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Call and Response Virgo New Moon

By Dana Gerhardt

It’s another New Moon: when wishes can be super-charged with sparkling fresh energy. Yet if you don’t have a strong relationship with the archetypes, don’t expect buckets of fairy dust. New Moons are potent times to forge alliances with the gods. But you must be willing to meet the invisible world. Bow and open yourself to their touch. Make an offering. Humans have been rendezvousing with these archetypes for thousands of years. When you call out to the gods, they do respond!

Calling Virgo

Call Virgo and she’ll appear with the fresh grace of a virgin. This goddess wants nothing, is attached to nothing, and fears nothing. She walks the ripening fields, knowing that when the Harvest Moon rises, round as a pumpkin above the waiting barns, it’s harvest time. Her eyes are honest and appraising. The smallest details can’t escape her. Call her in at this New Moon and she’ll help you scrub your floors, organize the family photos, alphabetize your spices, and empty the medicine cabinet of old prescriptions. She likes to plan for the future and knows the most efficient method for everything.

People sometimes feel worried or guilty when Virgo is around. In small doses such feelings can have a purifying effect. But one year, guilt had me hiding in the closet. “That won’t do,” she frowned. “Take a salt bath and clean your room, discard whatever feels too dark, then pick one or two useful objects to give away.” Her magic worked. Next year, when I was overwhelmed with worry, she handed me a small black bag. “Fill it with sticks and stones from your backyard, one for everything you fear. Pass it through a cleansing smoke, then bury it in your front yard, where it will transform.” A week later, above the buried bag, a dozen pure white moonflowers suddenly appeared.

Usually I call in the signs, but this year Virgo calls me. She asks me to join her on an Oregon back road, where the blackberries thrive like weeds; just now, they’re ripening. You should join us too. Five geese are squawking overhead, speeding somewhere… but let’s just amble, past the occasional picker with her Tupperware bowl, so absorbed in her task she doesn’t notice us. Berry picking requires concentration. If you don’t move carefully, the thorns will harvest you, grabbing your clothes and dragging you into the bush. To do it right, you have to work the Virgo way: With discrimination. Unhurried. Absorbed yet industrious. Reverent. With a quiet mind. You’re tuned to perfection: finding gifts from Nature that are perfectly ready to eat.

Your eyes will tell you a lot. Leave the red ones alone. Scan for those whose purple is so intense it’s almost black (hence the name “blackberries”). If the berry looks like it’s about to burst, it’s a good candidate. If it has the sad look of a deflated tire, it’s too late. Study the finish. The ripe ones aren’t too shiny or too dull; their sheen is a vibrant cream. Out of the fifty berries you scan, you spot a likely candidate. Now here’s the real test. Tug on it. If it instantly releases into your hand, it will be delicious. If you have to tug a second or third time, if you yank it off the stem, when you pop it into your mouth, it will repay you with a tart explosion. “Ha!” It says, as your mouth endures a sour rush: “You can’t fool Mother Nature.”

I wish I could tell you that I only pick the ones that are ready to eat. But I am impatient by nature. And more often than I can count, I’ve yanked the ones my eyes have determined should be ready. I eat them and get the appropriate reward for my impatience. Virgo has blessed me with a new resolution this year—to harvest more wisely in my life. I want to tug only on those things that are truly ripe. I want to let everything else take its sweet time.

Virgo’s Response

Virgo brings a precise, analytical, and useful energy to our September New Moons. We’re invited to survey our lives and sort what is useful from what is not—like the Virgin, separating the wheat from the chaff. If you call Virgo in, she may gift you with the humble willingness to work or an impulse to get newly organized.

I have Virgo rising—which means she rules my basic personality and approach to life. As a schoolgirl, every year when the Sun entered Virgo, I’d take out a clean sheet of paper. With a bold, optimistic hand, I’d write at the top: “The New Me.” Below it I would list all the wonderful qualities I was determined to adopt in the coming school year. (“Smile,” “Be helpful,” “Always say something nice.”) One year I read Dale Carnegie’s How to Win Friends and Influence People and following a suggestion in the book, made note cards of its winning slogans and strategies. Each time I conjured my New Self, I felt like this act of conjuring was itself new. It wasn’t until I became an astrologer that I realized I did this every year at Virgo’s insistence! Which house does she activate in your chart? What important message does the Virgin have for you this cycle?

