Horoscopes for August 31, 2016 - new moon in Virgo, Mercury retrograde, Jupiter into Libra and an annular solar eclipse

Hi everyone! Horoscopes for this new moon include working with the annular solar eclipse that accompanies it. Astrological cycles are often felt acutely at eclipse points and they mark times in the year that may feel more charged or intense than others. The eclipse on September 1 occurs at 9 degrees of Virgo and will be felt most strongly by those with personal planets and points between 4-14 degrees of the Mutable signs (Gemini, Virgo, Sagittarius, and Pisces.)

This eclipse is the second of the year and will reference themes that were present in early March during the year’s first solar eclipse in Pisces. The Pisces/Virgo axis speaks to intuition, creativity and ineffable feelings becoming realized through concrete action, tasks and details. Health and wellbeing are also highlighted here – notice how less concrete influences like emotions and energetic influence have affected you since March, it may be that this fall requires you to work with or work through the feelings by activating your physical body and attending to its materiality through your self-care regimen.

Additionally, the eclipse will act similar to an acupuncture needle and stimulate the ongoing square aspect between Saturn and Neptune. This aspect is encouraging us to get clear about where we need to either dissolve or create boundaries. It is testing our beliefs, hopes and dreams and asking us to open our intuition receptors AND get more practical about how we implement our ideals in day-to-day life.

Finally, this eclipse in Virgo activates the sign which is also currently home to Jupiter and Mercury (Mercury is Virgo’s planetary ruler and will have stationed retrograde just two days before the new moon. It will also be conjunct Jupiter the day of the eclipse.) Mercury retrograde in Virgo is a last chance to go over all the details before Jupiter finishes its year-long transit through Virgo on September 9th when it will then move into the sign Libra. This shift is an important one and will move our attention patterns from the material to the relational. Jupiter, the “guru” of the heavens represents our ability to expand in awareness.

I will be working with this planetary cycle (September 2016-October 2017) with a 12-month course I’m offering called Learning To Love More. This course explores philosophy through creativity, lifestyle, and personal practice. We will focus on expanding a contemporary understanding of the yamas and niyamas which are the relational and personal practices described as the ten living principles for those on the path of yoga. For those of you who are interested in harnessing the power of astrological transits this course is an excellent opportunity to bring mindfulness, intention and practice into your relationships. Learn more about it here.

Listen to the Embodied Astrology - About Astrology Podcast to learn more about the astrology of this new moon and eclipse

Listen to the Embodied Astrology Guided Meditation for this moon. I focus on releasing energetic holding patterns of Virgo. Virgo rules the small intestine and is responsible for our ability to absorb and assimilate. “Stuck” Virgo feelings often manifest in digestive issues and chronic tension in the torso.

New moon blessings. Xo- Renée

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These horoscopes are written partially as affirmations. Affirmative thinking and speaking are a form of magic that works through magnetism. If your horoscope affirmation resonates with you, print it out and place it somewhere visible for the next two weeks. Repeat it to yourself often and notice how the magic works. I suggest reading horoscopes for both your sun and rising signs. If you’re interested in a more personalized approach to your astrology you can request a reading here.

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ARIES Regardless of what you do or where you go in life one thing is certain… If you don’t take care of yourself it’s going to be a lot harder going. Creating an organized experience in your life requires that there is some level of organization as well in your immediate surroundings and physical being. The past year has been one with an emphasis on self-care, personal habits, and the service and care-taking you do for others. The next few weeks are prime-time to solidify plans for the coming year that have to do with how you take care of your business so that you can show up and be present with others and not distracted or destroyed by clutter in your body, your home or your to-do list. Notice though in your organizing when you stumble upon rigidity in your ideas of how things “should” be. I have found that when tasks and self-care seem very difficult I’m usually striving to fulfill standards that are unreasonable and based on external values that aren’t really right for me. So treat this time not as one to whip yourself into shape, but to really consider how your chores and tasks could actually be joyful to you. It may mean that it’s time to throw a bunch of stuff away and have less to clean up. Or it may mean that a daily nap for 20 minutes will allow you to be more effective in your efforts. Your affirmation is, It is a joy to attend to the corners and pockets of my life. Every time I clean something I give thanks for all who have ever cleaned up after me in any capacity. I recognize my body as my vessel and I treat it with respect. I am supported and inspired by my core values.

