Transitions, more thoughts on Uranus sq Uranus

Elizabeth graciously asked me to do a guest post for her blog and I decided to add more thoughts on the cyclical transit I'm undergoing of Uranus squaring my natal Uranus. As I am now in my early sixties, this will be the last Uranus to Uranus transit before my Uranus Return (if I live that long . . .) :-D

I don’t whether it’s the waxing transit of Uranus squaring my natal Uranus or Pluto having moved into Capricorn but I’m finding myself thinking about the aging process and what it means here recently. The USA is not the best place to be to grow old gracefully with the emphasis placed on youthfulness. We are deluged with advertisements for products designed to preserve an appearance of youth . . . and after we pass 60 that’s so not happening! I’m not entirely sure whether my first house Venus could resist having a little something “done” if I could afford it though I’d like to think so, after all I’ve spent most of my life bucking the current fashion trends. ::grin::

Having successfully negotiated my second Saturn Return a couple of years ago, this final Uranus sq Uranus transit marks the next step in the maturation cycle and it’s feeling like it will be liberating. All Uranus transits encourage us to express our uniqueness and this one is no exception. With my natal Uranus inconjunct Mars/Mercury/Ascendant my expression of individuality is going to be a very public one and most likely out of sync with my peer group as usual. The Uranus in Aries generation who are now in their seventies opted for what I call the “country club/golfer” look – short dyed hair, aggressively tanned with lots of plastic surgery if they could afford it. Yuck! No way!

Playing peek-a-boo with my granddaughter last weekend, I also realized the affinity of those in their first childhood with those of us moving into our second. We both have strong Uranus/Mercury aspects in our charts – her Mercury is conjunct Uranus & mine is inconjunct. We were both giggling like maniacs being happy sillies, playing on the living room floor. Uranus has no concern what so ever for what others think unlike Saturn. And my little Pisces sweetheart is completely oblivious to gramma’s wrinkles – just responds to my joy in her.

What I’m suggesting is why not be comfortable with the natural cycles and rhythms of life. Why push childbearing years past our thirties and compete with our daughters in the sex appeal department? There is great value in sharing experiential knowledge and allowing our bodies to rest in the crone phase instead of pushing hormones on it in pursuit of youth. Pluto is phasing into Capricorn now and providing an opportunity to gain understanding of what it means to be mature in the best sense. Pluto also rules Scorpio and the 8th House where we learn about death and re-birth and what happens when we attempt to fool Mother Nature. Seems to me there is a very good lesson to be learned from the rise in cancers and the use of HRT therapy . . .

As Uranus continues to encourage me to be my most individual self and embrace the present, enjoying what is rather than attempting to be something I’m not, I will also do my best to remember what it took to get here. Due have been paid.

Post by Neith

Aquarius North Node

Aquarius North Node, Leo South Node

Your soul yearns to dance to the rhythm of your own drumbeat, for in a former life or earlier in this life, you may have lived a life that had little connection to your true Self. In this life you may feel generally liked by your peers, as you have a charismatic “shine” about you, and others tend to project things on you which may or may not be true. They may even see you as being more lucky than you really are, or they may feel that you embody an ideal. However much others may project on you, your own true freedom and honest self-applause is more important now than the approval or praise from any group. You may have had previous lifetimes when you were on center-stage and had a fair amount of attention, and you may hold deep within you a feeling of being "special" but it may not have been a good fit for your Soul. Now there is a deep desire to be true to your self and not to follow the majority rule or herd instinct.

You care deeply about humanity and humanitarian ideas, and you need to risk disapproval from others to develop a more satisfying feeling of self approval. Because you are blessed with a keen intellect and the ability to see things differently, you have a lot to offer the world.

Aquarius North Node folks are visionaries and dreamers when they follow their North Node Soul Path. They are astutely aware of the importance of equality and fairness, and are usually brave enough to share their ideas with others--they're the ones who write the Letters to the Editor and organize the charity fund raising and peace rallies. Known as being non-conformists, romantics, exiles and brilliant thinkers, their challenge is to inform and balance their intellects with the sometimes irrational promptings of the heart.

Yet there's always a need for greater objectivity, and a need to leave behind making changes just to exercise authority. As you learn to relate to others apart from their roles, as equals, your desire for friendship will grow. You thrive best when you nurture yourself and others with your warmth and fresh ideas.

It will be important to leave behind any old melodramatic tendencies to insist on doing things your own way, and taking dramatic risks. When you ask God and the Universe for what you want and then let it go, you allow life to bring you exactly what you need with its own perfect timing. In this life, you can relax feelings that you need to be in control and be responsible for everything.

Because Aquarius NN folks were blessed with the ability to see things that others cannot, you are challenged to bring in new ideas especially in science, metaphysics, and human rights. As an idea-breaker and visionary forerunner for the rest of us, we look to you to see where we're going.
As you turn on your path and retrieve the gold in the shadow of Leo you may want to rekindle the warmth and openness of that generous heart of yours, and then to turn that warmth and non-judgmental quality on yourself. Expect the unexpected in life and keep dancing to that distant drumbeat---life will surprise you and delight you, when you least expect it.

