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Look! The Moon is Dancing with the Sun
The Dynamic Moon Phases as Manifestations of Consciousness
To seek an understanding of ancient astronomy is to encounter deep wellsprings of religion,
life-energizing forces of sex and eroticism, and frequently, cosmic aspects of games and sports.
--David H. Kelly, Exploring Ancient Skies
How We Learned the Old Woman's Secrets
When Judy and I began seriously to follow and record our experiences of the Moon Cycles, we initially worked with the four phases only. While we were investigating the history and pre-history of the Moon cycles we realized how basic the four phases were, and that the ancients initially did not use eight phases either. The recorded recognition of the original four is linked to the late Paleolithic (30,000-10,000 BCE,) while the eight-fold set appeared after writing, numbers, time and astronomy were established. The roots of what we are now as humans are in the prehistoric past. Far back in the Paleolithic, our roots were being lived out within belief systems based on the fourfold structures of seasons, directions, and the Moon cycles, as the beginnings of Lunar calendars. This was exciting, because we came to feel truly connected to our ancestors all the way back to the Lascaux caves, where consciousness was already more sophisticated than we ever dreamed.
It was not until we were halfway through this record of our journey that we realized almost simultaneously, in a moment of serendipity, that we had found in the Lunar cycle the very archetype of evolving consciousness itself! The history of consciousness as we know it, stimulated by Moon energies, turned out to be a natural, universal structure of evolving consciousness. Instead of a linear story, it is a dynamic pattern simultaneously within every human being and the bowl of the sky--a major living archetype--that at every time in history has been at work stimulating new possibilities for evolution. We did not invent the system or spiritual path we were writing about--it seemed to be inventing us. In chapter 10 we discuss this structure in detail.
Why is the Number Four So Important?
Four is the basic pattern of the Moon cycles, and the symbolic meaning of manifestation in the three-D world. If you draw a circle with an equal-armed cross in it, you will have the pattern of every Moon cycle. We begin with the basic four phases with which we initially began writing the book. The second half of the book contains the eight phases in entirety. For a more complete visual picture see our fanciful version in Diagram 1 which shows all eight phases, with short labels for the meaning of each phase. We marked the basic four so they are easy to see. We will be calling them either the quarterly, or the dynamic four phases, while we call the other four transitional phases.
Our Paleolithic ancestors probably initially recognized only four phases because those are the most easily recognized shapes of the Earth's shadow on the Moon. It was much later when people divided the four into the eight. We only find the early records of the eight coded into other systems of thought and divination. They were probably so esoteric then that they were kept secret at the time, as often happens with esoteric ideas. The eight phases will be explored in detail in Chapters 11 and 13-21
This four-eight-phase cycle lasts 29-1/2 days, with about 7 days between each of the four phases, and about 3-1/2 days between each of eight phases. The 9th phase in the diagram is the eternal return to New Moon. This eternal return was the visual evidence that led early cultures to a worldwide belief in life beyond death. The ancient ones identified their lives with the Moon at their deepest levels. Because the Moon died and was reborn, so did they. We believe the Moon is the external archetype of the soul, so such identification with Moon's patterns may be the most significant understanding of the immense influence the Moon had on early cultures.
When you are ready, you can use the diagram in ways that will improve your choices, reduce your stress, and increase your consciousness. It is a conscious process which includes self-observation, combined with observation of the Moon's progress through her phases each month. As you work with the phases consciously, a strange and wonderful thing will be happening to you underneath--you will be bonding to Earth, Moon and Sun in a way most of us didn't as children. Joseph Chilton Pearce tells us in his book The Magical Child that at age seven we bond with the Earth, but we have in our many years seen less and less of this happening. Without that bonding, Earth cannot be saved.
With earliest man living in nature day and night, this process had been operating all along at the unconscious level, as they began making it conscious through ritual. The phases of the cycle are created by the dance of the Moon with the Sun. The shadows on the Moon are made by the Earth, but only humans can give the shadows meaning. This dance between She who never dies with He who made all things can sweep us up into its rhythms and give our lives resonance with the universe. Let's look at the meaning of the Sun and Moon in terms of their relationship to us.
