If Venus is Taylor Swift’s Fearless era, then Lilith is the pop princess’ dark dive into her Reputation. As told in Jewish folklore, Lilith was Adam’s first wife in the Garden of Eden. Refusing to be subservient to her husband (and his constant need for sex and snacks), Lilith grew wings and flew away from the normative, stifling “paradise” of the garden. Not even angels sent by God could convince Lilith to return to Adam, and it is said that she still roams the Earth, haunting-and faceflow search even demonizing-women until they decide to free themselves. “Look What You Made Me Do” is right. Lilith is the archetypal rebellious woman. She is our instinctual side; the part of us that is unfiltered and uncontrollable. The inspiration for Sarah MacLachlan’s Lilith Fair, she contains multitudes. She’s a b*tch, a lover, a child and a mother. A sinner and a saint: she doesn’t feel ashamed. Still confused? Read on.
So what is Lilith in our astrological chart?
Though the name Lilith has been associated with at least four different cosmic points and objects-from a Lilith asteroid to a Lilith satellite discovered in the 1600s, which turned out to be a piece of dust on an astronomer’s telescope-and you may come across information on all of them if you were to late night Google “Lilith in astrology,” we’re going to focus on what has come to be called Black Moon Lilith, which is the Lunar Apogee or the dark side of the moon.
The moon moves around the earth in an elliptical shape and the apogee (Black Moon Lilith) is the point where the moon is farthest from earth during this orbit. Black Moon Lilith is not an object, but a point: a purely lunar realm where the moon is in isolation from everything else.
In our chart, Lilith describes where we value free will over inclusion, where we go our own way. Lilith is where we aren’t willing to compromise. This part of our chart is where we can access femininity not as a projection that seeks to please (especially to please men), but as a state of divine creation. Our Lilith placement is where we cut the bullsh*t so we can get to the heart of the matter. To expand on a previous analogy, Lilith isn’t only the rageful explosion of reputation, she’s also the comforting, genre-bending exploration of Taylor’s folklore. Lilith is where we let go of the myth of upward mobility and focus on the radical act of just being ourselves. She’s non-linear and she doesn’t give a f***.
How to find Lilith in your chart
You can use this calculator from the AstroTwins, which calculates all of the various Lilith points. The one we’re focusing on-and reading for in the next section-is True Lilith (or the True Osculating Lunar Apogee). This is the point that honors the dark moon’s wobbly, wavy orbit and, in our opinion, best represents her true wild woman, catch-me-if-you-can attitude. Though we don’t usually like to equate the signs with the different houses in an astrological chart, for the purposes of Lilith and our list, it’s useful to read for both.
Lilith in Aries or the 1st House
With so much emphasis put on personal branding and self-promotion in our society, having Black Moon Lilith in Aries puts you at a disadvantage. You know that true identity and individuation can’t be packaged and tied up with a neat little bow and you want to show the world all of the messy, chaotic parts of yourself. You are both an amazing entrepreneur with a unique point-of-view (that comes to you effortlessly) and also someone who deeply struggles with your image. What is it to be somebody anyway? You can find balance through partnerships that reflect your ideas and values back to you. Seek out people who aren’t afraid to respond when you ask hard questions.
