The 14 Libra Lunar Eclipse

A crop circle as photographed by Sphoenixee in April 2007 here stands in to image

Sabian symbol number 195 (for 14 Libra) which describes this influence as 'Circular Paths,'

a reference to life's cycles and - perhaps more important to the emotionality of a lunar

eclipse - the issue described by astrologer/philosopher Dane Rudhyar with regards to

how life's cycles can either be boring or peaceful depending on where we are in our own

life and whether our lives are being lived openly and honestly not just with others, but

with and within our Self.

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Lunar eclipses promote and elicit our feelings. They mark times when things happen to lift our hearts and dash our hopes, depending on where they are presented in a chart.

Your chart, that would be.

And yet eclipses have their own nature - which with this eclipse begins with the idea that the ‘Moon side’ of this dynamic is occurring in Libra a sign all about how we feel about others and how they feel about us, and what that may mean about us or the fact that we even know them.

That this is a lunar eclipse also says that it’s a specialized Full Moon (just as a solar eclipse is a specialized form of a New Moon) - an idea which tells us that something is being “fully highlighted” with a special sort of ‘eclipse nuance’ which may highlight someone else, may highlight some act or attitude we have taken (or are thinking of taking with regards to others), or which may put some sort of emotion-promoting spotlight on something which is either being offered or asked of us - as individuals or a group.

With this being a Full Moon and the Moon itself in Libra, the Sun is in Aries - at 14 Aries, to be precise. And 14 Aries, as a degree, is known for something of a ‘hands off’ perspective which may simply be the signature of an observer, the habit of a loner, the sign that someone either isn’t involved or doesn’t feel they can be involved ... or some other form of separation or being ‘walled off’ or split off from some whole which may be what is being emotionally responded to by the eclipse, or which may be part of how the eclipse itself manifests - by separating, by putting up some sort of barrier which separates, defines or provides boundaries, by making it plain that being too close to something (or someone) is ... well, not always a positive.

Or maybe just not a place to be working from when we want to do things un-emotionally.

Lunar Eclipse at 14 Libra (glyph chart)

April 4, 2015 - 12 07 (UT +0) - Aries Wheel (Location Not Specific)

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Lunar Eclipse at 14 Libra (text chart)

April 4, 2015 - 12 07 (UT +0) - Aries Wheel (Location Not Specific)

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But to count the signs and signals here, just to have a lunar eclipse speaks to a relationship, whether that’s between our Self and a job, a person, our finances, that squirrel which won’t let your garden alone or some life challenge ... it is our relationships to that which is the essence of the lunar eclipse because eclipses are a function of the nodes.

And then we add the ‘Libra’ note, making our heightened lunar eclipse relationship to ‘it’ a Libra thing, that being what makes this eclipse more or less about our relationship to relationships... and whatever (or whether) our situation is vis-à-vis relationships and our ability to relate, our style of relating and how that is working for (or against) us in this moment ... to which we add the specific 14 Libra ‘flavoring,’ which in this case has to do with whether we are or aren’t separated in/from others in how we relate to people in general, or maybe just in one relationship or in how the world views relationships and the need or issue of relating to one another - and whether we have the capacity to know anyone at all ... ever ... and what that may say about us.

A diagram showing the positions of Sun, Moon and Earth

during solar and lunar eclipses, respectively

(diagram credit: Tomruen)

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All this comes to us through a lunar eclipse - which as shown above is the ‘opposite’ of a solar eclipse in that with the solar eclipse the Moon comes between the Earth and Sun, where with a lunar eclipse it’s the Earth which stands between Sun and Moon, casting an ‘Earthly’ shadow on all things lunar.

And that’s the point. Where with a solar eclipse something in or about (the Moon) everyday life is eliminated or ‘blacks out’ something which we have held as part of our (Sun) life or conception of life. Solar eclipses force us to look at life a different way because we aren’t seeing ... or can’t see as much of it as we did, or we’re seeing something totally differently than we did only a short time ago.

That process - the solar eclipse process - speaks to a long-term evolution of our life which evolves from the moment of the eclipse: something changes, and we reorient our lives to account for those changes.

