The Dragon's Flight into the Cancer/Capricorn Axis

Illustration by Joy Ang from Tui Sutherland's 'Wings of Fire, Book 6: Moon Rising'

The Dragon’s Flight into the Cancer/Capricorn Axis

True Nodes in Cancer/Capricorn- 11-6-18

Mean Nodes in Cancer/Capricorn- 11-15-18

Tuesday, as voters were at the polls in the US, the Moon’s nodes shifted from our last lessons of the Leo/Aquarius plane to the lessons of Cancer/Capricorn. The Lunar nodes, in scientific terms, are the points where the orbit of the Moon crosses the ecliptic. The astrological implications of the lunar nodes are about karmic lessons, the relationship between the outmoded past and the creative future, and the necessary balance between what we’ve already learned and no longer need to focus on (The Dragon's Tail: South Node in Capricorn) and what we must learn now, however uncomfortable and uncharted the territory, for the growth of our souls (The Dragon's Head: North Node in Cancer).

Each of us has our own natal nodes and lessons, which are a significant part of the answer to the age-old questions, ‘Why am I here?’ and ‘What is my soul’s purpose?’ But the positions the Nodes are in at the present moment affect the collective soul’s growth of our entire global community…so while we are each having our own soul’s intentions directing us one way, those lessons are also being influenced on a global scale by the current position of the Nodes. Those who were born with North Node in Cancer will be having our Nodal Return during this transit (myself included), which happens approximately every 18-19 years. At these initiations, the soul work that arises brings us back to re-alignment with our soul’s path and offers us significant growth in our journey.

Previously, the Leo/Aquarius nodes formed an aspect pattern of four squares (called a Grand Cross) with Scorpio Venus Rx and Taurus Uranus Rx all in fixed signs. Venus Rx was the first to regress to a cardinal sign (Libra) at the beginning of the month, and now Uranus Rx (shifting back to Aries on the 6^th as well) and the Lunar Nodes are all back in cardinal signs. This is a significant shift that is in no way subtle: a Fixed Grand Cross transforming into a Cardinal Grand Cross. At the end of this month, as Venus moves direct and returns to the cross, she will strengthen the effects of this Cardinal Grand Cross before returning to Scorpio. This particular shift, where four corners activate the four elements as they change modes, brings our world from a holding pattern to an activation. It is interesting that the U.S. Midterm elections were held as the Nodes and Uranus Rx shifted...because that momentum was no doubt needed to shift the political sphere into a phase which will provide a wider range of perspective and more checks on the careless use of power.

And that’s one way that this nodal shift into the Cancer/Capricorn axis will arise. Care and support for people (with a strong empathy toward families and tribes in particular) is what we are collectively learning to initiate (Dragon’s Head in Cancer) while unchecked power and a past tendency to focus on being best and greatest, no matter who gets stepped on along the way, is what we’re on the path to eliminate now (Dragon’s Tail in Capricorn). North Node in Cancer puts the focus back on safety and security in a way that is very protective of familial bonds, tribal unity, and the strengthening of our roots. At the same time, South Node in Capricorn will show antiquated structures of power making some last grasps as they crumble to make way for new births from the womb of Cancer waters. Capricorn is ruled by Saturn and Cancer is ruled by Moon, so many of these last grasps will continue to center around a determination to control and restrict: female bodies, groups of people that do not follow traditional convention, and (in general) the feeling and intuitive nature of the human race. But what the U.S. political discussion may have been too narrowly focused on as a ‘Blue Wave’ set to hit in a war between political parties was actually much larger than that...that wave was really the waters of Cancer womb wisdom rising up to meet these failing structures of patriarchy with a formidable force of feminine principle. Global concern for the Mother (Earth) is top priority as we move through the next year and a half and make changes that reflect what we truly care about, standing up against any more destructive efforts. There is still much resistance to break through. As Ayanna Pressley, the first black congresswoman from Massachusetts, said ‘You know what breaks through concrete? Seismic shifts.’

While the South Node in Capricorn often brings up many of the lower expressions of this sign so that we can see what needs to be released, it is important to note that in doing so we are more able to honor the higher vibrational essence of Capricorn...which is the wisdom of solid structure that supports growth. What we have to release are the false structures built up around this energy overtime. This can include being overly ambitious at the expense of others, insensitivity, materialism, unnecessary restrictions placed upon society, rigidly holding on to the past as a means to control, calculated cruelty, and being unresponsive to the needs of others. It is in these lower vibrations of Capricorn where this sign can take on the reputation of being cold and heartless. This is not the essence of Capricorn (which is much more a pillar of strength such as the Council of Grandmothers), but the shadow of the patriarchy does hold tightly to this particular sign and now is the time to begin releasing that last desperate grasp to control what would serve to protect us and, especially, the younger generations being born to us now and in the future.

