The Moon will begin a new phase with the Sun at 9 degrees Scorpio on November 1 at 5:47 a.m. Pacific coast time. This is auspicious New Moon timing, this first day of November, the Dia de los Muertos, Day of the Dead, observed throughout Latin America. And, traditionally, in parts of northern Europe, October 31 to November 2 are the pagan holy days of Samhain, midway between the September equinox and the December solstice. This is the time of the Witches’ New Year, a time to remember our Beloved Dead, and to prepare for the onset of winter and the darkest part of the year.
Scorpio is the sign of fixed, deep water. Particularly during Scorpio season (October 23 to November 21) one might notice more intensely than usual the cycles of decay and renewal. Or, one might want to look more deeply into the shadowy realms of one’s own psyche, even if it’s uncomfortable to do so.
Scorpio is like the rotting leaves that make the best compost. Scorpionic personalities may be edgy, drawn toward intrigue and breaking taboos. Scorpio is ruled by the red planet Mars and, in modern astrology, also by Pluto. Mars and Pluto share drives for power. Not necessarily power over or against someone or something. More like the power that is the raw energy to do and to be, with little or no need to justify one’s self in relation to others.
Most notably at this New Moon time, Scorpio’s dual rulers Mars and Pluto oppose each other. Mars is at 29 degrees of Cancer. Pluto is in the final minutes of the 29th degree of Capricorn. This 29th, final, degree of a sign is like a last chance to do something, because another chance won’t come around for awhile. Mars moves fast, making its way around every sign of the zodiac about every two years. Slow-moving Pluto, though, is in the final pass of its generational transit through Capricorn (2008 to 2024) marking the end of one era and the beginning of a new one.
Hard aspects, such as an opposition, between potentially explosive Mars and Pluto are likely to manifest in incidents of aggression and violence, though where, and to what extent, is unknown. Is it any wonder, though, that the current Mars/Pluto opposition coincides with the U.S. election? The sign of Cancer, where Mars now travels, represents the home, family, children, and childbirth; Capricorn’s domains include laws, winning, and the official worlds of established institutions. The opposition between Mars in Cancer and Pluto in Capricorn, at the last-gasp 29thdegree, is a symbol of the fear and loathing so prevalent right now in the collective mood.
The transit of Mars and Pluto opposing each other will continue for months. When Mars enters Leo on November 4, it will still oppose Pluto, which will enter Aquarius on November 19. Forecasting difficult times ahead doesn’t mean that anyone can predict precise details. It’s safe to say that what’s coming is likely to be a period of harsh confrontations between warring parties and factions.
Yet against this backdrop, the chart for the November 1 New Moon shows some transits of ease and respite. One is that Venus, the planet of love and beauty, and now moving through fiery Sagittarius, is approaching an opposition with Jupiter now in airy, witty Gemini. There may be some opportunities right about now to manifest something expansively meaningful and beautifully spoken or written.
The most prominent of the transiting aspects at the November 1 New Moon is a grand water trine. Trines are 120-degree angles between planets, like the sides of a triangle. When three planets form a grand trine with each other, there’s a feeling of balance and flow because all three of the players are in the same element. In this case, that’s water. Scorpio’s ruling planet Mars is in Cancer, representing action that is emotionally nurturing, trine to Mercury, the Messenger in revelatory Scorpio, and trine to dreamy Neptune now in the final throes of its long transit through idealistic Pisces.
Cancer, Scorpio, and Pisces are the water signs. That planets in these three water signs are so closely aligned in an equilateral triangle at this New Moon appears like an omen: the tension many people are experiencing right now is accompanied by a reminder of divine harmony and beneficence, also on display. This grand water trine formation is a brief transit, to be enjoyed while it lasts for a few days.
There are other harmonious aspects in play also at this time. Venus has recently been making an approximately 60-degree sextile aspect with Saturn, suggesting the possibility of ease in the rules and norms (Saturn) of partnerships (Venus). Uranus, the break-through planet of unexpected shake-ups is sextile to altruistic Neptune. Uranus in earth sign Taurus has also recently been making a trine to Pluto, the modern astrological ruler of Scorpio, calling one to stay as powerfully grounded as possible. This is all just to say that there’s always a lot going on astrologically at the same time, none of it all “good” or all “bad.”
The same goes for the sign of Scorpio itself. Of the water signs, Scorpio is the most enigmatic. Scorpio is water, but water that’s not moving or not moving fast. As “fixed” water, Scorpio represents both tension and flow. That’s like the times we’re in now: fraught with conflict and even potential disaster. There are also unseen forces operating beneath the surface, and that which we cannot yet see may be our salvation. The paradox of the time of the Dead is that there is so much yet ready to be born.
Blessings for the Scorpio New Moon and these Dias de los Muertos!
~ Sara
Sara R. Diamond, an astrologer based in the San Francisco Bay Area, is a life-long student and practitioner in several esoteric paths. Her style of astrology combines modern-psychological astrology with insights from traditional astrology. Sara is also an estate planning attorney. In addition, she has published four books on right-wing movements in the United States and earned her Ph.D. in Sociology at the University of California, Berkeley. You are invited to contact Sara via her website at www.SaraDiamondAstrology.com.
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