But with a lunar eclipse, it is Earth - us - which is ‘casting a shadow’ on something (Moon) personal and feeling oriented. Being that this lunar eclipse is occurring in Libra, that ‘personal’ thing may involve any of the “Moon things” (women, memory, money, home, childhood, culture) ... and then again, it may involve any of the Libra qualities of being about relationships or manifesting through a relationship, and by ‘relationship’ we mean any kind of relationship - that you have with a lover, a parent, a co-worker, your dog, your homework, your car, your ambitions, your relationships to time, life and even Divinity. Where an actual other person is involved, we tend to think the lunar eclipse is about ‘them,’ but it seldom is - it’s our eclipse and therefore the issue is our feelings ... how we feel about them, or what they’re going through, what they’ve said or done to us, with regards to us - or something like that. And then there’s the fact that some of us (a good number of us) will be coming into this lunar eclipse with some kind of strange-feeling matter already knocking about in the back rooms of our psyche due to the solar eclipse which just blew through a few Piscean circuits as of March 20th.

- link to post -

Solar Eclipse Scheat:

Flight against Insight

So a lot of us are all stirred up right now. We probably won’t be admitting it openly, or wearing our uncertainties on our sleeves (as it’s said), but our world and each one of us living in it (which is to say on it) is coming to this week already very much in feeling mode.

And then comes the eclipse, a lunar eclipse which has the shadow of the Earth - our shadow - being cast on the Moon, that thing which metaphysically symbolizes and manifests as all those things which matter so much: family, home, traditions, feelings, memories, values ... and yes, that thing we associate so much with that list, money.

A map of the shadow being cast by the April 4, 2015

lunar eclipse (diagram credit: NASA-JPL) 

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The Moon represents money - in particular, business money: the money which cycles through business and which is used to build businesses - money as a resource and the measure of the flow (or lack thereof) of success ... that success being defined by each one of us individually through our feelings.

You know, the astrological Moon.

But here - with the image of the lunar eclipse, we are given to know that the Moon ... our feelings ... are under a bit of current stress which astrologers would refer to as a t-square.

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The difficulty here - and thus what those of us who run into problems or challenges now may well encounter - is the idea that there is something (represented here by Pluto/Vega) which is challenging us, standing in our way or existing as an issue we have to get over (past, around, etc.).

If we don’t get past it, given how t-squares work, then we’re going to end up back where we started - in that feeling puddle of ours, or that puddle of feelings we really were wanting to put to good use (or possibly put behind).

And why would we be going through anything - what’s the ‘object’ here? As imaged by the t-square’s end point (Uranus, Sun, Alpheratz and Psyche at 14 Aries) we want to ‘be alone’ ... or possibly be left alone to do what we need/want/intend to do ... or considering 14 Libra as Aries in its emotionally determined/determinative mode, there’s something which we want to be free to be or get done, whether for our own sake, its own sake, or for the sake of someone else.

So what is the problem? The ‘hurdle’ here being presented as Pluto-Vega, the Pluto part of the equation points to some change or transformative quality which has already had some sort of effect, which is part of that which is holding us back or as a reference to something which needs to happen. Pluto is doing the transiting, which on one level makes Pluto’s energetic (and that of transformation) the quality which is being applied to that which already exists (that being the Vega quotient) - and let us not forget how obsessive and controlling Pluto energies often tend to be.

Will we be obsessed with something we believe - or something about others? Or some goal we think entirely necessary?

Is what we are so obsessed with even real?

And if our issue is control or controlling others, is that sensible to ask - or even possible? Is the control we think so necessary about protecting others, or do they refer to some feeling we feel threatened by to the degree that we can’t even deal with our Self, resorting instead to trying to control others so we don’t have to be responsible for our own feelings and fears?

Plus when we get to Vega, then we’re talking about a fixed star which has long stood for all which holds appeal, that which holds sway through loyalty, allegiance or respect and all which exudes charisma, which persuades or is persuasive.

Together, these symbols stand for things which need to change, things long respected which we may have lost respect for, things loved with that love now lost ... and on a somewhat different trajectory, that which we either hold out to others (or) adopt as our own because they seem so attractive and charismatic ... or because they seem to hold or embody a promise of appealing changes yet to come. And when we add in what lore says about the degree this conjunction is occurring in (15 Capricorn), then we get a picture of something or someone (or perhaps some group, organization or other entity) which has ... or which has had (which may be the issue now)... a distinct leaning towards softness or passivity - and how that may be what is now changing.

