Moonstruck

Long before we measured our lives by paper or digital calendars, the moon was our true sovereign timekeeper, just as she commanded the wild ocean tides while also rippling the water within our bones. In this episode of Chasing Starlight, we bring ourselves back into the realm of wonder to explore the magic (and science) surrounding the luminous guardian of our night sky. Discover how tuning into the natural, cyclical rhythm of our beautiful moon can help you find your way back to your own true nature. 

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When you were little, did you ever believe that the moon was following you home, watching you through the car window on nighttime drives, then slipping silently behind the trees? Believe it or not, in a manner of speaking, you weren't wrong. She is our oldest nighttime companion, an ancient guide that's often hiding in plain sight. Today we'll explore her mysteries and remember what it feels like to bask in the wonder of our beautiful moon. I'm Isabelle, and this is Chasing Starlight. And as well, she should, really. She is the moon, after all. And I'm not talking about the sterile rock that you read about in astronomy textbooks, and I'm definitely not talking about the cheap, scary movie version that only shows up to cause chaos or paranoia. I want to talk about the moon as she actually is, a luminous companion to our planet, a masterful teacher of cycles, and a major influence on the energetic fields of Earth and its inhabitants, past and present. Just think of it. Every creature that has ever walked the Earth or looked up into the dark has shared that exact same moon. Before we get into the science, the history, and the practical lessons, though, I want to share a personal memory with you. It's a memory from my childhood that helps to shed some light on why I talk about the moon so much. And if you've ever talked to me at any length, it's more than likely come up somehow. And this memory lies at the root of why I continue to work with the moon to this day. When I was a young girl, long before I knew anything about astrology or metaphysics or energy work, I was completely fascinated by the moon. And I didn't know why. I didn't have the words to explain it, but I felt an intense magnetic attraction to her light. People would always say that they could see the man in the moon, but not me. I always saw her as some sort of goddess in her soft yet brilliant glow, and how she would always show up in soft curves of different proportions depending on the night. And so on one particular night, I think I was around twelve years old, that fascination turned into an otherworldly pull. I remember it was the middle of the night, the entire house was silent and wrapped in that heavy sleep that only happens in those very early hours of the morning. And I woke up suddenly, not because I had had a bad dream, but because I felt something calling to me. It wasn't a noise, it wasn't something that I heard, but something on a deeper level that pulled me from my sleep. And when I opened my eyes and I looked around me, I saw a brilliant bluish white pool of light cast upon my bedroom floor. And right then something seemed to pull me out of bed, and I found myself walking toward my bedroom window. And I stood there looking out, and there she was, the moon completely full, incredibly bright. It felt like she was looking right at me, like she was inviting me to join her outside. Now I was a pretty good kid, and sneaking out of my parents' house was definitely not something that I did, certainly not at that age, but the impulse that came over me that night was just it was too strong to ignore. And so I I crept down the hallway, I went downstairs, I unlocked the back door as quietly as I could, and I stepped out into our backyard. Everything was coated with a silvery blanket of soft light, and I could see objects, trees, the wooden fence, a shed, in sharp, crisp shadow of light and dark, and I started walking toward the tree line at the back of our yard, following a kind of slope that led down toward a river running past our property. If you have ever tried to walk along uneven moonlit ground at night, you know it can be tricky, and you're always one step away from a possible twisted ankle if you're not careful. But that night the moon illuminated every single root, every stone and every low branch with total clarity. It was like she was making sure that I wouldn't fall. Now my parents' property where I grew up abutted an estuary of the Connecticut River, right where marsh channels would thread together before meeting Long Island Sound. And so when I reached the tall grasses, I knew I was at the water's edge, and then I could see that it was high tide, and the water was a black mirror of stillness. It was mesmerizing. And in the center of that mirror was the moon's reflection, as though she were waiting for me to share in a night swim. I sat there for what felt like hours just soaking in her presence, and I didn't have a sophisticated understanding of the universe back then. Of course, I didn't know the names of all the constellations or understand celestial placements and workings, but I knew without a shadow of a doubt that there was a powerful, intelligent magic