Loving Light of the Equinox Sun ~ Spring 2010

Feeling a spring in your step? We fast approach the Vernal Solstice (in the northern hemisphere) at 17:32 GMT Saturday the 20th, and from here on the sap rises from under our feet energising renewed life into plants and bones, tired from this long hard winter. When the Sun moves into Aries, where is it exalted, we’re encouraged to shine with lifted spirits and praise the light of our innate intelligence. Aware each of us has a gift to bring to the world and, thinking long-term, as the light of the Sun increases, the Sun in Aries now marking the beginning of the zodiac, gives the go-ahead to invest energy into that talent.

The nature of the Sun is to shine upon everyone – without exception. Our Sun’s luminous rays do not discriminate who deserves its’ heat and light. Everyone equally benefits from the radiating sun. Feeling the blissful warmth of the Sun’s rays we sense tenderness, love and compassion that can be shared all around. The Sun is also in good aspect to Mars in Leo; this aspect is dynamic, healthy and playful; our goals can be reached with determination and, because Saturn is also involved in this celestial equation, cultivating helpful allies pays dividends.

At this time of equal day–equal night, yin and yang can balance within, connecting us to courage, strength and willpower, individually and collectively, to deal with an extraordinary Equinox: The Sun illuminates Saturn, Lord of karma by opposition; and squares transformational Pluto, planet of extremes. Days after the Equinox, on the 23^rd, the Moon moves into Cancer; here we witness the start of ‘The Cardinal Cross’ of 2010, which dominates this year’s heavens. This rare and unusual formation suggests we need to access our own individual ‘Spiritual Sun’, and grow the radiant glow that illuminates from within - the light that loves, forgives and heals. The way we allow our personal luminosity to expand is to be willing to accept and adjust, which is not always easy. The agent of change is in the spirit of spiritual warrior, working in co-operation to co-create. Together we can conquer our first challenge: to overcome any fear and trepidation of what the current development might bring. No one ever said it was easy - but the heavens only reflect what we are capable of. Humanity is much more amazing than we often give ourselves credit for.

One of the main features of this Grand Cardinal Cross is the Saturn square to Pluto. This square is symbolic of the current spate of destructive earthquakes. Mythological Pluto (or Hades as he is also known), when he grabbed Persephone, the lord of death reached his hand up through a gaping, earth-quake like chasm to abduct the young maiden who innocently picked wild-flowers. Persephone (aka Prosperina or Kora) has a duel role, as both Spring Queen and, almost unwittingly, she is Goddess of the Underworld. So she represents our blameless naivety as well as lost innocence. Persephone’s Mother, Demeter, the Earth Mother, was distraught at her daughter’s abduction. After much mourning and searching for her violated offspring, Persephone was found in the underworld, where she had already taken a bite out of Pluto’s domain by eating pomegranate seeds (symbolic of sexual indulgence). A deal was struck, between Pluto and the Earth Mother, who had by that time ignored her crops, vegetation and people: for Persephone, i.e. light and life, returns to the overworld for half the year, which she does at spring, only to descend again for winter. So it seems rather fitting that at this Spring Equinox, a time of renewed possibilities that we have Pluto shaking Mother’s Earth’s ground again, as he is in hard aspects to earthy Saturn – ‘Old Father Time’ Saturn is also Demeter’s father – This is an old grudge match about resources, justice and fecundity.

Interestingly, Saturn rules authority, empire, and all that keeps us contained; Pluto lords over controlling big business - as well as secrets, and Pluto is now in Saturn’s sign. Playing cards close the chests may prove difficult for all those in positions of power. Yet still they try, even if secrecy breeds indignation to the notion of fairness; the Aries Sun anc Cardinal Cross will illuminate underhand dealings. Key words for this transit are “responsible relationship” challenging “obsessive ambition".

Yet everyone is feeling the pinch, even the wealthy. If it's not fincances making them take note of finite interests, it will be something else, a relationship perhaps, or legal matters. Few escape Pluto's long-term generational influence and its' call to transform.

