Critical Reflections

There will be two new moons in Virgo this year, falling in the first and last degrees of the sign, perhaps to balance the expressive energy we had from Leo and Aquarius—Virgo being the confirmation symbol of Leo. At the new moon in Leo, you may recall, Sun and Moon formed an exact opposition with Pluto in Aquarius, initiating a month of obvious tension between individual and sociocultural expression all over the world. As it should, the full moon in Aquarius revealed the extent of such tension, this time aided by the opposition of Pluto with Mercury, which was (and still is) in a powerful sextile with Mars. The crisis of consciousness from such a revelation, symbolized by last Friday’s Last Quarter phase, gave us a bizarre summit between Trump and Putin in Alaska.

More Worldwide Uncertainty

Prior to Neptune’s entrance in Aries, we mentioned that such an event often has coincided with a global conflict, but predicted a different kind of “world war” this time: an economic war. Neptune moved into Aries on March 30 and the first salvos were symbolically fired right away on “Liberation Day”, April 2. However, in early May, Pluto went retrograde and, by the time Saturn entered Aries in late May, everything had a feeling of a rehearsal. When Uranus entered Gemini in early July, just before the full moon in Capricorn, we said that revealing information would begin to flow but suggested that we should observe and reflect, especially since both Saturn and Neptune began to move retrograde at around the same time. There is what we could call “reconsideration energy” that will become downright “doubting energy” once Uranus begins to move retrograde on September 5, just after Saturn reenters Pisces on September 1 with Neptune following suit on October 22. The bottom line is, as José Millán said, that any so-called agreements being signed now about the economic war will not be worth the paper in which they are written. I am afraid that we will go back to confusing and chaotic times for a while longer.

However, there is light at the end of the tunnel. With the rehearsal over and having had some time to reflect, the planets will begin to move in the forward direction once more, signaling the start of a lasting time for action because no slow planet will return again to a previous sign for several years. Saturn will be stationary at Pisces 25°09′ on November 28 and Neptune will do the same at Pisces 29°22′ on December 10. With Uranus back in Taurus since November 8, we will likely feel heaviness and a sense of déjà vu that will make us rethink, collectively, how to approach the same issues we are facing today. Everything will come to a head once Neptune reenters Aries on January 26, Uranus changes direction on February 4, at Taurus 27°28′, and Saturn also reenters Aries on February 14, on its way to its much-anticipated conjunction with Neptune on February 20. Of course, the final entrance of Uranus into Gemini, on April 26, will begin the real transition to a society based on new paradigms. It will likely be the real start of a global economic war or other means to effect the expected implosion.

The Role of Saturn

The processes of Saturn invite rebellion for Uranus-influenced people, like me. And Saturn is such a formidable foe that it is the bigger influence in any conjunction, including with Sun—someone with a conjunction of Sun and Saturn in his (or her) natal chart, also like me, will have many of the energies of Capricorn, ruled by Saturn, regardless of their sign. I have learned that a frontal assault on Saturn’s traditionalism only works if its structures are truly crystalized, including those in our psyche.¹ Otherwise, Saturn will react by building stronger structures capable of withstanding any radical innovation (Uranus). A much better approach is to work with these energies and present any innovation as a series of “reforms” that will require new structures. Saturn is happy to destroy what it built as long as there is a process of reconstruction afterwards—unlike Pluto which will destroy whatever is obsolete disregarding any collateral damage or whether something will be built in its place.

Unfinished Business

Given its pivotal influence, Saturn’s relationship cycles (synodic) have been carefully studied. In previous articles, we explored the cycle of Saturn and Neptune, which is coming to an end in dramatic fashion on February 20 after a year-long conjunction, most of it in the sign of Pisces. The 36-year cycle began with a triple conjunction in Capricorn in 1989, the last of which was on November 13, only four days after the fall of the Berlin Wall—quite literally the dissolution (Neptune) of the Cold War structures (Saturn). We have seen how the current Minor Grand Trine of Uranus, Neptune and Pluto mirrors the one formed during WWII, which seems to indicate some “unfinished business” related to such a key conflict for our civilization.

The fact that Neptune is the current director of the Minor Grand Trine—recall that it was Pluto during WWII—gives particular importance to the Saturn–Neptune conjunction.² Next year, and for several months, Saturn will remain in conjunction with Neptune, receiving instructions, symbolically speaking, from the transpersonal planets to effect changes in society. Of course, Saturn will work in collaboration with Jupiter and in accordance to the progressive actualization of what they began on December 21, 2020, at the last Grand Conjunction in the first degree of Aquarius.

