This full moon is the culmination of a particularly sensitive and painful Pisces lunar cycle, and it looks like a doozy – very emotionally raw and harsh. If you can get through it without killing anyone, you'll be doing well.
The moon will be in Libra, where she craves interpersonal harmony and niceness, but things are not set up so she can get it. She'll be part of a cardinal t-square: a tense, uncomfortable aspect pattern that necessitates movement and change.
The opposite pole of this t-square will be in fiery, warlike Aries, where the sun and Mercury will be conjunct. This represents a fierce, aggressive drive for self-expression – but with Mercury retrograde till mid-April, communication is likely to be frustrated or blocked.
The other part of the triangle is Mars conjunct Saturn in Capricorn (exact on the 2nd April). This is a tough aspect. Mars is about forward drive, and Saturn is about blocks and delays – so it's like momentum hitting a wall. Fortunately, both planets are well placed in Capricorn, so you could read this positively, as representing a rock-solid work ethic: an enduring (Saturn) drive (Mars) to achieve (Capricorn).
But however positive a spin you try to put on it, it's part of a cardinal t-square involving the moon (emotions), and it's unlikely to feel good. Jagged, frustrated and angry, more like. And as Libra is all about relationships, whatever happens this full moon is likely to play out as interpersonal conflict.
Libra is ruled by love and money planet Venus, and Venus has been stressed over the past month. She entered fiery, impulsive Aries on the 6th March, only to run into a frustrating square with Saturn (exact 13th March). This was about blockage of desire, and stagnation in love and money matters – very testing and dour. But worse was to come: Venus moved from that loveless square into a square with Pluto in Capricorn (exact 23rd March) – and this is some truly nasty stuff, full of the potential for manipulation, betrayal and power games.
And then just ahead of the full moon, we saw Venus conjunct Uranus (exact 29th March), which is about bright new doors opening – but also other doors shutting abruptly. The Venus symbolism over the past month couldn't be clearer – first a lack of fulfillment (Venus square Saturn), then an eruption of ugliness (Venus square Pluto), then she's out the door (Venus conjunct Uranus). And then the culmination: this Venus-ruled full moon which is all about love and war – very angry and raw.
So to say the past month has been rough on relationships is probably an understatement. But after this full moon, we are hopefully past the worst of the rapids. Venus has already moved into Taurus, where she calms down and stops associating love with fighting. And we'll have a new moon in Aries on the 16th April, which marks the start of the astrological year - it looks like a radical re-boot, the start of a whole new chapter. Change is coming!
So whatever rottenness is happening in your life, rest assured things are going to get better – and probably weirder too, which is not a bad thing. And if something you value or want is being taken away from you at this time, wait a bit. A little further down the road, you might just realize it was something holding you back.
It's on St Patrick's Day, a holiday associated with public drunkenness. And it's in Pisces, a sign associated with all forms of addiction. And the sun and moon will be conjunct Chiron, an asteroid which has to do with wounding – the kind you learn deep lessons from.
So I think it's a bit more dangerous than usual to go out partying this St Patrick's Day (and in the month to follow). The hangover is sure to be painful! Caution is advised with boundary dissolving substances – we'll be more addiction-prone this month, and more likely to encounter deep pain and karmic lessons via our escapist attempts to blur out reality. Interpersonal relations are likely to be harmfully affected too.
We've had a stellium in Pisces for the past few weeks, but this new moon marks the beginning of the end of that heavy Pisces influence. Instead we're going to have a stellium in Aries from the 6th of March, as Venus joins Mercury in Aries. Then we'll have the spring equinox as the sun enters Aries on the 20th March. It should feel like a release of stuck energy – an antidote to the inertia and depression of the Pisces stellium.
But Aries can be warlike and impulsive, and the planets in Aries will make harsh squares to Saturn and later Pluto in Capricorn, blocking the possibilities for forward movement. This is a recipe for frustration and rage. When you combine that influence with the sensitivity, delusion and ego-woundedness of this new moon, you can end up with a mess.
I think the danger of taking out your internal angst on others will be very strong this month. This Pisces lunar cycles culminates with a full moon in Libra on the 31st March which looks tough on relationships.
