What is the lunar calendar and what is it for?

To understand the lunar calendar and how it works First we have to go to the origins and the science on which it is based. This calendar follows the structure of other lunar calendars, but also takes into account the principles of biodynamic agriculture. Let’s go step by step.

How the Moon affects you according to science

Live in tune with natural cycles promotes health and well-being. The 2017 Nobel Prize in Medicine went to doctors Jeffrey C. Hall, Michael Rosbash and Michael W. for discovering details about how the cells of plants, animals and humans adapt their biological rhythm so that it is synchronized with the rotation of the Earth.

We begin to discover the biochemical details of how they influence natural cycles in the body at a cellular level, but humanity has known this reality from experience for thousands of years. In fact, each of us can check it every day.

For example, if a friend’s dog, who has always been playful and sociable, tries to bite you, look at the sky at night and look for the Moon. If it’s a full moon, there’s the explanation: animals bite more frequently in that lunar phase. It is not a superstition, it is the conclusion of an investigation carried out at the Bradford Royal Infirmary hospital (Great Britain) over two years.

And beyond literary and cinematographic myths, of werewolves or covens in the light of the Moon, Some scientific studies have determined its influence on behavior not only plant, but also animal and human. For example, it influences the quality of sleep, with full moon days being the most likely to suffer from insomnia.

This phenomenon, which many considered a popular belief without any basis, has the support of the scientific communitysince it has been shown that the days close to the full Moon the hormone melatonin, secreted by the pineal gland in the brain, decreases significantly in the human body. And that translates, among other consequences, into a decrease in the sleep cycle.

An important study from the Psychiatric Hospital of the University of Basel (Switzerland) showed that We sleep up to 20 minutes less on full moon days. The percentage of deep sleep also plummets and it takes longer to fall asleep.

With these data, the Lunar Calendar It already has a very first use in your life: just by knowing if the full Moon is close you will know if your sleep is going to be of poorer quality on those days.

So if you have an important project to present or an event in which you have to give one hundred percent of your energy and talent, try to choose another more suitable date.

If that is not possible, take into account those effects of the full moon on your night’s rest to go to bed earlier or take a supplement that helps you achieve deeper, more restful sleep.

The influence of the Moon on the Earth

Despite all the scientific studies carried out, the truth is that The influence of the Moon is very difficult to determine.

However, the tidal phenomenon, through which millions of cubic meters of water move daily under the action of our satellite reminds us every day of the magnitude of this influence.

Likewise, it is scientifically proven that the earth crust It is also affected by the phenomenon of tides, whose effect causes a rise of up to 50 cm.

Since in that case The influence of the Moon acts mainly on waterit is quite logical to think that it also influences living beings, which are composed of a high percentage of fluid.

So, plants and animals are very sensitive and receptive to the influence of lunar cycles, while people do not always realize this effect because we live very far from natural rhythms.

Depending on our sensitivity, we will detect that influence to a greater or lesser degree. Although the artificial stimuli of today’s life make it difficult to perceive these cosmic forces, their effects remain real.

There are many People feel more vital, restless or active when there is a full moonas if on those days of maximum lunar illumination they were capable of starting any new project.

How the Lunar Calendar works

Lunar and planetary cycles have an impact on a multitude of areas, but without a doubt the most studied is agriculture, and That is why the Lunar Calendar is so appreciated among horticulture lovers..

Our ancestors looked to the sky to schedule their crops. And they have transmitted to us that wisdom gained over the centuries. His method was empirical: Their only tools were observation and direct experience gained harvest after harvest.

This ancestral knowledge is reflected in a Lunar Calendarsince it reveals the numerous advantages that can be obtained by carrying out some activities following the cycles of the Moon.

But in addition to agriculture and crops, this observation over the millennia becomes applicable to other biological processes. The cellular activity of hair growth, For example, it will be more or less intense depending on the lunar cycles.

It is interesting to take a look at the Lunar Calendar to deciding when to cut our hair if we want it to grow stronger and shiny or on what date and time to shave so that it lasts as long as possible.

Lunar and planetary influences can also be applied with good results in other areas of life. daily life such as, for example, when cutting nails, in skin care, in massages, in the best time to fast, to make fermented foods and even in choosing the day and time of dental or surgical interventions.

