Lunar Mansion Report, January 20th, 2025 to January 26th, 2025

 This an entry in a continuing series of looking at the Moon's position and condition in the week ahead with an eye to the Mansions of the Moon. This is an exercise to help track the speed of the Moon, organize my thoughts on the Mansions, and think about the practical applications. 

All times are for me locally, United States Pacific Time. I will be making note of the Moon's phase, speed, and Mansion position in my assessment. Currently, I'm not considering aspects with other planets.

Lunar Mansion Report, January 20th, 2025, to January 26th, 2025

Monday January 20th, 2025. The Moon begins the week in Azubene, the Horns of the Scorpion, which she entered at 9:28PM the day before. The Moon is still Waning Gibbous, and will be for all of January 20th, but nearing the square aspect that will usher in the last quarter. The Waning Gibbous phase enhances works that seek diminishment and decline.  

The Moon transits across Azubene until 11:35PM which is 26 hours and 7 minutes. This is 11 minutes longer than the last Mansion and continues the Moon's period of moving slowly and decelerating. A slow Moon may make magical effect take longer to materialize but may lend longevity to its effects. 

The wrathful powers of Azubene include destruction of merchandise, to put discord between friends, to debauch a woman you desire, to impede those who journey so that they never reach their destination, cause hatred between friends (Latin Picatrix), damage merchant shops, separating friends and spouses, the severe punishment of a wife if the husband so desires, harm a traveling adversary, create discord between partners (Gayat al Hakim), and hindereth journeys and wedlock, harvests and merchandise (Agrippa). 

The image for Azubene in the Latin Picatrix is a man holding scales and weighing. The Horns of the Scorpion became the claws of the scorpion which became the cups of a scale. Discernment, judgement, and valuation are the keywords for Azubene. In its wrathful forms, it can obscure the value of things like relationships and ruin business deals. In Nigel Jackson's Celestial Magic this Mansion is given the power of enhancing sciomancy and necromantic operations to communicate with the shades of the dead. 

Azubene is the first half of the Via Combusta, the Fiery Way which is detrimental to the Moon and enhances the wrathful aspects.

At 11:35PM on January 20th the Moon moves out of Azubene and into Alichlil. The wrathful aspects of Alichlil are expelling thieves (Ibn Hatim), improving deception, besieging cities (Latin Picatrix), and for making images for discord and any evil (Liber Lunae). 

Tuesday, January 21st, 2025. The Moon is in Alichlil, the Crown of the Scorpion, and continuing to transit across that Mansion since 11:35PM the day before. Two big changes come upon the Moon while she is in Alichlil on Tuesday. One, the phase changes from Waning Gibbous to Waning Crescent at 12:30PM. The Waning Crescent promotes endings. It is the blade of a knife. 

The second change to occur during Alichlil is the Moon has ended her period of deceleration. She is still moving slowly, at 26 hours and 6 minutes in Alichlil, but this is one minute shorter than the last Mansion, and so begins a time of acceleration. A one minute difference is small enough to say that the Moon’s speed is stable. The Moon will stay in Alichlil for the entirety of Tuesday the 21st, moving out at 1:41AM on Wednesday the 22nd. 

The wrathful powers of Alichlil are expelling thieves (Ibn Hatim), improving deception, besieging cities (Latin Picatrix), and for making images for discord and any evil (Liber Lunae). 

The image of Alichlil in the Latin Picatrix is an ape with his hands over his head. It is not clear to me how an ape is an apt image for expelling thieves from a building but it might have something to do with Alichlil’s power to improve deceptions, playing on perceptions or the fears of the thief. 

Alichlil is the second half of the Via Combusta, the Fiery Way, which is detrimental to the Moon and lends power to its wrathful aspects.

The Moon continues to transit across Alichlil through Tuesday the 21st.

Wednesday, January 22nd, 2025. When the clock strikes midnight and Tuesday, January 21st becomes Wednesday, January 23rd, the Moon is still in Alichlil for another 111 minutes until 1:41AM, at which point she moves into Alcalb, the Heart of the Scorpion. The phase is Waning Crescent, which lends power to abrupt endings, cutting things off, and darkness.

The Moon will have been in Alichlil for 26 hours and 6 minutes, which she entered at 11:35PM on January 20th, when it moves out of that Mansion and into the next one, Alcalb, at 1:41AM on January 22nd. The Moon will be in Alcalb until 3:29AM on January 23rd. This means the Moon will be in Alcalb for 25 hours and 48 minutes, which is 18 minutes less than the previous Mansion and indicates an acceleration of her speed. This may make magic done under this Mansion take effect more quickly but may also indicate that effects pass more quickly. 

The wrathful powers of Alcalb are creating disagreements between partners (Gayat al Hakim), to conspire against kings, and to wreak vengence (Latin Picatrix and Agrippa). There is also the power to expel serpents and hurtful beasts. the Latin Picatrix also ascribes the healing of fevers and ailments of the belly to his Mansion. In its wrathful state it could inflict these maladies. 

