By Madame Dana Zia
I have good news, the New Year is finally starting! Yes, we’ve all felt it, lackluster, no energy, content to sit and stare or scroll for hours in meaningless torpor. But with the New Moon in Aquarius on Jan 31 at 9:45pm PST, we will all begin to feel the fresh new energy that a new year usually provides. It’s just a month late.
The quagmire we were all in was largely due to Venus and Mercury retrograde together. Venus is only retrograde every two years, and even though Mercury is a regular to the retrograde cycle, they are rarely retrograde at the same time. These two inner planets teamed up to wag their fingers at us and say… “not yet.” Stay put, stay inner, stay calm. (How many of us stayed calm as Covid became a wildfire again?) So in January we sat and waited.
Then January 29th Venus went direct and the ice began to thaw. Just a trickle at first but we felt new energy and life beginning to stir down deep in our roots. Following closely, the New Moon on the 31st signals the Chinese New Year and then Mercury goes direct on February 3 which is on the ancient holiday of Imbolc. The trickle becomes a stream of energy flowing under the snow.
Imbolc is the sacred Pagan holiday that lies between Winter Solstice and Spring Equinox and literally means “in the mother’s belly”. It is the time of gestation for the seeds that were planted earlier and when they begin to sprout wee tails. This is all taking place underground or inside of us and not yet showing on the surface even though we feel it. So even though the energy is beginning to flow, planetarily as well as seasonally, it is contained with caution.
This is also because Saturn, the planet of boundaries and structures, is conjunct the New Moon and Sun. Saturn wants us to take responsibility for ourselves and actions. With Saturn involved with this New Moon, it lends its heavy hand to this new energy, stimulating the desire to restructure the parts of our lives that aren’t working. Saturn shows us the confines that we have limited ourselves with that no longer work, so that we can change them.
To bring all this together, the frozen winter’s energy that called us to dive deep into self-care and quietude is thawing. It isn’t a rush of energy but is a steady flow that is infusing us with hope and stirring the life force. Now is the time to start planning for long term goals (remember New Year’s intentions?) and clearing out the dust bunnies. Do some pre-spring cleaning to claim a space back for new life. This can be your thoughts or a physical space.
Don’t try to move mountains or buy houses yet, just keep on loving yourself and making gentle forward movement. All is pregnant and expectant and growing new life and hope. Savor the last tendrils of winter and the inner work it calls for. Soon enough spring will be here again and with it rebirth.
