New Moon in Scorpio: SUR-THRIVE-AL
This New Moon in Scorpio invites us to:
Welcome the unexpected.
Embrace the disruptive.
and Engage with the shocks and awes of life.
Not just to accept it,
but to dive down deep and luxuriate in the upheaval.
Shall we dig in together?
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Mentioned:
My insightful astrology teacher, Austin Coppock.
Make Magic:
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Transcript:
New Moon in Scorpio: SUR-THRIVE-AL
Natalie Miller: Welcome to Mind Witchery. I’m your host, Natalie Miller, and I’m so glad you’re here.
Hello, my friend. Thank you so much for joining me for this New Moon in Scorpio episode. I know that some of you are so into all of the astro woo, and I love that. Of course, as you know, I’m into it. And I know that for some of you it’s, like, very new or maybe even something you’re not usually interested in.
So, either way, I’m so glad that you’re here, and I want to invite us all to remember that, from my perspective, what astrology does for us is gives us metaphors to work with. It gives our minds impulse to see the world differently, to think about it in specific kinds of ways. That’s what I see that astrology does for me.
It holds up lenses for me to look through. And when I look through those lenses, I have a different perspective, and that different perspective is incredibly empowering because it sparks creativity. And, as you know, I believe that our creative power, our power to cocreate this world and this life, is the most potent power that we have.
OK. So, with that little introduction, let’s talk about the New Moon in Scorpio. The New Moon in Scorpio is happening November 4th at 5:14 p.m. Eastern Time, so November 5th for those of you on the other side of the world from me.
And this New Moon in Scorpio has one specific thing happening in it that I’m really going to home in on. And, as you know, I always like to talk about how the different planetary aspects or relationships give us different things to consider, different lenses to hold up. This particular New Moon though is very intense in a very specific way, so I’m going to dive fully into the main aspect of it. I think it will be fruitful for us.
OK. Every time we have a New Moon, that means that the Moon and the Sun are together in the sky, meaning they’re very close to one another in the sky. And this particular New Moon, the Sun and the Moon are together in the middle of the sign of Scorpio. And directly across the cosmos from the Sun and the Moon, almost to the minute, is the planet Uranus. And Uranus is smack in the middle of the sign of Taurus.
And, so, one way we can think about this is it’s like the Sun and Moon are sitting at a little café table, and Uranus is on one side of that table, and the Sun and Moon are sitting together holding hands on the other side of that table. And they are having a very intimate conversation about the topics that are most important to Taurus, where Uranus sits, and Scorpio, where the Sun and the Moon sit: truth, desire, money, power, survival, sustainability.
So, this New Moon is really inviting us to think about those topics. Uranus is no ordinary coffee partner. [laugh] Uranus coming to the café is coming with a lot of shock and awe. So, I want to tell you a little bit more about Uranus as a planet so that we can understand more of what Uranus is inviting us to consider when it’s here at the table for this New Moon.
So, Uranus as an actual planet is extremely weird. It’s a very weird planet, and it has been since the beginning. So, Uranus is visible to the naked eye, but it’s kind of barely visible. It’s far, far away, and it was misidentified as a star until we had the technology to see it as a planet in the late 1700s. So, technology and innovation are closely associated with Uranus.
Uranus is also an ice giant that revolves on its side. So, it’s a different kind of planet. It introduced us to a different kind of planet that moves in a completely different way. I want you to imagine, you know, imagine the Sun at the center of the solar system, and then there’s Earth. And Earth, as we know, tips just a little bit on its axis, and then it turns around. Uranus, the axis of Uranus, tips way far, so Uranus looks like it’s rolling on its side.
The more we discover about Uranus, the weirder it gets. So, there is water on Uranus but the water on Uranus does not behave the same way as the water on Earth does. It’s different. It’s called hyper-ionic water. Because it’s so cold on Uranus—and, P.S., Uranus is the coldest planet. Even though it’s not the furthest from the Sun, it’s the coldest because of its makeup—the oxygen molecules in water on Uranus are frozen into a lattice, and the hydrogen molecules are free to roam, and that makes it hyper-ionic, and hyper-conductive to electricity.
So, the planet Uranus is associated with shock, sparks, innovation, technology, disruption. For a very, very long time, we thought, OK, Saturn is the end. The solar system ends with Saturn. But then it turns that, no, there’s a planet beyond. It disrupts our understanding of how far the solar system goes, of how planets work, of how water works, right?
So, I’m telling you all of this because, in this moment, we are invited to welcome the unexpected, to welcome the disruptive, to welcome the shocks and awes. And you might be thinking, like I’m thinking, actually, I have had plenty of disruption over the past couple of years. And, yes, we have had a lot of disruption over the past couple of years.
