Once upon a time, in the long ago and far away, when gods and goddesses walked the earth among humans and when human beings aspired to godhood, there lived a centaur named Chiron.

A centaur, as you may know, looks like a man from the waist up and a horse from the neck down.  There was, at this time, a whole race of centaurs, but Chiron was not really one of them, for he came to be a centaur in a different way.  He was the product of a rape.  Before Chiron was born, his mother, the nymph Philyra, attracted the attentions of Chronos (or Saturn).  Chronos was accustomed to taking whatever—and whomever—he wanted, and so he pursued her relentlessly.  She cleverly turned herself into a horse and sped away, but he turned himself into a horse also and caught her.  Chiron was the product of their unwilling union.  Think about that for a moment.  His mother abandoned him at birth without a second thought.  His father he never knew at all.

Chiron was always an uneasy union of opposites.  The way he came into existence was an example of that, along with the fact that he was, himself, half-god and half-beast.  A third example is in his attempts to negotiate treaties between the unruly centaurs (representing Freud’s unconscious or “id”) and their neighbors, the Lapiths (representing Freud’s repressive superego), even though neither fully accepted him as one of their own.  Chiron’s dualistic nature drove him to seek his own wholeness.  He was driven by a need to put the warring parts of himself together, so he could become one person.

Chiron in all his duality symbolizes an essential human problem:  a human being is a spirit in a body.  A human being is a bundle of instinctual needs and unconscious drives and yet “in aspect, how like a god” are we.  Has it ever occurred to you how funny it is that, when we are pointing out someone’s flaws, we say “He’s only human,” and yet, when we see an animal behaving in a way that seems beyond its capability, we say, “it’s almost human.”  It’s almost as if humanity itself is an odd blend of bestial and divine.  Chiron is this puzzle of being human.

Chiron formed a strong friendship with Hercules, the mightiest of heroes.  They fought in battle together, side by side, on many an occasion.  In one battle, amidst the confusion, a poisoned arrow shot by Hercules injured Chiron’s leg, causing what should have been a mortal wound.  But Chiron, being immortal, could not die.  So the animal part of him had to suffer while the divine part maintained his connection to life.  Perhaps it was for this reason that Chiron became a renowned healer.  He studied herb lore and healing ways and became a medicine man in search of a cure.  He never found one, but he found something better—a way to transcend his suffering and to become truly whole.

During this period, Prometheus was being punished.  He was one of the Titans, the gods before the gods we know best (Jupiter, Mars, Venus and the crew).  Prometheus thought Man was a pretty good invention, the best and brightest of the earth-dwelling mortal creatures.  He believed human beings should have fire, so he stole some from Mt. Olympus (home of the gods) and gave it to humanity.  For this, he received an extremely harsh punishment.  He was chained to a rock in the underworld and each day a huge eagle (or in some stories a griffin) came and ate his liver from his still-living body.  Each night it grew back.  Before leaving him there to endure this daily torment for all eternity, Jupiter (aka Zeus) declared that whoever of all the gods wished to, might relieve Prometheus of his torment if that god was willing to take his place for just one night.  After that night, the rescuer would die and become a ghost in the underworld, as if he were mortal.  No one agreed to—and why would they?  They were gods.  They had immortality and a luxurious existence.  Why would they give that up?

Chiron heard this and thought to himself, “I am already suffering on a daily basis and there is no value to my suffering.  If I took on the suffering of Prometheus, at least he would be freed.”  Chiron did so—he took Prometheus’ place on the rock and endured the torment of the giant bird.  Jupiter was so impressed with this behavior that he did more than make good his promise to free Prometheus.  He liberated Chiron from not only the rock, but also the torment of his own wounded body, and placed him among the stars as the constellation Sagittarius.

Now I want to point some very important things out here.  Chiron’s decision to heal Prometheus by taking on his pain was exactly the thing that liberated Chiron himself.  It was a truly selfless act.  It also illustrates a healing principle of homeopathy: “in the poison is the cure.”  Which means that a very small amount of the very thing that hurt you will cause your body to cough up and expel, in a healing reaction, the original damaging agent.  It is also the reason why people drink in the morning to cure a hangover, calling it “the hair of the dog that bit you.”  And this principle is related to inoculation, in the idea that a small amount of a disease, when introduced into the system of an otherwise healthy person, will cause that person to create antibodies which stand ready to fight the disease if it appears in force later in life.  Whether preventative or curative, all these principles suggest that small amounts of poison effect cure.

