Goals & Daily Life

“I see that I’ve become a really bad correspondent. It’s not that I don’t think of you.
You come into my thoughts often. But when you do it appears to me that I owe you a particularly grand letter. And so you end in the “warehouse of good intentions”:
“Can’t do it now.” “Then put it on hold.” This is one’s strategy for coping with old age,
and with death–because one can’t die with so many obligations in storage.
Our clever species, so fertile and resourceful in denying its weaknesses.”
― Saul Bellow

 

The week begins with the Sun in Virgo and the Moon void of course in Libra until it enters Scorpio late Monday evening. Monday is a (parenthesis) before the week officially begins and an opportunity to sharpen our tools for the work that lays ahead of us. A necessary period of inner refinement, adjusting our compass and vision as we find ourselves oscillating between our instinctual-desire-nature and our rational-pragmatic-intellect.

Constructive actions in tandem with inspired insights permeates this week. There is a lot of juicy momentum and it could even feel as if things are moving waaaay too fast for you to catch a break. Productivity is high on the list right now, and as a result procrastination hangs like a shadow over our game plan.

The soul craves synthesis while the mind dissects every aspects of existence.

The Moon will travel in Scorpio until late Wednesday night/early Thursday morning when it enters Sagittarius. The Moon in Sagittarius all day Thursday (Jupiter’s day) applies to a conjunction with Jupiter. The First Quarter Moon happens at 13º Sagittarius this month when it squares the Sun at 13º Virgo.

The First Quarter Moon is a time of action or crisis when the plans that were laid at the New Moon in Virgo on the 30th of August are being challenged or are starting to gain traction. This First Quarter Moon brings attention to our big idea or vision and the execution of this particular vision or idea. We have to trust that we will get there but we also have to put in the efforts required to get there.

Perspective gets lost when we spend too much time on the details (Virgo). However it can also be hard to execute a big idea if we don’t delineate a practical way to get there (Sagittarius). You could feel overwhelmed by the amount of preparation necessary for the execution of your idea/goal, losing perspective on where you were going it in the first place. Or it could be that you are so taken by your big project that you totally brush over the details and neglect some important steps in the process.

The Moon in Sagittarius will be next to Jupiter at the time of the First Quarter Moon on Friday September 7th – giving us a huge boost of confidence and faith that ”everything will turn alright”. We KNOW what we have to do, but it doesn’t mean we have the discipline to do it. It’s one thing to know, it’s another thing entirely to repeat the process day after day to install a new routine, a new program that will lead us to a new helpful habit. There is a conflict between knowing and executing, between an idea and the implementation of that idea into a tangible process. Time and patience is required as nothing is born overnight and it’s a good idea to keep that in mind as you navigate Virgo season and find yourself going over everything that remains to be done. Be patient and be happy for the process, because every step of the process is what eventually leads you to the desired result.

The Moon enters Capricorn Saturday morning, and here we are again, back at the working bench, at the drawing table with our plans and our to-do lists, and the burden of all that remains to be done. Time is slipping away so fast, and there are still too many details to deal with. We are not quite as healthy, productive, efficient, and successful as we could be, and it could all be too obvious next weekend. The Moon travels in Capricorn next Saturday and Sunday, convincing us that there are vegetables to harvest and preserve, fire wood to split, renovations to do, and all kinds of work left to be done. Not the most relaxing weekend but a productive one I hope.

Most planets traveling in the Earth element (Taurus – Virgo – Capricorn)  means it’s a great time to get stuff done, but terrible for anxiety around status, work, income, discipline, and habits. Don’t compare yourself too much. You are exactly where you are suppose to be; trust your process.

“You have to believe. Otherwise, it will never happen.”
― Neil Gaiman

WEEK OF AUGUST 26, 2019

JON KOKO – KARESANSUI

 

Out of perfection nothing can be made.
Every process involves breaking something up.
Joseph Campbell

And just like that, Virgo season is here, and this is definitely one of the most grounding time of the year when we can see the results and the reasons of the past. Not only do we have a stellium in Virgo (stellium: 4 or more planets in the same sign), the New Moon on Friday August 30th is positively supported by Uranus in Taurus. It is a time of traction and implementation for what is being birthed in your life. The new structures that are emerging on the horizon are starting to make sense and you can begin to see the tangible manifestations of your long held visions, the birth of a new awareness, a new reality.

