Keep On Keeping On At This New Moon In Sagittarius!!

   Being on the dark side of the moon, as we are now, and being a Sagittarian, I am looking forward to the New Moon on Thursday when the Sun and Moon come together for new starts in this forward-looking  and fiery sign of the zodiac! Mercury leaves Scorpio tonight having uncovered the secrets and mysteries we needed for understanding how to  co-create our lives. As the Messenger of the Gods heads into the Archers' territory re-fortified, he goes forward with great enthusiasm and renewed hope.

   Mercury is actually happiest in Gemini, Sagittarius' polar opposite, sharing tidbits of information and not having to worry about the ramifications of idle chatter. While in Sag, he has to consider the bigger implications of what he now knows. Mercury here waxes more philosophical than usual and has to look in the direction of spiritual momentum rather than short-term gains. This is harder for those in a hurry, or those who think the end justifies the means, than those willing to spend more time on sacred ground, knowing that integrity needs to align with intention on this part of the journey.

    The good news is, that Sag's ruler, Jupiter, is in Gemini and Gemini's ruler, Mercury, is in Sagittarius - what we astrologers call "mutual reception". In other words, they are visiting each others homes and while there will be on their best behavior! So enthusiastic Jupiter (the teacher), won't mind all the details that  Mercury (the student) will lay out in front of him because a new horizon awaits. Story-telling can be very poignant as long as the broadcaster isn't just telling tall tales... Witty dialogue and humor are apt to be rampant throughout the rest of 2012. I'm not saying we can't take things seriously, just that humor may help the medicine go down. It's the difference between "The News" and The Daily Show with Jon Stewart.

  As Mercury squares impressionable Neptune tomorrow, we also need to ask ourselves, "is it real, or is it Memorex...?" The answer may surprise you, so, if you don't want to know, don't ask! There is the contingent that says, what you don't know can't hurt you, but I am not of that school. If you want to know the truth, ask yourself if what you are hearing is real or not, then listen to your body or your spirit and you'll know the answer right away!! Because Mercury rules the mind, you could go round and round with reasoning, one minute believing this, and the next minute, believing that. Meditate for clarity and wait until after the New Moon to decide anything.

   Wednesday is an adventurous day with lots of happenings; set some time aside to spend outdoors in nature to address the wanderlust. The New Moon takes place in the wee hours of the morning on Thursday, when Sun and Moon come together in Sagittarius setting the stage for the month ahead. Long-range goals, including travel, higher education or spiritual pursuits are to be taken into consideration. For those writers out there, you may want to take some steps toward publishing or sharing your words with a much larger audience. If you keep things to yourself, how will you know where you might have gone?

   Finally we can speak to the meaning of the Sabian Symbol for 22 degrees of Sagittarius, the degree point in the spotlight at the New Moon; it is A Chinese Laundry. Dane Rudhyar say this is about maintaining one's own identity in situations which neither give value for, nor favor what one basically is. The necessity here is self-containment and good humor! Having my sun on this degree, I can relate. Avoid feelings of inferiority and stay alert to opportunities to relate to the bigger society.

  Another planetary energy to be aware of this week is revolutionary Uranus turning Direct shortly after the New Moon on Thursday. Let the dust settle around you, or out-in-the world, and prepare to seize the day on Friday when the Capricorn Moon  brings an opportunity to begin to achieve a work or career goal. How hard you work and how badly you want to make something happen of lasting consequence, will bring significant benefits down the road. Saturday evening is a time to enjoy shared values and social opportunities, especially if they involve humanitarian concerns.

   Remember, keep your head in the stars and your feet on the ground~

Mercury Direct and The Lunar Eclipse Full Moon in Gemini

  I know many of you are rejoicing now that Mercury is Direct again, and I want you to know that whatever mechanical malfunctions or agreements went awry in the previous three and a half weeks, it may take until about Dec.13th for things to be fixed or work themselves out. Until then, the Mercurial energy will be passing back through the areas where things went haywire, putting a clearer spin on things and then you will know what direction to move in, particularly as it relates to shared resources and/or joint projects. The good news is that things are looking up!

