Spring Moon Magic
SPRING
On March 20th in the Northern Hemisphere, the sacred wheel of the seasons turns towards a very special day of the year, when the light and the darkness are in perfect alignment, and we prepare to shed our wintery stillness to celebrate the first stirrings of the earth, the beginning of spring, and the time when all of life begins to emerge anew.
Long ago, for pagan worshippers of the earth as Mother, the moon as Goddess, and the sun as God, this equinox was called Ostara, and was a time to acknowledge the awakening of the sleeping land, welcome the growing light of day as the wheel of the year turned towards spring. It was considered a time of ‘greening’, when all living things began to awaken, push up from the darkness of the dirt and grow.
Equinox is a time of equilibrium, balance, beginnings and fresh starts. Just as we shed our heavy winter clothing at this time, so too, do we shed whatever is heavy in our lives, our minds and our hearts. At this time, we awaken.
SPRING PRAYER OF AWAKENING
O Maiden, Mother, Crone;
from deep within my being,
I awaken to this season, I am ever seeking,
Your body, soul and bone.
O Maiden, Mother, Crone;
Goddess' body, soul and bone.
From deep within the earth, and far below the sea,
all of life is stirring, growing and coming to be.
O Maiden, Mother, Crone;
Earth’s body, soul and bone.
First sliver of light, the moon becomes anew,
all that was hidden, is now coming into view.
O Maiden, Mother, Crone.
You are always with me,
and I am yours completely,
my body, soul and bone.
MOON
Please note that modern day calendars do not recognize the dark moon, and so you will see all the information that I am sharing with you below on other sites and calendars listed as the ‘new’ moon, but within magical practice, the dark moon is a phase in and of itself, and the new moon does not occur until the very first sliver of light appears in the night sky.
On March 19th at 11:13 a.m. EST, the waning moon will be in what is called perigee, which is when the moon is at the closest to the Earth as it orbits, a phenomenon that most greatly influences the Earth's magnetic field, and which causes higher tides and magically speaking is a time of great lunar power.
On March 21st from 11:57 a.m. EST until 12:01 EST the waning moon is void of course. The moon moves into a new zodiacal sign every two and a half days. After leaving one sign and just before the arriving at the next sign the moon is considered ‘void of course’ (V/C).
On March 21st at 12:01 EST the waning moon leaves V/C, and arrives at 0° Aries 49' and remains there until on 6:41 p.m. EST on March 23rd, when she then enters Taurus.
Also on March 21st at 12:01 EST, the waning moon enters the first Lunar Mansion, called Al Sharatain. At this time the moon is in conjunction (alignment) with this mansion's most sacred fixed stars, Sharatan and Mesarttim which are called ‘The Ram’s Horns', as they are located on the left horn of the constellation Aries.
On March 21st at 1:23 p.m. EST the Aries moon officially enters the dark moon phase.
This month's dark moon is within just over 24 hours of the Spring Equinox, which occurs on March 20th at 5:24 p.m. EST. In addition to the moon's close connection to the Spring Equinox this year, Venus appears in the North Node.
Also on March 21st at 1:23 p.m. EST the moon is in cazimi, or 'in the heart of sun'. A planet, or the moon is considered in the heart of the sun whenever it is within 17 minutes of the arc of the center of the sun, and it is only the dark moons that will on occasion be in cazimi. Remember: modern calendars do not recognize the dark moon, and so you will see cazimi moons called the new moon.
On March 21st at 2:17 a.m. EST, the moon completes its 30th day of the lunar cycle - which is a very special and auspicious time, as the moon is rarely in a 30th day within a month, and on this day the moon also begins its 1st day at 1:23 p.m. EST.
MAGIC
Perigee
For your perigee moon magic, plan to meditate or gaze upon the moon at dawn, and to practice a ritual for this event from dawn to midday. Morning moon rituals are aligned with and infused with the moon's new, fresh energy and offer blessings for rituals having to do with beginnings of relationships, projects, jobs and other endeavors, as well as intensify the success of health and wellness. If the moon is still in the sky while the sun is rising, this is a special blessing.
