You Were Searching ... Quick Takes

In this Hubble photo of Cygnus, one of its stars is revealed to be in a late-phase

evolutionary stage where the star sheds its atmosphere into space

(photo credit: ESA, NASA, July 2010)

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Before anything else happens to sidetrack or otherwise interrupt us, here are a few ‘quick takes’ on more of your search terms ...

CIRCE AND BYBLIS THE SAME

 

Circe Invidiosa by John William Waterhouse (1892)

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The astrological Circe and Byblis - not to mention the mythic characters - are absolutely not the same. Circe refers to something which in entrancing or affecting us ‘reduces’ us to ‘less than human’ in the thinking department (i.e., less in ‘command’ of our sensibilities) where Byblis refers to a choice we make knowing it is is unpopular or possibly considered ‘unthinkable,’ whether by us, someone else, or even society.

Astrological effects associated with these points (as with all points) can take many forms, but to give an example, while Circe could stand for our state of inebriation or drunkenness if we drink too much, the more Byblis version might involve someone trying to get someone else drunk for the direct purpose of taking advantage of them in some way.

So no ... Circe and Byblis are not the same (and I’m pretty sure both of the mythic personages involved would be happy to hear it!)

SPICA RISING IN NATAL CHART

 

The Moon, Mars, Venus and Spica all photographed from Nashville, Tennessee

(photo credit: Goddard Space Flight Center)

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‘Brilliance’ is often the astro-shorthand used for Spica, though the star otherwise known as Alpha Virgo stands for a lot more than just the ability to hit some nail on the head (mentally or otherwise). Traditionally seen as the sheaf of wheat carried in the hand of the goddess of earthly fertility, Spica is most often used astrologically as a reference to our ability to achieve a ‘great harvest’ of any kind. 

Apart from that, this star can also indicate where we understand some specific need or how to get something done - or where we find it easy to be supportive (or to get support) with regards to efforts which may simply be productive, but which may also be educational and some sort of investment in the growth of some process or method which in itself is ‘brilliant’ enough to open doors going forward.

With that much said however, Spica - which is currently positioned at 24 Libra - is conjunct Arcturus (which is also currently at 24 Libra), making it a bit hard to tell the effects of these two stars apart. Arcturus is part of an entirely different constellation (Bootes), and in being known for daring and the willingness to try something new/unproven could be seen as contributing a lot of positives if positioned with Spica at anyone’s Ascendant.

But let’s be real - this could just indicate someone who thinks they’re ‘all that and a bag of chips’ (as the saying goes) when they really aren’t. Beyond that, with both of these points being in Libra, the position and condition of Venus in the chart is going to say a lot about whether this sort of Spica (plus Arcturus) will tend to manifest as a plus or a source of frustration and disappointment.

HIS EROS IN ARIES

HER PSYCHE IN SAGITTARIUS

L'Amour by Julien de Parme (1762)

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I’m guessing this term came up somehow in relationship to something I wrote here at the blog...or at least that the Searcher in question here found the following astroPPM post while trying to find their answers:

-link to post-

Eros and Psyche: Falling in Love

With Our Mind

But with all due respect to the question (and questioner), the critical interplay between Eros and Psyche and that being referred to astrologically in the post and probably in the original myth is about the relationship of Eros to Psyche in our OWN mind, not between our mind and someone else’s.

Is there some effect if Eros aspects Psyche between two people? Probably yes. Positive aspects might well point to areas of commonalty and ‘attraction’ (human, not necessarily romantic or sexual) with negative aspects indicating ways or areas of relating to one another where one person doesn’t feel understood or cared about.

Everyone who is interested in astrology eventually (or habitually) looks up things like this between charts. It’s part of our human desire to be loved, accepted and appreciated. But when looking at these two points, before we look at them between charts, we should look at them in our own as ultimately our ability to love anyone depends on a level of trust in our Self which allows us to risk loss, rejection or relationship failure.

UNASPECTED VENUS IN CAPRICORN

 

Planet Venus as photographed by the Hubble Telescope on January 24, 1995

(photo credit: NASA-JPL)

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Any time a planet is unaspected (that is, unaspected when using the list of standard Ptolemaic aspects: conjunction, sextile, square, trine and opposition) using standard orbs, it’s effects are said to be ‘purely’ expressive of the combination of house, sign and planet - which since we’re not working with a chart, can only be sign and planet here.

By itself, Venus in Capricorn tends to be a stabilizing quotient or a desire to achieve a level of calm - or that which the native finds calming. Texts often refer to this combination as ‘aimed’ at material wealth, but someone who simply focuses on quality, the qualities of something or ‘having the best’ would also fit Venus-plus-Capricorn with the term ‘best’ being  purely individual, and thus subject to individual preference, quirks and all the other human oddities.

Given that Capricorn is ruled by Saturn, depending on what house this combination appears in (and the disposition of the planet ruling the sign on the cusp of that house), Venus in Capricorn may manifest as professionalism, austerity, cool or distant attitudes, or dignity which ranges from the simple to the  diplomatic.

This is not one of Venus’ most effusive or carefree positions, but Venus in Capricorn (if well placed in the chart, of course) is known for manifesting as loyalty, security and a general appreciation for history, traditions, culture and the rights of others.

On occasion, this combination could also indicate great paths of fortune. Such a native is in (or comes to be) in a position where life is or becomes ‘pre-determined’ on some level. Unaspected, Venus in Capricorn can also indicate a tendency to make choices and do things only for material or personal gain.

22 DEGREES SCORPIO

 

An Arizona bark scorpion photographed under black light by Bryce Alexander (2008)

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This is not considered one of Scorpio’s finer degree moments. Known for insufficient control of various kinds, 22 Scorpio is one of those degrees which is evidently given to us so that we can see what lack of control does, and how over-impulsiveness and the tendency to just ‘go off’ about things is hardly ever useful.

