Full Moon Releasea ritual of letting go, given to water

Begin here

Why release in the light?

At the full moon, the Earth sits between the sun and the moon, and the whole face we can see is lit. It rises at sunset and sets at sunrise, keeping watch all night. Nothing is hidden at the full moon. That is exactly why it's a good night for honesty.

The new moon is for asking. The full moon is for seeing what came of the asking, saying thank you for it, and letting go of whatever no longer fits. After tonight the moon begins to wane, giving a little of its light back each night. You can do the same.

You were never meant to carry
every month you've ever lived.
Put some of it down.

Release isn't the same as giving up. It is making room. The things you set down tonight are often the very things standing between you and what you asked for at the dark moon.

What you'll need

Gather a few small things

• A bowl of waterThe heart of this ritual. Glass or something pale is lovely, so you can watch what happens in it.
• A candleWhite or silver for the full moon, or any candle you love. A battery candle works too.
• Small slips of paper and a washable markerWashable ink loosens and drifts in water. That is the spell.
• A clean jar with a lidFor moon water, if you'd like to keep some of tonight's light.
• Something you're grateful forA flower, a stone, a photo, a note. Anything that stands for what grew this month.

Give yourself twenty to thirty minutes. If you can see the moon from a window or step outside, wonderful. If it's cloudy, the full moon is still there. You don't need to see it to keep company with it.

The Ritual

Eight steps into the light

1. I

   Find the moon. Step outside or stand at a window, and simply look for a minute.

   Before you do anything, let yourself be seen by it. Notice how much light it throws across the ground.

2. II

   Set your bowl where the moonlight can reach it, light the candle, and mark a circle with one finger around them both.

   The circle says: for this little while, this is a room for letting go.

3. III

   Begin with thanks. Hold your gratitude object and name three things that grew since the new moon, even small ones.

   Release goes more gently when it starts with gratitude. You are not only losing things tonight. You are also harvesting.

4. IV

   If you wrote a letter at the new moon, read it now, out loud if you can.

   Some of it will have come true. Some of it won't have yet. Both are allowed. Let the letter tell you what still matters.

5. V

   On your slips of paper, in washable marker, write what you're ready to release. One thing per slip.

   A habit, a fear, a grudge, a version of yourself that was right for a while. Keep the words short. (The prompts below can help.)

6. VI

   Read each slip aloud, then lay it in the water, words down. Watch the ink loosen and drift.

   Water has always been how we carry things away. You don't have to make the words disappear. You only have to let them go soft.

7. VII

   Fill your jar with clean water, cap it, and set it by the window overnight.

   Moon water is an old, simple practice. Use it to water your plants, rinse your hands before your morning practice, or add it to a bath this week.

8. VIII

   Close the circle. Thank the moon, trace the circle the other way, and snuff the candle. In the morning, pour the release water onto bare earth, and put the paper in the compost or the trash.

   Don't keep what you released. Giving it back to the ground is how you tell your body it's truly gone.

After the ritual

Resting through the waning

For the next two weeks the moon gives a little of its light back each night. It is a good season for rest, clearing, and finishing, rather than starting.

1. I

   Clear one physical thing this week.

   A drawer, a closet shelf, an inbox. What you released inside often wants an outside echo.

2. II

   Use your moon water.

   Each time you do, remember the night you made it and what you gave away.

3. III

   Notice when the old thing tries to come back.

   It usually does, at least once. Don't scold it. Just say, gently, "I already let you go," and keep walking.

4. IV

   Meet the dark moon again.

   When the moon goes dark, the cycle begins again with the New Moon Ritual.

Other ways in

When eight steps is too many

Let it go soft, love.
The water knows the way.Wander wisely, wild one · Kelli