Wednesday, December 30, 2009

Blame it on Mercury

Cell phones on the fritz, Blackberry not working right? Yes, I have heard the news reports too - which made me run to my trusty astrology software to confirm what I assumed..... Mercury is back in retrograde position.. When a planet retrogrades, whatever area it influences goes a little haywire...Mercury controls communications - and thoughts and education (good luck to anyone taking a final exam this week.) Hang on -- it will be straightened out on Jan 4, 2010. Happy New Year ALL!

Tuesday, December 29, 2009

Karmic Astrology: Why December 25?#links

Karmic Astrology: Why December 25?#links

Why December 25?

I have often wondered if the Winter Solstice is December 21, why do we celebrate Christmas on the 25th?Why did the Christians wait for four days before having the big party? The answer is simple - seems our ancient friends were rather cautious. Yes, December 21 is the longest night of the year - but it is the next day when the day grows just a wee bit longer and a little longer the next and so on. They wanted to be darned sure that Sun was indeed returning before getting out the party hats and horns (or reasonable facsimile thereof.)

But the day December 25 was long a day of celebration in the pagan world - a day to celebrate the return of the Sun or son. The Christians didn't have to look far for a holiday to co-opt on December 25. It was the day that Attis, the Roman son of the virgin Nana who was later sacrificed to bring salvation by being crucified on a tree and then arising three days later, was born.

The Greek god, Dionysus son of Zeus, whose body was symbolically eaten in the form of bread and wine, was also celebrated on December 25. The Egyptians placed December 25 as the birth day of Osiris, the savior-god who was resurrected by his wife and then reined over the after world. The Persians, also happy that the Sun was proving itself back to stay, celebrated the birth of Mithra, a savior who performed miracles, cured the ill and ascended into heaven in the Spring.

So go ahead celebrate the Solstice and then 4 days later the return of the Sun - or son - if you prefer. In either case, you will be carrying on a tradition that predates the current Christian incarnation by about 6000 - 8000 years. It is a great way to link yourself to nature and our collective roots.

The Sun, ruler of Leo, is at its Zenith in August - the time of Leo -- but it is the cycle of waxing and waning that we celebrate in the depths of cold winter. Rejoice for the Sun (son) has returned!

Monday, December 21, 2009

Ceres -Mother Earth

HAPPY SOLSTICE ALL

Ceres is the original Earth Mother. During good times she and her daughter Persephone wandered the Earth spreading seeds and making all things grow. One day, Pluto, Lord of the Underworld, tricked Persephone and took her into the Underworld. So aggrieved and annoyed was Ceres that she stopped all vegetation from growing. The Greeks were terrified of starvation and begged Zeus to mediate between Pluto and Ceres. Soon a bargain was struck whereby Persephone would be released but Ceres would have to go spend one half of the year in the Underworld. When Ceres did this, plants no longer grew and thus came winter. What a great story to explain the cycle of the seasons.

In astrology where the asteroid Ceres lies in a chart is the area that we see two things. One is parental relationships - loss, separation - and nurturing - how we nurture and how we feel the need to provide nurturing to others. Someone with Ceres in the 3rd house will likely nurture others by providing exposure to new ideas whereas Ceres in the 6th could produce a mother who runs an orderly and well structured family.

Ceres is a natural fit with Cancer - because they both are "motherly" but she also resonates with with Taurus. Taurus the Bull is the ultimate Earth sign and shows how we use resources - natural and otherwise. Also, because Taurus opposes Scorpio on the astrological wheel and Scorpio is ruled by Pluto - the guy whose tricks started all of this - there is a delicate balance between the power of Scorpio and the resource husbandry of Taurus.

By learning how Ceres fits between these planets we get a better outlook on how we deal with our Mother issues.

