“Supermoon” Over California Badlands

I wanted to share tonights adventure, but I will post more later about the where and the what, as well as the how cool it was. Right now, I wanted to let the images of the astronomical event in the surreal setting of Red Rock Canyon California State Park melt your mind away. The whole thing was just stunning and also it took close to sixty miles of driving from Palmdale/Lancaster suburban sprawl to experience the wonder of a true “Dark Sky” moment (unlike our moon-sighting/milky-way-galaxy expedition, where the adventure was “out shined” by the light pollution from Palmdale/Lancaster, as well as fifty miles away Los Angeles!).

Watching the moon come out from behind the clouds, as the Earth’s rotation sped the process up dramatically, I was awe struck by the beauty of all of it. It was too much to take in. Then I thought about this hadith that described the Prophet Muhammad (SAW):

A companion of the Prophet (SAW) said: “I once saw the messenger of Allah (SAW) on the night of a full moon. On that night he wore red clothing. At times I look at the full moon and at time at the Prophet (SAW). Ultimately I came to the conclusion that the Prophet (SAW) was more handsome and radiant than the full moon.“

There is power in that reflective statement. I couldn’t imagine something more beautiful then what I saw tonight. Yet, it is his character and his behavior that speaks through 1400 years of history and guides me today, so there must be a physical manifestation of such inner beauty for the companion of the Prophet (SAW) to have made such an opinion known to others. To illuminate through centuries requires a radiance much more powerful then what I saw tonight, so I am even far more awe struck by what I saw.