Tonight, 25 January in Aquarius season, is the first Full Moon of 2024 and this Full Moon is nicknamed the Wolf Moon. At this time of year in northern America and Northern Europe, wolves used to come down to human settlements in late winter in desperate search of food- and with resulting conflict.
A British Wolf Hunt
The dog in this picture is looking a tad nonchalant, just lounging about next to the man, as he does all the hard work, struggling with the wolf who is clearly about to get the worst of the encounter. Folk stories suggest the last wolf in England was killed in 1390 by John, son of Sir Edgar Harrington of Wraysholme, after he chased it all the way from the Coniston Fells to Humphrey Head in Cumbria (coastal North West England).
Windblown trees of Humphrey Head, Cumbria via Wiki
There were always wolves in Britain, but by the late middle ages, they were rare in England, although they survived in Scotland until the 17th or 18th century. Officially the last Scottish wolf was killed (shot) by Sir Ewen Cameron in 1680 in Killiecrankie (Perthshire) But other reports suggests wolves survived in Scotland till much later, with one possible sighting as late as 1888.
Astronomy
This Full Moon is in Leo astrologically speaking, but from the point of view of science and astronomy, this Wolf Moon is technically situated in the constellation of Cancer, next door to Leo, for reasons to do with the wobble of the earth in the 2000 years since the western zodiac was codified.
However, according to the working model of Western/Tropical astrology, for profound arithmetic, historic and symbolic reasons, the full moon is in the celestial territory of proud, passionate, playful Leo, the Lion King of the Zodiac.
Tarot cards of Leo
The major arcana Tarot card associated with Leo is Strength, signifying not only the raw power of physical strength, but fortitude; determination moral courage, although it is also, as one would expect, a physically lucky card, suggesting sporting success, military success or recovery if someone has been ill.
This figure – we may think of her as Una- “The One”-but she is you and me, has not tamed the lion as such. They walk side by side, facing futurity, focused on their purpose, looking inward on their dreams.
The lion walks alongside as an equal, though it could deal with Una any time it likes. One bite, one blow of the giant paw and she is toast. Una is holding the leash only very lightly, while the lion remains entirely by his own choice. No-one may sensibly or safely presume to think to altogether subdue or “tame” another. Likewise there is no true Strength, or right to command, without the power of self-restraint and self-command. Any one who would be a leader must first learn to rule himself, or herself. And to control their temper. More haste, less speed. There is a reason patience is a virtue. Lack of it can cost us everything, our lives included.
Leo says ‘fame’. Leo says shine your light, walk the stage, write your part and play it, but don’t overlook the audience. Not only is there no play without them, but they too, have their part to play. An author writes and publishes a book but it needs a reader for it to come alive. The Lion of the Zodiac is capable of many things, not always good. The Lion may be loud, demanding, careless, arrogant, or even cruel, but he is incapable of pettiness.
The minor arcana cards of Leo are the Five, Six and Seven of Wands, representing stress, conflict, competition, victory, fortitude and strategic advantage respectively. We are likely feeling a need to call on these right now.
The Heart of Leo
The heart of the constellation of Leo is its alpha star, Regulus, meaning Little King or the royal star. And in medical astrology, Leo rules the heart.
I had a strange night last night, not least due to a sensation of heaviness in the chest, though I think I may also have seen a ghost. I don’t often see such things, but I have seen them, and they are not necessarily frightening, though they can be. This one was not frightening, only startling. A figure. A man. No details. Today is the anniversary of the death of my husband’s father, whom I never met. But I could not see the face.
The heaviness in the chest was due to long standing inflammation; a sero-negative form of systemic arthritis, which has damaged the aortic valve.
I happen to have both the Moon and Mars in Leo in my natal chart. The Moon is square the sun, and now that I reflect on that, I won’t be surprised if this heaviness eases off again once the gravitational drag of this Full Moon has passed.
The dandelion –dents-de-lion, “the lions teeth” is traditionally used as a diuretic which by removing fluid that places an extra load on the heart, can also support heart health
Here’s a book fit to make you roar like a lion, or more likely, howl like a winter wolf any time. It says it’s for 2-6 year-olds but this is a story for anyone.
A lonely old lion loves a beautiful blue butterfly, but the butterfly must leave him to follow its own destiny in search of sunflowers to feast on. The old lion pines for his friend and goes in search…
His devotion will be rewarded, not in the way we were hoping, but in a way far sadder, and more tragic but also immeasurably majestic, when he lies down and dies and decays, and in time a sunflower grows where his body lay. He is reborn as a sunflower. And now the beautiful blue butterfly returns to find him again.
Tarot cards for today 25/01/24 (UTC formerly…Greenwich Mean Time I am writing in the UK. It is 16.20 PM as I write this and the Full Moon is rising here at 17.54 PM)
I am asking the Tarot for its general comments please. Typical! The first three cards out of the deck (The Legacy of the Divine Tarot) are mirroring and almost, though not entirely correlating with real time astrology.
The Star (right now we have the Sun and Pluto Aquarius) The King of Wands reversed (The Full Moon in Leo) and The Seven of Wands (second decan Leo)
This full Moon is actually in the first decan of Leo, 5 degrees and 14 minutes which strictly in terms of date correlations is represented in the Tarot by The Six of Wands. Still, that’s spookily close in respect of real time, and if the Tarot wants to show us the Seven of Wands and not the Six, well, the interconnections and overlap are wondrous, but the Tarot is an oracle unto itself. It contains elements of astrology but it is not astrology. The Tarot is in charge here, and it has its reasons.
General impressions
All three of these cards represent fixed energy. The Star reversed is fixed Air energy, while the King of Wands reversed and the Seven of Wands are fixed fire energy.
This isn’t a bad reading on a general personal level, but it has a certain explosive potential for quarrels or other domestic issues including minor electrical mishaps, water damage, power cuts or trouble with appliances. Chances are we’ve been, not dragging our heels today, but likely feeling as if we’re rolling stones uphill.
Right now we may be embroiled with practical necessities and these take priority. We’re not looking for fights, but no one is going to go stamp-around with us either, whether this is a boss figure, an individual close to home, or issues with some organization not doing what it is supposed to.
All the same, we can see where we want to get to. The fires are lit, the words are on the tip of our tongues. A bright vision beckons. There’s a certain charisma, or an undercurrent of sexual, romantic or creative passion in the air today, and this will last a little while beyond the Full moon.
The Seven of Wands says we are up for defending our turf, standing up for ourselves, and getting ready to roll forward with new projects and ventures…driven the inspiration signified by the number 7, even though we may not have every detail perfectly worked out as yet. Not only do we have the seven of Wands but the Reversed King of Wands, the Leo king, is wearing a 7 on his belt. We may be handling something now, or imminently, that will happen, culminate or conclude in July.