So the Cancer North Node upholds the kind of instinctual care and protection that is often apparent in the many mothers in charge of their young in our natural world. There is a fierce ‘Mother Bear’ quality to it, to honor one totem among many that teaches this kind of medicine. Connections to our mother figures (or nurturing parental figures in general) are strong during this transit. It is our feminine lineage, after all, that holds the evolutionary integrity of our human race and teaches us the bonds of blood. The power of this Cancer medicine is not just in its armor-like fierceness, but especially in its internal softness. The empathetic nature of this sign provides emotional acceptance and healing. The Capricorn South Node may feel like ‘hard times’ on repeat to some, where we are expected to keep it together and endure through lack and loss. Cancer North Node calls us into a motherly embrace and says ‘It’s okay to cry it out. You are loved.’

And it will take some getting used to, allowing our feeling nature to just feel. The South Node in Capricorn is what we know...it’s the real crutch, the collective addiction we’re facing. No matter how unhealthy it gets to depend on it, whatever it is for you, at least we’ve become familiar enough in that Capricorn shadow that we’ve become experts in navigating through it. The North Node in Cancer, familiar as Cancer energy really is, feels like unfamiliar and uncharted territory in these times. It is what will heal us of our collective addictions to that which depresses and oppresses us...but the vulnerability it requires can look quite scary to us if we’ve been bottling up our feelings for so long just to make it through the hardships of life.

For those of us born with this lunar node axis, the South Node in Capricorn is often the most apparent at first. We are those ‘old soul’ babies that also have that ‘thousand yard stare’ as if we’ve seen some horrors we’ve had to dissociate from but are here now to heal from them. Wise beyond our years from the start, yes, but in need of some compassionate care from those we are born to. And it’s so very difficult to understand what we really need to feel nurtured as we grow, because we were denied that need in our past...and often choose situations where that need isn’t immediately recognized either, or is flat-out denied. We may become unconsciously addicted to deprivation and lack...usually of belonging or love, but it can also manifest as lack in the material realm. Sometimes we will continue to live with lack, or we may overcompensate for it with a materialistic drive to succeed in this life. At some point, our soul learns how to better balance...and usually it is initiated by some fated encounter where, finally, we learn how to accept our emotional side and let love be our abundance.

My personal story, so far anyway, of being born with North Node in Cancer is not how it always plays out...but it is one thread that weaves into the larger theme. I’ll be having my 2^nd Nodal Return next year...so we’ll see what comes of the new lessons I’ll be learning. My ‘fated encounter’ that ushered in the deep soul healing of my Cancer North Node happened in my early 20s when I became pregnant with my first child, Alyrica Rayven. My whole world turned upside down. Prior to this, I had built up a good amount of armor around me to hide my softness within. I had learned, early on, that my softness was a weakness...and thought I had to stuff it all down to ‘grow up’. I didn’t allow myself to be completely vulnerable with anyone for many years as a teenager and young adult...and I adopted the tough love/’suck it up’ stance with anyone who gave a hint of not being in control of their own emotions around me. It wasn’t healthy (because it was denial of my true Self), and it led to other unhealthy behaviors to distract myself from my Self. Because I was ultimately afraid of allowing myself to feel anything, I was adamantly against ever getting married or having a child...I knew I didn’t love myself enough or take care of myself well enough for any of that. I just couldn’t fathom being ‘motherhood material’.

And then, SURPRISE! I’m pregnant. All the unknowns of what that Cancer womb energy had in store for me were terrifying and confusing. But somewhere within that pregnancy something clicked on in me that I never knew I had before. Because of a deep intuitive connection that began to grow with my daughter while she was still in the womb, I allowed myself to fully feel the whole of this experience. And though the newness and the unfamiliarity of the whole thing didn’t really subside until a couple years after Alyrica was born...I allowed myself to learn how deep my caring nature could go. Alyrica was my first experience of what I know now as true unconditional love...and she brought about so much within me that still remains and continues to grow. I realized from her how strong familial bonds can be, and how healing. She brought me to my roots and taught me how to care for them, as they are hers now too. She gave me a greater appreciation for my own parents, as well as for myself. And she broke down all the walls and opened my heart up to love so much that when the right person came into our life to be my partner, I knew it without a doubt...and I married him (and later had a son with him). Motherhood, family, roots, ancestors, and emotional healing has been an integral part of my life ever since.

