New Moon August 25, 2014: Stripped to the Bone

fish carcass for august new moon blogNew Moon August 25, 2014 @ 2 degrees Virgo 19 minutes
05:33 a.m. EDT 02:33 a.m. PDT

In slumber the shadow crosses slowly a desolate landscape. Stunning is the austerity.
One cannot help but be affected by the stillness; the lack of distraction. Where in this dream do I fulfill my desires? The thought goes out a long way but ricochets back to me from distant boulders. Where in this place do I find my desires? I do not find that I want anything and yet I see the landscape unfolding with magnificent curves, sharp edges, soft contours and a horizon that is finally at the end of the limitless sea—perhaps. This I do not know. But ‘it’ goes on. Has nothing to do with what I want. A vulture rises from behind a high outcropping and makes big circles in the sky searching for something that has died, spirals above me. The shadow disappears.

Contributing to a vision that includes only the bare necessities is sharp insight into what serves a higher purpose. Once again the feeling is ‘being stripped to the bone’. The result is feeling raw but it doesn’t take long before a sense of wild freedom replaces vulnerability; freedom from duty and responsibility for anything other than focus upon inner peace, the stillness that we encounter when perched upon a rock in the desert in waning sunlight.

A time to allow intuitive gifts to carry one into deeper levels of expression that demonstrate a commitment to what is beyond thought; being motivated by impulse. The impulse that drives all of us forward no matter how daily life is manifested or what appears upon the big screen. Thus there is freedom to be present and enjoy the moment.

No worry or concern for what should or should not, might or might not be. Only clear insight as to the nature of existence.

The messenger is not an individual alone on a mission to establish truth in the chaos. The messenger is the collective dream that desires to know the Love that we are, the inner peace that is. The message rises repeatedly from whatever is occurring in this moment. The message sings to us, dances about us, lands heavily at our feet, wafts temptingly in our vicinity as it continues to flow in and out of experience that is limited by our sense of physicality. Let go of all belief, become the song, the dance, the air that I breathe and the impulse for home beats with such regularity all else falls away as it changes, moves out of time and disappears. What remains is the true nature.

Stripped to the bone the door flies open and the heart is free to pour forth Love into Love into Love. In the golden light my tiny shadow looms large and then in an instant is gone.

This New Moon stalks me like a cat, the vibration of its silent steps jarring awareness of all that looms about me in the dream. With laser precision I eradicate symbols and images that have long kept me prisoner here. Naturally words dissolve and every belief I have ever had lets go and tumbles out of memory. In the morning we all marvel at this spectacular sun rise.

august new moon 2014 chart

 

 

 

 

Full Moon August 10, 2014

Full Moon August 10, 2014 @ 18 degrees Aquarius 2 minutes
2:09 p.m. EDT 11:09 a.m. PDT

full moon aug 2014Our true nature is like a precious jewel: although it may be temporarily buried in mud, it remains completely brilliant and unaffected. We simply have to uncover it.—Pema Chondra, Weekly Quotes

The beauty of a Full Moon, its radiance is reflection of our true nature and a reminder of the jewel that we are, a diamond cast down by the hand of God, Love flowing in every direction from every cell an explosion of light from emptiness. This planet, that smiles into eternity with the joy of Being.

This Full Moon in Aquarius, the water-bearer, ruled by Uranus=rolling thunder that precedes change, the electrical charge that moves energy from point to point—from the edge into the unknown for which we have faith and trust of what is to be or simply accept what is as the perfection of the moment.

“Freedom” means to allow ‘what is’ to be.—Robert Wolfe, Abiding In Nondual Awareness

Resistance to what is diminishes as we awaken to the knowing that there is nothing there against which to resist. At the moment this feels like extraordinary grace gently falling upon us like a mist at dawn near a northern lake. We feel, without thought, the presence that is everywhere, always as our self. Our way of moving through the world becomes as a rivulet of “that”, is “that”, peace and stillness and love.

