The Full Moon occurs at 13:09 (UT) on June 9, 2017 at 18°Sg53′.
At this lunation, the scholarly Sagittarius Moon is set against the information hungry Gemini Sun. The Moon is in the 9th global house, focusing energies on beliefs, international travel and communication, religion and philosophy. In the 9th house and Sagittarius, we are seeking to understand and to broaden our experience. This is a visionary house and normally we would be thinking ahead, envisioning possibilities promised by Jupiter (ruler of Sagittarius). But Jupiter is stationary, intensifying the weight of this archetype. Whilst Jupiter is joy, blessings and abundance, its shadow side is also judgementalism, the kind that strikes you down with a bolt of lightning.
As I write, it’s been 6 days since the Manchester attack. The media (3rd house/Gemini) is still full of discussion, debate and gossip. Right now, the conversation is focused on loss (the Moon is opposite Mother Ceres who lost her daughter Proserpina to the God of the underworld) and there are vehement opinions on what can, can’t and should be done.
The Moon is conjunct Saturn which narrows our vision. Sagittarius, who loves to say YES to everything and anyone is being shut down, much like the borders between cultures and peoples. The recent grounding (Saturn!) of British Airways planes (9th house) due to a communications breakdown (Gemini/3rd house) is an eloquent symbolic representation of what is happening right now. We’re not getting anywhere because we’re not talking to each other with respect. Saturn is a wall of denial, insisting that his way is the right way. The Moon is tightly semi-sextile Pluto indicating that the neighbourly relations this aspect encourages are currently based on power games and control.
The Full Moon is also square to Neptune in the 12th house harking back to the recent Saturn-Neptune square. A sense of meaninglessness is undermining our faith. Yes we need to be realistic and yes we are far from building a utopia but we do have imagination. We are creative beings. When we pull together (Neptune), we can create unity. An ocean of love can break down the walls that divide us.
In our own lives, we are being asked to sift through the information we have to figure out the truth so that we can clearly define where we’re going. Right now it feels like there’s something we need to understand at a much deeper level than we do. Whilst Saturn has a restrictive quality, he also encourages us to master whatever he touches.
Right now Saturn is saying master your emotions. Don’t let them take over. Look to the future but be realistic. Check whether what you believe is actually true – or just true for you. The square to Neptune is slippery. Somehow we have to get right with our God, Goddess, deity or higher selves to construct a better future. We are all responsible for finding our individual sense of meaning in life. There’s no one size that fits all.
Judgement is a major feature of this chart with Jupiter stationing and also still square to extremist Pluto. Righteousness is not just the domain of extremists though. We can all fall pray to ‘my way or the highway’ at times. The retrograde action of Jupiter represents an inner journey of growth to bring more equality and balance to our lives. The conclusions we’ve drawn may still need further refinement before we start to implement them.
The Moon is on the Sabian symbol :-
Pelicans Menaced By The Behaviour And Refuse Of Men Seek Safer Areas For Bringing Up Their Young
This symbol shows we are very focused on our safety. Right now, the world doesn’t feel like a very safe place – not just Manchester, not just those places that on our western doorstep but the people fleeing Syria, the gay men in Indonesia and Chechnya, the Coptic people in Egypt. Every continent has its menaces. Whenever I see this symbol, I always think of the dual meaning of the word ‘refuse’. The refuse of men is not just the rubbish humankind is spewing right now which keeps us divided but also the refusal to accept responsibility (the domain of Saturn!).
In our own lives, we may need to consider whether we are in the right place to facilitate growth and expansion, or whether our circumstances are in fact hindering our potential. Sometimes we have to go far beyond familiar ground to find a place called home. Beliefs too, can feel like home. We can feel safe in our sect or we can question what we were told.
This is a challenging Moon but not an impossible one. We cannot afford to give up and give in (Neptune) or to carry on regardless (Saturn). Loss is hard and we must grieve but then we must write a new story, with better ending.
