Highlighted Aspects this Week
IT’S BEEN a big week on the Sun, with quite a few M-class solar flares. The resulting aurora borealis show has been magnificent to behold.
It looks like we are truly in Solar Maximum now, which means the magnetic flip underway on the Sun is almost complete. We’re just waiting for the south pole to catch up — the north pole has already made the magnetic switch.
Based on that, it sounds to me that we currently have two south poles on the Sun and no north pole. Not being an astronomer, I’m not sure what that means in scientific terms — but energetically, it may help us understand why we feel anticipation, the expectation of a change about to happen. It may also explain recent episodes of vertigo and other experiences of imbalance on the physical plane.
THE MAGNETIC FLIP on the Sun occurs about every 11 years, so it’s not that we haven’t been through this before. And yet, having this event the same year (and perhaps the same month) that the Cardinal Grand Cross is in effect certainly emphasizes that 2014 is a time of change and realignment.
It may be interesting to consider the previous Solar Maximum times, to see how we have responded to the change in solar magnetics in the past. Given the symbology of having a new magnetic north, we may find these years as being times when we found ourselves drawn in new directions. We also may have gone through a period of destabilization before finding our way onto the new path.
Here are the years of the most recent Solar Maximums, including the month when the solar activity was highest: 1936-37 (April 1937); 1946-47 (May 1947); 1957-58 (March 1958); 1968-69 (November 1968); 1979-1980 (December 1979); 1989 (July); 1999-2000 (March 2000).
THIS CHANGE in the Sun’s magnetics and the grand cross feel like the backdrop for the play we’re currently acting out, while the weekly planetary activity provides the staging and specific scenes. And yet our lines — how we respond to the scenes and how we interact with each other — are not scripted. We have the complete freedom of improvisation, which can be both exciting and anxiety-producing at the same time.
This coming week, our staging includes a Saturn-Sun square, a Full Moon in Leo, and quite a bit of activity involving retrograde Mercury.
TUESDAY’S Saturn-Sun square is one of those reality checks we get periodically. Saturn in Scorpio wants to remind the Sun in Aquarius that lasting change often takes time.
Aquarius has a strong vision of what is possible, and like a schooner in full sail, glides quickly across the water in pursuit of the dream. Comparatively, Saturn in Scorpio can feel like an anchor dragging along the ocean floor. Along the way, this Saturn anchor may dredge up truths that feel inconvenient, but are probably important for us to consider if we want our dreams to have staying power.
OUR FULL MOON on Friday is in late degrees of Leo, encouraging us to remember what is in our hearts, and to seek out experiences that bring us both joy and creative fulfillment. The Sabian symbol for the location of the Full Moon is an image that can stir us to greater hope and optimism:
“The luminescence of dawn in the eastern sky: The exalting challenge of new opportunities at the threshold of a new cycle. While the rainbow marks the end of the crisis, early dawn indicates the real beginning of the new period of activity. The keyword here is ILLUMINATION.”
It’s interesting to read the words: “at the threshold of a new cycle.” The sign Leo is ruled by the Sun, which we have just been talking about due to its soon-to-begin new magnetic cycle. I hadn’t read the Sabian symbol until just now, so I love the synchronicity of these words in the explanation. The theme of change leading to new beginnings seems to be prevalent.
RETROGRADE MERCURY peeks out from behind every corner toward the end of the week. The wily planet moves back into Aquarius on Wednesday, revisiting territory previously covered, and asking us to reconnect with our dreams for the future before finalizing any plans.
When Mercury and the Sun align on Saturday, they form challenging aspects to both Pluto and Jupiter. This is likely to bring forward the polarities represented by the Pluto-Jupiter opposition — the tension between our desire to stay safely and comfortably in our home/family environment (Jupiter in Cancer) and our need to contribute to society in meaningful and transformational ways (Pluto in Capricorn).
This tension is one of the themes of the Cardinal Grand Cross that we are working with throughout these first six months of 2014. With retrograde Mercury the focal point this week, it is important to use this time to gain important insights into our true needs and motivations. This may mean that we delay setting our plans into action until March, when Mercury is once again in forward motion.
Blessings,
Pam
