Category Archives: astrology

New Moon in Virgo 14 September 2023: The Shock of Reality

11 Monday Sep 2023

Posted by in astrology, current events in the sky, forecast, New Moon, Sabian Symbols

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‘In the Magic Garden’ By Paul Klee 1926 {{PD}}

There’ll be an accounting, with this New Moon in Virgo (6:39 PM PDT of the 14th at 21 Virgo 58), one that lays out what really is, who owes what to whom, what resources are available to us, and what assets and assistance we’re lacking. It’s a point when we get things straight after a Venus retro period that was, in its own way, dazzling–as in Venus in Leo backtracking had us wrapped up in our own heads. We were meant to be Self-focused–but now it’s time to get some perspective, a nuts-and-bolts inventory of matters in general, and our emotional state in particular, that this New Moon promises to deliver.

Are we ready for this? The New Moon’s trine to Uranus in Earth signs says, no; the material world will easily present us with a shock, surprise, revelation, or needless rebellion (with this latter, perhaps us from the group, or the group from us!) that reveals our actual position. This will, by definition, be something we can’t anticipate. During the retro we were thinking about, mulling over, measuring our assets in all forms, and considering where this places us in our world–but now we find there’s something we missed, were unaware of, or didn’t count–and remember, this is coming ahead of the Mercury direction, so may push us to act or draw conclusions too early, when there are still things to be revealed.

Let’s call this an interlude when we gather information (or rather, it comes at us! Like it or not). And that trine to Uranus is it, in terms of relevant major aspects. I suspect, though, that our attention won’t really be on the New Moon energy, at least not immediately–we may instead be focused on Venus-Juno conjoined in Leo (an attention hang-over from the retro, perhaps) square Jupiter in Taurus (which of course has the potential to blow anything it touches out of proportion). This says we’re still preoccupied with our personal empowerment and our personal status, still trying to work out our appropriate place, our public standing.

Hello! Wake up! That’s over–at this point if continued it becomes navel-gazing, with a guarantee that you’ll miss important revelations if you continue to ponder a la Venus retro. The New Moon will deliver a status report, a clear accounting of where we are. No need to try to read the auguries–the info will be printed out, bullet-pointed, spreadsheeted, so–obvious, obvious, obvious–if we’re willing to look up and take in what’s happening/ shown us.

Also there’s Sedna, Vesta, Pallas at 00 (Sedna trine Pallas, Vesta square Pallas), and these are in various states of contact with Pluto and Ceres very late in Cardinals. This is a lot of ricocheting energy, predominantly Cardinal and Air, and some of us may find ourselves distracted by this, this anxious urge to do do do that dominates thought. What we need to see is that some things are ending (Pluto and Ceres as ways of doing, as forms of power expression) and some things are too new to their energies to be sure how to express (Sedna as an awakening of instincts and the surfacing of things we ‘know but don’t know’, Pallas as wisdom, practicality, and skills, Vesta as awareness of what we truly honor), and that means, again, that we still take time to consider, to look before we leap.

The New Moon Sabian is, ‘A Royal Coat Of Arms Enriched With Precious Stones’. A Coat of Arms is covered in shorthand, symbols, for identity–exactly how the Universe will inform each of us at this time as to what, precisely, we have and have become, using symbology that is familiar to us. Too, a Coat of Arms doesn’t represent just one person, but a group of them, related, somehow–so we’re back to that Uranian potential for our position in the group to be part of what we discover, part of what we now function under/ call ourselves/ identify with.

I want to mention what the Moon and then days later the Sun will contact, as a preview of possible near-future developments. That’s a quincunx to Eris-North Node in Aries, just as Moon, then Sun, opposes Neptune. This hints at tensions that crop up as we pursue our path–and then have to face an illusion, a challenged ideal, a creative or spiritual matter, that requires us to know ourselves (Aries) better than we probably do–because otherwise, where would the tension, the conflict, the challenge come from? The New Moon will introduce some facet of what we may face–so consider it getting a head start on what you’ll soon have to deal with.

Pointing Out the Magic, Pointing Out the Poison

07 Thursday Sep 2023

Posted by in astrology, current events in the sky, Finger of God

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‘The Magic Mantle’ By Isobel Lilian Gloag 1898 {{PD}}

Neptune is involved with a pair of Fingers of God, once as apex, once in the base, but both times posing a question: how much of what we think we know is real? We have the Black Moon Lilith point in Leo sextile Ceres in Libra, with Neptune in Pisces apex, suggesting that those things we’ve ignored or denied, those things we’ve crushed down and hoped not to have to deal with (and they’re things about who we are, they concern what makes us shine, what we present to others as a genuine way of Being–Leo), combined with our sense of personal authority and autonomy, those instances and circumstances in which we call the shots, hold power, or have the power to negotiate, and this may involve areas where we hold sway over others (particularly the partner or spouse–Libra). Our personal authority meets those things about ourselves we’d rather pretend don’t exist–and voila! We are either shown how we have met these challenges in ways that conform to our ideals, in a perfection of the spiritual and the creative, or we are shown how misguided we have been, how we have fooled ourselves–and in each case, we are given the way to make the most of where we find ourselves.

The other Finger has a base of Neptune with Pluto in Capricorn, apex the Black Moon Lilith point. Here are related energies, and so related opportunities, in this case to take what we find, the magic of the ideal within us, or the poison of delusion we’ve accidentally consumed, and we have the chance to transform it, with the way out via Black Moon Lilith–that is, the way out is through, found in confronting whatever it is we’ve been avoiding.

