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Art Journal with the Moon for August 28-September 3, 2023
This is a summary of the moon’s energy for the upcoming week and the inner work and magic you can do in your art journal to make the most of the opportunities the cosmos is gifting us with.
Every week the emotional and magical opportunities the moon is sending you are different because the energy she is drawing down from the planets and stars changes moment to moment. Planets and stars and moon phases and moon signs each carry their own unique energy. This is my weekly update of the moon’s comings and goings to support you in aligning with her energy.
Get your art journal or a scrap of paper you see lying around, your art supplies or those pencil crayons you have hidden away somewhere and have fun. Spend 10 – 20 minutes focusing on the themes the moon is supporting you to explore that day while you play with colors and shapes and watch what happens over time.
It’s amazing what a little consistent creative time can do.
Working with the Pisces Full Moon
My grandmother came to me in a dream last night. She wanted me to understand that because of poverty and the way it was judged in her community, she didn’t have a safe space to exist in her youth. Being judged made school an uncomfortable place. The way wealth was exalted in her church made church an experience of shame. And the stress and uncertainty that comes with poverty made home a traumatic place to be as well.
I’m not sure why she wanted me to know this but I found it interesting that I received her message at the beginning of Virgo season.
Right now, with the sun in Virgo and Mercury being retrograde in the sign of Virgo, we’re being asked to absorb information from the Virgo parts of our birth charts and assimilate and make use of what is there.
Virgo likes to pay attention to the details. It wants to help us assimilate, absorb, metabolize and make use of and release, eliminate, clarify and purify in order to heal. The Virgo areas of your life are looking for you to process your emotions, take in what information is revealing itself to you about those areas of your life and absorb it all in order to heal something so you can come at it in a new way.
With the full moon in Pisces, the moon will be in the sign of Pisces but it’s reflecting light from the sun who is in Virgo. Virgo and Pisces are opposite each other in the zodiac wheel. Virgo wants to help you pay attention to the details but Pisces wants to help you see the bigger picture and the interconnectedness of all things and Pisces especially wants you to feel your feelings so that you shift and change the way you influence the whole with your energy.
At the Pisces full moon, you are being asked to feel your feelings and pay attention to the details of your feelings so you can express them, absorb the information they are trying to communicate to you and use that information to move forward and make decisions with clarity.
When you understand your birth chart and look at it with the whole sign system as they do in ancient or Hellenistic astrology, you gather deep wisdom about how the moon is affecting you personally.
Let me show you an example of how specific it can be when you work with lunar energy in this way.
In my birth chart, Virgo is placed in the fourth house. This astrological house is concerned with my childhood relationship with my parents, the things that grew me, my ancestors and my home and living situation. Before I even realized this, I kicked off Virgo season with big plans to organize and redecorate my art studio. I didn’t know why. I just had a big urge to get this done. I’ll be doing that in the next couple weeks and the urge is being driven by these big internal shifts that are happening in my business. It’s as if the big internal shifts I’m experiencing want to be expressed in my home – which shouldn’t really surprise me. I work from my home so that lines up. But what’s interesting to me is that the Pisces part of my chart is placed in the astrological house that is concerned with my career. All this reorganizing for my home (4th house issues) that wants to be done this Virgo season is happening to support the changes I’m feeling in my career (10th house issues which for me is in Pisces).
Apparently, I’m more aligned with the moon than I initially thought. But it doesn’t stop there…
The fourth house is also the astrological house that represents your ancestors and here my grandmother is inviting me to untangle the threads of my past and explore the generational memories I carry around money and poverty especially in regards to how it is experienced in a culture that judges and fears poverty. In my culture, especially the one my grandmother grew up in, poverty is a social scar that carries a heavy weight.
Poverty carries a complex web of negative judgments and beliefs that can perpetuate cycles of shame and exclusion. Those living in poverty often find themselves unfairly stereotyped and marginalized due to these deeply ingrained societal biases. There’s a lot of shame around poverty.
