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Saturday, February 24, 2024

 February 24, 2024

Full Moon 5 degrees Virgo

Astro Tips & More by Linda Sprague



The Full Moon in Virgo gives us an opportunity to explore and experience the polarity of Virgo and Pisces. This axis is one of the most intriguing. Virgo is earthly service and Pisces is spirituality.  Mercury rules Virgo, giving us a sign that can analyze information and figure things out. Virgo energy during this full moon wants us to organize, do healthy things and be of service to our immediate family,  friends and community. The pull on the other side of the heavens is the Pisces Sun. Pisces is often messy and really enjoys checking out. Some of those check out stations can be healthy (like reading a book, taking a walk, meditating, engaging with the arts) and some can be dangerous (alcohol, drugs, food, laziness (!), daydreaming). Pisces likes to get away from it all whereas Virgo is tuned in to the news and to chores that need doing. We may feel the pull of both of these energy during the full moon. As I sit here writing, all is quietness (except for a few cars passing up over the hill). I could drift off into that silence and that is Pisces. Or I can use the silence to guide me in the service of writing my astro tips.  

Something that I see and hear many people talking about is how our belief systems are undergoing big changes. This full moon can be a guidebook for that process. The Pisces energy might bring us downloads about how our internal operating systems are being updated. The Virgo energy might find us with our heads in a self-help book or we may tune in to a podcast to ignite our unconscious. Now that Pluto has reached the sign of Aquarius we will be more aware of changes in our thinking and in our visions.

Of course it is always good to be on the lookout for the shadows of this polarity. A full moon in Virgo might bring forth the inner critical parent talk in your head or your partner may be critical (projecting an inner self criticism onto others). When Virgo is in one of its higher modalities (analysis of data, service to others and the planet), we are all uplifted. When Virgo goes into a who-is-to-blame-mode; or why-did-you-do-that-attack-mode; or let-me-give-you-some-sarcasm-mode, we want to get away!  The full moon in Virgo says, be conscious.  Think before you open up a negative stream of energy. Yoko Ono said, "Try to say nothing negative about anybody for three days, for forty-five days, for three months. See what happens to your life" Good advice to all os us. We all have Virgo lurking somewhere in our horoscopes.

One extremely important thing is going on during this full moon. That event is this: Chiron, the wounded healer, is in alignment with the north lunar node in the sign of Aries.  Asteroid Chiron was discovered in the 1970's. It sits between Saturn and Uranus. Therefore it became known as the bridge from our worldly realm to the higher realms. This is when old healing modalities (e.g. herbs, acupuncture) and new Uranian healing methods (e.g. radionics, Reiki, energy healing) gave us alternative medicine. Chiron was a physician who could heal everyone but himself. We all have a chironic wound somewhere in our psyche. Right now, the lunar north node and Chiron have aligned at 16 degrees of Aries. Aries is the child in us. Perfect time to check in with your inner child. Inner children might be wanting to talk to us (February 12 -February 26 is the period of the exact alignment).  Our beliefs about our childhood might be ripe for an update. There could be good news. There could be some settling in the cells. Maybe we can say goodbye to old beliefs about who we are. Maybe we can release old limitations, internally and externally. This pairing of Chiron and the north node is sitting alone, meaning the pairing is not making connection to other planets or to the moon or Sun. It may sneak up on you. Don't be alarmed. Another chapter of healing takes us to a new journey, what some are calling, a new time line. Indigo Williams, poet and educator, said, "On the journey to myself I've been so many people."  Keep on keepin' on, right? Thanks for reading my Astro Tips. Linda Sprague




Thursday, January 25, 2024

January 25, 2024. Full Moon Leo 5 degrees

 Astro Tips and more

January 25, 2024

Full Moon in the sign of Leo


Leo rules the Sun.  The Sun represents our identity. In the sign of Leo, we want to be seen and heard.  We are expressing our identity in order to grow in body, mind and soul. Today's full moon in Leo encourages all of us to check in with our positive identity and with our longing to be center stage. Moon in Leo is also about self care.  These days around the full moon in Leo, let your inner self talk to you. Right this moment, make a mental list of what you can do to take good care of yourself. Things like, get a massage, take more walks, eat Mediterranean, be more social, be less social (!), meditate more, love self more! Finally we get to the bottom of the list and see those words, love self more. Some people might be ready to move that item to the top of the list. This moon time can give us insight into beliefs and behaviors that might not be needed in our new operating system that requires self-care and self-love. It all gets down to being sweet to myself!

