Venus, the planet of love and beauty, will transmit her harmonizing qualities through the Libra Full Moon gracing our skies on April 5 at 9:34 p.m. U.S./Pacific. This is the first Full Moon since the Vernal Equinox, which was filled with Mars’s initiatory fire and zest.
The Libra Full Moon would like us to remember that all things are best in moderation, including moderation itself. As Venus’s indulgent trip through Taurus ends on April 10, rebalancing our appetites for pleasure may be in order. Under this lunation, the ego consciousness of the Sun, the vulnerability of Chiron, and the amplifying and integrating powers of Jupiter are all bound closely together and are shining a light on the more unconscious parts of ourselves, as symbolized by the Moon.
Venus will also quickly make a sobering square to Saturn (exact April 14), pointing us towards matters of our responsibilities in relationships. This will leave many of us revisiting deeply ingrained karmic patterns within ourselves and our relational dynamics.
Now, let’s explore Pluto’s entry into Aquarius on March 23 for the first time in 245 years!
First, we’ll consider the “ingress chart,” which is the birth moment for that world transit that lasts for 20 years. With Saturn in Pisces at that birth moment, we can expect movements towards healing outmoded beliefs and releasing misplaced faith so that we may reconstruct our material reality (Saturn) in more stable and sound ways. This applies both to our personal lives and to the world outside of ourselves.
With innovative Uranus in earthy Taurus in the ingress chart, we can expect a lot of experimentation in the material realm, which will result in both failures and genuine revelations and progress. Though these failures may pain us, taking wisdom from every step on the path is critical to our evolutionary process. Our failures can offer us some valuable lessons if we take time to stop and consider this truth: it is through our imperfections that we will find our perfection.
Pluto’s intensification of technological developments (Aquarius)—which will soon be catapulted by Jupiter conjoining Uranus (June 2023 to June 2024)—points to the overload of information we encounter in the Information Age. Partnering with the intelligences of Earth to adjust our perceptual filters, and being mindful of how our interactions with information dominate or warp our understanding, may become necessary in order to bring forth a healthy, desirable, luminous future.
With Venus’s sextile to dream maker Neptune (exact April 7) providing a supportive influence for the enjoyment of art and music, along with a dose of our own creative expressions, we can safely indulge our imaginal senses. While Venus rules this Full Moon, she is currently traveling through her other home sign of Taurus until April 10, where she also welcomes us to indulge in our favorite foods, comforts, and all earthly, sensual delights. This supports a delicious start to the new season that’s spreading over the Earth. But if we’ve wandered into excessive indulgence, Libra says we will have to be mindful of rebalancing our appetites.
Venus’s recent conjunction with unusual Uranus (exact March 30), may have already thrown us off our usual habits and introduced some new elements concerning finances, beauty, and the women in our lives and our social networks. If Venus-Uranus coincided with a shake up in our relational or financial landscape (such as an exciting new friendship, love interest, or work opportunity), this Full Moon will illuminate the benefits of those connections. It may also bring to light our reservations and fears of how we might be hurt—or hurt others.
We will have to distinguish between compromising in order to avoid potential pain or conflict and negotiating for what feels fair and reciprocal. Venus and Libra really want harmony, but too much compromise, whether in forming new relations or in reshaping existing ones, can result in some surprising eruptions of anger down the road, as poorly drawn boundaries are rudely crossed and revealed.
Venus won’t linger long in Taurus. She first saunters into Gemini on April 10 (until May 7) and immediately makes an enlivening trine aspect to powerful Pluto (exact April 11), who just entered Aquarius on March 23. We might find our attention rapidly turned from our inner aesthetic enjoyment to an outward focus in the form of networking. Gemini turns Venus into a social butterfly, which leads to us finding enjoyment in connecting with others, exchanging beneficial information, and attending to our financial flows.
There is a chance to get some distance and perspective here, if we call upon mental Mercury’s slowing movement and ourselves take time to sort through our automatic responses and well-rehearsed storylines. Is the story we have woven about ourselves in relation to the other (an intimate, a workmate, or a friend) accurate? Mercury has already entered the shadow of their retrograde on April 6, and will appear to turn to retrograde motion after April 21. The confrontation between the past history of Saturn and the connective power of Venus on April 14 could give us a golden opportunity to rethink the old stories we clothe our relations with, and to bless and release whatever is ill-fitting.
