New Mourning Moon Eclipse: The Soul is Not the Sum of Its Parts

Before I Begin...

There is something I need to address in the dark of the blood moon before moving on to the next phase.  There are just some obvious things we all need to release before stepping forward into new territory.

Many have been confronted with illness of some kind during the waning half of the blood moon this October.  Maybe its your illness, or that of loved ones, but one thing is certain…we either understand and accept the changes we are needing to make in our lives in order to heal, or we risk the spread of such things to others.  Negativity, avoidance, and ignorance are debilitating diseases that spread so easily, we often aren’t even conscious of the exchange. 

Let me be clear, by ‘negativity’ I mean that which starts out as a simple (though annoyingly common) recipe of disappointment, stress, and frustration (which is normal when faced with new obstacles to overcome, and is meant to give you the energy to face and fix such things), eventually can become skewed out of proportion, stirred up with stale emotions, swallowed down as the wrong medicine, and then spewed out at others in the form of complaining, misplaced anger, unfounded fears, etc.  That’s the negativity to avoid.  I’m not saying everything is always sunshine and roses (that would fall under the other two categories of avoidance and ignorance)…I’m saying try not to make it worse for yourself and others.

Now, let me be clear about ‘avoidance’.  There are obvious things (and people) to avoid for your own safety and sanity, and the safety and sanity of others.  However, if something keeps recurring…a certain feeling, a thought, a dream, a physical pain, a bit of advice from multiple people…it is often a problem that is demanding to be solved.  Avoiding the necessity of taking an active part in the solution leads to the kind of escapism that can make a problem much worse.  No matter where you run or where you hide, those things you’re avoiding will tag along until they are fully addressed. 

And let me be clear about ‘ignorance’.  I don’t mean stupidity…no, we all have some of that (even if we’re highly educated)…that’s normal.  Nobody knows everything.  No, I mean what ignorance is really all about…ignoring the facts.  It’s like avoidance, but instead of running and hiding...there is a stubborn refusal to acknowledge whatever it is staring you right in the face.  In time, ignorance begets ignorance.  And eventually, you might start believing your own lies out of loyalty to the family of lies you’ve created. 

Let me also be clear that I am not immune to these failings myself.  After all, you may think I write these blog posts just to help others (and that is partially true, because I aim to move in unison with the collective and not just assimilate)…but I am also the only one who’s been reading along since the beginning, chronicaling these changes as they come.  I write to myself just as much as I write to you.  These warnings are not coming from the top of some high horse.  These are reminders I’m digging up from my own stumbling grounds.  If they seem to hit close to home, as if I’m talking directly to you…it is one part coincidence, two parts understanding of human nature through the relations of above and below, within and without.

If you’ve been falling into one or more of these traps lately, the end of this moon phase is the best time to pull yourself out of it and make healthier choices.  That means now. The partial solar eclipse begins in the last 10 minutes of the Blood Moon phase, continuing through the beginning of the Mourning Moon phase.  Every eclipse brings about things that will have a lasting effect through 6 months until the next one…so try to make whatever it is a positive thing. The new moon phase will start tomorrow afternoon, and you don’t want to be carrying a lot of unnecessary baggage throughout the Mourning Moon, which can (for some) be a heavy enough time as it is.

And now that we’ve got this end of the Blood Moon addressed, let’s move on to the fast approaching Mourning Moon and the new chapter of possibilities coming.

New Mourning Moon Eclipse:  The Soul is Not the Sum of Its Parts

10-23-14

Solar Eclipse @ 4:45pm CDT

New Moon @ 4:55pm CDT

"It has been said: The whole is more than the sum of its parts. It is more correct to say that the whole is something else than the sum of its parts, because summing up is a meaningless procedure, whereas the whole-part relationship is meaningful." -Kurt Koffka

This new moon phase begins with a 7^th House Sun and Moon conjunct in the 1^st degree of Scorpio.  But there is more to this conjunction this time because Venus is also conjunct the luminaries in the same degree.  But there is even more still, because Pallas (the asteroid of feminine wisdom) is part of this conjunction as well in the 2^nd degree of Scorpio.  The combination of more than two celestial bodies in close conjunction is called a stellium, where the energies of each are shared and strengthened…and focused like a laser beam in one area.  In the collective chart, these energies are focused in the 7^th house (the house of relationships, partnerships, marriage, and the other).  So, no matter where this stellium is transiting in your own natal chart, the overall feel of what it is highlighted in all of our lives now are our relationships…particularly primary partnerships. 