What if there are memories that remind us of our perceived inadequacies and failures? It's a perfect time to understand something important: that was then and this is now. Perfect time to understand and love those moments where we couldn't do it any differently.  We can do things differently now. The moon in Leo gives us a big blast of sunshine even if it is a dreary, rainy day. Inside that sunshine is a whole new vocabulary about myself and a whole new sets of feelings about my life. It's a perfect time to remember that we did our best. Hindsight is always better than foresight.  It's a perfect time to decide to change our beliefs and behaviors in any way that will help us create a happier self for the days ahead.


Saturday, January 20, 2024

 Astro Tips and more

January 20, 2024

Linda Sprague

Pluto in Capricorn conjunct Sun in Capricorn

Pluto in Aquarius conjunct Sun in Aquarius

Today, January 20th, the Sun is in the last degree of Capricorn. Tomorrow, when the Sun moves into the sign of Aquarius, dwarf planet Pluto also will move into Aquarius. Interesting two days. Pluto brings intensity to whatever it touches. When it touches the Sun, we may experience increased empowerment. Our soul/sun responds to Pluto with an internal sense of strength.  After all we have just experienced fourteen years of Pluto tearing down and undermining all things Capricorn--our physical, orderly, dependable, reliable, life structures. Where did they go?  We have survived. That in itself is reason for feeling empowered. What exactly did we endure and what is on the other side of this endurance? We had these fourteen years of certain kinds of Saturnian lessons (Saturn is the ruler of Capricorn; therefore, our lessons have been in Saturn's cave).  That's where we go to learn patience when things don't go our way. How many of you have watched your daily Capricorn schedule go to hell in a hand-bag during these Pluto in Capricorn years?  How many of you have had to re-do your thinking around what is practical and what isn't? How many of you have had ups and downs financially? Who among us hasn't had test after test in the room called, Patience. The result of all this is hopefully a new sense of maturity and mastery in some area of life. This all goes back to 2008 when Pluto rolled into the sign of Capricorn. We have watched our own lives be upended for a variety of reasons. And we have witnessed our government wobble, our financial system experiment with the future (crypto what?), our financial system and overall social system favoring greed; our justice system compromised and our social order go crazy.  The fact is when we are going through something, we tend to hang on and do our best to adjust to the prevailing trends and to the upheavals we must endure. When rents and mortgages go up, we figure it out.  

My experience with important transits is this:  We keep on keeping on while it is happening and then, suddenly, it's over and we begin to experience the results of what just happened. For those willing to open their eyes and connect the dots, you will see where you've been and how things have changed. We tend to experience the real change on the other side of the transit. We are in a new, mature landscape and there is plenty to be done.

I asked a client if I could talk about her chart just to sum up this idea that Pluto in Capricorn in one sense is over AND in another sense, we will now get the result of Pluto in Capricorn.  Pluto in Aquarius will be a part of that process. 

So I will call this person, Candice. She was born with Venus in late Sagittarius followed by three planets in Capricorn (that includes her Sun in Capricorn), and then a Capricorn ascendant, and finally Saturn in the late degrees of Capricorn. This human being has been through major Pluto experiences since 2006. That is 18 years of one planet affecting five planets and her ascendant. She survived. She is on the other side.  She had to stay very sober and real. She was not allowed to indulge in escapists acts through drugs, alcohol or make-believe.  She came close to losing her vision. She came close to losing her career. Don't even mention relationship. Wherever Pluto sits, we tend to sit alone.  A Pluto transit over one planet is about five years. Think about eighteen years of sitting alone. Someone asked her how she managed to hang on all those years. She said, "I danced." She also wrote a novel and some other works that are now ready to be presented to the world.  She took up gardening and found joy in the dirt and colors that emerged from the dirt. Earthy Capricorn is a responsible work horse (or work goat!).  The highest vibration of Capricorn is a leader who does the job because it needs to be done, maybe for a school, for an important institution like our government, or for the world and most importantly for the self.  Candice chose the mountain goat path and is ready for her Capricorn work to roll into an Aquarius culture.