TAURUS In an astrological view of the creative process there are three phases that repeat until something is complete, the phases are: having/starting an idea, working on an idea, reviewing/refining an idea. Our modern pace of life and the ubiquitousness of gadgets and apps that produce things means that many of us rush from conception to completion and have forgotten what it feels like to take time with steps 2 and 3. In the last year there has been an abundance of opportunity and interest for you in the area of your chart that rules children and inner children – so regardless of whether you are a parent this means the part of you that knows how to play. This new moon is an invitation to play a little longer, let loose some more, and go back into your creative process for a bit before you call anything complete. Considering that this is back-to-school season it may feel counterintuitive to press pause before you get to practical. But over the next three weeks you may find that there are elements that need to be added or subtracted, encounters that are too much fun to ignore, kiddos (and inner kids) that need to let out some more wildness before ‘paying attention’ is an investment they want to make. I give myself permission to keep playing. I indulge all urges to make art. When I remember my basic playfulness and take the time to give it attention everything is more fun and everyone becomes a potential playmate.

GEMINI When I was growing up we lived in a bus that had a small framed picture of a caravan and the words “Home Is A Place To Park.” My parents called the bus La Tortuga (The Turtle) in honor of the evolved beings who carry their homes on their backs. Since then I have moved many times and with each move I feel the instinct to have less baggage and more contentment with simplicity. Having a home is a deeply emotional experience, so is losing/leaving a home. In the world right now we have lots of examples of homelessness, migration, and the psychology of place and belonging… These examples impact all of us whether or not we directly experience them. Collectively we must remember that Earth is our home before bricks and boundary lines, that our flesh bodies are homes that deserve care and respect. When we remember those facts the amount of other possessions we have is unimportant. I share this with you now because your current astrology has some energy to it that is strongly focused on home (yours now and the ones you grew up in,) the ways that home becomes both a launching pad for anything else you do, and spaces you share in stewardship and vulnerability with others. Let this moon and retrograde cycle of the next few weeks be a consistent meditation on home. Clean yours up and donate what you don’t need anymore, have conversations with those you share your home with about how it’s going and how to get along better, consider all the ways in which you can be at home in yourself anywhere, and bring your attention to the miraculous home that you have all around you. Your affirmation is, I belong here.

CANCER There’s a saying that goes, “Where you stand is directly related to where you sit.” There might be a seed of something here for you right now. Current astrology is pointing to the ways in which your early childhood development framed your ambition for personal growth and quests for deeper meaning. There seems to be some tension between your beliefs/ideals and how you get down to the business of acting on them in your day-to-day. This new moon is an invitation to listen deeply to what you intuitively know to be true and then to examine all the ways which you DON’T honor that truth. Currently up for consideration is language and your mental processing of information. How do you speak about yourself to others, how do you frame your interests and intent? How do you listen? Do you hear critique before encouragement? How do you absorb information? Are you looking for cues from your immediate surroundings or are you open to signs that come from afar? Where is your focus? Your affirmation for this moon is, I am steady in the flow of my life. I easily balance the information that comes in with the need for larger meaning and deep silence. I am attuned to myself – my words are honest but my speech is skillful and opens in the ears of others the way I would like to be heard.

LEO Resource and wealth mean different things to different people… but there are some fairly common things that most of us depend on for a comfortable life. Your health is one of those things. For you more than most, your health is your wealth. The last year has probably had your nose to the grindstone fairly non-stop in effort to prove to yourself (and others) that you and your work are worthy of attention. I hope you feel confident by now friend, and I hope you believe me when I say you have a great work ethic and you don’t need to prove it anymore. What is important right now is for you to get real with yourself about what you need in order to sustain the output you want to have. It probably has something to do with relaxing your austerity a bit and letting yourself have some fun with whatever you’re working on (don’t worry so much about whether anyone likes it!) It definitely has to do with self-care, because remember, if you’re feeling shitty it means you’re not shining. For sure it has to do with opening your pathways of receptivity to match those of your output. Let. Yourself. Be. Loved. Your affirmation is, I joyfully take rest and attend to my needs when they are present. I let go of stress and embrace the spaciousness of life by remembering that whatever I’m doing is what I choose to be doing. I let go of any controlling influences and fully take charge of my own actions and attitude.

