Lynn Hayes: February 2007 Archives

From the March Skywatch, here's my take on the Full Moon eclipse on March 3.

The Full Moon on March 3 (at 6:21 pm est) is a lunar eclipse at 13 degrees Virgo. In a typical year there are typically two eclipse seasons, occurring every 173 days when the new or full moon is within five degrees of the moon's nodes. The nodes of the Moon symbolize our evolutionary journey - they are like signposts that point to our past and our future development. Consequently, eclipses are often significant events that instigate change and transformation, especially if they hit a sensitive point in your own individual chart.

The Virgo Full Moon deals with issues of material reality. Virgo is associated with the mundane world-the small details that weave the fabric of our life. In Virgo we focus our attention on our personal ecology - our health, fitness, cleanliness and integration of body, mind and spirit. At its worst, Virgo can be petty and nitpicking, overcautious and afraid. The Virgo Moon is opposite the Pisces Sun now, and the nodes follow the Virgo/Pisces axis as well. The Moon conjuncts the South Node, or the past, with the Sun conjoining the North Node (our future evolutionary direction). The South Node in our own chart shows what is familiar and comfortable, but also what holds us back, so this Full Moon eclipse is a good time to look at where we are held back by our negative Virgo qualities, and how we can use the more positive Pisces elements to accelerate our personal growth. Every sign has positive and negative attributes, and in Pisces our hearts begin to open up to unlimited compassion and empathy. We find in Pisces an experience of divine love and inspiration that transcends the boundaries of the ordinary reality of which Virgo is so fond. However, there is a danger of becoming lost in the ethers and losing our footing.

This Full Moon Eclipse is a powerful one including a tight aspect of Uranus conjunct the Sun in Pisces and opposing the Moon. Uranus urges us to defy convention; it shakes us out of our deep sleep and rattles our cages so that we can live a more authentic life. In opposition to this Full Moon, it may evoke a sense that we lack security - the change may be somewhat frightening. Uranus propels us into the unknown; it's exhilarating if we let go and nervewracking if we hold on. Fortunately this influence is softened by a trine of Venus to Chiron that adds a gentle (Venus) healing touch (Chiron) and facilitates our forward movement. This Eclipse is about leaving behind that which is safe and secure (Virgo/South Node) and moving into an exciting though unknown (Sun/Uranus) future (North Node) that brings us closer to a transcendent experience of truth and bliss (Neptune).

Geeky astrological detail: A "yod" is formed by the opposition of the Moon/South Node to the Sun/Uranus/North Node which sextiles both Venus and Chiron. Venus and Chiron are both quincunx the Moon, applying pressure for change without actually forcing a crisis.

photo from cnn.com

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell over 416 points yesterday, a 3% drop that is said to be the worst since the day the markets opened after September 11. The drop came in reaction to a massive sell-off in Chinese equities, but this is probably a natural correction to the "irrational exuberance" fostered by last year's passage of Jupiter through Scorpio, the sign that rules equity investments, followed by the current relentless optimism of Jupiter in Sagittarius.

I know I'm sounding like a broken record (Saturn/Neptune all the time), but Saturn is nearly exactly opposite Neptune now in the second phase of this cycle. Typically, when a planetary cycle includes multiple phases due to the phenomenon of retrogradation in which one or both of the planets appear to be moving backwards from our perspective on earth, the first phase of the cycle is like a wake-up call. We're rustled from our sleep, wake up and say "Huh???" The second phase is often when the work really begins. We can't go back to sleep now, we're wide awake and having to deal with the energy of the planetary influences.

It seems to me that the market crash has more to do with the confrontation of our illusion (Neptune) and the need to face reality (Saturn) than any particular market fundamentals. In addition, Mercury being retrograde means we have to go back and correct some of the mistakes from the past.

Still, this may be a good time to pick up some stock bargains, but I would wait until after the eclipse on March 3 and Mercury's direct turn on March 7, just to be on the safe side. Pick up your gains now, because when Pluto enters Capricorn in 2008 it may be time to take your money out of the stock market.

A battle on the internet over religion seeks to "dump religion from our culture," says the individual who started the Blasphemy Challenge on YouTube. "We want to get rid of this supernatural belief in the same way that it would be great if we could dump astrology or phrenology and all of the other pseudosciences."

This confrontation (Saturn) over the mysterious (Neptune) is clearly reaching a head as Saturn opposes Neptune, and the conflict is becoming very frothy indeed. It will be interesting to see what happens over the next few months as the cycle continues until its conclusion next summer.

(Thanks to Astrococktail for the link, even though it's from my hometown newspaper!)

Our dear friend Elsa, tireless supporter of astrobloggers, has resuscitated the news feed under the Top Ten Sources site. Working day and night through the mists of Mercury retrograde, it is now finally up and running and my feed is finally working. You'll find the permanent link in the links section.

Thanks again Elsa!

