from the star to the moon

hello, friends. as we move from the focused, purposeful air of aquarius to the dreamy, murky waters of pisces, i want to share a few thoughts on this transition from star to moon, from collective to individual. i wrote a lot about the star and the moon’s intersecting energy in collaborating with sovereignty herbs for our MOON + STAR solstice box (don’t miss their latest course offering with ritual botanica, and this gorgeous set of flower essences paired with the spacious tarot deck), and i think there’s something really beautiful about these themes of sovereignty and belonging, the ways that we feel ownership and intention over our actions, our choices, and our impact.

take a deep breath, grab some water, and let’s get into it.

from the star to the moon

the star and aquarius are so often tied to ideas of community and the collective, to thinking forward, to considering how what we could do today might make all of our tomorrows better. what is broken, and how could we fix it? what is beyond saving, needs to be tossed out and rebuilt in a new and more sustainable way? what have we been clinging to that doesn’t function any longer, and how can we be intentional about growth instead of refusing to allow ourselves to bloom?

but we don’t rush straight from the star’s ambition to the sun’s prosperity. no, instead we move into a strange and intimate space, exploring our hidden hopes and disguised dreams, learning more about what we crave before we let the world in on those secrets. just like the magician’s big ideas need to be processed and sorted by the high priestess before the empress can burst forth with abundance, just as we need to be sure that the actions we take reflect the desires we carry, the moon sits in that liminal space between starlight and sunlight: offering a reflective glow, an opportunity for new kinds of questioning and awareness.

this shift from looking at the whole wide world from high in the sky to diving down to the bottom of our deepest, most intimate waters can be jarring, disorienting, even frustrating. after the precision and deliberate focus of aquarius, pisces can leave us gasping for air, struggling to figure out which way is up. the moon’s glow is a bit gentler than the sun’s: softer, easier to handle. but it also creates shadows and uncertainties, can manifest new fears, can reveal things that we might’ve preferred to leave in the dark.

sometimes, we have to start big before we can zoom in. we can’t always know how we personally might fit into a larger project, into a major change, into a revolution, until we understand where that movement will lead us. once we know our destination, once we clarify our vision for the future, then we can claim our part of that process, can recognize what our contributions might be.

we need to understand the macro before we can get into the micro. the collective vision paves the way for personal action.

the moon is associated with wildness, with fantasy, with confusion. but when we dive into this space of watery mystery, we do more than just howl and scream, indulge our most feral selves, sit in the ever-shifting tides of emotions and longings and desires and fears. we also allow our interior to shift to the forefront, acknowledging that the things that dwell within us, which we may not be able to fully name or understand, still have value. we grapple with the questions we still carry, those obscure, ambiguous longings that live within us. we let our fears hold weight, even if they don’t seem logical.

it might be scary — in fact, if we’re doing it correctly, it probably will be. we all have things that we bury in our subconscious, truths and desires and anxieties that are easier to ignore. but when we actually take the time to explore those strange and swirling depths, we can decide which version of ourselves we want to drag into the light, can choose for ourselves who we want to be. and when we’re brave enough to make that kind of choice, we can embody our dreams fully, completely, honestly.

we can be ourselves, instead of always trying to be the person the world wants us to be.

a few days ago the moon was full in leo, that sign of strength and confidence, of sunshine embodied, of passionate expression and heart-forward optimism. and while this sign of fire and ferocity may seem at odds with the moon’s watery luminescence, there are lessons in this placement. there will always be things that we want or need to hold back for ourselves, but the moon in leo helps us make space for pride and celebration, for shining as brightly as we want to.

the sun and the moon are not opposites, not enemies. their lights illuminate in unique ways, helping us to see ourselves through different lenses. they are distinct teachers, guiding us forward, helping us accept the various complex aspects of ourselves. after the star offers hope, calm, a sense of connection after feeling completely cut off from everything that kept us steady, the moon helps us see ourselves and our world from the perspective of our shadows, one that centers our desire and our dreams, that lets us get lost in the wilderness of our hearts and minds. and eventually, when we discover ourselves, the sun gives us a new dawn to step into: a chance to let our light shine, to pursue the things we want with clear-eyed focus, to recognize that we deserve everything that we want.

as we move into this time with the moon, celebrate the fact that you have an opportunity to be deliberate about your explorations, to let your dreams build and brighten, to stop hiding from the parts of yourself that scare you. as elizabeth gilbert writes in big magic, “the universe buries strange jewels within us all, and then stands back to see if we can find them.”

what have you been afraid to uncover? how is fear limiting your creativity, your joy, your willingness to be vulnerable or tender or courageous?

how often do you let yourself daydream, fantasize, imagine? what comes forward when you stop trying to make every longing have a purpose, every desire have a clear outcome? how does your understanding of yourself change when you take everything into account?

which strange jewels are you ready to hold up to the light, to let the world see?

for more on the moon and this new season, don’t miss my latest round of tarotscopes for autostraddle. and if you’ve been hoping to snag a personal tarot reading with me soon, i’ll be opening up my books again in early march, with paid subscribers and patreon members getting first dibs.

have a beautiful pisces season, friends.

images in this post feature cards from the moon bb magick tarot deck. all photographs by meg jones wall.