VIRGO In considering your partnerships (all kinds including business, friend, marriage etc.) please examine what rules have been set in place for everyone to follow. These ‘rules’ are usually unspoken agreements of some sort – habitual ways of behaving together that usually have more to do with each person’s internal reality then the dynamic between you. The last year has been a lot of sorting through this. Here’s one more chance, and this new moon and eclipse are a call for absolute sobriety while sorting. If you’ve been telling yourself stories about someone else is, see their complex humanness. If you’ve been telling yourself stories about yourself that feel similar to stories you’ve told before, decide whether you want to keep telling those stories. Something is wanting to root in a serious way for you. This might be literal in terms of settling into your home or space, this might be about resolving issues you’ve inherited from your parents and family, this might be a spiritual settling of some sort. It’s probably all of the above… the point is that you are home in yourself, and one rule you should have is that anyone who enters or shares your home needs to be respectful of it. That’s a rule as much for yourself as it is for them. Your affirmation is, I recognize and love the spiritual being that I am. I commit to caring for this essence in all of my choices. I recognize and love the spiritual being that you are. I commit to caring for this essence in you by releasing you from my attachment to the outcome of our negotiating. I trust that you will care for your own essence and mine.

LIBRA The area of your chart activated by the new moon is what the Brits call, “the rubbish bin of the zodiac.” This place, the 12th house, contains all that we can’t see. This includes secrets that have been forgotten, unconscious fears and desires, messages from dreams, and access to other realms. Jupiter (the planet of expansion and more-ness) has been moving through your 12th house for the past year. The effect of this transit could be an overflow of rubbish (unconscious) into your conscious reality. The offering of this moon and the upcoming shift that Jupiter will make into your sign is one that has abundant space for resolution and clean-up of stuff that’s old and maybe a bit nasty. What is required from you is conscious action in your thinking, speaking and gesturing. Remember that most humans don’t seek out the things they want, they seek what is familiar. Familiar is most often set into play in early childhood before logic and reasoning develops. The ways we sabotage ourselves and stay attached to familiar instead of moving towards what we want can usually be found in the unconscious attachments we have in articulating ourselves. We say we want something and then a moment later we devalue ourselves or brush off our own potential. Pay attention to your speech, even when it is only in your head. The more you consciously clean up habits of sabotage and replace them with love, the more space will open up in your unconscious for inspiration and aid in pursuing what you actually want to move towards. Your affirmation is, I lovingly acknowledge the parts of myself that are forgotten, terrified, wretched and hidden. I bring them to awareness so that I can care for them as I would a little sibling. I reassure these voices of my younger selves and fears. I take time to hold and accept what is hard to see. I am patient as these voices begin to calm. I am calm as they begin to mature. Together we move from distress into happiness.

SCORPIO There are certain moments in life that hold a rare kind of vividness and potency. Certain times when we have access to shifting not just small habits, but the larger force and flow that our many habits combine into. This new moon is one of those times. What is ready to shift has something to do with your long-term intentions. The choices you are making now in terms of putting yourself out honestly and creatively will set you up for choices to be made in the future in regards to your goals and plans. The current choices probably aren’t glamorous. Most likely there will be no celebration, no recognition, no awards. What it will be is a quiet, clear steadiness that arises within you and the choice to recognize that you are not beholden to anyone but yourself – you are free and always have been. Illusions you may have had about another kind of power over you which dictates your thoughts, feelings or actions are now ready to dissolve. This takes courage on your part to claim authorship and ownership over what is most valuable to you. A choice to rise above small-mindedness and claim your happiness might sound easy, but it will take tenacity and intention to turn the choice into action every day. Your affirmation is, I commit to the values that I know are at my core. I commit to acting with integrity, and honoring those values in all that I do. I hold no one else to my standards, only myself. I release feelings of disappointment in others. I am empowered to be the person I admire.

