Thursday, May 28, 2009

Wholeness and the Inner Marriage














The Chiron Sector and Relationship

© By Joyce Mason, 1992 - 2009

Key Words and Concepts

The many keywords for Chiron fit into a one-word concept—wholeness. For instance, Chironic people and things act as a “rainbow bridge” between Saturn and Uranus, synthesizing the best of the old and new. Chiron's job is to intercede between tradition (the way things have always been) and (r) evolution (the way things need to become). Chiron is the ambassador between these extremes, helping us to weave all polarities within the fabric of ourselves. The tapestry that results is wholeness. The threads for weaving into the fabric of our Selves include male/female, light/dark, and the pairs of astrological opposites: Aries/Libra, Taurus/Scorpio, and so on.

Another key word, alternatives, clearly points to Chiron's balancing or equalizing function. When the Establishment becomes too Saturnian (like the American Medical Association), we seek alternatives (in this case, we even call the alternative holistic medicine, another Chironic term).

One of my favorite Chironic words is shamanism. The shamanistic journey creates wholeness by dismembering the shaman. The dark night of the soul involves being ripped apart, facing death and/or demons, then being put back together again. Only when a member of the tribe has successfully faced this initiation does he or she become convincing (and trustworthy) as a healer and guide to help others become whole. Metaphorically, astrologers and other healers fulfill this function by dealing with their own “stuff,” be it physical or emotional dis-ease or other issues. To be perceived as authentic, modern-day shamans, too, must be willing to face their own darkness. We often face darkness by recreating the original wound (Chiron's wounded healer dimension), thereby experiencing some form of psychic death in order to be resurrected.

In another classic exercise in the integration of polarities, shamans were often required to cross-dress and live as the opposite sex. [1] In a modern-day parallel, we're all being asked to put the shoe on the other foot—to try on the recessive characteristics of the opposite sex within us. While we’re getting there, more than thirty years after the women’s movement, many people still aren't used to this, the real sexual revolution. Perhaps if we remember the Chironic balance-to-wholeness function, we'll keep trying to walk in each other's moccasins until we find a pair of comfortable “cross-trainers.” This thought may be difficult to hold while the fabric of how we relate as men and women is being ripped apart, like the shaman-in-training. After all, new shoes often pinch until they're broken in.

Kicking off our shoes for the moment and getting back to key words, some of the following qualities of Chiron are associated with various signs of the zodiac: synthesizes (Virgo), balances (Libra), dies and resurrects (Scorpio). Chiron was a teacher and mentor, dispensing a balanced “higher” education (Sagittarius). Chiron's students learned physical, metaphysical, and artistic skills. Heroes came out of this holistic body-mind-spirit training.



A hero is someone who demonstrates the ability to contact and act unselfishly from his or her Higher Self in urgent circumstances.

The height of wholeness is to be able to give your best with spontaneity, trusting Spirit to flow through you, where instinct and knowledge merge into just the right action.

This ability comes from the development of intuition, and is part of our lost "…oracular and divination skills ... This level of skill is simply reaching a holistic level of integration where we act without the intervention of conscious thought.” [2]

Rulership
How can wholeness be just one thing?

While Al H. Morrison suggested the subject of rulership became moot once we knew Chiron was a comet, [3] I still believe that any astronomical body can be linked by metaphor to any sign, idea, or process. Because the characteristics of several signs of the zodiac appear within the Chiron myth, single-sign rulership is precluded, but those “signs of many signs” support Chiron's consummate keyword, wholeness. In previous writings, I've suggested that Chiron is most strongly affiliated with Virgo, at least “for now.”[4] From this conviction, coupled with my belief that the sign Virgo has been maligned and misunderstood, [5] I've lived up to my Catholic confirmation name, Joan (of Arc), jumping on my white charger to save the sign of Virgo. At first, I thought this mission was self-serving due to my own Virgo Sun sign. It took awhile before I realized that I was on to something much more: Virgo is the key to understanding Chiron's connection to a process of inner marriage that ultimately leads to wholeness. The process of becoming whole—Chiron's process—is linked with the Virgo-to-Sagittarius sector of the zodiac, with Virgo as the pivotal sign.

From as far back as the first years following discovery, the major theories on Chiron's rulership have focused on Virgo, Libra, Scorpio, and Sagittarius. Collective first instincts often give us the best information we'll ever get about the meaning of symbols in our culture. It’s much like taking a test as a student. Your first, instinctual answer is usually correct.

There have been two primary assumptions about Chiron. Because mythological Chiron was a centaur and a great teacher, some astrologers (e.g., Melanie Reinhart) [6] believe Chiron rules Sagittarius. Others (particularly Barbara Hand Clow) [7] make a case for Virgo rulership based on Chiron's work as a holistic healer and herbalist, as well as his unselfish service to the many heroes he mentored. The surge in holistic healing and the reawakening of esoteric knowledge around the time of Chiron's discovery further supports this connection.

Yet others presume some link between Chiron and Libra, the sign it occupies at perihelion or its orbital point of closest approach to the Sun. [8] Since Chiron guides us to wholeness by way of a balancing act, this is easy to see—more so as this article touches on Chiron's role in relationships. A less held, but significant early theory focused both on Chiron's legendary skills as a surgeon and the observation of Chiron's transits, which can involve pregnancy and birth, sex, parenting, illness and death. Tony Joseph thus made a case for Scorpio co-rulership (with Sagittarius). [9]

My answer to the question, ‘Which sign does Chiron rule?’ is “all of the above,” with this qualification: I agree with Dale O'Brien that the concept of rulership is out of mythical character with Chiron. [10] To rule at some level implies domination, which was never Chiron’s way. He never tried to rein in the other centaurs, the rowdy ones so different from him, who could have well used a dose of leadership and Saturn. So rather than “rule,” I think Chiron enlightens, a concept consistent with his teaching and mentoring role. Chiron enlightens us about this special one-third of the zodiac from Virgo to Sagittarius, where we begin to shift the focus from Self to Other. If we choose to, we can take the trip to wholeness, which centers on integrating the masculine and feminine, regardless of gender or sexual orientation. Chiron can even tell us the steps we have to take to get there.

The Inner Marriage
The path to wholeness and Chiron's purpose cannot be understood until we correct our centuries-long misuse of the word virgo. Liz Greene writes that virgo once meant intact or self-contained. Virgo was represented by the Great Goddess, the Magna Mater, the Great Harlot… and in a sexual sense; she was ‘no virgin.’ [11] As an archetype, she is her own person, offering her femininity freely, as she chooses. To clarify:


A virgo or virgin is not someone who doesn't have sex. She isn't a whore, either. She doesn’t have sex for money or other gain or for any other reason except wanting to give herself.