The t-square formed by Saturn at the apex of the Sun/Moon opposition is an opportunity to feel our desire for control as a futile attempt to establish the ego in physical reality. The old patterns that seek security lose their power to move us as we recognize that we cannot hold onto that which never existed–including relationships where someone is perceived to be separate from my self. We have never lost anything. It would be impossible as it is all me, always.

At this time we truly begin to see that our way of thinking we exist, is only a small part of what it means to Be.

A t-square is a highly dynamic aspect that pushes for change, urges one to step out of limitations. And though it may be uncomfortable it is what we most desire. This Full Moon will be a test of allowing.

Allow the ocean waters to flow over you, to shift the sand beneath you, trusting that though you may be carried out to sea you will not be lost but rather may find that the jewel you have so coveted, the pearl upon which you have heaped so much praise is your own heart and as accessible as the blink of an eye; that the beating of the heart responds to the rhythm that pervades all things, is all things.

The Sun, Mercury, Black Moon Lilith conjunction is grace, allows us to move smoothly through this period of what may seem like radical change though nothing really changes except the illusion that I am separate from “that”; that I am this mind/body. Body, mind, spirit—one—no separation.

The other aspect of grace, the sign of Aquarius itself, the water-bearer pouring forth the eternal stream of life, vitality unimpeded by anything. Here there is no notion of attachment as there is the absence of emotional need that otherwise binds an individual to the notion of individuality. Here there is the abidance in the pool of humanity that is the reservoir of “that”, God, Love, Beloved. The heart beat is louder, eventually becomes the only sound I hear.

The Full Moon will have a particular brightness about it. The eye perceives more clearly demands the mind rest and come into the heart of Reality. It is your desire, it is my desire, it is our desire and for that we love each other without condition—in every moment.

The Poetry of Dana Gioia

(Return to Good Monday Morning July 28th and a post posting of the New Moon which occurs July 26th at 3 degrees Leo. For the Love of…Unfolding into Self Anna travels North.)
The world does not need words. It articulates itself
in sunlight, leaves, and shadows. The stones on the path
are no less real for lying uncatalogued and uncounted.
The fluent leaves speak only the dialect of pure being.
The kiss is still fully itself though no words were spoken.
And one word transforms it into something less or other—
illicit, chaste, perfunctory, conjugal, covert.
Even calling it a kiss betrays the fluster of hands
glancing the skin or gripping a shoulder, the slow
arching of neck or knee, the silent touching of tongues.
Yet the stones remain less real to those who cannot
name them, or read the mute syllables graven in silica.
To see a red stone is less than seeing it as jasper—
metamorphic quartz, cousin to the flint the Kiowa
carved as arrowheads. To name is to know and remember.
The sunlight needs no praise piercing the rainclouds,
painting the rocks and leaves with light, then dissolving
each lucent droplet back into the clouds that engendered it.
The daylight needs no praise, and so we praise it always—
greater than ourselves and all the airy words we summon.

 
~Dana Gioia

Good Monday Morning…for the Love of…

…everything, everywhere

Sheng Zhen Qi Gong (http://shengzhen.org) is the practice of unconditional Love taught by Master Li Junfeng. Recently I have had the good sense to avail my self of his teaching and this gentle and powerful form of movement. During a meditation in a class, I wondered that the Chi was not flowing and present as Master Li indicated it could be. An ancient and wise figure appeared to me that I recognized as Lao Tzu author of I Ching and founder of Taoism.

 

tao_LaoTzu “Chi is everywhere,” he said “where we resist only does it not flow in our body. Be present in the body! Here, now is Chi.”

Imagine the Chi between the cells expanding the cells and allow Love to flow throughout and be one with everything, everywhere. Master Li will return to Santa Barbara mid October to teach us more of his beautiful practice.

