by Silvianne K. Delmars | Aug 11, 2024 |
This week’s astro update begins with the Second Quarter Moon in visceral Scorpio, on Monday, August 12, and ends with a free-thinking Aquarius Full Moon on August 19. Here are the highlights (all times in PDT).
Monday, August 12
The 2nd Quarter Moon is exact at 8:19 am, at 20 Scorpio 24, squaring the Sun in Leo. We have arrived at the first major turning point in this lunation cycle. Time to revisit the intentions we set at the Leo New Moon, as we contemplate any new passions or creative ideas that have appeared over the last week. Time to choose what holds the most juice for us, and follow-through with gusto, fueled by Scorpio’s power to go deep, giving all it takes to ensure the most expansive and effective manifestation of our creations.
The Perseid meteor showers peaked today, in the early morning hours before dawn. Although this shower tends to fall off rapidly, you may be able to see some tonight as well. It’s definitely worth a look! Best after midnight.
Tuesday, August 13
The Moon in Sagittarius goes out of bounds today, rising and setting farther south than the Sun ever goes. We are in the intense heart of this once-in-19-years cycle, when an extended out-of-bounds Moon period is occurring twice each month. Time to actively question our own unquestioned assumptions. What “shoulds” and “ought to dos” in our life are begging for a major revamp?
Supporting the energy of thorough and pragmatic reassessment of our inner priorities, retrograde Mercury, still in Virgo, is within 10 degrees of the Sun today, marking the beginning of its metamorphic (interior) underworld phase. The planet of communication is offering itself as a guide for those souls brave enough to seek wisdom in the depths. What gift of insight awaits if we are willing to surrender to the necessity of a slower interior pace in the midst of outer chaos and frantic hurry?
The waxing Moon will be visible near Antares, the star at the heart of the Scorpio constellation, looking south this evening. The brightness of the Moon may make the star itself hard to spot though. Antares is one of the four Royal Stars, opposite to Aldebaran. The Moon activation makes this a good timing for meditating with this potent star and area of the night sky.
Wednesday, August 14
Jupiter and Mars meet this morning, (exact at 8:22 am at 16 Gemini 40), visible looking East in the early hours before dawn, with fiery Aldebaran very close by. This is the new seed point of the spectacular morning sky show that has been playing out for weeks in the vicinity of the Bull constellation, with the Pleiades just above. Read Daniel Giamario’s weekly update for more insights on this particular conjunction! https://turningoftheages.com/here-come-mars-jupiter-and-saturn/
This cosmic timing is a major exclamation mark in Jupiter’s year-long sojourn through the magical, shape-shifting sign of Gemini, as it collides with energetic, action-oriented Mars. Jupiter is here to accelerate the Gemini sacred masculine, for better or for worse. Will we allow ourselves to be seduced, personally and collectively, by the shadow aspects of this airy sign of duality – by false dichotomies, facile arguments lacking in morality, and a mind-numbing acquisition of facts devoid of any compassionate understanding?
Or will we use our spiritual will to leverage Jupiter’s potential for abundance, working in harmony with a higher octave version of Gemini’s creative mind power? We are invited in this potent cosmic moment to step beyond our comfortable obsession with duality. The magical answers to our unsolvable conundrums, available only through the expanded consciousness offered by crazy trickster wisdom, are waiting just beyond that threshold.
In the immortal words of the Sufi mystic and poet Rumi,
“The breeze at dawn has secrets to tell you,
don’t go back to sleep.
You must ask for what you really want,
don’t go back to sleep.
The door is round and open,
where the two worlds meet,
go across the threshold,
don’t go back to sleep.”
This morning would indeed be a powerful time to meditate on this soul invitation, as these two highly energetic planets meet under the aegis of the Royal Star Aldebaran in the Eye of The Bull, out near galactic edge where souls enter through the doorway of incarnation onto our planet.
Retrograde Mercury, in the final stages of its Aries overstory synodic cycle, re-enters the sign of Leo this evening, where it will stay until it turns direct at the end of the month, beginning a whole new 4-month cycle.
Thursday, August 15
Saturn, rising now around 9:00 pm and visible all night as it traverses the southern sky, is squaring Mars, exact today at 10:30 pm. If you are up in the wee hours, after Jupiter and Mars have risen in the east a little after 1:00 am, you may be able to get an actual visual experience of the 90-degree square relationship between the two.