The wish you whispered half consciously under your breath while sleeping is surrounding you. The faint light that guided you through the storm is now your illumination. There is a clarity about the events in your life and a reason for everything. Nothing is perfect but you might be able to accept that all the imperfect decisions has led you exactly where you are.

Witness your powers of manifestation for better or for worst.

Pixelated wood sculptures by Hsu Tung Han

Until the new moon in Virgo on Friday, we stand in the liminal darkness of the waning Moon, the dark of the Moon. Slowdown your pace, reflect, contemplate, clean, cleanse, purge, stretch, create space for the wisdom to enter, collect the strength from the Earth, lay low.

Monday: Moon in Cancer
Tuesday: Moon in Cancer – Moon enters Leo at 21:23 NDT
Wednesday: Moon in Leo
Thursday: Moon in Leo – Moon enters Virgo at 21:27 NDT
Friday: New Moon in Virgo 8:07am NDT
Saturday: Moon in Virgo – Moon enters Libra at 20:37 NDT
Sunday: Moon in Libra

The New Moon in Virgo takes place on Friday August 30th at 8:07am NDT/6:37am EDT. The New Moon signals the beginning of the work, a time of creation and implementation, of ”to-do” lists, of tangibility and manifestation, a time of taking advantage of the resources available to you, utilizing your space and body properly and efficiently. All the small actions that leads to the whole, it’s happening now. Your breath, the way you chew your food, your digestion, your posture. The superfluous will seem extra superfluous while you find a purpose for everything. Each little things in their place, there is a place for everything, and no space wasted.

The New Moon is linked to the revolutionary ways in which you approach the ordinary. Set your intentions, but don’t set them to high as to be discouraged. Plant your intentions in the realm of the possible, the tangible, the practical, something that will yield a satisfactory result down the road, every step counts, every action has meaning.

Wood sculpture by Yoshitoshi Kanemaki

“Your thoughts, become your words;
your words, become actions;
your actions, become habits;
your habits, become your character;
your character,  becomes your destiny.”

WEEK OF AUGUST 19, 2019

He, who every morning plans the transactions of the day, and follows that plan,
carries a thread that will guide him through a labyrinth of the most busy life.
Victor Hugo

The week begins with the Moon in Aires. The Moon enters Taurus Wednesday at 00:38 EDT and will travel though Taurus until Friday morning when the Moon enters Gemini at 10:34am. The last quarter Moon happens at 0º Gemini, officially initiating the mutable Earth season with the Sun having just entered Virgo. The Moon travels through Gemini until late Sunday afternoon when it enters Cancer at 17:05 EDT.

This week, with 3 planets moving from Leo to Virgo we are getting a good glimpse of what the next month has in store for us. Mars left the sign of Leo for Virgo early Sunday morning and Venus follows suit on August 21st, leaving the brazen fires of Leo for the humbling pastures of Virgo. On August 23rd, the Sun leaves its domicile of Leo to enter Virgo, officiating the Mutable Earth season. However, with Mercury (ruling planet of Virgo) still in Leo, we are holding onto the golden rays and royal ways, and not entirely dedicated to the practical applications of our vision until Mercury enters Virgo on August 29th.

Mars →Virgo: August 18 – 1:17am EDT
Venus →Virgo: August 21 – 5:06am EDT
Sun →Virgo: August 23 – 6:01am EDT

THE PROCESS
With the Sun’s ingress into the Earth sign of Virgo, we begin the process of sorting out what needs tending. Virgo season brings our attention and focus on the many task that lays ahead of us, illuminating what needs to be organized, smoothed, resolved and eliminated for us to find proper footing. With the heavy influence of the Earth element in the next few weeks, our attention will be on the practical and tangible ways in which we can establish order in our daily lives and in our bodies. Simplifying, streamlining, and putting back the tools in their proper place, becoming aware of all the little ways in which we are not yet fully efficient, proficient and perfect. Anxiety is a shadow that looms large over Virgoan-type people, for there is always ways in which one can improve themselves, and this process is never done. Quality resides in the critical eye for better or for worst. Perfection is not a burden for the artisan, but a guiding principle informing his repetitive actions which over time becomes the perfect object. Practice makes perfect as they say.

