Full Moon in Leo Thursday 1/25/24, 9:55 a.m. PT

When we are alone on a starlit night, when by chance we see the migrating birds in autumn descending on a grove of junipers to rest and eat; when we see children in a moment when they are really children, when we know love in our own hearts;

Or when, like the Japanese poet, Basho, we hear an old frog land in a quiet pond with a solitary splash - at such times the awakening, the turning inside out of all values, the "newness," the emptiness and the purity of vision that make themselves evident,

All these provide a glimpse of the cosmic dance.

~Thomas Merton

Full Moon in Leo Thursday 1/25/24, 9:55 a.m. PT

"The first Full Moon of 2024 occurs in Leo, greeting us at the start of Aquarius Season. While Aquarius teaches us to shift the collective consciousness by being ourselves, Leo helps us decide what that means. Leo represents our center. Ruled by the Sun, this sign reminds us of what holds us together. It helps us feel our truth, and more importantly, it helps us feel our hearts. This Moon can help you break through all the layers placed upon you that dim your light. It helps you find yourself, what you love, and what you ultimately want to express to the world. The Leo Full Moon is the time to find what makes you shine your brightest and embrace that part of yourself despite any fear of rejection. Instead, the Leo Full Moon teaches you to love yourself fiercely and let love change the world.

Leo is the regal lion of the zodiac. It embodies the energies of leadership, compassion, vulnerability, strength, and love. With Leo's energy governing the Full Moon, we are encouraged to focus on the heart’s truth. Acknowledging this takes courage and vulnerability. It's not always easy to listen to and follow our hearts. Our mind often has different plans and will try to convince us these plans are safer. This Full Moon, though, is the time to listen to the heart and follow its lead, even if we are unsure of the road ahead. It’s a time to feel the guidance of the heart through our emotions and let it give us the answers we’ve been looking for all along. "

~Spirit Daughter

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"Leo is warm. Leo is illuminated. Leo burns bright. Leo is passion. Leo rules the heart. Leo is instinctual. Leo is inspirational. Leo leads with its ability to dramatize the human experience so that the rest of us may understand ourselves and our predicament better. When its efforts to do so are not acknowledged, Leo is left bewildered, its ego battered and bruised. Leo must find the stage that fits it. Leo must tell the tales that are its to tell. Leo must give forth of its fire.

Leo is the creative beast inside each of us that has its own unique roar.

This beast needs to be believed. It needs to be known. It needs a place at our table. It needs to be fed. It needs to be worked with. It needs to be let out to roam in the wilds of our imagination."

~Chani Nicholas, author of You Were Born for This: Astrology for Radical Self-Acceptance

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“The Ice Moon occurs during the intense cold. The Germanic name for this moon is the Horning Moon because it’s the time when reindeer begin shedding their yearly antlers. This is a time for planting the seeds of hope for good things to come. Also known as the Budding moon, Candles moon, Safe moon, Wild moon."

~Ashley Leavy, Cosmic Crystals: Rituals and Meditations for Connecting with Lunar Energy

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1/25 to 2/2: Navajo Sing--Festival in preparation for the coming agricultural season; celebrated with prayer, chanting, dancing, and healing.

1/31: Birthday of Fr. Thomas Merton (1915), Catholic mystic and poet, who found Deity in stillness and silence.

1/31 eve to 2/2 eve: Imbolc/St. Brigid’s Day--Old Celtic/Irish feast of Goddess Brigid; merged with the Christian feast of St. Brigid. Fires were lit to welcome Her as She traveled about blessing fields, animals, and people.

1/31 eve to 2/4 eve: Mid-Winter/Groundhog’s Day/Candlemas--Festival marking the transformation from death to life - the beginning of the agricultural year, awakening of hibernating animals, and return of migrating birds and fish. Observed with a candlelight procession to bless fields and seeds, recognition of newborns, and contemplation of life.

