There’s so much going on this month in the heavens! How we integrate these energies is so vital now. We’re living in times when we’re called on to live in our hearts and see how we’re all connected. With Sun in Aquarius, the role of our tribes, our groups, our families need us to live our truth and shine out our light.
World views create worlds. Our task is to change our view of life – from our patriarchal individualism to a communal vision, a knowledge of our unity. Our Oneness. We have a choice every day to live our best Self.
So I’ll give you a context for the seasonal change that’s upon us and a brief look at the astrology of February 2022.
February Festivals:
This weekend and next week kick off February’s intense and interesting energies, so I wanted to get you oriented for this transformational month ahead.
At the beginning of February, we arrive at a new gateway of the Wheel of the Year called Imbolc by the Celts, Candlemas by the Catholics, and St. Brigit’s Day by the Irish and pagans. But first and foremost, it is an astronomical marker of the year.
By February, Earth has reached a point in the Sun’s return North that the Light will begin to grow more rapidly now. It’s already noticeable. All these festivals point to that fact. (Just as the light declines more rapidly at the opposite festival of Lamas on August 2 and now in the southern hemisphere – where they are preparing for Autumn.)
We Americans know February 2nd as Groundhog’s Day, the day this burrower comes out to check to see his shadow. If it’s sunny and he can see it, that means we’ll have an early Spring. If it’s cloudy and there’s no trace of a shadow, we’re in for at least 6 more weeks of Winter. He’s looking for the light.
The second gateway of the Wheel of the Year occurs on February 1st - 2nd. The Celts called this cross-quarter fire festival Imbolc, which means 'ewe's milk' because this is the time when spring lambs are born and the mother ewe's milk comes in. The lamb's birth promises returning life and light to the world, despite the snow and frost that still linger in the land. Imbolc was considered the first day of Spring. At Imbolc, we look for a vision of the future year. Take time to meditate – go to Cerridwen’s Cauldron (the Goddess of Bards and Inspiration) and look inside. What do you find there? We have hope in the light’s return.
St. Brigit’s Day is celebrated on Imbolc as well. The Celtic Goddess Bríd was regarded as a sun goddess of healing and the ancient Celts acknowledged her on this day as the day that signaled renewal, new growth, and a lessening of darkness. The Catholics turned this goddess into a Saint because the Irish would not give her up. She is the Goddess of Healing, Smithcraft and Poetry. You can read all about her at my Wisdom Chronicles blog. (The Irish just made St. Brigit’s Day a holiday!)
The Catholics also took over this cross-quarter day as the day baby Jesus was presented in the Temple (and Mary was ‘purified’) and renamed it Candlemas – the day the Church blesses all the candles it will use in ceremony for the year. They are blessing the light.
And this year, the day before Imbolc (January 31 - February 1st) is the New Moon in Aquarius and therefore the beginning of the Chinese Lunar New Year – the Year of the Water Tiger, a sign of strength, bravery and overcoming negative emotions.
That’s a lot of energy centered around the next few days. And Venus turns direct on Saturday, January 29th to add to the fun. There’s more on Venus below.
Before I get to the astrology, I want to talk about February’s energy.
All these themes of returning light are also seen in ancient Roman society, for the Romans viewed February as the month of purification, a time to let go of the old so the new could flourish.
In ancient Rome, February was the month of Purification. The Roman poet Ovid says that In sum, anything used to purify our bodies was named februa by our ancestors. The month February is named for this.
The Romans considered February a pivotal month, a transitional time between winter’s deep sleep and spring’s reawakening. They used this month for purification rituals, purifying their every day surroundings, sweeping away any decay, the outworn and any debris from their homes and fields, as well as letting go of any negative emotions, bad feelings and self-destructive behaviors.
In the fields, they cleaned up debris from winter storms and tended to the vines, pruned the olive and fruit trees, and began early planting. It was a time to set things right with the home, the community and especially the family.
It was a time to solidify their family ties, for families worked together to ensure everyone’s success. It was a time to heal old family arguments and a time to remember family members who had died, honoring the ancestors and healing old family wounds.
On February 1st, women were honored as the birthers of children, supporters of family, tenders of the home and keepers of the hearth fires. This was the day to honor the work and worth of women and support them with positive energy. On this day, young girls went to the sacred grove of Juno Sospita, the Goddess of Protection and Fertility and fed her sacred snake in honor of the feminine powers of fertility and regeneration. (It isn’t only about physical fertility.)
So let us use this next month like the Romans did and purify and bless our homes, our animals, our stoves & ovens which cook our nourishment. We can take time to honor our living and dead kin. February is a quiet month best used to come to terms with our past and purify ourselves to prepare us for the future.
