The Cosmic Story: Scorpio New Moon 2017

The Cosmic Story: Scorpio New Moon 2017

You have to Die to be Reborn Again.

Josh Libatique

When the Sun enters the sign of Scorpio, the light of the Sun in the northern hemisphere is growing dimmer and dimmer. The Dark continues rising until we arrive at Winter Solstice, the time of greatest darkness which gives birth to the new Light.

Scorpio is the time of year when we learn to accept the death of our ego choices as well as the death of the year. (Those of you in the southern hemisphere are celebrating Beltane and the return of Summer. May you find delight and joy this year!)

Death is a natural part of life’s cycle, and yet our patriarchal culture has a very hard time accepting death. Probably because some of our founding myths show us the fathers who refused to die and hand over their power to their children. Look at the Greek gods Chronos/Saturn and Zeus, swallowing their children to hold onto their power. Even the Judeo-Christian god won’t give up his power to his ‘only begotten son, Jesus’ whom he lets die in his place. In many ways, this implies that the children must die so that the father continues to live. Sounds like patriarchy to me.

This weekend I saw two movies which speak to this idea of immortality vs. death. One was Thor Ragnarok (which was actually kind of fun) in which we find Odin about to retire after long ages of ruling Asgard and his first daughter Hela, the Goddess of Death, determined to take over and live forever. In the end, Odin turns over his power to Thor and allows himself to die so Thor can release ancient powers which do bring on Ragnarok, the end of the rule of the Gods. The other movie was Dr. Strange (another interesting story) where The Ancient One’s immortality causes one of her disciples to turn to the Dark for his shot at immortality. I’m guessing the Ancient One was Scathach, the ancient Celtic Warrioress who trained up hero/warriors like Cuchulainn, the Hound of Ulster. She willingly dies when she finds her true successor in Dr. Strange. Somehow, being immortal leads to the death of worlds, cultures, people—and as we can see, instead of patriarchy letting itself die naturally, it is creating death all around us.

Why would anyone want to live forever? Is there something inherent in patriarchy that doesn’t want to let go? I think patriarchy is afraid to face its’ own death, beyond the need for power and domination, because it doesn’t believe in the immortality of the Soul. It doesn’t believe that we need to die to be reborn again. For patriarchy, rebirth isn’t possible – only endless suffering in the fires of Hell. Isn’t that the promise of our three Religions of the Book – Judaism, Christianity and Islam? That only the perfect ones among us get rewarded in Heaven, while everyone else suffers the torments of the fires of purgatory or hell?

These religions have lost touch with our Great Mother Goddess, Earth, who does assure us of rebirth, along with all life here on Earth. This is a promise to us that if we let go of our fear of death, a greater life is coming – not in Heaven, but in another round here on Earth. And this also applies each year to our smaller ego-deaths. We need to release old emotional patterns that no longer serve us, such as guilt and shame, insecurity and fear. And we can release our goals and hopes each year so they can come back to us in new and more creatively vital ways.  

We human beings have to reclaim our place in the cycle of Life. And that will take the death of our patriarchally-shaped ego, the “I think therefore I am” philosophy which helped to separate us from our place in Mother Earth’s interconnected ecology.

Angle of Death~Evelyn de Morgan

In Ursula Le Guin's wonderful Earthsea Trilogy, she imagines this fear of Death as a Shadow, a shadow that drains all the joy and color out of life. In The Farthest Shore, the Archmage Ged (Sparrowhawk) and the young king, Lebannen (Arren), go on a journey to try to restore the balance of life and death, which has been disrupted by a sorcerer who is so afraid of death that he has opened the gates between life and death and now cannot close them. The young King wonders why men are destroying the trees and the earth, and the Mage explains that they have no guidance, no king to show them how to live in the Balance.

In his youthful innocence, Lebannen wonders how this one fearful man could so easily destroy the Balance of the world as his fear spreads And he asks the Mage, "Where are the servants of this (man) Anti-King?"

In our minds, lad. In our minds. The traitor, the self, the self that cries I WANT TO LIVE, LET THE WORLD ROT SO LONG AS I CAN LIVE! The little traitor soul in us, in the dark, like the spider in the box. He talks to all of us. But only some understand him. The wizards, the singers, the makers. And the heroes, the ones who seek to be themselves. To be oneself is a rare thing, and a great one. To be oneself forever, is that not better still?

Arren looked straight at Sparrowhawk . 'You mean that it is not greater. But tell me why. . . . I have learned to believe in death. But I have not learned to rejoice over it, to welcome my death, or yours. If I love life, shall I not hate the end of it?

. . . 'Life without end,' the mage said. 'Life without death. Immortality. Every soul desires it, and its health is the strength of its desire. But be careful, Arren. You are one who might achieve your desire.'

'And then?'

