The Dreaming Moon

The Full Moon in Pisces arrives this week, carrying a powerful partial lunar eclipse with it, one that might give us a Blood Moon glow. Depending where you live in the world, you will see this on Thursday night (27th August) or Friday morning. It will be about 5am for me! I think I’ll set my alarm…

It will be a very deep partial eclipse, covering about 96% of the moon, and it occurs in Pisces, which is a mutable water sign, traditionally ruled by Jupiter, but in modern astrology ruled by Neptune, and symbolised by a fish. It’s the sign of intuition, dreams, spirituality, surrender, imagination and compassion, transition, adaptation, endings and the unseen.

However, the Sun is in Virgo, governed by the Earth, and that is grounded, analytical and detail-orientated.

According to Kirsty Gallagher in Lunar Living, this combination will help balance deep emotional impulses into intuitive knowing, but also help us commit our intuition into action.

Of course this full moon is complicated by the eclipse, which Kirsty states, “reveal truths, bring things to your attention and help put you back on the right track”. They are also “powerful portals for huge transformation and opportunities for growth.”

Right now we are in what’s called the gateway between the solar and lunar eclipse.

In a nutshell, this full moon eclipse is about letting go of things we’ve been trying too hard to control, and bringing the mystical back into balance with the practical.

All in all, we’re reflecting rather than manifesting.

I’m actually incorporating a little eclipse magic into Child of Light, my White Haven Hunters novella, so this has been fantastically useful research that I will weave into my story.

It’s also important to remember that this is the final full moon of the summer - how did that happen? - so use the light it offers to look back to the summer solstice in June - it seems only days ago to me - and see what you’ve achieved, and what you’ve learned. Autumn is coming, so we should decide what we want to close off, and what we want to take into the darker half of the year.

Here's a simple ritual for the Full Moon in Pisces:

An Eclipse Water Ritual

Put a bowl or glass of water somewhere beneath the night sky during the eclipse, then sit quietly with it for a few minutes.

Before the eclipse, write down something you’re ready to release.

Fold the paper and place it beneath the bowl.

During the eclipse, sit with the water and imagine the old energy dissolving. You can dissolve your paper in the water if you wish.

Afterwards, pour the water onto the earth.

Important practical note: Moon energy lingers, so these rituals can be done earlier in the evening, or the following morning. The symbolism matters more than catching the exact astronomical moment.

Stay safe, have fun, and witchy blessings to all,

TJ xx