   Another factor in straightening out issues surrounding money and resources is last night's Venus/Saturn  conjunction in Scorpio. Knowing where we stand in our entanglements with others and understanding our responsibilities is just part of the acceptance of duty or necessity. When both parties know what the expectations are, they can follow through accordingly and hopefully see the gains they anticipated be realized.

   Communication, writing and research are all gaining momentum with the lunar energies approaching tomorrow's Full Moon Lunar Eclipse. What do you have to say? What do you want to learn? Is there something you need to express or share with others? These are the issues to be addressed when the Full Moon occurs at 9:46am tomorrow morning. Eclipse energy can move us ahead very quickly if we harness the momentum of the available vibrations. Big gains can be made that are highly effective in the next six months. If not aware of what needs to be said or done, the Eclipse can also highlight where our thoughts and words have been frittered away. There is no time like the present to say what you mean and mean what you say! Take it from Horton the Who... one of my favorite literary characters.

   Two other planetary influences color this Full Moon. The first is Venus, symbol of beauty and love, making a harmonious aspect to Pluto, the Transformer, bringing an opportunity to change our financial circumstances. Again, it's about putting our ships out to sea to bring back the goods and resources we need! If you have been wanting to make a big change in your economic picture, this is a great time to step up to the plate and make a difference. I'm not talking about risk-taking here; I am talking about practical agreements, joint ventures or sound steps to building/increasing your savings or resources. This aspect of planetary opportunity building only happens once a year. The next time it occurs will be as Venus moves away from Pluto sometime in late February or early March and that's when you'll get to see how well your efforts are working.

   The second influence I mentioned is giant Jupiter in Gemini coming under the beams of the Full Moon early tomorrow night. Jupiter expands, increases and includes and in his arbitrary way of doing this, doesn't distinguish between good or bad. In other words, he'll make a BIG DEAL out of whatever thoughts or words you stay focused on. If you gossip, spread lies or cheat, expect it to get exponentially worse. If you make sincere compliments, speak only the truth if it's helpful, or seek true understanding with another, you can expect to reap the rewards at some point. Your choice, but a potent one indeed. Filter your thoughts and watch the words coming out of your mouth... they will act as little magnets to bring you back what you sent out from your mind. This is Mercury's influence after all is said and done, so avoid deceit and stay in your integrity, no matter what!

   "remember, keep your head in the stars and your feet on the ground" ... this is Suzanne Keating and I approve this message!

Pathways Astrology: Solar Eclipse Scorpio New Moon Starts The Cycle Of...

Pathways Astrology: Solar Eclipse Scorpio New Moon Starts The Cycle Of...:    Tuesday, November 13th will bring the next New Moon and it's a doozey! First of all, when the Sun (outer) and Moon (inner) come together ...

Solar Eclipse Scorpio New Moon Starts The Cycle Of Rebirth!

   Tuesday, November 13th will bring the next New Moon and it's a doozey! First of all, when the Sun (outer) and Moon (inner) come together in the intense and Fixed Water sign, Scorpio, we can expect deep emotions to surface. These emotions can be hiding wounds, secrets, desires or needs which we fear won't be discussed, acknowledged or met. Scorpio deals with joint and shared resources and our desire natures. What are you willing to give up to be in the relationship(s) that you're in?  The positive side of Scorpio is the ability and tenacity to rebuild and co-create, but it takes brutal honesty and willingness to get there. If both partners are willing and able, a new life can unfold; if not, one may decide to move forward, reclaiming their power.

   The good news is that it is all right! Whatever it took to get you to this point is in the past and you now have the resources to examine, acknowledge and release what's been holding you back. Yes, it takes a lot of determination, stamina and some humble-pie to deal with the ties that bind, and this Scorpio New Moon is the time to plant seeds for your release. The added boost of the Solar Eclipse can bring healing, release and a rebirth anytime over the next six months. I say why wait, bless it and release it now! Please know that I only suggest tools and processes that have worked for me and that I am sharing them here because I know they work.

