Last
of the season’s three full moons
MARCH
16, 2014
March
16, 2014 –This March full moon is the third of 2014. It’s the Northern
Hemisphere’s final full moon of winter and the Southern Hemisphere’s final full
moon of summer.
In the
Northern Hemisphere, we often call this full moon the Sap Moon, Crow Moon, Worm
Moon or Lenten Moon. For the Southern Hemisphere, this March full moon is the
Harvest Moon – the closest full moon to the autumn equinox.
The
upcoming equinox will take place on March 20, 2014. It’s the spring equinox for
the Northern Hemisphere and the autumn equinox south of the equator.
No
matter where you live worldwide, Earth’s shadow won’t diminish the light of the
March 2014 full moon!
What
is the Harvest moon?
The
harvest moon is named for the full moon nearest to Mabon, bright enough to
allow farmers to work late into the night bringing in the final harvest of the
year. This moon is celebrated across many cultures using different names: Other
names for this moon are the Wine Moon, the Elk Call Moon and the Singing Moon.
Why do
Wiccans Celebrate the Harvest moon?
For
Wiccans, it is an especially powerful time for our spell work. The full moon
itself represents the Goddess at her most fertile, luminous self. It is the
perfect time for creating change. After the contemplative holiday of Mabon, you
have reached deep into yourself and sorted through your own strengths and
weaknesses. You know where you want to see change and now is the time to
prepare for that. Creating moon magic is always strongest at midnight. You
would want to time your spell to start at this time. No matter how long you
plan your ritual for, the starting point is the most important one. You can
simply honour your deity(s) with a small ritual or create something more
elaborate but for the most effect, start at midnight.
How to
the Harvest moon?
From
simple to elaborate, celebrating the harvest moon is part of clearing the
clutter in both your mind and personal life. Since thoughts are turning to the comforts
of home as the cold weather arrives, think of ways to bring your ritual into
the area where your comforts come from in your home.
Honour
Demeter, Goddess of the bountiful harvest with gifts from your garden like a
pumpkin, include something green since harvesting means herbs as well as food.
In keeping with the idea of balance, you can also honour a God at Harvest moon.
As the
wheel turns
Celebrating
Mabon and Harvest moon is an important part of celebrating the wheel of the
year. It is a natural transition towards the winter season and new year.
Take
the time to make a small altar and focus your energy on creating the changes
that make your life more balanced.