And the fact that the new moon conjuncts Chiron in Pisces magnifies the potential for pain and loss this month. Pisces has a reputation for dreamy spirituality, but it also has a very dark shadow: addiction, delusion, isolation, victim shit, self-pity, emotional chaos, illness, loss. Chiron's involvement with the new moon means we are likely to see a lot of this dark Pisces, and it's bound to be a bit miserable and deflating. Bubbles will burst.
But Chiron is also about learning from our wounds, so it's entirely possible to learn something deep and spiritual from your angst and disappointment. The key is going deep, into your dark psychological stuff and your subconscious. You have to examine your uncomfortable feelings, get to the root of them, find out what's triggering your angry or depressed responses. It's not fun, but that kind of deep psychological work will be very beneficial at this time.
That's because Jupiter in Scorpio is beneficially aspecting the new moon, after having stationed retrograde on the 8th March. This is a clear directive to cast your lasers inward, toward what's subconsciously driving you. It's about coming to terms with your Shadow, bringing the ugly stuff into conscious awareness, and healing. With this Jupiter retrograde in the sign of depth psychology (and a Mercury retrograde in Aries beginning on the 20th March) projecting your battles onto the outside world and fighting them there is not a good idea, though it will be easy enough to do that. It's better to use this energy to dig out what's going on inside you.
I think one very good way of doing that at this time is via art. We have Venus and Mercury conjunct in Aries, and this is very forcefully communicative. We also have Mars at the very last degree of Sagittarius, and this is more of the same: a shoot-from-the-hip kind of influence. It can be mouthy, opinionated, prone to blurting insensitive things and calling it honesty. But if you can channel this urgency of expression into creativity, you're less likely to get embroiled in external conflict.
The alternative is to use this to spout off your opinions and probably wound someone, and people will be doing plenty of that! We have this combination of sensitive, wounded Pisces and callous, impulsive Sagittarius and Aries, so the likelihood of getting wounded or hurting people you care about (especially if you're under the influence) is strong. So keeping your forceful opinions to yourself for a while might be smart. And it's worth asking yourself whether you're deluded or projecting before you tell someone off, because the likelihood here is that you are.
Mars shifts signs a few hours after the full moon, into Capricorn, a sign where he functions well and get shit done. But he's headed into a conjunction with Saturn in Capricorn, exact around the time of the full moon. This does not look so great to me. Mars-Saturn contacts are known for blockage, frustration and cruelty – people lash out because of pent-up aggression. So it ties into the theme of interpersonal violence this month, and it's something to keep an eye on. It has the potential to really damage or destroy relationships.
It all comes to a head in two weeks time, under the full moon in Libra on the 31st March. Libra is about relationships and keeping the peace, but this full moon is part of a very tense cardinal t-square, so keeping the peace is going to be tough, and relationships can end abruptly at this time. Caution is advised.
Caution with communication especially: we'll have a Mercury retrograde through Aries starting on the 23rd March and running till the 15th April, and it's bound up with the full moon. This means impulsive, emotionally driven miscommunication is likely, or angry misunderstandings. Needless to say, this can lead to conflict. You can blurt the wrong thing, or things you've said before can boomerang back on you, or communication can be blocked altogether.
So all in all, it looks like a tough month, and my advice is to look inward toward the sources of your angst instead of fighting your battles in the outer world. Or channel it into art, if that's your thing.
Also, try to keep a detached perspective if someone says or does something hurtful to you, and be mindful of how easy it will be this month to hurt others.
It's an annular (“ring of fire”) solar eclipse - the second and final eclipse of this eclipse season. The next round of eclipses won't be till August. Eclipse season represents a time of supercharged change.
Pisces, as the last sign of the zodiac, has to do with endings – and we have a big stellium in Pisces right now. But new moons are symbolic of new beginnings, and we also have a very charged-up stellium in Aries, which is about birth.
So the symbolism here is very much about death and rebirth – endings and beginnings. We are looking at permanent endings here, but we are also looking at fiery, supercharged new beginnings. One door shuts for good, another door opens.
OK, that's all very well, but the death-and-rebirth process this new moon ushers in is unlikely to feel clear-cut. There may be intense delusion / nostalgia / confusion / deception going on, making it hard to know what the hell is happening.
