Saturday afternoon, we enter a new lunar cycle with the Sun and Moon at 01º32’ Aquarius. At the beginning of Aquarius, we take on the energy of the pioneer, the exile.
We began the last lunar cycle with a New Moon in Capricorn. Now we step outside traditional Capricornian structures to explore new lands, new ideas, and new goals.
We have a negative view of exile, since it can mean being forced to leave home and all that is familiar, our familiar world, as a punishment. Exile is what happens when we’re banished.
Yet, what happens when the familiar is no longer working? When our experiences have shown us time and again that the old ways of thinking and working and living are causing active harm? Then we may choose to leave all we know behind us to strike out in new directions, in the hope of finding something better.
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I’m not suggesting we all need to pick up and go at this New Moon. Exile is not always, or only, a physical move. One look around our current situation, worldwide, suggests a desperate need for new ideas, fresh ways of thinking, innovative approaches for resolving pressing problems.
This New Moon invites us to set aside old ways of thinking. We’re urged to step out of our mental ruts and become visionaries.
In the 1300’s, a visionary was someone who had inspiring dreams or the capacity to connect with the supernatural. By the 1700’s, the meaning had shifted to someone who had impractical or fanciful ideas, someone who was not realistic.
Words that come up in association with “visionary” include utopian, quixotic, and airy.
These are Aquarian words. This fixed Air sign has the reputation for being quirky, eccentric, and unconventional. Perhaps this is exactly the kind of thinking we need now. After all, doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results is one definition of insanity.
It’s time to try some different things.
The question is, what can we do? Mercury (08º50’ Capricorn), newly direct, forms a quincunx (150º) to Mars (08º37’ Gemini), also newly direct.
Both planets are still within their retrograde shadows, sorting out where they are.
In fact, this Mercury–Mars connection is one leg of a yod, a triangle with a sextile (60º) at its base and quincunxes on either side. The third point is the South Node of the Moon (09º31’ Scorpio).
Our planets of thinking (Mercury) and doing (Mars) are processing the past (the South Node). They’re working through what they learned during their retrogrades.
In addition, both the Moon and Mars are out of bounds, outside the control of the Sun. Feeling (the Moon) and action (Mars) are charting their own courses, following no guidance but their own.
The Sun and Moon apply to trine Mars, while Jupiter (04º14’ Aries) sextiles both sides. There is a desire to act, to shift into forward motion, but we may not feel capable, not yet. The path might feel blocked or unclear.
We do have some deep material to work with. The Sun and Moon have just left Pluto behind in the final degrees of Capricorn. They are still within orb of an out-of-sign conjunction with the Lord of the Underworld. We’re emerging from the depths.
Venus (23º28’) moves to conjunct Saturn (24º40’) in Aquarius. Our values and esthetics align with our need for clear, logical structures.
It’s time to organize and systematize what we’ve learned.
Venus rules this first decan of Aquarius where the New Moon takes place. She brings creativity, relationship, and a consideration of values to the table.
The day after the New Moon, Venus will reach a conjunction with Saturn, the traditional ruler of Aquarius. Venus may feel overshadowed by Saturn at this time, but still serves to soften the rigidity that this fixed Air sign can have. She reminds us the heart also has a place. We cannot rely solely on crystalline logic and mental structures.
Not long after the Venus–Saturn conjunction is exact, Uranus stations direct. Uranus, the modern ruler of Aquarius, is powerful now. When a planet stations either retrograde or direct, they hold steady in their zodiacal position for days. This creates an intense focus for that planet.
Since Uranus moves slowly, they’ve been standing still in the 14th degree of Aquarius since January 11, and will not move into the 15th degree until February 3.
Uranus is a force for revolution. In our charts, Uranus brings a focus on personal authenticity.
Don’t worry about being different, Uranus says, what’s important is following your own star. Stay true to your heart. Do not betray your core values to seek popularity, position, or even security. Be bold enough to be who you truly are.
This is challenging. Of course it is. We humans are social creatures. Being accepted within our families and communities is vital to our health and well being. Venus’ presence at this New Moon reminds us of this.
So our New Moon task is finding the balance.
My latest blog post is up today at The Mountain Astrologer! Follow the link to review the upcoming lunar cycle from Saturday’s New Moon in Aquarius to February’s New Moon in Pisces.
A first step is checking where the New Moon falls in our birth charts. Which House holds the earliest degrees of the fixed Air sign? Does the New Moon form aspects to any of our birth planets or key points such as the Nodes of the Moon or our chart angles?
Because there’s a lot going on, we’ll want to check other placements as well, asking the same questions about which House things fall in and whether they’re making important aspects to our chart.
Check where transiting Venus and Saturn fall in your chart. Mars and Mercury too are important. And of course Uranus, who has been sitting still for a while. We might already know where they are, of course, but it’s worth checking.
We’re embarking on a journey.
Over the next weeks, we’ll find ourselves exploring the unfamiliar, considering innovative ideas, and deciding where in our lives it’s time to boldly go where we haven’t been before.
This is what the New Moon in Aquarius is all about. It’s time for some fresh Air.
The images are original Midjourney renders.