The negative judgments directed towards individuals living in poverty can be harsh and unforgiving. Society tends to equate financial struggle with personal failure, fostering the perception that those facing poverty lack ambition, intelligence, or work ethic. This misconception not only oversimplifies the multifaceted factors contributing to poverty but also creates an environment where individuals are unfairly blamed for their circumstances. Additionally, the belief that poverty is solely a result of poor choices can lead to the assumption that individuals experiencing financial difficulties are somehow “less than” or undeserving of respect.
The stigmatization of poverty can also manifest in perceptions of laziness or unwillingness to work, perpetuating the stereotype that those in poverty are not making an effort to improve their situations. The tendency to view poverty as a reflection of character or moral deficiency leads to a distancing from individuals facing financial hardship, often rooted in the fear of being associated with what society deems a “lower” status. This distancing can result in social isolation, further deepening the emotional impact of poverty.
I know my grandmother wants me to challenge these negative judgments. She wants to increase my empathy and recognize the complexities that underlie poverty especially as it was experienced in the history of my own family.
She also wants me to recognize how the history of poverty contributes to chronic stress and anxiety.
Living in poverty or facing persistent scarcity thoughts can lead to chronic stress and anxiety that reverberates through every aspect of your life. The weight of financial uncertainty creates a continuous state of hyperarousal, triggering survival instincts deeply ingrained within us. The mind and body respond to this stress as if facing an imminent threat, even when the threat isn’t actually life-threatening (the mind just acts like it is).
When you live with poverty or, like me, you carry memories of scarcity in your body, the body remains on high alert, which can lead to heightened anxiety. As these survival instincts persist, the body’s stress response can take a toll on overall health.
You constantly worry about not having enough, and this scarcity-focused thinking further intensifies anxiety. Every decision, from buying groceries to managing bills, becomes heavy with the fear of falling short and your anxious, survival driven mind, jumps to the conclusion that falling short means dying. The stakes in your mind are high whenever you’re in relationship with money so the stress in your body becomes heightened whenever you’re in relationship with money.
I didn’t live with poverty but my body sure acts like it did.
After reflecting on the Pisces and Virgo parts of my birth chart, I know my job at the full moon is to carve time out of my busy life to be with my emotions – and specifically, for me, my emotions around money.
My emotions carry information and when I allow myself to feel and express them, they help me see what needs to happen next.
This is the beautiful gift of being highly sensitive and attuned to spiritual realms; you receive support to heal and change and grow and evolve. I am eternally grateful to my grandmother for the message she sent me last night and for the intuitive gifts she passed down to me that enables me to be in relationship with her across the veil.
What emotions do you need to feel, process and express during this Pisces full moon?
If you take your art journal out and spend some time expressing your emotions, I suspect you too will gather the information you need to make clear, informed choices for moving forward confidently in your life. If you’re curious as to the specific areas of your life you can be peering into in order to work with this lunar energy in a deep and personal way, don’t forget to take a look at the astrological house Pisces is placed in your birth chart.
Monday
The moon is in the air sign of Aquarius today. Aquarius is ruled by the planet Saturn so the moon is carrying a little of that planet’s energy as well today.
Aquarius is fixed air sign so it brings that energy of fluidity and the ability to change but it couples it with being constant, dependable and able to persevere. Aquarius energy likes to act its own way and distance itself from groups. It is air energy so it concentrates its focus on the intellect and the mind but it can be stubborn but if you’re having a hard time being your own person, the moon in Aquarius can help you love and accept the quirky, different and unique things about yourself.
Imagine you loved every bit of yourself and knew that everything that made you different was deeply on purpose and ultimately helpful to everyone you are connect with today.
Imagine you are perfect just as you are – exactly where you are right now in your life with the exact perfect personality, habits and ways of being. Imagine nothing about you has to change for you to reach your goals.
In your art journal, draw, paint or collage an image that celebrates what makes you unique.
Tuesday
The moon is in a tense relationship with both Jupiter and Uranus today who are both in the sign of Taurus.
Jupiter encourages us to open our hearts and minds to vast possibilities. It prompts us to go beyond our comfort zones, pushing us to transcend our perceived limitations. This optimism invites you to question how you can align your daily routines with your long-term goals.
