Image by Alexandra Haynak
28th October – 20th November 2019: New moon in 5th degree of Scorpio followed by Mercury retrograde in Scorpio from 31st October
All dates and times are UT so may vary in your time zone. For Eastern Time, subtract 4 hours, Pacific subtract 7.
The moon is new in the 5th degree of Scorpio at 3:40 a.m. UT on 28th October. This moon marks an opportunity to stop and take stock, turn within and ask some probing questions about what’s really going on in the places we most struggle in our lives.
Excuses won’t cut it now. Pussy-footing around the point won’t work. Honest answers are necessary. We’ll know them by their energetic charge which floods our being when we articulate truth.
We don’t even have to share it with others right now. It may indeed take some time to come to terms with it ourselves! But truth spoken in the privacy of our own hearts is still truth nonetheless. Doing so can be the first step to integrating its catalysing presence in our life. Even the most unpalatable truths can still set us free.
The Moon's North Node
At the time of this new moon, with the moon’s north node crossing the solar eclipse degree of 2nd July, feelings which arose back then – and the circumstances which triggered them – may find resolution now. Insights gained in July are coming into their own, paving the way for a manifest change of pace or direction.
If it feels like slipping back into a state you thought you’d finished with, remember that life is a spiral not a roundabout! We do indeed revisit things many times, but always from a slightly different perspective or point of view. We are never the same person twice, no matter how much we may feel ourselves to be.
The North Node facilitates the manifestation of our future not entrapment in the past. But we must do our part to make that happen, and if life is full of ‘déjà vu’ right now we may well be receiving a precious opportunity to revisit issues from earlier this year, to make different and better choices.
The Pain of Waking Up
With Mercury turning retrograde in Scorpio on 31st October, this is no time for obfuscation to escape the pain of waking up. What we avoid at this moon may well come back to slap us in the face in November!
It can hurt to be confronted with the fact and consequences of our denials, deceptions, avoidance and projections. But when we refuse to dramatise that pain into a crisis it can eventually subside, leaving the fresh air and space of a psyche cleansed of emotional debris.
Uranus opposing this moon offers exactly this freedom. For many, recent times have been extremely intense and the future looks like more of the same. But this moon reminds us respite and relief exist right here, right now. In accepting that the path of wisdom leads us through scary terrain, we’re no longer beholden to the power of unbridled emotion or the imposing nature of our personal shadowlands. We can face what we must and still prevail. Then we are truly free.
Mercury Retrograde in Scorpio
On 31st October at 15:35 UT, Mercury turns retrograde in the 28th degree of Scorpio and remains so until 20th November 2019. In this sign Mercury engages with secrets and lies, investigations and exposés. It will dig as deeply as needed to reach the root of an issue.
Polite chit-chat is not the domain of Mercury in Scorpio. Be prepared for some uncomfortable but enlightening conversations! Conjunct Venus as it about-turns, this retrograde phase is well placed to expose the deceptions in our relationships, illuminating where we subtly – or not so subtly – play with the truth to retain control and stay safe.
We may, of course, resist such revelation with all our might. But no matter why we keep secrets or hide aspects of ourselves, this Mercury will root them out, sometimes in the guise of other people digging their nose in where it’s least welcome!
Revelation Leads To Transformation
However adept we may have been at maintaining a smoke-screen or pulling the wool over certain eyes, this Mercury retrograde could change all that. And if it does… don’t panic! Whatever’s revealed now is better out in the open than hidden in the shadows. It has less power that way. And its revelation may just transform it into a more wholesome force in our lives, no matter how mucky it appears on first exposure to the light of day.
True protection is found in a Moon/Jupiter conjunction in Sagittarius at Mercury’s retrograde station, assuring us it’s okay – all this exposure, all these revelations. Look upon them as a release of stale breath held tight for years. It’s been poisoning us and we don’t need it anymore.
This planetary alliance reminds us how resilient we really are and how the power of realistic positivity can bring us through what at first appears insurmountable. So whatever may be upper-most in your life during the month to come, remember the following will carry you through:
hope in the potential for change,
faith in your ability to rise and
commitment to using even the sharpest challenges as fuel for the journey ahead.
Reprinted with permission of the author.
About the Author
Sarah Varcas is an intuitive astrologer with a passion for applying planetary messages to the ups and downs of everyday life. In doing so she aims to support people in their personal and spiritual development, making available celestial wisdom which may otherwise be inaccessible for those without astrological expertise.
Sarah has studied astrology for over thirty years alongside an eclectic spiritual path spanning Buddhism, contemplative Christianity and many other diverse teachings and practices. She also offers an online (via email) Self-Study Astrology Course.
You can find out more about Sarah and her work at www.astro-awakenings.co.uk.
