Who We Are is What We Get
by Guru Rattana, Ph.D. - Issue #86, April 2, 2004
The overall theme of the current astrological activity could be Who we are is what we get. While the Sun is in Aries and Taurus, we can profit greatly if our inner focus is on Who and how I am is how I get what I want. We can take advantage of the next two months to cultivate a deeper awareness of our personal energy system, our inner resources and how to manage them. Inner identity building and resource management should be our top priorities until the Sun leaves Taurus May 20th.
Summary of Cosmic Events
The Sun is in Aries from March 19th through April 18th. The Sun enters Taurus April 19th.
The Full Moon at 16° Libra will be on April 5th at 4:04am PDT.
The day after the Full Moon, Mercury goes retrograde at 2° Taurus at 6:35am PDT. During its apparent backward motion, Mercury will slip back into Aries until it returns direct at 21° Aries April 30 at 6:05am PDT.
The New Moon and Solar Eclipse at 29° Aries are April 19th 6:22am PDT, just hours before the Sun enters Taurus at 10:50am PDT.
The Scorpio Full Moon and Lunar Eclipse are May 4th at 1:34 PDT.
In this edition we will examine the implications of the Libra Full Moon, the Aries New Moon and Solar Eclipse and Mercury retrograde.
Full Moon in Libra
The Full Moon at 16° Libra is April 5th 2004 at 4:04am PDT. During Full Moons the cat jumps out of the bag, revealing hidden secrets. The light of the Full Moon exposes our hidden agendas and subconscious patterns. We can use this extra illumination to get in touch with programs that block or impede our forward movement. In the light of the Full Moon we can also discover our hearts desires and our soul yearnings. We can identify how our dysfunctional behaviors and negative thoughts are simply a misuse of our energies, which with proper understanding and care can be redirected to serve, instead of sabotage us. Full Moons expose what is not optimal, clarify what we can do to change, and motivate us to transform ourselves.
Each Full Moon reveals another level of truth through the play of polarities. The Libra Full Moon confronts Aries. Libra asks the Sun in dominant Aries Who are YOU in relationships? Self-centered Aries can learn a lot about itself in a relationship, if it takes the time to notice that our relationships reflect our projections. The Full Moon in Libra gives us a chance to examine our emotional reactions, feelings of self-worth, and our ability to maintain boundaries as well as a compassionate heart.
Whom am I in Relationships?
There are several common subconscious ways we interact in relationships. One is to try to please and manipulate others in order to feel safe, to get attention, and to obtain what we want. These patterns were learned at such a young age that we don't even notice the extent to which the impulse to please and manipulate rules our psyche. The problem is, that if our attention is on another person instead of on ourselves, we lose energy, we are not in touch with our own feelings, and our neediness or control programs sabotage us, preventing us from attracting to us what we want.
We can use the Full Moon in Libra to expand our awareness, of how our fears of not got getting attention or taken care of, determine how we use our energy in interpersonal interactions. Whether we are a novice or an old hand at this inquiry, it is always revealing to watch how our energy shifts in relationships. If we are controlled by fear of displeasing others, we are always on the alert and tense. Our self-mastery goal is to be able to stay totally present to how we can create harmony within ourselves, without altering our energy to accommodate what we think will temporarily reduce tension within ourselves, and hopefully make the other person happy.
The second opposite program to losing oneself in relationships is to be so self-absorbed that we do not even notice that other people exist and have feelings. The self-focus of this narcissistic program seldom leads to the self-awareness we are striving for. We are usually so mental and consumed by our own thoughts, that we not only miss out on relating to others, we miss out on relating to ourselves. The cure for mental escapism is also to cultivate awareness of our emotions and feelings in our body. Self-knowing is always a prerequisite for intimacy with another human being.
