This up-coming Full Moon in Cancer, January 19, sort of crept up on me. Although it is still officially winter, I can feel the energy of Spring. I think it is due to the up-coming ingress of two planets into Aries - Jupiter January 22, Uranus March 12.
Time is moving faster as Jupiter moves into Aries, soon to be followed by Uranus.
Projects that I have had on a back burner for months are suddenly manifesting. My Virgo ascendant keeps saying "not ready! wait! stop!" But my progressed New Moon in Gemini in the 10th house is ready to roll.
First new offering is my Pluto Through the Houses Course. A four week course featuring Pluto as viewed through the Evolutionary Astrology perspective.
Each week we will cover three house/sign archetypes. You have the option of taking the whole course for a discounted price, or just the one/ones that relate to you.
Everyone must take the Introductory class, which covers the basic principles of Evolutionary Astrology and the role Pluto plays in the chart. It will be offered three times so that you have a chance to take it before the Course starts in April.
The dates for the Introductory Class are:
Sunday, February 27, 2-4
Saturday, March 5, 2-4
They will be offered at the Songbird Community Healing Center in Cotati.
The four week Course will be first and third Saturdays of April and first and third Saturdays in May. April 2 and 16, 2-4pm and Saturday May 7 and 21, 2-4pm.
Each class is $25.00 or $90.00 for all four.
The Introductory Class is $15-$25 sliding scale
Register here at the PayPal button in the sidebar or through the Songbird Center website.
Now on to this Full Moon. Cancer, ruled by the Moon often represents the Mother or the Nurturer. That which sustains life so that it can reach maturity (Capricorn).
Stephanie Austin in The Mountain Astrologer says, "The first water sign (Cancer) teaches about feelings, family and food; how emotions function as our spiritual GPS; the importance of where, how, and with whom we live; and what helps us to grow."
It is important that she connects spirituality to emotions. In the West at least, we often connect spirituality with thought and the mind. We believe, often unconsciously, that emotions are connected with the body, which in the Christian tradition, is often considered the source of evil. Actually you cannot separate any of it. It is all a system - the body affects the mind, the mind the emotions, the emotions the body. What came first - the chicken or the egg?
Spiritual technologies that seek to control the mind and thought often leave out the next crucial part. It is not the thoughts themselves that affect us, but their relationship to emotions. If you have a thought and it is neutral...then no effect. But if a thought sparks an emotion (which it often does) then you have a bodily response and that can be detrimental to your health and well-being.
It might sound indulgent to say that being happy is good for you... but it's true! Being happy can be a result of gratitude, it does not mean you just bought a new Lexus!
Happiness is not dependent on your status or accomplishments although Hollywood and Madison Avenue have learned how to manipulate us so well, we now associate happiness with whatever they tell us we should have, be or do. They learned early on how to control us and they do. Most people are totally unaware of this type of programming.
Lately I have been watching T.V. a lot because I have been visiting an elderly relative. I have not had T.V. in my home for nearly 17 years because of where I live. I had heard horror stories about what has been going on there, but I had no idea how bad it had gotten. After a couple nights of watching T.V. I began to have an uncontrollable desire to eat. Being the analytical person I am, I sought an explanation for this insatiable hunger. I realized that it was due to frustration. Watching T.V. made me feel powerless. The one thing I could do, was run to the kitchen during every commercial break and grab something, ANYTHING to eat. I was eating stale crackers!
Why frustrated? One thing was the flashing images... they have speeded everything up. There was no time to process what I was seeing. Just as I would begin to wrap my mind around something, the image changed. I never got to see what the result was or even what happened next. Some shows were extremely bad. The worst I saw was Inside Edition. They spent more time saying what they were going to cover than actually covering it. It was hard to tell what was the content of the show and what was an advertisement. After awhile, it didn't matter. It was all sound and action bites, which left me 'hungry' for the meal....which was in the kitchen.
So we have come full circle to Cancer (which rules the stomach) and food...that which nourishes us.
We have to learn to eat what is good for us, not what is dished out by the media. We need to turn the electronics off. We don't have to take it in. We need to feel the effects of the things we consume...whether it be ideas, food, images, sounds - whatever. Limit or reject that which feels toxic, because it probably is to you. So what if people say "you are too sensitive." How can you be too sensitive? Especially if you have to 'toughen up' to withstand it?
"You are what you eat" was a slogan that came out at the end of the 50s. It was probably part of a T.V. ad (ha!ha!). But it is true. And it refers not only to food but to all forms of energy that enters your body.
It is especially important now that we are going through this huge energetic shift to feel the effects of everything and anything you are exposed to and to limit or stop contact with whatever makes you feel sick.
Learn to take care of yourself. Don't ingest poison in any form.
Showing posts with label Stephanie Austin. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Stephanie Austin. Show all posts
Tuesday, January 18, 2011
Sunday, April 25, 2010
Scorpio Full Moon - April 28, 2010
Once again we approach a Full Moon. I don't know about you but things seem to be moving faster all the time. Sometimes it feels like every day is a Full Moon in terms of intensity and the amount and rate of change that is occurring.
Perhaps I am feeling the coming of this next Full Moon more intensely because it will be conjunct my South Node and my natal Chiron. Which, of course, means the Sun will be conjunct my North Node, which is great!
I certainly have been having many opportunities to relive, review and heal past traumas both internally and in my relationships.
This is one of the keys to developing our consciousness. Rather than seeing these upswellings of the past as 'bad memories' to be forgotten... see them as toxins rising to the surface to be released and exhaled out of your being.
When we acknowledge them, recognize them and see how they have affected us as objectively as possible, then do something different, we experience miracles.
We need to feel, not numb out. The reason past traumas stay inside us is because we are not willing to feel their pain. We put off feeling it as long as we can, but it doesn't go away. Once we are present to the pain, it goes away. It's kind of like monsters in a dream. If we run, they will chase us forever. When we turn and face them, they vanish in thin air, never to return. Many people develop illness because they are unwilling to experience emotional pain. Instead, they experience it as physical pain.
With the Sun in Taurus and the Moon in Scorpio, which both relate to security issues such as food and money, many of us are feeling a lot of fear about the future. On Earth Day, KPFA had many special programs about the effects of climate change. One of the issues that directly affects all of us is FOOD. So used to having food easily available at the local supermarket (even if we don't have the money to buy it), we tend to take it for granted. We know it is there. But at some point, the changing climate will affect crops. It already has in some areas of the world.
Yesterday I had a booth selling my herbal products at the Harvest for the Hungry Plant Sale. (See my herb blog) Next to me was a woman selling plants including berry and grape vines. She was also promoting IGrow and the upcoming 350 event. I think she was dismayed at how many people had no idea what 350 referred to - especially since we were in the part of town where more affluent and educated people live and they were there to buy vegetable starts for their gardens. I heard her explaining it all day. By contrast, I didn't have to explain 2012 once (I make and sell a flower essence blend called 2012 - see my 2012 blog)
When no one was there, I asked her if she really thought we could do something about it in time. She admitted that while she thought it was probably impossible, one still had to try, "What else can you do?"
I agree, working toward a sustainable future is the only game in town. As I have seen with energy work, intention is possibly the most important element in the process. The mere act of setting intention, which focuses one's attention in a particular direction, propels you halfway there.
Taurus, although ruled by Venus, is more closely associated with Earth and there are some astrologers who suggest we should change the rulership. One thing about Taurus is that it is slow and steady - sometimes boring in its adherence to patterns and routines. Let us not get bogged down with this idea of slowness when it comes to change, however.
While the forces that create earthquakes and volcanoes take time to build up, once they have arrived at a particular threshold, the shaking and explosions are felt quickly in the moment. Drip drip drip in the bucket until it overflows all at once.
There are those who say that the climate change we are now experiencing began with the first agriculture several thousand years ago, because it made it possible to sustain more people. This is the major cause of climate change - overpopulation. Many of the inventions that create pollution came as necessary developments when managing the growing population.
I hate to say it folks, but sustainable means small not mega. In our own lives, we see that while our imaginations may make anything possible, the restraints of time and energy means that little actually gets done.
In my house, I have enough cross-stitch patterns to keep dozens of people busy all day for their entire lifetime, yet when I was into it, I kept acquiring more. Now, while I rarely touch cross-stitch, I still can't part with my patterns because "maybe someday I will get to them." Yeah, right. Probably not in this lifetime. Not unless I stop doing all the other things I do, or I figure out a way to do it while I am online.
Yesterday at the sale, I spoke with other vendors about how difficult it is to set up and take down shows. We all need to have more venues to make more money, but our backs could not take anymore lifting. The limits of the body are real (at least on this level).
So too, are the limits of the Earth's carrying capacity. Scientists like Michio Kaku say we have always had massive earthquakes. The difference today is 1) our communication systems allow us to hear about them and 2) people live in densely populated areas and so there is more loss of life and destruction of property. Tremendous explosions of volcanoes which have destroyed whole cities have always been part of Earth's history (remember Pompeii?). The difference is that cities are now larger than ever and there is little space between them.
The "San Francisco Bay Area" stretches from the northern border of the state of California to the southern. (Some would prefer to call it LA.) There are few areas of the coast of California that are uninhabited. Certainly there are no areas where humans have not affected the environment in one way or another.
Taurus deals with personal resources and Scorpio with shared resources. We are under the illusion that there is a difference. In astrology an axis - say between the 2nd and 8th house does not so much deal with differences as with perspectives on the same issue. As Above So Below... a matter of perspective and focus... the inner and the outer...So our personal resources are related to collective resources.
We need to begin to identify our inner resources and to bring them out into the collective. I refer to such things as our "character" a seldom-used term in the modern world. Who we are as people. What kind of people we are. Rather than what we do or what we have.
Anyone who has been in a crisis where they had to live in a shelter or on a lifeboat or something like that.. knows that that type of situation (where no one has anything) can bring out the best and the worst in people. In the next few years, earth changes will show us all that we have always been living in a lifeboat and that we have soiled our own nest.
What we do about it now will reveal who we really are as individuals and as a species. Some will get busy and clean, others will complain and blame, still others will just go to sleep. Which one will you be?
It is time to assess your inner resources. Not just how much money you have because what is needed now money cannot buy. In fact, money and stuff might cloud your judgement since it will provide you with a false sense of security.
Being prepared now does not mean stock-piling canned goods and batteries, for they, too, will eventually run out. Being prepared now means being calm and still like the Buddha while events swirl around one. Finding the center of the storm and abiding there.
In her article on this month's Full Moon in Scorpio in The Mountain Astrologer, Stephanie Austin quotes the Sabian symbols: Sun at 9 degrees Taurus: "A fully decorated Christmas tree; the ability to create inner happiness in dark hours" and Moon at 9 degrees Scorpio: "A dentist at work; overcoming the negative results of social practices and ego-cravings." She encourages us to release the fears that are holding us back.
I would add that we need to stop worrying what others think of us. As a friend once said to me over and over, "you wouldn't worry as much about what others think if you knew how little they think at all." Unfortunately, true. Most people are "asleep at the switch" as my mother would have said. For those of us who strive to be awake, this means that we can accomplish much, since no one is really paying attention. No one is at the controls of the "machine." Intention, focus and energy will accomplish much toward the Shift that we are seeking.
Perhaps I am feeling the coming of this next Full Moon more intensely because it will be conjunct my South Node and my natal Chiron. Which, of course, means the Sun will be conjunct my North Node, which is great!
I certainly have been having many opportunities to relive, review and heal past traumas both internally and in my relationships.
This is one of the keys to developing our consciousness. Rather than seeing these upswellings of the past as 'bad memories' to be forgotten... see them as toxins rising to the surface to be released and exhaled out of your being.
When we acknowledge them, recognize them and see how they have affected us as objectively as possible, then do something different, we experience miracles.
We need to feel, not numb out. The reason past traumas stay inside us is because we are not willing to feel their pain. We put off feeling it as long as we can, but it doesn't go away. Once we are present to the pain, it goes away. It's kind of like monsters in a dream. If we run, they will chase us forever. When we turn and face them, they vanish in thin air, never to return. Many people develop illness because they are unwilling to experience emotional pain. Instead, they experience it as physical pain.
With the Sun in Taurus and the Moon in Scorpio, which both relate to security issues such as food and money, many of us are feeling a lot of fear about the future. On Earth Day, KPFA had many special programs about the effects of climate change. One of the issues that directly affects all of us is FOOD. So used to having food easily available at the local supermarket (even if we don't have the money to buy it), we tend to take it for granted. We know it is there. But at some point, the changing climate will affect crops. It already has in some areas of the world.