The Sun represents one's consciousness as a purposeful intelligent individual with the ability to initiate action and make choices
and
The Moon represents one's reactions and responses to events outside and
inside the self as an emotional, caring individual.
Together, they also represent our spirit and soul as spirit-Being (Sun) and soul-Becoming (Moon). Our connection to the Sun and Moon can become more conscious as we resonate at deep levels to their energies and dance their dance with them. You can even learn to feel the energy changes of the phases. The excitement of discovering the sensation of energy flow and change in one's daily life within the cycle of the Moon to the Sun must be experienced to believe it, though science already knows it.
The Moon and Our DNA
Before we go further, we want to introduce a radical new concept, concerning the effects of this cycle. Science provides information about the electromagnetics of our Solar system which Science believes can affect all living beings. The information is not new, but until recently scientists primarily have applied it to the moon's phases. It validates what we have always believed about the concept of Sun, Moon and planets having some kind of effect on Earth and vice versa. The Moon path is a true spiritual path on its own, but we, like many others, delight in finding substantial “proofs” of that. We are surprised others have not put the information together. Here is how it works.
All planetary bodies emit electromagnetic frequencies, dependent upon their speed. As the Moon and planets orbit around the Sun their frequencies are measurable here on earth but are too far below the auditory range to be heard. If the individual planetary/Lunar frequencies are magnified about twenty times, they move into the auditory range. Our first scientific awareness of this fact was in learning that the increased frequencies are found to affect the acupuncture meridians. Tuning forks set to the enhanced frequencies are being used to experiment with the concept. Of course, if there is an effect from increasing a natural frequency, then there may also be effects from the natural ones as well, at less obvious levels. We and others are exploring this interesting possibility. One personal proof of the actual subtle human response is that some of us are able to recognize the times when the moon first enters a phase, and recognize its "feeling". Whole months go by when we have temporarily forgotten to check the phases and we will suddenly be aware of what phase we are in. Given that kind of experience, and the science background, what else have we found in connection with Moon phases?
We now know that something called the epigenetic shield around our DNA registers every personal and environmental stimulus to the body, emotions and sensory systems, and probably other systems outside conscious awareness. The planetary and Lunar frequencies are almost certain to affect us at the DNA level, just as a mother’s thoughts and feelings are known to affect the baby in utero, including its DNA, since all impressions are received by and sent from the shield directly to the DNA. New brain research at the Heart Math Institute lets us know just how incredibly sensitive our epigenetic shields are and how much more readily we can change than any of us thought until recently. And just imagine--DNA is made up of millions of groups of four proteins in different combinations! Four is basic to DNA and the basis of our individuality as human beings, even if we cannot yet "read" it completely.
All humans and living beings are affected by the Lunar phases, as are clams and crops. At least, we are all affected at the unconscious level. People who are not especially sensitive to changes in energies probably only register them unconsciously. This is why we believe the Moon phases have always had an effect on all living things on the planet. For early humans and/or humanoid beings, their process was probably an initially unconscious urging toward increased consciousness slowly over eons of time. At least by the early or mid- Neolithic--through visual information along with the subtle urgings of the Moon--the idea of ritual at New and Full Moons arose to increase the awareness. To us, it is an exciting promise that we can do it faster and more effectively if we know what we are doing. That is what the Ancients did, and as a result, writing, measurement of time, and mathematics appeared and developed far faster than historians feel they can account for it. We know from our own experience that our consciousness level has changed more rapidly than we can otherwise account for since we have been intentionally working with the patterns of the phases.
The Mechanics of How the Phases Operate
The four basic Moon phases, and the four annual Solar seasons, are the primary "fours" found in the earliest patterns recorded by man. They continue in subtle ways to provide the model and timing for our own manifestation in the Earth dimension. The Moon's phases taught early people how to count, write, and measure time, the most basic fundamentals underlying modern civilization. The exercise below captures the elements of the Lunar cycle as we have come to know them in modern times. Our desire is to return back into awareness of the subtle energies so that we can evolve at all levels.
