Know thyself is part of the lightning rod of this New Moon in Gemini. It doesn’t stop at knowing, however. The next part is equally valuable. What will you do with what you know? This Moon in Gemini has Mercury Retrograde on the Lunar Eclipse point. This is conjunct the fixed star Algol. The raging infant in each person is there. How well do you know your rage and how do you handle it?
All you have to do is scan the headlines to see how some are expressing the impulse. One of Algol’s meanings is to ‘lose your head’ about something. Our emotions have a purpose. So there is no use demonizing rage. When we do that, it presses it down underground to seethe and build. This New Moon has Mercury square Saturn and trine Pluto. Which I read as the unearthing of those deep feelings but in a way where you can harness and redirect them into something useful. Saturn gives strength over time.
One of my favorite teachers noted a path for our masculine side that moves from rage into anger, then into passion that fuels creativity. The raw material follows a map out of destructiveness and into constructiveness. What is built may displace what is currently in place, but it is not deliberately targeting what is replaced as bad or evil. We can learn how to take whatever felt emotion comes up and use it to our benefit instead of lashing out or imploding with rage connected to unmet needs.
We have Mars and Jupiter tightly knit together in Aries, a combustible combination. The urge to do something now is strong. But Chiron is in Aries too, highlighting the wound in each of us. That point where we’ve experienced helplessness or hopelessness has to be crossed as you express what’s percolating. Updating those feelings to your current status is necessary. Inner reparenting is required. Can you accept all your feelings, as they appear? Can you allow them a place in your head without giving them the steering wheel? Mothering allows us to meet ourselves where we are. It can take some of the heat out of the equation. Feelings have an origin and you validate what tripped the response.
That said, can you then move on to healthy restraint. You can better see when another is stuck in their version of the tripwire of emotion. Can you take your own raw rage and give it structure? Such as draw a healthy boundary, speak your truth but do it in a way that preserves options instead of burning bridges. The internal parents may need to swap places, where restraint comes first and acceptance of your emotions comes afterwards. The order is less important than your active engagement with the adult in you. When you have compassion for the adaptive child provoked into whatever coping skills may come up, you keep the maladapted adult from spinning out of control. Often all your wounded self needs is your attention, for however short a time you can give.
It takes time, patience, and presence to tame the dragon within you. And that time is invaluable. The cost for acting out is visible in the extreme in today’s world. Still the micro-aggressions and fall out are also present in our day to day communications. Take command back. You are not alone, we are all human. And it’s time to evolve past the primal raging infant in each of us, into the powerful creator that is you. The Cards and Stars can help.
Thank you,
Lisa Greenfield
5/20 Two of pentacles gemini new moon
How perfect to have this two come up for the Gemini influence. As we acknowledge and accept our inner dark and light, we integrate their energies and let them work for us. Each of us have the feminine, to belong, and the masculine, to stand out wired into our brain stems. We have adapted ways of belonging and standing out. Some of those adaptations cost us too much in the present. We have to patiently, case by case, be aware of our feelings and needs. Whatever obstacles present themselves, they are opportunities to drop in and ‘know thyself’. Where is the need to belong costing your your authentic self. Try taking blame out of the equation. Like a tree growing out of a crack in the sidewalk, you followed what was possible.
No use blaming the concrete for blocking your way. Redirect your growth to where there are better options now. This two of pentacles highlights that it’s normal to go back and forth, be of two minds. Patience for the inner dialogue is so beneficial. Neptune is in a supportive aspect with Mercury, which means your complaints are a gold mine. Because complaining precedes the risk of asking for what we want or need. When old wounds keep us in what we don’t have instead of asking for what we want it shows you where you are stuck! So bring unmet needs out of the helpless phase using courage.
Which may take a few tries. Stand with your younger self as you speak up and put what you want out there. Since Mercury is retrograde, it may take a bit of time before your requests get answers. Use any delays to practice holding transformational tension. Cheer yourself on and don’t skimp on high fives in the mirror or pats on your back. Steady yourself and feel how good being on your side can feel. Little actions pay big dividends over time. Start where you start and celebrate the daylights out of it.
5/31 ten of wands
The aspects today are nothing remarkable. Yet this Ten of Wands offers encouragement to take the momentum from yesterday’s New Moon and keep going. Jupiter still sits very close to Mars in Aries. Now on the shadow side of this we have expansion (Jupiter) of our aggressions (Mars). Yet on the flip side we have the beginner’s mind of Aries applied to the higher mind of Jupiter to help us act in ways that separate us (Mars) from what no longer serves us as our operating system. Turn the lens inward and act on what you find within you. You want to establish a pattern that is present for the raging infant in you, so you are not dependent on external circumstances to regulate. What’s outside you can improve the situation but doesn’t control you.
