Tag Archives: The Lunar Essence

Full Moon in Gemini 15 December 2024 Confusion Or Inspiration?

12 Thursday Dec 2024

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‘Hoar-Frost on Ice at Thielska’ By Gustaf Fjæstad 1901 {{PD}}

That’s the question this Full Moon poses: is that energy that’s surging through the social sphere, through our relationships and minds and hearts, tingling our nerves, robbing us of sleep or giving us dreams intense and random and full of emotion–is that rush a flood of inspiration, a happy confluence of all we know and are exposed to, birthing ideas that seem in their own way to be miraculous, moving us to manifest the ideal? Or is that surge really mania, imagination run amok masquerading as a motivating thunderbolt from the gods, chaos whispering to us that this way lies ‘The Answer’, or at least momentary, gratifying relief? The presence of confusion, and the vague enticements of gratification, should be our clues that what’s in the air, though carrying a sense of renewal and so promise, rides on a dark, ill-defined current that urges us to leap before we look, insisting we shouldn’t worry about the consequences–but we should be aware that ‘later’ will come, when we’ll judge things in a much more sober, but ‘too late to change outcomes’, light.

Since a Full Moon delivers a message of completion, of results and final pictures, and Gemini promises knowledge, information, or relevant messages and connections, then we shouldn’t be surprised that the Lunar event carries so much meaning–and yet, when we’re dealing with mentalities, decisions, information, details, sorting what’s relevant and what’s not, the presence of these two influences looms large: Neptune (forming the arm of a T-square with the Sun opposed Moon/ Earth axis) and the current state of Mercury (in apparent retrograde motion in Sagittarius until just before culmination of the Full Moon, when Merc will be stationary direct). Both suggest the possibility of illusion, incomprehension, misunderstanding or misinterpretation, a lack of clear or complete information, and that garden-variety confusion that seems to be everywhere, right now. So how, if this is the state of things, can the Full Moon actually deliver a comprehensive picture of the current Zeitgeist?

Let’s look at the other contacts made by the Moon at 1:01 AM PST of the 15th, with the Moon and Earth situated at 23 Gemini 52, Sun precisely opposed this point at 23 Sagittarius. Besides the T-square formed with Neptune in Pisces (presenting a fundamental question of ‘What is reality?’), we have the Moon sesquiquadrate Venus in Aquarius (the emotions and intuitive perceptions are impacted–and strained–by the current cool, intellectual approach being taken in both relationships and financial matters), Chiron in Aries sextile Luna (our independence, our individuality, is so easily wounded–and it feels lonely, out here!), and the Black Moon Lilith point in Libra receiving a trine (reiterating the prominence of relationship matters and warning about things too easily–the trine–buried, denied, ignored, or allowed to fuel rage).

One interesting thing here is that the Sun, which we must acknowledge as source of the Moon’s light in the first place, in some cases forms stronger aspects at the Full Moon than does the Moon (though both contact the same bodies, whether that contact is major or minor in strength figures in to interpretation–for instance, a trine is stronger than a sextile, and so commands a greater orb and more emphasis in the equation); the Sun also forms at least one significant aspect that the Moon barely notices: a quincunx to Uranus, which only semi-sextiles the Moon. Stay with me, here; this suggests that the current chaos, anarchy, ‘modernization’, erraticism, in short, ‘the crazy’ we’re seeing, is a direct part of the atmosphere that draws our attention, but that we have difficulty processing/ perceiving emotionally (the weak link to the Moon). We’ll be seeing things once removed, as if we’re looking in a mirror, and that mirror is, through no fault of our own, distorted to some degree. Uranus may be a strong element of our perceptions, the quincunx implying irritation, important since this can trigger knee-jerk responses that can be especially destabilizing at this time.

Is Jupiter in Gemini part of this Full Moon formula? Maybe. Consider: the Moon is almost 9 degrees past conjunction with Jupiter, which is retrograde, and the Moon moves so quickly, the implication is the influence, if it still exists at the time of the Full Moon at all, is almost totally dissipated, as both bodies continue to widen the gap. But, Jupiter could be considered still opposed the Sun, in part because the Sun commands a greater orb than the Moon, and also moves more slowly than the Moon. Let’s then allow for the Sun opposed Jupiter in Gemini. Again we have the mentality, expansion of it or exposure to what’s foreign, and this is pointed not at the individual but at the social order in general. Remember too that Jupiter is itself still square Saturn in Pisces, echoing a confusing reality, magnified by propaganda and our own unreliable thoughts. So, Jupiter essentially just amplifies what we already see elsewhere, again with a sense of a mirror, reflections that confuse us as to where, exactly, some idea is originating.

The Full Moon Sabian is, ‘Children Skating Over A Frozen Village Pond’. This brings to mind two children in New York who fell through the ice and drowned just this week; a middle school boy fell through, and his friend, a girl, tried to help him and also perished. It’s a tragedy of good intentions and poor (or rather, inexperienced) judgment; those are the ingredients of all the most heart-rending events. Keep the tenuousness of current structures and supports in mind during this Full Moon; seasons change, global warming is real, and it’s easy to miscalculate what will hold our weight, or always be there when we need it. We also look at the Sun, for a Full Moon: ‘A Bluebird Perched On The Gate Of A Cottage’. A bluebird is a symbol of happiness. Perhaps the suggestion is that if we can hold fast to who we are, to our own identity (the Sun), in these turbulent times, we can find a state of equilibrium, if not joy. Centering within ourselves is the best way to meet confusion, mixed messages, and uncertain others. I wish this for each and every one of us.