Symbolically speaking, Earth Mother will nurture love and protect unconditionally, while we all need to reconsider the rape of the Earth’s resources. Holding accountable those who plunder and pillage in the name of personal power is a challenge. Even in the face of sustainability, greed, avarice and ignorance may well continue to prevail. But with or without humanity, our planet Earth will regenerate herself - eventually.

The Vernal Equinox is also the start of the Kalachakra calendar, indicating time to meditate for world peace: peace within, peace without, and peace on the planet.

As always, thanks & appreciation to unknown artists.

Sowing the seeds of compassion ~ New Moon in Pisces 2010

“Just as a candle cannot burn without fire, men cannot live without a spiritual life.” Buddha

Every great spiritual teacher, from His Holiness the Dalai Lama to beloved Osho and Ram Dass, tell us “to be here now”. The past has already been, and the future is a mysterious mix of present circumstance and karma; so the most important time in our lives is NOW! True, the monkey mind can turn around and around and swing back and forth, but with practiced effort it becomes easier to train this mind of ours to focus and remain centred in a continued mindful presence.

An awakened state of awareness helps us to note how all life is inter-connected, and events, ideas, and even the other beings we encounter are a mirror of our own emotions, thoughts and actions. This almost supernatural connection to everything around us is where science and spirituality now meet, through the noosphere – a quantum field of unseen electromagnetic energy that resonates with Global consciousness, as well as (how we direct) our psycho-anatomical- spiritual subtle body. Thus, we humans are actually much more magical than we give ourselves credit for. Each instant a sacred blessing – thoughts with wings fly through the biosphere, generating a vibration that interacts with the collective consciousness and, at the same time, extend into an evolutionary sphere of resonance that can heal and elevate.

Astrologically speaking, there are times when it’s easier for individuals to consciously to tune into the wave of collective energies, and unite with the spiritual soul group to become ‘one’. The New Moon at 25 degrees Pisces, on Monday the 15th at 21:01 GMT, is one of these magical moments. This is a New Moon to activate the space-time connection between Divine cosmos and the sacred light that lies within each of us. Meditating upon the space in between the eyebrows, the wisdom eye – the Third Eye - can open the all-seeing pineal gland, a stargate already stimulated by increasing sunlight (in the northern hemisphere). Buddhists can envisage a spiritual awakening in the Dharmadhatu. In the Hindu tradition, the Third eye is associated with magical all-seeing powers; in the West we link it to clairvoyance or clairsentience. Third eye meditations are not to be taken lightly, as Kundalini can awaken; unless you know what you are doing, I advise you to practice with others who do. Having said that, through meditation and prayer, yoga and dance, poetry and music (all Piscean activities), ego can step aside for Spirit to progress and generate a higher frequency of light that can be used to initiate unconditional love and compassion.

With astrology we learn more about our relative dualist realm: As well as being symbolic of deep spirituality, Pisces is also the sign of phantasmagoria, with the accumulated energy of all previous zodiacal signs, Pisces can indicate self-undoing, where toxic negativity can fester, self-destruct, and fuel Samsara’s illusion. Hence a game of victim and martyr is often played by those with an emphasis upon end-sign influences: Pisces, Neptune, 12th House. Being seduced by glamour, with a spirit held to ransom by addiction and desire is a tough place to be (believe me, I know about these things). I don’t want to come across as holier than thou, but it is possible to confront the cycle of delusion, break nasty habits, and turn corners. (I did.) The cosmic key to release is to heed self’s plea for forgiveness and surrender to the collective’s call for universal service.

A transformation of the heart-mind can be invoked with this Pisces Sun and Moon, currently conjoined to Mercury, the celestial courier, and Uranus, planet of dramatic reform and modernisation: To send out into the world a powerful and positive altruistic intention that has greater effect. As the light of the moon increases, by the Spring Equinox, next Saturday, the 20th at 17:32 GMT, any intention we set into motion now, like a seed just sown, will begin to take root – all we then need to do then is add blessed Piscean water, and watch our seed grow. (Note World Water Day 22nd March).