(And yes, hopefully deal with whatever is causing us to act that way.)

Relationships to the Moon (and its associated sign of Cancer) are said to be important whenever this degree is active, or activated in a chart. Those who run afoul of their own nature under this influence are also fairly well known for lacking the emotional will (except under duress) to deal with the problems they’ve caused.

The Sabian Symbol for this degree (22 Scorpio being read as Sabian phase 233) ‘A rabbit metamorphoses into a nature spirit’ gives us some idea about what the issue is here through its reference to an ‘animal’ (our more instinctive and less thought-driven self) which transforms into something of a ‘higher’ nature - one imagines through the nature and process which is so very Scorpio. And since purging us of mortal toxins (most of which originate at an emotional and/or instinctive level) is part of Scorpio’s business, difficulties associated with 22 Scorpio probably point to personal/internal (read: vulnerability or fear) issues we either haven’t yet recognized or aren’t (as yet) prepared to take in hand and deal with.
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Venus in Virgo / Hidalgo Direct

The Harvesters by Pieter Bruegel the Elder

(dated 1565, Metropolitan Museum of Art,  courtesy of Google Art Project)
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There’s something about Venus in Virgo falling just after Venus in Leo which sometimes seems like a grand cosmic joke. After all, there we are getting into rhythm (with ourselves) while putting on some sort of ‘game face’ with which we dazzle others.

Yes, even when we’re bad, grumpy and entirely ticked off, under Venus in Leo it’s at least a good performance - and in time, as Venus sails through Leo’s degrees we get to where we can see how it all works (whatever ‘it’ is).

Good or bad, at least we ‘grok’ it, to borrow from Heinlein’s ‘Stranger in a Strange Land.’ (Sometimes you just have to use the word that works, regardless of its official language status or lack thereof.)

And then Venus moves into Virgo - a sign transiting Venus’s normally beneficial and responsive energies often fail to produce even a teaspoon of joy in. Still, it’s not like that’s any surprise - or at least it shouldn’t be as Venus is about 'the reward.' The response... and yes, hopefully the applause (with a side of ‘oooh’ and ‘aaah’).

And Virgo? Virgo is about the effort. The work. The responsibility.

So when we put the two together we get Virgo starring in the role as a zodiacal ‘do it right’ authority against Venus’ aim to win, celebrate and relax, enjoy and receive accolades at leisure - which is something of a problem as leisure is something of a dirty word where Virgo is concerned. As gracious and lovely as transiting Venus in Pisces can be (Venus being exalted in Pisces), that’s pretty much the level of discomfort, annoyance and sense of unwanted obligation Venus in Virgo may be able to rise to over the next several weeks once Venus enters Virgo on September 5th at 5:08 in the evening UT/+0 time.

Then we add in the fact that this particular Venus-Virgo ingress is happening not just in the wake of Ixion and Pholus going direct (see previous post) but also just as asteroid Hidalgo enters its two-day allowance to go on station - and then direct - come Sunday the 7th.

That station will be at 26 Sagittarius, a degree which because it is between 20 and 29 of the sign is never only a personal thing. Yes, you may have all sorts of feelings and opinions on any given subject. (In fact, being that this is Sagittarius we’re talking about, that could actually be plural feelings and plural subjects.) But whatever you’re focused on or involved in, you’re not alone in the doing, thinking, feeling, focusing, opinion-rendering or trying to figure out how to fix something which has gone wrong or which has gotten out of hand (both these last being common Sagittarian trials even without Ixion and Pholus' station effects).

As for the specifics of the degree, 26 Sagittarius is known for providing (and needing) a good deal of flexibility. This is a degree which shifts and changes and presents different ‘faces’ or factor in just about every situation and case. Sometimes such malleability is useful - as in the case of an actor or a dancer exercising their craft (26 Sagittarius is known for skill of movement, though not necessarily grace). But then... despite the fact that this degree can sometimes manifest as with warmth, friendship and outstanding loyalty, Sagittarius can also come off with a shiftless and untrustworthy edge which makes others think every new move, idea or opinion is some attempt to manipulate others (or some situation) for personal gain or aggrandizement.

And just to make it more exciting, all of these plus and minus factors may be being true and on display at the very same time.

With Hidalgo going direct at this degree the emphasis is on the manner, mannerisms or the manners (as in politeness) with which we do something. So people may change what they’re doing during these days and going forward. Or we many, any of us, realize that while our goal may be perfectly respectable, how we’re going about it (or even how we’re acting as we’re going about it) is creating problems for our Self, others...or even for that aim we seem to be so bent on.

Another thought to consider is that up until October 2010, 26 Sagittarius had been the degree of the Milky Way’s Galactic Center for many a plural decade. So anyone born before October 2010 has this point (depending on where and how it is positioned in that chart) as an active position and thus a ‘place’ where they need to ‘give’ to the world (this being a ‘beyond global’ point, this isn’t to ‘others’ but to our world/planet) in order to pass some personal “gateway,” said gateway being indicated in any given chart by the position, sign and aspects to that big red planet known as Jupiter.

Remembering that as Venus enters Virgo it will conjunct royal fixed star Regulus, this is a time to be careful about assertions and assertiveness as Regulus promises (eventual or long-term) success only where one’s actions are not affected by the spirit or intent of revenge - which in this case may be a challenging consideration as Orcus (things which have been decided or which can no longer be changed) will be positioned at 5 Virgo as Venus enters Virgo’s earthy, concrete world of the nitty-gritty, the fact of the matter and getting our hands dirty either in the cause or because we weren’t so very ethical (or careful...maybe even thorough) about some cause.

