While this Virgo New Moon is less frenetic than the last couple Moon cycles, it’s no less important. Through it, we can see where we set ourselves up for disappointment and even betrayal. With Pluto retrograde in Capricorn and Saturn retrograde in Pisces we are aware of the high price belonging can cost us. Whether it’s loyalty to a family, a relationship, or any group, we have a chance to redo what was unconsciously programmed in childhood. It’s time to discover the balance in how to belong fully to any group without betraying either yourself of the collective group.
Make no mistake, this is not a simple adjustment. It is the wrap of a 248 year cycle of Capricornian structure. Like a house that age, some of it is still useful and some of it is woefully inadequate to live in comfortably or well. Don’t be overwhelmed trying to think how it will happen. When we bring it down to our individual life contributions and choices, the eventual sum of all the parts will add up to a much bigger better whole than we could possibly plan for. This is where you get to build the structure and systems that benefit you. And benefitting you means it helps to be able to connect with the world at large in a way that doesn’t require either side sacrifice what is vital.
Okay, now on to what to do about dialing down the betrayal…
It starts with accepting that almost all betrayals begin with self betrayal. Yes, there are a small percentage of people who are exceptional frauds and masters at deception. But they’re a single digit percentage here. The rest fall under the broad category of self deception. Sometimes we shrink from having the hard conversations that they call ‘due diligence’. That’s not to say you grill the other person. Rather, it’s the ability to tolerate the discomfort of asking questions that require others to clarify their intentions, goals and means of achieving said goal. Are you really talking about the same thing or do you just think you are?
When you don’t know how to speak up, it’s often easier to defer the responsibility to the other person. It’s uncomfortable and unfamiliar to get clarity. It also requires that you can handle their answers. You may not like what you hear. Which is all the more reason you must learn how to ask. If you aren’t proficient at it yet, good to know, right? Let’s circle back to the word tolerate for a moment. It’s a good word to apply to what you may feel as you start having these conversations. It may not feel comfortable at first, so it’s tempting to go back to what does feel familiar. Better to acknowledge that tolerating is a good first step, not ease or expertise.
If you are shy asking, this is the time to gather tools to build your confidence that it is necessary and important that you learn to speak up for yourself. If you won’t, who is actually abandoning you? Or, instead if you are bothered by pesky questions that slow the process down when you are sure you’ve got it handled, are you willing to learn how to receive them graciously? Perhaps it is easier to judge yourself as superior or wiser to justify doing it your way? Terry Real teaches that good communication needs to be able to step up from shame and down from grandiosity. With so many planets retrograde this Moon cycle, self reflection is definitely beneficial.
At the very least it opens the door for productive conversations. Ones that have true discovery and exploration in them instead of projection and fantasy. When they do, you can focus on what constructive actions are required to take those dreams and plans and make them real. A sneaky little betrayal is one that comes from lack of confidence to take action on what you can speak of but won’t do. Instead you dream of it, but leave the bulk of making it come true to something outside of you. When it doesn’t happen, it’s easy to point a finger at who failed us. Again, introspection is key.
Blame is a sign we feel powerless. While you may not be responsible for all that happens to you, you still play a role. Dig a little deeper on where you lack the confidence to act on your own behalf. It’s the time to move into personal responsibility for our half of anything we create. With the Great Transformer, Pluto, in easy aspect to the New Moon and Sun, we get courage, support and dare I say moxie, to step into a fresh approach to collaboration. The Cards and Stars will help.
Thank you,
Lisa Greenfield
9/14 temperance Virgo New Moon
Such a great pairing, Temperance and this Moon Cycle. The last couple super Moons have served up electric and, dare I say, unnerving, energy. However, this one is more like an iron fist in a velvet glove. There’s strength and firmness available for us, with a softer approach. Temperance means moderation and voluntary self restraint. Restraint like good running shoes or the right bra. There’s no rush. Instead it feels more like being well held as you make progress and clear a path. Since so many planets are retracing their steps, fast movement forward isn’t advised. Even though Mars is one planet moving direct, it’s invisible in the night sky. Can you imagine running in the dark. To do that is to collide with something you can’t see at full speed. Ouch!
Comfortable isn’t a word I apply to confronting one’s own part in any deception or betrayal. Don’t mistake me, thought. There’s no need to excuse bad behavior on another’s part. Instead the goal is deeper self discovery and understanding. It’s not just looking at where you were part of the problem (not the whole thing), it’s getting to your motivations. When we behave in these patterns, we try to save ourselves from pain. Understand what the story is about the pain you fear and avoid – especially around those betrayals.
