Tammuz: Total Eclipse of the Heart

CHODESH TAMMUZ TOV!

"Sartan" / Cancer the Crab, from the Michael Mahzor, illuminated parchment manuscript, Germany, 1258

Chodesh Tammuz 5779: TOTAL ECLIPSE OF THE HEART 

Chodesh Tammuz (July 3 – August 1), associated with the mazal of Cancer (Sartan) the crab, is the only month of the Hebrew calendar whose ruling planet is the Moon. This year the Moon plays an even more important role as Chodesh Tammuz 5779 features two Eclipses! 

This month during “Eclipse Season” light, which is consciousness, is hidden and then re-revealed, and it’s never quite the same as it was before. It’s now upgraded awareness, a higher consciousness. These powerful cosmic events underscore themes of security, family, tradition and respect – all of which are associated with Tammuz’s Tribal ruler Reuven, the emotional and sensitive first-born son of Jacob and Leah. 

The Solar Eclipse / New Moon in Cancer on July 2 initiates “security” issues. Ideas like “food, home, mother, money” trigger powerful, primal gut reactions. The Lunar Eclipse / Full Moon in Capricorn on July 16 is a faceoff and smackdown between the Divine Feminine and old, outworn images of a punishing, patriarchal god. Venus and the North Node join the Sun in Cancer, eclipsed by the opposition of the Capricorn Full Moon with Saturn and Pluto. 

Cardinal Water sign Cancer is concerned with the honor and the memory of the mother as illustrated by Reuven’s relationship with Leah. Mother Earth is powerful this month and disrespecting her brings serious consequences. Honoring the natural creation and respecting her power and majesty honors our Creator and strengthens our own roots! 

What can’t you live without? What’s your absolute red line, your most basic, primal desire? We all need to love and be loved. This month we confront our most essential need during what may turn out to be a total eclipse of the heart. When the darkness lifts, a new light shines – may it illuminate our way during this Moon-month of Tammuz!

Click HERE for Tammuz Horoscopes in The Jerusalem Post

Astral Weeks July 29 - August 4, 2018

Astral Weeks

July 29 – August 4, 2018

For everyone who survived the longest and most-hyped by the media full lunar eclipse of the 21^st century on July 27^th, Sunday July 29’s void of course Moon in Aquarius feels like a little bit of breathing room in a dizzying schedule. Inhale! Exhale! Focus on hope and reject lingering fearful thoughts. Let some of the tension that has built up around all the energetic activity dissolve. Practice the Aquarian superpower: detach and keep moving.

The Moon moves into Pisces Sunday evening, enhancing sensitivity and empathy. Last week’s planetary activity was so jarring, we need tender connection to each other more than ever right now. Monday’s Moon in Pisces trine Jupiter in Scorpio invites deeper intimacy, followed by the Moon conjunct Neptune in Pisces in the wee small hours of Tuesday morning. That’s when boundaries and borders between intimate partners become porous and dissolve. If you are smart and you are lucky, you’ve had a pajama party with your most beloved partner going on since Sunday night. 

Take advantage of the relative down time because mellow turns to fierce and fiery when the Moon goes into dynamic, courageous, impulsive, brave, energetic, and sometimes headstrong Aries on Wednesday morning. The emotional energy gets ramped up but may run into a log jam when Retrograde Mars and Uranus make a direct square Wednesday evening strongly in the fixed signs of Aquarius and Taurus, respectively. 

Uranus is the modern planetary ruler of Aquarius, so square his Fixed Air (Establishing Thought) home sign in the Fixed Earth (Establishing Manifestation) sign supports the possibility of revolutionary energy come up hard against the status quo of the establishment. Uranus is also called by some “the higher octave of Mars.” The connections between Uranus/Mars/Aquarius continue to ripple through the end of the week, energizing (perhaps shocking, perhaps merely surprising) the comfortable out of complacency. 

Thursday might feel like power struggles of the heart when Aries Moon trines Mercury Retrograde in Leo, and squares Pluto in Capricorn. Pushing and bullying others to get your way will only result in a complete system shutdown. When you’re tempted to be forceful beyond the spectrum of customary politeness, realize you’re about to cross the line of perhaps not such a quick return. 