Wishing you a wonderful end-of-year, and a happy holiday season, no matter what you celebrate, or if you even celebrate at all. From the darkest point of our year in the northern hemisphere, the Winter Solstice, it only gets lighter from there–so no matter who you are, you have something to look forward to, and a new year to move toward.

New Moon 30 November 2024 A Difficult Reality

30 Saturday Nov 2024

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The quintessential Sagittarian pastime. ‘Archers’ By Ferenczy, Károly 1911 {{PD}}

The New Moon perfects at 10:21 PM PST of the 30th at 9 Sagittarius 32, forming a square to Saturn and a very loose Fire Grand Trine with the North Node and Mars–but what my attention is drawn to is something that doesn’t even figure in to the New Moon picture, but which I have the feeling will be the major influence behind anything that goes wrong: a Fire trine between retro Mercury and Chiron. This suggests that if we’re primed to receive hurtful information or communications, then that’s exactly what we’ll get; we won’t understand what’s actually being said, but we’ll overreact, blow our tops, get indignant, or lash out, trying to hurt others as they’ve hurt us. In the instant of decompression, we’ll forget that we should be listening for the meaning behind the words, the message buried in what we misread as a jab at us–and because this happens in Fire signs, we’re likely to act on it, way before we realize what it all means.

With that in mind, let’s look at what’s born with the New Moon: knowledge, a fresh life philosophy, a burgeoning belief, a desire to get the word out or share what we learn. The problem is that our impulse meets a difficult reality, one that we are bound to misinterpret, see as insurmountable, or that we imagine to be other than it is (Saturn in Pisces). We feel blocked creatively, and have an emotional reaction to it, one that we draw fundamentally incorrect conclusions from–and then we are prone to act on this (the Grand Trine) in ways that affect our path forward or our future prospects–so all in all, a precarious point when we’d do well to hesitate rather than leap.

There is a positive here, one that can light a fire under us, pulling best efforts out of us, if we formulated our plan well before Mercury went retrograde. If that’s the case, the Fire Grand Trine can assist us in moving forward under our own steam–but it won’t necessarily bring others to our aid, and still exists with all the caveats about perception and intention.

As with all things, this is a temporary condition, and will pass soon enough; it’s just holding ourselves together in the moment that’s required to keep from causing damage to ourselves or others. The Sabian for the New Moon is telling: ‘A Theatrical Representation Of A Golden-Haired Goddess Of Opportunity’. What we see play out before us looks like an opportunity, specifically to redress something unjust (the information or communication we find offensive or wrong), but what we’re seeing is a kind of illusion, a play, not reality, a fiction that tells us a story that exists in all its particulars only in our own minds–and those minds are under Merc retro at the moment, ready to innocently but significantly mislead us. Remember this and you’ll have little trouble using the New Moon energy to learn something important for later, once the influence to indulge temper or misunderstand passes.

If we need any confirmation about the nature of the New Moon, we note that Kassandra is sextile in Aquarius, suggesting that even accurate info won’t be believed–again, an inability to see reality as it genuinely exists. We also see a Mystic Rectangle at this time, made up of Jupiter, Chiron, Black Moon Lilith, and Mercury, that points out the possibilities of exaggerated perceptions, hurt, especially that arising from buried or denied material, and yet again, a mind susceptible to misperception. The New Moon is also widely conjoined Eros, implying misdirected passions, or a projection of desirability on a misperceived object. None of it’s your fault, but it is important to know.

Full Moon 15 November 2024 The Shape of Things

14 Thursday Nov 2024

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Walt Disney Concert Hall, Photographer Unknown www.Pixel.la Free Stock Photos {{PD}}

The Moon reaches exact opposition to the Sun (and so exact conjunction with Earth) at 1:28 PM PST of the 15th, with both bodies at 24 degrees, Sun in Scorpio, Moon/ Earth in Taurus. A Full Moon promises culmination, a big reveal, resolution, completion, even abandonment of a course that proves ineffective, a kind of end signaled by the Full Moon point–but this time what occurs is shocking, or shockingly original, or potentially unleashes chaos, with Uranus conjoined the Lunar energy and both grounded through the presence of Earth as well as their placement in the most security-oriented of the Earth signs, Taurus. It’s a combination that suggests anarchy, internal or external, a disorienting sense that what comforts us, makes us feel prosperous, soothed, established, secure, and materially safe, may disappear. The earth threatens to shift beneath our feet, and an inventory of what surrounds us is made impossible by our inability to discern the genuine shape of things, as the Sun shines on the Scorpionic depths, lights up the cave, spotlights the rot, what needs to be cleaned out, rehabilitated, or transformed, but never really gives us a clear picture of what is–vital areas are blurred, the solid indistinguishable from shadow, angles mislead, and what we see is a Rorschach that should illuminate but ultimately fails to reveal meaning.

