Tag Archives: New Moon Sabian

New Moon 18 January 2026 Reality Check

16 Friday Jan 2026

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‘Reading Tea Leaves’ By Harry Roseland 1906 {{PD}}

We exit the Dark of the Moon when the New Moon perfects on 18 January 2026 at 28 Capricorn 43; it does so with both Luna and Sol having just passed over Mercury and Mars, and on their way toward Venus and Pluto. It may feel like stepping out of the darkness directly into a fully-formed scenario that reads as a current status quo that is exactly what we’d expect from recent thinking, actions, and choices–not only ours, but everyone’s, a Capricornian stage set, a predetermined structure, a set of rules and boundaries presented with the assumption that we’re all players with assigned roles and scripts–but will we play the parts into which we’ve been slotted, and more importantly, should we?

First we need to understand what that stage is populated with and by, and that starts with recognizing what happens when we’re dealing with energies very closely conjoined or in very tight aspect. Typically that means we can’t tell the difference between them, or in the case of a non-conjoined aspect, we find them working in concert, each abetting the influence of the other, and again, difficult to sort. A New Moon has something of this character anyway: what draws our attention at the time of the event (represented by the Sun) is seen through an emotional or intuitive lens (the Moon) with all of it, both what’s spotlighted and the emotional atmosphere, reflecting the sign in which the meeting occurs.

For this New Moon we have that Capricorn structure, that framework and those rules, recognizable as they issue from the status quo, current authorities, and our own lives, and we see Merc and Mars tightly configured and just having influenced what shows at the New Moon. That influence was one where we thought we were acting and thinking, choosing and reasoning, practically, according to what is–but here we need to note: what we were seeing was what we expected to see, with the Moon in Capricorn and the involved energies all converging there, as well–and that suggests we’ve been seeing our expectations as reality, rather than taking in what’s around us in a more dispassionate light.

Other contacts are tight, but the closest is the Saturn-Uranus sextile, with Saturn conjoined Neptune (which itself is in crisis at 29 degrees of its own sign) and both in contact to the New Moon. Confusion reigns–or maybe personal illusion does–as we (continue) to try to sort reality from fantasy from lies from wishful thinking. Two additional things exert their influence here: the way our creative and imaginative energies, and the ideals we carry, are at a point where they’re so stressed that we may succumb to zoning out (not even trying to determine where they stand, anymore) or confusion may settle in such that it seems like a permanent state; and the unexpected, unanticipated, the shocking, especially as it pertains to material and asset situations and our place within the group, may quite suddenly exert a significant effect. Something we didn’t see coming changes the picture–flexibility and adaptability will help us deal.

In fact, all major aspects the New Moon forms are contained within 120 degrees (here’s where I’ll say they’re well past opposition to Jupiter in Cancer, making that, symbolically at least, ‘last week’s news’–we’re not exaggerating now, not basing our views and reactions on philosophy or beliefs or what we’ve learned–and optimism has dropped away, dreams of our own furthering of plans having dropped away, for now–we’re just trying to keep the ground we have, under this Capricorn influence).

Within that wedge we also find, conjoined the New Moon with Sun and Moon yet to make direct contact, a conjunction of Venus and Pluto in Aquarius. This may describe that sudden influence that changes the landscape, since Uranus rules these two: something love/ relationship and/ or asset related that threatens (at least, this change may feel threatening, with Pluto) to destroy, alter, resurrect, or remake that Venusian reality–or the Venusian facet itself may be the agent of change or destruction, and we react to that. This may involve our Higher Mind concepts around relationships, assets, or love, so that the challenge may be as much to how we think of and assess these things as it is to their existence–but of course, if we change how we think of things, that changes our reality, doesn’t it? This comes in the immediate future, and may pile on the stress or act as a distraction from determining the real-world situation and the constraints and limits it’s putting on us.

Really, this New Moon asks us to see the world in which we’re operating clearly but then throws lots of confusion and distraction and doubt, both internal and delivered by externals, into the mix. Outside that tight trine of New Moon to Uranus we see, besides the already discussed Jupiter, are the South Node, and Black Moon Lilith in Sagittarius, suggesting that the two factors we may miss/ ignore/ undervalue are the past and all it can tell us, and those facts and knowledge that we’ve buried or devalued, dismissed out of anger or a desire to forget, to look away. Keep those things in mind, especially what we’ve learned from the past (perhaps most especially what we’ve learned from parts of the past we’ve long forgotten or disowned or dismissed as not relevant).

The Sabian for the New Moon is, ‘A Woman Reading Tea Leaves’. We’re all looking for signs, for indications of what’s coming, of what we should do, of how we should react. That’s understandable, and often provides a new perspective, a clarity that allows us to step to the side and observe more accurately; don’t, however, let shopping for omens or explanations detract from the reality around us–it’s not only in our surroundings, the involved facts, and the practical effects of previous choices where the important signs will appear, it’s the place to respond and remedy things, if we want to be successful, which I define as having an impact that takes us in the direction we want to go. This New Moon offers a point of clarity about where we actually stand, if we can avoid succumbing to fear, confusion, delusion, or distraction by the unexpected, and if we can look at the structures, boundaries, and restrictions that confine us and shape our world, and see them in the context of how they do, or don’t, support our safety, security, prosperity, and overall wellness. Intimidation comes in the form of being judged, or via those who assume authority (whether that’s legitimate or not). We have to ask ourselves, Whose structures, whose rules, do I want to live by? Despite appearances, it’s up to us, not a Saturnian ‘Them’. Choosing our own life structure brings important questions of autonomy and dominion at any time, but especially now–don’t be afraid to answer them.

