Why is the Hunter's Moon Important to Civilization?

The Hunter's Moon and Harvest Moon are two revered Full Moons that have traditionally been celebrated during the autumn season. Survival necessities come into the limelight focusing on the need to prepare for the upcoming winter.

The Harvest Moon comes first, and it has the extra impact of occurring on or near the Autumnal Equinox. This is a time of year when the daylight and night is balanced. Speaking of balance, the sign of Libra comes to the forefront during the month of October. Libra is symbolized by the balancing scales.

The equinoxes are reverent times of the year and have been celebrated since ancient times. Monolithic structures left behind by ancient cultures show that the sun is measured by the length and position of these structures. Similar markers have been found all over the world.

Day and night become equal in hours. Soon, those longer days of late sunsets are past. With the shorter daylight, the necessity of bringing in and storing the crops is uppermost because of a limited amount of time. The will to survive makes this an intense time of year, as the barren winters are sometimes harsh enough to kill.

Festivals of gratitude for the abundance of crops and the good fortune of successful hunting include a sacred festivity of dancing, music or prayer. To this day, people celebrate the Hunter's Moon, especially hunters who belong to hunting clubs.

Often, the harvesting goes on into the night, and the bright moon allows for extra hours in the day to accomplish the larger than life task of gathering, and storing that which will sustain life. After the Hunter's Moon, the weather is too severe, and cloud cover is expected to darken the nights.

The Hunter's Moon is only a month past the autumnal equinox. Now is a time that prey moves from one place to another for winter shelter. It's when the hunters know they will find potential meat supplies in the wandering and migrating herds.

Hunter's may stay in the obscurity of nighttime; yet have enough light to spot their prey. Watching the moon, and memorizing its cycles ties in closely as matter of survival

Heralding the cold weather and snow, the Hunter's Moon is a sort of last chance for preparing for winter. The hunt must take place before the animals go into hibernation, and when the moon is at its brightest.

It is the end of the warm season for animals to roam and graze. Each passing day makes it more difficult for gatherers and hunters to prepare, and insure survival through the harsh winds and snow of winter.

This time also signals the gathering of firewood for fuel to heat the homes - be it log cabin or teepee. It's no wonder that historically so much emphasis is placed on what's happening in the heavens - the Hunter's Moon is no exception.