The Cancer womb medicine I needed was quite literal for me (but also deeply soulful and spiritual). Not everyone with Cancer North Node experiences this soul growth through the initiation of parenthood, of course. But events and experiences do occur in some way to invite us to tap into the strength within our softness...the deep healing power inherent within our empathic and intuitive nature.

And now, as we enter into this Cancer/Capricorn axis again, imagine the kind of transformations that can occur across the world when others allow themselves to feel what they’ve been depriving themselves of feeling...the kind of experiences that form empathetic and familiar bonds with others: root healing, belonging, greater appreciation for their life and the lives of others, love as abundance. And imagine that as the ‘seismic shift’ that breaks through concrete.

When we connect to the Mother, to the wisdom within the womb...we can better appreciate the whole world as our family. When more of us can feel the whole world as our family, we are more inclined to preserve and protect our natural world as our home and roots.

To see in what areas of life this shift affects you personally, look to the houses in your natal chart where Cancer and Capricorn are. The last time the nodes were in this axis was between 2000 and 2001. Try to remember what was going on in your life at that time to get an idea of what is to come now, after maturing since then. Astrology follows patterns, and recognizing those patterns can help you to work with the energies when they come around again.

Here are some ideas on how to make the best of this transit: allow your emotions to wash over you and heal, accept sensitivity as strength, trust your intuition, nurture and tend to those you love, nurture and tend to yourself, do some nesting in your home, connect with Mother Earth, allow Her to transmute what is too heavy for you to carry, express your feelings, support the child within yourself and others, show your vulnerability with supportive people in your life, nurture new bonds with supportive people, surround yourself with people who make you feel safe, pour your love and creativity into more home-cooked meals, let go of your need for control and achievement, trust what you feel, connect with a water source, create a better sense of home, connect with family members, connect with your roots, learn more about your ancestry, refine your empathic skills, and above all...give and receive more hugs! We all need them!

Love and Gratitude,

Felina Lune Kavi

Full Moon in Taurus: Resistance to Change Meets the Unexpected Storm

'The Eddystone Lighthouse in a Storm by a Full Moon' by JMW Turner

Full Moon in Taurus: Resistance to Change Meets the Unexpected Storm

Moon opposite Sun @ 11:45am CDT on 10-24-18

At this Blood Moon (aka Hunter’s Moon), fate plays a largely unexpected and active role...like a Deus ex Machina to resolve our free will resistance to making necessary changes in the human story. A storm has been brewing for some time, especially on the world stage, and something is set to hit us with a shocking moment of clarity. It can act as the lightning bolt in the Tower card of the Tarot, crumbling what was false down to its unstable foundations so that we can build something with more integrity. It may even feel like a volcanic explosion after a long period of building up pressure beneath the surface. If you’re easily scared by such imagery, don’t be. It’s exactly the force for necessary change that we all need...and it doesn’t have to translate so literally.

This Full Moon in Taurus activates an aspect pattern called a Fixed Grand Cross. Moon and Sun are on the Taurus-Scorpio axis, while the lunar nodes are on the Leo-Aquarius axis. These are the four signs with Fixed modality, which are more resistant to change than the other signs (the Cardinal signs initiate change and the Mutable signs are adaptable to change). I like to honor that these signs provide a way to maintain focus. If you’re focused on maintaining something with integrity, the energy of this Full Moon might bring you new and innovative inspirations for improvement. If you’re focused on trying to maintain something that has unstable foundations, you’re likely to have a more difficult time at this Full Moon. This time period is distinctly Uranian...so, especially on the larger scale, instability will be a theme as we await the opportunity to rebuild from the roots.

In the U.S., a crucial transformation is going down in the socio-political sphere as we approach our mid-term elections. Political junkies will likely be sensationalizing the lead up...everyone spinning their wheels on something they can’t possibly predict. People will be fixated on the information streaming in from their televisions, computers, and phones...forgetting that there is a whole natural world around them that is the exact medicine we need now. This is one way Uranus Rx at the beginning of Taurus will manifest on the national scale. Emotions fixed on this will be unstable and likely volatile. But the retrograde here, so closely conjunct the Taurus Moon, wants us to take cues from Mother Nature and peer inwardly for the real eye-opener. There are, no doubt, outer manifestations of the “October Surprise” (as predictions from political analysts to astrologers have referred to it)...but the real awakening is internal. And with Uranus as a key player in the squares of this time, preparing to regress back to Aries on November 6^th and shift the Fixed Cross to a Cardinal Cross, the feeling is electric.

The Earth Element of the Fixed Grand Cross: To Get Grounded or Crumble to the Ground?

