Below we’re going to look at the twelve moon signs, but I want to tell you first about my new book due out in the Autumn of 2022. In AstroMagic (How to Use the Magical Moon and Lucky Jupiter to Manifest Your Dreams), written with my colleague, Lucy Anderton, we’re going to look at two of the most significant planets when it comes to personal empowerment, success and predicting your own future. One of these is the moon, the other is Jupiter. But this book is different from some you may already have read. For one, we’ll go much deeper than ordinary sun signs (we’ll look at moon signs, too). I’m not knocking sun sign forecasting, but as any good stargazer can tell you, in order to get the most from astrology it’s best to have a full, personal birth chart, calculated from your date, time and place of birth. Your own personal birth chart is so easy to obtain online, nowadays, too. Try this from the popular astro-com site (you’ll need your birth time, by the way).
Once you have it you are ready to find out just how New Moons and Full Moons will affect any particular month for you. In Astro Magic you will learn all about the Goddess (as represented by the Moon) and be able to perform simple but powerful spells that are in tune with these important lunar phases. This is where the magic comes in. The second part of the book focusses on Jupiter, traditionally the planet of good luck and opportunity. In short, you’ll be on the lookout for when Jupiter contacts any of your personal planets or your rising sign. The effect is about new possibilities for the future; new potential is suddenly bestowed, and often you will experience ‘lucky breaks’ as if your prayers are somehow being answered.
In the past, I’ve marvelled at Jupiter transits myself. One coincided with the beginnings of a massive love affair, as Jupiter contacted Neptune on my chart. Another coincided with receiving letters about two prime job interviews on the same day, when Jupiter hit my Midheaven – the part of our birth chart pertaining to career. I discovered my present home at the exact time of another Jupiter transit to the Midheaven’s opposite point, the IC (associated with domestic life). These things seem like pure luck. Or are they the outworkings of the Law of Attraction?
But you can also start right away by checking where your Lunar High is. Download my Three Planet Tables here, (good up until the end of 2022) and then read this guide to your Lunar High and Lunar Lows. By plotting just when your Lunar High falls each month:
You’ll know when to make new starts and important decisions that will affect the rest of your life
You will know when to make the approach to important prospective employers
You will know the best time to aim high, and push your luck with the right people
And all of this is because you will be working with (and taking advantage of) the planetary rhythms and influences already at work on your birth chart
THE TWELVE MOON SIGNS
You will hear from astrologers that moon signs (compared with sun signs) describe your feelings, emotions and instinctive behaviour. Specifically, they are about emotional needs – the kinds of things you can’t live without if you’re going to feel inwardly secure. These needs, habits and conditioning started in your childhood, and the emotional environment created around you. Did you feel safe, and protected, or were you a fearful, vulnerable, oversensitive little thing? Did you grow up emotionally healthy, able to express your feelings, or defensive and uptight because of an unresponsive mother you felt never cared about you? For moon signs signify the mother on your chart, or rather, the way in which you experienced her presence. Was she good at creating a supportive environment, or (for her own reasons) unable to express love and nurture? Moon signs (plus their all important aspects) are often a huge clue.
Often, the moon sign on a male chart shows the kind of women he is attracted to – but this is also derived from his experience of his mother (or mother-figure). On a female chart the moon sign is about a woman’s sense of her own femininity – what women are supposed to behave like, as it were. If you don’t know your moon sign, download an ephemeris here or get your chart calculated online. If you’re not sure what all the astrological sign glyphs mean, just check this page out and scroll down it. Better still, download the fully featured, free AstroCalc program (worth £150) Knowing your birth time would be a big help, too!
The following is an edited extract from my forthcoming book – Astro-Magic: How to Use the Magical Moon and Lucky Jupiter for Empowerment and Personal Success.
MOON IN ARIES
Patience please! Patience, that virtue where we hang fire and slowly, mindfully work towards a goal, is not your strong suit. This tendency stems from Aries being a Fire sign and with the moon here your normal emotional reaction to things is immediate, quick and hasty, even. Of all the moon signs, this one reacts in this typically impulsive and instinctive, knee-jerk fashion.
It’s also a big ego moon! Every little remark is treated oh so personally, and moon in Aries can’t hide the fact that they’re always over-reacting. A friend of mine with this moon position is so sensitive to personal remarks you can witness his anticipating some dire criticism you may make. He nods in readiness as if to say: ‘Go on then, say it!’ One must learn to tread lightly around such people lest one offend the delicate creatures!
Nevertheless, you can’t keep a good Moon in Aries down. You’re the bravest and toughest moon sign (along with moon in Scorpio) and have the kind of reaction where nothing really fazes you – if confronted by problems then you summon your ‘never say die’, ‘can-do’ attitude. The emotional reaction of Moon in Aries is to quickly thwart danger since problems are there only to be conquered, are they not? Your needs are satisfied when you’ve managed to carry out your daredevil, heroic duties on behalf of others. When those dragons are slain and the vulnerable are rescued, then you relax.
