FULL MOON WEEKEND
Normally I do not send out a blog posting twice in one week. However, we have a rather intense Full Moon this weekend and I felt it was necessary to discuss. This Full Moon falls in the sign of Sagittarius with the Sun having just entered Gemini. It will occur on Saturday, May 21, 2016 at 6:45 pm EDT. So it is very early in these signs at 1°. Actually this would be a good time for communication and travel and connecting with people. But this lunation is accompanied by the retrograde Mars, which is also at 1° Sagittarius. This indicates the Full Moon gets an extra punch from the warrior planet. Meaning emotions will be high, relationships could be strained. I wouldn’t recommend this as the time to initiate any sort of dispute or confrontation with anyone you care about. Remember Mars is still retrograde and initiating disputes is not a good idea anyway, but this weekend in particular is a hot time. After the Moon makes its conjunction with retrograde Mars, it continues on through Sagittarius until it reaches Saturn, which is at 14°, where it will arrive 24 hours later on Sunday evening. Since the Moon is separating from Mars and applying to Saturn in 24 hours without a break from a benefic planet, we can say the Moon is trapped, between a rock and a hard place. An old astrological term for this is “besieged” – in this case we say the Moon is besieged because it is trapped between Mars and Saturn. Emotions are squeezed in this trap, the Moon energized from its fullness, not knowing where to release these feelings.
Not only are Mars and the Moon stressed, but Venus is as well. Venus is reaching the end of her annual tour through her sign of Taurus and therefore has aligned herself with the fixed star Algol. Fixed stars are the stars that appear in constellations, they are not planets, but their mythology is present in our lives just the same. Algol is a binary star in the constellation Perseus, and is representative of the eye in the head of Medusa, the Gorgon that Perseus slays and uses the decapitated appendage to turn enemies to stone. Algol was often considered by ancient astrologers to be one of the most dangerous stars in the heavens, often found in the charts of despots and the unfortunate souls who receive their wrath. To be aligned with Venus during an intense Full Moon means the goddess is NOT happy. She will be irritable and snapping, to say the least.
In the case of this weekend’s lunation, there may be an event that causes a confrontation, perhaps an inevitable one. If so, try to “keep your head” – as opposed to Medusa – and not lose your temper, it’s important to elevate consciousness during this time and act with deepest integrity. Though Algol makes us profoundly aware of life’s suffering, the challenge of Algol is to come to terms with it and not dismiss it. When one has a true and deep knowledge of this human experience, one can use it for good in this world.
What is the best way to handle all of this energy? You may not have planets at these degrees of the zodiac in your chart. However, if you feel frustrated and want to take action, exercise, walk. Most importantly, keep moving forward on your path of full potential. The support is the grand earth trine between retrograde Mercury in Taurus, Jupiter in Virgo and Pluto in Capricorn. Much will be revealed by the shining Moon and don’t forget, Mercury goes direct on Sunday and we shall have the information we need to proceed with our next steps.
