Scorpio Moon 2019

New Moon in Scorpio 10/27 8:38 pm PDT

Full Moon in Taurus 11/12 6:34 am PST*

Sun Enters Sagittarius 11/22 7 am PST*

*PDT is Pacific Daylight Time. Standard time begins again Sunday 11/3 at 2 am, which then becomes 1 am. Don’t forget to turn your clocks back for that extra hour of sleep next Sunday.

DST is now defined as ending  “the first Sunday in November” and starting again at “the second Sunday in March”. Until less than two decades ago, it was basically, “begins the first Sunday in Taurus (end of April) to the first Sunday in Scorpio (end of October)”. Six months on, six months off. Now we are at 4 months of real time, 8 months fake time (DST). Only AZ and HI do not use this ploy.

My totally biased opinion is that DST is the worst idea that Ben Franklin ever had. It was useful for helping farmers navigate their schedules during Summer months, but was continued and extended in our lifetimes because it was determined that being light after a typical workday inspired shopping and consumption afterward (really). Now there are moves, notably in CA and OR, to extend DST year round. I am in favor of doing away with it entirely. The more that we can look up at noon and see the Sun being overhead like it should be, the more our bodies relax. Support Natural Timekeeping!

Slipping into the Murky Undercurrents of Scorpio

While there is alot of variety amongst local Astrological roots, with many cultures seeing various creatures and meanings in the star patterns. Most every culture in the Northern Hemisphere had very similar imagery for what we see as Scorpio. Serpents, vultures, scorpions, all kinds of intriguing images of darkness and the mythical need for transformation.

I believe that resistance is futile, and that when we surrender to the dark side of the year, we can see a greater light within. Like the adage that shadow offsets light, and defines it. Without shadow we cannot perceive the light which would be otherwise overwhelming.

This fear of the dark is most notable presently in our need to light up the Fall with Christmas and holiday lights, and a desire to brighten our homes and illuminate our screens whenever possible. Yet, until recently, we also embraced the indwelling that is Winter and the transition that is Fall.

Typically, the New Moon in Scorpio reminds us that Fall is really here, that the weather is changing, and that it is time for other activities beyond the revelry of Summer and sun. The emotions that this sign reminds us of deepens the chalice of our beings, so drink deep. It’s not gloom, it’s mystery. It’s not polarity, it’s transformation. It is a time for the indwelling to nurture the seeds that we will be planting and tending in he near future. We can do this thru reflection and insights gained.

This year, the New Moon has several attending notable aspex. The first is the opposition to Uranus in early Taurus and retrograde. Uranus likes to spin us around and contradict even itself. Naturally spinning backwards to balance the electricity of the universe, there is magick to the madness and opportunity to the contradictory confusion. But what is that for you? The simple advice is to go beyond the simplicity of determination and look for the serendipitous potential opportunities that abound as the cracks open- “there is a crack in everything, that’s how the light gets in” (Leonard Cohen). The challenge is to evolve in your own assumptions and expectations, or you will be challenged by what needs to be illuminated for you.

Then there is also presently Mars square Saturn, followed by Mars square Pluto, both over the next week.

If you have been feeling both spunky and challenged recently, with a desire to rebel and a frustration that you are following the rules and doing the right things but somehow feel thwarted, that is the Mars square Saturn aspect, in which our best efforts may still have us at cross purposes to where energy should seemingly go.

Mars in Libra is compromising by nature, which doesn’t always work out well. The lesson here regards breaking those eggs to make an omelet, with a side order of the lemonade that you dutifully squoze out of the lemons that life handed you. The sweetener is your attitude, and the spice is the insight that you get at the moments of contemplation, more of which are coming right up.

Mars in square with Pluto during the first week of November may bring forth conflix and decided actions for better or worse. Watch your own temper at this time and practice the art of compassion and patience without suppression- always a balancing act. Expect energy to move during this time, and don’t stand still, but act- without anger, malice, or ego, as best you can for best results.

Then there is that Mercury Retrograde. Yes, it’s that time again. Time to chill the mind, to flow rather than push, to allow rather than dictate. Mercury will be retrograde for three weeks from 11/1 to 11/21, when the Sun enters Sagittarius.

When any planet retrogrades, it goes back over recently explored space, so in this case Mercury has almost completed its yearly traversing of Scorpio, only to move back across this sign again. Mercury is in Scorpio from 10/3 to 12/9, or about ten weeks instead of four. Generally, this intensifies our thots, ideas, and passions, allowing us to go deep and to explore the shadows “in the canyons of your mind”. The retrograde is a natural occurrence as seen from the Earth that allows us a greater understanding as we go in deeper into recently explored ideas and territory of our mental landscape. Or, we can get frustrated about our smart phones malfunxioning or the power going out or being unreliable. (The relationship of the Fires in CA and the unexpected events of grid being shut down are examples of Uranus opposition the Sun). If you are troubled by these things, by all means take meaningful steps to evolve your situation as you can only victimize yourself.

There will also be a Transit of Mercury across the face of the Sun on 11/11, which would be visible if that didn’t involve looking at the Sun. This is significant and can be seen as a “rebooting” or reworking time for the energies of Mercury- mind and communication, teaching and learning, writing, and balancing mental clarity and insights with the soul’s yearning for growth and understanding. It will have one effect before 11/11 and another after, and that date is a bellwether of change.

Neptune is also stationary now, and coming out of retrograde at the end of the month. Often this type of aspect can inspire our minds to drift, and add to the feeling that we are spinning in circles. But this is not true. We are spinning and weaving in spirals, and each new insight leads us from a circle (with the potential for a rut by repetition) to a new insight or integration which then naturally spins the weaving into a spiral, and evolution occurs. In fact, evolution is both mandatory and inevitable, without which we die like the annual flowers after sacrificing our power to the future. We can harvest and eat the abundance, and fertilize the future with our creativity and visioning. That is the realm of Neptune in Pisces, making multiple aspects this month to Sun, Moon, Mercury, Venus, and Saturn. (More correctly, these planets are acting upon Neptune while Neptune is not moving).

As always, take this natural exhale time to integrate the ideas and insights of the recent past while gathering energy for the mental motivations that will follow as the dark half of the year progresses. The month of December will make for greater clarity and for consciously answering alot of he questions that are being asked now.

Take the time to feel and be in the now. The deepening of this season brings out color to the leaves and brings purple to our souls.

This is a free service provided for greater general clarity regarding the bigger picture. For a professional gaze into your own picture, contact Mark for a reading at astrowizardry@gmail.com  or 541-964-5341.