Month: November 2016

Parental Synastry

~ EmpwrdDstny ~ 2 Comments

Being Venusian, I find synastry incredibly interesting – synastry is the astrological study of relationships; specifically of how the planetary energies in Person A’s chart interact with those in Person B’s to reveal potential points of harmony and/or contention. It’s super useful for teasing out the dynamics between individuals and pinpointing exactly where problems are apt to occur, and quite expeditiously at that. It also gives us great insight into the “purpose” certain people play in our lives, from lovers, to friends, to family and everyone in between.

I find the synastry lens tends to be my default “filter” setting when I look at charts – whether it’s the chart of a family member, a friend, or even a client, my eyes seem to be naturally drawn offhand to how the energies of their chart interact with my own; perhaps because I subconsciously yearn to understand my own role in their lives a bit better. I think this tool is most useful whenever we have a particularly challenging relationship of one kind or another on our hands, if for no other reason than it can help us to make peace with What Is while understanding it takes two to tango and the only one we only have control over ourselves & our own behaviors. How much do we want to contort ourselves to maintain a particular connection?

I have long thought about this question; specifically as it relates to family-of-origin since we have no choice at all regarding the relationships we are born into. For example, some of us are born into single-parent households, or are only children. Some are blessed with wonderfully loving and supportive families; others with emotionally distant, physically absent, or even abusive relatives. Some thrive under the care and protection of their parents; others wilt due to neglect. When family relationships are difficult, can they be turned around & improved? SHOULD they be?

It was a search for the answers to these types of questions that had me studying synastry at a young age. Pulling charts for both of my parents and comparing them to my own, it came as no real surprise to find prominent Uranus connections to my personal planets. A brief disclaimer is due because this is not uncommon whenever we are dealing with generational planets like Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto – these celestial bodies are slow-moving and therefore large groups of people will all have these planets at or near the same point if they are born within a given age range. But my parents were born 5 years apart, which put their respective Uranus placements in entirely different signs…far enough away that I theoretically should not have hit cosmic bingo the way I did.

Pronounced Uranus connections in synastry will tend to make a relationship anything but stable. In a positive context, they can be exciting and stimulating – they will most certainly foster our independence (one way or another) and this is often the hallmark of a type of relationship that is very “non-conventional” in one respect or another. These connections do help us to develop true individuality, but on the negative side this may also result from alienation and estrangement as detachment is a hallmark of Uranian energy as well. When put within the context of a parent/child relationship and specifically with respect to understanding that children psychologically look to their parents to provide some measure of safety, sanity, order, and security, one starts to see how this might be problematic. On the plus side, though, Uranus is the patron planet of astrology – it was the search to understand my tumultuous life/upbringing that first drove me to study astrology as an adolescent…I doubt that I ever would have become an astrologer without their disruptive (Uranian) influence activating my nativity. One thing is for sure: It absolutely did push me to be different and to do differently – Uranus always does, as it represents the evolutionary Quantum Leap.

Have you ever examined the synastry you have with your own parents?

goats

11/27/2016

The Mars/Uranus Mutual Reception

~ EmpwrdDstny ~ Leave a comment

changeandnewTalk about your Rude (Mars) Awakenings (Uranus)…! A mutual reception kicked in between Mars & Uranus beginning at 12:51am EST on November 9th when Mars busted into radical Aquarius like a lunatic making a jailbreak from the asylum. This date should ring a bell for American readers – it was the wee hours of the morning immediately after Election Day, and many might have felt like they were literally awakened by a sucker punch as they turned on their televisions to view the results of the presidential race. Results of this aside (because we certainly can’t control those), I want to re-orient focus to talk about what we *can* do with the energy of this mutual reception!