Or else the true import of what's happening may be clouded or hidden – we'll look back and say “this marked the turning point!”, but it'll be impossible to understand it in the moment. The meaning will only come clear in hindsight.
That's because the eclipse is happening close to the south node. And the south node in Pisces is very swamplike – we are vulnerable to all kinds of self-deception, delusion and addiction here. Also illness: Pisces dissolves boundaries, allowing energy to leak out and contagion to leak in.
Having the sun and moon near the south node in Pisces indicates delusive egotism (sun) joined up to emotional hypersensitivity (moon). Plus the sun and moon are conjunct Pisces' ruler Neptune, which further confuses matters. And Mercury, which has to do with our minds and communication, is newly in Pisces too, and tied up with the eclipse. Meaning our brains are going to be underwater, and not too helpful in reasoning us through this or parsing truth from falsity.
Put it all together and it's a recipe for mind-fuckery, victim shit, deceit, muddled thought, addiction, self-delusion, stagnation, depleted reserves and generally feeling like crap. I could try to put a better spin on this – Pisces can be beautiful, dreamy, magical, spiritual energy. But in the context of this new moon, it doesn't look so pleasant. It looks like a big leaky mess.
Don't believe everything you hear. We are sure to be lied to and emotionally manipulated on a grand scale this month, and it's going to be hard to know whose version of reality to trust. Focus as much as you can on what you know to be factually true – and steer clear of reasoning that is informed by wounded emotion, unverifiable beliefs or sentimental nonsense. I expect it'll be easier said than done.
Don't believe everything you think or feel either. Try to fact-check yourself and to take a broader view than the personal. The risk of self-delusion here is high. (One particular danger is of using victim shit as a smokescreen: people will be taking on the mantle of outraged victimhood in order to minimise or excuse their own bad behaviour.)
Also, please be very careful with boundary-dissolving substances (alcohol, drugs) and addictions – you can fuck yourself up much more severely than usual at this time – and maybe irreparably.
That's because in addition to the Pisces south node stuff, we have some ultra-violence going on in the sky: a cardinal t-square between Pluto in Capricorn, Jupiter in Libra and Mars and Uranus in Aries. Sudden shocking accidents are likely. Things can turn in a second and there'll be no going back – remember we are dealing with permanent endings here. So unless you want to blow-torch your life, extreme caution is advised.
This cardinal t-square is tough. Mars conjuncts Uranus the day after the new moon, and both exactly oppose Jupiter in Libra. It looks like an abrupt breaking point – for relationships especially.
I could view this more positively, as a psychological breaking point for relationship hangups and dysfunctional patterns. I do want to look at it positively! Maybe you'll get free of something that's been weighing you down forever.
Positive or negative though, it looks uncomfortable. It involves Mars, who is impetuous and violent, and Uranus, who is abrupt and shocking. Jupiter in Libra may moderate these two or inflame them, we'll see. But the scenario reminds me of the story about the straw that broke the camel's back.
“Don't push me cause I'm close to the edge...”
Not pushing people when they're close to the edge is a good idea here!
Anyway, please be careful this month. Be careful driving. Be careful drinking. Be careful drinking and driving. Be careful with machinery and electricity. Don't plug anything in while you're sitting in the bath. Keep your wits about you and try to avoid stupid drama. That won't be so easy, with Mercury zoning out in Pisces – but please try. These are dangerous days. Fools rush in where angels fear to tread, etc.
This emphasis on caution is reiterated by our Venus retrograde, which starts on the 4th March. She'll move backward from 13 degrees Aries toward 26 degrees Pisces, resuming direct motion on the 15th April.
This is a rare enough event – it happens about every other year. It's a time for evaluating our relationships and thinking about what we really value. Powering full steam ahead in love or money matters is not advised until the retrograde ends.
Because this retrograde takes Venus back into square aspect with Saturn in Sagittarius, it will probably involve a depressing sense of blockage, delay and deprivation – especially around mid-April. Don't try to push your way though. Blockage, delay and deprivation are absolutely real here, but also unavoidable. Also relatively temporary, so there's no point freaking out! You can work with the reality instead of getting depressed about it.
OK, and while we're talking about working with reality - I know I've been harping on about the north node in Virgo for ages, but it's very important - especially at this confusing mess of a new moon. This is no time to slack off on the Virgo stuff.
