Category Archives: New Moon

Solar Eclipse 10 June 2021 Agreement Between Head and Heart

06 Sunday Jun 2021

Posted by in astrology, current events in the sky, Gemini, Inferior Conjunction, New Moon, Sabian Symbols, Solar Eclipse

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Street art by the Norwegian artist Dolk. Taken in Bergen in 2009.

Photo By Gulosten

Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0

The New Moon/ Solar eclipse of the 10th falls at 19 Gemini 47, poised for the next day’s Inferior Conjunction of retrograde Mercury and the Sun. That makes a kind of double energy of ‘new beginnings’, of germination, in both the realm of ideas and that of the matters of the natal House where this eclipse falls for you. The seminal nature of things means we might not immediately know what is getting its start–but in Gemini, it almost certainly will cause a shift in the mentality, a shift in attention.

The eclipse forms a novile with Mars, already unhappy in Cancer and sitting at the 29th degree, desperate to do, to take action, to make ‘it’ happen–always a bad thing, when we feel pushed to do because we care, or worse, to prove we care, or perhaps pushed by others who care (or pushed by others to care, about something that doesn’t move us)–but if you can connect the passion Mars carries to the feeling nature without conflict or pressure, propelled by ideas, by thoughts we truly want to act on, something may be initiated that can help define your current, personal Zeitgeist and inform thinking and the mentality in a ‘fresh’ way. If you can apply the need for action to what you care about you can expect thought-innovation concerning something that really matters to you, ideas and the energy to put them in motion, as well as knowing who or what contacts will change thought into matter.

The eclipse trines Zeus, and forms a wide square to Neptune and wide opposition to Juno. These contacts suggest that ambition and desire fulfillment is the essence of what occurs at the eclipse–and that this may not agree with what we imagine fulfillment will look like. It also suggests that we may find what starts, at least in the beginning, disempowering–but it’s more likely disorienting, asking us to see things in a new light, one that can work out much better than if things unfolded as we would orchestrate them.

Muddy-ing the mix is a wide square to Vesta in Virgo, perhaps suggesting nothing so much as the potential for stiff-necked and judgmental ‘principles’ to get in the way of what needs to be initiated at this time. With that 29 degree Mars we know something must be done, and if we keep our emotional head on straight, and refuse to succumb to emotional pressures, we can start something big, new, fresh, necessary–so though we need considered judgment, an agreement between head and heart, we don’t need a hyper-critical take on what we want to do.

The Sabian for the eclipse is, ‘A Modern Cafeteria Displays An Abundance Of Food, Products Of Various Regions’. That’s an image of choice–a watchword of Mars, which we know is instrumental to what goes down. Note too that it’s a ‘modern’ image, one that provides options we might not have had at other points in time, or even in history–important as it emphasizes the wide reach we now enjoy, the variety at our fingertips, and the wide impact of our own choices, an effect we might not anticipate as we act, but which we should be cognizant of.

Find balance between the head and the heart, and be willing to act–what’s promised is something you’ve long wanted, though be warned, it may not be precisely what you’ve envisioned, it will fulfill the ambitions, the desire nature, the craving you’ve carried–and like so many things in life, surprise us with the form it takes, with what it brings, with discovery about the true nature of what we’ve drawn to us.

Bonus: if you have a natal placement in the 18-21 degree range of Aquarius, you may find this period initiates a new front with a worked-for ambition or aim, likely bringing a workable approach that leads to realization, as your natal placement fills in an Air Grand Trine with the eclipse and Zeus. Congrats!

New Moon in Taurus 11 May 2021 What We Want

07 Friday May 2021

Posted by in astrology, current events in the sky, Dark of the Moon, Finger of God, forecast, New Moon, Sabian Symbols

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‘A Beauty With Doves’ By Charles Joshua Chaplin 19th century {{PD}}

On the 10th, during the Dark of the Moon, we may get a shock, as the Moon conjoins Uranus in the world-weary material realms of Taurus. At roughly the same time, Moon-Uranus sextiles Mars and finds itself caught at the midpoint of Chiron and Mercury-North Node. Normally the Dark period is quiet, at least psychically speaking, the energy muted with many of us having the sense that we’re a little apart from the world. Things happen, but we either aren’t yet aware of them or we’re not aware of the full implication of events, as if we’re having trouble intuiting, or maybe feeling, our connection to what occurs.

This time we we may be surprised, or just enlightened, by some revelation, or even some revolution, that we’re witness to. It affects material matters, our security, or our comfort, and at the same time prompts us to act or choose, with the spurring event either evolving from the convergence of past hurt and current, clear thinking about the future, or leading us to a better understanding of the past, ourselves, and where we want to go–and so making what we need to do to get there clear.

That’s the lead-in to the New Moon, which forms at 11:59 AM PDT on the 11th at 21 Taurus 17. We’ve received some flash knowledge the day before, and we see the results of that in two potent aspects: the NM conjoined the Black Moon Lilith point, and the NM as apex to a perfect Finger of God with base of Juno and Zeus. These tell a story that may be a little scary, a little hard to take, simply because we may be faced with some of the more hidden parts of ourselves–and the things we deny, or repress, or think are behind us when they’re not, are some of the most difficult things we ever have to deal with–and they’re all inside us, so challenge us to be unflinchingly Self-responsible–and that’s never easy.

