A Last Quarter Moon of Coming to Terms with Reality

Monday morning’s Last Quarter Moon in Capricorn brings the practicality of the Saturn-ruled sign of Capricorn into a head-on confrontation with the flightier condition of Aries, the sign of the Sun and of the Spring Equinox, where we encounter a powerful presence of retrograde Venus, and where a very prominent Uranus still holds sway, along with Eris, the new planet beyond Pluto. These latter two planets in combination have been responsible for quite a stir recently, and this is getting even stronger as their conjunction perfects for one final time this month. The combination produces a rebellious opposition to any kind of status quo, moving in the direction of deep soul intention, as each involved individual is able to discern this within himself or herself. There is as well a dreamy and idealistic quality to all our imaginings now, with Neptune activated by a forming close quintile from the Moon in the first degree of Capricorn. Meanwhile, the conservative backlash to all this activism, as represented by stodgy old Saturn, also featured in this quarter Moon, is there for all to see, producing a collision that is fully supported by the Sun and Moon occupying these antithetical signs, one focused on future achievement, with Uranus so very prominent, while the other, in the Capricornian mode, constantly forcing us back to reality. The word “reality” can have two meanings of course; there is the nuts-and-bolts physical reality of schedules and responsibilities, symbolized by Saturn, and then there is the higher form of reality that is beyond the physical, as represented by Uranus, and by Neptune. This quarter Moon configuration partakes of the acceptance of reality in terms of both of these very different meanings.

Venus in her retrograde motion is also significant in this quarter Moon configuration, in part because as she gets closer to the Sun she disappears from the evening sky, in what is known as her sojourn in the underworld, and this portion of her cycle is just beginning. In Mayan astrology this period, lasting ten days or so until her Helical Rise as the Morning Star on the 31st, was thought to be a time when all bets were off and things could get out of hand. They referred to this period when Venus was making her transition to the Morning Star as “the embarrassment of the ruler,” because they thought that the normal rules of the game were temporally suspended. In any case this is an interesting transition, and Venus is also in close aspect to Mars, being in his sign of Aries, in exact semi-sextile to Mars, and in mutual reception. This is a very Marsy and rule-avoiding Venus we have right now, in these times of trial, and we are likely to be delving more closely into the inner meaning of all our relationships, and into what our true values are.

Therefore, as we navigate the polarities of these days of political left and right in their facing off, we might also want to be taking a closer look inside ourselves for where we feel cautious or seem to be holding back, perhaps wisely, and as well for where our most far-out and fanciful vision might be able to take us. This can be a thought experiment, ideas only, or we can decide to act on our most cherished values. Either way we are exploring, at least mentally, an important part of ourselves.

The Sabian symbols for the Sun and Moon degrees, the first of their respective signs, are powerful. For the Sun, in the first degree of Aries, we have “A woman rises out of the sea; a seal rises to embrace her.” This makes for a nice chime with the coming Aries cycle of Venus, empowering women everywhere, and with the strong presence of Eris in these late winter and early spring skies, speaking to the rising tide of the Feminine Warrior energy that she represents. There is also the notion of cooperating with nature rather than opposing her. Marc Edmund Jones has “completely unconditioned potentiality, as this may be grasped on the practical side of life… an implicit emphasis on the mutual interdependence of the emotional and purposeful aspects of self.” For the Moon, in the first degree of Capricorn, we find, “An American Indian chief demanding recognition.” This is another symbol of the interaction of natural law, here represented by indigenous peoples, and human activity. Jones has “uncompromising inner integrity” and “ever-effective authority following from a single eye of vision, and constant dignity of character.” We could be inspired to reflect that an important transformation is upon us, whereby we might rise to the very best version of ourselves that we can muster, and that only by a true concord between man, woman, and nature will we succeed as a society.