Friday, December 18, 2009

Vesta - The Fire Inside

The smallest but most determined asteroid goddess is Vesta. To the Greeks, she was Hestia who is actually the woman pictured in the Virgo the Virgin glyph. When the Romans took over the world, they renamed her Vesta and depicted her as the goddess of the hearth and the keeper of the sacred flame. (Remember the Vestal Virgins?) I, like a growing number of astrologers, assign Virgo rulership to Vesta. Poor Virgo doesn't have its own ruling planet...Scorpio finally got Pluto but Virgo and Taurus are so far without rulers. However, Vesta's dedication to a cause despite the hardship it causes her, the organized way she goes about keeping the fires burning - all sound Virgoan to me - and why else would the ancients make Virgo Virgin the picture of Hestia?

Simply, Vesta in a person's horoscope indicates where their burning heart's desire rests -- some inner burning fire...for me it is in the 12th house. Duh -- twelfth house our connection to the universe-- astrologer - hello! Seen in the first house, it would be a dedication to self-goals -often to the exclusion of long-term relations with others. In the fifth house, it will give a dedication to artistic and creative goals. The eleventh house placement would lend a person to be dedicated to group humanitarian efforts -- remember Jane Addams?

Vesta is the little but bright asteroid that keeps our inner passion and inner dedication burning. Someone with a strongly aspected Vesta will give up everything to achieve their goal - family, sex, society--- everything! Now that doesn't happen in too many charts but it gives you some idea of how intense she can be.

Girls will be girls. Don't mess with them when they are set on something!

Monday, December 7, 2009

Another One of the "Girls" - Pallas Athene

Pallas Athene is one of the most interesting albeit confusing asteroid goddess. This is because of her basic duality. I am not talking duality like Pisces the Fish or Gemini the Twins. It isn't that stark, however, she is the goddess of war and power as well as healing and wisdom. I guess, like most women, she figures she will have to clean up the mess others make so might as well get on with it. In her honor, the Greeks named their major city, Athens.

In classical Greece, this virgin goddess of wisdom was second only to Jupiter, king of the heavens, in importance. As the goddess of war, she was invincible in battle. In times of peace, however, her wisdom enforced the law and made sure justice prevailed. She was also patroness of the arts, architecture, cooking and weaving. Yes, insert your goddess multi-tasking joke here.

In the sky, Pallas Athene lies between the constellations Libra and Aquarius and opposes Leo - so when we use her in chart analysis, we see the flash of intelligence (Aquarius) and the driving originality of fiery Leo modified by Libra balance and fairness. For instance, someone with a well aspected Pallas in Taurus will have the ability to see beauty in new ways. Taurus is ruled by Venus - and is associated with the arts and beauty. A strong Pallas Taurus person is able to perceive art in a new way- with all senses - they might even "see" colors.* They could also be a fighter for the Earth - an ecological warrior. Taurus is the Bull, grounded in the Earth and earth resources (see my entry on Al Gore’s North Node in Taurus.) They will use the fire of Leo and the advanced mind of Aquarius to fight for Mother Earth.

Well aspected Pallas in Sagittarius people can become shamans or healers because the can actually see the big picture of someone's health arc. Remember, Sag. is expansive in nature. Unfortunately, we also see Pallas Sag. people who have negative aspects and who can take that warrior energy and combine it with Sag's belief in religious truth and become religious crusaders.

The main thing to remember is that Pallas packs a wallop of creative, fiery energy and high perceptive abilities. She was the original androgynous woman who competed quite well with men in the political and military arena.




*For more information on this see "The Spiritual Anatomy of Emotion: How Feelings Link the Brain, the Body, and the Sixth Sense " by Michael Jawer.

Tuesday, December 1, 2009

Say Hello to the Girls - Juno - Goddess Asteroid

I thought I would end the year with a look at four of the goddess asteroids that I use in my chart readings. Juno, Pallas Athena, Vesta and Ceres are all asteroids which vibrate to the energy of the ancient Greek and Roman Goddesses. Let's start with the lady in white, Juno. Juno is the ancient Roman goddess of marriage, the Divine Consort. (The Greeks called her Hera, the Roman's changed her name to Juno. She was the wife of Zeus and Jupiter respectively and in both cultures she gave up a great deal of power to enter into those unions. ) The Romans named the six month, June, after her - the month that even then was a time of many weddings. She works on issues of loyalty and commitment.

