Book of the Waxing Gibbous Moon: Moon Maiden Circle Contents i. Introduction I. Waxing Gibbous Moontra II. Waxing Gibbous Phase III. Waxing Gibbous Link IV. Waxing Gibbous Power V. Waxing Gibbous Pursuit VI. Waxing Gibbous Ritual A. Ready B. Render C. Reflect VII. Waxing Gibbous Phasework VIII. Twinklings around Waxing Gibbous i. Introduction Book of the Waxing Gibbous Moon. This book details the specific practices for the waxing gibbous moon phase, which we abbreviate as WXGM. We encourage you to return to this book each new moon and do the following: i. Offer the Waxing Gibbous Moontra whenever you spy the WXG moon in the sky ii. Conduct the Waxing Gibbous Moonthly Ritual iii. Complete the WXGM Monitor Phasework iv. Generate WXGM Notes Twinklings v. Visit the Waxing Gibbous Moon Meeting Room where you should always... Read, reply and recommend BEFORE you post, Dear Friend! I. Waxing Gibbous Moontra Gibbous, waxing, truth and health You shower me with spirit’s wealth II. Waxing Gibbous Phase The fourth phase in the moon’s cycle is waxing gibbous. It represents the transition from spring into summer--from adolescence into young adulthood. Its spirit is truth. It marks the time of steady growth and development when all the wheels have been set and the task at hand is simply to stay on course, steady as she goes! Characterized by abundance and authenticity, the waxing gibbous teaches us to use the strength and health of our threefold self: mind, body, and spirit in striving to becoming our truest selves. We do this by making solid decisions that move us forward along our life’s path and by monitoring our progress. III. Waxing Gibbous Link The life stage linked with the waxing gibbous moon is young adulthood. Spring's showers begin to bring forth flowers and summer's bright days fast approach. Fueled by the desire to understand and grow whole in her transitional status, the waxing gibbous is a keen observer. She pays close attention to the truths at work in her life in shaping the person she wishes to become as she strives to maintain the balanced health of her threefold self: mind, body, and spirit, all in cooperation, all in support of one another. For, the waxing gibbous knows that she cannot remain angry, jealous, sad or otherwise reactive in her thoughts without eroding her spirit and bringing illness to her body. Whereas when she is true to her spirit and responds thoughtfully to people and circumstances, negativity cannot hold any part of her in imbalance. And so, the waxing gibbous strives to be true to her spirit, creating healthy habits of thought now that will benefit her in the years to come, for she knows that these years will be fullest when met with the health of her threefold self. This is the heart of waxing gibbous phasework. IV. Waxing Gibbous Power The power of the waxing gibbous moon is truth. It is also the third virtue in the Chandrian mission statement to show its importance to us. Chandria urges us to seek truth and be true to ourselves because when we are authentic in our pursuits and genuine in our interactions, we live a life that is in harmony with who we really are. To this end, we observe ourselves in all of our endeavors, noting when our thoughts, words, and deeds are not in keeping with our core beliefs--which we continually revise as our understanding grows. We hold ourselves accountable for our actions and strive to make the necessary changes in our behavior to know harmony going forward. In our dealings with others, rather than dismiss convictions that seem to differ from our own, we recognize that truth wears many masks. For, we know that by reserving judgment and appreciating differences in personal code and custom, we can increase our understanding and enrich our experience. Therefore, we seek to maintain a graceful balance between strength of will and an open mind that truth may reveal itself to us in all of its many forms. The secret to the power of truth is awareness. When we become aware of our thoughts and honest about our part in the creation of our circumstances, we realize that it has been our own decisions moment by moment and moonth by moonth that have brought about the results we see today and have us feeling the way we do. The wonderful news is that we can trace the results back to the thoughts that produced them and choose again if the results have been less than ideal. Our life's journey is an ongoing process of self-improvement and awareness isn’t a once in a while thing. We must be mindful of our thoughts at all times to ensure that our actions and affirmations have us on track to our target result. For it is only then that can be free and fully present in the experience of our eventual success. By making better and better decisions every day and focusing on our progress rather than our past mistakes, we can continually improve the quality of our life. And so, we strive to choose wisely, observe, and choose again as necessary, that the next leg of our journey will always be an improvement over the last. V. Waxing Gibbous Pursuit Corresponding with the "N" in Chandria, to notice is to pay attention and Chandrians are keen observers. While some drift through their days, barely aware of the hours speeding past, we learn to be vigilant--alert and prepared, ever mindful of all that takes place around and within us. We mark the passage of time with rituals and activities to keep a solid stance on the path beneath our feet and a steady gaze on the road ahead. We set goals, act upon them, and note our progress, that we might meet with consistent success. We observe what is working, what isn’t, and what truly matters, extracting these kernels of truth to nourish us as we journey onward. We stand guard against limiting thoughts, attitudes, and appetites, whose effects we are bound to feel in the sensations of our body and the outlook of our spirit. By monitoring our thoughts this way and filling them with all things affirming, we do our best to