The following write-up for the Mother of Tides talismans (aka Mer-Moon-Mom) is a collaboration with my partner, astrologer Gray Crawford. We each wrote sections. First, you will find my section which synthesised from my understanding of Mother Moon in astrology, mythology and magic and came mostly through transmission and experiential gnosis.
The section titled An Astrological interpretation is written by Gray and brings an astrology-centered approach, which I am sure will be helpful for people who are looking for a clear and precise explanation of talismanic properties.
The Mer-Moon Mother of Tides Talismans
Moon is the Queen of the Night, the Mother of the Tides, and the Mediatrix between the eternal realm of the stars and our earthly world. As Mother of the Tides, she draws the life waters through the great body of the Earth, raising and calming its currents in an endless rhythm of generation. As Mediatrix, Moon casts her ladder of light among the stars, drawing their virtues into herself before carrying them down into the sublunary realm—our realm of matter. Thus her rightful title is Queen of the Night, for when Sun enters the underworld on his daily journey, she takes her throne in the court, which, empty during Sun's sitting, is suddenly populated by countless stars.
And all must pass through her to reach us.
Moon therefore governs our realm of material generation and corruption, where all earthly life is born, grows, declines, dies, and is renewed through the endless cycles of nature. While the light of the Sun that animates creation is self-generating, the Moon's light is reflective. She draws her light from the stellar rays. Where self-generating solar light eventually burns out and dies, Moon's light is never exhausted. For as long as there is light to receive, there is light to reflect.
This makes Her our exemplar of generation. Her creative force is inexhaustible because she is expert in drawing in, harnessing, and releasing stellar rays into generation.
This is flow.
In flow we learn that true mastery lies not in generating force, but in receiving, harnessing, and skillfully directing the forces already present. This is generation as a skill of reception, one taught to us by Mother Moon
Every living thing born into this realm has entered through the gate of generation over which she presides. Our magical texts tell us that all of life is infused with celestial intelligences. We are continually receiving their influences, whether we recognise them or not.
The stellar rays are RAW POWER. I don't need to explain the extent of planetary and stellar influences to astrologers—I would be preaching to the choir. We have long read the timing of worldly and personal affairs in the movements of the heavens. We know empires rise and fall, wars begin and end with the dance of the planets. Raw power can be explosive. Harnessed, it becomes generative.
In a solar-centred world we rarely stop to consider the extent of Mother Moon's influence. Take a moment to sit with this:
She receives the stellar virtues, channels them through her body, and releases them into generation. At the same time, she governs the waters. She raises tides, moves currents, shapes the rhythms of the great body we call Earth and of the bodies we inhabit.
We are mostly water.
We are vessels receiving her influence and her channelled stellar rays. There is no question of that. The question is, can we learn from Mother how to harness them, how to direct them, and how to bring them into generation rather than being swept along by their currents.
How to master the flow?
The stellar rays move through us, and we call this fate. What is ours is how we receive it, what we make of it, and whether we become conscious participants in generation. This is the difference between the deterministic astrologer and the magician who remembers they are also made of star stuff.
The second one is punk.
So rather than asking what the Moon gives us, let us instead learn from her how to become a vessel for directing flow within an interconnected cosmos. She provides us a reframe to the solar model upon which so much of Western culture is built: generate your own light, shine as an individual, burn brightly, even if, in the end, you burn out. Mother teaches another way.
The ‘MER’ part of Moon-Mom
The election for this talismanic working was during Moon hour on April 18, 2026 (Gray goes into full detail in his section below). The talismans are made in the image of a half-woman, half-fish, holding a mirror in one hand and a branch in the other—the medieval image for a Moon talisman found in the Liber sigillorum (Book of Sigils), traditionally attributed to Techel (Thetel). You can learn more about the talismans in the listings.
Offerings were made of incense, sparkling wine, bread, honey, milk, cheese, olives, cakes, water, a beeswax candle, white foods, eggs, and bluebell water prepared beneath the Full Moon.
We had been looking forward to this election for a long time, the chart promised exceptional beneficence and I am happy to report that it exceeded our expectations, most notable was the elevated atmosphere during and post election, we felt floaty, yet at the same time grounded.
Immediately following the election I received a transmission, which I will share in full with the talisman bearers in the accompanying booklet. It began with the image of a mermaid – a water elemental – full-breasted and overflowing with milk that was made evident to be the source of life nourishment. She spoke almost entirely of nurture and of the upmost importance of stilling the internal waters.
She spoke of how the body is mostly water. She spoke of how stellar rays move through us like emotions, emotions move like the tides. When the waters are disturbed they cannot reflect; when they become still they become a mirror. She repeatedly emphasised the importance of stilling the inner waters so they become like a mirror.
Interestingly since the transmission I have found this imagery echoed within the alchemical tradition: the twin-tailed siren, the flowing milk from her breast, the mirror. They also point toward a mystery of generation, nourishment, reflection, the soul, and the receptive power from which creation emerges.
