Welcome to this edition of Liminal Walker Musings!
Thank you for reading, you are very much appreciated.
Dear ones,
Exploring the moon today. I love the moon, totally fascinated with it! It’s beauty, mystery, impact on the earth and our lives. If anything gives a visual of the liminal, it is the moon.
The Moon and Me
Engaging and being with the moon for me, is extremely powerful. If I am feeling disconnected, the moon brings me back into alignment. Reminding me of my connection with nature and her cycles, as well as my own. Luna is also a bridge for me to access the ancestors that grew up knowing and depending on her movements. Inviting me to relearn the old ways that have been forgotten.
Over time I have become more aware of her phases and can track her though the sky, yet there is so much more to her! She invokes the deep mysteries of life itself and is connected to our intuition. Through her gravitation pull, she influences the ebbs and flows of the tides as well as the waters in our bodies, including the monthly cycles of women.
One of the most wondrous times I have had with the moon was a couple of summers ago. I walked to a nearby school field around 4:30 in the morning. Everything was so calm, still and quiet. Upon arriving there she was, the full moon in all her illuminated pregnant glory. And I got to see the moon set. Watching her slowly begin to dip below the low-lying hills till I could see her no longer except for the afterglow. While Luna was setting in the west, the sun was beginning to rise in the east. To see both at the same time was just yummy!
Phases of the Moon
Observing the moon cycles over time is a wonder to behold. Listed below are the eight phases the moon goes through during her cycle. Along with the best times of day to view the moon. But I invite you to do more than just read about how the moon moves across the sky, actually go outside and watch it for yourself. Maybe you already do that, so you know what I am talking about! For me it has been a joy to witness the rising and setting of the moon, how the shadow on her surface increases and decreases over time. To know where she is in her cycle and in the sky. It is one thing to wade in through the written explanation, another to become attuned to her each day. This is my invitation to you.
It takes 27 days for the moon to complete a full orbit around the earth. However, due to the earth orbiting the sun and the rotations of both bodies, the moon’s orbit appears to the eye on earth to be 29.5 days. The time it takes to complete the eight-phase cycle.
It is the moon and her position relative to the sun and the earth, that cause the shadow on the moon. These changing angles light up different parts of the moon creating the waxing and waning of her phases. The complete cycle from the New Moon to the next is called a lunation.
NEW MOON: Also known as the dark moon. This is considered the first phase of the eight-phase cycle. Here the moon rises and sets with the sun. From our perspective on earth, it gives the impression that the moon is in between the earth and the sun. This is due to the inclination of the moon’s orbit. Astrologically, this is a conjunction.
WAXING CRESCENT: A small portion of the moon is now lit up by the sun. Moving away from the sun each day, the moon begins to rise a bit later than the sun. We may best know the moon as a night orb, yet it does spend a good portion of its journey in the daytime skies.
FIRST QUARTER: This point in the moon’s journey, it is a 25% complete. Half of the moon is lit up while the other half is shadowed. Which is why some refer to it as a half-moon. However, the correct nomenclature is the quarter moon for it is only 25% through its cycle and we are only seeing half of the illuminated half. The moon rises around noon and sets around midnight. Astrologically this transit is a square.
WAXING GIBBOUS: The moon is growing in its radiance each day. Continuing to rise later and later. Appearing brighter each night as she spends more and more time in the night sky.
FULL MOON: The moon is now opposite the sun, astrologically called an opposing transit. The moon’s side facing the earth is now all lit up! And will look that way for a couple of days. She rises around the time the sun sets, setting as the sun rises.
WANING GIBBOUS or DISSEMINATING MOON: The moon now begins to move back towards the sun. The opposite side is now glowing as the light appears to be shrinking. The moon rises later and later each night, now spending some time in the early morning sky.
LAST QUARTER or THIRD QUARTER MOON: At this point in the moon’s journey, it is a 75% complete. The opposite half of the moon is lit up now while the other half is shadowed. The moon rises around midnight and sets around noon. Astrologically, the transit is a square.
WANING CRESCENT OR BALSAMIC MOON: What we see lit up now is a waning arc till only the curve of the moon is left. Spending more time in the day rather than the night, the moon will soon align with the sun again as the New Moon.
