January
Wolf Moon - The moon in deepest of Winter. In earlier times a time when the wolf came close to the villages to seek food.
Celtic - Alder - Masculine Moon of Completeness Exorcism; Prosperity; Banishing; Healing
Ritual - January is the time to conserve energy by working on personal problems that involve no one else. It is also a time for protection rites and reversing spells. During this month the energy flow is sluggish and below the surface.
February
Storm Moon - The storms come in silence. They blanket the world in coldness.
Celtic - Willow - Feminine The Witches' Moon; Moon of Balance Romantic Love; Healing; Protection; Fertility; Magick for Women
Ritual - February is the time for loving the self, accepting responsibility for past errors, forgiving yourself, and making future plans. At this time the energy flow is working toward the surface; good for purification, growth, and healing.
March
Chaste Moon - Like Diana, all of Nature at this moment is pure potential waiting fo be fulfilled.
Celtic - Ash Feminine Moon of Waters Prosperity; Protection; Healing
Ritual - March is the time for new beginnings, breaking illusions, and seeing the truth in your life however much it may hurt. The energy flow breaks into the open, a good time for growing, prospering, and exploring. Light and Dark are in balance now.
April
Hare Moon - Rabbits leap and play carefree in their mating and joyful in their games.
Celtic - Hawthorn Masculine Moon of Restraint; Moonof Hindrance; Summer Moon Fertility; Peace; Prosperity; Binding
Ritual - April is the time for working on your temper, emotional flare-ups, and selfishness. The energy is flowing into creating and producing; a good time for change, self-confidence issues, taking advantage of opportunities, and realizing self-reliance.
May
Dyad Moon - Sacred Marriage of the God and Goddess. When all meet their opposites in perfect balance and in perfect harmony. Let there be beauty strength, power and compassion, honor and humility, mirth and reverence, within you"
Celtic - Oak Masculine Moon of Strength; Moon of Security; Bear Moon All positive purposes; Magick for Men; Fidelity
Ritual - May is the time for strengthening the connections with supernatural protectors and beings around you. The energy is in full flow making this a good time for intuition, propagating, and connecting with faeries and nature spirits.
June
Mead Moon - After the bees have gathered their pollen and nectar the hives are filled with honey that is waiting to be gathered.
Celtic - Holly Feminine Moon of Encirclement; Moon of Polarity Protection; Prophecy; Magick for Animals; Sex Magick
Ritual - June is the time for decision making, taking responsibility for present happenings, working on personal inconsistencies, and for strengthening and rewarding yourself for your positive traits. The energy is in full, but restive, flow, the Earth tides are turning making this a good time for protection, strengthening, and prevention spells.
July
Wort Moon - gathering of herbs, the word wort is old Anglo Saxon for "herb".
Celtic - Hazel Feminine Moon of the Wise; Crone Moon Manifestiation; Spirit Contact; Protection; Fertility
Ritual - July is the time for dream-work, divination, and meditation on spiritual goals and plans. The energy is slower and more relaxed, proper for success and prosperity spells. This month is the time to start preparing for the colder and darker months ahead.
August
Barley Moon - A time to contemplate the eternalness of life. The grain in the bread we eat are descended from the first grain ever gathered.
Celtic - Vine Androgynous Moon of Celebration (Property dependent on the type of vine) Blackberry - Prosperity; Protection; Sacred to Brid Blueberry - Spirituality; Dream Magick, Grape - Fertility; Inspiration; Prosperity; Binding, Thistle - Courage; Protection; Strength
Ritual - August is the time for harvesting, gathering, and appreciating. The energy flow is slowing more and now is the time of vitality, health, and friendships.
September
Wine Moon or Harvest Moon. A time of true spiritual initiation. Since wine was, and is, such a sacred fluid, the Pagans of old named this Lunar month the Wine Moon.
Celtic - Ivy Masculine Moon of Buoyancy; Moon of Resilience Healing; Protection; Cooperation; Exorcism
Ritual - September is the time for organizing and straightening up physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual clutter. The energy flow is resting and Light and Dark are in balance.
October
Blood Moon - In days past a time for gathering food for the winter. The harvest supplemented by hunting wild animals or by slaughtering domestic ones.
Celtic - Reed Feminine Moon of the Home; Hearth Moon; Winter Moon; Moon which Manifests Truth Fertility; Protection; Love; Family Concerns
Ritual - October is the time for inner cleansing. Meditate on the laws of Karma and thoughts of reincarnation. This is the time of letting go, justice, balance, and inner harmony.
