This is tomorrow, the 7th December, at about 7.20 am GMT.
It ushers in the holiday season. Sagittarius is a fun, enthusiastic, outward-looking sign. It's ruled by Jupiter, the gas-giant guru of the solar system, who embiggens everything he touches. Jupiter has just moved into his home sign, so there'll be a heavy emphasis on Sagittarian themes this year: travel, higher education, philosophy and religion, anything that broadens your perspective and fires up your enthusiasm.
So Jupiter in Sagittarius is pretty damn fantastic overall. It's a multinational party vibe (with Shammi Kapoor as Jupiter).
But it can be too much of a good thing. There is a big propensity to go overboard, to leap before you look and get yourself into trouble. It's something to watch out for at this new moon, which is about an exciting, idealistic new beginning which may be completely delusional. Big dreams, but big blind spots as well.
The sun, moon and Jupiter are conjunct in Sagittarius, and that's all very buoyant and fun and enthusiastic. But they're being hit by a square from Mars and Neptune in Pisces, exactly conjunct at the time of this new moon. This is the delusion part. Mars in Pisces can be slippery, underhanded, manipulative, passive-aggressive – a false guru, or lying, cheating, drunk dude who passes himself off as a victim. Conjunct Neptune, the effect is magnified.
It's likely people will be using deception and emotional manipulation to get what they want. Be careful who and what you put your faith in, and hold onto your discernment. People are not always what they seem to be.
Be aware also of your own capacity for self-deception. And as always with Neptune and Pisces, beware of boundary dissolving substances: drink, drugs, religion, fairy-tale romance. You want your bullshit detector to be functioning and unclouded, because there's going to be a lot of bullshit flying around this month.
Mercury is direct again as of the 6th December, and he's in the probing, no bullshit sign of Scorpio, which should help you to see through the smokescreen. He's also part of a grand water trine involving the north node in Cancer and Chiron in Pisces. Chiron, the wounded healer asteroid, will station direct on the 8th December - so the new moon is bookended by Mercury and Chiron both stationing direct.
It's very significant that they end their retrogrades in exact aspect to each other and as part of this beautiful grand water trine, which is about deep insight into old emotional wounds, especially ones involving family and upbringing. It's cathartic and healing, and I think it's nice to have this as we head into a month that is all about dealing with your crazy family.
It's also nice that we have a bunch of slower-moving planets in the signs they rule: Jupiter in Sagittarius, Saturn in Capricorn, and Neptune in Pisces. This is not a common situation. It should help us to feel more stable and grounded in ourselves.
So however much bullshit you encounter, there's a lot of deep solidity and realism to draw upon as well. The trick is knowing which is which. I think you'll know the false because it will be cloaked in overblown emotion and appeals to sentimentality. The truth will be quieter and darker, but you'll know it in your bones.
We'll have a full moon in Cancer on the 22nd December, just at the winter solstice. It doesn't look terrible, but it doesn't look stress-free either. But when are the holidays ever stress-free? If you stay off the sauce and away from political discussions, it might just be fun. I'll write more about it closer to the time.
This is exact at about 5:40 am GMT tomorrow morning, the 23rd November.
It's Jupiter's grand entrance into Sagittarius, just in time for Thanksgiving – he changed signs from Scorpio to Sagittarius just after the new moon two weeks ago, and this is his first lunation in Sagittarius since 2007. He spends roughly a year in each sign and will be in Sagittarius till December of next year.
Jupiter rules Sagittarius so this is a happy place for him to be! It's a real party vibe. Jupiter's about what brings us luck, so for the next year, there'll be great luck and benefit in doing Sagittarian things - i.e. expanding your perspective, via the open road and an open mind. This can mean travel, higher education, exotic philosophies or religions, new experiences. Exciting opportunities will be popping up.
So it's mostly great! However, Jupiter inflates everything he's associated with, and this can lead to too much of a good thing, especially in the sign he rules. Sagittarius can easily go overboard in its enthusiams, and become pompous and ideological. It can also be quite callous about peoples' feelings and sensitivities, mistaking impulsive, opinionated blurting for candour.