The Digital Mind

Like Neptune, Saturn is forming sextiles with both Uranus and Pluto even though they are of different types. The current 45-year cycle of Saturn and Uranus, of tradition and innovation, began with a triple conjunction in 1988 in the sign of Sagittarius and will end in its polar opposite, Gemini, in June, 2032. In 1988, the Internet became more widely available and Sagittarius gave us a vision of global connectivity properly organized.

Similarly to a full moon, the halfway point of the cycle shows the maturation of the original seed, which was revealed in the quintuple opposition between November 2008 and July 2010, the first four with Saturn in Virgo and Uranus in Pisces, and the last one with the planets having moved to Libra and Aries. Whereas the entrance of Pluto in Capricorn in 2008 initiated the global financial crisis and has taken those years’ spotlight, the first four Saturn–Uranus oppositions gave technical structure (Saturn in Virgo) to the broad concept of worldwide “social networks” (Uranus in Pisces), and the last one ensured social acceptance (Saturn in Libra) of what has become a digital extension of our identity (Uranus in Aries): the smartphone.

During the waning phases, we must gain consciousness of what was revealed at the opposition, again in a manner similar to what happens in the lunation cycle. Gradually, we have shifted a considerable number of functions from our mind to the smartphone or the “cloud”, most notably our memory for contacts, appointments, etc. The crisis of consciousness, the closing square, occurred three times in 2021, when it seemed that people would be able to work remotely due to the tremendous increase in video conferencing during the pandemic. We are in the midst of a triple sextile, the second of which was exact on August 12, the only one with Saturn in Aries and Uranus in Gemini, and we can see its effects in legislation and other attempts to put structures around AI. Sextiles, you may recall, operate under the keyword: production.

Other Cycles

The other sextile, between Saturn and Pluto, won’t be exact until next year, and only once. Due to the large eccentricity of Pluto’s orbit, their relationship cycle lasts between 33 and 38 years. The current cycle began on January 12, 2020, in Capricorn, Saturn’s sign, and forming exact conjunctions (less than 1°) with Sun and Mercury. On that day, China reported the first death from the Covid-19 virus, from which infections we had confinements and other restrictions (Saturn). Through vaccines, we were finally able to contain the pandemic (Saturn), in the process harnessing the power (Pluto) of genetic manipulation. The opening sextile, symbol of productive action, will be exact on March 28, 2026, with Saturn in Aries itching to structure something and Pluto in Aquarius unearthing what has (and has not) worked in science and technology, among other areas.

Since we are talking about cycles, let me point out that there will be five exact opening sextiles between Uranus and Neptune taking place between now and June, 2027, each one tightening the Minor Grand Trine. The first one will occur next week on August 28, just five days after the new moon. The relationship cycle of Uranus and Neptune is about 171 years long, and the current one began with a triple conjunction in Capricorn in 1993; this cycle tends to bring major cultural shifts.

Signs and Constellations

As mentioned at the beginning of the article, we will have two new moons in Virgo this year, the first of which will occur in the first degree of the sign. In the same spot, we currently find the star Regulus, the “heart of the lion” in the constellation Leo, and many astrologers assign a particular meaning to conjunctions with specific stars.³ I want to take a moment and explain the distinction between the zodiacal signs and the constellations that bear the same names. Both are used as coordinate systems laid on the ecliptic: the apparent path of the sun through the year which, of course, is produced by Earth’s orbit around it. The ecliptic is inclined about 23.5° with respect to the celestial equator, the projection of Earth’s equator, and the intersection of these two planes produces the equinoctial axis.

For the tropical zodiac (signs), the location of the sun at the March equinox marks the beginning of the zodiac, the first degree of Aries. From then on, we simply move 30° to find the start of Taurus, 30° more for Gemini, and so on. Sometime between 100 and 200 b.C.E., the sun at the March equinox coincided with some initial boundary of the constellation Aries, which extended for about a twelfth of the entire circle and ended at the start of the constellation Taurus. In those days, a constellation defined roughly the same 30° arc of the ecliptic as what the tropical zodiac would have yielded; I said “roughly” because the constellation boundaries used in antiquity are much debated.

