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Aries New Moon– 2023

By Tracy Cook

Where should my focus be during this next 29-day cycle? 

When we draft a chart for the new moon, we get a sense of the energy that will be up for processing for the next 29 days.  

Okay what is this cycle about?   We have another round to find self.   This time finding self can be done with a steely eye and interior.  We are sharp.    

Aries New Moon 

Solar Eclipse 

29 Aries 50

April 19, 2023 

9:12pm PDT  

Let’s be clear, this is a special year because there are two Aries new moons in 2023.   The last time we had two Aries new moons was 2004.  Before that time was 1928.  The next time is 2053 and that’s it for this century.   

This is our second Aries New Moon.     

Aries is the first sign of the zodiac and launches the zodiacal year.   It speaks to new beginnings and the power of “self-driven.”  In Aries we stand up and tell the world, “I am here” and “I’m on my path.”   

This new moon we are on the final degree of Aries.   It is the last opportunity to find self.    

For those folks who have not yet made a Treasure Map you can use this new moon to launch a map.     For more information on Treasure Mapping go 

http://tracyastrosalon.blogspot.com/2023/03/treasure-map-season-is-upon-us-two.html

If you made a treasure map on the March Aries New Moon and you feel done, great you are done.   

If you made a map on the March New Moon and want to double check if you are done then take it out, look at it during this new moon and if it still feels accurate for you and your goals for the year, great you are done.    If you look at it and it does not feel done or right, then make the adjustments that seem accurate for you.  Perhaps you need to add or subtract something to it.  Maybe write a fresh new affirmation, a photo, a drawing, an image.   You figure it out.   And then consider your map done.   

Some of us cut images and wrote affirmations on the last new moon but will construct and glue them when this map launches on the 19^th.   Since I am in the pacific time zone that gives me a few hours to work on it before I go to bed.  If I need the 20^th, I will take that time as well.   I plan on being done by the end of the 20^thbefore Mercury turns retrograde on the 21^st at 1:34am PDT.   That is my intent.     

This Aries New Moon, it is a solar eclipse, and it is potent.  It is technically a hybrid eclipse which is semi rare, occurring once every ten years.   A hybrid is a combo of annular and total eclipse.  The total eclipse will be seen in Western Australia.   The theme with Aries eclipses is understanding self and doing for self.  It starts a fire for personal agency.  While we appreciate those folks who are born leaders, the truth is that leadership often happens when it is forged by circumstances.  This solar hybrid eclipse may ping and activate warrior, independent, and pioneering energies. Bullies are put on notice this cycle since people may not be inclined to roll over and just take it.   There could be squabbles and push back as the fire and force gets tapped.   Or maybe the energy is tapped and later in the year it gets called upon.    The point is the fire is stoked in the Aries new moon and launches the whole year.    

Aspects of this chart bring another layer of potency in addition to the eclipse:  

Sun/Moon conjunction Jupiter 

Sun/Moon sextile Saturn

Sun/Moon square Pluto (out of sign) 

A few days before the New Moon the Sun formed a conjunction with Jupiter and earlier in the morning on the 19^th the Moon does the same.   Jupiter with its large gravitational pull is in the mix on this new moon.  The desire to expand, grow, reach out and bring outside knowledge could be in the mix the whole 29-day lunar cycle amplifying any need for independence.   For the record this is not all hardship and struggle since humor, joy and abundance come with Jupiter.    

On the chart, the moon and sun are in square with Pluto.  At 29 degrees of Aries, this is out of sign, given the actual square will take place when the moon and sun enter Taurus.   Aries can be rough with people when it is finding self.   Squares with Pluto can speak to fear.   Perhaps the bigger the fear, the rougher the approach?  We may need to use tools that help soften the fear if we are being too harsh with others.     Pluto also can bring up resentments.  If we are stuck in resentment, we may need to figure a way to release them, perhaps by taking ownership of where we said yes when we meant no.  Or forgiving self for staying in something longer than we should have stayed.   The moon squares Pluto shortly after the new moon and on the day after the new moon, the Sun will make the exact square with Pluto.  This is the first Sun square Pluto since it moved into Aquarius.   Two times a year the Sun squares Pluto but in 2023 these will be occurring in different signs; this one is between Taurus and Aquarius.   The one in the fall will be between Libra and Capricorn (like all the rest for the last 15 years.)  We should watch the news on the 19th, 20^th & 21st as it might be a preview of themes for the next twenty years.   Pluto speaks to transformation and evolution.  Aquarius rules the technology, Internet, like minded groups and friends.   Taurus is material possessions, endurance, stamina, and stubbornness.   Square brings tension there might be a crisis involving these themes.  Some of it could be present the whole 29 days.   If any of it is personal, remember Pluto is the planet of death and rebirth.  Sometimes it is better to just let go and trust the evolution process.  