SAGITTARIUS Your new moon astrology feels like a rushing river. The current is fierce and pushing you from the past. Grow, grow, go it’s saying. The path that is before you is full of details, how will you put them all together to create the holistic picture of what you want? The present moment is tension – a hardening of metaphorical muscles, bracing against the pull from both past and future… You want to do what you believe you must, but you want to do it impeccably and sustainably, and that takes time. Feeling stuck is not knowing which instincts to trust. Right now breath is your friend. Stop when and where you can for moments of awareness. Inhale, exhale. All things come and go. The urgency is intense but it takes lightness of heart to utilize its power without being pulled under. The more spontaneity and fun you can call into your life the more you might find surprising and creative options you didn’t even realize were there. Your puzzle right now is to figure out how to be serious about the choices you need to make, while also remembering that life is basically playful. Your mantra for this moon should be repeated while imagining the sensation quality and physical feeling of success in whatever it is you are trying to succeed at right now, I don’t know the best way for things to work out. Larger forces work to synthesize disparate elements throughout all forms of life. The heat of my effort feeds the fire of my spirit. I offer my efforts with joy. Opportunity is attracted to joyfulness.

CAPRICORN Your chart for this new moon feels like ⅔ into an epic myth. You are the hero. You have already fought your way through burning forests of barbed wire, sailed across bloody seas, confronted an army of demon witches and demanded your humanity back, and now you are so tired, ragged and weary. In the present moment of this myth I imagine you standing at the mouth of a giant cave protected by a huge sleeping giant. Your happiness is guarded somewhere in the cave but first you have to get past the giant who is billowing noxious gas emitting from your dreams and ideals that have been festering, putrefying and have now started to burn in his belly. In order to fight him you will have to harness the anger that is arising within you. The fury, resentment and frustration that has built around the kind of fatigue that only comes after years of giving everything you think you have is waiting to emerge. This kind of anger can either become a sword that cuts through the ache of nostalgia, entitlement, and very real, very deep sorrow...or it can become a million tiny swords that fly at random, piercing anything in their path, including you. Whether you let the sword be one that is clean and healing or destructive and infected is up to you. Your battle cry is, I will not be defeated by the illusion of separation. Every shadow I face is one less shadow polluting the earth. I offer everything I have with all the love I have ever felt. All the heroic spirits are with me and there is no turning back now.

AQUARIUS The movement in your chart right now suggests an enormous amount of generosity. How this generosity is flowing (towards you or from you) I don’t know, but there is certainly a conversation around resources of some kind (energy and care are just as valuable as cash) and it seems as well that the conversation perhaps has a future-oriented idealism or investment in it. When collaborating with others it’s useful to practice appreciation and affirmation as negotiation techniques. Resources have a kind of magic to them that makes them more powerful and plentiful when they are regarded with respect and admiration. My suggestion for you at this time is meditate upon the intention of your affirmation which you can reword and rewrite as many times as you like so that it suits your personal and cultural taste. Your affirmation and prayer is the word Namasté, a traditional greeting often used by Buddhists, Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs and others. The literal translations vary but all come down to basically the same idea which is an acknowledgment, or bow, given from one spiritual being to another. To invoke this gesture is first to surrender your individual/egotistical spirit and recognize the godly/divine qualities in yourself. To come from that kind of respect when greeting another there is no need to fear their judgement because you know that you uphold godliness in your own standing. Likewise, there is no need to mistrust or be stingy with anyone else when you recognize their goodness in return.

PISCES The last year has been one that brought extra attention to the area of your chart that contains close relationships. This part of the chart doesn’t speak so much to the content or actual work of these dynamics, it speaks more to the ideas you have about being engaged in relationship, how you put yourself out to another, and what kinds of others you might find yourself drawn to putting out towards. There’s a lot of folks these days doing their own thing in relationships. Not that it hasn’t been the case in times past, but current mindsets and shifts in mindsets mean that many are much more likely to embrace quirkiness, kinks, and different kinds of commitment in their partnerships as par for the course. In the few weeks it will serve you well to step back from any decision making in this part of your life and simply assess. Your partners and close friends are, of course, people you would give anything for. What you give, how much, and what kind of return you get is up for examination. Your values have also shifted since whenever it was that you started relating with these people. Why not give yourself a moment to catch up to speed? There’s a steady momentum that’s building in your urge to to get out and be public with your work and/or passions – make sure that the folks who surround you also support you doing what you need to do for you. In turn, see if you can give yourself over to complete and radical openness with them. Ask for what you want, be willing to listen, don’t be afraid of your own emotional nakedness or theirs. My partners and intimates fully support me to grow and succeed in my work and dharma. My self-love and self-acceptance are mirrored and felt by those around me who also practice responsibility for their own state of wellbeing. Our relationships are generative, positive, equal, and truly respectful.