The Zodiac’s firstborn is an origin story: the accidental discovery of fire, the flight-and-fight of survival, the “lightbulb” moment of invention &, above all, a frolic into creation.
Aries’ representation by the Ram in no way fits a “follow the crowd” sheep stereotype. With a yearn to succeed and competitive urge to get ahead, Aries is known to burst thru the grey with voracious vitality, at times seeming spontaneous, chaotic and/or bombastic. However, Aries’ alignment with the Spring Equinox mirrors the Sign’s purposeful path of determination and self-actualization despite a lack of linear timeline and a penchant for erratic development. It’s a story told time and time again, even touching on Jesus’s rise from the Dead, as rebirth and reclamation mythologies are repeatedly attached to Aries Season and Equinox spiritual figures:
In ancient Egyptian astronomy, Aries was associated with the god Amun-Ra, who was depicted as a man with a ram's head and represented fertility and creativity. Because it was the location of the vernal equinox, it was called the ‘Indicator of the Reborn Sun’.
Amid pop astrology’s view of Aries as the hyperactive child, the firestarter, the feisty femme (and honestly, where’s the lie?), Aries wields the important roles of Warrior and Pioneer. Being “called to adventure” and the monomyth of the Hero’s Journey are the essence of Aries’ wheelhouse with risk and reward often finding itself running beside a yearn for Truth and Justice. The plot may begin with personal curiosities but the exploration for what lies beyond almost always blossoms into the fight for others’ rights, especially around expression and autonomy, values highly important to Aries.
Ruling the 1st House of the Self, Aries is the passion to know and be ourselves, the indominable spirit in a quest to face the Unknown, even when afraid.
Aries has no choice but to go forth, like a flower growing towards the sun, craving experience and energy at any cost.
There is, of course, the excessive side to Cardinal Fire Sign that burns itself out with excitement - or at times incitement - no stranger to the vibe of Eclipse Season and the Aries 2024 transits. This Spring faces challenges that have been percolating since the Aries-Libra Nodal Cycle began in July 2023, if not earlier on the 4/20/23 Aries Eclipse. Auspicious opportunities arrive over April, though foolish rushing during Mercury Retrograde is not advised.
In fact, it may take until the Autumn Eclipse Season for answers to be clear and action to be viable. Otherwise, rash decision making will take a toll if we cave to devilish desires of ill reaction (a cliche but truly a huge issue for Aries placements, especially in the Big 3!). Venus in Aries also entered the chat and we go into great detail about the back-spin and other Aries placements that makes April one of the most intense months of 2024 in our last post.
WHAT: Aries New Moon + Total Solar Eclipse
WHEN: Monday April 8 2:21 PM EST
THEME: Reclamation of Core Self, Healing Shame, Re-evaluating Motivation
What would happen if we learned to love the parts of ourselves we’ve been made to believe are not useful or too vulnerable to show? What aspects of ourselves have we ignored to fit in or to ‘stay safe’?
These are the big questions upcoming thanks to Chiron in Aries tight alignment with the Total Solar Eclipse in Aries. Chiron is large and in charge for April 2024’s New Moon in Aries, which is also conjunct the North Node in Aries as the highlight of 2024’s Eclipses. Though Chiron has been in the Sign of the Ram since its re-entrance in February 2019, and will stay there until June 2026, the Wounded Healer digs up intense internal shame and societal expectations that have stolen our inner fire. Uncomfortable but absolutely necessary to face if we want to pursue an authentic life going forward.
During the Aries Solar Eclipse, Mercury, Chiron, Sun, Moon, North Node and Venus will be all together, during Mercury Retrograde in Aries, and deep re-flection and re-evaluation is on our side, no matter how uncomfortable the messages may be.
A Truthful Time-Out for the Total Solar Eclipse:
The rebellious meet-up of the North Node New Moon AND Chiron in Aries can assist in the reclamation of our truest selves. It takes immense bravery to let go of exhausting narratives and identities that we are no longer (or were never really) aligned with but have held onto for so long. Shedding the facade around success, likeability and status is an ongoing process and yet immensely valuable to living our fullest lives. Even our views around whether or not we fit the criteria to be worthy of love can permeate our behaviors and personalities in extremely toxic and negative ways that groom us into becoming shells of ourselves. Allow this New Moon to gently review what lies we’ve squeezed ourselves into to feel valued. We are all worthy of love just as we are and we do not have to pretend to be someone we are not to receive the care we as humans all need and deserve. Reject the idea that you are not good enough. It’s a bullshit story that has no place in our hearts and minds.
"When perfectionism is driving us, shame is riding shotgun and fear is that annoying backseat driver." Brene Brown’s TED Talk on shame and the “vulnerability hangover” is such an endearing and gut-wrenching personal anecdote that breaks down how FEAR of vulnerability actually encages us into inaction and not growing at all. In order to peel back and get to a place of self-acceptance, we must allow ourselves to be vulnerable. Stating that “vulnerability is the birthplace of innovation, creativity and change”, Brown challenges the social idea of vulnerability. It is not a weakness, but a strengthener and connector to others and ourselves. Vulnerability helps us break through to healing in ways that defense mechanisms and denial never will.
Are your efforts driven by capitalism or scarcity mindset… and at what cost? We often look to money, our profession and social status as part of our identities, if not a means of safety and security in this insane economy. In a conversation with Dr. Chatterjee, Dr. Gabor Mate shared a story about forgoing memorable experiences with loved ones due to career commitments, reflecting: “People sacrifice their playfulness, their joyfulness, being driven by unconscious needs to validate your existence. And where does that come from? Again, that comes from childhood trauma. Play is so important and joy is so important.”
Get real about the shadow work. And shadow work IS work! To excavate our truest selves once again, shadow work is a mandatory requirement. BUT shadow work can also include childlike curiosity, objective experimentation, artistic workshopping, wild wonder and feral fun that does not have to be all doom and gloom. Reframing how we see shadow work is a radical act of self-exploration that can take us to great depths of our many selves. Especially during Eclipse Season, where lights go out, and Mercury Retrograde, where signals are scrambled, integrating the shadow side with light-hearted but imperative effort is life-changing. (We’ll dive deeper into this for Autumn Eclipse Season)
"You catch more flies with honey than with vinegar." Learning to speak our truths is highly important, but the TONE and TEMPER in which we do so may backfire. Serious conversations deserve serious consideration. Standing up for ourselves does not mean destroying others. Same goes for ourselves and the negative self-talk we indulge in. Being kind to ourselves, taking extra rest and allowing ourselves to feel our feelings WITHOUT JUDGMENT is absolutely vital during Eclipse Season, but will be especially helpful with the Moon-Chiron’s unpacking of how and why we may have lost our way. This time can bring up many regrets, resentments, and so on, but it’s best to respond with Future solutions in mind and not pine on Past hurts beyond their expiration date.
Building up to and after Monday’s Aries Solar Eclipse, we may feel an intense pressure while rummaging thru the severity of the stigma and other afflictions we have taken on for years at a time. Such distressing rumination can catapult us into knee-jerk decisions we feel will ease our agony or quick-fix and cover the layers of wounds. We may want to ignore our pain altogether by going to vices (common behavior around Eclipse energy). If we can manage the challenge of letting in the light to facing up to our fears, we will get much further ahead sooner than we think, BUT as Mercury Rx warns, decisions that can harm or hurt ourselves and others at this time will not serve us in the long-run. It’s a true challenge to not rush with all the hot-headed Aries energy at this time but we will be better to take it slow and steady to win the race.