January 18, 2026
In my nearly four decades of Vedic astrology practice, the New Moon in Capricorn has always marked one of the most potent times of the year for setting intentions around career, material achievement, and the hard work necessary to manifest our goals. This year’s New Moon on January 18th comes with particularly intense planetary accompaniment that demands our attention.
The New Moon at Capricorn 3°
12:52 PM CST, January 18, 2026
The New Moon occurs in the ambitious sign of Capricorn, the 10th sign of the natural zodiac connected to our desire to rise in status and be acknowledged in the world. Capricorn, ruled by Saturn, embodies the spiritual challenge of freeing ourselves from the material prison. It is not merely about achievement for achievement’s sake, but about discovering our dharmic purpose through disciplined effort.
Capricorn is connected to the base chakra or Muladhara chakra, out of which the kundalini energy arises. Hence it contains the latent potential for full realization but remains grounded and hidden in the earth and needs to be awakened. The essence of Capricorn is freeing the spiritual from its material prison.
If your Vedic Sun (January 14-February 12), Moon, or rising sign is Capricorn, you may be filled with enthusiasm and energy, particularly strong idealism, yet Saturn by its nature prevents easy expression of these talents. This New Moon asks us to work with Saturn’s discipline rather than fight against it. The responsibility of Saturn makes Capricorn a great employee, and its tenacious and persevering energy makes it an ideal worker. Saturn in Capricorn (and this New Moon follows that pattern) will support hard work and success and achievement, but it will not make it an easy journey.
Mars Conjunct Mercury in Uttara Ashadha: When the Warrior Meets the Strategist
Exact January 18th
The New Moon coincides with a powerful Mars-Mercury conjunction, bringing together the warrior planet and the messenger planet in Capricorn. This conjunction presents a fascinating tension because Mars and Mercury are bitter enemies in Vedic astrology. What makes this particularly interesting is that it occurs in the nakshatra of Uttara Ashadha, specifically in its Capricorn portion (0-10 degrees).
Understanding Uttara Ashadha in Capricorn
Capricorns are filled with enthusiasm and energy, particularly in the nakshatras of Shravana (10-23.20 Capricorn) or Uttara Ashadha (0-10 Capricorn), along with strong idealism. Yet Saturn, by its nature, prevents them from easily expressing their talents. This creates an interesting dynamic where enormous potential exists but must be channeled through discipline and patience.
Uttara Ashadha spans from Sagittarius 26.40 to Capricorn 9.59, and when planets transit the Capricorn portion, they tap into the practical, achievement-oriented energy of the 10th sign of the natural zodiac. This is the nakshatra connected to the desire to rise in status and be acknowledged in the world. It promotes business and material success, but only through sustained effort.
Mars Exalted: The Disciplined Warrior
Mars thrives when physically moving, athletic, and exerting prowess. When conjunct Mercury, Mars may get too caught in the head and thinking too much, blocking natural energies. We often note that Mars/Mercury conjunctions can cause accidents because if our enemy has done something to upset us, we are thinking too much about it and not focusing in the moment on driving or the task at hand, and we get into trouble. Mercury afflicts Mars’s natural ability to focus on the moment and the action at hand. Instead, Mars gets caught up remembering what someone said, being angry, and not paying attention to surroundings, and accidents happen.
Yet there is a crucial silver lining. Mars is EXALTED in Capricorn, the natural 10th sign of the zodiac, showing initiative and success in activities. Mars rules courage, success, and property, and it is exalted in Capricorn because Mars can do well enduring pain, hard work, suffering, and patience in order to produce results. For Mars to truly excel here, Saturn must be well-placed, as Mars needs to endure pain, hard work, patience, and perseverance to produce results in Capricorn.
Exalted Mars creates strong generals and commanders and will create a ruchaka yoga if placed in the 1st, 4th, 7th, or 10th houses. It creates people who are undefeated, generous, hard-working, good mechanically and technically, respected, and who have a capacity for wealth by taking risks while focusing on results. This is Mars at its most mature and strategic, channeling raw warrior energy through Saturn’s structure and discipline.
The Mars-Mercury Conflict and Integration
Mars and Mercury as bitter enemies creates natural friction. Mercury in Aries (where Mars rules) may also be too prone to act quickly and not be using his intellectual nature that allows deep thoughtful actions. Hence, Mercury is in an enemy’s sign and out of his nature. Mars by nature is a soldier and needs to be involved in action and not thinking too much.
