What is a Moon Sign?
A recent experience in business showed me that getting through the impostor syndrome I was feeling pointed directly to my moon sign and the house placement. In discovering the culprit and what I needed in order to move through the sensations, I was able to empower myself and move through the muck, even though I was scared shitless.
Knowing your moon sign, and all the lights and shadows associated with it can help you understand how you self-sabotage and then how to empower yourself to make the changes you desire in your life.
In this post, I’ll be sharing what a moon sign is, how to calculate your moon sign, what your moon sign says about you, and the archetypes of each moon sign so that you better understand how you operate in your day to day.
What is a Moon Sign?
Your moon sign is the zodiac sign that the moon was in at the moment you took your first breath. A person’s natal moon reflects their emotions, desires, and fears, and is guided by the house their moon sits in within their natal chart. It also shows how they need to feel in order to deal with the challenges that life presents.
All the energies in your chart were the gifts given to you to work with in this lifetime. Each one helps your soul grow and navigate this physical realm.
Why is Knowing Your Moon Sign Important?
The moon represents the unconscious of our minds. Most of our habits and behaviors take place unconsciously, so they are driven by the lights and shadows of the archetype your moon sign is in. Basically, your day to day habits, reactions, emotions and general way of being in the world are all dictated by your moon sign.
Your moon is your inner child. If the inner child doesn’t feel safe, destructive and sabotaging habits will reveal themselves, for better or for worse, in life. In order to make the inner child feel safe, it’s important to understand exactly what the inner child needs. Clues to this are found by knowing and understanding the archetypes of your moon sign.
“Learning my moon sign transformed my life!”
Whittney R.
How to Calculate Your Moon Sign
It’s easy to calculate your moon sign. You can use any astrology app, or go to astro.com to pull your free birth chart. You will need your exact time of birth, location and date with year.
Because the moon moves so quickly through the signs, it’s important to know your birth time. Also, the birth time orders the houses in your birth chart. Which is helpful in knowing which other energies are supporting or hindering the growth of your inner child.
Once you have your birth chart pulled up, look for the little moon sign. The sign the moon is in is indicated by the outer ring. You will also see a number next to the sign. That is the degree the moon was in at the time of your birth. Important to know for your monthly lunar returns.
In the example, we see that the moon sign is in the Taurus house, at 3º, which is the 6th house. So we would look at the Taurus archetype as well as Virgo (rules the 6th house) to understand more about how the moon expresses itself in this person’s life.
The Moon in the Signs
Once you are armed with the knowledge of which sign your moon is in, you’re ready to understand your unconscious behaviors, desires and fears so that you can finally work with them to move forward in your life.
The moon is moody AF, and affects all of our emotions on a day to day basis. But that’s getting a little too far ahead. We first need to understand how our moon shows up.
When working with archetypal energy, it’s essential to understand that there are lights and shadows of each. Meaning high vibe and low vibe. The archetype cannot be without one or the other. When a person is exhibiting the light/high vibe, we say that the person is connected and empowered. When they are in the shadow/low vibe, they are disconnected, and exhibiting sabotaging behaviors.
We all exhibit all of these at various times of our lives and even days! The key is recognizing where we are so we can start moving to an empowered place.
Let’s look at your moon sign as it lives in your natal chart and shows up in your day to day behaviors. The zodiac starts with Aries, it’s the initiator of the Spring season.
Aries Moon
Aries is known as the warrior of the zodiac. Anyone who has ever met an Aries Sun, knows that this person is direct, a leader and gets stuff started. But what about the moon in Aries?
When the moon is in Aries, the emotions take on the Aries archetype. We look at how this person needs to FEEL in order to understand how to heal and change behaviors.
Aries Moons, ruled by Mars, need to feel confident, impactful and in leadership, in order to feel safe. Below are the lights and shadows that are expressed with an Aries moon.
| Lights | Shadows |
|---|---|
| Confidence | Hostile |
| Leadership | Competitive |
| Initiative | Impulsive |
| Impactful | Domineering |
Taurus Moon
Taurus has a reputation for being stubborn and bull-headed. But when we re-frame it, Taureans are simply tenacious. They know what they value (ruled by Venus) and go after it to maintain their sense of security.
Taurus moons need to feel safe and secure, physically. Below are the lights and shadows that are expressed with a Taurus moon.
| Lights | Shadows |
|---|---|
| Tenacious | Stubborn |
| Embodied | Resistant to change |
| Sensual | Overindulgence in pleasure |
| Practical | Hoarding |
Gemini Moon
The person with a Gemini moon can be perceived as scattered, flighty or two-faced. Reframed, we see Gemini as one who can see both sides of an issue, is highly inventive and communicative.
The Gemini moon needs to feel safe to express themselves so they can be heard and understood. Below are the lights and shadows that are expressed with a Gemini moon.
| Lights | Shadows |
|---|---|
| Curious | Scattered |
| Engaged | Disorganized |
| Versatility | Overthinking |
| Adaptability | Overanalyzing |
Cancer Moon
Cancer is ruled by the moon, so tends to be a bit moody. The moon goes through each sign in 2 ½ -3 days, I think one would be moody too if it was constantly changing archetypes in this way. But if we reframe the Cancer archetype, we can see that Cancers are connected to emotions in such a way that allows them to be able to nurture and hold space for others to feel their own emotions.
