New Moon in Pisces March 2018 A Goldilocks Moon

14 Wednesday Mar 2018

Posted by in astrology, forecast, Horoscope, Jupiter retrograde, Mercury retrograde, New Moon, Retrogrades + Directions, Sabian Symbols

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Jessie Willcox Smith – ‘Goldilocks and the Three Bears’ 1915 Illustration for a soap company {{PD}}

The New Moon occurs at 6:11 AM Pacific Daylight time at 26 Pisces 53. Both bodies (Sun, Moon) are applying conjoined Chiron, sextile Sedna and catching Uranus at the rough midpoint, square Vesta, and widely square Mars, the latter two together in Sagittarius, with Mars at the stressful 29 degree mark. The New Moon is also headed toward a sesquiquadrate with the North Node, and is in wide separating trine to Jupiter, which suggests what was recently promised by Jupiter is now in the rear-view mirror, not exactly gone, but at least temporarily losing relevance and certainly making connecting with that Jupiterian potential impossible right now (and we might ask ourselves, what ‘new’ do we need to learn, related to that Jupiter possibility, that will make actually obtaining what we want possible? Look to matters of the House where the New Moon and retro Jupiter fall in the natal chart. The NM Mars could make us feel as if we must act on it–but the time’s not right, yet)–the sesquiquadrate to the North Node only adds to this, making the road ahead appear particularly bumpy from our current vantage point.

Forming so close to Chiron suggests the New Moon brings potentials for hurt or healing–but which? We get a clue in the sextile to Sedna, which finds Uranus at the midpoint; this promises that something prompted either by the instincts or the ‘blind spot’ (that is, that we stumble into, rather than deliberately choose) will bring something unexpected or shocking, will garner the input of the group, or will foster understanding, not just intellectually, but emotionally, even intuitively. We must also consider that the knowledge, opportunity, or belief ‘withdrawal’ suggested by Jupiter may be the source of the wounding or healing. Whatever it is, it challenges our commitments, our priorities, or our highest values, with responsibility one way or another falling back on us and our own (possibly) poor decisions or potentially arising from aggression or conflicts sparked by others. This New Moon gives us the opportunity to reckon with our own and others’ ego urges and assertiveness, and to do so via our capacity for creative thinking, or through applying ideals to the imagination (Pisces); like Goldilocks, we’ll need to ask: Are we too aggressive and Self-involved, or are we giving our own needs too little attention or regard, or are we just right? The NM lays the emotional groundwork to successfully deal with this question, and when Mercury retrogrades in Aries on the 22nd, it will be prime time for reviewing and changing our actions (retro in Fire), particularly the way we act out or express the ego and action urges (Aries); we’ll have this New Moon to thank for a least a portion of our insights.

With Mars at its current position (29 Sagittarius) we may feel we’ll have to act in order to learn, but that would be premature–wait for Merc’s turnaround, as more will then be revealed–at this New Moon point, it’s all about feeling, intuiting, and communing, to discover our precise relationship to the Universe–modifications come later. One thing we may have to face at this time is that there is no difference between our woundedness and our ability to heal–and that in response to that awareness, action need not and often should not automatically be our answer to what’s revealed. Hints as to what follows are found here–

Utagawa Hiroshige – ‘Cuckoo Flying Under a Full Moon’ 19th century {{PD}}

The Sabian symbol for the New Moon in Pisces is, ‘The Harvest Moon Illumines A Clear Autumnal Sky’. This suggests opposites, through the imagery of a Full Moon, and autumn rather than the spring that’s soon to come (at least here in the Northern Hemisphere–for those in the Southern Hemisphere, the message may be simple: in the beginning is the end, and it is now). This could imply for Northerners that New Moon events play out through the summer and come to some sort of peak in the fall, or that what is born with the New Moon has the seeds of its completion, its ending, built in. That suggests not only that if we look carefully we will see the outcome to events already implied in their beginnings, promising a ‘harvest’ proportional to our efforts now, but that what happens now may also bring endings–that is, that the New Moon beginning has arisen from the completion of other cycles, that it’s time for other efforts to naturally terminate, conclude, or die. The imagery may also suggest we note Virgo at this point, in any or all of its guises within the personal life. That means subjects, qualities, and even people we associate with the sign may hold one or more keys to the meaning of events. Earth sits in Virgo, and that means those symbols will be literal, or at least tangible; check also the subjects of the House in the natal chart that holds Virgo for clues as to what may inform the New Moon event. ‘Discernment’ may be a key concept–also ‘criticism’, ‘accountability’, ‘results’. The ‘Circle of Life’ may be extraordinarily apparent right now–embrace this as a natural part of things, and appreciate what you have, in the present.