Another significance of Venus is money and the flow of resources between entities. With Mercury’s retrograde wholly in Taurus (where Mercury will be from April 3 to June 11), the Venus-Saturn square aspect may kick off a whole round of reconsideration. This could mean rethinking resource flows, our attachment to material items, and our relationship to the five senses. Furthermore, how we engage with the material world and its limits, as well as the limits of our understanding of high technology, is shaping up to be a key feature of Mercury’s retrograde through Taurus.
Uranus, the significator of technology, is also in the sign of Taurus until 2026, bringing with it so many opportunities to notice and evaluate how technological engagement is improving or hindering the flourishing of our lives and communities. Both benefit and detriment are involved in all technologies, but with Pluto’s intense entry into the technological sign of Aquarius on March 23, our relationship with such tools is suddenly undergoing a quickening transformation.
It is quite notable that all of Mercury’s 2023 retrograde periods fall in earth signs, which emphasize the material, physical world, and all the responsibilities that implies. Earth signs (Taurus, Virgo, Capricorn) remind us that there are consequences for both action and inaction. Perhaps the difficult square aspect between mental Mercury and obsessive Pluto (exact April 3) will lead us to consider our own relationship to power, which could be defined as the ability to cause or prevent change, or as an ability which arises out of our relationships with others. In particular, the nature of the power of technology that threads through our lives presents a serious meditation, as signified by Pluto in Aquarius.
While all planets are possessed of powers of their own particular flavor, Pluto represents fundamental, primal power within Earth’s cosmic family. Structural Saturn had just entered the spiritual sign of Pisces at the moment that Pluto first entered Aquarius, and we can look at the birth chart of Pluto in the Aquarius world transit (the ingress chart) for clues about what the entire 20 years of the transit will bring.
Saturn in Pisces speaks to the problems and the promise of belief, spirituality, and emotional connectivity while Pluto traverses the humanitarian sign of Aquarius. Whereas Aquarius can be quite emotionally aloof—reflecting what is currently considered the proper scientific outlook able to distill the ultimate truth about reality—this very perception of what is “scientific” or how to discern truth will undergo massive transformation, as per Pluto’s evolutionary thrust.
Saturn’s location in Pisces in the Pluto ingress chart points towards the powers of less tangible dimensions of existence and their very real, tangible impact on our lives. That includes the power of abstract belief or the impact of the unseen and more mystical realms, as well as that which can be known through intuitive means. These unseen dimensions are currently dismissed by the modern scientific establishment, but they are unlikely to be so marginalized by the time that Pluto finishes this transit and itself enters the sign of Pisces, taking us even deeper into those healing and rejuvenating waters.
We can therefore expect movements towards healing outmoded beliefs and releasing misplaced faith so that we may reconstruct our material reality (Saturn) in more stable and sound ways. This might begin as a rather messy process, as we reconfigure the boundaries we set between self and other, and all the types of relationships our boundaries enable or inhibit.
There is such a desire for transcendence in the sign of Pisces, which is dangerous when it leads to delusions of impossible spiritual perfection. And yet Saturn is what pins us firmly to the terra firma beneath our feet, offering the possibility that in our imperfection we will find our perfection. This particular tension is a good one to carry us through all the transitions and the profound working through of the problems (Saturn) of religion (Neptune and Pisces), where religion is understood as that which creates the context for understanding everything else.
In this way, Pluto through Aquarius also promises to transform our understanding of the information we possess and the power of that information. Information is partly created through our perceptual limits—the world is such a massive, multidimensional experience that humans must filter out parts of our experience in order to make a functional picture of the world, and be able to grasp information.
Pluto’s time in Aquarius will have us revising our filters, and therefore receiving new and powerful information, with potential for both positive and negative consequences. One major challenge facing us in this period is the compression of time—that is, the increasing rapidity of unfolding developments and consequences, which outstrip the human capacity to assimilate or understand. As Aquarius indicates, this is largely driven by technological developments, but is also a product of our beliefs, ideals, and understanding of progress.
Back in 1971, the Nobel prize-winning economist Herbert Simon made the prescient observation that information doesn’t just fill us up, it extracts something from us: “What information consumes is rather obvious: it consumes the attention of its recipients. Hence a wealth of information creates a poverty of attention and a need to allocate that attention efficiently among the overabundance of information sources that might consume it.”
