Europa, 28 April 2006
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Beltane and the Taurus New Moon

THURSDAY arrived with the Taurus New Moon. This opens the season of Beltane, which is the cross-quarter holiday or 'high sabbat' of spring. Traditionally, this is celebrated around when the Sun reaches the midpoint between spring equinox and summer solstice. This year that falls May 5.

The Moon will be in Leo and Mercury will have just joined the Sun in Taurus. Venus, the planet for which this holiday is celebrated, will be in Aries, on the Aries Point and the Moon's North Node.

In many respects, Beltane is a celebration of sex as the ultimate experience of creation. This is expressed ritualistically in a way intended to fertilize the fields and initiate the cycle of abundance that would carry everyone through the four seasons to follow. In the Old Religion, humanity, nature, the Earth, God and Goddess were all considered aspects of one another, and the celebration of Beltane acknowledges this truth.

You can celebrate Beltane any way you like (suggestions will be found in the articles below), though if you don't have a steady lover or main squeeze, it is appropriate in the cosmic order to approach someone (preferably someone attuned to the spirit of the sabbat) to join you in a celebration of life just for this purpose.

Additional reading:

Wikipedia on Beltane
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beltane

Beltane: The Tree of Life
http://planetwaves.net/contents/beltane05.html

Your Own Celebration of Spring
http://www.ericfrancis.com/issues/0304/celebrate.html

Day Zero: the Venus Transit of the Sun
http://planetwaves.net/astrology/transitofvenus.html


Gender Fear Thread

THE Planet Waves front page blog has been the scene of an excellent discussion of the fear between the genders. This was inspired by a one-line comment from one of my astrological mentors, and has provided one of the most get real, down to Earth exchanges of ideas in the annals of Planet Waves. You will read men and women talk about their loves, fears and crises of communication with the opposite gender. We've prepared all six editions into one 'contents page' type link, available here and which you may share with friends:

http://www.planetwaves.net/contents/gender_fear_thread.html


An Introduction to Taurus

The Empress - The Hierophant
Traditionally ruled by Venus

CONTEMPLATING the internal and external properties of Taurus provides one of the most striking contrasts in all of astrology. With any astrological there are different angles of perception, including how one feels internally experiencing a placemen, and how you seem to those around you. The two can be very different.

Taureans are usually seen as stable, solid individuals who live close to the tangible, practical and sensual world -- rather than the world of abstract ideas. In astrology books, you will read that you are physically oriented, stubborn and persistent. You have a natural attraction to wealth and comfort that all of your friends benefit from. Individuals born under the sign Taurus usually have the most beautiful living spaces, but never at the expense of practicality. Go into their home and you will find home-made preserved peaches, a freezer full of food, and a variety of screwdrivers kept neatly in the kitchen.

Yet since Taurus is the first Earth sign, the Earth itself may provide a metaphor to your own life. The surface supports life quite nicely, and has many places where we can walk freely. Yet at the core of our planet is an ocean of hot molten lava believed to be about 5000 to 7000 degrees Celsius. We don't know, because we've never been there. As you move out to the crust of the Earth, there are pockets of geothermal heat, water and steam.

And even on the relatively placid surface, the plates of the Earth crash and collide in nonstop movement that releases the energy of many nuclear bombs every day.

The stability and gradual changes at the surface are a kind of illusion that depends on how fast you play the movie of time and whether you happen to be around for the really big changes. Therefore it is no great wonder that those born under your sign prefer to take life slow, and do their best to appreciate the experiences of existence; after all, you of all people know that existence is in constant change, movement and expression. The gradual quality with which you live, think and tend to accept new ideas is a kind of reaction against the intensity of your life within.

The closer you get to your core, the more you will notice the passion that is there, and strive for freedom from the mundane world at the depths of your own experience of life. Your strongly sensual nature is also a sexual nature, and when you let go you are capable of reaching white-hot temperatures like few other people.

It is interesting that yours is counted as one of the 'fixed' signs in traditional astrology, along with Leo, your opposite sign Scorpio, and Aquarius. The fixed signs receive this title, but they all share a quality of both stability (on one level) and constant, deep movement (on another). You can look to descriptions of those other signs for similarities and contrasts. Yours is also an Earth sign, sharing certain properties with Virgo and Capricorn.