The Astrological Ages

However, the March equinox moves retrograde against the so-called fixed stars that make up the constellations due to the precession of the equinoxes, a phenomenon not yet totally understood that results in 1° of backwards movement of the equinoctial axis every 72 years. As a result, the March equinox moves retrograde an entire sign every 2,160 years (30 x 72), giving rise to the concept of astrological ages. In his book, “Astrological Timing”, Rudhyar uses the convergence of various cycles to theorize that the constellations and the signs were synchronized at 98 b.C.E., which meant that the March equinoxes have occurred progressively backwards through the constellation of Pisces and we are thus living in the Age of Pisces until the year 2062.⁴

The Stars in a Constellation

Most significantly, the stars found within a constellation were thought to “sketch” an archetypal image of the solar energies in that region of space. The individual stars emphasized some symbolic features of such a sketch, like Regulus being located in the heart of a lion sketched by the stars of the constellation Leo. In the cosmic holarchy, each of the 100–400 billion stars in the Milky Way represents a planetary system at the same level as our solar system, all interrelated and collaborating as “parts” for the proper functioning of the galaxy in a manner similar to how organs interoperate in a human body.

Following this analogy, one planetary system would correspond to the heart while another would be the brain. Obviously, there is communication between the two organs to keep a person functioning as such, but in this analogy Earth is only a functional part of the solar system when taken as an organism and not a direct part of the galaxy; Earth would correspond to a cardiac valve or a cerebral lobe. Whereas a cardiac valve is clearly affected by the rhythms of the heart, it is less clear how it would be directly affected by the rhythms of the brain.

The Four Royal Stars

In Persian astrology, four stars were considered guardians of the heavens, located at the four cardinal directions: Regulus (north), Fomalhaut (south), Aldebaran (east) and Antares (west). According to Astrology King, Regulus was at the summer solstice (Cancer 0°) in 2345 b.C.E., and immediately began to move into Leo due to the precession of the equinoxes. By 700 b.C.E. the Assyrians had placed Regulus in Leo at the heart of the lion; Fomalhaut is in Piscis Austrinus at the mouth of the small fish under the water bearer of Aquarius; Aldebaran is in Taurus at the eye of the bull; and Antares is in Scorpio at the chest of the scorpion.

Notice how the four stars seemed to mark the halfway points of the fixed signs, where power is most concentrated. These points, Taurus 15°, Leo 15°, Scorpio 15° and Aquarius 15° have been called the avataric degrees and are especially potent. The point I am making is that perhaps the qualities assigned to the four royal stars stem not from the actual star systems but from the symbolism of the degrees in which they were located back then. Therefore, Regulus in the first degree of Virgo does not modify the meaning of that degree and it is basically irrelevant to Earth’s biosphere.

An Information Critique

It is time to talk about the new moon formed by the exact conjunction of Sun and Moon at Virgo 0°23′. It will occur on August 22 at 11:06 p.m. in California, or on August 23 at 12:06 a.m. in Mexico City, 8:06 a.m. in Central Europe, as seen in the Aries chart below:

Like the new moon in Leo, this is another one in an early degree of its sign (the first) and thus it forms aspects with the planets of the Minor Grand Trine: a square with Uranus (Gemini 1°23′) and quincunxes with Pluto (Aquarius 1°56′), Neptune (Aries 1°34′) and Saturn (Aries 0°36′), this last one practically exact. Whereas normally the Virgo new moon is a bit demure and proper, symbolically speaking, with energy for critical self-analysis and attention to detail, the tight square with Uranus, the only outer planet not moving retrograde, will keep bringing out revelatory information while it transits through Gemini. Sun and Moon will make sure the information is critically reviewed and carefully disseminated over the course of a lunation with the exactness of Sun in Virgo throughout. Alternatively, the negative aspect of this energy is to sow doubt and heavily criticize the information revealed, or the informants as messengers.

However, the quincunxes form a powerful Yod configuration, also known as the Finger of Fate, with Sun and Moon at the fateful vertex, receiving the energies generated by the sextile of Pluto with the conjunction of Saturn and Neptune. I should note that every one of these planets is moving retrograde, inviting reflection. After the Leo lunation, when the tension between individual and sociocultural expressions was exposed, this will be a lunar month for critical reflection, in all likelihood related to the revelatory information already mentioned.