Soul Purpose: Being a person who knows when to preserve what is good, when to reform what is in need, and when to overthrow what is corrupt. You are called to be visionaries and dreamers who are willing to do life differently. Avoiding the seductive undercurrents of other people’s expectations and projections on you is important—Aquarius is truly about freedom and authentic soul expression. Don’t settle for less.

Shadow: In wanting to share your generous heart, you can come across at times as being self-centered and seeking the spotlight just a little too often. There’s an awareness here of wanting to share your gift with the world, but unless you do it with a “warm touch” and pure intention it can come across at “first whiff” as being attention getting and self-serving, albeit in a rather subtle playful manner.

***

Marianne Williamson is a spiritual activist, author, lecturer and founder of The Peace Alliance, a grass roots campaign supporting legislation currently before Congress to establish a United States Department of Peace. She has published nine books, including four New York Times #1 bestsellers.
A minister in the Unity Church, the driving force behind Williamson's philosophy is to offer a new thought approach to spirituality. She addresses both established Christianity and Judaism in statements such as "You've committed no sins, just mistakes." Her earliest fame came as a result of her talks in a Course in Miracles, a step-by-step method for choosing love over fear. She credits her breakthrough to Oprah Winfrey who invited her to the Oprah Winfrey show to discuss Williamson's first book A Return to Love, a book of which Oprah bought one thousand copies.

Marianne’s famous poem, "Our Deepest Fear," was wrongly accredited to Nelson Mandela, but its message is unique in expressing the Aquarius/Leo Nodal axis. In this poem she challenges all of us to dare to share our light in the world—this is a good example of bringing the “shine” of the Sun ruled sign of Leo out into the humnanitarian public world of Aquarius, and she does this by acknowledging the fear inherent in her own South Node of Leo.

"...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, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small doesn't serve the world. There's nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't 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's not just in some of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we're liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others."

(c) elizabeth spring http://www.elizabethspring.com/

Moon's Node Reversal

At the time when the moon’s nodes are reversed, issues around life direction and soul purpose are up for examination and decision-making. It’s a time that holds great potential for crisis and transformation, and no matter what we do externally, on an inner level, we’ll want to balance the opposing tendencies within ourselves.

The transiting Nodes take a little over 18 years to make a full circuit around your chart. After 9 years they are at the opposite points from birth, so at the opposition point of 180 degrees your Natal North Node is conjuncted by your transiting South Node, and your Natal South Node is conjuncted by your transiting North Node. The opposites come together and this moment has the potential for a time of illumination—like a full moon.

I see this time primarily as one is which we are called to activate the highest potential or “octave” of both our North and South Nodes. It’s a time to release the negative qualities of each sign, and to manifest the highest qualities, or at least to truly see what these qualities are.

It’s also a time to reach for the “gold” in the shadow of the South Node. Carl Jung talked about this—he said that even in our repressed unconscious dark “shadow” self, we hold goodness and un-manifested potential there as well, similar to how the yin/yang symbol holds the germ of its opposite within each side.

As we access the highest octaves of both the North and South Node signs we release the negative qualities in each and reach for the gold in the shadow of the lower manifestations. It feels like this reversal is saying to us: "look at what's good here, take it, and release the rest.” Like all oppositions, it holds within itself a chance for an epiphany, a new depth of self-knowledge, and an illumination of where our Soul yearns to go towards. It illuminates what also needs to be released and surrendered.

Let’s look at an example. Say a man has North Node in Leo and South Node in Aquarius. He can choose to activate the gold in Aquarius South Node---which could be to courageously manifest a humanitarian project or a great life-work despite South Node Aquarius tendencies to think of himself as a genius exile who is both above and alienated from the rest of society. He could release me vs them thinking, and operate more from the level of the heart than the intellect. He could release being “eccentrically special” and simply be a conduit for the insights that want to come through him. And by acknowledging that his Soul longs to be a leader and a transformer of society, he chooses therefore to generously give of his heart, without fear and self-consciousness. His ego is diminished in light of the nobility of his work; his project, his life work.

These insights and awareness can come at anytime, but there are times in our lives—and the Nodes often point to these times—when self-awareness and the cosmic green light of the Heavens urge us to ‘move on’ like a loving mother. These are the times of openings in the curtain of fate, and the time to walk through old illusions and delusions. These are the times when we can see clearly, and when we are given renewed courage because we can now “take heart” because our unique life path opens before us.

Elizabeth Spring © http://www.elizabethspring.com/

Anyone else have research or insight about Node reversal?

North Node Virgo

North Node Virgo



Virgo North Node, South Node Pisces

Virgo is probably the least understood and most under-estimated sign of the zodiac. Whether it is your Sun sign or your North Node sign, you have a unique ability to visualize the ideal and the willingness to do what must be done to bring this ideal into reality. What a gift! However for you to do the high path of Virgo, you must use the tools of discrimination and discernment--which also means you need to "dot your i's and cross your t's." By carefully attending to the little details of life, and by analyzing what's really happening, you'll be able to make your dreams come true.