ensure that our health might be threefold: mind, body, and spirit. VI. Waxing Gibbous Ritual The waxing gibbous moonthly ritual focuses on building the power of truth and engaging in the pursuit of noticing. To conduct this ritual, follow the standard format provided in the Ritual book, substituting the specific practices and verses that follow in the ready, render, and reflect sections. Color-cladding: Dress in jewel tones or clad yourself with a blue sash or ribbon. (Optional) Ware-laying: Ring the standard with a blue ribbon and/or place a piece of blue topaz in the waxing gibbous moon phase. (Optional) Mood-making: Use steady light, hearty music, and strong scents such as rosemary and thyme. (Optional) VI.A. Ready Offering: Send the gift of truth to your sisters-in-spirit under the sign of offering. Invoking: Offer the following verse under the sign of request: Sister spirits everywhere Hear my waxing gibbous moon prayer Send your trueborn health my way That I may be rich in spirit’s wealth this day VI.B. Render Focusing: Offer the following verse under the sign of focus: The more I understand my journey’s path The easier it becomes for me to carve And so I take this time to contemplate The lessons Chandria bades us to regard During the heart of the waxing gibbous ritual, we generate Notes Twinklings and/or complete the Monitor Phasework, depending on the amount of time we have for the ritual. VI.C. Reflect After closing the ritual according to the instructions in the Ritual book, we take a few minutes to reflect, making few notes about the ritual experience and/or just jotting down our present thoughts, collecting everything in our Chandrian Chronicle. VII. Waxing Gibbous Phasework The Monitor Phasework directs us to turn all of our belief statements into positive and productive mantras, and eliminate any negative and limiting thoughts of any kind. Belief statements are mantras that we half-consciously repeat to ourselves constantly throughout our day. They generally begin with "I am..." and can be productive ideas about who we are and what we want to accomplish, but they can also be hindrances. Each of us fills in the blank differently, but all of us have mantras that affect our threefold self: mind, body, and spirit. Whatever we create in our mind, we create in our life. If we constantly bombard ourselves with negative thoughts, sooner or later they will take a toll on our mental, physical, and emotional health. We, Chandrians, strive to better guard our thoughts. As the saying goes, control your mind or it will control you! One way we do this is through the Monitor Phasework. Thought-monitoring is a constant activity. If this sounds daunting, it is likely because we have let our thoughts run wild. But, reining them in doesn't have to be a big struggle. Chandria teaches us to monitor our thoughts all day every day, taking our efforts a tangible step further during the waxing gibbous phase of the moon. Thought-monitoring involves 1) listening, 2) interrupting, 3) questioning, and 4) shifting. 1) First, we listen, or become aware of our thoughts, as though we are eavesdropping on our internal dialog. 2) Next, we interrupt, reacting with shock and repulsion whenever something negative or limiting comes up. 3) Then, we question, asking ourselves "What did you just say?" "Do you really believe that?" and "Is that actually true?" Usually, we find that we are making something up or blowing it out of proportion--"making mountains out of molehills as they say". If we want to be angry, sad, etc. our amazing mind will create to look at the situation that justifies our anger or dejection! But, the truth is that we are just "sweating the small stuff--and it's all small stuff" in the grand scheme of things. 4) The final step in thought-monitoring is the shift. We can do this in our thoughts anytime, but we put more power to it during the waxing gibbous moon phase when we record it. We first write out the limiting thought, which we call a "thought bog"--a bog being a thick, marshy swamp that holds us back. Next, we throw ourselves a "lifeline" by countering the negative thought with a positive replacement. For example, if we thought "I'm so stupid!" because we just did something silly or failed an exam or something, we can interrupt and question with "then how did you pass this other subject or exam? Next, we write down a statement that counters the negative one and extends it, such as "I am intellectually capable of accomplishing all that I truly desire with hard work and consistent focus." We can also interrupt generically with "excuse me?" "don't be so dramatic!" "so what?" "oh well!" or by picturing a big red "X" or circle/slash. We can then use a generic counter statement or affirmation from our Mantra phasework like "I am beautiful, powerful, and true", "all is well in my world" or "I'm getting better every day" substituting 'better' for any good quality. VIII. Twinklings around Waxing Gibbous The twinklings around the waxing gibbous moon are called Notes. During these brief meditations, we take stock of ourselves, in the form of observations. We strive to be as objective as possible, making neither particularly disparaging nor especially complimentary remarks. We try to be honest without being judgmental. We are not here either to puff ourselves up or to put ourselves down. We may pretend that we are someone else taking stock of us and ask these questions: What might another person observe about who we are, where we are headed, and, less so, about how we look? What recommendations might another person make for how we can improve ourselves and advance along our journey? NOTE: Although we downplay physical appearance for this activity, when we do make notes in this area, we strive to be strictly objective. For example, "I have gained two pounds since last month" is an objective statement, which should be based on actual measurements. For every physical note, we make two non-physical ones.