2008 November : wisestars.net

Nov

30

I’ve really been enjoying reading Mary Greer’s tarot blog lately. For the uninitated, Greer is a long-time tarot practitioner, writer and teacher, who I’ve had many a reading with over the years and from whose wisdom I’ve benefitted greatly.

Greer not only has an interesting analysis on the “Love, Jobs and 401 k’s” article that’s been making the rounds amongst many of us professional intuitive practioners, she also has many fun tips and tools about the tarot to learn from.

Drawing inspiration from her site, I wanted to offer blog readers some of my own processes for approaching astrology. In my astrology classes and readings, I like to give students and clients fun, easy and accessible ways to work with their charts.

Here’s a version of a game I play in my classes:

Planetary Characters

Pick a planet

(Sun, Moon, Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune or Pluto are the ones we work with in astrology, regardless of who says their planets or not….)

You may want to choose a planet that you particularly like, or one that you feel challenged by. But just pick one to start with.

Develop a character for this planet based on what you know of it’s astrological nature

If you know nothing about your planets astrological nature, read up a bit first at a site like astro.com

or read about the myths associated with your planet in Greek mythology. Wikipedia is a great resource for this…..

Then come up with a name, profession, hobby, mate, ideal home environment, etc. for your chosen planet. Imagine your planet as a person come to life.

Observe the people around you to see if anyone you encounter reminds you of this planet

What can you learn from this person about the planet’s nature? How do they express the more challenging (ie negative), or positive qualities of your planet?

How do you react to this person? Do you react to their qualities in the same way you might the influence of the planet in your life? (by transit or in your chart)

Use your first planetary exploration as a jumping board to explore the rest of the planets, until you have created your own collection of planetary characters.

Nov

16

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It’s a Sagittarius and Capricorn party, as several planets transition into one or both of these signs during the later part of November.

The new planetary positions are:
Capricorn:

Venus moved in on November 13, Pluto enters Capricorn on November 28th.

Sagittarius:

Mars moves in on November 17th, the Sun on November 22nd, and Mercury is next on November 24th.

This puts every planet except for Saturn, Uranus and Neptune into the signs of either Sagittarius or Capricorn. That’s a lot of movement in a relatively short period of time, so expect to feel a change of pace in the next couple of weeks as the planets play musical chairs and get comfortable in their new roles.

The energetic influence of Sagittarius and Capricorn brings us a greater awareness of our place in the collective story. Sagittarius encourages us to grow beyond our limited understanding of our daily lives towards a more expansive and multi-faceted approach to the world around us. Now we are much more interested in and also open to, new ideas and belief system. During this next month we may want to travel, explore and have adventures, broadening our perspectives and personal paradigms.
Capricorn asks us to focus and plan for the future, incorporating a long-range view into our perspective on life. We may be much more interested in reality and the bare bones of life now.
How can we practically take care of ourselves and invest in the next phase of our journey? Who are we responsible to and for?

The combination of Sagittarian and Capricornian energies encourages us to dream and explore with a solid foundation and plan in hand. This is a trip that needs to follow an itinerary whether we are exploring in the jungle or embarking on a new course of study. Without some kind of structure or form for our hope and idealism, we may become overconfident, foolhardy and appear to be more excited talk than concrete action. If we can draw on the gifts of both of these signs, benefiting from the buoyant confidence of Sagittarius and the grounded pragmatism of Capricorn, we may find that our holiday season is one of joy and wonder balanced by healthy limits and boundaries.

Nov

11

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Everything in nature seems to be moving, falling and changing now, as we enter more deeply into the time of Scorpio. Scorpio is the sign of bottomless depth, mystery and transformation: birth and death and birth again. Now we turn inward, circling closer to ourselves and each other, and moving forward into the growing darkness of winter.

The Full Moon tomorrow is in Taurus, and it serves as a reminder to nurture our bodies and anything pertaining to the physical realm. This moon was named the “Beaver Moon” by the Algonquin, and signaled a time to set beaver traps to prepare furs for winter. In the modern world, this moon can similarly be a reminder to get busy as beavers and make sure we have all that we need to sustain us through the cold and dark. Are we practically prepared for winter? Will we be warm, fed and sheltered?

At the same time, the mystery of Scorpio is calling us to go deeper into the dark cave of night, asking us to wander in our own depths, and reminding us of adventures of the spirit. The Scorpio Sun asks us who we really are? What gives our life meaning? If we were to die tomorrow, what would we spend our time doing NOW?

