posted December 10, 2008 10:05 AM         

In astrology, a grand cross will be a time of great tension and testing.
It is good to keep this in mind as we move through the upcoming rather intense energy cycle from about Dec. 11-15. Since the Full Moon of December 12th is tied into a Mutable Grand Cross, those with mutable signs will feel these energies even more profoundly. LH

Wikipedia: A grand cross is said to occur when four planets are all separated from each other by square aspects (90 degrees apart). A grand cross can also be viewed as two oppositions (180 degrees apart) separated from each other by a square. In a grand cross, there is one planet in each astrological element (fire, earth, air and water) but all the planets are in signs of the same modality or quality.

Because all the aspects in a grand cross are considered difficult aspects, the grand cross is seen as a source of extreme tension whereby various aspects of the personality (represented by the planets) are working at cross purposes that serve to nullify each other. This pulls the native in many directions, ultimately leading to indecisiveness and an inability to produce concrete achievements. It is said to take extraordinary effort to overcome the conflicts in a grand cross. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grand_cross_(astrology)

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SOUL-SEARCHING ASTROLOGY

FULL MOON in GEMINI DECEMBER 12, 2008

by kaliyugashaktimama @ 2008-12-08

This year’s last Full Moon happens on December 12, 2008, at 21ºGemini. While the New Moon earlier this month was a picture of subtle simplicity and inward-looking quietude, a strangely unaspected situation of planetary concentration, the Full Moon of December 12 is a map of interactive tension and dynamism. The skies speak to us of the massive processes of catalysis that are occurring around the planet, in the hearts and minds of all people, and while we walk forward into a new year and, as some would have it, the beginning of a new era on the geopolitical/spiritual scene, there is much that must be considered and understood if we are to step forward into that future with some sense of preparation and foresight, allowing us to make the best of what we and the world both have to offer and need.

Most apparent in this Full Moon’s picture is the fact that the Moon stands in opposition to a boisterous Sun/Mars conjunction in Sagittarius, which in its exuberance, also widely ties into a crucial Mercury/Pluto conjunction in the very earliest degrees of Capricorn. This speaks of a state of flux, of travelling and motion in the spirit of our people. Moon/Mars contacts can be cantankerous at best, and in these mutable signs, we can expect much discussion, some of it heated, swinging from the specific to the general, and back again. Emotions can get flighty and banter can be very colourful, so be forewarned to expect to defend your territory, or that those around you will feel deeply compelled to do so!

The Moon is further tied into a Mutable Grand Cross, involving the Sun/Mars conjunction, and the Saturn/Uranus opposition, polarizing and typifying the current preoccupation on the global scene with the need to step away from the past, from the ways of tradition and posterity and embrace the needs of the future generations and the planet, but while doing so, subjecting our personal reactive responsiveness to potentially volcanic eruptions of mood, temper and the propensity for accidents and feelings of irritability and frustration. The big questions at this time are: “what is “mine” and what is “theirs”, psychically and practically? How do we defend our ground, or do we go after more ground? How does the individual find his or her own place in the ever-increasing complexity that is this world? Or rather, how does one extract oneself from it all in the most efficient, responsible and peaceful manner?

The Sun/Mars conjunction in Sagittarius gives a feeling of invincibility, of grand expansiveness and the sense that our energies are so high, and our capacity to extend ourselves illimitable. Complicating the wilful manifestation of our Ego is the propensity to flit around emotionally, as Gemini is sometimes wont to do. We want to be more, do more and experience more than we ever have…the trick is figuring out how we feel about it all, and how we integrate all these wavering emotions into our diluted psyches. We want to sample here and there, try this and that, and would love to do so without making any particular commitment to any plan, though the need for a plan presses strongly upon us. The personal and collective sense of emotional history is unstable and crumbling, and there are varied influences playing on our minds.

At times, with Saturn’s effect we feel squelched and inhibited, and then with Uranus we turn around and feel wild and reckless, thinking that if we simply forge ahead, we will pick up the pieces later, wherever they fall and make do as necessary. The potential for inflammation and extreme behaviour is high right now, almost to the point of seeing red and going wild. This Full Moon cycle asks, despite the obvious complications, that we connect with who we actually are vs. what we think we are, and that we step away from cultural handles and impositions to see past all the myriad manifestations, signified by Gemini, to find what is higher ground. Can you see the difference? No? It may take some serious deconstruction to figure it out, but the time is ripe, so go for it! Feel free to sample and explore how each end of the pendulum affects you, and in doing so, suss out the truth that is You. Now’s the time – use it wisely!

The Goldilocks Effect:

“Change”. There has been much talk of change lately, and in fact, it became the reigning mantra of the incumbent US President’s campaign; this mantra swept through the nation, and this promise still rings sweetly and tantalizingly in the ears of a planet that is poised on what looks like a downward spiral of collapse. Yes, but what exactly do we change? How do we go about doing it? Do we change as individuals? Is it that we make changes in our personal lives, and then the effect will manifest externally? Or do we wait for the change to occur on the societal level, and then make adjustments in our personal life, as the situation requires? Emotional pressure always rises in any situation of change; right now, what we see is that the personal and collective need for change is seriously complicated by a lack of ability to see just which way is the best way to proceed. Which direction is most pertinent, comfortable and ultimately salient for us individually and as a society?

This Full Moon configuration shows us that the key to these questions is to be found in individual efforts in personal self-development and discovery. “Know thyself” is the crucial idea to work with now. You are your own blueprint– nothing more, nothing less is required. It is old wisdom, and yet, because of its very simplicity, it is a most difficult thing to apprehend. Why? Your Self holds the answer – stripped bare of contingencies, of undue influences, of interpolations and translations, there is your truth, waiting for you. Standing alone in the light of your own reality…it is almost to stark for most people to bear, and yet this is exactly what is required of us. Why does this simple idea cause such primal fear? Because it removes from us the mantle of our perceived individuality, the esteemed state we spend so much time cultivating and coddling, controlling and maintaining. Strip it down and see your bare humanity, and the fact that you are just like everyone else. And in doing so, have faith that your efforts count for so much – nothing else does, so much as each individual effort. The crux of the matter is in finding the change that is “just right” for you, and this requires a stabilized approach to incorporating all the best of what we are, discovered through care, courage and strength. It is within you, so utilize it!

“Real attainment is to be fully conscious, to be aware of surroundings and the people around, to move among them all, but not to merge consciousness in the environment. One should remain in inner independent awareness.” Sri Ramana Marharshi

COMPLETE REPORT HERE:
http://soulsearchingastrology.blog.ca/2008/12/08/astrology-notes-full-moon-in-gemini-december-12-5181962