I hear a groan rising through the ether. We are tired; we need rest, and positivity, and a sense of hope, you might assert–and I agree, though I would say that what we really need is positivity that reflects the real: real assets, real talents, our most genuine qualities, and a sense of hope that isn’t waiting for rescue, but that is instead founded in our own willingness to embrace the power and make the transformation happen ourselves (Pluto in Capricorn). These Fingers are pointing the way: to what we are, what we need to do, to what we can become. That’s a very useful and promising place to find ourselves.

Pallas is also opposed Neptune=if we’re willing to set aside our fantasies, to see clearly, to be practical, willing to accept that certain kinds of magic are real and that the ideal really can be our daily guide, we’ll have direct access to wisdom, within and without, a set of directions aimed at a successful harvest and accounting (Pallas in Virgo).

There are actually two other Fingers of note: Neptune sextile Uranus, apex South Node-Zeus, and Black Moon Lilith sextile Vesta, apex Pluto. With Neptune-Uranus we are given the sudden revelation, one based in ideals or in our own creative outreach to the Universe, which together offer reassessment of the past and how that shaped/ shapes our desire nature and current ambitions, especially concerning aesthetics, the Arts, and/ or our partnerships or romantic relationships (SN-Zeus in Libra). We’re offered a chance to perhaps change our interpretation of our own past behaviors; I would hope that means we will judge ourselves more kindly than we might’ve previously.

With BML and Vesta we see how those things we’ve avoided dealing with on the domestic scene, in our most serious and passionate commitments, and in those matters we find sacred, have become somehow unavoidable at this point–and we are seeing it’s a do-or-die moment, a time to come clean, transform the energy into something powerful (because the Truth will always generate an incredible engine for righteous change), a time to make permanent improvements, or to get rid of some troublesome issue entirely (Pluto as apex).

We also have Eris conjoined the North Node in Aries, which may give us the impression that making change will stir up a veritable sh*t storm–but the only sh*t flying will be stuff that needed to come out in the open and so lose it’s stink. We may fear anything that makes others angry is our fault, but that’s just one of those Aries-tinged egotisms–people will be angry on their own, without any help from us. Not totally reassuring, but we should proceed knowing that fear of what might come out is overblown, and the need for it to come out is overdue.

Mercury is still retrograde through midday Pacific time of the 15th, so we’re going to have to remain aware the thinking may be unreliable until Merc’s in good forward motion, but Venus has recently gone direct, so that the feeling nature may be freshly tuned-up and ready to go–especially when those sensitivities are applied to the Self (Venus in Leo). Uranus has recently gone retro; with the slower bodies those shifts in direction are more subtle, the station-change-station pattern playing out over more time, and so not felt as acutely. In this case Uranus is backtracking in Taurus and perhaps bringing our attention to material matters we haven’t really been seeing the actual state of or details surrounding, particularly those related to the matters of the natal House where Uranus is currently in transit. There will be some surprises, of course, some shocks, a few revelations–but what we must avoid is bullheaded pushing forward, rebellion for rebellion’s sake, that can become so tempting with Uranus in retrograde, and especially when Uranus makes hard contact during that backward journey to other transiting bodies (that affects all of us) or to our natal placements (a little static electricity generated just for us).

A Lunar Portrait of Jimmy Buffett

05 Tuesday Sep 2023

Posted by in Assets and Talents, astrology, Astrology and Identity, Astrology of Careers Vocations and Callings, Current Events, Moon in the Natal Chart

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This is an excerpt from my upcoming Moon book—thought any Parrot heads out there might enjoy it.

4th House Moon: What You See Is Not What He Is: Jimmy Buffett

We see the House ruled by the Moon, in this case the 10th of career and public image, functioning as a successful outlet very clearly in the chart of musician Jimmy Buffett (25 December 1946, 1:08 AM CST, Pascagoula Mississippi USA). ‘Parrot heads’ (as his fans are known) are generally older individuals (‘Boomers’) with establishment/ professional positions who, at least theoretically, long for and identify with the eternal beach bum lifestyle that Buffett sold–and sell he did: Buffett commanded a capitalist empire of merchandise and concert dates worth many hundreds of millions, highly appropriate for a 4th House Moon in Capricorn opposed a Cancer Midheaven who peddles easy livin’–in this case, what you see (Cancer MC) is not what you get, between the Cappy Moon and Sun (which are separating, just a little more than a day past New Moon status), Pallas, and Mars, with Pallas conjoined the Moon=the feeling nature and intuition contain both wisdom and practicality, and Mars conjoined the Sun=the ‘I Am’ doesn’t hesitate to fulfill the Soul’s intents, and to do so in concrete forms/ material expressions (Capricorn). In many ways, Buffett was all business. He may have been the first individual to successfully create a brand built around a persona and then merchandise it sustainably for almost fifty years in every way possible, from resorts to kitchen wares.

