new moon in mula
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[00:00:00] It is time to shed 2022 and set your intentions for the year of 2023. So happy winter solstice. We have a new moon happening this week and Sagittarius in the Nakshatra of Mula and we're going to talk in a second about what all that means. So if I just said some stuff that sounded confusing to you, or if you're like, wait, I didn't think this new moon was happening in Sagittarius.
[00:00:28] Stick around,. That's why I said sidereal Sagittarius. So if you're unfamiliar, familiar with the sidereal Zodiac-- welcome to the YOGISCOPES podcast. I'm your host, Rosemary Holbrook, your friendly neighborhood, yoga teacher, and Vedic astrologer. So Vedic astrology uses the. sidereal Zodiac. If you're unfamiliar with that, it's just a little bit different than the tropical Zodiac, but it's fun. Stick around, have an open mind, which actually this new moon is a great time to cultivate an inquisitive and open mind. We'll talk about astrologically why in just a moment, but if you want to find your sidereal placements, maybe you have even heard of your astrology friends, calculating some different kinds of birth chart.
[00:01:11] That would probably be their Vedic or Sidereal chart. You can go to my website, yogiscopes.com/chart to get a free birth chart. And then you can also grab a free worksheet there to help you understand. Your chart.
[00:01:25] So if you haven't done that, make sure you do it at some time, and then
[00:01:29] just know that each one of these episodes you're listening to the YOGISCOPES podcast and a Yogiscope is your yoga horoscope. We're going to talk about yoga practices and journal prompts. To harness the astrological weather so that you can get the most out of it so that you can really get an embodied understanding of what these archetypes mean.
[00:01:48] And then on the podcast episode, I'm going to tell you the astronomy, the Hindu mythology, anything like that to better illustrate what these archetypes mean and where they come from. So welcome. I'm glad you're here. Let's get started.
[00:02:02] So most notably this week, usually I like to give greater context to everything that else that's happening in the night sky. And so it's also important to remember that we have Mars retrograde right now. It will be retrograde for a few more weeks until mid January.
[00:02:21] So that's a pretty big deal, especially because Sagittarius is a fire sign. We have mercury in Sagittarius, along with Venus and sun will be there with this new moon, which is pretty typical of New Moons but next week we have mercury going retrograde and that will be. I will try to get a special podcast episode out about this mercury retrograde, but just know.
[00:02:43] We have a mercury retrograde meditation challenge coming up. I mentioned it in the Facebook group. I think that's the only place I've said anything about it so far. It will be hosted off of Facebook because several of you have told me that you're sick of Facebook. Facebook is not your jam. And so I thought, what better way?
[00:03:02] Then for mercury retrograde, I'm kind of sick of Facebook too. I just didn't see a way out of it since the Facebook community is how I connect with so many of you, because Instagram is not really my jam either. I have an Instagram, you can connect with me on there, but I get on it like once a month, maybe.
[00:03:17] Honestly, I used to try more and now I just don't put that pressure on myself. So we will be having a meditation challenge. It'll be 21 days of meditation because that's how long mercury is retrograde this time starting December 29th. So I'll try to get a special podcast episode out about it, but I can't make any guarantees because I also.
[00:03:34] Want to get for next week's episode, a. 20, 23 outlook, because like I said, for this new moon, usually at New Moon we set intentions for the moon cycle, but for this one it might be good to set intentions for the entire year. So let's talk about why.
[00:03:51] So today as I'm recording, this is the winter solstice here in the.
[00:03:56] Northern hemisphere. If you are in the Southern hemisphere, it would be the summer solstice as in it's the longest day of the year, because the earth is tilted your direction. Congrats. That's always nice, right? Most of us enjoy the longer days of sunlight because we get more vitamin D whether we're trying to or not. And then on the shorter days,
[00:04:16] Of the year, like around the winter solstice for us here in the Northern hemisphere. The days are really dark and there are real implications to not getting enough vitamin D like it can lead to, you know, poor absorption of other minerals and vitamins and it can. Contribute to a whole host of other issues. And I'm not here to talk about that, but and so the darkest day of the year, and a lot of people struggle around this time, which is why I think it's beautiful that we have all these holidays.
[00:04:47] Around the world, most cultures celebrate something, whether it's your Christmas. Hanukkah. You know, all these things have like some element of bringing in light, bringing in. The light that is not existent outside because the days are darker. So I just think that's interesting to think. And so. As always any new and full moon, you can just set intentions for the upcoming lunar cycle, like the time until the next new moon. But I personally like to consider the greater context of other things happening, astrologically and.
[00:05:25] From an Ayurvedic standpoint, which would be we're heading into Kapha season. So even though the days from today, the winter solstice are getting longer. It's in a very, very subtle way. Like it will be almost imperceptible for awhile until about the spring Equinox. For me usually is. When things start actually feeling like a little bit brighter and lighter. And so this time between the winter solstice and the spring Equinox is.
