Note: All archive entries are from Emergence-Activate Zoom poetry readings, organized by Nicky Rainey and Lucien Aeon.
Full moons are associated with release, which seems odd to me because they feel so, well, full. But I suppose the idea is that we are overflowing with inspiration and energy, and that is a good time to let go of anything that feels stagnant or obstructive to our absorption of that groovy, vivifying moonlight.
(Also: menstruation is tied to this concept. I think there are a couple of books about this.)
My favorite release method is to write something down that I want to discharge from my life, and then set that shit on fire. And then carry the ashes to a crossroad, preferably while singing a song that relates to my purpose. And throw the ashes into the road into the cleansing light of Auntie Moon. (I say Auntie because my Mother is the River; which technically makes the Moon my Great-Aunt, but we don’t stand with semantics in our family.)
Sometimes it is hard to know what you want to burn, or maybe you want to set your whole situation afire, and must choose just one thing. Going over your recent work–writing, visual, whatever–may be a clue.
Or, you can examine the themes of your dreams from the week leading up to your ritual. These will often indicate what your under-brain has been processing and needs to ventilate.
You can also get hints from the astrology of the sky you are currently under. The full moon we felt-slash-survived this week was the Libra moon in Aries. The Aries/Libra axis represents the self and partnerships with others, respectively. Because these are cardinal signs, there is an association with forming and forging the self and these partnerships under this moon. Evaluate your desires regarding the two poles of this axis. Then evaluate what is keeping you from meeting these goals, and burn that shit.
I have seen a shift in pop sociology this week from coping with the current crisis to deciding who we want to be as individuals and a society–both living in the crux of this trauma, and once the extremity has passed. We could be gardeners, tailors, ceiling-smashers, rent-killers. Some, of course, will desperately try to reassemble the “normal” from before. (Fuck them. But also, be empathetic. Our culture has encouraged clinginess.)
Reckoning what you want to cast off and what you want to compose in this cautious new world is something to ponder as this full moon of self and others wanes in the coming days.
(Next up will be the Taurus New Moon, which will be bout naps and food and sensually caring for your bod, so that may be more fun.)
Ellen The Red 