Scorpio Full Moon~ The Depths of Desire
I am writing this on an overcast and chilly Beltane afternoon. Beltane, one of four cross-quarter holy days, celebrates Mid-spring and the marriage of the fertile earth Goddess to the strapping sun God, who is coming into his power more and more as each day passes. This holy day favors dancing around the May Pole, lighting a giant bonfire and encouraging men and women to flirt, frolic, drink, dance and make love. These rites have been practiced for many years, but spent some time underground when the activities were considered heretic. Even then, the celebration of the first of May lingered, as all holy days will, no matter what new names or meanings we give them.
And yet, today, there is no trace of the Sun God and the Earth Goddess, while present in the chirping birds and green grasses, seems sleepy, and not quite in the mood to dance. I also feel a little tired, cranky and even a little grateful that the day is not very inviting, otherwise I would have to go outdoors and greet the height of spring. Instead, I am called to write about the other waxing energy, the full moon in Scorpio, whose phase begins Friday and will carry over into Sunday.
Just as the cross-quarter days herald the middle of each season, the full moon also marks the climax of the current lunar cycle. It is auspicious to have them fall so close together and this is a potent week for filling up. But filling up with what?
Taurus, the ruling sign of the month, is fixed earth, the goddess Venus herself, clothed in the grandeur of Spring. The sign that opposes her in the glow of the full moon, is Scorpio, fixed water. Water energy is emotional and it's fixed nature demands the deepest emotions available, the unconscious; imagine a deep, dark well. Where Taurus is led by beautiful, fertile Venus, Scorpio carries the banner of Pluto, ruler of the underworld and master of sex, power, passion and death. Their dance is a mighty one, a passionate one and an unrequited one. For while Venus may occasionally retreat to the underworld, as Persephone or Inanna, she always returns to her sunnier suitors. But it is her visits to the underworld and her encounters with Pluto, that make her powerful. The stories of goddesses embarking below are legendary. She may enter a maiden or princess, but she emerges a queen.
Perhaps that is the message of this gloomy Beltane as the moon waxes beneath a clouded sky; it is not enough to frolic in the spring time, wrap a ribbon around a pole, light a fire or mate frivolously. It may be fun, and we do need to play and find pleasure at this time, but it might be that more is demanded. What do you really want to bring into your life? What truly fulfills you and your soul's purpose?
I have posed that question to myself for months now. But Pluto has a patience fiery Aries did not have and waters that Taurus's roots cannot touch. Next month Gemini rides in on a summer wind bringing eclipses and mutable energy sent to dissolve anything not firmly held. Now is the time to leave the warm fires and soft earth with her blossoming flowers and follow Scorpio down the deep well. When you sit alone, in the dark, what dreams keep your will strong? What do you hold so dear it keeps your fear at bay as you go deeper and deeper? Pluto is the lord of the underworld, and he is counseled by dark goddesses like Kali and Ershkigal, and they will accept nothing but your rawest truths and most powerful desires.
If you can muster the courage to speak to them under the Scorpio full moon, perhaps, like Persephone or Inanna, you will emerge victorious, with new allies and carrying a vision and direction that will hold through the windy Gemini summer. It is only when we are able to look the lords and ladies of the underworld in the face that we can see what matters most. They are not enemies or villains, they are our truest teachers.
Their eyes will be hard to miss this weekend within the full moon, and I encourage you to take the time to look. The sun will come out from the clouds and Beltane festivities will abound, as they should and as is needed to bring love, light and abundance to the earth, but Pluto is there, too, and in that dark well lie the waters of life. Drink deeply, meet their gaze and do not fear to follow into the depth of your desires.
Tuesday, May 1, 2012
Monday, April 9, 2012
Taurus New Moon 4/21/12~ Body (and Earth) as Temple
Taurus New Moon~ Body (and Earth) as Temple
From the moment the full moon in Libra rose last week until the June 6th transit with the sun, Venus is holding the celestial spotlight.
