Henry Seltzer – As we get into the actual heart of the New Year timing, with the mid-Capricorn New Moon of Saturday evening, January 9th, conjunct Pluto, itself closely square Uranus, and with Mercury having begun its month-long retrograde cycle through the sign of Capricorn, we can sum up these first tentative steps into 2016 as in some ways a continuation of where we left off, enmeshed and enmired in the difficult cycles of the previous year. And yet in other ways this new cycle might be seen as a new departure, as is appropriate for a fresh calendar page in its turning; and we might be reflecting that, after all, there is always hope.
There is plenty of inventiveness in the strong presence of Uranus that we have seen in recent cycles and as well in the symbolism of Jupiter and the new planet, Eris, lighting up their own corners of these January skies, each proclaiming in different ways a paean for optimism and courage in the face of danger and environmental devastation. Indeed the human race has so much potential for greatness and for love that we might well be optimistic, for the solution to all of the divisiveness and polarity of these ultra-modern times is near at hand. As Paul Simon once famously reminded us, it is “only a motion away.”
In this first week of the New Year we have had several events leading up to this New Moon of the 9th, namely the retrograde of Mercury on the 5th and that of Jupiter on the 7th, in close alignment with the nodal axis. Prominent Jupiter, even though in retrograde motion, brings expansiveness and positive thinking to our scene. The Mercury Retrograde cycle that will last through to the middle of February, when we take the period of the ‘retrograde shadow’ into account, implies that we are in a very introspective place, for the most part, and reviewing the area of life where Capricorn lands in either our natal or our solar chart. When Mercury slows to a standstill and changes to direct motion on January 25th, it stations in conjunction with Pluto, so that the final ten days of January will be another quite interesting time.
Jupiter is quite prominent in this configuration also, being conjunct the Moon’s North Node, signifying moving onward with our lives. Being in a close inconjunct at this timing with the new planet, Eris, adds to this factor. Eris can be characterized as a spiritual warrior energy for soul intention, and is a factor that is very prominent as well in these current skies. Eris stations to direct motion on the day of the New Moon, and Uranus is close to Eris now, in forming conjunction that culminates in several exact hits over the summer, adding to the prominence of Uranus in the astrology of 2016. Uranus is also getting into an even more exact square with Pluto, as the January month unwinds, to a little more than one degree by month’s end. Although in mid-February these two powerhouse planets will once again begin, slowly, to separate, their “influence” lasts through to the end of the decade, as does Uranus- Eris in their conjunction.
In the chart for the New Moon also, you might want to stop and think about Venus in conjunction with Saturn, because this makes the conservatism of Saturn quite prominent. Saturn is also still widely square Neptune, indicating that there is a dreamy quality now to your meditations and for your plans to enable into being a more ideal world. The Saturn-Neptune square that was quite active at the end of last year comes back this spring and summer, and lasts in its general effects right through to the summer of 2017. All in all, this is an excellent time for you to ponder and make adjustments to your path work that lies ahead of you.
The Sabian Symbol for the degree of this New Moon in Capricorn provides much food for thought: “A hidden choir singing.” Marc Edmund Jones remarks on “the eternal music of the spheres,” and goes on to say that the symbol indicates “a unique gift for establishing a common interest and making it a power for the good of all.” Indeed, we have to find within ourselves the music that we would like to hear sung all around us; the song that we most passionately desire to foster within ourselves as we grow. We can only feel this chord of universal harmony by delving within, to discover what we have on the inside, deep within the mysterious confines of our very own minds and hearts.
SF Source Astrograph Jan 2016
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