Mercury Retrograde of Autumn 2014: Shapeshifting Through the Shadows

Retrograde Shadow Begins 9-14-14 @ 4:02am CDT

Retrograde Begins 10-4-14 @ 12:02pm CDT

Retrograde Ends 10-25-14 @ 2:16pm  CDT

Retrograde Release 11-10-14 @ 6:13am CST

The Shadow of the Mercury Retrograde

The Shadow period began on the morning of September 14^th, when Mercury entered the part of Libra that it will be in again once it turns direct on October 25^th.  This time period, before the retrograde, is often when we are moving along full-speed ahead and missing a few important details in our journey.  The main one likely happened on or around the day of September 17^th, when Mercury exacted a conjunction with the North Lunar Node, and someone influential likely had a message for you that could help you advance your plans.  Whether or not you were paying attention then, the opportunity (or another like it) may arise once more on October 29^th when the same aspect happens after Mercury is in direct motion again, and we are retracing our steps in the final shadow period.  Aside from the nodal conjunction and a few fleeting aspects with the Moon, most of Mercury’s relationships to other celestial bodies throughout the initial shadow period indicate quite a bit of mental stress and/or exhaustion.   Of course, other great things are happening, or have the potential to happen, in the midst of this mental frenzy…but are we all-there enough to notice and take advantage of opportunities that arise?

Rain Check!

After a few weeks of overstimulation and mental congestion, Mercury in Scorpio detects an underlying issue:  we’ve been ignoring our intuitive sense, thinking we’re being more productive without the clouds of confusion that it sometimes brings before answers are clear…or maybe we’ve just been dumbing it down with other things altogether.  So, Mercury holds everything momentarily (when it stations retrograde) and gives Neptune Retrograde in Pisces, his psychic friend, a call to set up a meeting.  “You have to go back and look at things from a different perspective before you can understand, and benefit from, the near future.  Meet up with me on the night of 11-11, after you’ve taken your time inward and gotten back on track.  What almost is now, will be by then.”

And cryptic as Neptune often is, Mercury already senses the need for this shift.  Accordingly, he begins an inward journey through what already was and dares to find some hidden truths previously overlooked.  The day this shift occurs (the exact shift is at 12:02 pm CDT on October 4^th), the global mindset is a bit shaky.  We were just in the middle of things that needed some focus and logical communication to accomplish…and now what’s happening?  Delays, confusion, transportation issues, scheduling snafus, and Murphy’s Law in full effect?  Sure, that can happen as Mercury stations retrograde, but is that what it’s all about?  Absolutely not.  And, does irritation in the daily grind have to be your experience of this time?  Not even close.  It’s all about perspective.

The Retrograde Station (in effect from 12:02pm CDT on October 3^rd to 12:02pm CDT October 5^th)  is the big slowdown, when the ordinary activity of the mind—as well as the ordinary conduct of business and commerce—sometimes seems to have stopped in its tracks, unwilling to continue its course.  Once Mercury begins moving in retrograde, though, our minds begin to turn toward vistas of knowledge and wisdom that call us from a distant past beyond our present lifetime.  And since Mercury retrograde periods often have topsy-turvy inclinations on our minds and communications…rational intellect may be replaced with gut instinct as logic gives way to intuition.  However, during a Mercury retrograde, our actual ability to think and communicate doesn’t slip into reverse—it is our perceptions, assumptions, and projections that turn things around.  After all, the trickster planet in its orbit stays on a steady course; it never actually goes backward.  It is only from our perspective on Earth that we see Mercury (or any planet in retrograde) appearing to reverse its course. 

On the morning of October 5^th, the past comes calling briefly…likely while you are still sleeping…with a lunar trine to Mercury.  But during the station, not much else arises as a harmonious opportunity besides those memories from the Pisces Moon and the echoes of that 11-11 trine to Neptune retrograde.  The weekend may feel like one where your mind just checks out for a while…where either the exhaustion catches up with you, or you just take a weekend retreat to reconnect with your spiritual side.  If you have other plans, don’t worry.  What does come up or is already scheduled (providing plans aren’t canceled last minute), is likely a necessary starting point to this retrograde process.  Embrace it and make the best of it, as it could prove to be exactly the thing that will open your mind to other perspectives.

Enter Mercury Rx, the Cure for What Ails Ya

I doubt I’m the only one who’s noticed that the Rx symbol for a retrograde is very similar to the symbol we use for a prescription.  It seems appropriate to me though, considering that the initial shadow of the Mercury retrograde often presents us with the root of whatever ailment arises during its retrograde station.  Throughout the duration of the retrograde then, Mercury (who has always been seen as somewhat of a shapeshifter for his associations with the gray area between polarities) becomes the shaman travelling through non-ordinary reality, retrieving scattered pieces of what we left behind in our recent past, in order to provide some holistic healing.   

On the morning of October 8^th, the Full Blood Moon (exact at 5:50am CDT) brings about many revelations…while the Lunar Eclipse (beginning at 5:55am CDT) brings our awareness to the shadows.  Many of these insights will have to do with relationships of all kinds.  However, our primary partnerships are specifically poised for healing as Mercury Retrograde makes a rare aspect pattern with Mars, Chiron Retrograde, and Juno while the Blood Moon in Aries conjuncts Uranus Retrograde and the South Lunar Node in the 7^th House for some surprising insights into the shadows of our past connections.  Many other aspect patterns surface at the full moon eclipse as well, so be sure to mark your calendar for an interesting week and pay attention to what surfaces.  The full moon’s effect can be felt two days before and after the opposition of the luminaries is exact…and when there is an eclipse along with it, what surfaces from the shadows has implications that can last for 6 months afterwards.

