The Moon - Pendulum of the Soul
Written by: Martin Lass
Published on: July 10, 2011
Category: Astrology
When I was a boy, my father used to have an antique wind-up pendulum-weighted clock named Teddy. It had a particular sound to it.. that is, if you could actually tune in to hearing it. This was because, after years of having the sound of its ticking (more a tocking!) in the background, the sound just seemed to blend in with the background like an aural chameleon. If the clock ever stopped, we would all notice it almost immediately by the absence of its sound. And if the pendulum was removed, the clock would not work, even if it was wound up. The pendulum was the balancing mechanism that made it possible for the rest of the clock to perform what it was designed to do. In the cosmic scheme of things, the Moon performs a similar function. It is a kind of pendulum weight at the end of our cosmic Local Ray of Creation. Without the Moon in the scheme of evolution and involution, it would be impossible for us to walk the Path of our own spiritual evolution. In each of our lives on Earth, it is the Moon that points our direction for each incarnation. In these next two issues of Golden Age, I will try to explain why this is so, what it means to us personally and how to utilize this knowledge in a practical way.
Similar to the chameleon effect in our analogy above, Moon energy in us manifests in behavioral patterns that we are so used to, that we are not even aware of them sometimes.. they are so much a part of us that we think that they ARE us. These patterns are, in reality, like luggage or clothing that we have acquired along the way.. they are emotional patterns that we constantly fall back on, that we repeat over and over again.
When things get tough, when you're feeling down, when you've just had enough, when you feel vulnerable or attacked, when you don't want to... just don't want to!.. what do YOU do? Where do you go? What is your place of retreat? How do you make yourself feel better? How do you indulge? What makes you feel safe and comfortable? Where is your safety zone? How do you behave at these moments? What is it that you inevitably fall back on when your peace is threatened? These questions can help point the way to your specific Moon energy.
Each of us has our own specific safety zones and palliatives against the onslaught of painful realities. Mind you, most of it is unconscious.. mechanical.. a matter of default rather than choice. Don't get me wrong, though, because even though many of these behavioral patterns are seemingly negative, they are also absolutely necessary.. for several reasons. Firstly, they provide a real safety valve.. we might really crack up under irreconcilable stress and end up doing something that we would regret later. Constant awareness of difficult realities is more than we can cope with at our present state of evolution. There is a lot of soul work to be done, but we can only do a little at a time. So these safety zones are where we go when we are not in the mood for introspection or facing our personal realities. Secondly, they provide a fertile soil for our evolution.. they are gross substance that can be used in the fire of transformation of the soul. They are the lead of alchemy that can be turned into gold. The transmuting of these patterns and tendencies from their lower octave 'negative' manifestations to their higher octave 'positive' manifestations is one of the many ways we can effect spiritual evolvement.
Let's take a short trip through the zodiac and have a look at what the Moon means in each of the Signs.. on the lower octave and then on the higher octave.
Moon in Aries.
When you've had enough, it's "I can't worry about other peoples' problems, I've got enough of my own. I can only worry about myself." At the same time, though, you need other people to like you and look to you for initiative. When the going gets tough, you start new projects, forgetting about all the other unfinished ones! Transmuted, this gives solidity, presence and magnetism that can lead others without the ego getting in the way.
Moon in Gemini.
You talk. And talk. And talk! It might be externalized or it might be to yourself, but your safety lies in the mind being constantly in motion. That way you never feel your Pain. You analyze, you dissect, you hypothesize.. you build edifices of reason and logic, bypassing the need to Feel too much. Transmuted, this position can give the possibility of connecting superior thought with depth of feeling.. a highly intuitive and inquiring mind that is guided by the Heart.
Moon in Taurus.
You indulge! It's the good life for you! Food, wine, spending money, having beautiful things.. just having!.. touching, being touched. If you have little money in your pockets and no sweets at home then you suffer terribly. Stability and material security are a must for your safety zone. Transmuted, this position gives a solidity and presence that is vast like the ocean.. a doorway for Unconditional Love into the world.
