The Moon – Basics
The Moon is the Most Significant planet in Eastern Astrology. Her disposition can positively or negatively affect the outcome of a person's life dramatically as she represents general contentment (peace of mind), well being, comforts, leisure, and really the fortune of the person. Where the Sun is about the willpower and drive of the person, the Moon is about the benefits that the person can achieve in their life. She is the greatest significator of happiness, fame, and luxury. All pretty good stuff!
But there is even more behind the significance that she holds in Eastern Astrology. So many methods of prediction, unique to this Vedic art, are lunar based and add so much depth for the astrologer to understand the person better. I won't pain the new learner by listing them here; but as the site grows in sophistication and scope, along with the learner, these advanced techniques will be explained in depth.
She gains directional strength, or dik bala, in the 4th House where a lot of her significations match up quite well with that house. They're a natural fit! Her other names are Chandra (So pretty!) and Soma.
Significations of the Moon
The section below will show how the Moon’s energy manifests in your life. These significations are directly impacted by how the Moon is disposed by sign, house, and aspect. Just like with the Sun, and all planets really, the Moon represents certain people or groups of people in our lives. A person with a well disposed moon will naturally have positive relationships with their mother, women in general, cooks, nurses, and most interestingly the public. The state of the Moon, that is to say whether she is positively placed or negatively placed, can be the difference between being famous, beloved by the masses, and being hated, mocked, and ridiculed… truly being infamous!
People
- Mother
- Women with Authority
- Females
- Nurses
- Cooks and caterers
- The Public
- Groups
- Special or gifted people
Characteristics
- Maternal
- Nurturing and caring
- Common sense
- The mind (more emotional than intellectual)
- Mass consciousness
- Growth and healing
- Early life (childhood)
- Beauty and romance
Health
- Mental health
- Emotional health
- The Brain
- Memory retention
- Breasts
- Eyesight
- Fertility
- Menstrual Cycle
- Lactation
Miscellaneous
- Benefic
- Pearls
- Silver
- Monday
- Milk and nurturing foods
- Bodies of water
- Northwest
Waxing and Waning – a Unique Rule
Whether the Moon is waxing or waning, or approaching a full moon or a new moon respectively, will drastically impact the beneficence she has on a person's life. If the person is born when the Moon is approaching full (waxing), excluding other indications and growing in its positive influence as it approaches full, the person will have a great memory, be emotionally balanced, be known positively in their community, have a nurturing and comfortable childhood, and in general enjoy many comforts and luxuries in their life. If the Moon is approaching a new moon (waning), also excluding other factors and losing its beneficence as it fades to a new moon, the person will be forgetful, be emotionally unstable and sensitive, be known negatively or not at all in their community (the latter is more likely the case of a waning moon alone), have a childhood filled with neglect and lacking in physical comforts, and in general live a rather spartan or austere existence. The difference between the two is astounding, but don't view a waning Moon as a malefic indication. Think of it instead as lacking the beneficence of a waxing and full moon. She can and will still reap positive outcomes. The distinction, however subtle it might seem to a novice, will be important as you progress. We must also keep in mind that aspects from benefic and malefic planets, and the house and sign where she is posited, can drastically impact the disposition of the Moon.This is just one factor of many in determining how she impacts our lives!
Also, most people are not born at the moment the moon is full or new and are usually born between these to extremes. Below I will demonstrate how to see if the Moon is waxing or waning in the birthchart.
New Moon
New Moon
The image above demonstrates where the moon is positioned in relationship to the Sun when it is in a New Moon (the phase when the moon is invisible from Earth's perspective). This position is a conjunction and the more exact the conjunction the less visible the Moon is from our perspective on Earth. To reiterate what was mentioned above, the Moon is not malefically placed from this position. It is however substantially weakened and thus has less potential to do good in a person's life. Planets aspected by her are still benefited but just not as much as they could be. The house where she resides and the house she owns are still of importance in the person's life. An exact new moon, just as in the example above, is the weakest the moon will become throughout its phases.