Excerpted from THE MYSTIC'S WHEEL OF THE YEAR 2024
A Multifaith Calendar Reflecting Eco-Egalitarian Spirituality
© 2023 Marija Miovski
‍www.WheeloftheYear.com

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Tarot Connection: Strength, 8th card in the Major Arcana

Leo is about knowing where your talent lies, and understanding how to utilize our inner magic to the best of our abilities. We shine brightly when doing the things we love and care about.

“The Strength card represents fortitude and awareness, someone waiting for the right moment to act. Strength asks us to remember our experience, to wield our wildness with precision, to observe as much as possible before acting, and to be brave enough to trust in our own discernment.”

~Meg Jones Wall, Finding the Fool: A Tarot Journey to Radical Transformation

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“Life is this simple: we are living in a world that is absolutely transparent and the divine is shining through it all the time. This is not just a nice story or a fable, it is true. ”

~Thomas Merton

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Crystals for the Full Moon in Leo

The “everything all at once” feeling that the full moon heightens for us is not a gift to be wasted. We receive revelations and illuminations. We are shown what we must next process in our own particular process."

~The Moon Book: Lunar Magic to Change Your Life, by Sarah Faith Gottesdener

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“When we are in touch with our emotions, our needs become known” (The Moon Book: Lunar Magic to Change Your Life, by Sarah Faith Gottesdener). That is the gift of the Leo full moon, to awaken our awareness of the edges and boundaries of our selves, the places we are spiling over...with joy, with hope, with fear, with all sorts of things...And the places where the outside is coming in, and how, and why.

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Here are three crystals that can help identify, interpret, soothe and "roll with" the feelings arising in the light of the full moon:

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Ruby | A flickering flame that warms the heart of winter, Ruby amplifies loving and calm vibrations so you don’t fall into the bullish and tyrannical side of Leo energy. We all know Lions love to roar! Ruby heals and soothes anger and irritability while inspiring love and grace. (The Crystal Bible, Judy Hall)

Teardrop Ruby and Gold Necklace | Teardrop Earrings Ruby in Gold | Natural Ruby | Larger specimens natural polished ruby hexagons; Ruby in Silver earrings - in shop only

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Kunzite | A delicate white pink stone (the green variety is known as Hiddenite) that helps enter a meditative state, contributes to a peaceful atmosphere, and connection to universal love. Encourages self-expression and expression of feelings, helps with crafting compromises between personal needs and those of others. Combine intellect, intuition, and inspiration, with introspection and the ability to "see the self" and act on constructive criticism. (The Crystal Bible, Judy Hall)

Kunzite Natural Crystals | Kunzite Point Pendant with Silver - in shop only

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Rhodonite | Assists in attaining one's highest potential, and bringing coherence and calm to chaos. Helps with recognizing action steps on the path forward towards a harmonious "brotherhood of humanity", the evolution towards loving energy, generosity of spirit, and the interrelations between us. Helps understand the individual's relation to the collective, and identify an individual purpose that can be fulfilled. (Love is in the Earth: The Crystal and Mineral Encyclopedia, Melody).

Rhodonite Palm Stones | Rhodonite Crystal Pendant | Tumbled Rhodonite | Rhodonite Bracelets

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Raise your vibrations and power your rituals with sacred stones from around the world.

Bring the earth’s beauty and energetic strength into your practice with an inspired collection of crystals and gemstones.

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“If a man is to live, he must be all alive, body, soul, mind, heart, spirit.”

~Thomas Merton

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Emerging From Winter | Celebrating Imbolc!

"Oh, the glory of growth, silent, mighty, persistent, inevitable! To awaken, to open up like a flower to the light of a fuller consciousness!"

~Emily Carr

We're halfway there! Celebrating Imbolc, and the return of Spring

"A lesser known pagan holiday, Imbolc falls exactly halfway between the Winter Solstice (Yule) and the Spring Equinox (Ostara).  Daylight is increasing and spring is the air. While too early for planting gardens, Imbolc was a time to start thinking about what you wanted to plant and harvest in the coming year. Imbolc means “in the belly” and celebrates the pagan Celtic goddess Brigid, who is the goddess of inspiration and creativity, healing, smith craft and poetry. Other associated deities include Aphrodite, Eros, and Hestia."