If you’d like to explore the archetypes in even greater depth, if you like to journal and/or muse on the positions of the Sun and Moon, you may enjoy my enrolling in my Moon Workshop (by snail-mail or email). It’s designed to deepen your relationship with the guardians of natural time, the Sun, the Moon, and the zodiac.

© 2010 Dana Gerhardt

Painting by Johanna Uribes. See more of Johanna’s work at her website.

Filed under: Call and Response

About Dana Gerhardt

A popular columnist with The Mountain Astrologer since 1991, Dana Gerhardt is an internationally respected astrologer. She has lectured extensively and written for astrology publications on several continents. Her ongoing passions are the moon and living the intuitive life. Dana worked for many years in the corporate sector, where she observed the undeniable influence of natural cycles. She graduated Phi Beta Kappa, Magna Cum Laude from Occidental College in Los Angeles and did graduate work in literature at Columbia University and CSULA. Dana can be contacted by email.

Comments

  1. luke phillips says

    Sep 9, 2013 at 1:58 pm

    Aha! Your writing is full of Aha! moments, and in addition, you write beautifully. The blackberry section hit very deep, as it’s become one of my favorite seasons (happens @ June here) & I’d experienced every detail you described about those delightful gifts, from Virgo? … or as a lunar calendar I used to get every year said, “the Goddess, in her many guises…” Rock on! >>>>> Luke

    Reply
  2. Beate says

    Sep 7, 2013 at 8:44 am

    Thank you so much for this wonderful resource. I have been visiting it every month for a number of years, sometimes a few days after the new moon or full moon and found that your messages correlated with what was happening in my life at that time. I would be interested in learning more about your moon workshop.

    Reply
    • Dana Gerhardt says

      Sep 8, 2013 at 9:00 am

      Hi Beate, thanks for joining us at the lunations! You can find out more info on the workshop (including a pdf showing what the monthly workbook looks like) here: https://mooncircles.com/store/moon-workshop/

      Reply
  3. Maria Machado Leite says

    Sep 5, 2013 at 6:29 pm

    A deep lesson,Dana. I can feel it from you….
    Maria

    Reply
    • Dana Gerhardt says

      Sep 6, 2013 at 9:28 am

      Blessings my dear Maria!

      Reply
  4. Maria Machado Leite says

    Sep 5, 2013 at 6:21 pm

    Trying to clarifyl my life and spend more time in nature. A great lesson for me.
    Thanks
    Maria

    Reply
  5. Jessica d'Arcy says

    Sep 5, 2013 at 5:09 pm

    I always rely on your articles. And really, the whole site. I visit it frequently and find it beautiful and also full of deep wisdom. Thank you. Bright Blessings! )O(

    Reply
    • Dana Gerhardt says

      Sep 6, 2013 at 9:28 am

      Glad to have your eyes on our pages!

      Reply
  6. cynthia says

    Sep 5, 2013 at 3:15 am

    Trying to gain clarity in my life this year I stumbled across your site because I heard about writing down your wishes according to the sign in the new moon. Virgo sure could help me DE-CLUTTER some things in my life right now.
    Thanks

    Reply
  7. Georgianna says

    Sep 4, 2013 at 7:21 pm

    Thanks, Dana, useful as all your articles.

    Reply
  8. Doreen says

    Sep 16, 2012 at 4:57 am

    I too have Virgo rising and leave inspirational quotes around my home..and in my artwork.

    Reply
  9. Valerie Day says

    Sep 15, 2012 at 7:53 am

    Hello Dana,

    What a wonderful article. It is awesome to look out in the world and see the graceful alignment that is happening with this Virgo New Moon.

    I appreciate the New Moon Rituals you provide; I use them with my New Moon cirlce.

    I would love to learn more about your Twelve Moon Workshop.

    Thank you.

    Reply
  10. Yolanda says

    Sep 14, 2012 at 8:46 am

    I am quite interested in your twelve moon workshop. I have my Capricorn moon in the twelfth house. I have always looked at emotions as a way of learning insite. The entire zodiac and the constant 2 1/2 days cycle has always been a bit intimidating for me. Thanks for the clear manor that you have in getting the message across. I will check out your worksop. Yolanda

    Reply
  11. Kristin Couturier says

    Sep 13, 2012 at 11:46 am

    Hi Dana, I found your site through the Sibylline Order. I was in there referencing New Moon Rituals and there was a quote in there form your web site.