'And then - this. This blight upon the lands. The arts of man forgotten. The singer tongue less. The eye blind. And then? A false king ruling. Ruling forever. And over the same subjects forever. No births; no new lives. No children. Only what is mortal bears life, Arren. Only in death is there rebirth. The Balance is not a stillness. It is a movement - an eternal becoming.

Are we one of those who would deny death, thereby denying the soul and the possibility of rebirth? Or can we passionately love our lives and give them over to an eternal becoming?

Scorpio New Moon 2017

This week’s Scorpio New Moon occurs on Saturday, November 18, 2017 at 3:42am PST /6:42am EST/ 11:42am GMT. 

 

As I talked about in my Full Moon newsletter, Scorpio is the sign where we emotionally engage with other people. Some people we naturally resonated with – as if they’re family and we can be ourselves. With some people, we have to work a little bit harder to feel comfortable. We wear our persona for business associates, neighbors, service people and strangers. Then there are the ones who just aren’t in our tribe at all.

Scorpio deals with all these kinds of emotional entanglements. But most especially with our sexual relationships. Scorpio learns through sexual engagement, wanting the depth, passion, intensity and sensual pleasure that great sex can give us. This is the place of intimacy, where we shed our defenses and leave ourselves vulnerable and open to the Other. Our deepest truths understood; our deepest longings revealed.

Jupiter, Venus and Vesta are in Scorpio now, supporting this New Moon’s energy that wants us to look ourselves in the eye and see our true feelings and longings. They trine Neptune in Pisces, bringing us the faith and imagination to let go of our ego defenses and trust in spirit that all can be well if we stop being afraid of death. If we want an intimate relationship, we have to be brave enough to take down our barriers, let ourselves trust and open to the Unknown, which is the magic of life.

 

We all have both dark and light within us. It’s the dance between them that makes life worth living. Too much light creates deep and dark shadows. This is the case with our western Judeo-Christian-Islamic society—in turning to the lights of Heaven and our rational brain over a love of Earth and our intuitive, feminine nature, we have created more darkness in the world. By giving these immortal ‘corporations who think they’re people’ power, we are giving them permission to create death all around us.

When we embrace our Scorpionic nature, we embrace the cycle of death and rebirth that can bring us fulfillment and wholeness. Plant this seed on New Moon night – that we leave behind our fear of death so that we can meet the coming challenges with hope and light and love, knowing re-birth is waiting for us there.

The symbol for the Sun and Moon at 27* Scorpio is: A warrior plumed, haranguing a multitude of armed soldiers.
This symbol denotes someone who has a forceful and yet pliant mind, a persuasive tongue and a brave spirit. Such an one will lead others by the ability of expression. This leader will undertake high duties and grave responsibilities in life and will largely be moved by a power from within, unrecognized but potent. It is a degree of PERSUASION. (Degrees of the Zodiac Symbolized by Charubel)

Since this image of a warrior-leader is presented to us in the watery, powerful sign of Scorpio, it’s time to persuade ourselves that letting go of our old habits, beliefs and even ideals is needed so that they can come back to us in a new, more relevant form. It’s time to release old stereotypes so that the archetypal energies behind them can manifest in new and more life-giving forms. And these archetypal energies will appear first in the images of our dreams, in the stories that call to us and in the longings of our hearts.

This symbol also speaks to the idea of the power of words to persuade, and is repeated in the Mercury/Saturn conjunction in Sagittarius trine Uranus retrograde in Aries, which urges us to speak our truth with passion and faith in the power of ever-renewed life. When we get over our fear of death, we embrace life more fully. And this is what people need to hear if we’re going to be leaders.

The symbol for Mercury at 18* Sagittarius is: Children playing on the beach, their heads protected by sunbonnets. This symbol denotes an imaginative playfulness, protected from too much left-brain rationality – those sunbonnets are keeping our solar consciousness from overwhelming our imagination. We have fire, enthusiasm, artistry and fun indicated here. So use your Mercury lightly & imaginatively. (An Astrological Mandala by Dane Rudhyar)

The symbol for Saturn at 27* Sagittarius is: A sculptor at his work. This is the degree of the Galactic Center of the Milky Way, and so very potent in bringing about change. With Saturn here, we can manifest our special talents, especially artistic and creative ones, which speak to our human need for freedom of spirit and truth. What will we create? (An Astrological Mandala by Dane Rudhyar)

The symbol for Uranus at 26* Aries is: A person possessed of more gifts than s/he can hold. This is a symbol of great potential and attainment. It’s about being so centered in your soul that all your gifts and talents are there to choose from. But you have to choose. That’s the hitch. This is the year of choice. Look at your opportunities and choose your heart’s hope. (An Astrological Mandala by Dane Rudhyar)

Uranus is quincunx (150* angle) this Scorpio New Moon. Quincunx angles are twitchy – they need to be constantly readjusting to things. With this aspect, we might find ourselves re-adjusted right out of our old behavior patterns in relationships. Being defensive will not work; being dramatic won’t either. Being yourself will, with the caveat that you’ll also have to be open to your partner’s point of view.

