The Cosmic Story: Sagittarius New Moon 2018

The Cosmic Story: Sagittarius New Moon 2018
 
"All the darkness in the world cannot extinguish the
                      flame of a single candle."   Saint Francis of Assisi

A light in the Dark, like Galadriel's gift to Frodo. 

 

A candle flame, like the candles that glow from windows to light our way home. 

 

A fiery arrow, like a comet shooting across our night sky. 

 

Fire is the source of life, a gift of heat and light. This is the creative fire of growth. Fire is the source of death, as it was in California recently, when it ignites the land. In astrology, Aries' divine fire flashes down from the heavens and Leo's personal fire becomes a warm, community bonfire. Sagittarius' cosmic fire is more unique and individual, at the same time as it is universal. Sagittarius' flaming arrows are our personal hopes and intentions, lighting up the darkness and aiming for the future.

With our Sagittarius fire, we shoot our flaming arrows towards our hopes and intentions, towards our life's purpose. Out of the darkness of unknowing (for that's all the darkness is) we light the fire of our passion and send it off into the world to mark where we're going and hope for what we'll find there.

Like the lights on our Christmas tree, Sag's many fires are a network of individual lights that create something essential to our souls -- our hope of new life. Our hopes for ourselves, for humanity and for the Earth. And just as the ornaments we hang on the Christmas tree symbolize our wishes and intentions for the new year, where we aim our arrows signify those same wishes and intentions.

We are in the darkest time of the year here in the northern hemisphere. And so, during this month of Sagittarius, which Catholics call Advent, we prepare ourselves for the birth of the new light. During Advent, we light candles to invite hope, faith, vision and renewal to blossom in the darkness. It's a very Pagan idea, a very Earth-oriented understanding of the seasons and their sacred purpose.

For as the darkness deepens, we instinctively yearn for light. After our deep plunge into Scorpio's transformative waters, we emerge with a needed image of light -- the light we hope will be birthed again on Winter Solstice.

Sagittarius' archer shoots his flaming arrows into the sky, watching how far they travel. Sagittarius wants to expand his horizons, but he also wants his way to be lit by the fiery passion he's regained from his regeneration in Scorpio. What are you passionate to learn, where do you feel you need to go? What new life are you going to imagine for yourself next year? What is your new story going to be?

This Sagittarius New Moon calls us on a quest of discovery, igniting our curiosity about what we might want to come next, what old/new gifts and talents we want to develop, and what we feel we need to possess to be happy. Do we really need more things in our lives? What about intangible presents for ourselves and others -- such as a promise to be kinder, to be more present in a relationship, to be more truthful, to take better self-care. Every New Year we make pledges to change, to become more excellent, to become more our truest selves. Perhaps if we give ourselves over to another (by gifting them with our new 'self'), we'll actually do it. I've always found that if I promise someone something, I'll do it. If I only promise myself, I might not.

What we imagine strongly enough, we can manifest. Where we send our thoughts matter. What better time than at this fiery, expansive New Moon to seek out our core values and expand our vision of who we think we are and what we can do for our world. It's time to prepare to do the work we incarnated to do.

May Sagittarius' fiery arrows find their marks.

Sagittarius New Moon

The Sagittarius New Moon occurs on December 6th at 11:20pm PST and on December 7th at 2:20am EST / 7:20am GMT.

The Sabian symbol for the Sun and Moon at 16* Sagittarius is: A calm ocean; a motionless ship; lazily soaring seagulls. This is a moment of pause which precedes change. Like Advent, it is a time of quiet reflection, a moment to prepare to act. If you're feeling distress, it's because you're afraid of not knowing what's to come. Instead, imagine what you want to come.

The words that describe this Sagittarius New Moon are optimistist and hopeful, especially with Jupiter occupying his own home sign again for the first time in 12 years. What were you doing 12 years ago (2006)? Did you expand your horizons? Learn something new about yourself? What do you now want to learn, explore, journey to for the next 12 years? Find Sagittarius in your chart and see where Jupiter begins his journeying for you. This is where your luck resides.

The Sabian symbol for Jupiter at 7* Sagittarius is: A smiling Cupid knocks at the door of the human heart. What a beautiful symbol, a call to Love's Feast. What would happen if we all listened to our hearts instead of our heads? What joy and happiness might we pursue? It's a good thing to think about while you're getting your flaming arrows notched to fly.