Or which has already changed.

Or which needs to change.

The quality of Vega means some will resist change because they found what came before so pleasant. 

But was it really pleasant? Or was it pleasant on one side because the cost (responsibility, effort, ignorance, fear(s), etcetera) of such pleasant things were unkindly ... even unfairly shifted onto others?

However this works, some fleck or nuance of this eclipse will color every life. But that doesn’t mean we’re all going to be feeling this eclipse to the same degree (no pun intended!). With the lunar eclipse occurring at 14 Libra, some of us will be affected and some won’t be affected - just as some of us have been more-rather-than-less affected by what the 29 Pisces solar eclipse may have revealed about some rather unacceptable lack(s) of clarity we have on our Self.

How did we get there? We’ve been so careful, and yet somehow we have ended up not wanting to know how unrealistic and ultimately unkind to our Self or our own cause we have ended up being.

(Oh yes - and if you’re over say ... age twenty, that may be ‘... we have ended up being again.’)

This eclipse (like any eclipse) occurs in all charts. But it isn’t going to necessarily be focal in every chart, just as the recent solar eclipse hit some like a gentle raindrop and others like a tsunami. Some of us will have been born with charts which are sensitive to the solar eclipse, some to the lunar eclipse, and some to both - which bespeaks the greatest sensitivity of all.

But I probably don’t need to tell you that. If your chart answers closely to both eclipses, life is already on the move, whether your body and psyche are keeping up with it (yet) or not...  

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... and with the eclipse occurring this Saturday, we would also be quite reasonable to think the whole of this week is likely to be one when we feel our own sensitivity more acutely than other times.

Again, ‘they’ (or ‘that’) may promote, provoke, support or be asking or prompting us to let our feelings out, most of all so that we can learn what those feelings are and learn from our feelings as they stand.

Why do we feel the way we do? Where do our feelings come from? Why do we hold the (Moon/lunar) values that we hold and do they reflect us as (Moon/Sun) individuals, or are we saying what we’re saying or feeling what we’re feeling because we think our (lunar nodes) society or family or culture requires of us ... or even urges us <wink> to think or act or be a given way.

Neither one is bad, mind you - it’s just evidently important that we know what is what and where things come from, for reasons which are individual to you and your life.

But understanding and knowing do figure large at this time, as do ethics and the ability or availability or willingness to learn, teach and share ideas - all of which reflects the fact that Jupiter (symbol of enlargement, expansion) is already on station at 12 Leo, having taken up temporary residence in said degree on March 24th, bringing much about the stations of this past couple of weeks into big, bold, bas relief sort of focus - which would fit a Jupiterian 'bigger, grander ... even to the point of being aggrandized' sort of theme.

-link to post-

Nemesis, Ixion, Sisyphus, Pholus

 - link to post -

Niobe Direct

The combination produced much which was obviously overblown and some things which deserved being enlarged upon or ‘made bigger’ so that they could be looked at in detail. And that quality of ‘making things larger,’ whether that’s a benefit or negative, that basic ‘Jupiter essence’ will continue to and through Jupiter’s station-direct moment on April 8th.

And that means things may well become VERY emotional over the weekend of April 4th, since that would have lunar eclipse effects overlaying and combining with the standard Jupiter manifestation, that being one of ‘enlarging’ which - given the lunar eclipse - could get out of hand. This can be a wonderful and joyous combination. Then again, it could represent the toppling of not just some personal house of cards, but things which we have been working towards for many a moon.

Plus there’s also Mars and Venus in Taurus against Mercury in Aries to think about. Mercury in Aries is thought and communication sitting in the oppositional sign to the nexus of all the emotional hoo-ha of the moment.

Is that helpful? Does this mean that as the lunar eclipse moves through the Jupiter quotient is going to help us see (read: learn) something we didn’t see - or maybe didn’t want to know or see, but will benefit from in the long run? Is this the moment when some opportunity we have dreamed of (or even better, which has been beyond our wildest dreams) suddenly reveals itself as possible? Or is this a moment when life breaks out in rashes, rash arguments and other forms of arguably irritating things?

