Dark Moon Lilith & the Reintegration of the Lost Feminine.

Image by Andrea-Mazzocchetti

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Who or what is Dark Moon Lilith and what can be gleaned from exploring this point in our natal chart?

On the New Moon last Friday, Dark Moon Lilith was in an exact conjunction with Jupiter at 17° Gemini, amplifying the Lilith archetype and highlighting Lilith as the teacher.

When working with Lilith in the astrology chart there is not one but four points to consider. Asteroid Lilith is the only actual physical body, an asteroid orbiting between Mars and Jupiter in the main asteroid belt. It was discovered on 11th February 1927, and named after the French composer Lili Boulanger who by all accounts was a strong minded, singular, and brilliant woman.

Black Moon Lilith is a hypothetical point- the point in the Moon’s orbit when it is farthest from the Earth, known as the lunar apogee. Just as there is a lunar mean and true node there is a true (or oscillating) Black Moon Lilith and a mean Lilith. Mean Lilith has a nine-year orbit and spends 9 months in each sign while the true BML fluctuates wildly. The gap between the two is sometimes referred to as the ‘Temple of Lilith’ and adds an extra dimension when exploring the archetype in one’s life.

Dark Moon Lilith also known as Waldemath after George Waltemath (1840-1915), the German astronomer who claimed that there is a second moon of the Earth… a kind of shadowy ghost moon. In 1918 the astrologer Walter Gonold confirmed the existence of Waltemath’s moon, however sightings of the mysterious dark moon date back as far as 1618. Gornold, or Sepharial as he was also known, thought that the Dark Moon was hidden for the most part although he claimed to have viewed it crossing the Sun.

Image by Andrea-Mazzocchetti
Image by Andrea-Mazzocchetti

Astronomy aside, the mythology of Lilith and the archetype of Lilith makes for some rich pickings in a session; I always include all four points when I set out to explore a chart.

In one version of Lilith’s story, she is the first wife of Adam but leaves the garden of Eden because she refuses to be subordinate to Adam. During her exile, which is very much self-imposed, Lilith lives in the wild places beyond the limits of civilisation and society. From a psychological perspective she is in the wild frontiers of the unconscious.

A similar tale is told of Lilith in the Sumerian myth of Inanna when Lilith flees into the wilderness after the Huluppu tree, in which she lives, is chopped down by Gilgamesh. The tree had originally been planted on the banks of the Great River Euphrates, by Enki the god of wisdom, in the first days, in the very first days, in the first nights, in the very first nights. During a terrible storm, the tree was uprooted and carried away by the waters. In time, a young woman (Inanna) who walked in fear of no man, and would not be owned, plucked the tree from the river and spoke: “I shall bring this tree to Uruk. I shall plant this tree in my holy garden.” The dark maid Lilith took up residency there. 

In both myths, Lilith is uprooted, made homeless, exiled, and out of bounds from normal  existence. She exists in a hinterland where patriarchal rumours have her murdering children and stealing the semen of men whose dreams she pervades at night in the form of a succubus. Lilith is feared by both men and women who among other things believe that she is capable of harming newborn babes and so employ amulets and prayers for protection against her.

It is the dark moon point of Lilith that most speaks to Lilith in her exiled state. Psychologically, dark moon Lilith is the part of us that has become disenfranchised from mundane reality or normalcy existing instead in the caverns of the unconscious. The babies that are murdered are  the creative projects and life-giving libido, which is stuck, unloved, and out of reach. Psychologically, Lilith as the semen stealing succubus may be representative of the shadow feminine stealing and sucking the creative, regenerative fluids of life, and of animus emasculation.

Dark moon Lilith can also be linked to dynamics in our nurturing (Moon) that were misaligned, shadowy, or in some way corrupted leading to a dissociation from our essential self. In this case, the false self that is adopted is the vehicle and recipient of the shadow resulting in a scapegoated identity.

Where there is a strong Lilith signature in a chart, I gently explore the position of the dark moon and enquire into the area of the chart where she resides. This is a sensitive place where the client may have experienced a great deal projection for it is here the client is influenced or pulled by the gravitational force of the ‘ghost moon’. This dynamic may have been initiated in the early environment  particularly in relation to feminine repression.

The darkness is two-fold: darkness that has been projected onto the client, and the client’s identification with that darkness- belief that there is something inherently wrong, mad, or bad with the self.

Transmuting dark moon energy and finding a way home requires a reframing of the self-image and a rejection of the scapegoat role. Parts of the self that have been exiled must now be seen as integral to the self and be brought back online with renewed conviction. The client may accept- reluctantly- that much of her suffering and feelings of being outcast were self- inflicted in her identification with the shadow.

Separation and dissociation takes its toll sometimes in the physical body in the form of auto-immune issues, or else in feminine related imbalance and dis-ease.

As healing is initiated, energy that has been trapped in the underworld is released. Wisdom gained from time spent in the wilderness can be brought to consciousness and used constructively for the integration of the self or as a healing aid and teaching for others. The essential self may have been marginalised or repressed in the first instance because it was deemed threatening in some way… threatening because powerful. The dark moon exists behind the veil or reality and those who see behind the veil are less likely to tolerate falsity or manipulation.

Ultimately, the story of Lilith is the story of feminine power, lost and reclaimed; connection with the more than surface aspects of reality; healing on a cellular level; and insight into the hidden workings of human culture and psychology.

If you are interested in exploring Lilith in your own chart or life, or if Lilith is calling you to work with her, I am available for astrology readings and exploration sessions.

This Post Has 2 Comments

  1. Sherly Voss

    This is so interesting. I would love to learn more about Lilith in my own chart … Where & how do I begin?

    1. Karen Smith
      Karen Smith

      Hi Sherly,

      Thank you for your comment.

      You can schedule an appointment with me by sending an email to karenmullensmith@gmail.com

      I will ask you for your place, date, and time of birth and then schedule a suitable time. Sessions are usually on Zoom and are recorded if you wish.

      Payment can be made through Paypal or by bank transfer. Sessions last 1.5 hours and cost £105.

      I look forward to working with you.

      Warm wishes,
      Karen

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