Pisces New Moon 2009
The New Moon at 7 Pisces happens on Tuesday February 24th 8:00 am Eastern and 5 am Pacific time.
With all the Aquarian energy swirling around, more and more people are asking, “Has the Age of Aquarius really started?” There was that conjunction of Jupiter and Mars in Aquarius last week, and the Moon does move through the 7th house once a day. Unfortunately, a new age does not come into the world like a baby. There's no set date. It's more like a tidal shift. The ebbing energy of the old is receding while the new energy is flowing in. There are tidal eddies that mix both, some that still drag back and even pool, and then there are strong sure currents that are leading the way to an Aquarian vision of peace, equality and love. If you're reading this, you're probably one of the people who are riding the Aquarian wave already. But there's still lots of old currents around. You might even get caught up in a few now that the Sun has moved into Pisces.
On Wednesday, February 18th, the Sun left the airy idealistic heights of Aquarius and plunged into the cosmic ocean currents of Pisces. Did you feel your attention shift? While there is still high-voltage energy traveling through Aquarius, we are directed to swan dive into the collective astral ocean. What are you feeling? What is everyone else feeling? Final question: Do you know if these feelings are your own or are you experiencing everyone else's feelings? That's the Piscean way – to feel everyone. We know we're all in this together, now more than ever. Pisces poses the question: What are WE feeling? And I'm asking: What are you going to do about it?
One of the brilliant gifts of Western culture is a healthy, strong yet flexible ego; developed through the workings of a deep intellect and a wide-open heart. When we are conscious that the ego is just part of a wholeness whose center is the Self – or soul – we can be a vessel for Spirit to work through, and can work selflessly for the group and soulfully for ourselves. We need the right kind of ego, one that helps us keep our sense of individuality at the same time as we feel at one with the world. A drop in the ocean is both drop and ocean.
We don't want to belong to a herd, which lacks individuality and is too easily swayed. We might agree to be part of a pack, like wolves. Which means we're responsible for our part of the show. We each get to chose what to do with the feelings. Usually the choices are Love or Hate, Courage or Fear, Passion or Anger. Pisces places us in the center of these feelings and says, choose Love.
There are still 4 planets and 2 asteroids as well as the North Node in Aquarius. Lots of energy focused into the group mind. As a matter of fact, someone called it an energy surge. And that's apt, because with last month's eclipses in Aquarius/Leo, and the other 6 to 7 planetary energies picking up on it, it is a unique energy nodal. The Aquarian energy gets very grounded and will be taken through the rest of the signs as the planets move around the zodiac. Especially Mars, which pushes us to act on our desires. For now, Mars is geared to the good of the group instead of self-interest.
On Feb. 17th Mars and Jupiter conjoined. Their combined energies bring to mind fuel and energy that stokes ingenuity, and with Neptune/Chiron also in Aquarius, creating connectedness and healing, and our Aquarian north node destiny pushing us forward to the new vision, it seems we're making some kind of leap in consciousness. We're becoming a world community, and even politics is picking up on it. (Which of course is usually the last place we'd find the new vision. So something is up!) Everyone feels this big wave of energy traveling through the world. While outwardly it seems destructive (Pluto in Capricorn) it is bringing change to the world. Out of death comes new life.
Everything is moving and changing. Anything seems possible. What do WE the People want? It was on February 17th that President Obama signed the big stimulus package into law. Did we get what we wanted out of it? Will it kick-start the economy? There was a bit of something for everyone. Mars in Aquarius works hard for the group, and Jupiter expands its influence. So Main St. got included in the Wall St. package - finally! Also, Mercury is still slowly emerging from the shadow of it's retrograde degrees, so it makes sense that the package had a hard time getting passed quickly. We needed to really look at it and make revisions where needed. (Mercury was retrograde when Obama was sworn in, but is direct now.) It's not perfect by any means – and the old forces are not dead, but we have three more oppositions between Uranus and Saturn to make it right. We have to figure out what to conserve and what to get rid of. Uranus will give us the insights we need and continue to bring in the new. Just tune in.
All this energy still in Aquarius is pushing us to expand our understanding of community and we are slowly coming to see that all creatures, plants and elements – air, fire, water and earth - are united in Gaia's community. There is a great gathering of the tribes going on, as people find their natural packs and find ways to act in concert for the good of all. We each have talents we need to share – whether in our families, our schools, our neighborhoods, our workplace or our communities. Politics is only part of the answer. The real deal is occurring at the grassroots level - and over the Internet, where we are finding our collective voices and learning how to process what's happening in the world so we can open our minds and hearts for the answers. And then we get to share them. This is the Aquarian ideal.
