by Robert Wilkinson
This Full Moon is intensely practical and anticipatory, with some cross currents accelerating our transformational adventure at this time. Things should be very clear in terms of the flow, with the promise of greater things in the next few months if we can find the right balance between mind and heart, will and love. This intensifies the search for a revelation in each of us.
Taken as a whole, the active aspects in this Lunation indicate an overall favorable period, with a lot of specialization, as well as ideas or information that will create “forks in the road of destiny” for those impacted by the septile series aspects introduced in part 1. Here all the planets have some very favorable aspects, with almost no friction except for Venus triggering the Rhombus Diamond opposition, semisquare, sesquisquare configuration. I’ll discuss the aspects in detail in part 3.
The Sun in Water and the Moon in Earth shows a time of expressing the depth-experience through the simple enjoyments of life, and since the rulers of both lights are in Air, idealism and beauty of form will be prominent. This is the second Lunation of the season that began at the last Equinox, so if you need a refresher about the important elements in play this season, please take a new look at that article.
The inner planets now begun to close the gap between where they’ve been and their coming conjunctions with Jupiter and Saturn. Venus and Mars are still closing on Jupiter and Saturn, whereas the Sun and Mercury have already begun their new Jupiter cycle while still closing on Saturn. We’ve now begun about 5 months of conjunctions between the inner planets and the outer planets. Harvests abound these next few months, so make the most of it!
Why Are Full Moons So Important?
At a Full Moon, that which has opened since the previous New Moon surfaces in a public form, and heads toward the culmination and fruition symbolized by the second half of any cycle. First half, birth into form and field. Second half, culmination and completion of the purpose of that cycle.
That’s why it’s important to regard the New and Full Moon charts as “God’s Footprints in Time,” since one follows the other in an unending sequence of births of newer and newer seeds. The New Moons show us the seeds that will flourish under the reflected light of the Full Moon.
Full Moons heighten feelings, due to the opposition of the Moon and the Sun. As noted, this particular Lunation is the only tight forming opposition, though Venus is exactly partile separating opposition to Uranus and in a tight forming sesquisquare to Neptune. That brings the Aries-Libra opposition back into prominence, doubling the “Tension of Opposites” needing to be transmuted by spiritual synthesis. We also have a very wide Moon opposed Mercury which is too wide by orb, but still reinforces the Taurus-Scorpio energy.
The Taurus-Scorpio “tension of opposites” is resolved by Pluto in Capricorn, throwing the favorable void into mid-Cancer. Even if the solution is extreme, or something involving the underworld of our existence, by showing appropriate “active defense” and caring for what we know we must, we will integrate the frictional forces in ways that are safe for us. The Aries-Libra tension is not resolved by a planet, but diligence and attention to details will yield favorable results even if the process is a bit frictional from time to time.
Dispositors - What's the Backdrop to the Energies?
The Moon is in Taurus, making Venus in Libra its worldly ruler, and TransPluto in Virgo its spiritual ruler. The Sun is in Scorpio, making Mars in Libra its worldly ruler, and Pluto in Capricorn as its Spiritual Ruler. As both Venus and Mars are in Libra, and Venus in Libra is in its home sign, it makes Venus the final dispositor of the Lunation.
By looking at the “chains of dispositors” for all the other planets, we see that Venus is the “final dispositor” for all the other planets except Neptune which is a “standalone” final dispositor of itself. You can find out more about dispositors in general, chains of dispositors, and mutual reception by going to Astrology Class – What Is A Dispositor and What Is Mutual Reception Between Two Planets?
The Sabian Symbols for the Full Moon
This Full Moon falls at 12 Scorpio and Taurus. It is said that the middle third (decan) of any sign deals with the emotional, social, and cultural levels of life, and as the Lunation is in the second decan of those signs, invokes a sub-influence of Pisces and Virgo.
Since the Moon always focuses the light of the Sun in specific forms, the degree symbols for both are important. The Sun degree is the illumination or enlightenment of the Lunation, whereas the Moon shows us the potential forms that enlightenment will take. Though I’ve given you a sense of what this is about up to now, here’s where we go into detail.
The Solar degree symbol for the 12th degree of Scorpio is “An embassy ball.” According to Rudhyar’s notes from the Marc Jones class, this degree is one of “social recognition of accomplishment as the substance of a ritual of human association,” “certification of rank,” and “ambition.”
In the Astrological Mandala he states this degree is one of “Group-consciousness, as it flowers at the highest level in cultural interchanges between representatives of the elite of the ruling class.” He says this degree requires that we meet other people “at the highest possible level of cultural interplay… rather than with an everyday type of consciousness and behavior.”
