What a lovely, informative and inspiriting response about the significance of the full moon. I feel I have learnt something that I can apply ie, I will try fasting till I see the moon and then only eat lightly. There is so much wisdom and knowledge wrapped up in Hindu practices that bind self and community with nature in ways that improve the whole.

It's also an interesting contrast with Western mythology which is suggestive of madness and dis-ease on the night of the full moon. So the words lunatic and lunacy are derived form 'lunar'. And many western films/ legends suggest evil power rising when the full moon rises.

Were they looking for an excuse in the days before electricity, to carry out their colonial violence by the light of the full moon, and then excuse themselves?