THE PISCES PENUMBRAL LUNAR ECLIPSE 16.9.2016: REVELATION, MYSTERY AND THE MAGIC OF SPIRIT

We begin this article with an astronomical note, followed by the spiritual and energetic analysis this alignment brings to us all. It is a potent Eclipse and one which brings with it the opportunities for many beginnings, endings, release, healing … and initiation unto a new Path. One that will, at the very least, involve a re-conceptualization of the road you´re headed on, the world you want to create and be a part of. It´s hard to say whether this alignment is more Yin or Yang as the Masculine and Feminine come through very different, and often overlapping channels at this point in time.

ASTRONOMICAL NOTE:

The Moon (24 Pisces) opposes the Sun (24 Virgo) at 19:04 UTC on 16.9.2016, creating a penumbral lunar Eclipse, meaning that the Earth´s outer shadow falls on the Moon as the Sun, Earth and Moon line up together in space. Those of you in Europe, Asia, Australia, Africa, West in South America, Pacific, Atlantic, Indian Ocean, Arctic, Antarctica may see a partial shading of the Moon (if you see any external difference at all).

From the astrological perspective, Eclipses are particularly significant as they act as funnels or intensifiers of cosmic energy, setting and releasing cycles of growth, change and experience in mathematically exact cycles. I work with the Saros cycle system, which sees different iterations or members of ´eclipse families´ occur in sequence, each eclipse separated by approximately 6,585.3 days (18 years 11 days 8 hour) intervals.

So, look back to the previous members of this particular Eclipse family to see how the flow of energy carries through these hyper-activated points in space-time. This eclipse is Number 8 or 70 in Saros cycle 147. This eclipse was preceded by 7 others and will continue to perpetuate itself through a further 62 eclipses, beginning on July 2nd 1890 and ending on 28 July 3134. This refers to the Lunar (as opposed to the Solar) Saros series 147.

The most recent eclipses in this series occurred on 26th August 1980 and 6th September 1998. The next two eclipses will occur on 28th September 2034 and 8th October 2052. Look back to those previous dates to see where the energy you´re feeling comes from (or is linked to) and to the future dates to see where it may continue to play out.

Info on Eclipse Cycles: eclipse.gsfc.nasa.gov/LEsaros/LEsaros147.html

And now, the astrological and spiritual interpretation of the Pisces Penumbral Eclipse (16.9.2016).

ASTRO-SPIRITUAL INTERPRETATION …

The Lunar Eclipse is, by definition, a Full Moon. We have discussed above the 18 year cycles that connect families of eclipses. In astrology, we can also find a connection between events that occur at a particular degree of an event, or, through the cycle of energy between the New Moon and Full Moon.

New Moons are excellent time for the seeding of intentions that they may culminate with the corresponding Full Moons of the signs these occur in. Therefore, the energetic seed set for this Pisces Eclipse (September 16 2016) began (in addition to the 18-year eclipse cycles) on the Pisces Total Solar Eclipse / Pisces New Moon 2016 (March 8, 2016).

You will see the seeds you set recur in some form during this Eclipse. As we´re speaking of Pisces, we refer to matters that link with your deepest, nameless, formless, unquantifiable and absolutely inexplicable relationship with Spirit/uality. It also refers to our relationship with cycles of karma carried through past-lifetimes and through intergenerational work. Here is where we consider the liminal nature of the boundaries, or thresholds, that separate the energetic frequency of consciousness/perception we understand as reality – from other alternatives. It is where, in other words, the Veil is thinned.

The psychically sensitive will benefit from the use of Frankincense oil as this will help you purify your energetic space. Make sure you use a high quality oil which you are not allergic to. Purifying gemstones such as selenite will help to clear space. Stones such as celestite and kyanite can help to open psychic bridges or pathways to other levels of consciousness – if you feel this is a safe and necessary thing to do in your journey. Aquamarine will be using in finding clarity and focus through emotional turbulence, especially when you need to come to the point of taking action in some form.

Always (especially now) seek out the guidance of a facilitator you trust if you feel you need some perspective. Those of you drawn to working with me at this juncture in your journey, please note that my next round of sessions will be between September 19-30, 2016. I´m letting the energy of this alignment settle a little first.

The Sun (24 Virgo) conjuncts asteroid Minerva (25 Virgo), asking you to hold in mind the role of the discerning mind and intellect in navigating amorphous psychic energy / impressions at this time. Not all that glitters is gold and not that that slithers is evil. So much of what we perceive passes through a mental filter which may or may not be accurate. Minerva´s role in this alignment tells me that the Goddess´ blessings are showered upon those who seek to find paths of healing, wholeness and service through the psychic or intuitive revelations shown to them at this time.

The Moon, Sun and Minerva square the asteroid Pholus (24 Sagittarius). Pholus is associated with the nature of revelation that – once known – cannot be unknown – and so creates an irreversible effect. It speaks to the power of knowledge, and with it forms of change that it necessitates. It ripples through the cosmos, affecting us through the generational lines. According this fantastic article (on the power of Pholus and what it can bring to you – astropost.blogspot.com/2010/04/pholus-files.html ), it is also an energy that can put a stop to addictions. I read that as a call to end the compulsive, sub-conscious impulses that lead us to karmic decisions, cycles and experiences that we are ready to integrate and ultimately, no longer be governed by.

Amethyst (the gemstone) can help in finding the mental clarity, whereas, Malachite can help with finding the willpower needed to overcome addictive compulsions. (All of these tools can help, but the real work still comes down to You.)

Now … the Galactic Center of the Milky Way is at 27 Sagittarius, 3 degrees away from Pholus. You´re going to find your paths, guides, mentors, gurus, teachers, astrologers, oracles, etc. to profound be way-showers at this time. Sometimes you will be lovingly brought to a new space or direction, and at other times, forcibly kicked out. You may feel drawn to or repelled from a particular path or person – and that is orient. It is all part of your initiation unto a new journey or chapter.

With this powerful energy of revelation comes change. The information you receive now may sweep you off your feet in a good way – or – make you feel like the rug you´re standing on has just been pulled away from underneath. Different people will respond differently and so there is no hard and fast rule. I would recommend grounding practices, whilst consciously choosing to remain present, open (and protected) to whatever emerges through this transit.

Psychic protection is a must. Frankincense, camphor, neem or lime (oils), labradorite or black obsidian (gemstones) can help immensely. Consider smudging your space with white sage, incense, palo santo and the like.

The healing potential of this eclipse is emphasized as the Sun sextiles, whilst the Moon trines Panacea ´the cure to all ills´ at 23 Scorpio. Those with bodies near 23-24 Aquarius will experience this as a powerful Yod (Finger of Fate), bring you swiftly to karmic crossroads. Here you will choose what ideological framework you continue to situate your ideals and sense of individuality within as you navigate the depths in the search of healing, or paths of service. It is in this search that Panacea offers her remedies.

Panacea is conjunct asteroid Isis (23 Scorpio), opening a different level of interpretation and meaning for ritual practitioners / spiritualists who invoke the energy of this Goddess. The symbol of the Ankh appears to be of immense significance at this point of time. Remember that Isis brings life and healing, and it is she who goes into the Underworld to put together, build a new phallus for and resurrect her husband Osiris (The Wounded Masculine).

With Chiron at 22 Pisces and Atlantis at 22 Cancer, we see the role of psychic healing, wounding, trauma and energies that connect with past-lifetimes in oceanic/underwater civilizations heightened. Larimar (the gemstone) can be an intense, but effective catalyst in working through the deeper emotions and memories these alignments evoke. Together with Panacea, Isis and the Moon, Chiron and Atlantis come together to form a potent Grand Water Trine in the skies. One that brings out a wide range of emotions, intuitive, karmic and psychic possibilities and experiences.

What also strikes me as curious is the fact that the March 2016 New Moon / Total Solar Eclipse also had Chiron conjunct the Moon, just as we now experience. The Wounded Healer asks us to look back to then, and now, to see what lessons we have learnt, and will continue to learn hereafter. There is the choice to transcend a particular cycle of pain and wounding, and another to accept it as a path of service. Neither choice is more sacred than the other and let no one bully you into thinking otherwise. Charoite is a gemstone that can help those seeking clarity on this particular question.

