Full Egg Moon and Holi

The full moon of March is the atcha-uyu or "Women Dig Camus" moon by the Kalapuya of my area, and the Egg Moon by others, because this is the month when birds begin to lay eggs again. The egg is a powerful symbol of hope, new beginnings, and completeness: My vague ideas take a solid shape, enclosed in a perfect shell, and I have created a whole new beautiful thing! The March Full Moon is a good time to ponder what I need to be made complete.

We are now at the peak of the high-energy yang phase of the waxing moon, and will soon begin the low-energy yin time of the waning moon.

Today is also Holi, a Hindu holiday that falls on the day after the full moon in March each year. It marks the end of winter in India. Holi is sometimes called the Festival of Color, because on Holi everyone in India throws paint at each other! 

To prepare, folks buy gulal, which are powdered paints in rich colors of pink, magenta, red, yellow and green. Three days before Holi, families get together to sprinkle a little of the gulal powders on each other, to share love and blessings. 

On the day of Holi the whole country goes wild with people laughing and running in the streets; they smear each other with powder, drench each other with buckets of paint, and spray paint with long pistons (like super-soakers). They also fill water balloons with paint! People often show respect for elders by sprinkling dry powder on their feet. 

By the end of the day everyone is covered with color- old people, children, men, women, rich and poor. Holi creates a feeling of equality in a country with strong disparity.

Agenda Today:

1. Take a vision walk

2. Celebrate strength

3. Make Malpua
4. Have a color celebration

5. Plant the sabzeh

1. Take a vision walk:

The full moon shines a bright light on everything, and I might experience intuitive and creative breakthroughs. I might be shocked by the clarity of my insights. I might see some ugliness - the full moon illuminates all the things I've left in the shadows, some heavy truths and some embarrassing mistakes.

Today I call on the Spirit of Light to guide me, bring me clarity and open my eyes. What is the Truth that is coming into focus for me now? 

What are the new beginnings that are sprouting in my life?

What changes are on the horizon, and how am I being shaken into creative action?

What steps can I take to improve my vitality and resilience, and have greater strength against the storm?  

2. Celebrate strength:

My theme this month has been strength and resilience, and I'm learning skills for calmness and clarity.

Today I will remind myself of my intentions, 

celebrate my accomplishments, and reaffirm this theme for the next two weeks. 

Each month I choose a different way to celebrate the full moon, and today I am ready to celebrate my strengths in three ways:

1. Go on a fun outing to town with my grandson (calmly)

2. Work on my collage project (with clarity)

3. Make Malpua:

Malpua is an addictive treat from North India, especially prepared during the Holi festival. It's a like a fried donut with a slightly spicy flavor. 

We like to start these before the celebration so they are ready to fry and eat (with hot tea) while we are warming up. 

Ingredients:

• 1-1/2 c. coarsely ground whole wheat flour
• 1 tsp. fennel seeds
• 10 crushed peppercorns
• 1/2 tsp. baking powder.
• 1/2 c. sugar
• 3/4-c. water
• 1/4-c. yogurt
• oil for frying

Yield: 12 pancakes-

 
1- Combine the flour, fennel seeds, peppercorns, and baking powder.

2- Dissolve sugar in water. Add yogurt and mix into the flour mixture to form a thick batter. Set aside for 45 minutes.


3- Heat 1" of oil in a frying pan on medium heat. Pour a spoonful of the batter into oil, spread into a thin round shape, and fry until golden brown.

4- Drain on paper. Serve hot.

4. Have a color celebration:

Holi 2021

My art class kids loved to celebrate Holi! We began with a ritual sprinkling of dry powder- one at a time we dip a finger in our powder and smear it on each person, to honor our friendship. Then we begin to spray and throw the colored water and dry powder at each other! It’s a blast!

Two years ago I got to celebrate with my (then) toddler grandson; we had fun with edible paint. I mixed flour, water, and food color and we took it outside.

This year, Holi has fallen on a very cold week, and we won't be able to celebrate properly, so we will revisit the idea in a few weeks.

5. Plant a sabzeh:

2022 Sabzeh

Today is a good time to plant the sabzeh, in preparation for Nowruz, the Persian New Year, which begins every year on the Spring Equinox. The sabzeh is a bowl of sprouted grains, a symbol of new life. Since it takes two weeks to get good looking sprouts, we usually start them about now.

Supplies: A shallow bowl, damp soil, grain seeds (lentils and wheat are traditional; we planted wheat berries this year).

Fill the bowl with damp soil, cover the surface well with seeds, and spray daily with water.