Our vision
is not a matter of
intellect but a matter
of hearing our hearts.
Ruth Saw
The Full Moon on August 1, 2023, at 9 Aquarius broadens our horizons, giving us insight and vision for how to give shape to our future self.
We can more readily see the road that stretches out before us and how to meet the potentials that are coming up the road to greet us. There is a powerful urge to break away from the predictable, from what is already created. It is beneficial to yield to the pull we feel to explore 'the road less traveled'.
Opening to the Full Moon's invitation, we can have profound insight into who we are becoming and how to give shape to our future. A new potential may arrive on our doorstep seemingly out of the blue. If we feel excited about something that seems farfetched, rather than shrug it off, we are encouraged to harness our excitement, climb atop it and ride it to see where it carries us. We are to validate and deeply consider a new idea that appears over the next days and weeks that makes our heart sing with joy.
The only word of caution is that we don't rush ourselves or take impulsive, decisive action but allow new ideas time to marinate and be explored. Time is needed for the seeds of what inspires us this month to germinate and come to flower over time.
Jupiter square the Full Moon and trine Mars
Full Moon Ruler: Uranus square Venus
Full Moon Classical Ruler: Saturn square Mercury
More on Venus Retrograde (7/22 – 9/3)
Nearing a period of 7 planets in Retrograde
Chariklo conjunct the Aquarian Moon
This is the second of four consecutive Super Moons. Super Moons are 15% brighter than an average full moon and 30% brighter than when the Moon is farthest from the Earth (apogee). Supermoons increase the moon’s gravitational and magnetic effects on the Earth, ocean tides, and our psyches as well. Because Feelings and sensitivities are heightened, it is beneficial to make room for what is stirring in our feeling nature and not just seek to numb, quiet or distract ourselves from it.
The meaning of life
isn’t to find your gift.
The purpose of life
is to give it away.
Pablo Picasso
The Aquarian Moon inspires us to think about our future. Recognizing we are all connected, the Full Moon supports us in creating a vision for how we want to share our skills, talents and gifts for the benefit of the larger community. The opposing Sun in Leo draws us into our heart, kindling a desire to give ourselves to what we love and what brings us joy.
The Full Moon accentuates the polarity between the head (Aquarius) and the heart (Leo), between innovation (Aquarius) and creativity (Leo), between a future plan (Aquarius) and the joy of being alive now (Leo). As air, Aquarius fuels the intellect, rational thinking, conceptual ideas, and a desire to meet the need of the collective. As fire, Leo accentuates inspiration, creativity, a child-like (not childish) enthusiasm for what lights us up and the desire to actualize our love and innate potential.
The Leo quest is to fulfill our creative potential through an awakened heart.
The Aquarian quest is to form collaborations for the betterment of all through an awakened mind. We can hold Aquarius/Leo as two sides of the same coin. In resolving the polarity, we embody our potential and shape our reality through collaboration and a desire to serve a larger community. In this, we dispel the trance of herd mentality and discover that our individual contribution can be valued and supported. The realization of our potential as a human being is ultimately connected to a sense of belonging to something larger than ourselves and being supported and recognized for our unique expression within and to the whole.
We are to contemplate the future, identify the potentials we see, and then look to collaborate with others to bring our gifts, vision and talents into the world. The key is to be anchored in our heart as we move with innovative and inspired thoughts. In other words, let the love of what we feel called to share guide our plans and ideas for the future. Otherwise, the Aquarian energy can cause us to be overly cerebral, too much in our heads, so that we become disconnected from our very humanity.
Jupiter square the Full Moon accentuates the Full Moon's invitation. Inspiring confidence and self-trust, we can embrace a big vision that calls forth our gifts and talents. In Taurus, Jupiter helps to also ground the vision in a plan and practical steps to having it become real. It can be a worthwhile exercise to take a moment at the Full Moon and fan the flames of a new idea that excites us and write it down or tell it to someone who will encourage us to nurture the vision of what we see for ourselves.
