The lunar first quarter at 1:24 pm EDT Sunday will find the Virgo Moon square the Gemini Sun. As with all first quarter phases, you will be able to see the square aspect yourself. Weather permitting, Luna will be visible at its highest point in the sky while at a right angle to the setting Sun. Distinguishing this particular first quarter, but not visibly, the Moon will also be conjunct the asteroid Sisyphus.
Given that the authoritative Dane Rudhyar referred to lunar quarter phases as times of crisis, and when you consider Sisyphus is named after a mythical symbol of unrelieved futility, you might feel discouraged. Let us see what we can do about that.
First and always, no aspect or set of aspects exists in a vacuum. To fully understand the astrology of any square, conjunction or combination thereof, it’s important to see things holistically.
Chiron is perhaps the single object most closely associated with holistic themes by modern astrologers. As Eric himself wrote over a decade ago, “Chiron functions as an integrating agent.” It is therefore worth noting that Sunday’s lunar first quarter will take place within hours of Chiron’s retrograde station at the same degree of Pisces that it last occupied during the final week of February in 1964.
Integrating Chiron’s turning point into a holistic perspective of the Moon’s concurrent square to the Sun and conjunction with Sisyphus, will thus integrate some lessons from history into the astrology.
For a lot of people, especially those who identified with the established order, it felt like a crisis the last time Chiron was where it is now. An outspoken young black man (who later changed his name to — gasp — Muhammad Ali) became both boxing’s heavyweight champion of the world, and the most popular American in the world outside the United States. Other Americans who prioritized errant nationalism over what is morally right found that to be very discouraging.
Looking back on the big picture now, we can see there was no reason to be discouraged that a man with a conscience should rise to dignify a largely unconscious nation. In both his courageous deeds and mellifluous words, he let us see that it was not futile, but morally correct, to resist an unconscionable war. He was not alone in how he let us see our way through that time.
By the end of February 1964, efforts by the power elite to discredit and exterminate the African-American art of rock-and-roll became a historical symbol of unrelieved futility as The Beatles returned to the UK after having conquered the USA. Yet, a holistic view of the past reveals The Beatles to be an integrating agent if ever there was one. Indeed, it is very possible that the revival of rock-and-roll redeemed the history of a discouragingly compromised nation.
After all, historical redemption goes beyond learning what not to repeat. It also teaches that how you see the present, and what you can do about it, will determine your place in posterity. It’s one thing to feel discouragement and futility, as might be the case with Sunday’s astrology. It’s another thing to succumb to it. Let us see what you can do about not succumbing this weekend, and you will have made a good start towards being part of the solution, and the future, rather than being part of the problems that will only become the past.
Offered In Service
Len is available for astrology readings. You can contact him at lenwallick [at] gmail [dot] com.
Thanks Len for your article and the selection of the asteroid Sisyphus. I went to do the research to supplement my understanding, very nice Sunday to you 🙂
thanks, P. Sophia!
Hi Hazel1: We must have been posting at the same time, just read yours now. Please don’t feel futility, you are special and sensitive. You have to believe this, how else could it be otherwise, you have toched my heart by your words.
We all feel this way, emptiness from time to time. Know its ok to to feel this. Just remember it will pass. By your feeling it and then gently releasing it, it’s’ its already on it’s way to healing then I know. We all have a special important part to play don’t forget.
I hope you dont mind i offer, when i am feeling this way it helps to start by finding pleasure in even the littlest, most mundane things. When you wash the dishes, do it with love and care. Making your bed say a prayer. Moping the floors find respect in your service in love to everyone who’s feet walk there? Listen to the wind, or the bird singing out to you. The flowers in your garden opening up -they are there for your intention to see. In the Sun coming up, it’s shining out to you! And in the evening the Moon she rises to make you glow. Take care of yourself. pamper yourself – bubble bath and candles, whatever makes you feel good, it is your call and time to rest. Stay in the presence, you will find love and peace there. Ice coffe and fans sound nice too!
Sending healing thoughts to you. xps
Len, so simple, such love, so true. You say, “…lets see what we can do?”. A lot it seems, as you so brilliantly forecast. Holistically, astrologically detailed in and among the objects of the sky, in the heavens and right here together, with and in front of you.
