Uprooting Old Structures Within
Dec 19, 2025 6:31 pm
Dear Friend,
Since I will be away for the weekend, I thought I would send this New Moon note a little earlier than the usual letter schedule. You can read it whenever you find the space. Life is wide, and the range of experiences we move through often makes sense only in hindsight. This is something I have been reflecting on deeply as I approach the closing phase of my Rahu Dasha.
A few weeks ago, I was speaking with my friend Meghna Bhagat about how understanding does not come from turning inward alone. To really know ourselves, we have to step out into life, experience it fully, and allow it to shape us. Only after that can we return inward with any real depth. Looking back, much of 2025 has been exactly that kind of year, one of outward movement, exposure, and experience.
At this point, there is enough lived experiences to work with. The task now is not to seek more from the outside, but to process what has already been lived and to see what remains once the noise settles. You can read my complete astrological commentary in an upcoming section.
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The Joli-Aswin Show
Season 1 - Bonus Episode
My friend Joli Knott and I have successfully completed Season 1 of The Joli Aswin Show podcast and we are excited to offer a special bonus episode.
This episode will be streamed live on YouTube and will also be available to watch later on our YouTube channel.
During the live session, we will be taking questions on the astrology of 2026 and discussing practical productivity stacks for astrologers, focusing on tools and systems that support sustainable practice.
The agenda for the live bonus episode is available if you click the button below. We hope you will join us live and be part of the conversation.
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As promised, I'm on schedule to release the Saturn in Pisces guide, valid through May 2027, and I'll make it available on or before Christmas so you can enter 2026 with greater confidence and clarity.
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The Inner Work
New Moon in Sagittarius in Mula Nakshatra
The New Moon in December 2025 in Mula Nakshatra is about getting to the root of things and dismantling the ego structures that have limited our spiritual and intellectual growth so far. Mula is associated with the deity Nriti, the goddess of destruction, but this destruction is not malicious or negative. The Rig Veda itself treats such forces as necessary, for cleansing cannot occur without uprooting what has outlived its purpose. What is removed creates space for what must come next. At certain points, planetary movements activate this process, and adopting a philosophical outlook becomes essential so that letting go of something, even something that once served us well, does not destabilise us. In this context, destruction is not loss but preparation.
Because Venus also plays an important role in this lunation while forming a square with Saturn in Pisces, the process of letting go may involve a person or a few people who once were important in our lives. This separation need not arise from conflict but it can simply be because of a shift in priorities, values, or life circumstances that no longer falls in line with where we are headed. From a philosophical standpoint, such unburdening is necessary at a personal level, as holding on to what has fulfilled its purpose only delays inner clarity. Mars in Sagittarius, also active during this lunation, supports decisive movement in this direction. Action becomes less about force and more about order, where doing what needs to be done feels natural once resistance is no more.
This lunation can be a reset of vision aligned with our belief systems and principles. A longer-term direction begins to show up now, and the task is to plant seeds whose results will unfold over time rather than immediately and this can be understood from my Saturn in Uttarabhadra Pada exploration. The New Moon’s square to Saturn reinforces this theme by pushing us toward a difficult but necessary pivot, one that we might normally avoid. Initiating something unfamiliar or uncomfortable during this period builds grit and inner determination, which then becomes the foundation for what unfolds through 2026.
The difference between constructive and destructive outcomes during such periods often lies in whether the ego is surrendered when the moment demands it. Andy Dufresne in The Shawshank Redemption is a powerful example of Mula handled correctly. Stripped of identity, status, and certainty, Andy does not try to dominate the system or assert himself against time. Instead, he allows the old self to dissolve very slowly. The decision is more like Mula, but patience is like Saturn in Uttarabhadra Pada. Saturn is not disconnected from this lunation as it forms a square. Through patience, discipline, and inner clarity, Saturn’s long duration is to be seen as an ally rather than an enemy. Andy’s liberation was possible only because the prison no longer defines who he was.
