If the essence of the Sun is Being, then the essence of the Moon can be conceived as Becoming.  There are two related primary ideas that derive out of this concept of Becoming.  One is that of Source.  The other is Duality.

On a metaphysical level, the Moon symbolizes the ground of Not-Being out of which the existents are manifested—thus, the Source of all that is created.  If we adopt a positive outlook on Reality, then we will see Being as the Everlasting and Eternal and Not-Being as being manifested from Being, rather than vice versa. Thus, the Moon becomes the first Manifested, the number Two, and the precipitator of Duality. 

From these two primary ideas, flow all of the associations that we have with the Moon in astrology.  We are used to starting at the sensory level and working toward the Transcendent.  Here, though, we will start with the deepest nature of the Moon and work outward toward her symbolic manifestations in the ordinary world.  As Source, we can view the Moon as the Cosmic Womb.  As such, She is the source of all life.  [Note that I have already begun referring to the Moon in the feminine.  This will be explored further as we move on.]

Yet, it is the Sun that represents the Creative Principle.  It is not the Moon, Not-Being, that creates—the Unmanifest is only the unrealized potential, the primal matter out of which the created beings spring.  Rather, the Creative Principle acts through the medium of the Unmanifest to make manifest what is potential.  The Creative Principle projects Itself into and through the prima materia.  Just as the seed is received by Mother Earth (in Her womb capacity) and just as the sperm seed is received by the mammalian womb, so the Moon is receptive to the creative energy symbolized by the Sun.  In receiving this creative energy, the Moon participates in the process of creation and, so, the Moon is not divorced from the power of creativity.

Receptivity, then, is a primary attribute associated with the Moon.  This attribute then manifests in multivalent ways.  It is one of a cluster of attributes that we associate with the Feminine.  It is contrasted with its opposite—activity—which we associate with the Masculine archetype.  Note that in possessing this attribute, which calls forth its opposite, the Moon becomes associated with Duality.

It is unfortunate, to say the least, that the polar archetypes of Feminine and Masculine have been corrupted by their association with patriarchal domination.  It is difficult to assign qualities to the Feminine without those qualities becoming automatically viewed as secondary or less powerful in our minds’ assumptions. 

This is a symptom of a deeper psychological dissociation between the two archetypes.  A psycho-spiritual goal of humanity is to reunite these archetypes and restore balance in the psyche and in the cosmic order.  We can, therefore, explore in the astrological positions of and relations between the Moon and the Sun potential avenues to work toward achieving this goal.  The key, as always, is to seek to manifest the qualities and attributes associated with the astrological symbol set at their highest transcendent meaning. 

Returning to the attribute of receptivity, we find this attribute in a number of the Moon’s associations.  We find receptivity to be a quality of the subconscious mind, which is associated with the Moon.  One avenue by which we associate the Moon with the subconscious is that the subconscious is unmanifested.  It is also a pathway back to our primal Source.  This Source is within, which means within our consciousness. 

We can conceive of our conscious mind as the circumference of a circle or as a littoral separating the outer “objective” world perceived by the physical senses and the inner “subjective” world of our mind, our emotions and, ultimately of Transcendent Consciousness.  The soul, our attention, can be turned either outward through the conscious mind or inward. (In reality, the soul is always “conscious” in the sense that it is aware.) 

Upon turning within and breaking through the barrier of the conscious mind, the first realm to be encountered would be the subconscious mind, which may also be conceived of as the lower astral regions.  Going deeper into the subconscious, the soul also ascends higher, ever approaching her original Source.  The Moon’s placement can potentially offer guidance with respect to approaching this journey.

Inherent to the function of the subconscious mind is its capacity to receive impressions from the conscious mind and store these impressions.  Impressions may be of any type—sensory, emotional, mental, experiential.  They are not simply memories.  Nor are they doomed to be forever hidden and forgotten.  For, within the subconscious mind these impressions carry on a life of their own.  If they appear dormant it is only because they are buried deeply under layers of subconscious dimension and, so, remain invisible, “unconscious” to the conscious mind.  While living in the subconscious mind, these impressions can interact and develop.  Because they are no longer tethered to the conscious “rational” mind, they often interact and develop in irrational ways. 