What surprises us about the Full Moon event may come in the form of an ideal realized, a fantasy come to life–or discovered, come to light–the establishment of a form of payoff or security we didn’t really anticipate (sextile Neptune), or as destruction of what no longer serves, or the clean sweep or falling away of a power or circumstance that has been restraining us, or threatening to overpower us (wide trine to Pluto). So, there’s a lot that’s difficult to see, and the action happens whether we consent or not, which can be upsetting. This all happens on the heels of the Saturn direction at 12 Pisces; does this take the brakes off our dreams, or does it gently apply them, steering us away from what we thought we wanted, denying what we were sure would be ours, or delivering what we were sure wouldn’t?

The Full Moon delivers fulfillment of some condition that affects us emotionally, or that validates our intuition. We see some lesser influences with the Ceres in Capricorn trine (the Lunar effect and what it brings is natural, perhaps necessitating negotiation, or acknowledgment of our boundaries, or perhaps seeing clearly for the first time the implications of or to our health or personal authority); Eris semi-sextile in Aries suggesting that expression of our Will will definitely stir extant resistance in others; Circe at 21Pisces sextile the Moon promises a strong woman/ female energy that offers support even as it may try to distract us or delay us; and Pallas sits quincunx the Moon from Sagittarius, requiring us to adjust our approach and attitude in order to accommodate the facts or what we learn.

It’s notable that the Sabian for the Full Moon is 24 Taurus; normally we would have minutes on the degree that would push it to the following symbol. ‘An Indian Warrior Riding Fiercely, Human Scalps Hanging From His Belt’ suggests to me that we are to gird ourselves as if we’re entering battle, taking ourselves and our efforts seriously, a ‘take no prisoners’ approach–and yet, the Sun’s symbol says, ‘After Having Heard An Inspired Individual Deliver His “Sermon On The Mount,” Crowds Are Returning Home’. We may feel as if an aggressive approach is required in order to triumph, and certainly, that’s the mindset we need initially, but it’s the message that drives us that’s ultimately most important. We must believe in ourselves and our cause, but the larger impact will come from what our conduct conveys about our beliefs and expectations. That’s how we’re actually communicating–and considering that Mercury is set to retrograde in just a week and a half at 22 Sagittarius, whatever we’re actually putting out now will come back to us, along with the consequences, probably much sooner than we think–so be as conscious of what your choices truly mean as possible.

There’s a Mystic Rectangle in force right now, made up of Mercury, Black Moon Lilith, Jupiter, and Chiron. If we’re willing to do the hard work around communicating on tough subjects (especially around what we’ve denied or ignored), we could really benefit, even heal wounds. The trick is doing the digging and being Truthful without treating our wounds as if they’re sacred; we can’t make progress if we’re afraid of a little pain.

Make note too of a Venus in Aquarius/ Mars in Leo opposition that occurs 12th-13th of December, about a week after Mars goes retro. Right now Venus and Mars are quincunx, meaning these energies call for adjustment, in order to get along; their December encounter promises a total re-consideration around our actions and choices regarding Love, assets, partnership, values. Keep that in mind now, making an effort to accommodate, to balance Higher Mind and ego, and the December contact will be that much easier to navigate and understand, and will require a lot less re-doing than it otherwise might without an early awareness of the way these energies will tangle.

New Moon in Scorpio 1 November 2024: The Nature of the Beast

23 Wednesday Oct 2024

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I don’t think we’re this far down the road, do you? The Horned Beast from the Bamberg Apocalypse Folio c1000 {{PD}}

The New Moon perfects at 5:47 AM Pacific time at 9 Scorpio 35 on the 1st, and makes only one major aspect, a trine to Saturn at 12 Pisces. The new starts of a New Moon in Scorpio may look more like endings, or rather, re-workings, or even transformations; inherent in that perception is the idea that we’re losing something even as the new thing emerges, and we may not notice just what it is that’s gone until the whole thing is past. Something’s contained, cut off, limited, denied, given shape, or made manifest, and that may be just as you imagined, but a little deeper, a little darker.

It’s the nature of the beast right now that emotions run high and our attention is half beyond the veil anyway–and that makes for distortion to the worldly perceptions and yet a much greater understanding through the feeling faculties and intuition–and this New Moon is a new beginning in terms of what we know with all our senses, especially the intangible ones. We intuit below the surface, our minds feeling around, so to speak, and there’s some urgency to it; we see this in the Water Grand Trine of Mars at the crisis degree of 29 of Moon-ruled Cancer, trine both Mercury in Scorpio and Neptune in Pisces, and this is given emphasis and even more urgency with Pluto still at 29 Capricorn opposed this Mars. We’re likely inundated with feeling that may precipitate action, destruction, or choices, before we know what we’ve actually decided, or thought it through much. What we do or choose is in service to our ideals, our dreams, and what we see as the Truth, and yet . . . that urgent feeling leads to overdoing, in an attempt to make sure what we do ‘sticks’, or to inadvertent destruction, arising from too much seriousness, too much intensity, focused on what might better be approached with nuance, with finesse, with gentle acceptance for ‘What Is’ even as we seek to change it.

