Aquarius Full Moon 2023

Tuesday 1 August – Full Moon in Aquarius 19:32 BST

Tuesday 1 August – Mars trine Jupiter 21:44 BST

Wednesday 2 August – Mercury opposite Saturn 3:18 BST

Monday 7 August – Sun square Jupiter 1:03 BST

Wednesday 9 August – Venus square Uranus 12:08 BST

Thursday 10 August – Chiron trine Jupiter 1:47 BST

Saturday 12 August – Sun trine Chiron 19:12 BST

Sunday 13 August – Sun conjunct Venus 12:15 BST

Monday 14 August – Venus trine Chiron 15:55 BST

Wednesday 16 August – Sun square Uranus 3:34 BST

Wednesday 16 August – New Moon in Leo 10:38 BST

We have a Full Moon in Aquarius on 1st August at 19:32 BST. Jupiter is very active at this full moon, squaring it and also in a supportive trine to Mars.

This is a supportive Full Moon. Jupiter’s influence stabilises and yet expands what’s good about this Full Moon, enriches the possibilities and opens doors.

Most of the outer planets, plus Saturn and Jupiter are in retrograde motion for most of the rest of the year. This has been a pattern for a few years, that the outer planets plus Jupiter has been retrograde for the latter part of the year.

Retrogradation is of course active now with Venus retrograde, but Mercury is also to turn retrograde in August, and as they turn direct at the start of September, we then see Jupiter and Uranus turn retrograde. So this time now through to the first half of October, we have a peak retrograde phase.

You could say that late July – August acted as transition months, heralding in some turnarounds, revisiting, shifting focus, reorientation. But this year, these retrogrades combined with Saturn now in Pisces, Pluto and Neptune in the final degrees, heralds a substantially different level of experience to just a ‘reorientation or revisiting’.

It’s a definitively different flavour to this year’s retrograde season, since we are all still getting acclimatised to Saturn’s rather complex sojourn of Pisces (as opposed to last year’s Aquarius). Saturn’s ingress into Pisces is forcing us to question the very ground beneath our feet.

This is multilayered and multileveled and cannot be easily contained. We are asking what keeps us grounded, what do we trust in, what keeps us feeling connected to ourselves and spirit. And essentially, who and what are we, what’s our purpose, what needs to die in order to rebirth ourselves into something more congruent.

What we assumed was made of substance, authority, perhaps even invested ourselves into (homes, people, institutions, communities, teachers, roles), now appears to be a confusing chaotic mess.

Pisces is a sign of culmination, being the last sign of the zodiac. We also have Pluto in the last degree of Capricorn (will return again in 2024), Neptune edging that way also, at 29 degrees in 2024. Saturn is in Pisces until the end of 2025, that times coincides with Uranus at the final degrees of Taurus.

The sheer magnitude of this astrology cannot be understated. It is a time of completing unfinished business, not just from our life, but those of our family lineage. The karma dues are now in need of being paid.

Saturn’s role is to crystallise our experience, that is, take value from it, make it real to us, make it mean something. But in Pisces, it opens a door to our emotional vulnerability in ways we are probably not quite prepared for, which is the whole point of course.

If we were prepared, what would we be learning – very little but righteousness – and we can all attest to having seen enough of that over the last few years.

The global atmosphere becomes one that flip flops between resistance, stoicism and escapism on the one hand, and on the other, inner withdrawal and outer disconnection leading to depression, annilihism and victimhood.

To have just one of those camps at our doorstep is enough, but to have many is to lose your direction and purpose. People are filled with doubt and uncertainty when they are forced to disengage with life. It is a dissolving of the personality, of our identity, and at this time there is still nothing to replace it with.

We are here to learn compassion for ourselves when all else fails. In fact we are here to learn compassion for self regardless. In times of dismantling, come back to taking each day as it comes, and holding yourself with compassion, this is the container you are growing.

So multiple, back to back retrogrades, during times of culmination, forces to explore the margins and depths, and takes us out of indifference.

It forces our hand also, to cut through things, to loosen our grip on things, forcing us to value clarity more, and supports us to find clarity, where we can. Perhaps because definitive clarity is harder to come by during retrograde periods, we are developing a different relationship to it.

