The Secrets of Your Moon Phase

How your lunar phase impacts your personality, strengths, and weaknesses

I’ve always loved the Moon.

I admire the way it transforms; not just in shape and size, but through energy.

The metallic disc reflecting off the ocean feels mythic and divine, while the Moon’s amber glow—hanging heavy through bare trees in a late October sky—has an eerie, almost supernatural presence. The Moon oscillates between a warm embrace and foreboding stare.

The Moon is flexible. It’s adaptable. It’s complex. The Moon is us.

But, like, actually.

Handatlas der Allgemeinen (1860)

In astrology, the Moon represents emotions, reflections, and inner-truths. The Moon is the symbol of the Mother—it reveals how you were nurtured, how you nurture yourself, and how you nurture others. The zodiac sign the Moon occupied when you were born shows the style with which you approach your feelings and sensitivities, as well as your emotional reactions, your concept of safety and security, and how you process your day-to-day experiences. The Moon illuminates both our greatest comforts, as well as our greatest anxieties.

The Lunar Cycle

Reflecting the Sun’s radiance, the Moon is most visible at night, which also happens to be when we feel our internal Moon most acutely. The Moon—the fastest celestial body tracked in astrology—races across the sky, shape-shifting as it moves through a 29.5-day cycle. It emerges as a bright sphere during the Full Moon phase, in various crescents as it waxes and wanes, and then becomes entirely invisible during the New Moon phase.

Lunar Cycle 101

Lunar Cycle = 29.5 days

Phases = 8

Days per phase = ~3.5

Days per zodiac sign = ~2.5

Within its 29.5-day cycle, the Moon unfolds an important emotional story. The New Moon establishes the narrative and the Full Moon signifies a climax, but all the other phases offer invaluable insight, as well. What’s coming to light? Who’s involved? What is transforming?

We can use the lunar quarters to help us maximize our magick and explore our own spiritual ebb and flow, as each quarter (lasting approximately 7 days) invites a different perspective.

Inspirational Quarter (First Quarter: Establishing new ideas, setting intentions, planting seeds

Creative Action Quarter (Second Quarter: Finding motivation, adopting different points of view, gaining insight

Manifestation Quarter (Third Quarter): Situations coming to fruition, navigating both clarity and conflict, responding to action

Transformation Quarter (Fourth Quarter): Adjustments based on events that transpired, shifting perspective, processing experiences

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The Eight Phases 

And, within the four quarters of the lunar cycle, there are eight distinctive phases. During each phase, the Moon emits a specific energy as it transforms in shape, size, and nature. When we’re using the lunar cycle to set intentions, we can lean into each phase for both grounding and guidance.

The lunar phase you were born under reveals your unique approach to life, your individual mission, along with your strengths and weakness. When the Moon moves into your natal lunar phase (approximately every 29.5 days), you’ll be activated and feel particularly aware of your emotions, as well as any karmic lessons that have surfaced. This is an excellent time to harness your personal magick.

Here are the keywords associated with each lunar phase:

• New Moon: Reflection

• Waxing Crescent: Breakthrough