Therefore, it is crucial to remember that where we focus our attention represents a great deal of power over the next 20 years. Neither simply imagining figures of light nor being wholly absorbed in the darkness, to invoke the psychology of Carl Jung, will be sufficient to evolve our human souls and our relations with Earth and sky. It matters more than ever that we nourish a good dream of our lives, our futures and the Earth in our hearts and minds.
The Moon represents who we are before we even think about who we are. She represents our instinctual self, and she describes our deepest vulnerabilities as well as our most profound capacity to connect with others. Full Moons amplify energy and emotions. This Moon encourages us to find true reciprocity and balance in our relations in a way that respects everyone’s autonomy and sovereignty. Let’s see how the Libra Full Moon impacts your own Moon placement!
Aries Moon
You may be feeling a little exposed under the Libra Full Moon as you realize how much the opinions or views of others do matter when it comes to feelings of self-worth. This may be a little surprising, Aries Moon, but embrace these feelings. This could be a good chance to open up a little more than usual to loved ones or colleagues, and to build greater trust with others.
Taurus Moon
The Libra Full Moon may prompt some reflection on your relationship to the material world and to creature comforts, as somewhere deep in your subconscious, some part of you craves an impossible security and stability. You may think you are aware of this craving, Taurus Moon, but it has deeper roots. It may be necessary to unpack that in order to conquer your fears and to experience deeper satisfaction.
Gemini Moon
What is it that you want for yourself, Gemini Moon? The Libra Full Moon swears to you that your enjoyment, happiness, and free spirit need not be encumbered by everyone else’s needs, illnesses or struggles. Be open to receiving the blessings and the sweetness that Venus wants to offer you, as she passes through your sign from mid-April to early May.
Cancer Moon
You may feel like you are in a fight for your life under this lunation, and that may be true, Cancer Moon. Your independence and autonomy is your guide to the desirable future you want to inhabit, and no amount of fusing with others’ realities, needs or desires can override that fact. The Libra Full Moon is asking you to care for your own well-being first, for all the rich relationship rewards it will bring next.
Leo Moon
You may be hashing it out with family or neighbors under the Libra Full Moon, as you feel compelled to set some boundaries. Your Leo Moon needs enough room to breathe and expand. While it is good to consider the needs of others, you’ll likely feel compelled to assert your needs first.
Virgo Moon
The Libra Full Moon is a call to scope out and embrace the big picture. Let yourself take the true measure of your vulnerability in the larger scheme of your life. The idea of releasing some control may seem foreign, Virgo Moon, but this lunation could give you a chance to fully grieve some losses, which may grant you greater emotional freedom in return.
Libra Moon
This is your Full Moon of 2023, Libra Moon! And it wants you to consider the ways you can be a better partner to others who depend on you by balancing the scales of who assumes leadership or responsibility for collaborative actions. If you keep taking the reins, how can you receive support? If you don’t assert your own will, how can you support others and nourish what is important to you? There is a sweet success waiting for you if you can adjust your approach to sharing power and responsibility.
Scorpio Moon
It’s okay to let the good feelings move through you, Scorpio Moon. There isn’t any trick or trap here. That’s just an illusion from the past. The Libra Full Moon is welcoming you to simply relax and enjoy your loved ones, and to trust that that can happen without suffering, complication or blowback.
Sagittarius Moon
The Libra Full Moon is shining a light on your aspirations and plans for manifesting all the good things, Sag Moon. But the devil is in the details, and managing to fit in everything you need to accomplish may be overwhelming if you don’t give yourself enough time. Beware of creating panic instead of a realistic routine and approach.
Capricorn Moon
The Libra Full Moon may play some tricks of light and shadow, bringing up fears or concerns about how others perceive you. Is it really that you aren’t living up to others’ standards, Capricorn Moon? Or are you judging yourself too harshly? Sacrificing too much pleasure in order to be good enough for others could seriously backfire on you. Let yourself play!
Aquarius Moon
The Libra Full Moon points to unburdening yourself of wounded thought processes that keep you from seeing the bigger picture of what you actually need. It helps to acknowledge your vulnerabilities, Aquarius Moon, and will help open your heart to your own fallibility. This doesn’t make you unloveable, but it will help make you feel more whole.
Pisces Moon
With Saturn now moving through your sign, Pisces Moon, you will eventually begin to feel the pull to retreat inward and to decrease social engagement. The Libra Full Moon invites you to let any inward turn be an opportunity to declutter your mind of the thoughts of others that often crowd out your own, so that you can better hear your own voice.
✨ Herbalist Picks for the Libra Full Moon ✨
