Preamble:
The new moon can be thought of as a window in time when the Higher-Self initiates specific lessons or personal growth intentions for the coming month, and we can use the lunar cycle as a way of decoding evolutionary forces at a more granular level than the solar cycle or the transits of the slower moving planets.
For the spiritually minded person, the new moon is a time to receive the seed impulses for one’s personal evolution, and specifically those impulses toward bringing something new into conscious awareness. Each moon cycle fits into a larger cycle, which begins at the Aires new moon, and if you seriously want to track the unfolding pattern of higher-self guidance, it is a really good idea to record a log or journal of key messages and impressions received in the few hours before and after the new moon, roughly 4-5 hours on either side. During this window of time, make space to be more meditative and pay attention to your thoughts, inspirations, psychic messages and so on, as these will tend to correspond to the archetype the new moon is birthing in at the time, and correlate to the growth themes we are meant to work with during the month.
At some point in time (after a few months) you can look through your log and begin to see a key pattern unfolding, which can stimulate further insight in terms of life purpose.
The first new moon in 2023 kicks off in the sign of freedom loving and progressive Aquarius on 21st January.
The lunar cycle is now coming to a close, with just one more new moon (in Pisces) before a cycle renewal through Aires in March this year. The upcoming new lunar cycle in a few months time will be more significant than usual, since the Aires new moon will occur exactly at the March equinox! It will also be followed by a second new moon in Aires a month later, emphasising a significant opportunity for the birthing of new directions, coinciding with Pluto at 0˚ Aquarius for the first time in 245 years.
This theme of the birthing of new possibilities is also reflected in the fact that five consecutive New Moons , beginning with the recent Sagittarius New Moon in late November 2022, are occurring within the 1st degrees of the signs, finishing with the New Moon in Aires 0˚ coinciding with the equinox; we are within a window of time where significant breakthroughs and change can occur both personally and collectively. The key will be where each of us put our attention; are we aligned with the principle of love and raising our core vibration toward a “New Earth” paradigm, or are we still aligned with fear, energising catastrophic or dystopian timelines?
Core archetypal themes this month
This Aquarius New Moon will tend to stimulate new objective awareness and generate a degree of significant insight throughout the month. We can expect sudden intuitive flashes about future directions in life we are meant to take; pay attention to repeat messages and signals this month as they will be pointing you forward in the right direction.
Higher-Self impulses may also be directing us to liberate from any limitations that now obstruct further growth and awakening, so if you have been feeling stifled of late, this month may see key insights that catalyse needed change. These limitations may be manifest structures such as relationships, routines and jobs, or they may be mental and emotional internal patterns that keep us trapped. Keep an eye on the full moon about two weeks after, as this may act as a trigger for something significant; new ways of seeing things may suddenly emerge, which can open up new possibilities.
What old structures and ideas might we need to leave behind to make free space for new potential?
What new objective insights can come in during this period that can help us see things in a different light?
In what ways do we need to break free from existing limitations?
This new moon is conjunct Pluto in the last degrees of Capricorn, adding a potent transformative quality, which may mean insight will be intense, transformative and penetrating this month, and it will certainly give us all an evolutionary push to break free from whatever is holding us back individually, and provide the necessary drive to put key insights into action in our lives.
Chart cast for the New Moon in Aquarius - 21st January 2023 at 20.53 GMT/15.53 EST
For a guide to the astrological symbols click here
Astro-technicals:
The chart cast for the Aquarius New Moon offers intriguing patterns with feminine archetypes:
Vesta is conjunct Neptune in Pisces
Pallas is conjunct Jupiter in Aires
Hygeia is conjunct Mercury in Capricorn
Ceres is in opposition to Pallas and Jupiter
Eris is sextile Venus conjunct Saturn in Aquarius
Pluto is in close trine with Sedna
Other key patterns are:
Quaoar and Pholus in very close conjunction in Capricorn
Pluto in conjunction with the New Moon
Venus conjunct Saturn
Orcus in ongoing opposition with Nessus
Mercury inconjunct Mars in Gemini
Two Yod formations:
Chiron and Mars with the lunar south node at the apex
The lunar south node and Quaoar conjunct Pholus, with Mars at the apex
Overall this lunation builds upon the energy wave of the Dec Solstice, which emphasised foundational work for self development and spiritual awakening through maturation and self-responsibility, as preparation for action in the world later down the track. This month the energy supports spiritual development and liberation.
Vesta and Neptune in Pisces puts a focus on spiritual practices that help us attune to higher guidance, and help us overcome illusions.
Pallas conjunct Jupiter in Aires represents the renewal of the Divine Feminine through innovative pioneering leadership, she is opposed by Ceres the Earth Mother in Libra, and the opposition forms a T-square with Quaoar and Pholus at the apex. Will we act appropriately to intuitive impulses to break free from the past and forge new pathways in ways that honour the feminine, and bring us into a more refined balance with natural forces? And if we do, how will this transform our reality, place in the world, and sense of personal authority over our own lives?
