The New
Moon in Aries is also the Dragon New Moon in Chinese Astrology and the Willow
Tree/Sea Serpent New Moon in Celtic Astrology. The New moon is exact at
18:56:48 GMT/UT on Saturday 18th April, 2015.
The New
Moon is a potent time to set intentions, or make a wish, as it is the beginning
of the Lunar Cycle, when seeds of the new are sewn. Tomorrow’s New Moon in
Aries is the first New Moon since the Vernal Equinox (Northern Hemisphere) and
for some it marks the true beginning of Western Astrology’s Solar Year.
“The
Vernal Equinox symbolizes the birth of the Fire element. Fire is the first
element we encounter on the Tropical Zodiac. Fire is the principle of action.
Fire, like Spring, is the spirit of out-rushing energy which charges into the
cosmos, obliterating all that stands in its way…Aries is Cardinal Fire…Cardinal
refers to birth, the beginning of a cycle. It is the principle of initiation
where something arises out of nothing. Cardinality is the creative urge that
allows new life to manifest itself into a universe that may already be stable
and closed…Cardinal energy reinforces what Fire
represents…Aries is the will to exist, the life-force. First there is nothing
(Winter). Then there is something (Spring). Out of seemingly nowhere, life
bursts forth, claiming its place. “
“Aries
teaches courage. It represents the ability of the will to triumph over any
intimidation, any obstacle, any doubt.” (“Inner Sky” by Steven Forrest)
The
Aries New Moon is a potent time to plant seeds that break new ground.
Aries-themed wishes include wishes around new beginnings, authenticity,
self-focus, self-discovery, disengaging from patterns of self-absorption,
innocence, courage and independence. Aries rules the brain, head, face, sinus
and blood, in terms of blood energy. Aries is ruled by Mars. Mars rules
inflammation. Any wishes for health in these areas will be supported by the Aries
New Moon.
Just a
little Medical Astrology link and Aries New Moon wish suggestion for anybody
experiencing depression or prone to depression or melancholy: there have been a
few articles recently published about research that shows depression is driven,
if not caused, by inflammation. As Mars rules inflammation and Aries, and Aries
rules the brain as well as the blood through which hormones are transported,
make some wishes around your depression lifting or around gaining insight into
its root cause or wish to find the perfect therapist to help you work through
it.
Everything
becomes possible at the Aries New Moon…
It is
also the beginning of Dragon month in Chinese Astrology. “You might feel increased power and strength
because this new Moon begins the month of the Metal Dragon. The Metal Dragon,
or white Dragon, is powerful and intense. There is a sense of karma or fate in
even the smallest interactions this month. Mighty Dragon is the most powerful
sign of the Chinese zodiac, a strong leader who brings luck, prosperity, and
rain.” (Susan Levitt - www.susanlevitt.com)
This is
also the Willow Tree/Sea Dragon New Moon in Celtic Astrology. Willow is ruled
by the Moon. Willow has a long and extensive history of symbolism affiliated
with ritual and metaphysical practices. Willow tree leaves have been found in megalithic burial sites and the tombs of the Pharaohs. At the Feast of the Tabernacle, ancient Israelites decorated their altar with Willow boughs. The Willow tree was considered one of the trees of enchantment, along with the Ash, in Northern Europe and Greece.The first tree of creation in Celtic
mythology was the Willow. In the Druidic creation myth the two scarlet sea serpent’s
eggs, which contained the Sun and The Earth, lay hidden in the boughs of the
Willow. Thus, the universe was “hatched,” symbolizing both cosmic birth and the
birth of life on Earth. In Robert Graves account of the life and death of Jesus,
Mary Magdalene was living in a Willow tree when she and Jesus first met.
The wood of the Willow has been used in
ceremonies to honour the Moon and to enhance psychic abilities. Symbolically flora
and fauna in close proximity to water were thought to inhabit the psychic realm
and inspire the imagination. Magically Willow is used in New Moon magick,
creativity, fertility, love divination, protection, healing and female rites of
passage. A wand made of Willow wood can be used for protection during
underworld journeys, to promote more vivid dreams and to draw down the Moon.
Witches brooms are traditionally bound with the branch of a Willow.
Willow bark contains salicylic acid
which is used to make aspirin. Willow bark infusions have long been used as a
remedy for rheumatism, fever and chills. Willow sap applied directly to the
skin is an acne remedy. Boiling Willow bark and leaves in water to create a
strong decoction and applied once cooled to the scalp is a remedy for dandruff.
