New Moon in Aquarius

In this episode, I talk about the upcoming new Moon, which will take place on February 27 in Aquarius in the sidereal zodiac.

Here’s a quick summary of what I talk about:

• Sun and Moon in Aquarius together with Saturn: This new Moon ushers in a roughly two week period where your energy and vitality might take a hit (something I forgot to mention in the podcast). You may also feel particularly isolated, gloomy and even depressed. Saturn is structure. Since he is combust in this lunation, this could mean structures are unclear and that the path forward feel blocked, which may bring up feelings of anger, fear and sorrow.

• Mercury is very weak and debilitated in Pisces: On the one hand, this could cause issues with miscommunication and misunderstandings, or finding the right words to express what you think and feel. Mercury is also co-present with Rahu, which can mean distorted information or even outright lies. On the other hand, Mercury rules money, market and the economy in general, and his state here speaks to issues and weakness in these areas.

• Venus is about to go retrograde: As I wrote in this post, Venus is currently exalted in Pisces and in a parivartana exchange with Jupiter. This bring in some supportive energy that both helps uplift Mercury and lessen Rahu’s malefic energy. However, she will also station retrograde two days, which will seemingly weaken her influence.

The power of Śatabhiṣaja nakshatra

This new moon brings in a heavy energy that may leave you feeling drained and out of sync. However, it does hold the seed of something both useful and powerful in times of crisis and uncertainty: it is taking place in Śatabhiṣaja nakshatra.

If you don’t know what nakshatras are, check out this post first.

Nakshatra of 100 medicines

Śatabhiṣaja is a nakshatra that calls us to hold steady and relentlessly seek the truth. It is a healing nakshatra, but not in a general sense. This nakshatra has the ability to be a light in times of crisis. It has the alchemical power to connect that which seems separate or even incompatible and distill it into something new.

In the video, the Vedic astrologer Vic DiCara brings up some interesting points about the life lessons of this nakshatra, so check it out if you’d like to know more.

Contemplations on the Age of Air

The synthesising nature of Śatabhiṣaja made me think about the original name I gave this newsletter: Age of Air.

At the time, I was still a traditional Western astrologer – I was just starting my studies in Vedic astrology and wasn’t yet aware that I would fall in love with this system so much that I’d change my astrological path for good.

But I digress.

Just what is the Age of Air?

The Age of Air is a traditional Western astrology concept that divides history into elemental epochs that can be traced by the Jupiter-Saturn cycle. Each epoch lasts roughly 200+ years.

I don’t want to go too much more into the details or historical evidence, as this post is already long enough. If you’d like to know more, check out this excellent piece I found here on Substack.

The Age of Air: What it is and why it matters

Why did I choose the name “Age of Air”?

Because, at the time, I was excited.

Before the 2020 Jupiter-Saturn “Great Conjunction,” that officially ushered in the Age of Air (we had a preview in the 80s and 90s that you can read about in the article above) we were in the Age of Earth.

This was an age of land grabs, mining the Earth for precious resources, carving up regions into united nation states, and the major colonial expansion referred to as New Imperialism.

Earth is material, and it’s age is when we saw the rise of rampant materialism.

The Age of Air seemed to promise a figurative breath of fresh air. This is an age that supports networks and collaboration, a time that calls for a decentralization of power on multiple levels, when empires crumble and borders and boundaries loosen and dissolve.

Sounds great, right?

I still think it is, or will be when we can learn to cooperate and take it to the level inherent in Śatabhiṣaja nakshatra.

Needless to say, we’re not there yet.

The darker side of a epoch transition

First off, this age doesn’t follow the same rules we’d grown accustomed too, which has led to some growing pains. Even if many of us were sick of the negative sides of the Age of Earth, by its nature, it did provide a certain amount of predictability and steadiness.

Air, however, is different.

It scatters and disperses, and cannot be contained, at least for long. Air is sometimes a gentle wind, but at other times a raging storm or hurricane. This means we’re living in a time that changeable, chaotic and unstable by nature. Things move quickly, and people expect quick answers.

Personally, I think this explain some of the issues we’re having with democracy. As I mention in the podcast, democracy is related to Saturn, which means, by its very nature, it calls for slow and laborious process, reactions and consideration. I don’t think this means democracy will disappear, but it will likely need to adapt and become more agile.

From an astrological/historical point of view, one thing I can say with certainty is this: those leaders still following the rules of the Age of Earth will ultimately fail, and their efforts crumble. In other words, those who seek to expand their empires, centralize power, build walls or tightly close off borders.

These are outdated strategies and solutions that will not have the staying power they achieved during the Age of Earth.

This knowledge does help ease my mind in troubled times, although the fear remains about what may happen in the meantime before this failure comes to pass.

In the end, I guess all I can say is this: Buckle up and do your best to stay grounded. We’re in for a wild ride.

Speaking of staying grounded…

I’ll be publishing some tips for how to deal with the heaviness of Saturn and the anxiety and chaos of Rahu soon, as both energies can be very taxing on both our emotional and physical health.

These types of insights and remedial recommendations are usually ones I only offer to my paid subscribers. However, since this energy plays a role in this new moon, the upcoming eclipses, and all of April – when Saturn and Rahu play house together in Pisces – I’ve decided to offer them to free subscribers as well.

If it’s possible for you at this time, please consider upgrading to a paid subscription – and a special thanks to those who already have! Your support is very much appreciated.

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Michelle R. Dean is a Vedic astrologer and writer based in Berlin. To find out more about Michelle, swing by here.