Working with the Dark Moon - Living In the Now

Digging into how working with Moon energy doesn't call us out of our bodies but rather to be fully present in them by offering a means of expanding our experience of ourselves here.

Transcript

Working with the Dark Moon - Living In the Now

First let me point out the elephant in the room. Most of us received our initial information about the moon from our parents, teachers, and the TV/internet. This information was more than likely a mishmash of science, children's stories, myths badly co-opted from other cultures, and archeologists' opinions often spun from whole cloth. Included in all of this is the fact the moon is female because it coincides with women's menstrual cycles, the cow jumped over it, there's a mouse in it, it's made of cheese, and the dark side can never be seen without landing on it.

Of course, there's also the anecdotal knowledge that the Full Moon brings out loonies which scientists try to debunk while first responders hunker down for the onslaught. And also the ongoing conspiracy theory that we've never actually landed on the moon while at the same time scientists find thriving critters which we managed to put there due to an experiment gone awry. 

However, before we start talking about the moon and it's phases, while you haul out what you know and think you know from the box in the basement/attic/storage unit, let me give you some new things to add to the mix. In ancient Egyptian culture the genders associated with planets, moons and the grander universe were the opposite of what we're taught today. Earth was thought of as male and called Ged. In the greater scheme of the cosmos the Earth was therefore not the center of everything and host to all life, but instead considered a seed flowering in the fertile potential of the cosmos. The Universe was considered to be female and manifested as the goddess Nut. The Egyptians considered the moon male as well and symbolized him in the form of Khonsu, which means traveler. He was considered the guardian and manager of time.

Among my people, The Cherokee, the Sun is thought of as female while the Moon is male. Men officiate at New Moon ceremonies while women officiate the Full Moon. 

Regardless of culture, those who hunt as well as those who are hunted can find the moon a fickle mistress providing exactly what is needed or not or a mixture of either or both. How they respond to this can lead them to amazing insights on life as well as themselves-- if they survive, of course.

More practically, our physical bodies retain a primal harmony with the natural rhythms of this planet, its various regions, and the ecosystem we inhabit. If we spend more time outdoors experiencing natural light and the changes of light from dawn to noon to dusk, if we allow ourselves to experience natural darkness during regularly dark hours, our bodies will sync back up to this rhythm. Doing so has a whole host of demonstrable health benefits including reduced stress, lowered blood pressure, more easily regulated digestion, better sleep and so on. Of course, this is rarely practical in today's society, but it points to how the seasons and the moon phases aren't just symbols, thought experiments, or decoration themes for the holidays.

When contemplating the moon, most people know about the various visual phases it goes through from our perspective: New, Waxing (getting bigger), Full, and Waning (getting smaller). It's not actually changing shape, but instead reflecting more or less sunlight depending on how the Earth is positioned between it and the Sun. 

These phases correspond to and often influence our personal energies, somewhat like a flower opening and closing. New moon begins the journey of turning our attention outward which can mean opening up to others and being more gregarious, starting new projects, moving things into a new phase and so on. Waxing sees us well underway with whatever has started. Full moon allows us to get a clear view of what we've achieved and become, but also tips our attention over into the return journey. We then take the experiences and, through the waning of the moon, convert them into wisdom, whether from success or failure or some of both. From this we arrive at New Moon and start the journey again.

What is notable in all this is the constant movement. While it is thought the effects of Full Moon can last for up to three days - beginning to radiate the day before, then the day of and the day after - and the waxing and waning transitions take several days each, there is never a time when things are actually still. While moonlight is beautifully calming and seems associated with the silence of night, there is a pushing to it like the restlessness of tides, never ceasing, ever changing, moving us along to the next thing.

What is less commonly spoken of is the Dark Moon, the moment between the waning of the old and the New Moon appearing. Like most things dark in Western culture, it has a bad reputation. It's used in horror movies to be the best time for the worst things to come out to get us. It's the span when black magic practitioners harvest, concoct, and manifest their negative magics. It's when it's easiest to be swayed by those with evil intent, where we are most likely to make a misstep and when all which is negative, subconscious, and uncontrollable about our natures rises to the surface.

In reality Dark Moon is the one moment of rest and stillness within the Moon phases. It is the final result of our turn inward into ourselves. Like with the Full Moon, it is the moment when we are able to contemplate and experience what we have become, but in this case without an audience or interference from any outside influence. We are fully and completely ourselves in this moment, without distraction or goal. It is the moment of each month when we are supported in Being rather than doing. We are offered an opportunity to stand still and experience the truth of I AM.

Something I find personally interesting is how the Dark Moon influences people. For most it holds no sway at all. They don't even know it exists let alone anything it might be bringing up for them in their lives. For others it's a nagging presence. They can't quite pin down what it is or why, but they cycle through a sense of personal knowing which interrupts their regular schedule, their carefully constructed plans for the day, and their ability to navigate their own sense of personal normality. Luckily, in their estimation, this passes quickly, and they can get back to getting on.

