Moon in Taurus

Tuesday morning through Thursday night

After the emotional sensitivity of the Pisces New Moon, and the fiery energy of Aries, the Moon slips into comfortable Taurus on Tuesday morning, and we can take in a deep breath and slow the pace down for a day or so.

Italian garden

Taurus is fixed Earth, the energy that prefers not to move, allowing everything to unfold in its own time. On Tuesday, the heavens are quiet, with no significant aspects, making this a wonderful day to relax. Quiet mediation, sensual massage, aromatherapy, soothing sounds ... all of these comfort the Taurus Moon.

Wednesday, the Taurus Moon makes her presence felt as she flows energy in trine with Pluto, supporting transformative change in peaceful ways. The Moon will challenge Venus in square, reminding Venus that not all the radical idea her time in Aquarius might suggest need to be implemented. The Moon sextiles Mars in dreamy Pisces, adjusting her course to flow with the energies of the cosmos.

While the Moon revels in a peaceful garden, Mercury jumps from visionary Pisces into impetuous Aries. Against the backdrop of a calm emotional state, the mind sparks with new ideas, new goals, new plans. Mercury in Aries can be direct, even blunt, in speech, so maintain your awareness of Taurus as this shift takes place.

Thursday, the waxing crescent Moon forms a flowing sextile with the Sun, allowing a clearer glimpse of our emerging New Moon wishes. This is an auspicious day for relationships, creativity and finances, as Venus and Jupiter, the two planets of good fortune and blessings, also form a sextile. May our intentions be fulfilled in the most beneficial possible ways!

Thursday evening, the Moon reaches the last degrees of Taurus, where she will square Neptune at the end of Aquarius and sextile Uranus poised at the end of Pisces. The Moon jumps into bright and busy Gemini just after midnight, at 12:31am EST Friday. Dreams tonight will be full of messages.

Moon in Aries

Saturday night through Tuesday morning

A world made new! If the New Moon in Pisces gave us a ringside seat at Milliways, the Restaurant at the End of the Universe, then the waxing Moon in Aries plops us down at the Big Bang Burger Bar as another cosmic cycle begins.

The Moon moves into Aries just after midnight, 12:14am EST Sunday, which could make sleep challenging for those sensitive to Moon shifts. Be sure to have pen and paper at your bedside tonight, because the combination of an Aries Moon with the remaining strong stellium in Pisces promises a night of active dreaming.

The Flame!

Sunday, the Moon pushes boundaries as she sextiles Venus in Aquarius, a flow of energy with the oomph to make the radical changes in our relationships and creative lives that Aquarian Venus loves to see. Then the Moon activates the tense Jupiter-Pluto square, as she squares Pluto in Capricorn and joins Jupiter in Aries. Our feelings are on fire, aligning with forces of change, ready to take on the world.

Meanwhile, the ripening inconjunct angle-of-adjustment between the Sun and Saturn comes exact on Sunday, Piscean dreams and visions needing to accommodate Saturn's clear understanding of the limits of time and space. Monday, the impetuous Aries Moon opposes Saturn, as again we're reminded that our actions have consequences.

The Moon has pulled ahead of Jupiter now, heralding the Aries week to come. Although the Moon leaves Aries Tuesday morning, Mercury will enter Aries on Wednesday, and revolutionary Uranus enters Aries on Friday. Uranus dipped into Aries last July as part of the dramatic Cardinal Cross, and now returns for seven years. At the end of which time, we can expect the world, and ourselves, to be radically, unexpectedly different.

Now, in these early days of the new lunar cycle, is the time for making wishes and setting intentions. While our intentions remain aligned with the flowing visions of Pisces, we plant them in the vigorous new ground of Aries. This is a time to be careful what we wish for, as we're likely to see great things emerge.

Moon in Pisces

Thursday morning through Saturday night

The Moon swims into Pisces' cosmic ocean at 11:46am EST Thursday, moving toward the New Moon in Pisces on Friday, March 4. There is strong focus on Pisces in the right now, that carries through the New Moon: Six planets span the sign from Chiron at 01 Pisces to Uranus at 29. The lineup also includes Mars and Mercury, as well as the Sun and Moon.

Pisces is visionary, empathic, and intuitive, with a felt sense that we are all part of each other, and of the cosmos. With the intensity of Pisces energy over the next few days, we're likely to feel more emotionally sensitive.

Thursday night brings Mars and the Moon together, and each one into a flowing sextile with Pluto. During this Moon transit, we may find ourselves ready to act (Mars) on intuitive guidance, or in following a creative muse, to do something transformative (Pluto).

Pisces is the last sign of the zodiac, a place of endings, of releasing what no longer serves us back to the cosmos. Having Mars active at this time can also make it easier for us to let go, readying ourselves for the new cycle that begins in Aries.

The usual approach for setting intentions and making wishes at the New Moon, is to wait until after the New Moon has occurred, when the last of the waning energy is past. This month, however, offers a special time before the New Moon, beginning Thursday night. The Hindu holy day Maha Shivaratri, described in this blog post by Ellen Longo, makes this the most auspicious New Moon of this year, a time when millions of Hindus worldwide will chant the name of Shiva, offering prayers and asking for blessings. In fact, the celebration of Shiva has already begun and will continue in waves through the many time zones of the world.

Shiva is a Piscean figure, the awareness the animates the universe, and one who sacrificed himself to save the world. He carries a trident, the Ganges flows from his head, and his third eye is open. Whatever our individual beliefs, we can merge with the energy of this special time, realize we are all one, and call on Shiva to help us.

The New Moon arrives Friday at 3:36pm EST, at 13 degrees of Pisces. Astrologer Hiroki Niizato sees emotional intelligence as the key theme for this New Moon, a time when we can tune in with our emotional antennae, live in the moment, and release the need for control. Solitude is powerful now, allowing us to connect with what is within.

Checking your birth chart for where the New Moon falls offers guidance on which areas of life most need release, or emotional intelligence, or both. Check also which of your birth planets are being aspected by the New Moon. Wishes and intentions can be made any time within about three days after the New Moon, as we plant our wishes like seeds in the new waxing cycle. If you create a personal ritual at this time, include water, a time for quiet meditation, and perhaps some creative expression, to honor the energy of Pisces.

Saturday morning, the Moon reaches the last degrees of Pisces, joining Mercury, and the Uranus in the very last degree, where he is poised to move into Aries in a few days. The Moon leads the way, entering Aries at 12:14pm EST.