RESOLUTION TO BUILD A FIRM & LOVING FOUNDATION
The message emanating from today’s Cancer Full Moon is one that reminds us to relax and release any rigid thinking keeping us chained to a tough love mentality of the “pull yourself up by your bootstraps and simply succeed, man!” kind…
What’s wrong with that way of thinking, you ask?
Nothing, as long as it’s NOT at the expense of one’s ability to feel and to exhibit compassion—especially self-compassion.
Since Saturn began his journey December 19 through his own sign of Capricorn—where he’ll reside for three years–he’s joined Pluto, the king of slow transformation, already in Capricorn since late 2008.
The Sun & Venus followed Saturn into Capricorn for their monthly stays on December 21 & 24, respectively, and we’ve seen a shift over the past two weeks since December 18’s fiery Sagittarius New Moon energy into staid Capricorn–a far more grounded, earthy, ambitious, practical, success-oriented archetype.
In short, we got a whole lotta Capricorn energy goin’ on right now…
This Cancer Full Moon is fine with that, but what she craves most is emotional safety and security. To her, achieving THAT defines success!
At this lunation, The Cancer Moon—the sign of family, security, the past & its memories, habitual behavior, nurturing mother, vulnerability, & deeply ingrained emotional psychological patterns—opposes the harsher less emotive Capricorn energy.
As she stands in opposition to not only the Capricorn Sun, but to Saturn, Pluto, & Venus in Capricorn as well, she tells us now’s the time to release any fears that prohibit the building, maintaining, or expanding of our foundation for future success.
And by foundation, I mean both the inner & outer structures upon which we may work toward a successful future…
NO LOVE WITHOUT COMPASSION!
The Cancer Full Moon highlights for us all the issue of fear, and asks that we initiate the process of non-attachment—from both our material and emotional worlds…
In its quest for success, Capricorn energy often forgets how rigid and cold (two archetypal traits of its ruler, the planet Saturn) it can appear when making judgments, signing cut and dried contracts, and myopically climbing the ladder of personal success.
We can almost hear the uber-sensitive, compassionate Cancer Full Moon beseeching this cluster of planets (stellium) in Capricorn to hear her plaintiff plea: “Yes, but what’s all of your success FOR? If it’s NOT about building a heartfelt connection to those we love for the purpose of emotional security & fulfillment, then WHAT?”
This Cappy stellium is likely to reply ingenuously, “what’s love got do to with it?”
Ah, yes, what indeed?
Capricorn, ruled by Saturn–Father Time & Lord of Karma–is always about structure.
And any foundational structure encompasses our fundamental belief system because it’s our beliefs which provide us a strong sense of external reality. Capricorn, a cardinal earth sign, represents taking initiative in the material physical world.
On the more metaphysical side, Capricorn the goat wasn’t always a dry land creature—he was once of the sea. This sea-goat, who climbed ambitiously out of the chaotic emotional waters of the ocean deep and onto terra firma, did so to adapt, evolve and, eventually, to thrive.
Think of the huge amount of motivation & ambition it took for this sea creature to drag himself from the ocean onto the shore, and the subsequent power he must have felt through accomplishing this goal. Such a feat was seconded only by his survival, adaptation to new terrain, and his ability to sidestep any potential environmental perils.
Despite the sea-goat’s metamorphosis—or more precisely because of it–the symbolism is clear: the Capricorn archetype originated from emotional beginnings. Its watery inception, however, was shed—like a snake sheds its skin—and replaced by earthy, practical, physical concerns.
The Cancer Moon in opposition to this strong Capricorn energy alerts us to remember that the Capricorn archetype contains within it the watery beginnings of the sea-goat. Ergo, it’s very existence is rooted in FEELING…
EVERY TIME I OPEN UP IT HURTS
Capricorn is uber-responsible; Cancer uber-sensitive…existential loneliness is the potential plight of the Capricorn archetype, while extreme emotional vulnerability through fear of abandonment is the Cancer archetype’s Achilles heel.