 

 

Your Ascendant Zodiapedia: ‘Just So You Know’ Gemini

13 Tuesday Mar 2018

Posted by in astrology, Gemini, The Ascendant

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So, which one is the Gemini? This Ascendant can get a reputation, if they’re careless. ‘Gossip’ by Eugen von Blaas, 1903 {{PD}}

Is Gemini aware of the Universal interconnectedness of things, of the fine web threading among every single thing in the Cosmos, so that tugging on one bit jostles them all? Do we know if Gemini thinks of this as she moves, like a bee, from point to point, from upturned face to upturned face of so many persons, each of whom blossoms under Gemini’s quick wit and inclusive gaze? Does Gemini know she’s the human glue in all this, or, to stick with our previous metaphor, the one responsible for pollinating the world of ideas? I ask because Gemini can be highly ‘other oriented’ (echoing the twin symbology), to the extent that focus can be almost exclusively on the external—and this ‘looking outward’ could be responsible for Gemini’s reputation for flightiness and a concern with surfaces—but when those surfaces connect large webs of others to one another through shared ideas, they are helping create a lovely interconnectedness, a kind of psychic connective tissue for the Universal ‘body’.

An Air sign, the Gemini Ascendant can present as bubbly and chatty, shallow and unconcerned with what others consider ‘serious’—and yet, Gemini is almost always effectively informed, especially as to what’s current, or what needs to be known in the moment—he or she can’t help that their natural delivery is light and deft. Looking out through the Gemini Ascendant, this individual likely views everything in terms of a network—they see the natural connectedness of all things—and it’s this thoughtful ability to connect the dots that makes Gemini so remarkable, as it manifests more as instinct than as mind. Too, they are highly mentally active from the get-go, and this suggests an early environment where thinking on one’s feet was beneficial to survival; it also implies the possibility that mental interaction with the caretakers and with the world was encouraged—or seen as vital to existence—and these individuals are almost always very early speakers and readers. One thing that Gemini almost insists upon is a response from those with whom he or she communicates, and this can open a chink in that cheerful armor, as exchange is a big part of the Gemini identity, and when denied it Gemini can suffer real mental anguish. The Gemini weakness is that the early environment may have convinced them that everything can be sorted out with the mind—and so others may observe Gemini stumbling slightly behind the curve emotionally, especially during teen and young adult years. Gemini is nothing if not a keen observer, though, and uses the Mercurial wit and alertness to get up to speed in a swift and efficient manner.

The Gemini Ascendant can appear to others to be insecure, even petty; if we look at things from the viewpoint of the twins, however, we see that this impression only arises when Gemini doesn’t feel sure she or he has a good grasp of the facts or the current situation. Nerves can make Gemini clam up, but the mentality is never lacking in wit, and this individual typically loves word games, puns, and challenging puzzles, and so can appear to others a bit of the detective, pursuing answers and looking for ‘why’. There is an instinct within Gemini that honors knowledge, learning and discovering, and the ‘Big Picture’, all expressions of opposite sign Sagittarius; as time goes on Gemini uses the networking ability more and more as a teaching, philosophy spreading, and life-improvement strategy, in service to the wider world, balancing the Mercurial urge with the Jupiterian one.

Willful Words, Willful Wants: Mercury and Venus in Aries

11 Sunday Mar 2018

Posted by in Aspect Delineation, astrology, Media, Mercury retrograde

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Oh, the lives of the gods! Jean-Honoré Fragonard ‘The Fountain of Love’ c1785 {{PD}}

Looking ahead a bit, there are two days coming up I wanted to discuss; I would describe them as ‘potent’, and so important to be aware of, if only for the potentials they might bring, and the assists they might offer. This first is March 18th: Mercury will still be direct in Aries, but moving very slowly, with less than a single degree to travel before turnaround. It’s also still within orb of a conjunction to Venus, and both are conjoined that day by the transiting Moon, just coming off the New Moon conjunction to the Sun in Pisces. We also see Merc and Venus (and briefly, the Moon) making semi-sextile to Neptune, a square to Black Moon Lilith, and a trine to the North Node point. What strikes me about this is not just the unusual length of time Mercury and Venus have been together (this happens, once in a while, so isn’t that extraordinary), but that they are at this point together in aspect to two energy ‘points’ and the most nebulous influence we find in the chart. That suggests, very generally, that we won’t have a handle on what Mercury and Venus together in Aries means to us. Willful words and willful wants, the ‘I Am’ controls communications and relationships–and if we consider how uncomfortable Venus is in Aries, almost making for a ‘Me vs. My relationship’ scenario–then we can see any number of ways that we may express out of irritation or discomfort or the need to be heard that could greatly affect our connections and even our income. Add to this that what has been ignored or denied or that enrages is causing friction (Black Moon Lilith by square), and we see how easily this will impact life direction (NN by trine)–and yet it may take some time before we’re completely aware of the way what happens in this window changes our relationships, and our personal trajectory. The 18th does offer a glimpse of what has been impacted, through the emotions or the intuition, but that glimpse is withdrawn almost as quickly as it appears–so pay attention when it comes.

