The Grand Sextile/T-Squares of 2013

Grand Sextile chart, courtesy of solpurpose.com. A good article on the subject.

Grand Sextile chart, courtesy of solpurpose.com. A good article on the subject.

There's been a bit of online hubbub regarding the so-called Grand Sextile that occurs on Monday July 29th, lasting from late morning all the way through evening. As you can see from the chart at the left, this configuration creates a shape of what looks like a six pointed star. We could dig deep into the symbolism of this shape appearing this way in the heavens, but it's unlikely that many of us will experience any profound divine realizations, at least no more than what we can experience on any other day.

Much has been written about the Grand Sextile, which I won't go into too much detail here. However, the Grand Sextile is not the entire picture. In fact, the Grand Sextile would mean a lot less without the t-squares, because t-squares carry with them potential for real change, pumping energy into the system to move out old baggage and motivate creation of new solutions to old problems. T-squares deliver the message: "Enough stalling! Get your ass in gear and get your life going!" You will need to fight to succeed or fail trying; or as Yoda said: "Do or do not, there is no try." It's the kind of energy that doesn't let us off the hook until we've worked up the wisdom and strength to manifest our higher purposes. T-squares carry the potential for great power, whereas the Grand Sextile is more of a lazy energy, bringing blessings but on its own ultimately not much victory.

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Sagittarius Full Moon Lunar Eclipse

The seemingly faraway sound of keys clanking inside a lock echoes off walls of stone and misery, awakening a man imprisoned for heresy. He has had weeks in darkness to think about his fate, left to rot in a dungeon for espousing a scientific point of view that ran counter to that of the prevailing powers of church and state. Fearing his ideas could spark a revolution, the man was hastily thrown in prison and forgotten.

But unbeknownst to him, he had an ally in the court, a voice of reason able to cut through the fears of the powerful. His ideas made it to the ears of royalty and it was decided that he should be sent on a mission to prove himself. A voyage across the sea to collect new information in a completely foreign land was determined the best course to decide once and for all if he was right.

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Healing After the Boston Event

Healing the World

artist unknown

Astrologers have been talking for a while about the explosive nature of Pluto squaring Uranus. This aspect is currently intensified as Pluto, the planet of destruction, very recently turned retrograde in Capricorn, the sign of infrastructure. It is thus applying into square aspect (tension, crossed purposes) with Uranus, planet of sudden change, in Aries, the sign of cardinal fire. Put these symbols together and you have a volatile soup of energy waiting to explode.

But why today? Mars stands at one degree after the Sun at 25 degrees Aries. Given the planets involved — Mars (fire, aggression), the Sun (free will), Uranus (sudden change and revolution) and Pluto (destruction), it's not surprising to see a tragedy such as this. Saturn in Scorpio at a precise inconjunct to Uranus shows us that this event is directly tied to the collective soul work of humanity.

But why should this happen at all?

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Jupiter Direct in Gemini

Having a Gas at Jupiter

© 1986 Paul McGehee

A benevolent lord sits on his throne and bestows graces upon his people. He assigns them tasks, in accordance with their skills, and instructs them to report back to him on their progress. The lord's kingdom is repaired and expanded, and the knowledge contained in its libraries and stewarded by its illuminati reaches its peak. The kingdom has arrived at an intellectual renaissance, with due care taken to apply objective rigor to the acquisition of facts and data. The kingdom's sciences and academia flourish, its pride in its reason and rationality impenetrable. The lord smiles equally on himself as on his subjects for their jobs well done.

Then enters the lord's jester, barking crazily about the death of mental reasoning, crying in grief for the loss of scholarliness and truth. "What is this strange comedy, dear jester?" asks the bemused lord. "Are you mocking our great achievements in advancing the minds of our people?"

"Oh my lord, I would not dream of it!" cries the jester. "But, my most gracious high lord, the news is terrible! I just spoke with the old hermit in the mountain. He told me all about the world, the places we haven't explored, even truths about magic, physics and mythical creatures. Oh, all our knowledge, all that research...". The jester begins to weep.

The lord gives him a moment, then asks impatiently: "And?!"

"We've got it all wrong!"

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2012 Astrology, Part 2 – The December Full Moon

Full Moon Meditation

Photographer unknown

For more on the astrology of the Solstice, please read the first part of this article.