Dr. Jones says this degree is about imagination as a great “effective corrective” to get ourselves on track, where we can examine our loyalties to see if they are bringing us “the self-fulfillment to which (we) aspire.” He says this deals with the “practical values of life,” and involves “the political organization of society as either a consummation or exploitation of personal potentialities.”
He offers the keyword of DISPLAY. He states that when this degree works positively, it is “an absolute stability of self as a contribution to group integrity.” This degree involves faith, magnetism, deeper connectedness, spiritual sensitivity, universality, and sustaining ideals.
So we enter a time of being illuminated by figuring out whether our loyalties need adjusting or not based in practical necessities while following through on practical plans that enable us to strip away whatever is veiling our understanding and/or ability to get things accomplished. On a related note, this degree was extraordinarily important in two different long term events that happened in 2013.
First, Saturn went stationary retrograde on this degree in early 2013, marking a threshold of “wisdom training” involving the themes of this degree. Second, this is the degree of the Solar Eclipse in November 2013 which had effects lasting for 40 months after that time. We had to grow into a higher level of interacting with others, and all that would hinder that was eliminated or ended.
Clearly this Full Moon brings the Light of Illumination on whatever losses and/or regenerations we went through between late 2013 and early 2017, which will help us embrace the adventure in transformation that Jupiter is bringing us now. (To note, when Jupiter transits this degree, everything promised by this Full Moon should take flight!)
The Lunar degree symbol for the 12th degree of Taurus is “Windowshoppers.” In the original Jones class notes Dane Rudhyar published in The Astrology of Personality, he states this degree is about “inner interest in outer life which leads to whole-souled participation and achievement,” “self-projection,” and “estimation.”
In The Astrological Mandala,, Rudhyar offers this degree involves “the fascination of the youthful ego with the products of its culture.” He says this degree represents “the outward longing of the ego,” craving “direct participation with society and the world of other egos,” which requires certain goods and ways of styling oneself for society.
He states “the consciousness surveys possibilities … defined by organic nature (personal abilities) and by the ambition to succeed in society.” Here “the ego becomes aware of what society has to offer,” and turns its attention to the world in an interplay “between the individual and (their) culture.” This is a degree of “being molded by what (we) see and by prospects for growth,” as well as “socialization of desires.” We are told this falls in the Span of Experience, and is the counterpoint degree of the individual-mental and spiritual level of the Scene of Substantiation in the Act of Differentiation.
Dr. Jones, creator of the Sabian Symbols, offers that this “is a symbol of human imagination as the real corrective for (our) experience, enabling each individual to know in advance whether the choices (we) will make are in line with (our) desires.” He speaks of “the continual demand that action follow each tentative examination of life’s possibilities, and that some latent phase of self-awareness be quickened in consciousness.”
He offers us the keyword VISUALIZATION. He says when operating in a positive way, this symbol is “high ability in presenting the immediate potentialities of human achievement and the consequent self-realizations.”
From these symbols it seems we can see the light of meeting others at a high level of cultural interaction while being neither stiff nor casual. Apparently there are times when a certain type of classy “formality” is the best way to be when we’re in public situations. This can be expressed in our socialized desires and the goods and adornment we seek when establishing ourselves in the public realm.
Given the Sun occupies the degree where Saturn went stationary retrograde, I interpret this to mean that we’ve all had opportunities since 2013 to become “ambassadors” or “diplomats” in our world, and that for the 2 weeks this theme will be front and center. Reject commonplace, “too familiar” and “everyday” ways of relating to others while conducting yourselves at the highest level of dignity and respect, both for self and others. Express it through the ease and simplicity of Taurus, staying calm and keeping it enjoyable.
TransPluto, Divine Mother, Neptune, and the Polarization in the Collective Atmosphere
Both Neptune and TransPluto represent very vast fields of feeling and connectedness beyond individual control. Neptune is the oceanic field of collective consciousness in which we all swim, and TransPluto is an almost incomprehensibly vast Divine Mother energy which redeems all things, brings grace to all circumstances, and is beyond even Death itself. When these two planets make an aspect, it shows us how the collective field is relating to Divine Redemption.
Many important collective developments related to these themes began to surface between 2009-2012, when Neptune in Aquarius was in very close opposition to TransPluto, or Divine Mother. That’s a major factor in why things became so polarized during those years, where the “tension of opposites” began to bring forth lessons in our Oneness, our need to share, and the human collective consciousness faced its need to embrace compassion and learn Viveka, or Divine Discrimination, especially when TransPluto was at the first degree of Virgo. Since that important opposition, we’ve all experienced intensified opportunities to join together in the Great Mother and realize our interrelatedness on a feeling level with All-That-Is.
