The Cosmic Story: Samhain, Eclipse Season and New Venus Star Point Part One

 

The Cosmic Story: Samhain, Eclipse Season

and New Venus Star Point

Part One

The Wheel of the Year: Samhain: Death Aspect of the Cycle of Life

As we enter the season of Samhain (October 31-- astrological Samhain at 15* Scorpio on November 7), we begin the six weeks of greatest darkness in the northern hemisphere before the rebirth of the Light at Winter Solstice. (I’m going to stick with the seasons in the North but I want to shout out to those of you down South to have a merry Beltane!)

We are entering the season of Death, with nature dying off and the light dimming. Westerners celebrate this season with celebrations of Halloween, The Day of the Dead, All Saints Day/All Souls Day. At Halloween, we begin to let go of our usual ‘ego-selves’ and take on imaginary ‘selves’ in an unconscious mirroring of the needs of the season – to let go of what is no longer viable – what is dead – and to begin to imagine the new life to come next year. Who will we dress up as?

Samhain is last gateway of the Wheel of the Year, the time to learn to become comfortable with darkness, to accept Death and change in our own lives. By accepting Death psychologically, we’ll begin to let go of our fear of DEATH. Otherwise, we will surely create even more death in the world. (Look at Putin – instead of letting go of what is no longer viable, he’s going all in on death and destruction. Scared, fearful, silly little man.)

We are a culture which fears Death. Most masculine cultures do. Made worse because Christianity made the afterlife a fearful thing of fire and damnation. Who is ‘saintly’ enough to make it to their heaven, especially if there’s only one chance to make it? Most people imagine going to purgatory or hell-- both places of fire and torment. Who came up with this religion? Who would worship a divine being that condemns most of us to one gruesome afterlife? And who condemned women as ‘evil’ ‘soulless’ and ‘the cause of death’. Sometimes I despair of the male religious imagination, which took the Goddess’ promise of continual death and rebirth and turned it into a nightmare of masculine linear thought of beginning, middle and the End. In refusing the gifts of feminine wisdom, these churchmen gifted us with FEAR of death instead of acceptance of life and death.

 

 

Elana Gibeault ~ Samhain

At Samhain, when the gates between life and death open and the souls of the departed sometimes return to comfort or confront us, we have the opportunity to face our loss and fears and let go of them. Life will have its way with us – but we get to make choices about how we meet it. We ourselves choose to make life a blessing or a curse. We don’t need to fear life. We just need to respect her and know how to meet her demands. Samhain demands a death.

This unconscious fear-based belief about death has given rise to a death culture – a history of warfare, death and destruction that is still being played out all over the world, but most symbolically in Ukraine. What will Putin accomplish with his war? More deaths. The threat of nuclear destruction? The end of all life? For what? His pride. His power. His legacy? This is the delusional state of the patriarchal mind, this unconscious fear of death, should not be running the world. For those of you old enough, Dr. Strangelove.

So how do we stop it? 

 

 

First, by realizing deep down in our souls that our world is DYING. On multiple fronts – the environment is in crisis, with around 90% of the animal species dying out, with our waters poisoned by chemicals and pharmaceuticals, our air poisoned with too much CO² as well as other hazardous chemicals, our food poisoned by hormones and chemicals which cause disease --- shall I go on? Then there’s the social, wealth, resources and gender inequality. And now – again – there is a renewed threat of NUCLEAR WAR.

The thing is, we can’t let these facts freeze us and leave us feeling powerless. There is a power in Mother Earth that can fill us and give us the power to accomplish what is needed. The issues facing us are our task, our purpose. It’s up to us to determine what kind of future this planet and our people will have. We are the grandmothers and grandfathers of the future. How will they remember us?

We can stop this craziness, and bring patriarchy down by not buying into it anymore. (I think women need to strike for 3 days all over the world – we’d stop the world, since we hold up more than our share of it.) At least we can look to something different to guide us. Let’s stop doing the same thing over and over again with the same results.

We need a guide. So let’s look to the ancient Mother Goddess for answers. 

 

Mother Earth

The problem of Death: The divine Feminine is tied to the Earth and her cycles, not some heavenly afterlife. Just as Spring brings new life, Summer growth and Autumn harvest, the last weeks of the year, when the darkness is greatest, bring us the lessons of Death. Which in turn, leads to Re-Birth at Winter Solstice. And the cyclical process begins anew. Mother Earth is a tidy mistress – we get recycled.

The truth is, Death is a needed and natural part of the life cycle. Without death, how can there be new Life? It is our souls which never die; they get recycled into new bodies and new experiences. It’s our individual egos that are afraid. (Pro-life people, you don’t seem to believe in souls, only bodies. A very one dimensional belief.) Patriarchy has tried to take control of this process and stop Death (keeping people alive past our expiration date for money), which is probably why the world is stuck in the Death aspect of the life cycle.

It’s especially important at this moment that we all learn to face Death without fear, because we’re also going through a big transformation of the world ages. The old world paradigm (patriarchy) is dying and a new world view is being birthed. But the old is ‘afraid’ to die and let the new vision come into being. As we can see, it’s not going down without its usually bullying response to its fear – a fight.

Because there is so much darkness and chaos in the world, the old is trying to maintain control all over the world, but the new energies of life are rising up. Young women in Iran and protesters in China and Russia are defying authority to demand their freedom. In the US, we are asked to reject a false narrative of lies and deception and conspiracy theories bankrolled by the wealthy to protect their power. Entertain this possibility: Perhaps they know about these conspiracies because they’re the ones doing the horrible things, hypocritically pointing the finger at others, just as perhaps Trump tried to cheat on the election and got outmaneuvered by voters. Could be.

