AQUARIUS NEW MOON / CHINESE NEW YEAR OF FIRE MONKEY - Monday 8 February 2016

Exact at 2.38pm GMT, 9.38am EST!

This Moon feels like a reward for all the hard work, soul searching and turbulence of the last month or so. Having confronted our shadows and faced the truth, we starting to emerge out the other end now, having shed whatever doesn’t resonate with our true path and purpose. Pluto, Uranus and Black Moon Lilith have stripped away our patterns and old ways of relating and have utterly transformed our lives and relationships, revealing the truth of the matter in no uncertain terms! Who knew that Pluto and Uranus would come back with such force? I suppose that it was their last chance to work their magic before they finally go their separate ways. The energy still lingers, but the tsunami is largely over. We are now mainly dealing with the after effects. And now we have the Aquarius New Moon, which allows us to set some positive intentions for our future. The old story is done and dusted and now it is time to create something new in its place. Something more aligned with who we really are and where we are going. Wherever that is!

The Sun and Moon are forming their monthly union in Aquarius, a sign that encourages us to break free from our conditioning and challenge the status quo. He is able to see a different way of being that does not conform to what we have been taught by our parents and society. Aquarius is highly individualistic and unconventional and encourages us to nurture our own unique natures and to dance to the beat of our drum, even if it makes us feel a little insecure at first. It is time to figure out what works for us, rather than forcing a round peg into a square hole. We have tried that and it didn’t work. Now we have a chance to create a vision of the way we would like our lives to be. It is not a time to dwell in the past, for that is done with. It’s time to look forward with hope in our hearts. The rules are changing and we must adapt and change with them.

This Moon will help us to release ourselves from the shackles of the past and to shed old patterns, beliefs and habits that are simply not working for us anymore. Aquarius wants us to free ourselves from anything holding us back from our truth so that we can blossom and grow. This is a time when we might have insights and epiphanies that guide us towards our future, and this really is a perfect opportunity for setting intentions and contemplating what we really, truly want for ourselves. We all have a purpose in this world; a gift to offer that is unique to us. It is time to walk our own path and realise our full potential.  It doesn’t seem like we have much choice in the matter anyway, so better to just go with the flow! Aquarius helps us to find like-minded people who share our vision and are walking a similar path to our own.

The two rulers of Aquarius, Saturn and Uranus, are both forming positive aspects to the Sun and Moon, which brings the potential for constructive, positive change that has the possibility of actually sticking. Uranus helps us to think outside of the box and contemplate ideas that help us stretch and grow. Saturn helps us to actually make sense of them and see how we could make them into reality. Uranus awakens us to our true potential while Saturn brings the focus and discipline to realise this potential. Uranus can help us to break old, ingrained patterns and habits, while Saturn in Sagittarius helps us to recognise what beliefs are holding us prisoner and keeping us small. Uranus challenges the status quo and helps us recognise where we might be stuck, or staying in a situation simply for the sake of security. We have the opportunity to make some positive changes here, whereby we take the initiative rather than change being forced on us. And Saturn is here to encourage us to stay grounded and sensible about the whole thing as well as helping us to put in any hard work needed to make the necessary changes.

Mars in Scorpio is challenging the Sun and Moon, urging us to dig deep and truly transform. Uranus and Saturn are gently urging us to make constructive, positive change, while Mars is challenging us to be brave and face ourselves so that we can fully transform our lives. We may feel urges and desires that come from the depths of our beings, forcing us to face the truth and also to have the courage to live by that truth. Scorpio is a very intense, passionate and wilful place for Mars to be, so we might find ourselves being driven by something bigger than ourselves which forces us to act on the prompting of our souls. There is nothing half-hearted about Mars in Scorpio! He is very present during this Moon as he is forming aspects to many planets, including the Pluto Uranus Square. It’s time to be brave and be truly willing to face the truth so that we are able to release ourselves from the old story and birth the new. Chiron the Wounded Healer is helping him along, bringing the potential for deep healing and fierce compassion.

In the meantime, the Jupiter North Node conjunction in Virgo remains. We are being called to move forward on our soul’s path, both collectively and personally. This is a time of reckoning and massive growth, when much is being asked of us so that we can grow spiritually and realise our full potential. It is time to let go of being the victim, at the mercy of fate, and to take responsibility for who and what we are. We are all being guided forward on our journeys at the moment and are in the midst of a massive shift in consciousness. It is important that we embrace the Virgo archetypes of discernment and discrimination and make some solid decisions about what we need in order to grow, and what simply needs to go. It is time to separate the wheat from the chaff so that we are able to grow and evolve.

It is also the Chinese New Year! The year of the Yang Fire Monkey begins on exactly the same day as the New Moon. We are just coming out of two Wood years, so this represents a big shift into the element of Fire. Whatever we have been working on or chewing over in the past couple of years now has the potential to really take off. Fire has a tendency to really make things happen. This is a year of dynamic action, as the Fire Monkey is very clever, forceful, inventive, energetic, creative, relentless, resourceful, playful and extremely powerful! This year we really have the opportunity to put our plans into action and it seems that anything could happen! Monkeys are full of trickery and magic and are known for being wizards of the impossible! This is a year to take the initiative and use our imaginations and then light the match and see where our ideas take us! The Fire Monkey is full of vitality and is very determined, so let’s see what this year brings! It seems like we might have a lot to process and life could move at quite a fast pace. My Chinese Medicine friend told me that it will just be a baby monkey at the beginning, but by the Summer Solstice it will be a “big fat baboon”! Exciting times!

The Sabian symbol for this New Moon is “A large white dove bearing a message”, and Dane Rudyar says of this symbol “The answer of spiritual agencies to thorough, sustained and victorious individual efforts. The individual who has gone courageously and with indomitable spirit through his crucial crisis receives, as it were, a deep spiritual blessing from the Soul-realm: “Mission accomplished. Peace be with you.” And in this blessing a secret prophecy of what is yet to come may be seen by the perspicacious and spiritually sensitive mind of the recipient. Every real spiritual step a man takes in his development is the result of a victory over forces of inertia or destruction. The Divine is totally “present” in the heart of all true victories.”

This feels like we are being rewarded for all that we have been through in recent times; for being brave enough to confront our shadows and face the truth. It takes courage to heed the calling of our souls, especially when it threatens our sense of security and rocks our world. Possibly, now we will receive a message that makes it all worthwhile, so that we know that it has not been in vain. Doves are a symbol of love and peace, of inspiration and divine guidance. It is likely that whatever message we will receive will reassure us that we are on the right track. On the other hand, if we have not been heeding the need for change in our lives, the message may force us to face up to something we would rather not. The messages can come from anywhere, so be alert for them. There is a sense that we can now breathe a sigh of relief. All will be well.

Much Love

Amy

xoxo

Photo: Dove, by Unknown.