On the morning of October 13^th, Mercury Retrograde lines up with Pallas (the asteroid of the female warrior) to combine metal strength, strategy, the ability to understand patterns and the wisdom to use it together with Mercury’s retrograde quest to reconnect the pieces. 

By October 16^th, Mercury Retrograde enters into combustion with the Sun.  On a chart, that means they are conjunct.  In the sky, that means Mercury seems completely swallowed by the sun’s light and appears invisible.  And symbolically, the combustion indicates that Mercury’s worldly significations are eclipsed, but its spiritual significations become even stronger.  So there may be some awkwardness in the areas of your life that Mercury rules in your natal chart, but your spiritual intellect will be heightened during this time.  Venus is conjunct in this Libra stellium as well, and by the next day, Mercury and Venus will exact their own conjunction while making a sextile to Mars….opportunities abound when the inner planets connect harmoniously, but you have to keep your eyes and mind open to find them.  Your best bet is midday in a public place, either during lunch or at work.

Another series of beneficial opportunities presents itself the next week when Mercury Retrograde makes a sextile with Jupiter then conjuncts the North Lunar Node (afternoon and late evening on Oct. 20^th).  Both of these are extremely good indicators that fortunate opportunities can arise from contacts with helpful people.  Then the Moon in her balsamic phase conjuncts with Mercury Retrograde (afternoon on Oct. 22) before the Solar Eclipse (beginning at 4:45pm CDT) and New Mourning Moon (exact at 4:55pm CDT) on October 23^rd to make a 7^th House Scorpio Stellium between Venus, Sun, Moon, and Pallas that will have lasting effects for another 6 months in the area of primary partnerships, once again.  Are you sensing a recurring theme?  After all, Mercury began this retrograde journey in Scorpio, but quickly made its way back to Libra, the sign of relationships, compromise and harmony.  The focus is very much on the important people in our lives and our relationships with them as well as with ourselves.

Mercury as the Pathfinder

Mercury stations direct at 2:16pm CDT on October 25^th (though the station goes on for 24 hours before and after that exact shift), just in time to back out of a Cardinal Grand Cross with Uranus Retrograde, Pluto, and Hygeia before things get too serious.  The main goal now is to take some time out during this weekend, reflect on where your spiritual compass has directed you throughout this journey, and chart a new course through familiar, though newly understood, territory.

After an eye-opening sojourn through non-ordinary reality, Mercury returns to a calmer state of being.  In this station, the mental state is restored and Mercury (along with those channeling him) can pass the knowledge and experiences of that retrograde on to others, helping them to successfully navigate life. Stability as well as the benefits associated with Mercury’s usual course are restored as the planet of communication moves forward again from our perspective.

Release from the Retrograde Shadow

Almost there!  One last leg of this journey that is often overlooked is the final shadow period and eventual release.  October will be a month of shadows, for sure.  In this shadow period, we are retracing steps our minds have already covered forward and backward…but this third time, we’re ready for what’s coming (whatever it may be). 

On October 29^th, Mercury reconnects with the North Lunar Node which can, again, lead us to someone who has an important message for us and can connect us to future goals.  Be sure to communicate those goals and best intentions for future plans on the night of Samhain, because Mercury and Jupiter return to a sextile (exact the following morning on Nov. 1^st) and what you communicate will grow with abundance. 

As far as the rest of the shadow period, much like the time-which-is-no-time after Samhain, Mercury makes no major aspects again until after the release (Nov. 10^th @ 6:13am CST).  The release is when Mercury makes it past the point of the zodiac where it first stationed retrograde…so at this point, we’re no longer re-tracing our steps and our minds can move on to new things.

Have a lovely autumn, an insightful Mercury retrograde, and a blessed Samhain!

Love and Gratitude,

Felina Lune Kavi

Strong Sun Moon: Point of Experience Before Crossing a Threshold

Happy Full Moon!  While many Americans who are west of the Eastern Time Zone have been somewhat mistakenly proclaiming this Full Moon to be on Friday the 13th...the Full Moon was actually exact for us (Central Daylight Time) last night, Thursday the 12th, at 11:11pm.  No big deal, just wanted to clear up the exact moment of the Solar-Lunar opposition.  We can still consider the moon as full tonight too.  I usually consider it full for two days before and after the exaction.

Preparing for New Journeys Ahead

The symbols of the specific degrees the Moon and Sun were in last night both have to do with getting to the point of arriving at a new stage of development or experience.  The Sabian Symbol for the Sun at Gemini 23 is 'Three Fledglings in a Nest High in a Tree' while the one for the Moon at Sagittarius 23 is 'A Group of Immigrants Fulfilling the Requirements for Entering a New Country'.  Both degrees show the possibility and hope for better things and a new way of life...as well as the developments that need to take place to get us to these thresholds of initiation.  This full moon is about the reorientation of self, learning new ways, and passing tests to further our progress.  We may feel like fledglings preparing for a first flight, or immigrants getting ready to embark on a new life in a new country.  We may feel underprepared or fear being out of our comfort zones, out of our element.  Or, conversely, we may be excited to step into the unknown and see where our leap of faith will take us.  Either way, as long as we 'fulfill the necessary requirements' and don't jump too hastily into the unknown, we'll be just fine.  So, these symbols reinforce another thing about Mercury Retrogrades that I often highlight...go back, make sure you've crossed your t's and dotted your i's, get your ducks in a row...then proceed with where you were headed once Mercury goes direct on July 1st.

