Living with the Stars

  The Full Moon of the 31st August is the second full moon of the calendar month, making it what is commonly known as a blue moon. Apparently it can also appear to be blue-ish in colour. The exact time of this full moon is 03:35, as the Moon was about to set in the west. So those of you who were not in the land of Nod might have been able to see it early this morning.  This full moon occurs in the sign of the fish, Pisces, at around 7 degrees of that sign. The Sun, obviously, is in the sign of the maiden, Virgo. The Virgo/Pisces axis deals with the notion of service and sacrifice, as Virgo is all about that which enslaves us in mundane life (daily chores) and Pisces is where we transcend the ego and offer our services for the good of others. This is in a nutshell, of course, as Virgo is also about the state of our health and animals, amongst other things, but this is a subject which deserves closer study. That's for another day.  Let's look at the story the sky is offering us. 

  The New Moon in Leo for 2023 occurs at 23*17' on the 16th  at 11:38am. This starts a new lunar cycle which will last until the Full Moon on the 31st of August (which, incidentally, is what is called a 'Blue Moon' - the second full moon in a calendar month). This is a time to set your new intentions for this cycle. First, let's have a look at what is going on in the zodiac chart for this new moon.  Leo is a sign associated with creativity as a means of expressing one's essence. Unlike the full moon, where emotions are at the forefront of this part of the lunar cycle, the New Moon chart is where the Moon is in the same position of the Sun, indicating a balance between the solar self and lunar intuitive part of our psyche. Leo is all about expressing one's ego. The lion is associated with kingship, where we become aware of our own creative prowess and our need to shine.  If we overdo the 'king thing' we become a tyrant, our egos get in the way, and our &#

Tonight, just as the sun sinks below the western horizon, the moon will rise directly opposite the sun in the west in what we call the Full Moon. Full Moons, in astrology, symbolise the fruition of all those intentions we set at the New Moon roughly two weeks ago. This New Moon occurs at 9 degrees of Aquarius.  Looking at the full moon chart, we notice that the Moon does not make any significant aspects to speak of to other points, but there are other things going on. Let's begin with the Mercury-Saturn opposition, the most prominent aspect in this chart.  Mercury is the messenger, so this is about communication. This planet can represent many things; speech, for one. How do we communicate with ourselves, with the world? We do that through speech, sound or movement. Mercury is currently travelling through the sign of Virgo, a sign which it rules. In this sign, Mercury takes on the discriminating aspect, separating the wheat from the chaff (have you every wondered why the sign for V