We'll be seeing all these over-the-top Sagittarian propensities at this full moon, which frankly looks like a head-melting scenario. We'll have a mutable t-square between the moon in Gemini, the sun, Jupiter and Mercury in Sagittarius, and Mars in Pisces. Optimistic and bouyant as Jupiter in Sagittarius is, his involvement here serves to magnify the stress.
A mutable t-square is a chaotic, neuron frazzling aspect, so things are going to feel jangled and all-over-the-place. This particular mutable t-square involves Gemini (information, communication) and Sagittarius (story / ideology / perspective) – so it's a conflict between different versions of reality. It looks confusing – reality, delusion, truth and falshood will be all tangled up, and it's going to be hard to know whose version of reality is true. There will be plenty of outright lying going on, as well as a lot of emotional manipulation.
The emotional manipulation part is courtesy of Mars in Pisces. Mars is about desire and aggression, and he doesn't work well in Pisces, which is about boundary loss and the unconscious. Mars in Pisces can be a spiritual warrior, but more often he's just passive-aggressive, slippery and manipulative. He's like a charismatic drunk who tells you his sob stories in order to seduce you and who ultimately wants you to “save” him – not a solid dude.
And Mars is squaring Jupiter, which is about going overboard and getting yourself into trouble via heedless enthusiasm. You put it all together and this full moon is a bit of an overboard headfuck. Don't believe everything you hear, because people will be spouting off some ludicrous stuff, and they may have conscious or unconscious manipulative agendas. Appeals to compassion and sentimentality are particularly suspect at this time. It's a good idea to stay critical and skeptical if someone is trotting out a “poor me” story. Ask yourself "What are they trying to sell me?"
Also "what am I heedlessly buying?" Be skeptical about your own opinions, unless your facts and reasoning are bulletproof (which is always hard to guarantee). The risk of self-delusion is very high these days. So often we believe what makes us feel good or what we have an emotional attachment to. We cherrypick facts to support our beliefs. We construct versions of the past to back up our personal narratives, disregarding everything that doesn't fit. It's unconscious dishonesty, we all do it in one way or another and it'll be more prevalent than usual about now.
Fortunately, Mercury (ruler of Gemini and dispositer of the full moon) is currently retrograde. Usually Mercury retrograde is a pain in the ass, causing difficulties with travel and communication, and now is no exception! But I still say it's fortunate here because Mercury retrograde allows us some space from jumping to erroneous conclusions or spouting off our ill-considered opinions. You can use it to rein in your communication and examine the information you're given. I think a bit of communication blockage can be helpful when there's this much pressure to jump the gun.
We'll be dealing with this nerve-frazzling, confusing, overboard, poor impulse-control stuff for the next month and a half. That means it colors the holiday season, never the most stress-free period at the best of times. I think the holidays this year look tough and the risk of over-the-top drama when you're hanging out with your crazy family is particularly high this year.
We have a lot of Neptune/Pisces stuff going on, with Neptune stationing direct the day after the full moon and Mars moving to conjunct Neptune in Pisces on the day of the new moon in Sagittarius (7th December). Meaning it'll be easy to slip into delusion, addiction and self-pity. Good boundaries are key – you'll have to keep a hold of all your discernment if you want to navigate this time without getting enraged or turning into a blubbering wreck at the holiday table.
Avoiding boundary-dissolving substances (drugs, alcohol) can't hurt, especially when you're in stressful situations. I know it sounds like no fun, but they can only make things feel worse at this time.
We'll also have some relationship turbulence as Venus opposes Uranus on the 1st December, just before moving from Libra into Scorpio. This is her third and final jolt from Uranus since September, and it makes for crazy on-again-off-again dynamics, instability and a lot of stress in relationships. But after Venus enters Scorpio on the 2nd December, we are headed for smoother sailing. Dynamics have been balanced and rebalanced and now they're either revolutionized or done. Either way, Venus is moving on.
It's beautiful. About as deep, shadowy, magical and transformative as a new moon in Scorpio can get. And it should feel like an abrupt tonal shift. We will not be the same coming out of this week as we were going into it.
Scorpio is about depth psychology, death and rebirth, and all-or-nothing emotional scenarios: either you're entirely done with something or you're all in. Maybe both at the same time here! One door shuts, another opens and your life is transformed, your self is transformed.
In this case we have the sun and moon in mid-Scorpio beneficially aspecting Neptune (compassion, spirituality, dreams) and Scorpio's ruler Pluto (power, intensity, transformation). So it's pretty mystical.
