Pisces 1st Quarter Moon AT 8°21’—November 30
One word?— yikes.
Sorry… that’s unfair—it might be someone’s birthday…
But ugh… for real.
To start—the first quarter moon in Pisces, according to shamanic astrologer Raven Kaldera, is the Martyr’s Moon; as, through this moon, one “does not have a lot of experience with defending [oneself] and putting up walls, [one] simply lets it all be passively taken…”
Ultimately, this moon heavily influences the feelings of superiority one may possess over others, in whatever way—specifically through the ways one gives or offers oneself… or through a complete lack of personal boundaries to be haphazardly trespassed upon the whim of whomever.
It’s a real ‘Sophie’s choice’ of a day.
This is the essence of the energies emerging today.
The degree through which this first quarter moon occurs is one which speaks to ‘teaching people what they really need to know…’ but from who’s perspective, exactly?
Otherwise, ‘insights and knowledgeability; maintaining discipline over oneself and others; finding a balance between indulgence and strictness; disciplining one’s emotions and mind; domination of will over desire; concentrating on the task at hand; traveling the distance for the next generation; and serving as a model of rectitude…’
Keep in mind that a first quarter moon is a moon that influences changes needed through our inner knowing, to actively fix—typically it is now, through a first quarter moon, that we’re given a nudge within our psyche toward something that might not be fitting within our overall narrative, goal, or ideal… and should we choose to ignore this nudge—the nudge tends to become more physically manifesting within our reality by the full moon or last quarter moon.
One perspective of the degree through which this lunar event occurs notions the awakening of a vampire… ‘the darkness calls to those who have been surfeited with too much compromise and too unbearable a load of suffering… there are regions of the dark to live out parts of self or all of self for a time—and inside darkness, an immense power of what is here in the earth and still raging can be felt and harnessed… you are imaginatively and inwardly pulled toward the great extremes—not able to go on in any usual way… but you ultimately fathom the mysteries and the depths, by exploring all that is there and finding in the end that all is sacred, all is beautiful, and all is integral to the fibers of existence…’
Another perspective still, that this degree ‘speaks to the requirement that an individual throw himself into life, hone his skills and talents, and make every effort his best one if he wishes to stand in the winner’s circle…’
And so there is a real temptation, then, to very literally use yourself, or an/Other, in an effort to gain something—though the boundaries and the expectations likely remain elusive.
Through this degree “the ‘race’ is on and you may feel that you are near the finish, but there is no guarantee of victory…” though the ‘race’ of personal evolution is never a race…
Through this degree it ‘is time to extract all available energy possible into the situation, making sure you’re not expanding it too quickly and not really getting anywhere or achieving anything of lasting value… be careful, too, not to bolt out of the gate without thought of ramifications.’
If winning, or achieving, or succeeding in terms of accolades or award, legacy, or recognition is what you’re after—these can be/become somewhat addictive… or if you’re wanting attention alone—like with social media, it’s intoxicating, and alienating. But if it’s a chance you’re seeking, an improvement, an upgrade, or a personal transformation… this, my friend, will take awhile and mustn’t be rushed.
There’s groundwork to consider. Training. Particularly if you’ve never done this before… there are layers of steps to contemplate most thoroughly—this should not be taken as laissez fare.
Speaking of social media, @centeredselftherapy on Instagram posts very helpful memes regarding psychological health… here are a number of considerations in regard to learning more about yourself—and maybe an/Other:
• what is your attachment style?
• what makes you feel loved?
• what are your triggers?—(God forbid someone not have one…) (parentheses and automatic eye roll mine)
• are there unhelpful ways you might react when you become triggered or stressed out?
• what are your go-to self-soothing strategies?
• what are your self-sabotaging behaviors?
• what are your core beliefs that influence how you might interpret your life and your experiences?
• what are things that you enjoy, and what are some things you don’t enjoy?
• what turns you on?
• what are your hopes and dreams and desires?—and why?
And, perhaps more pertinently to this moon—what are your coping skills amidst or within an emotionally volatile circumstance and/or a physical loss, upheaval, or trauma?
This first quarter moon occurs within the first decan of Pisces, a decan that associates itself to the 8 of cups in the tarot…
This first decan of Pisces, according to astrologer Austin Coppock, describes “the process of return, the beginning of the end of differentiated awareness… these faces show a fearful and ecstatic going back, a drunken stumbling home.”