Yesterday I had a booth selling my herbal products at the Harvest for the Hungry Plant Sale. (See my herb blog) Next to me was a woman selling plants including berry and grape vines. She was also promoting IGrow and the upcoming 350 event. I think she was dismayed at how many people had no idea what 350 referred to - especially since we were in the part of town where more affluent and educated people live and they were there to buy vegetable starts for their gardens. I heard her explaining it all day. By contrast, I didn't have to explain 2012 once (I make and sell a flower essence blend called 2012 - see my 2012 blog)
When no one was there, I asked her if she really thought we could do something about it in time. She admitted that while she thought it was probably impossible, one still had to try, "What else can you do?"
I agree, working toward a sustainable future is the only game in town. As I have seen with energy work, intention is possibly the most important element in the process. The mere act of setting intention, which focuses one's attention in a particular direction, propels you halfway there.
Taurus, although ruled by Venus, is more closely associated with Earth and there are some astrologers who suggest we should change the rulership. One thing about Taurus is that it is slow and steady - sometimes boring in its adherence to patterns and routines. Let us not get bogged down with this idea of slowness when it comes to change, however.
While the forces that create earthquakes and volcanoes take time to build up, once they have arrived at a particular threshold, the shaking and explosions are felt quickly in the moment. Drip drip drip in the bucket until it overflows all at once.
There are those who say that the climate change we are now experiencing began with the first agriculture several thousand years ago, because it made it possible to sustain more people. This is the major cause of climate change - overpopulation. Many of the inventions that create pollution came as necessary developments when managing the growing population.
I hate to say it folks, but sustainable means small not mega. In our own lives, we see that while our imaginations may make anything possible, the restraints of time and energy means that little actually gets done.
In my house, I have enough cross-stitch patterns to keep dozens of people busy all day for their entire lifetime, yet when I was into it, I kept acquiring more. Now, while I rarely touch cross-stitch, I still can't part with my patterns because "maybe someday I will get to them." Yeah, right. Probably not in this lifetime. Not unless I stop doing all the other things I do, or I figure out a way to do it while I am online.
Yesterday at the sale, I spoke with other vendors about how difficult it is to set up and take down shows. We all need to have more venues to make more money, but our backs could not take anymore lifting. The limits of the body are real (at least on this level).
So too, are the limits of the Earth's carrying capacity. Scientists like Michio Kaku say we have always had massive earthquakes. The difference today is 1) our communication systems allow us to hear about them and 2) people live in densely populated areas and so there is more loss of life and destruction of property. Tremendous explosions of volcanoes which have destroyed whole cities have always been part of Earth's history (remember Pompeii?). The difference is that cities are now larger than ever and there is little space between them.
The "San Francisco Bay Area" stretches from the northern border of the state of California to the southern. (Some would prefer to call it LA.) There are few areas of the coast of California that are uninhabited. Certainly there are no areas where humans have not affected the environment in one way or another.
Taurus deals with personal resources and Scorpio with shared resources. We are under the illusion that there is a difference. In astrology an axis - say between the 2nd and 8th house does not so much deal with differences as with perspectives on the same issue. As Above So Below... a matter of perspective and focus... the inner and the outer...So our personal resources are related to collective resources.
We need to begin to identify our inner resources and to bring them out into the collective. I refer to such things as our "character" a seldom-used term in the modern world. Who we are as people. What kind of people we are. Rather than what we do or what we have.
Anyone who has been in a crisis where they had to live in a shelter or on a lifeboat or something like that.. knows that that type of situation (where no one has anything) can bring out the best and the worst in people. In the next few years, earth changes will show us all that we have always been living in a lifeboat and that we have soiled our own nest.
What we do about it now will reveal who we really are as individuals and as a species. Some will get busy and clean, others will complain and blame, still others will just go to sleep. Which one will you be?
It is time to assess your inner resources. Not just how much money you have because what is needed now money cannot buy. In fact, money and stuff might cloud your judgement since it will provide you with a false sense of security.
Being prepared now does not mean stock-piling canned goods and batteries, for they, too, will eventually run out. Being prepared now means being calm and still like the Buddha while events swirl around one. Finding the center of the storm and abiding there.
In her article on this month's Full Moon in Scorpio in The Mountain Astrologer, Stephanie Austin quotes the Sabian symbols: Sun at 9 degrees Taurus: "A fully decorated Christmas tree; the ability to create inner happiness in dark hours" and Moon at 9 degrees Scorpio: "A dentist at work; overcoming the negative results of social practices and ego-cravings." She encourages us to release the fears that are holding us back.
I would add that we need to stop worrying what others think of us. As a friend once said to me over and over, "you wouldn't worry as much about what others think if you knew how little they think at all." Unfortunately, true. Most people are "asleep at the switch" as my mother would have said. For those of us who strive to be awake, this means that we can accomplish much, since no one is really paying attention. No one is at the controls of the "machine." Intention, focus and energy will accomplish much toward the Shift that we are seeking.
Sunday, December 13, 2009
Lighten Your Load, Enlighten Your Soul - New Moon December 16, 2009
The upcoming New Moon in Sagittarius at 24°39' on December 16, 2009, is conjunct the current location of the Galactic Center at 26°55'.
An enormous Black Hole was discovered at the center of our Milky Way Galaxy through the huge amounts of electromagnetic energy pouring out from it. Gamma, x-ray, infrared and radio waves coming out of the Galactic Center affect the electromagnetic fields of Earth and all its inhabitants.
This upcoming New Moon (conjunction of Sun and Moon) is conjunct the Galactic Center. Occurring just 5 days before the Solstice on December 21, I believe this is a very significant New Moon for seeding our intention for the next several years.
In general, New Moons represent new beginnings. A time to set your intention for the coming month. In many cultures, the month begins with the New Moon. The New Moon is actually the first sighting of the Moon after 2/3 days of Dark Moon - not being able to see the Moon at all.
Since we are only 3 years from December 21, 2012, I plan to set my intention on this New Moon because it is conjunct the Galactic Center and, significantly for me, conjunct my natal Jupiter and opposing my natal Uranus. This New Moon seeds my life for the next three years.
In my last long post on my 2012 blog, I wrote about the importance of focus. Interestingly, Stephanie Austin in her article in the current issue of The Mountain Astrologer, reiterates that theme saying "This New Moon in Sagittarius urges us to look deeply at our lives and the choices we are making. It reminds us of the power of focus -- just as a laser can do much more than a scattered beam of light, so our consciousness is vastly more powerful when we concentrate on our life purpose and what really matters."
Sagittarius, the ninth sign in the astrological cycle is represented by a man with the body of a horse. He holds a bow and aims his arrow high, seeking the answers to the BIG QUESTIONS.... What is the meaning of life? Why am I here? What is my purpose? Where did I come from? Where am I going?
While many people content themselves with job, family, home and recreation, some of us (like me) have been motivated to seek the answers to these questions. Since I have been on Facebook, I have been reuniting with many old friends and lovers. I was curious to see "how they turned out." They did the usual things... married, got jobs, had children, bought a house.
I have sought none of those things. Instead, I have been studying, traveling, sitting at the feet of spiritual teachers, meditating and contemplating the meaning of life, for as long as I can remember. Learning that my natal Jupiter conjuncts the Galactic Center and my natal Uranus opposes the GC, have helped me understand why I was so driven. Although we all have the GC at the same degree of Sagittarius in our natal charts, we vary in our house placements and planetary aspects. For a Galactic Center reading, please contact me.
The GC is located in my 4th house, which represents 'where you are coming from'. This can mean your home and family background, cultural conditioning, traditions you grew up with. I can also mean your soul's origin, the place you came from... in the larger sense. By contrast, the 10th house is who you will be in the world - your 'career' and what you will achieve while on planet Earth. You are born from the 4th house, you mature into the 10th and when you die, you return to the 4th.
With my Sun and Uranus in Gemini in the 10th house and Ascendant in Virgo, I see that part of my 'reason for being here' is to serve as a spokesperson for this time of cycle ending. Only after my many years of study, my travels and my experiences am I able to fulfill my mission.
I see my mission as twofold: 1) teaching the writing system so people can read what the ancient Maya said or did not say. 2) assisting people during this challenging time of transformation/transition through plant-based modalities such as flower essences and aromatherapy.
I teach courses on Maya Hieroglyphs, the Calendar and 2012, so, I read whatever I can find on these topics. As you can imagine, the quantity of material is increasing as we approach the date of December 21, 2012, the end of a cycle of 5125 years. There is very little that is original. Most is a rearranging of what others have said. I admit, it is difficult to have original ideas about this, because the 'data' is so limited. By data, I am referring to what the ancient Maya actually wrote. What we mostly have is New Age interpretation of the meaning of this upcoming event.
From time to time, I find something in this perusal of the literature that I believe can help people navigate this time period. Two concepts are crucial at this time and one might consider them especially during this New Moon.
The first is that of releasing and letting go. Lately many of us are being 'forced' to let go. Our lives may be more about loss than anything else right now. The secret then is to be okay with it. Mourn and grieve for a time, but move on. See yourself as on a journey where holding on weighs you down. You need to be free to move forward. Like refugees who start out with huge packs on their backs, then shed them as they go, leaving piles of stuff along the road, drop your baggage. It is weighing you down and where you are going, you won't need it. There is no way to fully prepare for what is coming so don't encumber yourself with packets of food or extra clothes.
The second is focus your attention and intention on the light up ahead. Make yourself into a laser beam which will connect you to the Light that is being directed towards us at this time. The more concentrated your light, the faster and easier it will be for you to move.
The word 'focus' is from Latin and it means 'hearth, cooking fire'. Traditionally, this was the center of a home or community. It later became symbolized as the place where the sacred fire was kept - an altar.
Mayan Cosmology, as reflected in the sky, posits the 'hearth of heaven', the 'three stone place' as composed of three stars, while the hearth of Earth is the traditional cooking fire in the home. The 'three stone place' is the place of creation. It is marked by Alnitak (one of the three stars in the belt of Orion), Saiph and Rigel)(Alnitak is in the position which corresponds to the Great Pyramid at Giza.) At the center of this triangular 'hearth' sits the M42 nebula which often appears 'smoky' due to clouds. One might ask themselves how the Maya could see this with unaided vision.
Sufis see the heart as the center of the human being. Cultivating the fire in the heart has to do with compassion, acceptance, forgiveness - Love. Many of the spiritual practices of Sufism have to do with removing the rust that coats the heart and prevents us from truly seeing each other as the sparks of the Divine that we truly are. Our hearts have become armored through betrayal, disappointment, and fear. Our job is purify ourselves by letting go of the pain - dropping our burden. We don't have to hang on to it. We need to move forward in Trust that all our needs will be taken care of. Lighten your load, enlighten your soul.
Now is the time to begin. Each moment offers another opportunity to begin again. The more times you begin the more chance you have of continuing. It is significant that this New Moon occurs the day before the Urs of Mevlana Jelaluddin Rumi (Urs means the reunion with the Beloved, the wedding day - death.) One of his poems says:
Come, come, whoever you are.
Wanderer, worshiper, lover of leaving.
It doesn't matter.
Ours is not a caravan of despair.
Come, even if you have broken your vow
a thousand times.
Come, yet again, come, come.
~Inscribed on Rumi's Shrine in Konya, Turkey
Four years ago at this time, I was there along with pilgrims from all over the world. Another saying written in his tomb is: "Do not look for me in the tomb. I am not there. I am in the hearts of the Believers."
An enormous Black Hole was discovered at the center of our Milky Way Galaxy through the huge amounts of electromagnetic energy pouring out from it. Gamma, x-ray, infrared and radio waves coming out of the Galactic Center affect the electromagnetic fields of Earth and all its inhabitants.
This upcoming New Moon (conjunction of Sun and Moon) is conjunct the Galactic Center. Occurring just 5 days before the Solstice on December 21, I believe this is a very significant New Moon for seeding our intention for the next several years.
In general, New Moons represent new beginnings. A time to set your intention for the coming month. In many cultures, the month begins with the New Moon. The New Moon is actually the first sighting of the Moon after 2/3 days of Dark Moon - not being able to see the Moon at all.
Since we are only 3 years from December 21, 2012, I plan to set my intention on this New Moon because it is conjunct the Galactic Center and, significantly for me, conjunct my natal Jupiter and opposing my natal Uranus. This New Moon seeds my life for the next three years.
In my last long post on my 2012 blog, I wrote about the importance of focus. Interestingly, Stephanie Austin in her article in the current issue of The Mountain Astrologer, reiterates that theme saying "This New Moon in Sagittarius urges us to look deeply at our lives and the choices we are making. It reminds us of the power of focus -- just as a laser can do much more than a scattered beam of light, so our consciousness is vastly more powerful when we concentrate on our life purpose and what really matters."
Sagittarius, the ninth sign in the astrological cycle is represented by a man with the body of a horse. He holds a bow and aims his arrow high, seeking the answers to the BIG QUESTIONS.... What is the meaning of life? Why am I here? What is my purpose? Where did I come from? Where am I going?
