Today I will choose love.
Tomorrow I will choose love.
And the day after that, I will choose love.
If I mistakenly choose distraction, perfection,
or negativity over love, I will not wallow in regret.
I will choose love until it becomes who I am.
Rachel Macy Stafford
The Full Moon on April 16, 2022, at 27 Libra
propels us to sow harmony in our relationships. We are opened to a fresh way of seeing, loving and understanding ourselves within the context of our engagement with others. The Libra Moon inspires us to cultivate fairness, consideration and diplomacy as the bases for achieving balance and beauty in relationships.
The Sun in Aries, and the Aries emphasis with multiple planets traveling through this fiery, assertive sign over the last weeks, we have felt emboldened to be self-determined, to not compromise our freedom to follow our impulses, and to courageously assert what will work best for us. The Full Moon now challenges us to look beyond our own needs and desires to collaborate and consider the impulses and inclinations of others.
The Libra Full Moon invites us to listen to and respect what others are wanting and needing. In essence, the opportunity to stand in ourselves and to nurture and enhance our own personal power these last weeks prepared us to better partner with others in a new way that further empowers the relationship and each person in the relationship.
It is opportune to connect with and have conversation with others. Listening to what others have to contribute, we discover an expanded perspective within a given relationship or situation. While Aries is all about looking out for number 1, Libra reminds us that human beings are not meant to go it alone. So, once we feel grounded in ourselves and our inclinations, we can successfully engage in the necessary collaboration and compromise of relationship.
..the running your fingers like a prayer
over every bit of the world, saying quietly
with every breath, thank you
for this chance to love.
Brian Andreas
Working with Power in Relationship
Pluto Forms a T Square with the Sun and Moon
The issue of power and how it is wielded in relationship comes to the forefront. We are to ask ourselves: how are my relationships empowering and in what ways are they disempowering?
We may experience power struggles with others at this time. Patterns where power is being abused may be accentuated. We can see power dynamics more clearly and discover the root cause of what has us susceptible to getting hooked into a power struggle.
We are being prodded to make a change in how we engage others. To make the needed shift, we are prompted to let go of something. It may not be easy to release what needs to be released. But it will become clear what is needed if we assume full responsibility for our relationships, be honest about what we can handle, and consider the big picture and future direction of the relationship.
Pluto is the first planet the Sun's rays don't reach, so it is in the dark and correlates to what is dark or secreted away within us. Secrets may be revealed at this time, even secrets we have done our best to keep from ourselves.
We can allow the love in our hearts to guide us in our discussions and with decisions. If we abstain from making the other wrong or at fault and look within ourselves to the patterns and ways in which we helped created a disempowering dynamic, we will discover something new about ourselves. If the desire to control, be right, or be defensive can be quieted, we can access a deeper movement for how to create harmony within ourselves and the well-being of a relationship.
We may feel impatient, wanting to go against the river, as we yearn to sidestep the tension we may be experiencing. It is to our benefit to view the tension as a friction needed to bring about a desired change. Something is coming to a head that needs to be worked through, so it is advisable to simply feel the discomfort and welcome the sensation of the tension. To make room for the shift that is wanting to happen, we may need to slow down, listen and pay attention so we don’t race past it or gloss over it - which may only result in reinforcing old ways of relating that no longer serve us.
The antidote to exhaustion is not necessarily rest...
The antidote to exhaustion is wholeheartedness.
David Whyte
New Connections Take Root
Full Moon in Trine/Sextile to Saturn
Saturn's positive influence here will help sustain and concertize the new openings we experience now in relationships. Our ability to rewrite patterns that have ensnared us in domination, submission, self-protection or blaming others, can be permanently rewired in some essential way. There is great potential for establishing agreements and ways of engaging where we are better able to create win/win situations, where both parties are empowered and one is not yielding their desires in favor of another’s wishes.
Saturn square the Nodal Axis
Saturn is about assuming responsibility. Throughout our lives, Saturn compels us to ‘grow up’. At this time, we are asked to grow a little more, raise ourselves up a little more, so we take full ownership of our lives. Saturn's square to the Nodal Axis presents another moment where we can release some hurt from past relationships that stunted the maturation process and kept us bound in childish compulsions that are based in distrust of self and others.
Cleaning up Emotional Residue
North Node and Neptune in a Yod to the Libra Moon
We are to integrate undigested emotional material that holds us back from seeing ourselves and others clearly. By doing this, we can more readily see how we can get along with others without compromising something essential to us, or giving too much of ourselves away.
