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Art Journal with the Moon for May 15-21, 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 (Mon-Fri) 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.
A Few Thoughts About The Moon This Week
We celebrate a new moon in Taurus this week.
Taurus is a fixed earth sign ruled by the planet Venus so the new moon is carrying a little of that planet’s energy as well. In the zodiac, Taurus feels the most grounded and earthy of all the signs. It represents commitment, loyalty, stability, security, pleasure, comfort, wealth, values, traditions, fertility, romance, indulgence and realism. Taurus is the gardener digging her hands in the dirt. It is making thoughtful, considered, informed decisions that will benefit for years to come. It is your relationship with money and food and it is the desire to enjoy good things.
Depending on where Taurus is on your birth chart, this new moon will affect certain areas of your life more strongly than other areas. The areas of your life that are flavored by Taurus energy indicate where you love stability, where you are a finisher. You probably tend to see things through to the end in the areas of your life flavored by Taurus energy. It may also indicate where you find comfort, where you are connected to the material world and where you build and accumulate over time. It’s also probably where you feel the most anchored and stable. Routine is most likely very good for these areas of your life but it may also be where you are the most stubborn and where you resist change the most – or where you find change the most challenging.
This means if Taurus is your rising sign or in other words, in your first house, you carry these qualities in your relationship with your body, personality or inner spirit. If Taurus is in your second house, you approach money, your assets and resources and the way you earn money in these earthy and grounded ways. If Taurus is in your third house, the way you communicate and express yourself is influenced by this energy as is your relationship with your siblings and the way you learn or your early education.
If Taurus is in your fourth house, your home and living situation and your relationship with your ancestors, parents, caretakers or the things that grew you share these qualities. When Taurus is in your fifth house, your creativity, relationship with your children, your hobbies and the things that bring you pleasure or joy are influenced by this stable energy. In the sixth house, you will probably feel drained and depleted when you don’t honor Taurus things – like feeling drained by change or feeling depleted when you’re daily routines change or needing to spend time alone or in nature in order to feel rejuvenated. This is because this sixth house has to do with your health, the things that drain your energy, daily work tasks and daily routines.
If Taurus is in your seventh house, you approach your marriage or close intimate relationships with romance, loyalty and commitment. If Taurus is in your eighth house, you are probably pragmatic and realistic when you approach death, taxes and debt. Your psyche will also be very Taurus in nature. The ninth house represents spirituality, religion and long-distance travel so you approach these areas of your life with Taurus qualities. If Taurus is in your tenth house, you approach your career and reputation with these earthy qualities. The eleventh house is about friendships, groups, communities and your hopes and wishes so if Taurus flavors these areas of your life, you are going to bring that Venusian energy there. Finally, if Taurus is in your twelfth house, your subconscious realm is flavored by this energy as is the way you approach inner and shadow work.
On Friday, if you are already on my mailing list, you’ll receive my Creative Moon Guide for the Taurus New Moon which will help you consider where this Taurus energy is benefiting you most during this new moon. All you need to know is 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.
Don’t miss setting intentions during this particular new moon. It has great cosmic energy to set intentions in. It is the kind of cosmic soil that allows for good things to grow. Plus, Venus is in the sign of Cancer which adds to the loveliness of this new moon. Cancer is the only sign ruled by the moon so the fact that the moon is in a sign ruled by Venus while Venus is in the one sign ruled by the moon brings a feeling of harmony and collaboration.
To align with this new moon energy, consider what delights you. What brings you pleasure and joy? If you prioritized what makes your heart sing, especially in the areas of your life where Taurus is found on your birth chart, how would that change the decisions you make or the actions you take next in your life? How much goodness and comfort can you allow in the Taurus governed areas of your life?
Monday
Today the moon is in the balsamic phase. She is retreating and preparing to hide away in the darkness of the new moon.
This is a time to move inward; to grow still and quiet and change the direction of your looking and to look within and trust your own wisdom and truth. Communing with Spirit and your deepest, truest self is helpful during this phase.
I use this phase to make time to communicate with the angels and my highest or core self. I try to tune into the wisdom and support I carry within me. The veil between Spirit and my conscious mind is thinner at this time of the moon cycle so it eases communication and intuition. It’s also when I’m focusing on my paying attention to Spirit Signs, making notes of my sleeping dreams and communicating with my ancestors or loved ones on the other side of the veil.
It is also a good time to address the shadow aspects of my personality and to get curious about what I have buried in my subconscious. Sometimes, when life is busy, we don’t have time to process the emotions and triggers that arise in our everyday life and in our relationships. This phase of the Moon is a good time to deal with whatever you didn’t have time to deal with earlier on in the moon cycle. Taking this time to make friends with my shadow before a new moon cycle begins helps me to be clearer and less influenced by my wounded parts as I make my New Moon intentions.
In your art journal, draw, paint or collage an image that represents an emotion you felt earlier in the moon cycle but didn’t yet have time to process or digest.
Tuesday
The moon is in the sign of Aries today.
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.
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. 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.
Wednesday
The moon is in a close relationship with the planet Jupiter today. This kind of closeness between the moon and Jupiter brings ease and flow.
Jupiter wants to bring harmony, well-being, kindness, justice, abundance, growth, expansion, good luck and balance to your life. The moon is supporting Jupiter’s desire to do this in your life today.
Take a moment to close your eyes and imagine what it would feel like to be bathed in goodness – as if a warm magical liquid light of harmony was being poured all over your body and throughout all the corners of your life – all the people you interact with, all the places you will go today, all the spaces you will be in and all the experiences you will have are bathed in this warm golden light of goodness.