Moon in Cancer.
You take solace (!?) in the feeling that you can never get enough love. You could have all the love in the world at your feet, but it wouldn't be enough. So you just have to content yourself with the meager scraps that are thrown your way. You might then abandon yourself to nurturing and caring for others.. totally, totally, without pause.. that way you don't feel that bottomless pit in yourself that is crying out for the love it feels it can never get. On the higher octave, Moon in Cancer becomes the personification of the nurturing Mother. Relates then to the Goddess, to Mother Earth and to the general nurturing of Humanity. These impulses come from a Heart unfettered and free, vulnerable and yet strong, childlike and yet wise.
Moon in Leo.
When things get rough, you want to be looked after, pampered, listened to and appreciated. If you aren't appreciated then you will just take your toys home and everyone can just be without your company! You will probably then lavish your affections upon children and small animals. Or indulge in a massage or a rich meal or go out and spend money on yourself. Transmuted, this position indicates the development of Real Will, as opposed to our little self-wills. Focus and purpose are brought down into the earth plane in a tangible way.
Moon in Virgo.
If you feel backed into a corner or vulnerable or your conscientiousness cannot be satisfied, you will probably go out of your way to criticize everything and everybody you are around. "I'm only trying to help.." You will find solace in organization, neatness and cleanliness.. driving your partners, roommates, family, etc. crazy! Operating on the higher octave, here are Healers.. having healed their own wounds, these people become channels for healing energy; mental, emotional and particularly physically. Their emanations and physical presence alone can give healing.
Moon in Libra.
Your safety lies in taking the line of least resistance and avoiding conflict and confrontation at all costs. Don't rock the boat and all will be well! The trouble is, though, that you will invariably sacrifice things that are precious to your soul's well-being just to avoid disharmony. Your own beauty often occupies your mind's eye and this is further supported by others' perception of your beauty. (That was a polite way of suggesting vanity!) Transmuted, however, these people can become channels for Beauty, Love and Harmony. These attributes will ooze out of their every pore, attracting people from everywhere. Counseling, teaching, conflict resolution, the Arts.
Moon in Scorpio.
Your safety lies in battle and fortifications. You have your weapons ready and you're not afraid to use them. Shoot first, ask questions later! Strike first and you won't risk getting hurt yourself. Your fear of being hurt is chronic and, like a wounded animal when it is cornered , you lash out when others come too close. Transmuted, this is perhaps the most powerful position of the Moon. It gives the tangible power of transformation.. transformation of yourself, of the world around you and of other people that you come in contact with. You will not only move mountains, you will make new worlds out of them.
Moon in Sagittarius.
No matter what goes wrong or how we feel inside, let's put on a happy face! Keep your chin up! Don't let the turkeys get you down! If you think positive all the time then you won't have to feel that stuff that lies inside you, threatening to darken your skies at any minute. It's all a joke anyway, so laugh and drink up! Or maybe there are some people around who could use your good advice.. you know what they should and shouldn't be doing, saying and thinking! Transmuted, this is the person that lives Wisdom and Joy. They are the shining teachers.. by example, by empathy, by Being. Inner Truth shines out from within.. no filters, no barriers, no masks.
Moon in Capricorn.
No matter what goes wrong or how we feel inside, when things get tough or we are feeling down, we can always bargain our way into a more personally satisfying situation! You will tend to avoid intangibles.. like emotions!.. and bury yourself in pragmatic and practical concerns. But if it's love you want, well there is always going to be someone around who will accept your emotional currency! You will find solace in recognition, awards and accomplishment. Workaholics live here! On the higher octave, this can give solidity, substance, form and structure to the process of spiritual evolution. Linked with the Heart, these people can be a tower of inspiration and practical help.
Moon in Aquarius.
