Happy Sagittarius New Moon! This is the time of the lunar calendar when we turn our attention to distant horizons, travel, and the exotic as well as philosophy, religion, and higher education. Over the coming four weeks we may set sail on a journey, take stock of what we believe in, or even publish our ideas. With that in mind, the new moon will be exact on December 11, 2015 at 5:30 am EST, 19 degrees Sagittarius. For those elsewhere, that’s 2:30 am Los Angeles, 10:30 am London, and 9:30 pm Sydney.

Sagittarius has been getting a bit of a workout of late. Ever since Saturn arrived in the sign back in September, we’ve been on a quest for truth and meaning. This isn’t just any quest, but a deep, archetypical journey through the farthest reaches of our soul — the sort alluded to in the Hero’s Journey.

After the losses of the past few years, what do we believe in? How do we maintain our faith and optimism while grieving? Who are we? Why are we here? What’s real and not real? We’re practically in a full blown existential crisis by now.

Here’s the thing I love about Sag. It doesn’t matter how bleak the odds are or how difficult the journey is ahead, they’ll always power through completely convinced that an 11th hour miracle is just around the corner. (It’s gonna be great!) Now that’s faith … or madness. Nevertheless, it gets the job done.

We’ve seen some bleak things lately. And, if we’re being honest, the world isn’t looking too great either. But the unfolding energies of the Sagittarius New Moon may give us a much needed shot of optimism this month. There’s also a restless energy to Sag as well as an instinct to seek out greener pastures. Over the coming four weeks we may travel to foreign shores both literal and metaphoric. We may feel a need to be free, leaving behind the old and the restrictive.

But there are a couple of complications sewn into this new moon. First, Jupiter, the ruling planet of Sag, is over in Virgo. For all our faith we can’t escape Virgo’s no nonsense practicality. You want to run away and join the circus? Fine, show me your plan first. That’s what Jupiter in Virgo wants. It also wants order, perfection, purity, and service. We can’t be self indulgent; we have to think of others. Two, the new moon activates this drawn out Jupiter/Chiron opposition we’ve been having. We’re digging into old emotional material over the coming lunar month and untying karmic knots.

In this end this is a new moon that will remind us that we can’t escape. Or we can try — Sag certainly has the passport at the ready — but there’s something we’ll have to get real about. Maybe it’s our health, our work, our ambitions, our education, or even our deeper emotional work.

Maybe we got lost along the way — somewhere, somehow — and this is the month to get the compass or map out and find way again.

Enjoyed this post? I also do private, one-on-one consultations via Skype and phone, which allow us to delve into your chart and reveal where this new moon will manifest. Go to my consultations page to book your session. Check out my testimonials and FAQ to learn more about what I do.