Book of the New Moon - Moon Maiden Circle Contents: i. Introduction I. New Moontra II. New Moon Phase III. New Moon Link IV. New Moon Power V. New Moon Pursuit VI. New Moonthly Ritual A. Ready B. Render C. Reflect VII. Milepost Phasework A. Long Term Goals B. Short Term Goals C. Concrete Steps VIII. Twinklings around the New Moon i. Introduction Book of the New Moon. This book details the specific practices for the new moon phase, which we abbreviate as NEWM. We encourage you to return to this book each new moon and do the following: i. Offer the New Moontra when you spy the new moon in the sky ii. Conduct the New Moonthly Ritual iii. Complete the NEM Milepost Phasework iv. Generate NEMS Strides Twinklings v. Visit the New Moon Meeting Room where you should always... Read, reply and recommend BEFORE you post, Dear Friend! I. New Moontra Newborn hope, though absent from my eye You remind me still that spirit is nigh II. New Moon Phase The first phase in the moon’s cycle is new moon. It represents the winter of birthing--the beginning of a journey, as well as the pivotal space between each end and new beginning known as change. The new moon corresponds with all of the beginnings and transitions in our lives, which require hope, for without a quiet and courageous will to succeed, we might become stagnant and yield to despair. The strength of the new moon’s determination compels us to plan and to resolve, to gather our strength and to organize our tools and supplies that we might set out on any leg of our journey prepared for the adventure that lies ahead. III. New Moon Link The life stage linked with the new moon is infancy. The newborn child arrives in this world cold and afraid, with much anxiety and commotion surrounding her birth. What is new, is always somewhat frightening, yet very much intriguing as well. Winter is a time of hopeful anticipation, waiting to see what springtime holds, planning and preparing for that warming season. Winter holds in its belly the seeds that spring will soon shape into blossoms. New moons are such seeds, full of hope and anticipation for what is to come. New moons plan and prepare, consider, and set goals for themselves, that the sum of their preparations might have fruitful results. This the heart of new moon phasework. IV. New Moon Power The power of the new moon is hope. Hope is our primary strength--our wellspring, our source, and our foundation. It is the natural energy source that fuels our spirit’s fire, enabling us to persevere in all of our pursuits. Hope incites us to dream and generates ambition, kindling our drive to succeed and find joy. Fear is its greatest threat. While fear turns down the heat, placing dreams on the backburner to simmer, hope can always counteract. When we turn up hope’s flame high enough for long enough, it eventually causes dreams to boil over, right out of the pot and onto the flame itself. Here dreams turn to stream and permeate the air, never to be contained again. The secret to hope's power is knowing that we have it in endless stores that we can tap at will. The greatest hindrance to our journey’s forward progress is a lack of hope or hopeful thoughts and the presence of fear or fearful thoughts. When we allow fearful thoughts to steal our hope, our strength flees with it. Just as when we feel weak, hope drains from our being and we question our ability to endure. But, with every positive, life-giving thought we hold in mind and every bit of loving support we give to ourselves along the journey, we build hope’s strength within us. We empower ourselves by saying that we can and will succeed in accomplishing our goals and dreams, as much to ourselves as to others. We know that only we can catch our fearful thoughts and replace them with hopeful ones. And so, whenever we find ourselves in the midst of doubt, we stop and consider that we are truly the only ones limiting ourselves. For, no matter what we hear with our ears, we are the voice in our own mind. V. New Moon Pursuit Corresponding with the "C" in CHANDRIA, Moon Maidens consider the outcome before taking action. We often regret our actions, either immediately or down the road, when we perform them without first considering the effects they will have on both ourselves and others. Chandria teaches us to make decisions that are aligned with the ideals of our truest self, long before we find ourselves in situations that require the corresponding action. This way, we minimize missteps and ensure consistent progress on our chosen course. VI. New Moonthly Ritual The new moonthly ritual focuses on building the power of hope and engaging in the pursuit of considering. To conduct this ritual, follow the standard format provided in the Ritual book, substituting the suggested verses and practices that follow in the ready, render, and reflect sections. Remember always that all aspects of Chandrian ritual are optional and suggested and should be adapted and personalized to suit our needs. Color-cladding: Dress in white or off-white. (Optional) Ware-laying: Ring the standard with a white ribbon and/or place a piece of clear quartz in the new moon phase. (Optional) Mood-making: Convene in darkness and silence, but commune in light to music without lyrics that has a steady beat. Use energizing scents such as ginger and juniper. (Optional) VI.A. Ready Offering: Send the gift of hope 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 earnest new moon prayer Send your hope-strong will my way To help me chart my course this newborn day VI.B. Render Focusing: Offer the following verse under the sign of focus: By the dawning light of the newborn moon This path I lay before me To guide my steps this moonthly way And troubles, most, foresee I take my pen in hand and write My way through thick and thin That all my steps be forward bound And not fall where I’ve been During the heart of the new moonthly ritual, we generate our Strides Twinklings or complete the Milepost Phasework, depending on the amount of time we have for out ritual. VI.C. Reflect After closing the ritual according to the instructions in the Ritual book, we take a few minutes to reflect, making a few notes about the ritual experience or just jotting down our present thoughts, collecting everything in our Chandrian Chronicle. VII. Milepost Phasework Chandrians consider their goals to be mileposts along the journey. The Milepost Phasework directs us to evaluate our goals and update the course we have charted for ourselves through them. We set long term goals, short term goals, and take concrete steps toward achieving them. VII.A. Long Term Goals Our long term goals forecast one or more years from today, and provide direction for our journey. These goals apply to some general area of our life, such as school, career, family, or personal interest that we can and do intend to accomplish in this lifetime. Long term goals and dreams often begin to overlap but the goals should be more specific. During each new moon, we renew or update at least four (4) of our long term goals, (renewing our circlet and updating our circlet key as appropriate) by completing this sentence and visualizing having already accomplished the goal as soon as we write it down... In the year(s) to come, I will... VII.B. Short Term Goals Short-term goals forecast months from today and provide us with more specific direction. These goals may pertain to performance in an upcoming event, scoring well on a school project, or befriending a new girl at school. They are generally attainable goals that we work to achieve through concrete planning within the next moonth or so. During each new moon, we identify at least four (4) short term goals (renewing our circlet and updating our circlet key as appropriate) by completing this sentence and visualizing having already accomplished the goal as soon as we write it down... This moonth, I will... VII.C. Concrete Steps In order to accomplish the goals we have set for ourselves, we need to make some specific plans and then follow through on them. We strive never to leave a goal in mind or on paper without identifying at least one concrete step we can take right now or very soon toward achieving it. During each new moon, we identify at least eight concrete steps we can take now or within the next moonth toward achieving our goals. Throughout the moonth, we revisit our Milepost Phasework and note the additional steps we have taken toward our goals. To help me accomplish this goal, I will... VIII. Twinklings around the New Moon The twinklings around new moon are called Strides. Strides are brief meditations during which we work to generate answers or responses to our considerations. We can generate twinklings anytime, anywhere around new moon simply by considering the concrete steps we have taken toward our goals and dreams and evaluating where they have gotten us, or what progress we have made toward them. If we have not taken any steps, we consider what is holding us back and how me might overcome any hindrances.