What Lies Beneath? Full Moon Pisces @ 18° Sept 10th – UTC  9:59am

“Mother, you don’t understand. I made Hades run to me. He saw my bones beneath and offered me half his kingdom. Do you really think I ate the fruit unwillingly?” a.davida jane

Every month the Full Moon reflects the strength of the Sun back to us and as the Sun sets, the Moon rises in the opposite zodiac sign. Reigning through the night, the Moon holds the throne of the dark skies, ensuring that nothing remains hidden under her gaze, all becomes revealed. Illuminating the duality of both signs and shedding light on hidden secrets and covert agendas, the energy of the two signs becomes polarised, drawing out extremes; a situation where energies run high and events culminate.

As the Sun passes into the mutable sign of Virgo, we become aware of the changing of the seasons; what has been steady, now begins to dissolve to make way for the new rush of energy that comes with the next cardinal sign. With Virgo we consider detail and process, it is a time of analysis, dissemination and a deep examination of the facts and with the Sun in Virgo, the full moon falls in the opposite sign of Pisces.

Mutable water sign Pisces, is the last sign in the zodiac cycle and notorious for its shifting sands, glamour and confusion. Its association with romance, confusion, evasion, doublespeak and manipulation provide the perfect foil to the pragmatic, practical and detailed qualities of its polar opposite,Virgo. Those who have this polarity emphasised in their charts are commonly found in the helping professions, healing the sick, comforting the lost and generally caring for those less fortunate than themselves, often whilst battling their own inner demons of addiction and dependency. No strangers to the battle between order and chaos, light and dark, they also find their way into less obvious roles, where their attention to detail and ability to humbly resolve the problems of others, puts them to work diligently in the background so that their more flamboyant superiors can take centre stage.

Although Pisces often eschews the limelight, they can find their fame (or notoriety!) in other more secret and hidden ways, becoming memorable to those who know them in a less obvious fashion. Often the hopeless romantic, Pisces can be guilty of clinging to their rose tinted vision of life (and themselves) and it can take a great deal of self sacrifice and avoidance before they realise that it is not possible to hide from the realities of life, or the realities of their own darkness and that the only person that will be coming to their rescue is themselves.

Pisces’ ruler Jupiter is always concerned with expansion, exploration and living life in the best manner possible and wherever I see Pisces in a chart, I think of the need to get in touch with something greater than the self, to connect with the divine plan or to experience numinosity on the earthly plane. These high aspirations can undoubtedly be accompanied by disappointment and partly explain Pisces attraction to seeking god in the gutter as it were. Giving their all for the good of the cause, for god, for their fellow humans or for any soul whether animal, vegetable or mineral who they deem to be worthy of saving helps this chameleon of the zodiac to connect with the divinity which they see reflected in the humblest of places.

This month, the Full Moon occurs in the 18th degree and 2nd decan of Pisces which is associated with its traditional ruler Jupiter. Of this decan, the Picatrix tells of “…a man with a second upside down head, his feet raised on high and a platter in his hand for eating. This is a face of great value, strong will, worthiness and contemplation regarding splendid matters…” whilst the opposite decan in Virgo, occupied at this point by the Sun, is described as “…a man with a handsome complexion, dressed in hide; above the clothes of hide is another covering of steel. This is the face of petitions, desires, loot, tribute, and denying fair things.”

Both images taken together seem to represent a conflict of interests, on the one hand displaying lofty ideals and simple pleasures, whilst on the other a definite stance of accumulation by coercion or indeed force. At this full moon, perhaps we will be shown the underbelly of a dynamic in our lives where deceit and trickery have played a part, where we have not seen the true motivations behind what is occuring or indeed perceived our own hidden motivations. The Moon’s application to a conjunction with Neptune, together with Mercury’s retrograde station in Libra seem only to heighten the potential for confusion, introducing a theme of embattled communications which is likely to extend into next year with Mars’ lengthy transit through Gemini.

Astrologer Dane Rudhyar in his Sabian Symbol referencing gave us the following image for the 18th degree of Pisces: In a gigantic tent, villagers witness a spectacular performance – The collective appeal of a well-staged and exciting display of skill and/or oratory.

This Symbol shows the need to make sense of all the information that is available and to be able to ascertain who is an authority worth listening to and who is a charlatan. Seeing through false intentions or messages will be an important skill at this time, especially in this particular period when our usual sources have become unreliable and even biassed in favour of those who fund their organisations. A feeling of community may well arise, the idea of villagers (the common person) witnessing a well-staged oratory brings to mind the power of the crowd, the strength of community and the potential of togetherness in a common goal, perhaps against a charismatic oppressor, leader or party line. Although the crowd is made up of humble villagers there is an inherent power here and it may be important to ask whether the cause that is being preached is true and just, or whether the crowd is even listening.

As more and more people gather on a regular basis across the world to demonstrate against the rising costs of basic living, the plutocracy increases their assets by record amounts, something which we might see described in the image from the Picatrix of the 18th degree of Virgo “…a man with a handsome complexion, dressed in hide; above the clothes of hide is another covering of steel. This is the face of petitions, desires, loot, tribute, and denying fair things.”

The energy of this Full Moon could generate situations of hysteria and there may be a need for moderation together with the importance of listening carefully to what exactly is being said. Great power exists here to influence groups of people and for big egos to manipulate and exploit others for financial gain and control. To remain vigilant and to see through the confusion we need to examine the messages that are being relayed to us on a personal level and also to the population as a whole, asking ourselves “what is really being said here?”.

The Sabian symbol for the Sun’s position in Virgo shows two girls playing with a ouija board, suggesting a desire to seek “easy” answers or the desire to contact a deeper wisdom. The messages may be unclear and muddled in the eager attempt to gain a deeper understanding of what is happening, and although we may be gifted with deep insights, we are warned not to rely on these if we seek only to escape our responsibilities. We are reminded that continually asking for new information in the desire for a better outcome does us no favours, and we are advised to work in the present moment with the information that we can hear clearly so that we can deal with the reality of the situation in the best way that we can.

At this full moon, pay close attention to what you are being told, and ask yourself who the message is really for, what is it actually saying. Listen to what is arising from your intuition, what are you being told? Are your natural instincts being alerted? Do you sense danger? Is all well with what you are hearing?. Now is the time to tread carefully but purposefully through the Piscean mists, avoiding the glamour and the charm so that you can keep your feet on solid ground. Progress is likely to be slow, but better slow and steady than to tumble in haste. To survive the clutches of the underworld you will need to keep your wits about you!

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FULL MOON BLESSING

In the glory of my fullness, I speak to you, revealing the truth as I see it at this moment. There are no secrets here, for if you are brave enough to look, all will be declared. Now it is time to turn away from all that is no longer fulfilling for you. I empower you to live your authentic self, to be unashamed of your fullness, to embrace your own power, to proclaim your true self, without fear. In Pisces- I believe in the power of the unseen, the waters of the womb are my source of inspiration, to surrender to a force that is greater than me, to return to the place where I came from. Through me, all seek to return to that point of bliss, that connection with the divine, that point of creation, that seed of perfect union.”. ©JKG