The Moon Today, July 19, 2023
We just began a new cycle with the New Moon on July 17th. Because the New Moon is always conjunct with the Sun, this means they are both in the same zodiac sign. In this case, Cancer.
As of this posting, Wednesday July 19th, the moon is in its waxing crescent phase and in the sign of Leo. Maybe visible in the evening sky getting ready to set in the west. Depending on the weather and location.
Moon Card in the Tarot
I love tarot, the imagery, archetypal representations, and messages. I read for myself and for others. Being that the Moon card is one of my favorites, I am going to use this here as a vehicle to dive deeper into the mystery and teachings of the moon.
In the Star Tarot moon card, we see similar towers like the ones in the High Priestess card, supporting the veil that leads into the mysteries. The moon is also a gateway. A threshold into the unfamiliar and unknown. A liminal space where we go from what we think we comprehend into meeting the question and being with uncertainty. Luna is about constant change as reflected in her cycles, waxing & waning, as seen on these towers. Reminding us of our own rhythms. All the many phases we go through again and again; birth, growth, maturation, declination, death and then rebirth.
Also from the Star Tarot moon card is the common symbol of the crayfish. Rising from the subconscious, the more fluid watery world, into a greater awareness. All three cards here show pools of water, depicting the moon’s influence on the ebb and flow of the tides. We too have inner tidal waters that affect our feelings, intuition, dreams, and psychic abilities. These aspects of ourselves which can be suppressed by the rational mind and hierarchical world. The invitation here, to honor these inner messages and insights by applying them to your life.
Additionally, in all three cards we find the two wolves. The guardians as well as the call of the wild, reminding us of our connection to all of life and matter itself. They are here as companions, to assist us in finding our own animal nature. One wolf is white, the other black. Each represents a polarity; conscious and subconscious, light and dark, known and unknown. Spiraling and drawing forth the inner recurring themes of our lives that challenge our journey as well as pointing to the means to face and transverse them.
The darker aspects of the moon summon us to meet our fears, delusions, and conditioning. Think about going outside on a moonlit night, how everything has a beautiful yet eerie type glow, it can look surreal. Questioning what we are truly seeing, having us take a second look. The inquiry is, are we really seeing our life and this world honestly, truthfully? An invitation to turn deeper into our intuitive and sensory knowing.
The Divine Feminine is well represented by the moon. Guiding us through this transformation in unexpected ways. It is in her cauldron, the deep feminine mysteries, that we come to understand the importance of the polarities and the liminal space that binds them. For there are moments when we are blossoming and flourishing, then times of revaluation, reassessing, maybe even doubting and fearing. It’s the alchemy of the two that generates a deeper and truer authenticity, wisdom & integrity.
Practicing With the Moon
There are many ways to practice with the moon and to honor her cycles as our own. I will go into more detail at some later time, specifically around rituals. For now, keeping it simple.
The two-week period between the New Moon and the Full Moon as she is blossoming and waxing is a good time to make intentions. Things are growing and expanding! Then during the two-week period between the Full Moon and the New Moon as she is decreasing and waning, is a powerful time to surrender and let go. To let things fall away.
Luna
Your rays activate within me a yearning. Your beams a primal churning, impelling me to dance in the wilds, howl like a wolf. Pulling on my inner tidal waters. Waves crash against the edges of my inner knowing. Touching. Kissing. Your mysteries embedded in my being as the veiling and the revealing. Coming home as this animal body. Rooting deep into the ground. Arms lifting up towards the starry realms. Rejoicing in your sacred lunation!
Would love to know your thoughts. What is your relationship with the moon? What is your most significant experience you have had with the moon? What has she taught you? Lets have a conversation…
What is coming…
The journey continues… Come along with me in the exploration and being with the mystery of it all!
For more information about the liminal and my offerings:
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https://www.liminalwalker.com/
I love your dance with the moon. I have gradually become more aligned with the lunar cycles and regularly converse with Grandmother moon as she is in my Native American wisdom. Sometimes I will just gaze at her and other times ask for her assistance. I feel held and supported as you would by any nurturing grandparent. 💫🙏
What a beautiful immersion into the magic of the moon and her phases! I loved your exploration of the tarot cards, the layers of expression that live in the artistry feel like they speak a powerful story into our knowing. I am longing to learn more of the Moon's connection to plants, curious about how the moon cycles influence the plants medicine and curious about plants that bloom at night!