Trust the Flow: Full Moon in Taurus 2017

Petroglyphs at Parowan Gap, Utah, August 2017; photo by Chad Woodward. 

Full Moon @ 11 Taurus 59'

November 3, 2017

10:23 PM Los Angeles

November 4, 2017

1:23 AM New York

7:23 AM London

10:23 AM Dubai

12:23 PM Beijing

3:23 PM Sydney

6:23 PM Auckland

This Full Moon in tropical Taurus is a solid grounding point in the collective psyche. It brings stability and closure to several processes we’ve been dealing with over the last month, but it isn’t devoid of tension. The Full Moon ruler, Venus, opposes Uranus, the changemaker, liberator, and revolutionary. That throws some relationship tensity into the current drama, but Venus’ superior position makes for constructive, positive changes and creative/artistic breakthroughs. 

The last two lunations occurred in cardinal signs, each emphasizing dynamic, catalyzing events and actions. If you’re a bit exhausted from the changes, adjustments, and turbulence of the past two lunations, this Full Moon can feel like a welcome relief for many of us. That’s because Taurus is a fixed, earth sign. Its energy is sustaining, underscoring consistency, peace, and repose. A Full Moon by its very nature is inherently tense. The opposition of Sun and Moon represents the reconciliation of opposites and the death/decay of the past. 

The dichotomy of Moon in Taurus and Sun in Scorpio highlights the tension between simplicity and complexity. One good example of this is the human body which reflects all natural products of evolution. At first glance, the needs of the human body are rather simple: eat good, whole food, get some exercise and sunlight, sleep, and engage intimately with others. Simple enough. 

Looking deeper at the biological complexity when all of these things are broken down or put through a microscope astounds the mind. The complexity of the nutrients, minerals, proteins, and amino acids required for our food; the neurotransmitters released during positive/negative social interactions and their impact on our nervous system; the need for acute stressors that challenge our vital organs and nervous system to keep our body fit, etc. Taurus isn’t concerned with what goes on behind the scenes. What you see is what you get. 

There is profound wisdom in that Taurean attitude. When we’re overwhelmed with life as it is, we don’t need to analyze the biological constituents of our dinner salad meticulously. Taurus says: “Eat the salad and go to sleep.” The body takes care of the rest. There are autonomic processes that just do what they do without us thinking about it. Scorpio is aware that sometimes that isn’t true. Sometimes when we just take life at face value, we’re oblivious to unknown factors that could lead to unneeded harm or stress. 

Scorpio wants to know what’s under the hood, what makes things work, and what dangers might lie in the darkness. With this Full Moon, there’s a need to balance both of these desires in our personal lives. Where do we just need to shut up and eat the salad, and where do we need to probe deeper to unveil the blind spots. There can be a healthy balance between the two. Jupiter's Scorpio transit over the next year will help us see under the hood with a lot more clarity. Consider what you’ve been trying to “get to the bottom of” in your own life, and notice how you might be getting closer to the truth. 

Jupiter’s opposition from Scorpio and the Full Moon’s applying trine to Pluto suggests taking it easy, and you’ll be led to the answers and the deeper awareness you seek. Don’t feel the need to plunge in and make anything happen with this Full Moon. Take some time to rest, find your still point, and let nature take care of the rest. The New Moon in Scorpio (Nov. 18) is a natural starting point for beginning to heal, recover, and uncover. Take a more significant risk in just two weeks, but for now, trust the flow and see what happens. 

Life feels overwhelming when faced with things outside of your control. Understanding yourself is key to finding your power and place in the world. While you can't control fate or the chaos of life, your destiny belongs to you, something you can always strive for to gain command of your life path. Evolutionary Astrology can help.

Stepping into the Light: Lunar Eclipse in Aquarius 2017

Light beams into an Arizona "slot canyon" near Page, Arizona; photo by Carol M. Highsmith.