And to your continuing prescription of our following the first lunar first quarter after the eclipses conjunct Sisyphus “that we should look more deeply into how Sisyphus relates with the Moon henceforth”. The Moon will be positioned conjunct Sisyphus, i believe at 26 degrees Virgo? It must be, the keynote very much goes along with your service, integrating Chiron and all the healing elevating comments here…if so the Sabian Symbol:
(VIRGO 26°): A BOY WITH A CENSER SERVES THE PRIEST NEAR THE ALTAR. Speaks of being of service. No matter how small the gesture, prayer, or act in your daily life, humbly offering our conscious service, moment by moment is sacred and evolving the structure of the cosmos towards peace.
KEYNOTE: The first stage of actual participation in the great ritual of planetary evolution.
DivaCarla and beleclaire so glad this was useful. It certainly was in understanding for me. In looking at my natal placement yesterday i found i have Sisyphus in my 1st house. So pushing boulders up in my learning to transcend those frustrating, fearful thought patters was, is, a daily practice and necessity in order for me to retain my connection to the Devine. And yet the undesirable situation, or unfounded belief is what created my increasing perseverance in faith and has actually led to accepting myself. So would I change it’s position? No, only my response to and accepting result. It is a blessing in healing for me.
Here was another “eye opener” I’d like to share if you have not already read yours. I just looked up my Ascendant Sabian Symbol degree. For me this illuminates and elevates the natal Sun,, Rising, and Moon interpretations. It feels like Soul purpose, or spiritual ideal for me. Would love to hear if this is relevant for others too.
I’ve been feeling the futility starting this week. And, since reading this by you, Len, I’ve been trying to care enough about myself to not give up (which was in another post this week, I forget who wrote it though). And I haven’t given up, and I don’t think I will, but I’ll be laying low and sitting in front of a fan (it’s hot in Santa Fe, though we did get rain last night) drinking iced coffee. Maybe I’ll have another of those cool dreams I’ve been having, those usually cheer me.
You are welcome Len….thanks…
Just re-read Albert Camus’ Myth of Sisyphus……the leap of faith…the absurd…or the third way…!!
The existential thought that so pervaded 50s/60s Europe is coming around again … it would seem…..
Interesting…!!
Paul
Musicman/Paul: Oops, did not mean to miss you. Welcome back and thank you for your delightful comment to dance to.
Chief Niwots Son: Precisely, thank you. There are options. There are choices. As those who made the myth knew, the options are available, the choices determine character, character (and not astrology) determines destiny.
Lizzy: You are very welcome.
Alex: Thank you for your kind and generous words as well as for your recommendation. Perhaps someday, somewhere, some astrological faculty will deem me worthy to join them.
beleclaire: You are most welcome. Yes, P.Sophia’s comment’s were truly well taken.
Hi Guys….here is an extract from http://www.musicman1.net/multi-modal-mersey-gate 2000-05
It was obvious…..immediately….. that the music of Africa had been carried on the oceanic winds……and that the full disgrace of a thoroughly disgusting period of history had produced some extraordinary and quite magnificent results. Like Diamonds……crushed for thousands of years….from an initial simple carbon fossil……African people had created didactic musical genres time after time after time….wherever their antecedents had landed. From Cuba…..Jamaica……and the Latin South….to the Delta Blues of Mississippi…….and on up to the hard north of Chicago and the New York Jazz of the 1940s and 1950s…..not forgetting the Swing Bands of Count Basie and Duke Ellington….the styles just kept on coming. Chiron transited Capricorn at the beginning of the 20th century…. and again in the 1950s…. and again in the 2000s. The musical cycles are evident…although some would argue that they became more visible as the Aquarius transit began. The first cycle ended with the supremacy of John Coltrane…. Miles Davis….. Dizzy Gillespie and a host of others…! The second cycle began in the 1950s with Rock n Roll…including the iconic Chuck Berry….and the iconoclastic Little Richard. By the 1960s…. Jimi Hendrix…. Stevie Wonder….. Marvin Gaye….. Smokey Robinson……. the Detroit Motown label……. Philadelphia Funk….. and the immortal James Brown….. had all produced new genres that stand supreme to this day…!! Quincy Jones is a man who grew up in the first cycle……….starting out as 3rd trumpet in Henry Mancini’s Orchestra. He really came into his own in the second cycle as Producer…Composer …and Arranger…. Frank Sinatra… Michael Jackson et al……and….as he approaches 80 years of age….. is now mentoring young trailblazers like Jay-Z at Def Jam. Jay-Z is married to Beyonce…is recording with Alicia Keys…..and is himself mentoring Rihanna……now that….is class…!! Chiron …it would seem…is proving to be one extra-ordinary healer of the musical kind…!!