Phases of the Moon: how to distinguish them and their influence

If you are interested in following the instructions of the Lunar Calendar, you may like to know a little more about how it works, what its logic is. The moon phase It is one of the basic information of calendars. It is not the only one, as we will see, but it is key. Let’s first resolve some doubts to learn to distinguish them and know how each phase of the Moon influences them according to the principles of the biodynamic lunar calendar.

How do you know if the Moon is waxing or waning?

The crescent moon goes from the New moon to the Full moon. Every day the illuminated surface of the satellite increases and, therefore, the light it reflects. The waning Moon begins with the full Moon and reduces its illuminated surface until it becomes a new Moon.

In the northern hemisphere the Moon grows to the left. Therefore, when it draws a semicircle it reminds us of the letter D. However, in the southern hemisphere it grows to the right and its shape is reminiscent of the letter C.

Although the appearance is different, The lunar phase is the same in both hemispheres. Thus, when we see the images of a Lunar Calendar, the full and new moons are correct in both hemispheres, the indications of the waxing and waning phases, too, but the drawings of the intermediate days should be opposite in the southern hemisphere.

It must also be understood that The drawings are just a guide.more than a reflection of reality, since the real appearance varies at each point on Earth. For example, in Ecuador, the arc of a crescent moon looks more like a «U» than a D or C.

Does a phase start everywhere at the same time?

In lunar calendars the time at which a certain phase begins. For example, the first full Moon of 2024 occurs on Thursday, January 25 at 6:54 p.m. in Madrid.

Of course, this is a local time and must be adapted to each time zone. Thus, in Argentina, the full Moon occurs on the same Thursday, January 25, but at 12:54 p.m.

What happens when the Moon is waxing?

What is important to know is that during the waxing Moon the vitality of plants increases, They have more strength to fight against parasites and diseases. They also transmit more vitality when consumed. And the flowers will stay vibrant longer in a vase.

How does the waning Moon influence?

On the other hand, during the waning Moon, the vitality of plants is reduced. However, Its color, smell and flavor is more intense. They also increase its medicinal properties. But they are more difficult to keep fresh.

It is a favorable period for making preserves and ferments, and for planting roots and tubers, such as radishes, potatoes or beets.

The day of the new moon It is not conducive to activities in the garden, except for working with leafy plants.

Orbit of the Moon: the Moon also rises and falls

Another cycle that lunar and biodynamic calendars take into account is the rise and fall of the Moon. It refers to the height of the moon above the horizon on its journey from when it rises in the east until it sets in the west. The cycle is ascending for 14 days and descending for the next 14.

This cycle does not have nothing to do with the «moon phase». A crescent Moon can be descending or ascending.

How to know if it is an ascending or descending Moon?

To know with the naked eye whether the Moon is ascending or descending, you simply have to observe it on two consecutive nights when it is in the vertical of a reference point, for example, the crown of a tree or a bell tower. If the distance is greater on the second day, the cycle is ascending and, logically, if it is less it will be descending.

What happens when the Moon rises?

Regarding the «properties» of the Moon during the ascending period, plants show more activity in the upper parts, in the leaves, because the power of the sap is greater.

It is not an appropriate time to prune, however it is an appropriate time to harvest the fleshy fruits.

What happens when the Moon descends?

On the other hand, the descending Moon carries plant liquids downwardstowards the roots.

It is a good time to harvest tubers,

Is the orbit of the Moon the same in the northern hemisphere and in the southern hemisphere?

No. In this case, the indications of a lunar calendar made in the northern hemisphere must be interpreted backwards in the southern hemisphere, Because when the Moon is ascending in Europe it will appear descending below the Tropic of Cancer.

This makes it quite difficult to follow a calendar created in the Northern Hemisphere in the Southern Hemisphere (or vice versa). But if the logic is understood, it is always possible for the calendar in question to detail each day whether the Moon is ascending or descending, and whether the period is leaf, root or flower (The leaf, root or flower periods refer to the height at which the Moon is, using the constellations to determine it).

How to wax or cut your hair according to the Moon

With these indications it is possible to calculate the best times to cut your hair or wax, taking into account the following conditions:

• The best time to shave: when the Moon is descending and the period is flower (the Moon passes before the constellations of Gemini, Libra and Aquarius).
  In the garden, flower days are favorable for planting and growing ornamental plants, some medicinal plants and broccoli or…