Taurus NEW MOON 2015       

By Tracy Cook

Many years ago I studied lunar phases with Robert Buz Myers.  It is my hope that he would be proud of my work today.  Blessings to you, Buz! 

What is a New Moon?

A new moon is the beginning of a 29-day cycle.  Technically, when you look up in the sky you only see a thin section of the moon illuminated.       

And the not so technical point of view?

Well, similar to farmers and indigenous people, who have used the eight phases of the moon for eons, astrologers also utilize the different phases of the Moon.  Certainly on the New we know it is time to plant seeds.  But the other seven phases are equally important.

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

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

Okay what is this cycle about?   How are you being practical about the things you value?  Including you? 

 

 

 

Sabian symbol:

 

An Old Indian Woman Selling The Artifacts Of Her Tribe To Passerby

 

http://www.cafeastrology.com/sabiansymbols_degreemeanings.html

 

 

 

 

 

 

Taurus NEW MOON

 

May 18, 2015 

12:13am EDT     May 17, 11:13pm CDT  10:13pm MDT  9:13 pm PDT

26 Taurus 56

 

 

NEW MOON

 

After 29 days of a fiery and robust Aries cycle we are ready for grounded Taurus, the first earth sign of the zodiac.

 

All the seeds we planted on our Treasure Map back at the Aries New Moon are starting to grow.   So, do we sit back and make margaritas until the fruit falls?    Not exactly.   Yes, we planted the seeds but now on each new lunar phase we should take the energy of the cycle and work with it knowing that it supports those goals set in April.  It is not that we get all OCDish about it and wake up every morning asking, “How are my goals and dreams?  “What do I need to do today to make them a reality?”   Heavens, no.  That just makes my head hurt thinking about it.   Instead we trust that the seeds are doing their job but we are also obliged to nurture them by working the energy of the different lunar cycles.  So, what do we do in Taurus?

 

In Taurus we learn to build things bit by bit.   We look around and see what needs work.   What needs commitment and focus?   We also take a look at our money, our properties, our resources and our love.   Taurus knows the old adage is true,  “Count the pennies and the dollars count themselves.”    We look around and ask where do we need Stick-To-It-ness?   Where are we bullish about our endeavors?  We are strong in our commitments.   What is going on with how we love and how are we loved?

 

Venus, the ruling planet of Taurus will be getting our attention early in the lunar cycle.  Between May 21 and May 25 Venus (in Cancer) gets into it with Pluto and Uranus.   But Venus in Cancer, which is the sign of the crab has got big old pinchers and will claw back.  Watch what comes up during that window.  How does it speak to your feelings and what you value?

 

5/21: Venus opp Pluto:  Values okay? Or do they need to be overhauled?  Power and love at war.  Or need to die and be overhauled.

5/22: Sun opp Saturn:  Willpower versus structure.  Rigidity versus flexibility.

5/25:  Venus Sq Uranus.   Twice a year we get this aspect that pits love, values, resources against CHANGE.    Try to remain flexible.

 

In Taurus, we contemplate what we value and how we are valued.  We do things that support our self worth.    If we have had a troubled childhood or perhaps disappointments in our love life, our family relationships, or our career, we may have walked away from the experiences with dents in our psyche.   Dents that might suggest to us that we aren’t attractive enough, or we can’t make enough money or we aren’t talented enough or no one really cares for us or we aren’t loveable.    Whatever that yucky stuff is that is deep inside you, take these 29 days to consider building up your self worth.   If you feel un-loveable then do something practical that speaks to YOU loving you.  If your money is cockeyed reach out to someone who has got their money together and ask them questions, if you feel like your creativity is low, then take a class and if your beauty feels off, get a new hair cut, get a facial, buy a new outfit.   The bottom line is Taurus is not airy-fairy, Taurus is practical and in this cycle you can do practical things that can help you pound out those dents in your self-esteem.     Or at least begin to heal them bit by bit.   Also, when Taurus is misbehaving they are stubborn and stuck.   They hold on for the silliest of reasons.  Or they hold on to ‘small’ and they hold on to ‘broken’ because it is easier to do that then get up and do new work.    If there is something you are hanging on to that has expired its shelf life then get practical and dump it.   Including beliefs.    Watch what comes up the next 29 days where you find yourself looking at your values and ask how you can build upon it and cut out any nonsense where you are still hanging on to stuff past its shelf life.    

 

Besides self- esteem what else are we building?  What else are we focused on?  Where are we putting our hard work and our commitment?   All of those are good Taurus questions and actually have a very odd answer --- We don’t know.    Huh?   How is that possible?   Well, this Taurus New Moon chart is a little different than previous Taurus cycles.  Mars is on top of the Sun and the Moon but it is NOT in Taurus instead it is in Gemini. And you pretty much can’t get any more different than Gemini and Taurus.  Mars in Gemini is light on his feet.  His goal is to be stimulated, to find new or novel situations, to meet different people, to just be out there in the world bumping into everyone and everything ---and occasionally bumping with a sharp knife.    I recently read about an author who got into fisticuffs with another writer over a description of a sunset.   Wow.  Some people slug another guy over a woman, or an insult but not this guy, he got mad over prose.     When I looked up his Mars I saw it was not in Gemini which surprised me but I saw it was in Virgo, the other mutable signed ruled by Mercury…so same thing.   Anyway, the point is that words count this 29- day cycle.  Don’t be surprised if you get all wrapped up in drama because of what someone said.   If you can breathe through it and not go into battle and instead use the Mars in Gemini’s innate curiosity to help come up with new interesting solutions to help better your self worth that of course would be better. But then, sometimes, someone just needs a good snap and it might be your time to give it or get one.