November
Snow Moon - Ahead are the dark months of winter. The Spirit is most active when the body is still.
Celtic - Birch Feminine - Moon of Inception; Moon of Beginning, Protection of children; purification; creativity
Ritual - November is the month of transformation. It is time to prepare for the coming winter and a time to strengthen communication with the god or goddess closest to you. The energy flow is taking root and preparing to flow once more.
December
Oak Moon - The moon nearest the Winter Solstice. Like the Divine Child who is born to die and dies to be reborn anew, the ancient Oak has its trunk and branches in the material world of the living, while its roots, the branches in reverse, reach deep into the Underworld, symbolic land of the Spirit.
Celtic - Rowan Masculine Moon of Vision; Spirit Moon; Astral Travel Moon, Healing; Personal Empowerment; Divination
Ritual - December is the time of Spiritual Paths. The Earth tides are turning and it is time to reach out to friends and family, the lonely, and the needy. This is the month of death and renewal. Spells should should be aimed at endurance and provision.
Witch In The Woods: http://www.witchinthewood.com/moon.html
Scotland saw a Lunar Eclipse on Sat:3rd March.
During a lunar eclipse, the Earth passes between the Sun and the Moon, blocking the Sun’s light. We see the Earth’s shadow creep across the surface of the Moon.
Lunar eclipses are not as spectacular as Solar eclipses, when day turns to night. However, they last for much longer, and can be seen from any part of the Earth’s surface where the Moon is above the horizon.
The Moon Phase.
WAXING MOON
Let's start with a Waxing Crescent Moon, the kind that looks like a Man in a Moon drawing or a cute Christmas tree ornament with a smiling face and a long white beard. When the Moon is a Waxing Crescent; the dark side is to your left, more or less, and the bright Crescent is to your right. (Sometimes the Moon is tipped a little, so it may not be exactly right or left, but you will know what i mean if you go outside and look at it.) You can use this time to perform waxing, drawing, increasing, or growth spells.
The Waxing Crescent Moon
rises after sunrise and sets after sunset --
it is only seen in the night sky for a short time after the sun goes down.
Every night the Moon rises in the East a little later and the thickness of the Waxing Crescent gets fatter, until the shape of the Moon is half a circle. This is the First Quarter, also called by some people the Waxing Half Moon. It is dark on the left and bright on the right. You can continue to do waxing, drawing, increasing, or growth spells.
The Waxing First Quarter Moon
rises about at noon
and sets about at midnight.
After that, the Moon starts to look like it is pregnant -- it is perfectly round on the right side, but bulged out past half-way on the left. This is the Waxing Gibbous Moon. You can continue to do waxing, drawing, increasing, or growth spells.
The Waxing Gibbous Moon
rises in the middle of the afternoon
and sets before well before sunrise.
FULL MOON
It takes about 14 days of growing bigger for the moon to grow or wax completely full -- that night you will see the Full Moon rise as a perfect circular disk. This is the Light of the Moon, and it is reserved for light works and dedications to benevolent lunar deities.
The Full Moon
rises almost exactly at sunset
and sets almost exactly at the next sunrise.
WANING MOON
After its 14 days of waxing, culminating with the Full Moon, the entire process is reversed and the Moon decreases in apparent size. After about 3 days of appearing to be more or less full, the moon slowly begins to visibly go dark on the right side, while the left side stays the same disk-shape as it had when it was Full. This is the Waning Gibbous Moon -- it looks perfectly round on the left side, but bulged out past half-way on the right. This is the time to begin waning, repelling, decreasing, or reversing spells.
The Waning Gibbous Moon
rises in the early evening
and sets some time after sunrise.
Every night the Moon rises in the East a little later and the thickness of the Waning Gibbous gets thinner, until the shape of the Moon is half a circle. This is the Last Quarter, also called by some people the Third Quarter or Waning Half Moon. It is dark on the right and bright on the left. You can continue to do waning, repelling, decreasing, or reversing spells.
The Waning Last Quarter Moon
rises about at midnight
and sets about at noon.
As the shape continues to shrink, night by night, the Moon becomes a Waning Crescent; the dark side is to your right, more or less, and the bright Crescent is to your left. You can continue to do waning, repelling, decreasing, or reversing spells.
The Waning Crescent Moon
rises between midnight and dawn,
but fades out when the Sun comes up.
NEW MOON
Finally, growing smaller still, the moon has waned completely and it vanishes. This is called the Dark of the Moon or New Moon -- and it is reserved for dark works and dedications to dark deities. On the night of the New Moon you will see no Moon at all, no matter how long you stay up and watch, because...
