The Turning Wheel - Astrology for rEvolutionaries by Rhea WolfWinter 29908-09
Some would say that liberating Uranus pulled off a decisive victory against conservative Saturn last November. This astrologer is inspired and cheered by the outcome of our elections, but there’s more in store with this current Uranus-Saturn opposition, which will be challenging us until July of 2010. We need both energies: Saturn’s structured, responsible society; Uranus’ freedom-loving, liberated individual. What could each planet be telling us, in their most enlightened states?
Author and activist Joanna Macy, in her writing on Systems Theory, may have found the answer: holons. What’s a holon? On her website, Macy writes: “All living systems—be they organic like a cell or human body, or supra-organic like a society or ecosystem—are holons. They have a dual nature: As both systems and subsystems, they are wholes in themselves and, simultaneously, integral parts of larger wholes.”
We can be unique and part of the whole. We can be free (Uranus) and still be responsible (Saturn). Too much freedom in the form of unbridled growth spells catastrophe, just as locking all the doors to new information spells atrophy. Saturn is about society, and it’s obvious that we need to invigorate how we structure human society. Let’s look for clues within the living systems that have sustained life for millennia. To read more about systems theory and the ways our own natural wisdom and wildness can guide us into the future, go to http://joannamacy.net/html/living.html.
When Pluto entered Capricorn again on November 26, a gateway opened for us to begin to embody collectively the transformation we’ve been experiencing in our personal lives—or vice versa. Pluto in Capricorn may be a 15-year lesson in systems breakdown—ecological, financial, societal—and the gifts and challenges of generating power structures that work without relying on fear, oppression, and artificial manipulation. On a personal level, we may feel more energized to undertake activities that put into practice our principles. More and more people will be waking up to the roles they play in our collective transformation. And we’ve got to be ready.
What are the skills and practices we will need in order to rebirth our world? Focusing on weaving the mythic back into our lives and our worlds will help us deal most effectively with the big changes in store. In stories, animals, spirits and rivers work in concert with the human world. We will need to flex our storytelling muscles to move our society forward and discover new structures that can contain such potential and magic.
The changes are not only occurring on a planetary level, but also personally. Reflect back to 1988-1989, which was the beginning of this Uranus-Saturn cycle. What was breaking down and what was finding order in your life? Over the next 18 months, you may feel like a pendulum swinging between order and chaos as events and feelings seek to crack open the limits of your understanding to create space for a new order to emerge.
The first test to this emerging world will certainly come with eclipses. A Solar Eclipse in Aquarius on January 25 and a Lunar Eclipse in Leo on February 9 will challenge the limits of our dreaming. After the initial excitement of political change dissipates, we may feel a bit let down at how difficult it is to put our visions into action. We may even feel paralyzed in developing a plan, stopped by our personal wounds or feelings of alienation. The key to this dilemma is to keep taking those small steps and asking “How can I help?” It’s frustrating to know where we want to be and to feel like it’s happening so slowly as to be excruciating. But the Earthy lessons of Virgo and Capricorn are paramount right now. Go slow. Keep it simple. Have patience with yourself and others. We are still learning. As the Winter draws us deeper inside, it’s a perfect time to identify the blocks within systems—whether that’s your own body, your family, or larger community. Slowly, with careful reflection and planning, we can work to remove those blocks and repair the damage they caused. Blocks can be ideological (cynicism, prejudice) as well as literal (dams, legislation). This is a time that needs practical action, which includes daily spiritual practices and plenty of rest. The global leap is happening, one hop at a time.
Rhea Wolf is an astrologer, writer, and spiritual activist. She is available by phone and in person for astrological and intuitive readings. To find out more about readings or to sign up for her free Full Moon reports, go to www.turningwheelastrology.com. Rhea also offers creative writing workshops with Portland Women Writers (www.pdxwomenwriters.com).