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I can’t say I know anyone who doesn’t love and appreciate the moon, in any of its phases. There is something romantic, alluring, mysterious, and powerful about the moon, especially the full moon.

I am not an astrologer, and will not be making overtly complex astrological references, or really anything too deep. The night I’m posting this is a Full Moon and I thought hey, that will be a fun topic to explore and learn more about.
So here we are.

29-Day Moon Cycle

The cycle in which the moon travels is 29 days.
This is why it’s not on a set date every month, and sometimes they get all wonky(following our calendar) when the months are longer or shorter. It’s actually kind of fascinating just to see the fluctuation from 2021-2023.

Honestly this really just goes to show how screwy our calendar is.
Nevertheless, the basic cycles of the moon are:
New Moon: A time for beginnings. When the Earth is between the Sun and the Moon, hence you can’t see the moon.
Waxing Crescent Moon: A time for slowing down.
First Quarter Moon: A time for discernment. 
Waxing Gibbous Moon: A time to trust. 
Full Moon: A time to let go. When the Moon is in between the Earth and the Sun.
Waning Gibbous Moon: A time to receive.
Third Quarter Moon: A time to give back.
 Waning Crescent Moon: A time to connect.

How to Know the Zodiac of the Full Moon

As I’m writing this we are in the Sign of Sagittarius, and this Full Moon is in Gemini.
The New Moon is associated with the zodiac you are currently in, while the Full Moon is associated with the zodiac on the exact opposite side! This took me forever to catch on hah. Monthly zodiacs= Sun sign, Moon sign= Zodiac from 6 months ahead. This will come in handy later.

Folklore of the Full Moon

Yes, werewolves are what immediately come to mind when we think of the full moon. It had been a long time since I had looked into the origins of the werewolf stories began, and not to be surprised, Ancient Greece is where the transformation began.
According to the legend, Lycaon, the son of Pelasgus, angered the god Zeus when he served him a meal made from the remains of a sacrificed boy. As punishment, the enraged Zeus turned Lycaon and his sons into wolves.|
Many cultures have their own versions of the werewolf, the why, the how, and the overall moral behind the myth.

Selene was the Titan goddess of the moon. She was shown as a woman riding sidesaddle on a horse or driving a chariot drawn by a pair of winged steeds. She was the sister of Helios, the Greek sun god. Tribute was paid to her on the days of the full moon. Like most Greek goddesses, she had a number of different facets or identities. At one point she was worshiped as Phoebe, the huntress, and later was identified with Artemis.
The Roman counterpart was Luna, the daughter of Hyperion and Theia. More to come on her later.

Witchcraft is also associated with full moons, as many rituals take place with the lunar cycles. Maybe another day I will write about “witchcraft”, but not today.

The Greek philosopher Aristotle and Roman historian Pliny the Elder suggested that the brain was the “moistest” organ in the body and therefore the most susceptible to the potentially harmful influences of the moon, which triggers the tides. This is why we think that humans and animals tend to act a little strange during the full moon.

It is debated that the Moons gravitational pull has any effect on our bodies, but we are mostly water, so makes sense right?

Manifesting With the Full Moon

The Full Moon is a powerful time of manifestation, however, it is slightly different than New Moon manifesting. The Full Moon means that we have come full circle, we are shining brightly on all of our intentions and previous manifestations. This is a great time to do group manifestations/vision boards or just spend some time with some like-minded people.
Your affirmations and intentions during the Full Moon will want to be Gratitude centered! If you have been doing Moon Cycle rituals for a while, be sure to reflect back and show gratitude for the things you have manifested into your life! Gratitude is really how you stay in that high vibrational manifesting state.

This is also the time of the month to LET GO. To shed things that no longer serve you. Prepare yourself to start the beautiful cycle over again. Letting go of fear, attachment to outcomes, and control, are particularly important for creating room for what you desire to flow freely to you.

Remember how the Full Moon correlates with the zodiac sign 6 months in advance? Keep that in mind when you are setting intentions, either in the New Moon or Full Moon. Pay attention to when things manifest in relation to this magic of opposites.

Moon Cycles for Women

For a long time, a woman’s monthly cycle was called her Moon cycle. 29 days is no coincidence.
According to Miranda Grey, author of Red Moon—Understanding and Using the Creative, Sexual and Spiritual Gifts of the Menstrual Cycle, there are two traditional menstruation patterns. The first is the White Moon or menstruating with the new moon. The second is the Red Moon or menstruating with the full moon.  
It is known that you will actually switch your natural cycles depending on where you are at in your life. If you are not currently on a natural cycle due to toxins, stress, birth control, and disconnection from nature, it may take some time for your body to restore to its natural rhythm, but it always will if you allow it.

Fun fact: Deer and other herbivores in the wild tend to ovulate at the full moon, and in Australia’s Great Barrier Reef, the full moon is mating time for coral.

