New Moon at 12 degrees of Aquarius 1st Feb

Sigh of relief as January gives way to February!
Here at the very beginning of Feb we are offered a feeling of something new being seeded. As always with a new moon something starts to stir under the surface and to work with it we might find wishes and dreams coming into focus. 
Just like the Celtic festival of Imbolc which starts on the same day, there are the very first brave signs of spring, of a new season being born. 
With the sun's ingress into Aquarius every year around the 21st Jan there seems to be a lightening of the spirit. Going from traditional, conservative, earth sign of Capricorn to the more innovative, futuristic, air sign of Aquarius is of course the natural annual progression of energies this time of year. Being both traditionally ruled by Saturn there is something sombre about both signs. I heard them described recently as Capricorn being around the theme of locked in (authority, hierachy, rules) versus Aquarius of locked out (eccentric, rebellion, excile). Both relating to society but where Capricorn slowly works according to how it's always been done, Aquarius can in its shadow form be revolting just to make a point.

In my approach, much inspired by Steven Forrest's work I try to be aware of the spectrum of ways that each sign can manifest and whilst aiming for the higher frequency also making sure the lower manifestations are not in my blindspot.
With Aquarius there's a strong need to be oneself, often quirky, unusual and orginal, but still finding a tribe or community where this is accepted. Often this means some inner work in terms of first finding what shape that unique soul takes, but somhow this is often in the context of groups, community and friends, that this inner work is triggered. It's in a sense a social journey, who am I in relation to society? Which parts of me are social conditioning, expectations super-imposed by my community and cultural upbringing and which is part if at the more core of my individual soul?

This new moon at 12 degrees in relation to the other planets in transit at the moment, sits in the middle of the Saturn-Uranus square that we experienced strongly last year. This on-going planetary dance presented us with quite a challenging atmophere where the old rules and regulations (Saturn) fought with the new and innovative (Uranus). Even at the best of times, such as a helpful aspect, these two contradictory energies are not very easily reconsolable and if the fixed signs are exentuated in your chart, especially Taurus and Aquarius, you might have felt this push-pull energy at a more personal level.
To most people's relief, this square separated before Christmas, but in a way, sitting only a few degrees next to Saturn and squaring Uranus within two degrees, this new moon brings this restraining (Saturn)-explosive (Uranus) into the emotional realm and sets the tone for the next two weeks of lunar cycle.
It's as if the Universe is asking; After lasts years juggling of old responsibilities along with new, innovative, freedom seeking endevours what set of intentions, which are integrating the best of both, are you ready to take with you forward and commit to?

In some ways I prefer to set intentions in the relevant house of my chart for the next Aquarius Full moon roughly six months from now. That way it stays about that same part of life and most importantly gives me more time!

Wishing you a very fresh-feeling Aquarius New Moon!
/Sara