Perhaps the lesson is to learn to make up our own minds about what we value. We stand on the brink of true freedom when we make our choices with our free will. It’s time to embrace our freedom, which includes everyone else’s freedom.

The way to begin this dying process for patriarchy is for each of us to let it die within ourselves. It doesn’t have to be a battle. Just a gentle farewell. A slow shedding of unnecessary waste. A turning away from being a consumer to being a citizen. Becoming a conscious co-creator of our world.

Ask yourself: How has capitalistic patriarchy colonized your beliefs, your values, your ideals and your needs? This season of Samhain is the time to shed your old skins so that your authentic light can shine through by Winter Solstice.

Part of the issue the world faces is the rapid development of technology in the last century, causing dramatic changes in our society. We are the forerunners of the Age of Aquarius, potentially a more technological and idealistic society. (think Star Trek! These stories always showed our future as one of equality, freedom, curiosity and unity, as opposed to Star Wars and others where most of the worlds are desert worlds full of junk, ruled over by despots.) It’s up to us to begin to understand what our technology is and what it can helpfully be used for. And what it shouldn’t be used for. It’s important to ween people off their constant use of technology and back into personal contacts and communication. We can find ways to use technology without destroying our humanity. We’ve gone overboard with our new toys, and now it’s time to re-balance.

We are entering unknown territory. Going where no one has gone before.

The Wise Crone and Death

We re-balance by re-connecting to the Divine Feminine energy of the cosmic laws of life and death. In ancient times, when the Mother Goddess was worshiped, people saw death as an intimate and important process of the life cycle. Just as the Divine Mother gives birth to us, she also takes life away when it is no longer sustainable. This is why women have been the caretakers of children and of the dying. The divine Feminine fosters caring, community and change, even in death.

 

 

This fear of death extends to our society’s disregard of older women, for the ancient Goddess often had 3 forms – the Maiden, the Mother/Lover, the Crone – the Creatrix, the Preserver and the Destroyer. The Crone was the aspect of the Goddess who understood and dealt with Death. So men feared her, and now fear death. Isn’t it interesting that it was the ancient gods that had to die to be reborn?

Men have to face their fear of death and surrender to the inevitable. That’s why a return of the Goddess and her natural laws can heal our fears. The Crone (which means crown), knows the wisdom of life and death. The Crone was the judge and lawmaker, since she understood what is necessary to promote life.

In facing death and facing fear, the Crone becomes the Maiden who creates the world again. It is all one cycle of life and death. And we are part of it, whether we know it or not. When we connect to the seasons and cycles, we make those times sacred and magic happens – the magic appropriate to the season’s needs.

Our modern culture loses a valuable resource when it devalues older women and our wisdom. All ancient cultures valued their elders, especially the grandmothers. It’s too bad that our ‘founding fathers’ left out the need for a council of grandmothers in our government, since they looked to the Iroquois’ Great Law of Peace for ideas on how to establish their experiment in freedom. The Native Council of Grandmothers decided if and when the tribes went to war and who could be chief. They were the Clan Mothers who held the people together. It would have been wiser to add this aspect of governance to our constitution instead of a Supreme Court that could be politicized by one group. The Grandmothers stood for all the people. Because they were the Mothers of the Tribe.

 

 

Grandmothers

We need our wise crones now more than ever. Christianity burned old women for their ‘evil eye’ – which was basically just a knowing look that saw how idiotic the men were acting. The male ego is often afraid of that disapproval. And so they suppressed the aspects of the divine Feminine that would call them on their s**t and only kept the loving and nurturing mother and spouse who they felt they could control.

So men’s fear of death and their fear of older women seem to go hand and hand. (of course there are men who are not like this, but in general, this has been the male attitude.) And yet the Wise Crone sets the moral standards of her clan and culture. The one who gave birth and gave nourishment, warmth, protection and survival skills to her children also created culture for those children. The Crone made moral and legal decisions for her people. The Church called these wise older women ‘witches’ and burned thousands of women over 5 centuries, wiping out the old pagan Goddess religions and its beliefs – that we belong to the Earth and its cycle of life and death, that sexuality and pleasure are sacred, that we are part of Nature, that women’s wisdom is more important than man’s knowledge.

With so many post-menopausal women alive today, we have a wealth of Crone wisdom to call on. Isn’t it time we did?

I’ve been re-reading a book from the late 80s The Crone: Woman of Age, Wisdom and Power, by Barbara G. Walker. It’s a powerful reminder of how the patriarchal religions have persecuted women’s religions and powers for thousands of years. And why it’s so important for women to reclaim our ancient purpose so we can bring a wise vision of life back to the world.

The second part of this Samhain newsletter will be out next week, where I’ll discuss the goddess Hekate and the upcoming total lunar eclipse in Taurus, conjunct Uranus – the planet of surprises – which occurs on the morning of the U.S. elections. Surprises are in store.

Venus Conjunct the Sun: New Venus-Star Cycle begins: October 22, 2022

Ever since we saw Venus cross the face of the Sun back in 2004 and 2012, astrologers have again been working with the Venus cycle, which makes a 5-pointed star in the heavens every 8 years as Venus moves from being a Morning Star to Evening Star and back to Morning Star.

