April's Full Moon in Sidereal Libra

Pink Moon or Seed Moon, both celebrate the blossoming of Spring

Apr 25, 2024

*Art by Lizzy Spikes of Driftwood Designs*

what didn’t you do to bury me

but you forgot that I was a seed

~Dinos Christianopoulos

We have just collectively experienced the April Full Moon which many in the northern hemisphere, particularly on instagram, call the Pink Moon, even though many probably don’t know why.

Folklore surrounding the names of full moons often originate from indigenous cultures. The names given to full moons reflect the natural rhythms of the season and the activities or observations by indigenous peoples about where they live during each lunar cycle.

The origins of the Pink Moon trace back to the Algonquin tribes of the eastern North America who lived in harmony with the natural world and observed the abundance of pink wildflower phlox that flourish across the land with the arrival of Spring.

Pink Moon named after Phlox that grows in abundance in spring in North America

Just as I am fascinated by the varying stories that Western and Vedic Astrologers weave around the moon being in different constellations according to whichever system they are committed to, it is also interesting to observe the popularisation of the different names and themes for each of the full moons.

So which is most authentic? Is it the Pink Moon or the Seed Moon, Budding Moon or the Egg Moon? I propose that all have their place in our collective consciousness and it is possible to tune into a common theme that flows through all names given to celebrate Grandmother Moon’s magnificence. Just as I believe there is space for both Western Tropical Astrology (who say this full moon is in Scorpio) and Vedic Sidereal Astrology (who say this full moon is in Libra) to provide different perspectives. Students of both systems will find ways to harness the lunar energies with the same objective of supporting their search for a deeper unifying connection into their true nature.

Through my daily yoga and meditation practice my svadyaya (self study) has taken me on an investigation of my ancestors of blood (my lineage is rooted in Wales and Ireland on my mother line and the North of England on my father line), land (spirits who lived where I live now in East Anglia) and time (my soul’s previous incarnations). I celebrate all of my ancestors and through ritual give thanks for their support as a spirit team who once walked this Earth before me, and whose shoulders I stand upon.

As a spiritual practitioner, the lunar cycle is central to my way of living with more heartfelt intention and authenticity. As the daughter of academics who studied sociology and anthropology I am conscious of cultural appropriation and the prevailing colonial mindset that is currently being dismantled.

Living in the home of my Welsh grandmother Harriet Mair Tahany, which she named Tegfan, translating it as ‘happy place” in her mother tongue, and being seen as a moon worshipper by all who know me, I was delighted when my sister gave me a beautiful print of the moons of 2023 as drawn by the artist Lizzie Spikes (pictured below)

I love that Lizzie is based in Aberystwyth, a town that I visited as a child during the summer holidays spent with my grandma, who we affectionately called Mummy T.
I loved Lizzie’s artwork so much that I decided to get multiple copies of her 2024 Lunar calendar as a print and tea towel (that makes an excellent tarot cloth) as gifts for my nearest and dearest and greeting cards for all of my yoga clients.

Each year the moons land in a different part of the month, so it makes sense for them to be called different things depending on their timing. Here is Lizzie’s 2024 version:

This 2024 print is particularly special to me because it shows that this year my brother has a full moon on his birthday in April (Seed Moon), my Dad has a full moon on his birthday in June (Moon of Horses) and my sister and I (who my Dad calls the magical twins born 28 years apart) have a Harvest Moon on our birthday in October.

Seed Moon in Sidereal Libra

Having first been drawn into the study of Western Astrology I can see how it is possible for the heliocentric tropical zodiac to resonate on a macro level for everyone born under a particular Sun sign. However, all will find when they get their sidereal birth chart done their Sun sign is 24 degrees earlier than where a tropical chart says it is.

After discovering my true sidereal birth chart, I resonate much more with the forecasts for my ascendant and moon sign, which are much more significant in Vedic Astrology. I feel strongly that as the divine feminine is rising it is a natural evolution for humanity to reclaim our synchronicity with the cosmic energies as we are actually feel them here on Earth. It just makes more sense to my whole being that if we are to harness the constant fluctuations in the atmosphere based on where the planets are in the sky, we must follow exactly where they are now, versus where they were when Ptolemy established the tropical zodiac based on the fixed starting points of Aries and Libra seasons timed with the spring and autumn equinoxes.

Therefore I use my star gazing app to track which constellations the planets are travelling through. You can see from these screenshots taken when the moon was peaking last night, that she was in sidereal Libra, in the portion of the sky called Swati Nakshatra. Swati is ruled by the Hindu God of Air and Wind named Vayu, source of all breath and divine messenger of all of the Gods. This energy can be harnessed for scattering seeds of intention and transformation. Of course, I loved connecting the dots between the Celtic Seed Moon and the Hindu deity Vayu, imagining him blowing winds of change, scattering truth so all can see more clearly, fuelling a big awakening and call for justice from across the planet.

Hanuman Jayantri

Vayu is also the father of Hanuman, the flying monkey God whose birthday coincides with this April full moon, the first one following of the Hindu Luni-Solar New Year which started after the solar eclipse that rocked the world on 8/9 April (depending where you are in the world).

Astronomically, the Full Moon’s peak is always an exact moment in time, but for us here on Earth, the Moon will look and feel full for about a day before and after the pivotal moment.

Whether we are tuned in to the lunar cycle or not, we all may be affected by her magnetic energy in the waxing phase for 2 weeks from the new moon up until when she peaks. Now that she is waning towards a dark moon and new moon, over the next 2 weeks the energies are repellent, making it an excellent time to release anything that doesn’t serve us.

Reflecting on the energies of this full moon, when we gathered in circle in my yoga studio this week, we each pulled three cards from the cards circling the altar for a tarot reading with the following journal prompts:

How is this full moon showing you where to scatter your energy in a way that serves you and the collective?
What is this full moon asking you to tune in and feel to heal?
How can this full moon bring you more into alignment with your soul purpose?