Help in reconciling these energies may be found in the Jupiter in Gemini sextile to Chiron in Aries. Optimism, hope, and the chance to get more or do better comes through understanding and accepting hurts, and then acting to heal them. It’s in knowing that our wounds aren’t fatal, but instead make us more sensitive to this very hurt in others, that we find mastery of some of the most difficult challenges we’ll face–and also provides the antidote to a too-emotional read of the current landscape, and helps us understand that, though action is desirable, unthinking action, or desperate action, can ruin what we’ve so carefully constructed.

The Sabian for the New Moon is, ‘A Fellowship Supper Reunites Old Comrades’. The past is part of the Scorpio energy; it has to be, since regeneration must acknowledge the something that was, before it can become something else. This image may speak to that way we will lose something in the process of birthing the new, but that if we’re attentive, we’ll have time to remind ourselves of the way it was, and all the good, all the contacts and rewards and knowledge and experience we gained, the companions who, no matter the passage of time, we are still as close to as ever. Even when we only want to leave the past behind, we must see that we were there for a reason, and that we touched many lives, and they touched ours, and that’s still a resonant and worthwhile thing for us all.

The dream is within reach, but we’re all so nerved up we can blow it if we succumb to tension or fear. This New Moon in Scorpio says, ‘A cycle is beginning, and a cycle is falling away, and what starts now must flow with existing energies even as it refuses to embrace extremes’. If you can carry forward the spirit of Libran balance so recently experienced, and apply it to the now, you’ll have the needed control, and the foresight, to choose wisely.

I’ll be stepping away from the computer for a much needed break, and will return just after the New Moon. All comments, inquiries, and purchases through the Press will be processed when I return to work. Thank you all, and have a wonderful couple of weeks!

Full Moon 17 October 2024 Potent Healing

16 Wednesday Oct 2024

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‘The Love Potion’ By Evelyn de Morgan 1903 {{PD}}

The Full Moon perfects at 4:27 AM PDT of the 17th at 24 Aries 35, with the Moon conjoined Chiron and a loose Cardinal Grand Cross formed with the Sun/ Earth-Moon axis by Mars in Cancer and tense 29 degree Pluto in Capricorn. This suggests action, perhaps extreme action, motivated by emotional hurt, or at least a tenderness around the feeling or intuitive nature that pushes one to choose, to take the ‘next step’, possibly out of fear or a deep desire for change. The energy around the event is precipitous, even dangerous, due to the amount of unconscious material that may push us to act. We can only hope that what we want to change or eliminate (Pluto) is something established, that we’ve already considered changing for a long time (Capricorn), and it will definitely be something we personally care about and see as our responsibility (Mars in Cancer, Aries Moon). Best case scenario is that this Lunar culmination offers potent healing, a chance at permanent change that rebalances personal power across the ‘I Am’/ ‘We Are’ axis (Aries/ Libra).

Remember, all arms of a Grand Cross are activated at once; that means we must recognize that, no matter what form these Cardinal energies take, they are connected, with action in one area affecting all the others. So, that scary Plutonian ultimatum may seem isolated from our beef with our partner (Libra Sun), and both those may seem unconnected to hurt arising from something we ourselves have done (Chiron conj Moon in Aries), but the reality is that each situation feeds off the others–and that means that sources of hurt, change, and actions may all become confused. We may think it’s our partner’s fault something is ending, when our own wounded nature has actually set up the hurtful circumstances so they’re aimed straight at us; or we may in some way feel ‘we have no choice’, and so fail to see that, even in the most dire circumstances, we actually do–it’s just that in our minds, we lack acceptable options, not genuine alternatives.

Consider that what we demand from the landscape, our surroundings, from others, from our lives, only spans a very particular range; perhaps we need to acknowledge that the unacceptable or undesired must become so, in order to open those possible options, and so radically change our viewpoint. Remember, too, that healing doesn’t necessarily mean we will go back to an old state of what we see as ‘whole’; it may instead mean a new state, with the interim period time spent in our very own chrysalis, the Full Moon a new step forward in regeneration, in being remade.

The Jupiter sextile to the Moon-Earth-Chiron is exact by degree to Chiron, suggesting what hurts is exaggerated, overdone, or presents big new opportunity, or may even represent optimistic thinking (Gemini) around the potential for healing or expression of one’s unique, natal Chiron gift. Also of note is Venus sextile Pluto, both at 29 degrees, of Scorpio and Capricorn, respectively. This is not just a potential, it’s a demand from the Universe: Love your Transformation, because this change is here to stay. If you carry a natal planet or point at 21-24 Scorpio that puts that natal entity at the apex of a Finger of God, with your natal point describing some facet of the outcome of learning to love what’s changing in or around us.

The Full Moon Sabian symbol is, ‘The Possibility For Man To Gain Experience At Two Levels Of Being’. That doesn’t call for much explanation, does it? At this Full Moon point we’ll have one foot in our current state, one in the ‘new’ state just reaching readiness–and that’s a unique spot, one that allows us to see our present with a previously unavailable clarity and understanding that we can now carry forward, into our developing circumstances and state of Being.

