Early Thursday morning (in my time zone), we reach the New Moon in Aries.
New Moons initiate a new lunar cycle. This happens every lunar month. Important. Not unusual.
The Sun in Aries initiates a new zodiac cycle for the year at the spring equinox. 0º Aries, the origin, the beginning. Also important. A restart. Not unusual.
Each spring, the Moon joins the Sun at some point in Aries for a New Moon in this initiatory sign. It’s like the Moon confirming where we’re at in the year, in this zodiac cycle. Also not unusual.
This year’s New Moon in Aries is unusual because of its context. We’ll have six planets and two important asteroids in Aries. These bodies span the entire sign, starting with Neptune at 02º48’ and ending with the New Moon at 27º28’.
There’s a divide, though, in the middle. Neptune, Mercury, Mars, and Saturn are in the first decan of Aries. Eris, Chiron, and the Sun and Moon are in third decan. There’s nothing in the middle.
As I dive into Aries, let me say Austin Coppock’s 36 Faces is my go-to for understanding the decans. Everything I’ll share here is my interpretation based in Austin’s book and talks on this fascinating topic.
We have first decan and third. Looking at the state of the world, it’s easy to say, well, there is nothing in the middle. We live in a time of division, polarization, us against them. Whatever issue we look at at, we see two sides at odds. No middle ground seems sustainable.
The first decan of Aries feels pretty good about this. Austin names this decan The Axe, the weapon of separation, of dividing one thing from another, whether a tree from its roots, or a head from a body. The violence shows up throughout astrological history in this place where Aries and the zodiac begin.
Yet it’s not all about destruction. Austin notes that cell division is the origin of organic life. Birth is a bloody process. We cannot grow anything new without using resources existing somewhere else. Life comes from life.
The opening of Aries is an intense, vibrant, challenging, divisive place. Something is separating, no longer part of any collective, stepping out on its own to begin a new, unique existence.
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How each planet behaves here depends, of course, on the planet.
Mars is at home in his glory. He rules not only the sign of Aries but this decan specifically. Mars is powerful here in an Aries way: direct, bold, driving forward without paying attention to how this affects anyone or anything else.
Having broken free from his matrix, Mars moves fast and doesn’t look back. This Mars energy has power that can be positive or destructive. When someone runs into a burning building to save children, that’s heroic and lauded. When someone blows up a building, that’s problematic and judged on the context and results. Mars doesn’t care either way. Mars gonna Mars.
Neptune, not surprisingly, is tricky to describe here. We can combine Neptune’s cosmic reach and inscrutability with Aries direct and engulfing fire. That’s the fog of war. Or, people lying about what’s happening to spark outrage and anger. Also, genuine confusion about what happened, which can lead to mistakes and damage.
Looking just at these two, Mars and Neptune, we can see this New Moon and the weeks around it are good times to be really really sure of our sources. There will be temptations to shoot first and ask questions later, which could leave us with consequences very difficult to undo.
On the global stage, we see daily examples of unconsidered action. We see deliberate efforts to cover up, confuse, and lie. Also examples of people standing up, calling out bad behavior, uncovering secrets and lies, at great risk to themselves.
Interestingly, Neptune is said to rule petroleum. Largely, it seems, because the modern era of economies based in petrochemicals began around the same time Neptune was discovered. Also because squishy, liquid, gaseous, misty things are in Neptune’s domain. Are we facing major issues related to oil right now. Yes, we are.
Mercury has just joined the Aries team after a longish stay in Pisces that included a retrograde. Mercury isn’t having a lot of fun lately. They’ve been in detriment in Pisces, lost in mist and obfuscation. But they’re not wonderful in early Aries. Here, Mercury argues, contentiously. This is a Mercury who knows they’re right, 100%, won’t budge, and can get mean about it. Examples abound.
Saturn is the full stop. Right now, he’s the farthest along in early Aries at 07º34’, gatekeeping this first decan, waiting for Mars and Mercury to show up. Saturn is implacable here, stronger than you think, ready to meet incoming force with a greater force to stop it.
Mercury and Mars’ encounters with Saturn and each other, happening between this New Moon and the Full Moon on May 1, will be some of the most intense astrology of 2026. The planets in this first decan of Aries are not to be taken lightly.
The second decan of Aries, which Austin Coppock names The Crown, is a place where the new individual learns to channel all the fiery energy into something meaningful and productive. Unfortunately, none of the Aries bunch is in this middle space.
The third decan of Aries is my favorite decan in this Fire sign. Ruled by Venus, named The Burning Rose, it’s a place we discover how to channel, direct, and create with Aries’ bursts of bright energy, Here, fiery temper can become passion, a drive to create, enthrall, and command attention.
The exalted Sun in this decan wants to bring the individual forward to be seen and experienced as a force. The Moon also desires a stage or platform but, being our emotional side, can become dependent on being seen by others in a certain way.
It’s compelling to see the asteroids Eris and Chiron conjunct this New Moon. Eris marks global issues. Chiron, personal ones.
Eris, the chaos goddess, is ready start fires to bring attention to bigger problems. She won’t stand by. She won’t look the other way. She stands out as a reminder of global issues become serious enough to threaten everything. She commands attention, drawing our eye to what we must see.
Chiron, the wounded healer, shows where personal healing work is needed. In our birth charts, Chiron’s sign and placement marks childhood wounds, patterns we can understand and unravel to reclaim what was lost.
The New Moon is conjunct Eris and Chiron, yet the Sun and Moon are already separating from the two asteroids with their healing messages.
So at this New Moon, we’ve been through the fire. At the end of Aries, we’re still in a really intense place, but have experience behind us and creative potential where we are.
It’s not a stretch to imagine everyone feeling more than a bit crispy right now. Scorched, even. Many have been through difficult and dangerous experiences. Some lost their lives. Many are still at great risk. We are all witnesses, seared by what we see happening in the world.
This New Moon is a time to note where we are, what is happening around us, and collaborate with Eris and Chiron to explore what we want and need to do.
Aries is not quiet. It’s bold, brash, and impulsive. Fiery. Yet this New Moon finds us at the end of the sign. Our journey through Aries with the Sun and Moon, the most personal of personal planets, is almost over.
Of course, Neptune, Mercury, Mars, and Saturn are not done. Neptune, in particular, remains in Aries for many years. Saturn for several years.
The Fire of Aries is not done, but we’ve been through it in a very initiatory way and are about to come out the other side. The question this New Moon brings into focus is, who are we, in this world, in this moment? What skills, orientations, passions do we bring? What action can we take? How are we showing up?
This isn’t about what we do today, but what we do going forward. Aries wants action. The state of the world calls for action. What is my place? My mission? My goal? This is the Aries New Moon question for each of us.
Title image from a photo by Dhanya Purohit on Unsplash