A virgo does not use her sexual power to manipulate; her purity lies in her integrity. She is whole in and of herself, and therefore has her whole Self to offer
.

This kind of woman or “virgoness" drives the

patriarchy wild because no one can control her. A woman in total abandon, uninhibited in her shakti or life energy, is awe-inspiring, and can raise fear, even in the heart of the maleness within women. Historically, the matrifocal earth religions, characterized in part by shakti running rampant in drumming and ceremony, scared the male powers-that-be. It scared them enough to bring on the Inquisition. (Their charbroiled past lives could be why some of today's women have had the shakti scared out of them.) Psychologists speak of men's envy of women's creative function, which is much more than baby making. The path to wholeness starts at Virgo, where men (and women with dominant male energy) can develop their feminine and full creative potential.

A true Virgo has done the difficult work of self-betterment, aiming for perfection or the best possibility. She chooses carefully to whom and to what she will give herself. She is very self-reliant, merging the mental (left-brain) aspects of traditional Mercury rulership with her feminine (right brain) sign. It is the same for the male Virgo. I am using the feminine because of Virgo's female symbol.
This is the first step to wholeness and can be easily skipped due to our desire for Cup-a-Soup, instant relationships. For love to work as a deep and lasting bond, a person needs good material in a partner. The Virgo of the zodiac symbol would not have a successful harvest if she planted her seeds in poor soil. This aspect of Virgo asks us to analyze our chances; to be sure we take calculated, reasonable risks in love.

Virgo also tells us this about the Chironic process to wholeness: we will not find salvation in another. In order to find joy and happiness with another, we first find our own integrity, or integrate ourselves—that means balancing our masculine and feminine. We think of Virgo as often choosing to remain single. An evolved Virgo will remain single until she finds good material, because masculine and feminine are in balance. She has relationship because she wants to not because she has to. She partners for synergy, where two wholes are more than sum of their parts.

The more intact we enter relationship, the more problems are averted. Most of us try to do Libra and the 7th house before we have successfully learned the Virgo lessons. For sure, marrying ourselves is hard work. Inner marriage means we can't blame anyone but ourselves for our happiness or lack thereof. It demands tough loving our inner child, the sometimes-bratty part in all of us that wants her own way and someone else to be wrong. We all talk about how we have to give 100% in relationships—we know that at some basic level—but if we don't do Virgo first, we don't have 100% to give.

Typically, Cupid-struck, we enter Libra, unaware that we are looking for qualities in our partners that we have not personally developed. Here's where we begin to get into a lot of trouble. I think the reason the sexes have been at war for eons boils down to the fact that they're sick and tired of doing each other's work. When we project our recessive inner male or female onto our partners, we are handing over our power and asking them to be responsible for us instead of developing our own wholeness. Then we get furious when we lose ourselves, when we discover a piece of us is missing. No wonder we feel controlled. No wonder when we break up, a part of us dies.

Perhaps the most important point about the inner marriage is that it must come before a successful outer marriage or committed partnership is possible. The Chiron Sector of the zodiac not only gives us a step-by-step prescription to wholeness, but it also tells us that those steps must be taken in order.

When we develop Virgo and the 6th house first, the partnership in Libra and the 7th house is much more positive. Our partners then tend to reflect our recessive qualities back to us in a gentler way; we see our Selves in the mirror of the Other. This brings a sense of merging, and focuses on our likenesses instead of the alienation that invariably comes with projection, which involves not owning our recessive masculine or feminine halves. When you or someone you know often verbalizes sentiments like, “men are jerks” or "women are bitches," it’s a symptom of projection in progress. The prescription is to go back and do Virgo—get self-contained and develop the inner opposite before the next trip to Libra.

Outer Marriage
Once we've mastered Virgo, we're ready to give our Selves in partnership, but before you breathe a sigh and figure you've arrived at Happily Ever After, here's another caution. It won't work if you let lust dominate and try to skip over to Scorpio and the 8th house before you've done Libra and the 7th. While the sexual revolution of the 1960s and 1970s was so crucial for balance—to counteract the repressive upbringing most of us did not enjoy—it created, at least for the baby boomer generation, the lousy Neptune-in-Libra illusion that sex is synonymous with intimacy.

Brian Clark gave a brilliant presentation on the 8th house at the April 1992 United Astrology Congress (UAC) in Washington, D.C. According to Clark, the 8th house (and Scorpio) is where we touch into our infantile rage. In a nutshell, we were bonded to mother in utero, and then she abandoned us (kicked us out by the contractions of birthing). Later, we awaken to find out she's in love with somebody else! (Father) All 8th house relationships replay this scenario and the Oedipal triangle. There can be no passion without anger, death, jealousy, and possessiveness. They all go with the territory.

This is a very charged area of life, and if we go there before getting to know one another and developing the romance and trust that goes with the 7th house and Libra, we're bound to have high drama and the worst of Pluto. With a strong 7th, there is a basic bond of good will. We're likely to acknowledge the other's faults and darkness (and our own), and allow each other to express them and therefore to let go of them. Libra has to do with merging based on an ideal, whether that ideal is a shared project, children, or a similar worldview. There's something about being “in it together” for a purpose larger than ourselves that minimizes the tendency to project our darker parts onto the other. When partners view each other as the enemy, it's a sure sign this step has been skipped.

The sexual revolution separated the body from the mind and spirit. Without the entire trinity, sooner or later sex becomes empty. In the 7th house, we have an opportunity to become companions and close friends—the best kind of relationship for facing all that of 8th house darkness that comes with the bright heat of intense sexual merging.


Microcosm to Macrocosm
Why is one-to-one relationship so important? If we learn to love an individual, we can extend love to other ethnic, religious, and political groups—to other nations. The 9th house is the boundary between one other and many others. We meet groups of others the 10th, 11th, and 12th, where we can better the world by giving ourselves to the collective. The 9th house is related to the sign of higher philosophy (Sagittarius) and ruled by the planet of prosperity (Jupiter). Now married, both inside and out, we receive the cornucopia of blessings, and in Jupiter’s typical fashion, we want to give back generously by sharing the higher view we've learned from our experiences. We may want to travel—now that we can relate to one human being intimately, we can relate to the rest of the world.

Chiron appears to have had a positive relationship with his wife, the sea nymph Chariclo. [12] He gave his students a well-rounded education, the kind they would need to balance anima and animus—to become heroes. In these turning-point times, good relationships, both inner and outer, are necessary to equalize the masculine and feminine principles on a global level, to assimilate polarities for the sake of wholeness and survival.

