Virgo 2 Decan

Virgo Full Moon

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“Vision of Bernadette at Lourdes”, Church of Saint John the Baptist, Duhill, County Tipperary by Harry Clarke
audio recording of Virgo Full Moon article

Virgo Full Moon

All months are not created equal in astrology. The quality of time tracked by transits can vary significantly from month to month, and sometimes a particular month signals a turning point in reality; a collective threshold that demarcates a radical change in story arcs larger than our individual trajectory. The Full Moon in Virgo on 7 March 2023 heralds a month of seismic shifts within the astrological landscape. Saturn will enter Pisces less than an hour after the Moon in Virgo opposes the Sun in Pisces, while Pluto will enter Aquarius sixteen days later on March 23. The Full Moon in Virgo will support methodical analysis of the potential choices and paths available as we sense the way that the current changes taking shape can lead to both challenges and new opportunities in the months ahead. Yet a rising fog may obscure our ability to gain clarity in the week following the lunation.

The Full Moon in the earthy, mutable home of Mercury can normally support slowing things down and pulling back from action to make careful and pragmatic processing of information. Virgo can be helpful in breaking down issues into smaller concepts, picking apart and separating factors to gain insight into how the details combine in the bigger picture. Yet Mercury will be responsible for the care of the Moon while occupying its fall in Pisces while also moving quickly into its invisible phase of combustion with the Sun. Mercury will also be in the bounds of Venus. These factors increase the imaginative, artistic, creative, and poetic capacities of Mercury more so than its ability to dryly divide and sort through details with linear logic.

The Virgo Full Moon will be closely separating from a flowing trine with Uranus in Taurus and applying toward a disruptive square aspect with Mars in Gemini and opposition with Neptune in Pisces. The innovative and liberating influence of Uranus will be further emphasized by Mercury moving quickly toward a creative sextile aspect with Uranus that it will complete on March 11. The involvement of Uranus accentuates the prudent foresight of Virgo and gaining intuitive insight into circumstances, as well as the experimental nature of Virgo that can ingeniously discover new ways to combine and mix influences and sources of inspiration.

Even more importantly, however, the Virgo Full Moon will bring to a head rushing currents streaming from the Mars retrograde phase in Gemini that began in October 2022. Mars previously formed a square aspect with Neptune on 12 October 2022 and again on 19 November 2022 when retrograde. With Mars and Neptune coming together into a square aspect for the final time in the series, the Virgo Full Moon will amplify the pressure building between them. Neptune does not help Mars gain clarity and can inflate the self-righteousness of Mars, and so their friction may ignite ideological conflicts. Moreover, as Mars approaches an exact square aspect with Neptune on 14 March, the Pisces Sun and Mercury will also align with Neptune, creating an extended period from 14 March through 17 March in which the triple conjunction of Mercury, Neptune and the Sun will clash with Mars. The resulting tension may correlate with disillusionment that brings about an important reorientation to reality. Conflicts during this time will be confusing, requiring an extra dose of discernment to clarify. It will be best to avoid disputes and center attention on creative pursuits in need of imaginative inspiration.

At the same that Mercury will be speeding into conjunctions with Neptune and the Sun, Mars will leave its retrograde shadow zone on 15 March. Thus the Virgo Full Moon will illuminate the final passage of Mars moving forward over the degrees it formerly moved backwards over last November after it stationed retrograde on 30 October. Pay attention to how events in the week following the lunation bring tests and challenges related to storylines from last November, as well as ways in which you can notice newfound strength and courage in pushing through difficulties and achieving results in areas of life that had been previously frustrating.

The Source of the Loue (1864) by Gustave Courbet

Saturn in Pisces

Saturn will leave Aquarius to enter Pisces less than an hour after the Full Moon. The entrance of Saturn into Pisces will be intensified due to the peak of the lunar cycle happening at the same time, as well as the fact that Saturn will have recently returned to visibility as a morning star heralding dawn. Saturn’s ingress into Pisces will usher in a sea change in collective and personal events. Pisces is a boundless and oceanic water sign in which boundaries and containment can often be issues. Saturn will offer a cauldron to tend that can contain the dissolution of the solutio alchemical stage that we will be collectively experiencing in the years ahead with Saturn in Pisces. With Saturn occupying the same water sign as Neptune, old ruling principles and reality constructs will disintegrate as the stirring of Saturn’s cauldron facilitates the coagulation of new, regenerated forms. The force of Saturn’s gravity within the imaginal waters of Pisces can heighten awareness of the ways in which we perceive and shape reality. While Saturn in Pisces can enhance the melding of diverse sources of inspiration into new forms of creative amalgamation, we must also be aware of becoming lost, confused, or sorrowful within the downward spiral of its stirring.

Although Saturn will not move within its traditional orb with Neptune during 2023, coming no closer than twenty degrees away, we will begin to notice an amplification of the balsamic, ending phase of the cycle between Saturn and Neptune due to them occupying Pisces together. The cycle between Saturn and Neptune coming to an end now began in 1989 when revolutions swept across the globe, including Tiananmen Square in China, the fall of the Berlin Wall, and the overturning of communist regimes in Poland, Hungary, East Germany, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia and Romania that led to the end of the U.S.S.R. The three conjunctions between Saturn and Neptune in Capricorn in 1989 also correlated with the invention of the World Wide Web, the first attempts to genetically modify humans, and the dismantling of apartheid in South Africa. While the impact of Saturn and Neptune coming together will be especially intensified in 2025 and 2026, due to the nonlinear nature of planetary cycles we will have many themes connected with them becoming stirred up in collective events as they begin moving closer together within the same water.

One of the reasons the Saturn and Neptune cycle is of paramount importance is due to them being the two outermost planets – Saturn has always been significant as the outmost planet we can visibly see in the sky throughout its cycle, whereas Neptune is now considered to be the outermost proper planet now that Pluto has been reclassified as a dwarf planet. In these threshold roles Saturn and Neptune are all about the relationship between the visible and the invisible. They are fundamental to our perception and what we personally and collectively consider to be reality – the visible concrete forms and the multiplicity of invisible influences. The Saturn and Neptune cycle reveals how our collective perception of reality changes across time, and now that we are coming to the end of their cycle there will be a reckoning and a reseeding as we approach the rebirth.

With Saturn entering a water sign, the most obvious correspondence will be literal issues of water becoming increasingly important, including corruption of water issues such as toxic pollution and conflicts around water rights and territories. Saturn has traditional associations with water, wells, and waterside trades and this will be amplified by being in Pisces along with Neptune. Yet on a metaphorical, inner level of symbolism, we can expect to be brought back to watery states through the dissolution and coagulation of the solutio alchemical phase. The solutio phase involves the dissolution of solid, differentiated matter into its original undifferentiated state, known as the prima materia. One of the reasons water is associated with spiritual regeneration is due to the alchemical concept that substances cannot be transformed until reduced to prima materia. While the transit of Saturn through Pisces will ultimately deliver solutions by dissolving obstructions, we can expect to pass through some disorienting and confusing stages of development as we adjust to Saturn and Neptune residing in Pisces together.

