New Moon at 21 degrees 17 minutes of Taurus on May 11 at 11:59am in Tucson, Arizona.
Venus-ruled Taurus hosts this cycle’s lunation, and generally speaking, it’s hard not to like a Taurus moon, even if this one is conjunct Black Moon Lilith. Taurus reminds us to enjoy the five senses, the material pleasures of the world, to create and build methodically, work hard and nap hard alike. The Taurus stereotype revolves around stubbornness, sometimes to a fault, but the gift of the fixed signs is to anchor and hold steady what could otherwise be blighted by volatility, unnecessary risk-taking, the cultural obsession to get the foot in the door for the sake of it without thinking things through, moving without fully aligning self with intention and conscious action in a sustainable way. Patience after all gives us time to smell the flowers and remind ourselves to notice the otherwise neglected beauty that continually surrounds us. New Moons mark a new “moonth”-long cycle, so as always, it’s a great time now to listen and reflect on what you’d like to seed over the course of the next few weeks, literally and figuratively. This cycle’s half-way point (the full moon on May 26), in roughly two weeks, will mark the start of eclipse season, a biannual event that has a tendency to shake things up and synchronize with milestone life events for those directly impacted by the degrees in question… if that’s you, you’re probably already feeling the tides of change. More on this in the next report. For now, do read on for the aspects…
Let’s start with the elephant in the room: the New Moon’s conjunction with Black Moon Lilith. Lilith, apogee of the lunar orbit, is usually considered to be the voice of dark, repressed feminine/receptive emotion and raw, primal desire. It’s a valid human aspect that deserves expression and understanding, but it often seems that it’s either completely snuffed out, fetishized in secrecy, or overly glorified. Depth and intensity can be confused with destination. Facet can become confused with core identity. In practice, if we silence our inner Lilith, she can often externalize through another, a scapegoat, a “shameful” behavior, something we fear to associate with but keep ourselves tied to, pure fear of illusory “what ifs”, the “what would they say if they knew x, y or z” thoughts that keep one stagnant or from following the Universal creative flow and heart knowing. Conversely, when we give too much attention to shadow, we enable a culture that perpetually needs victims to save, underdogs to fight for, self-righteous excuses to prevent evolving in a more balanced and harmonic way, because we’re conditioned to think drama is more exciting or that it’s the only way to create meaning or that it satisfies an unacknowledged need for attention that we cynically believe can never be met because we aren’t good enough. So, there may be a bit of a dark edge to the Taurean indulgences and desires this cycle. Taurus energy pertains to what we value, our relationship to self-esteem and even to our literal, material possessions. Reflect on what you have, what you crave, what the perceived obstacles and challenges are to these things, and make a course correction where necessary. Dare to imagine a world where you can have your cake and eat it, too.
Our dear moon is receiving a supportive sextile from Neptune in Pisces as well as a trine from Pluto retrograde in Capricorn. Neptune dissolves boundaries, lets us dream bigger, sometimes via a means of escape or an altered state of awareness. Sextiles are generally favorable and paired with Taurean stability, we can this time perhaps expect a positive touch of grounded inspiration and creativity rather than the overwhelming and confusing lotus-eater haze that Neptune in Pisces can sometimes drag us into indefinitely when there’s a surplus of it. Pluto, Lord of the Underworld, does have a tendency to unearth the deepest of the deep, but if you’re not afraid to see in the dark and are willing to work with its transformational energy, there is a miraculous possibility for vast improvements to be made on the foundational levels of what you strive to create and build in yourself and in the world. Pluto is raw power, and that isn’t in and of itself a bad thing, though often times the perceived responsibility of it can be daunting. If you have in some way been misusing power or acting out of fear or engaging in self-destructive behaviors, particularly in the past few months, this Pluto retrograde and its aspect to the moon may signal having to deal with the consequences of those thoughts or actions this lunar cycle; just remember it’s all in the name of creating a more sturdy and sustainable future foundation. Taurus gifts us the ability to tackle things in a steady and measured way, so take your time, be gentle with yourself, and harness the best of this potent energy to materialize your dreams. The current sextile between Mars in Cancer and Uranus in Taurus may be just the little boost needed to channel emotional force into making the necessary changes to break any ruts preventing progress in the deeper areas mentioned above.
Running in the background, we’ve got some other celestial players adding color to this cycle’s cosmic portrait. Jupiter, currently in Aquarius, is just days away from its ingress into bubbly Pisces, where it is said to be at home. Jupiter expands, amplifies, and can unlock doors of opportunity. We’ve certainly been feeling an abundance of the aloof, restrictive, technological and humanitarian-minded effects of Aquarius lately on the social scene. It’s no surprise that a lot of the public re-openings are synchronistically timed with the Jupiter in Pisces shift, which will perhaps bring a little more fun and lightness into our lives for a couple months. Jupiter will retrograde and dip back into Aquarius for a final hurrah later in the year before it moves into Pisces again more firmly at the end of the December, so party while you can (in a socially responsible way of course); there’s likely to be a bit of a tone shift moving forward, a little more hope, a little more reconnection to joy and conviviality, a little brightness in what has otherwise felt like an imposing storm of monumental and grave historical transition. Note that planetary grump Saturn (also in Aquarius) is slowing down and preparing for his retrograde soon enough, so this, too, compounds the feeling of being a little less restricted or an opportunity to lighten up on some boundaries that were getting a little too tight around the energetic waistline.
Just a little PSA for the intermediate astrology enthusiasts out there that Mercury is a few days away from entering the shadow zone of its next retrograde. This generally means that conversations, plans or exchanges taking place while Mercury is moving through the shadow zone will eventually be revisited and perhaps renegotiated when Mercury tracks back during the May 29 – June 22 retrograde. Most people focus on the perceived crises of the obstacles, delays or monkey wrenches that seem to come up during retrograde itself. The shadow zone is arguably more important for the prevention-minded. It’s certainly not something to obsess over, but be aware that as you move forward, your thoughts, ideas and words through the rest of the month are likely to undergo some unanticipated revision in June, often for the unexpectedly better. So just pace yourself and take your time before jumping headlong into anything brand spanking new. Conversely, if you’ve been procrastinating or holding off on something that you’ve been meaning to do or say, this may be the time where the clarity or connections finally come through to move you closer to completion and attainment. Mercury is at home in curious and intellectual Gemini, so, if used appropriately, this can really prove to be a more favorable and constructive celestial event rather than a burden. With the North Node conjunct Mercury now and trine to Saturn in Aquarius, there’s some big energy behind words, intentions, and manifestations at this time. Things that initially seem like they’re taking longer than they should to come together might in fact be worth the wait. The North Node has the ability to move us into deeper alignment with soul purpose and present opportunities, people, solutions, resources or external conditions that we might hope for but didn’t know how to find. Let new possibilities in. Don’t get caught up in your head or try to stay small. Embrace the fun, curious spirit of Gemini energy and trust that you’ll land where you need to, even if the path seems a bit confusing or convoluted at first. Happy New Moon, friends.
