Category Archives: Moon

Is Isis a Moon Goddess?

Last night, we held our All-Hallows Eve rite (a bit early, I know). As we welcomed our Honored Dead in the presence of the Dark Ones, many of us were very aware of the bright moon shining above, just two days past a full Hunters’ Moon.

The moon, the moon, the moon. And I am thinking now of the moon and Our Lady Isis.

When we first encounter Isis, we often first discover Her as a lunar Goddess, a Goddess of the Moon. But is She?

A lovely lunar Isis; you can purchase a copy of your own here

Well, that really kind of depends on when you ask.

If we’re asking for today, for now, then yes, She is. And She has been for more than a millennium. But She took a rather circuitous route to get there. So let’s follow that trail a bit and see how it happened.

Early in Egyptian history, Isis was firmly associated with the heavens—with the star Sirius in particular, and with the sun, too—but She was not considered a Moon Goddess.

Moon Gods were the norm for Egypt—Iah, Thoth, Khonsu, and Osiris are among the most prominent and the moon’s phases were quite important to the ancient Egyptians. Scholars generally agree that the first Egyptian calendars, like those of so many ancient people, were lunar based. The temples marked the moon’s changes and especially celebrated its waxing and full phases. But the face the Egyptians saw in the moon was masculine rather than feminine.

The horns of the Moon Goddess rising

For example, the waning and waxing of the moon could be associated with the wounding and healing of the Eye of Horus. So, perhaps we can think of Isis as the Mother of the Moon. Indeed, She was called “Isis, Who Creates the Moon Eye of Horus by Her Heart.” In some myths, Isis is the one Who heals Horus’ Eye, in others, it is Thoth or Hathor and we see this reflected in Isis’ epithet as She “Who Heals the Left Eye.”

By the time of the New Kingdom, the beloved of Isis, Osiris, becomes prominent as a lunar God. We have a number of examples of statuettes of Osiris-Iah—Osiris assimilated with Iah, a Moon God—or simply as Osiris the Moon. So in this case, Isis is married to the Moon. But She’s not really a Moon Goddess Herself.

On the other hand, the Greeks and the Romans were all about the Moon Goddess. In fact, the moon itself was simply called “the Goddess.” People spoke of doing something “when the Goddess rises.” They would kiss their hands, extending them toward the rising moon, “to greet the Goddess.” Magical texts give instructions for performing a certain ritual “on the first of the Goddess,” meaning at the new moon. When they saw Isis with Her horns-and-disk crown, they saw a Moon Goddess.

The lunar Eye of Horus

And because we have so much information about Isis from these Moon Goddess-loving people, today when many people think of Isis, the moon is one of the first things they associate with Her. Yet, interestingly, it seems to have been a third century BCE Egyptian priest named Manetho who first connected Isis with the moon. By the following century, when Plutarch recorded the most complete version of the Isis-Osiris myth we have, the tradition of Isis as a Goddess of the Moon was firmly established—even in Egypt.

Of course, it was easy to associate the fertility-bringing moon with the fertile Mother Isis. The ancient world also associated love affairs with the moon (the romance of moonlight, you know) and, in Her passion for Osiris, Isis was a famous lover.

A Roman Isis with lunar crescent

Of course, the moon and the obscuring darkness of night were connected with magic, too—and Isis was one of Egypt’s Mightiest Magicians from the beginning. She was called Lady of the Night. One Egyptian story told how a particular magical scroll—which the tale calls a “mystery of the Goddess Isis”—was discovered when a moonbeam fell upon its hiding place, enabling a lector priest in Isis’ temple to find it.

Today, we also connect the moon with emotions, the deep, the waters, the feminine (taking our cue from the ancient Greeks and Romans), the home, Mystery, and change (to name but a few). And Isis can definitely be associated with all of these things—from the emotional passion of Her myths to Her ancient Mysteries and Her enduring role as the Goddess of Regeneration and Transformation.

