After Beijing Military Parade, a Blood Moon Appears — Ominous Sign of National Decline? CCTV Rushes to Debunk

On the night of September 7 through the early hours of September 8, a blood-red moon was visible across all of China. (Video screenshot)

[People News] Right after the CCP’s military parade, the “blood moon” appeared. From late night September 7 to early morning September 8, a blood-colored moon could be seen across all of China. An old saying goes: “When the blood moon appears, demons appear.” Another version: “When the blood moon appears, the nation is in decline, its energy exhausted, as if falling into hell.” In response, CCP state media quickly issued graphics to refute these claims, saying the blood moon neither brings disasters nor summons monsters.

Regarding rumours about the “blood moon,” CCTV News posted an explanation on September 7, addressing whether the phenomenon harms humans. The article noted that in ancient times, the “blood moon” was widely seen as an omen of calamity, but in reality, it is just a total lunar eclipse. This happens when the moon enters Earth’s shadow — as the sun, Earth, and moon align, Earth blocks sunlight, and the moon appears darkened. The moon itself, they stressed, is not “malfunctioning.”

According to reports, this total lunar eclipse was fully visible in China from 11:28 p.m. on September 7 until 4:55 a.m. on September 8. A total lunar eclipse goes through seven stages from the beginning to the end of the penumbral phase. The core stage this time ran from 1:31 a.m. to 2:53 a.m. on September 8, when the moon was completely inside Earth’s umbra, appearing dark red, commonly called the “blood moon.” This lasted for 1 hour and 22 minutes. The peak — when the blood moon was fullest and deepest in colour — occurred at 2:12 a.m.

In ancient times, the blood moon was regarded as an ominous sign, often associated with disasters such as famine, war, injustice, or evil forces. Folk sayings claimed: “When the blood moon appears, demons appear.” It was thought to embody extreme yin and cold, symbolising weak righteous energy, strong evil forces, deep resentment, and heavy violence. Each time a blood moon appeared, it was said to precede upheaval, mourning across the land, fires of war, and national instability. Another belief held that it foretold great injustices, massive disasters, or widespread death.

In Europe, people believed a blood moon awakened dark, magical powers. In India, it was thought to foreshadow disaster.

In the Americas, some Indigenous tribes believed the moon was sick during an eclipse, so people would chant and pray to restore its health.

In Benin, West Africa, some believed the blood moon meant the sun and moon were fighting, so people would bang objects to make noise, urging them to stop and reconcile.

Around the world, nearly all traditions viewed the blood moon as an ill omen.

Some historical events often cited as proof:

Christopher Columbus’s discovery of the Americas coincided with a blood moon.

In 1948, the founding of Israel, and in 1967, Israel’s victory in the Six-Day War and recovery of Jerusalem, both occurred when blood moons appeared.

On November 9, 2003, during a lunar eclipse, a blood moon appeared — shortly thereafter, Hong Kong’s SARS outbreak erupted.

On April 15, 2014, a rare sequence of four consecutive lunar eclipses — the “tetrad” — began for the first time in 500 years. The very next day, on April 16, the South Korean ferry disaster occurred, killing over 300 people.

For ancient Chinese, the moon shifting from a “white jade plate” to a “red disk” was never just a scenic change.

The Book of Southern Qi · Astronomy recorded: “When the moon shows blood light, war arises.” For example, in the first year of Song’s Taishi era, a blood moon appeared, and soon after, rebellion broke out in Yuzhou. The New Book of Tang also noted that in the 21st year of Zhenyuan, a blood moon appeared at night, and not long after, rumours spread of palace eunuchs plotting a coup. In an agrarian civilisation, the moon’s phases were already tied to calendars and farming. For it to suddenly “change colour,” as if overturning heaven’s palette, was naturally seen as a “sign of disorder.” △