Uranus is in the sign of fixed Earth. It’s in the sign of Taurus. It’s in the sign [laugh] of steady as she goes. It’s in the sign of livelihood. And Uranus entered Taurus in 2018, and when it did, many astrologers posited, they said Uranus is going to bring innovation and disruption to our material world.
Now, most astrologers were predicting innovation and disruption around food, around material goods, around global economies and currencies, around environmentalism and climate change. And, certainly, we’ve seen all of that. And, of course, as we know, we’ve also seen a pandemic. And the pandemic has forced innovation, and created disruption—not only on a macro level but also on a micro level, on the level of everyday existence.
As I’m recording this episode, I just got a note that my very careful county where I live—Montgomery County in Maryland—has just lifted the mask mandate, I think, for the second or third time now. And I think we all, in this kind of recovery from or emergence from—maybe we should say—emergence from the most locked down part of the pandemic, we are very [laugh] aware that that is not going to be a one-and-done or smooth exit.
I saw that the mask mandate is lifted, and I don’t say, oh, great, cool, back to normal. I say, OK, that’s interesting, and I remain open to the possibility and even the probability that that might yet change again. So, our return to, quote, unquote, “normal” has been delayed. And I’m not going to get into this but that is probably thanks in part to this series of squares between Uranus and Saturn. I’m just going to gesture toward that for the astro-curious, and then keep going.
And I really believe that this New Moon in the sign of Scorpio, which is the sign of fixed water, like diving deep into the depths of the ocean, down into the water table, we have an invitation in this New Moon to pause and luxuriate in the slow emergence and the continued disruptiveness of our everyday lives. This New Moon is inviting us to wallow down into it, to dig deep, and to ask ourselves some questions about what’s most necessary, about what really matters, about what’s true.
This New Moon is asking us to own and to integrate some of the truths that we have discovered since January 2020. This New Moon is not in a rush, though it is disruptive. This New Moon—this just came to me—this New Moon is sort of like a snow day. It’s like, whoa, way more snow than expected fell. Let’s just pause and be. Let’s not go anywhere. Let’s just pause and be and integrate.
So, my first questions for you for this New Moon are going to help you do that. As always, I collect all of these questions into a worksheet for you. You can get the worksheet one of two ways. If you go to the Show Notes, and you click the little link, it’ll ask you for your email address, and that will send you this New Moon’s worksheet, and also subscribe you to my mailing list so that you automatically receive the questions on the following New Moon. And if you’re already on my list, then these questions are arriving in your inbox with the episode itself.
OK. So, first question, how has my definition of wealth changed since the beginning of 2020? This is one of those “what really matters” questions. What is actually important to you? When you think about being wealthy, are you only thinking in terms of numbers, or are you thinking in terms of health, and human resources, and comfort? So, how has my definition of wealth changed since the beginning of 2020?
The second question is related. What am I discovering is essential to my everyday prosperity? So, I never ever want to downplay the devastation wrought by the pandemic, and I know that especially for my friends and colleagues in the healthcare industry, in public services, it has been just incredibly challenging. So, I honor that.
And, also, because the pandemic shifted so dramatically our everyday lives, it did uncover both new challenges and new freedoms, new possibilities, different ways of being. One thing that I know I personally have discovered is essential to my everyday prosperity is eating well. Before the pandemic, I was cooking less and less because I was busier and busier. And I’ve really discovered in this time the huge difference that good food—not just even good food but good food and actually eating. Like, not just kind of shoving an RXBAR in my mouth in between talking in a meeting [laugh] but sitting with a bowl that includes various foods.
And may I pause here and express such immense gratitude for the great privilege that I have to be able to cook and eat nutritious food. I’m so incredibly grateful for that privilege. And I have discovered that it makes an enormous difference in my health and my happiness that, for me, being wealthy means eating well. And that’s not something I think I would have said a couple of years ago.
OK. So, pre-pandemic, we already knew, I think, that our lives were barely sustainable. I had so many clients and friends overwhelmed with their commutes, and with their work travel, and with appointments, and with meetings, and with taking the kids from here to here to here to here. We were all running from place to place to place to place.
And Uranus in Taurus has been inviting us to pay more attention to sustainability, and has been opening up our perspective so that we can innovate for more sustainability. Remember, Uranus is sitting opposite the table from the Sun and the Moon in Scorpio, and the Sun and the Moon in Scorpio are interested in the topic of sustainability but for survival’s sake. The Sun and the Moon in Scorpio say let’s get deeply clear that life as we have been running it—burning the candle at both ends, running on empty all the time—is not sustainable. We certainly can’t thrive, and perhaps can’t even survive that life.
