Astrology for the Pandemic: Full Moon in Scorpio
Art credit: Marina Molares
Full moons tend to bring to light what has been hidden. A full moon in Scorpio, which rules the eighth house of sex, death, and the occult, and is represented by the Death card in the tarot, is apt to unearth what has been buried in the depths of the collective unconscious. Scorpio, ruled by Pluto, is deeply engaged with issues of power and transformation. The Full Moon in Scorpio forces us to face our deepest inner demons — on an individual and a societal level. It forces us to confront the fact that white vigilantes are chasing down Black people and murdering them in the streets. It forces us to choose what side of history we will be on.
Sitting opposite the sun in Taurus, this full moon holds the possibility of deeply substantive evolution, both materially and spiritually.
Taurus (element of earth; suit of pentacles) is currently home to Uranus, the planet of radical transformation, rejecting authority, and revolution. We are undergoing a profound shift in the way that we relate to the material world around us (through 2025!). The role of Scorpio (element of water; suit of cups) is to invite us to go one level deeper; it reminds us that no material change can occur unless we also transform our inner psychic landscape.
The card that represents the theme of this full moon is The Hanged One. This card reminds us that sometimes we must endure profound discomfort in order to evolve. And The Hanged One is not easy medicine. Right now we are in a collective experience of loss of control over many aspects of our lives, and this can feel incredibly disempowering and frustrating.
Yet The Hanged One teaches us the power of surrendering to what is. It is not until we are able to be fully present with what is that we are able to transform our relationship to what could be. The Hanged One precedes the Death card in the Major Arcana. It prepares us to release ourselves from forms of life that are no longer tenable. It asks us to surrender our egoic attachments to the beliefs and practices and structures that need to die in order for something new to be born. What are you struggling against right now? What would happen if you stopped struggling, if you let yourself get really still and quiet? What would happen if you let go of your ego’s desire for control?
Our work right now is represented by The High Priestess and Strength. The High Priestess rules our inner psyche and our connection to the spiritual realm. This is the time to connect with your inner knowing, to listen to your intuition. Each of us holds vast knowledge and wisdom that is needed in the world more than ever right now. Once we are able to get quiet and let go of the narratives our brain has been feeding us, we can tap into something else: our own innate ability to sense and feel into what is most aligned for us. The High Priestess asks: What soul work are you being invited to do in this lifetime? What would it look like if you truly trusted yourself?
If High Priestess helps us get in touch with our internal spiritual compass, the Strength card reminds us that at this moment, our greatest strength lies in our willingness to be vulnerable. Deep within each of us resides a fear that has to do with our innate worth in some way — we fear we aren’t lovable enough, or smart enough, or that we won’t be able to provide for our loved ones. In times of scarcity and uncertainty, these fears are activated more than ever. The task at hand is to learn how to have compassion for ourselves. Rather than judging ourselves for our perceived “weakness,” how can we acknowledge that our vulnerability is what makes us human, and then offer ourselves the love and support that we need? What does vulnerability mean to you? What comes up for you around this concept? How can you be with these feelings, rather than pushing them away? What is an act of self compassion you could give yourself?
Enter Queen of Pentacles, who is our guide during this full moon. Deeply connected to both earth (pentacles) and water (queens), the Queen of Pentacles asks you to accept the invitation to nurture yourself. What material and emotional support can you offer to yourself in this moment? If connecting with nature is available to you, this can be a powerful source of healing. Meditating, moving your body, taking a bath, preparing a delicious meal: each of these can become a ritual that teaches you the power of self-nourishment.
The cards that are here to support our Queen of Pentacles work are Two of Pentacles and Three of Pentacles. The Two of Pentacles is an important reminder that we need to find a balance between self care (Taurus) and the difficult and sometimes painful work of personal evolution (Scorpio). What practices and containers can we create that will help us to stay grounded and feel supported during a time of intense transformation and growth? In a culture that valorizes pushing ourselves often past our limits, how can we allow ourselves to move at a pace that feels aligned with our best self?
The Three of Pentacles serves as a beautiful reminder that this work, though it often feels profoundly personal, is in fact not an individual but a collective endeavor. We must work together to heal intergenerational trauma; we must work together to ensure the evolutionary growth of the collective. In a culture that celebrates an ableist myth of individualism, what steps can we take to connect our own struggles to those of the collective future? How can we practice spiritual mutual aid?
The challenge during this full moon is Seven of Cups. This card, which corresponds to Venus in Scorpio, cautions us to be wary of the available choices presented to us. Don’t be pressured into accepting anything that’s less than what you truly deserve. We might interpret Seven of Cups as a warning against the illusion of choice, for though we see a number of options, we may not see one that we actually want. Venus in Scorpio asks us to look beyond what society is offering to us — instead, we need to look deep within to discover what our deepest desires truly are.
The cards that will help us meet this challenge are Six of Cups and Three of Cups. Six of Cups invites us to engage with our root systems and heal the intergenerational wounding that we carry. In order to get clarity on our own desires, we must work through our inherited trauma, including the collective inherited trauma of living under patriarchal white supremacist settler colonialism. (And yes, even those who benefit from these systems of power carry the spiritual wounding that happens when one is complicit in the infliction of violence on others.) What does spiritual reparenting look like on a collective level?
Healing involves laughter, joy, and forgiveness. We need to feel witnessed, supported, and understood. We need to take inspiration from movements for transformative justice in order to imagine a world in which violence does not beget violence. We need to cultivate interpersonal relationships that are built on mutual trust and respect, shared understanding, and a common vision for the future we want to build together.
Healing involves being in community. And Three of Cups reminds us of the importance of community — for accountability as well as celebration. The image of a loving, joyful community in the Three of Cups is a beautiful — and necessary — counterpart to the image of collective striving in the Three of Pentacles.
Because at the end of the day, our movements are not sustained by shared work, or even by a shared goal. Our movements are sustained by shared love. Our movements are sustained by shared moments of joy and pleasure and fulfillment. They are sustained by experiences that we ourselves create . Because the secret of this moment is that together, we are building the future in the present.
Full moon blessings.
Deck: Neo Tarot by Jerico Mandybur, illustrated by Daiana Ruiz