Have a wonderful New Moon, everyone!

New Moon 19 December 2025 It’s In Our Hands

16 Tuesday Dec 2025

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Jacopo Guarana
‘Three Studies of Hands Clasped in Prayer’ {{PD}}

The Sun and Moon meet at 5:42 PM PST of the 19th at 28 Sagittarius 24, and what we find is that the formation of the New Moon proceeds from the recent contact of both bodies to Venus, with each on its way to soon conjoin Mars in Capricorn (the Moon in just under a day, the Sun in about 5 days). What begins now is something arising from the experience of Love (or the awareness of its lack) that we felt (and perhaps had a big ol’ spotlight shined on) as first Sun (awareness) and then Moon (feeling and intuition) touched base with Venusian ideals–and this has a Sagittarian flavor, offering perceptions based on the kind of knowing that arises from sorting belief from fact, at experiencing emotional realities that point out how our ideas of the world differ from (or support) the way we see the Universe and our concepts of what it is, how it treats us, and how it works. It’s a genuine reality check that makes the facts prominent and will show the shortcomings of every institution, belief system, and academic argument we may try to hide behind or use to justify our choices.

We should expect new approaches to present themselves, based on what we discover, what we learn–and after almost a week post-New Moon to consider how we feel, should be ready to take action, serious, controlled, constructive action, when the Sun reaches Mars–or we’ll be faced with a choice, a big one, at least in terms of how this will channel our energy and efforts in the near future. Our awareness may center on what we’ll be turning away from, but we’d do better to base our choice in what we want, and avoid mourning things that, let’s be honest, we may not really want in the first place. We’ll already know how we feel–we’ll have sat with that revelation for several days–and if we aren’t avoiding the world in general (because we’re overwhelmed, tired, or just plain afraid of what we might find), we’ll choose, embrace our choice and all its implications, and know what to do from there.

The New Moon is semi-sextile the Black Moon Lilith point, quincunx Uranus, and square Saturn-Neptune, with Neptune and the BML point at 29 stressful degrees. This suggests that what’s born at the New Moon is forged from imagination, creative efforts, and/ or ideals under stress–the good news is, that stress is Self-created, rooted in anger we’ve not yet dealt with, or in what we are denying or hiding from ourselves–so, though not necessarily easily handled, we hold the keys, and that means no matter what, we could address it. Uncomfortable circumstances bring surprises–or is it that our own discomfort at what’s happening draws erratic responses, unexpected reactions, and revelations that may make us squirm but will also be a treasure-trove of information? We can be the leader in our own lives–don’t squander this chance to call your own shots.

All this finding out, this new knowledge, comes at the expense of living in the reality we’re imagining we’re in–that is, we learn things that prevent us going on telling ourselves fairy tales about our own real-world circumstances. Painful, possibly, disillusioning, definitely–but only the unhealthy among us would seek to live within delusion, so count yourself both healthy and lucky if the veil is lifted. Knowing where we are in life and who we are is the only way to create the world we want to live in; it’s like having a map, knowing where you want to go, but the only way to get there, to plot a course, is to know where you stand now. Connect to reality–it wants to speak to you.

A word about a Cardinal square between Jupiter and Chiron, and a semi-sextile between Mars and Pluto. The square could persuade us our wounds are bigger and more important in the scheme of things than they are; the temptation may be to put on an aggressive armor of optimism and forced positivity. We may mistakenly believe this will shield us from further hurt, but it’s really a guise for our own desire to destroy, punish, or impose our Will, as expressed through Mars-Pluto synergy with no immediate outlet. Beware in ourselves (or in anyone you deal with) the hard smile, the pretense of positive energy wielded like a club, the demand for a happy facade that in reality denies the spectrum of feeling. An easy trap to fall into, if we tell ourselves we’re being cheerful, enforcing the holiday spirit, when we are in fact living in our heads, in our theories about life (Pluto in Aquarius) and angry that things are clearly out of control–or at least, out of our control (Mars in Cappy). The New Moon changes this, puts things in our hands. Merc square the Nodal axis guarantees we’ll be getting a lot of messages in this period, and understanding them will be instrumental in navigating our Path. All we can do is our best.

The Sabian for the New Moon is, ‘A Fat Boy Mowing The Lawn Of His House On An Elegant Suburban Street’. I take this as an image of privilege, comfort, plenty, but where the boy is doing his part to care for his surroundings. I think it’s a symbol of appreciation for what we have, no matter what that is–and yet we can’t deny there’s a hint of the spoiled and indulged, in calling the boy “fat” and the street both “elegant” and “suburban”. I’m not fond of that kind of built-in judgment that certain things are inherently inferior because of their origins, their lifestyle implications, or the privileges they convey. What amounts to a moral pronouncement in the minds of some is just that: it’s within them, not in the scene or the people observed, necessarily. Celebrate what you have, and care for it–gratitude is never wasted.

It’s time to think about astro calendars for the new year! Have a wonderful, wonderful New Moon!

