Full Moon Ritual: Honoring the Feminine
Owning your own full moon ritual is a big part of establishing your own practice and stepping into the power of the divine feminine.
The full moon is perhaps the most powerful time of the month for practicing magic. The moon, after herbs, was my first introduction to witchcraft, magic, and building and growing my own spiritual practice.
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Witchcraft and the Full Moon Ritual
In the beginning, there were no doctors, no pharmaceutical companies, no therapists or counselors, no life coaches.
Just witches.
Sure, they did not all call themselves witches.
Some were shaman, some healers, some mystics or midwives.
Some herbalists and some seers.
But all were what we think of as witches today.
Women who understood the laws of nature and the universe and knew how to work with them to the benefit of themselves and of others.
Yes, of course, there were men involved in witchcraft as well, male witches, wizards, healers, shaman, village elders, etc.
But the vast majority of us were women, and no wonder.
Women are the creators, the givers of life, the ones more inherently able to visit the veil, the line between heaven and earth, the natural and the supernatural, life and death.
We visit that line every time we give birth, every time we assist another woman to give birth, every time we offer remedies to the sick, hold our babies when they are ill, and assist our loved ones as they pass from this life to the next.
We women, in our most feminine power, hold the key to life and death in the most natural of ways, without aggression or manipulation, without venom or the need to control.
That is the power of the feminine.
The Power of the Feminine
There is, of course, great power in the masculine as well. We need our men for protection, for order and organization, to provide and support our light, for stability.
But we must honor the feminine within ourselves in order to fully step into our power.
As Rebecca Campbell notes in her book Rise, Sister, Rise, we were born into these bodies as women in this time for a reason.
It does not serve us well, and it is in fact counterproductive, to reject our femininity.
This speaks to the nature of the yin and the yang.
We need balance, and we have come grossly out of balance with our feminine nature in this society.
And it is no wonder.
For centuries, “industry” and the love of profit and power have subjugated, silenced, and oppressed women, and we have played no small part in that.
We have allowed our voices to be silenced, our true natures to be hidden, and our finest qualities to be all but disappeared.
Women are, by our very nature, nurturers, inclusive, communal, and chaotic. Creation stems naturally from chaos.
We are naturally receptive, open, warm, and encouraging.
We are the innovators, the boundary pushers, the warriors, and the leaders.
That is the power of the feminine.
And that power is greatly needed in this far too masculine world.
It is high time we return femininity to our world, village by village, city by city, society by society.
For all the women out there caught up in hustle culture, stressed out to the max, haggard and harried, with nervous systems wrought and wrung out, wondering if there is a better way, the answer is yes.
Yes. There is a better way.
Embrace your feminine.
It is simple.
But not easy.
You have been trained and conditioned your entire life to either be like men or serve at the pleasure of men. It is just the nature of our society today. And men are just as victimized by this state of things as we are, whether on the surface it seems that way or not.
Lisa Lister tells us in her book Witch, that it is time to reclaim our status as witches, and to return the world to a balanced state that includes deep honor of the divine feminine.
The Full Moon Ritual and Cyclical Living
The greatest benefit to living in your natural state, the state in which you were born, and embracing your feminine is that you will feel more relaxed, more at ease, more joyful, clearer on your purpose, and more loving toward those around you, even the ones who drive you crazy.
Why?
Because you will love and value yourself first and foremost.
One of the first steps toward embracing your feminine and calling back your power is to step into the natural rhythms of nature.
With the rise of electricity, capitalism, and the 40-hour (60 hour?) workweek in factories and offices, we have stepped out of rhythm with nature.
We no longer put our bare feet on the earth, we no longer rise and sleep with the sun, and we no longer live with the seasons.
It has put us out of touch with our bodies, with our spirits, and with each other.
To return to this way of living will bring an abundant state not only to us, but to everyone we touch.
The steps we can take are simple:
Spend more time in nature
Get outside every day
Earth every day
Rise with the sun
Go to sleep earlier
Eat fresh food
Eat seasonal food
Cut toxins
Clear toxins
Live seasonally
Live by the moon
Each of these steps can be taken in your own time, and can be interpreted in your own ways, ways that work for you. But the idea is to get back to a place, or get to a place for the first time, wherein you feel the rhythms of nature thrumming through your body.
The moon and a full moon ritual are perhaps the easiest place to begin, especially if you are a woman seeking to connect to and honor your feminine.
The moon, which revolves around the earth in 13 28-day cycles, calls us to awaken, plan, prepare, execute, and celebrate each month.
Before the advent of artificial light, most women’s menstrual cycles aligned with the moon as well, with fertility and menstruation coming either at the full moon and then the new moon or vice versa.
Building a full moon ritual will help bring your feminine body into alignment with the earth and bring your feminine spirit into alignment with the universe.
Moon Phases and Rituals
The phases of the moon go from waxing to waning, from full to new, and each phase has a spiritual meaning behind it.
The New Moon
The new moon is when the moon appears dark to us. It is exactly opposite the earth from the sun in its rotation, so we see not sunlight reflected upon it.
It is during this phase that we plan a new moon ritual to prepare our goals for the next two weeks.
The Waxing Crescent Moon
The waxing crescent is the two weeks between the new moon and the full moon, when you see slivers of the moon appear larger and larger each day and night.
It is during the waxing crescent moon phase that we work hard toward our goals, putting all the pieces of our plan together.
The Full Moon
The full moon is when the sun shines fully on the moon, and it appears full or whole in the sky. It is usually “full” for two or three days.
During the full moon phase, we reflect on how far we have come, we honor our feminine for planning and creating and coming so far, and we sit with our feelings.
The Waning Crescent Moon
The waning crescent moon then is when the full moon gradually works its way back to darkness, from full to half to sliver once more.
It is during this two week period that we close out our small term goals, celebrate our accomplishments, and rest.
Note that if your menstrual cycle aligns with the moon, and you menstruate during the full moon and not the new moon, you may want to reverse these moon rituals so that your rest period is during menstruation and the full moon.
Either way is ritualistic and honors your feminine.
And no matter what, you can celebrate under the light of the full moon.
Full Moon Prayers
When the moon is full, it is a great time to celebrate new beginnings, expel negative energy, work with your tarot cards and crystals, and prepare for your next step.
Positive change is imminent when you work with the powers and phases of the moon, and any time is the perfect time to begin.
Offering full moon prayers like “I call all my power back to me. I am open. I am here. I surrender to the will of the universe, and I honor my divine feminine” while standing under a full moon and embracing the energy of the full moon is a great way to step fully into the cycles of nature.
When you harness the energy of the moon it is an ideal time to connect with yourself on a deeper level and offer a prayer of release. You can do this any time, under any moon, but a full moon is the best time to free yourself and welcome positive energy.
You can also perform a full moon meditation that utilizes oracle cards, calls for good health for yourself and planet earth, and sets your full moon intentions.
The moon cycles offer energy peaks and points of focus for any woman reclaiming her power, so take deep breaths, prepare for fresh starts, light candles, and don’t be afraid to dance naked on the night of the full moon to celebrate your feminine.
Let them call you witch.
They will anyway.
Happy manifesting!