Throughout history, people have considered comets to be omens. The half-comet Chiron, discovered at a critical juncture of human evolution, points to the balance needed to move humanity into an alternative lifestyle of holism that will support Earth and all life upon Her in abundance. By his very nature, both astronomical and mythical, Chiron teaches us that healing is a composite job. The cream of life is actually half ‘n’ half. It’s those opposite illusions that blend somewhere in the middle and add a sweet taste to life.

In the 1960s, the vision of peace, love, and harmony was so ahead of its time, its champions were called the counterculture. During this same era, marked by Pluto conjunct Uranus in Virgo, we started a sexual revolution, but it was just the beginning. Now we are on the brink of a revolution in relationship to ourselves and others that demands nothing less than a whole new world.

The
Mayan Prophecy of 2012 tells us we are about to transition from one world to the next. It’s not the literal end of the world, but rather the end of the world, as we knew it. I believe this is a time where we will create our personal and global reality from the inside out—the insight out, too—with our thoughts and intentions. Never has it been more essential to have good self-esteem and self-development, the pivotal lessons of Virgo.

The ‘60s were a premonition. The peace sign is back. This time ‘round, we’re right on time.
~~~

Photo credit: ZODIAC CLOCK ©
Boggy Dreamstime.com

NOTES
[1] Rogan P. Taylor, The Death and Resurrection Show, Anthony Blond, 1985, pp. 28-30.

[2] Barbara Hand Clow, Chiron: Rainbow Bridge Between the Inner and Outer Planets, Llewellyn, 1987, p.7.
[3] Zane B. Stein, Essence and Application: A View from Chiron, 3rd Edition, CAO Times, Box 75, Old Chelsea Station, New York, NY 10013, 1988. Update/Forward by Al H. Morrison, publisher. Note: Since this article was written in 1992, astronomers have confirmed that Chiron to be the first discovered among a new breed of composite planetary bodies, aptly called centaurs—half-comet and half-planetoid or asteroid.
[4] Joyce Mason, "The Radical Virgo," The Mountain Astrologer, April/May 1992, pp.57-60.
[5] Joyce Mason, "A New Look at Virgo," The Mountain Astrologer, April/May 1990, pp.31-33.
[6] Melanie Reinhart, Chiron and the Healing Journey, Arkana, 1989, 431 pp.
[7] See Clow, Reference #2.
[8] Erminie Lantero, The Continuing Discovery of Chiron, Samuel Weiser, 1983, p. 50.
[9] Ibid., pp. 25 and 51.
[10] Dale O'Brien, The Myth of Chiron, recorded 6/21/91 at The Mountain Astrologer's Planet Camp Conference in Philo, California.
[11] Liz Greene, Star Signs for Lovers, Stein & Day, 1980, p.194.
[12] See O'Brien, reference #10.

This article first appeared in Chironicles in December 1992 and in The Mountain Astrologer in October 1993.

Wednesday, May 20, 2009

University of Pelion Online



The Neptune-Chiron-Jupiter Conjunction in Aquarius

Every planetary meet-up has many layers of meaning. Here’s the one that speaks to me:

I believe this transit simply hollers healing, merging in a positive way, and big blessings. In the sign of Aquarius, networking and community are the context. We have finally discovered that we’re all in this world together and how to make the most of it. I call the triple conjunction an Aquarian Sandwich—Neptune and Jupiter are the bread, Chiron is the filling. As you’ll soon see, even though it’s not highly stacked, except in our favor, it’s a hero sandwich.

The trio reflects the way we are relating online through short films and music (Neptune/You Tube, Blip) and self-publishing (Jupiter/blogs and micro-blogging on Twitter, Facebook, and similar social networking sites). With Chiron in the middle, I feel the great mythical healer has gone high-tech and established a cyber Mt. Pelion. The time is right; the social networking trend is peaking. Chiron put his arm around the shoulders of Neptune and Jupiter, like old friends. He drew them in as team teachers at his Hero School. Famous graduates: Jason, Hercules, Asclepius—you and me.

My own social networking experiences overflow with inspirational quotes and links to articles on how to make my body, mind, and soul a better place to live. Then there are the amazing friendships, creating communities of mind and spirit. Helping each other—day in, day out.


Chiron’s key to wholeness is at our fingertips. He has brought Mt. Pelion to us!
Chiron rules hands-on healing. We are literally laughing, learning, and loving online through the medium of our hands. Who ever knew learning—and oneness—could be such a blast and so rewarding? The personal creativity I see people expressing surpasses my wildest expectations. So does the ability to reach anyone, anywhere.

This Hero Sandwich is being served at the graduation party of the human race. While some aspects of our collective life look like they’re falling apart, mostly in the area of finances, we are merrily saving our own day by this newly possible interconnection. I watched an old friend who lost her job after nearly 30 years nail a new one in no time flat thanks to online “word of mouth.”

We’ve become our own—and each other’s—heroes. What a reason to celebrate!

~~~

Photo credit: GRADUATION CAP CLOSEUP ©
Flashon Dreamstime.com

Tuesday, May 19, 2009

Humor: How the Signs Tweet


If I say Twitter, do you think I’m giggling at you like a goofy schoolgirl—or do you start talking in a bunch of birdie buzz words like tweet, tweeps, or twoosh?

For those of you not already a part of this Internet communication craze, here’s the Wiki, straight from the source (
Wikipedia, of course!):

Twitter is a free social networking and micro-blogging service that enables its users to send and read other users' updates known as tweets. Tweets are text-based posts of up to 140 characters in length which are displayed on the user's profile page and delivered to other users who have subscribed to them
(known as followers).

Unlike some of the other social networking formats like Facebook, MySpace or LinkedIn, on Twitter less is more. As a Wordgo, at first I found the tiny word count more than a bit restrictive. However, before long, I not just improved my writing to a degree of conciseness never before imagined; I found myself a twitterholic in no time. See my
six-word memoir on the subject, if you don’t believe me. (I never thought I could say hello in 140 characters, much less write memoirs in six words.)

Late last night, I decided to send a series of six tweets where I described how the signs do this Twitter thing. (That’s what you do when you can’t fit it all into one tweet. You hog the stream with a tidal wave of sequential tweets, something I personally detest but occasionally do.) I figured The Radical Virgo readers might get a bang out of this birdie business, especially if you already tweet. And if you don’t, maybe it’ll be enough to make trying it irresistable. Terms decoded for newbies:

Tweet Signatures

Aries - Short, rapid fire, outta there.

Taurus – Slowly betwn snacks.

Gemini – All day, night, in sleep.

Cancer – Can’t nurture tweeps enuf (friends/followers) in 140 chars.

Leo – Big, bold, look-at-me tweets, backgrounds.

Virgo – Precise, planned in advance, hates to shorten words.

Libra – RTs (return tweets or forwards) lots of others’ tweets, own are nice ‘n’ sweet.