THE MATERIAL
This year, we have a tight alignment of planets in the sign of Virgo which does not happen every year. This should greatly intensify the influence of the sign on our daily lives. Virgo is one of the three Earth signs considered in astrology to be primarily focused on the tangible and the practical necessities of material reality, the other two being Taurus and Capricorn.

Since we already have Uranus transiting in Taurus and Saturn/Pluto/South Node in Capricorn, the ingress of Mars, Venus and the Sun into the sign of Virgo this week will saturate the skies with planets in Earth signs. During the next few weeks, our attention will turn towards our material reality and how to improve it. We could find ourselves busy creating order out of the chaotic and disparate parts of our lives in order to improve it and be more productive. Productivity will be high on the priority list and you could find yourself overwhelmed with the work load while juggling all of your responsibilities. Procrastination will create more anxiety and I have seen many Virgo-type characters driving themselves mad with anxiety and stress while procrastinating. Don’t shy away from the work you have to do as this will surely release some of the inner tension.

This week, the transition of three planets from Leo to Virgo will be quite obvious as we find ourselves moving from the Fixed Fire season to the Mutable Earth season. In the Northern Hemisphere, Virgo season announces the end of Summer and the transition towards Fall. The preparation required for the return of the cold and the waning of the light prompts us to organize ourselves, and it is a time of movement and busy-ness. The structures in our lives will be vitalized and it’s a great time to organize your space and make it more functional. In the next couple of weeks, the emphasis is on our physical reality and tending to the smaller details of our existence like our body and our environment. However, the possibility of scattering ourselves through too many projects/avenues or being overly critical and preoccupied with perfection is a tendency to watch for during the next few weeks. It’s a good idea to temper the critical voice within you, and use this time to get ahead.

The Zodiac 1925 Ernest Procter 1886-1935

“If death meant just leaving the stage long enough to change costume and come back as a new character… Would you slow down? Or speed up?”
–Chuck Palahniuk

GROW• GLOW• SHIMMER: NEW MOON IN LEO

Bruce Pennington, 1973

 

✺

The month of July ends with a New Moon in Leo which will be exact at 23:12 EDT on July 31st. A few minutes later, Mercury stations direct in Cancer after being retrograde since the 7th of July. The New Moon in Leo and Mercury direct initiates us into the month of August, on the other side of eclipse season and in the bright light of the Sun who is at home in the sign of Leo.

→ Look to where the New Moon in Leo is taking place in your birth chart to understand where the focus is  for this upcoming lunation. The Full Moon in Aquarius on August 14 will see a culmination in the opposite house to where Leo sits and you can expect the next few weeks to highlight both the Leo and Aquarius house topics in your chart.

After a month of gestation, we enter a period of rationality and brilliance which will allow us to study in clear daylight, the pearls of wisdom that were birthed in the eclipses shadows. The intuitive epiphanies regarding certain roadblocks and detours inherited from the past, and the revelations contained in our personal biographies can now be observed with a certain lucid detachment as a fresh chapter emerges on the horizon. The page is blank, the fruits are ripped, and fresh intentions are being initiated with the conviction that we really do deserve the best of the best.

Honour and pride is on the menu in the first half of August. Leo season is a time of courage and conviction, of stepping up to the plate and having the guts of embodying your role with confidence. Now is a time for recognizing your accomplishments, your worth, and to show up with your best face on, trusting that you know exactly how its done.

Shimmering sparkles arising from the light – hypnotizing with a fiery glow – a magnetizing charisma containing the warmth of love and attraction. Thirsty, the seeker extends a hand towards the object of power –  hoping to catch its radiance and become a God.

Jupiter stations direct in Sagittarius on August 11, after being retrograde since mid-April and this should help boost our confidence level. On the same day, Mercury enters Leo setting the ego ablaze as Uranus turn retrograde in Taurus until next eclipse season in January 2020.

