Libra New Moon: Your Personal Paradox

The moon is new at 26.35 degrees of Libra at 3:12 PM today (Thursday, Oct. 19)


Ah, Libra, the sign of balance and relationships. The sign of beauty, harmony, and love. The sign of justice and peace. The sign of decisions, either-or, both-and. Perhaps the biggest criticism of Libras is that they contradict themselves. A Libra can make her way around a cocktail party, speaking first to a person who thinks every state should make its own laws, next to a person who thinks the federal government should have a more robust welfare program, and third to a person who thinks the free market will take care of everything, and agree with every single one of them. It's just that they all make such good points. Libra is on the side of fairness, but that requires seeing all sides of the situation. Creating actual justice isn't easy. It almost never happens peacefully. As the only sign of the zodiac that's represented by an inanimate object, I think Libra is at a bit of a disadvantage. After all, a Libra person is not a set of objective scales. She's a human being, and that makes her complex, unpredictable at times, even downright paradoxical. Maybe that's one reason why Libra, ruled by Venus, is associated with the arts. Part of an artist's job is to reveal the complexity of life.

Artists aren't the only people with inherent contradictions, of course. We all have them. Do you crave emotional intimacy but hold people at an arm's length? You consider yourself a private person, but you'll write a revealing personal blog post and publish it for strangers to read? Your friends see you as an ebullient, extroverted people person, but you're also an introvert who requires solitude to recharge? Welcome to life on Earth! Where nothing is ever what it seems. Every person you know is a walking paradox.

This new moon may bring your own little contradictions to life. It's directly opposing Uranus, the planet of total unpredictability. I can't tell you exactly what this new moon will bring for you, but I can say it will be a surprise. Maybe a fresh start. Maybe someone in your life drops a metaphorical bomb. Maybe it's a confusing turn of events with a meaning that won't become clear until later. Maybe a fantastic new idea. Whatever it is, you may find that you have conflicting emotions about it, or perhaps someone else in your life is driving you a little nuts with their personal contradictions. With Jupiter newly in Scorpio and conjunct Mercury, the truth may come into play. What's the truth about your personal paradox? Whatever your personal contradictions are, they're probably the truest, most authentic parts of you. And that's a paradox in itself.

The first three days after a new moon are a good time for setting intentions and initiating projects, with or without a ritual involved. As this is a Libra moon, it's especially good for intentions around relationships, art, justice, and decision making. It's a good moon for recognizing the complexity of all people and all situations. It's a good moon for accepting that the truth is rarely simple, and choosing to live with integrity even though it's difficult.

As with all new and full moons, how closely this moon aspects your chart will determine how important it is for you. If you want to know which moons matter the most for you personally, get my 13 Moons Report. It tells you how the lunar cycles will affect you for the next year.

What is this Libra moon cycle bringing up for you? Feel free to share in the comments below!