New Moon in Scorpio 19 November 2025: The Truth Will Out

18 Tuesday Nov 2025

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‘By the Waters of Babylon’ By Arthur Hacker 1888 {{PD}}

The New Moon of 19 November perfects at 10:46 PM PST at 28 Scorpio 11, poised to perfect the Inferior Conjunction with Mercury in hours, and clustered with the Black Moon Lilith point that both Sun and Moon have just passed over. A New Moon is a point of discovery, of revelation, and in Scorpio the energy is one of uncovering the Truth–but as always, we must be careful to parse objective truths (agreed-upon facts or points of shared reality) from what resonates as true to us (which may be both subjective and entirely valid, or may only apply to us). The Inferior Conjunction is a starting point within a minor cycle where the Sun and Mercury ‘converse’–their Inferior meeting birthing and allowing the remaining retrograde to incubate something, typically an idea or way of thinking related to the sign where they meet, with the finished initiative delivered at the Superior Conjunction, when the Sun and Mercury direct meet. Under the Scorpion those ideas may consist of what’s hidden, even from ourselves, things mysterious or primal–but the finished idea, delivered around 19 January, will be Capricornian: crisp, controlled, definitive, consisting of the rules or framework we think necessary as we move forward. That carries the potential for a lot of judgment of the Scorpionic, perhaps rejected out of the belief that it’s in boundaries and institutions, in listening to authorities, our best future lies–which sounds to me like an aberration, desperate, and temporary, at best, arising from fear of what we don’t know, or what we don’t understand, the kinds of things we think linger in the shadows.

Consider how passage over and, at the moment of New Moon, still conjoined, Black Moon Lilith affects our emotional experience. We’ve just been exposed to/ reminded of/ or faced with things we’d rather ignore or deny, or that enrage us–and now we are being given a glimpse of what those things might make us feel. And in Scorpio, those are dark feelings, even if they serve as revelation or purge. Magnified, by the Water trine to Jupiter in Cancer, in the form of imaginings made real, in the Water trine (and so forming a Grand Trine) with Saturn conjoined Neptune in Pisces, the latter at 29 stressed degrees=the dream is at a breaking point, the imagination taxed to its limit, the creative faculties at their peak.

Uranus at 29 Taurus sits in opposition to the New Moon complex=stress like a high-tension wire exposed throws electricity into the air, precipitating upset that forces innovation or a Higher Mind approach in the face of new, unusual, or more advanced intel. It presents as a crisis in identity, but whether that’s individual or in relation to the group is unique to each of us–in any case, our sense is that our stability, safety, prosperity, or well-being is endangered–and naturally, that may prompt any number of radical attempts to re-gain our footing–instability is the last thing the sure-footed bull can take for long.

The New Moon Sabian is, ‘An Indian Squaw Pleading To The Chief For The Lives Of Her Children’. The Moon in Scorpio is pleading with the Sun, bargaining for the emotional life and the things it makes possible, makes live; it reminds me of the way Mercury meets the Sun in Scorpio, then completes the cycle in Capricorn, as if the secrets, hidden matters, emotional truths we discover will be so overwrought, so deep, even taboo, that we may retreat to the clamped down and restrictive just to get a moment to collect ourselves, to get our bearings, so thoroughly will we be knocked out of our familiar emotional orbit. Oh, I hope that’s not the case.

New Moon in Libra 21 October 2025 Sensitive Change

20 Monday Oct 2025

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The New Moon perfects at 5:24 AM PDT of the 21st, filling in a T-square with Moon-Sun opposed Chiron in Aries and all squared by Jupiter in Cancer; with generous assessment, we could even call this a Grand Square by including Pluto from its spot very early in Aquarius–and maybe we should, considering Pluto and the New Moon both occupy Air signs. It’s a statement: what begins here brings conflict between personal hurt and expanded sensitivities (especially on the social front) and results in transformation or destruction of a way of thinking, and possibly of a way into the future that we’d anticipated–that is, our wounds and our caring about the wider world require change, and that change may alter both our thinking and our tomorrows.

A New Moon in Libra urges us to look at whom and what we partner with, prompting awareness of both cooperative circumstances and aesthetic ones; Luna’s contacts tell us that the ways in which we are injured will be front and center as we assess our emotional state (the Libra Moon) and our identity (the Libra Sun) in relationships. The Other looms large, and we’re likely to be hyper-focused on how we feel about others–and they will be looking at us through the same, Self-focused lens. That should give us pause; we’re not the only one feeling alone in the midst of all those closest to us.

Remember too that Chiron is also our unique gift, something original and useful we’ve synthesized from all our knowledge and experience, something that literally no one else can do, see, or understand in quite the same way we do. If we can manage to avoid being distracted with our own deep hurts, we could bring that gift forward with the New Moon, likely to help others (Libra) or to heal our own relationships, or to create necessary change in thought or theory (Pluto in Aquarius) or within the social arena or in faith or philosophy, specifically in how these guide us to care for others (Jupiter in Cancer). As usual, it’s a choice: use our energy to make things better, or distract ourselves reviewing a litany of our wounds.

The Moon and Sun are also apex to a Finger of God with base of Neptune in early Aries and Uranus in early Gemini. This suggests that if we can get our uniquely original ideas to mesh with our individual ideals (these are creative, pioneering, in some way), we can apply that to our New Moon fresh start with others. A Finger is all about making the best of the base energies; the apex describes what we get, if we get it right.

The New Moon is also sesquiquadrate the North Node in Pisces=we’ll need to adjust our vision of the Path forward, and that’s whether we use the NM energy positively or negatively (I hate to use those words–I’d rather think of them as electrical charges, with the energy either pushing out, or pulling in, the difference between engagement with others, so important under a Libra Moon, and stubbornly remaining focused on the Self, despite what’s around us).