The New Moon (Dark Moon)
rises at sunrise
and sets at sunset.
WAXING MOON AGAIN
About 3-4 days after the true Dark of the Moon you will see a tiny sliver of a Moon like a fingernail paring appear in the sky at sunset near where the Sun has gone down. Some people call this the First Crescent. Others call it the Siva Moon, because the Hindu god Siva is shown with a thin crescent moon in his hair. This is the time to begin waxing, drawing, attracting or growth spells.
The First Crescent
rises a little bit after sunrise
and sets a little bit after sunset.
After that, the Moon grows (or waxes) to a nice, "Man in the Moon" type Crescent Moon. You can continue to do waxing, drawing, increasing, or growth spells. And that's where we started out, with the Waxing Crescent Moon.
HOW YOU CAN TELL WHAT PHASE THE MOON IS IN
To tell whether the Moon is waxing or waning is fairly simple. Basically, all you have to do is go outside at sundown and take a look -- if you don;t see the moon then, you will have to go outside later at night and check again, or check during the day:
If the Moon is already up in the sky in the evening, when the Sun goes down, then the Moon is waxing. Every night it will rise a little later in the day and look a little fuller. At Full Moon it will rise almost exactly when the Sun sets.
If the Moon is not already up in the sky when night falls, but instead rises long after sunset, or if you see it faintly during the day, then the Moon is waning. Every day it will rise a little later and look a little thinner. At New Moon it will rise almost exactly when the Sun does, but you won't be able to see it at all.
MOON PHASES CALENDAR
This Moon Phases Calendar is calculated for California, where i live. Please be sure to adjust the time for your local time zone. (Mountain Time: add 1 hour. Central Time: add 2 hours. Eastern Time: add 3 hours.)
Prepared by John Mosley
Griffith Observatory Pacific Standard Time
(Corrected for Daylight Saving Time Mar 11 - Nov 3) New Moon First Quarter Full Moon Last Quarter
Jan 3 5:57 a.m. Jan 11 4:45 a.m
Jan 18 8:01 p.m. Jan 25 3:01 p.m. Feb 1 9:45 p.m. Feb 10 1:51 a.m.
Feb 17 8:14 a.m. Feb 23 11:56 p.m. Mar 3 3:17 p.m. Mar 11 8:54 p.m.
Mar 18 7:43 p.m. Mar 25 11:16 a.m. Apr 2 10:15 a.m. Apr 10 11:04 a.m.
Apr 17 4:36 a.m. Apr 23 11:36 p.m. May 2 3:09 a.m. May 9 9:27 p.m.
May 16 12:27 p.m. May 23 2:03 p.m. May 31 6:04 p.m. Jun 8 4:43 a.m.
Jun 14 8:13 p.m. Jun 22 6:15 a.m. Jun 30 6:49 a.m. Jul 7 9:54 a.m.
Jul 14 5:04 a.m. Jul 21 11:29 p.m. Jul 29 5:48 p.m. Aug 5 2:20 p.m.
Aug 12 4:03 p.m. Aug 20 4:54 p.m. Aug 28 3:35 a.m. Sep 3 7:32 p.m.
Sep 11 5:44 a.m. Sep 19 9:48 a.m. Sep 26 12:45 p.m. Oct 3 3:06 a.m.
Oct 10 10:01 p.m. Oct 19 1:33 a.m. Oct 25 9:52 p.m. Nov 1 2:18 p.m.
Nov 9 3:03 p.m. Nov 17 2:33 p.m. Nov 24 6:30 a.m. Dec 1 4:44 a.m.
Dec 9 9:40 a.m. Dec 17 2:18 a.m. Dec 23 5:16 p.m. Dec 30 11:51 p.m.
Data from US Naval Observatory http://aa.usno.navy.mil/data/docs/MoonPhase.html
corrected for Los Angeles' local time zone and daylight time when in effect.
The full moon of May 31 is a "blue moon" -- the second full moon in a calendar month.
Seasons
spring equinox 5:07 p.m. March 20
summer solstice 11:06 a.m. June 21
autumn equinox 2:51 a.m. September 23
winter solstice 10:08 p.m. December 21 The earth is at perihelion (closest to the sun) at 2 p.m. on January 3.
The earth is at aphelion (farthest from sun) at 5 p.m. on July 6.
Data adapted from Astronomical Phenomena for the year 2007 by The Nautical Almanac
Office, United States Naval Observatory, and Her Majesty's Nautical Almanac
Office, United Kingdom.
