Preamble:
The new moon can be thought of as a window in time when the Higher-Self initiates specific lessons or personal growth intentions for the coming month, and we can use the lunar cycle as a way of decoding evolutionary forces at a more granular level than the solar cycle or the transits of the slower moving planets.
For the spiritually minded person, the new moon is a time to receive the seed impulses for one’s personal evolution, and specifically those impulses toward bringing something new into conscious awareness. Each moon cycle fits into a larger cycle, which begins at the Aires new moon, and if you seriously want to track the unfolding pattern of higher-self guidance, it is a really good idea to record a log or journal of key messages and impressions received in the few hours before and after the new moon, roughly 4-5 hours on either side. During this window of time, make space to be more meditative and pay attention to your thoughts, inspirations, psychic messages and so on, as these will tend to correspond to the archetype the new moon is birthing in at the time, and correlate to the growth themes we are meant to work with during the month.
At some point in time (after a few months) you can look through your log and begin to see a key pattern unfolding, which can stimulate further insight in terms of life purpose.
As with every Leo New Moon, the seeding of new energy is enhanced by the Lion’s Gate Portal, which is an alignment of the Earth, with the Sun, its twin star Sirius, and the Orion constellation. The gate runs from July 28th to Aug 12th, and this New Moon falls right in the middle. The Lion’s Gate Portal represents a time when Sirius is activating our Sun, and in the old astrology, Sirius was likened to a combination of Jupiter and Mars; expansion, luck and growth fused with energy to act, creative drive and desire.
(of note the previous new moon in Cancer occurred in exact conjunct to the star Sirius, and this rare alignment seeded a renewed connection to Sirius now amplifying through the Lion's Gate Portal. The last time we had a new moon with Sirius very close was in 1929 when it was 1˚ off the exact conjunction.)
Leo is the sign relating to creative self-expression and self-actualisation, and this month we can expect seed impulses, transmitted from the Higher-Self, to stimulate new creative growth initiatives . Leo is also the 2nd fire sign and thus highlights an upthrust of energy driving us to step forward and initiate towards soul-objectives seeded at the Aries New Moon and Aries Equinox. If we have been holding back from action of late, then this month we may be feeling more impetus to push forward on our creative desires in a new way.
With Varuna conjunct the New Moon in Leo, we can also expect these creative new initiatives to correlate to personal empowerment, sovereignty and self-mastery; there is a pull toward doing things in alignment with the Self and with natural law.
Leo is also fun loving and highly expressive, and this time of the year tends to be energised toward more social connection, a respite from the burden of responsibility and a desire for joyful experiences.
The chart cast for the Leo New Moon is energised with several T-Squares and a couple of Grand Trines, making this month’s energy themes quite dynamic, so let’s take a deeper dive into the chart to explore the growth themes for this lunation…
Chart cast for the Leo New Moon on 4th Aug at 12.13 pm BST/ 7.13 am EDT
For a guide to the astrological symbols click here
Astro Technicals:
Conjunctions:
Saturn conjunct Nessus in Pisces
Salacia conjunct the North Node in Aries
Chiron conjunct Eris in Aries
Quaoar conjunct Pholus in Capricorn
Makemake conjunct the South Node in Libra
Varuna conjunct the New Moon in Leo
Oppositions:
Chariklo opposing the New Moon
Typhon opposing Uranus
Orcus opposing Saturn and Nessus
Haumea opposing Hygeia
Logos-Zoë opposing Salacia
Squares:
A T-Square featuring Typhon opposing Uranus with Praamzius at the apex
A T-Square featuring Haumea opposing Hygeia with Pluto at the apex
A T-Square featuring Orcus, Saturn, Nessus with Jupiter at the apex
A T-Square featuring the New Moon opposing Chariklo with Albion at the apex
A T-Square featuring Logos-Zoë and Makemake opposing Salacia with Quaoar & Pholus at the apex
Trines:
A Grand Earth Trine featuring Hygeia, Mercury and Ixion
A Grand Fire Trine featuring Eris & Chiron, Praamzius and Varda
A Grand Air Trine featuring Logos-Zoë, Chariklo and Jupiter
Makemake trine Mars
Pluto trine Sedna
Inconjuncts:
Typhon inconjunct Chiron & Eris
Orcus inconjunct Salacia
Haumea inconjunct Sedna
Pluto inconjunct Mercury
A Yod Aspect featuring Mars sextile Varuna and the New Moon, both inconjunct Quaoar and Pholus
A Yod Aspect featuring Neptune sextile Sedna with Haumea at the apex
A general overview of the bigger picture
There are several archetypal long-term themes currently active:
Manwë in an exact square to Ixion, together with Typhon opposing Uranus, make this a time of significant disruption and crisis, as the powers of the Light (service to the whole) move against the powers of the Dark (service to self). A rise in chaos and uncertainty is challenging many to wake up from a socially engineered and controlled narrative, which for the most part is in service to positive world change. Awakening isn’t always easy; it can at times be unsettling, destabilising and traumatic. Manwë in early Aries is ushering in a rebirth of the Light on our planet, and this is causing a crisis in consciousness for the status quo, and bringing an end to non-integrated patriarchy.