Also notable on that day is the Sun-Earth axis at 28 degrees across Pisces-Virgo, with the Sun closely conjoined Chiron. This suggests the obscuring of our wounds, in spite of the attention we may give them–and leads us into the second day of interest, the 19th. The Sun-Earth axis will have moved into the ‘stress’ degree of 29, and the Moon will make final contact to Uranus in Aries and then move into Void status at around 11:30 AM Pacific time. This promises a period of distress, accompanied by a feeling of ineffectiveness should we try to address our upset–and we may not know what to do until the 22nd-23rd, when the Sun-Earth perfects a T-square to Mars, and we finally see where the problem is (or perhaps, what about our actions has caused the problems we face)–strange, considering this is the day when Mercury finally goes retrograde, perhaps withdrawing the ego’s mental barriers that kept us from understanding, allowing us to review, ‘What should I do?’ (Merc retro in Fire). With Mars having entered Capricorn on the 17th, we’ll likely be oriented toward practical, real-world, modest solutions, ones that will take care of problems once and for all, and this period shows us, if we’re willing to see, just how we’ve contributed to issues, and just what we can do to fix them.

And if you haven’t seen it, I recommend Darren Aronovsky’s ‘Mother!’, a story of the eternal cycle helmed by a Zeusian-Plutonic figure and Ceres-Gaia, with man’s religious follies and god-worship and the destructive consequences of these. It suggests an endless interaction between Nature and her tranquility and fecundity, on one side, and man’s insatiable need for god, and god’s insatiable need to be worshiped, and the destructiveness of these needs, on the other. Approach it all as symbolic, with an acceptance of the characters as fluid in terms of identity and labels, and you’ll have fun picking out their roles from myth, religion, and the Collective psyche.

Your Ascendant Zodiapedia: ‘The Caretaker of Comfort’ Taurus

10 Saturday Mar 2018

Posted by in astrology, Taurus, The Ascendant

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Lovis Corinth ‘Mädchen mit Stier’ (Girl With Bull) 1902 {{PD}}

My Word dictionary wants me to change ‘Taurean’ to ‘tureen’–strangely appropriate, considering the Bull’s affinity for comfort food 🙂  –Tweeted by me 22 January 2014

Being born with Taurus on the Ascendant signals an individual who understands the physical and material pleasures/ experiences of life—and so is attuned as well to their potential origins, losses, or transformation from one state to another (through the opposing sign, Scorpio). This suggests an early environment where the material experience was prominent—either through appreciation for what surrounded the individual (whether that was luxurious or spare), or through lack that focused the individual on the material surroundings via the issue of survival, above anything else. Taurus might have taken comfort in the physical (food, enjoyments, activities, the learning of skills applied to the environment–typically artisanal or artistic–or exercise of talents) to fill some kind of gap, such as a common childhood loneliness or the experience of early caretakers who either made a huge fuss about the physical (and so focused the child’s values there) or who neglected them completely, leaving the young one to fend for her- or himself.

Taurus on the Ascendant appears to others to be grounded, methodical, aesthetically and especially sensually-oriented, concerned at all times with the material experience. Why is Taurus seen as so steadfast, so reliable? Is it because they’re plodding and dull? Nein! It’s because their priorities have both a practical and an aesthetically pleasing tinge—they are ruled by Venus, after all—and of course that fact lends an awareness of the Other in relationship—so it’s only natural that the Bull channels at least some of her or his Taurean response toward the welfare and comfort of those with whom they interact, and so gains the reputation of willingly looking out for others when they fail to look out for themselves—not a glamorous stance, but an appreciated one, in most cases. Since the material is important to Taurus, that’s where her focus stays—and others may unfairly read a lack of imagination in that. Taurus is about creating an atmosphere, an experience, and acquiring the materials and arena in which to do so—and meeting the world in this way makes for someone unusually competent at procurement and at understanding the worth of what surrounds them—practical indeed.

Remember, Taurus is looking out at the world through this lens, and what Taurus notices is surroundings and the way these make the human organism feel; above all, the Bull is tremendously responsive to the environment. Secondarily, Taurus’ focus on the material means he or she immediately and continually assesses and categorizes what is available and what must be done to create an acceptable ‘comfort level’—and this is a highly positive thing, as everyone benefits: Fire signs may be too busy to see to needs, Air signs who may ignore the material world entirely, and Water signs may be too overwhelmed by feeling to worry about fundamentals. This concentration on what’s right in front of her or him is what gives Taurus the reputation of being a plodder, a title bestowed by those who may assume that the details are beneath them—but when those who think like that are in charge, we find the necessities and the niceties aren’t seen to at all, and consequently our animal Selves suffer. Taurus’ concerns are highly practical ones, and as well, Taurus knows the importance of enjoying the experience—something we could all use a friendly reminder of.

