Moonwalks and New Moongram Merge

How to Keep Up with the New Moon

Dear Radical Readers,

As previously announced at the bottom of the Moonwalk: Gemini post, the monthly Moonwalk will now be absorbed into my monthly New Moongram newsletter. It’s available free, by subscription only. If you haven’t already signed up, you can do so quickly and easily on the top of the sidebar.

We’ve taken a dozen lunar strolls across all the Moon signs since last summer, starting with Cancer in July 2010 and ending with Gemini in June 2011. The Moonwalks are among the most popular posts on The Radical Virgo, but also some of the most time consuming to write. The redesigned New Moongram will include the chart of the New Moon, some concise comments about the chart and month to come, and refer back to previous posts on the general characteristics of the current Moon sign. It will retain all its other juicy New Moon features—information on the New Moon’s Sabian symbol and a mini-meditation for each New Moon sign. Note the opportunity to see a sample by the sign-up button, if you want to look before you leap. The sample you’ll see is “pre-merger.” Imagine it with the New Moon chart, some interpretation, and all the other updates, including what’s happening behind the scenes at The Radical Virgo.

Try it—and if for any reason you don’t like it, you can unsubscribe in a click.

The Moonwalk/Moongram merger is one of a number of changes to come, at least in the short-term, to allow more time for completing my research and writing my book on Chiron during the second half of this year. As the badge low on the sidebar says, I’m a passionate blogger … but there’s only so much time and energy. My book is long overdue, and there will be times where blogging will have to focus on quality rather than quantity in order to bring you longer, more meaty material in book format.

I haven’t quite figured out what “blogging less” will look like. Every time I’ve tried it in the past; I just seem to blog more! Since I can’t seem to stop doing it (blogging is like eating potato chips), I think there may be shorter pieces in the months to come … but, as always, I’ll let the Moon lead me. Join me in a sense of surprise and wonder about how it will all work out.

Happy Summer Solstice--The Growing Season!

As always, I welcome your input, feedback, and above all, your continued support. I love the community we have created on The Radical Virgo, and I hope you’ll continue to walk on the Moon with me in a slightly different way.

Have a wonderful summer,
Joyce

Spring Forest Qigong: Combining with the Universe

© 2011 by Elizabeth Wescott, Guest Blogger

All Rights Reserved

A Note from Joyce: This article is a follow-up to the last post, Chiron and Chi. Although it’s not about astrology, per se, it expands on the practical application of creating a practice that brings integration of body, mind, and spirit. I hope it gives you further inspiration about how the emotional or health challenges in our charts can be met in our bodies by the movement of energy—chi or qi.

January 20, 2010: I was living in a home that had recently been painted and carpeted. I’d moved back to Northern California from the desert just a month before, and there I sat in a cold common room, watching the Presidential Inauguration. It was supposed to be a very special day, and yet the cumulative effect of change in climate, environmental toxins and sitting in a cold room with someone who was probably in a contagious state with a flu virus knocked me for a loop. Having been challenged with health issues for a long time, I’m used to using alternative approaches on my own to deal with acute illnesses. So, before I decided I had to have help from a professional in the alternative health field, I’d let it get so bad; I had spent an entire night making a conscious effort to breathe through the coughing attacks. It’s good to know the word “Uncle” and when to use it!

A couple of weeks later, my sister finally got her chance to introduce me to Spring Forest Qigong (she’d been champing at the bit for the years I was living in New Mexico). I was out of bed, but still struggling a good deal. We did 20 minutes of the practice. I felt so much better. If I hadn’t known how powerful these energy practices can be, I would have been amazed. As it was, I accepted it as fact – a delightful fact.

The next morning, I felt like I’d been hit by a train. Because I’m familiar with energy healing, I knew what had happened--energy blocks had started clearing and, in my case, it was creating a ”healing crisis”.This doesn’t always happen, but it can. The thing to do is recognize this is good news. It means your body responds really well to the practice. Then it’s time to take it seriously and practice daily. Each day I did it, I felt better than the day before.

One of the things that became apparent as I integrated SFQ into my daily life: I had encountered a foundational support for my body and mind that would allow me to do the kind of energy healing work I’d felt called to for over 30 years. (With Pluto smack on the Midheaven, my Moon in Virgo in the tenth house and Chiron in Aquarius trine my Gemini Sun, it had been an uncomfortable wait, finding my healing expression).

Spring Forest Qigong is not only a form of exercise; it’s a wisdom teaching, very grounded in compassion, in our connection with the whole Universe and our innate ability to transform energy. Einstein introduced the Western world to the idea that everything is energy. Energy cannot be created, nor destroyed, but it can be transformed.

There are many things that help us transform the energy of our bodies, our minds, our lives and our world. SFQ is one of them.

Saturn is closely conjunct the Ascendant in my natal chart, opposite Venus in the sixth house. Health issues showed up as a teacher when I was 15, though I’m still working on integrating that friendly perspective on it. There was a time when health issues seemed to define me. SFQ has made my body more receptive to acupuncture treatments and energy healing work. It’s helped me to deal with side effects of medications I still need. Since beginning the practice, I have become far more aware of synchronicity in life, making it much easier to trust that things will unfold, and that it’s OK to let go of worry. The practice has increased my awareness of not just living in the Universe, but being an integral part of it. It has truly helped me to give love to my body and to send love to the things that create discomfort in it. Lighting a candle in a dark room brings light. As we say at the beginning of a practice or healing session:

 “I am in the Universe, the Universe is in my body, the Universe and I are combined together.”

Spring Forest Qigong is my most powerful tool in developing the awareness, concentration and discipline to choose what I wish to transform and then go about doing that. I know, I made it sound really easy. It’s just simple, not always easy.

Having learned to do a very powerful form of energy healing work in my mid-twenties, I had put that up on a shelf, because I didn’t have the support of something like SFQ that cleared blocks bringing me into alignment with my wholeness. After just a couple of months of doing SFQ, I delved into Level Two for helping others heal. It is so similar to what I’d learned before; it felt like I’d received my wings! Clearly, my study had to continue and my use of this work had to expand. Thus a dream was born: Go to Minnesota and complete the training for Teacher Certification for Level One to teach others to use SFQ for personal well-being.

A brilliant idea, and yet, quite underfunded. I set my sights on going the following summer. That gave me over a year to study, practice and earn money. The first two parts happened very easily, just a part of daily life. Making the money I needed to finance this endeavor was a different matter. I did begin doing healings for others, and I did some administrative work for a friend. The bottom line was I didn’t have the clientele to make a living and I didn’t have the energy to make enough money to do more than make ends meet. Yet, in January of 2010, I came across information about a window of opportunity for manifesting. There were numerous tools offered. I chose to work with one, giving thanks on a daily basis for the receipt of things I needed and wanted in my life.

