Article Window: Jan 16 to Feb 15
• New Moon is Tuesday, Jan 16, 6:17 PM PST
• Sun is 27° Capricorn, Moon is 27° Capricorn
• Next Full Moon:  Lunar Eclipse on Jan. 31
• Current New Moon Theme (Jan 16 – Feb 15): Transformation of Power

The New Moon releases a wave of new potential that sets the overall theme for the entire month that follows. This month’s Lunar cycle offers a new tool-set that creates momentum for energizing your life’s purpose. To experience your fullest potential in the coming month allow this energy to guide you, especially while adjusting to life’s changing circumstances.

Astrology Article: The Capricorn Transformation of Power

by Steven Steven
co-author Elizabeth Schermer

Our New Moon astrology presents a powerful Capricorn archetype that’s intended to develop a new capacity for personal power. This coming month will be time in which you’re able to experience new ways to participate in what is worthwhile, both for yourself and your world.

The zodiac sign of Capricorn is traditionally associated with qualities of being ambitious, reliable, and conscientious. This article will widen these practical ideas about Capricorn and breakdown this very complex New Moon signature in order to connect with the bigger picture of what is possible with Capricorn energy.

A Spiritual Perspective of Capricorn

While Capricorn is often seen as a sign of physicality, in its purist and most transcendent form it holds a high level of spirituality through the commitment to participation. From the spiritual perspective, Capricorn represents the collective value of group participation that is used for both practical and positive interactions for the larger good.

As the sign of Cardinal Earth, the energy of this Capricorn Moon is about the embodiment or formation of new potentials. Capricorn energy of embodiment is expressed through the desire to connect with the highest intrinsic value of something, and then hold onto that value and put it to use in some concrete way in the world.

When the value of something is recognized at its very core, and action is taken through this desire to connect, a greater harmony can be set into motion. This is how, in Capricorn, the concentration of what is worthwhile gives rise to power, which then influences the development of new achievements. This process of power happens first within the individual, and then this impulse to achieve is extended to the group. When the expression of power happens at the level of the group, the Capricorn influence has the potential to directly shape the structure of society.

The Right Use of Power

The yin quality that’s present in all three of the Earth signs has a generalized concentrating function. In this way, each of the three Earth signs, Capricorn, Taurus and Virgo, gathers and concentrates what has come before. In Capricorn, this concentrating function is expressed through the power to create social order. At the highest level, Capricorn’s expression of power leads to the creation of new social forms and structures that extend value to the collective, rather than a concentrated few who try to hold the benefits of power for themselves.

The shadow of Capricorn arises when power is misused and the value of action and resources becomes distorted for personal gain or for control. When the focus on the larger group is lost, the Capricorn value of power through group-cooperation becomes distorted  and replaced with the value of personal gain, for example through money, gold, and the power to control.

In order to transcend the use of power for personal gain, Capricorn’s qualities of being ambitious, reliable, and conscientious must have an additional focus. This expanded focus of Capricorn is toward the greater value that one’s individual power can add to the structure and harmony of society as a whole. For without this extra focus, Capricorn energy becomes self-serving and lacks a meaningful relationship to the new achievements that have the power to shape society to benefit everyone.

Personal Power – The Individual and the Group

This principle of the right use of power is very much connected to the current New Moon. The most positive outcome that can result from our Capricorn New Moon energies is the understanding of your own worth and value, and how that worth relates to your ability to express your individual power in the world.

Each person has a unique potential to structure their life and mobilize their personal power for the benefit of others. This principle of structure is the root concept behind Saturn’s connection as the ruling planet of Capricorn. Saturn defines boundaries and limits in order for growth to be structured and harmonized. In order to allow growth however, those established limits must be flexible so they can change when necessary. The shadow side of Saturn is rigidity and attachment to the past.  It’s our connection to a larger purpose that allows us to release old boundaries in order to expand. Without this connection to a greater purpose, limits would never be transcended. We would remain stagnant and inert.

Capricorn, working with Saturn, embraces this principle of transcending the limits of established value and  power in order to achieve something greater. It is this positive aspect of Capricorn, the willingness to release limitations of the past, that has the power to directly shape the structure of a society with breakthroughs and new developments for the benefit of all.

It’s often the shadow side of Capricorn that is emphasized, especially because of the prevalent patterns of abuse of power in today’s world. It’s important to remember that there is an alternative perspective. The shadow side and resulting distortion of any zodiac sign is not its full meaning, but only the contrasting expression of a positive potential.

Ultimately the energies of each zodiac sign encompasses a full range of potentials, providing for the growth of the individual and all of humanity. When you look at the meaning of Capricorn you will always get your best astrology insight when focusing on the harmonizing aspects of the big picture. This includes taking into account the value that can be learned from shadow activations, whether those shadow aspects are within yourself or evidenced in the world at large.

Astrology Pattern

Our astrology pattern is focused directly on the six-planet stellium in Capricorn. The concentration of so many planetary energies in only one zodiac sign is extremely complex. Despite the intricate nature of the stellium, it’s also possible to summarize the way in which these six planets are working together as one.  To best understand the complexity of the chart, rather than dissecting the stellium, we’ll focus on the bigger picture of the entire chart signature as a whole.

The pattern of the chart can be called a “Stellium-Bottomed Bowl,” meaning that the six stellium planets are at the bottom of the bowl-shaped chart. The edges of the bowl are formed by Uranus (25° Aries) on one side and Jupiter/Mars (20°/25° Scorpio) on the other. It’s worth noting here that the numbers 20° and 25° are both transformational in nature. This signifies that everything else contained within the bowl pattern holds a very positive and transforming signature.

It is significant to have Pluto at the bottom of the bowl pattern. The power of Pluto lies in the pure power of “absolute transformation.” Because the soul is the only aspect of the self that can undergo this extreme level of absolute transformation, Pluto is often associated with the evolution of the soul. This placement of Pluto in the bottom of the bowl amplifies the potential for personal transformation that this chart represents.

Pluto’s transformational nature is further amplified because of the new-phase position in relationship to the Sun, Moon and Venus. This indicates that the overall signature of the New Moon Chart is promoting an elevation of the individualizing areas of consciousness, represented by Sun, Moon and Venus.

Pluto’s influence within this stellium pattern means there is additional help for all who are ready to transcend the limitations, represented by Saturn.  We have access now to transformational growth, both for the individual and for all of humanity.

Conclusion

Because of the transformational nature of this month’s New Moon energies, we have an extra level of concentrated power with which to jump-start our new year. At the highest level, this is a power you can access in order to experience new levels of personal transformation, both in your personal experience of self-worth as well as in the ways in which you can contribute to our evolving society.

Together we are capable of so much more than we have ever known. During the coming Lunar cycle you have the opportunity to focus on the right use of power at the personal level. Remember that your worth is measured, not by society’s standards, but through your ability to move beyond limitations in order to create something of value to contribute to the whole.