We also look at the Sun’s Sabian for a Full Moon: ‘The Sight Of An Autumn Leaf Brings To A Pilgrim The Sudden Revelation Of The Mystery Of Life And Death’. We are the Pilgrim, obvs, a person in search of something that has a distinctly spiritual flavor–and the time is right now (Autumn), when we are slated to receive some of the most important information we’ll ever get (the ‘Life And Death’ nature of that info). The word ‘revelation’ points us, in my mind, directly toward the energies of Uranus, and when we look we see that body is a busy bee: it works into the Full Moon Lunar picture obliquely, by quincunx to the Sun, semi-sextile to the Moon-Earth (but not Chiron), sextile Neptune and wide sextile to Mars, trine Pluto, and opposing that stressed Venus (I’d mention Pluto’s ongoing stress, but we’ve lived with it so long, it’s starting to fade into background noise–but just imagine the relief when it finally leaves Capricorn for good!) This revelation, then, is not about that potent healing available to us if we are open to current energies (Chiron is ‘missing’), but something ‘other’, namely, Love, the state of Being we discover when we see the whole picture and vibrationally (that is, in attitude) rise above it. It’s a creative energy, one that calls for adjustment of our idea of who we are, even what we are, as well as requiring our acceptance that there are things beyond our control that in the same breath, the same moment, will deliver us to a perfect state of Love. Not bad, getting a glimpse of the eternal, and of the most potent healing force in the Universe–now just open your arms, and take it in.

Bonus: if you have a natal placement between 25 Cancer and 2 Leo, that body fills in a Water Grand Trine with Neptune and Venus, implying you have the chance to experience an ideal Love, in some form, whether that’s finding the love of your life, falling into it with a puppy, utilizing a talent, or discovering a new depth of feeling and understanding with someone who up to now may have been a problematic relationship or matter you’re dedicated to. The nature of and state of the natal body will describe what you can expect, what style this ideal Love may arrive in. Lucky you–savor it.

To all my Readers: have a wonderful weekend!

Solar Eclipse 2 October 2024 Harmony In Confrontation

25 Wednesday Sep 2024

Posted by in astrology, New Moon, Sabian Symbols, Solar Eclipse

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‘Harmony in Blue’ By James Ensor 1919 {{PD}}

Yes, I’m aware that’s contradictory; how can we find accord in the midst of conflict? It seems impossible, but that’s exactly what we do, with this eclipse, first perfecting at 11:48 AM PDT of the 2nd at 10 Libra 03: we find our new beginnings, after the event wipes the slate clean, through the New Moon and a pair of components of the Sun-Moon conjunction, the Black Moon Lilith point and Mercury, all in Libra, with a less than 1.5 degree spread. This describes a seminal point in relationships (especially intimate or partner-oriented ones), in the Arts, and/ or in matters of diplomacy and fairness (judgment as objective as possible, and the attempt to allocate resources or energies as deserved). The conflict or confrontation may be internal or external (with another), but in either case involves something ignored, denied, or that enrages (BML), while harmony comes from effective, open communication (Mercury, in Air sign Libra) that puts caring and considerate interaction (Libra, a Cardinal, and so action-oriented, sign) ahead of Self-interest or one’s own feelings (the Sun-Moon conjunction=the Self/ Sun meets the emotions or intuition/ Moon). Important to note, if the conflict is an internal one, we will essentially be wrestling with something we’ve set to the side or tried to ignore, and now must face how this affects our relationships or interaction overall; communicating honestly with ourselves becomes the New Moon eclipse necessity.

There’s a loose T-square formed with the opposition of Ceres in Capricorn to Mars in Cancer, with the eclipse, BML, and Mercury as the handle, with the Superior (direct) conjunction of the Sun and Mercury just a day away; this last event will bring some conclusion or revelation planted during the Inferior conjunction, when the Sun met retrograde Mercury back on August 19. Now it’s a realization about us in relationship, what is and should be communicated, that delivers a truce in the tension between what’s natural, real, observable (Ceres in Capricorn) and what we need as an individual to assert, express, attack, or make happen according to our Will, because we care (Mars in Cancer). The eclipse offers a way to resolve the gap between what is and what we want–not a bad influence, at all.

The eclipse and friends also form a loose semi-sextile to ruler Venus in Scorpio; This may provide the oomph to investigate, to look below the surface of things, that might otherwise be missing with so much Libran consoling, cooperating, and smoothing over in the air. Also in the air is an Air Grand Trine with the eclipse/ Merc/ BML and Psyche at 8 Aquarius and Hera at 8 Gemini. This suggests that mental balance may be achieved when we know our roles in relation to others, particularly partners. Both these mythical figures dealt with a great deal of friction in intimate relationships (mate, children, mother-in-law) that forced them to discover who they are, and how best to exert their own power. We could say that both of these women have stories that eventually connect them with their own power in the same way Juno does–and Juno just so happens to be at 18 Libra, pointing us back toward right now finding one’s best expression within interaction, especially with those close to us.

