Full Moon in Aries

This is early tomorrow, the 25th September, around 4 am GMT.

The moon in impulsive, warlike, self-focused Aries is facing off against the sun and Mercury in polite, diplomatic, harmony-seeking Libra. Aries is all about ME and what I want, while Libra is about WE, and the balancing act that is required to achieve harmony between different people and perspectives. So a full moon in Aries is always going to involve the tension between following our own emotional impulses and acting on our desires, vs. restraining ourselves and keeping the the peace.

In this case, the tension is really amped up, because the Aries moon is conjunct Chiron in Aries. This is about a fired-up sense of grievance, hurt and outrage. The full moon is also squaring Saturn in Capricorn, which means there are hard limits, rules and realities to be accepted, and actions have heavy consequences. So no matter how much you might want to throw a temper tantrum, you can't. You have to be a grown-up, abide by the social rules, restrain yourself, and accept reality – OR ELSE.

It's interesting that this full moon comes just after the equinox on the 23rd September, which is a fulcrum or balance-point between light and darkness in the year. There is definitely some re-balancing going on here, especially in the realm of relationships. Something important and binding has to be carefully negotiated, despite our personal outrage and hurt. As Saturn is about karma, expect the relational chickens to come home to roost: there are heavy consequences for our prior selfishness and heedlessness toward others.

As full moons signify culminations or endings, this looks a lot like a very fraught divorce to me. Teresa May and her difficulties in negotiating Brexit with the EU come to mind.

Reality is harsh, and though it may be emotionally wounding to admit you're on the weaker side of the negotiation, facts are facts. All the highly publicised outrage in the world won't change them. Demanding respect when your own actions have been inherently disrespectful is stupid. So is storming out of a negotiation and declaring “no deal is better than a bad deal.” There are times when capitulation to a harsh deal is a matter of necessity, and this is just one of those times.

Unfortunately, there's also a grand cross happening between planets in fixed signs at this full moon: Venus in Scorpio square Mars in Aquarius square Uranus in Taurus square the north node in Leo. Meaning this is a standoff, people are not likely to budge. And with Mars approaching his final conjunction to the Aquarius south node (exact 26th September), there is a real danger of violence at this full moon. Given the tension between irresistible forces, immovable objects, wounded egos and emotional intensity – something's gotta give.  (Please be careful driving, operating machinery, etc, as  the risk of sudden accidents in heightened.)

There are beneficial ways this can play out, though! The full moon is also bound up in a mystic rectangle formation involving Mars in Aquarius and the north node in Leo, meaning things can work harmoniously, you can use the tension to break with the past and move forward into a different kind of future. The north node in Leo, disposited by the sun in Libra is your key. Leo is playful, generous and creative; Libra is diplomatic, tactful and peace-seeking. It's a good idea to try to act from those qualities! Think about whether there are creative ways to get what you want that don't involve blowing up everyone who disagrees with you, or following unworkable tactics off a cliff.

Pluto resumes direct motion in Capricorn on the 30th, which represents a surfacing and purgation of all the dark psychological stuff we've been mulling over for the past five months of his retrograde - like a big zit full of unconscious toxicities coming to the surface to be popped.

And then Venus stations retrograde in Scorpio on the 5th October. Her retrograde will last till mid-November, and will bring her back into the late degrees of Libra. It's inadvisable to begin new relationships during Venus retrograde, or to make major aesthetic changes to your home or your person. But it's the perfect time to review and a re-think your relationships, with a ruthless eye toward the bottom line: the energy return you're getting on your relational energy investments. The balance should be as equal as possible.

We'll have a new moon in Libra on the 9th October. It comes during Venus retrograde and after the turbulent re-balancings of this Aries full moon, and it looks like a relationship re-set.

New Moon Eclipse in Leo

See here

This is today, the 11th August, around 11 am GMT.

It's a partial solar eclipse, the last one of this year's eclipse season. And it's in Leo, sign of creativity, showmanship and self-expression. Leo is a big shiny extrovert sign! It needs to perform, to shine, to be admired and loved.

But this new moon eclipse has a real introvert vibe. We have six planets retrograde at the moment: Uranus stationed retrograde on the 8th August, and there's also Mercury, Mars, Saturn, Neptune and Pluto. All this speaks of an inner illumination rather than an outer one. So if you're craving external validation, you're not going to find it here – it's more about finding your own light and your authenticity, and figuring out how to live from that.

I don't mean this in an airy-fairy “spiritual” way, I mean it in an immensely practical way. Like, how do you pay the rent and eat while doing something you actually enjoy and are good at? How do you channel your energy so that you have enough of it to devote to what you love? How do you arrange your life so that it supports your happiness and uses your particular talents?

It's all entirely possible! It's your life, you're the one in charge of it. But it takes creativity. You have to be willing to try something different and step outside your old comfort zone. This is your year for coming up with a better operating system for your life.

But this isn't the month to be putting anything major in motion – shifts are happening deep underground, and largely outside of our conscious control. Mercury is retrograde till the 19th August, and Mars is retrograde till the 27th, so it's going to be hard to push forward with new plans. It's actually inadvisable to start anything new until these retrogrades end, as you'll be banging your head against a wall.