I share the story of Candice to remind us that a transit brings its rewards and it doesn't end. Previous transits of Pluto (through the signs of Scorpio and Sagittarius) are still with us. This is an ongoing job. We keep expanding in our transformation; we keep deepening in our understanding of the humane experience; we keep finding more and more passion to create a new age. We are now stepping into Pluto in Aquarius, complicated and full of potential enlightenment.

Pluto in Aquarius (2024-2044)

One of my favorite astrology books is Mythic Astrology by Ariel Guttman and Kenneth Johnson (Llewellyn Publications1998). This book will not give you twelve steps for reading a horoscope. It will teach you the underlying stories that belong to astrology. Here is what they say in their introduction to the sign of Aquarius: "To the ancient Egyptians, then, Aquarius represented the vital spiritual power which renews and fertilizes all things." (page 345) If you do not want to read any further, this can be your take away for Pluto in Aquarius....vital spiritual power comes to renew and fertilize all things. 

The constellation Aquarius shows us a picture of a water bearer, a heavenly being pouring heavenly waters down upon us. This never was literal water. It was energy. But human beings have called it The Holy Grail, and The Water of Life.  When the planet Uranus was discovered it was sitting in the sign of Aquarius. That was 1781 and The Age of Enlightenment that unfurled gave new meaning to the energy of Aquarius. Now Aquarius had a planet and the ancient meaning of the Water Bearer took on new meaning. The American and French Revolutions happened in the late 1700's. Benjamin Franklin had already experimented with the phenomenon of electricity. The institution of monarchy was challenged and brought about new social orders. Inventions brought ease of movement and communication and those inventions have not ceased. At the same time, interest in spirituality beyond/without religion took hold and has not let go. Words for Aquarius:  technology and inventions, space travel, astrology, revolution for the betterment of humanity (fairness/equality/freedom), and enlightenment. On a spiritual level I believe Aquarius teaches us that we are each unique but we are contained in a Unity or Oneness that we are yet to fully comprehend.  Most astrologers have mentioned that during their Pluto in Aquarius cycle, people will strive to express their uniqueness. That could be in the arts or technology or in political activism.  It could also be in spiritual revelation or teaching. Remember, Aquarius is an air sign. Here are few areas to watch: electricity and the high tech modalities, super high scientific thinking like Quantum Theory, communication in earth realm, communication in and with other dimensions, belief systems, revolution for the advancement of humanity. 

Pluto in Aquarius.  The good, the bad, the beautiful.

Let's start with the beautiful! Surely we will have continued spiritual ascension and enlightenment with Pluto in Aquarius.  Most religious systems are based on fear and control. Aquarius longs for freedom, so religious institutions that resist individual rights will have to change. Teacher/Intuitive Matt Kahn has stated on Youtube that all our spiritual work is now in place and we can live it now and connect on a Unity Time Line. He suggests that whatever unfolds in our 3-D world has its own life that must be lived out. Or it will just faze out because the majority of souls will be connecting on a different time line, speeding up the evolution of humanity. However, that doesn't mean we shouldn't particulate in the 3-D show. We might need to vote to help that fade out and speed up process. Is this the Age of Aquarius?  I guess we are in it, right? It's a long process though.  

The good news. Those of you who were born under the sign of Aquarius, have the Moon in Aquarius, have a rising sign in Aquarius, you have a big life ahead of you. Whether it is in technology or it is in the higher planes where you tune in to different galactic stations, you will be busy. Because Aquarius is a fixed sign, you may not want to change. You may resist some of the information flooding your psyche. Pluto will ask you to change if you need to. If you need a different career, it will happen. If you need to be totally free to follow your soul path, you might leave your home town and any ancient dysfunction that holds you back.  

Fixed signs in general (Taurus, Leo, Scorpio) will have challenges if they cling to the past. It's time for an upgrade in your hard drive. Get rid of old beliefs that hold you back and down. Tune in to intuition and trust it; find your faith. Believe in yourself.

