Time for Self-Acceptance

An Evolutionary Perspective

The Aries charts I use show the position of the planets and other celestial bodies (and points) at a particular moment of time (in GMT) without projecting them to a specific place on Earth. Their horizontal line corresponds to the equinoctial axis, the vernal equinox at the extreme left (9 o’clock if it was a clock face) and the autumnal equinox at the rightmost position (3 o’clock). In the signs below such axis, the Day Force is prevalent over the Night Force. The former impulses the evolutionary development of our individuality, from its first assertion in Aries, the adolescent “I am” with the emphasis in “I”, to its realistic assessment in Virgo, the reasoned “I represent”, after a critical evaluation of ourselves. As a confirmation symbol, Virgo has to criticize the “I express” of Leo, its root symbol. In Virgo, we also prepare to relate to others in Libra, when the Night Force becomes prevalent for six months (above the equinoctial axis). In Virgo we want to understand what can we offer to others in Libra and beyond, our self-expression (Leo) must be consistent with who we currently are (Cancer) and that requires self-criticism since Virgo is ruled by Mercury, the planet of the processes in our senses and our rational mind. As always, we need to complement the Virgo energy of reasoned criticism with the Pisces energy of inclusion in the form of self-compassion, since Pisces is ruled by Neptune the planet of processes in the collective consciousness of humanity and beyond.

If the signs below the equinoctial axis represent the development of our individuality, the signs above, when the Night Force of relatedness becomes prevalent, symbolize the phases of our growth when we build relationships of varying complexity with others as well as social communities that begin with the one-on-one relationships of Libra. A sign often misunderstood in astrology, Libra modus operandi is “we relate” so it tries to build personal relationships based on what Virgo critically concluded was the final result of the “I am” of Aries. One by one, the signs with a prevalent Night Force and its Yin energy act as recipients of the opposing sign, trying to incorporate its lessons in the way we relate. Each duality calls us to become conscious of how the individual aspect of the axis can complement the social relatedness of its polar opposite. For example, the “I express” of Leo becomes a cry of “we incorporate” all individual expressions into a community’s culture in Aquarius. Just like Virgo wraps up our yearly individual development with a critical assessment of who we are thus far, Pisces uses hindsight to assess our successes or failures in relationships, both personal and at large. Since they greatly depend on how we integrated our individual efforts with the needs of our collective, Pisces becomes a “final judgement” stage for the year, with the opportunity to extract wisdom, let go of the past, and start anew in Aries at the next vernal equinox.

Venus’s Kite

The enclosed chart is for the exact opposition of Venus and Neptune, at 29°08′ of the Virgo–Pisces axis, which is significant at many levels. They are at the intense anaretic degrees where all the sign archetypes are deepened, including the shadow ones. Crucially, however, Venus also forms a Grand Trine with Uranus (Taurus 27°15′) and Pluto (Aquarius 0°04′), thus completing a Kite configuration with the Minor Grand Trine of the outer planets. It should be easy to spot in the chart: on the equinoctial axis, find Venus at the rightmost place and you can follow the red opposition to Neptune (leftmost planet) along with the two green trines to Pluto (at 11 o’clock) and Uranus (7 o’clock). Venus is called the leader of the Kite (where the tail would be in a real kite) while the opposing Neptune is called the pilot of the configuration.

It is said that the Kite can be a very successful configuration for the processes represented by the planet acting as leader; Venus in this case. The other three are the transpersonal planets which are collaborating to bring a new consciousness to humanity. The most important aspect in the Kite is the opposition between the pilot and the leader, by which the leader can become conscious of its archetypes. In this case we have the Virgo–Pisces polarity of self-criticism and self-compassion discussed earlier, which can lead to self-acceptance. Having Neptune as the pilot in its own sign allows the leader to see the purest form of all Pisces archetypes; for example, not just compassion but also delusion.

As we alluded earlier, the transpersonal planets refer to the power of the collective unconscious towards the individual ego: Uranus symbolizes the projective power, making sure issues are addressed, Neptune is the dissolving power that attempts to see all sides and overlook any differences, and Pluto is the regenerating power that may require the destruction of the old to give way to the new. The trines formed by Uranus and Pluto with the leader planet make sure the entire unconscious power is focused on the leader. Uranus will provide creative energy focused on truth whereas Pluto will empower the leader to understand the collective reason for the personal processes it represents, which is the question posed by the opposition with Neptune. The question for Venus is how to relate from the standpoint of universal love and compassion, not just personal love.