If you draw a circle and put an equal-armed cross inside it, you can see the Moon's cycle as a circle divided into four equal segments--thus a circle with an equal-armed cross within it, a common symbol found world-wide in early drawings, representing elements both of the Lunar cycle and four Solar seasons. Referring to the ritual patterns behind the symbol (described in Chapter 6,) the shamanic cosmology within it originally evoked reverence toward our planet and its spiritual guardians. These elements were recognized as ultimately guiding or mirroring the path of the ancestors' daily life and their need to be in harmony with nature. As such they were also used as protective designs on objects or walls.
The cross's touch-points also create a square within the circle. The square models the dynamics of the four basic or critical Moon phases. The Moon's orbit, or any circle, always contains 360 degrees. Tracing with your finger around the circle counter-clockwise shows how the Moon moves through four segments of the circle to create the four phases--a square with 90 degrees on each side. This square demonstrates a 90-degree angle at each of its corners. As you can see, a right angle of 90 degrees is required to change direction at each one-quarter turn of 90 linear degrees on the circle. Need we remind the reader that the angles of any square are always 90 degrees, so when we draw the square from the intersecting points to each other we call the square's points on the circle of the Moon's orbit "the angles" of the square. We see this configuration every time we approach a city intersection.
Since the four phases all begin on the hard 90 degree angles of the symbolic 360 degree diagram, they express tension in moving from one phase to another, requiring effort or struggle, and those positions are therefore in astrology called "squares." When driving down the street, it takes more effort (energy) to make a right or left turn than to continue straight ahead or at a broader angle, because one literally has to stop the forward movement in order to turn at the right angle. Violating that traffic law is called a California Stop. Such angular movements stand out, move fast, push, frustrate, and can get us into trouble if we don't honor that right turn. If we are willing to work at our lives, squares are not problems but more like solving puzzles. Exercising brains or bodies increases their abilities.
At the beginning of any phase (except New), the Sun and Moon will each be in different signs of the Zodiac and positions on the circle. The Sun and Moon, at the four quarters, always are either 90 or 180 degrees apart, thus relaying that effort theme, each time in a different way. The two quarter-moons of 90 degree aspects, as we call these relationships, generate more pressured action than the Full Moon 180 degree double-90 aspect, called an opposition. This is where the Moon is exactly opposite the Sun at Full Moon. Rather than pressure to act, it tends either to pull us apart, so we can see both sides of an issue clearly, then make a decision between the two sides, or else see them in alignment, or in a larger context, leading to different revelations or enlightenment about our life at that moment. If you think a moment about this, you can see that these squares, called aspects, imply changing relationships, about which more will be said later.
The reader may want to be aware, as well, of the interrelationship of the Moon' and Sun's related timing. The Moon takes a little over 27 days to complete a full orbit around the Earth through the 12 signs. The Sun takes 29-1/2 days to transit (traverse) and complete the 30 degrees of one sign and enter the next. Meanwhile the Moon must finish the last 2-1/2 days by covering one more sign to catch up with the Sun. So the transiting Moon covers 13 signs in order to begin in sync with the Sun after exactly29 days and a few hours. The Sun's pattern is similar. In its annual journey around the Earth, through the twelve signs of the Zodiac, it encounters four turning points, called solstices and equinoxes. These turning points divide the year exactly into four seasons and we mark our calendars with the dates. The meanings of these seasonal markers will be discussed elsewhere, as an inter-weaving between them and the 13 Lunar cycles.
[We forgot to remind you that in the looking-glass world of Moon phases everything is WYSIWYG or what you see is what you get. In the SoLunar world the Sun orbits the Earth as does the Moon.]