Chauvet cave paintings

Jupiter & Chiron in Aries

The Virgo Full Moon is additionally significant for announcing the coming together of Jupiter and Chiron into a conjunction on 12 March at 14°26’ Aries, initiating a new cycle between them. The influence of Jupiter and Chiron in Aries will be brought into the mix of the lunation through forming an antiscia relationship with the Virgo Full Moon. Jupiter and Chiron have a cycle that lasts about thirteen years, with their current cycle beginning in 2009 with three conjunctions in the third decan of Aquarius that were also in close proximity with Neptune.

I’ve previously shared an article about the Jupiter and Chiron cycle written by Brian Clark due to feeling deep resonance with his description of its meaning. Though Jupiter and Chiron have vastly different meanings in astrology, Clark shared how their mythology shares the landscape of Mt. Pelion in Greece where two sanctuaries on either side of the mountain brought Chiron and Zeus together into contrasting sides of the same location. Clark made the insightful point that while the sanctuary of Zeus on the southern side of the slope received the full light of the Sun, Chiron’s cave on the northern side of the mountain was shaded. This connects well with how Chiron opens the door to the shady side of our psyche, tending the threshold of our conscious awareness with the deep well of wisdom found within unconscious depths and ancestral influences. As described by Brian Clark, “Chiron’s gaze was down, to an inner landscape, a cave of night. Yet in that cave was also one of the first mythic mystery schools where disenfranchised and orphaned youth were educated in the skills of healing and combat, learning the wisdom of the wound and the insight of a warrior.”

Clark further illuminated that “as an embodiment of suffering, of pain and mortality, Chiron confronts our compulsion to fix, to overcome and resolve . . . In his cave, the instinct to fix it and feel better is held long enough for the soulful symbols in our symptoms to be appreciated as images of healing.” The capacity to tend soulful material will be further accentuated by the presence of Vesta in Aries alongside Jupiter and Chiron. The sacred focus and inner fire of Vesta can help illuminate the messages and meaning found within whatever symptoms of deeper issues have been stirred up by Jupiter and Chiron. There is also an immense quality of courageous resilience constellated between Vesta, Chiron, and Jupiter in Aries, an indomitable spirt that can persist through the kind of difficulties that lead some to believe that all has been lost. Issues around societal oppression, marginalized identities, refugees and the displaced will become more prominent as Jupiter sparks a new cycle with Chiron. Jupiter’s presence with Chiron offers the hope of forming supportive alliances and envisioning ways of organizing action to address inequities.

9 of Pentacles by Pamela Colman Smith

Virgo 2 Decan

The Virgo Full Moon will illuminate the second decan of Virgo associated with the Nine of Pentacles card illustrated above by Pamela Colman Smith. The image is saturated in a golden aura, with an elegant woman covered in flowing, golden robes. On her hand sits a hooded falcon, its capacity for swift flight and hyper vision temporarily restrained. Surrounding her are ripening grapevines and a large estate upon which we can imagine numerous marvels of nature and art residing. Since it is a tarot card associated with gains in wealth and creation of beautiful works, it makes sense that the second decan of Virgo is the face of Venus and Saturn. While Venus is like the guiding star of beauty and love that gives us an overarching reason to seek wealth we can share with others, Saturn functions as the force of necessity, discipline, and hard work required to seed, cultivate, and gather a bountiful harvest or shape prima materia into rarefied form.

In Henrich Cornelius Agrippa’s Three Books of Occult Philosophy, a “black man” rises in the second decan of Virgo “wearing skins, and the man has wool and holds a satchel; this signifies gain and accumulation of substance and greed.” The Birhat Jakarta has a somewhat similar image, except for the figure being armed with a pen and bow: “a man with a pen in the hand, dark complexion, the head tied round by a cloth, counting gains and expenditure, covered over the body with dense hair and holding a bow.” A similar image was also described by Ibn Ezra, who pictured a man covered in hair with three garments: “one of leather, the second of silk, and the third is a red mantle.” The Picatrix gives a similar image of a man dressed in layers of leather and iron. T. Susan Chang in 36 Secrets made the astute observation that the encasement found within the Nine of Pentacles is similarly found in these traditional images featuring figures covered in hair and different layers of clothing. Chang wrote that the “progression from comfort to protection to display reflects the turning of the mind’s eye from inward to outward, from concern for the self to awareness of the Other.” Chang wrote that the “gain” associated with the second decan of Virgo involves the “differential created by the outer appearance vs the inner reality; the image we put on in order to meet the world. The question is: does that outer glamor connect us to, or separate us from, that which we seek?”

Austin Coppock in 36 Faces ascribed the image of “The Hammer and the Anvil” to the second face of Virgo. Coppock connected the covered traditional images for this decan as relating to the encasing of spirit within matter, a state which “fortifies but also conceals the spirit’s light,” resulting in the “inherent beauty of spirit” becoming “visible only in the clever and gainful manner by which it shapes the world.” Coppock described a theme of continual reshaping and refinement of matter in this decan that results in beautiful products and gains in wealth, yet “conceals the pain and toil utterly necessary for its creation.” Coppock concluded that this face brings alchemical “understanding of the many beautiful and repulsive states the matter attains throughout the Magnum Opus,” while the “residents of this decan oversee the ever-transforming world, guiding and shaping the Great Work on a microcosmic level,” inspecting and keeping track of how efficiently material processes are operating.

On one hand we can consider how the meaning of this decan holds the fact that the ease of comfort afforded by our modern technology conceals the oppression and trauma inflicted on those who must toil in harsh conditions as part of the chain which leads to the final product. On the other hand, we can consider what inner and outer hardships we inflict upon ourselves in order to achieve our conception of perfected form in the world. While there may be necessary trials we must endure to achieve our goals, in other cases we may realize ways to reorder external goals to tend to the quality of our inner life in more fulfilling and satisfying ways.

The Hellenistic text the 36 Airs linked the Moirai to the second face of Virgo. These are the daughters of Necessity, the goddesses of fate: Clotho the spinner of the threads of life, Lachesis the measurer of fateful threads, and Atropos who cuts the threads. In Plato’s Myth of Er, the Moriai not only ascribe ones destiny but also the guardian daimon who can bring guidance in accordance with one’s intrinsic virtue and authentic character. As the Moirai are central to the incarnation of our primal spirit within our material bodies, this connects back to how Austin Coppock described the second decan of Virgo as a place where “spirt has enclosed itself in a dense body here in order to gain control over gross layers of the physical plane and to oversee its processes with a keen eye.”

The presence of the Moirai with the Full Moon in Virgo demands questioning whether we are exerting ourselves in the true work of our destiny or if we are instead putting ourselves through difficulties so that we may merely get by and survive in our materialistic culture. With Saturn entering a new sign, imagine where you would like to be with your life and work by the end of its passage through Pisces in 2026. Let the light of the Virgo Full Moon illuminate the smaller steps you can take now that will lead toward your larger vision.