This is a great opportunity to further tune in to this week’s predominant cosmic timing, as grounded Saturn in watery Pisces adds its medicine to the Mars/Jupiter activation. How do we manifest the ideas for change that are sparking within us? How do we bring expanded new levels of consciousness and spiritual awareness into form in our everyday lives? Saturn is here to demand that we wrestle with the realities of this galactic assignment, lest we fizzle out in an overdose of action and ideas with no lasting results.
Be sure to look for Fomalhaut, yet another Royal Star, in the mouth of the Fish constellation, below and to the right of Saturn. Associated with the angel Gabriel, this beautiful star holds an energy of great love and compassion and has been associated by many with Christ consciousness. Why not meditate under the night sky, looking south, and see what it has to say to you?
Meanwhile, the waxing gibbous Moon is near Galactic Center tonight and tomorrow, in the stars of the Archer constellation. Again, the Moon activation provides a heightened opportunity to tune in and ask for insight from this potent realm of deep wisdom at the center of our Milky Way galaxy. According to Philip Sedgwick, the information received from Galactic Center is often way ahead of its time. So take notes, and come back to them in six months to a year for optimum benefit. It could prove to be an interesting – and fruitful – experiment!
The Moon reaches its most extreme out of bounds south position today.
Saturday, August 17
If you spend some time with the near-full waxing Moon this evening, remember to tune in to invisible Pluto as well, as the Moon will be making its monthly pass of this deeply transformative dwarf planet today, exact at 3:13 pm. An excellent timing for releasing anything that wants to be composted, in support of the new growth being nurtured at this time.
Sunday, August 18
Retrograde Mercury, currently passing between Earth and the Sun, will square Uranus in the early hours and then make its interior conjunction with the Sun at 6:58 pm at 28 Leo 35. Time to tune in to the messenger planet as it channels wisdom from the heart of the Sun, infused with eccentric evolutionary Uranian insights.
Leo synodic overstory Venus, still low on the western horizon and faintly visible in the evening twilight, will be squaring Jupiter late this evening, from the earthy sign of Virgo. What might Venus have to share with us about the mysteries of sacred patterning and our part in adding new strands of ancient future wisdom to support the emergence of New Earth at this great Turning of the Ages?
The Moon goes back in bounds today.
Monday, August 19
Venus is opposite to Saturn, exact at 1:30 am at 17 Virgo/Pisces 29. Oppositions invoke the resonant polarity of the signs involved, in this case drawing our attention to the see-saw between a Piscean heart-centered, no-boundaries perception of All Oneness and Virgo’s need to be discerning in maintaining the energetic and earthy structures that support the sacred web of existence. Our ongoing task is to learn to navigate an effective, healthy balance between the two, as we strive to bring a new spiritual consciousness into manifestation.
The Sun in Leo is squaring Uranus today as well, continuing yesterday’s theme of unusual messages from the heart of the Sun. Be sure to tune in with intention, so you can be turned on, but not burned out, as we learn to calibrate more deeply and easefully to the ongoing electrical/plasmic transmissions being stepped through the majestic beings of our solar system, in this time of great change on planet Gaia.
The Full Moon is exact at 11:26 am at 27 Aquarius 17, opposite to the Sun in Leo. In the TOTAMS / Shamanic Astrology paradigm, this is the Vision Quest Full Moon. This year seems particularly potent, as the Moon is reflecting the light of a Leo Sun in very close alignment with both retrograde Mercury and asteroid Vesta, which speaks to us of sacred focus. A magically potent set-up for sending visions sourced in our deepest soul’s desires, while providing the focus and spiritual will to bring them into manifestation, seeding new passion, creativity, and leadership into our individual, and collective, reality.
And Uranus in Taurus forming an exact T-square with the Moon and Sun leaves us no room for doubt – we are not meant to seek some slightly altered iteration of an old, recycled vision. Calling to us from the heart of the Sun is an entirely new way of being, sourced in the next level of consciousness, just waiting for us to show up fully, body, mind, heart, and spirit. Waiting to hear our souls say “Yes, bring it on, I’m here”, enthusiastically willing to embark on this very wild ride!