Rodeo

They say the more things change the more they stay the same, words we must wait and see if they hold water, as Uranus is preparing to transition into Taurus after seven years time in Aries, where he will be trine by sign to Saturn and even slower moving Pluto. What does it mean to have these planets in earth signs? Saturn the planet of time, of chronology, of the skeletal architecture of reality itself as well as the hard laws of nature; Uranus, the planet of sudden, unpredictable shifts, of innovation, discovery, revolution, destabilization, chaos and turbulence. Pluto the planet of the beyond, of passing known limits, of raw power, of totality and of mystery. Neptune is between them in Pisces, sextile to them both, distributing fantasies of both the primordial source of everything as well as the final flow as it is all wiped away, and everything in between rising and falling like a vast ocean of tragedy and victory. Three of the slowest moving bodies in Earth signs and the other in a water sign. Nocturnal sect, feminine, emotion and sensation, wisdom of the body and the soul. Saturn returns us to the foundations of everything, the ticking clock hidden beneath the surface of our days, and the ruins of our history that are haunted with lessons. He demands the frivolous contract to natures limits, or at least check the soundness of their structure or succumb to collapse. Pluto both beckons and threatens from the black hole heart of this very structure, announcing that there is more than what we can see and touch, but it is on the other side; intangible and dangerous. Uranus floats down from the frenetic fires of our spirits and lands upon the earth where he nestles himself into the mud and amongst the tumbler bucket of granite and basalt begins to quake and shift the plates, shake the ground beneath us and agitate the magma. That this shifting is in harmony with Saturn’s weary work in Capricorn, inspecting the buildings we collectively inhabit makes sense. The inspector is intensely conservative, and as he has caught the juvenile delinquents in their den of iniquity having disrespected all codes of decency he glowers over his ledgers and announces “there are going to be some changes around her.” Saturn is not one for change himself, but as he goes along and gladly marks every unstable support Uranus will follow with his dual teams of demolition and renovation. With Pluto in the ranks there are no limits to how dramatically the world will be altered. Kiss the world you know goodbye.

Uranus’ seven year stretch in Taurus straddles the last few years of the Earth element epoch, the series of conjuncts between Jupiter and Saturn that occur almost always in one element for about two centuries, and extends into the first few years of the Air Epoch we are headed into in December of 2020. The entire industrial era of human culture occurred within the confines of this Earth elemental Epoch which is very shortly coming to a close. The last Earth element epoch before that was situated roughly between the 11th and 13th century: the High Middle Ages when population in Europe increased, the climate warmed, technological and agricultural advancements were made, emphasis was put on trade, society was organized feudally and the Crusades were hosted. This time around it would appear that Uranus is poised to radically change how we think of materials, craft and agriculture as the Great Chronocrators (Jupiter and Saturn) usher us in to an era marked by everything Air element: intellect, socialization, analysis, abstraction, information, conceptual paradox, media and culture. Clearly we have one whole foot on the other side of the threshold, likely due to the 1980-1981 interruption to the pattern which occurred in Libra when major strides where made in computers and communications technology, as well as the mean conjunction (average mathematical projection, like the rhythm of the cycle, the metronome under the music even if the music contains syncopation) in 2000, a major year for internet development.

This current week in which the Uranus ingress is nestled speaks curiously and perhaps prophetically of its significance in greater scope.

Sunday May 13th

Uranus’ time in Aries was in many ways a textbook expression: Aries hardline impulsive individuality saw major revolutions in digital culture especially the expansion of platforms of social media where people’s identities were literally revolutionized, for better or for worse. Uranus’ action tends toward technological innovation, so it is no surprise the expression of individual personality in this era went totally electronic, beaming and zapping from pocket to pocket by some kind of ricocheting plasma. The past period pushed sophisticated phones on nearly everyone, even those you would never expect to even touch only a couple years prior. People are more known for their “handles” rather than for their physical selves, and appear scentless and trigger happy on the other end of cellular data compulsively broadcasting shattered fragments of themselves, contextually ruptured and disengaged from space. This forecast is not an essay on digital culture and what it represents, we all will continue to sit with that more in the days to come, but it is more than worth noting what Uranus has been up to since he leaped into the Ram’s sign. Perhaps the most acute culmination of his business was the time he spent opposite Jupiter throughout 2017, where the unity/disunity and everything revolving the aftermath of the last election was clearly visible in the mass polarization: left, right, black, white, queer, straight, rich, poor, in, out, organic, conventional, local, exported, central, de-central, etc. Frequent large protests brought like minds together while sectionalization opened fissures up throughout the media projected conglomerate and it was possible to micro-marginalize or ostracize absolutely any definable difference. Beside ceaseless categorization we saw much of the world destabilized diplomatically as Uranus found vents in Aries hot channels of outright confrontation. High noon shoot outs and open threats amongst enemies. Uranus is of course a mixed bag, as amongst all this turbulence we gained the ability to create and choose our own media, to pull massive amounts of information into the light such as the translation of myriad texts previously languishing in dead tongues, and to run businesses and fund for ourselves in unique and personal ways. In moments of chaos there are usually rare opportunities.