There are … so very many different asteroidal, planetary and other conjunctions that make this Eclipse an extraordinary one. I´m going to conclude this article with a brief summary of a few of these aspects:

(1) Jupiter conjuncts the Super-Galactic Center (1 Libra): Our path to growth comes through the dissolution or creation of partnerships and collaborations in alignment with our Spirit and its connection with the energies of the Cosmos (our perception of All-That-Is). Many karmic contracts will be dissolved and others may (or may not) rise to take their place. There´s a lot of energetic recalibration underfoot as we rethink our visions of balance, justice and co-existence in the world (and how all of that is possible). There are moments where we are subtle, where we do not engage – and others where we roar charging into the arena to seek justice and redress.

(2) Mars (23 Sagittarius) trines Psyche (23 Leo) / Phaethon (22 Leo) and Uranus/Eris (23 Aries), creating a Grand Fire Trine at the 23rd degree of all Fire signs. Long story short is is when we reclaim the narrative of the Rising Feminine and integrate (or … if you still don´t see Her place in the world as a valid one) or exclude it from religious, spiritual, philosophical and/or intellectual paradigms and paths. You get to re-write Your-and-Her stories right now. Follow those impulses and act upon them, but make sure you don´t burn yourself out in a blaze of righteous fury and then have no energy left for anything else. We´re all burning, the world´s burning in its own way – and let us honor one another in our search for expression, passion and truth. There´s going to be a lot of reactive energy to Daddy-Patriarch, let us not let it spin our own compasses out of control. Focus your energy into the change you want it to manifest as.

(3) Saturn (10 Sagittarius) squares Neptune (10 Pisces), Eris (23 Aries) conjuncts Uranus (23 Aries). I´ve lumped these two together as I´ve written on them quite a bit before. Re-cap: We are asked to better align our Paths with the deeper Guidance from Spirit. We are asked to recognize (and embody) the archetype of the Rising Feminine in all aspects of our being, and the world-as-we-know it. They´re HUGE alignments, but ones we have been experiencing for most of 2016 in one form or another. Saturn squares the North Node (11 Virgo) which opposes Neptune and the South Node (11 Pisces). There´s a lot of karmic drama that this plays out through and much of it will relate to our paths of service and numinous experiences of what we truly consider ´the Sacred, without necessarily requiring intermediaries.

(4) Vesta (20 Cancer) squares Venus (21 Libra) and Uranus-Eris (23 Aries). If you recall my article on the Virgo Solar Eclipse 2 weeks prior, I made the case for taking note of Vesta at this particular degree as she plays a significant role in our collective evolutionary process, at least, till 2020 – http://wp.me/p4OUNS-1nz ! I see this as a time where the Priestess realizes that she need not sacrifice her femininity, emotion or home to perform her service in the world, nor does she need to be enslaved by it all. Relationships will be powerfully reconfigured at this time – and potentially dissolved – if they seek to confine the Feminine to its (purely) domestic, sacrificial expression. Whilst mothering and nurturing your family is one of the most sacred acts of service a person can do, it need not be the only, or even, the primary way that the Feminine can be of service. I see this as a clarion call to (Pluto in) Capricorn, which gives us the opportunity to reconfigure our visions of power and the role of the feminine in the institutions that contain them.

(5) South Node (11 Pisces) trines whilst North Node (11 Virgo) sextiles Black Moon Lilith and Juno (13 Scorpio). The Karma we seek to clear pertains to the Shadow Aspect of the Feminine. Which is not an evil thing, but often carries the weight of karmic baggage and projection. An excellent time to perform healing rituals or … call it rituals of love … with/upon/for deities and archetypes of femininity that represent the wounded, scarred or forgotten aspects of She-Who-Is-Goddess. It is time to realize that the Dark Womb is Sacred Ground, rather than the chamber of shame, neglect, abuse and judgement. Those of you with placements near 11-13 Cancer will experience this intensely as a Grand Water Trine, whereas those with placements near 11-13 Aries will experience this as a pivotal Yod (Finger of Fate).

So …. like I said, a lot is going on the skies and these are selected vignettes of the celestial symphony. Stay safe, stay grounded, stay protected. And then open yourself to the embrace of the skies. You might find a new way to see it all.

General Gemstone Tip. Try working with Sugilite. I find it resonant with the energies of the Goddess, in her many, many forms (and states of formlessness).

Blessings and Love,

Priestess Bairavee Balasubramaniam PhD
The Sky Priestess

Post © Bairavee Balasubramaniam, 2016. All rights reserved. Please do not use or reproduce without permission.

Image: Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons, Nasa.http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/IOTD/view.php?id=46209

Terms of Use and Sharing: Feel free to use the Share button on FB or Reblog on WordPress for personal, noncommercial or educational use with all links intact. If you are an organization, institution or individual seeking to use this material for promotional purposes, please ask first. If wanting to include this information and/or the ideas explored therein into your workshop materials, teachings or written work, please cite this article and author accordingly. All information provided, be it through sessions conducted or this post is non-liable and is not intended to replace professional legal, medical, psychological, psychiatric and/or financial counsel.

When Not All Darkness is Sacred: Things to Bear in Mind when Embodying or Channelling the Dark Goddess

With the Rise of the Feminine, so many of us across the Globe have instinctively sought out and begun to honor the Suppressed, Forgotten, Dark Feminine. Be She Kali, Lilith, Hecate, Dhumavati or by any other name, Her Darkness is one that any and all on this Path instantly recognize.

As I have written on multiple occasions, there is equally a trend of appropriating, watering-down and commercializing ancient spiritual traditions, rendering translations that (at times) are a far echo of what was once a powerful being or deity.

To some extent, that has happened with the Dark Goddess. In the bid to make her far more accessible to seekers, so much of what makes her Dark is forgotten or simply glossed over.

And that is .. when you really get down to it .. Not the brightest idea …

This is an energetic signature that has been suppressed, vilified, projected upon and held captive in the words, rituals and imaginations of thousands of years of patriarchal rule. Parts of it hearken back to a time before Time, a space I call the Void from which all Creation emerged. Parts of this Darkness are unspeakably, immeasurably healing and rejuvenating.

And parts of it are downright dangerous, psychotic, chaotic and out of control. This last part is the bit which I´m going to talk about today.

Some of you might find my words as a shocker, others might be be tempted to turn it back on me (i.e. project on me instead), others might wonder if I´ve finally gone off my rocker. That is your judgement to make, should you feel the need. I cannot eschew my duties in any case.

I should also add that many of you who are now just beginning your Path with Her may find Her to be the very opposite. This article is more so for those who have crossed a certain threshold in their relationship with Her and are venturing into a very different terrain. It is more likely to speak to intermediate and advanced channellers and practitioners who invoke her Energy directly.

This is not the same as being a Devotee of Her, or looking to her for Strength and Inspiration. It is a very, very, different relationship and level of engagement.

This is an article that has been months in the making with insights that have been verified by multiple practitioners of a truly advanced level whose judgement I find sound.

I have excluded all other known potential variables before putting forth my hypothesis:

That Parts of the Dark Goddess are Broken in Savage, Damaging ways. And it is up to us to Heal this Darkness. That Working with The Dark Goddess´ energy fully requires us to be present to All of These Aspects.

A few months ago, especially when I facilitated my ´Into the Void: A Journey to the Dark Goddess´ workshop in Glastonbury – I was initiated into certain energetic techniques that I have not read of or heard of elsewhere. I am in the process of writing down these transmissions that come directly from Her, straight from Source – in her Dark Form – I should say a Formless Darkness to be exact.

These teachings have the capacity to heal across timelines in a more complete form that accesses the body at a level I have no words for.

The workshop itself was attended by shamankas who had decades of experience in the field, and the facilitations were very very well received. The downloads were instants the keys I was given opened me to realms I did not consider possible. It was a gift. And most certainly a surprise.

And through that process I have seen many Shades of Darkness. Some are electric blue, some are fiery red. Some have no colour, only a taste or a texture. Some that bring me to a tearful state of reverence, and others that bring me to absolute repulsion.