So, here, at the New Moon in Scorpio, your next question is, how can I innovate for more sustainability in the way I support myself? And, so, basically, that’s asking you what needs to change in order for you to support yourself in a more sustainable way? And when I say “support yourself,” I mean financially but I also mean your health and wellness. I also mean supporting yourself in your relationships. What needs to change? How can you innovate? What’s something new you can do and invite in?
OK. So, to get a little bit more specific, especially on that survival front, here are two questions. One, to bolster my physical and mental health, what do I need to stop doing? OK. So, you heard that. What do I need to stop doing? Why? And, please, my friend, I want you to take a moment to articulate why. Why do you need to stop doing that?
Spend a moment digging in, wallowing around, in why that needs to change. What is going to happen if you don’t stop doing this thing? New Moon in Scorpio is intense, and it wants you to go there. Go there. Don’t just brush it aside. Oh, yeah, yeah, I got to—yeah, yeah, yeah, I got to stop staying up so late. No. Why? And what happens when you don’t?
OK. Second question, to bolster my physical and mental wellness, what do I need to start doing, and how can I support myself in sustaining those changes? So, not just what’s the thing it’s time to start doing, but also what is the support that you need for that to become sustainable? And I will say, my friend, if you only answer two questions for this whole New Moon, make it those two—make it those two—about bolstering—bolstering your physical and mental health and wellness.
OK. Next question, as I summon and sustain more personal power—because, listen, when you stop doing that bullshit that keeps you tired and weak [laugh], and you start doing that thing that helps you to be more supported and more strong, you are going to summon and sustain more personal power. So, as I summon and sustain more personal power, into what do I want to channel it? Into what do I want to channel it? Where am I going to send this power?
OK. So, we’re talking about power, of course, because Scorpio is very interested in power. I quote my astrology teacher, Austin Coppock, a lot, and I’m going to quote him here because I love his one line about Scorpio. “Scorpio is armed and armored. It’s armed and armored.” Right? So, when you think about a scorpion, a scorpion is covered in a thick exoskeleton that is practically indestructible, and it’s got a venomous stinger.
So, Scorpio, whose topics are death, and sex, and intimacy, and truth, and diving deep, and secrets, of course, it’s armed and armored because it is willing to go there, yeah? At the same time, remember, Scorpio is across the table from Uranus in Taurus, the Sun and Moon in Scorpio in an interchange with Uranus in Taurus. And Taurus is about pleasure, is about stability, is about values. Taurus is a Venus-ruled sign.
I always think of Ferdinand the Bull, and meadows with flowers and mushrooms. Taurus is fixed Earth. It is fecund. It is full of delight and of pleasure. And opposite Scorpio that’s like, “Let’s dig all the way down deep,” Taurus is like, “Yeah, and also when you dig all the way down deep, you will discover that there is beauty in truth. There’s pleasure here.” Right?
We’re beginning to understand that and, in the Northern hemisphere, we are in autumn, and we’re seeing the beauty in decay. Around me, it’s in the trees everywhere as the leaves are changing and turning. As it gets colder, as things start to shrivel, we’re invited to see, oh, right, we are in a cycle. We exist, we cocreate in cycles, and those cycles involve death and decay and sex and digestion. We’re asked really to be clear about that.
So, in this place where we are armed and armored, we’re willing to dive deep, and to go in, I think Uranus in Taurus is asking. It’s sitting on the other side of that table, and it’s saying, “Hey, what are the means of self-protection that we’ve outgrown?” So, we are armed. We are walking through this world, wanting to protect ourselves, and, yes, that makes sense. But, also, we are inextricably immersed in togetherness. None of us comes out of here alive.
We’re all pissing and pooping and burping and farting. [laugh] Isn’t that beautiful and delightful? [laugh] Although, it’s funny, just yesterday, I was having a conversation with some colleagues, and we were talking about how good, how pleasant and good it feels to pee when you’ve really had to pee. It’s like, oh, that is such a great feeling. And then another friend was like, “Oh, don’t forget a really great poop.” And we’re like, “Oh, yeah, you’re right.” [laugh] So, yes, that is the stuff of Taurus and Scorpio season.
But I digress. This is all to say, nonetheless, we are invited to put, I think, a little of our guard down. What is the means of self-protection you’ve outgrown, and what are you ready to try instead? So, I will—I want to admit something to you in the honor—in honor of Scorpio season, and truth and all of it.
One of my means of self-protection is criticizing other people and myself, like the teardown strategy of self-protection, and that is something that I—oh—I have so much shame and sadness around it. But it’s a thing. It’s a thing, and it’s definitely something also that I’m really clear I’ve been socialized into, right? That’s the way to protect yourself is to, like, tear down your enemies.
