In most neo-Pagan and Wiccan traditions, the names given to the various moon cycles are based upon a couple of different sources. Some come to us from the Native American tribes of North America, and others are rooted in Celtic and western European mythology. In the Native American tribes, the moon cycles were used to keep track of seasons, and thus designated different agricultural markers. If you live in the southern hemisphere, however, your seasons are directly the opposite of those in the northern hemisphere, and so it wouldn’t make any sense for you to celebrate an September harvest moon if September is when you do your planting, rather than your harvesting.

Because of this, people who live in the southern hemisphere would have to calculate their moon names based upon seasons. A lunar month is only 29 days long, so the full moon falls different days each year.

If you want to use the common neo-Pagan names for the moon phases, you can calculate what they’ll be based upon the timing of the equinoxes and solstices. The autumn equinox is in March, in the southern hemisphere, so the moon nearest that would be the Harvest Moon. The next one, which would fall in April, would be the Blood Moon, followed by the Mourning Moon. The next month would be June, which is the time of the Winter Solstice in the southern hemisphere, and corresponds to the Long Nights Moon, and so forth.

It’s important to recognize, though, that the names we generally use – at least in the northern hemisphere – are based upon a blend of northern Native American culture and western European tradition.

If you live in South America, Australia, or some other place, it may not make sense for you to use a naming system that was originally designed by cultures and groups on the other side of the planet.

Blogger Springwolf says, “Because Europeans settled in both the North and South, many of the moon names traveled with them to new lands and continents.

In many ways this does a dis-service to the original peoples of the land in question and the names they came to know and associate with the Moon phases. Like the Tribal Nations in America, each group has its own language… Many words for the moon in other nations associate the moon with masculine energy. And that’s just Australia. The Maori are the first people of New Zealand… They didn’t assign a name to only the Full Moon phase of each month. Every night of the Moon had a name. And these told the early Polynesian people when they could or could not eat certain food, when was the right time to plant or harvest certain crops and when to conduct certain rituals. Their Moon Calendar played an integral part in their economy, commerce and observances.”

Moon naming varies from one region to the next, however, so if you’re one of those folks who lives below the equator, you may want to look at some of the naturally occurring biological cycles in your area. Another option would be to look at some of the local cultures — perhaps the people indigenous to your region had their own names for moon phases, which would make far more sense than using the names of people who lived on the opposite side of the world, and who viewed their life experience through a different cultural and social lens.

There’s also some great information about the moon and how it’s seen in the Southern Hemisphere at Southern Sky Watch.

March rolls in like the proverbial lion, and if we’re really lucky, it might go out like a lamb. It’s the time of the Storm Moon, the month when Spring finally arrives, around the time of the Equinox, and we see new life begin to spring forth. As the Wheel of the Year turns once more, heavy rains and gray skies abound — the earth is being showered with the life-giving water it needs to have a fertile and healthy growing season.

This is also a time of equal parts light and darkness, and so a time of balance.

Depending on where you live, this moon may be called the Seed Moon, Lenten Moon, or Chaste Moon. Polly Taskey at Pagan by Design says, “Anglo-Saxons called it Hraed-monat (rugged month), or Hlyd-monat (stormy month). A stormy March was an omen of poor crops, while a dry March indicated a rich harvest. Some books refer to February as the “Storm Month,” however, I find this inaccurate. Where I live, March often IS stormy, and as the old wives tale goes, “in like a lion, out like a lamb.”

As always, your March might not see the same weather as other people’s, because your environment depends on a number of factors. If you need to adapt March’s magical correspondences to those of a different month, then feel free to do so.

Correspondences

• Colors: Green, yellow, light purple
• Gemstones: Bloodstone, aquamarine
• Trees: Dogwood, honeysuckle
• Gods: Isis, the Morrighan, Artemis, Cybele
• Herbs: High John, pennyroyal, wood betony, apple blossom
• Element: Water

Storm Moon Magic

Use this month for magical workings related to rebirth and regrowth. New life is blooming during this phase of the moon, as is prosperity and fertility. Here are some things you can do this month – because really, it’s all about planning ahead:

• Begin planning your magical herb garden for the year. What would you like to grow? Consider whether you want specifically medicinal and healing herbs, or if you’re going for a variety of magical purposes.
• Are you thinking about making a change in your career? Now is the time to tidy up that dusty resume and get it up to date. Start researching the companies you’d really like to work for, and figure out what you need to do to make it happen. Make phones calls, network, send in applications, and take control of the reinvention of your career.
• Got a storm rolling in? Place a jar or bucket outside so you can gather rain water for use in ritual. Bonus magical points to you if it’s collected during a lightning storm!
• Spring seems to be a time of year when many of us start thinking about going back to school in the fall – that’s partly because for many colleges and universities, this is the season when they are finalizing acceptances. If you’re thinking about continuing your education, get those admissions forms competed!
• If you’ve ever thought about changing your life, especially by making big changes, now is the time to plant the seeds for those efforts.
• Place your magical tools outside for cleansing during the Storm Moon.