Archive for March, 2009

New Moon in Aries — March 26, 2009, 16:06 UT

Thursday, March 26th, 2009

The New Moon symbolizes new beginnings, especially in Aries, the first sign of the zodiac which marks the beginning of a new cycle. Aries is the sign of pioneers and warriors, those who have courage to take the initiative, embark the adventure, or test their strength. Being first often requires willingness to take a risk.

The Sun and the Moon are in the same degree with Bienor, a Centaur planet discovered in 2000. The retrograding Venus is in close conjunction with these three. The stellium in Aries is squared by Pluto in Capricorn and opposed by the Main-belt asteroid Karma in Libra. The forenamed Aries planets sextile the North Node of the Moon. The sense of this planet and aspect combination resembles the primitive energy of the rune Ur (Uruz).

The visual symbol of the rune Ur is a wild ox, the aurochs that used to roam the forests of prehistoric Europe. The aurochs was an impressive and dangerous ancestor of domestic cattle. In Norse culture the young men were fighting them in order to claim their manhood. This was an initiation through which they became accepted as adult warriors.

Ur is the symbol of a great challenge, a test that one must face in order for personal growth and progress. It can mean danger, but the trial is a necessary one, and afterwards the person will be stronger and wiser for it. Ur represents raw, primitive and healing energy. According to Freya Aswynn, the force of Ur can be felt in nature just before spring, when one can sense the tension of new growth building up.

Venus is about values, and Venus retrograde in conjunction with the New Moon suggests that the challenge we are facing now has something to do with re-defining of our basic values.

Bienor is a Uranus-crossing Centaur with an orbital period of approximately 67 years. Bienor and Pluto have stayed in an ongoing square to each other for several years; the last exact square in this series happened little over year ago exactly when Bienor was occupying the Aries Point.

Bienor’s name means a strong one. In mythology, Bienor was one of the Centaurs that attended the Lapith king Pirithous’ wedding. Centaurs and the Lapiths started to fight and many of the Centaurs died in this battle. Pirithous’ friend Theseus leaped upon the back of Bienor, which was “never trained to carry riders,� and killed the Centaur. There is something unique in Bienor’s death, because in the myth he is the only Centaur who dies in this way. Centaurs were wild creatures, and the way how Bienor dies resembles a bit taming of a wild horse. It is an insulting act, which at the same time represents something positive.

Eric Francis has proposed that Bienor may be associated with the strength of mankind, and when combined with the Aries Point, something which affects everyman. It is up to us whether to put our strength to work for us, or against us.

Perhaps the myth points us to look for the meaning of Bienor in connection of events that have been unique and happened for the first time in the history of mankind.

In the chart of the first lunar landing in July 1969, when the lunar module Eagle landed on the Sea of Tranquility, the Moon was in early degrees of Libra with Bienor (opposing the Aries Point), mirroring two things: the strong men who bravely set out for the Moon; and the strong feelings involved in this event, not just in the USA but worldwide. Jupiter and Uranus were in conjunction in Libra, exactly opposite the Aries Point. The experience was not just historical for the mankind, but also highly personal for the men who walked on the Moon.

When Martin Luther King in August 1963 delivered his I Have A Dream speech on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial to an audience of at least 250,000, the Sun was conjunct Venus, Uranus and Bienor in Virgo.

John Lennon has a natal Bienor-Typhon conjunction at the Aries Point. John Lennon and Paul McCartney met for the first time in July 1957, three years before forming the Beatles. The same day the Sun was conjunct Bienor in Cancer. I doubt if there is a person in this world who hadn’t been influenced by their music.

President Barack Obama’s Sun in Leo is conjunct Bienor, Bienor right at his descendant. As we all know, he is the first African American to hold the office. President Obama’s strength can be easily perceived.

Nelly Furtado is a Canadian singer and songwriter. Her Sun conjuncts Bienor in Sagittarius, and the conjunction is opposite Varuna and Ceto in Gemini. Furtado is known for experimenting with different instruments, sounds, genres, vocal styles and languages (Sagittarius). She has said: “I always know there’s a new genre left to discover (Ceto symbolizing something constantly re-creating itself). For me, it’s like a metaphor for life (Varuna, a force that is “behind everything”). I feel like if you can get down with any style of music, you can get down with any style of person. So it’s fun for me—I get to expose my fans to different vibes and they, in turn, open their minds too. I’m always undergoing mind-opening.”

References:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aurochs

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ur_(rune)

Paul Rhys Mountfort, Nordic runes, Destiny Books, 2003

Freya Aswynn, Northern Mysteries & Magick, Llewellyn Publications, 1998

Metamorphoses by Ovid

Annular Solar Eclipse of Feb. 7, 2008, Lunations article

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apollo_11

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1957

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nelly_Furtado

Aries Equinox – March 20, 2009, 11:44 UT

Saturday, March 14th, 2009

Equinoxes and solstices begin the seasons. The word equinox means equal night. On the two days of the equinoxes each year, the lengths of night and day are equal everywhere on Earth. The vernal equinox marks the first day of spring in the Northern Hemisphere. In the Southern Hemisphere, the equinox occurs at the same time, but signifies the beginning of autumn.

At the vernal equinox the Sun enters Aries. It crosses one of the Cardinal Points, which are the first degrees of Aries, Cancer, Libra and Capricorn. They are very sensitive points in the chart, and the Aries Point particularly tends to connect us to big events of the world.

The story of the abduction of Proserpina illustrates the creation of the seasons. Proserpina was the daughter of Ceres, the goddess of the Earth, of growing plants and of motherly love. Ceres is the Earth Mother.

Ceres and her daughter were inseparable. Then Pluto abducted Proserpina in order to marry her and make her the Queen of the Underworld. In her grief and anger, Ceres stopped the growth of fruits and vegetables, and nothing could be harvested. People were starving.

Jupiter sent Mercury to order Pluto to free Proserpina. She was freed, but during her captivity she had eaten pomegranate seeds, the food of the Underworld, and was therefore forced to spend a part of each year in the Underworld with her husband. For the other part, she is able to return to live with her mother on Earth. When Ceres receives her daughter back, nature starts blossoming again; it’s the springtime.

The chart aspects are reflecting the story. Pluto in early Capricorn is in a dynamic square to the Sun at the Aries Point, the point of spring. Mars, the ruler of Aries, is opposing Ceres and calling for cooperation. Mars is also in conjunction with asteroid 1108 Demeter, named after the Greek counterpart of Roman Ceres, and emphasizing the moment for reunion of the mother and the daughter.

Asteroid 26 Proserpina in Sagittarius is forming tense aspects both to Ceres and Pluto, as if she was not quite sure at the moment with whom she should go; the time for blossoming flowers is not yet quite at hand. Proserpina is square to Ceres and in semi-sextile to Pluto.

Asteroid 399 Persephone, named after the Greek equivalent of Roman Proserpina, is in the mid-degrees of Aquarius in conjunction with Jupiter and asteroid 69230 Hermes. Maybe the daughter is negotiating with them for her release.

***

Recently I read an article divulging a theory that life on Earth could have originated on the asteroid Ceres. Astronomical studies suggest that Ceres could contain a lot of fresh water. It still could have a water ocean where life could have originated early in the history of our solar system.

It’s been proposed that life on Earth might have originated at hydrothermal vents, which lie at the bottom of oceans and spew hot chemicals. Many icy bodies in the solar system have rocky cores, so they may have had or still have hydrothermal vents.

Early in the history of the solar system was a period known as Late Heavy Bombardment, a turbulent time when radical asteroid impacts were very common. If there was life on Earth before that era, it most likely perished then and had to begin again after the circumstances here had became more favorable. The evidence points to Ceres having remained relatively unscathed during the Late Heavy Bombardment. If it had been bombarded, it would have completely lost its water mantle, as its gravitational force is too weak to recapture it.

Is it possible that rock fragments have chipped out off Ceres and then crashed into Earth, reseeding our planet with life? Are we humans descendants of Ceres, too?

The orbital paths of different solar system bodies which either had or currently have oceans were calculated, to see which were in the best positions to have pieces successfully reach the Earth. Ceres showed potential in these calculations.

The thoughts introduced in the article are more science fiction than science until evidence can be provided. The theory certainly gives a new perspective for calling Ceres the Earth Mother.

References:

Wikipedia

Eric Francis, The Personal is Political – ASR article

Lee Pullen, Could Life on Earth Have Come From Ceres? – Astrobiology Magazine article

Full Moon in Virgo – March 11, 2009, 02:38 UT

Tuesday, March 10th, 2009

The New Moon is a time of beginnings, and the Full Moon is a culmination point of the lunar cycle. Things we started at the Pisces New Moon two weeks ago have developed and matured. The Moon is growing towards the Virgo Full Moon. Virgo is the sign of a harvest.

