When the Sun crosses the Equinox point, planetary energies suggest themes for the entire season through to the next Cardinal point ingress (Solstice). An extra-potent New Moon is emerging this month, 0 Aries, at 17.23GMT on 21 March, just twenty hours after the Sun crosses the Equinox point. This strengthens the calling towards new beginnings. Yet it’s not new beginnings as we would usually qualify fiery Aries ‘go-for-it’. This season highlights a deeper embodied approach towards renewal, our desires, purpose, and relationships.
Aries is the first sign of the zodiac and heralds the astrological new year. The Aries archetype is the warrior, signifying the uprising of new life, desire, impulse, drive, and action. It’s a bold active and reactive sign, moving without forethought, with passion, courage, and zest for life. Over these last few weeks, the Aries energy has been strong, yet it’s not been a time for typically Aries simple focus. Perhaps you’ve been feeling held back by lack of energy, focus or direction? This New Moon amplifies the growing feeling of new beginnings. The potential is to get into gear with new ventures and adventures. Mars, the Aries planet, and this New Moon ruler, is now on new territory. Yet our approach to renewal, to this new territory, is key. It contains a seed of evolutionary potential from our growth since August 2022.
Aries is a masculine fire sign associated with action, yet at this New Moon the feminine energies are equally highlighted. Mars’s consort, Venus, Goddess of Love is strong in her own sign Taurus and aligned powerfully with relationship asteroid Juno and the Moon’s North Node of destiny and development. In many ways Taurus is an equally strong focus now, but more subtly. It offers a potential for deeply rooting new behaviours in our physical and sensual realities, financial matters, relationships, and well-being. Taurus signifies what we give value to. With Venus traversing Taurus, what we enjoy is also a focus. At this New Moon it is time for birthing new life, for a new commitment. Yet the approach to that is being called from a new place within. It’s the synergy of Aries drive and action with the Taurean gift of stability that recognises right timing, that allows space for deep rooting, gestation, nurturing the new. In other words, an embodied response rather than a fiery wilful or demanding one.
It’s intriguing that Earth Mother Ceres is a potent element to this New Moon, especially regarding embodiment. The universal synergy never ceases to amaze me! Ceres represents the flow of the seasons and always the potential for harvest. In the Greek and Roman mythology, she journeyed through the loss of her daughter, subsequent grief, and a lack of control over her experience, to discover her true evolutionary role and purpose. That purpose took form in ancient Greece through the Eleusinian Mysteries, rites of passage that embraced death and darkness as necessary aspects of the life cycle and that ensured a deeply rooted new beginning. Ceres is currently retrograde in the sign of relationships, Libra and is opposing this Aries New Moon. She calls us to recognise the need for balance, reflecting on our actions, harmonising them within broader aspects of our lives beyond the Aries focus on ‘what I want’. Relationships are a key focus here, as is the understanding that every individual action has potential impact overall. It’s a movement away from a purely Aries goal orientation. With Messenger Mercury conjunct the New Moon, how we think and communicate our desires, drive or even anger, is calling for balance also.
A deeper Sacred Feminine element at play here points to a core understanding at this New Moon. Dark Feminine Black Moon Lilith in Leo is trine the New Moon and square the Venus/Juno/Node conjunction. Whereas the Aries fire is towards impulse and immediate desires, Lilith in Leo’s calling is towards what feeds and sustains the heart. Ruled by the Sun, Leo is where we shine as mature individuals. Lilith’s play at this New Moon will be calling us towards an uplifted heart expression through the dark shadows that we may use to block that.
Bringing this all together suggests acting on a deeper impulse that arises from your heart, that is rooted in embodied values and that needs first or next-step action towards manifestation. It’s a new beginning that’s been gestating within, both subtle and active, with a risky edge, yet held in core truth and integrity within your being.
