William Blake “The Lamb” and “The Tyger”

October 31, 2020 (8 Taurus)

On the night of the annual Hunter’s Moon, the fields are laid bare from harvesting, and the sky shines a short-lived spotlight over the land, exposing the deer and other game to the arrows of men lying in wait. The coming winter has all species in survival mode. And in the Celtic wheel of the year, October 31 begins the cross-quarter celebration of Samhain, ushering in the dark months, when the passage graves come alive and the doors to the Otherworld are open. 

As it happens, this year we have both together: a full moon on the day of the dead. The Moon in Taurus, expecting the creature comforts it so enjoys in the sign of its exaltation, instead wanders into the crosshairs of the Sun opposite in Scorpio. It then stumbles upon the tripwire of Uranus the Awakener, and a bolt of lightning suddenly strikes, illuminating the scene. It’s a gut check: fight, flight or freeze are the automatic responses, and every nervous system will choose one. The competing energies of Venus and Mars, who oversee this lunation, will also inform our reactions. Regardless, this moon is tapping us into our basic instincts and primal drives. It is hungry, and full of desire. It can be passionate, as well as polarizing. Where are you feeling your animal nature? What urges are coming up? What scent trail are you following, and where will it lead? Blood flowing can be ominous or arousing, depending on the context and point of view.

In his poem “The Lamb” and its companion “The Tyger,” 18th century poet and visionary, William Blake (perhaps writing under a full moon such as this?), pondered what he called the contrary nature of the human soul, and what that meant for the Creator that designed us all. How astounding, he reflected, that such different creatures—one a ferocious, sensuous and powerful beast, and the other a sweet, docile, gentle thing—could be made by the same God. It must follow, he concluded, that all life, and the universe itself, contains opposites; and that all souls are here to navigate the gamut from innocence to experience. Sometimes we are the predator, and sometimes we are the prey. Throughout the course of our lives, we can be both villain and victim; powerful and vulnerable. We all have the capacity to be fierce, dominating, and cunning; as well as playful, tender and childlike. And through some combination and expression of those very traits, we find our humanity, and it has allowed us to survive.

Wherever the full moon falls in your chart is where you can find the lesson of the lamb (Taurus), and of the tiger (Scorpio), and try to reconcile the two that live within. It is where you can connect to the natural, and the supernatural, world; to your wild wisdom. In this time of hunting and haunting, let us appreciate life’s complexity, as well as its simplicity. And as you begin to make room for all parts of yourself, remember that you are not here by accident, and that you are fearfully and wonderfully made.