Full Moon in Capricorn

As the chaotic cacophony circulating through current events attests to, we are living through a period of vast collective change hosting historically important astrological alignments. Like any time of liminal collective change, when crossing thresholds that simultaneously involve endings and beginnings set within larger scales of time, the potential excitement of new directions must contend with the fears of uncertainty. We must gain certainty of focalized purpose while embracing the uncertainty of outcomes, learning to sustain faith in the unknown while traversing the boundary between the familiar and the foreign. Fittingly for a lunation testing our fears and challenging us to resiliently believe in our capacity to create positive change, Pluto stands at the heart of the lunation. The Full Moon is at the final degree of Capricorn, applying toward a conjunction with Pluto who is retrograde at the first degree of Aquarius. The boundary between Aquarius and Capricorn will be in between the Moon and Pluto, the liminal terrain separating the earthy domicile of Saturn from its airy home. The divide between earth and air, between stability and volatility, solid and swirl, tangible practicality and intellectual inspiration are at the root of the lunation’s tension.

Pluto has been in Aquarius since 20 January 2024, after being in Aquarius from 23 March to 11 June in 2023. Pluto will be returning for a final two and a half month sojourn in Capricorn from 2 September until 19 November 2024, bringing an end to the transit of Pluto through Capricorn that began on 25 January 2008. At the time of the Capricorn Full Moon, Pluto will be retrograde at 00°56′ Aquarius, less than half a degree away from where the great conjunction of Jupiter and Saturn at 00°29′ Aquarius took place at the end of 2020. The union of Jupiter and Saturn on 21 December 2020 heralded the dawning of a new age of air in which Jupiter and Saturn conjunctions will only occur in air signs until 2159. With the Full Moon illuminating the end of Capricorn while Pluto occupies the beginning of Aquarius, the rot and decay of the old age is palpable and stinking. We can simultaneously sense the excitement of inspiring new creative directions set against the old grasping to remain in control and refusing to let go. Yet we can also sense the hubris of new forces ambitiously pursuing power without having first gained the maturity of time governed by Saturn. The multivalent meaning of Pluto encompasses dark nights of soul and the necessity of facing death, while also revealing our capacity to transform circumstances, give birth to new life as the old passes away, and claim our power to enact productive change. To dance with Pluto is to dance with destruction and creation.

The Full Moon in Capricorn on 21 July 2024 is the second consecutive full moon to occur in the sign of the Sea Goat, and the second of three consecutive full moons illuminating the domiciles of Saturn. The recent Capricorn Full Moon on the solstice occurred one week before Saturn stationed retrograde in Pisces on 29 June, and a little over a week before Neptune stationed retrograde in Pisces on 2 July. Saturn will remain retrograde in Pisces until 15 November when Saturn will station direct at 12°41′ Pisces, while Neptune will remain retrograde until stationing direct on 7 December at 27°08′ Pisces. Saturn is the divine architect of long range plans and accomplishment who oversees our steady progress of laying the foundation for long term success brick by brick, step by step. With Saturn retrograde, the Capricorn Full Moon will illuminate the effectiveness of blueprints and goals, bringing awareness to how we may need to reprioritize our use of time and space. Yet even more importantly, with the Capricorn Full Moon applying to a harmonious sextile with Neptune, the lunation will reveal our current navigation of the watery solutio created by Saturn and Neptune being at the end of their cycle in Pisces.

Indeed, while the Capricorn Full Moon is applying to an imaginative sextile aspect with Neptune retrograde in Pisces, the Moon is also separating from a flowing trine with Uranus in Taurus and a tense square aspect with Chiron at the same time Chiron is stationing retrograde at 23°32′ Aries on 26 July. Altogether the lunation is connected closely to the longer arc of storylines held by the invisible planets beyond Saturn and the strange centaur Chiron who bridges them to the visible realm of Saturn. Not only is the lunation well suited for gaining insight into long range vision and any revisions needing to be made, it also ideal for seeking solutions to the personal within the transpersonal realm. While Saturn is our taskmaster within the material realm and can guide us into making pragmatic decisions with what’s available in material circumstances, Saturn is also the visible planet closest to the divine, numinous realm of spirit found within the fixed stars. Sometimes we need to find answers within the realm of spirit and the glistening stars stitched into the nocturnal firmament like jewels. Sometimes the guidance we need can be found within the depths of our unconscious and the deep wisdom of the body, not unlike the fertile void found within the dark matter of outer space.