Dedication, willingness to serve, analytical abilities, capacity for selection, precision and prioritizing are attributes of Virgo. It is important to be able to discriminate what is important in life. The chart now shows potential for great development in our aspirations; innovative and sparkling ideas are pouring out. Communication is highlighted.

The Moon is conjunct a binary planet Logos, a cubewano with an orbital period about 305 years. This is a trans-Neptunian object with a binary companion called Zoe. Logos and Zoe are a paired emanation of the deity in the Gnostic traditions and are part of the creation myth in this tradition. Astrologically Logos can be associated with logic, scientific breakthroughs and technology. Eric Francis has noted that Logos would appear to represent the “higher octave� of Mercury. Zoe represents the Divine Spark in all of us.

Mercury, the planet of communication and mental activities is the ruler of Virgo. In the Full Moon chart Mercury has entered Pisces, the realm of limitless imagination and intuition. Sue Tompkins associates Mercury in Pisces with dance or drama therapy, for instance, and sometimes with communicating through the medium of dance or music. Dance is a strong theme of this chart, represented also by a minor planet called Quaoar, which I will cover a bit later in the article.

Mercury sextiles Pluto, an aspect which intensifies intellect and gives depth to the thinking.

The Pisces Sun is conjunct Uranus, the planet of originality and intellectual brilliance, providing us with flashes of insight. Uranus is also about technology and inventions.

A main-belt asteroid Hermes conjuncts Jupiter. Hermes is named after the Greek equivalent of Mercury. Jupiter is associated with justice and wisdom and expands everything it touches, so the communication which is kindling may be very rewarding and righteous.

In Sagittarius a Kuiper belt planet Quaoar is forming a T-square with the Sun and the Moon. Quaoar is in exact square to the Luminaries. The orbital period of Quaoar is about 287 years. Quaoar has a satellite which hasn’t been named yet.

Quaoar is named for the Tongva creator god. The Tongva are the native people of the area around Los Angeles, where the discovery of Quaoar was made. According to the myth, Quaoar sings and dances the world and other deities into existence. Quaoar was sorrowed by the emptiness in existence and began to dance, whirl, and twirl all about while he sang the song of creation. God of the Sky was first to be formed of the creation melody. Next came the goddess of the Earth. These two new deities joined in the dance and created the Sun and Moon. Together these five sang and danced everything else into existence: animals, plants, people, and the other gods as well.

Scientists have been surprised to find crystalline ice on Quaoar. Being so far from the Sun, Kuiper belt objects should not be warm enough to form crystalline ice without some sort of unusual circumstance. How did the crystalline ice form and why is it still there? Is there a volcano on Quaoar? The impacts of micrometeorites may have raised the temperature of the surface enough to produce crystalline ice. The most discussed theory speculates that cryovolcanism may be occurring. A cryovolcano is an icy volcano. Rather than molten rock, these volcanoes erupt volatiles such as water, ammonia or methane.

Quaoar is a great creative and inspiring force. Mark Andrew Holmes’ keywords for Quaoar include creating abstract mental models.

Eric Francis’ research suggests that Quaoar deals with the family patterns that we enter unconsciously from birth. It is associated with the power of our personal creation mythologies (everything from how we were created, to how we ‘create ourselves’ in the process of life). These are patterns that existed before we were born and into which we were integrated without really noticing, like picking up a dance by feeling the rhythm of the music.

Quaoar in the chart can reveal to us something hidden and difficult to notice otherwise, like the eruption of an icy volcano. Planets in square aspect to each other create tension and action. The bright light of the Full Moon helps us to see clearly. Quaoar in square to the Sun and Moon may help us to break free from the old patterns from the past. Let’s dance!

References:

Wikipedia

Sue Tompkins, The Contemporary Astrologer’s Handbook, 2006, Flare Publications

JPL Small-Body Database Browser

Eric Francis, PW Daily Astrology & Adventure, May 19, 2008

Mark A. Holmes’ Asteroids

Astronomers Contemplate Icy Volcanoes in Far Places – New York Times article

Eric Francis, Mixed Signals, Bright Ideas: Mercury Retrograde in Gemini