Jupiter trine Mars further supports us in shaping a plan and identifying the steps that transform a fantasy into something achievable. We are energized to giving legs to an idea and setting it into motion. We trust ourselves to take the first steps to honor what is revealed to us now.
A vision is not just a picture
of what could be;
it is an appeal
to our better selves,
a call to become
something more.
Rosabeth Moss Kanter
The 2000's Carry an Aquarian Theme
The December 2020 solstice saw the Great Conjunction at 0 degrees Aquarius with Jupiter and Saturn catapulted us into a new 200-year cycle that emphasizes air as the primary vehicle of growth and mastery.
Throughout 2021, Jupiter moved through Aquarius, sparking innovation and future-oriented visions that gave birth to new potentials. We began releasing the past and what we have known to reach for something new and promising.
From 2021-2022 Saturn was in Aquarius, restraining forward movement so we could contemplate ways to ground our ideas and be accountable to them.
From 2021-2028, Chariklo, a dwarf planet, is in Aquarius. More on Chariklo further down.
In March 2023, Pluto arrived in Aquarius for the first time in 248 years!
Pluto’s nature is to transform – not just change or adjust but transform. Pluto has currently retrograded back to Capricorn for the remainder of the year, where it will continue to deconstruct what is not working within the status quo, within systems and organizations, and within government and those who hold leadership positions. It is breaking things down so that there is an opening to embrace new possibilities when it moves through Aquarius. When Pluto returns to Aquarius in January 2024, it will remain in this sign for 20 years, until 2044.
As Pluto journeys through Aquarius for the next 20 years, knowledge and the intellect will be valued over the accumulation of material resources. There will be fantastic and rapid changes in how we live resulting from technological and scientific innovation. The future will be shaped less by tradition, by conventions of what we have been taught, or on what we collectively already know. Centralized governments and top/down organization will give way to more grass roots and community-based organizations. Humanitarian goals that value all people, regardless of race, economic status, age, religion or other identifiers, will be supported.
While we will interact more and more with technology, the trick will be to not become an extension of that technology. The more and more we live only in our heads, only valuing the intellect, the more we become mechanized and isolated. It is essential that we do not mentally dissociate from our bodies, heart, soul and emotional nature. We need to stay connected to our heart, to valuing love and growing love in the world as a way to find balance and wellbeing to counterbalance increased technological sophistication. While the universe can be explained as a mathematical equation, its very existence is love. Love is what makes the world go round.
The Full Moon offers the discernment needed to understand the relationship between the head and the heart and how to move in a good way with continuing technological advancement. We live in a culture where the mind controls the heart, controls nature, and calls our feeling nature weak or even dangerous. The development of the mind is rewarded. Cultural norms have us naturally engage technology, thought and intellect. We are on computers, cell phones, in meetings, making lists, evaluating plans and using our mind to navigate the complexity of modern life. It is up to us to find ways to feed, engage and value the heart of us. Love resides in our heart, not our heads. Joy arises from the heart. Heart connects is to the natural world, to each other, to the divine. The Full Moon encourages our mind to come into its rightful place as a servant to our heart. Rather than take the lead, the mind's role is to hear what lights up our heart and use its intellectual prowess to fulfill the heart’s guidance for how to move.
The Shadow expression of the Full Moon and strong Aquarian energy is that we can get so lost in our heads. In the pursuits of the intellect we can so easily become detached from our humanity and our heart. Fixation on some idea or belief can lead to a rigid allegiance to it such it that creates an us versus them mentality. There becomes a lack of tolerance for those who do not share our vision of the future and a desire to censor, punish or banish them. Conversely, the Aquarian shadow can compel us to suppress some essential part of ourselves in order to 'fit in' and be accepted by others. By healing and opening our hearts, we can stay true to ourselves in the face of communal pressure and also stay accepting of people who see thing differently.
Certain things catch your eye,
but pursue only those
that capture your heart.