 

 

When Venus moves retrograde between the Earth and the Sun, she begins her Morning Star phase, which last occurred on January 8, 2022 19* Capricorn. Now she travels behind the Sun in her underworld journey (furthest away from Earth) and will conjunct the Sun tomorrow, October 22 at 29*27’ Libra. This is the first time Venus starts a cycle in her own sign in about 150 years. The last degree of a sign indicates it’s time to work out the issues of the sign.

 

 

Venus makes this pattern over years

 

Venus is the great connector – she teaches us about what we love and value, be it beauty, truth, a relationship, art and life itself. In Libra, Venus loves balance and harmony, truth and fairness, equality and justice. Beginning this new phase in her celestial journeys, Venus can help us take a stand for those things we hold dear. She elevates the divine feminine qualities that are so sorely needed in our society now. Love, connection, care, community. Let’s hope she restores diplomacy to the world instead of war.

This Venus/Sun conjunction is challenging Pluto in Capricorn to listen to her ideas and ideals. With Eris opposing Venus and squaring Pluto, we have to trust our heart wisdom. The divine feminine speaks to us through our hearts, minds and most especially through our imaginations. Change your perspective, change the world.

 

 

The Sabian symbol for Venus/Sun at 30* Libra is: Three mounds of knowledge on a philosopher's head. Dane Rudhyar states that philosophers are people who understand life and its issues. I would substitute (3) wise women and knowledgeable men. Three is the number of process – of something working its way to completion. This symbol urges us to understand life’s needs and find the wisdom to know what we need to do.

The Gene Key for this Venus/Sun conjunction is interesting in that it repeats the message. Gene Key for 30* Libra is Number 50 – Cosmic Order.

The shadow for this Gene Key is Corruption. But not just corruption of ourselves, and our political and religious leaders, but a corruption of data. The knowledge we’ve been raised on no longer serves our consciousness. It has cut us off from our natural wisdom and we suffer for it, because the data inspires our fears. This is what the South Node solar eclipse is about. (See below)

The Gift of this Gene Key is Equilibrium. This equilibrium comes from our own inner peace and security (since we were raised on fear and insecurity), and the recognition that our group, our nation, our world can come into equilibrium if each of us do. Each of us has to take responsibility for the gift we can contribute to society, creating a greater whole.

The Blessing of the 50^th Gene Key is Harmony, which occurs when all elements in a system are in perfect and permanent resonance. We are creating this new society and vision now as we begin to reach a critical mass of change. If we ever accomplish this, we will become Conscious Earth.

If this is the potential that the new Venus Star Point will birth in the coming years, its energy will certainly help us create a better world for us all. So Mote It Be!

Saturn in Aquarius turns to direct motion seven hours after the Sun/Venus conjunction, slowing us down to really pay attention to what those values are for us and for the collective. We are at the last stage of the waning Saturn-Uranus square that began in 2021. We might see the outcome of this struggle between the Old vs the New with the upcoming Scorpio Solar Eclipse and Taurus Lunar Eclipse.

These two eclipses in Scorpio and Taurus confront us with the question of our Values – isn’t it time we really looked at ourselves and our lifestyle and recognized that it isn’t sustainable. Can we let go of the past and look to the future with curiosity and imagination? Isn’t it time to imagine a different way to live? A more balanced and simple way, with basic needs met and time for personal creative expression. Not life based on survival and fear, but enjoyment and commitment. Work that feeds the soul with purpose because it’s needed for life to prosper and grow.

The Sabian symbol for 19* Aquarius is: A forest fire quenched. Since we’re still in the tension of the Saturn/Uranus square between the old and the new, I would say this signifies the end of the craziness the old is trying to exert on the world. Let’s hope so!

Scorpio partial Solar Eclipse: October 25, 2022

The Scorpio New Moon solar eclipse occurs on Tuesday, October 25^th at 3:49 am PDT/ 6:49am EDT and 11:49 am GMT.

 

 

This New Moon is conjunct Venus, who has just started her journey as an Evening Star of Wisdom, although still hidden from Earth’s sight until December 3, 2022.

The Gene Key is the same as the one for the Sun/Venus conjunction, Key 50. The theme is repeated with the Sabian Symbol. Equilibrium and Harmony.

The Sabian symbol for the Sun, Moon and Venus at 3* Scorpio is: A house raising party in a small village enlists the neighbors’ cooperation.

I’ve always loved this image – because it does take a village not only to raise a child but to make a home and community. With COVID and our dependence on technology to ‘reach out’, we are losing our community feeling. We have to let go of our isolation and re-connect with where we live. This is an image of both Equilibrium and Harmony, the gift and blessing of the 50^th Key.

So what keeps us from doing that?

This intense partial solar eclipse on the New Moon in Scorpio is called a south node eclipse, meaning that like the south node’s shedding of old habits that are no longer viable, we need to shed our skins and let go of old trauma, lies, deceits and relationships that are toxic not only to us but to the world.

We humans have so much fear in us. It keeps us from cooperating. This eclipse says – why not drop the fear? What else can happen? We’re all in this together.

Scorpio doesn’t shy away from the taboos in our culture. Whether it’s sex, drugs and rock & roll, investments, taxes, and death, Scorpio deals with the things we usually don’t want to deal with, let alone look at. But this Autumn, we all have to face the music – it’s time to deal with our Shadows, both personally and collectively.