If we are to begin to live in a sacred manner, we need to incorporate old/new rituals as we align with the magic of Mother Earth once again.
One last February tradition that we need to honor as well as change.
St. Valentine’s Day is February 14th. In modern America, we’ve turned it into a day that celebrates romantic love. Or it was turned into that by corporate advertising. Romantic love was introduced back in the 13th Century, when the Divine Feminine was valued (when the Grail legends were written down) and the Courts of Love taught warriors how to live by their values and honor women.
Perhaps we need to expand our understanding of Love this Valentine’s Day and make it a day to practice holding love in our hearts for everyone and for Mother Earth. Once again, to live in a sacred manner means that we have to walk our talk, so let’s all pick February 14th to walk with Love in our hearts.
Can you spend a whole day full of Love? Think of the vibrational change. Think how when Mars and Venus come together on the Full Moon on February 16th, that love might change the world. We certainly need it to. Look at how quickly the men in charge of our world are preparing for war again. How unimaginative! How remarkably stupid!
February’s Astrology
Venus:
Just before February begins, our Lady Venus, who has been retrograde since last December 91, 2021, will turn to direct motion on Friday - Saturday, January 28th – 29th. Venus is now a Morning Star, shining in the early morning sky just before sunrise. If you see her in the next day or so, the old crescent Moon will rise with her before dawn. It’s breathtaking to see them together then.
The Sabian symbol for Venus direct is at 12* Capricorn: In an old diamond mine, a showcase displaying and explaining different crystalline structures. Crystals are energetic matrices, just like the archetypes, which are the pre-existing building blocks of life here on Mother Earth and within our psyches. Venus says, let’s understand what makes life worthwhile if we’re going to build a new society based on natural laws.
When Venus met the Sun on January 8, 2022, she began a new Capricorn Venus Star Point. With her retrograde, she is backtracking to pick up the wisdom she learned from the previous Gemini Venus Star Point that began in June, 2020. That was a cycle of being open to new ideas and possibilities. Now as Venus moves direct, we have to get practical about the ways we can integrate those new ideas and possibilities into society, which is Capricorn’s intention.
Venus turning direct is energized by a lovely trine to Uranus in Venus-ruled Taurus, supporting her rebellion against patriarchy (she meets up with Pluto in Capricorn 3 times, helping to change the tone of cultural transformation). When she finally meets up with Pluto for the third time on March 3rd, she will be joined by Mars. These three planets can change the collective picture – especially if we let them change us in the process.
Venus and Mars meet twice in the next month. First on the day of the Leo Full Moon on February 16th at 17* Capricorn and again on March 3rd at 1* Aquarius – the same degree as the Jupiter/Saturn conjunction on Winter Solstice 2020. A new Aquarian beginning – again.
Mercury:
Hours before Venus goes direct, Mercury retrograde, the Messenger god, meets up with Pluto in Capricorn, perhaps revealing more secrets about what’s not working in our culture anymore as well as what’s no longer working for us personally. Mercury can travel through the three realms of the heavens, the earth and the underworld, offering his services as guide of souls. (You can listen to Hermes/Mercury’s birth story at Grandma Cat’s Bedtime Stories for the Soul.)
If
you have planets in the last 5 degrees of cardinal signs, you might
as well resign yourselves to a dip into the underworld. It’s time
to release those secrets you’ve been holding onto. Or at least
begin to think about it, since Mercury will go direct on February 3rd
and meet up with Pluto again for the 3rd
time on February
11th.
Prepare your mind for transformation!
The Sabian symbol for Mercury rx and Pluto meeting at 27* Capricorn is: Pilgrims climbing the steep steps leading to a mountain shrine. Our modern society has lost touch with the divine in so many ways. It’s time to realize again that we’re all one in Spirit. This is a great day to meditate and pull into focus what this retrograde has shown you. You can deepen your Imbolc visualization.
After Mercury goes direct on February 3rd, all the planets will be in direct motion until April 29th, when Pluto goes retrograde. So hang onto your hats – the energies are going to be strong and on the move.
Aquarius New Moon @ 13* Aquarius on January 31 – February 1, 2022
This second New Moon of 2022 is also connecting with last year’s Uranus/Saturn square. At the Capricorn New Moon, Uranus gave a boost to our New Year’s resolutions. At this Aquarius New Moon conjunct Saturn and squaring Uranus in Taurus, we’re taken back to the issue of Old vs New. We are challenged to change our ways. The universe gives us plenty of help to make the changes we need to make.
Will we listen to the voice of Mother Earth’s creative genius or will we succumb to the messages of media hype? It’s time to stop listening outside ourselves and turn within to listen to our own instincts and intuitions and our own critical thinking. We all need to stop running around like chickens with our heads cut off and really see what’s going on in our world. The pandemic isn’t the worst of it. The men in power are willing to go to war again rather than deal with the very real issues facing us. It’s time to stop them.