Safety, here, is found in retreat and aloofness from the world. To others, you can seem almost alien! Sometimes you distance yourself so far from others that there is no bridge possible. Solace is found sometimes in perversity, off-the-planet humor and stubbornness for its own sake.. "If you tell me what to do, not only will I not do it, but I will do the opposite!" Transmuted, this position can give unusual insights, novel ways of looking at things and, in general, a feeling for the larger picture in relation to Humanity.
Moon in Pisces.
When you are hurt or things get too much, you shut your emotional doors to the world, you lick your wounds, you indulge in self-pity and the feeling of being a victim to your world and you disappear into the mists of fantasy.. off with the fairies! The Earth is too a coarse a place for your energies so you detach from it, preferring the alternate worlds of the imagination and of the disconnected higher spheres. When this one is transmuted it gives a sensitivity to others that is unparalleled, but without falling into their negativities. You will feel what others feel, directly, and will be a source of ethereal healing energy for them. Ultimate compassion lives here.
At a certain point, I took a good look at my life and at myself and was confronted with a deep dissatisfaction. My life wasn't what I'd wished it to be. I wasn't the way I'd wished to be. In fact, I really didn't know who I was or where I was going. When we feel this kind of dissatisfaction with ourselves and our lives, it can be that our Higher selves are trying to make contact with us. Something in the Soul is languishing and calling out for us to make a better place for it to reside in. This can be the beginning of a spiritual path. It is certainly the beginning of the road back to Self.
None of us wants to see the unpleasant sides of ourselves. We don't want to admit that there are things about ourselves that we really don't like. We certainly don't want to look at the fact that we all have sides of ourselves that can negatively affect others. These are sides of us that create paths of chaos, hurt and destruction that affect all that we come in contact with. We all think to ourselves, "Not me..". But then we are quick to judge others.
Many of these negative attributes are the domain of the Moon. Our tendency to avoid seeing them is certainly the domain of the Moon. We would rather live comfortably in ignorance. But when that small voice inside begins to voice its dissatisfaction and begins to try to get us to take notice, we have the choice then to listen or ignore. If we have the courage and honesty to listen, we will gradually see things about ourselves that are wanting. At this point a struggle begins and this struggle is the fire of eventual transformation. The Higher meets the Lower.. my ordinary self and way of Being is confronted by my Higher possibility. For us to sit in the midst of these opposites, without flinching, without judgment and without trying to change anything in the ordinary way, is the way towards transformation from Lower to Higher. This is a practical expression of the holy Trinity.. the Law of Three. My ordinary self is the negative pole and my Higher possibility is the positive pole. On their own there can only be conflict and a shifting of energies to new patterns that still express the Lower octave. The third force is needed, but it cannot be injected by our small Will. We need to make space in ourselves into which the third force can enter. To sit in the midst of our contradictions between what we are and what we Wish to be, without turning away, without judgment and without seeking to change anything directly creates this space into which the third force can enter. Then the right connections are in place and transformation can occur. It is a mysterious thing that really defies description.. it needs to be experienced directly.