When Juno makes a major transit in a chart it indicates a time of either coming together or breaking apart - depending on the aspects. June resides in the sky near the Libra and Scorpio constellations and she uses the energy of both. With Libra she seeks harmony and union - but when that union isn't working - Scorpionic jealousy and anger can boil over. Remember, she gave up a lot to marry and sometimes that breeds unrest.

In a karmic chart analysis I look how each person's Juno interacts. If there are negative aspects, you can be sure there was some disharmony in the past so if the two people are thinking of making a go of it again you have to hope they get it right this time!

Wednesday, November 18, 2009

Uranus and Juno - sitting in a tree............

No they aren't k-i-s-s-i-n-g but they could be. For a good portion of this year and well into the next, the planet Uranus and the asteroid Juno have been in conjunction with one another - 22 degrees Pisces. A conjunction is an aspect planets make as they flip around the ecliptic (the path we take around the Sun). These two characters have been hugging one another, both 22 degrees into the constellation of Pisces.

Ok Joan what does that all mean? Well Uranus is the planet that likes to change things up. Remember, it is the only planet that spins on it's side. Uranus is all about sudden change, fast change - quick movement into the future. Juno is the ancient Roman goddess of marriage. She works on issues of loyality and commitment. Sounds contradicotry doesn't it? Well, no. It just means that this is time to find new ways to commit ourselves to people and issues. More specifially, where we commit to our way of connecting to the cosmic consciousness (that is where the Psices comes in. Pisces is our portal to the Universe.)

Remember you have to look at where these two are in your particular chart to see how you will feel their effect. In my chart, they are transiting the 6th house - the house of health and day to day work. Not surprisingly I have undertaken a plan to rid myself of my allergies to nuts - and my auto immune problems. I am committing myself to change the way my body works. I am not doing this with a traditional doctor but through meditation and energy work.

Tuesday, November 10, 2009

Once a goat - always a goat?

Not necessarily. I thought I would go back to my South Node shadow discussion again with my old friend Capricorn! Yes, my tongue sort of is in my cheek. I have always had issues with Capricorn - he goes against my born inconoclasism. On the upside, Capricorn gives us form and structure - he controls time and bones and everything that holds us together. Capricorn make us meet obligations and color within the lines. The steady, stubborn goat keeps us moving up the mountain.

However, when people get too into their Capricornian ways - when they get into the shadow - particularly if they have a South Node in Capricorn - they can become too involved in carrying that heavy load up the hill. This can manifest as someone who feels they must always work, must always provide for everyone. They can become joyless and the epitome of a work-aholic.

Capricorn South Node people had to keep family and community together through shear hard work in past lives. They were the go-to people and while they need now to learn to go to toward Cancer in this life - using their heart instead of head - they can get stuck in that work, work attitude.

We also have to watch for the upsdie down Capricorn who tries so hard to recreate that life of order and structure that he so longs to go back there but the universe wants him to move on and - you know you can't ever go home agian. Instead of organization this Capricorn becomes too tossed up inside and losses all track of time - always arriving late - and order- sometimes becoming a horder.

My prescription for those overly-charged Capricorns - think with your heart this time - open your heart. It is about feelings not things this time.

Thursday, October 29, 2009

Happy Birthday! Solar Returns

Happy birthday to me.... Happy birthday to me.... OK you get the picture - it was my birthday this week. The anniversary of your birth is called a Solar Return in the astrology world. Why? Well because the Sun is returning to the spot it was when you were born. See, this stuff is simple.

Birthdays are a great time to cast a Solar Return chart. By comparing your Solar Return chart to your natal (or birth chart) - we get a very good idea of what issues are coming around for you this year.

What a great way to start the next year of your life!

Contact me for your Solar Return chart - or for that of a friend. Finally, a gift you can use!

Monday, October 19, 2009

What is it with you Earth signs and your "stuff"?

I just had the dubious pleasure of watching my dear Virgo rising Virgo Sun friend move from Virginia to California. The pleasure came from seeing her do something she has been aching to do for years -- the interesting part was watching an Earth sign trying to part with her "stuff"!
Just because you guys are grounded and you have a connection to resources for goodness sakes doesn't mean you have to hang on to every piece of Earth that you have come in contact with since birth!

