April 6 12:34 AM EST
This is a beautiful, harmonious, and healing full moon as we head into spring in the northern hemisphere. Ruled by Venus, the goddess of love, relationships, beauty and abundance, there is a focus for the middle two weeks of April on beautifying and harmonizing our lives. Venus is positioned at 24 degrees of Taurus, the other of the two signs that she presides over. Venus’ rulership of air sign Libra is focused on the inter-personal aspect of abundance and harmony whereas Venus’ rulership of earth sign Taurus is focused on these qualities in the natural world, the organic beauty and interdependence of all things. During this full moon we rather have the best of both worlds.
It is especially significant to have an air sign full moon now, just after Pluto has moved into fellow-air sign Aquarius after a 15 year residency in earthy Capricorn. There is a “lightening up” of certain layers of density and a fresh buzz in the air. All of this will be highlighted and strengthened by the Libra full moon. And it is the ONLY air sign full moon we have this year with Pluto in Aquarius, since Pluto retrogrades back into Capricorn in June before the next air sign full moon which is on August 1st. So we are being tasked with harnessing the breezes of inspiration, insight and fresh connections that are coming our way. Perhaps so we can move them forward in a more assertive or concrete way during the upcoming eclipse season.
The first eclipse season of 2023 begins on April 20th with a new moon solar eclipse in Aries. This is significant for several reasons. First, because it is at 29 degrees of Aries, a critical degree that can be associated with chaos, disruption, and a “no holds barred” kind of energy. This is amplified by the fact that Aries is already a fiery, assertive, ‘leap before you look’ kind of energy. Secondly, it is significant because it is the 2nd new moon in Aries this calendar year- since we also began this lunar month with the 1st new moon in Aries at 0 degrees of that sign. Whenever we have two new moons back to back in a sign, there is major emphasis on the themes of that sign for the year: So in this case that means Aries themes of new starts and fresh beginnings are big for 2023. (On the lower vibrational side of the scale: Aries is also connected to conflict, aggression and war). Thirdly, the upcoming Aries eclipse is significant because it is the first eclipse in the Aries/Libra polarity since 2016. Aries/Libra eclipses will continue through mid 2025. And finally, both the Aries solar eclipse on April 20th and the following Scorpio lunar eclipse on May 5th are ruled by aggressive Mars. Which makes Venus’ rulership over this new moon all the more of an important invitation.
In some ways we can think about it like Venus is now helping us getting into preparation mode for a very Martian rest of the spring. Like setting up a house beautifully before throwing a big (WILD) party. At some level you know that by tomorrow morning it will look like a “war zone” but you still take the time to make sure the flowers look beautiful, everything is arranged just so, etc. Does it make a difference? Sure it does. It creates a kind of equilibrium from which the “unfolding of drama or chaos” can unravel, but in the ‘least stressful’ way possible. Returning to the party analogy, it’s like making sure there is enough ice in the freezer, and Aleve in the medicine cabinet (and food in the fridge) for peoples hangovers the next day allows things to progress as they will, which we may feel we have very little control over (eclipses). But at least through some thoughtful preparation we can give ourselves the peace of not being overly frantic in the midst of it all.
And that is the great invitation now. There will be drama and chaos unfolding in our lives, at the collective and perhaps at the personal level as well. Venus, the ruler of the full moon, though dignified in Taurus, is also conjunct wildcard Uranus who can catalyze change and surprises. And we have already discussed the dramatic nature of the current Aries season that we are in the middle of, with two new moons including the eclipse. AND, with the sun at 16 degrees of Aries now, it is conjunct over-the-top Jupiter as well. That means that Jupiter is opposing the full moon, fanning these flames of air insight (Libra) and fiery willpower (Aries) even more. Jupiter energy is to amplify so it adds even more anticipation.
There are also some beautiful and affirming saving graces here that give this full moon its overall healing and uplifting quality. Chiron, the asteroid healer, is at 15 degrees of Aries, tightly conjunct the sun and opposite the full moon. Chiron is not only a healer but a teacher and indeed the two are intimately linked. When we “learn” our lessons, we are able to “heal” and move on from them. This is part of how the metaphysics (and physiology) of human life unfolds. When we stay in denial or repression about something (or projecting it onto others), we block our ability to heal from it and have a different experience by essentially ‘refusing’ to learn or see the pattern.
