Urania's Well: Astrology for Changing Times


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Seductive and Dangerous: An Artist’s New Moon

b2ap3_thumbnail_1280px-Van_Gogh_-_Starry_Night_-_Google_Art_Project.jpg"I would venture to warn against too great intimacy with artists as it is very seductive and a little dangerous."
Queen Victoria

The Wheel of the Year has turned past the Summer Solstice, so Friday’s New Moon is in Cancer, just a few days before our Mom, apple pie and fireworks patriot-fest on July 4th here in the USA. I suspect there will be all kinds of fireworks in the upcoming month, both literal and figurative. But given the Mars-Uranus opposition in this chart, I strongly advise taking extra precautions if you are working with anything flammable or explosive! Here’s the chart, as usual cast for Washington, DC, and predictive for the month ahead for the country. It’s also broadly predictive, on a more personal level, for those of us living here.

(And yes, I know I said I’d send my newsletter out on the New Moon, but that will be the *next* New Moon, so if you signed up and you’re wondering where it is…well, this blog post is all you get for this one. :-) And if you didn’t sign up, you can remedy that right here)

This is a chart of Water and Air, and if you’re an artist, you should get to work. There’s a lot of creative energy floating around this month, but — artist or not — keep in mind that trying to be too clever and bright can work against your emotional and spiritual relationships. Cleverness tends to be ego-driven, and you’ll want to watch your own ego this month, remembering to, as Steven Covey put it, “seek first to understand, then to be understood.” There’s lots of emotional, connecting energy you can draw on this month, but you are also likely to see plenty of people in full look-at-me peacock mode, demanding attention and respect. Get clear now on just how much posturing and nonsense you are going to put up with, and have a plan to deal with it politely but firmly when you find yourself in the middle of someone else’s drama. If you can get past ego needs — your own and others —  the chart also offers lovely opportunities for deep connections with family, friends and tribe.

There’s a strong illusionary, trickster vibe in the air this month, a tendency to distraction, and to deception. (Astrologers will note the strong Gemini influence in this chart — it is the Ascendant, and holds both Venus and sign ruler Mercury. Mercury has a strong Trickster aspect, which is more obvious when it’s retrograde, and Venus in and ruling the twelfth, square Neptune is quite seductive and dangerous, keeping whatever it can low-lighted or under wraps). There are also patterns that support strongly transformative, life-changing emotional experiences. (Water emphasis, Sun and Moon trine Neptune, oppose Pluto. Venus-Neptune square). Magical/meditative work to develop the Observer, monitor your thought patterns, and deeply connect to your personal spiritual foundation will benefit not only you but those around you.

 

This work could simply be a matter of interacting intuitively with the items on your personal altar to balance the expression of the Elements in your life. (Don’t have a personal altar? There’s never a bad time to start one.) Begin by renewing your altar at the New Moon, making sure you have at least one object to represent each element. Create sacred space however you do that, then call in the Elements. Spend some time considering how you manifest each Element in your life, and how you might want to change or strengthen those manifestations. For instance, you may realize, when meditating on Air, that you have a tendency to gossip, or spend too much time on Facebook. You may also acknowledge that you are the communication lifeline in your family (is that a good thing, or not?) and that you are an excellent teacher. Find items that symbolize what you want to keep and what you want to change, then put them on the appropriate area of the altar. Once you’ve done this for all the Elements (you may want to journal about your insights), set some clear intentions for the month ahead.

Now when you visit your altar, you can add items or take them away, move them around, let the whole altar be a spell for balance through the Elements that you renew every day. It needn’t take more than a few minutes of your daily routine — just ground, center, tune in, and let your intuition tell you where you need strengthening, how the energy needs to move. You may want to physically connect with each element (candle, incense, etc.) if you have the time. Once you’ve set the pattern on the altar, take a moment to internalize it. to let it settle within you, then take it out into the day.

Taking this chart out into the big wide world, we can see not only deception, but a warlike vibe for the country, and some major clashes of belief systems likely in the upcoming month. The Gemini ascendant and Aquarius MC suggest putting information in service to the collective — and there are a lot of different and interesting ways that could play out. Working your own personal or group magic to strengthen clarity of communication and freedom of speech (these will be major issues this month) can make a big difference. So please, do your part to change the world!

In mid-July, we have Saturn and Uranus stationing within days of each other — Saturn going direct, Uranus retrograde. I’ll update you on that in the next post. 

 

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Diotima Mantineia began studying astrology in 1968, taking classes from Zoltan Mason in New York City. For the next 22 years, she practiced astrology only for herself and her friends, continuing her studies while watching an increasingly humanistic, psychologically oriented, modern astrology blossom through the work of leading astrologers such as Noel Tyl, Liz Greene, Rob Hand, Marion March, Stephen Arroyo and Howard Sasportas. In 1986, Diotima began her study of Wicca and started reading Tarot, discovering that she is a gifted intuitive. In 1991, she began practicing both astrology and Tarot professionally. She majored in plant and soil science both in college and grad school, and grows much of her own food and "materia magica" on her land in the mountains of western North Carolina. Diotima’s personal spiritual path is rooted in the Western mystery traditions, the principles of Yoga, and a profound connection with the natural world. Wicca gives structure to her spiritual journey, and she utilizes shamanic practices for healing and to live in harmony with Nature. Over 15 years of studying Chinese martial arts has given her a deep appreciation of Taoist thought which has strongly influenced her magical and personal philosophy. You can find her at www.uraniaswell.com

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