The Moon will be new in sidereal Cancer on August 4, 2024 at 7:11am Eastern Daylight time (please adjust for your time zone.) Each New Moon is an assignment from the universe for us to work with in the next 30 days. This month, the New Moon is in the Moon’s own sign of Cancer, which focuses our attention on our intuition and emotions. These feelings can bring a lot of energy but they can cause confusion, too. Cancer is a water sign, where our emotions can be churned up easily. If we focus solely on our feelings, we can lose the focus and presence we need to live skillfully. But if we take the time to sit for meditation each day, we can allow our emotions to settle down. Like a glass of muddy water, if we take the time to be still and allow the mud to sink to the bottom of the glass, we can see more clearly. Asana, tai chi, qi gong, pranayama are all practices that will support our ability to meditate more easily, and are highly recommended this month.
This New Moon takes place in the nakshatra (lunar mansion) of Ashlesha. Ashlesha can be a tricky place. It is ruled by powerful serpents that give insight and power, but can be poisonous, too. If we are disciplined, meditation and other spiritual practices can help us experience transformative spiritual insights here. But if we seek these insights in order to gain power over others, the poisons that result can be painful. This month, choose meditation and other practices that allow you to experience stillness and clarity. Even if this is a very busy time for you, make room for a few minutes of practice each day.