Impressions may gather together into complex systems (or complexes) and these may affect our conscious life in a number of ways.  They may manifest as dreams.  Thus, we have the association of the Moon with dreams and dreamwork.  Dreamwork has been developed as a gateway into the subconscious and, concurrently, as a way to get in touch with the Divine Feminine, of which the Moon is also symbolic.  For it is within the subconscious, and beyond, that the Divine Feminine dwells within each one of us.

This brings us back to the second prime archetypal quality associated with the Moon—Duality.  Just as Becoming juxtaposed to Being constitutes the First Duality, so the Divine Feminine of the Moon is juxtaposed against the Divine Masculine of the Sun.  The polarity of the Feminine combines with the archetype of Source to produce the association of the Moon with Mother.  This is not only mother in the personal sense but Mother in the sense of the archetype of all things giving birth and nurturing, including the very process of birth itself both in its physical and metaphorical forms. 

From the association with mother we derive the association of the Moon with all family and, particularly, the family unit of which the mother is the bonding force.  From the family, we also derive the association of the Moon with domesticity and, particularly, with those forms of domesticity associated with a mother, the keeper of the hearth and the caretaker of the home. 

Home itself is a natural progression from the domesticity associated with mother.  Home also congers back to Source for it is to home and Source to which we return.  The idea of returning to our Source is a Moon-related concept, distinct from the Mars-related concept of pushing onward.  One of the consequences of the patriarchalization of Western society (among others) is the diminution of the idea of Return to our Source.  In fact, such a return may be perceived as a defeat, a decline and withdrawal of vital energy, which feeds into the Western characterization of the feminine as weak.

Yet Return is a vital element of spiritual connection and it has not been totally lost to the West.  In Islam, for instance, (which is otherwise a patriarchal religion), the idea that the soul ultimately returns to Allah is a cornerstone.  It is also significant that in Muhammad’s Night Journey, in which he ascends into the regions of higher consciousness (to the furthest Lote tree and beyond), he splits the Moon (entering into the realm of the subconscious/Unconscious travelling toward the Source). 

The idea of Return also leads to another Moon association, that of cyclicity.  Cyclicity is symbolized by the repeating phases of the Moon, which return always and predictably to the same state (no matter with which state along the cycle we begin).  Cyclicity is also an inevitable consequence of Duality.  For duality creates polarization and opposites cannot be separated.  They are inextricably connected and, so, there is inevitably movement that takes place from one pole to the other and back again, whether this is the swing of the pendulum or the exchange of opposite charges.  Action begets reaction and a swing in one direction will always be followed by a swing in the other direction and, so, the cycle is established. 

Cyclicity, in turn, ties the Moon back to the feminine, as cyclicity is another hallmark of the feminine.  Demonstrably and symbolically we have the cycle of the menstrual period.  On a larger scale, cyclicity abounds in “Mother” Nature, from the cycle of the seasons to the great cycles of natural transformation (the water cycle, the carbon cycle, etc.).  Thus, we can say that the Moon governs the natural world. 

Here, we have another polarity akin to that of Being and Becoming.  For Nature is existentially a passive entity.  On a metaphysical level, Nature is the Divine palette which is activated by Spirit. 

Cyclicity also comes back to the Moon’s association with home and domesticity.  The home is marked by adherence to cyclicity, as each day repeats the same routine and the routine of the household moves in rhythmic fashion from awakening to slumber.  Routine, therefore, represents another association of the Moon, which governs all things that depend upon reliable repetition. 