As we enter the dark of the year, it’s a perfect time to look at our shadows and see where we aren’t living aligned with our values. These Shadows are behavior patterns and ideas & beliefs that once protected us as children, but which no longer reflect or serve our needs. Once we face our wounds (which birth shadows), and name them, we can change things. The collective naming of our wounds has picked up speed over the past two years. Now it’s time to see if we can transform those shadows into the gold of awakened cultural consciousness.

Scorpio is the sign of emotional stagnation, a fixed water sign that holds onto emotional trauma. This thick dark soup is the result of experiences of death, terror and pain, causing us to feel mistrust, betrayal, resentment, fear, and hurt. These repressed emotions can give rise to power plays, deception and control issues.

This eclipse season heralds a time to take the lessons learned and put those emotions back into the Goddess’ cauldron of regeneration. They use up too much of our authentic energy and so no longer serve our life’s growth. This south node eclipse’s lesson is to let go of the past, learn its lessons, and let the natural dying process transform our consciousness.

Because the upcoming Taurus Full Moon total lunar eclipse is conjunct Uranus, the master of surprise and sudden change. More on the upcoming lunar eclipse in the second part of this newsletter. Be ready for much needed Surprises!

This solar eclipse is interesting, because a New Moon is a time of new beginnings, while this south node eclipse calls us to let go of something that needs to die. But since we can live in paradox, why not see that the new seed planted is for the old to leave without too much pain, while the new rejoices in the hope for the future.

The solar eclipse and Venus make an inconjunct to Jupiter retrograde at 0* Aries – the World Point. This marks a point of great world importance. An inconjunct is an energy of adjustment – like a scale trying to come into balance. What is needed is great delicacy in achieving that balance. Jupiter in Aries is daring and can often be reckless. Don’t let him be now! Our Scorpionic energies are concerned with inner decisions.

Mars in Gemini is slowing down to turn retrograde on October 30^th. Ruling both Aries and Scorpio, perhaps he will slow down and think (Gemini) things through, seeing multiple ways to proceed.

The Saturn/Uranus square is still activated. But now direct Saturn in Aquarius forms an air grand trine with Mercury in Libra and Mars in Gemini (slowing down to turn retrograde Saturday, October 30^th). This alignment could hopefully open up the ‘old’ (Saturn) to accepting new ideas (Mars/Mercury) without fear.

I think that’s enough for now! More next week in part Two of Samhain’s Cosmic Story.

Blessed Be!

Cathy

 

 

Fall Song

Another year gone, leaving everywhere
its rich spiced residues: vines, leaves,

the uneaten fruits crumbling damply
in the shadows, unmattering back

from the particular island
of this summer, this NOW, that now is nowhere

except underfoot, moldering
in that black subterranean castle

of unobservable mysteries - roots and sealed seeds
and the wanderings of water. This

I try to remember when time's measure
painfully chafes, for instance when autumn

flares out at the last, boisterous and like us longing
to stay - how everything lives, shifting

from one bright vision to another, forever
in these momentary pastures.

 

~ Mary Oliver ~

 

(American Primitive)

The Cosmic Story: Mercury in Aquarius Retrograde, 2022 and Cancer/Capricorn Full Moon 2022

 

Mercury retrograde

Friday January 14^th, Mercury in Aquarius goes retrograde for the first time in 2022, retracing his steps as he moves from the evening sky to the morning sky until he moves forward again on February 3^rd.

As we know, when Mercury goes retrograde, it’s time to re-think, re-consider, re-organize, re-do and re-orient ourselves. Since Mercury is between Earth and the Sun, it doesn’t get very far away from the Sun – hence all the retrogrades we experience during the year.

Because Mercury moves back and forth more than any other planet in our solar system, the ancient Greeks named this planet after their god, Hermes, the Messenger of the Gods. (Our planets use the Roman name for these gods, hence Mercury.) Hermes was the only god who had this power to move through the 3 realms of Heaven, Earth and the Underworld. During this Mercury retrograde, he will touch on all three realms. 

 

When Mercury in Aquarius goes retrograde, he squares Uranus in Taurus, which is about to turn direct on January 18^th. When planets station (change direction) they are more powerful. Mercury is also just a few degrees from Saturn in Aquarius, so he picks up the whole Saturn/Uranus vibe from 2021. The question still remains: Are we going to revert back to ‘the old’ or move ahead with ‘the new’ vision?

With Mercury’s quick-wittedness and Uranus’ ability to break down the old and help us think outside the box of 3D reality, we can handle the unexpected change of plans or sudden exciting possibility that comes our way. We’ll have a wild, free mind to find new innovations and ideas. We also have to be aware that when Uranus changes direction, especially in the earth sign of Taurus, it can bring earth changes such as volcanic eruptions or earthquakes.

Mercury in Aquarius gives you an independent, progressive mind. It wants to see the truth in things, and can be stubborn about what it believes because Aquarius is a fixed air sign. While brilliant, it can get stuck in its thinking, so we’re lucky that Mercury is retrograding so we can open up those beliefs and take another look.

Personally, think about what you want to say before you say it, because you might be feeling rebellious and your words could cause damage. Don’t forget, words have power. In the Christian Bible, Christ himself is The Word and the Word creates the world.

This is a great aspect for a wake-up call (have you seen Don’t Look Up?) – our minds need to encompass the tremendous change that has to take place in the social order. Capitalism, at least the way we’ve let it develop, is harmful to our health and the well-being of Earth. It’s time to simplify our lives, because we can no longer live in a ‘throw-away’ society. Even without the dangers of climate change, our garbage is burying us in waste on the land and on the sea.

