THE MOON, by Jules Cashford

Jules Cashford
The Moon
Myth and Image

What is there in thee, Moon!
that thou shouldst move
My heart so potently?
—KEATS

With its subtle light illuminating the night sky, the Moon has always been an object of fascination for humanity. The earliest record of the Moon and her cycles is attributed to humans in the Paleolithic age, when it was used to measure lengths of time greater than 24 hours. While early humans and the generations that followed feared and worshipped the moon as an image of time and eternity, it also gained importance as a regulator of human activity, specifically the female menstrual cycle and therefore fertility and birth.

In this authoritative volume, Jules Cashford explores the myths, symbols, and poetic images of the moon throughout history. She traces our customs and secular events back to their sacred lunar source, providing a startling perspective on the genesis of human thought and behavior. Cashford brings her readers into a discussion of modern day associations with the moon via the past, including the moon's control over the ocean's tides: the Hindu moon god Soma was called "lord of the waters;" in Ancient Rome the moon's phases were linked to the weather; and 1500 years later Markham in The English Husbandman linked the moon to rain. Our association between lunar rhythms and the ocean's tides is a natural outgrowth of historical precedent.

Accompanied by 176 exquisite illustrations, The Moon investigates how the lunar image helped shape our mind. More importantly, it examines what these myths and images tell us about our own consciousness.

Jules Cashford, co-author of the best-selling The Myth of the Goddess and the author of The Myth of Isis and Osiris, is a member of the International Association of Analytical Psychology and lives in Cambridge, England.

Order this featured book
online at a discount from

Website design by JERRY ENGELBACH