The very first thing we must consider about Uranus and Mars working in concert with one another is that it unequivocally is some high-test rocket fuel. Like nitroglycerine, it may not be the most stable of compounds, but if you use it consciously it can certainly be one hell of a propellant. Mars is a hot-blooded, passionate, even angry kind of planet you see, and we sometimes forget what a vastly effective motivational tool this kind of fire can be when we want to make a change of some kind – think à la “I’m mad as hell and I’m not going to take this anymore!“; a rebel yell that urges us to action. Social activism is indeed a huge theme of a Mars/Uranus mutual reception, so if you’re angry and appalled about what you see going down, the first thing to do is get connected. Begin seeking like-minded people and band together, for there is strength in the collective now. There may be factions out there whose ideals conflict with your own, but that doesn’t mean you can’t start your own group and fight back; particularly against anything that flies in the face of the egalitarian energies symbolized by Uranus.

Please do not be fooled by the misguided notion that anger is not a “constructive” emotion – all feelings have their place and it’s what we choose *do* with them that ultimately determines whether they are positive or negative in expression. It is one thing to allow them to control us; another to acknowledge their presence and harness them in a way that truly serves us. If we become aware of our anger and opt to honor it, we can make conscious choices as to where and how we might turn this into fuel for actions that actually liberate us. The trick, though, is to be able to detach from it to a certain degree; to depersonalize our ire to an extent where it cools *just enough* for us to handle so we don’t burn ourselves or others. We must look at this almost clinically, in a somewhat scientific and observational manner, otherwise we’ll just wind up ranting and raving like a mad(wo)man or acting like a nutcase. But if we can observe the feeling and disassociate from it enough to where we’re “once removed”, we can see there may in fact be a Higher Order at work behind it. In this way, we can use it to prompt much-needed change without being part of the chaos – cooler heads must prevail in any “fight”. This is cerebral warfare we’re dealing with – you don’t fight fire with fire; you fight it with ice in your blood like some kind of Top Gun pilot. In this war for the future, it is absolutely critical that we maintain Air superiority by soaring above any belligerent bullshit to be the change we want to see.

This mutual reception will remain in play until December 19th, and a vibe of general social unrest will remain high at least until then. But this is not itself a bad thing, because things may change if we can band together and push for reform. In the meantime, make it a point to disconnect from social irritants, avoid fighting with “friends” (online or IRL) when you would be better off just detaching, and maybe even get some NEW friends. And be active in your community, because none of us battle alone under this vibe – we are all in this together! ❤

11/20/2016

Jupiter Square Pluto: Dark Blessings

~ EmpwrdDstny ~ Leave a comment

shadowangel

Building upon my last post discussing Jupiter in Libra square Pluto in Capricorn, another theme that keeps resurfacing in my head in relation to this energy lately is this concept of “Dark Blessings”.  Have you ever been through some kind of majorly unpleasant or even traumatic life event and then later turned around to use that experience to better relate to others; say someone who is/was in a similarly difficult circumstance?  Or as awful as things may have been, were you perhaps able to back up and get perspective to see that no matter how bad that experience subjectively was, there were certain factors that *could* have made the situation exponentially worse?

This is what I mean by “Dark Blessings” – it might not exactly be a silver lining, but the ability to salvage *something* (relatively) positive out of the situation is at least an appreciably lighter shade of grey, surely. Gilding the turd of a shit circumstance however we can – perhaps even through black humor – is certainly better than taking nothing positive at all away from a profoundly terrible experience, yes?

11/13/2016

Jupiter In Libra Square Pluto In Capricorn

~ EmpwrdDstny ~ 2 Comments

Over the next few weeks a square approaches between Jupiter in Libra and Pluto in Capricorn, perfecting its influence on November 24, 2016.  This is only the first round; there is a second on March 30, 2017 & a final bout on August 4, 2017. The effects of this energy are broad, but one manifestation of it will be to slowly breakdown our relationship dogma over this roughly 8-month long period in order to make a lasting transformation to our partnering philosophy. This is a time to upgrade relationship consciousness for the better; particularly if there are any negative/dysfunctional (perhaps even old-school) relationship paradigms inherited from our parents.  Pluto’s influence is psychological and Jupiter concerns belief, so what we really need to be drilling down to and illuminating now are the philosophies and perspectives we may have subconsciously internalized regarding love and marriage. Is it possible that in some respect we might have things just a wee bit….twisted?  Have we normalized things that are actuallyheartpentagram kind of…well…fucked up, to be honest?  Please understand this is not a judgment; it simply means if there is some kind of archaic “demon” sabotaging our happiness in relationships – perhaps even a warped framework/role model à la Al & Peggy Bundy – then it is time to perform a banishing ritual/exorcism!