Persisting Communications

The sextile between Mars (Libra 10°16′) and Mercury (Leo 12°34′) has been operational since the full moon in Aquarius and was exact twice, on August 12 and 18. It has given social acceptance to the expressions of disapproval towards what certain societies are doing, energies that are present in the new-moon seed and thus will be available through the month. Besides the sextile, Mars forms a square with Jupiter (Cancer 16°15′) which, in turn, forms a trine with the North Node (Pisces 18°20′), pointing to opportunities and synchronicities to further work the energies of the past full moon, when Mars led a Kite with the Minor Grand Trine.

More Individual–Cultural Tension

At the time of the new moon, Venus (Cancer 27°06′) will form a square with Chiron (Aries 26°55′) which at one level symbolizes, in the words of Pam Gregory, “using love to heal”. However, the opposition of Venus and Pluto, which is already shown in the new-moon chart, will become very strong when Venus enters Leo on August 25, two days after the new moon. The Leo–Aquarius tension we felt since the new moon in Leo, when Sun and Moon were exactly opposite Pluto, and which was all over the media in the week following the full moon, when Mercury opposed Pluto, will now acquire an emotional tone as it is Venus’s turn to be in opposition to Pluto and form a Trapeze with the Minor Grand Trine. The sextile of Mercury and Mars mentioned earlier will keep us informed of such an emotional tension. At a personal level, the tension will be felt in our relationships, perhaps involving a feminine (or feminist) point of view.

Sabian Symbol

The original image for Virgo 1 is: “A man’s head”, which Rudhyar greatly expanded to: “In a portrait, the significant features of a man’s head are artistically emphasized”, further explained as the capacity to picture to oneself clearly the salient features and the overall meaning of any life situation. If one interprets the original image as a portrait, or even a sculpture, Rudhyar’s enhanced version simply states the obvious, but which becomes important when considering the symbol’s keyword: Discrimination.

Any individual with a prominent Virgo phase (Sun, Moon, Ascendant, etc.) will understand that discrimination implies both analysis and intuition. Writes Rudhyar: “The mind separates and identifies … what makes a person or a situation different from another; but the intuitive responses of the whole person … are also essential, for what matters is not only my or your ‘difference,’ but the place and function this difference occupies … in the evolution of humanity as a whole.” Thus defined, discrimination is much more than mere differentiation.

It is important to remember that, from that degree, Sun and Moon make important contacts with the Minor Grand Trine. Discrimination in this case will apply to the careful review and dissemination of information or to feed the doubts regarding whatever is revealed. Looking ahead, the lunation will end hours prior to the autumn equinox.

Wrapping Up…

In the first part of this article, I explained how various relationship cycles between the outer planets, including Saturn, predict more confusion and chaos later in the year. The rehearsal of what to expect in the next three to five years is coming to an end. Being a rehearsal, it is unwise to place much credence to what is being decided or even accorded nowadays. These issues will resurface once the “big boys” begin to move direct once again and move into their current Yang signs for several years.

In the short term, the entire lunation will have the critical and practical energies of Sun in Virgo. The full moon in Pisces will arrive with a total lunar eclipse that promises to be quite revealing. The lunation will end with another new moon in the last (anaretic) degree of Virgo, the degree that often exposes the shadow aspects of a sign.

Venus in Leo will allow us to work on our relationships, in particular on the tension between sociocultural pressures and individual desires.

Always Love. 🌹🙏💖

Notes

1. We have seen that, in terms of psyche development, the Saturn processes symbolize what Jung called the ego complex which builds the structure of our conscious mind, our mindset. ↩︎
2. During WWII, Saturn formed a conjunction with Uranus, a supporting planet like Neptune in that Minor Grand Trine. The conjunction was exact on May 3, 1942 in the last degree of Taurus, the day when the Battle of the Coral Sea began, a key battle in which both sides suffered many casualties but, for the first time, a major Japanese advance was turned back. ↩︎
3. I mistakenly jumped on that bandwagon last year, when Uranus was conjunct the star Algol, part of the myth of Medusa, which in antiquity became associated with the death of “heads of state”, sometimes by actual beheading. The first conjunction coincided with the assassination attempt against Donald Trump. ↩︎
4. Given the uncertainty on some dates and constellation boundaries, I would place the triple entrance of Pluto in Aries in 2066–68, akin to how it entered Aquarius three times in 2023–24, as the likely start of the Age of Aquarius. ↩︎