Micheal Heizer

 

The Full Moon in Aquarius takes place on August 14, just as Venus in Leo reaches her superior conjunction moving behind the Sun. This marks the time when Venus transition from the morning to evening sky. Venus will be visible as a bright evening “star” in the sky after sunset in September and October 2019.

The Full Moon in Aquarius brings a culmination in regards to our own needs and desires versus the desires of the whole. Certain people might be accused of selfishness during this time as we try to reconcile our values with the values of others. Venusian matters will certainly be on our mind in mid-August and a division could be felt in regards to the practical versus the superfluous. We might feel more indulgent and deserving and this could create some friction with others who are also trying to get their piece of cake. Brash and dramatic displays of superiority are also possible as egos collide; even if you know best, you might not be heard in the cacophony of roars. 

Mars enters Virgo on August 18, followed by Venus on August 21st, and the Sun on August 23rd. The second half of the month will contain a lot more planets in Earth elements bringing pragmatism to our ambitions, and practical steps to reach our goals. The heated passions being felt in the first weeks of August will find proper outlets by the end of the month as we slowly come back down to Earth with the gifts of Fire. The last week of August sees a Mars/Venus conjunction in Virgo supported by a trine to Uranus; you will know exactly what to do and how to do it.

Love and passion, passion and beauty, beauty and lust, lust and novelty, novelty and pleasure, pleasure and discovery, discovery and freedom, freedom and connection, connection and soul.

The New Moon in Virgo takes place early on August 30th at 6 degrees of Virgo signalling fresh momentum in the part of your chart where Virgo is located. This should be a fantastic lunation to organize and take care of details that were ignored in the last few months. Delineating a schedule or a plan for your goals should help relieve some of the anxiety. It could feel like a lot needs to be done and September promises to be a good month to get on track. Organization will be high on the priority list and a clear action-plan will support your efforts towards reaching your objectives. The New Moon in Virgo trining Uranus, carries the promise of self-sufficiency born out of efforts.

 

 

 

EMERGENCE

EMERGENCE. Sculpture by Buddy Jackson. Hartman Park

The Sun entered Virgo a week ago and we can already feel the beneficial and grounding influence of this Earth sign after a VERY intense retrograde/eclipse Summer season.
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We also have a trine between Saturn in Capricorn and Uranus in Taurus right now and this is an aspect that will permeate much of September. Trines in astrology are considered supportive aspects between planets in the SAME ELEMENT. In order to benefit from trines, one must be willing to actively take part and to consciously work with it. In other words, you don’t sit on your ass and wait for things to happen.
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Saturn entered Capricorn in December of 2017 and will be there for another 2 years: Saturn in Capricorn is all about the tearing down of old structures that are not sustainable anymore. (on a personal level but also a collective one). It’s also about time management – meaning you don’t waste it on people and scenarios that do not support you. Saturn in Capricorn is your opportunity to simplify your life, be pragmatic about your trajectory, and invest where it’s worth it.
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Uranus will be in Taurus for the next 8 years (with a short stint back into Aries at the end of this year but officially back in Taurus in March 2019). Uranus in Taurus will most likely bring many disruptions on a societal level. Uranus is associated with rebellions and change. Taurus is a Fixed Earth sign and so we will most likely see more and more ecological crisis. On a personal level, Uranus in Taurus is your opportunity to revolutionize the way you relate to your comfort and the way you manage your resources and energy. Flexibility will be a major asset in the next 8 years.
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Uranus in Taurus will see more and more people interested in self-sufficiency and a return to DIY ways of living as the Earth continues to be damaged by the crumbling and unsustainable systems of consumer culture.
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You might start to get a hint of what it is that you want for your future, and perhaps even the opportunity to start moving in a new direction. Simplicity, flexibility and health IS the new wealth.
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With the Sun in Virgo for half of September, it’s an excellent time to implement or get back to healthier habits. The Moon is in Aries and will enter Taurus (the sign of her exaltation) later tonight and will be there for the next few days. This is your cue to root down in your body, go into nature and move with your natural rhythms.
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September is the recovery phase after a stressful and powerful Summer battle. Take this opportunity to get back to basics and reconnect with your medicine.