The Quaoar/Pholus conjunction in Capricorn ongoing for more than a decade to come, represents a vibrational shift of the structures of our reality, which at the personal level processes through the physical body, but will over time cause the restructuring of society (described in Ascension terms as a shift to 5th density). Pallas as the patron of heroes, is a key force in the awakening process, guiding us at times via the soft inner-voice, and bestowing helpful synchronicities depending on what is most needed. How many of us will feel initiated this month into a new level of awakening?
The potent cosmic light frequencies emanating from Quaoar, now directly affecting space-time reality, have to be anchored through the body into the Earth. In addition we are learning to accept any limitations we experience, as having significant value to our personal awakening process; limitations although obstructive to false egoic desires, are more than often compatible with the intentions of the Higher-Self, and this month we may experience a break-though in understanding this. Acceptance of limitation allows us to cooperate with what is meant for us for personal growth and awakening, guiding us forward on the correct path of development.
Can we differentiate between what we have power over and can change, from that which we cannot change and must learn to accept and cooperate with?
On a more collective level, Pallas rebirthing through Jupiter in Aires will coincide with the emergence of new feminine leadership manifesting through both men and women alike. What do I mean by feminine leadership? To lead from an internal sense of knowing; to lead through empathy and compassion; to lead with an inclusive approach based on anti-rivalry. The power of the feminine is emphasised with Venus in Aquarius in very close sextile with Eris in Aires energising many of us to break free, through inner changes that enable us to take new action in our lives.
Pluto is still in a square with Eris (an influence that began in 2015 and is now gradually dissipating), and makes a tight trine with Sedna in Taurus. Again the newer feminine archetypes are energised by powerful evolutionary energy, and there is no doubt that Eris in Aires has been a key initiator for systems disruption all over the world, shaking things up, and blowing away the heavy mists of complacency within the more privileged and wealthy western world, seeding chaos as we collectively entered a corridor of transition; it is plain to see for most of us that the world is changing fast and there is no way of knowing where we will end up. Chaos is a necessary environmental condition for radical systems change, so we needn’t be overly daunted, but we do need to guard against too much chaos as this can lead to destructive outcomes. The onus on each of us is to hold a steady positive vision of the future for humanity on Earth, and to desist from any alignment with fear based images we come across in the media no matter how seductive.
The Pluto-Sedna trine emphasises the plight of survival victims world-wide on many levels including those homeless, those who have lost their livelihoods, those with vaccine injuries as well as those sexually abused or gender discriminated - I think this aspect will most likely make more noticeable just how many people are victimised by the capitalist and largely patriarchal system now beginning to implode.
This combination of Pluto with both Eris and Sedna is exemplified by the women’s revolution in Iran against a tired and illegitimate political and philosophical social structure where, as Alan Kian points out, women are often subjected to both spiritual and physical rape on a day to day basis. Those in power represented by Pluto in Capricorn; overly rigid, dogmatic and stagnant, have shown themselves to be completely unable to entertain any kind of social or religious reformation, and are now experiencing the angry revolutionary push back from young teenaged women, who are no longer willing to put up with the suffering and victimisation bestowed upon women (Sedna in Taurus), in a culture where hugging, kissing, holding hands, dancing and the showing of hair is strictly forbidden and punishable by death. Eris in Aires has been activating the youth, daring them to demand a basic freedom to determine for themselves who they want to be, with enough energy to take action against the tyrannical and male dominant regime in such a way that for every individual who falls, five more take their places. My heartfelt prayers are with all those radiant souls courageously opposing tyranny wherever it is in the world.
The Sedna trine with Pluto will continue to activate many people all over the world until at least 2026, and in the meantime Pluto will ingress into Aquarius (beginning Mar 2023) also activating the people of the world to reach for more personal empowerment and quicken a shift toward greater equality, personal freedom, and egalitarianism, so long as we reject seductive technological offerings from the capitalist tech giants, in order to move away from dystopian timelines featuring social credit and the replacement of money with digital programable (and controllable) currencies (CBDCs), which if misused could effectively eradicate freedom altogether.
Personal Growth this month
There are a number of aspects to consider, which describe some of the personal growth challenges this month, some of which are ongoing for several months and will continue to be influential.
Orcus/Nessus Opposition ~ Virgo/Pisces
This is a long term dynamic playing out within the collective psyche since at least 2014 (if we use a 5˚ orb) ongoing to 2040 after which the influence will gradually dissipate. I’ll mention it briefly here because for the spiritual initiate it has significance; it describes an ongoing context of spiritual initiation many of us are involved with, where we are required to awaken through the processing of psychic toxins and what I call ‘conscious suffering’, where unresolved emotional energy is allowed to process through a conscious realisation and acceptance of personal pain, as a means to elevate ones personal vibration toward an ever more heart-centred way of being.