Sun/Moon sextile Saturn is a helpful aspect by bringing responsibility to the new moon and cycle.   The fire of the new moon meets Saturn in watery Pisces.   Emotions have an opportunity to be put to practical use.   The 29-day cycle may be peppered with mystical moments.   The desires for independence and tapping the needs of self are supported by creativity, arts, spirituality, and faith.   There could be an awareness of something bigger at play. 

Because this new moon is the last degree of Aries, we quickly marbleize Taurus energy into the new moon and cycle.  The moon moves into Taurus within a half hour of the launch of the new moon and the Sun moves into Taurus the next day.  On one hand earth is often used to put out fire.  So, the spark of the Aries may soften quickly in this cycle.  However, when iron ore with carbon is put into a blast furnace it creates steel.   Steel is not as brittle as cast iron and of course can cut with precision.   How can we use the fire and earth to cut through to find our goals and strengthen them?   Notice if your interior gets steelier as the 29 days unfold.     

Mercury Retrograde  

Mercury Dates 

April 7, 5:02am shadow begins 

April 21, 1:35am PDT station retrograde 15 Taurus 37

May 14, 8:17pm PDT station direct 5 Taurus 50 

May 31, 12:39pm PDT shadow ends 

Adding to the potency of the period, Mercury stations retrograde within 48 hours of the new moon.    Since January we have been enjoying every planet traveling in direct motion.   No surprise that Mercury who is usually retrograde three or four times a year is the first planet in 2023 to retrograde.  

During the retrograde, Mercury will go from 15 to 5 Taurus.   Like the other earth signs, Taurus is focused on practicality.   Taurus is THE sign, of all signs, to put its head down and do the work.   When given a task Taurus will do it until it is complete.  Taurus is known for building things from the ground up.  Look no further than the great pyramids in Egypt who were built during the Age of Taurus.  Mercury is our brains and thinking.   During the retrograde we may observe parts of our life that are missing that Taurus discipline and focus.  Maybe this is the steely resolve we find, to use that focus where it is needed.   Or, we could find ourselves doing a task we do all the time and now it feels ‘off’’.    Taurus, ruled by Venus, is a sign that relies on being connected to our values.  We could start thinking about narrowing who, what and where gets our energy.   How are we spending our time, energy, and resources?   Are they in sync with our values?  We just look at everything with more practicality.   Of course, Mercury retrogrades are notorious for being fuzzy so we should double check facts before we jump on someone or something.   The good news is that Taurus prefers being slow and knows how to take a beat and not race into something which could include being too dismissive or jettisoning something that we may later regret.   Use this Mercury retrograde to double down on things that support your values but before you ditch or get ugly, take a breath, and consider making big decisions after the three-week retrograde is complete.   Also this Mercury retrograde has a tie in with Jupiter we will discuss later. 

Pluto 

Oh, Pluto you really know how to pull focus.   Pluto carries so much punch and when it makes a move into a new sign, it gets the world’s attention.   We are in the middle of a two year period where Pluto will move in and out of Capricorn and Aquarius.  

