There is a full moon in Scorpio coming up on May 18th at 4:11pm, which is Saturday coming up of this week. This is an amazing time to do a full moon ritual. Full moons are already a time where emotions and sensitivities are already heightened, it is a good time to take to ground yourself and release some of the emotions you may be feeling. There are some really ancient rituals that have been done for 1000s of years. A lot of different astrologers and healers use these types of things to help people with the difficulties of life. You can do a ritual for all kinds of different things but some popular times to commit to doing a ritual is during new moons, full moons and during the equinoxes and solstices. If you really enjoy doing them then you can start to do a ritual for other things you need in life. It can be very therapeutic. The power of manifestation is a crazy thing and that’s why these rituals are important.

The full moon will be in the water element of Scorpio. Scorpio is ruled by Pluto the planet of death, rebirth and transformation. They are arguably one of the most intense signs in the zodiac. They are highly intuitive and very sensitive/emotional. However they are very capable of appearing strong and putting up a front that they have it together a lot more than they do. They like control. There is a definite dark side to Scorpio naturally. They are attracted to the occult, death, sex, any taboo subject they generally have a great interest in. They can handle the darker side. Although they are attracted to the darkness they are not bad or evil in fact this is the kind of friend you need in your life. This is the sign you want to have either for yourself or in your life to assist you when you are going through the darker side of life. They are fiercely loyal as a fixed sign. They value their relationships almost to the point of obsessive and possessive. They can be quite jealous and sometimes paranoid. They can sometimes feel like people belong to them. They are intensely passionate in a love relationship. You never want to cross a Scorpio. Not only do they sting back hard but they will hold a grudge until the end of time. Stubborn and hard of letting things go. Their sister sign is in Taurus so if there is any time to do a full moon ritual I would say it is now because of the sun being in Taurus. This is a good time to focus on themes such as letting go of that rigid control you have on certain things, transformation, maybe you are changing and certain things are holding you back, let them go. You will get real this weekend, there is going to be no bullshit with you baring your soul, true feelings and truth. Think a snake shedding its skin to transform into something more powerful and beautiful or a phoenix rising from the ashes. I always find Scorpio full moons to be the most intense but we are lucky because the sun is still in Taurus which balances out that intensity with her serene, grounded and steady energy. I wouldn't be surprised if some crazy sex scandal was revealed.

Whereas we perform new moon rituals to set wishes and intentions for the month ahead of you, the reason we do a full moon ritual is to let go of things that no longer serve you. This could be attitudes, emotions, personal relationships, bad habits, illnesses. Anything you can think of that is negatively impacting your life. Things that have been hidden can also be revealed. Revelations and people being exposed. You can count on it for a full moon. I like to burn my full moon ritual intentions. It can be very symbolic and healing. You can also interpret the way your paper burns, so if your intentions light up instantly and burn the paper completely you have truly let go or maybe the fire fades quickly and only burns off a corner, what do you think that is telling you? Focus on the flames. For the purposes of this full moon I will also be adding an element of water to include the Scorpio symbolism. Using my bowl of water while I chant to the moon.

You have 3 days before the new moon to perform this ritual or 3 days after.

1) Gather any and all supplies that you will need for the ritual. Incense such as patchouli or You can use sage to smudge beforehand, I will be using Palo Santos as I was recently gifted some and it seems very fitting. You will need some crystals (labradorite, turquoise, malachite, clear quartz and selenite are good choices), a pen, a journal to write, a bowl to smudge in or burn intentions, a bowl of water and a white or black candle.

2) Create yourself a special alter space for all the items that you have gathered. It doesn’t matter where your alter space is, it can be any table in the house or on the floor, wherever you feel most comfortable. Decorate with items such as crystals, plants, candles, things you find outside in nature like leaves or feathers, decorative table runners, anything you can really think of that seems appropriate. For Scorpio I would add some dark elements like black candles, maybe anything spooky related

3) Start by smudging your alter space and say a little prayer. It can be along the lines of “I respect mother moon and all she does for us. I plan to release that which no longer serves me. I do this to heal myself from past traumas and to fully let go and move forward.“ Write down your past traumas and the things that we wish to let go of focus on them, meditate on them. What do you wish for your life? Can you actually picture these things happening to and for you in your life? Letting go WILL NOT work if you truly don’t believe it. It’s important to be clear on what you want. You can doodle and make your intentions “pretty” or it can be as simple as writing a list.

4) Light your candle and put your crystals in the bowl of water. You want to charge the water and cleanse yourself after burning your intentions. Use melted snow that has been charged from the moon. Hold your intentions over the other bowl and using the candle light them on fire. Like I have already said you will want to analyze how they burn, even take a picture or video to look back on later.

5) At this time you can take some time for yourself however you wish, write down your interpretations of the flame burning, further meditation, possibly a tarot reading if you do that, you can even enjoy a glass of wine. Tell the moon you love her, clean up your space and now is a good time to put your crystals in a window sill to charge under the light of the full moon. You have just completed your full moon ritual. Now can be a good time to take a detox bath. Use bath salts, flowers, crystals and maybe even a charcoal mud mask to help detoxify and destress.

I hope you guys enjoy doing this ritual and can find some peace or healing that you may be needing in life. I also hope you can take some time to appreciate all that is good in your life. Just like the oceans’ tides that ebb and flow as does the moon wax and wane and although emotions can be heightened during the full moon you will soon feel back to your normal self and ready to tackle a whole new month/moon cycle. On the 18th I will put out my Full Flower Moon in Scorpio. There is a new moon in Gemini on the 3rd of June so stay tuned for my blog post on what to expect.