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When the Sun enters Sagittarius our nights are growing longer than our days and our conscious attention in tandem is seeking an expanded meaning of life beyond our daily toil. The wisdom of our ancestors honored the cycles of the seasons choosing to awaken the story-telling of their life experiences during the lengthening nights when human activity is beckoned inside. In the decreasing daylight of the fall season we find our self spending more hours indoors than out appreciating this time for exploring  unfamiliar territory within our self, and expanding our consciousness we set upon an inner journey home to the source of our creation. For the ancient Maya Civilization this home was found at the center of the Milky Way Galaxy, the World Tree rooted at the crossing point of the Milky Way along the ecliptic in Sagittarius. In Roman mythology Juno, the wife of Jupiter, is responsible for the birth of the Milky Way Galaxy born from the milk of her breast spilled from the mouth of Hercules. More recently, in the 20th century, the astronomers discovering the Galactic Center, a black hole in the center of the Milky Way Galaxy located along the ecliptic at the same place as the Maya World Tree, believe it to be the source of everything in our galaxy including human consciousness. When we are under the influence of Sagittarius we instinctively understand the evolutionary calling of cosmic consciousness expanding our perception of life beyond the contours of our ordinary experiencing taking us to a place different than our material self.  Taking our cue from the symbol for Sagittarius, half man and half horse shooting an arrow to the heavens, when we are under the influence of Sagittarius we aim our sight for the stars.

The motivating force of Sagittarius is our quest for the quintessential meaning of life requiring the full immersion of our mind and senses in a broad experiencing of life. In Greek and Roman mythology  centaurs were creatures born of raw instinct with an unbridled sensuality often expressed in human form as a fun loving and robust sexuality not mired in the tribal mating rituals of either fidelity or commitment. On the surface of life this behavior appears lacking in respect and sensitivity to the feelings and needs of others, yet, if we reach beyond the surface we encounter the unconscious motivate; sensitivity to a stultifying tribal view of reality that compels us to break through the “chains that bind” into a more universal perspective that is respectful of the source of all life

Chiron, half brother to Jupiter, and progenitor of the race of Centaurs, was a wise teacher and healer of gods and humankind alike who himself suffered an incurable wounding which only his death could absolve. He arranged with the Olympian gods to exchange his immortal life for the release of Prometheus, the giver of fire to humankind, by entering Hades and freeing Prometheus from his chained bondage to a rock. The planetary body discovered in the 1970’s and named after the mythological Chiron orbits between Saturn and Uranus offering us on Earth a mediator between our bondage to traditional authority  and our ability to unleash our full creative potential. When we are under the influence of Chiron we are made aware of a wounding we inherited from  the collective experiences of humanity which can only be healed by dying to an aspect of our individuality which has inhibited our conscious awareness. The necessity for our healing is made all the more urgent with the insistence of the current Saturn-Uranus opposition.

Yesterday the Sun entered Sagittarius following Mars and followed today by Mercury. This celestial trio is offering a period of cosmic expansion broadening our perception of what our life can be. Mars our impulse to be, the Sun our essential life force, and Mercury our interpreter of reality, are under the influence of an evolutionary growth in consciousness that can shift our focus from what we do, our achievements in life, to who we are, the discovery of the essence of our life. Admittedly, this journey  is an elaborate odyssey taking the entirety of our life before reaching our final destination, but this month we are given extra guidance from a potent cluster of planetary ruler ship with Jupiter and Saturn at the helm.

Sun, Mars, and Mercury in Sagittarius are disposed by Jupiter in Capricorn, the sign of Saturn’s ruler ship, and in trine to Saturn in Virgo, the sign of Mercury’s ruler ship. Uranus in Pisces is under the  shared ruler ship of Jupiter and Neptune, and Neptune is in Aquarius along side Chiron  and the North Node, all disposed by a Saturn and Uranus shared ruler ship. Venus in Capricorn and Pluto’s ingress into Capricorn cement this cosmic union of an extended celestial family which mirrors the potential unity of the extended family of humanity on Earth. This cosmic flurry of activity promises that we can  manifest an inspired vision for the future if we reach beyond the perceptual box of what is and fully participate with all of humanity to create what can be.

This will be made more clear to us later in December when first Mercury, then the Sun, and lastly Mars square the Saturn - Uranus opposition alerting us on earth that certain structures created to serve society are ready to be fully integrated into the service of a greater humanity; the only caution being that we do not encourage those in authority to “throw out the baby with the bath water”. At the same time it is essential that we clearly understand the nature of the social policies presented in service to society and who exactly in society they serve.

At the end of November Venus in Capricorn dances in harmony with a newly directed Uranus in Pisces before joyfully falling into the arms of Jupiter. Tradition holds sway that when the two beneficent planets, Jupiter and Venus, are in joyful harmony that which we call luck springs eternal. Uranus in Pisces, the sign of exaltation for Venus, further suggests a universal awakening in what we value in life. The only advisable warning is to make sure that we do not become complacent observers expecting the change in our future to come from the efforts of others.  Jupiter and Saturn are telling us that our efforts are an essential component for doing the work needed to accomplish the goal.

Pluto, our celestial ambassador having recently conjoined the Milky Way Galaxy adds a sobering mood to this months celestial euphoria when entering Capricorn; insuring that evolutionary transformation is on our horizon but not before we experience a significant death of an aspect of our self which we have held dear to our heart. This is not a time to fearfully cling to our past if we sincerely want a better future for our self, our tribe, our species, our Earth.

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