 

 

Full Moon July 12th, 2014 in Capricorn

Full Moon July 12th, 2014 @ 20 degrees Capricorn 03 minutes 07:25 EDT
04:25 PDT

When we look up at the Full Moon this month we see an image upon which we have gazed so many times before with various emotions and thoughts perhaps influenced by the sign that is occupied by our luminous friend. Perhaps by what we feel reflected to us through the light that is our nature—all else will fall away. The structures that we have built for safety and security fall away and the desire for freedom and the subsequent realization of our lack of freedom are plainly evident. The Heart opens and the need for structure is no longer defined.

This all a tremendous experience in Capricorn as the sea-goat has made its way to the mountain top and with lofty view realizes that the structure is like a ladder but as I never needed to climb anywhere, the ladder serves no purpose and what has been learned is now applied to serve the structure that is humanity. I discover my humanity deep within the truth of Be-ing.

No need to whine, worry or wonder you that stand between your suffering and surrender.
You cannot resist and live to tell the story! We’re all going down—but to rise into the light of liberty and joyous community, the structure that exists for eternity. When all else fails, Love prevails.

While we are at it here, might as well feel deeply all that is taking place—the sadness, grief, anger—anger moves us—anger is the energy that takes us from A to B. In sadness we sit. We should deny none of it. All of it is the One.

Capricorn is an earth sign, an opportunity to ground into physicality with the benefit of our vision to Be “that” or Love here—deep, intimate oneness in this body, here, now.

There are several planets shifting signs or direction in the two weeks between this Full Moon and the next New Moon (July 26th). Not a common occurrence. This represents a time of change that allows for deeper feeling. Mercury moves into Cancer on the 12th/13th depending on which coast you live on. Thought and communication originate from a deep place of feeling; less verbal expression. Venus follows into Cancer on the 18th. It is about what we desire that lifts us out of old patterns of want.

On July 16th Jupiter moves into Leo. All of our grand gestures and wisdom are devoted to what feels good. It is not about short term gain or what strokes the ‘ego’ necessarily but what supports our long term well-being. Leo rules the heart. What a heart expansion we are experiencing!

Saturn goes direct! July 20th, for some, is the long awaited date for the task master moving again and therefore not hammering home the same point over and over. We can now get on with what we have discovered while rooting through the cellar in the dark, digging up stuff that has stubbornly evaded scrutiny. Or that has disguised it self as necessary to our survival. And too, we may have been faced with fears based upon some very old thoughts that arise then are seen to be nothing more than the breeze that rustles the leaves. For some this may feel like a strong wind rattling the shutters.

We settle into the comfort of knowing the Self once again in peace and Love. The healing comes easily to us, spreads quickly from the center outward soothing, caressing and nurturing in a way that only Truth can. It has slipped between the resistance and the beliefs from the inside out and shattered all the incongruities that have just never made sense giving rise to numerous, numerous questions that of course have no answer.

Then on July 21st Uranus stations retrograde. What happens when the planet of evolution, change and awakening slows down in Aries (I seek Self)? More internal inquiry. What stands in the way of Liberty? This question may be asked so many times during the course of a lifetime, especially for those determined to get to where they have always been. Abrupt change is very possible and may become ordinary; dropping everything that has always seemed fine in favor of a quest that takes one into the unknown. Instinctively we know this is where our truth lies, beyond the known world.

The will and the way join hands in gracious allegiance. By the 24th as the New Moon approaches and Mars slides into Scorpio we should be filled with insight, many ah, hah moments that bring a smile—further relaxation into our perfection.

There is an intensity to these days that manifests in various physical issues from exhaustion to a disorienting dizziness and feelings of nausea. There are no reminders of what should be, how one should or should not conduct themselves. Instead each individual is called upon to utilize their intuition as to what best serves them. And many things are available to us; many beautiful people are present to show the way if we find our selves in a place where we want to see our own luminous reflection. The doors are open just walk through.