Waxing Moon
Waxing Moon – 50% Full
In the example above, the Moon was moved from the 8th house (Sagittarius) to the 11th house (Pisces). In this particular example, it is 50% full and waxing. Visually this is easy enough to see as it is half way to the exact opposition of the Sun. As the moon grows in size, it gains strength. This placement in and of itself is considered substantially better than a New Moon. It gives the Moon enough strength to do good things in the person's life. Planets aspected by her are benefited. The house where she resides and the house she owns are important in the person's life. The person is definitely blessed with her beneficence.
Waxing Moon – 83% Full
In the example above, we have moved the Moon to an even better waxing position. Just as with the 50% waxing Moon, it's beneficence is not limited. This Moon in particular is in its Exalted placement which is excellent for the Moon and her significations; but from a Moon phase perspective alone, this placement is extremely strong, the closer to 100% full the more influence she has!
Full Moon
Full Moon
In the example above, the Moon has been placed in direct opposition to the Sun. This is a Full Moon to exact degree! This is considered a blessed placement. The Moon is strong and able to positively impact all planets and houses that it aspects. The inherent significations of the Moon flourish in the persons life! Excluding other factors, the person has beneficial relationships with her Mother and women in general; the person is popular and thought of well in their community; the person is kind, empathetic, and emotionally stable. You get the idea!
Waning Moon
Waning Moon – 50% Full
In the example above, the Moon has been moved from the Full Moon position in this case in the 2nd House (Gemini) to the 5th House (Virgo). The Moon has lost half of its illumination or is 50% full. As the Moon loses illumination, it is considered waning. While the Moon is not as strong as it would be if were a Full Moon, it is still strong indicating positive Moon significations and positively impacting the house it resides in and the house it rules.
A brief note on Waxing vs. Waning Moon phases and what they mean in the chart: The condition of the Moon in the waxing state is disagreed on by Eastern Astrologers. Some Astrologers believe the Moon is weakened as soon as it enters the Waning phase as some traditional texts seem to suggest. This Astrologer, through his own observations and investigation, believes that the best method of determining the strength, or the influence, the Moon has in the chart is by evaluating how full it is. For instance a Moon that is 99% full but just starting to wane is substantially more beneficial to the native than if the Moon were 50% full and waxing. Through this lens, correlating the Moon's power to how illuminated it is, has benefited this Astrologer immensely while interpreting birth charts. It is of course up to the student to decide what works best from their perspective.
Aspects
In the aspects section, we will be discussing how the Moon impacts other planets by aspect. The Moon is one of the simpler planets that only aspects in conjunction and opposition to itself or the 1st and 7th houses as described by most Vedic texts. The Moon’s aspect is considered very benefic or positive. The house that it is posited in holds special significance in the person's life, and likewise, all planets aspected by her and the houses they rule are of special significance as well. Please look at the examples and the text below for a detailed explanation of the Moon’s aspects.
7th House Aspect
The Moon aspects the house that is opposite from itself.
In the example above, the Moon resides in the 2nd House and the sign of Cancer. She aspects Saturn in the 8th House and the entire sign of Capricorn. This aspect, from the Moon to Saturn, is considered extremely benefic. With an 11° orb (10 subtracted from 21), the aspect is about medium strength. Remember, the tighter the aspect orb the stronger the aspects influence. Regardless, Saturn is greatly benefited from this relationship with the Moon.
However, please note that this particular aspect or exchange between the Moon and Saturn is not one sided. All planets aspect the houses opposite of them! So while the Moon is greatly benefiting Saturn in the 8th House, Saturn is harming the Moon in the 2nd House.
1st House Aspect
The Moon aspects the house that it resides.
In the example above, we've added Mercury to the chart in the 2nd House, the sign of Cancer. The Moon aspects everything in the house that it resides, like all planets, and the Moon and Mercury are 2°'s apart from each other. This is a tight orb of aspect making it strong and of special significance in the chart. The Moon blesses the Mercury, it's significations, and the Houses that it rules.
