Exclusive | Here’s the meaning of the full Hunter’s moon in Aries for October — and why you need to beware

This moon is also a supermoon, and in addition to being the biggest and brightest full moon of 2024, it has the capacity to be the most charged and challenging.

When is the full moon in October 2024?

The full Aries supermoon peaks at 7:27 a.m. EST on October 17, but we will feel the effects of this lunation in the days that precede and follow this culmination.

Full moon in Aries 2024

This full moon falls on the Libra/Aries axis or the axis of the proverbial me and the partnered we. Libra is concerned with partnership, and Aries is about the self. These two signs are respectively ruled by the divine feminine (Venus) and the archetypal masculine (Mars).

Libra wants peace at all costs, and Aries wants progress at any price.

The brilliant astrologer Evan Nathaniel Grim of Inner Worlds Astrology told The Post that because this full moon will be conjunct Chiron, our astrological source of suffering, the focus will fall on how we’ve been hurt and how and if, we are choosing to heal.

“The energy of this moon is hard to contain because Aries is ruled by Mars and can easily be led astray by its impulses. This moon is bringing emotions out. Chiron speaks to our wounds, insecurities, and moments of betrayal. These challenging feelings can stem from any era of our lives, childhood, or events that kicked off in early April.”

Full moons reflect not only the actions and intentions initiated during the most recent new moon but also what we put into practice during the new moon in the corresponding zodiac sign.

In this case, we cast ourselves back, as Grim suggested, six months to the new moon solar eclipse in Aries on April 8, 2024. Consider the themes presented, questions raised, bridges built or burned, seeds planted, and patterns initiated, as you may find them coming to full-blown fruition, explosion, or cauterization right about now.

Aries full moon = trigger warning

The full moon in a Mars-ruled sign conjunct our primary pain source, coupled with said moon being the Hunter’s moon, gives new meaning to the term trigger warning.

“People must grapple with very sensitive situations that may or may not be directly connected to past traumas,” Grim noted. “In a significant relationship, someone could mention a certain word or a certain topic, and that really triggers difficult memories.”

He notes that because Aries is an impulsive, reactionary energy and Mars, our planet of war, will oppose Pluto, the planet of extremes, during this full moon, caution is called for.

“If someone chooses not to sit with these more difficult emotions, it can very quickly become an acerbic situation where people are projecting their anger onto others. I think almost everybody will have to contend with somebody in their lives who is defensive or testy.”

How to proceed if you find yourself locked in conflict? Grim said the best we can do is trade lit matches for a fist full of grace.

“Just realize again that that person is also going through their healing journey. It’s very important for all 12 of the signs to not add fuel to the fire.”

And on the bright side of burning, provocation (Aries) can be the path to resolution (Libra).

“This is all a means to an end, which is that we’re working through this healing journey with someone else or ourselves, coming to terms with that source of pain, and really turning it into power.”

Grim recommended approaching all situations with compassion and the aim of acceptance. Because Aries is all about unapologetic individualism, worshiping what you love about yourself while surrendering any lingering body shame or negative narrative about your appearance is a perfect recipe for harnessing the medicine of this moon. 

“Instead of talking about ourselves like, ‘I’m just 1 in 1,000,000, ‘consider that we’re all one of one,” he said. “We are all gifted, and some things that we are self-conscious about are actually what make us brilliantly unique.”

Meaning of the Hunter’s Moon

The second full moon after the autumnal equinox is known as the Hunter’s Moon, Sanguine, or Blood Moon. The spilling of vital life force is the red thread between all three.

The name Hunter’s Moon comes from the autumnal tradition of hunters, human and animal alike, seeking prey that was easier to spot among the freshly reaped fields, thinning trees, and the light of the full moon.

Supermoon 2024 in Aries

“Supermoon” is a sexier shorthand for what astrologers call a perigean full moon, wherein the full moon appears brighter, bolder, and better because it’s at its closest point to Earth in its elliptical orbit.

Supermoons exceed the disk size of the average moon by roughly 8% and can appear 16% brighter. 

Full moons are about fruition and closure. The very shape of the shine is a metaphor for how we culminate, close circles, and/or end cycles. A supermoon, due to its proximity, heightens these effects; more revealing, more feeling, folks.

Upcoming full moon

The next full moon is the full Beaver moon in Taurus, shining bright, bold, and bull-horned on November 15, 2024.

Astrology 101: Your guide to the star

Astrologer Reda Wigle researches and irreverently reports on planetary configurations and their effect on each zodiac sign. Her horoscopes integrate history, poetry, pop culture and personal experience. To book a reading, visit her website.