New Moon at 14 degrees and 38 minutes of Virgo on Monday, September 6 at 5:51pm in Tucson, Arizona.
Mercury-ruled Virgo is the sign of mutable Earth, the end of Summer, the preparation for change of season and the rebalancing of daylight and night that arrives within the following sign, Libra. Virgo governs the work necessary to prepare us to hold space for creating balance; its analytical and organizational mastery alerts us to the things preventing greater harmony and efficiency. Look to your birth chart to see which house or thematic area you may adopt a more Virgoan attitude this cycle.
Mutable means changeable, so if you’re hating on yourself or other mutable sign placements for being variable, inconsistent, or hyperactive, listen here. Barring extreme behaviors*, understand that this is the time for embracing more flexibility and making workable improvements. Mutable (i.e., end-of-season) signs excel at these things, especially Virgo. Virgo picks up on, sorts, and deals in detail. Details can illuminate points of vulnerability or expose not-so-random patterns that can be beneficial for “accident” prevention, greater time management, or bringing more practicable order into areas of perceived chaos.
Medically we assign Virgo to the digestive system, responsible for sorting and allocating what is taken in. Virgo placements are often told they have “weak” digestion or are “allergic” to everything; perhaps it’s just a greater sensitivity to what may be harmful to the individual system despite superficial ideations of what is supposed to be “normal”. Greater perception puts us in a position of learning to trust rather than always fight the body, adjust rather than force diet and lifestyle changes for personal optimization.
Virgo has a knack for service and problem-solving because there is a deeper grasp of needs. In shadow or excess*, Virgo energy can potentially conjure a worry- or guilt-motivated need to be needed, shame-based submissiveness or subservience, anxious compulsiveness for structure and order, editing to the point of sabotage or destruction, cleaning to the point of sterility. Use common sense to determine when to let go, step away, or ask for help. If you’ve been hopelessly struggling with something, this is a good opportunity to seek out support or advice from a specialist.
Aspect Details & Self-Work Applications
REVISITING STUBBORN STAINS WITH BLEACH
{New Moon in Virgo Trine to Uranus Retrograde in Taurus}
This lunar cycle may prove extremely helpful for connecting the dots, fine-tuning a more supportive routine, finding assistance, and generally harnessing some brilliant ideas to benefit your personal goals.
The New Moon in Virgo is most prominently trine to cosmic flasher Uranus, still retrograde in Taurus. Uranus in Taurus has been dealt with extensively in a few reports now as representative of the unusual shocks, disruptions, aha moments, or wacky situations you’ve experienced this year. With this productive lunation using the Uranian energy supportively now, this monthly cycle is a wonderful time to refine and address some of those challenging or unpredictable 2021 situations that made you feel like you were playing Whack-A-Mole.
What’s throwing you off your game? Perhaps look at uncomfortable behavioral tendencies, personal or monetary habits, self-worth or esteem-boosting work, realigning your values, oral health, diet or relationship to the physical body, over- or under-engagement with the five senses, better understanding your attachment or unattachment styles, how you express and receive affection, consumption and trust of technology, apps, data analytics, or digital archives, for example.
Your relationship to technology (Uranus) might be usefully analogous to exploring your relationship with your own mind and body. There might not be that much difference in how you treat your devices and how you treat yourself. Reflect on it.
PERCEIVED ACCIDENTS IN 2021 HAPPENED. SO WHAT?
What did you learn from them? What “emergency-only” behaviors or habits tend to come up repeatedly when things feel out of control? Are there any daily changes that can be made now to prevent having to wait until a crisis hits to find motivation? Re-examine and fortify your appreciation of and gratitude for what is around you every day. Break the habit of only putting emotional value in what you feel like you’ve lost or in what you think you could lose.
This is THE New Moon to set some practical goals for yourself and hold yourself accountable for them. Whatever you’ve been putting off, waiting to get your $h!t together before attempting, remind yourself that self-improvement is a life-long journey. Make a list of priorities, plan, and take some real-world baby steps toward attainment now. With all the big heavy planets currently retrograde, you’re likely to refine it and find your flow in a couple months, but you must start somewhere. No better time than the present.