It’s important to recognize that dealing with the material is no less spiritual than meditation or prayer; to see it as such is to miss the reason we incarnate in the first place, and Taurus knows this much better than most. The Taurus Ascendant may find the focus on the physical and on comforts becomes detrimental as the social sphere expands and the education goes forward; there are those who would designate material matters as ‘less evolved’ or sophisticated than say, intellectual pursuits, relationships, or finances—and these individuals would be, if not wrong, then really unpleasant in their snobbishness (which is something the less-developed Taurus knows all too well, when the focus is on luxuries and status within the established social standards). Taurus’ reputation for being stubborn comes from a need to feel grounded—and for the Taurus Ascendant, this can play out as a need to feel sure of the identity, including talents and the asset picture, and to achieve physical comfort, before anything else can be attended to. Stability in all forms is the goal of Taurus.

Eventually, the Bull realizes that it’s not all about warm sweaters, cozy fires, and delicious stews (or cool breezes, swinging in a hammock, and a tall fruity drink in one’s hand!) With time, the Taurean becomes more contemplative and less experiential, and begins to look below the surface of things (the complementary energy of the opposing sign, Scorpio), embracing a sense of mystery in the process, in contradiction to their inborn urge toward security and no surprises. They’ve always known that the unseen is there, affecting things, but it takes both a maturing and a certain level of surety within the physical sphere for Taurus to allow exploration of what she or he can’t see. We need to remember, Taurus is a highly sensitive sign; their involvement with comfort may be a response to an early emotional life that was lacking, as much or more than a response to the physical side of things. This kind of experience can make for a wise counselor or one who knows what others need, materially and spiritually, especially after or during trauma or an emergency. Taurus’ sensitivity to the environment and comfort evolves, translating into a sensitivity to the unseen forces of life and the power to resurrect or remake through manipulation of the material world, reflecting its companion opposite, Scorpio.

Your Ascendant Zodiapedia: ‘It’s War, Isn’t It?’ Aries

08 Thursday Mar 2018

Posted by in Aries, astrology, The Ascendant

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Aries on the Ascendant shares a lot of characteristics with the Warrior Pallas. ‘Pallas Athena’ By Franz von Stuck 1898 {{PD}}

This is the initial installment in a series that appeared previously in ECLIPSE (editing and additions have been made), where we inspect some of the characteristics, assumptions, and impulses with each sign as it captures the Ascendant. This is the symbolic place where we enter the world; the nature of the sign on it suggests both how we meet our environment, and what we believe is necessary to survive in it, and so forms the personality. I try to give a little of both the view from outside (the way others perceive those with the Ascendant in a particular sign) and from the inside (with the individual looking out at the world, and how that Ascendant response may have been shaped). First, Aries on the Ascendant:

Aries is a Warrior spirit, even when the undertaking is domestic, economic, meditative, or pleasurable in nature. Life brings out the ‘Me First!’ competitive spirit of Aries, and he should never be blamed for that. At the same time, one of the things Aries needs to learn is cooperation (a reflection of the opposing sign, Libra). What we see with Aries on the ascending horizon is someone who likely needed to put themselves first in order to survive, or who needed to lead others for the survival of all. Though we may see those circumstances as unlikely in early life, especially the leading of others, all we need think of is a child either left to their own devices to survive day-to-day or one who finds him- or herself in a position to help others survive (I think of a man I knew who, born during the Depression, cooked and cleaned for his three brothers from the age of 5, when his mother was at work in the fields and the two older brothers were doing whatever odd jobs they could find—he spoke of hardly being able to reach the stove top, which made my hair stand on end—a 5-year-old cooking!) Of course, not everyone with Aries on the Ascendant is literally dealing with life or death—but remember, the horoscope is the world as seen from the individual point of view—when we recall that, we can understand how putting Oneself first can become a real need in response to an environment that disregarded the individual or that left him or her feeling adrift on their own. Interesting that this doesn’t foster abandonment issues in most Aries Ascendants, but we may note that abandonment is a problem for the preceding sign, Pisces, reinforcing the idea that each sign is a response to the perception of the sign preceding it; Self-focused survival is the direct result of a fiery, Mars-fueled attitude, a response that says ‘I’m an army of one, you can’t ignore my impact!’—so if there are issues with unsupportive others or being left behind, they are likely hidden behind a flurry of competency, action, and ‘getting’ and ‘doing’.