This Vernal equinox sees the cardinal points are activated as 2010’s very powerful alignments begin to shape into place. It’s not an easy configuration by any means. We can take heart from esoteric astrologer, Alice A. Bailey, who says the Cardinal Cross accents the Spiritual Sun, i.e. our own light within the greater unity - with individual Uranus as the agent of awakening 'the whole' to the awareness of cosmic consciousness.

Pic credit to Tim Buckley for the beautiful third eye http://www.redbubble.com/people/bodhiimages/art/3052824-5-first-up

Unknown seedwoman and tatoo man and grid, most appreciated, whoever you are X

♥ ૐ ♥~Earth ♥ Heart ♥ Alignment~♥ ૐ ♥

Sensing the earth under my feet, I feel my heart beating to life’s flowing charge, tuning into the Great Mother. Kindling such heartfelt resonance isn’t always easy, especially when desire, ignorance or aversion are at play. As they often are. Yet Buddhism teaches us that when we are brave enough to drop any ego baggage, the mind reconnects with the heart and we will return to our true nature, calm and happy, intuitive and accepting. Aware that we humans are indivisible from our home planet, Earth; 70% water and 30% solid, the human body also shares with the planet a little known secret: that our heart is also tilted - just like  Earth’s axis.

So when I heard news announced, in dramatic fatalistic media fashion, how Earth’s axis has tilted as a result of the recent Chile earthquake, my natural reaction was to enter into ‘stabilising meditation’, to focus upon breathing and calm the heart-mind. My understanding is that we, i.e. the earth, have always ‘wobbled’ with a point degree this way or that – so far with no serious misalignment, and therefore nothing to worry about. But in any whirlwind of change, a meditator’s aim is to hold firm focus and relax into the spacious heart-mind.

Where attention goes, energy flows.

The antidote for feeling insecure, fearful or unstable is to rest in love ~ pure unconditional love. To generate the heartfelt state we can share with others, it is primarily important to feel good about oneself. A simple, easy, costs-you-nothing way to create love for self is by breathing. Really. It's as simple as that. By concentrating upon breathing into our lungs the pure and conscious life-force, all goodness, light and positive prana infuse the heart-mind and body, and then exhaling toxic negativity, it naturally opens the heart, clears the mind and calms the spirit. From this tranquil state we can then generate Bodhicitta: which is the aspiration for all beings to achieve enlightenment.

It makes sense, then, if we can establish love and a calm mind with directed breath - and as we are so interconnected to the Earth - by the same intention, motivation and focus we can also calm Earth’s breathing, as Mother Earth also breathes with the tides, as well as inhaling at daybreak and exhaling at nightfall (with greater inhalation during periods when there is less solar activity, or depending upon where we are in the yearly cycle). Russian scientist Lugovenko defines the breathing of the Earth as "the temporary variations of a cosmo-terrestrial field," and refers to both "global" and "local" breathing. He suggests global breathing reacts to sacredness, through meditation and mantra. That we are so connected is not so surprising if we consider the inclusive noosphere. Now, more than ever, with humanity in a constant state of crisis and chaos, knowing the techniques of being able to rest in happy heart makes for a happy life - and a happy earth.

Om Om Om ♥ૐ ♥ ♥ૐ ♥ ♥ૐ ♥ ♥ૐ ♥ ♥ૐ ♥ ♥ૐ ♥ ♥ૐ ♥ ♥ૐ :)

Thanks and blessings to unknown artists.

♥ Lion Heart Love ~♥~ Mars Direct in Leo ♥ March 2010

International Woman’s Day coincides with Venus, symbol of women and Queen of the Heavens, moving into dynamic, action orientated Aries, to ignite the fire in our soul. Aries is ruled by Mars and, with cosmic synchronicity, the two celestial lovers - Venus & Mars – are currently entwined in a sacred Fire Trine, accenting power, purpose and intuition, bringing a feel-good factor reminiscent of a pre-Xmas party, except the buzz is now fresher and decidedly more animated. It’s as though we have had to exercise patience since last October to fully awaken our heart-fire.