This Full Moon challenges us to find a balance between our Taurus need for physical comfort and sustenance, and Scorpio’s desire for spiritual and emotional quests. Look to the houses in your astrological chart that the full moon falls in for more clues as to how this full moon may manifest in your life. (for a free chart go to: astro.com)

The Taurus Full Moon is also squared by Neptune in Aquarius which went direct on November 1st. This aspect indicates that our personal journey is currently directly influenced and effected by the ongoing collective story. In the last several years, as Neptune has transited through Aquarius we have been learning about our illusions and fantasies in relation to the qualities of freedom, technology and independence. Neptune is approaching a conjunction with the Moon of the chart of the United States, offering us the opportunity to let go of our deceptions and self-defeating behaviors as a country.

The year-long Saturn and Uranus opposition, and also transiting Jupiter in Capricorn make harmonious aspects to this moon, offering support in undergoing dynamic change and transformation. We may find these transitions unsettling to the fixed nature of our Scorpio and Taurus selves, but ultimately, we will arrive at a place that is new, juicy and full of life. The earth trine formed by the Moon in Taurus, Jupiter in Capricorn and Saturn in Virgo offers us some practical and grounded tools for moving forward towards the future.

At the Full Moon we also have the opportunity to get a first look at any seeds we might have planted at the Scorpio New Moon on October 28th.Though it may not yet be time to harvest these seeds, we can gather clues about the state of their growth. What new projects or relationships did you begin at the New Moon? What has grown or changed with these projects since that time? The coming dark moon on November 26 may bring a greater sense of resolution to these new beginnings, but now is a time to assess and witness your unfolding journey.

Nov

6

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By now I was hoping I would come up with some kind of really pithy, savvy and wise astrological analysis of the recent election. But I have to be honest, all I can think about is that red dress that Michelle Obama wore on election night. I mean wow! Is this Venus in Sagittarius square Uranus and Saturn or what?!

There were a flurry of interesting astrological aspects taking place on the day of the election, from the Moon void of course, to Mercury’s placement, to Mars square Neptune. Many astrologers focused on the Uranus and Saturn opposition, looking at McCain as representing stodgy, boring Saturn, and Obama as a symbol of the wave of the future, the iconclast, and the rebel known as Uranus. Somehow Venus in Sagittarius making a tight square to both of these big players has mostly been missed…(Except, I have to say, by my esteemed, and fellow, Venus ruled colleague Jessica Shepherd, who writes all about it on her new blog on Venus matters).

So fancy that, leaving the feminine out of the equation, when she’s really in the starring role……

What exactly am I talking about you might be wondering? How does Michelle Obama’s red dress have anything at all to do with the planets or astrology, and why should you care?

Well…… it’s all about Venus, baby…

Venus, which is currently transiting through the sign of Sagittarius showcases the feminine at her bold, fiery, optimistic, expansive best. Sagittarius is a sign that thrives on cultural diversity and building bridges between people. This is a sign that wants to explore, grow and live life large. Venus also symbolizes fashion, adornment and beauty. Put the two together and you get a bright red dress worn on a night few will forget.
But there’s more…………..On the day of and the day after the election, transiting Venus in Sagittarius was in an exact square to both Uranus and Saturn. The dress was not just bright and fiery, it was also unexpected, a little suprising and shook up the traditions and fashion “rules” of the past. This is Saturn and Uranus facing off in their ongoing year-long opposition, trying to make sense of each other and Venus.

As odd as it might seem to some, this red dress is a symbol we can work with over the course of the Obama presidency. How will the Venusian qualities of diplomacy, peacemaking, relating, art and beauty express themselves in the White House in the Sagittarius fashion of expansion, growth, cultural diversity, education and mass media? How will these things shake up (Uranus), electrify, and revolutionize our culture? How will they challenge(Saturn), confront and interact with the past , with tradition, with roots and the foundations of our country?

Though Michelle Obama may not be the actual individual who carries the Venus in Sagittarius mantle throughout the coming years, her red dress is an awakening, a flag waving, and a heads up. This is a call to pay attention to Venus, to the feminine, and to the powers of attraction, receptivity and peace. These energies aren’t coming in quietly, this is a bold Sagittarian hurrah, blunt, to the point and obvious. It will be hard to ignore, and hard to squash, even if we wanted to.