TRANSCRIPT Ep. 315 | Aries Full Moon: Echoes of an Old Eclipse!

TRANSCRIPT Ep. 315 | Aries Full Moon: Echoes of an Old Eclipse! (10.06.25)

Hello, Invisible Friend, April here, and the date today is October 6th, 2025. Welcome to Episode 315 of the Big Sky Astrology Podcast.

This week, Mercury puts on its X-ray specs as it enters Scorpio and squares Pluto. The Aries Full Moon is a reminder to look out for ourselves as well as for our partners and friends. Venus convenes with Jupiter and Saturn. And I answer a listener question about the chart ruler.

Mercury enters Scorpio (Oct. 6, 2025, 9:41 am PDT)

Mercury enters Scorpio on Monday, October 6th at 9:41 a.m. Pacific time. Scorpio tends to notice what others don’t. And when Mercury is in this sign, it gives it a sort of X-ray vision, the ability to see what’s going on below the surface. This Mercury gives us insight into what’s motivating other people, but it also makes us keenly attuned to what’s going on inside of us.

Scorpio is kind of a private sign, so we might not want to express our feelings in conversation. And in fact, we might want to keep our feelings kind of close to our chest when we’re communicating with others. But when it comes to spending time alone in reflection, with our creative efforts, this can be a very satisfying placement of Mercury.

In fact, I don’t often hear people connect the sign of Scorpio with creativity all that often. But I think Mercury in this sign in particular is wonderfully creative. It gives the ability to access and to articulate very deep feelings, putting them into your writing, your music, painting, whatever artistic or creative kinds of things you like to do. Mercury will be in this sign until October 29th, so put it to good use.

Aries Full Moon (Oct. 6, 2025, 8:47 pm PDT)

And now it’s time for the Moon Report. We begin, as always, with the week’s major lunation. This week, it’s the Aries Full Moon on Monday, October 6th at 8.47pm Pacific time at 14º08’ Aries and Libra.

The Full Moon is midway through the New Moon lunar phase cycle, and that is when the night sky is at its brightest, both literally and figuratively. It shows us everything. At the Full Moon, we can see what’s working and what’s not working.

When it comes to your New Moon goals from the solar eclipse on September 21st at 29º Virgo, you’re now at the point in the lunar cycle where you can begin to see whether or not those plans are going to work out and what you might need to do to make them work.

This is an especially sensitive lunar phase for relationships. And at this particular Full Moon, it’s highlighting the dynamic between giving yourself to somebody else, trying to help them achieve what they want, while at the same time making sure you don’t completely lose track of who you are and what you want.

So it’s about finding that balance in relationships. In the chart for this Full Moon, the Sun and Moon are both in a wide square aspect to Jupiter in Cancer, so there could be tension involving your family and your partner’s family or family backgrounds that are going to call for some compromise.

Lunar Phase Family Cycle

This is the Full Moon in a lunar phase family cycle that began with a New Moon on April 8th, 2024 at 19º24’ Aries. That New Moon was a Solar Eclipse, and it was part of a pretty amazing stellium in Aries with the Sun, Moon, Venus, Mercury, and the north node of the Moon all crowded together in that sign. That chart also featured a conjunction that was forming between Jupiter and Uranus, which I believe was exact on April 21st of last year, which was a pretty exciting and dynamic aspect and really heightened the already unstable influence of the eclipse.

That’s the eclipse that initiated this lunar phase family cycle. It wasn’t a terrible chart at all, but simply by virtue of being an eclipse, it triggered the part of your chart that has Aries in it. And maybe there was an awareness at that time that you needed to change, that perhaps you began to realize how much more you needed to take care of yourself and to summon the courage to do things that are important to you.

The First Quarter Moon in this lunar phase family cycle was on January 6th, 2025, and that was at 16º 55 minutes Aries. The First Quarter is a cycle for taking action, especially a First Quarter in Aries. So maybe you did something around that time to stake your independence, to put a priority on your own needs.

Now at the Full Moon in this cycle, again, the Full Moon chart is not that difficult, but it carries the seeds of that Solar Eclipse on April 8th, 2024. And that means that we’re going to see how well we are doing with that Aries eclipse message about looking out for ourselves. The Last Quarter in this lunar phase family cycle will come on July 7th, 2026 at 15º 41 minutes Aries. And that’ll be the final action point in this eclipse-flavored New Moon family cycle. And that is the chance to finalize some personal, individual goals that began back at that eclipse.

Void-of-Course Moon periods

Let’s look at the Void-of-Course Moon periods for this week. On Tuesday, October 7th, the Moon in Aries squares Jupiter in Cancer at 11:24 AM Pacific time. It’s Void-of-Course for 10 hours, 48 minutes, then enters Taurus at 10:12 PM.

