Venus in Scorpio: 9, November 2009 – 1 December, 2009

November is turning out to be quite a month with Sun, Mercury and Venus in Scorpio. All that passion and intensity is a good way to offset this winter month in the northern hemisphere. Venus enters the water sign of Scorpio on 9 November, 2009 and while it is there, it teaches us that love is also passion, passion is also torment and sometimes torment is transmuted into death and transformation. Now, why would someone talk about death and transformation when they talk of Venus? Isn’t Venus about love and romance and all those other nice things? Yes, she is. But Scorpio is the sign of her “fall” and she faces certain challenges when she’s in this sign. 

If you want to understand Venus in Scorpio, think of Shakespeare’s Othello and Romeo and Juliet. Both are love stories, but they seethe with jealousy, passion and violence. Both end in death and tragedy. Relax, if you or your love interest have this placement it doesn’t mean that you will encounter the same gory end. But these stories will give you an idea of what this energy is about when it is operating at its maximum and is out of control. Handled with care, there is nothing to worry about.

Venus in Scorpio people don’t want a safe, comfortable-as-old-shoes kind of love. There is nothing casual about their approach to love and romance. When it comes to love, they want to plumb the depths, they want to soar and touch the sky. They don’t fall for someone gently and write sweet little ditties. When they love, they love deeply, passionately, obsessively. This quote from the Song of Solomon will give you an idea of what you’re dealing with, “Set me as a seal upon thine heart, as a seal upon thine arm: for love is strong as death; jealousy is cruel as the grave.” It could have been written for people with Venus in Scorpio.

Receiving a love of like this is great gift. If this kind of intensity is not for you; if you like it free and easy, then don’t engage their affections. Not only is it cruel to toy with their emotions, but it’s bad karma for you. But if you want a love that’s out of the ordinary, a love that’s mythic, that will fill the empty corners of your heart, you would do well to woo the regard of these enigmatic and magnetic creatures.

Annie Lennox: Venus in Scorpio

A friend of mine with this placement shared a song that describes Venus in Scorpio for her: Annie Lennox’s Love Song for a Vampire. Have you heard it? It’s drenched with longing; here are some of the lyrics:

The rhythm of this trembling heart
It’s beating like a drum
It beats for you, it bleeds for you

Annie Lennox knows what she’s signing about. This intense musician has her Venus in Scorpio natally. She’s also written and performed popular numbers like Walking on Broken Glass and Why. Both are love songs, but both deal with the darker themes of jealously, betrayal and despair. Scorpio passion, if not well directed, can wreack great emotional havoc on everyone involved. It’s not an energy that you should treat lightly. Treat it with the respect and reverence it deserves and chances are you’ll have found a love that will last a lifetime.

So let’s see what this transit has in store for us: On the day of her ingress into Scorpio, Venus forms a lovely sextile with Pluto in Capricorn. It’s a day for soul love. Feelings will run deep and true on this day. Make the most of it, because on 18 November, Venus squares the flamboyant Leo Mars and sparks are bound to fly. Try and keep it calm if you can. Jealousy and selfishness are the worst ways to deal with this strong energy.

Venus leaves Scorpio for some fun and adventure in Sagittarius on 1 December, 2009. But before that she squares Jupiter, Chiron and Neptune (all in Aquarius) in the last week of November. The Jupiter square that becomes exact on 23 November might tempt you into overindulgence in either love or spending. The Chiron square on the 25^th and Neptune square on the 27^th are days you should watch out for. Chiron deals with wounds and healing. Is there an old love that you’ve been unable to let go of? Well, now is a good time to lay it to rest. The square to Neptune will try and entice you with a vision of what can be: be careful, things are not as they seem. Stick to the facts and you will save yourself the pain of disillusionment.

For all the Scorpios out there: enjoy this month when a lot of celestial energy is focused on you. Moreover, Venus is gracing you with her charm: pamper yourself, add something lovely to your wardrobe and enjoy the attention you’re bound to get.

Confessions of an Astro Nerd

Sun in Leo, in the Sixth

There are many information-rich posts waiting to be written. But I want to do a good job, so, of course, I procrastinate. In the meantime, I sent a message to my friend Evelyn Roberts and the subject line read, “Confessions of an Astro Nerd.” What a good title for a blog post, I says to myself. So here are some of mine. Send me some of your and I’ll add them to this post.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

