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The Solstice
The sun, at the solstice on 21 June, reached the furthest
point north that it travels from our point of view. In the
Tropical Zodiac (Western Zodiac) this is called the first
degree of Cancer. In the Northern Hemisphere this is the longest
day, in the Southern Hemisphere, the shortest day. It heralds
the changing of direction in the flow of light; from now onwards
it will be decreasing in the north, increasing in the south.
As the light grows, we feel greater possibilities ahead and
tend to be cavalier with opportunities; as it wanes, we tend
to feel possibilities slipping away from us.
This year there is no need for those in the north to feel
we are losing opportunities. Jupiter has been retrograde for
the last four months, so we have already been feeling our
forward motion was slowed. In early July, Jupiter’s
movement will be direct again, and the growth of our projects
will accelerate.
Jupiter square Saturn and Mars
For at least the last two weeks we have been feeling Jupiter
squaring Saturn, and during mid-June Mars energised the Saturn
end. My experience of this was a sense of inner tension, rather
than outer pressure. It’s been about a tendency to push
oneself harder than is healthful because the goals feel so
possible of achievement. (My e-mailing problems last month
felt like a taster!) The result is that the weak link in the
body’s system shows up. Eventually one can feel burnt
out, or at least a little lethargic, but our efforts of the
last couple of weeks may have achieved a great deal. The first
of the three squares (Jupiter in Scorpio to Saturn in Leo)
was in mid-December 05, when you may have started working
on a new mode of self-expression, a new project, or a self-defining
situation may have arisen. Even now it may be that your project
is not completed, and that flaws have shown up that need adjustment.
If this is the case, the last of the Jupiter/Saturn squares,
on 25 October, could be the final test and/or achievement.
So, if you are feeling under-the-weather or just plain tired,
now is the time for a little self-pampering.
This New Moon in Cancer is trine to Jupiter in Scorpio.
Cancer is ruled by the Moon who pulls the tides up and down
our beaches, surging the great Mother Ocean around the Earth.
Water represents our emotions, and the tide of our moods is
also pulled by the Moon. When the Moon is in Cancer, we notice
these effects even more than usual. The trine to Jupiter in
Scorpio emphasises these swings, with the root causes coming
from the deep emotional experiences of our childhood. As long
as we are taking gentle, kindly, care of ourselves, we will
not need to blame others for not taking care of us. Our example
of rounded self-nurture will encourage others to nurture themselves,
rather than depending on us.
One of the most important ways to care for ourselves, is
to give credit to our emotions as having a valid original
cause. The fascinating part is to investigate (Scorpio-style)
into what the original cause may have been. Also important
is to allow that we cannot ever be certain of the true origin
because, once a pattern of reaction is in place in a character,
any similar trigger results in the same feelings rising to
the top. So there is no one to blame, only an inner need for
acceptance and care, which we need to give to ourselves, before
we can truly support another.
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Jupiter direct, Mercury retrograde
Jupiter (expansion) will be moving forwards through the
Zodiac from 6 July, opening again the gates of growth and
opportunity. But from 4 to 29 July, Mercury (communication
and movement) will be retrograde. It’s as though, while
the potential for growth gets underway, we find that we have
aspects of life that need re-thinking, especially family needs
(Mercury just arrives in Leo, then turns and retreats into
Cancer again). Perhaps we have been so set on our own new
statements that we forgot the effect they might have on our
loved ones. It will be well worth taking care of the nest
at home before the next New Moon in Leo, when expressing ourselves
fully ‘out there’ will be more appropriate.
The Nodes of the Moon: now Virgo towards Pisces
For the last year and a half, the Moon’s Nodes (Libra
towards Aries) have been indicating a need to relate harmoniously,
in order to express our true selves without driving people
away. The new focus is about becoming self-contained, in order
to empathise without getting lost. Pisces is without boundaries
or definitions: artistic, psychic, spiritual, one with all
that is. In order for a normal human being to have such experience
in daily life, there is a need to be grounded in form, held
by a method of meditation, qualified in the art to be practised.
We have the next year and a half to enjoy this focus, developing
a greater awareness of our own capacity for creativity, and
a greater appreciation for the spiritual in life.
By-the-way . . .
I was watching a TV program on whether Pluto (discovered
in 1930) is a planet or not, astronomers being in conflict
as to how to define ‘planet.’ One of the circumstances
that creates the question about Pluto is that during the 1990’s
many hundreds of objects have been found in the same orbit,
now called the Kyper Belt, similar to the asteroid belt between
the orbits of Mars and Jupiter.
The thought I had is that Pluto represents for us that which
reveals what has been hidden or unknown, the door to the unconscious.
For many years Pluto was the only body known about in that
orbit - perhaps the discovery of all the other Kyper Belt
Objects represents our continuing discoveries within the unconscious
layers of the human psyche.
In its present position in the sky, Pluto has been transiting
across the centre of our galaxy 24/25 Sagittarius. Including
its retrograde movement, this transit lasts from early 2005
to late 2006. Certainly there has been a growing sense of
a bigger picture, where all human experience and behaviour
is accessible to every one. We know now that we are all involved
in earth changes, and that together we need to adjust our
relationship with our home planet. To do this, we each need
to believe that our own effort makes a difference. But the
view of the galaxy centre behind Pluto is perhaps the sense
that whatever big picture we were working with – it’s
just got even bigger!
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