I have seen some articles recently buzzing around on the web, claiming that the approaching Full Moon of July 31st is going to be a ‘Blue Moon’.

Well, of course it depends on your definition of a Blue Moon, but I wanted to clear up a few (of what are in my opinion) misunderstandings and explain why, I’m sorry to say, that it’s not!

The most straightforward theory about what a Blue Moon is, and the one adopted by many people, is that a Blue Moon is the second Full Moon in a single calendar month.  This is a fairly unusual occurrence, happening about once every 33 lunar cycles, or roughly every 3 years.

This explanation has been traced back to a page in the Maine Farmers Almanac of 1937, and Blue Moons are also referred to in many more of these Almanacs, from decades either side of this edition.  But they don’t always describe the second full Moon of the month, so even at its origins, this explanation begins to break down.  It seems to be the theory many are using today, but in my opinion, it doesn’t really have any significance, and I’ll explain why.

Astrology – the study and interpretation of the movement of the planetary bodies, doesn’t have any roots in the Gregorian calendar system that we, in the west use.

We cross the two over – we talk about the day of the week, and the date of the month when a certain astrological phenomenon will happen because we are industrialized humans, and most of us are still required to keep one foot in the ‘real’ world.  And that ‘real’ world works to the Gregorian concept of time!

But clock time and astrological, celestial time are not the same.  They don’t use the same units of measurement, and are fundamentally different.  For example, according to our modern calendars, time exists linearly with each year beginning on the arbitrary date of January 1st, and a week lasting 7 days regardless of the lengths of those days.

But if our calendars instead used the movements of the planetary bodies to mark our movements through time, we would start to see that we exist within cycles within cycles within cycles, depending on which planetary body you choose to follow at any given moment.

So if we accept instead that our year is structured using the solar cycle, then it starts to become clear that moments such as solstices and equinoxes are our markers of time and indicators of significant annual turning points, rather than numerical ones.

Another celestial cycle very closely tied to the rhythm of our Earthly seasons is the lunar cycle. (And this is in a large part due to the physical 23.5 degree tilt of the Earth on its axis, and the cause/effect of the Moon on this phenomenon).

The lunar cycle overlays the solar cycle (not perfectly) so that in any one solar year – measured from solstice to solstice – there are 12, or 13 lunar cycles, each one normally, but not always, becoming Full in a different zodiacal sign.

Anyway, the point I am getting at is that although the most likely origin of the word ‘month’ is actually ‘Moon’, suggesting that in ancient times, the two were one and the same, today they are not. Our calendar months and our lunar months are not really related at all.  So whether we have one or two Full Moons in a Gregorian calendar month is (in my opinion) of no real significance.

Another Blue Moon theory is that a Blue Moon occurs when there are four Full moons in a season. And by Season, I am referring to those of the solar year, and to the chunks of time between equinox and solstice, or solstice and equinox.  So currently, in the Northern Hemisphere, we are in the summer season between the Solstice of 21st June and the Autumn Equinox of 23rd September. Friday’s Full Moon will be the second of three falling in this season (2nd July, 31st July and 29th August) so we’re not in for a Blue Moon by this theory either!

 

So what IS a Blue Moon?

Well, a true Blue Moon is a rare thing (hence the expression “Once in a Blue Moon…”) and it comes from the Vedic Astrological tradition.

A Blue Moon is a Full Moon that emits a very particular energetic resonance, as it is the second Full Moon to fall within one zodiacal sign, one (usually the third) of four Full Moons in a season, and it is the thirteenth Full Moon in a solar cycle.

The reason it is referred to as ‘Blue’ is that as this Moon has its origins in the Vedic system of astrology, it is intricately connected to Lord Krishna, the supreme Hindu God with blue skin, often portrayed playing the flute.

The Vedic system is not quite the same as the Western tradition of astrology, so the signs that the Moons fall under are not always the same.  Which is another of the reasons that the Blue Moon theory has lost its way in the western, tropical tradition.

But the key to this whole riddle, technicalities aside, is the number 13.

This number is intrinsically linked to the energy of the Moon, as it symbolizes and holds within it the resonance of the Divine Feminine.  So when we get to experience a thirteenth Full Moon, we are being exposed to a very specific lunar frequency, which can lift us up and activate these very particular tones within us.

In music (and this is what Krishna is here to show us), the thirteenth note is the beginning of a new octave, also containing the resonance of transcendence and ascension.  So the thirteenth Full Moon creates an especially potent launch pad for raising both our personal vibration, and the vibration of the planet.

So tapping into the frequency of a Blue Moon is an incredibly powerful practice!

But not one for this Full Moon. 

I feel I have to remind you that this is my opinion, based on my experience, research and channeling so if YOU feel something else to be the truth, then follow your own heart!

And let this not make this Friday’s Full Moon be any less beautiful and powerful for you.

 

K