September’s Full Harvest Moon reaches its peak on Monday, September 20, 2021. But before that, a New Moon in Virgo arrives on September 6. New Moons always carry the energy of new beginnings, novel ways of perspective taking, and allurement into new adventures. Admittedly, Summer’s festive energy can hard to say goodbye to. Like any change in seasons, transitions are not always easy to navigate. Fall is a good time to balance getting back to school, back to business, and manage busy schedules.Squirrels seem to embody Virgo energy in the way they anxiously and intensely sniff out disorder, but not without balancing doings with fun through imitation and play.
September is a unique month because it is commonly referred to as either a Harvest Moon or Corn Moon. Because this Full Moon is nearest to the Autumn Equinox on September 22, it is called the Harvest Moon. In Ojibwe, it is called the Falling Leaves Moon. Our ancestors noticed that the moonrise would come soon after sunset, so the abundance of natural bright moonlight allowed for plentiful harvesting of summer crops.
The Fall Equinox is Nature’s way of reflecting equality between the energies of masculine/feminine, light/dark, yin/yang. After that, our clocks turn yin-ward as our days begin to get darker till we hit the Winter Solstice, the darkest day in the Northern Hemisphere on Tuesday, December 21. In the Southern Hemisphere, it will be the Spring Equinox in September, and then Summer Solstice in December. Energetically, Equinoxes and Solstices are good times to entertain opposites, meditate on wholeness and relax on polarities in your consciousness.
Artwork by Barbara Merlotti
A Full Harvest Moon yields wisdom that it is nuts to keep doing the same thing over and over . . .
And expect different results.
Now is the time to get back to school, back to business, get organized and prepare for a rainy day fund.
Autumn Equinox is Nature’s way of showing us equality between masculine and feminine energies,
both within our beings and in the world around us.
After that, dark yin forces wax on until they climax on the Winter Solstice in December.
When you think you’re out of supplies, losing your acorns and
feeling like your being driven nuts;
Picture a Squirrel to help you
prepare for back to school assignments projects, tasks
and other responsibilities.
What are you doing to get ready for going back to school?
Are you working with your parents, grandparents,
guardians, coaches, teachers, family members or other caregivers to help make
a successful change in your daily schedule?
Squirrel guides us into the realm of getting back to school and down to business . . .
While looking at the weather forecast ahead,
we are preparing for a winter storage or a time when resources are less plentiful.
Picture sobering up, getting organized and cross-referencing your planner
so that busy fall schedules will not drive you mad!
Squirrels are a good reminder that solid mental health looks like
the realization that doing the same thing over and expecting different results –
is likely to drive you nuts!
Autumn Equinox reminds us of the transitory balance of light and dark energies . . .
Yin (Feminine) and Yang (Masculine)
Are dancing together in equal dance-step.
In the Northern Hemisphere, we are moving further into the dark nights of our souls
to reach its zenith on the Winter Solstice in later December.
On the opposite side of the same coin –
Our friends in the Southern hemisphere know a similar energetic balanceby
awakening to a Vernal Equinox in their Spring.
They will see the sunlight expands as darkness contracts
Reaching its climax on the Summer Solstice.
At this time, Nature reflects a most sweet and satisfying sensual equanimity . . .
If only fleetingly and transient
Commentary:
Fall and Spring Equinoxes are similar in the sense that masculine and feminine energies are in balance and reflected that way in Nature. Given that we are part of Nature, these are good times of year to meditate on these energies fluctuating together in natural equality both intrinsically and outwardly. This is an especially good time of year to marvel at the co-creative universal impetus for an egalitarian New World. Of course the building blocks of this new way of living on this Earth starts with you! The light of masculine-yang is the opposite side of the same coin as the dark of feminine-yin. We cannot get to the light unless we traverse the dark. Conversely, we cannot know the dark unless we walk in the light. Yang is expressive and outward in its movement. Yin, on the other hand is receptive and inward in its expression. Those of us in the Northern hemisphere can stand to realize that our friends in the South are experiencing energetic alignment in much the same way we are, absent they will be moving in a masculine-yang-light direction, whereas those of us in the North are moving in a feminine-yin-dark direction. If you prefer the dark and it is the opposite time of year where you live – the good news is that you have something to look forward to. In the meantime, we might as well find a way to accept, appreciate and even embrace the opposite of our energetic preference.