At 7am on Sunday Morning Mercury conjoins Uranus to review, analyze and organize thinking on all of these revolts and eureka’s Uranus incited and give the outer planet one last opportunity to tell all before he steps forward and tastes Taurus for the first time in 76 years (May 14 1942). Our language and logic might get an influx of high voltage that makes light bulbe glow so brightly they may burst, our ideas showering over us in hot shards and sparks, especially ideas about who we are and how we can or have revolutionized ourselves and are prepared for change, the chromosomal fluid we secrete in our cellular grey matter is volatile and reactive, and could very well seep into our lower body as the Moon is quickly catching up to the conjunction. The square from Mercury to Mars is just separating and the square from Mars to Uranus is steadily applying, so the tension wires certainly flow with an unstable current and connect the computer of our minds to the mechanics of our tongue, so watch out for whiplash if conversations get at all escalated. Some may rocket off on missions here, propelled by something Jack Parson’s cooked up, and if so we might have to say “see you next century” instead of “bon voyage”, even if they return soon it’ll seem like recently as they orbited the earth to get home and also came up through a wormhole or wrinkle in time. It might not sound like a passcode or secret word but something you say or someone says could spark an episode of hypnosis that lasts for years or even the rest of your life, reacting to the shifting floorboards that rise and fall chaotically like piano keys, ebony and ivory, with your identity likely to get caught in the works or chew you up and spit you out a new person, or at least someone who’s actions and impulses are scrambled. The quick thinking that can go on here is not for everyone. Racing minds and ecstatic moods are highly symptomatic. Hold on, the ride takes a serious dive in just an hour and a half.

Mercury has scarcely got his interview with Uranus off the ground before the radio dial gets spun and we find Hermes broadcasting from a much slower and steadier channel, maybe reporting live from a Sunday morning country antiques show where there are plenty of sweets and comfort foods in buffet troughs. Mercury in Taurus’ first face physicalizes the intellect, sort of making for a “money talks” or “the proof is in the pudding” kind of logic but free of the confrontational attitude. Thinking slows way down which is good for making future plans and getting the ball rolling with the prep work where you look at your resources and consider how you can smooth them out for abundance to maybe seat within them as long as your steady plans go undisturbed. Quite a bit of taking a minute to think things over in Taurus where Mercury is kind of perpetually inclined to sleeping on it. Interesting how looking into the identity information vortex in this case precedes this drastic thought motion shift, as if what we glimpse has us instantly digging our heels in and throwing on the breaks to some degree. “Whoa, whoa, whoa, waittt onnne mminnute.”

Later that day at 2pm the Moon catches up to Uranus which has us always suddenly feeling like a change, becoming able to comfortably destabilize temporarily to make domestic or relationship alterations, under the sway of rather impulsive emotions. She does the exact same thing as Mercury though and proceeds right into Taurus, catching up with the Messenger within the hour as she drains toward her degree of greatest exaltation right after, supporting the idea that the jolt from the bolt has us hit the ground then sends us running for cover, finding safety in gradual processes, safe sequences, natural rhythms and steady paces.

Tuesday May 15th

After just a brief rodeo astride a lightening bolt Uranus glides like a gentle meteor into Taurus earth at 7:33am (EST) and in slow motion displaces hundreds of miles of soil, rock, mantle and crust, the pace of his entry and subsequent travel varying from 1x to 1/2x to 2x and so forth randomly, so you never know how much displacement and earthly motion happens in any given frame of time. It might seem nothing happens for a year and then Pangea branches off into multiple continents in the matter of minutes. One day we wear rubber rain boots, the next we wear stillsuits. One day our energy comes from distant nuclear reactors the next we read by the light of glowing plants. The pace with which the story unfolds will be wildly variable, although, it is worth saying that perhaps in Taurus, even though Uranus is sure to shake earth, the slow and steady bull is the least deterred by Uranus’ quakes of all the signs.

Be prepared to be flexible and experimental with areas of your life as Uranus’ energy breaks from one house and enters another in each of your charts. He may fall into the background over the course of the seven years, but the sudden shift from say your art to your health, as well as from your inspiration and drive to your body and stuff, is going to be noticeable, the type of occurrence which has people who don’t follow astrology going “what the hell is going on right now?!? Everything just went crazy!” You’ll want to be ready to work with the changing environment, playing off the new results rather than expecting everything to go back to normal in fifteen minutes. Its not going to, so, put on your lab coats and goggles.