Activating the might and strength of the heart, passionate Mars is about to go forward at 0 degrees Leo, to once again kindle the flames of love that shape, refine, and purify. The normally vivacious Mars in Leo has been retrograde since December, from when it might have seemed as though our call to LOVE was in vain. That is now about to change as Mars is at standstill over the next few days, tuning into our global heartbeat, to be ready with all systems go in the sign of the creative 'King of Fire' on the evening of Wednesday, the 10th March. (FYI When a planet goes into apparent backward motion (retrograde) we re-consider how it functions. As Mars is the planet of action, we have had to re-do whatever the zodiacal sign indicates.)

In Leo, creativity flourishes with love and romance, fun and children. Psychologically Leo represents ego, authority and bravery. In the body it illuminates the heart and sustains the spine. Ruled by the Sun, central life-giving source and star of our solar system, Leo provides spiritual support and heartfelt encouragement. Note Mars will be in a shadow period until May 17th, so many of the issues we have been dealing with about love, relationship, authority, those that concern the heart of matters, should see some kind of resolve. Our currently midnight scarlet sphere provides love’s dynamo, staying in Leo until June 6th. All in all, Mars will have spent an inordinately long time in one sign, eight months in the sign of heartfelt LOVE, instead of the usual six weeks, which is maybe an indication how we all need to work on love and understand how love works, i.e. how to open the heart to a circular motion: the more we are generous with our love and share, the more love there is to share.

These next few days before the Pisces New Moon on the 15th, are important in many ways because we are now at a pause before this new Tiger year really starts. Take this precious moment in time to focus upon what you want to do with the rest of the year. Setting the intention with love in the heart encourages a positive journey and helpful result.

“When you take care of each moment, you take care of all time” Buddha Shakyamuni

There are several mega transits this year, not least the Cardinal Grand Cross, which, according to esoteric astrologer Alice A. Bailey, accents the emergence of the spiritual Sun, with planet Uranus, the harbinger of change, as the agent of the materialisation of Shambhala’s Spiritual Sun. Uranus and Jupiter will come together in the summer in Aries, which is a truly visionary combination. More on this unusual formation later…

Many thanks to all unknown artists for blessing us with such beautiful images.

♥ ૐ ~ Losar Virgo Full Moon ~ ૐ ♥ Feb 2010

The month of miracles and Losar New Year light blessings, Chotrul Duchen, culminates with Sunday’s Virgo Full Moon, at 16:38 GMT. As one of the four main Buddhist holidays, we celebrate today with practice, and light, flower and food offerings in honor of the fifteen miracles the Buddha performed. We also perform long life prayers for our masters. Karma is multiplied on this special day.

Events around this Moon are also magnified because the Sun in magical Pisces conjoins expansive Jupiter, a combination in which we could surely count our blessings. I’m sure however, certain people around the world, in Chile, Haiti, Darfur etc, would count themselves lucky if they could even get to read this. Thus we, the Digital Tribe of the love & light working Cyber Sangha, really are the fortunate ones, currently thrice blessed.

Psychic Pisces detects the undulating waves of collective unconscious emotion, and denotes our individual conscious connection to the Divine (through prayer, meditation, music, dance, yoga etc). Our Pisces Sun is now with Jupiter (Pisces’ traditional ruler), representing a philosophical search for life’s meaning – and an extrasensory urge to surrender to infinite cosmic unity that will broaden our understanding of what it means to be blessed.

Our Western grasp of the word ‘blessing’ generally means favoured, worthy of worship, able to passively enjoy heavenly bliss. But in Buddhist teachings the word can have greater value: Not only does it mean we receive the spiritually honed prayers of the compassionate and holy meditation masters (who are natural conduits of the heavens), but we can also actively generate a personal intention to take this unconditional universal blessing and use it as a means of transformation to heal and ameliorate through our own kind thoughts, words and deeds.

By harnessing the power of the received heartfelt vibration – the blessing – we can then add our own love to the collective Metta, Karuna, Agape - And therein lies the miracle: The more we share love, the more LOVE there IS to share.

