The Moon

The Moon is the eighteenth card in the Major Arcana of the Tarot deck, often depicted with a moon illuminating a path between two towers. In the foreground, a dog and a wolf howl at the moon, and a crayfish emerges from a pond, beginning a journey up a winding path. In other forms, there may be an owl casting a shadow over a body of water. (or another flying creature, in the presence of a full moon).

The Moon represents intuition, dreams, and the unconscious mind. It also signifies illusions and the sometimes deceptive nature of appearances. In an upright meaning, it could signal the coming of a vision in dreams, a strong emotional need or the power of one's gut feeling about a situation. The Dog and the Wolf may symbolize the tame and wild aspects of our nature. The dog represents the familiar and domestic, while the wolf represents the untamed and wild. Emerging from the water, the crayfish signifies the early stages of consciousness, representing the beginning of a journey into the unknown. The owl may represent the mystical or the hidden wisdom that we can find without our own subconscious.

When the Moon card appears reversed, it often indicates confusion, fear, or a sense of being lost. Alternatively, there could be a release of fear, with the potential to overcome illusions and fears, gaining clarity. However, there may also be difficulty distinguishing reality from illusion, leading to misunderstandings or poor judgment. There could be a struggle to connect with one’s inner voice or ignoring intuitive insights. It may sometimes point to anxiety, depression, or psychological distress that needs to be addressed.

Key Traits: Intuition, strong emotions about a situation, wild aspects of nature, mystical or hidden wisdom in nature and within ourselves, hidden.

Key Traits (reversed): Confusion, loss of fear, possibility gaining clarity of something important, difficulty of telling between reality and illusion, and misunderstanding a situation. Poor judgement. There could be mental distress that needs to be addressed.