Moreover, sitting right behind Venus (at 29 emphatic degrees of Leo) is asteroid Germania - an object which refers to strength of determination and the will to ‘continue the fight’ which here is shown as being left behind as the need for real results (Venus) ends imagining what could be in favor of dealing with what is... and what is going to become of things if necessities - no matter how much we do or don’t like them - aren’t tackled, dealt with and taken care of properly and in detail... hopefully without getting bogged down in details along the way.

Virgo is about getting it right and making things work in a healthy and productive way. Venus meanwhile, is all about results and ‘the result’ - that which we pull or hold close, and which by its yea and nay, by its functionality or lack of same tells us whether we’re heading in the right direction or whether we’re just embedded in some ‘old way of doing things’ which we like or which feels comfortable to us, but which in reality is no longer useful to our present or foreseeable future.

Venus will be in Virgo until September 29th (UT/+0 time) offering us an opportunity to become more grounded, more realistic and more productive in who we are as people...and in what it means to be human. During the weeks ahead we’re likely to feel vulnerable, but that doesn’t mean we need to (or should) lower our standards or exclude anything (or anyone) others who don’t feel, act or live like us.

Virgo’s keywords... health, work, service... are all about responsibility: that we have to our Self (mind and body), that we have to be a contributor and not just a ‘taker’ in this world, and to all which we acknowledge about being human when we determine what needs to be done while simultaneously requiring of ourselves that we remember how ‘life’ is not just our life, but one we share with every being, plant and creature on this planet.

Even with Planet Earth itself.
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Dateblog: August 2014

 August 2014

For various real life reasons (yes, something else has happened) this isn't going to be my longest post. Nor are these my finest diagrams, I would say. But I did want to offer some general August information...so here it is:

The above is a chart by sign which plainly shows that Leo (in yellow) is the dominant sign of the month. This speaks to a huge amount of energy and a 'brilliance' of mind (or mindset) which can accomplish great things providing others and the 'greater concern' beyond that which we are focused on as what we want/want to accomplish...providing all that is taken into proper account.

Towards the end of the month as the Sun and Mercury move into Virgo (on the 23rd and 15th, respectively) cooler thoughts (heads, solutions, reasoning) will begin to prevail, but with Jupiter in Leo there is likely to be a lot of 'stepping out' and much stepping over boundaries and limitations simply because some urge is so potent as to blind us to greater and factual issues, much as we might be 'blinded' if the Sun was in our eyes.

The are likely to be some very sun-struck (star-struck, arrogantly stubborn) folks around this month. As the Full Moon occurs in late Aquarius leading into the peak of the annual Perseid meteor shower insights will happen and they may well mark the 'sparking' of new ideas, insights and choices which are made as a consequence of same. 

Ceres having entered Scorpio (see previous post) and Juno entering Cancer speak to a shift of energetics; where the 'idea' [Juno/Gemini] of the thing had been a premier  basis of consideration, now a more 'domestic' [Juno/Cancer] and less theory-idea-concept-driven orientation comes on line, like as not because sufficient negatives have been encountered (that being Vesta in Libra) that we are each driven to consider some sort of basic, very (Cancerian) personal...even primal sense of [Vesta] cost.

With the Virgo New Moon a more practical and pragmatic phase of operation/operational necessity is implied, with the close association of this New Moon to Sedna's station-retrograde in late Taurus posing 'how to...' questions precisely where our mentality has failed to mature - a fact which conjures up all sorts of ingrained possibilities.

Will all of this happen succinctly and politely? Looking at the month in terms of element, that answer would seem to be solidly and resoundingly 'no.'

(And yes I'm sorry I have to say that, but truth is truth.)

 
In the above diagram, red is fire, blue is water, that greenish brown is earth and...oh yes, there IS a little air in this amalgamation, courtesy of the Full Moon.

But remember, the Full Moon is a moment. So we can expect a moment of clarity around the Full Moon (plus Perseids), but the rest of the month - while possibly very productive, creative, delightful and developmental - is likely to manifest in a manner which is very fervent, either in pursuit of a [fire] goal or aim...or through some wholly [water] feeling effort or emotionally-driven choice.

There is a possibility for much knee-jerk activity here - the response by rote, the retreat into your own 'world' because dealing with others rains on your parade. This is also a recipe for real world (as opposed to theoretical) considerations.

In other words, just saying the words isn't likely to cut it this month. It's one of those 'the proof is in the pudding' periods with a lot of hungry and expectant folks poised at the universal table.

Which begs the question: what are we about to serve up to others and be served by life in kind?
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Virgo’s New Moon Cycle: Processing Our Process

Australia's Great Barrier Reef

(photo credit: Steve Evans, January 2011)

Sometimes I sit and stare at something like a New Moon and wonder what it means – which in this case would be the meaning of a Virgo New Moon in the midst of everything else going on. Then it hit me…and the answer was very simple and utterly direct.

This New Moon is all about how we are going about doing our ‘Virgo work.’ It’s about how we’re operating in life and in our own lives and what we’re working to purify or make more functional…efficient…healthy…and maybe in sync with everything which is currently going on while supporting our greater, long term goals.

And we’re doing all this with Pholus and Ixion having just gone direct. We’re also doing it after entering the intense if glorious realm of dissolving structures and breaking down of walls which stand between us and the what we need to have in place which is so very typical of the eight weeks (or so) which precedes any given Solar Eclipse.

Not to mention one in Scorpio – a sign all about being transformed through our relationship with others and with our world, a sign which tests our ability…particularly our emotional ability to get past our own fears and insecurities in the search for what we think is really our dream, our goal, our nirvana, our bliss.

This Virgo New Moon is also occurring just as the South Node (the easy way, the comfortable thing) is leaving conjunctive orb with fixed star Menkar. And since Menkar is another version of what’s easy to do – aka the thing which doesn’t require confrontation – for the past few months or so, in spite of all we all have been doing what we needed to do.

Or rather, we’ve endured all the ancillary emotionality. And the feelings which have arisen during carrying on with what we had in our minds as the thing we needed to be focused on. That has been our South Node/Menkar combination.