Uranus in Taurus brings an element of innovation and transformation. Uranus urges us to break free from conventional patterns and embrace change. This might spark a desire to redefine your values and rethink the ways you approach stability. It encourages you to challenge the status quo, fostering a deep sense of authenticity and independence. With the gibbous moon’s influence, this could be a time of releasing old habits and embracing new, groundbreaking ways of thinking and being.
Emotionally, the combination of these energies might bring about a sense of restlessness as you grapple between your yearning for expansion and your need for security. Spiritually, it’s reminding us to embrace change because it’s part of growth and it is possible for stability to coexist with transformation.
To explore the emotional and spiritual themes of the gibbous moon as it squares Jupiter and Uranus in Taurus, create a page in your art journal that depicts a blooming garden with both familiar and unexpected elements. Draw, paint or collage things you would normally see in a garden and add things you wouldn’t normally see in a blooming garden. Maybe even use vivid colors to symbolize growth and expansion, intertwining roots to signify stability, or pathways that lead to uncharted territory. Reflect on how these themes are playing out in your life – where do you see the potential for growth and adventure? Where can you introduce innovation and transformation while still nurturing a stable foundation? Capture your insights in words or phrases amidst the artwork, allowing your creativity to guide you towards a deeper understanding of yourself and how you respond to growth and change.
In your art journal, draw, paint or collage an image that represents a blooming garden with both familiar and unexpected elements.
Wednesday
Happy full moon.
In western astrology this full moon is considered to be in the sign of Pisces. Pisces is an water sign that is ruled by Jupiter so the moon is drawing down a little of that planet’s energy as well. Pisces is mystical, poetic, oceanic, connected to the whole and oneness, compassionate, kind, dreamy, hopeful, intuitive, imaginative, emotional, magical, vulnerable, open and expansive. Pisces is the energy that encourages you to open, expand and grow emotionally and spiritually. It’s a dreamy moon that’s not as much about making decisions as it is about exploring and reflecting – especially exploring and reflecting on your emotions. It’s a time to dig deep into emotional patterns and behaviors to experience release and expansiveness.
The Pisces full moon is in the same sign as Saturn. Pisces supports us in our emotional realms but Saturn wants containment and can bring energy that interprets emotions as unstable. To me, this points to the need for a kind container for your emotions. Feel them but support yourself through it.
Pisces is associated with dreams and the subconscious. Pay attention to your dreams during this time, as they might carry messages from your inner self or from spiritual realms.
To personalize this moon even further, let’s get specific and see the area of YOUR life that this moon energy is focused on.
To figure out what area of your life this moon wants you to focus on, you simply need to know your rising sign.
If you don’t know your rising sign (it’s different than your sun or moon sign), then you can read more about it here and you can calculate what it is here. I also show you how to calculate your birth chart using the whole sign house system here. When you create your birth chart in this way, you will see your rising sign is the zodiac sign that occupies the first house in your birth chart.
The full moon in Pisces brings heightened emotions, deep intuition, and a strong connection to our inner worlds. Pisces, being a water sign, is associated with emotions, empathy, and spirituality. When the full moon graces this compassionate and dreamy sign, it’s an invitation to dive into the ocean of our feelings and explore the realms of our subconscious.
If your rising sign is Aries, the full moon is inviting you to receive intuitive insights and express your emotions when it comes to your subconscious mind and those things you hide from others and most importantly those things you hide from yourself. During this full moon ask for insights from your spirit allies around the kind of shadow work or brain rewiring you should do and reflect on the results you’d like to experience from that deep inner work through in all areas of your life. Also explore the emotions you have buried deep in your subconscious realm and ask your spirit allies for support shifting and healing whatever emotions are ready to rise to the surface to be expressed and tended to.
If your rising sign is Taurus, the full moon is inviting you to receive insights and express your emotions around your friendships, community and your hopes and wishes. Think about these areas of your life and consider what questions you want to ask your spirit allies during the full moon about these areas and which emotions need to be expressed when it comes to your friendships, your experience in groups and community or your hopes and wishes.
For Gemini people, the full moon is inviting you to receive insights from your spirit allies and express your emotions about your career, reputation or ideas of success. During this full moon, consider the questions you want to ask your spirit allies during the full moon about your career, the kind of success you want to achieve or the kind of reputation you want to build and the emotions you need to express in these areas of your life.
