Amelia’s Blog

Ganesha and This Week’s Astrology

“Time is not at all what it seems. It does not flow in one direction, and the future exists simultaneously with the past.” Albert Einstein

“God created time so everything wouldn’t happen at once.” Jack Smith

The presence of Ganesha  the Hindu god is likely to be felt this week. Ganesha is invoked  for assistance in removing obstacles. But Ganesha is a mercurial character and is also known for creating obstacles and placing them in our way.

This week some of  the planets are  forming 90 degree angles or square aspects. This indicates that the need to overcome obstacles will likely be present. Square aspects can create an inner tension which seeks an outlet through action in the outside world. People with a lot of squares in their natal charts, for this reason, can often be very dynamic.

It’s good  to keep in mind that we are in a somewhat liminal time – between eclipses. It’s wise to assume all the info you are looking for is not yet in. The next eclipse in Aquarius is on February 15. Eclipses on the Leo/Aquarius axis are about autonomy and personal leadership and collaboration with others. Striking a balance in this area is not always easy. It is wise to temper your approach in this area if necessary – i.e. if you are inclined ordinarily to take a detached view when working with others, try to integrate a more empathetic perspective. If you are inclined to take a more emotional view, try taking a more detached perspective.

There can be a fair amount of frustration this week in an effort to push things forward. It bodes well to proceed wisely and with caution.

One of the Sabian symbols for the Sun square Jupiter is, “Obeying his conscience a soldier resists orders.”

Sabian symbol from  Lynda Hill

Marriage, Relationships and 2018

“The most highly charged relationships occur when unlike seeks unlike, not when like seeks like. The ancient Greek god Eros was depicted as a prime creative force in the universe because he created the universe by bringing together chaos and matter, two very different things.The 7th house is traditionally called the house of the “not self “as well as the house  of marriage. It’s as if we want to marry what isn’t in us.”  Richard Idemon

“Spiritual practice is really about weaving a network of good relationships.” Dhyani Ywahoo

In astrology the elements-  earth, air,  fire and water govern  the different aspects of  perceiving and experiencing life. For instance someone with a lot of fire could take a very adventurous orientation towards life and tend to leap excitedly into new circumstances. Someone with a predominance of water would have a more sensitive, emotional approach. Someone with a  lot of the air element would tend to analyze and assess things from a cerebral viewpoint.

Everyone has  a blend of elements and many people have an  imbalance. This can result in behavior that tends to either overcompensate for the lacking element – often quite successfully – or to seek it outside of themselves  in partnership when they see it in other people. So for example a person who is reclusive by nature may be drawn to a partner who is outgoing and can develop a social life for the partnership. But when the sociable person leaves the alliance, the other person often  returns to the more solitary state.

Often with highly charged relationships there is a karmic component – i.e there was an agreement of some kind made before this lifetime that when the two people were to meet again – often under the most common of circumstances – the purpose of the connection would be  to work on some form of healing of old wounds. There can be an ancestral component too – some desire in the family lines to work on and make progress with an old issue that the family has struggled with over time. This is a difficult task –  especially if interpreted initially as indicating that a serious long term marriage may be on the table. Relationships like this may have trouble with endurance due to the intensity and can blow apart.

Some astrologers have said that 2018 is not a good year for marriage because the planets of the lovers – Mars , governing the Masculine  (drive, ambition and how we move forward in the world ) and the Feminine (justice, soulfulness and a holistic approach) both transit retrograde this year.  Venus retrograde can represent a fearless warrior goddess. And Mars retrograde can be related to retreat, aggression or passive aggressive behavior  in situations related to the  use of power.

With Mars and Venus transiting retrograde in the course of the year,this re-balancing process of power and the use and abuse of power – will be a theme both personally and collectively as  a new and more  harmonious balance is striving to be born.  Needless to say this elicits inner and outer conflict and push back and it’s wise to exercise patience as new perceptions are being born and seeking to be  integrated both personally and collectively.

I don’t necessarily  agree that  2018 is a bad year for marriage in general. I think partnerships established in this time will contain this seed of seeking a new kind of power balance as they move forward. It can create conflict obviously but can result in evolution as well. It also bodes well to take into account the balance of the elements in each chart.