This is a decan governed by Saturn, and so there is an inherent seriousness about, and possibly a heavily laced somber tone as well… “here figures stumble in darkness, their fingers tracing walls they cannot see… we come to recognize our imprisonment in our own reality construct here, a labyrinth we ever wander—yet the discovery of its walls portend its destruction, and the possibility of liberation… outside its subtle enclosure waits a world as yet uncorrupted by our assumptions.”
The 8 of cups is a card that most specifically signals: moving on… new directions and new horizons are typical manifestations through this card, and “this could be a time in your life when you feel that you need something different… or perhaps you’re taking a time-out to search your soul,” says tarot reader Theresa Reed, and suggests “don’t look back—look ahead and trust that whatever you are about to do will bring growth.”
There’s a real wandering quality to this card, to these energies…
Tarot writer TS Chang writes of this card that realization is a heavily laced theme… realizing the differences between ideals and reality—realizing, specifically, “through the emotions…” realizing overwhelm and saturation—realizing, most ultimately, “that you’re done”.
Further, Chang writes that the 8 of cups often correlates to the “remo[val] of someone or something from a situation where they no longer belong(ed)…”
Finally, Chang concluded that this card can symbolize “great uncertainty and doubt… this is only a problem if you’re committed to ‘following the plan at all costs’, particularly if the plan is someone else’s… if you can, take a step back, leaving behind eight cups’ worth of past assumptions—imagine you are floating in the sea of the whole universe as your problem (whatever it is) diminishes a tiny point and then—pop!—extinguishes itself… in the amniotic darkness, let go of the fear that ‘anything could happen’, and open up to wonder and to awe: indeed, anything could happen!”
Tarot writer Jessica Dore writes of this card that it has the tendency to manifest a particular ‘not-enough-ness’ to it…
Further, Dore writes that “this card is often interpreted as a difficult departure, a walking away that requires faith (there is no destination pictured), intuition (there is no path), and also what is not visible—the fact that this person has the ability to cope with whatever it takes to walk while carrying the weight of losing the eight cups they’ve left behind…”
And this is where it becomes strikingly crucial in importance—these personal talents and skills that we are able to use… sometimes become much more useful, in strangely unexpected ways, than you could ever imagine. Particularly if you are unsure of your next steps—when you understand who you are, what you’re actually capable of, and you realize what skills and talents you possess… the more practical, and doable, it may begin to feel in regard to making a necessary, and likely risky or scary change. Especially if your mind and heart were weighted, in tandem, to a specific horizon with rigidly specific landscaping…
Finally, Dore writes “knowing how to cope well with the requisite pain and grief of letting go is hugely important when making a life—it is foundational to getting unstuck because it diminishes the compassion to cope in ways that make things worse… when we have the coping skills to manage the emotional windfall of tough choices, we can do hard things rather than live our lives avoiding feelings we don’t have the tools to manage—paradoxically, avoidance makes life exponentially less manageable as time goes on… coping skills are a basic competency for the tough calls that a good life requires.”
Sending love and comfort to you and yours on a particularly prickly, potentially processing day.
❝We tolerate shapes in human beings that would horrify us if we saw them in horses.❞
—William Ralph Inge
🖋 by Jamie James
📷 by cult.class
🌐 moonmoodsdaily.com
📰 jamiejames.substack.com
💫 instabio.cc/jamiejames
🐦 twitter.com/moonmoodsdaily
🧿 Astrology is how I earn my living—so when I’m not providing readings, I’m writing (or traveling)… and so subscribing to the additional postings I am now offering for free via jamiejames.substack.com will support both my time and my skills—come January, these additional posts will be offered to subscribers only for $8/month—I thank you in advance.
Coppock, A ‘36 Faces’ Three Hands Press; ©2014. Chang, TS. ‘36 Secrets.’ Anima Mundi Press; ©2021.
Dore, J. ‘Tarot for Change.’ VIKING; ©2021. Goldsmith, M. ‘The Zodiac by Degrees.’ Weiser Books; ©2004.
Hill, L. ‘360 Degrees of Wisdom.’ A Plume Book; ©2004.
Kaldera, R. ‘Moon Phase Astrology.’ Destiny Books; ©2011.
Reed, T. ‘Tarot: No Questions Asked.’ Weiser Books; ©2020.
Roche, D. ‘The Sabian Symbols.’ Astrology Classics; ©1998, 2010.
Rudhyar, D. ‘An Astrological Mandala.’ Vintage Books; ©1973.