The Cosmic Story: The Wheel
of the Year:
Summer Solstice: June 21, 2019
The Blossoming of the Light
Summer Solstice at Stonehenge
We’re
moving into a new season. A new energy. Full of light and warmth.
We’re out of school, taking vacations, picnicking outside. The Sun
is high overhead and vital! Everything is growing. Nature is
blossoming.
This
week, the Summer Solstice marks the high point of light in the
northern hemisphere, the
longest day, the shortest night.
While
in the southern hemisphere, you celebrate the Winter Solstice, the
longest night and shortest day.
(I’m sorry I’ll be concentrating on the North. But the energies
are the same. It’s just that they are being seeded in the South
now at the New Moon phase of the year’s cycle/Winter Solstice –
you are the next stage of development of this moment.)
At the same time, we can’t
forget that the dark is rising.
We might not acknowledge it, but the body knows. Summer is the time
to sink into your body as you laze on the beach or on your doorstep.
Your body enjoys the warmth and the light but it also unconsciously
knows these days will soon be gone. So it wants to enjoy it now!
For
the energy has shifted into the Yin part of the year, into withdrawal
and ultimately darkness. For the dark is slowly rising even as we
celebrate the Sun’s power.
Light
and Dark. Two sides of a never-ending cycle of change. The Sun
stands still (Solstice) for 3 days twice each year, as the Sun
travels to its furthest points both North and South of the Equator.
Two
sides of life. Both necessary. The Celts name them twins – the
Oak King and the Holly King, one to rule the warmth and light, one to
rule the cold and dark. They battle for the hand of the Goddess but
let’s imagine that they switch off gracefully and peacefully. It
is during these 3 days at the Solstices that they switch authority over
the Sun as it continues its travels through the year.
Melissa Benson
All
things that live decay and die. Life and death are woven together.
Letting go of old habits, or old cultural beliefs and systems, are
part of the natural process. As a culture, we need to leave
patriarchy behind so there is new life and new growth available to
us. This is one of the lessons of Summer/Winter Solstice. Eternal
renewal.
Most
ancient cultures were aligned with the Earth and the heavens, and so
they celebrated the turning points of Light and Darkness, growth and
death. While our modern society has forgotten the meaning and
rituals of these turning points, it is surprising how we
unconsciously still celebrate them. Before the Summer Solstice when
we celebrate the gifts of Father Sky, we celebrate Father’s Day.
And what is America’s 4th
of July except a celebration of summer and the triumph of Life! It’s
time to celebrate them with deeper meaning and insight into our
lives. We need their sacred information so we can learn to live
attuned once more to the Earth.
With a full summer of light
and warmth ahead of us, most of us don’t think about the fact that
after Summer Solstice, the light begins to fade and the darkness
grows. With our modern conveniences and our disconnection from the
Earth, we no longer live within the Great Mother’s rhythms and
cycles.
But
when we do, we experience the Summer Solstice as the height of a
symphony of sounds and sights, tastes and touches and smells that
will slowly fade away with the year. It is the season to experience
the possibilities of heaven
on Earth:
that we can most surely nurture and create life to sustain us in the
darker times.
Sacred Marriage
At
Summer Solstice, we experience the orgasmic ecstasy of life as Heaven
and Earth engage in the Sacred Marriage. We get to experience the
fullness and beauty of life. And also now, the over-heated threat of
climate change. Gratitude and hope need to be coupled with
determination and action.
Like
a Full Moon, Summer Solstice gives form and intention to the seed
planted at Winter Solstice – the Seed of Light and Life returning.
What did we need to shed? What do we need to manifest? What
have you made of your life so far this year?
Summer Solstice, June 21, 2019
Summer
Solstice occurs on the day the Sun enters the sign of Cancer. This
year it occurs
on Friday, June 21st
at 8:54am PDT/ 11:54am EDT/ 4:54pm GMT.
This
is the season to honor our family and to feel the roots of our
existence and the deep foundations of our soul. Cancer asks us to
meditate on what it means for our souls to be at home here on the
Earth plane as well as in our body, which is the temple of the soul.
Cancer,
ruled by the Moon, also awakens memory, so we can begin to understand
what has gone before, so we can heal the hurts and wounds of the
past. Cancer wants our emotional body to be whole and healthy. We
need our lessons if our soul is to grow, but once we’ve learned
them, we need to let go of that life,
of that old story. If you’ve learned your lesson, then become
whoever you’re mention to BE!
How have your past lives, your ancestors and your present life
circumstances shaped you? What are the lessons? Have you learned
them? If so, move on!