There is an undertone to this chart that says – it’s time to live out our ideals.

So, to summarize:

1. Bring your own unique talents to the table of humanity. (Uranus)
2. It is up to you to create something – to manifest your dream. (Saturn)
3. The best way to do it is to be playful and imaginative, using your left-brain rationality to bring your right-brain imagination to life. (Mercury)

The Cosmos blesses us with help: the Mentor asteroid, Chiron, who we call the Wounded Healer, trines this New Moon from Pisces, giving us the compassion we need for ourselves and others. We’re all in this together. And it’s time we start living like we are. It’s time to release our emotional fear of others taking power over us and hurting us. If we’re not afraid, who can really take our power away?

So enjoy the deep, dark chocolately mystery of this Scorpio New Moon!

Walk with Mother Earth’s Spirit,

Cathy

Sabbaths 1985, V -- Wendell Berry

How long does it take to make the woods?
As long as it takes to make the world.
The woods is present as the world is, the presence
of all its past and of all its time to come.
It is always finished, it is always being made, the act
of its making forever greater than the act of its destruction.
It is a part of eternity for its end and beginning
belong to the end and beginning of all things,
the beginning lost in the end, the end in the beginning.

What is the way to the woods, how do you go there?
By climbing up through the six days’ field,
kept in all the body’s years, the body’s
sorrow, weariness, and joy. By passing through
the narrow gate on the far side of that field
where the pasture grass of the body’s life gives way
to the high, original standing of the trees.
By coming into the shadow, the shadow
of the grace of the strait way’s ending,
the shadow of the mercy of light.

Why must the gate be narrow?
Because you cannot pass beyond it burdened.
To come into the woods you must leave behind
the six days’ world, all of it, all of its plans and hopes.
You must come without weapon or tool, alone,
expecting nothing, remembering nothing,
into the ease of sight, the brotherhood of eye and leaf.

~ Wendell Berry ~

(A Timbered Choir) 

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The Cosmic Story: Taurus/Scorpio Full Moon 2017

The Cosmic Story: Taurus/Scorpio Full Moon 2017

Samhain’s Blessings: Seeing with the Eyes of the Soul

Samhain blessings to you all. 

Samhain is the Celtic festival that celebrates the beginning of Winter on the Wheel of the Year. It marks the death of the old year and the beginning of the new. In Celtic lands, it was a time when all the harvests were in and livestock was slaughtered for the winter months. It is also a time when the veils between the worlds are thin and the spirits of the dead walk abroad and are honored. In most ancient cultures, people honored their ancestors as well as feared their uneasy ghosts. While we still celebrate Samhain on October 31^st – November 1^st, astrologically it occurs on the power gate at 15* Scorpio, which occurs on November 6–7 due to precession. 

We celebrate Halloween (All Hallows’ Eve) and dress up as those very ancestors and ghosts, taking on another persona for a night, but without knowing and honoring its real purpose. The Catholic Church celebrates All Saints’ Day on November 1^st and All Souls’ Day on November 2^nd in memory of these ancient celebrations. And of course, the Mexicans celebrate Día de Muertos, the Day of the Dead, a day to remember and honor those family and friends who have died. 

Samhain BonFire

Perhaps more than ever, Americans need to celebrate these holidays because we need to face the fact of death with a different attitude. Our corporate culture hurries by Halloween and shifts right in Christmas – the renewal and birth of the Light. Don’t want us to dwell too long on death, do they? Our western society so often tries to get us to ignore that death is a part of life – just look at how patriarchal white men can’t deal with the death of their power and the sharing of it with women, other cultures and races. Masculine consciousness is afraid of death – because it thinks it means ‘the end’ rather than seeing it as a stage in the cycle of Life. It wants to hold onto its life, even if it causes death and destruction to everyone else. And that is exactly what patriarchy is doing – causing the death of our planet and of our people, rather than letting go of its power so a new way of living can be born.

This is what our American government and its economic overlords are doing right now. They are struggling to maintain their power, here and around the world. As we come to the end of America’s 1^st Pluto cycle in 2021-23, centered on our obsession with wealth and our need to dominate the world, we are experiencing the worst aspects of our culture as those very structures breakdown and decay. This is known as the Sunset Effect: as things start to fundamentally change, there is a backlash and the old tries very hard to maintain itself. (In the Book of Revelations, this is symbolized by the old Dragon who wants to kill the New Life that the Woman Clothed with the Sun gives birth to. Or in Greek Myth, this is Chronos eating his children rather than letting one of them take over. ) But it is doomed to failure. Life will see to that. So while we’re struggling through these last few years against the corporate zombie Apocalypse, know that as you let the old patriarchal rules die within you, the cosmos is also working to make it so in the outer world.

