Happy Summer Solstice!
The Sun goes into Cancer for the Summer Solstice this year on Friday, June 20th at 7:59 pm EDT and 4:59 pm PDT. The sun has reached its highest elevation in the sky – its most northernly position – and now it will 'stand still' for three days before beginning its journey back south.
The Sabian Symbol for the Sun at Summer Solstice is: On a ship the sailors lower an old flag and raise a new one. This symbol speaks of establishing new loyalties and priorities, marking a turning point in the cycle of the seasons. Pluto exactly opposes the Sun just before the Summer Solstice, increasing our awareness of the need for transformation this Solstice.
Solstice means “sun stand still” and so for this moment in time (the other moment is the Winter Solstice in December) the Sun stops and contemplates its child – the Earth. What would the Sun say to us at this point in our history? Perhaps: Think globally, act locally!
Jean Houston, the great psychologist, social artist and activist says “We no longer have the luxury of sloth. We need a new mind to create new possibilities in this time of whole systems transitions.” We each need to become social artists and bring a new vision for social change to our world. We need to create new patterns, new visions in which we all share the world equally and in peace. And remember, peace needs to be active, loving, imaginative, potent, dynamic, green, growing and sexy.
So at this Summer Solstice, which evokes the Sacred Marriage of Heaven and Earth, we need to 're-member' the beauty and magic of the Earth, to see the spirit in the material aspects of our lives. On this longest day of the year, step into the Light. Feel its potency, its warmth, its life-giving power. Rejoice in the Life the Sun gives to us and to our Mother Earth and be grateful.
And then take one more step. Into Faerie!
Faerie is that realm of awareness that was potent at the morningtime of the world. Step into this place of magic and beauty, see the great natural beauty of our world and let yourself experience the mysteries of the Unknown. June 24th was known as MidSummer's Night – and Shakespeare, the great Bard, described this night as full of mischief, delight and magic.
If we are ever going to stop the environmental destruction, we need to reawaken our ability to 'see' the spirits of the Earth and know that we are all connected in a live web of wonder that is our ecosystem. We cut off our own life when we continue to disregard our environment. Take time to enjoy these days and nights of the Solstice, and allow the magic to come back into your life. And then find ways to preserve and expand the beauty that fills you for your community. The Hero's Journey says that after we discover the treasure (often our unique purpose and talents) we must finish the journey by bringing those treasures back to our community. It is TIME!
One of the myths about Summer Solstice is that the Winter/Holly King and Summer/Oak King fight for the love of the Flower Queen. If you want to read a story about it, go to: Summer Solstice Story
Now for the Full Moon in Sagittarius. The chart of the full moon is similar to the Solstice Chart, with the exception of the Moon's placement. In the Solstice chart, the moon has moved into Capricorn, conjoined with Jupiter. So the Moon's qualities evoke her aspect as Hera/Juno, as Queen and wife to the King of the Gods. The Sacred Marriage is mirrored in the heavens this Solstice night. Relationships are important this year – not just our romantic relationships, but our connection to 'all our relations' – family, friends, foreign 'others', animals, plants, and most especially the Earth.
This Sagittarius Full Moon supports our taking that 'leap of faith' we've all been struggling with. Can we let go of our fear of the Unknown and trust in our vision that we CAN create a better world?
The full moon is conjoined with Pluto, taking on the lunar qualities of Persephone, who is wed to Hades/Pluto. (Another Sacred Marriage!) Persephone represents the aspect of lunar consciousness that reflects the Unconscious and brings back insights to enrich our lives. Persephone descends into the depths so she can bring back new riches from the underworld. To have a balanced life, we need to descend to the Unconscious periodically. (We do it nightly when we sleep.)
These riches – ideas, inspirations, visions, wisdom – will be extra potent since Mercury turns direct the next day, June 19th one degree from the last Gemini New Moon. Mercury has been traveling in the depths this month, so what intentions and new seeds did you plant at the New Moon? What have you become aware of these past two weeks? Listen to your dreams, write them down, work with them until you understand the messages your soul is sending you.
Pluto has just stepped back into Sagittarius (on Friday, June 13th) for one more glimpse of the evolutionary information he channeled last December 11th when he joined up with Jupiter near the Galactic Center. (Pluto will retrograde back to within minutes of that conjunction before turning direct on September 8th.) Pluto in Sagittarius wants to bring the riches of our spirituality and beliefs into our everyday life. Time to re-adjust and really walk our talk.
