The chart of this New Moon offers some hope for the month ahead. Profound spiritual awakenings, outpourings of compassion, and artistic flowering are all on the table, served up with generous helpings of luck and serendipity.

But not everyone can get to that table. Because there are countering forces of greed and authoritarianism that are also being strengthened this month, along with seriously delusional mental states — particularly those of the “rainbows and unicorns” variety, though we’ll see extreme paranoia as well. Those delusions will be egged on by people who know better, but encourage them for their own selfish reasons.

We’ll need to use all our spiritual strengths, empathy, and creativity to steer our personal lives, our communities, and our world away from delusions and towards healing. There will be sacrifices we’ll need to make — things we need to give up, or offer to others. Those sacrifices can range from cherished beliefs we need to let go of, to our time and energy, to actual physical possessions.

The Tarot card of The Hanged Man speaks to this concept of personal sacrifice in order to gain power, wisdom, and insight. If you work with Tarot, it might be a good card to focus on this month.

Here’s a bit about the astrology before I elaborate on how we can skillfully navigate the weeks ahead. If you don’t speak the language, feel free to skip over the paragraphs in italics.

(Charts of lunations are a standard predictive technique for the month ahead in mundane astrology.

Cast the chart for March 2nd, 12:35 pm EST, Washington, DC. Remember that the angles and houses of this chart apply only to the USA, but the planetary aspects are global.

The Pisces New Moon, conjunct Jupiter, powerful in its own sign of Pisces, with Neptune, the outer planet co-ruler of Pisces also in the sign, suggests we’ll be swimming in deep waters. Contrary to popular opinion, Pisces, known for its compassion, universal reach, and spiritual longing, is not all sweetness and light. Pisces encompasses the entire ocean of Consciousness, and cannot ignore the cruelty, greed, and evil in our world, because those things are also part of the Whole. Pisces is also the sign of the martyr, and encompasses the concept of sacrifice.

This chart also features a Venus-Mars-Pluto conjunction in Capricorn, in a tight semi-square with the New Moon stellium. On a personal level that can indicate positive outcomes like the empowerment and deepening of relationships. It suggests change created through courage and compassionate actions, fueled by deep feelings.

But keep in mind the sign, Capricorn, and the strength of its ruler Saturn in this chart, as well as the irritating semi-square aspect. Which means it is also likely to manifest in ways that can be explosive (emotionally or literally) and destructive, and confront us with people who are dealing in bad faith.

Meanwhile, Saturn and Mercury are in the negotiating position between the Capricorn and Pisces clusters, right on the midpoint of Jupiter/NewMoon and Pluto/Mars/Venus. I like this extremely close Saturn-Mercury conjunction — only three minutes of arc from partile. Mercury is happy in an Air sign — even Saturn’s. And Fixed Air gives depth and rigor to Mercury’s often scattered mental processes.. The two of them putting their heads together in the sign of social progress and justice could lead to real breakthroughs in communication, and wiser, cooler heads prevailing in moments of crisis.

Finally, note that the New Moon is in a tight sextile with Uranus that encompasses Jupiter as well. )

It’s going to be a very emotional month. If you are looking for opportunities to deepen relationships and/or spiritual connections, you’ll have a good chance of finding them. If you are full of unexpressed anger looking for opportunities to rage and destroy, it won’t be hard to find a few of those, either.

Everyone will have those opportunities, so you’ll want to stay very aware of the simmering emotions in those around you and the explosions they may create. Particularly stay attuned to unexpressed anger in yourself and others, because the likelihood of someone throwing gasoline on the fire is high.

In personal situations, we can help others get through seismic emotional shifts. We can work with our own emotions to create deep and lasting change within ourselves. Meditation and visionary work will help guide us, revealing the actions we can take to create a better life for ourselves and others.

But there is an undercurrent of revolutionary violence to these times. Be aware, carefully consider your personal beliefs about violence (physical or verbal) and when it is justified. Know what you are willing to fight for, and know when to get the hell out of the crowd.

Fortunately, a couple of planets are offering us a little island of clarity and calm in the middle of this ocean of emotion. That island even has a mountain we can climb to gain some perspective on the situations we find ourselves in so we can make better, more informed decisions.

It is possible to feel deeply and think clearly at the same time, but developing this ability takes awareness, courage, and the willingness to change.

