March 20 Vernal Equinox 1:49 am, Aries enters Aries
April 19 Sun enters Taurus
April 20 Passover, Full Moon 0 Scorpio,6:25 am
April 22 Earth Day
April 28 Last Qtr Moon
May 1 May Day/Ascension Day
May 3 Saturn goes direct, 1 Virgo
May 5 New Moon 15 Taurus 8:18 am, Cinco de Mayo
Eta Aquarids Meteors
May 10 Mars enters Leo
May 10 Jupiter goes Retrograde, 22 Sagittarius
May 11 1st Qt Moon; Mother's Day; Pentecost
May 19 Full Moon, 29 Scorpio, 10:11 pm
May 20 Sun eners Gemini
May 25 Venue enters Gemni
May 26 Memorial Day
May 27 Last Qtr Moon
May 27 Mercury goes Retrograde 21 Gemini
May 27 Neptune goes retrograde 24 Aquarius
Uranus in Pisces 21-22 degrees all month
Pluto in Retrograde in Capricorn 0 degrees
Neptune in Aquarius 24 degrees all month-goes Rx 27th
Monthly Overview for May by Verena Donath
At the onset of May Saturn is stationary at the entrance of Virgo and will resume direct motion on the next day. He changed direction on December 19, 2007, at 08:34:03 Virgo and went all the way back to 01:40:47 Virgo, the degree highlighted by the latest Lunar Eclipse. On August 8 2008 he will have retraced his initial steps and charter into new territory from there on. Thus, lessons to self-improve prompted a phase of inner analysis regarding our competence and integrity, whereby we had to come to terms with self-doubts, anxiety and fear during the harsh and cold days of winter. Now, with the manifestation of spring in the fixed earth sign Taurus, our inward withdrawal has come to an end and we can put our efforts to practical use as we feel solidified on the inside after this ordeal.
With the groundwork done so far we can now proceed systematically and in hierarchical order, thereby relying on self-awareness as our strategy for progress. Venus in Taurus, Saturn stationary in Virgo and Pluto Rx in Capricorn will form a Grand Trine in earth signs on the first day of the month, signaling the successful completion of this step. Stabilized on the emotional level, we can draw power from the inside, which will make it much easier to pursue our personal goals. In addition, traversing one of her signs of rulership, Venus’ influence will make it possible for us to show more sensitivity and to be receptive toward beauty and poise. Also on this day, Pallas in Aries, the indicator of the aforementioned strategy, squares Jupiter in Capricorn, demanding from us to take the initiative to the next level by breaking with concepts and viewpoints obstructive to our mental development and integrating a new directive instead. Furthermore, Vesta in Aries’ semi-square to Chiron in Aquarius emphasizes the critical stage we’ve entered that pushes us forward in the spirit of renewal and liberation. Freeing us from all boundaries and unashamedly celebrating the kindling of the bonfires for the leaping of the flame - literally as well as figuratively - during the sacred union that allows for healing and abundance is also in the sense of the cross-quarter day Beltane, assigned to this day.
On May 2, Mercury will ingress into Gemini, where he’s at home, and shortly before midnight Saturn will be moving in direct motion again. Saturn’s station in Mercury’s other sign (Virgo) guarantees a smooth passage, while preparing the mental faculties for the new tasks so that the mind will function effortlessly and with ease and will be perfectly suited to master the transactions. Finalizing the adjustment, Mercury will move from a quincunx to Pluto Rx in Capricorn to a square with Saturn in Virgo and thus getting straight down to business on May 3. Exercising mental discipline will be our objective. Detachment from past conditioning can be achieved by practicing objectivity, diversification and discrimination. To conduce this educational endeavor, Mercury will turn retrograde from May 26 to June 19 and instigate a process of rethinking, whereby we will be reviewing our ways of processing information. However, he will already have entered his shadow phase on May 11 and will not have moved out of it until July 4. He will station at 21:32:20 Gemini and travel back to 12:59:07 Gemini.
