The moon time
Ancient teachings from the medicine women of the Muisca tribe, Colombia
What does bleeding mean to medicine women?
In ancient times women understood that their bleeding cycle was connected to the moon and its phases. In their honor of the moon, they saw that they shared a 28-day cycle with her. In these traditions when women were bleeding they would come together to support each other through sisterhood. They would sing, dance, and contemplate the teachings. These ritualistic gatherings were always led by the guidance of elders. In honor of this medicine the women started calling menstruation; “the moon”. As women, we are fortunate to have this monthly time of cleansing and introspection. As well, by the nature of our cycle, we are connected with the rhythm of life and thus can more easily step onto the spiritual path.
The moon time is a ceremony!
In many indigenous cultures, the woman’s moon time is honored as a ceremony. They know that the time of bleeding is a gift from Mother Nature and a sacred time of connection, growth, and purification. Medicine women would retreat from stronger rituals like plant medicine ceremonies and from most daily activities, like cooking or gardening. The moon time was a space to rest, purify, and pray. This time is a ceremony on its own and since the womb is a portal for life it must be taken care of in this most sacred way.
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When women are mooning/bleeding they are going through a strong time of purification both physically, energetically and emotionally.
The Yagé/Ayahuasca medicine is a strong cleansing medicine, which can induce purging and cause temporary weakness in the body. These two together would be like doing two strong cleanses on top of each other. And as humans we can only safely process so much healing in a given time.
For this reason, in our tradition, we don’t authorize women to drink during their time of bleeding. Through many years of studying this subject as a community our tradition has seen time and time again that the combination of these two powerful healing energies is too strong. In specific times when we have seen woman drink while on their menstruation, they have almost always had a very hard time physically and emotionally.
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In our tradition we know that a woman’s energy is very powerful and that our auric field becomes bigger during our moon time. Although our auric field is full of healing energy, it can create interference in the field of these powerful energies collide. In certain cases, we have seen that it can block the vision of the Taita or other participants. This can also cause other participants to have a challenging or confusing experience. For this reason and for the safety of all, women working within this lineage do not participate in ceremonies during our moon.
Our recommendation
We offer a few retreats throughout the year and we would suggest you join us when the likelihood of bleeding is the lowest. Our ceremonies are always on the Monday and Tuesday of the week so please check your bleeding days are not close to the ceremonial days. If it happens closer to the retreat that your cycle has changed, we can offer a refund to come for a later retreat.
We understand how complicated things can be when we organize our lives in order to sit in a plant medicine ceremony. But please know, if your moon starts unexpectedly and overlaps the days of the ceremony, you will not be able to participate in the Yagé ceremonies. We will however hold a separate moon ceremony for you with another medicine, normally mushrooms. This separate ceremony will be held with the intention to empower you and to support you in your connection with your sacred time of bleeding. Walking as a woman through this life, our relationship to our moon cycle is one place where we can do some of our deepest transformational work.
The moon teaching from the muisca women
Woven into the wider intention is an opportunity to spend time with the womb and to listen.
The moon teaching speaks of the five days of bleeding and each day’s respective significance.
The first day: Bleeding for ourselves.
Firstly, we ask for guidance from Pachamama (mother earth) to accompany and witness us in this bleeding time. On the first day, we bleed for everything that has passed during the last cycle. We set the intention of opening space to listen to our womb, explore what has come up for us, and journal our insights.
The second day: Bleeding for our brothers.
We bleed for men around the planet. In particular for our partners, fathers, and as well for our children. We journal about what is alive for us in our relationships with the divine masculine and with the men in our lives. We set a prayer to see how we can help our brothers to connect with their intuition and to connect with Pachamama.
The third day: Bleeding for our lifework.
In this day we are open to uncover our life’s purpose and to see what we want to put our energy towards. We give it space to move slowly to truly attune to what is being shown to us in each sacred moment. As we journal, we can pray for clarity and guidance on our projects, goals, dreams and our path foward
The fourth day: Bleeding for our grandmothers.
On this day we bleed for our grandmothers, ancestors, teachers, and guides. On this day we make a spiritual payment in their names, honoring them at this moment for the blessings they have given to us. Take time to create an offering that expresses the fullness of gratitude that lives within your heart.
The fifth day: Bleeding for Mother Earth.
Today we sit with the recognition that all women are made from the resemblance of Mother Nature. She is the creator of all life and thus we are here. The more deeply we can tap into this felt sense of connection with her we see that our wombs settle into peace. On the morning of the 5th day, we arise and salute the Grandfather sun with gratitude. We ask for his support in planting seeds of goodness for our next cycle. This prayer helps us to remember where we came from and where we are going…
Written by: Sathyanarayani
Special thanks to Mama Jairza and Mishy Matthews