Scorpio – Watches tweet stream intensely in silence, then tweets alone late at night with mysterious phrasing.

Sag – Jokes, fun, big statements in spurts then off on adventures.

Capricorn – Biz-related and biz-building.

Aquarius – The odder the better. Loves e-communities.

Pisces – Merges, becomes one w/tweet stream. Often goes missing.


How to Take/Tweet it From Here

Sign up for
Twitter.

Follow me on Twitter. Or once you've got your account, go to the Find People tab and enter my screen name, JoyceMason (no space--grounded!).

See my tweets anytime by clicking this
link of my RSS feed.

To learn more Twitter terms, consult the
twictionary.

Want more Twitter humor? Read Humor: The 10 (Actually, 11) Commandments of Twitter on Hot Flashbacks, Cool Insights.


~~~

Photo credit: ASTROLOGER BIRD ©
Thefinalmi...
Dreamstime.com

Photo description: A parrot perches on some wires with the moon in clear blue skies in its backdrop. A parrot is normally used by fortunetellers in India to tell the fate of a person and the moon is definitely an influencing factor in astrology. Both of these elements in the image make it very much related to the concept of future.

Monday, May 18, 2009

If Your Transit's a Lemon, Make Prize-Winning Lemonade

This post actually has nothing to do with sour transits, but I hope that title got your attention. The real reason for the lemonade stand? The Radical Virgo has received a Lemonade Award! The Lemonade Award is for sites which show great attitude and/or gratitude, and this blog has received one! Thank you, Donna Cunningham of Skywriter blog for giving me this honor on May 12, 2009:


The Radical Virgo - Witty, wise views of astrology
and life

I am especially honored for Donna’s nod and willingness to clink lemonade glasses with me. (I have nominated her back.) Donna has been one of my most valued mentors, friends, and inspirations in both astrology and flower essences since 1980.


Here are the “rules” for this award found online. You can be certain that I’ll follow them — but only if I feel like it and if it makes sense! Rules for the award:

~ Put the logo on your blog or post. Nominate at least 10 blogs which show great Attitude and/or Gratitude!

~Be sure to link to your nominees within your post.

~Let them know that they have received this award by commenting on their blog.

~Nominate your favorites and link to this post.

Now that you’ve been lemonaded, you can play it forward and acknowledge others, if you're thirsty for a little reciprocal blog love. Here are my own 10 astrology blog nominees for this prestigious award in no particular order of affection. There are many stars in the sky, each brilliant and beautiful in its own right. That goes for this constellation of astrology blogs, too:

1. Skywriter – Practical advice and rich information that’s easy and fun to read from Donna Cunningham, one of astrology’s most prolific writers and long-time contributors to the field. For writing as big as the sky in its value and for sharing so freely the gold you’ve mined from a stellar career.

2. Astrotabletalk - British astrologer Dharmaruci would get my vote just for finding a couple of really interesting characters who share my Sept. 22 birthday, namely JRR Tolkien’s fictional hobbits, Frodo and Bilbo. For a fresh take on the Chiron myth and its meaning.

3. The Lion and the Lightning Bolt - Another find from the UK, Susannah offers astrological musings, observations, and her breathtaking, original artwork. For providing a virtual feast of mind and spirit with profound insights from the trenches of personal transits.

4. Sabian Symbols – Astrology’s own “tarot,” these channeled images for each of the 360 degrees of the zodiac offer additional depth to any planet’s interpretation. Lynda Hill is one of the world’s experts on the Sabians. For being accessible, communicative, and providing the most newsworthy Sabians of the hour. Don't miss Linda's Sabian Symbols web site that her blog complements, complete with “Ask the Sabian Oracle.”

5. Starcatastrology - Claudia Dikinis works a double entendre on her blog, watching the stars’ stars, such as Chelsea Clinton, Matthew Broderick and Sarah Jessica Parker, and—watch me swoon— Hugh Laurie. She also sometimes just watches the ones in the sky and her cats on the ground. For combining one of the most inquisitive, info-finding minds I know with beauty and love on your blog.

6. Medical Astrology - Eileen Naumann has studied medical astrology for over 35 years and casts a whole new starlight on understanding personal health and wellness issues. For demystifying physiology through astrology by easy-to-follow series like “The Sun and Our Health.”

7. The History of Astrology - This lush blog keeps drawing me back for its astrosophy or finding the wisdom in the stars. Astrosophy reflects a modern, more spiritual perception of astrology and astronomy. Author Karima Lachtane has an eclectic background, but her synthesis of various disciplines is utterly unique. For finding the sacred story and merging multiple disciplines to place astrology in its most meaningful context. Her photos and blog masthead are a visual feast.

8. Celestial Space Astrology – Dipali Desai offers evolutionary, insightful, and fun posts. For compassion, humor wisdom—and concise posts that spark interest with their catchy titles.

9. The Astrology Blog - Elsa Panizzon (Elsa Elsa) loves solving problems and giving astro-advice. She has been blogging for eight years. For your chatty warm style that exudes personality and a blog that goes where the spirit moves you.

10l
Big Sky Astrology - April Elliot Kent believes that through describing her own life with astrology, she comes to a better understanding of both. For a blog that’s like a chat with a friend over coffee.

Astrology is a topic that’s especially conducive to blogging. The sky is ever changing, and blogs are the dynamic form of web sites. These are but a few of the astrologers who have recognized the potential of starblogs.


Since we Virgos are known for our discrimination and talent as excellent critics, whether of movies, books or blogs, I hope you’ll especially appreciate that this high honor comes from The Radical Virgo. (It’s a good thing The RV doesn’t have to say this aloud, because the words would be impossible to articulate with her tongue glued to her cheek.) But, seriously …


Congratulations to all the winners. You are refreshing!

Monday, May 11, 2009

The Radical Virgo


Copyright ©1992-2010 by Joyce Mason


Virgo/Pisces and Chiron
In my article, “A New Look at Virgo: Shifting from Mercury to Chiron" (The Mountain Astrologer, April 1990), I presented an updated image of Virgo with Chiron as its new ruler. Positive responses (and synchronistic connections) poured forth when I put out my concept of what Virgo is becoming. Certainly, Virgo ruled by Chiron was not new. Barbara Hand Clow developed this idea fully in her 1987 book, Chiron: Rainbow Bridge Between the Inner and Outer Planets.


Now I want to expand some of my more revolutionary ideas about Virgo, especially its connections to sexuality (which needs to be healed in order for us to fully evolve), work, and enlightenment. Mentoring the hero within (our positive male energy), just as Chiron mentored countless mythical heroes, will save our planet in these turning-point times. This means finding our right work in the world. It also means incorporating the Pisces portion of the Virgo/Pisces continuum, a word I now use instead of polarity. The key to the times is marrying the extremes within us: virgin/whore, masculine/feminine, peace/war, form/formlessness, Virgo/Pisces, etc.

