September 21: Virgo New Moon Eclipse
The Summer ends on an intense note, as the Virgo New Moon eclipse dawns on September 21, just before the Autumn Equinox on September 22. It's a tumultuous transition to Fall, but that's appropriate for a year that brought so much chaos. The Virgo New Moon wants to re-organize our lives, and clean out the old so we can start fresh from a better place, but eclipses reveal what is normally unseen. The tail of the dragon releases to bring greater balance before the Sun enters Libra at 2:29PM ET on September 22.
Virgo likes us to get moving and stay busy, but eclipses can wipe us out physically and emotionally. You don't want to get run down because this lunation is much more difficult than the Full Moon eclipse in Pisces on September 7th that was in a lovely trine with Jupiter in Cancer. Mercury is at the end of its transit through Virgo, which has motivated us to try and clean house, even as the world burns. But we face a dose of chaos just before Mercury moves into Libra on September 18th.
The Mercury in Virgo opposition with Saturn in Pisces in effect from September 15-17, could exhaust you with a war of words or mental impasse. This difficult dynamics is a glimpse of what gets activated over the weekend. Don't waste your time arguing facts with people who won't change their mind without a spiritual transformation or personal revelation. This eclipse could exhaust you up to a week beforehand so give yourself wiggle room with plans and permission to just lay low.
The Virgo tarot correspondence is the Hermit Major Arcana card IX, which is also the collective card for 2025 (2+2+5=9). This year has brought a cascade of changes, but throughout it all, The Hermit has been a reminder not to push ourselves too hard.
In the Rider-Waite-Smith deck, The Hermit stands alone on a cold mountaintop but instead of feeling lonely and isolated, he is contemplative and content. The light of his lamp brightens the darkness, signifying spiritual connection and illumination from an inner source. When the outside world is too much, and boy is it ever right now, The Hermit counsels us to withdraw and connect with what is deeper, eternal, and true. The quiet voice inside us that never goes away.
The lunar nodes entered Pisces and Virgo on January 11, but we haven't had a full round of eclipses along this axis until this month. The first eclipse in Virgo happened during the Springtime double retrograde chaos. Whatever was not working in partnerships met a stunning end.
The Sun was in conjunction with Saturn in Pisces at the Virgo Full Moon eclipse on March 14. This lunation illuminated the messiness of life, and asked us to let go of perfect, how we think life should be, in favor of connection and compassion. Saturn slipped out of Pisces from May 24-September 1st, but is back now for five months, during which we must fulfill the promise initiated in 2023. The tension between the dreams we are trying to hold on to and the practical responsibilities of life are activated this weekend.
The New Moon eclipse at 29° Virgo at 3:54PM ET on September 21, is in a difficult opposition with Saturn, representing confrontations with challenging people or a painful disappointment. Oppositions represent internal conflicts that can't be easily overcome and get played out externally with those in your orbit. Virgo can be quite cutting with its words, so keep your thoughts to yourself if you may need to apologize for them later. This may bring a blossoming of what the Mercury-Saturn opposition from September 15-17th activated.
Saturn signifies consequences, older people, illness, poverty, and loss. We have been facing devastating losses for human rights and social services this year with greedy tax cuts for the rich that gut resources for the most vulnerable. The lunar South Node removes through deprivation so protect your energetic boundaries this weekend, and, when in doubt, withdraw like the Hermit.
Mercury is ruling this lunation from Libra, putting a focus on equality and justice. Mercury in the sign of the diplomat wants to help us broker peace and harmonize with has been causing us consternation. The Moon will immediately depart Virgo and conjoin with Mercury at the Equinox, helping us align our mind with balance.
The Equinox offers an opportunity to meditate on balance and harmony immediately after the eclipse. If you'd like to center peace at the start of the week is a wonderful time to consider your role of upholding justice in the cosmic order. If you're looking for a community of like minded souls to join with, I will be offering an Equinox Activation to celebrate Mabon, the Witches Thanksgiving, with VortexHealing® teacher, Lorraine Goldbloom on September 23, at 8PM ET. You can sign up easily through her website here.