Be the love you never received.
Rune Lazuli
The Poetic Heart
Ruler of Full Moon, Venus in Pisces approaching Jupiter and Neptune
The poetic nature of life is heightened with Venus exalted in Pisces. We are inclined to be more romantic, sensitive and tender. We are to celebrate our vulnerability and inspire kindness and compassion for ourselves and in others.
We are more tender. By inviting and acknowledging our tenderness, we are more apt to create beauty in our communications, in what we write and in how we express (Venus sextile Mercury/Uranus). Our intuitive nature is heightened, and we have the potential to put words to ideas that express what is in our heart.
We may be surprised by something we communicate, or something communicated to us that affirms and brings together what we have been contemplating and wanting to happen (Mercury sextile Uranus).
Rugged Individualism vs No One Left Behind
Full Moon squares The United States' Pluto during its Pluto Return
The U.S. Pluto Return (2022-23) heralds a turning point for the United States, where a transformation is to occur that has the country re-align with the values that created and define the country. The difficulty is that there is conflicting interpretations about the the country's core values.
How the country handles its Pluto Return will greatly impact the future of democratic ideals around the world. If the invitation of the Pluto Return is not met, and the country is unable to revitalize its democracy and unite around democratic ideals, the country becomes increasingly more susceptible to dictatorship, civil war, or further disintegration of its constitution and governance.
The increasing polarization between U.S. citizens, concerning the interpretation of the country’s founding principles, lies at the heart of what the Pluto Return is compelling the country to address. When we say, “All men are created equal” does these mean only all white men or does it mean all humankind. When we advocate for religious freedom does this mean only within the context of a Christian faith or does it mean all faiths? One of the motivating factors that led to the Declaration of Independence was the issue of ‘taxation without representation,” which has once again brought stirred agitation between the common people versus a ruling elite.
The Libra Full Moon stirs up something that lies at the foundation of how the country defines freedom, democracy and the American life. The freedom to make our money and live our lives without government oversight or being required to help for the needs of those less fortunate than us is a belief that many in our country have. It is an Aries impulse.
Conversely, the other 50% or so of United States Citizens believe that democracy means that all its citizens have value and therefore seek to create a culture where we take care of each other. This is a more Libran impulse where there is a recognition of the interconnection between all people, and a belief that when we take care of the least of us, we take care of all.
With Christianity as the dominant religion, the interpretation of the Bible and Jesus’ teachings have also led to a disparity in the understanding of what it means to be a Christian. What does it mean to 'Love Your Neighbor?' - How do we justify building walls or arming ourselves to protect our own? Is everyone our neighbor, or just those who recognize as neighbors? Do we care for those less fortunate than us or do we grant everyone the freedom to create their life without intervention or assistance? Are some people more worthy than others and how do we define the wealth and value of a person? Do the vulnerable and weak drain us of strength and economic prosperity, or is there a value to meeting their needs? The answer to these questions may seem obvious, but once we bring these questions into conversation or legislation, there is complexity, fear and misunderstanding.
The predominant interpretation of Darwin’s concept of ‘Survival of the Fittest’ was that the strongest of the species will prevail and the weakest will die off. This is an Aries impulse. Darwin also wrote about the survival of any given species. He observed how those within a species will take care of the weaker among them, protect them, and feed them so that all members of the species thrive. He purported that a species is stronger when the members of a species look out for and support each other. this is a Libran impulse. The polarization of the U.S. in some ways can be boiled down to the Libran/Aries polarity. With any polarity, it seems that we the impulses are opposing and we can have one or the other. In fact, the resolution of the polarity is to see that they are two sides of the same coin and that ultimately the impulses are complimentary, not contradictory.
The U.S. is wrestling with the question: what responsibility, if any, does the country have for the care and well-being of its citizens. What grants freedom and what takes it away? What exactly do we mean by 'freedom'? What is civic responsibility? What does it mean to be part of a democracy or a republic? How does capitalism or socialism support or diminish the founding principles and nature of what makes the United States great.
For our part, we can feed the mounting polarization of viewpoints, or we can practice love. We welcome and be present with the polarity without getting hooked into a reactionary stance. If we do not collapse or run when faced with confrontation, we can stand in love and hold the space for harmony to prevail. In essence, we can apply the invitation of this Full Moon to our relationship with society and how we interact with the tensions and power struggles that surround us. It is up to each of us to be the love that we never received.
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