What makes you feel comforted is having plenty of activity on the go. Most people are reassured by a partner’s warm embrace, or Mom’s apple pie, or moral support from friends, whereas you quite enjoy a good challenge to overcome. It’s that stimulus that you need. On the subject of your virtues, your main one is honesty. Others can rely on your calling a spade a spade. There is nothing hidden down there in your responses.
Quite often, the toughness you carry within can be a result of actual emotional deprivation by the mother. For instance, Marlon Brando (moon in Aries) was brought up in an atmosphere of domestic violence due to an abusive father. Consequently, his mother was an alcoholic, and pretty much absent when it came to nurturing. The young Brando had to grow a thick skin very early on.
Another case in point is the eccentric artist Andy Warhol, another Aries moon subject who seems to have blamed his mother for skin blotches he sustained as an adult. This was due to a case of ‘St. Vitus Dance’, an uncontrollable shaking that he’d suffered from as a child. According to a friend of Warhol’s, his mother Julia ‘made him feel that he was the ugliest creature that God put on this earth.’ Again, nurture issues.
You are what we might call emotionally self-sufficient, and one of your attractive sides is your reluctance to go weighing others down with your problems. You tend not to have dependency issues like some moon signs (say, Cancer or Pisces). In fact, you can be quite hard and, as a result, unsympathetic to others’ feelings (which you dismiss as moaning and bleating). But remember, people will come to you for help, as they perceive you to be a veritable tower of strength. A hero. And so you are. Remember this, and how much you can be of help to others.
MOON IN TAURUS
The Moon is well placed in Taurus and here’s the person who is, on the whole, quite calm and relaxed about life. Patient and persevering, your reactions are much slower than Aries. Since moon signs are also about our emotional reactions to things, it might appear that the Moon in Taurus person isn’t doing much reacting at all. Despite this, you’re probably a very good listener. Neither overly emotional and neurotic, nor distant and cold, this moon has a nice, calm air about it where hardly anything can catch you off guard.
Thus, you’re able to go around solving other people’s problems with a placid, common sense manner. One can see just why the moon is so-called exalted in Taurus. If you think of the moon as a sensitive and fluid entity needing a container, then it finds a very stable one in gentle, slow-moving, sensible Taurus. But maybe you are a little stubborn, too. OK, you are impossibly stubborn and it might be a little difficult to change your mind. OK – impossible, then.
Your senses are very finely tuned and you adore fashionable clothes, fine food and for some this means a fondness for the good things of life. Luxuries and comfort are the things that comprise your comfort zone, for the Bull is earthy, materialistic. Like the sun here they love their things. Having physical possessions calms you down, so long as they’re of the finest quality – naturally.
The only things that can really set your teeth on edge is the thought of losing those hard earned possessions – and this can (and does) include people. The sensuousness of Taurus is there too, of course. In fact this is the key to your whole being – you like to touch. Listen to Cameron Diaz, who has this moon :‘I’m primal on an animalistic level, kind of like, “Throw me over your shoulder. You man, me woman.” I love physical contact. I have to be touching my lover, like, always. It’s not optional.’
Individuals with Moon in earthy Taurus have usually experienced a favourable early environment where the mother was involved. Your relationship to her was almost certainly very supportive and reassuring. Mostly, you felt you could always rely on her for help, and this arrived in common sense ways, such as the dependable Mom who takes care of day to day business – like ironing clothes, shopping and preparing meals when you were either too young or lazy to fend for yourself. Moon in Taurus is a ‘don’t worry, Mum’ll fix it’ type of Moon.
My researches show many celebrities whose early life and relationship with their mothers was based on this kind of dependency. Elton John has it, and enjoyed a lovely, close relationship with his mother Sheila – always there for him whenever he was depressed or having an emotional meltdown. Sun Virgo Peter Sellers (another Taurus moon) had a mother who positively doted on him, even when he was all grown up.
Sellers was famously possessive, jealous and insecure, too – unless he could control others, famously in love with gadgets and cars, and forever buying stuff. Elton John (a Sun Aries) admitted that, during his often lonely childhood, material objects became a substitute for friendship. Not for Elton the rock-star wrecking of hotel rooms – he had too much respect for other people’s ‘things’, their property. Again, you don’t like to lose anything or anyone. Ever. Stubborn and immovable you may be, but that’s just how a Rock behaves, right?
MOON IN GEMINI
I once had a nervous, Gemini moon friend who could discuss any subject under the sun, making the smooth transition from world politics to Tarot cards, to the JFK conspiracy, to the current benefits system, to Oliver Cromwell, to chocolate fudge and back again. He knew very little in depth about any of these topics, but sounded like he did. Essentially, he wanted to know things, to keep abreast of a variety of intellectual, historical or newsworthy subjects. In fact, he wanted to know everything! So he could talk about it. This is what made him feel secure.