Native American Proverb
Freedom from a Conditioned Response
Full Moon Ruler: Uranus
Uranus compels us to question and transcend our childhood, social and cultural conditioning so we can move and express ourselves authentically and fully. With Uranus in Taurus, we are exploring a new kind of relationship with the earth and material resources, so we do not act from an unquestioned pre-programmed response in our relationship to the concept of 'ownership' of land, food, possessions or money. Uranus reminds us that everything is connected, so if we are looking to flourish as individuals, then we naturally want to support the flourishing of all that surrounds us.
Uranus, readying to turn retrograde, cues us to allow for added time to marinate on any big changes we are contemplating. Over the next months, we will gain increasing clarity around why some part of our plan or life is not working. Not pushing the river but listening for what calls to us can bring breakthrough and new perspective around the nature of the changes we want to see happen.
Uranus Square Venus is operating until the end of September with three exact squares during that time: July 2, August 9 and September 29. Venus is our values as expressed primarily through our relationships and how we utilize resources. We are desiring more freedom in our relationships. Routines that once created comfort and ease, now feel stifling. We are looking to be more authentic, creative. We are exploring how our interactions with others can be inspiring and uplifting, rather than leave us depleted or disempowered. A new relationship can come seemingly out of nowhere and sweep us off our feet, but with Venus Retrograde, it would be prudent to take it slow and not, for instance, rush off to Vegas to get hitched. There is likely to be fluctuation in our personal or collective financial picture; we can make room for the unexpected, windfalls or upsets – either is possible. The key is to slow down and not heed a sense of urgency to make some big decision but to have some patience and curiosity about what may be opening for us in the face of something unexpected.
More on Venus Retrograde (July 22 to September 3)
While Venus is Retrograde, we contemplate how we can be more expressed, more joyful in our relationships and what may need to change or be addressed to have this happen. We yearn for deep connection with others and to experience the romantic life. (Venus at the apex of a Yod with Neptune and Pluto). Within this, we are faced with a need to dispel fantasies and grow our capacity for kindness, honesty and compassion. We are to dream big in how we want to love and be loved, yet not lose sight of what is real. We are to feel the heartbeat of the universe, the deep pulse of divine love and open ourselves to its rhythm and power. Mystical visions and our creative spirit flourish here.
Discerning the Real from the Unreal
Classical Full Moon Ruler: Saturn in Pisces opposing Mercury in Virgo
Saturn in Pisces deepens our awareness around what is real and enduring. Much of what we engage daily is temporal, meaning it has an expiration date. We are discovering that things we thought would last, may suddenly be coming to an end. It can be a favorite department store, a relationship, a job or pleasant summer weather. In this, we are to root ourselves not in the shifting sands of worldly life but int he in the rhythms of Nature, of the Divine, of what was present before we were born and will continue after we pass. This will help guide us during a sea of change and the shifting sands of culture.
Saturn square Mercury. We are apt to be critical of our visions and what inspires us. Our thoughts are geared to examining why something will not work, conjuring the worse-case scenarios to issues we are facing. If we listen to just our thoughts, we can become stuck and defeated. The Mercury/Saturn square reminds us of the proper relationship between the head and the heart. If we give the job of visioning to the mind, we can experience mental fatigue and overwhelm. We need to listen to what our heart is telling us. If we find ourselves overthinking something, we need to relax our mind and listen to what is arising from our heart and soul. Mercury in Virgo can then excel at looking at the details of how to make something happen. It can zero in on particulars and iron out the kinks of a plan of action, but it will become jammed if it attempts subdue the heart and take the lead. A teacher I had once said: if you feel you have to choose between one thing and another, you are in your head. If you know which way to move, then you are coming from your heart. Again, let the mind give the reins to the heart and then it can exercise its brilliance in serving to realize what the heart has called us to do.
