The Moon at 20° 39′ Sagittarius will reach its full phase with the Sun at 20° 39′ Gemini on June 11 at 12:44 a.m. Pacific time.
This lunation is called the Strawberry Moon because, of course, the berries are in bloom, and summer is in play in the Northern Hemisphere.
Sagittarius is our mutable fire sign. The fire element is especially prominent at this time, with Mars in Leo and Saturn and Neptune having recently entered the sign of Aries.
The Moon in Sagittarius opposite the Sun in Gemini form an axis of intellectual activity. Opposites are complementary. Gemini, an air sign, wants to gather information. Sagittarius wants to make sense of it. Gemini is quick impressions. Sagittarius is an enduring myth. Facts and truth cannot do without each other. While Gemini is blowing in the wind, Sagittarius is a consuming fire. Both signs may come across as brash and voracious.
The Moon on June 11 at 20° Sagittarius will be moving toward a harmonious 120° trine with Mars, now at 26° Leo and Chiron at 26° Aries. A Grand Trine is formed when three planetary bodies in signs of the same element (fire) form an equilateral triangle. Mars in Leo is like a call for unbridled creative expression. Chiron in Aries speaks to healing in action, while the Moon in Sagittarius is an emotional drive for learning and becoming wiser. This Grand Trine in fire is a quick charge of inspiration as the Moon will move on to Capricorn the next day.
Also inspiring at the June 11 Full Moon is an encouraging sextile (60-degree) aspect between Venus in its home earth sign of Taurus and Mercury now in the waters of Cancer. This earth-water sextile suggests doing or making something of beauty (Venus) and substance (Taurus) that evokes emotional memories (Mercury in Cancer). This, too is a quick transit.
While there is inspiration at play, Mars’ energy is assertive if not aggressive. Mars, now in the last few degrees of Leo, is forming a tense square with Uranus in Taurus, the power of unpredictable breakthroughs. This is a square between fixed, unyielding signs. A square between Mars and Uranus may manifest in something explosive and ugly or something surprisingly down to earth (Taurus) and creatively brilliant (Leo.)
The Full Moon in Sagittarius is ruled by Jupiter, which changes signs roughly every year. On June 9, Jupiter shifted from Gemini to Cancer. Collectively, there may be an increased focus on finding meaning (Jupiter) through Cancerian themes of taking care of home and land, including notions of “homeland,” i.e. nationalism, and what constitutes a “family,” for better or worse. Jupiter, known in classical astrology as a source of beneficence, is a magnifier. While Jupiter is in the sensitive feeling waters of Cancer, neurotic patterns within and about family may become more apparent. (Yikes!) Or at least, one might feel freer to wear one’s heart on one’s sleeve.
The style of Cancer is reputedly introverted. But Cancer is also a cardinal, forward-moving sign. Jupiter in Cancer will form a tense square with Saturn on June 15 and with Neptune on June 18.
Saturn and Neptune are now less than a degree apart in forward-marching Aires. The Saturn/Neptune conjunction is the major outer planet transit of this year, with unknown possibilities on the world stage and in our own lives and psyches.
Saturn symbolizes the passage of time and the finality of things. Neptune is eternity. Saturn is realism. Neptune is idealism. What does one need to do now to make a Neptunian dream take concrete form?
The square formed by Jupiter at 0 degrees of forward-moving Cancer, applying pressure to the Saturn/Neptune conjunction in Aries, is a drive for action.
Cancer is the Great Mother, the Creatrix, the one who gives birth. As a cardinal sign, Cancer wants to get stuff done. Jupiter in Cancer wants to create something big and purposeful.
At this Strawberry Full Moon, the transits speak of inspiration, as time moves forward toward the Solstice of June 20, when the Sun will enter Cancer, a high point in the turning of the Wheel of the Year.
Jupiter, butting heads now with the Saturn/Neptune conjunction, is a push to do what’s needed to create visible forms for one’s craft. Start it, organize it, write it, speak it, paint it. There’s a paradox to consider here, too, because while Saturnian time moves toward an end goal, with Neptune, there’s no rush. There’s all the time in the world.
Blessings for the Sagittarius Full Moon!
~ 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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