Void of Course
While in V/C the Moon is not in association with the other planets—she is considered ‘private’, and on her own. As would be expected when one moves from one house to another, and this can be a very chaotic, stressful and disorganized time. While this void of course period is very brief, during this time it is best to seek your own counsel, clear your mind and your heart, surrender to relaxation, be grateful and go into prayer or meditation. This is not a time to sign contracts, begin projects or be in action of any kind.
Astrological
During the Spring Equinox, Venus appears in the North Node making way for an extraordinarily powerful portal for setting intentions, wishes and desires.
When the moon travels through the zodiac sign of Aries, she is aligned with their qualities of fire, which has to do with creativity, sexuality and passion. Fire is both creative and destructive, so when you use this time for creative expression be aware that you may ‘burn’ through projects and ideas quite quickly. But worry not, more are on the way. This is also a good time to explore your sexuality and passion; however, you may experience abrupt endings of relationships—especially those with predominantly physical connections, as this moon inspires you to seek much deeper connections.
Aries moons teach us to transform any restless, intense energy that agitates the self—and others, into constructiveness, rather destructiveness.
Practice fire moon rituals for sex, passion, creativity, and letting go of superficial relationships or attracting deeper relationships during this time. With its dual essences of creativity and destructivity, fire moons help you to create from a place a power and passion, and also help you to burn your project to the ground if need be. Fire moons amplify impulsivity and a sense of urgency, so remember not to act on the impulses too quickly, and to take time before scrapping your projects. Save all files and notes, for once the fire of this moon cools, you may realize that you have acted in haste.
When the moon is in a fire sign, incorporate the metals brass, gold and steel, the crystals amber, carnelian, citrine, fire agate, fire opal, garnet, red calcite, red jasper, rubellite (red tourmaline), ruby, sard, sardonyx, and sunstone, along with candles, fire, and ashes in your lunar rituals to represent and call upon the element of fire.
When the moon is in Aries, work with these plants for tea, incense and sachets; basil, nettle, wormwood, cayenne and marjoram.
While the moon's core energy is considered to be feminine, yin and receptive, when it is in the fire sign of Aries, these qualities are quieted by the masculine nature of this sign.
Lunar Mansion
While the 1st Lunar Mansion's planetary energies of Mars and Saturn are considered unfavorable for most things, it does offer an infusion of intense, fiery, initiatory energy, helping you to break through the most difficult of circumstances.
Dark Moon
Dark moons are a time for visioning, meditation, prayer and going within. It is a time for preparing for the new moon when you will begin, or start new things. The dark moon is an excellent time to be visioning your wishes, and your desires, and preparing for initiating, activating, and setting your intentions on the new moon. As the dark moon occurs on a Tuesday, its energy is influenced by Mars (the ruling planet of Aries) and is a good day for rituals of action, goal setting, and success.
Cazimi
The moon in cazimi indicates a very potent and powerful time of strength, power, luck, opportunity, fortune and blessings, as the planet that is in cazimi has moved into ‘the heart of the sun’, where it is infused with great solar power. During a cazimi moon, all of your rituals, visioning, meditations, prayers, and magic are intensely amplified, and so this is a very special, and very powerful lunar event. You can work with the Cazimi energies from 30 minutes prior until 30 minutes after they occur.
Days of The Moon
The 30th day of the moon is intensely supportive of successful, smooth completions, and the 1st day is very favorable for working with beginnings, and fresh starts.
Seasonal
Spring is an alchemical time of emergence, coming forth, becoming, and being born; this is a time of greening for the earth, as she is coming alive, awakening; shaking off all remnants of the sleepy winter, and bursting forth with new life, promise, and potential...the world is in a state of becoming. Even the light coming through the newly greened boughs of trees is a bit more golden, more shimmery and more magical, as if it were shivering in anticipation of something that is just about to happen.
An elemental time of air, cool breezes flow, and seeds fly on the wind to their destination. Air is the intellect, movement, flow, and change, and March’s Moons are best for rituals of business, success, study, and a time for awakening to the increasing light of Spring.
May this season bring you blessings & joy!
© 2023 Renée Starr
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