However, it is also beneficial to know where this New Moon stellium is transiting in your personal chart.  You can always look up your own chart wheel for free on sites like astrolabe or astrodienst.  Or, if you’ve given me your birth info at some point to look up your chart before, chances are it is stored in my software and I can look it up for you as well.  For those of you who don’t know what house placement this New Moon has in your birth chart, you just need to know your birthdate/ time of birth/ location of birth.  The last two parts are important for finding out house placements, which shows an astrologer what area of your life is being triggered during any transit.  For example, the beginning of Scorpio is in the 6^th House of my natal chart.  The 6^th House is the house of health, healing, service, daily work, and routines.  It is the house of getting your scheduling straight, your health back on track, and your daily activities focused on meaningful goals.  In my own natal chart, this is a very full house already.  Now it’s being triggered by this New Moon stellium providing an intense ray of focus to areas of my life that overlap between my own health and routines as well as those of my husband and daughter (as well as the baby growing bigger every day in my womb).  This has been going on for over a month now…but this transit suggests the focus is to become more of a pin-point than a scattering about of all of these energies (which it has certainly been for a month or so). 

If you need to know what area is being triggered in your life to make these necessary changes and intentions of focused energy, look it up or let me know (or both, if you look it up and still don’t know).  Now, on to the specific degrees and the symbols that describe the energy of this stellium…

Venus, Moon, and Sun in Scorpio 1:  “A crowded sight-seeing bus on a city street”

Venus brings an appropriate amount of friendliness and sociability to this New Moon eclipse already, but this particular degree leans toward expanding one’s social horizons…so even though we are met with some shadows on this journey (brought on by the partial solar eclipse), the point of all of it is to experience the results of collective achievements and new ways of life, communing in new awareness of the whole rather than only seeing it in scattered parts.   

As active observers banding together to initiate and appreciate collective values, we are not only expanding our social sphere, but also our collective consciousness as well.  A widening of experience is underway, through the narrowing focus of energy this stellium inclines.  When we are less distracted and scattered, we are better able to see the bigger picture.  Odd as it may seem to some, there are times when it does take a village to accomplish this goal.

Pallas in Scorpio 2:  “A broken bottle of spilled perfume releases its fragrance”

Pallas Athene rules creative intelligence, strategy, patterns, feminine independence, the prodigal child, support for the corporate and political state, and the father-daughter relationship.  Her contribution to this New Moon Stellium is an important one, adding even more depth to an already deep concentration of Scorpio energy.

This is a symbol of the seemingly accidental nature of opportunities that incline us to break away from our past, the remembrance of which is still poignant and cherished.  Something to which we have grown accustomed must be sacrificed in order to gain a new realization.  Even as we move into a new and wider sphere of experience, old feelings will likely be strongly surfacing.  There is a certain air of ‘farewell’ to this degree of Scorpio, as memories pull us in the usual direction one last time (though perhaps more intensely than before) so that they can be released and become part of the whole again, rather than be held captive by our own desires. 

This is not to say that what is gone will be forgotten.  There is a lasting impression…but the need for it to always be there in the same way will dissipate.  This may be a very nostalgic time for some, particularly to those with natal transits happening.  There may be some difficulty dealing with the past as we enter into a new realm of feelings, but part of Scorpio’s lesson is that real control of one’s life cannot be attained without surrendering control and allowing what must happen to happen.  Scorpio is a highly transformative, deeply healing energy.  Starting this Mourning Moon off with some focused healing is a good thing (even if it makes you really FEEL).