This may also just possibly be picking up events in Ukraine. Why? President Zelenskyy is an Aquarius sun sign native; shown here embattled, weary (King Wands reversed) looking for a new strategy and more air missile support (because The Star is reversed.) The counter offensive has not delivered relief as hoped, but he has not lost the initiative. Look for “fires at sea” -potentially decisive maritime events in the Black Sea between now and Leo season 2024.
The West is not doing enough, is the picture here, and if it does not do more, faster, the West will feel the weight of an new age of The Star reversed and the Kings of Wands reversed, the rise of a new age of dictators. The Star is a beautiful card of hope and recovery , but when drawn reversed it contains the potential for hopes denied, and for the dawning of a new totalitarianism.
What’s the push and pull in the collective energy today? I draw two crux Cards from the Touchstone Tarot deck by Kat Black and I draw Death and the Page of Coins (Pentacles)
Saturday 6 January 2024
It is a waning moon, not a time for sowing and planting. We are haunted, maybe grieving. Dreams are vivid. Today’s waning moon is in the fixed water sign of Scorpio, denoting a strong outgoing tide of deep feeling with a sting of loss attached but we may also experience a sense of irritation, not quite knowing where to put our physical, intellectual and emotional energy.
The Death card, curiously, is the card corresponding with the zodiac sun sign of Scorpio. The appearance of this card signifies endings. Many readers these days will state that the Death card never, but never represents an actual death or bereavement. My twenty odd years of reading for other people tells me that in general, the Death card is talking metaphorically. A job may come to an end, or a relationship for instance. But it can raise the question or the spectre of an actual human death. Oh yes it can, it will and it does. And so it should. Death is part of Life. It colours our experience of Life through the awareness of our own mortality and that of all those we love most. Death – and Birth are THE greatest life events, our own. The Death card needs handling with care. I do not make predictions of Death. I could be wrong. Nor will I avoid the conversation.
The appearance of the Death card reflects the dreadful events we are seeing on the news, if we are not living through them ourselves. And the Death card shows that we are feeling acutely aware of the passage of time, and of our own mortality. Time and tide wait for no man. Oh, do they not? I have known when loved ones were about to go. I do not mean that I was sensing anything imminently. But it was there all the same. Their tide was on the turn for the last time. There was a presentiment. An ebbing tide, pulling at my own inner water.
And yet the appearance of the Page of the element of Earth is timely. Mercury has now gone direct again, while energetic Mars has entered pragmatic Capricorn on 4 January and stays there till 13 February. The echoes of recent troubles may be powerful, yet this new wind may still prove favourable. Hold fast to the greatest tasks in hand…we have been stuck, but now necessary things can and should and will get done.
We are now in the second decan of Capricorn, associated with the creative and productive Three of Coins or Pentacles. This card, again from The Touchstone Tarot shows a master craftsman at work. See the sketch and quill behind him. An eager patron looks on, agog to see what beauty shall be created, proudly sponsored by him. Oh yes, he gets to claim much kudos. This is the card of making a house a home, but above all it is a card of excellence.
This is a good time to surge ahead with creative projects and businesses. A Tamil friend has a silk weaving business for instance, making sarees/saris. The Three of Coins is an apposite card for ant kind of business like this.
A medicine for grief -or anxiety is to do something constructive, creative or useful. Sort your admin (yawn -but it feels so good once you’ve done it.)
Or read and study. Learn something new.
“The best thing for being sad,” said Merlin, “is to learn something. It is the only thing that never fails”
(T.H. White The Once and Future King)
DO something. This is a medicine, a reliable Ju-ju for blasting the cobwebs or soothing sorrow. Action in the material world. Anything really, so long as it ain’t stupid. The young man representing the Page of Coins is a scholar (from an original painting by Hans Holbein. He could equally be a crafts-person or a cook or a pet owner.
When we are treading water, or right up in our heads, we can earth ourselves by going for a walk, feeding the birds, or by giving our mind and our hands something to work on front of house.
This day of a legalistic waning Libra moon we learn that the next UK election will not be in the spring as has been lately rumoured, but will be in the second half of the year.
The UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is a Taurus sun sign native, and the leader of the Opposition Keir Starmer is a Virgo sun sign native. Is Rishi waiting until after late May when Jupiter will move into Gemini, or will he wait until the 2 October eclipse in judicial, contractual Libra to call the election?
There is plenty good about Jupiter in Gemini for communications, publishing, teaching, aviation…but Jupiter is in detriment in Gemini, meaning that when it is in Gemini, Jupiter is sitting opposite Sagittarius, the sign it naturally rules. What this can mean is that we have super intelligent decision making during Jupiter in Gemini, or a load of flopping about, quibbling and hot air and nothing of great moment actually gets decided.
Globally, we are witnessing such dreadful devastation. Mars in Capricorn seeks to acquire- territory, resources, status. But it also seeks, like the Page of Coins or Pentacles, to rebuild.
Resolutions and rebuilding in Gaza and Ukraine can’t- and won’t come fast enough to satisfy any ideals of justice, kindness or basic decency. It never does until that last moment has long, long since passed. Those tides have gone right out, and are coming in again as tsunamis- “waves in the harbour”. I write this, realizing that I am speaking metaphorically in the very same week that Japan has experienced earthquakes and tsunamis on the very first day of 2024.
Source: Wikipedia
“As above so below.” The planet Earth, Gaia is unsettled, and so are we. The hive is rattled. The bees swarm, buzzing. We are experiencing Solar Cycle 25 and all that. This was expected to be a weak cycle in terms of solar flare activity. And maybe it will still be weaker than the average solar cycle. But it is early days in this cycle, and it is already proving stronger than was predicted back in 2019, with the next solar maximum expected any time between now and October 2024.
The stone associated with Capricorn is the garnet, symbolic of loyalty and devotion, The garnet is considered a lucky talisman of protection, and for the health of the heart.
Let’s take a quick look at the Numerology of 2024. The key numbers of this year are 2, 0, 4 and 8. Why 8? This is the number we get when we add up the digits. You’ll notice we have a dominance of even numbers: 2, 4 and 8; all of them divisible by 2.
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This is all about creating or protecting our stability during a time of great shifts, but the 0 stand for the wild cards at work in our lives. Births and rebirths, literally or metaphorically. Zero is the most numinous number, or non-number. Originally invented as a placeholder, The Fool card in the Tarot stands for Wyrd or Destiny, and is the greatest mystery of all the cards in the deck.
The Major Arcana card representing the Number 8 is Strength. This card correlates with Leo, which like Aries, is also ruled by Mars. This card stands for health, strength and courage. This is both physical and moral strength, resilience and fortitude, the kind that says we don’t give up. The one who wins is the last one standing. “Tomorrow is another day.”
There are no easy answers. We will all be tested this coming year, guaranteed, and this will be collectively and personally. This is not a quiet cycle we are in, the whole world is feeling it, and we may not come out of this cosmic wash-cycle that began in 2019/2020 until February 2026 when Saturn quits Pisces for the final time in this current cycle of transits.
