Erasing Memory under the Moon

Earth, and thus our lives upon it, wouldn’t be so magical if it wasn’t for the ‘Moon’. It is the second brightest ‘celestial orb’ that can be viewed from our vantage point here on Earth (the first being the light of the ‘Sun’) and therefore, since ancient times, it has had a great and often profound influence upon human culture, our language, our calendars, much of our mythology, and mysticism, and indeed ‘magic’. It is the Moon’s influence that produces the movement of the ocean tides (as well as the emotional tides that occur within all living entities here on Earth); and ‘She’ has been known by many names. The root of the word ‘Moon’ can be traced back to the Sanskrit word ‘Mon’, which means ‘One who Pleases the Mind’. Just as the ‘Sun’ is considered to represent the human ‘Soul’ (our ‘individuality’), and ‘Earth’ our ‘Body’, it is the ‘Moon’ that is our ‘Mind’ (and memory). The Moon (which is also known by the name ‘Luna’, from the original Latin, a word that will become an important distinction as we tell today’s tale), is the ‘mind in principle’, whilst the satellite we observe orbiting Earth, that we call the Moon, is but the ‘vehicle for the mind principle’, as it works for ‘us’ within this solar system.

Roman beliefs often intrinsically related to the Moon (in fact entire cults, often transposed from ancient Greek practices, were dedicated to the Moon, cults such as that of ‘Dionysus’ (or ‘Bacchus’ to the Roman’s) still exist to this day), and the Roman’s personified the Moon and its ‘energies’ within the Roman goddesses ‘Diana’ and ‘Luna’. To the ancient Greeks, the Moon was both ‘Selene’ (which was also utilised in their Astrology; the name given to the branch of Astrology that deals with charting the Moon’s surface was, and still is, called ‘selenography’), and ‘Artemis’ (the twin sister of ‘Apollo’). To the Norse this Luna energy was ‘Mani’, in ancient Egypt its was ‘Khonsu’, to the Mayan it was both ‘Awilix’ (the Goddess) and ‘Xbalanque’ (a mortal male incarnation), and Indians have many names for the Moon (108 to be precise), but the chief of these was ‘Chandra’ (also known as ‘Soma’), which literally means ‘the shining one’. Much like our previous tale about the Sun, in order to understand what follows, it is essential for the reader to distinguish between the ‘satellite moon’ that orbits Earth, and the ‘Moon’ (which will be referred to as Luna where appropriate, from this point forward), which is chiefly a ‘principle of reflection’. As with all things Astrological, the planetary ‘bodies’ must be distinguished from their defining ‘principle’; the human ‘soul’ functioning through the human ‘body’ is different from the human body itself (and the same is true when we discuss any of the ‘planets’ within Astrology). The story below tells a tale of the ‘significance of the Moon’ – of Luna, and in the main, it really has very little to do with the orb of waxing and waning ‘light’ which orbits around our Earth.

Astrology (and Alchemy) considers the ‘Sun’ to be masculine, the ‘Self’, whilst Luna is the feminine counterpart, ‘the mind of the self’; she is the reflected ‘light’ of the Sun. The Sun supports Luna, and the Moon in turn, supports the Earth. Put another way, the human ‘Mind’ draws support from the ‘Self’, and thus nourishes the ‘Body’ by providing a home for the ‘Self’. These are the three essential ‘centres’ of all esoteric belief, the understanding of which is of great importance. Our human mind receives our ‘thoughts’ from the ‘soul’ and then it reflects them upon this world of ‘matter’, thus we are able to reflect the ‘higher’ onto the ‘lower’, and also have the ability to ‘transform’ the lower into the higher through our minds. When our mind is turned inwards (towards the subconscious), then the ‘objective’ world ceases to exist; instead we open the ‘subjective’ world to our senses. But, when our mind is turned outwards (towards consciousness), it makes the entire objective world ‘visible’. Esoteric thought often describes this through Luna; it is said by many sages (particularly in the East) that when the mind is fully objective then it is in a state called ‘Full Moon’, when it is totally subjective, it is in the ‘New Moon’ state. Western occultism also utilises such an understanding, by working to develop these two states of mind concurrently, such that Luna stands as a gateway between the ‘inner’ and ‘outer’ (hu)man. This can be clearly observed within the symbolism of the masonic implement, the ‘compass’. The left leg of a compass represents ‘objectivity’, the right ‘subjectivity’, whilst the head of the compass represents the source of the two, that is, the ’soul’.

So, when we talk about the ‘Moon’, what exactly do we mean? The core ‘meaning’ of the moon is often hard to grasp, and is also rarely fully defined (particularly in the parlance of modern Astrology), such that the ‘idea’ of the Moon remains rather elusive. As we can see from the ancient ‘Gods’ associated with the Moon, there were often ‘two’ of them, and this is because the Moon represents two separate archetypes. The first of these is that of a sort of ‘medium’ (a container if you will), in which ‘energy’ may become ‘manifest’. The second, is that of a ‘matrix’, a source, or origin of all things. The common symbol of the Moon is the crescent shape (facing either left or right), which is much like the edge of a bowl, suggesting the form of a container, something that ‘gives form to’, limits, and thus helps to ‘define’ what is contained within it. This concept is essential to understanding the ‘Moon’, this idea of it providing a surrounding, a location, a place or environment, the very ‘principle’ of a set of circumstances in which ‘something’ may take place and be contained. The Moon is also the planetary archetype of ‘Yin’, and it is the equal of ‘Yang’ (which is the archetype of the Sun). This Yin principle defines the circumstances and conditions under which the Yang ‘energies’ can manifest (The Moon’s Yin ‘nature’ gives place and form to the action of the Sun’s Yang, it is the ‘foundation’ of that which can be experienced as ‘existence’, even though it does not in itself signify ‘action’, like the Sun does, or even ‘experience’; but without it neither of these could exist).