However, it is important to note that although the opposition aspect has tons of energy that must be utilized, it is not an aspect of action but of consciousness. So, even with the Kite, there is nothing that compels us to act, it is up to us to initiate any kind of action. With Venus as leader, we are dared to elevate our relationships to a new level of consciousness, dissolving any ego issues and allowing compassion to permeate their nature. After Venus, and ignoring Moon who forms an opposition with Neptune every month, Sun on September 20 or 21, depending on your location, and Mercury on September 25, will become leaders of a similar Neptune-piloted Kite; Mars will have to wait until August 9, 2025.

New Moon in Virgo

In the August 28 chart, we can see, in addition to the Kite, that Mercury and Uranus have slowed down their motions to be considered stationary. Less than 24 hours later, on August 29,¹ fast-moving Mercury began to move direct while Uranus will remain at Taurus 27°15′ for a while. But the main attraction of this article is the new moon we will have at Virgo 11°04′ on September 2 at 6:55 p.m. in California, 7:55 p.m. in Mexico City, or on September 3 at 3:55 a.m. in Central Europe (chart below).

Even though the opposition between Venus at Libra 5°32′ and Neptune at exactly Pisces 29°00′ is still within orb (tolerance), the Kite has disappeared because the angle between Venus and Uranus has grown to 128°17′ which, in my opinion, is too large to be considered a trine for mostly unrelated planets. At the new moon, Uranus will have just begun to move retrograde so the trine it forms with Pluto at Capricorn 29°59′ will only get wider while both remain in Earth signs. Thus, the Minor Grand Trine will never be tighter during the final transit of Pluto through Capricorn; I will say more about that later.

When we talked about the full moon in Aquarius, we discussed at length the opposition between Saturn and Venus. At the new moon, Saturn (Pisces 16°25′) will form an opposition with the Sun–Moon conjunction, providing energy to understand during the lunation how to become better individuals at the service of a collective, ranging from a nuclear family or a neighborhood to humanity as a whole. This will reach a crescendo at the full moon and partial lunar eclipse in Pisces, on September 17 or 18, and also three days later when Sun, the source of all energy and the power of our Self, becomes the leader of the Neptune-piloted Kite. I expect the entire lunation to bring opportunities for us to accept the new level of consciousness but more so after the full moon.

In the same article about the prior full-moon, we talked about the Jupiter–Saturn square that was exact then and continues to be very close at the new moon since Jupiter is at Gemini 19°15′, so we will have energy through the lunar month to cultivate mind flexibility, opening ourselves to relationships based on compassion and allowing a higher-level of consciousness in. If we want to go deep into self-criticism, there is plenty of energy from the sesquiquadrate formed by Pluto with the Sun–Moon conjunction. Pluto also forms a semi-square with Saturn, thus adding an extra dimension to the Saturn opposition to the new moon and to the Virgo–Pisces polarity which will be featured even more prominently during the next full moon and eclipse.

Mars and Venus

Mars at Gemini 28°57′ will form an exact square with Neptune which has been correlated with sea battles in times of war. As the planet of action, Mars is less comfortable when in the Gemini phase; there is too much energy spent in mental considerations instead of action for Mars’s taste. However, in Gemini, Mars energizes communication issues. We may see a stronger proliferation of “fake news” and other disinformation at all levels, not just in the media. On a positive note, its contact with Neptune will activate the Minor Grand Trine that is chiefly responsible for making a new consciousness available to all of us.

At a personal level, it will activate the Neptune–Venus opposition that calls for relationships based on higher levels of love and compassion. This is a theme we have carried over since the previous full moon when Venus was opposing Saturn in a powerful T-Square with Mars (and Jupiter). Theme we just encountered again when Venus opposed Neptune on August 28. Moreover, Venus forms a close conjunction with the South Node (Libra 6°42′)² that will allow us to assimilate the value of our relationships, keeping what is nutritious and disregarding the refuse, perhaps making room for new relationships based on the higher values we are seeking, in particular truth and honesty (Uranus).

Sabian Symbol

The symbol for Virgo 12°, where both Sun and Moon are located, has the image: “After the wedding, the groom snatches the veil away from his bride”, further explained as the penetrating and unveiling power of the trained mind. Its keyword is: Unveiling, as in revelation of mysteries long protected by secrecy.

