30 December 2020, 03h30 GMT (9 degrees Cancer)
2020’s final week is likely to be one of high emotion (and possibly even a smidgen of drama and intrigue), with a strong focus on relationships and money. With the cosmic weather relatively quiet up until December the 30th, all eyes will be on the Cold Full Moon, which takes place in its ‘home’ sign of Cancer – the same day that Venus will make her fourth and final square to Neptune for 2020.
Venus will also be travelling very close to the south lunar node or tail of the dragon, which is all about endings and exits, especially in terms of karmic lessons and soul contracts. Add to that a waning moon and the end of the year, and we really are talking about closing out cycles and closing doors. If there was ever a time to work on releasing any lingering toxic patterns, addictions or recurring lessons around self-deception, self-worth or self-sabotage from the 2020 Venus retrograde, then this is it!
Given that Venus will now be in Sagittarius – the opposite position in zodiac wheel that she occupied during the first three squares to Neptune, I really feel that there is a major opportunity here for aha moments and realisations, particularly when it comes to seeing connections between knowledge, thoughts & speech on one hand, and beliefs, values and lived/learned wisdom, on the other.
I recently heard somebody describe the one as being like a sword, and the other as a cup, which I thought was a lovely analogy. especially given what I was saying in my video last month about Hermes-Thoth being a Moon god (and therefore, a channel or receiver of higher/solar wisdom). While knowledge or answers (Gemini) can be actively sought via research, discussion or logical reasoning – wisdom (Sagittarius) is often received or imbibed, either by way of revelation, a transmission from a respected teacher or via rumination or lived experience.
The nexus between these two ways of filtering and understanding ourselves, the world and other people could well prove to be a site of major change or realisations at this Full Moon and the two weeks of the waning moon cycle, particularly within the sphere of money, relationships and creativity/leisure/joy and beauty. As opportunities to finally pinpoint and identify where we may have been blinkered, harboured blindspots or were previously deceived, so everything changes.
When it comes to romantic relationships or money matters, look for connections between what happens now and the Venus retrograde period (May-July 2020), especially the Venus-Neptune squares of early May and late July. However, if what comes up is about home, family, food or safety, then look to the Cancer Moons we experienced in January, June and July 2020 for parallels.
MAJOR THEMES
Sign
The final Full Moon of 2020 will take place in it’s own sign, making it extra potent and powerful. Cancer is about childhood as well as food, roots, home, parenting, and safety/security.
With the luminaries making a T-square to Chiron, this could be a time of healing inner child wounds around home, belonging and feeling safe/secure. Situations involving a close relative or family dynamic that may have caused you a lot of pain or distress in the past could also come to a head or a natural conclusion now.
Whatever transpires may well have links or ties to previous Cancer-ruled Moon cycles, particularly the Wolf Moon lunar eclipse in January 2020, which occurred so close to the powerful (and destructive) Saturn-Pluto conjunction that, in many ways, set the tone for the entire year. Either that or situations begun around the time of the Solstice Solar Eclipse in June 2020, which took place at the Cancer New Moon on 21 June 2020.
This soli-lunar event calls on us all to try and find a balance between giving and receiving love, self-care vs fulfilling domestic responsibilities and obligations, as well as self-sufficiency and emotional maturity – being able to take care of ourselves and others in a healthy and reciprocal way that doesn’t lead to co-dependency or over-giving.
Collectively, this is about lifestyle and emotional adjustments to changing economic arrangements and social institutions (Brexit anyone?), as well as issues that centre around matriarchal vs patriarchal approaches and structures to caregiving, discipline, home and family life. I wouldn’t be at all surprised if our attitude and approach to carehomes and retirement underwent a major overhaul in 2021.
Sabian Symbol
This Sabian symbol reminds me a lot of The Star card in the tarot. Unlike this image, though, we have a naked girl personified though, rather than a woman – the ultimate symbol of childlike innocence and purity. This for me points to the other aspect of Cancer so seldom discussed – not the mother but the child, and of childhood, which evokes the unaffected naturalness of youth before we become aware of shame or the pressure to conform. It can also indicate the desire to remain a child – to be taken care of by others and not to have to take on the burdens of adulthood.
The shimmering rockpool makes me think of the elusive and often illusory quality of memory – which is part fact, part fiction – a reconstruction based on a combination of recall and imagination. So often, the nostalgia we tend to project back onto the past is not a true reflection of what really happened and as such, often unrepeatable.
And given the strong emphasis on nebulous Neptune at this Full Moon, I think that the slippery fish could potentially point to the difficulties of trying to pin down a phantasm – a ghost from the past or an over-idealised loved one who probably only really exists in our mind; or indeed, if combined with childlike naivete, a quality shared by both Cancer and Sagittarius, it could indicate a commit-shy or deceptive person who promises us the earth but who always somehow remains just beyond our grasp.
