Faith is an oasis in the heart
which will never be reached
by the caravan of thinking.
Khalil Gibran
The Full Moon on June 14, 2022 at 23 Sagittarius moves us from confusion to clarity, and from disillusionment to a renewal of our faith. We are afforded the opportunity to cleanse the lens of our perception so we can see an issue or dynamic from a broader, fuller perspective. The very roots that give rise to our understandings and beliefs are challenged. As we open to a broader, more universal viewpoint, we gain clarity on the issues we face and move forward aligned with a steadfast faith in what we are to be about.
The Full Moon is a Super Moon, meaning the Moon is as close at it comes in its orbit of the earth. The Moon has added gravitational pull on the tectonic plates, and our psyches. Emotions are heightened at a Full Moon, but with a Super Moon emotions are even more amplified. Full Moons present a dynamic tension between the Moon and its relationship to the Sun. Something in our life is coming to culmination, so there is an increase in activity and pressure as we move something towards completion.
Interest in Learning, Bolstering Knowledge and Operating from Faith
The Sun in Gemini brings our focus to our mental processes, everyday communications and what is happening in our daily routines and environment. The Moon in Sagittarius challenges us to expand our focus, to think beyond our habitual or limiting mindset. We are guided to see an issue from a larger perspective. This will inevitably entail drawing on an intuitive wisdom that opens us to information and understandings that carry us beyond the innate limitations of our linear mind.
The Nature of Sagittarius
The Centaur and Archer is the constellation of Sagittarius. Half man, half horse, the Centaur is grounded in his animal nature. His four feet are planted firmly on the ground. His bow is drawn and his eye is on the Galactic Center - the target of his aim. The Galactic Center is the place in our galaxy that is the source of all creation where new energy continually streams through from some unknown and formless potential.
Sagittarius is the adventurer, the traveler, the student, the teacher, the seeker of freedom, justice and truth. He is the eternal optimist and the sage. The many facets of Sagittarius are encompassed in the notion that the Sag person, has their four feet planted firmly in their faith. Their faith is the rudder that guides their endless quest to expand their horizons in pursuit of truth and wisdom.
The Sagittarius Full Moon stirs our desire to learn something new. We use our faith as the rudder to discern which direction to take and how to move with what we are discovering. Like the Centaur aiming his arrow, we are to set our eye beyond daily concerns and societal circumstances. We are to ask the questions, and aim our desire for greater understanding, towards the heart of it all - towards the universal truths that are the seeds that give rise to our breath, longing, and life. Through this questing, our faith in ourself and life is perhaps challenged, potentially refined, and ultimately strengthened.
Faith is the bird
that feels the light and sings
when the dawn is still dark.
Rabindranath Tagore
Things May Not Be What They Seem
Neptune square the Full Moon
The presence of Neptune, the Dreamer is integral to the Full Moon dynamic, providing added dimension and complexity to the journey to strengthen our faith and understanding of truth.
Neptune is our spiritual yearnings and the experience of ecstatic union with the divine. But life often falls short of our ideals and sometimes we try to take shortcuts have some ecstatic experience. So, Neptune is also the planet of self-deception, addiction and disillusionment.
When Neptune is in a hard aspect, as it is to the Full Moon, we may feel like we are operating in a fog. Our mental functioning can be confused or scrambled. With humility, we can recognize that perhaps we don't know what we think we know - or think we should know. The remedy is to slow down and listen deeply. We are to attune to something beyond our ego mind, ask probing questions and open to something that lives outside the limitations of rational, analytical thinking.
We may experience disillusionment or feel that some cherished belief is no longer valid. Our perception of truth is broadening. If our faith is being shaken by new information or perspective, we are being afforded the opportunity to release a belief that no longer serves us and align with a truth that is worthy of our faith and trust.
Our emotional sensitivities are heightened. Our intuition and capacity to touch the sacredness of life is amplified. Our imagination and creativity are stirred, and we can view the poetic, mythic or archetypal underpinnings of our world. We feel our vulnerability - and with this, an empathy for others and the world around. We are to hold this increased sensitivity as a gift and a guide that can provide a reality check on the soundness of where we have placed our faith.
To the degree that we feel powerless or victims of circumstance, Neptune is challenging us to mature and take responsibility for the one life that is in our care. If we are experiencing illness, suffering from addiction, are disillusioned with a dream that we had given ourselves to realizing, or have been on the receiving end of some deception, these experiences are portals that open us to a journey of discovery and a deeper understanding that can heal our faith in ourselves and life.