That Venus and Mars are themselves not in aspect to the eclipse makes this less intimately personal. And with Mercury at 8 Aries, Mercury isn’t quite in opposition to the eclipse itself (the heart of the matter). Yet because the lunar nodes (which are part of eclipse mechanics) are at 10 Aries and 10 Libra, Mercury at 10 Aries does conjunct the South Node which in turn is conjunct the Sun.

Mercury-South Node is wanting to keep one’s opinion or position ... and/or the fact that not changing or not ‘caring’ about input (or whatever else) is easier to opt for than other options.

It does not, however, guarantee success. The ‘should’ side of the lunar nodes is the North (not South) Node, and the North Node is positioned at 10 Libra, a degree which speaks of a kind of individuality, ‘aloneness’ or distinction/differentiation (from other things or people) which more often than not follows a difficult path for reasons which are not always apparent. From this comes a subjective perspective based on those difficulties, and that perspective, if not corrected, may well become a motivation for, or means of limitation either on the part of the native (the individual) or someone else.

That all of this is happening just in advance of Jupiter’s station also suggests that this ‘nesting’ of events is a form of double-play. In other words, while the lunar eclipse is setting up the circumstances we will take into Jupiter’s station, Jupiter’s moving towards/into that station represents all of those life forces which are bringing so many things to light, some of which we are responding, acting on or reacting to with the ‘high water’ energy timed by the eclipse.

And let’s also remember how things which happen going into a station (we’re talking about Jupiter here) are things which are yet to happen - which with Jupiter could be a lot of things, especially if your natal chart ‘answers’ to the degree 12 Leo.

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Just to run through the basics, an eclipse (or planetary station, if you’re also thinking about Jupiter) which conjuncts your chart generally manifests as feeling totally involved with the matters described by the eclipse on a personal basis. This is you having to decide something about your life.

If the eclipse (or station) is in opposition to something in your chart, the qualities or area(s) of life described by that natal object as it appears in your chart in a given house ...something about such matters will into focus in such a way as to create a sense of challenge - or perhaps reward.

Squares and lunar eclipses seldom mix well, as what results may be exciting, if also frustrating (to some degree) at the very same time. Maintaining the balance and proper sense of determination which squares requires of us isn’t going to be the easiest thing to do at the time of any lunar eclipse, and one which is ‘backed’ (or influenced) by Jupiter will make it that much easier (or more likely) to go overboard or to think too positively or too negatively.

The inconjunct and semi-sextile are likely to follow this pattern to a certain degree, though inconjuncts are aspects which ask us to adjust something - be it our outlook, methodology, timing, perspective ... and semi-sextiles are aspects which test our ability to get past our own ego about something even if we don’t want to.

And for those with some axis point, planet, node or dwarf planet in semi-sextile aspect to the lunar eclipse, no - you probably don’t want to!

That would be the given. Figuring out whether you need to get past that and change ... or whether you need to simply get past your annoyance and remain classy and cool ... that’s another thing.

Eclipses (or stations) which trine positions in your natal chart generally refer to things which are already in progress, or which you may want to think about changing (or building on) but which aren’t yet at a place where you can make some move. Sometimes this can be problematic, particularly where the effect of the trine means you can’t cut and run on some unproductive situation. But the other side holds true as well, so if you’re in a good place doing what you know you should be doing in life, a trine from a lunar eclipse - uproar or no uproar - will generally end with little if anything changed.

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With all of that said and mused over, there’s one other ‘message’ which comes with this eclipse, that being simply the astronomical notice that as the Moon reaches Full (at the lunar eclipse) the first phase of the March 20th solar eclipse is now closed out. That doesn’t mean that ‘the worst is over’ or anything quite as definite as that as the 29 Pisces solar eclipse - being in Pisces - operates basically on an internal, super-personal (not to mention individual) level in opening us to ourselves so we can let go of that which is truly no longer appropriate (or perhaps necessary) in favor of becoming who we are supposed to be at this point in our life so as to stay on track with who we were ultimately born to be.

