Late Monday night, almost Tuesday in my Eastern US time zone, we reach the Full Moon in Aries.
We’re past the Equinox, the Sun in exquisitely calibrated Libra. We’re also out of eclipse season, which it great because the two fall eclipses were both intense.
This Moon is full in the middle of Aries, the sign of cardinal Fire, of starting new stuff, heading toward what we want the most. There’s a clean feeling to Aries, like an arrow shot straight and true from a bow, landing exactly in the middle of the bullseye.
Yet the Moon is not at her best here. Aries is the place of the Sun’s exaltation. There’s a bit too much glare for the Moon. The light is too bright.
The Moon in mid Aries has desires, for sure, but can be swayed by strong personalities around her. She may be influenced by directions and destinations set by others.
Meanwhile, the Sun travels through mid Libra, cardinal Air. This is a place of lasting unions, of connections so strong they feel like forever. And yet, the middle of Libra is also a place where bonds can be broken, by the chances of the world or changes of the heart.
The Sun, opposite their sign of exaltation (which is Aries), is not strong in Libra. Sometimes the search for harmony overall can lead to breaking individual bonds. It’s tough to keep personal commitments when we’re trying to keep everyone happy.
So it’s handy that Jupiter is nearby.
Jupiter sits at 23º Cancer, where he is glorious and strong. At the end of Cancer, cardinal Water and place of his exaltation, Jupiter is generous with gifts.
The Sun and Moon are at 14º Libra and Aries. These signs square Cancer. With the wide orbs given to the Sun and Moon, both luminaries are already in applying squares to Jupiter.
While squares can be challenging, any connection to Jupiter, especially in an exalted state, is great. So the Sun and Moon each apply to square Jupiter, who is ready to offer generous support.
The Moon’s square will perfect on Tuesday, October 7, within the Full Moon phase. The Sun will reach their exact square October 17. This means Jupiter’s beneficent action will continue well into this waning lunar phase.
This is good because the backdrop to the Full Moon is powerful.
We are still, and will be for many years, in a timeline of great change. The strength of this Big Change energy is reflected in the ongoing connections among Pluto, Uranus, Neptune, and Saturn. As we’ve seen for some weeks, Pluto in Aquarius continues to trine Uranus in Gemini while both of them sextile Saturn and Neptune.
Pluto is especially powerful right now because he is stationing. Currently retrograde, Pluto will turn direct on October 13. But Pluto moves so slowly, he’s already in position for this change of direction. He won’t move between now and the 13th.
As a general rule, all the outer planets are strongest when they are stationing. Because of the length of their orbits relative to Earth’s orbit, Pluto, Neptune, and Uranus spend a lot of time retrograde. So while we notice differences in birth charts based on whether outer planets are direct or retrograde, in world events, we tend to see the greatest impacts when these powerful bodies are not moving at all, which we call stationing.
Uranus is retrograde at the beginning of Gemini. He stationed back on September 6, but in the weeks since then, hasn’t even move half a degree. Uranus is strong right now too.
By the way, Neptune and Saturn also turned retrograde in the last weeks, so, the Big Change planets are all feeling a bit heavy these days as they stay connected to each other with trines and sextiles.
This can feel like a stationary storm front. Big weather systems can get stuck over mountains or large bodies of water, and keep blowing, or raining, or snowing much more intensely than weather systems that move.
Mercury, one of the quickest planets, is just about to enter Scorpio, and will make that move before the Full Moon. This will bring new insight into the Big Change pattern. As soon as Mercury enters Scorpio, they will aspect Pluto, Uranus, Neptune, and Saturn.
The strongest connection will be Mercury’s square to Pluto, Scorpio to Aquarius. Mercury at the beginning of Scorpio is incisive. Austin Coppock’s descriptors for this Mercury are curious, cunning, and concentrated. Pluto is, of course, the modern ruler of Scorpio. So, this Mercury–Pluto square will be a very Scorpionic conversation.
In world events, this connection can signal the uncovering of secrets. It can also signal the creation of new secrets, though, so, possibly we’ll see some of both. Scorpio Mercury won’t give up until they get to the bottom of things.
Mercury is also at the apex of a yod with Uranus as one point at the bottom of the triangle and Saturn–Neptune the other point. A yod isn’t comfortable because the three points do not share either element or mode. Mercury is fixed Water. Uranus is mutable Air. Neptune is currently in cardinal Fire.
Saturn plays an interesting role in this yod, being well within orb to participate but already back in Pisces, mutable Water, so actually sharing the same element as Mercury.
Will hidden things come to light? Will some things be hidden even more deeply? Can an incisive, penetrating Mercury help sort out Uranian quick changes happening in a Neptune–Saturn fog of confusion and disinformation?
The answer to a yod is said to be opposite its apex. For this Mercury yod, the opposite point is early Taurus. So when things get too confusing, do Taurus. Touch grass. Eat chocolate. Hug someone.
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Mercury is moving toward Mars, also in early Scorpio. This very powerful Mars has already squared Pluto and connected with Uranus, Neptune, and Saturn. Mars is action. Mercury is communication. So another possibility is Mercury’s entrance into Scorpio many bring forward news about stuff that happened when Mars entered Scorpio.
Mars rules this Full Moon, lending a subversive vibe to the straightforward approach Aries usually takes.
Venus, in late Virgo, rules the Libra Sun, and also moves into a sextile with Jupiter. Another additional tie to good fortune and good outcomes to balance the Scorpio vibes.
There’s no direct connection in this chart between the Full Moon and the pattern of aspects connecting the Big Change agents. Yet both are happening and both are important.
So, let’s foreground the Full Moon so we can understand and work with (and live with and survive) the Big Changes.
We’re past eclipse season. We’re past the equinox. It’s an Aries Full Moon. We want to move.
The Aries Moon wants to fulfill her desires, but not on her own. She wants to be part of her community. The Libra Sun longs to make deep, lasting commitments, while also being a good member of their community.
The key theme of this Full Moon is the intersection between individual desire and community support.
We already know how important this balance is. Big changes are happening. A chunk of those changes are not life sustaining, bringing serious challenges forward for many people. We need community. We still have individual goals. We want both to be healthy and strong.
This Full Moon is not letting us forget the state of the world. In fact, Mercury’s job is to keep us in the loop. But the world, at the Full Moon, is background.
Our focus is on finding our balance point between doing what we as individuals want and need (Aries) and what our communities need to stay strong and healthy (Libra).
We see how both the Moon and the Sun carry this dual message. It’s not a simple Aries=me and Libra=everybody else. Somewhere there’s a sweet spot in which we get our needs met, mostly, while also contributing to and supporting our communities.
This Full Moon invites us to find that sweet spot and move in there.