After the exciting eclipse energies of Aquarius which are still resonating through these other planets, we're now moving into a quieter month. So sit back, relax, and feel the waters.
Now that the Sun shines with Pisces energies, we might find ourselves suddenly submerged in the pain of the world – rather than our hopes for the future. This is a necessary step – we have to feel the pain so our hopes are realistic and balanced. Look around you. There is tremendous fear, dread, and anger floating around in dark whirlpools of emotion in the collective unconscious. This is powerful stuff – people can get swept away by these emotions. Now that the Sun is in Pisces, the energy of Uranus, which will be strong at the next full Moon, will be highlighted. Expect the unexpected from the invisible realms. Be prepared for it so you don't succumb to it. We have the choice of falling victim to these collective fears or letting them go. Being part of a group does not mean following along blindly. It means adding your light to the mix. If you shine your light, it will light up others in your pack.
During this watery, sacred time, you have to understand what emotions you're feeling and then let they move on. Being objective about emotions turns them into feelings, so you can then judge any situation and discover the truth. Yes, we are going through hard times, but most of the world lives like this, seemingly without us noticing. Now we viscerally understand - we're all in this together. Dubai as well as Kansas City. China and the USA. Wars are being fought over resources. People are dying violently. Our collective structures are collapsing. That's Pluto in Capricorn and even though it's barely moved in, it's already creating seismic shifts in the collective. It's started. So what will be your stand on things? Pisces rules the feet and therefore your standpoint. If you stand for Earth, you will have to give up a standard of living that is unsustainable. Once you decide that though, your creativity will find ways to create new ways to share resources and live a good life. We just need to redefine our vision of a good life.
Most of our collective problems come from our consumer economy, which now tells us that it's bankrupt. Instead of throwing money into it, we need to say Yes! The system is bankrupt. We need a new vision. We need a new system. Let's discover a way to share our resources so everyone is at least fed and housed. Let's clean up our environment. Let's learn to honor life instead of glorifying death. That's more important than buying another big screen TV, don't you think?
Instead of fear, we need to be experimenting with hope by finding new ways to live. (People are banding together to stop their neighbors from being evicted from their homes. That's a good start.) Can we live with less and share more? Do we really need everything our society has created? Or is most of it superfluous to having a good quality of life? These are the questions we can ask ourselves during the Sun's journey through Pisces. If you don't let the feelings overwhelm you, it's possible to imagine a way out - the next step.
Don't DO anything yet. We'll figure out what to do during Aries.
Right now during Pisces, we get a chance to imagine and play. That's the best way to deal with fears and sadness. Just let things be. Instead, rest, hold back on action, be creative, dream, slow down. These activities are hard for most people, especially when we're stressed. When we have an unconscious ego, it always needs to be Doing. A conscious ego knows that it's important to sit back and listen for the voice of the imagination, which comes from our souls and our unconscious when we play and imagine and relax. Wait for wisdom, which is knowledge and love combined..
This gives us the chance to help each other through these challenging times. That's the Pisces promise. Love is born in Pisces you know. Remember, Aphrodite is born out of the oceans. Our love, compassion and empathy can go a long way toward healing each other if we don't get lost in fear. Love is the gift we get from the Heavens and the Earth's waters. It points the way toward our future.
The Sabian Symbol for 7 degrees Pisces: Illumined by a shaft of light, a large cross lies on rocks surrounded by sea mist.
The cross is the ancient symbol for the world center, the cosmic tree of life. It is the point where Heaven and Earth meet, the union of these opposites. It is the descent of Spirit into Matter, of soul into body. The cross represents the four directions and humanity's relationship to those directions. So we are called to the vision of archetypal humanity, illumined by light, arising out of the sea mist like Aphrodite arising from the foaming waters. What a magical images. Go find this image within yourself during mediation and see what develops. This image calls us to our destiny – to grow in consciousness toward our spiritual purpose.
Swami Vivekananda writes: In every religion is the one luminous idea that [humanity] is divine, that divinity is our nature. This is where we're headed.
Venus turns retrograde on March 6th at 16 degrees Aries. As she retreats to the Underworld to be reborn, she leaves behind old attitudes about love. Now is the time to release old relationship pain. It's time to drop the expectations and deal with what's in front of you. How do you want to deal with love and desire? Wait 'til Venus turns direct on April 17th because she will go back for a dip in cosmic bliss into Pisces before she makes any decisions about love.
Pisces is a psychic sign, and so it's a good month to look for information from alternative sources. The invisible realms have a lot to offer us now. If you need a reading, please write or call.
Cathy Pagano
310-741-7013