Leo Full Moon

Leo Full Moon - Individual Determination

"Whether or not we are aware of it, there is nothing of which we are more ashamed than of not being ourselves, and there is nothing that gives us greater pride and happiness than to think, to feel, and to say what is ours."

— Erich Fromm, Escape from Freedom

This week begins with a determined Leo Full Moon (10.28 AM PST 16° Leo/Aquarius), setting up a fixed T-Square with Uranus. The connection to Uranus of course sets up some unpredictability. In this case, we see that unpredictability play out directly through individual behavior that surprises and, possibly, amazes us — the potential for expressions of genius is significant. We are likely to find ourselves deeply ego invested in our individual point of view and the expression of that view (whether genius or not). The Full Moon seems to draw hardened battle lines between established, traditional approaches and free-thinking, innovative new ideas. However, individual egos and strong emotions keep this from developing into a truly idealistic stand-off between differing ideas — it can quickly become quite personal. For the most part, individuals simply need to be heard. After the Full Moon, the prospect of standing apart and alone, isolated with our ideas, slowly chips away at our determination. We begin to recognize that there are costs to isolating ourselves. There are also practical drawbacks when we are too hardened in our stubborn individuality. The awareness that we need to interact with others in order to bring our ideas into form encourages us to bring our ideas 'to the table'. We are looking for ways to free ourselves from the past by doing things 'differently'. However, if we try to deny the past, we quickly lose any sense of continuity. We may also lose access to important wisdom that could be folded into the future that we are seeking to create. These are not simple or easy rectifications that are needed. By the end of the week, Mercury emerges from the shadow of the last retrograde period and makes the conjunction to Pluto that it stopped just short of making last December. We have the opportunity to use the lessons we have learned last month to deepen our understanding and to dig deeply into better understanding of our past, our present, and our future. There are surprising emotions surfacing near the end of the week, which may be connected to loss or a heavy sense of destiny that we aren't sure we have the capacity to fulfill. But the emotions may also be connected to the tensions created at the Full Moon, when the stakes of our ego investment were raised to extreme levels. By the end of the week, Mercury leaves the weighty boundaries of Capricorn. Our thinking can begin to catch up to the overall push for change, easing the emotional costs.

Sunday's Leo Full Moon challenges us to blend individual understanding into group effort. However, ego investment and ambition may initially cloud the issues and stall progress. The VOC Moon in Leo on Monday morning makes for a rather disorganized start to the day. We begin to find some flexibility in the afternoon. Although we may see some 'personality friction on Tuesday, important resolutions are possible. There is waning inclination to stay isolated in order to maintain our individual perspective. There are significant breakthroughs on Wednesday. We find allies to help us break a logjam of ideas that have been stalled by too much ego-investment. The Libra Moon on Thursday helps us to balance individual integrity with cooperation. The stubbornness has softened considerably. Strong emotions surface on Friday, along with a powerful sense of destiny. The Mercury-Pluto conjunction fosters transformative intellectual clarity. By Saturday, Mercury arrives in Aquarius, helping us to set aside concern for tradition and authority in favor of bold innovation. Residual emotions are released in a profound way.