So Mercury starts his retrograde with this dilemma on his mind. Then he backtracks into earthy Capricorn and meets up with Pluto, the Lord of the Underworld, before he turns back to direct motion. Pluto certainly symbolizes power and in Capricorn, he asks us where we locate that power – in outer authority or inside ourselves? It feels like Mercury is checking to see if we own our authority – do we have sovereignty over ourselves? Sovereignty doesn’t mean doing anything we want to the detriment of others. It means can we live by our values and take responsibility for our choices.

And since Pluto and Mercury meet up at the degree of America’s Pluto return (the first Pluto return found in America’s 4^th of July, 1776 chart), we Americans need to consider if we are being good citizens and taking responsibility for the kind of country and world we want to live in. Are we going to descend into an aristocracy of the wealthy and technological control or are we going to finally create a ‘more perfect union’ that elevates all of us together? The Pluto return asks us to transform our vision of freedom and incarnate it in our lives. It’s time for America to GROW UP!

It reminds me of President Kennedy’s advice: Ask not what your country can do for you. Ask what you can do for your country. [John F. Kennedy’s inaugural address] It is time for all of us to contribute to a new vision for our troubled world.

If we claim our sovereignty, will we reclaim our place in Mother Earth’s biosphere and finally serve our function – to be good stewards of the Earth? Instead of getting caught up in the media and political craziness, perhaps we could spend more time out in nature, praising the Spirit who created us and our beautiful world? If we can let gratitude and joy replace our fear of Covid and the unknown future, anything is possible.

 

Alchemical Hermes

When Mercury is retrograde, he becomes Hermes Psychopompous, the Guide who can illuminate the dark underworld of our unconscious. One of the ways we use this energy is to bring our night dreams into the light of day and engage with them. It’s time to look at our personal shadows as well as our collective ones. But don’t forget, the Shadow is 99% gold! The twisted part of the shadow can be released and its energy made available for life.

So for the next three weeks, Mercury will be our Psychopomp, our Guide to the Underworld. As such, he is also the magical healer who welds the Caduceus, the staff of healing.

With this Mercury retrograde delivering messages between the Lord of the Heavens and the Lord of the Underworld, stay tuned for important messages!

So Who is Hermes/Mercury?

While astrology understands that Mercury symbolizes the Mind, the myths associated with this messenger god also regarded him as a Trickster – he was called Hermes the Thief! The god of travelers and merchants and thieves! These are also attributes of our mind, especially the left-brain logical mind, which can rationalize any behavior. Carl Jung saw the planet Mercury as symbolizing the mind as dual and amoral, leading to either a positive or negative attitude. Our minds can trick us into believing lots of outrageous stuff if we don’t also use Hermes’ other gift – discernment.

Clever Mercury helps us stay young by sparking our curiosity and having a flexible attitude towards life, helping us meet life’s challenges by analyzing where we’re stuck and adapting our behavior to new circumstances. He also bestows on us a good sense of humor, which we all need in these tumultuous times. 

 

 

Mercury as the Messenger of the Gods could travel through all three realms – the Heavens, Earth and the Underworld. As I’ve said, this is especially true during this Mercury retrograde, where Mercury moves from the heavenly realm of Aquarius back into the earthy sign of Capricorn, until he meets up with Pluto, the Lord of the Underworld.

While there are many stories of Hermes bearing messages to gods and mortals alike, there is one story that exemplifies this crafty character. It is the story of his birth – how he steals his older brother’s cows, tricks him and then creates the most beautiful gift for him. There’s certainly indications of Mercury retrograde in this story as well.

 

I hope you’ll tune into my YouTube channel, The Cosmic Storyteller for my new series: Grandma Cat’s Bedtime Stories for the Soul. I’ll be posting this story of the mischievous god-ling on Friday. So tune in for some mythic storytelling.

The Cancer/Capricorn Full Moon January 17, 2022

 

Cancer Full Moon

A quick look at the Cancer Full Moon coming up next Monday shows us that the Cancer Moon faces the Capricorn Sun conjunct Pluto! This Full Moon is about power. Once again, consider where you give over your power to the state or to another person. This Full Moon is on that Pluto degree I was talking about earlier. It’s a lead up to when the Pluto return is exact on February 20, 2022.

This Cancer Full Moon shows us that we need to nurture ourselves, our family and friends, our community and our world. Cancer is the sign of the Mother, who will protect and defend her children with her life. Since Cancer is a water sign and deeply emotional and creative, emotions might run high. 

 

 Cancer Full Moon 2022

Neptune in Pisces supports this Full Moon, helping us connect to our higher wisdom and to the sure knowledge that Love is the answer to all our questions. This year, with Jupiter joining Neptune in Pisces (they join up in April), if we open our hearts and our imaginations to the spiritual light within us, we’ll always find the answers we need.

With Mars in Sagittarius on the Galactic Center (of our Milky Way), we need to stand for the Truth – not our petty, personal truths but the Cosmic Truth. Which says, Prepare yourself for big change! We incarnated for this, so I know we can do it.

Along with Uranus turning direct on January 18^th, the Lunar Nodes move from the signs of Gemini/Sagittarius to Taurus/Scorpio. The next 18 months will see big changes in how we deal with the Earth and climate change as well as finances as the Taurus North Node connects with Uranus. It’s time to release the secrets and pain of the past so we can create a better future.

May Hermes the Psychopomp guide our steps for the next three weeks and help us discover our heart’s desire.