at work that night in the dark. That moon, that beautiful moon, she not only guided me, but she bore witness to several milestones and rites throughout my childhood and adolescence. I can remember at age 15 being with three of my closest friends and dancing under the moon, doing cartwheels in a grassy field and laughing wildly as though we were the only beings in all of existence, living on the cusp of our childhood and of an awakening of some kind that we did not yet understand. The moon was there the night I had my first kiss down by the water, and she smiled upon us even as I blushed and then rushed back to my bedroom to document the entire experience in my diary, all giddy with excitement as I was at that young age. Just wondrous. I still feel that exact same sense of wonder today. Every single time I step outside and see her hanging in the sky, whether she is a tiny crescent or a massive glowing orb, that 12-year-old girl wakes up inside of me. And that connection is what we are going to explore today. Let's look at the sheer reality of what the moon is to our planet, because the science is just as mind-blowing as the metaphysics. If you look at our solar system, Earth is actually a bit of an anomaly. Planets like Jupiter and Saturn are surrounded by dozens of moons, an entire crowd of icy rocks competing for space and attention. Mars has its two tiny irregular potato-shaped satellites, but our home planet, assuming all listeners consider Earth their home planet, our Earth has exactly one moon. She is entirely one of a kind. We don't share our night sky with a cluster of other celestial bodies. We have this single massive dedicated companion that has been locked in a gravitational dance with us for billions of years. And her relationship with us is structurally vital. The moon holds Earth's tilt steady at roughly 23 and a half degrees. Without her gravity stabilizing our axis, our planet would wobble wildly. And that wobble would create catastrophic shifts in climate, obliterating predictable seasons and making the development of stable life nearly impossible. From a purely biological standpoint, we owe our very existence to this solitary guardian in the sky. Yet despite her life-giving stability, humanity has spent centuries projecting our deepest fears onto her. Think about the folklore and the cultural stories that we've built around the moon. For generations we've used her image to fuel horror stories. We invented the myth of the werewolf, the idea that an otherwise rational, civilized human being completely loses control and turns into a ravenous beast the moment the moon reaches full illumination. We look at old horror movies and the monster always strikes under a bright round moon. Our language still carries the weight of these old fears. The word lunatic comes directly from Latin meaning affected by the moon. For hundreds of years, people genuinely believed that the phases of the moon caused insanity or erratic behavior and mental breakdowns. If you talk to anyone working in public safety today, first responders, emergency room nurses, paramedics, police officers, or even middle school teachers, they will swear to you that when the moon is full, the world goes totally berserk. But I want to reframe this idea, or at least try to help to reframe it. We can start by bridging the gap between science and metaphysics because it's truly magical when we take a moment to explore the energy here. No reasonable person denies that the moon controls the tides of our oceans. Her gravitational pull is so immense that it warps the shape of the Earth's water, lifting millions of tons of deep, heavy ocean water and pulling it across the globe twice a day. Think about the sheer mass of the Atlantic or Pacific Oceans. The strongest engines and nuclear power plants in the world couldn't dream of moving that much water. Yet the moon does it seamlessly and silently from a quarter of a million miles away. And now let's look at the biology of a human being. We like to think of ourselves as solid, separate creatures, but physically we are fluid beings. The average adult human body is made up of roughly 60% water. Our brains and our hearts are even higher, hovering around 73% water, and our lungs are about 83% water. We are quite literally small self-contained oceans in human form. So let's not make any mistake here. If the moon has the gravitational power to move the massive, heavy oceans of this planet, she damn well holds the power to influence our own internal systems. When the cosmic tides shift, your internal tides shift too. This is a direct consequence of being a fluid organism living inside a gravitational field. When the moon pulls on the Earth's waters, she's stirring the emotional and energetic waters inside of you as well. She is rippling through you, making waves with your internal chemistry. And also, let's not forget, she's pulling at your intuition. Now I'm going to pause right here with a very important clarification. I don't want you to approach lunar energy from a standpoint of being a passive receptor. For example, oh, it's a full moon, therefore it's making me feel X, Y, or Z. Or worse, it's making me do X, Y, R Z. Our moon may have some influence on our energy, yes, but she's not looking