New Moon in Libra: Back in Balance

Tonight and tomorrow, September 23-24, we have a New Moon in the air sign of Libra, sign of the Balancing Scales. All New Moons ask us to start again, and this is a special lunation in that we are literally turning over a new leaf with the Fall Equinox upon us as well. The season is changing within and without. It is time to ask, what do we need to bring into our lives, our lifestyles, and our relationships in order to get back into balance?

Libra is a cardinal sign, signifying initiative energy, and the Moon falls on the first degree – two more clues that we’re due for a fresh start. Not only that: Pluto, the Great Transformer, has just turned Direct on September 22 after a six-month retrograde in which his powerful energy was restricted. Whew. Now we can at least get on with the show when it comes to making utter and total changes, rebirths large and small which will impact our lives to the core. So if you need surgery, a home renovation, a healing cleanse, a tax overhaul, a new psychotherapist – this fall is the time to let it in, or out, as the case may be.

Now, let’s turn to the New Moon in the sign of the Scales, and find out what we’re being asked to contemplate, integrate, and commit to (for lover Libra loves commitments!).

THE DANCE OF RELATIONSHIP

Libra wants us to cultivate harmonious surroundings and relationships in order to feel good. Libra thrives off relationship, whether we’re talking a spouse, a business partner, a date, or a family member, and requires equilibrium. The challenge for us during this New Moon is to NOT look for the balance and fairness in the externals of our relationships. Trying to find ultimate feel-good pleasantness between two people can be effective, but improving communication techniques goes so far. Absolute equipoise is an ideal; we need to allow for humans being, well, human. Like an airplane flying to Hawaii over the Pacific, you may be off exact course 99% of the time, with tiny or big wavering depending on air stream, weather, equipment, etc. But you will get there.

Eventually, the peace we are looking for MUST come from our own inner nature. Libra teaches us we much balance head with heart. This can be difficult to learn and integrate. Often, men are challenged, through genes and conditioning, to drop swiftly into their heart center. Conversely, women are typically more comfortable and conditioned to thrive in their feeling nature. Yes, this makes women often appear “hyper-sensitive,” and men come across as “insensitive” or arrogant when they are rationalizing. Can the twain ever meet? Regardless of gender, there is a gap to bridge in order to come back into balance. Perhaps both parties can become nimbler at shifting between head and heart to facilitate inner and outer harmony.

You may ask yourself, do you become emotionally distraught when harmony is disrupted? Do you lean so much toward approval, pleasantness and feeling good that you get caught off-guard, creating issues in your relationships? Are you swayed toward favoring one way of seeing, thinking, behaving, perceiving, feeling versus the other? There’s your balance bugaboo, every time! This is not inquiry for the meek of heart. The New Moon in Libra asks us to both face our orientation conditioning and detach from it. Absolute harmony is, ultimately, an inside job.

BODILY HARMONY

Tree pose in Thailand

For some of us, coming back into balance could literally mean just that: upping our yoga, dance or movement classes in order to facilitate bodily harmony. Tai Chi, Qi Gong, dynamic meditation techniques – any physical practice that integrates mind and body will do – even breathing consciously while working in the garden or raking leaves! Inner equipoise translates quickly into outer grace.

Even if you’re not a big yogi, one very simple pose that you can practice this autumn is tree pose (vriksasana) – fitting for fall, honoring the changing colors of our foliage friends outside. See how your balance improves with practice; eventually, you’ll be able to stand in tree pose, arms overhead, with your eyes closed. Start by gradually looking up at the ceiling more while you’re in the posture. Once you’ve stabilized in tree pose, effortlessly move into dancer’s pose (natarajasana) without dropping your foot to the floor first. Natarajasana, honoring Shiva performing his eternal dance of creation and destruction as well as beauty, poise, grace.

Perfect for Libra.

Practicing yoga at home. India, 2010

With a wealth of modern expertise in the ancient arts of Astrology and the Tarot, Erin Reese is an intuitive consultant uniquely positioned to answer your questions via Skype, phone or email. Please email or call Erin to make an appointment for a reading.

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