CAPRICORN FULL MOON - 9 July 2017

Exact 5.06am BST, 12.06am EDT

Sometimes known at the Thunder Moon, this is a powerfully transformative Full Moon that has the potential to bring some hitherto repressed energy to the surface so that it can be purged and transmuted. Pluto is very much involved in this Moon, which could make our emotions very intense indeed and force us to be very honest with ourselves and others. The recent T-square between Pluto, Mars and Jupiter is waning now, but all three planets are part of this Full Moon which means that whatever came up for us in the last week or so could resurface, demanding release. There is something very empowering about the energy of the T-square, because while it can bring up rage and some rather extreme emotions, it also brings the potential for empowered (Pluto) action (Mars) that emanates from the depths of our souls (Pluto) and has the capacity to transform our relationships (Jupiter in Libra) and help us grow. If we harness its potent energy and are willing to be self-reflective we have the chance to make some profound changes in our lives. Full Moons do tend to bring anything that has been bubbling away in the background of our consciousness out into the open, but this one also has the T-square behind it! This energy brings to mind a vision of something that has been stuck in a blocked pipe for a really long time and is suddenly released!

The Sun is currently in emotional, nurturing, sensitive Cancer, forming an exact opposition to the Moon in responsible, disciplined, cautious Capricorn. The key to making the most of a full moon is to find the balance between the energy of the two signs, as we often have a tendency to veer too far in one direction. Capricorn represents our conditioning from our parents and society and the standard of conduct that we have been expected to adhere to in order to “fit in”. This conditioning can end up feeling like a straightjacket and can cause us to feel guilty or ashamed if we stray from what our parents or those in authority have deemed acceptable or “morally correct”. In order to feel loved and accepted by our parents or society, we learn to tow the line, behave ourselves and supress and repress some very natural emotions which then go on to become distorted because they don’t have a healthy outlet. Capricorn is a very hard working, disciplined sign that knows all about the “shoulds and shouldn’ts” of living in the world, but is has a hard time allowing itself to feel vulnerable, which is where Cancer comes in. Cancer urges us let go of the need for control and to open up, express and release the natural emotions that we may tend to hold back, suppress, repress or control because we have somehow been made to feel that they are unacceptable. Sometimes things have to get a bit messy, and sometimes it is better to actually show our vulnerability rather than trying to pretend we're ok, or that we don't care.

Cancer represents the need that we all have to find emotional security from within, rather than seeking it from anything outside of ourselves, such as family, career, friends or intimate partners. In its negative state it can cause us to become dependent, needy, moody and insecure, demanding that those around us provide us with the sense of emotional safety and security that may have been lacking in childhood. Obviously this can cause problems in our adult relationship! Capricorn represents emotional maturity and taking responsibility for ourselves; it reminds us that we have chosen this life path, including the family and society we have been born into in order to learn specific lessons on a soul level. In this deeper sense we are ultimately responsible for it all! Capricorn is the energy that urges you to “pull yourself together” and encourages a “stiff upper lip”. Of course this is not good if taken to the extreme, as I mentioned earlier.

Capricorn is the part of us that has the capacity for self-reflection, but taken too far it can bring depression. It also represents that part of us that can be quite cautious or even fearful, but again, this often stems from our parental conditioning. Parents who were overly conservative, fearful or judgemental when we were young will produce adults who are filled with shame, guilt and fear and a sense of futility. Capricorn symbolises the need to find a sense of authority that comes from within, rather than feeling the need to have control over people or our environment, or to give others too much authority over us. Capricorn represents the government, school, parents and the rules and regulations of society. Cancer represents our inner life; the home, family and the clan we belong to.

Pluto is sitting right on top of the Moon in Capricorn during this lunation, urging us to find this sense of personal authority and power from within, while Mars is encouraging us to act on it. This is not the kind of power that disempowers others in order to feel powerful, but true power; the kind that comes from the depths of our soul and empowers all who come into contact with it. Pluto tends to have a detoxifying effect on the sign he is in, and in the case of Capricorn he is currently making the power structures of the world more transparent, exposing the rot and helping the world to see them for exactly what they are. The energy of Pluto destroys in order for something more appropriate to take its place. It is the principle of death and rebirth. Any corporations, governments, institutions or power structures that have become corrupt, outdated and are preventing further growth will need to be changed, transformed or even eliminated during Pluto’s 20 years transit through Capricorn.