If your rising sign is Cancer, then the full moon is inviting you to receive intuitive insights and express your emotions when it comes to your faith, spiritual practices, international travel or future success. Think about these areas of your life and consider which questions you want to ask your spirit allies and which emotions want to be expressed during the full moon in order to allow your spirit to shine more brightly in your spirituality or travel dreams or your goals for the future.
For Leo people, the full moon is inviting you to receive intuitive insights and express your emotions about your relationship with death, taxes, your psyche or any debt you have accumulated. What questions can you ask to help you clear any energetic, emotional or physical debt you may be carrying (your own or your ancestors’)? What questions can you ask your spirit allies to help your emotional or mental well-being? Which emotions are surfacing and want to be tended to regarding these topics?
For Virgo people, the full moon is inviting you to receive intuitive insights and express your emotional about your close, intimate relationships or partnerships. Think about your marriage or partnership or best friend relationships and consider what questions you want to as your spirit allies to gain clarity about the closest relationships in your life. Also, consider which emotions need to be processed and released in these areas of your life.
If your rising sign is in the sign of Libra, the full moon is inviting you to receive intuitive insights and express your emotions about your routines, work, pets or wellness. What questions do you need to ask your spirit allies about these areas of your life in order to gain some clarity about your everyday routines, your daily work tasks, your relationships with your pets or your health? Which emotions want to be expressed about these areas of your life?
For Scorpio people, the full moon is inviting you to receive intuitive insights and express your emotions about your children, hobbies, pleasure or your creativity. What questions do you need to ask your spirit allies and which emotions is it time to tend to about these areas of your life in order to gain some clarity about your parenting life, a creative hobby that’s dear to your heart or those activities in your life that bring you joy.
For Sagittarius people, the full moon is inviting you to receive intuitive insights and express your emotions about your parents, your ancestors, your childhood or your home and living situation. What questions do you need to ask your spirit allies and which emotions do you need to feel about these areas of your life in order to gain some clarity to help you make your new moon intentions a reality?
If your rising sign is in the sign of Capricorn, the full moon is inviting you to receive intuitive insights and express your emotions about learning or teaching, the way you communicate and express yourself, your siblings, your peers, the goddess or moon or earth-based rituals. Which one of these topics feels most important for you to focus on during this full moon? Choose one of them and consider what questions you want to ask your spirit allies and which emotions its time to face in that area of your life.
For Aquarius people, the full moon is inviting you to receive intuitive insights and express your emotions about money, assets, income and your livelihood. What questions do you want to ask your spirit allies and which emotions is it time to express about your relationship with money, your assets, income or your livelihood in order to gain clarity about that area of your life?
Finally, for Pisces people, the full moon is inviting you to receive intuitive insights and express your emotions about your identity, body, appearance or your spirit. Think about these areas of your life and consider what questions you want to ask your spirit allies and which feelings it’s time to face about your health, personal expression, identity or your relationship with your body.
In your art journal, draw, paint or collage an image that represents the emotions you are illuminating and expressing under the light of this bright full moon.
Thursday
Today the full moon is still in the sign of Pisces.
The full moon in Pisces invites us to explore the depths of our emotions, embrace our spiritual essence, and navigate the delicate dance between reality and imagination.
This energy encourages you to delve into your feelings, especially those that lie beneath the surface. It’s a time to honor your vulnerabilities and let go of any emotional baggage that weighs you down. Pisces’ compassionate energy guides you towards practicing empathy not only for others but also for yourself. This is a period to release any emotional attachments that no longer serve you and to find solace in the gentle embrace of self-acceptance.
Pisces, ruled by Jupiter and Neptune, is deeply connected to the spiritual realm. During this full moon, the veil between the material and the ethereal becomes thin, allowing you to access higher states of consciousness. It’s a time to explore your intuition and dive into the mysteries of your soul. Pisces invites you to find meaning beyond the tangible, to connect with your inner wisdom, and to seek answers from within. This energy encourages you to tap into your creativity, whether through art, music, or meditation, and to foster a stronger connection to the spiritual energies that surround you.