Veiling is something related to the Pisces sign and the energy of Neptune, so the symbol already brings up the Virgo–Pisces polarity. Unveiling was one of the mental images I got when I saw the Mars–Neptune square in the new-moon chart, a square that is only 0°03′ from being exact and with both planets in the penultimate degree of the signs they occupy. Mars and Neptune in a square aspect speak of piercing a veil and yet it’s the new-moon symbol which has that image. A double unveiling?

Uranus Stationary Retrograde

But the Sabian symbol reinforces the other theme we’ve had present for the past two or three articles: the quest to live in truth and honesty. It is clear that it is a prerequisite to elevate our consciousness. Whenever we speak of truth, we must consider Uranus which moved slowly, changed direction and at the new moon will begin to move retrograde but very slowly, at less than 10% its average speed so it’s still considered stationary. I have mentioned in the past that many astrologers consider stationary planets to act more strongly than usual when in reality they are just stubbornly acting in the same manner, with the same meaning, for longer than usual. The tenacity (the other side of stubbornness) exhibited by those planets may be mistaken as strength.

In the article about the full moon in Aquarius we mentioned that the Sabian symbol for Taurus 28°, where Uranus was already placed, has the image: “A woman, past her ‘change of life’, experiences a new love”, expanded as the human capacity to rise in consciousness and feelings above biological limitations. We mentioned that the symbol calls us to have an open mind to the possibility of new Rebeginnings. Not only that, Uranus will remain in this degree through the full moon and eclipse in Pisces and even when Sun opposes Neptune to become the leader of the transpersonal Kite. Through it all, there is energy to begin anew!

Finally, Mercury (Leo 23°17′) will form a nearly exact trine with Chiron at Aries 22°55′ and a square with Uranus, its “higher octave”. You may remember the same Mercury–Uranus square at the last full moon, when it was formed with Mercury moving retrograde. Any contact between these planets allows for a mixture of intuition and reason to coexist in our mind.

Pluto’s Final Transit in Capricorn

As I mentioned earlier, Pluto is the regenerating power of the collective unconscious, a collective of which we are a member. At the level of Life, the broadest collective is the biosphere, whose “conscious mind” is all of humanity as a whole. The collective power symbolized by Pluto is very large and when in Capricorn it’s focused on the structures of society. Regenerating anything may imply destroying and rebuilding it, but Pluto doesn’t do the rebuilding, that’s Saturn’s job. However, societal structures which are flexible and able to adapt to the new consciousness will be greatly empowered by Pluto, it is erroneous to think that all current structures are obsolete.

In general, astrologers misunderstand Capricorn as a symbol of top-down structures because that is how society has erected its institutions. In Capricorn, its ruler Saturn will build the necessary structures for the correct functioning of society as it seeks to organize its ultimate expression: a civilization. The Age of Pisces arrived with a top-down hierarchy in the heavens, a monotheistic God sitting atop a hierarchy of celestial beings, archangels and the like, from which every human being inherited his or her divinity. The Church and the Empire followed with the same type of hierarchy which has been implemented in the societies of the past two millennia. But Saturn would be just as happy structuring a decentralized society when in Capricorn, like the one required by the upcoming Age of Aquarius.

Most astrologers think that this final return to Capricorn will temporarily empower the old paradigms, only to disenfranchise them once again when it exits Capricorn on November 19. In general I don’t buy it, I think it will show us even more of the same failures it has exposed and at levels that will be impossible to ignore and that will be countered with the truth once it reenters Aquarius for the next twenty years. This time Pluto will go back to 29°39′ of Capricorn, forming a final same-sign conjunction with the position it held in the US “natal” chart (Capricorn 27°33′) just for their elections, it seems. We will continue to talk about this in the next few articles.

Wrapping Up…

This first two weeks of September should pass quietly for most of us. As usual, try to ignore the freely-available chaos and don’t pay attention to the news. The period prior to the full moon in Pisces is perfect for some reflection and self-criticism with the aim to reach self-acceptance. It will all turn hectic once more after the partial lunar eclipse.

As mentioned throughout the write-up, Venus is featured prominently and the energy of Uranus to power rebeginnings may easily apply to our relationships. Venus conjunct the South Node may bring karmic issues, however.

Don’t forget to declare your intention for the lunation, preferably before the new moon.

Always Love. 🌹🙏💖

1. I am writing this on August 28, and for the past five days I have had “Mercury retrograde” troubles, including computer and Internet issues. I wanted to have published this article by today (sigh). ↩︎
2. The South Node is not shown but it is exactly opposite the North Node, which is shown at Aries 6°42′. ↩︎