Full Moon in Gemini- The Rhythm of Rebellion

Untitled by Santiago Sito, CCL

Good god, its holiday season again?  Ugh, here I am still trapped in Leo season… What happened to this year? Seems like just a week ago I was lounging by a pool under the SoCal desert sun, and now its too cold for a bro-tank (which doesn’t stop me from wearing one, mind you!) and I have to deal with my family again?! #IsItAriesSeasonYet?

I don’t have much of a preface, so let’s just jump in to it like so much gravy, shall we? Besides, since when is Saggo about subtlety and buildup?

The Sun, Moon, Mercury, Mars, Saturn and Neptune- Okay, just breathe you guys. Yes this is a lot, but you can handle it. The lead up to this is exhausting, mostly because of Saturn-Neptune draining Mars’ vitality. The way out with this is through- Saturn is your champion, stick to your routine, put in your work and get shit done, even if you need to over-caffeinate and potentially get something far stronger than caffeine. Hustle and get rewarded, that’s the promise of Mercury. Once this hits, however, you are looking at a whirlwind of activity and drama that doesn’t stop til Cap Season. Maybe longer, because the cardinals are anything but boring in these times.  All this will of course coincide with a hellaciously bad Thanksgiving for those who celebrate this week- Everyone will get offended, you will drink too much and end up with your foot in mouth, and the exact topics no one wants discussed will be dragged out. This pallor will not last long, however, and everything should go back to normal within a week. Things will be forgiven but not forgotten, so be wary. Just remember its Saggo season, and we’re all a bit bombastic right now.   

Venus, Jupiter, Chiron, Uranus and Pluto- Now to address the elephant in the room- No, you don’t feel as though there is anything to celebrate right now. That is normal. Shit is terrible in this world. I personally explode with rage every time I see something pop up onto my news feed, thinking “My god, it can’t get any worse than this” but lo and behold, I am proven wrong DAILY. Usually hourly, in fact. How are you supposed to celebrate in the face of so much overwhelming bullshit, which no one seems to be willing to scoop away? First, realize that everyone else around you is probably feeling the exact same, and is also frustrated that they cannot figure out a good outlet to express the frustration, same as you. Don’t run from it. Look into the abyss as much and as long as you can handle. Know what is happening around you, and don’t shirk away. Be authentic. Then, for step 2. THIS IS FUCKING SAGGO SEASON. Put on your stupidest gear, act like a fool and channel Jupiter! Party! Do it as an act of rebellion, the single greatest one you can manage right now. In a world that is trying to destroy our spirits daily, spit in its face and slay the house down! Dance like mad, with every step a reminder of a terrible act, an atrocity in every beat. Do not forget, but honor the wronged with every laugh and smile. Mourn through melody.

New Moon in Scorpio- Savages

big savage tunnel 1911 by Nessie Grace, CCL

These are some psychotic skies, you guys.

I mean, limiting Saturn in expanding  Saggo, while broad-strokes Jupiter is in nitpicky Virgo, Uranus moonwalking backwards on the shag carpet, shocking everyone; and Neptune vaping up a storm, making everyone else choke and so it’s impossible to have any idea what the hell is going on (we get it bro, you vape!)… it’s enough to make a lesser AstroBro hand in his official Augury card! Luckily, you are in the hands of a professional.

Now, for this round the thing is fear. You have a unique opportunity this go-around- You will be aware of your fears, in crystal clarity- But for one brief and shining moment, you will not be a slave to them. This time around, you can make new choices, set new patterns, and break free where you have been held back before. It will be extremely tempting to give in to the temptation of following the same old paradigm, but I swear to you, this is the opportunity you have been waiting for and you will never forgive yourself if you miss it. Hell, the Cardinal Crisis did not spend so much time breaking you and reforging you in its fires to have you go back to the same old rut! No, it did what it did with purpose, and direction- To bring you up to a level that you have never seen before, and to unleash the full potential of what you could become, here and now.

And that’s to say nothing of the trial that is to come…

The Sun, Moon, Jupiter, Chiron and Uranus- Okay, so I love this Astro, I really do. Reminds me of that orgasmicly Aries-Uranian energy we had going, god I wish I could bottle that. Anyway, the main thing you want to look at here is the interplay of Jupiter quincunx Uranus. Now, most readers would see this as an awful and trying aspect- and it is, but only if you aren’t creative enough to see the potential inherent in the challenge. Chiron is also in the mix with those two, as is Eris- now typically these four would be a recipe for disaster, but somehow this particular blend gets it just right. With this Astro, Uranus drops a blessing disguised as a problem in your path and you pause before reacting; Chiron gives you the awareness to see where you have made the mistakes before- Jupiter helps you see what you should do instead, a better way, and Eris gives you the guts to step out of your old ways and into a better you. All the discordant parts moving in harmony for once, and just for a second, you get a glimpse of how your life could be. Make that change, take that plunge- stop relying on your old tricks and get a new one already! Find a better way, and actually make some headway toward your greater goals instead of sitting on your ass and complaining about how you are trapped and not going anywhere! Do better!