The Aries Ascendant gives others the impression that she’s chomping at the bit to lead, and to get her own way; this may spring from early experiences that thwarted the Will, that made Aries feel unsafe unless she was in charge, and that may have left Aries in the dust unless she thrust herself to the front of the pack—so you can hardly blame her for wanting to establish her place, for wanting to avoid being lost in the shuffle. The conscious focus is on the ego and the ‘I Am’ statement of what or who Aries asserts as the identity at any one time; this can change with the needs and/ or focus of the ego. Aries is also prone to defend others or to fight whenever there seems to be a reason (which may not, to an observer, justify aggression at all—but Aries can and often does frame aggression in the context of being justified, in the same way that a surgeon often sees the need for surgery—it’s their job); eventually, both a defensive attitude and a willingness to fight can be tamed to suit and support the identity statement, though the latter may never truly be subsumed.

When Aries is the rising sign, the individual meets the world assertively and aggressively, meaning that they both impress the Self on the surroundings and automatically meet others in a competitive spirit. Typically Aries starts out all ‘Me First!’ and, depending on experiences encountered, will evolve to continue to put the Self first in socially acceptable (Libran) ways. Once they become sensitive to others’ (mostly negative) reactions to excessive Self-assertion and interest, they move more and more toward expressions that carry that Libran style. In spite of such evolution, Aries will still always hold a strong competitive spirit in abeyance, and will still assess situations initially on what she or he can get, what can be done, and what kind of impact he or she may be able to make. A competitive or aggressive stance may continue to be presented—they’re always wearing their ‘War Face’, even when that is a smile! Action is a consistent, even eternal, part of the Aries expression, and it’s Aries’ job to learn how to make that action both acceptable to others and meaningful to the Self. Diplomacy, fairness, partnership, cooperation, good manners all become part of the arsenal that allows Aries to get what she or he wants—and that’s good, creating balance and fairness in the best sense, where others aren’t disregarded and yet Aries gets the needs met and makes an impression, which is so vital to Aries feeling their approach to the world is a successful one.

Watch for the Zodiapedia for each sign on the Ascendant, one at a time over the coming days.

What Is Intuition?

07 Wednesday Mar 2018

Posted by in Recognizing Intuition, Something For You

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Another re-print from ECLIPSE.

Intuition is something we all have and that we all use, but it’s not necessarily something we are conscious of, or recognize when it’s in play.  Intuition is easily mislabeled; fear, ego, want, or the mind can jump in and convince us that the urge is one of pure information, and intuitive insight, rather than the biased wish, thought, or frightened assumption it really is. How do we recognize real intuition when it arrives? Here are some points that help sort the intuitive inspiration from everything else:

Intuition is instantaneous  We don’t gradually come to an intuitive insight, nor do we cogitate our way there; it’s like a little ‘ping’ inside us that is not centralized in the mentality but fills the awareness.

Synchronicity signals  These needn’t be related directly to the intuitive insight; instead, synchronicities act as a signal that we are traveling along the Path with our senses ‘wide open’, and thus that we are open to those connections, leaps of logic, and ‘right assumptions’ we must make spurred by the intuitive insight.

Not willed, but allowed  Intuition doesn’t appear on command–we can’t will ourselves to have an intuitive insight, and we can’t plan ahead for one. We can allow them to happen–but that involves paying attention every time they do–and too often we will judge them, then push them aside with one rationale or another (“But I’m already committed to ‘x’, I can’t change now!” “Everyone will laugh at me if I bring this up” “That contradicts the way things seem to be!”) We must honor and follow the intuitive prompts we are offered–don’t, and the well goes dry–or at least narrows to a trickle.

Intuition comes whole By that I mean it arrives in the awareness all of a piece, not straggling in bit by bit. However, this is no guarantee that an intuition will hand you what you consider a complete answer or detailed Path. It’s not uncommon to be given a ‘next step’ with no idea of where it will lead, or proof that it’s ‘right’–that’s where our own trust in the Universe comes in, with trust in the Cosmos tantamount to trust in our intuition.

Intuition refrains from bias  Even though an intuition can be highly definitive, pointing very strongly to one point of action or attitude, it does not carry heavy condemnation of other potentials. If we find ourselves wallowing in how bad the varied possibilities except for the one we’ve chosen, then we are likely involved in some sort of ego-persuasive reasoning, not intuition. Intuition gives a ‘clean’ perception that does not waste energy denigrating other options. Period.

Intuition does not spur fantasy  In fact, intuition removes a great deal of the impetus to extrapolate–after we receive and act on a true intuition, we are likely to be in a continued state of openness, one that accepts all possibilities and waits for some indication of what’s to come, rather than pushing forward into a state of ‘I want’.

