Tomorrow, Feb. 14, is the Leo Full Moon (exact at 6:53 pm EST; view full chart here) — and Valentine’s Day. So if you’re feeling antsy, confrontational or as though a relationship is at loggerheads, it’s likely the building Full Moon you’re feeling, though it may be compounding any pressure you’re feeling from the romantic hype streaming at us this week.
It’s not that romantic gestures are bad per se, and expressing love is always a good thing. It’s that in the face of social expectations based on something other than holistic relating, and artificially fueled by the retail industry, the idea of ‘relationship’ gets warped into something less than nourishing. If you’re single, it can be downright alienating.
Somewhere along the line, certain actions and events became codified as the accepted ways to demonstrate love: fancy cards, chocolates, expensive dinners out, sparkly jewelry, etc. As society pushes those superficial (if pleasant) material displays, relational values such as empathy, honesty and receptivity seemed to get relegated to the back seat — especially on Valentine’s Day.
Empathy, honesty and receptivity can also be trickier to locate within yourself when a Full Moon is approaching, as this can be a tense moment, prone to opposition or polarization (i.e., drama).
When you’re engaged in conflict with another person and caught up in seeing them as the cause, it can be a struggle to find a way toward feeling empathy for them. Being completely honest about your own part in the conflict, or owning up to whatever qualities you’re pointing a finger at in someone else, isn’t easy. And once you’ve taken an accusatory posture and stopped looking inward, it becomes incredibly difficult to receive who that person really is and what they have to offer. We lose touch with our compassion.
Tomorrow, as the Leo Moon sets up across from the Aquarius Sun, it will also oppose retrograde Mercury and the centaur planet Nessus in Aquarius. Mercury relates to the mind: our thoughts and how we communicate them. Remember that you can mitigate havoc caused to communication this week if you’re willing to pause and double-check that you were understood and that you understand, before going on the offensive or getting defensive.
Mercury retrograde can represent confusion, and in Aquarius, an intractable Nessus is about consequences. The combination can be fearful, or in some way troubling — especially when coupled with the Full Moon.
The Sun, retrograde Mercury and Nessus may be pushing you to conform to the codified social expectations and patterns of Valentine’s Day. But the Moon is in Leo, which rules the heart; ultimately, love is about showing compassion for yourself and for others, in ways that truly matter: through empathy, honesty and receptivity. What effects might ripple out if you allow those qualities to guide your actions?
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Just do a search for “lion whisperer”. I thought it was a lovely example of the human as Aquarius relating peaceably with the lion as Leo. To me it shows that sometimes the beast we project onto non humans only turns into a beast when the human adds the vibration of fear. If he approached the lion with a gun that choice by the human draws forth the beastly expressions of the lion, compelling them to draw their weapons in defense. Leo dissolves the war with its opposite by considering that the distant stars are also suns and realizing that his eminence is only one of many as bright as it is in the small pond of the local stones. Aquarius does its part by withdrawing its fearful and worshipful projections onto charismatic leaders, recognizing the spark of the light that all can see shining in each and every sentient heart.
yeti, your link didn’t work for some reason. repost?
thanks lizzy, wishing you lots of love whatever you do!
“ultimately, love is about showing compassion for yourself and for others, in ways that truly matter: through empathy, honesty and receptivity.”
Fantastic, Amanda, thanks for the timely reminder, to treat ourselves with love too! And your photo is so magical and mysterious, just like love!
Happy Full Moon in Leo 🙂
Amanda, that’s one lovely photo you posted.
I’ll second the “apt words for those of us singletons”, but must say I did splurge on a tiny container of those little red cinnamon hearts just for moi.
Happy full moon to all…
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O82Ak1bBZu
Next door neighbors: Cancer and Virgo contain Leo’s fire, but only if they relate to their neighbors. Semi sextiles are considered weak and usually overlooked, kinda like neighbors in a society cultivated for maximum purchases and individual empires of stuff.
Following a path of a housekeeper in training while cultivating a musical garden: oppositions in action as various expectations clash. One asks the stressed out woman how to be helpful and that he didn’t understand her instructions. She shows him what she wants him to do and he does it. Her fire calms down. Another throws fire on the fire and argues and then she uses the voice that works best to clear the nest and manifest some space. I throw blame, it breathes fire back in my face. I ask how to be helpful and it’s like Leo’s next door neighbors relating to the kid so he doesn’t grow up thinking he’s the only star in the galaxy. That’s the glitch that turns Leo’s opposition into a war. Face to face relation is opposition. It doesn’t always explode.
Amanda: Thank you for exploring the subtle (and not so subtle) nature of oppositions so very well and for a sublime integration of how the concept balance works in.
Breandan: Welcome back. Perhaps sometime you can tell us more.
Good for you Stormi! (look forward to checking out link when I get home…). Yes, lovely to see you back here, Brendan.
Nothing Valentiney planned for tomorrow, but off to see the latest Cohen bros film (which looks amazing) with dear (male) friend.
agreed lizzy & brendan (welcome back!). even though i have two new *friends* (a leo and a scorpio), still a singleton by all other measures. so i bought myself roses (ok those are more to honor my kitkat who liked to eat the petals), and chocolate covered strawberries! hope you all get out and do something loverly for yourself too!
http://youtu.be/r-eXYJnV3V4
Very nice, very apt words for those of us singletons.
Hi Amanda! Back after a long time. I’ve popped in from time to time, but only as a lurker basically. Had to really concentrate on the professional life I’m kind of attached to, and that has taken a lot of time…
Nice to be back.
Thanks for this fantastic piece and photo, Amanda! I’ve been single for a long time now – and although it would be lovely to meet someone and fall in love, I also feel that I need to be alone right now, as I’m working through a lot of stuff. But feel quite a lot of pressure at the job I started some months ago. We’re a team of people who are all attached except me. And I think they’re a bit baffled about me and where I fit in, and from some of the comments the women make I see that it’s the classic thing where they’re expecting me to be in a hurry to hook up with someone and they just don’t hear me when I say this isn’t the case. Anyway, nice to be able to get this out here – and to take heed of your wise words about social pressure,dear Amanda.