Along my ongoing quest to better understand the patterns of lunar cycles according to zodiacal pairings (read more here) and Lunar Leadership (read more here), my study required a look at the larger patterns of Blue and Black Moons, and how those special triads of lunar events switched the order of Full and Dark moons within pairings. That’s when I took the deep dive into the Soli-Lunar Metonic cycle, and the patterns of how the sun and moon align throughout the two calendars. Then I stumbled upon a mysterious future Yule night of 2052, when wyrdness may fall, and the dark lunar goat goes missing…
The Metonic Cycle
I first learned of the Metonic Cycle as a larger Soli-Lunar cycle of celestial influence thanks to a graphic on page 188 of the book Practical Astrology for Witches and Pagans, by the dearest of all witch astrologers, Ivo Dominguez, Jr.
This is what Encyclopedia Brittanica has to say about it. “The most significant of all the early attempts to provide some commensurability between a religious lunar calendar and the tropical year was the Metonic cycle.”[1] This 19-year lunisolar interval of time was devised by Athenian astronomer Meton in 432 BCE. With help from another Athenian astronomer, Euctemon, they observed the equinoxes, and how often the phases of the moon align with the day of the solar year exactly.[2]
The Golden Year is the first year of the 19-year Metonic cycle, determined as the first Dark Moon of the calendar year falling on January 1. (what astronomers call the New Moon, but by witching terminology, we’re talking about the Dark Moon in conjunction with the sun.) The phases of the moon then recur on the same dates as other golden number years.[3] However, those phases do not necessarily repeat in the same zodiac signs, as that isn’t the purpose of what the Metonic cycle is tracking. However, both the phase and the sign of the moon was the pattern that I wanted to see.
Over those 19 solar years there are 235 lunations. Lunation is another word for a synodic month. By modern methods of computation, a Metonic cycle of 235 lunations takes 6,939 days, 16.5 hours. By comparison, 19 solar years takes 6,939 days, 14.5 hours. This is a difference of only 2 hours. [4]
This lunar calendar “gave an average length for the tropical year of 365.25 days, a much-improved value …. and was so successful that it formed the basis of the calendar adopted in the Seleucid empire (Mesopotamia) and was used in the Jewish calendar and the calendar of the Christian church; it also influenced Indian astronomical teaching.”[5]
Tracking Lunar Cycles through the Years
This is important to my practice of Lunar Witchcraft because it determines Blue and Black Moons within the Sun’s zodiac periods (not calendar months, as has mistakenly confused this terminology sine the 1940’s read more here.) Those extra Blue and Black Moons switch the order of lunar leadership within the six, thematic lunar pairings, which form axes of consciousness we can explore.
Just for reference the signs are paired across the wheel from each other as such: Aries ♉︎ and Libra ♎︎; Taurus ♉︎ and Scorpio ♏︎; Gemini ♊︎ and Sagittarius ♐︎; Cancer ♋︎ and Capricorn ♑︎; Leo ♌︎ and Aquarius ♒︎; Virgo ♍︎ and Pisces ♓︎.
Cold Moon Lunation
For example, at the moment of this article’s first posting we’ve just begun the Cold Moon Lunation. By zodiacal pairing, the magick that can evolve human consciousness during this time lies along the Axis of Security, balancing the needs of our public and work life (Capricorn), as opposed to the needs of our home and family life (Cancer.) I wrote more about the zodiacal pairings in this article.
This lunation spans the roughly 2 week waxing period leading up to the Cold Full Moon, and the roughly 2 week waning period afterward. So, we utilize both the Full Moon in the opposite sign of Cancer, AND the Dark Moon conjunct the Sun in Capricorn to reveal our needs along that axis, and work to heal that divide in our lives.
However, which of those magickal moments comes first? Some years the Dark Moons lead the pairing, and other years the Full Moon leads the pairing. I wrote about Lunar Leadership in this article.
Metonic Cycle meets Lunar Leadership Patterns
To study these patterns further, I compiled the three tables you’ll find at the end of this article. They track three 19-year Metonic Lunar Cycles, mapping lunar phases to the civil calendar dates by year, and Eastern Time Zone. You’ll see that the Golden Number year #1 has the first Dark Moon (Sun and Moon conjunct) of the calendar year falling on January 1st. Note that the sign in which the Dark moon may be conjunct on January 1st, can be either Capricorn or Aquarius, depending on the order of lunar leadership at that time. Although the Metonic Cycle doesn’t much care about concepts like lunar leadership, or finding which years have Blue or Black moons, I created these tables as a study in how these patterns overlay with each other.
On these tables I’ve included at the end of the article, I proposed the following terminology:
- Standard Lunar year: a solar year with twelve Full and twelve Dark Moons; with one of each in each zodiac sign.
- Blue Moon year: a solar year with thirteen Full Moons and twelve dark moons; two Full Moons falling within one zodiac sign, the extra being the thirteenth Blue Moon. After which, leadership within the lunar pairing switches to being “Dark Moon led.”