There is a danger however, of feeling overwhelmed when Piscean energy pervades; when it’s all too easy to turn towards toxic oblivion. Beware that opting for the path of the sleepwalker leads away from truth. Instead, be willing to accept there are some things we have no control over and go with the flow, towards the enlightened peaceful state. Being at one with the unified collective, and inclined towards spiritual service, we generate empathy and bring joy to others. Bare in mind you can’t ‘save’ everyone, lest you become a martyr. When the light of the Pisces Sun is reflected by our beautiful receptive full Virgo Moon, wholesome and pure in a sensible and solid earth sign, we’re offered intellectual integrity through practical service. Virgo underpins the solar-lunar gravitational influence so that visionary altruistic intention blends with right thought and right action; and so we needn’t feel victimised by nebulous fairytales of longing, or ‘lost’ in the Piscean Samsaric sea.

Our third blessing, together with the Sun and Moon, comes from Venus, currently exalted in Pisces. As Queen of the Heavens, she is the planet we normally associate with personal relationships and love. Venus is about to make contact with group-orientated Uranus, also in Pisces, suggesting a change of heart could suddenly be directed from self towards others as quick as a flash, as in the blink of the eye of Brahma. Awareness is the key to riding current change.

For instance, on a personal level I am an intuitive water sign, prone to being super-sensitive, too sensitive sometimes according to my darling husband. But everything I read and see around me at this moment in time points to us all feeling as though something big is happening. I am not alone in sensing the change and development we are now experiencing is of mega importance; how we handle that change will determine the outcome. Both environmentally and economically our collective civilization is struggling, psychologically and physically, on a scale previously unseen, to understand the truth of the matter. But as His Holiness, Dalai Lama says, “We all want to be happy”. Just that one goal unites us; consciously ‘as one’ we can evolve harmoniously so each and every sentient being can thrive in relative freedom. And this is now humanity’s objective.

All of which may seem a lot for one person to take on board. So my advice with this Virgo Moon is to work within everyday capabilities to raise the cosmic love vibration and generate a protective aura. We can do this in simple ways that cost nothing: for instance we can start by blessing the food we eat, the water we drink, the clothes we wear, the work we do, the people we meet, and the earth we walk upon.

And seeing as Pisces is also the sign that rules feet AND prayer… Bless each step you take…

On that note: Bless YOU dear friend, with Love and Full Moon light ~ may all beings be happy!

Thanks and credits to mandalalaw.com for pisces pic, to Karmyn for funky pic of HHDL, and other unknown, but much appreciated photographers.

Day of Miracles ~ Valentine Losar 2137 ~ Year of the Metal Tiger 2010

How wonderful it is when, for no other reason than glorious happenstance, diverse traditions meet to celebrate on remarkably auspicious days and double any potentially supreme good fortune. This year in our Western calendar the day of red hot passionate love hearts, St Valentine's, is the same day as Losar, the Tibetan New Year, which, according to Tibet's Eastern tradition, also marks the start of a month of miracles. Bringing the two hemispheres together we have a whole month when love is the key for making miracles happen. How cool is that?

As a result, Valentine’s love vibration abounds while we also have an altruistic and friendly Aquarius New Moon (2:51 am GMT), enabling us to generate the self-existing mindfulness that fully opens the heart to the loving kindness and consideration for others and ourselves that we can all enjoy: Welcome a new moon that accents heartfelt individuality within the ‘whole’, celebrating diversity in unity.

Interestingly, two adversaries also come together with this year’s Aquarius New Moon, a lunation which always marks a Chinese New Year, yet not always a Tibetan New Year (which can move - rarely into Capricorn, but often into Pisces): Valentine’s ‘arrows of love’ point to both cultures meeting at the New Year of the romantic and passionate Metal (or Iron) Tiger. With the elemental focus now upon sharp and cutting metal, strength comes this year from being be clear and focused, resolute and utterly beautiful and unique.

Differences in interpretation (and opinion) do exist: from China the Metal Tiger is assertive, direct and forceful, with a tendency to be self-orientated and rigid. From Tibet we also have the freedom-loving, generous commander; yet there is another side to the determined Tibetan Tiger, who is symbolic of meekness, less complicated by ego desire and therefore able to more easily show compassion towards others. According to Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche, “the Tiger is an expression of ‘unconditional confidence’ …not stalking for prey, but self-satisfied and modest, watchful and relaxed, mindfully aware of how to conduct affairs”.