Also of note is the way 29 degree Pluto has effectively stationed and is poised to resume forward motion on October 11, though it will still carry stationary status until about a week later. This may either impart a sense to everything (as Pluto sits in the final degree of reality-focused Capricorn) that it’s a general state of emergency, where nothing seems stable and everything is threatening, or it will make us feel the only way to gain a sense of security and freedom is via elimination or destruction. The sextile to Neptune, which obscures or makes our imaginations run wild, doesn’t help. Be aware this feeling of threat is, in some important ways, an illusion, one that may cause us to react to what’s not there, or to overreact to what is there. Note too that Chiron is sextile Jupiter=exaggerated hurt, and Mars is trine Saturn in Water=we may act on feelings in the real world, or suppress action because of hurt feelings, and either reaction actually stands outside what’s really needed now. Mars-Saturn can offer us stability in the emotional perceptions, if we can acknowledge that feeling isolated or insisting on having our way (both dangers when our Martian energies feel sorry for themselves) arise from tender and over sensitive (that is, too Self-focused) ways of interpreting the world.

The Sabian for the Solar eclipse is, ‘A Professor Peering Over His Glasses At His Students’. So much of what we’re dealing with at this time is rooted in the matter of authority: who holds it over us, how we handle it ourselves, how we exert it over others, and how we measure authority in every interaction we have. We might think of it as this: do we assess others essentially as equals, or are we always weighing to see who holds more power? Do we act differently in the presence of those we see as holding authority over us? Do we respect others because they are people, or do we respect those who hold an advantage, and disdain those who don’t? These can be deeply unconscious attitudes, but worth exploring, as you may believe no one can tell how you’re judging them–but oh, they really can.

The only way to find harmony in relationship, really, the only way to feel safe and so able to be open with and to others, is to know ourselves, what we require, and to feel our own sense of empowerment, a sense that is not dependent on the sanction or support of another, and that does not rest on judging oneself superior or inferior, in some way. This eclipse seems to offer us a chance to correct this, with the event a launching pad for better relationships, simply because we stand within our own power, unafraid of what others might say, do, or feel, which makes us truly free, able to handle whatever comes at us.

Have a safe and happy Solar eclipse!

Lunar Eclipse in Pisces 17 September 2024 Reformation of the Dream

09 Monday Sep 2024

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‘World of Dreams’ By Laura Theresa Alma-Tadema 1876 {{PD}}

Though an eclipse is an astronomical event that occurs during a relatively long period of time (minutes or hours), for astrological purposes we’ll look at the moment when the degrees and minutes for the opposition between the Sun and Moon become exact: 7:34 PM PDT of the 17th, with maximum eclipse effect occurring at 7:44 PM PDT (see more details on timing here). Here in Seattle the event actually begins while the Moon is still below the horizon, so unobservable, with the penumbral period starting at 5:41 PM.

A Lunar eclipse is a Full Moon; what makes it an eclipse is the alignment of Sun, Moon, and Earth, with Earth between the Sun and the Moon, so that what we’re seeing during a Lunar eclipse is the shadow of the Earth blocking the Sun’s light from reflecting off the Moon. If we were observing this from the Moon, we would see the Earth come between our vantage point and the Sun, throwing us into at least partial darkness (depending on how precise the alignment, which determines whether the eclipse is partial or complete). Fun fact: the Moon is moving away from the Earth, at the rate of roughly one inch per year. How do we know? We put mirrors on the Moon, then over time shoot lasers at them and measure how long it takes the light to bounce back to us.

The Lunar eclipse of September 17th occurs at 7:34 PM PDT at 25 Pisces 40, with the Moon just short of conjoining Neptune and sextiling Uranus and (barely) sextiling a 29 degree Pluto in Capricorn (though a big orb for an event sextile, Pluto’s stressed status suggests it will be felt, one way or another). Add to this Jupiter forms a wide T-square with the eclipse axis, while Venus will soon perfect a quincunx to the Moon that is already within orb. Eclipses are events where previous energies are wiped out, replaced with a rearrangement of energies based on the eclipse picture; in this case we see the full potentials of both idealism and delusion as they might play out fully formed (FM in Pisces). This suggests that however we imagined things to be before, whatever we believed would be an ideal outcome, whatever delusions we continued to support, knowing full well they were delusions, these will all be undeniable and we’ll have to acknowledge their implications–and in so doing we see a new set of ideals, new dreams, take shape before us, along with new potentials for being misled, for following what we imagine is there, not what really is there.

This reformation of ideals, dreams, and delusions is potent (conj Neptune); we’re unlikely to have a totally conscious handle on what’s happening, and we’re unlikely to see the full picture, whatever that is. This is where the Lunar intuition, a sense of knowing that springs entirely from the unconscious perceptions and the feelings they incite, should be employed; to rely on the mind is to ask to misunderstand and misinterpret. Proceed knowing that at least some of what presents itself is inherently deceptive, that we may be in a fog, unsure, confused, or, let’s hope, inspired. A good way to handle uncertainty at this time is to exorcise it through creative effort led by feeling–I’ll rephrase that: a good way to handle everything at this time is by allowing what we feel to inform the impulse to create–and then to follow through on that, not aiming for a finished product, but rather to giving what we can’t bring to conscious awareness a representation that can show us something about who we are, or what direction we need to take.

Expect the unexpected, the original, the unusual, and maybe a little chaos (sxt Uranus) and the potential for real change to the landscape that, up to now, surrounded us (sxt Pluto). There will definitely be a sense that either destruction is imminent, or that if we institute change, we will cause destruction. Neither is necessarily valid; if we want to harness Plutonian energies, we need to think of them as transformative, and accept that anything that is destroyed or falls away in the process needed to go, anyway. Balancing our feelings with the facts (Jupiter sq) will go a long way toward offering stability, as will being willing to modify our choices in order to respect those people and things we love (Venus qnx)–a simple but effective yardstick for measuring the appropriateness of our choices.

