Full Moon in Scorpio: Astrology of 5/15 – 5/21

Empowerment. Do we feel we are situated in our power? The funny thing about not being in our power is that the same power we are not embodying just gets placed somewhere else. Sometimes it is the adversity or negatively-charged events we face in life that triggers us to remember these deeper parts of ourselves.

Take an example of a person who is mild-mannered, accommodating, and who has ended up letting other people walk over them. Eventually they come into contact with someone who holds an opposite pole: someone who is a bully and who takes what they can. Perhaps it is through the intensity of their meeting that the mild-mannered person finally feels pushed around enough and a latent, assertive part of themselves rises to the occasion.

This Full Moon in Scorpio is an opportunity to see behind the appearances of what repels or triggers us. It offers a moment to ask why?! What deeper part of me is being awakened? How are the events in my life conspiring to awaken me?

It is worth saying that real power never has to use force, manipulation, or coercion. Empowerment is about tuning in with the nobility and authority of one’s actual essence, an essence which tends to empower others who behold it. That last time you were inspired by someone else? That was power.

At the same time as the Scorpionic mood is rising (as the Full Moon builds) this week can also offer us a radical shift in consciousness about how we can harmonize with the flow of reality and perceive through a lens of beauty and friendship, rather than “getting somewhere” or war – and how this can powerfully enhance and add ease and grace to our lives. Read more about it below!

And welcome back! In case this is your first time here, I’m Sabrina Monarch and I’ve been writing these weekly astrology forecasts for nearly four years now. I love providing perspectives on the opportunities of transits and putting into words what the vibe may feel like at this moment in time, to support you on your path & open a dialogue between us and the cosmos. If you would like to receive these weekly forecasts to your inbox, sign up for my mailing list here.

An announcement first…

Join me June 1 for a free masterclass!

Evolutionary Astrology is a modern form of astrology that opens a window into the history of the soul (our prior lives) as well as what the key lessons are in this lifetime. This is amazing knowledge to have for the person who often wonders, “why am I here?” or “what’s the purpose?” or “what am I here to accomplish?”

Evolutionary Astrology is also a language that supports us in forming meaningful meditations on questions like, “why was I born into this family and culture?” or “why have I experienced the adversities that I have and how can they become my greatest gifts?”

The gift about this form of astrology is that it is an actual language for discovering life purpose – both in the rich mythology of the zodiac and planets and in the esoteric teachings about karma and reincarnation, and the arts of transformation, that accompany this profound wisdom school.

Studying astrology can become a spiritual path that opens up the way for the universe to enter into a more dynamic dialogue with us. As a great astrologer Dane Rudhyar said, “Astrology is a language. If you understand this language, the sky speaks to you.”

In this class I’ll share with you some teachings from this lineage of astrology about Pluto and the lunar nodes (key archetypes for understanding the evolution of the soul). I’ll also speak to the nature of the reincarnating soul and how we can detect soul & engage with soul for a more fulfilling, meaningful life. These are teachings that have been so empowering for me as well as for my students. Sign up here.

(Scorpion Image: Josh E Wylie)

Here’s our week:

May 15

Venus enters Taurus: 2:46 AM PDT

• Venus in Taurus highlights earthy aesthetic – such as the pleasure of touch, the craft of cuisine or sensually eating fruit, the physical textures of clothes, the way that grass feels on our feet, the aromas of coffee and tea, and the whole expanse of sensuality in general which we can become more aware of if we just tune our attention toward it.

• Self-love is such a buzzword but it is still a concept which, if we move toward it, is a portal into a dimension! Self-love is crucial with the Venus and Taurus archetypes, and is a foundation from which all other experiences are interpreted. I’d like to invite you to think about a self-love this season that is totally grounded in your experience – not an aspirational self-love like “I’ll be happy when” or “I’ll feel confident when”, but a self-love rooted in each moment, a falling in love with what is. This kind of love is not about perfection, but it’s about staying present and relational with yourself. Everywhere you go, you are – so what is the quality of this friendship? How do you relate to yourself when you are annoyed, grumpy, etc? These are moments where unconditional friendship can be forged, rather than subtle forms of self-abandonment.

