New Moon in Aries

Ok, let's look at tomorrow's new moon - 30th March, around 7:30 pm GMT.

It's at 10 degrees Aries, conjunct rebel freak planet Uranus! Square Pluto in Capricorn and Jupiter in Cancer! I feel like putting exclamation points on the end of every sentence, looking at this!


(DIE ANTWOORD BREAK!!!)

So fun, so freaking scary. That's what this feels like. Big jolt of freak energy, teetering on the brink of mayhem.

New moons are about beginnings, and a new moon in Aries is about the start of something big. Woo, here we go! Yippie ki yay motherfuckers, it's spring! And everything is just shooting up out of the ground like, aaaargh, let me loose!

Aries is a cardinal sign: cardinal fire. The cardinal signs (Aries, Libra, Cancer and Capricorn) initiate action, and as the first sign in the zodiac, Aries kicks off everything.

It's the moment of birth: the moment where the baby finds itself suddenly clear of the constriction and anonymity of the womb. What a shock! A riot of new sensations: strange air on your skin, strange blurred forms all around you as you open your eyes for the first time and let out your first big yell of individuality:

“Aaaargh, here I am!! I, MYSELF, ME!!!”

Aries is about newness, excitement, raw enthusiasm - a headlong urge to begin something new; to set a new story in motion.

Ok, but here is the hard part – because there has to be a hard part. Birth is always hard...but these times are especially fraught: nothing is uncomplicated or innocent here. The birth we are looking at is an especially difficult and dangerous one, and as to what is being born, who the hell knows?

It's alive! God help us.

The fact is, we are headed for some shock and awe starting mid-April, and this new moon is the herald. This is the kickoff, the jolt of lightning that rouses the monster.

“Frankenstein” actually fits the themes of the current cardinal t-square between Uranus, Pluto and Jupiter very well. We have a mad scientist (Uranus) creating life out of dead bodies (Pluto)...and his poor hideous creation wants nothing but affection, acceptance, family – Jupiter in Cancer themes. But his efforts to attain these things only lead to heartbreak and violence. Everyone he tries to love either runs away in terror or gets accidentally killed.

Well “Frankenstein” is the worst case scenario, I guess. Maybe we can re-write it though...if we're brave enough not to run in terror from our monsters. They only need a little kindness, a little acceptance.

This new moon is disposited by Mars in Libra, and Mars is currently retrograde and opposing the lunation. In non-astrologese, what this means is it's all about relationships.

Aries and Libra are opposite signs...Aries is about selfhood, pure and simple, uncomplicated by the demands of relationship. But Libra is all about relating, marrying, creating harmony between the self and others.

These two polarities require balancing here. Aries energy on its own can be self-involved, arrogant, blunt and crude.

(Aries cake)

Libra, on the other hand, can be too diplomatic, too people-pleasing, so concerned with social correctness and politeness that the imperatives of the individual self are lost.

Clearly, these signs have something to learn from each other. Libra needs a bit of the fire and self-determination of Aries, and Aries could use a dose of Libra's social finesse and concern for the other.

With both the north node (the direction of the whole story) and Aries' ruling planet Mars, in Libra, the demands of right relation take center stage at this new moon. What we are looking at are the difficulties of balancing the needs and desires of the self in relation to others – especially in close, one-on-one relationships like marriages or partnerships.

And it's a difficult balance. There is a lot of emotional intensity, ambivalence and blockage here...especially with Mars retrograde. Covert tactics, passive aggression, power plays. An underlying drive for freedom, escape, self-determination; vicious argument as a form of communication and exchange. Belligerent posturing, undercover maneuverings. A hopeful new order being manipulated into abusive relationship with a corrupt old one... a revolutionary impulse co-opted, sold out, betrayed.

Prague spring.

On a collective scale, we are seeing the public desire for change coming up against entrenched, rotten old power dynamics. It's fraught and explosive. And the same themes apply in personal relationships...

