| RULERSHIP | Cancer |
| EXALTATION | Taurus |
| DETRIMENT | Capricorn |
| FALL | Scorpio |
| PLANETARY CYCLE | 29 days |
| TAROT CARD | II. The High Priestess |
| KEY WORDS | Emotions, Feelings. Home, the Past, “Mother”, History, Comfort, Subjectivity, the Sub-conscious mind, “Holding space” |
Your Drive to Meet Your Internal Needs
In your personal Astrology chart, the Moon represents your drive to meet your internal needs. The Moon is perhaps the hardest planet to grasp with your rational mind… probably because She is not meant to be grasped… She is meant to be felt.
She represents your sub-conscious mind, your emotions, your feelings, and how you hold space. She is intimately connected with your past, your history, your ancestry, and your early home life, since these things are the main shapers of your subconscious mind and automatic responses.
She represents what you are used to, where and how you seek comfort, and how you “hold” yourself and others. She is the part of you that seeks to mold, shape, hold and fill, and is the main signifier of “mother” and mother figures in your life.
The Sun may represent your life purpose, but it is the Moon that represents how that purpose gets magnified to the Earth on a daily basis. She represents the sustenance that you need to keep on shining… because everyone needs a place to retreat and replenish after the day’s work is done. In essence, She is your drive to self care – to “feed” yourself, “clothe” yourself, take in proper rest and exercise, and attune to the daily and monthly rhythms that keep you in touch with your wholeness and inner strength.
In the Solar System, the Moon is the closest celestial body to the Earth, its only main satellite, and the main source of “night light” after the Sun goes down. Look to Her placement by sign, house, and aspect, to tune into what you need to replenish your internal reserves, and to tune into how you most naturally reflect your light of purpose in your daily life.
What sign and what house is your Moon in? What does this say about how you naturally operate in the world? What does this say about what makes you feel comfortable and secure, and how you cultivate your home and “safe spaces”?
How does your Moon placement relate to how you hold your own emotions and the emotions of others?
Do you notice any correlations between your Moon placement and your early life, your “mother”, or your relationship to mother figures in your life?
Remember, every planet plays a part in our Hero’s journey, and has both challenges and gifts to share.
The Moon in Transit
The Moon is the fastest moving planetary body that we study in Astrology, spending roughly 2 1/2 days in each sign. The hourly and daily fluctuations of the transiting Moon in your natal chart tell you where your life’s drama is unfolding in the moment. The interesting thing is that you may not always realize this because the Moon controls your automatic and subconscious responses.
Because the Moon moves do fast, you may feel Her transits to a particular planet in your chart for only a few hours. The exception to this is when there is a New Moon or a Full Moon, in which case you may feel the effects for up to two weeks… or an eclipse, in which case you may feel the effects for several months.
The more you pay attention to the transiting Moon in your chart, the more you’ll correlate Her placement with your continuous mood shifts, your “triggers”, and the story you are unfolding from month to month. (Read more on the Lunation cycle and ways to work the Moon’s phases with your natal chart.)