   First, you have to go into your heart center and sit with the beauty of your own divinity, the spark of life within that is always there to remind you that you are safe and connected at all times to your Higher Self. Then, invite in any of the Higher Selves of anyone you have given your power away to or who has taken it and still has power over you - just their Higher self, not their Ego, nothing to fear here! Hold them in the Light and tell them how you feel and that you forgive them for their part in whatever you felt held you back; forgive yourself while you're at it... no matter how stupid or scared you feel. Tell them you're moving forward and releasing them of any power they, or you, thought they had over you. I don't care if it was mental, emotional or physical, the important thing is is to decide to let it go.

   Just in case anyone reading this is struggling with an actual safety issue in the present, please get help now! There are plenty of resources available when you want to stop struggling. The hardest thing is making the decision to do it because change is scary. But change is inevitable and necessary for you to reclaim your power and move into your brighter future! The current planetary energies support you.

   The double whammy here, just to put the icing on the pity-party, is Mercury Retrograde!! The "Messenger of The Gods" goes so fast most of the time, that he/she needs to slow down in order to process all the information coming in and to deal with all the machinery, cars, etc. that need repair or replacement. It seems that right when you make up your mind to replace that printer or cell phone, it breaks before you've done all your research and you get the most convenient replacement. Well, fingers crossed, let's hope you don't have to get another one during the next Mercury retrograde cycle in about three and a half months. Be patient, do the research and read the fine print!

   Another consideration on Tuesday is Mercury interacting with Neptune, impressionable ruler of the seas. Neptune can enhance spiritual guidance or escapist tendencies, depending on whether you are willing to take the high road or just go with the path of least resistance and escapism. Bringing traits of idealism, intuition, artistic creativity, deceit, compassion, sentimentality or impracticality together with Mercury's own tendencies of adaptability, cleverness and indecision cautions one to examine one's motives and chose wisely which traits will guide you through the stormy seas. It's your choice~

   Remember, navigating by the stars requires keeping one's head in the stars and one's feet on the ground.

Scorpio Energy, A Taurus Full Moon Building & Mercury Retrograde Approaching

   Are you ready to look at the depth of your own needs, emotional or otherwise? With the Sun in Scorpio opposing the Moon in Taurus tomorrow afternoon, there is a lot of energy that will be dealt with, having to do with personal values, possessions and the earth. Fixed water (Scorpio) and fixed Earth (Taurus) relate to stuck or stored emotional (water) or physical (earth) energy - think resources. When someone, or something, else stirs up those intense feelings of gain/loss or security/the unknown it's better to fully dive into your "stuff" than to try and avoid it.

   What you keep in the bank, your pantry or your heart, are all forms of stored energy - like a battery, waiting to be used. The Full Moon in Taurus highlights the security you feel, aka your comfort zone, and it can show you where you are stuck or being stubborn. Tauruses tends toward practicality and comfort and while their loyalties are strong, they can fall into the "I won't budge from my beliefs, or these are my things" category. The Sun in opposing Scorpio shines the light on these attitudes through deep feelings of shared resources or values and how secure you actually feel. Wherever you have Scorpio and Taurus in your birth chart is where you will experience this polarity.

   The Sabian Symbol for the Full Moon at 7 degrees of Taurus is "The Woman of Samaria at the Ancestral Well." Dane Rudhyar says the keynote here is the meeting of the traditional past and of the creative spirit pointing to the future. Paraphrasing Rudhyar here: In the Jesus mythos, he met a Samaritan woman at an ancestral well who was not only part of a tribe despised by the Jews, but was unmarried and considered on the fringe of her own society. As religious history records, it was to this woman, who had already repudiated any narrow subservience to the old order, that Jesus could reveal he was the Messiah, "I am He". The old order never is open to the new Revelation until it has accepted disorder in the name of that power which subsumes all forms of order... Love. A new factor transcends the collective past and reveals a new quality of being which renders old patterns obsolete!