The month of May, mid-spring, has always been center stage for the sensual Goddess, ruling her most comfortable sign, fixed earth Taurus. The sign of the bull maintains and venerates the physical. The body, the senses, the flowers, trees, animals, anything that is visceral and can be touched, smelled and tasted awakens the earth mother. This is the cycle of fertility for all living beings and fecundity has been celebrated by humans for millenia. Sadly, our current society (meaning the last few thousand years) has overall been more disconnected from the power of life and nature than any culture before; and that separation does not seem to be creating more love, joy and peace in the world, does it?
Venus is getting a lot of attention this year, not only with her usual April full moon cameo and regular season of worship in May, she is also next to go retrograde and is an integral part of both the Mayan and Cherokee prophecies for 2012, which includes her completing an eight year solar transit when she crosses the sun on June 6th.
If I were to say there is just one thing we could collectively do to bring more harmony and balance in such chaotic times, it would be to make a regular practice of honoring Venus.
Like, NOW.
The Taurus new moon is Saturday April 21st, and precedes another intense eclipse cycle over the summer. That feels to me like Venus giving us a chance to ground through sweet physical practices, surround ourselves with the people, places and things that bring beauty to our lives and sustain the mutable time ahead through gratitude, connection, community and love.
The thought that came to me as I admired Venus in the sky (as her planet self and as the energy behind the full moon) was the saying "my body is a temple." I don't know if that inspiration came from the earth, sky or from within myself, but it could truly be said for all three, and that is my intention for this month and those that follow.
How would you treat yourself and the planet differently if you really believed they were temples? I mean, have you ever walked into a space and just wanted to fall to your knees and weep in reverence? That is my reaction to seeing a Red Wood or Sequoia, to standing at the ocean, climbing the red rocks of New Mexico or entering the cathedrals of Italy or Spain. I have always felt that "temples" can be made by hand or nature, as long as the intention upon entering is to worship. What temples have you honored in your time? How can you create that feeling in your own form and the places you call home?
Could you eat better? Maybe this month is the time to plant that garden of veggies and herbs, or find a farmer's market. Have you been meaning to switch to natural in your cleaning, bathing, beauty or home products? Start researching your options. Have you wanted to find a more joyful community? Get into massage, or crafting? There are groups all over this city! What actions can you take to bring more beauty into your life, and into the world around you? I have friends working in community gardens, meeting monthly to align their chakras, doing book clubs, planting trees, hiking in groups, biking to work together, taking time for the spa, learning to cook, all of these and more are Taurus tasks!
Another simple way to connect with Venus is to paint, print or purchase an image of the love goddess in one of her many forms (Venus, Ishtar, Inanna, Astarte, Aphrodite, Hathor, Isis, Lakshmi) and either place it on your mirror, altar or even make an altar just for her. Offer her sweets and flowers and ask for her blessings through this time.
Venus will be retrograde for part of her reign, and that means cleaning up old wounds, particularly around relationships, body issues, environment and abundance. This is the time to put your focus on the temple around you and within you, tidy it up, decorate and celebrate!
Take time to meditate on Venus's invitation. I feel really strongly about how important creating a connection with her is right now and I hope you can create the space to experience her beauty and love in your life. You really are a sacred vessel, worthy of the gifts of the Goddess.
I leave you with an excerpt of one of my favorite Navajo blessings~
In beauty I walk
With beauty before me I walk
With beauty behind me I walk
With beauty above me I walk
With beauty around me I walk
It has become beauty again
May we all walk in beauty~
From the moment the full moon in Libra rose last week until the June 6th transit with the sun, Venus is holding the celestial spotlight.