Of all the moon signs, this one can be a bit fickle and – perhaps unfairly so – you are indeed thought superficial by some. But it’s like this: you just need to cover the widest range of experience possible, and that need for intellectual intake, nay variety, cannot be honoured if you’re stuck with only one person all the time. If tied down in this way, boredom often surfaces. No single individual can provide the miscellany of experience you seek – ‘don’t fence me in!’
This is why your acquaintances come from all different walks of life – you appeal to butchers, bakers and candlestick makers equally, plus the homeless guy around the corner, the traffic cop on his break, liberals and conservatives, saints and sinners – you get on with them all. Why would you bother judging them? They’re just part of the fabric of everyday life and you manage, with that silver tongue, to offend none of them. You just adapt.
Your responses to life are all done with high-speed mental processing. You avoid so-called gut reactions and know how to keep things nice and ‘light’ and funny. In short, you have a quicksilver mind, high-speed wit and cool, pin-sharp humour. Some of the world’s best humourists – surprise surprise – have this moon sign, so take a bow: Billy Connolly, Spike Milligan, Goldie Hawn, Jim Carrey, Rowan Atkinson, Stephen Colbert, George Carlin and Roseanne Barr. Even the late, great moon in Gemini actor, Roger Moore (not exactly a comedian) was well known for his playful sense of humour.
In fact, using humour is how you often respond to your own problems – a certain kind of distance can be created if you don’t get too emotional. It gives you more room to think and intellectualise. To feel comfortable you need mental stimulus like others need oxygen to breathe. Interesting conversation, a busy social life and frequent changes of location are all necessary. Plus, your talent for communication in the social world is considerable and there’s always someone around whose head you can talk off. People can never shut you up.
Moon signs show your domestic habits – the environment you want when you shut the door to the outside world. One moon in Gemini client of mine isn’t happy until the house is buzzing to the sound of casual callers bringing gossip, phones ringing, email alerts and 24 hour TV news in the background, in case anything interesting just happened. This is likely to be a hangover from your childhood when you were brought up in a place just like this – with interesting new gadgets, people calling 24/7, and – especially – the gossiping neighbours.
Your mother could even have been like the Big Sister you never had, instead of the stereotyped, smothering, attentive figure we associate with moms and mums. Concerned more about educating you, she encouraged you to read and develop your intellect, instead of nagging you to eat all of your greens.
MOON IN CANCER
With this moon sign you’re one of life’s more sensitive types, reacting instinctively to others, especially if to offer a little TLC. You’re one of life’s nurturers, too, and friends know they can go to you if they’re in trouble – you’ll put a roof over their head, no questions asked. And do they take you for granted! You need to put your foot down more with the hangers-on – but you’re not quite the bold, assertive type, and would hate to think you’d upset someone.
It has to be said that you’re easily hurt and never forget a slight, never quite let go of the past. There is a deep nostalgic element to your psychological make-up, but maybe you’re just a little too insular – you could step back a little more and see that the world is a much bigger place than you readily appreciate. Privacy is a big thing for you – maybe more than sun in Cancer – you have an invisible ‘keep out’ sign to guard against anything that might interfere with your personal world.
Home and family always, always come first, indeed, family ties are ever powerful, drawing you back to that thing which looms so large – your roots. You uphold all the values instilled by your parents, as if you’re a custodian for all that’s been supportive during the years when you were growing up. Thus, you feel most secure when the home environment and family unit is functioning well – the least hint of trouble here and you start worrying. Like we’ve said – family comes first!
Moon signs can, as we’ve noted, indicate your preferred living space, or home environment. Rock legend Jimmy Page, for all his Scorpio rising intensity and sun Capricorn ambition, is a deeply sensitive, moon in Cancer, a water sign, who not only once lived near water, but actually on it. (He owned a ‘boathouse’ in Pangbourne, Berkshire.)
Your mother was mostly protective and supportive at best; smothering and interfering at worst. But you always felt she would do anything for you, and the family would rally around if you were in trouble. Again, the family comes first! Always. For some of you it’s a more or less a religion.
There are strong dependency issues here and you prefer to stay physically close to the family home, even when you’re a grown up with offspring of your own. You never know when you’ll need mum and dad. Inevitably, you transfer this neediness to a wife or husband. But do be careful – other people can find this a little tiresome, no matter how much they love you. Men with this highly moody moon sign work hard to overcome their feelings of vulnerability. Naturally, the women make excellent mother figures … to all and sundry.
Two of Rock’s most famous sibling rivals, Ray and Dave Davies of the Kinks also have the moon in Cancer. Ray, in particular, based an entire career on a kind of hankering for the past – and he’s a sun Gemini! But his Cancerian moon inspires lyrics which look back to a kind a former golden age (in the recent past) that probably never existed. Many of them are dry-eyed vignettes about everyday life, or home, or local places and people dreaming big dreams. In Ray’s wistful, nostalgic songs, domesticity, family and the past are lifted to mythological levels. (Check out the words to ‘Waterloo Sunset’, ‘Dead End Street’ or ‘Shangri-La’. The line in ‘Autumn Almanac’ that goes: ‘This is my street and I’m never going to leave it,’ says it all!)