Also of note, and probably the most prominent thing in our consciousness at present, is a Water Grand Trine, Mars, Mercury, and the Black Moon Lilith point all together in Scorpio, Saturn in Pisces, and Jupiter in Cancer=hidden anger and ‘buried’ realities motivate us and drive our reasoning; we believe we and others should care about the wider world, and we think reality is as we imagine it to be–we mistake feelings for facts. Wow, the possibility of missteps in those combined factors is huge. Traps lie in the Trine’s components each carrying a high degree of subjectivity, a propensity to be viewed through one’s inner reality rather than through fact or real world-based perceptions. This is certainly what I’ve been seeing around me for a while now, and I bet you are, too: people charging forward in the belief that they see things correctly, and you need to agree. Let’s redefine this Trine, substituting externals for that inner reality. What we get then is Self-awareness that understands our own aggressive tendencies and those ways we can deceive ourselves by refusing what we’re uncomfortable with (Mars, Merc, BML), a way to look at how ideals can shape the real world, as well as spot them when we come across circumstances that meet those ideals (Saturn), and a viewpoint that centers not on feelings but facts, and the ways we can be sensitive to these realities and so can move to expand both our understanding and our efforts to help (Jupiter).

The New Moon Sabian is, ‘Mankind’s Vast And Enduring Effort To Reach For Knowledge Transferable From Generation To Generation’. If we don’t learn from the past, then we’re doomed to repeat it–and doomed is the word specifically because there’s something truly awful about retracing our steps when we should know better. Understand what came before–look at how it turned out–don’t think you’re the exception for whom a repeat of choices will somehow magically end differently than they did before.

The Daily Brief: 22 August 2025 A Divining Rod of Truth

21 Thursday Aug 2025

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Engraving ‘Die Gartenlaube’ From a book published by Ernst Keil, 1859 {{PD}}

Late in the day, the New Moon perfects PDT at 11:05 PM at 00 Virgo 22 (so falls AM of the 23rd for everyone east of this zone), and the whole day/ 24 hours preceding it is a lead-up to this energy refresh. But, it’s a lead-up through the Dark, and after two days of this already, we may hit a bit of frustration, a mini-Dark Night of the Soul, as we look for, and likely fail to locate, why we are what we are, and want what we want (Moon in late Leo).

The New Moon is apex to a Finger of God with base of Saturn-Neptune in Aries and Pluto in Aquarius. That’s an emotionally charged divining rod, or maybe a lightning rod, attracting and concentrating the state of reality and its degree of conformity to our ideal/ degree of departure from our ideal, if we’re being misled or deceived (and we can fool ourselves if we’re not careful, Saturn-Neptune), and this combines with a Higher Mind desire to make change, or a rebellious urge to foster chaos through destruction or overturn the status quo, but all with an underlying desire to discover the Truth (Pluto in Aquarius), and the result is the New Moon=a sudden realization that the feelings are raw and intuition is stark and unavoidable (00 degrees). We perceive something new for the first time, and the first things we see are what’s wrong with our idea of reality and our desire to change it. Don’t let that be discouraging; having what isn’t working made apparent is much more useful than platitudes and reassurances that may only serve to take our attention away from problems.

The other major aspect is a square to Uranus, ruler of Pluto, which may say that what we discover at the New Moon could be upsetting; we want change (Pluto) because of what we see about our own uniqueness and/ or our relationship to the Group (Uranus). Notice too that the New Moon forms a novile with ruler of the other leg of the Finger, Mars, implying that the actions and choices prompted at this time will create an advantage for us; they’ll be rooted in a spark of genius we won’t necessarily see as such in the moment (as long as they won’t be made from a sense of hurt, see below).

Spanner in the works: Venus and Chiron are still in Cardinal square. Make sure wounded feelings aren’t the impetus behind current choices and decisions; that may infect things in a way that later can’t be easily undone.

The Sabian symbol for this New Moon is, ‘In A Portrait, The Significant Features Of A Man’s Head Are Artistically Emphasized’. The Uranian and Uranus-related elements of this New Moon are likely to make us hyper-aware of our most unusual and unique traits and abilities. We need to see them as ‘beautiful butterfly’ aspects of who we are, and not the unflattering or even shameful distortions of spirit that some others, looking to disempower us, might want us to believe.

New Moon in Leo 24 July 2025 Truth Bomb

23 Wednesday Jul 2025

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Sign for “Truth” (bar), Broad up from Tulane Avenue, Mid-City New Orleans

Infrogmation of New Orleans Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0

The Sun and Moon meet at 12:10 PM of the 24th at 2 Leo 08–which puts the New Moon in close opposition to Pluto in Aquarius, trine Saturn and Neptune in Aries, and sextile Uranus in Gemini. That sounds like the recipe for a bomb. The question becomes: is the bomb one of unanticipated revelation, one that removes restriction (especially around what we think) or acts as impetus for individual initiative, or does this destroy our understanding, our capacity for change and embrace of the new, instilling fear of authority as well as eliminating our own trust of ourselves? That may be an individual matter, depending on how the Lunar event contacts your natal chart, but in either case, the presence of Neptune in the equation suggests that the basis of any effects rests in whether we know ourselves, or find our own workings a mystery; whether we’re honest with ourselves, deceive others, or hold to our highest ideals. That’s the nub of it: our energy surges, born anew with the combining of Solar and Lunar power, and so will take a creative direction; it’s up to us whether that creativity is of the productive or the destructive kind.