When I look at Ukraine’s President Zelenskyy, time and again I draw The Hanged Man reversed, signifying either significant Pisces timing and/or an unwanted compromise that is ultimately reached. This card of Pisces points out that Saturn moved into Pisces in March 2023 and does not finally move out of Pisces until February 2026. This does not mean the war can’t end sooner. The Hanged Man could indicate Pisces season 2025, possibly triggered by events around the time of the eclipse in Libra season 2024. As ever, only time will tell. The reader is always “looking in the glass darkly.”
I have been struck by the physical resemblance to Zelenskyy of this card from The Tarot Illuminati deck. This card below, I drew in a reading for Zelenskyy back in March 2022. I was looking to see if Russia would succeed in assassinating him, as we understood Russia was trying to do at that time, and the feeling was no. The cards showed he will come through all this, but emerge a very different man. Not defeated, not diminished but disappointed. Reading between the lines, Russia’s President Putin will get away with far more than justice says he rightfully should, although much less than he wants.
We are all desperate to see an end to the darkness of the wholesale horror we are witnessing in Ukraine and in Gaza. There could be crucial turning points in these and other conflicts (and also in personal matters) around 14 February, around the solar eclipse of 8 April, during Leo/Virgo season- July and August, and again, around the solar eclipse in Libra, 2 October (ruled by Venus, cards 2/3 Swords- diplomacy/severance) and again towards the end of the year in Sagittarius around Christmas Eve, 24 December 2024, though this last date could likewise prove very tricky.
My cards have not so far seen a second term of office for Donald Trump. I first looked at this in 2021, looking to see signs of a second term after the Capitol Riot.
But nor are they showing me a second term for Joe Biden. I will be looking more closely at this later, as will twenty gillion other readers and astrologers. Some Vedic astrologers do say it will be Trump.
May-June could prove the most productive and easygoing months this coming year when Jupiter moves from productive Taurus into agile arch-communicator Gemini.
The April solar eclipse in Aries suggests a window of opportunity, bold decisions finding ways forward, and at a personal level for any of us, but especially for the Aries native or those with Aries rising, brave new initiatives in prospect.
The tarot card of this eclipse at 19 degrees of Aries is the expansive, outgoing and far seeing Three of Wands.
The possible negative interpretation of this card is the clear and present danger and obvious potential in 2024 for an escalation of maritime aggression in any of these areas: the Black Sea, the Red Sea, the Straits of Hormuz, in the South China Sea or the Straits of Taiwan.
This is a twitchy year and the very end of the year may prove the trickiest time.
Image from The Legacy of The Divine Tarot.
First comes the vision, but planning, co-operation and timing is everything. We are equal to these challenges, and we can achieve more by approaching our most personal problems with an attitude of kindness and respect. The lady in the Strength card does not subdue the lion by killing it. This card references an old story, Una and the Lion from Edmund Spenser’s 16th-century poem The Faerie Queen. Una is the daughter of a king and queen who have been imprisoned by a dragon. Most unfortunate.
Una undertakes a quest to free her parents, but on her journey she encounters a lion. Rather than eating her, the lion is so captivated by Una’s innocence that he follows her instead, accompanying her as a protector, and in the painting by William Bell Scott, Una gently rests her fingers in the lion’s mane, as they make their way together through the autumnal wood.
But the lion is not going her to kill her, either. She calms its threat by holding her nerve, moving decisively but quietly, and using a carefully measured restraint with the lightest touch.
Image from The Gilded Tarot.
This is a year of gravitas. We are changing, and we are feeling that change. There is a sense of a greater self discipline, but also striking out in a new direction, expanding our lines of vision, enlarging our horizons as per the Three of Wands. We are starting new things or revisiting old things and re-imagining them anew.
These are just seeds or buds in 2024. We won’t see the results this year, but we are changing direction. The particular nature of this, and the life departments it will affect will depend on our own natal charts.
Jupiter is on our side in 2024, and he can be a big old bully. But Jupiter is also “the bringer of jollity.” People need to eat, but they also need beauty. They need laughter and they need other people. Jupiter keeps it large, and Jupiter in Gemini can be a big fat beautiful butterfly, the symbol of Psyche, the soul.
Airy, breezy, airy pollinator of renewal of the richness of the earth of Taurus, Jupiter enters Gemini 25 May 2024 and stays there until 9 June 2025. This can be all manner of good news, with April, May and June are the most promising months for communications, networking, teaching, publishing, business, study, travel and progress in the most general terms.
Jupiter in Gemini is endlessly curious and enquiring. Jupiter is however, in detriment in Gemini, meaning that Jupiter is opposite the sign of Sagittarius where it is exalted (most naturally at home.)
There could, in politics and geo-political conflicts, be a lot of dithering, delaying and fair- weathering.
But even so, Jupiter in Gemini may bring better things to the world, while the Aries Eclipse in April is an even bigger hitter this year. Big and brave. What brave new stories shall you be creating this coming year?
We are about to leave the season of Sagittarius, entering the celestial territory of Capricorn 22 December 2023.
The astrological sun sign of Sagittarius the Archer represents the elemental power of Mutable Fire. The sun sign of Sagittarius is represented in the Tarot deck by the Knight of Wands, generally signifying an explosive speed of travel, attack, or action, or, whether these things are connected or not, a string of beacons. Passing of messages. The Ace of Wands is the Divine Spark. Inspiration, vision and philosophy. The Knight comes and goes without warning. Changeable states. Well, blow me down, if this depiction of Sir Knight Sagittarius does not actually show a volcano spewing magma.
In Sagittarius season 2021 the La Palma eruption became the longest running on the island. Then in Java, Mount Semeru erupted 4 December 2021, spilling out a deadly pyroclastic flow with tragic consequences and widespread disruption.
So far, the latest ongoing volcanic eruption in Iceland is not declared to be a danger to life. May this continue. The Earth itself is always restless but currently more unsettled than “normal.” Perhaps it is little wonder that we are too. The world is never quiet, never at peace. It is always relative. But we are in a particularly unsettled geomagnetic cycle. Solar Cycle 25 is turning out much stronger than predicted. Read more about that here
On a mundane level I have known this card to alert me, correctly, to client problems with travel plans, with boilers, cars and central heating. I have known it to advise me, correctly, that a client is struggling with liver problems, or with side effects of medication which are having an adverse effect on the liver. Why might that be, I wondered, deducing it was because the liver is a powerhouse, aka the engine room of the body’s metabolism.
Meanwhile we are witnessing horrible terrible events; man-made fire raining down relentlessly on the heads of the defenseless masses in Ukraine and Gaza.
None of this is to say that the month of the zodiac sign of Sagittarius= volcano eruption month. This would be a false equation. Nevertheless, we do say “as above, so below.”
And as within, so without.
