The Cross-Quarter Full Moon

Shifting with the Cross-Quarter full moon—cosmic energy is on the move.

The Cross-Quarter Full Moon illuminates the sky today, Friday, May 5th, at 1:33 pm EDT. This full moon has a lot going on—including occurring on a pagan Sabbath, shifting lunar energies, and being a lunar eclipse. The keyword resonating during this Cross-Quarter Full moon is intensity.

This month, the Sun transits Taurus and the Moon in Scorpio. The Taurus-Scorpio axis deals with our values and what we're willing to share. This can involve our resources like currency and debt or our ethics.

The Sun in Taurus spotlights what we value and can display territorial reactions and responses over those values. The Sun empowers the Taurus energy to see and examine what is in its sphere of influence—the long-held values, the freshly sprouting observations, the overgrazed barren bits, and the toxic patches.

In addition to this Taurus-Scorpio axis, Vesta, Uranus and Retrograde Mercury conjunct the Taurus Sun.

Vesta represents what we find sacred. Vesta's conjunction to the Sun, Uranus, and Retrograde Mercury asks us what our core values are—what values uplift us, and which ones are toxic to us and others.

Uranus has been transiting Taurus for some time, shaking up the ground and stable earth energy of the sign. During this conjunction, Uranus helps to break us free from and break down stagnant energies—comfort zones and self-imposed limitations especially.

One of my great uncles used to tell us to never be content, strive to be satisfied. In my family, we see contentment as a herald to stagnation, self-doubt, lower self-esteem, and eventually imposing limitations on what you can achieve and/or receive in life. This Uranus reminds me of that uncle and his advice because sometimes comfort zones can hide dissatisfaction and keep us bound to what we know out of fear.

Mercury Retrograde supports the Sun with the time, energy, and patience to reanalyze and re-examine our values and valuables. Mercury in retrograde during this lunar eclipse will have a hint of this flavor extended during the next six months.

Meanwhile, the Scorpio Moon exhumes and expunges our attachments—emotional, mental, spiritual—to what we value. Once exposed, the Moon highlights what needs to be released and what needs to be shared. The Scorpio Moon does not encourage sacrificing our own needs for others and going without, but to share between the self and others. Having too much of something can be as toxic and unhealthy as having too little.

Beltane Full Moon

Cross-quarter days occur between the solstice and equinox sabbaths—Samhain, Imbolc, Beltane, and Lughnasdagh. This cross-quarter day falls between the March Equinox and the June Solstice. In the Northern Hemisphere this sabbath is Beltane and in the Southern it is Samhain.

Whether celebrating Beltane or Samhain, the veil between worlds and realities is thin. The thin veil makes for a great time to change your reality, your perception, and your world. The possibilities and potential seen, found, or understood during this sabbath full moon are only bound by you, your imagination, your self-doubt, and your self-imposed limits.

Megan pointed this out to me a while ago—human can be broken down. Hu or hue means pigmentation of color with some gray added in (tint adds white and shade adds black) and of course color is a vibration of visible light. Man—as in mankind—manifests. Humans are light beings manifesting in, on, and through the third dimension.

Our potential resonates from the core of our being. This Cross-Quarter Full Moon looks to enlighten us, pull that revelation to the surface, and help us embody that potential.

Shifting Lunar Energies

Everything has cycles that are continuously in motion. The moon’s orbit is just one of its cycles. The eclipse cycle is another. Yet another involves the phases of the moon and when they occur during a Zodiac month or season.

The full moon today, May 5th, shifts the lunar energies from when a moon phase occurs in relation to others.

Traditionally, the New Moon leads the lunar cycle. During the New Moon, you set an intention for the lunation ahead. Full Moons occur after, towards the end of a lunation when you can see the results and actualization of those intentions. Full Moons give us time and space to figure out what needs to change and what the next step in your journey should be.

This cycle, that pattern changes. This full moon occurs before the new moon in Taurus.

For the next year and a couple of months—until the summer of 2024—the full moon leads the lunar cycle. Instead of setting intentions at the beginning of the lunation and working towards actualization, the full moon will bring things to light first—what is and isn’t working for you, where problems are taking shelter to avoid change, etc. The new moon occurring afterwards will allow you to set intentions and take action based on the full moon’s revelations.

Beyond this phase shift, the Cross-Quarter Full Moon occurs during an eclipse shift as well. This full moon partial lunar eclipse will be visible to the Eastern Hemisphere of the globe.

Eclipses occur when the nodes are conjunct the Sun and Moon. Solar eclipses happen during the new moon and the lunar eclipse during full moons. This year, the nodes of the moon are moving towards the Aries-Libra axis and out of Taurus-Scorpio. This means the eclipse seasons will occur between these four signs.