Friday sees the Moon enter Taurus, making a conjunction to Uranus in Taurus in the evening, joining Uranus’ supportive trine to Retrograde Saturn in Capricorn. The Last Quarter Moon in Taurus on Saturday, August 4^th marks Shabbat Parshat Eikev, a recount of the many blessings the Israelites were receiving as they prepared to enter the Promised Land, and exhortations to remember that their blessings were because they were beloved, not because they were deserving. 

This consciousness of humility and dependence on Divine Grace is important to keep in mind always, never more so than during this time in our collective history. Saturday is also Shabbat Mevarchim, during which we announce the molad, the date and time of the upcoming Rosh Chodesh, the new Month of Elul, which will occur on Shabbat, August 11^th, at 7:33 (and 9 chalakim) PM, Jerusalem time. 

A Closer Look at the Skies:

During this week, Retrograde Mars and Retrograde Saturn are inconjunct in Aquarius and Capricorn, respectively. In classical astrology, Saturn is the ruling planet of both Capricorn and Aquarius. Saturn (“Shabbtai” in Hebrew, from the same root as the word for “Shabbat,” meaning Sabbath) is said to be the ruling planet of the Jewish People. 

Symbolically speaking: Mars (aggression) in Aquarius (humanitarianism, idealism) inconjunct (on a completely different wavelength, invisible to each other) Saturn (the classical ruler of both Aquarius and Capricorn) in Capricorn (traditionalism, ambition, assertive persistence, materialism). It’s like a perfect symbolic picture of the simmering struggle between American and Israeli Jews over the direction the State of Israel is taking, politically and religiously. 

The total lunar eclipse in Aquarius on July 27^th conjunct Mars in Aquarius stimulated a series of events that may climax in December of 2020, when Jupiter and Saturn make their conjunction in Aquarius. Following this event, Saturn and Pluto will make a conjunction in Capricorn in January of 2021. The events of this month are the kickoff to the developments climaxing at that time, which according to Jewish astrological tradition (see last week's edition of "Astral Weeks") have a direct bearing on the nation of Israel.

May the One Who keeps Israel neither slumber nor sleep!

Mercury Retrograde December 2017 Preview - It Actually Starts Now!

Remember how you spoke/heard, communicated/listened, interfaced with others and how it made you feel on Wednesday / Thursday (November 15/16) of this past week? 

That was 13 Sagittarius, the degree of the Zodiac where the upcoming Mercury Retrograde stops before it turns around again and stations Direct.

Even though Mercury Retrograde does not begin until December 3rd, we're in the pre-Retrograde period because we'll be revisiting 29-13 Sagittarius and back again between now and January 4th.

December 3rd also happens to be the Full Moon, with the Sun at 13 Sagittarius (the degree of the Mercury Retrograde) and the Moon opposite at 13 Gemini.

Which House of your Natal Chart contains 13-29 Sagittarius? That's where all the lights/camera/action/stop the cameras, rewrite the script/take two action takes place. Conversely - an "opposing effect" may occur in whichever House 13 Gemini falls, as that powerful Full Moon in Gemini which kicks off the Retrograde is, of course, associated with Mercury (the Ruler of Gemini) and therefore comes under the category of "A Mercury Retrograde in Big-Picture, Don't Bog Me Down With The Fine Points Sagittarius with a Heaping Side Order of Data and Details Delivered by Gemini". 

Pre-Retrograde: November 15-December 3

Retrograde: December 3 - December 22nd

Post-Retrograde Return: December 22 - January 4th

Chodesh Ram Cheshvan Tov!

Chodesh Ram Cheshvan Tov!

The Jewish Year is one whole, two halves, four quadrants, 12 months associated with 12 Tribes/12 Houses. We've just rounded the corner into the Northwestern Quadrant - Libra, Scorpio, Sagittarius (Tishrei/Cheshvan/Kislev) corresponding to Ephraim, Menashe and Benyamin - "Rachel's Boys" (Ephraim and Menashe were the sons of Joseph, the son of Rachel, and this Quadrant of the year is the most intense "Rachel Energy" of the entire Jewish Year ).
Each of the 4 Quadrants are made up of 3 Signs, always in the same progression: Cardinal (Initiating), Fixed (Establishing) and Mutable (Transforming). That is the archetype for all energetic progressions, internally and externally.

