There are places deep within in which each one of us must walk alone.

The mysterious Scorpio Full Moon on Apr. 21/22 calls us to explore the depths, and find the treasure within.

Aeterna of Aeternalight Astrology sums it up beautifully:

“Life triumphs, even in the midst of death. Death serves Life. Death is a passageway. We are our own ancestors and we are our own midwives, giving birth to the same life in new forms. We must allow ourselves to be shaken up and cracked open.”

Scorpio Full Moon

Full Moons heighten the intuitive, instinctual and emotional side of our nature — especially when the Full Moon illuminates a water sign such as Scorpio.

Says Clarissa of Viva Combusta!:

“Scorpio is a highly psychological aware sign, only finding satisfaction in knowing the unknowable, the occult, the depths of the abyss it often finds itself staring into.

“This is the sign of the Spidey senses that set off alarms in our psyches before we’ve ever begun processing the information intellectually. If something feels wrong, it is wrong. Our rational mind just hasn’t caught up to our instincts yet.”

Moon Fall

To do her work, the Moon likes to feel safe. Protected.

Mars-ruled Scorpio is certainly not safe. Scorpio planets want truth and reality above all else. They are emboldened to seek it out, too; comfort and coddling are not on the menu.

So it’s no surprise the Moon trembles to enter the Scorpion’s territory. To the ancient astrologers, Scorpio was known as the “fall” of the Moon. While the Moon may emerge stronger for her trials, but few savor the threshing floor itself.

As Darkstar Astrology’s Marina Macario says:

“The Moon has the precise degree of its fall (3 degrees Scorpio), which is suppose to make it extremely unfortunate. This is the devouring Moon, the goddess Kali and vagina dentata (yes, a lady’s part with teeth!) …

“Those that do not sink develop sharp brains and become wise survivors. The survival of the fittest plays out here… [For them] the Moon here can actually works to produce unexpected excellence.”

Adds Clarissa of Viva Combusta!: “This Scorpio Full Moon occurs in the Via Combusta, [the area between 15 Libra and 15 Scorpio]; things [are] being pushed to an uncomfortable and possibly unpleasant head.”

Full Moon at Lunar Apogee (Black Moon Lilith)

Occurring near its apogee (the place in it’s orbit where the Moon is furthest from the Earth), this Full Moon appears to be the smallest one of 2016.  The Lunar apogee is also known as Black Moon Lilith, and is a point signifying of lunar extremes:

“Even the smallness of the Full Moon seems to underscore its frustrations in finding healthy energetic channeling,” says Clarissa of Viva Combusta!

With Black Moon Lilith conjunct the Moon, says Marcario:

“We get the mother and the anti-mother in one being. I think it becomes rather like the Black Madonna…. This combination has to successfully merge the paradox of the virgin and the whore or the very worst manifestation of Lilith can surface. At its best this is sheer priestess and occult ability at the highest level…. When it is good it is very good, but when it is bad it is terrible.”

Five Retrograde Planets

After looking at the Full Moon (or New Moon) itself, astrologers usually consider the condition of the ruler of the sign in which the full Moon occurs.

In this case, that ruler is Mars. And Mars just stationed retrograde in Sagittarius on Apr. 17, a few days before this Scorpio Full Moon. With the Moon’s ruler retrograde (and still appearing to move very slowly), the Full Moon’s intensity is driven inward.

Modern astrologers also associate Pluto with Scorpio. And Pluto also stationed retrograde just days ago, on Apr. 18.

“It’s hard to act, with the sign’s co-rulers directing their considerable energy inward, looks like a lot percolating under the surface and trying not to rupture. … the Full Moon in Scorpio is the valve that releases the pressure, bringing to light the dark shadows created by Mars and Pluto’s retrograde stations.

Clarissa, Viva Combusta!

In fact, the Mars and Pluto retrogrades contribute to the overall “turning inward” of the cosmic energies over the next few weeks.

As Jamie Partridge of Astrology King points out: “Six days into this full moon phase, Mercury stations retrograde to give five retrograde planets for the first time in ten years. Five retrograde planets is rare, occurring only 4% of the time.”

It’s a time for deep, shadow work. Don’t be surprised if you need some extra time and space for processing. Deep work happens on its own schedule.

Unaspected Moon

As if a Moon in fall, at its apogee, in retrograde season weren’t enough, there are no planets making important Ptolemaic aspects to it. In a sense, there’s no outlet for the kind of shadow work required.

“This release is not a comfortable one, however, as the Scorpio Full Moon does not find many aspects to serve as avenues of expression. I like to say an unaspected Moon is one that usually only makes itself heard through primal screams.”

Clarissa, Viva Combusta!

Other aspects occurring during the Full Moon

So, besides the advice to “go deep,” what else have astrologers gleaned from the sky during this Scorpio Full Moon?