Meanwhile, Quaoar and Pholus in conjunction with Ixion in Capricorn represents powerful light transmissions coming from the Galactic Centre, now expressing as a cascade of stellar flares and solar flares. This light energy (information) is penetrating our dense habitual cultural patterns and structures, while also causing changes in our physical bodies. If Ixion (dark self-interest) were a force to be reckoned with, the presence of Quaoar, facilitated by the bridging nature of Pholus, is a significant counter-force, making it hard for those in power to maintain control of the system and subvert consciousness itself.
Lastly, Logos-Zoë and Makemake in close opposition to Salacia on the nodal axis, makes this an energised time for new light-information to be activating humanity toward breaking the patterns of the past, in order to pioneer into new ways of living and being. Part of this process involves the reclamation of past Golden Age knowledge and the truth about our origins. It is a significant co-factor; the unveiling of our lost heritage and history pertaining to pre-diluvial cultures, the remnants of which are often standing in plain sight. It’s worth noting that as the planetary frequency moves upward, new previously unnoticed sites on the planet are discovered shedding more light on our ancient past.
With Pluto at the 1st degree of Aquarius, we are now entering a liberating and more humanitarian era.
The battle for health sovereignty and a more integrated approach to phenomenal reality
Mercury is a key planet this lunation; he is stationary-retrograde at the new moon! This means Mercury appears stationary in the sky and will soon appear to move backwards through the zodiac. The retrograde phase of Mercury begins the day after the new moon until Aug 28th, highlighting more internalised thought processes; a need to review our current ideas and any new information we may have absorbed lately, and to release whatever isn’t relevant to our personal growth. If you obstinately resist internal self-reflective processes, don’t be surprised if Mercury retrograde lives up to its reputation causing breakdowns in communication and other obstacles!
Mercury is part of a Grand Earth Trine with Ixion and Hygeia all at 4˚ of a sign. We know that self interested powers are both censoring information and deliberately polluting the information ecology to protect their interests. This Grand Trine speaks to the process of throwing off false or misleading data, in order to come to a more integrated viewpoint on the world around us. Hygeia highlights the battle between the corporate orthodoxy and holistic medicine.
Mercury is also in a full phase inconjunct with Pluto in Aquarius, adding an inner tension, pushing for greater discernment with what information we allow ourselves to be exposed to, as well as what we choose to take on as truth. Pluto in Aquarius is speeding up the evolutionary pace, and driving for more objective awareness so that we can liberate from lies and deceptions. In terms of health sovereignty this means asking relevant questions of our health providers, and recognising that health authorities are typically influenced by corporate capitalism, and years behind in terms of current research.
Hygeia is also square to Pluto and in opposition to Haumea: holistic health is set to go through a rapid evolution as we deepen our understanding of natural plant medicine, with powerful evolutionary forces stimulating breakthroughs and an expansion of the holistic health sector.
Chiron, a key archetype for holistic health, is part of another Grand Trine with Eris, Praamzius and Varda. The activation of Chiron through Eris suggests an upswing in energy within holistic medicine, to assert its right to be here, without the hostile debunking and attack from corporate driven interests. Both Praamzius and Varda effectively over-light this impulse, adding coherence and higher protection into the mix; there is support coming in from higher dimensions to bring a change to the way we approach health and wellbeing.
