by Somya Devi | Jun 13, 2022 | Astrology, Conjunctions, Planets Changing Signs, Retrograde
Full Moon in Scorpio, June 2022
Tonight the Moon waxes into fullness into sidereal Scorpio, coming fully opposite the Taurus Sun, both at 29 degrees 16 minutes, one of the three gandanta points in the zodiac. The Moon receives an aspect from both Jupiter and Saturn, while Sun joins Mercury. Saturn is currently in retrograde motion and will soon head back into Capricorn for several more months before finishing its final transit there. We also approach the solstice on June 21st, the brightest day of the year.
Full Moon in Scorpio
Scorpio is the sign where the Moon is considered debilitated, because the fickle and sensitive mind feels a lot of intensity in the watery sign ruled by warrior Mars. At the same time, a full Moon is always a strong Moon, so this is an opportunity to raise our courage when confronting that difficulty. Scorpio is a sign of change, being the natural eighth sign, and under this full Moon we can strive to embrace change and find some freedom amidst the Sun’s cycle of Taurus, which compels us towards a more grounded, fixed and secure existence.
Gandanta Point
Being in this particular last degree of Scorpio, however, the Moon finds itself in the gandanta degree which is somewhat of a cosmic and karmic “knot.” We pay feel particularly locked into something that is challenging us, even though we know that we must push through to allow the change. Under this full Moon, search for your inner warrior, strength, and courage, and call upon your guides to help you in evolving into the next phase of your life.
Jyestha Nakshatra
The full Moon lies in Jyestha nakshatra, the Vedic sign known as the “eldest.” This star asks us to be responsible, like its deity Indra who is the chief of the gods. Where in your life are you responsible for others, perhaps those with lesser abilities or privilege? Generosity and charity are encouraged by this star at the end of Scorpio who is the last before we enter the charitable and righteous sign of Sagittarius.
Aspects of Jupiter and Saturn
Both Jupiter and Saturn aspect this Moon. Jupiter is sva in his own sign of Pisces at the moment, and his aspect of the Moon brightens our optimism and idealism, bringing our principles and beliefs into the fold as we strive to allow some inner transformation. Saturn, in turn, adds more energy of responsibility, and gives us an awareness of the future consequences of our action. Together the two can add a discerning influence on the decisions that we make at this time.
Retrograde Saturn
Saturn has been in retrograde motion since June 4th, and now appears to be making his way backwards through Aquarius before he heads back into Capricorn again on July 12th. He rules both Aquarius and Capricorn, so he maintains strength through this time, and will be getting brighter and brighter each night over the next month. The powerful Saturn of this time continues to put pressure on society at large, adding a crushing weight of the awareness of consequences, as we consider what type of structures need to be in place for us to advance into the next era.
Solstice
The summer solstice is the peak of what we might call the Sun’s waxing cycle, as it is the day with the most daylight and the fewest dark hours, in the northern hemisphere. This is the most outward time of year for most people, when we are literally outside, and filling our schedules with social interactions, barbecues, and activity. It is a time to celebrate life! If you’re more of a natural introvert, this time of year can become exhausting, so be sure to pace yourself. It is a beautiful time to commune with nature and experience the fullness of what the light and life cycle has to offer.
Sadhana suggestions for tuning in with the Scorpio full Moon:
- Fast or meditate this Tuesday (the actual day of the full Moon, and the day ruled by Mars, Scorpio’s ruler)
- Make an altar that includes water and fire elements, connecting with your emotions and warrior
- Spend some time outside checking out ground insects, watching how they move and work
- Utilize red crystals on your altar or for japa (mantra chanting)
- Chant a Moon or Mars mantra, or both
Personal readings available here
by Somya Devi | Jul 23, 2021 | Uncategorized
Guru Purnima Full Moon July 2021
The full Moon waxes to full brightness tonight, July 23rd at 10:37 pm. Fully opposite the Sun in sidereal Cancer, the full Moon in sidereal Capricorn joins a retrograde Saturn in his home sign. This particular full Moon is the auspicious one known as Guru Purnima in India, and is a day for honoring our teachers and gurus, who bring forth the light and knowledge that guides us.
