ARIES NEW MOON

As our beloved Grandmother moon wanes towards a Micro New Moon in Aries on 11th/12th April, there are lots of strong astrological energies weaving their stories in our consciousness this week. The big energies that you may be experiencing this week are Tuesday's Venus Sextile Mars, Thursday's Mercury conjunct Chiron, Friday's Mars Square Neptune and Saturn Trine North Node, Saturday's Mercury Sextile North Node and Saturn and Venus Sextile Jupiter, Sunday's New Moon coincides with Venus Squaring Pluto... this all may be experienced as a overwhelm or if you're consciously going with the flow you may be pleasantly surprised by how quickly your dreams may start to manifest in reality. When I tune in to the energies as a whole for this Aries New Moon I keep hearing the simple observation that Aries is an anagram of Arise and the image I am getting is the phoenix rising from the ashes in the flames of our raging hears. Take courage this week Beloveds, take your time and practice kindness and patience with yourself. If ever there was a time to master counting to 10 before speaking this week is it! The power of our words are magnified this week and particularly with this New Moon be extra careful what you wish for.

As I write this we have already collectively experienced this transit and I for one felt it as a very harmonious energy. We've all heard of the book "Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus", although I feel like the title explained enough for me so confess to never having read the book. Still you get it, Mars is the masculine archetype (yang, sun, action, linear, warrior king etc.) and Venus is the feminine archetype (yin, moon, inaction, cyclical, intuitive goddess). Sextile, is a super harmonious and cooperative aspect in astrology meaning that planets are positioned in the heavens at a special 60° degree angle. It's easy to remember this is a positive aspect because sextile feels well.... simply put just sexy right? Depending on which sign your Venus and Mars are in your chart, you may have experienced this as each of the planet’s energies within you inspiring and encouraging each other rather than being in conflict. Because of this, you may have new ideas and opportunities flowing more smoothly bringing your sometimes opposing wants and needs more into balance. As I write this I am realising that I may have experienced this energy this way because my Venus and Mars are in Libra... Let me know if the comments below if you have felt this different?

On Thursday the planet of communications Mercury joins forces with the wounded healer asteroid Chiron in Aries, so you may experience this as finding new ways to express the truth about your own healing processes. Collective healing is a huge theme in 2021 and we are all going through so much transition that it may manifest as feeling like we need to rest or withdraw from life to recenter and recalibrate. I know that I am feeling called to do that at the moment and allowing myself time to adjust and integrate the learnings of the past year before formulating and executing a plan for the next phase of my journey. There has been so much uncertainty lately that it feels like we are all developing a resilience and resistance to committing to any plans that we may need to cancel. Our hearts have suffered too much disappointment and grief that the slightest hope of new beginnings is processed with extreme caution and the idea of reopening the world in the way things used to operate is simply unfathomable. We have been through so much. Let's not underestimate the sheer amount of healing that each of us and our planet and beloved home Mother Earth still need to go through. Mercury conjunct Chiron in Aries may ignite our passions to fight as warriors of light for the truth of what fundamental changes we see need to happen to facilitate reclaiming our holistic health as an ecosystem here on Earth. As Tupac says in one of my favourite tracks to practice ELDOA™ with:

Two words for you this Friday ~

Be

Kind 

As Mars continues to play out of bounds in Gemini we are going to be feeling his out of control fiery warrior nature as a bubbling under the surface. In fact, I've been feeling this since the weekend. When two planets square off against one another then it can cause serious confrontation of friction and potential for drama. So safeguard your energies this week and pay attention to any irritations that if not dealt with might explode on Friday. Neptune is at home in dreamy Pisces so this usually means heightened psychic awareness and intuition, including enhanced clarity of dreams. However, the fiery opposition of Mars could highlight the shadow side of Neptune which is deception, illusion and outright lies. So, prepare for an unveiling this Friday, or even before. This could well be an unveiling of a truth that could serve the collective on a massive scale. Or it could be an awakening within you personally that you are no longer willing to just go with the flow. You may experience this as a rage in the heart that desperately needs some expression in order for you to preserve your own mental, physical and spiritual health. The best way to navigate any of these strong emotional responses is to breathe through them and find some kind of outlet that feels safe and gives you time to process and choose the right time to share with others, if you ever do. Remember that finding our voice to share our truth also involves developing our capacity to listen and integrate new information. All of this energy will play out within the sacral and solar plexus chakras so do what you can in your yoga, pranayama, mudra and meditation practice to bring the fire and the water within you into balance.

Saturn is named after the God of Time, Cronus who ruled over humanity during the Golden Age after devouring his father Ouranus (Uranus). He is the father of Zeus, or Jupiter and as such he is known as Grandfather Time. I always think of him as a great teacher who facilitates our life lessons through some of our biggest challenges and hardships. This week he is making a benevolent trine in the skies above us with the North Node of Grandmother Moon which is our collective Soul Purpose. Combined with all of the building Aries fire element with the imminent New Moon, we may feel our creative urges activated to make bold steps forward to manifest our dreams for a New Earth. The big message coming through here is to give ourselves time. Use this New Moon to plant your seeds of intention because with Saturn and the North Node's support they could flourish beyond your wildest dreams. Patience, butterfly. You've got this.