And here it is. A tarot card specifically correlating with the dates 22 November-21 December and we are looking at vulcanicity in full flow. The oddity, the sheer symbolic synchronicity of Sagittarius as the vulcan archer of Fire in 2021, and now again in 2023 may be mutable as we segue between seasons.
IMG Abstract: Sagittarius. Own image in watercolour and pen
We’re in the second decan for just a few more days, till the New Moon in Sag 12 December, represented in Tarot by the Nine of Wands.
The keywords here are vigilance and stamina. This figure, stalwart but injured, is resting, battle weary. The second decan Sagittarius native is quick of mind, good with their hands, adventurous, technically proficient, Sagittarius-Aries fire. More generally, this card says we would rather not go it alone. But we’ll do it if we have to. Oh yes. And we’re not done. Oh no. We’re still standing, and we are standing by. Sentinels. Watchmen. Ready. You won’t catch us with our guard down.
Neptune has gone direct in Pisces as of 6 December, having been retrograde since 30 June. We might have been having some mighty odd and vivid dreams just lately. In my own case, there has been a rather entertaining spate of dreams involving raccoons popping up in odd places, possibly reflecting symbolically tricky dealings to do with certain matters. The raccoon can warn against dealing with tricky people and those who aren’t dealing straight with us, wearing its little bandit mask. The raccoon has positive associations too, of course. The raccoon is agile, and endlessly resourceful.
But it’s curious where these things come from. And I wouldn’t mind but we don’t even have raccoons where I am (in the UK, North West W England) I can’t just put it down to watching nature programmes on the box either.
Things have been heavy going in recent months for almost anyone. Something has been weighing heavy on our minds for some time. Problems for which there can be no solutions as such. We’ve just had to do the best we can, maintaining a holding position, and trying meanwhile not to make matters worse.
The New Moon in Sagittarius 12 December suggests new possibilities, and a clearer way ahead. And don’t we all wish that for the whole wide world. Looking into my cards for 2024 there are no clear signs of a lasting resolution in the dreadful conflicts and events in Ukraine and in Gaza. Though there are windows of opportunity, and perhaps I will write more about that later.
But right here, right now, says this card is our individual power of action in our own, personal battles.
The New Moon on the 12 December is in 20 degrees of Sagittarius. We might get the strong urge to go somewhere new, learn something new, change our horizons, however vicariously. Even reading a book is a form of travel. Reading rolls up telepathy, mind reading, space travel and time travel all in one page. Each page a magic carpet.
There are so many sad events, and we might well ask ourselves, what use is philosophy? What use is poetry? (Or Tarot)
We are made that way. Words can lift us up. Why else do we conjure special words for births and weddings and funerals? Words are invocations. Words are comforters. They can help us readjust and regain our equilibrium when everything is dark. Words contain the magical power of Wyrd. We get the word weird from Wyrd, meaning mystery and destiny.
Word. Weird, Wyrd. They are all the same thing.
“I will lift mine eyes up to the hills from whence cometh my help.”
-Psalm 121
The higher we can go, the more bearable or at least, immediately manageable things are when the going is really tough. We don’t have to be religious to feel the truth of this.
“The best thing for being sad,” replied Merlin, beginning to puff and blow (on his pipe. “is to learn something. That’s the only thing that never fails.”
Halloween is designated the season of ghosts. Why is that? We can encounter a ghost any time of year.
But there is an especially potent natural reason for the ghostly season. Halloween or All Hallows Eve is celebrated 31 October each year, marking the cross- quarter of the year, half-way point between the autumn equinox in the northern hemisphere, and the winter solstice, which in 2023 will occur on Friday 22 December.
Halloween began as a pre-Christian Iron Age festival 2000 years ago among the various peoples of Britain and Northern Europe popularly known as the Celts.
In parts of Britain and the Republic of Ireland Halloween is still called Samhain (pronounced Sow-an, from Gaelic/Irish meaning ‘summer’s end.’)
This is a critical turning point of the year from an ancient survival point of view: food production, harvesting and storage as the days grow shorter, the nights longer, vegetation decays, temperatures drop – and more people get sick. We are now in the zodiac sign territory of Scorpio, and the Tarot card correlating with Scorpio is the Death card.
From Halloween in the Anglo-sphere to Alf-blot (Elf Blood) in Scandinavia, to The Day of the Dead in Spanish speaking countries, the period 31 October – 3 November is a festival marking the end of the harvest season.
Russia does not celebrate Halloween as such. It is not recognized by the Orthodox Church, though it has been gaining popularity among young people since the 1990’s.
In France, again, Halloween is not a traditional festival, though certain elements may be catching on nowadays, cultural imports in the twentieth century. But La Toussaint or All Saints Day, is a widely celebrated national holiday celebrated on the first of November.
Now we are preparing for the decay of vegetation, the coming darkness, the time of hibernation of many animals, and the hardships of winter. This is a natural time to be marking the remembrance of the Dead.
Do I believe in ghosts? I have had some deeply strange encounters, and met enough perfectly sensible people who have told me their stories, and had no reason to doubt their common sense, and the validity of their account.
What is a ghost? We have the dictionary definition:
“Now chiefly, an apparition of a dead person which is believed to appear or become manifest to the living, typically as a nebulous image and attempting to right a wrong done in life; this sense of the word is recorded from late Middle English.
The word is recorded from Old English (in form gāst) in the sense ‘spirit, soul’, and is of Germanic origin; the gh- spelling occurs first in Caxton, and was probably influenced by Flemish gheest”. – Source
But the question still remains, what is a ghost, really? Are they sentient? Do they know they are there? Do they have intent? Or are they some kind of an echo? Do they know who they are- or were? Do they know who we are? What do they want?
I recommend reading up about the Cambridge archaeologist and paranormal researcher Tom Lethbridge T.C. Lethbridge
The Moon card
The Tarot card that in a reading can suggest a vivid dream, a vision, a psychic or supernatural experience or even a ghost is The Moon card. And this Halloween, we have only just passed through a Full Moon lunar eclipse. Perhaps you have been experiencing unusually vivid dreams.
From The Gilded Tarot Royale, illustrator Ciro Marchetti
This time of year represents a ‘liminal’ space, a threshold – a doorway of some kind, an ‘in-between’ space between outside and inside, one room and another, or between summer and winter, night and dark, and therefore symbolically, between Life and Death.
Being half-awake or half-asleep is an ‘in-between’ state of mind or consciousness, when we are might have a powerful frightening or psychic dream experience or even experience sleep paralysis, traditionally known as a visit from The “Night Hag” aka The Mara, as portrayed in a famous painting in its several variants, The Nightmare by Henry Fuseli.
This is a not uncommon experience that can occur when the brain is in-between deep and lighter sleep stages. The person thinks they are awake when they are not. There is a strong sense of threat, a malevolent presence, and they cannot move a muscle to defend themselves. I have experienced it myself, very unpleasant. Read here for the scientific medical explanation.