There are two asteroid contacts of note, with Karma and Pandora conjoined in Cancer and trine the eclipse. These suggest myriad possibilities–in fact, a Pandora’s box of them–released with the eclipse. I think it’s reassuring (or damning, depending on your own past operations) that what occurs is karmic–that is, earned or deserved. That could bring possibilities, good, bad, or otherwise, that up til now only lived in your imagination (Neptune, Pisces)–but those possibilities can be ideal, and hold the potential to make dreams come true. Someone once said that a good way to know if you’re living up to your own ideals of behavior and beingness is to thing about “getting what you deserve”. If that phrase is appealing, you’ve definitely been doing your best; if not, it’s a signal that you’ve either strayed from your own ethics and standards, or mistreated others, or both, and need to get right with your Soul. No matter what, Pandora’s box contained hope, the absolutely, rock-bottom, vital ingredient for going on, and for each of us personally going in a positive direction.

‘Pandora’ By Odilon Redon c1914 {{PD}}

The eclipse Sabian is, ‘Watching The Very Thin Moon Crescent Appearing At Sunset, Different People Realize That The Time Has Come To Go Ahead With Their Different Projects’. A slender crescent Moon is a very new Moon, symbolizing the new starts we typically associate with this Lunar phase; in this case, though, it’s a symbol of the new creative landscape and outlook we’re likely to develop during the eclipse. At sunset suggests, possibly, that the project we see as ready to go forward has already received sufficient scrutiny and effort (the day that’s now done). It’s a point of realization, offering a significant step forward, if we’ll only take it. The Sabian for the light-giving Sun is, ‘A Boy With A Censer Serves The Priest Near The Altar’. The project of the Lunar symbol is, in some important way, a form of service that fits us perfectly. This may be an odd interpretation of the symbol, but here goes: we’ll know whether we’re going in the right direction, taking the right steps, if it ‘smells’ right (the intense odor of the incense burning in the censer). Intuition, then, is key–good thing we’ve got a Lunar eclipse to pump up the intuitive volume.

Starting tomorrow, the 10th, I’ll be unavailable until Sunday the 15th. All comments will be answered and orders will be filled then. Thank you, and have a wonderful week!

New Moon 2 September 2024 Realm of the Gods

22 Thursday Aug 2024

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‘Following the Example of the Gods’ By Henryk Siemiradzki 1879 {{PD}}

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Full Moon 19 August 2024 The Tree of Life

16 Friday Aug 2024

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‘Cypress Trees, Carmel’ By Mary DeNeale Morgan {{PD}}

The Full Moon perfects at 11:26 AM PDT at 27 Aquarius 15, with the Sun/ Moon-Earth axis balanced on the fulcrum of the very close square to Uranus in Taurus. Meaning comes almost exclusively from the Moon’s location in Aquarius, its relationship to Uranus, and its status as the Lunar orb at maximum; it cannot get any bigger, any more ‘complete’, and neither can the matter of freedom, anarchy, academics, independence, innovation, invention, originality, leadership, or group participation that sits before us. Involved is some life area, signified by the House of the natal chart where the Full Moon occurs, where we’re ahead of the pack, where we’re trying to modernize, where we’re trying to apply Higher Mind concepts, where spirit guides us not as a nebulous ideal but as a ‘new’ principle, one that we embrace with our mind and aim for.

This is a remarkably conscious energy for the Moon to carry, and as such may make us feel uncomfortable, as if we’re missing some emotional realization we’re sensing we should be having. In actuality, this Full Moon acts as the point of emotional enlightenment related to the new beginning in thought seeded at the Inferior Conjunction just the day before, on the 18th. That means revelation is achieved as we consider matters and consciously make choices–but of course this happens with the awareness that Mercury is still retrograde, so that our feeling nature needs to be used for decision-making at least as much as our mind–and so we welcome the Moon in Aquarius, that aids the thought processes, enhancing them with significant emotional realizations and bolstering or discouraging our thinking with active intuition.

Are we as open to the feeling messages, and to the Aquarian form revelation takes, as we need to be? It all depends on our relationship to Uranian energies. The good thing is that Uranus is currently moving through Taurus, grounding the lightning-quick insights and shocking reveals by giving them material components, expression through circumstances in our surroundings and in our comfort, security, asset situation, sustenance, and survival. If we’re unsure of the ‘message’, all we have to do is inspect the landscape and the way the present atmosphere makes us feel, and all will be clear. The square to Moon ruler Uranus suggests these messages via the material must be filtered through and interpreted by the personal conscious mind (Sun in Leo, Moon in Aquarius) and balanced with our ‘read’ of our surroundings and the feelings these stir and the insights these deliver (Moon and Earth in Aquarius).