    I’m glad I found you. I will be visiting more often.

    Thanks, Kristin

    Reply
    • Dana Gerhardt says

      Sep 13, 2012 at 2:42 pm

      Welcome!

      Reply

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The Moon is in its
New Phase

in the
Sign of Aries


Today's Lunar Aspects (Greenwich Mean Time)
(subtract: PST -8 hours, PDT -7 hours, EST -5 hours, EDT -4 hours)

  • Moon sextile Mars, 5:13pm  Mar 23 2023
  • Moon square Pluto, 6:42pm  Mar 23 2023
  • Moon sextile Saturn, 9:57pm  Mar 23 2023

Venus is currently
The Evening Star

in the sign of Taurus


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Astrologers use a variety of house systems, or methods of dividing up the sky into twelve sections. I use the Porphyry house system; another popular house system is Placidus (this is the default on https://astro.com). If the chart I send you looks different from what you are used to seeing, then likely a system other than Porphyry was used. Whole signs, Equal House, Regiomantus, and Campanus are examples of other systems. If you find all of this confusing, do not worry. It is likely not critical to your report.

m  Conjunction:  Like peas in a pod, planets in conjunction tend to come from the same place. They act together, but it’s also hard to tell them apart. This aspect can increase talent, focus, and intensity (“two are better than one”). Or one planet can disappear as the other dominates. Their connection feels so natural, it’s easy to think everyone blends these planetary energies just as you do—but mostly, they don’t!.

p  Sextile:  Planets in sextile are compatible, though without any fireworks. This aspect doesn’t demand your attention. It quietly presents an opportunity. You can join these archetypal forces. Donna Cunningham has called this the “Oh, that!” aspect, because that’s generally what her clients say when she describes their benefits.  To get the most from sextiles you need to actively work them.

q  Square:  Squares are wild and wonderful—but difficult too. The power struggle between these planets was likely defined in your youth, when they were impossibly challenging. People are usually aware of their squares. They force the issues that make you to grow. And that’s their gift. They ensure you learn your lessons. When you rise to the occasion, they bless you with energy, action, and success.

r  Trine:  Michael Munkasey has dubbed this the “goddess aspect” because it’s so lovely. Identifying talents you may have perfected in a previous life, trines can bring you joy. There’s a nice flow of energy between planets in trine. They support and reinforce each another. But without any struggle, you might take them for granted—neither using nor developing their gifts. An unattended trine can sometimes trick you into negative behaviors.

t  Inconjunct/Quincunx:  Your quincunx planets are innately incompatible. Bringing them into harmonious expression requires constant adjustments. This can be stressful, also motivating. You’ve got to keep changing your process, opinions or attitude—which promotes highly creative solutions.

u  Opposition:  They say opposites attract—and planets in opposition are never far from each other, though they’re constantly bickering. You may be triggered into awareness of this aspect by other people who seem to resist or undermine you.  An opposition can make you feel uncertain, insecure, or discontent, until you can accept and see yourself in both energies. Typically people find it easier to identify with one side and project the other onto unsuspecting others in the outer world.

First House: Personality, physical body, beginnings. Includes the Ascendant and rules physical appearance, the image you project to others, your general outlook on life, how you start things; may describe your role in your family system, often guides your first impression of immediate environment.

Second House: Money and personal finances, sense of self-worth and basic values, personal possessions, talents.

Third House: Communication, thoughts, language skills like writing and speaking, early schooling, siblings and neighbors, short trips, coming and going around town.

Fourth House: Your home, psychological foundations and roots, family, parents, domestic life, instinctive behavior, ancestry, your connection with the past, sense of security, domestic life, real estate. conditions at the end of life.

Fifth House: Children, creativity, romance; pleasure, entertainment, self-expression; all forms of “play”, speculation, gambling, and attitude towards taking risks; hobbies, attitude towards romance, lovers as opposed to partners, attitude towards having fun.

Sixth House: Work and job (as opposed to career), daily life, attitude towards service and coworkers, helpfulness, pets, attitude towards routine and organization, how you refine and perfect your skills.

Seventh House: Partnerships, one-to-one relationships, marriage, the first marriage, the “significant other”, business partnerships, competitors, open enemies, lawyers, mediators, counselors, contracts, negotiations, agreements. clients/the public.

