New Moon in Leo 26° 35’
August 18, 2020 at 7:41 pm pst
August 19, 2020 at 12:42 pm aest
Sabian Symbol: “The Luminescence Of Dawn In The Eastern Sky”
The Sun Child radiates its light without fear of judgement.
New Moon in Leo is a great time to check in with the inner child. In his Moon Phases book, Raven Kaldera calls this moon the Sun Child’s Moon. Children are typically unafraid to laugh when the feeling strikes or cry out for attention, this moon brings us back to our own childhood to reflect on where we may have been silenced to freely express ourselves. Ruled by the Sun, Leo’s brightness shines wherever it is in our charts and we all have a slice of this radiance within us. The way Leo’s warmth is expressed on an individual bases is dependent on what house the Leo sign can be found. Knowing where this New Moon falls in your chart will also give you a deeper understanding of what seeds are being planted for your soul growth. In general, though, this moon brings forth flashes of creative inspiration from within. Strike when the iron is hot! If you get a ping to write out something that has been brewing inside for a while go ahead and take pen to paper. Share yourself with others like the mighty lion strives to do and watch as your kindhearted actions begin to attract those who hear the roar of your heart. Does it feel like your voice is drowning in a sea of opinions? Remember that it’s not just you who is being affected by the New Moon in Leo, but that we all are hearing the need to be more open with who we feel we truly are. So, if all the noise of the jungle becomes too much, taking a step out of the discussion this New Moon can help to refocus where your own voice is outside of media and social platforms.
This New Moon is a part of two major astrological transits: one being a Grand Fire Trine and another being a Yod / Finger of God. The Grand Fire trine allows for easy flow of fight, passion and masculine force to burst through the scene where necessary. This is a helpful energy to have when enacting change within the self and in our mundane worlds. Mercury and Mars play an important role in this New Moon Leo cycle and offer clarity and solutions to issues that we have been facing for the last couple of months. It is time to act NOW and put forth all the theories and ideas that have been mulling about within the subconscious. Though New Moons are typically reserved for going within and retreating into the self, this one is offering us the spiritual ring in which to fight our demons and relinquish timidity around shameless self-promotion. Mars and Lilith have been working it out with each other to fight for sexual freedoms, free of oppressive legal entities. What is original sin and how do we reinvent the concept while still maintaining a moral stance in society? As we move through the rising of the Divine Femme within us all, questions around what moral and virtuous sexual expression comes up in the legal and religious spheres. South Node in Sagittarius brings forth the opportunity to let go of dogmatic beliefs around what is proper expression of self all while opening the question of what then is hedonism? The moral goal posts keep moving and it becomes harder and harder to know where to aim in this strange realm of shifting perspectives. We tend to seek other people’s opinions of what is socially appropriate so that we may pass by without feeling the wrath of the collective’s disapproval. An unpopular opinion is detrimental to one’s placement on the social ladder. The Thoth deck switches the traditional Leo major arcana card Strength with Lust. In the Smith-Waite illustration, the 8thmajor arcana is illustrated with a feminine figure petting a lion. This iconography represents the taming of the beast within through courage and gentle tenderness. In the Thoth version however, the same feminine figure is seen naked, riding the Lion. There are 7 heads on the Lion, one for each of the 7 wicked sins of humanity which has been tamed by the naked femme figure. She rides the beast, showing she is in control of it rather than it being in control of her. Her hand rises up to touch the primordial fluid of life which resides below the horizon on the earthly realm. She is within her whole divinity as femme and is not ashamed of the strength she wields.
The Thoth image would rile the feathers of any avid follower of a conservative faith as the female form represents sinful pleasure to dogmatic belief systems. The vulnerability of completely opening up to the feminine is a raw experience. One must move through the feelings of embarrassment and bashfulness which can be common symptoms of an imbalanced Lion. On the opposite pole, learning to tame the need for self-gratification and pompousness teaches us how to be in control of our ever-eager ego. There is a ritual of commodification of the female form however, and the freeing act of shameless sexual expression should be called into question, whether it is in the eyes of the patriarchal masculine ideology for the sake of capitalism or a true form of radical self-love.
