PolarfatePhase 7 of 8
Reassessing · Letting go · Turning point
Moon phase
Last quarter moon
About three weeks into the cycle the Moon is half lit again, this time on the opposite side. The last quarter moon rises around midnight and is high in the sky at dawn.
In the sky
The Moon is three quarters of the way around its orbit, at a right angle to the Sun on the other side from the first quarter. In the Northern Hemisphere it's the left half that's lit. It sets around midday, so it's often visible in the morning in a clear blue sky.
As at first quarter, the Sun and Moon pull at right angles, so the tides are small again: the second set of neap tides in the month.
Through binoculars, the shadow line now marks where the Sun is setting on the Moon, so the craters that caught the morning light two weeks ago throw long evening shadows instead.
In tradition
Astrologers read this second Sun–Moon square as a turning point. It's less about pushing on and more about deciding what to keep and what to clear out before the next cycle begins. Dane Rudhyar called it the crisis in consciousness, which is less dramatic than it sounds: a point of reckoning with what the cycle has shown you.
The idea of a waning half for clearing and a waxing half for building runs through a lot of moon lore, from old almanacs to modern moon journaling.
Things to notice
- Notice what you're still carrying that's already finished.
- Notice the small spaces that feel cluttered: a drawer, an inbox, a list.
- Notice what you'd do differently next cycle.
A question to sit with
What's one thing you could put down before the next new moon?
For entertainment and reflection.