Sarah Starts Living, a novel by Gina Medvedz

A novel by Gina Medvedz
A novel by Gina Medvedz

Do you see that thin line on the book in the picture above, just to the right of the book’s spine, that’s a “reader’s crease” ?    That’s a love mark.

A few words about where I met the author:

When I met Gina Medvedz at our Sangha in Bethlehem, PA, it was several years ago. This is the group where I also met my husband. It’s a place where I regularly meditated with our Sangha on Monday nights. There’s a part of my spirit that is still joining every Monday night and sharing in “Evening Aspirations,” as the group continues on. Meanwhile, it was there that I took my meditation practice to a deeper level. I cultivated a place of refuge within me; indeed, it was my first ‘true’ community in every way that I needed it to be. Sitting in silence, alone beside one another, is how I’ve felt the most connected spiritually. As my husband and I have since moved our residence 3 times, each group I’ve discovered along the way has been different, and so much to be appreciated about each. In Santa Cruz, CA is where I met a group that I also miss very much, but our live connections (via online or in person have not continued due to loss of contact information and “life happens,”) and so far my Bethlehem Sangha has lived in my heart and since widened to include a much larger online community. My new meditations have expanded in ways that I would have never expected.

About the Author: Gina Medvedz

“Rev. Gina Medvedz is a certified Akashic records reader, spiritual healer, and certified nutritional consultant with a MS degree in holistic nutrition. Ordained in the Order of Melchizedek, she uses divine guidance to clear the fear and self-doubt that prevent her clients from living an inspired life. Her passion lies in reconnecting people with their spirit guides and teaching them to bring all areas of their lives into alignment with their soul values and purpose. In this, her first novel, Gina continues spreading her message of healing through self-love. She currently resides in Lehigh Valley of Pennsylania with her husband and two children.”

About: Sarah Starts Living 

“For eighteen years, Sarah has been a devoted wife and doting mother. When her only child leaves for college, Sarah wonders how she will spend her days. But when her husband announces that he is leaving too, Sarah is forced to reexamine everything that she holds to be true. On a dare from her best friend, Sarah agrees to listen to God and do what He suggests. Following signs that she interprets as divine, she winds up in a convent in Connecticut, on a mission in West Virgina, and in a metaphysical bookstore in Pennsylvania. Learning lessons along the way that shift her belief in the nature of God and her mindset about herself, for the first time in her forty-five years, Sarah Starts Living!”

What really struck me, what made the text so easy to read, was the way the dialogue between the characters directed the plot. The characters’ voices were audible in my own mind while reading. They basically started to live with me for the couple of days during my reading of the book. The main character, Sarah, had a lot of inner dialogue and guidance, and she was keen to follow her cues to integrate and make decisions about her guidance, regardless of any contradictory feedback from her family and friends. The book includes a series of questions at the end for further discussion and is helpful as a springboard to the readers’ intuitive development through inner responses and group discussion.

To read more about “Sarah Starts Living,” visit her at her website here.

Castles in the Sky: Pisces Full Moon

Castles in the Sky by Marcel Pirosca

Full Moon in Pisces
August 29, 2015 11:35am (PDT)

This Full Moon in the Tropical (Western Zodiac) of Pisces is referred to as a Supermoon. The term “Supermoon” refers to the lunation being during, or near the Moon’s perigee. Perigee is the closest point of the moon in its orbit around the earth. The term Supermoon was coined by astrologer Richard Nolle in 1979. The exact perigee occurs on Sunday, Aug. 30, at 11 a.m. EDT (1500 GMT), about 18 hours after Full Moon.

It’s the following Full Moon, on September 27, 2015, 7:51 p.m. PDT
that will not only be a lunar eclipse, but it will be the closest to the Earth of all the lunations, aka, the “Most SuperMoon” for the year.

With the August 29th Full Moon in Pisces, we look to both Jupiter (the ancient ruler of Pisces) and Neptune the modern astrological ruler for Pisces, first. Jupiter is conjunct the Sun within a very small orb, while opposing (180 degrees) to the Moon as it conjoins transiting Neptune. The energies of Moon and Neptune are co-joined which mixes together the two principles. The Moon and Neptune combination, from Reinhold Ebertin’s book, “The Combination of Stellar Influences,” p.106 on Probable Manifestions of Moon/Neptune:

(Positive) A sympathetic understanding of other people (psychometry), the activity of the subconscious, a state of relaxation, receptiveness, impressionableness, an intensely vivid dreamlife.