Oh the machinations she went through - this 30 year old thingie bobbie that I got at the flea market well that has to have a home with so and so -- and this book this book just has to go her.
Just dropping off crap you haven't used in the past 2 years at Goodwill wasn't good enough. She had to find a "home" for everything no matter how old or useless to her. It was like she was giving away her babies. The best moment came when she was agonizing over a set of pom-poms she got from a bike ride and had been sitting in a box for at least four years. With my typical Scorpio Sun sympathy I picked them up and announced, "This is what you do with them!" With that they found themselves in the trash.

It makes sense that Earth signs are attached to things - they need to feel Earth around them as a kind of security blanket. Sadly, when their emotions are out of whack they run to things to find a form of happiness. I had one dearly departed double Taurean who was a certified hoarder. After her husband died, that need for security went haywire and in a few short years her house became impassable. Another double Capricorn (Sun and rising sign) no longer allows anyone in her house because her insecurities are manifesting in a collecting frenzy.

So a note to all Earth signs - stay grounded, stay connected - just don't become so attached to STUFF...When in doubt - pitch it!


www.youtube.com/watch?v=MvgN5gCuLac

Wednesday, October 7, 2009

Thanks for the Cancer scare

The question arose – what is going on in my own chart. There is no harder animal to interpret than my own chart! Right now I have transiting Juno in conjunction with transiting Uranus (both in my 6th house – the house of health as well as day to day work) opposing my natal Vesta which is in the 12th house in Virgo. Uranus and Juno are now in Pisces, the ruler of the 12th house (the keeper of the keys to the secrets of the universe) - - so this seems pretty significant.
To make matters more interesting, my natal Saturn/Juno conjunction in my 2nd house (the house of self worth and self possessions) is making a flowing aspect to the charming duo of transiting Uranus/Juno (I know that is a lot to picture but go with me here – Vesta on one side – Uranus/Juno in exact opposition and Saturn and natal Juno in between them.)

I was having a tough time with this until the universe handed me a very unique gift. Last Friday, I received a letter from the Virginia Hospital center which what I thought would be the mundane results of my yearly mammography…basically; everything is fine see you next year. This year the letter was longer and started off with, “We need you to come back for further analysis…..” Oh dear not what I was looking for! Hey thanks Uranus – you love to shake things up don’t you and there you are in my house of health. Isn’t it good enough for you that I fell flat on my face two darn times this past month???

Ok so now the mind goes in 1000 directions. Somewhere between, oh this happens to everyone occasionally and Lordie I am dead – my mind suddenly clicked on this question. How would I live my life if I knew I had cancer? What would I change? How would Cancer give me the license to be more authentic? Suddenly, I understood my planetary conundrum… Vesta is the burning heart’s desire –what we want to dedicate ourselves to. Mine is natally in the 12th house so my search for my universal truth is very important to me in this life. However, with Juno, the asteroid that shows where we dedicate ourselves to something else – where we stick to “other” sitting next to Uranus, that trickster in the 6th – the question was now clear. What parts of my life am I still too worried about what others think or how I can fit in with other people’s wishes and desires – to the neglect of my own search?

A cancer diagnoses would give me a license to be more authentic. But why did I have to lean on such a crutch? Why couldn’t I be more authentic just for the heck of it - on my own strength and willpower?

I was comforted in the few days before my follow up tests by the fact that the Uranus/Juno transit was making a harmonious relationship to my natal Saturn/Juno in the 2nd house. This is just a good lesson I said – and this will help me rely more on myself image and stop trying to see reflections in others. I kept repeating that as I waited yesterday first for the results of a second mammography and then when the technician said the Doctor wanted to take an ultrasound. I waited and repeated ---. This is just a lesson to say live more authentically – live for self and say that is how you will build your self worth.

After three “lovely “ hours I heard the Doctor say that the ultrasound showed that there was nothing there – just some anomaly of the way mammography’s read certain tissue. As I thanked him for being so diligent (a sharp-eyed radiologist caught my sister’s cancer in very early stages years ago) and then melted off the table – I thanked the universe for the outcome and the lesson. Just one thing – hey Uranus can you move the heck out of my sixth house? You made your point OK?