They’re called precision affirmations. The idea is to express thanks as if the desires have already been fulfilled and to feel the joy and gratitude.

My SFQ goals weren’t the only things I was working on. As I did this process, I saw results in numerous areas. It was a blast. Yet, my finances didn’t change. The training was in June. By March, I tried to talk myself into facing reality and accepting that I wouldn’t be going. Come April, I abandoned that effort and sent out a message by letter, email and Facebook to a couple of dozen people telling them what I wanted to do, how powerful SFQ was for me and why it seemed I wasn’t able to come up with the money myself. Then I waited, uncomfortably.

As money began to come in I still worried. (I don’t have this transforming energy thing down completely). Others were sure I was going to receive the money I asked for and go to the Spring Forest Qigong Center. Their faith was my rock, and I leaned on it. One friend offered to help me find the best deal for my flight. One person sent me a third of what I needed. Others sent smaller portions.

Money trickled in, from $200 to $10. It all added up. My trips to the post office included walking home in tears as I opened letters from people I didn’t really expect to respond and was touched by their generosity. Some people gave twice. There were people who couldn’t send anything but their good wishes. Now, that touched me deeply. It’s not easy to say, “I can’t help with your request, but I am so excited that you are doing this and I am 100% behind you.” We have a tendency to think if we’re not there to give on the physical level, we have nothing to give. These expressions were one of the most powerful aspects of the experience.

Over that time, I wanted very much to share my good fortune. One way I did this was to tell each teller where I deposited the checks how I had come by this money--through the kindness and generosity of others at a time when peoples’ budgets were (and still are) very tight.

I wanted others to receive the hope I was receiving in this experience.

Occasionally, a teller would become quite animated and we would share uplifting stories about the kindness of others as the transactions were completed.

I was able to find someone to room with in Minnesota, to share the costs of lodging. We talked on the phone about a month before the training. It was clear we were an incredible fit from the first conversation. We roomed together, seamlessly for four nights. Both of us have health issues amongst our teachers. In a very gentle way, we watched out for one another. Celebrated each other’s joys and softened the difficulties. Emily and I are friends for life. Just recently, I met one of Emily’s dearest friends--it was like being with Emily. Such a delight and gift since Emily and I don’t live in the same state.

Going to the training, I was coming off a month of dealing with an acute illness. An 8 am to 4 pm schedule was not easy for me under the best of circumstances back then (though 11 months later, I’ve improved so much, I wouldn’t be really concerned now about spending four days in training). But then, I was apprehensive. It wasn’t exactly easy, in addition to the time in training, there was the time I needed to put into my practice of Qigong. I also had to give my body the support it needed through acupressure and other forms of bodywork, too, an absurd number of supplements to organize and have with me at all the appropriate times, and to get food that would fit my very restrictive diet (which is also less restrictive now). Yet, in the end, it worked very well.

A couple of months later, someone who was guiding me in a healing exercise asked me to tell her about the happiest time of my life. It was those four days, being in the presence of others grounded in this practice. Being in the presence of the teachers and our Master Teacher, being in the presence of such incredible goodwill. Those of us who went through the training echoed stories of synchronicity in our lives at a level we’d never known before. I’d thought it was just me who was having that experience.

One of the best days began with feeling as though I was falling in love with person after person, with things, with events, with everything. In the early part of the day, I watched my mind throwing up judgments about the experience. Fortunately, I chose just to observe it. Later on, it had just disappeared and I was in a state of love, a simple, joyful state of love and appreciation.

Another “best” was a healing I received. Of the many symptoms I’ve had, there has been one that has been most difficult to deal with. It has impacted my mind states so much and undermined my trust in myself. I have dealt with it more and less effectively for decades. When I went to Minnesota, my intention was that it would be healed. It is now only a shadow that comes up for an hour or two on rare occasions. It used to be with me for six months out of the year.

Since I began practicing Spring Forest Qigong, it has been a daily practice. My body has required this for balance and to feel that I am moving forward with symptoms and my life. In the year that I’ve been teaching the practice to others, I have been so gratified to learn that some experience benefit from doing just a weekly session in one of my practice groups. There are two things I encourage people to do: Start where you are, and do Qigong every day. Sometimes starting where you are means doing it once a week. How glad I am that there are many who benefit from doing just this much.

Nothing fits for everyone, with the exception of breathing. Some might argue eating does as well, but I know of a few highly evolved people who choose not to eat and lived very active lives, so I’ll stay with breathing being the one thing that fits for all of us humans. Though there is little that fits for everyone, each of us has those things that will support us in living the lives we were meant to live as nothing else does. Spring Forest Qigong is something that can do that for people. This is why I teach it, offer healings and coaching.

If you live in the Sacramento Area, perhaps I’ll see you sometime at Heart to Hearth in Folsom for a Group Healing or a Practice Group! My blog is Stepping Stones to Health. It will keep you up-to-date on practice groups and specials, and if you’re in need of reading the words of a wordy Gemini woman, you’ll find that there too.

