The Full Moon on May 19 (May 20 in the Eastern Hemisphere) falls at 29° Scorpio, just before the Sun leaves Taurus and enters Gemini. This is called the “anaretic degree” or “critical degree” and marks the ending of a phase. It is an opportunity to review our understanding of the lessons of the sign involved.
Scorpio has been the focal point of this last cycle from Full Moon to Full Moon, and hopefully most of us have had realizations about what we need to let go of or release to the highest good.
The Sun is still conjunct Venus in Taurus, emphasizing appreciation of what we have and the importance of being in the body. When the Sun moves on into Gemini and joins Mercury and Ceres there, air signs will be able to breathe more easily, whereas the earth signs will be reluctant to give up touchy feely Taurus. The fire signs are just happy to have Mars in Leo instead of Cancer! It is a bit dry now for water signs.
One of the more interesting patterns in the sky on this Full Moon is a wide fixed grand cross formed by the nodal axis, the luminaries, and the Chiron/Neptune conjunction in Aquarius. This particular pattern impacts my chart strongly and prompts me to feel the key here is to take advantage of pain to discern what needs tossing from one’s life. It’s a truism that humans change more readily when it’s too painful not to, and the conjunction of Chiron/North Node/Neptune looks very much like just the crew to do that. Aquarius provides the detachment to stand back and observe the source of the pain Chiron is pointing to, while Neptune provides the anesthetic (boy, is this going to hurt when it wears off . . .), and the North Node in Aquarius indicates the path we need to travel toward the greater good. The Scorpio Full Moon gives us the wherewithal to dig deep inside ourselves and haul what we need to review to the surface. May passing through this experience help all of us feel lighter and freer to truly be ourselves.
We are still working with Jupiter sextile Uranus, but in this Full Moon chart, Mercury conjunct Ceres in Gemini is square Uranus. This may be a clue as to why so many are feeling Mercury retrograde is casting a deeper shadow than usual. Once Mercury goes retrograde on May 26, the square to Uranus will widen and won’t begin to close until after Mercury goes direct on June 20. Uranus is essentially standing still now as it prepares to station retrograde on June 28, but we won’t cross that bridge for awhile yet . . . thankfully.
The next chapter following this Full Moon will unfold slowly due to Mercury’s change in direction. Perhaps the best course of action is to keep in mind Scorpio’s theme of rejuvenation and review, as Mercury retrograde is certainly a good time to continue with it. Life has been moving very quickly since the powerful New Moon in Aries, and a breather would do us all good!
posted by Neith . . .
RealAstrologers 
Hey, ladies:
I was wondering what you both thought about the void of course period and whether you believe that it’s a bad idea to start anything when the moon is v.o.c. I began a project last night at around 7pm NY time and today I wondered if that was a good idea or if that idea ain’t going anywhere.
thanks!
Eme
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Neith, this post is well worthy of the depth of the Scorpio! There’s so much here to ponder.
You are right about the pain, and I’d add that all transformation (a Scorpio keyword) is painful by definition. I don’t think it has has to be, but for most of us, it is, because we usually don’t understand what’s happening while we’re in the middle of it. Only after we come out the other side do we have an idea of what that was all about (and even then, not always). The thought occurred to me the other day that we might not even know what our individual life is all about until after we’ve crossed over and are looking back…
Put another way, pain and suffering exert stress and pressure, which under the right conditions temper the spirit. Although I believe you are right about Aquarius providing the necessary detachment, we also have to be careful here not to try to avoid the pain altogether. Neptune is the planet of self-delusion, and people with strong Neptune or twelfth house energy in their charts (our current president, for example) often resort to pain relief through drugs, alcohol, or religion. Taken to an extreme, even spiritual practices can be a form of escapism.
Eventually, pain avoidance leads to intense pain, and at that point, the pain of changing becomes more attractive.
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Hey Eme,
The Moon was v/c from 11:29 p.m. EDT, when she trined Neptune, until 10:59 a.m., when she entered Libra. So if you started a project around 7 p.m., you missed the v/c.
If I can avoid it, I don’t start any major new projects while the the Moon is v/c. And depending on what sign the Moon is in and how long the v/c lasts, it can act like a mini Mercury retrograde period. There have been times when I’ve needed to start someting and couldn’t, for the life of me, because no one was returning my phone calls or answering my e-mail.
Anyway, good question — exactly the kind that Neith and I will be answering in our new Ask Real Astrologers column! If anyone else has questions like this, send ’em on over. We’ve created a special page for you to submit them.
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Thanks very much for answering, Pat.
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Hey emekah!
I’ve tracked Moon V/C for quite awhile and overall found like Pat it’s easier to take care of old business because new projects don’t seem to get off the ground.
Now i have read other astrologers say if you have personal planets in the late degrees Moon V/C is less noticeable. I do and still not sure if that’s true . . . :-D
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I agree with Pat on the depth. I couldn’t even comment last night, but I was so happy to read this. And, just nodding my head.
Neith, I have to tell you because you’ve seen his chart, but this Full Moon falls right under my Cancer’s ascendant at 27 Scorpio (so I know how big this is in your chart too) and exactly on his NN at 29 33′ Scorpio (hey, semisextile my Sun and I guess yours too). It’s just so exciting to see something this big happen directly on important points for someone you care about. I used this Full Moon to write him to end the relationship for now (I know I talked about “restructuring” in an earlier Twitter). The most important energy I get about Scorpio is that it’s not just about death, it’s about rebirth. Therefore I believe that if something ends on a Scorpio full moon, you take advantage of the chance that it (or you) will rise from the ashes in the future. Wow, is this an intense day! I am feeling it like nothing else. I guess Neptune is working for me for now…
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Hi Jessica!
Yesterday was intense for sure. Always glad to have the Moon move into Sagittarius and feel the atmosphere lighten. The Sun moves into Gemini today and I’m delighted to have more Air in the sky!!
The Venus/Neptune square late yesterday had me thinking about the beauty of the ephemeral, like spring wildflowers. One of the reasons I love following the transitions of the seasons – each makes me appreciate the others more. :-D
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