It can therefore be said that the ‘Moon’ gives birth to ‘matter’, it assures its ‘growth’ here upon the Earth. This understanding provides a significant (these days mostly forgotten) clue about how our ‘mind’ holds the very key to our human ‘body’. We can clearly observe when our mind is working in good ‘order’, then our bodies (particularly its ‘magnetism’) is also in good order, but when our mind is ‘disordered’ then it often manifests itself in the matter of our ‘body’ through illness and discomfort. Without the objective mind there is no ‘birth’, no ‘growth’, and no ‘nourishment’ of matter. Such is also true in the subjective world (the world we experience in dreams when we sleep, that exists ‘outside’ of this ‘material’ world), which is why the ‘Moon’ is often seen as the ‘Mother’ in all the worlds theologies, just as the ‘Sun’ is often seen as the ‘Father’ (in eastern theologies there is also a very clear distinction between Luna and the Moon in their beliefs, more so than modern ‘western’ theologies have decided to allow the masses to remember). Through this knowledge we can see that the ‘energies’ of the Father are drawn through the ‘principle’ of reflection (reception and containment), and as a result our ‘souls’ are then nourished, and thus ‘delivered’ upon Earth by the principle of the Moon (Luna). This reflective principal also functions on all planes of creation, it thus enables the universal law of “As above, So below” to function.

Note that (as was briefly mentioned) in ‘Drawing Souls towards the Sun’, and (what was also expounded upon further in) ‘Grounded within Man-made Time’, the Moon (just like the Sun), plays a fundamental role in what we commonly refer to as the ‘Kali Yuga’ these days. Our current Moon (the one we observe orbiting the Earth), is actually the ‘mother’ of this Earth. It was previously the ‘Earth’ upon which we ‘soul beings’ (as well as other entities) inhabited; when that Earth reached its forgone conclusion, we were transported to this, our present Earth (such is a tale for another time, but essentially, ‘we’ were not evolved enough at that ‘time’ to ascend into the higher realms, and so we had to start again here on ‘Earth’ – this tale is explained to some degree within the biblical story of Noah’s Ark, and is much better explained in the ‘Vaivasvata Manu’ in the East, and in what little remains of the Sumerian literature, particularly the story of Gilgamesh, and references to the ‘Seven Hills of Sumer’). All of the ‘species’ that existed on this previous Earth were transmigrated onto our current Earth, which had emerged as part of a ‘globe chain’ before the termination of that previous Earth. This process was/is undertaken in three steps, where an ‘Earth’ becomes visible, and then in three further steps this Earth becomes invisible, such that the ‘visible’ globe (‘Earth’ as we know it today) is the ‘fourth’ state (with three preceding and three succeeding ‘global’ states), what today we call the Kali Yuga state. Therefore, whilst our current ‘Moon’ is in a state of recession (and thus becoming invisible), and we currently ‘dwell’ on this Earth, there is another ‘Earth’ on its way to being ‘manifested’ (becoming visible) for our future. In total, there are always ‘seven’ Earths at any one time (along with our current Earth, there are three preceding and three succeeding Earths), there is therefore a ‘globe chain’ of seven that gets in to get out, in seven ‘cosmic’ pulsations.

“Garbage and nonsense” some of you reading this may cry. However, to truly understand this tale it is important to ‘remember’ that within Astrology, as well as our (so-called) ‘reality’ here on Earth, the Moon is always our ‘Past’. Every entity goes through a period prior to its ‘mature’ manifestation in which it is developing and growing, where it is not yet ready to ‘appear’ and to exert itself upon the Earth. During this time the entity ‘exists’ always within some kind of container that both ‘protects’ and provides ‘structure’ and ‘form’ to it. It may be an egg, a womb, a seed, or the very soil of this Earth; either way this is the ‘principle’ of the Luna container as the nurturing matrix (hence why the Moon has always been connected, since ancient times, with every form of ‘motherhood’, and also within Astrology the Moon symbolises our experiences through our life of being nurtured, protected, and supported, as well as representing the ‘energies’ that are manifest within the home we were raised in as children, and our home in adulthood through its association with the ‘fourth house’ and the zodiac sign of ‘Cancer’). This therefore leads directly into the second meaning of the Moon noted above, which is intrinsically related to the first. It is the very ‘idea’ that we all have of where we come from; hence why there is a common tendency to treat ones homeland as ‘Mother’, as is evidenced by the often feminine endings to the names of many of the nations across this Earth.

Moreover, when we view our natal chart, we can clearly see (and identify), that what is ‘expressed’ in the placement of the Moon is our ‘Past’, whilst our ‘Ascendant’ is our ‘Present’, and the placement of the Sun is our ‘Future’ (for more information on this see: ‘Know Your Chart: The Basics’). Astrology (and esoteric beliefs) state that the effect of the Moon is on us at all times, and this is clearly evidenced by our ‘Personality’. We all have a personality that is our innate ‘nature’ (the sum total of all our positive and negative experiences), and we all are conditioned by this personality (and the impact of the phases of Luna are experienced by us all when we have changing moods and emotions, often on a daily basis, or hourly basis, and sometimes in rhythm with the tides). This Luna influence is the impact of all of our ‘past’ experiences (and not just because of the Moon’s magnetic inducing movements around the Earth); within our natal chart the Moon represents our ‘ancient’ thoughts as well as our ‘past lives’ incarnated on ‘Earth’. Whilst the Sun lights up our ‘world’ and it infuses us with our own ‘individuality’, and our Ascendant sets our very direction of travel, the Moon is who we ‘truly’ are, where we came from, and ultimately, it is what we ‘need’ in order to grow into ourselves. To fully ‘know’ yourself, and thus (for want of a better word) ‘master’ yourself, you must learn how to ‘transcend’ the limitations of the personality, and learn how to begin functioning as a fully ‘soul-infused’ individuality.