Willow is extremely flexible. It can
bend into the most extreme poses without snapping. This is a powerful metaphor
for the spiritual path. We can be bent but not broken when we are flexible and
adjust to challenges rather than fighting against them.
“I am a willow of the wilderness, loving
the wind that bent me.” (Ralph Waldo-Emmerson)
The Willow can take root from a single
branch in moist conditions and can thrive in the most challenging conditions, a
further testament to its adaptability and a reason it is called the Tree of Immortality. Willow reminds us to keep growing and reach higher no matter where
we are rooted.
“Willow asks you to bend with her into
the path of retrieval. Follow the labyrinth trail, connect with the power of
wisdom and the rhythm of your soul, and return to the ordinary world
strengthened. You will find that your awareness of your purpose is stronger and
your intent cannot be broken by the spell of someone else’s desire.” (“The
Faces of Woman-Spirit - A Celtic Oracle of Avalon,” by Katherine Torres)
In the "Wisdom of Trees," Jane Gifford
says the Willow encourages us to express deeply buried feelings so as to ease
sadness through tears and the grieving process. The Willow reminds us that
sometimes we need to let go completely, to surrender to the watery world of the
subconscious and emotions; So that we may be led to a deeper understanding of
our inner-most feelings, hidden motives and secret desires and fears. Suppressed
and unacknowledged emotions can lead to energetic imbalances and stress, which can
lead to illness. The Willow helps us acknowledge that within every loss is the
potential for something new.
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“We
teach what we need to learn,” really! Our experience, process and
transformation inspires us to share and inspire others to reach for the stars. It ignites our passion and creativity. In a sense all creativity is ignited by
a passion for discovery. The creative process offers a spectrum of lesson
opportunities. The more passionate the creator becomes about self-discovery and
self-mastery, the longer the path, the greater the challenge, the deeper the
experience, the more developed the innate gifts, and the more expanded and
connected the resulting being becomes. This drive has an Aries flavour.
Yesterday morning during my mediation/contemplation I heard the words, “I am more evolved
than you are.” I find this kind of thinking strange but it also triggers me, because of the arrogance, and because I feel sadness that the spiritual path has become a field of competition.
A truly spiritually evolved being is gentle and humble. They may or may
not share their experience and speak their truth, but the need to compare
themselves has long since left them.
Anyway, how can one possibly judge the
spiritual evolution status of another being? Aries is competitive by nature.
Used most powerfully this Aries-flavoured drive can be used to propel us forward
on the path towards becoming the greatest version of ourselves. Used in a less
productive manner (long-term) this brings out the worst kind of competition,
the ego-fueled spiritual evolution game. Nothing wrong with a healthy ego, in
my opinion, but when the ego is disowned or projected it becomes like a raging beast which fills our
mind with all manner of distorted thoughts, driven by anything lurking in
denied and disowned parts of our being.
In my
experience the assessment of status of somebody’s spiritual evolution is usually
based upon things like their current challenges. Let’s say Bob is going through
some kind of breakdown. Betty thinks, and maybe even says, “Oh I already had a
breakdown and recovered, I’m more spiritually evolved than Bob.”
Not everyone needs to have a breakdown, illness, spiritual emergency, tragic
event, near-death experience or trauma to evolve to their next level, though
for some of us it feels like we've had one thing after another. Bob may have been on his path for a long time and been in a really aware and
expanded state of being when he began to go through his breakdown, while
Betty’s breakdown may have been what took her out of her old life and put her
on her spiritual path. How can you compare?
Who can
tell who is where by when they had their breakdown? These challenges or lessons
are merely spokes on the Great Wheel. We don’t all do the spokes in the same
order. Some people do not do every spoke in a lifetime, some do a few spokes
over and over again. Ultimately the path to spiritual evolution and
self-mastery is unique for everyone and when we let go of comparison and
judgement we leap forward on our path.
The
Great Wheel brings me to time, cycles, spirals and the brain. Since Aries rules
the brain and the Moon rules cycles, I’m going to keep on writing!
How we envision time says a great
deal about which side of our brain is dominant.
“The right brain is relational and unifying.
When the right brain predominates everything – humans, animals, plants, the
spiritual, and physical worlds – is interdependent aspects of one living being.
The right brain sees time as cyclic and is audial and intuitive. The left brain
is masculine, linear, logical, and visual. “It has been prevalent in the
analytical, technological and scientific intellectualism of modern times.” (Demetra
George) The right brain focuses on how things are alike while the left brain
sees the differences. According to George, left brain dominance sees a
separation between self and others, between us and them. Taken to extremes this
attachment to self as being external to others results in feelings of
isolation, fear, and disconnectedness.”