 

Americans have been given a chance to awaken to a new reality – or return to the reality of the myth most of us were brought up with, of America as the land of the free and the home of the brave. With this summer’s total solar eclipse running through, and only through, North America, we have the cosmic go-ahead to embody the feelings and imaginings of the mermaid rising up out of the ocean to take on human form. She embodies all our longings and hopes that a free, peaceful, creative life is possible here on Earth.

With the 2012-15 square between Uranus in Aries and Pluto in Capricorn winding down, it’s now up to each of us to engage in the hero’s journey and overcome the obstacles the old patriarchy is throwing in our way. And we will do it. Have no doubt. But not without going through the hard work of meeting those obstacles head-on. We are not entitled to more of Mother Earth’s resources than others. We have to grow up and learn to share the wealth. We have to realize that we are all in this together. We have to sacrifice our old life-style of conspicuous consumption and entitlement and work to create a more perfect union that asks each of us to be responsible citizens and engage in our communities to make sure we’re all pulling in the same direction – A SUSTAINABLE FUTURE.

Stop wasting water. Save electricity by shutting off lights and unused electronics. Walk or bike when you can. Bring your own bags to the grocery store. Car-pool. Use renewable energy if your electric company allows for it. Stop eating meat altogether – or at least beef, which contributes a lot to greenhouse gases and takes up too much of our farming needs. Go to your town council meetings and know what’s happening in your town or city. Band with others to help create the changes that need to take place if we are to reverse the damages to our environment and heal Mother Earth. She will survive – our children won’t. That’s the best way to be compassionate – to think of others as we enjoy the benefits of our lifestyle. I saw a bumper sticker today. If you want peace in the world, work for justice. We are here this lifetime to bring a new balance into the world, so that the entire human family as well as Mother Earth can prosper.

Scorpio and Samhain

Having the Full Moon so close to Samhain boosts Scorpio’s purpose into high gear. Scorpio is the sign that demands that we learn to shed what’s old and no longer serves our life. Since Scorpio is a water sign, it means we have to shed those emotional wounds that we hug close to the chest – the hurts, betrayals, the jealousy, the fears and anger that derail us from being able to open to others. Just as in winter we gather together to help each other through the dark and cold, so Scorpio needs and wants to engage on a deep level with others about the important things in live. It’s all about shared values that we can grow with together.

So let’s look at how Samhain embodies the essence of Scorpio.

Samhain, the Day of the Dead, the great Goddess Hecate of the Crossroads and dark Hades, Lord of the Greek Underworld. 

Hecate the Crone

          These times and deities are symbolic gateways to the in-between places: 

• where veils are thin so many dimensions converge; 
• where we find ourselves at a crossroads, a marker of choice and decision; 
• where we step – or are pushed – into a new world and a new role; 
• where we have the perspective that only death gives us to understand our life’s true story. 

With Samhain falling on this Taurus/Scorpio Full Moon, we have a chance to bring through the veils a part of our soul that can help us on this next stage of our journey. Taurus’ energy builds a container for Scorpio’s emotional depths, enabling us to really look at what’s in there. Our hidden fears and prejudices, our hopes and desires, our hidden wounds as well as our proud victories. And our past lives, with our talents and desires still resonating within us. Scorpio feels it all – the betrayals, the hopes, the intensity, the passion. Our life up until now. Our many lives up until this moment, perhaps? 

Taurus/Scorpio Cauldron

 

What do you have to say about this lifetime? Happy or discontent? Write it out because it’s time now to enter into that ‘in-between place’ where you are dead to your old life but not yet born to your new. You are in the gray zone of understanding, awakening and choice. What will I do in this transformational time to help myself and humanity move peacefully and gracefully into the future? 

 

We are being called to step forward and offer our healing energy, our open minds and our loving hearts to our communities and see where we’re needed. Mother Earth wants us to work with her, to listen to her, to cooperate with her. Our dream group was talking about how we have to stop thinking we have to be ‘perfect’ to use our talents and just DO IT. We will grow in skill and wisdom by doing the work, not waiting to take one more class.

Taurus/Scorpio Full Moon

This Taurus Full Moon occurs on November 3^rd at 10:22pm PDT and on November 4^th at 1:22am EDT/ 5:22am GMT. 

This Full Moon is a super Moon, meaning that the Moon in its orbit is closest to the Earth, so it will appear bigger on the horizon as well as having a stronger effect on the tides and on us.

