Hello again. Yes, I took a little summer vacation from my blog while I was working on a bunch of other stuff. But since we are heading into the most challenging time of this challenging, eventful year, I figured an astrological heads-up might be helpful.
I’m looking at the New Moon on Saturday, August 27th. The chart of a New Moon sets the pattern for the month ahead, and some of the aspects of this chart will be in effect for several months more.
The chart emphasizes the Elements of Earth and Air. Working with that knowledge will help us navigate September. (The four classical Elements – Air, Fire, Water, and Earth – are an integral part of astrology and magic, and from that perspective, foundational to material reality. The more scientific or skeptical minds among you might find insight in exploring the correlations between the Elements and the four states of matter — gas, plasma, liquid and solid).
What this New Moon signals specifically for you depends on your birth chart (if you want to know more, contact me for a consultation), but you will find certain common themes playing out in your personal life, the lives of family and friends, and out there in the wild, as well.
I’m going to take a few paragraphs to note the technical details for astrologers and students. If that’s not you, skip ahead to the next section, and we’ll look at what we can expect over the next month, with a few magical suggestions for working with the energy patterns.
(Astrologers: I’m using a chart cast for August 27, 4:17 am EDT, in Washington, DC. Because it is cast for Washington, DC, the angles and houses of this chart apply to the national affairs of the USA. The planetary placements and aspects are global.
Here’s what I’m looking at:
The New Moon is at 4º Virgo, within 3 arc minutes of a partile square to Mars in Gemini. Mars is trine Gemini’s ruler, Mercury in Libra, which is getting ready to go retrograde in early September.
[While sextiles and trines are generally seen as beneficial aspects, they simply signify an easy flow of energy. In mundane astrology, you have to ask who is benefiting from that flow, who is being swept away by it, and who is being denied.]
In addition to that powerful Mutable square, we also have the Fixed square between Saturn in Aquarius and Uranus in Taurus that has been in orb for almost 2 years now. It will come within a few arc minutes of partile in early October. In this chart it is activated by Venus in tight aspect from Leo.
There’s a productive sextile between Mars and Jupiter, and an approaching opposition between Mercury and Jupiter. That opposition perfects on September 4th, and, due to Mercury’s retrograde, perfects again on September 18th, and finally on October 12th This final one is at the Aries point, so expect some very public manifestations of this aspect — conflict and diplomacy come immediately to mind.)
Ducks in a Row
This is a good month to get your proverbial ducks in a row and organize your life in a way that allows you to be flexible in the face of change. Make a plan. Think about how you could reorganize aspects of your life so that you have less anxiety and more time, then map out the process for getting there.
Put backups in place — and not just computer backups. Make sure you have extras of necessary items in case supplies are cut off due to (insert random black swan event here). Check out some alternate routes for your daily commute. If you regularly need childcare, make a list of emergency options. Figure out what things might cause a crisis in your life if they became unavailable, and have a Plan B.
Work on getting your finances organized. Diversify. Have some cash on hand. Set up automatic bill pay. Review your budget, and make sure you have some savings. War and climate change are setting us up for a serious recession on a global level in the not-too-distant future.
On a magical/spiritual level, focus on housekeeping, both material and energetic. Refresh your personal grounding and protection. Do some cleansing/uncrossing work. It’s also a good time to visit a healer who is skilled in working with subtle energies and plants as allies.
Clean and renew your altar. While you’re at it, set aside any materials from spells that are no longer active, and plan to dispose of them after the Full Moon.
Short Fuses
Tempers are likely to be short this month, and words said that cannot be unsaid. Remember you have a choice. Your best choice is to keep your mouth shut, and walk away. If your anger is righteous, you can always say what needs to be said and do what needs to be done after you’ve had a chance to think about the best way to approach it.
Criticism will be offered freely, and generally not taken well. Which suggests that if you feel the need to offer criticism, you might want to think carefully about the timing and the approach. Others may not be quite as considerate of you, so be prepared to hear “feedback”, and give yourself some time to think before you react.
Magically, you may want to charge a pocket stone of some kind to help you stay grounded and resist being triggered into knee-jerk reactions.
Healing Relationships
Certain relationships may blow up this month, but there are clear paths to healing as well. An explosion may even reveal the path to healing, if it’s not clear to you now.
Clear, honest communication and a generous heart will help you find the healing path. But it may be that the relationship can’t be healed, and you need to focus on healing yourself — setting boundaries, cutting energetic ties, tending to emotional wounds.
Service
One path to healing for your own emotional wounds is the path of service. Service to others is centered by most of the world’s religions, because in helping others, we heal not only them, but ourselves as well. Make a point of asking “How can I help?”.
Out in the Wilds of Collective Reality
In general, there will be a focus on the intersection of ideas with material reality. In the broader, public spaces, we’ll see an emphasis on technology, transportation, trade, and communication, and their integration with the means of production of all sorts, but particularly food.
Expect ongoing and emphatic dialogues, monologues, and official announcements about climate change, resource depletion, and pollution. We’ll see social conflict and unrest, and the upheaval will have people coalescing into new groups, some of which will be driven by clear goals and ideas for innovative solutions.
Stresses and strains are building in the United States as we move towards the eclipse on November 8th — Election Day. I believe this will be one of the most consequential elections in the history of the country. And while I do believe we will snatch our democracy back from the jaws of fascism, the astrological indicators of violence in the weeks following the elections are strong.
Are you registered to vote? If you’re not sure, go here:
If you need to register, start here:
And speaking of service, the role of the poll worker is critical to safe and fair elections. If you are able to volunteer to take on that role on Election Day, you can find out more here:
The gods willing and the creek don’t rise, I’ll be back on my regular schedule of New Moon posts through the fall, and I’ll have more to say about the current astrology of the USA. If you want to be notified of all my posts (usually just one a month), you can sign up for my mailing list on my website . Follow me on Facebook here; and here; and on Twitter here:
See you in September!
