By Kaitlin Legge, 889 Yoga Teacher
In traditional Ashtanga Yoga practice, the moon days of the month (the full moon and new moon) are days to abstain from practicing. The theory behind this is that practicing at the extreme ends of the lunar cycle leave the body more vulnerable to energy. The body is comprised of mostly water, therefore it is affected by the moon, just like the ocean’s tides. On new moon days, the pull of the moon is weak, leading to a diminished energy in the body, and a lack of motivation for practice. Oppositely, on full moon days, the pull of the moon is strong, leading to an increase in Prana moving upward in the body, which can cause us to feel headstrong and maybe even push ourselves to far from our ‘edge’, leading to injury.
If you pay attention to your energy around moon days, there are sure to be some effects of the lunar cycle that you will feel in your body. Perhaps you will feel erratic, or overly emotional during full moon days, when the prana of the body is at its highest. On new moon days you will most likely feel sluggish even depressed, as the apana energy of the body is heavy. Women may also feel more in tune to the pull of the lunar cycle as it mirrors the menstrual cycle of 28 days.
Even though this ritual of pausing from practice on moon days is valid within the Ashtanga world, I believe it to be a very special time to practice Yoga. This especially so for full moon days. Because our Prana is so high on full moons days, the transformative energy in our bodies is at its peak. This is in fact the perfect time to align with what is happening in the universe. In our busy western culture, we rarely take the time to connect with our innate rhythms on a deep level. Connecting with the rhythms of the tides and earth, draw us closer to our true selves and unite us as a community together sharing the experience of heightened prana.
It is the perfect time for a practice of Chandra Namaskar (moon salutations), meditation,chanting, slow flow, and yin or restorative postures. This type of practice will allow you to ground the body and calm the mind, tuning into the fluid nature of a healing practice.
The next full moon will take place Tuesday October 11th 2011. This full moon is known as the Harvest moon. The harvest moon is special because there is only a short period of time between the sunset and moonrise on this date, allowing for more daylight than usual compared to other days of this season.
Traditionally in the Native American culture this moon has been a time when farmers were busy harvesting corn. A time for gratitude and celebration for a healthy bountiful harvest. A time for feast and celebration. What an inspiring powerful time to set an intention for your practice.
What can YOU harvest in your life? What bounty are YOU grateful for?
On October 11th, I encourage you to set some time apart for a grounding flowing practice, connect to the power of the full moon, the ocean tides and set a powerful intention. It might just surprise you how powerful a moon day practice can be.