 

Scorpio is the sign where we emotionally engage with other people. You know how that goes. Some people you naturally resonated with – as if you’re family and you can be yourself and ‘let it all hang out’. With other friends, you have to work a little bit harder to feel comfortable, and often you can’t share all of yourself with them. Then there are business associates, neighbors, service people and strangers who you wear your persona for and therefore try not to engage emotionally with them. Then there are the ones you know you’re not aligned with, because they are discordant in themselves or with your own energy and values. They annoy you. 

Scorpio deals with all these kinds of emotional entanglements. The more you are both centered in yourself and open to the other person, the more real your encounter can be. If you can get by the unconscious Scorpio part of yourself that constantly needs to defend itself and fly like the Eagle of Scorpio, being emotionally open is like a dance. And that’s the promise of the Phoenix of Scorpio: arising from the ashes of fear, insecurity, entitlement, domination, jealousy, greed and cruelty, Scorpio is certain of his values and emotionally secure enough to dance with your values and emotions. That’s what intimacy is: the dance of our emotional lives, a dance that take courage and strength, love and responsibility, openness and hope. 

Easier said than done. Especially if we’re still awash with our own emotional dramas. But, Scorpio goes deep, wants to explore the mysteries and grapple with the Shadow. If we have a handle on our Shadows – Jupiter is presently in Scorpio for the next year and will certainly expand on any shadowy areas of our emotional lives – we won’t fall into a shadow dance with others, even if they are lost in it. It’s amazing what a conscious standpoint can do for emotional flexibility. 

Spring Maiden

Taurus is the sign that ushers in the Summer on the Wheel of the Year. We celebrate Beltaine across the Wheel from Samhain. So Taurus enlivens all the traits of late Spring/early Summer: fertility, beauty, sensuality, values and inherent talents. May is when the trees and shrubs blossom, when the sunlight grows stronger, when we feel the wild desires of life rise up within us just as the fire of life is rising up through the Earth. Taurus gives form to that fire of Life and those necessities that make for a good life: food, shelter, sex, security, peace and prosperity. Yes, Taurus can be indulgent and sensuous, reveling in the goodness of material life. And that makes it a perfect match for Scorpio’s need to let go of what’s dead, because we have to clean out if we want to savor the good things in life.

So what happens when we’re in the time of death and the Full Moon of Taurus shines down on us? We embrace those primal values of life and hope! As we go into the Dark, we take with us the memory of Life – of the body and of the Earth. That is what we retain when we let the rest go.

Jupiter in Scorpio is intimately connected to this Full Moon, adding his expansive energies to the process of release and accelerating transformation. Jupiter will be in Scorpio for a year, stirring up the depths, expanding our awareness of how our emotional life separates us from or unites us with others.

This Taurus Full Moon is blessed by a sextile (60*) to Neptune in Pisces, which also trines (120*) the Scorpio Sun, adding imagination, opportunities, luck and spiritual insights to the mix. With Scorpio’s deep, penetrating vision, we can let go of the superfluous and give the Goddess her due, while holding on to the eternal. Pluto adds his power to this Full Moon as well, trining the Taurus Moon from Capricorn and sextiling the Sun. These aspects to the Full Moon offer us opportunities to both incorporate new knowledge from our experiences as well as reshaping ourselves and our world through using our intuition and self-expression.

Finally, Ceres, the ancient Mother Goddess, squares (90*) this Full Moon from Leo, forcing us to look at where we ignore our creative voice and abandon ourselves in the face of opposition, rather than descending into the underworld and allowing ourselves to ‘not know’ for awhile. Ceres, like her Greek counterpart Demeter, understands the rage, despair and anger that comes from losing what is most precious to us. Let her help us honor those places in us that mourn for what never was or what can no longer be, and then move on to the wisdom that comes from letting go of those feelings so we can get on with Life.

 

Aphrodite/Venus' Bath

Venus, the ruler of our Taurus Full Moon, is also in the spotlight. Venus in Libra opposes Uranus in Aries around the same degree as the Libra New Moon a few weeks ago. Be open to new and different relationships but even more important, wake up to your own beauty, self-worth and power. Now is not the time to hide your light under a bushel.

One last energetic movement in this Samhain dance. Saturn in Sagittarius near the galactic center exactly squares Chiron in Pisces on November 2^nd, helping us face the pain and suffering our collective consciousness of consumerism has inflicted on the world. What will you do about it?

The Sabian symbol for the Moon at 12* Taurus is: A woman looking out of a latticed window. The woman is hidden from view but has a view of what’s going on. This seems to be a symbol of both inner and outer vision, perhaps even clairvoyance. Really look at and understand what’s going on in your world and in yourself.

The Sabian symbol for the Sun at 12* Scorpio is: A latecomer to an embassy ball surveys the scene before making an entrance. Another image of watching, looking, seeing and understanding, this time in a specific, important setting. This Full Moon activates the virtues of prudence (seeing ahead, sagacity), temperance (self-control), and honesty.