Conversely, Mercury positively aspects the Moon.
It should be noted, like in the previous example, that Saturn malefically aspects Mercury, and Mercury positively aspects Saturn. All planets aspect the 7th (opposite) and 1st (same) Houses from where they are posited.
Rulership Placement and Disposition
In this section, we will go over what sign the Moon rules and how she functions in all of the signs. Uniquely, the Moon has no enemies and her energy is welcome in most every house/sign.
The Moon's relationships to the signs.
Exalted
The sign where a planet is exalted in is the place where the planet’s energy is best expressed reaping the most beneficial results in a person’s life. Keep in mind this is only according to placement of sign and other factors such as aspect and house number can either positively or negatively impact these results. So, referencing the picture above, the Moon is Exalted in the sign of Taurus. When interpreting charts with this placement, expect extremely positive results from the Moon if it is not aspected by malefic planets. Because the point of exaltation is 3°’s of Taurus, it functions best in the first 3°’s of this sign, benefiting the native the closer it is 3°’s. It is most beneficial at exactly 03°00’s Aries and loses this extremely positive energy as the degrees increase. In the remaining degrees of Taurus, the Moon is considered to be Moolatrikona. Read below.
Moolatrikona
The sign where a planet is moolatrikona is the place where the planet’s energy is very positively expressed giving very beneficial results in the person’s life. While this is not as positive as the Exalted placement, it is still a great placement for a planet. Referencing the picture above, the Moon is Moolatrikona in the sign of Taurus from 03°01′-30°’s. Just like the point of exaltation, the benefic energy of the Moon in this placement increases depending how close to the 30th degree it is.
Own Sign
All of the luminary planets rule at least one house; and like a person in their own home, the Moon feels comfortable there and expresses his energy in a positive way. Referencing the picture above, the sign of Cancer is the Moon’s home and her Own Sign placement. This placement is considered positive and reaps good results for the person with this placement.
Friend
All planets like other planets and function well in their homes (houses). The Moon is friendly with the Sun and Mercury, and accordingly is comfortably placed in the signs of the Sun, who owns Leo, and Mercury, who owns Gemini and Virgo. If the Moon is placed in these signs (excluding aspects and house rulerships), it is considered naturally positive for her significations.
Neutral
The signs not colored are considered neutral for the Moon, meaning they neither negatively nor positively impact her by placement. In this case, the Moon is neither friend nor enemy to Venus, Mars, Jupiter, or Saturn, and she functions neutrally in their signs of Libra (Venus), Aries (Mars), Sagittarius (Jupiter), Pisces (Jupiter), Capricorn (Saturn), and Aquarius (Saturn).
Enemy
The Moon has no enemies but functions poorly in its fallen sign. Read below.
Fallen
Just as a planet can be placed extremely positively, such as the exaltation, there is an opposite placement that is extremely negative, or fallen (also called debilitated). And just as there is a point of exaltation where the planet is most benefic, there is a point of debilitation where the planet is most fallen or negatively placed. If the Moon is placed in the sign of Scorpio, she is Fallen and does not manifest her energy positively in the person’s life. Naturally, excluding other factors, the significations of the Moon are on the negative side of the spectrum. It is up to the astrologer to analyze the significations and apply this negative filter to them.
What was covered…
- We introduced the Moon as the Most Significant planet in the Chart.
- We described what the Moon indicates in the section titled The Significations of the Moon.
- We introduced how the positions of the Moon and the Sun can indicate whether the Moon is waxing, waning, full or new in the section titled Waxing and Waning – a Unique Rule.
- We went in depth concerning how the Moon aspects other planets and provided examples to illustrate how it works in the section titled Aspects.
- We described how the Sun functions throughout the zodiac and showing her Exaltation, Moolatrikona, Own Sign, Friend, Neutral, and Fallen placements in the section titled Rulership and Placement Disposition.