Darkness is not Homogeneous. She is not Homogeneous. And we cannot Nail Her into Archetypes that Serve our Interests.

Well, not when you´re on an all-out Priestess path. At some point, you feel the rub.

Yes, She can be All-Loving, but that´s not All She is. There is a part of Her that is equally All-Hating.

With the astrological activations of Eris and Uranus, I have seen these multiple Shades of Darkness intensify, with the more bloodthirsty and destructive variant finding more ground.

Imagine having been let out of a cage after been held hostage and raped and abused for thousands of years. I´d be in a bad mood, wouldn´t you?

And I´m not just talking about the righteous avenger of Justice, the Holy Flame of Passion, I´m talking about the kind of energy that enjoys Discord. That enjoys pushing to the edge to see if you will jump.

That throws down the Golden Apple to watch them dance, and ultimately murder themselves. That brings you to the brink of desperation at which point your only choice is to surrender and to do what She bids you to.

(I know, this sounds a lot like the way the ancient Greeks and Romans understood Eris – but dammit, I´m starting to see where their fears come from. It ain´t pretty)

Before we discuss this further, I want to explain that I have taken the time to rule out other factors, in collaboration with professionals in these respective fields : –

A Mental Breakdown – Unclear Sight / Ungrounded Presence – Hijacking / Entities speaking on the Same Channel – Implants – Past-Life Karma – Rips in the Energy Field – ´The Shadow´/ Unacknowledged Self – Projection Dynamics – Disassociated Personality – Possession – and so on …

Having the same experience validated and verified by other long-time practitioners and Priestesses has given me the courage and necessary push to speak about this aspect of Her. I had to be sure that I wasn´t just picking up on something personal and projecting it onto a Divine construct. This is the hardest article I have ever had to write and I thank the sisters – and my brother – who proof-read the draft.

Again – those who directly embody and channel the energy of the Dark Goddess relate to her very differently from those who worship her as a devotee or write about her in admiration, who see her from afar.

For when you look at her Eye-to-Eye, you begin to see these Multiple Faces. Multiple Shadows.

To the many who have sought her out for healing from brokenness and victimhood – I know what I´m saying is a tough pill to swallow.

She is your Saviour, the One who brought you out of bondage. And now – could She be asking you to enter into another?

The thought is too painful to fully consider, but I must. For that is how I began with her myself – that was the first chapter of my Journey with her.

In past times, this is also why access to the Dark Goddesses was traditionally mediated by one who had crossed those thresholds and who help you navigate your way through.

To see if you were ready to truly pass through the eye of the Needle and into a different dimension of Consciousness. Things don´t make the sense the way we expect them to. To be able to tell the difference between your baggage – and – what appears to be baggage of a Cosmic Origin.

In this age, everyone is connecting with everything, irrespective of levels of readiness. We want Enlightenment NOW! And – especially – when it comes to an energy like this one .. that is absolutely not the right approach. It´s one of the reasons why working with the Dark Mothers has, in past times, come with a tonne of warning labels.

Well, like it or not, we´re all going to have face Her. Especially with the Eris-Uranus conjunctions of 2016 and 2017.

So, back to what I´d like to share with you today. The aspects of Darkness that are .. possibly not Sacred as we would like them to be … This is different from the righteous energy of the avenger, the bringer of justice. Or the benevolent, nurturing mother. Or the faceless, formless Void of Creation.

This is just batshit crazy.

I have witnessed this energy move through me, and those closest to me. And have heard of the same story or dynamic with other practitioners. And they are the same story.

Sometimes when you channel or embody Her energy, you see Her Pain. Her Shadow. And that is far larger than any one individual or story. The level and intensity of hate, rage and anger far exceeds your own. It is not even the pain of a single soul through multiple lifetimes, but of a pain that millions, if not billions have borne.

And sometimes it is Anger. It is the desire to Burn. Burn the world that held Her down against Her will.

It is a far larger than one individual´s pain. It is immense.

The images we receive are very similar as is the feel or nature of the energy which I am doing my best to describe. Something about it feels edgy, intoxicated with power – but off, so very, very off. It is the Rising Feminine, but it´s not what we expected.

And I´ve seen it move through so many people that I now can put a finger it and identify it. Not to blame or shame. But to heal.

There are these moments when you feel as though you have no control. That your usual ways of communing with Spirit are quite literally leading you off a cliff. They can be utterly selfish, utterly destructive, utterly ghastly. And still come through the same channel as so many other beautiful, uplifting messages from the Dark Mother emanate.

A very different experience from your personal shadow-work, from possession, or all that fun stuff… this moves through you like Lightning that has stood in wait for thousands of Years and whose anger can no longer be denied.

There´s no Ego-hold to it. It just moves through you like a Wave you feel you can´t stop. Because it is so … huge.

Until I reached out and found other sisters struggling with the same, I was about to throw in the towel. I had run out of explanations beyond the idea I was on the wrong Path and had taken a weird turn, now in thoroughly bizarre territory.

How was this even possible?

How could the Mother I love so much be expressing such violent, destructive-for-its-own-sake energy?

Could the Greeks have been right with their fear of Eris?

Was I internalizing patriarchal propaganda or finding an inner demoness I needed to exorcise?

Was I losing my own sanity?

Was my Ego-Shadow-Baggage that HUGE?

So many questions ..

But after much searching, verifying and discerning …

What I can understand now is that this is part of a far, far, larger thing. Something that goes beyond me as a person, as a daughter of a particular maternal line, a member of an ethnicity or race, and so on.

It´s something that each and every practitioner-channeller of The Dark Mother will face the farther they go in Her Service.

That with the Rise of the Feminine .. ALL parts of Her are waking up.

That includes the Avenger, the Protector, the Mother – but equally –

Part of her is Screaming. A part of her wants to Kill. A part of her Relishes the Bloodshed.

Imagining Her not to have these features is … to deny so much of what She is and has been through.

And that is what has happened… with the watering-down of this archetype so as to make her more accessible. In much the same way the Feminine is pedestalized to the point where she is not capable of any Evil.

And to pretend that this side of Her comes out only in response to injustice is well-meaning, but ultimately incomplete.

Different people have responded differently to this energy. Some have run for the hills. Others have embodied it and have allowed their personal baggage to be conflated with Her Shadow. Her Past. The energy they feel from Her is so powerful that it makes them feel powerful. And they attack, in Her name. And they glorify it.

There is another group who sees this as a test of initiation. Surrender to her without question and She will save you. You can call it a lack of faith on my path, but there are some things I will never do – no matter who or what asks me to, or whatever larger cause there may be. The ends do not justify the means.

Those who are working with Her purely from the Lower Chakras aren´t able to see the difference between these shades- because it looks so very similar. You need the upper and the lower working in tandem to tell the two apart.

How do you tell the difference between one fighting for justice, and one fighting just because She likes the chaos? When you´re in a stage where you´re just finding your feet, your voice and your power – this is the last thing you want to think about.

I am writing about this because (1) that´s how I process, (2) there´s bound to be other people who are dealing with this exact question-

What do you do when your Dark Goddess tells you to do the energetic equivalent of drinking poison, of mating with a monster? Or of putting an innocent in harm´s way? Or opening a door you know you shouldn´t?

(Those with Atlantean connections / past-life memories – you know exactly what I´m talking about)

What do you do when the one you trusted and loved so deeply asks you to commit an act you cannot? And every fiber in your body tells you not to?

My only response would be to find a different kind of Darkness to Heal whom you Love so very very deeply. In this case, a Priestess to a Goddess. And many others will be doing the same.

With the astrology of Eris and Uranus, I suspect this work is going to be far more significant than any of us ever imagined. Already I see many who believe they´re on the Path being utterly controlled by this variant of Darkness. And those who can tell the difference between the two are shying away from it. Some refuse to acknowledge it at all (which does not help).

It´s an ancient energy. And one that carries the scars of what we collectively did to the Goddess in the first place. When you bring back The Feminine — it´s ALL of Her. Not just the lovey-dovey, rosey, or even the avenging-for-justice bits. There is lunacy, there is hysteria, there is aggression and there is malice. There is the victim that wants to be heard and the victim-turned-bully that wants to enjoy what it once endured.