• My Moon is in Scorpio. In its fall. I don’t care. I love my intense Moon. Intensely, of course.
• My Venus falls in Virgo. I think I’m envious of people with a strong, happy Venus. Okay, I might be jealous of them. Fine, I’m jealous!
• When I look at someone’s chart, anyone’s, the first thing I see is how it links with mine. I have a friend whose axes are so strongly connected to mine that I have difficulty getting past that and actually seeing her chart.
• The nodes of the Moon fascinate me. I don’t know why. I suspect it is because my natal chart has Mars conjunct the south node and Moon conjunct the North.
• There are two kinds of people in the world for me: astrologers and non-astrologers. I’ve recently heard the latter referred to as “civilians,” and “muggles.” I like using “civilians.”
• Astrology proves the existence of a greater design. Of a Higher Mind. Think about it a bit, it proves the existence of a Higher Force. ::She whispers, “Of God.”::
• There’s enough Virgo-Scorpio in me to find a good use for everything. Even my grief. You’d think I love astrology so much because it’s so useful. Nope. I just love it. It’s the only love in my life that’s inexplicable.
• I know one of the purposes of my life is to promote astrology. I’ve got enough Jupiter to do it, too. Yeehaw!
• I did my masters in psychology and I agree with Dr. Glenn Perry that psychology and astrology need to combine.
• I fantasize about a place where everyone is dressed in white robes. It’s a university. (It’s a planet, actually. But I didn’t want to say that.) And where astrology and healing are taught. I want to go there. It’s probably my Neptune in the ninth in Sagittarius.

 

P.S. I love you.

  

P.P.S. When I wrote this, Tr Moon was exactly conjunct my natal Moon.

Difficult Transits, Hope and Jupiter Direct

Hello my Fellow Traveler,

How’s it going for you? Difficult transits? Yeah, me too.

::sigh::

Chiron’s been opposing the ruler of my sixth house: my dog died last month and my cat’s not well. Cat wouldn’t allow me to take him to the vet; and when the good doctor came home, he wouldn’t allow the tired man to do an examination. Now Cat’s hiding in my cupboard (even though that’s forbidden territory) and I’m exhausted.

The Chiron opposition is not all that ails me. I believe the current sky’s making a grand cross in my chart: there’s trouble everywhere I turn. And I’m standing in the midst of all these swirling currents and I’m tired. And humbled. That’s another thing tough transits do for you: they humble you. Face something you can’t control, like illness, and you have to let go. I don’t mean don’t get treatment. Do all the right things. But you know that it’s out of your hands. That Life, God, the Universe, whatever you call it, is bigger than you. And there are some things that can’t be changed, they have to be endured. And that you can’t figure everything out, that sometimes you just have to accept it, whatever it is. Am I sounding very Neptunian and defeatist? I don’t mean to.

I don't know the flower associated with Jupiter, but I love the Jacaranda and the color works.

Sometimes, surrender is the answer. Acceptance is the answer. Humility and owning our limitations is the answer. Allowing pain to flow through our life is the answer. I don’t mean you should curl up and die. My Jupiter in Aries trines my Sun and my faith is strong. But in the meantime, I also know that I have to go through this process. Without getting bitter, without resenting it, without attacking other people. Without humility, without accepting that we still have some learning to do, no learning can occur. How can it if you block it the learning by saying that you know everything?

Have you read about Edgar Cayce and his work? He was a healer and he worked while he was in a trance state. There are transcript of what was channeled. Many of these transcripts detail what was said through him about people he was diagnosing. People with paralysis or very debilitating diseases. The health or the dis-ease of the body was linked to a person’s spiritual development. Spiritual, not in the sense of God or religion, but in terms of being kind, forgiving and well-intentioned towards others. About people seeking to regain their health, there were times when the Guides said, “There is no development in kindness, in giving to others. If this person regains his health, what is he going to do with it?” (This is not verbatim, but I hope it conveys some of the meaning of what was said.)

Without internal growth, the body atrophies. Because you can have health, wealth, power, beauty, intelligence…but what are you using it for you? Have you mastered your jealousy, pettiness, greed, selfishness? Total mastery can be quite a task. But awareness is a beginning. Self-aggrandizement is no sin, neither is reaching out for more and better. But what about your spiritual currency? I see powerful examples, amongst people I love, of spiritual bankruptcy. In wanting more, they despise what they do have. In wanting to achieve, they disparage what they have achieved so far. People are either richer than them, or more educated or from a better bloodline or the opposite. They feel inferior while thinking of the former and treat the latter with disdain. Simple pleasures are ignored and they seek a “high” through artificial means. When you’re hollow inside, you can drink as much as you want, but nothing will fill that gaping hole where you were meant to flower.

And people do flower, even during difficult transits. Perhaps, especially during these. When times are tough and you’re plodding along trying to cope, just trying to survive, you can learn a lot. Especially empathy and kindness. This text from the Bible comes to mind:

If I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not charity, I am become sounding brass, or a clanging cymbal.

And if I have the gift of prophecy, and know all mysteries and all knowledge; and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not charity, I am nothing.

And if I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and if I give my body to be burned, but have not charity, it profiteth me nothing.

-1 Corinthians 13:1

Some versions of the Bible use “love” instead of “charity.” But I prefer “charity.” I mean that in the nicest way: a feeling that is a blend of kindness and giving.

There was one more thing I wanted to mention today. Grace. Yeah, it’s a tough transit and, yeah, you’re going through a rough time. But one of the gifts of astrology is the reassurance that even this shall pass. And you’ll come out on the other side. But what will you be once you emerge? Will you be wiser, kinder, determined to use your power (we all have some) well? Or will you emerge from it bitter, full of hate and resentment, determined to get what you want at any cost? At anyone’s cost? What will this do to your relationships? Don’t shake your head: we need healthy relationships to have a fulfilling life. And your inner choices and feelings will determine the health of these relationships.