This continues that theme of the Full Moon square Jupiter and the possibility of family tensions influencing your relationship. For instance, it might not be the very best evening to take your new partner over to meet your parents at dinner or something like that. It could also be that there’s a tension between you and your partner on the subject of home. “Where are we going to live? Are we serious enough now that we’re going to move in together? Whose house will we live in? What will we do with the other house?” Or possibly around the theme of whether or not to have children, which can also be connected to Jupiter in Cancer.

This is a Void-of-Course Moon period for practicing compromise, which is the keynote of the Sun in Libra and the opposition between the Sun and Moon. Void-of-Course Moon times, which are when the Moon has completed its final major aspect in its sign before it moves to the next sign. And these times are often good ones to initiate new habits. And the habit here would be about talking things through and compromising. But of course, the fine line here is to not give away too much. You still have to be comfortable that you’re taking care of your own needs as well as everybody else’s.

On Thursday, October 9th, the Moon in Taurus sextiles Saturn in Pisces at 5:31 p.m. Pacific Time, is Void-of-Course for 4 hours and 41 minutes, and then enters Gemini at 10:12 p.m. The Moon is very strong in Taurus, and this is where we have an opportunity to feel a little more grounded in who we are and what we want to accomplish. The Moon sextile aspect to Saturn in Pisces is especially helpful because with Saturn in Pisces, we can have a little more trouble outlining our goals and deciding what we’re going to tackle next. But the Moon in Taurus has a way making us feel that, okay, I’m just gonna do this. I feel confident that this is the right course of action for me right now, so I’m just gonna go ahead with it.

And on Saturday, October 11th, the Moon in Gemini squares Venus in Virgo at 7:56 p.m. Pacific Time. It’s Void-of-Course for 3 hours 41 minutes, then enters Cancer at 11:37 p.m. Here’s a square that’s happening between planets that are both in Mercury ruled signs, Gemini and Virgo. So you need to be a little bit careful with your words, because the square is inherently an aspect of conflict. And especially right now with Mercury in Scorpio, we can tend to be a little more blunt than we maybe absolutely need to be in our communication. And feelings can get hurt. And if they do get hurt with Mercury in Scorpio, it can lead to a grudge that can last a while and be very hard to let go of.

Mercury square Pluto (Oct. 7, 2025, 7:40 am PDT)

Mercury squares Pluto on Tuesday, October 7th at 7:40 a.m. Pacific Time at 1 degree 22 minutes Scorpio and Aquarius. This transit is on pretty much the same degrees as that Mars-Pluto square back on September 24th, which was a very high tension, emotional aspect.

So today could bring conversations that are left over from that aspect, or insights that we gain concerning things that we were working on during that Mars-Pluto square. Mercury is on the Sabian symbol 2 Scorpio, A broken bottle and spilled perfume. That’s a poignant and nostalgic degree, where there’s this beautiful smell of perfume, but something had to get broken in order for us to smell it.

It could be that this Mercury aspect with Pluto gives us an opportunity to have difficult conversations in order for us to get to the other side, and for our relationships to improve.

And Pluto is on 2 Aquarius, An unexpected thunderstorm. It’s been hanging around this symbol for a while, and there is the warning of a kind of an emotional thunderstorm. So choose your words carefully, and deliver them with as much kindness as possible.

Venus sextile Jupiter (Oct. 8, 2025, 4:41 am PDT)

On Wednesday, October 8th at 4:41 a.m. Pacific Time, Venus sextiles Jupiter at 23º18’ Virgo and Cancer. We think of Venus and Jupiter as the centers of pleasure and success in the chart. The sextile aspect between them says there’s an opportunity for us to attract more of the things that we desire. But we have to be careful, because of course when Jupiter is involved, we can get too much of a good thing. And Venus and Virgo doesn’t really want a lot. It doesn’t crave a lot of possessions or even a lot of experiences, generally speaking. And that’s not really true of Jupiter. So, at the very least, at this sextile, we need to appreciate what makes us feel truly good and happy. And that usually involves finding a balance between having more of what we truly value, without sacrificing a lot of money or space or peace of mind, in order to have it.

Venus opposed Saturn (Oct. 11, 2025, 4:10 am PDT)

And on Saturday, October 11th at 4:10 a.m. Pacific Time, Venus opposes Saturn at 26º59’ minutes Virgo and Pisces. Opposition aspects often involve relationships, because we often see big issues most clearly when somebody else is enacting one side of an issue for us. And then we have to respond to them.

One thing this particular transit could represent is taking a relationship to a more serious level, because Saturn’s involved. And also, it can be about our financial goals, about making a plan, taking the steps to implement that plan.

There’s an awareness about the need to manage what we have more wisely, and generally a lot more clarity about what we need versus what we want. This is true not only in your financial situation, but in your relationships as well.