Two ways to identify how our energy system is being used in relationships is to notice if we are, (1) tense or relaxed, (2) present to ourselves or absent. The bottom line is that we have to be relaxed to be in our own flow to align with the Universe. We have to be present to ourselves to attract to us what is ours. Our emotional energy and its messages are accessible to us only when we keep our attention on ourselves. We have to know ourselves, for others to know and appreciate who we are.
Aries New Moon and Solar Eclipse
There are not only two Aries New Moons this year; the second one on April 19th features a solar eclipse. During a solar eclipse the Sun is blocked by the Moon. During a lunar eclipse, the Moon is blocked by the Earth's shadow from the Sun. The blockage of light brings personal and collective subconscious patterns into our conscious awareness. There are many ways that these revelations can impact us. We may face crises that force us to face our fears and make major changes in our lives. A significant chapter in our lives may be coming to a close, while another one is being birthed.
Eclipses compel us to let go of attitudes, belief systems, careers, relationships, and situations that no longer serve us or that we have outgrown. They oblige us to grow up in the area of life impacted by their transformative energy. The Solar Eclipse in the last degree of Aries signals the beginning of a new cycle, and a new way of being. Where 29° falls in our birth chart is where a new life direction is unfolding. (If you don't have your birth chart, don't worry, you will know where you are being impacted and what you have to change.)
We will feel an imperative for change, guided by what is right, real and true for us. Our spiritual test is to be true to ourselves, while honoring the truth that resides in all beings. This requires an open mind, courage, emotional and spiritual maturity and a compassionate heart.
We definitely need to take time for ourselves to meditate, connect with our own energies, and receive inner guidance on how to best deal with the necessary changes. Fortunately, to support our inner process, Mercury will be retrograde for 25 days starting April 5.
Who Am I all by Myself?
The second New Moon in Aries asks us one more time, Who am I all by myself? Who are we when we stand alone? Can we be alone and feel secure, content and at peace with ourselves? Can we be present to our energy as our emotional states shift? Or, do we lose contact with ourselves when confronted with painful feelings of anger, fear or sadness? Can we embrace these challenging emotions as part of the repertoire of our energy system, or do we escape into reverie, or take flight into illusory futures and mental preoccupations?
While the Sun in is in Aries, we are supported in deep examination and contemplation of our energy system. To make real progress we must get in touch with the fact, that the hunger that keeps us dissatisfied cannot be fulfilled with external gratification. To satisfy of our deepest desires, we must cultivate internal gratification.
The sooner we realize, that we indulge in external pleasures to avoid internal inquiry, the better. We avoid emotional awareness because we resist feeling the pain. We must be willing to feel our pain in order to find the contentment that we crave. Our pain is a result of not honoring our own feelings. Our emotional pain is relieved as we develop a relationship with our emotions and energy system. As we cultivate a conscious relationship with our own energy, we discover how to nurture ourselves. In the process, we find inner fulfillment and contentment.
Self-nurturing is a very personal process. It is not an intellectual pursuit. We must be with ourselves and feel what we feel, without resistance, judgment or guilt. This ongoing process takes time, patience and attentiveness. Me being authentically me with me is our touchstone.
Mercury Retrograde
The day after the Full Moon, April 6th 6:35am PDT, Mercury goes retrograde at 2° Taurus. During its apparent backward motion, Mercury will slip back into Aries April 13. It returns direct at 21° Aries April 30 at 6:05am PDT. Mercury has designated 25 days to do our inner work. Aries energy likes to take risks and investigate new territory. With Mercury retrograde in Aries we are being asked to enter new territory in our psyche, and to take the risk of actually being in touch with the energy that gives us life.
The depth and honesty of our inner investigation will create a more solid foundation for embarking on new endeavors, that will be revealed by the solar and lunar eclipses. Personal integrity, balance and integration are the overall goals we wish to achieve during this time out. When we are so accustomed to moving full speed ahead, Mercury retrograde periods can feel frustrating and confusing, but these periods can also be extremely useful and serve our overall plan. We can take advantage of this time to review our path, refine and redefine our priorities, and take care of any unfinished business.