to control you, nor can she. So don't be blaming any negative goings-on or events on our sweet moon. She is fiercely powerful, yes, but so are you. And from a manifesting and intention-setting standpoint, we can use our power to tap into her power to co-create with her. And together we can become like the Wonder Twins. So what do we want to co-create? Well, it's actually more of a question of when do we want to co-create? Because depending on the phase and sign that the moon is in, we can time our intention setting to co-create real magic with her. This physical connection goes far deeper than a general energetic pull. There is a clear parallel between the feminine body and the moon that our ancestors tracked for thousands of years. Think about the natural reproductive cycles of a woman which average between 28 and 30 days. The lunar cycle, the exact time it takes the moon to travel through all of her phases from one new moon to the next, is 29 and a half days. So when we talk about the divine feminine connection to the moon, we're not talking about some abstract woo-woo concept. We are so deeply connected you can think of the moon as the visible external expression of our own personal and biological composition. This resonance explains why ancient cultures overwhelmingly classify the moon as feminine and the sun as masculine. They recognize them as the two foundational polar energies required to sustain life. The sun is external, it blazes with unyielding consistency, ruling the daytime world where we work and build and rationalize. This aligns with the traditional masculine archetype, or yang energy, logic, visible action, structural clarity, outward projection, forward momentum, and so on. The moon conversely represents the feminine archetype, or yin energy. Remember, the moon doesn't generate her own light. No, she receives, absorbs, and reflects. From our earthly perspective, she moves through a continuous process of growth, completion, decay, and rebirth, changing her face, seemingly, every single night. She rules the night, which is the realm of the hidden, the mysterious, and the subconscious. Because of this, the moon is the ultimate emblem of intuition. Logic belongs to the bright light of day, but intuition is most assuredly a lunar correspondence. It operates best in the dark, like a bat navigating its flight through the night sky. Intuition is our internal radar that gives us the ability to process the subtle, unseen currents and subtexts of reality. So when you begin a relationship with a moon, you can't help but build a relationship with what lies beneath the shadows of your conscious mind. And when we understand her specific phases and what they each embody, we can learn how to put this intuitive power into practice. The moon is our ultimate guide for the cycle of living. As we can see just by looking out our window, nature, as with many, many things, operates in a cycle. The cycle of ebb and flow, of give and take, the cycle of life and death. And the moon shows us that within her cycle, there is, yes, an energetic sweet spot for growth and action, but there is also a prime time for release and introspection and rest. While the lunar cycle can be broken down into eight or nine phases, a good starting point for examining her energies is the four primary phases, the major mile markers of the month, and each one carries its own distinct strengths and energetic themes. At the start of the cycle, each month, we begin in the dark. The new moon occurs when the moon sits directly between the earth and the sun, facing her illuminated side completely away from us. To our eyes, she has vanished. Or has she? The new moon is one of my favorite phases, and I guess I can't really pick a favorite as that would be like picking a favorite puppy to me, but I do find the teachings of the new moon particularly resonant. With the new moon phase, our moon teaches us two very, very important lessons. First, as she starts fresh with a new beginning every single month, she teaches us that there are limitless opportunities to start over, to be reborn, to have a fresh, clean slate to whatever may be going on in our lives. The new moon may not look like much with her lack of illumination, but what lies underneath the darkness in the shadows is so potent and rich with fertile soil, it represents all that we have the potential of becoming. And as she shows us each month, we can start again, try again, reinvent ourselves anytime. The second powerful lesson that she teaches us with a new moon phase lies in the fact that she starts again each month in total darkness, from our vantage point. From where we stand, the moon starts her cycle completely in the dark with zero illumination. The lesson here is that in starting again or setting out on a new path, we do not have to have all of the answers in order to begin. We might not even have any clear answers. But even so, we can do as our moon does and still start in the dark, so to speak. All we have to do, if we take a page from her book, is to move forward. The moon may start each month in darkness, but that doesn't stop her from moving forward on her path. And what's more, the more forward momentum she makes, the more light appears. How many times have I used that