MOON IN LEO
This is a regal moon from the sunny side of the street, so to speak. Like moon in Aries, nothing can get you down for long and emotional reactions are frequently warm and generous – there is plenty of joie de vivre and you react well to extroverts with humorous, entertaining personalities. Gut reactions are generally trusting of others and other people develop a genuine, instant rapport with you. There is one Achilles Heel though, and here it comes …
Moon in Leo is never quite content unless the centre of attention; taking a supporting role, much less a back seat, is not for you. What truly makes you feel secure is having the affection and support from others that reminds you – continually – that you’re number One. Without this kind of back-up you wither. In particular, the child within you needs to create – you know how kids love to paint and draw and dress up?
The adult moon in Leo is essentially working from this archetype – the need to bring something creative out of oneself. It can be music, dancing, sculpture acting or any other of the myriad performing arts, but there is something within you that must create. That, and be recognised (even, adored) by others. It’s probably a more intense planetary placing than sun in Leo, for whom ego recognition is not necessarily an emotional concern.
You feel instinctively that you’re essentially ‘special’ and ought to be treated as such. This can lead to quite a bit of pompous, haughty behaviour. To return to that ‘child within’, this behaviour kicks in when things go wrong and the chips are down. Then, for the Leo moon, the world is suddenly a cruel place populated with peasants and imbeciles standing in your way, and all you want to do is scream! But you don’t, of course. Now that you’re a superior, dignified adult this doesn’t happen, but this dramatising of your setbacks and problems is typical Leo. All in all, though, ego notwithstanding, its one of the more ‘healthy’ moon signs: proud, self-possessed and magnanimous in your emotional reactions.
You were raised by a mother who thought you the most wonderful of creations, but maybe affection secretly came at a price – so long as you behaved like the darling angel she wanted you to be, everything was fine. Otherwise, there may have been some icy and haughty coldness. Many Leo Moons were short on both real affection and attention when they were kids – their mothers were too interested in pampering themselves.
David Bowie had this moon sign, and to this we can attribute his sense of the theatrical (which came in very handy, career wise). However, he was into dressing up from a very early age, and loved to see his reflection in a mirror when little. His mother Peggy once caught him wearing her make-up when a small child, and when told that little boys don’t use lipstick he answered: ‘But you do, Mummy!
Though a sun Capricorn, Bowie’s experience of Mother had a Leo theme, and Peggy certainly fitted the bill. Bowie biographers have referred to her as ‘imposing’, ‘fearless’, ‘wilful’, ‘independent’ and – unsurprisingly – ‘regal’. Nor was she exactly shy about speaking her mind, and she managed to carry off this Queen Mother-like image for most of her life. That Bowie was ultimately seeking ‘Leo-type’ women became plain when he married his first wife Angela (a sun Leo). And is it any surprise that his model widow, Iman, is also a Leo? Of course not. It shouldn’t be.
MOON IN VIRGO
This is the moon sign that, more than any other, simply needs to calm down. They are full of twitchy behaviour in a way that most sun Virgos are not. There are always things that need to be done, tasks to be performed, desks to be tidied. You feel comfortable when you can see the results of your efforts, and when others appreciate them. Moon in Virgo derives its sense of security from knowing that everything is ship-shape and in good working order (this applies to health issues, too). Then life is sweet. But not for long – for life has a tendency to get messy again, and sprout leaks. In short, it’s full of imperfections.
Emotionally, you are ‘cool’ and your instinctive reactions to life are sublimated into doing what Virgo does best – criticising. You love to analyse things to death, but this includes carping at others, too. You may think you’re just being rational (and, along with Moon in Aquarius, you’re the most rational of moon signs) but this kind of behaviour also drives others mad. Of all the moon signs, it’s the most nervous.
For example, people notice how you seem to worry and obsess about every last detail, like the compulsively tidy, germ-phobic Felix Unger in The Odd Couple, who despairs of his slobbish flat-mate, Oscar Madison (clearly a sun Cancerian/moon Taurus). When the laid-back Oscar was out one day Felix cleaned up his room, top to bottom, and then asked him how it felt now to be rid of all those germs. ‘Lonely,’ came the droll reply.
This need of yours to have everything nicely organised started in childhood. Your mother would hand out little tasks for you to fulfil, the better to prepare you for adult responsibilities. Like moon in Capricorn, she expected you to grow up fast, too. So many of the Virgo moon celebrities I’ve researched had mothers who worked hard to support the family, but often had to cope with illnesses of various kinds. The former Johnny Rotten, ‘punk’ legend John Lydon has moon in Virgo: ‘My mother was devoted to making me an intelligent human being. It was her who taught me to read and write at four. ’ In short, she was there to teach him to be rational, sensible and to think for himself.