[00:05:52] At least where I live, this is like the heat of Kapha season. And so I have an episode on my other podcast, the science of light, which is a more evergreen, like the things that the, this podcast is.
[00:06:06] Weekly updates for astrology. So they go out of relevance pretty quickly. You know, Because astrology is changing all the time, but the other podcasts, I didn't want things to get buried under all this quickly changing astrology stuff. That's why they're separate. You can go and listen to like the Ayurveda of the seasons. And I have episodes over there covering it. So, eh, they're not mostly on YouTube yet. If you found this on YouTube, go find it on your favorite podcast player, just search the science of light, which is what Jyotish or Vedic astrology translates to roughly in English.
[00:06:37] So anyway, we're headed into Kapha season, so. Here in the Northern hemisphere. So it can be like an over accumulation of yin energy, which can also in a shadow sense. Manifest as stagnation. So. So.
[00:06:50] Just quickly before we start talking. More specifically about the new moon, because maybe you want to set intentions, do journal prompts just for the new moon and that's fine. But with the greater context of the solstice and we're headed into kapha season here in the. Northern hemisphere. I said this in on last Sunday, we had a winter solstice gathering and you can now, because that was also the yearly planning workshop.
[00:07:16] You can. Now, if you want to purchase the 2023 astrological YOGISCOPES planner. So it's more than just the astrological dates, even though it has all of those. It also has tons of mindset work. And Themes like monthly themes. So a little bit of interpretation done along the way for you.
[00:07:34] In it, you can purchase that separately. If you just want the planner. It was a big hit last year. I've made it even better since last year at the feedback of people who got it. And it's going to be even better next year. So if you purchase that, you can also get when you purchase it, there'll be a option to add on.
[00:07:51] To your purchase the replay. So you can get the winter solstice yoga practice, but you can't buy just the winter solstice yoga practice by itself. You have to get the planner. And you can get the replay because the second portion of the workshop was pretty much going over the planner with a little bit more in depth exercises and bonus.
[00:08:09] Content it's not in the workbook itself, so I couldn't sell that. Without you have to have the planner. So, so you can get just the planner without the workshop. So if you wanted a winter solstice yoga practice, I see all over the place. Folks offering winter solstice yoga practices, and they're all offering like Yan and restorative. Those are the things that I see most often. And I'm like,
[00:08:33] That's good. I suppose because we are headed into this Kapha season to kind of embody the energy of the season of the darkest day of the year. And so the, I mentioned this in the workshop, the two extremes that I see are people, either offer yin and restorative or yoga nidra, like something very slow and cooling, very yin, like in terms of like, so yin yoga is a thing.
[00:08:57] If you didn't know that, but. Maybe if you've seen the yin yang, so yin and yang. Symbol, the yin is like the dark. Cooling feminine side and the yang or yang. If you're in the U S Is the masculine bright sunshiny, energetic side. And so I, and then I see, so on solstice is either. People will teach it at like a yin and restorative, which is very far one direction or they'll teach a 108 sun salutations, which also seems to be pretty traditional.
[00:09:27] And the practice that I shared for the winter solstice. In that workshop that you can now get the recording to. Separately. It's, it's cheaper than. Coming live would have been because you can't ask me questions and I can't. You know, make it tailored to you because you weren't there. So it's already done anyway. So it's a little bit of a blend between the two. So we didn't do 108 souls, sun salutations, and we didn't do a totally cooling and restorative practice. We built a little bit of heat.
[00:09:55] In a gentle way in a very accessible way, but we built some heat in the body to tap into that inner fire element because that's the idea. At the winter solstice is very dark outside. It's very cold outside, most places in the Northern hemisphere, unless you're somewhere tropical. And you don't have seasons. This doesn't apply to you, but if you live somewhere with seasons,
[00:10:15] At the darkest day of the year, it's usually cold outside. And so when we have the absence of heat and light in the environment, Then we might tend towards having an absence of heat and light in our bodies. So in the practice we tapped into our own internal heat and our own internal light. And so if you want that practice, I recommend going to grab it.
[00:10:37] You can go to yogiscopes.com/2023. Just like the year, the numbers 2 0 2 3 to find out more about that. Get the planner and the replay. Or you can just do that in your own practice for the solstice. Build some heat in your body, maybe do a candle light meditation. Right. And so this pairs really well with the upcoming new moon, I just wanted to say all of that.
[00:10:59] Separately. And so now let's talk about the new moon. Even though it is in context of. It's happening like the day after the solstice, which the difference between the solstice and the days right around it in terms of length of the day and the night is only like a few minutes. Like the, the movement of how long or short the day is only changes a few minutes per day. So that's why I'm saying it's.