For some it is a truly terrifying prospect and something they avoid at all costs. It is like what Nietzsche described, if they look into that abyss, the abyss will look back into them. They therefore most always keep moving, keep happy, keep positive and stay in the light because to do otherwise would be to encourage everything they fear to manifest into a horrifying and devastating reality. 

Then there are those who welcome being in the pause. For those who seek insight into themselves and the world around them, who are looking for wisdom and inspiration, the quiet which allows them to hear their soul singing is the most precious moment of each month. It is a time of gathering back into the self, but also one of pristine clarity. Like water in a crystal lake, we can see through all the distractions to what is true and honest and real about ourselves. For one moment there can be peace in the stillness.

I have found over the years the Dark Moon is one of the best times to work with guides, gods and goddesses, the higher self and Akashic beings if you are looking for knowledge and experience of your essential self. It's not a good time for answers to process questions such as how to manifest something or how to work out a relationship with another person. It's not good for asking about careers, dating, or finances. It is amazingly transformative if you want to know who you have been, are being now, and may possibly become.

This also makes it a wonderful time for blessings, the bestowing of new names, and honoring ceremonies. In the moment when the sky is full of nothing but stars, individual lights glistening in the rich velvet of the night sky, we too become a point of light joining all other lights in their celebration of their unique divinity.

No matter what phase of the moon, the Akashic energies of the moon are focused on our being here rather than elsewhere. They don't call us out of our bodies but rather to be fully present in them. While working with the moon may feel like it calls us out of ourselves into something bigger or "more", what it is offering is a means of expanding our experience of ourselves here. We are offered a means to broaden our way of knowing ourselves holistically (physically spiritual), encompassing interconnection with planetary forces, reflected and emanated light, and the rhythm of something more than the weekday commute.

Working with the Dark Moon (Moon Phases)

You don't need to get into a regular habit of celebrating the various moon phases to have a healthy spiritual practice any more than you need to eat kale on a regular basis to be healthy. Kale...ahem...I mean the Moon is always there and doing its thing whether you're paying attention or not. If your spiritual path is enhanced and made better by including spiritual practices which utilize the Moon energies, then great. If not, then that's fine too.

I find that unless I have something specific I need, I don't make a fuss about the moon or what it's doing. However, it's not unusual for me to wake gently in the night when the moon is full and find my bedroom bathed with silver light. I'll then simply enjoy the soft and gentle beauty of it and perhaps spend some time in contemplation of the major, minor and miscellaneous bits of life.

On the other hand, the moon has often pointed out to me when something is significant at times when I'm too busy to pay the proper attention. Most recently I offered to foster a cat who was recovering from surgery. It was Winter Solstice that year and the Friday before Christmas, so I was headed into not just evening traffic, egregious holiday traffic, and going to have to fight it all the way to the shelter to pick him up. As I turned to get on the onramp to the freeway the Full Moon was directly in front of me as round and yellow and blatant as it gets. I was charmed while still driving appropriately and felt the magic of it turn the drive into something altogether more potent even though I had no idea what any of it meant. It wasn't until four weeks later I came to understand I hadn't been driving to pick up a foster cat, but instead was being led to another piece of my heart, my sweet Simon Tam. (Well, sweet to me. His sisters have other opinions depending on the moment).

There are as many ways to work with the Dark Moon as there are people. What is important is to remember: this work is about and for you, not about others or externals. When the Dark moon arrives:

*You can be as minimalist as stepping outside for a moment and letting yourself be still and receptive.

*You can set aside time to do gratitude work on who you have become. Write things down, do prayer, color or write a poem. Whatever you feel called to which brings the blessings into your heart and your hands.

*You can work with whatever modality you like in order to see yourself more fully. This can be via scrying tools or mirrors, tarot, astrology, angel or goddess cards, or simply looking into still water.

*You might go out into the darkness like camping outside for the night (safely).

*You can go to a living water source such as a creek or river in order to feel the deep river of your life force echoed and magnified.

*You could find a place to lay out under the stars and ask to be shown what your place is in them.

*You may wish to do something more formal, creating ritual to support you in looking within. This can be as intricate as you wish including altars, candles, ceremonial clothing and more. Creating sacred space is one of the most honoring things we can do for ourselves and our path, allowing us to set aside the habitual, logistical, and external so we can focus on the gloriously essential.

*You can also use this moment to invite the presence of your guides or those beings you wish to work with for learning more about your I AM. It is not uncommon for those who nurture intimate relationships with gods, goddesses or other Akashic beings to feel them most present at these times of honoring and celebration. There is often message presented which is simultaneously validating and transformative.

No matter what you choose, even if you choose nothing at all, those moments when the moon is absent from the sky, when there is a pause in all the movement, allows us a brief experience of THIS. This which is: I AM.