New Moon in Scorpio: The Alchemy of Death

No new life can arise, say the alchemists, without the death of the old.

They liken the art to the work of the sower, who buries the grain in the earth:

it dies only to waken to new life.

~ Carl Jung

Today, October 30, we have a New Moon in Scorpio, most potent water sign of transformation. Here we have our allies the great serpent eagle and the phoenix rising from the ashes. A perfect fit for this Halloween-Samhain and Dia de los Muertos honoring of death and rebirth. Wise witches, healers, and alchemists know it is far less painful to embrace an inevitable disintegration process, than to resist it.

At this autumnal dark of the new moon, we may observe and experience important things falling away: people, relationships, ways of life. And the more we can even ‘settle in’ with the death and dying process, the easier and – daresay – more relaxing it becomes. Maybe not enjoyable, but probably more full-filling or meaning-full. Satisfying. Ripe.

When something dies, it is often overly ripe, far past its sell-by date. The German word reife relates to ripe, meaning maturity. Extract to the English word rife, which means unchecked or in a widespread manner. If something is overly ripe, and resists the death process, it is putrid, rotting, uncontrolled. Rife can cause damage, like a virus or cancer. Pruning occurs to reduce the chance of overly ripe things running amok. Balance is restored. Ashes to ashes, dust to dust, we awaken again to everlasting life through the death process.

I know: All this is simple, on paper, but to remember it when someone we love is in the dying process, or when our cherished intimate relationship is ending, or our professional life is taking a walloping turn – well, that’s another story. It is at these times, that the ancient principles of alchemy can help, with its motto "solve et coagula (dissolve and coagulate)". Two of the key alchemical stages signified by our New Moon in Scorpio are putrefactio and mortifactio.

The Putrefactio

The process of putrefactio is a transition stage. A gate, a station of decomposition. The matter itself is literally rotting. We know not what lies on the other side of the door. It is a secret, a mystery. One senses power and potential energy on the other side, a garden of delights. But the transition through the portal requires a trust to endure great shadow, to not bolt during this stage when all is in decay. We rely on the ancients, the seers, and our contemporary mentors and guides. Even our selves-as-teachers, who have already lived through various forms of the death process before. These previous experiences remind us that we do live on. Yes, changed in form, and garnered with hard-earned wisdom.

Solve et Coagula: Dissolve and Coagulate

In the mortifactio, we are reminded that the final death knell can be mortifying, bringing us to our knees. We experience the mourning during the blackest and the bleakest. The sensation of grief, whether pre- or post-bereavement, can feel like the wind has been completely sucked out of us. We are empty, deflated, and the world is on hold. Close cousins with depression and anger – totally normal reactions, by the way – the mortificatio stage can last for months or even years.

It is a soul-driven process, and the rational mind does what it can to move it along. Alas, the extent of the enmeshment or identification with the person or situation that is no more, may require a good long work of disentangling to make sense of the matter. Meaning-making returns to reclaim the pieces of Self that were projected onto the lost object. Healthy grieving is invaluable, filled with power as the soul does what it must to clear the ground for what is to come.

Navigating the mourning, the mortifactio, is deep work requiring great courage. It may require a guide, a person who has gone before and is familiar with the terrain of the cremation grounds. But even without a helper or wise teacher, the miraculous force of Life itself will naturally lead a soul to new ground, to plant a seed, and start again. Fresh compost tops the soil, the ripeness is now a readiness to receive the seed and eventually bear new fruit. But first we must endure and respect the alchemical stages of putrefactio and mortifactio.

Honoring, even celebrating the transition – the transformation – is the secret magic and the message of this New Moon in Scorpio.

Erin Reese is an author, spiritual guide, astrologer, and modern psychic reader based in the San Francisco Bay Area. She works with clients all over the world. For readings and spiritual counseling by Skype, phone or email, contact her directly. She can be reached at erin@erinreese.com.

Further Reading:

• Experiencing the Mortificatio: Jung on Grief, Grieving and Mourning by Sue Mertens
• The Principles of the Yoga Philosophy of the Rosicrucians and Alchemists