 

And then there is Mercury Retrograde

Whoa, Nellie.   If it is not bad enough that we will be spread thin (Mars in Gemini) while we try to build things bit by bit (Taurus) we have the extraordinary gift of a Mercury retrograde in his home sign of Gemini.   Lord, deliver us from the miscommunication!     Mercury turns retrograde a handful of hours after the launch of the new moon. 

 

The window for the retrograde is:  

Mercury turns retrograde on May 18 9:49pm EDT at 13 Gemini 9

Mercury turns direct on June 11 5:33pm EDT at 4 Gemini 34

And it leaves its shadow point on June 26

 

Last June (2014) we had a taste of Mercury retro in Gemini although it launched in Cancer.  So, that was a more emotional retrograde.  This time it is all Gemini.  Not a smidge of a neighboring sign.    This will not a particular ‘feeling’ retrograde.  It is more about taking our brain and putting it into a vegamatic.  Slicing and dicing our thoughts into such tiny squares that we have a hard time finding our way through a conversation.    We will be scattered like there is no tomorrow.  Will we be crying?  Probably not.   But we might be yelling (thanks to Mars), we might get frustrated and we might be thin skinned and yes, our computer will break, our car will melt down, electronics will spark blah, blah, blah.  You know all that stuff.  What is more important is to try and slow down.   It will be hard but slow down and process stuff the best way you can.  And more than anything, you need to be ADAPTABLE.     Perhaps the gift of this Mercury retrograde during the Taurus cycle is building on our ability to adapt.     And maybe just maybe some of the seeds you planted back on Aries need your support by you adapting.  Who knows?   We will all have lots to think about until June 11 when it turns direct.     But plain and simple, back up anything that needs backing up.   Double-check every reservation and every email and every posting on social media.  Think long and hard before you hit send or post.   

 

Between the Mars in Gemini conjunction and the Mercury retrograde in Gemini we really we have all booked passage to ADHD Land for 29 days.    Every day is going to be up, down, left, right, stop, go, do this, do that…you get the drift.   For those who know Larry David, let’s assume we are all in a CURBED episode every day for 29 days.    And for goodness sake, please laugh.   No matter how cuckoo your day turns out to be and probably frustrating---Laugh. It will help.   I promise.

 

The day after Mercury turns direct Neptune begins his annual retrograde.    Interesting that Mercury is in its ruling sign Gemini and Neptune is in Pisces its ruling sign and both turn retro in this Taurus lunar cycle.     Taurus is so practical and those two are so wacky.   Perhaps there is a sober spin to their madness.  Neptune is connected to our dreams and anything divine or spiritual.  Neptune is how we love humanity.    Taurus with Venus as a ruling planet is how we love that person next to us.  Neptune in Pisces is so dang dreamy and really wants to believe that if “I think it, then it will be true.”  Ha!   Wouldn’t it be nice if it were that easy?  Neptune launching his retrograde now will ask us how to connect to humanity in a practical, real world way.  It is not enough to just think about doing good or whatever it is that we think will help improve the world.  We need to get up and do it.  And be practical about it.    Neptune will be retrograde until November 18 when it turns direct in the Scorpio Lunar Phase, the opposite of Taurus.    Expect some issues to come up in the news for the next six months that leave us scratching our head and we say, “There’s gotta be a practical solution to that issue.” 

 

Saturn continues its own retrograde movement, which started in March and will wrap up August 2.    Saturn is in Sagittarius but on June 14, it moves out of Sag and back into Scorpio.    So we get Mercury turning direct on the June 11 and Neptune turning retrograde on June 13 and then Saturn moving into Scorpio on June 14.  That’s a lot of movements.   Watch what comes up that window that gets your attention.    Saturn stays in Scorpio until September 17 and then it will move into Sag and won’t return to Scorpio for about 27 years.    Saturn is a tough disciplinarian.   He is a taskmaster.    In the sign Scorpio we are working on our joint resources, our sex, our debts, anything co-mingled, anything legal and of course death and rebirth.  Saturn is as serious as a heart attack on those matters.   If you are dicking around on any of those topics and throw in taxes for good measure, take the four months between June and September to clean up any long standing issue in the Scorpio world. 

 

In conclusions, it is going to be a cuckoo crazy cycle.   I’m not sure what we all look like on the other side of it but I have a feeling we will all be lighter.  I don’t think I have ever said that about Taurus but this one is different.     See you in four weeks for Gemini.  