Mercury and Pluto- And this is how you do it. When these two get together, it’s pure dead magic; Literally, it’s usually Necromancy (or at the very least, Alchemy). These two are the ones to look for when you want to change everything around and/or within you. Think your way out of your problems, rely on your wits for once- You know exactly how to, think back to when you used to be more desperate and had to make something out of nothing. Make it work. Spin that straw into gold, you know you can do it again! Also, just because All Hallows is over, that doesn’t mean those loved ones who have passed cant still teach you a thing or two, point you in the right direction, if you only honor their memory…

Venus, Mars, Saturn and Neptune- Finally, good relationship news! Venus is no longer dead to me, because frankly I no longer care what she throws at me. This is a very calm and composed Venus we see, not like the bitchy and vindictive one we’ve been treated to as of late. She is riding the afterglow of her conjunction with Mars, so I’m sure that helps. But she’s also getting some good advice and tea from Pallas Athene, and miracle of miracles, our girl is actually LISTENING to what she is saying for once! I honestly never thought I would see the day.  Saturn and Neptune are in the mix as well, Neptune urging her to give up on these booty calls and find the ONE, and Saturn nonchalantly deleting her dating apps while she isn’t looking. The interesting player here is Lilith. She is not sowing chaos for the hell of it, as per usual, but this time she is actually taking the chaos and helping you to synthesize it within yourself so that you can… you know what, it doesn’t matter. What I just realized is that this Astro boils down to one thing- You have a second chance. The failures and setbacks you endured in 2009-2012, the first half of the Cardinal Crisis, before Saturn went into Scorpio- That is what you have a chance to correct. Right now, in 2015-2016. This window will not last forever, so move NOW! Get your shit done, do whatever you have to do- This is your moment to reclaim what you lost, reset your score.

Make it count, guys.

Something Wicked This Way Comes...

Consumed by Corruption, Michael Shaheen, CCL

How far would you go to gain the power to change the world around you? Subject reality to your whims? What lines would you cross? Are there any that you wouldn’t, even if that was all that stood between you and your ultimate expression? What sacrifices would you be willing to suffer? What atrocities would you commit in the name of your own greatest good?

How corrupted and vile would you allow yourself to become in pursuit of your power?

Now that Saturn is officially well and out of Scorpio, and into Saggo, these thoughts weigh heavily on my mind. Today I realized, driving home and listening to one of my new favorite songs for the 300^th or so time, that Saturn in Sagittarius will be testing you, specifically on your most deeply held ideals. He will push and prod you, having your back pressed further and further up against the wall, to see what guns you will stick to, and what you will sacrifice in the name of self-preservation. This will not be easier than Scorpio. He will not be kind. He will force you to see where you have already surrendered to the monster within you during his Scorpio trip, and he will engineer situations to force you further down that path. What you will find however, is that by following that path, you will gain more and more control, strength and power. This comes at a steep cost- the idea of who you were, the good and pure within you, what some would call your soul. It is essentially signing a deal with the devil, as they say.

That is the cost of the fast road.

And lord, you will be tempted. Saturn WANTS you to give in, he wants to see you surrender. And make no mistake, this is you surrendering to yourself. The desire to go faster, do more, do better NOW is you. And it is oh so human. No god, devil, or bloated gasbag of a planet can make you want this- This comes from within you. I can’t tell you whether or not to use it, to go further down into your own corruption, that will be up to you. Lord knows im hardly the spokesperson for restraint, and the slow road. There hasn’t been a line yet that I haven’t been willing to cross. My corruption is so much that it is impossible for me to even remember where I started. I offer no apologies however- if I didn’t make the choices that I made, I wouldn’t be alive to look back and sit in judgment of myself. I know where one old line is still drawn, however; and I am still pure enough to be sickened by the corrupted parts of me, but to be at my maximum I must bring them within me- The poison is my cure. Yet I hesitate on the threshold. Must I really embody that which disgusts me, which I reject? Is there no other way? Acceptance will lead to further corruption, but my current state is nothing more than a stopgap- I am stuck in neutral if I do not move forward. Is it even tenable to try and withstand it? How long can I possibly teeter on the edge? If it is inevitable that I fall further, why am I wasting valuable time and energy fighting what I have no chance against, as it is me locked in a civil war with myself?