So whether Pluto is squaring your Venus or Saturn conjuncting your Sun, what you become is up to you. You have Free Will there. And hidden amongst the folds of your decisions is Grace, that mysterious force that blesses us with goodness.

If I hadn’t gone to my friend Hitch’s blog this evening, I wouldn’t have noticed that Jupiter has gone direct today. And Jupiter is wisdom. Is faith. I’ll end with another quote from the Bible and, even if you are not a Christian, I hope these words help you:

O woman, great is thy faith: be it unto thee even as thou wilt.

Well, that’s all for me. Didn’t meant to get on my soapbox. But it’s Jupiter, you know?

God be with you,

Neeti

P.S. And for all you astro-buffs out there, while I was writing this the transiting Moon was conjunct my natal Sun exactly, the MC of the event chart (when I was mid-way with this post) was the exact degree of my ASC. Oh, and in the event chart, Jupiter was conjunct the cusp of the ninth house.

Venus in Libra :: 15 October, 2009 – 8 November, 2009

Venus moves into Libra on 15 October, 2009. With the Sun and Mercury already in Libra and Saturn moving in to join the action on 30 October, 2009 there is a growing emphasis on this sign and its energy at this time.

But first let’s take a look at how Venus fares when she’s in Libra. Since she’s the natural ruler of Libra, Venus does rather well in this sign and so do people who are born with this placement. Venus, along with Jupiter, is considered a ‘benefic” in astrology. Translated into simple English it means Venus exerts a favorable influence and bestows the gifts of beauty and material benefits on her favored ones. Financial benefits accruing due to Venus’ influence are not the lucky largesse that Jupiter showers, rather they take the form of gifts and favors that others confer on her charming children.

There is no doubt about it, Venus in Libra people are charming. They are also good-looking, well-dressed and possessors of a keen sense of aesthetics. A man with this placement recently told me that perfection in objects is achieved when form combines with utility. People with a strong Venus are very aware of “form” or appearance. They also have deep need for beauty in their environment. Oscar Wilde (Sun and Venus in Libra) said, “Beauty is a form of genius – is higher, indeed, than genius, as it needs no explanation. It is of the great facts in the world like sunlight, or springtime, or the reflection in dark water of that silver shell we call the moon.”

If you are inclined to be prosaic, this constant emphasis on beauty can begin to seem both annoying and superficial. But before you leap to a hasty conclusion and write off these folks as people who are obsessed with just appearances and pretty clothes, please remember that Libra is a cerebral Air sign that also strives for harmony and balance in both its environment and in its social interactions. When it comes to love and relationships, Venus in Libra looks for a partner who can grace their life with both beauty and with intellectual companionship. They themselves make perfect companions with their beautiful manners, refined tastes and the importance they place on fairness in their interactions.

Perhaps Oscar Wilde is right after all. It’s never wise to underestimate the power beauty exerts over us all. Take Richard Gere (Venus in Libra). This is what Wikipedia says about him, “At age 52, with wavy silver hair and granny glasses perched on the end of his nose, he was included in the People magazine’s ‘sexiest man alive’ roster.” Richard’s Venus is exactly conjunct Neptune and in a T-Sqaure with Jupiter and Uranus thus explaining his global popularity as a major Hollywood star.

Librans can expect to enjoy a period of enhanced popularity and charisma during this transit which lasts till 8 November, 2009. It’s pretty interesting for the rest of us as well. The Venus ingress into Libra on 15 October begins with a square to Pluto in Capricorn. Even if you are a normally calm person, don’t be surprised if this day finds you experiencing feelings of jealousy and possessiveness. Emotions run high and if you manage to stay detached, you may face these feelings in other people. But after that it’s pretty much smooth sailing with Venus going on to trine Jupiter in Aquarius on 29 October, 2009. This is a good day for indulging yourself and for expressing your generosity to others. Make the most of it. On 1 November, 2009 Venus trines Chiron in Aquarius and this day give us an opportunity to heal wounds in our romantic relationships and, if we have experienced wounding there, to reaffirm our own attractiveness. Venus moves into the deep waters of Scorpio on 9 November, 2009. But before she does so, she forms a trine on 3, November, 2009 with retrograde Neptune that’s currently transiting in Aquarius. It’s an great day for day-dreaming about perfect love. As long as you are aware that during this time, you will be inclined to see things through rose-colored glasses, you will do just fine.

Be the Astrologer You Want to Be, Not the One You Should Be

Jeffery Kishner is multi-dimensional: he’s a trained counselor, an astrologer and the editor of one of the Internet’s most popular astrology sites, Sasstrology. If you want the truth, go to Jeff: he tells it like it is. And in this guest post, he shares the trials and rewards of being an astrologer.