The Moon is sextile the 2nd House Venus-Jupiter, making up the base to a loose Finger of God with 9th House Uranus in Gemini as apex. Uranus rules the 5th of creative output, while Venus rules the 1st of Self and the 8th of others and the resources they share, while Jupiter rules the thought and communication 3rd=was all about telling others who he is, exaggerating, and thereby gaining—so doubly ironic that the easy-going, always tipsy, life-in-the-sunshine image is completely belied by that Capricorn Sun-Mars, a hard-driving, nose-to-the-grindstone combo if there ever was one. With Sun and Moon in the 4th and ruled by 11th House Saturn, we know that inside Buffett likely saw himself as a serious businessman, first and foremost, and he derived emotional and financial security, expression, and satisfaction from this, at least in part by playing so well the tropical transplant with no responsibilities.

The way Venus-Jupiter ruler Pluto is widely conjoined Saturn in Leo enhances the connection to the material, perhaps endowing the Self-image presented (Pluto rules the 2nd) with a serious note—or one that promises transformation, through consumption of his ‘product’ and validation of his approach. Also interesting is the way the Sun-Mars sextile to Chiron is base to another Finger, this one with apex natal Vertex. This suggests fulfillment of the ‘I Am’, the identity and the purpose, as filtered through the perspective of hurt and experience, forms the fate—so we have to ask, is there any truth to the carefree but just a little sad image, the ‘loved and lost and now chillin’ in the sun’ persona? Yes, there may be: Neptune, planet of imagination, drink, and dreams is in the Libra (sign of relationships) 1st, above the horizon, this position hinting that his creative interpretation of drowning love troubles in sun and alcohol might at the very least feel real to him, making the facade a reflection of some not-quite-conscious idea Buffett had about himself.

The Moon is apex to yet another Finger, with base of Zeus and Uranus. Again, the emotional satisfaction from communicating (Uranus in Gemini) his beliefs/ philosophy around how to get through life (9th House), but Zeus in Leo in the 11th means there’s an ego payoff, as well, one that fulfills a goal or dream—which we can interpret as involving Love, Money, or both, with Zeus’ close square to Venus. The image he presents focuses on an ‘unlucky in love’ theme, which shows in a loose Fist of God, base of Venus square Zeus, apex Eris. This is an instance where Eris in a man’s chart takes on the function of casting blame, specifically on the women he loves and loses—and it suits his ambitions, makes that image shine, to a ‘T’ (Zeus in Leo). This is echoed in the opposition of Zeus to Ceres; there was no way to achieve his ambitions and goals without the foil of strong, smart, independent women (Ceres in Aquarius)–though to his credit, Buffett always copped in the end to the whole thing being, in his words, his “own damn fault”.

What did Buffett need to be wary of? Selling his Soul. A 29 degree Vesta in Pisces in the 6th suggests it was imperative he keep duties, obligations, and what he honored in focus. This squares the Sun, upping the danger that if he strayed from his core Self (Capricorn energy, that he carries deep inside—4th House–and sees as truly defining who he is) what results would, at the very least, be unwise or impractical, shown by the other close aspect to Vesta, a sextile from Pallas. Some might assume that such a strong embrace of capitalism automatically qualifies as Soul-loss, but when one values hard work and the things one can get from it, as a Capricorn Sun-Moon surely does, then pursuit of worldly profit actually means one is following the spiritual path appropriate for the individual. By all accounts, Buffett navigated things well, without noteworthy scandal or leaving a string of enemies in his wake—in fact, upon announcement of his death just a few days ago, tributes to his kindness and generosity came from many who knew and clearly loved him. We should all be so attuned to our natural energies, as living in harmony with ourselves is the most fulfilling thing we can do.

Full Moon 30 August 2023: A Period of Adjustment

28 Monday Aug 2023

Posted by in astrology, current events in the sky, Full Moon, Sabian Symbols

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‘Morning Fog’ By Jasper Francis Cropsey 1854-55 {{PD}}

The Full Moon perfects at 6:35 PM PDT of the 30th at 7 Pisces 25, and it makes only a handful of aspects: a quincunx to Juno in Leo, a sesquiquadrate to Zeus-Ceres in Libra, and a novile to Pluto in Capricorn. That’s a goodly amount of Cardinal energy working on a Watery, nebulous Lunar energy infused with a fiery bit of egoism–and all of it through the more subtle mechanisms of less pronounced aspect relationships. That makes the events surrounding the lunation emotion-heavy and personally focused to a greater degree than usual.

A Full Moon brings to culmination some matter either related to the sign in which it occurs, or to the matters of the natal House where it falls, with specifics added by any close aspects it makes to natal placements. That specificity is why a general overview only goes so far (and, I think, contributes to the idea, fed by those familiar only with Sun sign horoscopes, that astrology is superstition, rather than what it really is, a language–one we’ve barely begun to decipher–through which the Universe itself communicates).

The Full Moon in Pisces promises endings related to illusions, delusions, dreams, ideals, or a creative effort (and the fact that it’s the second Full Moon of the month, termed a Blue Moon, really doesn’t matter–the movements of the planets–to include the tilt and orbit of the Earth around the Sun–are Nature’s calendar, not a man-named month). As we know, endings don’t arrive solo–they always contain the seeds of the next thing (or at least, they make space for it, with surrounding energies poised to fill that vacuum we hear so much about Nature abhorring).

