Full Moon
ssayings
   Cosmic indicators do not promise utopian results. Like the ancients, each of us must heed the passage of time in the Solar, Lunar, and planetary rhythms, answer to their stipulations, and thereby cultivate their rewards. In this way one becomes the sower of one’s own destiny and the reaper of life’s promise.
      – Rosemary Clark,  Astro*Logic


All phenomena are cited for the Tropical (Western) Zodiac, Eastern Time (*)






solarflare













nova













Planet Venus














solar













Nwt







Season of Pisces (February 18 – March 19, 2010)
God Poseidon
A Sea of Storm and Deep Tranquility

   Poseidon (Roman: Neptune), brother of Hades in the underworld and Demeter in the fertile soil, commands both water and wind, flood and storm. His three-pronged trident represents his power over the waters and the creatures within them – with it he both calmed the stormy seas and brought forth hurricanes. When wielding his weapon he pierced the earth and caused springs to come forth, but could also strike the ground to compel earthquakes. Beneficence and anger, tranquility and turmoil – the lord of waters shows us the powers and dangers of our internal sea, the vast ocean of our unconscious impulses.

   In the season of Pisces, all past seasons dissolve in the brine of Poseidon’s kingdom, awaiting the renewal of a new season when our aspirations and efforts emerge rejuvenated and reanimated with the powers of the coming Spring. It is a phase of awakening from the hibernation of Winter, a transition from the incubation of dreams into the world of new life. In Pisces, we move with the tides of our internal sea toward the shore of renewal.

• Poseidon at the Copenhagen Port (photo by Hans Anderson)


The Piscean Journey

   Ancient legend tells of the time of the demigods, when Typhon, lord of chaos, sought to overturn the beneficent rule of Zeus by capturing and holding hostage the Olympian deities, Aphrodite and her son Eros. To escape discovery, the two hid in the waters of the Nile and transformed into fish. Their feat was commemorated in the heavens with the stellar image of the Ichthyes (twin fish), to keep the influence of Typhon forever at bay.

   The northern fish swims upward, toward the cosmic waters of forgetfulness; the southern fish swims westward, toward the constellation Aquarius and the waterbearer’s waves of enlightenment. At the same time the Ichthyes are tied together, representing the eternal quest that draws the soul toward these dual destinations and the dilemmas of spiritual desire.


• The constellation Pisces
Pisces constellation
  Cosmic Events

     The Sun enters Pisces on February 18th at 1:36 pm with a harmonious aspect between the Moon and Neptune, drawing the water lord’s insightful powers into the environment. This will be a month of small realizations that will find significant truths when the Moon is in full light.

     The Full Moon takes place February 28th at 11:38 am (9º Virgo 59’) with the Sun and Jupiter aligned in an opposition to the Moon. This should be an interesting day of hits and misses, or maybe a comedy of errors if serious matters are set aside. Family issues can be resolved amiably and long journeys may be planned with confidence.

     Mars turns to direct motion (0º Leo 18’) on March 10th, reenergizing the atmosphere with fiery ambition after months (since December 20) of inaction and discouragement.

     The New Moon takes place on March 15th at 5:01 pm (25 Pisces 10’), a day that will encourage brilliant ideas as the Moon conjoins Mercury and Uranus – all three together in visionary Pisces. But dreams need a foundation of ambition and fortitude to become a reality, and they can find just such fulfillment if patience and commitment are the powers exercised through the next month.




 Season of Aquarius (January 19 – February 19)
Aquarian Acts of Service

And godlike Ganymede,
Most beautiful of men;
The gods beheld and caught him up
To heaven, so beautiful was he, to pour
The wine to Jove, and ever dwell with them.
– Homer

   Ganymede, a Trojan prince,  was viewed by the Olympian gods as the most attractive among mortals. But with this admiration came notice from Zeus himself, who sought the young man to serve as cupbearer to the celestial powers. Taking the form of an eagle, Zeus swooped down from the heavens and abducted Ganymede, who became an immortal but also a servant to the gods. His image is embodied in the constellation Aquarius, and is accompanied by the eagle constellation Aquila.

    This ancient story tells of the obligation human beings have when they seek to become “godlike.” The individual ego is subsumed by divine will, and those powers hold greater sway over mortal destiny than the petty aspirations of the individual. A lesson to be well understood by those who strive for the ethereal heights!

   But the Aquarian motif also alludes to a cosmic secret – the gods seek our service as much we we seek their counsel. The exchange of powers – human and divine – becomes possible when each recognizes the needs of the other. It is the ancient art of theurgia that uncovers this secret, a sacred tradition that is unlocked with the words and gestures of magic. In this way, the server is given a true place in the heavens and is served by the powers s/he has honored.
Ganymede  
Abduction of Ganymede by Peter Paul Rubens (1577–1640)

Hapi
Cosmic Events

   The Sun enters Aquarius on January 19th at 11:28 pm EST with intimations of rebellion in the financial world and the unveiling of revelations held secret for a time in the political sphere. This will be a season of unrest and distrust as efforts to bridge differences, moral and social, will take months to resolve. When the Sun enters Leo the cynical will regain some trust and the wounded will be well on the mend.

