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Writer's pictureJana Barrett

Full Moon in Pisces 2023: Expanding Our Awareness

On August 30, 2023, at 6:35pm Pacific, we had a full super moon at 7°25’ Pisces. Opposite the Sun in Virgo, conjunct Saturn in Pisces, and co-ruled by Jupiter in Taurus and Neptune in Pisces, this lunation gives us a buoyant opportunity to see beyond. In many ways, it feels like an intuitive rebirth — a reconnection to the unseen abyss of mutable water, where we find our extrasensory gifts and ancestral wisdom that can't be explained, only felt and known.


Below, I'll do my best to articulate what I see coming up organically in the collective. I'm not getting super technical for this one, because that just feels wrong in this Piscean haze. But if you'd like more in-depth astro talk, tune into yesterday's Full Moon in Pisces podcast episode, where I talk about the planetary players and share a five-card oracle + tarot reading with deeper insight.


Alright, let's get into it. (Psst — Here's a Pisces Full Moon playlist to listen to as you read.)


 



A change is gonna come


Super moons occur when the Moon is the closest it ever gets to the Earth. They're bigger and brighter and, often, more activating. They can bring aha moments, when the invisible suddenly comes into focus. Yesterday's full moon in Pisces was also a blue moon — our second full moon in a single month, which only occurs every two to three years. This seemed to emphasize the energy of clarity in the air. Or, at least, subtle awareness.

In surreal, ethereal Pisces, our newfound knowing might be hard to articulate as it buds from our subconscious. But like the subtle ripple of the wind on the lake, our heightened attunement to the unseen will bring echoes of change for weeks if not months to come.

Maybe you've begun to recognize your intuitive power. Maybe you've felt long unfelt feelings, or freed yourself from the grips of an old grief that was cloaking your throat as it demanded expression. Maybe you've recognized the ways you've betrayed your inner knowing to stay in situations, jobs, relationships that gave you a false sense of safety.

Or maybe you had a supremely average Wednesday, and you were hardly aware of the subterranean shifts occurring within and around you. That experience is just as valid, and it's likely for lots of us — especially as we navigate an earthy Virgo season marked by Mercury Retrograde (also in Virgo). Our focus might be firmly planted in the material or even consumed by distracting, intrusive thoughts that keep us from going inward.

If that's what you're experiencing, try spending a few minutes in silence and asking for help. Sometimes anxiety surges in to prevent other challenging emotions from consuming us. And sometimes we just need a snack, a caffeine break, and a nap. Whatever the source of your angst, know that you're not alone.

Virgo tugs at us to keep our eyes on the page while Pisces coaxes us into the abyss. It can be a tricky, paradoxical experience (as is the case with all polarities). But the mutable nature of both signs invites a “both/and” approach. I can be focused and distracted. I can be anxious and at ease. I can be critical and compassionate. You might be swinging back and forth between different states of being and if so, you're right on time.

No matter your experience, know that a change is gonna come. And it's due. You're evolving in ways you may not perceive or articulate for many months. Be grateful for the you that exists now, however they're navigating this month.


 

Your full moon in Pisces tarot reading


Every new and full moon, I ask three questions: What is the anchor? What is the challenge? What is the gift? Below, you can see the tarot's answers, channeled with the help of my guides. As a reminder, you can listen to my latest podcast episode for a more in-depth reading on the cards below.

Five cards lay on a light blue blanket. At the top we see two black cards with the words "betrayal" and "curiosity." The betrayal card has a depiction of an angelic being punching another angelic being through the chest. The curiosity card shows a figure entering a cave and looking upward. Below these two are three tarot cards: the Nine of Cups in reverse, Judgement in reverse, and the Ace of Swords upright. All three cards are colorful, featuring bright and whimsical imagery of non-human beings. The Nine of Cups shows a blue figure with nine red and white cups held in their abdomen. Judgement shows two figures — one red, one blue — walking with their arms around each others' waists as they move toward the sun. The Ace of Swords shows the top of a head with a sword pointing upward from it to indicate clarity.
Decks: Reclaim Oracle and Lilifer Tarot by Little Darkness

The Anchor: Nine of Cups Reversed


Gratitude is called for now. Maybe you've swum a into the deep end of your psyche and you need to pull yourself back into the present. Maybe you're so focused on obtaining more that you've overlooked what you already have. Or maybe self-love is hard to come by when the voice of criticism gets too loud. Wherever you find yourself in this moment, try coming back to compassion. This Jupiter in Pisces card can offer an abundance of that. You just need to open up to receive it.


The Challenge: Judgement Reversed


The same challenge has resurfaced from our August 16 New Moon in Leo. Back then, we were struggling to face a certain reality. Maybe we've climbed back under the soft blanket of denial since then, and this Full Moon in Pisces is coaxing us out once more to see what's in front of our eyes— bigger, brighter, harder to ignore. This awareness might be something we've resisted facing within ourselves. Or it could be external. Possibly both. With the Betrayal oracle card showing up on the table today, it's likely to bitter.


The Gift: Ace of Swords


Clarity comes, no matter what. You might be chewing on a truth that you had to discover for yourself because someone else was unwilling to give it to you. Or it could be that you've finally chosen to see through the illusion of safety that false relationships were offering you. Clear sight is available to us. It might come through extrasensory knowing, universal clues, casual conversation, the lyrics of a song. Be open to receiving messages of truth from unexpected places.


Have a beautiful Pisces Full Moon 🌕


As you swim through these ethereal waters, remember to look to Jupiter in Taurus as a helper. Engage your senses. Enjoy nourishing meals. Speak words of gratitude for what you have, who you are, and how you're becoming more fully yourself as you let go of what doesn't fit.


If you're interested in exploring the personal themes that are coming up for you, you can book a live tarot reading or purchase a recorded reading (under Services). I'd love to help you navigate the moment and discover the personal meaning this lunation is illuminating for you.

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