The conjunction speaks of the New Moon beginning/ event as driven by things we’ve ignored, denied, or that have in the past enraged us. It’s the kind of powerful energy that can move us to major feats, to redemption, but also has the potential to simply enrage us all over again as we’re forced to acknowledge something we thought carefully buried! So, we can make the best of it by recognizing what we’ve put aside and then using it as a catalyst to do what needs doing, or we can sink into an abyss of anger at our own choices, pointing fingers at who’s responsible–but by now it’s obvious, the Finger points at us.

With a base of Zeus (the ambition and desire nature) and Juno (empowerment, status, the role we play), this configuration suggests that the dissonance created by the New Moon revelation/ event is the direct result of our own wants and our attempts to bring them to fruition. These two components of our lives have worked together to bring about this New Moon result, and vice versa, the New Moon tells us a great deal about our actual wants, and our actual empowerment situation.

The New Moon also sextiles Neptune and Pallas (wisdom, practicality, and creative energy are all available to address what comes forward; we just have to make a little effort to apply them), trines Pluto (change or transformation is easy–in this instance a kind of ‘magical power at your fingertips’ aspect), and noviles Chiron. This latter is interesting in light of the 10th, when what occurred (or occurred to us) was related to our sense of hurt (or, in some cases, our very unique personal skills); now a novile says that we have an exceptional ability to heal and/ or utilize that energy in positive ways–it’s so strong, we don’t even really need to try, which means that appropriate healing will occur, even if we don’t see it as such–at least, we may not see it that way yet.

Neptune and the New Moon create another Finger of God base, this one with an apex of Zeus in Libra. This suggests that our purest creative urge, when driven by the New Moon energy (that is, a likely material, Arts-related, or comfort-keyed energy), may inform our ambition pursuit, and possibly connect us with others who can make our desires a reality.

Also of note: Jupiter sits at the stressful 29th degree of Aquarius, signalling one of several things: that the intellect suffers under strain that comes from what we’ve learned or realized; that the social sphere around us is in some way at a tipping point, when feeling (Pisces) will soon overtake the mental lens (Aquarius) we’ve been using for some particular subject; that we’re presented with a crisis or stressful situation that is in reality a major opportunity; that knowledge we’ve acquired or ‘the facts’ of the matter will force us to choose or act–in this case, we’re at the end of the road, there’s no getting out of it.

The Sabian for the New Moon is, ‘A White Dove Flying Over Troubled Waters’. This might be the stance we need to take for what’s coming: bring nothing but a pure kind of peace, an intent to do no harm, to whatever roiling situation you’re faced with. If you find a particular situation is missing something, rather than blaming someone else, what we need to see is that we didn’t bring the missing ingredient, either–and if we choose peace over anything else, as long as it isn’t camouflage for passive-aggression, then we’ll be, at a personal level, in the best position possible to cope, to thrive, to ‘rise above’. And that’s what we all ultimately want, isn’t it? Peace?

New Moon in Aries 11 April 2021 Turns in the Road

07 Wednesday Apr 2021

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

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‘The Arrival of Spring; Two Roads’ By Maria Yakunchikova 1896 {{PD}}

Even though the New Moon of the 11th, 7:30 PM PDT at 22 Aries 24 is still conjoined Venus, that’s actually a separating aspect; whatever the Superior conjunction of the Sun and Venus was meant to convey around relationships or assets, it’s already come to us, though our emotional reaction to it is still in the future, delivered about 8 hours after this Lunar event (and maybe spurred by what happens at the NM). The same can be said about issues around personal power and authority, boundaries, a sense of autonomy, and even health matters, as the Sun and Moon have each both recently conjoined and are now moving away from Ceres. This suggests we’ve hashed out quite a bit recently, and likely believe we know where we stand–so why does it feel like we’ve made no progress, like we remain rudderless and confused, like we’re yearning for something and reaching come up with a handful of water, lost before we can get a sip?

A New Moon in Aries should spark confidence, a feeling that we can do ‘it’, the courage to take the next step, a sureness about taking the lead in our own lives, and when this NM perfects we may want to make a clear ‘I Am’ statement, not for those around us, but for ourselves, to try and ground us in something firm. We have the fire (Aries) to do (Cardinal sign) something to propel us forward–and this NM in particular we’re buoyed by imagination and a wave of creative energy (semi-sextile to Neptune), and we have big ideas (sextile to Jupiter) for change (square to Pluto) with empowerment as the goal (trine to Juno)–but there’s something about our desires or ambitions (opposition to Zeus) that makes us reluctant, or that maybe even outright prevents, that change we’re dreaming of–the potential for action could dissipate into nothing but talk (sextile to Mars in Gemini).

There’s a (brilliant) way out, and there’s also an issue to be dealt with, before the feeling and action impasse can be broken. One is the novile to Pallas in Pisces. This speaks of the wisdom of the imagination and the creative outlet, of the practical benefits of using our skills to do–and so serve both the Arian New Moon impulse and and the need to circumvent issues that have brought us up short, confused us, or distracted us from what we want and need to sort out. The Sabian symbol for the New Moon says it all: ‘A Pregnant Woman In Light Summer Dress’. The image is one of creative potential. Giving our creativity free rein right now is the smart thing to do; we may ‘birth’ our answer, or we may in the process of expressing make other contacts, or take other turns in the road, that will get us past what’s been holding us at bay. The ‘Summer Dress’ of the image implies the creative urge itself is at its peak of productive potential, just as a garden is at that point in the seasonal cycle. We don’t know how far along that ‘pregnancy’ is; we only know that the creation itself definitely exists, and will, sooner or later, be brought forth.