This
Solstice season, with the lunar nodes creating eclipses in Cancer and
Capricorn, we have an opportunity to release old karma and to
understand the lessons involved. Now it’s time to leave the past
behind and write that new story. Create your life – live a
creative life!
So let’s look at where this
cycle began – back in December of 2018.
At
Winter
Solstice
last December, the Sun
entered Capricorn,
already made powerful and heavy by the presence of Saturn,
Pluto and the Lunar South Node
there. The necessity of societal change put pressure on the new
Light to take us deeper and wider than we’ve ever gone before. The
world literally
rests in our hands
and now we see what’s at stake if we don’t act.
Society
is just a construct, like a corporation thinking it has person hood.
Every society has its own rules and beliefs. Ours is called
patriarchy, but other societies has had different rules and beliefs.
We can change constructs. We don’t have to live in a society that
values greed, materialism and power over Spirit, people and the
Earth. It’s our choice. What we can’t change is the fact that
we’re destroying our own world and killing our children’s future.
Unless we take it upon ourselves to change and bring change to the
world.
The
other energy pattern in the Winter Solstice chart was a T-Square
between the Gemini Moon, Mercury and Jupiter conjunct in Sagittarius
and Neptune in Pisces. Jupiter and Neptune opened us to new
spiritual possibilities and a larger, deeper imagination, while
Mercury and the Gemini Moon contained the capacities to see the truth
and to communicate what these new perspectives might entail. What
was your true Solstice wish? What did you find yourself desiring?
Venus was
busy with Ceres
in Scorpio
resurrecting a deep nurturing spirit in us while Mars
in Pisces
was grappling with his wounded warrior spirit. They asked us, What
is important enough to us to stand up for, to fight for, to work for?
The
next shift came at Spring
Equinox,
when the 0* Aries Sun was conjunct Chiron,
the
Wounded Healer and Mentor of Heroes. We were called to see our
wounds to understand who we are. Hopefully, we began to listen even
more intently to our imagination and intuitions (Mercury
conjunct Neptune in Pisces)
while we worked with its Virgo
Moon
to understand how to manifest what we are called to do (grand trine
with Mars in
Taurus, Moon in Virgo and SN, Pluto and Saturn in Capricorn).
If we let go of our old story, our old karma, could we find ways to
manifest the New Story, for ourselves and our culture?
Venus in Aquarius
challenged Mars in Taurus
to stand up for everyone, everywhere. We can see it happening in the
world. People are standing up. Children are standing up. So the new
Winter Solstice seeds took root. We have to boldly stand up for our
beliefs if we want to change things. And we have to do it together.
Now,
at Summer Solstice with the Sun at 0* Cancer, we are getting ready to
incarnate our soul’s essence in a whole new way. We must name our
desires and hopes and stand up for what’s important in life.
Neptune
stations retrograde an hour before the Solstice, so its power is
especially potent. As Neptune turns within, our focus will be on
the inner world of our soul, the world of the creative imagination.
What do you
really want to imagine into being?
Neptune
in Pisces has been a major player this year, working with Pluto,
Saturn and the South Node in Capricorn to help us dissolve old karma
by
offering
us a more spiritual, meaningful paradigm to live by. Neptune awakens
us to the timeless place of beginnings and asks us to operate in
Kairos time
(timeless) as well as Chronos
time (3D
time). Bring the spiritual vision into our everyday life.
Neptune has also been
squaring Jupiter retrograde
all year, dissolving what is false in us and in the world. Neptune’s
spiritual imagination is inspiring Mars
and Mercury conjunct in Cancer now,
so we feel
and know
(Mercury)
what we need to do to nurture life, while
Mars, the
spiritual warrior, is ready to stand
up for
it.
There’s
a feminine grand air trine illuminating this Summer Solstice. The
Aquarius Moon
aligns with Venus in Gemini and Pallas in Libra.
The issues of freedom, equality, inner knowing and balance will
offer us a chance to communicate our ideals. Venus asks that we use
self-awareness to communicate our beliefs with charm and wit and
kindness, and with wisdom. Use your imagination to figure out how to
approach issues in ways that speak to the heart. It never hurts to
engage with kindness and an open ear.
Venus in Gemini is opposite
Jupiter retrograde in Sagittarius and they both square Neptune in
Pisces.
What truths need to be communicated? Truth isn’t simple. “Truth
is deadly. Truth is freedom. Truth can break and mend and bind.”
(Sarah Maas, Court
of Mist and Fury).
Mercury in Cancer
is intuitive and understands that the family, the tribe, is there to
be supported and to support us. With Mars
and the Lunar North Node there
as well, we are ready to act on our beliefs because we see the
breakdown of our culture and our institutions (Pluto,
Saturn and the Lunar South Node in Capricorn)
and we know that it is time to protect and defend life. Everything
else is irrelevant.