Astraea in Aries 2:  “An entertaining comedian reveals human nature”

One more piece of this puzzle from the opposite side of the zodiac wheel may help to round out the experience of this New Moon/Solar Eclipse Stellium.  This 7^th House Scorpio Stellium mentioned above is quincunx Astraea Retrograde in the 1^st House (House of Self).  What is a quincunx and who is Astraea?  Good questions.  They are the energetic links to why the above-mentioned release might feel a little painful or resistant.  A quincunx (also called an inconjunct) is an aspect of 150˚ between celestial bodies.  The energy relationship between these bodies then feels a little off balance and slightly dissonant.  This is an aspect that encourages growth through challenging feelings.  Astraea is the asteroid of the Star Maiden of Justice.  She rules what needs to be brought to equilibrium, what is difficult to let go, truth, judgment, balance, karma, fixations, desire for closure, and attitude toward endings.

And how will this energy play out?  Well, it will be most significantly played out by the serious and nostalgic mental-emotional patterns of Pallas being jostled out of her comfort zone a bit by Astraea’s energy coming out in a way that means to break up the seriousness by poking a little fun and making people laugh.  If someone is revealing your stubborn refusals to heal by making fun…try not to take it too personally (hard as that can be when we get in a serious mood).  Laugh with them.  Laugh at them.  Laugh at yourself.  Understand that this is a valuable insight, however jarring it may feel at first to be called out.  If no one else is doing this, do it for yourself.  Do it for others (though use appropriate tact).  Remember not to get too caught up in any kind of sadness, longing, or feelings of loneliness or hopelessness without pulling yourself up for a breath (and a laugh) for a bit. 

Invite the challenge to look at yourself and others objectively.  This is a large part of the new consciousness being built in ourselves and others…the ability to see ourselves as if reflected in a mirror, and allow ourselves to laugh at the inadequacy of the form we see.  Thus, objective consciousness can triumph over subjective feeling or moods…and involvement in oneself makes way for interaction with others.

In closing, I would like to point out that there is a cosmic healing underway…a collective soul retrieval that means to bring us one step closer to wholeness.  It will not be without its challenges.  Plenty of energy is there to resist.  I urge you to be part of the energy that accepts the transformative healing that can occur at this time.  After all, what happens within an eclipse window has implications for 6 months, at least.  Let’s be part of the better side of change.

Love and Gratitude,

Felina Lune Kavi

Full Blood Moon Eclipse: Recovery in the Realm Less Traveled

Full Blood Moon Eclipse:  Recovery in the Realm Less Traveled

10-8-14

Full Moon @ 5:50am CDT

Lunar Eclipse @5:55am CDT

“I shall be telling this with a sigh somewhere ages and ages hence:  Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—I took the one less traveled by, and that has made all the difference.”  -Robert Frost

 Moon in 16^th degree of Aries:  Nature spirits dancing in the setting sunlight

The Sunset is often a symbol of personal fulfillment.  In such times, we may be able to establish a life-giving contact with natural forces.  Such forces are active any time growth processes take place, but our individualized minds are usually too focused on working for consciously set goals to be able to realize the presence of invisible forces in operation. 

Still, these forces of nature act as guiding, balancing, and harmonizing factors in all life.  It is when our own individualized energy becomes less dominant (symbolically, at sunset), or the body is weakened by illness, fasting, sensory deprivation…or even set aside in meditation, altered states of consciousness, or sleep…that it becomes easier to perceive these ‘nature spirits’ and to give them forms that symbolize the character of their activity. 

The Sunset also indicates the end of a long day’s labors.  In this time, these forces of nature want to take over…while we rest, relax, and step back from all emotionally-charged concerns.  These nature spirits, then, examine just what is needed and dance in order to shift and balance our vibrational realities into harmony, healing, and healthy function. 

This Full Moon Eclipse is an invitation to open our minds to the possibility of approaching life in a holistic and nonrational, intuitive manner.  This backs up what I previously wrote about this Mercury Retrograde being a time when logic is less leaned upon…while intuition takes us on a journey of necessary discovery and, in many cases, rediscovery. 

 Sun in 16^th degree of Libra:  A boat landing washed away after a storm

Boats, themselves, are links between distant places.  They even enable humans to find food from the sea (a symbol of grasping new realizations which previously only existed in the unconscious realm).  A boat landing in need of reconstruction, then, symbolizes the need to keep in operation steady links between the vast Unconscious and the ego-consciousness.   