With Menkar at 14 Taurus, the South Node (which if you remember cycles backwards) came into five degrees of conjunctive orb  - which is to say it hit 19 Taurus - back in February, 2013…which if you remember is also the month when Saturn went retrograde at 11 Scorpio, the degree of the incoming eclipse.

- link to -

Saturn station/retrograde (Part One)

- link to -

Saturn station/retrograde (Part Two)

During the months since, that South Node/Menkar combination became something of a bedrock – ‘the thing we could trust’ as a good place to invest our time and effort. It was Taurean. It was comfortable. We felt like we knew what we were doing and we knew that by putting our time and effort there we were going to at least be on an even keel with ourselves…we wouldn’t suffer any big nicks or cracks in the self-esteem department.

And let’s be real…humans are all about self-worth, self-esteem and self-respect, am I right? Those are the stuff of satisfaction, whether we’re rich or poor, whether we’re young or old, whether we’re single or married…whatever.

Let’s also note that this Virgo New Moon? It’s at 13 Virgo. And 13 Virgo is about as trine to 14 Taurus as you can get. What’s one measly degree in the life of a trine?

But that’s sort of the point. Back in February – as the South Node slid back into 19 Taurus and thus came into orb-of-conjunction with Menkar, we had a Full Moon at 7 Virgo. And now, as Menkar is being left behind by the South Node, we’re getting a New Moon at 13 Virgo.

Full Moons are about fulfillment and often about having finished a ‘phase’ of some project or effort. So back in February, some long term (Saturn) effort was getting ready to be completed and between then and now we have gone through the finishing of that and the ‘making good on the easy part’ (South Node) in the sense that nodes always refer to our relationship to others and our world.

And now the South Node is leaving Menkar as we get this Virgo New Moon at a moment when we are entering the thickening energetics of the approaching Scorpio Solar Eclipse…and all this is happening just as we’ve experienced Pholus (the little things which can cut us so deeply) and Ixion (the need to recognize others in this world for who and what they are) have gone direct – in Sagittarius.

In short, this is a recipe for finding out what is and isn’t working in our lives, with the the Virgo Moon part of this equation being the what we’re responsible for in terms for doing well…or not doing at all…or doing too much of, to the exclusion of other things which perhaps need doing – or with so much focus on the nuances that we forget the bigger picture.

The South Node actually conjuncted with Menkar on July 10th – just after a New Moon at 16 Cancer, a degree Jupiter will be rolling over during this very lunar month. If you remember, the grand trine in water (which began as Saturn-Jupiter-Neptune) came online in late June – at June 26th, with Jupiter’s ingress of Cancer. That began a steady increase in the emotional ‘water level’ in life. Some of us felt more emotional. Situations and conversations turned towards being about emotions and got emotionally provocative. People were ‘getting to us’ and things were ringing bells which got us to thinking about how driven we all are by our experiences…our feelings…our need to have or avoid emotionality.

Then as July 10th and the exactness of conjunction slid on by then came Uranus’s station. and Eris’ station – both of which amounted to some ‘emotional turbulence.’ There was energy breaking out like chicken pox all over the place – and yes, it did all seem highly contagious.

The combination of Uranus and Eris is dramatic. So there was a lot of drama and some dramatic things were revealed to us, through us and in our greater world. Life kept throwing curve balls at us, shaking us up in order to get us to consider what our capacities really are. And what they should be.

Critical, lyrical, esoteric and practical, with Mars having entered Cancer back on June 13 (UT/+0 time) we were all caught in our various crucibles, the lid of which was tightly locked against our ability to do anything but cope or stew or steam or vent. And that we did. And by doing that – through all that has taken and through all that we have been forced us to grapple with we have become both more imbedded in who we really are even if we are perhaps still papered with layers of situations, habits, choices and ideas which everyone seems to get cluttered up with.

You’d think we were all city walls getting pasted over with handbills or something.

Sedna’s turn to retrograde ushered in the first of a series of grand sextiles represented the fusion of cause/effect energies which will either bury us in the effort to be who we are or in the denial that we are indeed individual…or that we need to individualize and stop living on hype, dreams, or some sense that ‘it will just be okay’ if we just hold on.

- link to -

Sedna goes retrograde in Taurus

That ‘holding on’ thing would seem to be part of the Virgo New Moon question…what should we hold on to? What should we let go of? Wherever Virgo is concerned it’s easy to opt for the habitual and the traditional. It’s often simpler to go along with what everybody wants and not assert ourselves.

But that isn’t always going to get us where we want to go in life. We can be the nicest person in the world and still fail ourselves – miserably. We do and do and help and support and then feel utterly empty because we have been supporting those who don’t support us in turn.

This isn’t about money. (Though yes, money has it’s place as a life necessity.) Sometimes the simple ‘thank you’ or care-worn smile of appreciation is the greatest validation in the world.

What this comes down to is the idea that Virgo is the last of the zodiac’s first six signs. In Virgo, we come to the end of the ‘inner’ or personal development sequence and face the ‘emergence’ of our abilities and drives and the nature of our motivations.

How so?

The answer there lies simply in the idea that Virgo ends at the Descendant. Though it’s technically the first degree of Libra (0 Libra), the Descendant point would be that place that Virgo leads to…and thus, where airy, theoretical Libra is the IDEA of cause effect, it’s really what we do which counts. It’s who we’re being and what we put out there into the world which turns cause into effect.

And that’s the Virgo dynamic.

So when we talk about Sedna in association with a Virgo New Moon, at some level that speaks to the whole of this next month …the lunar ‘phasing’ of our days…as being about the grace of our individuality or uniqueness, or the trials we face in becoming unique and in discovering what needs to happen and who we need to be in order to be able to be effective (i.e., get the desired ‘effect’ from our causal energy) in our daily life. In the whole of our life. In this world.

