Tag Archives: Buddha

Weekly Forecast May 16: Full Moon in Scorpio, Sun Enters Gemini

This week is the festival of Wesak, honoring the birth, death, and enlightenment of the Buddha. A portal is opening.

Wesak takes place at the Scorpio Full Moon, with the Sun in Taurus. There is some confusion about this, as Eastern religions use sidereal astrology, which means that Wesak sometimes is in June, by which time the Sun in our Western tropical zodiac has advanced to Gemini. This year, they happen to coincide; in our tropical system, the Full Moon occurs at 26°13 Scorpio, while in sidereal astrology, it falls at 2°12 Scorpio.

To help understand the connection between Taurus, Buddha, and Wesak, I suggest Ruth’s excellent article, from the perspective of soul astrology. “The highest vibration of Taurus is about revelation, illumination and enlightenment,” she writes. “It is a very mysterious sign, associated with the opening of the third eye.”

The third eye, located between the eyebrows, is our center of higher consciousness, the ability to “see” into the energetic realms. When it gets activated, we’re said to be enlightened.

Ruth also notes the connection between Aldebaran, the brightest star in Taurus, and the third eye. One of the four Royal Stars of Persia, Aldebaran is known as the “eye of the bull.” In ancient mystery schools, it was known as the “Eye of Illumination.”

Death, rebirth and transformation are Scorpio keywords. Substitute “enlightenment” for transformation, and you understand the theme of this Full Moon. Humanity is evolving toward higher consciousness and enlightenment. More and more of us are aware of our soul’s purpose, and we’re trying to find a way to align ourselves with it.

At Wesak, a portal opens for light to enter the world. The more of us who are aware of it and who actively call upon the forces of enlightenment, the more the world will get – and not a moment too soon.

The Full Moon at 26 degrees Scorpio ironically falls with the Sun conjunct Algol, considered the most malefic star in the sky. Algol is associated with Medusa, the snake-headed woman in Greek mythology who turned men to stone if they looked at her. The symbolism and psychology of this myth is complex and speaks a lot to the cosmic split between divine masculine and feminine energies. In ancient times, snakes were a sign of wisdom, a direct connection with the unseen energies of the universe, and they were associated with women until patriarchal religions took over. Since then, the energy on the planet has been completely unbalanced.

The snake symbolizes our connection to source energy – what some might call the Mind of God. Have you ever noticed that some Scorpios seem to have unlimited energy? It’s as though they’re plugged directly into a cosmic battery. And most of them don’t even realize it, because the connection is deeply integrated. They operate on “instinct” and often don’t even have to think about what they’re going to do next. This power can be scary, and it’s one of the reasons Scorpio is feared and reviled.

Could the Full Moon conjunct Algol signal a rebirth of the ancient, wise goddess? Will her vibration be part of the light stream that enters the world?

The Moon reaches peak fullness on Tuesday at 7:09 a.m. EDT on the East Coast of the United States. If you’re on the West Coast and don’t want to get up at 4:09 a.m. to participate in the Wesak invocation, you can set a bowl of water outside and drink it in the morning. Just be sure to cover it. As far as I know, ingesting bugs and bird poop is not a path to enlightenment.

In the Full Moon chart, the Sun and Moon are in a wide, out-of-sign square with Neptune at 0 degrees Pisces. The Sun and Jupiter are in a tight semi-sextile, which means the Moon and Jupiter are inconjunct. We’ll need to make sure we’re not too busy or too preoccupied with acquiring material possessions to stop for an hour or so, quiet our minds, and tune into the stream of light. So many people don’t know what they really want anymore, especially in a world with a glut of consumer goods and a dearth of information about how to be truly happy.

After the Full Moon, we begin the countdown to the eclipses. There will be three eclipses in June and July – two solar and one lunar. It’s also interesting to note that next year’s Wesak festival will fall on June 4, which coincides with an eclipse and the 2012 Venus transit.

Speaking of Venus, she rules this Full Moon. All of the planets except Neptune now deposit to her, whereas for the past several weeks, they’ve deposited to Mars. With Jupiter and Uranus in Mars-ruled Aries, there still will be some tension and conflict, but for the next few weeks at least, peaceful solutions may be found.

Here’s how the rest of the week shakes out:

Last week started out with a conjunction of Mercury and Venus in Aries. The two have been tracking very close to one another, and on Monday this week they conjoin again, but in Taurus. Then they both sextile Neptune in gentle Pisces. It’s a whole different atmosphere now. Word are kinder and softer, and we should be able to find some time to dream. Do watch your cash, though. If you make a large purchase, a few days from now you may wonder what you were thinking.

