Virgo Season + Lunar rituals
As a mutable earth sign, Virgo is one of the most misunderstood signs in the Zodiac. They receive the capitalist baggage heaped onto earth signs (efficiency! productivity!) and mutable signs are often seen as too changeable or in Virgo’s case, finicky. And because their modesty serves as a corrective function to Leo’s need to be seen, Virgos are the least likely to complain about being misunderstood. But I see you Virgos - very demure, very mindful!
Reducing Virgo’s critical thinking and synthesis abilities down to “perfectionist” and “picky” misses the Virgoan superpower - Discernment. Virgo understands time differently than the other signs (in fact, each sign has its own perspective on time but that’s its own blog post!).
Though it comes at the end of summer during harvest season in the Northern Hemisphere, Virgo is already planning ahead and thinking about winter. This drives their calculations in deciding when is the right time to harvest - too soon or too late and the crops won’t be as useful. Not enough crops during harvest and it will be a hard (ie deadly) winter. And the same applies to the Southern hemisphere - winter is fading and the ground is warming up so it is time to prepare for planting.
Virgo’s sense of purpose comes from the ability to assess conditions and use that data paired with research and/or past experience to make clear decisions that benefit the group. However, none of this calculating happens in a vacuum (ok technically it does because outer space is a vacuum but hear me out…) and there are always other factors and energies at play and this month there are some befuddling transits…
The month ahead has some befuddling transits
This Virgo season starts out with Virgo’s ruler Mercury retrograde until August 28th and Mercury remains in its shadow until September 12th. While Mercury retraces its steps and “ties up loose ends” there is more focus on the past and tending to the unfinished details that went unnoticed at the time but have grown into larger issues now requiring attention. While this may be annoying in the moment, it is a necessary part of the cycle to revisit what isn’t working, lest it continues to grow into a bigger issue.
This will also be the last time for 164 years (!!!) that Neptune will be in Pisces and opposing every planet that moves through Virgo during Virgo season, which it has been doing since 2012. (Note: Neptune moved into Pisces in April 2011 but had retrograded back into Aquarius by the time Virgo season rolled around.) Neptune has a foggy haze that muddles Virgo’s precision. While Virgo seeks clarity through objective measures, Neptune seeks unity through fantasy and glamour - what you see is not what you get.
Venus is the first to oppose Neptune this month on August 27th, casting doubt and stirring up confusion in the realms of relationship and finances. These two planets vibe well with each other though so the confusion might actually *feel good* in the moment, until the truth gets revealed when the fog lifts. The Sun opposes Neptune on September 20th, just before it moves into Libra. (Mercury won’t oppose Neptune until after the start of Libra season on the 25th.) When the Sun and Neptune interact, it can feel draining and depleting as Neptune disperses the Sun’s vital energy. Your sense of direction could be “clouded” by Neptune, requiring you to rely more on intuition.
VIRGO NEW MOON RITUAL
The Virgo new moon occurs at 6:55pm PST on September 2nd at 11 degrees Virgo. For those of you with fire rising signs (Aries, Leo, Sagittarius) this is an excellent new moon to work with vocationally since it falls in one of your vocational houses (6th, 2nd, or 10th respectively). New moons are an excellent time to let go of the old and make space for the new and the ritual below will help free up stuck energy so that you can have more to devote to what matters to you.
What you’ll need:
piece of string or cord at least 12 inches long
journal
glass of water
Take a moment to get present and grounded in whatever way works for you. I like to close my eyes and imagine all my thoughts coalescing into a ball that I send down my spine to rest in my pelvis until the end of the ritual. Then spend 5-10 minutes journaling or drawing all the ways that you get in your own way. These can be self-defeating beliefs, actions you’ve taken (or not), or habits that hold you back.
Now count up all the road blocks you inflict on yourself and start to tie a knot (not too tight!) for each one in the string and name it as you go. After you’ve tied all the knots, spend some time looking at the knotted string and feel how much energy is stuck in these knots and feel where that stickiness lives in your body.
Then, begin to untie each knot over the glass of water and say “What once was blocked is now free, my energy returns to me” or whatever feels right. Do this for each knot and imagine the energy dropping down into the water, charging it. When you’re done, drink the whole glass of water and soak in all that freed up energy!
PISCES LUNAR ECLIPSE RITUAL
The Pisces full moon at 7:34pm PST on September 17th is our first eclipse in the Pisces Virgo axis and will be a preview of what the next eclipse cycle will bring once the lunar nodes change signs (they are currently in Aries and Libra). Eclipses are life’s chapter markers - they bring endings and beginnings. For folks with air rising signs (Gemini, Libra, Aquarius) you can expect this eclipse to impact you vocationally since it will fall in one of your vocational houses (10th, 6th, or 2nd respectively). I don’t think there’s anything you need to *do* during an eclipse because the energy is so intense so the ritual below will help you to go with the flow and recharge so you don’t get burnt out (washed out?).
What you’ll need:
Salt (any kind will do but ideally sea salt)
Bathtub or large bowl
Rosemary - fresh sprigs or 3 drops of essential oil
Honestly, this is probably the same ritual I would recommend for any eclipse but it is especially appropriate for a Pisces lunar eclipse. Eclipses can be really energetically draining and Pisces energy is an emotional sponge soaking up all the feelings of everyone around. I recommend taking a cleansing bath with salt and rosemary to energetically clear yourself of anything that you may be carrying around from someone else.
If you don’t have a bathtub, you can make the salt and rosemary mixture in a bowl and bring into the shower and slowly pour it over your head. In both methods, take time to imagine everything that does not serve you and does not belong to you dissolving and melting away. I like to swipe my hands down from my shoulders all the way down to my feet to cleanse myself. After you dry off, put on some clean clothes and relax!
May you meet the magic in every moment
Thanks for reading and let me know how those rituals were for you. Or if you have another way of working with these transits, I’d love to hear about that too!
XOXO Anders
