Author Dana L

Pluto’s Power

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A full moon in Pisces snuggling up to Neptune is coming up in the wee hours of the morning. But my mind is on Pluto and how it shows up to remind us to play in the dirt, to dig deep, to plumb the depths of what can’t be seen. There are jewels there. Past the bugs and crawly things, we find sparkly bits that are we base the very measure of our money on. Pluto isn’t a planet anymore but it does not need to be one in order to remind and signify the places in our charts and in our lives that need to constantly be mined for what hidden treasure.

If you face fears that you find out weren’t so bad and go deep enough to find diamonds and rubies, it’s addicting. It’s a rabbit hole of discovery that pushes home that the journey is as important as the destination but also that to the victor goes the spoils. When you have something that combines the adrenaline rush of the crusade and the holy grail together, how can you not get obsessed with doing it again and again and again? Of course, the Pluto of mythology let his obsession lead him to abduct his wife. That is the bad side of the hunger that Pluto brings. When all sense of right and wrong flies out the window in the pursuit of our goal; we fight the knights that came with us along with the dragon we must face. Finding the place where we desire and are driven but still keep our cool wits about us should move us. It should not be blind, primal urging.
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The best transformation lies in what we learn about ourselves along the journey that Pluto forces us to take. It lies in how we must redefine ourselves when we find a new piece of treasure to add to our bounty. In mythology, Pluto often holds the item that is needed for a hero to obtain for his glory or the object of his almost obsessive desire. He holds the riches of the soul and will not give them up just because we want them. He makes us work for it. Pluto forces us to get our hands dirty.

So that is the power of the non-planet. We are continuously tempted with ideas of what is hidden below the depths and we eventually are moved to go digging for them. We go ten feet, find some gold, and Pluto beckons us with the glint of something more just a few feet further. We scrape our knuckles and bloody our knees to reach it but we keep going, at least those of us who are heavily influenced by the cold and distant planet. We grow and morph with each bug that is quashed and each layer that we pull back in search of our treasure. We are reborn. We are powerful. We are transformed

Balancing the Titans

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Jupiter teaches us how to say yes and Saturn teaches us how to say no. 

Before the Romans borrowed heavily from the Greeks to add some shine to their stories, Saturn was associated with burying things. Depending on the academic you talk to, these buried things could either be people or seeds. Either way, Saturn put things to rest and cultivated them for later. The story we all know has Saturn overthrowing his father, Caelus, to become King of the Gods but not learning the lessons only to repeat the curse. He chose to eat his offspring, to carry the burden and allow fear of what could happen to change him from the rebel he used to be to the tyrant he himself had fought against previously. Jupiter was the last child born to Saturn and his mother hid him to save him. Once Jupiter comes of age he gladly accepts the risk of returning home to save his siblings and overthrow his father. Some versions have Jupiter rallying Saturn’s own brothers against him for a great battle where he is dismembered and has his “member” thrown in the sea spawning Venus from the seed that spilled there. Others have Saturn leaving after his defeat and  teaching the people of early Rome agriculture and ushering in the Golden Age of Rome. Either way, Jupiter goes on to rule the Gods and the skies. He also manages to eat his children from his sister-wife but retain his throne and later spawns thousands of others with various humans and supernatural creatures.

What does any of that have to do with saying yes and no? When we look at the stories and how the planets show up in astrology we realize that they show us the good and bad side of the two powerful words. Saturn shows us the power of no in understanding boundaries. Good boundaries can help us to stop a tyrant from burying us. It also helps in cultivating delayed gratification so that the seeds we bury can have enough time to properly sprout and bear fruit. Saturn also shows us how saying no from a space of fear (not caution) can cause us to unduly burden ourselves on ways that will destroy us. It is a mirror that shows how saying no to time and to the march of evolution will be our undoing. Jupiter shows us the power of yes in going for it. It reminds us that faith is the weapon most often employed in yes and that audacity can be a powerful. Jupiter shows us how a whole new world unknown to us to can be opened up with those three letters if we are willing to go for it. And it remind us that yes can be just of much of a burden as no because we have to care for or are hurt by all the things we or they let in.

Jupiter returns in astrology often have times when we expand and get a whole of what we think we want but it ain’t always good. Saturn returns constrict us and have us grow up through reminding of what we can’t have right then. Expansion or yes and constriction  or no should be in balance in order for us to thrive. Too much of one and not enough of the other will have us in a sorry state. The two juggernauts of the solar system have signed up to be our constant guides and reminders of this lesson.

New Moon in Aquarius 1/2017- Pour in, pour out

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The new moon in Aquarius is this evening. The sign of fixed air, ruled traditionally by Saturn, colors the energy of this newly beginning lunar cycle. It also happens to be Imbolic and the Lunar New Year. Celebrations that bring folks together in ways that call for thinking forward while looking at what got us here in the first place. It is the crossroads that requires innovation for the survival of humankind.