The Full Moon is exact at 4:22am CST on Friday December 28th. This is the first Full Moon after the 2012 Solstice, and offers another significant energy pattern to clue us in to the future as we move into 2013. In fact, the Full Moon chart is a snapshot of issues we will be dealing with well into the future — through the next six months, year, 19 years, possibly even the next 2,160 years, the length of the Aquarian Age, considering the proximity to the 2012 Solstice.

Given that this Full Moon also opposes Pluto on the zodiac, the primary message is that our transformative work is being highlighted on yet another plane, the emotional body of the ego. This is yet another remarkable aspect in a long line of such aspects that have taken place since the 2012 Solstice. Let's take a look at them, how they may be expressed and how we can derive power from their symbolism.

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2012 Astrology, Part 1

Welcome 2012

artist unknown

If you've been feeling a great deal of intensity in your life lately, you're not alone. The Mayan End Date is fast approaching and its primary symbolism, the "end of time" or the "turning of ages", is effecting all of us. Many souls have been awakening to an inner calling, feeling pulled towards something that somehow, some way they were always meant to do. Others are being pulled into the dark abyss of total personal transformation. Whatever its nature, that pull is becoming stronger and more intense, requiring us to evolve as we rid ourselves of old patterns that hold us back and embrace new missions based on new ways of thinking and being. We must ride our leading edge into the future or risk becoming overtaken by our past.

From an astrological perspective, we can gain clues that can help us make the most of this pivotal transition in human consciousness. The planets powerfully symbolize a clearing of karmic cruft as we are encouraged to step up to our soul work, to fulfill our futures as agents of world healing during the years of change to come. The planets show us that the Solstice of 2012 is more than just the end of a calendar — it's a wake up call to our souls.

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December Full Moon and Lunar Eclipse

June 2011 Lunar Eclipse

June 2011 Lunar Eclipse — image courtesy of nasa.gov

The Gemini Full Moon occurred today at 8:46AM Central Time. It is also a lunar eclipse, when the Earth temporarily blocks the Moon from the light of the Sun. A Full Moon is usually a time when our emotions (the Moon) are being lit up by the light of our awareness (the Sun). But when there is a Lunar Eclipse, that light is blocked by our center of gravity (the Earth). Instead of a bright moon we have a dark moon, and it is just as true that we block the Sun from the Moon as we block the Moon from the Sun. We are thus being given an opportunity to see even deeper into the darker parts of our emotional bodies and in doing so we are given the chance to connect to the deepest, truest source of our emotional nurturing.

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The Virgo/Pisces Polarity

Zodiac Wheel

Image courtesy of astrolibrary.org

Virgo and the 6th House are the pivot between subjective and objective orientation to life. Moving through Virgo shifts the focus from emotional attachment to one's creative source (it's all about me, the world revolves around my needs) to a detached perspective of one's place and purpose (I am here to serve others, the world is my oyster). Aries thru Leo is exploring the development of the self, evolving the individuating ego, Libra thru Pisces is exploring relation of self to others, the use of power, and how best to manage resources to objectively achieve one's purposes. Aries thru Leo develops compassion for the self, Libra thru Pisces develops the connection to the needs of others. Continue reading

Election Check-in

Voting Badge - Your Vote Counts!

Get out there and exercise your liberty!

Happy Election Day. Here we are again, exercising our individual will to elect the leaders of our nation. No matter if it is just a game between tweedle-evil and tweedle-eviler, there is something sacred about election day, taking a moment out of our work schedules to join the crowds and make ourselves heard by engaging in the most essential ritual in a democracy — voting. The very act empowers us and reminds us that we all have a responsibility to our society and nation, no matter if we agree with its politics or not.

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The Chiron Bridge, Part 1 – From Conformity to Liberation

Chiron

Chiron (artist unknown)

Out there amongst the distant planets flies a unique and strange object astronomers call a centaur. It's not quite a planet, not quite an asteroid, not quite a comet. It is the first known object of such a classification and has an erratic orbit unlike any other body, giving it the feeling of a celestial outcast, an alien among more familiar orbiting bodies. Like the Greek immortal centaur Chiron himself, this object does not fit in with its heavenly brethren, but as an astrological symbol we must learn to incorporate Chiron's lessons if we are to transcend our wounds and step up to our roles as healers in the world.

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