This beautiful lunar Isis is by Reinhard Schmid. You can see his work here

So is Isis a Moon Goddess? She certainly has been for a very, very long time. Whether we choose to honor Her in this form has more to do with us than with Her. Many contemporary Pagans will probably be quite comfortable working with Isis as a Moon Goddess; a strict Kemetic Reconstructionist, not so much. But Isis is a Great Goddess; She is All, and so, for me, She is unquestionably to be found in the deep and holy Mysteries of the Moon.

And yet, and just for myself, while I do find Her in the moon, I resonate most strongly with Isis of the Stars and Isis of the Eternities of Space and Isis the Radiant Sun Goddess. Nevertheless, I still feel the call to explore Her important lunar aspects. What about you?

Is Isis a Moon Goddess?

Will you be able to see the lunar eclipse and “blood moon” tomorrow? Sadly, it looks like it’s going to be a cloudy sky for me, but I hope you will have better viewing conditions. (For a good explanation of the science, visit here.) With the moon in high focus right now, let’s look at Isis’ association with the moon.

So…is Isis a Moon Goddess?

Well, it depends on when you ask.

Early in Egyptian history, Isis was firmly associated with the heavens—with the star Sirius in particular, and even with the sun—but She was not considered a Moon Goddess.

The horns of the Moon Goddess rising

Moon Gods were the norm for Egypt—Iah, Thoth, Khonsu, and Osiris are among the most prominent and the moon’s phases were quite important to the ancient Egyptians. Scholars generally agree that the first Egyptian calendars, like those of so many ancient people, were lunar based. The temples marked the moon’s changes and especially celebrated its waxing and full phases. But the face the Egyptians saw in the moon was masculine rather than feminine.

The lunar Eye of Horus

For example, the waning and waxing of the moon could be associated with the wounding and healing of the Eye of Horus. And so, we can perhaps think of Isis as the Mother of the Moon. In some myths, Isis is the one Who heals Horus’ Eye, in others, it is Thoth or Hathor. By the time of the New Kingdom, the beloved of Isis, Osiris, becomes prominent as a lunar God. We have a number of examples of statuettes of Osiris-Iah—Osiris assimilated with Iah, a Moon God—or simply as Osiris the Moon. So in this case, Isis is married to the Moon. But She’s not really a Moon Goddess Herself.

On the other hand, the Greeks and the Romans were all about the Moon Goddess. In fact, the moon itself was simply called “the Goddess.” People spoke of doing something “when the Goddess rises.” They would kiss their hands, extending them toward the rising moon, “to greet the Goddess.” Magical texts give instructions for performing a certain working “on the first of the Goddess,” meaning at the new moon. When they saw Isis with Her horns-and-disk crown, they saw a Moon Goddess.

A Roman Isis with lunar crescent

And because we have so much information about Isis from these Moon Goddess-loving people, today when many people think of Isis, the moon is one of the first things they associate with Her. Yet, interestingly, it seems to have been a third century BCE Egyptian priest named Manetho who first connected Isis with the moon. By the following century, when Plutarch recorded the most complete version of the Isis-Osiris myth we have, the tradition of Isis as a Goddess of the Moon was firmly established—even in Egypt.

Of course, it was easy to associate the fertility-bringing moon with the fertile Mother Isis. The ancient world also associated love affairs with the moon (the romance of moonlight, you know) and, in Her passion for Osiris, Isis was a famous lover. Of course, the moon and the obscuring darkness of night were connected with magic, too—and Isis was one of Egypt’s Mightiest Magicians from the beginning. One Egyptian story told how a particular magical scroll—which the tale calls a “mystery of the Goddess Isis”—was discovered when a moonbeam fell upon its hiding place, enabling a lector priest in Isis’ temple to find it.

This beautiful lunar Isis is by Reinhard Schmid. You can see his work here.