The thing to be dealt with is described by the New Moon’s sesquiquadrate to Vesta in Virgo. A sesquiquadrate is an aspect that promises difficulty, suggesting both trouble within the psyche (problems with accepting and processing what we’re confronted with, for example) and external factors that contribute pressures or force awareness and/ or force us to stop forward progress, at least in terms of the goal we thought we were working toward. There’s usually a measure of upset or outrage, a ‘This is ruining all my plans!’ plaintive cry as we see we’re given no choice but to halt and re-group.

With this being the New Moon’s contact to Vesta, what we’re likely to be faced with is some form of criticism or critique, internal or from others, that assesses our commitments, our values, or what we’re dedicated to as less-than-sacred. This might come in the form of our own internal monologue that recognizes we don’t care as we think we did, or in internal recognition or external feedback that points to some facet of hypocrisy in what we claim to hold in highest regard. Maybe our actions haven’t been supporting our highest standards, or our choices point to an entire other set of values by which we’re in reality living. No matter what, the Aries New Moon offers us a chance to re-dedicate ourselves to choices and actions that reflect our true values; it gives us a chance to align our walk with our talk, and prove what and who we genuinely care about.

A New Moon in Aries is about choice; the issue for this New Moon may be that we’ve convinced ourselves either we don’t have any, or that our options aren’t ideal. Events at this time are meant to show us that the true circumstances are otherwise–we just need to be brave enough to see that the ideal is possible, and that indeed, we always have options.

New Moon in Pisces 13 March 2021 Siren Song

10 Wednesday Mar 2021

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‘Ulysses and the Sirens’ By Herbert James Draper 1679 {{PD}}

The New Moon perfects at 2:21 AM PST on the 13th at 23 Pisces 03, after recent passage of both the Sun and Moon over Neptune. That puts a haze on everything, a siren song with no clear origin: what are we seeing? what are we feeling? Also past but still in orb: a square to Juno and a quincunx to Zeus, suggesting that just lately we’ve faced some conflict over the legitimacy of our ambitions and our own autonomy. And what lies ahead, within orb now, are a sextile to Pluto (the impulse to burn it all down, out of shaken convictions around the ambitions, desires, and our ability to act on them), and a sextile to Sedna (the impulse to listen to the instincts, to trust what we ‘know but don’t know’, and proceed as planned). Which will we choose? Right now that depends on your relationship to Piscean energies in general, and to transiting Neptune in particular.

Pisces is singing to us right now, of ideals and dreams, of our practicality, skills, and wisdom, of the payoffs awaiting us in Love or Money or maybe just companionship (Pallas, Venus, Neptune transiting there), and the New Moon offers a starting point: face what we want, and either purge it and ourselves (if we find the dream inadequate), or trust ourselves and follow instinctual prompts and the inner knowing. Not a difficult choice, if we know ourselves, if we are not deluded, if we know our dreams, and if we are brave enough to go forward and create, unafraid of what others might say or think. And of course, that little bit at the end may be the hardest part.

The New Moon also falls at the midpoint of the Saturn-Uranus square. That’s reality pushing against the radical, the established pushing against precipitous change, tradition butting up against the modern, authorities clashing with the individual, or with advancement in general. It’s natural for What Is to resist and resent innovation, unless how that improvement is good for all is made obvious from the start–and even then there may be issues. Expect the New Moon to present a point of tension over this kind of revolution, a preview of the coming, just forming Cosmic dream, a glimpse of the future, and look for the positive that will come from letting go and accepting new developments. What’s happening is inevitable; better to have some say in and control over change (by willingly going along), than have it overwhelm when upset and resistance builds too high. Don’t let the siren song of ‘We’ve always done it that way’ stop a good thing.

The New Moon Sabian is, ‘On A Small Island Surrounded By The Vast Expanse Of The Sea, People Are Seen Living In Close Interaction’. I’m seeing this in something of an unusual way: Pisces is the sea, the House of the natal chart an island in the horoscope, with the people in close interaction those we love (Venus), those we idealize or connect with spiritually (Neptune), and those from whose wisdom or practicality we benefit (Pallas). Getting all the human components to mesh in positive ways is something we strive for–and the new start of the New Moon offers a moment when the way to that harmony might be apparent, through the matters of the natal House where Pisces sits. And right now, everybody could use just a little more harmony.

New Moon in Aquarius 11 February 2021 What Are We Waiting For?

07 Sunday Feb 2021

Posted by in astrology, current events in the sky, Dark of the Moon, forecast, Inferior Conjunction, New Moon, Sabian Symbols

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‘Waiting’ By Henri de Toulouse Lautrec 1887 {{PD}}

The New Moon perfects at 11:05 AM PST on the 11th at 23 Aquarius 16, but before it does, we pass through the pre-New Moon three day period known as The Dark of the Moon, notable for its absence of Lunar light. This is a period when forward momentum can be sidetracked or stalled, and new projects will sputter, fail to get off the ground, or later require a rehaul or restart–and that’s doubly so during Mercury retrograde, currently in effect.

