31/01/2026
🌿🔥 Blessed Imbolc
& Full Moon in Leo 🔥🌿
Sunday 1st February
As we stand at Imbolc, we find ourselves in the in between… where winter has not yet loosened her grip, but the first stirrings of new life are quietly awakening beneath the soil.
Imbolc (pronounced im-olk with a silent B) is the mid point between Yule (ᴡɪɴᴛᴇʀ sᴏʟsᴛɪᴄᴇ) and Ostara (sᴘʀɪɴɢ ᴇǫᴜɪɴᴏx).
It is a festival of quickening. A time of washing and cleansing, both inwardly and outwardly, of making space for what is beginning to form. The old Irish meanings of Imbolc speak of being “in the belly” and of ritual purification… a reminder that new life, new purpose, and new direction often begin unseen.
This year, 1st February......Imbolc is also illuminated by the Full Moon in Leo, reaching her fullest expression at 22.08pm, at 13 degrees.
A Full Moon is likened to the height of summer… abundant, fragrant, and ripe. It is a time of gratitude for what has grown well, and also a moment of honest reflection… noticing what has not flourished and consciously releasing it so that what is thriving may continue.
Leo is fire. In balance, the Leo within us is courageous, inspired, warm hearted, and quietly powerful… like flowing liquid gold. As a fixed sign, Leo sits in the middle of the season, holding the tension between beginnings and endings. When aligned, this brings stability and leadership. When out of balance, it can feel like being frozen between past and future… stuck, depleted, or dulled of purpose.
At 13 degrees Leo.....thirteen is a number of transition, rebirth, and sacred threshold. It carries the energy of the Maiden, the womb, and the cycle of death and renewal.
At 13 degrees, this Full Moon does not ask for performance or ego… it asks for authentic courage. The courage to stand in your truth, to reclaim your voice, and to honour what is genuinely ready to grow.
In the Celtic Ogham calendar, this is a Rowan (Luis) Moon, a time linked to personal power, protection, and creative strength.
The Celts dedicated this moon to Brighid and at this time, Brighid walks in her Maiden aspect… full of potential, possibility, and quiet determination.
Brigid, also know as Bride and Brid....the Keeper of the Sacred Flame and the Holy Wells, Goddess of healing, poetry and smithcrafting, she is a Goddess of Fire, Sun and the Hearth and creative inspiration. She brings fertility to the land and its people and is closely connected to midwives and new-born babies. She is the Triple Goddess, but at Imbolc she is in her Maiden aspect of potential and possibility.
Brigid was considered one of the most powerful Celtic Goddesses and was the daughter of the Dagda, one of the first Druids and both being members of the powerful and mysterious Tuatha du Danann.
To honour this transition into newness and birthing you can decorate a small space or your altar with snowdrops, swan feathers, a Brigid Cross, white and green candles or anything that represents to you....the aspects of new beginnings for you.
The perfect herb or essential oil to use at this time is Angelica as it carries the fiery qualities of illumination and inspiration and the healing, creative spirit of spring. It activates and strengthens our inner fire. Angelica is a herb also said to have grown in the gardens of Atlantis 😉
More traditional plant allies are Basil Heather Rosemary Bay Cleavers and Willow and are wander-full to use to decorate your alter, add to a tea or a ritual wash.
Imbolc is where 'modern' society gets the concept of the 'spring clean'....but our society today sees this as chucking out of uselss junk.
Today's society would do well to recognise the sacred practices of old where there was no hoarding of unnecessary stuff but spaces that were honoured, cleansed and prepared for coming abundance of harvests.
Sooooo......
Imbolc and this Leo Full Moon mirror one another beautifully. Both ask us to clear what is cluttered or spent. Both invite us to tend the inner fire. Both remind us that renewal begins with honesty.
So take a moment to reflect…
Where are the weeds in your life that need gently pulling out?
Where have you been holding on… or holding back?
Have you given your power or your voice to others?
What restores you, regenerates you, and stokes your inner fire?
What still lights you up… and are you allowing yourself to feel it?
In ritual or meditation, you may work with the energies of the Full Moon, the Sun, and the element of fire… imagining any heaviness melting, any stickiness loosening, your inner fire warming once again.
You could ask the Moon, (the lucid mirror of the soul), to reflect back the version of you that is whole, aligned, and fully alive.
I’d love to know…
What is beginning to stir within you right now?
And what are you ready to release to make room for allignment and abundance in all its forms?
🔥🌿 Blessed Imbolc 🌿🔥
Much love
Antheias Enchanted Herbals