While many people content themselves with job, family, home and recreation, some of us (like me) have been motivated to seek the answers to these questions. Since I have been on Facebook, I have been reuniting with many old friends and lovers. I was curious to see "how they turned out." They did the usual things... married, got jobs, had children, bought a house.
I have sought none of those things. Instead, I have been studying, traveling, sitting at the feet of spiritual teachers, meditating and contemplating the meaning of life, for as long as I can remember. Learning that my natal Jupiter conjuncts the Galactic Center and my natal Uranus opposes the GC, have helped me understand why I was so driven. Although we all have the GC at the same degree of Sagittarius in our natal charts, we vary in our house placements and planetary aspects. For a Galactic Center reading, please contact me.
The GC is located in my 4th house, which represents 'where you are coming from'. This can mean your home and family background, cultural conditioning, traditions you grew up with. I can also mean your soul's origin, the place you came from... in the larger sense. By contrast, the 10th house is who you will be in the world - your 'career' and what you will achieve while on planet Earth. You are born from the 4th house, you mature into the 10th and when you die, you return to the 4th.
With my Sun and Uranus in Gemini in the 10th house and Ascendant in Virgo, I see that part of my 'reason for being here' is to serve as a spokesperson for this time of cycle ending. Only after my many years of study, my travels and my experiences am I able to fulfill my mission.
I see my mission as twofold: 1) teaching the writing system so people can read what the ancient Maya said or did not say. 2) assisting people during this challenging time of transformation/transition through plant-based modalities such as flower essences and aromatherapy.
I teach courses on Maya Hieroglyphs, the Calendar and 2012, so, I read whatever I can find on these topics. As you can imagine, the quantity of material is increasing as we approach the date of December 21, 2012, the end of a cycle of 5125 years. There is very little that is original. Most is a rearranging of what others have said. I admit, it is difficult to have original ideas about this, because the 'data' is so limited. By data, I am referring to what the ancient Maya actually wrote. What we mostly have is New Age interpretation of the meaning of this upcoming event.
From time to time, I find something in this perusal of the literature that I believe can help people navigate this time period. Two concepts are crucial at this time and one might consider them especially during this New Moon.
The first is that of releasing and letting go. Lately many of us are being 'forced' to let go. Our lives may be more about loss than anything else right now. The secret then is to be okay with it. Mourn and grieve for a time, but move on. See yourself as on a journey where holding on weighs you down. You need to be free to move forward. Like refugees who start out with huge packs on their backs, then shed them as they go, leaving piles of stuff along the road, drop your baggage. It is weighing you down and where you are going, you won't need it. There is no way to fully prepare for what is coming so don't encumber yourself with packets of food or extra clothes.
The second is focus your attention and intention on the light up ahead. Make yourself into a laser beam which will connect you to the Light that is being directed towards us at this time. The more concentrated your light, the faster and easier it will be for you to move.
The word 'focus' is from Latin and it means 'hearth, cooking fire'. Traditionally, this was the center of a home or community. It later became symbolized as the place where the sacred fire was kept - an altar.
Mayan Cosmology, as reflected in the sky, posits the 'hearth of heaven', the 'three stone place' as composed of three stars, while the hearth of Earth is the traditional cooking fire in the home. The 'three stone place' is the place of creation. It is marked by Alnitak (one of the three stars in the belt of Orion), Saiph and Rigel)(Alnitak is in the position which corresponds to the Great Pyramid at Giza.) At the center of this triangular 'hearth' sits the M42 nebula which often appears 'smoky' due to clouds. One might ask themselves how the Maya could see this with unaided vision.
Sufis see the heart as the center of the human being. Cultivating the fire in the heart has to do with compassion, acceptance, forgiveness - Love. Many of the spiritual practices of Sufism have to do with removing the rust that coats the heart and prevents us from truly seeing each other as the sparks of the Divine that we truly are. Our hearts have become armored through betrayal, disappointment, and fear. Our job is purify ourselves by letting go of the pain - dropping our burden. We don't have to hang on to it. We need to move forward in Trust that all our needs will be taken care of. Lighten your load, enlighten your soul.
Now is the time to begin. Each moment offers another opportunity to begin again. The more times you begin the more chance you have of continuing. It is significant that this New Moon occurs the day before the Urs of Mevlana Jelaluddin Rumi (Urs means the reunion with the Beloved, the wedding day - death.) One of his poems says:
Come, come, whoever you are.
Wanderer, worshiper, lover of leaving.
It doesn't matter.
Ours is not a caravan of despair.
Come, even if you have broken your vow
a thousand times.
Come, yet again, come, come.
~Inscribed on Rumi's Shrine in Konya, Turkey
Four years ago at this time, I was there along with pilgrims from all over the world. Another saying written in his tomb is: "Do not look for me in the tomb. I am not there. I am in the hearts of the Believers."
Friday, November 13, 2009
New Moon in Scorpio - November 16
There is a lot going on in the heavens right now and as the title of this blog... from the Emerald Tablets of Hermes Trismegistus say.. As Above, So Below, there is a lot going on here on Earth.
Most people I know are going through huge changes. It seems everyone in is flux.... moving, major changes in income (mostly going down), dealing with health challenges. There has been a lot of death of people and pets, among my acquaintances.
In addition to the New Moon, which is a conjunction of Sun and Moon, there are other significant transits occurring - the New Moon squares the ongoing conjunction of Juptier, Chiron and Neptune in Aquarius. If that weren't enough, Pluto squares Saturn the day before this New Moon. Whew! Can we find any stability in times like these?
Scorpio is a complex sign and one that is not easily understood, even by natives. They are often unable to understand themselves throughout their entire lives. Because of the depth and hidden nature of their ruling planet, Pluto, Scorpios who are not 'into' self-analysis or reflection, opt to live very material, externally motivated lives. Thus they can appear superficial. While this may be an unattractive, unexamined life that people reading this blog may want to avoid, it can give us a clue as to how to navigate this time of upheaval. Whatever is going on... don't take it personally. It is not your fault.
If you find that you are not able to figure out what to do next or what is going on....take a hint from the Scorpio/Taurus axis when it is 'unevolved'. Focus on the superficial. Huh? What I mean by this is... spend more time doing the small daily tasks. Cook your own food, rather than buying pre-made meals or going out. Can't cook? Learn. Start simple. Fix small things around the house, do crafts, wash the floor. Rather than adding to frustration and confusion by 'thinking' too much, stay grounded in mundane activities. Work on tangible things like...your yard, cleaning the closet, painting the bathroom.
This may appear to be 'denial' but by keep your mind and body occupied with tasks that are useful, practical and might save you some money, you will actually allow the intuitive function to kick in. Have you ever 'tried' to have a transcendent experience (without artificial means like drugs)? Did it work? But have they not just come to you while you were doing something else? - like walking in Nature. By keeping the mind and body busy, there is more space for the metaphysical to arrive. Inspiration often comes when you are not looking for it. I get a lot of ideas while washing dishes.
One of the metaphors for the transformational process is the butterfly. It begins as a caterpillar - an unattractive and, to some, disgusting creature. Certainly it is 'mindless' right? But....this so-called ignorant creature makes a cocoon around itself, goes to sleep and emerges as the extraordinary and magical creature we call a butterfly.
Does the caterpillar know what it is doing? Preparing an incubating chamber for its eventual transformation into a 'light being'? For all it knows, it is merely finding a twig, attaching itself then spinning the goo that comes out of its body into a home or a bed. The caterpillar/butterfly is 'programmed' to do this. It can no more say "No, I don't want to do this" than it can say, "I want it now, I don't want to wait, why do I have to bother with the cocoon?" "Why am I doing this?" It cannot stop its destiny.
Let us take our cue from this. Are we not also programmed to transcend, to ascend, to become light beings? Can we control the timing of it?
One of the lessons of now is that we are being asked (some would say forced) to surrender. We are being shown in many ways something that Gurdjieff said decades ago "we cannot do", which means that we live under many levels of laws of Nature etc. No matter how much we want the weather to be great on the day of the party we planned, we cannot control it. Our inability to control our circumstances, to make anything happen, to understand what is going on, to know what to do next....FRUSTRATING! A solution? Stop trying and just BE.
For those of us who subscribe to astrology, the planets also impose 'laws' on us. Saturn is the god of time. As long as we live at this level, we are subject to time. That includes timing. Sometimes the action is right, but the timing is not.
If you don't know what to do next...follow the teaching of Rumi: You are drunk and on the roof. Don't move or you will fall off. Just sit down where you are and be there. Learn to wait, be patient. (My interpretation)
Meanwhile, do what you CAN do...work on your cocoon. There is nothing you need to learn. You have it all already. It is part of your programming. Just take care of business on this plane as best you can.
Fifteen years ago, on November 12, 1994, I went to my first Sufi Dance in Sebastopol. Being involved in Sufism has been a very satisfying experience. I thank all my teachers. One of the teachings of Sufism is "die before death". I have often compared this to the teaching of Don Juan (Carlos Castaneda) who says to let death be an advisor.
If you died today, (no this is not morbid - it's Scorpionic) what would matter about your life? Who are you? asks the hookah smoking caterpillar in Alice in Wonderland. WHO ARE YOU? Are you your house, car, job, bills, material possessions? If they were all gone, would you die? If they.... who is 'they'? took it all away and you were standing there naked, what would you do next? Scream? Cry? Faint?
Stephanie Austin in her article for this New Moon in The Mountain Astrologer gives the following quote: You only really discover the strength of your spine when your back is against the wall." (James Geary).
I learned this lesson on the physical plane the Thanksgiving after getting involved with the Sufis when one of the group took some of us rock-climbing. First we paired off - one person blindfolded, the other the guide, climbing up a hill on the way to The Rock. An extremely valuable experience. I was blindfolded. My guide was so concerned about my getting hurt, she was not able to give me any direction. We barely moved up that hill because she was paralyzed by concern. Finally, I started moving by intuition. I used my inner sight, feeling my way up the hill to the point where I was leading her. As it turned out this experience bonded us and We became fast friends. She couldn't understand how I had done it. By conquering fear with my body, not my mind. Feeling my way up the hill through my body.
Once we had gotten up the hill, those of us who wanted to take the challenge, climbed up a 40ft rock with an experienced person up top holding the rope attached to our harness. We had to go up a crack. I got stuck. The space got too small to raise my knee to get my foot up to the next foothold. My arms were not strong enough to pull myself up. I was caught in the crack, hardly able to move. I started to panic. I thought about all the ways I could not do it - all my limitations. Halfway up (halfway down) almost ready to yell out to be 'rescued'.
I remembered to breathe, calm my mind, get still. Suddenly I felt all of my body, not just the parts that did not do what I wanted.... feet, legs, knees, arms, hands, but the rest as well. Not strong enough, no room to maneuver....stuck. But I also felt my back against the rock. I started to slither, like a snake. Pushing up against the rock, using the rock as my friend, rather than my enemy. My back against the wall, I slithered my way up those few inches that made the footholds accessible. I got to a place where I could function in the ways I was most accustomed to, but I did it by finding a new way to use my back (my weak point). Since I have always had 'a weak back' this was an amazing discovery. I had not used my back for carrying, but for slithering. A new use for a bad back. It felt miraculous.
I suggest you reassess everything in your life. Find new uses, be creative. Rather than look at what is not working in your life... turn it all upside down. See how the obstacles can be turned into foundations for new activities. Question all your assumptions. Better yet, get rid of your assumptions. Don't take NO (or yes, for that matter) for an answer. If you feel like your world is upside down use that as an opening to a new way of being.
The Universe is supporting our transformation despite what you think about it. Trust that.
Most people I know are going through huge changes. It seems everyone in is flux.... moving, major changes in income (mostly going down), dealing with health challenges. There has been a lot of death of people and pets, among my acquaintances.
In addition to the New Moon, which is a conjunction of Sun and Moon, there are other significant transits occurring - the New Moon squares the ongoing conjunction of Juptier, Chiron and Neptune in Aquarius. If that weren't enough, Pluto squares Saturn the day before this New Moon. Whew! Can we find any stability in times like these?
Scorpio is a complex sign and one that is not easily understood, even by natives. They are often unable to understand themselves throughout their entire lives. Because of the depth and hidden nature of their ruling planet, Pluto, Scorpios who are not 'into' self-analysis or reflection, opt to live very material, externally motivated lives. Thus they can appear superficial. While this may be an unattractive, unexamined life that people reading this blog may want to avoid, it can give us a clue as to how to navigate this time of upheaval. Whatever is going on... don't take it personally. It is not your fault.
If you find that you are not able to figure out what to do next or what is going on....take a hint from the Scorpio/Taurus axis when it is 'unevolved'. Focus on the superficial. Huh? What I mean by this is... spend more time doing the small daily tasks. Cook your own food, rather than buying pre-made meals or going out. Can't cook? Learn. Start simple. Fix small things around the house, do crafts, wash the floor. Rather than adding to frustration and confusion by 'thinking' too much, stay grounded in mundane activities. Work on tangible things like...your yard, cleaning the closet, painting the bathroom.