Chiron’s story is both beautiful and profound but for Chironic types (people with Chiron placed strongly in their chart) it is more than this:  it is a life-path with deep, rich meaning.  To be on the path of the healer is a gift which hurts at first, but leaves one with a wholeness, a sense of being knitted together and of having access to all of oneself that would not be possible if the wound had not been there in the first place.

The key to this is to spend as little time as possible in the victim role, and to, as quickly as possible, move on to the role of survivor and ultimately to become a thriver.  If you’re a Chironic type, you cannot afford to get self-indulgent anywhere on the path, because you will get stuck there.  Acknowledge that the pain is life’s gift, driving you onward toward healing and wholeness—for yourself and the many others lucky enough to cross your path.

Chiron is a part of all of us. All of us have a primal wound, a wound that feels like it will never heal.  Our human tendency is to think that we are special in our woundedness (“You don’t know how it feels to be me” was how Tom Petty put it) but that attitude is the very thing that forms the greatest obstacle to our healing.  In order to heal and truly move on to surviving and thriving, we must let go of the glamour of victimhood.

Chiron is split; he is both wounded and divine.  Chiron in your astrology chart shows a place where you came into this life ready to be wounded.  It also shows a place where you have a capacity to be divine, extraordinary, special.  Heal the wound and you are left with the divinity.  How do you heal the wound?  Three ways:  First, accept and bring yourself to love the broken or split off side of yourself.  Second, let go of attachment to being special in your brokenness, a victim of your fate.  And finally, heal others who are like you because this will bring out and exercise your divine ability.  You don’t have to do these in any particular order—life will send you random opportunities to do all three.

Chiron’s gift is great, but unattractive.  Can you accept it and make something of it?  If you can, you will release the pain of being human and take your rightful place among the stars as a constellation.

In the last month (February of 2011) Chiron has now moved into Pisces for the first time in 50 years.  Chiron is the Wounded Healer and Pisces is the symbolic “ocean of dreams.”  What does this mean?

In Greek and Roman mythology, Chiron is a healer, but he is also a wounded figure.  He is usually shown limping, because he’s a reminder that everyone has a broken place inside.  He is also a centaur—half horse (from the neck down) and half god (from the waist up).  He is a symbol of our own human nature—half-beast and half-god, and that as human beings, we are an uneasy union of the animal and the divine.

Chiron is The Broken One, The Walking Wounded, the Healer and every character who has ever touched greatness through suffering.  Chiron says:  “I’m here to show you the old, stuck places in you that linger from the past.  This may sound painful, but it’s actually an opportunity for healing deep, ancient wounds and recovering your human birthright.”  Chiron’s gift is the accelerated evolution that comes when we own our wounding and do what is necessary to make ourselves whole.

In 2011, Chiron, the Wounded Healer, leaves Aquarius and moves into Pisces.  Chiron in Pisces does his work gently, bringing up old wounds having to do with intuition and illusion.  If you’re cut off from your intuition, Chiron will show you.  If you’re deluding yourself about something, Chiron will know.  “Watch your dream life,” says Chiron, “That’s where I’ll be, showing you places where you are split or broken and showing you how to heal them.  You’ll find wholeness in your dreams and in your spiritual practice.”  Even people who never thought they had a spiritual side may find themselves on the path during Chiron’s passage through Pisces.  It lasts until 2018.

Tomorrow, I’m going to tell you the tale of Chiron, so you will learn why he is the wounded healer and what that means.

In the first two articles of this series, I looked at what happens when Pluto and Jupiter get together in the sky and form a stressful square:
Jupiter Squares Pluto: Going To Extremes
Jupiter And Pluto Go On A Binge
This month’s square is their final pass, so their influence will be fading quickly after February of 2011 ends.

