Libra Full Moon and more
Dear Friend and Reader:
Saturday’s Libra Full Moon is an invitation to actualize your dreams and creative plans. The Moon-Sun axis is square the centaur planet Orius, which is about what you do with what you’ve got. As a Full Moon apart from any aspects, this is the first of the astrological year, with the Sun in Aries. Full Moons can be tense and stressful, though they also advance the story. They help us out of deadlocked situations, and can provoke a useful confrontation.
This Full Moon is making all kinds of aspects: the Moon is opposite a Sun that is making conjunctions to both Eris and Pallas, two wildly different influences. My early research into Orius (discovered in 2009) was revealing. Notably, this centaur makes very few appearances in mythology, and none that stand out as thematic (he is killed by Heracles, like just about all the rest of them). Orious shows up in fictional form in The Chronicles of Narnia.
From its Wiki: “Orius was a brave and noble Centaur who lived during and after the Long Winter, and was the General of Aslan’s Army against the evil White Witch during the Winter Revolution. He was a fierce warrior and a loyal follower of Aslan.”
However, it is more visible as a planet in astrology, and it has some exciting connections. And it seems to show up more in the charts of prominent men than women.
That said, we see the feminine influence in this chart coming from the opposition of Orius in Capricorn to Iris in Cancer. She is sometimes called the “female Mercury” and is the goddess of rainbows (Arc Iris). Here is an article about asteroid Iris that looks like fun but which I have not had a chance to verify.
As for Orious: this centaur turned up as a prominent influence in the charts of Bill Gates and Steve Jobs (who both have it conjunct Eris and the Moon). These are the two people who first transformed the world with the digital revolution, then turned the world into a gigantic robot — though there is no debating the point that they are or were both overachievers.
They both have the same triple conjunction in their natal charts: Moon conjunct Orius conjunct Eris. It is remarkable beyond the limits of astrology to understand how something this outrageous works. Both Gates AND Jobs, with the Moon in the pattern? What about everyone else born with the Moon picking up this conjunction? Orius conjunct Eris (exact between 1954 and 1955) does not repeat until 2068, this time in Taurus, with a whole different flavor; for that we may be grateful.
Artists, Activists, Iconoclasts
Orius also shows up boldly in the charts of Pablo Picasso, James Dean, French surrealist poet Arthur Rimbaud, American rock star and surrealist poet Jim Morrison (who said he was the reincarnation of Rimbaud), Edward Snowden and Julian Assange.
In many ways, all their lives have defined eras of history, taking their professional lives to the level of profound cultural contribution.
Similarly, Orius shows up as influential in the life of Malcolm X, and one of my very favorite Supreme Court decisions, the one that makes it difficult for public figures to sue newspapers for libel, The New York Times Co. v. Sullivan. But now that there is no such thing as defamation, we don’t have to worry about that.
Orius seems to have an affinity for top-notch iconoclastic art, social justice and activists who don’t take any bullshit. It also turned up in the chart of Nelson Mandela, the first black president of South Africa, who reunified the country after many decades under the Apartheid regime. When he was freed from prison after 27 years, he did not show the least trace of bitterness.
I think of Orius as the centaur of making the most of your resources. We could use some of that right now — particularly as we seem to have so much, and do so little with it.
The Sun Has Been Busy This Week
The late Aries Sun has been busy this week, first making a conjunction to law-and-order, daddy-pleasing Pallas Athene, then to anarchist, self-righteous bitch Eris. You could not have two conjunctions of the Sun with wilder contrast between them. Prior to that, the Sun was conjunct Chiron.
This series of conjunctions has partly been responsible for the somewhat wild ride of the past week or so, though we have not seen the end of it: the energy continues to peak with the Full Moon, which re-activates the whole Aries stellium.
Pisces, the most visionary sign, has been in the news: by now, everyone has heard of the Jupiter-Neptune conjunction that happened there this past week and will not happen again in Pisces until 2188. Venus, exalted in Pisces, was there for the fun.
However, Venus is about to make a conjunction to centaur Nessus: beware of regrets, and don’t take them so seriously.
As of late Thursday, Mars has entered Pisces, and will be energizing all that is already there — turning thoughts into actions, and desire into results.
Remember this Simple Message
Mercury will be doing some of the same thing, as it works its way toward a conjunction with Uranus in Taurus. While that is exact Monday, it will be alive and well all through the weekend, and bring out some of the more interesting possibilities of Uranus in its present sign.
We might remember a message that relates to the topic of values: that which really matters. I mentioned Nelson Mandela above. A quote long attributed to him was written by Marianne Williamson. She does have an interesting Orius, though to read it, I would need to explain about six asteroids — her birthday is coming up, so perhaps then.
But may we remember:
“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, and fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world.
“There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people will not feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It is not just in some of us; it is in everyone and as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give others permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.”
A new horoscope is below — my intended return to the weekly.
Faithfully,
Planet Waves Weekly for April 15, 2022 for the Libra Full Moon
If you feel the impetus to take some radical steps, let your questions work themselves out, including how to finance your decision.
Aries (March 20-April 19) — Many forces are urging you to shift the trajectory of your life in some bold way, but do you have the confidence? When you’re pushed or compelled to make a decision by forces outside your control, that does not matter.
And it may not matter now; if you feel the impetus to take some radical steps, let your questions work themselves out, including how to finance your decision. It’s essential that you move from your body core and not from your head, your feet or based on visual cues.
Imagine there is a line running vertically through your body, tighten it till you’re straight and tall, and then move with your hips and shoulders in alignment. I mean this metaphorically, though it will help to move this way physically too, focusing on your breath when you do.
This looks like an idea that comes to you all at once, which leads you to re-evaluate everything. There is no point wondering who you are when you can actually discover yourself in one burst.
Taurus (April 19-May 20) — Amidst many other spectacular planetary movements, Mercury is about to form a conjunction to Uranus in your birth sign.
This looks like an idea that comes to you all at once, which leads you to re-evaluate everything. There is no point wondering who you are when you can actually discover yourself in one burst. You invest way too much trying to resolve the mystery of what people think of you, and whether they accept you.
Pondering this issue is nothing more than a distraction; it’s your mind going into its typical unstoppable overdrive. There is some magic in not caring what others may think, believe or want. There is real freedom when you let go of your beliefs about their expectations and just see what happens. Something definitely will.
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Take a while and observe what’s going on both within you and around you. Let the Full Moon play out, and also the conjunction involving your ruling planet Mercury in the most sensitive area of your chart.