New Moon in Gemini - Bathing In Mercurial Waters 💦

The Seeding: June 6th, 2024 @ 5:37 AM PDT

Welcome To The Beginner's Mind 🧠

"We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them." - Albert Einstein

As the yearly Gemini new moon graces the sky, it beckons us to explore new realms of perception. The mutable airs, like a gentle breeze, sway our intentions and headspace from one direction to the next. Double-bodied signs, a symbol of movement and transition, hint at the possibility of change arriving at our doorstep during a mutable new moon cycle.

The most potent form of change can come from a change of mind rooted in the heart. The road to intellectual modification can be bumpy, but when the adjustment is made, it's like a light that goes off in the psyche. The only thing that will extinguish this illuminative awareness is limiting it within the confines of what we think we already know. Here, we must adopt a beginner's mind—an innocence of perception open to the magic of starting fresh with a willingness to learn.

This lunation on Thursday, June 6th marks a re-writing of the story in the Gemini area of our charts. Jupiter, the planet that pushes us to say 'yes!' to whatever it touches, is now in the sign of the twins and readying to segue us all to the next chapter within the celestial symphony known as the Jupiter / Saturn cycle. This cycle, which creates the foundation of cultural, financial, and political movements, has a profound influence that permeates the multiple plot lines in our individual realities. With their trickle-down effects, these 'heavyweights' are central to our growth and long-term story arcs. Their 20-year dance began in December 2020 and is approaching a significant development stage.

While the expansion principle of Jupiter may not reach its first exact square to the contractive limits of Saturn until August 19th, this new moon opens the door to the mutative energy that is preparing for activation.

So, why are we feeling Saturn's presence so early? This lunation features the sun, moon, and Venus all partile at 16° Gemini in a tight, applying square to Saturn at 18° Pisces. The weight of Saturn in an overcoming position can be felt as our emotions, relationships, and sense of purpose are ready for redirection. Commitments, obligations, and obstacles to overcome will be at the forefront of our intellect. This is where the beginner's mind will be challenged, for as the Einstein quote says above, we cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used to create them.

Luckily, we have Mercury - ruler of this lunation - in domicile in Gemini and coming off of a conjunction with Jupiter's broader view. Growth-minded Jupiter is rising as a morning star and emerging from the combustive influence of the sun, trading space with Mercury as it furthers its position under the beams. We see a glimpse of the big picture and how it breaks into its many facets as the mind sparkles like an impressively cut diamond. This clarity is a saving grace, as all planets, aside from Mars and Chiron in Aries, look to Mercury's lead. This is where the adaptive alchemy of the beginner's mind will take hold to shift our desires and begin the purification process that will change our reality.

The Mercurial Waters of Alchemy ⚗️

Mercury is the god associated with the alchemical process. Not only is it the archetype known for its psychopomp privilege of accessing all three realms - heaven, earth, and the underworld - but it also plays an intermediary role from an elemental state.

Mercury is the volatile liquid principle in alchemy. It's the bridging water of life, mediating between the soul's realm of Sulfur and the bodily form of Salt. It can dissolve any material it comes in contact with, and no matter how many changes it undergoes, it can always morph back into its original form - a true testament to its inner mobility and flexible nature.

With Mercury playing the solvent role, it can bring base metals together, dissolving their form into one. Think of the merger of two - when corporations or entities come together - this is a natural Mercurial action. The Lovers tarot card, which represents Gemini, elicits this amalgamation perfectly. Harmonizing the dualistic nature that lives within and without is the basis for the alchemical process that sets us on the path to wholeness. May the two become one.

The Lovers - Tarot of Her

It's only fitting to find that Gold and Mercury sit next to each other on the periodic table of elements. There's no doubt that the two go hand in hand (Gemini pun intended). Not only can Mercury break down all base metals, including common gold, it is the first element alchemists would start with in the pursuit to create the coveted spiritual gold.

Gold & Mercury In The Periodic Table

"The birth of the philosophers' stone occurs in the air. It's nurse is the Earth. Mercurial water nourishes it." - M. Maier, Atalanta fugiens, Oppenheim, 1618

This leads us to what is known as the "Mercurial Waters" aka "Virgin Milk" or the "Red Sea." Mercurial water is said to "make everything earthly, heavenly, in a sevenfold way, and has a cleansing enlivening and fertilizing effect." The destructive moistures that come from the putrefaction of Saturn can be renewed with the essential moistures that the Mercurial water can gift.