Today’s story finds them sitting on Mount Olympus, contemplating the landscape.
Jupiter:  I love a view from a lofty height like this.  I can see forever and I can really get the big picture this way.
Pluto:  This is not my favorite view—I prefer to look underneath things.
Jupiter:  You always get so dark when you do that.  You like to find the darkest, grittiest, ugliest thing at the bottom of something and point it out.
Pluto:  And you have a way of overlooking what matters.  I put human beings through their own dark places.  It’s my job and I’m very good at it.
Jupiter:  Yeah, but I’m the king of the gods.  I help people see the heights they’re capable of.  That’s more important.
Pluto:  Not in my world.  In the underworld, I’M king.  You can’t even get in unless I let you.
Jupiter:  Oh, I can get into the underworld anytime.  I just don’t usually want to.  It’s not the best vacation spot.
Pluto:  But important things are going on there!
Jupiter:  Stop pleading, Pluto.  It doesn’t look good on you.  Make your point.
Pluto:  I will.  People need a place to go when they die.  They need a concept of hell to sober them up while they’re alive.  They need a way to work off bad behavior.  They need a well of souls to rejoin after death and to be reborn out of.
Jupiter:  I just don’t get why this stuff matters.
Pluto:  It may not matter to you, but it matters to human beings.  You’re a god.  You live forever.  You don’t die, can never be reborn.  A human being can become a little bit more like a god by going through death and rebirth.  That’s why I’m here.  To make it possible for a human being to burn away his mortality and become his finest, greatest self.
Jupiter:  Who’s making himself sound important now?
Pluto:  Here, I’ll show you what I mean.
Pluto grabs Jupiter’s arm and whisks them both away to the underworld.  It is a dark, dreary place.  They stand in an empty landscape where everything is in shades of gray.  A Human Being trudges along, unaware of the presence of the gods.
Pluto:  This human is experiencing what they call a “long, dark night of the soul.”  Eventually, he will come out the other side of it and find that he has changed in a very fundamental way.  He will be a new person.
Jupiter strikes a light.  It flares up brilliantly.  The Human Being perks up.
Pluto:  (putting the light out) Hey, don’t do that!
Jupiter:  Why not?
Pluto:  This human hasn’t gotten to the end of his journey yet.
Jupiter:  But you just said the journey through the darkness has to end sometime.
Pluto:  He has to suffer some more first.  Then he will get to the light at the end of the tunnel.  It will happen naturally in the time that’s right for him.
Jupiter:  Who are you to say that I didn’t just provide the light at the end of the tunnel?
Pluto:  I’m the Lord of the Underworld, that’s who!
Jupiter strikes another light and illuminates it even more.
Pluto:  Cut that out!
Jupiter:  (moving away from Pluto and turning the light up.  The Human Being reaches for the light with a look of hope on his face.) No, I won’t.
Pluto (roaring) You’re RUINING IT!  This is supposed to be scary!
Jupiter laughs and runs around with the light, totally confusing the Human Being and keeping just ahead of Pluto.
Jupiter:  Thought I’d shed a little light on the subject.
Pluto:  You bring humor into the most inappropriate places.  This is a serious matter.  This Human is experiencing real tragedy and you’re making fun of it.  False hope only adds to the anguish.
Jupiter:  Can’t take a joke, can you?  There’s nothing so serious in life that a little lightening-up won’t help.  Humor is the best way.
Pluto:  You’re going to leave this Human with the idea that the gods are laughing at his troubles.
Jupiter:  Aren’t they?
Pluto:  No!
Jupiter:  Maybe this Human will learn to laugh at his own pain and not take himself so seriously.  Laughter and tears are sometimes very close to each other.  You should take yourself less seriously too.  Oh, and the joke’s on you—told you I could get into the underworld whenever I wanted to.  Nah-nahhhhh!
Pluto:  You’re insufferable!
Jupiter:  I’ve been called that before.
Pluto:  You’re nothing but a giant gas—oops, I mean gas giant.
Jupiter:  Caught you making a joke!
This is getting ugly, so we’ll draw a curtain over the scene here, Gentle Reader.

Suffice it to say that when Jupiter and Pluto get into conflict, sometimes we find ourselves making fun of a bleak situation, just to find some light—any light at all—in the darkness.

This month is the final pass of the Pluto-Jupiter square.  If you have anything at all in 7 degrees of Aries, Cancer, Libra or Capricorn, you’re probably feeling it.  And if you have Jupiter and Pluto together in your birth chart (in any aspect at all—conjunction, sextile, square, trine, quincunx or opposition), most likely you tend toward extremes and a dark (sometimes inappropriately) sense of humor.

“Wake up!” says Saturn.  “I gave you a chance to see your responsibility recently.  Now I’m telling you again:  this is a time of testing.”