An upswell of interest in the Light
There are two active Yod aspects in this months energy wave triggering internal change. A long term Yod coming into full expression is Neptune sextile Sedna with Haumea at the apex. Since all these archetypes are collective, this general theme is reflective of collective shifts. Neptune is the archetype of the collective unconscious, and so it is generally representative of the spiritual experience or the resistance to spirituality. Neptune is now culminating its passage through its home sign of Pisces, and he has been an active player in the quickening of many people, toward a more spiritual orientation to life. Sedna in Gemini acts as a psychic messenger, channeling through Neptune into the collective unconscious, effectively activating more and more people through psychic experiences that have an awakening effect.
We can receive a great deal of higher perspectives about the nature of existence and our part in it, and I think this is reflected already by the expanded number of channellers now expressing themselves via social media; it is now so much easier to touch into metaphysical ideas than ever before. This expansion of interest in the psychic and spiritual side of life, in turn stimulates co-creative momentum toward a New Earth, as more and more people begin to consider spiritual practices that improve the collective frequency on the planet. This Yod is driving many to make inner adjustments and to embrace healing processes as a step in improving their own personal lives, as well as helping the world move in a better direction; as we heal, so too does humanity. Haumea in Scorpio is signally humanity to undergo a deep metamorphosis, which starts with our personal inner reality.
A second Yod featuring Mars sextile Varuna with Quaoar and Pholus at the apex adds a more personal and tangible element to this process. I sense that this mostly relates to a drive to engage spiritual practices that bring us more and more into alignment with natural law.
The question arises: what are the current rituals and spiritual practices you use to elevate your consciousness through a gradual return to natural law?
This month we could feel this issue coming more to the fore, and if we individually need to level up our game, then this might be a month when we feel guidance coming in strong in order to get us there. There are of course many spiritual practices that can serve this purpose, and the ones we resonate with will probably connect to previous-life experiences. Quaoar and Pholus act as catalysing agents in this regard; as the frequencies elevate, we too need to move with these changes; the pattern of our lives must change in accordance, or in other words we may need to engage new spiritual practices as a means to integrate and express the new high frequencies we are gradually embodying…
Examples of this might be: altering the nature and quality of the food we eat, making changes in lifestyle away from watching the news, or violent movies, toward more time in nature, or meditation etc. Other ways might include adopting established spiritual practices such as fasting, solitude, devotional singing and so on.
Varuna’s presence close to the New Moon in Leo emphasises co-creative will, and self discipline, as a means to a more self-mastered way of life.
Making space for Higher-Self connection furthers the human enterprise
A T-Square featuring the New Moon & Varuna opposing Chariklo, with Albion at the apex adds a more dynamic theme for those seeking more Light. We typically tend to turn spiritual awakening into a pursuit of some kind; we may set goals and strive to make progress on the path. Chariklo challenges us to yield to the feminine way and to let go of the goals and the constant need to measure any progress, in favour of the journey itself; through embracing more feminine energy and thus a degree of trust, faith, compassion, intuition and self-reflection, we can optimise. Albion at the apex in Taurus reflects a crisis in action; if we are approaching things with an imbalanced energy toward too much of the masculine mode, we may find ourselves struggling to make practical tangible changes. Albion represents integral thinking, and the necessity to bring balance to all primary aspects of the soul; physical, emotional, mental, creative and spiritual.
As we integrate the feminine capacity to hold space for ourselves and others, we will more readily move into personal life expansion toward the higher potential of humanity. Since our culture is top heavy in the masculine mode of perception, this will be for most people an area of active development; can we stop incessantly driving, striving, judging and competing and move toward more allowing, trusting, feeling, sensing and knowing? And if we can bring more balance to ourselves, what new open doors of unrealised potential within ourselves will emerge?
Personal growth currently means facing reality as it is and our personal unresolved pain
Saturn in Pisces represents a growth responsibility to overcome personal illusions and comfort-escapism; the symbol implies the collective tendency to check out of reality and the work required to recognise when we are hiding in illusions. Nessus, now in close conjunction with Saturn, highlights how avoidance is often linked to personal repressed emotional and mental pain.
