Tuesday is not only formidable for the obvious tax deadline, but for a far more cosmic reason too.
The nighttime sky will reveal the "blood moon" or orange "pink full moon" on April 15. This visual phenomenon can be attributed to the beginning of a series of eclipses, each six months apart that will go on through 2015.
For those of you who don’t follow or buy into this universal "hocus-pocus" like I do, let me please begin to make you aware of what I think is the real power of the moons to exert changes on your energy. (Stars and Moons! Unicorns and Fairies! I sure did just go there. Stop reading now if you don’t want to know why you feel wonky around the full and new moon, or why perhaps you or people around you are feeling anywhere on the spectrum of "out of sorts" to "charged up" right now.)
For those who require a little more of an expert perspective on this impending astrological happening, this information (well, the "Blood Moon" eclipse and moon cycle info, that is) is available to you on NASA.gov. If that’s not credible enough for you, you can go back to reading your horoscope and doing the word games in the "Good Morning" section now.
I first became aware of the energetic effect of the full and new moons on the physical human body and for those more sensitive – on the emotions, through my practice of Ashtanga Yoga. This style of yoga prescribes rest days on both full and new moons due to the energetic extremes the moon’s gravitational pull exerts on the body.
Since the human body is comprised of up to 70 percent water and water is affected by the moon’s relative position to the sun, it is only natural that we should "feel" something when the two most visible objects in the sky, which both exert gravitational pull, change positions.
During full moon, most people tend to generally feel more energetic due to the upward and expansive force occurring. When the new moon is the sky, the feeling is typically the opposite – calmer and more grounded in cohesiveness with the downward and contracting energy produced. (Although there are some people who feel the opposing energy to the moon’s force during these times.)
Yogis aren’t the only ones who have noted this phenomenon. Farmers have paid attention to the "energy" of the moons since the beginning of time. The Farmer’s Almanac advises planting seeds during new moons because of the "downward/grounded" energy that encourages rooting, while transplanting is encouraged during full moons for the reverse reasoning.
I was recently at a party where I had the privilege of chatting with a woman from a long lineage of Native American farmers. We got to discussing gardening and she explained to me something that solidified the wonder that yoga had taught me years ago.
She told me, "If you dig a hole on the full moon and try to fill the hole back up with the very same dirt you moved, you will have too much earth leftover (expansive.) On the new moon, you can dig the same hole and try to fill it back up with the very same earth – and you will not have enough (contracting)."
The four upcoming Blood Moons are especially notable because they will all be visible throughout most of the United States. Be sure to jot down the dates of the next three: October 8, 2014, April 4, 2015 and September 28, 2015. The last time this "tetrad" happened (four successive Blood Moons followed by six full moons each) was 2003-04.
I will let you research the historical religious implications of this astronomy on your own, but there is certainly chatter since these upcoming Blood Moons each align with significant religious events – Passover and The Feast of the Tabernacle.
I’m curious, regardless of the Blood Moon extravaganza we are about to witness, do you feel the impact of the moons personally? I know I can feel them without even knowing what day the new or full moon will ascend in the sky.
I experience extreme surges of creativity, productivity and motivation around the full moons and more mellow, calmness around the new. I can’t help but also find coincidence in the wacky weather we will experience over the next few days during this eclipse.
I use these fluxes as an indicator to be more aware, alert and conscious of my own actions during these times. I remind myself to slow down and be attentive of others during these periods as well, as even those ignorant of the moon cycle can be unknowingly influenced by it. (An example is the rise in accidents and crime around full moons …)
Whether you believe in the power surrounding the moon cycle or not, just be sure to take a moment to relish the splendor of the Blood Moon on the rise.
Lindsay Garric is a Milwaukee native who calls her favorite city home base for as long as her lifestyle will allow her. A hybrid of a makeup artist, esthetician, personal trainer and entrepreneur all rolled into a tattooed, dolled-up package, she has fantasies of being a big, bad rock star who lives in a house with a porch and a white picket fence, complete with small farm animals in a version of Milwaukee that has a tropical climate.
A mishmash of contradictions, colliding polar opposites and a dash of camp, her passion is for all pretty things and the products that go with it. From makeup to workouts, food to fashion, Lindsay has a polished finger on the pulse of beauty, fashion, fitness and nutrition trends and is super duper excited to share that and other randomness from her crazy, sexy, gypsy life with the readers of OnMilwaukee.com.