We are almost a third of the way through his stay in Capricorn right now, and it definitely feels like we are at boiling point. The patriarchy (Capricorn) is under threat, as people have quite simply had enough and are standing up in protest (Mars/Pluto). It is resisting the necessary transformation (Pluto) so it is fighting very hard indeed to maintain control, which is probably why everything is so extreme right now. Balance is desperately needed (Jupiter in Libra) for growth to occur. Capricorn is the animus (masculine), while Cancer is the anima (feminine), and the pendulum is swinging too far in one direction as it tries to find the necessary balance.  As above, so below.  As within, so without. What is happening on the world stage is merely an outer reflection of what is going on within us all. The changes we seek in the outer world must also be resolved internally. All that we dislike in the powers that be must be faced within ourselves to, for they are merely symbolic of the shadows we all have as a collective.

On a personal level, Pluto and the Moon pairing up could cause some very intense and possibly ancient emotions to come rising up from the depths of our souls and psyches, which could make us very aware of how our shadows are ruling the show! As the Moon in Capricorn rules our emotional conditioning, Pluto has the capacity to make our old, crystalised and outworn patterns, tendencies and habits very obvious indeed and to help us purge them! Mars in Cancer may have been causing us to act and react from a very subjective, emotional place recently, causing us to be a bit defensive, or reactionary, or to express anger in quite an irrational way. Cancer represents emotional patterns and ways of relating that stem from childhood and, combined with Pluto, Mars could be helping us discover old anger, rage and impulses that have their roots our childhood. Any tendencies or emotions that have been repressed or supressed for whatever reason could have come surging  up in recent times and could do so again during this Full Moon!  Pluto and Mars do cause rage, but this rage can help us to act on urges that come from the depths of our soul and could be very useful, so we should use the energy for empowered action!

The Sabian symbols tell a tale, that’s for sure! The Symbol for the Moon, at 18° Capricorn, is “The Union Jack flag flies from a British warship” and Rudyar speaks of “power can easily be misused under the pretext of preserving “law and order.” Justice and compassion must balance social power, and especially the power of privileged groups.” The symbol for the Sun, directly opposite at 18° Cancer, is “A hen scratching the ground to find nourishment for her progeny” and Rudyar speaks of one having to “feed them with social substance gathered from the “the ground” of his community, and to watch with concern over their unfoldment”. There is a sense of having to take action in order to secure of the well-being of future generations and of things being built from “grass roots”. The symbol for the midpoint of the two symbols, at 18° Libra, is “Two men placed under arrest”, which speaks of “the breakdown in the constructive relationship between the individual and society, and the expectable result…. The individual whose actions introduce unacceptable principles into the established order runs the risk of being “punished” or re-formed according to this order”. There is a story forming here! The hen scrabbling around doing whatever it needs to in order to take care of its young,  versus  the misuse of power of the warship, and then in the middle is the refusal to conform to the powers that be and the consequences that ensue.  

This Full Moon definitely packs a punch, that’s for sure! One of the greatest gifts of Capricorn is integrity and this is something we should all strive for during this time. We also deserve it from others, including the powers that be. The New Moon in Cancer started the ball rolling in terms of developing more awareness of our childhood conditioning and the emotional patterns that are a product of it. Over the course of the last two weeks we have become increasingly aware of how these old habits and patterns infect our lives and affect our adult relationships. As things come to a head at this Full Moon we have a chance to purge, transform and transmute these patterns, as anything that may have been suppressed comes bursting out into the light of our consciousness. Capricorn is a big fan of authenticity, as it involves us being “real”. This Moon invites us to step into an emotionally mature, empowered and authentic place, taking full responsibility for our part in anything that might come up. Whatever does come up during this time is a gift, because when the unconscious is made conscious it is no longer roaming around in the shadows, so it loses its power over us.

Much Love

Amy

xoxo

Photo: God’s Fireworks – Ms Ladyred on Flickr