Quite telling of what we really are dealing with here the New Moon occurs in the other end of Taurus just twelve minutes after the Uranus ingress. New beginnings of prayer and petition dawn for the security of fecundity and promise of bounty. Is this simply a coincidence or symbolic that yes this is a new epoch of foods and goods, what they do and how they are made. How does this effect the environment and the world’s delicate ecology as there is a near consensus that we are on the brink of extinction, and the wrathful incarnation of Mother Earth is at this point, we assume, wide fucking awake. This fateful lunation occurs in the 5th Lunar Mansion, Al-Haqa, which extends from 21° 25' 43'' Taurus – 4° 17' 09'' Gemini, and in this way takes on much of Gemini’s significances, again mirroring the transition from an Earth to Air paradigm. Christopher Warnock says “this is a Mansion of thought and mind. It signifies the energy of the Mind of the Universe, particularly as manifest in the intellect of each person. It indicates the successful solution of an intellectual problem or the necessity of applying intelligence to a current dilemma.” It is traditionally good for study, art, intellectual pursuits, petitioning superiors, traveling, journeys by water and returning home from travels as well as haircuts and hair washing. Hopefully this is more than literal, as much of the world desperately need their heads cleaned out by vigorous intellectual as well as artistic activity with the worst parts pruned back or chopped off all together. I for one am hoping that the very near simultaneous events remain connected throughout the longer transit.

Wednesday May 16th

Over night a pair activities happen in another instance of quick succession. Mars enters Aquarius at 1am and then perfects a square to Uranus two hours later. In Aquarius Mars is libel to instigate revolutions, fight for change, pursue rebellious exploits, experience alienation from actions, become the isolated maverick engaged in frontier-lands confrontations. When he squares Uranus there is typically also rebelliousness, impulsiveness, and revolution. Aquarius Mars in tension with and clashing against Uranus in Taurus. Fringe and frontier action or outsider confrontation in tension with material change and innovations of fecundity or turbulence in steady pace or sudden shifts in planning. Maybe a lot less desirable as a signature rooted in this ingress and tethered to the next seven year narrative, but perhaps it is a necessary one. This is the other “Whoa, whoa, whoa, wait a minute!” But not the hold on, slow down, lets think about this. Its the severances and ruptures in the fringes of society that sound a rash alarm and confront the slow plodding technocracy to speed up and save our lives. Its the voice of the marginalized, as well as their torches, pitchforks and other artillery. To a large degree this appears as one part of science talking to the other, and not in a friendly way. Later we might find that the demands were not the cause of the change that takes place, it was inevitable, but still, it might be the cry that triggers the avalanche.

Appropriately, the Sun passes by Algol at 10:45pm and looks the Gorgon’s Head right in the face. Visions and identification with natural disaster, or, the primal, creative destructive, current vitalizes our consciousness, the face of the wrathful female divine, the creative/destructive force of female kundalini energy. Babylon herself is in this star, and seemingly right on time. Of course the Sun visits this star every year on this day in contemporary times, but the synchronicity of all this space weather coming together all at once spells out a telling sentence, one which is the opening line of a rather raucous ecological thriller, where money is shredded and dangles from between a Ghoul Goddess’ teeth. I’m aware that this is pretty much a collective fantasy right now, but she is not likely to punish the male’s of the species and hand sovereignty over to the women. When she acts it is purely in the essence of destruction, or alternately, in protection against the kind of destruction she is capable of. All men are her sons and all women are her daughters. From her we have come and to her we shall return. Time to get to know her as fast as we can starting right now.

Friday May 18th

Next up Mercury sextiles Saturn at just after noon on Friday bringing into perspective detailed awareness of our flaws, critical changes we make in future plans work hand in hand with obligations, restrictions and the structure of foundational hierarchies, or more resonantly the very laws of nature. This is ultimately good. You can do this and you can’t do that. Something that should really hopefully start to sink in for those out there churning up water on jet-skis and so on. Nature does have rules, we just break them all the time. This is uncomfortable for anyone born in the past century, but hopefully not be for those born in the current one. We’ll see. Of course this all applies to your personal or professional life as well, and encompasses much more dreary issues like mortgages and taxes, but take a tip from nature here to and consider how resources operate organically to inform your economic strategies or whatever area of life being affected. Our analogies and metaphors should begin to be opened with phrasing such as “its like a river…”, or, “consider a wetland…” rather than “its a smooth running machine.” As we now know, no matter how smooth it once ran it will eventually destroy itself and everything else along with it.