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References

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

Chang, T. Susan. (2021). 36 Secrets: A Decanic Journey through the Minor Arcana of the Tarot. Anima Mundi Press.

Clark, Brian. (2022). The Jupiter-Chiron Cycle: Weaving the Ways of Wisdom.

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

Virgo New Moon

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Pour Gustave l’adoré by Dorothea Tanning

New Moon in Virgo

The New Moon in Virgo on September 6 heralds the coming turn of season, uniting Moon with Sun sixteen days before the Libra Equinox initiates the final quarter of 2021. As a mutable sign Virgo bears wisdom for transitions, for attuning to how our inner mutations may emerge within the changing external circumstances surrounding us. The accelerated pace of change that has been present throughout 2021 will not be easing in the season ahead, and so the darkness of the lunation is ideal for drawing inward away from the cacophony of current events to become rooted within the inner ground of your essential integrity. In correspondence with the rebirth of another lunar cycle, make the time and space for connecting with the resources and relationships that nurture your capacity for creativity, that inspire inventive expression and provide a container for giving life to your deepest desires.

The Virgo New Moon is centered within activating aspects that can stoke forward progress on goals yet require thorough application of the sharp discernment that can be cultivated within the zodiacal terrain of the Winged Maiden. The Virgo Moon is applying to an exact trine aspect with Uranus in Taurus as well as an opposition with Neptune in Pisces, a trine with Pluto in Capricorn, and a conjunction with Mars in Virgo. The earthy triangle formed between the lunation with Uranus, Pluto, and Mars can foster tangible productivity that can be helpful in breaking free from what no longer is working or ways in which you have felt stuck or stagnant. The synergy between the Virgo New Moon with Uranus, Pluto, and Mars can generate the courage and determination to take a new risk in not only constructing plans and conceiving goals, but also following through with meaningful effort.

Yet the boundless, oceanic expanse of Neptune must also be taken into account as the waxing Moon will form an opposition with Neptune on September 7 followed by the Sun in Virgo forming an opposition with Neptune a week later on September 14. While there are many illusory choices to circumvent within a digital age of misinformation and endless distractions, the underlying influence of Neptune upon the lunation can facilitate a release of conditioned beliefs into its dissolving waves. Rather than restricting your path forward based upon what you have led yourself to believe is or is not possible for you to create, see what new vistas of imagination enter awareness through exploration of inner landscapes. Allow a refreshing reordering of longterm goals to emerge that will be in greater alignment with the dreams you want to manifest.

The astrology of 2021 has been centered upon the kind of change that unsettles and disrupts our former sense of normalcy, a trend that will be continuing to occur at an accelerated pace. Indeed, the astrology of the final quarter of the year promises to bring another round of increased volatility that can upturn old storylines and structures while providing impetus for embracing an enlivened resiliency in pursuing what we truly wish to create with our lives in spite of the obstacles we will need to work through. As a result, the Virgo New Moon will be opportune for contemplating and clarifying the various desires and ideas you have been carrying and considering so that you may be more focused on forging an authentic path forward.

Aurora by Remedios Varo

Mercury in Libra rules the Virgo New Moon while separating from a flowing trine aspect with Saturn and applying toward a tense opposition with Chiron in Aries. Mercury is in both the airy home of Venus and the exaltation of Saturn, and so has support through its harmonious aspect with Saturn and the fact that Venus is also present within her domicile of Libra during the lunation. As a result, both sides of the ongoing square aspect between Saturn and Uranus are involved in harmonious aspects during the lunation, with the New Moon in trine with Uranus and its ruler Mercury in trine with Saturn. Mercury in Libra can assist in finding a greater degree of balance in recovering from any difficulties that have led us to feel off-kilter, despondent, or overwhelmed amidst so many collective and personal changes occurring at once in recent months.  The airy nature of Mercury in Libra combined with Venus, Jupiter, and Saturn also occupying air signs can help in connecting with restorative sources of uplifting inspiration and creativity. 

In contrast, the opposition between Mercury with Chiron in Aries can help pinpoint internal issues and blocks that have been getting in the way of pursuing passions connected with our greater purpose. Pay attention to signs in your environment or insights gleaned through relational encounters for messages regarding wounds or places of vulnerability needing your care and awareness. As the Moon waxes in light during the forthcoming lunar cycle into the Full Moon in Pisces on September 20, Mercury will move from its opposition with Chiron into a trine with Jupiter in Aquarius and a square aspect with Pluto in Capricorn. Mercury will be in position to not only dig into internal issues that have been limiting our growth, but also to find the support needed to find ways of moving through places of previous restriction into important development. Mercury in the airy sign of Libra can be helpful in remaining flexible in response to arising challenges, drawing from the strength that Libra possesses in communication and listening as well as both intellectual and aesthetic arrangement and analysis.

Heron Maiden by Nakamura Daizaburo

Providing a buoyant boost underneath the Virgo New Moon is the harmonious trine aspect between Venus and Jupiter, the two planets considered to be the beneficial sources of the good and the beautiful in the astrological tradition. Venus is at full strength in her airy home of Libra, as well as glowing bright in the night sky in her Evening Star phase. In fact, in the days before the lunation Venus made a visible conjunction with the beneficial fixed star Spica in the night sky. Spica symbolizes the wheat held by the Winged Maiden of the Virgo constellation and signifies a brilliant gift or talent. Since Venus crossed Spica in the sky while forming a flowing trine with Jupiter in the days before the lunation, make space within the fertile darkness of the Virgo New Moon to explore what important message about your own unique gifts and talents that the star of Aphrodite is bringing to your attention.

In addition to Venus separating from a trine with Jupiter that can help with stabilizing amidst currents of change, Venus is also separating from a more disruptive square aspect with Pluto in Capricorn during the Virgo New Moon. The square between Venus with Pluto may dredge up issues within relationships that need attention and mediation as well as unearth desires we had been denying or resisting. Due to the trine between Venus with Jupiter at the same time, however, there will be opportunities to make productive use out of whatever deep material becomes stirred up by the tension between Venus and Pluto. As 2021 will end with an extended period of Venus being in close proximity with Pluto in Capricorn due to Venus stationing retrograde in Capricorn on December 19, it will be wise to make space for sorting through what Venus and Pluto force to the surface.

Venus is also separating from a recent conjunction with Vesta in Libra that took place on September 3, with Vesta applying to a trine with Jupiter and a square with Pluto. While Venus in Libra has an emphasis on relationship and social interaction, the recent contact between Vesta with Venus could have revealed insightful meaning regarding how to rebalance relational dynamics in greater alignment with inner needs and our authentic being. Vesta draws attention to the inner hearth of our heart and what is front and center within our inner desires. As Vesta in Libra follows the path of Venus through the same aspects recently formed between Venus with Jupiter and Pluto, we may deepen into contact and discovery of the inner desires needing our attention removed from the demands of external relationships. Vesta in Libra can hold space for the experiences and material dug up by Venus with Pluto as well as whatever inspiring yearning arose from the contact between Venus and Jupiter, helping us sift through their meaning with acceptance that allows for necessary integration.