(Negative) The danger of being exposed to peculiar and strange influences or being exploited by other people. Instability or unstableness, weakness, crises in life are caused by laziness or indolence.

These attributes are in opposition, or in a “pull-pull effect” at the full moon with the following expressions of the Jupiter/Sun combination. The opposition can manifest as a “push pull,” essentially a calling to balance opposing forces.

(Positive) Advancement in life, recognition, success in the material or spiritual sphere.

(Negative) Conflicts caused by arrogant and pretentious demeanour, illness through wrong nutrition, differences with people in one’s environment or with superiors, a person in conflict with the laws of the land or realm.

Saturn and Pluto also feature in this full moon, and there’s a lot going on. There’s this combination of catharsis and intensity with Pluto, while there’s also some restraint and compression with the energy of Saturn in Scorpio forming a T-Square (tension) configuration with the Sun/Jupiter in Virgo and Moon/Neptune in Pisces. Saturn transiting the last two degrees of Pluto-ruled Scorpio further intensifies the energy of this lunation with Scorpionic vibes. With Pisces and Neptune there’s a desire for escapism and/or transcendence through spiritual retreat.

The Piscean experience can be fuzzy and elusive. It can even embody the energy of release and renewal through sacrifice. If we hang out too much on the Virgo side of the balance we may find ourselves too critical of ourselves and/or others, not maintaining an awareness of our health, or being too overly focused on a health or fitness detail, potentially even as an escape. Jupiter expands whatever it touches. The keyword with Jupiter in Virgo is discretion. Otherwise, we too may be prone to flights and escapism through romanticism and experiencing some intense dream times! The unconscious is very much alive with Pisces, and the grounding energy of Virgo is balanced in structure and routine. Finally, let’s not forget the Venus/Mars applying conjunction forming, too, at the Full Moon! It might even be exciting!

Reference:

Ebertin, Reinhold. The Combination of Stellar Influences. Aalen, Germany: Ebertin, 1972. Print.

McClure, Bruce. “Most “super” Supermoon of 2015 on September 28 | EarthSky.org.” EarthSky. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Aug. 2015.


About Ebertin Reinhold, courtesy of Wikipedia:
[February 16, 1901 – March 14, 1988] He was a German physician and astrologer. Ebertin’s book was first published in 1940 and the most recent updates in the English translation were added in 1972. Ebertin’s greatest and most truly original contribution was his research in the field of medical astrology and his addition of more psychological correlations.[2] Ebertin worked with the “Anatomical Correspondences of the Zodiac Degrees” as presented in the “Organuhr der anatomischen Entsprechungen” of Fritz Brandau.


News Article with similar theme to this lunation: Here
Jupiter conjunct Sun in Virgo (health/vitality/optimism) opposite 180 degrees (reflecting or mirroring the awareness via contrast) Moon conjunct Neptune (beliefs about the past/emotional body/dreams and possibilities/placebo) squaring Saturn (time/age/limitation). Sun conjunct Jupiter trine Pluto in Scorpio (self-mastery & deep healing through transformation).


Inner Child Challenge and Creative Blogger Nomination

InnerChild1

InnerChild2

The creative blogger award

snorkel_source unknown

My inner child has been a tiny bit restless, I say ‘tiny’ because she’s pretty small, and imagine that she is still cute – not the annoying and terrible thing that her older brother saw her as. The image of the child above the text here is not of little me. Sadly, the link that I found for this image was posted at has been abandoned:

404 – File or directory not found.

Therefore, I am rescuing this child’s image! It’s what I’d imagine my inner child would have been like if she ‘lived a little.’ When we look at children, some of them are fearless and open and abundant with their thoughts. They play around with their friends with the industriousness of a full imagination just pouring out into the world. On any given day, there could be epic missions, and heroic rescues. They live with the purpose of their imaginations and process their emotions as moments that come and go. One day there’s a fall from a bike, wailing and tears. The next day the child is doing bicycle loops around their dad who is beyond proud of them: stunning and amazed. We are most amazed by how independent children are, how despite all the influencing around them, they still end up just being themselves. Many of them are confident and busy at play. To me, this IS the essence of my inner child.