Effectively getting ‘control’ of our personality isn’t an easy task. Most of us are in a constant struggle with our own personality, as it continues to condition our comprehension of ‘self’ as well as our ‘reality’. Until we can break free from this conditioning by our personality, the Moon placement within our natal chart will continue to have an iron-like hold over us. Ever wonder why you seem to keep making the same mistakes? Why does our past have a nasty, and frequent habit of returning to haunt us? Why does life seem to feel so very predictable at times? Why do we experience Déjà vu? The impact of the Moon (our ‘personality’, ‘mind’, and ‘memory’) has to be overcome in order to break free from the cycle. Remember, the Moon is but a ‘mirror’ (as is our ‘mind’), it only reflects that which it is angled towards. The Soul reflects through the mind, but the mind is only the medium that enables the reflection of the soul to infuse our ‘individuality’. This mirror also works on another dimension (which adds a further aspect to each of our personalities that we all need to understand and utilise); the Moon is the repository of our ‘karma’. Luna works as a stimulator of our ‘mind’ to patterns of behaviour that are particular to each of us individually, according to our own past karma, which is expressed via our (often peculiar) emotions, sentiments, personality traits, and how we inherently react to things. This past karma is embedded within the twelve ‘houses’ of the zodiac, as detailed within our natal charts (the map to ourselves), and it is ‘expressed’ by the planetary transits.

More than anything else in life, it is our ‘needs’ that drive us, we all seem to need so many things in order to live, be it nutrition, affection, nurture, belonging, resources, roots, goals, others around us. All of these things seem so very necessary, we ‘need’ them all at some fundamental level, and at times it seems like we cannot live without them. Some of us have simpler needs than others, but regardless, all of these ‘needs’ are the domain of Luna. It is impossible to ignore the position of the Moon in your natal chart, for she is the only ‘planet’ that is actively ‘managing’ your existence in its totality, she is responsible for your mind, and thus ‘thought’, and as we well know, thought controls our very existence. She is a connecting link between our past, present and future (as well as our parallel existences, although such is also a tale for another time). She is the link between the material and the astral (being responsible for our ‘astral bodies’), and knowing the Moon is essential to knowing yourself, for she is the one who ‘times’ the events in your life, and it is only through Luna that your ‘karma’ is triggered (it is worth pointing out at this point that the frequent transits of the planets through the twelve houses of the zodiac that result in conjunctions, squares and oppositions stimulate your ‘negative karma’, whilst planetary trines and sextiles bring forth the ‘positive karma’ of your past – over time we humans have come to call this ‘fate’). We do not have to be conditioned by fate however, if we can train our ‘mind’ with the help of these planetary transits we bring forth our ‘freewill’, and we can learn how to wait, to think, and to respond appropriately instead of reacting ‘instinctively’, which is what the impact of Luna forces us to do, time and time again.

Observed throughout astrological literature is the fact that the Moon is considered to be the primary indicator of our ‘emotions’, this is because Luna operates largely ‘unconsciously’. It is our emotions that are one of the principle ‘manifestations’ of the part of the ‘self’ that is either hereditary or structured at a very early age (usually unconsciously and in conjunction with our needs). Our emotions are the strongest sign that something deep within our ‘self’, the part that is ‘dominated’ by Luna energies, is being ‘activated’. Our emotions are neither more, nor less, accurate than our ‘rational’ mind in making judgements, it is merely that the rational mind does not have easy access to the ‘power’ inherent in emotions, and therefore it often ignores them (this becomes evident when we ‘consciously’ identify with our ‘rational’ mind more as we age, and those of us who do not create a ‘split’ between the rational and the emotional natures of ‘mind’ have a greater ability to make judgements that utilise every ‘faculty’ of the true self). This Luna influence is also more mechanical in nature, instinctual, and reflexive. A great deal of our personality and thus our ‘behaviour’ requires emotional reflexes and instantaneous judgement, and this is the Luna mind in action (in fact it is these unconscious, instinctive reflexes that govern a much larger portion of our daily activity than the rational element does, this is because they are indispensable for our very survival – if a car is rushing at us and we are only half-way across the road, we have no time to rationally ‘think’ and thus consider what to do, instead our ‘instinctive’ reflexes, our Luna governed ‘quick response’ kicks in to move our body out of harm’s way).

Remarkably, throughout time mystics, sages, and indeed Astrologers, have failed to fully understand the Moon as well as they have the Sun. In fact despite particular instances of dedication to Luna and her associated ‘cults’, we humans never accorded the Moon with the same level of importance as the Sun. This is probably due to the cultures that we have built around ourselves over time. Our modern cultures have lost touch with the ‘power’ of Yin, and only fully embraced the Yang element (and unfortunately, our recent ‘western’ culture has also completely lost touch with the inherent duality, and necessity of masculine and feminine, with the current abomination that is ‘transgenderism’, and the woke usage of ‘pronouns’ instead of what all life actually is, a divine and sacred combination of the ‘He’ and the ‘She’). These days we are conditioned to ‘go out’ into the world, to grab it by the throat, and to ‘master’ it. We no longer understand (or value) the importance of waiting, of learning to fit into the world, and become a part of the ‘whole’. The only role that modern man (particularly) seems to respect is that of ‘mastery’; whether that be the mastery of our circumstances, or of nature, of this universe, even ourselves. But in our approach, we have forgotten that it is the ‘Moon’ that represents the ‘energy’ of an alternative path, that of ‘becoming a part of’, that of ‘belonging’, and of ‘submission’ to that which we will gain nothing by mastering. It is never enough that the female sex gain political and social ‘equality’ with the male sex (again, this is something that is being undermined, and destroyed by the whole transgender movement, with the undoing, and ridicule of centuries of female struggle in a Yang dominated world); if the ‘Yin’ principle does not gain full equality with the ‘Yang’ principle, then all is for nought. We humans are all both Yin and Yang, both masculine and feminine, and as long as we (and our culture and society), continue to act as if the Luna Yin is not an equal ‘participant’ in our existence and reality as the Solar Yang, then we are just living a life as ‘half-beings’, a so-called ‘living’ that is incomplete, and also out of touch with nature.

