New Moon, New Mode

 Earth's Moon and a long shot of Uranus

photo credit (Uranus only): NASA/JPL 

With a New Moon occurring as Uranus is on station with Mercury due to go retrograde in just a matter of days, it's a cinch that the status quo is in for at least a little quiver. And maybe a shake, rattle and roll.

Said New Moon occurs on Sunday, December 5th at 5:37pm (UT/+0). This being the second of six New Moons at 13 degrees of a sign is a metaphor: the continuing trend will be for people to be 'operating' in emotional mode for several months to come!

To be specific here, last month's New Moon having been at 13 Scorpio gave us all (at the very least) a new appreciation - if that's the word for it - for however it is that we feel own, and maybe even isolated in, or by life.

13 Sagittarius is more of a vibe about 'needing to break out of this'...whatever 'this' may be. Interestingly, lore cites this as being a 'Uranian-type' degree as well...yes, even without a Uranus station hanging in the wings.

To be noted is also that lore is specific on this point - the easy way around problems here is not always the productive way to go. Short change yourself or choose some rebellious course in order to try to just bypass the problem ('blow it off' would be the more Uranian term) and trouble surely follows.

Yet this being a New Moon, there is good to be had and established at this point. Just as lunations mark tidal cycles, so any New Moon marks the commencement of some sort of 'new phase.'

With this New Moon we get a whole Sagittarius theme. And where the general theme is Sagittarius, the mode is expansive or about expansion. Of what? Well, that part is up to you! It could be your outlook, your education, your circle of friends, your activities, your income, your belief system, your ambitions - almost anything.

And let's not forget that when we say there's a 'theme,' we mean that across the whole of life's board. That means you could expand your literal horizons by taking a trip, meet new people and through something totally simple...maybe by reading a newspaper or visiting a museum...you could see or hear or learn something which would change your whole outlook on life.

Some people interpret the Sagittarian influence as needing to expand on what they know personally. Others insist on expanding the breadth of their effect. Fiery and inventive by nature, the Sagittarian 'vibe' is about seeing how things work and making them work better.

Of course this generally means meeting up with a few corrections too. As polarity sign to all which is about choosing what to learn and apply (in what order) and organizing that in some cohesive way (said sign being Gemini), Sagittarius tests us and tests our ideas, mentality...and theories. Will what I have designed or decided to do work? 

Some people try new things now out of curiosity. Some people do it because they want to create a bigger, better, means of getting things done - and that applies whether your object is to get through those errands or you're doing rocket science in the cause of curing the common cold. Sagittarius is about 'trying' - and yes, you should take that literally and figuratively! A New Moon in Sagittarius can indicate an 'emotionally trying time,' yes sirree!

But if it does, the point would be to remember what Sagittarius is about. The confusion, the turmoil, the disappointments and the triumphs of Sagittarius are not just about getting ahead, they're about learning how you got there. It's Sagittarius as the 'feedback' mechanism for Gemini, the dynamic which describes how we learn and (yes...) if we learn!

And hopefully we do learn.

One more thought for the day here - that being that this New Moon is what 'aims' us in the direction of the Lunar Eclipse which will happen latter this month. That eclipse occurring in Gemini, the whole idea of 'process' (the how you go about doing things) is underlined a bit more firmly.

A house of cards

(no photo credit given)

Yes, there is a little bit of a 'house of cards' feeling to the whole dynamic of the moment...yet what's a person to do? With a Black Hole directly in opposition to this December New Moon, the 'other way' to do or see things is apparent.

But with the quality of same described here as an opposition, that 'other way' may be what we are faced with but don't want to touch with a twenty foot pole (used to be ten...pole inflation, let's call it)...or that 'other way' may be so foreign and the amount of effort it would take to get there so enormous that getting upset about the whole thing seems to best thing to do.

Or, with Uranus on station, at least the easiest thing to do. Moon plus Uranus is a recipe for emotional instability to be sure. Does this mean the whole lunar cycle will be one filled with roller coaster emotionalism?