When I used to work with children and tutor them, I enjoyed seeing their eyes light up when they reached within themselves and drew a picture, or answered a math question, or danced to a song by their own choreography. Many of the students I saw in my classroom wanted to be singer/songwriter/musicians/acrobats. Many of them wanted to be stars, celebrities. My heart ached when one of my students felt excluded from an activity that the administration was doing for students who attended a certain number of days. The students I tutored were from the inner city school. There were lots of cut programs and tutoring was an attempt at filling after-school gaps. This particular student, M.,  cried and cried. I ached right along with her. I can’t tell you that I’m the opinionated type that took sides either with the administration or her broken heart. I did not feel this was my cause nor my duty to make anything just, nor to eliminate her sadness by fighting for what she wanted. I just did my best to comfort her, seeing her process as a continuous initiation into all the trials that we ever, as humans in society, endure.

There are simply times that we are excluded, there are times that some students get rewarded more than others, there are times when peers are mean or just simply uninterested. I try to remember the kindergarteners that I worked with at the Navajo reservation in Tuba City, Arizona when I was assisting as a volunteer for my Spring break during undergrad. That’s a beautiful age when the kids surrounded each other, and also gave each other space. At least in this classroom, this was the situation. They seemed to understand when one child excluded himself from the group activities and instead focused intently on the magic of the wall map. They interpreted that he just wanted to do what he wanted to do. They didn’t seem to need to make an excuse for him in their minds or with each other, “he’s different.” The didn’t perceive him as “different” just doing what he wanted to do. When the activity ended, they all joined hands with him and me. That little child, F.,  I was told, had fetal alcohol syndrome. He was a little angel. I think he was perfect, but I do know how hard we work to accommodate and make an early intervention. Sadly, this student wasn’t attending school very often, and the limitations of being a teacher and pursuing that particular course any further felt rather unfulfilling.  After all, I was an anthropology major, a participant-observer.

Eventually I worked with a group ESL students from Burma, and I enjoyed setting up their classroom and making worksheets, and really enjoyed talking with them – the goal was getting often getting them to speak in their non-native language. If I had continued working with children, I probably would have enjoyed the high school groups more – as for right now – the inner “teenager” aspect of me is very much alive. Those creative years when I would join my older friends at their colleges while I was still in high school. I would paint in my one friend’s studio; and we were wild. Yes, alcohol was involved. That kind of freedom to be wild; that rebellion in some sense, that was the best medicine for my creativity and my friendships. I still miss J. but she never liked technology, nor public attention. I’ve got a lot of ‘inner friends’ who represent all sorts of sides of me. I’m toasting to her right now…. wherever you are… you will always be loved; and I will always appreciate the wildness that you inspired in me! Somehow we were “old” before we were ever really young. I’ve been seeing a lot of memes that say, “Growing older, growing bolder.” It seems that getting bolder are acts of courage we all could use; and it doesn’t come from a place of naiveté, as much as it comes from place of having been wounded before, but moving forward anyways.

Luckily, life gives us plenty of opportunity for exploring all the ‘inners’ with all the ‘outers.’  Thanks to Sindy from Bluebutterliesandme for tagging me in this blog challenge, and I am grateful that you extended your dates.  Thank you to Aquileanna from La Audacia de Aquiles: El Mundo Visible es Sólo un Pretexto for the Creative Blogger nomination! I honestly take this award as a challenge to get more creative, and to ‘live a little more fully.’ I am so humbled by you and yours. I mean that in the best way!! 😀

Here are my nominations for the Creative Blogger Award. Please note that if you are not “into” awards, that is fine, just please accept my appreciation for your creativity!!! Also, if you already have the award, then here’s another one, this time **from me, with love**!

With the nomination we thank the person that nominated us, add a logo to our posts, and nominate 10 bloggers of our choice and let them know that you nominated them. I think that when I link your blog, WP will ping you. I’m not 100% sure, though. Please please visit these blogs, if you have not already, and have happy times with these bloggers and their original content and uniqueness.

Walking My Path

Quantum Hermit

Guru Genie

The Reinvention Intention

Embracing Forever

Smile Calm

Life as Improv

Paths of the Spirit

Storiesthatmustnotdie

VenusLotus

Shehanne Moore

Universe Speaks through Dazzle

Going with the flow
I don’t know if I’m spreading myself
too thin. I see myself spiraling
in all directions, using more arms
than I was given, on a given day.