That makes this month a month about figuring out where we excel and where we lack…what we need to work on and what we need to have some (Sedna) perspective on.

Hopefully a “matured” perspective, yes – which would mean one which is ready…or on the way to being ready…to go out into the world or take us out into the world.

As for the (Pholus)Ixion part of this process? That – and the South Node leaving Menkar’s aura would seem to be about the ‘revealing’ of where improvements need to be made. Where we tend to time and time again trip ourselves up as the thing which can be worked on during this month’s lunation – or even uncovered, probably in the midst of some Virgoan process which has us focused on being just attentive enough that we’re able to ‘see what we’re doing.’

Or maybe not doing.

Or doing which gets us in a bind.

No matter what year it is, no matter what degree the Virgo New Moon occurs at, it’s basic theme is always more or less ‘get to work.’ Or ‘its time to make things work.’ Whatever house of your natal chart Virgo falls on, that’s the prime area of concern – call it the “arena” in which you’ll be experiencing day to day events. Then we add on the house containing Mercury (as ruler of Virgo) and the sign Mercury is in. Both of these will – especially in terms of their aspect to Virgo give you a hint as to what you’ll be facing.

The basic idea here is this: if the New Moon is Virgoan, the underlying issue is functionality which supports the  greater purpose. That idea is why the thing which is so easy with Virgos (or with anything Virgo) – which is to get totally caught up in the nuances and details to such an extent that you never get the ‘greater purpose’ taken care of (at least not in a purposeful manner!) is a negative.

 As the second of the zodiac's earth signs, Virgo involves the process

of working on what we are or "have" (be that tangible or in terms of ideas

or abilities) and bringing that to the point where it can be put out into a

(Libra) world - at which point it will build towards our (Capricorn) aims.

I know, I know…I’ve heard all the defenses about exactness and thoroughness and doing your best and all that. And it’s all fine. It’s just that when we talk Virgo, there is always some point where the forest gets lost for the over-focusing on this tree…and that tree..and that other tree over there…and lookie at that cute little tree beside the brook…

There’s a famous slightly crude expression which goes like this: when you’re up to your ass in alligators it’s hard to remember that the prime directive was to drain the swamp.

Understandable? Yes. Alligators are serious critters. I did a very long film location down in Louisiana and when one of the locals said ‘don’t stand too near that shore, there’s a ‘gator in the water’ I moved my city girl self to higher ground. (Don’t ask me why I wore nice white heels out to the swamp, either – I just did.)

Virgo asks us to have priorities, to utilize those priorities in doing our best but to always remember that getting the job done is the point of all things.

Sometimes just what the job is becomes the problem, yes. Is it the thing at hand…? Or is it the working on yourself to be a better person doing that job at hand?

That would be the avenue of discovery we travel every time we encounter the Virgo brand.

As for 13 Virgo, that’s a degree about owning one’s own choices. And yes, maybe with the New Moon taking place in the wake of Ixion’s station, owning up to how or why (or what) you’ve done in the manner you’ve done it is now important. Ixion often points to those things we do because we like doing them…or because we simply like doing them the way we like doing them in spite of the fact they don’t work.

Ixion…Virgo…yes, that might well be the case. And because of that, some of us will spend this month clinging to the notion that what we’re doing is okay when it isn’t and some of us will feel persecuted – even punished – for things we don’t seem to be able to get a handle on with regards to their incorrectness.

With Ixion (and Pholus) at 18 Sagittarius and the New Virgo Moon occurring at 13 Virgo, there is also a natural square in the works. That suggests that there is a building of (sorry to say) narcissistic energy at one pole of life’s possibilities with a building of momentum towards making good on your aims through self-discipline and thinking things through.

And with all this happening under the auspices of the incoming Solar Eclipse, we will suspect that there will be some separating of our ways. This is a natural time for changes and for things which have run their course to come to an end. In some cases – particularly at the moment with Ixion in the mix – denial of something may get peeled away or fall by the wayside.

With the North Node representing the situations and ‘relational dynamics’ sitting in Scorpio, something about our life is being eliminated or purified. Or maybe transformed, rehabilitated, denied or created through our relationships and how we relate or are caused to relate to our Self through life, our world and all the people in it.

Through all that we are guided to all we need to do and work on…and what we need to let go of, whether that’s in our life or about ourselves.

In light of which, all either goes well or we learn that we’re in for a major shift of reality yet to come.
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The Capricorn New Moon

The Moon at dawn

(Mike Lewinski, December 2012)

This little blog piece is being posted on January 10th at 1 a.m. Pacific Time (I'm in California). And as these words magically appear on a computer (or tablet or smart phone) near you, as discussed just yesterday (i.e., in the last post) Mercury is catching up with the Sun. It's within orb of conjuction...that being (for standard astrological purposes) defined as five degrees.

As is Sun/Mercury orb grows tighter, we all will tend to focus. Maybe over-focus. Sun/Mercury conjunctions are pretty much famous (even infamous) for their lack of perspective. With this one happening in Capricorn, the subject is reality and how things really are. For you that may mean 'how things really are as opposed to how I've been wishing they were, or thinking they were.' Or you may just be thinking about the whole of the world (or your world) situation.

Or one little thing may 'become' your whole world - at least for the moment.

One other thing happens on January 10th: Jupiter retrogrades back into 6 Gemini, the degree it will be in when Jupiter goes direct on January 30th.

After going direct, Jupiter will remain at 6 Gemini until February 19th.

So that's more than a month of Jupiter at 6 Gemini, a degree known for separation of mental church and state, (which is to say emotions and intellectuality) and a certain dispassionate perspective which CAN be very shallow or 'all surface, no depth' and CAN be very productive or very unproductive, depending on what you're doing.