Solar eclipses evolve over a full three years, often starting off with very intense periods riddled with various events, few of which ultimately have any direct bearing on where we will end up going, or who we are destined to become. Lunar eclipses on the other hand, tend to be very immediate, prompt and timely, with events of the moment - though emotionally important - being more ‘situational’ than intrinsically personal, if you will.

And maybe even more importantly, the evolution of lunar eclipses is swift. This one - the events or situations which are associated with it, in other words - may ‘spill over’ into other things of lengthier duration because of this 14 Libra eclipse’s proximity to Jupiter’s station, but most lunar eclipses mark events and moments which after a space of just three months become part of the fabric of our memory.

Still, they can be exciting. And this one - in particular - would seem to hold the potential for great inner personal discovery.

Will we like what we find?
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Pluto square Mars:December 28–January 1

New Year's fireworks in Copenhagen's Tivoli Garden

(photo credit: Stig Nygaard, January 2009)

Described by some as one of the colder degrees in the zodiac, 11 Capricorn has something of a questionable vibe all about using 'the other' with an emphasis on the sheer ability to use them. Or not.

It is a choice.

The whole aura of 11 Capricorn is about a ‘disregard’ for the consequences, which means that in some charts we could see this degree highlighted and it would represent someone into self harm. Taken from there into a more public realm 11 Capricorn makes us think about the way some people are users and some people seem into being used.

And yet…as with all astrological images, much of this is in how you take it, and how you use the choice implied – remembering this isn’t necessarily about you are someone else, it could be how you treat yourself. Or your abilities. Or preferences. Or  intelligence, feelings…whatever.

Starting on December 28, Mars will move past fixed star Diadem – the “crowning glory.” As that happens, we will be moving past some period of ‘crowning’ opportunity or activity or interactivity (to which most of us will say 'ah yes, Christmas...') in which, because this is Mars-the-Initiator we’re talking about(‘Mars the Initiator’ sounds like a superhero, doesn’t it?)…there may be something ‘initiated’ during this time which carries on, which develops, which lingers as a thought, conversation, project, effort, etc.

So that may carry on. The rest? Not so much.

Mars - which has just begun a super-long transit of Libra (I call 8 months instead of around 2 super-long!) – reaches 11 Libra on December 28th. And once it reaches 11 Libra, that’s Mars in square to 11 Capricorn, a sign that we are either going to be testing or tested in some area which involves responsibility, dedication and a large amount of conscious and measured effort on our part WHILE it also takes into account the wants, needs, likes and opinions of others.

And guess what’s at 11 Capricorn about the time Mars gets to 11 Libra? Pluto. So with Mars in Libra and Pluto in 11 Capricorn, we either have a recipe for freaky explosions and disruptions or transformations which just possibly may allow us to do what we’ve been wanting to do all along.

Or…yes…realize that we don’t really WANT that thing we thought we wanted all that much. Mars is bringing a lot of unusual ‘underbelly’ notions in from 10 Libra, a combination which focuses on seeing things we don’t normally see. They can be in others…or maybe this is the moment when we really see who we are. Or see ‘for ourselves’ what something is – or isn’t.

Mars/Pluto contacts are often associated with ‘flare ups’ too – whether physical, emotional or some old argument which gets re-hashed yet again. Infections, burns, old injuries and hurts (physical or emotional) may now get triggered.

Or healed. With Klotho (beginnings) at 11 Capricorn and Kallisto at 12 Capricorn, we may now begin to see how to ‘get from here to there’ in our life – whatever that means to you at the moment.

But given that Kallisto is part of this grouping, we’re going to have to ‘last’ it through to get where we really want to go. There are no easy solutions here.

(Wherever ‘here’ is in your life at the moment.)

This combination is also known for heated conflicts – though in the end, what is often found is that the one who strikes out did so out of a desire not to have to face their own truths – not really because the other side had been so awful. There’s a whole aura of wanting to manipulate a situation or dynamic here which must tends to be done with bias but which only really works if it’s done out of a sense of fair play. And since this Mars/Pluto square is happening with Sun conjunct Mercury (in Capricorn) things are going to be clear enough.

Maybe even “too clear.”

Or clearly something we don’t want to have to work or wait for!

To all of the above, one answer: 'you may have to.' And given that this is the wonderful world of Capricorn we're talking about, all the pluses and minuses are going to occur (in particular) if, when, and where we aren’t comfortable with our standing in the world.

