Your horoscope for the week ahead: Deliberate intensely — there will be an added gravitas to events

Mercury continues to trundle on in retrograde motion — I hope you have not been adversely affected. This is essentially a work-in-progress time. Things like repairs and changing your car tires come up at these times. So often it's an overdue task and you're forced to take action. You may not like it, but after it's finished, there's a sense of satisfaction of a job well done. For best results, make sure you keep your thoughts positive. 

The Moon, our Celestial Mother, has again gone full circle around our beautiful planet. On Wednesday, she will pass between the Sun and Earth and commence yet another 29.5-day lunar month. Make your wishes. New Moons give you a fresh start and herald new beginnings. 

It will be a New Moon in the sign of Libra. This will call on your skills of diplomacy and your ability to negotiate. Work on smoothing out differences of opinion in a friendly way. You will need to be convincing and persuasive. The charm of Libra will come to the rescue.

Keep in mind that Mars, the planet of action, will be conjunct with the New Moon. This will create a sense of urgency. Stay as calm as possible. Try not to lose your cool.

Pluto is powerful this week as he returns to direct motion. This will add gravitas to events. There will be a sense of great importance to whatever you do, and therefore what you do will require intense deliberation. Pluto's connection to Mercury will cause surprising secrets and hidden information to be revealed. 

Mercury, conjunct with the Sun on Saturday, marks roughly the halfway point of the Mercury retrograde. Also on Saturday, a young Crescent Moon will pass close to Venus. It will be a beautiful sight to behold. 

Here is your horoscope for the week of Monday, October 4, 2021.

Aries

You are learning an immensely valuable lesson. Your life is rapidly changing, or it soon will. The New Moon in Libra is opening your eyes. Your understanding is deepening. This is why you feel a little uncomfortable. You're no longer able to rely on an old assumption or point of view. You are seeing reasons to question it and to develop a more balanced perspective on your situation. Soon you will start to trust your new way of looking at life. You will then be able to apply it and work wonders. If you listen carefully to the whispers coming from your intuition, you will hear a lot of valuable information. 

Taurus

Recent events might have set you free from a problem. You're worried, though, that perhaps the opposite is true and they've somehow consolidated it. It's got you wondering if you'll ever escape. Rest assured: all will be well. You have to accept that you may never be able to change a certain aspect of your life. In genuinely accepting this, though, you'll lose the anxiety surrounding it and, ironically, in that process you will also increase your power to alter it. The New Moon in Libra insists this will turn out much better than you expect. All your worries will evaporate like the morning mist. 

Gemini

There's nothing theoretical, ethereal or symbolic about the pressure you now face — or the excitement that is beginning to take place — nor is there anything negative about it. The New Moon in Libra is leading to the fulfilment of an ambition you have secretly nurtured. You have also overcome a limitation that once held this aspiration almost painfully in check. While you may feel inclined to keep pinching yourself because what's happening doesn't seem real, or to keep worrying because it seems as if a process is spiralling out of control, you can expect a highly rewarding outcome. 

Cancer

When our clothes get dirty, we can wash them; likewise, our bodies and our homes. But our hearts, souls and minds need cleansing over time too. These also accumulate layers of grime. Events and experiences make their mark on us. Our spirit somehow gets soiled or stained, and every so often, we must go through an emotional cleanse to restore clarity and integrity. You are now approaching the final stage of such a process. The kind influence of the New Moon in Libra will take care of this. It will start a process of cleansing that will make you feel refreshed and renewed, as if you've been on a holiday. 

Leo

You may wonder if you had done things differently or had known in the past what you know now, how much further ahead you'd be at this point. Those two little words — "what if" — can do more to undermine our confidence than a team of hard critics. What has happened has happened. Sometimes we have to accept that and move on. Leave it behind and start a new day. The New Moon in Libra is that new day. It will lead you to a pleasant surprise. You don't yet have all the information. A significant development very soon will make that much clearer. 

Virgo

There has been a fair amount of chaos going on in your life. In fact, there wasn't that much calm in your life even before the last wave of chaos came washing over it. You may feel you want to return to the point where things were at least comparatively calm, but actually, that's not what's needed. Despite the stress your current situation is creating and despite the confusion it's bringing, you are being taken through and past an obstacle to happiness that has long been in your way. The energy of the kindly New Moon in Libra will calm things down to a point where they'll be far better than ever before.

Libra

There's a chance to put something straight, to clear up a mess and, in the process, to create a better climate for future growth. Maybe it seems like too much work. Well, it will pay off in the long run. After all, you are looking for something very precious. What you want is attainable. There are limits to how good things can get, but within those limits, there's an awful lot of magic, excitement and fulfilment to experience. The New Moon in Libra will point you in the right direction. As you're starting to see, this time in your life has the potential to shape up very well for you. Your outlook looks clear and bright. 

Scorpio

A little of this, a bit of that, a touch of something else, and voila! Great creations often come about through such subtle combinations. Sometimes, though, the purity and integrity of a simple solution can become compromised when too many additional factors are introduced. There's a point where a carefully balanced cocktail may turn sour. Sometimes, as they say, less is more. Be especially careful, with the New Moon in subtle Libra, not to complicate issues surrounding a close relationship, and you'll yet come up with a great recipe for progress. 

Sagittarius

We are often told that before we judge a person, we should first walk a mile in their shoes. We know this, but for all that we strive to be sympathetic and show understanding, it's easy to take one look at someone and decide they are a fool. Sometimes, the assessment is appropriate. But try to have a little extra tolerance as this kind New Moon in Libra will help to heal a counterproductive rift. Be flexible in your dealings with others, but be determined to stick to your own plans and beliefs. You have already made a decision that's worth staying with. 

Capricorn

You have accomplished a great deal lately. Of course, you want to do more. Soon, you will. Miracles are feasible, especially if you radically adjust any aspect of yourself that is not in sync with your deepest ambition. Your interest lies not in changing the world around you, but in better understanding who you really are. This is where the New Moon in Libra will help, by guiding you to find the right balance of all the different voices in your head vying for control. Be more willing to talk and listen, and despite recent difficulties, you could yet manage to attain a very profitable form of progress. 

Aquarius

An important situation ought to be clear and simple, but it is complex, cloudy and baffling. In some ways, you don't mind. It appeals to your sense of mystery and the unknown. When things are cut and dried, there's no room for imagination or speculation. Really, though, you don't want to have fun with a certain set of circumstances. You want to get results from them and in good time. The New Moon in Libra will give you the determination to cut through all the obfuscation of a particular situation. You have the power to do this. You are more influential than you know.

Pisces

You are not as confident as you should be about your power and your talent. There is an unwarranted nervousness about some imminent encounter which is being overdramatized. You are allowing an insecurity to make you weak, when you should be manifesting great strength. You face nothing you cannot cope with. To rise to the challenge, though, you must make adjustments. Remember that time is on your side. You don't have to act immediately. Things will wait, if you want them to, till you feel more prepared. The New Moon in Libra is changing the cosmic climate in your favour.