Take a deep breath and feel that all the way in your belly.
Ask all your body to notice how safety, harmony and goodness feels.
In your art journal, create an image that represents your life being bathed in a warm light of goodness.
Thursday
The moon is in the fixed earth sign of Taurus today. Taurus is ruled by the planet Venus so the moon is carrying a little bit of that planet’s energy today as well.
Taurus energy is stable and secure. It brings an air of grace, calm, tolerance, tenacity, comfort, pleasure, grounding, safety and security. Depending on the way it affects you or the area of your life it influences the most, it may also bring laziness, inactivity or stubbornness.
Allow the stable and secure energy of Taurus to sit in your body for a moment.
Think of someone or something that makes you feel safe.
It could be someone you know or even a place in nature that makes you feel held. Maybe its the feeling of being wrapped in the arms of someone you love.
Your nervous system deeply benefits from dosing your field with feelings of safety. Taking care of your body includes caring for your nervous system and allowing it to remember what feeling calm and grounded is like. When you are able to achieve that feeling of safety its like medicine to your nervous system – a warm liquid medicine that flows through your nervous system and speaks to the energy you hold there and reminds your entire system you can let go and relax because in this moment you are safe. Your brain can take a break. It doesn’t need to stay alert. It can put down the guards.
In your art journal, create an image that represents what feeling safe means to you.
Friday
Happy new moon!
If your rising sign is Aries, the new moon is inviting you to set intentions around what brings you pleasure, comfort or stability when it comes to money, assets, income and your livelihood. Think about these areas of your life and consider what seeds of intention you want to plant during the new moon in order to experience more joy, comfort or security when it comes to your finances, possessions or livelihood.
If your rising sign is Taurus, the new moon is inviting you to set intentions around what brings you pleasure, comfort or stability when it comes to your identity, body, appearance or your spirit. Think about these areas of your life and consider what seeds of intention you want to plant during the new moon in order to experience more joy, comfort or security when it comes to your vitality, personal expression, identity or your relationship with your body.
For Gemini people like me, the new moon is inviting you to set intentions around what brings you pleasure, comfort or stability 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 new moon set intentions around the kind of shadow work or brain rewiring you’d like to do and the results you’d like to experience from that deep inner work so that you can experience more joy, comfort and security.
If your rising sign is Cancer, the new moon is inviting you to set intentions around what brings you pleasure, comfort or stability when it comes to your friendships, community or your hopes and wishes. Think about these areas of your life and consider what seeds of intention you want to plant during the new moon in order to experience more joy, comfort and security in your friendships and community or your hopes and wishes.
For Leo people, the new moon is inviting you to set intentions around what brings you pleasure, comfort or stability when it comes to in your career, reputation or ideas of success. During this new moon, visualize your intentions for moving forward in your career, the kind of success you want to achieve or the kind of reputation you want to build and what living with more joy, comfort or security looks like in these areas of your life.
For Virgo people, the new moon is inviting you to set intentions around what brings you pleasure, comfort or stability when it comes to your faith, spiritual practices, international travel or future success. Think about these areas of your life and consider what seeds of intention you want to plant during the new moon in order to experience more joy, comfort or security in your spirituality or travel dreams or your goals for the future.
If your rising sign is in the sign of Libra, the new moon is inviting you to set intentions around what brings you pleasure, comfort or security when it comes to your relationship with death, taxes, your psyche or any debt you have accumulated. How will experiencing more joy, comfort or security help you clear any energetic, emotional or physical debt you may be carrying (your own or your ancestors’)? What would experiencing more joy, comfort or security in your emotional or mental well-being look like? Write your new moon intention below.
For Scorpio people, the new moon is inviting you to set intentions around what brings you pleasure, comfort or stability when it comes to your close, intimate relationships or partnerships. Think about your marriage or partnership or best friend relationships and consider what seeds of intention you want to plant during the new moon in order to experience more joy, comfort and security in the closest relationships in your life.
For Sagittarius people, the new moon is inviting you to set intentions around what brings you pleasure, comfort or stability when it comes to your daily routines, daily work tasks, pets or your health and wellness. If you were to experience more joy in these areas of your life, what would that look and feel like? Consider what seeds of intention you can plant during this new moon in order to experience more joy, comfort or security in your daily routines and work tasks, your relationship with your pet or your health.
If your rising sign is in the sign of Capricorn, the new moon is inviting you to set intentions around what brings you pleasure, comfort or stability when it comes to your children, hobbies, pleasure or your creativity. Think about these areas of your life and consider what seeds of intention you can plant during the new moon in order to experience more joy, comfort or security in your parenting life, a creative hobby that’s dear to your heart or those activities in your life that bring you happiness.
For Aquarius people, the new moon is inviting you to set intentions around what brings you pleasure, comfort or stability when it comes to your parents, your ancestors, your childhood or your home and living situation. Think about these areas of your life and consider what seeds of intention you can plant during this new moon in order to experience more joy, comfort or security in one or all of these areas of your life.
Finally, for Pisces people, the new moon is inviting you to set intentions around what brings you pleasure, comfort or stability when it comes to learning or teaching, communication, your siblings, the goddess or moon or nature-based rituals. Which one of these topics feels most important for you to focus on during this new moon? Choose one of them and consider what seeds of intention you want to plant in order to experience more joy, comfort or security in one or all of these areas of your life.
In your art journal, draw, paint or collage an image that represents your new moon intentions.
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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