New Moon in Aquarius

The New Moon in Aquarius on February 11 contains a catalyzing undercurrent that will overflow into external events and experiences in the month ahead. With the Sun and Moon joined by Mercury, Venus, Jupiter and Saturn all in the sign of Aquarius together, there will be reshaping and reordering of personal and societal systems as we individually and collectively reorient to the extreme volatility of the past month. The year of 2021 began in the wake of the great conjunction between Jupiter and Saturn in Aquarius, followed by the turbulent force of Mars and Uranus in Taurus unleashing a chaotic charge that accelerated the changing dynamics underway and forced numerous issues to the surface in need of addressing. The New Moon in Aquarius initiates a lunar month that has supportive astrological aspects for adapting and recalibrating to the changing currents flowing through the wider collective as well as within our inner life.

Although the New Moon in Aquarius is separating from a discordant square aspect with Mars in Taurus, the disruptive square aspect that has been taking shape between Uranus in Taurus and Saturn in Aquarius is intensifying in magnitude. With Mars and Uranus in Taurus volatilizing the gathering of planets in Aquarius, issues and material that had been stuck will become dislodged and released. Since we simultaneously will be experiencing the final phase of Mercury retrograde in Aquarius in the week following the New Moon, contents of our inner psyche that had been buried or hidden may flood our awareness. We will need to tend to our inner life with care so that we do not become so overwhelmed that we lose capacity for clarity in perception.

The New Moon is at the same zodiacal degree as the projection of the fixed star Deneb Algedi upon the ecliptic. The symbolism and star lore of Deneb Algedi fits well with the surrounding astrology of the lunation having an unusually large gathering of placements in the sign of the Water Pourer. Deneb Algedi is a star in the tail of the Goat-Fish constellational image, associated with the Babylonian creator god Ea and the Sumerian creator god Enki who brought the gifts of civilization from his realm of subterranean water. A trickster and wise magician bent on reordering civilization with the greater good of the wider community in mind, the flowing freshwater of Enki transfigures the landscape of dry land, creating wetlands and fertile soil in which the food and resources needed to fuel civilization can grow. The vast intellect and sacred eye of Ea understands the fathomless depths of metaphysical laws and how they may be integrated into human systems of law and order. Bernadette Brady wrote that like the “justice-oriented ancient god who was seeking to bring civilization to his people,” the star Deneb Algedi “continues to be reflected in the laws of the establishment, and the structure of civilizations that yield ordered societies.”

There is obvious synchronicity between the New Moon in Aquarius being at the same degree of the zodiac where Deneb Algedi is projected, as governing bodies and legal systems around the world are presently engaged in yet another phase of restructuring systems to address the many ways the pandemic has continued to reshape societal issues. In your personal life, explore what gifts are ready to emerge from the subterranean water within that can be brought out to share with your community. Seek to discover how you can reorder your personal structures and systems to be in flow with the changing currents altering the landscape, while staying centered within your own sense of integrity. Let the influx of so many placements in Aquarius help you claim your authority to reshape your life in accordance with the principles and wisdom that dwell within your own inner waters.

Venus and Jupiter will form a conjunction in Aquarius as the New Moon forms in Aquarius, forming their exact conjunction only four hours before the lunation. The union of Venus and Jupiter can kindle hope and faith, yet their conjunction in Aquarius will not appear as a visible omen in the sky as both Venus and Jupiter are presently invisible under the beams of the Sun. However, although Venus has recently entered its underworld phase of becoming invisible, Jupiter is preparing to re-emerge into visibility as a Morning Star heralding dawn in the week following the New Moon. As Venus is at the beginning of burning off what needs to be released from its past cycle, Jupiter is bearing the wisdom that has been gestating during the past month in which it has burned off the dross of its past cycle. Due to not being visible, the union of Venus and Jupiter may be most deeply felt within the realm of imagination, memory, and unconscious depths. 