[00:11:20] It's almost in perceptible for a few weeks, at least to notice that the days are getting any amount longer, like you would, you would only know. Like if you're paying a lot of intention attention, right.
[00:11:34] So let's talk about this new moon it's happening in sidereal Sagittarius. Like I mentioned and it's happening in a Nakshatra or a lunar mansion that's called Mula and so Moola, you may know, you may have heard this before. Like Muladhara chakra Mula literally means root. So it's like your root chakra or your first.
[00:11:56] Chakra. And so we'll talk about how that ties into yoga practices in just a second, or maybe what root chakra yoga practices. Could even look like if you're not familiar with that, or if you are just run with it, do some root chakra work. But Sagittarius is ruled by Jupiter. And Jupiter is in currently in its other sign that it rules Pisces. And it's has recently, actually about a month ago, but that's still kind of recent recently gone direct.
[00:12:25] So. In terms of looking over the past year, because at the winter solstice, that's a good thing. To do anyway. Maybe you look at where, what lessons have come up for you related to what have you learned? I mean, Jupiter is a teacher. You know what kind of.
[00:12:43] Things. Have you learned, how have you worked towards your greater vision in life? Right. And can you set intentions? Can you get to the root of that? Get to the root of what the themes were of this entire year. And kind of set your intentions of how you're going to be more aligned with that greater vision with your philosophy of life.
[00:13:06] Moving forward into the next lunar cycle and beyond over the whole entire next year.
[00:13:11] So. Here's the thing about. Mula the Nakshatra it is. Actually the stars that make it up are the tail of the scorpion. There's nine stars. So, you know, Scorpio is a scorpion. In the, in the night sky, Scorpio is actually.
[00:13:29] Really small the way it like the amount of space it takes up. Compared to other signs, but in, so in astronomy, It's it's fewer degrees than some of the other signs, but in astrology we kind of just make all the signs and even nice, pretty 30 degrees because 12. Times 30 is 360 and that's the whole night sky right around the earth.
[00:13:52] 360 degrees makes the circle. Math. Woo. So.
[00:13:59] The tale of the scorpion. Actually lies in Sagittarius, astronomically, I suppose or astrologically. But so this, this nakshatra is considered in the sign of Sagittarius completely, but it's made up of the tail of the scorpion, like for Scorpio. So we already know about Scorpio that it is a deep sign. It's about like,
[00:14:22] The sort of underbelly of society, like deep psychology type stuff. And Mula is so it's the tale of the scorpion. And it's also it's ruling deity. Nirriti brings the energy of loss and destruction. So you may know your, you may not know, but there's this constant cycle of death and rebirth.
[00:14:47] Sort of going on and each deity and Hindu culture is either like creation, maintenance, or death. You know, for the purpose of that rebirth, right? And this one brings. Loss and destruction. So just to say that like, Like I was saying, it's a time, you know, at the winter solstice at this new moon that symbolize kind of by depths and the root and loss and destruction. CA can you shed.
[00:15:16] 2022, say, that's over now. It's okay. I'm going to look at the, you know, lessons that this year brought and I'm going to really shed any ways of being that like. Didn't seem to serve me this year. Maybe they. Did serve at some point, but they're not really anymore. So can you release that? Can you really shed the year so that you can set your intentions to step into the new year anew, right? So that's an important part of the cycle is the shedding part.
[00:15:46] So to, to come back to what I was saying about the solstice, where like with the practice, we want to incorporate some heat building some. Form of stoking your inner fire. Like when it's dark and cold outside, we have the lights on inside. We have the home fires burning, right? So can you bring that into your body? Can you bring your own home fires burning? This would be known as Agni, like your digestive fire in. You know, Ayurveda, yoga. Can you stoke your Agni so that could look like core work that could look like building heat in the body that could look like. Taking care of your digestion with foods, right? But then also.
[00:16:28] With the solstice. Since things are, it's kind of like the phase in the yearly cycle. Like the new moon is the Fe is the brand new phase. In the moon cycle where it's going from dark. Like the darkest, it gets with the new moon and the darkest, it gets in the solar cycle with the solstice.
[00:16:47] And just, if you're watching the video, you can see my hand. It's got like, sorry. If that's distracting, it's got my dog pulled me down in the dirt earlier, right before I recorded this. So if you can see my little abrasion in the video, sorry. I just realized I'm like flailing my hands around and that might be distracting. Or you might be wondering what that is, but.
[00:17:03] That's what that is. I talk with my hands. You can watch these on YouTube. Now, if you're listening on the podcast so anyway, we're moving we're at this pivotal point. At the new moon and solstice. in a shorter cycle, a monthly cycle, the lunar cycle and the larger cycle of the sun. Moving from dark to light and.
[00:17:23] At the next lunar cycle. We'll talk about it. will be in. I think I said this morning in our practice that it was the next new moon, but I believe it's actually the next full moon is in. Punarvasu which is a Nakshatra that means a return to the lights. So for the next couple of weeks, we're really thinking about.