Chiron and Neptune in Aquarius will start their retrograde periods together with Mercury on May 26. For Chiron this will last until October 25 and for Neptune until November 2. The former will go back from 21:09:01 to 16:02:10 Aquarius, and the latter from 24:15:16 to 21:28:05 Aquarius. Although we will be greatly involved with the outside world with our focus directed outwardly during this half of the year, there will be a lot happening on the subtler levels on the inside that will cause serious introspection to the point of transparency, thereby enabling us to learn about the connections between our thoughts, mental states and attitudes, and the wounding and healing potential they’re endowed with –- whether this concerns ourselves or our society at large.
Another planet changing direction this month will be Jupiter on May 9 at 22:22:06 Capricorn. He will remain in retrograde motion until September 8 when he will have reached 12:32:00 Capricorn again. This will correspond to a testing as well as reformulating of our preconceptions, assumptions and other thinking models, thereby targeting narrow-mindedness, outdated viewpoints and negative beliefs. When Mercury is in Gemini not only will our mind be the most flexible and adaptable, but the principle of duality that underlies our cognition will be enhanced, pressing us to name, classify and relate the fleeting experiences and sense impressions. Simultaneously, Jupiter in Capricorn allows them to take hold on a broader scale so that we may understand and integrate them in the larger context. During the retrograde lapse of both planets information will be more closely examined for truthful and realistic contents. Thus, beginning with the Taurus New Moon on May 5, the basis for the next step regarding our mental growth will be outlined in form of the seed potential of this lunation.
The Sabian Symbol for the New Moon at 15:22 Taurus states: “An old teacher fails to interest his pupils in traditional knowledge. Keynote: The inadequacy of past knowledge in time of crisis – CREATIVE FRUSTRATION.” (Dane Rudhyar, “An Astrological Mandala: The Cycle of Transformations and its 360 Symbolic Phases”, Pages 80-81) Click here for image file. Obsolete knowledge cannot solve the problems of our times characterized by chaos, disintegration and personal, as well as cultural, crisis. We must approach the situation differently, thereby detaching ourselves from the past, the known and the learnt, and orient us toward the future -- the unknown and uncertain. The future belongs to the next generations who connect via public and social networks in an unprecedented effort of information-sharing and political initiative, thus aptly corresponding to the signs of our time as their birth premise comes to fruition.
Taurus is associated with a time of the year when we renew our relationship with the earth and participate in the fertility rites. Though for humanity as the highest evolved form of life on this planet, it is the bearing of mental fruits together with the flowering of the soul that will bestow spiritual abundance. The multiplication of the seed has been transferred to the mental level as we emerged from the vitalistic era and the enclosing matrix of tribal societies to become a microcosm unto ourselves, while growing into a global village as a collective. Realistic evaluation of the changing circumstances is imperative. And so is the proper validation of humanity’s new needs. Our purpose now is to claim ownership over our lives and to develop true Selfhood.
Besides the Sun-Moon conjunction in Taurus, the perfected aspects on that day are a semi-square between Venus in Taurus and Uranus in Pisces; a sesqui-quadrate between the Sun in Taurus and Pluto Rx in Capricorn; and a sextile between Pallas in Aries and Neptune in Aquarius. The creative frustration resulting from the failure of ‘the old
teacher’ is well represented by the semi-square and sesqui-quadrate; they are indicators of high tension, as well as of a state of acuteness -- which demands immediate attention. A recommendation regarding how to approach the crisis is given in the sextile and could be interpreted as an appeal to respond by joining the up-shooting grassroots movements, because in unity we are strong. Collectively and personally a vibration is sounding forth in synch with the dawning Age of Aquarius, which is awakening us to our true potential and calls for individuation. Our personal progress serves the cause of our society. With more self-awareness, courage and empathy for our fellow human beings we can change the course of history. That this is a necessary evolutionary step is shown by the involvement of the outer planets in the aspect pattern. The growing dissatisfaction of the populace is stirring up the restructuring process and at same time engaging every individual. Thus, the transubstantiation of our character will be inaugurated and also include our value system.
