Overnight Saturday, just after midnight in the Eastern US, the Full Moon in Aries arrives. Full Moons always bring illumination and this one is ready to light the sky–possibly the entire cosmos. This is the Hunter’s Moon and also a supermoon, the first of three that will close out 2016. Supermoons are larger in our sky because the Moon is closer to Earth. This makes her pull stronger and her presence more powerful.
This Full Moon is in Aries, the first sign of the zodiac, the spark that brings everything to life. This is the pioneer, the initiator, the racer, the adrenaline junkie. Sitting very, very close to the Full Moon is Uranus, also in Aries, who is the revolutionary, the radical, the one who doesn’t follow the rules. This is a take-no-prisoners Full Moon.
Sitting between the Moon and Uranus, very close to both, is Eris. Who is Eris? Excellent question. Eris, known as Discordia to the Romans, is one of the dwarf planets. She is, in fact, slightly larger than Pluto, so it’s tough to justify leaving her out. And yet she has been left out; she was only discovered in 2005. She will not be left out any more.
Eris is one face of the fierce feminine. She is not the pretty one. She is not the one who gets invited to the cool parties. In fact, she was left off an important invite list and got her revenge by tossing the golden apple among the competing goddesses, which pretty much led to the Trojan War. Because, in case you’ve forgotten, Aphrodite promised Paris the most beautiful woman in the world. As a prize. Even though she was married to someone else.
Are you getting an idea why this particular goddess might be front and center at this Full Moon? Yep. “You can’t grab this” is a slogan Eris would love.
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Venus in Scorpio forms an inconjunct to the Moon-Eris-Uranus trio. This awkward angle pokes at the three fiery revolutionaries and says, “Look what’s underneath.” The patterns in our culture that treat women as objects did not magically appear overnight. They’ve been around a long time and it will take time to find a new way. At this Full Moon, though, we reach a place where some things can’t be unseen, can’t be unheard. We can no longer look away.
Chiron the wounded healer is in a flowing trine with Venus, and inconjunct with the Sun in balanced, harmonious Libra. We might find that the path to healing will require breaking some eggs. We’re past the point where the things we tried to ignore can be smoothed over. Nice words and easy promises don’t sound good any more.
Meanwhile, Neptune remains close to the South Node of the Moon, where she might offer help in creating a vision for a new society, or might be caught in an endless recycling of ideas of a golden past.
The choice, as always, is up to us.
This Full Moon is not exclusively about women. We women are not exclusively about women, and we all have feminine and masculine, yin and yang, within us. The fierce goddess Eris is ready to champion all of the forgotten and powerless who need a defender, and likewise ready to sow seeds of discord and chaos when she sees the need. Eris is not easy. Neither is life.
But change is possible. Mars, the ruler of Aries, also rules this Full Moon. He is currently moving in to conjunct Pluto, and will be close enough to be considered conjunct by the Full Moon. Both Mars and Pluto are in Capricorn, a sign of hard, steady work over difficult terrain. Pluto is the planet of deep, tectonic transformation. When Mars brings his energy to bear on a need to transform, things will indeed change.
At this Full, fiery Supermoon, we may be confronted with something we can no longer ignore, even though our lives might seem more comfortable if we could. We may see something that needs to change. Or perhaps something has already changed and we have been unwilling or unable to admit it.
What that something is will depend on where we are are in our lives, and where the Full Moon falls in our birth charts. The Moon will be at 23 Aries, Eris at 23 Aries, and Uranus at 22 Aries. The Sun is at 23 Libra. The House in which the Full Moon falls, and the House opposite, will point to areas of life likely to be affected. We will also want to check for planets and points close to 23 degrees of any sign.
Positive change often calls for diplomacy as well as hard work. The Sun in Libra may feel outfaced by the Moon, Eris, and Uranus together, but there are others in Libra with him. Mercury at 15 Libra squares Pluto and Mars, a challenging reminder that grace and balance are important. Jupiter is also in Libra, adding his all-inclusive optimism to any project.
No Full Moon is really quiet. This one most certainly will not be. The patterns suggest avoiding crowds, alcohol, other mood-altering substances, belligerent people, and arguments. Staying home might be a good idea, or maybe heading to the gym for a serious workout. There will be a lot of kinetic energy around. Channeling it in positive ways, toward worthy ends, can bring amazing results. Let’s light up the night in the best way possible, celebrating our capacity to grow, evolve, and create our world anew.
brenda ferrimani
Great report, Mary Pat! If I’m not mistaken 23° is very powerful for any energy in the chart. Right?
Mary Pat Lynch
Yes, Brenda, anything we have at or around 23 will be touched by this Full Moon. It’s an important point in my chart with lots of planets at 23 in various signs, so I’ve definitely been feeling this!