Today is a Pivotal Day
When a planet turns retrograde it makes a pivot in the sky and also creates a metaphorically “pivotal” experience for human beings.

Today, that planet is Saturn.  It’s as if Saturn is telling us, “You can’t go on avoiding responsibility forever.  Today I’m delivering a wake-up call.”  If Saturn is touching a planet in your chart this year, this message is for you and it will have very specific meaning, depending on what planet that is.  That planet, and the part of you it represents, is being asked to take responsibility.  Today is the peak of possibility of Saturn’s wake-up call, but it could happen anytime within 5 days surrounding today.

Initiation Leading to an Inner Journey
Sometime between now and the end of last October Saturn showed us an area of life in which we need to take more responsibility.  What he delivered was an initiation and it was our first chance to catch a clue about the changes coming.  That clue may have been obvious or it may have been subtle, but we’ve been shown a place in our life that would benefit from sustained hard work and a more serious attitude.

Did we notice?  It’s human to go into denial after a clue is delivered.  During the autumn we may have said to ourselves, “Maybe I don’t have to do anything about this.  Maybe it was just a one-time thing.  Maybe I can just move on.  Maybe I can get away without paying attention to this.”

Or maybe not.  Today Saturn turns up the volume and gives us a reminder.  “That responsibility you need to take?” he says, “You’d better figure it out and start doing it.”  This is a wake-up call.  Today, Saturn’s retrograde journey begins and with it begins our journey inward to discover what responsibility we need to take and how it will benefit us to do so.  Saturn’s retrograde journey lasts until the day it turns direct, which is June 12, 2011.

Where must we take responsibility?
The sign Saturn makes its backwards journey in matters.  Saturn is traveling through Libra all this year and most of the next.  Saturn does well in Libra, because Saturn is the judge and Libra is all about fairness.  It’s Saturn’s job to remind us of our responsibility, our duty and of what we must do to mature, and in Libra he can do that job with some kindness, gentleness, fairness and even an extra spoonful of sugar.

Another thing Saturn does while traveling through Libra is to remind us to take responsibility for our relationships.  “Are you keeping it fair and equitable?” asks Saturn.  While Saturn passes through Libra we must all sharpen up our negotiation and mediation skills.

Is this story your story?
If this resonates for you, it may be that you are personally touched by this transit.  Saturn may be triggering a planet in your own chart, thus bringing these themes up for you.  This year Saturn is covering the space between 10 and 17 degrees of Libra.  If there is anything in your chart in 10-17 degrees of Libra, Capricorn, Aries or Cancer, you will feel this.  And knowing it can explain feelings you may be having of guilt, seriousness, obligation, duty or feeling trapped or limited.  Saturn may be trying to tell you something important, and if you listen, your discomfort will ease and a clear path to action can open up before you.

What area of your life is being affected?
Good question.  It will have to do with the planet in your chart that’s being triggered by Saturn.  If it’s Mercury, Saturn is asking you to sharpen, hone and focus your mind, so this could be the right time for studying hard.  If it’s Venus or Juno, Saturn is testing your capacity to love and be loved.  If it’s your Moon, you may go though a lonely time while your emotional restraint is tested.  But whatever it is, that feeling of heaviness, oppression, limitation and the pressure to take committed action are present.  That’s Saturn.  He’s nobody’s favorite planet, but because he lives in each of us, the job gets done.

Want to know more about how this Saturn transit affects your life?
Contact Jamie at pandora@pandoraastrology.com
to schedule a reading.

You may have read recent articles about a “new zodiac sign” called Ophiuchus.  It’s not actually news.  Here’s the article I found:  http://www.livescience.com/strangenews/wobbly-earth-horoscope-zodiac-wrong-110113.html.   This article went viral, and I (and astrologers all over the nation, apparently) are getting questions about the “new sign” from people who are wondering if they are now different signs than the ones they’ve identified with all their lives.  I’m happy to say that nobody’s sign is changing, and here’s why.