[00:17:40] How we're going to return to the light, right? Like that's the top of mind because of the new moon, because of the solstice, because of our next full moon, where it will be. So can you. Take some time right now to really be grateful for your blessings of this year, to Shed things that weren't working.
[00:18:00] For you this year, that is the major energy right now. And with Sagittarius energy, the idea is. Can you look at your sort of philosophy of life? That Sagittarius is very philosophical. And so Mula is very, like get to the root. Of things.
[00:18:18] So that leads us pretty well into our yoga practices. I mentioned already do root chakra work, maybe also ground yourself and stoke your agni your inner fire. So this morning,
[00:18:28] In our practice. It's Wednesday morning, we have Wednesday. Practices every Wednesday at six 30 or 6:00 AM Eastern time, you can join us for drop-in for those. Or you can come as a member. And we did some of that. We did some grounding work and we did some core work because Sagittarius is also a fire sign. So to tap into that fire energy,
[00:18:48] We want to. Build heat in the body, whatever that is, whatever way that is. And so Sagittarius is also the hips and legs. And so through our practices throughout the month if you join us live. or you can just work this into your own practice. We've been building heat, especially in the hips and thighs a lot. We've been doing a lot of that.
[00:19:07] And so this morning, For the new moon, we were doing a little, we were tapping into a little bit more of that yin energy of Sagittarius by stretching the hips and thighs.
[00:19:17] And so root chakra work. I often say this. root chakra is your feet and your seat. So it's. Sometimes said to be just the base of your spine. So it's like the very tip of your Coccyx like the, the very base at the end of your spine, your Coccyx is your tailbone.
[00:19:35] But it also, like in an energetic sense is your entire lower body basically, and connecting to your lower body and in, in all of the shapes throughout your practice and your, in your starting and centering shape, whether that's lying down or seated and then through your standing poses, through your sitting poses, all the different ways that your base.
[00:19:55] Connects to the earth, to the mat that is root chakra work, but root chakra work also has to do. So that's in the physical sense of what is root chakra work. In a more esoteric or energetic sense, root chakra has everything to do with your sense of security. In yourself and your relationships. So do you have a sense of stability in your life or do you have sort of like secure or insecure attachments?
[00:20:24] You can be looking into all of those kinds of things. At this new moon, looking at how maybe those things showed up for you throughout the past year. And so to get to do grounding work, you could also just connect to your feet, practice, Pada bhanda which I'm actually going to upload. This week in the membership.
[00:20:42] Explanation of pada bhanda I've taught it in some classes. So you may have heard it. Before, but I'll upload an explanation so that you can practice that specifically, which is just. It's it's the foot lock. So mulabandha is the root lock. So you could, I guess, practice that too. That would be fine. But pada bhanda the foot lock so really connecting to your feet, lifting the arches.
[00:21:02] . It's the foundation of standing really well. So in a, in a physical sense, that's a good thing to incorporate into your practice. This week, connection to your feet. You could also walk barefoot on the earth, but it's pretty cold out there. You can walk barefoot inside your house, and that would be just fine for Grounding. I'm just connecting to your feet and as much as you can, and then connecting also to that. Relationship with stability and security and getting to the root of the themes of the year. So that's what the replay that I brought up earlier is meant to help you with. So if you go get the 2023 planner and grab that replay while you can, you can do this winter solstice practice, that would also double as a great.
[00:21:40] Practice for the new moon. If you wanted to be guided through one, without the commitment of joining the membership, perhaps you could do that.
[00:21:48] But then in a more.
[00:21:49] Smaller like zoomed in sense for the new moon, the journal prompts that I have to offer you for the new moon is just that to get to the root of the most difficult lesson. Of the year. And just maybe think through the past year, what, what have been your struggles this year? What have you really struggled with?
[00:22:07] And you could just list all the things and then start to notice if there's a theme. Right. Have you been showing up? In the best way, according to your higher ideals and philosophy of life. And what do you think is behind that? What do you think is at the root of that? And how could you show up differently going forward? That might be how you, the kind of intention you set for the new moon. So I want to send you.
[00:22:33] The warmest wishes for a beautiful and bright solstice where you feel your inner light and warmth. And happy new moon, happy new year, happy holidays, whatever you are celebrating, I'm sending you warmth. And well wishes at this time of year, because I know. It can be beautiful as we all try to cultivate this inner joy and light because it is so dark outside. I think that's where the sort of spirit of the season comes from. But I also recognize that it can be challenging.
[00:22:59] And I think that's also why some people kind of try to. Bring a little extra happiness and joy because it can be a very challenging time of year. So I recognize that I'm sending you love, please remember to keep your feet on the ground. You're heading the stars and stay in the light until next time friends.