Full Moon in Capricorn
Capricorn is a cardinal earth sign ruled by Saturn. It inspires us very much to create structure. With a strong retrograde Saturn on this full Moon, while simultaneously ruling over it, we may feel a certain weightiness right now that compels us to consider serious matters. The full Moon is opposite a Cancer Sun, wherein we find our power through the heart, seeking comfort in the heart space and quite often the literal home or sanctuary. The full Moon in Capricorn reminds us of the outer world and makes us take notice of the whole. At the same time, it complements the attraction to the heart space and home by reminding us of the hard work it takes to sustain it, reinforcing our commitments to our responsibilities.
Uttara Ashada
The full Moon is in the Vedic nakshatra of Uttara Ashada, the latter “invincible one.” There is a lot of power here, one that is often used for achieving dharma both on a personal level and for humanity at large. Service and spirituality are inspired by this star. It is ruled by the ten Vishvadevas, the lords of dharma, and is also associated with the Sun, the sattvic purifyer. This full Moon is a time to let impurities burn away as we align ourselves with purpose and principle, orienting ourselves towards spiritual as well as worldly victory. This nakshatra’s animal symbol is the male mongoose, making it the only nakshatra (of the odd 27) that does not have a female counterpart.
Retrograde Jupiter and Saturn
The large and powerful outer planets are on their farthest course away from the Sun right now, making them loom bright in the night sky and wield a potent yet slow and pointed force over our lives, as they appear to move backwards through the zodiac.
Saturn’s retrograde trip has been from May 23rd and stretches through October 10th, while Jupiter’s lasts from June 20th until October 17th. Jupiter will once again travel back into sidereal Capricorn, joining Capricorn there for the final month of his retrograde journey, before once again entering Aquarius on November 20th. While these two transit together Jupiter becomes neecha bhanga, a position that can both challenge and augment his expansive power in different situations, and also creates opportunity for some auspicious muhurta moments.
Personal Chart Readings with Coaching Are Available Here
by Somya Devi | Jun 11, 2021 | Astrology, Conjunctions, Eclipses, Retrograde
New Moon & Solar Eclipse June 2021
The morning of June 10th brought a New Moon, a conjunction of the Sun and Moon in sidereal Taurus, so close to the lunar nodal points Rahu and Ketu as to cause an annular solar eclipse. The exact Sun-Moon alignment was at 6:53 am ET and the eclipse maximum was at 6:41. This eclipse was visible from the northernmost latitudes and aligned with the Vedic nakshatra of Mrigashira.
Taurus New Moon
This begins a new lunar cycle in the energy of Taurus or Vrishabha, the bull. A four-footed feminine earth sign, Taurus helps us to root down and stand strongly, moving towards our goals with determination in an embodied manner. It is an inward sign, ruled by Venus, the planet of pleasure and happiness. This time of year can be one for enjoying life, connecting with nature and family.
Mrigashira
Mrigashira is the “benevolent” star-sign symbolized by the head or face of a deer. There is a gentle, whimsical nature to this asterism, but there can also be an energy of skittishness, wandering and seeking. Embrace the energy by calling in your guides and looking within to learn what are you truly seeking? The answer often lies beyond the material realms.
Solar Eclipse
This morning’s annular solar eclipse was only visible to some in the most northern latitudes, but its energy takes affect over all of us. When the Sun’s light is obscured, it can make us feel cut off from our inner power, our source energy, and shadows of confusion over our true nature can arise. This is the second of two eclipses this cycle, so the confusing and chaotic energy should subside after this somewhat until the next set of eclipses in November-December. Depending on the natal placement of the nodes in your chart, this year’s nodal transit and eclipses may be taking a strong toll on your mental, physical or emotional well-being.