We may begin by gazing at this Full Moon. Being filled with gratitude and nothing else is a moment of Love and joy. And that is all there is.

full moon july 12 2014 chart

Good Monday Morning…Sweet Surrender (con’t)

Tripping Over Joy

What is the difference
Between your experience of Existence
And that of a saint?

The saint knows
That the spiritual path
Is a sublime chess game with God

And that the Beloved
Has just made such a Fantastic Move

That the saint is now continually
Tripping over Joy
And bursting out in Laughter
And saying, “I Surrender!”

Whereas, my dear,
I am afraid you still think
You have a thousand serious moves.”
― Hafiz, I Heard God Laughing: Poems of Hope and Joy

I wake up for nine days with the chin of an eternally optimistic chocolate Lab resting on my hand or arm, with tail wagging and bright eyes imploring, “let’s play!” Because she is the sweetest and most well behaved critter on four legs, I surrender to the hour, 6:15, throw on some clothes, harness her up and we explore the neighborhood–new to me and always new to her no matter how many times she has sniffed that patch of ground.

She doesn’t know me but loves me regardless and I don’t know her but the feelings are mutual. It is the wonderful thing about dogs and I personally am grateful for a little extra LOVE this week! Thank you Lily.

New Moon in Cancer: Sweet Surrender

New Moon July 27th, 2014 @ 5 degrees Cancer 37 minutes
04:08 a.m. EDT 01:08 a.m. PDT

The title for this New Moon is ‘sweet surrender’. In the early degrees of Cancer when the soul is vulnerable to all the external stimuli and still basking in the love-light discovered upon the recent venture into familiar and comfortable interior caverns. Gentle, tender wrapped in your arms safe and loved you unfold, surrendering to the glow of love that radiates from your heart. Love flows everywhere—no boundaries. Incapable of turning the tide of pure emotion, you rise and fall, the ocean, inhales and exhales so consistent, eternal, where can there be fear in such Love? Only knowing soothes the mind, rocks the mind into obedience.

Stillness penetrates deeply in the darkness. Thoughts are absorbed into soft mesh, the fabric of consciousness that slowly lets go of all the debris collected over numerous ages of participation. You are free, limbs search for ground in the void only for a moment. Without thinking, the need for ground suddenly has no meaning. You move with the rhythm of truth, guided by the essence that is your nature. No thinking necessary. No problem solving, planning, pretending. From the cocoon you emerge and fly for the first time with the Beloved as your guide.

During this New Moon prepare your self for a dip into the well of divinity and see if it doesn’t usher you into life anew—softness, kindness, caring and easing into everyone and everything you meet with out resistance. The Crab is being coaxed from its shell by the forces of the deep. Neptune’s powers of persuasion are based upon the desired dissolution of any harsh or hard elements standing between you and your liberation. You will gladly be wooed by this immensely attractive influence. Not to become prey to but to become one with. Frivolity rejected in favour of intimate excursions, explorations of each petal as it unfolds and watching as it floats downstream and finally out of sight.

There are very few distractions now unless you go looking for distraction. There is little to call you in any other direction as your direction stands out as clearly as one cloud slowly spreading its edges across the sky, so thin that white becomes blue and is lost.

These few days before and after the New Moon put us in touch with Yin energy—gentle, sensitive, compassionate with appreciation for the human condition and wanting to engage from a place of peace rather than conflict. It emphasizes Love and receptivity and a willingness to ‘sacrifice’ what does not serve the highest good.

Wherever this New Moon falls in your own chart will generate deeper consideration of those aspects in your life.

1st House: The Self. Be sure to allow your self the time and space for inner reflection.
Self inquiry—who is this ‘I’? A different process than getting your feet right way up after first arriving.

2nd House: Self-worth and security. Big issues around how you perceive your self and place in the world. This may show up as emotional insecurity. Stay focused knowing that thoughts are based on the past and none of it is true in this moment.