Self Portrait by Dorothea Tanning

While Venus is comfortably at home in Libra during the Virgo New Moon, within a week of the lunation she will enter the deep waters of Scorpio. As the Moon waxes toward the Full Moon in Pisces on September 20, Venus will enter Scorpio on September 10 and will be less than three degrees away from an exact opposition with Uranus in Taurus at the time of the upcoming Pisces Full Moon. This means that Venus will be setting off the ongoing square aspect between Uranus and Saturn, with Venus in Scorpio forming an exact square aspect with Saturn in Aquarius on September 16 before forming an exact opposition with Uranus in Taurus on September 23. As a result, we can expect another round of dramatic changes in storylines especially within relationships; previously in this past year, Venus set off the friction between Uranus and Saturn from the sign of Aquarius in mid February, from Taurus at the end of April, and from Leo in early July. Venus in Scorpio will encourage an unflinching gaze into the internal dynamics present within relationships, helping us uncover issues that have been buried, feeling into the emotional impact of the changes taking shape in our lives.

Mercury in Libra will also be on a pivotal journey during the forthcoming lunar cycle that will correlate with pivotal events in storylines for us to respond to. Indeed, Mercury is crossing the threshold into its “retrograde shadow zone” during the New Moon in Virgo, meaning that it will ultimately return to the same degree it is occupying during the Virgo New Moon when it stations direct on October 18. This means that in between the Virgo New Moon and October 18, Mercury will move from ten degrees of Libra to 25°28’ Libra when it stations retrograde on September 26, and then will backtrack through the same degrees until stationing direct at 10°07’ Libra on October 18. Contemplate the aspects and house topics this degree range in Libra applies to in your natal chart to begin getting a sense of the issues related to the upcoming Mercury retrograde period that will begin emerging in your life following the Virgo New Moon.

While Mercury is moving direct with the strength of its own visible light during the waxing half of the forthcoming lunar cycle, the fact that Mercury will eventually return to the same degree it is occupying during the Virgo New Moon means that some issues and experiences emerging following the lunation will end up needing to be returned to for reflection and reworking in one way or another. If you realize an important project you are developing is aligning with this same timeframe, it doesn’t mean you should refrain from proceeding but rather be mindful of how things are proceeding step by step, promptly responding to arising issues. The extended period of time that Mercury will spend in Libra from now until early November will give the star of Hermes ample time for thoroughly working through whatever we are designing and generating with our creative output.

9 of Pentacles by Pamela Colman Smith

Virgo 2 Decan

The New Moon in Virgo is in the second decan of Virgo associated with the Nine of Pentacles card illustrated above by Pamela Colman Smith. The image is saturated with a golden aura, with an elegant woman covered in flowing, golden robes. On her hand sits a hooded falcon, its capacity for swift flight and hyper vision temporarily restrained. Surrounding her are ripening grapevines and a large estate upon which we can imagine numerous marvels of nature and art residing. Since it is a tarot card associated with gains in wealth and creation of beautiful works, it makes sense that Venus and Saturn are the co-rulers of the second face of Virgo. While Venus is like the guiding star of beauty and love that gives us an overarching reason to seek wealth we can share with others, Saturn functions as the force of necessity, discipline, and hard work required to seed, cultivate, and gather a bountiful harvest or shape primal material into rarefied form.

Austin Coppock in his book on the decans 36 Faces ascribed the image of “The Hammer and the Anvil” to the second face of Virgo. Coppock described a theme of continual reshaping and refinement of matter in this decan that results in beautiful products and gains in wealth, yet “conceals the pain and toil utterly necessary for its creation.” Coppock concluded that this face brings alchemical “understanding of the many beautiful and repulsive states the matter attains throughout the Magnum Opus,” while the “residents of this decan oversee the ever-transforming world, guiding and shaping the Great Work on a microcosmic level,” inspecting and keeping track of how efficiently material processes are running.

Interestingly, the Hellenistic text the 36 Airs linked the Moirai to the second face of Virgo. These are the daughters of Necessity, the goddesses of fate: Clotho the spinner of the threads of life, Lachesis the measurer of fateful threads, and Atropos who cuts the threads. In Plato’s Myth of Er, the Moriai not only ascribe ones destiny but also the guardian daimon who can bring guidance in accordance with one’s intrinsic virtue and authentic character. As the Virgo New Moon initiates us into the final quarter of 2021 and a season of changes that will likely contain significant experiences that feel like they have a fated quality, making the time and space to center within your essential character will help in discerning how to navigate forward. Like the inspired guidance provided by one’s guardian angel, make the choice to share more of your creativity and gifts with your wider community.

If you enjoy my writing please consider supporting my work through a monthly subscription on my Patreon page. Take a look to see the benefits you will receive as a patron!

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References

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

Full Moon in Virgo

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Full Moon in Virgo

Felix-Hilaire Buhot (1879) Lady of the Swans

Full Moon in Virgo

The Full Moon in Virgo on March 9 illuminates the finale of the Mercury retrograde period we have been experiencing ever since Mercury stationed retrograde on February 16.  The Full Moon is in the exaltation and nocturnal home of Mercury, bringing amplified potency to Mercury stationing direct at 28°12′ Aquarius about ten hours after the Moon reaches its peak light. The Virgo Full Moon will center awareness within the streams of changing circumstances and relationships that have been taking place during the past three liminal weeks of Mercury looping retrograde. While the lunation may spark perception of concrete actions that need to be taken as well as adjustments that need to be made, the simultaneous conjunction between Neptune and the Sun in Pisces will cast a mist over proceedings we will need to clarify.

Virgo is the inwardly directed, earthy home of Mercury that facilitates analyzing, sorting, organizing, and synthesizing the kind of ineffable, immaterial insights we can receive when Neptune unites with the Sun in Pisces. The Virgo Moon can be a keen aid in discerning revelations and understanding regarding whatever has been shifting and rearranging during the past month of Mercury retrograde. In particular, if you have been feeling confused as if you have been swept out into a sea of illusion or excessive idealism, the Virgo Full Moon will provide dry  land for you to wash up onshore and regain your bearings. If there is melancholy to deal with due to disillusionment, there are galvanizing aspects to the Virgo Full Moon that will enliven efforts to reorient as needed to whatever has been unveiled about reality.

The Full Moon in Virgo is separating from an invigorating trine aspect with Mars in Capricorn and is applying toward a flowing and stabilizing trine aspect with Jupiter in Capricorn. The Virgo Moon weaving in between Mars in its exaltation and Jupiter in its fall of Capricorn will focalize attention toward the conjunction between Mars and Jupiter that will occur on March 20 during the Aries Equinox. There is extreme potency being stirred up between Mars and Jupiter that can be directed toward work and creative expression, and so it will be vital to set clear intention for where and for whom you wish to invest your energy and time.