Let’s revisit the Roman goddess Luna. She is one in a triad of women, there were two other goddesses, Diana and Hecate. Luna was the goddess in heaven and of the full moon, Diana was the goddess on earth and of the half-moon, and Hecate was the goddess in the underworld and of the dark moon.
These goddesses represent the three stages of women. Diana, the maiden, Luna the mother, and Hecate the crone (post-menopausal). Another intricate and fascinating topic perhaps for a later day.

“Our great symbol for the Goddess is the moon, whose three aspects reflect the three stages in women’s lives and whose cycles of waxing and waning coincide with women’s menstrual cycles.” ― Carol P. Christ

5 Simple Full Moon Rituals

Full Moon Water– This is a simple one. All you need is a mason jar and water. You could use any jar or container, however, try to use glass versus plastic. I like to stick a clear quartz tumble in the bottom of my jar to help cleanse the water and amplify the magic. Set an intention, leave outside overnight, and presto, moon water. This can be placed in your sacred space or altar and sipped from, used to water plants that maybe aren’t doing as well, or make a room/intention spray with essential oils and any other way you find applicable. I use mine to make my monthly blend of Bach Flower remedies.
The intention here is that obviously the water is affected, charged up, enhanced by the moon, and more importantly your intention. One of the intentions I am playing with right now is “I am open to the things that trigger me, for they serve as a guide for where to shine my light. I am calling all parts of me into coherence.” The water then serves as a reminder or enhancer of that!

Charge Your Crystals– Round them up and put them under the moonlight! Setting your crystals outside will reset and recharge their energy, which can be very helpful to those especially those are absorbers of negative energy around the home. I like to do this every couple months, especially with the crystals I haven’t been using very much, or when it is a super special moon. Sometimes I’ll set them up on a crystal grid, sometimes just in a basket. No way to do it wrong here lovelies.

Mindful Movement and/or Meditation– Think of the full moon really as a special time to connect with yourself and align with the cycles of not only the Earth but of the Universe through the Moon. Maybe you have a steady meditation practice, or maybe this can be a once a month treat for you! There any many guided meditations online that are tailored specifically for the month’s specific full moon.
Make this a deep gratitude practice, maybe some visualization of things you are working to manifest, but also really important to just surrender, to let go, to trust the Universe is weaving your perfect web.
There are also Yoga practices that you can do that are relevant to the specific cycle of the moon. This is a new area for me, and I’ll certainly write more about it in the future.

Ritual/Self-Care Bath– This is a gorgeous way to honor your intention for the full moon while honoring the most important aspect, yourself! The more time you spend honoring your physical body, rather than critiquing it, the more blessed and abundant you will be. These are two of my favorite books on ritual baths: The Book of Sacred Baths: 52 Bathing Rituals to Revitalize Your Spirit is an incredible resource for ingredients, intentions, and dieties and <a href="http://<a href="http://affiliates.abebooks.com/c/58313/77798/2029?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.abebooks.com%2Fservlet%2FSearchResults%3Fan%3DDeborah%2520Hanekamp%26bi%3D0%26bx%3Doff%26ds%3D30%26servlet%3DImpactRadiusAffiliateLinkEntry%26sortby%3D17%26tn%3DRitual%2520Baths">Ritual BathsRitual Baths has absolutely gorgeous imagery!
You can go elaborate and luxurious, or you can keep it simple with what you have in the kitchen. What is important is the intention behind it, while preparing and soaking.

Howling at the moon–
“Howling at the moon is an analogy for describing clear and heart-centered communication established with yourself first and then extended to another. The howl is the spirit of the wolf unleashed in its divine expression. A reverence and celebration for life, even those most haunting aspects of the human psyche, our shadows.  The moon represents the energy of the night (full integration of self, our emotional sphere, and the shadows) and the reflection of the soul via the heart.”
-Excerpt from Permaculturewomen.com

I get chills reading this. Having the luxury of living out in the country, this is something I intend to incorporate into my Full Moon ritual. This practice helps to let go of stored up energy, to release it back in a way that honors the Moon. If you don’t live in the country, don’t let that stop you. Howl at the moon my friend, people may just think you’re a lunatic. 😉

Coming Full Circle

It is important to note that the influence of the full moon is not limited to the exact calendar date! You have the three days before and the three days after to bask in its energy, to complete a few rituals, to make this time special and intentional to you.
I have started doing three-day moon rituals, pulling tarot cards, journaling, intentions, yoga/meditation, ritual bath(not always), and other forms of self-care.
It is important to me, to spend some time learning about the current astrology and appreciating the cycles that are always around and within us.

Witch, werewolf, madman, or mother.
There is something about the full moon that draws us all in. We feel her pull. We long to see her swollen there among the stars.

“I’ve never seen a moon in the sky that, if it didn’t take my breath away, at least misplaced it for a moment.” ― Colin Farrell

Love and vibes,