Maybe. And if it is, or to the extent that it is, the key to 'why?' lies in a different planetary picture drawn by this moment of lunation:

The above figure is known as a 'Yod,' the proverbial 'finger of God.' What it refers to is the having come to a point (the bottom of the 'Y' shape) which seems to pose a highly vexing problem.

At the top (the situational dynamic) is Sun/Moon on one side (the New Moon we've just discussed) and on the other, Saturn-Niobe in Libra...which could be many things, but which is most likely going to manifest as 'stubborn pride' OR the need to be proud of one's self or what one does.

There's a whole quality to this Saturn-Niobe thing which involves what we 'put out' (responsibilities) or 'put out there' (products of our effort). And this may be totally about us...or it might be all about what we meet up with or face in others.

Given that Yods describe an innate sense of tension, the quality of that tension is described by whatever is at the 'bottom' of the 'Y' - in this case, Medusa/Sabine.

A point which deserves its own blog (one of these days...) Sabine is all about being 'forced into' something or 'held captive' by something (someone). And it doesn't have to be dramatic - though this configuration certainly could point to drama. High and serious human drama.

But even at its lower-case end, this is about a requirement (Sabine...or Sabine/Saturn, if you prefer, given that both symbols lend to 'required effort')...that is scary (Medusa).

Medusa being not quite who most folks think she is, here's a link to the standing blog article on Medusa (LINK). If you haven't already read this article, feel free to when you finish this piece, as it explains a lot about the inner conflict which is human fear and how it's often so much more about us and our imagination than the reality of how difficult something is.

In the meantime, let's just say that Medusa may be a fear of knowing what the truth is, the process of learning something new (without which, you're rather held like the Sabine captive) or that, in combination with the New Moon and Saturn/Niobe in Libra, the jig is up - you have worn some sort of mask but others have now got your number.

The "rule" with a Yod is that the 'solution' to the puzzle is defined by the point which is half way between the 'points' of the 'Y' - between the New Moon and Saturn/Niobe.

Interestingly however, there's nothing there. But with Saturn at 14 Libra, Niobe at 12 Libra and the New Moon at 13 Sagittarius, it's pretty safe to say that said 'midpoint' is 13 Scorpio. And what's 13 Scorpio about?

The Sabian symbol for 13 Scorpio pictures 'An inventor performing a laboratory experiment' which if nothing else emphasizes the new, and a need for cautious application of focus and known facts. This being an emotional degree of a watery emotional sing (Scorpio), we know the subject is not only emotional in nature but emotionally evocative and interactive. So this is not just about us - the 'me, myself and i' of life, though this is about who we are on the inside (and thus why our emotions get evoked). There is an interactive quality to the solution to this Yod, and it involves dealing with fear, dealing with pride, and getting on with getting on in the greater scope of life.

But wait...13 Scorpio....haven't we talked about that degree just recently? Isn't that the degree of last month's New Moon? 

So it was...so it was, so it was! And we've already experienced that dynamic.

Does this mean we have to go back there and do that again?

Probably not. More than likely, this is a karmic and cosmic indicator that we have not yet actualized the solution to last month's challenges. They are still on our plate. Or maybe a new form of them (the "New Moon") gets handed to us. We often think that we can slide right by, blow things off (Uranus on station, remember?) and all will be hinky-dinky.

Well, apparently not. And for those still unwilling to deal with cosmic karma, one other note to jot down on the mental scratch pad: come December 20/21st (depending on where you are) there is going to be a Lunar Eclipse. And that Lunar Eclipse does have two objects sitting at 13 Scorpio: Atropos (endings) and Venus.

You remember Venus in Scorpio, right? The sticky wicked of our recent Venus retrograde?

So many people like to think of Venus as mere mortal beauty. The precept is so much more...and so much more eternal, considering how looks inevitably fade. What we put out comes back to us. Or to put it another way, for every action, there is an opposite and equal reaction. Or to put it yet another way...Like attracts like.

There is no escape from who we are because we will inevitably attract that which will teach us to be our better selves...or to struggle with our ineptitude: the reflection of our unwillingness to respect the person we are.