Key Aspects
The Sun and Moon will form a T-square to Chiron, currently retrograde in Aries. This, for me, suggests that an opportunity to heal a past wound or painful situation, more than likely involving one or both of your parents, is likely to present itself. The square may mean that this won’t necessarily arise voluntarily, but instead, be foisted upon you by challenging circumstances. However fraught it may feel at the time, I think ultimately you will look back on the event and see it as a positive thing. It could also point to opportunities to reconcile the masculine and feminine aspects of your psyche, since the Sun and Moon represent these archetypes on a cosmic level.
Luminaries sextile/trine Uranus
Both the Sun and Moon will also be separating from a set of positive aspects to Uranus, suggesting that in order to welcome in the New Year, with all its fresh possibilities, we may need to open ourselves up to change and/or novel ways of approaching something. Letting go of rigid stances, nostalgia for things past (which may not actually have been that great) and situations that we may have outgrown emotionally, may free us up enough to welcome in positive changes. This aspect is also great for changing unhealthy habits – something I discussed in my recent blog post about Uranus retrograde.
Venus-Neptune Square
Given that Venus will be located in the polar opposite zodiacal position to the one she occupied during her tour through Gemini, my feeling is that at the final Full Moon of 2020, we’re being given a huge opportunity to complete a cycle or loop – to come full circle in terms of integrating lessons and/or releasing old patterns – but this time, from the flip side of the coin to the position/viewpoint we occupied during May, June and July. So, don’t be surprised if in certain situations, the shoe is on the other foot.
In contrast to airy Gemini, which can be a tad superficial, fickle and/or overly cerebral when negatively aspected, fiery Sagittarius is all about beliefs, meaning and aspiration. It is much deeper, more principled and often more passionate and enthusiastic than Gemini. However, it can also be freedom-loving and therefore commitment-shy; and occasionally lean towards bluntness, over-enthusiasm, preachiness and over-confidence if it allows inflation – or alternatively, naivety – to get in and take hold.
Add to that the blurry, delusional and sometimes flaky energy of a Neptune square into the mix, and we potentially have a recipe for unrealistic expectations, skewed perceptions and fantastical thinking, particularly when it comes to Venus-ruled matters (love, values, finances, beauty, the arts, social connections), all of which could add up to deception/manipulation, big disappointments and foolish risk-taking, especially if we choose not to act from a grounded place of wisdom, integrity and maturity, or sound judgement.
Fixed Stars
Both the Fixed Star aspects at this Full Moon have a very strong emphasis on ambition and our goals or vision of the future. (see the above graphic for details). Although there’s a strong emphasis on maintaining laser sharp focus and drive – remaining dedicated to our dreams and goals – it also reminds us not be too ruthless, militant or cyclopic when it comes to how we go about achieving what we aspire to. Tunnel vision can be a good thing, but it can also blind us to other opportunities or indeed, alternative and possibly less painstaking ways of arriving at the same destination.
There is also a subtle message in here about being realistic and staying grounded – a very sensible proposition, given the rather confusing energy of the Venus-Neptune square and the strong triggering potential of the Cancer Full Moon. Indeed, the Moon’s conjunction to Facies carries with it reference to the ‘grass is greener’ attitude of Sagittarius – rather like the slippery fish (Neptune anyone?) which the girl is trying to catch with her hands in the Sabian symbol, what we aspire to may prove to be just out of reach, or indeed, not end up tasting as sweet once it is attained as we thought it would. Chasing after chimera’s may actually just be a waste of energy, so perhaps at this Full Moon, it’s a good idea to stop and reassess – to take stock when it comes to our goals and plans.
Having the correct tools/equipment, expertise or approach may also save us a lot of time and hassle , pointing to the need for advice/upskilling in order to avoid rooky mistakes. Here the childlike image of the Sabian symbol of someone trying to catch a fish reminds us that rather than trying to catch something as slippery as a fish with our bare hands, we might want to identify ways of working smarter, rather than harder when it comes to achieving our dreams or objectives.
The Moon’s aspect to Alhena, on the other hand, points to the need to redefine care-giving and social contributions. Although our impulse to give or make a difference may be noble, it’s also possible that we may need to redefine how this is done in a way that is not patronising/dominating on one hand (just think of the early colonial missionaries during the Victorian era with their ideas about ‘noble savages’ who needed ‘civilising’, for example) or creates unhealthy dependencies, on the other. As the saying goes, ‘if you give a hungry man a fish, you feed him for a day, but if you teach him how to fish, you feed him for a lifetime.’ It is possible, given the major themes around parenting and nurturing that the Cancer-Capricorn axis of the luminaries evokes, that this issue may come up on some level and it will be important to strike a healthy balance here between self-suffiency/self-care, on the one hand; and overgiving/self-sacrificing, on the other. Healthy boundaries, something highlighted by the Venus-Neptune square, may be what is needed in order to avoid burnout or feeling drained or victimised.
