the full moon at 17’09 capricorn is exact on saturday july 8th 2017 at 9:06pm PDT. this marks the midway point of the current lunar cycle we are in that began with the full moon in cancer on june 23rd. the new moon was widely conjunct mars and widely opposite pluto and this full moon is tightly conjunct pluto and opposite mars- bringing into focus the lower will (mars) and Higher Will (pluto) all throughout this pretty intense lunar cycle. the exact mars/pluto opposition was on sunday july 2nd- an aspect for those who live in the USA that shows up in the birthday chart of america. mars/pluto pits the lower will against the Higher Will and can unearth power struggles, domination/control tactics, and hidden shadows coming to Light. yet we must remember aspects are not good and bad in and of themselves. they show energies and potential and it’s up to us in regards to how we work with it. positive mars/pluto is transformation in the extreme. if we are fully ready, willing and able to confront our emotions, our fears around safety and security, our own victim/tyrant dynamics and tendencies to want to project the shadow onto others and only identify with the Light- then this astrology can initiate some profound transformation and evolution!!!
so yes this full moon is conjunct pluto- within a degree (pluto is at 18’09 capricorn) and opposite mars at 22’39 cancer- so the sun and moon will trigger both pluto and mars in the hours and days following with moon conjunct pluto on the 8th at 11:05pm, moon opposite mars on the 9th at 8:40am, sun opposite pluto on the 9th at 9:35pm and sun conjunct mars in leo on july 26th. this makes the sun and moon- the Lights or luminaries in the sky that represent consciousness and Unconsciousness- trigger mars and pluto ALL MONTH LONG. this can make for an intense month- there is just no getting around it. BUT if we work with these energies consciously we can use mars’ energy to take conscious action and we can use pluto’s energy to purge what is toxic, activate what is stagnant, transform what can be transformed and let die what is no longer workable and needs to be fully let go of. the thing is the human ego does not like change and it does not like letting go of what it thinks it needs to hold onto. the degree to which we choose to work with these energies and challenge our attachments, subjectivities and safety nets we hold onto out of fear of the unknown (all related to cancer where mars is right now)- is the degree to which we can experience this month as liberating and freeing! of course if we resist these energies then it may be a tad more difficult of a month to navigate through ;)
luckily in the full moon chart both the sun and moon harmoniously link to neptune- the planet of the Higher Heart. neptune reminds us to have compassion for ourselves and others- for everyone we meet is fighting some kind of battle. compassion, service and kindness go a long way! of course we want to balance an open heart with healthy boundaries (linking neptune with saturn) so that our compassion is not blind, our service is not enabling and our kindness is also coming towards ourselves.
the ruler of this full moon is saturn who is retrograde in sagittarius and part of the Grand Fire Trine with uranus, eris, the north node and vesta! vesta the priestess asteroid is triggering the Grand Fire Trine this month- bringing focus to what we want to bring to life, ignite and materialize in our lives! our passions and our hearts need to lead the way. with the south node in aquarius any shadow tendencies to come from the mind as a way to stay disconnected from the heart needs to be seen for what it is (remember “Compassion without intelligence is useless; Intelligence without compassion is dangerous”). also acknowledging any tendencies to group think and going with what everyone else is saying/thinking/doing like a mass herd of sheep all going in the same direction is key. the north node in leo asks for leaders to step up, for people to open their hearts and for all of us to use the fire energies to consciously create rather than Unconsciously destroy!
interestingly saturn is quincunx mars- bringing some intensity between the will and drive and the planet of limitation, restriction and mastery. this is a full moon to THINK before we act and better yet take a pause, meditate, connect to our breathe and make sure we are not acting/speaking out of reactivity, impulsivity and selfishness. of course those of us that sit on our hands way too long don’t need to hold back any longer- so we each need to discern where we tend to default to. do we act too soon or do we hold ourselves back from acting when we need to? which is our comfort zone on the spectrum and where are we being challenged to do something differently?
what i find really interesting in the full moon chart is the fact that juno, the asteroid Goddess of partnership and marriage, is parallel the sun/moon midpoint. she is a key player in the tension between the sun and moon. relationships and contractual arrangements- romantic, financial, business and otherwise- are in focus at this full moon in a big way. juno is conjunct dark moon lilith- bringing up some big time shadow dynamics into play. but she is also conjunct astraea- an asteroid that martha westcott says relates to “blocked closure. staying to the end- sometimes the bitter end. believing it ain’t over till it’s over- even if it it already is. an inability to read beginnings or endings, or to let go of things, people or events.” this is fascinating when involved with juno- the Goddess governing partnerships. if you have read in some of my previous forecasts- pluto and juno are in a dance with each other right now. since april they have been doing so with their exact union (conjunction) on 11/11. so from april till end of the year we have been in the midst of radical transformation but also underworld experiences in relationships and partnerships in our lives. this is personal but also collective- so you can see this playing out in the news in world events as well. this brings another layer into the full moon chart that is not readily apparent when you are looking at it- giving deeper insight into what is going at the time of this full moon.