The union of Venus and Jupiter will have a restorative and vivifying influence upon the final week of Mercury being retrograde in Aquarius. Mercury has had a busy week leading up to the lunation, as it was reanimated by the Sun on February 8 and then formed a disruptive square aspect with Mars in Taurus on February 10. No matter how frustrating or disorienting recent events have been that have corresponded with the intensifying aspects between Mars with Mercury and the Sun, take the time to explore the deeper meaning of the disruptions and what they may teach you about the changing dynamics taking shape around you. Whether you have felt new desires stirred within or found yourself pulled into conflict with others, as Mercury slowly begins to separate from Mars in the days ahead you will be able to gain a greater sense of what needs to be released and let go from recent experiences, versus what aspects hold important lessons for you to contemplate and gain greater realization regarding.

Following the New Moon in Aquarius, Mercury will form a conjunction with Venus in Aquarius on February 13 followed by a conjunction with Jupiter in Aquarius on February 14. These days following the Aquarius New Moon can be extremely fertile for creativity and coalescing greater clarity regarding difficulties we have experienced in recent weeks as well as the path for us to follow into the year ahead. Venus and Jupiter will feed Mercury with new inspirations and visions to gestate as it begins to slow down to station direct on February 20. With Venus, Jupiter, and Mercury all combining in Aquarius while in their invisible phases, we will have potential for turning within the unbound realm of imagination to deconstruct any difficulties or obstacles we have been facing. Listen to guidance from within, allowing your unconscious to reconstruct responses to setbacks and give you greater access to the inner visions that can be brought into the world through your creative expression.

At the same time that Mercury is slowing down to station direct on February 20, the first exact square aspect between Saturn and Uranus will take place on February 17. There has already been a great many examples of rupturing in collective events that have correlated with the square that has been forming between Saturn and Uranus, with the mass protests of farmers in India being especially apt with regard to the symbolism of Uranus in Taurus. However, as the first square finally becomes exact we may gain sharper clarity for a fuller picture of how this incredibly catalytic aspect has been shaking up our life and perspective. Within the tension between Saturn and Uranus, the secure walls surrounding our sources of stability can be disrupted with lightning strikes that unleash rapid change. Prometheus steals the fire that liberates the mind of humanity, yet must suffer enduring consequences. Forces enlivened by new visions of emancipation clash with those seeking to protect the traditions that hold up the status quo. 

With Saturn in its airy home of Aquarius and Uranus in Taurus there will be opportunities to find new ways of combining wisdom and insight from ancient lineages within modern applications that can address the numerous crises erupting around the planet. Yet the volatility created by their friction can also lead to increased division within groups that have already been engaged in polarized conflict, as well as lead to separations within personal relationships. Since Saturn in the fixed sign of Aquarius can exert control through manipulating sources of information, it’s a fitting correlation that within many of the conflicts occurring both sides feel like they are attempting to liberate the other side from having their thought and perspective manipulated by external sources. With Mercury slowing down to station retrograde at the same time as the square between Saturn and Uranus, we will be well served by stepping back from escalating conflict to perceive where the other perspective is coming from and discerning ways to bridge viewpoints and find some semblance of common ground. Once Mercury stations direct it will continue to move forward toward a conjunction with Jupiter as the Moon waxes toward fullness, increasing our capacity for making needed reforms and course corrections.

As groups and relationships splinter and fragment, there will also be increased opportunities to form new alliances, collaborations, and develop important new relationships. There can be a lot of fertile creativity found within those meeting on shared paths of purpose, as well as opportunities to help form new organizations that can meet the emerging needs of surrounding communities. As the Saturn and Uranus square becomes exact we will also gain greater clarity regarding what is falling apart and collapsing, and what will need to be built and developed to address the systemic issues being exposed. With Venus in Aquarius also forming a waning square aspect with Mars in Taurus at the same time Saturn forms its square with Uranus, we will need to make adjustments within our personal relationships in accordance with whatever larger collective changes are taking place. Notice how your internal values have been shifting, and find ways to communicate your changing needs to those you are in relationship with. 

