Immerse yourself in the potent energy of the Aries Full Moon with a sacred ritual to honor your inner flame of wisdom.
In this blog post you will find:
What you need to know about the Aries Full Moon
The Aries Full Moon arrives when the Sun is transiting through the sign of Libra. During Libra season, themes of balance, relational harmony and justice are strong. These are important pieces when contemplating the energetics of the Aries Full Moon. The Aries Full Moon happens 6 months after the Aries New Moon, (when the Sun and Moon were conjunct in the sign of Aries on Mar. 20th). Something to note is that the Aries Full Moon always arrives on or after the Autumnal Equinox because the Libra-Aries axis is part of the Cardinal Cross which is associated with the equinoxes. It's the time when nature's vital forces begin their descent underground.
Aries Full Moon Themes:
Balance & Harmony
Solidarity & Sacrifice
Interdependence
Dynamic Equilibrium
Courageously giving & receiving
Sharing your gifts; expressing yourself
Creative Adaptability
Attunement
Aries Chart
Symbol | Ram | Reflects the evolutionary will to survive; the power to penetrate and overcome by asserting strength in creative ways to achieve a breakthrough. Associated with the Shepherd. |
Modality | Cardinal | Represents initiation, taking action, and translating formless (thoughts, longings, intuitions) into form (embodiment, service, contribution). |
Ruling planet | Mars | Assertive, directive, forthright, adventurous, courageous, confident, enthusiastic, initiating, impulsive |
Element | Fire | Energy, dynamism, activation, creation, destruction, transformation, passion |
House | 1st | Ascendent house of self |
Symbol | Ram | A ram’s horn is part of a cornucopia, the “horn of plenty”, symbolizing abundance. In history, rams were often symbols of leadership. Aries natives are said to be leaders and pioneers. |
Physiology | Head & Eyes | Aries are susceptible to head injuries, headaches such as migraine, sinus pressure, and eye problems. Aries should seek balance and calm. |
Flowers | Honey suckle | Honeysuckle blooms in early spring — the season most associated with rebirth and new experiences — the two pair perfectly together! |
Metal | Iron | The Metal of Mars - a symbol of human strength, obstinacy, fortitude, honor, courage, sharpness (of body and mind), tenacity, and confidence in power. |
Gems | Ruby | As a general talisman, it is said to increase health, wealth, energy, courage, leadership and influence over others, to protect from poison and snake bite, improve sleep, drive away nightmares, and to ward off evil. |
Herbs | A tea of Wild Geranium flowers effectively counters many love spells. A bit of the root can be carried as an amulet to attract prosperity. Can be used in spells to encourage conception & successful pregnancy. | |
Colors | Red / Scarlett | A symbol of passion, energy, and life force. In some traditions, red is also associated with the element of fire, and is used to represent heat, transformation, and the power of the sun. |
Ritual Preparations
1. RIGHT RELATIONSHIP:
Being in right relationship with your spiritual practice means approaching each aspect with humility, curiosity and reverence. This includes checking yourself on the nature of how you relate to "objects" as things and the process itself.
For example, if you feel called to stones as part of your ritual, consider WHY first. Then contemplate the impact of whatever action comes next. For example, instead of mindlessly purchasing cheap precious stones from somewhere like amazon (which have more than likely been harmfully mined/extracted and then shipped across the world as part of the consumer machine that's destroying our planet), perhaps part of your spiritual practice is to resist such an impulse, and instead take the time to go for a mindful walk in your backyard, or a nearby stream and see if the right stone presents itself to you.
2. CLEANSE YOUR BODY-MIND-SPACE:
Cleansing is the practice of clearing out and releasing negative energy from your space, as well as energy that’s just old, stale, stagnant, or no longer serving you.
Here are a few different methods:
Physical cleaning: dusting, vacuuming, opening windows for fresh air
Salt: a common element used for purification and protection in many different cultures. To use, simply sprinkle salt along doorways and windowsills to protect them from negative energy entering or just keep a small bowl of salt on your altar or nearby surface.
Smoke Cleansing: light incense or burn a bundle of dried herbs such as rosemary, cedar, or mugwort. Choose plants that you have grown yourself or that grow abundantly wild nearby, plants that you have ancestral tied to or just those that have been grown and harvested ethically.
Bathe: Take a shower our bath; visualize any negative energy that has accumulated in your auric field to be washed away as the water goes down the drain.
Meditate: take some time to center, still your mind and ground into presence.
A NOTE ON SMOKE CLEANSING:
If you do not have meaningful/authentic relationships to Indigenous culture and customs, "smudging" with white sage cultural appropriation and is dishonoring to Indigenous nations across Turtle island. It is important to understand that smudging is not just about burning sage to purify the negative energy from your space but is a sacred ritual that is culturally specific to tribes such as the Lakota Sioux, Comanche, Cheyenne, Arapaho, and Navajo. If you have been gifted sage by an Indigenous friend, use to your discretion in how to engage with this medicine. This sacred plant is being abused, exploited and mass-harvested for commercial and consumer use which perpetuates the violence of white supremacy and settler colonialism. Take some time to locate yourself within a settler-colonial context interwoven with the land you currently occupy. Check out Native Land to learn the name and more about the territories you occupy.
Aries Full Moon Ritual
Altar Tending
Creating an altar is optional. Altar tending is a beautiful practice, especially if you have a designated area in your home that you can tend to over the course of each moon and seasonal cycle.
Tending to an altar is an intentional practice that supports your exploration of nature spirituality and carries the potential to deepen your relationship to the energetic archetypes of the unfolding seasonal & moon cycles.
