By Cal Garrison a.k.a. Mother of the Skye
This week’s Horoscopes are coming out under the light of a Scorpio Moon, that will turn Void-of-Course at 5:39 p.m. on Jan. 28 and remain in that mode until it enters Sagittarius at 9:33 a.m. on Tuesday morning. As I sit down to write this week’s column, I realize that the sun slipped into Aquarius one week ago, and I was so all consumed with the blood moon, the eclipse, and a bunch of other issues I neglected to say “boo” about how the collective mind needs to respond to the energies that fill the matrix during the sun’s passage through the sign of the Water Bearer. This oversight compels me to backtrack a little in order to cover that piece – because believe it or not, it matters what we do, and how we think, and where we direct our energy at this point in the yearly cycle.
The words that follow come from a book that I wrote for Samuel Weiser 14 years ago. Titled, “The Old Girl’s Book of Dreams” this excerpt talks about what happens when the sun passes through Aquarius:
“When I was younger this time of year used to depress me. I pushed myself through it by fueling up with tons of calories and reminding myself that it was only going to last a few weeks. Taking off for the tropics wasn’t in the budget. Having money in the winter meant getting Fuel Assistance at Cal’s house!
“My daughter Eliza was born on Valentine’s Day and so halfway through, at least there was that to get happy about. Too bad I’m not one of those women who ever wanted to know what Victoria’s Secret was all about. The ‘Hearts and Flowers’ that are supposed to light your fire on Valentine’s Day never got me going. It’s just as well. The men in my life have either been cheap and practical or cross-addicted, macho cavemen.
“Maybe it’s a godsend that my personal life has been such a disaster. Instead of whining about it, I got into my studies and my spiritual work. Astrology and the Wiccan ways have turned Aquarius into my favorite month. I see it in a completely different light now that I’m old and gray.
“Nature teaches me everything I need to know and I’ve spent many winters watching Mother Earth and Father Sky do their winter dance. Look around. The world is covered with ice, the air is filled with crystals, and everything is locked in a state of suspended animation. The life force in the frozen ground is hibernating and there’s not a trace of evidence that it will revive. The stark background that we conduct our lives against provides us with plenty of opportunity to see only what is essential.
“With nothing to distract us we have plenty of time to ponder. What are we here for? What do we really want? What are our ideals at this point in time and are they working? Do they need to change? The dead of winter is the perfect time to reevaluate everything that we’re doing from a detached perspective so that we can be reborn with a new vision in the spring.
“The sign Aquarius is the embodiment of the ‘Visionary’ archetype. The frequency that vibrates through the unified field when the Sun is in this sign endows everything in it with the capacity to dream. Everyone knows that when we dream we wish for, or envision, possibilities that don’t exist. What we know less about is the fact that if we hold our dreams in our hearts for any length of time they become real. The importance of the dream and the strength of the wish bring it to life.
“It doesn’t matter what the dream is. You can wish for a Mercedes-Benz or you can hold a vision that the people of the world will remember what it means to live in peace and harmony. Dreams are the matrix that reality is woven upon. If we’re too fearful to strike out and carve new paradigms, or don’t understand the importance of weaving new and better visions, the structures we create become static and wind up choking us to death.
“In the Wiccan traditions this time of year marks the approach to an important cross quarter. It’s known as Imbolc, Saint Brigid’s Day, or Candlemas depending on where you’re from. God knows what they were thinking, but when the patriarchal forces extinguished the ‘Old Ways’ they renamed this holy day, Groundhog Day! Why they stuck such a stupid label on one of the most magical points in the year is beyond me.
“People’s lives were much more intimately entwined with nature in the old days, and mid-winter must have been the pits. Supplies were low, food was scarce, and none of them knew how harsh the remainder of the season would be. But every year on, or near, the second of February the ewes started lactating. They still do, by the way, and have every year since the dawn of time.
“Because the Law of Resonance is one of the Hermetic laws that are axiomatic in this dimension, in the same way that all of the warm blooded creatures begin to lactate on or around the second of February, so does the sap begin to rise out from the heart of the earth, into the trees. This is, was, and always has been the sign that something is ‘quickening’ inside Mother Earth and that her womb is preparing to bring forth new life.
“Dissecting the labels that have attached themselves to the mid-winter cross quarter: Imbolc translates as, ‘in the belly,’ and Saint Brigid is an ancient fertility goddess. Saint Brigid was raised and mentored by a wizard and became quite a magician herself. Her specialty was the ability to multiply food and drink. Candlemas is about light. All the rituals performed on February second involve lighting candles to pierce the winter darkness. The various traditions associated with this cross quarter could fill a book. All of them are incredibly beautiful and real. Behind every one of them the intention is the same. That intention is to seed the dreams for whatever we want to come to life in the spring.
“The week before Imbolc is pregnant with unrealized potential. I keep the candles burning non-stop. On the eve of Feb. 2 I light a white candle and fill a pitcher with fresh milk and think about what I really want. When the vision is clear I walk outside and pour the milk into the snow and watch it flow down into the frozen ground. As this happens I see all of my wishes coming true. By the Spring Equinox these visions begin to manifest, showing me that there’s more to the Old Ways than meets the eye.”
As the next week unfolds, stop the madness as much as you can. Let your mind and your heart come together in the center of your being. Use this time to dream new dreams. Fill them with love, water them well, let the Great Mother take it from there, and take what you can from this week’s ‘scopes.
