On February 1, 12:45 AM ET, a New Moon in Aquarius takes place, and we begin a lunar cycle characterized by unpredictability. During the upcoming weeks, we will have opportunities to become aware of our conditioning and liberate ourselves from its shackles.
The Sun and the Moon join Saturn, the ancient ruler of the sign, and square Uranus, the modern ruler of Aquarius, now transiting through Taurus. This Aquarius New Moon magnifies the tension of the Saturn-Uranus square, the characterizing alignment of 2021, which will continue to be active for several months, even if the angle won’t be exact again. Throughout the lunar cycle ahead, the spotlight will be on social dynamics that need to change.
This New Moon also marks the beginning of the Lunar New Year, which corresponds to the Chinese New Year. According to Chinese tradition, 2022 is the year of the Tiger and is associated with the element of Water.
To celebrate the arrival of this New Moon in Aquarius, on February 1 at 9:45 PM ET, we are hosting Global Live New Moon in Aquarius Meditation on our YouTube channel. We invite you to join us, and invite others to meditate together with us. Tap here to find our scheduled live meditation.
New Moon in Aquarius: Exploring the Role of the Individual in the Collective
When the Moon joins the Sun in the heavens, a seed is planted. The Moon is now emerging from her phase of darkness and in the upcoming days will be, once again, visible in the night sky. New Moons are about fresh starts and new beginnings. They represent the first phase of the lunar cycle, a moment to set intentions for the future. During the two weeks leading up to the Full Moon, we will have chances to act on them in a spontaneous, intuitive fashion.
The activation of the sign of Aquarius emphasizes the need to reflect on the role of us as individuals within the collective, and reconsider our duties, our responsibilities, and our rights. Throughout the upcoming lunar cycle, we have an opportunity to find links between our personal aspirations and a socially relevant purpose, offer tangible values to others, and make our contribution to the advancement of civilization. We will have chances to reflect on what we want to manifest, what we want to build, and whether that is relevant only for us or is also valuable for the collective.
Aquarius: Objectivity, Detachment, and Paradox
Aquarius is the detached observer looking at life through the glass of a window. It is the opposite sign of Leo, which is about participating in life wholeheartedly. Through Aquarius, we understand existence objectively, we have revelations about life that can only occur when we are not engaged in its drama.
This sign is about self-discovery: it can be considered a paradoxical archetype with many seemingly contradictory facets. Aquarius is both the group and the individual, the rebel with a cause and the rebel without a cause, peer pressure and peer support, the human need to belong to a community, and the danger of losing our individuality into it.
This New Moon in the sign of the Water Bearer may bring up contrasting tendencies. On the one hand, the impulse to differentiate from the majority and take our own path. On the other hand, the temptation, more or less conscious, to conform to what the mainstream or others expects from us, in order to feel safe, accepted, and loved.
New Moon conjunct Saturn & square Uranus: Clashing Desires
We have become very familiar with the friction associated with the Saturn-Uranus square, reflecting the tension between the forces wanting to maintain the existing systems and the forces trying to break them down. We are traversing a period of social, political, and financial instability: witnessing surprising global shifts and unexpected developments remains a possibility we can’t exclude.
Saturn tries to maintain predictability because it feels secure. So far, Saturn’s transit through Aquarius has been showing us how the forces of order and control wanting to preserve tradition have been trying to keep everything as it is with the aid of science and technology, and by increasing the pressure to conform to specific social norms, rules, and expectations.
Meanwhile, the forces of chaos and renewal keep working in the background. Uranus in Taurus has been threatening the foundations of the existing systems by generating a massive shift in our collective values and facilitating a slow revolution that is bringing us back to Nature, to our bodies, and simpler ways of living. Uranus is pure unpredictability: the Great Awakener wants to wake us up to the possibilities that the unknown can offer us and help us overcome our fear of it.
Learning from Mistakes & Remaining Open to the Unexpected
Uranus is about nonconformity, while Saturn is about conformity. Uranus is about liberation from existing forms and Saturn is the crystallization of form. Saturn is how the individual integrates into society, Uranus is how the individual breaks free from social norms, values, beliefs, and expectations that don’t resonate or that prevent growth from happening. Both archetypes are necessary, and the tension generated by their interaction brings forth evolution and progress.