All of this is part of the global ambiance which heralds the January New Moon, a New Moon which will occur on January 11th (UT/+0 time) at 21 Capricorn.

And the details certainly don't stop there - not even for a moment! For one, asteroid Atropos (endings) is going direct with this New Moon. And for another, asteroid Eos (instinct, ‘dawning’) is going retrograde with the New Moon.

As the Sun clocks the whole of the year and thus the greater ‘chapter of our life,’ so each lunar cycle (or ‘lunation’) marks a ‘phase’ in our life cycle. Call it a sequence or scene in the chapter of that ‘book of our life’…or lifetime, if you prefer.

This particular New Moon, being positioned at 21 Capricorn is about what we do in the world. It’s worldly in the sense that Capricorn directs us to understand how our life operates in the greater context of the world, and how that world affects us, sees us, limits us, will support us, operates, or maybe even judges us. Hence we come to the idea of Capricorn as our ‘status’ in the world. Or our ‘status’ as the world sees us (i.e., ‘social status’ and achievements).

By being a third decanate degree (that is, a degree in the last third of Capricorn as a sign), this New Moon speaks to things which are ‘out of our hands.’ They may have left our hands prior to now, or they may just be things which it would be useful for us to be aware of. Typically, third decanate degrees are all about reactions. Or input from others. In the Capricorn sense, this may be rules you need to follow. Or what you would need to do in order to take some idea or project to fruition. This could be critique on what you have done which may be just a reaction and then again may be an indicator that you really don’t know what you’re getting into!

Whatever that is, this New Moon begins a cycle which goes from New (in Capricorn) to Full (in Leo), which is similar to the December lunation in that it describes an 8th sign harmonic (counting Capricorn as “1” it’s eight signs from Capricorn to Leo).

This is a particularly interesting sort of 8th house harmonic as it would seem to offer opportunities to us where we can motivate or interest others, or where we can free ourselves up to do more by completing some sort of (Capricorn) task or process.

That Atropos is going direct here speaks to some ‘cut off’ or ‘stoppage’ which we have felt inside, which now we can do something about. This may be something you know needs to be stopped (as in, ‘cut that out!’) or maybe more literally – as we might see with budget cuts or even surgery. This could also be some sort of situation where in finishing some obligation, you get to get rid of “that” and therefore ‘cut off’ the amount of energy, money, time, or attention you’ve needed to devote to something.

With Leo as the “fulfillment” phase of this lunar cycle, the challenge is to free ourselves up while not cutting ourselves short just because we’re restless or bored or irritated or in some need of being ‘right’ or self aggrandizement. Those who do what they do for grandstanding purposes may get their moment in the spotlight, yes. But in the long run that’s not likely to play out…UNLESS you are dealing with something which could come to fruition by the end of this lunar cycle.

And we’ll call that date straight out of the lunar tables as February 10th.

 The sun begins to dawn over Jubilee Campus

(Mattbuck, January 2012)

Yes, there is a form of ‘put up or shut up!’ going on. Those who assert without being able to produce are going to lose not points of the moment, but respect if or where they try to ‘put one over’ on others this month.

And part of that goes to Eos. If you’re not familiar with Eos, you might want to read this…

Link to “EOS Direct: Instinct as Awareness” post

How well we deal with our own instincts is what is like as not the bottom line here. And that will prove true whether you’re the one giving someone the ‘go ahead’ or you’re the person wanting to prove your capacity.

Warning: there is a tendency to think you can do something which will work only because it fits your definition of “working.”

That’s a big Leo challenge. Any time we see Leo in any astrological equation the challenge is about perspective. Is it possible that how you see things may not take a broad enough set of ‘variations on a theme’ into account? Leo always asks us about whether we have conviction…against whether we’re right, with ‘rightness’ (in the Leo sense) being about our ability to see beyond our own nose, tastes, preferences or priorities.

This month’s themes and details, especially those which are colored by or affect us emotionally (lunar-ly, if you will) connect these outer and inner ‘dots.’ Are the world’s directions and directives working for us? Are our choices working in the worldly sense?

Eighth house/sign harmonic call on our power and bring out the weaknesses. The temptation is always…which here would be “on all sides”…to try to impose your will on others. There’s far more to be gained by recognizing where and how the priorities of others differ from yours, but…

Let’s face it. People like having their own way!

Unfortunately, that’s not the way to any lasting sense of victory – which would be the other side of eighth house/sign harmonics. The thing we don’t really want to have to consider (namely that we don’t know everything, may be insecure, aren’t always right and – shock of shock – that other people have different priorities, needs, preferences and likes)…understanding those things and investing the time and effort to find solutions which if nothing else work equally well (or equally badly, sometimes!) for all are what gains respect.

And when it comes to respect and eighth house/sign harmonics, that means power potential which will lead to greater opportunities in the long run.

The fact that so many lunar cycle are constructed along this New-to-Full eighth sign harmonic isn’t stressed enough, I think. But it’s well worth considering.

With Eos going retrograde in Virgo, our instincts are all about how well things work. And if they're healthy. Errors, ideas, recognitions may now 'dawn' on us...and inspire new instinctual understandings about how life works and why things are as they are.

On the other hand, Atropos, on the other hand, is going direct in Taurus - a sign all about security, most of all that security we need in order to life a productive and happy (healthy) life living inside our own skin.

Moreover, together with the New Moon, Atropos at 24 Taurus and Eos at 21 Virgo describe a grand trine - one which evidently points to areas of 'fluctuation,' testing and change.

  
That the New Moon is posed with Europa speaks of getting 'carried away'...Sedna-Atropos-South Node tells us that it's easy to stick to our own concerns, our own group, our own beliefs, our own priorities. It's also easy to move beyond them, and the private discussion about whether that's the right thing to do goes on. With Eos positioned so close to Sabine/Lust, we know that we have the capacity to hold ourselves (Sabine) apart, or to a worthy task, or perhaps that we feel held captive by some notion, some idea which may or may not be true. 