From Wednesday to Friday, Mars, Mercury and Venus form a sextile to Chiron in Pisces. Healing can happen on many levels. How many of us beat ourselves over the head for what essentially are wounds? Would you blame a child for falling and breaking his nose? Even if he did something stupid, you’d at least use the occasion to provide some gentle instruction about the consequences of bad judgment. Be just as kind with yourself and others as you’d be with that child.

Also on Friday, Mercury conjoins Mars, and the two trine Pluto. Rather than getting angry and giving someone a piece of your mind, you can use this influence to understand the source of the conflict. Venus trines Pluto on the following day. If you and a loved one had a “discussion,” now you can make up in a way that should leave you feeling much closer than ever. The loving feelings will continue to build as Venus and Mars move closer to conjunction on May 23.

The Sun leaves Taurus on Saturday and enters fast-paced Gemini. However, Gemini’s ruler, Mercury, is in Taurus, and so placid Venus continues to be the dominant influence. I am a bit concerned that peace may be confused with repression of emotions. In mundane terms, this could mean squelching valid complaints in order to reach an agreement. Repressing feelings and failing to address underlying causes of problems never works, as all of that negative energy eventually surfaces. And when it does, it’s usually with a vengeance.

The last major aspect of the week is a Sun-Neptune square. For some, this could manifest as the combined urge to accomplish many small tasks and the lack of energy and motivation. My advice is to rest while you can, because June and July may bring fast and furious change.

Wishing you all love and enlightenment,
Pat

Chiron in Pisces: The Healing Power of Self-Pity, Part II

In Part I of this article, Ruth discussed coming to terms with our suffering under Chiron in Pisces. In the second and final installment, she talks about how to get through the suffering to a place of healing. ~Pat

Chiron instructs young Achilles, Museo Archeologico Nazionale, Naples.

Another attribute of Chiron in Pisces is that we may find ourselves needing stronger boundaries than ever before. As our capacity for compassion increases, we will naturally attract needy people who want to tell us all their problems. If we don’t have firm boundaries in place, we can find ourselves quickly feeling drained while all those around us feel better. Don’t fall for the old Piscean trap of trying to fix everybody else. It’s not your job. It is each individual’s job to heal themselves.

Another reason why you will need strong boundaries is that you might feel a very strong urge to withdraw from people and spend more time in solitude. This is natural and vitally important, because it creates the time and space that you need in order to go within and listen to your inner voice.

When Chiron is in Pisces, it is important to avoid the temptation for escapism through alcohol, drugs, TV, movies, anything to distract us, make us go numb and avoid having to face the pain and suffering we are experiencing on the inside. This only puts off the inevitable and makes matters worse. When your inner self is crying for your attention and you ignore it, you are abandoning yourself. This adds to your sense of disconnectedness, isolation, and suffering.

What Chiron in Pisces is trying to show you is that when you take the time to be fully present with yourself, the sense of fear and isolation lessens. You can begin to touch that deeper, compassionate part inside you and actually feel nurtured by being with your own loving presence. If you have no experience of meditation and/or therapy, it might be time you took a spiritual teacher or hired a coach or counsellor. This Chiron transit invites you to give your inner world your highest and best attention.

Remember, in the Buddha’s lesson there were four noble truths. After the first truth of suffering comes the second truth, that suffering has causes; the third truth, that it can end; and the fourth truth, that there is a method, or way, to that end. That way is your inner journey, your own presence. You can find it by following a spiritual path, through personal development, or therapy. Any method that allows you to go deeper on your inner journey will eventually lead you there.

With practice, you may even learn to welcome self-pity when it comes knocking. If you are experiencing self-pity, think of it as a spiritual wake-up call. You are trying to get your attention. It is time to strengthen those boundaries and enjoy more solitude. Sitting with yourself, accepting, acknowledging and embracing the truth of your own pain and suffering, is not the number one choice of entertainment for a fun Saturday night, but you will find the experience nurturing and potentially very healing.

Ruth

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Ruth Hadikin – Soul Astrologer

To get your personal Soul Sign/Life Purpose Report (FREE with a consultation), contact Ruth via her website. You can also request a FREE mp3 download, “The Energetics of Soul Astrology.”

Taurus-Scorpio, Part II: The Desire to Know and the Path of Illumination

Nice try, Taurus, but eating a chocolate Buddha won't substitute for meditation. Photo from Chocolate Deities of Redhook, NY.