May the Love of the Goddess and the God be ever in your hearts. Merry Meet, Merry Part and Merry Meet again!

Cathy

The Cosmic Story: Virgo New Moon 2021

 

 Virgo is the sign of the harvest.  It is the Virgin Mother, whose child is the grain that sustains life.  She is Isis and Horus, Mary and Jesus.  You and what you've created this year.

So what have you harvested?  Many years ago we had a harvest ritual and at the time, my 6 year old Virgo son (who just turned 41!) whispered to me what he had harvested.  Each year we learn something new, we create some new pattern in our lives.  This is the time to think about what we've accomplished this year and give thanks.

Virgo is the sign of discernment, of giving our attention to the details of life.  By bringing more attention to our everyday tasks, we imbue them with spirit, we make our lives sacred. 

Being more of a 'go with the flow' type of woman, I have struggled for years to have a daily routine.  But I'm working on it and this month is a great time for me -- and for you -- to finally give each part of our lives the attention they deserve.

But it's not only about paying attention to details, because Uranus in Taurus lends us his awakening powers with a beautiful trine to this New Moon.  So if your routines are stuck, this is the power you need to un-stick them by trying something new and unexpected.  It will help if you go out into nature and ask Mother Nature what's the best course of action.  You WILL get an answer.

 Mars in Virgo is exactly trine Pluto in Capricorn, ready and willing to institute new rules, big changes.  Mars also inconjuncts Jupiter in Aquarius, creating a wonky energy that takes some adjusting to.  Jupiter wants us to see unexpected possibilities but Mars might have to adjust his goals to meet them.

 Venus in Libra is opposite Eris in Aries, the warrior goddess of the heart, square Pluto in Capricorn and trine Jupiter in Aquarius. The Goddess of Love and Wisdom is conjunct Vesta -- the fire priestess.  Both of them in Libra energize us to take our relationships seriously.  We all want and need relationships, but our culture hasn't taught us how to be in them. This is a great time to learn what it takes to create strong, loving relationships, without losing yourself in the process.  Relationships are supposed to support us in being our authentic selves, rather than dimming our lights.

It's time to listen to your heart's song and trust it.  I just read Brene Brown's book, Braving the Wilderness.  It's about being virginal -- the Virgo state of belonging to yourself.  It's hard to be authentic in today's world with so much bullying and nastiness on social media.  But this month is a call to do exactly that.  Be your authentic self. And do it with kindness, courtesy and intelligence.

Also, go out just after sunset and see Venus in the West and Jupiter in the East.  If you raise your arms in both directions, you'll see the 'trine' -- a 120* angle -- in the living sky.  

Last but not least, Mercury in Libra enters the shadow period of its upcoming retrograde -- September 26-27 -- just after this New Moon.  This means that it's at the degree it will retrograde back to (Libra 26* - 11*).  Pay attention to what comes up now to understand what you'll be dealing with during the retrograde.

Mercury forms a grand air trine between Saturn rx in Aquarius and Ceres in Gemini. Make sure that your plans are nurturing for you and stay open to other options that come up. Saturn can give you the focus you need to make things happen.

Mercury in Libra seeks balance in your relationships and harmony in your life.  The problem with Libra is that so many Librans bend over backwards to create that harmony.  I tell my clients, do not jump to the other side of the scale. It creates imbalance.  You're not hear to agree with the Other -- you're hear to listen to the other and find solutions.  But you have to stay on your own side of the scale to create that balance.

 

 
Today Virgo New Moon occurs at 8:52pm EDT/ 5:52pm PDT at 15* Virgo.

The Sabian symbol for the New Moon at 15* Virgo is:   A fine lace handkerchief, heirloom from valorous ancestors.

It's time to act with strength, determination, courage and discrimination while following in the footsteps of those who have gone before us.  Pick someone who you honor and use their image to help you find your own power.

The Cosmic Story: The Leo Gateway of Lammas: Leo New Moon & 2nd Aquarius Blue Full Moon 2021

We’ve just arrived at the cross-quarter day of Lammas here in the north, a time of harvest and fulfillment. With the receding light and warmth, we are now definitely heading toward Autumn.

Welcome to Lammas season, the Harvest Season.

 

 

Regardless of what’s happening in our world regarding COVID and politics, Mother Earth still holds us in her yearly cycle of life and death and renewal. When we orient ourselves with these cycles, we can ground and connect to Earth’s biosphere, giving us the energy to align with our life’s evolution in a natural way.

Here in the North, we’re at the beginning of harvest time and the second half of summer. We’ll begin to notice the days growing shorter more quickly now as the Sun continues on its journey south as we head into Autumn. Down in the southern hemisphere, you are experiencing the light returning, heading out of late winter and into spring.

For us in the northern hemisphere, we can celebrate our personal harvest through ritual and meditation, gratefully acknowledging the new harvest this year. Is it a new job, a new book you’re writing, a new relationship with yourself or another, a new attitude or perspective on your life? Have you let go of fear and opened to your heart’s desires? Have you faces your shadow and freed up new energy? Whatever you’ve created this year, it’s now time to name and acknowledge it with gratitude.

Change is here, whether we like it or not. The question is, who is going to be making those changes? This summer’s astrological energies are intense, urging us to release what no longer serves us so we can start following our heart’s wisdom and start living our soul’s story.

