Graphic: “Go with the Flow,” batik river goddess by Eileen Sullivan. http://www.shekinahhanddyes.com
February already! This shortest month of the year has lots of astro-action, starting off with a double planetary sign change that will shift the emotional tone. Practically simultaneously, less than an hour apart, Mars leaves Aquarius for Pisces as Venus enters the Aquarian door. Thus we celebrate Candlemas, February 2, one of the Celtic cross-quarter holy days in-between the equinoxes and solstices. Also known as Ground Hog Day, it augurs the length of winter. Will the Ground Hog see his shadow? As the month goes on, more and more Pisces influence engulfs us in a tsunami of cosmic vibrations, like auroras in the feeling realm. Astrophysicists are forecasting strong solar flares to come our way. We can prepare by grounding, starting off with a schedule that supports our health and well-being.
This month’s “fuzzify” title comes from Andrew Junker, electronic designer who loves to invent words that describe the process of exploring somatic inner space. This word has a companion process called “squidgify,” as we are using squidgy balls in our class. These words soften the hard edges, something to go for this month!
MARS into PISCES, February 2
The action planet loses its rational edge of Aquarian objectivity and slides into the watery flow of The Fishes. The tides shift in some possibly stormy seas, as Mars connects with the reality-altering preoccupations of the ongoing Neptune/ Chiron combination. It may be easy to lose track of what we are doing in the mélange of distractions that seem to increase through the first half of the month. We’re in an extended Alice-down-the-rabbit-hole moment. Take it easy. Don’t expect too much of yourself or anyone else. Give yourself plenty of rest and relaxation time to ground yourself and catch up with the currents of change that flow in a round-about direction.
VENUS into AQUARIUS, February 2
delights in a friendly milieu supporting social and aesthetic harmonies. Though not the most romantic Venus sign for Valentine’s Day, in Aquarius she does appreciate individuality and value the quality of friendship in any relationship. That goes a long way toward happiness.
MERCURY into PISCES, February 5
The psychic internet is buzzing with synchronicities and serendipities, as well as possible confusions and misunderstandings about who is saying what. With Mars and Mercury in Pisces, connecting with Neptune/ Chiron, we are all way more sensitive than we are used to. Our nervous systems may be flooded with impressions and ideas that are essentially not ours. We need quiet, R&R time to wash off those impressions, like water off a duck’s back. This is an excellent time for meditation and spiritual devotion, especially as Mercury goes retrograde later in the month, extending its stay in fluid Pisces. We get extra time to adjust our mental dial to a cosmic channel that uplifts and inspires those “good, good, good, good vibrations” (Remember the Beach Boys?). The Pisces Dream-Time alters our perceptions. Shamans say, “The world is as we dream it.” Another appropriate truism: Change your thinking and change your life.”
John Michell, an Earth mysteries researcher, gives us a helpful perspective in these words (thanks to master geomancer Sig Lonegren [www.geomancy.org] for sharing):
“Think about reality, confess your own helplessness and then consider the world-soul and your own soul that partakes in it. That opens the channel for the spirit of divine revelation which, when invoked and captivated, lights the way to salvation of nature and humanity.”
The NEW MOON in AQUARIUS, February 10, 1:20am CST
CHINESE NEW YEAR is inaugurated at this New Moon, ushering in the Year of the Black Water Snake, in keeping with the water theme.
Aquarius, an air sign, offers breathing room to help us keep our heads above the swirling Piscean waters. Like dolphins, whales and sea turtles, we need to come up for air. Still, the close line-up of Neptune, Mars, Mercury and Chiron in Pisces dominates the daily flow, activated and amplified by Jupiter in Gemini. A flood of data is coming in on a lot of levels. It is easy to feel overwhelmed. There are so many options and points of view, like facets of a crystal, we hardly know in what direction to turn. Our personal belief systems may fray at the edges and dissolve. This can be freeing or set us at lose ends.
JUPITER in GEMINI will amplify the energy of every planet in Pisces, confronting us with paradox, ambiguities and alternating currents of energy that shift in and out of multifaceted realities. Pisces and Gemini are signs of dualities, as we see in the images of The Fishes and The Twins. We can set our sights on the best options and steer our way there.