Intuition rarely presents as words/ a thought  Those who have strong influences from Venus, Neptune, Cancer, or Pisces in the natal chart will know what I’m talking about, while those with a lot of Air or Earth may not be so quick to understand: typically something that presents in words/ a thought is an idea, not an intuition. Remember how I said it comes into the awareness whole and immediate? We may then translate that into words and thought–but if it starts that way, it’s more likely the mind, putting in its two cents–that’s not bad, it’s just not intuition “

 

And a Little More on Ceres

06 Tuesday Mar 2018

Posted by in Asteroids, astrology, Ceres, current events in the sky, Finger of God, Gemini

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Also known as Ceres: ‘Demeter Mourning for Persephone’ 1906 By Evelyn de Morgan {{PD}}

I was wondering if the spate of attention I’m giving Ceres (or Ceres is drawing me toward!) warranted a little investigation. The current picture is this: Ceres is in apparent retro motion in Leo, in close quincunx to Juno in Pisces–and Juno is sextile Saturn in Capricorn, within range of a quincunx to Ceres, so making Ceres apex to a Finger of God. Why does it seem Ceres is so often involved in a Finger? Maybe that’s about Ceres as a natural expression of the flow of energy, with the influences exerted by Nature and our own expressions of Ceres (Nature, agriculture, the power of authority, negotiation, food sensitivities and allergic reaction, to name just a few) ways of dealing with and responding to the extant energy stream (and so to power, and to its consequences) in the world.

This particular Finger implies that empowerment through dreams, visions, creativity, or the loss of this through deception or misunderstanding couples with the reality picture to result in a personal (Leo) experience of the extents of our authority, our body’s ability to process food and/ or the environment, of our role in nurturing or guiding another (a maternal role), and/ or in a need to negotiate in order to see our dream or project realized, or our authority (perhaps even our autonomy) returned. Ceres is also widely sesquiquadrate Vesta, pinpointing the home environment and something to be learned there (Sagittarius placement) that can help further or restore our empowerment options.

And here’s a re-post from the blog: What You’re Asking: Ceres and the Death of Shelley, Synchronicities, and Rejecting a Gemini Man

What does Ceres have to do with health?

In mythology Ceres’ Greek predecessor, Demeter, was goddess of Nature, abundance, and the fruits of the Earth, but by the time she reached Rome and her current name and form, she was decidedly more tame: a goddess of agriculture, of Nature that’s been shaped and subjugated to man. That suggests that in modern conception she may deal with the balance of the body and its vulnerabilities to natural elements, of being overwhelmed from without (drowning, buried in a landslide, struck by lightning, for instance, or from things like allergens and starvation) and from within by invasion (of germs, viruses, bacteria, fungi). She doesn’t offer a total picture of health in the natal scenario or by transit, but does speak of certain conditions one may be prone to, or illnesses susceptible to, aside from her other meanings: a sense of personal power and authority, a maternal interest in others (which can easily tip into a controlling one), territoriality, and negotiation.

Romantic poet Percy Shelley (4 August 1792 10 PM Horsham England) was just coming up on a Lunar Return in Pisces the day he drowned in a boating accident (8 July 1822 Lerici Italy). He has Ceres natally conjoined the Sun, Venus, Pallas, and Uranus in Leo in the Whole Sign 4th (and though Juno’s close enough to the Sun, it’s too wide for Ceres, in my opinion); Ceres is also opposed Pluto and quincunx the natal Moon and Sedna in Pisces. Already we can see that Ceres was a vital part of the life, and so of the death as well. In the context of the drowning event, the natal scenario suggests sudden accidents (Uranus) based on unwise decisions (Pallas–staying on the water despite the storm) activated the Self-destruction he had always been conscious of, and perhaps at times had to fight (Sun opp Pluto), with Ceres’ involvement implicating the elements, the weather, even potentially activating an emotional attachment to the water, and a need to adjust (the quincunx) to prevent getting lost in it! (the Pisces Moon)

The Cremation of Percy Bysshe Shelley, by Louis Édouard Fournier

The Cremation of Percy Bysshe Shelley, by Louis Édouard Fournier

On the day he died, Shelley’s Ceres was contacted exact by degree by the transiting South Node, suggesting a ‘pull back’ to a previous (pre-birth?) state; t Ceres was opposed natal Mercury in the 5th=the elements literally in opposition to the lung function; t Merc was conjoined n Chiron in Cancer in the 3rd of lungs, breathe=water water everywhere, water that injures; t Mars was conjoined the n NN, spurring actions and choices that take one into the future; and t Earth sextiled the n Moon-Sedna, forming the base of a Finger of God with apex n Ceres-Pallas=here’s a recipe for the environment ganging up with instincts and emotions to prompt that natal judgment of Nature. Shelley may have believed he was very practical (Pallas) in his relationship to the elements and the natural world (Ceres), feeling that instinct (Sedna) and emotion (the Moon) would inform his choices. There’s a sense that he didn’t fear them, that instead the Pisces Sedna-Moon may have seen the obliteration threat of the natal Pluto opposition as a kind of Oneness with Nature–absorption rather than obliteration. Too, the transiting Sun had just run over his natal Black Moon Lilith=he may have been more than a little in the mood to explore the darkness.

