great bud moon /Rheda’s moon
Feb/ Mar 2026
Hello All,
Welcome to the second new moon of 2026—a day that aligns with Chinese New Year and quietly sets the stage for the sacred month of Ramadan.
If you haven't picked up a 2026 lunations calendar yet, both the US and UK versions are available on my website and in my Etsy shop, now at a reduced price.
☽O☾
British History – “Rheda's Moon”
The Anglo-Saxons called the moon that would be full in March Hrethmonath, Latinized by Bede as Rheda’s moon. The only historical mention of Rheda is one single sentence in his De temporum ratione (The Reckoning of Time), written in 725 AD:
“Hrethmonath is named for their goddess Hretha, to whom they sacrificed at this time.”
That’s it. No description of her appearance, powers, myths, symbols, or personality. Everything beyond that one sentence is modern interpretation.
The name Hreth- is related to Old English words for “glory,” “fame,” “victory,” or “success” — so scholars and modern practitioners often call her a “goddess of victory” or “glory.”
She’s one of the most shadowy figures in Anglo-Saxon paganism. It seems plausible, though, that Anglo-Saxon communities turned to her with offerings at this time in a last push to see them through the lean days when spirits, along with winter’s stores, had run desperately low. Trusting in her power to triumph over hardship, their sacrifices to her would surely carry them to a hard-won victory and the warmth and abundance of the coming season.
Rheda's Moon asks: What simple offerings can you make to invite victory into your life? A quiet intention spoken into the chill night air might perhaps be enough to usher you through the last of the lean times and on to spring’s bounty that lies just ahead of you.
☽O☾
American History – “Great Bud Moon”
For the Kiowa people of the Great Plains, this moon is known as Ka`gu´ăt P'a Edal — the Great Bud Moon -- to distinguish it from the preceding Little Bud Moon. Ka`gu´ăt translates literally as "red shell or rind," from kañi—shell, rind, skin (of fruit), etc; and gu´ădal—red.
In James Mooney’s Calendar History of the Kiowa Indians, this sequence tells us how the buds that first stirred last month are now swelling more boldly. The trees are preparing to burst into leaf, while the land slowly shifts. This is the moon that sees us now fully in the Kiowa spring. Mooney wrote:
“…spring… is considered to begin when the grass and buds sprout and the mares foal (about first of March), and is known to be near at hand when the breasts of the eagles begin to turn white and when the panther whelps are born.“
The Kiowa understood that true growth builds in stages: first the small stirrings, then the greater buds that signal the land’s readiness. Now is a time to prepare for action. Ready the garden for planting, make plans for the busy work that comes with production and greater freedom of movement. Mooney notes that even war had been at a standstill through the winter months:
“As usual, the Indians had deferred hostilities until the grass was high enough in the spring to enable their ponies to travel.”
The Great Bud Moon teaches us patience with our own unfolding. What within you is swelling with potential, even if it’s not yet ready to bloom? What small signs of life are you noticing in your own winter season that hint at greater growth to come? Make your plans!
☽O☾
Lunar Astronomy
The new moon on February 17 is also a solar eclipse—the Moon passing directly between Earth and Sun.
You might wonder — don’t all new moons cause eclipses? Not quite! The Moon’s orbit is tilted about 5° compared to Earth’s path around the Sun, so most months the Moon passes just above or below the Sun. Only when a new moon happens exactly at one of the Moon’s two ‘crossing points’ (called nodes) do we get this magical alignment — and today is one of those days.
The Moon is currently near its farthest point from Earth, so it appears slightly smaller than the Sun and cannot fully cover it. Instead, a brilliant ring of sunlight remains visible around the dark disk of the Moon — a dramatic celestial “annulus”. Alas, for those of us in the Northern Hemisphere, the event will not be visible — but we can still feel its powerful energetic reset.
⭒✩⭒
This event also marks the beginning of Chinese New Year (the Year of the Fire Horse). The Chinese lunisolar calendar has always used the precise, invisible moment of astronomical conjunction — calculated with remarkable accuracy for over 3,000 years using sophisticated mathematical models developed by ancient Chinese astronomers long before modern computers.
In contrast, the Islamic calendar begins Ramadan with the sighting of the first thin crescent moon after sunset — a practice rooted in ancient celestial observation that has been preserved for over 1,400 years. In the tradition, months start when the crescent is seen with the naked eye. Today, in Mecca, Saudi Arabia’s official moon-sighting committees still gather on the western horizon each 29th of Sha’ban, scanning the twilight sky just as their ancestors did centuries ago, relying on direct human observation rather than calculations alone. For this cycle, the crescent is unlikely to be visible this evening in Mecca. It becomes easily visible the following evening (February 18), so Ramadan 2026 is expected to begin on February 18th or 19th in most countries worldwide.
☽O☾
Lunar Astrology
This new moon falls in Aquarius at 28°49', amplified by the solar eclipse. Eclipses bring fated shifts and long-term resets, and this one in Aquarius invites change of the progressive and visionary sort. However, just hours after the exact new phase, the Moon slips into Pisces, carrying the fresh eclipse energy from fixed and innovative Aquarius and softening it into the dreamy, compassionate waters of Pisces—almost like the eclipse plants a bold new idea, then immediately asks you to dream it into being with heart and imagination.
While the Chinese begin their new year on the radical note of Aquarius, by the time the moon becomes visible as the delicate first crescent to mark the start of Ramadan, it will already be firmly in Pisces. Which is your new moon? Do you follow the astronomically precise method, or the personal observation method? Perhaps the way to find out which rings true to you is to observe the energy around you today. In what area of life do you feel your energy has shifted? Both Aquarius and Pisces are concerned with the collective, but is your energy tipped to the intellectual and rebellious Aquarius or the empathic and gentle Pisces?
The moon reaches its full phase at 12°51' Virgo on March 3—a total lunar eclipse. Full moons bring culminations, and in detail-oriented Virgo (opposing the Pisces Sun), this one spotlights acts of service and health. The eclipse adds intensity: expect revelations around routines, boundaries, or where you’ve been over-serving at the expense of your own wellbeing. It’s a powerful moment to release perfectionism and realign with what truly nourishes you. The Virgo-Pisces axis reminds us that the greatest healing comes when practical care meets boundless compassion.
☽O☾
All my best, and until next lunar month,
Claire