Were you afraid to lose the connection if you did your due diligence and verified you both agreed to the same story? Or did you perhaps, listen to hear what you wanted instead of hearing what they said? Maybe they were someone who wanted to hit that big milestone with you, but they lacked the confidence or courage along the way to take proper actions. Not that you can fix it, but would compassionate inquiry along the way have helped things?
Be careful of co-dependent thinking. You can’t love someone into healing, unless it’s you yourself. But you can help by holding the view of them as more than their mistakes. Help them find the confidence to try again instead of fear your disappointment. But you know how you do that? Don’t excuse bad behavior. Know they can do better and you deserve better. And build your own confidence, too. Practice as you remember your history. It was part and only part of what went wrong. Be sure to give yourself equal time on what you got right. Both are true.
Learn to tolerate the discomfort of true self knowing. From there you can more easily step up from shame and down from grandiosity, also known as superiority. The goal is true connection that has no shade to hide deception. You make that possible and end most deception before it can grow.
9/15 The fool Mercury direct
The Messenger goes direct with a bit of a hurrah today. The Moon starts out opposite Neptune, which can have dreams that illuminate our crisis of confidence but also the way out of it. Then Pluto gives the Moon a hand to transform our self doubt into a brave leap into the unknown. For it’s only in the unknown that more of us can emerge. When we surrender to the unfamiliar instead of falling back on stories, we can bring all our resources to the present as we discover new boundaries. The Fool helps us move instinctually. Mercury is our filter – it’s how we take in information and how we put it back out to the world. It may be worth a little personal inventory on where you words and actions may have shifted these last three plus weeks.
Since Mercury is in Virgo, the changes during this retrograde may be subtle or small but they are precise. They call on our body wisdom to help guide our choices instead of habitual caution where it’s no longer needed. On the cautionary note, there’s also increased ability for tiny little airborne things to make it into the bloodstream. So do what you feel is best to take good care of you as Mercury begins its forward trek. Our well being is a whole host of tiny thoughts, choices, beliefs and actions that make life possible. Nature reminds us the devil is in the details. So while you leap, include time for the feedback loop your senses offer.
Try moving ahead in this order. Intuitive guidance helps us move out into unfamiliar territory, like a visionary explorer. Then notice which pathways feel compelling, the heart has a magnetic pull. Third and only third, think about how to move wisely in the unfamiliar direction that draws you. Finally, let the body give you fine points on any adjustments that benefit you as you go. Details matter. Gather all the input and take one brave step at a time. Uranus gives us some breakthrough momentum to open up the way ahead.
9/16 six of pentacles
Venus squares Jupiter today and this Six is a reminder to look for balance and harmony within your body. Do you know what your yes or no feels like in your body. In order to be healthy and whole, another hallmark of this Six, you’re in conversation with your physical senses. That means giving it direction and listening to the feedback loop. The push to overdo is possible with that Venus/Jupiter meet up.
What a great opportunity to get nitty gritty on what drives you to do more, spend more, give more than is healthy for you. Discover what sits at the root of compulsive over consumption. Often the justification we use is more of that self betrayal. Short term gain for longer term pain. Give that equation a little look over today. It is a detail that serves you well when you understand where and how it operates in you.
9/17 king of swords
There is a host of challenging Lunar aspects today to serve up an unvarnished view of your current situation. The Swords represent our mind and the cold efficiency of a dispassionate view. Because Eris is involved, a little distance may help us see unhealthier ways we learned to cope with our unmet needs in the past. Remind yourself, you did the best you could in the moment and now you can do better by yourself.
You can look painful truths in the eye today. Which can help as you prepare to take next steps from a more informed and empowered starting point. Accept where you begin. Stay open to where you think your headed and let life surprise you. Remember Mars isn’t visible until next May. So these recalibrations may seem trivial now. But they may make a wealth of difference six months down the road.
9/18 ace of swords
The efficient view from yesterday helps inform what needs to be pruned away today. The Scorpio Moon gets an assist from Saturn to take stock of past actions and mold them into a better understanding for you today. The Moon and Mercury are in easy aspect to give us more precise language for what we feel and how we make sense of things that is more useful now. It helps us keep the lineup of Spirit, Heart, Mind and Body in a rhythm that can start to become muscle memory. Sense where there is unexplored potential; feel what draws you towards it; cut away what obstructs the next steps and find handrails to move ahead; now physically put yourself on the path that’s best for you, as decided by you as you are now. Good, take a rest. If you accomplish any of that today, you’ve earned it.