 

I don’t know about you, but I have an image of the ideal professional astrologer, and how she prepares for readings. She prepares a complex graph that includes transits, eclipses, stations, secondary progressions and solar arc directions, noting the “key dates” in which important events are likely to occur in a client’s life. Then she meditates on the natal chart, allowing the “themes” to speak to her on an intuitive level, and then looks for “testimony” to support her gut feelings. Then, at the start of the actual consultation, she invokes a few spirits and lights a candle to create a “sacred space” so that the goddess can guide her and her client to wisdom.

Me? I hate preparing for readings. I cannot think of a more boring task, other than reading each and every item posted by people I don’t know in my Facebook news feed. However, I enjoy the actual counseling work when I’m conversing with my client about her chart. If only I could just waltz into a session without doing any preparation I would, but I know that I’d do a half-ass job and do my client a disservice.

So what do I do? I force myself to look at every delineation in the natal chart – at least the Ptolemaic aspects and the ten planets – and look at transiting hard aspects from Saturn through Pluto. And then I’ll throw in a few eclipses for good measure, and just check to see if there’s something really important going on in the progressed chart.

That alone is torture, yet I still feel that it is not enough. But guess what? I don’t honestly think I need more than that for my purposes – because the astrologer I want to be is one who focuses on what really matters.

What really matters is, of course, a matter of opinion. For me, it’s that my client leaves the session feeling she has a deeper understanding of some of her core issues, and that she feels she has some tools to help her navigate upcoming changes in her life. And possibly even more important, that she feels heard and understood – because I’m an astrological counselor, not just an astrologer.

Perhaps I will always be hard on myself, comparing myself to some idealized version of the perfect astrologer. However, I also know that going through some punishing preparation routine so that I can feel over-prepared will only lead to resentment, which may rub off on my client. Therefore, I do what I feel is necessary, and no more.

Which is probably just the right amount.

 

About the Author: Jeffrey Kishner is editor/publisher of Sasstrology. He is a regular contributor at AOL Horoscopes, and occasionally does consultations. You can learn more about him at jeffreykishner.com.

Astrological Ramblings: Jupiter

 

A "weak" Jupiter is like a sad clown

Tee asked me recently, with his characteristic gentle concern, “What do I do about my debilitated Jupiter?” Tee’s Jupiter in 29 Capricorn. I’d told him a while back that my friend Matthew Currie says that a person with such a Jupiter may find it hard to be happy and may go to unusual lengths to find happiness. That’s certainly been true for Tee and his excesses have left him rather debilitated.

His question lead to an animated discussion and I told him that I’ve often wanted to write on “weak” planets (planets that are debilitated or in their fall in a chart) and what we can do about them. “What can one do?,” he asked. “Well, if you have a planet that’s ‘weak’ in your chart, you should honor it in your life. It’s weak because it can’t express itself properly. Take Jupiter. What is Jupiter about?” “Teachers,” he said knowledgeably, “gurus.” “Yes. But also generosity and enthusiasm and kindness and optimism and plain blind luck. It’s also about giving. It’s kind. You don’t have to give things. It’s also about generosity of spirit. I think first you need to understand Jupiter. Read about it. Then honor him in your life, every day or every hour or once a week or whenever the spirit moves you.”

Not an unusual conversation. Unless you know Tee. He’s not into astrology. At all. So it was rather surprising that he and I were talking about Jupiter. Intrigued, I decided to do a horary for the time he asked me the question. I told him since we were talking about Jupiter, chances were that Jupiter would be strongly placed in the horary chart, on the ASC or the MC. As a matter of fact, when he asked me this question, Jupiter was conjunct the MC exactly!

Uranus and Your Career :: Guest Post :: Donna Cunningham

Powerful writers shape minds. Subject matter experts lead the way. Donna Cunningham is both. It’s a rare and potent combination; and in the world of astrological writing Ms. Cunningham is right there on the top. Countless number of people have been helped and healed by her words and her insights. Students of astrology devour her books and will continue to do so in the years to come. Printed below, with her permission, is a piece on Uranus from her book Outer Planets as Career Indicators.

Precocious children have been known to tell their parents, “you’re not the boss of me,” but individuals with Uranus in the career houses of the astrology chart may adopt this as a life-long motto. Some wear it on greasy tee shirts along with other rude sayings, while others deign to wear suits but carry the attitude around in their pockets, ready to whip it out at any challenge.

Brighter than most people around them, typical Uranians easily grow bored and restless, and unless new challenges constantly present themselves, they can create an uproar in the workplace for the sheer excitement of it. Many of them gain the reputation of being mavericks who are unpredictable, erratic, or difficult. Because they’re almost impelled to speak out about things that are wrong, they’re often seen as troublemakers. They question authority and object—none too tactfully—when standard operating procedures on the job are irrational, inequitable, or unjust.

Uranians can have a superiority complex—sometimes even a justified one—but those who cross the line into arrogance are likely to create friction with bosses and coworkers. They inherently feel the rules don’t apply to them, for after all they’re special. Surprisingly often, they get away with it, for they appeal to our too-frequently-suppressed Inner Outlaw, and we live vicariously through their escapades.