We have now established that the Moon's observable dance with the Sun can be diagrammed as a circle with an equal-armed cross in it. For now, keep the thought that the four quadrants of the circle each equal 90 degrees while the circle represents the Moon's orbit, with Earth in the center of the circle. These 90 degree points represent the quarters of the Moon--the basic four-phase Moon path. At each 90 degree point, Sun and Moon are in exact 90- or 180-degree relationship with each other, creating powerful spiritual energies conducive to human action. These four positions are simply called squares.
Western metaphysical teachings and Greek philosophy tell us that the square and cube represent manifestation in our 3-D world. This means that we produce in that context a manifestation of what our life is about at that moment. That energy spurs us on, either subliminally or consciously. If we are aware of this as a fact, even if we do not consciously feel it, we are in a position to make conscious decisions that help us manifest our lives more effectively. There is also the possibility that many will resist the energy behind negatively perceived effects, which converts those energies into conflict.
Of human interest to the modern reader is a discovery by researcher Rhoda Kellogg (Analyzing Children's Art. (See Bibliography) that the image of the cross in the circle is one of the most common figures drawn spontaneously by young children (about 3-4 years old) in cultures all over the world. She also found it in abundance in early and later cave art, which paleontologists associate with rituals held at annual Solar and Lunar cycles. Its deeper relevance to the present subject is a mystery, but it does indicate the archetypal nature of the figure, which we know often represented aspects of ritual done in later times at New and Full Moons, as well as seasonal celebrations. One possibility is that an earlier recognition of the "fours" in nature had become so embedded in the human physical experience from the beginning that it had always been in the human DNA as an archetype. Some controversial pre-historic researchers believe that young children reflect the evolutionary level of so-called primitive peoples and therefore draw symbols common to them.
Here is a good place to add that we believe with many physicists, that everything and everyone in our universe affects everything else. We know the Moon contacts every body in the Solar system through these same angular type aspects, as does the Sun, and leaves its messages in all the planets’ mailboxes. We look at our participation as amplifying whatever Moon puts out to Earth.
What, How, Where, Why?
These are four basic questions that might occur to a contemporary person watching the Moon for a month, and hopefully give a glimpse of the legacy early shamanism left us. We apologize to the reader who knows about the phases, if we repeat ourselves, here and throughout the book, but we have found that understanding the phases is not always easy for newcomers. Also the geometrics of the phases, as in the paragraphs above, contain symbolisms that must be incorporated into our understanding of the phases. So we want to show how these four phases can be distinguished in the context of our own familiar dimension. They are already familiar to anyone who has ever fished or had a fisherman in the family, and to farmers all over the world. They are also familiar to women everywhere who get their hair cut according to the phase of the Moon. However, to those people, the reality and familiarity has not gone beyond the tides and the growth supporting moments of hair-cutting and planting seasons.
Now for some more geometry. The cycle or “circle” of four basic Moon phases all activate on the angles of that circle where the arms of the cross intersect the circle. With the circle representing the Moon's monthly orbit of Earth, the 90 degree points become the manifestation points. Connecting these points to each other, creates the square inside the circle. The points where they touch the circle's circumference are visual metaphors for turning points as visual angles in the month--New, First Quarter, Full, Last Quarter. In terms of action, the four points are critical to the creation or co-creation of our lives. Each indicates the critical, turning-point energy of one of the four components of manifestation. These are the basic mundane cyclic energies in physical reality. The type of action at each point is unique, and each one offers us a symbolic right-turn when the Moon crosses a point. The Moon does not cause us to take these actions--its orbital interaction with Earth's orbit in relation to the Sun produces measurable energies that encourage us to take the actions. The kinds of actions are our choice.