This is more about germination: new creative ideas are germinating deep underground at this eclipse, with far-reaching practical consequences for your life. (The eclipse is the focus of a yod, an aspect pattern that has to do with abrupt, fateful shifts.)

I think it's important to just let the seeds germinate, entertain new possibilities – you'll find out what's actually viable in the real world soon enough. It should become a lot clearer at the full moon in Pisces in two weeks' time, where we'll be separating fantasy from reality. And then by the end of the month, Mercury and Mars will be moving direct again and you can start moving forward with your plans. But for now, plant your seeds and see what comes up! 

Retrograde Mercury is conjunct the new moon, meaning there will be difficulties and blockages with self-expression. But this doesn't have to be a bad thing! As it's happening in Leo, it looks to me like it's about refining your creative expression - any form of artistic expression requires introspection. (It's interesting to note that a lot of writers have retrograde Mercury in their natal charts: writing is a solitary, internal form of communication, and great writers edit their self-expression mercilessly.)

Jupiter in Scorpio will be exactly squaring Mercury, and again we are looking at this theme of going inward, cutting away the layers of dross that are obscuring your light and your individual voice. This Mercury – Jupiter square also speaks of research and investigation: this is a good time to really research your options. Look under every rock, in order to find out what can help you design a more authentic, creative life for yourself. 

There is a cardinal t-square involving Venus, Chiron & Saturn in effect, meaning you are likely to be feeling some painful insufficiency and deprivation, especially around relationship and money matters. With a cardinal t-square, it's obvious that something has to change. If you're feeling unfulfilled, use this new moon eclipse to look at practical yet creative ways to rectify your sense that something is missing.

The point is really your happiness. How do you build more joy and creativity and fulfilment into your life; what kind of practical measures will you have to take to make a more authentic life a reality; what are your actual options? You can't keep trudging along in your same old rut this year. It's time for a radically new chapter. This month is where we start dreaming it up in earnest. 

Full Moon Eclipse in Aquarius

Themes in pictures: 

Calmly observing the primordial swamp from a progress-oriented vantage point

Cutting oneself free of old patterns and conditioning

To thine own self be true

 

This is tonight, the 27th August at 8:22 pm UTC.

So here we are at the big blood moon. Longest eclipse of the century so far, a super-moon (meaning closer to Earth than usual), and conjunct a Mars that is halfway through his retrograde period and closer in his orbit than he's been since 2003. It's a big deal.

I don't really know where to start with regard to this thing. The strings of the whole chart are pulled so tight – like a bow string, or a loaded gun. The moon is nearly exactly conjunct Mars on the south node, the sun is nearly exactly conjunct the north node in Leo, and Uranus in Taurus squares both poles at a tight angle. This is a fixed t-square - pretty uncomfortable, a bunch of immovable objects facing off against irresistible forces. Something's gotta give.

With Uranus so heavily involved, expect the unexpected. Whatever comes, shock will be involved. It may really be a liberation, but it won't necessarily feel like one -- it looks abrupt and uncomfortable.

Mars in Aquarius is squaring Uranus, the ruler of Aquarius. This is a blitzkreig aspect – sudden accidents and explosions of violence are more likely. Please be careful operating machinery and driving, and be careful around electrical equipment.

Also, stay away from angry, aggressive people if you can, and try to avoid being one. With Mars and the moon on the south node in Aquarius, the path of least resistance is cold rage and abrupt, emotionally detached violence – kinda psychopathic really.

The sun on the north node in Leo points the correct way forward: creativity, self-expression, generosity, good humour, playfulness, heart. These qualities may be harder to access than usual at this time, but it's important that you at least try to access them in order to avoid acting like a total psycho.

There is also a theme of maintaining personal authenticity in the face of group dynamics – acting from your core individuality instead of going along with the crowd. Being true to yourself is pretty much impossible if you're preoccupied with how you appear to others. The task here (and always) is to become your authentic self, not a curated persona. The ways in which you are not true to yourself are likely to be cast in sharp relief about now.

Authentic self-expression may be blocked or difficult, as we're dealing with a Mercury retrograde in Leo as of yesterday (26th July), and running till the 19th August. As always, I'd advise using blockage to look inward. Introspection is a prerequisite for true authenticity and self-expression, and you can use this Mercury retrograde to connect with what you truly think and feel, even if expressing it properly is tough at the moment. (Also, hold of signing documents and formalising commitments with Mercury retrograde, and expect the usual issues with travel and communications.)

Full moons are about culminations and endings, and a lunar eclipse is a full moon, only more so. So be prepared to say goodbye to something at this eclipse. Given the Uranian influence, something may be abruptly removed. Please remember that what feels like loss may actually be liberation: one less thing to carry around and worry about.

 Radical minimalism is one of the themes of Uranus in Taurus: the less baggage you're carrying, the more room you'll have to manoeuvre, and the more space you'll have for the new to enter your life. It's all about making space for the new this year: we are in the process of building new operating systems based on greater personal authenticity, because following the same old patterns no longer works. This is for everyone, across the board -- and this eclipse serves that imperative.

I think we're looking at a great opportunity here to cut ourselves free of old conditioning and pathologies. Remember we are still in Cancer lunar cycle, and the new moon solar eclipse in Cancer two weeks ago was about the death or transformation of unhealthy old emotional patterns and family dynamics. Aquarius, unlike Cancer, is emotionally detached and focused on the future.

