For hundreds of years, perhaps since the beginning of Creation,
a piece of the world has been waiting for your soul
to purify and repair it. And your soul, from the time
it was first emanated and conceived, waited above
to descend to this world and carry out that mission.
And your footsteps were guided to reach that place.
And you are there now.
Rabbi Tzvi Freeman
The New Moon on January 2 at 12 Capricorn inspires us to step up to the plate, claim our inner authority, our sovereignty, and stride toward a great work we have been preparing to initiate or re-invigorate.
Resolve and Resolution
The New Moon supports setting a bold goal and backing it up with the conviction to bring the necessary discipline and commitment to realizing it. The energetic is not unlike a New Year’s Resolution. The Moon was dark on New Year’s Day, so not the optimal day for making a resolution. But January 2, after 1:33 pm EST and for the next 24 hours, it serves us to take a moment and write down what the great work of 2022 will be and our intention around that. In the coming weeks, the growing light of the Moon and the current Retrogrades of Venus and Mercury will guide us to the conversations, the research, the formulation/re-evaluation of the plan, and to laying the cornerstones of what is ready to rise up.
For guidance on the nature of this work, we can look to what House 12 degrees Capricorn falls in our natal chart. The activities of that House direct us to the area of life where we can experience momentum, change, and growth in our life this year.
We can also take cues from the key astrological dynamics of the year in shaping our resolution
A movement towards simplifying our lives with an eye to sustainability – North Node in Taurus
Actively seeking spiritual alignment and enrichment – Jupiter and Neptune in Pisces
Letting go of secrets and breaking down life structures that are inhibiting growth so we can better live in integrity with our values and who we say we are – Pluto in Capricorn
Formulating a clear vision of who we want to become that inspires us to disentangle from ways of living that are familiar and habitual, but inhibit vitality and joy. Acknowledging that we have outgrown certain ways of living, we open to want wants to break through into our consciousness and life – Saturn square Uranus
Capricorn is Cardinal Earth
In a cardinal sign, the Capricorn New Moon ignites our determination to begin something, take initiative and set a plan in motion. Our ambition is stirred. There is something we are to achieve and give shape to this year and this New Moon is the moment this year's great endeavor is launched.
In an earth sign, the Capricorn New Moon has us feeling serious and pragmatic in relation to what we want to build over the long-term. We have the focus necessary to define or further define the structures, plans, routines, and agreements that will support the work. We are inclined to commit to disciplined and sustained engagement with the tasks ahead.
With the New Moon in Cardinal Earth, we assume the authorship of our life and not look for someone or something outside ourselves to change, to fulfill our dreams, or to grant us the empowerment we seek.
When asked if I am pessimistic or optimistic about the future,
my answer is always the same:
If you look at the science about what is happening on earth
and aren’t pessimistic, you don’t understand data.
But if you meet the people who are working to restore this earth
and the lives of people, and you aren’t optimistic, you haven’t got a pulse.
What I see everywhere in the world
are ordinary people willing to confront despair, power, and
incalculable odds in order to restore some semblance of grace, justice,
and beauty to this world.
Paul Hawken
The Shape and Structure of our Life is Ready for a Change
Earth New Moon Trine Uranus in Earth
Uranus gives us boost to start a new venture. Its presence reminds us that isn't about having all the answers, but stepping in the right direction and letting ourselves be buoyed by what comes into inform, gift, shape and lift us forward. There can be sudden changes in our thinking or in opportunities that arise. There may be a surprising shift in how we view something, finding that we can suddenly see something clearly that was previously hidden or obscured.
Staying within our comfort zone does not feel as comfortable as answering the call of adventure and experimentation. It is a beneficial time to make a new friend or open to a new form of technology that could support us in the work we are about. New business ventures are favored. Because of the current Venus Retrograde, it is also prudent to not be impulsive, rash or make a sudden decision out of some misguided sense of urgency. Risks are favored if they are coupled with a process of due diligence that lead to an informed decision.
