New Moon
Beginnings. Set your intentions.
The Moon
The moon has marked time and mood for as long as we have looked up. This is your guide to the eight phases, the new and full moon rituals that follow them, and how to live a little more in tune with the sky.
Start a new moon ritualBegin here
The moon moves through a full cycle roughly every twenty nine and a half days, from dark new moon to bright full moon and back again. Long before calendars, that rhythm shaped planting, festivals and rest, and many people still find it a gentle, natural way to mark time.
Following the moon is less about belief and more about rhythm. The new moon becomes a moment to begin, the full moon a moment to release, and the phases between them a quiet structure for setting intentions and letting them go.
The cycle
Beginnings. Set your intentions.
First steps. Build momentum.
Decision. Push through resistance.
Refine. Adjust and persevere.
Culmination. Release and celebrate.
Gratitude. Share what you have.
Release. Let go of what is done.
Rest. Surrender and reflect.
Go deeper on the order of the phases, the waxing gibbous, the waning crescent and the half moon.
Release the pressure
An honest note
The moon truly moves the oceans, and its light has shaped sleep and behaviour for millennia, but the idea that it controls our moods is folklore rather than settled science. What moon rituals offer is something quieter and real: a steady rhythm to return to, a prompt to pause, reflect and reset. Read the cycle as a gentle structure for your own intentions, and take what serves you.
Questions
There are eight: new moon, waxing crescent, first quarter, waxing gibbous, full moon, waning gibbous, last quarter and waning crescent. The moon moves through all eight over roughly twenty nine and a half days.
About once every twenty nine and a half days, so roughly once a month. Occasionally two full moons fall in the same calendar month, and the second is called a blue moon.
A simple practice for setting intentions at the start of the lunar cycle: a quiet moment to reflect, write down what you wish to call in, and begin. Our beginner's guide walks through it step by step.
The full moon is traditionally a time of culmination and release: a moment to celebrate how far you have come and to let go of what is no longer serving you, often with affirmations or a small ritual.
It is the practice of pairing your intentions with the moon's rhythm: planting a wish at the new moon and releasing what blocks it at the full moon, using the cycle as a structure for focus.
The moon moves the tides, but the claim that it controls human moods is folklore rather than proven science. The real value of moon rituals is the rhythm and reflection they invite.
Explore more: The Library, Zodiac and Astrology, Tarot and Crystals.
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