Whereas Taurus’ opposite sign Scorpio is the first to dive headlong into confrontation, Taurus can dig in their heels and actively avoid confrontation to “keep the peace” (or just present a wall of stubborn silence).

Contentment and preserving the status-quo are the ego-traps of Taurus. The tendency to avoid making waves and to be content with material gain and/or sensual pleasures prevents you from asking the bigger questions, exploring your inner nature, and seeking higher knowledge. This keeps you stuck in “spiritul ignorance,” focused purely on mundane matters and not recognizing your own inner awareness.

The higher Divine vibration and illuminated nature of your Taurus Soul cannot be accessed from such a limited perspective. The deeper mystery of Taurus’s esoteric ruler, Vulcan, is hinting that we have the key to our own destiny: we really are forging our own path. The inner mysteries of Taurus are strongly connected to the development of the three kayas (three bodies of a Buddha) or, in other words, the light body.

As a Taurean Soul, you have an inner understanding of the process of involution – a necessary precursor to evolution – whereby Spirit incarnates into matter to have a physical experience. We are spiritual beings having a human experience because of the energies of Taurus. They are the most mystical of energies. At its highest level of illumination, it is the sign of omniscience (all-knowing) and clairvoyance (clear seeing), so it is ironic that at the personality level, many Taureans keep yourselves spiritually limited by not aspiring to spiritual truth.

This is the Soul-path of Taurus in a nutshell: the transformation of desire into aspiration. To transform the desire for mundane sense-pleasures into the aspiration for spiritual truth. Yes, folks, it’s time to put down the chocolate and go meditate!

When you allow yourselves to simply be in meditation – for example, with the radiance of a flower – a deep inner knowing begins to dawn upon you. More than anyone, your Taurean Soul knows that your own physical body is both a Temple and a Universe. You know the beauty and radiance of the flower, felt at a very deep level, which connects with your own inner beauty and radiance until eventually there comes a recognition of the Divine within. As a Taurean Soul, you are learning to use your exquisite sensing capability to sense Divinity in all physical forms. This is how you sense and know beauty.

By being more inquisitive about the nature of your own inner world, you start moving towards Taurus’ opposite pole of Scorpio. This lifts you out of your comfort zone, beyond the doldrums of contentment, and cultivates your desire to know. The knowledge gained in Scorpio awakens and enlivens the higher vibration of Taurus. The full implications of your Taurean Soul Journey are hinted at in the Soul Keynote for Taurus:

“I see and when the Eye is opened, all is light.” ¹

This refers to the opening of the inner eye, following which you see and understand the workings of the Universe. The Soul path of Taurus is to know and understand all the mysteries of the workings of the Universe by recognizing and directing your own inner light. The power of Taurus to illuminate was well-known in ancient times. The brightest star in the constellation of Taurus, Aldebaran, is commonly called the “eye of the Bull,” but it was also known in Ancient Mystery schools to be the “Eye Of Illumination.”²

Vulcan, Soul ruler of Taurus, shapes and forges primordial awareness into physical matter. This accounts for the dualistic inclinations of Taurean energy: will you direct your power and stamina outward toward the mundane, or inward toward the spiritual?

When the pristine, primordial, immature awareness of Aries (the “point of light in the mind of God” ¹) first moves towards form³ in Taurus, as a result of desire, it is not yet known whether it will incline toward the mundane, become embroiled in the materialistic world and contribute to the “great illusion,” or whether it will incline towards a spiritual path and move to illumination. It could go either way. Will your journey be of benefit to all, or just benefit for yourself?

If you have Taurus strongly placed, it is very important for you to stay alert, aware, recognize your inner senses and make conscious choices to move toward the light moment by moment. This time of year, this not only applies to those with Taurus in their natal chart, but to the rest of us as well. During our annual “Taurus shower,” we all get to bask in the energies of potential illumination. Each one of us has the potential to become a Buddha (enlightened one). What we make of it is up to us. The spiritual path of Taurus is one from ignorance to illumination through a deep recognition of spiritual truth and the power to cultivate and direct spiritual energy into form.

Ruth

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Footnotes:

1. Esoteric Astrology, the wisdom of Djwhal Khul (Master DK) channelled through Alice Bailey.
2. Here is a great article exploring the mystery of Aldebaran: http://www.souledout.org/cosmology/highlights/aldebaran.html
3. Not necessarily physical form. The Soul can be considered to have a “form,” “character,” or “shape.”

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Ruth Hadikin – Soul Astrologer

To get your personal Soul Sign/Life Purpose Report (FREE with a consultation), contact Ruth via her website. You can also request a FREE mp3 download, “The Energetics of Soul Astrology.”

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