The Full Moon in Gemini on November 8th EST, or November 7th, Pacific Time, is conjunct Mars retrograde and is the start of a new Mars cycle. This Moon will embody an exaggeration of all the heightened feelings from the past four months.
It is not a clean, orderly time. It feels firey and windy. What you are building may burn, ideas will smolder, wounds will show. Something feels hurtful or harmful. It might even feel like you are ready to shout out to the universe to say, “Enough!”. If there were ever a time to howl at the moon, this is one of them.
Full Moons illuminate themes in our life. Because this Moon is tightly connected to Mars retrograde, and it falls at the midpoint of the retrograde cycle, this moon is illuminating the Mars retrograde story in your life, which began around August 20th, when Mars first entered Gemini.
Mars is the warrior in all of us. How do you get what you want? What drives you? How do you exercise your power? What stories do you tell yourself about the power you wield?
In late October, when Mars went retrograde, what came up for you around themes of control, aggression, rage, or reaction? How do you see yourself processing pent up energy? How can you begin to pause and replay these stories in a new, productive, and healing way? What is underlying the pain for you?
The story of Mars in Gemini asks us to know our power and our drive, while also asking us to effectively strategize how we use it. Gemini wants us to see the conflict from all angles and to hold multiple perspectives. Do you have compassion for yourself? Do you have compassion for others?
Gemini is an Air sign, so we can expect a lot of diverse thoughts jumping around, from one idea to the next. It might feel a bit like you don’t know which direction you are being pulled. It also might feel like you are over-extending yourself in a very physical way.
Gemini is great for questioning, multitasking and quick-thinking, but is often more superficial when it comes to getting the job done. Gemini does not go so deeply, so it’s important to remember that Mars in Gemini arguments are superficial. When something arises from a heated debate, it is important to ask yourself: what is grounding this argument and what is the real cause of the anger?
What are you fighting for? Are you fighting for peace? Are you fighting for a just cause? Are you fighting for your will-forces to be heard and acknowledged by others?
Mars will be in Gemini until March, an unusually long time for Mars in one sign. This gives us the opportunity to redefine and rework power structures in our own lives, when it comes to how we react when someone upsets us, OR how we engage when we upset others.
Don’t try to fix other peoples feelings.
Don’t try to have the last word.
It’s ok to walk away from a conflict.
It’s ok to sympathize with the hurt of others without getting swept up in their drama.
It’s important to protect your energy.
DO empathize and hear your children's feelings without trying to fix them.
Retrogrades are always a time of reflection and reworking. As a mutable sign, Gemini will intensify the thoughts in many directions, and some of the energy might feel very unsettling.
Gemini is also about a split in yourself, and Mars brings up cutting and knives… so where have you split yourself in two, and how can you begin to become whole again?
By the end of the week, Venus will make a square to Jupiter. When these two benefic planets make this contact, it is a moment of pleasure-seeking, with a little tension. It will feel cathartic!
Scattered thoughts will begin to settle a bit towards the end of the month as the Sun moves into Capricorn, but ultimately this whole period is one of trial and error, experimenting with what works and what doesn't as we go.
Although this Lunation might feel messy, let’s use this Full Moon to uncover the hidden stories of how we exert our power, honor ALL of our emotions, and use them to begin to heal the inner and outer separation we hold with others and ourselves.
Art by MoonMuse