The Virgo Full Moon is also forming a flowing trine aspect with the asteroid Pallas Athena, which is currently mediating in between Mars and Jupiter. Pallas Athena will form a conjunction with Mars on March 17 and then will slowly build toward an eventual conjunction with Jupiter on March 28 that will also be less than one degree away from Pluto in Capricorn. Pallas Athena accentuates our capacity for visualizing a blueprint to follow in achieving goals, yet we need to be prudent and wisely explore options. Rather than simply following the whims of desire for ambitious growth, work with the creative contraction of Capricorn and distill the essential work that is most deserving of attention. We will need to navigate volatile changes within collective events as Saturn enters Aquarius on March 21 while Mars, Jupiter, and Pluto come together in Capricorn, yet within the corresponding catharsis we can make significant breakthroughs and advancements if we have a clear target to direct energy toward.

jmw turner norham castle, sunrise

JMW Turner (1845) Norham Castle, Sunrise

Mercury in Aquarius rules the Full Moon as it is standing still and stationing direct at 28º12′ Aquarius. Mercury finally became visible again in its Morning Star phase in the days leading up to the Virgo Full Moon, and so the Star of Hermes will be heralding the rise of the Sun on the morning of the lunation as birdsong fills the air. It’s more important than normal to bring mindfulness to every moment when Mercury is stationing so that we can be alert to unexpected twists and turns in storylines brought by the tricky messenger planet. It will also be important to pay close attention to the symbolism of signs and omens within our daily actions and nightly dreams, as Mercury will be delivering guidance through a multitude of forms within nature.

Indeed, it will be vital to listen to nature and watch for signs as Mercury pauses in stillness as the Virgo Moon forms an opposition with Neptune and the Sun in Pisces. Contact with Neptune opens us to the wisdom found in the otherworldly and wherever we feel the presence of the interconnected, underlying fabric of reality. As the solar rays infused with Neptune prepare to emerge once again from the fertile night, as Mercury flashes its morning light above the dewy mist covering the earth as we awaken from dream, we can release ourselves from old illusions and engage with the arising inspiration that brings life to our imagination. Neptune injecting its mystifying qualities into the Pisces Sun may make us want to drift into daydream, lay near water, listen to rapturous music, or engage in any other way we can journey into imaginal fantasy. It may be harder than normal to take care of monotonous tasks, but the foggy mists of Neptune united with the Sun is a passing influence.

During the waning half of the current lunar cycle, Mercury will slowly begin to move forward again and will return to Pisces on March 16. As Mercury returns to Pisces, you may notice a return to some of the topics and themes you were especially immersed in during the retrograde movement of Mercury in Pisces from February 16 through March 4. Now that Mercury is shining in light again in the liminal space before dawn, it will be taking on a more active, diurnal quality of being curious about new information and actively forging new connections between ideas and developing plans. Mercury will pick up speed and return to moving faster than the Sun as it reaches its maximum elongation as a Morning Star on March 23, just in time for the New Moon in Aries on March 24. Thus as the light of the Moon wanes from its peak at the Virgo Full Moon into darkness, Mercury will be increasing in light and speed and in its capacity for initiating new lessons and achieving results.

Shields Lighthouse circa 1826 by Joseph Mallord William Turner 1775-1851

JMW Turner (1826) Shields Lighthouse

As the Virgo Full Moon rises in the east following sunset, Venus in Taurus will be burning brightly in the twilight of the west. Venus is separating from a conjunction with Uranus in Taurus it completed on March 8, and so the Virgo Full Moon is providing critical insight not only into our relationship with Neptune in Pisces but also with Uranus in Taurus. This is only the second time that we have experienced Venus uniting with Uranus in Taurus (previously they conjoined on May 18, 2019), and so as Venus is receiving Uranus into its inwardly directed home we may experience an enlivening of flavorful aesthetics, sensuality, and sense of harmony. Within relationships, Venus combined with Uranus in Taurus can help in finding allies and forming fellowship with those who resonate with and support our authentic values and passions.

Furthermore, Venus in Taurus is also forming harmonious aspects with the transiting lunar nodes, forming a sextile with the North Node of the Moon in Cancer and a trine with the South Node of the Moon in Capricorn. During March, Venus shining bright as an Evening Star in her earthy home will be serving as a gift bearing goddess who can help in bringing balance within our relationship with others, with the divine, and with our own body and being. While Venus remains in close proximity with Uranus, however, there will be a greater likelihood for erratic or unexpected gains and losses in pursuit of goals. Fortunately, Venus provides a stable presence in the fixed earth sign of Taurus to regulate shifting elements so as to bring about eventual success. Moreover, under the emancipatory influence of Uranus we can feel motivated to take creative risks and discover innovative breakthroughs we would never find by doing things the way we have in the past.

While Venus is forming stabilizing aspects with the transiting lunar nodes, Chiron in Aries is applying to a catalytic and volatilizing square aspect with the transiting lunar nodes. Chiron at the southern bending of the lunar nodes will bring attention to recovering whatever you have felt you needed to abandon about your essential purpose to fit in with cultural expectations. A key aspect of the collective wound Chiron in Aries will be tending is the intersection between systems of oppression within civilization with one’s identity and core purpose. Chiron will form an exact square aspect with the true calculation of the lunar nodes on March 13, but the aspect will be in close proximity for all of March. In fact, the upcoming New Moon in Aries on March 24 will be conjoining Chiron while also forming a square with the lunar nodes. If you want to read more about the meaning of Chiron squaring the transiting lunar nodes, I recently wrote an article for astrology.com that you can read here.

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9 of Pentacles by Pamela Colman Smith

Virgo 2 Decan

The Virgo Full Moon arises within the second decan of Virgo associated with the Nine of Pentacles illustrated above by Pamela Colman Smith. The image is saturated with a golden aura, with an elegant woman covered in flowing, golden robes. On her hand sits a hooded falcon, its capacity for swift flight and hyper vision temporarily restrained. Surrounding her are ripening grapevines and a large estate upon which we can imagine numerous marvels of nature and art residing. Since it is a tarot card associated with gains in wealth and creation of beautiful works, it makes sense that Venus and Saturn are the co-rulers of the second face of Virgo. While Venus is like the guiding star of beauty and love that gives us an overarching reason to seek wealth we can share with others, Saturn functions as the force of necessity, discipline, and hard work required to seed, cultivate, and gather a bountiful harvest or shape primal material into rarefied form.

Austin Coppock in his book on the decans 36 Faces ascribed the image of “The Hammer and the Anvil” to the second face of Virgo. Coppock described a theme of continual reshaping and refinement of matter in this decan that results in beautiful products and gains in wealth, yet “conceals the pain and toil utterly necessary for its creation.” Coppock concluded that this face brings alchemical “understanding of the many beautiful and repulsive states the matter attains throughout the Magnum Opus,” while the “residents of this decan oversee the ever-transforming world, guiding and shaping the Great Work on a microcosmic level,” inspecting and keeping track of how efficiently material processes are running.

