Illuminations

The Balsamic Moon of Reception

2022 bookends its debut month with balsamic moons. This phase of waning light glows with a low, mellow energy.

Use this dimmer switch in the sky to help your inner luminosity grow.

We enter the new year slowly and cautiously, with lots of opportunities for reflection and practical planning. Think of this as your time to unplug, recharge, and boost your cyclic intelligence.

This year, let January’s double dose of balsam help you feel at home in the dark.

What is a balsamic moon?

This final stage of the moon’s cycle appears as a tiny sliver of lunar light, winking out when the new moon blankets us in deepest night. It is a time of retreat and quiet introspection—both receptive and releasing at the same time.

The balsamic moon and balsamic vinegar do not have much in common except that they both feel a certain way: soft, aged, and smooth. Balsamic means soothing and restorative. The word comes from a balm produced, most notably, by the balsam fir tree.  A balm heals, calms, and soothes the skin—much as the balsamic time of the lunar cycle can calm us spiritually.

During this time, your physical energy might dip while your psychic energy soars. It’s definitely a time for introspection over action. This is your protected and private space of germinating ideas, an inner cauldron of initiations and incantations.

Standby Time

Imagine those moments when your phone has no bars—an elevator ride, subterranean subway car, or mountain campground with no cell towers in sight. In this liminal space of in-between, we can release the chaos of digital noise and grasp a different kind of reception.

We can all think of times when our digital devices made moments sour: this mean tweet, that date who swiped left. Under the balmy balsamic moon, we can retreat and recover from the fallout of cluttered thoughts and social bombs. Vinegar becomes balsamic only after it has been aged, steeped, and settled to transform into something smooth and sweet.

Go easy in this energy. Restore resilience by making rest a priority. It’s hard to slow down in a fast-moving world, so do your best to mute society’s notifications of relentless restlessness. Downward arcs are necessary. Without them, we lose our sprouting spaces.

You might find inspiration in the celestial skies instead of cyberspace. Take your cue from above and accept this offer to linger in the dark. There’s a payoff when we make places for ideas to prosper, when we pause long enough to let our gifts grow. Even your phone battery lasts longer when it’s on standby time—when it’s not doing anything. Fertile fields don’t rise from depleted ground. This might be the time to try your hand at a little cosmic compost, a psychic crop rotation for the soul.

Raise the Bar for Rest

It’s ok to take a brief moment in the early morning to linger in bed with the covers over your head. Think about taking the long way home, sitting still like a frog, letting the threads that keep you tightly wound unravel. It’s a great time to seek the sacred in small things.

When we clear the cobwebs gumming up our minds and hearts, we can weave new netting to catch or receive messages of guidance. Maybe we don’t have to feed everything with ceaseless work. Some things might not need to grow up or out so fast—fingernails, anxiety, weeds, that pile of laundry, your child’s sense of wonder.

See how much you can thrive when you release the need to constantly strive. When we restore ourselves during these balsamic days, we increase our bandwidth and renew our capacity to encourage others. We emerge into a new year and a new moon. We return to our tribe inspired.

*2022’s first two balsamic moon phases are from December 30 – January 1 and January 30 – February 1.

Source material provided by Lynn Carroll-Rivera, Astrologer at Miraval Austin.