Happy New Moon in Virgo! This New Moon at approximately 22 degrees of Virgo became exact at 9:39 PM New York time on Thursday, September 14, 2023 (01:39 GMT on September 15).
Virgo is an earth sign that is represented by The Maiden. It is associated with Persephone in Greek mythology. Virgo is very much associated with the wheat crop, as the ancients thought that Virgo—the second-largest constellation in the sky—appeared to be a woman with wings carrying a sheaf of wheat.
In the Northern Hemisphere, the final third of summer (Virgo season) has historically been the time when the most crops are reaped. In order to reap crops, it requires discipline, planning, and pragmatism. These are three qualities that the sign of Virgo models for the rest of the Zodiac.
Virgo means virgin in Latin. The sign of Virgo is also associated with purity and self-sufficiency. The Virgo glyph is an 'M' with a tail that turns inward, representative of Virgo's ability to introspect and discern. It also may represent sexual shyness, as Scorpio, the most outwardly sexual of signs, has a glyph that is an 'M' with a tail that is an outward-pointing arrow, representing a phallus.
Virgo is a mutable sign in Western astrology, because it comes at the end of a season. In many parts of the Northern United States, Canada, and Europe, the deciduous leaves change colors (or at least start to) during Virgo season.
Virgo is the ruler of the 6th House—the House of Health. This house is the realm of health, daily routines, and repetitive tasks (including those that are involved in work/career).
Virgo is ruled by Mercury, the planet of communication. If you have your sun, moon, Ascendant, or Mercury in Virgo, you’re probably a good communicator. You probably have good speaking and/or writing skills, are detailed, and practical.
Mercury is very exalted (amplified) right now, as this New Moon coincides with Mercury slowing to a halt and entering its Station Direct Phase at 8 degrees of Virgo just a half-day following the New Moon. It will resume Direct Motion on Saturday.
Mercury’s influence is most exalted (amplified) in the days around its Station Phases; during the time around this New Moon, we will be feeling very strong Mercury Retrograde-like effects.
Communication will be difficult, electronics will go awry, and delays will abound. We will be very much focused on the past—and it kind of feels like time is standing still. It’s a good time still to resolve leftover issues and problems, and to connect with people from our past.
You’re likely to hear news about something you’ve been waiting on during around this time. Travel will be difficult; there will be a lot of flight delays, and a lot of cars will be breaking down.
By the way, if you were born under a Mercury Retrograde, it's not going to affect you as strongly--and in fact you might even feel more ‘at home’ during this time.
Here is some general advice for navigating a Mercury Retrograde period:
Make sure that all the 'I's are dotted' and 'all the T's are crossed' when signing any contracts. Consider Murphy's Law during Mercury Retrograde: what can go wrong, will go wrong. Consider holding off on signing contracts until October, if it's something that isn't time-sensitive.
Be extra clear in your communication with others. Give others more leeway than usual. Inquire to clarify what someone means by something if you're unsure--especially if it's via text message or e-mail.
Avoid purchasing big-ticket items (e.g. a new car) until October, if possible
Back up all of your computer files and your smartphone!
Triple-check travel plans and appointment times. Verify times with others.
Release expectations of others, especially when it comes to people responding in a timely fashion. Give people the benefit of the doubt. Expectations of others may go unfulfilled.
As always, use Mercury Retrograde as a time to refine your communication--rather than to be afraid of miscommunications, or electronics breaking down, or travel plans getting interrupted.
The sun and moon form a supportive, harmonious trine to the exalted, Retrograde Uranus in Taurus. With Mercury’s exaltation, this Uranus trine is giving us a fabulous opportunity to find creative solutions to whatever issues we may be facing—especially those left over from the past.
Although we have 7 (!) Retrogrades at the time of this New Moon, and thus the focus is on working with the past, this Uranus trine does also provide a great opportunity to go after new opportunities, and to be innovative in general. It is a very creative energy, but in a grounded/practical way.
By the way, the Retrograde planets are Mercury in Virgo (at least until it officially Stations Direct Saturday—but it will be mimicking a Retrograde for the next 10-14 days anyways), Jupiter in Taurus, Saturn in Pisces, Uranus in Taurus, Neptune in Pisces, Pluto in Capricorn, and Chiron (a minor planet in astronomy, and an asteroid in astrology) in Aries.