So at this eclipse, we are facing an inward turning-point, where we can finally look dispassionately at the baggage we're still carrying around and drop what needs to be dropped, in the interests of moving forward. There is unlikely to be much point in dwelling on your hangups any further, unless you really enjoy doing that. But it'll keep you stuck! If you're interested in progress, you can use this eclipse to cut and clear.

At best, it looks like a kind of emotional shock-therapy – liberating, but not exactly comfortable:

Intense as this blood moon is, it really does look like an inward realization kinda vibe to me: coming to terms with reality and understanding how to move forward. We are dealing with a lot of retrogrades at the moment, so you can't expect much progress in the outer world, though you may have great clarity about where you're supposed to be aiming.

On a collective level, some intense reckonings with bedrock reality are underway. On a personal level I think this is all about being true to yourself. Your authentic core self, your essence – not your socially constructed self.

We'll round out eclipse season with a new moon partial solar eclipse in Leo on the 11th August, which underscores the theme of personal authenticity.

Per Shakespeare:
“This above all: to thine own self be true, 
And it must follow, as the night the day, 
Thou canst not then be false to any man”

New Moon Solar Eclipse in Cancer

Yumiko Kayukawa

This is on the 13th July, around 3 am UTC.

So eclipse season is now upon us, starting off with this new moon which is also a partial solar eclipse. Eclipse season is an intense time of accelerated change with long-lasting effect. We have two eclipses this month so what's happening in your life this July is super-important. Long-term shifts are kicking off NOW, at this emotional pressure cooker of a new moon.

Cancer is a cardinal water sign. Cardinal signs are initiatory and forceful, and water signs are concerned with emotion. Cancer is about your roots – the deepest part of you, where you draw your emotional sustenance. It's about where you come from and what you call “home” in this world, so it's associated with childhood, mother, family, nostalgia and memories.

So a new moon in Cancer is about a new emotional start, bound up with issues relating to home and family and your roots. The fact that this is an eclipse gives it an added intensity.

But what amps the intensity up to 11 is that the sun and moon will exactly oppose Pluto. And Pluto is all about intensity and deep, gut-wrenching transformation. Pluto heaves everything we're ashamed or afraid of, the Shadow stuff we'd prefer not to look at, into the light of day. The process is analogous to pus coming out of a boil, and unpleasant as it may be, the purpose is purgation and healing. What's rotten has to come to the surface to be released.

So you can expect long-buried emotions to erupt this month, especially stuff connected with home and family and mom. Formative patterns that have been deeply unconscious may become conscious. Situations may come up that radically alter your notion of “home”, or painfully expose your vulnerability. Your feelings may seem overwhelming.

I'd say, don't attempt to shut them down – it won't work, they'll just manifest in destructive ways. Welcome them and let them wash through you like water, flushing out the pent-up toxicity.

Cancer is good at hiding and defensiveness and clinging to the past, but the point here is emotional catharsis and release. Pluto is retrograde at the moment, so it's all about going inward and facing your demons. With Pluto, there's also a theme of ruthless amputation of what's no longer viable, be it an attitude, a habit, or a relationship. So this is a great time to extricate yourself from toxic family dynamics or to deal with an addiction. This is potentially a powerfully healing new moon, despite the intensity and discomfort. You can't expect to get through it without some kind of drama,  but overall it looks very beneficial.

There's a lot of nice stuff happening in the sky around it. Jupiter, the “great benefic”, stations direct in Pluto's home sign of Scorpio on the 10th July. This is some very helpful backup for the process of dealing with our Shadow stuff. Jupiter will also be in beneficial aspect to Neptune in Pisces, and forming a grand water trine with the sun, moon and Neptune at the time of the new moon – more backup for letting emotions flow and trusting your intuition and your gut.

We also have a grounding and stabilising grand earth trine in effect at this time, involving Venus in Virgo, Saturn in Capricorn and Uranus in Taurus. This is great for radical yet practical new approaches to money, work and relationships.

Mars is retrograde in Aquarius until the end of August. Traditionally, it's not advised to begin new ventures until he resumes direct motion. You may run into blockages and frustration despite your best efforts. It doesn't matter – things are developing all the same and you don't have to bang your head against walls in the effort to push forward. Refine your plans and wait it out.

Mars will be tangoing with the south node for the next three months, passing over it in his retrograde on the 20th July, and then passing over it again on the 26th September in direct motion. What this means is it's a fateful time. There's an imperative to act from creativity, generosity and heart, but also a greater potential for getting stuck in violent, reactive rage. This potential is really intensified at the time of the full moon on the 27th July, a total lunar eclipse which is just a doozy.

It's a blood moon, so-called because the eclipsed moon will glow a dark red. And it looks raw, emotionally super-heated and shocking – a blood moon indeed. It's a game-changer.

This will be the longest lunar eclipse of this century and also a supermoon, meaning it'll be closer to Earth than usual. And it'll be tightly conjunct Mars, who will be at his closest point to Earth in 15 years - so the bloody moon and the red planet will both appear uncannily bright. Uranus in Taurus will be involved, forming a t-square with the sun, moon and Mars. Uranus in Taurus, recall, is a force shaking up the stable structures of our lives, altering the ground beneath our feet.