The Full Moon of the Summer Solstice

This Full Moon has many names.  It is often called the Strong Sun Moon, as it is closest to the Summer Solstice when the Sun is strongest.  It is also called Strawberry Moon, because strawberry picking season reaches its peak in June.  Other names for this Full Moon are Lovers Moon, Honey Moon, Rose Moon, Mead Moon, and Dyad Moon...all of the names suggest what is often 'in bloom' at this time, including love and relationships...as June has long since been a month of handfastings and marriages (while May was said to be sacred to the marriage of the God and Goddess, the summer months that followed were usually the ones chosen by mortals for their own marriage rites).

What is in full bloom in your own life?  Now is a time to take stock of the year so far.  This is the mid-point, so review what you've accomplished and what is left to do (which is always a good thing to do during a Mercury Retrograde anyway...just reinforced by the approaching solstice).  Take responsibility for what is happening in your life presently.  Reward yourself for what is positive, and strengthen yourself in the recognition of the negative.  Work on those personal inconsistencies and make conscious decisions to improve things with the turning tides.

Other Cosmic Influences Surrounding This Moon

There are good things happening cosmically to reinforce the energy of the Lovers or Dyad (pair).  Venus, Saturn, and Chiron are all linked up currently in an aspect configuration known as a Feminine Mystic Wedge.  With these energies combined in this way, during this time, commitments in relationships (romantic or otherwise) are strengthened and can provide a source of healing.  Tap into this energy in whatever way possible...it's so much more important than the frustrating irritations that can be a side effect of a Mercury Retrograde...focus on the positive and you'll no doubt be rewarded.

We are approaching another square between Mars and Pluto soon, which can be rather volatile without the effects of love, patience, and wisdom that the current Feminine Mystic Wedge provides.  So, this Friday the 13th, feminine elements abound in order to provide some auspicious, pleasant energy to us mortals...even in the midst of a Mercury Retrograde complete with solar flares and possible CMEs as well as a strengthening square between masculine energies of war and death.  In other words, masculine energies may be in a panic, frenzy, or a state of aggravation or aggression...while feminine energies may be the calming influence, balancing out fears with love and wounding with healing.  This is not to say that all the men are going to be jerks and the women will be the voice of reason.  If you read me in black and white terms, you're reading me wrong.  All of us have both energies present within...just as both energies are present without.

Calming Feminine Influence Side-Note to Dispel Fears of Friday the 13th

Most of you who have known me a while and have been reading along have read many times already the origins of Friday the 13th being considered unlucky and how it has been perpetuated over the centuries both in misogynistic ways as well as by misguided fears or glamorized sensationalism.  I don't want to sound like a broken record by going over it all again, so I'll just say the absolute best compilation of information on the subject would be Chapter 7 of Dan Furst's book 'Dance of the Moon:  Celebrating the Sacred Cycles of the Earth'.  Chapter 7 of that book is called 'Time Out!  How 13 Got Unlucky'.  So, if you're interested in the origins...I encourage you to read this chapter (really, the whole book).  Nope, no easy links for you...you actually have to go out and find a book and read it.  ;)  I personally know the author, and I can vouch for him as an authority on many of the subjects I often write about.

Love and Gratitude,
Felina Lune Kavi

New Moon Eclipse in Taurus: Celebrate Your Greatest Gifts

This New Moon Eclipse (at 1:13am on April 29^th) marks the beginning of the Flower Moon phase…many things will be coming into bloom in our lives in the coming month, mirroring the blossoming Earth.  The degree of Taurus illuminated by our luminaries carries the symbol of ‘A decorated Christmas tree’.  This symbol may seem seasonally out-of-place, however, the meaning of the symbol goes much deeper than what it appears to be.  This is a time to celebrate the gifts with which we have been blessed during what may have seemed to many as a particularly dark or difficult time this past month.  It is a time of celebration, a conjuring up of some warmth and joy within even though the environment outside of us may have recently been either barren, difficult, or even hostile in some way.  We are beginning now to come off of the Cross of the previous week and into our new identity...the same soulful being, but one that has endured an experience that has elevated their outlook.  This symbol suggests that we transform the darkness and deprivation of a low point in our life cycle by celebrating the good moments, inviting them to return in abundance.  The symbol of the Maypole is one that holds a similar feeling of celebration more in line with our current season, and encourages fertility in its many aspects.  Perhaps those of us who celebrate Beltane at the beginning of May with maypoles and flower baskets will feel a bit like the Yuletide season stretched into Spring.  Or it may hold joyful echoes of the Yuletide to come.  ;)

Every New Moon is a time where an old cycle ends and a new one begins, but during an eclipse this initiation becomes even more powerful.  After those new opportunities from the New Moon present themselves, a glimpse at our collective shadow appears. After identifying what it is we need to do, and what it is we need to leave behind, in order to be the change we wish to see in the world…we may be backed into a corner by that which has held power over us for so long now. It’s important not to give in and go the easy route that takes little effort but has far-reaching drawbacks and debilitating limitations. There is light and shadow within each of us. Many of us hide from our shadows by playing the victim and pointing fingers outside of us…whether it be at parents, relationships, or the world around us. We have these experiences, though, to teach us the whole truth about ourselves and our interconnectedness to what we experience. Those people, those situations, those struggles…they are mirrors reflecting what we refuse to acknowledge about ourselves.