Mercury has been traveling through Pisces for the past few weeks, but as it retrogrades it is now moving back into Aquarius. The passing of retrograde Mercury back through a sign it has completed tends to bring back issues of that sign that are not yet complete. In Pisces Mercury is creative, there is an emotional softening and powerful empathy. Mercury in Pisces is flexible, but Mercury in Aquarius can be somewhat dogmatic.

Mercury in Aquarius is the sign of reason, and there is a return to practicality now. Any fuzzy- headed decisions made while Mercury was in Pisces, particularly while it retrograded through that sign, may have to be revised or reworked now. In Aquarius Mercury wakes up, there is an electrifying awareness that sees clearly. Creative projects inspired by Mercury in Pisces may wither in the Aquarian light of day, or they may be seen for the brilliant piece of magic that they are. Retrograde periods bring us closer to truth as errors are corrected, but we are asked to be more flexible, more adaptable, and more willing for change.

Update: Mercury is also making a sextile now to Pluto, an aspect that will be exact on the 28th but is in effect now. The harmonious combination of Mercury's communication function with the transformative power of Pluto can add energy and depth to any projects where communication or the processing of information is involved and can add the intensity we may need in order to complete outstanding commitments. Pluto also helps us to get the most out of our daily life since Mercury governs how we process those experiences. This aspect will be in orb for another day or two.

This story falls under lots of categories: Saturn opposing Neptune and destroying the illusion; Pluto in Sagittarius and turning our established theology and religions upside down, and possibly even the end of the Age of Pisces.When Pluto entered Sagittarius,...

Thanks to Universe Today for this fantastic photo of Supernova 1987A (click photo to enlarge).It's hard to say whether supernovas contain any astrological symbolism that we can use, but there's no doubt about the gamma ray energy that is released...

photo from Cesar Millan's Dog Psychology Center.I'm a little behind on my tv viewing, and last night I watched part of a Dog Whisperer episode that I missed about Howie, the (adorable) rescue dog that lived at an animal hospital...

I'll be adding my point of view on the upcoming March eclipse series as we get closer to the event, but meanwhile Jeffrey has written a great article on the subject:Anticipation of eclipses tends to bring out a "sky is...

Hillary Clinton's campaign is sniping at former supporters who are flirting with the idea of supporting Barack Obama. Says Arianna Huffington at a campaign event for Obama this week, "It's like being married, and suddenly you fall in love. You're...

Unless your political views fall on the right side of the aisle, it's hard not to like Al Franken. I have long been a fan of Al Franken, even though his trivialization of the power of affirmations (via Stuart Smalley...

Image from Bella Online, source unknown.Lovely Venus has entered the sign of her warrior lover Ares, leaving the misty realms of love and universal compassion for the battleground. Venus in Aries seeks the courage to stand up for ourselves and...

There was a story on NPR this morning about the Fear and Greed Index:When the index is low, fear is the dominant emotion. Investors tread warily. But when it's high, greed is in the driving seat and no one seems...

Susan has a post today that reminded me of an experience I had before I was married. She writes:I know astrology works. I have made mistakes in casting charts that have proved to me that it is valid. When I...

Recently these pages witnessed a dramatic debate over whether astrology could be or had been proven in the now defunct Skeptics Challenge. (I learned my lesson - as revealed by a commentator, skeptics don't have an open mind but require...

A comment from Cathy to the previous post reports:I looked back on previous oppositions between Saturn and Neptune and the wars that were going on then did not end when the aspect ended. Far from it!1971-72 - Vietnam didn't end...

Saturn is nearly exactly opposite Neptune now, and there are a lot of qualities to this configuration. Deception (Neptune) is confronted by law (Saturn). The mysterious (Neptune) is being challenged by pragmatism (Saturn). Big Brother (Saturn) wants to spy on...

This New Moon marks the New Year of the Chinese calendar, and 2007 is the Year of the Golden Pig. In Chinese astrology, each year is represented by twelve different animals with the pig being the final animal in the...

JM has quite a bit of information on the lunar nodes right now. I love her blog Raging Universe, it's exhilarating and effervescent and wise, all at once. And with beautiful art as well.In March we have a series of...

"Aquarius" from Eclipse of the Firefly galleryI've been surprised to still find writings that fix the beginning of the Age of Pisces at year zero, roughly coinciding with the birth of Jesus, with the Age of Aquarius beginning in the...

"New Moon over the Atlantic" by Mark Daffey from art.comThe New Moon on February 17 links the Sun and the Moon in Aquarius, the sign of idealism, innovation and revolution. Aquarius is the radical, the inventor - it seeks to...

Watch the video here. There has been virtually no media coverage of this event outside of a few minor journals in the UK. I found an article that reports a wedding having released Chinese-style "glow" lanterns that very day. However,...

There's some great stuff out there today:Barbara explores infinite love and gratitude. Jeffrey gives advice about love in the time of Mercury Rx.Robert celebrates a love affair with astrology.Enjoy!...