The power of Leo’s energy is to help us discover and attend to the Heart and what really matters in life, giving full expression to our creativity. This year, while the Sun is in the sign of Leo, we will experience two Aquarian Full Moons (the first was on July 23^rd at 2* Leo and the second is on August 22^nd at 30* Leo and is the Blue Moon) with the upcoming Leo New Moon on August 8^th near the Leo power gate of 15* Leo.

Uranus, about to turn retrograde on August 19^th, is stopping at the Taurus power gate at 15* Taurus, squaring this week’s New Moon. It is a reminder to us that what we create must be sustainable and must benefit the whole group in some way. It can no longer be ‘art for art’s sake’ but ‘art as a healing modality for the collective psyche’.

It is only through the heart’s wisdom that we’ll get through these global health and environmental crises.

These power gates occur at 15* of the fixed signs – Taurus, Leo, Scorpio, Aquarius – and are represented by the cross-quarter holidays of Beltane, Lammas, Samhain (Halloween) and Imbolc that mark the halfway point between the solstices and equinoxes. They are the energetic center of these ‘fixed’ sign, generating portals to other dimensions. If you have planets at any of these gateways, their energies will give you a persistence and determination to get through any troubles in life.

 

 

So as people continue to get in touch with their heart needs, they are quitting jobs that no longer satisfy them or leaving relationships that no longer give them the freedom to be themselves. We see this struggle between the old, repressive behaviors of patriarchy and the new freedom we each want to express in light of the Saturn/Uranus square – pitting the old (Saturn) against the new (Uranus). It’s up to each of us to break the chains of old patriarchal rules and beliefs within ourselves so that this societal paradigm dies out in the collective consciousness, leaving room for something new to arise – something better to arise.

For these past few years, we’ve talked about discovering our new story, which implies changing our beliefs and behaviors. Well, the need for change is upon us now! Yes things are getting chaotic, but the truth is out of chaos emerges the new forms we need to recreate our global society. And while there are a lot of powers in our world that want to take us back to the past, there is no way the past will win out. We are set to move into the future – the Age of Aquarius is calling to us. We just has to deal with the shadow karma of the Piscean Age – the old Them vs. Us beliefs that hinder the truth of Pisces – that we are all one.

When we re-emerge into a post-covid world, we have an opportunity to change our society and culture. Many of us want to change. How that’s going to happen will become apparent when we begin to let go of our fears and worries about the future. We are heading into that future and the one thing you need for the trip is a sure sense of yourself, a grounded presence that is willing to go with the flow and change when it’s appropriate, yet is strong enough to support and protect you.

We each have to find our wholeness so we can become holograms for collective wholeness.

 

 

Astrological influences through Leo and Virgo

There are a lot of planetary changes going on this season, especially between the two Aquarian Full Moons on July 23^rd and August 22^nd.

The themes coming up now in your life are important to the future, so pay attention. We’ll be making decisions about how we want to live our lives as we go forward. It’s time to take some action on our personal changes.

If you’ve been frustrated lately, blame it on Saturn in Aquarius opposite the Leo Sun on August 2^nd, with both squaring Uranus in Taurus. Once again, the theme is out with the old, in with the new.

 

 Sekhmet: the Heart of the Sun

Leo is all about heart energy. Leo is the fire that is passionate, creative and utterly unique. Leo is a shining Light that warms everything it touches. So this month, burn brightly and let your light shine out.

Mercury met the Sun at 9* Leo on August 1^st and rushes through the rest of Leo, moving into Virgo on August 11^th. Our creative vision gets down to earth and practical.

 

 

The Leo New Moon occurs on Sunday, August 9^th near the Lion’s Gate at 15* Leo. With the square to Uranus in Taurus and opposite Saturn in Aquarius, it’s time to actively work on changing our ways, discarding what no longer serves our future Self. With Venus in Virgo channeling Neptune in Pisces, we can begin to make our dreams a reality. Don’t forget that beauty and embodiment go together. It’s time to let go of the ugliness we’ve created in our world and remember how beauty makes us feel.

It’s always good to let go of expectations and just accept the reality of the Now. Yes, old patterns need to be broken, but everyone is doing it in their own time and way. The frustration comes from how slow vast changes take.

So it’s up to us to make the small changes in ourselves that can make change happen in the world.

Uranus turns retrograde on August 19^th at 15* Taurus. It’s time to turn all that revolutionary, transformative energy inward. Awaken your soul body. 

 

 

The 2^nd Aquarius Blue Full Moon on August 22^nd occurs at 30* Leo. Blue Moons occur when there are two Full Moon in an astrological sign – NOT when they occur in a calendar month. This is because they switch the lunar cycle back to its original rhythm of New Moon followed by a Full Moon in the same sign. For the past two years, the cycle flipped and so we’ve had the Full Moon come before the New Moon in a sign. This part of the lunar cycle splits us open to encompass different energies. Now we can get back in rhythm and feel more whole.

For this second Aquarius Full Moon, Jupiter is conjunct the Moon, opening up our perspective to what is possible. Jupiter can make magic happen, so stay open to the synchronicity in your life that can show you the path forward.

While Uranus is now retrograde, it is still squaring Saturn retrograde in Aquarius, so the tension between old habits and new turn inward. Uranian awakenings are strengthened by a nice earth trine to both Mars and Mercury in Virgo, who can help plan out the small changes we need to make to shift our energies. Venus is in Libra opposite Chiron in Aries, asking us to love and respect ourselves as much as the Other. Because we have to ‘love our neighbors as ourselves’, we need to do the work of loving ourselves and facing our inner critics, those voices of old patriarchal beliefs that we need to shed now.