On the next day, May 6, Mercury in Gemini will semi-square Eris in Aries, then sesqui-quadrate Jupiter in Capricorn on May 7, and forming a sextile with Vesta in Aries on May 8. Mars enters Leo on the same day Jupiter turns retrograde -- May 9. Also on that day, Mercury will cast a semi-square to Pallas in Aries and Vesta in Aries will form yet another one to Chiron in Aquarius. Thus, our thinking process will undergo a reassessing phase and a final push, thereby taking newly emergent facts into account. We should aspire to deal with them objectively and in a self-determined manner, while steering clear of selfishness. As a consequence, we may see the reality of the situation in a grander scheme and could come up with the one option that would work best in the long-term. This can propel us toward self-commitment and lift us up to make a promise to focus on a positive ME. Therefore, decisive action will be needed to move forward, whereby personal crises and instable circumstances will strengthen our will and arouse our spirit. In synch with these developments, Mars’ ingress into Leo can boast our self-confidence and encourage us to act on our own behalf. However, Jupiter’s retrograde through Capricorn can force us to take time and confide in caution in order to ponder viable options and think things through before we’ll embark on the next step, which fosters the learning experience.
Accordingly, with the event of the First Quarter Moon on May 11 we will face “a crisis in action” as the waxing Leo Moon is at cross purposes with the Taurus Sun, calling for a creative breakthrough of the seed planted at the New Moon. As the Sun also casts a square to Chiron in Aquarius and a semi-sextile to Eris in Aries -- in addition to Mars in Leo’s quincunx to Pluto Rx in Capricorn -- the challenge for us is to stop perpetuating the unproductive ways we used in the past regarding our self-expression, and how we seek self-affirmation. Repeating certain mistakes can be detrimental to our advancement, as well as deepening the split between personality and Self. In order to win the battle, our self-motivation needs to be strong. We have to access the power at the core of our Being and equip ourselves with the necessary resilience, thereby assuring us of personal authority and dignity.
The next day, May 12, the Taurus Sun will sextile Uranus in Pisces and trine Jupiter Rx in Capricorn. On May 14, he will square Neptune in Aquarius. Venus in Taurus will sesqui-quadrate Pluto Rx in Capricorn on May 13, semi-sextile Ceres in Gemini on May 15 and Eris in Aries on May 17. She will also square Chiron in Aquarius on that day and on May 18 she will repeat the Sun’s aspects to Uranus and Jupiter that took place on May 12. Thus, we will have ample opportunity to present ourselves in a different manner as true individuals, by simply stating our personal truth; on the other hand, we must strive to avoid condescending and insulting remarks. Self-pitying won’t bring us any sympathy either. Once we are in touch with our true Self and have grounded ourselves on sound footing, our rhetoric will reflect our beliefs and values. We don’t have to resort to pretense or feint to keep up the facade. Authenticity is complemented by honesty. If we can leave a positive impression upon other people without compromising our own integrity we have overcome any lack of self-worth or other insecurities. There is a chance, however, that we could be perceived as weak if we show restraint due to certain ideals our society still upholds. It’s not going to be an easy task. We will have to be persistent and stay our course with a cultured disposition. Moreover, we will need to walk a delicate mental balance during debates, or in case we find ourselves in disagreements with others. Our style should be polished and sophisticated and we need to focus on a conciliatory dialogue first and foremost. Beware of the pitfalls of self-infatuation and pride in the event of kindled personal energies, which could carry us away when the Taurus Sun engages in a semi-square with Vesta in Aries and Ceres in Gemini in another one with Mars in Leo as this could exacerbate the situation on May 18. As a result, we may feel a bit tense or stressed out on this day; therefore we will need to focus on our positive intentions, plus w! hat we w ant to cultivate in our lives and attract toward us in return.
