"The moon was created for the counting of days." - Hebrew Midrash
In my first diary of the "Year of Moons" series, I talked about the April Moon as the Egg Moon. But I also said that moons can have many names, even on a single calendar. My own coven has multiple names (and aspects for some Moons), and this is one of them. While April 17th is the Egg Moon, it can also be called the Seed Moon - and while it bears some similarities, it has its own special aspects that are worth talking about.
Read on . . .
Like the egg, the seed is a fundamental symbol of life and rebirth, but it's also much more. The almost endless variety in seeds around the world - how they look, feel, propagate, taste - has given rise to an almost endless variety in species-specific (and culture-specific) symbolism.
In Hindu culture, sesame seeds were a symbol of immortality. Sunflower seeds were a symbol of the Sun God (or Goddess) for some indigenous peoples. The Eastern Orthodox Church held pomegranate seeds as symbols of the sweetness of Heaven.
Even a partial list would be exhaustive. Unless we want to dive into magickal herbalism, let's just say that seeds, beyond their status as symbols of new and returning life, have carved out their own place in the mythology and folk magick of cultures around the world.
But it's that most basic and universal symbolism -- and how the traits of seeds relate to it - that embodies the spirit of the Seed Moon.
Seeds are adaptive, tenacious, determined, and infinitely patient. They exploit every niche, every resource and, yes, every adversity to thrive. Seeds are not just new life; they are new life unbound . . . and unstoppable.
vitae omnia vincit
By the selfish gene theory, all life forms are mere vehicles for the survival of their genes - a chicken, as the joke goes, is just an egg's way of making another egg. By that philosophy, seeds are the masters of the world.
They have built the broadest and most varied collection of vessels on Earth. They have made ways to propagate themselves by wind (dandelion) and by water (mangrove), by riding on animals (burs) and by riding through them (any fruit you can name, and then some), and even by physically hurling themselves into the void (geraniums and the explosive Touch-Me-Not).
Remember what I said about patience? A Judean date palm seed recovered from excavations at Masada was successfully germinated in 2005. It was two thousand years old.
Seeds are survivors. They even adapt to make use of disaster. The Sturt desert pea of Australia and the sedges of the Tropics, among others, rely on floods to germinate. The Whispering Bells of the chaparral and the banksia tree of Australia use the natural cycle of wildfires to set off their germination. Like the phoeanix, they rise from the ashes.
vitae omnia vincit
For the Seed Moon, we meditate on this seemingly boundless power.
Think of what you intend - a job offer, a new home, some project or interest or new direction for your life, or simply your wish to grow. Imagine this as a seed. It can be any sort, anywhere – drifting on the winds until it lights upon a suitable patch of earth, buried among the ashes of a wildfire, or carefully placed by the farmer’s hand. It lays dormant, waiting for its moment.
Now imagine it bursting open. Following gravity, its embryonic root reaches into the earth, while the seedling stretches upward. Feel the shoot finding its strength as it reaches for the sun. Feel the root driving itself into the soil.
Feel the immense power of this, even on this tiny scale. . . persistent, unstoppable . . . life.
This is you. This is the work and intention you have focused upon.
What can stand in your way?
This moon is, of course, a perfect time to bless any seeds you intend to plant -- vegetable garden, flower garden, etc -- or to call blessings on any you've already planted.
But I also like this activity - refering back to that
magickal herbalism, find plants that connect to the things you want to increase or the work you want to do. Bless the seeds at your
esbat with that focus in mind, then sow them randomly over the next few days. As they take hold and grow, so will what you connected them to. A few important caveats on this activity:
Always use native species. You can always find something, or at least something close enough, without contributing to the problem of invasive plants.
Never sow seeds on private property (without permission), public parks, gardens, or other maintained areas. Aside from the fact that your seedlings will get quickly cut down, it's inconsiderate.
All around us, Spring brings green shoots - and everywhere we see them, from the fields to the cracks in your front stoop, we know they spring from a seed. Seeds make the world. The Seed Moon is our time to remember that, and to connect ourselves to that power and potential, and to feel it within ourselves.
Happy esbat.