Saturday May 19th

Venus steps into the realm of Cancer at 9am Saturday, focusing on emotionality in relationships, emotional art and aesthetics, sentiment, need and reciprocity. Aesthetics surrounding the love which emanates from the Mother & Child dynamic. Here there is value in dependance, but for the most part it is affectionate and sweet.

Not long after Mercury moves into Taurus’s second face where he deepens his attention to long sequences and processes. He retains his planning abilities but becomes more stubborn in his thinking and is prone to becoming mentally stagnant or unable to see outside of the box. In this state the Bull is likely to proceed down the wrong road without realizing it because he’s not looking up. Luckily for us he is not here for very long, so try to prep your mental permaculture while he’s got the tape screwed because he ends up in Gemini in only a few weeks time snapping the reel into multitrack mode.

In the afternoon Venus sextiles Uranus, which can be exciting for finding new friends, flings, parties, and make breaks from boring art and people, but also, can be quite disturbing to pleasure and upsetting to values. Cancer prioritizes comfort and protected space where careful incubation can occur and Uranus puts the nursery in the hull of a ship and then revs up the wind and summons up some waves. Not impossible but a bit more turbulent than expected. There is still milk and cookies and a string quartet but the milk is spilling and splashing everywhere, the cookies are rolling down the deck and the bows are getting jerked across the strings as the boat rolls back and forth. This is maybe a little more rocking than baby requires.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Moon of Hyldemoer Herbal Notes for Liminal Light

May 13 2018--May 19 2018

These notes are suggestions for herbal allies to assist with the effects of the cosmic influences of this week. As stated in earlier weeks, before imbibing any of the herbs recommended, research what is a recommended dosage, & ask yourself & research such questions as, Does this herb interfere with any medications I am taking?, Does this herb match with my constitution?, Do I really need to take this herb into my body? Be wise: listen to your own body, intuition, guiding spirits & the plants themselves.

Imbibing the herbs recommended is of course only one way of meeting the herbs. There are multitudinous manners of developing relationships with our herbal allies including sitting with the fresh or dry herbs, or a picture/drawing of the herb, making an amulet to wear or have on your altar (adhering to planetary hours/days is important here), visioning or meditating with the plant, & taking an herbal body or foot bath (In this case remember your skin is the largest organ of your body). Use your imagination & listen to the plants, they have been on this planet much longer than we have, are our Elders & have much wisdom to offer.

In this time of slow, steady Saturn & the mysterious depths of Pluto in earthly Capricorn, mixed with Lightning Uranus moving into earthen Taurus, we need to call upon our grounding tonic & nervous system allies, but also befriend our quixotic, stimulant comrades to help us work with the frenetic Uranian energy that is upon us. Some of our stable, nourishing, grounding plant allies are Milky Oat Tops/Oatstraw (Avena sativa), Dandelion (Taraxacum officinale), & Nettle (Urtica dioica). As teas or tinctures these allow one to walk on the Earth with solid, strength-filled steps. Adding nervines like Lemon Balm (Melissa officinalis) & relaxing, alert Linden (Tillia Cordata) offers another level of spirit lift. Sitting with ones back against stable White Oak (Quercus alba), heart opening (& protecting at the same time) Hawthorn (Craetagus ssp.), or flexible & generous Willow (Salix ssp.) or Birch (Betula ssp.) will help us embody these qualities ourselves. Quixotic herbs that move through our beings & spirits quickly focusing on the circulatory system are Cayenne (Capsicum anuum) & Ginger (Zingiber officinale). Added to tinctures, tea blends, food, & magical work, these two fiery beings (Hot Cayenne of course being of Mars & Ginger of Mars as well, with a bit more warming Sun energy) will add the necessary quick steps, thoughts & ways that are needed as the Earth rumbles beneath our feet. So as Uranus moves into Taurus at 7:33 am EST on Tuesday, May 15, call upon any of these flexible, grounding, or lightning style plant allies that you feel will help you embrace the sudden changes & jolts of Uranus grounding into the slow paced Earth. On Wednesday, May 16, as Mars squares Uranus in the early morning hours & later as the Sun is facing Agol, the Gorgon's head, the wrathful feminine divine of Babylon, continue ones work with ones chosen warrior herb(s) for the year as well as pay homage to Motherwort (Leonurus cardiaca) for this tough love plant ally will not put up with the shit of the last century & help us move into a wiser, stronger, more intuitive way at the same time as call out the madness for what it is. Motherwort will also help us step up into the strength & personal truth that are so necessary during the intense changes of these challenging times. As forewarned in the forecast, "Kiss the world you know goodbye." & who better to have as an ally than the wrathful feminine divine. At least this is how I plan to roll, don't cry over spilled milk, this is a gift for the Fey.