Taurus is ruled by Venus, the second known planet from the Sun. She is the only named female deity in the astrological tradition (since the discovery of the asteroids began in 1800, there have been others, and you might look to them for deeper and more specific insights about your own nature). Venus is the goddess of love and abundance. Her nature is to attract rather than to go out and get -- which is both a gift and a caution that you need to be direct about your needs, intentions and desires both with yourself and with the people around you.

The Moon is the planet 'exalted' in your sign, which is as important as the ruler. The glyph for Venus looks like a bull or cow, but is also a circle with the crescent Moon above it. The cow represents the great divide between wealth and poverty; if you have a cow, you have milk and you can plow your fields. The lunar image is also a symbol of planting, as the phases of the Moon are often used to time the work of agriculture. If you are a Taurus, you should know that all things do indeed come in their time, but we also have to work for them.

The Tarot card associated with your sign is the Hierophant. This mysterious card depicts a spiritual master who is the keeper of a mystery. In the oldest decks, he is depicted as the Pope being visited by two monks. The key to the card comes in studying the patterns of the vestments on the monks, shown in the Waite-Smith version to the left; one monk has lilies and the other roses. The message is that the journeys of passion and purity both lead to the same place.

In the newer deck, designed by Crowley-Harris, the Hierophant is shown as the fiery Egyptian god Horus, with Isis standing before him.


Extended Birthday Report Note

THE EXTENDED birthday report is under renovation. I will, however, have all the Taurus birthday reports due till this time (the first two) early next week. Note that I will be returning to the original format, an approximately five paragraph interpretation included with the Friday edition of Planet Waves Weekly.


Eros Area Coming Soon!

CHECK your inbox later this weekend for an announcement about our new Sustainer-Supporter area, called EROS. This area will include a searchable database of the last seven years of horoscopes, a live chat area, an audio area, and a section called Eros which will feature some of my late-night writing and photographs unsuitable for the public side of Planet Waves. I plan to mail that letter out Sunday evening European time.


Chelsea says...

IT'S time to change the passwords. So the passwords for the Planet Waves Weekly site, Parallel Worlds and the Lemonade area will be updated by Monday at the latest. Please look for an email with the subject header PASSWORD UPDATE! Remember that the Lemonade area exists, a new subscriber only area that includes Lemonade horoscopes going back to the beginning of 2005 plus other special features.


Astrology Secrets Revealed #91

WILL be updated Friday (today). This edition includes a long and detailed discussion of a 1960s chart. Last week's included a special edition on "How To Learn Astrology."


Planet Waves by Eric Francis
Friday, April 28, 2006 - Weekly Horoscope #608
 
Happy Birthday Taurus!
Challenges you now face are most likely the kind that are the result of success. You may not see it that way, but you can, if you want, look at it that way. Had you not made so much progress in the past year, following a time where it seemed that setbacks were a way of life, you would not be in a position to make the kinds of decisions you find yourself needing to make today. You may feel, and rightly so, that circumstances are compelling you more than anything to be a different person. You may feel that this is unfair or undue pressure. But that is the price of individuality, and of personal success.
 
Aries (March 20-April 19)
You may feel like you're in a state of constant adaptation. There is nothing you can want, strive to be, or strive to do that doesn't require you to make some conscious adjustment, whether to keep the creative flow going or to keep the pressure equally distributed. The issue you seem to be working with is the one where you must reconcile how you feel and who you need to be in the world. The more you feel yourself with complete authenticity, the more you may recognize that you don't fit in. The more you recognize that, the more you'll be compelled to keep making adjustments until you create a space genuinely your own.
 
Taurus (April 19-May 20)
Anything is possible if you focus your mind -- and you can do that. Working toward a goal is never terribly easy, and the pressure to succeed doesn't make it any easier. But my sense is that what you're really struggling with is what it means to have power. There are people who will take two hours to get impeccably dressed and then be offended when somebody notices how beautiful they are. That is how troublesome power can be. Embrace your strength, your influence and the clarity of your own mind. Accept the fact that when you focus your awareness, you have an effect on the world around you, and people may respond.
 
Gemini (May 20-June 21)
You're nicely tuned to go purely on intuition for a while, but you have to listen. In particular, I suggest following what that 'little voice' or the feeling in your body tells you about people you consider friends. Listen carefully to what people complain about, and how they relate to their own sense of loss. That will tell you everything about them that you need to know, at least at this point. You may see your reflection in some of the comments people make, and at other times, you may recognize something that is distinctly not yourself. This is exactly the shade of difference you need to see.
 