Interestingly, the Hellenistic text the 36 Airs linked the Moirai to the second face of Virgo. These are the daughters of Necessity, the goddesses of fate: Clotho the spinner of the threads of life, Lachesis the measurer of fateful threads, and Atropos who cuts the threads. These goddesses of fate appearing in this decan remind us to center within the actual currents of life so that choices can be discerned that will allow one to navigate accordingly. In Plato’s Myth of Er, the Moriai not only ascribe ones destiny but also the guardian daimon who can bring guidance in accordance with virtue and authentic character. While there are many upsetting events occurring in collective events we cannot change, we do possess the inherent character to respond with responsible virtue rather than in a way that goes against the nature of our higher self. Within the light of the Virgo Full Moon, shed attachment to the false, illusory entrapments of surface desires and ambitions to kindle connection with the primal, burning, daimonic light of your essential self and character that can provide guidance during the coming changes in season and circumstance.

References

Coppock, Austin. (2014). 36 Faces: the history, astrology, and magic of the decans. Three Hands Press.

New Moon in Virgo

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Winged Sphinx from Petra, Jordan

New Moon in Virgo

Virgo is a mutable sign of seasonal transition, as in the northern hemisphere we shift from Summer into Fall, while in the southern hemisphere we complete Winter in turn for Spring. The New Moon in Virgo on September 9 similarly serves as a bridge between distinct astrological seasons. Previously, we experienced a volatile series of eclipses with numerous planets in retrograde, most notably Mars and Mercury. Now within the darkness of the Virgo New Moon we are experiencing the gravitas of Saturn having stationed direct a few days before the syzygy, bringing us into a lunar cycle ideal for generating forward momentum and taking care of whatever responsibilities need our attention following a season of volatility.  Within a month, however, Venus will station retrograde and by the time the star of Aphrodite has completed her backward motion in November we will also have experienced the lunar nodes moving into Cancer and Capricorn, Uranus moving back into Aries, and Jupiter entering its domicile of Sagittarius. The Virgo New Moon thus connects two distinct periods of change inducing astrological influences.

The recent stationing of Saturn makes the ringed planet’s significations take precedence, and with Saturn in Capricorn in range of creating an earthy triangle with Mercury in Virgo and Uranus in Taurus, there is great potential for clarifying goals and the priorities and tasks necessary for effective manifestation. Yet the Virgo New Moon is separating from an opposition with Neptune in Pisces, an aspect which lends itself more so to simply enjoying the presence of being rather than diligently taking care of work details. As I wrote about recently, the planetary nodes of Neptune were strongly activated in recent months, and transiting Neptune in Pisces has likewise been an important influence.  If we have been able to take time for imaginal exploration of whatever we most want to bring into the world, the Virgo New Moon is perfect for discerning choices and following through on action for development.

The Virgo New Moon is full of resilient, visionary aspects as it is applying to a harmonious sextile with Jupiter in Scorpio and an empowering trine with Pluto in Capricorn. Rather than being lost in a cloud of Neptunian fog, the Virgo New Moon can aid in recovering from disillusionment with the state of the world in order to invest energy in our own personal projects or in helping others in collective efforts toward the greater needs of our surrounding community. Jupiter in Scorpio has completed its final exact trine with Neptune in Pisces and is applying tightly toward its final exact sextile with Pluto in Capricorn.  We’ve been experiencing Jupiter in Scorpio since 10 October 2017, and the Virgo New Moon signals the time to make a final push to complete or make significant progress in realizing whatever growth opportunities have coincided with Jupiter’s time in the fixed sign of the Scorpion.

the-sacred-wood-arnold-bocklin

Arnold Bocklin The Sacred Wood

Mercury rules the New Moon from its home and exaltation of Virgo, separating from an earth triangle with Saturn in Capricorn and Uranus in Taurus. Mercury is experiencing a phase change during the New Moon, heading under the beams of the Sun and disappearing from view on its way toward a union with the Sun in Virgo on September 20. This means we have come to the end of the synodic cycle of Mercury that began with its superior conjunction on June 5, which was interestingly in square to Neptune in Pisces. With the ruler of the New Moon at home in Virgo, it amplifies the potential of the New Moon to help us recover and move forward from all of the change that has occurred since the beginning of June. Mercury in Virgo is ideal for analysis, organization, and clarifying decision making.

As Mercury moves toward its rebirth with the Sun on September 20 at 28º02′ Virgo, it will recreate the same aspects with Neptune, Pluto, and Jupiter that the New Moon possesses. On September 13 Mercury will form an opposition to Neptune in Pisces, then on September 15 Mercury will form a trine with Pluto in Capricorn, and then on September 16 Mercury will form a sextile with Jupiter in Scorpio. All of this will occur in the build-up not only to the superior conjunction of Mercury on September 20, but also to the Aries Full Moon on September 24. Thus during the week of September 13 through the 20 we can experience a manifestation or significant development toward whatever we set in motion at the Virgo New Moon.

Bocklin Schwanengrotte

Arnold Bocklin Schwanengrotte

One of the most significant elements of the Virgo New Moon is the entrance of Venus into Scorpio that coincides with the lunation.  One reason is that as soon as Venus enters Scorpio, it instantly begins to tightly form an opposition with Uranus in Taurus. The tension of the polarity between Uranus and Venus is somewhat mitigated due to Venus receiving Uranus, but it is likely to coincide with sudden and rapid developments in associated areas of life (for example whatever places in your natal chart are occupied by Scorpio and Taurus). Most importantly, this is the first of three oppositions that will be formed by Venus and Uranus in the coming months. This is due to the fact that after Venus completes the opposition with Uranus on September 12, it will be slowing down as it approaches its retrograde station on October 5 which will lead it to forming two more oppositions with Uranus on October 31 and November 30. Thus more so than a temporary activation of Venus and Uranus, the Virgo New Moon launches us into an extended process of change we will not fully have understood until December. For now, it will be helpful to begin taking note of whatever changes arise in storylines while also realizing we are only at the beginning of navigating the corresponding developments.

Venus remains a bright evening star during the night of the Virgo New Moon, so enjoy her luminescence as each subsequent evening she will be descending lower and lower during twilight as she approaches her retrograde in October when she will disappear from visibility.  Venus is also forming harmonious, pivotal aspects as not only is she opposing Uranus in Taurus, but also forming harmonious sextile aspects with both Saturn in Capricorn and Mercury in Virgo. In addition, Venus completed a catalytic square aspect with Mars the day before the New Moon on September 8, an aspect which stirred up all of the material that has been in a process of change over the course of the past few months. Due to Venus stationing retrograde at the beginning of October, it means that Venus and Mars will form another exact square on October 10. Therefore, similar to the opposition formed by Venus with Uranus, its square aspect with Mars also takes us into an extended process of change rather than a temporary impetus.

