The Treasures that Glisten - New Moon 30th August, 2019
On August 30thit’s time for new intentions, new thoughts, new attitudes as the Moon joins the Sun for a new cycle in the sign of Virgo. It’s always good to start thinking about new intentions at what we call the dark of the Moon, just a few days before the Moon is actually new when you can’t see any Moon in the sky. However, as with the last New Moon, I also give you two further dates which will afford opportunistic moments and where the Moon will be waxing – September 3rdand September 7th.
Virgo ‘stuff’
So first a bit of Virgo ‘stuff’, because at this New Moon we will have no less than five planets in this sign – Mercury, Sun, Moon, Mars and Venus (plus the asteroid Juno signifying relationships and relating in general) – so quite a crowd. They say three’s a crowd but five is like waiting ages for a bus and then all the ones that didn’t turn up and some arrive together. So what’s a Virgo party like?
Well, it’s for sure nothing like the Leo party we had in August. Virgo is portrayed by the maiden carrying an ear of corn. She carries her harvest, symbolising that she already carries within her all the reapings of her harvests to come – her eggs – to create the future generations. Virgo discriminates and discerns – so this means she’s not about to give her eggs to any old Tom, Dick or Harry – this Virgo is no trollop. Her job is to sort the wheat from the chaff so to speak and to do this she needs information – lots of it. She critiques and analyses this information trying to pick out what will be useful to her because what she wants is to create perfection. However, this may leave her in a state of extreme anxiety in case she picks the wrong thing and her creation is less than perfect. Some Virgos can become almost paralysed with fear and indecision because of this.
At this New Moon there is much more potential to be able to analyse and rationalize what is happening around us and how we might breathe new life into situations. Virgo wants to find what is useful to improve and make it better
because it wants it to work perfectly
Virgo is a sign of service – she’s not like Leo and has no interest in leading the pack or showing off, instead generally quite private and working much more under the radar. She is self-critical, unassuming, modest, fastidious in some areas of life but possibly overly cautious; she’s not really a risk taker, preferring to work with sound judgement and the knowledge that she has honed her craft. She pays attention to the small, seemingly insignificant things, which can lead the typical Virgo to feel almost small her/himself. The average Virgo is practical (this is after all a logical Earth sign) and industrious. Above all the main thing a Virgo wants is that what he/she does is useful and, in whatever field, the Virgo just wants to improve and make things function better.
This New Moon sits with the Fixed Star Thuban found in the constellation Draco, the Dragon, who guards the treasures. So this New Moon has something to do with protecting, defending and acknowledging your own treasures, which may not be wealth in terms of money but rather in terms of your talents and abilities. On the money side though there is perhaps a timely reminder here that there is a need to be aware of the imbalance of wealth in society, some of which may be exposed following the eclipse season as products of corruption and greed. Now that the eclipses in July have done their stuff – some things have already been brought to an end and elements of greed corruption and lies are being flushed out. And I am wondering if this Virgo energy suggests a return of customers to the artisan craftsperson.
The symbol of the dragon has appeared in many forms and in many religions and systems of spiritual unfoldment. Douglas Baker speaks of the constellation of Draco the Dragon as the activator of the chakras – He considers that the kundalini fire emanating from the base of the spine chakra (the constellation of the Dragon) rose upwards to stimulate the head, the throat, the brow and the heart.[1]
The five planets in Virgo at this New Moon include Mercury who is both Lord and exalted, honoured guest in this sign. So the mind, logic and reason are on tip top form here.
There’s also a whopping 8 planets in the Earth element, so there is an accent on practicality, tangibility, dealing with what is real. There is a desire to work within limits and with what is known as well as to produce something. However, there can be an element here of hanging on to ‘stuff’, of being too cautious and sticking with the conventional road rather than being open to new ideas. Earth speaks of practical realities, the body/health, (Virgo is particularly interested in well being), security, what is real, but also Earth can get bogged down with things and not want to let go of anything. Earth wants everything tangible – to possess and to own
On the plus side this line up in Virgo has a real potential to get to grips with the needs of the Saturn/Pluto/South Node combo which you are all probably sick of hearing me talk about. But we must!!!
What we have are two main energy aspects. We still have Jupiter square Neptune, but we now have a window – an ability to see light at the end of the tunnel. We have a trine (harmonious aspect) between the Virgo line up, the Capricorn line up and with Uranus in Taurus.
Building the legacy of dreams
I read an article recently on the fact that archaeologists are for the first time discovering the probable origins of Ancient Greece.[2] Their discovery embodies the craftsmanship of Virgo, the big dreams of Jupiter in aspect to Neptune, as well as the religious side that Jupiter reflects and the seamanship of Neptune.
Excavations on the tiny Aegean Island of Keros, 125 miles south east of Athens, are revealing the earliest truly monumental complex of buildings ever unearthed anywhere in the Greek world. They date back 4,600 years – so similar timing to Stonehenge, the Pyramids of Egypt, the great cities of the Indus Valley and the first known Mesopotamian kingdoms. This discovery may reflect a key part of Greek religion which is the idea that mountain tops (very Jupiter) are the dwelling places of the Gods. This discovery is totally changing archaeologists’ understanding of prehistoric Greece. In order to construct this complex it is thought that early Bronze Age Greeks made at least 3500 maritime voyages to transport between 7 and 10,000 tonnes of shining white marble from one Aegean island to another. It also shows how integral to Greek culture seafaring (Neptune) was to these Bronze Age Aegean people.
It is thought that this was a huge religious sanctuary consisting of up to 60 marble buildings which were constructed specifically to glisten in the Sun. The entire complex was constructed according to a set plan with buildings of a very similar design, so the sanctuary is likely to have been constructed over a period of just 20-40 years rather than developing over a long period.
Sanctuaries such as this, and pyramid shaped sacred mountains in Crete particularly, appear to precede the eventual emergence on the Greek mainland of Mount Olympus as the principal home of the Gods of Ancient Greece who embodied so much of archetypal principles.
Where can your own treasures ‘glisten in the Sun’?
So, now that we have relaxed during August and honoured the festivals of the harvest, it’s time to get down to work with our own talents and treasures. Where can we literally ‘glisten in the light of the Sun? What treasures do we have within us that we can build upon to take us forward? And at the same time how can we be mindful of our physical and mental well-being? This is the energy of the New Moon.
[1]Dr. Douglas Baker, The Jewel in the Lotus, Claregate Publishers, 1975, p.88
[2]https://www.standard.co.uk/news/world/archaeologists-unearth-probable-origins-of-ancient-greece-in-groundbreaking-discovery-a4186531.html