I wish you the joy of Blooming Where You Stand!

~~~

Elizabeth Wescott is a Reiki Master and Energy Healer. She offers healing work to assist others in experiencing their own healing energy in actively bringing healing in their lives. She coahces Spring Forest Qigong Level 1 and leads SFQ Level 1 Practice Groups. Encouraging others to trust that there are forward steps that can be taken to move into health and wholeness is a joy beyond words, for a Gemini woman of many words. Contact her at 916-969-7993 or  elizabethwescott@att.net.

Chiron and Chi

© 2011 by Joyce Mason

All Rights Reserved

Chiron begins with the letters “chi,” the same ones that are pronounced “chee” in Oriental medicine. Chi is the vital life force regulated by acupuncture and healing practices like t’ai chi and qi gong, also written without a space, qigong. (Qi is the other spelling for chi, pronounced the same way.) The practice of feng shui is based on these same principles—the free movement of energy that helps human beings function well in their living spaces.

Since 1986, acupuncture has been a major part of my personal health care and in the past year, I have taken up both t’ai chi and qigong. I find Spring Forest Qigong to be a particularly powerful healing practice for me. I now believe I that my health was “off” since autumn of last year, in part, so I could discover the relationship between Chiron and chi!

Stuck Energy

Chiron of mythology became a “wounded healer” because he was stuck. This is both literal and figurative! He was stuck with a poisoned arrow—an accident—and because he was immortal, he could not die. He was stuck in a body with no hope of escape.

Whether our pain is physical or emotional, it is being stuck that causes most, if not all our grief. That stuck factor is parallel to the blocked energy flow that the Oriental healing arts aim to correct. It’s ironic in the case of acupuncture that being stuck with something—a fine needle—can actually correct stuck energy.

One can have too much chi or too little chi flowing along the meridians of the physical body. In qigong, all the exercises aim to balance yin and yang and that energetic circuitry. After a session, I feel physically and emotionally rewired in the best possible way. I buzz with vitality.

If this analogy is true, the key (Chiron’s glyph) to healing our Chironic wounds is to change the energy flow around them. This task can have both a mental and a physical component.


Going with the Flow


Changing the energy flow around pain or wounding, as the Oriental healings arts do, reminds me a profound idea I heard about Chiron by astrologer Stan Riddle many years ago and have repeated on The Radical Virgo many times:

Pluto transforms; Chiron transmutes. Transmute means to experience the same thing but to look at it differently.

That energetic transmutation is the alchemy in ancient texts, the idea of creating gold. The gold is a change of attitude that shifts a manifestation from the inside out.

To make this attitudinal shift means letting go of resistance. A vicious cycle develops when it comes to pain. The fear of further hurt causes us to tighten and resist energy flow in the present. Our body/mind replicates the same reaction pattern. The reaction pattern becomes fixed. Then we find ourselves stuck in pain, whether or not we have actually experienced any new trauma. Whatever pain we have is made worse-- or it can’t transmute itself--because we have jammed our circuitry in a knee-jerk reaction. These patterns can tend to be as hard and thick as cement.


Healing Practices for the Chiron Signs

Any of the practices mentioned below can be an effective path to healing and releasing energy blockages, regardless of an individual’s astrological make-up. The following pairings are my “hits” on what would work will for the Chiron signs, combining intuition with .astro-logic. Not all of them come from the Oriental traditions, but they all move energy and are very Chi (chee) – ronic.


Chiron in Aries - The martial arts. These practices help vent aggression and replay for release the Chiron-in-Aries wound, often caused by violent or hostile behavior. The martial arts have both a fighting and an energy-balancing component to them—t’ai chi, for example. Acupuncture would also be helpful as a sharp object that brings healing, counterbalancing the literal and figurative wounds a Chiron in Aries often experiences from being “wounded by the sword” in some way through violence, war, or emotional sharpness.

Chiron in Taurus – Acupressure and bodywork aimed at releasing energy from the musculature. Aromatherapy appeals to healing through sensuous pleasure. A little dark chocolate therapy now and then couldn’t hurt, either, especially given the antioxidants and other benefits.

Chiron in Gemini – Talk therapy, especially the type that involves dialogue with different parts of you, such as the Gestalt technique. Since this Chiron sign often is wounded by family communication patterns in early life, it allows those patterns to come up again naturally for therapeutic intervention. Singing is also healing for this Chiron sign. A good vocal coach could release all kinds of blockages, not just to the notes coming out, but vicarious blockages of long- suppressed speech. A spoken voice vocal coach or speech therapist, in case of literal speech handicaps, would work, as well. Think of the movie, The King’s Speech. [1] This Chiron sign needs to heal self-expression.

Chiron in Cancer – Water massage techniques, such as Watsu, swimming, and long soaks in a tub with aromatherapy are naturals for this Chiron sign. Increased self-nurture is an important practice to counterbalance pouring all of him- or herself into family and other intimates.

Chiron in Leo – Nothing moves energy better for this Chiron sign than channeled drama, such as Psychodrama or Astrodrama. Raucous play of a physical nature can also do the trick. Who says adults can’t play on the playground? Take a kid if you feel silly.

Chiron in Virgo - Qigong. Virgos heal with their hands, and qigong uses flowing movements of the hands to move and balance energy. T’ai chi, a closely related practice, is also helpful. It’s important for the mental sign of Virgo to get physical a little bit, every day, to avoid stagnation of chi.

Chiron in Libra – Practices that focus on you as an individual, as this Chiron sign is prone to enmeshment with others to the point of Self loss. Solo dancing, especially in front of mirrors, is an energy shifter while literally focused on self-image. Yoga is excellent for Chiron in Libra, as it focuses on balance of body, mind, and spirit—and the individual’s relationship to All That Is. Food for thought: This is the rarest of Chiron signs, as Chiron transits in Libra only 1.25 years out of every 50. If the world needs each of us to be our unique selves and to contribute our special gifts, we need Chiron in Libra to find him- or herself as much as he or she does. It's the perfect Chi/Libra solution, taking care of others and yourself at the same time.

Chiron in Scorpio – Like Chiron in Leo, this sign benefits from channeled drama, such as Psychodrama or Astrodrama. Chiron in Scorpio finds release in ritual. When energy is stuck or pain lingers, create a ceremony with an object that stands for the hurt or stagnation. Literally, toss it in the air, boot it, or burn it in the fireplace to transform it. Seal it with positive affirmations, such as, My energy flows freely. I am free. OK, Chi/Scorps. No dark side stuff with voodoo dolls on other people. Remember, the law of karma is everywhere, and the person you stick back, even in ritual, is likely to mean more pain for little gain. (Since this is my own Chiron sign, I know the temptations!)

Chiron in Sagittarius – Travel therapy is just as important to Chiron as the Sun in this sign. When you need healing and a long journey just isn’t possible, jump in your car and head for the nearest college campus. Visit the cafeteria, commons, or library. Bring a good book or look one up. See if you can jump into some conversations with students. Just hanging out in the higher educational vibes and walking the campus of in institution of higher learning will move your energy and put you in an environment that’s naturally healing for you. If you’re really stuck, book a quick getaway, even if it’s only for a few days.

Chiron in Capricorn – Like its opposite sign, Cancer, Chiron in Cap needs to nurture him- or herself, especially because of workaholic tendencies. The best thing this Chi/sign can do is to take mini-vacations from the office. That means coming home early, or if you work at home, closing the home office door. Create a daily end-of-business time and stick to it. Since the sign of Capricorn rules bones, chiropractic or bodywork focused on realigning the skeletal structure can be helpful. Examples: Rolfing or Svaroopa yoga and its complementary embodiment work. (My Cap Moon and senior body swears by the latter two.)

Chiron in Aquarius – This Chiron sign does well with bodywork that’s “electric” in nature, such as electronic acupuncture. If it’s unusual, too, this Chi/sign is likely to resonate! Try out something that’s offbeat, but do your homework to be sure it won’t harm. Bowen therapy may be a pain reliever and energy reorganizer that this Chi/sign likes a lot, because there is minimal invasion by another and you are left to let your energy body realign itself after some barely hands-on techniques. Another that comes to mind is network chiropractic or network spinal analysis. (If its “network,” it must be Aquarian!) It is also a minimal hands-on technique that simply stimulates the energy body to readjust itself in relation to your physical being.

Chiron in Pisces – Dance therapy and improvisational music like jazz are natural healers for this Chi/sign. Since this sign loves movement, it may be one of the lesser likely to get stuck often. It’s another sign that would appreciate water therapies, too, when it does. (See Cancer.)


Instant Alchemy

In the short-term, the best thing to do with stuck energy is to “do something different”. That’s why I celebrate Do Something Different Day every month. Create a habit of mixing things up, whether it’s taking a different route home, eating a different kind of cereal, or just getting up in the middle of whatever you’re doing and walking around. This awakens your whole being to the idea that energy shifts are exciting and helpful. Instead, we tend to dig deep ruts with our routines and habits. We often operate like the stuck needle on an old 78-RPM record. Here we are, back to needles again!

Needle (verb) - Informal. To prod or goad (someone) to a specified action: "We needled her into going with us." ~ Dictionary.com

Perhaps language itself offers a hint for the cure. If we “needle” ourselves in the sense of nudging ourselves to be more comfortable with change, we won’t just foster healing. We’ll deal well with the current time where change is the air we breathe.