Pisces and Virgo, never exactly the stars of the zodiac, have much to teach us about correct service and giving, leading to the balance of Self and Other (Aries/Libra, the next continuum). Virgo and Pisces must learn the lesson of all “professional givers”—to let someone else have the joy of giving for a change. This paired sector of the zodiac must master learning to receive, and to give to themselves in the same unabashed way they give to others.

Within two years of writing that article, my ideas had shifted and refined. I now lean toward the concept that Chiron rules no sign in particular, since his humble nature would be inconsistent with being King of Anything, even classically modest Virgo. [1] Some say the astronomical confirmation of Chiron as a comet supports this conclusion, since comets have not been considered ruling bodies in astrology up to this time. [2] But Chiron acts like an outer planet, despite its shooting star origins, captured between Uranus and Saturn—if only temporarily. I still believe Chiron has the most resonance with Virgo for now.


So, why Virgo, and why now? Because there is so much work to be done to clean up this planet, the skill for which Virgo is notorious! The work needed is both on and off the face of the Earth—to mend our ecosystem and the broken souls that have neglected it. To do this service, the key Virgo/Pisces lesson requires learning not to give ourselves away completely, or we are like the comet that gives totally, burns out fast, and abandons humanity and ourselves with still so much left undone. The new Virgin must overcome the early savior complex she shares with Pisces and become savvy enough to save herself.


Virgo is the last sign before we come to Libra, the Other. We cannot give ourselves without first possessing Self—that is the lesson of Virgo. Pisces is the last sign before we come to Aries, the Self. The Pisces lesson: Until we lose ourselves, we cannot value ourSelves. How to make these seemingly circular ideas make more sense than two fish swimming in opposite directions? Let’s look to the Chiron myth for hints.


Pisces is Virgo’s “shadow.” (I prefer the term “recessive sign,” which can incorporate both its light and dark traits.) If the Virgo affiliation with Chiron is lit up now, it is probable that the Pisces parts of the Chiron myth have been the most overlooked to date by astrological writers.


The Pisces imagery in the myth comes from Chiron’s maternal lineage. Born of the sea nymph, Philyra, Chiron doubtless shared his mother’s gifts of prophecy, as the sea nymphs were known to be extremely psychic. Along with his talents as an astrologer, Chiron likely used his channeling abilities [3] when guiding the many heroes under his tutelage toward finding their proper place in society.

Seldom mentioned are Chiron’s musical talent and his use of art as a medium for healing. He played the kithara, a predecessor to the guitar. Based on his original research on the Chiron myth, astrologer Dale O’Brien proposes that Chiron mesmerized and enthralled his visitors in the forest with both storytelling and song. [4]



So, what does the Pisces portion of the Chiron myth suggest that the “radical Virgo” incorporate into his/her evolution in order to become the best this sign has to offer? I believe it is a balance between practicality and dreams, between mundane tasks and soul expression, between form and formlessness. A good illustration came up recently: When we’re still relatively new astrologers, some of us tend to over-prepare—to run the chart in several house systems, to stack up pile upon pile of transits and progressions, and to Virgo/analyze ourselves into a near dither. Then we meet the person behind the chart. The original plan for approaching this reading may be totally inappropriate once we hear the client’s concerns and/or sense the level of information he or she is open to receiving. If we are an “old Virgo,” we’re likely to cling to Plan A like our life depended on it, but the “new Virgo” is ready to chuck form at a moment’s notice, shift gears, and trust intuition.


In order to do this, we must trust the Piscean gift on the other end of the Virgo/6th house continuum—our 6th sense. It’s as though the Virgoan side of Virgo is an expert at rehearsal (which is why Virgos tend to love classical music with all of those predetermined notes). By contrast, the Piscean underside of Virgo is the improviser—the person who plays by ear (which is why s/he can hear Spirit). Each talent is appropriate at certain times, and complementary, but either can be useless noise if taken to extremes. In that case, there is form without feeling or feeling without form.

From this place of enlightenment, not only does your gift itself help heal the world, but also your bliss permeates everything and everyone you touch. Enlightenment has a divine domino effect. Take care of Number One, get yourself to heaven, and the chain reaction will heal the world.

What is a Radical Virgo?
At the beginning of this article, I promised to discuss the “radical” Virgo’s connection to sexuality, work, and enlightenment. Before I do that, let’s define the word radical. I mean it in these dictionary senses: positive Virgoness carried” (1) to the utmost limit, extreme; or a Virgo known for (2) favoring or effecting extreme or revolutionary changes…. [5] I would modify definition #2 to say, A radical Virgo favors and effects extreme evolutionary changes. S/he does this especially in the areas listed below.



The Radical’s Realms


Sexuality. The Radical Virgo is beyond whether or not she has sex and onto whether or not sex has her.

There is nothing like watching a young Virgo’s struggles with virgin/whore syndrome. Virgo is, after all, an earth sign. Combine earthiness with a mission to learn discrimination, and one is likely to see a pattern of wide swings between promiscuity and celibacy, as s/he gets beyond the struggle and puts sex into proper perspective, as just one way of expressing the life force.

As discussed in my previous article, the concept of Virgo as prudish is absurd. The term virgo has been corrupted over the years by the patriarchy. These powers-that-be control both men and women through spoken and unspoken admonitions. Woman as evil is potent storytelling, beginning with the fall of Adam and the whole human race because of the first woman’s disobedience to a male Supreme Being. And the Beginning was just the beginning!

The control is more complete when it is invisible, secret, and the consequences are a threatened abandonment by God Himself. In her book, “The Liquid Light of Sex: Understanding Your Key Life Passages,” Barbara Hand Clow presents the idea that our Eros or life force energy rises naturally at the opposition of transiting Uranus to natal Uranus (the Uranus Opposition). The Hindus named that energy kundalini. The Church has had an invisible leash around our energy bodies, in the genital zone, making sure our kundalini does not rise naturally to empower us with our own Eros or life energy. Sexuality is one important, expression of that vitality. Hence, the handy separation of Virgin and Magdalene (whore), and the withdrawal of the very love of God for being erotic or alive. Since I originally wrote this article, the Church’s own sex scandals highlight how subversive it is to misuse spiritual power over others. It’s more than “do as I say, not as I do.” It is mind- and sometimes physical rape. It is soul control and power over who gets the best things in life, including aliveness.