This may appear to be 'denial' but by keep your mind and body occupied with tasks that are useful, practical and might save you some money, you will actually allow the intuitive function to kick in. Have you ever 'tried' to have a transcendent experience (without artificial means like drugs)? Did it work? But have they not just come to you while you were doing something else? - like walking in Nature. By keeping the mind and body busy, there is more space for the metaphysical to arrive. Inspiration often comes when you are not looking for it. I get a lot of ideas while washing dishes.
One of the metaphors for the transformational process is the butterfly. It begins as a caterpillar - an unattractive and, to some, disgusting creature. Certainly it is 'mindless' right? But....this so-called ignorant creature makes a cocoon around itself, goes to sleep and emerges as the extraordinary and magical creature we call a butterfly.
Does the caterpillar know what it is doing? Preparing an incubating chamber for its eventual transformation into a 'light being'? For all it knows, it is merely finding a twig, attaching itself then spinning the goo that comes out of its body into a home or a bed. The caterpillar/butterfly is 'programmed' to do this. It can no more say "No, I don't want to do this" than it can say, "I want it now, I don't want to wait, why do I have to bother with the cocoon?" "Why am I doing this?" It cannot stop its destiny.
Let us take our cue from this. Are we not also programmed to transcend, to ascend, to become light beings? Can we control the timing of it?
One of the lessons of now is that we are being asked (some would say forced) to surrender. We are being shown in many ways something that Gurdjieff said decades ago "we cannot do", which means that we live under many levels of laws of Nature etc. No matter how much we want the weather to be great on the day of the party we planned, we cannot control it. Our inability to control our circumstances, to make anything happen, to understand what is going on, to know what to do next....FRUSTRATING! A solution? Stop trying and just BE.
For those of us who subscribe to astrology, the planets also impose 'laws' on us. Saturn is the god of time. As long as we live at this level, we are subject to time. That includes timing. Sometimes the action is right, but the timing is not.
If you don't know what to do next...follow the teaching of Rumi: You are drunk and on the roof. Don't move or you will fall off. Just sit down where you are and be there. Learn to wait, be patient. (My interpretation)
Meanwhile, do what you CAN do...work on your cocoon. There is nothing you need to learn. You have it all already. It is part of your programming. Just take care of business on this plane as best you can.
Fifteen years ago, on November 12, 1994, I went to my first Sufi Dance in Sebastopol. Being involved in Sufism has been a very satisfying experience. I thank all my teachers. One of the teachings of Sufism is "die before death". I have often compared this to the teaching of Don Juan (Carlos Castaneda) who says to let death be an advisor.
If you died today, (no this is not morbid - it's Scorpionic) what would matter about your life? Who are you? asks the hookah smoking caterpillar in Alice in Wonderland. WHO ARE YOU? Are you your house, car, job, bills, material possessions? If they were all gone, would you die? If they.... who is 'they'? took it all away and you were standing there naked, what would you do next? Scream? Cry? Faint?
Stephanie Austin in her article for this New Moon in The Mountain Astrologer gives the following quote: You only really discover the strength of your spine when your back is against the wall." (James Geary).
I learned this lesson on the physical plane the Thanksgiving after getting involved with the Sufis when one of the group took some of us rock-climbing. First we paired off - one person blindfolded, the other the guide, climbing up a hill on the way to The Rock. An extremely valuable experience. I was blindfolded. My guide was so concerned about my getting hurt, she was not able to give me any direction. We barely moved up that hill because she was paralyzed by concern. Finally, I started moving by intuition. I used my inner sight, feeling my way up the hill to the point where I was leading her. As it turned out this experience bonded us and We became fast friends. She couldn't understand how I had done it. By conquering fear with my body, not my mind. Feeling my way up the hill through my body.
Once we had gotten up the hill, those of us who wanted to take the challenge, climbed up a 40ft rock with an experienced person up top holding the rope attached to our harness. We had to go up a crack. I got stuck. The space got too small to raise my knee to get my foot up to the next foothold. My arms were not strong enough to pull myself up. I was caught in the crack, hardly able to move. I started to panic. I thought about all the ways I could not do it - all my limitations. Halfway up (halfway down) almost ready to yell out to be 'rescued'.
I remembered to breathe, calm my mind, get still. Suddenly I felt all of my body, not just the parts that did not do what I wanted.... feet, legs, knees, arms, hands, but the rest as well. Not strong enough, no room to maneuver....stuck. But I also felt my back against the rock. I started to slither, like a snake. Pushing up against the rock, using the rock as my friend, rather than my enemy. My back against the wall, I slithered my way up those few inches that made the footholds accessible. I got to a place where I could function in the ways I was most accustomed to, but I did it by finding a new way to use my back (my weak point). Since I have always had 'a weak back' this was an amazing discovery. I had not used my back for carrying, but for slithering. A new use for a bad back. It felt miraculous.
I suggest you reassess everything in your life. Find new uses, be creative. Rather than look at what is not working in your life... turn it all upside down. See how the obstacles can be turned into foundations for new activities. Question all your assumptions. Better yet, get rid of your assumptions. Don't take NO (or yes, for that matter) for an answer. If you feel like your world is upside down use that as an opening to a new way of being.
The Universe is supporting our transformation despite what you think about it. Trust that.
Sunday, August 2, 2009
Follow Your Heart - Leap into the Lunar Eclipse August 5-6
My Summer class at Santa Rosa Junior College is complete and so I am free to post again for awhile. I taught a course on Mayan Hieroglyphs for six weeks. It went really well. I will be teaching it again in a month. The new class starts September 3. This time it won't be as difficult since I have already made the PowerPoint presentation and my ankle is healed, so I won't have to teach from a wheelchair with my friend Steve serving as my chauffeur.
Another eclipse is coming up in a few days. This time a Lunar Eclipse. Stephanie Austin in The Mountain Astrologer says that during the eclipse, solar energy is blocked by the Earth and that this in turn opens a portal in hyperspace.
Well, this got my attention since I am getting more and more into portal technology. Preparing to teach the hieroglyph class this time, I re-read all the old books and read many new books. I was struck by the fact that even though there were books I have read several times, each time I review the material, the meaning evolves as my level evolves. Passages I didn't notice before were jumping off the page and I wondered "How come I never noticed this before?"
It's about evolution. Funny how things we 'know' with our brain take on deeper significance when our state has evolved - even a little.
I see it as a spiral. While we may revisit certain areas of our lives or certain subjects, as we move upwards in the ascension process, we understand more.
I have taught this course several times in the past, but this time, I learned so much more myself that I would have liked to pass on to my students. Perhaps it is time to create an advanced class.
For me, these eclipses signal the fact that we are in extraordinary times. We all have the opportunity to make quantum leaps in our development. At the same time the pressures in our Earthly existence are so extreme (job loss, home loss, financial ruin, health challenges) if not to ourselves then to our loved ones. It is difficult to see that this is an attempt by the 'dementors of doom' (as Caroline Casey says) to take us off our path and stop us with fear. Huge distractions designed by the powers of stagnation and decay to keep us hooked into believing that what our hearts yearn for is impossible.
Yet, these 'dementors of doom' are not external. We cannot point a finger at 'them'. They are us. They are within us. They are projections of the saboteur that we all have.
Caroline Myss' work on archetypes that I find invaluable claims that everyone has 12 archetypal energies that form a type of 'board of directors' in our life. We created this board before the current incarnation to help us accomplish the task of this lifetime. While each of us has 8 that are unique to our individual selves, we all share 4. Each age has a different set of 4.
Currently we all share The Saboteur, The Prostitute, The Child, and The Victim. These archetypes have many facets which you can learn about in her major opus (in my estimation) Sacred Contracts (see Amazon add in sidebar). So, we each have a Saboteur whose task is not really to prevent us from evolving, etc., but whose task is to show us where we ruin our own lives. Where we 'get in our own way'. (A strange expression I never really understood.) Caroline Casey played a wonderful talk by Reverend Ike called "Get Your But Out of the Way".
When you hear yourself say, "Yes, but...." you are on your way to learning about your Saboteur. Since most of us (at least in the West) are so obsessed with money, we usually 'can't' do something because of money. So now money REALLY IS a problem. Or is it? Isn't that just an illusion? What were we thinking when we created that one. We thought not having $100,000 in our bank account was a problem. Now we are lucky if we have $100. It's like they said: "You want to complain? Complain about THIS!
The challenge here is to see that it is not money that makes something happen or not, it is intention, desire, 'love'. No amount of money in the world will make something happen if there is no desire for it. These things come from the Heart.
So.... stop complaining. Stop making excuses... Just DO IT! Or not, but don't blame anyone but yourself. Or... even better, don't blame anyone, especially yourself. Do or don't do, then let it go. If your Heart is not in it, let it go.
So what does all this have to do with eclipses? and especially this eclipse? Another opportunity to make a leap into the life you dream for yourself and humanity. We must all begin to dream a new world into being. Then when we have the image firmly established in our hearts, to leap into it whenever there is a portal.
Austin quotes Norman Vincent Peale at the end of her article: "Throw your heart over the fence, and the rest will follow."
Let your heart lead the way. Not your little heart, that loves so-and-so and hates so-and-so or want this-or-that and doesn't want something else. No. the big huge heart that is wise and connected to the Oneness of Creation.
Another eclipse is coming up in a few days. This time a Lunar Eclipse. Stephanie Austin in The Mountain Astrologer says that during the eclipse, solar energy is blocked by the Earth and that this in turn opens a portal in hyperspace.
Well, this got my attention since I am getting more and more into portal technology. Preparing to teach the hieroglyph class this time, I re-read all the old books and read many new books. I was struck by the fact that even though there were books I have read several times, each time I review the material, the meaning evolves as my level evolves. Passages I didn't notice before were jumping off the page and I wondered "How come I never noticed this before?"
It's about evolution. Funny how things we 'know' with our brain take on deeper significance when our state has evolved - even a little.
I see it as a spiral. While we may revisit certain areas of our lives or certain subjects, as we move upwards in the ascension process, we understand more.
I have taught this course several times in the past, but this time, I learned so much more myself that I would have liked to pass on to my students. Perhaps it is time to create an advanced class.
For me, these eclipses signal the fact that we are in extraordinary times. We all have the opportunity to make quantum leaps in our development. At the same time the pressures in our Earthly existence are so extreme (job loss, home loss, financial ruin, health challenges) if not to ourselves then to our loved ones. It is difficult to see that this is an attempt by the 'dementors of doom' (as Caroline Casey says) to take us off our path and stop us with fear. Huge distractions designed by the powers of stagnation and decay to keep us hooked into believing that what our hearts yearn for is impossible.
Yet, these 'dementors of doom' are not external. We cannot point a finger at 'them'. They are us. They are within us. They are projections of the saboteur that we all have.
Caroline Myss' work on archetypes that I find invaluable claims that everyone has 12 archetypal energies that form a type of 'board of directors' in our life. We created this board before the current incarnation to help us accomplish the task of this lifetime. While each of us has 8 that are unique to our individual selves, we all share 4. Each age has a different set of 4.
Currently we all share The Saboteur, The Prostitute, The Child, and The Victim. These archetypes have many facets which you can learn about in her major opus (in my estimation) Sacred Contracts (see Amazon add in sidebar). So, we each have a Saboteur whose task is not really to prevent us from evolving, etc., but whose task is to show us where we ruin our own lives. Where we 'get in our own way'. (A strange expression I never really understood.) Caroline Casey played a wonderful talk by Reverend Ike called "Get Your But Out of the Way".
When you hear yourself say, "Yes, but...." you are on your way to learning about your Saboteur. Since most of us (at least in the West) are so obsessed with money, we usually 'can't' do something because of money. So now money REALLY IS a problem. Or is it? Isn't that just an illusion? What were we thinking when we created that one. We thought not having $100,000 in our bank account was a problem. Now we are lucky if we have $100. It's like they said: "You want to complain? Complain about THIS!
The challenge here is to see that it is not money that makes something happen or not, it is intention, desire, 'love'. No amount of money in the world will make something happen if there is no desire for it. These things come from the Heart.
So.... stop complaining. Stop making excuses... Just DO IT! Or not, but don't blame anyone but yourself. Or... even better, don't blame anyone, especially yourself. Do or don't do, then let it go. If your Heart is not in it, let it go.
So what does all this have to do with eclipses? and especially this eclipse? Another opportunity to make a leap into the life you dream for yourself and humanity. We must all begin to dream a new world into being. Then when we have the image firmly established in our hearts, to leap into it whenever there is a portal.
Austin quotes Norman Vincent Peale at the end of her article: "Throw your heart over the fence, and the rest will follow."
Let your heart lead the way. Not your little heart, that loves so-and-so and hates so-and-so or want this-or-that and doesn't want something else. No. the big huge heart that is wise and connected to the Oneness of Creation.