~~~

Next: Guest blogger Elizabeth Wescott, a teacher and practitioner of Spring Forest Qigong, tells more about this form of energy movement and her healing journey.


Note

[1] King George VI of the United Kingdom, whose story is told in the movie The King’s Speech, actually had Chiron in Libra. (December 12, 1895.) His severe stuttering and struggles with language are suggested in his chart by Sun/Mercury in Sag opposite Pluto and Neptune in Gemini.


Disclaimer: This article is provided purely for informational purposes. Readers are asked to make their own determination regarding the quality of the services and products described above. This article is not meant to be advice, and the information is not meant to replace medical or psychological treatment.

Photo Credits: Yin-Yang © Divinior Dreamstime.com; Acupuncture needles © Jochenschneider
Dreamstime.com

Moonwalk: Gemini

 

New Moon Solar Eclipse

June 1, 2011 – 2:03 pm PDT

(7:03 pm UT)

© 2011 by Joyce Mason

All Rights Reserved

Two-in-One. The facet of Gemini most people know, even if they barely know anything about astrology, is the Twins’ famous split personality. When viewing Gemini as a Moon sign, it’s good to start with symbolism on a feeling level. Why does there need to be two of you?

If Gemini were born as a singleton symbol, s/he would create a sibling or partner just to have someone to talk to. Chatty, quick, and versatile, this Moon sign is all about communication. If you’re a Gem Moon, I suspect you talk to yourself more than most of the other Moon signs, and it helps to personify your inner listener to avoid feeling a little crazy. In fact, I’m sure Gemini gets so facile at these self-dialogues, “talking to yourself” is normal. When done well, positive self-talk is the building block of self-confidence and material manifestation.

We create and become what we think and repeat to ourselves in our minds.

As the sign of Gemini itself represents duality, self-talk has its upside and downside. The upside of your Inner Twins is always having someone to talk to in your mind and an uncanny ability to wade through a lot of mental input for having “brains times two.” Gems often are experts at handling mental matters.

On the side of the more challenging, I can’t think of Gem Moon without remembering the cartoon angel and devil I grew up watching. One sits on each shoulder of the person being tempted to do something wrong.  We all know or have experienced Gemini’s “evil twin.” The evil twin is often shocking because the good twin can be such an angel by comparison. Appearance of the evil twin comes from dis-integration. Most of the time, Gem Moon can integrate these extremes of self. When s/he can’t, all hell breaks loose. I know someone who finds Gemini cold rather than hailing from The Hot Place in this dis-integrated state. After observing Gems who turn to ice and appear to lose all feeling, this individual is convinced they come from another planet. If the Gem in your life “goes cold,” know you’re witnessing that dis-integration.

I want to talk about the buildup to dis-integration, before it happens, because there are practical ways a Gem Moon might be able to cut off at the pass his or her downhill slide to ET (Evil Twin, which doubles well for the chilly extraterrestrial metaphor, too.) There was a delightful and very funny man with Gemini Sun I used to date years ago. He had the best description ever for the challenging side of his Gemininess, applicable as much or more to Gem Moon: “I beat myself up with my mind.”

Ouch! Anyone with Moon in an air sign or even earthy but mental Virgo can relate to this malady. Gemini Moon is especially prone to it.

What do you do when endless thought loops threaten to overtake you? When you can’t stop the chatter in your head? When this mental treadmill keeps you from a good night’s sleep? If Gemini Moon can develop strategies for this issue, s/he has it made.

Mind Over Chatter

The cut-offs can be extremely simple. When stuck in endless thoughts, it’s all about breaking a pattern that has gone “vicious circle” without your permission or desire. That means doing something different to break the circuit of your synapses firing like a machine gun with no off switch.

Here are a few ideas:

1. If you know tapping or emotional freedom technique (EFT), do it. Here’s an intro video. While designed to address negative emotions, tapping is effective on circular thought loops because they precede emotions. (See header below). You may ultimately feel frustrated, stuck, and hopeless or battered by your unstoppable mental chatter.
   
2. Splash cold water on your face.
   
3. Find an image that “wakes you up” and breaks the pattern. Example: Cher slapping Nicolas Cage in the face in Moonstruck and saying, Snap out of it. I don’t recommend physical violence on anyone, including yourself, but …
   
4. A few gentle taps upside your head can wake you up out of your mental rut just enough to attract your attention away from the drilling expedition you’re doing into your gray matter. The qi gong practice I do involves cupping your hands and doing this gentle tapping on your head and other parts of your body. Feels great!
   
5. Use White Chestnut flower essence. This could be the best remedy you’ll ever discover, as it actually helps dispel runaway thoughts by simply taking a few drops of tincture under your tongue several times a day for a few weeks. You may feel results anywhere from a few days to a week or two. If it’s a chronic issue, periodic rounds of this essence could be the best thing that ever happened to you. [1] [2]

Thoughts Precede Feelings

My birth mom was a Double Gemini. I learned much about Gemini Sun and Moon from observing her in our 15 years together after we were reunited.

Some Geminis can seem high-strung or even mentally fragile. I saw why when I observed my original mom. She was nearly paralyzed by her emotions most of her life, which seemed directly connected with her inner dialogue about things that happened to her. In earlier times, people called what she did ruminating. She stewed on, or over thought situations, she considered unpleasant until the thoughts built to fears that overwhelmed her. She helped me see that what we think about things precedes how we feel about them. You may have noticed at holiday gatherings how memories differ from one family member to the next. In fact, sometimes you wonder if all of you are talking about the same event. One may have reacted in anger, another in amusement, another in observer mode of others’ reactions. They were telling themselves very different stories about the same event, a mental process that led to unique emotional reactions.

When these thought-to-feeling patterns become kneejerk and lifelong around certain subjects, the Moon in Gemini can truly become his or her own worst enemy—the reason for nipping those runaway thought loops in the bud. Breaking these patterns is Gemini salvation. Not only can Gems do it; we all can do it at times when our minds are off and running in a way that does not serve us.