Beyond the potential for political upheaval, I'm thinking of climate change in relation to this hotted-up eclipse. There is an unprecedented global heatwave going on right now. No question, the planet frying has long-term, serious effects for all of us.

I will write more about the full moon closer to the time, but I think as this is happening during Cancer lunar cycle, we are being given an opportunity at this new moon to release our toxic emotions and unconscious patterns. There is an angry flashpoint coming, but pain is at the root of anger. If you can allow yourself to feel your pain and flush it through, you can hopefully avoid acting it out unconsciously and destructively.

We are also getting a Mercury retrograde this month, starting on the day before the full moon, the 26th July. He'll be retrograding through Leo till the 18th August. Expect the usual issues with communications and travel, and hold off on signing major documents until the retrograde ends.

Full Moon in Capricorn

This is exact on the 28th of June, about 6 am UTC.

It's not a feel-good kind of moon. It's in Capricorn, a sign which is about authority, sobriety, responsibility. Not only is it in Capricorn, but it is also conjunct Saturn, the ruler of Capricorn.

Saturn is about maturity and earning your keep. He is also about karmic payback – he can reward, but only in proportion to the work you've put in. Not a penny more and not a penny less. There are no sudden lottery windfalls with Saturn – you have to pull yourself up by your bootstraps, inch by inch.

So if you've been staying on the right side of Saturn – being a grown-up, doing your work, living within your means and taking good care of what you're responsible for – you might just be rewarded here, in exact proportion to what you deserve. It's not a fun or light moon, but for you it should feel pretty OK! You'll have a sense of solid backup and you'll know you're on the right track, even if progress is a bit stalled at the moment. (Mars just stationed retrograde a couple days ago, on the 26th, so you can't expect to be barrelling ahead with anything at this time – blockages and delays are to be expected.)

If you're on the wrong side of Saturn I would expect this full moon to be a conclusive wake-up call and to feel kind of shitty. Look to where you've been evading responsibility, behaving childishly or selfishly, or enabling the bad behaviour of others. That's the stuff you have to work on.

The full moon squares Chiron in Aries, which means it could feel painful and wounding to your sense of self. Whether you're on the right or wrong side of Saturn, it's likely that you'll have to absorb a loss of some kind. The necessity of it will be clear and you're just going to have to deal with it, though it may feel like a punch in the gut.

Whenever we have a full moon in Capricorn, the sun is in Cancer. The Cancer-Capricorn polarity is about emotions (Cancer) vs reason (Capricorn), emotional needs vs. duty and responsibility, being the child vs. being the adult. Issues of work-life balance often come up: the domestic sphere vs. the world of work; private self vs public persona. Family issues also come up. So I'd expect some of that stuff here.

The way forward is shown by the north node in Leo, which is about living with creativity, heart, integrity, pride in yourself and joy. These qualities may be feel hard to access under this sober, austere full moon, but please try to remember they're your goal. And to reach that goal, your heart and your sense of responsibility have to be working in concert, not at cross-purposes. Otherwise you get this:

--The current furore in the US over separation of asylum-seeker families is a good illustration of the energy at work this full moon, by the way: heartless authority (Capricon) vs. families and children (Cancer), and a wound to America's sense of national identity (Chiron in Aries). What you're dealing with in your life is hopefully less extreme, but the themes will be similar: an identity crisis of sorts, involving the conflict between your heart and your head.

We are headed into eclipse season now, a time of intensity and accelerated change. With Uranus shaking up the status quo in Taurus, it promises to be a doozy, so be ready for a bumpy ride. (It's worth noting that Melania Trump is a Taurus, and we can expect to see bizarre and rebellious behaviour coming from Taurus folk with Uranus in their sign. That weird jacket was very Uranian.)

We have a partial solar eclipse in Cancer on the 13th July, where the themes of rules vs. emotions will be revisited and intensified. We have a total lunar eclipse in Leo on the 27th July, which looks like a game-changer and a profound shock to the system. And we have a partial solar eclipse in Leo on the 11th August which looks like a proud, inflexible ego kind of vibe. There's a lot of fixed energy in the sky at the moment, meaning people aren't likely to compromise or back down, even if they're demonstrably on the wrong track. I'd avoid waving the red rag at the bull if you can help it!

It's just a harsh, strange time and people are going to be prone to unpredictable aggression. Acting with integrity and real caring are not the easy path right now, but they're the way through.

Full Moon in Sagittarius

This is on the 29th May, 3:21 pm UTC.

It looks kinda mentally jangled and all-over-the-place, but pretty nice overall! Things will feel lively, to say the least. It's an upbeat, sociable time.

We'll have the moon in expansive, optimistic Sagittarius opposite the sun in thinky, hyperactive Gemini. The Gemini-Sagittarius axis is all about information and communication (Gemini), and how we draw the disparate bits of information into a guiding narrative (Sagittarius). It can also be about alternate interpretations, misinformation, and truth vs. lies. When we get a lunation along this axis, we usually see a lot of issues around information and communication coming up, and knowing what's true and what's false can be challenging. So it's fitting that we have the European General Data Protection Act coming into effect at this time, nobody seems to exactly understand what it's about, and there are a lot of scams connected with it. We also have weird reversals in international diplomacy – the US-North Korea summit is cancelled, oh wait, maybe it's back on, WTF is happening?