Let us be honest. If we accept that the Male God has a Shadow of Brutality and War, then why do we leave the Female exempt? I for one do not buy the woman-is-by-virtue-of-her-sex-more-sacred-argument. In our need to see Goddess as Saviour, we exclude her Shadow. Just look to the holy texts of monotheistic faith – a lot of Gods have a side that is utterly, unspeakably Cruel.

And if we look to the history/herstory of The Dark Goddess herself, her cults have not necessarily been of a peaceful kind. The priests of Cybele and her consort Attis, for instance, engaged in Self-Castration and self-whipping. An impersonator of the Aztec Earth-Mother Goddess Coatlicue was ritually sacrificed in an annual festival. Practices of human sacrifice and .. shall we say unethical magic.. have been associated with the Goddess Kali.

The list goes on. She is a whole lot more than your sister-power-girlfriend who backs you up when you need to stand Tall. There are many other facets of Her than the watered-down, New Age interpretation we´re being asked to consume.

When we bring back these Older Goddesses and their practices, we also bring back the energies associated with them. And not all of them are of Love. So when we invoke these names, we are invoking far more than our current ideas of what The Dark Goddess is what We Want Her to Be. Such is the power of ritual.

Which is why … truly walking the Path of the Dark Goddess is not something I would recommend for most people. You see every possible Shade of Light, Dark, Rainbow, Inverted Energy there is – and you are challenged to find what is Sacred within it , or what must be done to make it Sacred Once more.

Sometimes Serving the Goddess means .. ya really got to Serve Her… with a Dose of Perspective.

To me, a Goddess is not some uber-deity that watches over us. She is born of the intersections of multiple realities, fractals of a hologram that together – bring us the Illusion / Reality of One who is far greater than All. At least, that´s the way I see Her. Which may be right or wrong, but it´s only way that works for me.

When I heal myself, I heal my Goddess. I heal every woman, man, child, being I am connected with. And vice versa. When I harm myself, I make the same choice.

It´s possible – using the body analogy – that whatever this vibration is is the equivalent of bile or regurgitation. That it´s an image of the pain and distortion that women (in particular) and their Sacred, Dark traditions have undergone. Or, it´s just a part of Her we need to address.

Whichever it is, I am sure this piece will challenge and alienate many. But I hope it will find its way to many others who work with, who honor the Sacred Dark Mother for All She Is, not merely All that We Need Her To Be.

In other words, just as we have a Shadow, so does She. And when you channel Her or embody that energy directly, that Shadow comes out as well. It´s tempting to say it´s the individual self projected, or other such psychological shenanigans – but here is where I am grateful for the validation that other channellers have also experienced. It is a part of Her energy in itself. Telling the difference between these various shades of Darkness, between your personal Shadow – and Hers – is a task in itself. That´s why this path has not always been that accessible.

The question of how to heal or address this Shadow is a huge one. And I´m going to have to go back the transmissions I received earlier in the year. As I suspect my answer has been there all along.

It´s going to take Love of all Shades. Especially from the Darkest of Spaces.

I´ll share more when I can.

Priestess Bairavee Balasubramaniam PhD
The Dark Mother’s Children

Terms of Use and Sharing: Feel free to use the Share button on FB or Reblog on WordPress for personal, noncommercial or educational use with all links intact. If you are an organization, institution or individual seeking to use this material for promotional purposes, please ask first. If wanting to include this information into your workshop materials or written work, please cite accordingly. All information provided, be it through sessions conducted or this post is non-liable and is not intended to replace professional legal, medical, psychological, psychiatric and/or financial counsel.

Image ´ Woman and Crescent Moon, oil on canvas, 24″ x 36″
© E.K.Buckley, 2009. Image used with artist´s permission. For more of her work, go to :http://www.ekbuckley.com

Post © Bairavee Balasubramaniam, 2016. All rights reserved. Please do not use or reproduce without permission. See Terms of Use and Sharing above.

Felt I needed to share it. So I did.

When I was a child, I wanted to be a physicist, an astronaut, or a neurosurgeon. Or some strange combination of all of the above. I excelled at calculus, mathematics, music, languages and so on.

I disliked the politics of the land I was born in and became a social worker, trainer and public figure. Within a short span of time, I ended up working with over 2,500 children of my own ethnicity. I focused on teaching them about the neuroscience of the brain and how it could infinitely re-wire itself – and tools that can be used to facilitate the learning process. In ways that kids would understand and enjoy.

And for political reasons, I had to leave – and started my journey into higher education.

I started out in Physics, but quickly found that I liked literature, politics, performance and poetry. A gifted Nigerian professor got me started on African History, then American History – and introduced me to the Model United Nations.

And fate intervened.

I switched major and countries and became a political scientist by training. Living in the US, Germany and the UK – and travelling to many other countries for research work and attending conferences. Eventually, through much personal struggle and illness, I completed a PhD in Political Science. My thesis was called ´The dramaturgy of ritual performances in the Indian Parliament´.

And then after that a major download came, and I became an astrologer and a priestess and God/dess knows what else. And somehow elements of all of the above come spinning together in what is a tapestry I myself do not fully understand.

But what I do understand through all of this is that my work – as a priestess – never asks me to look past the human structures this species uses to govern itself – it asks me to engage with them powerfully. Into the muck, as it were.

To get lower, to sink deeper to the heart of things, and never to escape from them. But to embrace them. And in so doing, to transform them.

It´s meant popping a lot of bubbles, and wielding a very large sword. When appropriate. But – for those of you who know me – that´s just how I roll.

But my heart has always been with the stars and the quiet, dark detached spaces they hold. To me, they have always seemed like home.

And yet my work, is in the here and the now. It looks like a new way is opening up for me and it´s going to be a very interesting dance of all of the above.

Wish me luck 🙂 The next chapter starts for me on a trip to India. I´m looking to do a second PhD there, this time in Sanskrit. Or in whatever else I´m supposed to be doing.

We´ll see – whatever it will become, it´s certainly a very interesting journey I signed up for.

Priestess Bairavee Balasubramaniam PhD

The Sky Priestess

ENTERING THE DARK WOMB: LIMINALITY, DARK-ADDICTION AND THE DISCOVERY OF HOME

As you discover the sacred embrace of Night, you begin to transform your perception of the Universe. It´s like living in a different time-space, or discovering a different type of element, or language through which you interpret and engage with reality.

A very different sort of reality. One which the ancient Goddess traditions encouraged us to journey into. One which we were later told to forget, vilify, and destroy.

And so many have heeded the call of the Sacred Dark in the past 3 years (Saturn in Scorpio, and so on). So many have begun to open their eyes to that different language or paradigm.

And just as the same way Light is romanticized and stylized and distilled into a form that often forgets its essence – I see the same happening with the way we conceptualize and speak of Darkness.

Rather than the space itself – the vessel of the Void – I see many becoming more and more fixated on the Path of Getting There. Which is a natural thing, but it still needs to be discussed.

And for many the path into the shadow is Pain. Gut wrenching, soul crushing, heart-destroying pain. And metaphors of abuse. And somehow we´re supposed to enjoy this. We´re supposed to dig deep and find what part of us likes this process. With many allegories to BDSM thrown into the mix.

Certainly a route to the Darkness, but not the only one. And certainly one that perpetuates that patriarchal narrative of Pluto raping Persephone and dragging her down below against Her will.

Again, one way of Getting there.

But the Goddess has never left the Shadow. She is the Void.

So why would you need to go through that? Unless you were told you had to, and believed in it?

What happens when we identify our greatest depths, highs, lows – the feel and thrill of excitement (not always the happy kind) – with the quality of being alive?

What happens when getting thrashed, surrendering, mastering (?) or simply being with the Shadow – is really how you get off and feel … simply .. feel…. alive?

When the adrenaline of the Descent and the Hero/ine´s War/Embrace of the Dragon/Serpent/Dark becomes synonymous with Life itself?

That then becomes worrisome.