Today, we also connect the moon with emotions, the deep, the waters, the feminine (taking our cue from the ancient Greeks and Romans, no doubt), the home, Mystery, and change (to name but a few). And Isis can definitely be associated with all of these things—from the emotional passion of Her myths to Her ancient Mysteries and Her enduring role as the Goddess of Regeneration and Transformation.

So is Isis a Moon Goddess? She certainly has been for millennia. Whether we choose to honor Her in this form has more to do with us than with Her. A modern NeoPagan will probably be quite comfortable working with Isis as a Moon Goddess; a Kemetic Reconstructionist, not so much. But Isis is a Great Goddess; She is All, and so She is unquestionably to be found in the deep and holy Mysteries of the Moon.

For myself, while I do find Her in the moon, I resonate more strongly with Isis of the Stars and Isis of the Eternities of Space and Isis the Radiant Sun Goddess. Nevertheless, I feel called to explore this aspect of Her. What about you?

Guest Blogger – Sheri Horn Hasan – The Spirited Woman: The Return Of The Matriarchy (Part Three)

For spirited women everywhere, the Spring Equinox is a big deal - it is an annual turning point in our lives and reflects many changes. But why does it affect us so? I invited Sheri Horn Hasan, an expert in Karmic Evolution Astrology back as our guest blogger to give us some answers - since her posts on Mercury in Retrograde were such a big hit. This time she has written a three-part series on the Spring Equinox and how it really influences the divine feminine in us all. This is Sheri’s final post in the series.

As the Spirited Woman journeys into the season of Spring, she understands now that-- while the Sun is in the Mars-ruled sign of Aries—she’s blessed with the instinctual capability to act or react.

It’s easy to see how “instinct,” defined as “a natural or inherent aptitude, impulse, or capacity,” has morphed from female archetypal energy (such as that of Artemis from the ancient past) toward the male-oriented martial principle of action in these more modern patriarchal times.

However, it’s intuition--defined as “a natural ability or power that makes it possible to know something without any proof or evidence”—that connects every Spirited Woman to the feminine divine and the days when the natural cycles of the matriarchy were far more revered than they are today.

Your Moon & You

The energy of one’s Moon--which represents our emotions, our soul, our inner child-- does not replace Mars or the martial principle. Rather, each Spirited Woman’s astrological Moon incorporates within both male and female-oriented instinct and intuition.

When the Spirited Woman allows herself to tap into this deep vein of archetypal intuitive AND instinctive wisdom, a big picture emotional awareness emerges from the depths of her soul. Without honoring both, we may lose our way and traverse paths that leave us only exhausted and depleted, rather than emotionally satisfied and fulfilled.

Astrology breaks down the 12 astrological signs into four elements: fire, earth, air, and water. Every Spirited Woman has a Moon in her personal horoscope, or natal/birth chart, and the element of your Moon tells us how you react emotionally and what you need to feel secure in this lifetime.

How easy or difficult it is to live one’s Moon energy depends on its sign, location in the chart, and its aspects to other planets and sensitive chart points.

Fire & Air Moons

Fire Moons--Aries, Leo, and Sagittarius—encompass adventurousness of spirit, creativity, and a generally unabashed sense of joie de vivre. The Spirited Woman born with a fire Moon may leap before she looks, react before she thinks, and is undoubtedly imbued with a fire burning within.

Fire Moons may act quickly, but if the impulse to act is stifled it can result in issues that “somatize,” or manifest as potential dis-ease in the body. A fire Moon Spirited Woman must express her creative impulses in order to be true to her nature. While she may find she’s moved too quickly into anger or defensiveness at times, this is far better than suppressing the urge to move, create, express, or engage in life with gusto!

Earth Moons—Taurus, Virgo, and Capricorn—are far more concerned with security and keeping their feet on terra firma, or solid ground. The Spirited Woman with an earth Moon may be conscious of what’s in her bank account, be an expert at detailed work, and/or possess the desire to climb the upwardly mobile ladder to success.