You can clearly see this ‘balance’ in nature, and it may be easier to explain how it relates to ‘us’, if we also look at the symbolism contained within the Tarot. The ‘Moon’ tarot card (the eighteenth of the Major Arcana) ultimately represents ‘deception’, ‘chaos’, and ‘confusion’ (all related to ‘mind’ when undertaking a Tarot ‘reading’). When we view the Rider-Waite tarot card, we can clearly see a ‘path’ that leads off into the distance. On either side of this path stands a wolf and a dog, these represent our ‘animalistic’ nature – one is civilised, the other wild and feral. There is a lobster crawling out of the pond (the ‘waters’) from which the path stems, and in the distance, we can see ‘two’ towers flanking the central path (alluding to the ‘doubles’ that are clearly visible within this card). Everything within this card seems to be an echo of the other, thus alluding to ‘two possibilities’. As we walk this path, we find ourselves walking a fine line between ‘conscious’ and ‘unconscious’, between the tamed side of ‘civilisation’ (the dog), and the very forces of ‘nature’ (the wolf). The towers are at opposing ends, and are representations of the forces of ‘good’ and ‘evil’, the similarity of appearance alluding to the difficulties we all face in distinguishing between the two. The Moon can be seen to have sixteen primary, and sixteen secondary rays, that correspond with the phases of the Moon (as will be explained below). This card also represents life of the ‘imagination’ apart from life of the ‘spirit’, the path between the towers being the ‘unknown’, with the dog and wolf representing the emotive fears of our ‘mind’ in the presence of that place of exit, where there is only ‘reflected light’ to guide us along the path.

Understanding the symbology found within the tarot is important. It is akin to the symbology inherent in the Alchemists understanding of the Moon as one of the ‘seven’ planetary metals, of which ‘silver’ was the metal associated with the Moon (and of course, has as its symbol, a crescent moon facing towards the left). In alchemy, silver is a symbol of purity, wealth, and the feminine principle, and it is also a representation of the lunar cycles in practice. Silver was known to have the ‘power’ to transform base metals into gold and was also associated with ‘intuition’, psychic powers, and the ability to ‘access hidden knowledge’ (knowledge that we have been forced to forget these days, and has been erased from our history). It is very interesting to note in this context the utilisation of the ‘waning crescent’ moon as the alchemy symbol, as opposed to the ‘waxing crescent’ moon which would face towards the right. The crescent moon is sacred all over the world in multiple religions and ancient practices, in particular with the ‘wicca’, or what we nowadays call witchcraft, where the waning crescent is used for the banishing of evil energy (or negative influences), for the cleansing of people or places, the ending of relationships, curses or of spells placed upon the practitioner, releasing bad emotions and also ridding oneself of bad ‘habits’ and ‘personality traits’. However, the ‘Moon’ as a waxing crescent represents ‘new beginnings’, positive thinking and acting, the building of something better (whether that be increasing your health, your wealth, happiness, friendships, or just making a ‘better future for yourself’). Working with the ‘Moon’ has always been vital for the wicca, and was intrinsically tied to their power, as much as it was essential to the alchemist in order to complete the sacred work of transforming base metals into gold.

Nowadays we pay little head to the Moon, but the ancients understood the importance of the Moon much better than we do today. In fact, throughout time cultures counted the days by the ‘lunar’ orbit, not the solar orbit, and as a result they conceived a ‘seven-day’ week (which is not the solar week we have today). The system of counting the weekdays was based on the seven ‘ascending’ Moon phases and the seven ‘descending’ Moon phases, with the eighth phase being the ‘eighth day’, or the New Moon and Full Moon nodal points. These Moon phases were called ‘dies’ (hence why we still call them ‘days’). This is probably a good point to also mention that it is often said (astrologically), that the Moon is ‘paving the way for Saturn’. The cosmic movement of the Moon and of the planet Saturn correspond with each other, it takes two and a half days for the Moon to transit a ‘Sun’ sign of the zodiac. It takes two and a half years for Saturn to transit a zodiac Sun sign (therefore, Saturn is 365 times stronger, and is sometimes called the ‘Grand Moon’). Likewise, the Moon completes an orbit of the Earth in (about) twenty nine days, whilst Saturn’s orbit is (around) twenty nine years, and the ‘matter’ that the Moon gives birth to is ‘solidified’ by Saturn. The centre of ‘our Earth’ attracts matter around itself and gathers itself into a ‘globe’ (of particles and photons for those more scientifically minded). This matter is gathered from the ‘invisible’ planes into the ‘material’ planes through the ‘effect’ of the magnetism of the Moon, and the rays of ‘sunlight’ (rays that are reflected through the Moon) create the fecundity of Earth, bringing forth the seasonal flora and fauna, and also our human ‘fertilisation’. Without the magnetism of the Moon there would be no ‘life’ on Earth.