The more we romanticize the pain, the abuse and the trauma that Dark-Working can bring (in some of its conceptualizations, certainly the more common ones), the more we legitimate levels of addiction to certain forms of Darkness and paths of reaching it.

It´s the same story with codependency and the way cultural norms romanticize it. Here the abusive partner is Pluto/Saturn and somehow we´re still expected to take it – to find salvation.

Some story, different container.

An unnecessary repetition. And one that takes away from the vessel itself.

It´s certainly a part of the process, but a Liminal One.

For some people the period lasts a while, and for others it´s a quick dip – in and out.

Either way, as you head for your Descent – watch the highs and lows that come – and know that this deep emotional roller-coaster is a catalyst for your catharsis. Your undoing. Breaking. and Re-making. But that´s all that is. A Catalyst.

It´s the psychodynamic tension that makes that change, whatever alchemical release happen so that transformation can begin. The drama, in and of itself, is not the end-point or outcome of the process. Just a part of it. It helps to bear that distinction in mind.

And when it´s done … some of you will head out of the cave, the matrix of death and creation, and head back on into the sunlight. Others will find something hidden further within. And head towards it.

A black light calls. Burning with the cool fire of ice. A different sort of light and experience.

There we meet the Dark Mother. The Womb. The Primordial Chamber.

And it gets real quiet.

We enter a space of Detachment. A space where all is, has been, will be and never was.

That space, I call home.

But it takes a bit of a dance, a whirl, a tumble and turn to get here. It´s a space that has no name, no label, no time. The Dark Womb comes close, but that too is a human construct.

And sometimes we stay there for a while, or longer.

Just as the silence begins to deafen, as the sheer .. weight … of unformed potential begins to spill over and through the dark abyss, just as you both enjoy and can no longer take the fullness of the Void … without warning …

BANG!

The Beginning, Back Again.

Blessings,

Priestess Bairavee Balasubramaniam PhD

Honoring The Dark Mother: A Temple-Space ; The Sky Priestess ; The Dark Mother’s Children

‪#‎backtothewomb‬ ‪#‎morestereotypebreaking‬

Terms of Use and Sharing: Feel free to use the Share button on FB or Reblog on WordPress for personal, non-commercial or educational use with all links intact. If you are an organization, institution or individual seeking to use this material for promotional purposes, please ask first. If wanting to include this information into your workshop materials or written work, please cite accordingly. All information provided, be it through sessions conducted or this post is non-liable and is not intended to replace professional legal, medical, psychological, psychiatric and/or financial counsel.

Image: The University of Utah. This artist’s conception shows what an invisible “dark star” might look like when viewed in infrared light that it emits as heat. The core is enveloped by clouds of hydrogen and helium gas. A new University of Utah study suggests the first stars in the universe did not shine, but may have been dark stars. Fair use policy.

Post © Bairavee Balasubramaniam, 2016. All rights reserved. Please do not use or reproduce without permission. See Terms of Use and Sharing above.

THE SKIES SPEAK, THE COLLECTIVE SHIFTS: LESSONS FROM THE BROKEN GODDESS (Mercury conjuncts Uranus, inconjuncts the North Node + Grand Sextile / Star of David with Thereus and Cyllarus, 31 March – 1 April, 2016)

Blessings everyone. Over the past few hours I´ve been seeing a lot of messages coming through – signs, codes and symbols that speak to the crossing of the threshold – from the Age of Pisces, to that of Aquarius.

I wondered why, then turned to the skies. And it was clear.

At this time, we have a Grand Sextile (Star of David) in the skies, along with an impending conjunction between Mercury (The Messenger) and Uranus (The Collective Awakener / Revealer). They both form an inconjunct to the North Node (20 Virgo).

The Mercury-Uranus conjunction indicates that we shall either be receiving, transmitting, or somehow engaging with the energy, or consciousness, of the Collective. This is a time where we think about the ideals and visions of a future that we – humanity and all else it coexists with – can aspire to manifest. We are challenged to find new ways of thought and modes of articulation that facilitate the breaking into new ground, or revelation of new codes or forms of thought – as we enter a new Age.

So much of this requires a re-visitation of the lessons from the Age of Pisces, and to allow those lessons the time they need to fade. Change, as radical as it needs to be, is not something that happens overnight. It takes time for the ideas we articulate to sediment into the material lives of the collective we exist as a part of.

In Aries, Mercury and Uranus focus upon messages that are channeled through – the physical body – the way we connect with ´I AM Consciousness´- insights on the human brain (anything neck upwards really) – things that break through old ways of seeing who and what we are, and that allow new ones to be recognized.

The old and new dichotomy is somewhat ironic, as so much of what we celebrate as cutting-edge research is stuff that has often already been said or put into practice by ancient civilizations. An article I saw yesterday captures this perfectly: Scientists now believe they have to rewrite the textbooks as they have now conclusively shown a connection between the brain and the lympathic system. Whilst this is a celebration and indeed, a triumph, for ´modern´ science, it´s something that practitioners from India and China have recognized for thousands of years. Be it in acupuncture, Ayurveda, Tai Chi, Chi Gong and related fields of body energy-medicine.

For me, I saw it in a little-known version of Hercules (starring Dwayne ´The Rock´ Johnson). Surprisingly good … and I mean graphic comic book level good. He plays the role of Hercules, essentially, as a mortal man who has an unusual amount of strength. Quite gritty.

Much of the mythological figures associated with his trials are shown to be – rather than gods – interpretations of his own subconscious. I loved that narrative.

It´s quite epic in a Promethan-MonkeyKing-challenge-the-gods kind of way. A dismantling of old hiearchies, and dissolving of the game that mortals play and gods orchestrate.

The closing scene is him essentially pushing down an idol of Pallas Athena onto a raging army. In that world, much as this one, the symbols of the gods become co-opted for the tyrannical machinations of would-be autocrats. Quite a powerful tale, and Pallas Athena a powerful symbol of the fall of the old. She is, of course, as the ancient Feminine co-opted as part of a later, patriarchal, mythology.

Think of her as the Distorted Feminine, that (alongside the Distorted Masculine) equally needs to tumble back to the Abyss as we seek balance once more.

Interestingly, the head of the Goddess rolls straight into the main villain, plunging him – and Her – into the abyss. Quite a powerful symbol.

Now this direction of thought and experience wasn´t one I thought I´d be entering. I´ve served many lifetimes in the role of the temple priestess and related spiritual … positions. And I thought that this life was going to be more of that.

I – and many other priestesses – have died in service to older forms and symbols of what was once sacred (temples, statues, sacred serpents and familiars) .. But all of that has shifted for me, and for others who come forwards to tell similar narratives of their own journeys.

The karma of that path of service no longer seems to call to me, and instead, I am asked to find something new for myself – and to recognize that this is a collective moment to discover (once more) – what is ´Sacred´ in this coming Age.

So much of what we once considered the forms and structures that hold/express the sacred need to … well .. tumble down. They need reconfiguration so we do not repeat the imbalances of the past, but build on that knowledge to find better ways of connection. Even in in the things we´re trying to bring back.

But is this a call to Ascend and leave the Earth plane? Not necessarily. If anything, it is a call to find ways of service that are reconfigured to match the energies of this new Age. But one that no longer uses that binary of Earth / Heaven , Black / White – one that sees and celebrates it all as different chapters of the same story.

In short we are called to discover a collective ethos or universalist ideal that is focused upon service to this Earth-Plane. A bridging of the rational mind and intuitive spirit in ways that no longer enslave us within the doctrine of predetermination and fatalism.

I see that expressed as the inconjunct between Mercury/Uranus (19 Aries) and the North Node (20 Virgo). Those of you with placements close to 19-20 Aquarius, or 19-20 Scorpio will see this activated as a powerful Yod (or Finger of Fate). They will lead you through powerful karmic currents, and to the crossroads of change.

It´s a very exciting time to be working with the energy of the Collective as all of this is happening whilst we have a Perfect Grand Sextile in the skies. Grand Sextiles are essentially, the Hexagram formation, or Star of David surrounded by a Hexagon. We have all but one area in Cancer (9-16 degrees) that would otherwise complete the alignment – and that too is covered when consider other asteroids. So yes, a perfect Star of David.