Losar is also a time of ‘Light Blessing’. A Tibetan blessing differs from our usual understanding, in as much as it suggests purification with an intentional transformation.

Tiger is associated (in both cultures) with Aquarius, a future orientated zodiacal sign of hopes and wishes, symbolic of humanity’s desire to come together and build a brighter tomorrow. Tiger’s planet is Venus, the planet of love, who now flourishes in her exaltation, in Pisces. So the kind of love we are now talking is deeply felt, oceanic and delightful, nothing short of unconditional cosmic love.

~ ♥ ~ ♥ ~ ♥ ~

It’s been 60 years since China invaded Tibet, the last Metal Tiger year. This means a whole new Metal Tiger cycle is about to begin. According to Chogyam Namkhai Norbu, this is a completion of a first 'metreng' of the 'cycle of the mewa' (smen 'khor – i.e. the element and number relation). Sixty years is also mega important in Kalachakra astrology, being the above mentioned as well as a completion of five elemental cycles of Jupiter through the twelve signs of the zodiac, plus two cycles of Saturn (the planet that orders the flow of bagua): this is a cycle that demonstrates how wisdom and karma work together.

Let's hope then, at the start of this second metrung (60 years), that miracles can and do happen, that we can string the necklace of the numerically magic ‘mewa’ together in peace and harmony, so that the people of Tibet (and China, and the world over) have the Aquarian liberty to practice their non-harmful light-shining spiritual belief, free in speech and worship, and free from fear or want.

~ ♥ ~ ♥ ~ ♥ ~

From the western astrological point of view, the horoscope of this year’s Losar, erected for GMT, has positive and forward-thinking Sagittarius rising, with beneficent Jupiter ruling the chart. Optimistic Jupiter is in the third house of communication, in his traditional domain of enchanting Pisces, conjoined by the sympathetic, loving and harmonious Venus. This strong combination is astro-speak for potentially very helpful relations, willing to enter a dialogue that could bring about an end to matters, or at the very least, agree on the need to co-exist and co-operate and co-create (much like this surrogate tiger mum to a litter of pigs).

The life-giving Sun is also currently with visionary Neptune and healing Chiron, as well as symbol of the collective, the Moon. At best this combination suggests spiritual healing, big style, (through the cyber airwaves?). At worst it is about a harmful intention to pull the wool over the masses’ eyes. Working together (with or without miracles) we could quite feasibly make it the former.

Tiger is also an endangered species. One wonders if this is a year when more of an effort is made to protect them. With the all-consuming love shown in this year's chart, one might well hope this is the case.

Many thanks to all tigers (especially the one I saw on my honeymoon, all those years ago in India's Sarsika national park) & credit to Janosh for beautiful healing mandala www.janosh-art.com

Ahimsa * Non Violence ~ Full Leo Moon conjunct Mars

Passion is seriously heightened over this full Leo Moon (10 degrees) on the weekend of January 30th (6:18 am), as la Luna joins forces with an aroused retrograde Mars. Whilst firing together in tandem excitement abounds, and as they oppose our spirited Aquarian Sun, which is in union with friendly Venus, fervour ignites. Bear in mind that emotions can overwhelm during any full Moon, but this one promises to be more ardent with the slightest spark making anyone hot under the collar. This could work for us or against us. The danger is that because of impatiently wanting react (even to aggression or criticism) we could become too egotistical, too self-orientated or selfish, and a delicate situation might escalate out of hand. Co-operation is called for if we want to enlist the help and support of partners and loved ones. Taming a Leo lion’s hungry heart is easier through love, confidence and trust – fear, fury or betrayal would only rouse tempers.