A few things of note: Mercury is retrograde and will meet the Sun in Inferior Conjunction on 1 August–we know this meeting, much like a New Moon, as an inception point, a new start to something, and considering the players, we’ll either see the beginning of whatever is conceived at the NM, or we’ll see a ‘new’ idea emerge from the mix of events and influences occurring now; Saturn and Neptune both retrograded earlier in July; Uranus just entered Gemini for the first time since 1949–so will be ruled for some time by Mercury (and Uranian energies then may have more ‘swing’ when under the sway of the oft-retro Mercury–like they need more instability). All this suggests there is a newness, a rawness, to so many energies involved with the New Moon, both from their locations in early degrees of a sign, and because of the several recent turnarounds, symbolic of a pulling back, a hesitation, a need to reassess territory one has already traversed. The subtle involvement of Mercury through rulerships and its own retro cycle emphasizes the messages we send others, and what we tell ourselves, at the heart of all that happens, with this Lunar event setting off a kind of ‘Truth Bomb’, a situation, gift of information, or realization that we meet with our current level of ‘truthiness’, that allows us to discover something more about ourselves and where we stand, about who we are at core and where we can ‘shine’ (Leo).

Also sextile the New Moon and conjoined Uranus are asteroids Psyche and Sappho, and object Sedna*; these bring to mind passionate relationships (and these can be relationships to groups or to a vocation or life subject/ path) where some knowledge or denial/ lack of acknowledgment (for a variety of reasons) may be involved. Too, with Sedna there’s the potential for this attraction/ interaction to sit in one’s ‘blind spot’, suggesting we may feel strongly but not be completely aware of our feelings, which may read like instincts or suppressed knowledge (as in, Psyche sensed there was something different about her lover Eros, but wasn’t conscious of it until she finally made the decision to light a candle so she could observe him at last). This New Moon is ‘lighting the candle’, about something we might already be knowledgeable of to some degree, but not have in the forefront of awareness. Linked to Uranus, this may contain Higher Mind knowing, or may have the purpose of disruption to the current order; in any case, our relationship to it is unique to us, original in the way we see, approach, and interact with it.

Hekate in Scorpio is square the New Moon=the Lunar event is a ‘way shower’, but either the way is difficult or seeing the direction we must go causes conflict. Lilith in Pisces is quincunx the New Moon=are we seeking to wield our power simply to express ourselves, or are we seeking vengeance? An important issue to sort before proceeding. And finally Dionysus is conjoined the New Moon but out-of-sign, from 29 degrees of Cancer=the stress response to all this might be to go wild, party like it’s 1999, or try to escape in whatever way will let us hide from our feelings (Cancer placement)–and we all know that’s never a good move.

The Sabian for the New Moon is, ‘A Middle-Aged Woman, Her Long Hair Flowing Over Her Shoulders And In A Braless Youthful Garment’. I firmly believe that everyone should dress the way they want; this description, however, hovers close to judgment, simply by the details it chooses to include, details that suggest, with use of the designation ‘youthful’, that how this woman has chosen to present herself is inappropriate, because the first thing mentioned is that she is not, in the estimation of the image assessor, youthful. Is she dressed inappropriately? No, she’s not, and make sure you hear that: just because someone else thinks they get to judge you, doesn’t mean they actually have any business doing so. That kind of thing is the opposite of the ‘Truth Bomb’ the New Moon will set off.

The Truth, rather than ‘out there’, is ‘in here’, in our own hearts and minds. This New Moon brings something that helps us discover it, and no matter how stunning, shattering, or powerful the event or idea (or how subtle–we can’t forget the porousness of the unconscious, or the influence we tacitly accept without realizing it)–we do best to welcome it. And if the ‘bang’ doesn’t come with the New Moon, keep an eye on the Inferior Conjunction on 1 August.

Have a wonderful New Moon, my friends!

*Sedna is an SDO (Scattered Disk Object). These are small bodies located beyond Neptune’s orbital path that have eccentric orbits themselves, which is what distinguishes them from Kuiper Belt Objects.

New Moon in Cancer 25 June 2025 The Lens of Belief

23 Monday Jun 2025

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In this case, the lenses are in the upper left corner. Trompe-l’oeil By Charles Bouillon 1704 {{PD}}

The New Moon perfects at 3:31 AM PDT at 4 Cancer 07, and our immediate reaction to events will be big, exaggerated, but the reaction will be based in facts and/ or our beliefs (Moon-Sun conjoined Jupiter) centered on what we care about or are responsible to care for (Cancer) as this applies to our individual position within the real-world situation (square to Saturn in Aries)–or at least, our reaction and actions taken will be based on what we BELIEVE the real-world situation is (Neptune conjoined Saturn). The thing we need to be cognizant of, more acutely than anything else, is that our illusions, prejudices, ideals, and beliefs, along with any deceptions perpetrated by or aimed at us, will be our lens–and that means we’ll be reacting to what we tell ourselves is so, rather than what’s really there.

That doesn’t mean our perceptions and experience of the moment are wrong; it means we’re bringing ourselves to the event and filtering what happens through ourselves–and we can’t help but add our interpretations to the mix. Awareness of these perceptual conditions is vital to being able to translate what we conclude into the most fact and reality-based version possible–because accuracy in terms of the reality picture is necessary for our presence to be heard and the impact of our actions felt–otherwise, we’re just waving out arms and shouting into an empty room.

A clear interpretation is important because a New Moon is a new start, a seed moment, when new conditions, ideas, perceptions, germinate and will be with us in one form or another at least through the Full Moon in two weeks, and possibly considerably longer, depending where in our own natal chart the New Moon falls and what natal placements it contacts.