However, in Uttara Ashadha in Capricorn, we have important mitigating factors:
Mars’s Exaltation: Mars has dignity and strength here, which means his positive qualities are amplified while negative tendencies are controlled.
Saturn’s Rulership: Saturn, ruling Capricorn, brings the discipline that can structure Mercury’s mental energy productively.
10th House Energy: This is the natural house of achievement, career, and public recognition, where strategic thinking (Mercury) combined with decisive action (Mars) can produce real-world results.
The key is learning to integrate these energies rather than letting them conflict. Exalted Mars in Capricorn has the patience and maturity to work WITH Mercury’s analytical mind rather than fighting against it.
Practical Manifestations
Positive Expressions:
- Strategic military or business leadership
- Technical expertise combined with hands-on skill
- The ability to plan campaigns and execute them effectively
- Mechanical genius – understanding both theory and application
- Disciplined communication with forceful delivery
- The capacity to think under pressure and act decisively
Challenging Expressions:
- Overthinking that paralyzes action
- Mental arguments that distract from present-moment awareness
- Accidents from divided attention while driving or using tools
- Saying things in anger that you regret later
- Starting arguments through sharp or cutting words
- Analysis paralysis in competitive situations
The key during this transit is to channel the mental energy constructively. Use Mercury’s analytical abilities to create strategic action plans for your Mars energy, but don’t let overthinking paralyze your ability to act. Stay present when driving or operating machinery. Take breaks from mental work to move your body and discharge Mars energy through exercise.
Venus Conjunct Pluto: Transformation in Relationships and Values
Exact January 19th
Just one day after the New Moon, Venus meets Pluto in Capricorn, bringing deep transformation to our relationships, values, and creative expression. In my experience, Pluto is connected with power and transformation and in extreme cases, death of the old so that the new can arise. The cocoon has to be destroyed so that the butterfly can emerge.
Pluto represents Divine will that forces us to surrender and let thy will be done. At its highest, Pluto represents the ultimate surrender to the Divine. It takes great faith to hang on during these dark moments and depths of sadness and loneliness and periods of uncertainty. Pluto forces us to surrender and change our self-defeating behaviors and blind spots and to grow.
This conjunction may bring power struggles in relationships. Watch out for control issues. I find that Libra and Taurus rising signs have real difficulty with Pluto conjunctions, with angry flare-ups coming out of nowhere if personal power is blocked. This is not a good time to try controlling your spouse or forcing them in any way.
On the positive side, this transit can create deep psychological transformation in how we approach relationships and money. Old patterns that no longer serve us may die away, making room for more authentic connections and values. Venus benefits from Pluto’s intensity by discovering deeper layers of beauty, love, and creative power.
If you were born with Venus conjunct Pluto within 2 degrees in your natal chart, you may have intense passions and deep transformative experiences in relationships throughout your life. The key is learning to share power rather than dominate or be dominated.
Mars Conjunct Pluto: Unleashing Transformational Power
Exact January 27th
As we move through late January, Mars approaches its conjunction with Pluto on January 27th, creating the most intense configuration of the month. This aspect is particularly potent within two degrees, January 25-29th.
The late Narendra Desai felt that Pluto was a higher octave of Mars, the ruler of Scorpio, in classical Vedic astrology. When these two come together, we get an amplification of Martian energy transformed through Pluto’s depth and power. Pluto is connected to power, energy, virility, and transformation, and this transit is particularly powerful for Aries and Scorpio rising.
This conjunction can increase ambition and control issues. It may bring out darker energy, particularly in politics, and has been a signature for an increase in earthquake activity in the past and sometimes can lead to more violence. On a personal level, use the energy for positive transformation and change. It may bring up huge angry flare-ups in some people, so find a way to channel the energy constructively.
If you were born with this signature of Mars conjunct Pluto within 2 degrees, you may have a forceful personality that tries to dominate or bully others and have strong cravings, a strong ego, tremendous restlessness, and strong sexual prowess. This signature in a natal chart may also lead to low self-esteem around manhood which is overcompensated with trying to prove oneself sexually with too much macho energy, competition, or threat.
The highest expression of this transit is to surrender personal will to Divine will. Channel the enormous energy into transforming something in your life that has outlived its usefulness. This is warrior energy in service of spiritual transformation.
Working With These Energies
This New Moon period calls for:
Discipline and Focus: Set realistic goals that require sustained effort over time. Saturn rewards patient, methodical work.
