The New Moon perfects at 6:56 PM of the 2nd at 11 Virgo 04. Long-time readers know I like to keep aspects tight, in order to get a crisp, unmuddied picture of the event and what it means; in this case, the New Moon makes only a single, wide aspect to other major transiting bodies: a loose opposition to Saturn in Pisces. This is epic, in its own way. A New Moon in Virgo means new beginnings in matters of accountability and the results of our efforts, a ‘clean sweep’ of old methods and previous allotment of assets. Our intentions turn toward getting a clear accounting of responsibilities, what we have, distribution of ‘the harvest’, and accurate critique that focuses on details, especially around the practical and material (Earth sign). Saturn in Pisces has been a trip on its own: fantasies brought to life, delusions shut down, materialization of ideals, and uncertainty about the future, rooted in the inability to see the present clearly. Now, these energies face new and revelatory emotional perceptions, with feeling applying a critical eye to What Is.

These sets of energy, Sun-New Moon and Saturn, oppose each other, and what we might see is a denial of reality, even as one inspects things intently, sifting through circumstances with a fine-toothed comb; we could also see an end (for now) to attempts at meeting the real world with creativity (or, for some, unrealistically), supplanted by a commitment to sort responsibility and reward and distribute these among appropriate parties. One way or another, the emotions that come forward interfere with making dreams real; if you find yourself being hyper-critical (especially if this isn’t your usual MO), you can be sure that the feeling nature is trying to speak, to get your attention, to re-balance what you see as possible, and what you imagine as ideal.

With such a generalized picture, I naturally wanted to see what asteroids where involved with this event, how contacts from the realm of the gods might shape the reassessment of reality. The New Moon is conjoined Apollo, suggesting the power of solar energies like identity and Self-expression, and perhaps a hyper-focus on the Self and the personal feelings (and especially of being critical of them–Virgo)–which can, Saturn-like, limit ones ability to take in information and/ or be relatively objective. Apollo is a figure who’s fairly insistent on having his own way, so keep that potential for too narrow processing/ too constricted attention in mind.

Sisyphus and Narcissus are conjoined in Scorpio, with both sextile the New Moon. Here again we see insistent focus on the Self, to the point of being mesmerized by one’s own Beingness (Narcissus) and/ or persisting in tasks better re-evaluated or abandoned (Sisyphus). This is complimented by a sextile from Dionysus in Cancer, a god known for granting a sense of freedom through pleasure and indulgence. Maybe we end up needing a break from scrutiny of ourselves; Dionysian escapes include religious ecstasy, insanity, attendance at festivals, sex and other expressions linked to fertility (including tending one’s garden), and drinking a lot of wine–so choose carefully. Are these a good idea? Could be, if such license helps us accept the reality we’re seeing. The danger would lie in letting the escape disconnect us from what we need to see, evaluate, and feel.

Then there’s Persephone square to the New Moon (and so forming a T-square with Sun-Moon at one end of the opposition and the Earth widely conjoined Saturn at the other) and Aphrodite quincunx the New Moon. The T-square suggests we have a choice: will we remain above-ground, so to speak, dealing with the surface world (and possibly experiencing the interference of someone nurturing and controlling, as Persephone did with her mother, Demeter, also known as Ceres), enmeshed with material productivity and ‘the harvest’, or will we choose to delve into the Underworld, committing to the experience of learning about ourselves? In either case we are, if not subservient to, then certainly ‘partnered’ with others of great power, which can be both an impediment to what we need and a distraction.

Pluto, planet of power, is retro at 29 Capricorn, implying that our involvement with and awareness of the power of others is at a crisis point (and may be what drives us to concentrate on ourselves, on what we actually can control), though our ability to understand those exerting their power is obscured, and so not necessarily accurate (Neptune at 29 Pisces, sextiling Pluto and so facilitating a perceptual or creative crisis). The contact to Aphrodite, the Greek counterpart to Venus, implies we must continually re-adjust (the quincunx) the relationship and/ or asset picture at this time–and considering how difficult parsing out our attention could be, we just might want to pour that drink or pick up a trowel, and try to maintain enough perceptual distance that our judgement isn’t completely out of whack.

The Sabian for the New Moon is, ‘After The Wedding, The Groom Snatches The Veil Away From His Bride’. First of all, rude. But, this may give us a glimpse into the kind of aggressive energy we’ll have to deal with; even as we want to assess ourselves and our situation, we get some entitled goon grabbing at us, in an attempt to ‘reveal’ us. Whatever point they think they’re making, the only result is they fail to look at themselves, and succeed in distracting us from whatever new tack the New Moon shows us we need to take. A fresh way to measure ourselves and our accomplishments is the New Moon in Virgo goal; how we get there will be a lesson in focus and Self-control, and how much of that is too much.