The late Capricornian rocker Ian Kilmister (or ‘Lemmy’) had moon in Virgo, and lived much of his life totally self-sufficient. Of his mother, he says she ‘did not have an easy life, trying to support our family alone. Her first job was as a nurse … After resigning, she worked as a librarian for a while … I did not really understand how stressed she was … Later, after getting married to my stepfather, she went back to work – as a waitress, this time.’ This perfectly fits the theme of Virgo – the workhorse who keeps going despite their own frailties. (Plus she had two ‘Virgoan careers’ – nurse and librarian.)
Though you are the most logical of the moon signs, perhaps you are the least well equipped to cope in an emotional or relationship crisis. All of that nervous energy goes to waste when you don’t have the necessary control. Virgo moons also have what I call the D.I.Y. ethic – whatever the goal or ambition, if you possesses the necessary (or only the basic) skills, then you feel you might as well do it yourself. Properly.
This is also because you want things to come out exactly the way you want them to. It’s the craftsperson in you, another Virgoan archetype. Moon in Virgo has this desire to render things just so and they work hard to get there – maybe too hard. They’re hard on themselves, too especially with their own supposed imperfections. They just need to go with the flow more often – like slobby, old Oscar Madison.
MOON IN LIBRA
The most romantic of the moon signs! Since the moon is about what you can’t do without, and Libra is all about relationships then these individuals are fairly easy to understand. Their emotional anchor is fixed securely when they are with a partner – they really don’t like to go it alone too often. They even put their considerable charm and diplomatic skills to work to ensure they don’t have to. With moon in Libra, blessed with a radar for others’ social cues, you listen carefully to them and then respond beautifully.
We think of water signs as being blessed with a sixth sense for how others feel, being excellent at reading emotional undercurrents, and thus knowing how to respond. Strong Libra (an air sign) does this, too, but the intuitive element is missing – they’re not tuning into emotions. But they are good with outward social cues like body language and tone of voice. In relationships – their favourite area – they know all the right moves and tricks to win over a partner.
You may have detected something slightly superficial here, too. The point is that they are diplomats above all else. You won’t find them demanding their own way (like Aries) or having secretive plans and schemes (like Scorpio). Of all the moon signs, they rely on their own careful reading of a situation and the appropriate ‘nice’ reactions. For Moon in Libra hates unpleasantness, being more fond of the ‘prettier’ features of human relating. Messy emotions are seen as inconvenient – they smack of the irrational – and such things must never spill over into moon in Libra’s personal or social life. In short, feelings are often rationalised away. Nicely, of course.
However, they don’t exactly rule out the little white lie to spare someone’s feelings – telling you what they really feel is for Scorpios and Sagittarians. This is what happened in childhood – your mother had a kind of cossetting effect on you, but deep, inner stuff and raw emotion were discouraged. You were never allowed to really discover your own feelings. Here is that Libran avoidance of the nasty and unpleasant once again – they just don’t want to go there. At least, in childhood, you learned early on how to charm others to get your own way.
However, you may well end up giving more than you take, especially if it’s to keep a relationship alive. For Libra moon’s Achilles Heel is as stated: they can’t bear to be alone for very long. Henry Kissinger is often cited as an example of moon in Libra when astrologers are discussing this position. Whilst much of what we see in Kissinger is a result of his Gemini sun, there is no denying his persuasive skills at the negotiating table, his tact and discretion. Like a good Libra moon, he knows when to keep his mouth shut.
This avoidance of the dark and unpleasant can be carried too far, however. It’s as if there is an inner wall that prevents moon in Libra admitting any culpability for others’ pain – to do so would mean having to deal with negative emotions (like when a relationship breaks up).
Take Abba’s Bjorn Ulvaeus (moon in Libra) and the writing of ‘Winner Takes It All’ – its heartbreaking lyrics are about the death of a marriage, his marriage, and the ‘loser’ in the song is clearly his ex-wife, Agnetha. So who does he get to sing it? Right, Agnetha! (That the words actually referred to their painful break up was only half acknowledged when Ulvaeus was interviewed.) Anyhow, one must wonder at the sensitivity of someone putting an ex-lover through the emotional wringer in order to have a hit single!
MOON IN SCORPIO
Moon in Scorpio is a ‘tough as old boots’ moon – intense, secretive, self sufficient, hardy, defensive and self controlled. Feelings are hardly ever allowed to show, but it’s a highly purposeful moon – you want to focus on what matters, you want authenticity, to point to the truth of things. And you can spot a phoney a mile off. But what truly motivates you is the need for emotional self protection. Of all the twelve moon signs, you are the one who surrounds yourself with a thick veil of secrecy. No one has a smokescreen quite like Moon in Scorpio.