The shadow side of our personalities is the part of us we don’t want to identify with…the aspects of ourselves that we hide, repress, or dissociate after society teaches us various things that aim to correct what is ‘wrong’ or wild about us. We’re conditioned to watch our tempers, hold back our tears, look presentable, concern ourselves with money, keep our heads out of the clouds, not say something stupid or crazy, or any other variation on what blocks our self-expression. This is not to say that letting children run wild is the way to raise them. My parents laid down ‘the law’ for us, just as I find myself doing with my daughter now. But discipline is about teaching right from wrong and guiding along a morally sound path. Those are not the limitations to which I am referring. I’m talking about what makes us feel worthless, unloved, misunderstood, maladjusted, less than, wounded, afraid, disconnected or wrong. Harsh judgments stay with us, whether they come from outside or within. It’s those ideas that keep us from our highest potential. That is the shadow side at work…phantom pains from old wounds that demand that we heal them in order to discover our gifts.

This eclipse hastens us to begin or resume our healing process. Step out of self-defeating cycles and forge a new path filled with new discoveries. Identify your wounds, integrate your shadows in your healing and loving light, and identify yourself as whole in the process. Shed the limiting skin of the past and welcome the new you, The Healer.

This is a chance to focus the spotlight of the luminaries within and find previously undiscovered truths about life, and about ourselves.  Every eclipse offers us a new perspective.  This particular annular solar eclipse is rare because it is non-central (the central axis of the Moon's antumbral shadow misses Earth entirely while the shadow edge grazes the planet).  We won’t be able to see it, but as usual, we will feel it.  The eclipse will only last about 12 minutes…and its energetic influence will be relatively short as well, lasting about 2 months.  In a Solar Eclipse, the Moon occults the light of the Sun, showing only the Sun's corona.  This sight represents the brilliance of consciousness that we don't see everyday because we are blinded by the glare of everyday life.  In an annular eclipse like this one, we are able to see the outer ring of our consciousness by taking a step away from the 'core' of our lives (because, usually by this point, something in our 'core' has gone awry and we need a new perspective on life).

What's under the surface of how you've been presenting yourself lately?  When you take away everything that is superfluous, not really you, or accumulated from your environment or social upbringing...what reveals itself as the clearest path to your true aspirations in this life?  Remember that your circumstances, crises, and the stories about yourself that you've accumulated so far are not you...though they are likely representative of your previous actions.  We are meant to learn from our past only...not to take it with us for the long haul. What is important is the NOW of every moment.  The future will take care of itself, and the past is already taken care of.  In the now, we can actively create the world around us.

So, celebrate and create.  You’ve endured a lot, and it’s about time you had a chance to enjoy yourself, your life, and all of the amazing people in it.  Here’s a new start, so use it wisely.  Taurus is about our values and resources…so this would be the time to set them straight and accumulate more of what you really need for yourself and your loved ones.  You can’t create abundance while holding on to the debts of your past, so move forward with the mindset of ‘like attracts like’…attract those things you need in your life and allow them to blossom under the Flower Moon next month.

Love and Gratitude,

Felina Lune Kavi

Square Five of The Fool’s Tower: Awakening on the Cross

Square Five:  Awakening on the Cross

4-21-2014 (Uranus Square Pluto in the 14th degree of Aries and Capricorn) @ 5:02am

Uranus and Pluto are two of the three Generational Outer Planets that allude to the collective experience of our global community.  These planets take much longer to move through our solar system, and so their energies have an enduring effect when triggered by alignment.  Though I am writing this series as they approach each of the seven exact square alignments, the powerful effects can be felt months before and after (as they gradually approach and recede from the alignment).

This April, the two are met by Mars Retrograde and Jupiter to heighten the experience.  The opposition of Jupiter and Pluto (now retrograde since the 14^th) are aligned near the galactic center, while the opposition of Mars and Uranus are aligned near the galactic edge...making this particular cross distinctly important in our collective evolution...so near the solstice and equinox points and in the Eclipse Cauldron (the window of time between April’s lunar and solar eclipses).  While a whole lot is brewing on a global scale, every individual is essentially ‘on the cross’ as well in some way.  Keeping that in mind may help you navigate through the irritations of this time and into the mindset of creative restructuring that the cross represents.

The Cardinal Grand Cross of April 2014

The atmosphere is heavy…and the world around you feels like it’s teetering on the brink of something amazing, or something disastrous.  At the same time, you feel stretched in multiple directions and that many things (including yourself) are sabotaging your own needs and desires.  How do you balance your energy, attention, and time between all of these things?  Where is your center between what you need for yourself, your family, your relationships, and your community/work?  Why, when you try to focus your effort on one of those things exclusively, does another come at you full-force with something that needs to be taken care of immediately…throwing you off balance again, ad nauseam?  Maybe work obligations or community related projects seem the most pressing…some shifts, changes, or new opportunities are demanding your time and attention at the expense of taking care of yourself, your family, or your relationship…and then suddenly, you or your whole family comes down with whatever nasty bug has been floating around, and you’re forced to take a few sick days.  Or relationship issues are throwing you off your game in all other areas of your life.  These are a couple of scenarios I’ve been seeing a lot lately, but there are many others.  On a daily basis now, especially since the Sun has been highlighting these squares since the beginning of this month, we’re faced with obstacles to overcome. Most of it has to do with needing to find a balance amidst a rapidly active and transformative cycle in our earthly lives.  It also has to do with finding our identity within the 4 areas of life I mentioned.  So many opportunities to make necessary changes, pulling us at once from all directions…the thing about it is that it’s not just you, this is happening in the lives of everyone around you in their own ways.  So what are we all to do?  Meet me in the middle.  Allow me to describe what the path to center looks like during this time so that you all may find your own ways.  We can make good use of the highly active, transformative, and initiating Cardinal Grand Cross (CGC) this time, together.