Charmers

Geminis are among the most charming people on the planet. When they extrovert their mental abilities, they are social butterflies, good at the chitchat many more introverted types find foreign. Gems tend to look forever young and have a range of mental interests that boggle the imaginations of the other eleven signs. Gemini skills are such an asset in both business and pleasure. Find a Gemini you really like, observe his or her behavior, and send yourself to vicarious charm school. If you’re already a Gemini Sun or Moon and/or have several planets in Twin, watch another Gemini, anyway, and pick up some new tips!

Gemini Mind Float Experience

If you have Sun, Moon, or Mercury in Gemini—or a lot of air that gives you the same hyperactive mind that the sign of Gem is prone to—let’s do a practice this month to learn how to give your brain a break.

1. Find the gentlest, most calming music you can muster.
   
2. Lie on your bed or in your easy chair while you listen to it. Put an eye shade or cool cloth over your eyes to eliminate all stimuli and relax your facial muscles.
   
3. Imagine you are floating on a cloud. Your only job is to let your brainwaves rest. Imagine an EEG where the waves are sweetly calm like ripples on a lake, even to the point of mesmerizing boredom. Float here for as long as possible, at least 15 minutes.
   
4. Every time a thought enters, acknowledge it and let it go. For example, you’re worried about your kid’s bad report card. Say to yourself three times, “Report card, report card, report card,” then let it float off on your calm brain waves. Do this treatment on anything that comes to mind, even if you find yourself doing it for most of the 15 minutes the first few times.
   
5. If you fall asleep, nap a little. Modern literature tells us napping is good for us. The mind that rests well works best. (See Take a Nap! Change Your Life by Sara Mednick and Mark Ehrman.)
   
6. When you get up or wake up, no talking for ten minutes. Many Gems still need to learn that silence is golden. Space between words is as important as margins on paper and blank lines between paragraphs. Don’t be the oral version of sentences that all run together giving listeners, including yourself, no room to breathe or absorb the input. If you love to communicate, “white space” around your words is a crucial part of doing it well.

Click to Enlarge

This Gemini New Moon Solar Eclipse

Eclipses are more powerful lunations and tend to catalyze turning points and change. The house where 11+ Gemini falls in your chart and any planets it activates will determine some of the areas of life and issues the New Moon will trigger for you this month. On the side of being more proactive, the New Moon is always a good time to start something new for the immediate weeks ahead. An eclipse is ideal for starting something new that really matters to you, things you want to have positive repercussions from this month’s starting point.

The Sun/Moon conjunction for this New Moon trines Saturn—an opportunity to ground in reality your intentions for this new 28-day cycle, remembering that the intentions you set will resonate like the sound waves of a chime, ringing for months to come because of the eclipse.

The North and South Node are on the Gemini/Sagittarius axis this month, featuring mental pursuits, learning, and communication. Contemplate how you can take advantage of a positive manifestation trend in these areas of your life.

With Mars, Venus, and Mercury in Taurus, there is slower moving fixed energy underlying the exciting mental and communicative energy of the Gemini Sun/Moon. This can be grounding or frustrating, depending on your tolerance for “set up.” The Gemini New Moon bring great ideas and a desire to run around and do a lot of things while the Taurus planets in the New Moon chart are likely to pull you back to a slower pace. This kind of combo is great for the conceptual stages of ideas and plans, where you plot your course while the Taurus planets invite you to plod it out more slowly, getting there. This allows you to dot all the i’s and cross all the t’s along the way, probably resulting in a much better outcome for being thorough in procedure.

Jupiter sextile Neptune can be a time where you can dream big and conjure up vast plans. As Neptune is transiting rather close to Chiron, travel, learning and personal expansion will tend to have healing crises and perhaps resolutions attached to them. These pursuits are bigger than usual for growth and gains, if you seize the opportunity to work with them.

As we continue the long cycle of Uranus square Pluto, contemplate issues of freedom, progress and breakthrough and how they “square off” with matters of power and transformation. This is a time of great shake-up as the ‘60s were when Uranus and Pluto were conjunct in Virgo. I was talking with some of my close and spiritually oriented friends this weekend about how strange the energy feels “out there” right now. The best way I can articulate what I feel comes from an expression in Star Wars—a disturbance in The Force.

Life is morphing and changing form at deep levels—mentally and spiritually as well as physically with climate change and other drastic earth changes like tornados, hurricanes, and earthquakes. My friends and I each said the same thing in different ways. We’re not who we used to be, but we’re not yet who we are becoming. The in-between feels strange, formless, and foreign. It feels like a frontier with no traffic signals or reference points. A sort of miserable malaise can overtake you, if you let it.

Don’t. These are the times to evoke what I call radical trust. If astrology teaches us nothing else, it teaches us that life is cyclical and rough patches pass. We got through the ‘60s, and the shake-up still resonates with the ultimate, positive difference it made in so many areas of our lives.

