“Be vewy, vewy quiet! I’m hunting wabbits!” Or maybe it’s duck season? I actually have no idea when the various hunting seasons occur, but I do know that we have our Aries Full Hunter Moon on October 9, 2022. Much like our last Full Moon in Pisces, this full moon is also tied to the Autumnal Equinox. If the October full moon is closer, than the full moon in September is called the Full Corn Moon. These are the only two full moons of the year that aren’t ruled by folklore, but rather by an actual astrological event. The Hunter Moon is technically the first full moon that occurs after the Harvest Moon, for after we finish clearing the fields the wildlife will come to finish off the scraps that were left behind. The moon will rise at approximately the same time for several nights in a row, allowing us plenty of time to poach those fattened animals ahead of winter.
The earliest use of the term Hunter Moon was in 1710 in the Oxford English Dictionary. It is sometimes referred to as the Sanguine or Blood Moon, which is said to be reminiscent of either the blood from hunting or from the colors of the changing leaves. It is the Drying Rice Moon to the Dakota and the Migrating Moon to the Cree. It is the Falling Leaves Moon to the Anishinaabe, the Freezing Moon to the Ojibwe and the Ice Moon to the Haida. All the names give a nod to what Mother Nature is doing all around us, and what we are asked to accomplish during this season of our lives.
We Celebrate with a Hunt!
The New Moon in Aries occurred on April 1 this year, and as such marks the Zodiacal New Year. This is the time when we can begin to see the results from what we stirred up six months ago. Although in this life I have come to learn that nothing is ever truly completed, not when the Earth works at a constantly changing pace. Some moments are meant to plant seeds, some are meant for harvest, and some are meant for decay. Thus beginning the circle of life yet again. I find comfort in this actually. It reminds me that nothing is ever permanent, the happiness or the sadness. It helps me to remember to savor those moments of bliss, and that the hard times too will pass.
Ruled by Mars, the warrior planet, the archetype of Aries embodies the mythology of this Roman god. Although his fury and rage inspired ruthlessness in battle, those conflicts brought lasting peace to its people. This is not to say that the outcome justifies the means, but more to say that sometimes you have to put it all on the line for the greater good of everyone involved. There are times when we must trudge through the darkest days of our lives, so that we can then learn how to live fully from our heart’s desires. Many times I have found that the war that is raging is one that is completely in my head. There is a battle between what I want and what others expect of me, of who I truly am and who society wants me to be. They don’t often overlap.
At some point in our lives we determine that our mind’s peace is much more important that the wants and needs of others. It’s not that we don’t care about the feelings of others, it’s just that we are no longer willing to sacrifice ourselves for them. Other people’s emotions are not your responsibility, nor is how someone reacts to you setting a boundary in order to protect your peace. People who are too caught up in their own egos may see you setting a boundary with them as an attack, but that is absolutely false. Boundaries just establish a line of tolerance in the sand, what energy you will and won’t allow into your space. And if those people cannot tolerate that, then maybe it’s time to question the need for them in your life at all.
The Void
When you begin to do this type of shadow work, as it is sometimes called, you can find yourself sitting in the midst of nothingness. What am I going to do now? What do I want to do now? Who do I want to be? Who am I really? All of this is very Aries energy, it’s mantra being ‘I Am.’ I call this space the void. You left the thing that was no longer serving you, but you haven’t quite stepped into the next chapter of your life. This is where I feel as though I have been for these past six months, sort of lost, yet still meandering on some sort of forward facing pathway. I know I am going somewhere, but I am still not quite sure where to. It’s like Alice when she first meets the Cheshire Cat in Wonderland.
“Alice: Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to go from here? The Cheshire Cat: That depends a good deal on where you want to get to. Alice: I don't much care where. The Cheshire Cat: Then it doesn't much matter which way you go. Alice: ...So long as I get somewhere. The Cheshire Cat: Oh, you're sure to do that, if only you walk long enough.”
One of the biggest morals of the story of Alice in Wonderland is that intense desire to discover who you are. The Caterpillar straight up asks her, as he blows smoke from his pipe directly into her face. It can feel maddening at times to try to figure out who you are, but in doing so, we can find ourselves having a much smoother ride on this journey we call life. It could at the very least help to dig ourselves out of the rabbit holes that we manage to get ourselves into time and time again. Alice said it best when she stated that she often gave herself sound advice, but rarely ever followed it. We all do it from time to time. Shit happens.
Whatever I Say I Am
I have often stated that new moons are initiatory and full moons signify times of completion. I don’t mean to say that this part of your life is over, or that the work is finished. I actually believe that our work is never truly finished, not until it becomes our time to leave this earthly plane. I have a feeling that my inner critic will always dance it’s jig in my brain. The difference now is that I know better when to tell Michigan J Frog to fuck off, although I do mess that up occasionally as well. We could all use that reminder from time to time.
It takes patience to retrain your brain, to have better thoughts about yourself. The first step is to understand that it’s not your fault. Our brains are trained to search for the dangers lurking around every corner. That is it’s job, to keep us safe. Sometimes the only thing you can do is that the mind for its hard work, and then let it drift into the background. Something I am currently learning how to do is to teach my brain to look for the more joyous moments throughout each day. They love pattern recognition. It’s the same reason artists like to use odd numbers in things. It stops us from looking at pairs, and forces us to look at things in a different perspective.
During the new moon I pulled Jera, the rune of harvest, which we all know entails much more than just the reaping. The fertile season lasts all year, and thus requires patience. “There is no way to push the river; equally you cannot hasten the harvest” (The Book of Runes, Ralph Blum). This goes for farming as well as the harvest of the self. Figuring out who you are underneath all the layers of bullshit is fucking hard, but actively living your life in the ways in which you feel match up with who you are on the inside is the ultimate act of freedom. Besides who cares what their opinion is of you anyway? They haven’t been right up until now, have they?
Mad love, Jenna
references include: Rabbit Fire from the Looney Tunes (1951), Rick & Morty Season 3 Episode 9, and Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll
