Exploring Thresholds for the Pisces Full Moon
Pisces often brings up themes of liminal spaces and dreamscapes. As the last sign of the zodiac, Pisces is a sign that defines a threshold, or a simultaneous point of arrival and departure, an invitation to detach from the physical world.
Thresholds are liminal spaces, but liminal spaces are not always thresholds. Thresholds are unique because we can physically see and engage with them in the physical world. Thresholds mark the ending of one area and the beginning of another. Doorways and windows are examples of these kinds of spaces. There can, of course, be internal or otherworldly thresholds too.
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In this share, we'll explore the position of the Pisces full moon in relation to our seasonal year, ways to work with thresholds and why you may want to, and corresponding tarot cards for Pisces that invite the exploration of thresholds.
A quick note about timing: in 2022 (when this post was written), the Pisces Harvest Moon is nearly upon us and will take place on September 10th. If you happen to be reading this in the future, these thoughts and offerings can all be applied to any future Pisces full moon, which often occurs during September.
Pisces Full Moon Timing
As a zodiac sign, Pisces marks the end of the zodiac calendar before it begins anew with Aries. Pisces's unique placement and energy amidst the zodiac calendar are not coincidental. It aligns beautifully with the energetics of ending a cycle. Pisces energy inspires liminality and encourages engaging with thresholds.
Pisces energy combined with a full moon, which often aligns around the same time as the Autumn Equinox, is also well timed. The coming Autumn Equinox is also a liminal time of its own, marking a point of equal balance between daytime and nighttime. It is the threshold of the Equinox that we shift towards nighttime, increasing over daylight. The Neptunian energy from this upcoming full moon also feels like an invitation to begin wading into the element of water before we shift fully westward on our seasonal wheel.
The Pisces full moon coming around the same each year seems like a well-timed embrace pulling us in to dance in the watery liminal spaces associated with this time before fully moving into the darker half of the year.
Cards from the Ritual Deck
The full moon itself can be seen as a threshold between the waxing and the waning moon. As I've mentioned in previous shares, like this one, the moon is only full for about one minute. For the rest of the "full moon," the moon is either waxing or waning, which makes working with thresholds even more potent during any full moon.
What are thresholds, and why are they important?
Before we explore ways to work with this energy, let's discuss what thresholds are and why they're important. Thresholds are endings and starting points simultaneously. Much like a coin, two different sides, inextricably linked as one. The doorway of your living space offers a perfect example. You can observe a door to your home outside or within the home, it is an entrance and an exit, and it can be protective or permissive. The doorway itself carries all of these opposing and differing energies. Your front door can serve as a powerful symbol of protection, locking out those you don't want while also giving you the option to invite in those you do.
There are energetic layers to explore within physical thresholds, as well. You can even pause and think about how it feels to walk from the outside into your living space after a long day or into your bedroom from a busy kitchen space. Each threshold carries unique energies and purposes.
Exploring thresholds more deeply moves us out of binary thinking. They are the "both-and's" all around us, reminding us that grey areas are available and needed. Thinking outside of a binary is important for many reasons, especially if engaging with the spirit realm. The spirit world is full of mystery and confusing contradictions that can be hard for our binary-seeking brains to be present with. Working with and learning from liminal spaces and thresholds is one way to open ourselves to being with the complexity of not knowing and mystery. Thresholds are magically complex!
Exploring doorways and windows may seem quite mundane, but they are powerful places ripe for making magic and exploring different contrasting energies. Especially in this current time, living amidst mass extinction and climate collapse within failing systems, all while seeking pockets of rest and joy. In many ways, we're living in a threshold. What better way to honor this moment than to confront the mystery of thresholds intentionally?
Let's take the idea of thresholds beyond physical windows and doors and explore internal or otherworldly thresholds.
The Hanged One as a Threshold
When we explore Pisces energy in the tarot, one of the corresponding cards is the hanged one. This card is an invitation to explore your internal thresholds. The hanged one hovers in a liminal space between worlds, able to look backward, forwards, and side to side.