Tuesday, September 29, 2009

Time Goes By So..............quickly

A friend called me today all upset about the speed of time. "I know time speeds up when you get older but this is crazy. Thing are flying by way too fast. What is going on?

What is going on is Pluto has moved into Capricorn. Last week I mentioned how that change is and will continue to effect the structures of society. That is just one sphere of influence for Capricorn, the sign I affectionately refer to as the "Old Goat." (Capricorn's symbol is the goat.)
Capricorn also rules time. Makes sense, right? Capricorn rules form and structure. What structures us more than the clock, the sun rising and setting - time?

So for the next few decades as Pluto grinds through the Capricorn constellation - time is going to go a bit hay-wire. No, we aren't going to all vanish onto another realm on Jan. 1, 2012 - I don't care what the Mayan's did or didn't write. However, be prepared to see the speed of time increase and the effects of time on our bodies change.

Time stepping up its pace a bit actually started when Uranus was discovered in 1781. Uranus is the only planet that spins on its side and is associated with sudden changes and advances that move mankind relentless into the future. After it showed itself to us, the industrial and then scientific revolutions began. In the past, generations would live almost exactly like those which came before - suddenly massive changes started in the way we live and one generation would not recognize the life style of the one before. That is all thanks to Uranus.

Now that Pluto will be forcing changes to the way we see time, the "good old days" will be anything that happened last week!

Thursday, September 24, 2009

Pluto - Dark and Light

As I mentioned in an earlier entry, Pluto moved into Capricorn late last year. Pluto, that cold, distant - sort-of planet, makes a huge impact on society. Because it is so far away from the Sun, it takes a long, long time to transit the solar system and stays in each sign for a good, long while. Pluto rules change and transformation and as it grinds through the solar system it makes deep changes in the areas of our lives influenced by that sign.

For example, when we baby boomers were born, Pluto was in Leo. Ruled by the Sun, Leo people want the spot light on them - they want everyone to see them shine. What better sign to birth a generation of self absorbed whiners (remember "30 Something"?) than Leo? In the early '60's Pluto moved into Virgo and we saw the rise of the environmental movement and huge changes in the workplace. Its recent foray into Sagittarius saw the rise of spiritualism - as well as its shadow, fundamentalism.

Capricorn rules the very structures that hold society together - our government, our banking system. The last time Pluto was in Capricorn was 1762 - 1777 - a time of great revolution here in America and abroad. The most obvious sign of Pluto Capricorn this time around was the election of our first African American President. However, for every positive there is a shadow. Right now we see that play out in the tea-baggers and those people who wish to blame our current economic woes and "government take over" of business not on the guy they supported who created this mess, but on said first African American President.

A more frightening development was the death of the 51 year old census worker who was found with "FED" on his chest. That is anger at it's worst, most irrational and tragic. Anger among people short on facts and shorter on judgement - fueled by vested interests who are out to keep their piece of the pie safe - can create situations where vigilantism and domestic terrorism reigns.

Pluto will remain in Capricorn for another 10 years - that is a long time to stir up anger. With a wise leader, we will come out the other side with great reforms to make these "big guys" more amenable to the needs of those they are to serve. With fools in charge all bets are off and uncontrolled anger can lead to many tragic circumstances like the death of the census worker, Bill Sparkman, or worse.

Let's hope that we remain as smart as we were at the polls as we were in November 2008.

Wednesday, September 16, 2009

Wherefore Art Thou Mercury?

"My computer is crashing and I am losing my work!"
"I can't complete a phone call - it keeps cutting out."
"Everything I say is coming out garbled - my thoughts are all loopy."

I have been hearing a lot of that lately and lay the "blame" for these little life events at the quick little feet of Mercury. It happens to be in retrograde right now - meaning that is appears to us Earthlings as we peer out into the universe to be going backwards in the sky. Of course, it isn't going backwards but sometimes - because of how planets are spinning around the Sun - they appear to be retrograding back. It is that motion - that makes the area influenced by that planet to go a bit goofy. Retrogrades make us find a new and different path for our work.

