The Moon Cycle

The moon has four main phases: the Dark Moon, the Waxing Moon, the Full Moon and the Waning Moon. Each phase has their own flavour and knowing the power of each phase can be very empowering.

The Four Moon Phases

We can use an analogy of a flower to get a better picture of the four phases.

The Cycle beings with the New Moon.We can picture it as the dark fertile ground. The seed of the flower is still hidden underground, preparing to sprout and grow into the flower it will become. The first phase last for about three days before and after the New Moon.

The next phase is the Waxing Moon. During the Waxing Moon the seed slowly sprouts, puts up the first shoots and forms the stem, the leafs grow and finally the flower bud forms and the flower prepares to show it´s beauty.

Three days before the Full Moon we enter the phase of the Full Moon. The bud starts to open and on the day of the Full Moon the flower is fully open, sharing all it´s beauty with the world. For about three days after the Full moon the flower stays beautiful and open but then it enters into the fourth phase.

During the Waning moon the flower slowly takes it´s power away from creating beauty into creating seeds. The petals fade and start dropping off one by one. The seeds form and the flower relaxes, knowing that nature will take care of getting it´s seeds into the ground to create new flowers next season. The flower slowly dies and returns back into the ground to become new soil.

The Moon and the Macrocosmos

When we start to notice the moon and her ever changing phases it puts us into touch with nature and the macrocosmos. We can start to try to see if the moon cycles affect us. Maybe we are more introverted around the new moon and more extraverted around the full moon. Maybe we are more active during the waxing moon and more pensive during the waning moon.

We can take it further and see if our own inner turmoil might also be cyclical in nature. If so we can take action to be aware of what the phase the moon is in at the moment and how that might be affecting us.

The Cyclical nature of Life

When nature has found something that works it tends to repeat. This cycle of expanding and contracting is a fundamental part of life. The year could be described in the same way. Winter solstice would be the New Moon and Summer Solstice the Full Moon.

We could use it to describe the life of a human being. Conception and pregnancy covered by the New Moon. Then we grow and expand and ideally blossom into all that we can be. After middle age we often focus our attention inwards, do a life review. Then finally we start to slow down until we die and go back into the void that we came from. Our bodies turning into soil and our spirit set free from the boundaries of physical life.

The lovers of God never run out of patience,

for they know that time is needed for the crescent moon to become full.

Rumi