What can we do during this period? Normally we’d do best to drift and dream, meditate and relax, to connect through silence or dreams to the non-verbal perceptions, but during this Dark period we have a slightly different mandate: it starts with the Inferior Conjunction of Sun and Mercury on the 8th, an inception point for development related to matters of the House where the contact occurs, specifically around shifts in thought, plans, and where we’re putting our attention–and it continues as later that day the Sun meets Pallas, with the Moon to pass over Pallas just over two hours before the New Moon perfects. All this speaks to reconsideration of Mercurial subjects that leads to a wiser take on things, and to a smart or more practical new beginning shown by the New Moon event.

Otherwise, this New Moon doesn’t make much notable contact at all. Its closest aspect is a trine to Zeus in Libra, suggesting that Higher Mind revelations (Aquarius) in relationships and their role in ambition and desire fulfillment (Zeus in Libra) will lead to greater understanding–but understanding of what? For some this might be revelation in relationships themselves, a more accurate view of how they work on a daily basis, and what each party gets out of them, but for many of us the emphasis will be on how our interactions with others color, constrict, shape, or curtail our own efforts toward ambition realization. We may become acutely aware of how we modify our efforts to accommodate relationships, and how we modify relationships so we can pursue our goals, and we’re very likely to see where we need a re-think on the whole thing, with this re-consideration informing the latter half of the Merc retro cycle.

Too, Zeus speaks of the power balance within any relationship, the ways in which we get our needs met but must accept that others, too, have needs, and that the clash between these two sets of wants can be chaotic, a contest between our desire for the relationship and our desire for, well, just about anything else that creates an appetite. With Juno, the asteroid of empowerment, and signifier of Zeus’ partner, placed sextile Mercury from her spot in Sagittarius and conjoined the South Node at the time of the New Moon, we definitely see a rise of smoke from smoldering relationship issues, and between the New Moon of revelation and understanding (Aquarius) and the Merc retro cycle, we are likely to find these issues cropping up, many of them as direct power issues and some as an outright clash of wants between partners.

We might also want to count a very loose square to Sedna, only in contention because Sun and Moon are approaching rather than retreating from the aspect. This might give just the barest hint, the vaguest echo, a mere wisp of an idea that trouble may be on the horizon. This might take the shape of Self-sabotaging instincts or an insistence on not admitting that everyone, including ourselves, has a blind spot–and this might be just the time when we need some reflection (the Moon) from those with whom we’re in relationship (that Libran Zeus)–because that’s exactly what we’re offering them, too.

The New Moon Sabian is, ‘A Man, Having Overcome His Passions, Teaches Deep Wisdom In Terms Of His Experience’. I’ve not much to add to that since it seems we’ve already covered this same message via aspects, but will point out that the symbol strikes a hopeful note, as the messiness that is natural to relationships will show us what we need to know, and make us wiser in the process.

Have a lovely week, everyone!

New Moon 12 January 2021 A Fissure Filled With Light

09 Saturday Jan 2021

Posted by in Astro Lessons, astrology, current events in the sky, forecast, Grand Trine, New Moon, Sabian Symbols

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Kilauea’s Fissure 8 cone erupting in the early morning of June 28, 2018, in the Lower East Rift Zone. {{PD}}
Courtesy of the United States Geological Survey

Usually we get that ‘wipe out’ feeling/ energy from an eclipse, when the old patterns are disrupted by new ones; this time, we get the same experience from a New Moon as it meets the god of the Underworld. The Lunar event of the 12th falls at 23 Capricorn 13 at 9 PM PST, closely conjoined Pluto–in just over two hours the Moon will perfect contact, while the Sun will take a tad longer, a little more than twenty-four. This suggests the dawning of new emotions or intuitive perceptions that transform our Beingness, or that change what we pay attention to; we are plunged down, to the depths, perhaps in the birth pangs of a new world order arising from the institutions, rules, and constraints of the old order a la Capricorn, and we’re given a clear insight into what this change means for us as individuals.

A New Moon in Capricorn promises two things: new rules, and efforts at ‘building’, whether that’s something intangible, within the psyche, or an actual, literal structure or figurative framework within the social order, but when the Sun-Moon meeting is on the way to conjoin Pluto, we are effectively stunned by the energy–hence the similarity to the eclipse ‘wipe out’. In this particular case, the new feelings, followed by a new sense of ‘I Am’ or ‘I See’, then gets the Plutonian treatment. We can’t be sure if the emotions and changed efforts are undertaken in anticipation of serious, inevitable, even extreme change that is before us, or if they’re the result of such thorough, deep, and irrevocable developments–all we can know is that this New Moon is the first glimpse of an ever-growing light shining at the bottom of the bottomless fissure that opens up beneath us: the New Moon shows us a way out, a new way of structuring or processing, or the resurrection of something, as it delivers an inspiring and instructional glimmer of not only what’s to come, but what we can build from it, that will culminate with the Full Moon two weeks from now.

