Our Human & Soul Selves: The Sun & Moon
photo by Viviana G via pexels
Today marks the Summer Solstice in the Northern Hemisphere, the day when the sun is at its peak power and resulting in the longest day of the year. We also have a full moon in Capricorn tomorrow, a full moon being when the moon is at its peak power and brightness.
At this intersection of Sun energy and Moon energy, we have a unique opportunity to explore these two energies side by side, as a supportive pair, instead of along a perceived oppositional binary, outer vs inner, day vs night, bright vs dark. They are here together, so let’s receive them together.
Mesopotamian astrology & myth placed the Sun and Moon not as siblings or opposites, but as a Father Moon and Son Sun. The Father Moon god, either called Sin or Nanna, was a male deity of great wisdom, considered the most wise of the gods and was sought at for counsel and guidance from all the other deities themselves. The Son Sun god, either called Utu or Shamash, drove the Sun across the sky and saw all that happened in a day, and was thus considered the divine judge. The Father Moon knew things instinctively and through integrated wisdom, while the Son Sun knew things through direct witness and clear sight.
Both ways of knowing are needed and necessary. The inner unconscious knowing of what you want, what you know to be true, and who you are at your deepest self is all information required for an enjoyable and aligned life. The outer conscious knowing of what is actually happening in your life, what the current circumstances are, and how you feel about them (your judging function) are all key for actually acting and moving through the world effectively.
But also, interestingly, the Moon's wisdom comes first and is what births the Sun’s sight. What we believe to be true, affects what we see. What we unconsciously think precedes what we consciously witness.
This is why the first step to a happier or more aligned life typically won’t start with just re-arranging your life’s furniture for the thousandth time, like changing your romantic partner, or job, or house, or hair cut. We can easily find ourselves in a cycle of surface level life changes if we keep neglecting the source of where the discontent is coming from, which lies not in our conscious life but in our unconscious selves.
When we tap into that moon level of our “knowing,” we reconnect to the deeper truths that rest under the surface of our lives. Who are you really? What brings you joy or fulfillment on an intrinsic level? What patterns are you engaged in that need ending? What traumas need healing? Where are these conscious gut reactions actually stemming from within your unconscious wounding, feeling, or knowing?
When you engage with yourself on this unconscious level first, then you can direct your seeing and judging functions to the areas of life that are actually aligned with you, instead of constantly scanning the world for things that only the depths of your own being can provide.
Yet the second step to this equation is still a necessary step, bringing the unconscious to the conscious level. We can not only live in hypotheticals or within our own intuitive dreams, we must act and make decisions in the conscious world in order to move our lives and days forward. The conscious requires the unconscious, and vice-a-versa, the unconscious requires the conscious.
And one thing I always like to point out is that we do not have a gender binary within this original myth as we do in later Western tradition, making the Sun male and the Moon female. I will say this a thousand times over and for as long as I need to: no planet or zodiac sign’s energy is gendered inherently. We are the ones that impose that binary thinking onto these archetypes and energies, and I believe at this point in time that to keep up this gendered tradition causes more harm than good. Are women not supposed to be active witnesses and actors within their lives? Are men not supposed to listen to their own internal wisdom? So silly. We all have an inner source of wisdom, and we all have the ability to make conscious action and distinction in our lives. We share in these abilities equally.
Another more mystical way to frame this Moon and Sun relationship though, besides the unconscious and conscious selves, is as the Soul self and Human self. One of my teachers uses this framing of the individual as a human conscious self that is often unaware of their soul self, and thus the work of a medium or psychic is to bring those two parts of the self into better communication. He does this through unexplainable spiritual phenomena, like spirit contact or correct psychic information, as a means to awaken people to the spiritual & soul dimension of their own life. Within my own Soul Alignment readings, I find myself also using this framing, that I’m communicating with the Soul so that it can reveal to the Human what it needs to know now.
But you don’t need a psychic or medium to bring your own Human and Soul into alignment, though you do need a willingness to consider yourself more than just your human lived experience. What parts of you feel more ancient than others? What truths about yourself do you know run deeper within your being than others? What lights up within you when you have a transcendent or spiritual experience?
If you ask to see or know or experience your Soul self, then they will happily come in to be the wisdom giver and counsel you need right now. And if you ask to know your Human self better, they will very clearly give you insight into your current life and what is or isn’t working. Both of these selves are here for you, and happy to offer their unique type of knowing whenever you’re ready to receive it.
You just must be ready to see and know your life clearly, as to see by either Sun light or Moon light still means that the truth will be revealed and life most likely will need to change in response to it. Are you ready to see things clearly? Why have you feared that up till now?
Here’s to the realigning of your conscious Human and unconscious Soul selves my friends. I wish you bright and wise sight in all things.
As is now a pattern, I’ve made a little groovy, Sun themed playlist for your listening enjoyment and hopefully as an aid in connecting with this solstice energy. Perfect for these sunny summer days, filled with all the fun and human things I hope.
Big human & soul hugs,
L.