Cancer represents a more obviously emotionally vulnerable and compassionate archetypal energy rooted in early family life. However, her plight is the same: she’s driven not by fears of a dearth of physical resources, but rather by a lack of emotional ones.
Capricorn energy is more likely to take an uber-responsible stance and emotionally FEEL: “I’ll do it because I HAVE to—because nobody else will!” At his inner core, Capricorn is not convinced there are enough resources to go around, so he strives to achieve emotional security and satisfaction through the physical material plane.
It’s almost like saying the sea-goat realized intuitively that staying in the ocean forever wouldn’t ultimately provide enough boundaried security and safety. The sea is uncertain, amorphous, ever-moving. Capricorn’s archetypal energy isn’t comfortable with such uncertainty and inconstancy.
What’s was a Cap to do when he feels so ungrounded?
One possibility is that his deeply ingrained distrust of the finite nature of his world (read: current resources) led to his compulsive expansion onto land. Once there, however, his distrust that scarcity might leave him vulnerable again convinced him to keep pushing upward and onward…
Meanwhile, exposure of one’s soft white underbelly to the world at large frightens the heck out of the Cancerian archetype, causing her to fearfully run and hide from the world she deems to be too big, cold, and cruel to emotionally bear.
Fear can become the Cancerian manta and color everything in her world. Often this energy “hides” her extreme emotional vulnerability behind a mask of nurturing, compassionate mothering-type energy, and deflects attention away from her own deeply hidden emotional insecurities and fears of abandonment.
This Cancer Full Moon reminds us of the juxtaposition between these two archetypal energies, and that it’s integration that’s necessary.
We can’t go around being hard-asses our whole lives out of a desperate fear of losing our resources—a deeply hidden fear that simply perpetuates our need for more and more physical accoutrements.
Neither can we weep profusely, mire ourselves in fearful worry about emotional exposure and abandonment, or hide behind the guise of a “mothering” role forever…
YOU GOTTA HAVE HEART
Ah, but wait! It’s possible this Cancer Full Moon’s formation of a grand water trine to Neptune in Pisces and Mars/Jupiter in Scorpio can be of help!
While water equals emotion, a grand trine can work in one of two ways: it can cause us to tap into our emotional natures and have compassion for both ourselves and our fellow human beings, or it can create a kind of emotional closed circuit.
The latter means that our sensitivity at the Cancer Full Moon may flow inward ONLY and result in a kind of “why me?” mentality that sends us scuttling into our hard, protective shell. A shell from which we won’t emerge again until we feel completely, totally, unerringly SAFE.
What other defense does water energy have against such a seriously driven, boundaried, less emotional earth one like Capricorn?
The trick here is to recognize that, although Cancer & Capricorn are polar opposite energies, both have their origins in the watery emotional realm.
Helping us out is the sextile formed by Venus & the Sun to Neptune, providing us the opportunity to benefit from this a whole lotta feelin’ goin’ on now, too…
None of us survive on money alone. We can try, and many do, but when we recognize that our ambitious need to acquire is driven by our deeply hidden fears we see, if we are smart, the opportunity to better define and subsequently release these fears.
This Cancer Full Moon reminds such strong Capricorn energy—so likely to feel like the last man standing who develops an “I know this is gonna hurt, but it’s got to be done!” mentality—to remember that at heart it’s about HEART.
Capricorn may say “I’m doing it this way because this is the way it’s always been done!” Cancer reminds him that none of his knee-jerk rationales guarantee freedom from emotional hurt, and that lurking in the subconscious of Capricorn energy lies emotional depths about which this archetype is often unaware.
We know the Capricorn archetype seeks success but often perceives the universe as finite. So, it does not necessarily contemplate the emotional expansiveness that’s possible. Such expansiveness includes widening one’s definition of “success” out into the emotional realm. It’s here that safety and security for his soul might cause him to adjust his previous hard sought after goals…
If not, it’s too easy for the Capricorn archetype to continue to take his definition of success at face value, and to dismiss the more watery emotional realm that lies beneath.