3rd House: Communicating the Self. Some of your basic ways of expressing your self with others may come up for review. Don’t take things personally. Remember that you are wearing your heart on your sleeve.

4th House: Home and Emotional Expression. A sensitive house as it is our roots, the Mother. Matters of Self nurturance and feeling—loved and accepted or not. Again be prepared for deep connections to how you feel without becoming engrossed in the past. The moon does represent past patterns. Here they come up for review.

5th House: Self expression, Self realization and Romance. Obviously the combination of the Sun/Moon here in Cancer is a great opportunity to stand up and Be ‘it’. No words necessary fortunately. Its all about what comes from the Heart and in this case it is only Love. On a mundane level it certainly will achieve a lot in terms of any relationship plans you have.

6th House: Mentoring, Work, Health. So, realize that you are vulnerable. Take care of your self. The tendency is usually to look after others first but in this case, you are number one then everyone else and they will show up for a good shoulder—yours is it.
Also the house of small animals. They may show up too.

7th House: One on one relationship. Marriage house. Kindness and caring of those with whom you relate on a personal level. Lucky them! Do not allow your incredibly sensitive and perceptive self to be disillusioned by what may look like the opposite coming from partners. It gives you the chance to Be Love regardless of what comes at you.

8th House: The cycle of humanity and others possessions. Sex/sexuality. Super sensitivity and heightened awareness of the needs of humanity. Everything you give out comes back tenfold. The desire to give may be outstanding but be prepared to receive the same. Be aware that whomever you connect with sexually will have a deep impact on you energetically. If it is not someone that is committed you may feel loss at their leaving.

9th: The Holy Grail. Higher Self. Internal drive for Self realization and an interest in exploring whatever channels will carry you to ‘higher heights’. Setting out on a journey or quest for the apparently elusive freedom to BE and a strong inclination to share that with others, to shine your light and spread the Truth. People will be attracted to your confidence and your inner peace.

10th: Recognition. Career/Ambition. Structure of humanity. There is no holding you back! Your ability to affect those around you, to add to the expanding sense of community and awareness of what it takes to truly make a difference may bring you recognition for services rendered. Global healing through Love is the motivating factor for which you may find your self feeling enormous gratitude.

11th: Community. Goals. Friends. Feeling a deep connection to humanity and aspiring to engage with everyone in brotherhood/sisterhood. We are all in this together. We are all the same. Many hands joining together in Love and peace. Feeling the strong bond that unites us all. Love elevates us to new heights of human expression and freedom.

12th House: Absolute. Not two. Knowing. There really are no words to describe the 12th house adequately. Why is that? The 12th house is what remains after one can no longer describe anything about our true nature. Here there is a deep knowing and anything that stands in the way of that will be seen as worthless—a frightening process for some. Fear may arise as a result. It will pass as it is seen that there really is nothing to fear and that vulnerability is necessary to freedom.

 

Good Monday Morning…for the Love of…

…humanity.

blog for june 23 2014

“The first essential is that the human units shall draw closer together, not merely under the pressure of external forces, or soley by the performance of material acts, but directly, centre to centre, through internal attraction. Not through coercion, or enslavement to a common task, but through unanimity in a common spirit. The construction of molecules ensues through atomic affinity. Similarly, on a higher level, it is through sympathy, and this alone, that the human elements in a personalized universe may hope to rise to the level of a higher synthesis.” ~Pierre Teilhard deChardin, Let Me Explain

 

Good Monday Morning…for the Love of…

 

blog june 16

…all the kind and sincere sharing that occurs every day in thousands of ways, demonstrations of the Love we are that is expressed but cannot be talked about.

 

Someone posted this on face book. Children read to cats at a cat shelter. Adorable!

 

 

Love itself speaks through every pore of your body,

you need not open your mouth. There is no word for Love…

Love is the spontaneous Indweller of the Heart.~Sri H.W.L. Poonja, Papaji, This