The Full Sturgeon Moon peaks on Sunday, August 22, 2021 at 8:02 A.M. Eastern Time. Our ancestors named this Full Moon after Sturgeon because August traditionally represented the peak seasonal catch of these mighty fish. Fish are highly sensitive creatures, and water is a powerful conductor of sound vibration. Keep in mind that humans are made up of mostly water. It is scientifically proven that we can influence our thoughts and can co-create our reality through the power of positive self talk. Might as well give our purposeful attention toward collaborative co-creative, fluid thinking over fixed, stagnant ideas. If there’s a fish that captures the expression ‘stirring the pot’, it’s Sturgeon. Given that Sturgeon have been around for over 130 million years, they reveal a survival instinct that should catch our attention, if you’ll pardon the pun.
Spiritually, Sturgeon’s ability to thrive, in spite of the many Climate Changes they have faced over millions of years, truly reflects their resiliency. Now more than ever, humans need to cultivate resiliency on our Planet today. Like Sturgeon, we have a strong survival instinct. But we could stand to build our resiliency at this juncture so that we can weather the changes in Ages we are now facing.We need to understand our interconnection with each other and all creatures from Mother Earth and the Universe. Co-regulation means that we can be in our heads and our hearts with each other in ways that both honors our diversity and recognizes our unity.
Artwork by Barbara Merlotti
A Full Sturgeon Moon awakens the magic of color in the theater of life.
But be careful of getting caught up in your own fantasies
of turning everything you touch into gold.
True wizardry is the knowledge that eating humble pie is good food for the soul.
Follow Dragonfly’s flight plan for a magical mystery tour.
Imagine flitting about with a playful, light-hearted sense of detachment in your energy field.
Have you ever heard of the story of the Emperor’s New Clothes?
Picture a Dragonfly to add color to your Life
Flit away any burdens your soul might be carrying
You don’t have to plug truth into a computerized search engine to learn about
what is really true and real
Are you focusing on what others are telling you?
Or are you paying attention to how people make you feel onthe inside?
Dragonfly inspires us to be light on the feet –
with magical colors of waning sunlight
See through illusionary smokescreens through the
laser precision eyes of a spiritual watcher
What hidden aspects of yourself want to come out into the sun and
dance in the daylight for others to see?
A Full Sturgeon Moon signals a peak seasonal catch . . .
Might as well swim with the current instead of pushing against the primordial power of water
Dragonfly breathes magic and color
into the ordinary doings of everyday life
A long time ago . . .
Dragon had the Midas touch of always going straight for the gold
But a wise guy called Coyote tricked Dragon by shrinking him down to a fly
so that he could eat a slice of humble pie
Do you need a change in habit?
What good are your lucky charms
If you get consumed by your own facade?
Let go of the shores and surrender to Life’s oceanic bounty
Are you holding yourself back with programmed beliefs that want to
break out of their boxed in mental compartments?
Lighten up by picturing a dragonfly making dazzling aerial feats
in the wide open vastness of your infinite inner space . . .
Ask for directional guidance to see through illusionary smokescreens –
Allow transformational pathways to become self-evident truths
Summer is a powerful time to act and create change in your life!
But it won’t be long before Nature reflects a colorful transition –
when Autumn leaves behind fleeting energetic balance and fallen old selves
Life is a mystery – isn’t the destination really the adventure of the journey?
Commentary:
August is a mysterious month. It is a time where it feels very much like the heat of summer will last forever. But even early on in the month – if you look carefully, you can see subtle evidence that fall is coming. Perhaps it’s a fallen leave or a hint of color that looks out-of-place in a treeline of green. Dragonflies are colorful creatures that do incredible feats. They are good reminders that it is a magical, mysterious and colorful world out there. Use their energies to see through the smoke and mirrors and awaken a more authentic and meaningful life experience. Remember to get out and play outside and meditate on the healing application of water.
Take care of yourselves everyone,
Ari
In case you missed it, here is a Chakra meditation video demonstration that I recorded recently. You can also find a multimedia description on the meditation page of this website:
May the sign of a male deer’s antlers point you into a doe’s yin-ward, gentle allurement into new adventures. Pay purposeful attention to the seasonal synchronicities that July opens up in your consciousness . . .