Decoding this knowledge further, the role that the ‘mind’ plays for the ‘soul’ within (hu)man, is similar to what the ‘Moon’ plays for the ‘Sun’ to enable life on ‘Earth’. This plays out through the Luna phases, a divine time cycle that is covered over the period of ‘fourteen’ days here on Earth, with fourteen ‘ascending’ and fourteen ‘descending’ phases. This ‘increasing’ and then ‘decreasing’ process is of great importance, with each phase ending in either the New Moon (akin to the ‘nothingness’ of creation), or the Full Moon (which is akin to the ‘fullness’ of creation), thus making two ‘cycles’ of sixteen days. The Full Moon, New Moon, and the ‘eighth’ phases of each ascending and descending cycle are of the greatest importance, and they mark great changes within the order of things, in the course of events, and also within ourselves. They are natural concluding ‘points’ in the cycle, such that after ‘seven’ phases there is always either a Full Moon, an eighth Moon phase, or a New Moon, thus marking ‘four quarters’ in a lunar cycle, with each quarter containing seven Moon phases (as shown in the image below). The ancients, through this ‘division’ of the lunar cycle understood that ‘inner work’ on the ‘self’ was to be conducted on every ‘eighth’ day, and so they spent their lives ‘functioning’ (or active) for seven days and then resting on the eighth day; such was the way of living until the days of Rome (where it got distorted into a week of seven days with a ‘holiday’ on every seventh day, which is not in tune either with the natural ‘Luna’ cycle, nor with the ‘Solar’ cycle, which aligns with each of the New and Full Moons – the weekdays that we now live and relate to are but a very poor substitute to the week of the ancients).

Image produced by Seraphim for this article – A visual representation of the Luna phases and their quarters

Evidenced in the above image is the clear correlation between the second set of ascending Moon phases and the third set of descending Moon phases, they correspond to each other in their ‘inverse’ order. These two sets of Moon phases produce more than fifty percent of the ‘moonlight’, they shed more ‘light’ during the night compared to the other two sets of phases (which also correspond to each other). We can say that there are therefore ‘two sets’ of Luna phases, one producing more than fifty percent of the ‘light’, whilst the other produces less than fifty percent of light. The first of these sets of Luna phases are related to ‘formation’ and ‘growth’ (of both this ‘material’ Earth as well as within ourselves), and thus have always been considered to be the ‘optimal’ time for such to happen. Occultists throughout the ages have related this period of Moon phases to their ‘magical’ practices. (Hu)man is a ‘replica’ of the ‘Cosmic Being’, the entire cosmos can be experienced (in its minute detail) within us, as was told in ‘Being this Story within Earth’. Every day we humans ‘descend’ in seven steps into ‘matter’, and likewise, we can also ‘ascend’ in seven steps towards our ‘original’ state of being (‘us’ outside of this material existence). These seven steps are: 1. ‘Self-awakening’ (every morning we are awakened from our sleep, from a seeming ‘non-existence’, which is actually our ‘real’ existence; we are awakened, and then we ‘feel’ that we have awakened); 2. ‘Filled with brilliance’ (after awakening, we are filled with ‘fire’ for the activity of the day, and with the help of this ‘fire’ energy we are ‘infused’ and able to conduct the activity for the whole day); 3. ‘Rising’ (having awakened and been filled with energy, we rise from our bed to conduct the activity of the day – hopefully in tune with the ‘laws of nature’); 4. ‘Ignorance’ (having risen from bed, we now have to relate to this world of ‘matter’, which is nothing but the world of ignorance, darkness, and ‘illusion’); 5. ‘Individual Ego’ (we tend to individualise as we start our day-to-day activities, and we thus start functioning as an ‘individual’, our Ego takes charge of the day); 6. ‘Functioning through senses’ (as we function ‘within’ this world of ‘matter’, we are primarily depending upon what we see and hear, and what we ‘comprehend’ from what we see, hear, touch, smell and taste. All of our ‘wisdom’ and experience is sense oriented); and 7. ‘Weaving’ (based upon our ‘knowledge’, which we gather with our senses and our ‘perceptions’ as an individualised ego, we perpetually ‘weave’ a web of life within this material world, a web that we all eventually get stuck within). At the end of the day we return to sleep, and we are ‘retrieved’ by nature (we return to ‘our’ true state), only to be re-awakened the next morning to repeat these seven steps of ‘involution’.

Reversing this process is the work which we all need to undertake in order to realise who we truly are and return to our ‘original’ state of being. It is a work of ‘evolution’ instead of being perpetually trapped in a cycle of ‘involution’. Reverse the seven steps that are described above, and you can identify what all esoteric belief, all teachings from the ‘East’ are tell us about where we should be heading towards (you can see how this ‘path’ leads both ways, with different results – one mired in ‘matter’, the other free from this ‘illusion’ of existence). This is the basic occult and esoteric theme of the ‘Luna’ phases and how they should be viewed. We can utilise the Moon phases where the moonlight is at more than fifty percent to ‘experience’ the ‘light’ (which is also a ‘frequency’) and raise ourself from the ‘darkness’ of this material world (hence the common references to ‘raising your frequency’). We can all encounter this ‘truth’ every fortnight, and a simple exercise is to take note of how these Moon phases relate to your ‘self’ as detailed within your natal chart, by noticing the waxing and waning ‘flow’, and the effect of the changing frequencies, you can organise your life accordingly so as to help it ‘expand’ and ‘consolidate’. The same is true when we talk about how we understand and overcome our ‘personality’, as was discussed above. All of us, at one point or another in our lives, needs to find the ‘resolve’ to battle ones personality in order to advance upon the evolutionary path of our soul. The Moon (our mind) should be viewed as the ‘gatherer’, whilst the Sun (our Soul) is the ‘distributor’. Luna gathers results, causes our ‘growth’, and preserves it, and it is ‘Saturn’ who then ‘consolidates’ it, and it is ‘Mars’ who provides us with the power, the ‘will’, to stand bold in our confrontation with the ‘personality’ (together the Moon, Saturn, and Mars form a ‘triangle’, a ‘lower triad’ of forces that gather, preserve, develop, and consolidate ‘matter’ around us – around our ‘soul’ as the in-dweller in this material realm on Earth).