When Mercury, which influences communications and the thought process, spins backwards a bit - we find ourselves not getting our words out the way we want, or misunderstanding others, or losing our written words. Instead of getting aggravated try to find a different way to express yourself --- back up your computer and then take time to go for a walk.

Mercury will right itself on September 29 and move from airy Libra into Virgo. Libra, the sign of the Scales, adds to our mental confusion - "should I shouldn't I, will I won't I" but solid Virgo with its feet on the ground will make it all clear to us again.


http://soulsign.com/tools/practitioners/joan-porte

Wednesday, September 9, 2009

A New Year's Eve Blue Moon

I just wanted to give you a little heads up. On this New Year's Eve there will be a blue moon. While there are several definitions of a blue moon, the most common is the second full Moon in one calendar month. What does this mean astrologically? Well, not much - other than the implications of any full Moon on your chart. If the full Moon is sitting on top of one of your personal planets (Sun, Moon, Venus, Mercury, Mars) then you are going to feel it emotionally whether it is blue, green or chartreuse. If BOTH full Moons in December (the first being Dec. 2, 2009) impact your personal planets, well it will be a wild holiday season for you for sure!

The reason I bring this up is twofold. One, can you imagine what a full Moon will do to already crazed New Year's revelers? Two, I might suggest a more meaningful way to ring in 2010; instead of joining them in drunken revelry why not sit outside and look up at the beautiful Moon and see what messages it has to tell you for the future.

Friday, September 4, 2009

Ted Kennedy - Capricorn Tenacity

When I heard of the passing of Senator Edward Kennedy I did what I always do - I ran to my computer and looked up his chart. While it may seem odd to some, death times in karmic astrology are as important as birth times. (More on that issue later, I promise.)

What struck me so much about Sen. Kennedy's chart was the high concentration of Saturn in his first house (the house which dictates how we present ourselves to the world.) The ancient Sumerians, who are credited with being the first known astrologers, didn't deal much with a Sun sign because when the Sun was up they couldn't see the rest of the stars. It was your first house - your ascendant - that was key to them.

Sen. Kennedy had Capricorn on the cusp of his first house and its ruler, Saturn, in the first house. That is a lot of Capricorn! At first it seemed bizarre. Capricorn is known to giving form and structure and being very much "within the lines" while Senator Kennedy had been known for - how shall I say this - living outside the lines for a long period of his life. I "credit “that to his heavy Piscean influence - the escapist. However, it was that strong Capricorn which gave him the courage to go on when things felt hopeless and which allowed him to prevail even over his fatal illness when he mustered the strength to speak at the 2008 Democratic Convention.

If it weren't for that Capricornian tenacity (symbolized by the sure-footed mountain goat) he never would have been able to face and ultimately triumph over life's traumas and his own self inflicted wounds.

Sunday, August 30, 2009

Gemini South Node Shadow - Gemini South Node Shadow

Yes, I repeated that twice. Why? Simple - Gemini is all about duality - it is symbolized by the twins. Gemini is also about speed - ruled by Mercury that speedy little planet that zips around the sun at quite a good clip. At home in the third house - the house of communications and the processing of information - I often think of Gemini as the computer of the Zodiac - quickly moving information from one point to the other -- IF it is working! When Gemini goes awry - when we are stuck in the shadow of a Gemini South Node, we exhibit nervousness, gossipyness (information gone a muck is gossip, isn't it?), multitasking to the detriment of concentration on any one thing and learning problems.
Those of us who are Gemini South Node (yup I am one - Gemini 9th House South Node - more on what karmic identity that brings later) need to focus and allow ourselves to get into life instead of skating across the surface. In a phrase we need to "stop and smell the roses" instead of just stomping on them or racing past them thinking, "Did I just see a rose? oh well i will look at it later."

Friday, August 14, 2009

Me and My Shadow - Taurus

You got me JF! I was showing the shadow of my Gemini South Node -- jumping around too much. Your comment was correct - I SHOULD go to the opposite of the Scorpio North Node now - not jump to another nodal axis. Ah ha - I tossed in another word - Nodal Access. You know one thing I hate about astrology is when people try to make it totally confusing and inaccessible. The zodiac is a circle - go look at a chart - it is round - right? So, if you have a North Node on one side of the circle - the South Node has to be on the opposite site - that whole north and south thing. Therefore, that is a Nodal Axis. See? Easy.