Just a few hours after the Full Moon is exact, Venus will meet Uranus in Aries. Mercury in Taurus is also making a trine to the North Node and Jupiter in Virgo.

Lynda Hill covers both in her Sabian Symbols blog:

“Feeling frustrated or somewhat impatient with progress can lead to outbursts of energy – not always useful, not always timely. Still, we are reprogramming our lives in many ways – the transit of Venus over Uranus at this full Moon is preceded by Venus squaring Pluto a few days before. This means that Venus is likely to be giving us a shake-up in some measure. 

“With the square to Pluto from Venus, we are being asked to examine our boundaries – how much are we doing for ourselves and for others? Sometimes, we are giving away our power to others, other times, we may be stepping over boundaries when we perhaps shouldn’t OR we might feel that others are doing that with us (and possibly both at the same time). 

“Mercury in Taurus is in an nice exact trine with the Moon’s north nodes and Jupiter, both in Virgo. This can bring a shift in that we have new contacts, new perspectives, new opportunities, new alliances, etc. This can feel like a fated time, as we are further being asked to embrace the future and to let go of the past.”

Asteroids and More

This Scorpio Full Moon keeps her secrets well. Astrologers usually form a consensus about what’s important to look at, but less so with this lunation.

Not only is she calling us into the forest, but also to look for the less-travelled paths.

Cupido conjunct Moon

The Scorpio Full Moon occurs within a few minutes of the asteroid Cupido (also retrograde). Cupido was the son of Venus, underscoring the Venusian themes of Love in this lunation.

Marguerite Hafeman has written an in-depth article about the nature of Cupido and the other love asteroids, which may be particularly relevant to this lunation:

Cupido indicates “the style, tone and preferred arena of action for an individual’s romantic powers; aspects made to Cupido to the circumstances, positive or negative, under which one would be drawn into a dance of courtship with the object of love.”

“Cupido unaspected or retrograde could relate to a tendency to repress and/or disown one’s own real needs in the exchange of love, instead sublimating these qualities to a set of conditions put forth by the desired object, or sublimation in favor of an unrealistic set of conditions that are then projected onto the desired object.

“The common pattern would be to fall in love with surface qualities … Painful rejection happens because the Cupido person did not allow an honest appraisal of their own real needs in the first place, nor clearly perceived the needs and nature of the person being pursued. One has fallen for an image and a presentation, rather than the real person.”

Sabian Symbol

Astrologers have imagined symbolic meanings for each degree of the Zodiac. The Sabian symbol for this degree is “A house-raising party in a small village enlists the neighbors’ cooperation.”

Astrology Dane Rudyar suggest this is a degree in which our deep feelings are transformed into activity. We sort through our past and memories to find those that can best suited to propel us toward more harmonious and actualized relationships with others.

Lunar Mansion

The Moon has her own 28-sign zodiac, known as the “Mansions of the Moon,” one sign for each night of the lunar “year.” It’s an especially potent tool when seeking to understand the energies surrounding an upcoming New or Full Moon.

This Scorpio Full Moon falls in Lunar Mansion 17, Iklil al Jabhah, otherwise known as the “Monkey.” The Monkey’s cleverness is considered protection against loss or deceit. In this case of this Full Moon, the suggestion is to keep your wits about you in the midst of whatever turmoil is churning under the surface.

Summing it Up

A complex and mysterious Scorpio Full Moon pulls us inward to confront  our deepest desires and motivations. With all the retrograde, the answers we seek may take time to percolate up to our conscious awareness. But be sure, it’s a Full Moon you’re likely to ponder for some time to come.

Lunaria Datebook

The Full Moon in April (the second Full Moon of the Spring season) is also known as the Pink Full Moon.

Last Moon Phase: New Moon in Aries

Next Moon Phase: New Moon in Taurus

Full Moon April 2016 Dates and Times

San Francisco: Thursday, Apr. 21, 10:24 p.m. PDT

New York: Friday, Apr. 22, 1:24 a.m. EDT

Sao Paulo: Friday, Apr. 22, 2:24 a.m.  BRST

London: Friday, Apr. 22, 6:24 a.m. GMT

Istanbul: Friday, Apr. 22, 8:24 a.m. EEST

Mumbai: Friday, Apr. 22,10:54 a.m. IST

Tokyo: Friday, Apr. 22, 2:24 p.m. JST

Sydney: Friday, Apr. 22, 3:24 p.m. AEST

9 Comments

  1. Jeff Peters on April 22, 2016 at 4:49 pm

    In Clarissa, Viva Combusta! the one aspect she seems to miss is the exact opposition by the Sun. So, not really un-aspected Moon. There was very little mention of the capacity for creating talismans for deep healing during this full Moon. I personally participated with my crystals in a healing ceremony under the Moon as I charged up everything used in the healing process going forward.

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