This period may ask us to get past or ‘over’ a few things. And to accept forms of valid or mature perspective we don’t feel familiar with yet. (Or which we would rather not have to listen to.)

And yet...this Sun/Mercury link can also represent the heart and soul of seeing what's what. It's a classic indication for travel (which makes sense on December 29th of any year) and, given how there's a lighthearted, sort of fun-loving quality to this vibe, this may well be a wonderful time for friends as well as a valuable time in which to make connections or socialize with others not in a direct "work mode"...but more in that sense of getting to know people so that you can work together.

Or...yes...to see whether you might want to or not.

Planet Mars - specifically, the Acidalla Mare Erythraeum face of Mars as

photographed by NASA's Global Surveyor.

(photo credit: NASA-JPL)

This Mars square Pluto can be a powerful sign of ‘pulling one’s Self together’ - when you ready yourself for some big new effort (which getting through New Years just may be for you!). It may signal events which really let you know that it's time something needs to happen.
However…as Sun/Mercury will have moved into 9 Capricorn as Mars 'perfects' the square on December 30th...? That means we have to care about ever more energy being triggered as the Moon joins the Capricorn lineup at around 6 p.m. UT/+0 time.

This is about when the positive separates from iffy. Why? Well, 9 Capricorn is a very plus-or-minus degree in that it tends to reward the search for wisdom and utterly defeat (and sometimes punish) the search for purely material or selfish gain…which if you think of the Sun and Mercury igniting this celestial fuse on New Years Eve conjures up all sorts of scenarios.

And then there is the fact that this entire contemplation is the last ‘astrological act’ of 2013…and that it ends in a 10 Capricorn New Moon on New Year’s Day.

Technically, this means that however much we may be looking ahead and looking to change something or looking to do something – with all of that, we are also conscious (at least emotionally conscious) of letting this or that ‘thing’ go. That time, that place, that person, that ideal, that period of your life, that limitation, that hope….

…oh yes – and that year, since we’re letting go of 2013 in favor of 2014. But obviously this isn’t just about turning 2013 into 2014. So we all can expect a healthy measure of internal talking (to ourselves or with ourselves about what we think of things) with a lot of reflecting going on.

And hey…if we decide to make a few changes – isn’t that one of the traditional fun things to do as one calendar gets traded out for another?

But first, New Year’s Eve – have a great one!
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News Flash: Saturn Synchonicity

 Images of Saturn supplied by the European Southern

Observatory (VISIR) and Trevor Barny of Australia. Taken on

January 19 (2011) they show signs of what has now become

a huge storm in Saturn's northern hemisphere. More to the

astrological point however, January 19th was when Saturn

stood at 17 Libra - the degree it would go retrograde in on

January 26th. Saturn returns to 17 Libra in September, 2011.

A NASA bulletin for May 19th announced a major 'super storm' occurring on the planet Saturn.

May 19th is also the date when Saturn moves into 10 degrees of Libra, the degree it will now hold at until it goes direct on June 13th.

As NASA addresses itself to storms on Saturn and President Obama speaks to the storms of violence and influence here on Earth...it's not that one or the other is so 'right' but that they are both expressing the ability to observe, reflect and comment on serious (Saturnine) events.

With a Gemini solar eclipse just ahead, 'breaking down' and examining what we know, what we don't know and what our limits to know are would seem yet another good way to see ourselves through these times which so obviously require change from us, and to our perceptions.

Want to read the rest of the NASA article? Here's the LINK.

Or just paste... http://science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/2011/19may_saturnstorm/ ....into your browser.

May’s Scorpio Full Moon: Milking Issues at Hand

 The Full Moon of May 30, 1999 as it appeared over the

Upper Patuxent River in Maryland as photographed

by Mary Hollinger, NODC biologist (NOAA)

Going back to the concept that in some traditions the May Full Moon is known as the ‘Milk Moon,’ there’s good cause to look at this edition of the Full Moon and wonder about all sorts of things.

With the Sun at 26 Taurus opposition Moon at 26 Scorpio there’s an automatic and built-in quality here of ‘my life being dependent on yours.’ Now this can be good…or it can be bad. What it isn’t likely to be at this point is subtle.