 

And Now for a Moment of Levity

There can be a somewhat somber feeling in the air around a Lunar Eclipse – one of which is tomorrow, Wednesday Jan 31.

But  it brightened my  day considerably today when I was driving home to have to stop and  let Pina Colada cross the road. Pina Colada is a chicken who lives with a family downtown in our small New England Village.  She was rescued from a dire fate by two little girls whose house is across the street from the cinema arts theatre in town. Pina Colada has her own house in the yard and is free to run during the day. Her first priority is to get over to the theatre where they give her a bowl of popcorn and a bowl of fresh water.

She then often can be seen in other areas  downtown. The police one day in particular enjoyed a call to the station about a chicken crossing the road. There has been occaisional concern about a hawk that dives down into her yard when she is running free but the staff at the theatre keeps an eye out for her  as do the patrons of the movie theatre who have to take care when parking there. Plus Pina Colada is savvy too and knows when to dive under a car.

In our topsy turvey times  of change , with Chiron and Neptune in Pisces – the sign of service to others – it’s good to remember the many good deeds that go on all the time around the globe that help to make the world a friendlier, kinder place.

Leadership and Wednesday’s Lunar Eclipse in Leo

“The people I love the best
jump into work head first
without dallying in the shadows
and swim off with sure strokes almost out of sight…

I love people who harness themselves, as an ox to a heavy cart,
Who pull like the water buffalo with massive patience,
who strain in the muck and the mud to pull things forward,
who do what has to be done again and again.

The work of the world is as common as mud.
Botched, it smears the hands, crumbles to dust.
But the thing worth doing well done
has a shape that satisfies, clean and evident.” Marge Piercy

Wednesday’s Full Moon Lunar Eclipse in Leo is in the sign of leadership and where you shine in the world.  Sometimes and under certain circumstances you can be “called” into a leadership position before you feel you are ready. It can feel like an initiation that you must step into –  in a personal or professional way – not fully prepared or with alot of unanswered questions.

This is the case for many people now who feel called to work to create a more just world.  And it’s important with the South Node involvement to remember that activity like this can have its daunting moments and unanticipated problems and that’s okay. Just make sure to provide appropriate downtime in order to restore and reinvigorate.

The Nodes in astrology – prominent players in eclipses- are associated with life path and life purpose. It’s wise to be conscious of where you intend for your life to go during these time frames – this one extending through late February. With the powerful influence of Mercury, Pluto  and Uranus now, do  be attentive to signs and signals of an unconventional nature that can point the way forward in unexpected ways.

“And all the obstacles along the way
Sometimes may feel so tremendous
There are guides and spirits all along the way
Who will befriend us.” Van Morrison 

 

Upcoming Eclipses

“I have made this,  I have forgotten
And remember …
Between one June and another September,
Made this unknowing, half conscious, unknown my own.

This form, this face, this life,
Living to live in a world of time beyond me, let me
Resign my life for this life, my speech for that unspoken,
The awakened, lips parted, the hope, the new ships. ”

We are now in eclipse season when time can feel distorted  Eclipses are evolutionary in nature and and  present opportunities for personal growth and evolution. The first eclipse is a Full Moon Lunar eclipse at 11 degrees of Leo on January 31. The effect of eclipses can be felt building up to and after the event.

Lunar eclipses are about the past and the unconscious.  In the old texts they would say that during a lunar eclipse the power of the unconscious mind would overtake the conscious mind. In our time it would be explained more as a time when – if you are tuned into it- there can be glimpses of unconscious thoughts or feelings which can drive behavior in old, unproductive ways. The pull of the forces can be habitual and strong but the opportunity lies in seeing things more clearly to contain these influences in order to move in a wiser way going forward.

The Tarot Card of the Sun is associated with the sign of Leo. The card depicts a  joyful, small child riding on a white horse. The horse has no saddle or bridle. This happy duo is moving away from a very tall and thick  wall.  Behind the wall grow sunflowers which symbolize happiness. The idea behind the card is that the child is moving away from things that feel constrictive or limited and moving in a direction of  freedom and happiness because she can see the unnecessary limitations (symbolized by the wall)  that held her back. The limitations can have to do with assumptions that are no longer necessary. The child is naked implying  trust and innocence. Riding away from the wall does not mean leaving boundaries behind but rather leaving overly limiting boundaries or restrictions  (thought or feeling patterns) behind or in the appropriate perspective.