August is just around the corner. Even in its notorious ‘dog days’, if you look carefully, you’ll see early evidence of the subtleties of Autumn arriving. Perhaps an early fallen leaf, or another hint of Fall in the air.
Soon it will be back to school and back to business. Light and dark will be equal again on Wednesday, September 22nd.
Artwork by Barbara Merlotti
A Full Buck Moon wakens the return of the serpent to respond to the poisonous venom with medicinal healing energy of Snake. Out of the ashes, a Phoenix Rises. Growing pains are only an inevitable and natural part of life. But the stories you project onto your pain only adds more scar tissue to your wounds. Snake can help show you how to shed your old self and change the snake holes of your soul’s path.
What might look like a poisonous snake, could become the new skin of a healing tonic in your Life. Picture a Snake to see through the smokescreen of opinions that others might have about you, and slither into the truth of your own, unique identity. Are you sick from eating something bad for you? How are you feeling after getting a good night’s sleep, eating mostly fruits, plants, whole foods, spending time unplugged, and playing outside?
This month, we get in touch with our reptilian kin . . .
We are inspired to shed our old skins!
A Full Buck Moon arrives with the growth of new deer antlers
sprouting out of the foreheads of male deer.
As such, we transform the toxicity of venomous snake-bites
into an alchemy of soulful healing.
Might as well breathe in Divine air in the form of crystalline love-light!
Stoking the fire burning within . . .
A passing Summer Solstice,
Gently nudges us closer to feminine yin.
Meditation on Snake awakens medicinal transformation . . .
The time is now for heartfelt connections.
But don’t forget to mind your head!
Disasters leave a crematorium of ashes smoldering underground;
igniting new trees to leave underground darkness and branch out into the light.
Pain and suffering are hellish tragedies of Life . . .
Sometimes it’s hard not to feel derailed when riding along subways of unwanted emotions.
A sacred marriage between energetic masculine and feminine kin;
Awakens magical rebirths by shedding dead skin.
Commentary:
We live in a world full of toxicity. We are constantly being bombarded by lots of energies that leave us feeling depleted. Whether its heavy metals in our bodies, pollution, electromagnetic frequencies, radiation, a shrinking ozone layer, drugs, etc. – there are so many ways to bring us down or perk us up. But in spite of being bitten by these garden variety of venoms, there is so much help waiting to slither in from the spirit realm. All we have to do is ask. Just imagine the possibilities if every one of us started to do this from a clean place in our hearts – without any expectation of getting something in return. It will come about and reflect in our outer world when enough of us shed our old skins and open up to becoming something new. In this way, we will leave behind a clean energetic footprint for others to follow by being a role model. It’s like flagging a path for others to follow toward the trail head, to use a hiking metaphor. The trick is to not get stuck in our primitive lizard brain, or reptilian brain. It is easy to become trapped in survival mode – robotic and lost in the everyday busyness of life. But the same systems that oppress can liberate. It is encouraging to know that alternative energy really does start with you. We can all incorporate a meditative way of living by simply becoming mindful of our breathing, picturing calming and peaceful thoughts, expecting synchronicity and focusing on the positive. Enacting a walking meditation, if you will, really does change our experience with reality and energizes our bodies. This process of transformation is contagious and literally becomes your new normal.
April starts out as an Aries time of year, the first sign of the Western Zodiac. Energetically speaking, there is a feeling of a new year in the air. Yesterday’s New Moon reflects that. Moreover, “New moons, which occur every 29.531 days, are about release, dissolution and beginning anew. As the first sign of the zodiac, Aries is about breaking ground, blazing trails, taking risks and venturing into often uncharted territory.” Or as soul psychotherapist Deborah El’Elia puts it, Aries “is a fiery energy that can help us know what it is that we really want to create in our lives, as well as tap into the I Am Presence!”
Here in the Northern Hemisphere, Spring is springing, and a Full Pink Moon arrives on Monday, April 26th in most places around the planet. Many of our ancestors called this moon pink based on the vegatative spreading of the “moss pink” wildflower in North America. There are other descriptive names as well, including the Breaking Ice Moon by the Algonquin, which reflects the “increased mobility of the early spring season.”
