First of all we have to remember that Sol and Luna constitute broad categories. Sol is of course the masculine element and Luna is the counterbalancing feminine. The idea is that these two forces or personas must be wedded together into one overall Entity. I capitalize "entity" because truly that is a state of perfection and attainment, which is godliness. God in Genesis is referred to as Elohim, which in Hebrew has both masculine and feminine connotations. God is not simply one or the other - he is both in perfect union. When Elohim creates man in his own image Adam comes first because God, being the active creative force in the universe, can be predominantly understood and conceptualized as masculine. Eve is second but being made of the same flesh as Adam should be understood to be his equal - at least in the original marital configuration. (It isn't until Eve sins that God declares her to be subservient to Adam.) It is through their marriage, however, that Adam and Eve are made into "one flesh," and are thereby made more perfect "as [their] Father in Heaven is perfect." This is a reference to one of Jesus's more vague commands since the definition of perfection is so ineffable and tenuous, but it certainly is necessary advice. Man is imperfect until he is made unified with his complement. Love being the only force that is capable of uniting the divided, it can be said that perfection is only attainable through the heat of love.
What I mean by "broad categories" is that Sol and Luna represent different things for different people. For the evidence of this we must turn to astrology. Everyone has a sun sign and a moon sign and these represent separate aspects of one's personality. In my case the sun was in Scorpio and the moon was in Leo at the time of my birth. Both of these accurately describe my overall personality. In my experience the moon sign is a weaker, less stable because more fluctuating, personality, and it is more subject to the themes and archetypes represented by the sun sign. The sun sign, however, is consistent though not without its own vices and issues. So everyone's case is different. Even two people who have the same signs in the same configuration will obviously not be the same person by virtue of their different experience, nor will their personal methods of development and growth be the same. Their True Wills are inherently different and must be so, otherwise they would be the same being - a clear fallacy. Put simply, the way a sign expresses itself in the nature of an individual is unique to that individual if only by virtue of the individual's indivisibility and universal centrality ("Every man and every woman is a star.")
In my experience, the worst elements of my sun sign - vengefulness, grudge holding, licentiousness, obsession, and depression - have always been more prominent and out of control in my life when my moon sign has equally been unsupported or misunderstood - in my case at times when I've felt unappreciated, unconfident, weak, too introverted, etc. It wasn't until I discovered more about my moon sign personality (particularly through the help of tarot and meditation, invoking of the HGA) and learned to ground this personality that the less useful and negative aspects of my sun sign started to also evaporate. (This is not to suggest that I've become perfect, by any means.) Sources of lifelong sadness and angst have started to melt away because of the growing strength of my lunar foundation. It's no coincidence that on the Tree of Life Luna is associated with Yesod, which translates to "foundation" in Hebrew. The path of Samekh (XIV Art, Sagittarius, the Arrow) that connects Luna in Yesod to Sol in Tiphareth on the Tree is associated with the Hermetic Marriage, and represents Nature, or Creation, as the union of opposites. We must exalt our personal psychological Eve so that we can also redeem Adam.
It's very much a process, of course - a long and natural one. And balance and moderation are crucial aspects of it. Crowley's commentary on XIV Art are revealing and perceptive into this metaphysical/psychological/natural process of self evolution. The basis for it is understanding of one's nature, particularly those parts of our nature which happen without our consent. There are many aspects of our behavior that simply happen with our without or conscious choosing of them. Represented by the moon in her "lower aspect," in other words in Yesod, it is important to wade through the sometimes nonsensical, phantasmagoric muck of the subconscious. I think the ultimate goal is to use the power of will or consciousness to wed the best aspects of Luna with the best aspects of Sol. "Love is the Law, Love under Will." The Marriage of Self must be a choice. Perhaps it can be suggested that this is one of the most divinely inspired or godlike decisions we can make regarding our own lives, as it was God's will that Self should be divided in the first place, and it is God's will that Self should be reunited and thereby redeemed. To imitate the divine will is to assume the identity of the Divine itself and to essentially become its equivalent. This represents an even higher spiritual marriage, that which exists between the Eternal Self, which is God, and the Temporal Self, which is the incarnated man in living in the body. Thus the highest is reconciled with the lowest and the road to Paradise is made clear.
The importance of this reconciliation is made clear by the traditional medieval text, "Virga Jesse," taken from Isaiah which reads:
Virga Jesse floruit:
Virgo Deum et hominem genuit:
pacem Deus reddidit,
In se reconcilians ima summis.
Alleluia.
The rod of Jesse hath blossomed:
A Virgin hath brought forth God and man:
God hath restored peace,
Reconciling in Himself the lowest with the highest.
Alleluia.
The Virgin is the equivalent of Malkuth, the Kingdom, Malkah the Bride. But the key phrase here is, "God hath restored peace, reconciling in Himself the lowest with the highest." In other words, through the Virgin's acceptance of the Divine Will (which in this case is reconciliation and unification) within herself (both through her statements, "As you say, let it be done to me," and, "Behold, I am the Handmaiden of the Lord," and through her literal physical acceptance of the Word/Will in her womb) the mystery of the Incarnation has been made possible, and it is through Christ's Incarnation that God has united the Divine and Human natures and has thereby established harmony - the basis of Creation and Redemption. The chaos of sin brought about by self ignorance and unwillingness to understand oneself is brought into check, allowing the individual the freedom to grow in the direction they were meant to grow in from the Beginning. This explains the attribution of XIV Art to Sagittarius, the sign of freedom and exploration, spirituality and philosophy. Perhaps it is no surprise that Sagittarius himself is both half man and half beast. It is certainly no surprise that his sign is the arrow, which is a glyph of the will, which is to say "love."
Not the best interpretation of this piece, but you get the idea.
"Virga Jesse" by Anton Bruckner
