Post by Emily on Sept 13, 2015 22:48:30 GMT -8
September brings us the Harvest Moon, sometimes referred to as the Wine Moon or the Singing Moon. This is the time of year when the last of the crops are being gathered from the fields and stored for the winter. There's a chill in the air, and the earth is slowly beginning its move towards dormancy as the sun pulls away from us. It's the season when we're celebrating Mabon, the autumn equinox.
Correspondences:
Colors: Browns and greens, earth tones
Gemstones: Citrine, chrysolite, peridot, bloodstone
Trees: Bay, larch, hawthorn
Gods: Demeter, Brighid, Freyja, Vesta
Herbs: Wheat, valerian, witch hazel, skullcap
Element: Earth
This is a month of hearth and home. Spend some time preparing your environment for the upcoming chilly months. If you don't already have one, set up a hearth or kitchen altar for those times when you're cooking, baking and canning. Use this time to clear out clutter -- both physical and emotional -- before you have to spend the long winter days inside.
Thanks to science, the Harvest Moon does things a little differently than some of the other moon phases. According to the Farmer's Almanac, "The usual behavior of the Moon is to rise distinctly later each night -- an average of about 50 minutes later... But around the date of the Harvest Moon, the Moon rises at almost the same time for a number of nights in our intermediate northern latitudes." Why does this happen? Because "the Moon's orbit on successive nights is more nearly parallel to the horizon at that time, its relationship to the eastern horizon does not change appreciably, and the Earth does not have to turn as far to bring up the Moon.
Thus, for several nights near the full Harvest Moon, the Moon may rise as little as 23 minutes later on successive nights (at about 42 degrees north latitude), and there is an abundance of bright moonlight early in the evening, a traditional aid to harvest crews."
Finally, remember that the harvest moon is a season about reaping what you have sown. Remember those seeds you planted in the spring - and not just the physical seeds, but the spiritual and emotional ones? This is the season where they are bearing fruit - take advantage of all of your hard work, and collect the bounty you deserve.
Correspondences:
Colors: Browns and greens, earth tones
Gemstones: Citrine, chrysolite, peridot, bloodstone
Trees: Bay, larch, hawthorn
Gods: Demeter, Brighid, Freyja, Vesta
Herbs: Wheat, valerian, witch hazel, skullcap
Element: Earth
This is a month of hearth and home. Spend some time preparing your environment for the upcoming chilly months. If you don't already have one, set up a hearth or kitchen altar for those times when you're cooking, baking and canning. Use this time to clear out clutter -- both physical and emotional -- before you have to spend the long winter days inside.
Thanks to science, the Harvest Moon does things a little differently than some of the other moon phases. According to the Farmer's Almanac, "The usual behavior of the Moon is to rise distinctly later each night -- an average of about 50 minutes later... But around the date of the Harvest Moon, the Moon rises at almost the same time for a number of nights in our intermediate northern latitudes." Why does this happen? Because "the Moon's orbit on successive nights is more nearly parallel to the horizon at that time, its relationship to the eastern horizon does not change appreciably, and the Earth does not have to turn as far to bring up the Moon.
Thus, for several nights near the full Harvest Moon, the Moon may rise as little as 23 minutes later on successive nights (at about 42 degrees north latitude), and there is an abundance of bright moonlight early in the evening, a traditional aid to harvest crews."
Finally, remember that the harvest moon is a season about reaping what you have sown. Remember those seeds you planted in the spring - and not just the physical seeds, but the spiritual and emotional ones? This is the season where they are bearing fruit - take advantage of all of your hard work, and collect the bounty you deserve.