The Sabian symbol for Venus is 27 Virgo, Grand Dames at Tea. A lovely, genteel image of relationships that are proper and defined by etiquette. Saturn’s Sabian symbol is 27 Pisces, A harvest Moon. So it’s most likely an opposition, when something that we’ve been waiting to develop finally is ready. It finally comes home to roost. And the Harvest Moon in the symbol says it’s time to collect what we’ve invested in our relationships and in our financial situations.

Listener Question: The Chart Ruler

In this week’s listener question, listener Dani writes, “What exactly is my chart ruler? What does that mean? What does it do? Is it the same as my ascendant?”

Dani, thank you for your question. The chart ruler is simply the planet that rules the sign on the ascendant.

For example, if you have Taurus rising, Venus would be your chart ruler because it’s the planet that rules Taurus. And when we talk about chart rulers, we usually use the traditional ruling planet. So, if you have Aquarius rising, we would consider Saturn to be your chart ruler rather than Uranus. If Scorpio is rising, Mars would be the chart ruler instead of Pluto.

I think I’ve described the chart ruler in the past as being a voice that guides us in our actions and our direction. Let’s say that you’re on television and there might be somebody in the control room that’s talking through the headphones and telling you, stop doing that thing with your hair that you’re doing.

That would be the role of the chart ruler. This planet has exceptional strength and significance in your chart. And to understand how it affects you exactly, we would consider the house that the planet is in, its sign, and its aspects to other planets in the chart.

And of course, just the nature of the planet itself. If you have Venus or Jupiter as your chart ruler, for example, they could be in pretty bad condition, be in the worst sign, the worst house, the worst aspect, and they still would be somewhat favorable simply because the planets themselves are considered so advantageous. They would give you extra ease or fortune in what you do.

Now, similarly to the Ascendant, the chart ruler will describe your motivations, how you act, the kinds of experiences that shape your life. And the condition of the chart ruler – is it in a sign of dignity? Is it making good aspects? Is it in a comfortable house? – really talks about how smoothly your life will flow and what areas of life are always kind of demanding the most attention from you.

As an example, consider two well-known entertainers, John Cleese of Monty Python and the actor Tom Hanks. Each of them has Virgo rising and Mercury as their chart ruler. And Mercury also rules their Gemini Midheaven placements. I will put their birth data in the show notes for you in case you want to run their chart and look at it.

Now, both of these men are comic actors. It’s sometimes easy to forget these days that Tom Hanks was primarily a comic actor when he started out because he’s gone on to do a lot of very dramatic roles. But their style of comedy is very different.

John Cleese has Mercury, his chart ruler, in Scorpio in the third house and it reflects his very acerbic persona. Mercury is in the third house in his chart and he got his start really as a writer for BBC programs, especially the program Footlights, before he went on to be a and performer for Monty Python’s Flying Circus. He has an extremely satirical style of comedy. And not surprisingly, Mercury in his chart is not only in Scorpio, but is square Mars in Aquarius and is opposed Uranus. And both of these contribute an unconventional and sometimes even shocking influence.

On the other hand, Tom Hanks has Mercury in Cancer, which is a much gentler sign, but it’s also incredibly funny in its own way. Mercury is in the 10th house of his chart, which seems to me a pretty good placement for a performer, along with Venus on his Midheaven. Mercury in the 10th house can give an emphasis on communication in whatever work you’re doing.

Mercury is a little more gentle in Cancer, a little more sympathetic in its approach than John Cleese’s Mercury in Scorpio. Hanks’s Mercury is sextile Jupiter in Virgo in his chart, which is in a close conjunction with Pluto. So, the connection with Jupiter is very helpful, very fortunate and favorable. And fairly early in his career, he connected with powerful directors and he rapidly gained power of his own, forming his own production company, winning two Oscars and being nominated for more.

So, the idea here is not to give you a total chart interpretation of these two men, but just to point out the fact that they have Virgo rising and therefore Mercury is the chart ruler. So of course, communication is extremely important in the lives and careers of both these men, but their style of doing it is very different. And I mean, to be honest, John Cleese is the kind of guy that I think is really funny, but I’d be kind of terrified to find myself in a conversation with him! Whereas Tom Hanks just seems like he’d be kind of nice. He’d be a buddy. And it really, for me, is down to the difference between those different placements of Mercury.

Dani, I hope that that helps. You didn’t tell me anything about your own chart, so I don’t know what kind of chart ruler you’re dealing with, but I hope that this example might give you an idea of how you can explore your own chart ruler.

And if you, my invisible friend, have a question you’d like me to answer on a future episode of the podcast, please leave a voicemail of one minute or less at speakpipe.com / bigskyastrologypodcast. Or, if you are a shy person, you can just send me an email at April (at) bigskyastrology (dot)com. And please be sure to put ”Podcast Question” in the subject line.

Donor Thanks

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That is it for this episode. Join me again bright and early next Monday, and until then, keep your feet on the ground and your eyes on the stars!