This temporary destruction by psychic storms sometimes will happen when venturing too far away from the consciously defined and socially structured ways of life…but Mercury Retrograde has much valuable information to retrieve in this alternate route.  It has moments of extreme confusion, but by next month…the journey will make much more sense.

Just as with the previous symbol, his indicates a time of rest dictated by forces beyond human control.  After all, when the boat landing is washed away…nothing leaves the harbor and nothing comes in.  Let the body and the rational mind rest…and see what you come across while floating in subconscious waters.

Aspects of Action and Agitation:  The Desire for Stability in the Stormy Seas of Change

“Profound desire, true desire is the desire to be close to someone.” –Paulo Coelho

Setting the stage for the next 6 months, really…the many aspects supporting this Full Moon Eclipse highlight the light and shadow of who we are and what we want, especially as it relates to how we identify ourselves and how we relate to others.  We aren’t necessarily in new territory with this…as planetary alignments have been stressing the Cardinal signs, with little relief, for years.  In that time, we’ve been trying to navigate through a collective identity crisis and finding new, inventive ways to take action and trying to break free of the limitations of old, crumbling structures to make way for the new.

Amidst all of these weighty world undertakings, we have similar things happening to us on the individual level.  Yet, often, in these individual struggles…we are trying to break free of false structures of our own design.  This month, though, is heavily focused on our relationships (all relationships, but especially the ones most important to us).  Habits have formed over time and new ways of relating must replace complacency in order to make progress with the many things that are bombarding us in all directions for attention in our lives right now.  It’s become very apparent that we can’t do it all alone.  We need help to navigate this twisted sea.  But we need right relations in order to keep us all afloat. 

Kite Aspect Pattern:  Let the Sunshine In

“When the Moon is in the 7^th House and Jupiter aligns with Mars, then peace will guide the planet and love will steer the stars.”  -The Fifth Dimension

Okay, not exactly…but the alignments are correct.  The Moon (conjunct Uranus) was in the 7^th House during the Full Moon Eclipse, and in a Grand Fire Trine with Jupiter and Mars in the 11^th and 3^rd Houses.  And with this, the Sun’s opposition to the Moon at that time created a harmonious aspect pattern called a Kite—which is a good guiding energy to follow if you could successfully manuever around the psychic storms of the rest of the energetic atmosphere this week.  The key was, and still is, to ‘let the sunshine in’…hippie-dippie as that may sound during a shadowy week of eclipse energy.

Out of the tumult of feeling stranded in the deep without a lifeline, hoping for some kind of miracle from the universe to correct our course while we sleep off the overwhelming exhaustion of our conscious awareness…a glimmer of light from the unconscious realm beckons us in our dream state to seek within instead of out.

This is not a fleeting aspect pattern.  In fact, this lesson is still unfolding throughout this weekend and into the middle of next week (switching from the opposition of the luminaries to being carried along by the lunar nodes soon after).  The Sun, though, is making direct contacts with the rest of the angles of this Grand Fire Trine for the next 5 days…each time furthering the lessons we began to glimpse at the time of the Full Moon.  For most of us, the message was unclear at that time…we were still in the thick of it all.  But as we are reconnecting the bridge between the unconscious and conscious realms this weekend, we may start to reconnect other things we’ve brought back with us from fathoms below.

The first parts of the lesson had to do with Rest and Relaxation…which, though we all want permission for such things (from ourselves and others), we are somehow more inclined to react in the mode of Repair and Respond because we are focusing outside of ourselves on things that seem to need our attention.  Guilt may set in if we allow ourselves an actual break from even thinking of every little detail in that big  tangled ball of ‘to do’.  What we learned quickly (either the easy way or the hard way) during this week of the Full Moon influence, is that avoiding our own needs is what keeps us from being fully able to address the needs outside of ourselves. 

Now into the weekend, the lessons shift to tests.  We are meant to release some negative behavior patterns and realign with group consciousness.  Those energies glimpsed in the unconscious realm during the Full Moon Eclipse will come to light by the end of this weekend…perhaps we can even channel them into ways to serve and inspire others.  After these steps of the process are finished, the beginning of next week has potential to start off with feelings of reinvigoration and renewal, as long as you don’t meet the whole process with resistance to change.

Love and Gratitude,

Felina Lune Kavi