The Moon-Sun-Jupiter meeting sextiles Mars in Virgo and so forms a base for a Finger of God, apex Pluto in Aquarius=this suggests that New Moon actions born out of critical assessment, harvest-sharing, or attempts focused on efficiency and accountability will result in significant change, that may be permanent, or potentially could go beyond helpful to outright destructive. The success of transforming some element of your world, then, is relative to one’s fairness in dealing with others (giving them their rightful due) and one’s processing of and understanding of critique. The change may be purely intellectual or may catapult us into the future, maybe even thrust us into the avant garde in some area where we hold experience or expertise–but it’s definitely a double-edged sword, as capable of harming as it is of clearing an avenue for progress.

The New Moon also makes a semi-square to Venus in Taurus=the Moon in its own sign and Venus in her own sign with an uncomfortable angle between them suggests feelings are strong, and relationships and/ or material assets and the situation generating them are firmly in place–and neither will budge willingly–so we look again to the required change demanded by our own actions and choices (Mars) and the new spark of the New Moon and see that the change to the asset picture or relationships comes about because of the Lunar new start and in spite of the way we’re dug in with both our feelings and our prosperity efforts. We know this because Plutonian outcomes are the result of the mix, and that they’ll take an Aquarian form (the Finger).

Also of note: Uranus at 29 stressed degrees of Taurus sextiles Mercury in Cancer=what shocks or surprises in the material world or conditions under which we operate can be anticipated–but it’s an individual matter how willing each of us is to acknowledge what we care about, what we see potentially occurring, to formulate ideas on how to handle it (Mercury), and then decide what we are willing to do (Cancer is a Cardinal sign) about the impending crisis. With a 29 degree placement, the wave will break, but it’s up to us whether we’ll position ourselves well or just get swept away by it.

The New Moon Sabian symbol is, ‘At A Railroad Crossing, An Automobile is Wrecked By A Train’. This emphasizes the need for awareness, especially of current surroundings, and whose or what’s path you may be in the way of. Too, it requires acknowledgment that there are forces larger than all of us capable of harm, often simply because the objectives it holds don’t take us into account–and at this moment in time, getting out of the way of Plutonian (focused on obliteration, change-by-force) and Uranian (anarchic, wanting to shock and surprise above anything else, all the energy in the act, and so not caring about the outcome) actors may be the best strategy for coping and staying safe.

Wishing you all a lovely, and above all, safe, New Moon–

New Moon 26 May 2025 It Dawns On Us

23 Friday May 2025

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The New Moon perfects at 8:02 PM PDT at 6 Gemini 05, just three days before the Superior Conjunction, the meeting of the Sun and Mercury in direct motion. That suggests the New Moon generates fresh feeling that creates new thoughts or ideas (Gemini), or that a new, seminal-feeling idea engenders new emotional response, and that leads to the event the Sun-Mercury meeting promises: the culmination of energy and intent seeded with the Inferior Conjunction of March 25th. This connection is doubly potent, doubly exciting to the interplay of mind and emotion, because of Mercury’s rulership of Gemini. It will likely feel, between the New Moon and the Superior Conjunction, like we are seeing things in a whole new light; it dawns on us that we weren’t putting all the pieces together, weren’t appreciating what they mean or how we genuinely feel, with the result that we experience a quickening of mental activity, perceptual acuity, and an awareness of the depth and true nature of our own feelings. Think ‘Mercurial’, and expect some lightning-quick reveals, realizations, and thought and ideas that will shift and shift again our viewpoint of the current situation and what we must do.

Thanks to Selwyn Ken Abapo for ‘Dawn and the Early Blue Hues’ 2022 Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0

Saturn has just entered Aries, is conjoined Neptune, also new in the sign, and makes a very wide sextile to the New Moon=the real-world consequences of our own choices and actions, what started with these and the emotional impact they have, is just now beginning to be apparent. We’re both moving toward the ideal, and moving deeper into the fog. Questions around discipline, boundaries, constraints, denial, and suppression all come to the fore, we attempt to measure what may be impossible to quantify (are we living our dreams and ideals? How successful have we been at embracing the spiritual? What are the real impacts of our creativity?), and, for good or ill, awareness of the individual’s responsibility for what they put out into the world is more acute than ever. This New Moon offers mental clarity in the midst of these contradictory trends, something we desperately need as the planet of ‘No’ meets the planet of ‘I don’t know’. The good news is neither Saturn nor Neptune is in ultimate control; it’s up to each of us to apply the constructive and restrained influences of Saturn to the creative and spiritually-oriented impulses of Neptune, in the hope that we choose well and Aries provides sound and rewarding results for individual choice and action.

The New Moon is trine Pluto in Aquarius and closely quincunx the Black Moon Lilith point=Aha! What we’re being offered with this fresh Lunar energy is the chance to change our minds. May not sound all that revolutionary, until we consider that’s the exact energy that’s currently motivating Pluto: Aquarian forward-thinking, upsetting the status quo, innovation and invention. The question is, will we embrace change because we have a progressive vision, a desire to transform and regenerate? Or will we destroy simply to see the world burn? It’s an important distinction, best determined before you light the match. Important note: the match itself may consist of those things we’ve ignored, denied, or been really p*ssed off about, and the danger there is that those angry, disowned energies may desperately want to strike without much consideration for what may result.

The dangerous part of this multi-energy mix is that we may expect ourselves to have all the answers, know exactly what we think and want, when this is actually the perfect window to re-consider, to discover, to explore, to acknowledge our uncertainties and what we’ve neglected or ignored. It should dawn on us that a) we don’t know everything, and shouldn’t expect ourselves to (that is, a little humility and modesty will go a long way), b) that there’s no virtue in being inflexible or failing to incorporate new information, c) that though what we think is a precursor to what we do and become, it isn’t who we are–don’t think that the story in our heads is more ‘real’ than the interactions we have and the real-world results we create. Too, just because we think a thought doesn’t make us a good (or bad) person–it’s what we put our energy into (and what we withhold it from) that counts.