Air signs (Gemini, Libra, Aquarius) will be able to smile and get with the Pluto/Aquarius program. you are in your element! Mental activity, communication, technology, avant garde creativity, uniqueness, it's yours.

Of course these are generalizations. To know how this Pluto in Aquarius affects you, please get a reading of your horoscope.

The bad news.  What is truth? Even the sky has a range of color depending on the season. When we are looking at the sky, we should be able to agree when it is blue, when it is red, when it is dark, when it has clouds. Right now we are living in a landscape that manipulates the color of the sky, or uses propaganda to convince you the sky is sunset red when it is actually a balmy blue day up there. This is the bad news. We are leaving the ground of Capricorn for the sky and air of Uranus. Uranus is named after the Greek deity Ouranos, priordial creator. Ouranus lacked groundedness. He didn't hang around the earth place. He was off in the sky with his ego and his ideas and his dreams of perfection. He was good with chaos and anarchy as long as he was in charge. He was the top guy. This is the bad news because we live here on Gaia, Earth Mama. We have to find ways to be inspired and live that inspiration here on earth. Of course Aquarius will also promote gender equality and color equality. Bosses and dictators cannot solve that part. Pluto pulls back the curtain and shows what has been hidden in the dark or in the ground (includes what is dead and buried). It's up to the collective body to understand what needs to change. Pluto in Aquarius will eventually bring down the charlatans, the frauds. There will be a fight though. It's not going to be easy to bring down those who want us to agree to something that simply isn't true. I guess what I'm saying is the patriarchy is under scrutiny. It could be confusing. There could twenty years of struggle and then when Pluto gets tired of Aquarius and steps into Pisces, we will finally see some progress.  Greed and Control are obstacles. The combination of greed, control, power and AI is not pretty to think about. However, maybe it won't take that long for vital spiritual power to rock our world, because we are dealing with a different form of energy now. We are beginning to tap in to a bigger field of manifestation. Manifestation from love may be bigger and faster than manifestation from greed and control. As Caroline Myss has said many times . . . "when the love of power becomes the power of love."

Pluto in Capricorn has thrown the punches at our lies, our messed up social systems and our political system that is off the track.  Democracy is for the people, for everyone. The shadow of Pluto in Capricorn (the shadow of the patriarchy) overturned Roe v Wade and took away fundamental rights that belong to women. Pluto in Aquarius will help restore those rights.  Meanwhile with all this Air stirred up and everybody talking, it's good to take time out and get pagan about the Earth. Keep feet on ground and thank the earth for having us here. We are everything and we are nothing. All it takes is one earthquake to bring us to that humble place. 

The Water Bearer has morphed from water of life, magic mushrooms and cacao, to the big Quantum Energy: the particle, the wave, the Field.  It has morphed to the awareness of Light and Sound and Movement and Love. It includes the appreciation of the body and somatic awareness. It has morphed to the place where we are co-creators with all that is unfolding.  Caroline Myss said this in her recent announcement about her new workshop on our sacred contract with creation: ". . . the most valuable resources we have as human beings are those we cannot see:  Creativity, love, trust, faith, compassion, imagination, endurance, determination, vision, courage."  Aquarius, the air sign. Pluto, the revealer of the hidden and the dark; the transformer into light. Pluto in Aquarius has a lot to teach us in the years ahead. Thanks for reading my Astro Tips. Comments and emails are always appreciated. Love and LIght as we enter this new era of transformation. Linda Sprague




Tuesday, January 2, 2024

 Happy New Year 2024

Astro Tips and more . . . by Linda Sprague

Pluto completes its transit of Capricorn and enters the sign of Aquarius


xafrom Gaia Matrix Oracle by Rowena Pattee Kryder:

26 EAGLE CROOKED PATH:  "The new phoenix opens its beak, and out comes a crystal sphere which is the New Earth.  The phoenix gives out a piercing call--the call for a new era, a great age."


After nearly 15 years in the sign of Capricorn, dwarf planet Pluto has reached the critical 29th degree of that sign and will make entry into Aquarius on January 20th. Pluto spent a brief spell in Aquarius in 2023 and in 2024 Pluto will retrograde back into Capricorn for a brief time.  After that we will have Pluto in Aquarius for a total of 20 years (through March 8, 2043).