I have no doubt that my rambling and questions mirror your own inner monologue. We are all facing this same quandary, in one way or another. I have no more answers than you do, all I offer you at this point is the solace that you do not face this alone. Well, allright that’s a lie. You are in this alone. But you have others with you locked in the same struggle. This will get easier once Jupiter moves into Libra, but by then we will be busy trying not to get dragged under the tsunami that is coming (Summer 2016. It will make the Cardinal Crisis look like chicken shit).

No rest for the wicked.

Lunar Eclipse in Aries- Fight or Flight

Fear by Nathan O'nions, CCL

I open with a confession- I am terrified.

 This is a Lunar Eclipse, at the Moon’s closest approach to the Earth. On this day, above all else, I promise that you will feel. And that, above all else, scares me to death.

I am not a brave or strong man. I am a man who, long ago, figured out how to shut off his own emotional response to just about any situation. It enables me to survive, on nothing but pure bloody-mindedness and refusal to quit, long after I should have fallen. That will not work today. Today, I must face the rotting, necrotic corpse of what I once was. Today I must face the creature that I helped to survive. It is not me, not anymore. What I once was is dead, and I must move on with what is by facing the shattering of the fantasy. The day I am forced to feel again, I fear that the cumulative emotion will tear me to shreds, like the proverbial dam breaking and unleashing a torrent.

You will all face this in one way or another. This one will slip through the cracks in your armor, not matter how tightly you have wrapped it around yourself. You cannot run, you cannot negotiate or talk your way out of it, and you sure as hell cannot fight it. What you CAN do is dive in, and let it envelop and permeate everything that you are. You can give in to it. Stop resisting it and let it do its work. You must jump into the black abyss that holds everything that you fear and everything you want. You may die, alone and scared as you run out of oxygen. You may face terrible creatures, the stuff of nightmares that mankind has never seen; black and terrible things, hell-bent on making you their lunch. Or, you may swim like your life depends on it, giving it everything you have and just a little bit more, and you may emerge into a chamber filled with light, and sweet, sweet oxygen. You may find a reason to live when you hit the bottom and things look their bleakest.

The Sun, Moon, Mercury, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Neptune and Pluto- Yes, you’re reading that right. It’s insane. This is highly concentrated energy, and it can easily crush you if you let it. It’s mammoth, gargantuan, and overwhelming. But know this- This is the paradigm. It’s set now. In the cardinal crisis, things could and did shift monumentally in the blink of a moment. For better or for worse, this is what you have to work with. This is forward motion; unfortunately it’s all uphill. Good for the calves though- Leg day and all. This is all set against the backdrop of the Nodes, as all eclipses are… *editors note- from here its just me rambling. I tried to edit it but it didnt make any sense. Skip to Venus if you want pure astro* Huh. I just realized, mid-sentence why eclipses are so feared- The nodes are massive channels of pure, formless potential energy. Their symbol in the charts looks like gateways. When the sun/moon combines with them, the gate is opened and the energy is released, for better or for worse. Think of it like Ghostbusters (the original, when they open the fridge to the other dimension). It’s up to us to shape what comes through the gate, just like Gozer could not choose its own form- It needed a human for that. Which brings us to Saturn (not that I can even follow my own train of thought on this, but trust me it’s there) Saturn is the one holding this shit together, as he almost always does. He will help bring form to whatever you put your energy into (Mars), bringing it out of the potential and into the real (Mercury-Neptune). Even though it doesn’t seem like it, YOU are the one in command of this energy (Jupiter). Wield it or be destroyed by it (Pluto).

If you will indulge me another reference, I will explain in terms of a really good story. In one of my favorite super nerdy book series, Shannara (There are about 30 or so books so far, and it’s going to be a series on MTV!)  There exist objects called Elfstones (coincidentally, the name of the book they are starting the MTV series with!) which all have different properties. Blue for Seeking, Red for Destruction, White for Protection, and so on, but each one comes with a cost, as magic is never free. There are three of each set, one stone for Head, Heart, and Body. All three need to be present and in tune to work. This is true for all but one stone, the Black Elfstone. It is self-contained and surpasses anything that any of the others can do. Upon its first use, it destroys all in its path at the cost of its user’s life, sacrificing himself for his friends and his mission. Another time it was used as a means of deterrent and ended up turning both users into monsters, warped beyond all former semblance of what they used to be. On its final use, it is used to take on magic that was deadly to any other person- The user was able to take the magic into himself, and upon doing so found both power, wisdom, and a new mission, not to mention a personal catharsis and coming to terms with the use of his own magic that he continually rejected. He suffered a death of sorts, and came out the other side, healed in ways that he was unaware could be healed. He embraced the challenge before him, and refused to allow his own limits, rage and fears stop him from doing what must be done, even if it meant becoming the very thing he hated. Once the crisis was over, he was able to move on and accept what was, by facing it head on. He never looked back, and was better for it.