metaphor to remind myself that if I just keep moving forward, the answers and clarity that I'm seeking will begin to emerge? The moon taught me that, and she reminds us of this every single month. Energetically, the new moon is quiet, internal, and deeply reflective. But there's also a current of new energy that reverberates in the darkness. That is the energy of potential, of possibility. And so this, the new moon, is the time when we plant the seeds for whatever we want to see come to fruition in our lives. Again, think of the energy of the new moon as being fertile ground to set new clear intentions for what you wish to manifest. Try asking yourself during the next new moon, what do I wish to cultivate in this fresh new cycle ahead? Then about a week after the new moon, we reach the phase of the first quarter. The moon now appears in the sky as a sharp, clean half circle of light or a half moon. This phase brings that forward momentum and starts picking up the pace on what we are looking to invite into our lives. The quiet, reflective energy of the new moon is now replaced by the need for concrete action. However, let's not assume that it will all be smooth sailing here, even though the energy may be gaining momentum. No, no, this is actually typically the point in the month where obstacles might crop up or where self-doubt tries to creep in. This is all part of the process. The first quarter moon is here to test your resolve. She's testing your commitment to the seeds that you planted. She's doing an energetic check-in to say, you really want this? Okay, good, prove it. And you can partner with this energy by taking practical steps, making decisions, even hard ones, or maybe especially hard ones, and pushing through any resistance that you may be feeling in your way. Two weeks after the cycle began, with a new moon, we arrive at the climax of the cycle, the full moon. The earth sits between the sun and the moon, allowing her entire face to be flooded with direct sunlight from our vantage point. Now she is brilliant, she is loud, and she is impossible to ignore. That actually sounds like my husband describing me. The full moon. This is where we see in fairy tales and pop culture all of the beasts and zombies and werewolves coming out of the woodwork. They are fierce and they are scary and they are uncontrolled. And it is entirely possible that this is over millennia an interpretation of how human beings responded to the energy of the full moon. The full moon in its peak energy is all about amplification. So if you're tired during a full moon, you might feel exhausted. If you're feeling irritable during a full moon, that irritability might morph into real anger if provoked. And so we might be able to see the parallel that very likely it's not that man became beast under the full moon, as ancient folklore would have us believe. But instead, the amplified energy of that peak moon phase simply influenced the man's emotional state enough that he behaved, maybe in a more beastly way, perhaps through anger or irrational action. So, yes, this phase represents peak energy, but it also metaphorically represents harvest or manifestation. It is a high vibrational and highly emotional time where we can envision all that we have planted is now coming to fruition. This is your invitation to celebrate your wins, acknowledge your growth, and channel that potent energy into your creative work. But remember, the full moon illuminates everything, including what's not working. If there is a toxic dynamic in your life or an unhealed wound that you've been ignoring, it may just show up on a grand scale under the full moon. So how can you use this for good? You can partner with this energy by letting it shine its light into all areas of your life, especially the muddy or convoluted ones, in order to attain better clarity and in turn the answers that you may be seeking. After the pinnacle of the full moon phase, the moon's light begins to recede. And we hit the third quarter moon about three weeks into the cycle. Once again, the moon appears as a half circle or a half moon, but this time the light is diminishing, gradually moving us back toward the dark. From an energetic standpoint, where the first quarter moon created external pressure to help build things up, the third quarter moon creates internal pressure to help tear things down, or a better way of phrasing that might be to let things go. This is the phase of the great energetic house cleaning. Your job during the third quarter is to take a look at your life and ask, what am I holding on to that no longer serves the person that I am becoming? It is the ideal time to break bad habits, clear out physical clutter, end draining commitments, and set firm boundaries. Because you are clearing space to make way for what's to come. So that covers the four fundamental main moon phases of the cycle. But at the very, very end of the cycle, just before we restart the whole process, we step into the phase referred to as the balsamic moon. This is the final tiny sliver of the waning moon, the quiet threshold between the ending of the old cycle and the birth of the new one. The root of the word balsamic means healing or softening. So naturally, this is the phase where we turn fully inward