Even with loved ones you don’t exactly open up, for moon in Scorpio is the control freak extraordinaire. You instinctively choose to give nothing away and when you don’t want others to know what you’re feeling (which is most of the time) your reactions are either blank or camouflaged in cheery, or sarcastic, humour. The moon is that instinctive part of us where we should be free to respond naturally. Having these responses watched over constantly makes for a somewhat tense individual, more apt to focus on the negative than the positive.
However, you’re a good listener if a friend is in trouble or having emotional issues. This is because moon in Scorpio would rather deal with other people’s emotions than reveal and expose their own. You have empathy and healing power in abundance, too. A tower of strength for those you care about, you’re a born counsellor or psychiatrist. You not only understand the human heart you are good at giving ‘tough love’, too.
Your emotional anchor is the promise of loving support in a stable relationship. Having this ‘rock’ in your life is something you can’t live without. This is true of most people, but moon in Scorpio is often making up for some kind of deficiency in childhood, when maternal affection and reassurance were in short supply. Frequently, the personal mother had ‘issues’ with being a mother or was absent, and you never quite got over this, never quite learned to trust and to leave your emotional welfare in the hands of someone else. Even close partners.
Ricky Gervais (a sun Cancerian) has this moon and one gets the impression from his live appearances that he’s always trying to parade his dark, cynical – even cruel – side before the public. In his stand-up comedy, he’s made a career of daring the audience to laugh at his borderline-offensive, borderline-tasteless jokes (especially ones aimed at the disabled). Cynicism is a way of saying to the world: ‘Look, I’m just being realistic about things.’ (Yet we do see the Cancerian soft-centre in his other work; for example, recall the happily-ever-after ending of The Office).
Certainly, of all the moon signs, this one thrives on intensity and passion and has a determinedly independent streak, and you prefer to stay clear of dependency on others. You’d rather have it the other way around – vulnerability is not your thing. You stay in control that way. In fact, you insist on doing things your way, even if it’s to your detriment. It’s called cutting off your nose to spite your face. One Moon in Scorpio friend would rather lop off his own head with an axe than admit to being in the wrong in personal disputes. Being wrong is uncomfortable! Bad for the ego.
And like all the other fixed signs, habits are formed and kept to and no one – no one – is about to change you and your stubborn views. You like it that way. But sometimes it can be impossible to actually live with someone like that!
MOON IN SAGITTARIUS
Among the twelve moon signs you are the most naturally optimistic. You exude happy-go-lucky with every breath you take. The moon is emotions and since Sagittarius is a fire sign, the emotions on display here are ebullience, exuberance and sanguine, high spirits. You certainly know how to cheer people up.
I had a girlfriend with this moon sign and all the time I was with her I don’t think I recall a single negative, or critical word about life or any one person. For her, anything was possible if you smiled and kept on trying. She always had some new enthusiasm on the go, was always off to meet someone new. People were drawn to her benign, magnetic, cheery, warm and effervescent personality. Of course, she was wildly popular as a result. Moon in Sagittarius just doesn’t do cynical! They just shrug their shoulder and grin a little when anything bad happens.
What you can’t live without, however, is The Big Picture, and some kind of religious, spiritual or philosophical quest will have its hooks in you as you thirst for answers – for life must mean something! You need to believe, in short, and it’s an emotional thing with you. Usually, you find the ‘answers’ pretty quick and want to pass them on to others – in other words, you like to preach. You’re the original armchair philosopher.
This tendency to see the bigger, philosophical picture in an instant is typical for a Sagittarian moon. Freedom is the key: the spiritual teacher Jiddu Krishnamurti had this moon sign and saw it as his task show the way towards true enlightenment and spiritual liberation – for we can be free from the ‘prison’ of the false self that is the ego. (He was the Eckhart Tolle of his day.)
Moon signs show your instinctive reactions to the outside world. This can sometimes include bad news – but moon in Sagittarius just doesn’t want to know! Pondering over inconvenient, practical detail is not your thing, you prefer to ignore or dismiss such things. Let others figure it out! You need your head in the clouds. You can see better from all the way up there! Donald Trump has this moon sign, and whatever your opinion of him, you can’t say he’s not an optimist, enthusiast and risk taker. (And someone who bounces back – he’s been bankrupt twice).
The relentlessly optimistic politician Nigel Farage (a sun Aries) is also a good example of this moon sign. His German wife has noted that ‘he doesn’t get much sleep or rest, he lives on adrenalin a lot, he doesn’t eat regular meals – and he smokes and he drinks too much.’ This is the indulgent, even reckless, side of moon Sagittarius – moon signs are about how we nurture ourselves too, how we find a quiet ‘inner’ place of retreat, how we eat or comfort ourselves. Moon in Sagittarius cannot be bothered with this, as much of everyday life is too slow and boring. As a financial trader he once lost a seven-figure sum in a single morning, commenting: “I love a gamble. I am at my best when my back is against the wall and the odds are stacked against me.”
