New Moon in Capricorn
Jan 18, 2026 2:09 am
Dear Friend,
The New Moon in Uttarashada Nakshatra evokes the sense of victory or the condition of being victorious. This period can be approached as a time for engaging in serious and thoughtful planning that helps us to emerge victorious over the next fortnight or so. Along with the luminaries, Venus, Mars, and Mercury are also placed in Capricorn, and because of this prominence, it becomes extremely important to accept and embrace the necessity of hard work in almost every area of life. Capricorn signifies meticulousness, careful planning, attention to detail, and the willingness to accept challenges as an inherent part of any meaningful process.
I have analysed the current situation in Iran and presented my thoughts in written an article and a youtube video. If you are interested, you can explore those and I have used medieval Persian mundane techniques to understand what the outcome might be.
Iran - Article
Iran - Video
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My personal consultation sessions are open and I look forward to working with you.
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Inward Glance
Epictetus' Discourses: A Retelling
Book I, Chapter 7, 1.7.16 to 1.7.24
Epictetus is now dealing with a difficult but very practical problem. Sometimes we accept certain premises/assumptions honestly and carefully. From those premises, a conclusion follows correctly according to the rules of reasoning. Yet the conclusion itself turns out to be false or unacceptable. What should we do then?
He says we cannot escape responsibility by pretending the conclusion does not follow. If the premises still stand, then the conclusion must be accepted, whether we like it or not. This is like borrowing money. Even if we regret the loan, the fact remains that we took it. As long as the loan exists, the obligation remains. We cannot wish it away.
It is the same with arguments. If we accept the premises and they remain unchanged, then we are bound to accept whatever follows from them. Logical commitment works exactly like moral or financial commitment. Once we say yes, we are responsible for the consequences of that yes.
However, Epictetus makes an important distinction. If the premises no longer remain what they were, if upon reflection we realise that we should not have granted them in the first place, then the conclusion no longer binds us. In that case, rejecting the conclusion is not dishonesty. It is correction.
This is why training in reasoning matters. Without it, people either accept conclusions blindly or reject them emotionally. Both are forms of confusion. The trained mind knows when to stand firm and when to withdraw.
Epictetus is not teaching clever debating tricks. He is teaching integrity of thought. If we accept something, we should accept it fully. If we withdraw, let’s withdraw honestly. Do not cling to conclusions when their foundations have collapsed. Do not abandon conclusions simply because we dislike where they lead.
The aim is not victory in argument, but consistency between what we admit, what we reject, and how you live. A person who reasons this way does not deceive others, and more importantly, does not deceive themselves.
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Enjoy this prominence in Capricorn and I hope you are able to push yourselves forward and utilise the energy filled with desire and motivation. Have a wonderful time and I have an announcement to make which will follow as an interim letter in the middle of the week. I am grateful for your readership!
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Until Next Letter,
Love,