Lunar eclipses can also bring forward the influences that come down from the ancestors or are inherited through the bloodlines. There are evolutionary wishes on the part of the ancestors but there are also similar pitfalls about attaining those aspirations that we can fall prey to – such as addiction in its myriad forms. Addiction often has an inherited component to it.

It’s best if these kinds of influences arise now to take a good look and them and choose which of the traits you would like to carry foward and which of the pitfalls you need to avoid or would be best left behind.

The second eclipse is a Solar eclipse at 27 degrees of Aquarius on February 15.

In early November  of 2016 there was a significant station of the centaur planet, Pholus.  The meaning of Pholus is “the lid blows off” and it speaks of something that is uncontainable or has  trouble with containment. We are in many ways entering a new age (the dawning of the Age of Aquarius)  with the many changes we see around us. The sign of Aquarius is that of the enlightened or spiritual warrior who values collaboration and innovation and brings about change that way.

The  Sabian symbol for the upcoming eclipse is,”An old sea captain rocking on the porch of his cottage.”

Sabian symbol by Lynda Hill.

This Week’s Astrology

“In a circle of friends,
In a circle of sounds,
All our voices will blend,
When we touch common ground.” Paul Winter Consort 

“Out beyond ideas of wrongdoing and rightdoing
There is a field. I’ll meet you there.
When we lie down in that grass,
The world is too full to talk about.
Ideas, language, even the phrase each other
doesn’t make any sense.” Rumi

The Sun in Aquarius is moving up to a conjunction with Venus this week.  This is the sign of the collaborator who seeks alliances along lines of common interest.

The Age of Capricorn which we are  now leaving, was a time of top- down or power- over leadership. Capricorn rules the institutions of big business and “the way business is done.” It is associated with the patriarchy and patriarchal rulership. There is a movement afoot with the Age of Aquarius and the re-emergence of the Feminine (in both men and women) that has the potential to bring about a more just, egalitarian and sustainable world.  Needless to say in working towards the transition to a new paradigm from an old one, there will be resistance and push back.

In building alliances this week and going forward it bodes well to focus on common interests rather than the stark differences which are so prevalent in the world these days.

It is a good week for forging collaborations, making agreements and business deals- keeping in mind the benefits to others involved.

Mercury is conjunct Pluto and making a positive aspect to Jupiter, the planet of expansion and wisdom.  Mercury/Pluto  is often found  in the charts of investigators, private detectives and people who do research. It has a laser-like in focus and intensity and is able to quickly and accurately penetrate the outer layers of information. It is also an aspect of deep thinking. So if you are in the process of making some kind of alliance or negotiation the best to enter full prepared and having thought it  through thoroughly. And then speak or act with a great deal of  clarity.  Important things can be accomplished under these terms now.

It can be a time of working towards healing fragmented relationships as long as there is clarity and the cool headed detachment of Aquarius which can be open to the opinions of others without getting  caught up in heated discussions about the differences. Best to have appropriate boundaries in place when entering this kind of situation.

It’s best to practice diplomacy and build bridges to the future now.

One of the Sabian symbols for this time is,”A Hindu healer glows with a mystic healing power.”

Sabian symbol quote from Lynda Hill

 

Relationships and This Weekend’s Astrology

“Our highest business is our daily life.” John Cage

from Aslan, “You would not have called to me unless I had been calling to you.”  CS Lewis 