The month of May, mid-spring, has always been center stage for the sensual Goddess, ruling her most comfortable sign, fixed earth Taurus. The sign of the bull maintains and venerates the physical. The body, the senses, the flowers, trees, animals, anything that is visceral and can be touched, smelled and tasted awakens the earth mother. This is the cycle of fertility for all living beings and fecundity has been celebrated by humans for millenia. Sadly, our current society (meaning the last few thousand years) has overall been more disconnected from the power of life and nature than any culture before; and that separation does not seem to be creating more love, joy and peace in the world, does it?
Venus is getting a lot of attention this year, not only with her usual April full moon cameo and regular season of worship in May, she is also next to go retrograde and is an integral part of both the Mayan and Cherokee prophecies for 2012, which includes her completing an eight year solar transit when she crosses the sun on June 6th.
If I were to say there is just one thing we could collectively do to bring more harmony and balance in such chaotic times, it would be to make a regular practice of honoring Venus.
Like, NOW.
The Taurus new moon is Saturday April 21st, and precedes another intense eclipse cycle over the summer. That feels to me like Venus giving us a chance to ground through sweet physical practices, surround ourselves with the people, places and things that bring beauty to our lives and sustain the mutable time ahead through gratitude, connection, community and love.
The thought that came to me as I admired Venus in the sky (as her planet self and as the energy behind the full moon) was the saying "my body is a temple." I don't know if that inspiration came from the earth, sky or from within myself, but it could truly be said for all three, and that is my intention for this month and those that follow.
How would you treat yourself and the planet differently if you really believed they were temples? I mean, have you ever walked into a space and just wanted to fall to your knees and weep in reverence? That is my reaction to seeing a Red Wood or Sequoia, to standing at the ocean, climbing the red rocks of New Mexico or entering the cathedrals of Italy or Spain. I have always felt that "temples" can be made by hand or nature, as long as the intention upon entering is to worship. What temples have you honored in your time? How can you create that feeling in your own form and the places you call home?
Could you eat better? Maybe this month is the time to plant that garden of veggies and herbs, or find a farmer's market. Have you been meaning to switch to natural in your cleaning, bathing, beauty or home products? Start researching your options. Have you wanted to find a more joyful community? Get into massage, or crafting? There are groups all over this city! What actions can you take to bring more beauty into your life, and into the world around you? I have friends working in community gardens, meeting monthly to align their chakras, doing book clubs, planting trees, hiking in groups, biking to work together, taking time for the spa, learning to cook, all of these and more are Taurus tasks!
Another simple way to connect with Venus is to paint, print or purchase an image of the love goddess in one of her many forms (Venus, Ishtar, Inanna, Astarte, Aphrodite, Hathor, Isis, Lakshmi) and either place it on your mirror, altar or even make an altar just for her. Offer her sweets and flowers and ask for her blessings through this time.
Venus will be retrograde for part of her reign, and that means cleaning up old wounds, particularly around relationships, body issues, environment and abundance. This is the time to put your focus on the temple around you and within you, tidy it up, decorate and celebrate!
Take time to meditate on Venus's invitation. I feel really strongly about how important creating a connection with her is right now and I hope you can create the space to experience her beauty and love in your life. You really are a sacred vessel, worthy of the gifts of the Goddess.
I leave you with an excerpt of one of my favorite Navajo blessings~
In beauty I walk
With beauty before me I walk
With beauty behind me I walk
With beauty above me I walk
With beauty around me I walk
It has become beauty again
May we all walk in beauty~
Thursday, March 29, 2012
Libra Full Moon 4/6
Libra Full Moon~ Softening the edges
I was lying awake last night thinking about this full moon, because that's what I do when I can't sleep. (Which has been happening more and more with the active solar flare cycle, I might add.) I was thinking about Aries and how interesting the last couple of weeks have been thanks to the pulsation of fiery spring spirits and retrograding planets altering the natural flow of the season. I have been more sensitive, but also a little more focused than I usually am this time of year because of it, and have found myself grateful for the challenges. Aries is the warrior, after all, and what fun is life without some opposition to make you stronger?
