New Moon in Capricorn
The new moon this month is in the sign of the goat-fish, with the Sun and Moon making their monthly conjunction on Monday 30th December at 10.26pm. Capricorn reminds us of our duties and responsibilities, challenging us to take a stand, connect to our core values, and make known our intention. Its image is of the hardy goat who stands firm in its conviction, while others cower, and carries on where others give up. And through its mysterious fish’s tail, it remembers the earliest origins of life, carried through the deep waters of the soul, life after life. Saturn-ruled Capricorn confronts you with the question: "You've come here to do something with your life, so what are you doing about it?" It is the sign that grounds us in our commitments, and calls us to account when we turn away from them. This new moon urges us us to re-connect with the founding motivations behind our vocation and calling. Being in the 10th degree of Capricorn, those of us that have personal planets or angles around that degree of Capricorn or the other cardinal signs (Aries, Cancer or Libra) will tend to experience the significance of this more intensely.
Capricorn is the third of the earth signs in the wheel: the first, Taurus, grants us our talents and resources, then Virgo enables us to put these into practice in terms of the useful work that employs our time, while in Capricorn, it is about aligning what we do to our purpose in life. Victor Frankl described the need for a person to acknowledge and commit to their vocation in life, as the ‘concrete assignment that demands fulfilment’.
What inspires you to do what you do? And why is it so important to you? Think about your non-negotiable values, things like integrity, trust, honesty, service - to what extent are you living true to them? I personally find it useful at the Capricorn new moon to distinguish four core values and imagine them as the four pillars of a temple that house my soul and support my direction in life. I also like to imagine that this temple is aligned to the north star in which I invest my intention for the year ahead, a point of focus towards which I direct my energy.
There are no major aspects made to the Sun/Moon conjunction in the new moon chart, however we are undergoing two significant transits involving other planets: Jupiter (retrograding in Gemini) and Saturn (in Pisces) are working through the second phase of their square aspect, which reflects a friction between the forces of possibility and those of necessity; perhaps it seems harder right now to manifest our dreams, or there might seem to be obstacles in the way of us seeing clearly the way ahead. It may be that we have to wait, reconsider our options, or re-evaluate what is important to us during this time. And with Mars retrograde, and opposing Pluto, our will-power may feel compromised or depleted; we may not seem to have the energy available to us to drive a particular project forward in the way we would want. When Mars is retrograde we must face the warrior within and dig deep for courage. During the Pluto opposition of Mars, there may be some shadow work to do around this, lest we project our anger out onto others in destructive ways. We may need to take some time to recuperate our energies, or take a hard look into what is causing us frustration or angst.
In the midst of this, Capricorn will continue to test your commitment to your life. What is your stand, and how does it support and strengthen your life's purpose? What are you willing to put your head above the parapet for, even if that risks spoiling your popularity rating or public image? This Capricorn new moon drives a hard bargain, concerned only about what really matters, what we hold sacred, and what it means to act with integrity. And that begs the further question: how do we take that strong stance without using our position to build walls around us, without making ourselves impenetrable to true human connection; to remain mindful of that which requires a much more sensitive, empathic type of engagement, lest the the shadow side of Capricorn raise its ugly head. The Capricorn shadow is encapsulated in that highly dubious, old goaty maxim: 'the ends justify the means'. When we give away our rights and freedoms to forms of authority who use this to justify their actions, we rarely get them back without a fight, and much of what is really meaningful in life, the soul-stuff, gets disregarded.
This sign is often connected to the mythic figure of Janus (from where we get January), the two-headed god of gateways and transitions, the one who minds our endings and beginnings. We are riding the cusp of a new year, which promises great change, is charged with uncertainty and potentised by as yet unrealised possibilities. It seems prudent, then, to acknowledge a figure that looks back and forth simultaneously, acting as the hinge who connects what is past with what is to come. And here we are, in the depth of Winter, needing to grieve our losses, release what no longer serves us, and call upon our strength of endurance and determination to see out the darker days and welcome back the light.
It is good to remember that new moons are about the sowing of new seeds, and what we initiate in the Capricorn season sets out our stall for the year ahead; like a well-thought-out 'new year's resolution', and this is a good time to set forth a longer term intention - and a strategy to go with it that lines up with our values and a grounded sense of what is achievable.
My Capricorn mantra runs: “I carry the wisdom of the elders, and the strength to complete the task I am set.”
New moon blessings to everyone.