We also have a lot of planets changing signs at this time, and this is the abrupt tonal shift part. It's a weird situation!
Uranus retrograded back into Aries yesterday, where he will spend a final five months before re-entering Taurus for the next eight years. Uranus is the liberator, Aries is the sign of the self, and Uranus in Aries has been about revolutionary change to our basic sense of identity, often technologically mediated. We've seen the rapid spread of smartphones, social media and identity politics since Uranus first moved into Aries in 2010. As Aries is the sign of aggression and war, there has been a lot of collective rage associated with this transit, and we've seen the rise of populist movements all over the world.
Uranus moved from Aries into Taurus in May this year, and Uranus in Taurus is a bit less personal. It's about radical shakeups to the solid structures of our lives - the things we rely on for stability and security - like the money system, the political status quo, the climate, our "traditional" values, etc. The ground under our feet is shifting, Since May, things will have been shaken up in a revolutionary (and perhaps unpleasant) way for you in some area of your life. But now, as Uranus retrogrades back into Aries, we're getting a chance to integrate outer changes into our self-concepts.
Again, though, this is Aries, and there may be a lot of anger associated with this transit. Someone might have done you pretty damn wrong, and that stuff hurts. However, Aries's ruling planet, Mars is currently in Aquarius, the sign Uranus rules. This is called a mutual reception, and it means this energy of outrage and the drive for liberation can work very well together at this time. It's great for collective action and also for breaking free of your old self-concepts or other people's ideas of who you should be.
Another big shift: the north node has just changed signs as of yesterday: from Leo, where it has spent the past year and a half, into Cancer. The north node is about the "direction" of the sky-story - the path forward. With the north node in Leo, we were meant to focus on our individual self-expression, joy, romance, creativity, bling and fabulousness. But in Cancer it's all about emotions, roots, home, family, nurturance. It's a far humbler, more introspective path, concerned with the domestic sphere and the inner world. Traditionally it's associated with women and motherhood. So abruptly, we're over going out into the world to claim our spotlight. The way forward for the next year and a half is to stay home in our fuzzy slippers and cook pasta dinners. (Except that the the north node in Cancer is disposited by the moon, and the moon shifts signs every 2.5 days - aaargh, so it's a bit more complicated than that. But you can't go too far wrong with fuzzy slippers and comfort food and phoning your Ma.)
Finally, Jupiter is at the final degree of Scorpio for this Scorpio new moon, his grand finale in a sign where he's spent the past year. Jupiter is about expansion, and in Scorpio, the sign of depth and the Shadow, he's a giant muckraker, bringing hidden ugliness and corruption to light. Jupiter is also about what brings us luck, and this obsessive digging up of old dirt has been necessary and collectively transformative over the past year - the entrance of Jupiter into Scorpio last year coincided nearly exactly with the viral expansion of MeToo. (As this is Scorpio, reactions to it have been extreme and polarised.)
The chart of a new moon determines conditions for the month ahead, and as Jupiter is still in Scorpio for the new moon, we are still called upon to do this depth work into December. But tomorrow, he moves from Scorpio into the sign he rules, Sagittarius. And Jupiter in Sagittarius is a whole different vibe: free-wheeling, happy-go-lucky, the life of the party. It's like coming out of a dark, airless little room filled with psychodrama and intensity, into sunlight and open space. The scenarios couldn't be more different.
So all in all, this new moon heralds a very rapid and sweeping emotional phase-change - or a bunch of them, and how they'll fit together remains to be seen. It carries the potential for a profound psychological shift, individually and in the collective. Things that didn't seem possible will come to seem possible, very suddenly.
Other events this month:
Mars also changes signs on the 15th November (so many sign-shifts this month!!) He'll move from Aquarius to Pisces, where he doesn't function so well. Don't be surprised if your energy suddenly feels a bit underwater from then till the New Year, and beware of drink and drugs. (This is not great timing for the holiday season, I know.)
Venus will resume direct motion on the 16th November. She's currently in Libra, where she seeks harmony in relationships - but she's tangled up in an opposition to Uranus, which makes for turbulence and on-again-off-again dynamics. These dramatics will continue into mid-December.