The image for Alcalb in the Latin Picatrix is an adder with its tail above its head. A venomous snake is dangerous enough but with its tail above its head it takes on the defensive qualities of a scorpion and so cannot be attacked from in front or in the rear. 

The Moon transits across Alcalb for the remainder of January 22nd.

Thursday, January 23rd, 2025. The Moon begins January 23rd in Alcalb until 3:29AM, when it enters Axaula, the Sting of the Scorpion. The phase is Waning Crescent which is advantageous to cutting things short or ending things abruptly.

The Moon will have been in Alcalb for 25 minutes and 48 minutes when she enters Axaula. The Moon will transit across Axaula for 25 hours and 22 minutes, which is 26 minutes less than the previous Mansion and so is a continuation of her acceleration. This may make magic done in this Mansion pass more quickly but it could also make the effects happen more quickly. 

The wrathful powers of Axaula are isolating cities, defeating enemies, making a person lose all his money, separation and alienation, breaking and destroying ships, creating discord between partners (Gayat al Hakim), to besiege cities and take them, to destroy the wealth of whoever you please, to expel men from a place, to separate and destroy the wealth of allies, to break and destroy ships (Latin Picatrix), and to annul contracts (Shams al Marif). 

The image in the Latin Picatrix for Axaula is a woman with her hands covering her face. The special power of Axaula is as a purgative, especially to bring on menstrual bleeding. A key verb for Axaula is “flow”. In its wrathful aspect this could mean causing a miscarriage. 

The Moon continues to travel across Axaula until 4:51AM the next day. 

Friday, January 24th, 2025 begins with the Moon in Axaula until 4:51AM. She will then enter the next Mansion, Alnaym, the Ostriches or the Beam. The Moon remains in Alnaym until 5:35AM the next day. The phase is still Waning Crescent which strengthens works of making endings and removals. 

The Moon takes 24 hours and 22 minutes to get through Alnaym. This is 38 minutes faster than the last Mansion and the Moon continues to accelerate. An accelerating Moon may make eefect happen more quickly but may also make effects pass more quickly.

The wrathful powers of Alnaym include worsening the situation of partners (Gayat al Hakim), to bring evil and destruction to the riches of allies (Latin Picatrix), to bring about imprisonment and containment, and destroy ill-gotten gains (Celestial Magic).

The image of Alnaym in the Latin Picatrix is a centaur shooting a bow. The power ascribed to it is for finding and taking whatever you hunt. It is also for taming wild beasts.

The Moon remains in Alnaym from 4:51AM to the end of January 24th.

Saturday, January 25th, 2025. The Moon is in Alnaym until 5:35AM and then she moves into the next Mansion, Albelda, the Wasteland. She is still Waning Crescent and so works of endings are empowered.

The Moon transits Albelda for 24 hours and 7 minutes, which is 37 minutes faster than the last Mansion. The Moon is moving quickly which may make effects dissipate quickly but the effects may manifest more quickly. 

The wrathful powers of Albelda are for a wife to divorce and never remarry (Gayat al Hakim), to separate wives from their proper husbands, destruction of a place (Latin Picatrix), for the destruction of a person (Agrippa), and creating enmity, hostility, divisiveness, and everything calamitous (Shams al Marif).

The image for Albelda in the Latin Picatrix is a man with a face like Janus, with one face on the front and another face on the back of the head. Janus was the Roman god of the threshold, the place in between, and marked passages. In my experience Albelda is a Mansion of waiting, of holding until the next Mansion comes along. I suspect that, once upon a time, this may have been the first Mansion at the Vernal Eqinox, but I have not calculated how much time would need to have passed for procession to move the equinox to where it now stands. 

The Moon is still in Albelda when Saturday, January 25th ends.

Sunday, January 26th, 2025. When this day begins the Moon is in Albelda, which she entered at 5:35AM the day before. She remains in Albelda until 5:42AM on Saturday, January 26th and then she moves into Sadahaca, The Lucky Star of the Slaughterers. The Moon’s phase is Waning Crescent which supports workings of cutting things out, ending things, or hiding things.

The Moon will travel through Sadahaca for 23 hours and 26 minutes, making egress at 5:08AM on January 27th. This is 41 minutes faster than the previous Mansion so she is moving quickly which may make the effects of workings to happen quickly but may also cause the effects to pass quickly. 

The wrathful powers of Sadahaca include separation between kings and wazirs (Ibn Hatim), separation of spouses and lovers, for a woman to be raped and discord between partners (Gayat al Hakim), to bind tongues against slander (Latin Picatrix), evil (Liber Luneae), and to agitate rulers into wrath and to hide secrets (Shams al Marif). 

The image for this Mansion in the Latin Picatrix is "the figure of a man with winged feet wearing a helmet", a very Mercurial image. Considered together with the title of this Mansion, The Lucky Star of the Slaughterers, this Mansion has connotations of spiritual communication. The slaughterers are those who make the animal sacrifice to the gods. During this Mansion making entreaties to heaven and making offerings to seek favors and boons are greatly enhanced as are devotional acts of giving. 

The Moon remains in Sadahaca for the remainder of January 26th. She moves into the next Mansion at 5:08AM the next day, January 27th.