Monday, April 6, 2009
Full Moon in Libra - April 9
Clearly, this Full Moon is strongly influenced by the recent retrograde of Pluto on April 4 and the retrograde motion of Venus which started March 15. At this time, Venus retrograde is square Pluto retrograde. I'm kind of glad I am in a relationship with someone who is following his bliss on his boat in Mexico right now. Otherwise, who knows what the fireworks might look like. LOL
On top of that, Saturn is still retrograde in Virgo. What all this means for me is that first we examine our values, then rather than rebuilding the things that are falling apart, we let them fall. We don't rebuild things that didn't work. We take this opportunity to build new structures. We need a whole new way of doing things. The time is perfect to let it go and start a whole new, sustainable, green way of doing things. How much more evidence do we need that the Earth is encouraging us to change our ways? Of course, the institutions that exist (for their own sakes) will do everything they can to justify their existence and keep themselves going. That is the nature and the problem with institutions. They are calcified fossils of ideas which were once new and fresh and alive. They are dead now. Bury them. Jesus said "let the dead bury the dead." Let us take this opportunity to create a new, vital world.
It does not take an astrologer to tell you that we are in challenging times. What astrology can tell you is that there are forces larger than any government, bank, insurance company, or other man-made institution at work now. Astrology provides a way of seeing cycles and patterns that are transpersonal. They affect everyone on this planet albeit in different ways depending on their awareness and connection to spirit. I do believe that one suffers less if they have an active spiritual life. Formal religions don't seem to provide much support these days because they tend to externalize and project, rather than encouraging people to take personal responsibility for their own thoughts and actions.
This Full Moon in Libra ruled by Venus opposes the Sun in Aries ruled by Mars. Traditionally, these are the archetypes of female and male. Thus, spring (in the
northern hemisphere) corresponds to the period when the fecundity of Nature surrounds us Christians celebrate the former ancient pagan rites of fertility through the holiday of Easter, represented by the risen Christ. The miracle of rebirth. The return of the life-giving light of the Sun.
Stephanie Austin in her article in The Mountain Astrologer, suggests we "take a risk" and "do something radically different" wherever 20 degrees Aries falls in your chart and "get by with a little help from your friends" where 20 degrees Libra falls in your chart. She also offers the Sabian symbols for these positions: Sun at 20 degrees Aries - "A young girl feeding birds in winter: overcoming crises through compassion." Moon at 20 degrees Venus - "A rabbi performing his duties; the ability to draw on the power of an ancestral tradition in order to serve and inspire one's fellow men." She asks what you yearn for and what is holding you back?
"Prosperity is a way of living and thinking, and not just money or things. Poverty is a way of living and thinking, and not just lack of money or things." (Eric Butterworth)
On top of that, Saturn is still retrograde in Virgo. What all this means for me is that first we examine our values, then rather than rebuilding the things that are falling apart, we let them fall. We don't rebuild things that didn't work. We take this opportunity to build new structures. We need a whole new way of doing things. The time is perfect to let it go and start a whole new, sustainable, green way of doing things. How much more evidence do we need that the Earth is encouraging us to change our ways? Of course, the institutions that exist (for their own sakes) will do everything they can to justify their existence and keep themselves going. That is the nature and the problem with institutions. They are calcified fossils of ideas which were once new and fresh and alive. They are dead now. Bury them. Jesus said "let the dead bury the dead." Let us take this opportunity to create a new, vital world.
It does not take an astrologer to tell you that we are in challenging times. What astrology can tell you is that there are forces larger than any government, bank, insurance company, or other man-made institution at work now. Astrology provides a way of seeing cycles and patterns that are transpersonal. They affect everyone on this planet albeit in different ways depending on their awareness and connection to spirit. I do believe that one suffers less if they have an active spiritual life. Formal religions don't seem to provide much support these days because they tend to externalize and project, rather than encouraging people to take personal responsibility for their own thoughts and actions.
This Full Moon in Libra ruled by Venus opposes the Sun in Aries ruled by Mars. Traditionally, these are the archetypes of female and male. Thus, spring (in the
northern hemisphere) corresponds to the period when the fecundity of Nature surrounds us Christians celebrate the former ancient pagan rites of fertility through the holiday of Easter, represented by the risen Christ. The miracle of rebirth. The return of the life-giving light of the Sun.
Stephanie Austin in her article in The Mountain Astrologer, suggests we "take a risk" and "do something radically different" wherever 20 degrees Aries falls in your chart and "get by with a little help from your friends" where 20 degrees Libra falls in your chart. She also offers the Sabian symbols for these positions: Sun at 20 degrees Aries - "A young girl feeding birds in winter: overcoming crises through compassion." Moon at 20 degrees Venus - "A rabbi performing his duties; the ability to draw on the power of an ancestral tradition in order to serve and inspire one's fellow men." She asks what you yearn for and what is holding you back?
"Prosperity is a way of living and thinking, and not just money or things. Poverty is a way of living and thinking, and not just lack of money or things." (Eric Butterworth)
Monday, March 9, 2009
Full Moon in Virgo - March 10-11
As if Venus retrograde weren't enough, this Full Moon is conjunct the Saturn/Uranus opposition. Yikes! Hold on to your... or is it better to let go?
According to Stephanie Austin in The Mountain Astrologer, this is one of the most importantFull Moons of 2009 because it amplifies the Saturn/Uranus opposition which she calls an 'evolutionary imperative.' Ah, that's what they are calling it. I thought it was 'my life falling apart.' This so-called imperative is operational until 2010 folks, so I guess we have no other choice but to evolve or .....?
Austin suggests we 'embrace inventiveness.'
What we see is the breakdown of of outmoded structures and rapid cultural change. The retrograde Venus can be useful here since it assists us in determining what is of value and thus what we should keep or at least work on rather than just totalling tossing it.
As you may have read in my 2012 blog, I am really getting into Nassim Haramein and it just happens to relate to this Saturn/Uranus thing. Saturn representing the laws of classical physics and Uranus the 'quirky' realities of quantum mechanics.
Other contrasts that Austin makes that relate to this Saturn opposing Uranus transit are: hierarchy/democracy, status-quo/progress, and fear/freedom. Duh, I wonder which to choose? The difficulty is that there are few models out there because we are being called to create new ones.
But on to the Full Moon. The Sun will be at 21 degrees Pisces conjunct Uranus at 22 degrees. The Moon will be at 21 degrees Virgo with Saturn at 19 degrees Virgo. Austin says that each moment we have a choice between standing in love or collapsing into fear, between staying asleep or waking up. She says that where the Sun at 21 Pisces is in your chart is where you must trust your intuition and do something out of the ordinary; where the Moon at 21 Virgo activates your chart is where you need to discern your priorities and honor them.
Those with Uranus in Virgo and Pluto in Virgo are being given an especially loud wakeup call to own and express their power. Austin suggests we all use the power of this Full Moon to take the next big step on your path and remember: If we are facing in the right direction, all we need to do is keep on walking. (Buddhist proverb)
As for me, lately I have a lot of trouble falling asleep and staying asleep. I am filled with an intense energy but must really focus to accomplish anything. I feel there is something really important I must do, but don't always know what it is. When I am focused, I can get a lot done in half the time. I can be very efficient. But when I am not focused, I feel I am spinning my wheels.
One way I ground myself is by literally saying: "Stop! What are you doing?" This can snap me out of the whirr of my mind. I also need to go outside a lot and smell the flowers or work in the greenhouse. I am learning to listen to my intuition and act on it.
Over the years through meditation and other spiritual practices, I have learned how to distinguish between my intuition and other 'voices' that pass through my mind. My work with flower essences (see my herb blog) has moved up to another level. I can feel it. When I am with a client, I get 'downloads' from the plant spirits and find staying grounded both essential and extremely difficult. It is definintely an interesting time and I feel excited about what is happening.
According to Stephanie Austin in The Mountain Astrologer, this is one of the most importantFull Moons of 2009 because it amplifies the Saturn/Uranus opposition which she calls an 'evolutionary imperative.' Ah, that's what they are calling it. I thought it was 'my life falling apart.' This so-called imperative is operational until 2010 folks, so I guess we have no other choice but to evolve or .....?
Austin suggests we 'embrace inventiveness.'
What we see is the breakdown of of outmoded structures and rapid cultural change. The retrograde Venus can be useful here since it assists us in determining what is of value and thus what we should keep or at least work on rather than just totalling tossing it.
As you may have read in my 2012 blog, I am really getting into Nassim Haramein and it just happens to relate to this Saturn/Uranus thing. Saturn representing the laws of classical physics and Uranus the 'quirky' realities of quantum mechanics.
Other contrasts that Austin makes that relate to this Saturn opposing Uranus transit are: hierarchy/democracy, status-quo/progress, and fear/freedom. Duh, I wonder which to choose? The difficulty is that there are few models out there because we are being called to create new ones.
But on to the Full Moon. The Sun will be at 21 degrees Pisces conjunct Uranus at 22 degrees. The Moon will be at 21 degrees Virgo with Saturn at 19 degrees Virgo. Austin says that each moment we have a choice between standing in love or collapsing into fear, between staying asleep or waking up. She says that where the Sun at 21 Pisces is in your chart is where you must trust your intuition and do something out of the ordinary; where the Moon at 21 Virgo activates your chart is where you need to discern your priorities and honor them.
Those with Uranus in Virgo and Pluto in Virgo are being given an especially loud wakeup call to own and express their power. Austin suggests we all use the power of this Full Moon to take the next big step on your path and remember: If we are facing in the right direction, all we need to do is keep on walking. (Buddhist proverb)
As for me, lately I have a lot of trouble falling asleep and staying asleep. I am filled with an intense energy but must really focus to accomplish anything. I feel there is something really important I must do, but don't always know what it is. When I am focused, I can get a lot done in half the time. I can be very efficient. But when I am not focused, I feel I am spinning my wheels.
One way I ground myself is by literally saying: "Stop! What are you doing?" This can snap me out of the whirr of my mind. I also need to go outside a lot and smell the flowers or work in the greenhouse. I am learning to listen to my intuition and act on it.
Over the years through meditation and other spiritual practices, I have learned how to distinguish between my intuition and other 'voices' that pass through my mind. My work with flower essences (see my herb blog) has moved up to another level. I can feel it. When I am with a client, I get 'downloads' from the plant spirits and find staying grounded both essential and extremely difficult. It is definintely an interesting time and I feel excited about what is happening.
Tuesday, December 9, 2008
Full Moon in Gemini December 12
During a Full Moon, we experience the maximum exposure from both the Sun's emanations and the Moon's reflection of solar radiance. Since human bodies are composed of both electrical and magnetic fields, we are affected by these changes in energy.
This is the fifth and final Super Moon of 2008. That means it is both at perigee (its closest approach to the Earth) and syzygy (directly aligned with the Sun and Earth).
In addition, the Sun and the Moon make a Grand Cross with Saturn and Uranus. All mutable signs, there could be some really big changes afoot.
I recommend flower essences during times like these because they operate on the energetic level. In the last couple days, I have been having erratic emotional states and have been relying heavily on my essences to maintain an even keel. Go to Hamida the Herbalist for some suggestions on essences that might help you during these challenging times.
Stephanie Austin says: "The Sun in Sagittarius illumines what we need to see; the Moon in Gemini, what we need to say. Saturn in Virgo exposes what no longer works, and Uranus in Pisces reveals where we are ready for a quantum leap."
Mars is conjunct the Sun exactly on December 5 and squares Uranus on December 11 and Saturn on December 15, extending the force of this Full Moon. Mars gives us the courage to act on our convictions.
It is one thing to know and what needs to be done, another to do it. The energy Mars brings to the situation can help us make the required changes. Good time to tackle those long-avoided projects, like cleaning out the garage.
Oh yes, and let us not forget that Mercury is conjunct Pluto at 1 degree Capricorn, which insists that we examine our assumptions and ask: "What is true for me now?"
"To be mistaken is a misfortune to be pitied; but to know the truth and not to conform one's actions to it is a crime which Heaven and Earth condemn." Giuseppe Mazzini
The Day Watch Calender "2for" lasts until December 24. A good last minute gift as well as any of the Astrology Reports which are sent to you via email and thus nearly instantaneous. You can print them and add a nice cover.
Please contact me if you want a Pluto Reading and Flower Essence Blend. Leave a comment with your contact info and I will get back to you.
This is the fifth and final Super Moon of 2008. That means it is both at perigee (its closest approach to the Earth) and syzygy (directly aligned with the Sun and Earth).
In addition, the Sun and the Moon make a Grand Cross with Saturn and Uranus. All mutable signs, there could be some really big changes afoot.
I recommend flower essences during times like these because they operate on the energetic level. In the last couple days, I have been having erratic emotional states and have been relying heavily on my essences to maintain an even keel. Go to Hamida the Herbalist for some suggestions on essences that might help you during these challenging times.
