Written by Morgan Leigh McKenna, Evolutionary Astrologer
September 23, 2023 – This is “not your ordinary Equinox”
The Fall Equinox is here on September 23! Sounds exciting… what’s an equinox again? Mini-review: equinoxes occur when there’s an equal amount of daylight and dark, marking the mid-point between the apex of summer and depth of winter, or vice versa. Every year, the Fall Equinox is also the gateway to Libra season. Libra is an air sign ruled by Venus, so you guessed it – relationships are a big focus. In the sign of Libra, the emphasis is particularly on balance: relationships where you maintain your freedom, priorities, and goals, but temper self-absorption with mutuality, consideration for others, and collaboration.
Remember that Libra co-worker? He’s the one who asked the facility staff to weigh in on lighting changes slated for the office remodel. The planning team was skeptical, but it proved to be a crucial move. Those super-hip lighting strips the design team just ordered? They required more electrical outlets. Ah, the simple power of inclusion and equalizing the voices in a room! Now the facilities team is consulted on a regular basis about building upgrades. Suddenly, there are more lights in the stairwell and stall doors in the restrooms that actually lock. What a concept.
Ok, you got the balance part. But this year, the scales need to tip the other way to right themselves. Every astrological sign has its darker sides and Libra’s shadow is one of the most insidious of all: over-giving. If you’ve felt a hard tug to focus more on your own life over the last two months, there’s a reason. The world’s nodes of fate (that 180-degree axis of personal growth) entered their current positions with the south node in Libra and north node in Aries on July 15, 2023. South nodes are typically areas where we’re stuck, while north node energies are anti-dotes to that stuck-ness.
Ah, but Aries as our “north star”? Can it truly be an antidote? Isn’t that the raging ram in the proverbial china closet? A limbic system on steroids? Sure, there’s that familiar stereotype, and we’ve certainly seen people who demonstrate the Aries negative extreme. But let’s remember that Aries at even mid-levels of expression is the energy for getting things done. You know a good Aries boss when you meet her. She’s initiated five major projects for the year, making sure to motivate the staff with good vibes and incentives. It’s only September, and the company has just completed the fourth project.
Personally, Aries can be your inner warrior on a special cosmic assignment, focused on your life’s mission. Yet, it’s a funny thing about cosmic assignments. They can easily get lost along the way, derailed by other people’s needs and agendas. Many of us are caregivers, healers, and practitioners. We probably have strong Libra placements in our charts, and are often most comfortable when we don’t have to think about ourselves – when we are distracted by everyone else’s noise.
This is the shadow side of Libra, and we can hang out there for way too long, so drawn by the siren call of other people’s lives, we give our power and dreams away. The last time these Libra and Aries nodes were in this position was between 2004 – 2006. Think back to those years. Do you remember coming up against a wall of emotional and relational exhaustion? Did you suddenly feel the need to extricate yourself from an over-demanding occupation, work situation, boss, parent, partner, child, or friend?
Now, you’re being asked to re-evaluate your current relationships, perhaps even your relationship to your job. That may seem daunting. But remember, with lessons from the past under your belt, you have experience, strengths, and skills you didn’t have twenty years ago. And there’s another piece of good news: the nodes of fate will be in Libra and Aries until January 25, 2025. The cosmos will be giving you extra helpings of support for the next 16 months as you return to your life mission, clear about who you are and what you here came to do.
This Equinox, listen to Ed Sheeran’s song, “Save Myself.” And then journal what came up for you. Maybe there’s a phrase in your journal entry that sums up what you’re feeling. Consider making that your mantra from now into 2025.
By Morgan Leigh McKenna, Evolutionary Astrologer
Origins Astrology
Website: www.originsastrologer.com
Email: morgan@originsastrologer.com