Virgo stuff is about taking care of everyday tasks, sticking to routines and health regimens, attending to details, doing the mundane stuff that needs doing daily. Also helping others as much as possible, and keeping our minds on what's practical. Right now, that's our path through the fog.
Service, discrimination, humility, pragmatism, attention to reality! Virgo stuff can actually be lifesaving as we head into the atmosphere of swirling deception and rage that characterises the month ahead – so please keep doing your Virgo, as much as you can. Even if the most you can do is wash a few dishes. It's not nothing. It's grounding and it helps.
This is tomorrow, Friday the 22nd April, around 6:30 am GMT.
OK, so at the new moon in Aries a couple weeks ago, I wrote about desire: excavating your True Will and focusing intent and stuff like that.
Well here we are at the full moon, the culmination of the cycle opened at the new moon. And it's in Scorpio, which is all about primal desire, psychological depth work, power, intensity, death/rebirth, self-transformation and purgation.
So we are looking at a continuation and culmination of this theme of examining / transforming desire, and focusing intent.
And it's pretty intense! We are at fever pitch here. Shifts, shocks and transformations are underway.
These transformations likely have to do with relationships, money, possessions, self-esteem and values – all Venus themes. The sun is now in earthy, pragmatic Taurus – and Taurus is ruled by Venus.
So Venus is highlighted here. And right now, she is in Aries (where she is basically Xena, Warrior Princess) and tangled up with the violent and transformative Uranus-Pluto square. So she's in fighting mode. She's really not taking any shit.
Venus squared Pluto in Capricorn on the 20th, just as the sun moved into Taurus – and right on the heels of Pluto stationing retrograde. And she will conjunct Uranus in Aries on the evening of the full moon.
This denotes some major upheaval, in relationships especially. Hidden corruption and buried injustices coming to light, power dynamics shifting in wildly unpredictable ways, new opportunities popping up out of nowhere...and an unwillingness to play out the same old stories and dramas.
I think something is going to change radically here, of necessity.
It could also be about a shift in values; a change in what you want or need. Or a shift in your finances...especially shared assets and debts.
But whatever form it takes for you, this won't be superficial. It's about deep structural change. The kind that puts your life on a new footing.
It could well involve an abrupt, decisive ending – maybe there's something you have to leave behind for good here, be it a relationship, a habit, a situation. This kind of Venus action puts me in mind of a woman discovering she's been two-timed, and walking out for good. Righteously!
Like pretty much every Mary J. Blige song, ever...
Yep!
OK, but I also have to say, this moon is pretty sexed up. Scorpio and Taurus are sexed-up signs, and the sun and moon are a charged polarity at the full moon – so I guess that's another way to use this energy, if you don't want to be lighting cars on fire or taking people to divorce court.
Scorpio and Taurus are fixed signs, and Scorpio in particular brings a intensity and fixity of focus to emotional matters. And full moons are about emotional intensity...So all in all, this full moon is really fired-up.
Plus it makes no aspects except for a very weak trine to Neptune in Pisces - so the intensity of it is pretty much unmodulated. It's an all-or-nothing kinda vibe.
Please bear in mind that it might bring an intensity of frustration! Scorpio's ruling planets, Mars and Pluto, are both retrograde as of the 17th April.
I have said this is is about reconsideration, inwardness, excavation of True Will etc. – and I think at the deepest level, that's really what this is about.
But at the everyday level, it's likely to manifest as blockage, delay and frustration. Being held up or thwarted in some way, especially in regard to what you most deeply desire.
If your progress in the outer world is stalled and things are not happening the way you want them to happen or on your schedule, please just sit tight and focus inward. Think about what you really want and need, and where you want to go. Locate the obstructions in yourself that keep you stuck – because the obstructions you face in the outer world are often a mirror of the inner ones.
And please remember, things ARE shifting – just not necessarily on a surface level. Nothing can be forced right now. Lashing out in anger or frustration isn't going to help.
It will be easy to feel frustrated and jangled-up, with the mutable t-square we have going on now (and for much of this year). This involves Saturn and Mars in Sagittarius, Neptune in Pisces and Jupiter in Virgo. It's just kind of a hot mess – energy and drive all over the place, the future completely unknowable, our minds all frazzled and neurotic.
