Moon into Taurus

Monday evening through Thursday morning

Reach out your intuitive sense today. There's a shift in the cosmic winds, as Neptune puts her toes into the Piscean ocean. This planet of dreams and visions, glamour and delusion, poetry and spiritual connection, will swim in Pisces until August, when a retrograde takes her back into Aquarius. She returns in February 2012 for a fourteen year swim through these waters.

dolphin riding the waves

As if to mark the change, the Moon leaves fiery Aries for peaceful Taurus this evening. An early morning conjunction with Mercury retrograde in Aries (6:04am EDT) initiated the Moon's void of course time, which ends with her entry into Taurus at 7:46pm EDT. One minute later, the Moon flows energy in sextile with Neptune, waving across the water.

Water and Earth are the receptive, yin elements, patient and calm. Yang, the active, thrusting, fiery energy of Aries, shifts into yin. This is a natural flow, if we are prepared to sense it and allow it. Yes, there are still five planets in Aries, and yet we feel a new balance emerging. The Taurus Moon will nurture the seeds we planted at the Aries New Moon, making sure they have what they need to take root and grow strong.

Tuesday, the Moon flows energy in trine with Pluto in Capricorn. While Aries squares off with Capricorn, challenging the power of Earth, the Taurus Moon says to Pluto, we can work together. What is it that needs to grow here? What needs to be nurtured? I can do that.

The Moon will sextile Chiron in Pisces overnight, offering gentle support for healing. Tuesday morning, the Moon sextiles the asteroid Ceres, the Grain Mother, offering support to bring Spring growth. Tuesday night, the Moon sextiles Venus in Pisces, flowing peace into our relationships and perhaps quiet and sensuous inspiration from our muse.

Tuesday night's sextile with Venus begins a long void of course time that lasts until the Moon enters bright Gemini early Thursday (7:21am EDT). Wednesday's key aspect is a conjunction between the Sun and Jupiter in Aries, expanding Aries fire and bringing exuberant vitality. The Moon holding her breath, and Mercury retrograde, remind us to embrace the joy and avoid the temptation to overextend.

For those working with anger issues at this time: The ongoing strong Aries signature, and especially the Mars-Uranus conjunction, will continue to offer challenges to our ability to stay calm in the face of provocation. Don't mistake Taurus' patience for weakness, or its quiet for acceptance. When it comes to standing up for what we believe, moving from Aries to Taurus is the shift from the irresistible force to the immovable object. As Taurus energy increases over the next weeks, explore these new ways to work with difficult circumstances.