The Sabian for the Full Moon is, ‘A Tree Felled And Sawed To Ensure A Supply Of Wood For The Winter’. This implies what happens prepares for the future–even if it doesn’t seem to. Framing what occurs with future repercussions in mind would be smart, and may change our idea of what we’re seeing. The Sabian for the Sun, source of the Full Moon’s light, is, ‘Many Little Birds On A Limb Of A Big Tree’. Interesting that both images involve trees; they push up out of the ground like living extensions of the Earth itself. What lights on us, in our minds and hearts, at this time may seem minor, but these will be ‘living’ matters, things we must respect and allow the freedom to develop, even to ‘carry the message’. ‘A little birdy told me so’ may not be so far from the way revelation arrives with this Moon, but in no case should something small be dismissed as something irrelevant.

Have a wonderful, safe, and happy Full Moon, my friends!

New Moon 4 August 2024 I Am, I Said

01 Thursday Aug 2024

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‘The Tight-Rope Walker’ By Jean-Louis Forain c1885 {{PD}}

If you read this title and automatically heard the words that follow this line from an old Neil Diamond song (‘I am I said/ to no one there’) then you’ve just grasped the essence of this Leo New Moon: we may end up feeling like we’re shouting into the Void, or at the crowd, or we may simply realize we are speaking, putting out info, sharing ourselves, to an empty room. The New Moon forms on the 4th at 4:12 AM PDT at 12 Leo 33. It doesn’t make a lot of aspects; that emphasizes the sense of Leo as a singular energy, one that sees the Self as spreading out into the Universe, with the Universe reflecting the Self, rather than the individual reflecting the Universe. The Leo energy glories in expression of the unique sensibilities, aware that its opposite (Aquarius) signifies the groups to which one belongs and one’s place in those groups, making for a kind of ‘othering’ of the individual’s obligations to everyone else, freeing Leo New Moon energy to be concerned only with the Self.

It’s important to note that between now and the New Moon, we’re in the Dark period, which calls for its own variation on low-key energy and a more contemplative-than-usual mindset. Rest and relax–not as easily done as it is said, but a good thing to aim for, anyway.

The New Moon prompts us to communicate assertively, to lay out the facts, to broadcast our ideas to the world (NM in wide sextile to Mars and Jupiter, widely conjoined in Gemini) and potentially to act on them–but there are some crisis energies in play right now that could distract, to the point where pronouncements are made but not effectively received by the intended audience—and yet what happens still shapes the future, whether we mean it to or not (NM trine NN/ sextile SN). Mars and Jupiter together in a Mercury-ruled sign could make for a racing mind, exaggerated Will, anger, or appetites, and may inflate our perceptions of the aggression or transgressions of others–we see a bullet coming toward us, propelled by angry words, rather than the tossed pebble it actually is.

What’s worse, our intuitive perceptions, and our experience of our own emotions (Lunar energies), may suffer as the mind (Gemini) insists on inserting itself–and we can’t get away from the ‘me’ focus of the the Leo Moon, which only encourages us to see ourselves as right, even perfect, despite any feedback to the contrary.

The energies in crisis are creative and relationship ones, ones where we are unsure of the value of things, ones where we are either worried that what exists will be destroyed, or that what exists isn’t what we think it is—both valid worries with Venus at 29 degrees of Leo, quincunx Pluto at 00 Aquarius, and quincunx Neptune at 29 Pisces. This draws a Finger of God in the sky; the apex (Venus) centers the effects on interaction, assets, and what we care about, while the base of Neptune sextile Pluto speaks of the power inherent in new knowledge, innovation, invention, or radical events (Pluto in Aquarius) combined with crises in the creative, inventive, spiritual, or in manifestation of the Universe itself (Neptune in Pisces–with this latter, think climate change, experiments or power generation that alters fundamental atomic structure, a shift in the magnetic poles, mutations, changes to the rotation of liquid layers near the Earth’s core, asteroids, comets, and space junk on a collision course with us–you get my drift). I have a totally irrational fear that gravity will stop working, right as I’m climbing a steep tower, counting on that downward pull to center me and keep me in place; this weekend would be just the kind of instance when that fear could come true. We must accept the stressful and inconclusive status of both creative and relationship matters at this time–walking a tightrope is tricky, but if we remain aware that the only way to resolve things is to get to the other side–that’s the beauty of not resolving these matters, right now.

One other thing I’d like to mention that’s not relevant to the Moon picture but will, for some of us, be distinctively, aggressively in the air: Eris and Chiron, conjoined in the latter third of Aries. Irritations and upsets we normally quash, ignore, bury, or otherwise have the Self-control to overlook come popping up, making for a kind of ‘instant anger’, and offering a fiery potential to hurt or be hurt. Try not to let anyone press your buttons if you can.

The Sabian for the New Moon is, ‘An Old Sea Captain Rocking Himself On The Porch Of His Cottage’. This is an image of someone who’s been through the storm, who knows the (sea=emotional) score, and now has retired his full interaction with the world in favor of enjoying a quieter existence. This suggests to me that a peaceful situation would be a smart one to surround ourselves with at this time. It’s not out of defeat, but out of care for our Souls and our own peace of mind, that we can embrace a calmer situation and participate in less assertive engagement–FOMO may try to panic you, or your own ego (Leo) may see a calmer demeanor as uncool, but remember, rest and a lower profile are only temporary, a necessary Self-nurturing that the Leo New Moon can be very good at delivering, once we can accept that gift.