Virgo is a wonderful sign that helps us to get in touch with the logical, the practical, and the everyday things that really take up the majority of our lives on earth. Let’s discuss how we can best utilize the Virgo energies to improve our daily lives.
USING THE LEFT BRAIN: DISCIPLINE, LOGIC & PLANNING
Virgo the Maiden can seem cold, but she is simply focused. She is a model of discipline, pragmatism, and logical planning—all tenets of the left (logical) brain, or the yang energy. Applying this Divine Masculine aspect to our lives can help us to experience greater success in life. With Mars in Libra right now, it’s a great time to integrate these Divine Masculine energies in a harmonious way.
Two of the best traits of Virgo are being organized and detailed. Having things in order improves efficiency in all areas of life, and helps you to avoid unnecessary hangups that are due to being disorganized.
I'm a Lunar Virgo and I tend to be pretty organized when it comes to keeping track of numbers and records. When I was a kid, I ran a backyard baseball league and obsessively kept stats (I was batting champion one year). I really, really love statistics, whether it's about baseball or finances or whatever. One thing that isn't an inherent strength for me, though, is organizing possessions.
I'm committing to doing some cleaning and organizing of my physical environment during the remainder of this Virgo season. What are you committing to organizing or cleaning during the remainder Virgo season?
As a Lunar Virgo, I also have a discerning, skeptical, and logical mind. It's seemingly an odd trait to have for an intuitive, but I actually find that the skepticism and discernment helps me to more often than not separate true intuition/psychic receivings from illusion of my mind.
Logic and pragmatism are important virtues on the spiritual journey. Science says that adults make approximately 35,000 decisions every single day. Most of these decisions are relatively inconsequential--and most of these decisions are made with the left-brain/logical mind (e.g. following directions to cook something, how to drive to your destination, following protocols in your work).
I believe that we should strive to establish a healthy balance between the left brain/logical side (yang) and the right brain/intuitive side (yin) in order to be the most effective humans.
The planets are providing us the opportunity to find this balance right now, as the Retrograde Neptune in Pisces (which represents the right brain/intuitive/yin side) is opposing the sun and moon in Virgo (representing the left brain/logical/yang side).
Here are some general tips for improving your use of discipline, logic and pragmatism:
Write down daily and weekly goals. Set intentions soon after every New Moon for the next 28 days. Put these goals in a journal or somewhere where you can see them daily [e.g. a wall in your office or the refrigerator (after you remove any inessential postings on your refrigerator, of course)].
Keep a list of daily rituals on a clipboard or a whiteboard and check off each completed ritual as you do them
Schedule a weekly or bi-weekly cleaning and organizing time
Schedule daily, weekly or monthly rituals (e.g. meditation time, cleaning the house, going for acupuncture, or backing up your files) in your smartphone or Google Calendar, if you use one
Keep a journal on your bedstand and commit to spending 5-10 minutes each night writing down some thoughts on your day and some thoughts/ideas for the days ahead
IMPROVING INNER DIALOGUE
As I have said, Virgo is concerned with communication, as it is ruled by Mercury. Thus far we have discussed the themes of communication with others, and rituals, but what about dialogue with yourself?
One of the most difficult aspects of the Awakening journey is the challenge of mastering your mental body. In order to master this lesson of the mind, it requires a great amount of discipline and practice. Someone with little control over their mind will be able to progress spiritually in many ways, but will simply not be as happy or content as someone who has really learned to master their mind.
When it comes to this topic, one of the most important things to understand is that thinking is not always the same mechanism. Sometimes you are actively thinking thoughts--for example while you are logically trying to solve a problem--while other times thoughts are actually thinking you. The reason for this is something called T-Fields.
T-Fields are clouds of energy that are located within your energy field and in spaces in homes and businesses, or wherever people congregate. T-fields can be passed from person to person kind of like a virus. This is why if you have dinner with some pretty negative people, for example, you're probably going to start thinking negatively yourself. And if you have dinner with some really positive, upbeat people, your thoughts are going to become more positive!
