For today’s Aquarius Full Moon, which is exact just before 9:45 pm EDT, the Moon is conjunct the centaur planet Nessus in Aquarius. On the opposite side of the zodiac, the Sun in Leo is conjunct the asteroid Ceres. There is something in this lunation’s message about the potential for emotional patterns to get ‘fixed’ or crystallized, but there’s quite a bit going on in the chart.
To touch on some basics first, Eric wrote of the Aquarius Moon last year:
“Aquarius Moon is famous for one thing, at least: helping. My father, who is an ardent conservative and argues the tired points he hears on FAUX News, has an Aquarius Moon and would just about help anyone any way they need. This Moon has a need to be supportive of others, or at minimum, to organize with others in a way that’s useful.
“The United States itself has this Moon, in the July 4, 1776 chart — the Sibly Chart. On that day, the signers said, ‘with a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor.’
“This need can be distracted, subverted or perverted (Richard Nixon is an example) though the Aquarius Moon is in the DNA of the United States. And while everyone with this placement isn’t a saint, I’ve seen that at least there is a readily accessible capacity for decency — something that’s in the air as this Full Moon reaches its peak.”
Today’s Aquarius Full Moon is conjunct Nessus, a centaur planet associated with multi-generational patterns of abuse (often sexual) — as well as the ability to ‘stop the buck’ on those patterns. You have a choice as to which part of the equation you support: pain and the repeating or calcified emotional/energetic patterns that feed its continuance; or those who are willing to stand out from the crowd to help break cycles of silent suffering (including that impulse in yourself).
The bottom line is: when it comes to fixed emotional patterns that have become abusive — whether in yourself, in your family or in society at large — who decides that enough is enough? When do you get to be ‘grown up enough’ to put your foot down, make your voice heard and refuse to perpetuate the patterns no matter who might look at you askance?
Consider that Sun in Leo conjunct Ceres, and ask yourself what feeding humanity — or simply truly nourishing anyone you care about — really looks like.
Amanda, your explanation of the Sun-Moon opposition, being determined by the choice of which part of the equation one chooses to support, moved me to examine the whole chart layout as originally described and discussed by Marc Edmund Jones. His formula for determining which of 7 different patterns a horoscope fell into was the topic of his book “The Guide To Horoscope Interpretation” and yesterday’s full moon chart is a perfect example of his See-Saw pattern, which looks just like a playground seesaw.
Jones used only the 10 traditional planets to determine the pattern and the specific planets didn’t affect that early determination, but the pattern revealed was a way to provide a grasp on the overall drives and perspective of an individual before examining the planetary placements. Since the full moon chart isn’t a chart for a person, I looked at it (the full moon) as experienced by the U.S. and set for Washington D.C. to determine the house placements of the 10 major planets. The fact is though, that it is a seesaw pattern for all of us, and Jones says “The seesaw temperament has its existence in a world of conflicts of definite polarities.” Of course, that is what a full moon is too.
To further refine the “polarities” the planets (for the FM chart set in Washington DC) fall into what are referred to the 2nd quadrant (4th, 5th, 6th houses), with Saturn in the 7th house or 3rd quadrant, and the 4th quadrant (10th, 11th and 12th houses) The 2nd quadrant consists of the Sun, Jupiter, Mars, Mercury, Venus with Saturn the only planet on this side of the seesaw in the 3rd quadrant. The 2nd quadrant would be concerned with contact with others on an inner emotional level (in the case of the U.S. it would be non-public contact). This quadrant is sometimes referred to as the “soul quadrant”. (Astrowiki-en)
On the Moon side of the seesaw, the other planets are Pluto, Neptune and Uranus + Chiron who wouldn’t be considered part of the original formula. For the DC chart, Pluto is on the midheaven (10th house cusp) and Uranus is just above the ascendant (1st house cusp) and is contained totally within the 4th quadrant which symbolically serves the intention of influencing the public sphere and is collective in nature. It sounds to me like this full moon might be described as the personal VS the political.
I believe this pattern (seesaw) for yesterday’s full moon chart, especially as it falls when set for Washington DC, supports your idea of a Sun-conjunct-Ceres opposite a Moon-conjunct-Nessus application for individuals. It also rings true for this nation for a couple of reasons. The ascendant of the DC chart is 14+ Aries and the descendant (7th house cusp) is 14+ Libra, the same degree as the U.S. Sibly natal chart’s Saturn. When you add the fact that the transiting Saturn in Scorpio would be a singleton in the 7th house and 3rd quadrant, yet still part of the Sun-side of the seesaw pattern mostly in the 2nd quadrant, I think it bears a closer look.
The 3rd quadrant of a chart symbolizes one’s direct contact with the “outer world”, and its expectations from relationship with others. Official contacts (marriage, contracts, etc.) are one of its primary functions. Having Saturn in these positions (transiting 7th house + U.S. natal Saturn on the cusp) gives it a sense of officialism, structure and “crystallization”. This would become part of the “inner emotional” contact with others (2nd quadrant) side of the seesaw represented by the Sun and all other personal planets except for the Moon.