~Mabon House

Born at the Exact Moment of Daybreak: Mythology of the Goddess Brigid

"Brigid is a triple Goddess with three identities: Lady of Healing Waters, Goddess of the Sacred Flame and Goddess of the Fertile Earth. Another symbol for the Goddess Brigid is the serpent, which represents renewal, new beginnings, the creation of new life and the beginning of spring.

"The goddess Brigid was also revered as the Irish goddess of poetry and song. Known for her hospitality to poets, musicians, and scholars, she is known as the Irish muse of poetry. ​Born at the exact moment of daybreak, Brigid rose into the sky with the sun, rays of fire beaming from her head. She was the daughter of Dagda, the great ‘father-god’ of Ireland.

​In Druid mythology, the infant goddess was fed with milk from a sacred cow from the Otherworld. Brigid owned an apple orchard in the Otherworld, and her bees would bring their magical nectar back to earth. ​It is said that wherever she walked, small flowers and shamrocks would appear. As a sun goddess, her gifts are light (knowledge), inspiration, and the vital and healing energy of the sun."

~GoddessGift.com

Ways to Celebrate Imbolc

~Make an offering to Brigid...Traditionally food offerings were left out on the eve of Imbolc, and on Imbolc she was celebrated with feasting and bonfires. People wove "St. Brigid's crosses" out of straw.

~Prepare your home for Spring's bounty, i.e. spring cleaning.

~Seek out writings of Awakening, Light, New Beginnings, and themes of Fresh Starts, Renewal, and Rebirth. We've included a small sampling below:

"Today at middle winter, I feel a stirring.
All around me, signs of life emerge
from beneath blankets of snow and ice.
Within me, life emerges too,
and I honor the return of the light,
strengthening my life force on this sacred day.
I light a candle to Brigid, goddess of the eternal flame.
I am grateful for Mother Earth and her gifts.
I invoke the radiant energy of the sun,
as I feel the days growing longer.
The sun's gentle return, the flame,
its rays spreading warmth across the land, across my heart.
I am the light. I share my light with others.
And in doing so, my light expands.
May all that I touch grow, bloom, and flourish
with love and in beauty, always.

Amen, A'ho, So it is."

~The Book of Blessings and Rituals by Athena Perrakis, Ph.D.

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“Together let us move from a place of restoration to a place of connection, celebration and exploration.
Now is the time to begin to flesh out our insights after a time of deep recuperation.
We trust the knowing and divine intelligence of Mother Earth, and soon we will sync ourselves with the energy of initiation and reinvention.
We must lean into the resilient practices of our ancestors to help us germinate our creative seeds.

In alignment with the spirits of our plantcestors, soon we will begin to access our potential energy and utilize that momentum to push through any obstacles around us to reach the light at the surface.
We must bring our personal gifts, purpose and knowing forward.
It is time to get to work with peace in the spirit and a compassionate heart.
Combine your ideas and hopes with the collective initiation of discover and open paths.”

~Karen L. Culpepper, excerpted from We'moon 2024: Luminations

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"I think that one's art is a growth inside one. I do not think one can explain growth. It is silent and subtle. One does not keep digging up a plant to see how it grows."

~Emily Carr

Learn More about Imbolc and Other Sacred Days

In her book, Walking The Wheel of The Year: Reroot in Nature, Reconnect Your Soul, holistic life coach and spiritual guide Emma-Jane Cross supports you to create your own spiritual and personal growth path using nature's seasonal rhythm as the catalyst for personal and spiritual growth. This book has been written to be used either as an inspirational tool to start living a lifestyle connected to nature's rhythm or you can use it as a workbook.

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"There is something bigger than fact: the underlying spirit, all it stands for, the mood, the vastness, the wildness."

~Emily Carr

“You do not need to know precisely what is happening, or exactly where it is all going. What you need is to recognize the possibilities and challenges offered by the present moment, and to embrace them with courage, faith and hope.”

~Thomas Merton