- Black Moon year: a solar year with thirteen Dark Moons and twelve Full Moons; two Dark Moons falling within one zodiac sign, the extra being the thirteenth Black Moon. After which, leadership within the lunar pairing switches to “Full Moon led.”
Observations
After tracking all of this information for 3 cycles I observed that golden years are typically standard years, except for 2052, which is a black moon year. But there is a very strange thing that happens at the turning of 2052-2053 that messes up the pattern. We’ll get back to that…
The 19 year pattern seems to hold with 4 sets of 4 alternating patterns, and the first three years of a fifth. Then golden years restart at standard (typically.) Standard years alternate between lunar leadership.The sets fall as such: [standard, black, blue, black] [standard, blue, black, blue] [standard, black, blue, black] [standard, blue, black, blue] [standard, black, blue] Note the colors of the rows in the tables at the end of the article for that pattern.
The span of time between Blue and Black Moon cycles typically ranges between 12 and 20 lunations. Except for the weirdness of 2052-2053…
Lost Yule Dark Moon in Capricorn of 2052
OK, now for the break in the pattern I’m trying to figure out. I made the following graphic to show the information I’m basing these question upon. The screen caps are from astro-seek.com, with times and dates set for Eastern Time Zone.
In 2052, three minutes before the the Sun enters Capricorn, which is the exact moment of winter solstice, the Dark Moon meets perfect conjunction with the Sun in Sagittarius. So, that Dark moon in Sagittarius only waned for 3 minutes before the conjunction in the same sign as the sun ended. I realize that would be different in other parts of the world, but over my neck of the woods here in North Carolina (USA), its exact conjunction definitely falls in Sagittarius, and that is the rule by which I judge these things, magickally speaking.
Now, from my graphic above, continue to look at the patterns of lunar pairings before and afterwards. From what I can tell, this mysterious solstice night of both solar and lunar darkness means that there will be no proper Dark Moon Conjunction in Capricorn at all that year! The Full Moon in Cancer (January 4, 2053 @12:45 ET) will follow, but I’m calling that full moon a “stray” because it’s Dark Moon partner will never happen. Unless we somehow count that Solstice Dark Moon as both Sagittarius AND Capricorn, which I don’t.
Does this foretell some mythical, apocalyptic story of the Sag Archer hunting down the Cap Goat and consuming it at an ill-fated feast or something? What prophecies could be divined from this astrology? Someone needs to write a spoopy YA witchy fiction about the future night the dark lunar goat disappears!
Whatever else it might mean, that stray Cold Full Moon shifts the whole pattern back to Dark Moon leadership for only two lunations. Then 2053 has a second Black Moon cycle in Aries, switching it back again, and leaving the unusual occurrence of two Black Moon years in a row. However, this missing dark moon isn’t the same situation as a blue or black moon changing the leadership. There isn’t a triad or a second, additional auspicious night. There is one too few and a stray, un-tethered Full Moon. Do we count the switching of leadership the same way? All this feels a bit foreboding to me, just for the chaos that disruptions to patterns tend to bring.
Questions to the Witchery
What kind of juicy magick is possible when that Dark Moon meets the Yule Sun that night? I’d love to know what the predictive astrologers have to say about those tides. I’d love to know your thoughts in the comments! I hope I’m still alive to see it for myself (as a wizened crone of 78.)
Maybe I need to write that story…
Merry Yuletides!
Heron
[1] Ziadeh, N. Abdo , Bickerman, . E.J. , Schmidt, . John D. , Ronan, . Colin Alistair , Proskouriakoff, . Tatiana , Wiesenberg, . E.J. , Buitenen, . J.A.B. van and Lin, . Chao. “calendar.” Encyclopedia Britannica, Access Date November 21, 2022. https://www.britannica.com/science/calendar.
[2] Ziadeh, N. Abdo , Bickerman, . E.J. , Schmidt, . John D. , Ronan, . Colin Alistair , Proskouriakoff, . Tatiana , Wiesenberg, . E.J. , Buitenen, . J.A.B. van and Lin, . Chao. “calendar.” Encyclopedia Britannica, Access Date November 21, 2022. https://www.britannica.com/science/calendar.
[3] Britannica, T. Editors of Encyclopaedia. “golden number.” Encyclopedia Britannica, Access Date November 21, 2022. https://www.britannica.com/science/golden-number.
[4] Britannica, T. Editors of Encyclopaedia. “Metonic cycle.” Encyclopedia Britannica, Access date November 21, 2022. https://www.britannica.com/science/Metonic-cycle.
[5] Ziadeh, N. Abdo , Bickerman, . E.J. , Schmidt, . John D. , Ronan, . Colin Alistair , Proskouriakoff, . Tatiana , Wiesenberg, . E.J. , Buitenen, . J.A.B. van and Lin, . Chao. “calendar.” Encyclopedia Britannica, Access Date November 21, 2022. https://www.britannica.com/science/calendar.
Big Sale at The Sojourner Whole Earth Provisions
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