Mercury Retrograde Attitude Shift
The reactions were mixed when I told my Kundalini Yoga class that Mercury was about to go retrograde for 25 days. A Virgo man and a Pisces woman were very pleased. They said they looked forward to these times, as the heart energy allows them to let go, relax and feel freer. Another man who was initially apprehensive, decided by the end of the class that he was going to use this time to delegate work in his business, so that he could enjoy his life more. After a good Kundalini Yoga set, the others were ready to reconsider their apprehensive attitude to Mercury retrograde periods. Ideas on how to best take advantage of this vacation were percolating in their minds.
Retrograde periods give us the breathing space to identify vital missing elements, and to make course corrections so that our actions and intentions point us in the right direction. One or more planets will be retrograde every day of 2004. With the warp speed of planetary evolution, it is essential to use these respites for relaxation on inner connection. Currently Jupiter and Pluto are also retrograde. (Jupiter is retrograde January 3 through May 4, 2004. Pluto is retrograde March 24 through August 29, 2004.)
Aries and Taurus Lessons
Mercury stationary at 2° Taurus highlights issues of resources and basic needs. It is time to reassess our quality of life, and our ability to take care of ourselves, financially and emotionally. Taurus wants to feel safe, secure and comfortable. In earthly Taurus we define our needs and assess how we can best get them met.
As Mercury backtracks into Aries territory, we need to look at what we want in terms of at who we are. Do our goals and aspirations come from a deep connection with our unique identity, or are they superimposed by external dictates and customs? The cost of getting what we want can be very high, if our goals are externally defined. We pay with our own sanity and health. If we are paying too high a price for survival, we need to ask How does who I am support me in getting what I want and need? The more authentic we are, the more we attract to us what is really valuable and satisfying. We can always be more authentic. Now is the time to deepen our inner authenticity. We can do this by aligning ourselves with our soul identity, that is larger than our personality.
So many interesting things are being revealed at this time. One Aries friend, who is being confronted with challenges in his business, wrote to me that he is experiencing how his presence is setting up difficulties in his business so that he can learn about sacrifice and service. It is a major shift in consciousness to take responsibility for what we are creating. When we identify the lesson we are supposed to learn and act on it, transformation happens. We evolve even further when we identify how we create problems through misalignment of our thoughts and emotional energy. When we take action to correct ourselves at an energetic level, we really catapult forward.
Kundalini Yoga - Meditation on Our True Identity
There is a very simple and beautiful mantra that we can chant to get in touch with and affirm our true identity.
ANG SUNG WAHE GURU
ANG SUNG means in every cell.
WAHE GURU vibrates ecstasy.
This mantra is an affirmation that Divine ecstasy vibrates in every cell of your body. Chanting this mantra aligns your vibration with the ecstasy that really does resonate in every cell of your body. We become aware of the infinite truth of our identity. Chant this mantra for 11 minutes every day. The hands can be on the knees or on the heart. This can be done in a monotone or with a CD. I personally love chanting with the Gurudass CD Longing to Belong. The Gurudass sing with so much heart that chanting with their music can make us feel very happy and free (MP3 below).
During the day, neutralize negative self-talk by responding with this mantra. Answer negative thoughts by telling yourself the truth - Ang Sung Wahe Guru. Repeat 3-11 times, as needed. Let the vibration of the mantra change your inner reality. It is a fun game to play with yourself.
I still recommend doing Nabhi Kriya during this time.(1) This navel set aligns the emotional body and lower chakras. Combined with the emotional and mental alignment of Ung Sung Wahe Guru, you will be able to profit greatly from the current cosmic energies.
References and Footnotes
"Libra Full Moon April 5, Aries Solar Eclipse April 19", Stephanie Austin, M.A., The Mountain Astrologer, April/May 2004, pp. 106-7.
1. This set is also in Transitions to a Heart-Centered World.
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