The issue to watch out for here is getting stuck—or too attached—to your body, your perfectionism, or a belief system that may not reflect the Spirited Woman’s true core values. Allow your earth Moon to intuitively dig deeply into the wisdom of your body and to obey the laws of the universe to understand that the one true constancy is change!

Also, it pays to be mindful that true security is not rooted in what you own, and success lies not necessarily in how many resources you may accrue. Rather, real peace of mind is gained by getting to the core of your soul’s definition of the value of TRUE happiness…

Earth & Water Moons

Air Moons—Gemini, Libra, & Aquarius—are usually social, rational thinkers. Curious and loquacious, their concern with fairness and equality in partnership, and communication of ideas trump their need for action.

The air Moon Spirited Woman must guard against allowing ideas to confuse rather than enlighten. Also, over-concern with “right” relations may eclipse the personal will. When compromise becomes the only solution for every situation, it may come at the expense of getting what you want—at least some of the time.

Additionally, watch out for ideas that become so fixed that your perception of “right” belongs only to you but isn’t shared by anybody else…and be alert to the propensity to rationalize your emotions instead of FEELING them…

Finally, water Moons—Cancer, Scorpio, and Pisces—are visceral because they feel their emotions acutely. Of all the elements, Water Moons are most likely to be highly sensitive, and to exhibit compassion, loyalty, sympathy, and empathy through deep and lasting emotional bonding.

This propensity to absorb other people’s pain in an attempt to alleviate the sufferer can land the water Moon Spirited Woman in a bit of hot water as she may ultimately find she attempts to escape her own emotions by absorbing herself in those of others. This is a slippery slope, though on the other side of the coin, water Moons are extremely intuitive, emotionally deep, and spiritually connected...

Fire, air, earth or water—one thing is for sure: The Spirited Woman’s Moon puts her in touch with her divinely inspired feminine wisdom. As many of us already know, when women concentrate on accessing their precious gift of intuitive wisdom, the results are often most amazing!

SheriHornHasanAmazon #1 Bestseller & professional intuitive psychological/archetypal/evolutionary astrologer at Karmic Evolution Astrology, Sheri Horn Hasan analyzes natal horoscopes as the blueprint that can help one’s soul to recognize & reach its highest destiny in this lifetime. Her mission is to assist others to move from chaos to clarity and co-create their own future through astrology! Read Sheri’s story about her astrological awakening!

Guest Blogger – Sheri Horn Hasan – The Spirited Woman: The Return Of The Matriarchy (Part Three)

For spirited women everywhere, the Spring Equinox is a big deal - it is an annual turning point in our lives and reflects many changes. But why does it affect us so? I invited Sheri Horn Hasan, an expert in Karmic Evolution Astrology back as our guest blogger to give us some answers - since her posts on Mercury in Retrograde were such a big hit. This time she has written a three-part series on the Spring Equinox and how it really influences the divine feminine in us all. This is Sheri’s final post in the series.

As the Spirited Woman journeys into the season of Spring, she understands now that-- while the Sun is in the Mars-ruled sign of Aries—she’s blessed with the instinctual capability to act or react.

It’s easy to see how “instinct,” defined as “a natural or inherent aptitude, impulse, or capacity,” has morphed from female archetypal energy (such as that of Artemis from the ancient past) toward the male-oriented martial principle of action in these more modern patriarchal times.

However, it’s intuition--defined as “a natural ability or power that makes it possible to know something without any proof or evidence”—that connects every Spirited Woman to the feminine divine and the days when the natural cycles of the matriarchy were far more revered than they are today.

Your Moon & You

The energy of one’s Moon--which represents our emotions, our soul, our inner child-- does not replace Mars or the martial principle. Rather, each Spirited Woman’s astrological Moon incorporates within both male and female-oriented instinct and intuition.