Returning to the theme of motherhood, we can explore other themes with which the Moon has association that derive from its symbolizing the Mother principle.  One theme is nurturing.  A primary mother role is to nurture her offspring, providing a warm and safe environment for them to grow and develop.  This involves care and feeding on multiple levels.  Thus, the Moon is associated with emotional caring, care-giving and, at a physical level, with food (and through food with the stomach, the organ through which the body is nurtured). 

On a broader level, the Moon is associated with nurturing as a life process.  This is also symbolized by the Moon’s phasing cycle which begins with the birth of the New Moon.  The waxing of the Moon symbolizes the growth and development of the new idea, experience or entity.  Resonating with the Moon’s nurturing principle, this is a process that, rather than being autonomous and independent, is dependent on constant care and attention.  This may be the care and attention received from others but it is also the care and attention which we provide to any undertaking. As the Moon reaches fullness, the undertaking comes to fruition, having been nurtured to this stage.  Nurturing is not abandoned as the Moon enters its waning cycle, for the integration of the completed concept now needs to be carefully managed.  Care-giving to those in decline is also indicated by the late waning stage.

Inherent in the concept of nurturing is protection.  This, too, is a mother’s role—to protect their charge from the dangers of inexperience and from those who might prey on that inexperience.  Hence, the Moon’s quality of exercising caution, proneness to worry and protectiveness. 

As the mother is the creator of the family, the concept of motherhood extends to family in general, particularly the nuclear family that provides the environment (nurturing, in a healthy family) for the development of its members.  The Moon is, thus, associated with all matters of family dynamics. 

Family not only has dimension in space (the family unit) but in time, as well, since the process of birth and nurturing fosters generations.  The time dimension of family opens another set of Moon associations.  The most immediate association is with ancestry.  Ancestry exists in the past and, so, we find that the past and all history is symbolized by the Moon.  Through the ancestors, we also have the transmission of tradition and culture, which are also symbolized by the Moon.

Family is the vehicle through which ancestral traditions and culture are transmitted to the family’s members.  This process of cultural transmission, however, is a facet of a broader and more fundamental psychological function symbolized by the Moon—conditioning.  For it is not only cultural transmission that is passed through the family but all forms of acculturation.  It is through the family that the norms and expectations of society are indoctrinated.  In this way, the Moon, ruler of the Nadir, establishes contact with its polarity, the Midheaven, which symbolizes the super-ego. 

It is not just the instruction, spoken and unspoken, that takes place from parent (especially the mother) to child that is the provenance of the Moon.  Much enters into the subconscious and resides there, conditioning the child’s behavior, thoughts and feelings into adulthood.  Other influences, besides those derived from the family, also are absorbed subconsciously and likewise condition us.  Furthermore, if we accept the premise of reincarnation, then we can recognize that the subconscious also holds the impressions from our past lives which are also conditioning our psyche.  Here, we reconnect with the Moon’s symbolism of the subconscious.

Another meaning that we can derive from the Moon’s symbolisms connected to family and ancestry is rootedness.  The Moon governs the Nadir, which is at the bottom of the astrological chart.  In this bottomness we see the psyche’s essential groundedness, its being fixed in one place.  We are rooted in multiple contexts—to our past, to our culture, to our family, to our home, and to our indwelling subconscious self.  We can look to the Moon’s placement to discover how we are rooted and where we are rooted psychologically, where we are emotionally attached.  We can look to the Moon’s aspects to gain insight into the forces that either promote or disturb our rootedness.

We now come to that meaning of the Moon which is perhaps most common, considered to be most fundamental to what the Moon symbolizes—our basic emotional grid.  This is, indeed, a fundamental meaning of the Moon and we have heretofore avoided it not to ignore or belittle it but to first explore the richness of the Moon’s meaning and the derivations of its symbolism that precede its meaning our basic emotional construct. 

The Moon-as-emotional-grid represents the primary function that the Moon symbolizes in the human psyche.  As important as this function is, in my view it is not the essential meaning of the Moon but is a meaning that is derived from the higher level meanings that have been discussed at the beginning of this article.

