The New & Full Moon Forecast: New moon (7/18/12)

Astrologers Isha Lerner and Tara McKinney join forces to offer their complementary interpretations of the New and Full Moon phases each month – Isha from the Western perspective, Tara from the Vedic. Isha’s approach draws upon thirty years in her practice of Western astrology. Tara’s approach employs the ancient Vedic system of 27 “Lunar Mansions” (each 13 1/3 degrees wide) which are oriented primarily around the stars (sidereal), the constellations and our Galactic Center. Please join us every couple of weeks for the latest guidance from the Great Lunar Goddesses of both Western and Eastern traditions.

Become “The Star of Renewal” by Following Your Own True North

By Tara Faulkner

The 29-day lunar cycle that begins with the New Moon on July 18, 2012 (at 2+ degrees Cancer (sidereal)), appears to be quite a mixed bag. On the one hand, the Moon conjunct the Sun in its own sign, in the angular house of committed relationships and marriage, is a beautiful thing. Especially when you consider that this particular placement falls in the Lunar Mansion, Punarvasu, meaning “The Star of Renewal,” in the Vedic astrological system. It combines the very harmonious energies of Jupiter (blessings and spiritual inspiration), Mercury (discernment and communication) and the Moon (the soul, deep emotion, the natural rhythm of things, the Feminine), suggesting that through the medium of inspired, soulful discernment and speech, the self is purified and reborn. Along these lines, its presiding deity is the Mother Goddess Aditi, who tends the ground from which healthy seeds eventually bear fruit.

On the other hand, this New Moon phase is somewhat overshadowed by a tight T-Square between mischievous Mars (potential aggression and volatility, plus self-assertion and will force), Pluto (deep transformation through descent into the Underworld) and Uranus (lightning strikes of illumination and the revolutionary call to freedom).

The Sabian Symbol for our current lunar cycle reflects this interplay of apparently contradictory energies, indicating a challenging period of realignment and reintegration, a period that tests one’s will and commitment, following a profound transformation into a new level of consciousness:

A Man Bundled in Fur Leads a Shaggy Deer

Keynote: The need to overcome stagnation and “cold” during trial of endurance

This rather enigmatic symbol has suggested an exploration in arctic regions; but it seems more relevant to see in it simply the difficult phase imposed by the new allegiance upon the reoriented consciousness. In India, the deer was the symbol of Brahma, the Creative God. The antlers represent the extension of the mind-power located in the head. The new path may lead to cold regions requiring insulation from harsh circumstances. There may even be a desire to escape from new responsibilities. The will leads the mind on toward the spiritual North of the soul.

A period of trials is implied. The focalized mind may seek to escape its limits by venturing forth toward an idealized goal – the North Star, perhaps. This represents a TESTING OF THE WILL.

The overriding message of this New Moon phase is: continue to follow the guidance of your soul, your own True North, and you will become the living embodiment of “The Star of Renewal,” a stellar inspiration for all to behold.