The quincunx to Juno gives us our theme: personal empowerment. Something about what occurs shows us how we must adjust (the quincunx) to keep or enhance our ability to direct our own life and make our own choices. It’s fueled by Fire (Juno in Leo), probably making us feel we must do something, even though the matter is perceived through the emotions and intuition in a direct pipeline from the Universe (Moon in Pisces), and so may demand we process it thoroughly, as much as it calls for action. Feeling strongly the impetus behind the Creative (Pisces) may only add to our sense that we need to actively address matters, with the sesquiquadrate to the pairing of Zeus-Ceres in Libra entangles events and the issues they stir with ambitions and level of personal authority we enjoy in relationships–where we see those need adjustment, too (the sesquiquadrate).

Think of what happens around this Moon as a fact-finding opportunity where we are quite naturally able to interpret creative and effective solutions or approaches; then the challenge becomes having the courage to make permanent, irrevocable transformation or change, or to eliminate something that has outlived its time in our sphere (aspect to Pluto). We should be assured that our ideas of how to respond with power and grace are inspired ones (the novile). That means there’s nothing to be afraid of–and that if we don’t make the needed changes, Pluto will reach out and start trimming and shaping without our consent.

The Sabian for the Full Moon is, ‘A Girl Blowing A Bugle’. So this is a call to action, mustering our creativity in service to our ideals and imagination. The Sabian for the Sun, giver of light, is, ‘A Five-Year-Old Child Takes A First Dancing Lesson’. This image suggests we may feel we’re beginning at the beginning, likely in terms of what fills the void left by what the Full Moon ends or eliminates; that can be frustrating and even discouraging, but only if we are judging ourselves with a big ‘should’ that says we must be further along, further developed, on this particular path. That’s an attitude that will drain us and is guaranteed to stop progress. I suggest we abandon our ‘shoulds’ and our ideas around where we must be in life according to our judgments about age and skill, and instead embrace this new thing as a child would: seeing it as a new world to explore, a place of opportunity, and for the older among us, a reminder that ageless living (that is, living life without constant reference to one’s biological age, and all the shoulds that accompany that) really is the ideal.

Some of you may question why I’ve not included the wide conjunction to Saturn that the Full Moon makes–in my opinion, it’s too far past to ‘speak’ within the Lunar picture. It does suggest a situation that restricts one’s freedom, license, or creativity, or some sort of restriction or denial, leads up to the Full Moon event, probably making us aware of a way in which we’re not being fulfilled, with the FM bringing home emotional impact of this, and then making clear what must change in order to move closer to our desires, or to achieving our ambitions (sesquiquadrate to Zeus). The potential novile to Chiron is also a bit too wide–suggesting that hurt feelings aren’t necessary, so if you see any displayed, they may be more of an indulgence or attempt to manipulate.

Special note for those with placements between 6 and 9 Libra: that adds this natal energy as base, with Juno in Leo, to a Finger of God with the Full Moon as apex. This suggests your empowerment quandary will precede the Full Moon, that the Full Moon will bring an emotional result that illuminates the ways in which the expression of that natal energy is or isn’t calling its own shots. This is likely to impact your identity and your relationships (Leo, Libra)–so proceed with that in mind.

Have a wonderful Full Moon!

Mercury Retrograde 23 August 2023: Look To The Moon

23 Wednesday Aug 2023

Posted by in astrology, current events in the sky, Mercury retrograde, Retrogrades + Directions

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‘Reaching for the Moon’ By Edward Mason Eggleston {{PD}}

Mercury has just begun one of its periodic apparent backward journeys, at 21 Virgo 51, right around 1 PM Pacific time–so we brace for the usual reviews, retreads, reorientations, reminiscences, and with any luck, can avoid most potential regrets, by proceeding with the awareness that the mind is not a suitable device for understanding or comprehending at this time. That awareness, this time around, is doubly difficult to grasp, since the retro happens in one of Merc’s own signs, the earthy but mentally-attuned Virgo. We feel the urge (and our surroundings naturally prompt us) to use thoughts to discern the truth, rightness, or validity of things, and yet that’s the very instrument we should avoid using!

Using the mind is especially seductive as Mercury turns around and runs right back into the arms of Pallas, which will be the first major non-lunar contact after retro. That says we’ll try our damnedest to be smart about things, to access wisdom, to be practical, to respect our own skill set–and yet we are doomed not to see things clearly–the song that plays during every Mercury retrograde.

We’re hobbled by the unexpected; normally during a retrograde of the Messenger we can turn to the feeling nature of Venus for perceptual info, for using the barometer of what’s dear to us to make our choices fit a context we can’t quite otherwise see–but now we suffer from Venus retrograde, as well, and that just sends us looking for another faculty with which to assess the landscape.

We find it in Luna. The Moon offers us a more fluid feeling ability (it’s in Scorpio as Mercury starts to back up) and it throws in the bonus of intuition, accurate if the Moon’s not aspecting something in our natal chart that’s reactionary in the presence of emotion and emotional perception. This suggests that we should look to our own inner emotional tides for illumination of other circumstances; rather than thinking, we go within and feel, trusting our emotional perceptions to convey the information we need, that we’d normally glean from the mind.

This can be harrowing, especially for those who are ‘married to their minds’ (have lots of natal Air placements), but should provide a field day for those who are Water-attuned; they’ll quite literally be ‘in their element’. I would suggest that as the Moon progresses during the approximate 3 weeks of retrograde we continue to check its position, and particularly the sign it’s in, daily; though the Scorpionic urge to depth of feeling echoes throughout the Merc retro period, the daily placement of Luna will add its own qualities and viewpoint to our attempts to process information, and conscious awareness of these qualities will only help us navigate and get the most from our intuitions and feelings. And, if the transiting Moon at any point forms a hard aspect to a natal point or placement, you will know that for a few hours ideas and impulses around the placement’s concepts or related to House matters may be unreliable, overly emotional–so that you can then defer related choices until the Moon passes.

