Weekly Metaphysical Forecast 8.16.23
PASSIONATE FINALITY
WHAT?
Good news beams down from a new moon in Leo today, breaking the paralysis in which we've been riveted since Venus began her backward trek through Leo in July. We are able to move again, and if we wrap our arms around ourselves protectively and squint at the horizon we will glimpse a future that has been obscured up until this moment, or that simply seemed depressingly implausible.
Proceed cautiously and know this - nothing is born without the death of something else, and the fever of emotions we feel at having been disappointed, subjugated, refused, or oppressed is going to break along with any ties no longer serving us.
If last weekend's Venus cazimi helped us identify what we love more than anything in the world, this week's moon is showing us what must be excised in order to make proper room for that love. Earthly duties and responsibilities aside, we are realizing that the time spent on people or endeavors that piss us off and make us feel trapped or hurt us is just that - a massive, unnecessary time suck. Revelations like this are often accompanied by fury, released in a way that prompts break-ups, impromptu quitting, outbursts, and dramatic rebuttals that were probably simmering for a good long while. With all this Leo energy pulsating above us, we finally feel the confidence it takes to tell people NO, even if we're a bit bereft at the outcome. It is ultimately healthy to rid ourselves of dead weight, but if we've been carrying the corpse for years, it's healthy to feel a little sadness, too, at the final interment.
WHY?
Because the goddamn patriarchy can never give us a break, that's why. (I'm kidding, but only a little.) The main reason this new moon is not wholly a positive vibes, manifest-your-dreams kind of affair is a conjunction with an infamous sex demon, Black Moon Lilith.
Mythologically speaking, Lilith was either Adam's shrew of a first wife or a sexy, baby-eating night hag and demonic nemesis of men, depending on your preferred hot take. The Mesopotamians landed on the side of she-demon, and that likely inspired the Judaic notion of an intractable, scorned first wife. As time went on and humanity expanded it's stranglehold on planet Earth, the two notions intertwined and Lilith became symbolic of female sexuality and rage, referred to in various texts from the middle ages to present as a lamia, night owl, night hag, strigai, witch, and vampire.
Astrologically speaking, Black Moon Lilith is the apogee of our moon's orbit, or the furthest point away from Earth that our moon is capable of traveling, and should not be confused with Lilith the asteroid. (She has her own thing going on.) In a natal chart, the placement of one's Black Moon Lilith indicates the dark desires and interior yearnings that we hide from the world in order to avoid embarassment or abandonment, much like Adam embarassed and abandoned Lilith for refusing to submit or dumb herself down while playing naked 'house' in his weird, oppressive garden. Lilith symbolizes everything we sweep under the rug* of our personality in order to become palatable to other people, and her astrological assignation of distance and darkness drives the point home.
We can consider this week a deep clean of our souls and psyches due to Lilith forming a conjunction with both our sun and new moon in Leo. For a shorthand explanation, consider the following characteristics of this week's major players:
Leo - Charismatic drama queen obsessed with their hair
Sun - Illuminative, masculine powerhouse and ego
Moon - Shadowy, reflective subconcious and id
Black Moon Lilith - Dark desires that are hidden, aching to be released from oppression
These generalizations illustrate how things may transpire when shit hits the proverbial fan this week. We are experiencing a reckoning wherein we loudly, dramatically announce, like Peter Finch in the film Network, that we are mad as hell and we're not going to take this anymore. The world is on fire, we are all broke and sick, and rich assholes are using us to make themselves richer...yet our ruling class is laser-focused on encouraging sex panic and legislating what we can all do with our bodies. No wonder Lilith told Adam to fuck off.
*The rug metaphor is actually a pretty apt one for Black Moon Lilith. If you have hard wood floors covered in area rugs and you enjoy cleaning thoroughly ( Hi Virgos!) you've probably noticed that no matter how much you vacuum or sweep, interesting striations of dust and unidentifiable crap tend to collect toward the center of all area rugs unless you completely roll them up and give the area a solid scrubbing. Pick up the psychic rug this week and look at what we've been hiding.
WHEN?
Today, August 16th, is our new moon and Black Moon Lilith conjunction and tomorrow, August 17th, Black Moon Lilith and the sun form a conjunction. Pedantically stated, today we might feel Lilith's rage... but tomorrow? Tomorrow we might do something about it. Loudly.
TAROT
The rage and sadness of recent astrology is apparent in Thursday's 6 of Swords draw, but look closely at the rest of the week into the weekend and we can spy true hope, joy, and creation on the horizon. The Knight of Cups guides us on Friday and Sunday, meaning we can find happiness and even a little redemption through dedication to our art, as well as the rock solid relationships in our lives. Then on Monday, The Priestess confirms things about ourselves we have long suspected were worthwhile, but were afraid to express; that we are smart enough, good enough, and powerful enough to make the sustainable changes we need to thrive.
As always, thank you to everyone who has been following the daily readings on our stories at RitualPNW on IG and YouTube channel at http://youtube.com/@alectochaos and everyone who has sent little notes of encouragement to me over the last month or so. It warms my black, evil heart.
LAGNIAPPE
It can be fun and a little unnerving to look at the history of astrological moments. A brief review of my ephemeris in deference to Black Moon Lilith and a Leo new moon showcased the year 2014, where from March to August our vengeful she-demon was also traversing the dramatic sign of the lion. During the same time period, Vladimir Putin started saber-rattling and running 'military drills' at Ukraine, which we know now was simply an extended warm-up to full invasion. (I'm guessing that Putin's natal chart is fraught, absolutely fraught with hard aspects to his Black Moon Lilith.)
Back then, Taylor Swift would have been recording 1989, which is now considered her first major pop album, and the first body of work fully free of the churchy, country vibes that carried her to fame in the first place. It's not hard to imagine some Lilith style wrath informing lyrics like the following:
"Rain came pouring down
When I was drowning, that's when I could finally breathe
By morning, gone was any trace of you
I think I am finally clean"
Reviled she may be in certain circles, but after shrugging off traditional country music trappings and recording a completely new album under Black Moon Lilith in Leo, Taylor Swift - inoffensive, good girl from Nashville - became a certified superstar.