The Lunar Altar and its Pieces
Along with “working the phases” of the Moon, I encourage you to consider creating a Lunar Altar each month. Your lunar altar is a place to help you focus your intentions, seek spiritual clarity and support to achieve your goals (the lunar work of that month), and demonstrate your value and respect for this work. It should be placed in a relatively private, “psychically clear” place where you alone have access to it, and where you will be in its energy on a daily basis. The Lunar Altar and its pieces are based on your purely subjective choices. Throughout the month, your altar may change or evolve as consciousness of the emotional work in progress grows. Using the colors, rulerships, and associations with the sign of the New Moon, I suggest that your altar initially include the following: An altar cloth composed of a color, fabric, and style to symbolize the New Moon sign; An altar candle; A Goddess symbol of the Feminine Principle of the New Moon sign; The sign’s gemstone or stone; The sign’s metal; The sign’s element (Note: Many believe that all elements – Fire, Earth, Air, Water – should be included on every altar); Specific objects of personal meaning that symbolize and/or help you connect with the month’s lunar work.
The following ideas may help you create a meaningful lunar altar for the Capricorn Lunation:
Color for altar cloth/candle: Dark Earth tones; Gray; Russet; Deep reds like maroon or burgundy
Fragrance/Oil: Fragrant Herbs, spices used for cooking, medicinal herbs, mistletoe, willow, oak.
Goddess: All Goddesses who are honored for effective manipulation and use of earth’s resources,
healing, building/leading society and grounding civilization, personal sacrifice for good of the
many: Buddhist Kuan Yin, Greek Rhea/Hera, Egyptian Isis, Tibetan Tara, Celtic Danu &
Bridget of Healing, Norse Freya, Babylonian/Sumerian Tiamat, Libyan/Ethiopian Aegis.
In Tarot: Meditate on The Devil and The World
Stones & Gems: Garnet, Jet, Onyx, Limestone, Granite, All Crystals, All Healing Stones.
Metal: Lead
Element of Emphasis: Earth
Specific Objects: Plants and herbs (especially those used for medicine or spices); Goats and Unicorns;
Symbols of your greatest “natural” resources (talents, skills, objects, people, etc.) or natural proclivities that you would like to develop; Symbols of nature made into art (i.e pottery, weaving, sculpture, pyramids; etc. ); An organizer with a schedule of healthy life routines and reasonable responsibilities you desire; Symbols of time; Cornucopias (or goat’s horn); Crystals; Symbols of new life structures you desire to make manifest (i.e. career; outer world reputation or involvement, home, land, people you respect, etc.); Salt (Lamp); any symbols of transformed/adapted Nature.
Kim McSherry
Institute of Astrology https://betterlife.solutions/the-houston-institute-of-astrology/