With Jupiter in Sagittarius making our search, our journey much more expansive and important than in other years, we need to center in on our real mission this lifetime -- the need to know ourselves and find our destiny. Because both Jupiter and the New Moon square/are challenged by Mars and Neptune in Pisces, we need to go big, we need to embrace Source in our search. With Mars and Neptune swimming in the waters of Pisces, we might find ourselves wanting to manifest our Mars doing in an archetypal way -- perhaps manifesting a form of the archetypal spiritual warrior. This square can be energized by imagining great archers of legend and myth. Katniss, Robin Hood, William Tell are just a few archers who aimed their arrows against tyranny and for freedom. Be the archer and the arrow. Aim high and true.

With Mars joined to Neptune, you might start to feel tired and fuzzy, especially if you're doing something that no longer feeds your soul. This combination can wear you out, so if you're tired, rest. Rest and dream. Imagine!

The Sabian symbol for both Mars and Neptune at 14* Pisces is: A young lady, wrapped in furs, displays supreme elegance. For those of you who know my work, this image of a lady in a fur mantle is a symbol for the emerging new feminine wisdom. This is the wisdom of the body and of the Earth. The natural elegance that emerges from the truth of our inner being is awesome to behold. There is something elegant about the way Katniss shoots her arrows, just as it is for Robin Hood. Perhaps our spiritual warriors will weld beauty as a gift and a blessing.

Mercury retrograde is finally over! (Happy dance!) There were more technological glitches than usual it seems. With all the retrograde planets this past year, it will be a relief to have the first few months of 2019 retrograde free. For the holidays, Uranus is still retrograde until January 6th. 

Uranus in Aries makes an inconjunct to Mercury in Scorpio, testing the waters, making us stretch our minds and hearts a bit before we decide what we want. 

Mercury turns direct about 10 hours before this Sagittarius New Moon. The Sabian symbol for the degree of Mercury's station at 28* Scorpio is: The King of Faerie is solemnly welcomed to his realm. While the Queen of Faerie is the life-blood of the land, the King symbolizes the protection and power of the realm. Perhaps we'll finally see the return of the King. It would seem that's what Mercury is asking us to consider. It is time to honor the spiritual forces of life, of nature and of ourselves.

The New Queen needs her New King to birth this new world.

With the combination of Scorpio and Sagittarius, the Cosmic Story says it's time to face the truth. What is your truth? Once you understand that, you'll understand your purpose in this lifetime.

I was reminded of a story I always enjoyed. It's a story about Jesus when he was about 12 -- a Jupiter cycle. When Jesus was 12, he and his parents journeyed to Jerusalem. On the day they set out to return home, Mary and Joseph discovered that Jesus was missing. And so they hurried back to the City to find him. They went to the Temple to start their search, praying to Yehweh to find their lost son. And then they heard his voice coming from an inner courtyard of the Temple and followed it.

They saw their son sitting among all the learned priests, disputing with them. What do you think he had to say to these learned men? The old patriarchs. That young child/man who knew his purpose. If it were you, what would you say if you had a chance to speak with our leaders?

But the part of the story I loved was Jesus' reply to his parents' worry for him. When they asked him how he could just stay back in Jerusalem without telling them, he said, "Don't you know I have to be about my Father's business?"

Isn't it time we were all about our Father's/Mother's business? Our world is in chaos because we needed to let things descend into chaos so something new can be born. But it is up to us to rise up out of the chaos with our vision, our hopes and our wisdom. That's what we came into this world to do.


This year's Winter Solstice (Summer Solstice down under) occurs on December 21, 2018. The Cancer Full Moon occurs 12 hours after the Sun enters Capricorn, the Winter Solstice. Enjoy this beautiful time of year. If you celebrate the seasons, have an outdoor ritual even if it's cold. That is what Winter is all about -- the cold and dark that longs for the Light. Let yourself feel the longing, the yearning.

I"m taking a break for the next Moon cycle (I'm journeying) so I want to wish you a blessed Winter Solstice and a joyous New Year.

Blessings for the New Year. Walk in the Light. Happy Solstice.

Cathy