The Archetypes on the Cross

Essentially, the CGC is a great initiator of action. The uncomfortable tension of the right angles may cloud the fact that its design is like a nucleus of structure and strength that can be a tremendous resource. Finding the point of balance and integration in order to use this energy properly is a difficult challenge, but it can be done. The key comes from developing balance between the two oppositions. When balanced, they are wielding the same amount of force on the planets that are connected by the 90 degree squares, creating a solid foundation.

Many times, these four cardinal points activated will call forth issues of identity. The Aries planet (in this case, Uranus “the innovator”) inspires action that impulsively expresses the self. The Cancer planet (in this case, Jupiter “the patriarch”) inspires action that sees to the nurturance of the emotional identity. The Libra planet (in this case, Mars “the warrior”) inspires action that connects the social and intellectual identity. And finally, the Capricorn planet (in this case, Pluto “the transformer”) inspires action toward recognizing the tangible manifestation of the identity.

In the energy building now, Uranus is illuminating enthusiastic energy toward self-improvement through change. Jupiter is illuminating opportunities for growth and the emotions surrounding them. Mars is illuminating the active participation of our social and intellectual skills with others. Pluto is illuminating the mundane transformations we are being forced to make with the hidden resources of personal power we don’t always recognize. All of these illuminated aspects of our identities (individual and collective) are pushing and pulling in four different directions.

In many cases, this Cross can represent an identity crisis if not balanced…and during this month, that crisis is on a global scale. The four points involved are each pushing to express a facet of the identity, yet each operates from a different level and perspective of the self. This can cause people to feel overstretched or pulled apart. The influence can also cause frustration based on the desire to take action without a sense of focus or direction.

The 14^th Degree of Cardinal Signs

Aries: A Serpent Coils Near Lovers

For some this image will suggest the Adam and Eve (or Ish and Isha) archetypes, while others may immediately be drawn to the idea of Kundalini arousal.  Both have some merit here, but the focus is on self-realization as a shared transformation of Universal Consciousness.  The coiled serpent is all about potential lying dormant within us, waiting to be activated, and often being activated by encounters with ‘the other’ rather than the self.  The coiling itself represents the spiral-like process of evolution.

 

Cancer: A Very Old Man Faces a Dark Space to the Northeast

The Northeast (true north) is the direction of Changeless Reality, solitude, stillness, and silence.  It is the space that occupies the void between individuality and transcendence.  It is the chrysalis of transformation, the cave of hibernation, and the shedding of the skin that no longer serves us.  Jupiter faces us with our emotional baggage an effort to release what we have been clinging to that is no longer needed.  He urges us to let go of the blockages that keep us in the darkness, and awaken the sleeping energy within to bring us to illumination.

Libra:  A Man Takes a Noon Siesta

And speaking of sleeping energy…Mars Retrograde in Libra is an interesting combination of energies (I was born with this combination myself).  Mars is a passionate and active planet while social-butterfly Libra (ruled by Venus) inclines balance and diplomacy which tends to soften the hard edges of the planet of war and aggression, focusing the energy on relationships of all kinds.  In addition to this, the retrograde brings this energy inward…inclining the most necessary actions to be on the internal level, the relationship with the Self.  You may just want to sleep it off in the heat of what’s all coming at you (and from you) lately…but be careful of avoidant tendencies.  So we don’t like conflict and confrontation, but at the same time it’s these very things that are getting us somewhere now.  Do take time out to recharge…meditation, yoga, or power naps can go a long way in getting us through this Spring…but only as a means to relax and rejuvenate, not as an escape.  Escapism, in this time, will only bring about more conflict.

Capricorn:  An Ancient Bas-Relief Carved in Granite Remains a Witness to a Long-Forgotten Culture

This is a symbol which again brings up something that lies dormant until unearthed…wisdom from the ancients. It reminds us to unearth what has permanent value and to let go of non-essentials.  What is needed in this time is effort founded upon a valid historical perspective, which applies both to an individual’s past as well as to the history of a nation or group.

“At a time when in nearly every land men are questioning and challenging the validity of traditional beliefs and customary attitudes, it becomes necessary to separate permanent values and great principles or symbols from the many individual habits and the socio-political developments which more often than not have perverted or even negated the original ideals of the culture. We must strive to free these ideals from the wild growth of personal and class selfishness, from the greed and ambition so prevalent in human nature, and learn to appreciate the excellence of what is the immortal seed-foundation, as well as the spiritual harvest, of any culture — and by extension of every sustained and complete work produced by a man's indomitable effort to achieve creative perfection.” –Dane Rudhyar

Total Eclipse of the Seed Moon

The Full Moon Eclipse at 2:43am CDT on Tuesday, April 15^th initiated a time (between April eclipses) that is an opportunity to consciously connect to the shadows within. The way in which we work with these eclipse energies will have reverberations for the next 6 months, until the next eclipse window opens.  During a Lunar Eclipse, the Earth passes between the two luminaries and the Earth’s shadow falls on the face of the Moon…so while it evokes experiences that confront your own shadow nature, it also evokes the collective shadow of the Earth itself.