The Sabian symbol for Ceres at 13*Leo is: Rugged old sea captain watches a boat approach, its golden hull gleaming in the afternoon sun. This is another symbol that speaks to watching, looking, seeing. This time, the eyes are those of long experience and understanding. The past is valued (golden hull) for the lessons learned, thereby giving us the strength, courage and wisdom to meet the moment.

The Sabian symbol for Neptune at 12* Pisces is: A squirrel hiding from hunters in a hollow tree. This symbolizes our need to retreat in the face of outer threats but once again, having an eye opened to what is coming. 

 

All of these symbols tell us to keep our eyes open – both our outer eyes and our inner, 3^rd eye. 

Eyes symbolize the window of the soul, as well as clairvoyance, intelligence, light, vigilance, moral conscience and truth.

The Sabian symbol for Pluto at 18* Capricorn is: Heavily armed destroyer bearing down on an enemy ship. This energy is a force to be reckoned with. Watch what is happening in the news. Pluto’s recking ball is once again on the move.

The Sabian symbol for Venus at 26* Libra is: An Eagle and a large white Dove change into each other. This image speaks to the interchange between Will and Love, between spiritual vision and heart wisdom. 

 

The Sabian symbol for Uranus at 26* Aries is: Standing in the center of the fiery fountain of Life, a man is overwhelmed by hundreds of new inspirations. This is the overwhelming passion for life, the creative genius of potentiality that calls us all now.

 

The Sabian symbol for Saturn at 25* Sagittarius is: Little boy flying through the air on a brightly colored rocking horse. We have a need for play and imagination. With it we can feel the whole world. In this case, imagine the world’s suffering.

The Sabian symbol for Chiron at 25* Pisces is: After drastic reforms, a purified clergy officiates anew. Seeing the state of our world – we are fast approaching the tipping point of climate change – we need to rededicate ourselves to our spiritual purpose and ideals and stand up to the corruption in our society that fosters this disregard for Life.

So there you have it. Lots of imagery to work with as we experience the energies of this strong Full Moon. 

 

Have a blessed Samhain.

Cathy

Sabian symbols from The Revised Sabian Symbols by Steven D. Eardley.

 

Ask Me
Some time when the river is ice ask me
mistakes I have made. Ask me whether
what I have done is my life. Others
have come in their slow way into
my thought, and some have tried to help
or to hurt: ask me what difference
their strongest love or hate has made.

I will listen to what you say.
You and I can turn and look
at the silent river and wait. We know
the current is there, hidden; and there
are comings and goings from miles away
that hold the stillness exactly before us.
What the river says, that is what I say.

~ William Stafford ~

(The New Yorker, 1975)

The Cosmic Story: Libra New Moon 2017

The Cosmic Story: The Libra New Moon

Imagining a Balanced World

Susan Seddon Boulet

The chaos and disruption of ‘regular’ life in America has never been so great in my lifetime. Even the 60s didn’t feel this tumultuous, but then again, I was in my teens and I can’t vouch for how my parents experienced it. What I felt was excitement from the music, the culture, the protests. It was our first wakeup call to an exciting new vision of unity and love (the very promise of Christianity), Now as an elder, I see what makes this chaos different – it’s the despair in people’s heart and minds about surviving and thriving. But that earlier vision of living an awakened life has also taken root in places all over the world and now it’s time to strengthen that vision deep within our collective psyche. Our whole culture – our whole world – has to unite and heal Mother Earth. Until we do unite, our leaders will continue to play at war and power and greed. 

 

We unite by stepping forward.

The hippies grew up in a time of peace and prosperity after WWII and stepped into an adventure as they went out into the world and found their new tribes. This was the birth phase of the Uranus-Pluto cycle that began in 1965-66. We’ve just undergone 3 years (2012-2015) and 7 squares between these planets of awakening and transformation and our journey is different. Our task is to make those ideals that our country was founded on a reality. The only way to do it is through an awakened citizenry. Perhaps if Americans actually work together on our problems, coming from opposite sides but willing to negotiate, the US would make more progress with its diplomacy. How can we tell other countries how to behave if we do not live up to our own ideals?

 

We can’t until we ARE a true example of democracy and peace. And that’s where an engaged and enlightened citizenry comes in. Each of us has to engage in our world. Wherever we see a need, if we’re balanced we can step in and help re-assert the proper balance. 

 

“As Above, So Below. As Within, So Without.” Come into balance yourself and that vibration will extend out into your family, work and community.

Libra New Moon 2017

This Libra New Moon occurs on October 19, 2017 at 12:11pm PDT/ 3:11pm EDT/ 7:11pm GMT.