It's Rosh Chodesh Cheshvan today. Fixed Water - Establishing Emotion. We're going to spend the next month diving into the deepest, darkest depths of our feelings and if we do our work correctly, we'll emerge from this month like a pearl diver coming up for air with the biggest, most pure and beautiful translucent pearl he found in the depths of the sea and the dregs of the bottom of the ocean.
 
Cheshvan is sometimes called "Mar" (bitter) Cheshvan but we call it Ram (the highest!!) Cheshvan - for even though there are no holidays aside from Shabbat during this month, Ram Cheshvan is destined to become the highest when the 3rd Temple is inaugurated during this month as it is prophetically destined to happen - may it be soon!

The Flood began and ended during Cheshvan, it's also the month of the yartzeit of Rachel Imanu and of Reb Shlomo Carlebach, who, like Rachel our Mother, constantly cried for the Children of Israel to return again, return again, return to the Land of our souls.

Cheshvan/Scorpio/Menashe is EXTREMELY INTENSE. Intensely emotional, intensely deep, as far from superficial as East is from West. We have the "klee", the container to be able to use this intensity right now for applied spiritual growth and the development of emotional wisdom.

The "Rachel" Quadrant of the Jewish Year is about relationships. Tishri is about the marriage and partnership relationship, Cheshvan is about the sexual relationship and the relationships between ourselves and those with whom we share resources. Kislev is about sharing inspiration, sharing philosophies and ideas and religious constructs and ideologies. 

We're in the Northwest Quadrant ("Rachel's Boys") Part of the Jewish Year

Rosh Chodesh Ram Cheshvan certainly got off with a big bang as we welcomed it with a New Moon/Solar Eclipse/Venus Conjunction yesterday, and on Saturday Mercury leaves his Retrograde period and will station Direct. On Sunday, Mars moves from fiery, inspirational (possibly fanatical) Sagittarius into practical and pragmatic Capricorn. 

It's going to be a week of energetic changes but it will feel "right", in fact it will feel more than right, it will feel right on time as well. We're going to dive deep - make sure your oxygen mask fits you correctly and you know how to use it!

Chodesh Adar Bet Tov Tov!!!

Rosh Chodesh Adar Bet is coming, it's the Pisces/Pisces New Moon and we're about to become ALIGNED again! 

The Conjunct Sun and Moon at 10 degrees Pisces makes a perfect Trine to Jupiter in Cancer, a Triple-Water Ripple Effect that opens the gates of compassion, understanding and empathy within us. 

Make a list of everyone you need to forgive - then put your own name at the top of it. Forgive yourself first and the rest will follow. Chodesh Tov Tov!!!

Mercury Retrograde FINALLY ends today, Baruch HaShem, although it won't have left the shadow of its Retrograde motion until it finishes traveling forward through the shadow period, which ends March 20th.

Between now and March 20th, we're fixing everything that got tangled up in the last few weeks. The good news is - the fixing will be easy, as easy as combing one's hair after using a very good hair conditioner (as opposed to trying to comb one's hair without any conditioner at all). In the shower. Nice and warm and steamy. Get the picture? :)

But of course there's never a dull moment in the celestial world, because there's never a dull moment in the terrestrial world. Mars in Libra turns Retrograde on March 1st, another turn on its interminably long journey backwards and forwards through Libra over an 8-month period of time. Mars will Retrograde from 27 Libra back to 9 Libra until May 21st.

Mars was previously at 9 Libra around Christmas, specifically December 25th - 29th 2013. Basically what is happening is an energetic re-visiting of the ways in which we've expended our energy (Mars) between now and May 21st. We'll revisit the things that were important to us in late December and maybe have a second chance to do things differently. 

Mars in Libra asks: Where is your passion invested? Did you put your energy where your heart is, or did you put it where someone else told you to put it? Are you using your koach, your Chi, your sacred energy to please others or to be true to yourself? You need to answer all these questions, or the Universe will answer them for you.

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