Co-creating: Learn How To Work with the Energy of the Moon 

By Reina Alejandra Prado Saldivar

I have been a follower of the moon cycles since I was in college. It began when I was in a Chicano studies course reading the work of Gloria Anzaldúa. She wrote about Coyolxauqui, the Aztec moon goddess, daughter of Coatlicue, and sister to Huitzilopochtli. Many Chicana scholars write of Coyolxauqui because she reflects how we feel being split into many parts searching for our wholeness. My connection to the moon has deepened since aligning with all its phases to best co-create with nature and the Universe.

During the early years of establishing my holistic energy business, I created more intentional rituals with each moon phase. I now share a moon reading with an audio recording in my monthly newsletter that includes a tarot card for each moon phase explaining the theme of each card as it corresponds with the moon phase. An outcome of this practice is that it has helped me be more attentive to my energy shifts during the moon cycle.

The moon phases can impact our physical well-being, even one’s menstrual cycle. For folks who menstruate, it is a thought that to have one’s cycle coincide with the New Moon is that both one’s physical and emotional bodies are in greater balance. By the time the full moon arrives, one will be ovulating. Following these rhythms is ideal for those who wish to get pregnant. In many indigenous cultures, when folks are menstruating, they cannot participate in the ceremony as they are in the seat of their power.

The moon phases can give us some insight into our emotional well-being too. As the moon moves into a different sign about every two days or so, it’s helpful to pay attention to these details. I use a moon tracker to know what sign the moon is currently in and accurately write the new moon’s time and full moon arrival. I also notice if my mood is different when the moon is in the earth, air, fire, or water sign. This information helps me track my energy. I often focus my yoga practice with this insight to develop a different flow for that day’s asana sequence.

Another aspect of the moon and astrology is that it can help us tune into our emotional state of mind. Steven Forrest’s book The Inner Sky suggests that the moon can help us explore our feelings and the kinds of most essential experiences to one’s happiness. He invites us to “know what unconscious emotional needs motivate your behavior”? Also, to note when “moodiness and irrationality overtake you, how are they expressed”? (107).

Other great books on co-creating with the moon, such as Sarah Faith Gottesdiener The Moon Book: Lunar Magic to Change Your Life, incorporates ritual and astrology. Her focus is to help us understand how the moon is “a source of ancestral wisdom” and when “nourishing our moon is to acknowledge all of these spaces we hold and try to give them what they need” (81). In the upcoming workshop Whole as the Moon that I will facilitate on July 21, I share some practices to connect with the moon energy and work with plant and crystal allies to support our overall well-being.