9/19 king of cups
The Sun opposes Neptune today, calling on us to be deliberate about what we believe and why. This is the aspect that highlights where we want something to be true but it isn’t, yet. The King of Cups is the minor octave indicator for magic. Today you can discover just what it takes to make dreams come true. But you have to invest yourself in the process. It isn’t passive. In fact the shadow side of this is where you either try to force an outcome or you sit back and expect it to come true with no risk for you. Shed a little light on your version of one or both of these behaviors. Examine them.
Because when you do, this second King in the Moon cycle announces that things can come to a fruitful and contented end, so you can begin fresh. Don’t worry, you don’t lose much except the excess weight of habits and views that don’t suit where you are now. It takes a few minutes (or more) of time to get familiar with those pockets of deception and betrayal. When you clean them out, the highest expression of the aspects is that you raise the bar on anything and everything you do. Higher quality is in reach with a little effort applied. Go find out where you can Magic happen today.
9/20 prince of cups
The knights or prince cards stand for movement, action, impact. This sweet Prince shows up as the Sun trines Pluto exactly. It’s been building the last few days but peaks today. These effects are deep and long lasting. One of the gifts offered is self mastery. Try that on for a second. To have the ability to master yourself. Mastery is skill not force. It carries finesse and artistry, not brute strength. It’s that iron fist in a velvet glove.
This allows for a full range of emotions without fear of drowning. It helps build patience for things to unfold. It offers courage to face our demons and pull their fangs so they can stay on the playground. Most of the monsters within us emerged to protect us in ways it knew how. You can integrate the brave efforts while adding better shape and definition to the raw energy of survival. You want to thrive, not just survive. This Prince says you are making progress. Keep including intuition, heart and body to the mind’s busy chatter. These four elements of you can take you wherever you wish to go, loving the way there.
9/21 four of pentacles
Fours remind us to put things on a firm foundation. The soul searching and demon face offs of the last few days benefit from some grounded pauses today. The aspects make it easy to take the revelations and expansions of this week and assemble it in muscle memory you can pull from again and again. In fact, it helps to set the intention that your mind recognize where your body has already made the subtle shifts. The busy brain wants to list and categorize before it feels sure that progress is achieved. But take it straight to the body. Maybe even put your hands on heart and belly and acknowledge that is knows the way. Invite it to speak up anytime it has good guidance. When you do that, you know your foundation stays solid.
9/22 the hermit The Fall equinox
Saturn weighs into today to keep you on track for the right use of power. It’s a feeling of resistance or obstacle that comes up which can feel frustrating. But it merely wants to keep you on track for decisions drawn from strength and expansion, not weakness and contraction. In fact, you can feel the difference between a healthy pause to assess and fearful shrinking that has you defensive. Watch for blame. It’s always connected to powerlessness. You aren’t trapped, you have choice and even with a delay or reroute.
The Hermit is a symbol for the inner light that dawns that then can light the way ahead. Your inner knowing is being up leveled. Which is always a good reminder to spend quality time with yourself. Journal if you feel drawn to do that. Voice memo what you see if you don’t want to write. Tell a good friend and let them witness your thoughts assembling in unfamiliar ways. You know more than your minds can track in linear fashion. When you speak, write or collect those thoughts, invite the rest of you to add to the pool of wisdom. There is light to be found, more than equal to any shadow that tries to dominate. Let your wisdom gather light.
9/23 two of swords the fall equinox
This pesky two is like the angel and devil each on a shoulder whispering in our ears. One version offers the best possible way forward. The other offers the short cut that you pay for later. We have to face those compromises we make and why we make them. Time to move away from deception and self betrayal, no matter how good the reason sounds when we hear it. We get help from Venus today, making her third trine to Chiron in her retrograde dance. Retrograde Venus in Leo connected with the wounded healer, Chiron, August 14th. Now it’s time to acknowledge where our egoic self works against our unique contribution to life when we don’t risk being the individual we are.
Whether you learned that you were too much and there was no space for who you are; or felt an unending demand to stand out that never stops, no matter how often you do it, there is harmony available. Your work and opportunity is to find it. Hint, it’s probably best tailored on a case by case basis. Some places and spaces need more of your presences. Other places you can flourish as an appreciative audience as well as center stage. Abundance is real when you feel fulfilled in any role, knowing it’s one only you can do as YOU. So as the days are equal in light and dark, find the place in you that knows you can be perfectly you. Push back on any scarcity thinking that keeps your mind busy in a fruitless tug of war.
