New Moon in Capricorn
By Kirsti Melto and Eric Francis | Lunations
WE ARE currently in an extended phase of Aries Point events. The first New Moon of the New Year falls at 17+ degrees of Capricorn, in one of the cardinal signs, and qualifies for an Aries Point event. The news is reflecting the astrological Aries Point theme “personal is political”, telling about global events that can have profoundly personal implications and lasting effects through time. Some asteroid positions in the chart are subtly reminding us to be vigilant about what we read and see.
Most of the major planets and also many important minor planets are concentrated in the last four signs of the chart wheel, from Sagittarius to Pisces.
The New Moon sextiles Uranus, asteroid Kassandra in Pisces, and asteroid Hidalgo in Scorpio. Thus the Sun and the Moon are in the midpoint of those planets. A midpoint is the point located halfway between two planets, the point that integrates the energies of the planets in question. Transits to the midpoint can be important.
Asteroid 114 Kassandra is a large and dark main belt asteroid, named after Cassandra, the prophetess in the tales of the Trojan War. Kassandra is the syndrome wherein nobody believes you if you tell the truth but everyone believes you if you make up stories. People often believe stories more than they believe the truth. Kassandra asks you to be cautious about what others say.
Asteroid 944 Hidalgo has the longest orbital period (13.8 years) of any asteroid in the traditional asteroid belt. It is named for the father of the Mexican Revolution, Miguel Hidalgo, and a priest and rebel leader. Hidalgo, one of the most complex asteroids, works on a large scale and has a Sagittarian flavor. Hidalgo is dealing with themes of rebelling against hypocrisy and saying what’s on your mind. Hidalgo speaks to the perplexing hypocrisies presented to us by culture, the ones we have to swallow every day and are often humiliated in doing so. Hidalgo is about our response to absurd social hypocrisies, whether or not we revolt against them, and how we do it.
The New Moon opposes Varuna, a cubewano discovered in 2000 and named after a supreme pre-Vedic deity. He has influence in the levels of seas, streams and rivers, and most meaningfully, the failure to be responsible for our actions. He deals with the punishment of liars and is responsible for punishing those who don’t honor contracts. Varuna is “the great equalizer”, calling us to take both personal and collective responsibility for our world.
The New Moon squares Eris, which just has stationed direct in Aries.
Pluto, the prime mover of human progress, is in the last degree of Sagittarius and Jupiter with its expansive tendencies in early Capricorn are square the Aries Point. Two main belt asteroids, 896 Sphinx and 128 Nemesis are also in the same grouping. Sphinx can represent great mysteries, but also missing information. In mythology Nemesis was the goddess of rightful indignation. She was daughter of Nyx, Queen of Night, as was Eris. Nemesis is said to have directed human affairs in such a way as to maintain equilibrium and she made sure that humans respected the natural laws. The position of the asteroid in the birth chart is said to symbolize our conscience and guide us towards right action. If we don’t pay attention to her, then we have to deal with the consequences.
Retrograding Mars in Cancer opposes the above-mentioned planets square the Aries Point. The Mars-Pluto opposition can be forceful, even fatal, and needs to be handled carefully.
Mercury has entered Aquarius just before the New Moon. Mercury in Aquarius can be objective, sincere and truthful, but also prone to extremism. Mercury semi-squares Uranus and is in septile aspect to Pholus, a Centaur planet discovered in 1992. Pholus has the energy of release; Pholus opens the container and lets something out. These Mercury aspects remind us to be mindful also about our own communication and what we say.
Mercury opposes asteroid Apollo in the first degree of Leo. 1862 Apollo is the namesake of the Apollo asteroids, a group of Earth-crosser asteroids, which can get very close to the Earth. Apollo’s orbital period is 1.8 years, it spins every three hours, and it has a tiny satellite orbiting it closely. In 2007 scientists found out that Apollo gets an extra kick from solar radiation. Its rotation speed steadily increases due to the re-radiation of solar energy from its surface. This affects it as if there were small propulsion engines on Apollo’s surface. The effect is tiny, but the study shows that sunlight can make an asteroid spin so fast it eventually breaks up and splits into a binary all by itself. The results of this study are important for understanding binary asteroids.
In mythology Apollo was a Sun god. He was the god of light and truth, medicine and healing, poetry and music. He was also the god of divination. Apollo was the leader of the nine Muses and he played on a lyre, which Hermes/Mercury had made and given him. The Apollonian and Dionysian is a philosophical and literary concept, a dichotomy or contrast. Apollo represents harmony, order and reason, while Dionysus represents ecstasy and disorder. The Greeks did not consider the qualities that Apollo and Dionysus represented as rivaling, but complementary.
Astrologically asteroid Apollo is a light-bringer in other ways than the Sun, the center of our solar system. It may represent something of the inner quality or talent of seeing the light where others might not see it, in the strangest of places if you look for it right. Martha Lang-Wescott has proposed that it may symbolize provocation and going against the odds. It can be very useful allowing one to tackle situations where the odds of success are small.