and allow ourselves to rest and to heal and to restore our energetic reserves. All of the work that we have done over the course of the cycle leading up to this point, the planting of intentions with a new moon, the building of momentum with a waxing moon, the harvest of the full moon, and the deep cleaning release of the waning moon. All of that action requires a great deal of energy. So this, the phase of the balsamic moon, is the time when we allow for quiet introspection and deep rest. This is the phase where we engage in calming self-care and restorative reflection, where we take deep, slow, intentional breaths before we start again. Now some people ask me, is the new moon total darkness, or is that the first tiny sliver of light? What really constitutes a new moon? The answer depends on whether you are asking a modern astronomer or an ancient historian, because both answers are correct in their own way. In terms of modern science and astronomy, the new moon is defined as the exact mathematical moment of conjunction, or the precise second when the moon sits directly between the Earth and the Sun. Because her illuminated side is facing completely away from us, she is in total dark and completely invisible to the human eye. So scientifically speaking, the new moon happens in total darkness. Historically and culturally, however, human beings millennia ago, of course, couldn't calculate celestial mechanics with sophisticated tools. And so for thousands of years, our ancestors defined those two or three days of complete invisibility surrounding the conjunction as the dark moon. And to them, the new moon wasn't declared until the moment that very first paper thin crescent of light re-emerged in the evening twilight. That first visible sliver was the physical proof that the light had survived, marking the visual rebirth of the moon and the start of a new calendar month. So which one is correct? Science shows us mathematical precision while history shows us lived human experience. But most astrologers today will mark the new moon as being the period of darkness, and from there the waxing phase of the cycle begins. Now that we understand her phases, we need to add the next layer of the story, because the moon doesn't just change her shape as we see her each night, she also changes her environment every two and a half days. Every month as the moon makes her orbit around the Earth, she travels through all 12 signs of the zodiac. She moves into a new zodiac sign approximately every 2.3 days, and therefore she completes her trip through all 12 signs in approximately 27 days. And yes, I know, I know, we already established that the moon cycle lasts 29.5 days. So where do these extra two and a half days come from? Well, because the Earth is also moving around the Sun, the Moon has to travel for an extra two plus days to catch up and line up with the Sun again. And so this extra catch up time brings the total lunar cycle from new moon to new moon to 29.5 days. But we don't really need to dwell so much on the mathematical calculations of her orbit at this time. The important thing to grasp here is that each month she passes through all 12 signs. And all 12 signs are organized by and aligned with one of the four elements: fire, earth, air, and water. This is very important when we look to understand our moon's energy and its impact on us, because we have to remember that yes, each moon phase carries its own energy, but also each zodiac sign and each element carries its own energetic traits as well. I'm going to try for an analogy here. Think of the moon as a light shining through a stained glass window, with each pane of stained glass representing one of the four elements fire, earth, air, and water. Now, the moonlight that shines on the window, well, the intensity there will depend on the phase that the moon is in. But that's not the only variable. Depending on the pane of glass the moonlight is passing through, the color, mood, and in this case the emotional impact will vary as well. You see, when the moon passes through a specific zodiac sign, and therefore the element that particular sign represents, she entrains with that element's unique energetic qualities, which can alter how we experience whichever lunar phase we happen to be in at that moment. So for example, when the moon enters a fire sign, such as Aries, Leo, or Sagittarius, think of our own internal waters as beginning to heat up, metaphorically speaking. Fire energy brings passion, courage, a need for movement and forward action, possibly even an undercurrent of urgency. Under a fire sign moon, whatever lunar phase we are in may carry an extra boost of momentum for you. If you are planting seeds under the new moon, fire energy in this phase can help give you the confidence to dream bigger. If you are navigating a full moon, emotional reactions might feel a little bit more dramatic or quick to flare up. It is an exceptional time for breaking through stagnant ruts and taking bold risks, though you have to watch your impulse control because oftentimes our fuse can be a little shorter or burn a little faster under the energy of a moon when she's in a fire sign. When the moon slips into an earth sign, like Taurus, Virgo, or Capricorn, the energy tends