The full moon, always in a different element but same energy of the new moon, tends to bring more clarity to this opposition. I was laying awake at 1am musing on the unlikely but perfect tango between Aries, Cardinal fire ruled by Mars, and Libra, Cardinal Air ruled by Venus. Where Aries brings the initiationn of spring and the inspiring heat of flame, Libra heralds autumn and cooling breezes of balance. Mars is the God of war and Venus the Goddess of love. Mars wants to stir things up and make his presence known and respected, whereas Venus wants to calm things down and bring appreciation and alignment.
With all the current planets in retrograde, other planets heading in that backward direction and a variety of other alignments that my brain can't comprehend, I was trying to sense what illumination these two signs could bring us in the full moon phase. Then, it hit me, I know exactly what the magic between Aries and Libra is, because I live it every day. Aries is my moon and Libra is my rising. Some of you know astrology and what I just wrote perhaps brought an "ah," but many are less familiar and went "what?"
I am not an astrologer. I love astrology, I dabble, google and have also invested in really good readings that have taught me more than I could discover on my own. One of the first things I learned about my chart is that even though all planets, houses and alignments have meaning, if you can at least learn your sun, moon and rising (also called ascendant or first house) you can get a good sense of what energies affect you most. It makes you more three dimensional in the celestial realms, rather than the one dimension of knowing I was born between May 21 and June 21 which makes me, along with a million other people, a Gemini sun.
The sun is the masculine, active purpose in our lives, kinda what we came here to DO. The moon, is the feminine, emotional, receptive side, often what we are bringing in from where we were before this life, and shows us how we need to BE fulfilled so we can commit to our solar purpose. The rising is the outer appearance, how we move in the world with the sun/moon dictating, the yoke between them. Someone once told me that rising is like the car you drive, sun is the driver and moon is the navigator.
My solar purpose is Gemini, to communicate, educate, network, travel, read and write. But my moon is that reckless Aries, so in order to stay balanced in my airy day to day functions, I require my independance, strong physical practice, ability to pursue my passions and a lot of heat in emotional connections (which is what many of you may be experiencing right now in the Aries lunar cycle). Yet, when people meet me, they often see Libra, Thank the Goddess, who can harmonize anything, including the Gemini mental air and the Aries spiritual fire. With Libra rising, I might seem charming, committed and clever, rather than manipulative, intense and a know-it-all, which is how I imagine I come across when my Aries moon runs the show.
Libra softens Aries "I-don't-give-a-f$-about-anything-except-what-I-want-right-now" mentality and brings the awareness back to relationships with others. Aries fire would burn every bridge in town if it meant pursuing her passion, and then, once the desire is satisfied, she would look around like my dog does after she has dug up my garden, kinda like "what happened? why is everyone looking at me like that?" Aries is the youngest, most impulsive of the signs and Libra is the loving mama, who sweetly hands Aries a coloring book and wipes the crayon off the walls. She wants harmony, balance and acceptance in all situations, so she definitely has her work cut out for her in this crazy cycle.
The best I can suggest, having a personal relationship to these signs, is to simply open yourself to taking some deep breaths under this full moon. Let Libra's calming winds soften your Aries edges. Check in with your loved ones and see if anyone has been feeling neglected or hurt during the chaotic weeks of Aries reign and Mercury's retrograde. This is not the time for solutions, but just to open the lines of communication. There is not much Libra can't weigh out and she might offer all of us some clarity and gratitude for the challenges we have been facing.
If nothing else, perhaps she can makes us appear more appreciative and aligned whilst we play out the rest of this month. Ask her to take your hand and guide you through the waning cycle, helping to clean up wreckage from Aries' tantrums, repair any bridges and remind you of what is beautiful and balanced in your life.
I was lying awake last night thinking about this full moon, because that's what I do when I can't sleep. (Which has been happening more and more with the active solar flare cycle, I might add.) I was thinking about Aries and how interesting the last couple of weeks have been thanks to the pulsation of fiery spring spirits and retrograding planets altering the natural flow of the season. I have been more sensitive, but also a little more focused than I usually am this time of year because of it, and have found myself grateful for the challenges. Aries is the warrior, after all, and what fun is life without some opposition to make you stronger?