Retrograde Mercury
The Sun and Moon join a retrograde Mercury which may have contributed to a few internet mishaps, scheduling conflicts, or difficult conversations over the past few weeks. Mercury will station and turn direct again on June 22nd, allowing communication and intellectual endeavors to move ahead more smoothly.
Summer Solstice June 20th
The Sun will reach his northernmost course on June 20th, marking the longest day of the year in the northern hemisphere and giving cause to celebrate the light of divinity that fuels us. This is the most outward time of year for those in the north, and it is appropriate even for us introverts to spend more time outwardly active and social as we tune with nature’s rhythms.
Saturn Retrograde
Saturn is moving slowly backwards from our perspective now, in retrograde motion from May 23rd through October 10th. This could slow some things down in your life depending on your natal planetary placements, and in general gives us some pressure to reflect on our responsibilities and commitments, noticing where we need to put in the hard work to meet our goals.
Personal Chart Readings with Coaching Are Available Here
by Somya Devi | Apr 8, 2021 | Astrology, Conjunctions, Holy Days, Planets Changing Signs
New Moon April 2021
The Moon and Sun join to make a New Moon at the very end of sidereal Pisces at 10:31 pm ET on the dark night of Sunday, April 11th. This will begin a lunar cycle in which the Sun spends most of his time in Aries, his sign of exaltation. Jupiter, one of the outer, slower-moving planets, has transited into sidereal Aquarius, breaking rank with Saturn who remains in Capricorn.
Pisces-Aries Cycle
We enter another lunar cycle during which the Sun begins in one sign just two days before entering another, where he will spend most of the lunar cycle. Pisces is the last sign of the natural zodiac, the end, a place where we connect with the unseen world including the underworld itself. Aries, on the other hand, is a place of beginnings, the true springtime energy where the literal sunlight gives life to the world once again and things begin to grow outwardly. This cycle will connect these two worlds for us, bringing much of the subconscious into light as we begin to take on more activity during this season.
The Sun and Moon begin joined with a debilitated Mercury, which can make us pass up practicality in favor of hopes and dreams. Jupiter rules this femenine (inward-looking) water sign.
Revati Nakshatra
The Sun, Moon and Mercury are all in Revati nakshatra as we begin this Moon cycle. The final of the 27 Vedic nakshatras, this sign has to do with journeys, and is ruled by the deity Pushan, the protector of journeys, flocks and herds. We can imagine in particular the journey from life to death as this is the final journey that we all make. Revati means “the wealthy” and is also related to Mercury, Vishnu and Lakshmi. There is a strong association with animals and this nakshatra, and many people with planets here have a strong love of pets or animals.
Jupiter Transit
Jupiter has moved from sidereal Capricorn into Aquarius, lightening his load as he is no longer in his sign of debilitation and joining the heavy presence of Saturn. Jupiter in Aquarius could stimulate some expansion in social programs, scientific innovations, and forward-thinking across society. This new position could stimulate some movement in your life depending on natal planetary positions and the current dasha (planetary period) and bhukti (sub-period) you are running according to your chart.
Mars Transit
Mars will leave Taurus just hours after the New Moon, finally parting ways with Rahu, lessening some of the intensity that has built up around their conjunction the past couple of months. His movement will also break the Kala Sarpa cycles, although with only one outlier the nodal alignment can still bring some intensity to current events or those born with these placements in the birth chart.
Chaitra Navaratri
This New Moon is followed by nine nights that are the springtime celebration of the goddess known as Chaitra Navaratri. These nights are celebrated in homage to the divine mother in her many forms, particularly Durga. This is not as largely celebrated as the fall-time Navaratri (Sharad or Maha Navaratri), but is also significant. This leads us up to Hanuman Jayanti which will be celebrated around the time of the next full Moon.
by Somya Devi | Mar 25, 2021 | Astrology, Conjunctions, Planets Changing Signs
Full Moon March 2021
The full Moon is in sidereal Virgo this Saturday night, coming in full opposition to the Sun at 2:48 pm ET on Sunday, March 28th. This full Moon is in the Vedic nakshatra of Hasta, “the hand,” signaling our opportunity to be more hands-on in crafting our own reality. The Sun joins an exalted Venus in Pisces, who is currently combust due to the close proximity of the two. Mars and Rahu are also in close conjunction, raising volatility in the world during this full Moon. Jupiter will soon transit into Aquarius, leaving his debilitated transit with Saturn.