So the opposite of Scorpio is Taurus. The last post dealt with a Scorpio South Node...so now we will like at Taurus. Taurus is the Bull, to me the ultimate Earth sign - content to laze in the pasture - feeling the wonderful Earth beneath it. They can stay in the pasture all day and look at the pretty colors of the fields. How wonderful. Well, to an extent.

If you have a Taurus South Node, some of the traits you may become too reliant on are stubbornness, materiality and just be stuck in stuff. Come on, you know someone like this - they hoard materials either actually like having a hoarding illness, or they are people stuck on collecting possessions. "See my toys - I have all of these possessions so I must be good - see what I just bought. You must think me valuable now because I have all of these valuables."

Taureans also have a hard time turning away from the table. People who eat and eat despite having to reinforce the bed, the car and the house frame - are stuck in a gluttonous past. As are people who can't change their situations no matter how miserable they feel.

Think of the bull, eating in the pasture all day, enjoying all that surrounds him -never moving - taken to extreme that is a person stuck in a Taurus past.

Remember, our South Node is comfortable to us - no matter how detrimental it is to our soul development in this lifetime. We have lived in that existence for so long that we subconsciously crave to go back there. However, the longer we reside there the more shadow aspects develop as the soul development stalls.

So all you Taurus South Node people - get out of your pasture - and into the drama of the world... embrace your Scorpio North Node passion!

Thursday, August 6, 2009

Me and My Shadow - Scorpio

I have a friend into whom I have tried to pound the basics of astrology for months. Being born with a Scorpio South Node, she constantly gets lost in the minutia of each astrological concept despite my urgings to see the big picture. Scorpios are the detectives of the Zodiac - they love to root out the secrets - all of the details. (The South Node, remember, is where our soul has come from in previous lives and from which we need to evolve.)

So this Scorpio South Node, Moon Child rising friend is regaling me in the many projects in which she is immersed right now - providing food for friends, shelter for people coming in from out of town for a political campaign and battling bureaucrats over the building of a new church. Does it surprise you that Moon Child are the mothers of the zodiac? At the end of the list she said with exasperation, "I wish I weren't addicted to the rush of doing all this stuff."

"That's it! That is Scorpio South Node - addicted to the thrill, addicted to the drama and the passion - that is what I have been trying to explain to you!" I think she got it.

All signs have their flowing and shadow aspects -- Scorpios have a tremendous talent for connecting with nether worlds – they are physic antennae beaming out to all of those frequencies and worlds others can’t even imagine. They are also passionate warriors for justice especially for the underdog. However, the shadow of Scorpio is a lust for, often inappropriate, passion and an unnatural pull to the unusual and dramatic -- the passionate fight.

This particular friend is addicted to fighting for her church and being the uber mother (remember, she is Moon Child rising) on all political campaigns. I have another Scorpio South Node friend who married twice –both times to difficult men with whom she battled for years. One husband was foreign – feeding her attraction to the unusual. Recently, she has met another man whom she describes as unusual and bizarre and the warning signal went off in my head again.

We tend to live in the shadow of our South Node because that type of existence worked for us in the past and in this lifetime we want to go back to it. However, like old shoes, our South Node identity no longer fits us in this lifetime. We need to evolve.

Scorpio South Node people have Taurus as a North Node. So instead of seeking other worlds and passionate fights, they need to ground themselves on this planet and find their creative heart.

Next time – a South node that I know so well – my own….Gemini.