During this square partnerships where (individual or joint) growth has stagnated are particularly in jeopardy, for Jupiter’s is a restless type of energy and the name of the game is always mutual elevation when it is found in Libra. Unfortunately, Pluto’s influence can bog this down in a big way! This Plutonic vibe revolves around the theme of something degrading over time – for example, constant or long-term pressures created by career, responsibilities and/or carrying all the “weight”, the aging process, our parents, or even parenting may threaten to undermine the sanctity of a union and can have some of us feeling as if we are growing apart rather than together.  Psychologically, there may be a sense of outgrowing a relationship that we perceive as being from a dying era of our lives; perhaps one that has seemingly been frozen in time/stuck in slow-motion and is a big drain in some way.  Instead of throwing more energy in, we may come to the conclusion that we’d rather conserve it for someone who lifts our vibe and generally makes us happy.

On another level, relationship growth can also be undermined by fearful or defensive psyches.  Whenever we endure some kind of trauma or negative experience in life, we tend to build up psychological “scar tissue” and add on these thick protective layers, sometimes making the perimeter wall between ourselves and Others a bit extreme.  This can be magnified by the stressor of relationship, as even good ones can trip off a trigger and thus create an overblown/disproportionate reaction within us….perhaps in response to demands for greater intimacy.  In such cases, despite the unpleasantness of this we must get perspective to realize when the person/partnership is actually quite beneficial for us and then honestly address any baggage that may be sabotaging growth and happiness within the union, because otherwise we risk taking a huge loss.  Not just immediately, but potentially with regard to our happiness in future unions as well.

We still have a few days left of that gorgeous mutual reception between Venus in Sagittarius and Jupiter in Libra, meaning if there has been any negativity with regard to our relationship beliefs we still have time to reset our stance to optimistic. There is no room for cynicism when these two benefics exchange energies; focus on aligning your energy and philosophy to reflect upon the beautiful, beneficial side of relationships, because we really do “receive what we believe” now.  Venus energy works on the principle of attraction, so raise your vibration for best results because others on a similar energetically elevated level will be drawn to it.   Have hope for love.  Believe in the goodness of Others.  Trust.  Open up to intimacy and challenge yourself when you feel the time and person is right. This is an 8-month long Jupiter/Pluto tango we’ll be doing, so start off with your A-vibe in partnerships to hold the energetic high ground.

11/07/2016

Forced Air

~ EmpwrdDstny ~ 2 Comments

Waking upon a cold, damp, and blustery autumn morning, I slid on my sneakers and slipped out the door into the clear post-dawn light for a run. As I made my way down the long and winding road the wind whipped at my face ferociously, stinging my eyes as tears welled up.

I pressed onward.

The path under my feet turned to dirt. My chest began to heave with exertion, but my limbs were invigorated and felt as if they could run indefinitely. Mile after mile passed as the arctic blue sky continued to howl around me, lashing out with a post-storm cold front vengeance.

"Ecstasy" by Maxfield Parrish
“Ecstasy” by Maxfield Parrish

It was then I realized the entire time I ran, this cold damp wind had been forcing its way down into my lungs; oxygenating my system and supplying fuel to my muscles in an all-natural ram-air induction process.

If that’s not a metaphor for my life, I’m not sure what is.

I have a natural astrological resonance with the Air element, and the glacial blasts infusing their essence into my run felt soooo Aquarian; the one Air sign I lack.

Do you have an elemental resonance?

11/2/2016