1. Energy-initiating (New Moon)
2. Energy-forming (First Quarter)
3. Energy-relating (Full Moon)
4. Energy-evaluating. (Last Quarter)
The four points or energies are a primary formula for the process of unfoldment or manifestation in our physical world. These points also ask for us the four basic questions about our specific and personal actions in a cycle, beginning at New Moon. We will show you how to find them, on the centerfold dial, in your own life, along with new and different meanings each month. Later on, you will see how the meanings of these phase-points parallel the meanings of the four stages of ritual and other fours we mention later in this book. The four questions are
1. Initiating--WHAT?--New Moon (day one of the cycle)
2. Forming--HOW?--1st Quarter Moon (day seven)
3. Relating--WHERETO?--Full Moon (day fourteen)
4. Evaluating--WHY?--3rd Quarter Moon (day twenty-one)
Whoever you are, you are "in these phases in your own life." From the moment the Moon crosses the initial point of any phase, you are "in it" which means it is now a subjective experience which wants to be objectively defined. Unconsciously, at these points you start actively answering the questions by living them. If you looked at the Moon or checked the weather pages of newspaper or website, and asked yourself the first question a day or two after the New Moon, you might have caught a glimpse of the project you will be working with for the Lunar month.
With a few simple tools, like the dial in the centerfold of this book, you can also know ahead of time the four different areas of your life that will be receiving the energies of all the above four kinds of activity. However, for that you also need to know what Zodiac signs the Sun and Moon will be in, at the beginning of each phase. All of that and much more you will find in the tools in chapters 7-10. Those chapters contain all the techniques you will need to do an in-depth, detailed reading for yourself for a month, and get different information for all the months of your life. You can start to use those chapters now, if you like, but don’t go away--you might miss something very interesting between here and there. The chapters in between contain depths of knowledge and understanding of the Moon phases not to be found anywhere else in print. Chapters between here and there also contain important information you need to understand yourself, your consciousness, and your relationship to humanity--information intimately involved in active work with the Moon cycles Here are some topics you can expect to find in chapters 2-6
What consciousness is and how it evolves
The functions of the conscious mind
The personal unconscious and the collective unconscious
The archetypes, what they are and how they affect you.
How all the above create a foundation for self-understanding, and for personal and planetary
evolution
Answering the Questions without the Tools
We wrote this chapter purposely in such a way that anyone reading this stand-alone chapter could immediately begin working with the monthly Lunar energies. So even if you do not have this book, you can intentionally be putting yourself in harmony with the energies of each of the four phases.
Without further chapters, we can recognize the four energies at work in our lives just by knowing when they begin a new cycle, and counting the days. We know only what is implied by the new impulse, but it is like a seed that has suddenly germinated and wants to grow. Our first thought is What is beginning? At that point the creation is begun, and the outcome is set, but still as a divination so to speak. Half-way through this phase (3-1/2 days), the initial intent begins to take form.
At day seven our next question is How can I complete this impulse? In the coming seven days of this phase, we must figure out how, and use our technique for bringing about the completion. In linear time this is the How of it that develops during the First Quarter Moon and with which we are meant to struggle and use our own creativity as part of our growth. This is meant to be a joyful struggle, like climbing a mountain, or painting a picture, but not everything you are used to doing seems to work. This is the most important time in the cycle to take individual action, if we are to reach the fulfillment of our seed-intent. It must come at least in part from our own creative being, and not automatically from past patterns we have been taught.
At day fourteen, we arrive at the light of the Full Moon, and we can see from outside ourselves what we have created. This is the answer to Whereto is the New Moon impulse leading? The full light on the Moon symbolizes insight or illumination of perspective concerning the fulfillment of the New Moon's intent. We need to be clear that whatever we have created can be mental, emotional or spiritual, as well as physical.
At day twenty-one, the 3rd Quarter, we want to explore What was the value of this cycle? Value is evaluation of its meaning, the price I paid, why I needed to experience this, and what I learned from it? Should we call it cosmic de-briefing?
Therefore, without any tools we can view our month phase by phase, just by watching the newspaper weather pages or the sky, and consciously living these four steps of changing energies.
Seeing the Phases in the Sky
The visual images you see in Diagram 1 are symbols of what is happening in the sky. Note the waxing moon has the light on its right side; it is proactive, moving out instinctually, intuitively or impulsively, in a new direction toward fulfillment or completion. The waning Moon has the light on its left side its energy is increasingly inward—moving toward creating meaning of the month’s events, integrating the experiences, dispersing the wisdom to others. Above all, it is transforming external light into internal light--the product of transformation.