Indeed. You need optimism. Hope. Faith. Freedom. This attitude was formed in childhood and Mother was an independent, someone who loved their freedom and couldn’t be tied down to a kitchen sink. She may have seemed somewhat less than maternal, to put it bluntly. More interested in expanding her horizons she avoided too much of that mumsiness – feeling somehow above it, or just not into it.
MOON IN CAPRICORN
In Secrets From a Stargazers Notebook, the US astrologer Debbi Kempton Smith begins her reading of this planetary position thus: ‘When somebody with the Moon in Capricorn starts being especially nice to you, always ask yourself, “what do they want?”’. It’s true that moon in Capricorn is emotionally guarded and driven by self gain, yet Smith accuses them of using other people, too. This may be true, but the defensiveness of moon in Capricorns may lead them to suspect others are using them, too!
Among the moon signs, the moon here is – traditionally – badly placed, similar to Scorpio. Emotionally speaking, these people give away very little, holding their cards close to their chest until you make your move. They would make excellent poker players, if they could allow themselves a little gamble with life. Taking risks isn’t really their thing, especially with their feelings. You never know who will reject you.
Moon in Capricorn is a wee bit obsessed with security – especially of the financial variety. And so you get a grip on life, tighten your belt and play safe. Your emotional needs are likely to be neglected – you’d rather work, organise and accomplish goals, no matter how much you maybe dropping or starved of affection. The alternative, for you, is to have a good moan about how hard life is, how hard you work with so little appreciation, and how everything seems to conspire against you.
What lies behind this patterning is moon in Capricorn’s deep fear of failure, of poverty, of being dependent on others. You shouldn’t be so hard on yourself if things go wrong: no other moon sign takes failure quite so badly. Moon signs show how you react to stress and these people are born with the stress gene fully switched on. Their first instinct is to try and control things and, often, this isn’t possible. (Going with the flow and having faith is not your forte.) Nevertheless, this is what actually calms you down – being in control, being organised, being able to manipulate things.
Childhood conditioning was such that you were expected to grow up too soon, be responsible and realistic – especially about your own limitations.There were plenty of folks around you who never thought you’d amount to much, and your reaction was: I’ll show you one day! There may have been times when your mother urged you to do better, work harder, put money in the bank and accept your responsibilities (because you can’t rely on dreams and ambition) whilst at the same time undermining your self confidence. Unconditional loving support wasn’t in abundance as a child, and even though Mum meant well, she was thinking more about your practical needs.
The flamboyant, gay frontman of Queen, Freddie Mercury, had moon in Capricorn. Born into the strict Parsee faith in Zanzibar, much of his childhood was spent away from his parents in a boarding school in India, ‘for his own good’ (a phrase moon in Capricorns have heard many times.) A timid, shy boy, painfully conscious of his ‘buck’ teeth, he later spoke of ‘loneliness’ and ‘rejection’ at the school. But like a typical, self-reliant little Capricorn moon he got down to work and made the best of it, for ‘you had to do what you were told …One thing boarding school taught me was to fend for myself.’
The later Freddie became quite defensive about his family roots, as if it were an embarrassment not in keeping with a Rock god. He’d snap at reporters: ‘Don’t ask me about it!’ This is moon in Capricorn’s tendency to hide any sensitivity or vulnerability, those ‘weak spots’ that we try to cover up. But moon in Capricorn overdoes it!
MOON IN AQUARIUS
When it comes to the subject of feelings you’ll notice how very distant is Moon in Aquarius. This is an air sign, an element out of its comfort zone where emotion is concerned. Of all the moon signs it’s the most cool and detached, in fact, people may wonder if you really have any feelings at all – you seem so awkward where matters of the heart are concerned. Others’ feelings often don’t register on your radar! Yours, on the other hand, are rationalised out of existence, as being ‘rational’ is the big thing with you. You’d rather discuss feelings than actually feel them.
You compensate by having a busy social life and don’t feel comfortable unless there are plenty of friends and colleagues around, old or new, or prospect of same. Where moon in Pisces reaches out to the Infinite, or God, your needs are slightly more modest and satisfied when feeling part of a group, whether it’s a bunch of buddies, your night school pottery class or the WI. Here is where you feel best, among peers with whom you can identify and be heard.
Your abiding image of Mother was that of a free, even rebellious, spirit, not exactly ‘mother material’ when it comes to nurture, nappies and feeding times. This is heaven for Cancerians, but not an ‘Aquarian mother’. She probably didn’t want to be tied down with the domestic responsibilities this would entail. In later years, you may have felt she was more like a Big Sister than a mother (a bit like Moon in Gemini). This is more or less what happened with John Lennon, who had moon in Aquarius. His mother Julia was a rebellious, wilful and carefree spirit – the wild card in the Lennon family. John adored her precisely because, as a mother, she was unconventional, funny, and never bothered disciplining him.