Punctuating the emphasis of the lunation upon the threshold between earth and air is the ingress of Mars into Gemini. The Full Moon in Capricorn will illuminate the entrance of Mars into Gemini and the flowing trine aspect between Mars and Pluto. Though the Capricorn Full Moon is applying to a trine aspect with Mars that will become exact once the Moon crosses the threshold between Capricorn and Aquarius, the Full Moon at the final degree of Capricorn is also forming a contra-antiscia contact with Mars in Gemini. This means that the midpoint between the Capricorn Moon and Mars in Gemini is at zero degrees of Aries, infusing the lunation with the scorching heat of Mars and making it a lunation that can catalyze dynamic forward momentum and courageous action in the face of challenges. Of course at the same time, the contra-antiscia between the lunation and Mars may bring about another wave of collective conflict reminiscent of the recent conjunction between Mars and Uranus in Taurus. The entrance of Mars into Gemini will correlate with an accelerated pace of plotlines and a multiplicity of exciting potential directions to explore. While Mars in Gemini can be exciting, its co-presence with Jupiter and tension with Saturn will also make it important to monitor your nervous system and anxiety, taking measures to temper excessive heat and mental inflammation when needed.

Mars will remain in Gemini from 20 July until 4 September, but the most impactful section of the red planet’s journey through Gemini will center around the conjunction between Mars and Jupiter in Gemini on 14 August, the square between Mars and Saturn retrograde in Pisces on 15 August, and the square between Mars and Venus in Virgo on 22 August. The co-presence of Mars with Jupiter in Gemini can fuel an acceleration of development as long as we can sustain focus on goals without becoming too dispersed by having too many interests to pursue. Crucially, however, this time around the union of Mars and Jupiter is part of a much larger story arc involving the twenty year cycle governed by Saturn and Jupiter. Saturn and Jupiter will form their first waxing square aspect since their 2020 conjunction on 19 August at the same time that Mars is separating from a conjunction with Jupiter and Venus is applying to a square aspect with Mars. The tense configuration formed between Venus in Virgo, Saturn retrograde in Pisces, and Mars and Jupiter combined in Gemini will be the most impactful alignment of the season, a crucial turning point in storylines. The creative fireworks fused by Mars and Jupiter in Gemini must cohere with the limits of Saturn, but within the tumult will be a silver thread of Eros held by Venus we may use to weave together the next chapter of our story.

Fortunately, the Capricorn Full Moon is also occurring at the same time that Venus in Leo is forming an exact sextile aspect with Jupiter in Gemini, an extremely creative aspect that can help in finding the silver lining of inspired creativity amidst any difficulties. In addition, Venus in Leo has finally reached her phase of becoming visible as an Evening Star following sunset, infusing the presence of Aphrodite into daily events. Venus in Leo kindles creative desire and sparks the inspiration to actualize our creativity in daily tasks. Venus in Leo brings inner awareness of the fertile potential we each possess, and lights a burning desire to actualize our creative gifts into the world around us. Venus in Leo does what she pleases, and will be even more emboldened than normal due to her harmonious aspect with Jupiter.

At the same time, Mercury in Leo will be applying to a catalyzing square aspect with Uranus at at 26°33’ Taurus. Mercury in harsh aspect with Uranus adds a large dose of volatility to the astrological mix, and could correlate with exciting creative breakthroughs as well as upsetting disruptions in realms of communication and technology. Similar to the ingress of Mars into Gemini, the square between Mercury and Uranus is another warning sign regarding anxiety levels and nervous system regulation, and so we will need to strike the balance between making space for needed rest as well as taking advantage of the exciting creative opportunities unleashed by the tension between Mercury and Uranus. Since Mars and Jupiter are both in the domicile of Mercury, the dynamic sparks between Mercury and Uranus will make it a potent time for taking bold action.

Moreover, the dynamic square between Mercury and Uranus is coinciding with Mercury reaching maximum elongation as an Evening Star, the section of Mercury’s solar phase in which the star of Hermes begins to slow down in preparation for stationing retrograde. Mercury will ultimately station retrograde on at 4°06’ Virgo, eventually becoming reanimated by the Sun at its inferior conjunction on 18 August at 26°35’ Leo, the same exact degree where Mercury is located during the Capricorn Full Moon. Thus the Capricorn Full Moon is illuminating a critical phase of Mercury that further links to the upcoming Mercury retrograde phase in August: pay attention to signs and synchronicities that may provide insight into what will need attention during the Mercury retrograde period in August. Before stationing retrograde on 4 August, Mercury will become incredibly potent in essential dignity once entering its domicile and exaltation of Virgo on 25 July. Pay attention to signs of what needs revision and restoration once Mercury enters Virgo, so you can be prepared for the tricks Mercury will play once stationing retrograde on 4 August.