Jupiter can help elevate our perspective beyond just our individual needs. It calls out physical confidence and good timing. When you acknowledge your old fears, doubts and limits they shrink down into right size. They no longer cast such big shadows. This allows the positive charge from Jupiter and Mars to put you in the right place at the right time to go beyond what you thought you were capable of doing. There is a naturalness that reveals more of you. Tune in to that young you, be present as the adult with whatever fears, projections or stories come up. Then watch as the adult you has more authority in any given moment. Discover choice and agency within you, too. Go for it…
6/1 three of cups
Threes concern the realm of communication and belong to Mercury, which is retrograde until Friday. This three emphasizes fun and celebration with friends. The aspects today hold some tension, so it may not be easily achieved, yet it is worthwhile to reach for it. Can you find the humor in some of your touchy points. The Cancer Moon offers loving support and what can be more kind than finding laughter. You get to have those feelings and they are yours to care for. Sometimes it helps to have a friend to laugh together about those triggered moments. Cancer represents mothering and being delighted by yourself as you are is the essence of maternal love.
Or maybe you can find gratitude for being able to feel. Numbness is a sign of emotional overwhelm. When the emotions rise up, as they might today, let them be a dashboard. Anger helps center us and place or hold healthy boundaries. Grief needs a ritual to release whatever is lost. Be a willing witness to what you feel and how you show up for those feelings today. Then deliberately choose to act on them in a way that serves your greater good. This is the opposite of implosion or explosion of feeling. When you engage your emotions this way, it absolutely is something to celebrate.
6/2 six of wands
Sixes belong to Virgo, a Mercury ruled sign that has to do with health and wholeness. Wands are Spirit’s domain. So it helps to call on our wise self today. First we have the Cancer Moon in hard aspect with Chiron. It’s easy to have the wounded part of us to push to the front or lobby insistently from the backseat. The good news is Uranus comes into play as the day moves on to give us fresh insight into how to integrate that part and move ahead, free of unnecessary constraints. Have compassion for what hurts and let in inform what you do for yourself. It doesn’t decide what to do, it merely contributes important insight into your wants and needs. The young inner tyrant or victim no longer decides what is true. See the bigger picture and celebrate your progress, this isn’t easy and you can do it.
6/3 six of pentacles Mercury goes direct
This is the second six in a row and two together highlights love and partnership. It’s a busy day in the heavens, with both stress and support swirling. The question to be answered is will you carry the insight forward you learned these last three plus weeks? Those necessary obstacles helped you stretch into uncertain territory and carry lasting value. Will you lovingly bring the newly emergent parts of you into partnership going forward? You don’t have to do so. It’s a choice, a commitment you get to make.
It can be easy to move from relief at some of the pressure to self righteous indignation at what still needs attention and then into power struggles both within and without. Forewarned allows you to stay relaxed, curious and open to whatever comes up today. This alone may help keep you loose and relaxed so you find solutions available to whatever arises. Whatever you feel, you have the resources now to find answers to honor your needs in a way that wasn’t available in the past. It is better by far to balance time spent meeting those needs now and whatever wounded you before. This six embodies wholeness. The wound is no longer the biggest part of you, after all.
6/4 three of wands
These two threes bookend the two sixes within this Moon Cycle. So the invitation is there for you to choose your mindset. Two threes signal you have choices. This plus, Saturn turns retrograde in Aquarius and back tracks until October. The Three of Wands is a ship about to come in, but it hasn’t hit the dock yet. You can see it, you just can’t access it all at present. So these next few months are a good time to revisit the choices you’ve made since February of this year when Saturn entered its shadow period. How do you like the results of your actions these last couple months?
For some reason this makes me think of that line in Parenthood, when Steve Martin says “My whole life is have to” as a complaint. This is a time to rework your mindset. When you choose to do something challenging in order to gain from the investment, it’s not a ‘have to’ any longer. Except in an old mindset. And a punishing mindset at that… What can you willingly, if not joyfully, do for yourself that brings you long term gain for short term sacrifice? This can be handling your hurt feelings and rage yourself before visiting them on another. Or it can be risking an ask for what you need without strings or pressure on getting it now. Find your choices and celebrate them.
6/5 Hanged man
The Moon is opposite a retrograde Saturn today, a perfect pairing with this card. Patience is required. Both for yourself and whatever circumstances present themselves. Mercury squares off with the Leo Moon and you may find your mind reacting out of habit. The best way to get rid of a habit you don’t want is replace it with actions you do want. Taurs versus Leo has our ego overly invested in whatever happens. Over time the deliberate interruption of the familiar helps you build a new normal, one you want. The inverted figure in this card reminds us to value heart over head. Our heart helps us choose, then our heads help us get from where we are towards what we want. There is no rushing this process. One step, one choice at a time you replace what doesn’t work anymore with what does work. You are worth your time.
6/6 ten of cups
Oh what an interesting approach to happiness is required today. This ten stands for ‘happily ever after’ in almost every Tarot deck. Yet the aspects call for a strategic approach to how you arrive at what is to be done. What pleases you and then how do you integrate it into your relationships? You cannot trade your authenticity for belonging or ask another to do so. Instead you are challenged to find out what collaboration looks like. Not compromise, but rather collaboration is called for here. Creativity is key. Don’t worry about being right. In fact, being right is the enemy of getting it right. The better you are at feeling and honoring your needs the easier it is to hear and honor another’s needs, even when you aren’t aligned. From there, find joyful solutions. They are there…
6/7 queen of wands
We continue the theme of creating your new world today. This Queen is about receiving inspiration from all things. Fire requires fuel so be sure to give yourself credit for your efforts today. Not your results, but your efforts are to be praised. How do you handle obstacles, delays or reroutes? Let them be a possibly exciting detour instead of a source of frustration. This can be more mental than actual obstacles. Notice where you interpret information in a way that underestimates you or what you can do at first. Then invest a little time to consider all the possible benefits that can come from whatever is present. When you are generous with yourself this way it builds a resonance that others follow. You teach others how to treat you by how you treat the various parts of you.