Stephanie Austin says: "The Sun in Sagittarius illumines what we need to see; the Moon in Gemini, what we need to say. Saturn in Virgo exposes what no longer works, and Uranus in Pisces reveals where we are ready for a quantum leap."
Mars is conjunct the Sun exactly on December 5 and squares Uranus on December 11 and Saturn on December 15, extending the force of this Full Moon. Mars gives us the courage to act on our convictions.
It is one thing to know and what needs to be done, another to do it. The energy Mars brings to the situation can help us make the required changes. Good time to tackle those long-avoided projects, like cleaning out the garage.
Oh yes, and let us not forget that Mercury is conjunct Pluto at 1 degree Capricorn, which insists that we examine our assumptions and ask: "What is true for me now?"
"To be mistaken is a misfortune to be pitied; but to know the truth and not to conform one's actions to it is a crime which Heaven and Earth condemn." Giuseppe Mazzini
The Day Watch Calender "2for" lasts until December 24. A good last minute gift as well as any of the Astrology Reports which are sent to you via email and thus nearly instantaneous. You can print them and add a nice cover.
Please contact me if you want a Pluto Reading and Flower Essence Blend. Leave a comment with your contact info and I will get back to you.
Thursday, November 27, 2008
Sagittarius New Moon - November 27
I have been a bit distracted lately. A lot is cooking after the 2012 Conference. I am working out the details for a class I will be teaching on Mayan Hieroglyphs and the Mayan Calendar, and planning to put a class on CD that will be available in a couple of months and... I missed, or almost missed this incredible New Moon!
What adds to its significance is that on the same day, Uranus goes direct after being retrograde since June. Stephanie Austin in the Mountain Astrologer says its "like a red light turning green". Uranus is the Awakener, the God of Chaos, the Cosmic Wild Card. Turning direct it signals a time for a quantum leap.
From November 27 through December 31, there will be no planets retrograde and so a lot could happen in the next month. Austin calls the energy that is available "breakthrough or breakdown". Change or be changed.
I got an email from one of my teachers, Jane Bell. She said she is going to devote some time to creating a supportive infrastructure. That really got me thinking. Sometimes we are so focused on what we want to accomplish, we forget that unless we have a solid base to work from and nurturing support along the way, that is, if the foundation is not laid, we cannot get anywhere. The arrow of Sagittarius is pointing us in a direction. But don't forget to look at the rest of the symbol, which also has meaning. The bow and arrow are held by a man with the body of a horse. In addition to the arrow - the goal, look at the foundation - the horse. Don't forget to take care of your horse.
An expression I learned from the Sufis is "Pray to Allah, but tie your camel." We ask for Divine Inspiration (from whatever source) to give us this or that, but we fail to do our part by taking care of what we have in front of us.
The day before this New Moon, Pluto goes into Capricorn. The challenge is to create structures that are sustainable and equitable, not just to get back to business as usual. True, we all want economic recovery, but not the way things have been done in the past. Rather than seeing recent events as a disaster, see it as house cleaning, remodeling, tearing down a dilapidated structure to build a new one.
Pluto and Uranus are preparing us for a paradigm shift. They are leading us into a new way of doing things. Ya Hu!
"Focusing your life solely on making a buck shows a certain poverty of ambition. It asks too little of yourself. Because it's only when you hitch your wagon to something larger than yourself that you realize your true potential" Barack Obama
Oh! I just love the sound of his voice! For 8 years, I couldn't listen to Bush, not only for what he said, but because his voice was so irritating. McCain was worse. A certain hissing like Golam in Lord of the Rings. Obama's voice is music to my ears. Oh Happy Day!
What adds to its significance is that on the same day, Uranus goes direct after being retrograde since June. Stephanie Austin in the Mountain Astrologer says its "like a red light turning green". Uranus is the Awakener, the God of Chaos, the Cosmic Wild Card. Turning direct it signals a time for a quantum leap.
From November 27 through December 31, there will be no planets retrograde and so a lot could happen in the next month. Austin calls the energy that is available "breakthrough or breakdown". Change or be changed.
I got an email from one of my teachers, Jane Bell. She said she is going to devote some time to creating a supportive infrastructure. That really got me thinking. Sometimes we are so focused on what we want to accomplish, we forget that unless we have a solid base to work from and nurturing support along the way, that is, if the foundation is not laid, we cannot get anywhere. The arrow of Sagittarius is pointing us in a direction. But don't forget to look at the rest of the symbol, which also has meaning. The bow and arrow are held by a man with the body of a horse. In addition to the arrow - the goal, look at the foundation - the horse. Don't forget to take care of your horse.
An expression I learned from the Sufis is "Pray to Allah, but tie your camel." We ask for Divine Inspiration (from whatever source) to give us this or that, but we fail to do our part by taking care of what we have in front of us.
The day before this New Moon, Pluto goes into Capricorn. The challenge is to create structures that are sustainable and equitable, not just to get back to business as usual. True, we all want economic recovery, but not the way things have been done in the past. Rather than seeing recent events as a disaster, see it as house cleaning, remodeling, tearing down a dilapidated structure to build a new one.
Pluto and Uranus are preparing us for a paradigm shift. They are leading us into a new way of doing things. Ya Hu!
"Focusing your life solely on making a buck shows a certain poverty of ambition. It asks too little of yourself. Because it's only when you hitch your wagon to something larger than yourself that you realize your true potential" Barack Obama
Oh! I just love the sound of his voice! For 8 years, I couldn't listen to Bush, not only for what he said, but because his voice was so irritating. McCain was worse. A certain hissing like Golam in Lord of the Rings. Obama's voice is music to my ears. Oh Happy Day!
Monday, October 13, 2008
Full Moon in Aries - Oct. 14
It's Full Moon time again. Now that I am posting about the full and new moon phases - they seem to happen so fast! This time it's a Full Moon in Aries.
Stephanie Austin, in The Mountain Astrologer, says Full Moons are power times. She says we can better see where we are coming from and where we need go.
I don't know about you, but I feel sort of blah. Lots of ideas, but not enough energy to manifest them. I can definitely feel the days shortening and the temperature dropped 30 degrees in one week. Already at night it's 36 degrees!
Austin says that since the Moon is in Aries, ruled by Mars and the Sun is in Libra, ruled by Venus, this Full Moon has Venus energy(compassion and love) facing Mars energy (individuality and courage). She suggests that the more we develop our Aries side, our ability to know who we are and what we want, the better we can do Libra, the art of relating to and learning from someone who is different.
I agree completely. Most people need others in their life to fill their own emptiness or make up for their own lacks. Rather than identifying and exploring their own ideas, they follow others like sheep. Their lives are unsatisfying and empty. Depression and despair follow when and if they finally realize their condition.
Austin suggests we look for where the Sun is in our chart - 22 degrees Libra - this is where you are being called to negotiate and see things from another point of view. The Moon, at 22 degrees Aries, is where you need to clearly express your desires and intentions.
For me, Libra is in the second house - my resources and what I value - and Aries is in the eighth house - investments and other people's resources. Okay, in light of this advice, I am willing to receive copious and unlimited amounts of other people's resources (money) to improve the quality of my life and permanently improve my net worth. How's that?
Stephanie Austin, in The Mountain Astrologer, says Full Moons are power times. She says we can better see where we are coming from and where we need go.
I don't know about you, but I feel sort of blah. Lots of ideas, but not enough energy to manifest them. I can definitely feel the days shortening and the temperature dropped 30 degrees in one week. Already at night it's 36 degrees!
Austin says that since the Moon is in Aries, ruled by Mars and the Sun is in Libra, ruled by Venus, this Full Moon has Venus energy(compassion and love) facing Mars energy (individuality and courage). She suggests that the more we develop our Aries side, our ability to know who we are and what we want, the better we can do Libra, the art of relating to and learning from someone who is different.
I agree completely. Most people need others in their life to fill their own emptiness or make up for their own lacks. Rather than identifying and exploring their own ideas, they follow others like sheep. Their lives are unsatisfying and empty. Depression and despair follow when and if they finally realize their condition.
Austin suggests we look for where the Sun is in our chart - 22 degrees Libra - this is where you are being called to negotiate and see things from another point of view. The Moon, at 22 degrees Aries, is where you need to clearly express your desires and intentions.
For me, Libra is in the second house - my resources and what I value - and Aries is in the eighth house - investments and other people's resources. Okay, in light of this advice, I am willing to receive copious and unlimited amounts of other people's resources (money) to improve the quality of my life and permanently improve my net worth. How's that?
Monday, September 29, 2008
Libra New Moon
Today is the New Moon in Libra. I realize it does you little good to have the information on the day it is happening, so in future, I will attempt to post this a few days before. That said, there are several things occurring now that are important.
I want to mention that we are still in a Mercury retrograde period and since it is in Libra, which is ruled by Venus, the emphasis for the retrograde period is relationships. We might find ourselves repeating relationship karma or at least revisiting it. We might also find out just what our relationship karma is by have a pattern repeat in such a way that we cannot avoid seeing it - perhaps for the first time. Relationships provide a mirror for us to see aspects of ourselves that we may be unaware of or disown. Pay attention to projections.
Another aspect of Venus is what has value for us and what we are willing to exchange, pay or do for that which we value. We are all being challenged on the material plane. We are being asked to go deeper and examine our other values. What is of the most importance to you? We are being encouraged - nudged - in some cases pushed into examining our non-material values, such as: relationships, knowledge, our spiritual connection. Those aspects of our life that cannot be taken away by down-sizing, foreclosures, or natural disasters.
Then, tomorrow is Rosh Hashanah "head of the year" - The "Jewish New Year" and is the first of the High Holidays or "Days of Awe." It begins a period of 10 days of repentance which culminate on Yom Kippur the "Day of Repentance." During this time Jewish people pray and fast, reviewing their deeds of the past year and seeking forgiveness so that they can be renewed and purified for the coming year.
Today is also the end of Ramadan, a month long period during which Muslims pray and fast. Muhammad (phuh) received the revelation which we know as the Quran during this month. Especially potent is the Night of Power which occurs during this month. It's exact timing is disputed, but some say it was Friday, Sept. 26.
And if that's not enough to inspire you....
Oh yes, the New Moon! in Libra, again ruled by Venus. Currently, Venus is in Scorpio. Scorpio has to do with transformation. New moons are times for beginnings. We might consider a new way of relating to people and to ourselves. Perhaps beginning or re-visiting a spiritual practice - movement, prayer, meditation. A reconnection to our inner life and the transformation of consciousness that these times require.
Stephanie Austin in The Mountain Astrologer has this to say:
"Venus is the Mythic Goddess of Beauty as well as Love. Beauty opens the heart and feeds the soul. Venus represents what is most dear to us and what is really worth our time, energy, and resources. Where Venus is located in our chart -- by sign, house and aspects -- describes our preferences and requirements in relationship and lifestyle choices. Venus in Scorpio pushes us to examine our desires and motivations. Are we living in accordance with our values, or with those that have been instilled by our parents, culture, or the media? Have we bought into the Western belief that power equals money (for men) and beauty (for women)? Venus in Scorpio asks us to go deeper, to go beyond the many substitutes for love we're sold and told to pursue and discover what truly lights our fire the fire in our heart and soul.... This New Moon shoes us what we treasure, what we dread, and what we need to reconcile. It illuminates the power of love and the power of truth -- for each of us and for the world."
I would like to add that we might think about whether we are motivated by the love of power or the power of love.
I want to mention that we are still in a Mercury retrograde period and since it is in Libra, which is ruled by Venus, the emphasis for the retrograde period is relationships. We might find ourselves repeating relationship karma or at least revisiting it. We might also find out just what our relationship karma is by have a pattern repeat in such a way that we cannot avoid seeing it - perhaps for the first time. Relationships provide a mirror for us to see aspects of ourselves that we may be unaware of or disown. Pay attention to projections.
Another aspect of Venus is what has value for us and what we are willing to exchange, pay or do for that which we value. We are all being challenged on the material plane. We are being asked to go deeper and examine our other values. What is of the most importance to you? We are being encouraged - nudged - in some cases pushed into examining our non-material values, such as: relationships, knowledge, our spiritual connection. Those aspects of our life that cannot be taken away by down-sizing, foreclosures, or natural disasters.
Then, tomorrow is Rosh Hashanah "head of the year" - The "Jewish New Year" and is the first of the High Holidays or "Days of Awe." It begins a period of 10 days of repentance which culminate on Yom Kippur the "Day of Repentance." During this time Jewish people pray and fast, reviewing their deeds of the past year and seeking forgiveness so that they can be renewed and purified for the coming year.
Today is also the end of Ramadan, a month long period during which Muslims pray and fast. Muhammad (phuh) received the revelation which we know as the Quran during this month. Especially potent is the Night of Power which occurs during this month. It's exact timing is disputed, but some say it was Friday, Sept. 26.