To A Star

Sweet star, which gleaming o’er the darksome scene
Through fleecy clouds of silvery radiance fliest,
Spanglet of light on evening’s shadowy veil,
Which shrouds the day-beam from the waveless lake,
Lighting the hour of sacred love; more sweet
Than the expiring morn-star’s paly fires:–
Sweet star! When wearied Nature sinks to sleep,
And all is hushed,–all, save the voice of Love,
Whose broken murmurings swell the balmy blast
Of soft Favonius, which at intervals
Sighs in the ear of stillness, art thou aught but
Lulling the slaves of interest to repose
With that mild, pitying gaze? Oh, I would look
In thy dear beam till every bond of sense
Became enamoured–  

That was definitely written by a guy with Sun-Venus-Ceres-Pallas-Uranus conjoined, all opposed by Pluto!

Synchronicities

Synchronicities have been everywhere lately–have you noticed that for you, too? Those little mentions or phrases or events or people that grab your attention simply by the unlikely way they’re brought into one’s compass repeatedly within a short period. To my mind that signals we’re in a kind of flow, that attunement to the optimum vibrational level for you is very close to perfect–and that implies intuition is sharp and accessible, that information is yours to pluck right out of the air, that you can ‘know’ without anyone telling you. Though our tendency is to breeze through these interludes, to remark ‘Isn’t that strange?’ when we hear the same song or its lyrics or mention of the singer in every store and elevator and TV show and conversation we’re exposed to the entire weekend, and at the same time to be very focused consciously on the here-and-now, what we really need to do is pause; this is a point when we are cruising along with a lot of our perceptual abilities working below the surface, and we can see the world very clearly, if we are willing to. We can get our questions answered, if we’ll only stop looking out, and take a moment to look within.

Carl Schweninger the Younger 'Not Willing' 19th century {{PD}}

Carl Schweninger the Younger ‘Not Willing’ 19th century {{PD}}

rejecting a Gemini man

Are you thinking there’s some magic word (he’s a Gemini, after all) that will make him take it well, not make a fuss, even see it as a gift? There’s not, and it’s likely that if he senses you are trying to out think him (by manipulating or being one step ahead, the latter of which you automatically are if you know something–that you intend to reject him–that he doesn’t) he’ll be very resentful, indeed. Geminis are highly focused on thinking, processing info, communicating, networking–so he may already be aware, whether it’s through the grapevine or through reading your body language and tone in previous encounters, that you aren’t interested. That puts you in a precarious position: if he does know and he’s still coming at you, he’s forcing you to say it outright, and if he doesn’t know, he’s going to feel especially upset that he didn’t parse it out ahead of time (it’s a Gemini thing–they always think they should’ve known!) All you can do, really, is send a clear, consistent, and polite message through every pore of your Being and, obviously, word spoken: no thank you. Problems will only arise if you’ve been ambivalent in your feelings or in your behavior, wrongly believing that will ‘let him down easy’ (and if so I bet you’re horoscope is chock full o’ Water signs). Come clean without engaging in any way that sends the wrong (that is, an enmeshed behavioral or contradictory) message, and it should go fine–the last thing you want to do, and he wants to feel you’ve done, is mislead him.

I hope you’re having a great week!

Viewing the Ascendant in the Whole Sign Chart

02 Friday Mar 2018

Posted by in 1st House, Aries Point, astrology, Cardinal Activity, House Systems, The Ascendant

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The figure in the lower left corner is a great symbolic representation of the Ascendant point of the chart. By an unknown artist. First appeared in Camille Flammarion’s ‘L’atmosphère: météorologie populaire’ 1888 {{PD}}

This is a re-print from an issue of ECLIPSE, with some new material added.

Using the Placidus House system over many years, I came to truly love the Ascendant of a chart; for the individual it’s a declaration, ‘Here I am, and this is who I am!’ literally representing the moment the person arrived in the world, and describing the attitude, the ‘face’ with which they meet everything they encounter. For an event it describes the moment of inception, the event’s first thrust into reality, and for both an individual and an occurrence, the Ascendant describes the character of what’s presented to the observer. This point in the chart both tells us of the initiating nature of the individual or event, and tells us what was on the horizon at the time and place of this ‘birth’. The integration of the point itself into the other points and bodies of the natal chart (by aspect) tells us the story of this entry point, and the character of the first House tells us what outlook supports this personality.