The ’material’ that we develop around ourselves subtly ‘conditions’ and even ‘imprisons’ us. Until we find the ‘will’ to erase this conditioning , all the forces of the cosmos are focused on us ‘developing’ a material (often comfortable by design) life, which eventually turns out to be a prison. This is true for our ‘mind’ as much as it is true for our ‘body’. Our human body is gradually ‘developed’ in five cycles of ‘seven’ years (as was detailed within ‘A Lifetime of Planetary Cycles’ and ‘Opeaus Blair’s Sacred Sequencing’), and later we find that this conditioning of the body (which we have developed around our ‘self’), manifests itself in terms of our ‘material’ wealth, health, and physical ‘being’, because what is material tends to ‘settle’ and harden (this is what we mean by the term – ‘the Moon is paving the way for Saturn’). The reversing of this process is what all esoteric and occult practice is ultimately about, and the first key to this undertaking is the ‘force’ of Mars (which is inversely directed ‘towards’ matter). By reversing this ‘Mars’ force through the ‘evolution’ of the soul by the act of ‘self-will’, we can turn away from ‘matter’ and focus our attentions on the ‘higher triad’ (the triangle formed by Mercury, Venus, and Jupiter), and position one triangle over the other to form a ‘star’ (further details on how to relate this to your own individual natal chart, and what it truly means in practice will be covered in forthcoming ‘Know Your Chart’ articles).

Having the ‘higher’ and ‘lower’ triads in ‘agreement’ we can make our ‘Moon’ (that is our Luna ‘mind’) work in either direction, thus we can learn to turn the ‘subjective’ to receive the ‘energies’ from the higher triad, and also turn the ‘objective’ to distribute such ‘energies’ into our ‘material’ surroundings and ultimately our lives (through the lower triad – the opposite of what we all inherently do without such practice), because we have reversed the flow, and erased the conditioning of our ‘personality’. When we achieve such a ‘mind’, we eventually lose the ‘instinct’ of gathering and preserving, and instead are able to ‘distribute’. We are able to turn our attention and focus towards ‘work’ that ‘benefits’ our surroundings, we move away from our own ‘fate’, and work for the benefit of ‘others’, we cease working solely for the benefit of ‘ourselves’ because we reach an ‘understanding’ that this reality (this ‘creation’) is for ‘all’, and each of us needs to work for all to ‘experience’ this creation appropriately, and in its ‘fullness’. Thus we reach a point where we have ‘wisdom’, and the realisation, that when we work only for ourselves, we are ultimately creating ‘fate’, and we are creating (as well as reinforcing) our own ‘conditioning’, our own ‘prison’ here on Earth. By having the ‘knowledge’ of this path (illuminated by Luna), and by working for others, we can transform our ‘mind’ into a group consciousness, we can ‘refine’ ourselves to ‘think’ that what we do should be fair for all, and should truly help our surroundings (the ‘whole’). Selfish thinking thus yields the way to thinking for the ‘good of the group’, and at that point, the influences of the ‘Moon’ at the time of our birth yields itself to the ‘degree’ of the Moon within our natal chart (which existed at the time of our ‘fertilisation’, and was expressed as we ‘grew’ within our mother’s womb – the ‘time’ that is marked by the ‘Ascendant’ in our birth chart – this topic will also be covered in-depth in future ‘Know Your Chart’ articles as mentioned above).

Essentially, until ‘(hu)man’ gives himself up in favour of the group (and for the benefit of all entities here on ‘Earth’), it is the birth ‘Moon’ (and thus all of our past ‘karma’) that continues to condition each and every on of us on a cycle of repeated ‘fate’, a state that is completely devoid of ‘freewill’. We are thus doomed to suffer a series of ‘lives’ in the world of cause and effect. We have to ‘wilfully’ transcend this selfish approach in order to work for the general good, and the key to this undertaking is the ‘Moon’. This whole work (which can often take a lifetime) is one of ‘freewill’, it can not be imposed on us, neither can it be compelled upon, it is for each one of us (in our ‘individuality’), to pick up this golden thread that is embedded in all the theologies and occult practices across time, to live a life of ‘self-offering’. Anyone can start this ‘journey’ by observing when their birth ‘Moon’ is conjunct with ‘Saturn’, it is at such times that a series of ‘adjustments’ commence in relation to our own ‘personality’. This event (conjunction) occurs every thirty years, but its effects (and thus the period of time in which one has to ‘utilise’ this energy of adjustment) lasts for seven and a half years. This is never an easy ‘time’ in our lives, and to truly utilise the resultant ‘energy’ does require a great deal of ‘self-discipline’ in order to ‘reverse’ the embedded conditioning of our ‘personality’ and of our ‘mind’. But by harnessing the ‘moonlight’ (through the phases of the Moon) and by using your natal chart to work with (rather than against) the planets a great deal can be seen and ‘understood’ about ourselves, and our place within this ‘Earth’. In fact, with every Full Moon, a ‘message’ is transmitted from the ‘higher realms’ (which is understood in some circles to be a message of ‘sixteen’ letters). Those who are able to ‘receive’ this message offer their lives to fulfil the message for the month to come, and thus ‘Full Moons’ are times of ‘contact’ in which we can receive ‘instructions’ for each month to come.

