I planned to share a post in time for the new moon last Friday but instead I’m sharing this one today during the first quarter phase of the current Leo lunation, which is really fitting given the apparent vibe of the week. First quarter phases are generally associated with challenge and crisis – we face a little test of endurance to see how committed we truly are to creating what we planted at the new moon one week prior.
Friends of friends dying. Unemployed friends feeling lost. Disillusionment. Dramatic, emotional outbursts. Constrained resources. Illness. Binges. Childhood memories disintegrating. Relationships dissolving. Sexual exploration. New highs and ugly lows. Ecstatic dreams. Connections with friends. Temptation.
Something’s got to give…
Sol, Luna, and Venus together in Leo at the new moon had some astrological forecasts predicting 4 weeks of creative, happy, expressive, sociable playtime.
AM I DOING IT WRONG?
I looked back at my rough notes for last week’s aborted post to see what I was thinking and intuiting for this current phase.
Choosing to receive your retrograde learnings.
Ah. Yes.
Cryptic but resonant.
The Sun chooses, Luna receives, and Venus is partway through her illusory backward trek across the sky. In fact, I do believe we are right in the thick, juicy centre of Venus’ retrograde. The belly of the beast one might say. Hell? We have descended into the underworld with Hades, naked and vulnerable and about to stare in the face our ugly other half.
But Venus is the planet of love, pleasure, and unification. How can any of her phases bring such pain and chaos?
According to a little biblical research, Moses received the 10 commandments during a period of 40 days and 40 nights on Mount Sinai. When God destroyed the earth with water in Genesis 7:12, He ordered rain to fall for 40 days and 40 nights. In Matthew 4:2, Jesus struggled and fasted in the wilderness for 40 days and 40 nights
At the end this trial, he was hungry.
Hungry for what?
40 days and 40 nights is the approximate length of Venus’ retrograde phase and as the above examples illustrate, this duration of time tends to show up in stories of trial, tribulation, and judgment.
So even though this new moon began in joyful Leo, and even though benefics Venus and Jupiter were close by streaming their blessings through the luminaries, it seems that we are called to get a little more raw and a little more naked before we pass this test.
What is your retrograde lesson? Have you been pressured to give something up? Let something go? Are you broken, ill, broke, or depressed?
Hang in there!
Faith, endurance, and a soft, pulsing heart will get you far in these trying times.
***Blog art by Erica Chapuis***