   There is so much relevance in this one symbol that we can relate to today and I won't presume to know what it means for you by pointing out my interpretations. I just offer it to you for your contemplation. Another symbol to consider is the Sun's position at the opposite point of the Full Moon. Before I even looked it up in Rudhyar's Astrological Mandala, The Cycle of Transformations And its 360 Symbolic Phases, I had written the first paragraph about diving into your "stuff". Here is the Sabian Symbol for 7 degrees of Scorpio: Deep Sea Divers and the keynote here is the willingness to explore the hidden depths of all experiences and to search for primordial causes. Rudhyar says this is the coming to terms with the collective Unconscious and its contents and it symbolizes a quest for "under-standing", for what lies under the surface waves of daily living. Isn't this interesting and timely?!

   So we have the power, determination and confidence of the Sun to dive deeply and the receptivity, sensitivity and intuition of the Moon to transcend the collective past for a new revelation and a new way of being in the world! Another thing to consider here is the Moon's comfort in the earth sign of Taurus; the Moon after all, is a satellite of the Earth and has sway over the ebb and flow of her tides and our emotions. How can you access the vitality of the Full Moon in a transformative way that allows you to move forward and not get stuck in the past? One way is to identify your comfort zone and what you need for your self-worth and to take care of your physical needs on the earth. Then, unflinchingly, dive into what it is about your own desire nature that is either holding you back from your own truth or that you are afraid of asking for because you worry your needs won't be met.

    Let's look at some of the other planetary factors that are in effect now. Venus, symbolizing love, beauty and values, moved out of Virgo this morning and into Libra for a less critical and more balanced view of what we need in relationships as well as how we can maintain our finances in a more even manner. Surrounding ourselves with the beauty of nature and appreciating the people in our lives that we feel good with are another of Venus' objectives through November 21st. Be careful not to overdo with finances or going to extremes in your associations and this can be a very enjoyable time.

    Mercury moves into Sagittarius for a broader world view tomorrow, but goes retrograde in motion on November 7th, returning to inquiring Scorpio on the 14th. If you must buy a new car or computer (they have a tendency to break down during Mercury retrograde...) do your research first and try to resist buying anything or signing contracts until after the 26th when Mercury turns direct again. In the meantime, know that people on soapboxes may make a BIG noise to distract you from thinking for yourself! Oh, and in case you didn't notice, it's Election Day on the 6th, so we'll see if Mercury turning retrograde that evening adds to any confusion over clear communication, counting of ballots, etc. let's hope any snafus are cleared up by the time Mercury (also known as the Messenger of the Gods) moves forward.

   Enough for today. Those of you in the Northeast with an eye to Hurricane Sandy's approach may be interested to know what Astrometeorolgist Carolyn Egan has to say about the impact in New England. You can visit her site here: http://www.weathersage.com/

   Remember to keep your head in the stars and your feet on the ground. I might also add today, keep an ear to the ground as well~

  
  

Libra New Moon And The Chanticleer's Voice

   New Moons are seed times and today's new moon in Libra heralds the possibility of new beginnings, especially in relationships. The energy increases as the moon waxes to Full, but we plant our seeds in the dark, not seeing the thin Crescent until 2 or 3 days later. There is much to be considered here. Libra is the halfway sign of the zodiac, teetering at the fulcrum of the seasons and reminding us to consider what is not only timely for ourselves, but for others as well. As the Cardinal Air sign, Librans seek harmony and balance, preferring to schmooze  and keep the peace instead of upsetting the apple cart. We can use this energy to interact and socialize with our partners as long we consider both their needs and desires as well as our own. The danger here is bending over backwards to please others and not getting our own needs met!

  The Sabian Symbol for 23 degrees of Libra is The Chanticleer's Voice Heralds The Rising Sun With Enthusiastic Tones. A rooster crowing at the break of dawn announces the new day and those who rise with the Sun may be enthusiastic in trying to get others up and moving. It's great to be excited, but you don't want to become annoying to others not needing to be disturbed. Let your own confidence carry you into this new lunar period while allowing your significant others to experience their own joy. This isn't to say you can't speak up when needed, just be aware that you are responsible for your announcements and they for theirs. Some reading this will have news they want to share and others will be waiting to hear your news.