Uranians’ resumes tend to be full of mysterious gaps that give job interviewers the willies, and their references tend to be friends or colleagues rather than past employers. They tend to change jobs frequently and suddenly, particularly when bosses clamp down on them.  Transiting Uranus is often the impetus for their vocational shifts, for it increases the restlessness and the need to adhere to their own authority rather than rather than former supervisors. However, they’re seldom jobless for long unless they want to be, because they’re usually so bright at what they do that they dazzle potential employers into ignoring the personnel officer’s “red flags” of warning. (They’re also inventive enough to come up with plausible reasons for their spotty job history.)

Over time, they tend to change careers as well, when they no longer find their old field challenging enough or when technology evolves in interesting new directions. They get bored with what they’re doing and move on. Alternately, the trend changes and their fifteen minutes of fame are up, and they’re back on the path of exploration and experimentation that characterizes their work life.

Who are the Uranians? They’re people who have Uranus or the sign Aquarius strong in their birth charts, especially with strong aspects from Uranus to the Sun, Moon, Ascendant or Midheaven or 8° either side of the Ascendant, Midheaven, IC, or Descendant. These factors are stronger if Uranus aspects a number of the personal planets or is in a major configuration like a t-square or grand trine, or if there is a stellium of three or more planets in the sign Aquarius. Such combinations make them Uranian in nature, but might primarily affect their personal lives. (If you’re new to astrology and don’t understand the technical parts but identify with what has been said so far, chances are you’re Uranian.)

For a direct impact on vocational potential, these placements would generally need to be in the 10th, 2nd, or 6th houses or conjunct, square, opposite, or trine the Midheaven and would also need to be prominent in some of the ways mentioned above. If the chart has only Aquarius on the Midheaven or on the cusp of the 2nd or 6th houses but none of the factors mentioned above, the individual may not fit the picture I am describing. The likelihood of a match increases with the number of these factors in the chart.

About the Author:  Donna Cunningham is an internationally-respected author of books, articles, and columns about astrology, flower essences and other metaphysical topics. Her insights reflect her dual background in astrology and psychotherapy. She has a Master’s degree in Social Work from Columbia University and over 40 years of experience in working with people. Her ebooks can be found at Moon Maven Publications (http://www.moonmavenpublications.com) Visit her blog at http://skywriter.wordpress.com.

Picture from Wikimedia Commons

Where’s the Fire?

Where’s the fire? Well, there isn’t any. That’s the problem.

Have you looked at the sky? All the planets and both the luminaries are currently in Earth, Water and Air signs. In case you’re interested, here’s the break-up:

 

 

 

Air = Sun, Jupiter, Neptune and Chiron
Earth = Moon, Pluto, NN, Mercury, Venus and Saturn
Water = Mars and Uranus

The Moon is cruising through Capricorn right now and will have to go through Aquarius and Pisces before it enters Aries on 4 October, 2009. Thank God for that! I don’t think I can survive without Fire for too long. No other element gives a zest for life like Fire does.

It’s the same with people. Because of my natal Water moon, when it comes to romance, I tend to gravitate towards the water signs. And my Taurus and Virgo planets can’t enough admire the dependable Earth signs. But I adore my Fire sign friends. Yes, they’re loud and raucous. A bit over-the-top and damnably self-involved. But they’re so alive. Things light up when a Fire sign is around. Which probably explains their popularity.

Right now with nothing in Fire, we have a very unbalanced sky. I don’t know how it is for you, but for me there’s something missing. It’s the joie de vivre that Fire bestows. But don’t lose hope, I got some good news. Mars moves into Leo on 17 October, 2009. Woo-hoo! I think. Because it stays in Leo for almost eight months! Till early June, 2010. Which ought to be good for Aries and Sagittarius. But I wonder how it’ll play out the fixed signs, especially people with personal planets in the last decanate of Leo, Scorpio and Taurus. With Jupiter Neptune and Chiron hanging out in the third decanate of Aquarius, it hasn’t been easy for the Lion, the Scorpion or the Bull. What happens when you add Mars to the mix? I don’t know, but it won’t be dull!

An interview with Neptune

Editor: You got that, right? Do the interview and get some good dope on Neptune.

 ::NR cringes at the inadvertent pun::

 NR: Yessir!

————————————————————————————–

NR at Neptune’s apartment 

::Rings doorbell::

Nothing happens.

::Rings doorbell again::

A lady in a flow-y chiffon outfit opens the door.

NR: Hi, I’m here to see Neptune. From the paper? We had an appointment.

Lady: Oh! I thought that was next week!

NR: Well, it’s today. I have a deadline on this one. It goes to print tonight.

Lady: In that case, come in, come in.

NR: Thanks.

NR steps inside and stops. Takes in the room. Blinks. The windows are covered in multi-colored saris; there are rugs everywhere: some oriental, some with space-age designs, lots of books: in shelves, on the floor, on tabletops; the walls sport an eclectic collection of art.