The above article by Stephanie Pappas appears to be a rewrite of a similar article posted back in 2007: http://www.livescience.com/strangenews/your-astronomical-sign.html (It was obviously a slow day in the news room.)  Both articles speak of the precession of the equinoxes as if it were news.  In fact, precession has been well-documented and understood by astrologers since before astronomy separated itself from astrology during the Enlightenment.  The knowledge of precession is not “news,” it is about 1800 years old.  Here’s my FAQ page explaining how it works: http://pandoraastrology.com/content/faq.htm#univ

The topic of precession comes up again and again as if it were news, which it isn’t.  Astrologers know about precession and it has no impact on our work.  It’s been my experience that astrologers tend to be aware of the basics of astronomy while astronomers are not aware of the basics of astrology, and the writer of the 2007 article was quoting an astronomer, not an astrologer.

Modern-day astronomers believe that events in the sky have no connection to events in our lives here on Earth.  This is where their study of the sky diverges from that of astrologers.  Astronomers name the stars, as their title suggests.  Astronomy contains the word root “nom,” which means “name.”  The word “astrologer” contains the root “log,” describing an astrologer’s job:  to log the stars.  We observe (and write down) the corresponding life experiences that go with various sky phenomena.  That’s our job.  Astronomers and astrologers may disagree, and sometimes loudly, but they have something bigger and more important in common than all their disagreements, and that is a sense of wonder and mystery in our lovely, star-studded skies.

I suppose I shouldn’t complain, because this hoo-hah has resulted in me getting a call from the New York Times.  I may be quoted in tomorrow’s paper, dated Jan. 15, 2011.  I was delighted to have the opportunity to simplify and explain the situation.  So rest assured, gentle readers, you still have the same chart and sign that you’ve always had.

This month’s New Moon is also a Solar Eclipse, and it’s one to take seriously.  Influenced by Saturn, this Capricornian eclipse has got a heavy sense of responsibility and duty.  We can expect real-world events to result from this solar eclipse, reminders of what we are supposed to do—and perhaps smackdowns from the Guy Upstairs if we fail to do what is right.  Get on the straight and narrow, people!

Details About This Eclipse

Date: January 4, 2011
Time of eclipse: 1:03 AM PST
Type: partial (moderate in intensity)
Visible in: Europe, North Africa, the Middle East, northwestern China, northwestern India.
At: 13 degrees Capricorn
Shadow Agent: Saturn

Does It Affect You Personally?

If your birthday is on any of the following dates, you most likely experienced this eclipse:
December 29-January 8
March 29-April 8
June 29-July 8
October 1-11

Remember, not every eclipse touches everyone, but when it does, it’s usually noticeable.  A solar eclipse is likely to be marked by an external, real-world event (unlike a lunar eclipse, which is likely to bring up strong emotions and to be experienced as a subjective event).  The following script is just one possible way it could go.

You hear a knock at the door.  You answer it.  Saturn stands there, a tough old man with a craggy, weather-beaten face, dressed in a very expensive suit, wearing a power tie.  Cowering behind him are the Sun and Moon.  Led by Saturn, they all push past you.
Saturn:  Well?
You:  Well, what?
Saturn:  I’ve come to administer your test.
You:  What kind of test is it?
Saturn:  It’s a reality check.
He pulls out a scroll from inside his jacket.  He unrolls it and it’s so long that it hits the floor and touches the opposite wall before unrolling completely.
Saturn:  This is a list of questions I have for you.
You:  Um, ok, shoot.
Saturn:  What have you completed lately?  What have you accomplished?  What is left unfinished?  What have you promised and delivered?  What have you promised and not delivered?  How many times have you been late?  Do you habitually do what you say you’ll do or is your word good for nothing?  Have you earned anyone’s respect this year?  Have you met any goals?
You:  Woah—I haven’t even figured out the answer to question one yet.
Saturn:  I’m sure even a pitiably slow human like yourself could not fail to notice that the year 2011 has just begun?
You:  I had noticed that, yes.
Saturn:  Have you made any resolutions?
You:  I thought of a couple . . .
Saturn:  Do you know that most people abandon their New Year’s resolutions only two months into the new year?
You:  Yes, I’d heard that.
Saturn: (towering over you) Did you think you’d be different?
You:  Um . . .
You turn to the Sun and Moon, who are huddled together on the sofa.
You:  Help me out, guys!
They shake their heads vigorously and go back to trying to appear as small and untargetable as possible.  Both are visibly quivering in fear.
You:  Ok, ok, I give up!  I accomplished very little last year.  I forgot all my resolutions before spring.  I didn’t really want to do any of those things.  They were false promises.
Saturn:  That’s what I wanted to hear!
You:  Are you satisfied?
Saturn:  Not quite yet.  Totally aside from what you promised for 2010 and failed to do, what did you actually do?  What are your successes?
You:  I’m really not sure.
Saturn:  Look not at what you promised but did not deliver—look instead at what you actually did deliver.  Those are your achievements—and they are your commitments too.  If you want to know what you’re committed to, just look at where you’ve put your effort.
Leaving the very long test behind him, Saturn sweeps back out into the night, followed by the still-cowering Sun and Moon.