Moon in Taurus 2 “An electrical storm”

'Uranus Storm' from Kharmazero

Full Moons are electric anyway (read the link, I’m not speaking metaphorically here), but this one is backed up by the planet of electricity, Uranus. This ‘storm’ (which is also indicated by the Moon’s South Node at the ‘unexpected thunderstorm’ degree) is the Deus ex Machina plot device that enters the story and dramatically changes the outcome. You’ve heard the phrase ‘expect the unexpected’, but this Full Moon energy can neither be prepared for nor expected...so it is really about ‘ACCEPT the unexpected’. Something is likely to come as a shock to our systems, but the acceptance of a new perspective will contribute to our growth. Surprises from Taurus may have to do with self-worth, the physical body, finances, resources, values, attraction, pleasure, or comforts. Taurus is a very sensual sign, so a shock to our senses may feel like sensory overload. Anxiety about things that have to do with earthy Taurus is likely, even if you aren’t especially prone to anxiety. As mentioned previously...things may feel a little unstable for the time being. The best thing you can do is ground and center. Especially while the Grand Crosses are in play...the key is to find your center rather than be pulled to one extreme of the cross or another. Additionally, for some, this can be like a Kundalini Rising experience. When the Taurus-Scorpio axis is strong, especially backed up by Uranus Rx in Taurus and Venus Rx in Scorpio...life force often surges within us in very tantric ways.

The Water Element of the Fixed Grand Cross: To Release the Past or Resist the Future?

Sun in Scorpio 2 “A broken bottle of perfume releasing its fragrance”

Without our own conscious intentions, past memories are permeating the atmosphere like a familiar scent. With Venus Retrograde conjunct the Sun, past relationships may have been coming to the fore in some way. Apollon is between them, doubling up this energy and increasing it...inclining the ‘fragrance’ of the past to spread before it dissipates. This is a healing transformation happening that necessitates the release of the past. By the 26^th, Sun and Venus Rx will meet in their Interior Conjunction, which (especially in Scorpio) can be likened to the imaginal cells within the chrysalis finally overcoming the Caterpillar to make way for the Butterfly. Currently, we are in that phase of fighting the transformation off like its some infection. Resistance is a strong scent in the air, but it will soon fade. Change is inevitable. All that is resurfacing from the past right now is to remind us of how far we’ve come and how necessary it is to continue to transform ourselves from the inside out. If an old relationship or habit that was not good for us resurfaces, it’s not an indicator of giving it a second chance. Consider it more of a reminder that you left it behind because you made a wise choice to do so. Keep the change.

The Fire Element of the Fixed Grand Cross: To Spread Love’s Creativity or Fear’s Destruction?

North Node-Vulcanus in Leo 2 “an epidemic of mumps”

'Hephaestus (Vulcan) at the Forge'
by Guillaume Coustou the Younger

The North Lunar Node is conjunct Vulcanus in this degree, which is where the hot and fiery volcanic eruption part of this theme emanates. But it is good to remember that he was also a smith, so there is as much potential for creation in this combination as there is for destruction. What this symbol means to bring to our attention is the spreading of something that has been building below the surface (and, with the influence of Vulcanus, the spreading of fear of those who are different, fiery emotions, vitriol, and hot-headed behavior as a reaction). On one hand, fear is what is underlying it all…fear that we, too, might succumb to the worst of the potentially harmful effects of others’ unchecked aggressions. Those acting (or reacting) unconsciously to perceived threats are quick to point the finger of blame at any easy target, unwittingly pointing three more fingers back at themselves (if you live in the states, you’ve likely already seen too much of the ‘displaced victimhood’ tactic of our current president). Those who are conscious of these energetic undertones have a better chance of ‘immunity’ to the disease of fear that might seem to run rampant in their environment (or, at least, they will be asymptomatic or only mildly put out by it). This becoming conscious of what’s spreading is the key…and it starts with inner examination. Examining it in the light of consciousness allows us to create our ‘antibodies’ of resistance. This resistance to fear is none other than love...one of the most difficult things to build up and maintain during an epidemic of panic. However, it is crucial to keep your heart resonating the spread of love especially when it is most difficult. Love is the cure, trite as it may sound.

Since my own medicine has much to do with finding the gifts within our wounds, this symbol draws me into the nature of viruses to recognize their strengths…so that we may recognize the mirror they hold to our own strengths. Little is scientifically known about the evolution of viruses, but we can recognize a co-evolutionary relationship between viruses and their living hosts. We can easily understand that viral microbes cannot multiply on their own, but need to inject their genetic material into living cells in order to replicate and mutate. But it is less recognized in the general population that viruses both build our immune systems and contribute to our own evolutionary change. What can we learn from them besides fear?