SATURN in SCORPIO tugs us down, where “still waters run deep,” offering a steadying anchor if we are willing to let go of superficial distractions. Venus is challenged by Saturn’s intensity, but offers emotionally resonant perspectives when we step back from the waters that engulf us. A deep sea diver needs a good air tank on her back.
VALENTINE’S DAY, February 14
dawns with a crescent Moon in Aries, sparkling in harmony with Venus and the Sun. This augurs well for the love fest of the day, as long as you stand in your self-clarity. Be loved for who you are. It might be most fun to do something new and different with your beloved, with friends, or with your best friend (yourself). And there will surely be lots of parties.
SUN into PISCES, February 18, 6:02am CST
The Sun highlights the flow of Pisces energy, full of nuances, strange tidings, spacey moods, and new trends, soft and fuzzy edges, confusions, illusions, Big Dreams and great music. Many people seem to be on some medication or drug. Are there other options to support the life force? What dream images inspire your days to guide you forward or haunt you with nightmare anxieties to point out how you need to let go? Waves of compassion pour forth from Kwan Yin, goddess of miracles. We feel the mermaid or merman in each of us. Tugged in the tides, we ride the waves or feel pulled into the choppy undertow. Look at this wonderful Mother of the World youtube! with music by Constance Demby: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ACMOVie974&feature=youtube
This same day, SATURN turns RETROGRADE at 12 SCORPIO
How deep can we go? We’ve gone deep enough for now, as Saturn heads back to consolidate our progress since last October. Saturn comes back to 12 degrees to complete its first circle in Scorpio in mid-October of 2013. Check in to the exigencies in your life now, and know that circumstances will be altered at that time if you do your due diligence with this planet of discipline and focus. Saturn is not a “bad guy.” We do well to welcome and honor its timeliness in dealing with issues that are ready to be resolved, to come to fruition or finality.
MERCURY turns RETROGRADE on February 22 at 20 Pisces
Though we often groan in front of a Mercury retrograde cycle, I think we’ll welcome this respite, indicating a slow down to review and reconsider. Con-sider means “with the stars,” a meaningful reminder as we take time to look at our lives from various angles and perspectives. It may feel as if we walk a labyrinth, a pattern that echoes Mercury’s retrograde weavings around the Sun. We’re in an extraordinary cosmic flow, with subatomic and supra-luminal (faster than the speed of light) photons popping like champagne bubbles. Part of our energy field feels ultra sensitive, like a quivering sea creature without a shell, and need a good deal of quiet time and soothing, lovely music. If we reign in indulgent addictive habits that seem to soothe but, in fact, undermine our clarity, we can more clearly commune with the stars.
FULL MOON in 7 VIRGO-PISCES, February 25, 2:28pm CST at 2:26pm CST.
And VENUS into PISCES
“Wings of angels, tears of saints…” sings Judy Collins. Universal love and compassion fill our hearts, like a belated Valentine. The edges may blur between unconditional love and the need to take into account personality issues in our relationships. Even as we forgive our human weaknesses, we don’t need to lose ourselves in some mistaken sense of sacrifice. Venus honors the beauty of the soul, while loving the personality with all its flaws, some that we can’t ignore in our daily dealings. Also, self-forgiveness and self-compassion enhance our love of self and others.
The Virgo Moon reminds us of our bodies, our personal piece of Earth, that we serve Earth in this vehicle, and can bring in the increasingly finely tuned cosmic wavelengths when our bodies are well-oiled, well-rested, well-fueled and well-loved. The image of Virgo is angelic, the experience of the divinity inherent in matter, Mater, the Great Mother Earth. Imagine finding a quiet place inside yourself where it is still and peaceful, where you can hear the Piscean waves softly lapping at the shore of your life.
Let’s end with a song:
“We have dreams, we hold them to the light like diamonds
Stones of the moon and splinters of the sun–
Some we keep to light the dark nights on our journey
And shine beyond the days that we have won
The heart can see beyond our prayers, beyond our fondest schemes
And tell us which are made for fools
And which are wise men’s dreams.
Trust your heart”
– Judy Collins, “Trust Your Heart”
Listen at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6vOilrk1iqs