Pluto is continually providing us with breakdowns and breakthroughs. We have witnessed ongoing breakdowns in the shadow areas that Capricorn represents:  the over-riding, over-bearing, self-serving patriarchy; government stagnation; society's structures and legal systems; and the unrelenting rise of plutocracy. The breakdowns in our society have revealed the outrageous exaggeration of the distribution of resources and wealth, something we might call greed. All of the planets have their archetypal meanings. One of the shadow sides of Pluto is obsession and sometimes that obsession is greed. We are living in very material times. So on the one hand Pluto has shown us that our systems are inadequate and need to be analyzed and changed. What we have yet to fully grasp is how our greed has contributed to our problems.  Simple things like why do we, living in the United States of America, pay more for our medicines than people do in Canada, Mexico and other western countries? We have yet to see the breakdown of greed--pharmaceutical greed, CEO/corporate greed, and political greed to mention a few.  On the other hand, Pluto in Capricorn has taught us about our own value and our own power. Pluto in Capricorn has urged us to grow up and be responsible for ourselves. Pluto teaches us humility as well, because there are things in life that require that we say, I am powerless over that. In what ways can we be powerful and impactful without joining the toxic, power-dominance of the greater collective? It's instructive to remember that planet Pluto was in the sign of Capricorn when the United States was born in 1776. We have experienced our Pluto return in Capricorn in our country.  We have been in a repeat cycle that helps us understand our beginnings. 

Perhaps Pluto's long visit to Aquarius will help us address the issue of greed, as well as other issues around equality and justice. Aquarius is also associated with technology.  We are on a journey to a new era for technology (think AI) as well as for humanity. The planet Uranus rules Aquarius so we can expect more upheavals and surprises as we find our way to a bigger consciousness that includes fairness, equality and justice, as well as a consciousness that teaches us that we are not just earthly citizens.  We are citizens of our solar system, galaxy and universe. Right now we are stuck in a very old belief system where we are citizens of a family, tribe, village, city, state, nation.  We cling to the belief, the myth, that one tribe is better than another, one nation superior than all others. We are so much more than any of those systems, and everyone is included in the bigger oneness that holds all of us.  Those who want to return to a dominance based systems are in for a surprise. No one can stop the unfolding of consciousness.  It doesn't matter how many books are banned, consciousness will expand. No matter what we see in the media, people are beginning to live from the place of love and acceptance of individuality.  Quantum theory--particle, wave, field--demonstrates the interconnectedness of everything as well as the power of belief to broaden our understanding of life itself.

Miracles can happen, I guess. We could make some big shift if the big white light sphere engulfs our planet and fills the air we breathe to the extent that we awaken to something beyond this material plane.  Or it will take a little longer. The phoenix is rising and calling for a new age. But do any of us really know when that might unfold? Life is a process not a destination. And astrology is about planetary cycles that repeat in different ways. We want to believe there is a moment in time where everything sparkles and everyone gets it at the same time. We want the Age of Aquarius to be a loud beautiful show with a big attendance and enormous applause. Meanwhile we might have someone in the White House who is on trial for a variety of misdeeds. How can that even be a possibility? Because there are people who don't think or believe the candidate committed any misdeeds. We are in murky waters. Where is the truth?  How do we respect and live with diversity of truth? Is one truth allowed to dominate all the other truths? That's a rabbit hole that takes everyone far far and away from the heart chakra.  

There is more to say about 2024. There are other planetary cycles to discuss:  Uranus, Neptune, Eris (another dwarf planet of profound importance), Saturn and Jupiter.  For now I will pause and try to return to my heart center. It's not just the future existence of humanity that is on the line. Many sentient beings are depending on us to make this a better place. And not just the ones that fly and crawl and swim. Even the waters and mountains are more awake than we are, and yet they are subjected to our behaviors. We have grave responsibilities. The big picture is both scary and also beautiful. I have got to believe that every goodness we do for others, for ourselves and for all sentient life, really, really matters. The energy of those deeds unites with all the the other energies. That big energy expands and magically nurtures the womb of the new era, an era of homo-spiritus and homo-galacticus.  We may not get there in our lifetime, but that doesn't mean we aren't giving birth to it right now.