We’ve got thick skulls
and thick roots
and hefty rain boots here.
The diamond of compassion
nestled in our center, ironically as
soft as puppy nose kisses
can melt the age off of a face.

His name was Francis, yesterday
reminds me of the Sage Francis,
a rapper and priest for barbed
hearts and false starts
a lyrical collection of lonely hearts…

And driving through the rain. at night.

Here there’s no rain anymore
it’s all sunshine and yesterday I
joked with a hippy saying he was
really a troll because he told me
to get my head out of my phone.
Interesting imagery.
Sure he didn’t like being called a hippy either.
But he preferred it to troll..

It was an appreciative smile…
and a nod to our connection over big fish
and the pier. Words were carrier pigeons,
and the pigeons
did not represent words.

Still the Universe speaks
in people, in whispers
in loud car honks and the puppy
left alone who cries all day to the whole
neighborhood.

Those with ears like auricle satellites
don’t exactly rotate to precise coordinates
but vibrate on existing strings, historic
symphonies that the souls played
from time immemorial.

Here’s to tonight’s viewing of the Perseids
while the moon is silent in Leo.
And sitting in the darkness
is the best way to see the show.

Why not? Break the Silence…with Darkness & Sound

To make a sound, any sound
I may need the screech of pitch
or a certain definite
round-bound-pound
to break the glass in.

I interrupt this silence which
has seeped so deep inside of me.

This is not the calm silence of balance
and equilibrium, not the settled outcome
of a ripened meditational fruit-flower.

This is the compression of so much left unsaid,
unwritten. It gets caked up, stucktogetherinstuff-ness
and becomes downright flammable.
This is the build up of Movement-Qi without
Exit-Qi.

It is also natural,
when your busy-busy in a particular kind of way.

Crack! Awake!
And who are you? and what is this? How did we get
here in this blogcar, wearing our blogflipflops
and our blogshirts on blog-backwards with all the blogtags
sticking out under our bloggychinchins.

There is a fire in consciousness that’s exploding
With the wicked heat of thought; and
it’s building up, and it’s leaking out
Steaming the edges of Consciousnesses-es
Crisping the light-and-shadow contours
Spitting with energy, just to
release some pressure.
Water Filling-in complex edges with deep dimensional
ridges, building on a new Form.

We are molten and molted.

There’s no other poem I want to write now
than the one that leads me out here naked, and
leaves me wondering, How DID I get here?
Where ARE the Extraterrestrials?
How DO I account for this loss of time?

The release valve has been found, and the nozzle
ambitiously turned.

The Full Moon in Aquarius: Consciousness, from Individuation to Awakening

This is an old post. I was surprised to see that I wrote this. The nodal positions are now in Aries/Libra axis. Happy Full Moon Everyone 🙂 I love you all.

Ka Malana - Fiestaestrellas.com's avatarFiesta Estrellas

Aquarius Full Moon: Ushering in the New Era

There is a nature to the universe, an order, a unity that is divine. Early scientists had some interest in what they sensed as the divinity of order, and they sought to uncover it. At the Aquarian Full Moon, August 13th, 2011, we come clean to our awareness that there is perfect structure in creation.  We are witnessing within and without this extraordinary epoch of renewal, the unfolding of the universe before us–ever becoming, blossoming, simultaneously as our awareness blooms into space.

In this new era, we will see children differently, having allowed our own inner-children to grow up spiritually, we can allow our children to write their own stories/destinies from day-one. They will be encouraged to teach us by their individual expressions. When we are awakened, “Before God we are all equally wise – and equally foolish,” Albert Einstein. We will…

View original post 653 more words

Ananta Swa Bhava – My True Self has No limits or Boundaries

I’m not sure if this means my meditation was productive or a complete waste of time. Either way… I can live in equanimity with my creativity.