There's just a lot going on and it's confusing. And recall that this full moon comes on the heels of Uranus moving into Taurus at the new moon on the 15th May, which symbolises a thorough shake-up of the status quo, with long-term effect. Things are in mega-flux, you're probably coping with enormous change in some area of your life, and it's entirely appropriate that your mind should be reeling a bit.

Aside from the fried neurons, this full moon looks pretty nice and beneficial. It's part of a harmonius aspect pattern called a mystic rectangle – this one features Mars in Aquarius and the north node in Leo, as well as the sun in Gemini and moon in Sagittarius, which all together is a lot of air and fire. Air is thought and communication, fire is energy and inspiration, and they work well together. So this is clearly a time of revolutionary new thinking, progressive ideas, excited communication, blazing creativity.

And compounding this theme of accelerated mental shift, Mercury (planet of thought and communication) shifts signs on the day of the full moon. He moves from slow, conservative Taurus to the sign he rules: frenetic, free-associating Gemini. And he'll be moving into a trine with revolutionary Mars in Aquarius (exact 1st June). This means fired-up mental agility and a drive to think outside the box.

At the same time though, we'll be dealing with a yod, which is a tense aspect pattern that speaks of mutual irreconcilables. The focus of the yod will be Saturn in Capricorn, a force for structure, order, authority and conservatism. It looks like the weight of the past and of tradition will sit uncomfortably with the drive for new, creative, progressive thinking. Also, the task this year is to build a whole new operating system for some aspect of your life, from the ground up – and this is tough when things are feeling so unsettled.

Helpfully, we have a grand trine in the water signs forming at this time, as Venus moves into middle degrees of Cancer. It'll be exact from the 1st to the 2nd of June, and it looks really lovely and lucky. It involves Venus and Jupiter, the two “benefic” planets, and also Neptune in his home sign of Pisces.  This speaks of a great flow of intuition, compassion, healing and love. It should feel pretty good.

So if you find yourself confused and unable to make sense of anything mentally, you can use your heart and your intuition as a guide at this time. These will tell you what to put your faith in and which way to flow.

New Moon in Taurus

This is on the 15th May, 12:45 pm UTC.

It's a big deal. Something is bound to be shifting for you at a very basic level about now, and the effects are going to be long-term. You are not going to be able to stay stuck in the same old ruts. And collectively, the events unfolding now will have long-term consequences.

This new moon is all about Uranus, planet of shock, revolution and upheaval. Uranus is changing signs within 3 hours of the new moon, from Aries into Taurus. Uranus changes signs roughly every 7 years, and the odds that he'll be changing signs at nearly the exact time of a new moon in the sign he's shifting into is... wildly improbable, to say the least. The universe is being pretty heavy handed with its symbolism here. And the symbolism is of a thorough-going shake-up of an established order.

Then the day after the new moon, Mars shifts signs into Aquarius, the sign Uranus rules. His first order of business in Aquarius is perfecting his square with Uranus in Taurus – it will be exact at 0 degrees of each sign. More heavy-handed symbolism – and here we are dealing with a shock to the system, a bolt from the blue, a trigger event. A Mars-Uranus square is liable to be explosive, aggressive and abrupt: it's a blitzkreig aspect. And here it acts as the starting gun that sets off Uranus's rampage through Taurus - or the red rag to the bull, if you like.

Taurus is habitual, slow-moving, conservative, attached to comfort / possessions and resistant to change (but implacable once set in motion). Uranus, in contrast, is a live wire, very erratic and unpredictable, chaotic, uncomfortable by nature – and he demands change. So the transit of Uranus through Taurus is likely to set the ants loose in your pants. Over the next 7 years, we are going to be dealing with disturbances and abrupt shifts to our finances, our work, our values, our habits, our possessions – everything we cling to for a sense of security in this world. Shocking reversals of fortune are likely. Unpredictable political changes and environmental shifts are also likely.

I think it's a good idea to streamline and get rid of stuff you don't need in preparation for this – radical simplicity is one way of making this energy work for you. It's also a good psychological tactic, as the less you're holding on to, the less you'll have to lose and the easier it will be to maneuver.

You probably already have a pretty good idea of what this is about for you and are itching for change in some sector of your life. We had a Mercury-Uranus conjunction at 29 degrees Aries on the 13th May, just ahead of this crazy new moon. The moon in Aries was also involved, and everything was squaring Mars in Capricorn. And all this represents an intense lightbulb moment, a newsflash, a surge of tremendous irritation and insight. So I'm sure you know by now what has to change.

But it's one thing to know what you want to be free of and to open up space in your life for something new – it's another thing entirely to build a new operating system, from the ground up. That's the challenge we're looking at this new moon, and for the forseeable future. Thankfully, the sun and moon will be beneficially aspecting Mars and Pluto in Capricorn, which should be very good for making long term, practical changes. Whatever is set in motion at this new moon should have long-lasting effect and staying power.

There'll be plenty of impatience and irritation as Mars squares Uranus, but please try to keep things slow and steady. Also, with Mars square Uranus, please be careful around electronics and while operating machinery or driving. Sudden accidents are more likely at this time.

