NEW MOON at 22 LEO
August 14, 10:53am EDT, 7:53am PDT, 3:53pm GMD
Image: Venus Arising, 1997, pencil drawing by author.

This Leonine New Moon is accompanied by love goddess Venus, invisible in the dark of the Moon and the light of the Sun. What an extraordinary vision to dwell on in our imagination. As Venus exudes the quality of her influence, she invites us to do just that—”Imagine.” Bring to mind John Lennon’s famous song as we consider the quality of our lives and use the creative Leo energy to imagine a new vision of what is possible. Consult your heart and proceed with all the love you can bring to it. Remember to smile. In the tropics, a new crescent Moon is tilted into just such a smile. Imagine that!

This is a special, touchstone moment in the Venus retrograde cycle, as we tap into our emotional intelligence and a quality of our personal essence that can feel into a spacious, divine field of being. As we enjoy life more fully, appreciating the beauty around us, and the people that we love. Venus heightens our qualitative experience, so purely feminine, meaningful and of true value, amplifying relational pleasure and personal happiness. As we are called in to deeper relationship with ourselves and the divine, all our relations share in the emotional richness. This aspect of the feminine expresses JOY— and LOVE, and Gratitude. In the intensity of these times, we clearly need more Joy in our lives!

While contemplating the Venusian dimension of life for my current class on “The Feminine Path of Self-Awakening and Personal Brilliance,” I began again to contemplate the relationship between emotions and feelings. Along those lines I came across an interesting commentary that helped me think about this issue from a new perspective:

‘Emotion’ is what the heart experiences, ‘feeling’ is the mind’s experience of emotion, and ‘sensation’ is the body’s experience of emotion.” How does this resonate for you?

Another interesting paragraph feels very relevant to this cycle in which Venus calls us deeper into our hearts in the expressive sign of Leo. How consciously are we expressing our true emotions, as they connect more fully with the divine?

“When you find deep, intense emotions, try to make the emotion more intense. To do that, you have to go right into it, and at that time you can’t be concerned with expressing it. Expressing it, consciously, in the way you choose, can come later. At the moment the emotion is found in your heart, your only thought is to go into it, to follow it, to allow it to wash over you. You give your heart to it. Instead, most people turn away from the first little hint of emotion and express it as it was discovered. But it isn’t mature yet. It leads to a deeper emotion that is very beautiful.”         — Expressing Emotion.PuranBair.https-//iamheart.org/Puran_Bair/column/24expression.html

Now with Jupiter, Mercury, and soon the Sun active in Virgo, these fine distinctions become increasingly meaningful and sensate. This Venus cycle started at the cusp of Virgo and will return there in October. The intelligence of our bodies and of the Earth informs us, offers wisdom beyond the intellect, and guides our way. The Sun begins its month in Virgo on the 23rd, scheduling a powwow with Jupiter for the 26th. Enjoy Nature and listen to the cellular wisdom of your body. Let your five and more subtle senses speak to you.

“Because I love,
The Earth upon her celestial spindle
winds her ecstasy-producing dance.”
—Kathleen Raine

 “And it’s not too late
To dive into your increasing depth
Where life calmly gives out its own secret.”
—R.M.Rilke