The bodies involved are (briefly speaking):

Vesta at 9 Taurus – The Priest/ess in Service to the Earth – see yesterday´s post for more info

Neptune at 10 Pisces – The Deep, Formless Surender to Spirit / Nothingness / Ocean of All-That-Is

Moon and Pluto in Capricorn – Questioning our understanding of authority and forms of legitimacy born of power, the idea of legacy

Juno at 12 Scorpio – the Energy of the Divine Feminine, the awakener of the Soul in the sign of the Underworld / Lessons from the Descent

Jupiter Retrograde at 15 Virgo – Growth through the Archetype and Practice of Service (bear in mind that Jupiter itself is currently squaring Saturn Retrograde – 16 Sagittarius – and Pluto – 17 Capricorn)

Thereus and Cyllarus (asteroids) at 15 Cancer – The recognition of traditional traps of identification on the victim-abuser spectrum, familial or cultural wounds that resist transcendence. The need to recognize the power of emotional movement through the past, without wanting to leap forwards / into the fray before we´re ready to do so.

Energetically speaking, it´s prime time to manifest, whatever you will. Watch your energy and intention at this time and allow it to tap into the emergent wisdom fo the Collective. Quite a lot of what will come through for you is likely to resonate with the points of the Grand Sextile. And take it in your own time, there´s no need to rush into something. If it seems too overwhelming, plug out and let things unfold as they will.

The Grand Sextile formed through the Moon´s movement into Capricorn, circa 5 am on March 31st 2016, UTC time.

The alignment dissolves just as the Moon conjuncts Pluto (17 Capricorn) and intensifies its square to Mercury and Uranus (19 Aries) I´d estimate that to be around 3.30 am, April 1st 2016 (UTC time) – roughly 9 hours from the time this post goes public.

The Grand Sextile dissolves as the Moon conjuncts Pluto, squaring Mercury-conjunct-Uranus. That activates the same dynamic we´ve been (intensely) feeling between 2012-2015, i.e. the Uranus-Pluto squares. It (in a nutshell) makes you question the legitimacy of authority and the legacy you leave behind in this world – supported by that radical break-through energy of Uranus as it propells the evolution of the Collective.

Old structures fall, as we prepare for new alignments to take their place.

Blessings to the Collective,

Bairavee Balasubramaniam
The Sky Priestess

Post © Bairavee Balasubramaniam, 2016.
Image: Roman – Statue of Hygeia, Goddess of Health – Walters 2342.jpg – Walters Art Museum [Public domain, CC BY-SA 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0) or GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html)], via Wikimedia Commons

Terms of Use and Sharing: Feel free to use the Share button on FB or Reblog on WordPress for personal, noncommercial or educational use with all links intact. If you are an organization, insitution or individual seeking to use this material for promotional purposes, please ask first. If wanting to include this information into your workshop materials or written work, please cite accordingly.

A Dream of Asherah … Messages from the Goddess

 

The Goddess weaves her Magic and Mystery through Love, Joy, Warmth and Play. But equally so through Sorrow, Grief, Abandonment and Pain.

I had a dream last night in which I was shown, once more, the multi-facetedness of Her Presence in The World. She is the moving, living, breathing force that moves through All. Seen and Unseen.

It was a powerful reminder of her Love. In the dream, she helped me find my strength to close the door to a powerful karmic current in my life I was ready to release. I saw her wear multiple faces, some of those who had hurt me, some of a Higher/Deeper Self, and many others.

It was a realization and a reminder to see the personal hurts and attachments we associate with our human life as part of her Sacred Dance. And to trust in that Dance, and our ability to evolve through it.

As we walk in Faith with the Goddess, we understand this complex tapestry She weaves with us, as co-weavers, or co-creators of Experience and Consciousness.

Be She Asherah. Kali. Diana. Hecate. Dhumavati. Ixchel. Pele. Brighid. Inanna. Sophia. Gaia. By these names, or any other name, or no name at all.

She is here with us now. And always has been. And always will be.

Hail Goddess! Hail the Mother!

Blessings and Love,

Priestess B. Bairavee
I AM Rising: The Goddess Awakens

❤ ❤ ❤ I thank my dear sister Petah-Jane Auckland-Hall for giving me the space to figure out what all this meant for me, in my work and spiritual being. She is a lovely soul that I value and appreciate deeply in my life. She runs the page The Way of the Priestess .

Image of Asherah – By Deror avi (Own work) [Attribution, CC BY-SA 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0) or GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html)], via Wikimedia Commons. Fair Use Policy.

INTO THE VOID: A JOURNEY TO THE DARK GODDESS (21st March 2016, Glastonbury, England)

 

** REGISTRATION DEADLINE: MARCH 14, 2016, 23:59 UTC  **

INTO THE VOID: A Journey to the Dark Goddess celebrates the channel of Darkness, the Shadow and the Night in its most Sacred vibration. We Journey to the Womb of the Earth Mother, and further still into the Black Void, the Abyss from which all originated – and to which all shall return.

This is a sacred space, one that has been shunned and abandoned for millenia – but no more…

It is time for Her Return.

In practical terms, Into The Void is an extremely intense workshop that opens and clears energetic channels connecting to our inner and outer Perceptions of The Dark Feminine.

We will be discussing specific tools, paradigms and practices that you can use to clear the energetic waterways and plunge into the depths, on your own terms.

Much of this will involve a re-signification of the process of wounding, victimization, grief and anger in the processing of deep pain. As, more often than not, we are triggered into a consciousness of the Shadow through the medium of the Wound.

That being said, if you are at an raw, early stage in processing your own wounds, or are easily triggered, please bear that mind before booking. A lot of this work will challenge your perceptions and encourage you to discover a different Path to the Dark Mother herself. And all of our paths are different.

To summarize, here are the key themes presented:

• The Channel of the Dark Goddess
• Transmutation of the Wound, Pain and Anger
• Compassion, then Detachment

 

Just some of the themes that we will be exploring during this 1-day workshop.

 

Venue: Chalice Well, Glastonbury

Date: March 21, 2016

Time: 10 am to 6 pm (estimated)

Cost: 75 GBP (sliding scale available) + 8 GBP for private access to the Chalice Well Gardens.

** REGISTRATION DEADLINE: MARCH 14, 2016, 23:59 UTC  **

 

30 places available

 

So … here we go. Into the Void!

 

To book a place or get further information, please use this contact form:

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Blessings,

Priestess Bairavee Balasubramaniam PhD – Workshop Facilitator
The Dark Mother’s Children ; The Sky Priestess ; www.bairaveebalasubramaniam.com

Fiona Willis – Workshop Coordinator
BirthDance UK , Sacred Cycles ; Shamanic Womancraft UK

Visiting Raja Kali Amman (The Royal Mother Goddess Kali) & A Wish

I love this sculpture of the Goddess. She´s calm, powerful, centered and a beautiful representation of Love. My brother visited the place for the first time today, though I´d been there a few times before.

I bought Her a garland of flowers with orchids in them and spoke to Her for a little while. It´s a coming home, in many ways.

She´s housed in a very unusual temple, whose walls are covered by colourful, reflective pieces of glass (inside and out). Whilst this is not the major idol in the moolastanam (sanctum sanctorum), this is the idol of Kali-Ma used for rituals during New and Full Moons. Haven´t participated in those yet.

My ardent wish was to one day, see a Priestess in that temple in full time-service. That would be fitting. What we have now is two male priests. They tend to her with reverence, but still, one of Her daughters ought to be there. Perhaps one day that daughter will let me garland Her myself.

Let´s see what She´s got planned 🙂

Blessings,

Bairavee Balasubramaniam
The Sky Priestess ; The Goddess, The Serpent and The Sea: Building Pathways of Light ; The Dark Mother’s Children ; I AM Rising: The Goddess Awakens

Image ´Rajakaliamman JB, Feb 28 2016´ and Post © Bairavee Balasubramaniam, 2016. All rights reserved. Please do not use without prior permission. Feel free to share for personal, non-commercial use with all links/text intact.