This is why your living environment really matters. If you live with negative people, you are going to be more likely to be haunted by negative thoughts because of the T-fields. If you live in a building with a lot of dark energy, you likewise are going to be subject to more negative thoughts if you haven't sufficiently cleansed your living space spiritually.
So whether you know it or not, most of the time thoughts are actually thinking you, and not the other way around. The more that you cleanse your energy field and your space and do your spiritual work, you are able to let go of the subconscious patterns that were unconsciously imprinted on you by your parents or caregivers when you were between the ages of zero and seven.
As you shift these subconscious patterns into more supportive subconscious patterns, naturally the resonant T-fields in your aura will shift to more positive T-fields. If you are then able to surround yourself with positive people more of the time, you will find your thoughts permanently shifting for the better.
The other thing that is really important to remember when it comes to improving your inner dialogue is the breath. People who breathe shallowly most of the time tend to not have the most supportive inner dialogues--as when the breathing is shallow, the nervous system is stressed. A stressed nervous system will generally produce stressed thoughts.
When you remember to breathe deeply as you are going about your day, you are likely to experience a levity in your thoughts. This is why, as I said, I recommend a daily deep breathing practice for most everyone.
Meditation is such an incredibly helpful tool for everyone—not just those on a conscious Awakening/self-improvement journey.
A very simple and (I think, beginner-friendly) form of meditation is to simply sit quietly, and focus on breathing deeply into your abdomen. As thoughts inevitably come up, rather than following the thoughts, imagine that they are simply clouds drifting by in the sky. Observe the thoughts when they come up—and when you catch yourself following the thoughts (and beginning to ‘think’), remind yourself to bring your focus and attention back to the physical sensations of your breathing (e.g. the movement of your belly, and the feeling of the air going in and out of your nostrils).
Try this for just two minutes at first. You’ll get better at it after just a week of practice. When you’re ready, you can increase to five minutes, 10 minutes, or more!
Many studies show that meditation is great for physical and mental health; let’s talk more about how Virgo season can help us to improve our well-being.
DAILY RITUALS TO IMPROVE PHYSICAL AND MENTAL HEALTH
The pragmatism and ritualism of Virgo also assists us in improving our physical and mental health and vitality. Use the remainder of this Virgo season to implement new strategies to enhance your physical robustness and mental well-being. Start taking some new supplements (or start taking ones again that you maybe had taken in the past), and recommit to daily meditation and exercise.
Take a moment and write down at least 3-5 new rituals (this could include a new diet and/or supplement regimen) that you will be implementing this Virgo season. Examples could include: meditation; an exercise routine; cultivating an altar; a tai chi or qi gong practice; practicing a sport; doing dry brushing; going for weekly massages.
OTHER ASPECTS OF NOTE
The Retrograde Neptune sextiles the Retrograde Pluto, opening the doors to seek out esoteric knowledge, and discover truths in general. This is the type of aspect that makes us want to watch Ancient Aliens on The History Channel. Also, the Mexican government just revealed to the world mummified extraterrestrial bodies that come from Peru!
The only two non-Retrograde planets, Venus and Mars, are sextiling one another, bringing out a romantic air from the otherwise timid Virgo energies. Venus of course represents women, and being in Leo, it is quite expressive. Mars represents men, and being in Libra, it wants to be harmonious and fair. It is a lovey-dovey relationship type energy.
Some of you may have gotten back together with your exes (or at least explored the possibility) during this Mercury Retrograde and/or the most recent Venus Retrograde. You might be feeling very drawn to reconnect with past lovers right now.
For some, this energy may reignite old flames—and it could perhaps be a turning point, where the relationship ends up working out this time. However, in most cases, it’s important to remember that there’s a reason you’re no longer with that person, and perhaps it’s in the Highest Good for both parties to go on your respective journeys alone.
If you’re feeling unsure about anything involving relationships, one of my specialties is reading into relationships and discerning what the Soul Contract is—and whether it will likely work out or not. I use many tools--including clairvoyance, astrology, and tarot-- to make my assessments.
Wishing you a happy, healthy and productive New Moon in Virgo!
With Love,
Matthew John
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