This mental struggle will come to a head on the next day – May 19, which is the day of the 2nd Scorpio Full Moon or Blue Moon this year, happening to coincide with the Wesak Moon. The latter is associated with the birth and enlightenment of Gautama, the Buddha. This has the potential to trigger the deepest insights, besides holding the promise of profoundly transmuting illumination of our psychic patterns. Neptune’s conjunction with the North Node in Aquarius at the end of last month together with Vesta’s Aries ingress has already stirred the spiritual impulse within us and could inspire more awareness globally concerning our spiritual goal.
The Sabian Symbol for the Full Moon at 29:27 Scorpio states: “Children in Halloween costumes indulge in various pranks. Keynote: The periodic outlets society furnishes within traditional limits to still-immature energies – RELIEF FROM TENSION.”
For the Sun at 29:27 Taurus: “A peacock parading on the terrace of an old castle. Keynote: The personal display of inherited gifts – CONSUMMATION.” (Dane Rudhyar, “An Astrological Mandala: The Cycle of Transformations and Its 360 Symbolic Phases”, Pages 209-210 and 88-89, respectively) Click here for image file.
As we mature emotionally and mentally, the spiritual seed we carry within us will blossom like the lotus flower. A Buddha is a fully bloomed human flower. First though, we have to gain control over our minds and develop mindfulness. Then, we can look into the heart of things and become enlightened.
On May 20, the day after the Full Moon, the Sun will ingress into Gemini, and Pallas Taurus. As we’re becoming more self-conscious and lighter in our expression, we can employ those new mental tactics we've acquired with persistence and ease. During the second Jupiter-Uranus sextile on May 21, we’ll realize that we’re pursuing the right course and that new developments are looking promising with the advantage on our side. Subsequently, we may aspire toward more intellectual enrichment and fine-tune our capabilities for holistic perception. Transition has transpired on a higher mental level when the Gemini Sun casts a quincunx and Pallas in Taurus a trine to Pluto Rx in Capricorn. Another trine is connecting Ceres in Gemini to Chiron in Aquarius that day.
Already the next day, May 22, will bring a new lesson when the Gemini Sun squares Saturn in Virgo and Mars in Leo forms a sesqui-quadrate to Uranus in Pisces. Those aspects will force us into affirmative action by testing our will. The outcome will be in the character of the twins. Contradictory positions have to be reconciled and recognized as mutually dependent upon each other. Conscious and subconscious contents of our thinking process have to be distinguished, reasoned out and bridged as indicated by Mercury in Gemini’s trine to Chiron in Aquarius and Ceres in Gemini's quincunx to Jupiter Rx in Capricorn on May 23. This mental adjustment is necessary to gain more understanding so that we can change our mental outlook when Ceres in Gemini squares Uranus in Pisces on May 24. At the same time, Venus’ ingress into Gemini will be aiding us in this process of balancing duality and reconciling opposites.
May 25 will see another critical stage in terms of our commitment to do a better job at self-control for which we will eventually reap the rewards if our practicing of mindfulness was successful as reflected in Venus in Gemini’s quincunx to Pluto Rx in Capricorn and semi-square to Vesta in Aries during Pallas in Taurus’ trine to Saturn in Virgo. A course correction follows on May 26 with the square of Venus in Gemini to Saturn in Virgo, along with her semi-sextile to Pallas in Taurus, while in the background the combined retrogrades of Chiron, Mercury and Neptune will facilitate the shift. This will be the lead-up to the Third Quarter Moon on May 27.
