June 28 10:52 PM EST
This is a highly emotional and watery new moon that may stir our deepest feelings from the past, as well as messages from our inner intuition. Merely hours before the new moon, Neptune, the planet of dreams, fantasy, illusion, delusion, addiction and mysticism begins its annual retrograde in its home sign of Pisces. Both the Cancerian new moon, and Neptune retrograde in Pisces, are highly watery and subtle aspects. The fact that they occur on the same day shows how deeply our inner worlds are being awakened and stirred right now.
This co-influence of the new moon and Neptune, is reminiscent of “The Moon” card in the tarot. Cancer is, of course, ruled by the nebulous moon in astrology, the only sign ruled by earth’s satellite. The moon we see in the sky every night is the closest celestial body to us, and as such is the most personal. Our innermost dreams, hopes, desires, wishes, feelings and moods wax and wane constantly, grow dissipate and morph relentlessly, just as the moon is ever changing its shape and position. But in the tarot, “The Moon” card is actually ruled by Pisces. This is because the realm of ‘the nighttime’ and the deep mysteries and unknowns that exist there, like the vast and unknowable ocean with which the moon is so intricately intertwined, are the place where our fears reside. Unlike the bright light of day, when our solar side takes over, and we feel we have some ability, some mastery, some capability to shine our light and get our needs met, we feel relatively humbled and uncertain in the cold shadows of night over which the moon prevails.
Hence, “The Moon” card in the tarot is associated with our fears and the deep unknown recesses of our psyches. This is the terrain of Pisces, the watery nebulous realm from which all creation emerges, the undefined state of pure energy and potentiality. To swim in the waters of “The Moon” at night, to confront our fears and our shadow is the work of Pluto, the planet of deep psychological change and transformation. Pluto is also associated with power, because it is through this process that we access our REAL power as humans (not the power that we take or co-opt from others) but the power that emerges as we bravely, and ultimately lovingly, confront our fears and shadow.
It is no surprise then that Pluto is also highly active during this new moon. Pluto is retrograde at 27 degrees of Capricorn and nearly exactly square to aggressive Mars at 25 degrees of its home sign of Aries. This is a dramatic, and sometimes violent, confrontation between these two most willful planets. When we neglect to gently turn towards our shadow and proceed on our path of healing and confronting our fears, then unconscious drama, pain and suffering are often the result. This generally comes in the form of clashes with others, but can also feel like a deep internal rift between what we want to do (Mars) and the fears that are holding us back (Pluto). Or how we want to change (Pluto) but the habituated impulsive actions (Mars) that thwart our progress and keep us repeating the same cycles.
So we have a powerful choice now, during this 28 day new moon cycle : to sit with the fears and anxieties, regrets and emotions, that are coming up now. Or to “go to battle” with others as a way to ease our discomfort. Of course, there is a time and place when it is necessary to confront the outer world. But if we are doing this in a reactionary and unconscious way, then we are playing into the low-vibrational end of the Cancerian spectrum where we ultimately have little awareness of our own true motivations and can cause further chaos and frustration in our own lives. If, however, we first truly sit with our deepest fears and feelings (Cancer), and hear the subtle whispers (Neptune) of what they wish to communicate with us, then we may very well be able to take inspired action in a very different way with a very different outcome. Aries (Mars), Capricorn (Pluto), and Cancer (sun, moon) are, after all, all action-oriented cardinal signs, so finding a way to channel this energy wisely is indeed necessary. If we feel at a loss, simply moving our bodies through exercise or time in nature is a time-tested way to re-ground and let off steam.
Adding some much needed levity to this planetary lineup, we have two planets, Venus and Mercury, in bright and quicksilver Gemini. Both of these planets are assisting us in processing information as it is coming up, even if that is very quickly, and making necessary adjustments. This will be very useful to not get ‘bogged down’ by all of the watery energy. Gemini is a natural communicator so getting some of our feelings and thoughts down on paper right now is another good way to discharge energy and we could find ourselves feeling a whole lot better afterwards.
Jupiter, the great expander of the solar system, is at 7 degrees of Aries and exactly square to the new moon. Essentially, this further exacerbates the potential for reckless and wild emotional tail spins. But can also ‘expand’ the potentialities for healing and integration that are present. Especially since Jupiter is conjunct Chiron, the great healer.
Saturn, retrograde at 24 degrees of Aquarius, is an ally here. The planet of structure and rules, karma and causality, is positively aspecting the Aries planets and Gemini planets. When we understand that ultimately it is the choices we make each day and the way that we process our lives that creates the ‘scaffolding’ that is our Saturnian structure, then we can begin to dismantle it and rebuild it in higher integrity. We are also seeing this process mirrored back to us in the outer world, where structures are being re-visioned and re-created from the inside out, albeit still in a rather subterranean way at the moment.
If we do accept the invitation of Pluto to do the deep dive through the Neptunian waters of our lives, to look at some of the fears and emotions (the moon) that are swimming around there, then we have the opportunity now to be re-born (Cancer) in this process. Cancer is ultimately all about our own personal sense of safety, security, and inner wholeness. If this was deeply fractured at some point in our lives through trauma then we may be in the habit of running away from our feelings, or looking for safety and wholeness outside of ourselves. These are perfectly ‘normal’ and understandable responses to emotional and psychological challenges, but ultimately it only through sitting with ourselves and our fears that we can re-claim the pieces that make us feel whole and empowered again. The good news is : This new moon is here to help us with that process! To invite us into our inner worlds, even when it seems scary or confronting, and help us to love and nurture (Cancer) the parts of ourself that continue to want to hide or stay in victim (Pisces), or fight and blame (Mars/Aries). Now we have a chance and a choice to ‘take our power back’ in a very real way, but also a very personal way. So ideally we can all take our time now navigating and choosing how to respond to the present moment in a way that is most deeply honoring and nourishing to ourselves and our spirit. Especially the part of us that may feel scared or triggered by what we are experiencing in our lives or in the world at large right now.
*art by @ayla.elmoussa
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