Black Moon/New Moon in Aries: Something New/Something Old

 This Sunday’s New Moon in Aries is about to send us headlong into spring!  

 Ok I know it officially already started when the Sun moved into Aries on March 20th.  As we start the new lunar cycle, the Sun and Moon together  in feisty, fiery Aries really kick-start the astrological year.

Uranus in Aries is about living authentically, alive and awake, about discovering who we are and what we want. It is really about time we let go of that old, limited self  and stepped into who we came here to be!

This is also the second New Moon of the month (called a Black Moon); this month we  have straddled the old and the new; Pisces (last new moon) is the last sign of the zodiac, while Aries is the first.

It has been a weird month of missed communications and  foggy wrong turns, and many of us will be glad to see the back of it.  Once we turn our headlights on in the fog …  forward motion will be totally possible, as long as we drive carefully. By next week the sun will have cleared the mist away completely and (hopefully) our destination will be more visible. 

Till then: Stop. Think. Observe. Proceed.

The doubling of New Moon energy in March has special significance.

“ The double lunation is associated with higher consciousness, hidden wisdom, the deepening of communication with spiritual realms…. The Goddess Hecate has been associated with the Black Moon. A beautiful and powerful goddess in her own right, the Greek goddess Hecate was the only one of the ancient Titans who Zeus allowed to retain their authority once the Olympians seized control. Zeus shared with Hecate, and only her, the awesome power of giving humanity anything she wished (or withholding it if she pleased). She is also keeper of the hearth and the inner realms.” http://www.goddessgift.com/goddess-myths/greek_goddess_hecate.htm

Hectate  is  associated with crossroads, entrance-ways, turning points. She offers protection in times of change.  

This  powerful archetype can  guide us over the threshold of the dying year (and dying age) as we enter into the new beginnings of spring. She shows there are choices to be made and a new direction to be taken.

 'When one doors closes, another one opens.'

Although it is clearly time to shift our energy forward, part of us may be still hanging out in the past. Saturday represents a transition between the old and the new, it is similar to the recent Spring equinox, where everything was in equal measure.  We can use these moments of ‘pause’ to gather ourselves,  to reflect on and connect to our more inner promptings before turning our energy outward. Part of the emphasis at this moment is about releasing the past. Whatever it is that needs letting go of, now is a good time to do so.

 Then … spring ahead!  

The Sun and Moon in Aries push us forward, filling us initiative and drive. Aries is the go-getter; impatient, irascible, courageous; always intent on leading the way.  If you are needing some energy to kick start a new project, this would be it. Add Uranus to the mix means we are all in for some very rapid change.

Uranus and this New moon are all part of a cardinal (initiating) Grand Cross, the on/off configuration I have written about for the last year, where Uranus and Pluto, in constant on/off tension over several years. These are the movers and shakers of the zodiac. The last time they were bashing up against each other so distinctly was in the 60’s, resulting in massive cultural revolution and change.

The Pluto/Uranus dynamic gets amplified by planets squaring or opposing them in Cancer or Libra. Right now Jupiter and Mars are stepping in as catalysts and amping up the voltage. There is tremendous pressure to now to change and grow. 

I have said a few times before that, if these planets are lining up in key areas of your personal astrology, your life will be significantly under revision; upheaval and change are inevitable. I am seeing some people losing jobs, partners, homes, financial base etc, and also experiencing significant improvements and new beginnings in their wake (what doesn't kill you makes you stronger)!

Sometimes you have to wait patiently for those improvements to happen. I just had an email from someone who’s chart I read a couple of years ago. She was right in the cross hairs of all this at the time, and her whole life was falling apart (marriage, home, job, children). I told her to hang in there… (this too shall pass) and last week I received an email saying things were finally shifting for the better, and that all is well. Whew!!

If this is you now… take heart… and don't give up.  These changes really are for the good, even if they don’t always feel like it. This is highly creative energy, not there merely to break you down ... it is also there to transform and rebuild.

There is a natural wax and wane of the seasons and of life: 
‘A time to sow, a time to reap…  
a time to keep, and a time to cast away…”     
    (Ecliastics 3 / Simon and Garfunkel! )

We are at a critical turn of seasons ... both literally and metaphorically.

Sunday's New Moon energy reflects the larger shift going on all around us and within us; a new day is dawning, though we are yet at the very beginning.

How timely to have this Black Moon, which is apparently a fairly rare occurrence. In keeping with the recent wave of Mercury/Neptunian weirdness that has been blurring reality and playing havoc with our logical mind, this New Moon can again bring us into contact with things that are highly mystical, while at the same time serving as a wakeup call.

The Grand Irrationality continues!

Intuitive experiences are seldom understood in a linear fashion. They require stillness and a sensitive, listening ear. Watch your dreams over the next few days… they may give you insight into the issues you need to resolve to move forward. Meditation can be the gateway to our inner knowing. Take some time tomorrow to tune into the ‘music of the spheres’. It’s there to sooth your soul.

This transitional energy between the old and the new marks an important turning point for some, a fork in the road moment, as we reach major crossroads in our thinking or relationships or how we live in this world.

There is a potential for compulsive emotional reactions (Moon Square Pluto), control dramas, push pull scenarios etc. Some of us will deeply resist these powerful forces. Caught between the familiarity of the past and the pull of the future, it is easy to get stuck in flight, flight or freeze.

Tensions could show up as family dramas (Jupiter in Cancer), struggles with authority figures (parents, bosses etc), or relationship issues (Mars in Libra).  Our need for freedom and autonomy (Uranus in Aries) is in direct opposition to our need/desire for connection with others (Mars inLibra).  This is a balancing act and how conscious we are (Sun in Aries) will determine the outcome. 

Expect everything to be more exaggerated and pronounced than usual (and slightly irrational) as buried issues rise to the surface (Saturn in Scorpio) in a second, and suddenly we are in some old pattern or power dynamic we thought we outgrew years ago!!  

Despite this struggle and tension, the key message of this  New Moon energy  is change and movement.  Anything can and will happen.  And Uranus is bringing us  new insights along with the sudden changes or surprises.  The only way to remove darkness is to bring in the light!!

Remember:  April is the turning point of this year. 

New moment. New choice!!   

Set your intention and let it be so…

Next up: April 24^th :  The Pluto Uranus square is exact for the fourth time in two years. Stay tuned.