"I see skies of blue, and clouds of white
The bright blessed day, the dark sacred night
And I think to myself
What a wonderful world."
What a Wonderful World ~ Thiele and Weiss

The whole-hearted optimism and idealism of this wildly popular song that Louis Armstrong pretty much owned would probably cause it to fall flat on its face were it released today. Cynicism, deep pessimism and hypocrisy are rampant. Just reading the news is an exercise in developing emotional resilience — assuming you can manage to avoid getting depressed.  But as we try to pull back from the edge of causing our own extinction, as we try to figure out how to deal with the obvious insanity of our culture (did you read the one about how they just restarted a nuclear reactor located two miles away from a highly active volcano that is close to erupting?), as we try to keep our own lives on track, it is important to remember that the simple joys, the sacred moments, the acts of blessing and being blessed are experiences inherent to our human consciousness, experiences that connect us with Spirit and bring healing. Nurturing those experiences is the work of the healers of the world -- and we are all healers, if we choose to be.

“Everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms—to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s own way.” ~ Viktor E. Frankl (neurologist, psychiatrist, Holocaust survivor)

It is only by changing our consciousness as individuals that we can change the world we live in. This month’s Full Moon reminds us that we are being called to a level of transformation that requires leaving cynicism, pessimism and hypocrisy behind as we become more and more aware of the effects of consciousness on physical reality.  The ramifications of the choices we make every day about how we use our minds, thoughts and emotions reverberate through our lives in the same way a plucked string on a guitar sets the other strings vibrating, even though they are untouched.

Unless you are a complete materialist, and believe that there is no existence or awareness separate from what your brain generates, and that brain is no more than the result of a process that began with the entirely random knocking together of atoms in a primordial soup, then you know that consciousness extends not only within and throughout physical reality, but in a reality that exists beyond the borders of time and space. (I am not questioning the mechanisms of the evolutionary process here, BTW, just the “entirely random” part.)

We have considerable and accumulating evidence that consciousness does continue to exist after death, and between lives, and that consciousness — or perhaps I should refer to it as Consciousness — not only exists outside time and space, but is responsible for the creation of it. If you have experienced this reality — whether you believe in creator gods or a single God or simply the non-theistic existence of the Tao —  then you realize that Consciousness is primary, the Source. From there, it is an easy step to conclude that your own consciousness must also be creative and influential, since it is part of the greater Consciousness that is the force behind all creation.

“I too have felt despair many times in my life, but I do not keep a chair for it; I will not entertain it. It is not allowed to eat from my plate “ Clarissa Pinkola-Estes

We live within a mass co-creation of consciousness, an existence in which we have a great deal of free will as to how we use that consciousness, use our minds. And, as any magician knows, we can train ourselves to use our minds, our thoughts and our feelings with intention and discipline. Attitudes of cynicism and pessimism are defended because they supposedly are reflective of reality, yet they help create the very reality they reflect, and are, in fact, not intellectual stances but emotional attitudes that allow us to justify numbing out and denying our emotions. These attitudes allow us to avoid feeling pain and despair, but they also deny us joy and a connection with Spirit that feeds our souls.

This is not to say we should suppress or deny any negative emotions that arise — on the contrary, it is important that we acknowledge them, understand their source, and work our way through to an understanding that allows us to release them. Despair, rage, resentment, grief, depression — all of these emotions tell us that it is time for change and hopefully spur us to action. But to hold on to them — to keep a chair for them, to entertain them — is to resist change, and numb our ability to authentically and deeply feel, to connect with Spirit, to sense the sacred, to bless and be blessed.

“Your spirit joined itself with flesh, and in flesh, to experience a world of incredible richness, to help create a dimension of reality of colors and of form. Your spirit was born in flesh to enrich a marvelous area of sense awareness, to feel energy made into corporeal form. "You are here to use, enjoy, and express yourself through the body. You are here to aid in the great expansion of consciousness. You are not here to cry about the miseries of the human condition, but to change them when you find them not to your liking through the joy, strength and vitality that is within you; to create the spirit as faithfully and beautifully as you can in flesh."  ~ Seth in The Nature of Personal Reality by Jane Roberts (Session 615)

What is needed now is a re-connection with the creativity and love that the mystics of most religions and spiritual paths tell us is at the heart of existence and awareness — the Source. We need to remember what is possible, that we *can* turn things around, that we *can* make a difference. Clinging to cynicism and despair will do nothing but breed more cynicism and despair. We must actively seek out the best of what it means to be human and remember that we are here to learn and to change.