In terms of the larger Era, we’ve now ended the TransPluto (Percephone, Parvati) in Leo era that we knew from September 20, 1935 through July 4, 2014. The transition period where this planet danced at the last degree of Leo and first two degrees of Virgo began October 2011 and ended July 4, 2014, when TransPluto left Leo for many centuries to come, and entered into Virgo for the next century.
TransPluto, or Divine Mother, has mainly danced between 1 and 2 Virgo since July 2014, showing us the larger view of what we are learning about how we conceive of God the Mother. The symbol for 1 Virgo is about how our ideas and ideals shape the outer forms in our lives, as well as how we act. It’s about picturing “the salient features and the overall meaning of any life situation,” as well as the Path of discipleship and other forms of training.
So one of the two great themes Divine Mother has taught all of us is to see life as a whole, and find meaning in seeing the significant features of the whole picture. This is about understanding the value and function of differences, and seeing how our personal integrity allows us to make our ideals real through accepting some sort of responsibility.
TransPluto first entered 2 Virgo, and we began humanity’s “liberating ordeal.” Its initial stop here was between October 2014 and mid-January 2015. This began the themes of the “crucifixion” of our sense of ego-separateness so that compassion and understanding could come forth. We are told it symbolizes “eminence at the cost of struggle,”’ which certainly seems to be very much the case as humanity redeems the promise of its better nature.
So it was at 2 Virgo between October 2014 and mid-January 2015, after which it retrograded back to 1 Virgo. It re-entered 2 Virgo in early September 2015, and stayed at that degree until February 2016, when it retrograded back to 1 Virgo again. In mid-May 2016 it went stationary direct at 1 Virgo, and then re-entered 2 Virgo in early August 2016. It remained at 2 Virgo until the end of March 2017 and then retrograded back to 1 Virgo between April and the end of June 2017.
It then again entered 2 Virgo, where it remains in this Lunation in direct motion. That means its occupancy of 1 Virgo is now complete, and this is the next phase in our collective “liberating ordeal.” The GOOD news is that on October 11, 2017, it entered 3 Virgo, which we are told is a degree of “Two angels bring protection,” symbolizing inner powers and “divine help when human efforts fail.”
This should bring forms of security via “the simple and consistent convergence of all good things toward their own kind.” This is a type of conviction that guarantees “an effective fulfillment of our dreams.” With the planet symbolizing Divine Mother expressing help via guardian angels, it should provide us a welcome relief from some parts of our “liberating ordeal.”
It goes stationary retrograde at the end of November at 3 Virgo, and then retrogrades back to 2 Virgo on Jan 19, 2018. It stays at 2 Virgo, going stationary direct in mid-May 2018 on that degree, occupying it until Sept 6, 2018, when it re-enters 3 Virgo again. As you can see, while we dealt with themes related to 1 and 2 Virgo for a long time, we’re now moving into themes related to 2 and 3 Virgo for many months to come.
The energies of Divine Mother will only grow stronger throughout this century, and these will be demonstrated each time the planets make significant aspects to TransPluto. One major set of cycles were set into motion when Jupiter conjuncted TransPluto in August 2015 in Virgo, beginning a new 12 year cycle of how these “Divine Mother energies” will manifest. It also began a new long wave era, since Jupiter will conjunct TransPluto in Virgo every 12 years until the 22nd century!
Related to this, Venus went stationary retrograde exactly conjunct TransPluto in late July 2015, setting up Venusian manifestations of Divine Mother that will show each and every time 1 Virgo is transited. That means the Venusian Divine Mother promise of late July 2015 was expanded, or set into motion somehow, by Jupiter's transit of 1 Virgo in mid-August 2015, and then took expression due to Mars’ transit of that degree in late September 2015, and found “beauty of form” when Venus transited it in early October 2015.
Those two conjunctions have dominated the Virgo landscape in our charts since then, and were given new value, new power, and new understanding each time the inner planets transited those early degrees in 2016 and 2017. Also of importance, the Mars-Jupiter cycle set into motion in October 2015 in mid-Virgo will continue through their next conjunction in mid-Scorpio January 2018.
So we’ve officially entered a different Spiritual Era that will last through July 2107, when it leaves Virgo for good and re-enters Libra for the first time in many centuries, also after a few years of dancing on the cusp of Virgo and Libra. I offered you a bit more about this vast spiritual energy field in Astrology in the Age of Aquarius - Transpluto, a.k.a Divine Mother, Parvati, and Percephone.
See you soon with part 3, covering aspects, planetary sequencing, and other important factors in this Full Moon!
© Copyright 2017 Robert Wilkinson
Thanks again for yet another great article.
Posted by: Clay Uptain | November 02, 2017 at 02:56 PM
Really great points within this. Thank you for your kind generous offering of the energies in play.
Posted by: Nancy | November 14, 2017 at 05:27 PM