This New Moon is another SuperMoon, being as close to the Earth as it gets in its elliptical orbit, thus intensifying its overall effects. This lunation cycle begins with a chart that calls to question our relationships, mostly our intimate ones, but also any relationships we encounter and have association with in our lives. Libra is an air sign, and that means that its strength is in communications, using words and thought to appeal and relate to others. However, the sign of Libra is also ruled by Venus, which governs our relationship to our appreciation of beauty and our sensitivity, which is our connection to our hearts.

We come into this world as infants and children with a strong built-in sensitivity. Everything affects us from our environment, we feel deeply the comings and going of others around us, and the energies they send to us. It’s part of our instinct for survival. We eventually have to learn how to navigate our  sensitivity, tuning it in and out, in order to focus on the demands of our physical environment. And in a competitive, conflict-oriented, war-economy culture such as we have built so far on this planet, our sensitivity, which is our most beautiful human trait, gets shut down, blunted, trained out of us. Then our relationships are not so much about sharing, but about getting what we want from others to fulfill our needs. Those who are highly sensitive often end up carrying the trauma that is a result of a society which  only rewards progress and ambition, rather than quality, connection, and depth.

In this New Moon chart, Chiron, the wounded healer, is in Aries, in opposition to the Sun and Moon conjunction, pulling on our sensitive, Venus-oriented desire for relatedness. It’s also reminding us of the wound that the down side of Aries represents: our narcissism, our “me-first” competitiveness, our drive to “be best” which in Western culture is to compete to be the brightest, the quickest, the highest achiever. Since Chiron is the bridge between the known and unknown (or unseen) worlds, it’s asking us to use the “higher” aspect of our aggressiveness to call others to task, as Greta Thunberg is presently doing. This is the right use of will, rather than willfulness.

In all relationships this month, it is time to let go of our preconceptions, and approach our partners and associates as freshly and openly as we can, while noticing our prejudices and preconceptions of what others say, or who they were yesterday, or the month or year before. We can’t forget what has happened, but we can allow forgiveness to enter our awareness — forgiveness being acceptance of the past but connecting also with compassion towards others. And of course, that means also being compassionate toward oneself, for whatever errors we have made.

Learning to communicate cleanly, compassionately, and without prejudice is on the menu for this month. Saturn and Pluto (the dynamic duo coming closer and closer together toward their powerful conjunction in January) now form a square (challenging 90˚ angle) to Venus and Mercury, conjoined in Libra. Saturn, which has just recently gone direct, gives us lessons in self-discipline, and being the ruler of karma, it’s payback time, receiving back the energy of what we’ve put out. Pluto cautions us to use our power wisely, lest we be caught in a moment of inflation. This has been illustrated recently on our political stage. Two weeks ago I wrote in the Full Moon blog: “Saturn’s forward motion opens up those threads which need to be exposed and revealed in order to be healed. Look for exposure to be a theme on the world political stage.” Yup!

There are healing energies in this chart also, as Jupiter exactly sextiles (forms a harmonious 60˚ angle) to Venus and also to Mercury. But we must apply ourselves to make this energy manifest, as sextile energies are not automatically felt until we give them a push, so to speak.

Uranus forms an exact inconjunct (angle of 150˚) to this New Moon. This angle is one sign off from an opposition and represents a need for caution, an adjustment in our energies that’s timely now. Uranus represents the energy that wants to rebel, to clear the decks, or even to cut and run, even though it is now in earthy Taurus (also ruled by Venus), which may concern issues of money and resources. We may become more doggedly stubborn in our insistence that our point of view is correct, crossing our arms and turning away. But Uranus also has the keys to seeing any situation from multiple points of view, as it rules our intuition and our ability to break free from the past. If we’re careful to breathe, take in the Present Moment and start fresh, we may find ourselves and our relationships in a new phase of growth and possibilities. 

On October 2nd-3rd, Pluto goes direct, having been retrograde since April 24th. This is signaling a renewal of our powerful connection to the deep underworld, also thought of as our Source energy. For some, this is a time to reconnect with our sense of having agency in the world, being able to affect our reality with our prayer and intention. For others, it could mean that Faust’s bargain is over, and those who have made a “deal with the devil” will have to pay the price. Pluto’s forward movement now is the precursor to its powerful conjunction with Saturn (and the Sun and Mercury) on January 12, 2020. This initiates a phase in our history when the Karma Collector comes to town. Stay tuned!