Asteroid 3671 Dionysus at 14+ degrees of Taurus is semi-square the Aries Point. There is possibly a small moon orbiting also Dionysus. Peak experiences and pushing things past the limits are astrological attributes of Dionysus, and in spite of the strong Neptunian association it can be rather associated with evolutionary Pluto.
Mercury and Saturn are in mutual reception (Mercury is the ruler of Virgo and Saturn the traditional ruler of Aquarius). When two planets are occupying one another’s signs, the planets in question can, in a way, switch places or roles; thus leaving them bound with a kind of shared role or obligation.
Saturn in Virgo is in exact conjunction with the Centaur planet Okyrhoe, named for the daughter of Chiron and Chariklo. It has shorter orbital period than any other Centaur planet (about 24 years) and thus makes an excellent representative for the “daughter of the centaurs.” Mark Andrew Holmeswrites, “A prophet, she was changed into a mare by the gods as punishment for revealing their plans to humankind. Astrologically, Okyrhoe seems to indicate being criticized or attacked, being able to cope with attacks or unpopularity, ability to stand up for one’s beliefs or principles.”
Saturn, Pholus and Chaos are still forming a precise T-square pattern in the early mutable signs.
Venus in Sagittarius is in the same degree with asteroid Juno, and both are in conjunction with plutino Ixion, discovered in 2001 and having an orbital period of 250 years. Ixion was named for the first murderer recorded in Greek mythology (a former king and friend of Zeus), who unsuccessfully tried to attack Hera/Juno. Ixion speaks to that which we are all capable of and expresses itself more often negatively than not. However, Ixion at its essence is about pure potential and suggests that we all can access the same potential if we want to or need to. Nobody is incapable of anything; but not all potential is expressed. Venus and Juno are squaring Saturn.
The first four asteroids (Ceres, Pallas, Juno and Vesta) are all in the degrees 9-12 of the signs that they are occupying currently and thus aspecting each other, perhaps offering us safe passage through this moment in time.
Weekly Horoscope for Friday, January 4, 2008, #695 – By ERIC FRANCIS
Aries (March 20-April 19)
You may feel like you are being put to the test, and you are. Yet the question is what test, exactly? Well, the current challenge involves whether you feel safe taking such a big chance, or feel secure pushing yourself to achieve so much. It is all about how you feel in the context of what you want. You would be wise to question whether a) feeling insecure really means you are in a compromised position; and b) what you consider to be the source of your strength. At the moment, it appears that most of your support is coming from your community. Some of that assistance you recognize the value of; some of it, it’s very likely you have no concept of how valuable it is. Note that your community changes with your role in the world; as you change and grow, different people consider you their peer.
Taurus (April 19-May 20)
You’re about to strive for some peak experience in your career. In truth you’re already there, or well on the way — what you are seeking is a tangible feeling of soaring to new heights. I humbly submit that you must consider the difference between the feeling and the reality. There are a lot of ways to get the feeling; what is more crucial is that you recognize your achievements for what they are, ground yourself, and build on that success. If you take the conservative approach, you would feel closer to the Earth, and you might need to stretch a little to have a wide perspective. That is better than soaring and falling. The way you handle your professional life now will set patterns that extend far into the future. Pay attention to those patterns. Choose the ones that work for you.
Gemini (May 20-June 21)
While the stars are leaning distinctly in your favor, you may not be entirely thrilled with the prospects life is holding out for you. It may feel impossible to make any progress, and you may feel divided against yourself in some odd way. This is entirely an illusion. You are free to express yourself fully. You are free to vent your frustration in entirely constructive ways, and more to the point, you are free to use it as a tool to learn about yourself. Yours is a rare state of mind at the moment; you have the ability to feel what you really want, and once you do that, you will feel how easy it is to get what you want. What you need to guard against is identifying too closely with negative emotion. Recognize that you have a choice in all matters of feeling, and that what you get is most likely to be what you want.
Cancer (June 21-July 22)
Pluto makes its way into your opposite sign Capricorn in late January, though the vibrations have been shaking up your world for some time now. The implications of this long-term transit focus primarily on people having a more profound impact on your life than you may have ever imagined possible. From a growth standpoint, you need to be vigilant against situations that may come with a power struggle. Such are not necessities in life, though they occur frequently enough. While I am not suggesting that you convert to being suspicious, you need to be discerning of the motives of others. Remember what people say initially about what motivates them, even if they change their tune later. Look for the results they get, and look at how they relate to others as contrasted to how they relate to you. Those who feel like a victim most of the time are more likely to make you into one next. Those who feel like winners are likely to have that agenda for you.