And it's made even more frustrating by all the retrogrades we have going on right now: Saturn, Mars, Pluto and Jupiter are all moving backward, denoting a ton of blocked or inward-directed energy.
Compounding the frustration, they'll be joined next week by a Mercury retrograde (29th April to the 23rd May). He'll be retrograding through Taurus, and this is about mental energy and communication that move about as fast as a damn glacier. Things are going to feel a whole lot slower by the end of this month.
Expect some mega frustration and blockage with this. Remember: things really are not going to happen according to your schedule, so don't expect them to. They will happen when it's time for them to happen. (With Neptune involved, you can have faith in that.)
Annoying as it may be, please remember the blockages you encounter are in service of deep restructuring. This Mercury retrograde through Taurus creates a grand earth trine with Pluto in Capricorn and Jupiter in Virgo – all moving retrograde as well. It'll be in effect till early June, and it looks immensely beneficial, as far as creating a solid new foundation goes. Blockage and delay will provide us with plenty of time to consider all the details of what we're entering into, and to get things right.
Anyway – remember there's really no big rush. Everything will get done if you keep attending to the little details as they come up, per Jupiter and the north node in Virgo. Please don't drive yourself crazy with deadlines and schedules and expectations, because things aren't likely to go according to plan.
It's important to keep working but also to trust in the larger design. And to view delay as a kind of gift...Because the way things are set up right now, it really IS a gift.
Anyway, to sum up: we are in the midst of a lunar cycle that is all about profound structural upheaval and transformation – especially in the context of YOU, what you really want out of life, where you want to go etc. This full moon is where the self-transformation stuff gets really intense, lit-up and unavoidable. There might be some stuff you have to cut yourself free of decisively, before you can move forward. There is likely to be some deep psychological reckoning involved. Don't expect it to be painless. Also, “moving forward” right now is more about quiet planning and internal psychological processing, because outward progress is likely to be delayed or blocked. You'd do well to treat any blockages you encounter as opportunities to refine your plans, or to re-examine your assumptions. Things will happen when it's the right time, not when you want them to happen.
PS - RIP Prince.
He would shed his mortal frame at a sexed-up, super-intense, transformative full moon in Scorpio. He just would.
This is today, the 7th April, around 12:20 pm GMT.
Oh man. It's such a zinger. Just in time, too.
Our last new moon, in Pisces, ushered in a swampy, drunk kind of 28-day lunar cycle – quite dank and depressing really.
Well this new moon is the antidote. It's a powerful, charged-up new start.
A new moon in Aries is the start of the whole astrological year. It signifies beginnings in all their rawness and urgency. And this one is a bit more raw and urgent than usual!
The sun and moon will be conjunct Uranus in Aries, planet of shock and rebellion. They'll also be squaring Pluto in Capricorn, which is about restructuring, hidden corruption coming to light, death and transformation.
We are past the historic, transformative series of exact squares between Uranus and Pluto (2012-2015), but those heavies are still in square aspect, and this new moon sparks it off again.
Under the Uranus-Pluto square over the past few years, a lot has changed. For better or worse. Think of your life, your self, in 2012 – and now look at you, four years later. Did you ever think you'd be this person?
A lot has been absolutely blown to bits; a lot has been re-built from the scorched earth. And the restructuring process is ongoing – the future isn't what it used to be, and we all have some adaptation to do.
Anyway, whatever way you look at it, this new moon will be a deep jolt. Especially if you have planets or chart angles in the cardinal signs (Aries, Libra, Cancer and Capricorn) - something is going to shift in a lasting way.
A deep jolt, and possibly nasty – Aries is warlike, and with Pluto involved, things can get pretty dark. I guess it won't be the calmest month on the world stage – but that's the norm now.
But nevermind the world stage. We are dealing with Aries, sign of the self – so this is all about YOU.
What do you want for your life? Not for anyone else, not for the planet, not for your highfalutin' ideals. For YOURSELF. What do you really, actually WANT? What kind of future do you envision?
Because by now you must know: nothing is going to go according to plan! Nothing is going to be quite what you'd expected.
Maybe you need a new M.O., because the one you had pre-Uranus square Pluto just doesn't cut it anymore. You don't believe the same things as you did, you don't want the same things. You're not the same person.