And if that's not enough to inspire you....
Oh yes, the New Moon! in Libra, again ruled by Venus. Currently, Venus is in Scorpio. Scorpio has to do with transformation. New moons are times for beginnings. We might consider a new way of relating to people and to ourselves. Perhaps beginning or re-visiting a spiritual practice - movement, prayer, meditation. A reconnection to our inner life and the transformation of consciousness that these times require.
Stephanie Austin in The Mountain Astrologer has this to say:
"Venus is the Mythic Goddess of Beauty as well as Love. Beauty opens the heart and feeds the soul. Venus represents what is most dear to us and what is really worth our time, energy, and resources. Where Venus is located in our chart -- by sign, house and aspects -- describes our preferences and requirements in relationship and lifestyle choices. Venus in Scorpio pushes us to examine our desires and motivations. Are we living in accordance with our values, or with those that have been instilled by our parents, culture, or the media? Have we bought into the Western belief that power equals money (for men) and beauty (for women)? Venus in Scorpio asks us to go deeper, to go beyond the many substitutes for love we're sold and told to pursue and discover what truly lights our fire the fire in our heart and soul.... This New Moon shoes us what we treasure, what we dread, and what we need to reconcile. It illuminates the power of love and the power of truth -- for each of us and for the world."
I would like to add that we might think about whether we are motivated by the love of power or the power of love.
Saturday, August 30, 2008
New Moon in Virgo
Virgo is known as one of the pragmatic signs of the zodiac. The organizer, the planner. Not the one to come up with the idea, but the one to make it happen. An earth sign which helps us to analyze, discern, refine and assimilate. It rules the digestion.
I had been planning for months to go to South Dakota for Segment III of the Evolutionary Astrology training with Kim Marie. Something kept me from buying an airline ticket and I was still debating whether I might drive. Then, the last minute, a family situation came up and I needed to stay home to take care of it. Thankfully, I was not going to lose any money from this last minute change of plans. While I was disappointed, I felt that in fact, it was perfect since I don't feel the need to take in any new information right now. Instead, I feel I need to digest and assimilate all that I have been learning in the last few months. It didn't occur to me until now that what I am feeling is completely in tune with the cosmos and what is going on in my own chart. The more I pursue this study of astrology, the more I am amazed at 'how it works'. In fact, this New Moon is conjunct my ascendant and my Mars and so the right action for me is to take action to realize and materialize my goals.
For all of us, Saturn is very close to this New Moon and will be in Virgo for the next couple of years. It is the principle of time, space and all forms of physical manifestation.
Stephanie Austin says "In Virgo, Saturn seeks the perfect form, the most appropriate way of expressing what is in our heart and soul. Saturn also tells us that we are the boss, the chooser, the creator of our reality, and that we have the power to change whatever forms are no longer functional or desirable, including our defenses. The mythic Reaper makes its yearly conjunction with the Sun on September 3, turning the spotlight on whatever most needs to be strengthened, revamped, or abandoned." She suggests that we use the power of this New Moon to "examine and dismantle what holds you back from expressing your creativity. Listen to your body. Be willing to be a beginner and try out some new steps."
Look at your own chart to see where this New Moon occurs. This is where you will feel the energy. Where is Virgo in your chart? This is where the lessons of Saturn will play out in the next couple years.
quotes are from the Mountain Astrologer Aug/Sept 2008
I had been planning for months to go to South Dakota for Segment III of the Evolutionary Astrology training with Kim Marie. Something kept me from buying an airline ticket and I was still debating whether I might drive. Then, the last minute, a family situation came up and I needed to stay home to take care of it. Thankfully, I was not going to lose any money from this last minute change of plans. While I was disappointed, I felt that in fact, it was perfect since I don't feel the need to take in any new information right now. Instead, I feel I need to digest and assimilate all that I have been learning in the last few months. It didn't occur to me until now that what I am feeling is completely in tune with the cosmos and what is going on in my own chart. The more I pursue this study of astrology, the more I am amazed at 'how it works'. In fact, this New Moon is conjunct my ascendant and my Mars and so the right action for me is to take action to realize and materialize my goals.
For all of us, Saturn is very close to this New Moon and will be in Virgo for the next couple of years. It is the principle of time, space and all forms of physical manifestation.
Stephanie Austin says "In Virgo, Saturn seeks the perfect form, the most appropriate way of expressing what is in our heart and soul. Saturn also tells us that we are the boss, the chooser, the creator of our reality, and that we have the power to change whatever forms are no longer functional or desirable, including our defenses. The mythic Reaper makes its yearly conjunction with the Sun on September 3, turning the spotlight on whatever most needs to be strengthened, revamped, or abandoned." She suggests that we use the power of this New Moon to "examine and dismantle what holds you back from expressing your creativity. Listen to your body. Be willing to be a beginner and try out some new steps."
Look at your own chart to see where this New Moon occurs. This is where you will feel the energy. Where is Virgo in your chart? This is where the lessons of Saturn will play out in the next couple years.
quotes are from the Mountain Astrologer Aug/Sept 2008
Friday, August 15, 2008
Eclipse, Trip to Fez and a Give-away, What More Could You Ask For?
Saturday there will be another eclipse. This time it's a Lunar eclipse. Although it will not be visible here in Northern California, its effects can still be felt.
Caroline Casey on her Visionary Activist show this past Thursday at 2pm on KPFA, said that since the Moon will block the light of the Sun, we can see the reflected light of the Earth on the Moon's surface instead. (If you want to hear this show or any other, go to KPFA.org where they have all the shows archived)
I was thinking about that. Over the centuries the reflected 'Earth light' has gotten brighter and brighter, especially in the northern hemisphere. What could be the significance of this? Something to ponder.
Stephanie Austin in her article on the eclipse in The Mountain Astrologer, gives the etymology of the word 'eclipse' as being a combination of the Greek verbs ecleipo "to cease existing" and calypse "to cover".
She advises that since Neptune conjuncts the Moon and therefore opposes the Sun, that our right brain will be dominant, "amplifying our intuition and our capacity to envision our highest hopes and dreams." She goes on to say that "Neptune enables us to feel our interconnectedness, as well as our infinite potential."
The Sabian symbol for the Sun at 25 degrees Leo is: "A large camel is seen crossing a vast and forbidding desert; self-sufficiency in the face of a long and exhausting adventure."
For the Moon at 25 degrees Aquarius: "A butterfly with the right wing more perfectly formed; the capacity to develop the rational and fully conscious aspect of the mind ahead of normal evolution."
Austin suggests "watch your day and night dreams closely. Envision the world you wish to inhabit. Hold it in your heart. Share it, live it, be it. Remember: 'The greatest achievement was at first and for a time a dream. The oak sleeps in the acorn, the bird waits in the egg, and in the highest vision of the soul a waking angel stirs. Dreams are the seedlings of realities.' (James Allen)"
So in 'light' of this, I would like to announce two things.
First: an upcoming tour I will be leading to Morocco. Next May 2009, we will be going to the Fez Sacred Music Festival, touring Casablanca, Rabat, Fez, Marrakesh and Essaouira, the shrine of a famous Sufi saint and an ancient Roman city. We will stay in the heart of Old Fez in the midst of the festival. We will have herbal footbaths, rub downs at the hammam and feast on the delicious Moroccan cuisine. If you want more information please leave a comment with a way to contact you. (the camel)
Second: a giveaway. To the first person who writes a comment with their name (can be a pseudonym), date, time and place of birth a free Day Watch calender by email. This is a 25.00 value. (the butterfly)
Last night I dreamt I discovered rock-climbing and loved it. The thought occurred to me that it was to be my next endeavor. That I enjoyed it and that I could do it.
Many years ago, a friend of mine did a give-away for Thanksgiving. He offered a rock-climbing experience to a small group. I went and I did it. It was a 40 or 50ft. rock. Just enough to get the challenge, the thrill and the rush. I learned that when you are stuck in a crack wiggling like a snake can get you out.
Caroline Casey on her Visionary Activist show this past Thursday at 2pm on KPFA, said that since the Moon will block the light of the Sun, we can see the reflected light of the Earth on the Moon's surface instead. (If you want to hear this show or any other, go to KPFA.org where they have all the shows archived)
I was thinking about that. Over the centuries the reflected 'Earth light' has gotten brighter and brighter, especially in the northern hemisphere. What could be the significance of this? Something to ponder.
Stephanie Austin in her article on the eclipse in The Mountain Astrologer, gives the etymology of the word 'eclipse' as being a combination of the Greek verbs ecleipo "to cease existing" and calypse "to cover".
She advises that since Neptune conjuncts the Moon and therefore opposes the Sun, that our right brain will be dominant, "amplifying our intuition and our capacity to envision our highest hopes and dreams." She goes on to say that "Neptune enables us to feel our interconnectedness, as well as our infinite potential."
The Sabian symbol for the Sun at 25 degrees Leo is: "A large camel is seen crossing a vast and forbidding desert; self-sufficiency in the face of a long and exhausting adventure."
For the Moon at 25 degrees Aquarius: "A butterfly with the right wing more perfectly formed; the capacity to develop the rational and fully conscious aspect of the mind ahead of normal evolution."
Austin suggests "watch your day and night dreams closely. Envision the world you wish to inhabit. Hold it in your heart. Share it, live it, be it. Remember: 'The greatest achievement was at first and for a time a dream. The oak sleeps in the acorn, the bird waits in the egg, and in the highest vision of the soul a waking angel stirs. Dreams are the seedlings of realities.' (James Allen)"
So in 'light' of this, I would like to announce two things.
First: an upcoming tour I will be leading to Morocco. Next May 2009, we will be going to the Fez Sacred Music Festival, touring Casablanca, Rabat, Fez, Marrakesh and Essaouira, the shrine of a famous Sufi saint and an ancient Roman city. We will stay in the heart of Old Fez in the midst of the festival. We will have herbal footbaths, rub downs at the hammam and feast on the delicious Moroccan cuisine. If you want more information please leave a comment with a way to contact you. (the camel)
Second: a giveaway. To the first person who writes a comment with their name (can be a pseudonym), date, time and place of birth a free Day Watch calender by email. This is a 25.00 value. (the butterfly)
Last night I dreamt I discovered rock-climbing and loved it. The thought occurred to me that it was to be my next endeavor. That I enjoyed it and that I could do it.
Many years ago, a friend of mine did a give-away for Thanksgiving. He offered a rock-climbing experience to a small group. I went and I did it. It was a 40 or 50ft. rock. Just enough to get the challenge, the thrill and the rush. I learned that when you are stuck in a crack wiggling like a snake can get you out.
Thursday, July 31, 2008
Leo Solar Eclipse
August 1, 2008 will be a Solar Eclipse. In general, New Moons are good times for beginning things. This one, an eclipse, has added effects. According to Stephanie Austin, in The Mountain Astrologer, "it signals our readiness for a major shift in direction and priorities." She says in an eclipse the normal flow of solar radiation is interrupted because the Moon blocks the light of the Sun. "Energetic matrices are opened, reorganized, and reconfigured, creating new patterns and pathways."
Austin believes that this eclipse will affect the Pluto in Leo generation (1939 - 1955) and the Uranus in Leo (1955 - 1962), which amounts to millions of people, very strongly, "as it activates their cellular memories of their mission and their fears (Pluto), as well as the need to break from tradition and be an agent of change (Uranus)."
She also says anyone with planetary placements or angles within 5 degrees of the eclipse will feel its evolutionary impulse most directly.
The eclipse is at 9 degrees Leo and therefore is conjunct my natal Pluto, which is at 12 degrees in the 12th house. Over the years, many people have accused me of 'self-sabotage'. Since I have always sought self-knowledge, I have been trying to understrand this and work with it. Generally self-sabotaging behavior is invisible to us and thus hard to control or change. But today I had a clear understanding of an issue I have struggled with all my life. I often feel that I don't get anything done, that I am way behind in my projects and that I live surrounded by 'wasted' talents and resources. Today I realized it is because my mind is over-loaded with inspiration and creative ideas. I struggle with time and space. Never enough time, never enough space. My house is packed. It is very difficult for me to admit I will never get to all the projects, books etc. Even if I did nothing but sew, I'd never be able to make all the garments I have patterns for. Let alone the crocheting, knitting, cross-stitch, etc. It goes on and on. Because I am surrounded by all these reminders of what I have not gotten to, I feel I have accomplished nothing. Since I am working with my North Node in Taurus, I am trying to make slow, but regular prgress. One way I do this is that each day I set some reasonable tasks for myself. At the end of the day, I check the 'to do' list against the 'done' list.