Cancer (June 21-July 22)
This may be one of the high points of your life where social acceptance is concerned. Yet you seem to want to go deeper. If that is the case, then do it -- and try to do it without the expectation that anybody is going to be inclined to follow you. You've got a fairly unique capacity to endure and even enjoy psychic and emotional challenges and pressures; you don't need life to be normal. Not everyone has that gift, but they do seek you out for guidance and ideas. Go with people as far as they will go with you. When you need to, go alone. You'll keep finding people to accompany you on different parts of the journey.
 
Leo (July 22-Aug. 23)
You finally seem to be finding a balance between your personal needs and your professional goals. I don't think you've resolved the strange division between these two seemingly different hemispheres of your life. Yet at this stage of your growth, you are the living embodiment of serious aspiration, and you have some very tangible objectives in mind. You need to be something of a politician where it comes to getting the support of close partners, but you can trust that people close to you look up to you more than you may realize. This is true even if they complain.
 
Virgo (Aug. 23-Sep. 22)
You are finally experiencing the benefits of some independence, and after what has seemed like way too much swimming against the tide, you are back to breathing a bit of fire. You may, however, want to investigate whether a health concern you have is related to the grief of another person you're carrying, most likely one of your parents. You may also want to check carefully whether, in that case, your current theory about how to handle it is correct. The next few days will provide you with an opportunity to move some of those emotions and as a direct result, experience some relief.

Libra (Sep. 22-Oct. 23)
The sequence of events that unfolds over the next few days may seem completely outside your control, but I assure you this is not the case. You would eventually figure this out; whatever others may be saying, doing or demanding, the situation boils down to one decision that you get to make. But I don't suggest you rush. The current New Moon may seem to be exerting pressure on you -- but your moment of choice is yet to come. Better to decide once than go back and forth several times. Therefore, bide your time and await the unmistakable inner calling to shift your reality one giant step away from the past.
 
Scorpio (Oct. 23-Nov. 22)
You're currently in an interesting discussion with your highest ideals, and it seems that more than anything, you want your faith in true love to be vindicated. Everything makes perfect sense until you're reminded that people are not perfect and that you have a tendency to be particularly demanding of others. You can go a long way toward peace and harmony by giving people a break every chance you get. You're not being asked to make large sacrifices, only small ones, and in the end you will realize they were token gestures that allowed the minimum space for real results to manifest in your life. This is a risk you can afford to take.
 
Sagittarius (Nov. 22-Dec. 22)
The hidden valley of your life has been quite a busy place lately. You seem to be formulating an entirely new idea about who you are and what you need, one that you're not entirely happy about sharing with others or even putting into words. You may, however, want to take the risk of doing just that, even if you're the only one who ever reads them. You are attempting, with great determination, to enter a new personal reality. Go forward with the daring trust of a child, and let yourself say whatever it is you feel. I promise, you'll surprise yourself.
 
Capricorn (Dec. 22-Jan. 20)
You continue to be the person with the plan and the solution. If people seem determined to resist your best ideas, then you just need to find a way to express them such that they're acceptable. You can do this with absolutely zero compromise of quality or integrity -- just by adapting your presentation. The situation is actually pretty simple: you have a solution that seems to challenge the sense of security of a key person in the project. Address that issue first. Make sure people feel safe, and keep listening to their need for safety. At the moment, creativity comes second, but it definitely has its place.
 
Aquarius (Jan. 20-Feb. 19)
There are two distinct ways to experience and express your life right now: in short, the hard way and the easy way. The hard way has an all-or-nothing quality and invokes everything you feel is wrong with you. When you get the easy way going, you'll notice that ideas precede reality and you can use your intuition to find the path of least resistance. Communicating your needs and listening to the needs of others will get you a very long way -- because once you get that dialog going, you become the person who knows where to put those parts of the equation together and get results that work for you, and for them.
 
Pisces (Feb. 19-March 20)
Get the mystery out: stick to what is conscious, sentient, tangible and subject to awareness. When in doubt, apply a series of logical steps to every situation in which you find yourself. Watch where your logic leads you. If you find you're going away from the direction of compassion for yourself and others, turn around and start reasoning in the other direction. Keep your thoughts positive. An awesome financial opportunity is currently in the works, one you've been waiting to develop for quite a while. But you'll have to be feeling good to see it, or to believe it's real. But this juncture represents a very good opportunity to make this a long-term policy in your life. For a Pisces, feeling good is really all there is.

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