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 This New Moon will take place at 2:11 pm here in Hawaii on Friday, September 30th in sidereal Virgo. This is the cycle of the Moon where we focus on the details and find practical applications for our mental energy. The Sun has already been in Virgo for a couple weeks, so we have been experiencing some level of this already, especially since Jupiter moved into Virgo in August. Our sense of power is challlenged here, as it is difficult to rise to great heights when we are bogged down in the nitty-gritty. There is a desire for everything to be just right, that we may have to overcome if we want to actually get anywhere in our pursuits. Especially when connecting with others, as the Moon so desperately wants to do. Our psyche is caught up in how things should be, and our endless struggle to have our own efforts make it so. We may find we are overly critical with ourselves and others and wasting our precious energy on details that would eventually work themselves out if we could just take our gaze off the ground and look up every now and again. Virgo is a tamasic sign, which means that it has an inert energy and is self-protective. The inertia with Virgo is interesting because there is so much mental energy in this Mercury-ruled sign that it is almost like frenetic standing-still. Paralyzed by too much doing and thinking in too many different directions, and by self-doubt.
The first luanr phase, or Pratipad, of this New Moon cycle marks the beginning of a nine night celebration of the Goddess Mother called Navaratri. In this celebration, people from India and Nepal and now all over the world, honor the cycle of fertility and harvest through an epic battle where the Hindu Goddess Durga, rides her Tiger and saves the three worlds from a shape-shifting Demon. This battle, of course, also represents the battle within with our own shape-shifting Demons that take on different personas as soon as we become comfortable. The Goddess is able herself to manifest in many forms from gentle to terrible and the people hear the stories, go to various temples to pray and some even take on these energies into their own beings. What a beautiful time to honor the Divine Feminine in ourselves and in the world and to reflect on what seeds we have planted over the last year and are pulling from our own fertile soil this fall. The nakshatra this New Moon takes place in is Hasta...the open hand that releases its firm grasp and allows your vision to manifest in its upward-facing palm. This star is ruled by Savitar, the god of the sunrise who awakens us. Here we are inspired by our long-term visions and are able to bring them to reality. The Gayatri Mantra is an ode to him and his manifestation in each of us. Om Bhur Bhuvaha Swaha Tat Savitur Vareniyam Bhargo Devasya dhimahi dhi yo yo nah prachodayat. As mentioned, Jupiter has been in Virgo since August, somewhat constricting our beliefs and higher ideals. Jupiter is where we expand and experience the larger spiritual picture, and in Virgo, we have a tendency to get caught up in the words and dictates and debates and miss the higher aim of our spiritual goals. It is a good time to get back into psychical health as Virgo is an earth sign, and also a sign of anxiety about health, wanting to purify ourselves in any way we can. Eating healthy foods, exercising and using natural healing techniques are all supported here, although we can get carried away in the details of these practices and miss overall balance in our health also involves a calm mind. Breath work is encouraged here to balance the brain and bring yourself to a state of peace that might allow for deeper meditation. Having the Sun and Moon joined Jupiter is a party of sattwa in Virgo. All harmonious and high-reaching grahas, in the tamasic sign of Virgo makes our inspiration and higher selves both insecure and practical. This allows us to stay grounded and humble in our approach, but also to let our lack of confidence get in the way of real connection, leadership and expansion. Venus has moved into her own sign of Libra, and out of debilitation in Virgo, so we are at least feeling less constriction as we relate to others both romantically and in other partnerships. There is more ease and grace here as we truly want to find balance and harmony in our interchanges with others and it is more effortless to do so. Our sense of happiness is appeased here and we are able to make nice with others and create beautiful environments wherever we go. Mars has also since moved signs, finally exiting Scorpio where he was joined Saturn since February and moving into Jupiter's own sign of Sagittarius. This will motivate us to have more action and discipline towards our spiritual or religious pursuits and to be pysically aligned with our higher beliefs and ideals. The main thing we will notice here is the tumult and intensity of Mars and Saturn conjunction in the emotional playing field of Scorpio is now over and we are more empowered towards external action than fighting our inner fears and demons. Mercury has moved direct again and is now heading back into its exalted placement in Virgo on October 3rd. We will again see mental acuity and discernment at its height, although this will further hinder the Sun and Jupiter's ability to reflect their highest natures. As always, New Moon is a time for inner reflection and meditation as our mind winds down to dark along with the Moon. Find time in nature, if possible during the day and in the evening, try to de-stimulate as much as possible. If you wish to follow along with puja, or ceremony during Navaratri, there is a wonderful online opportunity I recommend with Priestess Laura Amazzone. Go to http://www.lauraamazzone.com/classes to register. Blessings on your New Moon, and Jai Ma! Victory to the Divine Mother! For more information or to schedule a natal chart reading, please go to:
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 The Full Moon will take place at 9:05 am on September 16th, here in Hawaii (-10 GMT) in the sign of Pisces. There will be a prenumbral lunar eclipse from 6:54 am to 10:53 am, not visible here in North America but the Moon will look slightly fainter in Europe, Africa, Asia among other places. In a prenumbral eclipse, the Moon is not eclipsed by the Earth moving between it and the Sun, rather it moves into the prenumbral cone just outside the umbra and just a shadow is cast on its full glow. Astrologically speaking, the Moon is barely in the sign of Pisces and the South node of the Moon is 13 degrees away in the sign of Aquarius. This Full Moon Eclipse is bringing the intelligent and humanitarian energy of Aquarius into the spiritual, watery realm of Pisces. How can we raise up our highest vision for Earth and one another? How can we ourselves merge with our highest Self? In this period where the Sun has moved into Virgo, and joined Jupiter and Venus this is our balancing point. Virgo is where we seek purity and often times we do that through the physical plane, trying to get all the details just right and control that which we think will taint that purity. In Pisces, we are able to offer it all up to the higher Energy of the universe and trust that perfection does not come from micro-managing the details, rather from surrendering the control altogether. This Full Moon will take place in Purvabhadrapada, the place in the sky where we are struck by a lightening bolt (especially poignant here in Hawaii with our epic lightening storm earlier this week) of insight. Great Wisdom and True Knowing comes in a flash to fill us and then it passes, leaving us to do the work to get there again and sustain that Knowing. In a lunar eclipse, there is a blackout on our Full Psyche that can cause chaos, confusion and delusion, or can be a portal to the vast universe of past wisdom. Here we have great potential to “see” the Truth and even know it, so that we might feel compelled to find it again.
Like I mention, the Sun being in Virgo is a time when we focus on managing the details, as opposed to leading from our pure connection to Source. Jupiter in Virgo, being a year long transit that just began, is where our highest beliefs and ideals come from this detail-oriented plane. Facts and figures become the new religion and the manifesto is that we can physically control anything out of our control by making “smart” choices. The assumption here is that those who have fallen into trouble or sadness or illness have made “wrong” choices that got them there and all we need is self-control and all the “facts” to avoid the same happening to us. But the facts are always changing and the truth is we can rarely control the outcome of our choices, only the choices themselves. A balance must be struck between Faith and Knowing. We can do our part to educate ourselves with what information is available and make the best choices we know to at that time, and we can also learn the art of surrender to the only true fact, which is that nothing is certain and change is inevitable. One place we tend to put that control when planets are in Virgo is on our physical health and well-being, which is a wonderful way to actually calm some of the anxiety of this sign. Healing exercises that don't overwhelm such as yoga and tai chi can be life-savers and learning to control the flow of our Prana through breath exercises can be tremendous as well. Using plant medicines and herbal remedies to work with any ailments is wonderful, just be sure to know what you are using and to take it easy as becoming overly rigid and obsessive with any natural healing technique can actually have reverse effects. The ruler of Virgo, Mercury, is still retrograde, making this a time of self-discovery, contemplation and perhaps remembering silence is golden. While we combat all the ways that our computers and technology seem to be “against us” in this cycle, we are learning the valuable lessons of reflection and revision and above all, slowing down. Mercury will be retrograde until the night of September 21st. Meanwhile, the day after our eclipse/Full Moon, September 17th, Mars will finally make his way out of Scorpio where he has been since February. This transit has brought him in conjunction with Saturn and has likely forced you to face some deep-seated fears in whatever area of your life Scorpio rules (in your Vedic Chart). This tension has allowed us to move through some “dark night of soul” kind of energy and hopefully to clarify that part of our existence. *If you still have not received it yet, this will be the last week where the FREE report on the eclipse cycle and Saturn/Mars for all 12 signs will be available when you sign up for my newsletter! We are wrapping us this battle that has been raging for 7 months and moving forward with whatever pieces are still intact! Saturn will remain in Scorpio for another year, but at this point we will likely have a deeper understanding of what we are committed to in this area of our life. (Again, if you don't know what area of your life it is, get the free report while its still available!) The Full Moon phase, or tithi, called Pournimasya began around 9 am Hawaii time on Thursday, September 15th. Use this portal from Thursday morning to Friday to meditate, pray, reflect and clear your channels so you will be an open vessel (as opposed to a whirlwind of chaos) during the time of the eclipse Friday morning. Happy Full Moon, Lunar Eclipse! Lokah Samasta Sukinoh Bhavantu May All Beings Everywhere Be Happy and Free. Hare Ohm For More Information or to discuss how these transits affect your Natal Chart go to: |
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