Healing our Relationship to Authority and Responsibility
Chiron Square the New Moon
We are being prodded to grow up in some area where we have acted and believed ourselves to be small. The phrase, “We are the ones we have been waiting for” is apt here. Someone may have hurt us, but when it comes down to it, it is up to us to heal the wound we carry. It is not about waiting for something outside to give us permission, but giving ourselves the permission or validation we seek.
Authority and responsibility are words that often evoke a reaction, because we have grown up in a society where authority has been misused and responsibility feels burdensome. We have an opportunity to take back our authority and not give it away to another. We can redefine authority as something other than the way it was modeled to us. We gladly embrace responsibility when we are dedicate to fulfilling a dream of what we want to bring to the world.
The potential for healing can show up in our relationship to our bodies. The path to wellbeing is forged when we assert a healthy authority and responsibility for our body’s care, with a decision to no longer hurt it with our bad habits and attitude of disregard.
By affirming what we have accomplished and what we have healed, we also affirm the authority and responsibility we have already demonstrated. Acknowledging how far we have come over the years and how we are different than before, inspires the belief in ourselves to heal and accomplish what lies before us.
Release what we Hold in our Hand, so we Catch what is Dawning
Saturn, ruler of the New Moon, Square Uranus and Sextile Mars
Since Saturn entered Aquarius in April 2020, our sense of duty and responsibility is to be directed towards shaping a vision for the future. Actions now are to be taken with our long-range goals in mind.
Saturn continues to square Uranus through 2022. The square reflects an inner struggle: We desire to create a new way of living, but resist moving toward it because we are clutching the life we have. Living by the adage, “A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush” may mislead us because the bird we hold in our hand is dying or at the very least is ready to be released. We struggle with letting go of what we already have, what we have become attached to, because what is in the bush is not guaranteed. And yet, we are to reach for it anyway because in that bush is our future, our next adventure, and who we are becoming.
We are currently energized to release what is outworn and move towards the unknown that beckons us. We feel a courage to reach for what we imagine will sate our yearning. (Mars sextile Saturn)
Our Hand is on the Vane of the Arrow, Ready to Let It Fly
New Moon aligned with Nunki, a fixed star in Sagittarius
Nunki is the fixed star on the hand of the Archer, Sagittarius' constellation. His eye on the target, the Archer has planted his feet, fit and drawn the arrow in the bow, and is poised to let the arrow fly. The hand of the Archer is on the vane of the bow. The hand aims the arrow, makes micro adjustments, and will release the arrow when ready.
Nunki is a Babylonian word that means “Voice from the Sea” indicating divine guidance and direction. In Latin, the star is called Pelagus which translates as Sea. The star opens us to the intuitive. Communication that draws from our feeling nature is emphasized. Being truthful to ourself is a Nunki trait that is rewarded with spiritual growth and expansion of the mind.
This is everybody’s journey:
to be experienced and witnessed within the confines of this frailty,
which is our human body that moves towards its inevitable end.
The only way to strengthen this frailty is to know exactly who you are
and do exactly what you know you need to do.
To claim your power this way is the only worthwhile journey
to be undertaken as a human being. Lujan Matus
Additional Astrological Influences Remind Us
to Move in Rhythm with our Humanity
Taking a Step Back to Re-Evaluate and Re-New
Venus Retrograde in Capricorn (December 19 – January 28
Mercury Retrograde in Aquarius/Capricorn (January 14 – February 5)
With Mercury and Venus both Retrograde this month, we are cautioned to not leap before we look. Impulsive and rash decisions are not favored. The New Moon encourages taking bold initiative, but the Retrogrades remind us that we can take our time, not rush, do the needed research, and be willing to adjust our plans in response to new information or circumstance that emerges.
The Venus Retrograde has us re-evaluating our values, relationships and finances. We are rooting out areas where we have compromised or settled for something that diminishes our well-being. Perhaps our approach to a relationship or a job once worked, but now there is a change or adjustment that needs to be made. We are re-evaluating our responsibilities and seeing where we are shouldering responsibility out of obligation or expectation and making adjustments to stand strong in the responsibilities we choose to carry into 2022.