The next day, the 17th November, we'll have Mercury stationing retrograde in Sagittarius. The retrograde will take him into the late degrees of Scorpio and will last till the 6th December. The usual Mercury retrograde cautions re. signing documents and communication and travel difficulties apply. Also, be careful what you say at this time, especially when under the influence - it may come back to haunt you.
We'll have a full moon in Gemini on the 23rd November and it involves issues of information, truth, falsity and delusion. Kinda jangled-up. Then Neptune resumes direct motion on the 24th November, which can be a bit of a WTF scenario.
Basically, there are just so many shifts this month it's hard to keep track of what's going on, or to know how things'll pan out. I guess we'll see! It should be interesting. But this new moon can be like a pause where you connect with some deeper truth in yourself and commit wholeheartedly to your path (after getting rid of what is no longer viable for you). No matter how whiplash-strange things get this month, you can rely on this inner truth and sense of guidance. You know deep down what's really important for you and where you want to be going.
But first the run-up. As of today (1st February), we have a bunch of planets in beautiful, dreamy Pisces. Venus is conjunct Neptune in Pisces, and squaring Saturn in Sagittarius – the square was exact a couple days ago. Venus-Neptune aspects and Venus in Pisces are about impossible, boundless, delusive love and sweetness...and Saturn is about reality and constriction. So this is a potentially painful awareness of limits in love and money matters – a reality check.
And we also have Mars in Pisces conjunct Chiron - an asteroid symbolic of the “wounded healer” archetype. And this is also painful – but potentially an aspect of great healing and spiritual awareness. It is a sacrificial kind of aspect – what gets sacrificed here is personal will and ego.
So we are looking at some major dreamy love-and-loss and sacrificial holy devotion in the sky right now, yikes. And the moon in Cancer is trining these planets in Pisces today, adding emotional force – as if more were needed. It's all too bittersweet and soulful.
We also have a cardinal grand cross involving the moon in Cancer, Uranus in Aries, Pluto in Capricorn and the north node in Libra. This was the same set-up we were dealing with at the full moon in Cancer last month.
So it's a revisiting of that scenario, to some extent – whatever it was about for you. Except that scenario was very stark and violent. In this one, healing and forgiveness are on offer. Emotional release, kindness, catharsis. It all goes very deep.
It's a day to forgive others – or yourself. I think it's incredibly beautiful. Have faith. Pisces is about faith...and trust in the larger design. Have faith in life no matter how much it hurts.
OK, so this sets the stage for our main event – the full moon in Leo late on the 3rd February. And tricky and intense as this thing looks, I really like it.
The moon will be conjunct Jupiter in Leo – and this is a happy, bouyant, creative, emotionally generous kind of emotional tone.
And the moon and Jupiter will be bound into a very beneficial 'mystic rectangle' formation involving the sun and Mercury in Aquarius, Uranus in Aries and the north node in Libra.
This is about new ideas, liberation, creativity, energy and enthusiasm. Radical new approaches to intractable problems are likely, especially in relationships. And at the same time, we'll have this stellium in Pisces, which is about deep faith, love, healing, sacrifice...
It looks pretty nice. That's not to say it's easy: there will be plenty of weird juxtaposed feelings and mutual irreconcilables. We'll have two yods going, and these are tricky aspect patterns, all about irrecconcilable imperatives.
Yod 1 involves Pluto in Capricorn sextiling the Pisces stellium, and inconjunct the moon and Jupiter in Leo. So here we see dedication, very deep seismic change, deep love and faith, austerity and truth... vs. lightheartedness, fun, partying, good times! Obviously these poles are hard to balance...and the point about yods is they DON'T balance; you cannot get them to balance and it's no good trying.
Yod 2 involves Jupiter and the moon in Leo sextiling the north node in Libra, and inconjunct the stellium in Pisces. And this is about creativity, fun, generosity, social harmony, happiness in relationships...vs. siren songs, impossible loves, soul-deep wounding. Again, the poles don't compute – you cannot balance them.
Just know you don't have to decide in favour of anything. In fact you'd be better off NOT deciding. You can let all these mutual irreconcilables hang spinning in the air. Let them balance themselves like a gyroscope.