Leo (July 22-Aug. 23)
You may feel, yet again, like everything is coming at you at once, but consider this. You are being pulled out of yourself and toward the future. The sense of unfamiliarity is precisely that sense of standing in a strange new landscape of time. There are different people around you, and they have styles of relating, to you and to one another, that may seem a little strange. I suggest you notice the differences, and how they make you feel — and appreciate them like you were visiting a foreign country. That sense of the new and the unfamiliar are precious while they last; humans have a way of converting everything to the ordinary in a short time. The planets are conspiring to keep you on your toes, which means alert and aware, and there is a reason, soon enough to be revealed.
Virgo (Aug. 23-Sep. 22)
For years, others have been doing their best to coax or shock you out of your shell. And for years — until recently — you have most likely felt unprepared to rise fully to the occasion. Now that you have Saturn visiting your sign, you’re blessed with a measure of stability and yet the sense (as Saturn often bestows) that change is natural and inevitable. Take advantage of the strength that Saturn is offering, and the ability that it’s giving you to structure your life in new ways. This will help you accommodate what may be an overwhelming influx of energy and activity. You have always had flexibility going for you; you typically have a healthy respect for your limits. What you have now is a blend of both, at a time when both will support you in some unusual endeavor or breakthrough.
Libra (Sep. 22-Oct. 23)
The ground beneath you is moving, but you are safe. Your source of nourishment is changing, but your new source is both healthy and potent. Indeed, what you most urgently need to adapt to is how to work with so much energy rising up from the Earth into your heart, body and soul. You may be possessed of the feeling that you are somehow on your own, with an unusual degree of responsibility for your own sustenance and destiny. Very likely you have received signals the past three or four weeks that you will succeed brilliantly, but I would caution you that this is true to the extent you are able to live each new day as being different from the last. History is over; you are writing on a new page of your life. That is to say, stop yourself each time you have the feeling you owe something to someone.
Scorpio (Oct. 23-Nov. 22)
You must get over the feeling that your greatest achievements are behind you — and get over it fast. Your perception is like you’re looking at the world through prism glasses, seeing everything upside down. Your sense of the passage of time is skewed, though this gives you a certain advantage at the moment. In particular, you have an opportunity to completely reassess your commitments to others, and their commitments to you. You have a chance to look honestly at what is working for you and what is not. Indeed, you have the prerogative to free yourself from any situation or circumstance involving another person that is not fully to your advantage — but to use this power you must be exquisitely honest with yourself about the basic facts. Use language, not just feelings. A fact is something that can be supported or denied by tangible evidence; start making a list.
Sagittarius (Nov. 22-Dec. 22)
You have seen what others are capable of; now you must own up to what you are capable of. In a word, that translates to anything. The more boldly you can embrace your negative potential, the greater strength you will feed into your positive potential. If you want to be the most passionate [heterosexual] lover, embrace your queer side. If you want to be the perfect spouse or partner, embrace the potential you have to be boring, faithless and inconsiderate. In sum, admit that the light you carry casts a shadow. Try standing with the light to your back to see how long that shadow is. Then turn around, and face the Sun, which is blazing in you as well.
Capricorn (Dec. 22-Jan. 20)
Pluto is about to enter your sign, but Jupiter has already arrived. It’s as if you’re being given an advance against future royalties, and an incentive to view this long-term transit as an entirely positive development. Most people don’t view Pluto this way — you have little choice in the matter. I would sum up this development with a few simple ideas: you are the person who sets the limits on your bliss, or who blows off the roof. You are the person who violates tradition and makes your mark on the world. You are the benefactor who has the power to solve the problems you perceive in the world. In other words, you are no longer one among the meek and the mild; you are among the brave and the wild — but for this to last, you must be fair with everyone, and I do mean everyone.
Aquarius (Jan. 20-Feb. 19)
What an odd mix of energies you are under at the moment. From the look of your solar chart, I would surmise that your sense of standing at the very edge of reality is counterbalanced by an overwhelming feeling of safety. The closer to the edge you get, the safer you are likely to feel. However, consider this, before you decide you are able to fly. Where would you go, if you could go anywhere? Why would you go there? For the sake of something new and exotic, or to fulfill your new mission in life? The things you actually need to do are eminently practical, and I suggest you take great solace in your ability to get up every day and do your best and most devoted work. It is also true that you need to have fun, but I see no shortage of that in your chart.
Pisces (Feb. 19-March 20)
If you have time and again had the feeling that the world is too stuck in its ways to make any room for you, you are in for a pleasant surprise. Traditions and established structures that have for so long held you back are likely to start opening their doors. You may not see the reasons; they may not see the reasons; everyone will see the results. You may not see the mechanisms of action; indeed, many of them are ‘invisible’ in the sense that they are not easily traced by direct cause and effect. What is crucial at this juncture of your life is that you stop falling for the sad lie that the past is what sets the limits on the future. For you, what was impossible yesterday verges on inevitable today.