In the preface of The Liquid Light of Sex, Clow talks about cultural historian William Irwin Thompson’s concern about her thesis--that kundalini rises in all people around age 40, timed with the Uranus cycle. This means all people could attain enlightenment at that time. Clow and Thompson agree that it doesn’t necessarily accomplish enlightenment. Both feel enlightenment cannot exist without compassion and the opening of the heart. [6]


The Radical Virgo knows that all people can reach enlightenment eventually—this is the perfection s/he strives for. S/he evolves naturally to expand the kundalini energy beyond the sexual center, through the heart and upper chakras, to harvest his or her life force through the fruits of service. Consequently, s/he ultimately learns to choose her partners carefully. As astrologer Jackie Hoag has said, Virgo is concerned with efficiency in relationship. While at first that may sound cold, it really isn’t at all.


Virgo is a tender, sensitive soul. S/he is also very focused on service, and when s/he can find a love who looks in that same direction, or even shares his or her work, that’s the ultimate. Otherwise, service and relationship will always be rival loves. The Radical Virgo simply has too much to do to flit from lover to lover. S/he couldn’t be him or herself without performing those works, and a monogamous relationship that supports his or her reason for being is “it.”

To sacrifice Self, s/he has learned, is too painful. Martyrdom has been done before. S/he would prefer not to be in a relationship at all—yes, even give up sex—rather than give him- or herself away. This means only one thing: a relationship with someone mature who doesn’t rely on this Virgo for sole sustenance, one where mutual growth and support is the keynote. The lucky soul who teams up with a Radical Virgo will find, despite all fears to the contrary, that this person has plenty of time to devote to their relationship, and plenty of erotic energy, for Virgos are recharged by sex within the boundaries of consensual commitment.



Work. The Radical Virgo is beyond “workaholism” and onto work as holism.


This person has worked on him- or herself. S/he knows s/he’s okay and doesn’t have to perform constantly to prove it. What an entirely new perspective that places on work! Work becomes not an arena to pump up self-esteem, but the place to contribute one’s gifts. The Radical Virgo simply does not hang out where s/he is not appreciated, or where his or her gifts are not valued by the powers-that-be.

Work becomes a canvas for self-expression and positive giving. If s/he is particularly Chironic, s/he may have several jobs and need them all because they express his or her multifaceted nature. This is different from work as addiction—doing to feel worthy. It is work that supports expression of self in a positive way. Often, work is play for these folks. (“People actually pay me to do this?”)


Enlightenment. The Radical Virgo is beyond which toilet bowl cleaner deodorizes best and onto saving the world from going down the toilet.

Linking onto the issue of work, this new Virgo tends to have "big picture" jobs like ecology and counseling, jobs which help the macrocosm by profound interatctions with the microcosm. His or her jobs have purpose, or s/he won't play.


Clow calls the 6th house, traditionally ruled by Virgo, “the awakening point for most people.” [7] She entitles the 6th and 12th house sectors of the zodiac, “Be here now” (6th) and “Bliss” (12th). [8] I love her title for the 6th house because of my belief in Chiron’s current resonance with Virgo. Chiron has so much to do with coming into incarnation. As Clow has stated before, Chiron teaches us “not to jump out of our bodies.” [9] If Chiron were a movie, it would be called Being Here.

Paradoxical as it seems, it is through being here in our work that we ultimately get to bliss and enlightenment. “ … Most people first discover how to be in the moment during engrossing work projects that enable them to filter out all their conflicts as well as the undeveloped aspects of self.” [10] Anyone who has ever been deeply focused, “losing themselves” in their work knows just what this means. It is the antithesis of what I call Worrygo, hovering over every detail. For the Radical, work instead becomes a mantra and mandala for letting go. Emptied, we have made sacred space so that light can flood in.


This reminds me of the word avoidance. Until we commit to the temporarily painful path of growth, most of us do “a void dance,” dancing as fast as we can to avoid the void, the empty space where we might (God forbid) really have to look at ourselves. Thank God for work, where the void might just sneak up on us with a blast of bliss, tempting us to sign up for the entire trip to enlightenment.
So, the 6th/12th house and the Virgo/Pisces continuums are intimately connected: the reward of right work is ecstasy. To get there requires Radical P and V (Pisces and Virgo), an evolution to the highest expression of these signs versus being stuck on false roads to heaven (like drugs, alcohol, and romantic co-addiction). Usually, these are temporary highs but long-term hells because they deplete the life force for giving.


Clow also talks about the seeming contradiction that to get to bliss and timelessness, we must fully enter into time. “The way to move into the present moment is to give your gift … every time you totally offer your gift to the cosmos, you go into bliss.” [11]

How to Recognize a Radical Virgo
 

A Rad is likely to have Chiron prominent in his/her chart with a good dose of Aquarius planets or aspects to Uranus (to ignite already radical tendencies). Radical Virgos are not limited to Sun Virgos, but can be found among anyone with strong Virgo, Chiron, or 6th house emphasis, or any Virgo planet (or Chiron) in the first house or on the angles. Radical tendencies seem to come especially from the latter degrees of the sign. While any of these factors may point to a Rad, they don’t guarantee it—it’s a question of evolution. I know Virgos born days apart where one is a Rad and the other is far from it, simply because of differences in development.

What to look for: good at many things (versatile); is often described as “one of a kind” because of a totally unique perspective on life. He or she tends to “get away with a lot,” bending the rules with authority figures or telling the truth to those who usually will not hear it, often because of humor or some unique perceptual skill that enables him or her to push to the limit without going over the edge.
The Radical may be so busy creating new order in the world that his/her household is in constant disarray. S/he might have a strong tendency to be buried under papers, books, and magazines, because of Virgo’s love for words (and the need for all Radicals to be highly educated and up-to-date). This person is committed to healing the planet and may literally be a healer. A Radical Virgo is a heart person, and yet able to detach and see the larger patterns in life.



People think this person knows everything, so they come to him or her for counsel. This comes from two characteristics: a Radical Virgo’s versatility and wide-ranging knowledge, and a strong sense of commitment, which puts much power behind his or her words. This tendency for people in trouble to come to them for help may have begun at a very early age, and led naturally to a career in the helping professions.


Finally, this person is not only perceived as one who knows everything, but one who does everything. A litany from those around this Virgo is, “I don’t know how you do it,” meaning accomplish so much. The Radical Virgo is so attuned to synchronicity, and so comfortable in the Pisces alter ego, that s/he can do so much because Spirit takes care of a lot of the details; most old Virgos would still be obsessing over them, and therefore, accomplishing nothing. S/he knows when to put down the day planner and tune up the heavenly hearing aid.


