The Full Thunder Full Moon in Capricorn, July 1, 2015

"The Full Buck Moon – July is normally the month when the new antlers of buck deer push out of their foreheads in coatings of velvety fur. It was also often called the Full Thunder Moon, for the reason that thunderstorms are most frequent during this time. Another name for this month’s Moon was the Full Hay Moon."  -The Farmers Almanac

This Full Thunder Moon is making an appearance on July 1st at 7:19pm PDT. There is something magical about visualizing a full moon with thunder. The all seeing nocturnal eye blackened by darkness with streaks of fierce light emanating from its retina makes one pause with awe. This is a perfect image for the message of this Full Moon in Capricorn. Capricorn, the administrators of the zodiac, represent authority, responsibility, and accomplishment. But while in its opposite sign of Cancer, the sign of the Moon, it softens its stance by its more receptive, nurturing, and emotional side. What we get is an opportunity to handle the toughness of our lives with the softness of a comforting unconditional mother. 

With the Sun and Moon forming a Grand Cardinal Square, those of you in the cardinal signs (Cancer, Libra, Scorpio, and Capricorn) will feel this lunation more acutely. It may feel like sink or swim, fish or cut bait, or crisis or opportunity. Since most of us have one of these signs somewhere in our charts, look to where these Cardinal signs will impact you the most. Jupiter, the planet of good fortune, kisses Venus before the power of this Full Moon is at its peak. It won't be all high drama. This conjunction will lure us into surrendering to more playful and pleasurable pastimes as a release from the shoulds and should nots of Capricorn's drive for perfectionism.

We are now at mid-summer in the northern hemisphere. This is a time to revel in the warmth of summer, marvel at the thunderstorms, and enjoy the bright colors of summer flowers. The Capricorn Full Moon will ask us to look at the path we are on but also give us a snippet of grace to soothe the harshness of change.

Looking for Love in Purgatory

In parochial school I was always taught that purgatory was a get out of jail free card with probation. The condition set by the Catholic Church was if you are a sinner but not a hopeless unrepentant one, you can purge (thus purgatory) yourself of any of the seven deadly but popular sins (especially prevalent in my state of California).

 'Another list, given this time by the Epistle to the Galatians (Galatians 5:19-21), includes more of the traditional seven sins, although the list is substantially longer: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, idolatry, sorcery, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, "and such like".' -Wikipedia

Looking at this onerous list, I decided my dating life is somewhere on the lowest path leading up to 'The Envious'. Being one of 'The Proud' has been a tough place to start. If you know anything about pride, it is considered the worst of the seven deadly sins. Pride being at the top of my list means there is nowhere to go but up because nothing compares to the hell of dating.

As a Catholic, we were taught never to be proud. This has not stopped me wanting to be oppositionally defiant, super-competent, confident, and independent. The unfortunate consequence of this tends to intimidate males. I have wondered why having strong strategic, rational, and communicative skills acts like salt peter. Being a strong woman looks good on film but most men I've met don't know what to do with a self-sufficient woman. Thank God adultery, uncleanness, heresies, and murderings are not part of my pride complex.

'Pride (Latin, superbia), or hubris (Greek), is considered, on almost every list, the original and most serious of the seven deadly sins: the source of the others. It is identified as believing that one is essentially better than others, failing to acknowledge the accomplishments of others, and excessive admiration of the personal self (especially holding self out of proper position toward God); it also includes vainglory(Latin, vanagloria) which is unjustified boasting.'  -Wikipedia

Well, I wouldn't go that far but I wouldn't be surprised if men thought this way about me. Men who are insecure about their level of confidence, degree of intelligence, or ability to communicate, are quick to condemn competent women as 'ballbusters'. It is no surprise that this makes smart women question their attractiveness, sending them scurrying for plastic surgery to compensate. As a seasoned woman who desires but does not desperately need straight male companionship, I feel I have an advantage. Even though the dating process is tedious, at least I know who I am and what I want, giving me objectivity. Men desiring me to be more passive and less knowledgeable are quickly dispatched. This does make for slim pickings, however. Sometimes this process seem like the road to perdition but knowing I am in purgatory gives me hope I'll find another compatible with me who enjoys my quirky, intuitive qualities. 

This is a schizophrenic time for dating. Technology has replaced good manners, civility, and kindness. Being this is now the primary route for communicating, it complicates the already rough road of connecting with someone on an intimate level. Looking for love in purgatory is fraught with obstacles but at least I don't have to worry about envy, wrath, sloth, avarice, and gluttony. Lust, however, is another story.