Read about other eclipses coming up: 2011 Eclipses.

This month’s Full Moon (Dec 21) is also a Lunar Eclipse, bringing emotional intensity even though it’s in emotionally light Gemini.  Gemini’s desire to skate across the surface of emotions may conflict with the Moon’s need to look at emotional shadows during an eclipse.  Several other planetary influences complicate the matter:  Mercury in Sagittarius, along with Jupiter and Uranus in Pisces, leading to a sensation of busyness and many factors to consider.  But if you stay in your head, you may miss the wonder, beauty and depth of this eclipse, so look for the calm place in the center of its storm.

Details About This Eclipse

Date: December 21, 2010
Time of eclipse: 0:13 AM PST
Type: total (strong in intensity)
Visible in: North America, South America.  Its beginning will be visible in Europe and its end in Japan and northern Asia.
At: 29 degrees Gemini
Shadow Agents: Mercury, Uranus and Jupiter

Does It Affect You Personally?

If your birthday is on any of the following dates, you most likely experienced this eclipse:
December 16-26
March 15-25
June 15-25
September 17-27

Remember, not every eclipse touches everyone, but when it does, it’s usually noticeable.  A lunar eclipse is likely to bring up strong emotions and to be experienced as a subjective event (unlike a solar eclipse, which is likely to be marked by an external, real-world event).  The following script is just one possible way it could go.

You hear a knock at the door.  You answer it.  The Sun and Moon are there, with several more deities standing behind them.  The Sun looks a little weak and the Moon looks strong and shiny.  The Sun staggers into your living room and collapses onto the sofa.
Sun:  This is really not my time of year.  It’s just too much effort to light things up.  I can’t keep going all day like I can in the summer.  I get so tired.
Moon:  It’s the longest night of the year.  Soon you’ll get your juju back.
The Sun is already dozing.  Jupiter and Uranus meander into the living room and take the love seat.  The Moon is casting a lovely silvery glow over everything in your living room.  On an impulse, you turn out the lights so you can get the whole effect.
Moon:  I’m full and at the height of my powers.
Mercury pops his head in the door and like a streak is suddenly seated in another stuffed chair.
Mercury:  But you’re going to have an eclipse tonight.
Moon:  Yeah, I know.  I’ll be lighting up the night—until I’m not.
Jupiter:  But there’s always hope, even in the darkest night.
Uranus:  And insights can be gotten—
Mercury:  —sometimes even better when we stop thinking.
Moon:  Merc, I can’t believe I’m hearing you advocate for stopping thinking.
Mercury:  True, it’s not my usual strategy, but I’m always for new ideas, and when you think too much, sometimes the thing to do is stop.  And you’re in Gemini right now—
Moon:  Indeed I am—
Mercury: —so you could use to think less and feel more.
Moon:  I do tend to overanalyze feelings when I’m in Gemini.  Perhaps you, currently in Sagittarius, could remind me of the big picture.
Mercury:  Happy to.  And our old friend Jupiter is always good for that.
Jupiter starts to respond, but the Moon’s glow suddenly dims.
Mercury:  Uh oh, it’s beginning!
The Moon’s light lessens until she is completely dark, so dark in fact that it’s as if there’s a black hole in your living room and the Sun’s glow, which he’s gently emitting while dozing on the sofa, is being sucked into it.  A hush is cast over the room.  You move to turn on the electric lighting, but Uranus stops you.
Uranus:  Why not just dwell in the mystery?  Humans used to experience the full darkness of the longest night.  Modern people now understand that it’s a passing thing and soon over, and you are not afraid.  But you can still experience the wonder.
The hush descends again.  You sit in darkness and silence in the presence of these deities, noticing the magic and that there is nothing in particular that needs to be said.  This brings you a deep sense of peace.  After a time, the Moon begins to glow again, very faintly at first, then stronger and stronger until her full shine is restored.  You are glad you didn’t adjust the lighting because this was worth seeing.  You feel that you have been present for something ancient and true.
Jupiter:  So it seems that the key to this eclipse is “Don’t think too much, but let yourself feel it all and don’t worry about whether the feelings make sense.”
Moon:  Yes, the feelings will sort themselves out, given the chance.
Uranus:  And who knows what startling new insights might come of it?
They all get up to go.  Mercury pokes the Sun, who was quietly snoring.
Mercury:  Wake up, Sun, your longest night is almost over and we’ve figured out how to handle it.
Sun:  Cool.  I’m going home to bed now.  Days start getting longer tomorrow and I want to be alert.
They leave and you feel just a tiny bit of sadness as the cool glow leaves your living room.

