This Thursday, March 1, just before 8 pm EST, the Full Moon in Virgo arrives.
Oh, Virgo? (I hear you say) That should be kind of dull, don’t you think? Especially compared to all the recent eclipses and Supermoons and all that. I mean, Virgo is pretty quiet, isn’t it?
Well, yes.
Virgo is the Mercury-ruled Earth sign we associate with anxiety and wanting things to be really, really orderly. Virgo likes to be careful and not mess things up. This isn’t the typical energy we think of for Full Moons, when emotional tides run high and people get up to mischief.
Yet although this Full Moon will be more subtle than some, it has a power all its own. This Moon is full of magic. With the help of Virgo’s practical focus, we can channel that magic into something wonderful.
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One glance at the chart reveals what’s in store. The Sun is in Pisces, Virgo’s opposite. But the Sun is not alone. Neptune, Pisces’ ruler, is conjunct the Sun, opposing the Moon.
The asteroid Juno sits at the beginning of Pisces. Mercury and Venus are conjunct at 22 and 23 Pisces. And Chiron the wounded healer holds the space at the end of this sign of mysterious things, at 27.
Virgo is all about the details and Pisces is the opposite. Here we find mysteries that are cosmic in scope. Pisces is the sign that connects us to All That Is. This is the home of spiritual exploration, of lyrical poetry and music, of everything that is diffuse, confusing, and hard to hold on to. This is the place where we long for connection and can lose ourselves in addiction. This is a place of sacrifice and of enlightenment.
How can this careful Virgo Moon hold her own in the face of so much Piscean energy?
It helps to remember this is not a battle. Even though the Moon is opposite all that misty Pisces, and “opposition” sounds like a fight, at this time in the lunar cycle, the Moon is fully illuminated. The Sun and Moon are face to face as the Moon lights up the night sky. This gives each the opportunity to see each other face to face, with as much clarity as is possible for nebulous Pisces.
In addition, both Virgo and Pisces are mutable signs, falling at the end the summer and the end of winter. Mutable signs are more flexible, transitioning as they are from one thing to another. The so-called hard aspects are easier when mutable signs are involved.
Still, there is a lot of Pisces floating about. All that mysteriousness wants to go somewhere and calm, grounded Virgo is the ideal manager. In the light of the Full Moon, we have the opportunity to see the magic around us and direct some of it to reach practical goals.
The Moon has strong allies in her quest to channel some Piscean magic. There is a Grand Trine in Earth with the Moon at one apex, supported by Saturn and Black Moon Lilith in Capricorn, and the asteroid Pallas Athena in Taurus. The stern capability of Saturn, the dark insights of Lilith, and the clear-eyed rationality of Athena will help the Moon keep her feet on the ground.
And of course the Grand Trine in Earth becomes the base of a Kite pattern, as the Moon opposes, and Pallas Athena, Saturn, and Black Moon Lilith sextile the Sun–Neptune conjunction.
Other powers serve to increase the strength of the Piscean planets. Jupiter, at 28 Scorpio, trines Chiron the wounded healer at 27 Pisces. Mars at 20 Sagittarius is especially fiery. He is conjunct the asteroid Vesta, the hearth goddess, and trine Uranus at 22 Aries. Focusing his Fire, he squares Venus and Mercury.
We are in a complex web of love, relationship, creative expression, and healing, each encountered at a place where the human world meets what is beyond.
Full Moons illuminate. Be sure to check your birth chart to see where this Moon will shine its light, and which of your planets and points will glow.
The place where Pisces is strong in your chart might feel magical, or perhaps simply foggy. The presence of so many planets in Pisces can invite us into a deeper connection to mysticism, spirituality, creativity–or confuse us about what is real.
The Earth signs in your chart, especially where the Virgo Moon, Saturn in Capricorn, and Pallas Athena in Taurus are right now, point to places where we can work to craft the magic in the mists into something tangible, practical, and real.
Perhaps this Full Moon feels full of creative potential for you. The Sun and Neptune together can give us conscious access to deep wells of inspiration. The Venus–Mercury conjunction might use lyrical language to express your vision. The presence of Chiron opens the door to healing, either through reconnecting us with our own power or by imbuing what we create with healing energy for others.
The Moon, with the help of Saturn, Lilith, and Pallas Athena, directs this abundance of inspiration and imagery in pragmatic ways. We might see what next steps are needed, or perhaps gain clarity about how to overcome an obstacle.
The connection between Venus and Mercury, as well as the presence of the asteroid Juno, might focus the Full Moon’s energy on relationships. The square from Mars could create a feeling of challenge or crisis. Chiron’s presence suggests healing is possible, especially in the deeper levels of relationships, or places of soul connection, or feelings of loss or abandonment.
The Moon and other planets in Earth help maintain both a practical focus and a link to the body. Saturn keeps us grounded in what is real. Lilith is fiercely protective of personal boundaries. Pallas Athena looks over a confusing landscape with a cool, rational gaze. The Moon in Virgo attends to what the body feels and how to work with that.
The is a wonderful Full Moon to schedule body-focused therapies. Massage, a bath filled with epsom salts and scented oils, a walk along a beach, lake, or stream–anything that gets us in touch with how we feel in our bodies will be powerful.
Neptune, strong at this Full Moon, creates a link to deep levels of spirituality, especially realms connected to dreams, mysticism, intuition, and journeys.
Dreams are likely to be vivid and meaningful. Harness the practical wisdom of the Virgo Moon to set dream intentions, asking explicitly for guidance. This can also be a fruitful time for divination, one more way to link cosmic wisdom to practical needs.
Meditation can go deep at this time. If you practice astral travel or other out-of-body explorations, you will travel far and want to be sure you maintain a clear link to find your way back.
It would be wise to avoid overindulging in any substances that alter consciousness. We may find ourselves more sensitive than usual to anything of that kind.
The strong Pisces presence at this Full Moon can offer illumination or entice us with deceptive illusions. Yet the Virgo Moon is a weaver, a wise woman, and a healer who does not lose her way. If we keep our finger on her thread, we can find the path through the labyrinth to the wisdom within.
I use Unsplash for almost all my photo illustrations. All astrological charts are my own. The images in this post include the title, created from the photo of the starfish on the shore by Jakob Owens, the photo of the red wall with the magic sign by Karly Santiago, the forest fairy by Boris Krizmanic, and the photo of the rose by Meredith Whitman.