How much this New Moon will bring change to the individual is dependent on the contacts the event makes to the natal chart. This is precisely why general forecasts aren’t ‘one size fits all’. That said, see below for a brief lesson on reading a configuration filled in by the New Moon event. What all of us will be influenced by: the New Moon semi-square Juno=we see our own relationship to pure Power, and see just where out limits are (but that also means we’ll get some idea of what we’re missing, and so how to go about getting more); New Moon square Zeus=we see where our ambitions, relationships, or desires are making it difficult to start anew, or to make the changes we really want to, or what we learn at the New Moon creates tension or conflict with those ambitions currently on our agenda; and lastly, the New Moon forms an Earth Grand Trine with Vesta and Sedna=I’m counting this despite Vesta being more than six degrees from perfection to Sedna 1) because Sedna is in apparent retrograde right now, so moving back toward Vesta, and 2) because trines are major aspects, and 3) because this configuration is in Earth, same element as the New Moon, and 4) because the presence of Pluto and the Sun together gives a big energy ‘punch’ that I see as carrying farther than I normally would accept. Ties of the placement together make up for the looseness of the orbs, particularly the way the NM and Pluto ‘bridge’ the degrees between Vesta and Sedna. The Grand Trine suggests that what changes/ evolves/ is forced/ transforms/ resurrects at the New Moon is in harmony with our actual highest values, and with our instincts and what we ‘know but don’t consciously know’. We may not see the benefits of the GT energies right away, because they have a good chance of emerging from our own ‘blind spot’, and so carry the feeling that they’re coming from external events, rather than that they’ve been orchestrated by our own intents, even though they have.

‘A Nun’ By Ragnhild Beichmann 1878 {{PD}}

The New Moon Sabian is, ‘A Woman Entering A Convent’. This implies that though what occurs seems excessively restrictive or that it requires an inordinate degree of discipline or supplication, it’s actually based on what we’ve chosen to dedicate our life energies to (Vesta). A look at your Vesta will help tell you the intent behind what manifests, and may give you a greater understanding of the nature of what you genuinely care about in life.

A Little Something on Configurations, as Demonstrated with the New Moon

When judging whether a configuration is formed, we need to keep in mind the various strengths of the aspects. The loose Grand Trine I describe above is allowable at least in part because a trine is a major aspect, and that allows for a greater orb; in the Fist I describe below, we have a square between NM and Zeus, which is a major aspect and so can take a greater orb, but in order to form the Fist, we need both bodies to sesquiquadrate (135 degrees) a third body, and since this is a more minor contact, we need a closer orb, something around no more than two degrees from exact in either direction, which in the following example would be 8 Gemini. In this case, anyone with a natal placement 6-10 Gemini will find their natal energy at the apex of a Fist of God with base of New Moon-Pluto square Zeus. This suggests the New Moon will bring change that arises from conflict over or forces change to the ambitions or desires, particularly as this applies to relationships (Zeus is in Libra). What happens or is revealed by the light of the New Moon shows how the current ambition picture contrasts, and requires modification of, what you’re aiming for, and this is because of what you learn now–and this will affect the natal apex planet, either through expression of its characteristic energies or through something it rules, House or other bodies, in the natal chart. (And just a reminder: please don’t write and ask if the aspect, for instance, applies to your Ascendant at 12 degrees Gemini, or your Sun at 5–I’ve told you the range of things already: anything between 6 and up to but not past 10). Keeping in mind what aspects any configuration contains, and then keeping orbs crisp, will insure you not only get a clear picture, but also that you don’t lead yourself astray or distract with an inaccurate or exaggerated picture, though there are exceptions, as I describe using the example of the Grand Trine aspect, above. Thus endeth the lesson!

Forecast for the 10th is here–

Tomorrow the Weekly will go up. Have a great rest-of-the-weekend!

Solar Eclipse in Sagittarius 2020 Moon in Blue

09 Wednesday Dec 2020

Posted by in astrology, current events in the sky, forecast, Lunar Aspects, New Moon, Sabian Symbols, Solar Eclipse

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By alyssa BLACK. from toronto, canada – full moon., CC BY-SA 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=76519128

This New Moon of the 14th occurs at 8:17 AM PST and is also an eclipse, falling at 23 Sagittarius 08, preceding the Superior Conjunction of the Sun and Mercury at 29 degrees in just about a week. This adds an element of building tension to what is normally with a New Moon a ‘fresh start’ energetically, a clean slate that typically signals the origins of a new beginning. That means new circumstances arrange themselves around an already-tense situation, lending things a ‘jumped into the fire’ quality, and this is even more noticeable because an eclipse on its own signals a wipe-out of previous arrangements–and that means we may find ourselves in the midst of a conflagration (Sag is a Fire sign) that we absolutely have not anticipated–and that quite possibly interferes with manifestation of the new start.

The eclipse doesn’t make many aspects–the major ones are loose, so it’s to the minor ones my attention goes first, as this implies a subtle and nuanced eclipse picture. The eclipse is closely semi-sextile Pluto, suggesting that small discomforts or inconveniences create big change, while the New Moon also noviles Pallas in Aquarius and sesquiquadrates Uranus. This combo implies the influence of the Higher Mind and/ or ‘the group’ in events, with those influences arriving through difficult Uranian means: an accident, a troublesome or unanticipated serendipity, the crashing down of a larger spiritual Truth, the exercise of and surprise brought forward by one’s own originality, or the spotlight on one’s position in (or perhaps alienation from) the group. However, the novile tells us that this spurs or is spurred by something smart, motivated by wisdom or practicality, maybe by the way the Universe presents a set of trying events and then asks, ‘What will you do?’.

Pluto and Uranus both aspecting the eclipse could imply a spark-to-flame destructive event that clears the way for something entirely new–in any case, what happens may be disturbing, upsetting, unsettling, even traumatic, or just unexpected, surprising, but will be for the good (see the Sabian symbol, below).