We don’t need nor want another war. Or any wars. This is our ‘death culture’ at work again. It’s time to create a life culture. And it’s up to women and men of good will to do it.
At
this New Moon, Venus joins the asteroid Vesta, the fire priestess.
It is so important now to ‘belong to ourselves’ (being virginal)
and stop trying to be what our culture says we should be. Venus can
help you find your own sovereignty during this New Moon. Ask her for
her blessing. With Mars added to the equation, Venus, Vesta, Mars and Uranus makes for unconventional partnerships. Stay in your own power and see who's around.
The Sabian symbol for 13* Aquarius is: A barometer. The ability to discover basic natural facts that allow us to plan for the future.
Leo-Aquarius Full Moon @ 28* Leo-Aquarius on February 16, 2022
This Leo Full Moon activates our creativity and our place in our tribe. What do we have to offer to our group? What creative expression do we feel we need to make? This Full Moon squares the new lunar nodes in Taurus/Scorpio. What old values need to go so we can build something new?
The Sabian symbol for the Sun at 28* Aquarius is: A tree felled and sawed to ensure a supply of wood for the winter. What do we need for the future? Isn’t that the question. What do we need and is it sustainable?
The Sabian symbol for the Moon at 28* Leo is: Many little birds on a limb of a big tree. There’s a flood of ideas and possibilities but which one to choose? Look to Aquarius and ask, What does the group need?
The First-time U.S. Pluto Return: February 22, 2022
We’ve been feeling this transit for awhile now but it perfects on February 22nd. What does it mean for a country to have their first Pluto return? Well, it sometimes means the end of empire – which we’ve seen played out these past few years. America is no longer the wonder child; American exceptionalism is on the wan. In fact, America isn’t doing very well in the things the matter to life – our health care system ranks below 3rd world countries; we are the most violent country in the world; it looks like our democracy is failing; we are controlled by corporate interests who own the government and the courts; we haven’t stopped our over-the-top polluting. I could go on and on but you know what’s wrong.
But we now have a chance to fix things if we actually engage in our society. If we actually take up our duties as citizens. It’s time we stopped waiting for our government to do what’s best for us. It’s been proven that our government officials listen to corporate lobbyists instead of we the people. Isn’t it time we took our government in hand? Or at least had a tax revolt like our fore bearers did.
Remember: Taxation without representation is tyranny. It seems money is always at issue here. That was the rallying cry of the American revolutionaries. Why isn’t it our cry now? The wealthy and corporations are not paying their fair share of taxes but working Americans are. Our government isn’t spending our tax dollars on things Americans need – they’re giving it away to the military and to Wall Street banks.
Are we ready to participate in our government? That’s what democracy is about. If not, we will be led by dictators. There is an element in our country that wants us to live by their rules rather than allowing us to make our own decisions. Isn’t it time we stopped supporting those institutions which no longer represent us? This goes beyond vaccines. This is about how society’s decisions are made. Airlines get to stop 5G from coming in because it disrupts flight patterns. But people can’t stop them when it disrupts our personal electro-magnetic field, causing harm to our bodies.
Anyway, these are questions we need to look at if we’re going to help create a new society. What do you think?
May we all arise together to a new day,
Cathy
“From
too much love of living,
Hope and desire set free,
Even the
weariest river
Winds somewhere to the sea—“
But
we have only begun
To love the earth.
We have only
begun
To imagine the fullness of life.
How could we
tire of hope?
— so much is in bud.
How can desire
fail?
— we have only begun
to imagine justice and
mercy,
only begun to envision
how it might be
to
live as siblings with beast and flower,
not as
oppressors.
Surely our river
cannot already be
hastening
into the sea of nonbeing?
Surely it
cannot
drag, in the silt,
all that is innocent?
Not
yet, not yet—
there is too much broken
that must be
mended,
too much hurt we have done to each other
that
cannot yet be forgiven.
We have only begun to know
the
power that is in us if we would join
our solitudes in the
communion of struggle.
So much is unfolding that
must
complete its gesture,
so much is in bud.
~ Denise Levertov ~
(Candles in Babylon)
The
Changing of the Gods: https://changingofthegods.com/
A great series about the astrological perspective on what’s going on in the world. Based on Rick Tarnas’ book ‘Cosmos & Psyche’, it’s a wonderful explanation of astrology, archetypes, social movements. It’s a new world view that has at its center, we are all One – we are all connected and we all have meaning.
You can go to https://astrologyhub.pages.ontraport.net/cotg-waitlist
Check it out and sign up to see the whole series. And pass it on!