The reasoning behind refusing to learn from our mistakes and adjust accordingly is a massive, complicated subject. But often it comes down to fear of change. When we ‘unravel the thread’ of one problem (or problem area) in our life or our situation and decide to tackle it, then we are opening ‘pandora’s box’ that can ‘force’ us to then deal with whatever associated issues also come up. This is hard work. This is the work of healing and growing in emotional maturity and consciousness. And there is often a vested interested in continuing to sweep things under the rug, not rock the boat, etc. But at a certain point the cost simply becomes too high. We can no longer ignore the elephant in the room or play along in situations where imbalance has created dis-ease. Libra is all about balance and bringing things back into harmony, and doing it in the most graceful, delicate, win-win way possible. So the combination of Chiron and the Libra full moon here is a beautiful, beautiful opportunity to make any adjustments we feel we want to (or need to) make now, before eclipse season and its Mars dominance come in and can inflame conflict more than focusing on the solutions.
Truth-telling is an important part of this story. We cannot heal and move on if we are not willing to tell the truth TO OURSELVES about certain situations, patterns, behaviors, choices, etc. This is the beginning of self-accountability and responsibility. And the more comfortable we get in this energy, the more comfortable we become with truth-telling with others in a way that is just, even-handed and fair (Libra). Mercury, the planet of communication and information, at 3 degrees of Taurus, is nearly exactly conjunct the North Node of the moon at 4 degrees of Taurus. So this is a huge invitation for us with healing around our ability to communicate in ways that are respectful of all parties involved (Libra) – again a level of preparation for the upcoming Mars eclipse “party” that will serve us well indeed.
There is some subtlety involved in this process as well. Mars has recently exited Gemini after an extremely long 7 month stay, and is now in Cancer for a more typical 8 week duration. Mars in Gemini taught us many lessons about how news, ideas, information can be manipulated and how we can have highest discernment in our lives about what we are ‘buying into’ at that level. Now with Mars at 5 degrees of Cancer during the full moon we can use Cancerian aptitude at side-stepping, working around, and meeting our goals in more patient or skillful ways. While the sun and Jupiter in Aries may encourage us to “charge at something” head on, Mars in Cancer provides us with more options about how to get the results we want. Mars is results oriented and driven, so it’s not about “being passive” as much as applying emotional intelligence and skill to situations in addition to brute force (Aries) or insightful deliberation (Libra). Mars in Cancer is trine to Saturn in Pisces at 3 degrees, reinforcing this message that trying to gently open the door before smashing it in is our best bet when it comes to pretty much anything we are trying to accomplish right now.
It’s interesting to note as well that Mars will be in Cancer until May 20th. So that’s for the entire duration of eclipse season. And since Mars rules BOTH the upcoming Aries solar eclipse and Scorpio lunar eclipse, getting a “head start” on intelligently working with Mars in Cancer now can likewise provide very useful when emotions are running high during eclipse season. On the lower vibrational side, since Cancer is such a personal emotional sign, Mars in Cancer can be easily triggered believing it’s very safety (Cancer) is under attack (Mars) so can be highly reactive rather than maintaining more of a wide-angle view on situations. This creates a lot of drama, and is also a signature of situations where there is a lot of emotional manipulation. So again, preparation is key now so that as this begins to come up with people in our lives or on the world stage, we are better prepared. And also have the wherewithal to go into a higher expression of Mars in Cancer, which as mentioned involves using emotional intelligence to sidestep drama and take the easiest path forward even if it is not the most obvious or straightforward way.
There are big shifts continuing to unfold over the next several months and so once again we can think of this full moon period as that “party preparation mode”. If we can set the stage now in our lives in as positive, healthy, harmonious (Libra) way as possible, then we have considerably less to “worry about” no matter what gets thrown around “during the party”. We know things are going to to break, there may be some tears, but hopefully there will be a lot of positive things to come out of the upcoming situations as well. Giving ourselves, and LIFE, grace to unfold and have positive expectations of the outcome is part of the Chiron healing lesson here. We simply cannot control everything and when we try it leads to unnecessary stress. We can do our best, set the stage beautifully, and then decide we are going to see what happens and enjoy the ride!
*art by @lewismillerdesign
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