Going after what we want (as opposed to what we need) at the expense of others could also back-fire. A partner, loved one, or anyone else we meet is likely to be defensive if badly or wrongly challenged, and swiftly rise to the bait. When the Moon is with Mars, anger is all too easy to arise. The Buddhist take on anger is that it is not only one of the three poisons (ignorance and desire being the other two), but by allowing ourselves to lose our cool, we also prevent ourselves from seeing any situation clearly; it also wipes out, in one fell swoop, any good karma deposted in the karmic bank of heavenly merit. Angry responses also complicate already tricky situations. Luckily, the cosmos also now accents the antidote to any tantrums, which is quick thinking mindfulness allowing one to communicate clearly. For the Aquarian Sun is a cool and intellectual air sign, aware that all feelings and thoughts, opinions and ideas stem from the mind. Hence the stars also suggest we can have the ability to cut short any escalation of hurt or wrathful feelings, which might destroy further relations. Should you find yourself in the midst of an overheated situation over this weekend, look beyond external appearances. Ask yourself if others are reflecting frustration, resentment or something in you? And as non-violence, ‘Ahisma’, is the number one rule in yoga, take any confrontation as a cue to go inside for a moment. Tune into your breathing to note knots in the stomach, or heat rising in the body as a prelude to anger, or any other physical signs.

This Leo Moon says ‘Be Brave’ if someone (a family member, for example) starts to pick a fight, forgive and let it go. Be gentle with yourself and others for head and heart to align and create the kind of peace, love and understanding that all beings can benefit from. Also worth baring in mind is how anger, frustration and resentment can be worked off, temporarily, by getting physical in the gym or dance the night away. Leo is, after all, the sign of the best rip-roaring parties!

Thanks to Bill Brouard for catwoman - other artists unknown but much appreciated.

Building the Framework ~ Solar Eclipse in Capricorn

Whenever we have the sensation that change is afoot, it can be rather disconcerting. Especially if there are no obvious concrete or practical plans regarding the direction a new, but seemingly inevitable development might take? If you can feel an undercurrent of dramatic change, either on a personal or global level, take heart: We are still in eclipse season, and 2010’s first real turning point is about to be revealed. Having ushered in the New Year under the auspices of a partial eclipse of the Full Moon, the second and more decisive solar eclipse (they always come in pairs) is on the 15^th January, when Sun and new Moon join forces in the sign of Capricorn, the sign recognised for invested practical effort. This happens the same day that communicative Mercury goes forward, taking the breaks off Capricorn objectives, enabling one to present ideas more clearly.

Capricorn resonates with the karmic law of cause and effect, in much as those born with this sign prominent in the horoscope tend to comprehend that everything said, thought or done, has a knock-on effect: As we sow, so shall we reap; or in modern language: What we put in, we can get out – even against all odds – as long as we do it right. It takes a certain amount of discipline, authority and confidence to develop this kind of deep faith - not just in oneself to achieve, but also that others will appreciate the skill, determination and sheer ambition to accomplish the empirical Capricorn goal. So when the Sun and Moon meet in this sign a potent portal of energy opens, signalling a time to build, stirring big business into action, be it personal, professional or political. Spiritually speaking, this is wonderful time to build a framework for pratice, and give oneself a discipline that will generate the awareness of how to be of greater assistance to humanity (and create positive karma).

It’s worth noting when eclipses happen, which is twice a year, six months apart working on an 18.3 yearly cycle. The next set is in the summer; also in the signs Cancer and Capricorn, suggesting an evolution of instinctual consciousness with combined spiritual awareness. A good rule of thumb, when going through any kind of watershed now, is to think back 18-ish years and see what was happening and evaluate any similar defining moments. Then note how we follow our destiny. A cosmic union of Sun and Moon aligning with Earth creates intense and dramatic turning points in many areas: As an integral part of the alignment, our planet, Earth, also experiences powerful pressure levels, with volcanoes, earthquakes and high tides all quite common during these few weeks. And as we humans are intricately connected to the heavenly lights, Sun and Moon, we are too are subject to similar seismic shifts. During an eclipse it is therefore most important to protect psychically as well as physically, and connect to the holy light of Spirit within. The ability to unite with Spirit could also become easier for many in the early part of this year as beneficial Jupiter, bringer of favourable expansion, moves into Pisces, the sign of spiritual world service, on Monday the 18^th.

pic credits: Michael Ash for beautiful Tara hand; Michael Lujan for the extraordinary triple ying-yang gakyl - if anyone knows where the other hands come from please forward. xl