Moonlight (which can be seen to shine like ‘silver’ within the darkness), is often viewed as the ‘light’ of comprehension. By understanding the ‘Moon’ and contemplating its Luna ‘light’, we can gain a true knowledge of our ‘self’. As so, this is the ideal time to return to the significance of the number ‘sixteen’. Sixteen is a number of ‘perfection’, it is a number of ‘fulfilment’, and the ancient Vedic knowledge has an understanding of this number. A Virgin of sixteen years and the Son of God of sixteen years are worshipped in Vedic beliefs as ‘Kumari’ and ‘Kumara’. Within Hindu mythology, the Lord Rama and Lord Krishna, though they lived well beyond one hundred years, always looked like they were a youth of ‘sixteen’. It is believed (by Vedic’s, the Buddhists, and other faiths over time) that the ‘fulfilled’ ones are ageless, they remain forever in their youth (not only is their ‘soul’ ageless, their ‘personality’ and ‘body’ are filled with the ‘soul’ energy that makes them remain truly ageless). As well as sixteen seeming to be the ‘perfect age’, we humans are endowed with sixteen teeth (each for the upper and lower jaw, in unison with the Luna phases described above, even down to the shape if you look closely). There is therefore ‘wisdom’ in this number. The ascending and descending Moon phases, from New Moon to Full Moon, and from Full Moon to New Moon, are counted as sixteen in total (the New Moon is often referred to as a ‘nil state’, whilst the Full Moon is known as the ‘full state’). The sixteen ‘dimensions’ of the Moon (either way) are therefore seen as the ‘complete light’ within creation, and this ‘knowledge’ has been passed down to us from the ancients, who ‘knew’ how to relate to every ‘frequency’ of the Moon.

Observing these Moon phases we can see from ‘nothingness’ to ‘fullness’ and then from ‘fullness’ back to ‘nothingness’ is an eternal cycle. We enter into this material ‘existence’, then evolve and become fulfilled during the duration of our time imprisoned in ‘matter’ (what all the theologies of this world call creation), before leaving creation through the act of ‘death’ (only to once more start all over again on an endlessly repeating cycle). These Luna phases are thus an ‘ascent’ into light and/or a ‘descent’ into matter, but when the ‘soul’ departs in the ascending moonlight (and we have won the battle against our personality and ‘conditioning’), it can be said that the soul moves into a better (higher) state/realm of ‘life’ (as who we really ‘are’). This is at the core of the story contained within the ‘Bhagavad-Gita’, a story that tells the tale of every life being an opportunity for onwards movement and ‘soul’ development. The ascending ‘light’ is regarded as a sort of ‘experiencing’ light in ‘objectivity’, and then the descending light is received as experiencing light in ‘subjectivity’. In the ascending arc, the light of ‘awareness’ is gained and in the descending arc, the ‘memory’ of that light of awareness is ‘contemplated’. The former of these is seen as the ‘feminine’ aspect of God (for want of a better word, although ‘Source’ would probably be more appropriate), whilst the latter is seen as the ‘masculine’ aspect, therefore, at the time of a ‘Full Moon’ it is the female aspect that is in full bloom, and the ‘experience’ of the light of awareness is at its peak, it is in a state of ‘fullness’ (embodied as the ‘Divine Mother’), which is why most ‘magic’ is done under the light of a Full Moon. Therefore, when there is a ‘New Moon’, it is in the opposite state, a state of ‘nil-ness’, where the Mother is absorbed by the ‘Father’, the female having been ‘absorbed’ into the male aspect, and is a time for ‘sowing’ for future growth.

Overall, the whole ‘creational’ process is seen as an aspect of the ‘Mother’, and can be truly understood by observing the cycles of the ‘Moon’. The sixteen Luna phases can be seen as a set of sixteen ‘initiations’ from the ‘birth’ of the crescent Moon (after the New Moon) up to a Full Moon. It corresponds to the birth of ‘consciousness’ and its gradual growth, and every phase of the Moon is therefore ‘significant’. These sixteen ‘dimensions/frequencies’ of the Moon are seen as the complete ‘light’ of creation, and are also fundamental in working on the full creation of our ‘Self’. Each time our ‘soul’ enters into this material existence and takes ‘form’, it enters into (and ‘illuminates’) the sixteen ‘principles’ of the body. The body (as we know) is simply the vehicle for the soul here on Earth, and it has sixteen principles into which the soul enters. These are as follows: the five elements (Earth, Air, Fire, Water, and ‘Aether’), the five sense (Sight, Hearing, Taste, Touch, and Smell), the five ‘organs of action’ (Speech, Feet – which provide ‘movement’, Hands – which provide ‘manipulation’, Excretory Organ, and the Organ of Reproduction), with the sixteenth being the ‘Mind’. The soul enters in three steps – firstly as an individual ‘Ego’, then as ‘Comprehension’, and finally as a full resident of the ‘Mind’, where we become ‘whole’. This ancient knowledge enabled everyone to ‘relate’ to ‘every’ Moon phase; it was central to Vedic beliefs, and to all occult undertakings throughout time, but today the ‘memory’ of this wisdom has been lost. The deep symbology of the Moon and her phases has been forgotten, and all most people see these days is the dying ‘Moon’ orbiting this ‘Earth’.