With the Whole Sign system, we see the Ascendant relocated, in a sense, to a point within the 1st; it no longer demarcates the chart in a definitive way, acting as ‘the place where everything begins’, but instead becomes a part of the 1st House itself, with the implication being that the environment of the 1st House determines Ascendant expression. By that I mean, the Ascendant is essentially a reaction to the environment into which one is born; as such, it describes survival skills the entity developed to cope with the early (immediate) environment. It’s a statement of what the individual believes they must do or produce in order to survive—and so can be highly revealing of core beliefs and assumptions about the world, as well as indicative of the individual’s likely natural, initial, instinctive response to pressure/ stress. This is in contrast to the approach in the Placidus system, where we may see the Ascendant nature as a fait accompli at birth, due to its prominence on the horizon of the flat chart. With Whole Signs, we allow for the shaping of reactions and personality, unlike with Placidus, which symbolically fixes the personality to the horizon, to birth, to the moment of entrance, and so imbues the Ascendant with an aura more fatalistic than expressive.

The Ascendant could also be viewed as the individual’s own personal Aries Point, if we define the Aries Point as the place at which the Sun enters 0 degrees of a Cardinal sign, which corresponds with the start of a new season. The moment of birth could be seen to represent the start of a personal new season for the individual. A new life brings a new outlook, and incarnation the translation of the unseen into physical form (that is, the spirit into a human body). We can’t discount what that individual may be bringing with them, consciousness that exists beyond the timeline that begins with the moment of birth, which argues for the Whole Sign system, with the symbolism of the Ascendant placed within the 1st rather than acting as the cusp of it, so that some of that 1st House ‘essence’ is placed above the horizon, symbolizing that non-material state of the spirit prior to translation into human form.

The flexibility offered by the Whole Sign system in relation to the Ascendant, represented by the way the ASC is found somewhere within the 1st House, means that we get a more holistic view of the personality; it presents not as an assertion of personality, a statement of ‘I Am’, as much as an ever evolving viewpoint that rises naturally from interaction with the environment. This means that we are inclined in interpretation to see the personality quirks and difficulties that arise from it not so much as irrefutable facts, but as responses—and seeing things that way offers us the opportunity of modification and change in the moment and in any direction, rather than the linear Placidus model that suggests only a single line of possible development, with much less suggestion of dimensionality.

If you’re still unclear about what I mean, draw on a piece of paper just your 1st House, once with the Ascendant on the cusp (the Placidus model) and then again with the Ascendant sign from 00 to 30 as the 1st House, with the Ascendant placed inside (the Whole Sign model), and see if this doesn’t convey two truly differing impressions of the Ascendant and its possible readings. Both are useful ways of looking at the chart, and both tell a story about who we are.

A Little Change

02 Friday Mar 2018

Posted by in Current Events

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By Unknown – vQEPnXLblnBFYQ at Google Cultural Institute, zoom level maximum, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=29675767

Change is a good thing, right? Unfortunately there are only so many hours in a day, so for a while I’m going to be skipping daily forecast posts, in favor of short articles, commentary, and re-posts of greatest hits or interesting topics. I’ve been neglecting broader subjects out of the need to do that everyday thing, so would like to shake things up just a bit. I hope you’ll continue to drop by and keep in touch; I’ll be popping back later today with a little something.

Just a Little AstroEssence 28 February 2018 Into the Full Moon

27 Tuesday Feb 2018

Posted by in astrology, current events in the sky, forecast, Horoscope

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Japan, 1878, 12th month, Series: Allusions to the Seven Planets By Tsukioka Yoshitoshi {{PD}}

On the 28th it’s all about communications, thinking and reasoning, ideas, and sudden changeability, the quicksilver reactions of a mind that shifts before we can consciously address what’s happening. And what are we thinking about, talking about, and maybe changing our minds over? The power situation, and our dissatisfaction with it (Mercury sesq Ceres), angry episodes, our own anger or that of others (Mercury sq Mars), clever ways to change the situation (Mercury sxt Pluto), what we truly care about, and how that’s not being honored (Mercury sq Vesta), and the difficulties we have reaching for what we desire or getting what we aim for (Mercury qnx Zeus). This is our lead-in to the Lunar event for Wednesday.

On Thursday we see a pre-Full Moon atmosphere centered on one of two areas for each of us: one group will be appreciative, seeing assets or rewards expand, the mentality steeped in Love, actively living some version of the ideal Self (Mercury parallel Venus, Venus trine Jupiter, Sun parallel Neptune); the other sees a need to address the power situation or the distribution of authority actively, maybe angrily (Sun parallel Juno, Mars sesq Ceres). And then, the Full Moon–

Julie Demboski's ASTROLOGY

Addressing the Individual Experience Within the Universal Truth

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