Aries New Moon 17 April 2026

Have a go for everyone’s sake –
and trust yourself to handle the results.

 

(don’t worry about the astro-jargon – go for the gist)

Aries – the beginner

.       This was going to be a short letter – almost everything celestial is in Aries!
But perhaps I need to talk about the sign of Aries deeper than usual because we are all liable to be dealing with these characteristics, expressed through others, and also ourselves regardless what Sun-sign we have. There are two fundamental principles driving Aries: the first principle is that it signals the beginning of something entirely new, which therefore cannot be known in its fullness beforehand. We may expect the sun to rise each morning, but weather, ocean currents, Earth’s shifting tectonic plates, are not entirely predictable – we assume a lot. Aries doesn’t assume much, except that they will cope somehow with whatever happens.

.       The second principle driving Aries is that it has to spring out of Pisces and that takes a lot of energy, because Pisces is the ocean of all the potential possibilities that could arise from the composting of all past experience, mushed up by solar flares, and complicated by cosmic evolution generally, all tugging at our feet. So, it takes a lot of energy and determination to spring out of Pisces – and stay out! And that means jumping fast directly into the first principle, the unknown – courageous? brave? foolhardy? But that’s what Aries needs to do. Other signs need to stand further off if they feel damaged by the occasional volcanic blasts – these don’t usually last long, and tend to be forgotten because all the heat came out with the blast, but they test our ability to ‘not take things personally’. And Aries can teach us, it’s wonderful what you can leave behind, when you go for what is.

Aries – how it might feel this month – intense/complicated

.       Near the beginning of Aries, the chart shows Mercury (our thoughts and communications) in a close group with Neptune, Mars and Saturn. We might experience this as a lot of clear and uncertain talk about great actions, maybe happening or not, and their effects real, hidden and/or potential (Neptune dissolving edges, and merging meanings). All this may be combined with opinions of how it should, and shouldn’t be done, and a good dose of blame and hind-sight – whether informed or not, doesn’t seem to matter (Mars/Saturn together in Aries).

.       At the latter end of Aries, we have the New Moon itself (Sun and Moon) with Chiron: that is a sense of; ‘Just because we feel like grains of sand involved with an in-coming tide, doesn’t mean we are unimportant as individuals.’ This is a good thought, but can be hard to maintain if we insist on allowing our attention to be constantly caught by news-feeds about ‘what’s going on in the material world’. This is what’s likely to make life seem complicated.

.       The answer is, of course, to focus our attention on what is within our field of effectiveness – our personal health and well-being, body and soul. This uses the Chiron as healer, rather than bemoaning the wounds. If that’s hard to do due to unbounded empathy for other people’s wounds, then let’s focus on someone we can help and get on with what we can do for them, with their permission, of course (Jupiter still floating through Cancer unaspected). Best if that someone is yourself first. It will feel natural to take care of our bodies with diet, exercise and sleep, as well as loving Nature, plants, trees, animals – all of this will bring a more grounded sense of being during each day (Venus walking through Taurus on her own).

No need to cling – what is yours comes with you anyway

.       At the same time, Uranus is encouraging us to let go of the last material tethers, before being swept into Gemini by Venus as she passes him on 24 April. Two more days and he leaves the earthly domain, opening up the realm of ideas, new thoughts and inspirations, communicating openly about what to do with all that was revealed as he ploughed up the past. Not about solutions necessarily – we just may find it easier to accept, and navigate, the apparently chaotic nature of life; perhaps it’s the perfectly natural rearranging that happens inside a transformational chrysalis.

.       We will not all feel this shift the same way. Check your chart to see which House contains the change from Taurus to Gemini – this indicates the area of your life where you are likely to feel considerably freed up from previous constraints or assumptions, so that a new way of going about those things becomes easier. It’s rather lovely that Venus should be the influence that assists this opening, suggesting it’s about how we relate to people in that area. You may find you’re interacting with more people of like mind, attracting situations where you can risk just being yourself. We will do well to remember that each of us is responsible for our own reactions, and not anyone else’s! Not everyone may enjoy knowing your truth, but letting it show at least allows for those who agree to approach, and the others to leave. And whether to express ourselves un-edited is still our choice.

Our history may need one more showing

.       From the Full Moon on 1 May, it will be particularly important to be sure our smaller self is speaking in accordance with our Greater Self’s guidance, or we are likely to open wounds that are not ready to be healed (Mercury on Chiron). I think it’s a difficulty in knowing if we are healing an old would, or just re-traumatising the inner child. It so depends on each person’s ability to shift their inner perspective to Higher Self or soul, and then not fall prey to their ego’s Higher Self impersonation – you know the sort of thing, feeling superior when we know something another doesn’t, or telling ourselves how good we are by healing another, or telling a person some piece of information assuming they don’t know already without finding out! Even when speaking to ourselves, say about a piece of behaviour we’ve just discovered we do, and might wish we didn’t, and telling ourselves off for not knowing it before or for behaving so un-spiritually, criticising or shaming ourselves – this is certainly not the voice of our beloved soul. If you ask yourself what spirit would say, you know immediately how it would sound by the gentle patience and understanding, the support and encouragement, and by the constant love.

.       The Full Moon itself will be in Scorpio, moving towards a lovely relationship with Jupiter in Cancer. This suggests that very deep issues may well be rising within your family, past as well as present. So all the above is really important, particular because these issues may well bring up past angers, feelings of unfairness, discrimination, relative importance, not being taken seriously (Jupiter squared by Mars in Aries, Moon and Sun squaring Pluto). We will have to work hard to maintain responsibility for our own inner emotional field, to avoid the blaming and jealousy that may need recognition and acceptance. We can always accept that what the other is saying is how they feel, we don’t have to agree that we are culpable. And we can own up to the part we may have played, without feeling guilty now. The past is done, and Uranus moving out of Taurus and into Gemini allows a line to be drawn that we step over innerly as we walk forwards into whatever we are becoming. On a global level, rather than thinking nation against nation, it would serve us all to regard the whole of humanity as our family.

. . . this is the short bit . . .

.       The beginning of this New Moon month is a good and encouraging time to feel intuitively what you wish to do moment by moment, and to just go ahead and give it a go. Later in the month may be more testing, but we are never going to learn our best new ways if we don’t give things a try before we know. It’s experience that teaches, not thinking. It’s trust that guides, not fear.

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Contemplation for this Aries New Moon

First charge your battery
then point your direction
Lastly switch on and go!
The angels and Light ones are watching
ready to give a hand,
untangle a knot from your past.
Give the world a try, and see how that feels.
Within you is a mechanism of great beauty
and effectiveness,
exercise it in your world,
become adept at being in charge of it.
When Light is needed near you
there will be a pouring of Light into your space
because you have fitted yourself as a willing conduit.
As Light channels through you
you become more of what you can be
and every need is served.

With love.
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