Let me give a practical example. My Taurus Moon gives the lower octave tendency to see those close to me in terms of possessions. This possessiveness in me, at a certain point in my relationship with my wife, led in turn to jealousy specifically directed towards her closest friend. I agonized over this friendship of hers. My mind invented all kinds of negative scenarios and edifices of misinterpreted signals. I felt like I was caught in the vice grip of some enormous monster. At times I was convinced that they were plotting against me, that she would leave me for him, that they laughed at me behind my back, etc., etc. It was two years of utter emotional torture. And yet, at certain times, there was a small voice in me that kept telling me that maybe things were not what they seemed. It was a small part of me that recognized in a small way that the way that I was in this situation was not serving my Higher good. In fact, the way I was having an adverse effect on not only me, but on my wife, on our relationship, on her friend, on their relationship and on my relationship with him. This small part in me recognized these things. Of course most of the time the voice inside was ignored, otherwise it wouldn't have taken two years to work out this difficulty. There was, in particular, one incident that occurred that nearly meant the end of their friendship. And I was responsible. To save the situation, I had no choice but to listen to my Inner self and to test its convictions. It is a Painful thing indeed to face the Conscience. To see what went on in me with respect to my jealousy from the eyes of my Higher possibility was the act of allowing transformation to occur. Sitting in the Pain and Conscience of my own inner contradiction, in full view of the negative results of my actions towards my wife and my friend, without denying it, but also without negative judgment, allowed the transformation of jealousy to occur. I See how I am. I really See it. I acknowledge that part of me that is full of jealousy, full of fear of loss and full of fear of abandonment. I acknowledge that part of me that needs to grow, that needs to be nurtured. I desist from judgment and condemnation. I desist from denial. I look, I See, I allow something different to enter.. something of a Higher nature. This is the process. The result was that gradually I began to have fleeting moments where I was free of these jealousies. And gradually I had moments when I could think of the two of them and be filled with Love for them.. filled with Love for their connection to each other. This friendship was a sacred thing. We are all so alone at times. Their friendship was and still is a sacred, nurturing and divine thing that I cannot touch without soiling it. I was able to set them free. And in the process, I was set free from this scourge. At times I was filled with so much Love and Gratitude that I felt as if I would explode. Such is the Power of Unconditional Love. Jealousy was transformed. My relationship with my wife is intact. Her relationship with her friend is intact and blossoming. And I thank the Creator for being able to partake of this aspect of Creation that leads us closer and closer to Oneness.
This incident, of course is a very dramatic one. We all have our share of them. However, transformation in this way can begin with small things. Things that we notice about ourselves that make us uncomfortable, no matter how small, are the food for possible work on ourselves. A little at a time..
The other aspect of the Moon that I wish to touch on in this issue is the Moon's Nodes. (For an astronomical definition of this, refer to your astronomy books!) In Soul centered astrology, the Moon's Nodes point the direction of each of our lives. The sign and house position tell us what our life's purpose is and in what area of life it will be carried out. It's kind of like a compass needle that shows the way, not that we always follow its directions! The South Node indicates where we have come from, what talents, gifts and abilities we bring into this life and what baggage we have picked up along the way.. all the negative stuff! It encompasses our Soul's lackings. It illustrates what we need, what lessons haven't been learned yet and it also represents all of our karma to be worked out. The North Node, on the other hand, represents the specific potential that we are moving towards in this lifetime. It is, in many ways, the polar opposite of the South Node (hence the names North and South). The North Node pulls us towards our potential, towards our future and towards our Freedom. It asks us to let go of the negative aspects of the South Node, the excess baggage of outmoded ways, pulling free from the negative attraction of ways of being that don't serve the Soul's Higher intentions. The North Node asks us to consider the opposite of the way we are as a valid addition to our Being. The South Node moving towards the North Node is the path of a single pendulum swing. The Pendulum of our lives, past, present and future, swings first one way and then, when the farthest point is reached, we need to experience its opposite and so the Pendulum swings the other way. In this way we see the Unity in Opposites, the third force of the Trinity being our Soul in the middle experiencing all possible viewpoints over a multitude of lifetimes.
So the next time you look at the Moon and feel her incredible attraction, think of her role in the making of our lives on Earth. She is always Grateful for our Acknowledgement of her cosmic mission. The more we connect with the Moon and with all the planets as cosmic brother and sisters, the more we become aware that they live within us, that they are a part of us.. that they are us.
Moonbeam is a rudder
and the Moon is my Ship..
I sail the night sky,
negotiating star clouds,
and spreading liquid light
across the sleeping Earth..
Without the nurturing Bosom
of my Moon Goddess,
I am blind and in limbo.
I drink deeply of her pale liqueur,
and setting my sails at full mast,
I launch my Ship into the Sea of Creation,
pointing its prow towards Home,
towards Love,
towards Oneness,
towards GOD.
© Martin Lass 1999 - 2006 onward. All Rights Reserved. This article is reprinted with permission from Martin Lass. Martin Lass currently publishes extensive material relating to Chiron and offers some very unique personal astrology reports on his site Martin Lass -- Astrology and Healing Pages.