The Moon (Tarot card)

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The Moon (XVIII)
The Moon (XVIII)

The Moon (XVIII) is the eighteenth trump or Major Arcana card in most traditional Tarot decks. It is used in game playing as well as in divination.

Contents

[edit] Symbolism

  • Two large, foreboding pillars are shown. Some see them as tombstones, others relate them to Karma.
  • Two wild beasts howl at the moon.
  • A crayfish appears in the water.
  • The Moon is "shedding the moisture of fertilizing dew in great drops" (Waite). These are numbered 15 in the Rider-Waite deck and are Yodh-shaped. On this basis, some associate this card with impregnation.

[edit] Rider-Waite specific

  • Very clearly, the figure in the moon is frowning, reflecting displeasure.
  • The waxing moon has 16 chief rays and 16 secondary rays.
  • The beasts are, according to Waite's PKT, a dog and a wolf, which represent the fears of the natural mind.
  • The crayfish crawls from the water unto the land.
  • There's a pathway into the distant, dark unknown.

[edit] Interpretation

A. E. Waite was a key figure in the development of modern Tarot interpretations.[1] However not all interpretations follow his theology. Please remember that all Tarot decks used for divination are interpreted up to personal experience and standards.

Some frequent keywords are:

  • Lack of clarity ----- Tension ----- Doubt ----- Fantasy
  • Deception ----- Psychological conflict ----- Obscured vision
  • Confusion ----- Illusion ----- Fear ----- Imagination ----- Worry
  • Romanticism ----- Anxiety ----- Apprehension ----- Unrealistic ideas

[edit] Other meanings

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This card has to do with sleep patterns this can mean both dreaming and nightmares. If one gets this card they may be going through an emotional or mental state. If they are already sick and gets this card they should make sure they're taking all of their medication. If they drink alcohol or use drugs they may cause irreparable damage. On the other hand this card can give one visions and insight, creativity and psychic powers. In this case if one gets this card they should trust their intuition. [2]

[edit] Alternative decks

In old Italian Tarot decks instead of the above scene there is instead an astronomer measuring the large moon above him in some way.

[edit] References

  1. ^ Wood, 1998
  2. ^ "The Moon" from "Thirteen's Tarot Basics" Aecletic Tarot
  • A. E. Waite's 1910 Pictorial Key to the Tarot
  • Juliette Wood, Folklore 109 (1998):15-24, The Celtic Tarot and the Secret Tradition: A Study in Modern Legend Making (1998)

[edit] External links

v • d • e
Major Arcana
0 (The Fool) · I (The Magician) · II (The High Priestess) · III (The Empress) · IV (The Emperor) · V (The Hierophant) · VI (The Lovers) · VII (The Chariot) · VIII (Strength) · IX (The Hermit) · X (Wheel of Fortune)
XI (Justice) · XII (The Hanged Man) · XIII (Death) · XIV (Temperance) · XV (The Devil) · XVI (The Tower) · XVII (The Star) · XVIII (The Moon) · XIX (The Sun) · XX (Judgement) · XXI (The World)
Tarot · Minor Arcana