New Moon Intentions for Beginngers: Your Questions Answered
If you are new to the world of new moon intention setting, you might find yourself with questions. This blog post is intended to clarify your questions about new moon intention setting — and the details surrounding your ritual or ceremony to welcome new beginnings.
If you’ve got a specific question, look for it in the table of contents below. Otherwise, you can scroll through the article to learn all the things related to your questions about new moon intentions.
What if I Missed the Official New Moon? Can I Still do a New Moon Ritual?
Your new moon ritual can take place the day before, the day of, or the day after the new moon. So, you have a little bit of flexibility.
To make sure you don’t miss it, add the lunar calendar to your personal calendar. You might also consider filling in your planner with the all the new moons when you set up your calendar at the beginning of the year (or month).
I Did a New Moon Intention Setting Ritual. Now What?
Once you have your intentions completed, make sure you read and recite them daily. This is particuarly important throughout the waxing crescent moon to the first quarter (the first 7 days of the lunar cycle).
You may continue to refer back and recite your intentions through the entire moon cycle though. Keeping your intentions at the forefront of your mind — and heart — are critical in manifesting.
Pro-tip: Write your intentions down in your planner, a calendar, or put in a task management program, such as Notion. This way you can easily and frequently refer back to and recite them.
Should I Burn My Intentions?
This is a commonly asked question. There is no solid answer. In other words, it is up to you.
You may burn your new moon intentions when you are done. Or, you can keep them to reference later.
What you choose to do is totally your decision. Best practice is to do what works for you in the moment.
If you prefer to burn your intentions, one way to do this is to write them on zigzag papers (joint rolling papers) because they require a smaller flame to burn.
Important Note About Fire Safety: As always, when using an open flame to burn something, such as your intentions, make sure you do it in a manner that keeps safety at the forefront of the process. If you don’t fully burn every piece of the paper, that is totally fine too. To help you contain your practice, consider burning your intentions with a candle in a heat/flame resistant bowl or container. When you finish everything up, you want to put water on the left over pieces so they don’t accidently re-ignate or light something else on fire. It’s always a good idea to practice this in a well ventilated area with water nearby..
On the other hand, you may find yourself interested in keeping your new moon intentions to refer to later. That’s totally fine, just be sure to store them in a sacred space, such as your alter. When you revisit your intentions, be aware of your mindset as you read through them. Read them from a loving place free of attachment of the outcome and without judgment of where you’re at or what you have/haven’t done.
Should I Write Affirmations to Accompany My Intentions?
If you feel called to do this — absolutely! Including affirmations with your intentions can help you to overcome mental blocks that may come up as you work to shift your mindset. So, yea. Go for it! Write those affirmations. At the same time, if the idea of writing affirmations is paralyzing, that is an indication you do not need them right now; we don’t want to unnecessarily complicate the process here.
Can I Make Changes to My Intentions During the Moon Cycle?
My take personal take on this one is this — When you find that your intentions need updating, and you feel at peace in your body and soul with the change that needs to happen, then make the modification.
The important things to remember here — Any changes made to your new moon intentions need to come from a place of abundance. In other words, you are not reacting to a negative thought, comment, or experience from yourself (or someone else) when reviewing or reciting your intentions. You went through a ritual to create your intentions with mindfulness; any modifications to these intentions should come from the same place.
Do All of My Intentions Need to Follow the Same Format?
Everyone has a different style of writing. Some people appreciate (and welcome monotonous) phrases; it can create a sense of calmness or peace. For others, there is a preference for using a variety of words.
You may find yourself writing similar intentions or you might use a variety of different sentence structures. Whatever you gravitate towards — do that!
When we create our intentions, we are doing so from a place of intuition. Therefore, you want to tap into your intuition and do what is best for you in the moment. That said, when you are first getting started, you may use more structure sentences to formulate your intentions. As you repeat the process over and over again, you will tap into your intuition more and do what is best for you.
If you want to format your intentions differently, but struggling with what that might look like, check out my setting new moon intentions blog posts and scroll to the example section. If you are completely new to this concept, you might also want to check out my blog post that has everything you need to know about intention setting, plus examples.
Can I Perfom My New Moon Ritual With Friends?