The square to Neptune is too wide, for my taste, suggesting that we may think that misleading information, the creative urge, the dream, or a mirage, any or all related to the emotional state, is a motivation when it’s really not. Zeus in Libra is sextile the New Moon, suggesting that ambitions involving relationships we want, or the way relationships affect us going after ambitions, is on the agenda. There is a trine to Mars in his own sign of Aries, telling us how easily we may act, based on a relatively sketchy picture or our own hair-trigger temper; the sense is of being profoundly aware that we are all alone, that we must do something, and this may come from events or be the agent of them, and is probably the driver in the relationship scenario: we must act to make a reality of the desired relationship, or we must act in order to fix a situation where a relationship is precluding our ability to go after what we want.

A New Moon in Sagittarius is typically a Moon where we learn something, are exposed to something foreign, or see the origins of new beliefs or philosophies coalesce; the Sabian is, ‘A Bluebird Perched On The Gate Of A Cottage’. Well that’s idyllic, isn’t it? A bluebird is a symbol for happiness, the ‘bursting out in song’ kind, and its position, at ease on a garden gate, suggests a peaceful environment where the bird feels safe, an ‘in its element’ sensibility. As the Sabian for a New Moon eclipse, this might imply we learn or are exposed to something that brings happiness in the way of feeling ‘at home’ in some situation, or with some change or new start that occurs. It’s a reassuring symbol that tells us in spite of any indications to the contrary within the scenario or related to the initial upset, we’ll be happier with our new circumstances than we were with our old ones.

Special note: those with a natal placement between 21 and 24 of Taurus may find the eclipse brings a real ‘do-or-die’ point in matters of ambition and desire fulfillment, relative to the natal energy, which will act as apex to a Finger of God with base of the eclipse and Zeus. What you’ve been aiming for, wanting, even lusting for will be addressed through the energy of the eclipse, and the result will funnel through the natal point. Good luck with that!

New Moon in Scorpio 14 November 2020 Re-Birth

13 Friday Nov 2020

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‘The birth of Aphrodite’ By Ivan Konstantinovich Aivazovsky 1887 {{PD}}

The New Moon perfects at 9:07 PM PST of the 14th at 23 Scorpio 17; this meeting takes place after both bodies have, relatively recently, conjoined Juno (the Moon within hours, the Sun about 5 days before). This suggests that the New Moon new start follows on an illumination of our own empowerment situation, the extent of our reach, and how effective we are in impacting our world. We looked beneath, or even through, x-ray-like, circumstances (Scorpio) and likely found one of two things: that we are much more powerful than we thought, or that we don’t hold power in the ways, or over what, we previously believed.

So this New Moon offers a point of re-birth, a re-making that allows us to rise again empowered–and a single set of sextiles tells the story. These are to the Capricorn-located energies of Pluto, Jupiter, and Pallas–and the New Moon has no other contacts. A sextile is a cooperative aspect, one that encourages the entities to work together, but it does require some effort, the kind shown by active intention.

We must choose to re-make, re-form, according to the Truth we find beneath the surface (Scorpio), and we do it by transforming structures, rules, restraints, and the framework upon which we hang our identity (Capricorn). The energies at our disposal are powerful ones: the Plutonian spark of the Universe, intense as life and death, a generative essence that can create or destroy; Jupiterian confidence, opportunity, and largesse, a bold belief in what we can build, and also that we know the material facts, and so can judge our best endeavors; and Pallas, offering a Warrior-spirit, a mature wisdom and understanding, a brave countenance with which to face challenges, and a practicality that informs our best use of already-developed skills.

That sounds like a lot, but the reality will be very individualized, very specific to your own personal transformation story. We’re likely to experience the chance at re-birth in matters of the House in the natal chart where the NM occurs. Though the contours of the situation will be highly unique to each individual, the general areas affected may be encompassed by the House where it falls: the 1st–the Self and the way you ‘present’ to the world; the 2nd–talents, assets, or Self-concept; the 3rd–communications, thinking, agreements, siblings; the 4th–family or core beliefs about identity; the 5th–creative efforts, romance, one’s children, risks; the 6th–the everyday circumstances, obligations and duties, the job, work colleagues, health; the 7th–your partner, your audience, your Art, or the world at large; the 8th–others’ assets, what you share and they share with you, sex, death; the 9th–things at a distance, education, religion, in-laws, travel, publications; the 10th–the career, the public image, business, your boss; the 11th–group affiliations, friendships, hopes wishes and goals; the 12th–the wider Universe, large institutions, those things we may be hiding from ourselves, spirituality. Not a definitive list, by any means, but one meant to give you some idea of where the action will be. There’s plenty of overlap, as well, as anyone who works with astrological concepts for long will know, so use your best intuitive sense of how this translates to your world.

So what’s the Sabian for this transformative Moon? ‘After Having Heard An Inspired Individual Deliver His “Sermon On The Mount,” Crowds Are Returning Home’. We’ve already ‘received’ the message delivered by spirit, or via someone inspired in their offering–now we need to take it ‘home’ with us, into ourselves and our everyday lives. What that message is will depend on who you are–what we know is that we’ve already got the needed information, and now just have to implement it.

