Libra Ingress 2010

 

At the equinox (twice a year) the Earth receives

equal amounts of Sun exposure north and south

diagram credit: Przemyslaw 'Blueshade' Idzkiewicz'

Of the two very different astrological events taking place in barely over a breath of cosmic time, this is the second - the Libra ingress which takes place at 3:09 am (UT/+0) on September 23rd.

The other is a Full Moon which will come to fruition also on the 23rd (at 9:17am - UT/+0). It will get it's own blog post tomorrow.

Why two posts? Well...when we talk Sun versus Moon cycles, one is a month long (the Moon) and the other  (the Sun's) spans an entire year - which because of Earth's inclination (tilt) gives us our seasons.

They're just different things. Metaphysically, the Moon is about life in reflection. Or as a reaction. The Moon symbolizes our moods and daily emotional experiences which over time shape our memory and thus our (4th house/Cancer) basis for habits and 'ingrained' attitudes. Against this we have the Sun as the Big Picture and life's overview. The Sun isn't about what happens to us - it's all about what we can make happen!

Every year we get two days - the Aries and Libra equinoxes - when planet Earth is aligned as above. On those two days the planet receives equal exposure north and south. Zodiacally, this planetary "equilibrium" is well mirrored adeptly in the symbol of Libra as the scales...

 Libra's scales from 'Astrologie Strernzeichen Kalendar' (1512)

courtesy of Deutsch Fotohek

....but achieving such balance in everyday life? Not so easy. Everyday life... as noted...is lunar and reactive, meaning the life we generally react to is a feeling, not  intellectual affair.

Still...one can hope, right? I mean, for a little balance and beauty of the give-and-take, gracious cause-effect kind.

Ah yes, a lovely thought. But true?

Let's get real - which astrologically means, let's take a look at that ingress chart!

 Libra Ingress 2010

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Okay! Like the June Cancer ingress, this season's chart also features a kite, the bottom section of which is outlined above by a green triangle (that would be a grand trine)...with yellow sextiles reaching up from that triangle towards the top of the chart, completing the picture of the kite.

With that kite are also two t-squares. The first one (which is a sort of "double" t-square) is constructed by the Sun (in white at "3 o'clock") in opposition to Uranus, Jupiter and Moon (at the left in red, yellow and white)...with the 'hurdle' to get past being drawn in not one, but two ways at the top of the chart.

A t-square as helpfully shown by a road sign. 

The first hurdle is represented by Pluto: our emotional need to transform. What this represents is our need to get past our entrenched emotional attitudes. In Capricorn, this Pluto is telling us that we need to get over thinking things are going to work the way they used to work.

The second way hurdle pictured by this first t-square is to Ceres, symbol of nurturance and the harvest. Having gotten a lot of positive 'oh, I get it now!' emails after posting a blog on Ceres not long ago, I refer you there for nuances and details (link). But the nitty-gritty here is that we need to think and be thoughtful, but we can't rely on things being sweet, nice and comfy.

Evidently life is not going to be a picnic this season, capiche?

Now for a few significant differences between this ingress and that of last June. First off all, the need to allow ourselves not to know while doing anyway as pictured then by Neptune/Chiron is gone. So is the Moon/Pallas "knowing feelings" thing.

And yes, this really is one of those bad cosmic jokes: we were supposed to know our feelings (Moon/Pallas) in order to be transformed (Pluto) through the experience of those feelings?

Well, yes. And over the last season we have all have met up with various situations which have confronted us with needing to know who we are and why we are that person holding those values and emotional points of view (Moon/Pallas). And through those 'self-confrontations,' so we have grown.

At least in hard-core realizations about ourselves. Have we changed? Maybe. But at least we know more. So now at least we have the option to change - knowing why we are changing, and maybe why it would be a good idea to go through all that effort.

But we aren't home free just yet! Now with Moon-Jupiter-Uranus in late Pisces, now comes a season in which we are all aiming to get past difficulties to a point where we really understand how to be who we are effectively.

To get there we still have to get past that issue of wanting to hold onto the 'old way' or the 'old standard' or some old thought of how things work or how we're going to be able to operate. As we move through Libra, there will be a lot of talk, discussion, posing, posturing and proposals.

But as we get into October (and reach Libra's emotional degrees) things are going to get sticky. From there on, we will really begin to feel things get dicier. So expect more intensity. More pressure. A greater sense of need.

As the Sun moves into Scorpio (sign of "fixed water") those who have been kidding themselves or trying to get by on some hope, wish or level of personal denial will find themselves skating on thinner and thinner ice. And once we hit fiery Sagittarius, expect fireworks which may just light up your world - or explode it. 

It all depends on how you have treated this issue of getting past the difference between new and old and the nice (comfy, desirable) versus the workable, pragmatic and honest.