During epidemics, viruses evolve. So must we.

The epidemic is fear (I know, many of us are so fed up with the “idiocracy” that it would seem the epidemic is stupidity…but whoever truly benefited from riding the high horse? It goes deeper than ignorance…though it does mutate through many forms. Fear seeks to evolve through replication and mutation throughout multiple hosts. Try watching/reading mainstream news (or any current events) without feeling affected by this or that scary thing mentioned. It’s hard to do…no matter how desensitized you’ve become. Something will likely evoke anger in you, at least. For many who try not to appear emotional, anger disguises itself as acceptable…it is too forceful to be ‘delicate’, so it can look like strength (and it can be, as long as it’s used properly). I tend to see all well-directed emotions as strengths.

So the fear epidemic spreads in rapid fire mutations through all these other emotions, and seems to shed longest through anger because it is often well-disguised there to many. But anger is not the answer, it is simply the key in the ignition of positive action at this time. If you feel angry about something, there’s a clue there in how to proceed beyond that anger to affect change (it could be exercising your right to vote, or...on the personal level...it could be that you find your frustration with others is really a frustration with something about yourself that needs to change). Anger forces us to make necessary changes. Like the viral infection changes and adapts, so should we with regards to our various strains of fear. Examine your own fear, and you can better fight off the inflammatory nature of the epidemic it feeds.

The Air Element of the Fixed Grand Cross: To Rise Above the Patriarchy or Allow the Patriarchy to Inform You?

Pandora-South Node-Ophelia in Aquarius 2 “An unexpected thunderstorm”

'Pandora' by John William Waterhouse

I find these to be interesting asteroids joining at the South Lunar Node at this time. Pandora (which means ‘all-giving’) was originally known as a life-bringing figure in mythology who was similar to Gaia...but Hesiod’s anti-feminist twist on her story is what we remember most. Pandora...she’s the one who opened the box and let loose all manner of evils into this world (disease, pain, etc.). Right? Something similar to Eve taking a bite of the apple. The two have become embodiments, over time, of a need for male control. Ophelia, on the other hand, was written in Hamlet as a less powerful figure who was sexually-restricted and tightly controlled (and informed) by the men in her life. Her love-struck insanity was her own demise, and her emotional tragedy paled in comparison to Hamlet’s more fleshed out emo-intellectual tragedy. However, her character is so sparsely portrayed in the script that, over time (especially as women began taking on the role), the portrayal of her tragedy has highlighted the dark and dangerous role of the patriarchy upon young women. What are these two figures to tell us about the South Lunar Node’s expression in this cross?

We are at the final stages of the nodal lessons of the Leo-Aquarius axis for another 18 years (see the link for more details on these collective lessons in play since May 2017). While the North Node in Leo has directed us toward heart-centered expression of leadership and self-love, the South Node in Aquarius has highlighted a collective soul need to separate from emotional repression and detachment. And with Mars’s journey back and forth over the South Node in our recent past...the patriarchal overuse of aggressive oppression and repression of the feminine has been front and center in society. Pandora and Ophelia are here to help us purge the real evils holding humanity back from expressing our true nature. They arise like an ‘unexpected thunderstorm’ with a gift of hope in the face of human tragedy. Pandora, in her original Goddess form, asks us all to consider that the girls being born now do not have to suffer as Ophelia suffered. She reclaims her true role as ‘all-giving’ Goddess of Abundance and rejects the anti-feminist fable that misconstrued her through the eyes of patriarchal fear. And Ophelia cries out from the waters she drowned in...’uplift your daughters to know their strength is not weakness’.

'Ophelia' by John Everett Millais

Love and Gratitude,

Felina Lune Kavi

Venus Retrograde in Scorpio: The Crisis and Catharsis of Emotional Renewal

"Venus" photo art by Terence Arpino

Venus stationed retrograde in Scorpio today, and the Divine Feminine pauses to recapitulate the wisdom of her journey which began in Aries in March 2017. In what ways has the Divine Feminine within each of us (no matter our gender identity) grown since then? This was the journey of the Dauntless Warrioress...instinctually guided to protect and lead. We have seen this archetype emboldened on the world stage in female-initiated movements, speeches, and projects. And now Venus asks us each to look within to find how this journey has transformed you as an individual. What trail did you blaze with the spark of Aries fire? In what ways were you emboldened to take action in this time? And as we reach the end of this Venus cycle and begin anew in Scorpio (when Sun and Venus Rx meet in the 4^th degree of Scorpio on 10-26)...what transformations in your own understanding of the feminine principle have occurred?

