Astrological Characteristics by Kerry

New Moon in Sagittarius

                                                                    November 27, 2008                     

New Moons are times of new beginnings, planting seeds and setting intentions. This year the New Moon in Sagittarius (Jupiter) falls on Thanksgiving Day (Thursday), which is Jupiter’s day. This is a hopeful offering as Sagittarius invites optimism, idealism, faith and generosity. In Native American traditions the Turkey is a symbol of gratitude, abundance, the give away. Praise, gratitude, and enthusiasm invoke abundance. Rumi says: Poverty of the soul is caused by your inability to praise! Let us all give thanks to our creator/great spirit/ god/goddess for the abundance and blessings in our lives. Embrace the attitude of gratitude.

With the Sun, Moon, Mercury and Mars all in Sagittarius let us hope the Archers sacred arrow of hope, generosity and good intention pierces the darkness of the past eight years. This New Moon conjuncts the ascendant (national identity) in the chart of the USA. Yet despite all the negative news, the global financial meltdown and massive job cuts there is still a collective vibe of hope, new vision, and a reason to believe and say never again to the scorch earth policies of the past administration. The horoscope I use for the USA comes from the excellent astrologer and researcher Mark Learner of Earth Aquarius News. The date for this chart is July 4, 1776, 4:47 PM, Philadelphia, Pa.. I’ve been using this chart for thirty years and it works well for me.

The ascendant for this chart is seven degrees of Sagittarius and this is a critical link to the Nuclear axis chart of 1942. For example, Hiroshima, Three Mile Island and Chernobyl all had triggering planets activating the nuclear axis, which is between 9-11 degrees of mutable signs. With the New Moon on the ascendant and in opposition to Uranus in Gemini we can expect continuing upheavals, major shocks and hopefully reform within the automotive industry. We can look for new breakthroughs and discoveries in science and technology, and political earthquakes loom on the horizon. The Sabian Symbol for the degree of the New Moon reads: A Game of Cricket, Keynote: The development of skill in group-situations testing the collective good. It is a symbol of solidarity.

On November 26 Pluto returns into Capricorn until 2023. With Pluto at 0 degree Capricorn this activates the Aries point ( 0 degrees of cardinal sings) until February and again in August and September of 2009. Planets at Zero degrees of cardinal signs (Aries, Cancer, Libra, Capricorn) are like heat seeking missiles guiding or influencing the expression of that sign in connection with the external world. It is often referred to as a point of fame or recognition. In the August newsletter I wrote with the return of Pluto in Capricorn we might witness the death of corporate capitalism, as we know it. Capricorn rules government, corporations and organizations. Pluto rules all things that are toxic. The intent of Pluto is to tear things down, then build them back up stronger and healthier than before. Something has to die before something new can be born.

                                        
New Moons are times of new beginnings, planting seeds and setting intentions. The Moon in Scorpio is related to all things deep, dark and mysterious. Scorpio is the sign of birth, death and renewal . This is one of the best New Moon’s to work on emotional healing by releasing and letting go of old attachments that no longer serve our needs.

The Moon in Scorpio is sort of like going on a blind date only to discover that your partner is Ereskigal, the Sumerian goddess of darkness and the underworld. A goddess, not a god, ruled the underworld. Ereskigal is an earlier form of Pluto.

It is Ereskigal who strips us bare to the bone and of everything which has given us an identity is taken away and leaves us for dead, only to discover that we rise once again out of the ashes renewed and resurrected. It was Carl Jung who said “we discover what truly supports us when that which we thought supported us is taken away.” We find out there is a part of us still there, a part of us that is indestructible and eternal.

Healing rituals with the New Moon in Scorpio are about working in the dark. The wounded animal withdraws into the stillness of the dark empty cave in order to heal itself. Likewise the psyche requires that we go down into the depths of our unconscious in order to heal the soul. The symbol for the degree of the New Moon reads: An Eagle with a snake in its beak. Denotes a forceful, determined character that will not easily be imposed on. With himself he is continually at war, being swayed by two emotions, one uplifting, the other degrading. What he wishes to remain in mastery will remain. It is a symbol of watchfulness.

This New Moon in Scorpio precedes Samhain/Halloween which marked the Celtic New Year, for our ancestors knew that from the dark time, the dark silence, came the whisperings of a new beginning and the stirring of the seed underground. This is also the time of the year when the veil between the two worlds is at its thinnest. This is indeed one of the most conducive times to make contact with our ancestors and the spirit world. The reason people wore masks and dressed in costumes was to frighten or scare the spirits away, and they believed the spirit couldn’t find you if you wore a mask.