In Azoth, sive Aureliae Occultae Philosophorum, an alchemical work published in 1613 and attributed to Basilius Valentinus, we find the Philosopher’s Siren. The verse accompanying her reads:
I am a goddess, exalted and delicate;
Within our sea I was born—
The sea that circles the entire earth
And never rests for even a moment.
From my tender, gracious breasts
I give forth milk and also red blood.
You must cook these two together
Until from them come silver and gold.
My equal cannot be found.
Blessed is the one who obtains me through art.
This is the Image of the Philosopher’s Siren
The Philosopher's Siren gives both milk and blood: the white lunar substance and the red solar substance, whose union brings forth silver and gold. What interests me is that while making this talisman, which bears a striking resemblance to the Philosopher's Siren, I felt distinctly directed to cover one of her breasts. The transmission, too, spoke only of milk, nourishment, and the abundant Mother. No blood was shown.
She therefore feels distinctly connected to the Philosopher's Siren yet specifically related to the white, nourishing current of Luna herself rather than the dual natured Alchemical Siren.
An Astrological interpretation
In astrology, the Moon reveals our lived experience, our changing feelings and thoughts, and the ways we relate and respond to others. She signifies the awareness that mediates between mind and body, as well as mothers, family, and the nurturing communities that sustain us. The Moon also governs our capacity to conceive, gestate, birth, and nourish creation in every form. She shows how we cultivate supportive relationships, develop empathy and compassion, and find belonging with those who share our affinities. In the Picatrix, the Moon is said to signify "the necessities in life that the fortunate desire."
For these reasons, an exalted Moon in Taurus talisman can enhance wellbeing and quality of life in countless ways. Supporting communication, travel, material resources, prosperity, health, and emotional resilience while cultivating the stability and security that allow life to flourish. The Moon not only attracts good fortune but also serves a protective function, shielding against harmful influences and safeguarding against adversaries. For practitioners of astrology, divination, and magic, a Moon talisman can strengthen intuition, divinatory skill, and magical practice. More broadly, it can strengthen personal efforts to cultivate greater self-worth and confidence in navigating the changing tides of life.
The exalted Moon in Taurus is especially beneficial for rising above the fluctuations of fortune with patience, steadiness, and emotional equilibrium. One of the strongest messages to emerge for Genie while crafting this Moon talisman was the importance of stilling the inner waters so that the mind becomes like a tranquil lake, clearly reflecting the luminous light of Luna. This inner serenity fosters practical insight by drawing awareness toward the material foundations of stability while revealing the concrete steps needed to cultivate and sustain them.
The election beautifully reflects these themes of stability, nourishment, and enduring support. Cast in the hour of the Moon, she occupies not only her exaltation but also her own face while applying toward the Midheaven in the tenth whole sign house. The Moon is angular, swift in motion, and enclosed by uplifting aspects from both benefics, each possessing strong essential dignity. The result is an exceptional election that magnifies the Moon's power to attract prosperity, protection, and overall wellbeing.
Only once every twelve years does Jupiter occupy his exaltation in Cancer, creating a rare opportunity for an exalted Moon talisman to receive the harmonious support of the great benefic from the Moon's own watery domicile. In this election, the Moon also occupies the bounds of Jupiter, adding further reception and amplifying Jupiter's benefic influence. Together they strengthen the talisman's capacity to foster material abundance, emotional security, physical and mental health, creative fertility, and the expansive vision needed to recognize new opportunities while cultivating the self-worth, consistency, and patience required to bring them to fruition.
The Moon is separating from Jupiter while applying to a conjunction with Venus in her earthy domicile of Taurus. Venus further enriches the fertile and enduring qualities of Taurus, increasing the talisman's capacity to cultivate stability across every sphere of life, including physical and emotional health, financial prosperity, creative productivity, and personal relationships. The Moon's applying conjunction with Venus also emphasizes beauty, joy, sensual pleasures, graceful expression, artistic inspiration, and adornment. Whether through creating a beautiful home, cultivating gratitude for life's simple pleasures, or strengthening self-worth in ways that support vocational growth, the Moon's enclosure between Jupiter and Venus magnifies the most life-giving qualities of her exaltation.
The Moon also appears in her waxing crescent light, emphasizing increase, growth, and the gradual cultivation of intentions into tangible form. This phase supports the steady development of material ambitions while drawing together the people, resources, and opportunities needed to bring aspirations to fruition. Her first appearance after conjunction with the Sun also resonates with the deeper symbolism of her exaltation at three degrees Taurus, following the Sun's exaltation at nineteen degrees Aries. Together, the exalted Sun and Moon embody the creative union of solar vitality and lunar fertility at the beginning of a new cycle of manifestation.
The lord of the Ascendant is the exalted Sun in Aries, rejoicing in the ninth house and blessing the bearer of the talisman with solar virtues including vitality, honor, magnanimity, intelligence, and a guiding sense of purpose.