The most obvious cliché stereotype is of the successful, rich, “I can have anything I want, long as I have money” business man who—although he owns a beautiful house in a desirable neighborhood, marries a beautiful wife, fathers beautiful children, and acquires many possessions—finds himself empty and unhappy. Charles Dickens’ Scrooge is a perfect example.
And so, this Cancer Full Moon reminds the Saturnian/Capricorn energy within each of us to be gentle with itself and to become aware of its vulnerabilities.
“Take down that mask of steely resignation and acknowledge from where such commitment to succeed comes!” this Moon cries. “Wo/man cannot live by reason and empirical success alone! WHY do you do what you do?”
Nor can one live by pure visceral gut-wrenching emotion alone.
This Cancer Full Moon asks us to get rid of anything that prevents us from integrating these two archetypal energies: the task master who wants to build the firmest boundaries possible through the material world, and the sensitive, vulnerable, frightened, hurt child within.
You know, the one who cries out in the night for love, acceptance, protection, solace, and healing…
SURPRISE, SURPRISE, URANUS STATIONS DIRECT
Almost exactly 12 hours after the Cancer Full Moon, Uranus, the planet of unexpected events, change, and revolutionary revelations, reverses course and will begin to pick up steam to travel full speed ahead.
What does this mean?
Well, within the context of the Cancer Full Moon, it’s going to be about not only tapping into your own capacity for self-compassion and forgiveness, but to then extend that out to loved ones and the world in general.
Uranus takes seven years transit through a sign, and usually a zodiacal house depending on the configuration of one’s individual birth chart. He retrogrades (appears to move backward) once annually for approximately five months each time.
Uranus last stationed retrograde on August 3, 2017 and now begins forward movement again on January 2, 2018.
The retrograde period for this planet, which rules the zodiacal sign Aquarius, is a time when we may reconnect to parts of ourselves that have been split off. If we think of Uranus/Aquarius as the harbinger of sudden unexpected events, we know that many times surprising events can be traumatic.
For this reason, sudden happenings can have long-term repercussions, both positive and negative in nature, depending.
What Uranus asks us most is to NOT stay eternally, perpetually, mind-numbingly the SAME forever! He’s anti-stagnation and for that reason seeks to shake us out of whatever rut we may have dug ourselves deeply into over the course of time.
Hence, his connotation with revelations, some of which may lead us to revolution in our personal lives or the wider world.
Erin Sullivan writes in “Retrograde Planets,” that “…the long-term process of the Uranus cycle is to gradually produce a new perspective.”
Aha! Eureka! Now we can ask ourselves as we begin the new year 2018 ahead, WHAT perspectives of ours need to be replaced? Where have our ways of thinking or our situations become outdated, no longer useful to us? And how can we replace the old with something new?
As we make our way into 2018, this theme will be prominent. It’s obvious in the politics of the world around us. Even if you’re not into national or global political happenings, one cannot fail to see that change is all around.
The external representation of internal changes? Methinks so…
“I have just three things to teach: simplicity, patience, compassion. These three are your greatest treasures.” ~ Lao Tzu
It’s up to us all to recognize the silver lining in any cloud of change we incur in our lives and to make lemons into lemonade!
And we can start—this Cancer Full Moon tells us—by examining the beliefs by which we live, upon which we’ve built our foundational security, and determine whether they still hold true for us or whether they actual hinder us more than they help…
Into the deep dark shell of Cancerian vulnerability and the vastly hidden iceberg-like nature of Capricorn’s darkest fears that finite resources will assure his demise—for who can outrun physical death–can we shine a light?
Can we acknowledge that change is good and that no matter what happens we can go with the flow instead of becoming more rigid and inflexible due to fear, or burrow our heads deeper in the sand believing that if we can’t see it we won’t have to deal with it?
Uranus says “no!” It’s time for forward thinking solutions to any problems. The grand water trine with Mars/Jupiter squaring the Nodes is another clue that a “skipped step” within the collective is ripe for a karmic replay.