Wednesday, July 15, 2009

Meditation Retreat at Homestead

A Special Invitation from Mimi Malfitano,
Master Healer and Gifted Meditation Teacher . . .
RECHARGE & REJUVENATE YOUR LIFE
at The Homestead, a Premier Mountain Resort
October 9-12, 2009


In the spirit of the Homestead and
Hot Springs, Mimi is offering a
special 3-day healing experience
that might even change your life. This
retreat is for everyone—novice, beginner,
or experienced meditator. If you
are looking to . . .
• Reduce stress and re-establish
balance and clarity in your life OR
• Jump start a meditation practice OR
• Reenergize an existing practice OR
• Give yourself a meditative tune up
. . .this Meditation Retreat is
for YOU!
The program is group taught with each
participant leaving with an individualized
meditative practice that fits their needs.
Your Weekend Includes:
• 5 Meditation teaching & practice
sessions
• 3 Nights--Deluxe Accommodations
• Friday evening welcome reception
• Saturday & Sunday dinner
• Breakfast every morning
• Snacks during day sessions
Private Reiki Healing sessions with
Mimi available upon request.
$100 per hour.
Your Weekend Investment
Bring a Companion to enjoy Virginia’s
premier mountain resort while you destress
with meditation. Meals with the
group are included as well as a $75
credit to help your companion jump
start their adventure. While you
meditate they can enjoy golfing on
one of three championship golf courses
or hiking the gorge or pampered spa
treatments. And of course, the Homestead’s
sought after southern
hospitality is included.
$767.00 per person/double occupancy
Share a Room. If you are attending the
retreat solo and want to share a room,
we will try to pair up meditators--
though we can make no guarantees.
$767.00* per person/double occupancy
*Call for single occupancy rate.
For more information or to book your
reservation, call Joan at Joan's Travel
703-533-2210.
Or email: joanstravel@verizon.net

Sunday, January 25, 2009

"I Have A Dream" Neptune's Whisper

I have been so taken by the Inauguration of President Lincoln, I mean President Obama, and the talk of Dr. King's "I Have A Dream Speech" and the dream realized that I took at look at the astrology behind the day.

I was struck with the realization that it was singer Mahalia Jackson who whisper to Dr. King, "tell them about the dream" as he was speaking to the participants in the March on Washington. His "I have a dream" was ad libbed - not a part of the original speech. Amazing. What made her do that - what was the connection between the two?

The problem with the analysis revolved around timing. The accepted data for Dr. King's birth is Jan 15, 1929 in Atlanta at 12 noon. I am always suspicious about noon birth times as they are the fall back when time is not known. I researched it a bit and found some citations that he was born - around high noon -- or "late morning" - so I am not sure if 12 noon is accurate.

We know that Ms. Jackson's timing is off as well and as I looked on every website and every book I can find and her birth time wasn't recorded. She was born Oct. 26 (wonderful day :)) 1911 in the "Negro Section" of New Orleans. No one found the need to record the time.

Also, the time of the speech is fuzzy. The closest information I got was from going back to a "New York Times' piece and it said the people marched to Washington and were addressed by Dr. King - later that afternoon. I chose 4p as a time but again that is a guess.The date was August 28, 1963 in Washington DC.

Sadly I was not an enlightened 7 year old so I don't remember hearing the speech first hand.
____________
OK that being said when I ran a triwheel of the three - his known birth information, hers and a transit chart for the stars and planets overhead when he made the speech.

But what I did find is in a way even more interesting.The North Node was transiting the 3rd house on that day --- what a way to say a speech will live in the evolution of the planet, right? Ms. Jackson's Neptune was close to Dr. King's Pluto - (and may even be closer than the charts show considering the time difference) - so I can almost see Neptune (dreams) reaching over and and nudging his Pluto, his transformative planet. "Tell them about your dream Martin," - Neptune nudging Pluto to make a great transformation for all of us - making this transformative speech for the ages.

Dr. King had Saturn in the his 8th house, the house of change and transformation - the house of power and powerful transformation - in Sagittarius - the sign of expansion, growth and cultural understanding. At the time of the speech, Ms. Jackson had her Sagittarius Moon transiting his Saturn - (can you hear the emotion in her voice - "Tell them about your dream, Martin." Now is the moment - seize the emotions - and then on the transit chart we see Moon conjucting her natal Moon also in Sagittarius. To me the arrow - the glyph of Sag. is like a arrow shooting from his Saturn - and giving structure to her and our dreams for cultural unity.

Karmic Astrology by Joan's Fan Box