When the Spirited Woman allows herself to tap into this deep vein of archetypal intuitive AND instinctive wisdom, a big picture emotional awareness emerges from the depths of her soul. Without honoring both, we may lose our way and traverse paths that leave us only exhausted and depleted, rather than emotionally satisfied and fulfilled.

Astrology breaks down the 12 astrological signs into four elements: fire, earth, air, and water. Every Spirited Woman has a Moon in her personal horoscope, or natal/birth chart, and the element of your Moon tells us how you react emotionally and what you need to feel secure in this lifetime.

How easy or difficult it is to live one’s Moon energy depends on its sign, location in the chart, and its aspects to other planets and sensitive chart points.

Fire & Air Moons

Fire Moons--Aries, Leo, and Sagittarius—encompass adventurousness of spirit, creativity, and a generally unabashed sense of joie de vivre. The Spirited Woman born with a fire Moon may leap before she looks, react before she thinks, and is undoubtedly imbued with a fire burning within.

Fire Moons may act quickly, but if the impulse to act is stifled it can result in issues that “somatize,” or manifest as potential dis-ease in the body. A fire Moon Spirited Woman must express her creative impulses in order to be true to her nature. While she may find she’s moved too quickly into anger or defensiveness at times, this is far better than suppressing the urge to move, create, express, or engage in life with gusto!

Earth Moons—Taurus, Virgo, and Capricorn—are far more concerned with security and keeping their feet on terra firma, or solid ground. The Spirited Woman with an earth Moon may be conscious of what’s in her bank account, be an expert at detailed work, and/or possess the desire to climb the upwardly mobile ladder to success.

The issue to watch out for here is getting stuck—or too attached—to your body, your perfectionism, or a belief system that may not reflect the Spirited Woman’s true core values. Allow your earth Moon to intuitively dig deeply into the wisdom of your body and to obey the laws of the universe to understand that the one true constancy is change!

Also, it pays to be mindful that true security is not rooted in what you own, and success lies not necessarily in how many resources you may accrue. Rather, real peace of mind is gained by getting to the core of your soul’s definition of the value of TRUE happiness…

Earth & Water Moons

Air Moons—Gemini, Libra, & Aquarius—are usually social, rational thinkers. Curious and loquacious, their concern with fairness and equality in partnership, and communication of ideas trump their need for action.

The air Moon Spirited Woman must guard against allowing ideas to confuse rather than enlighten. Also, over-concern with “right” relations may eclipse the personal will. When compromise becomes the only solution for every situation, it may come at the expense of getting what you want—at least some of the time.

Additionally, watch out for ideas that become so fixed that your perception of “right” belongs only to you but isn’t shared by anybody else…and be alert to the propensity to rationalize your emotions instead of FEELING them…

Finally, water Moons—Cancer, Scorpio, and Pisces—are visceral because they feel their emotions acutely. Of all the elements, Water Moons are most likely to be highly sensitive, and to exhibit compassion, loyalty, sympathy, and empathy through deep and lasting emotional bonding.

This propensity to absorb other people’s pain in an attempt to alleviate the sufferer can land the water Moon Spirited Woman in a bit of hot water as she may ultimately find she attempts to escape her own emotions by absorbing herself in those of others. This is a slippery slope, though on the other side of the coin, water Moons are extremely intuitive, emotionally deep, and spiritually connected...

Fire, air, earth or water—one thing is for sure: The Spirited Woman’s Moon puts her in touch with her divinely inspired feminine wisdom. As many of us already know, when women concentrate on accessing their precious gift of intuitive wisdom, the results are often most amazing!

SheriHornHasanAmazon #1 Bestseller & professional intuitive psychological/archetypal/evolutionary astrologer at Karmic Evolution Astrology, Sheri Horn Hasan analyzes natal horoscopes as the blueprint that can help one’s soul to recognize & reach its highest destiny in this lifetime. Her mission is to assist others to move from chaos to clarity and co-create their own future through astrology! Read Sheri’s story about her astrological awakening!