It’s notable that the Scorpio Moon in the Merc retro chart is opposed Uranus and essentially forming a T-square with the Black Moon Lilith point. Be ready during the retro for emotional revelation, for the surprising and unusual, for those things ignored or denied to arise once again and demand attention–and look to the material realm (Taurus) for the messages it sends, the symbolisms it lays at our feet. The same rules apply: use feeling, use intuition, use emotional intelligence (otherwise known as maturity) to the greatest extent possible, and you’ll come out the other side of the retro if not unscathed, at least much much wiser.

Expect a difficult, emotionally tense situation on the day of Mercury’s Inferior Conjunction with the Sun, 6 September. It’s a new seed point for something driven by feeling, as indicated by the transiting Moon’s square from Gemini to the Sun-Merc combo (and at this point Venus will have stationed direct, perhaps giving us access to the feeling nature in a way that makes us think it’s an ‘all clear’ for making decisions). The temptation will be to believe the head over the intuition–just remember that things processed mentally now will be missing some key information, or we will be unaware of some important circumstance, that might otherwise change our assessment of them.

When Mercury stations direct, on 15 September 2023, it does so at 8 Virgo 00, primed to be sextiled by the Moon, once again in Scorpio, on the 18th, but otherwise not forming any aspect anytime soon. We may have to feel our way in the post-direction period, as well, with the themes of depth and change still present from retro times–and that suggests we might almost undergo a purge of sorts, a re-making and re-forming of our feeling sensibilities, by the time all is said and done.

New Moon in Leo 16 August 2023: Standing Up for (and to) Yourself

14 Monday Aug 2023

Posted by in astrology, current events in the sky, New Moon, Sabian Symbols

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‘Lady Standing at a Virginal’ By Jan Vermeer van Delft c1670-1672 {{PD}}

The New Moon occurs on 16 August at 2:38 AM PDT at 23 Leo 17, and forms a tight square to Uranus in Taurus, effectively making a T-square (when we include the always-opposed-to-the-Sun Earth in Aquarius). The tension involves our life direction, the surroundings this has resulted in, and sudden surprises or revelations about these, particularly about how the environment has been either Self or group generated. A Leo New Moon primes us to become aware of fresh feelings or intuitions about the role of the Self, about the identity, and specifically who we have become, with the dissonance of the T-square pointing to disparities between what we expected to become, the measure of our once ambitions and desires, and what we’ve actually made of our life (NM sextile Zeus-South Node), especially the identity we carry, both the one we see ourselves as having, and the one(s) the group may assign us or see us as fulfilling.

The New Moon forms just before the Black Moon Lilith point. That suggests the lunation brings a kind of dawning realization, accompanied by growing feeling, around some matter of equal treatment, particularly where you are being seen as ‘less than’. Leo can be prideful, too Self-involved, and way too Self-reverential, but it can also be healthy ego, the kind that reminds you you’re on (or should be on) an equal footing with others, and gives you the positive Self-regard that allows you to speak up, ask for what you need, and set boundaries–all very necessary, challenged only by those who will lose their advantage when you respect and honor yourself. This is reinforced by the NM’s sextile to Vesta; if you can muster the Self-respect it will become abundantly clear what you must invest your energy in, what you must honor.

Luna and Sol also form a semi-sextile to Mars=here’s the energy, related to the Warrior instinct, or maybe survival instinct, that can fuel Self-assertion, and deal with the identity/ role issues that will inevitably arise. And lastly, the New Moon trines the combo of Chiron-Eris-North Node=this is a potent grouping that could easily (the trine) lead us into reacting to circumstances with hurt or vengeful thoughts, but we need to remain aware that would shape the future–and nobody deliberately creates disaster (even as I write that, though, I think of the Self-important and the short-sighted–but even they don’t mean to pull the house down around them–or if they do, they’re thinking it’s constructive in some other sense, meeting some goal).

If we receive this Leo Moon energy in its most positive form, we can gain: admiration, purpose, a healthy respect for the individual, proper boundaries, and a much clearer idea of how we, uniquely, shine in the roles we take on. This requires, though, that we honor not just our own individuality, but that of others, as well, and it doesn’t mean we suddenly become a law unto ourselves–those with authority do hold it for a reason (though that reason can be corrupt, sometimes it’s because they truly know more, or are empowered to help in ways we can’t) and that’s true of others familiar with areas we are not: sometimes they will know more than we do, and we have to be able to acknowledge that, give them their due as individuals. It’s called humility, and Leo can show us examples of this, too (sometimes by example of what not to be like!)

