This month the Moon emphasizes its relationship to the Earth both near and far when it comes to Full Phase November 5th and New Phase November 20th.
The Moon’s orbit around Earth is an ellipse, which is like a squashed oval, and because the Earth is not at the exact center of this ellipse, then every month as it orbits us, the Moon moves in close and then swings out far. The distance of Moon to Earth varies by as much as 26,000 miles.
The Moon achieves Full Phase and New Phase at a different place on its orbital path each month, with the result that once each year, it will be at Full Phase where its path comes closest to Earth (that’s Wednesday, November 5th), and then at New Phase furthest away (that’s in two weeks, on November 20th).
What might this mean in a human life?
It might be easy to imagine that a Full Moon leaning in close will make things dreamy and romantic, but the Moon is a mighty cosmic mirror, like a reflective lens, focusing all available celestial light into our world. This is not meant to spark things into flame literally, but to stoke the flame of enthusiasm in human hearts for what’s good and true. I say “good and true” because when the Moon comes Full closest the Earth on Wednesday, it will be near the star Hamal, the star that marks the head of the constellation Aries, the Ram. Hamal is the “lead star” of the zodiac, a herald of new beginnings. According to Bernadette Brady, this star is a forceful star of action, and this week, it’s enhanced by Super Moon with strength and independence. The keynotes of this star augmented by Full Moon are focus, determination, strength of will, free-spirited, courageous and unconventional.
So imagine Moon, focusing all available celestial light, and leaning in to enkindle a flame of enthusiasm in your heart of hearts for what’s good and true, as Rumi describes it with these words:
I drank that wine of which the soul is its vessel. Its ecstasy has stolen my intellect away. A light came and kindled a flame in the depth of my soul ~ a light so radiant that the sun orbits it like a butterfly.
Let this Moon be a light so radiant that it enkindles such a flame in the depth of your soul.
~MarymakingwiththeMoon
Hear this week’s episode of The Storyteller’s Night Sky on podcast here, and wherever you listen, and get out to witness the Moon, rising about 15 minutes before sunset on Wednesday, November 5. Exact Full Phase will occur at 8:20 am EST, when the Moon has already set in my part of the world.