 

Have you friended TracyAstroSalon on FB?  Why not? 

 

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The 8 phases

 

May 18

12:13am  EDT 

26 Taurus 56

 

 

 

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:   Where do you need to get practical?  What do you need to tackle bit by bit?  Where do you need to be committed?  What job needs your full attention?  What is going on with your self worth?  How is your money and your love?

 

 

Special Focus:  

5/18:  Mercury Retrograde 13 Gemini  9:49 pm EDT  (see above) –until June 11

5/21:  Sun moves into Gemini 4:44am

 

 

Crescent Moon Phase

May 21

2:03 pm EDT  

 

 

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 emotions?  What are you learning about what makes you feel secure?  What are you learning about your childhood?  What are you learning about your family?  What are you learning about the hard shell you wear that protects the soft stuff?   Did you forget you have soft stuff and are overly focused on the shell?

 

Special Focus:

 

5/21: Venus opp Pluto:  Values okay? Or do they need to be overhauled?  Power and love at war.  Or need to die and be overhauled.

5/22: Sun opp Saturn:  Will power versus structure.  Rigidity versus flexibility.

5/25:  Venus Sq Uranus.   Twice a year we get this aspect that pits love, values, resources against CHANGE.    Try to remain flexible.

 

First Quarter Moon

May 25

1:18pm EDT

 

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:  What actions can you take that really tighten up stuff?  What actions can you take that dot the I’s and cross the t’s.   What is coming up since Mercury retrograde that speaks to areas that are sloppy in your life?  How can you clean up your sloppy stuff?  Not just for this instance but for life in general.    What new skills need to show up?  

 

 

Special focus

5/27: Mercury Con Mars:  The mouth is fast and furious. The brain is moving at light speed.    Tell your brain and mouth to watch the speed bumps! 

 

Gibbous Moon

May 29

4:04pm EDT EDT   

 

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:

 What have we missed about finding balance?  What is totally out of whack? Where have we been overly focused and at the same time where have we been missing the point?   What corner of our life is getting no sunlight?  But the other areas are getting to much?  What have we missed about our relationships?   How are we in balance with them? Or Not?   

 

 

Special Focus:

5/29: Mercury Sq Neptune:  Dreamy thinking.  Communications are fuzzy.   Lies are in the air.

5/30: Sun con Mercury:  Thinking is elevated.  New ideas pop through the din of noise.

5/31: Sun SQ Neptune: Accent on cuckoo and crazy.   Distortions are pronounced.  Get out of the way of any circuses.       

 

Full Moon Phase

June 2

12: 18pm EDT

11 Sag 49

 

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:   Full Moon in Sagittarius.  We feel overwhelmed by data and things on our To-Do list.  The brain is overflowing with so much information that we can feel like a boat without a rudder.   Not sure what direction we are taking.   The answer is to rise above the mundane crazy and look at the bigger picture.    Anything that has you saying, “YES” must respond to a larger context.   Don’t just scratch things off your To-Do list, instead ask what is the meaning of doing it.

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Special focus:

6/5:  Venus in Leo

6/5: Mars sextile Jupiter:  Actions bridge fun adventures.   Joy and bravery merge.  Movements that support heart driven causes. 

 

 

June 6

Disseminating

1:24am EDT  

 

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:  How are you sharing your community?  How are members of your community of ‘like-minded’ supporting you?  And how are you sharing that support with others?   How are others sharing their community with you?  What practical support are you learning?   How is technology supporting you?  How are you sharing technology with others?  

 

Special focus:

6/6: Venus TRI Saturn:  Love has a backbone.  Values feel straight.  Money and love receive support.     Creativity and Expansion go hand in hand.

6/8: Sun SXT Jupiter:  get your play and love on.  Time to reach out and have fun.  Time to explore.   Even in your office or home, let your heart explore new ideas or ground.

 

 

Last Quarter Moon Phase

June 9

11:41am EDT

 

 

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:

What actions are you taking that speak to your faith? What actions can you take that support your spirituality?  How is your spirituality being called upon?   How are you being practical about your faith?  

 

 

Special focus:

6/9: Mars SEXT Uranus:  Actions that originate with CHANGE.  No doing the same ol’ thing again and again, wanting to do something new.

6/10: Mercury SXT Venus:  Communication and love are in sync.   Creativity and money are given a mental boost.

6/10: Sun SXT Uranus.  Fun, novel changes are inspiring new growth. 

6/11:  Mercury turns direct 04 Gemini 34 6:32am EDT –thank god.

6/12:  Neptune turns retrograde 09 Pisces 49 (see above)

 

Balsamic Moon Phase

June 12

9:50pm EDT

   

 

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

 

Focus on We release our rigidity.  We release our stubbornness.  We release our controlling.  We release our bossiness.  We release our creature comforts.  What do we look like when we release all of the above? 

 

 

Special focus:

 

6/14: Saturn returns to Scorpio (see above)

6/14: Sun CON Mars:  Fast actions. Inspired movement. Rushing around.  Moving fast. 

 

Gemini New Moon June 16 12:13am EDT