I have so many ideas, goals, plans, projects that no human being alone could get it all done. My mind moves very quickly, coming up with new ideas constantly. I am a natural multi-tasker. In addition, I like being able to do things myself, so, when I decided to get a new website, rather than pay someone else to do it, I had to take Dreamweaver myself. This often leads to tangents that have trajectories of their own. Sometimes, like the person who finds herself in the middle of a room and can't remember why she walked in there, I don't remember why I started out in a direction. To help me 're-trace' my steps, I must go to my garden. Reconnecting with the earth helps me remember what I'm doing and why I'm doing it. Meditation also helps.
The frustration comes when I realize that I come up with more ideas than any human could accomplish on their own in many lifetimes. In addition, now that I'm 60, my body is not as cooperative as it once was. I am tired and achy. I can't do as much as I used to do and it makes me feel depressed and hopeless.
So what is the solution?
Formerly, I would have thought: I should get rid of this all this stuff that I will never get a chance to do; I should curtail my creativity, just focus on a few things, dropping the rest.
Today, under the influence of the Leo eclipse, I realized I could do more if I had a staff including a chef, housekeeper, chaffeur, secretary, gardener.....LOL! Now that is truly a Leo idea. I laughed to myself, but why not? Rather than stop thinking, planning, creating, I need a domestic staff and a company with many employees.
As for understanding our mission, this is a problem we all share. Our soul designs an incarnation, like writing a screenplay, including the supporting characters and situations, so that it can experience something or accomplish something. Then we get here and forget. We spend most of our lives asking why we are here etc. because we have forgotten the 'play' we ourselves wrote.
There is actually a story about this. Recently I was told this is a Jewish folktale, but I'm not sure of that. The story goes that we did all this planning before we were born, including choosing our parents and everything that will happen in our life. Then, when we are born, an angel touches us right above our upper lip, which seals our mouth, and we forget. That little dip right under our nose, is the remnant of the angel's touch. For the rest of our lives we wonder what it's all about. It sounds like this eclipse will give us an opportunity to remember.
At the end of her article, Austin says that the Sabian symbol for this eclipse indicates that a new era is dawning: "Early morning dew sparkles as sunlight floods the field; the exalted feeling that rises within the soul of the individual who has sucessfully passed through the long night which has tested his strenth and his faith." According to Austin, the questions you should be asking yourself are: "What brings you joy? What do you love more than anything else?" She goes on to say "You are the eyes and hands of God. Dream. Dare. Do. Life is waiting to be lived through you. Rmemeber: 'When you don't follow your nature, there is a hole in the universe where you were supposed to be.' (Dane Rudhyar)"
Look at where this eclipse is occuring in your chart. Are there any planets or aspects that might be highlighted? The house where this eclipse is occuring is where you might experience insight and/or change.
Austin believes that this eclipse will affect the Pluto in Leo generation (1939 - 1955) and the Uranus in Leo (1955 - 1962), which amounts to millions of people, very strongly, "as it activates their cellular memories of their mission and their fears (Pluto), as well as the need to break from tradition and be an agent of change (Uranus)."
She also says anyone with planetary placements or angles within 5 degrees of the eclipse will feel its evolutionary impulse most directly.
The eclipse is at 9 degrees Leo and therefore is conjunct my natal Pluto, which is at 12 degrees in the 12th house. Over the years, many people have accused me of 'self-sabotage'. Since I have always sought self-knowledge, I have been trying to understrand this and work with it. Generally self-sabotaging behavior is invisible to us and thus hard to control or change. But today I had a clear understanding of an issue I have struggled with all my life. I often feel that I don't get anything done, that I am way behind in my projects and that I live surrounded by 'wasted' talents and resources. Today I realized it is because my mind is over-loaded with inspiration and creative ideas. I struggle with time and space. Never enough time, never enough space. My house is packed. It is very difficult for me to admit I will never get to all the projects, books etc. Even if I did nothing but sew, I'd never be able to make all the garments I have patterns for. Let alone the crocheting, knitting, cross-stitch, etc. It goes on and on. Because I am surrounded by all these reminders of what I have not gotten to, I feel I have accomplished nothing. Since I am working with my North Node in Taurus, I am trying to make slow, but regular prgress. One way I do this is that each day I set some reasonable tasks for myself. At the end of the day, I check the 'to do' list against the 'done' list.
I have so many ideas, goals, plans, projects that no human being alone could get it all done. My mind moves very quickly, coming up with new ideas constantly. I am a natural multi-tasker. In addition, I like being able to do things myself, so, when I decided to get a new website, rather than pay someone else to do it, I had to take Dreamweaver myself. This often leads to tangents that have trajectories of their own. Sometimes, like the person who finds herself in the middle of a room and can't remember why she walked in there, I don't remember why I started out in a direction. To help me 're-trace' my steps, I must go to my garden. Reconnecting with the earth helps me remember what I'm doing and why I'm doing it. Meditation also helps.
The frustration comes when I realize that I come up with more ideas than any human could accomplish on their own in many lifetimes. In addition, now that I'm 60, my body is not as cooperative as it once was. I am tired and achy. I can't do as much as I used to do and it makes me feel depressed and hopeless.
So what is the solution?
Formerly, I would have thought: I should get rid of this all this stuff that I will never get a chance to do; I should curtail my creativity, just focus on a few things, dropping the rest.
Today, under the influence of the Leo eclipse, I realized I could do more if I had a staff including a chef, housekeeper, chaffeur, secretary, gardener.....LOL! Now that is truly a Leo idea. I laughed to myself, but why not? Rather than stop thinking, planning, creating, I need a domestic staff and a company with many employees.
As for understanding our mission, this is a problem we all share. Our soul designs an incarnation, like writing a screenplay, including the supporting characters and situations, so that it can experience something or accomplish something. Then we get here and forget. We spend most of our lives asking why we are here etc. because we have forgotten the 'play' we ourselves wrote.
There is actually a story about this. Recently I was told this is a Jewish folktale, but I'm not sure of that. The story goes that we did all this planning before we were born, including choosing our parents and everything that will happen in our life. Then, when we are born, an angel touches us right above our upper lip, which seals our mouth, and we forget. That little dip right under our nose, is the remnant of the angel's touch. For the rest of our lives we wonder what it's all about. It sounds like this eclipse will give us an opportunity to remember.
At the end of her article, Austin says that the Sabian symbol for this eclipse indicates that a new era is dawning: "Early morning dew sparkles as sunlight floods the field; the exalted feeling that rises within the soul of the individual who has sucessfully passed through the long night which has tested his strenth and his faith." According to Austin, the questions you should be asking yourself are: "What brings you joy? What do you love more than anything else?" She goes on to say "You are the eyes and hands of God. Dream. Dare. Do. Life is waiting to be lived through you. Rmemeber: 'When you don't follow your nature, there is a hole in the universe where you were supposed to be.' (Dane Rudhyar)"
Look at where this eclipse is occuring in your chart. Are there any planets or aspects that might be highlighted? The house where this eclipse is occuring is where you might experience insight and/or change.
Friday, July 18, 2008
Capricorn Full Moon
The Full Moon in Capricorn is upon us, giving us a hint of how Pluto in Capricorn will be for us as individuals and as part of the collective.
In general, what you seed at the New Moon and should begin to show results at the Full Moon. It may be a flower or a weed, but you'll have something. Then you must decide if you want to keep it or not.
In many traditions of the world, but not all, the Sun is considered masculine, the Moon feminine. What we have now, is the opposite. Presently the Sun is in Cancer, which represents the archetype of the Mother; the Moon in Capricorn, the Father. Each has a role to play in society and within our own psyches. The Mother bears, nurtures and protects the child. The Father teaches the the child how to function in society, often by preparing him/her to work. In tradtional societies boys learned their father's trade and moved into it when they grew up. Mothers taught their daughters, usually by example, how to cook, sew, raise children etc. Of course, now days these roles are not as rigid as they once were. I do believe, however, that they have made an imprint on our psyches after the thousands of years that they were in operation and that they have made their marks on our karma.
It has only been a short time since the societal roles for men and women were rigidly defined. For most people in the world, they still are.
In any case, Our inner Mother is how we nurture ourselves and others. Our inner Father is how we work with structure in our lives and discpline ourselves to accomplish things. This Full Moon gives us another opportunity to look at this. Do we work too much leaving no time to enjoy life and be with our loved ones? Are we in touch with what we need to be nourished besides food? Studies indicate that most Americans are sleep deprived and/or have trouble sleeping. Yet, how many hours do we spend watching T.V. or on a computer (blogging)?
Not only does our body suffer from this lack of sleep, but also our dream life. Dreams serve many functions. Dreaming is a way for the psyche to process the events of our day and an avenue for inspiration. Many famous scientists report that they got the idea for a breakthough from their dreams. Artists, writers and composers are often inspired by dream images.
Stephanie Austin in The Mountain Astrologer, says that the Full Moon illuminates the shadow side of each sign as well as its spiritual tasks. Cancer must learn about receiving, Capricorn about giving back. The Crab can build too thick a shell; the Mountain Goat may climb the wrong mountain. The fourth sign must develp healthy roots; the tenth must share the fruits of its labor. The more we diregard our own feelings and needs, the greater is the risk that we will violate the rights and concerns of others. The less responsibilty we assume, the less power we have. The light of this Full Moon reveals whether our crab shells are too thick or too thin--showing us where we need to shed our defenses or establish better boundaries. We wee whether we are climbing the right mountain, or treading someone else's path.
Yesterday Karyn Sanders on her radio show The Herbal Highway on KPFA, talked about how so many Americans are like children and how remaining a child also means you have no power. The entire show was about herbs and flower essences that would help one face reality and grow up and that the among the rewards of adulthood was the increased sense of power and authority. Right in line with this Full Moon. You can listen to this show or any other archived at KPFA.
So the challenge is balance. Retaining the open-heartedness of childhood and the responsibility of adulthood. Learning when to give and when to receive, when to work and when to rest. On my blog Hamida the Herbalist, the issue of the week is about the relationship between gratitude and abundance - which are related to giving and receiving. What is true security? Being heart-centered. It's all connected.
In general, what you seed at the New Moon and should begin to show results at the Full Moon. It may be a flower or a weed, but you'll have something. Then you must decide if you want to keep it or not.
In many traditions of the world, but not all, the Sun is considered masculine, the Moon feminine. What we have now, is the opposite. Presently the Sun is in Cancer, which represents the archetype of the Mother; the Moon in Capricorn, the Father. Each has a role to play in society and within our own psyches. The Mother bears, nurtures and protects the child. The Father teaches the the child how to function in society, often by preparing him/her to work. In tradtional societies boys learned their father's trade and moved into it when they grew up. Mothers taught their daughters, usually by example, how to cook, sew, raise children etc. Of course, now days these roles are not as rigid as they once were. I do believe, however, that they have made an imprint on our psyches after the thousands of years that they were in operation and that they have made their marks on our karma.
It has only been a short time since the societal roles for men and women were rigidly defined. For most people in the world, they still are.
In any case, Our inner Mother is how we nurture ourselves and others. Our inner Father is how we work with structure in our lives and discpline ourselves to accomplish things. This Full Moon gives us another opportunity to look at this. Do we work too much leaving no time to enjoy life and be with our loved ones? Are we in touch with what we need to be nourished besides food? Studies indicate that most Americans are sleep deprived and/or have trouble sleeping. Yet, how many hours do we spend watching T.V. or on a computer (blogging)?
Not only does our body suffer from this lack of sleep, but also our dream life. Dreams serve many functions. Dreaming is a way for the psyche to process the events of our day and an avenue for inspiration. Many famous scientists report that they got the idea for a breakthough from their dreams. Artists, writers and composers are often inspired by dream images.
Stephanie Austin in The Mountain Astrologer, says that the Full Moon illuminates the shadow side of each sign as well as its spiritual tasks. Cancer must learn about receiving, Capricorn about giving back. The Crab can build too thick a shell; the Mountain Goat may climb the wrong mountain. The fourth sign must develp healthy roots; the tenth must share the fruits of its labor. The more we diregard our own feelings and needs, the greater is the risk that we will violate the rights and concerns of others. The less responsibilty we assume, the less power we have. The light of this Full Moon reveals whether our crab shells are too thick or too thin--showing us where we need to shed our defenses or establish better boundaries. We wee whether we are climbing the right mountain, or treading someone else's path.
Yesterday Karyn Sanders on her radio show The Herbal Highway on KPFA, talked about how so many Americans are like children and how remaining a child also means you have no power. The entire show was about herbs and flower essences that would help one face reality and grow up and that the among the rewards of adulthood was the increased sense of power and authority. Right in line with this Full Moon. You can listen to this show or any other archived at KPFA.
So the challenge is balance. Retaining the open-heartedness of childhood and the responsibility of adulthood. Learning when to give and when to receive, when to work and when to rest. On my blog Hamida the Herbalist, the issue of the week is about the relationship between gratitude and abundance - which are related to giving and receiving. What is true security? Being heart-centered. It's all connected.
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