Lunar Month Look-Ahead for August-September 2023*
* This reading is for the lunar month beginning on the New Moon of August 16, not the calendar month of August.
AUTHOR’S NOTE: In this reading I’m incorporating the most recent changes to the Lunar Month Look-Ahead spread that I’ve developed over the last few years. It reflects both an update to my lunar-month predictive model and a return to “first principles.”
In the past I decided to remove the Major Arcana and court cards from the draw because the short-term outlook changes on roughly a 3–1/2 day frequency during the month and the Minor Arcana should therefore provide a more reliable picture of the routine day-to-day situation. But more recently I’ve begun seeing the Major Arcana as furnishing a “thematic backdrop” for the activities shown by the rest of the cards, and not normally as representing important events in their own right; instead, they establish the “archetypal environment” in which circumstances will play out. Regarding the court cards, when reading for myself I typically view them as describing attitudes and behaviors of my own that I could experience during the period rather than as signifying other people I might encounter.
So I decided to put them both back in, with one new twist: whenever I receive a trump card in one of the eight positions, I will accord it a “background” role and immediately draw another card to place on top of it as the “active agency” or mundane outlet for its influence during the time-frame indicated. If I get a second trump on top of the first, that’s the trigger for anticipation of “big things afoot,” kind of a “double-barreled” scenario — backdrop and major development. Note that this practice will shift the rest of the cards in the pull “up the chain” one position and give the overall reading a slightly different complexion.
In addition, I’m continuing to derive a monthly “theme” card on the first day of the lunar month using “Theosophical addition.” For August of this year it is Death as described below. Note that the pewter Full Moon emblem on top of Death in the photo is merely a prop that I use with this layout, along with the painted stones that represent the four main lunar phases. I have also added the titles for the eight sub-phases and the four quarterly transition flags to the graphic.
The periodic phase-changes in the “lunation cycle” for the period August 16, 2023 to September 14, 2023 are as follows:
August 16, 2023: New Moon — 0% Visible
August 21, 2023: Waxing Crescent — 25% Visible
August 24, 2023: First Quarter — 50% Visible
August 27, 2023: Gibbous (Waxing) — 75% Visible
August 31, 2023: Full Moon — 100% Visible
September 4, 2023: Disseminating (Waning Gibbous) — 75% Visible
September 7, 2023: Last Quarter — 50% Visible
September 10, 2023: Balsamic (Waning Crescent) — 25% Visible
September 14, 2023: New Moon — 0% Visible
Preliminary Remarks:
The theme card for this lunar month is Death, Trump XIII (8/16/2023 = 8+16+2023 = 2047 = 2+0+4+7 = 13). The Death card is the significator for my astrological Ascendant, Scorpio, so I live with it year-round and am no stranger to its vibration. Three of the ten cards are Earth and three are Fire, suggesting that finances and enterprise will be focus areas during the month. Early in the forecast two trump cards appeared, which in my updated model provide a thematic backdrop for the affected days, requiring me to pull two more cards to represent the more mundane aspects of the situation. That makes for eight “base” cards and two supplemental “adders.”
Analysis:
The first quarter, encompassing roughly seven days, is a period of growing tension leading up to the Waxing Crisis that should appear by the end of the first week. It is a time for following one’s instincts, attending to any unresolved internal issues remaining from the previous cycle, and getting one’s “ducks in a row.”
For the New Moon I pulled the Wheel of Fortune — usually a harbinger of favorable change — as the underlying emphasis and the 6 of Coins, a card of financial reward, as its outward expression. August is the month every year when a significant number of extra dollars roll in; I’ve already contacted my investment firm and learned that the disbursement is in progress. I’m certainly inspired (if only to spend money)!
The Crescent Moon brings the High Priestess reversed. The reversal could be a caution against allowing any hint of a closely-guarded confidence to escape my control. The companion card pulled was Temperance reversed, also a trump, suggesting that it will be critical to walk a fine line of discretion and circumspection to make sure that doesn’t happen. The advice is to “let sleeping dogs lie.” The two reversals here are a perfect example of maintaining airtight “Inner Focus.”
The First Quarter card is the 3 of Swords reversed, implying that the anticipated crisis (which is an inherent feature of the astrological square between the Sun and Moon that occurs twice each month) could involve some type of “mental trap” (perhaps being caught in a lie, although I don’t typically indulge in them).
The recovery from this turning point occurs at the Gibbous phase of the waxing hemi-cycle. Here we have the 4 of Cups, another card of stability and security but in the emotional realm. Following that harsh 3 of Swords, it could indicate “licking my wounds” as I emerge from the crisis. Note the direction of the man’s gaze in the image: he is clearly looking right past the fourth cup toward better times ahead at the Full Moon (I think he’s mesmerized by what’s going on in that big glass jar).
The enlightenment of the Full Moon offers the 10 of Coins, generally considered a card of wealth that may not mean money but rather material comfort. The three subsequent cards suggest that I should be able to capitalize on this windfall.
The entire second half of the cycle after the Full Moon looks like a period of “initiative writ large.” Something new is clearly indicated, perhaps a significant investment in my future. The Ace of Swords at the Disseminating (or Waning Gibbous) sub-phase I call the “bright idea” and “singular opportunity” card, while the Ace of Wands at the Third Quarter is the “Just do it!” card. Cap that with the pragmatic resourcefulness of the Page of Coins and I could be in for a highly innovative and productive time. This all plays out in the arena of external circumstances, where I’ve been hoping to focus my entrepreneurial efforts for a while now.
In summary, the first half of the month looks to be uneven, but the second half could go out with a resounding bang while the Page of Coins hangs on by his fingernails!
As a footnote, I typically apply these readings to my own life-circumstances but I see no reason why they couldn’t be viewed as signifying world events of a sociopolitical nature. However, if I were to do it routinely I would use my PoMo (PostModern) deck, one of Brian Williams’ crowning achievements. (In public rather than private terms, the present reading might show a well-heeled individual trying to “buy his way out of a jam” after compromising secrets are revealed, and very likely succeeding since the Wheel of Fortune/6 of Coins combination denotes “gambling and winning.” The 10 of Coins and the two Aces suggest that “the fix is in,” with the Page of Coins as the accomplice and facilitator.)
Originally published at http://parsifalswheeldivination.wordpress.com on August 20, 2023.
