Pisces New Moon, 2024

(Originally published 3/10/2024)

Hello again, friends - 

We have another season rushing up to us; the sun is coming back quickly, there are crocus and daffodils blooming on the sidewalks, magnolia buds popping over the garden. I imagine Pisces season wants to be spring as badly as I know Gemini season wants to be summer. We are perched here, with all the kinetic energy of spring. We are asking, what will we become this year? 

I’m still experimenting with what this letter is. I want to write a calendar/horoscope, I want to tell you about the books I’ve been reading, I want to discuss charts and what they mean, - I’m really wanting to do too much at once. So I would like to ask y’all for some feedback: let me know what’s interesting here. Ask me questions. I’ve been going down this astrology rabbithole for a while by myself. I would like to share and teach what I’ve learned, hopefully while also being led further down this rabbithole through our collaboration. 

Anyway. On to the thing itself. Let me update you on the upcoming astrological movements for this month. Keep in mind you can reference your own chart to see which houses things land in.

As I send you this letter, Mars is taking an aggressive stance towards Uranus. In my last letter, I mentioned that there was probably a big change in your life that has built up since 2018, happening in whichever house in your chart is occupied by Taurus. I think you can expect something sudden or passionate to appear in that story around this time. This isn’t a huge deal, but it might be helpful in locating what story in your life this Uranus transit related to. Or maybe it is a big deal and it’s the spark that starts that big opportunity that Jupiter is bringing. Either way, watch for it.

The Pisces new moon is happening on the 10th. New moons are about beginnings, but Pisces is about endings. It’s the “last” sign in the zodiac. If you are making a new moon wish, focus your intentions on planting a seed that will close a chapter of your life. (Unless your moon is in Pisces. Then wish for whatever you want.)

On the 19th, the sun will leave Pisces and enter Aries. The sun is exalted in Aries because we are now past the equinox, the light has won its celestial battle once again, and The Return of the King theme plays in the background. 

Venus then meets with Saturn, in Pisces, on the 21st. There might be a lull in the social calendar, or a decision about values to be made. A lover may set a boundary.

Mars then moves into Pisces on the 22nd, heating up whatever was going on with Venus and Saturn.

There will be a Full Moon and Lunar eclipse in Libra on March 25! If you are making full moon wishes, remember to write with gratitude as if you have already received your wish. In Libra, you would be smart to focus your wishes around relationships, balance, and social justice. (Unless your moon is in Libra, in which case, wish for everything you want.) 

Mercury turns retrograde on April 1st, so I guess be cautious with your April fools jokes.

Venus moves into Aries on the 4th. The Aries new moon will be on April 8th. 

Now that we’ve updated the calendar, I want to focus some more of our attention on Uranus, and the transit that it is making. 

Uranus is the planet of technology and sudden changes. Richard Tarnas, in Cosmos and Psyche, argues that Uranus would be better named after Prometheus - the god who stole technology in the form of fire in order to give it to humans to benefit our lives. There’s a righteous bent to the themes of Uranus, and we do frequently see revolutions break out when he is relevantly aspected. Uranus spends 7 to 8 years in each sign, meaning it’s a generational planet, affecting many of us at once. It has been in the sign of Taurus since May of 2018, and its themes have been building up in the area of our lives indicated by the house in our charts that is held by Taurus. 

In order to reflect on this transit, I hope that you take some time to look at your own chart. First, what house in your chart does Taurus hold? Next, are there any planets in that sign for you? Do you have any planets in the other fixed signs - Scorpio, Aquarius, Leo? How are all these things tying in together and showing up in your life?

To illustrate, I’m going to tell you a bit about my experience with Uranus in Taurus. Mostly because it’s the best example I have (since I lived it), but also because telling this story is a bit like “beginning at the beginning” as to why I’m writing this letter right now. And I just think that’s neat. 

I am a Virgo rising, which means Taurus holds the 9th house in my chart. The 9th house is all about our higher learning, long-distance travel, beliefs, values, and religion. Meanwhile, my chart ruler and most well-aspected placement, Mercury, is in Taurus. Mercury rules communication, learning, and, wouldn’t you know it, astrology. While Uranus has been passing over this placement, I have been overcome with curiosity. It’s not just about astrology, though that’s clearly a big part. I’ve read 214 books since Uranus first started aspecting my Mercury placement, after years of reading nothing for fun at all (thanks college). I’ve taken two classes, attended free lectures, listened to endless hours of The Astrology Podcast. I’ve been absolutely eating up information, and I’m now feeling like I want to share it in order to really process it.

I had other major aspects with this transit, but I’m just trying to give you a picture of what it looks like to locate things in your chart. 

There’s a reason I want to share this skill with y’all. This week, I was reminded about the power that astrology has to effect our lives. I received some upsetting news. My brother, who has been unwell for a long time, is going through another difficult phase with his illness. Distraught, depressed, anxious, full of grief, I looked to the movement of the planets. I looked at my brother’s chart, and I found plenty of reasons for him to be struggling right now. He’s going through a long, once-in-a-lifetime, confusing mess with Neptune. He’s got Mars aggravating the same spot that Saturn was two years ago when he had his last peak in symptoms. 

And, well, who can really argue with that? Who am I to think I could fix any of that for him? These are the things that he was destined to live through, in one way or another. I’m not trying to sound too fatalistic here, and maybe it seems a little messed up. Maybe it could be called a coping mechanism, a logic-ing myself away from feelings, using the external nature of astrology to give myself emotional distance, whatever. But it did give me distance. And with that perspective, I was able to feel calm. My grief for the lost possibilities of his life is still and forever here, but I can move through my day. And that’s really what healing is all about, as my therapist would tell you. We’re just hoping to tolerate the bad feelings so that they don’t ruin everything else with them.

This is, after all, what Stoicism was all about. I don’t see it mentioned anywhere other than in astrological discussion, but, did you know that Stoicism and Astrology are two sides of the same coin? Astrology is the practice of knowing your fate so that, as a virtuous Stoic, you could face that fate with wisdom and courage. But maybe I’ll go into that more later. 

Until next time. Sending you love,

Alanna