Virgo Full Moon
The Sun is currently transiting Pisces, Jupiter’s water-sign that drives us to connect with our inner strength through deep emotional exploration, seeking a purpose greater than ourselves to which we can fully surrender. With Venus also in Pisces (exalted here), our hearts are yearning for this purpose and higher power. For some people, this alignment could stimulate a desire to escape the mundane world. There is the option to do this through intelligent means like spiritual practice and inward-looking journeys, or the potential to choose over-indulgence in escapist drugs, alcohol, or bed-pleasures. Some structured journey-work that integrates the two might be an opportunity this lunar cycle.
During the Virgo full-Moon, the Moon and our minds are illuminated with the energy of the sign that is opposite to Pisces’ deep-diving other-worldliness. In Virgo, we practice managing life’s details and being hands-on through our own efforts. Ruled by Mercury, the planet of the intellect, Virgo is an earth-sign where we figure out how to organize our lives sensibly, very much relying on the material plane to do so.
Hasta Nakshatra
Within Virgo, the Moon is full in the Vedic nakshatra of Hasta, “the hand.” Under this star we find our inner artisan, our craftiness, our skills at manipulating the world around us, both literally and figuratively. As we approach the coming Moon cycle, during which Sun will enter exaltation in Aries, and our impetus towards action and initiative will come alive brightly, we can try our hands at creating something we wish to manifest under the light of the Hasta full Moon. Hasta is ruled by the solar deity Savitri, and is also one of the Moon’s nakshatras, whose animal symbol is the powerful female buffalo.
Venus, Exalted and Combust
Venus is exalted in the sign of Pisces because Pisces gives us the opportunity to align our desires, relationships, and pleasure-seeking (Venus) with something that aligns with our values and principles (Jupiter, Pisces’ ruler) and is bigger than or beyond our normal, waking, mundane lives (Pisces). Through this month of Venus’s Pisces transit, try to take the opportunity to re-align your romantic and pleasurable pursuits with that which gives you the most meaning, be it your spiritual or philosophical values or a sense of higher power in general.
During Venus’ combustion, however, the Sun is so close to Venus that we cannot see its light at all, and some of the pleasure of life may feel like it is being “burnt up” before it reaches us. Unfortunately, Venus is spending his entire time in Pisces combust this year. Venus has been highly combust (within 3 degrees of the Sun) since March 14th. He remains highly combust during his whole exalted stint in Pisces (March 16th – April 9th), save for the last few hours when he is still quite combust within 4 degrees of the Sun. This is good time to dig deep for the more austere pleasures of life… connecting with the divine energy that is still present even when worldly pleasure may not be.
Mars and Rahu
There has been an uptick in violence the past week as Mars and Rahu came closer and closer together. Their exact conjunction will be on the early morning of March 28th, the night of the full Moon, which could bring even more acts of terror or chaos. In Rohini nakshatra, a sign of commerce, this could have an impact on the stock market and might trigger some extreme volatility there, as well.
Jupiter Transit
Jupiter will transit from sidereal Capricorn into Pisces on April 5th, finally parting ways with Saturn after spending most of the year conjunct and under his debilitating rule in Capricorn. This transit could allow for more opportunity and inspiration in your life, especially in the areas ruled by Jupiter in your personal natal chart. It signals a progressive time for philosophies across society in general, and we can expect to see more progressive and less restrictive movements gaining traction across the world.
Jupiter will enter retrogression in June, putting him back in Capricorn in September for a while before he finally re-enters Aquarius again in November.
Personal Chart Readings with Coaching Are Available Here