I find the best way to deal with the strange disorientation (it might work for you, too) is to stay in observer mode and use the anchors in my life that are most solid for me. These include family, close friends, and connecting with a world of like-thinkers on the Internet. It’s our positive trust that we are moving toward the new reality of One Consciousness and one family of humanity that will keep us sane and grounded, month to month—and, of course, add a great sense of humor. I hope Humor Month on The Radical Virgo helped!

~~~

Photo Credit: Two Moons © Sweetheart29 | Dreamstime.com

NOTES

1. White Chestnut is a Bach flower remedy. It is also made by the company FES, the same formula, different label called Healing Herbs. It can be purchased in most health food stores, Whole Foods, or similar types of establishments. You can even find remedies at Vitacost at a discount. (I buy almost all my vitamins and health products online there.) Buy a one-ounce empty amber or blue glass dosage bottle with dropper in addition to your remedy. Fill it about ¼ of the way with brandy or apple cider vinegar as a preservative. Fill just below the neck with spring water. Add 2-4 drops of the remedy. (Use your intuition for what feels right.) You can keep reusing and refilling the dosage bottle with the same remedy. (Do not reuse the bottle without sterilizing if using a different remedy, as they are vibrational and the pattern of the previous remedy will linger.) Pour a little boiling water to rinse out in-between uses. This will make your “stock” bottle—the one you purchase from the store—last for a long time. There is no need to take essences at the stock level.

2. For more on flower essences, check out these past posts:

Astrology and Flower Esssences

Flower Remedies for Practicing Astrologers by Donna Cunningham

Flower Essences for Pluto and Resilience: Don’t Worry, Be Happy

Disclaimer: The references on flower essences in this article do not mean to imply any recommendation or certification of any individuals or companies mentioned. It is provided purely for informational purposes. Please make your own determination about the quality of the services and products offered. This article and the others referenced are not meant to constitute advice, nor are they meant to replace medical or psychological treatment.

Moonshift! This Moonwalk is the last in the series of twelve, which we started under the Cancer Moon in June 2010. We have now strolled across the lunar surface of every Moon sign. Starting next month, the Moonwalk will merge with the monthly New Moongram, available by free subscription only at the top of the sidebar. If you don’t already subscribe, I hope you will! You’ll still get the monthly New Moon chart, some concise comments about it, reference back to previous Moonwalks by sign, and these Moongram extras: thoughts on the Sabian symbol and a mini-meditation for each new Moon.

Soon I’ll announce more changes on The Radical Virgo to make time for my research and book project during the second half of this year.

Other reminder: The special on my Chiron 101 Summer School e-class ends June 1. Purchase now in the sidebar to save $20 ($59 before June 1, $79 afterwards). There are 20 maximum spaces, and they are filling up. Class begins July 11. See announcement for details.

Funny Movies for the Signs

© 2011 by Joyce Mason

All Rights Reserved

Whether you want to tickle your Jupiter sign, your Sun sign, or a sign where you have a number of planets, this Zodiac Movie Guide is guaranteed to bring signs of laughter. If you don’t subscribe to Netflix yet, what are you waiting for? Please share your other faves and the sign you think they fit in the Comments. It’s time for Radical movie therapy!

Aries – The four Indiana Jones movies, starting with Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981). Heroic adventures with plenty of laughs along the way. Harrison Ford is the perennial hot hero, and his character is hilarious.

Keeping Up with the Steins, a movie about dueling bar mitzvahs that takes Aries competitiveness to new heights of ridiculous and actually made me laugh so hard, I could barely breathe. Stars Jeremy Piven, Jamie Gertz, Doris Roberts and Garry Marshall, among others.  All this and a kid finds himself.

Taurus— Trading Places. Eddie Murphy is a streetwise hustler who trades places with a banker (Dan Akroyd) to learn if money really makes the man—and to fulfill a bet.

Death Becomes Her (1992). This one is actually good on either end of the Taurus/Scorpio continuum. Goldie Hawn and Meryl Streep star in this black comedy about two women who discover the secret of eternal youth—and some of its drawbacks. We know Tauruses love beauty and physicality, but this flick takes it over the top!

Gemini – Jeff Dunham: Platinum Comedy, Vol. 4 (2009). Netflix describes Jeff Dunham as “not your father’s ventriloquist.” His array of alter-ego puppets suggest someone having a multiple personality disorder breakdown on stage. Jeff’s comedy is edgy, witty, fast and irreverent. His colorful cast of characters include Achmed the Dead Terrorist, Jose Jalapeño on a Stick, a purple creature named Peanut who seems to be on speed, an old fart named Walter, and a few others you might want to discover on your own. Reinforce your sides. They’ll be splitting. Sometimes you’ll think to yourself, maybe I shouldn’t laugh at this, but you just won’t be able to help yourself. And you Gems thought you had problems with a dual personality. Imagine juggling this crew.

Network (1976). This classic cautionary tale is a dark comedy where a news anchor loses it on the air. His outrageous antics boost ratings and predict some of the outlandish reality TV that has become everyday fare. Dubbed by Netflix “an Oscar-winning masterpiece,” it gave us a heads-up on the trashier side of television that we can now see with a flick of the remote. It meets all the Gemini needs—issues of mind, communication, and information, and is definitely a curiosity.

Groucho Marx, Duck Soup
You know, you haven't stopped talking since I came here? You must have been vaccinated with a phonograph needle.

Cancer – Julie and Julia (2009). Amy Adams stars as a bored foodie who decides to spice up her life by cooking and blogging about all 524 recipes in Julia Child’s classic French cookbook. In a dual story, Meryl Streep plays Julia Child to the hilt. You’ll laugh and cry and want to stuff chickens with her.

Moonstruck (1987). Cher and Olympia Dukakis both won Oscars for their performances in this slice-of-life romantic comedy about an Italian-American family in Brooklyn. Family? Moon? How Cancer can you get. A main character even works in a bakery. Also stars Nicolas Cage, Danny Aiello, and John Mahoney.

Leo – The Birdcage (1996). Another one of those films that works on both sides of a continuum, this one is Leo/Aquarius for the show within the show and the acting that must take place, primarily by a real queen—and Aquarian for its gay theme. Armand (Robin Williams) and Albert (Nathan Lane) own a Miami drag club. When Armand’s son announces he’s marrying the daughter of a conservative Senator (Calista Flockhart and Gene Hackman), the charade of creating a “normal” family begins with Albert putting his cross-dressing talents to good use in an emergency. Others in this star-studded cast include Dianne Wiest, Hank Azaria, and Christine Baranski.

The Lion King (1994). Certainly, for Leo there should be at least one kids’ movie to entertain his or her considerable Inner Child. Could this be more Lion topic perfect—about a young cub who longs to be king who faces competition from his uncle? There’s also an element of Leo gold. The Lion King has been the largest grossing animated film of all time.

Virgo – The Road to Wellville (1994). This satire on 19^th century health habits is as timely today as it was back then, especially for the Virgo who will admit to obsessing on the subject. The all-star cast includes Matthew Broderick, Anthony Hopkins, Bridget Fonda, Dana Carvey, and John Cusack.

Monk TV show (2002). Meet or revisit the defective detective, played by Tony Shaloub. Monk is so Virgo; he’ll make your Virgo planets squirm while they’re laughing. This show had a great ensemble cast. It’s set in San Francisco and wonderfully quirky.

Libra – Adam’s Rib (1949).  Spencer Tracy and Katherine Hepburn play lawyers married to each other who end up on opposing sides of a spousal attempted murder case, and it’s murder on their relationship that was sweet, till then. One of my favorite movies of all time.

It’s Complicated (2009). Meryl Streep and Alec Baldwin are ex-spouses, Jack and Jane Adler, who accidentally wind up back in bed together—which complicates everything, including Jane’s relationship with the new man in her life, played by Steve Martin.

Scorpio – Young Frankenstein (1979). One of the funniest movies ever written, Mel Brooks takes the classic creepy tale to places no one would ever imagine. With company like Gene Wilder, Madeline Kahn, Peter Boyle, Marty Feldman, Terry Garr and Cloris Leachman, how could it be anything but goofy?

M*A*S*H (1970). It’s classic. It’s dark comedy with sexy shenanigans. Army doctors patch up the wounded in a Mobile Army Surgical Hospital unit in the Korean War, only to send them out to be shot full of holes again. While most of us are more familiar with the TV version that came after it (also a great rent), this movie fun to revisit as the template for what followed on television. Stars Elliott Gould, Donald Southerland, Tom Skeritt, Robert Duvall, Sally Kellerman—an another unforgettable ensemble cast. 

Rupert Everett, My Best Friend's Wedding
It's amazing the clarity that comes with psychotic jealousy.

Sagittarius – Nash Bridges TV show (1996). Played by Don Johnson, both Don and Nash are Sagittarians on the streets of San Francisco. (I love the sequence that ran for awhile where we get to see Nash’s birth certificate.) Nash is a wisecracking underground cop who heads the Special Investigations Unit. As much a comedy as a cop show, Nash is my favorite TV show of all time, and that’s a tough call for any Mercury in Libra. I love ensemble casts, and this one is golden: Cheech Marin as Nash’s sidekick Joe Dominguez, Jeff Perry, Annette O’Toole and others too numerous to mention. Have Sag adventures in your easy chair and get ready to fall in love with a guy you can’t tame and wouldn’t want to. I cried when the series ended.

Educating Rita (1976). A modern spin on the Pygmalion story (what could be more Sag?), Julie Walters plays hairdresser Rita, who is determined to better herself. Alcoholic professor Dr. Frank Bryant (Michael Caine) becomes her reluctant tutor. She blooms, and together they learn some things about life and love.

Capricorn – Nine to Five (1980). Fed up with their sexist boss, Jane Fonda, Lily Tomlin and Dolly Parton indulge in revenge fantasies. Fantasy turns to reality when they think they have inadvertently poisoned him (Dabney Coleman). The ladies cook up a plot to cover their tracks and turn the good old boys’ network on its ear.

Risky Business (1983). High schooler Joel (Tom Cruise) takes advantage of his parents’ absence on a vacation to turn the family home into a brothel. He’s enterprising! A Cap executive right down to his briefs. Tom Cruise does a famous lip-synch in his skivvies that catapulted him to fame and fortune. Life imitates art once more—and big business.

Aquarius – Northern Exposure TV series (1990). It’s well-worth reliving life in Cicely, Alaska, a frosty town full of unusual individualists. They may as well have called the place Uranus on Ice. Stars Rob Morrow, Janine Turner, Barry Corbin, John Corbett and many other total characters.

Mambo Italiano (2003). This one’s a treasure about an Italian-Canadian young man, who must ultimately come out with his old-fashioned, immigrant parents, played to archetypal perfection by Paul Sorvino and Ginette Reno. Luke Kirby is so loveable as Angelo, I wanted to adopt him. This story about the pain of being different and how love ultimately breeds acceptance will warm the cockles of your heart and keep you in stitches all the way.

Pisces – Chances Are (1989). This romantic comedy and another one of my all-time faves stars Cybill Shepherd, Robert Downey Jr. and Mary Stuart Masterson in a tale about reincarnation gone slightly amuck. It explains a lot about how coming-and-going from Earth works. You get a strong intuition you’re hearing the unvarnished truth hidden in humor. People with Pisces planets will appreciate a tale about someone who wants to get into a body instead of out of one.

Monty Python’s Life of Brian (1979). Graham Chapman in a peculiar British comedy about a recluctant Messiah. The ending is the funniest and most Neptunian finale I’ve ever seen—one you’ll never forget.

Don’t forget to share your faves and the sign they match!