The Death card bears the Rider of the Pale Horse who comes for one and all. But the white rose is a symbol of the sanctity of life, and is a promise of resurrection.
A True Ghost Story
Some years ago, my phone rang one Saturday night, about 8 PM, a lady calling from Preston, about ten miles away from where I live. She had found my number in the psychic pages of the online telephone directory, and she wanted a psychic medium.
Note. I have never advertised as a psychic medium, but there is no separate listing for Tarot readers who are frequently listed under that same heading, along with astrologers and clairvoyants.
This lady was calling to ask me to come over to her house. Right now, please! There was ‘something’ in the hallway and it was blocking the stairs. She, her partner and the children were huddled in the sitting room with the door shut, too terrified to leave the room.
I could not go in person, sadly. Nor do I advertise such a service. But there are others who do. I gave her the name and telephone number of a local lady who specialized in clearing ‘haunted houses,’ -I didn’t know her but she had positive reviews, and meantime I reached for my cards, asking the lady what exactly had happened?
Her youngest child had been upstairs, she told me, when an invisible lady started whispering in her ear. The child panicked. Then her siblings panicked. Then the mother panicked too, and so did her partner.
Now there was something outside the sitting room door; a cold spot, a moving shadow.
I asked, what had this invisible lady said to the little girl?
The caller said, the ghost told her youngest child, her hair was very pretty.
I was looking through my cards while we were talking. This figured. The cards confirmed a benign presence – or influence. A grandmother?
The cards also indicated the lady on the other end of the phone had been under a lot of strain. I asked about this, and she confirmed a prolonged period of acute financial and other worries. Her mother had died three years earlier, and she was still missing her, really quite badly. But, she said, the littlest child was too young to remember her grandmother. Why, the lady wondered, if the ghost was her mother, had her mother not talked to her, but instead to the child, she had never known in life?
It was because the little girl happened in that moment to be the one tuned in on the ‘right’ wavelength to receive such an incoming message. The little girl had ESP in other words, and was hyper sensitive to atmosphere. This was why she alone had heard it. If there was a ghost, if the grandmother was still around, then she was tuning in to the living, seeking to deliver comfort to the mother who was her child.
The little grand-daughter was the most receptive conduit.
First things first. The lady had called to ask for help. I had given her the number of a reputable medium but she needed support right now, and help to restore order in the household.
To do this she needed to assert herself and reclaim her territory, ‘psych it out’, and show the children it was safe to go anywhere in the house.
The living can talk to a ghost, or say boo, just as it can say boo to us.There was no nastiness in these cards. If there had been, then the living can use aggression too. And tell the presence to GET GONE.
This presence was not nasty. Or at least the original one was not. But it was not wanted. I suggested that she tell the family, ‘it’s all gone now’, open that sitting room door, put lots of lights on, go herself down that hallway, alone if need be, put the kettle on, serve up something for supper. Light, movement and noise will shatter such a spell, and fear is contagious and feeds upon itself.
I later heard directly from the medium whose number I had given the lady. The lady gave her my number. The medium and her team had gone to the lady’s house next day, taking with them an array of electronic equipment. The medium confirmed there was an old lady’s ghost in the house, that it was the grandmother, and that the mother’s state of stress had called the ghost forth. The ghost had behaved in character, affectionately, but since the child had been startled, and then the mother had reacted with fear, everyone became frightened, and the thing took on an unpleasant aspect. The medium said that now the mother was consciously aware of it, the house should stay quiet now.
No suggestion of judgement attaches to the lady’s handling of the situation by the way. None whatsoever. Fear was and is a natural reaction to such an inexplicable experience. But if it happened again, now that she had some kind of explanation, however questionable, and reassurance that it was not malevolent, she could choose a more controlled and matter of fact response, whilst not dismissing the child’s experience.
“The Mind has many corridors” – Emily Dickinson
Psychic author Cassandra Eason has written a book with advice for parents with psychic children available from a range of second hand book sellers online.
From my point of view, since I had never spoken with this lady medium myself before her visit to the house, but had simply provided contact details, I was interested that my tarot and this lady, this psychic medium, had detected virtually identical stories.
The power of the physical, the element of Earth, is the power of the living moment, here and now. We are exalted in the Earth. We take in air. We take up space.
From The Gilded Tarot
This time is ours. Our inheritance of Earth. Our ace card in otherworldly dealings, the Ace of Pentacles. A nice cup of tea? How about a biccie? Fed the cat. Take the dog a walk.
RIP Mam who wrote this poem (23 December 1939- 27 February 2023)
I saw my darling mother’s ghost just once, the day after she died in her own bedroom at home, released from hospital on end of life care. A movement caught my eye and there it was, a faint cloud, a movement on the turn of the stairs.
But she did not linger long. She was out and through “the valley” by the tenth day, and smiling up at hills the other side, clouds chasing sunlight across the tops. A child of the Pennines always. I reckon she has found her way to her own perfect heaven.
Life is for living. But Time is not linear. There is much wisdom in superstition, and we give thanks this All Souls season and every day, for the time we have shared with all those we have loved, who have gone on before us.
No sooner had I posted this article on Substack about the equinox, the harvest festival of Michaelmas, the archangel Michael and his colours of brightest cobalt blue, than my eye was caught by a movement through the sitting room window; the most amazing, brightest electric blue dragonfly out over the pond. So huge that I did a double take, thinking perhaps it was a bird. But there is no bird so blue, or not round here.
Only a kingfisher could be so blue, and I have seen one here before. But no, back it came again. An electric blue dragonfly, an insect warrior spirit, the fiercest hunter on the pond. It begins by hunting underwater in its larval state, and it is lethal, and then, once fledged, is a supreme hunter by air over water. Lethal beauty.
There are many dragonflies here during the summer months, some blue, others golden or pale yellow. But not usually so late in the year.
But I had literally, just moments, before hit the publish button on a piece about the harvest festival of Michaelmas, and the archangel Michael and his armour of brightest blue. The closeness of this timing struck me as odd, or was it a real time synchronicity?
Dragonfly symbolism says that the dragonfly represents change, transformation and maturity, while blue is the colour of serenity, insight and inspiration.
A blue dragonfly is a message from a higher realm, possibly angelic, and is a message that a loved one is at peace. In my case, this would be my darling, mighty little mother who died 27 February on a night when the Northern Lights were seen the length of the British Isles, and we could hear the hooting of short eared owls outside the bedroom window. Two treatments of IV antibiotics had failed to stop pneumonia, and now, in accordance with her wishes, she had been brought home on what they termed “end of life care.”
(The hospital ward was bedlam on occasion, but in general the NHS were wonderfully kind,quick and efficient at this,her time of extremis)
So now I drew a Tarot card. What was the ‘message’ of the dragonfly? And by extension, what was the ‘message’ from Michael, archangel of the South, whose name means, ‘who is like God’?