This energy is an emotionally intense transformation of death and rebirth…where the shadow conceals the light of the self (Sun) from being reflected in the emotional body (Moon) for a brief time before the light returns. Eclipse energy is a quickening of time, healing opportunities, and confrontation with who we really are and what no longer resonates at the vibration of our highest frequency. We often come across times that are astrologically sound for ‘out with the old, in with the new’ cleansings of our lives…but this particular eclipse window (the 15^th through 29^th) would be a key chance to have the universe act as a cosmic converter for everything that no longer serves us on our planet. Most of this process will not happen easily…crumbling foundations will leave a mess and people facing drastic confrontations of self may react with kicking and screaming victimization. However, there is a wide open door for those who wish to do the work required and get right with themselves for their own sake, and the sake of those they love.

Eclipse energy often highlights accelerated changes, clearing, eliminating, releasing, and transforming so new energies have room to manifest and grow. This can be like opening up a dark storage closet that hasn’t been opened for years, and thinning out the excess by determining what can be kept and what can be thrown out. Most of the things you find here will bring up shadows of your past, and you’ll have to let go of those attachments so that your new, more true to you, life has room to breathe.

This eclipse illuminates symbols that carry great potential.  The Sun in the 26^th degree of Aries highlights “a man possessed of more gifts than he can hold” while the Moon in the 26^th degree of Libra (where my natal Pluto is…which means this eclipse is highly transformative for me, personally) highlights “an eagle and a large white dove turning into one another”.  Essentially, the eclipse is showing the shadow side of being good at too many things and not being able to choose between them…often, instead, we will try to mix them together and ‘turn one into the other’ somehow in order to keep it all together.  All of us will be confronted with this now in some way specific to each of us.  It may be that too many people are vying for your attention and you finally have to choose who is most important to you, or it could be that you finally have to decide which career path to take, or that you have too many things going on at once (this is likely for all of us, because of the CGC) and you have to scale it all down to make the best use of your time now.

The four main feminine asteroids (Juno, Ceres, Vesta, and Pallas) are lining up with this eclipse, as well as the lunar nodes (mentioned in my post from last month).  Juno is in Aries conjunct the Sun and South Node…making primary relationships a focus now.  Ceres and Vesta in Libra are conjunct the Moon and North Node…making nurturance and spiritual dedication an almost necessary (though in many cases, underdeveloped) means to get through the rest of the month.  And then Pallas in Leo gives a beneficial outlet for these oppositions, giving us a sound and opportunistic strategy for making the best of these initial energies. Pallas illuminates the symbol “After a heavy storm, a rainbow appears.”  It suggests we keep in mind what happens after we make it through the toughest of life’s challenges.  With this, fear can dissipate…and action can be taken with commitment and confidence.

Love and Gratitude,

Felina Lune Kavi

P.S.  If you haven’t read the information I posted in June 2012 about the first of these squares as well as the general information about what these alignments mean, please check out this article from June 2012.  Here you will find the overview of the squares and their relation to the Fool’s Tower of the tarot.  If you also want a refresher on the themes of the 2^nd, 3^rd, and 4^th squares, you can find them at these links: September 2012 May 2013 and November 2013.

The Dragon's Flight into the Libra-Aries Axis

On the Saturday following the Spring Equinox, the Moon’s nodes shifted from our last lessons of the Scorpio/Taurus plane to the lessons of Libra/Aries. 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, and the necessary balance between what we’ve already learned and no longer need to focus on (The Dragon's Tail:  South Node in Aries) 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 Libra).

Each of us has our own natal nodes and lessons, which tend to answer the age-old questions, ‘Why am I here?’ and ‘What is my soul’s purpose?’ For example, I (and those around the same age as me) have the lessons of North Node in Cancer and South Node in Capricorn…our soul’s growth comes from spiritual nurturance and caretaking, learning the value of emotional fulfillment as we move away from our engrained urges to acquire fame, recognition, and materialistic pursuits.

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.

And it’s that shift that I’m talking about now…the one we’re all feeling. Now that the South Node is in Aries, we’re being introduced to the lesson of self-centered behavior and the consequences of making rash decisions without consideration for others.  We’re currently so intent on pushing forward and impatient in the pursuit of our own individual discoveries, that we end up narrowly-focused on what we want rather than allowing others to have a voice in the outcome. The North Node in Libra directs our paths toward the benefits of partnership, finding a compromise with others that could actually improve our situations in the long term. Being overly-aggressive becomes problematic during this time because we may just push others away to the point of having little support when we really need it…and while we may be more comfortable working alone during this time, we may find ourselves constantly hitting impediments that could be eased by others. Our powers of patience and cooperation need to be cultivated now instead of aggressively seeking what will get us ahead.

This axis can be very frustrating, making it difficult to prioritize and commit to a single fail-safe strategy that has everyone’s best interests in mind.  Self-sacrifice instead of focusing only on what we want for ourselves is where we move past the old ways of thinking and come into our collective ability to diplomatically work together in making our lives more harmonious. One of the things you’ll see during this transit is a greater tendency to be bossy, aggressively exercising authority without concern for how it effects the productivity and well being of everyone else. Our own authority figures are already skilled in this, yet now is the time they will be faced with its negative implications as more and more people will be seeking out more harmonious environments where the atmosphere is friendlier and more conducive to accomplishing goals toward the greater good. This is the time we learn the lesson that relating is creating…and that putting ourselves above others, bullying, fighting, or any other manner of creating distance between others is destructive to everyone involved.  Balance, reciprocity, and healthy relationships on every level are the underlying goals for the next 18 months.