 

Osiris / Isis , The Magdalene / Christ, Kali / Shiva – ARCHETYPES OF THE DIVINE MASCULINE AND FEMININE AT PLAY IN THE SKIES (25 February 2016)

I´ve been listening to the skies, and a very clear message is coming through: In the bid to Awaken the Feminine, the Masculine cannot be neglected. This is represented by (at least) three different exact aspects present in the skies now.

For reference, I understand the Divine Masculine and Feminine as energetic archetypes present in all beings, irrespective of species, race, gender, age, sexual orientation, belief system, and so on. They play out in different ways depending on other factors – like how much weight we ascribe to the fixity of gender, how we were raised, what our respective cultures told us being a ´man´ or a ´woman´ looked like – and so on. The three aspects we´ll discuss are:

(1) Eris conjunct Siva (22 Aries)

(2) Osiris (12 Sagittarius) – Magdalene (13 Sagittarius) – Great Attractor (14 Sagittarius) conjunction

(3) Vesta (24 Aries) inconjunct Mars (26 Scorpio)

Eris refers to the force of the Awakening Feminine able to exist As-She-Is, irrespective of the shackles placed upon her by an outmoded status quo that fears her presence. I see her as the agent of Chaos, strongly resonant with some perspectives on the Goddess Kali-as-Destroyer. She (Eris) is conjunct Siva, the asteroid representing the energy of Lord Shiva, the Masculine complement to Mahakali.

In mythology, despite his ability to destroy All of Creation with the opening of his third Eye, Lord Shiva demonstrates love thorugh acts of self-sacrifice (very Christ-like in that sense). He swallows the poison of the Great Serpent to prevent it from destroying the Universe, he lays down (in surrender) to Mahakali as she dances in her bloodlust. She awakens out of her frenzy when realizing that her foot now stands on her husband´s chest. There are multiple interpretations of the latter event, depicted as Mahakali standing over Shiva in a corpse-like form, smeared with cremation ash. (I quite like the narrative which takes it as a form of play, where Kali-Ma´s in the mood and Shiva´s playing hard to get 😉 ) Either way, it´s a complex interplay of energy between the Fierce Feminine and the Compassionate Masculine. They both seek acknowledgement and embodiment at this time.

The same dance of the Masculine and Feminine also comes through the second aspect discussed here – Osiris conjunct Magdalena and the Great Attractor in Sagittarius.

Osiris, of Egyptian mythology, refers to the form of the Masculine that is dismembered by his brother Set. Isis, wife and sister of Osiris goes into the Underworld to find him once more. She searches for the torn pieces of his body and crafts him a new phallus, replacing the only piece she cannot find. This theme resonates powerfully with the Archetype of the Dark Feminine Nurturer, able and willing to enter the Shadow realms to heal her Masculine Counterpart. We see the same story repeated, from the Feminine perspective, in the form of Magdalena.

Astrologically speaking, Magdalena represents the energy of Mary Magdalene – the consort of Christ, now increasingly recognized as his spouse rather than the abhorred prostitute condemned by the Church (till she was then recognized as a saint). Yes, you´d have seen that in the Da Vinci Code, but it is supported by research. The British Library also has a Hebrew scroll that indicates Christ´s referral to the Magdalene as his companion (meaning wife, in those times). I suspect this perspective will gain greater credence over time.

The Magdalene´s energy brings the message of Radical Self Embodiment, to be True to the Self irrespective of projections (or stones) cast by others. To be purely and wholly true to one´s sexuality, feminine presence and being. In a time where patriarchal belief systems had already begun to denigrate the presence of the Sacred Feminine, being the Magdalene was (and still is) a revoluationary act.

Personally, I perceive Her energies to be profoundly healing, nurturing and incredibly powerful – quite Isis-like, in fact. There´s also a strong case for comparing the mythology of Osiris with the Christ narrative. I see them as analogous archetypal pairings reflected across different spiritual and religious systems of belief and practice.

Together this Divine pairing speaks to the Masculine in need of resurrection, nurturing and healing by the Dark Feminine, able to work in realm of the Shadow, to render Him whole once more. Kali and Shiva´s interplay speaks to similar archetypes, but ones that play out in different ways. In some traditions, Kali – as the Crone Dhumavati – devours Shiva when she is hungry. An interesting variation.

It is also interesting to note that the Great Attractor is conjunct the Osiris – Magdalena pairing. The Great Attractor (14 Sagittarius) represents a gravitational anomaly in space that acts much like a black hole without an event horizon – it ´pulls´ you towards a path or teaching (or away from one, as it happens). It focuses our collective engagement with certain Paths or Themes in search of a Greater Truth – though we may individually respond to the same impulses very, very, differently.

AIn other words, the sacred interplay between Masculine and Feminine is, whether we realize it or not, weaving itself into the Paths we choose to take and embody at this time.

At the personal level, I see both aspects discussed above also mirrored by a third: Vesta (25 Aries) inconjunct Mars (26 Scorpio). This operates at a more physical, tangible level as Mars is a personal planet, representing our ability to act, to follow our passions and drives and seek out our desires. It also refers to our significant partners, those who play the more masculine role in the relationship. It may also be represented by a male (or carrier of masculine energy) in a non-partnership context. In Scorpio, the energy of the Yang (Masculine) Archetype seeks to direct itself to penetrate the layers of the sub-conscious, into intimate spaces of alchemy, destruction, and transmutation. It´s a powerful placement for Mars, and one that it will return to, in early June and late July of this year – owing to the Mars retrograde (April 17-June 28, 2016).

Vesta represents the Archetype of the Priest/ess of Facilitator. Devoted in her Service, Vesta keeps alive the Sacred Fires of Life, Creation and Intimacy. In Aries, her focus is upon rekindling the Sacred Flame within the Self and the Truth that then emerges. In practice, Vesta calls us to truly and fully embody ourselves – as we are (much like Eris) – except that she realizes this is, truly, her best route or Path of Service. Embodiment.

The inconjunct between Vesta and Mars challenges the expression of both energies. Vesta is in the Cardinal Fire sign (Aries), and Mars in the Fixed Water sign (Scorpio). Fire and Water do not readily mix (in classical understandings of the elements), nor do the modes of Cardinal (energy that takes a new direction, initiation) and Fixed (energy that seeks to hold its signature). It takes a third point to make the energetic connection into a Yod (or Finger of Fate). Interpreting that all together:

Vesta inconjunct Mars tells us that we´re looking for ways to resolve question of how to Embody the Path of the Awakening Priest/ess with more immediate concerns of how we express our intuitive and emotional depths, intensity and need to concern with respect to the Masculine. There´s a lot of deep work and karmic density coming through with our relationship with the Masculine at this time, and how it relates to the larger process of Awakening the Feminine. They´re not disparate processes, and rather, they need to connect in ways that allow one to be honored and recognized by another.

Those of you with placements near 25-26 Virgo or Gemini will experience this as a Yod or Finger of Fate. Those signal karmic decision points, powerful conduits of energy that can accelerate and/or intensify the spiritual journey you´re on. Wowza!

Even if you don´t have those points readily activated in your chart, the Vesta-Mars inconjunct is prodding you into an awareness of the Dance of the Feminine and Masculine – echoed by Eris, Siva, Osiris, Magdalena and The Great Attractor.

In fact, I found myself staring this message in the face, repeatedly, during the ongoing Eris Awakens Sessions. It kept coming through, over and over, and over again. They must both Dance.

Considering the Mars (April 17 – June 28 in Sagittarius and Scorpio) and Saturn Retrograde (March 25 – August 12 in Sagittarius) later this year — we are, as a collective, going to need to weave the story of the Wounded / Nurturing / Healing / Compassionate / Sacrificed-and-Resurrected Masculine in the awakening of the Feminine-in-all-Her-Forms.

This would of require a re-thinking of the way we relate to men and women in our lives, but equally, a conscious effort to recognize the interplay of these archetypes within our own consciousness and associated energetic lineages.

Blessings to All,

Priestess Bairavee Balasubramaniam PhD
The Sky Priestess

Post © Bairavee Balasubramaniam, 2016. All rights reserved.