My goodness, I was getting a PhD in it, once upon a time. [laugh] So, that’s something that I’ve outgrown. That’s not really who I am anymore. And, so, what am I ready to try instead in this season right now? It’s so beautiful to say, OK, that I am done with. I don’t need to protect myself in that way anymore. So, what is it for you? What is the means of self-protection you’ve outgrown, and what are you ready to try instead?
OK. On the theme of intimacy, because intimacy is such a topic at this table, where are you ready for deeper intimacy? And, again, with Uranus in Taurus, please expand this sense of intimacy. I don’t just mean like sex with your monogamous partner. That’s not what I mean by intimacy. Intimacy is bigger than that. We have intimacy with ourselves. We have intimacy with our supporters, our helpers. We have intimacy with our friends.
So, where am I ready for deeper intimacy, and how can I support myself as I dive in? So, you’ll notice the theme woven into all of these questions is support and sustainability, support and sustainability, support and sustainability. The scorpion is armed and armored because it’s a survivor. It has built in its own support for self-sustenance.
Of course, you know, I was reading more about scorpions because I’m like, what do I need to learn about scorpions? And it’s really fascinating. They have an incredibly low metabolic rate so they kind of exist on the bare minimum. And, at the same time—are you ready for this? Google pictures of this unless you think you’ll never be able to sleep again.
Scorpions don’t lay eggs. They give birth to live babies. And the live babies crawl up on the mama scorpion’s back, and live there. And sometimes, for some species, the babies stay with the mom for two years. So, on the one hand, there’s like this armed and armored, you know, minimally viable existence—what’s necessary for survival. Scorpio knows that. And on the other hand, there’s this kind of exquisite vulnerability, this exquisite inside-out-ness to the origin of a scorpion. Mm, I just love that.
OK. So, as always, we finish with kind of a summation so you can look back through all your answers to all those questions, whichever ones you chose to do. Please never feel pressured to answer them all. I know some listeners have told me that they keep the worksheet with them, and they just answer a question at a time. Other people have a whole ritual around it. And I love both of those approaches.
I also love if you’re just listening to this episode, and allowing yourself to play a little bit, to dabble in the questions. Although, I will say, this particular New Moon, you are invited to sit down with an inky pen, and really go for it in these self-reflections. So, as always, we end with kind of a summation. This New Moon in Scorpio, I am releasing. What are you letting go of? What can’t you stand anymore? What is in the way of your thriving?
And this New Moon in Scorpio, I am strengthening. What are you empowering in yourself? As always, I remind you, the thing I hold true above all truths, when you are living in a way that works for you, truly, where you can live your values, where you can do what you love, and love how you want to love, when you can be fully yourself in this cocreation, you will bring your best contribution.
It’s when we hide from some of the questions that are even here in this episode, the questions for the New Moon in Scorpio, when we hide from ourselves, when we hide from our truths, that’s when things become problematic sometimes, for ourselves and in the ways that we interrelate. So, I’m so glad that you are here to dive in, to get to know yourself better, and to move with intention, with purpose, through this next cycle.
Our world is so messy. It’s so [laugh] fucked up. And it’s also so beautiful and so full of possibility. And, as we know, we cocreate it, so the world can be what we make it. I think the subtitle of this episode just came to me. OK. I’m making up a word but I like it: surthrival. What do you think? We’ll do surthrival.
It’s about not just surviving, although, as we know, our survival on this planet is in question because of the way that we treat the Earth and one another. And, yet, I really believe that we are invited not just to survive but also to thrive, to create and innovate, to live our values so fully that we are able to thrive. So, let’s call it New Moon in Scorpio surthrival.
I mean, I’m rolling my eyes a little bit but I also kind of like it. [laugh] OK. So, this is to your surthrival. Thank you so much for listening. Thank you so much for showing up, for showing up for yourself, for this evolutionary work that we do together. Bye for now.
Thank you for listening to this episode of Mind Witchery. To catch all the magic I’m offering, please subscribe to the show, or if you want a little bit of weekly witchiness in your inbox, sign up for my Sunday Letter at mindwitchery.com. If today’s episode made you think of a friend or loved one, your sister, your neighbor, please tell them about it. We need more magic-makers in this troubled world.
Like all good things, this podcast is co-created by stellar people. Our music is by fabulous DJ, artist, and producer, Shammy Dee. Our gorgeous art is by the sorcerers at New Moon Creative. Mind Witchery is produced in conjunction with Particulate Media, K.O. Myers, executive producer. And I am Natalie Miller. Till next time.
End of recording