Bright Beacon: A Full SuperMoon in Capricorn

light across the waters

Full Moon in Capricorn
Sunday, June 23, 2013
7:32 am EDT

Feeling a bit damp these days? The Water element reigns: Sun newly in Cancer conjunct larger-than-life Jupiter; Mercury, Venus and Vesta very close together in Cancer; Neptune and Saturn continuing to flow energy to each other from Pisces and Scorpio; Chiron the wounded healer in Pisces; North Node in Scorpio.

We're in a time of deep dreaming and strong feeling. The annual conference of the International Association for the Study of Dreams opens today, and I'm imaging this conference will be an intensely wonderful experience for all there.

The challenge is figuring out what to do with all that emotion. The Water element is life-giving when it's flowing, circulating, bringing in nutrients and carrying away toxins. When Water stops, though, we get stagnation, brooding, stuckness. Let's face it: when water stops moving, we get mold.

Overnight Saturday (tomorrow), the largest, brightest Full Moon of this year arrives. This Moon will be the closest to Earth she'll be all year. Where skies are clear, we might feel we can reach up and touch her luminous face. Don't miss a chance to see her, and dance in her golden glow.

This Full Moon channels Capricorn, the Earth sign that puts its shoulder to the wheel, never gives up, never surrenders. This Moon is widely conjunct Pluto, the alchemist who leaves no stone unturned. This Moon is pragmatic, hard working, and has her eyes on the prize.

This Full Moon sits at the point of a kite formation that draws the Saturn–Neptune trine right into the Full Moon energy. With Jupiter in the final, anaretic degree of Gemini, and asteroid Lilith right between the Sun and Jupiter, this is a powerful combination.

Shining her bright beacon on the intense waters we're swimming in, this Full Moon asks: What are these feelings about? Are we stuck or moving? Where's the goal? How do we get there?

And, of course. where are the life vests and can we all fit into the boat?

We'll all make it to shore as long as we look to the light and follow its path across the water. Lighthouses are built with powerful lenses that serve to focus light so it carries across long distances. This Full Moon, so close to the Earth, has the power to shine through any storm.

Eric Francis has an intriguing take on 29 Gemini, the spot we'll find expansive Jupiter shining from at this Full Moon. He sees that final, intense degree as uniquely suited to giving us the big picture, offering the ability to put things into context and see how they connect.

The thing is, sometimes light shows up things we'd rather not see. This Full Moon could be like that. If there's stuff in our psyches, in our families, in our relationships we've been looking away from, this Moon could illuminate it inescapably. This Moon ain't for sissies.

focus!

The gift this Full Moon offers (and it's a great gift) is that same illumination. Those places we've felt stuck, the personal stuff we've been working on and just can't quite see clearly, the missing piece of the relationship puzzle: all those might be highlighted. Oh! we'll say ... is THAT it? I can work with that. Big shifts possible.

Another big theme for this SuperMoon is ancestry. Cancer is tribe as well as family; Capricorn is tradition as well as authority. The involvement of Neptune, Saturn and Pluto take us into deep territory.

This will be a powerful Moon for connecting to our ancestors, working with them, learning from them. Old issues may come up for healing, and new directions brought to light.

Full Moons can make us all feel a little crazy, and this one could be loonier than most. With all this emotional intensity, we'll want to be prepared. Connect to your tribe. Find a place where you feel emotionally supported, at home, loved. From that place, we can follow the Moon's bright beacon to see what we need to see, learn what we need to learn.

May it be so for you.
     

Grasshopper Kung Fu: The Summer Solstice Chart

the balance

Summer Solstice
Sun enters Cancer
Moon in Scorpio
June 21, 1:04am EDT

The Summer Solstice arrives overnight Thursday (very, very early Friday). One of the great hinges of the year, this apex of light in the Northern hemisphere is celebrated as Midsummer––a time of magic, lighthearted fun, and a bit of madness.

Grasshopper time, when fields are green, skies are blue, warm breezes caress the skin, and merriment is rife––like the Saucy Solstice Burlesque Cabaret scheduled for this Sunday in Nottingham, UK.

And why not? What's wrong with forgetting care and having a bit of fun? Nothing, really. Except turning points are just that: Reminders we've reached a culmination and now turn toward something completely different.

In ancient times, the bonfires of Midsummer blazed for protection. Cattle were driven through twin fires to protect them from disease and magical interference. Charms of protection were made, and worn, by those out and about at this thin time of year. Elaine Kalatarian of Blue Moon Astrology has posted a lovely essay exploring these traditions.

The Chinese symbol of yin and yang shows a small dot of white in the black, and likewise black in the white. When we are most deeply in yin, yang is born. When we are most deeply in yang (as we are at Midsummer), the yin of winter begins to stir. Carl Jung pointed this out as well. Each quality, when most in its suchness, potentiates its opposite.

Sometimes, grasshopper behavior is denial. We will not look at what's around the corner, hidden in shadow, down the lane, in back of beyond. We don't want to know.

This year's solstice chart suggests denial will not be a viable option.

The newly-Cancerian Sun triggers the Grand Trine in Water anchored by Neptune in Pisces, Saturn in Scorpio, and Lilith in Cancer. These are oceans of dreams, visions, illusions, the subconscious, our fears and our deepest desires.