New Moon is all dark--creative silence. For some that could be creative chaos for three days. The
energy is there, but it is not yet organized around a focus.
First Quarter is half light, half dark--new ways versus old ways.
Full Moon is all light--culmination of manifestation, conscious enlightenment, personal growth.
Last Quarter Moon, half light, half dark--new values versus old values, and finally letting go of something old.
Later, there will be tools that describe every month in detail, either as you live it or ahead of time for the curious. In the chapters on technique you will learn about imagery and descriptive words that you can apply to your own life--words of divination from ancient sources of collective wisdom; information about the areas of your life that are involved; and information about the most fruitful ways to handle the issues, situations, and emotions involved.
For now, hold that thought and begin looking at the Moon outside to see the increasing light on her face from New to Full Moon, and the decreasing light from Full Moon to New Moon. Actually looking at the Moon for a few moments may increase your sense of connection. Ask yourself the questions and to some extent you can answer them yourself as you manifest the answers. It does take some practice, and not all months are as clearly read as some.
1. New Moon WHAT is my seed-intent primarily about?
2. First Quarter Moon HOW can I best fulfill it? (manifest it)
3. Full Moon WHERE is it leading? (to what goal or fulfillment?)
4. Last Quarter Moon WHY was it of value? Why did I do it? What did I learn from
that experience and how is it valuable to me?
Remember that ultimately our own lives give us the answers, anyway. For example, a teacher says after Full Moon, "I had this problem with a student. Then at the Full Moon, the answer just came to me and I tried it and it worked!" Since we do live the pattern in its natural order, asking each successive question on the first day of each phase during a signs month helps us to be more conscious of our actions; and knowing the unique basic outline of a given month ahead of time, helps us to unfold our intentions more consciously and effectively. At this point, without further tools, you are not intentionally working with the phase-energies, but you are becoming more conscious of what you are doing in relation to them.
We offer the ancestors' wisdom that these phases mark appropriate times to plan details of our personal and group lives and rituals. They are what the ancients would call propitious times to explore divination about specific phases as a way of connecting heaven and earth. We can all be shamans, now, if we are willing to be. We need, even more at this time in history, to be, like the shamans, connectors between the Divine and the human. "If not I, who? If not now, when?"
This potential can manifest regardless of your preference of personal spirituality. It does not replace your choice of religion or its repudiation, or your own free will. It merely times your experiences of being part of a purposeful universe, and helps to define the nature of the situation at the right time. The Moon cycle is your tiny wrist watch fractal of the cosmic cycles of the universe.
How to Use the Spirit/Soul/Personality Diagram
Meanwhile, what are the parts of ourselves doing during the four phases? How do our parts--ego-personality (conscious self), soul (Moon), spirit (Sun)--interrelate at each phase? Diagram 2 gives the visual image of a Western Metaphysical viewpoint. It shows the dynamics of the three elements of the Moon path--Moon (soul), Sun (spirit), and Earth/ego (Personality.) This diagram does not correlate literally with an astrology chart, and is meant to be viewed as a philosophical statement and experienced first hand. Personality is actually the conscious self as a personal aspect of the Moon, while Soul is a more subtle part of the Moon all of which will be explored later. We leave it to the reader to contemplate diagram 2. If it resonates, use it, but it is not necessary to the understanding of the phases. We personally find that it helps us to understand why we feel somewhat distant from our inner selves at New Moon, and more emotional than usual at Full Moon. The parts of ourselves, in Diagram 2, represented by the Sun (spirit), Moon (soul), and Personality, all of which play several roles in our make-up, will be discussed in detail later. While Sun and Moon refer to spirit and soul. Personality refers to how we function, and how people see us, as described by our behaviors, emotional expressions, and communications. It is the “me” that experiences the movements of spirit and soul. The diagram shows how these parts operate on the esoteric or spiritual level, moving from New to Full Moon, with the First and Last Quarters indicated where the diagonals intersect in between New and Full. The paths of these three parts are marked by the letters S for soul (Moon), P for personality, and * for spirit (Sun). New Moon is designated by N; Full Moon is designated by F. As shown by the signs written vertically below, the Moon cycles through about a sign a month, but every so often it slips behind and has two New or Full Moons in a month. The activity described by this diagram is primarily outside of normal conscious awareness. The reason we like the diagram so much is that conscious intention to accept that the activity is happening, tends to help us over time to actually become aware of the more subtle energies. This ability, too, is part of the goal of evolution.