We'll have a full moon in Sagittarius on the 29th May, and it looks quite confusing and unsettled. I guess that's fitting after the Uranian shocks of the new moon – people will be rattled, and it will be hard to know what's true. Lunations along the Gemini-Sagittarius axis usually have to do with information, communication and truth vs. falsehood, and the full moon is no exception. But amid all the fried neurons and crossed wires, you'll have a strong ally in the form of your intuition. We have a grand water trine forming between Venus in Cancer, Neptune in Pisces and Jupiter in Scorpio, and it will be operative around the time of the full moon. It looks like a soulful, soothing influence in a jangled-up period. I'll write about it closer to the time.

Full Moon in Scorpio

This is on the 30th April, 2 am UTC.

The sun in Taurus will be facing off against a Scorpio moon.

Taurus wants to hold on to comfort and possessions. It's a rooted, habitual kind of energy. Scorpio, in contrast, wants purgation, intensity and transformation. So there's a conflict at work every Scorpio full moon, between holding on to the past and letting go. It's like a cicada leaving its old, flightless shell to take up a new airbourne existence – not a comfortable or easy process, but necessary. You can't move into the future if you've one foot stuck in the past. Something has to be shed and left behind for good.

This full moon, the Scorpio side of the equation – purgation, intensity and transformation – are definitely the way to go. It's all about letting go of the past in order to have space for a different, more authentic future. There is a theme of ruthless, extremely pragmatic culling going on. Whatever in your life is superfluous or non-viable has got to go, so you can channel your energy toward what you really value and want. Building and maintaining something of real, solid value in your life will take all the energy and commitment you have, and you can't afford to waste energy on people, things or situations that drain your resources. You have to erect boundaries around what you care about and defend those boundaries.

Scorpio is all about energy exchanges, particularly psychological ones. These dynamics are hard to quantify, but easy enough to discern on a physical, gut level: if an exchange leaves you feeling depleted or queasy, something is off. The energy balance has to be righted or the dynamic won't be tenable long-term.

It's very useful to do a cost-benefit analysis of relationships and situations at this time: what kind of energy do you get back for the energy you invest (and this applies to work, as money is a form of energy); is it an equal exchange or does it leave you feeling consistently drained and used? If a draining, parasitic situation can be transformed, this is your moon for trying to put the energy balance right. If it can't be transformed, it must be amputated from your life – and this is your moon for amputating. You'll know in your gut what needs to be done, and it will be all-or-nothing. Trust that instinct, cut cleanly and don't look back. There isn't a lot of room for sentimentality here, and odds are, you won't be feeling sentimental.

The cost-benefit analysis can be done on your bad habits, addictions and internal pathologies as well. That stuff is non-viable by definition, and this is a great time for getting to the root of it and cutting it out.

Scorpio's rulers, Mars and Pluto are conjunct in Capricorn at the time of this full moon. This is a very violent, ruthless, dangerous energy, and caution is advised, especially around conflict scenarios. An argument can escalate into a fight to the death under this aspect. Fortunately, it's in beneficial aspect to Jupiter in Scorpio, which rewards deep psychological excavation work. I think this is the best use of the energy, but you can definitely use it to achieve big in whatever area of your life you want to focus on.

We'll also have the Scorpio moon beneficially aspecting Saturn in Capricorn - so all in all, we are looking at a lot of helpful Saturn-Pluto action. It means that what's been hidden under the surface will come to light in all its ugliness and corruption, but that unearthing will feel necessary and beneficial - even cathartic. It will be very hard for us to lie to ourselves about what's actually going on in our lives, or to cover shitty situations in a haze of pretty sentiment. The truth will be laid bare, and uncomfortable as this may feel, the truth is what will set you free.

I think this is a fantastic scenario – very liberating. But if you're heavily invested in your ego, it's sure to be painful. In fact I think being too heavily invested in anything is not a good strategy at this time, because we're in for a thoroughgoing shake-up where fortunes can reverse in an instant. If you have all your eggs in one basket and that basket gets knocked over, what then?

The shake-up is fast approaching. Uranus will move into Taurus at the new moon in Taurus in two weeks' time. A few hours later, Mars will move into Aquarius, in exact square to Uranus in Taurus – this presages sudden, blitzkreig shocks and accidents, so please drive carefully and be careful around machines and electrical wiring.

On a more internal level, the stage is set for sudden, life changing insights into the nature of reality; lightning mental revolutions and breakthroughs; sudden reversals of stuck mental ruts; brilliant discoveries. It looks exciting, but we should all be prepared for some unexpected, and maybe unwelcome, shock and awe. Uranus in Taurus will shake our stolid certainties and complacencies right out from under us.

So I think it's a good idea to get on board with this energy in advance, and use this uncomfortable, powerful full moon to cull what's no longer viable in your life. If you're actively moving toward transformation, you're less likely to feel victimized by sudden change. It'll be easier to maneuver.

Full Moon in Gemini

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This is tonight, the 14th November, around 12:05 am GMT.

The moon in Gemini will be facing off against the sun and Saturn in Sagittarius. Both these poles will be squaring Chiron in Pisces.

As Chiron is about wounding, this looks painful. As Saturn is involved, it looks harsh. As Gemini and Sagittarius are involved, this has to do with thought, information, communication and truth vs. fiction.