Since all three anchors are retrograde, these are deep, deep waters indeed. I picture the Cancer Sun putting a toe in the waves and wanting to pull back. Nope, uh-uh, too cold ... looking around for sunnier playmates.

But with Mercury, Venus and Vesta conjunct in Cancer, and Ceres there as well, the pull of the waves is undeniable. The Scorpio Moon flows easy energy with these four planets in late Cancer. Dreaming will be very strong on this night.

Yet, we're not being drawn into a well of emotion just to wallow about. Signs point to action. 

Mars in grasshopper Gemini might feel ripe for distraction and fun, except he's conjunct Pallas Athena, the ever-cerebral protectress of civilization. And ... hmmm ... Mars is point man for a yod (that awkward, pushy pattern that demands adjustment) with the North Node and Pluto––nothing lighthearted there. Then, wow, the North Node is at the apex of another yod with Mars, Pallas, and Uranus at its base.

Last but never least, Jupiter clings to the end of Gemini, conjunct the Sun and therefore part of the Grand Water Trine. This year, we're meant to think, connect, and act. Get out the swim goggles, pull on the fins. We're heading into deep emotional territory and we're meant to dive in with eyes open for the opportune moment.

If your life feels overfull of challenge and turmoil, remember that Gemini Mars keeps us light on our feet, and possibly light-fingered as well. This is the trickster, the one who dances away from danger with the prize hidden in his pouch.

Think of whistleblowers, of dancers in gas masks, of children speaking up to CEOs of huge corporations. These are the Mercurial heroes and heroines now, the ones seemingly without power who still find a voice and a way to act.

Our lives these days can seem filled with challenge and turmoil. That same Mars catches a square from Chiron, the healer and mentor. What do skillful means look like now? How can we finesse this situation? How can we be both effective and safe?

At the Summer Solstice, we hold this paradox. We celebrate, we sing, we dream ... and we remember those who suffer, we know it's not all fun and games. This knowing brings poignancy, brings depth, and the courage to stand and say yes to the whole catastrophe, YES to life.
    

Good Questions: Listening to the First Quarter Moon

deep listening

First Quarter Moon in Virgo
June 16, 2013 1:24 pm ED

Today's First Quarter square between the Sun and Moon brings BIG energy around communicating with precision, analysis, and possibly excruciating detail. The Moon and Jupiter are conjunct, so if you find yourself talking nonstop, take a deep breath and slow down.

If you find yourself listening to someone else talking nonstop, take a deep breath and tune in to what's being communicated on all levels.

Listening on all levels will be key in the next weeks. Today's Virgo Moon could go with some fairly detailed critiques of what's being said––but Virgo is also a grounded, compassionate healer, with the ability to tune in and really, really listen. So, lose the critical voice and go with deep listening.

Early this morning, Chiron the wounded healer stopped in his tracks and then turned backwards. This is a powerful moment for any planet, and brings focused attention to the idea that sometimes we get hurt. Then, we find that when something bumps up against that old hurt, it hurts again, worse. Ouch.

As we mature, gaining insight along the way, we can get some perspective and learn how to understand and integrate those hurt places. Since the broken places are where the light gets in, those same wounds become sources of healing for ourselves and, potentially, others.

In an intriguing synchronicity, the asteroid Lilith stopped less than half an hour before Chiron, and turned backward in a one-degree trine (easy flowing connection) with Chiron.

Chiron's in Pisces, Lilith is in Cancer. And here's Venus in Cancer just one degree away from Lilith. Mercury, who rules both Gemini (where the Sun and Jupiter are) and Virgo (where the Moon is), sits in Cancer just three degrees on the other side of Venus.

What's coming up includes deep emotions, female power in relationship, sexuality and power, delusions, illusions, Shadow, and how we talk about all that. Yep, the easy stuff (not).

This is the crossroads of what we think we think, what we think we're supposed to feel, and what we actually, really feel deep down. Today's energy could bring up how far apart those are in us, or in those around us.

Response choices includes everything from distraction, denial, dismissal, 'correcting' what is said, to taking that deep breath I mentioned and diving into something way more vulnerable and real. And this can happen with those close to us, or in our own internal dialogue.

We're heading into an intensely emotional and personal time, astrologically, as the Sun and Jupiter prepare to shift into Cancer. Our Cancerian sojourn will include a Mercury retrograde in this sign too, beginning right after the Full Moon. With Neptune and Saturn continuing to flow energy together in Pisces and Scorpio, there's a whole lotta Water goin' on.

At this First Quarter Moon, we're invited to step into this realm of deep feeling with our mind in an open, attentive state. There is much to learn here, much to be healed. There are gifts of depth, insight, creativity, spiritual connection, and relationship.

In the midst of ongoing transformation (ok, yes, also turmoil), stepping into the shadowy spaces of emotion is a good thing. When the mind is running the show, we miss a lot. We're more interested in what we have to say than in listening to what anyone else says. We can fail to ask the right questions.

Today's Moon asks, are we asking good questions, of ourselves, of our loved ones, of our world? And (this is the important part) do we listen to the answer with our hearts as well as our heads?