Astrological Energies for June 21 to 27, 2010

NorthPoint
Astrology Journal
Written by Pam Younghans

This is a pivotal week in our experience as spiritual humans on planet Earth. If you've been reading this NorthPoint Journal regularly, you already know that next Saturday's Lunar Eclipse is a powerful one.

We've been working with some of these energies for quite a while now, starting all the way back in November 2008, when the first Uranus-Saturn opposition coincided with the history-making and precedent-breaking election of the first African-American U.S. president.

Since that major first major change -- which had ripplings of effect not only in my native country, but worldwide -- we've continued to work with the Uranus-Saturn polarity through experiences that have tried our collective and individual patience. Where we've wanted major breakthroughs, we've most often found just small inroads into new territory. Uranus has been brandishing the carrot of breakthrough and possibility, while Saturn has been keeping a tight rein to keep the horse from bolting too quickly and spilling the contents of the cart.

Then, in November 2009, we began to feel the influence of the Pluto-Saturn square. As always happens when Pluto gets involved, the intensity kicked up a notch or two. We've seen what it's like to deal with situations that are outside of our control, oftentimes through acts of nature such as earthquakes and extreme weather, but also now through the seemingly unstoppable oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

It would be easy enough to look at all that is occurring and feel overwhelmed, even despairing. It's clear why astrologer Steven Forrest describes Pluto's negative effect as "narrowing our perspective, isolating our egos in a spirit of cynicism, despair and nihilism."

But to allow ourselves to sink into that abyss would be missing the point of it all, a purpose which astrology and a heightened perspective can help us find.

The flip side of the card dealt by Pluto shows positive effect. It holds images of empowerment and a passionate commitment to a larger purpose. Through experiences that can take us to our knees, through the dissolution of ego and its attachments, we find an inner strength that no outer event can destroy.

It's very hard for my Taurus brain to gain enough detachment from the current environmental crisis to find its higher purpose. But, if I am reading it correctly, there is a purpose to it all -- one that we began addressing many months ago, when gas prices skyrocketed and there was an upswing in interest in alternative energy sources.

It is difficult to accept that we must go through such darkness to find the light, especially when our natural world is being so negatively affected. But perhaps there are few other ways that all of the planet's human inhabitants will learn about the interconnectedness of all life, and the need for us to put our considerable intelligence to positive use.

The numerous interplanetary aspects that are involved in next Saturday's Lunar Eclipse chart are actually sprinkled throughout the days before and after the event. For readers who want to know what's going on astrologically, the litany reads thus: Uranus squares the Sun on Monday, Jupiter squares the Sun on Wednesday, Saturn squares Mercury on Thursday, Uranus squares Mercury and Pluto opposes the Sun on Friday, and Pluto opposes Mercury on Sunday.

The Moon begins to contribute her voice to the chorus with a square to Saturn on Friday at 4:19pm PDT, then enters Capricorn three hours later and starts checking off the rest of her aspects -- squares to Uranus and Jupiter and an opposition to Mercury -- before aligning with Pluto a little more than an hour before the eclipse is exact (4:31am PDT on Saturday).

That's more than an armload to carry, especially since each one of those aspects represents tension that is needing resolution. The square aspects demand change, as we come to the awareness that to continue on in the direction we've been going will mean running into more walls. And the aspects of opposition require that we find new balance between polarities, as we realize that a lack of acceptance of others only adds to uncertainty and instability.

The very good news is that we have support from Neptune and Chiron to ease the tension contained in these aspects, as both planets form trine aspects to the Sun and Mercury at the time of the eclipse.

Neptune in Aquarius softens the borders and walls that have kept us separate. He also assists in the expansion of consciousness through dissolving the veils between dimensions.

Chiron in Pisces is working to heal the basic fear that we each must face as spiritual beings in human bodies -- the fear that there is nothing "out there," that we are alone and that there is nothing beyond the physical world that we can trust -- and that faith itself is merely delusion. The healing offered by Chiron in Pisces is ultimately a return to a knowing of our connection to source, a renewed belief and faith that there is a plan to the universe, and an opening of the high heart chakra.

Saving the best for last: The planets in the Grand Cross will also be connecting us to the energies of the Super Galactic Center (SGC), the black hole around which our Milky Way and many other galaxies orbit. Here's what astrologer Mary Elizabeth Jochman says about the SGC in her book An Introduction to Karmic Galactic Astrology:

"The SGC is a jet galaxy which holds some 130 galaxies in place. Here there is a releasing of all past life karma. A connection with the Soul's higher purpose is sought. Seeking one's center and inner balance and listening to the voice of the Center is more important than all else in life. Yet, all that comes through must be balanced with the physical, logical, practical, liveable aspects of life."

Our experience of this energy will no doubt be profound, and perhaps disconcerting at times because of its immensity. We will need to ground ourselves regularly and calm our emotional and mental bodies as we interact with such high-energy influences.

And, whatever is set into effect through this alignment with the SGC will likely continue to unfold over the next few weeks, coming more fully into our shared awareness when Mars and Saturn conjoin the SGC the first week of August.

It all adds up to a week of transformational energies designed to move us up several notches on the consciousness scale. Author Barbara Hand Clow recently wrote that this Lunar Eclipse "rings and rings of shifting vibrations, intentional personal changes, and astonishing cosmic forces."

I would agree.

Blessings,

Pam

NorthPoint Astrology Blog: I'll be posting additional perspectives during the coming week at http://northpointastrology.blogspot.com/ -- please visit and add your comments!