By contrast, Michael Corleone in The Godfather Part II shows what happens when destruction occurs externally but the ego remains intact. Michael dismantles enemies, structures, and even family bonds, yet refuses the inner work that Mula demands or signifies. In this case, control replaces clarity. Instead of refinement, it led Michael to isolation. This is destruction without cleansing, where the roots are disturbed but never released, resulting in repetition rather than renewal that we expect of Mula.
This lunation therefore is all about honesty above all else. Insights gained over the past month or two, especially during the recent Mercury retrograde, may now prove useful. Reading spiritual or philosophical texts during this period can act as inner work that catalyses change elsewhere. Life is not linear or binary. Clarity in one area often unlocks movement in another, and sometimes it is not through effort, but just being in alignment with the cosmic order. We rarely notice this process while it is happening, yet this fortnight is when focused inner work opens unexpected horizons.
The clarity gained now allows choices to be made with greater conviction, but truth reveals itself only through smaller, deliberate steps. With this new moon in Mula, the willingness to let the old root systems fall away is the key so that something enduring can take their place.
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If you feel called to receive astrological insight before the year begins, or if you simply wish to stay aligned with what the planetary movements are indicating, I am open for personal consultation sessions.
My Bookings for January 2026 is now open. As always I have 20 slots during the month and if you are looking for a session, I look forward to working with YOU.
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Inward Glance
Epictetus' Discourses: A Retelling
Book I, Chapter 6, 1.6.30 to 1.6.37
Epictetus, seemingly serious figure suddenly shifts tone and becomes almost playful, but the point he makes is very serious. He begins with the example of a running nose. Instead of complaining that noses should not run at all, he asks a simple question. Why were hands given to you? To wipe it. In other words, nature does not remove every inconvenience from life. It gives us the tools to deal with them. Complaining about the problem instead of using what has been given to solve it is a misunderstanding of how life works.
He then moves to a much larger example by invoking Hercules. Epictetus asks us to imagine a world without danger, struggle, or challenge. No lions, no criminals. What would Hercules have been in such a world? He would not have become Hercules at all. He would have slept comfortably, lived quietly, and never discovered his strength, courage, or purpose. Without trials, his gifts would have remained unused and meaningless.
This is the crucial Stoic insight. Our abilities exist because there are challenges that call them forth. Strength exists because there is resistance. Courage exists because there is danger. Endurance exists because there is hardship. If these things were removed, our highest qualities would never come into being. A life without difficulty would not be a blessing. It would be a kind of spiritual sleep.
Epictetus then anticipates an objection. Should Hercules have gone looking for monsters on his own? Of course not. That would have been foolish. The point is not to manufacture suffering, but to meet what appears naturally with readiness and gratitude. When challenges arise, they reveal what we are made of. They test us, refine us, and give shape to our character.
He then turns directly to us. Now that you understand this, he says, appreciate the resources you already have. Your body, your reason, your capacity to choose, endure, and respond are not small gifts. When difficulty appears, the Stoic response is not fear or complaint but confidence. Bring on what you will, Zeus. I have been given what I need to meet it with dignity.
This is where Epictetus brings a sharp contrast. Most people do the opposite. They sit worrying about what might happen. They are already distressed by imagined futures. Then they blame the gods for their anxiety and weakness. Epictetus says that this weakness comes from a failure to recognise what has already been given.
The gods have not merely given us the strength to endure events. They have given us something far greater. They have placed what truly matters entirely within our control. Our judgments, choices, and responses are free from constraint. Nothing external can touch them unless we allow it. Yet we fail to use this freedom, simply because we do not recognise it.
This is not a condemnation but a wake up call. The resources are already there. The tools are already in our hands. The only question left is whether we will use them.
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If you appreciate my work and feel called to support it, whether once or on a regular basis, you’re welcome to do so through my Ko-fi page. Reading these letters, watching my videos, and engaging with what I share already means a lot to me. But if you wish to go a step further, your support is always received with gratitude.
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Until Next Letter,
Love,