~~~

Photo credit: © Ariwasabi - Fotolia.com

Like my movie reviews? If you haven’t read my full-length piece on Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lighting Thief, check it out. It’s a great film for Outerplanetary People. You’ll see all the major PUNCs portrayed in their mythical personae and a few others thrown in like Venus/Aphrodite.

Chiron 101: Summer School: Don’t miss your chance for a $20 discount. Early bird special of $59 ends June 1. The class is filling up, and the maximum number of students is 20. The earliest this course will be repeated is in 2012.

Astrology and Humor

Taurus Rising

© 2011 by Joyce Mason

All Rights Reserved

I had an encounter with a woman many years ago—someone very “proper.” She couldn’t understand why I use humor so liberally when talking about Chiron, because Chiron is “so spiritual.” I have a very different perspective, namely:

We’re closest to God when we’re laughing.

I don’t know how anyone could think that God, Spirit, the Cosmos—or Chiron—could lack a sense of humor. (How could anyone endure ongoing pain without learning to laugh?) We’ll get back to Chiron. For now, let’s start with “opposites attract” and just go around the zodiac for a minute. This, to me, shows that beauty and absurdity are both part of creation. Tell me this these magnetic matches aren’t a hoot!

Aries/Libra – Me-me-me meets Us-us-us!

Taurus/Scorpio – Touchy Feely meets, Don’t touch me! You don’t know me that well! (with apologies to Flip Wilson and his unforgettable character, Geraldine).

Gemini/Sagittarius – Curious About Everything falls for Already Knows Everything. (What’s left for poor fact finder Gem to share with this person?)

Cancer/Capricorn- Home Sweet Home meets Home Sweet Office.

Leo/Aquarius – Look at Me goes gaga for Look at Them!

Virgo/Pisces – Manners and Orderly is drawn to Might Be Drunk and Thrives on Disorderly

Humor Is Conflict

Conflict is one of the mainstays of humor. As thoroughly modern students of astrology, we like to call the “hard” aspects stressful, but by whatever name we call these tensions, they are a hotbed of hilarity. As another for-instance, let’s look at signs in square and the strange bedfellows they make. Just imagine some of their conversations …

Aries square Cancer – Adventurer and Homebody

Taurus square Leo – Down to Earth and His or Her Majesty

Gemini square Virgo – Flitting Factoids and Thorough Analysis

Cancer square Libra – Too Worried About the Kids to Ever Leave Home and Dying for a Romantic Getaway

Leo square Scorpio – Light (Sun) meets Dark (Pluto)

Virgo square Sagitarrius – Self-Doubt and Never Any Doubt

Libra square Capricorn – Beauty and the Corporate Beast

Scorpio square Aquarius – Private Cave and Public Love-In

Sagittarius square Pisces – Higher Education and High as Education

Capricorn square Aries – Step at a Time and Hit the Floor Running

Aquarius square Taurus – Sit-In and Just Wants to Sit

Pisces square Gemini – Feeler falls for Thinker

You could do this, conceivably, with every aspect that creates interchart tensions: quincunx, semi-square, sometimes the conjunction. (In fact, if anyone has any “good ones,” please share in the Comments.)

Humor: The Ultimate Survival Tool

No one wants "the crabs."

When life gets too heavy there’s only one thing to do—make light of it.  The first symptom that I have lost my sense of humor is when I’m crabby—and it has become chronic.

When I went through a very difficult time with my husband’s health some years back, I felt I had lost my connection to Spirit—and my sense of humor. That only gave more weight to my theory that they are closely connected.

Though I didn’t figure this out during that dark time, I now see that when humor does not come spontaneously due to depression, overwhelm, fatigue—whatever the cause—we need to seek “passive humor” opportunities. There’s the wonderful story about how Dr. Norman Cousins found relief from severe arthritic pain by watching funny movies. That’s my recommendation for passive humor—or funny TV shows, humorous books—whatever is your favorite medium where you can sit and receive amusement. Clear the cobwebs out of your mind and just take it in. You’ll laugh.