As we explore the Moon’s emotional symbolism, we will see how it is intricately involved with a host of other meanings associated with the Moon, both in forming those phenomena and being informed by them.  If we follow this line of thought, we can come to the conclusion that the emotional body, which the Moon symbolizes, is not an independent entity, a whole and prime mover of the psyche, but is a complex and contextualized system. 

We can begin with the subconscious, for much of our emotional life lies “buried” in the subconscious.  We can identify a model of the emotional grid in which the subconscious is the venue for an emotional life that is rich, complex and ongoing but of which we are normally unaware.  This may be said to resonate with the dark side of the Moon—the face of the Moon which we never see from Earth because it is always turned away.  Of course, because we cannot see it does not mean that there is nothing going on there.  In fact, it is this dark side of the Moon that is turned toward the cosmos, receiving all of the energy from the rest of the universe.  Our subconscious is attuned to the wider environment that is invisible to our conscious senses, an attunement that can be viewed as multi-dimensional.

Within our subconscious, we are emotionally processing the content that is both being received from our conscious mind and senses and from our unconscious senses and whatever communication we may be receiving from higher or deeper levels of consciousness (of which we are normally unconscious). This processing is “emotional” not necessarily because it involves feelings (although it may involve feelings) but because it is not being governed by the rational (conscious) mind. 

In our model, we may conceptualize the various emotions that are formed through this subconscious processing as entities, archetypes, or demi-gods and goddesses.  They may carry on in the background, in our subconscious, and we may be dimly, or subconsciously, aware of their “actions” and “play.”  This background awareness may take forms such as a sense of well-being, underlying happiness, or general anxiety, a sense of depression or unease.  When triggered, however, these “entities” will demand to be “heard,” which is when our emotions erupt into consciousness. 

Thus, our experience of emotion is generally reactive, which is a manifestation of the Moon’s essential connection with Duality (action and reaction), which is also seen in the dichotomy inherent in the operation of the emotional body between the subconscious and the conscious worlds.  It is reactive in the sense that our emotions spring into our consciousness when they are activated by some event or circumstance.  The emotional grid or emotional nature that the Moon symbolizes can be viewed primarily as a regulatory function taking place within the subconscious mind.  It is the Moon’s function that regulates the appearance of these emotional “entities” and complexes onto the stage of consciousness. 

It is this internal control system, which is entirely unconscious, that is symbolized by the Moon as the basic emotional nature of the psyche.  For, it is through this “filter,” through the operation of this regulatory system, that we consciously experience our emotions and, thus, the determinates of our emotional nature.  Are our emotional “entities” tightly controlled and only guardedly let into the conscious world by a Capricorn Moon; or are they held back until they can be contained no longer by a Scorpio Moon and then erupt into our conscious world; are they dallied with but not taken too seriously by a Gemini Moon; or are they given free reign, an open door into the conscious world by a Cancer Moon; do they thrust through impulsively as an Aries Moon struggles to contain them; or does a Libra Moon strive to keep them in balance and living in harmony?

We can also see the emotional system through other symbols associated with the Moon.  The subconscious can be viewed as acting as a womb for our emotions and their appearance in our conscious awareness as a kind of birthing.  The Moon-world of the subconscious resonates to Mother and even more deeply to Source. 

Within the subconscious, emotional patterns are formed.  We can conceptualize this as our emotional “actors” or “entities” forming relationships with each other and acting out roles and scripts which become habitual.  Thus, we see emotions running in cycles, repeating themselves and even establishing “routines.” 

Through repeated occurrences of emotional patterns, we become conditioned to react and behave in certain ways, unthinkingly, unconsciously, driven by emotion.  We become automatically responsive to certain triggers.  Again, this is all bound up with the Moon’s Duality.  We may react to opposites or we may be emotionally attracted, necessitating a subject-object dynamic. 