To create your altar, draw upon the Aries Chart above and consider what you might want to bring. Start simple. There is absolutely no need to "buy" altar items. This is something that we encourage you to unlearn. Everything we need is within us and can be found around us. A simple bowl of water will do since you're working with the water element.
NOTE ON CULTURAL APPROPRIATION:
There is no right or wrong way to go about creating, tending or being with your altar, however we do not condone cultural appropriation or theft of any kind.
Clarify Your Intentions
An intention is an aim or purpose that you intend to carry out through action, in this case your ritual.
Write down or speak out loud your intention.
The intention you give voice to will ripple through abd beyond your ritual.
Moon Blessing or Prayer
A blessing, invocation or prayer can be done in silence, but there is power in speaking words that come from your depths. A prayer is spoken to the animating, loving force of the universe - that which gives us life and is the source of love. How you call this permeating, loving presence is unique to each of us, but here are some words that you may have resonance with: Ancestors, place-based spirits and dieties, god(s), goddesses, Allah, Source, Buddha, Creator, Spirit, Tao etc. It's important to remember that Spirit is not outside of you, but also within you... so when you pray, you're also praying to the deepest, divine aspect of your nature.
I humbly offer my breath to the Holy Mystery,
whose invisible hands weave our dreams.
I humbly bow to the lands who hold me,
whose 10,000 faces reflect our nature.
Bless this journey down the river of life,
May we learn how to walk together in a good way.
Aries Eco-Somatic Practice: Dance of the Inner Flame
For this practice we will be drawing upon the polarity between Pisces WATER and Virgo's EARTH energy who sit opposite to each other on the Mutable Cross. This axis is all about relationships to self and other, cosmic law, interdependence, dynamic equilibrium, coming into balance. For this practice we will be drawing on the polarity between Aries FIRE and Libra AIR. These two signs sit opposite to each other on the Cardinal Cross and correspond to the equinoxes (the balance of day and night). There will be a seated flame gazing practice followed by slow intuitive movement.
CONTEMPLATIONS:
Consider the relationship between fire and air.
The flame could not exist nor articulate it's expression without air.
Your body is like the fuel (wood). Your central self (inner spirit) is like fire. Your breath is the air that creates movement.
MATERIALS:
Match or lighter
Candle (preferably one that is visible like a tea light).
PREPARATION:
To amplify grounded connection, perform this part of the ritual outside, under the open sky or next to a window.
Alternatively, find a spacious place inside.
ACCESSIBILITY:
All of our practices can be adapted to suit your needs. One option is to treat this as an visualization, in which case you don't even have to move. Read through the steps, then close your eyes and let your imagination take you through the experience. Let your dreamscape guide you. Notice the internal experience you have and then write about it or create something to reflect your experience nonverbally. Remember, Earth is within us. Here is a beautiful video of candle flames with piano music in the background.
GUIDED PRACTICE:
FORMULATE A QUESTION:
Contemplate what's stirring in your soul as it relates to the Aries Full Moon themes.
Formulate it into a question that isn't a 'yes' or 'no' question.
FLAME GAZING
Begin by finding a comfortable sitting posture that allows you to gaze into the flame without straining your body or neck in any way. Allow your face muscles to soften as you gaze into the candle flame in silence.
As you gaze into the flame, allow your breath to be natural as you inhale and exhale, noticing the rise and fall of your breath as the candle flame gently moves in accordance with the atmosphere. Notice how you move with your breath simultaneously.
Then bring your gaze to the base of the candle where the wick meets the flame. Take a moment to contemplate the relationship that fire has with earth and the ground. Then begin to sense the grounding contact you're making with the earth. Allow yourself to sense the stability that earth provides and your relationship to gravity as you gaze at the base of the flame.
Now allow your gaze to penetrate the heart of the flame where it is most dense. As you do this, sense the source of your own inner light within your heart space. Take a moment to contemplate light as the source of life, the sun and your own heart. Breathe into your heart as you do.
Notice the way the flame moves and dances as it interacts with the surrounding atmosphere. Tune into the beating of your heart, the subtle pulse of blood pumping through your veins, and the vibration of life force energy flowing through all your inner channels. Ride the waves of your inner flame.
Speak to your inner flame and ask this part of you for some clarity or wisdom pertaining to the question you might be holding.
FLAME DANCING
Take that question and shift your practice toward intuitive movement.
Begin either lying down, on your hands and knees, or standing.
Find home in your breath. When you're ready, let the question guide your breath to an area inside your body that wants to speak (example: neck, hands, hips, etc.)
Let the breath stoke the inner flame and articulate itself through the language of movement in this area.
Movements should be very slow, soft and smooth like a flame.
The slower you move the more clear your articulation can be.
There's no right or wrong way to do this. Just stay with and follow whatever inner experience or impulse emerges.
Notice if any sensations, feelings or images arise.
Be like the movement of the flame. Responsive and adaptive to what arises.
When you feel complete, find your way back to stillness in a seated posture.
Close your eyes to sense and be with the movement of your own inner flame.
Simply breath and be here for as long as you desire.
Thank your inner flame's wisdom.
What came up for you during the eco-somatic practice? Take some time to reflect on anything you'd like to hold onto.
Aries Full Moon Journaling
Reflect on any or all of the following questions:
How did my inner flame speak to me?
What did I learn about the language of movement?
What is the relationship between my body, breath and inner flame?
How might I continue to tend my inner flame during this time of darkening?
You may also wish to finish the following sentences:
My inner flame is telling me...
I feel passionate about...
A habit of thought or behavior that I am burning is....
A new practice that I would like to bring into my routine is...
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