The Sabian symbol for the Sun and Moon at 27* Libra is: An airplane sails, high in the clear sky. Dane Rudhyar¹ states that this symbolizes “a consciousness able to transcend the conflicts and pressures of the personal life.” This symbol evokes our ability to take an objective view of ourselves and the world, looking at our lives from a higher perspective, creating unity within the polarity. This is the alchemical ‘union of opposites’ which gives rise to the Self.  

 

The original union of opposites was and still is the union of feminine and masculine energies. We need and deserve equality between the sexes, but we also have to learn to give equal value to both types of consciousness – our feminine imaginal brain and our masculine rational brain. They each have a different function, and when they work together, they create brilliance! This is what has put our culture out of balance – the fact that our feminine wisdom is disregarded, used and abused. But this New Moon in Libra can change all of that. 

 

While the Libra New Moon makes contact with Saturn, the Nodes and Chiron, (as well as Jupiter and Mercury in early Scorpio), the most important connection it makes is to Uranus and Eris, exactly opposing it from Aries. Aries and Libra are concerned with Self/Aries and Other/Libra, one of our primary oppositions. Jung felt that our whole world is built on the energy of opposites. But remember, opposing doesn’t necessarily mean fighting and refusing the connection. Opposing means to complement each other, to share our talents in a synergistic way, just as women and men, night and day, heaven and Earth compliment each other and make life more interesting, fruitful and fulfilling. It is good to remember that these planetary energies will work best when working together.  

Uranus and Eris have been working together for a while now. Eris symbolizes the Goddess of Discord and we’re certainly experiencing that. But discord means against (dis) the heart (cour). We are in the midst of discord because we are going against our own hearts. Uranus in Aries has been waking us up to our destiny, which is Aries’ special task. Who am I? Once I know who I am, I’ll also know what I’m here on Earth to do. Together, their energies will shake up our world, entwined to keep us centered in our hearts as we awaken.

Uranus symbolizes the higher mind, one that is shaped by the archetypal powers of life, the cosmic laws of life and death and rebirth. Uranus breaks us out of patriarchal thinking, out of our collection sleepwalk through our corporate culture. Uranus can inspire us to brilliance or when we ignore him, shake us out of complacency by big surprises. What Uranus contributes to this Libra New Moon is fresh ideas, the breakdown of habitual patterns of relationship and the courage to face the truth in our relationships.

 

So what energies do they bring to this New Moon birth? 

 

The Sabian symbol for Eris at 24* Aries is: Blown inward by the wind, the curtains of an open window take the shape of a cornucopia.

The Sabian symbol for Uranus at 27* Aries is: Through imagination, a lost opportunity is regained.

 

Both symbols speak to the magic ingredient of this powerful New Moon—the creative imagination. In the first symbol, our imagination ‘sees’ abundance in the shape of the wind’s dance with a curtain. How do we value abundance? In the second symbol, the creative imagination has become a tool for self-growth and spiritual enlightenment. What possibility are you called to?

I’ve worked with the imagination for over 30 years and know its power to create positive change in life. Yes, it can be used as the patriarchy uses it for personal profit. But its true purpose is to help us understand and live life fully, as both spirit and matter. It is our connection to Wisdom, the wisdom of the Heart. This is the purpose of Jungian active imagination, creative visualizations and shamanic journeying – accessing our own wisdom. 

 

We have to learn how to consciously connect to the creative imagination to ask for wisdom and guidance, until we re-member our instincts and know their purpose. Patriarchal religions shame our bodies and our instincts, devalues the body and its needs as sinful, and demand that we reach for some heavenly perfection. Since we never will, it keeps us constant sinners. It turned our imaginations to negative thinking: to worry rather than creativity, to fear rather than hope, to confusion rather than vision. Uranus will shock us to wake us up if need be. It’s up to you how you meet him.

Imagination is how we connect to the quantum field. 

 

This is what three lovers of Wisdom say about the Imagination.

I do not know what bounds may be placed on the power of the imagination. It can heal the body, reveal the secrets of divine truth, transform the personality, incarnate God, and open up worlds of infinite diversity and potential. Jeffrey Raff, Jung and the Alchemical Imagination

The imagination is, therefore, not a source of deception and delusion, but a capacity to sense what you do not know, to intuit what you cannot understand, to be more than you can know. William Irwin Thompson, Gaia, A Way of Knowing

Albert Einstein said, “Imagination is more important than knowledge.” 

 

With the return of the Goddess, women are remembering our direct connection to spirit through the body and through the imagination, for the Goddess’ purpose is to incarnate Spirit – to know the spirit in matter. And that’s women’s gift to the world. Our Wisdom and Vision. Just as we need and have developed masculine traits such as rationality, focus, discipline, will. 

