Full moons are a time of culmination, release, and heightened energy—and this weekend’s new moon in Aries is no exception. In fact, it could be a particularly painful full moon for many of us, according to astrologer Kayse Budd, M.D. Here’s why, plus a ritual to work with this moon’s energy.
The astrology behind October’s full moon:
This month’s full moon in Aries will peak on Sunday, October 9, at 4:56 pm ET—and Budd tells mbg it’s going to be intense and “definitely a bit extra.” This is because Chiron, Venus, Saturn, and Mars are all involved in a big way, she explains.
Chiron is also known as the “wounded healer” of the birth chart, and it reveals where you may have a core wound to work through. Venus, meanwhile, is the planet of love and beauty, Mars, the planet of action, and Saturn, the planet of restriction and discipline.
As Budd notes, this full moon in Aries is conjunct Chiron, and opposing Venus. “Thus, there could be a general theme of wounding—or on the positive, healing—around relationships, or our experience of comfort, beauty, and pleasure,” she says. It could also provide an opportunity or culmination of some sort on the Venus front, she adds.
The sun and Venus, both in Libra, are also forming a grand trine with Saturn in Aquarius, and Mars in Gemini, which according to Budd, means the energy of commitment, hard work, and applying oneself is blending with the energy of action and initiation. “This may create a ‘get it done’ vibe,” she explains.
“Overall, themes of change and instability continue due to the ongoing north node-Uranus conjunction, and the Uranus-Saturn square, which has become exact (after a period of separation and lessening) recently, during the retrograde periods of Saturn and Uranus,” Budd tells mbg.
A ritual to work with this energy:
This full moon in Aries has strong healing themes, and also favorable energy for facing difficulties, considering solutions, taking action, and/or communicating ideas in a balanced way, according to Budd. And as such, she says, this is a great moon to do a releasing and integrating ritual around healing old relationship wounds, attachments, or resentments.
“I am not a person who believes we can just excise a painful relationship from our hearts and minds. We can, however, change the focus and energy it receives, including the way we process it and interact with it,” she explains. “To do this, we need to make peace with the relationship in a way that weaves it more subtly into the fabric of our past.”
A releasing and integrating ritual for the full moon:
To begin, take a piece of loose paper and write the name of the person who will be the focus of this ritual at the top. (If you have multiple relationships in mind, choose the most prominent one or do a separate ritual for each.)
Close your eyes and take a moment to hold the person and your experience of the relationship in your heart. Acknowledge the emotions that arise. Greet them with compassion. If there is anger, embrace it with tolerance and love. If there is resentment, face it with understanding. If there is sadness, meet it with nurturance.
On your piece of paper make two columns. Label one “Challenges” and the other “Gifts.”
Under the “Challenges” column, write a few words to symbolize the difficulties, resentments, and pain you experienced as part of the relationship. Briefly honor these difficulties in your mind and heart with the intention of compassion, as well as release.
If you are able, try to forgive yourself for your role in those challenges. If you are able, try to forgive the other person for their role, as well. If you aren’t ready or cannot do this, it’s okay. Have compassion for yourself and go on to the next step.
Now shift gears and attempt to balance the energy by thinking of the good aspects of the relationship. Honor the lessons learned and love, joy, or fun you once shared.
Under the “Gifts” column, write a few words to symbolize the good times and happy memories. Include discoveries made and benefits received through the relationship. Hold these gifts in your heart and mind. They, too, will be processed/experienced in a new, more subtle way, when you release the relationship as a whole. It’s important to make peace with this. Take a moment of gratitude for the gifts of this relationship.
Now, in the spirit of Libran balance, take a moment to think about the relationship from the other person’s perspective. Do you think they had the same or similar challenges? Ponder how and why the relationship might have been hard for them, as well. Honor this for a moment in your heart and mind.
Think, also, of how the relationship helped the other person. What are the gifts they might have experienced as a result of knowing and connecting with you? Take a moment to appreciate this relationship from the other’s perspective.
Pinnacle step: because this moon is in a fire sign, we will use the element of fire to free the energy on this piece of paper and in this relationship, moving it from a more prominent place in our minds and hearts, to a more integrated and subtle place in our cells and memory. Identify a safe place to make a small fire (preferably outdoors). Burn your note in the fire. As the smoke rises, imagine the relationship it represents changing form and being carried in new directions and new dimensions, within you and beyond. When the smoke clears, exhale through your mouth and say the words, “And so it is.”
Optional: If you want to bury the ashes or place them in or under a moving stream of water (at the time of the ritual or later), doing so may complete the ritual even more clearly. Feel within your body whether that act could provide additional closure.
While this full moon may light up some old wounds you would have preferred to stay in the dark, the potential for deep healing is strong—it’s up to us how we decide to move forward. But as Budd puts it, “Healing is a journey, and with these steps, progress is made.”
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