But here’s our warning: the New Moon is conjoined asteroid Icarus at 5 Gemini. Could we have a clearer message to keep our heads about us, to not let the misleading energies of the imagination pull us too far astray from the real and the practical? No, we couldn’t. And, Jupiter and Uranus are semi-sextile each other=though optimism can spark the unexpected, the fortuitous, the unlooked for opportunity, and the shock of the ‘new’ can send us careening in an entirely unexpected direction, whatever happens, we’d do best not to fly too high, to note the distinction between exploring mentally and translating that into concrete events–one doesn’t necessarily have to follow the other, at least not without some solid, Saturnian footings beneath it. Or, we can see it as Chiron sextile Jupiter, with Uranus at the rough midpoint=that lets us know that hurt might underlay a lot of the big pushes forward right now–and we all know the wound is never the best engine for choice/ decision making.

‘Daedalus and Icarus’ By Orazio Riminaldi c1625 {{PD}}

The New Moon Sabian is, ‘A Well With Bucket And Rope Under The Shade Of Majestic Trees’. We’re offered emotional ‘water’ at this time–the image is of a pleasant spot, a place of rest, and maybe that’s Luna’s point right now: we’re at the beginning, with what we learn at the New Moon, and with what we feel; best to take it easy, as many of the other current influences will push us to do the exact opposite, with very likely unhappy results.

New Moon 27 April 2025 Back From the Dead

24 Thursday Apr 2025

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‘Circee’ (Circe), drawing By Jean Delville 1893 {{PD}}

A New Moon in Taurus may ask if we are born from our environment, a material, sensuous Being with qualities and personality fully formed and fully intact, or if we are born into our environment formless, a tabula rasa upon which our surroundings write their influence? Of course, in absolute terms when we’re born, or re-born as part of the Lunar cycle, we’re neither totally unformed nor are all our characteristics already determined; anyone who’s dealt with an infant knows they’re distinctive from birth, even as they are learning and changing all the time, and so it is with us all through our lives: we live, we grow, and even as we develop we’re aware that there are some responses, feelings, traits that have always been within us.

Any New Moon offers us a moment of re-birth, a moment in which, in areas related to the sign and the House it occupies in our natal chart, we can begin again; with Taurus we focus on our surroundings, the atmosphere, our assets, what we have or are missing (and related to this, what we need, find comfort in materially, and what personal expression and power we derive from our wealth or talents), such that we may feel the sign concerns things outside ourselves, and so outside our influence or control. An easy mistake to make; that’s why we are obligated to remind ourselves that where we are in life, and what surrounds us, is a direct and undeniable result of each and every decision we’ve ever made. The outside matches the inside, not one-for-one, but in ways where many things are more subtle, cumulative, or far-reaching, extending into our futures and or sending tendrils of meaning and re-interpretation back into the past.

This New Moon sparks at 12:30 PM PDT of the 27th at 7 Taurus 46, conjoined (and moving toward perfection of the conjunction with) the asteroid Circe=the child of gods, but described as a sorceress and minor goddess, Circe is chiefly known now as having used her power to turn men into pigs just to keep the one she desired (Odysseus) trapped on her island. Like so many people used to wielding power, used to getting her way, Circe didn’t see how she was encroaching on others’ boundaries, that she was behaving in abusive and controlling ways, simply because to people who process power the way she does, others aren’t as real as she is–she’s a narcissist.

Together the New Moon/ Sun-Moon conjunction and Circe act as one arm of a Grand Cross made up of Mars in Leo conjoined the asteroid Karma, Pluto in Aquarius, and Black Moon Lilith and the asteroid Hekate in Scorpio. In a more conventional interpretation only the T-square would be considered, with Hekate (the one who shows the way) ignored–which may be the case even as we note Hekate’s presence, because it’s conjoined the Black Moon Lilith point, urging us to bury the info we’re being given about which way and how to go.

So, conscious of this tendency to skip over what’s uncomfortable or inconvenient, especially if it illuminates the direction we should take, we look at the other energies in play: Mars in Leo makes us want to act or choose, to our own glory or for our own Will or purposes; Pluto in Aquarius may, in this Lunar light, take on an unusually negative tone: awareness of Higher Mind, taking an intellectual tack, being inventive or innovative, may feel destructive–or, change and transformation seem to be required to move successfully into the future. Either way, the pressure is intense–and so may be the fear.

But, we haven’t addressed one element: the asteroid Karma in Leo conjoined Mars. Here we have a chicken-or-egg situation: do we act or choose because we’re meeting some facet of our Karma, something we have created ourselves and now must face (or embrace–it could be a good thing), or are we creating Karma with our actions and choices? Inevitably, both are true, in the larger scheme of things, but the label of ‘Karmic’ is one we should use with care; really, either everything is Karmic, or nothing is. Mayhap we should read this, then, as facilitating something we deserve–no more, no less–and no matter where or from whom this appears to come, we as individuals have earned it (Leo).