The Sabian for the New Moon is, ‘Totally Concentrated Upon Inner Spiritual Attainment, A Man Is Sitting In A State Of Complete Neglect Of Bodily Appearance And Cleanliness’. This is an image of extreme imbalance, which occurs when we see some roles and functions as less worthy, when we put the physical and the spiritual at contrasting ends of the spectrum, and then totally fail to honor one end, and massively exaggerate the sacredness or importance of the other. Look for where and how you might be carrying this attitude; disdain for the physical and excessive worship of the spiritual, for instance, are seen by some as a ‘higher’ way of living, but it’s actually an ignorant way of living. Reality is the spiritual in tangible form. We need to honor the seen and unseen equally; it’s arrogance to believe we can judge the worthiness of anything, of the world or beyond it. Arrogance can be a Leonine trait, but it doesn’t have to be; use the Moon’s sensitivity of perception to take note of the ways the unseen manifests through the physical, how the what is aligns with thought, feeling, and intention–and note how all of it plays out against a background of Universal constancies, also known as Truth.

Next up: Mercury Retrograde! I hope you all got a glimpse of the Perseid showers, and have a wonderful New Moon!

Full Moon in Aquarius 1 August 2023: Anger or Action?

31 Monday Jul 2023

Posted by in astrology, current events in the sky, Full Moon, Sabian Symbols

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‘Racing’ By Gerald Sargent Foster 1934 {{PD}}

The Full Moon perfects at 11:31 PDT on the 1st at 9 Aquarius 15, and makes very few aspects, the closest being a quincunx to Pallas in Virgo, setting a tone of adjustment and an atmosphere of critical discernment, and all of it arising from our own inner wisdom or from practical considerations or exercise of skills. We see what’s not working, and know that adjustment is the right thing. What comes to a head at this time creates a response in us that doesn’t allow us to remain as we have been–and this is so whether our feeling is one of temperament/ anger/ aggression or action/ expression of Will–and it will be some version of one of those two.

That reactive and active response to Full Moon energies is indicated by the quincunx to Mars that will complete within hours for the Moon, and days for the Earth, suggesting feeling or intuition precedes physical effects. Our initial reaction may be anger, a feeling that we need to stand up for ourselves, but as we often find, that response can hide fear, or mask a defensive posture with righteousness, a ‘How dare they?’ position. Rather than go with our first reaction, we may want to hold back, use that moonlight to look deeper into our feelings. Whatever causes this, we’ll see it coming–and that means we have a little time to make our response reasonably conscious, and so shape what might otherwise have been an impulsive outburst or choice.

Simultaneous to the Mars aspect, the Moon-Earth also squares Jupiter, implying that our Full Moon response either brings conflict over the facts, makes knowing in any sense related to the real world or the social order difficult, sees us at odds with the social sphere, and/ or renders attempts to expand or ‘get more’ tough, if not impossible. This may be the aspect that tells us why we must adjust our response, and maybe also is that thing we should plan ahead for, inspecting our feelings or what we intuit so that our answer to Jupiterian conflict (which can be the clash between two strong entities that carry differing agendas) genuinely reflects the choice we’d make that’s steeped in our ideals, in hopes of creating an ideal situation.

The Full Moon makes one other aspect, a trine to Ceres, that with very generous orbs could be seen as part of an Air Grand Trine involving Vesta. This emphasizes the way much of what occurs surrounding this Moon will be mental in nature–that is, all in our heads! That doesn’t mean that our experience isn’t ‘real’, it instead means that so much of the discord and frustration is seated in either the way in which we’re processing incoming info, or the viewpoint we’ve taken (and possibly mistaken for objectivity). We see this in the Full Moon Sabian: ‘A Man Who Had For A Time Become The Embodiment Of A Popular Ideal Is Made To Realize That As A Person He Is Not This Ideal’. Revelation, courtesy of the Aquarian Higher Mind, probably delivered by the social experience (Jupiter) or through realization of our own agency (Mars). It’s as useful to us to know what we’re not, as it is to know what we are; such knowledge can only help us refine our journey.

We also look at the Sun Sabian for a Full Moon, as we owe it all to the Sun, don’t we? ‘Early Morning Dew Sparkles As Sunlight Floods The Field’. The ‘day’ is fresh, newly arrived, our prospects are sunny, what lays before us is wide open. That’s an image of optimism and brand spanky new starts–so we might do best to see the Full Moon energies as offering a chance to refine ourselves and our lives more in line with what Higher Mind (Aquarius) intends. Take any feedback that comes at this time in this way and you’ll benefit exponentially. That future contact to Ceres and Vesta only reiterates the dual message of this Moon: it’s about the accuracy of our sense of agency and personal authority, and the level and kind of dedication we commit to around our highest values, and how these shape and become integral to not just telling our story, but to living it as successfully as possible.

Venus Retrograde 22 July-3 September 2023: Arrested Development

20 Thursday Jul 2023

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Venus matters, particularly the costs to our individual expression, will be under the microscope during the retro period.

Right now (the 20th) Venus has stationed within 5 minutes of its retro point–so it appears to keep moving, just a bit, before actually seeming to stop and go backward. That’s an important thing to keep in mind during all retrograde cycles: this is an apparent phenomenon, completely dependent upon our viewpoint; what we witness (a body seemingly halting forward zodiacal progress, then appearing to go back over already traversed degrees, stationing at a point that from long observation we know is coming, then beginning apparent ‘forward’ progress once again) is based upon the point in space we’re observing the heavens from, and is caused by the movement of everything, as those movements affect positions relative to other bodies, and we observe. But our interest is in something else: it’s centered in the observer effect, which is the idea that the very act of observing something changes what’s observed. That makes us, as observers, as much a part of what’s happening as those bodies we’re tracking. And then our question becomes: just how is our observation affecting what occurs?