Capricorn 3 Decan

The Full Moon will illuminate the third decan of Capricorn associated with the Four of Pentacles arcanum illustrated above by Pamela Colman Smith. An image of empire building and wielding influence from a seat of power, the Four of Pentacles signifies a cultivation of inner talents to make an impact in the material world that aligns with the third decan of Capricorn being ruled by the Sun and Mercury.  The crowned and enthroned figure is surrounded by the weight of matter with pentacles below and above, as a fourth pentacle cradled at heart level evokes a spinning wheel of fortune. The figure towers in the foreground, suggesting someone sovereign and able to manage structures to bring material prosperity and security within the wildly fluctuating changes in fortune that come and go within surrounding society. Yet their tight hold of the pentacle also evokes a tyrant obsessed with maintaining control and power. The third decan of Capricorn possesses these two sides to the same coin.

These contrasting images of the third decan of Capricorn are clearly demonstrated by Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa in Three Books of Occult Philosophy. Agrippa wrote that within the third decan of Capricorn “rises a woman chaste in body and wise in her work, and a banker gathering money on a table; this [image] is the significator for prudent government and for ambitious and greedy substances.” The description of a banker’s greedy ambition is a popular stereotype of Capricorn, and indeed has been a common perspective people have had about major issues brought up by the transit of Pluto through the third decan of Capricorn since 2018. Yet a wise woman who is prudent in her work is an accurate portrayal of Capricorn that may align more with the lessons you have learned during Pluto’s transit through Capricorn. The etymology of prudence has connections with foresight and sagacity, with prudence having a long tradition of being associated with the ability to discern the virtuous choice and action to make. How have your virtues changed since Pluto entered Capricorn in 2008? Now that we have reached the final year of Pluto’s time in Capricorn, what enduring virtues have been forged by your experience?

Austin Coppock in his book on the decans 36 Faces ascribed the image of “The Throne” to the third face of Capricorn, a fitting image given that it is the face of the Sun.  Coppock wrote that the third decan of Capricorn involves administering from a throne to control the elements of the world needed to attain material gain and positions of greater power and responsibility.  Notably, Coppock cautioned that hubris can tempt those grasping for power in this decan to overlook the weight of responsibility and the loneliness of isolation that accompany achieving ambitions.  Coppock warned that accumulations of material wealth, power, and responsibility “may end up crushing them,” the idealized palace turning into a restrictive prison as “only high places bring with them the danger of terrible falls.” Coppock concluded that although the third decan of Capricorn draws us “close to high seats of power,” we need to remember that influential “positions always come with responsibility, and to sit in them is to be tempted by hubris.”

As the image of “The Throne” suggests, the Capricorn Full Moon will illuminate the long term ramifications of current plans and ambitions. Take stock of your current trajectory and if your goals truly align with what you are prepared to take responsibility for managing. The third decan of Capricorn is a place for gaining the skills needed to generate wealth, yet whatever achievement and acquisition may be found here must also involve some sort of struggle. While the 12th century astrologer Ibn Ezra gave an image of a beautiful black woman whose hands are skilled in all kinds of work and the spinning of silk for the third decan of Capricorn, the Picatrix gave an image of a man holding a snake in his hand who also possesses golden jewelry. The third decan of Capricorn further speaks to the virtues, ethics and ideals underlying our priorities and the moral compass we utilize in navigating the choices we must make with regard to vocation and livelihood. While Capricorn is the ultimate builder and initiator of ambitious plans amongst the zodiac signs, Capricorn also must confront the danger of choosing the wrong mountain of goals to climb that do not align with one’s values and will ultimately leave one unhappy or overwhelmed by too many burdens. May the brilliant light of the Capricorn Full Moon illuminate the path most aligned with your core values and virtues.

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References

Agrippa, Heinrich Cornelius. (2021). Three Occult Books of Philosophy. Translated by Eric Purdue. Inner Traditions.

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