She blinks again. The room is…hazy somehow. Her eyes water.

::muttering:: NR:  I get it, I get it. Guy rules fog and smoke and haze. But does he have to makes such an exhibition of it? Jeez!

::She sneezes::

Lady: Bless you!

::She sneezes again::

Lady: Oh, dear! I think the agarbatti smoke it getting to you. Allergic are you?

NR: Planets in the sixth square Neptune in my natal chart.

Lady: Oh, my! Sorry about that. Let me open a window.

::Fresh air dispels the smoke and NR gets back to the subject at hand::

NR: Is Neptune in?

Lady: You’re looking at me!

NR: You? But I thought Neptune was a guy!

Neptune: Well, I can be anything anyone wants me to be, you know? In your head, you see me as a woman; so for you, I am a woman.

NR: Ah! I see, it’s that projection thing. What I expect to see is what I get. Isn’t that a bit misleading, though?

Neptune: That depends on your point of view, I guess. There’s objective reality and there’s subjective reality. Which do you think is more powerful?

NR: Why, objective reality, of course! See, this is a wooden stick. What else can it be?

Neptune: For you it’s just a wooden stick. For someone else, it could be a murder weapon. They might recoil at the sight of it. It might freak them out. You know?

NR: Huh. Yeah, okay. I get that. But since we’re on the subject, I believe that, at best, your message is that this is a world of illusions. I don’t think I get that one.

Neptune: Let me tell you a story. That’s one of the ways in which I communicate. Through stories, parables, fables. This one’s from India. Once upon a time there was a young god and he goes to this older god and asks what is maya?

NR: You know, not everyone might know that word. Let me just look it up and get a good definition. Okay, this is what Encarta says, “Illusion of material world: in Hinduism, the material world, considered in reality to be an illusion.”

Neptune: Good, thanks. What a delight your Mercury in Virgo is. So helpful and precise. Yeah, so where, was I? Oh, yeah, so he’s like, “What’s maya?” So this other god waves his hand or something and they find themselves on earth. Now because of heavy rains, there’s a flood on and everything is chaotic.

Our young god sees a woman in distress and he swims over and rescues her. So, naturally, they fall in love and marry and go on to have a child. Our hero is now so busy getting food for his family and taking care of them that he’s forgotten why he’s on the earth in the first place. But he’s happy enough.

One day, he has to go away on a trip and when he comes back, he sees that heavy rains have destroyed his home. His wife and son have been swept away by the flood. He sits down near his ravaged home and cries.

In midst of his grief, he feels a soft touch on his shoulder and sees the familiar face of the older god. He gets up and embraces the other man, pouring his tale of woe into the other’s ears. The older god waves a hand, earth disappears and they are back in heaven again. “That,” says the older god gently, “was maya.”

NR: So, what are you saying? This world here ::taps the chair:: isn’t real? That this is my imagination? Are you saying…

Neptune: We’ll get to that. Relax. Have a drink.

NR: I don’t know if I should.

Neptune: Don’t make me laugh, kid. You want to understand Neptune, and you won’t drink?

NR: Okay, just a glass of wine then.

Neptune: Here you go.

NR: Thanks ::takes a sip:: Hey! That reminds me! I’ve got another question. And this is rather a serious one. Addictions. ‘Fess up!

Neptune: It’s true, my hard contacts with personal planets can lead to substance abuse. But they can just as easily lead to inspired writing or great art. It’s like a spectrum, see? It’s up to you which part of it you want to experience.

NR: But don’t you feel bad about that guy who drinks every night or that woman who’s ruining her lungs by smoking cigarette after cigarette?

Neptune: I feel bad. I feel bad for everyone. God, you have no idea! ::looks visibly upset:: Man, I need another drink!

Neptune refills both glasses

Neptune: Oh, that’s better. You don’t know what it’s like to feel so much! I see the grief in every life and I have to get away from it all. The drink helps.

NR: You could just as easily meditate.

Neptune: I’ve tried that. But my challenge is not to merge with the infinite, it’s to stay grounded. And meditation, well, I pop out of my body.

NR: Really? You mean like astral travelling?

Neptune: Oh, yeah. You know about that?

NR: Yeah, I read that they teach the Tibetan monks astral travelling to bring home to them the fact that “This is a world of illusions.”

Neptune: Some things you have to experience to understand. With your third eye open, you can see auras, heal others, astral travel. Have beings from other levels come to you in dreams with messages. These things you’ll remember, so the next time, when your faith is tested, when you wonder whether there is more to the world than just what you can see, you’ll remember. And remembering, know. That there is more.

NR: Oh, that reminds me of something lovely that Christina Georgina Rossetti wrote:

‘I might show facts as plain as day;
But since your eyes are blind you’d say
“Where? What?” and turn away.”‘

Neptune: Yeah, sweet kid. Jupiter conjunct Neptune in her third, you know.

::scribbling in her notebook:: NR: So, you rule poetry, too, huh?

Neptune: Poetry, photography, the cinema, the oceans…

NR: …lies, deceits, half-truths…

::cringes:: Neptune: No need to be so harsh, kid!