Earlier in this life, or in a former life, you've merged with the Divine in some way and yet you weren't savvy about how to live the mundane life on earth. Whether you merged with God, your Art, your lover, or your bottle of wine, you now need to relax the urge to merge and pay attention to the demands of reality. Some of you may have died, suffered, or been persecuted because of your beliefs, so now you need to regain your faith that life in the real world can be good. Many lifetimes may have been spent in the dissolution or sacrifice of ego or simply sacrificing your life for the sake of another person or ideal. Now it's time to develop a healthy ego and strong sense of Self that allows your Soul to feel safe.



As a North Node Virgo, you've been naturally drawn towards developing a vision of the "ideal" and you innately know how to bring that vision into reality. Don't allow yourself to get distracted, but get good at the mundane details of life and see how that process of focusing and becoming competent enables you to bring your dreams into reality.


Dare to take risks in spite of fears, and avoid addictive tendencies and escapism. The wisdom and sense of Oneness you earned in former lives can now support you in this world. Because you see the ideal and are willing to work for it, you often get what you want, as long as you don't let your perfectionism or self-criticism stop you from giving 100 percent in whatever you do. There is a need to plan and strategize in this life and follow through on your ideas.



You are likely to have skills in crafts, teaching and in the healing professions, but whatever you do, use skillful means to your ends, and empowerment will happen naturally. You have a psychic sensitivity, a great imagination and a uniquely creative way of seeing things. These attributes, plus an innate understanding of people helps you in countless ways.
As you turn on your path and retrieve the gold in the shadow of Pisces, remember your half-forgotten visions and sense of knowingness..."remember to remember" all that is good and beautiful and meaningful in life. Remember the magic you know in your heart.


Soul Purpose: to bring order, harmony, healing, and practical wisdom into your life and the lives of those you touch. By knowing what is truly good—since you’ve been doing the work of “separating the wheat from the chaff” and the real from the illusory, you preserve and maintain the best of what our culture and our mutual lives have to offer. Learn a skill and offer it to the world. When you become truly useful to others—when you are “in service” to others—you regain a lost sense of self and self-appreciation.


Shadow: A default tendency to see the world as a dream, and one in which you don’t have a strong sense of Self. You may have spent lifetimes dissolving the ego in unselfish tasks, or religious life, but that stance doesn’t serve you now. In a former life you may not have developed a strong enough ego that could have helped you thrive—you might not have been “mirrored well” as a child, or you may have lost your sense of sense in the collective (like in the military) or in addictions (communing with the bottle.) When you don’t look beyond your inner world to skillfully participating in life, you sink into a dull dream of life that’s bound by other people’s expectations, and you lose that cherished love that comes from serving and loving others. There’s a subtle difference here—basically, give your gift/service to the world, but do it your way!



***
Joseph Campbell had this Virgo/Pisces Nodal polarity. Campbell was a world famous mythologist, writer, and lecturer in comparative religion and mythology who also became popular to the American public due to the PBS television series, the” Power of Myth” with Bill Moyers. In this series, Americans remember him for his depth of sharing on the “myth of the hero” through all cultures, the Universality of certain spiritual “truths” and the necessity for “following one’s bliss” in life.



As a North Node Virgo, Campbell tackled the enormous job of chronicling, cataloging and synthesizing details of the world’s mythologies and religions. His painstaking analysis allowed us to see connections and parallels in man’s religious nature—the kind of work that Carl Jung had also done.



However Campbell began his studies in the time of the Great Depression, and when conventional graduate school wasn’t available to him he devised a plan of study as he was trying to figure out what to do with his life. He engaged in a period of intense and rigorous independent study which he discussed in The Hero's Journey: Joseph Campbell on His Life and Work. Campbell states that he "would divide the day into four four-hour periods, of which I would be reading in three of the four hour periods, and free one of them...I would get nine hours of sheer reading done a day. And this went on for five years straight." Now this is reaching for that skillful and disciplined North Node Virgo!



Campbell believed the religions of the world to be culturally influenced “masks” of the same fundamental, transcendent truths. All religions, including Christianity and Buddhism, can bring one to an elevated awareness above and beyond a dualistic conception of reality—that is, beyond the idea of “pairs of opposites,” such as being and non-being, or right and wrong. Indeed, he quotes in the preface of The Hero with a Thousand Faces "Truth is one, the sages speak of it by many names." In this line, we can hear the echo of his Pisces South Node: that place in him that could permeate beyond boundaries, masks, and linguistic or cultural divisions.



Campbell’s body of work was huge and even affected the world of screenwriting and film. George Lucas was the first Hollywood filmmaker to openly credit Campbell's influence. Lucas stated following the release of the first Star Wars film in 1977 that its story was shaped, in part, by ideas described in The Hero With A Thousand Faces . Campbell’s life itself was like a film of one hero’s journey, and contains both the discipline and the imagination of the Virgo/Pisces axis.

(c) elizabeth spring For more information: http://www.elizabethspring.com/