This is about not selling yourself short, not throwing yourself away in relationships that are manipulative or abusive. Standing your ground, standing up for your right to live by your own standards. And figuring out how to reconcile this fiery self-focus with relationship...How to be yourself, and free, in the context of a relationship.

There is a definite gender theme here. Libra's ruling planet, Venus, is in Aquarius, trining Mars in Libra. Women are the movers and shakers in balancing the relationship equation: they will be the ones demanding change, unwilling to conduct relationships via the old rules, willing to abruptly walk out on situations where their needs aren't being met. Firebrands!

(That's a quote from Lady Lazarus by Plath on her back.)

Men will be more likely to be struggling to maintain control in the context of stale old patriarchal power dynamics. They are going to have to learn to work with women, and within a radically new set of relationship rules. Not easy, but the trine between Venus and Mars means it's definitely do-able... and it's what both parties actually want, deep down. They want to relate, and they want change and freedom in the context of relation.

Something very helpful here: Mercury in Pisces is conjunct Chiron, trining Jupiter in Cancer and Saturn in Scorpio and sextiling Pluto. What this means is resolution of these issues is available via communication. And it's a very specific type of communication: intuitive, compassionate, profound, emotional.

The speaking of old hurts and grievances in a way that does not accuse or lay blame on the other. And also nonverbal communication: music, art, poetry, gestures of empathy and kindness.

Giving the monster a flower...

But please keep in mind that this sort of thing is always a possibility when you're dealing with monsters:

And we all know how well this approach worked in disarming the military-industrial-partiarchal complex. Ha fucking ha.

Anyway, please keep in mind that despite the fact that nastiness is possible at this time, and can lead to outright war (like in 'Frankenstein' where a lynch mob forms after the monster drowns the little girl!), war can hopefully be averted via the recognition that we're not really separate; that we all need each other ultimately. The ability to empathise and put yourself in the opposing party's shoes (without letting empathy turn you into anyone's doormat) will get you far here. 

PS: re. the discussion of gender relations, what we're talking about here are archetypal 'masculine' and 'feminine' energies and gender roles, not necessarily physical genders! It's about the construction of those roles and necessary shifts within that rotten old structure.  

Full Moon in Virgo / Mars and Saturn Retrogrades / Prelude to April

(Collage made out of pieces of maps. Virgo has to do with detail, and Pisces is the sea.
Matthew Cusick - more here)

This full moon is at 26 degrees Virgo on the 16^th March, around 5 pm GMT. The moon in Virgo is facing off against the sun in Pisces. 

Virgo is a mutable earth sign: concerned with adjustments and adaptations in the realm of physical reality. Fine-tuning, systemization and order, work and routine, bodily health, attention to detail, craftsmanship. It's about making sure the machine of daily existence is well-oiled and functioning smoothly.

Where its opposite sign, Pisces is emotional and lacking in definite boundaries, Virgo is contained, emotionally reserved, pragmatic and orderly. Both signs share a focus on service: Pisces via self-sacrifice, Virgo through attention to the small details of daily life. In fact these two signs must serve something larger than the self: the motto of the Virgo-Pisces axis is 'serve or suffer'.

They remind me of Mary and Martha in the Bible story. Jesus comes to visit and these two sisters set about serving their guru in opposite ways. Mary sits at his feet adoringly, absorbing his presence: that's Pisces. And Martha is bustling around making dinner for everyone and doing practical things and worrying: that's Virgo. (Virgos are great worriers.)

And then Martha is like “Mary! Get up off your behind and help me make this dinner!” And Jesus gets all preachy and tells her not to worry: “Mary has chosen what is better and it will not be taken away from her”.

Kind of a strange story, when you think about it. It sets up a dichotomy: the physical vs. the spiritual. And then it devalues ordinary physical existence in favour of some ethereal, blissed-out notion of spirituality.

I would like to rewrite it and have Martha say, “OK, well then get the hell out of my house, hippies. Go hang out in the fields and sing kum-ba-ya and eat goat turds.”