NR: Just telling the truth here.

Neptune: The truth. What is the truth? Facts? Don’t give me facts, tell me what your soul needs. What will make life meaningful for you, makes you want to live? It ain’t facts. Soul food, kid. What’s your soul food? That’s what I’m about.

NR: Love, I guess…Hey, that’s another thing! What’s with all this unrequited love you’re inflicting on people? I just heard that song recently by The Cardigans called ::snorts:: “Love me, love me, just say that you love me.”

Neptune: Ah, yes, I adore love. The longing…the dream…

NR: …the suffering…

Neptune: All feelings are blessings, even pain. You’re alive, aren’t you? You want to live, don’t you? Well, life is also suffering. And suffering can be beautiful. If you let it be, don’t get attached to the pain…let it flow through you, talk about it, write about it, make poems, create stories, put it in a movie, share it with the world.

Glasses are refilled again by Neptune

NR: Okay, got that. I think. My head’s feeling a bit funny. What time is it? Omigod! Gotta go! Got a story to run.

Neptune: Bye, darling!

————————————————————————————–

NR is at her desk reaching for a headache pill and coffee when the phone rings.

::wincing:: NR: Hello?

Editor: Get in here right now!

NR: Yessir!

Editor: Why are you wearing sun glasses?

NR: The light…it hurts me eyes.

Editor: What have you been up to? Are you drunk?

NR: Well, sir, Neptune kinda insisted and it seemed rude to say no…

Editor: That explains it! What is this incoherent rubbish that you’ve written? What kind of an interview is this? There’s no structure, no clear beginning and end! It rambles and worse, it’s vague!

NR: Yeah…but, don’t you see? It captures the spirit of Neptune perfectly.

Editor: See if you can fix it! We’ll run it, but only because we don’t have a choice. But, watch yourself, no more drinking during working hours!

NR: Yessir!

::Backs away slowly, bangs into the door::

————————————————————————————–

Back at her desk

::groans:: NR: “O thou, who didst with pitfall and with gin
Beset the road I was to wander in,
Thou wilt not with predestin’d evil round Enmesh,
and then impute my fall to sin.”
 

Maybe Omar Khayyam ran into Neptune, too. Hey! That’s a good quote! I’ll finish my interview piece with that!

::starts typing::

Astrology: A Labor of Love (Part II)

“And I say that life is indeed darkness save when there is urge,
And all urge is blind save when there is knowledge,
And all knowledge is vain save when there is work,
And all work is empty save when there is love”
-Khalil Gibran on “Work”

 

The second question I asked the astrologers I interviewed was: “Why do you love astrology? I think, I could be wrong, that all astrologers are into it because of love.”

I didn’t ask them if they loved it, I took that as a given. And I was right, they do love it. Jeremy Neal explained the sometimes difficult relationship he has with astrology as a profession, despite his love for the subject. His mixed feelings are something that most astrologers may have felt at some point in their career. 

It’s a difficult road to follow: you have to be driven to learn without much outside support or encouragement. And once you have achieved a certain amount of competency, you have to find your clientele. Astrology is not a mainstream profession; there are few, if any, 9-to-5 kind of jobs for astrologers. Added to that is the fact that astrologers work in a world that, at best, is ignorant of what astrology is all about; and, at worst, is ignorant and scornful.

All the astrologers interviewed here are also bloggers (if you click on their names, you will be taken to their sites). Even if you do not know much about astrology, a perusal of their written material will tell you that they are articulate and, and in many cases, gifted thinkers and writers of the human condition. They could have chosen an easier road by becoming psychologists or journalists: my opinion, not something that they said.

You’ll read below, in their own words, why they love it so much. But before that I want to quote something that Jeremy said on his blog that resonated very deeply for me:

“In my work I see some remarkable truths. Even as I sit and explain to a person that they have this situation that has held them back all their lives, and even as I see them struggle to comprehend the truth and anguish of it, I, who witness it every day, am forcefully reminded of the wonder of this fleeting, myopic life we have and the axiomatic majesty of our astrology. This astrology* does not contain your purpose: it is your purpose.”
*By “astrology” Jeremy means a person’s nativity.

Here, then, is what they told me and what I’d like to share with you (printed with permission):

Julie Demboski: It’s a way of understanding myself and other human beings–so I’d say I love what can be accessed through it, rather than that I love astrology–because I see other ’systems’ as allowing us true glimpses into human nature as well–I think good fiction, good poetry, good art, and good drama also have the illuminative quality of astrology–it’s just different windows into the same house. Oops, ‘house,’ is that an astrology pun?