The asteroid Hera/Juno, the archetype of relationship, is on the degree of that December conjunction, reawakening it and connecting us to it. (This theme is repeated, making it important.) The dream I had in December implied that there will be a new dispensation (the Pleiads shining in a daytime sky). So act as if it is real, and make it so.
Pluto so often brings us soul-shaking transformation, and yet once we open to this energy of the Underworld – the dark, the uncanny, the vast 'spaces' of the inner world – we can connect to Pluto's other aspect, as lord of the treasures of the Earth, master of the Earth's power to grant blessings. The Moon's power is to be receptive, to be open to new perceptions, to be responsive. It is the moon who integrates the energies of the Unconscious. With Pluto joining her, the Moon deepens our perceptions, opens us to the information that the Gemini Sun beams at her.
The Sabian Symbol for the Sun at 28 Gemini is: Society granting bankruptcy to him, a man leaves the court with mixed feelings. This symbol implies a new protection, the ability to begin a new life, release from pressure and renewed optimism for the future. Read the news. We can buckle under to the negativity of our collective situation, or we can see this as an opportunity. The greatest opportunity presented to us in this moment in our history is to become social artists – people who have traveled the inner realms and have the ability to heal the wounds of our society and the Earth. Committing bankruptcy in a bankrupt world isn't as bad as you might imagine!
So the Sun, which is conjoined with Venus, (the goddess of love and connection in the sign of Cancer connects us to the inner security of our soul), sends the Moon its light this Solstice season. The Sabian Symbol for the Moon at 28 Sagittarius is: A Splendidly built bridge, a heritage of unknown ages, still spans the beautiful and wildly primitive stream. The moon, taking in the new freedom that we gain when we leave our old perceptions of what is important behind (there is no money 'energy' left for the old system to operate with - bankruptcy) offers us another way. The bridge, a heritage of an 'unknown' pre-historical age, just might be a bridge to Faerie, or to the Collective Unconscious. It must be a strong bridge, because it has survived the ages. It might provide us with shortcuts that we might not otherwise perceive. It spans a beautiful and wildly primitive stream, almost like a boundary to another 'world'.
The instructions are: We can't solve our personal and collective problems with the same tools that got us into trouble (our rational mind). We need to leave a bankrupt system behind and take this ancient bridge offered to us and explore the land beyond “the beautiful and wildly primitive stream.” Earth herself will give rise to the solutions we are searching for – how to have a full and fulfilled life without engaging in a bankrupt system and how to solve the issues of a society in chaos, operating without the tools of transformation and healing that are already available but still collectively unacceptable.
Uranus at 23 Pisces (a materializing medium) squares this full moon. A square implies an obstacle which challenges us to change. So many of us have a vision of what we want to do, but are afraid to take the 'leap of faith' that might bring that vision into manifestation. Get out of your comfort zone and try something new. Uranus is slowing down to turn retrograde on June 26th so its energy is more potent. Uranus is the wild card of the zodiac, so stay open to magic happening.
There is a 'mystic rectangle' formed at this full moon - two pairs of oppositions that sextile and trine each other. A mystic rectangle offers a strong sense of balance and structure, of harmony between the four planets involved. Finding this balance will take conscious effort and awareness. Work with the trines and sextiles to make sense of and find the point of integration for the two oppositions. Once this point of balance is found, it's easy to maintain, and the energy will provide a strong foundation for your work.
So, the two Oppositions (demanding attention and awareness) are:
Moon/Pluto opposing Sun/Venus. See above.
Neptune opposing Mars. When Mars and Neptune oppose each other, we have to become aware of and integrate our personal desires (Mars at 23 Leo: show your courage and mastery of powerful energies) with the greater good of the community (Neptune at 25 Aquarius: a need to bring balance into a situation).
The Sextiles (opportunity) are:
Mars sextile Sun/Venus: Martian courage lets us leave the past behind.
Neptune sextile Moon/Pluto: Neptunian vision is accessed by opening deeply to the Unconscious.
The Trines (talents, luck) are:
Mars trine Moon/Pluto: Courageously and passionately stand by your beliefs.
Neptune trine Sun/Venus: Let your imagination and spirituality guide your innate love of beauty and sense of future possibilities.
We are completing the first quarter phase of the round of the zodiac. Aries through Gemini defines our personal desires, talents and perceptions that will serve as the basis of this year's growth. Use this full moon energy to consolidate your understanding of who you are and what you really want this year, for we are heading into wild times!
If you need a guide to understanding your dreams or how these energies are affecting you personally through your birth chart, call me for an appointment. 310-741-7013.
Blessed Be,
Cathy Pagano