MARCIA SACKS

The New Moon takes place on Tuesday, March 24 @ 4:28 a.m. CDT in 4° Aries. Coming right after the Vernal Equinox on March 19, it's a perfect time for new beginnings. Are you thinking, "I'm stuck here in my house. How can I start something new?" 

As motivational speakers say, "Where your mind goes, energy flows and results show!" Start internally, first deciding on your most important goal or new project. Then spend time using your imagination to visualize your successful results. Take some small first steps: Write it down, look up resources online, read a related book. It's the perfect time for phone calls or online meetings. Talk to people in your field or area of interest.

Or if you're a yogi, follow Goswami Kriyananda's advice and "seek out your own illumination with great diligence."

The chart of the New Moon holds a major planetary configuration. Jupiter is close to Pluto at this time, making an exact conjunction on April 5. Jupiter is the great teacher and Pluto rules our unconscious mind. As we have less activity externally, we may be turning inward, getting better acquainted with ourselves.

​In mythology Jupiter was the god of the sky and lightning. In ancient times, Pluto was seen as the god of wealth because gold, jewels and minerals were mined from underground. This conjunction could be seen then as a time when a lightning bolt of insight strikes deep into the earth and illuminates some treasure in our unconscious mind, something that has been hidden but is now revealed.

Saturn has just entered the sign of Aquarius where it will transit for the next 2 1/2 years. People with Taurus, Leo, Scorpio and Aquarius sun signs may have heavier responsibilities for the next few years. They can also accomplish great things with persistence and determination.

Saturn into an air sign like Aquarius can be a benefit to critical thinking. Situations and projects will require very thorough scientific thought and related proofs, policies and procedures.

​Saturn relates to confinement and Aquarius is associated with fellowship, the feeling of interconnectedness. It's an interesting symbol that just as Saturn is going into Aquarius, we are "social distancing."  It suggests that even as our concern with Covid-19 subsides, the trend toward working from home and meeting on conferencing apps may persist.

Because we're "sheltering in place", my noon meditation talk for the Temple of Kriya Yoga was created virtually. Here is the link to the pre-recorded "The Spring Equinox and Your Journey to Freedom." This noon meditation includes mantra, chanting, some thoughts about the Vernal Equinox and the Jupiter/Pluto conjunction, plus a guided meditation with healing imagery (the guided meditation starts around minute 38:30 if you want to go directly to that).

The Full Moon and the Vernal Equinox both occur on March 20, 2019. The Equinox is at 4:58 pm CDT, as always with the Sun at 0° Aries. The Full Moon is at 8:42 pm CDT in 0° Libra.  Equinoxes represent balance and the sign Libra represents harmony. One thing to think about at this time is how you can bring more balance and harmony into your own life.
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With the Equinox and Full Moon giving emphasis to the Aries/Libra polarity here are some other things to think about. How you want to approach the next two weeks (the Full Moon time frame) or the next quarter of a year (the Equinox time frame)? Will you choose the forcefulness of Aries or the diplomacy of Libra? What works best for you - the independence of Aries or working together in partnerships like Libra?

With Mercury still retrograde, neither the decisiveness of Aries nor the Libran tendency to poll the opinions of others will have an advantage in the next few days. Important decisions that have legal implications should probably be put off until several days after Mercury goes direct on March 28.

So how has this Mercury retrograde period been for you? On March 5, the day of the Mercury retrograde we were already in the car on the expressway when we realized we left something critically important at home. We had to get to the next exit, retrograde our way back to our house on the local roads, retrieve what we needed, and then get back on the expressway.  That was so totally Mercury retro that we had to laugh even though it was a time-consuming inconvenience.

Goswami Kriyananda said "Karma is forgetfulness." So even though I knew that it was Mercury retrograde, and I knew we needed to stand still for a moment and think before we walked out the door, we still got caught up in that moment of rushing out.  The key point about knowing that an aspect occurred and a piece of karma triggered is that if you can rebalance right away, the piece of karma is over. Actually, laughing is a way of softening or neutralizing karma. If we'd beat ourselves up about the incident all day, we'd have been hanging onto a piece of karma that could have been over.

Here's a relevant Zen story "The Muddy Road" from the book Zen Flesh, Zen Bones by Paul Reps:

Tanzan and Ekido were once traveling together down a muddy road. A heavy rain was still falling. Coming around a bend, they met a lovely girl in a silk kimono and sash, unable to cross the intersection. 'Come on, girl,' said Tanzan at once. Lifting her in his arms, he carried her over the mud. Ekido did not speak again until that night when they reached a lodging temple. Then he no longer could restrain himself. 'We monks don't go near females.' He told Tanzan, especially not young and lovely ones. It is dangerous. Why did you do that?' 'I left the girl there,' said Tanzan. 'Are you still carrying her?'

Keep in mind that when Mercury goes direct on March 28 it's conjunct Neptune so extra 'forgetfulness' is possible for a day or two around the 28th. Do the best you can by communicating carefully and making lists of things to remember. If you have to 'retrograde' to fix a problem, just do it, then let it go. A few days on from March 28, projects and plans will begin to move forward again.

Online:

My article "Astrology, Yoga and Balance" is in the March/April issue of Yoga Chicago Magazine.
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Goswami Kriyananda's Professional Astrology Course is distance learning at your own pace.

In the Future:
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Saturday, March 23, 6:30 - 8 p.m.: Music Meditation with the Temple of Kriya Yoga Musicians at The Yoga Shop, 3830 N. Milwaukee Avenue, Chicago

Sunday, March 31: Astrologer Lynn Ewing is giving a workshop "Retrogrades - the Big Rewind - Karma, Reincarnation, Revisioning" at Life Force Arts Center in Chicago.