December 23 5:17 AM EST
This is a complicated new moon that encourages caution and discernment. Capricorn is the sign of stability, maturity, endurance and playing “the long game”. Rather than rush or push, Capricorn prefers to be strategic, and uses discernment in making choices and alliances. This is part of why they are known as the sign of business leadership and success, because they are able to make effective present moment choices with an eye for the longterm. We are all wise to tap into this sense of moderation now and be extra observant of what is happening around us.
The sun and moon are united at 1 degree of Capricorn. Venus, Mercury and Pluto are in a triple conjunction in the later degrees of Capricorn. That is a very heavy Capricornian emphasis. Pluto, who has been traveling through Capricorn since 2008 shaking the very foundations of all things in the Capricornian realm of big business/institutions/patriarchy is ‘doing its thing’ with Mercury and Venus here. That means that it is shaking the dead leaves from the trees, and exposing any weaknesses that may be in our relationships/finances (Venus) or communication/ideas (Mercury). This can be a rather unpleasant feeling. Even if somewhere deep down we KNOW that a certain relationship is only surface level, or that an idea we are playing with isn’t exactly up to snuff, we still don’t necessarily want Pluto shining an enormous spotlight on these weaknesses. But the more we try to force the friendship, or drum up enthusiasm for the idea, the more clear it will become that the path of least resistance (and wisdom) is to simply release and let it go. The more comfortable we get with allowing things to change and transition now, without trying to control the outcome, the more smoothly we will be able to glide through this period.
The new IS wanting to come forward now into our lives, we just have to be receptive to it. On December 20th, Jupiter, the great expander and cosmic benefactor of the heavens (Zeus himself!) re-enters Aries. Jupiter in Aries was present for part of earlier 2022 before Jupiter retrograded back for its swan song in Pisces, so we are not entirely unfamiliar with this energy. Jupiter has been trying to drum up our excitement and enthusiasm for “the new” all year, but once again we are still collectively in a process of clinging to the old. But what makes this new moon special is that Jupiter is a 0 degrees of Aries, the VERY first degree of the zodiac. 0 degrees of any sign is highly significant, and 0 degrees of the four cardinal signs (Aries, Cancer, Libra, Capricorn) even more so since this is what is know as the “world axis”. When a planet is on the world axis, its effects are felt strongly in the collective. And since Aries is the very first sign of the zodiac, this is also the beginning of Jupiter’s new 12 year cycle through the signs.
Aries is all about what’s new, what’s next, what’s the future. But again, we are still attached to the past right now, since Capricorn is cautious and invested in the status quo. And the new moon at 1 degree Capricorn is square to Jupiter at 0 degrees Aries. We may have gotten a sense of what the new could be or looks like during the previous Jupiter in Aries stint (May 10 – October 28), but are still not quite sure what it all means or where we are going. And again Capricorn is urging us to go slow and steady, and to first clean up whatever needs to be dealt with from the past (Venus and Mercury conjunction Pluto) before we move on to the new.
But all around us could be small (or big! Jupiter goes LARGE) signs of progress, innovation, change, disruption, and potential that are ready to break through to the surface. So the more diligently and efficiently (another great Capricorn keyword) we attend to clearing the slate and releasing the past now, the easier and more quickly things can move with the new.
This tension between old (Capricorn) and new (Aries) is shown again by Capricorn’s ruler (and hence the ruler of the new moon), pragmatic Saturn (old) in square to disruptive Uranus (new). This has been a dominant aspect for most of 2021 and 2022, demonstrating certain types of fragmentation and polarization that have been pulling our attention in the past several years. Both of these planets move relatively slowly, and hence the aspect has endured for a long time. Uranus has been in Taurus since 2018 and Saturn has been in Aquarius since 2020. But after Saturn moves into nebulous Pisces in March 2023, this square will be complete. But during this new moon it is still very much active. Fear (Saturn) of change (Uranus) is one of the things we are all being ask to attend to in our own lives (and psyches) right now. Deciding that we believe that things can be BETTER, rather than going down the rabbit hole of catastrophizing, is important now.
Mars continues its 10 week retrograde in Gemini. On January 12th, Mars will finally go direct, but at the time of the new moon it is at 10 degrees of Gemini and re-treading territory where it was in September 2022. We may be called to re-address some of the things that were happening in our life at that time. Consider this Mars’ invitation to ‘do the right thing’ and course correct. If we have a niggling feeling that we didn’t express something very well (Gemini) or that our words (Gemini) and action (Mars) have not quite been lining up, now is the time to right the ship. We are being given a second chance, so taking accountability and ‘setting things right’ or clearing up any messes, will be very well received. Saturn and Capricorn are all about accountability and integrity and so once again, this helps resolve issues from the past so we can move forward more easily and quickly.
Finally, Mercury is getting ready to go retrograde in Capricorn on December 29th. At a practical level, this could create some drama during a high travel time of the year, so be aware. But on a more esoteric level, it is posing some of the same questions as Mars Rx in Gemini. Where have we not been communicating (Mercury) in integrity (Capricorn)? How can we create a better foundation (Capricorn) in our lives through improving our discernment (Capricorn) around ideas and communication (Mercury)? What business issues or projects (Capricorn) can we adjust or course-correct (Mercury) right now? Spending time with this now can help prevent issues from coming up in January. Mercury will go direct again on January 18th.
Ultimately the goal of this new moon is to help us take accountability and clean up issues from the past, so that we can have clarity and discernment to move towards the new in a measured and effective way. If we bulldoze ahead without resolving old issues, things can get out of hand easily. If we cling too closely to the past or things that are not working, we can miss the ship entirely. We have the support of this new moon to help us straddle the past and the future with dignity, patience and authority.
*image by Nancy Holt
vibrational-astrology.com 