Eighth House: Transformations and crisis, your ability to meet and rebound from crisis and change, sexuality; sex, death and rebirth, rituals and personal growth, your partner’s resources, addictions, psychology, other people’s money, taxes, divorce/alimony, inheritance.

Ninth House: Attitude toward expanding horizons, religious beliefs and personal philosophy, higher education, long-distance travel, morals, foreign languages and cultures, personal truths, publishing, commerce, advertising, your sense of adventure.

Tenth House: Career and profession, your contribution to society, social status, public reputation, material success, how you carve out a public identity for yourself; attitude toward authority figures, parents, caregivers, bosses, governments, attitude towards responsibility, desire for achievement.

Eleventh House: Friends, groups, organizations; hopes, wishes, aspirations, personal goals; your philanthropic attitude, concern for the collective, humanity; like tenth, can bring recognition and honors for fulfilling hopes and dreams.

Twelfth House: What’s hidden beneath the surface, karmic dustbin, limiting childhood/past-life messages, self-undoing, hidden enemies, hidden weaknesses, dreams, secret affairs, lost items, hospitals and prisons, hidden strengths, spiritual studies and soul growth.

A  Sun: Our vitality and magnetism; self-identity, ego.
Roles: The Self, the Hero, the Performer, the King.

B  Moon: Intuition, emotion, nurture.
Roles: The Mother, the High Priestess, the Child.

C  Mercury: Mind; physical dexterity and mental agility.
Roles: The Thinker, the Communicator, the Student, the Trickster, the Merchant, the Thief.

D  Venus: Our capacity for pleasure, receptivity, creativity, and social connection. Also indicates our relationships, self esteem, and financial abundance.
Roles: The Lover, the Seductress, the Artist.

E  Mars: Desire, initiative, anger.
Roles: The Protector, the Athlete, the Warrior.

F  Jupiter: Luck, opportunity, expansion, higher learning, religion.
Roles: The Scholar, the Gypsy, the Traveler, the Monk, the Professor.

G  Saturn: Hard work, commitment, focus, inadequacy, leadership, suffering, loss.
Roles: The Task Master, the Grim Reaper, the Wise Old Man, the Builder, the Cynic, the Boss.

H  Uranus: Change, breakthroughs, upsets, discoveries.
Roles: The Revolutionary, the Humanitarian, the Visionary, the Snob.

I  Neptune: Imagination, spirituality, idealism, addictions, deception, compassion.
Roles: The Artist, the Romantic, the Guru, the Addict, the Martyr, the Victim.

J  Pluto: Transformation, power, psychological dynamics, helplessness.
Roles: The Terrorist, the Detective, the Psychotherapist, the Dictator, shady people.

a  Aries: Pioneering, competitive, selfish, impatient, courageous, reckless, independent, dynamic, domineering, “Me first!”

b  Taurus: Patient, stable, lazy, dependable, practical, sensual, stubborn, artistic, possessive, greedy, gentle, loyal.

c  Gemini: Intelligent, curious, adaptable, quick-witted, restless, clever, scatterbrained, lacking follow-through.

d  Cancer: Nourishing, intuitive, protective, moody, sensitive, maternal, domestic, childish, cautious, creative.

e  Leo: Proud, dignified, vain, expressive, romantic, generous, childish, overbearing, self-assured, creative.

f  Virgo: Perfection-seeking, practical, methodical, petty, critical, studious, discriminating, cautious, never satisfied.

g  Libra: Charming, sociable, peace-loving, refined, diplomatic, artistic, indecisive, apathetic, easily deterred.

h  Scorpio: Passionate, secretive, penetrating, resourceful, suspicious, manipulative, jealous, sarcastic, intolerant, determined, aware.

i  Sagittarius: Freedom-loving, philosophical, optimistic, enthusiastic, careless, impatient, talkative, a know-it-all, broadminded, athletic, honest.

j  Capricorn: Serious, responsible, practical, hardworking, stubborn, brooding, inhibited, status-conscious, domineering, unforgiving.

k  Aquarius: Progressive, individualistic, unpredictable, cold, intellectual, artistic, eccentric, shy, impersonal, scientific.

l  Pisces: Compassionate, intuitive, ungrounded, romantic, impractical, self-sacrificing, seductive, musical, artistic.