Wizard Weekly by Daniel Giamario | Feb 1, 2026 |
This week of interest for me to discuss:
1) The Full Moon extremely close to the Imbolc Cross-Quarter
2) The Lunar Occultation of Regulus
Imbolc Full Moon
The Full Moon happens at 2:09PM PST on Sunday, February 1, at 13Leo04. Several things about this Full Moon are worth mentioning. What stands out is how close it sails to Imbolc, the true astronomical cross-quarter, when the Sun is at 15degrees of Aquarius. This occurs at 12:20pm PST on Tuesday, February 3.
The cross-quarters are Solar festivals, and as we will see, the close Full Moon is another example of the reciprocal relationship between Moon and Sun and between Leo and Aquarius.
TOTAMS hosts a free and open Esoteric Circle around every Cross-Quarter. We meet Sunday, February 1, 5-6:30PM PST, to explore the Air Branch of the school and dive deep into the unique features of our astrological paradigm and divination itself. To join, create a free account in our Community Forum, or if you already have one, sign in, and find the event here.
Back to Imbolc: This cross-quarter is somewhat lesser known than those in early May (Beltane) and early November (Samhain). For reasons I fail to discern, it has been secularized as “Ground Hog Day”.
Note from the editor
It is known as Groundhog Day (in North America) because it’s the time when the hedgehog (groundhog) emerges from hibernation. The story is that if the hedgehog peeks out on this day and sees the sun and blue sky, winter would remain for another 40 days (until Equinox). But if it doesn’t see the sun, i.e. it’s cloudy or rainy, spring is on its way.
In Steiner tradition it’s of course the festival of Candlemas. In Steiner schools and communities around the world, earth candles are being made on this day from all the beeswax leftovers collected throughout the year. You dig a whole in the ground, pour the melted wax into it and add a wick. Once the wax has settled, you light your earth candle to shine in the dark. To this day i collect my candle stubs and always find a piece of wick somewhere to (weather permitting) sit with my earth candle around this time of year. Naraya Naserian
Imbolc, Brigit and Spica
Various cultures have emphasized the cross-quarters, which are the mid-points between the Solstices and Equinoxes. For Imbolc, there has often been an association with the Goddess Brigit. Historically, in the time frame 5000-6000 years ago, the Full Moon at or nearest to this cross-quarter was aligned with the star Spica, the most important star for the Sacred Feminine. Due to precession, in current times the Full Moon near Spica (now in the sign of Libra) happens a good two months later. This year, it will be on April 1 at 12Libra21.
The Leo Full Moon is the opposite of the Aquarius Full Moon, when the Sun is in Leo, during current times happening late July to late August. But 5000-6000 years ago, this was when the Sun aligned with Spica in the Underworld behind the Sun. Due to the same precessional shift, this conjunction now happens in October. It would appear that originally, Imbolc celebrated the highest and brightest Full Moon, while the Sun-Spica conjunction, Spica being a veritable stellar stand-in for Venus, was seen to be the centerpoint of the death and rebirth of the Goddess.
On “Oppositions”
All this suggests that to truly understand and appreciate a Full Moon, the Solar position needs to be equally included. I have always had challenges with the modern connotations of the word “opposition’, as it sounds confrontational. I prefer seeing the Full Moon, or any planetary opposition, as a resonant polarity. They see and need each other. Without the autonomy and sovereignty of Leo, Aquarius becomes part of the collective, and quite easily falls under the spell of the Plutonian shadow of Aquarius. But without Aquarius, Leo can revert to an egotistical “me-consciousness.” Each resolves the shadow of the other. This Full Moon reminds us of that.
The Sacred Feminine can be radiant and full of divine sophianic wisdom, or be a powerful underworld teacher of the dark, and death and rebirth.
Lunar Occultation of Regulus
The still Full Moon, just passing 0Virgo, rises occulting Regulus around 8PM PST on Monday, February 2. Regulus is the heart of the Lion constellation – yet another symbol of sovereignty and autonomy in both men and women. This occultation favors the United States and Africa. As the ongoing momentum of Pluto in Aquarius pulls more and more folks into the collective mob, also called the egregore, for the few hours duration of this infrequent event it would be wise to contemplate any loss of autonomy and sovereignty of your Self.
This map from my Sky and Telescope Weekly update shows the locations on Earth where the occultation takes place.
Also taken from that weekly update is the following information for those who desire to observe or create ceremony:
“The first two tables, with predictions for many locations, are long. The first table gives the times of the star’s disappearance behind the Moon’s bright edge; the second gives its reappearance out from behind the Moon’s thin dark edge. Scroll to be sure you’re using the correct table; watch for the new heading as you scroll down. The first two letters are the country name; CA is Canada, not California. The times are in UT (GMT) February 3rd. UT is 5 hours ahead of Eastern Standard Time, 6 hours ahead of CST, 7 ahead of MST, and 8 ahead of PST.”
Click here to find the tables.
Remain sovereign and remain free.
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Earth Candle photo © Naraya Naserian
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