Dasani

Why is the background blue? Should it not be duller?(the moon card in the riders)

Sometimes you can still see the moon in the daylight. Does this change the meaning of this card ? A daytime card, instead of thinking it as night time?

Hope I made this clear.

Indigo Rose

ROS, very interesting observation on the background of the Moon. It is as if we are not meant to know for certain. Is it day or is it night? Certainly when one considers the mysterious nature of the moon, the card of illusion, this makes sense.

OakDragon

I've always interpreted it as a partial eclipse. The crescent part with the face is the actual moon and the the circle with the rays behind it is the sun. Hence, the dark blue sky (at least in my RRWS). Also, it fits with the theme of deception. The moon not only gives off no light of it's own (it reflects sunlight), but in this interpretation it's also blocking the sun's light (i.e., it's guidance, wisdom, inspiration, etc.)

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TemperanceAngel

ros, just an idea, but I think the card is trying to show us the cycles of the Moon. The crescent (waxing and waning), new and full moon cycles is all pictured in the Moon image.

Perhaps by having the card a lighter color we don't always associate it with night. We can see the moon in the day, as you have stated.

And perhaps everything associated with the Moon isn't always hidden or dark, sometimes it can be lighter.

Does this make sense?

I can't remember everything of my study of the Moon in the 78 week study, the thread can be found in Using Tarot Cards

XTAX

tmgrl2

I like this interpretation...TA...
As I flipped through the RW deck...the backgrounds of many cards are predominantly this same blue...The Star, The World, The Sun...then the Tower and The Devil black...some bright yellow...I think the Hermit in the RW is the only one with a sickly kind of green backgroung predominating. ..a light blue gray also the The Emperor with orange...the brigter blue is on many of the minors as well...also the bright yellow...it would be interesting to consider the discussion of the blue in the Moon card by placing it in context of background colors from the entire RW deck..I just did a quick glance of BGround colors...Star, Moon, Judgement, Sun and World as a sequence all have this blue with the Tower and the Devil right before these five trumps with the black background. Interesting....
I know this thread is about Moon background but wonder if in addition to what has been said, it can be studied in the entire context of backgrounds throughout the deck.

TA, I agree worth going back to the Moon and reading the posts in the 78-week study...

terri

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TemperanceAngel

terri, a bit off thread but the deck we buy in Australia The Hermit is grey and I much prefer this to the green, I do have the 'green' deck, but don't really like it for reading with...
XTAX

Centaur

Perhaps it is indicative of that special time when it is both night and day, and both moon and sun appear in the sky. I know that there is no specific sun in this card, but the light colour might suggest that it is in present but not seen.

This time is suggestive of intuition, deeper emotions, and psychic abilities. Everything seems quite surreal!

I am thinking that this could also emphasise the half-awake and half-asleep state which is common to trance, and some psychic-experiences: the state in which we gain further access to our subconscious. The moon could signify the half-asleep part, whilst the sun could signify the half-awake part.

TemperanceAngel

I like what you are saying there, Centaur, but I believe the parts that appear sun-like are the moons rays or energy or light or vibrancy or all of the above!
XTAX

WalesWoman

I really like the moon eclipsing the sun idea, it holds well with the general meaning I have of the Moon of things hidden, unclear and everything seem dim. I like the idea that it's twilight or 'gloaming', the change between night and day or the reverse, not enough light to see clearly. I hadn't thought of that before, so depending on surrounding cards and the question, it could mean either coming out of a state of some sort of confusion or soon to be entering one, or just hang in there, things will change. Another card with a similar background is the 2 of Swords. Early dawn, or almost night? From now on, when I see that color of sky it will remind me that the situation is a transcient one.

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