I can only quote an article that I wrote for the Gambian Observer…!!
“Every American administration since the end of the McArthy witch hunts in the 1950s has paid tribute to the ongoing contribution of African American artists and musicians. Their playing of world music has been simply immense. Supposing it could be proven with DNA coding that you were the 27th cousin, once removed, of Duke Ellington. His classical work “Black, Brown and Beautiful” would become a little bit more important than your new car or hairpiece! Of course, if you are sitting there thinking that you would rather be Bob Marley’s sister, then that is OK! I find it exhilarating that my watchman in Fajara is the Mandinka double of Miles Davis as pictured on his album Tutu!; that John Coltrane, who mashed up my head with “A Love Supreme” live in Antibes in 1965, could be a Wollof from Upper River Division. Jahass! Jazz!! How would you like to play tonight?
Why on earth would you want to do anything else?”
………………………………….
This new musical 21st century cycle of Chiron now has such luminary reference points as Kate Bush…
“make a deal with God… (sisyphus) ..running up that hill….with no problem….”
http://youtu.be/wp43OdtAAkM
nice one Len….
Paul
Thank you Len for this wonderful nuanced piece and to all the PW community comments on it.
Once again I am left enriched and thinking about yet another layer to clarify and offer up for healing.
P.Sophia…I thank you too for suggesting the value of finding our own Sisyphus in the chart.
That was another eye opener!
Len, I really like they way you put this piece together! The way you apply the lessons from the cycles in relation to their historical and cultural reference points is a super synthesis.. an effective teaching style.. captivating too.
Keep pushing the edges.. great refinement.. you have established your voice.. I could see you, with your gift for lucidity, teaching at some astrological faculty.
Thanks for your tireless commitment to Planet Waves.
A.
Len’s piece + comments = wonderful! Thank you all!
So I looked up our friend Sisyphus, and discovered he was rolling that rock up the hill as punishment for an large assortment of heinous deeds he accomplished during his lifetime. The wiki link to his story is below, but the short version is he was a bastard who earned the futility he now endures. I read his story as a warning about karma and behavior, and so too the placement of the 1st Q moon indicates the need to make clear choices for the road ahead. Since the discovery chart for Sisyphus has a noteworthy spiritual tone, I would offer the choice we face is about orienting to our spiritual source, rather than following a mundane/secular path in life.
Read it for yourself: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sisyphus
DivaCarla: Good catch on correlating the discovery degree of Sisyphus with the Taurus solar eclipse. For now, i would say with humility that it’s back to the drawing board for that eclipse in the sign where the Moon is exalted. To have the first lunar first quarter after the eclipses conjunct Sisyphus indicates that we should look more deeply into how Sisyphus relates with the Moon henceforth. The credit for discovery is yours today!
P. Sophia: Validation is yours today!
P. Sophia, you inspired me to find Sisyphus in my chart. By ascendant it’s in my 8th house, and by sun sign, it’s in my 5th. Either way, that dayum boulder just rolled back down the same dayum hill.
I’d prefer a smaller boulder. Or a shorter hill. Or a different myth?
Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee.
That’s the way to roll that boulder!
“Wisps Of Winglike Clouds Streaming Across The Sky.” This was ringing bells for me, some recent event transpired on this Sabian symbol, and I found it. The solar eclipse! On May 1 a few days earlier, I photographed the sky from my back porch and there were “Wisps Of Winglike Clouds Streaming Across The Sky.” Wish I could show you.
