Self Portrait with Taos Full Moon, New Mexico 2019
The moon, our Queen of the Night, chandra, soma, ماه, la luna, la lune…
One of many moons in the solar system, perhaps calling her Our Moon would be more accurate.
Our Moon — so close yet so far away, visited by mankind but still such a marvelous mystery.
Did you know that we only see one half of Our Moon, because of something called snychronous rotation? That means Our Moon’s rate of rotation is equal to that of its orbit around the Earth, which is also rotating and orbiting the sun, making it just so that we view the same side each night we peer up and out, regardless of where on Earth we are. WOAH 🤯 Also wild is the fact that the landscape of Our Moon’s far side is completely different from its near side.
I’m not a scientist (obvi), but I’m inclined to think poetically and, oh boy, what a gold mine of metaphor this is! The fact that Our Moon shows us one side prompts inquiry into the duality of relationship. Certainly, we don’t go about showing our full selves to the external world. What about the select few who are nearest to us? Is it necessary to do so in honor of that relationship or, conversely, is it necessary to keep a part of ourselves not so much hidden, but rather for ourselves? There are no absolute answers but for the absolute that, obscured or illuminated, we are whole. When we believe that, when we honor ourselves wholly — both the dark and the radiant as one — our relationships with others get a little bit easier (please note ain’t nobody said easy, because relationships are damn hard. Just want to be clear on that).
Let us again consider the longstanding Earth-Moon relationship, which has been shifting and (r)evolving for some time. We often like to think of synchronicity as something that just happens, and while randomness does play a role (cosmic collisions! 💥), it has taken years — millions of them — for Our Moon’s synchronous rotation to be established, to find the “right” flow. Most of us are aware of one effect of the Earth-Moon gravitational relationship: that Our Moon’s pull on the waters of our home planet causes the oceans’ tides (along with some help from the sun). Did you also know that the Earth’s gravitational pull has literally shaped Our Moon? Which isn’t perfectly spherical, but rather egg-shaped, with the pointy end toward us. There’s some more duality for you.
As a kid in science class, I wondered, if Our Moon causes the tides on this mostly-water (~71%), wondrously beautiful planet, and the incredible-in-design human body is also mostly water (~60%), surely it must affect us as well. Scientifically, our bodies are too small in relationship for a physical shift; rather, the effect is much subtler — a sort of inner tide, you could say, or an ebb and flow of energies.
All the more reason to honor our relationship with the moon in whatever form feels right: if you’re into yoga, we have moon salutations (chandra namaskar); if you’re outdoorsy, full moon hikes are an amazing way to connect with both Earth & Moon; if you’re feeling more chill, you can simply gaze at our closest celestial neighbor, or just close your eyes and soak in those cooling vibes; and of course, there is moon dancing.
Which brings me to my final fun fact: LUNAR LIBRATIONS. The term just makes you want to dance, right? That might be because it is referring to a sort of subtle shimmy that Our Moon does in its movement ritual, in addition to rotation and revolution. Lunar librations give us a slight peek beyond the north & south poles. So in truth, we actually see a bit more than half of Our Moon, which makes itself about 59% visible to us earthlings. NASA has a cool video of the moon phases through all of 2019, in which you can see that lovely lil libration.
Libration sounds like a mix of “vibration” and “liberation” which is apt because Our Moon is an independent night queen who does what she wants despite being tidally locked to Earth. It’s no wonder why across cultures and through time, humans have looked to the Moon with reverence, awe, and wonder — or fear of the unknown. In Part II, I’ll discuss some of those traditions, both ancient and contemporary, particularly in the context of Yoga.
If you enjoyed this post, please join me for my online class, Yoga and the Lunar Cycle. We will meet on Thursdays @ 6:30pm, starting September 17th, for 5 weeks – one class for each moon phase, which we will dive into through discussion, breath, and asana. More info & register via Beloved Yoga.
