Ixion by Hendrick Gottzius (1558-1617)
By definition, we all want what we want. And what we want, we tend to ‘do something about.’
What does that mean? Well, that depends. It depends on on how much we want something, and how much of a rush we’re in – for whatever reason.
But maybe most of all, such things all start with (and therefore depend on) our ability to separate the concept of want from the reality of need.
There’s a lot of blurring of these terms in our modern day world, and it’s not all that hard to argue that a lot of our world’s difficulties, through mental and emotional high ways and forked tongue lie ways – come back to the mental slight-of-mind which causes us to substitute the word need when the reality is actually want.
When we internalize this whole dynamic, what we end up with are questions which tend to be referred to as ‘entitlement.’
Entitlement too – as a term – has a whole lot of meanings. At it’s base, the term means I’m entitled to…with the real question being what entitles you?
If the answer is because I NEED it (i.e., to function, to survive) that’s one thing.
If the answer is I WANT it…then while it may be worthwhile to ask what’s the drive behind that ‘want.’ Do you want it because you ‘just want it’? We call that ‘desire.’ Do you think you’ll be “less” or be thought of as a lesser being if you don’t ‘keep up with so-and-so’? That’s either competitiveness or some form of insecurity compensation.
If the answer is that you feel entitled because you were promised something, that again has several formats. You may have earned it (pay-for-work) or you may have been guaranteed it.
All of these – all of them – CAN be represented by Ixion, though the person who truly needs in order to survive, that person (or that request) is hardly ever Ixion-worthy…though ‘worthy’ is a really questionable term to use when discussing Ixion.
Why? Because for all the many interesting quirks to the Ixion story (of which there are many and yes, here’s the LINK to the article on Ixion…) the thing which Ixion distills down to as a sticky wicket of human personality is that edge of carnal selfishness…the ability to be narcissistic which each of us is endowed with at our very first breath.
Just to be clear here…there’s ‘clinical grade’ narcissism and a whole lot of other ‘attentive to self’ urges which while a bit narcissistic by nature are neither damaging nor undermining.
'All is Vanity' by C Allan Gilbert
The same traits which when polarized into grandiosity of such proportions that feeding your own need or supporting your own position (which may or may not change on a dime and which may or may not be ludicrous, self-defeating or damaging to others) which is generally indicative of Narcissism (big ‘n’ – clinical grade) are when scaled back, part of healthy self-esteem.
In other words, life is yet again all about proportion.
And that is probably one of the big concepts of the day.
There’s a lot of excess going around, in this world, and virtually sanctified by everything we see and meet up with, from big business to entertainment to members of various clergies who see fit to judge people, to advertising and much, much else.
Ixion is going on station. It’s about to go retrograde. What we see going ‘wrong’ in the world around us, we’re soon going to realize is alive and eating away at our innards. It’s making us into people we would loathe on sight if we met us on the street or heard us talking in the next room.
And the reason why this Ixion station is going to be tougher, rougher and more testy and testing than most is because as Ixion enters its station/retrograde zone (that being the two days before and the two days after Ixion’s actual turn to retrograde motion)…as Ixion goes to do this, Mercury is also entering the shadow of its upcoming (Aries) retrograde.
A Relief of Mercury (Hermes) in Stuttgart
photo credit: Ecelan (2009)
Mercury = thought, communication, conveyance, mentality.
Aries = Being, Self, Ego, Physicality. The “I” of it all.
Mercury in Aries is a mentally willful time. So we should expect to be more willful – more want-ful. And we are likely to also be more sensitive to provocation.
Like I said, a testy and testing time.
And just to make it all more prosaic, this would also be the day when Photographica actually makes its turn into direct motion. As it’s doing so in Cancer, this adds a little more emotional sensitivity to the mix.
That could be good, no? Uh – yes, it could!
Then again, it could be really, really bad! Snippy, moody, yelling angry bad!
And yet…given that Photographica is ‘the image’ (reputation, the look of the thing, etc.) …there is this odd sort of chance that this may well be when someone gets a clear perspective on themselves – for good or ill!
Okay…with Ixion in the mix? Chances are that’s less good than ill! But there’s always that chance that someone will see they’ve been being not merely the south end of the horse but what gets left behind by said behind of said horse…
And maybe from such…uh…dungish behavior they will create (ummm….) fertilizer, helping things grow and come to flower?
Stranger things have happened, you know…
A couple of things to note here. We tend to use two day station allowances because that seems a nice safe number to use. So that means Ixion will be going retrograde on March 18th. The real reason to think this through is because given Photographica’s going direct today, that means Photographica’s station extends through these next few days while Ixion’s station effects are also in force.
Considering that Neptune is at 29 degrees, there’s already a lot of delusional grandeur (i.e., dreams of) going around. And with Mercury’s shadow adding a subtle sense of urgency to the mix (as if we needed that?) one would expect – at the very least! – a lot of hyperbolic talk and not just a little talking through various hats coming from people and outlets which just neeeed (read: want) attention of whatever type.
And here we thought Uranus moving into Aries was the end of the "fun" (I'm being decidedly sarcastic...!) for the month?
NOT HARDLY.
(And yes, you can quote me on that one. It's a cinch this month will yet astonish, astound and - unfortunately - dismay!)
Though…with Ixion, is it really fun, or just fun in the short run? Do we act in haste and repent in leisure?
Or do we just be aware of our wants and sort them out from our needs and deal with each thing in proper, prioritized turn?
This is a moment when we need to all keep an eye on our own motives and values as well as those of others. It's as easy for us to slide over our own bounds as it is for world events to seem out of hand or beyond believing.
Perspective is necessary and not now anyone's strongest suit. Looking away isn't the answer. Giving yourself allowance to 'do' because someone else is 'doing too' isn't the answer.
What is the answer is, of course, entirely individual. But considering the story of Ixion and the implication created by the potential for all of us to act as Ixion, awareness and holding ourselves to our own standards seems particularly important at the moment, lest we end up being run over by a wheel of fortune set in motion by our own choices.
As we move towards and into a station/retrograde, what we do in the world or what we will yet encounter or experience in ourselves (that being the retrograde part) or in our lives.
An excellent example of stations is how England's royal family announced the engagement of Prince William as Jupiter moved into its 'station window' last November. In that case Jupiter was in retrograde and coming to its station to go direct - which is more or less what we have here with Photographica (the 'image,' our image of self or our image of something/someone else). Jupiter is 'expansion,' and in the case of a wedding announcement the information, the knowledge (Jupiter) that a wedding is going to take place is announced.
The decision to get married - which obviously preceded that announcement - took place under Jupiter retrograde, the internal phase of Jupiterian growth and expansion of life. With Jupiter going direct just after the announcement, we have the actual wedding being in the future and a worldly event.
Here we have Photographica going direct; we will yet see the image of something or an existent image being "Ixionized." That event will affect us and our conception of Ixion - reflective (as a lesson of what we shouldn't do) or entitled (not caring) in the days ahead.
Photographica going direct now may promise many things in many a life, to be sure. But that it's station ends at Ixion's station/retrograde does seem to image something consequential about to happen.
And quickly, too.
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