The Moon's Pull On Weather in Folklore

  The cyclic nature of the moon affects many of the cycles that occur on Earth’s surface. Like the tides that come and go according to the pull of the moon on Earth’s gravity, our moon can affect our food sources. Farmers have long held beliefs about the way that the moon can affect their yields, and the traditions of adhering to these beliefs has resulted in more modern beliefs that consuming food according to the lunar cycle is not only traditional, but also has some health benefits.   The Harvest Moon is probably the most familiar part of the lunar cycle. This annual occurrence has significance in nearly every culture. In the American Midwest, it is sometimes referred to as the “Corn Moon” if it occurs in September; it is the full moon that most closely coincides with the autumn equinox. This full moon allows for more light during the harvest of grains that can be stored in the winter. The light of the harvest moon allows the day of harvesting to last well into the nig...

  The term menses comes from the plural form of the Latin word for month: mensis. So it is no wonder that this term is applied to the natural cycle that occurs in women every 29 days. This length of the cycle is very close to the natural cycle of the moon, which is 29.5 days. This similarity in cycle lengths has resulted in an abundance of folklore on the subject, that many still adhere to today.   To begin, it was very likely that women without calendars relied on the phases of the moon to determine where they were in their menstrual cycle to achieve or avoid pregnancy, and whether or not they are late in their cycle and might be expecting a baby. This reliance on the phases of the moon, along with bodily inconsistencies, may have led to other beliefs that the moon, especially the full moon, affects the menstrual cycle in several ways. These beliefs are so prevalent, that many researchers have invested time and resources globally in efforts to dismiss the myths.  ...

 The full moon has been taken the blame for a slew of things in folk-belief over the years. It is often positioned as an active agent, swaying not only the tides, but the minds, hearts, and even the funds of humankind. It is accused of acting upon us and shaping our world the same way heavy rains and powerful storms may beat upon and shape the soft sediment and soil--in fact, the full moon is said sometimes even to summon these things.   Here, we will be examining how the full moon is positioned within cultural belief as a natural force that acts upon us and within us; we will look at these beliefs, where they occur, and proposition potential links and causes behind these beliefs. We'll gaze at stories, songs, and movies, bits of folk-belief and scientific reactions and studies, all concerning the great, big, mysterious moon that haunts our hearts, our minds, calls the clouds, and disrupts our sleep.  Please check out the links below, and enjoy!

  The Moon and The Occult   The full moon, perhaps more than any other natural body or force, has long been associated with the occult. The moon is associated with beckoning madness and monsters from within the depths of man , with witches, werewolves, divination, and secretive cults. Perhaps this stems from polytheist religions, where many deities associated with the moon were also tied to other, sometimes bloody or secretive aspects. Looking at this list of lunar deities,   seven of the ten selected lunar deities have some association with death. Selene, Diana, Artemis were all associated with the hunt; with taking life. Hecate, Thoth and Alignak are all somehow tied to the dead; Thoth sometimes being charged with weighing their souls, Alignak being responsible for bring the souls of the dead back to the earth to be reborn, and Hecate, associated with the moon through the reappearance of Phobe and her relationship to Artemis, was in charge of the spirit world. ...

  The Full Moon’s Effect on Madness   The moon has long been associated with rising instances of violence, impulsive and animalistic behavior in mankind. It is considered by many to be a natural force that controls not only the tide’s push and pull, but the rise and fall of people’s sanity. The moon is, in fact, the root of our word lunacy, in reference to a period of instability believed to have been initially caused by the moon’s cycle. During the full moon, many were thought to grow unstable, or go through bouts of insanity. Likely, this is related to myths of lycanthropy, that men would turn in to beasts under the light of the full moon. Many beliefs about lycanthropy involve the bite being the cause of the infection, but there are also beliefs that sleeping outside under the light of a full moon can turn a person into a werewolf on its own.   But these beliefs about a causal link between the full moon and instability in human’s psyche are not regulated ju...