 

Balance is THE keyword for the sign of Libra, whose symbol is a Scale. A scale measures and weighs things and is one important tool of exchange, for how can we truly know how to balance things out? Whether we speak of human partnerships or human/animal partnerships or human/Earth partnerships, what is the correct balance? 

 

One thing is sure. The Scales demand our whole weight—our truth—to balance out. In ancient Egypt, the Scales were sacred to Ma’at, the Goddess of Truth. After death, Egyptians believed that we are judged—by ourselves. The heart of the deceased is placed on the Scale of Ma’at and the balance is a feather. The only thing that will balance that feather is the Truth, the truth of who we are. 

 

America is a nation of laws, a system of checks and balances. We as a people have to own up to some discipline and find our own inner checks and balances. Yes, a person of a particular faith can believe that life begins at conception, but that is only his belief. Shouldn’t we, as a nation, create laws that allow for other people their beliefs? Isn’t that what freedom means? Pro-lifers don’t have to use contraception or get abortions – nobody is forcing them too. Why do they need to enforce their beliefs on others? That is imbalanced. 

 

Don’t we need laws that are wide enough to accommodate many beliefs without hurting the common good (which we don’t have now with our crazy gun laws), and let our free will choose which course to take? If pro-lifers think early abortions or even using contraception is murder, why do they send their sons and daughters off to war to kill and be killed? Killing is murder, however you want to spin it. If they lived their beliefs, they would be pro-peace and life. This is the self-discipline and awareness we have to bring to bare on our beliefs. Many people are hypocrites, living contradictions, because they don’t live the beliefs that they want others to follow.

 Now that Jupiter is in Scorpio, we’ll get to the bottom of that religious contradiction. With Jupiter and Mercury close to this New Moon in the sign of secrets, diving deep and psychological renewal, don’t be afraid to look at some hard and fast truths about yourself and others. What you do with these truths is up to you.

Uranus and Eris want this new balance to include individual freedom, both in our communities and in our partnerships. We don’t own each other – we’re not possessions. We are free to follow our convictions – or we should be. But we’re still at the very bottom of the barrel of patriarchy, so we’re seeing the worst, and yet, once the wound is lanced, we have a chance to heal. While we have a President who has molested women, it wasn’t until last week’s Harvey Weinstein revelations (reported on the day that Jupiter went into Scorpio, the sign of sex, secrets and scandals), that women are taking a united public stand against these kinds of male predators. Women are and have been raped and pillaged right along with Mother Earth and have been second class citizens for thousands of years. It is time to balance the scales. Especially if we’re going to deal with our environmental and social crisis. We need both types of knowledge and wisdom to heal our world. If we listened to the grandmothers and water protectors, if we listen to the women peacemakers, if we listened. If we listen…

To avoid unconscious hypocrisy, we need to develop the self-discipline to use this New Moon’s objective perspective to live out our beliefs. That’s where Saturn in Sagittarius comes in, forming a waning sextile with this New Moon, opening up opportunities to exercise that discipline. Along with Black Moon Lilith, Saturn is moving over the Galactic Center. As the base note of our chakra system, this signals a time when we complete the shift to a higher vibration. Aligned with the Leo North Node and Uranus and Eris in Aries, Saturn can focus the fire energies generated by this grand trine into cosmic creativity. 

 

In personal relationships, be true to yourself! State your desires so that you and your partner can have different opinions and yet create win-win situations. That’s what makes partnerships vibrant and exciting. The Scale is always in movement, striving to create that one perfect moment of balance. So ride the wind with wings outspread: balance yourself and you can create that balance with anyone else.

Libra being an air sign, it’s associated with thinking, socializing, communicating, as well as justice, beauty and the arts. Venus, the ruler of Libra, is in Libra, drawing our thoughts down into our heart chakras to see if we are being true to ourselves and open to the other person. Venus wants to bring harmony and balance, beauty and fairness to relationships. Meanwhile, she’s dancing with Ceres in Leo, Pallas in Taurus, and Juno/Pluto in Capricorn, making it a fruitful time to begin creating and embodying the changes that you want to bring to the culture. We need you!

So open up to your feminine wisdom and ask how to do it! You’ll be surprised at what you learn. The truth will set you free.

Walk in the Light and Dark,

Cathy

1. Dane Rudhyar, An Astrological Mandala, Vintage Books, 1973.

Burnt Norton (excerpt) -- T.S. Eliot

At the still point of the turning world.
Neither flesh nor fleshless;
Neither from nor towards;
at the still point, there the dance is,
But neither arrest nor movement.
And do not call it fixity,
Where past and future are gathered.
Neither movement from nor towards,
Neither ascent nor decline.
Except for the point, the still point,
There would be no dance,
and there is only the dance.

~ T.S. Eliot ~

(excerpt from Burnt Norton, The Four Quartets)