There will be a lot of competitive behavior and rushing into battle with little consideration for those involved during this time, as well as more heated arguments that only further separate us from the compromise we desire to achieve. As we go through these lessons, we learn that peace is priority…not self-interest.  The balance of give and take, amongst our human race as well as between us and our whole planet, is a necessity that can no longer be ignored.  Life is not a competition, it is a gradual unfolding of our interconnectedness.  All life requires some type of partnership in order to grow, after all.  Now is the time to realize which of those partnerships are the most important to our survival as well as our collective ability to thrive.

To see in what areas of life this shift affects you personally, look to the houses in your natal chart where Libra and Aries begin. The last time the nodes were in this axis was between August 1995 and January 1997. 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 ingress: Reach out to others, both to help as well as to ask for help.  Rediscover your identity by relating with others, not by distancing yourself from them.  Share.  “Make love, not war.”  Agree to disagree. Negotiate.  Compromise.  Slow down and think things through before you act.  Talk it out.  Cultivate patience.  Work together toward a common goal.  Get involved with those around you in more meaningful ways.  Learn to commit whole-heartedly to something, or someone, other than yourself.  Create beauty.  Connect.  Be tactful.  Live in harmony.  Try yoga.  Socialize in other ways besides online.  Create positive friendships.  And most importantly, strive for equality in all relations.

Love and Gratitude,

Felina Lune Kavi

New Moon in Pisces: Illumination in the Dark Night

At 2am on Saturday, the Storm Moon begins a new cycle.  The luminaries meet in the 11th degree of Pisces to provide a path to Illumination for those of us who seek it.  The moon is dark, we can't see it but we feel it...we are challenged to walk on blindly toward sanctuary.  This Dark Night of the Soul has been a long one.  Even when we feel it may be coming to a close, we are suddenly pulled back inward.  Endings are never what we think they should be, after all.  They are transitions instead, where transformation takes place in the evolution of our stories.

Opportunities for healing transformations have been in full force all month, and will continue, as Pluto and Chiron have recently exacted a sextile.  Mercury is now direct again, after a particularly disorienting retrograde jaunt from Pisces back to Aquarius for most of this month.  Of course, we're not completely in the clear until its release out of the shadow of the retrograde on March 21st...but at least now we can move forward with what we've rediscovered since this shadow period began at the end of January.  While the spotlight is on communication and our mental state (Mercury), the stress is still on bringing the unique ideas of our higher mind (Uranus, Mercury's higher octave, is still at the apex of a T-square with Pluto and Jupiter Retrograde) out in the open in original ways.  And soon after the new moon begins, Mars and Vesta, conjunct at the end of Libra, slow down to go retrograde together...followed by Saturn in Scorpio going retrograde the following day.  So, the planet of action (Mars), the asteroid of spiritual dedication (Vesta), and the planet of responsibility (Saturn) will soon be taking the spotlight as we move into a phase of difficult internal work on those things about ourselves that we've been ignoring while other things demanded our attention.

But first, Mercury paved the path to the illumination that our luminaries suggest in their conjunction.  We may have gotten caught up in helping others without giving the same attention to ourselves, which set us back a bit throughout this month...as we revisited those things within that weren't going to just go away.  Now, we've been faced with the task of our own healing...finding better, more proactive ways of keeping ourselves from spiraling out of control in destructive patterns.  This is when our ingenuity (a distinctly Uranian concept) comes into play, and we have to shake up our lives a bit in extraordinary ways to get back on track.  After all, if we don't do it...someone/something else likely will.  The path we've been trampling for the past few months isn't getting us anywhere new...and it looks all too familiar.  But in this dark night, the new moon seems to tug at us to go off the beaten path and we soon find a new one...one that promises something we've been seeking all along but somehow couldn't find it.

Leave your expectations behind this time.  Leave your worries, leave your self-judgments, and leave your ideas of perfection that only lead you to procrastination.  Walk on, unencumbered by negative thoughts or pre-conceived ideas.  Be new with the moon, and as she returns each night and shows more and more of her face...she will reflect your own becoming.  Be fearless and follow the directional flow of your soul.

Illumination follows a period of purification where we are often faced with our greatest fears and our darkest feelings.  The dark night of the soul may break us down and have us feel that we will never be the same again...but that's also the point.  We are never the same after we face our fears.  We become more powerful and more aware of ourselves, and our life changes because of it.  It's hard to believe, while we're still in that struggle, that we could ever relate to the word 'powerful' again.  It's human nature to size up personal power as it relates to things outside of ourselves...so at our lowest we see that this person is mentally stable, or this person is in control of her emotions, or that person is financially secure while we may pale in so many comparisons.  But true power is the soul stripped of all those outward manifestations and suddenly free to choose the path it means to follow.

Breathe deeply, and walk on.
Love and Gratitude,
Felina Lune Kavi

Square Four of the Fool’s Tower: The Turning Point

Square Four:  The Turning Point

11-1-2013 (Uranus Square Pluto in the 10^th degree of Aries and Capricorn) @ 5:02am

Uranus and Pluto are two of the three Generational Outer Planets that allude to the collective experience of our global community.  These planets take much longer to move through our solar system, and so their energies have an enduring effect when triggered by alignment.  Though I am writing this series as they approach each of the seven exact square alignments, the powerful effects can be felt months before and after (as they gradually approach and recede from the alignment).

