Full Moon Aries - October 2021 - Breaking the Shackles
As the intensity of this lunar cycle has been made apparent in the last couple of weeks, we are entering a culmination phase that is undoubtedly shaping up to be memorable. This is going to propel us into new directions and force some uncomfortable but necessary changes. We know what we have to do in our individual situations, and it's up to us to do them.
The Full Moon Itself
The Full Moon goes exact at 27 Ari 26'05" on October 20th, 2021 at 07:56:38 PDT (14:56:38 UTC). The primary aspect of Sun opposite Moon puts the Moon at the end of Aries for this lunar cycle culmination. The themes for this Full Moon have to do with our core being, our own identity, who we are, our egos and drives and ambitions. As Aries is ruled by Mars, and given the Sun's interaction with the red planet, this is a rather potent Full Moon. Our dealings with partners, whether romantic or business-oriented, and whether potential or actual partners are involved, there's a lot of focus and energy here that will need to be processed and released. And that energy will be released during or soon after this Full Moon whether we want it to be or not. Balance between our own interests and that of those we are strongly aligned with will be the name of the game until the next lunar cycle begins in a couple of weeks.
Other Aspects to the Full Moon
The Full Moon in Aries is one side of the equation when it comes to a rather intense T-Square formation between itself, the Sun's conjunction to fiery Mars, and both sides of this squaring Pluto in Capricorn, which just ended its retrograde cycle recently. This give-and-take in our personal relationships and balancing with our own interests? Yeah, this is going to be a major test for us, as Pluto here is all about tearing down the governing structures and laying waste to that which is no longer serving our careers, our reputations, and basically what we're known for. Furthermore, Mars square Pluto is an explosive mix, and at worst this can indicate people choosing violence. Unless we want to see the blood flow, we'd better be damn good at conflict resolution and quickly. At best, this can be an impressive drive towards reaching for our goals and ensuring success at all costs. Mars is still in Libra and thus debilitated, so there's a lot of frustrations when it comes to actually enacting our goals as a potential. Expect setbacks and redirect accordingly.
The Full Moon does also make a very weak sextile (with the Sun making a weak trine) to Jupiter in Aquarius, also no longer retrograde. The optimistic nature of Jupiter may have a marginal influence in defusing some of the more explosive situations, but we may not be able to count on this very much for the remainder of the cycle. Still, there's the possibility we can make our own luck if we know how to play these events right.
Other Noteworthy Aspects During the Full Moon
Mercury, fresh out of its retrograde in Libra, has a rather interesting set of aspects that will be of use where getting underway with our goals is concerned. It's almost like a shield pattern, though I'm uncertain if that's the right name for it. First off, Mercury opposite Chiron retrograde in Aries, this is one of the main aspects we have to be concerned with. We're still healing ourselves and trying to right what's gone wrong with our own core being, and Mercury can indicate we've got some give and take as far as how communicating these concerns will go. We may find ourselves still uncertain what to say to certain people in our lives (such as potential or actual partners), so we may still be facing some silence and being "left on read" since the ones we're close to (or desire to be close to) may not know what to say to us.
At the same time as that Mercury-Chiron link, we've got a pair of interesting trines from Mercury. Mercury trine Black Moon Lilith on Aldebaran in Gemini, we can speak from the heart and talk about some of our more deeper secrets to those we care about and trust right now, as we're digging deep into our shadow being now, and with Aldebaran involved, there's a possibility this could work out well, but there's also the risk of defeat, like we may be revealing something to someone who may not be ready to hear it. The trine aspect, one of the best "softer" aspects, this should soften the blow. On the other side of this we have Mercury trine Saturn in Aquarius, also fresh out of its retrograde cycle. We may need to set some things up with friends and allies to get things done, or perhaps we've got some accountability partners who will be better able to keep us on task, and we may be a little less resentful about it too.
As both Saturn and Black Moon Lilith sextile Chiron retrograde, this is a time where, given the Mercury link to all three of these, we can have some heartfelt discussions with those who are important in our lives, and actually get to the root of some issues. Perhaps even confess some true feelings for some potential partners.
Mercury also sextiles Venus in Sagittarius, in a sign ruled by Jupiter so there's a sense of optimism and hope here. This can play into that potential healing and mending of wounds thing going on with the Mercury "shield" pattern, and perhaps it's time to take a chance and let someone know that we're thinking of them. Another possibility is making meaningful art or giving someone a meaningful gift right now, or perhaps leading up to that sort of thing, depending on your situation.
There is still a risk here though, given that Sagittarius Venus makes an iffy quincunx to Uranus retrograde in Taurus. Perhaps we're feeling a little uncertain about how certain hopes and gifts would come across, or perhaps what we wish to display gets lost in translation. There's a chance of uncertainty about the stability we seek as well. This could take the form of instability in a job, for example. It could also be needing to sweeten the deal to attract the wealth we desire. The ongoing "Great Resignation" movement going on I think is represented in this aspect somewhat.
Mars does make a trine to Jupiter, so we've got the opportunity for some slight boost in our energy and optimism. A door may need to close to somewhere we didn't need to go for another one to open up to where we are needing to go through. Perhaps some boosts in our ways of thinking too, since Jupiter can also represent philosophy and how we rationalize the world. As Mars is also conjunct fixed star Spica, there's the opportunity for some good drive in getting things done.
Neptune retrograde in Pisces sextiling Pluto in Capricorn, there's the intuitive feel of knowing what needs to be changed and using our gut feelings to make those changes happen. Pluto retrograde before this had us looking at our lives and thinking about what was no longer working, and now that it's direct, those changes will come more rapidly now whether we're ready or not.
What Do the Cards Say?
I'm compelled to draw some cards for this Full Moon as well. Yep, I do read tarot as well as study astrology. Who knew?
As I was preparing to draw, Ten of Pentacles reversed and King of Swords upright leaped out, so those are significant. Ten of Pentacles is usually a good thing, but reversed, it seems there's some major abundance we're wanting or awaiting that just doesn't seem to be coming our way the way we want. King of Swords with this, this does indicate someone with firm but fair temperament will be involved in some way, or those qualities at least.
I continued drawing and was compelled to draw three more for this. We got the Six of Wands upright, Knight of Wands upright, and finally the Nine of Swords, also upright. An interesting mix. Six of Wands speaks to me of victory and championship, whereas the Knight of Wands represents news coming our way, news of action and driving forth (as Wands are a fire suit, while Swords are more air elemental). So some good news coming our way in accomplishing something. But that Nine of Swords... something's bothering us. Something is keeping us up at night. Is it the Ten of Pentacles reversed? Money woes are enough to make us lose sleep for sure.
The cards don't seem to want me to pull any more, at least that's what I get intuitively with this, so these five cards are it. So there's some success we'll be seeing during the rest of the Full Moon cycle, and some real anxieties regarding our resources and abundance (which goes hand in hand with the astrology, so it is congruent).
(Once I get my site update up and running, I'll add the picture of what I pulled here).
In Closing
This Full Moon does indicate that we will be seeing some things come to fruition, and what is hidden will definitely start coming to light. There's the opportunity for some real new beginnings here, or perhaps continuations. But there's some stuff that's just going to have to be dealt with and some endings are going to have to happen. Some of those endings are going to hurt, but in the long run it may be for the best (depending on the ending type).
Definitely keep alert for any trouble, and absolutely we need to not be careless or reckless right now. There's potential for success, but do watch for nasty surprises. And there will be help out there or we're already getting help now in some cases.
I like the card aspect I've added, so I'll be keeping this! I hope this resonates better with people. Anyways, until next time.