   Another important thing to know about this lunar phase is that Scorpio has a lot of sway over this New Moon chart, as it it the rising sign and Saturn is newly moved into Scorpio, conjunct the Sun and Moon, giving added weight to the need for balance. Saturn will focus our attention on joint and shared values, resources and projects for the next two and a half years as it travels in this Fixed Water sign. Co-rulers of Scorpio, Mars and Pluto, both interact with Uranus in fiery Aries, bringing triggers to uncover secret motives and/or hidden treasures. It could be interesting trying to maintain harmony with so many possibilities for change.

   This can be an extremely rewarding time if you are first honest with yourself, then in your relationships. Watch out for crowing too loudly as you attempt to make an informed decision in your life. First put on your detective hat and do some sleuthing to get as much information as possible for making the best choice possible when it comes to finances and shared resources. Better to be sure of who you want to be enmeshed with, at least for the next month and possibly a lot longer, because you don't want to regret your commitments with the Lord of Karma (Saturn) in Scorpio.

   Remember to keep your head in the stars and your feet on the ground.

Getting Personal At The Last Quarter Moon

   Do you feel it yet? There's something in the air and it's not just the leaves falling from the trees. With the three inner/personal planets, Mercury, Venus and Mars, having all shifted into new signs this past week, the energies are expressing themselves in new elements and modalities that we are experiencing as subtle changes in our daily lives.

   Let's look at affectionate Venus which moved into the critical Earth sign Virgo on Wednesday. As a receptive energy, Venus operates best through attraction, but in this analytical sign, she may become too focused on perfection. A wise use of her power of gentle persuasion would be to engage others in setting up a budget by pointing out where money has been going for the last several months. Also, organizing and beautifying your environment, as well as putting the gardens to bed for the winter, are other ways to effectively utilize the Venusian energy as she expresses herself in practical Virgo.

      Mercury's move on Friday, into secretive Scorpio for the next three weeks, signals a time to put on your detective hat and uncover hidden mysteries or find misplaced items. The hidden treasures may be in the deepest recesses of your being, so take time to have an inner dialogue with your more knowledgeable self. Also, the answers to long-held  questions may be revealed during the following weeks. If you need to research the worth of something and/or do some comparison shopping before Mercury goes retrograde in November, this would be the time to do that. As Mercury's job is to oversee the coming and going of thoughts and information, agreements, etc. you really want to do your homework before complying with someone else' terms. Does what you have to pay or exchange for what you want, make sense fiscally and emotionally?

    Now that Mars has left one of his favorite states of being, Scorpio, and moved into Sagittarius on Saturday, let's hope that the Martian intensity of aggression and determination will be tempered by traveling through the more upbeat territory of Sagittarius. Mars in Sag expands vision to include a wider spectrum of ideals and belief systems or seeks to expand horizons through travel or study.  It also brings the desire to experience adventure at the drop of a hat! This new fiery expression gives a boost to projects that may have met a stalemate while Mars gathered battle scars in fixed Scorpio. No more time for sulking as you look to the future and apply some elbow grease with all the drive and determination Mars has to offer; just avoid taking up arms or proselytizing and losing track of your goal. 

   Today's Last Quarter Moon, a square aspect between the Sun in Libra and Moon in Cancer, signifies a challenge to accept what has been brought to light at the Full Moon while we prepare for a new start at the Libra New Moon on the 15th, in a week. The Moon is at home in watery Cancer so we need to pay attention to our emotions while finding some kind of balance for ourselves out in the world under Libra's influence. This might be a good "sick" day for some people to lay low and take care of themselves, but for most of us, we need to take care of tidying up the loose ends that have to be finished before we can have a clear path to the next Lunar phase. Make this week, which starts with 2 days of Leo's sunny Moon influence on Tuesday and Wednesday, for expressing oneself joyously or creatively and moves through Virgo's organizing days Thursday and Friday, finishing up the week Saturday and Sunday in Libra, about keeping things on an even keel as we enter the dark of the Moon just before rebirth next Monday.

  As always, remember to keep your head in the stars and your feet on the ground!