And speaking of Pisces, s/he draws them like bees to honey. Perhaps in the past, before owning his or her own Pisces flip side, only the drugged, drunk, or spaced-out variety applied. Now, he or she is blessed with a number of Radical Pisces—the enlightened variety, those who see their oneness with all and approach life with beauty, sensitivity, myth, ritual, and song. The real giveaway to spotting a Radical Virgo is that this Virgo has gotten over cringing at the mention of the 12th sign and has “gone Fishing.”

Radical Virgos We All Recognize
 

The three that jump to mind instantly are Michael Jackson, Lily Tomlin, and Madonna. (No, Madonna isn’t a Sun Virgo like the others, but with Moon, Mercury and Pluto conjunct in the V-sign, she definitely belongs to this club. This explains why she sang, Like a Virgin, Like a Prayer, and shares a name with the most famous Virgin of them all.)


Michael Jackson. Born in Gary, Indiana, August 29th, “on a late summer night in 1958,” according to his autobiography, Michael is a Moonwalking, talking example of the Virgo/Pisces continuum—his Sun/Moon opposition.

His struggles to balance masculine and feminine were so overt that they make many people downright uncomfortable. One article about him is entitled, “Blurring the Boundaries of Gender,” [12]. Few people could deny that his androgynous persona was radical,and  his moves like poetry on stage. His talents over time have been extraordinary gifts he lost himself in giving.


In 1988 one writer stated that despite links with actresses like Brooke Shields and Tatum O’Neal in the past, “ … he has apparently not established any long-term relationships, and expression of his sexuality seems limited to the stage.” [13] Michael’s controversial autoeroticism in his “Black and White’ video is a good example. Since the original writing of this article, Michael’s failed marriages and child molestation charges give the following statement an even more painful echo:

“My dating and relationships with girls have not had the happy ending I’ve been looking for … They want to rescue me from loneliness, but they do it in such a way that they give me the impression they want to share my loneliness, which I wouldn’t wish on anybody, because I believe I’m one of the loneliest people in the world.” [14]



Not all Radical Virgo’s have an easy job of dealing with the balance of erotic energy, revealed in Michael’s chart by a Mars/Venus/Chiron T-square. Although he was found not guilty on all charges in his 2005 child molestation
trial, he remained a symbol, until his early death at his Chiron Return, of the Radical Virgo struggle to synthesize the extremes of sexual innocence and corruption. Surely, everyone has an opinion about what really went on in Neverland. The irony is that his exoneration still left him the poster child for sexual ambiguity—and those who observe him still left wondering.

Lily Tomlin. A Chiron-in-the-1st Sun Virgo (Detroit: 9/1/36), Lily has been making us laugh and enlightening us for years. Considering Chiron’s connection to “meaningful coincidence,” I love the start of this description of her magnificent one-woman show, The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe: “If you believe in synchronicity, which Lily Tomlin surely does…” [15] Jane Wagner, Lily’s long-time writer, says, “The concept behind the show was to talk about consciousness in a way that hopefully nobody would know we were talking about higher consciousness.”


Lily the Rainbow Bridge more than succeeded. In a versatile performance that spanned a wide assortment of characters from Agnes Angst, a teenage miserable, to Trudy the Bag Lady (who talks with ETs and claims she didn’t have a nervous breakdown but a nervous breakthrough), Lily is at her best in the realm of sexuality. Her portrayal of a woman’s first love experience with another woman in the early days of the feminist movement is tender and uproariously funny. Equally well, she portrays the wife in a full-circle story of a happily married, hippie-esque, heterosexual couple—from their first meeting to their divorce.


I cried at her ability not only to find the signs of intelligent life in the universe, but also to flash them in neon and strike tender chords of oneness with the modern struggle for meaning. Called a “passion play about metaphysical fitness,” [16] here’s a woman whose kundalini/Eros is definitely on full-tilt boogie.


Madonna. There’s a lot I could say about Madonna Louise Veronica Ciccone (Bay City, MI: 8/16/60), but I’ll stick to what’s obvious. This woman makes the powers-that-be squirm because she undoes their evil deed of separating sex from spirituality. In her wonderful irreverence, crucifixes and cleavage bared, she not only thumbs her nose at her strict Catholic upbringing, but also provides a delicious parody of why society is so screwed up, pun intended. With her Sun in Leo, she channels her Virgo planets in an outrageous way.

She’s bawdy, unpredictable, and prefers a man able to acknowledge his feminine side. Madonna says, “I think I have a lot of masculinity in me. Macho guys don’t really go for me. They’re frightened of their own femininity.” [17]
Aside from the fact that the above quote is from an article with the Chironic title “Magnificent Maverick,” the Material Girl has always wanted to be a patron of the arts, and in this same interview, she says, “Having money is just the best thing in the world. It gives you freedom and power and the ability to help other people.”



Others. Some Radical Virgos are more “under construction” than others. If the above Virgos aren’t your cup of herb tea, try: Blues great BB King (9/17/35); controversial filmmaker Oliver Stone (9/15/46); or Shirley MacLaine (29 degrees Virgo Rising).

Reasons to Become Radical
It’s good for your love life. Rads strive for a kind of relationship we’ve never had before, based on equality, maturity, and concern for the world where their love must live. Since the old ways of relating haven’t worked worth a darn, this is definitely worth a try!



We are so wounded in our sexuality that it should be no surprise that Virgo and the 6th house of healing are becoming the Masters & Johnson of the zodiac. So many of us have been damaged in this energy center, especially by the splitting apart of sex and spirituality by religion and patriarchy. This is the primary cause of our more direct grief: molestation and rape as children, sexual (and emotional) dysfunction, and AIDS as adults. We need to get well in the way that we give ourselves and our “fertility.” We need to learn Virgo discrimination, saving ourselves for the right kind of soil and weather in relationship.


Heart and sexuality are biologically connected—in the Chinese medicine system, both are a part of the fire element. When we heal our inner fire, we will revolutionize the world. Full of our own Eros/Life Force, it is impossible to be a victim.


It’s cutting edge and it’s TIME. As we increasingly live the megatrend of information overload, the Virgoan talent for separating the insignificant from the germane will be a key survival skill. When we purify our decision-making process, choosing more often what is helpful, healthful, and whole as opposed to harmful, and when we heal our sexuality and bring our work to the level of gift-giving, the harvest is enlightenment and a whole new world.



We are strong, we are invincible, we are Virgos. What other sign could single-handedly accomplish a global reorganization? So, Virgos of the world, UNITE! Get radical. After all, it’s your job.