 

                                             Virgo with her Wheat Shaft

 

The Sun enters Virgo late in the day August 22^nd . I’ll leave you to find out about the Virgo New Moon on September 6^th and the Pisces-Virgo Full Moon on September 20^th, two days before Fall Equinox arrives on September 22^nd.

Virgo is the sign of the Great Mother and Child, the womb and the fruit together. What have we woven into being this year? How do we integrate that into our ongoing evolution? Virgo’s great gift of service comes from being aware of what’s really needed in any situation.

Exploring the Myth of Psyche & Eros: Part 2

Psyche & Eros

 

Venus stays in Virgo until August 15^{th –} 16^th, when she enters one of her home signs, Libra. But while she’s still with Mars in Virgo, this pair wants to work out the details of their union at 20* Leo on July 13^th.

I wrote about their union in relationship to the ancient myth of Psyche & Eros.

If you remember their story of an initiation into the mysteries of Love and Desire:

Psyche (our word for Soul) is married to Eros in a secret marriage. She can only make love to her new husband in the dark of night, without seeing who he is. When she finally lights a lamp to consciously see who her secret lover is, she discovers that it is the god of Desire himself who is her mate. But he flies off, leaving her to search the world for him.

She finally presents herself to Aphrodite, the Goddess of Beauty and Love, who is the mother of Eros and who initiates Psyche into the wonder and magic of this divine love. Aphrodite sets Psyche four tasks to complete before she can be reunited with Eros.

1) The first task is to sort and separate out a big pile of different seeds. When Psyche despairs of the job, friendly ants come to help her sort things out. Ant is a symbol of discipline, hard work, strength, unity, determination, teamwork, and patience. Sometimes, if we stick to the work of Love, we have to trust our instinctual nature to sort things out when relationship issues arise. A sorting of seeds lets us understand where things began. This is also the type of sorting that Virgo is good at, because it asks us to use this initiation’s gift of discernment in this sorting.

2) The second task is to harvest the golden wool from the sun rams. She gets advice from a friendly river reed to wait until the Sun is descending and losing power so the rams can settle down. Then she’ll be able to gather the wool that got stuck to the brambles. This initiation makes us face our fierce aggressive need to compete with the Other – to make our point and take our stand. It asks us to use our golden intellect in a different way. Can we stand in our own power without having to destroy the Other? How do we relate to power in relationships?

The ram symbolizes boldness, new beginnings, new paths and power. Like the reed who gives Psyche this advice, we need to understand the flow of life and not go head to head with our loved ones in the midst of powerful emotions and power plays. Instead, we need to let things calm down and then find out what really is going on. The gifts Psyche receives from this initiation are a sense of her own courage, strength and spirit.

3) The third initiation demands that Psyche find the source of the River Styx, or the river of life, and draw up a crystal cupful to take back to Aphrodite. There are dangers surrounding this river. But Zeus’ eagle comes to help, taking the goblet and filling it.

This is a test of our faith, our belief in love and our ability to fly high and see with the eyes of Spirit. It is also a challenge to take a larger perspective on the issues. And the paradox is that to do this, we have to stay in the NOW and deal with the present moment. There are so many possibilities in life to drink from, but we need the wisdom to know which possibility is the best to foster and deepen love. I would say that the gift of this initiation is that higher, spiritual perspective.

4) The fourth and last test is the most important. Aphrodite wants Psyche to travel to the underworld and obtain from Persephone, the Queen of the underworld, a little cask of her own beauty ointment.

 

 Psyche's last task

This initiation involves staying on track and not getting thrown off track by other people’s needs. This is a journey into our own inner world to discover our own unique Beauty and Truth. On this journey, we have to curb our instilled sense of generosity and kindness and own our dark side. Persephone, Hecate, Kali all represent the dark energies that influence our decisions, those shadow aspects of our personality that used to keep us safe but now just keep us stuck in old patterns of low self-worth and self-criticisms. The gift of this initiation is a grounded “NO” in response to outer demands on our freedom of choice. Love must be freely given, never demanded.

This initiation asks us to die to the innocence of our youthful imagination and expectations of what love is and means. Then we can be reborn without fear, allowing a transformation of our consciousness to ripen and mature our understanding of the Other and ourselves. This is the path of individuation, where we can embrace all our ourselves so we can see and embrace the wholeness of the Other.

As the story ends, Psyche and Eros are reunited and Psyche gives birth to a daughter, who is Pleasure.

A life lived in and with love blesses us with all sorts of pleasure, especially joy and wonder.

 

Our task at the end of the Age of Pisces is to learn Love in all its forms.  Love is never easy.  It takes work.  So work on loving yourself and then you'll know how to love others.

May the many blessings of Lammas flow through your life,

Cathy

 

Now is the Time

 

Now is the time to know
That all that you do is sacred.

Now, why not consider 

A lasting truce with yourself and God.

Now is the time to understand
That all your ideas of right and wrong
Were just a child's training wheels
To be laid aside
When you finally live
With veracity
And love.

Hafiz is a divine envoy
Whom the Beloved
Has written a holy message upon.

My dear, please tell me,
Why do you still
Throw sticks at your heart
And God?

What is it in that sweet voice inside
That incites you to fear?

Now is the time for the world to know
That every thought and action is sacred.

This is the time
For you to compute the impossibility
That there is anything
But Grace.

Now is the season to know.

That everything you do

Is sacred.

~ Hafiz ~

(The Gift - versions of Hafiz by Daniel Ladinsky)