The ancients saw time in terms of
cycles; The Lunar cycle; The Solar cycle; The birth, life, death, rebirth
cycle. Now, time is measured and thought of by most in the developed world as
being linear. Cycles are circular, beginnings are also endings. Something dies
but something else is born. Energy is transformed from one thing into another;
nothing is lost.
It follows that constantly comparing
ourselves to others, judging others and competing is a pretty left brain thing
to do. Seeing everything in terms of oneness, win-win and interconnected, as
taught on the spiritual path (though not always practiced), is a natural
function of the right brain. Perhaps an important step towards spiritual evolution is, at least in part,
the return to right-brain dominance; the return to seeing EVERYTHING as interdependent
aspects of one living being.
The Great Wheel spins on a spiral,
propelling us onward through experience, and upward in terms of frequency and
vibration. Have you ever wondered why some issues and lessons repeat? We often
think “but I've done this one so many times already, why? WHY? At least that is
what I have often thought.
I feel that our core, deeply rooted
lessons, challenges, gifts and life purpose are multi-faceted and part of how we are made. We
can only address them up to the level we have reached on the spiral. As The
Great Wheel spins onward and spirals ever upwards, back towards the source of
all things, we also spiral upwards, addressing each spoke on the wheel destined
for us again and again if necessary, or not, we can always resist. We can
always choose to try and stay unaware or try and go back to sleep. Some are
quite successful, or appear to have been thus far.
I saw a post on Facebook the other
day. I can’t remember the exact words but it said something like, don’t focus
on the shadow, focus on the light instead. All well and good and I agree, don’t
focus on the shadow, BUT one of the least productive and potentially damaging
things we can do on our spiritual path is to ignore or deny what our shadow is
revealing to us, when it makes its presence known.
The shadow or dark phase is part of
every cycle, including the Great Wheel. In the Lunar phase the shadow
phase is represented by the Balsamic Moon, the last few days of the waning Moon
and just before the New Moon. We can run from our shadow for the rest of our
days, it’s our choice, but choosing to address our shadow when it is brought to
our attention is the fast track way to unlocking our creative power. When we
allow ourselves to acknowledge what makes us feel uncomfortable with ourselves and
others, and why, we are able to make more conscious choices as to what no
longer serves us, what is no longer in alignment with us and our purpose. The sahdow is not bad or good, it is just what we are denying, or rejecting, or what hasn't been brought into our conscious awareness yet. Sometimes what we are disowning and denying are our gifts and power. If we
refuse to look at it, we won’t ever release it, heal it and become empowered by
the gifts in the lessons learnt and challenges faced. It will keep coming back,
no matter how much love and light we talk and sprinkle.
Earlier today I experienced one of those
high pitched sounds. It blasted me in one ear but only lasted only
as long as it took for me to acknowledge it and remember the purpose of high
pitched ear blasts.
I am currently processing something that has been challenging me for some time. The lesson I am
talking about has a lot to do with my boundaries and honouring myself.
The high-pitched sound made me wonder
if I am missing something, if I need to look at the issue from a different angle, if
perhaps I am being too stubborn and unwise rather than honest and true with
myself? Perhaps there is an opportunity for healing the root cause of this situation?
Now I am dancing with my shadow. I
have experienced a spectrum of emotions since the ear-piercing noise. I have
both softened and experienced a brief outburst of anger. I don't get really angry easily or often, but when I do it can be pretty fiery. Fortunately it is over quickly too. I am reminded that
once in motion, the pendulum swings from side to side before resting again in
the middle. The high pitched noise stirred things-up, made the pendulum swing. I can only wonder where
it will lead me.
I am posting this blog entry about 24
hours before the Aries New Moon. It is still the Balsamic or Dark Phase of the
Lunar Cycle. The Shadow is likely to have come up for a review of something
that needs to be owned, healed or released in the last day or so. It has for
me. Perhaps you don’t recognize the energy that shows us what needs to be
healed, released or owned as the shadow. It truly matters not what you call it,
but allowing it to complete the breakdown of the old so that the energy may be
transformed into the new is powerful creatively. That is what working
consciously with creative cycles is about. This is more than just any New Moon.
The shifts that have taken place since the Solar Eclipse, March Equinox, and
Lunar Eclipse have been extremely powerful, even if we can’t see evidence of
them in the physical just yet. We are different as a result, whether we are aware or not. We are in a position to seed the new with beautiful possibilities as never before.
Time to make a wish, or two! Let’s
dance! Love!!!!!!!!
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