• While Venus is traveling through this very present and methodical earth sign, consider the parts of yourself and your reality that you have not made contact with because you have been overlooking them or wishing them to be something else. What would change if you got really grounded by relating, with love, to what is?

Mercury in 18 Taurus sextile Neptune in 18 Pisces: 6:20 PM PDT

At the very moment of this transit, the Moon will be in 18 degrees of Libra, forming a yod or “finger of god” alignment with Mercury and Neptune. Here are some thoughts:

• Even though many of us reading this are probably on some spiritual path or have some relationship with mindfulness and introspection, separation-based thinking (I am an individual, and the world is chaotic or not intrinsically related to me, I have to fight and struggle through life, etc.) is deeply conditioned into our culture. There are subtle miracles where we check out of this script and relate to the fabric of reality as though it is an intricately woven song that both influences us and responds to our influence.

• If you are facing an obstacle right now in your life, consider how the picture would change if a perspective shift occurred from victory/conquest to harmonization. There is a difference between accessing the will out of fear and defense versus accessing the will out of a harmonic inner-urge to contribute to the universal song with that frequency.

• Remember that relaxation and rest restores us. Slowing down and tuning in (without a normal, accomplishment-based agenda) will be fruitful.

• Consider an encounter with two individuals: one is defensive, on-edge, and is analyzing you to see how you might be a threat to them. The other is warm, friendly, and seems to be aware of the best qualities in you. Which person would become aware of who you are and what you have to offer? Now considering that the universe is not a static, preset thing but is complex and multifaceted, consider how the universe would show you different sides of itself and open up different pathways depending upon how you regard it – an enemy you are always fighting or a friend you are relating to.

Mars enters Cancer: 8:09 PM PDT

For more thoughts on the Moon-Mars combination (here Mars in a Moon-ruled sign), read an article I wrote called The Moon-Mars Connection: Emotional Warriorship & Intuitive Sexuality. Here are some more meditations!

• The unconscious side of Mars in Cancer is to be emotionally reactive, emotionally violent, and to be emotionally defensive in such a way that many things, people, events, feel like the enemy. It is an emotional state of fight-or-flight.

• However, consider that when someone or the collective is working with such hot emotional states, that a new warrior ethos emerges. The nobility of Mars in Cancer includes things like facing the emotions that one is afraid of, learning how to emotionally self-regulate, learning and practicing nonviolent communication, resourcing triggers as signals of where to grow (and doing it now), and finding healthy ways to regulate or release hot emotions.

• An article has been circulating around called Men Have No Friends and Women Bear the Burden, which highlights a social issue up in the collective which has been developing throughout the #yesallwomen, #metoo, zeitgeist, which is a deep call to the masculine to develop its lunar, intuitive, feeling side. In this culture men are brought up to not show weakness, and anger is a safe or valid form of emotional expression while other emotions beneath or primary to anger are shamed and suppressed. But now it is our call as individuals and as a culture to develop that emotional intelligence and emotional connectivity where it has been suppressed.

• Mars transiting through Cancer can be a time where we actively develop our emotional characters by getting into some process (therapy/therapy groups/self-help) that affords us new tools in dealing with the emotions that have caused fight-or-flight reactions in us or which we have suppressed. The first step can take the most courage, but the fruits of this path are cumulative and life-enhancing.

May 16

Mercury in 20 Taurus trine Saturn in 20 Capricorn: 4:09 PM PDT

• This transit can help us be realists for better or worse. The shadow side of realism is cynicism or close-mindedness cloaked as being realistic. But the benefit of being grounded in reality (at least as it is at each moment) can help us tune into dimensions of our experience that we wouldn’t attend to if we were being more lofty.

• Be aware that mental states can dip into grooves in our psyches which have been paved by depression or grief. Life comes with peaks and valleys and sometimes we descend. Soulmaking occurs in the valleys, and sometimes our life work or the beautiful things that we do and the heights we do climb are informed by what we have discovered at our low points.

• I don’t know about you, but I have a LOT of practices and tricks to pull myself out of depression because I used to be chronically depressed and I found ways to re-pattern myself. I’ve found that my overall life and habits are built toward life-enhancement (my habits are, with the exception of stuff I’m working on, good for my mental health), but that some days I may just have a low day and that either I rally myself to feel better and that’s the dharma, OR I sit in the stew and that’s the dharma. It’s not a one-size-fits-all but it is about being deeply present with ourselves. Let me know what you think in the comments, about how you relate to heavier mental states – how you learn from them and how you shake them up.