While Saturn needs to know what to expect and aims to control all the processes, Uranus teaches us to learn from the unplanned, from mistakes and setbacks, and remain open to the unexpected. Uranus strikes like lightning, it acts quickly and flashes brightly. The discovery of the planet itself happened accidentally and created disruption in the scientific community, as it was the first celestial body discovered with a telescope. The Solar System suddenly became much more vast than what we originally thought it to be: Uranus’ discovery destroyed our certainties and brought up a lot of questions. This is precisely what happens when this planet is activated by transit.
The current emphasis on the archetypes of Aquarius and Uranus could inspire many of us to rebel against lifestyles, conditions, and ways of being that don’t honor our true nature. We may finally find the courage to detach from the past and allow the future in.
To help you harness this energy New Moon in Aquarius brings we have created New Moon in Aquarius printable channeled “Cycle of Unpredictability” journal and guided meditation audio. We invite you to use these New Moon in Aquarius Ritual tools: printable journal and join New Moon guide meditation audio together with Moon Omens Soul Family. Tap here to learn more and gain access to ritual tools.
Mars & Venus trine Uranus, square Chiron, sextile Jupiter
As the Aquarius New Moon takes place, Mars and Venus are in Capricorn, and they both trine Uranus in Taurus. These aspects facilitate action and artistry and remind us that disruptions to our plans can be a doorway to genius and brilliance. As we are dealing with the two relationship planets, unexpected encounters and changes in our relationship status are possible. This is even more the case considering that the upcoming lunar cycle will culminate in a Full Moon in romantic Leo happening simultaneously with the exact Venus-Mars conjunction.
On another note, both Mars and Venus are forming a square aspect to Chiron in Aries. This alignment may bring up wounds relative to self-assertion, taking action, and taking initiative. Feelings of rejection linked to the sensation that the expression of our desires and our feelings is not being well received or correctly interpreted by others could emerge. We may have chances to overcome the drive to repress our spontaneous impulses in order to be accepted, loved, or fit in, and resist the temptation to conceal from others what we truly want, feel, and need.
Mars and Venus are also in a sextile to Jupiter in Pisces. These harmonic aspects bring opportunities to make progress and move forward, support our creativity and energy levels, and promote the growth of those relationships based on a foundation of truth, honesty, and shared values.
Retrograde Mercury conjunct Pluto: Deepening our Perceptions
On this New Moon, Mercury is still retrograde and is conjunct Pluto in Capricorn. Their alignment is bringing up information previously hidden or secret, deepening our psychological analysis of ourselves and of the structure of society, while reflecting a tendency for compulsive, obsessive thinking. Mercury and Pluto sextile to Neptune reflect an openness to receive information from subtle channels and dimensions and deepen our intuitive understanding of reality.
Mercury stations direct in a couple of days. For the rest of the lunar cycle, the Messenger will promote the integration of what happened during the retrograde, facilitating mental clarity. Mercury comes back to Aquarius on February 14, shortly before the Leo Full Moon. During the rest of its journey through the sign, it will join Saturn and square Uranus. Mercury will inspire us to embrace out-of-the-box, innovative ways of thinking, and detach from conditioned, distorted ways of perceiving and interfacing with reality.
New Moon in Aquarius: a Cycle of Unpredictability
We are entering an unpredictable lunar cycle that could be colored by feelings of alienation, of being out of place, of being misunderstood. The activation of Uranus will inspire us to question our core motivations and values. It will challenge us to deal with the unexpected and ride the waves of change, while inviting us to root into our bodies and into the present moment.
The presence of Saturn conjunct Sun and Moon indicates the need to manifest and give form to something unique in the material reality. It invites us to build new, innovative structures, aligned with the systemic changes we want to see. This configuration encourages us to move away from those structures that have lost their purpose and function, that have become obsolete and restrictive.
The Aquarius New Moon conjunct Saturn and square Uranus will remind us of the link between freedom and responsibility and of the importance of accepting the duties and the commitments that our desires imply.
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P.S. for deeper personalized guidance for the month of February we invite you to get our February Horoscope.