Mercury is currently in its shadow phase, meaning that it is moving through an area of the sky that it will backtrack and go over again while Retrograde. The substance of what we are contemplating now may be revisited when Mercury is Retrograde. Our mind is focused on the North Star, the desired destination, The first part of January, we will be further defining the long-term goal. (Mercury in the early degrees of Aquarius). Then partway through the Retrograde, we will be re-evaluating the plan and how we will take responsibility for reaching our North Star (Mercury moves back into Capricorn and conjoins Pluto).
It is an opportune time to set a bold intention at the New Moon and to move toward it, but to also recognize that the intention will open us to a process that may require revising our definition of the North Star or the way we plan to reach out. Our momentum is likely to slow down as we move further into January. We are not to push our agenda or meet some imagined timeline, but be curious about what is happening and what we are being shown in the slow down. There is likely to be a reshuffling of priorities, values and a process that leads us to greater clarity.
Venus began her retrograde conjoined with Pluto and Mercury and will complete her retrograde conjoined Pluto in the area of the sky that the Great Conjunction occurred December 20, 2020. Hidden motivations, compulsions, fears and yearnings have been surfacing in response to the vision we have been formulating over the last year. A profound self-inquiry that helps root out where we are getting in our own way will lead to self-growth and awareness. Through January, we are to take a realistic look at all that is on our plate and access what we can reasonably handle and discern where we will give our energy and time. It us up to us to decide what stays on the plate and what needs to be backburnered so we can hold our responsibilities in a good way.
Recognizing and Honoring the Depth of Our Sensitivity
Jupiter in Pisces (5/13-7/8/21; 12/28/21 – 5/10/22; 10/28-12/20/22)
Jupiter, the Great Benefic is looking to grow or increase whatever it touches. In Pisces, Jupiter is enhancing our feeling nature, compassion, and spiritual connection. Our intuition is our 6th sense and if we nurture and make time for it, we will strengthen our ability to hear and have it guide us. It is beneficial to have a meditation or prayer practice, a time for creating art or taking quiet walks in nature. As Jupiter moves to conjoin Neptune in Pisces in April, we can experience a profound mystical opening or surge of creative output. For this to occur, we need to woo it, develop it and make room for it in our lives.
Simplifying, Grounding, and Living what we can Sustain
The Nodal Axis in Taurus/Scorpio 12/22/21 – 7/12/23
The South Node indicates the past we are ready to integrate and complete. In Scorpio, there may be intense feelings and deep truths that will surface related to past experience that we carry with us. Rather than defending ourselves from its content or justifying why they are there, we can recognize them for what they are. A light is being lit in the shadowy side of our psyche so we can heal and move on.
The North Node is the remedy, the future we are to collectively embrace. In Taurus, we are to seek simplicity, not complexity. We are to honor our basic animal needs and not make life more complex than it needs to be. Humans have not changed much since the beginning of time. We nurture our young, live in shelters, eat when we are hungry, clothe ourselves, and take care of our neighbor. We have developed skills to survive and have more comfort, but the human life cycle and basic needs have pretty much stayed consistent. We are to return to our bodies, to the wisdom of our ancestors, and look at how to live life so that we cultivate peace and less drama.
Uranus also moving through Taurus will help instigate the changes that will help us live more in harmony with the earth and our bodies.
In Summary
The heavy emphasis of Capricorn at this New Moon (4 planets in Capricorn) invites us to take bold initiative that requires discipline, responsibility and a willingness to work for what we want to achieve. Other planetary influences remind us that this can and should be done with our own body's needs and rhythms in mind.
Life is not a race to get somewhere, but a sensual experience moment by moment. If we move too fast, we miss it. As Ralph Waldo Emerson said, "Life is a journey, not a destination." So, we can define our North Star, set the course for how to reach our destination, commit to the course we have set, and then move towards in a way that is responsive to unexpected circumstance and our bodily needs. We are to actively create enough quiet within ourselves so we can honor our sensitive nature and hear the messages that our intuitive sensibilities have to contribute.
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