Some of our strongest emotions are often connected with Moon-associations.  We become emotionally attached to home and family, to culture and tradition, to homeland and ancestry.  Of course, the primal attachment that we all share—even if it has been dysfunctionally broken—is our emotional attachment to our mother.  These strong emotional bonds can all be seen as reflecting the psyche’s deep yearning for her Source. 

Much of our emotional fabric is tied to this longing to return to our Source, the Source of All.  However, mostly this longing becomes displaced as we emotionally attach to other people and things that we hope will fill this basic need (or divert us from feeling the intense pain of separation from our Self).  We look for comfort and solace in the outer world, frequently finding is in Moon-associated phenomena (home, family, etc.).  Since it is our nature to displace the psyche’s painful longing and find comfort in other directions, the Moon shows us where we may find that comfort and with what we are most comfortable. 

When we do not obtain the emotional satisfaction we are seeking, when the karmic consequences we are experiencing are not to our liking, or when we are disappointed in what we thought would bring us fulfillment or when the object of our attachment leaves us, then painful or negative emotions are triggered within us.  We may become depressed, angry, resentful, envious, or disturbed.  On the other hand, when we obtain what we want and enjoy it at least for a while, when things are “going our way,” when we feel that we “have” that to which we are attached or when the objects of our attachment seem to be responding positively to us, then our emotions become pleasant.  We may feel happy, satisfied, loving, or elated. 

Thus, what we feel emotionally is in reaction to what we are experiencing in our environment.  As our circumstances change, so do our emotions and when our circumstances persist, but not too long, then we experience moods.  Therefore, we have the Moon’s association with moods, for moods are only changing emotions and change is a constant and is also a product of Duality.

However, if we tire of these pacifiers, our attachments on the Earth plane, we can be reminded that the Moon represents the gateway back to that Source for which we long.  If we leave this physical realm, when we leave our body behind, we find ourself in a realm that has been named the astral realm.  Since we no longer have a physical body there, our primary senses are emotional in nature.  The astral realm is said to be a place where feeling predominates.

While we speak of this level of consciousness as a realm, it is actually composed of multiple layers or levels of consciousness.  The astral realm also still exists within the realm of Duality and, in may ways, Duality is intensified there.  Thus, particularly in the lower regions of the astral realm, we can experience intensely negative emotion and intensely positive emotion. 

Negative emotions are generally the product of our realization of the mistakes we have made while on the Earth plane—emotional and ethical mistakes caused because we have followed the inclinations of our ego rather than the higher knowledge that everyone is everybody.  We then experience guilt, regret and emotional suffering without any filters and without any distractions with which to alleviate our pain.  Major religions have called this experience, Hell. 

If we are being rewarded for our actions on the Earth plane, we will experience pleasant sensations in the astral realms.  Because we are used to associating pleasant (and unpleasant) sensations with physical objects, we are likely to imagine similar objects existing in the astral worlds, except those objects are imaginal with no physical reality.  These pleasant astral sensations have been characterized by the world’s religions as Heaven. 

A great Sufi mystic, al-Qadir al-Jilani once said that he had stopped at these regions of heaven and hell to examine them and found them to be nothing more than created concepts in which souls experience ego-satisfaction or ego-distress.  The Divine Feminine that the Moon represents call us to go deeper and rise higher.  As we ascend into higher regions of the astral realm, the predominant “emotional” experience becomes more and more positive.  We begin to experience overwhelming feelings of Love. 

In order to continue in this Love, we must surrender to it.  The Moon archetype is full of images of and associations with surrender.  There is the feeling of safety and security as we drop our guard when we enter our home.  There is the complete surrender of the infant to their mother.  There is the passivity and receptivity that is a quality of the feminine archetype represented by the Moon.  Finally, there is the call and pull to surrender which comes from the Divine Feminine, the Divine Mother, the Moon.

[This is the second in a series exploring the essential meanings of the planets in depth.  For earlier chapters, beginning with the Sun, go to the archives.

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