To do that, we need to look at our personal spiritual practices and mental hygiene. I know my meditation practice has become sporadic lately, and my thoughts too often dwell on the dire state of the world. I suspect many of you can relate. So I’m working not only on making more time for meditation, but also finding other perspectives on current events that are both hopeful and rooted in reality.

Your own spiritual/religious/philosophical beliefs on how the world works will help you find new perspectives. But no matter what those perspectives are, it’s important to recognize and implement our ability to direct our thoughts. A view can’t be appreciated by staring at the ground.

Serious magical practitioners of all stripes recognize the necessity of deeply exploring our minds and emotions, and of self-discipline in learning to direct them. We all have an imprint of subtle energy that radiates out from us and interacts with the energies of other beings. Our thoughts and emotions are an important part of that imprint. Changing our personal imprint will always change the world — for better or worse, to one degree or another, because we are all part of the world.

Learning to direct our thoughts and sail the vast seas of our emotions increases our ability to affect our surroundings. It also increases our capacity to connect and work with other humans and with the power of the natural world that we are so carelessly destroying.

Power is a key word for this month. Power is both electric and magnetic. It generates energy and draws the energy of others to it. It can create or destroy. And if we turn up our noses at the whole concept of power, thinking that it is somehow not “spiritual”, and that those who wield it are only the greedy and amoral, then we relinquish our own ability to create change.

(Astrologers — it’s not just Pluto. Never underestimate the power inherent in Pisces’ oceanic realm, strengthened by both its modern and traditional rulers, or of Saturn in one of its home signs shaping the expressions of Mercury, Venus, Mars, and Pluto. Note that, between them, Jupiter and Saturn disposit every planet in the chart. Think back to their conjunction, and look ahead to the upcoming Mars-Venus conjunction at the same degree. Big changes are in the wind.)

It is not power that corrupts. We cannot offload blame for malevolent and immoral acts that victimize others on to some overwhelming and controlling force called “power”. It’s entirely on each individual, and the decisions we make on how to use the power that is granted us. (And if you’re reading this, you have at least a modicum of power.)

So it’s important to not only do all we can to reclaim our own autonomy from those who would take it from us, but then to turn around and extend a hand to others who were cut off from their own power by circumstances.

A community where all are empowered is the foundation of a healthy community. But the work to created empowered communities, to heal some of the gaping wounds in our society, will require some sacrifices and moving away from our comfort zones.

This month, consider the themes of power and sacrifice, and how they play out in your life, and the lives of your communities. Here are some questions you might want to ask yourself:

• Do you recognize the need for personal sacrifices in times of crisis?
• What are you willing to give up to help create a better future for yourself and others?
• Are you willing to do the deep spiritual work that is necessary to reclaim the internal power that is yours by right?
• Power is meant to flow. Are you willing to share the power you have in the interest of building a society that does its best to care for, heal, and nurture each other and our environment?
• Do you have the courage to stand up to those who misuse power, and the compassion to help the powerless?

I don’t need to tell anyone who is paying attention that we are in the middle of a profound time of crisis that will impact the long-term future of the entire planet. If we cannot rein in our human predilection for violent conflict and careless destruction, if we cannot learn to work together for the benefit of all, that future could be bleak.

Every one of us will contribute something to our communal future. What we contribute will be dependent on the choices we make in the face of circumstances we have little or no control over.

We all have our circles of influence. And paying attention to how we use it, reclaiming our personal power to shape that influence so it manifests in line with our core values, is the work we each need to do. Because everyone’s personal resonance contributes to the overall resonance of the zeitgeist. And that resonance determines in which direction humanity’s future tips.

The forces of destruction are strong right now. Change requires at least some destruction — it’s a question of what gets destroyed, and how. Fortunately, the forces of creative wisdom and healing are also strong and getting stronger. And I am convinced they will prevail if enough of us do the work we are called to.

As the March Equinox approaches, and the Sun rises further to the north every day, we can let the shifting seasons motivate and empower us to work with the tides of change.

If you are looking to develop some spiritual and magical practices to help you through these times of crisis that are not attached to any spiritual/religious/magical dogma, you might find my book "Touch the Earth, Kiss the Sky" of interest.

If you’d like to know how the current astrology affects you personally, contact me, and we’ll set up a consultation.

Blessings of the changing seasons to you,