Moon News: March New Moon and Partial Solar Eclipse
This Saturday March 29th, there will be a new moon and partial solar eclipse taking place in Ares. This continues the series of eclipses happening this year, and it is accompanied by a lot of other chaotic astrological phenomena. After checking in with some of my favorite astrologers, the conclusions I’ve drawn about this new moon, are that there is big change coming, and its something that has been a long time coming. It has almost been tiring lately, how often I’ve heard in the astrology world, and the occult world in general, that it’s time for a new beginning. Surely not every phase of the moon brings radical change into our lives. But at the same time, surely every day does bring an absolutely new opportunity to understand and connect with the world. This new moon marks the end/beginning of a change that hasn’t been abrupt at all, but something that has been slowly creeping in since the solar eclipse in Ares last spring, or the one that took place in Libra (opposite of Ares) in October of 2023. A cycle of change is truly coming to an end (only to make way for another) and that happening in the sign of ares means it will be trial by fire.
In my chaotic brainstorm notes about this moon, I had a word cluster written down around the phrase “ ring of fire”. This refers to a visual element of certain solar eclipses, where only the outer edge of the sun is visible around the moon, but it is also evocative of several other symbols. The phrase is often used to describe the final pain of birth, as a baby’s head is crowning, or it might evoke an image of the circles of hell passed through in Dante’s Divine Comedy (or the Johnny Cash song). It could be seen as a daredevil, jumping his motorcycle through a flaming ring as the crowd watches in anticipation, or eruptions of lava around the edge of the Pacific Ocean, where ring of fire is the name given to strings of active volcanoes outlining the tectonic plates. This is the energy and imagery conjured by my mind when I’m thinking about a solar eclipse in Ares this month. A cosmic hazing ritual of fiery initiation into the new reality. So maybe be prepared with some fire extinguishers, and maybe also be ready to let something old finally burn down.
Ares in this potentially stressful time, will be joined the day after the eclipse, by Neptune, which will for the first time in over a decade, begin transit out of Pisces, and into Ares, where it will largely stay until 2039. Since Neptune stays in each sign for so long, it defines the dreams, stories, and beliefs (including deceptions and illusions) of entire generations and periods of history. Neptune moving into Ares as the sign that represents masculinity, and war, pairs unfortunately well with the cultural shift toward distorted fundamentalist and patriarchal gender roles. It won’t be surprising to see aggressive masculinity play out in our personal lives, or on a larger global scale in real and painful conflict. It is important to remember that true divine masculinity is not found through senseless violence or chauvinism, but through the empowerment found in the hero's journey. It is more important than ever to cut through those illusions, and model what secure connection to divine masculinity actually looks like.
For rituals this new moon, I suggest embracing the flames. Have a bonfire or light some candles. Burn something. If there’s going to be a dumpster fire, you might as well throw some shit in there that you needed burned.
Additional notes: Mercury is still in retrograde, so take care with communication. Venus is still in retrograde as well. Mars is now direct, in the sign of cancer. The moon is on fire. ❤️
Above is a photo of my chaos notes.
Ring of Fire Ritual
Supplies: safe fire such as a fire pit, or a candle on a non flammable surface, paper and pen or printer, water on hand for safety, the rest of your regular ritual setup.
1. Print out or write down something that you would like to see ENDED by this solar eclipse.
2. Gather your supplies and cast your circle or prepare your space how you normally would.
3. Light your fire, and call on the divine masculine figure of your practice. “Aid me now, ______, as the sky burns tonight. As the earth seems to burn, as this flame burns before me. Aid me in burning what needs to be burned, and in sparing what here is worth saving.”
4. Take your hand, and run it quickly through the flame, fast enough so that you don’t burn yourself. “I will not burn down today. I am strong, and I know what to fight for.”
5. Take your paper and throw it in the fire (or light it and put it in a metal or ceramic bowl if you’re using a candle flame) and speak to it. “but you will burn, because your time has come.”
6. Let the paper burn away, then close your circle and clean up.