The Moon side of the seesaw on the other hand, has only outer planets, all of which symbolize universal energies attempting to break through old patterns (habits as symbolized by the Moon) for the sake of evolution. With the Full Moon being
(1) conjunct Nessus, a centaur who serves as an intermediary for consciously recognizing outer planet energy, and
(2) aspecting no other personal planets except through opposition, (AND conjunct the U.S. natal Moon), and
(3) being the second Aquarius Full Moon of the year, AND
(4) with a grand trine in water (Chiron, Jupiter, north node) in effect along with the cardinal square (Jupiter, Pluto, Uranus). . .
leads me to wonder if the universe hasn’t designed this period of turmoil to access humanity’s “capacity for decency” and awaken humanity’s willingness to accept responsibility for “stopping the buck”.
For the U.S specifically, and all individuals generally, it pits the subconscious Moon with all the attending ramifications mentioned above, against the conscious Sun and all the inner planets between the Sun and Saturn (except for the Moon), as a way to bridge the blockages found on either side of the seesaw pattern. If the Moon reflects the Sun when she is at her fullest, and if the Sun is at his most individually creative point in the zodiac for the 2nd time in a month, she provides the light, not only of the Sun (consciousness) but also an inner, newly awakening sense of something bigger. It is up to us as individuals to level the seesaw and as a society to find a balancing point with other societies.
For the U.S.A, the 7th house cusp (the other, partner, open enemy) of this chart holds a clue as to how it can begin to be achieved. Libra is a good place for Saturn, he is most welcome in that sign. Transiting Saturn conjunct the transiting north node symbolizes a path to opportunities for growth and transformation, and they too are in the 7th house of the Washington DC chart for yesterday’s Full Moon. It helps to remember that “with a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor.”
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Hello Amanda
Thanks for your rich and deep thoughts
Excellent double full moon in Leo 🙂
Carrie, thank you dear! You put it very beautifully indeed.
Aq Moon.. a great teacher. I have learned so much from such natives.. You have to learn to discipline your own feelings when dealing with them. They problematise much about the unfreedoms of our contemporary western relationship models..
All relationships require good communication to be successful. Aq Moon asks us to ask questions about how we go about that without imprisoning those we have feelings for. The “ownership” model of most intimate contracts is well documented in this space. Engaging with Aq Moon in your experience constitutes an opportunity to learn much about yourself, your conditioning and your emotional self-regulation.. an opportunity I have grasped in recent years to great reward in personal contentment..
Hail the blessed Aquarius Moon! 😉
Daniel,
I have also been hurt by Aquarian moon folks at times. It is difficult for me to understand their particular kind of emotional distance and desire for independence because I am not like that. Yet I don’t see them as bad in and of themselves. They are just bad for me, personally. Sort of like how some people are allergic to chocolate so they avoid it. Chocolate is a wonderful thing but some people are just not able to eat it. I am just not able to “click” with Aquarian moon people that well. So I don’t as a rule. Trouble is; they, like chocolate, are often very tempting indeed.
Amanda,
Excellent article and so on time. Just a day or so ago I got this on my timeline about how our grandparents’ experiences can affect US in our genes: http://discovermagazine.com/2013/may/13-grandmas-experiences-leave-epigenetic-mark-on-your-genes
We can stop the cycle. Thanks for writing this.
OMG Daniel, I’m with you on how fun Aquarians can be. I have zero planets (a few asteroids) in Aqua, so I learned ages ago that I’m insatiably (and catastrophically!) attracted to them. I eventually learned (?) that the fun isn’t worth the catastrophe. Or maybe I just want to think I’ve learned that 😉
I would say that accepting the way you process & manage while leaving them to their own systems has got to be healthy. We’re all fucked up in our own way–we can only un-fuck-ourselves-up in the way that’s true to who we are.
And in the same way, nobody’s ever going to get me to approach life from an unemotional center–teaching Aquarians to swim might not be the best use of your boundless & gorgeous energy.
Love you 🙂
Strawberry, thank you for sharing that. I truly appreciate your ability to talk *with* me. I agree with your perspective and paraphrasing Eric. There’s a deeper side to this, one that is my experience to some extent with my Aqua Sis, my good Aqua buddy, and a recent Aqua Moon “relationship” (strongly in quotes). I observed them and others rather closely but was careful not to group them or make absolute judgments. They are ALL incredibly beautiful. So I tried taking on a bit of their energy in the way they manage problems. I think that this is where my comment is originating from – and yes it is partially from a place of hurt, and I’ve been hurt by them all in very similar ways. And I know I shouldn’t, but I went *there*. At the end, I’ve just come to accept that I process and manage problems differently and I leave them to find their own answers. And I’ve always appreciated their ability to bring a smile to my face and uncontrollable fits of laughter. I am learning every day about loving the nuances of relationships; I just need a little bit more from them on the “showing up” part. And although I’m generalizing, I’m not afraid to say it.