of course when talking about a full moon in capricorn opposite sun in cancer we cannot forget to look at the archetypes of cancer/capricorn and what they symbolize. cancer is the Great Mother and capricorn is the Great Father. cancer is the matriarch and capricorn is the patriarch (also the patriarchy!). this full moon can definitely bring up some intensity in home/family dynamics- regarding childhood, children, the past, ancestral stuff and more. it can also bring up stuff in the work/profession/public standing. any parent/child dynamics that don’t actually involve children at all but involve two adults (or two countries?) playing out the roles of parent and child in their interactions can also come into focus. really tuning into where we might be playing the child- seeking a parent figure to take care of us, pay all our bills and take responsibility for our lives- OR where we are playing the parent figure who is attempting to teach childlike others or taking accountability for things they should be taking accountability for themselves- is key at this full moon. if we want equal, healthy conscious partnerships (romantic, business and otherwise) we have to see where these dynamics are at play so we can shift and change them. the thing is neither cancer nor capricorn like change. they prefer safety, security and stability and can stay stuck in situations, relationships, dynamics, attitudes and beliefs out of fear of the unknown or simply in willful resistance to change. pluto on this full moon demands change though- so we can work with the energies or work against them- but in they come regardless!
i leave you with ellias lonsdale’s star sparks meditation for the degree of the full moon (we always round up to the nearest whole number) which is SPOT ON if you ask me! elias talks about our desire to control the shadow and live a manageable life- and that if we are fortune enough the shadow will win as only then do we really have a chance. the ego is the thing that resists facing the shadow- yet we are more than the ego. we are the Total Self. and to be whole and fully awakened we have to see and face it ALL. compartmentalizing and keeping certain unsavory parts of self in the closet is not enlightenment. as jung said (and my favorite quote of his that i quote a lot!) “enlightenment is not about imagining figures of Light but of making the darkness conscious”. ellias talks about how the shadow unacknowledged/unaddressed keep coming back up and creating karmic replays. we “will not get out of it by pushing it away”- but by going into it and through it. his last words in this star sparks meditation are prescient: “The name of this struggle is the capacity to face the self on whatever terms present themselves, or instead, a harsh denial impulse leading to outer accomplishment and inner emptiness. Karmic frequencies that have gone this far already, indebt us to the law of cause and effect. We reap what we’ve sown, facing it or making it far worse.” this full moon is an opportunity to dive ever deep and FACE IT.
blessed be!
~divine harmony
ellias lonsdale
star sparks
Capricorn 19 A half eaten piece of bread
Karma bites into our present day self and splits us down the middle. Our personal shadow draws back under with a fierce insistency. Our individual striving seeks a path forward, onward, upward with a strident clamor of our own desire to pull out of the shadows and bring us to a manageable, controllable place to operate from. The battle rages. If we are fortunate, the shadow will win. Only then do we have a chance.
The ego-self here is a construct, an outwardly propelled, mechanized creation intended to spare us the worst. What it actually does is to suppress the symptoms of the old karmic disease. It believes that the best thing possible is to override all that stuff and get on with something useful.
The deep shadow is overwhelmingly identified with past life scenarios and their re-enactment. Most of these carry a charge of inescapable chains of events leading to more of the same. So it would seem that going back into these is foolish and futile. But this is not so.
These karmic replays bear within themselves a very great potential. If we can see it, we can change it. And if it takes many re-enactment’s, then we’ve dug a deep hole before, and will not get out of it by pushing it away. Only as we go back under, is authentic experience reclaimed.
The name of this struggle is the capacity to face the self on whatever terms present themselves, or instead, a harsh denial impulse leading to outer accomplishment and inner emptiness. Karmic frequencies that have gone this far already, indebt us to the law of cause and effect. We reap what we’ve sown, facing it or making it far worse.
PLEASE NOTE: when i first posted this lunar insight i posted the above star sparks degree which is actually the degree for PLUTO not for the full moon! the full moon rounds up to 18 capricorn (not 19 which is the above degree) so i am including that one here below. thanks to isabelle for pointing it out!
Capricorn 18 A black leopard with green eyes
He sees inside. He penetrates the appearances with the most implacable determination, and he goes about his business of getting down to what counts and discarding the rest. He is ruthless and not given to second thoughts. He just goes with the intuitive sense and will not step aside for anything.
He is one of those characters you need to be on the good side of, for he is indeed ferocious. Not that he acts it out. It’s all in the manner; a glance, an intonation. Nobody had better step out of line around here.
He is a patroller, a vigil keeper, a watching one. His instructions are to keep a very keen eye out for all outstanding factors and to be as disciplined and constrained as possible in not acting too fast or jumping to conclusions. But he is so intent and on the spot that he does see it coming, before it’s even there.
This is the one to do the job. He never sleeps. He never varies. His track is that of staying on it. And he is severely one-pointed in carrying out his objective. That’s the way it’s gotta be.
What he is most obsessed with is making sure that we get where we’re going, and we can be less interfered with by the dark ones than we would otherwise be. He’s a protective fellow, the one who intends the very best.
When he takes his power and surrenders it again to the Higher Power, he is a miracle of intervention. Then he can transmit the ultimate and essential, to fit within the most ordinary contexts. His tone functions to restore peace of mind and a guided, well-orchestrated life.