Ceres in Leo, conjunct the North Node & squared by Mars/Jupiter, indicate that issues around “sustenance”—faith and/or literal food/resources—are in play right now. Let’s not forget that Ceres/Demeter is the mythological mother of Persephone, who was kidnapped, raped, and made queen of the underworld by Pluto/Hades.
Ceres is not only a mythical mother figure, she’s the goddess of the grain/harvest, the holder of the secret to fertility–from which both heavenly & earthly manna is made.
Mar/Jupiter is quick & easy action; as part of the grand water trine to the Cancer Moon & Neptune, it can cause us to act impulsively, or provide the spark we need to ignite our inner fire…
The universe is asking “where do you engage in angry nurturing” rather than allowing yourself to gain the necessary sustenance (both literal and metaphorical) in a loving compassionate way?
The answer to that question may lead you to discover that your self-talk isn’t so nice, and that you might better benefit from replacing the tape in your head with a new, more positive and affirming one.
So, plant the bravest smile on your face, and sally forth reminding yourself that you DO have faith in the universe’s infinite wisdom, that everything happens precisely as it should, and that’s it all meant neither to hurt nor harm, but to allow us to co-create our own futures in a world that’s ever-changing…
Happy new year!
Namaste..
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Sam Smith’s song/video, Too Good At Goodbyes provides a telling glimpse into what can happen when we defend ourselves too dearly against our emotions. Check it out here!
“You must think that I’m stupid
You must think that I’m a fool
You must think that I’m new to this
But I have seen this all before
I’m never gonna let you close to me
Even though you mean the most to me
‘Cause every time I open up, it hurts
So I’m never gonna get too close to you
Even when I mean the most to you
In case you go and leave me in the dirt
And every time you hurt me, the less that I cry
And every time you leave me, the quicker these tears dry
And every time you walk out, the less I love you
Baby, we don’t stand a chance, it’s sad but it’s true
I’m way too good at goodbyes
(I’m way too good at goodbyes)
I know you’re thinkin’ I’m heartless
I know you’re thinkin’ I’m cold
I’m just protectin’ my innocence
I‘m just protectin’ my soul
I’m never gonna let you close to me
Even though you mean the most to me
‘Cause every time I open up, it hurts
So I’m never gonna get too close to you
Even when I mean the most to you
In case you go and leave me in the dirt
And every time you hurt me, the less that I cry
And every time you leave me, the quicker these tears dry
And every time you walk out, the less I love you
Baby, we don’t stand a chance, it’s sad but it’s true
I’m way too good at goodbyes
(I’m way too good at goodbyes)
‘Cause every time you hurt me, the less that I cry
And every time you leave me, the quicker these tears dry
And every time you walk out, the less I love you
Baby, we don’t stand a chance, it’s sad but it’s true
I’m way too good at goodbyes…”
The Aries archetype is all about survival in the sense that one has to fight one’s way out his or her mother’s womb in order to be born. if you really think about it, the tremendous amount of energy it takes to burst forth out of the peaceful uroboric waters of the womb into the birth canal and out of your mother’s body, you’ll begin to get what I mean!
uprising in the Middle East to Ferguson, Missouri (and the Black Lives Matter movement), from the Syrian refugee crisis to the breakdown in infrastructure worldwide (but particularly here in the U.S.), and more…
However, with Saturn, there’s no free lunch. Under Saturn’s tutelage, you can’t have dessert until you eat your meat (as Pink Floyd liked to say), and you can’t go out to play until you eat your dinner…Saturn can help ground the planting of this new seed…
speaking) and plant a seed that you know, with the proper tender loving care, will take root. You want it to grow into a sturdy plant that matches your expectation.
Typical retrograde energy/behavior looks like this: time to review, re-analyze, rethink, re-plan, re-strategize, revisit (or just about any word you can put “re” in front of that you can think of, lol and that pertains to your specific situation.)