The experience of confusion, overwhelm, or powerlessness are Neptune’s signals for us to let go of the thinking mind and to listen to the pulse of something deeper. There is a larger truth beyond what we see and to the priorities that society nurtures. We can slow down, listen, spend time in nature, meditate, open to silence and feel that universal pulse that enlivens all creation - to which we are part of. Quieting the rational mind, we can tap into an intuitive universal wisdom.
We are to let go of overthinking or trying to control a given situation, and be curious about what is wanting to come through and wanting to happen. In doing this, there is great potential to expand our awareness to experience our life as part of greater and greater wholes. Greater truths buried within the truths we currently hold are illuminated. Neptune stirs the imagination, and we can begin to perceive the connections between the larger fabric of life and the weave of our own.
The opposite of faith is not doubt;
The opposite of faith is control
Richard Rohr
Readying to Put Faith into Action
Ideas take Root
Saturn Sextile/Trine the Full Moon
Saturn’s presence offers a counterbalance to Neptune’s influence. Saturn says that we can readily stabilize what we are discovering (through Neptune’s invitation) about our lives and the truths we hold. There is a newfound strength within ourselves emerging that is solid. With this, we can easily integrate and weave new perspectives into the expression of our life. We can trust the confidence we are feeling to make a decision about something we have been planning to make.
The truth about some movement in our life is becoming clearer and clearer. In Aquarius, Saturn indicates that the steps to acting on this clarity involves communication. We need to express our truth, our idea, our choice to others. Communication can be in writing, in words, or in a post. As we prepare for this, we will move through the insecurity brought on by the Neptune Square that is helping dissolve areas of confusion and the beliefs that serve to stir up confusion.
Saturn Square the Nodal Axis
We are reminded to reduce the intensity we have around defending or asserting 'our truth.' We are to take the next step to release the wounds of the past and to resolve undigested childhood thought patterns that create complexity and muddy the lens of our perceptions (Scorpio South Node). It is up to us to stand tall, face what needs to be faced, and release what is heavy and burdensome (Saturn square the nodal axis). The truths we are embracing and coming to embrace will have a simplicity as we commit to having greater peace in our lives. (Saturn square the Taurus North Node).
So Ready to Strike Out and Be a Pioneer
Ruler of the Full Moon: Jupiter in Aries
May 10, Jupiter began a new 12-year cycle (newsletter on Jupiter in Aries). Jupiter's nature is growth and it looks to bring growth to wherever it finds itself. In Aries, it is growing our fire, our fighting spirit, our readiness to take initiative and venture forth into undiscovered territory. There is a courage, a trust in one’s instincts and a confidence that is ignited over the course of the next year while Jupiter is in Aries.
As the Full Moon's Ruler, Jupiter announces that we are ready for something new! Jupiter's prominence provides the context for the Full Moon planetary dynamics that provide clues for how we can best move towards a new beginning or a new venture.
At this moment, we have the support and potential to
clarify the beliefs and truths that inspire and shape our faith (Neptune square the Full Moon)
heal what thwarts our confidence to take initiative, to be authentic and make bold choices (Mars conjunct Chiron)
nurture our desire to learn something new that broadens our horizons and perspective (Moon in Sagittarius)
break free of restrictions and routines that stifle our vitality (Venus conjunct Uranus)
discover ways to articulate what we are learning and discovering (Mercury in shadow phase following its recent retrograde coupled with the Sagittarian Moon, Gemini Sun, and Aquarian Saturn)
The Full Moon is helping us renew our faith in ourselves, our beliefs and in the divine movement of life so that we have the confidence to embrace the Jupiter in Aries potential. We undertake this so that our faith becomes unshakable. We then move aligned with and empowered by the beliefs and intuitive wisdom that will allow us actualize and embrace the words 'Faith is an oasis in the heart which will never be reached by the caravan of thinking.' (Khalil Gibran)
In Summary
The 20th century camera and how we readied to take a picture comes to mind as a good analogy for the Full Moon invitation. The lens through we perceive our life may first need to be cleaned. And while we may have zeroed in on some object of our desire, our focus is somewhat distorted and blurry. We may first need to zoom out to get a fuller picture and context for what we have set our sights on. Then, we can discover how to focus and bring clarity.
With the invitation of the Full Moon, we are shifting our perspective, much like the process of using the camera to remove fuzziness and sharpen an image. We are learning how to bring our thoughts, desires, beliefs and understandings into better focus. By making the necessary adjustments, we find the courage to move forward with confidence and faith in the clarity of what we are perceiving.