In Capricorn, Pluto is tying up the loose ends of big business, big government, and with those who are leaders.  Where there is a disconnect, it will get called out.  Where obligations are not being met, it will be noted.   Those who are shirking responsibility will be seen and called out.    Why?   Because Pluto knows that once it finally leaves Capricorn on November 19, 2024, it won’t return for over two hundred years.   As for Aquarius, the last time Pluto was in Aquarius was 1778 – 1798.   That time included the end of the American Revolution, the founding of the USA and The French Revolution.  We are seeing racial themes that harken back to that time where the authors of the Constitution protected slavery.   As for the French Revolution; weird weather, crop failures, cattle disease, and funding wars, created dissent with the neglected French citizens.  By the time of the French Revolution, Pluto was halfway through Aquarius.  Remember Pluto is in Aquarius for twenty years.   Now, during this two-year window of Pluto bouncing between Capricorn and Aquarius, leaders may fall and others may rise, depending on how they connect to the wants and needs of those they serve.  As we know, Pluto can use crisis to get attention.   It will be curious to see what events in these two years that will be harbingers for the next twenty.  Putting on our radar these dates: 

Jan 8, 2023: Pluto enters shadow (27 Cap 53) 

March 23, 2023 Pluto enters Aquarius 

May 1, 2023 Pluto retrogrades (0 Aquarius 22) 

June 11, 2023, Pluto returns to Capricorn

October 10, 2023, Pluto stations direct (27 Capricorn 53) 

January 20, 2024, Pluto returns to Aquarius 

Feb 1 Pluto leaves Shadow (0 Aquarius 22) 

Jan 9, 2024, Pluto enters shadow (29 Cap 38) 

May 2, 2024, Pluto stations retrograde (2 Aquarius 06) 

Sept 3, 2024, Pluto re-enters Capricorn 

Oct 11, 2024, Pluto stations direct (29 Cap 38) 

Nov. 19, 2024 Pluto re-enters Aquarius 

Feb 2, 2025, Pluto leaves shadow (2 Aquarius 06) 

Since March 23, when Pluto moved into Aquarius some of us may have felt something growing.  Perhaps a need or force to crack something open, break free and do something unusual.  Those people with planets at early Aquarius, Taurus, Leo and Scorpio could be feeling an angst.  Maybe the tension or anxiety makes sense or maybe it is coming from somewhere they don’t understand.   On May 1, Pluto stations retrograde and begins to head back to Capricorn which might give a little relief to those with the fixed sign (early degree) planets.    Pluto spends about five months every year retrograde, and this retrograde has a shadow point from Jan. 6.   Issues and themes that came up between now and then may get a revisit after May 1^st.   

Jupiter enters Taurus 

May 16, 2023 

10:20am PDT 

June 11, 2023 Jupiter enters shadow 

Sept 4, 2023 Jupiter station retrograde 15 Taurus 34   

Dec 31, 2023Jupiter station direct   5 Taurus 34 

March 24, 2024 Jupiter exits shadow 

A couple days after Mercury turns direct at 5 degrees of Taurus where we will have just spent three weeks considering and editing our life in some fashion to be more practical and in alignment with our values, Jupiter the biggest planet of all moves into Taurus.   

Jupiter suggests, that money, properties, possessions could be improved or expanded.   Perhaps all the hard work of the Mercury retrograde has cleared space for better quality _____(fill in the blank) in our life.   The last time Jupiter was in Taurus 2011-2012.  Consider what you were doing at that time.  How was it expansive?   Where were you inclined to go big?  Did that big improve your life?  Did you do something big that held up and is still working?   Or did it not survive the test of time?   Or was it just too much?     How can you be sensible, (good Taurus word) with any expansion?    Globally, we should take note of money, including digital currency.   Land and real estate is very critical during Jupiter in Taurus.   Will it get over heated?   Or will there be big swings?  Will there be big money gains or losses?  It is hard to tell because Uranus is still in Taurus mixing things up in its famous unpredictable Uranus way.   

One of THE biggest aspects next year will be the conjunction between Jupiter and Uranus on April 20, 2024.   This aspect happens about every fourteen years, and it drafts on new Tech, new ideas, new waves of something that have big impact.   In astrologer Chris Brennan’s podcast from earlier this year he discussed that Steve Jobs was born with a natal Jupiter Uranus conjunction in Cancer.  And Chris points out that Jobs launched Apple’s -Think Different campaign in 1997 during a conjunction between Jupiter and Uranus.  God knows Jobs iphone made it to homes and pockets across the world (perfectly Cancer).    