Like Dorothy, we already have what we need to get ‘home’, we just have to access it, and the New Moon offers an ‘entry point’ that can kick-start a next-step inspiration.

New Moon in Libra 16 October 2020 Discovery

14 Wednesday Oct 2020

Posted by in astrology, Cardinal Activity, current events in the sky, forecast, Lunar Aspects, New Moon, Sabian Symbols

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‘Butterflies’ By Fujishima Takeji 1904 {{PD}}

The New Moon perfects at 12:31 PM PDT on the 16th at 23 Libra 53, after just recently passing Zeus at 21 Libra and so still conjoined, and still within opposition of Mars, which recently conjoined Earth as the Warrior continued apparent backward motion. Immediately the New Moon takes on the tone of the near-past, where emotional aspirations and attentions toward ambitions and passions have been faced with the effectiveness (or not) of choices and actions meant to bring those goals into concrete realization. What dawns here may derive from recent choices and interactions, and let us know who will help us, who has hindered us, and who we must cooperate with or accept support (or even criticism) from, in order to make ‘it’ happen. With whom do we want to bond, with whom partner or share, in whom are we interested romantically, with whom are we aligned? This New Moon brings forward these important questions–but do we get an answer, during Merc retrograde?

Merc in Scorpio is prone to dig, and that doesn’t always sit well within Libran relationships–too, our Mercury cycle may focus our thinking in directions other than those brought forward by the New Moon, so it may be highly individual whether these two tie together in any way. If we don’t learn who is vital to our efforts and our happiness at the New Moon, we’ll definitely get an inkling at the Inferior Conjunction–simply because our excavations will naturally have at least some effect on our relationships, and vice versa.

This time the Lunar event forms one end of an opposition (the other end being the Earth and Mars), with both ends squared by Capricorn residents Jupiter (yes, we’ll give the orb a little more than usual, this time, because this body touches the two that have closer aspects to the NM), Pluto, and Saturn–and of course, that makes a Cardinal T-square. That’s a configuration of tension, stretching all energy components to their extremes within the situation, but it promises us something: we can resolve the basic opposition if we can resolve the conflict the ‘arm’ introduces to the general dynamic.

That presents a picture of ambition and desire fulfillment, and who or what is helping (or hindering) with that, as it stands in relation to our own actions and choices, and how these have affected the material situation. We’ll be seeing the disparities between enacting our Will (Aries) and our desires (Zeus–which naturally involve others, even if only in the form of an audience or witness, because we might ask if we really find satisfaction in a totally unnoticed act–even with an anonymous one, we want to see it affect others–Libra).

We sort through these disparities between getting our way and getting what we desire by recognizing what we’re doing that works, and what is impeding us–and this New Moon says we do so using the three energies of the square in a disciplined and controlled (Capricorn) way. There is a strong element of responsibility in all this, via both the need to assess our own behavior and its effectiveness, and in the ways to modify that in order to get what we truly want.

Jupiter says we need to face the facts, especially those that are restraining us or hemming us in, or it suggests that it’s our relationship to (or perhaps subjugation to) the social order that is causing problems, or that our expansion attempts are poorly engineered, or that our faith is somehow misplaced (probably invested in an unworthy authority figure). Saturn says we just need to stop! or that authorities have deemed we must, or that we are failing to follow ‘the rules’ or to discipline ourselves–and so we miss at least some of our marks. With Pluto the idea of power struggle is introduced, again possibly with authorities, or we either fail to recognize that change has occurred, or that changes need to be made. We underestimate the force behind the social order, the inevitability of evolution, and the march of time, and this New Moon allows us to re-calibrate, in terms of our own efforts.

Remember, it’s natural to weigh things, with this Libra New Moon–we’re meant to assess one thing against another–so don’t succumb to internal critics that may confuse discernment in matters that directly affect you with judging things that have nothing to do with you. Right now, weighing your own choices, actions, and goals is what it’s all about.

Though I don’t typically talk about other aspects in a New or Full Moon picture, because I prefer to keep the energies discussed Lunar-relevant, I want to mention a close square currently in place: Ceres in Aquarius square Sedna in Taurus, both late in the sign but not so late that they demand our attention (right now, at mid-28 degrees, they’re just whining and pulling on our sleeves!) This may bring an entirely different tension that we could mistake for New Moon conflict; in reality this shows more as our own intellectually held concepts of our personal authority as they clash with those matters that either sit in our ‘blind spot’ or that we ‘know but don’t know’. Here the clash is internal, and likely highly distracting, stirring all kinds of feeling–but not the same ones stirred by the Lunar need to measure our actions, and our effectiveness, as it applies to goals and the World.

Too, Black Moon Lilith at this time is found at 29 Aries 29, placing those things we’d like to ignore or that enrage us at a precarious, hard-to-maintain position that could become explosive–and that means this tension might factor in, as well.

This New Moon really is about knowing ourselves (Mars in Aries, retrograde, and so going over territory we’ve already seen but need to reassess), and this knowing must be in the context of our relationships with others. New interactions or bonds can be born at this time, just as long as we face what we need to. This NM may feel a lot more like a Full Moon because of the Mars opposition–so don’t be surprised if it brings as many endings as beginnings.