An eclipse season tends to see a solar and lunar eclipse occurring in the same polarity signs. A solar eclipse in Taurus during Taurus season is paired with a lunar eclipse in Scorpio during that same season. During Scorpio season, the solar eclipse would be in Scorpio and the lunar in Taurus.

This eclipse season started with the solar eclipse in Aries on April 20th’s new moon phase. This lunar eclipse in Scorpio will not couple with its polarity sign of Taurus, but instead with its planetary ruling sibling, Aries. Mars' influence on this eclipse season brings more drive, motivation, passion, and intensity to the changes taking place in our lives and around the world.

Harmonious Energies

Speaking of Mars, the Sun, its conjunction, and the Moon make a harmonious aspect to Mars in Cancer. Mars in Cancer supports the energies of the Sun and its conjunction by defending the heart, hearth, and home of any given situation amongst all of the shaking up and changing out happening in Taurus. More importantly, Mars in Cancer aspects the Moon in Scorpio in reciprocal harmony to each other.

The Moon does not enjoy or feel comfortable being in Scorpio where it is considered in detriment. The same goes for Mars in Cancer—he is not comfortable and is in detriment.

Scorpionic energy pokes, stabs, exposes, and expunges. The Moon has dominion over our emotions, what makes us feel stable and secure as well as what we try to provide to others for them to feel stable and secure. The Moon doesn’t overly enjoy being poked and prodded or having its emotions exposed for all to see.

Mars in Cancer is like a charging warrior trying to run through the shallows along a shore. It can be done, but the warrior is slowed by the water and unstable due to shifting sands, tides, and ebb and flow of the waves. In order for Mars to succeed in his action, he needs to stand still and defend or throw barbs and long range projectiles to provoke an adversary into charging through the water to get to him, wasting energy and stamina.

While both the Moon and Mars are still in detriment in each other’s sign, the equally receptive harmony between the two provides a defensive shield, a protection from self-sacrifice and martyrdom. Mars protects the heart and emotional seat while the Moon cuts away at the extra baggage of negative emotions—guilt, shame, regret, fear.

Also in harmonious aspects to the Sun and Moon are Saturn in Pisces and Ceres in Virgo. Ceres in Virgo nurtures you through this intense period through nutrition, routines, and organization. Saturn in Pisces brings long-term goals and discipline to our dreams. If you can imagine it, you can do it with Saturn in Pisces.

Squaring Off With Lilith

Lilith in Leo squares the Sun and Moon, challenging our perceptions, our ego, and our emotions. Lilith represents the primal, wild, receptive, and magnetic energies within all of us. In Leo, she is a lioness—the hunter within the pride.

Lilith dares us to hunt and take down those things, beliefs, ideas, thoughts, and limitations that keep us from expressing our true selves—the wild and primal beings that attract what we need, want, and deserve and are unafraid to receive them.

The intensity of this challenge from Lilith lies with how, when, where we accept her dare and provocation. Modern society has implemented and trained us to behave and be certain ways that don’t rock the boat—the SS Fear of … Judgment, Failure, the Unknown, Actualization, etc. Lilith reminds us that without our participation, the boat only sits in an ankle deep puddle we can easily walk away from it to live life as the Sovereigns we always were.

Lunar Forms

To add to the energies surrounding and empowering this full moon, a couple of significant shapes form in the sky as well—a trapeze and a mystic triangle.

Trapezes form from an opposition, trines and sextiles. The Cross-Quarter Full Moon Trapeze forms between the Scorpio Moon aspecting Cancerian Mars which aspects the Sun and Uranus Taurus conjunction which aspects Ceres in Virgo which closes the trapeze with an aspect to the Moon. These corners all reside in receptive energy signs making the Trapeze receptive and magnetic as well.

A Trapeze in the sky works the same way as one on the ground—tension, force, and struggle needs to be applied for there to be a bounce of merriment, success, satisfaction, appreciation, and gratitude. This trapeze reminds us that change as well as negative emotions, experiences, and events are necessary components in life that lead to bigger, better, and more positive things—without lemons there is no lemonade.

Mystic triangles take shape from an opposition and a harmonious aspect to both opposing luminaries—Sun in Taurus, Moon in Scorpio, and Saturn in Pisces in this case. Mystic triangles stimulate creativity, action, talents, and luck. They are also intense shapes and this receptive mystic triangle encourages conviction to permanently release and completely change your reality. Examine what you’ve been unconsciously participating in and through lack of awareness have given permission to lose energy and power to. This requires intimate analyzation of what makes you uncomfortable and uneasy to find what does and does not work for you or support you.