Special moons: Blue moon
Blue moon is perceived as the second full moon in a calendar month, respectively. Of course, that moon looks just like any other full moons. But where does that “blue” come from?
Astronomically, a blue moon is observed sporadically. If volcanoes or forest fires contain soot and dust particles in the atmosphere and are of the right size, they can block the red light from the spectrum that makes the moon look blue. The most striking observation was in 1883, during the eruption of the Krakatoa volcano. The moon was visually blue for more than a year around the world. In 1927, the same thing happened due to a late monsoon rain in India. And in September 1950, the moon turned blue in Newfoundland by heavy forest fires in Alberta. Also during the eruption of Mount St Helens in 1980, blue moons were observed. So a blue moon can be seen as a rare natural phenomenon.
Within the spiritual world, the blue moon is seen as one with extra power, animates with flourishing and accessibility. That power can be used for a special personal purpose. A goal that's special or something you've never done before. As it were, you get an extra chance to achieve your goals. Sometimes there is also talk about a reincarnation phase.
The idea of a blue moon has existed for centuries and for more than 400 years has also had many different meanings. Its earliest use dates back to the 16th century where one spoke of a blue moon as something that was absurd without a doubt. If at that time someone referred that the moon was blue, one might as well say that black was equal to white. The earliest quotation of this can be found in a poem by Shakespeare from 1528 in which the following is written:
Yf they say the mone is pale,
We must believe that is true.
The old English word 'belewe' means betraying. With this he indicated that what had been said had as much value as the idea that the moon would be blue, and thus was treacherous. The pronunciation is the same as the word blue. Perhaps here it is referred to the fact that the tradition of one full moon per month would have been “betrayed”. However, this is not entirely correct. Because the interpretation that a blue moon is the second moon in a calendar month only exists for a few decades and is therefore after Shakespeare's time. The Gregorian calendar as we know it was only introduced by Pope Gregory XIII in 1582, which is also after the above writing.
This recent meaning came to the attention of a question in the game Trival Pursuit (1986). On the question “what is the name of the second full moon in a calendar month?'was given as an answer blue moon. An astronomical radio program referred to an old edition of Sky and Telescope from 1943. In it was a starquiz with the same question and answer. As a source, an unknown almanac was given. That almanac was untraceable for a long time. When it was finally found, the correct meaning of blue moon turned out to be misinterpreted. According to this almanac, there is a blue moon when four instead of three full moons fall in one season. Remarkably, such a moon was pointed out with blue. The blue moon as the second full moon in a calendar month is therefore based on an interpretation error of almost 60 years ago.
Nevertheless, in earlier centuries people could feel betrayed by such a blue moon. Because one was accustomed to the idea that a season had three full moons, one could understand the idea that a season would last longer when a fourth full moon had to follow. The third full moon was, as it were, a traitor and was therefore seen as the blue moon.
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