End of Summer Slow Down
By the end of August, seven planets will be retrograde just as they are each year about this time. It is a time of slowing down, catching up, re-evaluating and readying ourselves to move forward with clarity and clear intention later in the fall. Underlying all this, is Pluto’s square to the nodal axis that dominates the 2023 astrological landscape. This square reminds us that we are in a time of deep change as we are prodded to more and more to release what we think we know and open to new ways of living and seeing life. We are to let knew stirrings, new ideas, new illuminations marinate within us. Changes are coming. We need only to be patient with ourselves and stay connected to our heart and to nurturing our love.
Our days are happier
when we give people
a bit of our heart
rather than a piece
of our mind.
Ritu Ghatourey
Temenos: A Container for the Soul’s Work to Flourish
Chariklo conjunct the Aquarian Full Moon
I do not write about dwarf planets unless I am struck by the degree of its influence in current planetary dynamics. Discovered in 1997, Chariklo emanates a reservoir of compassion, devotion, discernment and presence. Her presence in Aquarius, during a time when the outer planets are all traveling through Aquarius, brings her qualities and gifts to the forefront to support us in moving in a beautiful way with the Aquarian themes that permeate this decade. With Chariklo conjoined with the Aquarian Full Moon, it felt timely to name her and acknowledge her presence and how we can benefit from embracing what she has to offer us.
Chariklo’s name means 'Spinning Grace.' Chariklo and her husband Chiron together represent the healing qualities of the divine feminine and the divine masculine. These qualities are not about gender, but about energetic expressions that when in balance, foster harmony and unity within the mind, body, and soul.
Chiron in astrology is the wounded/healer, directing our attention to a core wound that we are called to heal so it becomes a source of great strength. Through this process, we develop a profound gift we can then offer the world.
Chariklo emanates a purity and gentleness that quickens the loving-kindness that lives within us all. She offers receptivity and spaciousness. Integral to this, is how she creates and holds a sacred space, much like a womb. It is her very presence, her witnessing, that catalyzes the transformation and growth that is ready to take place. Chariklo resides within each of us, and through our desire to be of support to others, we can access her great power.
Chariklo, as the presence of the divine feminine, offers the gifts of:
creating and holding sacred space that provides a ‘field for healing’
upholding the boundaries needed to maintain a field of spaciousness, compassion and deep trust and acceptance
healing through her presence and state of being
benevolent neutrality that neither judges, persuades, intervenes, attracts or repels but has deep trust in the natural unfoldment of what is taking and needs to take place.
giving witness as the means to facilitate big transitions (birth, death, soul transformation)
Chariklo in Aquarius 2021 – 2028
Due to her healing nature, we are likely to see themes of spiritual awakening through a healing crisis of some kind. As stated earlier, the Aquarian quest is an awakened mind. Inherent in this is the awareness of the interconnection between all people and living beings and the desire to collaborate and serve some purpose greater than oneself. The advent of AI can easily set us off course if we hold Intelligence as the goal and separate it out from all that gives us life and meaning. The space Chariklo holds can help us in to realize 'the awakened mind' or 'higher mind' without disconnecting ourselves from nature, our humanity, or the dance of the creation.
As the shaman asteroid, Chariklo exudes softness, patience and acceptance as we undergo a transformative process to guide us to greater wisdom. Her presence helps provide a sacred container where we feel safe to be unsafe. Surrender is fostered as we give ourselves to the waves of destiny that cannot be fought, but only rode to some new shoreline. To allow for a deep surrender, we will each look at what boundaries need to be maintained so that we feel a sacred container, a temenos, in which we can do the inner and outer work we are called to do.
Chariklo conjunct the Aquarian Full Moon
In her spacious presence, and the acceptance found within the confines of the sacred space she creates, we are reminded that nothing needs to be forced or pushed along. We have only to ride the waves of change as they present themselves. We do not need to fight them, judge them, analyze them, but just accept and move with them. In this, we can discover how our heart is connected with the heart of the universe, the heart of all things, and how it guides and moves us to continually become more than who we are. In this space, we can open to something more than what we already know, and most likely to something beyond what we could ever imagine as we continue our life journey to come into our full expression, an expression of the universe, which ultimately is an expression of love.