She had a perfect right to. I don't see how making dinner isn't a spiritual act.

Everyday work is spiritual, care of the body is spiritual. Eastern religions are much clearer on this than the monotheistic religions - they don't have this false dichotomy between the physical and the spiritual. In Zen, for example, work is a form of meditation. They have this saying: “A day of no work is a day of no eating”. Everybody in the monastery helps tend the vegetables...it's very practical. But also they have those very impractical, seemingly pointless (Pisces) rock gardens which they tend in a very methodical, structured (Virgo) way, as an object of contemplation... It's work or routine (Virgo) as high art and spirituality (Pisces). Same with the tea ceremony: everyday ritual as art. This is one way to integrate the Virgo-Pisces polarity: grounding the ethereal via form and ritual.

Here is something on the Japanese Zen-influenced philosophy of wabi-sabi, appropriate to these themes. Really interesting! “If an object or expression can bring about, within us, a sense of serene melancholy and a spiritual longing, then that object could be said to be wabi-sabi.”

Anyway, my point is, Virgo and Pisces shouldn't be at odds – they require each other. Pisces needs Virgo's containment, discipline and discrimination...otherwise it is just some druggy hippie bullshit. And Virgo needs Pisces's ability to relinquish control, go with the flow, accept life as it is. Otherwise it gets all neurotic and naggy; overly focused on unimportant details, destructively perfectionist.

A full moon in Virgo is, on the deepest level, about integrating these themes of the practical and the spiritual. Seeing work as service, everyday tasks as contemplation and art. And feeling the mystery of actual physical existence. Like, here we are in these weird fragile temporal bodies that require all this tending...what IS all this? It's crazy! But here we are eating and sleeping and driving to work and doing the shopping. Composed of our routines, and disintegrating slowly within them. And it all has to be done, day after day after day...there is really nothing else to do. Totally amazing and bizarre. Wabi-sabi for sure.

When you direct your awareness towards the everyday, the seemingly very ordinary and basic...it is revealed as inherently magical and strange.

On a less esoteric level, this full moon takes the theme of service and compassion we saw at the new moon and shines a light on it. Are you following through on whatever you planned to do? How's it working out? Any adjustment required?

It's a really good time to do the spring cleaning and stuff around the house and garden. Or to fine-tune your health regimen. It's also a good time for an emotional clear-out. Jupiter is direct in Cancer, in tense t-square formation with Uranus and Pluto: this demands radical emotional honesty and change. Take out your garbage already.

And it's a good time to think out the practicalities of your plans and dreams: Mercury (Virgo's ruler) is in Aquarius conjunct Neptune in Pisces (Pisces's ruler). With Mars and Saturn retrograde, you probably won't be able to take much practical action for now...But maybe you can see and feel the future up ahead.

This influence is also really good for creative work: for giving concrete shape to things dreamed or imagined.

Toilet roll diorama - Anastasia Elias. More here

Be aware that it's fleeting. It's a kind of lightning intuition that you can use in a practical way...but Mercury is about to change signs. He moves from brilliant Aquarius to murky Pisces on the evening of the 17^th (around 10 pm GMT), so you'd better use your mental clarity while you've got it, before it drifts down to the bottom of the sea.

The day after the full moon, the 17^th of March - St Patrick's Day - is really tense and difficult. The moon will be in Libra, in cardinal grand cross formation with Jupiter, Uranus and Pluto. There is the potential for emotional shock and upheaval galore, so be REAL careful and keep your wits about you..and try to go easy on the drinking. The cardinal grand cross will be exact at around the same time as Mercury moves into Pisces, and this is not a great influence for staying clear-headed or sober...so it's tough. Try to avoid aggressive drunks if you can, and stay out of situations involving emotional manipulation. And remember that if you initiate a fight during a Mars retrograde, you will pay. It's a bad time to start a war, apparently. Whoever fires the first shot loses ultimately.