Read about other eclipses coming up: 2011 Eclipses.

We’re in the middle of a Venus retrograde period, lasting from October 8 to November 18.  Today is the day in Venus’ backwards journey that she conjuncts the Sun.  The Sun sheds light into the dark corners and brings illumination to Venus’s domain, which is the domain of relationships.

Has your relationship gotten stuck?  Has romantic, erotic love gone away?  Have you been working at restoring love?  Today look for special insight.  It could arise spontaneously from within or it could come from conversation with other people.  Look for a new understanding that reframes your relationship or how you behave in it.  This insight could come anytime between October 26 and 30.

(If you’re just starting this thread here, please begin here.  Then what follows will make more sense.)

Love Flies Out The Window
When Eros awoke to find Psyche watching him by lamplight, he knew his identity had been revealed.  He could no longer stay.  Dismayed and angered that Psyche had done exactly what he’d asked her not to, he flew away and returned to his mother, Aphrodite.

Did Eros want to leave Psyche?  Of course not.  He was just as in love with her as she was with him.  But he couldn’t maintain their relationship in the light of day, for fear of being caught by his mother, Aphrodite.  Unfortunately, keeping his identity a secret had become a point of vulnerability for Eros, a vulnerability Psyche’s sisters exploited.  They aroused Psyche’s curiosity and fear, claiming that he was a terrible monster and goading her to get a look at him in the light.  Psyche was afraid, but didn’t really believe them.  She wanted to know Eros truly and love the person he was, instead of keeping their relationship in darkness.  So she lifted the lamp over him.

Romantic love is a delicate thing, a dance of illusions.  We want to look and behave our best when we are in love.  When the illusion is shattered, love flies away in fear.  Isn’t it ironic that we come to relationship to be seen and then can’t stand it when it happens?  When she lifted the lamp, Psyche had no idea what that simple act would cost her.  But all the pain that ensued was necessary pain, because without it, her marriage could not tolerate the light of day.  Her desire to see Love face-to-face was the catalyst for doing the work necessary to restoring Love to her marriage—but this time in the daylight.

Let me say this again in a different way.

The human psyche craves love, and will accept it, even if given only in darkness.  The psyche recognizes love as benevolent until fear and jealousy creep in.  When goaded by dark emotions, the psyche will become curious to see the face of love, but upon being looked at too closely, romantic love flies out the window and the psyche has to do inner work in order to restore love.

Have you had an experience of love “flying out the window” in the last several weeks?  Have you shed light on some aspect of your relationship and found that it is not what you thought it was?  Have you or your partner run away from being seen?

Psyche’s journey has begun—has yours?

Read “Psyche Panics” for more insights about this powerful myth.

(If you are beginning this thread here, read this first.)

Psyche wandered the earth, lost in grief.  She found herself at the temple of Ceres, where she cleaned and tidied the harvest tools until Ceres took notice of her anguish and advised her to go to the temple of Aphrodite and beg forgiveness.  Psyche did so.  “I know you don’t like me much,” she addressed the goddess, “but I am in love with your son.  What do I have to do to get him back?”  You could just about hear Aphrodite rubbing her hands together in glee.

Aphrodite declared that Psyche might win her husband back by doing four tasks, the final of these bringing her into the underworld, to the very throne of the god and goddess of death.  If Psyche should complete these tasks, her husband, her love, might be restored to her.

What Does The Story Mean?
The tale of Eros and Psyche is the tale of the soul seeking the fulfillment of true love.  When Eros and Psyche live together in their castle in the clouds, love cannot see the light of day.  It is too fragile.  Psyche’s journey to reclaim love shows us the way to convert ethereal love into the real thing.