For one, the Sun (the realistic point of view) is exactly conjunct fixed star Algol, and Algol has a rather nasty reputation. But is it really nasty?

That would sort of be the all-around question now, as many things reach an emotional (Full Moon) high tide in the wake of Atropos and TNO Orcus both having done a station turn during this past week. We’ve all come to endings of some type. Either we can’t continue or are simply refusing to continue on in the same way. Some of us have come to a point where we’re simply ‘out’ of something, be it a job, a home, patience, hope, options, a relationship, energy… something!

All this is indicated by Atropos (the end or extent of the thing) having gone retrograde. That Atropos has gone retrograde in Saturn means we are faced with changing our structural relationship to our life or circumstance. Something is over. Something has changed. It’s no longer apt to continue on as we have.

After Atropos went retrograde, TNO Orcus went direct in the functionality-oriented sign of Virgo. Matters of health or healthy obligation – and the limits and personal responsibility which do and don’t go with Virgo’s health/healthy obligation are being thrust in our face as a matter of consequence. That would be the Orcus part. We are now having to deal with some consequence.

And with Damocles having gone retrograde in Aquarius just yesterday (May 16th) in Aquarius, there’s money, social standing, and a very real consequence additional consequence which goes with thinking we don’t have to deal with realistic boundaries and efforts.

Oops! Life isn’t as simple as we thought. We don’t get the skim the cream off the top of this Milk Moon and walk away sweet and innocent.

And that ‘why’ in why we don’t get to simply la-dee-dah off and about our life is indicated by Algol. Spoken of as a star which embodies the ‘feminine,’ Algol is NOT about gender – it’s about our ability to respond to live and contain ourselves…(here we add in the Taurus part) both productively and in a manner which benefits us not just today, but all the way down the line into our many tomorrows.

In metaphysics, ‘masculine’ is not male: it’s the assertive, pro-active quality so long associated with males under the now-waning Pisces Age. Thus the ‘feminine’ is our ability to receive, react, contain, gather resources for later use/understanding – from which we respond appropriately…without harming our reputation, our future, and the lives (reputations, futures) of anyone else around us.

Part of the difficulty of the time we live in is because the Pisces Age divided things emotionally, where the Aquarian Age (into which we are now moving) divides things through the idea of the thing. At the beginning of any Age things are very rough…people are being asked to change their dance step half way through life and humans are notoriously not-so-good at giving up what they already know, life and (rather importantly!) have learned how to profit from.

And yet it must be done. So to the extent that we are imbedded and committed to a given way of being or prioritizing, this is a testing – and quite possibly, testy – time. But again…does it have to be?

Located in the constellation of Perseus, Algol is a star the Greeks identified with the head of Medusa. And you know what that Medusa head is all about, right?

No, Medusa's head is not some fearful evil which freezes us in our tracks, turning us to stone. Or rather it is, but that’s not because the evil is so evil – it’s because we’re afraid of dealing with the truth…a truth stripped of all manipulations, emotions and other frilly considerations.

LINK to Feature Article on MEDUSA

As for Perseus, he was one of those very busy Greek heroes, though he didn’t get into the hero business much on purpose. After killing Medusa, he cuts off her head and uses it’s scariness to first rescue fair maiden Andromeda from a sea monster (Medusa/scary truth versus monster of oceanic emotion? No contest!)…then he goes home to save his mom from a really bad relationship with a local king – the guy who sent Perseus out to kill Medusa in the first place.

Andromeda, Perseus and Cetus by Titian

So the real issue which is at the heart of things now – at the moment of the Full Moon is whether what we want (the Moon in Scorpio)…and what we’ve done over the past few weeks since the May 3rd New Moon kicked this round of lunar activity off…did we overstep our bounds? Did we do something to sour or curdle our milk of human kindness or that others feel towards us?

In most cases, the events of a Full Moon come to crest then abate. Sure, there are grumbles…or happy dances off through flowering fields of joy which happen in the waning wake of the Full Moon’s ‘high lighting’ of emotional or emotion-driven issues.

But this month? Well…we’ve been talking about those solar eclipses about to happen, right? On top of that (or as part of what is actually a rather grand unfurling of cycles and events)…now we have Saturn moving back into 10 Libra as of this moment.