Diplomacy is possible, reconciliations are possible, balance and fairness are possible – and remember that with the north node in Libra, these are the aims of the story right now. But with all these planets in Pisces, you have to let things flow. There is no need to push anything. Don't rush for premature closure, don't try to argue things out. Try to stay open and tolerant of ambiguity, hard as that can be.
Focus on staying internally free and true to yourself and to your own heart. Uranus in Aries and the sun and Mercury in Aquarius are about personal integrity and freedom of expression, and the Moon in Leo is about emotional generosity and open-heartedness...and remember these points are all beneficially aspecting each other.
I guess maybe the best way to approach this is to just have a good time with it and have faith (Pisces) that the whole crazy mechanism will balance (Libra) itself out somehow. (It will, too! It always does.)
Like the gyroscope above, which is a totally weird yet simple contraption. I can't get my head around how the thing works, but it works.
Having some faith in the larger design looks important for the days after the full moon – the moon in Virgo will be making all kinds of tense aspects to the rest of the sky. Don't let your worries get the best of you. Steady as she goes. Remember moods are only a kind of weather...They pass. Be a gyroscope – spinning around your own internal center to keep steady.
--An aside on Saturn in Sagittarius, which I've been thinking about lately, as we are at the beginning of this transit. Saturn is about solidity, and Sagittarius is about philosophy, meaning. And I think to get through the next few years, people will have to concretise (Saturn) a personal philosophy of life (Sagittarius)...and live by it.
Saturn will be squaring Neptune for much of its transit of Sagittarius – and this complicates things. Neptune dissolves boundaries and structures, and makes it hard to know what's true and what's illusion. But it also dissolves ego – it is an intensly spiritual, mystical influence.
So we have pragmatism (Saturn) squaring off against idealism (Neptune). Given these skies, I think the task is to find a workable, realistic philosophy of living that is rooted in our highest spiritual ideals....and to maintain it in the face of disillusion and despair.
Stoicism is what springs immediately to my mind. A philosophy (Sagittarius) of endurance (Saturn) – of equanimity in the face of life's ups and downs.
If you allow yourself to live at the mercy of your fluctuating moods and emotions, you are pretty much screwed. You will be doubly screwed under the Saturn-Neptune square, which is an inherently disillusioning kind of energy. We're all going to need something stronger than mere emotional reactivity to get us through the next few years.
I think your personal philosophy is a good place to start. What can you actually put your faith in? What in you endures, beyond hope and fear? What do you commit yourself to, even in the face of disappointment? What kind of future do you envision, and what will you do to secure it?
These are Saturn in Sagittarius topics and I think they're worth thinking about!
Anyway...
As we move on through the 2nd week of February, Venus will be catching up to Mars in Pisces. The two of them will be 3 degrees apart in Pisces for freakin' Valentine's Day, which is a real dreamy romantic love scenario, yikes.
All this Pisces stuff can be very delusive, but Venus and Mars will be moving into harmonious aspect with Saturn in Sagittarius – so whatever this is about, it looks like the real deal to me. Grounded and true. Quite lovely, really.
And then we have our weird new moon late on the 18th February. I say 'weird' because it's a bit of a departure from the last four new moons, all at zero degrees of their signs. This one is at the very end minutes of the end degree of Aquarius...so technically it is a new moon in Aquarius, same as the last one. A herald of intense change.
Except with this one, the sun and moon meet in Aquarius around 10 to midnight (GMT), then immediately move together into the next sign, Pisces. They will be together at zero degrees Pisces at the stroke of midnight on the 19th. It's like a fairy story – very heavy on the magic and romance. At the stroke of midnight, we move from emotionally distant, rational, clear-sighted, future-oriented Aquarius...to dream cities at the bottom of the sea in Pisces. To the otherworld.
It is something incredibly beautiful and powerful, I can't help feeling. And it shifts...everything. The next day (20th February), Mars and Venus and the moon will be together at 0 degrees Aries – this degree is called the Aries point, the most potent significator of rebirth in the zodiac. When the sun reaches this point, it means the start of spring in the Northern hemisphere.
This is a burst of raw, fiery energy and will, and it signifies new beginnings, in relationships especially.
(It could also signify the beginning of World War 3, but I'm trying to be positive here.)
I'll write more about the new moon closer to the time...but all in all, the next few weeks look really interesting. Get out the popcorn, we are watching a big weird movie!