"Fear is the path to the dark side. Fear leads to anger. Anger leads to hate. Hate leads to suffering.” ~ Yoda

There is a dark side to this Full Moon chart, of course, one that engenders a great deal of confusion, delusion, and outright deception, as well as a staunch refusal to see the forest for the trees. We are also likely to see fear that may shade into panic. You’ll need to watch out for these tendencies in yourself, but also consider how to deal with them in others. Carry around a salt shaker, so you have plenty of grains to take with all the promises and declarations that are made. Finding clarity is key over these next couple of weeks, but it will not come from either obsessive attention to material details or wishful prayers to gods, spirits or ancestors.  Clarity comes when you draw inspiration and fearless awareness from Spirit, then take the action necessary to make that inspiration manifest in the world. Dream big, then go chop wood, carry water, and let go of your fear.

Now, lest you think I am randomly blathering, let’s bring this back to the chart, and the reasons why these ideas are so important right now, and will be highlighted over the course of the next two weeks or so) (That’s the average reach of influence of a Full Moon chart, unless it is an eclipse). You can find the chart here, cast for Washington, DC, which offers a look at the energies at play in the USA over the next couple of weeks.

(In addition to the aspects discussed below, astrology students should also note the tight conjunction of Mercury and the North Node at the Mercury-ruled Virgo MC, the Venus-Mars conjunction in Leo in the 8th and its aspects [give Mars a trine to Uranus even though it is too wide to show on the aspect grid], the multiple aspects to Uranus, and Saturn in Scorpio hanging out in the twelfth house like a forensic accountant looking for trouble in the archived files of a business. The T-square may not be exact, but it’s there. Also note Jupiter’s rulership of the AS.)

The main thing to look at is the signs and aspects of Moon and Sun. By definition, the signs involved are in opposition, a polarity — in this case, Pisces and Virgo, a polarity that emphasizes the vast reaches of space and consciousness, and the tiniest of material details to be found within the universe of an atom. Jupiter, co-ruler of Pisces, is in Virgo, where it is challenged to find eternity in an hour and expand while not losing sight of important details. (As an aside, I expect some major breakthroughs in the realm of physics, particularly particle physics, while Jupiter moves through Virgo over the next year, and Uranus continues through Aries).

"Space and Time! now I see it is true, what I guess'd at, What I guess'd when I loaf'd on the grass, What I guess'd while I lay alone in my bed, And again as I walk'd the beach under the paling stars of the morning. My ties and ballasts leave me, my elbows rest in sea-gaps, I skirt sierras, my palms cover continents, I am afoot with my vision.~ Walt Whitman “Song of Myself”

Jupiter is also still conjunct Sun, and in opposition to the conjunction of Moon and Neptune in Pisces. We are looking at a complex and powerful aspect pattern, and my best advice for handling it is to take whatever situations arrive and look at them from a spiritual perspective (whatever that means to you), and then take a reality check. You’ll need both points of view. This aspect can be emotionally, psychically and mentally destabilizing. It’s likely that we will see a number of people having problems with serious dislocations from reality — not just garden-variety mental illnesses, but the kind of psychic mayhem that is often associated with religious frenzy, like the Maenads or drug-induced deliriums. The problem is that clinging tightly to the parameters of time and space reality is not going to help us navigate these times. The lesson we are learning is about the limitations of time and space reality and how we need to look beyond it into the realm of Consciousness to find the solutions to the issues that plague us now. So it’s important to find the reality behind the reality, to see the psychic framework behind physical manifestation and understand the extent to which we can shift that, each one of us, using the Consciousness that we carry in every cell.

So find your physical touchstones, those things that keep you grounded and focused in physical reality and connect with them.  Then find your spiritual touchstones, those relationships with whatever ancestors, guardian spirits and/or deities you work with, and nurture them. Take a close look at the stories you are telling yourself about reality, the emotions that you are feeding (that’s not a typo), the words that you speak to others. Are you doing your best to create consciously and to help heal? Because the times are calling for the best we can give.

And that’s what this month’s Full Moon in Pisces is all about!

If you want to know more about how these aspects will affect you personally, drop me a note, and we’ll set up a consultation. Also, be sure to pick up your copy of my free guide to "Planning  Your Day With The Moon" here. That will also subscribe you to my weekly newsletter.