Thank you my friend, you’re very awesome too!
Daniel, I wanted to toss out some ideas on your question about detachment. I think Aquarians kind of get a bad rap about detachment; Eric often refers to Aquarius as the water bearer who fills her pitcher to give away to others. Something along the lines of “this isn’t about me,” or maybe “it’s about more than me.”
In that light, Aquarian “detachment” doesn’t have to be seen as equivalent to avoidance. More like keeping yourself filled in order to have something to give to others. Deserving your own attention first. (Something I’m working on, obvi.)
One of the things Len is always encouraging us to do is to try seeing things from a wider perspective (today’s post being a perfect example of adjusting the focus out a notch!) And you’ve helped me see several times: shifting the perspective makes all the difference. Not that one perspective is more valid than another, they just offer different information.
Besides, you know when you’re running away. You’re honest enough with yourself about what you want & why. You’re awesome; you can do this.
Best wishes!!
The full moon/Nessus is conjunct my natal Vesta in the 7th which t-squares my natal Nessus and opposing natal Moon Juno Pallas. It’s opposing my husband’s natal Moon, Uranus, N Node (conjunct transiting Sun) and it’s in his natal 7th. Feels like a portal to walk through regarding an evermore enlightened version of relationship.
All I can think of is time traveller Sam from the movie Happy Accident: “Break the causal chain.” Along those lines the senseless murder of an Australian baseball player by three Oklahoma “bored” gang members is lighting up the USA Sibly chart’s Moon, inflaming the gun rights issue as it now becomes an international affair. When is enough enough?
Thank you for this Amanda. I wish courage for us all as this full moon shines forth tonight, whatever form that courage needs to take.
Thank you for this, and everything else you contribute to PW, Amanda. I have the Moon at 27 Aquarius and have always felt I should have gone to San Francisco in 1967 when Scott MacKenzie beckoned us there. I’ve since discovered why: the U.S. and I are Siblyings!
Your sentiments are pitch perfect and, low emotional awareness or not, the Aquarius Moon is definitely on the side of the people – all of the people.
I shall be watching tonight’s main event from my favourite bench on the foreshore of my home town. It’ll be 2.44am Wednesday here in the UK but, hey, we danced ’til a quarter to three …
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hoopfp5iaKw
FAUX News … lol
mimik — possibly. and to support your final thought, the moon *is* opposite Ceres, who stands in part for the fertile-and-fallow cycles of nature, among many other things as we’re learning.
The way everyone at Planet Waves gets the personal and the mundane/transpersonal connection is always deeply impressive to me.
I’m thinking of a little appreciated largely unknown dimension of the ancient idea of hubris for Nessus: The Greeks understood hubris to be a breach of natural law, humans messing with the natural order of things, that put a curse on future generations until a descendant came along and discovered the original ancestral breach, named it, and cured it.
As a centaur, Nessus in this lunation, feels very much like an energy calling our attention to natural laws and human laws (the centaur half animal/half man quality), and the deeply abusive generational patterns of the patriarchal and industrial age vis a vis nature.
It makes me wonder — as I really haven’t till now — if the abuse of nature by fossil fuels is something that we all feel deep in our psyches as OUR being abused. Food for Aq. moon thought.
Amanda: Thank you for reminding us how to stand out from the crowd just as the Full Moon stands out in the sky.
Oops…
Amanda your posts are always cathartic!
Thought you were eric too!
Peace
O
This has a boomerang effect doesnt it?
Eric your honesty is Heartwarming. Don’t you have
An aquarian moon also? We aquarian moons are freedom fighters! Honestly Eric, Ive never been more inspired!
Peace and love,
Patricia Louise…Agape!
Ops, Amanda. I thought I read Eric this morning.
I wonder too if the key to breaking a lot of these emotional fixed patterns can be broken by utilizing the detached energy of the Aquarian Moon. To get up high above it all and see a larger picture. Perhaps even to be unapologetically independent. The question is, am I running away or solving something meaningful.
Amanda, thank you! Your lucid writing helps me makes some sense of my personal Nessus mystery. The abuse and repression stops here.
Natal Nessus sits on top of my descendant, stepped over the threshold into the 7th house. Juno is swinging by her knees on my ascendant, in the doorway of my first house. It seems a significant aspect, and the story of my life has played out that way. Juno setting the tone for my personal journey, life lessons, and healing, and Nessus sounding the opening note for my interpersonal and public expression of my life.
Have fun under the moonlight tonight!
It’s also conjunct my nodes, with Sun and Ceres on the North, so I am bathing in this full moon. Or burning. Or feeding. Or everything at the same time.
This sound so good, and SO appropriate. Thank you Eric, a lot.