A POPULAR EXERCISE TO HELP!
Try this easy visualization exercise to put things in perspective: Imagine COMPASSIONATELY holding the hand of your child self (4, 5, 6—choose any young age). Imagine showing this younger version of you where you live now, what you like to do, how you spend your time and your resources, what possessions you have around your environment, who you like to spend your time with.
Without judging yourself, just notice what thoughts and emotions come up. This might help shine a light on areas you’re ready to adjust a little bit. You might be tempted to replace your child self with someone else, an authority figure or one of your actual children, but give honor to the insights your child self inevitably holds. Here’s a walk-through video for some additional tips to enhance your visualization experience.
SCRUBBING THE FLOOR WITH A TOOTHBRUSH
{New Moon in Virgo Very Loosely Conjunct Mars in Virgo in a Separating Trine to Pluto Retrograde in Capricorn and a Separating Opposition to Neptune Retrograde in Pisces}
Mars in Virgo with a supportive trine boost from Pluto Retrograde in Capricorn at its worst could be the energy for starting an endless semantics war that rewrites an entire language; building a to-scale model of your town in toothpicks and updating it whenever there’s a real-time civic change; hosting a cleaning competition that doesn’t end until either all the dust is gone, or everyone dies from chemical fumes. I might be exaggerating.
If you lack the combination of drive and focus, a little Mars in Virgo with Pluto’s caring touch can help you tackle those complex, painstaking tasks that might otherwise drive you nuts. Too much of it, and any small detail might get you a one-way ticket down a rabbit hole. This lunar cycle, life is handing you a grenade instead of a lemon. You need not fear your intensity or personal power; instead, make a point to channel it more appropriately or find an environment or application more suitable for it.
Productive Mars has been in Virgo since the very end of July. All last week it started receiving the intense influence of Pluto as well as being opposed by nebulous Neptune Retrograde in Pisces. Neptune obscures like a permanent altered state, which can be creative, but also potentially overwhelming, confusing, and leaving one with a feeling of needing to surrender all hopes of control. Now that the Neptunian influence is waning, nap time is over. Perhaps the rest was needed. Perhaps revisit your to-do list with a blossoming sense of clarity or inspiration and a renewed focus and drive to complete what you thought you might never finish.
SIT ON YOUR SUITCASES TO ZIP THEM SHUT
{New Moon in Virgo Loosely Square the Lunar Nodes in Gemini and Sagittarius}
A lunation that aspects the Nodes of the Moon has an energy that creates a deeper penetrative focus for the month. It may not be a precise knowing, but there’s likely to be a subtle feeling that what you’re doing now is important and sets a precedent beyond just this month.
The North Node in Gemini encourages new people, new ideas, new skills to enter the ring. The South Node in Sagittarius favors releasing old belief systems, disempowering relationships to external authority or institutions, faulty philosophies. The New Moon is challenging this influx and outflow of these energies and helping you decide which of these are in alignment and supportive for your long-term visions and which are just distraction.
With square aspects, discomfort, frustration, the sudden feeling of there being a need to pause or face an obstacle often initially presents itself. What would make your life and goals easier to accomplish right now? Ask yourself whether it’s time to let in some new influences or stop banging your head against a wall trying to make old beliefs fit. Use this cycle to adjust yourself accordingly.
Background Aspect Influences
IT’S OK TO LEAVE THE DONNER PARTY
{Grand Air Trine: Saturn Retrograde in Aquarius Trine the North Node in Gemini Trine Mercury in Libra}
As you forge ahead with a desire to expand your mind, your network, your skill set, what would create more stability for your ability to organically grow and explore? Do you feel collective limitations because your present environment or those you have gotten used to sharing the most of yourself or your ideas with aren’t really in line with where you see yourself heading? Re-evaluate this.