A warrior of Air, a gigantic human dragonfly, an armed angel wearing blue.
Astrologically, this card classically represents a man belonging to one of the air signs, particularly the fixed sign of Aquarius, though he may be a Gemini or Libra subject. Volodymyr Zelenskyy is an Aquarius sun sign subject. Donald Trump is a Gemini sun sign subject. Now we are in Libra territory. My spouse, Il Matrimonio is a Libra sun sign subject, and served in the UK military a long time ago, and served as a helicopter pilot in the Army Air Corps. Vladimir Putin is a Libra sun sign native, though his year of birth is uncertain, whether it is 1952 as officially stated or 1950.
This king’s natural ruling element is Air.
Attack by air may mean missiles, with an eye to Crimea or The Black Sea, though I fear we won’t see an end to this war in Ukraine in 2023. I don’t know, of course, but Scorpio or Sagittarius timing is looking more likely to me right now as viewed through the cards, late in 2024, and I pray that this is wrong.
But ‘attack by air’ may just as likely mean a political battle of wills, or misinformation, or airborne infections. My brother has covid now for the third time, though in his case it is only unpleasant and not dangerous, and he has had some, but not all of the boosters.
Many years ago I was diagnosed with a leaky aortic heart valve, now diagnosed as heart failure, and earlier this week had a scan, pending analysis and feedback from the cardiologist (The King of Swords can indicate a surgeon or surgery.)
I have lived with all this a long time. I am not alarmed, and whatever the findings, will not be rushed or pressured in respect of decision making.
Beyond the sun sign meanings associated with this blue human dragonfly, Aquarius rules the astrological Eleventh House of Community, ideas, science. IT and technology. More big news in the space industry any time soon, then.
The message of Archangel Michael, the coincidental dragonfly, and then the King of Swords can be seen and understood equally as something or nothing.
The broadest meaning of the message, whether this is understood as being meant for me personally, or for the wider collective at this turbulent time seems to be,
The Truth will come to light. Confusions will come clear.
Coping strategies: keep your eyes open and keep your cool, no matter what. This way, we can avoid making anything worse. Hold your temper, your tongue and your nerve. Do your research. In the meantime, tread lightly, if decisively. No going stamp-about in the face of provocation. Stand your ground but go high, stay high. Do not buckle. But do buckle up. Not because of any imminent threat, but simply because life right now demands more resilience than it has done at other times.
The dragonfly is a promise of change. A blue dragonfly is change for the better. And on a personal note, I know my mother has reached and attained the wild blue yonder. I felt her, saw her go through the valley on the tenth day after her passing. What she was looking at now, I have to say, looked rather like North Yorkshire, and she was looking away from me, looking up and smiling, clouds chasing the sunshine across the hills.
A rather down to earth vision of paradise, one might feel. Limited perhaps by my own imagination. How do we picture what is so very far beyond our ken? But my mother used to say of herself, that she was all her life, a child of the Pennines. She grew up in Lancashire and used to say the people of Lancashire were peculiarly and particularly warm and kindly. After her children had all left home, she lived her last thirty years and died in her home in Teesdale, on the south bank of the river Tees, marking the old limits of North Yorkshire (and the people of Yorkshire do like to say of Yorkshire that it is God’s own country.)
But to return to that blue dragonfly, and the archangel Michael and his battle with The Devil is above all, a liar, and he is not our friend. Whatever entraps us, takes us into dependency, helplessness or obsession-whether it is our own worst fears, or our deepest desires; whether it is to do with another person, or situation, or a substance addiction, it is not our friend.
See the chains around their necks.
We will all die one day, ain’t that the truth. And people that we love will die before us, and we shall bear witness to their passing, and be left to grieve and mourn their absence, but to be grateful that they were here, and that we knew them, and that now they have gone free and gone forward.
The truth is sometimes painful, but it sets us free, so goes the wise old saying. Michael went into battle with Lucifer in defense of God’s Law, and Humankind. His element is fire, the ultimate fire of creation, and his weapon is the sword of truth.
The battle angel Michael offers safe escort to the souls of the newly dead on their journey back home to the origins of everything beyond the stars.
His colours are blue. It might be any colour of blue, but in battle array, he wears the hottest cobalt blue.
Most of us know our sun sign or sign of the Zodiac, but what does the constellation look like in the night sky, and what’s the story behind it?
The season is the reason.
It’s time to meet Virgo again, and get to know her better.
Virgo Season 2023
We are entering the zodiac territory of Virgo 23 August and we’ll stay there until 23 September.
Virgo is a mutable Earth sign, representing the changing of the seasons as we approach the end of summer and the beginning of autumn in the northern hemisphere (or the end of winter and into early spring in the southern hemisphere.)
It is harvest time- ‘the season of mists and mellow fruitfulness’ (From An Ode to Autumn by English poet John Keats) Virgo represents the classical Hellenistic goddesses of wheat and agriculture. The brightest star in the constellation of Virgo, far brighter than our own sun, is Spica, aka ‘the ear of wheat’.
Virgo the Maiden is the sixth sign of the zodiac, and rules the sixth house and the concepts of daily routines; work, service, order, analysis and analytics, food, harvests, health, digestion, hygiene- and crafts
Virgo is traditionally ruled by Mercury, planet of communications, inquiry, science, commerce, trade and travel. This symbolic planetary influence brings to the Virgo-born subject, an enlarged curiosity and a combination of analytical ability, but also a certain contemplative, humanitarian or even mystical quality.
Traditional Associations
Zodiac symbol of Virgo
Date: August 23-September 22
Symbol: The Virgin
Element: Earth
Quality: Mutable (Sagittarius and Pisces are also Mutable, suggesting these subjects are capable and versatile; generally inclined to conform and go with the flow for the greater good.)
Ruling planet: Mercury (Travel and all forms of communication)
House: Sixth, ruling health, habits and routines
Colours: green, white and yellow
Body: The digestive system
Birthstone: Carnelian
Flowers: small bright flowers such as the buttercup
Tarot: Major Arcana card: The Hermit (introspection, perception, analysis, health, care for nature)
Minor Arcana cards: The 8,9 and 10 of Pentacles/ Coins.
The Hermit from The Golden Tarot, Kat Black
Astronomy
Via Wiki: Credit Till Credner
The zodiac sign of Virgo gets its name from the constellation of Virgo; the largest constellation in the zodiac, and the second largest in all the visible sky after the constellation of Hydra
It’s mind-boggling to consider that our own Sun is just one star of the Milky Way, and the Milky Way is part of a collection of galaxies known as the Local Group. This contains three large spiral galaxies: the Milky Way, Andromeda, and the Triangulum Galaxy, as well as a few dozen dwarf galaxies.
