"The moment you change your perception,
is the moment you rewrite the chemistry of your body,”
Dr. Bruce H. Lipton
A week following the collapse of the World Trade Center in 2011, I co-facilitated a Creativity Conference at Kripalu Center in Western, MA. Registration for the conference had doubled during that week with nearly ¾ of participants arriving from New York City looking for integration, healing and perspective. There was an intensity within the sessions, the stories and the feelings expressed during the Conference.
During an afternoon break, I decided to take a walk in the woods that surrounded the retreat center property. After climbing over a hill, the path descended into a meadow. The bowl of the sky was a sapphire blue. The sun was shining. There was a light breeze that rustled the grass of the meadow. Small flowers lit up the meadow with color and vibrancy. While the setting evoked beauty, I was deep in my thought and process until I met the unexpected. Standing in the middle of the meadow was a moose, grazing. I came to a full halt, finding myself taking in the whole of the scene, becoming part of the scene. I felt the deep peace embodied in the moose, and felt myself become part of the dream of the moose.
My entire perspective shifted in contemplating the moose. It was a stunning revelation to feel how the moose knew nothing of New York City, the World Trade Center or of terrorists. The moose knew nothing of the trauma and grief and confusion happening in a building a mile away. It was just a gentle and beautiful fall day, and through the presence of this moose, a smile spread through my whole body, responding to the gentleness of the breeze, the warmth of the sun and the beauty of the colors that enlivened the meadow.
By the end of the weekend, participant after participant told a similar story after having a dream while sleeping or being engaged in the creative process of making art. But I was impressed that most participants were telling a different story about their relationship to the events of 9/11 after having ventured out of the building and along a path that led them to an encounter with the natural world.
Looking at the stars in the night sky, sitting by a creek, or watching the flight of a bird, one after another was lifted into a larger and more expansive perception of reality. What had so deeply shaken our lives in the last week was now held as singular moment in the span of all creation. While it had impacted our lives and the lives of many, it had not produced a ripple in the continuity of life. The sun still rose in the morning. The movement of the stars had not altered. The animals were not agitated. While this may seem obvious, it was a startling revelation - to those of us inside a disaster larger than we could wrap our minds around - that there was something larger than the disaster itself.
Sagittarius is a fire sign. It is the fire of wisdom, the fire of vision,the fire that brings us to the brink of the unknown, inspiring an adventurous spirit to embrace something larger, something new, something that has always been there waiting for us to discover.
There are 3 stages to a campfire reflective of the 3 fire signs.
After the crunched paper, kindling and logs have been stacked, a fire is lit. The fire shoots up high, announcing itself with a boldness, and burns fast. This is Aries. Once the fire is going, burning steady, needing less tending, and its warmth is now permeating the immediate vicinity, this is the expression of Leo. Near the end of the evening, when the fire is smaller, hotter, and more condensed, this is the essence of Sagittarius. We can liken it to three stages of manhood: The Warrior, the King and the Sage. Each burn with a different kind of fire, a different gift to bring to humanity.
With Sagittarius, we harness and move from wisdom. Yet, Sagittarius is a Mutable sign. Not fixed, it is adapting and moving with the change that is presented. The fire at the end of an evening burns low and hot. The darkness is more present as the fire emits less light and those gathered around speak in quieter tones. It isn’t about dispelling the darkness, as the fire earlier in the evening will do. It is about welcoming the unknown, welcoming the dream, welcoming the adventure of transformation and change. So, wisdom encompasses an openness to what we don’t know that is either just around the corner, or is sometimes right in front of us ready for us to still enough and open enough to see.
The New Moon embodies the shifting of perception and the dying fire. And the particular fire of this Sagittarius New Moon especially emphasizes the unpredictable, the creative, and the conditions for change.
Uranus, The Awakener, is a central player stoking the New Moon Fire
as it quincunxes the Sun/Moon, opposes Mars and trines Venus
Look to be invigorated and surprised by the experiences, the people and the realizations in the coming week. Uranus is the master of the unexpected - whether it comes as a flash of insight or through a situation that takes us out of our comfort zone. The gift will be missed if we doggedly hold on to what we already know or hold tightly onto the reins to control a situation towards a predetermine outcome. To the degree we elect to do this, we may feel increased impatience and frustration. Uranus is wanting to give us a gift. The gift will come when we loosen our grip, welcome the unexpected, and feed our courage more than our fear.
It is an opportune time to step out of the box of how we are operating, of what we believe is the most logical, reasonable course of action. This usually involves traveling of some kind. We may not be able to hop on a plane or take a road trip, and this may not be necessary. Stepping away from our desk, walking into the woods, or simply changing the scenery around us can be quite effective.
If we are feeling resistance, rather than doggedly pushing on, it is more beneficial to simply do something else. For instance, at that conference following 9/11, I could have spent my afternoon break supporting individual participants who were struggling, thinking that giving more energy to the situation would lead to better results. Instead, I did something different. I went for a walk and came back to the situation realigned, renewed, and with new vision for how to respond and engage the intensity of the conference.
Other Astrological Players Reinforce the New Moon's Message
There is increased capacity to shift our perception, shift into different states, and have our thinking connected with the greater realities within time and space with Mercury trine Neptune.
We are further emboldened by an urge for greater freedom, for the dissolving of restraint and the desire to learn and grow in new ways as Jupiter trine Uranus
Sagittarius, of all the signs, is the optimist, always believing everything work out, and is working out in ways that we may not yet understand. The constellation of the Archer has his bow raised and his arrow pointed at the Galactic Center, the place in the cosmos where new life is consistently streaming through into the created universe.
The key is to be like the fire at the end of the evening. Instead of burning fast and strong, rushing into change as Aries will do, or holding steady to the what we have committed to do as Leo will do, we can hold the fire in our belly, feel the heat building, and quietly open to the unknown, to a different way of perceiving, moving, taking action.
Let us embrace the Sagittarius spirit by setting an intention this New Moon to feed our inner fire, to build the courage and fortitude to open to the adventure of discovering new ways of relating to life.