What do you really know? What's true? “Post-truth” has entered the lexicon this year. The idea that news is faked is no longer a conspiracy theory – it has become the news. People cherry-pick their sources to support their established opinions, social media has enabled us all to block out voices we don't agree with, and reality TV has supplanted reality.

Where do we go from here? The future looks grim. How does collective life operate, post truth? Is reality to be controlled by whoever or whatever we feel like believing (facts be damned)?

Joseph Goebbels:

“It would not be impossible to prove with sufficient repetition and a psychological understanding of the people concerned that a square is in fact a circle. They are mere words, and words can be molded until they clothe ideas and disguise.”

In a way I think it's a heartening development that the concept of “fake news” has become real news. At least we're all aware we're being flagrantly lied to.

The problem is, where do we go from here? What stories can we actually have faith in, when our sense of collective reality has been wounded to this extent? Planning for the future requires knowing where you're standing now – but who knows that anymore?

Leaving aside the collective, what does this dynamic look like in your own life? Where have you lost faith in the future, where do you no longer believe the story you're telling yourself or being told?

It's likely something will come to light at this full moon – some new information or revelation that helps you put things in proper perspective. Expect it to be a harsh reality check. Truth is not exactly a feel-good element in this scenario – it is sobering and painful.

Mercury (thought, information, communication) is the ruler of Gemini and dispositor of this full moon. He is currently in cold, sober, reality-based Capricorn, and edging toward Pluto – and this speaks of a drive to get to the bottom of things; to face the unvarnished truth.

Mercury is stationing retrograde on the 19th December - as if to underscore this theme of analysing the facts and getting the story straight. The retrograde runs till the 8th January and brings him back to the late degrees of Sagittarius, which is all about the stories we tell to make sense of the world. He will station direct as the sun conjuncts Pluto in Capricorn. Some harsh truths – especially relating to corrupt power dynamics in the collective, and in your own life – are likely to be illuminated.

It's not all grim though. We have Mars in Aquarius (the will to try something different) and Uranus in Aries (a fiery drive to be true to ourselves) in mutual reception, and helpfully aspecting each other right now. Both are also beneficially aspecting the sun, moon and Saturn this full moon. This speaks of paradigm shifts and revolutions - energy, anger and will being directed toward progressive channels. It's not a time for sitting on your hands and isolating yourself – there are new associations and realities to be built, to replace the stuff that is no longer credible. It's exciting and unpredictable!

Also, we have Venus in Aquarius, which is a drive for freedom and novelty in relationships. With Jupiter in Libra, relationships are a theme, but Venus in Aquarius abhors staying stuck in the same old relational ruts. She wants space, candour and equality, and she's into unusual, improbable pairings.

So we have a lot of Aquarian influences pushing us to find new modes of inhabiting reality, relating to others and envisioning the future right now. Be ready to embrace shock and upheaval this holiday season – change is in the air, and it's necessary.

Uranus, ruler of Aquarius, stations direct on the 28th December, in exact opposition to Jupiter in Libra and sextiling Venus in Aquarius. This is a big zap to relationships of all kinds – obviously we can't keep doing the same old shit and replaying the same old dynamics. This is about clearing the air, being radically honest and objective, striving to find a new kind of balance.

To sum up: this full moon looks like a bit of a drag – a bubble-burster for sure. You'd do well to work with this. Let your bubble be burst. Reality has to be faced, and there is work to be done to create the kind of future you want. That involves dropping your illusions and self-pity and getting out there, joining with others, forming new associations and embracing change. We are not really “post-truth” - but the old realities are torched and it's time to try something new.

Here is a crazy relevant article published just at the full moon: "The case for despair is made. Now let's start to get out of the mess we're in".

Please be aware that the north node is still in Virgo – keep your focus on what's practical and realistic. The south node is still conjunct Neptune in Pisces, and Mars will be moving to conjunct Neptune by the end of the month. I've been talking about the difficulty of knowing what's true these days – well it's sure to be extra-difficult for the rest of the month. So please try to stay grounded and be aware of the possibility of deception. That includes self-deception.

Plus: big substance alert! Take care with drink and drugs. Also with romantic idealism, delusion, self-pity, nostalgia, despair... All poisons under these circumstances. We are not going backward to the way things were - we are trying to forge a new paradigm here. Facing harsh reality is a necessary step toward this.

Full Moon in Taurus

This is tomorrow, the 14th November, around 2 pm GMT.

It's a supermoon, as I'm sure everyone has heard. The biggest one since 1948 apparently – and we won't see another this big and bright till 2034.

Given the societal tensions we've been seeing and the way full moons amp up people's passions, I'd be kinda nervous about this...except this full moon is in settled, stable, reality-based Taurus. That should calm the emotional tone down a bit and make the tension easier to manage.

The story the sky is telling right now is one of tension, though. Go figure. Basically, everybody is angry, people are taking extreme stances and it has become very hard to know what's true. Talk about politics at your peril - firefights are the norm now.

--We have the sun in extremist, polarizing Scorpio, and this is intense by definition. Plus we have Uranus in Aries (populist rage) sending an edgy inconjunct to the Scorpio sun, triggering bursts of destructive collective anger.