 

Jeremy Neal: I’m not sure I do love it. I feel that it’s what I’m here to do but often that feels like a bit of a curse as much as a joy. I’ve seen so much astrology by now that I can’t really pretend that much of the contemporary concerns of humanity matter very much and that impacts my life in often difficult ways. I struggle to be especially enthused by the necessity of going out and working for money and I’m very focused on the underpinning lessons of an astrological philosophy of life. Self-awareness, compassion, but balancing that with making good emotional investments. The astrology exposes you to some uncomfortable truths as well. My own nativity, frankly, isn’t very good, at least not from the point of view of making me easy to get along with or get close to. I’m working on it all the time, but I’m continually amazed by how I cannot even see a reality of my own astrology one day and then the next it hits me like a steam train. I find that kind of humbling and I’m trying to be less reliant on my own instincts as a result, because they seem to give me bad information at times (which is a Scorpio problem I guess). As you can perhaps see, I think life would be inestimably easier without astrology. I could just pretend that my conclusions were utterly valid, that my actions didn’t have particularly subtle consequences and that it matters what car I drive. Unfortunately astrology makes the truth unavoidable. We’re not here for a material purpose and that puts me at odds with pretty much everyone I ever meet.

 

Frederick Woodruff: I’ve never been interested in the ‘is it a science or a religion’ debate. It bores me and that will rage until the end of time; for me it’s about working tangibly with a practice that actually, over time, begins to infiltrate the brain’s cells and help them change; to ‘mutate’ as Krishnamurti used to say. Meaning, it opens the practitioner’s mind, over time, to a literal perception of the interconnectedness of everything and everyone. Again, it’s a bit of a mystical perspective.

 

Matthew Currie: For a lot of reasons… mostly because (despite being crazy and unexplained) it really does work in a consistent and reliable manner. 

 

Michael O’Reilly: I do love it. No other system works as well in describing individual, social and spiritual developments. No other system is anywhere near as accurate in describing individuals whom that astrologer has never met, no other system is nearly as accurate in seeing past events or predicting the future. It tells us that there’s a larger, mysterious, multi-dimensional holistic universe to which we all belong.

 

 Fern Feto Spring: 

I love it because it feels as if I am in a conversation (a fascinating conversation…), with the spirit of the earth.

 

Raphael Simons: I love astrology because it is a very good tool for finding out about the world outside. It helps me to see the differences between people. I also use it for horary and mundane charts. I make horary charts for myself fairly often and keep them in a journal along with all the active imagination inner work I do.

 

 

Lucy Goldstein:  

I love astrology for so many reasons, but mainly, I started on Greek mythology and Carl Jung before comic books, so I love how the planets can actually mirror archetypal/psychoanalytic patterns. Most people are very surprised to learn that a typical astrological reading sounds a lot like a counseling session. The difference is that sometimes patterns or behaviors that can be troublesome in one’s life make a lot more sense when they’re pared down into raw symbolism.
Beth Turnage: I have two instinctual needs. Through my Moon in Pisces I have a need to help people. Through my tenth house Sun I have a need to show off. With astrology I can do both.

 
Rodney Smith: 

I love it because it provides a rational handle, a window into the irrational tendencies of both the individual human, and the human collective. We have always used the stars to understand those things we aspire to bring within the realm of reason, I love being a part of that process.

Evelyn Roberts:

Absolutely, it has made my own life make more sense, so it is a joy to share the same with those who are receptive. But I don’t ever try and convert those who are not interested.

 

Gavin Carruthers: I love astrology because it is such a useful and accurate language of life. Real astrology, when it is used to serve the individual, rather than the ego of the astrologer, is the most extraordinary tool for understanding what it’s like to be in another person’s skin, and I am still amazed at the world’s lack of awareness and lack of understanding of the validity and power of this great art/science.

I also love astrology because an accurate chart always tells the truth and I can count on it. Sometimes, as an astrologer I cannot see the truth, sometimes my clients may not know or see the truth, but I can always count on the chart to reveal the truth if I am patient and trusting. I also love astrology because it is a doorway to connect with people at a much deeper level and to share true and meaningful intimacy.

On many occasions I have had clients who have gone through 10 to 20 years of therapy and told me that one astrology session addressed most of what they had uncovered over those decades of therapy.

It still feels to me that I have a secret tool that most of the world is ignorant of, so usually clients get more than they expect, and their excitement is a delight. I also love teaching, something I have done for more than 30 years, and in particular I love it when a new student falls in love with astrology, and starts to learn to fly on their own!

 

 

April Elliott Kent: I certainly loved astrology when I started out. I couldn’t get enough of it! And I think I was still smitten when I started my website, ten years ago now (wow, that’s hard to believe!). These days, asking why I love astrology is like asking someone who’s been married for many years why she loves her husband: After awhile you cease thinking in terms of love, because the bond is so much deeper than what we normally think of as love. With astrology, I’m no longer smitten, no longer “in love” with it. But its symbols provide the structure for how I see the world, and I can’t imagine my life without it.

 

Basil Fearrington: I’m not sure how to answer that. It’s probably because it illuminates life’s flow. It’s also fulfilling to help people.

 

Eileen Nauman (© Eileen Nauman 2009): Because it works. It helps people. I believe in “forewarned is forearmed.”

Nick Dagan Best: I love it because it allows me to learn about life and the world on a level that no other kind of knowledge can provide

To be continued…