It might be an OK night for initiating some ahem hot biological action...plenty of fizz in the skies. But unless all you want is a one-night stand, it might be better to hold back. Relationships initiated under Mars retrograde have a tendency to fizzle out.

OK, regarding the Mars and Saturn retrogrades: I personally feel like I'm living inside a bowl of jell-o these days...anyone else feel like this? Physical energy and drive (Mars) is pretty much absent, and time (Saturn) seems to have slowed to a crawl.

Look at this picture I found: flies mating in amber. This is how it feels - pointless and depressing. Kinda wabi-sabi though, I guess - in a gross way.

How long does this glacial, blocked, frustrating crap continue? Till the 20^th May for Mars, the 20^th July for Saturn.

And personally I don't mind so much about Saturn...he works slowly at the best of times, and in Scorpio he's working undercover anyway. But I really miss Mars.

Mars is retrograde in Libra, sign of relationships. So yeah, expect blockages and reconsiderations, especially in the realm of close partnerships. Expect men in particular to act kind of shady about their intentions, and passive-aggressive. Or outright wussy. If you get a chance to start a new relationship during this time, try to hold back until you know exactly what it is you're dealing with...Ideally till Mars goes direct in May. I know that's a long time. Aaaargh, yes it is.

What makes it harder and more aggravating is that right in the middle of this Mars retrograde we have...the scariest April ever. Like, brink of World War 3 type April. The irritation gets so intense.

Mars will be retrograding right into cardinal grand cross territory in Libra : Mars vs. Uranus vs. Jupiter vs. Pluto. This will be exact at 13 degrees of the cardinal signs (Libra , Aries, Cancer and Capricorn) on the 22^nd of April...and we'll just have to see what happens. Uranus (shock) is involved, so there's really no calling it.

Know that if you were born under any of these signs (or have planets or angles of your chart in the mid degrees of these signs), you are likely to take some sort of hit.

You can try to work with this energy...it's about radical change, and you can use it to be an agent of necessary change. There is likely going to be some drama involving you, so you might as well try to own it...make it YOUR drama.

But because Mars is retrograde, know that aggressive action will get you into big trouble. This is tricky alright! How do you initiate change when the outlet for direct action is blocked?

I think the way through this is personal integrity and faith in the larger design: you will have to “be the change you want to see”. Also, remember that the north node (direction of the story) is in Libra, and currently conjunct retrograde Mars...the focus is definitely on relationships, social harmony and interpersonal maneuverings. It's a good influence for back-room deals, diplomacy, detente. Subtlety and strategy will carry you through.

Here's some more freakin' Bible: Matthew 10:16. “I am sending you out as sheep in the midst of wolves; so be as shrewd as serpents and as innocent as doves.”

Shrewd as a serpent and innocent as a dove is a good way to roll with this, if you can. But please keep in mind that a lot of what is set to go down in April is out of anyone's hands, and there's no sugar-coating that fact. Be prepared for some shock. All the strategy in the world can't help you if a giant rock falls out of the sky and lands on your head...and we are looking at big collective influences here which can't be controlled.

An example of this is the dangerous political situation underway in Ukraine. Crimea is holding a very controversial referendum on the 16^th March, and the next day we have the St. Patrick's Day cardinal grand cross I outlined above... This situation prefigures (and can be said to 'set up') the difficult events of April. Interestingly, Putin's sun is at 13 degrees Libra...exactly in the crossfire of the April cardinal grand cross. Expect the Ukraine situation to ramp up in intensity...hopefully outright war can be avoided, but it's not a given.

In your personal life, you may be able to see and feel what the issues of April will mean for you as the moon goes full tomorrow and then passes through cardinal grand cross territory on St. Patrick's Day...so try to pay attention as best you can. As stated above, this may be tough with Mercury going deep-sea diving in Pisces from the 17th. But the stakes are VERY high, so try.

(Shocking "Annunciation" by Simone Martini. Virgo lady not lookin too thrilled.)