Super Moon

Thanks to the MOON app, I saw that the full moon was going to enter Sagittarius last Saturday.

Not knowing much more, besides that Sagittarius is my star sign, I went on a mission to watch the moon come up and learn about the rituals surrounding this time of month.

Luckily, here on Oahu, there are some beautiful locations to watch the moon rise. My preference is Lanikai Beach, but in a rush I’ll go up to Tantalus Lookout. From there, you can see the moon clearly after it passes the mountains.

I looked more into the moon’s happenings on the website Mystic Mamma, which told me that Saturday’s moon was a blue moon and the first of two consecutive full moons in Sagittarius. According to the site, because this blue moon would be happening at the same time that Mercury is coming out of Retrograde (Mercury Retrograde is basically the astrological equivalent of sh*! hitting the fan – don’t worry, it’s over), this represents a shift of perspective. We should have physically felt ourselves being pulled to our deepest truths.

Buddhists believe many significant events happened under a full moon – Buddha was born, achieved Enlightenment and died during full moons – so it is a very sacred time for them.

Women’s menstrual cycles are said to be linked to the phases of the moon. Some spiritually-inclined women (and maybe men) find that working with lunar energies helps invigorate them and improve their overall well-being. Understanding the energies of the moon, meditating with it, and performing certain practices during the New or Full Moon is said to be very spiritually significant. Courses on websites like Wicca Academy help those women interested in deepening their spiritual practices by imparting spiritual knowledge; the moon can be considered an important aspect of it.

Then there are the farmers who plant their crops according to phases of the moon, based on the idea that the moon affects Earth’s gravitational pull and the moisture in soil. By this method, root crops absorb the most moisture during a full moon; leafy crops are best during the moon’s second quarter; and aboveground crops are best planted at a new moon when the lunar gravity pulls the water up.

Human bodies are about 60 percent water, and some believe that our body’s fluids flow more liberally during a full moon. And some with illnesses ranging from bronchitis to mental conditions claim they are more severe during the full moon. (The word “lunatic,” after all, is derived from luna in Latin.)

Ancient leaders believed that full moon periods should be a time to rest the mind and do rituals like praying, meditating and fasting.

If you’re someone who believes that the moon influences our lives – or if you just want to watch a moon rise – the MOON app is great for checking what phase the moon is currently in. For in-app purchases, you can unlock the daily calendar that will offer advice in business, health and more based on the current moon phase.

Just like star signs and horoscopes, these can be quite playful, but if you believe in it, there could be some truth there. My opinion? If this is something people have been studying for thousands of years, there could be some merit.

@SUPERCW

CHRISTA WITTMIER IS “SUPERCW” ON ALL SOCIAL MEDIA. FIND HER ON SNAPCHAT, SOUNDCLOUD, TWITTER, VINE AND INSTAGRAM. BY NIGHT, SHE IS KNOWN AS DJ SUPERCW. BY DAY, SHE IS KNOWN AS SENIOR MARKETING DIRECTOR FOR YOUNG’S MARKET COMPANY OF HAWAII.