The Next Full Moon Is This Sunday, February 5, 2023, at 1:29 PM EST (6:29 PM UTC). As the second after the Winter Solstice 2022-23, it’s called the Full Snow Moon.
My father and maternal grandmother would always laugh and declare, “It must be a full moon” to whatever non-sensical happenings were presented. And now I let this serve as my comical relief when I observe the full moon and the howling surrounding it. This phenomenon also can be met with a spiritual ritual.
Whether you buy into the ability for the moon to make people mad, the science can turn your tides of current belief or it’s purely moonshine, we know the moon has a pulling effect. It’s responsible for the tides and currents. Regarding its power over human emotions, earlier human societies observed patterns and the words ‘lunacy’ and ‘lunatic’ (from the Latin ‘Luna’ for moon) testify to this[1]. This concept prevails widely today, not only for everyday people but among mental health professionals, who often report their impression of patients being more disturbed at the full moon. A review of literature generally debunks the notion, but recently there’s been an upsurge in researchers suggesting the moon can indeed affect mental health. Perhaps as a result of tidal effects instead of variations in moonlight during the month. These studies have been reported more or less uncritically on popular science websites and elsewhere. What do you believe?
The moon exerts a gravitational force on the Earth. But the Earth’s force is greater. This is the reason we can stand still on the Earth and don’t float in orbit to the moon. The moons forces cause the Earth’s oceans to bulge in the direction facing the moon, which leads to a cycle of tides last about 12.5 hours. When the sun and moon are aligned so they join forces in gravitation, there can be very high tides. This happens twice a lunar month or about every fortnight or 2 weeks.
Some health and wellness gurus explain how the maddening that occurs in us all can be released by the pull of the moon. My husband and I started a new spiritual tradition and freed our concerns and ails. Just like athletes perform rituals before the big game, together, we release our strongholds to the moon. We let the moon’s pull work in our favor. Looking up and under the bright, fully rounded moon, we cast our cares away. We: Let. It. Go.
Remembering the moon doesn’t support life, we give away what is draining us from life – to the moon. In contrast, we allow the moon to push away and towards us in return life-giving dreams and aspirations. This push-pull dance is our latest tradition, and we share it with you so you may benefit from it as well. Of course, you can let go and release anything that’s not serving you well, at any time. But perhaps as a preventative practice, you may join us and prepare to give away trauma and death. We invite you to release at the next full moon.
What will your practice look like this Sunday during the Full Snow Moon?
Photo by Gary Fultz on Unsplash
Dr. Jaime L. Pula is the author of her newly released book titled, ‘Rise Above: A Playbook On How-To Keep Energy Flowing.’ She can be reached at jpula@artofhealthsciences.life. And she enjoys connecting on LI at: www.linkedin.com/in/drjaimelpula001/.
[1] Launer, J. (2021). Light and gravity: can the full moon really make you go mad? Postgrad Med J. doi: 10.1136/postgradmedj-2021-141300. Online ahead of print.