FULL MOON at 24 Aries-LIBRA 33
April 10, 11:08pm PDT
April 11, 2:08am EDT, 7:08am GMD, 4:08pm AEST
Image: Chiron and Chariklo illustration from Planetary Gods & Goddesses Coloring Book, colored by Anne Jameson. The Centaur and the Mermaid reflect April’s ongoing close conjunction of Chiron and Venus in Pisces, as Venus turns from retrograde to direct on the 15th. Chariklo, the name of an astronomical Centaur Object, like Chiron, became his wife when she shapeshifted from a mermaid into a female centaur. What kind of shapeshifting in your life best serves LOVE?
Majestic Jupiter accompanies the Full Moon with bright blue star Spica near by. Do lift your eyes to view this glorious celestial treat. With this Full Moon highlighting this year’s major opposition between Electrical Universe Change-Agent Uranus in hot-to-trot Aries and Wisdom Keeper Jupiter in Peace-Loving Libra, the Evolution Revolution is stepping up a quantum gear or two. The winds of change are blowing in from different directions and pushing us onto unexpected paths. Accelerated growth and unprecedented opportunities catch us by surprise. This Full Moon is a peak moment of this dynamic, which continues to play out through the summer, with another peak moment and grand finale at the end of September. Be open to serendipitous meetings, new liaisons and ideas from seemingly opposition parties . Keep your options open and follow your heart.
“The heart can see beyond the sun
Beyond the turning moon
And as we look
The heart will teach us
All we need to learn.”
—Judy Collins, “Trust Your Heart”
Listen at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6vOilrk1iqs
This is just about the most charged up Full Moon of the year (apart from the total eclipse in August), and much of it is happening in an internal, retrograde way. Venus, Mercury, Jupiter and Saturn are all retrograde, reverting back, reviewing, reimagining, reevaluating, introverting and introspecting. One special undertone, which may be the one you are feeling the most in your secret heart, is the continuing internalizing retrograde movement of Venus.
The radiant Evening Star all winter, Venus celebrated the seasonal change by dipping below the horizon and around to the other side of the Sun. Look for this radiant planet beaming in the pre-dawn sky. A corresponding emotional shift has stirred deep feelings, calling on the intelligence of our hearts: to reevaluate what is meaningful, to be clear about where you stand and stay centered and grounded in your integrity. This emotional exercise is preparing us to pursue initiatives with courage and confidence, just not quite yet, or not too much too soon. Take your time, as Mercury just turned retrograde on the 9th. Fine tune your sense of shifting realities, resolving doubts, hesitations and grudges that can undermine you. Then you’ll know better what makes your heart sparkle. The next New Moon in Taurus on the 26th is a cue to make it real.
Venus has recently (April 2) backed into Pisces and her realignment with shamanic Chiron that lasts most of April. We need these weeks to move through this compassionate, psychic pairing, likely to evoke disconcerting discomfort, subliminal and actual tears from a deep well of sorrow from our feelings about what is going on in the world. More than usual we are reminded that we are far from our spiritual home, exiled in this place that seems so dark and chaotic, especially these days. It is important not to let the tendency to despair or a sense of failure, or any other such blood-sucking emotions drain our energy. The call is to pour compassion, forgiveness and unconditional love upon ourselves and then offer it to others.
“Moral courage gives us the power to clean up our river by forgiving others as we forgive ourselves.” —Alberto Villoldo, Courageous Dreaming.
Venus/Chiron showers healing waters upon the suffering. We are all in the same universal sea, moving in waves and currents of love. Count your blessings. I have been keenly aware lately of the compassionate goddess Quan Yin, so this timely article by channel and healer Jenny Schlitz, caught my attention:
“I was talking with Quan Yin about how so many are drowning in the waves of emotions, unable to keep their heads above water. She said so clearly that ‘at times one must drown in order to find what makes them breathe’ and she reminded me of times I too was drowning, holding on to things that didn’t serve for whatever reason and how much I grew after I released them. The point here is that if you are finding yourself submerged in the emotions and negativity of this world, change your focus and find what makes you breathe, what makes your heart sing. We can get lost in the depth of the releasing taking place on this planet and that takes us off course from our true mission which is to merge with our soul.”
Venus is also challenged by Saturn, feeling the weight of the world. Are we seeing through the glass darkly, restricting a broad enough perspective? Do you believe that everything is going according to a cosmic plan? that everything is in divine order? Many peoples have prophecies about this time. The deepest piece of heart work we can attend to is to shrug off the sorrow and find the joy, pierce through the dream illusion of this world to imagine a greater vision.