--We have Mars (aggression, drive) in the revolutionary sign of Aquarius, in mutual reception with Uranus (shock, revolution) in Aries, a sign which is all about individual will - and this is about popular rage in action. People out on the streets demanding change.

--We have Mercury (speech, communication) newly in Sagittarius, where he is prone to ideological ranting. He is aspecting Mars in Aquarius. This fires up the rage and the potential for wounding, crude, shocking (and/or incisively insightful) communication.

--We have Neptune in Pisces stationing direct on the 19th November, nearly exactly conjunct the south node. This is a swamp of confusion, delusion, lies, inertia and stagnation. Destructive nostalgia; the pull of old addictions, utter head-fuckery and bewilderment.

--We have Jupiter in Libra getting set to square Pluto in Capricorn (exact 24th November) and oppose Uranus in Aries (exact 26th December). This is a test of our civility, our tolerance, our ability to find common ground in the midst of disagreement. It is also a painful magnification of the sense of a corrupt power hierarchy (Pluto in Capricorn) and individual rage against it (Uranus in Aries).

In short, we have not seen an end to populist rage, or to duelling ideologies, or to polarized discourse. Or to the reign of utter crazy bullshit and delusion. Or to the dissolution of everything we thought to be true and stable...

We are still dealing with the aftermath of the transformative, destructive Uranus-Pluto squares (2012-2015), and we will be dealing with this for a long time. Recall that the last time we had a series of squares between these two planets was the 1930s, during the run-up to World War II. This is similar.

Pluto (toxicity, corruption and transformation) entered Capricorn, sign of the establishment, in 2008. That was the year the banking system fell apart. It was propped up at the expense of ordinary taxpayers.

Then Uranus (shock, revolution) entered Aries, sign of individual will and combativeness, in 2011, and collective anger erupted. That's when we watched the birth of the Occupy Wall Street movement, which demanded accountability from governments and the financial system. That's also when we saw the Arab Spring explode all over the Middle East, as people took to the streets to demand change.

Pluto and Uranus squared each other seven times between 2012 and 2015, and they hit like a wrecking ball, reducing a lot of lives to ruins. Populist revolt and shocking violence (Uranus in Aries) vs. extreme efforts on the part of authorities to maintain control, though the systemic rot could no longer be hidden (Pluto in Capricorn). Syria is a perfect example of how this sort of thing plays out on a collective scale - and with Neptune and Chiron in Pisces, the horror of that war can't be contained to just Syria; it is a contagion affecting the entire world.

But on the individual level, plenty of people have been through their own private apocalypses these past few years. Much of this (job and home loss and financial difficulty especially) is tied to the collective catastrophe - the failure of governments and the financial system to provide stability.

This year, to top it all off, we had three squares between Saturn (structure, order, reality) and Neptune (dissolution) – and this has dissolved the scorched earth right out from under people's feet. We no longer know what to expect. The future has always been uncertain, but this is something else entirely. None of it makes sense. And this uncertainty fuels more extremism – people retreat to polarized viewpoints when their sense of stable reality is threatened.

So here we are, at this supermoon in Taurus, and I hope it brings some calm and pragmatism, because we all have to figure out how to move on from here. New foundations have to be constructed; new realities have to be attended to. The old ones are torched.

The sky offers some clues as to how to move forward. Chiron in Pisces (a sense of existential woundedness) supports the full moon, and this says to me that compassion is the right response to turmoil – hard as it may be to come by. Compassion for the oppressed, and for the suffering that underlies the rage of the oppressors. We are all in this planet-sized shit show together.

Chiron is also about healing, and I hope some of that will be on offer. Because the collective polarization and savagery have grown hard to bear.

Another way forward is highlighted by the north node in Virgo, now exactly opposing Neptune and the south node in Pisces. I have been harping on about this for ages, but it bears repeating: pay attention to reality, to the bedrock facts of your everyday life. Attend to the little details of what needs doing. Stay grounded, serve others, help whenever you can, keep to your routines. Do not get stuck in the swamp of your own inertia or delusion or emotional ungroundedness.

All this is easy to say, but it will be pretty damn hard to do. Especially as Neptune stations direct later this week conjunct the south node, and in square to Mercury. It will feel like a complete headfuck, and the temptation will be to retreat into cloud-cuckoo land or a bottle of gin. Try to stay anchored in reality, one mundane task at a time. This has been important all year, with the north node transiting Virgo. But it is absolutely imperative now.

There is a yuuuuge need to accept and be willing to work with reality at this full moon - we must get down to business. We have Venus newly in security-seeking Capricorn, moving to conjunct Pluto on the 25th November - and this, along with the Scorpio-Taurus stuff, is about a fairly ruthless, realistic assessment of the bottom line in relationship and money matters. What you give vs. what you get back.

And by “bottom line”, I don't just mean money – I mean energy, though money and energy are often interchangeable. With Jupiter in balance-minded Libra, exchanges have to be fair, above-board and equal. The energy drains have got to go. This may entail getting rid of things you're quite attached to, and it will hurt.

But you have to drop the dead weight in order to move forward - and the dead weight in this case may be your dreams and illusions about how life should be. We have to work with what life IS.

This is not a time for burying our heads in the sand - this full moon is all about accepting reality, working with it and striving for fairness and balance in the face of conflict, delusion, polarization, shock and instability.