Working the Tides

"Time and tide wait for no man." - Chaucer

Growing up, we learned about phases of the moon and the advent of tides in both the ocean, and in large enough bodies of inland water like the Great Lakes in the US (although admittedly, the Great Lakes tides are miniscule compared to those of the ocean). What you may not have learned, however, is that tides are not caused by the water itself ebbing and flowing. Rather, the earth rotates through two tidal bulges - one on the side of the earth closest to the moon, and the other on the opposite side. These bulges are water being pulled away as the result of gravity and inertia and are static. That is, they remain in place and it is the earth itself moving through them that creates the tides as we know it. Another fun tidal fact is that it's not just the pull of the moon that affects these bulges. The sun plays a much larger role than you may think. Solar tides are about half as strong as lunar tides and therefore, we don't hear much about them (their effects are rolled in to lunar tides) but when the sun, moon, and earth are perfectly aligned - generally at the new and full moon phases - the sun's pull has an added effect and is, in part, what helps to give us the highest high, and lowest low tides during these times.

Now that you know a little more about the science behind the tides, what about the magic? As sea and water witches, we're very used to working with lunar phases and the magic that each phase corresponds to. When we think about the tides in the same cyclical way, we can use those high and low tides in conjunction with the moon phase to boost our magic. Here are some basic moon phase and tides correspondences:

• Dark Moon / Ebb Tide: Perfect for banishing or letting go.

• New Moon / Low Tide: At peak low tide, everything is revealed to us. This is an excellent time to pull a card, scry, or otherwise work divination magic to assist you in crafting your new moon intentions.

• Full Moon / High Tide: Draw down the moon, and draw in the power of the ocean.

• Full Moon / Low Tide: Use this phase and tide to gain clarity and insight to help you move forward for the remainder of the lunar cycle.

These are only a small sampling of ways that you can begin to work the tides with your lunar magic. If you're well versed in these correspondences, we'd love to hear your ideas for combining the moon and tides! We'll be offering a full course on working the tides in the future, but we hope that this little mini-sample of correspondences helps get you thinking in new ways about your own lunar rituals.