The Sun sets beneath the horizon as the mighty figures of the Constellations appear in the western sky, background to the Sun's Light.
As the Sun sets these days, we
can see a group of constellations that tell the sky story of the
moment. We have the ancient constellation Ophiuchus the Snake
Handler, Serpens the Snake, and Heracles who also wrestles the
serpent.
The figures of Heracles and Ophiuchus (our mysterious 13 th sign of the zodiac) both had to handle snakes (Serpens). How they did it differed though. Heracles as an infant straggled the serpents, signifying his ability to overcome his serpent nature--his instinctual nature, which was seen as evil. But in our night sky, Heracles hangs upside down, suggesting that his way, which was about killing off the instincts, is no longer viable. Ophiuchus is associated with the great healing god, Asc le p i us. Snakes are always associated with him (it was said he could bring the dead back to life) and with medicine (the medical caduceus) as symbols of prudence, wisdom and regeneration. So do we kill the snake or use it to heal ourselves?
All in all, quite a story going on outside, around us in the dark. This is the time to gather for stories, when the Dark is Rising and we are tested to let go of another year of our lives.
That's what the energy of Scorpio is all about. This is the time of year to let things die, which is hard in our patriarchal society which fears death. Scorpio used to be symbolized by the serpent--a symbol of death and rebirth--and is now symbolized by three images: the scorpion who will fight to protect itself and its desires; the Eagle who flies high and sees the bigger picture and is in control of those desires; and the phoenix who transforms those desires into enlightenment. It is said that anyone who is born a Scorpio is in a pivotal lifetime, where they either progress in enlightenment or regress through negativity.
Scorpio's task is to go into the unconscious depths (Pluto, lord of the Underworld, is one of the rulers of Scorpio) where our instinctive drives, unconscious emotional attachments and obsessive, negative behavior patterns and desires from other lifetimes hold sway. It is during Scorpio, the death aspect of the life-cycle, that we face and confront our old ego-attachments and alchemically transform them into greater awareness and psychological growth.
Scorpio is about slaying our inner demons, which sometimes manifest as our instincts run a-muck because we've repressed them. The way they manifest is unique to each of us. And some of us have more demons to transform then others, but we all have Scorpio energy to deal with at this time of year. Where is Scorpio in your chart? The house cusp it's on will offer you ideas about what those demons might involve.
When the Sun moves through Scorpio, we are called into the Underworld--especially our own private version of it. It is a call to confront our instinctive snake nature (which our religions have condemned as evil--which is one collective wound we all have to heal) and listen to what it has to tell us about our lives. If you've journeyed here before, you'll know to converse with those energies you meet, and see if there's any wisdom to be shared. You are meeting 'the ancestors', the archetypes that shape Gaia's life-force.
If you are new to the Underworld, never fear--you might feel you're facing scary demons as you go down there, but it does get easier each time you go down to face your life and your shadows. Soon you too will be working with these life energies as guides and ancestors. This is how we are meant to live--being courageous enough to face the dark each year and re-birth ourselves in the coming year.
These types of demons appear in many cultures at this time of year. It is the death harvest now. These are the Shadows--our regrets, our despair, our heartaches, our fears, our deepest wounds. These
aspects of our personality keep fouling up the joyful water of life that flows through each baby born on Earth. Just as we pollute and misuse Earth's precious waters, we often deny and turn away from our feelings, our values, our beliefs.
The Shadow draws its strength from when we feel pain, which is most profoundly the pain of being unloved--it promises us that love when it protects us from more pain. When we block out the pain, we tend to dim or even block out all the rest of our feelings. But we need to feel the pain to heal it. That's what Scorpio's energy is geared toward.
So if you find yourself battling a dragon you've battled before, why not put down your weapon and have a talk with It. Perhaps It has something to tell you. Perhaps you have something it tell It! If you actively listen, and take it to heart, you will not have to slay the dragon, but rather learn to ride your dragon to great insight and ancient wisdom.
Scorpio New Moon, 11/11/15
So here we are once again at 11/11, with the New Moon energy available to us to start a new chapter in our lives. Everyone I've talked to feels what I've been feeling--that we're standing on the brink of some big change. Perhaps all our of 11/11 sightings lead to this day. It certainly feels like some new energy is stirring in the world.
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