What I mean by this is that when we do touch and meet clarity, and that refreshing wave of relief that accompanies it, we feel it more intensely, we feel the nature of it. To feel the nature of our own internal clarity, regardless of what caused its emergence, is a wondrous, powerful thing.

To know for sure, deep within yourself, that something is real, is to experience through various channels of your experience, that something holds substance and meaning for you, and possibly adds meaning to others’ lives also.

Yes it isn’t easy. It’s certainly not easy to put this into words that neatly encapsulates everyone’s experience. The whole nature of where we are currently at, in real and potential form, is that life cannot be so contained and encapsulated in such a way that satisfies the soul.

It is this satisfaction, that we are missing and craving, perhaps lost somewhere along the way, or never even had it, that is attempting to return.

Its return though, requires some shifting of realities. The boundaries of the so-called everyday reality (the 9-5 syndrome), are no longer as accessible. They are shifting, dancing, bringing in potential, an upliftment. Since you make of your life what you make of your life.

Being connected to your inner creator, or at least having that door of reality open up before you, is an uncomfortable experience, especially in conjunction with purpose or personality dissolving.

While it might feel like you are grasping at things that run through your fingers and you are struggling to get real traction on anything meaningful, do not allow yourself to only focus on the struggle and suffering.

This is a truly exciting time for our souls. It is not for our grumbling automaton self that doesn’t know if it’s coming or going, but would prefer a predictable, safe reality. But our souls revel in taking lead and turning it into gold. This is after all the philosophers stone.

Mercury’s recent move into Virgo brings him into sharper focus at this Full Moon, since he opposes Saturn in Pisces, and will turn retrograde on 23rd August. Mutable Virgo, which tends to strive for the ideal, comes face to face with harsh reality, or some deeper wisdom, or both.

Perhaps this is about stepping out of our mild indifference or fatalistic hopelessness and choosing to bring certain aspects, qualities or awarenesses back online. At its best, Virgo energy likes to get things right, it’s not sloppy, and it extends beyond itself in a healthy, service orientated way.

Use this Mercury-Saturn to strive for focus, discernment, clarity and mastery. Look at how you apply time. Your ability to be mutable, to allow shifts in orientation, honing in on your focus while simultaneously maintaining focus, will bring you the most at this time.

What is that something in your life that allows to you develop your capacity to master how you apply yourself? Bring it now out of the closet, if it’s been hidden at the back for some time.

Boundaries, even decisions, clearly defined rules, while still enforceable, will come with a feeling of unease, insecurity, doubt or a lack of reality check, which means they will not be taken so seriously. Saturn (authority) is basically totally out of touch with reality, since the reality is one that shifts.

Mastering the dissolving of boundaries requires us to consciously hone, ironically separate ourselves off, rather than allow the dissolving to master us. We have to develop a part that can maintain awareness of what we are doing, feeling, orientating towards etc. If awareness is depleted, we become susceptible to corruption. Focus your awareness.

“The Sword is to decide. The blade separates one reality from another… We just make these cuts again and again, if we are to grow.”

We have to assume that the challenge to our inner and outer limits and rules – the mechanisms of control, armours, all which keeps us separate – are in need of this sometimes subtle, and sometimes intense, revolution or upshift.

Comfortable it is not, as the cuts feels relentless and remorseless, but it only has its eye on what lies beneath it. Often that which separates us is not of our conscious choosing, and we tend to be at its mercy in one way or another.

As we define ourselves through our choices, through the sword, we do not need all these mechanism of separateness. It is only through the joint ownership of our lives, our alignment with Divine Will, that we understand and experience ourselves as the Divine creator.

To get there, to this place, is our mission. Many have not chosen, were not even meant to chose this. They are here in support of those that did, some of that support might feel limiting, and some embracing. One role in the game of life is not better than another since we are all working towards the same goal.

So my advise would be forget the boundaries discussion, and arch for the decisions instead, and let them start shaping your life. It is our spiritual essence, or rather our spiritual flame, which is waiting patiently for it’s time. It is up to us to tend the fire, keep it blazing.

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