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Author Topic:   Full Moon in Aquarius
Venusian Love
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posted August 06, 2006 02:19 PM           Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
Full Moon in Aquarius
Wednesday, August 9, 2006
3:54am PDT
16º 44'

If you haven't already noticed, we are witnessing a worldwide struggle between those that have the power and will not relinquish it no matter what, and those that desperately want power and will do anything to wrest power away from the powerful. Our global community has become pathological in its need to cling to aggression as the only tool to get, maintain, or defend power. It seems we have condoned losing touch with our basic humanity in name of security. This is Saturn in Leo at work; diligently making it clear that power in the hands of those with little compassion, narrow vision, and a mindless attachment to hatred and victimology, brings only massive death and destruction. I am beyond disbelief at this point with the senseless violence and abject hatred on all sides of the Mideast Conflict, including the unmitigated disaster America has created in Iraq.

Aquarius rules the global community and also the global nervous system. With the crazed level of negative thoughts, emotions and actions exploding around the world, you might be wondering what can I, one small person, possibly do to have a positive effect on this precarious situation? A very Aquarian thing: radicalize your relationship to the world by accepting the power you have to change your own mind, and through this, affect change on a global scale.

So, this is the Full Moon to break down the attraction to focusing only on your own life. Selfless giving to others is a true Aquarian vision of working for the collective upliftment of all sentient beings. Resist the seductive, narcissistic impulses of Sun in Leo and take a step into the reality-based ego-deflating world of Saturn in Leo. This is the Full Moon for involvement in something bigger than you. Put together an Aquarian Full Moon conjunct Neptune (Bodhisattvic intention), opposing a serious Saturn/Sun (knowing your limitations) conjunction in Leo, squaring Jupiter (philosophical meaning) in truth-telling Scorpio, and we find ourselves resting deeply in the realization that as individuals we are not the center of the universe.

The Dalai Lama says, "The belief that there is a substantially real self, and the cherishing of one's own interest at the expense of others, are the two main thoughts and emotions we have nurtured within us through our many lives. But what is the result of this? We are continually suffering, we are continually experiencing negative thoughts and emotions, so our self-cherishing hasn't really got us very far. Also, if we shift our focus from ourselves to others and to the wider world, and if we turn our attention to all the crises in the world, all the difficulties and the sufferings and so on, we will see that many of these problems are direct or indirect consequences of undisciplined negative states of mind," 2003, Transforming the Mind, Thorsons Publishing.

Over the last week, I have listened to dear friends who cherish peace and justice, defend the unbelievable destruction in Lebanon in the name of security and defense. Each time I have this discussion, I come away more committed to practicing the "Eight Verses on Transforming the Mind"; a very challenging Buddhist teaching on the development of Bodhichitta, the altruistic intention to attain enlightenment for the sake of all sentient beings. Since this is a Full Moon in Aquarius, a celebration of far-seeing, far-reaching, innovative strategies for global peace and understanding, I thought it appropriate to share this teaching with you. If you wish to read commentary on it, I recommend the book "Transforming the Mind", by HH The Dalai Lama.

The Eight Verses on Transforming the Mind

With a determination to achieve the highest aim
For the benefit of all sentient beings,
Which surpasses even the wish-fulfilling gem,
May I hold them dear at all times.

Whenever I interact with someone,
May I view myself as the lowest amongst all,
And, from the very depths of my heart,
Respectfully hold others as superior.

In all my deeds may I probe into my mind,
And as soon as mental and emotional afflictions arise,
As they endanger myself and others,
May I strongly confront them and avert them.

When I see beings of unpleasant character
Oppressed by strong negativity and suffering,
May I hold them dear—for they are rare to find—
As if I have discovered a jewel treasure!

When others, out of jealousy,
Treat me wrongly with abuse, slander, and scorn,
May I take upon myself the defeat,
And offer to others the victory.

When someone I have helped,
Or in whom I have placed great hopes,
Mistreats me in extremely hurtful ways,
May I regard him still as my precious teacher.

In brief, may I offer benefit and joy,
To all beings, both directly and indirectly,
May I quietly take upon myself
The hurts and pains of all beings.

May all this remain undefiled,
By the stains of the eight mundane concerns (gain and loss; pleasure and pain; praise and blame; fame and obscurity)
And may I, recognizing all things as illusion,
Devoid of clinging, be released from bondage (suffering from attachment to negative thoughts and emotions.)

