About Moon People

About Moon People

Dr Raven Dolick MsD

Mar 27, 2016

All rights reserved

2016 RavenStar Enchantments

Moon Men: In medieval Europe and England, "Moon's men" were thieves and highwaymen who plied their trade by night. The current term "moonlighting" is similar, meaning to hold down an additional night job.

Moon Struck: Originally, the term Moon-struck or Moon-touched meant chosen by the goddess. These people were considered to be blessed.

Moon Calf: A Moon-calf now means someone who is absent-minded or not very bright. At one time it described a person who was so carried away by love of the Goddess that he/she was nearly oblivious to the world around them.

Moonrakers: In certain parts of England, the term "Moonrakers" eventually came to mean simple-minded people. The factual story behind this, reveals some pretty fast thinking by local smugglers. The English excise men (a combination of border patrol, ATF, and IRS) were out at night, trying to catch the smugglers red-handed. Hearing the excise men coming, the smugglers sank their loot in a lake and pretended to be fishing for the Moon reflected in the water. When the excise men asked what they were doing, the smugglers innocently replied they were raking for the moon. The excise men went away shaking their heads over the stupidity of the local folk, while the smugglers fished up their goods and went on with their business.

Moon Folk: The Danes believed in a type of elves they called the Moon Folk. These were perfect in appearance when seen from the front, but were hollow when seen from the back. It was said that the Moon Folk caused sickness by blowing on humans.

Lunatic: The term "lunatic" was used as far back as Roman times to describe someone who was mentally unbalanced. Many cultures believed that sleeping out in the moonlight or where the moonlight came in through a window would cause mental illness and/or blindness

Moon-Eyed People: Moon-eyed people is a term referring to a race of people allegedly remembered by the Cherokee when they came to their homeland in the Appalachians. The group was described in 1797 by Colonel Leonard Marbury. According to Marbury, when the Cherokee arrived in the area they had encountered a "moon-eyed" people who could not see in the day-time. They were said to track time by watching the night sky.

More Moon Lore

When anyone spoke of Mountains of the Moon, it simply meant white mountains. The Arabs call white horses "Moon-colored."

Mount Sinai was probably named after the Chaldean Moon god Sinn, shich would make it another Moon mountain.

In Italy they say that if the moon changes on a Sunday, there will be a flood before the month is out.

A ring around the Moon means rain or snow.

The Irish say that to see the future, for good or ill, take a mirror outside. Let the light of the Moon fall on the surface and stare into it. Any face that appears will be connected with your future.

Cornish tin miners had some very interesting ideas about the Moon. One of these said that if you put a piece of tin in an ant hill near a certain phase of the Moon (unspecified), it would turn into silver.

If there are two Moons (two New or two full) in the same month, the weather will be unfavorable and unsettled until the next New Moon

In Wales, fishermen avoid the moon line, or the moonlight showing on the water, when setting out to sea; they consider crossing this bad luck. However, in other areas they say to make a wish when crossing the Moon line.

Many cultures felt that it was extremely unlucky to point at the Moon, and that bowing to the Moon would bring a present before the next change of Moon.

Country people said that the weather was more likely to change at the four quarters of the Moon than any other time.

Rain is coming when the Moon has a halo around it, or when an outline can be seen between the horns of a waxing or waning Moon.

One old legend says that on the Moon is everything that was wasted on Earth: misspent time, squandered wealth, broken vows, unanswered prayers, fruitless tears, unfulfilled desires and intentions, etc.

Once in a Blue Moon doesn't mean never; it means a rare occasion. The Egyptians connected their thirteenth month with the color blue, which was a lucky color.

Thessalian priestesses at one time laid curses using "moon-dew." Even into medieval times people believed that such curses were incurable.

To cry for the Moon is an old saying that means you are craving or demanding something that you can't have.

The word moonshine has two meanings. In the US it means "illegally distilled liquor," also known as "white lightning." An older meaning was "total nonsense."

In English, French, Italian, Latin, and Greek, the Moon is feminine; but in all the Teutonic languages the Moon is masculine. In Sanskrit, the word for the Moon is mas, which is masculine.

In some legends, the Egyptians said that the Dark Moon and the Full Moon were the two eyes of Horus.

Deciphering the Moon

What follows is a simple explanation of the phases of the moon and how to know them by sight:

The Waxing Crescent Moon

rises after sunrise and sets after sunset --

it is only seen in the night sky for a short

time after the sun goes down.

The dark side is to your left, more or less,

and the bright Crescent is to your right

The Waxing First Quarter Moon

rises about at noon

and sets about at midnight.

It is dark on the left and bright on the right

The Waxing Gibbous Moon

rises in the middle of the afternoon

and sets before well before sunrise.

It is perfectly round on the right side,

but bulged out past half-way on the left.

The Full Moon

rises almost exactly at sunset

and sets almost exactly at the next sunrise.

When completely full, it is a perfect circular disk.

The Waning Gibbous Moon

rises in the early evening

and sets some time after sunrise.

It looks perfectly round on the left side,

but bulged out past half-way on the right.

The Waning Last Quarter Moon,

also called the Third Quarter Moon,

rises about at midnight

and sets about at noon.

It is dark on the right and bright on the left.

The Waning Crescent Moon

rises between midnight and dawn,

but fades out when the Sun comes up.

The dark side is to your right, more or less,

and the bright Crescent is to your left.

The New Moon is the Dark Moon,

you will see no Moon at all.

It rises at sunrise

and sets at sunset.