One thing that makes next year’s conjunction a bit concerning is that the last time Jupiter and Uranus shared Taurus and formed a conjunction was at the end of Taurus in May 1941.    You don’t need to have a PHD in world history to know that by May 1941, greedy, ruthless, power-hungry autocrats were popular and causing pain and a world war.  Who followed them?  Lots to unpack and we’ll be talking a lot about the conjunction as we head into 2024.   Watch this space. 

As for the retrograde of Jupiter later in the year,  it is interesting that Jupiter will be retrograding exactly over the same Taurus degrees that Mercury just went back and forth over during its retrograde.    This gives more reason to watch what comes up during the Mercury retrograde and then the Jupiter transit especially between the shadow points of June 11, 2023 and March 24, 2024 to see if there are any common themes both personally and globally.      

For those of you who felt the Aries energy after the March new moon, you will feel some of that same Aries fire this time but it will also have a different quality.  As we discussed this fire may lose its spark sooner in the 29-day cycle than the previous Aries New Moon, but it also has the ability to forge a powerful steely interior.   Are you ready for it?   Are you ready for your new year?  Are you ready for your new goals?  Oh, heck ya.  Let’s go for it.  

The 8 phases

Pisces New Moon 

Solar Eclipse 

29 Aries 50

April 19, 2023 

9:12pm PDT  

New moon: Plant seeds, make calls, activate, start projects.   Activate something that will ideally lead you to more.  This is the phase where INTENT is critical.  Even if the results are not immediate, the intent is there.  You may not have all the answers or road map, but you should put out your Intent.

This focus:     We find our inner fire.  We tap our inner warrior.  We understand self-agency.  We want to pioneer our own path.   We can find the steel inside us to accomplish a remarkable and authentic year where we find goals that support a year where we thrive and grow.   

Special note:

4/20: Sun enters Taurus

4/20: Sun square Pluto  (See above). 

4/21: Mercury retrograde (15 Taurus 37)  (See above) 

Crescent Moon Phase

April 23, 2023

1:42pm PDT  

Crescent:  We will receive information, we will research a bit more, perhaps get feedback on stuff that we planted on new.  Perhaps get some information that will help down the road on a seed we planted a while ago.  We can collect some data now.  Even if you think you are not getting information, stop, and re-look at everything.  Who called you?  Even the silliest things when they come up during Crescent are note worthy.  A parking ticket.  An argument with a spouse?  A refund check from the phone company?  All of it needs to be considered a message from the universe.  How can this information help you?

Focus on: What are you learning about your communication abilities?  What are you learning about your ability to pivot?  What are you learning about the facts on the ground?   What are you learning from neighbors and siblings?  

Special Focus

4/23: Mars sextile Mercury.  Actions and thoughts are in sync.  

4/24: Sun conjunction North Node.  Finding self in a sea of others is highlighted. 

4/25: Sun sextile Saturn.  Concrete wants and needs meet structure, discipline, and hard work.  

4/25: Venus sextile Chiron.  Joy and pleasures support any healing needed around independence.  

First Quarter Moon 

April 27, 2023

2:19pm PDT 

First quarter: We do more actions based on the information that we just received. Or we feel our instincts guide us on something.  We pursue again.  We make another call, or we see someone. We mail something.  We stir the pot again.  This can be a time when we realize that the goals, we planted on new need more action from us, perhaps actions that involve breaking away.   Are there people who say they have our best interest in heart but fear us growing away from them?  Maybe we need to get help from others not the usual suspects.  Some independence may need to be exerted. 

Focus on:  How are you taking actions that support your independence and finding your own path?   How are you tapping personal integrity?  How are you finding your inner strength?  How are you tapping bravery?   How are you willing to take an action and shine?  How are you willing to be the center of attention?  

Special Note

4/29 :  Mars sextile Uranus.  Actions that support creativity.  Actions that are in alignment with brilliance, breakthroughs and even a little weirdness.  

Gibbous Moon

May1, 2023  

4:00pm PDT  

Gibbous:

We refine our information.  We pick and choose, we discriminate, and we organize to be ‘Virgo’ like.  We sort through details.  Have we missed something?  How are we sifting through the information?  Go back and make sure something hasn’t been neglected.  Refine our actions.  