Frogs are waking up again, and are really making their presence known, especially the peepers and wood frogs. It’s not a coincidence that this month’s Full Moon is also named after Frog by some tribes. There is something cleansing and purifying about the mystical vibrations of Frog medicine. The stories about how their ribbet calls on April showers to bring May flowers makes sense energetically for a good spring cleaning for the soul. This is good medicine, and we really need that after a long Winter, as things have gotten pretty cold and dark there. If you think of the swampy bog areas where frogs thrive, we can visualize them hanging around lily pads. Amazingly, lotus flowers grow out of them, seemingly out of nowhere, and in spite of gnarly areas that aren’t typically perceived as beauty parlors. But what more primordial potential does a lotus flower spring from, if you’ll pardon the pun? As humans, are we not like that? Sometimes, if you want to calm your racing thoughts that are driving you crazy, try visualizing a frog, really getting in touch with its character, and assertively say to yourself, “stop!” Can you see why the Lotus Flower is such an inspirational mantra in Buddhist Psychology?
Additionally, April’s Full Moon will also be the first of two consecutive “Super Moons” in 2021. A supermoon appears slightly larger than other Full/New Moons because it occurs at the same time as its orbit is closest to the Earth. But if you want to see any Full Moon really look super, then watch any of them when they are rising or setting. May’s supermoon will also be a total lunar eclipse.
When I reflect on Aquarius, the Vernal Equinox, Easter, and the Aries New Moon, I think about the resurrection of light, Christ Consciousness, and a New Year ahead. Remember that Aries is the first sign on the Western Zodiac. Moreover, the resurrection of this Christ Consciousness to our Planet appears to be a mystical connection to the prophecies of Indiginious People that posited that humanity was seeded by visitors from other worlds and dimensions, and would someday return. In much the way as it says in the Genesis section of the Bible, “Let us create man (humankind) in our image.” Have they ever really left? Keep in mind that Christ was an embodiment of this divine consciousness, and believed that we are all capable of this mystical vibration.
According to petemedium, from ‘A Land Down Under’, “With (US President) Biden comes Aquarius in its conception. From this month of April, we will start to see the gradual growing and establishing of, not just another liberal Presidency, but the first Presidency in this New Age.” As with any Karma, this administration has inherited what has been handed to it. Don’t expect the Establishment and the Billionaire Class to loosen its grip without resistance.
“Let the old be released now, the old ways and beliefs that keep us stuck. If you cannot believe in a new and better world, you are part of the problem. ‘They’ have won you over with their programming. They have convinced you that you are worthless if you do not get with the program. Who is ‘They’? It is the paradigm that keeps those who are entitled, entitled. They are not the enemy to be hated.”
Keep in mind that while the sunlight of yang is rising in the Northern Hemisphere, the dark nights of yin are rising in the Southern Hemisphere. Either way, the equal equinox dances of light and dark are becoming more dramatic with their oscillations again, as they break away from the Vernal and Autumnal Equinoxes on opposite sides of the planet. But wherever you are on the planet, the winds of the astrological Eclipse Season are blowing in, and “will unleash more exciting energies with eclipses on May 26 and June 10”, as spiritual guide, and professional astrologer Leo Knighton Tallerico reminds us.
From a multidimensional perspective, the spiritual awakening we are going through on the planet now is a transitional process from an old paradigm into a New Age. This quantum leap reflects “the doors of perception” being cleansed so that humanity has the eyes to “see things as they truly are.” The veils appear to be thinning more than usual because we are developing the spiritual eyes and ears to see and hear. The wisdom of the Tao teaches us that when we change the way we look at the world, the world literally changes the way that it looks. In that light, “people are waking up all over the country and planet! Old stories that lead to Dead Ends are ending. New stories are being opened, stories that show how Nature and the Universe are joined and are moving us forward in Evolution.”
Furthermore, when contemplating the sacred geometrical Arcturian wisdom of remembrance, consider the following positive self-talk mantra: “the energy of remembrance helps you reach your inner knowing, which is where your real strength is. We often think we are not capable of doing something or think we are not ready to do something. Realize that all strength is already inside you and that you only need to remember.”