Mars returns to Aquarius on September 10, a day after the Virgo New Moon, meaning that it will basically be sustaining tension with Venus over the course of the next month.  Mars will be approaching its final conjunction with the South Node of the Moon in Aquarius during the waxing cycle of the Moon, forming its exact conjunction with the South Node on September 25, a day after the Aries Full Moon. Taking all of this into account, it means the lunar cycle we begin with the Virgo New Moon will not only bring significant developments, but also deeper understanding regarding whatever changes we have been experiencing, or however we have been feeling stuck or obstructed.  The forthcoming lunar cycle demands clear thinking bound with decisive action and a willingness to confront whatever is not working, devising solutions as needed.  We will need the resilient desire of Venus in Scorpio that will penetrate to the depths of dilemmas, and with Jupiter co-present in Scorpio there is strength to be found in taking a stand and persisting in the face of opposition.

pents09

9 of Pentacles by Pamela Colman Smith

Virgo 2 Decan

The New Moon in Virgo falls in the third face of Virgo associated with the Nine of Pentacles card illustrated above by Pamela Colman Smith. The image is resplendent with a golden aura surrounding a Venusian figure, and fittingly Venus is the ruler of the second face of Virgo.  On her hand sits a bird of prey ready to strike out for resources, while ripening grapevines surround her.  This tarot card is traditionally associated with gains in wealth, and Austin Coppock in his book on the decans 36 Faces analyzed how the hooded falcon (a symbol of spirit enclosed in matter) is a protector of the grapevine resources linked to her wealth since it feeds on the creatures who would damage the growth of the grapes.  Coppock found a theme of continual reshaping and refinement of matter in this decan that unveils the diverse extremes of experiences that unite within the final form of a created work that contains spirit:  “Alchemically, this face provides understanding of the many beautiful and repulsive states the matter attains throughout the Magnum Opus . . . . [and] brings one to inspect material processes and note the efficiency or lack thereof” (p. 146).

Interestingly, the fragmentary Hellenistic text the 36 Airs linked the Moirai to the second face of Virgo.  These are the daughters of Necessity, the goddesses of fate: Clotho the spinner of the threads of life, Lachesis the measurer of fateful threads, and Atropos who cuts the threads.  These goddesses of fate appearing in this decan remind us to center within the actual currents of life so that choices can be discerned that will allow one to navigate accordingly.  In Plato’s Myth of Er, the Moriai not only ascribe ones destiny but also the guardian daimon who can bring guidance in accordance with virtue and authentic character. While there are many upsetting events occurring in collective events we cannot change, we do possess the inherent character to respond with responsible virtue rather than in a way that goes against the nature of our higher self.  The current shift toward a time of Venus retrograde will bring tests and events saturated with the feel of destiny, bringing forth deeper aspects of our Self and realizations of purpose and potential. To paraphrase Carl Jung, free will is doing that which one must do.

References

Coppock, Austin. (2014). 36 Faces: the history, astrology, and magic of the decans. Three Hands Press.

 

Virgo Full Moon: Pisces Wave

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Rosette

India (1645) from Metropolitan Museum of Art

Full Moon in Virgo

Now all the truth is out,
Be secret and take defeat
From any brazen throat,
For how can you compete,
Being honour bred, with one
Who, were it proved he lies,
Were neither shamed in his own
Nor in his neighbours’ eyes?
Bred to a harder thing
Than Triumph, turn away
And like a laughing string
Whereon mad fingers play
Amid a place of stone,
Be secret and exult,
Because of all things known
That is most difficult.

To a Friend whose Work has come to Nothing by W.B. Yeats

The Full Moon in Virgo on March 1 is full of inspirational force, imaginal vision and emotional tidal waves.  The Sun, Neptune, Mercury, Venus, and Chiron are all lined up in Pisces opposite the Moon in Virgo, with the lunation’s intensity deepened by a harmonious aspect with Jupiter in Scorpio and catalyzed with explosive vitality by an amplified Mars in Sagittarius.   Ideally during the period of fully reflected light one can situate themselves in a place of stimulating learning or creativity where the dynamic force of the Full Moon can be transmitted into tactile manifestation or revelatory reception.  The potential conflict from Mars comes from dogmatic ideals and subjective projections within an atmosphere making the dry discernment of Virgo challenging.  Mercury rules the Full Moon as it applies to a union with Venus in Pisces and so we experience the Moon in Virgo under the sway of poetic richness, emotional reception, and the intuitive knowing of feelings within the body.

There is simply something sublime about the Moon in Virgo ripening full in reflection of light cast by the Sun uniting with Neptune in Pisces.  In Virgo we can sense the spirit in our flesh and the soul of the earth around us like nowhere else in the zodiac.  Virgo can both discern and analyze insight from difficult or confusing experiences, as well as weave together meaning into tangible forms of shared understanding.  Attaining calm presence in the moment amidst the tumult of ceaseless change is key to optimize the grounded, pragmatic wisdom available in the sign of the Winged Maiden.  The overflowing Piscean influence on the surrounding time period of the lunation makes it easier than normal to fall into illusory pursuits or projections, yet the combined earthiness of the Virgo Full Moon in harmonious relationship with Saturn in Capricorn brings the potential to make the magic of Pisces real, true, and embodied.

deer mandala of kasuga shrine
Japanese silk scroll (late 14th century)

The Virgo Full Moon is ruled by Mercury in Pisces applying to conjoin Venus and Chiron in Pisces, as well as applying to a stabilizing trine with Jupiter in Scorpio.  Mercury resides in Pisces in polarity to both its home and exaltation in Virgo, yet since it is being received by Jupiter it has the resources of Jupiter fully loaded in its tool kit.  Combine the fact Mercury is simultaneously uniting with Venus in its place of exaltation, and we have a deeply visionary and imaginative Mercury that can grasp understanding of one’s larger emotional environment as well as perceive creative solutions.  Flashes of intuitive, direct knowing may be received and the inward earthiness of the Moon in Virgo can facilitate processing perceptions in order to receive a harvest of important insight.

Most auspiciously, both Mercury and Venus are emerging as Evening Stars at the time of the Full Moon, regaling the twilight with their bright starry presence.  Venus has already been visible at twilight in the week leading into the lunation, but the fullness of the Moon rising is perfect for celebrating the return of Venus glowing bright on the horizon.  We haven’t been able to see Venus since she was in her Morning Star phase last November, and so her longly anticipated return to visibility is an omen of good tidings.  The following hymn “The Lady of the Evening,” adapted from ancient Sumerian text by Diane Wolkstein and Samuel Noah Kramer, celebrates the re-emergence of Venus as an evening star:

At the end of the day, the Radiant Star, the Great Light that fills the sky,
The Lady of the Evening appears in the heavens.
The people in all the lands lift their eyes to her.
The men purify themselves; the women cleanse themselves.
The ox in his yoke lows to her.
The sheep stir up the dust in their fold.
All the living creatures of the steppe,
The four-footed creatures of the high steppe,
The lush gardens and orchards, the green reeds and trees,
The fish of the deep and the birds in the heavens-
My Lady makes them all hurry to their sleeping places.