Remembering also that Venus has just moved into Capricorn (see the previous post for info on that) tells us that this is a time which favors the pragmatic and the practical. This is a time when focusing on the Big Picture and long-term goals, aims and situational dynamics, developments or issues is prime emotional territory. We’re likely to see and hear of a lot of purges and changes this lunar (January/February) month. People are recognizing the difference between ‘good enough’ and truly functional. Gaps have been opened where quantity has outstripped quality and for many that means doubling back or cutting back or finding those weak links in the chain.

As a degree, 21 Capricorn directs us to a greater understanding that though we need or what what we need or want, that we don’t exist in a vacuum. The health, productivity, functionality and convictions of a society we want to support us or support our aims has to be part of our personal equations. We can’t just ‘take’ without caring about how that whole functions and the job of fixing whatever may be wrong isn’t just up to ‘them.’

The Sabian Symbol for this degree is BY ACCEPTING DEFEAT GRACEFULLY, A GENERAL REVEALS NOBILITY OF CHARACTER. On the surface, that may well be echoed by certain people in our personal lives or the public arena stepping aside, whether out of true nobility, because their ‘time’ doing something is over…or because they have been forced to recognize some level of decency demanded by the world at large.

But on a personal level – and all lunar cycles are personal, whatever else they may be, this Sabian recalls that old saw ‘the burned hand teaches best.’ Sometimes those really hard lessons are the only way we learn. Sometimes we have to lose something or someone before we realize how dearly we love them or how much they have given to our life.

This lunation may be the moment of realization, it may be when something happens. Whether it’s one or another in your life would depend in where this point falls in your chart and individual nuances.
The one thing we can all trust is that by the end of this cycle we will all know a bit more about reality and what really matters.

When I started this post, I thought to entitle it 'Our January New Moon: Looking Ahead, Looking Back, Holding On and Letting Go.' That struck me as apt, though it was obviously far too long for a blog title.

This New Moon moment is likely to stay with us as a notion in our minds, in our heart, in our days...not just because of the process of a lunation and not just because this particular New Moon is emblazoned with that very particular mark of the grand trine.

All those are apt. All those things are important. Yet beyond that, one of the emblems in that grand trine - Sabine - is about to go retrograde. That happens next week, and you'll hear about it in different post. But to have this idea of 'being held captive' against 'being held to' our better notions, spirit or standards of willingness amidst all else suggests this is a time when decisions and choices can get made. When changes may become necessary or apt. When we can acknowledge our mistakes, weaknesses and errors as well as our strengths, wisdom and caring...and in doing so, convert negatives to positives through recognizing our own humanity and that of others.

Where there is life, there is indeed hope.

There's also opportunity. So here's to the best in all things. May much good and inspiration come from your efforts, your thoughts and your caring.  
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Venus in Virgo

  The Kiss of Peace by Julia Margret Cameron

People tend to associate Libra with beauty. That works fine as a concept, but in understanding Venus…how it works and why its transit of one sign feels natural and another denotes a somewhat more challenging time is because Libra isn’t beauty as a quality.

Venus is the sense of satisfaction or happiness that anything you consider beautiful or delightful or sumptuous or wonderful evokes. If success makes you happy, to you, successful moments are Venusian. If seeing something beautiful – be it a piece of art, a ballet, a baby laughing or a stunning bit of natural scenery…if that evokes a sense of fulfillment and ‘ahhhhhh….’ feeling in your heart, soul and tummy…whatever it is about that moment, be it the feeling of hot sun on your skin while you’re lying on the beach, that thrill of delight when fireworks light up the sky, that first bite of something yummy which recalls your favorite moment from childhood…

That trigger, that feeling, the ability to conjure that feeling of happy satisfaction – even for just the moment – that’s your astrological Venus.

There are all sorts of places to go with this idea. But certainly if I tell you that much about Venus, then you’ll understand why the person who is unhappy on the inside is never ‘cured’ by the diet or the new love affair or the fancy home or any amount of money.

Venus abides deep in the inner sanctum of our soul. And when in reality you don’t know how to evoke that feeling of satisfaction, security, delight…when your don’t know what will give you a lasting sense of peace, that’s when we know you have an astrological Venus issue.

Getting in touch with our Venus is important. For most of us, our childhood greatly shapes our mortal Venus.

But not always. Sometimes for good, sometimes not so much so, people come and go in our lives and there are those who will teach us more about love and humanity than our parents have.

They evoke our Venus. The touch is theirs...but the Venus is ours.

 Painted by Luke Fildes in 1914, the painting is called 'Motherless' and it depicts a young child in loving arms. So often we think that love comes only from mothers or family...modern society has caused us to become suspicious of each other.It doesn't have to be that way...we each have the ability to reach out, to nurture and to care.

Understanding that as ruler of Libra and Taurus Venus is not about what happens or is given to you but developing a life which will cause those things to happen? That’s even better.

In the merry world of astrology (!!!) there are a couple of forms of planet-sign combination considered a big ‘plus.’ One is rulership. In its sign of rulership, a planet is said to manifest its qualities easily and fully. And as we said, with Venus, those signs are Libra – the sign of interaction and relating where we get to present that person we’ve ‘created of ourselves’ and (hopefully) get the right reaction from others and through that achieve a sense of satisfaction and inner peace…and the other is Taurus, a sign all about self-worth and the satisfaction which comes from having lived a life you can respect and which you find fits you body, soul, spirit, heart and morality.

But there’s another form of positive ‘dignity’ – that’s the astrological name for a planet/sign combination which is by and large a symbiotic plus. That second form of plus is called exaltation. When a planet is in the sign of exaltation that sign, by its nature exalts the qualities associated with the planet in question and its operational imperatives.