   The Full Moon takes place January 30th at 1:18 am (10 Leo 15’). Sword-rattling accompanies this phase as the antagonistic face of Mars joins with the lunar public, while Venus attempts to sooth the afflicted. Mars, who has been in retrograde motion since December 20th of last year, will move forward on March 10th. This will allow hostilities to become more transparent and amenable to resolution. Until then, passive-aggressive actions are on the rise.

YrTiger
Harmony at Last

   The New Moon takes place on February 13th at 9:51 pm EST (25 Aquarius 18’), inaugurating the Oriental Year of the (Metal) Tiger. The overall tone of such a year conveys austerity and focus, hard work and determination to go forward. Individual fortitude will bring far better results than allowing the status quo to dictate the course of action. This may seem noisy to some, but will be the sound of progress to others.

   February 14th features a grand conjunction of the Sun with Chiron and Neptune, shining a light on the elusive quest for universal health and healing. The 17th will bringing a semblance of resolution to this issue as Chiron and Neptune join at 26 Aquarius 15’ with Venus and Jupiter simultaneously in a harmonious conjunction in their favored and exalted places of 7º Pisces. The Sign of the centaur (Sagittarius) rises at this event, presaging the rule of the wise warrior.


Season of Capricorn (December 21, 2009 – January 19, 2010)

Aqconjunction
A Solstice Star
  
The gloom of winter can be illuminated by stellar light for those who see beyond the darkness of the moment, and such a possibility comes to us at this year’s Winter Solstice. The new season is accompanied by a configuration in Aquarius that will usher in a new paradigm for many. At our nation's capitol, the Moon and asteroid Chiron join Jupiter and Neptune in an Aquarius conjunction on December 21st, quietly setting a trajectory for the New Year that seeks to meld environment, education, and health in a grand plan for change and progress.

   The ingress of the Sun into the sphere of Capricorn is viewed as the pacesetter for the coming year, financially and politically. Looking at the event from Washington DC, the Solstice Sun on December 21st is accompanied by Pluto, indicating a transformative change in the Ninth House of Government. The world will monitor this change, to judge if the new values it presents will ripple into waves of empathy and responsibility for others of less fortunate circumstances around the globe.

   The key to this change lies in the symbolism of Chiron – healer (“chirurgery”), peacemaker, and the legendary teacher of the physician Asclepius and the hero Achilles. As he now travels in the celestial sphere with a progressive Aquarian Moon and the lords of sky (Jupiter) and water (Neptune), he brings us to a place of reckoning for the state of our environment, within and without.  At this Solstice, Mars opposes this stellium of powers, but
Chiron is well versed in the art of war and a veteran of many hazardous conflicts. He teaches us to resolve our discord through nature, his exclusive realm, and he promises victory over blind aggression. Change indeed will come to pass under his tutelage.



Cosmic Events

   The New Moon takes place on December 16th at 7:02 am EST (24 Sagittarius 40’), with the Moon conjoining Pluto later in the day. This presages the transformative process that will take place for the next thirty days, one that will bring as much bitterness as liberation from outworn conventions.

   The Sun enters Capricorn (Winter Solstice) on December 21st at 12:47 pm EST, following the Aquarian conjunction of Moon and Chiron, Jupiter and Neptune, at 3:53 am EST. The atmosphere throughout the day will be one of wonder and trepidation, as what was long sought for becomes unfamiliar and challenging.

   The Full Moon takes place on December 31st at 2:13 pm EST, (10 Cancer 15’), also known as the Yule (Winter) Moon. This year, it features a partial Lunar eclipse that foreshadows a coming year of doubts and a desire to retreat to old habits. Resist the gravity – illusions may obscure our sight for the duration of this eclipse, but in the following months Chiron will be offering each of us a path to healing or heroism.

   The New Year 2010 is inaugurated between the Lunar eclipse of December 31st and an Annular Solar Eclipse on January 15th at 2:11 am EST, along with a Mercury in retrograde motion – all in wintry, stern Capricorn. These cosmic influences will encourage a frustrating decline in government initiatives due to financial instability and obstructions from the status quo.

   Other delays in moving international agreements forward can be expected, with more than the usual seasonal transportation slowdowns. But these disappointments will be short-lived – on February 11th Chiron joins Neptune in a decisive finale that will mend many of the rifts that separate people from the powers that heal, educate, and govern with harmony.

Chiron_Achilles

The Education of Achille by Chiron 
– James Barry (1741–1806)




(*) U.S. Time Zones
Central Time:    – 1 hour
Mountain Time:    – 2 hours
Pacific Time:    – 3 hours
Hawai’i-Alaska:    – 5 hours

© 2003-2010 Rosemary Clark
All Rights Reserved

blackstar
Last Year's Soothsayings
AstroLogic Return to Astro*Logic
 Return Return to Sacred Tradition
Contact Reach the Author