“The crisis in consciousness” related to this phase in the lunation cycle is amplified as the Gemini Sun will not only receive the waning square from the Pisces Moon, but also cast a semi-square to Eris in Aries and a sesqui-quadrate to Jupiter Rx in Capricorn. Another sesqui-quadrate will lead from Vesta in Aries to Saturn in Virgo. At this point, our conduct will be essential for the effective implementation as well as consolidation of our long-term goals. Moreover, it will be imperative to be clear and concise in the selection of our words. Mixed messages or dubious signals could cause us damage and give a wrong impression. A slip of tongue or some other instance of inconsideration could be misunderstood and have serious consequences. Thus, it would be advisable to correct eventual mistakes in the act before it’ll be too late. In case we are at the receiving end of mindlessness, we don’t have to let it end in a fully blown-out argument, resulting in a breakdown of all communication. If a sign of regret will open the channel for an apology, there could be a choice to yield to find common ground.
Things will be easier on May 29 when Ceres in Gemini trines Neptune Rx in Aquarius and Mercury Rx in Gemini trines Chiron Rx in Aquarius. Then, we could be the recipients of good news, see a vision finally coming through, or look forward to a promising social meeting. Feedback will be positive this day. Besides a sense of progress we may feel some kind of healing taking place. Conversations should be free-flowing and inspiring with minds at peace and attuned to the same wavelength. On May 30 though, Venus in Gemini will repeat the Sun’s tense aspects to Eris in Aries and Jupiter Rx in Capricorn from the 27th, simultaneously with an opposition between Juno Rx in Sagittarius and Ceres in Gemini. The need for emotional support will be strong amidst heated arguments and conflicting viewpoints. This crisis calls for an iron will, eloquence and high morals and particularly so in the wake of the second Jupiter-Eris square reaching completion on the next day. Contentiousness has to be fought with a carefully orchestrated show of strength. Success depends on personal initiative as well as the upholding of ethics. As personal and public opinions will divide us into fractions we may be challenged to defend ourselves with all means necessary. Though should we be overtaken by anger and give in to those emotional impulses we will lose the ground we’ve so hardily won previously.
CAPT. CHAOS' 2008 TAURUS LUNATION BY CHRIS TURNER
2008 Taurus Lunation --- by Capt. Chaos
Hello again, furry residents of the Funny Farm of Planet Water. How's it hanging? 'Tis the season of flesh, fungus and fornication. There is no symbolic Sign so attached to the material world as Taurus. If it's not edible, consumable or collectible, it's not worth much. You've never been fully owned until you've been in a relationship with Taurus. Money and food are the favourite things of any weighty Taurus. Some have unkindly said that a very Taurean person is just an alimentary tract going somewhere to eat, digest and defecate. So organic she smells and revels in the senses. She hates change and prefers to plod along familiar paths of routine and ritual. Which makes now something of a crisis for her and in fact, this is the biggest Taurean crisis for centuries. A financial credit and food crisis is enveloping the human domain. How did this happen she wants to know! It's unfair, someone should do something about it and whosoever is at fault should be punished. Moo, baa, damn!
Let's start with the stomach and gonads, as any real Taurean will immediately understand are the main priority of life. If you just keep breeding in a Catholic way, at some time your numbers will outstrip food supplies and you'll start to starve. Is this simple enough to evade your denials? And if your waste products affect the planetary climate, reduce arable land and collapse environmental systems, the problem is compounded.
But hey! - Discipline, personal responsibility and asceticism don't correlate with the urges of the flesh. When is enough???? How many pairs of shoes do you need? How much food can you consume before you start looking like a blimp? Now you've run up against a wall for your greed. From: <http://www.national post.com/ news/story. html?id=412984> http://www.national post.com/ news/story. html?id=412984 "Sharply rising prices have triggered food riots in recent weeks in Mexico, Morocco, Senegal, Uzbekistan, Guinea, Mauritania and Yemen, and aid agencies around the world worry they may be unable to feed the poorest of the poor. The shadow of "a new hunger" that has made food too expensive for millions is the result of a sudden and dramatic surge in food prices around the world. Rising prices for the entire world's crucial cereal crops and growing fears of scarcity are careening through international markets, creating turmoil. Two weeks ago world rice prices soared by as much as 30% in one day. With crude oil soaring above US$100 a barrel, higher fuel prices have driven up the cost of production and increased transportation costs for all foods. At the same time, millions of people in China and India have suddenly become relatively wealthy and are changing their eating habits, consuming more meat and chicken, which places a huge demand on cereal stocks. A surge in demand for biofuel has resulted in a sharp decline in agricultural land planted for food crops. About 16% of U.S. agricultural land formerly planted with soybeans and wheat is now growing corn for biofuel.