May 17

Mercury in 23 Taurus trine Pluto in 23 Capricorn: 10:48 PM PDT

(Image: Josh E Wylie)

• Speaking of heavy stuff – here is where it can be transformed and alchemized!

• Singing, chanting, using affirmations are ways to get the body (sound moves through you) to create new patterns. Think of how certain soundscapes and words moving through you shake up old patterns and clear them from your body. We have that power when we use the word and mean it.

• When you have clarity on the pattern that is disempowering you and it has language, “My life is a mess”, “I’m afraid of people judging me,” etc. you can use language to pattern in a new frequency. Sure, you may need to “do” something at some point. But your language game counts too. Shift the tide by saying new thoughts to yourself that affirm a transformation or a new reality. Say it over and over again if you need to. Anxiety loops on its own accord, but mantras and affirmations are repetitive forms of language that come from the will and can be empowering. So why should anxiety have the stronghold on mental repetition? Make your own empowering thought loops.

May 18

Venus in 3 Taurus conjunct Uranus in 3 Taurus: 9:17 AM PDT

• Venus-Uranus transits bring excitement, unpredictability, and irregularity into our relational lives. It’s like there’s more of a charge in the air, and people can be a little bit more animated than normal!

• Relationship developments may occur more quickly or suddenly than normal. Venus-Uranus can be associated with the fling – quick, temporary connections. But not necessarily – it just depends on how people change and grow together or not. In Taurus here, there can be a great amount of excitement when interacting with people whose values resonate at a high level with ours. The ways we enjoy life co-awaken the other.

• Venus-Uranus transits can serve as a reminder to stay spontaneous in how we connect with other people. We can feel inspired, internally or by circumstance, to get out of our ruts and go out and meet people. We might feel inspired to engage people in our lives in a slightly new way, as well.

Full Moon in 27 Scorpio: 2:11 PM PDT

“The state of mind and body that blocks any awareness of the presence of greater being inevitably produces a special kind of suffering. It is this experiencing of this anguish that forces us to take stock of our life attitudes. This taking stock, if honestly carried out, brings us to so great a pitch of desolation that it forces us to the point where we can perceive, sense, and heed the call of our true essence towards which we now feel driven. If, in some propitious hour, we have been given this experience of Being, and if, through the failures of our world-ego and the suffering that results from them we have been brought to the great turning point, then at that moment we can find ourselves on the threshold of something new. Now without fail we just open ourselves to the mysterious, numinous content of moods and impulses which we can neither understand nor explain, still less translate into concepts, but in which we can, nevertheless, unmistakably sense something from beyond this world calling and beckoning to us.” – from the Way of Transformation: Daily Life and Spiritual Practice by Karlfried Graf Durckheim

• When we understand a dynamic in our lives at depth and are able to analyze it – it is in a process of transformation. When our pain threshold is exceeded, we are at a crossroad of transformation. Scorpio can work by bringing things up to the surface (where before they were unconscious, yet still influencing everything) and into the light of consciousness. If we study transformation (such as through depth astrology!) we can recognize these pivotal moments of angst as markers of a threshold.

• If we become aware of some way we want to change, that involves a deeply-patterned and normalized part of our lives, the change can feel that much more daunting. However, a strong container can do a lot of magic! What do I mean by a strong container? A powerful ritual setting, entering an educational program, starting a training – working with people and/or groups that will hold the space for you in your transformation.

• This is a powerful time to let go of extraneous resistance in our lives – the resistance we have to look within, the resistance we have to doing the things we know we are called to do, the resistances we have that are based on fear, and so on. We can get to a place where we face what it is we are resisting and realizing THAT is the path – and everything we were doing to circumvent this path was just avoiding the call.

