Or, what is over-and-done in your relationship with others, yourself and the world? It’s time to let go.
As we welcome the incoming Libra New Moon, we’re greeted by a relational reckoning of sorts.
Let’s keep in mind that while, generally, New Moons are the perfect time to set intentions for what we’re wanting more of in our lives, this lunation comes with a few plot twists.
As a South Node (solar) eclipse, today’s New Moon energy is amped-up. But rather than having us look directly at the future, we’re first needing to take stock of the past. Wherever the South Node lies, we can draw on a storehouse of past experience and expertise in a particular domain — in this case, Libra territory.
Yet the South Node also points us to the things we must un-learn in order to move on: stagnant dynamics, or specific ways in which we have learned to suffer, that we’re now invited to free ourselves from. As we do South Node work, we clear the way for our North Node — currently in Aries — to guide us to new, enriching and satisfying experiences.
Put differently, during this New Moon, we’re getting clear on what’s a true “Yes” through taking inventory of all the “No’s” we’ve accumulated over the last little while.
What are we letting go of specifically? Aries is courageous, passionate, and asserts its right to exist with all it’s got. To get the most of this lunation, we’re going to have to bring forward these qualities, while releasing everything that stands in the way of connecting deeply from that bold, fiery, life’s-really-worth-living place. We’re looking at ways of relating, committing (or failing to commit), or of presenting ourselves socially, that have run their course and reflect a timid, hedging-our-bets, less mature, less real version of ourselves.
Libra’s Superpowers
In order to more deeply understand what the Moon is proposing to us at the time of this eclipse, let’s review what Libra’s all about — both the light and dark of this paradoxical sign.
Libra, the sign of the scales, offers us the wisdom that the self is only half of the equation at any given point. As such, Libra is happy to think in terms of “us” rather than “me, myself, and I”.
Libra’s goals are the creation of real, fair, and true relationships of all sorts. Ones built both on genuine love, and on all of the so-called “soft skills” required to bring that love to fruition.
Think: reading a room, active listening, attending to courtesy and niceties, creating pleasant, enjoyable spaces and experiences, de-escalating conflict, being ready for negotiation and compromise.
These skills are absolutely essential. We’ll need them anywhere connection and cooperation are to thrive: from cultivating a rich friendship, to a romantic long term relationship, to — at a more abstract, big picture level — the social processes that create cohesive communities built on justice and connection.
When not speaking to our interpersonal circuitry, Libra asks us to enter into a different kind of relationship: with the experience of Life itself. The prescription here is about tending to beauty and artistry, curating aesthetic experiences and sensual joy. In other words, giving center stage to everything and anything that allows us to soften, relax and open our hearts, so we can build a loving connection with our world. Sometimes Libra gets judged as lightweight or shallow when paying so much attention to aesthetics, yet the deeper truth is that Beauty is a balm for our soul, and there’s nothing superfluous about it. At this exalted level, Libra advocates for Beauty beyond the surface or the trendy fad, as the beacon that pulls us toward transcendent wholeness.
All That Being Said…
The Scales remind us that it’s always a balancing act to craft and maintain that sense of beauty, balance, love and harmony. Especially when other people are involved, with all the social games that can entail. Yet, this is exactly how we can fall into the Libran shadow-side traps, which equate to what we do to try and maintain a flawed, surface-level-only feeling of harmony.
We’ve been working on freeing ourselves from the grips of the Libran shadow — any and all false versions of love, beauty and social roles and identities — ever since the Lunar Nodes entered Aries and Libra back in Spring/Summer 2023. Now we’ve only got three more months before the nodes change signs, and a whole new set of lessons begins. This New Moon/ Solar Eclipse says: “It’s time to make what we’ve learned count!”
During this New Moon/South Node Eclipse, we definitely want to harness the positive sides of Libra. However, to make that happen, we’ll need to first go through the work of disrupting loops and dynamics that keep us shackled to un-love. For love to truly thrive, our real needs, experiences, opinions and fiercer emotions, such as anger, have to be included. Rupture, conflict, and a sense of healthy self-interest create the real-deal experience of connection, and far more closeness than when these “messier” expressions of our relational life are edited out. We can’t all always look glossy, shiny, well-adjusted and peaceful.
Otherwise…
In the name of connection, we can offer up ourselves as a sacrifice, editing our experience and erasing our needs to the point that we eventually explode, burn out, collapse or get sick.