The Yod aspect is one that enacts change. The Sun, Moon, Mercury are all a part of a Yod configuration with Saturn at the apex. A Yod in the Hebrew alphabet is the 10thletter and represents a dot, a divine point of energy. Yods are the most common letter found in the scriptures and looks like a little hook. In Astrology, a Yod is formed when three planets or points come into contact by way of a specific geometric pattern that looks like a narrow triangle. It is called the Finger of God or the Finger of Fate because it tests us with situations that pop up seemingly out of our control that we must then navigate through with creative effort. We get flung into a situation where we feel as if destiny has positioned itself onto our paths. The New Moon is a part of one of these configurations and because of the nature of the moon phase, whatever the situation is, it will come as a creative new opportunity for intellectualizing an old situation. Saturn is the trigger point for this aspect and is the stubborn, unmoving energy that is represented by higher authorities, bosses, business owners, government, elders and the rigidity of society. Cancel culture in and of itself is a force in which we may feel stuck in how to express ourselves. The limiting views of family also pushes us to recalibrate the words we choose to use. So many parts of everyday life dictate how and when we enact self-expression and the Yod paired with the New Moon in Leo suggests that it is time to actively learn new ways, words, mediums for putting ourselves out into social spaces.
Uranus retrograde August 15that 10° in Taurus, retrograde points are significant to the transit of the planet and become trigger points to watch out for. The Uranus in Taurus cycle for us has been one of the main disruptors to our everyday existence. The planet of sudden change and chaos in the most stable earth sign does work towards shaking up our very foundations. The Earth changes constantly but there are periods of rapid growth, which we are currently in at this very moment. When Uranus and Mars sync together in Taurus, they create catastrophic changes to the environment. Ruler of Taurus is Venus, which is everything material made from the earth, art, beauty, fashion, goods sold and commerce. The volatility of the precious materials and agriculture can be seen when planets hit Uranus trigger points. This can be sobering information to take in but information that will help you through these changes none the less. We will see unpredictable agricultural production throughout the world, financial markets are unstable and real estate also fluctuates with no predictable patterns. Typically, global and local commerce can be charted on a graph to see clear patterns of, knowing when they will rise or fall. We usually see trends fall in line with the seasons and holidays but because of the uncertainty of Mother Earth’s moods, we are at the whim of her recalibration. When you have a windfall of income, consider where you invest that money. Every dollar we spend is an investment towards something. Will you invest that in your future stability or in immediate gratification? Taurus in our charts represents how we relate to the material world and how we consume the earth. Take a look at what house Taurus is in your chart to see where you are experiencing the most change in your life. Some will benefit greatly with how up and down the markets have been and some will experience great loss, that is how Uranus works. It is erratic, not subtle like Neptune and very dramatic in the changes that it enacts. As long as we move forth with the mindset that all change is for the rebalancing and repatriating of the Earth’s resources, then we can be a part of the positive changes that will come from this cosmic reset. Uranus is sextile Venus during this New Moon, coloring it with the compassion that is necessary for soulful evolution.
Moon phases
New Moon in Leo- August 18/19: Mercury conjunct the new moon with a grand trine to Mars + Lilith and the South Node in Sagittarius. Think about new forms of self-expression that speaks true to your own heart. Channel the inner child, offer love and support to the parts of the self that still feel unheard.
Waxing Crescent– August 22/23: Moon semi-square the Sun, square Venus, Moon square Pallas Athene + Jupiter. Take first initial steps towards implementing the knowledge that was received during New Moon phase. This can manifest as a need to confront people who are close to you in order to support your own need to be seen and heard.
First Quarter Moon- August 25/26: Moon square the Sun, trine Vesta, inconjunct Venus, square Ceres. The first big release of the New Moon energy is supported by Vesta, the asteroid goddess of purity and ritual. Cleanse the self of unwanted or stagnant energy from past relationships in order to create space for newness.
Gibbous Moon– August 27/28: Moon trine the Sun, square Chiron, sextile Ceres. The Sun is now in Virgo and the Moon in Capricorn the earth trine offers some stability. Use the grounding energies of the sun and moon to push you towards fulfilling tasks, filing papers, sending off the piled-up mail etc.
Full Moon– September 1/2: Moon opposite the Sun, sextile Uranus, Pallas Athene, semi-square Saturn and Mars + Lilith. Moon in Pisces this full moon is a release of a lot of emotional pains. Music, poetry, art and fantasy ease the soul into a Piscean headspace. Nurture the body as the emotions flow with nourishing self-care ritual.
New Moon Mantras
I am the child within
I graciously share myself to the world
I am not ashamed of anything I have shared yesterday, today and tomorrow
so long as it benefits the evolution of humanity
I am courageous
I am the Sun
Evelyn Zuel