Of course! Make sure everyone has some time/space to tap into their intuition while creating their intentions. If you feel comfortable, you can take some time to share your intentions with the friends you love.
Important Note: Check in with yourself and the others first.
Here’s what I mean by that — If sharing intentions with one another doesn’t feel safe or you are worried the intentions of others will create a scarcity mentality, then skip this part. However, if everyone is open and at peace with sharing intentions, then you will likely find your intentions manifesting faster. Our intentions materialize more quickly when two or more people focus on manifesting them!
How Many Intentions Should I Write for the New Moon?
Ideally, you want to keep your list of intentions manageable. The definition of manageable will vary from person to person; some people may feel most comfortable with 3-5 intentions, whereas another person can write up to 10 intentions with confidence.
If you find your list of intentions makes you anxious, that is an indication you have too many. If you are having trouble whittling down your list of intentions, you may keep them with the idea that you are giving yourself longer than the current moon cycle to manifest them. Remember, we talked about setting intentions for the current new lunar cycle AND the next six months.
Let’s break it down some more:
- If you have a list of 15 intentions, but are nervous about all but five, you can put the other 10 on the back burner to come back to for future moon cycles.
Do I Need to Practice My New Moon Ceremony in the Same Place Each Time?
Nope. If you have a ritual space or sacred place, you can do it in the same place every time. At the same time, it is not a requirement.
The important thing is you first prepare your new moon intentions setting space first — physically, mentally, and spiritually. Hopefully you can still cleanse yourself with palo santo or sage.
What if I Can’t Find a Quiet Place without Interruptions?
We all have different living arrangements, this means we may not have the time and/or space to practice without interruptions. If you struggle to find a quiet place, make sure your are intentional in creating a clear mind to allow you to focus on your practice.
On a personal note: I wrote my entire Masters thesis in various coffee shops. On more than one occasion, I had people stop me to ask: “How can you stay so focused in such a hectic place?” It’s a long answer, but the short answer is I thrive in ‘busy’ spaces; I’m actually more focused when I am actively blocking out background noise or the movement of others. The point being, hopefully you can tune out the commotion around you by creating a space within your mind that is free of distractions.
Alternatively, if you do not have a space within your home that is quiet, consider getting outside into nature. There might be people around you, but as long as you can tune them out and focus on your moon rituals, that is all that matters. Plus, being in nature is a great way to connect to your higher self.
When Writing My Intentions, is it Best to Keep Them Specific to Me Only?
Can I include family, my significant other, or friends in my intentions? In many situations, you’ll find yourself wanting to create intentions that include important people in your life. You can certainly include them.
The critical piece being, you want to make sure you focus on your efforts. This is means you cannot want things for someone else if they don’t want them too. Instead of trying to convince others to do the things you want. Your role is to lead the way, it is their choice to decide to follow you on the journey or not.
Is it a Good Idea to Start A New Under a New Moon?
Yes! Definitely start a new job under a new moon phase. This is the perfect time to start new things, that includes a job.
Do My Intentions Need to Be Written on Paper? Or, Can I Type Them?
Ok, my core belief is that handwriting your intentions is the way to go. However, it is understandable that writing on paper isn’t everyone’s cup of tea (or a possibility). If your thoughts flow freely while writing on a computer or your phone — go for it! Turn off notifications so you don’t get distracted by notifications, alerts, or messages. The important things is you are fully present throughout your new moon rituals.
What’s the Difference Between a New Moon and Full Moon?
The new moon signifies a new, fresh start. Often times, people will notice a natural downshift in their energy. This is because the new moon is a time for renewal. The full moon, on the other hand, brings in extra energy. A full moon is a great time to channel that boost in energy to work on meaningful projects or tasks to move the needle forward for the intentions you set during the new moon. If you pay attention, you may begin to notice the fruits of your labor blooming for the intentions current at the beginning of the lunar cycle.
In Closing
Well, that’s all for now. I hope you have a better understanding of new moon ritual to successfully your intentions. If you are looking to learn more about setting new moon rituals and intentions, check out this detailed blog post. Or, if you are interested in everything there is to know about powerful intention setting, this is for you.
Do you still have unanswered questions? Drop a comment below. I am happy to help answer them for you.
Best of luck in manifesting your dream future in the perfect time of the new moon!!!