Ananta Swa Bhava, Ananta Swa Bhava, Ananta Swa Bhava, Ananta Swa Bhava, Ananta Swa Bhava, Ananta Swa Bhava, Ananta Swa Bhava, Ananta Swa Bhava, Ananta Swa Bhava, Ananta Swa Bhava, Ananta Swa Bhava, Ananta Swa Bahava (not this is not the “The Shining” meets Mantra… I’m really typing this….) Ananta Swa Bhava, Ananta Swa Bhava, Ananta Swa Bhava, Ananta Swa Bhava, Ananta Swa Bhava, Ananta Swa Bhava, Ananta Swa Bhava, Ananta Swa Bhava, Ananta Swa Bhava, Ananta Swa Bhava, Ananta Swa Bhava, Ananta Swa Bhava, Ananta Swa Bhava, Ananta Swa Bhava, Ananta Swa Bhava, Ananta Swa Bhava, Ananta Swa Bhava, Ananta Swa Bhava, Ananta Swa Bhava, Ananta Swa Bhava, Ananta Swa Bhava, Ananta Swa Bhava, Ananta Swa Bhava, Ananta Swa Bhava, Ananta Swa Bhava, Ananta Swa Bhava, Ananta Swa Bhava. Ananata Swa Bhava, Ananta Swa Bhava, Ananta Swa Bhava, Ananta Swa Bhava, Ananta Swa Bhava, Ananta Swa Bhava, Ananta Swa Bhava, Ananta Swa Bhava, Ananta Swa Bhava, Ananta Swa Bhava, Ananta Swa Bhava, Anata Swa, Bhava, Ananta Swa Bhava, Ananta Swa Bhava.

Venus Retrograde: revisiting old flames, loves, and daemons

*Thank you to Alessia -nice to meet you! -who favored a tweet today of this blog post, and by doing so, reminded me me about a blog post I wrote when I had more time and energy for writing and astrology :-)* In honor of Venus Retrograde: Here it is…Cheers.

Ka Malana - Fiestaestrellas.com's avatarFiesta Estrellas

“…How I longed to be over there with you…”

 Image

http://househistoryman.blogspot.com/2012/02/love-letter-mystery-from-capitol-hill.html

Dear Readers,

In lieu of Venus going retrograde, I thought I’d write you a letter and tell you about it. No matter what happens, I want you to know that the goddess of love is even closer to our hearts now than she is at any other time…

 

Love is never lost. If not reciprocated, it will flow back and soften and purify the heart.” ~Washington Irving

 

Venus turns and dances backwards on December 21, 2013—she’ll be doing a foxtrot for her winter solstice celebration.  Retrograding just about every 20 months or 1.6777 years, this is not a terribly uncommon style for Venus.  But just because the planet of love is reverting to her former astrological turf in the sign of Capricorn, does not mean that her love shall -in any way- wane.

Image 

During…

View original post 698 more words

Blissed out on Green Growing Food

New Moon in Cancer: Nourishment in Relationships

Image from http://hikingartist.com/

New moon in Cancer 23 degrees squaring MC at 18 degrees 52 minutes Libra.
Transiting North Node is in Libra.

New Moon squaring the nodes in Aries and Libra, and on July 25, 2015 Venus goes retrograde. This lunation is about nourishment in our relationships, and freedom when we need it. Uranus, the liberator, is currently transiting in square aspect to the moon. We also have Mars in the mix, which is really putting the pressure on – it’s so close to this New Moon and Mercury! Also, we’ve got Pluto in Capricorn opposite the New Moon. Everything about this lunation is intense! It can be all about clearing out the dross from our lives, finding what nurtures us – and it’s yet another calling for self-nurture. What brings us security? With Saturn retrograde in Scorpio we need to be clear about our boundaries, especially while we reach deeply into our hearts and pull up more material from what may feel like the ether.

The Sabian Symbol for the new moon is “Cancer 24: A woman and two men on a bit of sunlit land facing south.” According to astrologer Blain Bovee this degree is about “withdrawing to contemplate.” I feel like I can agree with that. I’m also feeling a lot of gratitude for my blogger friends. I found this picture in honor of us; in honor of our joining – how we nurture one another with friendship, space, togetherness, and the loving support of shared interest in learning and exploring.

