Working with the phases of the Moon can be a meaningful part of a personal spiritual practice. As the Moon’s light waxes and wanes, we align different actions and intentions to its cycles.
The New Moon invites intention-setting and the beginning of new projects, while the waxing Moon supports steady growth as we take steps toward our goals. By the time the Moon reaches fullness, we have a chance to celebrate achievements and bring awareness to what we have accomplished.
When the Moon is fully illuminated, its light can help us explore shadow material and the subconscious—issues we might have been avoiding come into clearer view.
Here we explore the last quarter Moon in Libra (January 6, 2021) and offer a Tarot spread tailored to this phase: a Last Quarter Moon in Libra 3-card spread that can highlight what to release, what’s fading, and what to carry forward.
About the Last Quarter Moon
The last quarter Moon marks a waning phase when the Moon’s light diminishes and the focus shifts toward letting go, forgiveness, and clearing space. In Tarot, this phase resonates with the Judgement archetype from the Major Arcana, a card that prompts deep reflection.
Judgement appears late in the Fool’s journey, directly before the World, asking us to examine what we’ve carried with us—old patterns, emotions, and stories that have become part of our identity.
Are you ready to move beyond those parts of yourself? What keeps you holding on?
Both the card and this Moon phase encourage self-forgiveness for lingering guilt, fear, or doubt and ask what you are prepared to release so you can evolve.
What are you ready to leave behind, and how will that release create space for your next stage of growth?
Judgement’s energy can feel heavy or intense, but it also opens a pathway for honest awareness and meaningful change. With the transition into a new year and the larger planetary shifts that preceded it, many find this a potent moment for letting go.
About Libra & Justice
The Moon in Libra brings a Cardinal Air energy that pairs naturally with the Justice archetype. Libra seeks balance, harmony, and fairness, and Justice adds a strong element of clarity and ethical discernment to that pursuit.
Libra is often seen as the mediator that weighs different perspectives and aims for beauty and equilibrium. Justice, however, emphasizes seeing situations clearly and understanding how choices affect both ourselves and others.
How do you use your judgment and understanding? What do you accept as true, and how do those truths shape your actions?
When Judgement and Justice appear together, there’s a call to forgive yourself for past imbalances and to recognize where you hold power and where forces beyond you influence outcomes.
How are you adapting to change, growth, or loss? What are you ready to release in order to restore balance?
This last quarter Moon in Libra is a useful time to work with Tarot for clarity—identifying what to rebalance, what is fading from focus, and what to keep in mind as you move toward the next New Moon.
Last Quarter Moon in Libra 3-Card Tarot Spread
Any ritual you prefer can accompany this spread, but the three-card layout below is a straightforward way to explore what to release and what to carry forward. A sample reading follows to demonstrate how each position might be interpreted.
Card One: Something That is Finding Balance
Ace of Swords
The Ace of Swords represents clarity, insight, and a shift in perspective that can change everything. As a balancing card, it suggests the intellectual self is coming into alignment: new understanding, a decisive truth, or mental clarity that helps you make more grounded choices.
What new realizations have reshaped your view? How are you integrating thought and feeling, head and heart?
Card Two: Something That is Fading
Maiden of Pentacles
The Maiden of Pentacles (or Page of Pentacles) symbolizes beginnings, curiosity, and steady effort. In the position of something fading, it may indicate that a beginner’s stance or an overly modest self-image is ready to be released. You may be moving from learning into ownership of your skills and experience.
How is your view of yourself shifting? What seeds you planted have grown enough to harvest, and what stories about your limitations can you let go of?
Card Three: Something to Carry Forward
6 of Cups
The 6 of Cups reflects memory, emotional roots, and the past’s gifts. As something to carry forward, it asks you to honor the foundations—relationships, joys, and support systems—that have nourished you and continue to shape your choices.
Which connections and memories provide emotional grounding? How can you preserve and build on those foundations as you move into a new cycle?
You don’t have to abandon your origins when you grow; instead, consider how to integrate enduring values and supports into your next chapter.
Embrace Moon Tarot
As this last quarter Moon in Libra arrives, reflect on the balance between Justice and Judgement. Consider what you are being called to release and what you should keep. Notice how personal shifts affect the collective, and where objective clarity can help you let go of what no longer serves.
Featured card images in this post are from the Lumina Tarot. Photographs by Meg Jones Wall.