The four phase-points imply strong changes in the type of energies needed and experienced. Without realizing it, we gather or focus our energies at the end of each phase, and release them at the beginning of the next, though this energy change is most noticeable at the end of the 3rd Quarter and the beginning of the New. The nature of the phases is clearly defined here, but real life is seldom clearly defined--our personal experiences of the phases are often subtle versions of the foregoing. At other times we may only see their negative energies and respond with our own negatives, creating unnecessary resistance and struggle. We also don’t make major decisions every month, or create on a monthly schedule. Neither does a Moon cycle always begin at the beginning of a sign. A Lunar month is a continuation of all our previous ones, on different levels, sometimes beginning in the same sign as the last, which this diagram clarifies if questions arise. You can learn to see in this structure the subtleness of life, and through that, the importance of the small. You can see the Moon's phases moving through all the areas of your life in about a year's time, highlighting one area after another.
For now, consider how much information these four phases offer you, without going any further. Unless you live in a coastal area, you are likely to see the Moon often in the night sky, and sometimes in the day. However, nearly every daily newspaper lists the quarters of the Moon along with sunset and sunrise, tides and weather. At the end of chapter 2, we list several books and other items that you will need to fully follow the phases. One of them is an appointment book that lists the Moon phases for the year. If you are planning on doing the "big gulp" reading of this book, get them now before you tackle Chapters 8-12.
Below we offer an example of how one cycle might work out. You may be able to apply the principles you see in it to whatever your own cycle might be about.
An Example of One Cycle
Four to five days after the last quarter Moon, go out for several nights, before dawn, and look up; and when you have noticed the waning moon has disappeared from the sky, you will know that within 24 to 36 hours the Moon will meet the rising Sun, lost in its light. Six hours after New Moon, the tiniest fingernail sliver will appear, called first light. It indicates that you can begin to get a sense about the something that is new. For example let's say you realized in the previous cycle that you needed to do a complete housecleaning because you are a “terrible housekeeper”. That need may show up at the New Moon. Keep watching, and during the week from New to 1st Quarter, that New Moon intent will have taken form as you impulsively manifest that urge.
At First Quarter (half light, half dark) be prepared to observe what social, parental, or other barriers suddenly arise to confront or delay your activity--dentist appointments, casual company, long telephone calls, a broken washer, a flood… Don't worry. You are supposed to struggle at this point, in order to have strong spiritual muscles at the Full Moon. Get rid of any false beliefs, your own, or others', that frustrate your plans. Move ahead with all speed and direction. You might discover that your mother's methods don’t work for you and you have some better ideas.
At Full Moon consider how your activity, now well-defined and partially or fully completed can be of value to others. Even if your New Moon intent was only to do spring cleaning, what is a clean house in nice order for if not to share it with company? You decide to invite company for dinner and realize that you have been missing the social contacts because you felt ashamed of your house--the Full Moon “enlightenment”.