Image from the Tarot of Love, courtesy of angelpaths.comThere is no mistaking the power of love, but as this Valentine's Day falls very close to the exact opposition of Saturn to Neptune, a transit where the lovely fantasies of Neptune...

A question often asked: "I am looking to understand the "CUSP" between a Virgo and a Libra? After reading [horoscopes for] both for several months, I am finding myself more inclinded to be or leaning towards Libra. Can you give...

It was almost a year ago that I first profiled Hillary Clinton in these pages: Hillary Clinton's birthchart shows a strong personality: She has four planets in intense Scorpio, including her Sun, Chiron, Venus and Mercury. Scorpio is an intensely...

Although for me it won't make much difference, I'm sort of getting used to the kind of technological craziness I've been experiencing lately with the square of Jupiter to Uranus and evidently I'm not alone. Although this aspect made its...

For the past few years I have written to anyone who wrote a post or an article debunking astrology offering to do a free reading for them so that they can try it for themselves before making a judgement on...

Thanks to Dharmaruci for this link to an article describing the tight Yod aspect between Venus, Mars and Saturn that is moving into formation now and will be strong on Valentine's Day. A Yod aspect involves two planets in sextile...

There seems to be a rash of UFO sightings over the past couple of months (Jupiter/Uranus anyone??) but this is a big one: PEOPLE screamed and cars came to a halt when dozens of mysterious lights hovered thousands of feet...

Plenty is being said right now about the death of Anna Nicole Smith, and I'm not going to add to the frenzy of media coverage and obsession over this sad creature's life and death. For me the pertinent item of...

Robert Wilkinson has a lovely post today on Good and Evil in the birthchart:Our birth charts show us what cycles we've set into motion, and what we're dealing with. All of us are learning to deal with the results of...

Any time someone does something completely bizarre and out of character, it's always makes me want to look at their astrological chart. Often we have subconscious elements that we are able to keep in the "basement" of our psyche until...

From Universe Today:One of the great outstanding questions in science is known as the “theory of everything”. What underlying laws of physics explain the forces we see in nature? Are gravity and electromagnetism the same force? One popular theory is...

A column by David Brooks the other day intrigued me when he wrote about students he taught at Duke University last fall, calling them "Children of Polarization": Today’s college students, remember, were born around 1987. They were 2 or 3...

Our friend Ursi once again delights and amazes with this beautiful article on Renaissance astrology and magic which was taken from Christopher Warnock's excellent site on the subject. Christopher tells us that for Renaissance astrologers, the planets were the link...

Ryan O'Neal was arrested for assaulting his son Griffin this week, although Ryan claimed he was defending himself from an attack with a fireplace poker. Growing up with Ryan O'Neal can't have been easy; all of his children have suffered...

In the year or so that I've offered the Skeptics Challenge, Paul is just the second person to participate. He sent me his birth date and time and I sent him a short reading which he has reproduced on his...

Recently I've been doing more typed readings. Typically I prefer telephone readings because they're more interactive, but the typed readings are powerful because there's no instant feedback, no assurance that I'm on the right path. Just me and the computer...

Diana shares her experience of Comet McNaught:My first sighting of comet McNaught was with a group of people, all gazing expectantly into the darkening twilight, and it was a little girl who caught first glimpse. And as our eyes focused...

I have to admit I was skeptical when astrologers predicted that the opposition of Saturn and Neptune would bring with it a deadly flu pandemic. The planets rarely act as they are expected to perform, and this was too easy...

After four days of wrangling with the web hosts who had no idea why I couldn't upload to my site, the February skywatch article is finally posted!! I'm now including a comprehensive list of the major planetary aspects and events...

For the past year or so I have been followed by hawks. A hawk will fly right in front of me when I'm sitting on the porch, one will circle my car out on the highway. Often as I'm driving...

Although I was a fan of Molly Ivins for years, it wasn't until the Bush administration that her biting yet hilarious wit became a must-read for anyone skeptical of the Bush presidency. Ivins was celebrated for her unconventional and unabashedly...

Work entitled "Alchemy" at Mamtaart.comI don't see how the American public could have been convinced by the Bush White House that the threat from global warming was political, but there certainly is no escaping the reality now according to the...

Jill says it as well as I could: Molly Ivins can't do that, can she?Alas, she can. Molly Ivins died far too soon [yesterday] at the age of sixty-two.I'm not sure if we could have made it through the last...

February begins in the shadow of the Full Moon in Leo which will be at maximum fullness at 12:46 am est on February 2. During the Full Moon, the solar conscious mind opposes the lunar instinct of the subconscious, illuminating...

from spaceweather.com: Comet McNaught and the Southern Lights: --------...

Usually we see this predominate when Mercury is retrograde, but the last few weeks since Jupiter squared Uranus anecdotal evidence reports that such problems are rampant. Delayed travel, downed websites (mine and many of the ones I am trying to...