Moon in Aquarius sees the Big Picture – you’re concerned with things far beyond the scope of the average person and want to make the world a better place. The French intellect Voltaire (1694 –1778) went to jail for speaking out against hypocrisies and state tyranny. More recently, many revolutionaries and political radicals have moon in Aquarius – hard-left hippie Jerry Rubin and black civil rights activist Angela Davis of sixties fame.
Of all the moon signs, your ideas are either off the wall, or plain provocative, like LSD advocate Dr. Timothy Leary, or controversial psychiatrists like R. D. Laing and Jacques Lacan. What unites these diverse people is that, in one way or another, they are Mavericks. They set themselves apart from the Establishment and put forth their own wacky solutions to society’s ills.
Men are seeking nurture and support from women of intellect, the more liberated and crazy their ideas, the better. John Lennon always said that Yoko Ono brought out the ‘real’ him, that she was nothing more than himself ‘in drag’. He meant that she embodied his anima, his Ideal Woman: in Aquarius this means someone freethinking, liberal, progressive, outspoken. It’s no surprise she’s a sun Aquarian.
Likewise, women with moon in Aquarius are gifted with high intelligence and realise that being a woman can be a struggle in modern society, because men make most of the rules. They’re having none of this, and refuse to conform to the usual stereotypes – valuing their self sufficiency and intellect more than anything else. In the end, freedom and independence is what, ironically, makes them most secure – like not getting deeply attached to someone (as moon in Cancer or Scorpio would). Dependency of this kind scares them to death. They’re weird that way.
MOON IN PISCES
Moon in Pisces people positively live for the world of the Spirit, imagination and emotion. It’s as if they live in a shell most of the time – no, all of the time. They do this for the simple reason that the moon here is so very porous. Moon in Pisces has been likened to a psychic sponge which absorbs everything from the surrounding environment. As you can imagine, some kind of protection is needed. Normal people filter most things out; poor old, super-sensitive Moon in Pisces doesn’t have a choice.
Plus, they just don’t react ‘normally’. I have at least three Pisces Moon friends (males) who are typically ‘bad’ with anger. They’re not wimps, either (one is, in fact, a Martial Arts expert) They just don’t feel that surge of self-defensive, righteous emotion that normally occurs when offended or accosted by an aggressor outsider. Where an Aries moon would be in there, fists at the ready, moon in Pisces probably feels sorry for their opponent.
You may hardly ever suspect this other realm they’re living in. This is because … well, sometimes, they’re often a stranger to themselves too! They can be nebulous, absent minded, evasive – not the most direct of people to deal with. Yes, they’re complicated. Moon in Pisces subjects tend to diffuse their real feelings and reactions tend to be ‘fuzzy’ and vague. This is not to say they aren’t deep, mystical and imbued with a powerful empathy (you will find many of them in the healing professions or involved with charities, especially for animals).
The ‘psychic sponge’ element in them makes their response to your suffering all the greater – they really feel for other people. It’s because of this that they – ironically – may seem cold and distant if you’re the one in pain. Perverse as it may sound, they just can’t bear to see you suffer – and so they need to insulate themselves. Just as images of animal cruelty on YouTube are a genuine horror show for them, they have to distance themselves somewhat from human anguish, or else they start to feel it themselves!
Among the moon signs this one is best at self pity. It has something to do with early upbringing, where you experienced Mother as a suffering, overprotected, little thing. This is a weakness you seem to have inherited – this ‘woe is me’ attitude, as if your misfortunes were the fault of God. But self pity is just a luxury you’ve granted yourself! You’re essentially an addictive personality and go to extremes of self-indulgence. Same with self-imposed guilt (which you also inherited from mother).
Plus, organising yourself into an efficient, practical routine may not be your strong point. Of all the moon signs, dealing with too much everyday reality may prove quite a challenge. One way out, of course, is through drugs and alcohol – the wise ones opt for yoga, meditation, chakra balancing and The Power of Now.
What they really need to feel secure in this world is some psychic connection to the one beyond. They need that sense of oneness with the Universe, to transcend the mundane, material world with its petty limitations. Either way, they are all drawn somehow to the mystical or spiritual. They need to escape somewhere, commune with God, and remove themselves from 3D reality for a while. The Catholic theologian and mathematician Blaise Pascal had this moon, and wrote:
For after all what is man in nature? A nothing in relation to infinity, all in relation to nothing, a central point between nothing and all and infinitely far from understanding either. The ends of things and their beginnings are impregnably concealed from him in an impenetrable secret. He is equally incapable of seeing the nothingness out of which he was drawn and the infinite in which he is engulfed.
Does this discussion of moon signs resonate with you? Are you, in fact, more like your moon than your sun sign? Why not leave a comment below?
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My moon is in pisces and this is totally true. my love has Capricorn moon and it makes me want to love and nurture him because of all he went through as a child
Dear Cierra,
Many thanks for your comment. You sound like a lovely person. Have a great new year.
JLP