With Venus, we not only have to make something of ourselves and our abilities, we have to have the faith to go out there and be that person. Apart from that, everybody knows the quintessential qualities which describe the reactions which elicit that Venus ‘ahhhh…’: appreciation, applause, compliments, admiration and – yes – love.

And the sign which melds the idea of faith and love? That would be Pisces…and yes, Venus is exalted in Pisces. You may know a few Pisces people who seem to be in love with love, right? (We all know a few.)

Taking all that and thinking it through, if Venus is liberated to be faith-inspiring-ly, romantic, sensual and loving in Pisces (which it is), then there are some plus and minuses of Venus in Virgo – the passage just ahead.

Venus will enter the earthy, reality-oriented, deal-with-the-dirt (and dirty jobs) Virgo on Wednesday, October 3rd at 7 in the morning, UT/+0 time. For those who can see dealing with the corporeal and ‘imperfect’ challenges of life with an air of practicality and mindfulness of being of service or 'part of the process,' Venus in Virgo is fine. Anyone with a 9-to-5 job who understands it as a means to their end will be fine.

Venus in Virgo is associated with nurturance...the blessing of the patient parent is Venus in Virgo, the spiritual or medical caretaker is a Venus in Virgo person. Even the soldier who defends us, the person who comes to save us from the stuck sink pipe, the civil servant who does their best despite public hassling, the stock person who hunts down that pair of socks in blue for you...they're all Venus in Virgo figures.

Here, a waste collection truck goes about its business in Prague. From doing service with the knowledge that you're doing some good to service which is done for the good of others, Venus in Virgo honors many. To the extent that things seem difficult, annoying or frustrating in the next few weeks, to the extent that others don't seem to like, approve or support you in the ways that you need help or support...? That may well be the reflection of your own feelings about being of service in this world. Venus in Virgo often reveals the Scrooge so as to prove to others that such feelings exist...and so that the person 'being' Scrooge-ish can see that they need to take others more into account.  (August 2005, public domain)

(And yes, I do know this post is going up early. Take it as a sign that there’s a busy week ahead!)

There are however, a few exceptions and qualifications on those statements above. Remember Regulus? Yes, royal star Regulus is sitting right there smack dab on the Virgo doorstep – at 0 Virgo. Regulus promises success to those who deal with whatever without exacting retribution. Vengeance is a big no-no in the Regulus world.

There’s also the fact that Neptune is at this moment sitting exactly opposite (in zodiacal terms) at 0 Pisces. And Neptune is in retrograde, indicating that it’s ‘yes/no?’ qualities meant to cause us to have faith in truth (read: acceptance of reality) is…well…a mite challenging at this time.

And by implication, about to be challenging throughout the next few weeks while Venus transits Virgo, a passage which ends on October 28th.

There’s also the wee idea (read: fact) that Neptune is in conjunction with (meaning Venus’ conjunction with Regulus is in opposition with) Fomalhaut/Niobe at 4 Pisces and Bali/Chiron at 5 Pisces.

This is an interesting little subtext all its own. Fomalhaut being another of the sky’s four royal stars promises success only where dreams and means are not corrupt, corrupted or corruptive. Conjunct Niobe (a symbol of pride) this is bad news – now and in the weeks ahead - for anyone who has lived/exhibited the kind of boastful pride which got everything Niobe cared about shot down.

Not shockingly, Bali (paradise) with Chiron represents that happiness which we should guard, which we should have taken better care of, and which we need to fix but don’t quite know how to fix…(and which we will never know how to fix until we try!)

 Put all this together and you have a whole bubble, bubble, stewing and making trouble sort of recipe which is in us.

Yes, we may encounter things which prompt us to think about whatever the matter is. For those who are living pretty cleanly, there will be people and situations which no doubt will tempt you or poke you and see if you’re really devoted to steering clear of corruption and vengeance.

And for those who have acted in a manner which was corrupt for the moment or your position in some matter, those who have taken out their spite and ire on others when they shouldn’t have…this Venus passage has your name all over it!

Yes…for you this would be a good time to think through (with yourself) why you did what you did and where that urge came from. If you can be honest with yourself and honest with those who you have hurt, harmed or willfully attempted to dupe, marginalize, sideline or whatever else…then you may really experience some magic in your life.

Metaphysics is a funny thing…we talk about something like this and I refer to the ‘magic’ which may happen and we don’t seem to understand that the good we do in one place may well come back to us in another.

It’s sort of a universal cycle of earning. Considering that right after Venus gets through this relatively trying (not gloriously Venusian) period at hand then comes Venus in Libra (a totally pro-Venusian period) what we earn now may well come back to us then.

Since late April (2012) Venus has been transiting the first six signs of the zodiac. Those signs are all about internal and personal growth, learning, experiences and development. Once Venus enters Libra, it moves into its public, visible, worldly, interactive and contributing phase – a phase much more conducive to Venus effects we like, treasure and long for.

We’re just doing the earning now. Venus in Virgo is all about ‘cleaning up our act’ and fine tuning our abilities to interact with others in such a manner that they’ll like, appreciate and (yes) reward us.

The Regulus-Neptune-Fomalhaut-Chiron suggestions are clear enough. To do them, we have to live less in our heads and desires and more in the realities of whatever our track record really is.

Virgo asks that things be made better, more functional, cleaner and more effective. Venus in Virgo tells us our rewards come through sorting through that recipe and through working towards being someone we would not just like but respect if we met ourselves. There’s an earthiness to Venus in Virgo which can be liberating in its revelations. And so long as we can do that without compromising a prioritization of responsibilities and choices we know work not just for us but for everyone… (that’s the BIG everyone – not just your chosen few!)…then having flung your fling is just fine.

Just remember to rebuild whatever castles you’ve brought down in ruins first. You’ll thank yourself for it oh…in just shy of a month from now!
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