"I made the joyous discovery that ten minutes of genuine belly laughter had an anesthetic effect and would give me at least two hours of pain-free sleep. ~ Norman Cousins

The physiological benefits of laughter are legion. The best article I ever read on this topic is How Laughter Works. It’s worth 10-15 minutes of your time to read the whole thing. It’s a thrilling read, and it will leave you laughing—more!

Jupiter, Your “Humorous”

If there’s an astrological funny bone, it’s your Jupiter. (The other humerus is the long bone of your arm, so the funny bone or elbow is part of it.) Hitting the “funny bone” feels very strange, even painful. A bundle of nerves are routed though it—and it’s easy to see the double entendre there. We need to laugh to release tension and nervousness. We often find funniest what “hits home” the most.

Here are some observations on what the various astrological archetypes find funny or do to make us laugh:

Jupiter in Aries:  Pointed humor. Quick witted. Example: Robin Williams, whose Jupiter in Aries opposes Neptune. He taps into the collective unconscious and channels whatever comes through faster than a fire out of control.

Jupiter in Taurus:  Jokes about money and food—like where his or her next dollar or cookie are coming from. Example: Jack Benny, whose routines were primarily about his being cheap and vain—beauty being another Taurus preoccupation.

Jupiter in Gemini: Speech or communication patterns that have a pattern of two or twin opposites and “good messenger” timing. Example: Bob Newhart, known for double-takes (Gemini duality), his deadpan humor, and his artful use of the pause. Deadpan humor is another Gem-duality, when something is funny because it is delivered with such seriousness.

Jupiter in Cancer: Jokes about family, hometown or neighborhood. Example: Humorous mystery author, Janet Evanovich, who writes about a blue-collar pocket of Trenton, NJ, known as The Burg in her numbers novels. (Laughter alert: A movie based on the first Stephanie Plum novel, One for the Money, will be out in January 2012, starring Katherine Heigl as Stephanie.)   Also, Garrison Keillor, whose fictional hometown of Lake Woebegon, MN keeps us laughing on A Prairie Home Companion on National Public Radio.

Jupiter in Leo: Humor that makes fun of views other than his or her own. (My beliefs rule!) Example: Bill Maher, who considers anyone stupid who believes in “the talking snake,” his buzz words for the Garden of Eden story. He produced the movie, Religulous (2008), which discredits religion as ridiculous.

Jupiter in Virgo: Plays with language and “does it wrong” for laughs.  Example: Comedic pianist Victor Borge, who would read a sentence and punctuate it with silly sounds that you could easily imagine a comma, period, or question mark to sound like. Some of his other antics: He’d turn music upside down, botch a concerto, or play two different songs with each hand. He liked to turn proper Virgoness on its fussy ear.

Jupiter in Libra: Relationship humor, of course. Example: Rodney Dangerfield. “Take my wife—please.”

Jupiter in Scorpio:  Sexual humor, humor about the mysteries of life, gallows humor, sometimes a little twisted and/or macabre. Example: David Letterman. (You always knew he was a little off!) Swami Beyondananda gets the prize for mysteries of life humor with Jupiter conjunct Mercury, firing pun after pun about consciousness.  

Jupiter in Sagittarius:  Exaggeration, humor that’s over the top. Also those minister, priest, and rabbi jokes. After all, they’re about religion, one of Sag’s favorite topics. Example: Woody Allen. Jupiter in Sag conjuncts Sun and Mercury and is part of a T-square with Chiron and Saturn.

Jupiter in Capricorn: Occupational jokes and ones about aging. Example: Peter Sellers whose Jupiter in Cap opposes Pluto and trines Sun/Mars. He made a joke of the occupation detective in his bumbling Inspector Clouseau movies, the antithesis of the “together” Capricorn businessman archetype. With Mars in his Jupiter configuration, his comedy was very physical. Another example: Johnny Carson, with Moon/Jupiter conjunct in Cap, did an over-the-top caricature of psychics as Karnac the Magnificent.

Jupiter in Aquarius:  Humor that flips off the powers-that-be and cuts them down to size. Example: Matthew Brodderick. He played his Jupiter sign as the ultimate rebel charmer in Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, one of my all-time favorite movies. Ferris drove the principal of his high school literally crazy with his clever defiance of authority and catch-me-if-you can nerve.

Jupiter in Pisces: Impressionists, another one for religious humor. One of the best examples of this is comedian/ ventriloquist Jeff Dunham whose puppets are like multiple personalities inside him screaming to come out. His Jupiter in Pisces conjuncts Chiron and trines Neptune. One of his characters is Achmed the Dead Terrorist, a literal skeleton of his former self. Jeff’s humor is edgy, and his puppets speak what many people think but would never have the nerve to say. In a very Jupiter in Pisces way, he’s tapped into the collective “humorous.”(Interesting note: Jeff’s birth data is not easy to find, differs in a couple of places, and the most likely correct data is 4/18/1962 in Dallas, TX.) Late Late Show host Craig Ferguson, born just a month later with the same configuration, expresses Jupiter in Pisces (conjunct Chiron) with his goofy, pliable facial expressions, becoming any face and every face.

Chiron and Humor

Most humor derives from pain at some level. We laugh about what hurts. Pain is a generic term that encompasses discomfort, embarrassment, anger, exasperation, friction, annoyance and many other feelings. Consider how you felt the last time someone was being a pain—and you can probably add pains by other names to the list.

The most positive Chironic characteristic is to make lemonade out of lemons. That’s what humor does. It takes what’s sour, adds the sugar of laughter and the water of our tears, if we laugh so hard we cry, and whatever we’re going through is suddenly bearable.

Chiron is prominent in the charts of many comedians, often in aspect to their Jupiter. While too wide to be considered a conjunction, my own Jupiter and Chiron are in the same sign—Scorpio—and I definitely feel the connection between what hurts and what humors.

In the channeled material, A Course in Miracles, we are told that miracles are changes of perception. When someone heals, we often say, It’s a miracle! Laughter changes our perception by putting pain in perspective.

Laughter is miraculous, and those who help us laugh are miracle workers.

Self-awareness and transformation—the gifts of astrology—are serious business. The more serious the subject, the more we need laughter to compensate for what we go through in the process of growth and evolution. We need to be the “light” at the end of our own tunnel.

I’d like to see a lot more humor in astrology—and a lot more astrology in humor. I don’t think it’s possible to heal without it.

You’ll continue to find plenty of it here on The Radical Virgo.

~~~

Photo Credits: Famous Dog © Willeecole - Dreamstime.com; Happy Sun © Tetastock - Fotolia.com; Humorous Blue Crab © Benjy - Fotolia.com

Next on Humor Month: Funny Movies for the Signs

Chiron 101: Summer School: Don’t miss your chance for a $20 discount. Early bird special of $59 ends June 1. The class is filling up, and the maximum number of students is 20. The earliest this course will be repeated is in 2012.