New Moon Reading – January 24, 2020

As some of you may know, we’ve just been through some rather intense solar and lunar cycles, otherwise known as the eclipse season. These are almost always two weeks apart, although occasionally longer, and can flush out energy in order to bring new fresh experiences into our lives.

This month’s new moon is the first New Moon after the recent eclipses, and so it has some extra push to it as we approach a brand new impulse of energy. For many, this time has been experienced as a deep shift and perhaps rift in the fabric of our lives. Changes can be rapid or can develop over time.

Although sometimes difficult to see and feel, we always have options and choices upon which to focus. We can experience a situation in which we are thrust against making decisions that have great impact on our future. There can be the sensation that we have no choice or that others have made those choices for us.

In spite of any difficulties, it is always healthy to understand and accept how one feels. It may start off with a negative premise or outlook, and yes, we may get caught up in venting those emotions as we endeavour to sort them out. But this initial phase of working with any challenge should propel us to some form of solution based thinking.

If we stay in the reactive, muddy and projection riddled landscape of whatever has stirred us, we cannot be receptive to the type of change that will truly bring back equilibrium and harmony, and ultimately the joy we seek. Finding that pivot point can free us from the illusion of being held in place by circumstances out of our control.

This New Moon Reading starts off rather boldly with the Emperor. We get a sense right away of the presence of authority. He represents the structures in society, in our lives, and the supervision needed to ensure that systems function well. To get some idea of how this card may be interpreted, we can look to the other cards to get some context of what exactly his presence signifies.

He is in the recent past, which suggests we are processing what has taken place based on his energy. He can represent a boss or a person who has had some authority over us. Perhaps we have been working with a mentor figure who has laid down some foundational practices to aid us in some goal.

At a surface reading, it can easily be seen to be an uncomfortable relationship, especially as we look to the present cards and the future card. The present is portrayed as the 4 of Pentacles. The man depicted, appears to be highly preoccupied with how he interacts with the world and with who enters his life. He is not at ease with how energy moves in and out of his experience, so he strives to hold on to things to ensure he is well protected.

He is cramped compared to the more confident and power posing Emperor. When we are confronted by a force, be it a circumstance or personality, that is larger or overbearing, we are under the illusion that our power is smaller, weak and ineffective. This is illustrated in The Devil as the crossing card. It is what is challenging us and confronting us. We are working with it in some way. However, it is a card of oppression and illusion, of darkness and concealment. It is the place where lies are magnified and exaggerated into the sensation of “truth”, into the sensation that no other alternatives exist.

Whether or not The Emperor represents someone who has had a dominating influence over us recently, he also represents our need for self-authority. Often, we call upon those individuals to test us and prod us, to push our buttons and to make us reactive. We call upon them energetically because in a deep and profound way, we understand how they can benefit us.

If we view The Emperor as the path, as the sacred “crazy wisdom”, as the universe bringing forth our power and strength through various opportunities for personal expression, then it doesn’t matter who it represents. It is the same energy. Working with it opens the potential to so much empowerment and self-awareness because we have the opportunity to understand how to express that power and authority in our lives.

This is a gift. If we don’t value the energy of The Emperor, we become The Devil. Easily angered, quick to react, insecure and vindictive, oppressive and intolerant, and needing to control and manipulate others. The psyche can go into this downward spiral if we begin to view ourselves as the victim of The Emperor.

Our energy is calling for release, releasing the notion that we can’t handle something or that a predefined environment exists without our input and creative voice. The Emperor is calling us to stand up and to assume a power pose. To let ourselves be transformed by adversity into feeling our worth and projecting it with greater skill and comfort.

Understanding this shift, and feeling its traction in our behaviour, we are no longer bound by The Devil – an energy that we have put into place through a faulty perspective and premise. We are being led deeply into our minds darkest corners to find these faulty patterns, to root them out, to expose their untruth.

Moving into the future, The 9 of Wands is showing an emergence. Here we see a resolute spirit, an individual who has been through a kind of cleansing where he understands what has been keeping him down. He might have endured some harsh words or tough emotional climates, but he has also understood the need to separate himself from toxicity, and has applied himself accordingly.

With this card, there is the sensation of “never going back”. Because one cannot, in truth, go back to an illusion when it has been stripped of its falsehood. We no longer fit the mould of our previous placement. We are approaching a new platform from which to operate. A new foundation to make and create new experiences and relationships based on the clarity of knowing who we are and what we value.

It is through this catharsis that we have The Emperor to thank. We have learned the essence of authority and power, and what it means to have dominion over our choices and our life.

“Presence emerges when we feel personally powerful, which allows us to be acutely attuned to our most sincere selves.”
― Amy Cuddy, Presence: Bringing Your Boldest Self to Your Biggest Challenges

Thanks for reading,

Daniel Palmo

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