The Cancer moon needs to feel emotionally safe and secure to feel safe. Below are the lights and shadows that are expressed with a Cancer moon.
| Lights | Shadows |
|---|---|
| Nurturing | Enabling |
| Compassionate | Exclusion |
| Welcoming | Overbearing |
| Kind | Controlling |
Leo Moon
Leos, ruled by the Sun, are marked by their ability to shine in the spotlight and can sometimes come off as arrogant or prideful. Reframed, Leos shine their light in a courageous and heart-centered way to inspire others to shine as well.
The Leo moon needs to feel safe to self express, create and be recognized. Below are the lights and shadows that are expressed with a Leo moon.
| Lights | Shadows |
|---|---|
| Confidence | Pride |
| Self Expression | Entitlement |
| Passionate | Arrogance |
| Heart-centered | Drama |
Virgo Moon
Virogs have a reputation for being workaholics, self-sacrificing and overthinkers. To reframe it, they are dedicated to being in service of the well-being of others. They simply forget to put their oxygen mask on themselves first.
Virgo moons need to feel healthy, organized and effective, in order to feel safe. Below are the lights and shadows that are expressed with a Virgo moon.
| Lights | Shadows |
|---|---|
| Detailed | Perfectionism |
| Service-oriented | Workaholism |
| Effective | Overthinking |
| Humble | Worry |
Libra Moon
Librans are the seekers of balance in the zodiac. When not in the light, Libras tend to be indecisive and co-dependent. In order to shift towards the high vibe, Libras need to reach for balance, the ability to receive as well as give.
Libra moons need to feel balance and harmony, in themselves and in the way they relate to others, in order to feel safe. Below are the lights and shadows that are expressed with a Libra moon.
| Lights | Shadows |
|---|---|
| Balance | Codependency |
| Collaboration | Indecision |
| Harmony | People-pleasing |
| Fairness | Avoidance |
Scorpio Moon
Scorpios have a bad rep. I see memes all the time about controlling and manipulative Scorpio ex-girlfriends. I think they are vastly misunderstood. Scorpios are intense and love to dig deep and shine the light on other people’s bullshit, in order to help them heal.
Scorpio moons need to trust in themselves and in their own power, in order to feel safe. Below are the lights and shadows that are expressed with a Scorpio moon.
| Lights | Shadows |
|---|---|
| Trust | Power over others |
| Empowerment | Secrecy |
| Passionate | Manipulative |
| Transformative | Blaming |
Sagittarius Moon
Sagittarians are largely viewed from the high vibe. They are ruled by Jupiter and highly optimistic and inspiring. Watch out for their extreme judgey side!
Sagittarius moons need to feel freedom and inspiration to feel safe. Below are the lights and shadows that are expressed with a Sagittarius moon.
| Lights | Shadows |
|---|---|
| Gratitude | Judgey |
| Optimism | Close-minded |
| Generosity | Blunt |
| Explorer | Indulgence |
Capricorn Moon
Capricorns can be viewed as controlling and cynical. But when viewed from the light, we understand that their ability to manifest and create is backed by their structures in consistency and discipline.
Capricorn moons need to create structures and systems that allow them to feel safe to go after their big dreams and goals. Below are the lights and shadows that are expressed with a Capricorn moon.
| Lights | Shadows |
|---|---|
| Manifestation | Cynical |
| Consistency | Controlling |
| Achievement | Over-achiever |
| Disciplined | Obligated |
Aquarius Moon
Aquarians are the rebels of the zodiac. While they are focused on the improvement of humanity as a whole, they tend to be eccentric in the way they express themselves and how they show up.
For Aquarian moons, authenticity and the ability to innovate are paramount to feeling safe. Below are the lights and shadows that are expressed with an Aquarius moon.
| Lights | Shadows |
|---|---|
| Individuality | Chaos |
| Freedom | Alienation |
| Innovation | Rebellious |
| Authenticity | Eccentric |
Pisces Moon
The dreamers of the zodiac, Pisces are connected to the collective. But many Pisceans are subject to avoidance, addiction and low vibe behaviors. To turn it around, Pisces can look to the help of Virgos to help them heal and make space to dream.
Pisces moons need to have space to emote and dream in order to feel safe. Below are the lights and shadows that are expressed with a Pisces moon.
| Lights | Shadows |
|---|---|
| Ease | Self-sacrifice |
| Inspiration | Addiction |
| Creativity | Avoidance |
| Compassionate | Martyrdom |
The Moon sign in your natal astrology chart can help you understand so much of your unconscious behavior if you are completely unaware of limiting beliefs, mental blocks and what’s really holding you back from reaching those goals made with your conscious mind.
Did you resonate with your moon sign and all the ways that you might show up in your day to day beingness? When you discover the source of your unconscious behaviors, good and bad, you can start to shift them and work with the power of your moon to show up as the best version of yourself.
Self Care by Moon Sign Guide
A free guide to inspire your personalized self care routine that empowers and nourishes you inside and out.
If you are curious about transforming those behaviors and unconscious patterns, I’d love to give you a moon reading to see how the other planets in your chart can support your progress.