Scorpio is a deep dive into the unknown to explore beyond our usual boundaries and into the shadows that must come to light. For almost a year now, it has been Jupiter in Scorpio enlightening us through the dark underbelly of society. But last month, Venus joined in this Scorpio experience to light up the darkness in an even more personal way.

The shadow of this Venus Retrograde began on September 3^rd, when Venus entered 25.14 degrees of Libra (where Venus will station direct on 11-16). Since Kavanaugh has been a disturbing focus in the U.S. lately...you might remember that his Supreme Court confirmation hearings began in that first week of Venus’s retrograde shadow. The shadow period of retrogrades (especially for the inner planets) are often a time when important things to do with the theme of that planet are being overlooked. When we go through the retrograde period, then, we have an opportunity for a closer look as well as an opportunity to pick up those pieces we may have missed while we were trying to forge ahead. Though these things are often easy to see play out on the world stage, it is also important to look at our individual experience of these energies and movements. Key points from our own experience between Labor Day and now will be revisited twice more between now and 12-16 (once through the lens of Venus Rx, and once more after she moves direct again). Venus’s retrograde lasts from now until she stations direct on 11-16...and the post-shadow period lasts another month after that.

Here is a list of some of the main events of the transition from the end of Venus’s Evening Star phase to the beginning of Venus’s Morning Star phase. I have included the Sabain Symbols to highlight the story within the story, as well as my own keynote about what we can expect from each part of this journey.

Botticelli's 'The Birth of Venus'

9/3- Venus in Rx shadow (Libra 26: ‘an eagle and a large white dove change into each other’)

The appearance of balance between opposites, but something is overlooked.

9/8- Venus square Mars (Libra 30: ‘three mounds of knowledge on a philosopher’s head’ and Capricorn 30: ‘a secret meeting of men responsible for executive decisions in world affairs’)

Clash between what the Feminine Principle knows and what the Masculine Principle wants.

9/9- Venus enters Scorpio

The Divine Feminine investigates the truth under the surface.

10/5- Venus stations Retrograde (Scorpio 11: ‘a drowning man is being rescued’)

Venus Rx to the rescue, the pause we all need

10/10- Venus Rx square Mars, 2^nd pass (Scorpio 11: ‘a drowning man is being rescued’ and Aquarius 11: ‘a man who had become, for a time, the embodiment of a popular ideal is made to realize that, as a person, he is not this ideal’)

Humanity, drowning in a focus on desperation, is humbled by a saving grace.

10/15- Venus Rx conjunct Mercury (Scorpio 9: ‘a dentist at work’)

Repair after decay.

10/26- Venus Rx Cazimi (Interior Conjunction with Sun)/Venus becomes Morning Star (Scorpio 4: ‘a youth carries a lighted candle in a devotional ritual’)

The light of hope and renewal in the darkness. The phoenix reborn. New cycle of Scorpio Venus- The Shamaness.

10/30-10/31- Venus Rx in height of Fixed Grand Cross with Moon’s Nodes and Uranus Rx in the 1^st degrees of Fixed Signs (Venus Rx in Scorpio 1: ‘a crowded sightseeing bus on a city street’, North Node in Leo 1: ‘blood rushes to a man’s head as his vital energies are mobilized under the spur of ambition’, Uranus Rx in Taurus 1: ‘a clear mountain stream’, and South Node in Aquarius 1: ‘an old adobe mission in California’)

A forceful period of challenges to activate necessary change through resistance.

10/31- Venus Rx re-enters Libra

Reviewing equality in relationships

11/6- Nodes enter Cancer/Capricorn axis, Uranus Rx re-enters Aries

Dramatic shifts in world perspective, reviewing self-improvements.

11/16- Venus stations direct (Libra 26: ‘an eagle and a large white dove change into each other’)

Retrieval of the missing piece to achieve greater balance in opposites.

11/28-11/30- Venus in height of Cardinal Grand Cross with Uranus Rx and Moon’s Nodes (Venus in Libra 29: ‘humanity seeking to bridge the span of knowledge’, North Node in Cancer 29: ‘a muse weighing twins on golden scales’, South Node in Capricorn 29: ‘a woman reading tea leaves’, Uranus Rx in Aries 30: ‘a pond, a duck, and ducklings’, and Venus in Libra 30: ‘three mounds of knowledge on a philosopher’s head’)

Key period in the process of integrating Venus’s medicine, a collective identity crisis where we must pull ourselves back to center to implement necessary changes.