Full Moon/Lunar Eclipse @ 15 Aquarius 25'

August 7, 2017

11:11 AM Pacific

2:11 PM Eastern

My experience of eclipse season is always different, but suffused with mystery each time. Eclipses can generate an awareness of something larger, more powerful running the show. Since so much seems to be happening due to a mysterious “acceleration” effect (of which eclipses tend to correlate with), eclipse season can feel overwhelming and we can easily get caught up in dramas and events that feel beyond our control. That’s why it’s important to be mindful. Keep your focus on your thoughts, emotions, and reactions. Find your center. I’m not suggesting that you suppress or avoid anything that arises, but do keep yourself in check. Eclipses have the power to poke holes in our ego/identity, revealing things deep within us that we’ve been avoiding or totally unaware of. Syncing up with Mercury’s retrograde cycle, this eclipse season is powerful and dynamic in terms of changing our focus, direction, priorities, and perceptions.

Eclipses also reverberate through time. They connect us to the past and future in deep, encompassing ways. Whatever we’re currently dealing with has its origins long before this moment and will have consequences for months in the future. Eclipses are not isolated events, but a long process of change and reversal of circumstances. Since this is a south nodal, lunar eclipse in tropical Aquarius, we are working on releasing, moving on, and then stepping more fully into the future after the solar eclipse on Aug 21. That means that the themes you’ll be dealing with during this lunar eclipse will be issues from the past: moving beyond stagnant attitudes, habits, and perceptions that are no longer useful. In the two weeks between this lunar eclipse and the following Aug 21 solar eclipse, we’re in a deep process of archetypal death.

With Mercury’s retrograde cycle beginning in between the lunar and solar eclipses, and with the usual nature of eclipses in general, keep in mind that whatever begins within this two week time may not go in the direction of your intentions, and may in fact represent a series of “dying” circumstances. That’s because the Moon is waning from Full to New, and thus in a process of decay. And since eclipses are simply more powerful New or Full Moons, after this Full Moon, we’re heading for a more pronounced death/rebirth at the New Moon/solar eclipse. The shadow of Aquarius contains feelings of alienation, social rejection, or perpetually working against society/culture out of fear or even righteousness. It can reveal a victim consciousness due to social exclusion, an attitude that is essentially antisocial (against maintaining or creating cohesion and peace) or unconsciously rebellious (rebel without a cause).

Look to see how this has shown up in your life, and how these patterns have been in the background somewhere. This lunar eclipse/Full Moon is a culminating release of energy. It helps to shift us forward into the north nodal Leo solar eclipse on Aug 21. That will relate to the need to overcome fear of rejection and step into our creative and expressive power. Or it can relate to the need to overcome intentional isolation and righteousness into a more active participation in the life drama. Where have you been a spectator in your life? Have you withheld your gifts out of fear that others would judge, persecute, or seek to devalue them? Or have you been mindlessly rebelling due to an inability to accept your uniqueness thereby suppressing your true individuality? Obviously not every eclipse will impact everyone the same (or much at all) but if these questions strongly resonate with you, then you’re more likely impacted (check planets or angles in the horoscope touched by 14 degrees of Aquarius and 28 degrees of Leo).

With Jupiter making a helpful and dominating trine, it blesses this lunar eclipse and offers help, assistance, and support when we need it most. This trine from Jupiter in Libra suggests looking beyond your own preconceived notions of what’s happening in your life, or intentionally reaching beyond yourself to contribute, offer assistance, or even guidance to others. However this eclipse shows up for you, this Jupiter trine helps us to make constructive use of these changes and to find compromise, common ground, and peace with others. These themes will not only show up in your own life, but will appear on the world stage in some way. These external events reflect a collective process of change and evolution, revealing the inter connectivity of all beings and things. Take a moment with this eclipse to see how you can transcend any tendencies of working against the social current and instead see where you can jump in and make peace where it’s needed most.

Be sure to read your Kosmic HorIzon Forecast for this lunar eclipse. These bi-weekly forecasts will be FREE until mid-September! Sign up for my newsletter below to receive news and updates.

Life feels overwhelming when faced with things outside of your control. Understanding yourself is key to finding your power and place in the world. While you can't control fate or the chaos of life, your destiny belongs to you, something you can always strive for to gain command of your life path. Evolutionary Astrology can help.

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