Obviously there are possible Grinch moments to be faced. And how to handle it...? Not so easy to figure out, evidently - that kid we discussed has the South Node at the tail (at the bottom of the chart). Normally we would cheer this, as the South Node is the 'easy thing.' 

But apparently not. Grand trines are all about what's easy to do and tough to get away from. And without belaboring a long list of planets and asteroids involved in this particular grand trine (including House, Hera, Mars, Venus, TNO Deucalion and Black Moon Lilith) let's just say that this grand trine says we'd rather check out or get rejected and continue doing things our own way rather than make changes.

Oh yes...and while we're doing this, everyone else is going to be doing the same thing and everything is going to get harder and less operative because the time really has come for changing!

Really!

 The drawing of an early kite design as submitted to

the US Patent office. In astrological terms, the long 'arms'

of the kite and its central cross bar comprise the three sides

of a grand trine, the short lengths from the trine to the kite's

top represent what we aim to achieve.

A couple of notes are pretty specific and worth mentioning. That 'finding the moral way' TNO Deucalion thing, because it's combined with Mars and Venus both being in Scorpio...that's a sure sign of 'desirous conflicts,' especially once Venus goes retrograde in October. We all have our wants and much is being wanted of us. (link to blog on Mars in Scorpio)

It's a recipe for feeling put-upon, people. And when we don't feel put-upon, we're likely to feel deprived, resentful, rejected or just drained. The medium may vary. Some of us will find ourselves confronted financially. For others, it'll be emotions. Or time. Or commitments. Or you'll find yourself in power/control struggles. Or situations which arouse deep-seated feelings of vulnerability or rejection.

Do I hear a big groan? Sorry. Even sorrier, I'm here to say there's more to this seasonal Libran tale. Going back to that astro-rule that when you see a kite you use the symbol at it's tail to 'steer' by, we see two little situational challenges. 

For one, this South Node is in Cancer. And that means it's ruled by the Moon. You know, that Moon sitting with Jupiter and Uranus which only begins to play in our favor once we get over the 'I want to do what I've been doing' thing? 

And one other issue with this South Node: it's conjunct Pandora. You remember the mythic, problematic Pandora, right? The girl who opens the box, freeing all the ills of the world?

'

Pandora by Arthur Rackham (1867-1939)

But there is some good news here - regarding Pandora, I mean. The good news is that the story of Pandora centers in the tale of the girl, not the ills she releases into the world. So we ask ourselves...why did Pandora open that box? Theoretically, if we can control those tendencies, we can not make her mistake, right?

Good thinking. So the answer to the question is that Pandora was curious. She also had been told not to open the box, which as we all know made opening it all but irresistible. She was also by nature impatient. Pandora wasn't happy about how long it was going to take her to grow up. She wanted a 'quick fix,' which if you think about it, is very much like the urge associated with the South Node - a symbol of wanting to do the 'easy thing.'

So the key would seem to be not giving in to our basic case of hard headed immature impatience. To not cut corners. To no opt for the short form, easy way out or indulgence in 'take a pill' mentality.

And lest you think you can just 'handle' this and be done with it? Uh...evidently not, as South Node/Pandora is the starting point for the last t-square in this Libra ingress, a t-square which has a 6 Libra Saturn as its hurdle.

Hopefully you get that all three of these planetary pictures are celestially crocheted together. And with this last figure asking us to take (Saturn) responsibility for ourselves (so as to benefit from life) it pays to remember that to get through this season we need to adopt a basic mantra: who I am, others react to. 

And that is pretty basic, no? 

But one more comment before we go. A seasonal ingress chart is all about it's Sun. And this Sun is at 0 Libra conjunct the giant Black Hole known as M87 and Atropos, Greek Fate of fated 'endings.'

 M87 as photographed by Caltech

So in essence, as we realize that who we are and how we act generates reactions from others and the doors of opportunity which open to and for us, we will need to face cutting things out and eliminating certain aspects of our behavior. Or maybe our attitude.

Or maybe even some of our alliances, associations or ways of relating to certain people. 

If we do, as we do, other things will happen. New doors will open but as happens in life, probably not until others are firmly closed. Atropos-Sun-Black Hole means you may feel at times like you're looking into the abyss. Or that the world seems like some foreign place. Or that you can see a whole new set of possibilities which you might have never thought of before, but which might not just work for you...but which might actually be fun.

Any of these moments may be a very good thing. Sometimes seeing the abyss makes us grateful for what we have. Sometimes seeing the world anew or as if we were a 'stranger' allows us to wipe our slate clean and tackle something totally different with no expectations, no preconceptions and that sort of cheerful innocence which everyone finds so very attractive. 

Will you be able to let go to have your chance at the new? Or will you require things to be taken out of your hands, forcing you to scramble?

The choice is yours. But choice is a good thing, no? So have a great ingress, and well balanced equinox!