In your art journal, explore what emotional release and spiritual connection have in common. How does releasing and expressing your emotions support you to connect to spiritual realms and to strengthen your connection to your intuition? What do your emotions and the world of spirit have in common?
In your art journal, draw, paint or collage an image that represents your emotional and spiritual realms.
Friday
The moon is in the sign of Aries today and it’s still considered to be in the full moon phase.
Aries is ruled by the planet Mars so the moon is carrying a little of that planet’s energy as well.
In its most helpful form, Aries supports you in setting healthy boundaries, knowing who you really are and feeling connected to your inner power. The full moon phase represents being at the peak of your power.
Aries is action, quick responses and impulses. It values action, leadership and assertiveness. When the moon is in the sign of Aries as it is today, it can bring abrupt energy that is blunt and harsh – maybe even sometimes aggressive but it also helps to light a spark in your spirit and connect you to your passion and enthusiasm.
Think about your inner power and what being at the peak of your inner power might look or feel like. What kind of relationship do you have with your inner power? When do you feel connected to it? When do you feel disempowered in your life? What kind of situations or people help you grow your inner power?
In your art journal, draw, paint or collage an image that represents your inner power.
Saturday
The moon is having a happy relationship with Venus today who is currently retrograde in the sign of Leo.
This brings emotions, creativity, and self-expression that invites us to explore the depths of our hearts.
The moon is drawing down energy from Venus that infuses your emotional landscape with a sense of self-love, passion, and artistic inspiration. Venus, in its retrograde motion, also prompts you to reassess matters of the heart, love, and relationships.
Emotionally, the moon is encouraging you to delve into matters of self-worth and self-expression. You’re prompted to examine the ways in which you seek validation from external sources rather than cultivate a sense of self-love that comes from within. It also invites you to reflect on your creative passions, talents, and desires – urging you to embrace your unique identity and confidently step into the spotlight.
Spiritually, the moon today is prompting you to reevaluate the authenticity of your connections and the roles you play in your relationships. It’s a time to let go of masks and embrace vulnerability. This energy calls you to honor your individuality while at the same time fostering connections that are rooted in genuine affection.
To explore the emotional and spiritual themes of the moon today, begin by sketching a vibrant heart at the center of your page, symbolizing self-love and authenticity. Surround the heart with images that represent your creative passions and unique qualities – use colors that resonate with your personal expression.
Next, illustrate two figures on either side of the heart, representing the balance between self and others. In one figure, depict the qualities that you wish to embody in your relationships. In the other figure, portray aspects of your own identity that you wish to nurture and express. This allows you to explore the roles you take on in relationships versus the qualities of your true self you want to develop and grow. Do the roles you take on in relationships reflect your true self?
In your art journal, draw, paint or collage a vibrant heart with figures on each side. In one figure, show how you want to be in relationships. In the other figure show qualities of your true self.
Sunday
Today the moon is in the disseminating phase.
This phase is when the moon is just starting to become smaller. It is a time to rest, relax and rejuvenate and move inward and focus on self. This isn’t a time to start anything new. It’s a time to reflect. It’s a great time for expressing your devotion to Spirit and for presenting offerings to your Divine helpers, your ancestors or the Earth.
It’s also a great time to share the wisdom and knowledge you’ve harvested. There’s a generosity or giving back quality to the waning phases of the moon. We’re taking note of the bounty we received as the moon was growing in power and feeling grateful and wanting to share what we learned or received with the people we love and care about or with a greater community we feel connected to.
There’s also a releasing and letting go that happens in the waning phases. It’s a good time to look back on everything that has happened since the new moon and reflect on the abundance you received during the full moon. What were your intentions during the new moon? Did they manifest in your life yet? If they didn’t, did you witness tiny shoots starting to grow in the direction of your dreams?
Think of the disseminating moon like the beginning of a great satisfying exhale. Reflect on what you need to release or let go or who it is time to forgive (including yourself)?
In your art journal, create an image that represents something you’d like to forgive yourself for.
Have fun with your art journal and the moon this week.
with love,
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hi i'm dana...
This is a space where art and spirit come together. On the blog, I share art rituals for working with the magic of the moon. I also work with the subconscious mind to lighten your emotional load and follow your creative dreams.
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