The New Moon occurs when the Sun and the Moon are on opposite sides of the Earth, and none of the light from the Sun is reflecting off of the Moon. The New Moon is a moment of darkness, a prime time for reflection, release and setting new intentions.

There are many rituals out there for New Moons, many of them long, elaborate and requiring a lot of tools or ingredients. Maybe you don’t have the time or the energy for all that. Maybe you don’t consider yourself a ‘witch,’ per se, or maybe you don’t have a large dedicated sacred space. Maybe you don’t have time to spend an hour in a fancy herbal salt bath surrounded by black candles. I’ve come up with a pretty easy, simple New Moon ritual that anyone can do with a few simple things that most of you will already have in the house. It doesn’t take up your whole night, and its still powerful af.

Step 1: Grab your journal or some paper and a pen, and write down everything you need to get out. Write about things you’ve had on your mind, things that have been bothering you, and just vent. Release all your worries and grievances into the paper, without thinking too much and without judgement. Just write it down and feel the tension and negativity leaving your body.

Then, write at least two things you are grateful for. They could be things that happened today, things that made you laugh, or things that you are grateful for everyday like your kids or your car. They can be as small or big as you want.

Finish off by writing about the future. What are things that you want to happen in the next four weeks or beyond? Just let your mind wander and write down wherever it goes. Don’t take more than five minutes for this part, as it can spiral out of control pretty easily.

Step 2: Cleanse your space. Whether you’re at an altar, sitting on your bed, or hiding in the bathroom, you’ll want to cleanse your self, your space and your tools. You can use sage, Palo Santo, juniper, rosemary, and other plants to cleanse with smoke. If you can’t use smoke, there are smudging sprays available too. (This one is my fave.) You can also cleanse with sound, using a singing bowl, gong or bell.

Step 3: Light a candle. It can be any candle you’ve already got, or a special one that you only use for New Moons, or even a fancy specific ritual candle made just for you. It is up to you to choose the type of candle you want to use. Smaller ones tend to be better because you’ll want to let it burn out on its own.

Optional: Charge your candle! After it has been cleansed, hold the candle, feel gratitude and love, visualize what you want, and ask for it from the Universe. Light the candle and place on a heat-safe surface.

Step 4: Crystals. You should gather the crystals you’d like to use before you begin the ritual so that they are part of your cleansing. You might also cleanse all of your crystals as part of your ritual, and then choose them when you are ready. When it comes to choosing which crystals you will use, you can pick whichever ones you feel most drawn to, or ones that are most related to your intentions, or use these New Moon faves: (click on any name to shop that type of stone)

Moonstone: For tapping into lunar energies, new beginnings, inner strength, intuition

Labradorite: For transformation, strength, easing change, hidden magic, reinvention, self love

Clear Quartz: For magnifying, energy cleansing, balance, manifestation

Black Tourmaline: For grounding, protection, blocking and removing negative energy

Indigo Gabbro: For connecting to New Moon energy, clairvoyance, seeing your inner darkness, balance between light and dark

Step 5: Setting intentions. Write down your intentions on a fresh piece of paper that you will keep and refer to for the next four weeks. Write your intentions as if they are already happening now. Write them with gratitude. Avoid negatives- what you focus on becomes your reality. (For example, if you want to become free from debt, focus on wealth and financial freedom - not the debt!)

After you write each intention, visualize it as if it is already true- and most importantly- FEEL those feelings that this reality gives you. If you’re manifesting money, imagine the money is in your hands- see it, feel it, visualize yourself spending it - giving it purpose - and FEEL the feelings of gratitude, of having financial independence, and whatever feelings that makes you feel. To HAVE that now. Go through this for each intention. Feeling them as if they are already here is the most important part.

Step 6: (Optional) Meditate, do a tarot reading, or both. You could do a simple five minute meditation to clear your mind and listen for your intuition. You could do a simple three card spread. One example could be 1. Where you are now 2. What to release 3. What action to take.

Step 7: Make a list of 3-5 steps you can take this moon cycle toward making your intentions a reality. They should be actionable steps, they can be as small as researching or scheduling an appointment or as big as hiring a coach or applying for that position you want. But they need to be specific actions that you can take. At least one should be something you can do in the next few days.

Step 8: (post ritual) Put your intentions somewhere you can see them every day. As often as you can find a few spare minutes, read each one aloud, using visualization and feeling those feelings, to make them true. Cross off your steps as you complete them, and add another step for each completed one. This will keep you from losing sight of your goals.