Venus, Chiron and Uranus- See, this is the shit that scares me. The rest of you are still freaking about the other nonsense that I barely explained. This is dam-breaking Astro if I’ve ever seen it. The catastrophe that you have been trying to hold at bay, the worst case scenario that has kept you up at night, maybe for years, will come to pass. It will be sudden, and all your plans won’t amount to shit. It will be bad. You will need to face it and will not be able to run from it. But no matter how the chips fall, they will fall. This is a good thing, because it is taking so much energy to fear this thing happening, that even if the worst happens, then it will be a relief to no longer have it hanging over your head. It is a brave new world out there, and you can’t take this old fear with you. Your deepest weaknesses and insecurities will be exposed, and you will be vulnerable. You may find yourself all alone. But it’s not the end. In fact, your load just got much lighter, and you can move on to the next stage in your story.

Solar Eclipse in Virgo- Distillation

Foreword- Jesus, its weird being back here. Like putting on an old suit that I never have an occasion to wear... Still it fits though, in the grand scheme of things. You may be wondering why this post is late, and why it isnt on the Darkworkers site. Darkworkers had some technical issues the day I needed to post this, and so I had to find another outlet for it. Fear not, Darkworkers will be back stronger, and much better than before, very very soon. Luckily, this is an eclipse and valid for 6 months. Below is the original, unedited post that didnt quite make it to print.

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I have written quite a few of these over the years, chronicling our journey through time since the early days of the Cardinal Crisis. I have learned a great deal, grown immensely, and found my voice as a writer. One thing I have learned more than anything else? The stars are a bunch of bitches. What can they do against a man with a vision, a goal, and the indomitable will to make it happen? How can they possibly stand against YOU? Most of them are millions and millions of miles away anyhow, who cares what they think? If there is something you desire: something you want to create, achieve or become, then there is no chance in hell that anything can stop you aside from your own unwillingness to bring it into form. Excuses are for those who are not creative or resourceful enough to find a way to make reality their bitch. Break your world, get rid of what is unnecessary, melt down the remains and shape it as you see fit. Just fucking let them HAVE it, darling!

More than anything else I write, this is the point, THE message behind this eclipse. Hell it’s the message for most of them if I’m being perfectly honest. The rest is just window dressing and funny hats.

The Sun, Moon, Mars and Uranus- The one thing that these particular stars are not short on is ENERGY! It is like a thousand shots of espresso in one tiny cup, perched in the hand of one of the most fabulous of the Virgoan fashion designer army, enabling them to bring out and tap their genius. Take the same liberties. This is one of those times where it is tantalizingly close to you, bubbling up to the surface and just aching to be grabbed. Reach out. It’s not a blissful walk in the park however- you will have your challenges to your awesome. Fear, doubt, insecurity, issues and situations that you thought long dead will attempt to drag you back the second you try and bust out of your mediocrity. Use it as your fuel and struggle harder. Break out of the quagmire. 

Mercury, Venus and Pluto- You will be holding your life up to a mirror, and I doubt that your hyper-critical eye will like what you see. That is okay, but get your frustrations out (preferably in list form) and identify why they are frustrating you, and how you can tackle each individual issue in order to live more fully in your own personal Nirvana. Your emotions will be wild and unmanageable and tantrums are likely, but high creative expression, at its very best will be possible as well. Let your passion fuel your expression, and leave your mark on this world NOW, because that is all any of us ever truly have. 

Jupiter and Neptune- These two are this eclipse in microcosm. Well, as microcosm as the macrocosm gets, anyway. And that is fundamentally the heart of the interplay of these two: Micro vs. Macro, You vs. The World, that sort of thing. You will be acutely aware of your mission in this world now, in broad strokes and gut feelings if not explicit detail. It will be far easier to understand your purpose, but will paradoxically be more difficult to find where you fit in the grand scheme. The search for this resolution and for the place you belong is so quintessentially Jupiter in Virgo that it hurts. A greater adventure awaits you- go chase it down, even if it hurts like a motherfucker at first. Quit making excuses, blaming other people for your problems and whining to anyone who will listen- Man up, take some responsibility for once and DO WHAT YOU CAME HERE TO DO ALREADY!

Saturn- Last but certainly never forgotten, the old bag of bones is boring this time at first glance, but upon closer inspection we find that he is actually at the heart of the undercurrents of the eclipse, and the nexus of its most interesting Astro, framing this eclipse in a whole new way. He takes what would otherwise be a singular event, a stumbling block or challenge, and weaves it into the grander tapestry of your life, lending perspective and giving it depth and scope. This moment, while frustrating and confusing now, will one day be something worth remembering, a start to something amazing. Let this be your beginning, and take your first steps into a grand new life.