This new moon looks like a really good time to look at what you really, truly, deep-down want, going forward – and to set your intentions toward that end.
New moons are magical. Setting intentions at a new moon is a powerful thing. This is when you plant your seeds. The act of clarifying and articulating a desire is like planting a seed – something is bound to come of it.
But Aries new moons are super-special, because they set the tone for the entire year ahead. Meaning today at the new moon, you can set your intentions for the year ahead and expect them to carry a charge.
Ask yourself: what do I want for ME? What do I need? What has to change completely? What baggage do I have to drop?
Aries has an association with selfishness, but this is really not about being selfish. It's about being true to yourself. Your deepest desires are in you for a reason, and it's bigger than just you. Desire is how destiny manifests itself. What you want, what you're drawn to, what you value, what you love – that stuff creates the shape of your life.
This lunar cycle really does look to be about desire. We have Venus (love and money planet) in Aries, where she is a total warrior for what she wants. She's beneficially aspecting the new moon's dispositor, Mars in Sagittarius. There is a lot of sparky desire-driven energy here.
Mercury (mind and communication) has just moved into Taurus, where he is preoccupied with practical, earthbound reality – and also matters of pleasure, desire, contentment, self-esteem, ownership. This is a calming, stabilising influence on our minds and communication – useful when we are dealing with so much fire and drive. It'll help us to look at what we want in the light of reality, and see what is actually possible (and healthy) vs. what is not.
Plus Saturn in Sagittarius beneficially aspects the new moon – and this is about having a vision for the future.
Clearly, this is not about short term anything. It's about the long haul. That's why I think this is a really good time to set intentions for the future – with Saturn involved, your intentions will carry weight. Maybe write them down. Jupiter and the north node are in systematic Virgo, so list-making is favoured!
It can be pretty difficult to clarify what we actually, deep-down want. It can involve some psychological excavation. You have to cut through layers of things you think you want, that were programmed into you by your culture or family or social circle.
We are looking to get down to the core of what actually drives us here. What lights you up, engages you, makes life vital and meaningful for you? It's different for everyone.
But this is not about superficial desire. It's about the deepest levels, and it may involve stuff that is buried or taboo for you. There's a need to excavate – who are you really? What are you really about?
And to purge all the stuff you're carrying that isn't really yours and has nothing to do with what you actually want out of life. No more distractions, no more drama.
Sing it Mary J!
This emphasis on depth work has to do with Pluto's involvement – now at the new moon, and also at the full, which will be on the 22nd April, in Pluto-ruled Scorpio.
Scorpio is about psychological depth, the taboo, the Shadow. Also, desire in its most primal, compulsive form.
Driving home this focus on the depth stuff, we'll have the sign's two rulers, Pluto and Mars, both stationing retrograde just a few days prior to the full moon in Scorpio. There is a deep inward focus here, and it will be in effect all through the summer, as Mars retrogrades through Scorpio.
So yeah – this month definitely looks like it's about focusing True Will.
Aleister Crowley was an unsavoury human being and largely full of shit, but I think he was right on this score: “Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the law”.
But first you have to dig out what it is you really want – not what you think you ought to want. Not what would please your parents or your friends or even your ego.
If you can identify what really drives you and be drawn by that lodestone, provided you're not harming anyone, you can't go far wrong.
Anyway, I really like the look of this month, though it's quite violent and intense! And fraught. The usual cautions apply. Expect some kind of depth charge / jolt this new moon, especially if you have planets or angles in mid-degree Cardinal signs. Something is going to shift in a lasting way, and it's likely to be uncomfortable. Don't be surprised if it's nasty - there are some hidden agendas at work here. But whatever hits you or erupts out of you, it won't really be out of the blue. This has been building for some time.
Mind yourself and don't fight anything out to the death please. Don't blow yourself up, or anyone else. It'll be easy to overdose on rage.
Also, we are dealing with a mutable t-square now, involving Neptune in Pisces, Mars and Saturn in Sagittarius, and Jupiter and the north node in Virgo. This influence will be in play for nearly the rest of the year. It looks pretty jangled and confusing to me – like it'll be hard to know what's true.
I guess this makes it all the more important to clarify your deepest intentions and desires now. Like, now. TODAY.