We also need to keep in mind the long view in the sense that the radical realignments in societal and personal structures that will correlate with the tension between Saturn and Uranus will be taking place over the next two years. While we may be seized with a feeling of needing to change everything rapidly, in many cases a more patient process will be helpful in developing a more stable path forward into the unknown. Rather than overturning everything in our life, we can instead choose to begin integrating the liberating insights of Uranus, experimenting with how to take steps in living from our rejuvenated realizations rather than remaining in the old status quo. With Jupiter and Venus combining in Aquarius at the same time, we can embrace a more expansive sense of wholeness that can hold within it our radically shifting perceptions. Rather than live from the side of Saturn that conforms to group dynamics for security, we need to work with Jupiter, Saturn, and Uranus in ways that allow us to shed whatever we have built up over time that no longer authentically aligns with us.

Aquarius 3 Decan

The Aquarius New Moon is in the third decan of Aquarius associated with the Seven of Swords image illustrated above by Pamela Colman Smith. Austin Coppock in his book 36 Faces ascribed the image of “The Knot” to the third face of Aquarius, using the symbol of a knot to explore the karmic binds that keep us stuck in the known and familiar rather than liberating ourselves to enter the unknown. Coppock described the stealthy figure in the image of the Seven of Swords card as having already undergone a process of not only deciding to leave a frustrating situation but also having already contemplated what is worth saving. There is a risk of exile and the uncertainty of no longer having the stability of the structures being left behind, but the figure has determinedly chosen the unknown over the known.

The Moon is the ruler of the third face of Aquarius, and so the Moon being renewed in its own face points toward gathering the inner resolve required to experiment and take creative risks. By listening to the Aquarian guidance of doing things differently and looking at things with a different perspective, we will more naturally find the resources we need to support the new direction taking shape in our mind. The New Moon in Aquarius can help us cultivate a healthy dose of detachment from the all-consuming drama and conflict with current events, just enough space to gain the widening of perception needed to discover solutions and forge supportive connections with others.

The Hellenistic text the 36 Airs ascribed Osiris, lord of the dead and the otherworld, to the third face of Aquarius. Furthermore, the Osiris asteroid is at 27°28′ Aquarius during the lunation, and so the New Moon is applying toward a conjunction with the Osiris asteroid. There was also a union of the Isis and Osiris asteroids at the same time as the great conjunction between Jupiter and Saturn during the recent solstice, only four degrees away in Aquarius. The presence of Osiris with the Aquarius New Moon brings themes of fertility and regeneration to the forefront. Osiris calls us to find resources and enrichment within the depths of our unconscious so that we will be able to nurture our own metamorphosis rather than needing to seek the kind of external validation that could condition the change underway. Osiris possesses a sacred quality of surrender to the process of regeneration, surrendering to all of the suffering that must be endured in order to fully nurture and realize our creative potential.

Thom Cavalli in Embodying Osiris wrote that if we wish to embody the Osiris archetype, “we must take into account his ‘individuation’ as he matures into a cosmic archetype. What he does is not for self-gain but for the benefit of all. Ultimately, the spirit of the dead arrives in the duat, the fitting place for him to reign as god of the dead and master of unconscious forces.” The intention held by Osiris to serve the benefit of all from his place in the netherworld is not unlike the focus of Enki and Ea upon the greater good from his seat within subterranean water. If we have experienced increased fragmentation recently, just like Isis was able to meld together the dismembered body of Osiris for reanimation, so may we rejuvenate an authentic presence in the month ahead. If we have had to unravel the knots that had bound together our secure identity within recent months or the past year, the catalyzing winds of the New Moon in Aquarius can inspire us to retie a sacred knot that may contain and protect whatever we need to nurture and grow in the lunar cycle ahead.

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References

Brady, Bernadette. (2008). Star and Planet Combinations. The Wessex Astrologer. 

Cavalli, Thom. (2010). Embodying Osiris: the Secrets of Alchemical Transformation. Quest Books.

Coppock, Austin. (2014). 36 Faces: The History, Astrology and Magic of the Decans. Three Hands Press.

White, Gavin. (2014). Babylonian Star-Lore. an Illustrated Guide to the Star-Lore and Constellations of Ancient Babylonia. Solaria Publications.