What’s that to you?

Well, 10 Libra is the degree Saturn will go direct at on June 13th. Yes, I said JUNE. That means from now until June 13th, Saturn is just going to be sitting at 10 Libra, sort of poised there…inching backwards ever-so-slowly in retrograde motion. And that, dear friends, is something most of us are going to experience as an increased focus on something very particular in our life.

What will that be, you may ask? I can’t tell you that – that would be all about where your natal Saturn lies, it’s general natal chart nature and where Libra sits in your chart. Does Libra even have a house cusp to call it its own? And since we’re talking about Libra, how’s your Venus quotient lately? How well are you doing in that ‘making things happen the way I want so that I’m comfy and happy and feeling safe, secure, loved and satisfied’ life department?

For those who react to this with a big ‘thumbs up,’ this next couple of months will provide big shifts and like as not, some big ‘moments’ of advancing your personal agenda.

But for those who are having problems – particularly in the (Libra) relationship arena, be that personal or in the broader sense such as at work or as concerns all the me-versus-the-world stuff?

And let's not forget...retrograde cycles are just that: cycles. As Saturn went retrograde last January in the wake of a Capricorn solar eclipse, along came all sorts of (very Capricorn) rebellion against overly (i.e. negative) Saturnine governments.

 Saturn's double aurorae as photographed by

the Hubble Space Telescope

photo credit: NASA/JPL (Jan 2009)

Also, let’s be real here: once Saturn goes direct in mid-June it’s not like it hops into some celestial Porsche and goes zooming off on its orbital path! No! Saturn is going to be in 10 Libra until July 8th. And that means that we are now very officially in the ‘dual eclipse’ zone. So figure everything that comes up now – and all the issues which get raised internally (inside you) between now and when Saturn goes direct…these are part of what is going to be refocused or remade over the next several months (big time!) and the next three years (in a more evolutionary sense) …all of which we know because there are not just one, but two solar eclipses on the way!

And yes, there is one Lunar Eclipse, which may be another headache for those whose charts are formulated as to be hit by emotional doings of the 24 degrees of Sagittarius kind. Principal positions to look for would be anything positioned between 19 and 29 Sagittarius, Pisces, Virgo or Gemini and/or between 22 and 26 Cancer and/or Taurus.

But more on that when the time comes. Lunar Eclipses tend to go off like alarm clocks, so let’s talk about that later.

Meanwhile, a few background notes on 10 Libra before we close for the day. By definition, Libra is a public sign – it’s not just about us or our ‘in my body, mind or soul’ sort of thing. Libra is also an air sign – so it’s the idea of the thing which gets us as much as anything, and being that 10 Libra is an emotional sign it’s the idea of the emotions you may experience because of others…what they do/don’t do. What they say/don’t say. What allowances they give you or deny you.

Traditional lore speaks of this degree being one of isolation which forces a person to ‘sort through things’ as they battle their own feelings of vulnerability, failure or inferiority. Good comes of this process through thinking things through not entirely personally, but in terms of others who have gone through similar situations: the process involved and how experiences of the moment can provide motivation to improve things not only for yourself, but everyone else too. By holding to this more universal course instead of simply focusing on the ‘me’ of it all, people are able to in time emerge with a new found respect bolstered by others for their humanity and integrity rather than their personal aims and personality.

The universal quality cited here is rather reminiscent of Damocles having gone retrograde just yesterday in social, societal Aquarius. And that word ‘integrity’? That’s one of the hallmark concepts which life will focus on as we hit and move past June’s 11 Gemini solar eclipse.

And let’s not forget that Atropos/Orcus thing. Atropos speaks to things which have ended. Or are over…at least in the form or format they were before.

And Orcus? Orcus is an ‘out of the blue’ sort of consequence you could not have predicted. Oh, it was out there…but you wouldn’t think it could be true until it comes true.

Sometimes that’s very, very good….and sometimes that’s very, very bad. All that depends on you – more specifically, how well you understand others around you and in your greater world. The values you have risked now prove to be not just yours, but theirs too.

How do they feel about you? 

That would be the message of the moment – even if all you get is total, complete and utter silence.