Black Moon Lilith in Sagittarius recalibrates the tuning fork of truth to a different tone. Tap into and listen to your intuition. Black Moon is at the pivot between the Nodes of the Moon, the collective destiny line, in Pisces/Virgo. To help with the increasing Pisces sensitivity, we pay attention to Virgo, its opposite sign. Attend to the body, as it is continuing to adjust to the shifting Earth rhythms.
If we are disturbed enough by the jarring, static, off-note, fingernail-across-blackboard impact of the global reality show on our nervous systems, we need to seek grounding as well as golden glories of harmony and angel hosannas. Many are turning to drugs and mood enhancers, useful when necessary, perhaps, but not a sustainable choice. Massage and bodywork can be deeply relaxing. Subtle vibrational therapies can be very effective, like sound healing, homeopathy, flower essences (Shield of Light by Living Tree Orchid Essences is particularly recommended for those overwhelmed by the collective distress @ www.healingorchids.com. Personally, I am needing their Gentle Geisha, for calming down at the end of busy days— along with some meditative moments, soulful reading, fiction, poetry and a movie or two.
Recommended Reading
Patricia McKillip’s latest novel, Kingfisher, is her charming, updated retelling of the search for the holy grail. Populated by knights with cell phones, princesses, sorceresses and cooks, it tells a tale of wounding, ancient healing rituals, shape shifting and love. One of my top favorite authors, I just love her writings, such an alluring blend of mystery, myth, magic and psycho-spiritual undertones.
A Piscean-type tale that resonates with the Venus/Chiron combination (lasting most of April), is that of The Little Sea-Maid, by Hans Christian Andersen in his Fairy Tales and Wonder Stories. You’ll likely remember the story of The Little Mermaid from Disney’s watered down version. The young mermaid saves a prince from drowning, falls in love and wants to become human so she can marry him. But this version is a little different. She wants to go back to marry the prince not only because she loves him, but there is something more that she passionately desires. Mermaids live 300 years and then melt into sea foam. Humans have immortal souls. If she could marry the prince, she would also gain an eternal soul. You know what happened: the prince was to marry a princess. So the mermaid was doomed to melt into sea foam at dawn.
Her sisters appear with a dagger from the sea witch. If she kills the prince, she will finish out her mer-life. But she cannot do it. She is ready to give up her life and her hopes for immortality rather than betray her love. Yet, as the sun rises, she is still alive! Flying along the sunbeams come angels that lift her into the sky. As one of them, she can earn eternal life by doing good deeds. Her longing for human love is not fulfilled, but her desire for an everlasting soul, for which she has suffered and endured much pain, has raised her to heaven.
Oh, Bright Star, you shine so near and yet so far.
How few know who you are.
Fewer still try to reach you.
Even fewer become you. –Hanuman Women’s Choir
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Postscript
Read a short version of this mermaid tale as the Pisces story on my astromythology page on this website.
Or a MOVIE might be just the thing for Venus (art) in Pisces (film)! There are some new Indie films coming along that may cosmically inspire. These are just a few I personally know about. Watch for them:
ALMOST SUNRISE “follows two Iraq veterans, Tom Voss and Anthony Anderson, both tormented by depression for years after they returned home and pushed to the edge of suicide. The two embark on an extraordinary walk across the country from Wisconsin to California, in order to reflect on their haunting experiences of war and to ultimately, save themselves. Will this epic pilgrimage allow them to begin the new life they so desperately seek?”
SATURN RETURNS
This film, with a title that refers to a well-known astrological cycle, is starting to win some awards. Plot Outline from the FB page:
Five college friends reunite for a wedding. “The day before the wedding the long lost 6th friend, the former best friend of the groom and soulmate of the bride, shows up uninvited. This turn of events forces everyone to rethink their lives and choices. Think THE BIG CHILL meets (500) DAYS OF SUMMER.”
I’ve mentioned the magical film SHE SINGS TO THE STARS several times before: http://www.shesingstothestars.com
Galactic Astrologer Philip Sedgwick wrote a film script, ELEVATOR PITCH, now in final production stages. One of the characters is Orcus, a name of one of the new planetoids in an orbit near Pluto, and another underworld god. Is that where the elevator goes—to the underworld? I am SO interested to see it! “Words are cheap – Souls are priceless…A moral, but romantically conflicted young man is confronted by a deity whose offer for conflict resolution is more tempting that temptation itself.”
There are cool visuals and news on the FB page.