The living creatures and the numerous people of Sumer kneel before her.
Those chosen by the old women prepare great platters of food and drink for her.
The Lady refreshes herself in the land.
There is great joy in Sumer.
The young man makes love with his beloved.

My Lady looks in sweet wonder from heaven.
The people of Sumer parade before the holy Inanna.
Inanna, the Lady of the Evening, is radiant.
I sing your praises, holy Inanna.
The Lady of the Evening is radiant on the horizon.

Fascinatingly, due to Mercury slowing down and then stationing retrograde in Aries on March 22, Venus and Mercury will remain in range of a close conjunction all the way through the waning half of the forthcoming lunar cycle, so that on the following Pisces New Moon on March 17 they will still have only one degree of separation between them in Aries.  This is an unusually long time to live with Venus and Mercury transiting in such close proximity to one another and so brings an opportunity to find greater alignment between inner values and outer expression and communication.  There will be a notable shift on March 6 when both Mercury and Venus will move into Aries, bringing potential to take the inner illumination received from their time together in Pisces into direct, courageous action in the world.

While Venus and Mercury are uniting at the end of Pisces they are also taken into a deeper dimension of perception by their additional conjunction with Chiron in Pisces.  Chiron is a celestial centaur who bridges the divide between Saturn and Uranus, the key holder who brings access to vital subconscious information.  Since Mars in Sagittarius is also approaching a challenging square aspect with Chiron, there is a collective trigger that reflects the gaping, aching wounds of trauma and oppression felt throughout the collective, injuries often brought about through violence and conflict connected to dogmatic paradigms of belief.  During the days following the Full Moon there is potential to journey within to both face and dissolve old wounds that are ready to be dislodged.  However, some wounds may still feel more painful than fully engaged in healing and if this is the case the over abundance of planets in Pisces can allow for a flow of emotive release.

One of the biggest factors in the Virgo Full Moon, however, is Jupiter in Scorpio not only forming a trine to Mercury, Venus and Chiron, but also beginning to station retrograde.  Jupiter in Scorpio will station retrograde a week after the lunation on March 8 and is barely moving at the time of the Full Moon, bringing its archetype into a stronger presence within the collective.  Whenever a planet stations its archetype saturates the landscape, so prepare for lessons involving Jupiter in Scorpio to become abundantly clear.  We have passed through a season of eclipses that formed a square to Jupiter in Scorpio, and so we are primed to receive direct knowing from the accumulation of recent experiences.  Although Jupiter and Mars are not in a major aspect, they are mutually exchanging signs with Jupiter in the home of Mars and Mars in the home of Jupiter.  With regard to the additional interplay between Mars and all of the action in Pisces that Jupiter also rules, Jupiter in Scorpio can help us shed attachments to old illusions of belief and ready us for a new influx of understanding.  Once Jupiter turns retrograde in the first week of March, it will move backwards through our zodiac until stationing direct again on July 10 at 13º20′ of Scorpio.

mount meru mandala
Cosmological mandala with Mount Meru (14th century China)

While Mercury and Venus are separating from a square with Mars in Sagittarius, Mars is applying to a trine with Eris and Uranus in Aries.  When we also factor in Mars being conjoined with the asteroid Vesta at the Full Moon, there is potential to utilize the fiery volatility of Mars in Sagittarius to not only explore exciting frontiers but also utilize the focus necessary to bring something worthwhile back to share with the wider collective.  Aspects between planets are multivalent in expression, and so while there is potential destructive conflict signified by the aspects Mars is making at the Full Moon, this same energy of Mars can correspond with separating yourself from previous limitations or oppressive circumstances and making visionary strides forward.  Mars in Sagittarius is fast moving and curious with ample stores of generosity and optimistic hope available to fuel striving for greater freedom and making real progress toward idealistic pursuits.

In addition to all of the watery and fiery dynamics previously mentioned, there is also a lot of the grounded earth element involved in the Full Moon.  As the Moon waxes full in Virgo it will form a trine with Saturn in Capricorn, and then following its opposition with the Sun the Moon will move toward a trine with Pluto in Capricorn.  When we also consider the placement of the asteroid Pallas Athene in the middle of Taurus, there is a stable earth triangle formed that also involves harmonious sextile aspects between Saturn with the Sun and Neptune in Pisces.  As a result, there is potential to find surrounding structures to stabilize and ground the insight available in correspondence with the lunation into tangible manifestation.  It also highlights the availability of outlets for grounding or compassionate support if the emotional waves of the abundant Pisces influence becomes overwhelming.

pents09
9 of Pentacles by Pamela Colman Smith

Virgo 2 Decan

The Full Moon in Virgo arises in the second decan of Virgo associated with the Nine of Pentacles card illustrated above by Pamela Colman Smith. The image is resplendent with a golden aura surrounding a Venusian figure, and fittingly Venus is the ruler of the second face of Virgo.  On her hand sits a bird of prey ready to strike out for resources, while ripening grapevines surround her.  This tarot card is traditionally associated with gains in wealth, and Austin Coppock in his book on the decans 36 Faces analyzed how the hooded falcon (a symbol of spirit enclosed in matter) is a protector of the grapevine resources linked to her wealth since it feeds on the creatures who would damage the growth of the grapes.  Coppock found a theme of continual reshaping and refinement of matter in this decan that unveils the diverse extremes of experiences that unite within the final form of a created work that contains spirit:  “Alchemically, this face provides understanding of the many beautiful and repulsive states the matter attains throughout the Magnum Opus . . . . [and] brings one to inspect material processes and note the efficiency or lack thereof” (p. 146).

Interestingly, the fragmentary Hellenistic text the 36 Airs linked the Moirai to the second face of Virgo.  These are the daughters of Necessity, the goddesses of fate: Clotho the spinner of the threads of life, Lachesis the measurer of fateful threads, and Atropos who cuts the threads.  These goddesses of fate appearing in this decan points to the importance of centering within the actual currents of life so that choices can be discerned that will allow one to navigate with as optimal a flow as possible.  While there is incredible imagination available with the overflow of Pisces influence on the Virgo Full Moon, this visionary capacity needs to be grounded in the truly developing elements of life rather than dissipated through denial of what is actually happening.  Through a combination of grounding while simultaneously opening to the full range of possibilities available in the moment, the Virgo Full Moon can facilitate awareness of new choices freed from the limiting thoughts of the past.

References

Coppock, Austin. (2014). 36 Faces: the history, astrology, and magic of the decans. Three Hands Press.

Wolkstein, Diane and Kramer, Samuel Noah. (1983). Inanna: Queen of Heaven and Earth.  Harper & Row.