Needless to say, having told the tale above, it is apparent that the ‘Moon’ holds the key to the universal law – ‘As above, So below’. The lower follows the higher, as the ‘Earth’ follows the ‘Sun’ (whilst the Sun follows the ‘Central Sun’). Lower ‘energy’ systems need to follow, and fall in line with the higher ones (the ‘inferior’ has to follow the ‘superior’). This ‘Earth’ is much bigger (as a system) than the individual, it sets the day and night, it sets the seasons that us as individuals have to follow. By any of us not ‘following’, the Earth is not disturbed but the ‘individual’ is, and so each of us would do well to follow the ancient wisdom; the individual is too small to ‘contradict’ this ‘existence’ (but we can ‘escape’ it by approaching it a different way). The accumulated wisdom that has been passed down to us, can help each individual to work towards improving this existence, and also each of our ‘lives’ within it. What has been told above is an attempt to help provide some knowledge about this material existence we find ourselves trapped within, through the ‘wisdom’ of the Moon (and to conclude the first series of articles written as part of a ‘Sacred Sequence’ of work that intends to shed further ‘light’ on the planets both within, and without). The ‘Moon’ prepares our ‘body’ for material ‘existence’, the fabric of this body can be seen as an aggregate of our ‘past’; whatever ‘traits’ we have when we leave this ‘Earth’ in earlier incarnations, re-gathers when we enter into the womb of our mother, and these traits are then inbuilt into the fabric of our new material ‘body’ when we manifest again on Earth. We carry these individual likes, dislikes, our ‘conditioning’, our ‘personality’ and memory with us each time, until we break the cycle and complete our ‘soul’ journey from the Moon towards the Sun, and this can only be done by mastering your ‘mind’. Remember, the Moon is but a ‘mirror’, if you keep orienting it towards ‘matter’ it will only reflect matter, but if you orient it towards your ‘soul purpose’, so will it reflect…

References:

In reference to the Cult of Dionysus/Bacchus – See: The thrill and the ecstasy: the mysteries of the Dionysian cult in ancient Rome – Planet Pompeii, DIONYSUS CULT 1 – Ancient Greek Religion (theoi.com), and Part II. Every God Is Plural. 3. Forgetting Delphi Between Apollo and Dionysus – The Center for Hellenic Studies (harvard.edu)

In reference to the Goddesses ‘Diana’ and ‘Luna’ – See: Diana – World History Encyclopedia and Luna ancient Roman moon goddess (vindolanda.com)

In reference to ‘Selene’ and ‘Artemis’ – See: SELENE – Greek Goddess of the Moon (Roman Luna) (theoi.com) and ARTEMIS – Greek Goddess of Hunting & Wild Animals (Roman Diana) (theoi.com)

In reference to ‘Mani’ – See: Mani — Norse Mythology, NORSE GODS: MÁNI – Ýdalir (ydalir.ca) and Sól and Máni Norse Gods: The Complete Guide (2023) (mythologysource.com)

In reference to ‘Khonsu’ – See: Khonsu: Enigmatic Egyptian Moon God, Healer, Protector And His Dark Side – Ancient Pages, The Nightly Journey of Khonsu – The Ancient Egyptian God of the Moon (anthropologyreview.org) and Khonsu God of the Moon: The Mythology and Significance in Ancient Egyptian Culture – Old World Gods

In reference to ‘Awilix’ – See: Awilix – Wikipedia (apologies for the Wikipedia link, my usual source of Mayan mythology on the internet appears to have been scrubbed, so this will have to do).

In reference to ‘Xbalanque’ – See: Hunahpu and Xbalanque: The Legendary Heroes of Mayan Mythology – Old World Gods and Xbalanque (mayansandtikal.com)

In reference to ‘Chandra’ and ‘Soma’ – See: Chandra: Hindu God of the Moon – World History Edu, Chandra Dev: The Divine Influence of the Moon God in Hindu Mythology – Hindu Deities, and The Secret Substance Soma: Bringing Human Beings Closer to the Gods | Ancient Origins (ancient-origins.net)

In reference to Vaivasvata Manu – See: Manu Vaivasvata – Dharmapedia Wiki, Story of Manvantara (wisdomlib.org), The Hare Krsnas – The Manus – Manus of the Present Universe and Vaivasvata Manu (blavatsky.net)

In reference to Gilgamesh and the Seven Hills of Sumer – See: Gilgamesh | Epic, Summary, & Facts | Britannica, The Sumerian Seven: The Top-Ranking Gods in the Sumerian Pantheon | Ancient Origins (ancient-origins.net), and The Ancient Epic of Gilgamesh and the Precession of the Equinox | Ancient Origins (ancient-origins.net)

In reference to Yin and Yang energies – See: Understanding Yin and Yang Energies » Nourishing Your Spirit, Yin & Yang Energies (whatonearthishappening.com) and Yin and Yang, Movements and Energies | Chinese calendar of energies (yinyang-calendar.net)

In reference to how the Moon effects emotions – See: https://www.indastro.com/astrology-articles/effects-moon-phases-emotions.html, https://www.nature.com/articles/mp2016263, and this interesting article evidencing how the Luna Cycles influence our very Sleep https://www.cell.com/fulltext/S0960-9822(13)00754-9

In reference to the seven metals in Alchemy – See: The Seven Alchemical Metals & Planets of the Week – √ø∑Dubs (joedubs.com)

In reference to the frequencies of the Moon phases – See: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/B0122274105006372

In reference to ‘Kumari’ and ‘Kumara’ – See: Kumari Goddess: The Last Living Goddess of Nepal – Nepal Sanctuary Treks, Sanat Kumara – Wikipedia (again apologies for the Wikipedia links, but these are actually quite accurate), and Four Kumaras – Wikipedia

In reference to Lords ‘Rama’ and ‘Krishna’ – See: Rama – Wikipedia and Krishna – Wikipedia (again, although not ideal sources for information, they are mostly accurate)

In reference to the Bhagavad-Gita – See: The Bhagavad-Gita (fulltextarchive.com)