~~~




NOTES
[1] This concept was well-articulated by

Dale O’Brien in his June 1991 presentation at Planet Camp, “The Myth of Chiron.”
[2]
Zane Stein, Essence and Application—A View from Chiron, Third Edition, Preface.
[3]
Barbara Hand Clow, Chiron: Rainbow Bridge Between the Inner and Outer Planets, p. 4.
[4] O’Brien, “The Myth of Chiron,” Ref. #1.
[5] The American Heritage Dictionary, Second College Edition, Houghton Mifflin, 1982, p. 1021.
[6] Barbara
Hand Clow, The Liquid Light of Sex: Understanding Your Key Life Passages, Bear & Company, 1991, p. xiv.
[7] Ibid., p. 33.
[8] Ibid, p. 27.
[9] Clow, Chiron … see Ref. #2, p. 197.
[10] Clow, Liquid Light of Sex (Ref. #7), p. 33.
[11] Ibid., p. 30.
[12] Nicholas Jennings, “Blurring the Boundaries of Gender,” MacLean’s, July 23, 1984, p. 44.
[13] Quincy Troupe, “Michael Turns 30!” Essence, July 1988, p. 54.
[14] Michael Jackson, Moonwalk, Doubleday, 1988, p. 162.
[15] Tracy Young, “Tomlin/Wagner,” Vogue, November 1985, p. 396.
[16] Ibid.
[17] David Ansen, " Magnificent Maverick, “ Cosmopolitan, May 1990, p. 311.


This article has minor updates to the original, first published in The Mountain Astrologer, April/May 1992.

Photo Credit: PEACE SIGN ©
Thehurwich... Dreamstime.com

The two-fingered “peace” sign has also been used to convey the V for Victory. It is literally the sign for the letter V in American Sign Language.

Monday, May 4, 2009

Chiron’s Keyword Corner: Ecology





By Joyce Mason
© 1993-2009,
All Rights Reserved



This is an update of an article that appeared in Chironicles in 1993. I am running it between Earth Day and Mother’s Day in honor of Mother Earth.

Astrology owes a great debt to mythology for our interpretation of the planets and planetary objects. Planets are named after the characters in these universal, archetypal stories.

There is magic—at minimum, synchronicity—in the way astronomers name planets. Most astronomers are “hard scientists.” Yet, the myths behind the names they choose offer whole galaxies of metaphorical information. When various aspects of the myth are applied to interpreting a planet in an astrology chart, insights abound, as luminous as a starry night. The Chiron myth is no exception.

As the tale goes, passed on through the millennia, Chiron lived in a cave on Mt. Pelion. Yet he was far from the stereotypical hermit-like mountain man (more accurately, half-man.) He was different from the wild centaurs. The latter were untamed beasts at best, known for raping and pillaging both women and the forest. They galloped through the woods, tromping trees and had no regard for the beauty around them. The wild centaurs were so hellish; they even appear in
Dante’s Inferno in the section First Ring, the Violent.

By contrast, Chiron was kind, nurturing, and trustworthy. He lived in the “upper half” of his dual nature of composite man and horse. The mentor and teacher of so many Greek heroes preserved the forest and nurtured the local ecosystem. In
Midpoint Keys to Chiron, astrologer Chris Brooks cites Chiron’s affinity with the environment and environmentally related diseases, suggesting that Chiron is associated with the human immune system. Immunity is the ability of a system to protect itself and fend off invaders that leave it weak and subject to attack. Similarly, the ozone layer protects the Earth from the ultraviolet rays sent down by the sun. If the ozone layer is depleted by human activities, the effects on the planet could be catastrophic.

Our environment is the crisis currently bringing out both the best (heroism) and worst (the wild centaur consciousness) in humanity. Going green has gone mainstream since I first wrote this article, a sight to behold after having worked in the reuse and recycling field for nearly 30 years and wondering if I’d ever see the day. On the other hand, the idea that there are people who still think global warming is a hoax makes me want to throw up my hands (or maybe just throw up!).


Chiron teaches us that nurturing is of the utmost
importance, and that the forest is sacred.

I have lived for 36 years in or near Sacramento, California— the City of Trees. Now I live in a stand of oaks in one of its suburbs. Living in an “urban forest” increases my sensitivity to the wholeness and whole-li-ness of living close to nature.

Unfortunately, there are those who haven’t come far from ancient Thessaly and destroying the forest and each other. There is a time for righteous indignation—an issue of boundaries—where to draw the line. A stray arrow in a fracas with the wild centaurs at a wedding reception caused Chiron’s incurable wound. Innocent bystanders can get hurt when the wild centaur energy runs amok. It destroys even the most beautiful of occasions—or planets.

The year 2008 was rife with weather disasters. There were 220,000 fatalities due to extreme incidents. In “
2008 – A Year of Weather Disasters,” author Cat Lincoln calls last year’s weather weirder and worse than 2007, which was bad enough. Among the evidence that it’s not nice to fool Mother Nature: earthquakes, cyclones, cold snaps, low-pressure systems, typhoons, and hurricanes. “Most show a frightening connection to the changing world climate.”

Even though God told Noah He’d never again destroy the world by water after the Ark Incident, I can’t help but notice how many of these weather disasters involve the element water. In astrology, the water element is connected with emotions. It feels like Mother Earth is crying, heartbroken.

Before Chiron was discovered,
Dane Rudhyar predicted that a planet “like a second Moon” would be discovered between Saturn and Uranus. This is exactly where Chiron was discovered in 1977. The great astrologer Rudhyar was onto something. It is our feelings that need release and healing. Chiron’s wound may have been physical, but his deepest wound was about fitting in, turning the isolation of extreme uniqueness (not a wild centaur and not really human) into finding his treasured role in society. That role was mentor and catalyst, training heroes who went out to save the day in a divine domino effect of sharing talents, skills and knowledge.

Ecology is everything—balance inside and out. Within an ecosystem, everyone’s thoughts, words, and deeds affect everyone else. High time we got it: We are each other. In these turning-point times, our upper (human) and lower (instinctual) parts of ourselves can be balanced at the heart center through love. Chiron’s myth helps us reconnect with nature and nurturing.

Celebrate Earth Day and Mother’s Day every day of the year. Love your Mother. We owe her our lives.

~~~

Photo Credit: SUNRISE AT MOUNTAIN PELION ©
Nkoravos Dreamstime.com

Soapbox Saturday: This post is also a response to Pop Art Diva’s Saturday Soapbox, “Do You Believe in Global Warming?” Click on the Global Warming link to learn more. Additional responses to Soapbox Saturday can be found on The Radical Virgo’s other blog, Hot Flashbacks, Cool Insights.



Up Next: In honor of the upcoming Mercury Retrograde, May 6-30, The Radical Virgo will start doing some of the things that Mercury Rx is good for—recycling and reposting. (Anything with re- in front of it—revise, redo, reconsider—are great activities during this time.) Joyce Mason’s key articles will be reproduced here, starting with “The Radical Virgo,” the article this blog is named after. This baker’s dozen collection will run over the next several months.