Waning Gibbous ◕

In the sky

After the full moon, the light begins to decrease. This phase is often linked with sharing what you have learned and expressing gratitude.

What does waning gibbous mean?

Waning means shrinking, from the Old English wanian, “to lessen”. Gibbous comes from the Latin gibbus, “hump”. A waning gibbous Moon is still more than half lit, but each night a little less. It is the phase between the full moon and the last quarter, lasting about a week.

How to recognise it

• It rises in the evening, an hour or more after sunset, and about 50 minutes later each night
• It is best seen late at night and in the early morning
• It is often still visible in the western sky after sunrise, in daylight
• In the northern hemisphere it is lit on the left; in the southern hemisphere on the right

Spiritual meaning: sharing and gratitude

After the peak of the full moon, the light turns outward. Rudhyar called this the disseminating phase: a time for sharing what you have learned, teaching, and passing on what has been useful. In reflective practice it is linked with gratitude and generosity: thanking the people who supported you, and giving something back.

Krishna Paksha: the waning moon in the Hindu calendar

The day after the full moon begins Krishna Paksha, the dark fortnight. In the purnimanta calendar used in northern India, it also begins a new lunar month. The fourth lunar day of the dark fortnight, which falls in this phase, is Sankashti Chaturthi, a monthly fast for Ganesha broken only after moonrise. Karva Chauth, the autumn fast kept by many married women in northern India, also falls on this day and ends with sighting the moon.

Bring it into practice

Practise with someone else, teach a pose you love to a friend, or dedicate your practice to another person. Loving-kindness meditation, which extends goodwill outward step by step, suits this phase well.

Bring it into your practice

Practise with someone else, teach a pose you love, or dedicate your practice to another person.

A pose for this phase

Seated Twist

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A practice for this phase

Loving-kindness meditation

A practice of goodwill towards others and yourself.

Open the practice

Questions to sit with

• Who would I like to thank?

A few lines for yourself Download my notes

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Questions