Full Moon in Pisces and Autumnal Equinox

 

Full moons always arouse tales of superstition, witchery and the supernatural. Human behaviour has forever been associated with the waxing and waning of the moon. The word ‘lunacy’ is derived from the myth that the moon is responsible for odd behaviour. Wolves howl at full moons, witches fly – this is all stuff that has been thrown at us. Even Shakespeare refers to the moon, when in “Othello”, the maid Emilia tells Othello, “It is the very error of the moon/She comes more near the earth than she was wont/And makes men mad.”

There is nothing witchy about this full moon, however. In astrological terms, this full moon occurs in Pisces at 28 degrees, that is, close to the end of Pisces (you might know that each zodiac sign is assigned 30 degrees). This is actually quite an auspicious Full Moon because it is very close to the degree at which ancients considered the planet Venus to be exalted, that is, in a particularly special and ‘good’ degree.

Pisces is all about foregoing the ego, self-sacrifice, compassion, so Venus’ position here confers something of a loving nature. The planet Venus, as you probably realise, has long been associated with the notion of love and art.

As stated in the previous blog entry, this Full Moon falls on the same day as Malta’s Independence Day. On the 21^st September 1964, at midnight, the Union Jack was lowered and the Maltese flag was raised, signifying the end of an era. The Full Moon on Tuesday highlights the Venus effect, and if we look at the chart of Malta’s Independence Day, we find that Venus was at 13 degrees of Leo.

This is where astrology gets interesting, because in the field of Mundane Astrology (the study of the application of astrology to world affairs and world events), it is generally thought that the birth charts of national leaders would have links to their respective national astrological charts. This is one reason why astrologers get busy at election time, trying to predict who will win or lose. One way of practising this art is to look back at previous elections, check the contenders’ individual charts, and see if there is a link to the national chart. Malta has had quite a few prime ministers since 1945, and no less than eight individuals have been PMs since 1964. Checking their birth charts, six of them had a planet at 13 degrees of Leo. Interesting, right? This is the kind of information that makes mundane astrology interesting. Does this mean that if 13 degrees of Leo is ‘active’ in your chart, you could become prime minister? No, it takes more than that, but to astrologers it is a good indicator.

Back to Tuesday’s Full Moon in Pisces. This photo was taken a couple of days ago by my close friend Stephanie. The planet Jupiter is close by in the sky, but by the time of the full moon it will be even further away. (Jupiter is currently doing its 'backwards walk', that is, it is in a period of apparent retrograde motion through Aquarius.) The planet closest to the Full Moon in Pisces will be Neptune, described in the previous blog entry. Remember, Neptune is all about illusion on one end, and disillusion on the other. A full moon reflects light from the Sun onto matters which were hitherto hidden from sight, so do not be surprised if this full moon will bring matters to light. Again, channel your endeavours into the arts – Neptune loves artists because they create illusions (and because Neptune is also about illusions, don’t believe everything you hear).

Last but not least, the seasons are changing, and although here in Malta we do not have leaves on trees going all shades of gold, red and copper, nevertheless, the Sun still crosses directly over the equator heading south. This signals the change of season and countries in the southern hemisphere will welcome the beginning of spring, whilst we in the northern hemisphere are heading towards autumn. The equinox occurs on the 22nd September at precisely 21:21 CEST. Everything you need to know about the equinox is explained very well on the site below. 

https://earthsky.org/astronomy-essentials/everything-you-need-to-know-september-equinox/ 

Blessings to all!