SOLUTIONS AND DISSOLUTION

FOR WHEN THE SUN IN VIRGO OPPOSE NEPTUNE IN PISCES AND
THE MOON IN AQUARIUS CONJUNCT THE SOUTH NODE:

Can you discriminate between omens and wishful thinking?
Between poison and medicine?
Delusion and honesty?
Between a ghost and your own shadow?
Do you know your boundaries?

Still from the film ”The Dance of Reality” by Jodorowski

Sun in Virgo: Boldness & Patience

The Sun is now at 0º Virgo in a conjunction with the fixed star Regulus (The heart of the Lion). This interesting part of the zodiac is often associated with The Sphinx; the meeting of the lion with the maiden.

We are on the other side of the much-anticipated and powerful Solar Eclipse/New Moon at 28º Leo. It will take a few weeks before we assimilate and understand what this means for us on a personal scale but also for the world we live in.

We are being pushed towards bold new beginnings but with Mercury retrograde in Virgo until September 5th our ambitious goals will need careful and deliberate planning. With the Sun in Virgo for the next month, we must bow down to the earth and the natural rhythms of nature. A shift has occurred but it will take time before it becomes visible and we must tend to the ordinary in order to bring about the extraordinary.

Mercury goes direct on September 5th at 28º of Leo; the degree of the Solar Eclipse/New Moon in Leo. By then, we should gain greater clarity and have a pretty good idea of where we are heading.

God is in the details

FULL MOON IN PISCES-SATURDAY AUGUST 29 2015 @ 2:35 PM EDT.

This weekend’s full moon makes me think of the boat builder who finally gets to bring his boat on the ocean to see how it will sail. What happens once he goes out and launches his boat on the big open waters? Well first of all, there is an element of surrendering.  After the work is done, each step carefully followed: stem. keel, moulds, battens, timbers, and planking, the builder is relying on his faith.  Faith in his work, faith in the techniques used and the knowledge passed down from generations. Something else is at work here, and even though the boat builder is a skilled artisan, ultimately once he puts his boat on the water it doesn’t matter how much he knows about buoyancy because the ocean has the last word.

Aran Islanders, Martin Driscoll

How does an object of art comes to be born?

It starts with a flash of insight, a vague image, a sensation of the shape to come. Inspiration, like the ocean has its own will. It is not controlled easily and in order for the artist to create, he must surrender to the process. The role of the artist is to translate the vision into form. We all have access to the realm of the intangible through our imagination, at night through dreams or through artificial paradise. But to bring back these visions and put them into forms takes a lot of hard work!

Sometime you look at a painting and you say:  ”I could of totally painted that!” Why is this artist getting praise for something that is seamingly so easy to do?

Well the answer is simple:  Because he did it and not you.  He took the vision and brought it into  form. It’s a very simple idea but the hardest step, because it takes practice. To materialise, to pull out the dream, out of the void and make something tangible you need to do it often. To be good at something you need to do it every day.  In order to actually materialise the vision, you must try and try again, day after day until it becomes like a second nature. Until you become a passage for the dream to pass through.  Until you become the voice for the soul of the world, a translator of the intangible: that is the role of the artist.

I really like this quote from Terence McKenna:

“The creative act is a letting down of the net of human imagination into the ocean of chaos on which we are suspended, and the attempt to bring out of it ideas.”

Fritz Hegenbart

This weekend’s full moon is illuminating the paradox between our imagination and reality. Between what we would like our life to be and the daily rituals we do to get there. What you do, day after day and how it shapes your destiny. The master piece is your life and the balance between surrendering to it and shaping it takes skills. You don’t want to be a total control freak,  but you also know that drifting aimlessly is a sure way to feel sorry for yourself. Go with the flow but where is the flow going?

God is in the details expresses the idea that whatever one does should be done thoroughly. When you pay attention to the details, the whole becomes a masterpiece. What you do with your days, how you fill them, the work, the habits, the rituals is how you shape your life.

So what are you creating?

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Go to the spring where the fairy lives

Fill your cup with the magical waters

and sing with them in praise of the absolute

And when you come back to the city

where the cynical man dwells

remember the song that filled you with joy

and sing it.

Art by Forest Rogers