It is important to note that this 4^th square in a series of seven (from 2012-2015) between these planets is a turning point of these revolutionary energies, and leads up to the synodic square (the heliocentric square) occurring in the 138-year Uranus-Pluto cycle that began on January 7^th, 1966 (at the exact peak of the Vietnam War and the height of the Flower Power Movement).  The synodic square, where these energies culminate toward action, occurs on November 24^th of this year.  At the beginning of this synodic cycle, in the late 60s, the theme of this cycle emerged…which can be summed up as ‘war and peace’, ‘destruction vs. creativity’, or even ‘fear vs. love’.  For those born in the late 1960s, it may stimulate dynamic radical action of these matured forces within them.  For humankind, in general, we carry on this theme but bring it now to an evolved and active manifestation.  The ‘Flower Children’ were the fledglings of this revolution…but it is at this time where we show how we have grown and take action against the forces that continue to cause destruction on our planet.  This is the next major shift in our group consciousness, where the square pushes us to take dynamic action to realize those goals that began in the late 60s.

While the following focuses mostly on these transformations from an individual perspective (because if you can’t change yourself, how can you change the world?), the same can be applied on the collective level (as above, so below; as within, so without).  This is so you can apply these energies to what you are personally going through first, while keeping in mind that everyone is going through similar changes that, as a whole, reflect upon our collective transformation.

Uranus in the 10^th degree of Aries

The Sabian Symbol for the 10^th degree of Aries is ‘a teacher gives new symbolic forms to traditional images’.  This is a symbol of re-interpreting what we see and have come to understand in one way, and redefining it in a new way that speaks to who we are currently.  An underlying theme of Uranus-Pluto aspects is often about releasing old structures that no longer serve us to make way for the new…which is why, for the past few years, I have been writing on this subject.  This symbol shows that there is much to be gleaned from the old ways, as long as we can apply them to what is current in a way that creates something useful.  It shows that we have exhausted old habits and ideas in their current form, and need to transform them.  Something has been holding us back through all of these shifts occurring around us, something we weren’t willing to let go of, and now we’re facing it head-on with no recourse but to see it for what it is…an obstacle to our growth.  Though the root is there, in plain (albeit symbolic) sight, and the forces surrounding us push us to address it…we have the choice.  We can rewire our brains, so to speak, and choose new actions…resulting in the difficulties that ensue when we, like reformed addicts, give up something we have relied upon for years.  Or we can make excuses and continue in that world of addiction that we know so well, because at least we know how to navigate that pain by now.  However, to continue only furthers that self-destruction along…without true release.  At least, after making the needed change (whatever it might be), we’ll be better for it eventually.  Do we choose to prolong the pain, or fight through it for a relatively short duration until we can reach the equilibrium we seek?

The Stellium in Scorpio align in sextile to Mars in Virgo to point directly to Uranus at this time in an effort to show us the way to our own specific revolutions.  It seems change is inevitable…so do we follow suit now, while it’s critical, or do we wait until something really terrible (perhaps even irreversible) happens? 

Give yourself a new form, and let that revolutionary energy spiral out from your center to help inspire others around you, and the world itself, to effect more change.  Words mean very little when actions do not back them up.

Pluto in the 10^th degree of Capricorn

The Sabian Symbol for the 10^th degree of Capricorn is ‘an albatross feeding from the hand of a sailor’.  At the last new moon (October 4^th), Pluto was prominent in this same position…and has returned to teach the same lesson. Reciprocity is still the key to unearthing our desired actions.  Giving and receiving in kind creates the necessary balance that provides for everyone involved.  There may be a bit of fear holding each side back from cooperation, after all, there is the potential one could get hurt.  It is disempowering on one side to give too much, and on the other to give too little.  But this symbol reminds us that Generosity heals the wounds that Greed creates.

This degree has much to do with nurturance as well as working harmoniously with others who may be very different from you.  This same symbolism can be seen in the alignments of the planets as well.  There are many harmonious aspects working along with Pluto at this time to feed this transformation among us.  It may be that, because we’re all experiencing this tempestuous energy in our own ways, we are coming together in a spirit of solidarity to provide a safe harbor for each other during difficult times.  Look around you.  Many are likely dealing with serious medical issues, financial troubles, a heavy workload, a job change, a change of residence, a failing relationship, a death in the family, etc.  Even if you can’t see it, know that something is either falling apart in their lives to make way for something new, or something is reaching a frenzy that may be stretching them thin in many directions to push them to find their center.  You’re not alone.  Each individual lesson may be different, but it all relates back to the same theme:  necessary transformation.

The world is not against you.  The world is against itself right now.  Each of our individual struggles are like symptoms of a root cause that deals with collective identity.  Who are we?  And how does what we create, nurture, or destroy tell us about who we are?  What do we manifest when we go through an identity crisis?  Chaos.  What do we manifest when we act with self-awareness?  Order.

Either way, the sea of change is rocky right now.  But do we want to be in the thick of the storm with no place to land, or do we want to be on the ship with all of the other sailors who might just make it out alive with pieces to float upon if the ship wrecks?  I think I'll take my chance on the ship, and maybe we'll all have some good stories to share after this storm blows over.

Love and Gratitude,

Felina Lune Kavi

P.S.  If you haven’t read the information I posted in June 2012 about the first of these squares as well as the general information about what these alignments mean, please check out this article from June 2012.  Here you will find the overview of the squares and their relation to the Fool’s Tower of the tarot.  If you also want a refresher on the themes of the 2nd and 3rd squares, you can find them at these links: September 2012 and May 2013.