Orcus in Virgo in an energised opposition tells us that for many on the planet, spiritual growth goes hand in hand with the healing of deep seated pain and suffering; if we deny what we really feel deep down, we cannot progress or grow. Through the acceptance of what is, and the ability to allow painful feelings and memories to arise, we can be catalysed on the path of awakening to become more whole and empowered.
So much of the pain many of us feel is deeply connected to the consequences of thousands of years of patriarchy and the devaluing of the feminine Yin expression of the One Creator within all of life.
Jupiter functions at the apex of a tense and energised T-Square aspect with these archetypes, highlighting the role of the intuition as a primary means of penetrating illusions, deceptions and patterns of avoidance. While Orcus as the archetype of the spiritual initiate (a person on a personal path of awakening through soul alignment) dwells in Virgo, at a fundamental level all of those on the awakening path are necessarily engaged in personal healing processes, deep internal self-analysis, and paths of healing service either to others or the natural world. This month, Jupiter opens up a window of potential expansion of understanding, through the study of spiritual teachings of one kind or other that then acts as a way forward, and with Chariklo in exact trine to Jupiter (part of a Grand Air Trine with Logos-Zoë), we can expect intuitive breakthroughs to coincide with a more compassionate approach. And with Logos-Zoë also in the mix, once again the theme of finding greater balance between Yin and Yang forces is highlighted as we climb the frequency ladder to Christ-Sophia Consciousness. Remember that the toxic and damaging expressions of both masculine and feminine energy arises from dis-regulation and non-integration of these primary energies.
The Divine Feminine continues to rise within us
A Grand Fire Trine featuring Varda, Eris, Chiron and Praamzius demonstrates another highly energised archetypal theme: Varda, conjunct the Galactic Centre is a potent transmitter of high-frequency Divine Feminine energy emanating from the Galactic Logos, and she is now activating Eris in Aries together with Chiron. Eris is the champion of the feminine principle and her appearance in Aries has quickened the rebirth and return of the Goddess Energy to the world. Eris is also a keeper of the wounded and rejected feminine, and her conjunction to Chiron symbolises an ongoing call to heal personal and collective wounds associated with the patriarchal distortion and a loss of the feminine. Chiron as a world-bridger is serving to help us with this healing and integration through the physical body, and Praamzius in conjunction with Venus tempers the potency of Eris with love, adding coherence and order to this process.
What does this mean?
It is finding love and joy in the little things; learning to slow down to appreciate what is good in life; learning to enjoy the flowers, the scents of the natural world, and to cultivate the feeling of joy and connection through a mindful presence of attention in the present moment, as a counter energy to the more obvious challenges in the world at large. By anchoring in more love and joy in the simple things, we support harmonious global healing and outcomes.
Given that Typhon (a chaos archetype) is making an inconjunct with Eris and Chiron, the presence of Praamzius is highly beneficial in curbing destructive and negative expression with this process. Eris has been, in recent years, at the forefront of these chaotic times, and she has been a necessary catabolic force. This month we are seeing quite a refined and harmonised symbol of feminine power arising in the world, but this must happen through us, and we can choose to put aside our worries and concerns to make a little more room for pleasure, joy and delight.
Finally…
This Lion’s Gate Portal will be a highly energised time of personal and collective activation. With so many T-Square aspects and harmonising Grand Trines there is not only a lot of active energy, there is also speed and intensity. For those of us ready to step through to new levels of yin-yang integration and personal power, this lunation could be a potent window of inner or outer change. There is a lot to be positive about this lunation as the inevitable challenge and breakdown is strongly supported by beneficial and protective forces. If you are a budding Light-Worker or you are now activating the Light Warrior in service to the whole, 2024 is an auspicious time, replete with numerous gateways of transformation, and this month is no exception.
© 2024 Aquila Idha - all rights reserved. Please credit and reference me and this website when choosing to use any written part of this article.
Aquila offers Self-realisation mentoring, Evolutionary Astrology, and Tarot sessions for those awakening to their true potential.
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