If we are being present with the awareness of remembrance, it is clear to see that we are living in a time when we don’t need a middle man guru to tell us how to accelerate our youth in this reform school known as earth. Also, the spirit of Weasel inspires a lesson plan that amplifies the importance of receiving silent messages that come from the soul, which is akin to a higher vibrational mind to mind, or telepathic communication. Of course, we all know the background noise of anxiety driven thoughts, aka the Chattering Monkey Mind. Nothing against monkey’s, as they are our distant cousins. But as we learn to tame the “downstairs” part of our brains, the inner voice of our “upstairs” brain area, or prefrontal cortex can become more alive. We know this reality by learning how to tune into it, and discern the quiet wise mind from the distracting background noise of the reptilian brain, where the amygdala tends to get hijacked. Mindful attention to the energy of Weasel can help you with self regulation, and assist you from smoking out the smokescreen of everyday life. Meditation on Weasel can help you get in touch with your silent observer, which can help you relax your identification with your thoughts, and emotions. Once you are the observer, you realize you are not your thoughts or emotions, and that is a very freeing experience.
What’s more, while listening to a podcast recently, these lyrics resonated about why we humans forget to give each other unconditional love: “We miss small moments that are grand ones” because being human on the planet today is like “being on a hamster wheel.” The trick is that we need to get in touch with our inner child, and remember what it was like to be a soul before we became more adult like in our personality development. From that place, we are more equipped to come from a clean place of love.
Looking back at the internalized oppression that I felt growing up with a parent who struggled with depression, and addiction, I can identify with what it’s like for someone who identifies as LGBTQ or BIPOC, who perhaps feels like they can’t breathe. From this position of empathy, I can understand how my experiencial feeling has a connection to a heavy feeling of suffocation.
However, because of the way I physically looked to others, I could blend in more easily than people in minority positions that are physically differently observable. From this perspective, I was more overtly readily accepted by the dominant, popular, and mainstream culture that we were all born into. Even if I could taste the fringes, I had the privilege of growing up with Middle Class values in an American Dream that probably seemed a bit more attainable to me, even if by a bit of long shot. But not everybody does or even knows what those values or that dream is. And whether you do or do not buy into these values or dreams, they can be hard on our hearts. This can be especially true for sensitive people, and regardless of whether or not you achieve them as goals or not.
Furthermore, a hardened heart is probably more alarming, when you think about the invited karmic “lifetime to lifetime” dharma you are working out. Perhaps you have been wise to the ways of the world, learned how to play the game, and know how to win at it. But at the end of the day, it can be a sad story, and lonely old road if all you have to show for it is fool’s gold. You can’t take those possessions with you after you die.
More importantly, remember that most of who you are today is a formless, energetic being or a soul that lives in your body that is also made up of a mind and a spirit. Contemplate when you were a soul before you incarnated into a mortal and were born on this planet. Why would you have agreed to come here, and chosen the form that you have? From a place of victim consciousness, you might say that you had no choice, that it was luck of the draw. But if you are willing to shift your mindset, and take responsibility for the cards that you were dealt, that can be very empowering. Just use your imagination to entertain this possibility and see what happens. In my experience, it relaxes a sense of victimhood, and entitlement. This mindful practice can be quite empowering and liberating. It is an honor and a privilege to see that you have chosen to come here as a spiritual being to have a human experience, whatever that experience might look like. If you are in a position of privilege, you might as well do something with your privilege to help others who do not share your position. Acknowledging your privilege, and holding a position of non-judgmental curiosity, compassion, and empathy toward someone else’s plight is the least you could do. You don’t need to make yourself feel superior or carry a wound that suffers from guilt. Both sets of baggage will just drag you down.
Finally, manifesting abundance transcends how much money you bank, or equity you build. If you read between the lines of the book The Secret, you’ll see that truth. Remember that energy is energy. It’s what you do with it that counts. Abundance isn’t really about what materials or success you accumulate, what you do or get people to do for you. Rather, on a deeper, and more meaningful level, abundance is about how you make other people feel that moves them, and inspires them to awaken their own greatness. It might come from the repeated exposure to the yinful reception of silent blessings, as well as peaceful, benign thoughts directed outward toward others, like yang does. In that light, abundance is manifested in the power of love that shines through your Being. And like the energy that Master Jedi Yoda radiates, you just do that with the invisible, yet priceless gift of your presence, and without any expectation of outcome.