SENTENCED TO DEATH WHILE IN JUPITER'S TWELFTH HOUSE

Astrologically for Virgos, the planet Jupiter is in the twelfth house: the house of the hidden, the unconscious, dreams, intuition, secrets, and psychic phenomenon. I call it the house of death because it is the last house of the zodiac where critical mass reaches culmination. Say good bye to anything and everything you thought was an absolute certainty going into older age. Secrets are revealed, unconscious or hidden desires surface, and the maturation of one's intuitive skin directs how to respond to the unknown. Like the Confessor sworn to the oath of secrecy, the hidden buried beneath the breast seeks release from the burden of the past. The chrysalis reminds us of the Buddhist 'suffering of birth' is a transitional stage.

Everything begins ultimately with death: the death of a dream, the death of vocational verve, death of solid beliefs, and the death of relationships (not just separation or divorce-physical death as well), death of the way you thought it would be. Now is the time for all good Virgos to grapple with the unresolved issues from previous losses. Only by clearing out this mental and emotional debris can Virgos get ready for August 11th, when our planet of luck (Jupiter) moves into Virgo. So it is wise to commence cleaning.

Everything starts with the past. Don't be afraid of saying good bye, letting go, and burying the dead. Be aware of secrets, dreams, coincidences, and the handwriting on the wall. The signs are everywhere, it's waking up and acting on them that is the challenge. Having the faith to release everything will prepare a new table being set for us in August. I rest my fate.

Gemini's New Moon

The duality of the Gemini New Moon returns June 16th at 7:05am PDT. The above illustration gives us an excellent example of Gemini's split personality. At best, we see both sides of our natural humanity. At worst, we become fractured slipping into what we think of as our 'evil' side. But even our 'good' traits we hold so dearly can become fodder for our foibles. It depends on which one governs our perception of reality and remembering too much of a good thing also causes problems. How many of us have tried to 'help' a loved one only to get burned when you realize you enabled their problems to continue instead of abating them?

The message of this New Moon is for integration; for one cannot reject 'evil' and think it'll go away. For anyone who has studied Psychosynthesis, the trick is to know all of these aspects within us have a function. Dealing with multiple personalities, we tend to attach ourselves to whatever dominant trait is capturing our attention at the moment. It is like driving a car and picking up hitchhikers, only we think we are the hitchhikers. Granted, frequently we are dogged by tenacious thoughts which compel us to feel we have to act in accordance with its power. However, they can be attenuated by its opposite trait. For example, arrogance (false pride) can be lessened by genuine humility and generosity. 

This lunation points out the importance of recognizing what is tearing us apart in order for us to make significant changes. The time is now. Can we make friends and call a truce to those discursive elements within us? The electricity generated by Gemini's New Moon is a call to trust in balance, equilibrium, and civility. Pick up a mirror and you will see why your world is structured the way it is.

Ride the high energy voltage of this lunation by allowing yourself to be, express, and communicate the real you. Quit hiding behind the so-called negative or 'evil' facets you believe to be solid by massaging them with the kinder, gentler you. As we near the summer soltice, the longest day of the year, let the suns rays bath you with the light that can alleviate destructive emotions, obscurations, and blockages.

The Strawberry Sagittarius Full Moon

"The Full Strawberry Moon – June:  This name was universal to every Algonquin tribe. However, in Europe they called it the Rose Moon. Also because the relatively short season for harvesting strawberries comes each year during the month of June . . . so the full Moon that occurs during that month was christened for the strawberry!" -The Farmer's Almanac

As I write this, the gorgeous full June moon in Sagittarius is lovingly showering me with its early morning moonbeams. The loveliness of image conjures up a bucolic soft moonlit field lush with a fresh growth of crops. This fiery lunation smack dab in airy Gemini means hot dry winds. But these siroccos are whipping up our creative cognition, giving us a chance to innovate, invent, and inaugurate. It's not enough to appreciate the strawberries produced in concert with this June moon-we are motivated to let ourselves out of our repressive closet of fears and self-sabotage. To accomplish this we need to slow down, let go, and deal with what shows up. What good is it to have keen insights when they go nowhere? That is the point.

This Sagittarian Full Moon reminds us of how delicate strawberries are. They have a short growing season and are fragile to transport. In this beginning season of summer we dive into our gentle nature, this time with the mental energy for creative action. Obsessing and compulsing are the exact opposite of what is being asked of us. This is a time for thoughtful contemplation, patience, and channeling desires into meaningful forward movement. It's about allowing the universe to guide us to see what unfolds.

Where are you stuck? What do you know you need to do but are afraid? Who has come to offer you a message but you are too preoccupied to hear it? How does a journey of a thousand miles begin when you've taken a detour? If not now, when?