to settle. Earth sign energy can help to keep us a bit more grounded when it's aligned with our moon. This is the kind of energy that can bring our focus down into the physical body, practical realities, and tangible results. Under an Earth moon, our internal atmosphere echoes this energy and we may feel more steady and rooted and also quite likely more disciplined, which makes Earth Sign Moons a fantastic time to focus on your physical health, to handle financial matters, or to organize your personal space or make long-term plans. Whether you are setting intentions or clearing out energetic or actual clutter, Earth energy, when aligned with our moon, can help you to buckle down and make those plans that will help make your dreams a reality. Now, when the moon visits an air sign, which would be Gemini, Libra, or Aquarius, the combined energy here brings with it all the thoughts, ideas, communication, and larger perspective. Under an air sign moon, you may find yourself feeling a bit more curious than usual, maybe a bit more talkative or willing to share and connect with other people. With this energy, your brain is inspired to gather information through the lines of communication and to ask questions. And by doing so, it can help you to solve problems. If you're looking for a good time to do some real brainstorming or conduct important negotiations, air sign moon energy might just help you to step back from the introspective weeds so you can open your mind and see the bigger picture with a greater sense of clarity. And then finally, when the moon aligns with a water sign like Cancer, Scorpio, or Pisces, she has come back to her native element. You may have even heard the sign Cancer referred to as moon child. And it's true, in water sign moons, our internal tides are at their deepest and most intuitive. Water energy magnifies emotional depth, subconscious exploration, and psychic sensitivity. Under a water sign moon, your intuition will often be exceptionally sharp, especially if it's a water sign full moon. And your artistic inspiration can flow effortlessly here. And the desire for quiet introspection will often be at a high. This is the ultimate time for emotional healing, doing deep inner or shadow work and connecting with our intuition and our spirit guides. It can also be a wonderful time for emotional release or emotional catharsis if it's a waning or balsamic water sign moon. You ever find yourself saying, I think I just need a really good cry. Well, first of all, there's nothing wrong with that. And now would be the phase and the sign to give yourself permission to put on that old sentimental movie or nostalgic playlist. I mean, remember, catharsis is an excellent energy cleanser, tears and all. We are living in a fast-paced world that tries incessantly to keep us disconnected from our true nature and from nature itself. There is a constant expectation that we should be linear and predictable and endlessly productive, treating our bodies like machines that never need to rest or reset. But the moon disputes that notion. I envision her quietly watching the human race, watching us as we allow ourselves to be cogs in the giant man-made machine and thinking, my my what nonsense. And then she gently holds up her luminous mirror to us, beckoning us to tune in to her energies, and she shows us that we are more like her than we realize. She is forever reminding us that we were always meant to have different phases, just like the ebb and flow of nature, of seasons, of life. That is who we truly are. You are allowed to be in the dark and hidden away from the world when you need to heal. You are allowed to take up space and shine with absolute brilliance when you feel that you are at your peak. You are allowed to change your mindset and emotions as your internal tides shift. There is no shame in your cycles. There is only power. Remember that. Thank you so much for walking down the path with me today and for exploring the mystery and radiance of the night sky here on Chasing Starlight. I am so grateful for this community of seekers, of individuals who are brave enough to look past the surface of things to find the real magic within and all around us. If this conversation resonated with you, please consider sharing this episode with a friend who might need a reminder of their own wonder and magic, or take a quick moment to leave us a review wherever you listen to your podcasts. It truly helps other seekers to find their way to this path. This evening, when you look up at the night sky, connect with our moon, whatever phase she may be in. Feel her gentle yet unyielding guidance, and when you do, ask yourself, what is one hidden truth that you are ready to invite her to illuminate in your life? Listen honestly to the answer that comes up from your own depths. Trust your instincts, honor the rhythm of your own unique journey, and never stop exploring your own magic. Chasing Starlight is a podcast brought to you by The Belle and Raven. If you'd like to explore more about who we are, including our workshops and educational offerings, our spiritual wellness retreats, and our one on one intuitive readings, be sure to follow us on social media at The Bell and Raven. Or visit our website, thebell and raven.com.