For the first time in history, there is a clear link between the price of fuel and the price of food. If there were a miraculous 20% increase in the quantity of food production, we would not know what would go toward increased food consumption and what would go to biofuels. Experts predict world food markets will be locked into an inflationary spiral for at least four years, but some say the crisis could linger for a decade or more. There is a sense that what we are seeing is a step or structural change and not a peak to be followed by a trough. In other words, we are into an era of high food prices. It's not just volatility, it's a step increase".
In the New Moon chart, retrograde Pluto sesquisquares the Taurus Lights. A message for all humanity - wake up to your unconscious greed or suffer the consequences. Life on Planet Water is not an ever growing meal table in ever larger McMansions. This could be a transformational crisis or foster further levels of denial and pompous plans for ways to increase agricultural production by chemical and genetic manipulation. Enough really means enough! On the other hand, the Lights also trine Jupiter, a signature of greed or understanding. I'm not holding my nonexistent breath for the results of this one. Saturn stations direct close to the beginning of this moonth, so taking responsibility for your appetites is necessary for success in this moonthly workshop.
Jupiter stations retrograde on the 9th May, so around this date the boys who make their loot from financial markets will be proclaiming that the credit crisis has been exaggerated and it will soon be business as usual. For the second time in the current series Jupiter sextiles Uranus on the 22nd May - and plans for liquid natural gas (mainly methane) continue to be the flavour of the moonth as an antidote to dependence on oil.
On the 27th of May, both Mercury and Uranus station retrograde. The space pixies will be out and about with intuitive plans for cheap global energy from ubiquitous non-polluting sources. But hey - some of it might work. Neptune is conjunct the North Node, so anything that can be imagined or visualised seems possible. It's a rocky road from an image too an energy source.
Special lesson number two this moonth is about money! Credit has fuelled economic expansion for three centuries and this is now coming to an end.
"In 1694, by bailing King William out of his debts incurred by England's war with France, the moneylenders achieved enormous power and a new found respectability. They now called themselves bankers and would profit by the vast sums of credit that were to underwrite the greatest empire since imperial Rome - an era that is now about to end. England ultimately leveraged its ability to wage war with credit into a world empire; and the moneylenders, now called bankers, used England's power to spread their system of credit-based money across the world, multiplying and increasing their profits thereby. And although England's position as a world power has waned, the power of the moneylenders has grown. Today bankers are more powerful than governments. But the triumph of the bankers will be short-lived because the United States has now irreparably damaged the credit-based system that England's bankers so carefully constructed". Darryl Robert Schoon
The current Jupiter Saturn cycle began in 2000 in Taurus and is the last great hurrah of the Jupiter/Saturn cycles beginning in Earth Signs since the early 1800's. The notion and expectation that economic expansion would go on for ever has run up against some Malthusian limitations. An economic crisis often occurs when approaching a Jupiter/Saturn opposition. And this one is unusual because it correlates with a Great Mutation out of Earth into Air Signs. Material wealth as a primary social goal is giving way to the airy realm of ideas and notions. After the enormous changes of the next few years, life will be very different for most of humanity. So stay tuned for the next thrilling episode of human life on Planet Water.
I'll be back for the Gemini New Moon, where words are the fuel and the story is the vehicle.