One other thing worth mention: the New Moon is at the midpoint of another energy picture, a trine among Requiem in Cancer and a conjunction of Orpheus and Damocles in Pisces. Requiem in the sign of Lunar sensitivity and emotions suggests an end to something, a feeling or caring situation memorialized which reflects the presence of Pluto in the larger equation. Orpheus attempted to retrieve his beloved from Hades, only to fail when he lost trust and looked back, violating the only order he’d been given; combine this ‘blowing his big break’ with the story of the Sword of Damocles, wherein it’s made clear that with enormous privilege comes a much higher level of danger/ threat, and we get a portrait of an individual granted extraordinary favor who then, either through his own misbehavior or through a newfound awareness, loses what he so deeply wanted. He is disabused of the idea either that he deserves an exception to the very rules of life and death, or that those with a particular status are immune from these rules. The Moon-Sun, then, poised between these, may imply that a particular idea about what one desires will need, one way or another, to die.

The Sabian for this New Moon is a little startling: ‘A Sleigh On Land Uncovered By Snow’. We’re given a symbol of movement that’s in a totally unsuitable environment. This just reiterates that the ‘old’ idea of how to move forward needs revision–and certainly, that what we find comfortable and secure may need to be revised, updated–because how many of us regularly drive a sleigh anymore? You see what I mean.

That New Moon in Taurus gives us a re-birth in what’s not just materially important or possible, but in what we want and deserve. Awareness grows, likely through emotional processes, and so our ideas about what brings comfort, prosperity, or security, particularly on an individual level, change as well. We’re re-vivified through a process of assessment and evaluation–and we are shown in the light of the New Moon exactly what we must do, what direction we must take, to make it happen. We’re, in some important way, back from the dead, in the Taurean areas of our life. Enjoy it.

Partial Solar Eclipse 29 March 2025 Seeing Our Way Forward

25 Tuesday Mar 2025

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‘The Education of Achilles’ By Auguste-Clément Chrétien 1861 {{PD}} The Horse/Guy giving the archery lesson? None other than Chiron.

The upcoming Partial Solar Eclipse (New Moon) peaks at 3:47 AM PDT of the 29th late in 8+ degrees of Aries. What we see is that retro Mercury is already well past Inferior Conjunction and poised to re-enter Pisces, suggesting we are on the verge of a ‘mental retreat’–I don’t think that’s a surprise to any of us. Transiting Mercury is out-of-sign conjoined retro Venus and Neptune in Pisces, the latter at 29 stressful degrees, and in a chain-reaction conjunction with both the North Node and Saturn which are close to Venus and Neptune, with Merc also closely quincunx the Scorpio Black Moon Lilith point; I think that’s a pretty good description of the situation: we’re worried about our future as much as the current reality picture; the mind needs a rest, an escape, as a recent refresh (the Inferior Conjunction) is still germinal, not even close to revealing itself, and with our tastes, relationships, and/ or values under temporary assault, experimental, or feeling foreign to us, and our ideals and faith stretched to the limit, we are more than aware of those matters under the surface, the things we’ve tried to ignore or deny, that enrage when we think about them, that require us to adjust repeatedly–and we feel the need for a break. Looking for relief from our stressful reality has, at this point, almost become a way of life–so we must ask, what will trigger this latest urge to escape, and the actions (Aries) it suggests?

A New Moon is a new start, but when it’s a Solar eclipse in Aries, it promises something new doesn’t just take root, it wipes out what was growing before, creating fertile ground for something originating all the way, in our planetary metaphor, to the molten core of our individuality, our sense of initiative, and identity as a unique Being who works to impress the ‘I Am’/ Will on people and things around us. We feel we must act; we may desperately want a new start in that most important of venues, within ourselves–and the Aries New Moon delivers that aforementioned trigger prompting the new start via three scenarios: the Moon’s sextile to Pluto in Aquarius, and in two Fingers of God, one with the eclipse as apex with a base of Achilles at 7 Virgo sextile Atlantis at 7 Scorpio, the other with Aries Luna sextile Pallas in Aquarius, apex Achilles.

The sextile to Pluto, of course, announces serious, permanent change or evolution; this may involve involuntary loss or destruction, affecting our intellect and our understanding of current circumstances. It alerts us to the fact that we will feel this, be aware of this, as it affects the mind/ mentality, our relationship to or role within the group, and calls for a modern approach to what we are facing (Aquarius).

The Finger featuring the eclipse as apex blends as the base two interesting energies: Achilles, describing an unanticipated vulnerability, around critical thinking/ reasoning, abilities of discernment and enjoyment of mutually shared ‘harvest’, and Atlantis, embodying an advanced civilization that is no more, that in fact has receded into legend, if it ever was at all, with the memory at this point possibly acting in a hidden and potentially destructive way. Looking back now we may wonder: is our past real? Were our advances lost, or never really there all along? This config suggests we have a weak point brought forward by a set of standards or behaviors that are no longer appropriate, needed, or in force, that are in fact actually detrimental in handling the Now, with the Aries Solar eclipse the result: a wipe out to some facet of the identity, or to some course of action or choice we either have been contemplating or have already embarked on/ made.

The eclipse point sextile Pallas suggests there’s wisdom, or at least practicality, in what occurs at this time, in the reconsidering of action or choice, and that’s so even if we don’t understand it. The result of recognizing this is an understanding of where, precisely, we are vulnerable (apex Achilles) and so most crucially, how to deal with it.

The Sabian for the New Moon/ Solar eclipse is, ‘A Crystal Gazer’. I think this describes every one of us right now, intent on seeing the future, or at least discerning how we can best respond in the moment. The Solar eclipse delivers a clear suggestion, an intimation of what we should do, and what we should avoid–and the image implies we’ll be capable of seeing what’s presented, if only we’ll believe in our own ability to see.

A vanitas still life with a crystal ball reflecting an image of the artist at his easel, By Vincent Laurensz van der Vinne 17th century {{PD}}