There is a very powerful cosmic alignment this weekend boding well for considering or reconsidering relationship commitments – and by this I mean relationships of all kinds.
The Lunar Nodes – associated with life purpose and life path are an integral part of this combination along with Venus, The Sun, Juno, Ceres and Pluto. This alignment speaks of  the teachings  put forth by many spiritual traditions  – that love is a spiritual force in the world and that by our actions we make the world a more loving or less loving place.
With the South Node conjunct the asteroid of traditional commitment, Juno, it is wise to consider the commitments in your life that may be related to the past and to tradition.
With Ceres conjunct the North Node is is wise to consider which relationships in your life in general that  you would particularly like to nurture going forward.
The ability to do this while remaining a loving person or loving force in the world requires appropriate personal boundaries – i.e. the knowledge of how to protect yourself  so that your inner life may flourish and grow. It speaks of the ability to surround yourself with people who support growth in that direction while keeping others who are not like that at an appropriate distance.
The highest card in the Tarot deck is the World Card which shows a woman dancing inside a laurel wreath. The laurel wreath symbolizes victory and the woman dances naked – meaning she has created a temenos – a sacred space both within and outside of herself where she might safely evolve and flourish.

The South Node at this time is at 14 degrees of Aquarius and the Sabian symbol for that placement is, “Two lovebirds sitting on a fence and singing happily.”

Sabian symbol reference  from Lynda Hill

 

Venus Enters Aquarius

“Well the first days are the hardest days
Don’t you worry anymore
‘Cause when life looks like easy street
There is danger at your door.” Robert Hunter

“To change something build a new model that makes the existing model obsolete.” Buckminister Fuller  

Venus is now in Aquarius through mid February and the Sun will enter Aquarius Friday 1/19.  The sign of Aquarius has two rulers – Saturn and Uranus and often people with this signature placed strongly in their charts are bridge builders between the past and the future.

Aquarius is the sign of our common humanity. Uranus, its ruler governs cyber technology and we have seen how it can – with its accelerated speed- bring  about a new awareness of the interconnectedness of the world community.With the transitioning of the Sun and Venus into the sign of Aquarius it bodes well to put your energy into collaborating with others along common lines of interest. The sign of Aquarius can have a measured and moderate detachment. It is an air sign – governed by the thought process. Best to be open to new and innovative ideas and consider options in working by yourself or with others. Keep an open mind.

The Sabian symbol for Venus entering Aquarius is,”An unexpected thunderstorm.”

Sabian symbol by Lynda Hill

Tuesday’s New Moon

“Intention is infinite.” Carlos Castaneda

The Moon waxes new Tuesday January 16 at 26 degrees of Capricorn.  The symbol of Capricorn is the mountain goat – which tenaciously aspires and perseveres  to reach the heights at the top of the mountain. If you have ever been around goats you probably know it is best not to get in their way. They can be very strong willed and determined animals.

Capricorn is Saturn’s sign and as Caroline Casey has written, “Saturn lays the tracks for the Reality Train to follow.” The New Moon bodes well for intention setting while committing to the work , discipline and self restraint required which will result in a positive long term outcome.

At the time of the New Moon Mars will be making a harmonious aspect to Chiron – the asteroid of the Wounded Healer. This indicates that the ongoing  process of healing inner fragmentation and moving towards a more whole inner vision can be a powerful asset in actualizing your aspirations.

One of  Sabian symbols  for this New Moon is, “A mountain pilgrimage.” Another is,” A nature spirit dancing in the mist of a waterfall.”

Sabian symbols from Lynda Hill

 

The Sun, Venus and Pluto

“Children born of fairy stock
Never need for shirt or frock
Never want for food or fire
Always get their heart’s desire…
They live on cherries, they run wild-
I’d love to be a fairy’s child.” Robert Graves

This weeks’s powerful planetary line up of Pluto, Venus and the Sun sextiling Mars and  Jupiter can bring you closer to your “heart’s desire” if you are clear in your visualization of it, willing to walk through the terrain of inner transformation to attain it  and if you are willing to be patient.

The Peruvian shamans believe that the earth is a living being and that in the time we are living,  the earth- like a serpent – is shedding her skin. In a certain respect this is true of individuals as well. Transformation is a difficult and profound process which takes time and effort and which engenders push back internally and externally.

There is enthusiasm now which can fire projects and initiatives with new energy. Just be careful not to get too ahead of yourself or overshoot the mark and end up feeling depleted.

One of the  Sabian symbols for Sun/Pluto/Venus alignment is, ” A general accepting  defeat gracefully. ”

Sabian symbol from Lynda Hill