This is on the Tuesday the 20th Jan 2015, around 1:15 pm (GMT).
It has been a hard couple of weeks following the heavily emotional full moon in Cancer on the 5th January. We had Mars (energy, will) moving into Pisces on the 12th of January – and this represents a real dissipation of will and of emotional boundaries.
Mars in Pisces at his best can look something like this:
Such an effortless-looking physical flow. Is it fighting or dancing?
Or he can be a spiritual warrior, like Gandhi or Jesus. Or an inspired artist, or a musician.
At his worst, though, he is a self-pitying, deluded, addicted, emotionally-confused mess.
Yeesh.
On entering Pisces, Mars moved straight into a square with Saturn in Sagittarius (exact on the 15th January), and he will conjunct Neptune in Pisces exactly on the 19th January – the day before the new moon in Aquarius.
These aspects represent exhaustion, depression and lowered physical resistance. Also heavy delusion, scattering and misdirection of the will, addiction, self-sabotage, pain, frustration, cruelty. So we're much more likely to be seeing the worse aspects of Piscean Mars these days, and it ain't pretty.
In addition we have a very fraught and ongoing situation involving Uranus, Pluto and the nodes of the moon. The moon's north node signifies the karmic 'direction' of the story – what we are meant to be striving toward. It is currently in Libra, sign of peace, right relationship, harmony and balance – so these are the imperatives of the story. The south node, which represents what we are trying to get away from (but where we are liable to get stuck) is in Aries, sign of self-will, rage and war. (And as these Aries placements are disposited by Mars in Pisces, we are looking at an unhealthy dose of self-pity and delusion in the mix. Rage-aholic zombie stuff.)
So basically we are meant to be moving from conflict to harmony and balance - especially in relationships - but it's very fraught and difficult. And what makes the terrain even harder to navigate is that these points are bound up with the historic Uranus-Pluto square, which is about upheaval, destruction and transformation. Uranus, representing shock and upheaval, is currently conjunct the south node in Aries – and this conjunction will be exact on the day of the new moon in Aquarius. And Pluto, representing death and transformation, squared the moon's nodes exactly on the 15th January. It's a cardinal t-square, very tight through the middle weeks of January, which is where we're at.
A cardinal t-square is an aspect requiring – even forcing – change and adaptation. It is inherently tense and uncomfortable. And as this one involves the Uranus-Pluto square, the tension and pressure for change gets ratcheted up a few orders of magnitude.
What it all represents is big shock and absolutely necessary change, in the context of relationships especially. Tests, breakups, forced evolution to a new model of relating. It is also about the requirement to cut yourself free of the past, of destructive habits and relationships, of what is unworkable in your life, of what you are completely fed up with.
The problem is, things are very volatile and explosive courtesy of Uranus conjunct the south node – so the potential for reckless, indiscriminate destruction is huge. And with this Mars-Neptune stuff going on in Pisces, the past has a deep and very dangerous undertow to it. You may find yourself hypnotized by it, unable to pull away, drawn back into the same shitty old dramas. Self-sabotage is a big risk right now.
The question is: do you keep your ship firmly on course while the sirens sing all around you? Or do you steer it into the rocks in pursuit of them; do you let yourself become a wreck?
Here is Ulysses, lashed to the mast of his ship and listening to the sirens sing - and tormented by his longing.
Ulysses and the Sirens - Waterhouse
I think the story of Ulysses and the sirens is very pertinent to these skies. He wanted to hear their famous song, though he knew it would turn him into a deranged, self-destructive imbecile. So he ordered his sailors to plug their ears with wax and tie him to the mast as they sailed past the sirens. And he got to hear them and survive - something no mortal had done.
The mast he's tied to in the story and the temporarily-deafened sailors rowing the boat out of harm's way can be read as metaphors for the will – for the backbone and determination it takes to escape the pull of destructive desire.
But another lesson of the story is that you don't fuck around with this stuff. You don't idly decide to listen to the sirens sing – not unless you have a crew of devoted sailors around you to keep you on course and steer you out of harm's way. Most of us don't have that, so we're better off staying well away from whatever undermines our self-possession.