Too many folks, in my opinion, focus on the idea of Aquarius being eccentric. It really is not as much of a trait as people emphasize. Most Aquarians have a healthy respect for tradition, even if they don’t participate in the traditions themselves. They find ways to honor it by evaluating if it works for them and us as a whole. The ability to look at and examine what is currently in place, the structures and social mores that build the world around us (so much Saturn there) and see the pieces that are missing are Aquarius’ gift. It is also its’ curse because to constantly examine and critique the world around you requires a detachment from it that can leave others viewing you as cold and unfeeling. The feeling is there but Aquarius is driven by the stubborn inner knowing that there is always more work to be done, more social bridge-building to be done.
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This new moon can emphasize the need to share our collective story and points of view due to Mercury taking up residence in the sign of the water bearer. It may not be as refreshing to others as cool water but we all must be willing to pour out and into the world at large and into the organizations around us that look to change it for the betterment of us all. We could all take a page from Aquarius’ book and find ways to holding our fragile egos in check when hearing others’stories and criticism that might hurt them. To remove the need to smooth over differences in order to get to Utopia. Having a healthy respect for them is necessary in order to build this world that will get as close to it as humanity ever could.

Working with traditional rulers truly changed my relationship with the signs and Aquarius was one of the ones that hit the hardest. The ideas of what I had been told were blown away when I began to look at the meaning of the sign in relation to yet another astrological symbol that is often framed as cold and unfeeling. It helped me to get into a better relationship with Saturn and what it represents as well. I’m thankful I listened.

My best advice is to set some intentions to speak as much as you listen this lunar cycle. To endeavor to integrate into society without losing self. To find like minds and like hearts and build on it but to exchange with those who are different in ways that honor truth and accountability to the greater whole.

Be easy y’all

 

New Moon 12/2016- Slow and Steady

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A new moon is coming in Capricorn at 1:53 am ET. All that new moon energy is swirling around at 7 degrees of the Sea Goat, talking to a distracted Mercury at 6 degrees. The new moon is a great time to set new intentions. ff103-capricorn1Take note that with Mercury being retrograde that you will most likely have to revisit the plans you make. Capricorn is cardinal earth. So good intentions to set could center around long term goals, practical plans, taking care of your bones, and assessing your responsibilities. Take it slow and steady. Capricorn is hardly ever in a rush. It takes pleasure in playing the long game. Take a note from its book. Especially with Mercury (lower mind) doing a backward sprint thru the sign.

 

This is a good time to think about what you want and make some small but sure steps towards them. You got time and you got this.

Full Moon 12/2016- Reviewing Our Stories

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Hey good peoples. It’s Full Moon day. At 7:05 pm ET, the Moon in Gemini will be opposite the Sun in Sagittarius at 22 degrees. When you look at the chart you notice that the moon is almost all by it’s lonesome on one side of the chart while most of the other planets are clustered and collected on the other. Seems ominous and heavy, doesn’t it? Meh…lol. Ominous? Not really. Heavy? Just a bit.

As I always write, full moons are about culmination and revelation. It’s the mountaintop, the pinnacle at which we take stock of all we have just done and figure out what we can leave behind that we just picked up. What stories and half truths did you pick up this go round? What truths did we stop ourselves from telling because of something deep inside of ourselves? When the new moon for this cycle started, the sun and moon were squaring Neptune and moving close to Saturn. I shared about how this cycle could be about moving forward in the search for truth by doing something different and how we could benefit from some loose structure because finding that string of truth could be a little hinky.

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Now the moon’s close opposition to Saturn suggests that getting serious about enacting boundaries and sifting thru the stories that we have collected should be on our agenda. The Moon in Gemini feels very comfortable collecting all different types of information and tidbits.It’s fed by differing perspectives; constantly moving about as curiosity dictates. Seems great but at some point, we have to settle down and delve into what we have collected. Saturn is in mutable Sag but it still helps to give some grounding and desire for truth to the flights of fancy and magic that the Moon wants us to go on. While the Sun in Sagittarius wants us to go far in our search, the Moon in Gemini calls for us to stick closer to home and our hearts for what we need.

Considering that Mercury will be going retrograde soon and that the full moon trines Mars in Aquarius, reviewing and processing things could be good for us right now. An early start to assessing not just this last cycle but this past year  for the untruths that we told others and our selves so that we can move forward bolstered by the words we speak and the stories we weave. Of course looking at the house that the full moon falls in in your chart can give you some personal insight into where to look first. Balancing our sun driven need to venture out broadly with our moon driven desire to speak on our emotions is key to making the best of these next two weeks. Completely doable so don’t fret y’all. We got this.