Full Moon & Saturn’s Shift into Pisces
This full moon (7 Mar 2023, 12.42pm, UK time) places the Sun and Moon in the opposing signs of Pisces, the poet-mystic, and Virgo, the wily crafter. And it falls on an important day astrologically, when Saturn changes sign. So let’s start there:
Saturn Moves from Aquarius to Pisces
This is such a significant shift for Saturn, from Aquarius, the sign that it rules and commands a great deal of authority in, to Pisces a sign where Saturn will struggle to establish the same kind of ideological order as it has enjoyed in Aquarius. Saturn keeps time and holds society together under the rule of law. Piscean energy dissolves boundaries, exposes the weakness of systems, and is more likely to unravel and dissipate the hard line control that Saturn insists upon and will likely weaken its structures. The Saturn in Aquarius period has been typified perhaps by an advancement of social and technological structures designed to control information and keep social order. Today begins a period of 2.5 years of Saturn in Pisces, where boundaries are more blurred, suffering more apparent, and systems more liable to break down. In the struggle for a human future, in the midst of a technocratic takeover, we must dig deep into the shadow and attend to the deep longings of the soul. This Saturn is Pisces period may just force us, as a society, to do that.
At a personal level, this is about tending to your inner life, maturing spiritually, and taking responsibility for the well-being of your own soul.
Insights into the Full Moon in Virgo
Full moons are times of heightened tension and expanded awareness, and during this full moon we are stretched upon the loom of life, the loosely bound but deeply entangled threads of Pisces, contrasted with the intrictate stitching and tight weave of Virgo. With the Sun and Moon in signs that express opposing forces, we must confront a certain type of conflict within ourselves, so that it doesn’t act out as conflict in the world around us. And heaven knows, there is enough of that going on already! The tension that exists between Virgo and Pisces is one of control and surrender, judgment and forgiveness, order and chaos, a push/pull dynamic between the everyday practical concerns of life, and the longing of the soul for redemption and the release from suffering.
The moon is in a tight trine aspect to Uranus which suggests the need for important changes need to be made to the way that we organise our daily lives. Something has to give, and the challenge will be to recognise the warning signs of stress, and implement a new rhythm consciously rather than wait and then experience the unexpected disruption that Uranus can bring. The fact that this is a trine rather than a square aspect suggests that this integration is more achievable, but Uranus can still through us a curve ball, even with this aspect that can shock us awake. The moon is in an applying square aspect to Mars which can make us impulsive, and quick to react under stress.
The Virgo full moon calls specific tasks to our attention, things which require careful observation and delineation, yet we can easily become obsessed with the details, overly concerned with the micro-management of everyday things, or just get bored with the apparently humdrum nature of the tasks before us; activities that the Piscean part of us wants to dissolve, transcend, spiritualise or simply escape from!
Virgo medicine returns awareness to the body and the earth. Through this Mercury ruled sign we learn that intelligence does not simply belong to the realm of abstract thought, but that it is intricately woven into the very fabric of our embodied experience. The body carries its own innate wisdom, with its own built-in healing system. A mindful engagement with everyday tasks and practices can get us into a rhythm that the body recognises and is able to respond to. And this can becomes a gateway to transform the tension inherent in the Virgo-Pisces polarity. A ritual attitude toward simple repetitive procedures can helps us to transcend the mundane aspects of what we are doing, and enter into a more sublime, transcendent, Piscean understanding. There are many ways we could do this - through dance or drumming, through a craft, a martial art or yoga practice. But we could equally do this through washing up or cleaning the house; the acitivty itself is not the point, for whatever it is we focus on, the important thing is to stay present to the activity. While we remain focussed on what we are doing physically with our bodies, our awareness grows and we begin to enter the sublime, releasing anxiety, opening up compassion in our heart, becoming more lucid in our perspective.
To connect with the Virgo energy over this full moon, I offer this mantra:
“I discern what is essential to my well-being, and it becomes my practice.”