Given that this new moon is under the pressure of Saturn's destructive moistures in Pisces, the blessing will come from the essential moistures that Mercury will mist upon us, leading us back to our true form. I like to think that the spiritual and karmic crud that has hardened itself around the heart and mind, can be peeled away and softened by this rejuvenating essence that cleanses and refines.

Speculum veritatis, 17th century

Above, we see a depiction of this first working of Saturnian source material as it is sublimated thrice by being moistened with the 'boy's urine' - yet another name for Mercurial water (and probably the least appealing!). This is where it is cooked until the "blackness passes" and by the conclusion of the final work the elixir will have the power to penetrate all impure metals - even common gold - so they may be transformed into its own heavenly quality. I find this very fitting for our Saturn in Pisces journey, as we do the hard work that brings us closer to the soul and a feeling of interconnectedness with all that is. If we cannot disperse outdated structures or surpass what weighs us down, we will distance ourselves from the spiritual blessings of love and acceptance that pour forth when we trust and align with the Universe and our Higher Self.

Much of the "work" mentioned here can be a lifelong process. However, in more immediate timing, I suspect the purifying clarity of Mercury's superior cazimi ruling Virgo first quarter on Jun 14th will shift material reality and play a role in the transcendence of current obstacles. For every Saturnian problem, there is a Mercurial solution, and what we have felt we were up against may begin to unravel as alternative options make themselves known and conclusions are reached. The test is to stay flexible with the newly forming synapses in our beginner's mind as we adapt to the shifting tides.

Changing Benefics: Jupiter & Venus in Gemini ♊️

Another proponent for change lies in the benefics who are also in positions of adjustment within the mutable air stellium. Jupiter has just returned to Gemini, a place Jove has not visited since 2012/13. In the twins, Jupiter is considered to be in its detriment position, a title it receives when traveling in either of Mercury's signs. Otherwise referred to as "exile," the upside to being in detriment is that the planet distances itself from the archetype's status quo, including the more disadvantaged qualities. I personally think this can be beneficial with moving past emotional resistance. Saturn in Pisces is under the directive of Jupiter in Gemini, and the negative side of righteousness that sits at the heart of resistance can't be upheld as new information and empirical facts come in to break down old, conditioned beliefs. The minute this knowledge is no longer reduced or negated, the Universe lays the first stepping stone on the path to wisdom and growth.

Venus in Gemini experienced her own rebirth moment as she succumb to the heart of the sun during her superior cazimi conjunction on June 4th. Relationships, value consciousness, creative projects, and aesthetic desires are all reaching a full moon expression. The inception of this cycle began in mid-August 2023, which happens to line up with the Kickstarter launch of Tarot of Her - a tarot deck I am creating with a dear friend. Our project is now wrapping up its full production, just as Venus' cycle peaks. Isn't it lovely how the birth of an idea can spark the start of creation? A reminder that...

“Everything is created twice, first in the mind and then in reality.” -Robin S. Sharma

So let's be conscious of what we want to create. There's an immense power of attraction held by the mind right now (and always!), so let's focus intently on using it for our greatest good. If you'd like to go back further into Venus' phasal rebirth periods, she made an inferior conjunction here in June 2020 and her last superior conjunction at the very degree of our new moon on June 6th, 2016.

Do any of those time periods stick out to you? There's no better moment to extract and repurpose memories of the past with the goal of informing the architecture of your future's blueprint. When we know where we come from, we can make better choices on the road ahead.

New Moon in Gemini Tarot For Alchemy 🌞

If you follow my work, you know there's nothing I love more than creating and working with a new moon tarot spread. Below is a 10-card custom spread to aid in facilitating a smoother ride as we compute the Geminian changing of life's seasons.

1. My central theme for the NM in Gemini cycle

2. The opportunity or challenge that presents itself 

3. Where am I to adopt a beginner’s mind?

4. What problem is Saturn pushing me to overcome?

5. What is the essence of the solution? 

6. Where is duality most present in my life?

7. What am I to merge with towards the path to wholeness?   

8. Divine guidance on where to remain adaptable 

9. The energy that culminates at the Full Moon in Capricorn

10. The outcome of this lunar cycle
    

Last Words... For Now

In closing, we all have lemons that life challenges us to make lemonade out of. This is our alchemical work. Whether we are puckering our face in the sour stage or enjoying a cool, sweet drink of our citrusy reward, there is a deep knowing that polarity is an essential component to life's nature. The ups, downs, and all arounds. Gemini asks us to embrace the ride as one thing is for certain... if you choose a beginner's mind, it will never be boring!

Stay curious, my friends. 😉

💜 Mel

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