The last couple of weeks have been marked with intensity and power, with the Grand Sextile/Star of David formation and the powerful opposition from Jupiter to Pluto.
The next few days offer an opportunity for the heart to open as the Sun and Moon align in Leo, a kiss of magic to open up the heart. The energy of Leo encourages us to return to the simplicity of childhood – to witness and find joy in the simplest things and retreat from the day to day problems that weigh down our hearts and create stress and disease.
While the Sun represents the physical heart, the Moon represents the emotional heart. How we protect ourselves, how we express our feelings, the level of comfort we feel with the emotions that flow through us every moment of the day – all of these things live in the realm of the Moon. In Leo, the Moon becomes more dramatic and more easily able to find expression for the inner language of the soul.
The Sun is the most powerful force in our planetary system, and the Sun is in its own sign of Leo where it has the strongest force of radiance, illuminating the darkness and shining light into the unconscious. It has just aligned with Uranus in a harmonious trine of sparkling energy for change and transition, and Uranus trines the Moon during the lunation. The window of light that shines within us every moment of every day is more easily accessible now if we simply allow ourselves to Be, even for just a day.
Generosity of the heart is another hallmark of Leo – a warmth and sincere desire to give which lights up the world around us. When our own hearts are closed it can be difficult to feel we have anything to give. But generosity and the feeling of value that we experience when we are giving to others is the key to true happiness.
This New Moon squares the lunar nodes, which is a bit like an eclipse in which the nodes are also involved. The nodes of the Moon guide us from the past to the future, so this New Moon has the potential to be a great ally in confronting something from the past so that we can move more freely towards our ultimate destiny. This is a turning point – a time when we can make one decision or take one step that will change our course in a direction of greater wholeness and freedom. Under the opposition from Jupiter to Pluto we are stretched to our utmost so that we can balance our ideals (Jupiter) with the need to let go of anything that does not aid in our ultimate transformation (Pluto).
The cross-quarter festival of Lammas (England, Wales) or Lughnasad (Ireland, Scotland) coincides with the New Moon. These cross-quarter festivals mark the halfway point between the Solstices and Equinoxes and generally fall at the midpoint of the fixed signs (Taurus, Leo, Scorpio, Aquarius).
A small child is remarkably un-selfconscious. Under the Leo influence we are asked to shed our inhibitions and our insecurities and let the light of the Divine Child that lives still within us shine through in all its glory – to forget momentarily about the crises that surround us and the responsibilities that await us and just for one moment, to call forth the innocence and joy of a child. At the New Moon there is an opportunity to wipe the slate clan. Let go of your grown-up worries and allow the child within to speak and be known. Walk in the rain – enjoy an ice cream cone as if it were your first. Stay out after dark and watch the fireflies. The world will wait.