Full moon blessings to everyone.
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A new foundation course will begin on 18th April 2023. There are three levels of access. You can choose the self-study route, and just go at your own pace in your own way. Or you can choose to join the live online tutorials and engage with our community forum. And, you can also add 1-2-1 support and assessment from our course tutors, and work toward accreditation with our premium access option.
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DIPLOMA COURSE MODULE 1 STARTS 8th MAY
One of the most common motivations for a person to seek astrological advice is when they feel at a crossroads in their life and sense that the path they have been following in their life is no longer true for them, no longer authentic. It could be about personal ambition and may relate to career, a change in the type of work that they do, but often it relates more to their sense of vocation, in a wider sense, more to do with their role in life, their sense of purpose or spiritual calling. It could be about wanting to make more of a difference in the world in some way, to be of service above and beyond personal ambition.
In this module, we will explore in depth the main signifiers of vocation, career and spiritual calling in a person’s chart and how best to help someone who is seeking guidance with this.
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SHORT COURSES FOR MARCH & APRIL
Relocation Astrology & AstroCartoGraphy
7th -21st March: Tuesdays 6pm - 7.45pm (UK time)
The principle behind relocation astrology is that our consciousness belongs to the world, not just our place of birth. So if we travel to, or relocate to another place, we become connected to a possibility that lies latent in our character, based on who we are and what we might become, had we been born in that location. As such, we can discover and experience other dimensions of our nature, or at least bring to the fore certain qualities of our character and calling that may not be so accessible in our place of birth.
In the course, will be sharing some research I've been doing into the ACG lines and relocated charts of famous travellers and other well-known figures who experienced turning points in their lives in particular locations. You can read about one of these here, Shirley Maclaine, and her connection with the Santiago de Compostela pilgrimage (the Camino) on my latest blog post.
And on the course, you will also have the opportunity to investigate your own astro*carto*graphy map, and explore the significance of your relocated chart for different locations in the world, and you can request to have your own chart featured.
Click here for enrolment details...
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The Chiron Experience: Sacred Wounds & Healing Keys
Sun 12th March (4pm - 8pm UK time)
In this online workshop, timed for the auspicious Jupiter-Chiron conjunction in Aries on 12th March, I will be sharing my latest Chiron research, with some poignant insights into the lives of Chironic characters, & examples of Chiron’s chart placement by sign, house & planetary aspect. In the second half of the workshop, there will be a space for you to explore your own Chiron position, discover the nature of your own particular wound & healing medicine. And you will have the chance to have you own chart featured.
Click here for enrolment details...
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The Moon's Nodes: A Karmic Journey
Fri 21st April (6 - 9pm UK time) & Sat 22nd April (10am - 5pm UK time)
This special event on the Moon’s Nodes, is timed for the April eclipse season, where the energy of the Moon’s nodal axis is at its most potent. The Moon’s north and south nodes, which mark the points in the zodiac where the Moon crosses above and below the Sun’s path (respectively) act as eclipse predictors, and a crucial significator in astrological work, known to the ancients as the Rahu & Ketu, or the Dragons' Head and Dragon’s Tail. The nodes point to our soul’s deep karmic patterning, and where there is an imbalance that needs addressing in this lifetime.
On the Friday evening, I will be presenting a talk about the eclipse season, and how to work with eclipses. And from there, looking at what the Nodes represent in astrology, how we interpret them karmically, and how to work with them in the context of the birth chart. This talk will be delivered in person in Glastonbury, and will also be live-streamed online. There will also be a Q&A, and an opportunity for participants both in person and online to ask questions relating to the topic.
On the Saturday, I will be facilitating a one-day workshop, where you will have the opportunity to work experientially with your own north and south node dynamics. And for those who choose, you can experience having your own nodal axis dynamically enacted for you by other members of the group in short astrodrama pieces.