Our world is ripe for change.
Will we be the change agents it needs?
This summer, engage the Spirit
of the times. Yes, summer is the time of light and warmth, fun and
love. But it is also a time to act to overcome the obstacles of the
fear of change that makes us want to pull back and stay safe in the
comfort of ignoring the pain and suffering in our world.
We
need to upgrade our consciousness, to open to the blessings that came
to us at June
17th’s Sagittarius Full Moon
which occurred on the Galactic Center, the Womb of our galaxy. Open
up to revelation! A new belief system will give us new insights and
possibilities. With Vesta the priestess conjunct Uranus in Taurus,
our rituals will be potent. Rituals help us to hold onto and ground
in meaning.
Count
our blessings, which are so abundant. I feel like I live in paradise
compared to the rest of the world. Which is true for most of us
reading this. Spirit wants us to accept the challenge of our times.
We can share our abundance – of life, of hope, of change – with
the world.
What are we here for if not to
create a better life? A more creative life. More alive to
possibilities. We can do simple things like walking instead of
using our cars. We can shut off our TVs and talk to our neighbors
and see what our town needs that we can offer. We can do something
big or something small, but we all need to take some action around
the issues that we are passionate about.
Our world is dying.
If we don’t want to literally kill people or exacerbate climate
change, then we have to choose to
sacrifice
(to make
sacred)
ourselves. Let go of old habits that no longer serve your beliefs.
Let go of old addictions that keep you stuck. Let the old world,
the old story, die within you, so a new world, a new society, a new
story can be born.
Now
is the time to open up our vision and communicate it to our
communities. The masses (Aquarius
Moon)
are ready to hear the right stories. Like Scheherazade, we have to
take the risk and enchant people with the beauty, power and truth of
our vision of a free, healthy and creative future. The Arts
are especially important now. Just as they were in the 60s/70s. Art
is an easy way to get to the heart
of the matter. We can turn the fear of the future into a positive
image of the future for ourselves and for others who do not have
hope.
Where
do we look for the parts of the new Story? Begin by asking, what
does our world need? What does our immediate environment need from
us? How can I contribute? What gifts can I offer? Go out and speak
with the trees, the water, the winds, the Earth. Listen. They will
speak to our hearts. We just need to use our imaginations to
discover how we can help.
The Cancer/Capricorn
Eclipses
Cancer
and Capricorn are the signs most related to family and country.
Cancer is the expert on family and nurturing. Capricorn is the
expert manager of the community. We have to let go of the old way of
managing things – and start to manage our lives around the good of
our people. A shift must occur from the head to the heart – and
then the head can help the heart instead of ignoring it.
With
the Lunar Nodes going through these signs, we are being asked to
reconsider if our society really supports our lives. So far, we’re
seeing that it doesn’t. How can it, when we put the economy (which
really serves the 1%ers more than it serves the rest of us) before
the welfare, health and happiness of we
the people?
Both
the Cancer
Solar Eclipse on July 2nd
and the Capricorn Lunar Eclipse on July 16th
confront
us with these questions. And Mercury’s
retrograde from July 7th
– July 31st
in Cancer
will help us dive deeply into the emotional foundations of life to
help us discover what is really important for our own happiness.
Once we understand what that is, it’s our responsibility to see
that we attain it. And along the way, we might help others attain
their desires.
Cancer Solar Eclipse, July 2, 2019
The
Cancer total
Solar Eclipse will
be visible in eastern Oceania and most of South America. The
Sun and Moon at 11* Cancer faces Saturn, South Node and Pluto in
Capricorn. Our
collective soul needs an upgrade. It’s time to plant a seed of
emotional intelligence so we can recognize what is life-giving or
life-destroying. The eclipse trines Neptune in Pisces, adding the
spiritual imagination to the mix. Our spiritual beliefs can power
our resourcefulness. Uranus helps us stay awake and aware and
rebellious enough to push back against the old ways.
The
Sabian symbol for the Sun and Moon at 11* Cancer is: A
clown caricatures merrily all kinds of human traits.
This ability to see and understand human nature is important. Make
fun of yourself and your habits before you make fun of others. But
also see through the illusion to the truth. What is just being human
and what is cruelty and evil? We need to learn to discern!
Capricorn Lunar Eclipse, July 16, 2019
The
Capricorn
partial Lunar Eclipse
occurs
on July 16th.