Timing of 2010’s Venus retrograde period
October 8, 2010:  Venus turns retrograde.  Love flies out the window and Psyche is cast upon a journey to recover him.  She submits to the process because she recognizes that the only way out is through and that love cannot be forced.
October 28, 2010:  Venus conjuncts the Sun.  There will be a relationship epiphany on or near this day.
November 18, 2010:  Venus goes direct.  Eros and Psyche are restored to each other.  The retrospective period is over, and now you must go on from here with the insights you’ve gained about your relationship.

What Does It Mean That Venus Is In Scorpio?
Venus’ retrograde journey this year takes place in the sign of Scorpio, an apt symbol for the death of a dream, for loss and grief and for the place Psyche’s journey takes her to—the underworld.

In the underworld, there is darkness and uncertainty.  We do not know what is happening to us.  Change is going on, but we don’t know what we’re changing into.  And we have no idea when it will be over.

Scorpio’s message is “trust the process.”  Love cannot be controlled, dominated or forced by the psyche.  Love comes when it comes, not when demanded.  A show of devotion helps, but only if it is not viewed as a bargaining chip.

In the upcoming weeks, as Venus continues retrograde, we’ll follow Psyche on her journey . . .

Friday, October 8 through Thursday, November 18, 2010

What Is Venus Retrograde?
When Venus goes retrograde, she takes our hand and pulls us into the darkness of our relationships.  A retrograde period of any planet is a retrospective of that planet’s themes.  It is like going into the deep, dark cave of oneself in whatever area of life is covered by the planet that is retrograde.  It is a time of moving backward, perhaps of going back to pick up pieces lost in the past.  It is a retrieval, a turning inward, perhaps a letting-go.  Since Venus’ domain is relationships, this turning inward will happen in that domain.

The Tale of Eros and Psyche—Forbidden Love
The story of Psyche’s marriage to Eros, her loss of him and her journey to recover him, is an apt metaphor for the retrograde journey of Venus.  Here is her story.

Psyche, whose name means “soul,” was a mortal woman of great beauty, beauty to rival even Venus-Aphrodite herself.  People came from miles around to worship Psyche and bring her gifts.  This aroused the anger of Aphrodite, for no mere mortal deserves to be worshipped as a goddess.  Aphrodite sent her son Eros (Cupid), who represents living desire, to punish Psyche.  He came upon her when she was sleeping, and fed her the drink of Bitterness, then touched her with his arrow, that she might fall in love with the next hideous creature that came near.  But in doing so, Eros was grazed by his arrow himself, and he became struck with her beauty, so he gave her the drink of Joy also.

Psyche was now cursed.  Everyone wanted to worship her but no one wanted to marry her.  She was unloved.  Her parents consulted an oracle, which said, “she is destined for no mortal husband” and advised them to leave her on a mountain top where a monster would claim her.  While her parents were dismayed, Psyche herself submitted and went to the mountain top.  There she was swept away by a friendly breeze to a marvelous castle, filled with attentive but invisible servants.  There also she met her bridegroom, who was loving, affectionate, charming and passionate.  He visited her daily, but only in the dark.  He gave her everything and required only that she never ask to see his face.

Psyche was allowed a visit from her two sisters, who were jealous and concerned at the unusual marriage she had made.  “What,” they exclaimed, “you only see your husband in the dark?  How do you know he isn’t some kind of frightful monster who only wants to do you harm?”  Their suspicion persuaded Psyche to break her promise to her husband and make an attempt to view him in the light.

One evening, after a fabulous (but unlit) meal and the same splendorous lovemaking Psyche had come to expect from her mate, he fell asleep in her arms.  She gently crept out from under him and, lighting a lamp, held it over him to see what he looked like.  No one was more surprised than she to see that the being she was married to was not at all a monster who wanted to hide his face in the dark, but the very God of Love himself!  She fell into a reverie, feeding her hungry eyes on his features.  Just then a drop of oil from the lamp fell and landed on his perfect shoulder, scorching him and awaking him.  “Now you’ve done it!  Love cannot live with suspicion,” he cried, in anger and regret, as he flew out the window and into the clouds.  He went back to his mother, whom he had defied in living with Psyche.

This tale–and its meaning in your life–to be continued tomorrow . . .