The window of time between 2014 and 2040 is highly auspicious because it is another indicator (along with the Quaoar/Pholus conjunction) of a shift in consciousness within humanity; it offers many souls the opportunity to awaken at this time. Through cycles of catharsis, many of us are awakening to our true path of service; we are throwing off the painful patterns of the past that we have been carrying for many lifetimes throughout the last Dark Age, and although the inner work can sometimes feel gruelling, in the longer term it serves to purify the ‘soul-vehicle’ as we transition into an Age of Light. Obviously this long term energy dynamic will not affect us all at the same time, and at a personal level we can expect cycles to occur as this is the way the Orcus archetype functions; we won’t be in conscious suffering all the time, but from a collective level, there will always be awakening souls engaged in psychic detoxification throughout this period. In the current time period the opposition flows through the Virgo/Pisces axis, so much of the work now is focused on purification and the throwing off of illusions, spiritual dogma and unhelpful patterns of escapism, toward a more coherent connection with the Living Matrix and our personal path of service to the whole.
The 2 Yods
A Yod is formed when two planets in sextile aspect, both make an inconjunct to a third planet at the apex. The two planets in sextile, having a stronger affinity, tend to exert an evolutionary pressure to adjust the expression of the archetype at the apex, often through internal self analysis or through some external blockage causing a reassessment.
Yods are a call for inner work and a need to make internal adjustments. A Yod featuring Chiron, Mars and the South Node is an invitation to resolve and purify the patterns of the past (South Node at the Apex), through a desire to understand the nature of our deeper wounds.
A second Yod featuring the South Node, Quaoar & Pholus with Mars at the Apex, adds to the complexity of this adjustment dynamic: modulating high frequency light energy penetrating all layers of the auric field, including the physical body, activates a purification of past patterns, stimulating a conscious desire to find the answers and find solutions to deep feelings coming up now to be resolved. Together these Yods represent a process of liberating from past karma, and this month we may garner deeper unexpected insights. The square between Chiron and Hygeia signals that for some of us, engaging a holistic therapist could really help soothe and moderate any processing intensity. If we don’t make sufficient headway with regard to the past, we may end up feeling stifled and blocked later on down the track.
The T-Square aspect: Pallas/Jupiter opposing Ceres, both square Quaoar and Pholus at the apex.
The Pallas-Jupiter conjunction in Aires, sextile to the New Moon, activates powerful intuitive guidance and help this lunation - expect some strong gut feelings to guide you forward into new directions, especially in regard to personal spiritual work.
What is the next step for you on your spiritual journey?
What new tools, processes or adventures are you being signalled to engage?
With Ceres in the opposition we must remember to stay grounded and realistic, and pay attention to cultivating more balance in our lives to stabilise new intuitive insight in order to avoid unnecessary disruption and chaos, because radical new insights can put us into disarray at least for a while. If new realisations about your life feel too radical and destabilising, remember to let the feminine in and allow yourself the care and attention you need in order to stay harmonised.
This T-Square can be quite enjoyable so long as we can acknowledge the deep energetic changes occurring within us and for the planet as a whole.
Most of all I am struck by the strong feminine archetypal signature of this New Moon chart. I think we can expect to see expressions of feminine power on the world stage and within local community this month, geared toward greater freedom and equality. With the feminine archetypes of Pallas and Vesta both rebirthing through the expansive and spiritualising archetypes of Jupiter and Neptune respectively, for those tuned to a spiritual journey of personal awakening, much of the information coming through this month will set the scene for a spiritual renewal taking the personal journey onto a new level. My advice: stay open, receptive and vigilant for guiding signs, feelings and symbols from now through until late spring.
And finally, with all the primary planets going direct from late January until June (a relatively rare occurrence), with Uranus [the ruler of the Aquarius New Moon] the last to go direct, synchronised with the New Moon on 22nd January, not only may this lunation be punctuated by sudden changes or sudden world events, the forward motion of all the planets in unison suggest a real shift in the energy. If the last few years since the Pluto/Saturn conjunction in 2020 have felt creatively stifling and stuck, then I expect this year 2023 to be a year where many of us feel more able to flow with greater freedom, which will feel like a breath of fresh air. Last month, while the Sun has been transiting Capricorn, my sense was one of slow steady development toward the foundations of new beginnings yet to come. This month it feels like we may well be gifted with new insights, and as the energies open out in the next few months, they will generate momentum toward the rebirth of the lunar cycle in Aires synchronised with the March Equinox. From now until the June Solstice there is a real opportunity for rebirth and the initiation of new life journeys and projects. It always takes time for the energies to take shape in reality, but we can expect the 2nd half of this year to feel quite a lot different to where we are now. Lets hope so.
© 2023 Aquila Idha - all rights reserved
No written part of this article may be used without written consent of the author, unless credit and reference to this website are provided.
Aquila offers Self-realisation mentoring, Evolutionary Astrology, and Tarot sessions for those awakening to their true potential.