Rare and Powerful January 6 Full Moon Occurs During Epiphany
Why the First Full Moon of 2023 Will Bring Us Amazing Discoveries and Realizations
Please note that this and all my other forecasts are based on the sidereal zodiac used in both Vedic and Western sidereal astrology, not the tropical system used by most Western and some Vedic astrologers. All the astrological charts below are calculated according to the sidereal zodiac and Lahiri Ayanamsa.
The first Full Moon of 2023 will be on Friday, January 6 at 6:08 PM EST. You can use World Time Buddy to convert to your own time zone if it is different. Every year, January 6 marks the Christian “Day of Light” known as Epiphany. Although this "Day of Light" always occurs on January 6, it is unusual for Epiphany to coincide with the Full Moon.
Epiphany: The Culmination of the Twelve Holy Days of Christmas
Epiphany is also known as Epiphaneia, which means “a manifestation or striking appearance." It is also known as Theophany or Τheophaneia, meaning “Vision of God.” It is the culmination of the Twelve Holy Days and Thirteen Holy Nights of Christmas.
Epiphany celebrates the perfect manifestation of the divinity through Christ who appeared before the Magi (Wise Men) after their long journey and search. Many historians believe that the Magi were actually astrologers, but that is not the most important point of the story.
In his book titled The Second Coming of Christ, Paramahansa Yogananda shares the allegorical meaning of the story of the Magi:
When the Wise Men saw a star intimating to them the birth of Christ, they were beholding through the wisdom star of infinite perception in their spiritual eye where the Christ Consciousness was newly manifested in the body of infant Jesus.
The esoteric process of the Twelve Holy Days and Thirteen Holy Nights of Christmas ending on Epiphany has been quite beautifully described by Anthroposophist, teacher, and author Claudia McLaren Lainson:
We descend, as soul seeds, into the earthly depths to gather the spiritual forces we will need if we are to meet the trials that await us in the coming year. In these blessed nights we are reminded that all suffering is brought about by our false beliefs. Our hearts are granted new forces, engendering the courage we need to face our trials with equanimity of soul and stalwartness of spirit. By living into the wonders now unveiling within these new mysteries, we prepare ourselves to better serve peace in the world. (Starlight Christmas 2015, Sophia Foundation)
Christian celebrations are observed on Epiphany, and sometimes on the Twelfth Night before. These traditional religious practices include the sanctification of holy water, holy water blessings, and special house blessings. As an example, some householders write the letters C, M, and B along with the numerals of the new year (such as “2023”) at the top of the front door to their homes. These letters stand for the names of the three Magi: Caspar, Melchior, and Balthasar.
The Power of the Full Moon in the Auspicious Punarvasu Nakshatra
Spiritual practices and house blessings will be even more powerful this year since Epiphany will occur on the Full Moon, which is in itself a wonderful day for rituals like energy clearing and healing, meditation, ceremony, empowerment, and prayer.
This month’s Full Moon occupies the playful, communicative, and creative Gemini constellation, in the auspicious nakshatra (lunar sign) of Punarvasu. Known as the “Star of Renewal,” Punarvasu spans from 20 degrees of Gemini to three degrees and 20 minutes of Cancer.
The name “Punarvasu” means "made new again,” or “the return of the light,” as “punar” is Sanskrit for “again or repeat”; and “vasu” is a Sanskrit word for “a jewel, ray of light, and goodness.”
During Full Moons, significant matters often “come to light” or “into full bloom.” This is even truer now as the Full Moon occupies Punarvasu nakshatra, and also as the meaning of “epiphany” refers to an illuminating discovery, disclosure, or realization.
A Time to Channel the Divine Aum Frequency
The Full Moon in Punarvasu nakshatra evokes feelings of nurturing and contentment. Aditi, ruler of Punarvasu, is the unbounded sky goddess who connects us with the akasha tattva, the divine fifth element of ether (spirit).
I refer to this Full Moon as the “Aum Moon” (or “Om Moon”) because both Aditi and Punarvasu are associated with the divine Aum frequency. In God Talks with Arjuna: The Bhagavad Gita, Paramahansa Yogananda describes this energy:
The Aum frequency is the intelligent cosmic energy that issues forth from God, and is the manifestation of God, the creator and substance of all matter. This holy vibration is the link between matter and Spirit.
A Meditation to Perform on the “Aum Moon”
If you have an opportunity to meditate on the Full Moon on either Thursday or Friday night (January 5th or 6th), I highly recommend it. Just find a quiet place where you will not be disturbed, preferably facing east and sitting on a woolen blanket. Close your eyes, take some deep cleansing breaths, and then slowly and gently focus your inner gaze up toward your third eye in the forehead, where you might envision (hold an image) of the white orb of a bright Full Moon glowing ever so exquisitely:
ॐ Chant aloud the Aum sound for about 5-10 minutes, all the while focusing your inner gaze toward the light of the Full Moon in your mind's eye.
ॐ Then very, very quietly, almost in a whisper, chant Aum for 5-10 minutes, still focusing on the lunar orb in your forehead.
ॐ Next, take the sound all the way inside yourself for 5-10 or more minutes (repeating it inwardly only), continuing to hold the inner image of the Moon's light in your brow center.
ॐ Afterward, rest quietly and listen to the inner sounds that might arise, and bask in the divine rejuvenating currents of light and sound energy flowing through you.
As Paramahansa Yogananda says:
Meditation on the Aum is the way to realize the true Spirit-essence of all creation. By inwardly following the sound of pranava [the Aum frequency] to its source, the yogi’s consciousness is carried aloft to God.
Happy Epiphany! I hope you are blessed by this amazing soma-licious Full Moon! May the divine light of wisdom and truth grow brighter and brighter in all of us every day!
The journeying is long.
The way lies through wasted desert land,
yet grace is in the very seeking.
With each step the star's light
burns deeper into my heart
and fills me with its searing brightness
till all of me is aglow with its fire...
Yes, grace lies upon the edges of this long journey,
and time to prepare the heart...
Look deeper as the star's light shines upon this Truth
and dispels the gloomy darkness…
(Excerpt from Journey by Starlight by Jeanne Kun)
Aum 🕉️💖
Especially beautiful post.