Mental Clarity and Physical Grounding: With Mars and Mercury together, be extra careful when driving or operating machinery. Since Mars wants action and Mercury promotes thinking, split your time. Do focused mental work for periods, then take breaks for vigorous physical activity. This prevents the mental energy from bottling up and creating accidents or irritability.
Strategic Planning with Decisive Action: Use this time to create detailed action plans. Let Mercury handle the analysis and planning, then use Mars to execute with discipline. This is excellent energy for project management where both strategic thinking and decisive action are needed.
Relationship Honesty: The Venus-Pluto conjunction demands authenticity. Surface-level connections won’t survive this transit. Go deeper or let go.
Channeled Intensity: The Mars-Pluto conjunction brings enormous transformational power. Use it consciously for positive change rather than letting it explode destructively.
Spiritual Grounding: Remember that Capricorn is about freeing the spiritual from the material prison. Exercise, yoga, and meditation will be essential to ground these intense energies. Saturn responds well to meditation and calms the mind. Saturn likes yoga and exercise, which grounds the body.
Rising Sign Impacts
Aries Rising: These transits occur in your 10th house of career, bringing opportunities that require both strategic thinking and bold action. Don’t just charge forward – plan first, then act decisively.
Taurus Rising: In the 9th house, this may bring opportunities around higher education, publishing, or teaching that require both philosophical understanding and practical application.
Gemini Rising: The 8th house placement can bring research opportunities or situations requiring investigation. Your mind is sharp for uncovering hidden information.
Cancer Rising: The 7th house brings relationship transformation. Business partnerships or marriage may require both diplomatic communication and assertive boundary-setting.
Leo Rising: The 6th house brings conflict resolution and problem-solving abilities. Use strategy to overcome obstacles rather than brute force.
Virgo Rising: In the 5th house, creative projects benefit from both inspiration and disciplined execution. Good for detailed creative work.
Libra Rising: The 4th house brings home and emotional foundation transformation. Projects or family situations require both emotional intelligence and decisive action.
Scorpio Rising: In the 3rd house, your communication becomes more forceful. Be careful not to come across as too aggressive in everyday interactions.
Sagittarius Rising: The 2nd house brings financial planning opportunities. Combine Mercury’s analysis with Mars’s courage to make smart money moves.
Capricorn Rising: In the 1st house, this powerfully affects your personality and approach. You feel more confident, strategic, and action-oriented. This is your moment.
Aquarius Rising: The 12th house asks you to meditate on how overthinking blocks spiritual progress. Sometimes action IS the meditation.
Pisces Rising: In the 11th house, social networks and goals benefit from strategic thinking combined with bold initiative. Good for leadership roles in groups.
Conclusion
The New Moon in Capricorn reminds us that true achievement comes through dedicated effort aligned with our dharmic purpose. The accompanying Mars-Mercury conjunction in Uttara Ashadha shows us that even enemies can work together when placed in the right environment. Mars’s exaltation in Capricorn provides the maturity and discipline to use Mercury’s mental gifts strategically rather than letting them become a distraction.
The Venus-Pluto and Mars-Pluto configurations intensify this message, demanding that we transform old patterns and commit to the hard work of spiritual and material growth. The essence of this transit is learning to think AND act, to plan AND execute, to strategize AND move boldly. Neither pure action without thought nor pure thinking without action will succeed. The integration of both, channeled through Saturn’s discipline in Capricorn, can produce remarkable achievements.
Remember that Capricorn is connected to freeing the spiritual from its material prison. Even our greatest achievements in the material world serve this higher purpose when undertaken with awareness and dharmic intention.
Barry Rosen has been practicing Vedic astrology since 1987. He has visited and studied in India on 4 occasions and has spoken numerous times at the American Council of Vedic Astrology Conferences in Sedona, AZ since 1999 and also the British Association of Vedic Astrologers in London since 2006. He has been involved in Vedic culture since 1973 and is a long-time meditation and yoga teacher and a published poet.
Recently, he has been pioneering research in other areas of Vedic astrology including Vedic Astro-locality, the effects your current physical location have on your chart, connecting astrology to hatha yoga for therapeutic purposes and developing transformational healing work to move through karma and the spiritual dimensions of Vedic astrology. He is a Neo-Vedic astrologer and uses the outer planets. He is particularly interested in Jaimini astrology and the soul’s journey through the physical world and its karma and purpose and has taken live seminars in London with Sanjay Rath.
For questions, please contact Barry by email mail to: [email protected] or call Fortucast at 800-788-2796.
Source: ASTRO BLOG Archives – Applied Vedic Astrology – www.appliedvedicastrology.com