It will be visible in most of Asia, the Middle East, Europe and
eastern South America. It will involve the usual suspects in
Capricorn (Pluto, Saturn, SN) along with the Moon. They will stand
opposite Venus, the NN and the Sun in Cancer and both square Pallas
in Libra. We have to find new ways to work with each other, ways that
are nurturing to all of us. We are all in this together! That makes
it our job to do the work of reconciliation. Offer to read the
Mueller report at your local library. Let people know the truth of
what’s going on.
The
other aspects occurring during this lunar eclipse is a square between
Uranus in Taurus to Mars and Mercury in Leo, opening our minds to
alternative sources of energy and technology. And we’re still in
the energy of Neptune square Jupiter, pushing us to really walk our
talk – beliefs must lead to action.
The
Sabian Symbol for the Sun at 25* Cancer is: Leader
of men wrapped in an invisible mantle of power.
This symbol indicates that when we are courageous enough to take a
stand and lead, our soul’s power is there to protect us as well as
to attract others with our light. Play to your strengths!
The
Sabian Symbol for the Moon as 25* Capricorn is: Little
boys frolic on soft rugs in an oriental carpet shop. (Shades
of my trip to Istanbul!) This symbol indicates that our imagination
must be grounded in reality to do what we need to do. Little boys
rock at playing and imagining. They lose it as they grow up though.
The magic carpets of Scheherazade’s stories bring a spiritual
dimension to our 3D reality. Magic can happen. Stop being such
grown-ups and start to believe! That will make you the leader we
need.
The rest of the summer/winter
transits:
1.
Mercury goes
retrograde from July 7th
– July 31st
from 5* Leo to 24* Cancer.
As mentioned in earlier newsletters, all of the Mercury retrogrades
this year are in the 3 water signs. The first was in Pisces in March,
where we had to contemplate our oneness. This one in Cancer asks us
what our personal stake is in life. The last Mercury retrograde this
year will be in Scorpio, where we’ll have to consider how much more
we grow when we interact with other people in our lives.
2.
Venus moves into Cancer on July 3rd
and into Leo on July 27th,
into Virgo on August 17th
and into Libra just before the Equinox on September 13th.
She’s moving quickly now and will disappear behind the Sun from
the morning sky from July 8th
– September 20th
when she’ll appear as the Evening Star.
3.
Mars leaves Cancer and enters Leo on July 1st,
enters Virgo on August 17th,
squaring Jupiter in Sagittarius on September 12th
and Neptune on September 13 – 14, reigniting our passion for being
a spiritual warrior.
4.
Pay attention on August 11th.
Jupiter retrograde turns direct at 15* Sagittarius (divination),
Mercury re-enters Leo (creative mind) and Uranus turns retrograde at
7* Taurus (a
new revelation)
.
It should be an interesting day for all.
5.
Saturn retrograde turns direct on September 18th
at 14* Capricorn (enduring
values).
This
is the time when Light blossoms along with the flowers and fruits.
This Summer Solstice season asks us: What
can we do to nurture ourselves, our communities, our clans, our
people?
If each town and village pledged to heal their immediate
environment, it would begin. We can’t depend on corporations or
governments which are failing to do the right thing. It has to come
from the people. And that is what is happening again.
The children are rising.
The workers are rising. The repressed are arising. Women are
arising. The Earth is arising. We will be reborn.
May the peace and the love of
the Goddess and the God be ever with you. Merry meet, merry part and
merry meet again!
Cathy
What
Is There Beyond Knowing?
What
is there beyond knowing that keeps
calling to me? I can't
calling to me? I can't
turn
in any direction
but it's there. I don't mean
but it's there. I don't mean
the
leaves' grip and shine or even the thrush's
silk song, but the far-off
silk song, but the far-off
fires,
for example,
of the stars, heaven's slowly turning
of the stars, heaven's slowly turning
theater
of light, or the wind
playful with its breath;
playful with its breath;
or
time that's always rushing forward,
or standing still
or standing still
in
the same -- what shall I say --
moment.
moment.
What
I know
I could put into a pack
I could put into a pack
as
if it were bread and cheese, and carry it
on one shoulder,
on one shoulder,
important
and honorable, but so small!
While everything else continues, unexplained
While everything else continues, unexplained
and
unexplainable. How wonderful it is
to follow a thought quietly
to follow a thought quietly
to
its logical end.
I have done this a few times.
I have done this a few times.
But
mostly I just stand in the dark field,
in the middle of the world, breathing
in the middle of the world, breathing
in
and out. Life so far doesn't have any other name
but breath and light, wind and rain.
but breath and light, wind and rain.
If
there's a temple, I haven't found it yet.
I simply go on drifting, in the heaven of the grass
and the weeds.
I simply go on drifting, in the heaven of the grass
and the weeds.
~
Mary Oliver ~
(New
and Selected Poems Volume Two)
