March Dark Moon 2023 - Open up to creativity & transformation!

Hello Moonchild :)

I missed you the last Full Moon. I was wrapping up after a flurry of activity at Rishikesh where I was part of the facilitating team of the world's first ever Shakti Kumbh :) I must say the last Full Moon brought some things to fruition and peaked a few realizations for me! How was it for you? Write in to me and let me know - I'm curious.

This Amavasya or Dark Moon is specially auspicious. Falling on a Tuesday on March 21, it is also called the Bhaumvati Amavasya. In India, this precedes the Chaitra or Vasant Navratri from March 22-30 (9 days of worship/sadhana - an opportunity to go within to establish ourselves in the divine energy.)*. This is the New Year according to our Lunar calendar. It is also the spring equinox in the Northern hemisphere.

The invitation for this Dark moon is to surrender to the auspicious, transformative energy of the time. Touch your intuition, unearth your latent, true potential to get steered in a direction that brings magical gifts in the form of awakenings, realizations and manifestations. This time can push you to take risks and even change course completely - be aware of that, trust the process, go with the flow.

WHAT CAN YOU DO?

Step 1

Journaling as a reflection practice

- Sit down, close eyes and feel a deep connect with Mother Earth.

- Visualize a Dark Moon in your eyebrow centre for a few breaths

- Put pen to paper and write down two incidents/situations that made you feel inspired and motivated, filled your heart and had an outcome of joy/deep fulfilment/exhilaration/enjoyment.

Situation 1: From your growing up years

Situation 2: From your adult life

Remember to write from the heart, without inhibitions, and as it happened.

-Read what you have written and feel everything associated with it. Close your eyes, hold this to your heart with a smile :)

Step 2

Connecting with your authenticity

- Place your palm on the lower belly. Stay here for 21 breaths.

- Place your palm on the heart. Stay here for 21 breaths.

- Remove the palm, breathe normally, observe sensations, emotions, thoughts that may surface.

- Bring to mind what you wrote earlier. Reflect on how much of it and in what way can you introduce it into your current life. The incidents/situations could be carrying seeds of change, they could be an inspirational direction for something new - as a life changing big step or even as a serious hobby that holds potential for growth. So wholly welcome the thoughts and ideas that come from this process without any judgements.

Step 3

Journaling to gather insights and explore the way forward

- Start writing using one of the prompts below

'I am inspired to...' or

'I am being called upon to...'

'I feel the need to...'

Write continuously without stopping for 5 minutes. It is likely that one practice does not reveal much. What is important is that you write without pausing to think. Allow the words to flow from within, directly to the paper without the mind intercepting it. Read this after writing. If any action points have surfaced, underline them and decide to start work on them from the next day. If not, the recommendation is to repeat the whole practice for another two days. Like I always say, inner work takes time :)

If you would like a guided practice to unlock your creativity, here's a Svadisthana chakra practice video I made a while ago that can help you.

Wish you a deep and soulful practice!

Hugs, love & gratitude

Sheetal

*Information courtesy the Devipuram sisters, Radha & Rama who are a repository of wisdom on the Devi and everything associated with this divine feminine energy in Indian culture and tradition.