The Sabian for the New Moon is, ‘ A Butterfly With A Third Wing On Its Left Side’. This New Moon seems to be about discovery, specifically about our own assets and what we can do with them. An extraneous ‘third wing’ may at first appear useless, random, even in the way of our successful ‘flight’, but on a butterfly a wing is an object of delicacy and beauty, with location on the left suggesting a spiritual purpose or meaning to it. It may be that with this New Moon we find something, in the course of all our other weighing and measuring, that offers a profound spiritual connection to our own beauty and ability–do your best to accept it as genuine, and to incorporate it in your idea of You.

Feel like Saturn’s giving you a hard time lately? Are you near a Return? You may want to visit (or re-visit) this real-life Saturn advice.

New Moon in Virgo 17 September 2020 A Soul Critique

15 Tuesday Sep 2020

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

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Honestly, this doesn’t look too bad–which may just go to show that hell is a personal, internal creation. ‘A Soul in Hell’ By Evelyn De Morgan 1902 {{PD}}

The New Moon perfects at 4:00 AM PDT at 25 Virgo–those are some nice round numbers, aren’t they? (And as an aside, don’t read anything into that–numbers are a human-created system–there’s no mystical meaning in neither having minutes.) The NM noviles Vesta, right away telling us that what begins at this time is something that carries a spark of genius, in terms of the way it can instigate important commitments, can dedicate our energies to what really matters to us, and can bring the spiritual into interactions. What is birthed right now matters, to the Soul, to the psyche, and to the manifestations of these in the life, as they arise from our own accounting and critique (Virgo) of who we are (the Sun) and how we feel (the Moon).

The New Moon, which is of course conjoined the Sun and opposed the Earth, also happens to square the Nodal axis. The Nodes are not bodies but ‘markers’, in a sense, of the points at any one time when the Moon’s orbit crosses the ecliptic, and so can be thought of as energetic placeholders, adding depth to analysis of the Moon’s situation at any particular point, and indicating the direction of a general energy stream moving from South Node to North. Since this Grand Cross consists of the event bodies (New Moon-Sun), one that’s always linked to the Sun anyway (the ever-opposing Earth), and these extremity markers (the Nodes), no one could be faulted for thinking this isn’t truly relevant to the event–but it is, simply because this likely signals the kind of ongoing tension typical to a GC that is kicked off by the New Moon event. That is, what starts at the NM simultaneously brings forward questions of identity and role (the Sun), the past (South Node), and the direction we’re headed in life (North Node), and this happens as a logical matter of course, and again marking the depth of meaning behind the NM itself and giving events the sense that decisions and choices must be made.

The New Moon trines Pluto and is in close trine to Saturn, suggesting just how easily profound change may occur, particularly in ways that change the material reality or that create structure or limit restraints. Further, Sedna could be considered to fill in a loose Earth Grand Trine with Saturn, indicating that either our instincts and intuitive faculties, or those matters we carry in our ‘blind spot’, become instrumental in events. Do we have a choice here as to whether we get a leg up with accurate instinctual perceptions or suffer at the hands of matters we just aren’t conscious of? No, probably not, though we can do our best to stay open to change, and so to Truth–a willingness to see and know may be our most important asset.

The New Moon in Virgo forms quincunxes to the Black Moon Lilith point and to Mars, the latter of which is still stationary in Aries, poised to break backward in apparent motion. The light dawning with the New Moon may slowly begin to illuminate what we need to do about matters we’ve ignored or denied–but whether that comes as a flash of knowledge all at once, or seeps in over the coming days, can’t be known, and considering that Mars is technically already retrograde, may imply that we don’t do anything, but instead learn what must be done, and then reserve action for a later date.

The NM also makes a sesquiquadrate to Uranus. This points out to us the need to ‘make peace’ with our own uniqueness. Too often we seek to subdue, distort for acceptability’s sake, or otherwise hide what is most true to ourselves, partly out of fear: to be known and seen is to be vulnerable, and partly out of a desire to be accepted. But, this Moon event will help us see, even if it’s only in some small way, how embracing a unique part of ourselves will make us truer to who we are at a Soul level. Special note: if you have something 8 and 12 degrees Aquarius, then that natal placement fills in the base of a Fist of God with Uranus and New Moon as apex. The suggestion is that Moon events might come directly from a clash between your most unusual qualities and the natal energy as they try to ‘get along’. For you the ‘recipe’ for making the most of New Moon events very firmly rests in the need to accept something you up until now may have seen as too ‘out there’ to be incorporated as a part of the identity–but now you must find a way.

The Sabian symbol for the New Moon is, ‘A Flag At Half-Mast In Front Of A Public Building’. The editor in me wants to correct that to say ‘half-staff’ as half-mast is only shipboard–and then I wonder, is that ‘mistake’ part of the message itself? Is it meant to convey that the mourning of loss and show of respect shown by lowering a flag is actually, in some strange way, misplaced? Maybe it draws our attention to an area we have been mourning, something that brings us sadness, only to point out to us that we are sad either about the ‘wrong’ component of the situation, or that we are misunderstanding our own mourning, either the need to or the need not to (which in some circles could be seen as unacceptable and so punished). In any case, this sadness has a public component, a public ‘face’, so that we may be challenged to examine whether what we are told we should be mourning really matters to us, or whether we are mourning something else entirely in private, participating in group sadness as a way to find ‘cover’ for our real feelings. Whatever happens at the New Moon, it may involve the loss of a feeling state (real or pretend) that moves us by its subtraction closer to living a most genuine life.