What I dig about this new moon chart for my location is that its part of fortune is exactly conjunct its ascendant degree. This makes sense because this is the calculation for the part of fortune, which can be applied to any chart, it need not just be a birth chart; though I have not used it in horary:

Day Births: Fortune = Ascendant + Moon – Sun
Night Births: Fortune = Ascendant + Sun – Moon

Coincidentally this new moon chart’s ascendant is within orb of a conjunction to my relocation chart’s ascendant degree. I’ve got the part of fortune in my natal chart in my 11th house in the sign of Capricorn. Working with the vertex (and part of fortune) and checking it against other charts via synastry has been fairly informative to me throughout the years. My natal vertex is in my 7th house conjunct Jupiter. This chart also has Vertex conjunct Jupiter in the 7th house. As far as that goes, my favorite aspect to work with is the conjunction. A New Moon – which is the moon forming a conjunction to the sun, and starting a new cycle – are my favorites. It’s a time of uncertainty… it’s a time of new encounters and for setting intentions.

All the best to you and yours for this new moon in Cancer!

IMG_0235

Once upon a time…when film was film

I have experienced so many profound things… and, I never wrote that story. I never became that professional photographer. I never found those words.  I never became the hero that I wanted to be. I couldn’t return to the townships in South Africa and say… Let’s play some music together again. I want to hit that drum with you again – join hands, transcend worlds…

So, here’s something from 2001.

Dear Woman, when the National Press Club notified me that I won the photo contest with your picture, I felt embarrassed. It took me a long time to find that smile you wore – to find it inside myself.

I could not afford to fly and see your image on the wall in the gallery. At the time, I could barely pay my rent. I wanted to see you again, not fly to Washington D.C. I needed the sunset and the sunrise to enter into my heart, just like it did when I could feel the whole jungle wake, as the funny monkeys stirred.

Old times, they do tug at my heart. People who I’ve met and exchanged with in depth of spirit, people on the journey. They moved on; we all just moved on.

Aloha.  Aloha. I love you. You have been in my heart all this time….

Your smile… is like no other I’ve ever seen. Here at Angkor Wat. Here at the temple where I continue to worship. The temple of shadows where smiles are forged from the hearts of connection. Where we don’t need things, or even hands, to smile.

Woman with smile_Angkor Wat

Dear Children, I want to see you free… free and free….

Children at home_Cambodia

Overcoming the desire to want everything NOW; Releasing the past

We’ve got the transiting Sun, Mercury, and Mars all in the tropical zodiacal sign of Cancer, and many thoughts and themes are about reminiscing and looking into the past. While I’m currently not writing deep analysis of the astrological themes at work, I am keeping a hand in it, or shall I say more aptly, a feeler out there for it.

In fact, I am ‘living’ it, just like all of you. Every week brings new challenges; and each day is another day to ‘find the fun’ in it. Which brings me to the comfortable, dare-I-say conclusion that:

‘I am here.’

The temptation to dip into the past is a juicy one, each year it can be all the more enticing. Carrying one’s past with them is inevitable, and at the same time, it can be a wonderful, pleasant, momentary respite to just reminisce. Sometimes some of us, we may discover a desire to start anew. Why not? Why not take every opportunity to give a fresh look to your situation, at your moment.

I want to introduce you to: The Sedona Method  I’m not trying to get you to click on the link, but I just wanted to quickly write this post and put it out there, because I want people to benefit from this technique, just like I have benefited. It’s that simple.

May your summer (or winter depending on where you are) days be fun!  If you think this method might be something that will help you, I will file it under ‘meditation,’ so you know where to find it for when, and if, you are ready… I also (and especially) recommend the book by written Hale Dwoskin. That was how I discovered the technique several years ago.

Image 1 credit: meditatecenter

Image 2 credit: Forgiveness butterfly, http://sevenstonesgallery.com/

Honestly, I want to introduce to all of you: The Sedona Method

Here’s a brilliant song inspired by a friend who reminded me of Toad the Wet Sprocket, and I like it for this post, it wasn’t an old personal “old favorite,” but it certainly fits the transits in the maternal and creative aspect of the sign Cancer:

Full Moon in Capricorn, July 2nd UT 2:20; otherwise July 1

Simplicity

Original watercolour on thick aquarelle paper, 28 x 39 cm Sale at: http://www.yayateahouse.co.nz/Tea-Art-1.php

While it looks like the monk in the picture above is resting and peaceful, most likely his appearance of “rest” is the result of hard work, born from his/her commitment to the ritual of tea drinking.

When one works repetitively and consistently at a task, the result – even with the natural correction of the environment on his/her actions – is grace-in-movement, movement with rounded edges. 