To my mind the most important role our observation plays is that of adding message (through interpretation) and meaning (through symbology and timing) to what we observe. If all things in the Universe are working in concert, then both the relationships bodies have to one another at specific points in time, and points in time when things appear to reverse course, are important signposts for developments and especially for change–and isn’t that what an astrology chart is, those relationships and timing points captured and ready for interpretation, which is done in light of all the times that particular set of aspects has occurred before and been compared to what we experience here on Earth? Yes, it is.

So, a singular event such as the apparent retrograde of a planet doesn’t really happen alone; it happens in connection with every other thing in the Universe, and it happens as our observation of it both affects the event itself and adds its own meaning. In this case, we’re talking about Venus, second major body from the Sun, symbol of Love, Money, Relationships, Beauty–and anything that stands for something also carries the opposite of that thing, so that the absence of Love is also Venusian (in all its forms: indifference, envy, jealousy), as is poverty, loneliness, or the subjectivity of attractiveness, ‘eye of the beholder’.

And that, then, means that each person observing this event will bring their own ideas of Venus, their own interpretations and beliefs about Venusian subjects, to understanding the retrograde itself. This retro happens once every 18 months, and every 8 years it happens in the same sign (which, depending on the House system you use and the degree where it occurs, may or may not be in the same House as 8 years before). The retro period carries both a shift in aesthetic perceptions and values linked to the sign where it happens, and to the personal House of the natal chart where it falls for the individual. That means that every 8 years you’ll be re-examining those House subjects through the same lens; often we are even plunked down in the middle of all the same issues, sometimes altered, other times manifesting as if no time had passed at all! During these periods our tastes, aesthetic assessments, financial inclinations, use of talents, and relationships (existing ones and openness to new ones) are likely to take an experimental turn, which is why it’s important to dabble and sample, even as we make no permanent changes during the retro period. House subjects are typically examined through a Venusian lens; it happens in our 5th and suddenly romance or having children is on our mind, in the 10th business, in the 1st Self-improvement (or Self-decoration), and so on. We can and should try new things on for size and fit, and make more lasting choices after direction. That’s why dyeing the hair or trying a new clothes style or make-up is good, but a new tattoo or an impulsive marriage really needs to wait to be assessed in our more characteristic aesthetic light.

Let’s look at a snapshot of the time of retrograde, as this is like a birth chart for the retro period. Venus officially enters retro status at 6:33 PM PDT of the 22nd at 28 Leo 36. In Leo Venus is all about the glory of the individual, the way each of us is a shining light, and focus is on making the most of our assets and who we are. That means that it’s appropriate to keep most of the emphasis on us; even in relationship matters, we must be asking: does this serve my highest good? For once, keeping ourselves in the foreground in every matter isn’t only right, it’s required in order to see things in proper perspective.

The most striking thing may be that Venus at time of turnaround does so as apex to a Finger with base of 29 degree Pluto conjoined a 29 degree Earth (which is about to be trined by Luna in Virgo), and 27 degree Neptune, slated to have a quincunx perfected once again by Venus in backward motion. Venus is also short of perfecting a trine to the North Node, and is semi-sextile the Sun. It all looks like arrested development; we’re almost clear on changes needed to move more toward the ideal (in areas related to the House in the natal chart where Venus falls at this time), but the retro period asks us to pull back, to wait for the emotional experiences the retro will bring, to inspect our material situation and see where we are on direction, and to consider during the retro just where our current Venusian standards are taking us in life.

Maybe the most unusual thing, though, is the way Venus is novile both Juno and Ceres. The novile is serendipity, the spark of genius, and in this case promises that the Venus retrograde will illuminate our personal empowerment situation, and our circumstances of personal authority and in matters where we are responsible for others (and in some instances may show inspired ways of dealing with health or dietary matters, or in areas that require negotiation).

The Venus retro, while holding us back from reaching certain conclusions we thought were on the horizon, will give us an understanding of peripheral matters that in the end may significantly alter our goals. Things will look differently to us by retro’s end, particularly as it relates to positive expressions of our empowerment and our agency, and these will without doubt restructure our ideas around our responsibilities, our roles within relationship, and how and where we dedicate our assets and talents. It may at first appear to be a case where we are stopped short from achieving our ends, but by direction we’ll see much more clearly what it is we really want (at least in part because the retro will have in some way forced us to put ourselves first), and we’ll understand much better both our true goals, and how to reach them. The Universe always works in our favor, but we’ll only realize that if we see that denial or withdrawal of what we anticipated is only happening because there’s something we haven’t yet seen, haven’t yet considered, or some value we aren’t completely clear on, yet.

Expect a point of revelation or illumination around August 12th, when the Sun lights up retro Venus, giving us some ideas of what to do about what we see (Sun-Venus semi-sextile Mars in Virgo).

New Moon 17 July 2023: T’d-Off

15 Saturday Jul 2023

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Don’t look at where those arrows are landing, look at who’s shooting them. Sagittarius Weather Vane at the American Folk Art Museum, NYC {{PD}}

The Sun and Moon meet in Cancer, as they do once (rarely, twice) every year, at 11:31 AM PDT of the 17th at 24 Cancer 56, and this time form some tense, T-square energy across the Sun-Earth axis with Eris, a square to which is the next aspect both Sol and Luna will perfect. Eris is generally blamed for creating strife, but I see her more as bringing to the surface already extant tensions–she has the nature of a catalyst, facilitating the interaction of other factors. Eris gets blamed for causing trouble because no one wants to own something they’ve worked hard to ignore–and that means there may be lots of finger-pointing (or worse, sotto voce insinuations), all in the name of denial. Wherever the weather vane is pointing, look back in the direction that wind is coming from–that will tell you much more than will fixating on the direction it’s traveling.