Saturn makes us feel like we need to put the brakes on, but that’s not always a bad thing. Instead of feeling hampered by needing to take certain things slow, use the opportunity to enhance and adjust your support systems and what you buy into. Have conversations (Mercury in Libra is great for this) with those around you and do your best to balance speaking and listening.
Ask questions, feel into whether you’re on the same page or not. Find better ways to bring harmony or more equal give-and-take into all your relationships. Instead of diminishing your light to please others or keep the perceived peace, stand in your truth and honestly assess how you are received.
You may find that certain situations can be enhanced, even miraculously rectified, when you step up with greater self-honesty and self-expression. You may find that more people actually agree with you but were acting otherwise because they were afraid to rock the boat. Conversely, you may start to see that people or situations that you thought had your best interest at heart really don’t provide tangible support or shared visions. Learn to lovingly let go of these connections to make space for things that are a better fit for the authentic you.
WHAT YOU ALLOW YOURSELF TO RECEIVE IS READY FOR AN UPGRADE
{Venus in Libra in a Separating Square to Pluto Retrograde in Capricorn and a Separating Trine to Jupiter Retrograde in Aquarius}
My recent “Vibe Check” video focused a lot on this influence. Venus, the receptive principle, what we attract and allow for ourselves, is undergoing an intense recalibration from the square to Pluto. The reason for feeling frustration or imbalance regarding what you take in may be so deep you can’t even see it.
Ancestral or epigenetic patterning, generational conditioning (often called “generational curses” by the New Age community), laws and structures in place that are in the process of overhaul, deep trauma from loss, systemic manipulation that has become normalized, disconnection from or fear of one’s own personal power are all examples of what is getting unearthed and restructured at this time.
What we inherit culturally or genetically probably has a bit of good and bad, relevant and irrelevant for the present age. It’s rarely all or nothing. Who you are and who you have been historically evolve. When you reflect on this, are you getting hung up on shadowy emotions like shame or guilt? Does this drive your behavior or your (in)ability to receive? Do you feel a need to overcompensate or demand retribution for the past? What if, for a moment, you took these limiting motivators away.
What would you be doing or how might you be treating yourself (and consequently, others) differently when you already imagine a better integration of the darker aspects of self? Use this vision to guide your conversations, choices, and interactions with others. Seek support in facing and integrating the shadow aspects of your outward self for more overall balance. Refusing support or overcompensating and burning yourself out create an exhausted individual ill-equipped to make healthy choices and decisions. Poor choices tend to perpetuate pain for self and others. Does that create the most beneficial collective picture?
HIDE UNDER BED OR ASK FOR AN EXTENSION?
{Mercury in Libra has Entered the Retrograde Shadow Zone}
Oh, it’s every sensationalist astrologer’s favorite time. Mercury is not in Gatorade, lemonade, retrograde just yet, but the planet of communication has now entered the retrograde shadow zone. Since Mercury is the ruler of Virgo, the sign of the New Moon, this planet’s activity is significant right now.
Mercury will go retrograde (appear to stop and move backward for three weeks) at the end of the month on September 27. The retrograde shadow zone marks sky territory (10-25 degrees of Libra) that the planet in question will be revisiting during actual retrograde. So, basically for all of September, communication around Libra themes like partnership, social justice, giving and receiving, general balance and harmony will inevitably be revisited during October.
This doesn’t mean you need to go on a silent retreat for a month or rush travel plans now to avoid taking those trips during October. Please don’t do anything superstitiously cuckoo and frantic. What it does mean is pay attention to your feelings, points of view, body of knowledge, personal interactions this month. These might shift in unexpected ways when more information comes in during the retrograde later, and that’s great. Let things unfold naturally.
Are you noticing your relationships, your devices, your vehicle showing signs of vulnerability? These are things to watch and give yourself time to work on. If you’re more analytical than feeling-based, ask an astrologer or look to your personal natal chart to see where you have Libra, especially 10-25 degrees. Notice the house and any planets you may have there or in other Cardinal signs (Aries, Cancer, Capricorn) at those degrees. These placements will totally clue you in on what is likely to come up for addressing during the retrograde.