Last Quarter Moon, again half light, half dark, is very complex. A number of scenarios could present themselves. Take one example only, here, that of the thorough house cleaning. Having enjoyed fulfilling feedback on your lovely house and dinner, you could conclude that your lifelong habit of leaving the dirt to pile up for 6 months at a time is not really how you want to live. You realize that you only do that because your mother did the same. You intentionally let go of that habit and that value and go through your house lightly once more, picking up and straightening to practice your new way of keeping house, promising yourself you will continue to keep it in good order. Then you turn away from this month’s activity toward what may be coming next. The key to this stage of the month is to mentally make an offering of your month's experience, as part of your foundation as a social being. Perhaps in this example, you invite a group to meet regularly in your house. Follow that by considering your present needs that have arisen out of the month’s activity, and the desire to attract some answers to them in the next new phase. In some sense you are changing—consider what that might mean. You may have to deal with some unfamiliar situations. Some examples of needs or as yet unsolved problems that could have arisen out of this month’s activities in relation to the group are (a) someone you don’t get along with will be coming to the group, (b) you have dogs who bark incessantly when you have company (c). Several hours a week of preparation are needed for the host/hostess to prepare for this group. Where will you find that extra time? You will not need to look far at any Last Quarter Moon for future needs.
You can see and know this in your life every month without reading further in this book, without buying anything, without knowing the first thing about astrology. The Moon is out there, you are busy living your life, and you can simply step outside, check the Moon's light-dark balance, and ask yourself, "Am I moving in harmony with the energies I see in the sky?" If you spend a few minutes four times a month observing how your life just naturally flows into these four foci of energies you are in the flow and doing what you are supposed to be doing.
We invite you, if you drive, to watch the different kinds of behaviors you see on the road throughout the four phases. They say laughter is healing--this part of your practice is healing for sure. Later as we put the Zodiac signs together with the phases, the commuter behaviors become even more interesting! Health food stores also provide great information about phases and signs, if you ask questions about how their customers behave during any given phase. We are meant to find satisfaction and joy in our lives and to learn to play with our experiences. You may even laugh at yourself. Life is so serious sometimes that we don’t accept the lighter side, but playing with the phases helps us to stand outside ourselves and realize "it’s not always about me."
Our Relationship to Ourselves
The ritual of honoring the faces of the Moon is my terminology for the re-visioned ancient Moon ritual, and its modern counterpart (See Chapter 7). We see the Moon’s cycle as a cosmic ritual played out in the sky. It no longer requires mirroring with a specific shamanic practice. The Ancients used many different rituals, but the key to all of them was their ritual created Sacred space and while they were in that space there was no-time; they were just Being, and open to the god’s energy. We can create our own sacred space through intent and/or ritual in ways familiar to our own lives. It can be simply a practice of intentionally paying attention to the Moon energies. This becomes the ritual for us when we stop what we are doing in ordinary time, and notice where the Moon is and the pattern of shadow on its face. We can intentionally tune in to the energies by locating the moon's phase in the sky, reminding ourselves of its energies, then checking to see if we are aligned with the phase energies.
As we connect with the Moon phases in this or other ways, "time stops." We are Being in the moment aligning with the energies, as intent, or a meditation. These moments offer the opening to an alternate reality or interstice, where changes can occur, and intent is the most important basis for that. Doing this small intention frequently helps us maintain ourselves in the openness of non-linear time and space more of the time. This is the primary relationship--our relationship to the universe, the Divine, and ourselves--in a world where relationship is a major issue at this time. But even more important, because the primary relationship is between Sun-spirit and Moon-soul and by extension Earth itself. We think there are frequencies reaching us from the Moon and Sun, as we discussed above. Focusing on Sun and Moon might enhance our own efforts.
We have a view of the universe as a web by which every body out there is connected and through which frequencies run free. Some writers, such as Lynne Taggart, are now saying that when we do healing work or pray for a healing, we connect to an energy focus in the universe to which we have a resonant connection. If we could understand how to use that connection we could call forth whatever we need. The attitude and energy of prayer is one way, and there are others, such as the Moon path. The Sun-Moon connection is our first outpost on the way out to the infinity in the sky. Staying connected keeps us open to whatever gifts the stars may send to us, so look up and reach for the endless potential in the black sky. Let go of all the old fears of night, the unconscious, the unknown, eclipses, dark of the Moon--all are sources of renewal.
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