FULL BLUE MOON, March 31, 2018 at 10 Aries-LIBRA 45
8:37am EDT, 5:37am PDT, 12:37pm GMT, 9:37pm AEDT

Image: Moon Rabbit, oil painting by author, 1998. The Full Moon rises over the Caribbean Sea overlooking Coral Bay, St. John. The Moon Rabbit is storied in Mayan and Japanese mythology, also showing up as the Easter Bunny.

I’ll always remember when I first saw the Easter Bunny in the Full Moon. I was swimming in the turquoise waters of the Caribbean, looking at the almost full moon close to setting. In lower latitudes, the Moon is tilted at an angle from its familiar position up north. The shadowy features of the moonscape make different images. Suddenly I saw it, hunkered down, silhouette looking left, with ears back and up—the Easter Bunny in the Easter Egg! From deep in my subconscious a childhood memory was invoked. One of my favorite books was an illustrated Easter book. One illustration showed a frosted sugar candy egg with an opening showing a rabbit in the egg. There it was in the sky.

This weekend is a cacophony of cosmic collusion—

Full Moon, another Blue Moon, a New Mercury, April Fools Day, Ostara/Eostre celebration of spring’s fertility, Passover, and Easter. Easter is scheduled for the first Sunday after the first Full Moon after March Equinox. This year it is just hours after the Full Moon.

This Full Moon highlights the theme of freshness and renewal. We passed the Equinox turning point into Aries and a fresh new season, no matter which hemisphere you are in.

And, yes, Mercury is retrograde! Let’s make a joyful noise and be glad for a little bits of respite amidst an overall tone of Lights! Cameras! Action!

Generally these Mercury retrograde weeks are not considered optimum for initiating new activities, rather best used to forward plans already in gear. This is an action-packed Full Moon, calling for alert and careful attention to what we are doing in order to skirt potential mistakes, misunderstandings, aggravation and frustration. Contentiousness pushes arguments. How can we clear the air? Are there basics we can agree upon?
Action behind the scenes is evading attention, but may have longterm implications. Keep an ear open for new ideas, and use Venus in Taurus to personally evaluate what is worth proceeding with.

Saturn and Mars meet up, squaring the Full Moon. This may sound bit edgy, but both of these planets are great in Capricorn. Saturn rules and Mars is exalted—both are fully capable here. This is considered action, however, not impulsive. We need to be gentle with ourselves and others, as a cosmic downwash of energy sweeps in and global events happen at a rapid pace. Take refuge as needed around the fire with wise ones.

This Full Moon weekend highlights the golden moment of New Mercury, moving in front of the Sun to bathe in the Star Light of Being and begin a new cycle.
April 1 is the moment, with a day of grace on either side that obviates any Mercury retrograde effect. Use this time well to reach out for possibilities that delight you.

Let’s look at some Sabian symbols of this Mercury cycle for imagery to stimulate intuitive areas of the brain:

March 22—Mercury stopped at 16-17 Aries. This is a leading image for the complete Mercury retrograde circle that comes back around on May 3: Two Prim Spinsters are sitting together in silence.
What does this evoke for you?
Master astrologer Dane Rudhyar interprets this image: “Poised and dispassionate outlook, involving either great dignity and integrity of self, or inability to live life fully.” Take heed where you are with those choices.

Mercury in Aries wants full fire and impulse behind what you are doing—your fire, not someone else’s. Mercury hangs out with these crones for a bit, taking a pause from the worldly fray and soaking in their stillness. Initially this fire is internal and expressed with no fanfare from deep inner space, reaching into wells of wisdom, listening to the still inner voice. Give it time.

Musical accompaniment: Simon and Garfunkel’s Sounds of Silence?”

and whatever meditative music feeds your inner spiral into the center, where you can touch into every resonant possibility in the galaxy.

What fresh possibilities arise from this silent pause? As you look around at what is happening, what does it all mean to you? What can happen here? What is your take on it? What action is required and what steps will be effective for the long run? Then put all your energy behind that. The Bearded Sage aspect of Mercury appreciates this. Mercury will go back to confer with these women again on May 3, completing its retrograde circle. Another pause to listen.

This contemplative space reverberates through the New Moon on April 15, when Mercury turns forward at 5 Aries, evoking this image: A White Triangle, with Golden Wings on its Upper Sides.
Inspiration! We’ll look at this closer to that fire-eater Aries New Moon, when we’ll be closer to Chiron’s ingress into Aries. Get the popcorn out.

This Mercury retrograde extends the Equinox celebrations past the next New Moon to welcome Chiron into Aries on April 17. I haven’t yet thought too much about this new 7-year passage of Chiron. I do feel the Mercury retrograde igniting sparks and new concepts. This new Chiron phase hearkens back 50 years to 1968-69. What comes up for you, if you were alive in those tempestuous Sixties? Do you have some good stories to tell the youth of today? Is anyone showing up from that time in your life? Perhaps there will also be a retake on the 2011 Uranus into Aries Occupy movement. Already we are seeing thousands on the march, bringing attention to issues of the day.