The Lunar Mandala is a tool to connect with our body, to understand its fluids, its smells, its cyclical energies. We can study anatomy and physiology, but, much further, we can follow a path of self-discovery based on the perception of how we are at each moment of our cycle. In this way, we can build knowledge from our experiences.

Understanding who we are when we are menstruating and realizing when we are in the fertile period is knowledge that, little by little, we acquire about ourselves, through self-observation.

Steps on the path to self-knowledge – Illustrations by Júlia Vargas for Lunar Mandala 2025 | Northern Hemisphere 

 

To help you on your journey, we have prepared special content with some topics about the menstrual cycle and the perception of fertility.

 

Cyclicity

It is common to explain that the menstrual cycle has 28 or 29 days and that ovulation occurs around day 14, but it is important to know that this reference is purely didactic. Menstrual cycles rarely last 28 days (they change constantly) and ovulation does not occur on day 14 (or the middle of our cycle). We should not rely on dates and predictions to understand our menstrual cycle, but on the physical and emotional perceptions we feel in our body/mind, from the point of view of someone who experiences these changes from within.

Illustration: Vic Campello

 

 

Inhabiting our body and building knowledge from within

A healthy menstrual cycle can last from 21 to 35 days, and we can ovulate from day 10 to day 20. There is no one best day to ovulate, and the length of each cycle can vary from person to person and also from cycle to cycle within the same person. We are not machines and we do not function mechanically. We interact with the world in a living, cyclical way. That is why our cycle can change at any given moment.

Illustration: Julia Vargas

 

 

Apps for the menstrual cycle

There are many apps available today to track your menstrual cycle. Most of them “predict” your fertile period. However, this predictability is based on the rhythmic method (the “calendar”), i.e. the app predicts the date of our ovulation and our fertile period based on previously recorded cycles. This could be misleading! The best way to know if we are fertile is to observe our body and learn to read the signs that indicate our fertility.

 

Lunar Mandala and perception of fertility

The Lunar Mandala allows you to be aware of your menstrual cycle and observe some primary and secondary signs of fertility, as we believe that fertility awareness is an important part of our self-knowledge process. However, it is good to remember that noticing signs of fertility does not indicate that we are protected from a possible pregnancy. The Lunar Mandala is not and does not serve as a contraceptive method. To use fertility awareness as a contraceptive method, we must use a “Fertility Awareness Method”.

Method means that we use fertility awareness in a systematic and regular way, with study and methodology. There are several methods based on fertility awareness (or FABM – Fertility Awareness Based Methods). These methods use a form of systematic recording of the primary signs of fertility (such as cervical mucus, basal temperature and optionally observation of the cervix) together with other secondary signs such as mood, libido or cramps. This data only makes sense when we read it from a method interpretation perspective that guides us on how to use this information for conception or contraception. Thus, if we want to get pregnant, we can have penis/vagina sex on the most likely days (close to ovulation, when we have abundant cervical mucus). If we want to avoid pregnancy, we can know which days not to have sex or have sex protected by some barrier method.

Some fertility awareness methods use cervical mucus analysis only (Billings), others use mucus analysis together with basal body temperature (symptothermal such as TCOYF, Justisse, Sensiplan) or use cervical mucus analysis together with hormonal tests to confirm ovulation (such as FEMM).

 

The Lunar Mandala and the menstrual cycle

The Lunar Mandala can be a great tool for you to chart and analyze your cycle. With diagrams for each lunation, you'll take notes on physical and emotional aspects of each day. This allows you to compare with previous cycles, identify similarities, relate to your moment, and notice personal patterns.