12/2- Venus re-enters Scorpio

The Shamaness returns to heal

12/17- Venus moves out of Rx shadow (Scorpio 11: ‘a drowning man is being rescued’)

One more rescue effort

1/7/19- Venus moves from Scorpio to Sagittarius

Divine Feminine Vision Quest

Love and Gratitude,

Felina Lune Kavi

Full Moon in Aries: New Perspectives on Humanity

Full Moon in Aries: New Perspectives on Humanity

Moon opposite Sun @ 9:51pm CDT on 9-24-2018

As we greet the Harvest Moon just after Equinox, abundance is met with temperance. What seeds of this harvest do you want to save for future harvests? What is no longer needed? The Libra energy of the season helps us to weigh these options as we build our relationship with our Mother Earth, and with all of her children.

So close to the September Equinox (Mabon, as I celebrate it), the Sun in this Full Moon opposition is aligned with the Super Galactic Center. SGC is the core of a larger cluster of galaxies forming a super galaxy. This super-massive black hole can both evoke the void unable to be filled as well as a source of immense healing. As with everything, it’s all in how you work with it. In my view, these places are portals where we can be granted access to light codes far beyond our current awareness...helping us to heal old relationships and bring in new ones with an expanded sense of who we really are. To others, maybe it’s a deep dark hole of nothingness that makes them feel nothing is ever enough. I certainly hope not.

The Aries-Libra axis of this Full Moon always brings up the theme of Self and Other. The common thread between You and Me is...”Us” (or, “We”). When the luminaries light up this axis, the highest expression is one of Namaste (an acknowledgment and appreciation of the light within each of us being the same light, even with our individual expressions). Aries is that spark that ignites the individual’s journey and holds integrity with our purpose...while Libra is the acceptance and appreciation for and from another being on their own journey who joins paths with us in any way (from a brief encounter to a committed partnership).

And no, it’s not always peace and harmony. There can seem such a stark contrast between Self and Other. One might feel they got the short end of the stick somehow. Demands for equality often arise when a lack is recognized. Or, one might feel above another in some way. And the wound of separation deepens and widens. Keeping things balanced is a constant effort.

This Full Moon is conjunct Chiron Retrograde at the beginning of Aries. I’d like to take a moment to acknowledge and appreciate other astrologers who want to move away from linking Chiron with wounding. I can respect that, because the conversation around Chiron can get so singularly focused there. However, when I speak or write of the wound revealed by Chiron, it is not the incurable injury he suffered at the end of his mythic storyline...it is the original wound of separation he carried from both his parents as well as other centaurs. What Chiron teaches, by his example, is how our original wounds become our greatest gifts. Chiron became a great teacher and healer because he found that wound was not a lack, but the source of his unique medicine. And in this initial phase of our current Chiron in Aries cycle, we are to re-member ourselves as healers. As I’ve mentioned before about Chiron in Aries, the message here is: “Know thyself to heal thyself”. And this Full Moon is another chance to deepen our experience of this wisdom before Chiron dips back into Pisces waters for a closing lesson there.

Chiron’s father, Saturn (Kronos), is in a 90 degree square with this Aries-Libra axis...so that original wound may get tested at this time. If you have natal planets at the beginning degrees of Cardinal signs (Aries, Cancer, Libra, and Capricorn)...they will be activated with this Cardinal T-Square transit to varying degrees of personal expression. However, keep in mind that these transits also have an affect on a global scale...in which case we may witness anything from stressful clashes to inspiring activation happening all around us. Again, it depends on how each person works with the energies. If more of us could see the gift of inspiration for necessary change within the dynamic force of square energy, rather than simply focusing on the stress and holding it there, we could come to meaningful resolutions. But that’s not the widely accepted experience of things. Still, what I see is more and more people holding a higher frequency of expression. It’s only a matter of time, Saturn says, before such responsibility catches on. Until then, whatever lesson is necessary.

Moon in Aries 2

The Sabian Symbol for Aries 2 is “A comedian reveals human nature”. The Astro-Wizard, Rick Levine, recently brought to my attention the Terence McKenna quote: “Levity is the opposite of Gravity.” Just the quote made me laugh to myself as I remembered my dad making up the word ‘Levitious’ as a way to describe someone (like himself) who intends to add levity to serious situations. The Comedian/Jester/Fool/Clown/Trickster/Heyokah archetype may come into play at this time. Human nature will be best revealed in this way of teaching through opposites and humor. Think of how you respond to some of your favorite comedians as they point out the absurdity of our human experience. Somehow they can get you to grasp that message without holding you in anger at the gravity of our situation...because they simultaneously lift you out of it by making you laugh (at yourself as well as the situation). And laughter can inspire courage...the courage to face the dark and transmute it to light.

