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.