Focus on:  How are you refining your schedule?  How do your appointments reflect your values? How are you filling up your date book?  How does your diet and exercise support your independence?   

Special focus

5/1: Pluto station retrograde 00 Aquarius 22 (see above)

5/1: Sun conjunction Mercury.   Connecting with practical knowledge but still missing some important info.  

5/4: Venus square Neptune.  Feeling lost around love, feeling alone, concerns around shallowness.   Overwhelmed by too much data.  

5/4 : Venus sextile Jupiter.  New opportunities that bring money, joy, love.   Even the smallest opportunity is an opportunity.  

May 5, 2023

10:34am PDT

Full Moon

14 Scorpio 58 

Lunar Eclipse 

Full Moon:  We make the needed adjustments on the things we planted. Usually, emotions are up and running and for those people who perhaps did not utilize the new moon and the rest of the waxing moon, this is when emotions can get the better of us.  There can often be a big emotional break, for no other reason than to get back on track.   Some partnership will offer up some balance.  The moon is bright and full and there is no room for shadows, what is reflecting on you?  

Focus on:     How do you find and access power?  How do you find a way to self-empowerment?  Do you know how to let something die?  How do you find rebirth?   Where are you letting go of control to find an authentic power?  

Special focus 

5/7 : Venus enter Cancer 

Disseminating

May 8, 2023

10:12pm PDT       

Disseminating: Share information; find a teacher or someone who has more knowledge. Perhaps there was a big ol’ blow out on the full and one feels in need of support and help, this is the phase to reach out to one who knows more. This is when we find a rabbi or a minister or therapist who gives us more insight.   And of course, you too may be ready to teach and share your own information.  

Focus on:   What advice can you ask for or give that will strengthen your position in the world?  What can you share about your practices moving about the world?  How do you put yourself out there?  Do you need advice as to how you are out there in the world?   

Special focus:

5/9 : Sun conjunction Uranus.  Get your brilliant, rebel, weird on.   Shaking things up.   Looking for some personal earthquakes? 

5/9 : Venus sextile North node.  Independence keeps help from new information.  New facts on the ground.  

Last Quarter Moon Phase

May 12, 2023 

7:28 am PDT    

Last Quarter moon:  Now we do the final adjustments to the seeds we planted on new. The final call, the final letters to send, we follow all the trails that came up that still make sense.  And we let the other parts lay fallow. It is a time of action but wise action.  It is a time for living “The serenity prayer” 

God, grant me the Serenity
to accept the things
I cannot change Courage to change the
things I can, and the
Wisdom to know the difference.

Focus on:

How are you taking actions that connect you with others?  How are you taking actions that speak to like-minded groups?   What is your part in community?   How would taking actions with groups support your independence?   

Special focus 

5/12: Mercury sextile Saturn.  Communication might be cool or cold but it is helpful and can support structures that need help.  

5/12: Venus sextile Mercury.  Emotions and brains are in sync and bring joy and amplify values. 

5/12: Venus trine Saturn.  Joy and values get support that might seem like it came with a little mystical patina. 

5/14: Mercury station direct 5 Taurus 51.  Yep that’s over.   

5/15: Mars trine Neptune.  Actions that support faith and trust arts, creativity and humanity.  

Balsamic Moon Phase

May 15, 2023 

6:10pm PDT 

Balsamic:   We let go.  By releasing we can prepare for the new.  

Focus on:  How are you releasing your independence?  How are you releasing your warrior?   How are you releasing your strident nature?   How are you releasing your argumentativeness?  

Special focus:

5/16: Jupiter enters Taurus (see above) 

5/17: Jupiter square Pluto.  Big earthy practicality conflicts with innovation and group breakthroughs.   

5/18: Sun sextile Neptune.  Practicality and faith find each other.  Opportunities that surprise.  

5/18: Mercury sextile Saturn.  Brain and communication are focused on practicality.   Faith helps build concrete results.   

May 19, 8:53am Taurus New Moon PDT 28 Taurus 25