For “listening to the sirens sing”, substitute
--looking up old boyfriends on facebook
--revisiting the past obsessively, with sentimentality and misplaced nostalgia
--having a little teeny tiny drink even though you know you're a raging alcoholic
--indulging your emotional excesses and self-pity to the point that they get in the way of your relationships and everyday functioning
--eating another cupcake
--watching "Purple Rain" again even though it disgusts you deeply and there are constructive things you could be doing with your time...
Or whatever. Giving way to temptation, basically. You know what's good for you, you know what's destructive – so don't make excuses for yourself. Tie yourself to the mast and row on.
We are going to be dealing with a Saturn-Neptune square for the next couple of years, basically – so it's pretty important to learn how to be your own internal rock (Saturn) even when everything is crumbling and dissolving around you (Neptune). Fortitude and determination in the face of temptation and confusion – that's one lesson to take from Saturn-Neptune. This is a very good time to start learning it, with Mars in Pisces activating this square.
OK, so I have written a lot already without even looking at the main event! Which is, ta da... Our zero degree new moon in Aquarius on the 20th January! And what a zinger it is. Like a big jolt of electricity right up Uranus! Like a huge, cosmic kick in the ass. Like sudden, detached clarity and insight in the midst of pain and loss... Or like a door opening into a new world, a weird magical one where nothing is quite what you thought it would be, and everything keeps changing so fast you can barely keep track.
Aquarius is future-oriented, zany, progressive, excitable...and emotionally detached. This new moon should come as a relief to anyone slogging through the heavy swamps of Mars-Neptune right now. Aquarius is about liberation, so this is a great opportunity to get free of whatever is holding you in thrall.
But the danger is that all that murky, blocked energy will be released as rage. Aquarius is ruled by Uranus, which will be exactly conjunct the south node in Aries, and this means acting like a rage-aholic is the path of least resistance. Especially in the context of relationships, as we've seen. It's 'fight or flight' kinda stuff, and could potentially be very ugly and destructive.
Don't overstep the bounds of politeness and civilised discourse, no matter how stressed you may feel. There is a high road and a low road here. The low road is the hair-trigger rage-zombie stuff. The high road is represented by Venus conjunct Mercury in Aquarius – this is about objectivity, open-mindedness, insightful and tactful communication, free expression. It's about allowing people the space to be who they are and to make up their own minds.
The Venus-Mercury conjunction is stressed by an opposition to Jupiter in Leo, which can be about big ego issues. So again, it's very important to try to think and communicate calmly and objectively, and not with your ego. No matter how provoked you may feel. It doesn't matter how justified your anger is – letting it rip over your petty little ego stuff is not going to get you very far under these skies. If you use it to look at what needs to change in a broader sense – in your life and collectively – you'll be better off.
The best side of Aquarius is always personified for me by Mr. Spock, who is rational, humane, calm, insightful... and also a complete unapologetic freak (he's an alien after all).
A good way for navigating the emotional rapids of this time (or any time for that matter) is to ask yourself: “What would Spock do?” Try and channel your inner Spock.
(Spock says time out!)
Ok, what else. We have a Mercury retrograde starting on the 21st January, the day after the new moon, taking him back through the sign of Aquarius. This means Mercury will be in Aquarius till March. And I think it's a pretty good place for him to be, whether retrograde or direct. It gives a bit of clarity and detachment to our thinking and communication, and some future-oriented insight. The Uranus-Pluto squares (the last of which is on the 16th March) are about revolutionary change, and Mercury in Aquarius will help us to wrap our minds around revolutionary change as it goes down. (Things will be moving fast!)
Also, we have Venus entering Pisces on the 27th of January, which represents a softening of the general emotional tone.
All in all, it's not an easy two weeks ahead - when is it ever these days? But it really doesn't look so bad overall! Not compared to the last couple of weeks, certainly. We are moving from the heaviness and dourness of Capricorn season to something much more free and light and unconcerned, and that's a nice shift, even with all the attendant drama. And there is potential for all kinds of weird magic to happen.
Just remember:
ps: forgot to say, this new moon is very good for creativity and creative thinking. For getting out of ruts of all kinds and creating something new. It could be a solution to an intractable problem, or a new work of art or music, or a new insight that completely changes the way you relate to some aspect of your life...The point is there will be creativity and inspiration on hand. So use it to do something new.
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