For many of us, clarity on what steps to take on our path has been in short supply. The Sun’s journey through Pisces, the final sign in the zodiac, is traditionally a groundless, watery exploration of the core feelings we’d rather not feel, the nebulous realms of our unconscious motivations and the delusions they perpetuate. Adding to the uncertainty of it all is a host of planetary transits, some going retrograde and others going direct. To better understand what it means when a planet goes retrograde, let’s use a basketball analogy. It’s like a star player taking the court with an injury. In many ways his game suffers. In other ways he overcompensates and rises to the occasion when called upon. Taking a seat on the bench isn’t an option. It can be messy in moments and exceptional in others. Consistent it isn’t. Conversely, when a planet goes direct it’s like he’s just come off injured reserve. Where he was once limited, his mojo is now in full effect. With the game on the line, we want the ball in his hands.
Preceding the upcoming Spring Equinox (March 20) we have two planets going retrograde and two more going direct at roughly the same time. Mars and Saturn entered their retrograde transits (on March 1 & 2, respectively), while Mercury and Jupiter moved out of their retrograde transit and went direct (on February 28 and March 6, respectively).
Mercury and Jupiter rule over the lower and higher faculties of the mind. From our day-to-day cognition, communication and associative thinking (Mercury), to our broader vision of reality and expanding our awareness of the divine perceiving and communicating through us in a more altruistic, benevolent and creative way (Jupiter). These two moving direct offer us the timely insights we need to better perceive and recognize our path and our truth, something that was largely obscured for much of the last few months.
Mars rules over our assertive power, our creative impulse and our sexual drive while Saturn rules over our discipline, responsibility and sense of limitation. We’re called now to take stock in where we’ve been over-asserting our power, and conversely where we’ve been giving it away. Where we've been side-stepping our responsibilities and perpetuated a false sense of limitation. The energy of winter is one of going within to appreciate the stillness of what's true as well to acknowledge the commotion created in our lives by maintaining what isn't. This is the stuff we need to reconcile once and for all, because the last thing we want is to carry last year's paradigm into the action-packed spring to come.
How we "do" the world (Mars and Saturn) is likely going to be truculent and challenging. The upcoming transits will bring another wave of shaking up old patterns. It will break down outdated structures. It will require resilience and trust. How we "perceive" the world (Mercury and Jupiter) is likely going to be fluid and expansive. We will find in ourselves a faith in our capacity to create with all the energy that arises from these falling structures. Rather than play victim, we will see all too clearly that one door closing opens another of even greater potential. One thing is for sure, the growth will be substantial. How we orient to the growing pains, that's where choice comes in.
Ask yourself a simple question; What resonates for me? Act not out of consistency, but out of truth. I realize this is easier said than done, but the astrology of our time demands it. It occurs to me that what resonates for me may not be consistent with the cultural memes and habituations perpetuated by my ancestors. Remembering the words of G.I. Gurdjieff, "Culture is your enemy," it appears that disentanglement from the unconscious narrative of my ancestors is the order of the day. Assorted transits have been bouncing Earth around like pin ball of late. Shaking loose our grip on outdated habits and belief systems. I'm reminded again and again, the more I hold on, the harder the shaking gets. The path is different for each one of us, but the process undertaken is shared by all. For those of us ignoring the natural leaning of our consciousness, in favor of perpetuating unconscious patterns, the approaching wakeup call will be particularly loud.
The final lunar cycle of the year urges us to tap into my capacity to create with all that's arising. How? A friend's bumper sticker comes to mind: BEGIN WITHIN. Thought forms arise. I identify in order to dis-identify. I say no, so that I can say yes. I am not my perception. I simply am. I bear witness to what feels resonant. As well I take heed in that which is dissonant. I remember to choose to lean toward the resonant, for in the gap between my thoughts is housed conscious choice, and I am mindful that I am at choice with how I relate to all that's arising. Forty years ago, while forecasting humanity's upcoming challenges (i.e. our present day reality), Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche said... "I
have no doubt the challenges will be considerable, but I never question
human being's capacity to relate with whatever is arising."
The month of March will have its share of challenges and opportunities. There will likely persist a sense of imbalance and injustice. In early April, when Mars retrogrades into direct opposition with Uranus, these two powerhouses will be in a super-charged Grand Square (or Grand Cross) with Pluto’s opposition to Jupiter. This will place Earth smack in the middle of some intense friction. When we have four planets with very different agendas, each unwilling to yield to the force of the other, the charge will be unrelenting. This is where we bring the aforementioned expansive perception to the fore of our experience.
