Full Moon in Cancer • February 1, 2026
The full moon will reach its peak on Sunday, February 1, 2026 at 5:09 PM ET. The Moon is located at 18-19 degrees Cancer, directly opposite the Sun at 18-19 degrees Capricorn. This places the Moon deep within the Ashlesha Nakshatra (serpent’s coil) and fixes the Sun in Saturn’s mountain of responsibility.
Through decades of practice, I have watched this Cancer-Capricorn axis play out as one of the most fundamental tensions in human experience. It is the attraction between the desire for emotional security (Cancer) and the desire for external accomplishment and status (Capricorn). This full moon intensifies that struggle, especially since Ashlesha itself is a very complex and intense nakshatra.
Ashleesha: Clinging Star
Ashleesha is ruled by Mercury and ruled by Naga, the ancient serpent god of wisdom. While last month’s Pusha provided us with the “cow’s udder” – pure nourishment and support, Ashlesha provides us with the “snake’s embrace”. This is the energy of intense attachment, keen intuition, and at its shadow level, the coiling control of manipulation and toxic thinking.
The snake symbolism here is important. Snakes are protective, but they are also territorial. They have long memories and can attack when threatened. When the moon passes through Ashleesha, our emotional bodies remember every minor hurt, every hurt, every moment when we felt abandoned or betrayed. With the disciplined Capricorn Sun opposed to this placement, you may feel caught between your deepest emotional needs and the ruthless demands of duty, work, reputation, etc.
saturn squeeze
With the Sun in Saturn’s Capricorn sign, this full moon has a heavy, solemn feel to it. Saturn does not release emotions easily. They want structure, responsibility, and results. You may feel a painful pressure. Your mind wants to escape to a place of safety and comfort, but your responsibilities require you to keep climbing mountains, keep performing, and keep maintaining your place in the world.
When the Moon occupies Mercury-ruled Ashleesha and the Sun approaches from Capricorn, the mind becomes calculating and fearful. This is where fantasy thinking takes hold. You may convince yourself that you are a failure, that disaster is imminent, and that everyone around you is competition or a threat to your safety. The snake’s defensive instinct can turn into paranoia.
Reality check: Do you actually have a problem, or is your nervous system simply overwhelmed by the weight of Saturn and the coiling intensity of Ashleesha? This nakshatra can make you attached to perceived threats. Don’t let anxious mind loops drown out the truth of your own steady progress.
What this moon asks of you
This full moon wants you to let go of what’s eating away at your peace: old grudges, bitter memories, and stories about why you can’t trust anyone. Although the Ashlesha snake has a long memory, it does not need to remain poisonous. Use Saturn’s discipline to consciously archive what hurts and close this chapter.
Here are some that may help:
Removes mental toxins. Ashlesha is associated with poison (sarpa). This is a critical time to avoid harmful media, toxic conversations, and environments that trigger survival instincts. Your nervous system is already on high alert. Don’t give it any more reason to wrap its nervous system around itself tightly.
Supports digestion. Both Cancer and Capricorn influence your digestive fire, and the emotional intensity of this Full Moon can literally make your stomach tighten. Focus on foods that are warm, nutritious, and easy to digest. This isn’t the weekend for heavy, complicated meals.
Breathe through the narrowing. Mercury rules Ashleesha and rules the nervous system. If you feel trapped between work and emotions, deep, slow breathing sends a signal to your body that it’s actually safe. The threat is in your mind, not in the reality right in front of you.
Maintain a balance between home and mountain. The Cancer-Capricorn axis asks you to honor both your need for emotional security and your worldly responsibilities. You don’t have to choose one or the other. The task is to find a rhythm between them.
please remember this
A snake’s embrace may feel suffocating, but it can also be protective. Ashleesha’s intensity is meant to help you shed your old skin, not to get you stuck in fear. Saturn’s mountains may look cold and harsh, but climbing them will build up your stamina.
This full moon is not here to break you. This book is here to show you where you’re holding on too much: old wounds, stubborn expectations, stories where you have to choose between your heart and your ambitions. you don’t. Just breathe, let go of your grip, keep an open mind and keep climbing.
There’s nothing to fear. God is always guiding us through these initiations and you are more resilient than you think.
About the author
Barry Rosen has been practicing Vedic Astrology since 1987. He has traveled to India four times to study, and has spoken numerous times since 1999 at the American Vedic Astrology Council conference in Sedona, Arizona, and since 2006 at the British Association of Vedic Astrologers in London. He has been involved in Vedic culture since 1973, has been teaching meditation and yoga for many years, and is a published poet.
More recently, he has conducted pioneering research in other areas of Vedic astrology, including the regional nature of Vedic astrology, the influence of current physical location on the chart, linking astrology to hatha yoga for therapeutic purposes, and developing transformative healing work for navigating through karma and the spiritual dimensions of Vedic astrology. He is a neo-Vedic astrologer and uses outer planets. He is particularly interested in Jaimini astrology and the soul’s journey through the material world, its karma and purpose, and has attended live seminars with Sanjay Rath in London.
If you have any questions, please email Barry. [email protected] Or call Fortucast at 800-788-7296.
Source: ASTRO BLOG Archives – Applied Vedic Astrology – www.appliedvedicastrology.com