But The Local Group is just one member of the Virgo Cluster; a collection of 1200-2000 galaxies that stretch across 15 million light-years of space. And the Virgo Cluster is just one cluster in the Virgo Supercluster.
The Virgo constellation is visible from all around the world. In the northern hemisphere, it’s most visible in the evening sky from mid-March – the start of the planting season- to late June. In the southern hemisphere, look for it in the autumn and winter.
Own image. Free to share. Credit Katie-Ellen Hazeldine, True Tarot Tales.com
It’s a bit of a stretch, picturing a person. But add in a few more of her stars and now we can see her, lounging semi-recumbent, dangling something, holding it in one hand. This is the star Spica, a blue-white giant. Its name comes from the Latin, meaning an ‘ear of grain’- a sheaf of wheat.
The star Vindemiatrix, ‘the Grape-Gatherer,’ as soon as it was seen at daylight, is the sign, or used to be, that now was the optimal time to pick the grapes.
But if the constellation of Virgo is most visible late March- late June, then why are the birth dates for the sign of the zodiac August 22-September 23rd?
The constellations of the zodiac are not to be confused with the signs which were named after them. Once upon a time, the dates of the signs reflected the constellations directly overhead at the same time, but they have since separated.
This drift away from that real time matching up of constellations and zodiac signs is due to the effect of the Earth’s wobble over a long period of time; every 26 000 years, creating an effect known as the precession of the equinoxes.
This does not change the symbolic link between the constellation and the sign named after it. Western or Tropical astrology is based on a symbolic, and an arithmetic, and not a strictly astronomical model. The western zodiac as we know it today, the celestial wheel of 360 degrees divided by the 12 constellations fully straddling the ecliptic, and with the signs named after those 12 selected constellations, was codified in the second century AD by Ptolemy, Greek astrologer, astronomer and mathematician.
History & Mythology
Virgo from Urania’s Mirror, Public Domain
Shala was an ancient Sumerian (Iraq) goddess of grain -and also compassion. Why link these two things? Famine is suffering. A good harvest was seen as a blessing of the gods. What is planted in the spring must yield a crop in the autumn or famine follows. But this cannot be guaranteed from one year to the next.
From early times, more than ten thousand years ago, Shala was associated with the constellation of Virgo and vestiges of symbolism associated with her continue, such as the naming of Spica, the ‘ear of grain’, even as the deity’s name changed from age to age, and culture to culture.
The Shala Mons is a mountain on Venus named after the goddess Shala.
In 10th century BC the Babylonians called part of this constellation, “The Furrow,” again, referring back to Shala.
While this is only one myth of the origin of Virgo, she is seen as a bringer of crops throughout all myths. In Egyptian mythology also, the arrival of Virgo in the night sky meant harvest time. Ceres (we think of the word ‘cereal’) or Demeter, the Greco-Roman goddess of the harvest, was the mother of Persephone.
It was the same with the Greeks and Romans “Spicifera est Virgo Cereris” — “The Virgin with her sheaf belongs to Ceres,” The Astronomica“, Manilius, 1st century AD.
When lonely Hades abducted Persephone to live with him in the underworld, her distraught mother, Demeter, went searching, and was enraged to discover that Zeus had known all along where Persephone was, but had turned a blind eye to Hades’ abduction.
Demeter demanded that Zeus help her bring Persephone home, and when he didn’t, she went on strike and the harvests failed. The people and the livestock starved. Humanity might have perished altogether had not Zeus finally intervened and insisted that Hades send Persephone home, and sent Hermes to collect her.
Hermes descended to the Underworld where he discovered Persephone, no longer a wretched, weeping, homesick girl. She had become a woman, a wife. She was the radiant queen of the gloomy Underworld, the apple of Hades’s eye, and he had built for her the most beautiful gardens he could contrive, with underground pools, and gems and stalactites.
Persephone now loved Hades. But she missed her mother, Demeter, and she desperately missed the light, and if she hadn’t developed the most almighty vitamin D deficiency by now, she was either eating plenty of fish or the nutritionists don’t know their stuff.
So Hermes passed on the order from Zeus, “send the girl home, pronto,” and Hades agreed that Persephone could go home. But he had conditions. Persephone must not eat anything until she arrived home again to her mother.
Hades had no intention of giving up Persephone, Zeus or no Zeus, and he gave her a handful of pomegranate seeds, knowing how much she loved them. A few seeds didn’t count as food, he said. And Persephone believed him and ate some on her way home. Or who knows. Perhaps she knew perfectly well what he was up to.
Painting by Frederick Leighton, Public Domain
Persephone went home to her mother. But a deal is a deal, and because she ate the pomegranate seeds, she returns to Hades and her life in the Underworld for four months of the year, and then Demeter mourns her child’s absence, the winter returns and the land lies cold and fallow.
The Virgo Archetype
Public domain
All zodiac signs are archetypes, meaning something that is considered to be a perfect or typical example of a particular kind of person or thing,
The signs of the zodiac paint a ‘typical’ portrait of a person born at a particular time of year, in a particular season. A baby born in the summer arrives into a different physical environment from a winter born baby. Different conditions; temperatures, available hours of daylight, seasonal foods available to the mother and so on, with potential physical and constitutional effects.
The archetype of Virgo is the Craftsman, paying careful attention to every detail, taking pride in doing the job, whatever it is, to the highest standard possible. There’s no substitute for skill and hard work, according to Virgo.
The major arcana card in the Tarot representing Virgo is The Hermit, as previously mentioned, denoting a deep-rooted sense of connection to Nature. Here is wisdom, maturity and the value of solitude and self-sufficiency. The Hermit represents work and the principle of service – the desire to help Humanity.
Virgo is ruled by agile Mercury, the fastest moving planet of communication. Virgo’s brain is in overdrive most of the time, but they stay anchored and grounded in common sense by their associated element, Earth.
Virgo is practical but artistically gifted. They are hard-workers who love to better themselves. They think deeply, they love to analyse, and their perceptiveness means that they can always find or create order within chaos. They are honest friends although, being discerning, and analytical, they might have a tendency to analyse you, and point out your strengths and also your mistakes and weaknesses. This can undoubtedly be annoying, though it’s well meant. They may also give great advice because of those same analytical abilities.
The Virgo appearance is generally neat and well groomed.”Slob” is not in their vocabulary. The quest of self-improvement includes personal presentation. They can be incredibly concerned about the impression they give, and even worry about it, but at the same time, they are very ready to help others, maybe sometimes even too generous. Others may try to take advantage of Virgo in a way they would not with, say, Aries, Leo or Scorpio..
But of course there is no such thing in reality as THE Virgo personality. We are all unique individuals. Your zodiac sign (sun sign) is a major clue, the keynote, the baseline, but doesn’t claim to represent the full picture in real life – or even in astrology.
But the Decans tell us just a little more.
What are the Decans?