Hanged One card from Journey Tarot
One way to approach this full moon is to allow yourself the time and space to explore the internal thresholds in which you're currently living. Perhaps taking time to look back into your past few months or this year, ahead at the next, and maybe even side to side toying with different paths and timelines. It's a card that invites spending time at the threshold of the present moment, all while noticing how it feels to hang between different realms simultaneously.
Giving yourself time to sit in different internal or energetic thresholds allows you to feel into different possibilities and solutions that have yet to be acted upon. It allows you to explore spaces of limitless possibilities and notice how they feel. What would it feel like if you were to "step through" an internal threshold of perhaps putting a new boundary in place or expressing yourself in a new way?
Let's explore how to practice some of these ideas for the full moon in Pisces.
Working with Thresholds this Pisces Full Moon
Here are a few invitations to explore thresholds in honor of the full moon in Pisces. For best results, practice any or all of these offerings within the three days leading up to or after a full moon in Pisces. However, these are great practices to try for any full moon if you don't have the time and space to practice them this week.
1. Explore the energetics of physical thresholds in your living space. This simple activity can help you tune into the present moment and subtle shifts in energy within your living space. It's also a great exercise to try before the following suggestions. Though this one might seem overly simple, I encourage you to take some time with it. You might be surprised!
This will work best with doorways because windows can be a little tricky to stand or sit in! Before you begin:
Spend some time tuning into your breath and body.
Select one or more thresholds to explore.
Start by standing on one side of the threshold, in the actual threshold (within the doorway), and on the other side of the threshold. As you step into each area, pause, breathe, and notice how you feel.
The differences may be subtle, and that's okay.
I encourage you to try this with a few different thresholds, as you'll likely find some may have more noticeable shifts than others. For example, the threshold doorway between my basement hallway, my home office/sacred space, and my bathroom door feel quite different! The energy of my office/sacred space threshold holds a noticeable palpable energy. You could also take this exercise into public spaces, noticing the subtle and not-so-subtle shifts in energy that occur when entering and exiting public spaces. If you feel called, consider writing down your experiences in a journal.
2. Like the Hanged One in the tarot, suspend yourself in an internal threshold. Approach this as a meditation or as a journaling exercise. Whatever method resonates with you most is great. If you're unfamiliar with the Hanged One tarot card, you may also find support in reading more about it.
Consider a specific situation where you feel like you're at a crossroads, or think about your life generally. Spend some time slowing down to connect with the breath and body. Imagine yourself suspended in time; you can even visualize yourself standing in a doorway. Reflect on everything that's happened this year, and visualize looking behind you in the doorway. Notice what arises. Then, look forward and notice what arises. Take this further by looking side to side to see if any different narratives or ideas come to you from this unique perspective. Stay in this space for as long as you'd like. When you feel ready to end this exercise, consider writing about your experience.
3. Lastly, here's a little card spread you can lean into during a Pisces full moon. Use this card spread with any oracle or tarot card deck.
Card 1: When I look back on this year, what wants to be seen?
Card 2: What is this Pisces full moon threshold holding for me?
Card 3: What possibilities are on the other side of this threshold?
Card 4: What alternative outcomes are available to me?
Many of the usual suggestions for Pisces season and moons certainly still apply, like exploring dreamwork and the subconscious mind. Explore tuning into dreamwork in this previous post that contains a Pisces-inspired dreamwork ritual or a ritual to explore the subconscious mind here.
Of course, threshold magic is an entire area of study that this post doesn't fully explore. If your interest is piqued by discussing thresholds in this post, I encourage you to spiral deeper into exploring threshold magic. You can find some tips here in this past post for a Samhain house blessing.
This share is just the tip of the iceberg when exploring thresholds! I hope you're feeling empowered and intrigued to start investigating both internal and external thresholds this Pisces full moon.