The ruler of this full moon in Capricorn is the planet Saturn. Personally, I’ve always been a fan of Saturn. Time and time again, Saturn has shown me that whenever I work hard and commit myself to a task or a project, I am always rewarded. The heart has to be into it; that’s the commitment, and then there’s solid ground. I’m reminded of the ancient Egyptians who weigh at death the heart against the feather of Ma’at. Perhaps it is in this spirit of inevitability (death, Saturn) that we learn the true nature of our hearts. Interestingly, the ancient Egyptians and Romans used to worship Saturn as the Sun God, and the holiday of Saturnalia was around the time of the Winter Solstice but varied in length – sometimes continuing up until December 25th, when the sun is in Capricorn. I was surprised to see this relationship between Saturn and the Sun/Son. In the Kabbalah, Saturn is related to the sepiroth of Binah, which equates to wisdom and understanding. See more links at the end for information on Saturn in religious/occult history.

Saturn asks you to find your heart. Find your ‘why.’ This is not your philosophical ‘why,’ but your ‘reason to action.’

Saturn is solid, linked to the metal ‘lead’ in ancient alchemy, and is very ‘grounding’ to be quite honest, even sobering. Perhaps the most well-known astrological text on the re-visioning of Saturn is by Liz Greene called, Saturn: A New Look at an Old Devil, originally published in 1976. Her take is largely influenced by Carl Jung and presents Saturn as an archetype, representing a psychic process; and therefore having psychic meaning beyond its traditional astrological association as a malefic, can be beneficial. Greene introduces her book with a quote from the late esoteric astrologer, Alice A. Bailey [1880-1949].

When the disciple knows Saturn as the God
who offers opportunity and does not only feel him to be Deity
who brings disaster, then he is on the path of discipleship in truth
and in deed and not just theoretically.

All astrological traditions are not perfectly alike, and the newest age astrology has been changing rapidly. Some astrologers stick to the planets in their interpretation of psychic forces, others reach to interpret every space object that has been named and/or numbered for some representative psychic phenomena/force in the collective consciousness’s puzzle. In the Chinese Tradition, Saturn relates to the element “Earth” just as in Western Astrology. However, in Chinese astrology, Saturn relates to the Stomach and Spleen; its color is Yellow. Its direction is CENTER. In Western Astrology, Saturn rules the skeleton.

Saturn/Capricorn represents the fundaments, the structural framework of your life. It can look different for everyone individually, and often does! The way we relate to metaphor/archetype is colored by the orchestra of our charts taken as a whole – and those experiences it represents. Therefore, writing here generally on the full moon can only be just that: administered with broad strokes. In this case, I’ve encountered new ways to discuss what for me is an old subject. There’s a lot left to be defined, understood, and relegated into a complete cosmological picture of meaning. I’m not so sure I’m interested in being that ‘tidy’ these days. I don’t prefer comprehensive explanations, but I do have a certain appreciation for the simplistic. That said, I’ve never found my study of astrology to be simple…

When thinking of Capricorn, think of the mountain goat! My favorite animal representative for this sign. Capricorn is about focus, having your mental bullet-points ready, following a specific and complete checklist. It’s where things are clearly defined and there’s organizational conformity. When one is fully balanced in the assemblage of all the archetypes, Capricorn gives us the sense of ‘I CAN’ to reach beyond ‘perceived obstacles (limits)’ and triumph in the face of all obstacles (known and unknown). Overall, a pretty cool energy; pretty bad ass, to use a popular label…and something we are all familiar with. There’s a growing need for more bad asses on the planet. That’s for sure. We’re no longer talking about the saturnine archetype that keeps us down! No, no.

Mastering Saturn/Capricorn is mastering thyself in the mirror of the world, being the commanding authority in one’s own life. As Saturn has related to the archetypal father-time, and as we all are experiencing, fathers are becoming increasingly more sensitive. More fathers are stay-at-home fathers. While a long way off from ‘perfect,’ our societal archetypes, roles, and norms are becoming less and less rigid. How can astrology deal with this new sense of fluidity? If Saturn/Capricorn itself is any representative of the frame supporting life, then Pluto is certainly redefining and transmuting this frame with its 15 year stay (2008-2023). Fatherhood will continue to undergo massive change in its meaning and expression, as all social roles evolve and adapt.