The decans are nicknamed the ‘thirty six faces of astrology,’ and though they are not regarded as powerful influences in a horoscope chart, they do provide added insights and texture. The first ten days of your zodiac sign are the first decan. The second ten days or so are the second decan, and the last ten days are the third decan.
The decans were a feature of Egyptian astronomy, later adopted by the Greeks and incorporated into astrology.
The visible area of sky as seen from earth is what we call the wheel of the Zodiac, and represents an imaginary circle of 360 degrees. This circle divided by arithmetic into twelve ‘slices’- the zodiac signs we know today.
Each of the zodiac signs represents a 30 degree slice of this imaginary ‘pie in the sky,’ as seen from Earth. Each zodiac sign can be further sub-divided into three blocks of ten degrees, equivalent to about ten days in length. This is not exact, and may vary by a day or two because not every month is the same length. These three sub-divisions of all the zodiac signs are what we call ‘decans,’ from the Greek word for ten.
There is more than one decan system. For the avoidance of confusion, we are using the traditional system, based on the seven planets known to the Ancients.
The Tarot cards shown below are from the Rider- Waite deck, which many Tarot practitioners now refer to as the Waite-Smith, in recognition of the artist, Pamela Colman Smith.
First Decan Virgo
Dates: 23 August-1 September
Planetary ruler: Sun
Tarot card: The Eight of Pentacles: ‘Lord of Prudence,’ art, craft, industry, skill, concentration, application, studiousness, apprenticeship, crafts, heritage, buildings
Look at him. This person is absorbed in his work, and he seems to be enjoying himself. This work has meaning and purpose for him. This is typical of this decan. There is a mixture of quiet warmth and a cool mind with a talent for acute observation and incisive analysis; however this is expressed artistically, commercially or scientifically or in administrative tasks. Virgo is a master of the spreadsheet.
They see more than they say, but they have a talent for communication via the spoken and written word; making many of these subjects potentially great teachers. They are hard-working, industrious. ‘We reap what we sow,’ goes the old saying. This is not necessarily always true or fair. Misfortune strikes plenty of people who have done nothing to ‘deserve’ it. And plenty of wrong-doers escape justice.
However, it is broadly true to say, we can’t reap what was never sown. Wild berries had to be first sown by the wind, or by birds. First decan Virgo understands this better than almost any other sign, except Capricorn and Taurus.
They are serious people but they are cheerful company, faithful friends and partners, devoted in their quiet way.
Second Decan Virgo
Dates: 2-11 September
Planetary ruler: Venus
Tarot card- Nine Pentacles: ‘Lord of Material Gain’ beauty, luxury, hard work that pays off, horticulture, agriculture, viticulture, gardens, vineyards
This decan is associated with Venus, planet of love, beauty –and money. A perfectionist; conscientious, devoted, and above all focused, they can turn anything they do into an art form in its own right.
Notice the hooded falcon on her wrist. She has ‘tamed’ wildness – or chaos. She has tamed her own impulses, learned patience and self-discipline. She will not trade away her tomorrows for today’s gratification.
She has cultivated a home, a garden, a business, and made it thrive, healthy and beautiful. She is financially self-reliant but that doesn’t mean it came quick or easy, any of it. To achieve this she has learned to control the wild falcon representing her impulses, wants and desires. She has learned self-discipline and self-control, the power of deferred gratification.
A squirrel will have no nuts in the winter if it scoffs them all at once, or if it can’t remember where it hid them, because it wasn’t paying attention. This, the second decan of Virgo is often the most capable, conscientious provider for themselves and for others, and they enjoy spoiling their loved ones. But though they have learned how to do without (and at times, life, they have probably had no choice) still, they do crave and value beautiful things.
Third Decan Virgo
Dates: 12-22 September
Planetary ruler: Mercury
Tarot card- Ten of Pentacles:keywords: ‘Lord of Wealth,’ commerce, messages, deliveries, Hermes, home, homeland, ancestry, genetics, inter-generational relationships, inheritance, gifts, legacy, bequests, town planning, art, museums, banks.
Third Decan Virgo is both a creative and a practical thinker. These are proud people, not vain, but dignified – big difference. They need to be their own masters and it’s not about the money, or at least, not for its own sake. These people are careful, prudent, but they are not misers. They have a winning way with people and may work in the public eye; such is their talent for communication; personal, professional, artistic, written and spoken.
Notice the old man surrounded by family, adults, children, and dogs too. Virgo cares for animals. What he or she has built, was created in order to share, to pass on, seeing themselves as part of a bigger picture, a link in a chain of legacy. This could mean money. It could mean ideas. It could mean a place that means everything to them, their own home or their homeland, with a sense of belonging, of being in the right place – to feel this way is a treasure beyond price.
These are family minded people. They enjoy family outings, a walk in the woods, or a trip to the seaside. And they will organize it. Realists with a ‘can do’ attitude, Virgo are makers and menders, and they are usually good with animals too, as shown by The Hermit cards. Eco-warrior is not really their style. But they do care about the environment. Virgo is about food for the mind and the spirit, as well as the body.
Virgo has both feet on the ground. And yet, it is something of an artist, something of a scientist. Like the Hermit himself, something of a sage.
Grounded, rooted in the earth, but looking inwards and upwards, moving to its own dance, steering by your quiet inner star.
Planetary influences this Virgo Season
The month of August 2023 began with three of the five outer planets (Saturn, Neptune, and Pluto) in retrograde, along with the inner planet Venus retrograde in Leo, and the “wounded healer” Chiron.
Mercury goes retrograde on the day of writing, as Virgo season begins on August 23, and then Uranus goes retrograde on August 28
So what?
Retrogrades symbolize a time for reflection and review. In this case, many of us may be feeling that a whole way of life is coming to an end, and we are feeling our way through it – at times it may feel like a veritable sh*t storm.
We may need a cool head and a calm nerve this Virgo season, and Mercury retrograde advises that when the going gets tough, we need to be very careful how we react, and to guard what we say in the heat and stress of the moment.
It’s not necessarily anything to worry about. It’s just, change happens, and sometimes a lot of it happens at once.
“I beg your pardon
I never promised you a rose garden.”
Change is inevitable. We take the rough with the smooth and we learn. We may be wiser and sadder but that’s just Life.
We have a Blue Moon in Pisces 30 August. A moon to dream on. To daydream on. We may experience powerful dreams or even have psychic experiences at this time. We are physically and psychically subject to the tidal pull of the Moon, and the Moon card in tarot is associated with Pisces; 12th House of deepest mysteries. This is a moon for seeing ghosts (though Pisces also rules the feet, and we can hardly get more grounded than that.)
Venus, planet of money matters, luxuries, pleasures, self image and relationships stations direct again 3 September, and The New Moon in Virgo 17 September, start bringing things more back to normal again. Back to school, and all that.
But for so many of us, this will be a new normal. Something has shifted so profoundly, that we know nothing will be quite the same again.
True Tarot Tales 