May 21

Sun enters Gemini: 12:59 AM PDT

• We are leaving Taurus Season, a time where we may have slowed down, taken stock of ourselves and our resources (our finances, possessions, inner-resources, etc.), and been very methodical. Gemini is an air sign through which we become adept communicators and pick up and re-iterate tons of ideas (research rabbit holes, talking about what we’ve learned). We start to see connections and get very excited about synthesizing different worlds and building bridges – I know a few Geminis who have expressed an interest in synthesizing “the secular” with “the esoteric”by translating esoteric concepts into secular language! Gemini is friendly to diversity, and enjoys making connections between diverse subjects.

• For us, this season can be mentally and intellectually stimulating, and we may be more motivated to seek out (or more frequently chance upon) novelty. Novelty allows us to keep things interesting (Gemini doesn’t like boredom!) and to experience new perspectives about reality.

• Engage your curiosity during Gemini Season for creativity and fun – Gemini is the adventure of seeing where our curiosity takes us. It’s not necessarily anywhere we planned, but a spontaneous unfolding of discovery as one interesting lead carries us to the next.

• If we are feeling a little scattered, something that focuses the Gemini vibe is having a philosophical value system to organize our random experiences with. For example, if I were to just go out and do “whatever”, I could end up in all sorts of scenarios. But if I go out with an intention or a value system around aligning with my higher self, I’ll encounter scenarios accordingly. Consider what some of your touchstones might be in this month ahead and see what diverse experiences you can gather around those intentions.

Mercury enters Gemini: 3:52 AM PDT

• Mercury in Gemini is fabulous for research and assimilating tons of ideas. It can also be great for making connections with other people – networking or community-building, if you will.

• Mercury in Gemini is also a time to refine our communication, learning how to articulate things which we have not yet. We can tell that we have succeeded when the message fires as is received – and we experiment or figure out how to articulate until the bridge is formed.

Sun in 0 Gemini conjunct Mercury in 0 Gemini: 6:07 PM PDT

(Image: Josh E Wylie)

• It can feel like there’s so much chattiness and activity happening in our minds, and like we have tons of ideas firing at once. The sense of possibility is palpable as well. This burst of mental energy may have us seek discharge in the form of lively conversation, writing, dancing, or anything that gets us to shake it out and just express.

• Words and ideas have a way of shaking up reality and changing things – considering that the words deviate at least slightly from the original conversation. You know how you’ve felt when someone has said something you haven’t thought of before and it changed your perspective? This is the creative fun and potency of the Gemini archetype. A little change of mind and a whole new world opens.

• You can tell a happy Gemini (or someone with a lot of Gemini in their chart) by how freely and lightly they chat and express themselves verbally. The lightness is like a birdsong, communication just for the joy of it. This Sun-Mercury conjunction can be like laying out in the Sun and getting a sunbath in the form of creative and mental inspiration. Likewise, sometimes the Sun-Mercury energy burns so bright we feel burnt out. If mental activity becomes excessive this week (as it may), consider some form of grounding or some way of getting into the shade to relax!

Thank you for meditating on the planets with me this week! I really appreciate you being here with me as I know that if you connect to this writing we have likemindedness and that is so special. Please share this article with a friend who you think would resonate!

I have an upcoming online 45 hour Evolutionary Astrology intensive coming up in June, designed to give you the vocabulary and skillset to start forming your own astrological interpretations from the perspective of the soul. I created this course because I wanted other people to have the opportunity to have a deep personal connection to astrology which would empower them to have astrology as a personal and spiritual growth tool as something to keep long after the course is over. Past students have reported that this course is life-changing and has supported them on their spiritual path. You can read more about this course and enroll here.

Please let me know what you think in the comments – truly I want to know so leave a note! I love you and you are tribe to me, thank you for finding your way to these words and resonating with them in whatever ways you have.

I’m also becoming increasingly expressive on instagram and love connecting with people there, so go find me there @sabrinamonarch and say hello! You may also know that I recently started a new podcast called The Magic of the Spheres, a show about spiritual lifestyle and personal evolution. You can find it where you listen to podcasts!

With love,

Sabrina Monarch

Sabrina Monarch is a soul-centered Evolutionary Astrologer who publishes weekly astrological forecasts, works with clients and teaches. She has been collecting astrological experience for over a decade. She is a novelist and is currently pursuing her masters in Philosophy. She also enjoys kundalini yoga, meditation and ashtanga yoga.

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