Can you imagine if everyone committed to practicing this humble, heart-opening, mind-transforming way of being in the world? So much would change. It's time we stopped convincing ourselves of our own importance and preciousness. Our failure to care about anything outside of our own little lives lies at the heart of our cultural acceptance of the two most aberrant expressions of Leo: greed and a lust for power. So let's all use this Aquarius Full Moon to transform our minds and get really involved in something bigger than our own personal stories.

With Saturn and Sun in Leo we really have to reach hard to hold the Aquarian side of the Aquarius/Leo polarity. This Full Moon is the time to actively integrate these two opposing energies. You cannot have one without the other. Though Leo is the sign with the greatest attachment to knowing and creatively expressing the self, many astrologers call Aquarius the sign of individuation. This is due to the fact that Aquarian individuation goes past the Leo recognition of self to oneself: it proclaims self-knowledge to the community in the hope that this will awaken in others an awareness of their own condition. Remember that Aquarius rules the breakdown of the old ways by questioning the status quo. Those who create revolutionary change in societies are always the ones who can vision far beyond accepted beliefs and structures. In these troubled times, we all need to practice this kind of farsightedness.

This is the Full Moon to honor freedom, idealism, humanitarianism, egalitarianism, and the revolutionary impulse toward reform, without causing harm to anyone. Aquarius is the impulse to raise-up everyone and leave no one behind. So in service to these calls to action, become responsible and find out what is really happening around you. Get involved in your community, volunteer your time, and raise awareness in your neighborhood. It's summer, have a block party and raise funds for a good cause.

This is the Full Moon to wake up, and get politically/spiritually active (two of the most powerful expressions of Uranus/Aquarius!) Remember "a government of the people, by the people and for the people"? I can hear the shouts that we have no real power. Well, we abdicated our power by clinging to a complacency that has become so common it is almost expected. Free yourselves from the lies of the spin-doctors. Let go of your complacency and urge your family and friends to join you in speaking out against injustice, impoverishment and war. Get involved in working to fix our broken healthcare system, our outdated air/rail transportation industries, our dependence upon oil and our ever-worsening economic situation. Wake up everyone: our nation is in deep debt once again! Worst of all our government has a compulsion toward dictatorial use of power. We need to question the authority of our government to make war upon any nation without due cause or direct threat. We need to question the authority of our government to spend billions on "security" while each day so many of its own citizens join the swelling ranks of the working poor; strapped to the max, struggling to make ends meet, and unable to afford medical care. America is asleep and it has made our nation suffer.

Speaking spiritually, the Aquarius/Leo polarity is a bridge to enlightenment. The Leo desire to seek, to grow, to be wise and all knowing, leads us to do the hard work that is necessary to evolve our consciousness in order to achieve enlightenment. Uranus represents the enlivenment of kundalini, the life force that resides, curled up like a snake at the base of the spine. The awakening and rising of kundalini is the source of the powerful waves of ecstasy we experience during orgasm. Imagine the intensity of that force flowing all the way up the spine and searing skyward from the top of your head, awakening you to the ultimate orgasmic experience of pure consciousness: "I am that, thou art that, all this is that". Without this Uranian bridge, there is no awakening to the Neptunian/Piscean nirvanic state of enlightenment.

This is especially true with the North Node in Pisces/South Node in Virgo axis squaring Pluto in Sagittarius. Pluto in its last five degrees of Sagittarius is showing us, more than ever, the dark side of Islam, Judaism, Christianity, and Hinduism. The North Node in Pisces is calling humanity to abandon religious beliefs based upon ignorance and intolerance such as; my God is the only God, or this land is mine because God gave it to us, or I am holy because I have accepted God as my savior and everyone else is going to hell, or I am chosen by God, or any other spiritual belief that separates, berates, and causes hate. Pisces represents spiritual practices based in enlivening compassion, selflessness, a commitment to non-violence, and the attainment of enlightenment in this life, for the benefit of all beings.

Here's an Aquarian vision: creating a nation of enlightened individuals is the only means to real security. It is time to make group meditation mandatory practice in our schools and workplaces. Get ready for the next Full Moon in Pisces and start making group meditation part of your Full Moon celebration. Now more than ever, the world needs our attention and care. This is, after all, a Full Moon; a time of gathering in groups to celebrate, teach, share, and most of all enlighten.

©2006 Lisa Dale Miller
All rights reserved
PERMISSION MUST BE GRANTED BY THE AUTHOR FOR USE ON WEB SITES AND FOR OUTSIDE PUBLISHING

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