By Kirsti Melto and Eric Francis | Lunations
Full Moon in Leo -- January 22, 2008, 13:35 UT. Chart by Solar Fire.
THE MOON AND SUN will soon oppose each other in the early degrees of Leo and Aquarius, respectively. This is the Full Moon. It always happens with the two lights, or luminaries, in opposing signs, activating a full polarity. Leo and Aquarius deal with self-consciousness and group-consciousness. The Moon in Leo can have a dramatizing feeling in it.
This is the last Full Moon before Pluto ingresses Capricorn, the sign that represents corporations, government and the structure of society. It is also the last Full Moon before a series of eclipses. Pluto then aligns with the position of the winter solstice Sun, which brings in something called the Aries Point. In other words, we are about to experience a Full Moon on the brink of both eclipses and Aries Point events, and the total result may be dramatic or precipitous.
In the Full Moon chart, Pluto is in the challenging last degree of Sagittarius (the last degree of any sign is transitional, and humans tend to have difficulty adapting to change). But this degree has an interesting Sabian symbol, apropos of Sagittarius: The Pope blessing the faithful. It's as if we made it this far on this seemingly endless Sagittarian journey, we get to experience some reward or blessing for our sustained faith and conscious effort.
Venus, meanwhile, is conjunct the Galactic Core -- take it as you will, the planet of love, abundance and eroticism conjunct the Source at the core of our galaxy. It forms an exact conjunction to Pluto close to the eve of Pluto's transit into Capricorn.
So this chart contains the energy of that combined transit -- Venus plus Pluto plus the Galactic Core. The three are square the Aries Point (the potent first degree of Aries). This suggests some kind of cultural struggle where love, lust, sex and our notion of spirituality (the conjunction) challenge that of the prevailing culture (the Aries Point).
Remember that Pluto is a binary planet. Its binary nature reminds us that there are two sides to the story. One of the earliest works on Pluto, called
Pluto or Minerva: The Choice is Yours (published in 1973) proposed that there are two sides to Pluto. One what we normally think of as the Plutonian aspect of Pluto (intense, dark, shadowy, irresistible), and then the wisdom aspect, which she described as Minerva, or wisdom. "In unevolved souls," she wrote, "Venus-Pluto contacts are often indicative of those who tie sex and money together."
However, she adds, "There is a potentiality for universal love when the Minerva aspect is in operation. This is the love principle that is able to transcend ethnic, racial, cultural and social barriers."
Notably, Mars retrograde is opposing Venus, Pluto and the Galactic Core. The Mars-Pluto opposition can be forceful and needs to be handled carefully. The opposition emphasizes the diametrically opposed viewpoints we think of men and women as having. Given that the "female" side of the equation is conjunct God, Lust and Wisdom, and the "male" side is in Gemini, we need to remember that these two supposedly distinct viewpoints are not as simplistic as they may seem.
Mars conjuncts Centaur planet Cyllarus, who reminds us to be conscious of the choices we are making in our lives -- particularly the choice to fight, or walk away from one. Cyllarus says that the decisions we make directly affect our relationships, and we need to be conscious of our choices in this context.
Mercury, which is already in its echo phase preparing for a retrograde, is in exact conjunction with Neptune in Aquarius. This can be an excellent aspect for artistic work, but also be associated with idealizing things or telling lies. Focus your creative on that which calls for it, and ride that Mercury conjunct Neptune to stations retrograde on Jan. 28.
Jupiter in Capricorn is in close trine to Saturn. This suggests that the two biggest planets -- one representing structure (Saturn) and the other representing expansion (Jupiter) are working together. With a trine, we get the feeling of a door or energy pathway opening, and the planets can be mutually supportive.
All in all, we are in a doorway with this Full Moon represented by Pluto about to enter Capricorn, and being on the verge of two eclipses. Pay attention and transition gently. You have gained momentum, and now you can let the cosmic movement carry you through the opening.