What’s more, we’re talking about Cardinal energies, and that means stresses will prompt action–and it’s likely those choices won’t have been fully considered, there’ll be such pressure to do something about ‘it’, with the pressure to act coming as much from within us as from externals. Vesta semi-square the New Moon says our own highest values and deepest commitments will require we act. One way, though, to help us judge how accurate and/ or effective those impromptu moves might be is by examining what the Sun and Moon contacted just before their meeting (illustrating the time leading up to the New Moon) and what each will contact just after, before either leaves the sign of Cancer.

Both sextiled Uranus, and almost simultaneously squared Zeus. That suggests our attentions have been on deep desires, our passions stirred by want and ambition (and in both instances, these have our attention because we don’t have fulfillment there–the square) and surprise, shock, a sense of rebellion or revolution, sudden awareness or information gleaned through Higher Mind, or the effect of the group on individual autonomy or originality, figure in to the scenario that leads us up to the ‘now’ of the New Moon.

And what springs from the inception point of the New Moon, from the seminal energies of emotion, what we care about, what we nurture, ‘mother’, protect? Out of the stress of the Lunar event we see an enormous creative, imaginative, or spiritually-infused burst (trine to Neptune) and just after that, a scenario where we must choose, involving elimination, destruction, or transformation of a facet of surrounding structures, rules, disciplines, or frameworks upon which we have been reliant (opposition to Pluto in Capricorn–and note this occurs in the 29th degree, suggesting the choices we will have to make, even be forced to make, will in themselves be stressful).

The Sabian for the New Moon is, ‘A Willful Man Is Overshadowed By A Descent Of Superior Power’. That’s Cardinal energy, all right, describing a highly Arian sort of Being–and Mars at the time of the NM will be in Virgo, just moving out of conjunction with Pallas, telling of a recent point where we asserted ourselves based upon what was wise or practical–with the ruler of Mars, Mercury, in Leo, so ruled by the Sun, which is ruled by and conjoined the Moon, leading us back to the Lunar picture. So, the action we took then, or choice we made, is integral to the New Moon event–and likely affecting us much more emotionally than we realize (or care to admit). But, the image declares that whatever way in which we’ve made our Will known, by the New Moon, will be overtaken by a larger, more potent force–which suggests something about the Lunar event will show us not everything is within our power, under our control, or subject to our Will. A lesson in limits and modesty, that will serve our creative and transformative efforts that follow.

Let’s Sort It Out

10 Monday Jul 2023

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‘Sorting the Catch‘ By Johannes Hermanus Barend Koekkoek

I’ve seen a bit of a kerfuffle among astrology fans, freaking out over contact between Mars and Pluto. A couple of points: the current aspect, still in effect today, the 10th, is a quincunx. That’s an aspect of adjustment, of moderating the flow between the two energies, often requiring we change both of them, just a little. Here it’s a matter of weighing the strengths of asserting our Will vs. creating permanent change (how much do we need to get our way, and how much do we really want to irrevocably alter the landscape); or it’s about expressing our own anger/ temper vs. the destruction this might do (can we live with it? Is our anger only a momentary acting-out that could wreck something we otherwise value?); or it asks us to decide between how much action we want to take and how much change we are willing to handle; or, will we lead (and so take responsibility) or pursue pure power (and so not even question our right to act); or will we be called to make choices, and in the process decide whether we will transform things, or end them.

So, nothing to be afraid of. We should also note that Mars is closely conjoined Pallas, reassuring us that we have wisdom available to guide our actions and choices–we’ll just need to accept that this is new, raw, and perhaps a little unpleasant on initial contact, bringing out criticism or pointing to details we’ve missed (00 Virgo). This is one of those times when we’d do better to seeing this info as beneficial, rather than nagging.

We also see Mercury at 29 tense degrees exactly opposed Pluto, making for some extreme, maybe panicked, thinking, with reasoning power under pressure and perhaps overly influenced by fear or the power situation. Know that nothing in this arena is what it seems, especially our assessment of power–and that means we should probably delay making any big decisions for just a day or two. Mercury enters a new sign, Leo, at 9:11 PM PDT tonight–not very long to wait for clarity, especially concerning what each of us needs as individuals.

That move also links thinking to instincts and what we ‘know but don’t know’ (sextile to Sedna), and forms a T-square with the Nodal axis (a Grand Cross if we include Pluto, making for a sense that what we’re thinking now will determine our life direction, and will directly affect our personal power situation).

A great deal of the sensitivity we’re feeling and seeing displayed around us may be the result of the Sun’s current position in Cancer; we care, the spotlight’s on what and whom we care about, and everything seems to be run through a filter of nurture (are we doing it enough? Are we getting enough?) and sentimentality, the latter threatening to bog us down in visits to the past, when we really need to be present in the now.

The message, then, is: Relax, if you can. The invisible pressures you’re feeling are atmospheric, rather than personal (though they are likely to fool you by presenting in personal ways). In other words, it’s not you, it’s everything else.