6/8 five of swords
This pesky five feels the hangover from yesterday’s challenges and anticipates more today. Except the battle is won or lost in your mind. It really is a matter of ‘whether you think you can, or you think you can’t, you are right’. Remember fear goes to work on your greatest strengths, not your greatest weaknesses. Since your weakness won’t expand you into the unknown, use whatever story your doubts serve up to point out where you resources wait. Gather them up and talk yourself through it. Often rage comes up when you believe you ‘have to’ do something. It feels helpless or hopeless. Even if you don’t like your options, you have them. Find them. It’s good practice, right. See if you can have some fun with it. Above all, go slowly. Give time a chance to bring more insight to light.
6/9 strength
The tension of opposites calls on an internal strength card well represented by today’s card. When oppositions are in the sky we are best served by integrating them into a whole. Think of what a 24 hour period holds. We have both night and day and how well do they work together, right? Notice where fear pops up when things don’t immediately seem to go together. Or where things actively clash with each other at first glance. You are not at the mercy of life. This card invites us to manage the emotions in conflict. Not to give in, control or bully your way through the feelings. Feel what you do and decide, strategically how to put that information towards working with what’s is the best use. Compassion followed by strength is a winning combination and soothes the internal struggles.
6/10 nine of pentacles
Insight into where and how your wounds informed your view of the world is on deck today. Nine of Pentacles stresses you can physically master what’s in front of you. You are a match for any challenge, obstacle or story that needs attention. The sore spot is likely to make an appearance with today’s aspects. It touches on those neglected parts of your personality. Give them space and quality attention. It doesn’t have to take all day, but do show them care and concern. Each time you acknowledge unmet needs (that may be framed as complaints) it teaches you how to show up for what is important now for you.
Release perfectionism if it makes an appearance. Your fear brain uses it like a weapon to keep you from expanding. If you focus on giving or getting perfect results, you are squeezing into space too small to thrive. Like flies on a white wall, those places where your survival brain wants to herd you back into familiar space shows up. Each time you choose to go beyond those patterns, another fly drops dead. Slowly you can grow out into unfamiliar space. Take a look around, reassure yourself and enjoy the new view.
6/11 three of pentacles
This is the third three in this Moon Cycle. Three threes together is a shout out for innovative communication. We need it today as we have Venus meeting up with the Great Awakener Uranus before going on to oppose the Moon. Your desires are freed up and then run headlong into the fears that want to put the Genie back in the bottle. Today really requires you see it with fresh eyes. Take time to investigate what you believe about whatever happens in your world. What do you believe and is that your belief or is it a leftover from your inheritance. We often traded what we yearned for in order to belong.
Except you cannot truly belong if the real you isn’t there. There can be deep pockets of rage and pain around this disconnect. Where can you risk knowing yourself, accepting yourself and only then seeing how it fits into the environment around you? Be astonished at the information available when you look at things from completely fresh perspective. There is more of you to discover. Make friends with those parts of you before you edit them for the world around you. There will be a time for that, it just isn’t yet. Simply resist trimming, suppressing or denying what you discover. That’s a good start for now.
6/12 Lovers
Resist the temptation to put things into black and white decisions today. The Lovers Card can symbolize deciding between two people, places or things. Except that few things are truly that simply. Better to go with what feels authentically you and what doesn’t. With the Moon in tense aspect with Saturn and then easy aspect with Neptune it can be easy to rationalize tough decisions. Resist rationalization. Deal with the facts at hand and give it time to reveal itself more fully.
When applying the gifts from all aspects today there is deep healing available. Be present for that possibility. It may not be immediately obvious. So set the intention to be open to your highest and best good. Then let the day serve up what it will as you choose your authentic wants, needs and actions.
6/13 ten of swords
The aspects today serve up a buffet of support for you to uncurl and stretch into all the growth you’ve done during this moon cycle. Three tens together have a value exchange theme. Considering the raging infant was wired into this moon cycle, we can exchange that unconscious destructive force for creative passion with a little maturity and time. So while the Ten of Swords is mental death there is a sense of it being a gift, payback for being brave and going beyond where you have lived up until now.
It puts responsibility back in your adult self for the wounded parts of you that were not well adapted to living your best life. It may well be the end to you inhabiting a world where the wounded or helpless part was the largest influence in that space. You decide. It is a major ending point. Yet there is a sense of a fair exchange. You give up to get something even better than you knew to ask for. There are so many more choices for an adaptive adult who learns from all that is. Breathe that in and feel it land in your body. It’s been a big couple of weeks.