Trying to protect a fragile harmony and peace with our loved ones, we can walk on eggshells and avoid the confrontation that will produce real healing.
In trying to be caring and “a good person”, we might fail to realize that we’re enabling others in bad behavior, selfishness or immaturity.
We might be adamant about our commitments to others… but neglect to keep any commitments to ourselves.
Or, we might simply be so defined by the people around us, that our life becomes the dull life of a chronic follower. We live the quiet tragedy of never experiencing fire rising in our belly — nor letting that intrinsic passion lead us to where our Soul needs to go.
Mercury, Black Moon Lilith and Grand Water Trine
Thanks to a close conjunction with Mercury and Black Moon Lilith, we’re also looking at a possible “Aha moment”, a clicking into place of many puzzle pieces. Something or someone might give us the missing information we needed to finally grok the whole picture of what we’ve been grappling with in our relationships. A conversation or empowered discussion with a partner or loved one might be in order too: Mercury is all about communication. This could be a time not only to reflect, but to talk it out and acknowledge our relational stuck places, as a step toward healing.
With Black Moon Lilith in the mix, and with Venus (the New Moon’s ruler) in Scorpio, in a Grand Water Trine with Saturn and Mars, there are edgier, harder energies present at this time as well.
We may be finally finding the words to articulate an almost-feral boundary around our autonomy, something that may not look or appear palatable in “polite society”, but that has to be claimed for our full self to be available for trust and connection.
Or we may be tapping into deep, passionate longings and desires — there’s one Scorpio connection. Look out around this New Moon for disowned, primal instincts, boundaries — and shadow material that you’re no longer willing to carry for another.
Black Moon Lilith, too, is a deep and wild aspect of us that craves sovereignty above all else.
Can we be both loved, and respected in our autonomy? Lilith asks.
She is the hag or she-demon, a powerful primal feminine force which doesn’t conform to social expectations of meekness or goodness. But she’s also the archetypal “hysterical woman” who acts out what everyone else has repressed: the designated patient. In this sense, now’s also a time to notice any body-mind symptoms that may show up. Whether emotional distress, mental health issues, or physical ailments, listen carefully for their underlying messages about your wholeness and needs, no matter how “out there” they may seem.
Making it More Personal: Journaling Prompts.
This New Moon feels like our final assignment for these Nodes, centered on identifying our deadening and damaging responses to the South Node in Libra’s pressure to maintain (the appearance) of harmony and an even keel. By this point, we can’t move forward, unless we commit to this leveling up in our self-advocacy and relational integrity.
Because each of us has a very unique chart, we all respond to these pressures differently. You yourself might not be a people-pleaser, for example — a typical Libra shadow archetype — but what matters is to feel into your personal version of the Libran trap. What I’m trying to get at, is that you don’t have to be a Libran personalityto be stuck on issues that pertain to Libra at a structural level. Makes sense?
Here are some journaling prompts to help you dig deeper in this direction:
What do you actually do when you feel like you can’t be yourself with others?
How do you find yourself avoiding discomfort in relationships, even when necessary confrontations are at hand?
Do you ever find yourself compromising your needs or values because of real or perceived pressure from others? How so?
Do you have a particular way of abandoning yourself in the face of other people’s needs?
Is your attention, time and energy being devoured by a relationship? (Perhaps not even a loving one, or one you wish to pursue. It doesn’t even have to be romantic! It can just as easily be with your landlord or boss).
These questions might help in determining what’s ready to go at this South Node eclipse. And once your inner space is clear, don’t forget to explore what the next level of beautiful, delicious, edifying, and loving relationships would look like! Feel free to share below in the comments what you’re letting go of this New Moon to make space for something much, much better.
Looking for more to go on?
If you’d like some 1:1 tailored assistance with any of the themes coming up this New Moon, check out my services here. If find we’re a good fit, I’d be happy to support you through an astrological consultation, coaching, a psychic session, or energy work.
As part of my Autumn Tune-up, this season I’m offering discounted, time-limited sessions for energy healing, which can be especially devoted to sorting through any relational stuck places in your life.
I’m also offering a 3-session series of mentoring consultations to help you learn to do energy work for yourself as part of your essential self-care. You’ll find more info about these discounted sessions in the “Booking and Rates” section here, and you can always reach out at hello@karineglinton.com for any questions.