The full moon, always in a different element but same energy of the new moon, tends to bring more clarity to this opposition. I was laying awake at 1am musing on the unlikely but perfect tango between Aries, Cardinal fire ruled by Mars, and Libra, Cardinal Air ruled by Venus. Where Aries brings the initiationn of spring and the inspiring heat of flame, Libra heralds autumn and cooling breezes of balance. Mars is the God of war and Venus the Goddess of love. Mars wants to stir things up and make his presence known and respected, whereas Venus wants to calm things down and bring appreciation and alignment.
With all the current planets in retrograde, other planets heading in that backward direction and a variety of other alignments that my brain can't comprehend, I was trying to sense what illumination these two signs could bring us in the full moon phase. Then, it hit me, I know exactly what the magic between Aries and Libra is, because I live it every day. Aries is my moon and Libra is my rising. Some of you know astrology and what I just wrote perhaps brought an "ah," but many are less familiar and went "what?"
I am not an astrologer. I love astrology, I dabble, google and have also invested in really good readings that have taught me more than I could discover on my own. One of the first things I learned about my chart is that even though all planets, houses and alignments have meaning, if you can at least learn your sun, moon and rising (also called ascendant or first house) you can get a good sense of what energies affect you most. It makes you more three dimensional in the celestial realms, rather than the one dimension of knowing I was born between May 21 and June 21 which makes me, along with a million other people, a Gemini sun.
The sun is the masculine, active purpose in our lives, kinda what we came here to DO. The moon, is the feminine, emotional, receptive side, often what we are bringing in from where we were before this life, and shows us how we need to BE fulfilled so we can commit to our solar purpose. The rising is the outer appearance, how we move in the world with the sun/moon dictating, the yoke between them. Someone once told me that rising is like the car you drive, sun is the driver and moon is the navigator.
My solar purpose is Gemini, to communicate, educate, network, travel, read and write. But my moon is that reckless Aries, so in order to stay balanced in my airy day to day functions, I require my independance, strong physical practice, ability to pursue my passions and a lot of heat in emotional connections (which is what many of you may be experiencing right now in the Aries lunar cycle). Yet, when people meet me, they often see Libra, Thank the Goddess, who can harmonize anything, including the Gemini mental air and the Aries spiritual fire. With Libra rising, I might seem charming, committed and clever, rather than manipulative, intense and a know-it-all, which is how I imagine I come across when my Aries moon runs the show.
Libra softens Aries "I-don't-give-a-f$-about-anything-except-what-I-want-right-now" mentality and brings the awareness back to relationships with others. Aries fire would burn every bridge in town if it meant pursuing her passion, and then, once the desire is satisfied, she would look around like my dog does after she has dug up my garden, kinda like "what happened? why is everyone looking at me like that?" Aries is the youngest, most impulsive of the signs and Libra is the loving mama, who sweetly hands Aries a coloring book and wipes the crayon off the walls. She wants harmony, balance and acceptance in all situations, so she definitely has her work cut out for her in this crazy cycle.
The best I can suggest, having a personal relationship to these signs, is to simply open yourself to taking some deep breaths under this full moon. Let Libra's calming winds soften your Aries edges. Check in with your loved ones and see if anyone has been feeling neglected or hurt during the chaotic weeks of Aries reign and Mercury's retrograde. This is not the time for solutions, but just to open the lines of communication. There is not much Libra can't weigh out and she might offer all of us some clarity and gratitude for the challenges we have been facing.
If nothing else, perhaps she can makes us appear more appreciative and aligned whilst we play out the rest of this month. Ask her to take your hand and guide you through the waning cycle, helping to clean up wreckage from Aries' tantrums, repair any bridges and remind you of what is beautiful and balanced in your life.
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