Chiron Rx-Hygeia Rx in Aries 1

In conjunction with the Full Moon is a double dose of Healer energy from Chiron Retrograde and Hygeia Retrograde. Many of us know of Chiron by now, but who is Hygeia? She is the asteroid named after the Goddess of Health and Prevention of Illness (the word ‘hygiene’ comes from her name). With Moon in the Comedian degree, Hygeia joins her to remind us that ‘laughter IS the best medicine’. And Chiron joins in to teach the gift of levity. The Sabian Symbol of these two Healers is “A woman rises from the ocean; a seal embraces her”. This degree is about creative beginnings. This is a reminder from Chiron (as he first ingressed Aries on April 17^th this year) that each individual has the potential to arise from the collective and actualize their destiny in society and in the planetary organism of the Earth. Now, in this retrograde pass, the message is that we will soon need to return to the Piscean Ocean because there is some medicine there to retrieve before we can fully embrace our own emergence as healers. With every new beginning, something is often left behind. This was a step out of the collective unconscious (symbolized by the ocean) and into individual consciousness…but not a separation. There is a need to soon return. But first we must remember this impulse to become, so we can return to it again in the third pass. This image speaks of mermaids and the Selkie myth…where the woman is of two worlds. It is about our potential. Finding your feet and reaching solid ground is part of the process, and it takes some time to get used to as we step in and out and back again to this new arena. What transpires now in this process of becoming is not a setback...it is a necessary return to a lesson that still needs some closure.

Sun in Libra 2 (Super Galactic Center)

The Sabian Symbol for Libra 2 is “The light of the sixth race transmuted to the seventh”. This is one of the more esoteric symbols, as it indicates the threshold between spiritual dimensions. Dane Rudhyar preferred the translation, “The transmutation of the fruits of past experiences into the seed-realizations of the forever creative spirit”...which has a similar feeling to the first degree of Aries that alludes to the germination of the seed which breaks through the crust of the soil still covered in the remains of the past. The symbol has to do with the evolution and expansion of consciousness through the planetary ascension process. The challenge is to let go of our limiting thought processes so that we can reach new levels of awareness. Ascension to higher levels can be like an insatiable hunger to so many New Age Seekers...like a black hole, we may consume whatever information (light) is available to us...trying to fill a void of what we, again, assume we lack. The SGC degrees (between the end of Virgo and Libra 6, where Mercury is now) challenge us to get out of our own way and stop attracting more of the feeling of lack and unhealthy hierarchy that we want so desperately to be free from. So Chiron Retrograde in Aries will soon bring us back to Pisces for whatever lesson we need to more fully integrate before we can emerge anew again. In the meantime, what does Mercury have to say about what is needed for our collective mind?

Mercury in Libra 6

The Sabian Symbol for this degree is “a man watches his ideals take a concrete form before his inner vision”. This symbol directly relates to the Law of Attraction. Thoughts and imaginings take form, like attracts like, and whatever we wish for can be realized. It’s so simple, yet it is something we so often get in the way of realizing. We’re often more prone to worrying, obsessing over things that don’t matter, amplifying thoughts that make us feel unworthy or unappreciated, etc (ad nauseam): a perpetual loop of attracting more of what we don’t need. How do we break such habits? Saturn and Vesta agree, ‘Routine practice. Make it part of your sacred work.’

Vesta and Saturn in Capricorn 3

The square energy from Vesta and Saturn pool the focus of the opposition to this point of Capricorn. The Sabian Symbol here is “a human soul, in its eagerness for new experiences, seeks embodiment”. Themes from the other symbols mentioned in the Aries-Libra axis bring us to the core here of what we need in order to attain the balance between levity and gravity: embodiment. What are your embodiment practices? Vesta and Saturn both have much to do with dedication, commitment, and responsibility…and in this Cardinal Earth sign, they focus their efforts (and incline ours) to the most tangible manifestation of our identity as human beings: the body. The Comedian within may refer to it as our ‘meat suit’ or our ‘monkey suit’...and as long as we also remember that our body is our Temple, we can wear that suit well. Is it possible to ascend to a higher state of consciousness while still remaining grounded in our bodies upon the body of our Mother Earth? Absolutely, yes. In fact, it is that perfect alchemy of Spirit, Soul, and Matter that makes us who we are and allows us to actualize the purpose of humanity. So, go outside...get your bare feet on the Earth...and appreciate the season we’re in right now. Remember, the experience of what is new begins with you.

Love and Gratitude,

Felina Lune Kavi