This Saturday promises to be rather dynamic with all of the sexy sextiles in the sky. Mercury in Aries (communication) sextiles our North Node (collective soul purpose) and what's sexier than finding ways to put into words what turns our lights on and makes us get out of bed in the morning. Watch out for any frustration with yourself or your nearest and dearest during this time though. Remember that Aries' ruler Mars is still out of bounds in Gemini so this could manifest as scattered energies or thoughts/ideas flying all over the place. Saturn sextile Jupiter will help us reel it back in and get grounded in reality while Venus joins sextiles Jupiter to expand our hearts beyond any limitations our minds may have been placing on our plans for new beginnings. All in all this is the perfect concoction for rewarding those of us who have been consciously planting seeds for positive intentions over the past year. I am feeling this as a booster shot to help me take a leap with my plans beyond the safety net. It's by no means feeling easy and the fears of taking a wrong turn are bubbling under the surface. The push-pull in the energy field is of course amplified here in the UK by ridiculously changeable weather as well as the edginess around transitioning back to opening up "non-essential" shops, pubs and restaurants after being in lockdown for so long. Some of us may have got quite used to our own company. I know that I have and there is slight trepidation surrounding re-emerging into the world before I'm ready. All of this prolonged time to myself has made me rather introspective and heightened my sensitivity to other people's energy. For now, I'm enjoying being a hermit and I wonder whether many others may think they're craving company but then when they do meet up with others they find it exhausting. We are adaptable beings and perhaps we are going to need to shake ourselves out of this somnambulant lifestyle.

On the same day of our dark moon we have additional challenge in the form of Venus squaring Pluto which could bring up conflicts in the area of love, money and what we value. Pluto is in the 13th year of a total of 16 years moving through Capricorn which has been and continues to be about transforming governing structures and systems, moving into Aquarius on 21st January 2024. It is said that at this point the Age of Aquarius will be in full swing. In the meantime, Pluto is doing its work to dissolve outmoded structures and redress imbalances in the way we as a generation work together. Just to give you an idea of the level of transformation this planet can precipitate, last time Pluto was in Capricorn coincided with the fall of the Roman Empire. Meanwhile, Venus is feeling uncomfortable in the masculine archetype Aries, ruled by her twin flame Mars, so be ready for the dark moon to cast heavier shadows around control and power dynamics within your closest personal relationships. Similarly you may become more aware of imbalances in the way you manage your financial affairs and notice whether you're holding on too tightly. Remember that money is an energy like water, flowing in and out of our lives. If we do not take care of paying off our debts then this creates a stagnation in the flow of money coming in. We must renew our faith in our ability to earn everything that we need and if we are aware of receiving too much it is up to us to ensure there is equilibrium between what comes in and what goes out. Notice if you're holding on too tightly to money and not sharing with those who may need it more than you. Also, notice if there are any relationships in your life where money is used as a control mechanism leading to codependency. If you are conscious of receiving too much then now is the time to be generous. As a generation, we may also be waking up to the fact that money is merely a construct and that when we collectively re-prioritise the holistic health of our planet over the excesses of consumerism, true transformation towards a New Earth can happen. Make no mistake, we all are terrified of letting go of what we know to be "normal." But many of us are equally terrified of going back to how things used to be. The most gratifying part of this transitional time is that there is no way back. The only way is forwards, which takes renewed faith and courage.

Maya Angelou speaks during Senior Convocation, 24 May 2008, Cornell University

Thanks to one of my favourite astrology teachers Bracha Goldsmith who shared in her latest video the above quote by much-loved author and civl rights activist Maya Angelou. We are living through a Great Shift which is taking so much collective courage to navigate. Aries is fire element and lives in the manipura chakra (solar plexus energy centre) in the body. This is a good time to give yourself permission to try new things. Listen to your intuition and filter out the noise to find your true feelings about where you are going in your current profession, relationship or home situation, or all of the above. If a little voice inside is whispering it's time to make some changes, then do your best not to dismiss it. Take time to tune in and listen more closely. Give yourself a massive break as well though. There is no rush. If you take time out in nature at the moment you will see all of the buds of new life forming on the trees. They each are part of an organic process. You are too. So allow yourself the freedom to explore the new without placing too much pressure on yourself for immediate results. Deep down you know what is the best way forward for you and your nearest and dearest. Develop your trust and confidence (confide-ence = ability to confide in oneself) so that the next part of your journey is created by you. If you don't allow yourself to do this then someone else will do it for you. Notice moments when you let go of responsibility for your mental, emotional and physical health. When I say give yourself a break, that includes literally letting yourself rest. If everything feels like it's moving too fast for you right now, then let it be. We often make the process of growth so much harder than it needs to be. It is when we rest that we do our best work. We practice the art of doing without doing. We remember how to just be. So this New Moon, how can you give yourself the gift of just being?

Thank you for reading my cosmic energy updates. I hope that you have been finding them helpful during these crazy times we find ourselves living in. I'm in the process of moving my blog over to a new community space on Mighty Networks, away from the noise and surveillance of social media. From May 2021 onwards I intend to focus all of my online activity over there in one place. For now I'm calling this new space Lou Hart + because it is where you'll be able to get more access to my services.

My weekly cosmic energy updates will continue to be part of the free membership to the online community over there and you will be given options to upgrade to premium memberships that will include online courses in yoga + meditation + astrology + essential oils.

LOVE

Lou

xoxox