Aquarius Last Quarter Moon at 3°19′
—April 23
Today’s last quarter moon is separating from Pluto, while Mercury is connecting to the North Node, and the Piscean stellium continues on… and so the truth needing to be spoken is derived from personal lessons and inner learning—which, in turn, lends its wisdoms to teaching and inspiration, and of course, compassion toward the underdog, as well as all of humanity.
Today’s Aquarius moon, specifically through its square to Uranus, needs to speak the truth—yours, and for the people…
Where, in your beingness, do you prefer to belong?
How do you best identify with your own divinity?
The degree through which today’s last quarter moon occurs is associated with ‘perceiving the divine in all people and channeling this energy into good works; breaking through emotional blockages that can result in physical problems; reestablishing a flow of pranic energy; having the courage to reach out to others; living out ideals; speaking to others from the heart; immersing oneself in life; wrestling with spiritual blockages; and responding passionately to life…’
Today’s energies might insist that you confront some of your fears, particularly through the stating of your truths… and, of course, this can be, potentially, somewhat painful, struggled, tense, or triggering. Which is where the necessary healing today’s energies collectively conjure comes to the celestial rescue.
Through these very personal, yet ridiculously humane, vulnerabilities and confrontations—today’s energies could very well present challenges involving, as astrologer Austin Coppock expresses through the first decan of Aquarius, “the mark of the eccentric, exile, the rebel, and the pioneer…”
What, within you, pinpoints or stems from your authenticity?—and is this, also, where your vulnerabilities lie?—or where your belongingness begins?
In what ways would you agree or disagree that you express the plight or highlight of an eccentric, an exile, a rebel, or a pioneer?
Today could also be a lonely day, as one could imagine—in reference to the above-mentioned descriptors, or even a day for which relationships are compromised, damaged, or entirely severed… especially if you decide to go it alone, whatever it is you may do—in your truth.
The 5 of swords in the tarot is the card associated with the first decan of Aquarius, a card which is also typically a card signaling trouble…
Tarot writer Jessica Dore writes of the 5 of swords, that “mythologist Martin Shaw has written, ‘bad storytellers make spells; great storytellers break them…’”
Dore writes that this card could interpret both victory or failure, depending upon your own individual wisdoms… “simply engaging with this card is an experiential lesson in the unique capacity of the intellect to make meaning out of not-yet-named things—there’s always an option to tell a more or less empowering version of a story.”
Continued, Dore writes, “when we go to a healer of any kind, we always bring a tale—usually that story has been pared down to a version that is succinct and oversimplified: the key points, the crux of the thing, the core complaints…”.
Where it gets really bold is when Dore confesses that “true healing depends on an understanding of the dynamic and contextual nature of our stories—when we make problems into elevator speeches, we’re choosing a psychic location for ourselves: ‘I am broken, I am damaged, I have been victimized’… if that stance is not one of agency or power, we start to see our lives through that perspective, and the brain’s confirmation bias excludes anything to the contrary: ‘I am broken and am blind to any evidence that I am whole; I am damaged and therefore cannot see physical proof that I am perfect in my complexities; I am a victim, I cannot see my power…’”
Finally, “in order to smooth out the texture of our stories—to make it easier for telling to ourselves or others—we conveniently omit perspectives that might complicate things… but don’t forget that the Fool’s journey is one of occupying the edges, where nothing is all this or that, all good or bad.”
The most successful people, popular or obscure, will tell you to fail, fail again, to fail harder—because it is through your failures, and your breaks from the mainstream, that you’ll learn the most and be open to the most potentials for inner growth.
Finally, finally, “and while you are never—and I repeat, never—required to frame a traumatic experience as an opportunity, you always, always, always have the option to tell a story that highlights your agency and power.”
❝I am not eccentric. It’s just that I am more alive than most people. I am an unpopular electric eel set in a pond of catfish.❞
——Edith Sitwell
🖋️ by Jamie James; 📷
Coppock, A. “36 Faces.” Three Hands Press; ©2014.
Dore, J. “Tarot for Change.” Penguin Life; ©2021.
Goldsmith, M. “The Zodiac by Degrees.” Weiser Books; ©2004.
Hill, L. “360 Degrees of Wisdom.” A Plume Book; ©2004.
Kaldera, R. “Moon Phase Astrology.” Destiny Books; ©2011.