More general themes and observations: the archetype of Saturn, as I’ve experienced it – is one of consolidation. There’s this “putting it all together,” experience with a Capricornian practicality that no other sign’s energy can offers. However, with Pluto’s stay in Capricorn, “putting it all together” and getting a good grasp on ‘order and operations’ is less about ‘tried and true’ and more about a playing a game in a changing field of possibilities.

Also, there’s a compression with Saturn that can be both positive and negative. The positive aspect is the resulting action that is born from the discomfort, the negative aspect of compression. To me recognizing polarities is the pointer for finding the middle, like a string oscillating between two distances, there’s a back-and-forth motion that makes, “one sound” or “one frequency.” It’s a tone. That’s it! That’s the sound of one hand clapping…

Sun conjunct Mars in the sign of Cancer, and the drive is for comfort, safety, and the nurturing of family in the home. We all get to live a private life! No matter how socially connected we become, there’s an ‘inside’ that always requires attention.

We may be driven to clear out, resolve, and tidy our clutter and distractions with this full moon in Capricorn. The energy supports areas of life where we commit to building the foundations (structures) that are necessary for all the creative actions that come forth. With this Capricorn full moon we look at our systems, and the way we manage our personal needs. It’s a excellent reminder for scheduling in necessary playtime, leisure, and relaxation. Also, the emotional life ‘has life‘ at this time, but it has to serve in the worldly context and expression of Capricorn. Your signals to this emotional life during this full moon with the presence of Mars conjunct the Sun: agitation, drive, frustration, and even more likely, passion! With the sign of Cancer, think of needs, often emotional needs that fuel the work, and bring the projects into fruition. Again, this is our ‘why’ for doing what we do.

Finally with the Moon conjunct Retrograde Pluto in Capricorn we have a depth that we are capable of reaching into – and of purging, turning-over, and empowering.

Here’s the process: We’re going to use an Earthy Model

1). Discover.

a). Dig deep and find the stones: Pain, Sadness, Resisted ideas that we believe
b). Turn over the stones, what is underneath this emotion, this belief, what are the consequences of this belief?

2). Turnover the soil, and re-mix your findings. Put them into a new perspective:

a). Psychologically re-frame (re-pot whatever hasn’t been released, or shelve it..allow yourself some space from it. etc)
b). Use techniques: Emotional Freedom Technique EFT, Vipassana Meditation, Chant Mantras around it, Cry (Water it).

3). Embrace yourself fully – whatever you cannot or do not want to let go of.

a). Whatever we cannot let go of may be useful, honor the seeds of your new challenges.

4). Repeat steps 2 and 3.

5). Appreciate and congratulate yourself on what you have been able to release.

Repeat all steps as necessary; and at the end of the day, DO REST. Tuck yourself in. Let your Wei Qi return to your Dan Tien.

If Wu Wei is your Master, these are simple steps – ideas, or suggestions for what to do, while you are doing nothing! 

Love to All….Happy Full Moon!

Namaste.

References: __VOL I, No. 10 April 22, 1997 SATURN: THE ANCIENT SUN GOD By David Talbott
___About Saturn, the Son of the Sun. http://hans.wyrdweb.eu/about-saturn/
___Saturn in Myth & Occult Philosophy, by David McCannhttp://www.skyscript.co.uk/saturnmyth.html

My Rainbow Path

Rainbows everywhere!!! Re-blogging.

Ka Malana - Fiestaestrellas.com's avatarFiesta Estrellas

Image from globalminds.com

Each sister has said to me

At least once:

“I saw a rainbow,

And it reminded me of you.”

REAL –LY?

A rainbow,

I was taught, was God’s promise

Never to be mean to all of us, ever again!

(at least not by flood)

Maybe,

I drew all those rainbows

From ages 3 thru 8,

Because life wasn’t always easy,

and people: They

need colorful bridges to escape onto /(

Take refuge In.) On. ^Above^ _or_ Under the Rain…

Look at the pictures;

I thought it

was the #Number of

Rainbows that could staircase the Way Out-

UP, Around ~

Each Arc

Another Step, a Progression

What I see now is that ‘rainbow’ was

simply MY FAVORITE COLOR.

The early years:

Rainbow NativeRainbow with Trees

View original post