Let's examine all the archetypal dynamics at play during this transit:
The Warrior (Mars) who asserts, defends and fights for our personal desires will be operating with limited mojo while he's retrograde in Libra, a sign he's already extremely uncomfortable in. In essence, how we normally assert ourselves will be muted in favor of tuning in to something higher, more transpersonal in nature. Keep in mind that planets in retrograde act out in extremes as well. What may feel diffuse on one hand, might compensate in excess on the other. It will be imperative to take responsibility (the ability to respond) for our reactive tendencies, especially in areas you feel injustice or a sense of imbalance. We react from instinct. We respond from intuition.
The Awakener (Uranus) in Aries, opposing the weakly stationed Mars, gives our intuitive faculties exponentially more power than our instinctual nature. Our capacity (along with our need) to deviate from the expected in order to recognize and embody our individuality is at full throttle during this transit. When confronted by your thoughts, or by someone or something in our external environment, take a breath. Pause. Ask yourself, how can I relate with this differently than I normally do? The quote most applicable here... "The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result." Like never before we will best be served by thinking outside the box and approaching moments of confrontation or challenge from a different, more intuitive perception.
Squaring both of these planets is The Benevolent (Jupiter), who expands our horizons, instills faith and bestows abundance in all areas. The friction of the largest planet in our solar system squaring the aforementioned Uranus/Mars opposition will be substantial. The expansive nature of Jupiter, in the sign of Cancer, augments our intuitive and creative faculties immensely. Jupiter will also be in a harmonious trine aspect with Venus as it transits from Neptune to Chiron in Pisces (April 7 - 21st) . Let the linear mind rest. This will be an exquisite time to listen to the abstract creative flow of the feminine, heal and be nurtured by this connection and create anew our perception of the world.
Rounding out the Grand Square is The Transformer (Pluto) in Capricorn. He burns up the useless, transmutes the poison and grants us rebirth. Arguably the most intense player in the game ("dwarf" planet or not), his transit through Capricorn began in 2008. Since that time we have seen a great deal of instability in every structure built on false pretenses and lies, both within ourselves and with one another. The last time Pluto transited Capricorn, the upheavals we significant (See: The American Revolution and The French Revolution, among other substantial structural transformations). Pluto will also go retrograde (April 14) during this transit. The house of cards built on our unconscious projections will likely give way to Jupiter’s mission to expand our conscious awareness. It occurs to me to look at the unskillful side of Capricorn most in need of transformation within my self and in this world. The pundit.
Webster's definition of pundit: "a source of opinion; a critic." We each have our own unique version. When I ponder the origin point of this inner-critic, I suspect it's part and parcel with the human condition. Upon further examination, I realize the inner-critic generates a narrative of my life based on my beliefs. I then remember the words of Alan Watts (a Capricorn)… "You cannot escape in all matter of belief from opinion...," which leads to the realization that my perception is indelibly shaped by my opinions, while my beliefs architect the foundation of my reality. With Saturn retrograde in Scorpio, the time is now to restructure this critic to be constructive as opposed to limiting.
"Man often becomes what he believes himself to be. If I keep saying to myself that I cannot do a certain thing, it is possible that I may end up really becoming incapable of doing it. On the contrary, if I have the belief that I can do it, I shall surely acquire the capacity to do it even if I may not have it at the beginning." ~ Mahatma Gandhi
Pay no mind to the demons that fill you with fear. How we relate with what's to come is something we are at choice with. The more objective we remain in our perception, the more creative we will be with whatever arises. Align your thoughts with what resonates with your true vision, regardless of whether it's congruent with your current cultural paradigm. This will align you with the rainbow bridge of the realms within your heart, your subjective and objective awareness, filling the gap between the unconscious mind and the flowering of human consciousness.
Remember... Pain is but one among a myriad of inevitable human experiences. Suffering is a choice. In the words of the venerable Garchen Rinpoche; "There is only one cause of happiness and one cause of suffering. Only one. The only cause of happiness is an altruistic mind. The only cause of suffering is self-grasping."
As we continue to let go of (or have ripped out of our hands) the old identifications we know in our hearts to be relics of a self we’ve outgrown, we're provided a wonderful opportunity to bring altruism and compassion to the fore of our interactions, within ourselves and with others.
Stellar blessings,
Ryan
www.bodyworkastrology.com
namaste