The discovery degree of Sisyphus hosted the most recent solar eclipse. What is the resonant meaning stirring up our collective astrology? Shed any light on the vibration of this particular eclipse?
be: Thank you so very much for reminding us that it is not only the major planets (Neptune in Pisces, Saturn in Scorpio, and, after June 26, Jupiter in Cancer) who are part of the water trine action. Thank you for helping our individual and collective psyches by noting how asteroid Psyche is also helping us feel the flow. Thank you for your mastery of the Sibly chart once again, reminding those of us in the USA that it is once again time to rise to the occasion. Finally, thank you for lending your shoulder to our collective effort to show that “day’am boulder” that human beings can overcome where mythical figures have failed. We shall overcome. Yes, we shall.
Thanks for always looking out for us Len. Having Sisyphus conjunct anything could be disheartening but conjunct the Moon who’s already square the Sun, could be a real downer. I’m glad you recalled Cassius Clay’s attributes because I live in his hometown and we think the world of him here. The Beatles too were adored in February 1964, the month when Sarah Palin was being born. Little did we know then how much the world was about to change!
In fact, the degree where Chiron is stationing retrograde is trine the degree of the U.S. Sibly Sun in Cancer. In February 1964 it would have also been trine the U.S. Sun, but. . . . it was also opposite transiting Pluto at 13+ Virgo retrograde. That means Sarah would have a natal Chiron-Pluto opposition, a fact I hadn’t recalled. Yes, I think I can see that now.
Well this time, Sisyphus or no Sisyphus, we – at least those of us in the USA – might have a leg up with our lunar 1st quarter square crisis. All week transiting Psyche in Scorpio has been forming a grand trine with the U.S. Sun in Cancer and transiting Chiron in Pisces. She will be moving slowly (retrograde) away from exact on Sunday, but barely. Demetra George says a Psyche-Chiron aspect “connotes abilities in psychic healing” and we in the USA could get an extra boost by way of our country’s Sun in a grand trine with these two. That could go a long way toward integrating, from a holistic perspective, and that makes me willing to push that day’am boulder up the hill just one more time.
be
P.Sophia: Thank you for the benefit of your excellent research and sublime analysis. It is especially notable that the “Keywords and Phrases” offer us a choice. Choosing to work with change (one of the things astrology symbolizes) and against discouragement puts us on the upside of history and on the wave front of evolution.
Thank you Len for making us aware of this very encouraging aspect if only we vision and choose the real result.
For any interested, here below is some more info on the asteroid.
The discovery degree of Sisyphus is 19°47 Taurus placing it on the Sabian symbol
“Wisps Of Winglike Clouds Streaming Across The Sky.”
Does Sisyphus only see the clouds or does he see the wings of angels?
Dane Rudhyar says this degree speaks of “The awareness of spiritual forces at work.”
Perhaps then, Sisyphus is also about finding the meaning in the mundane, knowing that there’s a reason behind it all and trusting that you are being watched over when life is at it’s hardest. Maybe it’s about loving yourself enough to keep trying.
Asteroid Sisyphus was discovered on the 5th December 1972 at 02:28 by Paul Wild at Zimmerwald observatory in Bern, Switzerland.
To find Sisyphus in your chart, go to Astro.com and enter 1866 into the asteroids which are found under the ‘extended charts’ option. The house of Sisyphus will suggest the area of life where you might struggle with the reality, repeat mistakes or find it hard to change. This area of life may cause you to go around in circles or you might fight to maintain the status quo even when all hell breaks lose.
Keywords and Phrases for Sisyphus
Starting over, repetition, meaninglessness, try again, pushing through it, pointless work, an uphill climb, a thankless task, an eternal battle, “it’ll be the death of me!”, exasperation, frustration, trial, an uphill battle, nothing accomplished, the absurdity of life, futility, cheating death, getting nowhere. Finding faith in the mundane, maintaining faith when all else fails, believing without seeing, appreciating the journey rather than the destination, acceptance that all things change, adhering to the will of the Gods, accepting your fate.
http://www.leahwhitehorse.com/2013/01/13/asteroid-sisyphus/