9/24 five of pentacles
Ah, the threat that there is not enough to go around. We must confront and integrate where this scarcity mentality has cost you. It rests at the heart of almost all betrayal. It’s the part of our ancient mind that has us do whatever it takes to survive. Except this approach will always put you in opposition with something or someone. It’s a lie. Mars is opposite Chiron today, while Venus is trine to it. Those two play off each other to reveal a bigger truth. There is no competition to be YOU. The space you occupy is yours and yours alone.
When you really own that, you can release survival fears that have you attached to specifics and limit available options. Back to the leap of faith. It’s uncomfortable. It takes time to learn to tolerate the tension rather than resorting to inner compromises that add up. Can you learn to trust the uncertainty of the unknown has plenty of on ramps for you your unique contributions? This requires practice and reinforcement. The mind chatter of yesterday is particularly efficient at serving an insistent Greek Chorus of reasons to believe the worst case scenarios. Push back. Love what you do and let what you love engulf new people, places and paths. Find your way back to what draws you while practice talking back to that vicious little fear that there won’t be enough for you.
9/25 Death
This is more a symbol of everything has a season than it does of literal death. It is linked to the season of winter, where life goes internal as one growth cycle ends and it prepares for the coming spring. This is a time of release, going dormant, so at a deep level you get invest in what will bloom for you as life unfolds. Signs of life are less visible. Guard your mind against trying to measure your progress by outer milestones.
This is self defeating and a great way to limit your expansion. If you don’t see the results you want, the lie is that you are going to miss out, trying a fresh approach. Watch for a million little ways that logic tries to keep you stuck repeating compromises out of lack and mistrust. That’s a better thing to measure. Slowly but surely, like the leaves on a tree, the old falls away and prepares for dormancy that precedes explosive blooms to come.
9/26 ace of pentacles
This Ace echoes the message from yesterday. Out of little acorns grow mighty oaks. Don’t let size or speed fool you as to the change that is unfolding. Revisit your body messages. Today is a fine today to improve the dialogue between you and your senses. The body is the slowest to incorporate change of the four elements of you. Because it is the place that meets the world. While you may share emotions with someone, it’s the body that reveals or carries those feelings. It’s the same with thoughts, and beliefs.
The body is like our pack mule and can suffer from poor conversation with the rest of us. Can you tell the difference between anxiety and excitement? Excitement has breath folded in to help convert anxiety into prepared anticipation. Little things like that can make a world of difference when things open up and start moving. Why not give yourself a head start with a little body chat today. I’ll bet it has more to offer than you realize.
9/27 empress
Ah, abundance is mine says the Empress. With Mercury direct in Virgo, once again we get the message to pay attention to the details. While the big picture may appear to be wrapping up the old, there is life bubbling though those veins. It helps to fall back on that when you hit resistance and delays. In the less than rapid progress, you sort out what you love enough to overcome obstacles for. We are heading into the season where darkness is longer than light in the Northern hemisphere. It’s a good symbol for creative chaos. What lies does your brain reach for when you don’t get progress or results – or when it appears you are moving backwards?
Time to uncover details on those pesky little shadow pockets. The goal is to reclaim your creativity and not get lost in the wounded story line. Although, it can pay to examine what the old story line is. Details, details, details can yield so much insight. How well do you know your current boundaries and where are you still operating under what you learned are the edges from circumstances that no longer exist. The more patiently you excavate here, the better the nourishment for new growth for spring. Even the chaos is rich food for understanding who you are and what you want more completely.
9/28 two of cups
We start the day able to see and feel another’s pain, but in a way that brings compassion rather than suffering. Remember, pain needs a witness. Being seen is often a very strong foundation for healing to begin. This gentle two offers a tender touch where it hurts. Whether it’s our own pain or what you see around you, kindness is easier to access and the potency in this simple act, available for free anytime, anywhere is liberating.
As we move ahead in the months ahead, you can never go wrong making compassion a daily practice for all concerned. It does not mean you will be taken advantage of. Rather, compassionate boundaries are the very image of iron fist in a velvet glove. You may be pleasantly surprised at what aligns and what falls away when you practice that combination more consistently. Here’s to joy in the practice and delight in the discovery.