Image: Artist’s impression of an ultra-short-period planet.jpg – NASA, ESA and A. Schaller (for STScI) from http://www.spacetelescope.org/images/heic0612c/

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Info on the Eris Awakens Session available at this link.  Cheers! 🙂

VESTA CONJUNCT ERIS (22 ARIES): THE LAMP THAT LIGHTS A HOME MEETS THE RAGING FOREST FIRE

Blessings to all. Vesta, the Goddess Asteroid of Priestessing now meets Eris, the Dark Goddess of Discord (I read it as Chaos) at 22 Aries. This is an extremely powerful alignment that affects us all, particularly those who identify strongly with the need to Serve and/or Embody the Fierce Feminine. I´m going to begin this piece with a mythological analysis of Eris, followed by the astrological interpretation.

Unless you´re over the age of 80, you´ve got Eris in Aries. The mythology of Eris shows her to be an exiled, snubbed, feared creature – Daughter of the Night, the Creatrix of Strife. Much of this is linked with Eris´exclusion from the wedding of Peleus and Thetis, and subsequent events that led to the Trojan War. Essentially, Zeus (uber-patriarch) thought that Eris would be a troublemaker at the wedding and so excluded her (and her alone) from the guest list. As part of her revenge, Eris threw down the Golden Apple of Discord at the wedding feast, inscribed with the words “for/to the most beautiful”. The Goddesses Hera, Aphrodite and Athena each claimed the apple for Herself. They turned to Zeus, who refused to adjudicate, and later to a shepherd named Paris. Paris was already known for his fairness in prior dealings with the gods. And so the Goddesses stripped themselves naked before him, offered him bribes (talk about a male fantasy narrative) and asked him to declare who was indeed, the fairest. Paris eventually took Aphrodite´s offer – the chance to marry the most beautiful maiden in the world, i.e. Helen of Troy. And all of that led to to the Trojan War. It is interesting to note that the great warrior Achilles, son of Peleus and Thetis (whose wedding kicked off the whole thing), is famously killed during that war as well.

Let´s just say the Apple of Discord packs a powerful generational punch.

Now, bearing in mind that much of Greco-Roman mythology is deeply patriarchal – it´s easy to see why a woman who would not ´fit in´ with the rest of the gang would be seen as troublesome and something to exile or avoid entirely. It´s easy to see why she gets projected upon as something that causes Strife, when – from a different perspective – her actions actually lead to far larger-scale events that change the course of history (or herstory, if you prefer). I´m pretty sure Eris would not have stripped to find male approval of her Beauty, nor would she have paid to receive that validation. In that sense, she is the Dark Goddess – the Fierce, Feared, Forgotten Feminine that Patriarchy seeks to stamp out. It seems to me that Eris, as an agent of Change, shakes up the status quo in ways that disallow unequal or unjust dynamics of power to persist. That of course depends on which level of consciousness we understand Eris operating from: at the personal or the collective level. We do not know if she cast the Apple of out sheer spite, or if she did so to reveal the vanity and weakness of the Gods themselves.

That being said, She´s probably my favourite Greco-Roman Goddess. Rather than Discord, I see her as a force of Chaos. The necessary energy that destroys the old – no longer in need, or in imbalance – to make way for the new. That kind of change is frightening for most people. Especially if they know they´re holding onto a world, or worldview, that is starkly out of balance with their sense of truth, authenticity, power and Selfhood. That comes through especially with Eris´ position in Aries. Unless you´re over the age of 80, you have Eris in this sign in your birth chart.

Now, let´s have a look at Vesta.

Vesta is the Roman Virgin Goddess of the hearth and home. Sacred flames lit Her temples, tended to by her Priestesses, the Vestal Virgins. Whilst Vesta was a goddess, her concerns were seen to be purely Earth-based, focused on the material, day to day concerns of the here and now. Some ancient scholars equated her with the Earth itself, whilst others argue that her role was that of a Protector. The sacred flame of Vesta´s flames were seen as the spark of the life infusing and sustaining the entire community. There´s plenty of symbolism associated with Vesta and her importance in the ritual life of Roman civilization. It becomes interesting to see if, or how, these themes play out in astrologically analysing Vesta and her placements.

Personally, I would like to believe that Vesta´s flames and the all-woman Vestal Virgins had access to the women´s mysteries and a metaphysical understanding of creative, sexual life-force (i.e. kundalini energy). Perhaps that theory will be confirmed, we´ll see.

The Vestal Virgins were an all-woman college of full-time temple priestesses. They were chosen as girls from the patrician class between the ages of 6 to 10. The moment they took their vows, they were freed from the control of their father. The Vestals enjoyed a greater degree of freedom than other women of their time, however, they had to stick to an absolute vow of chastity for 30 years. They could then choose to marry if they so wished, but often did not as marrying one who had committed herself to the Goddess was seen as unlucky.

The punishment for violating the chastity code was to be buried alive or having molten lead poured down one´s throat.

Quite a powerful disincentive.

Bear in mind that my understanding of the Virgin archetype has less to do with the idea of not having sex, and more to do with having sovereignty over one´s own sexual, creative and reproductive faculties. Some authors also associate the Virgin with the idea of Virgin Birth, i.e. Parthenogenesis. But that´s a different piece for a different time.

The Vestal Virgins also performed other duties, such as the preparation of a kind of sacred bread (mola salsa) that was sprinkled upon animals prior to ritually sacrificing them to the Gods. They also officiated over public events, tended to the temple´s sacred fire and participated in the preparations for various feast days (e.g. Roman New Year – March 1, Lemuria – May 13, Vestalia – June 7-15, and so on).

Coming back to astrology …

In Aries, Vesta brings our focus, intensity and passion to the cause of the Self. That Primal, Fundamental, Wordless understanding of Who You Are. It is that Spark that arises out of Nothing and puts all into Motion and Being. And that flame is called to burn brightly.

With Eris and Uranus in Aries, these fires have been lit for some time now, particularly with the Uranus-Pluto squares. So many of us have begun to rapidly accelerate in our process of Awakening and Self-Knowing.

Vesta calls us to Serve the Self. To allow it to awaken in ways that resonate with your deepest impulses and most primal sense of who you are. In your bones, in your gut, in your womb, in the parts of you that feed back into the Void. That is the place from which your Sacred Flame begins to burn.

But what do you Feed the Flame? What allows your inner, sacred Flame to Burn?

There are three ways of looking at that. One is through the external use of energy, i.e. through sacrifice of other objects. In the past, that would have been animals. Another is through an inner process that – like the Vestals – sees power accessed on the condition of restriction. A third way, perhaps the one that appeals the most to this current generation – is to feed the flames with an expression of your own passion, your own being, your own sense of self.

In terms of the Priestess & Goddess Movement, I see many of use who resonate with the Archetype to trying to find ways to negotiate between the 2nd and 3rd option. Especially as so many have been taught that sanctity and purity can only come through self-negation, suffering and sacrifice. But that is a far larger question that what we´re discussing today.

We live in a different age than the Vestals did. We need not serve in a ritually prescribed form as they, nor do we need to suffer such punishment for transgression. We can now find different ways of being True to the Sacred Fire Within, without sacrifice – in the older sense of the term.

In the day to day level of reality, Vesta in Aries refers to a need to fully Embody one´s being, so that one can in fact, discover new ways to Serve. Sometimes Being is simply Enough. Others can see Vesta in Aries as a call to disown the Self or to deny it, one that resonates with older ideas of what a priestess ought or ought not be.

What you choose is ultimately, what you resonate with. Each road will lead you someplace.

Getting back to the astrological conjunction –

The energies of two mighty Goddesses come together as one. The rage of Eris and her outrage at the injustice of the world and status quo awakens us with a mighty roar. Vesta appears, with her calmer, albeit, more sustainable fire – as if to say –

Yes, Dear Sister. Roar. But don´t burn yourself out. Rage. But find a way to make it real. Embody. But find a way to weave into into the everyday.

Eris herself turns towards Vesta and questions her in turn:

But why dear Sister would you limit yourself to the words of men? To laws that would punish you so? Why would you boil yourself down to a single pinprick, a singularity? Why not simply Be – Untamed, Wild, Uncontrollable … and Free?

The difference between the two, borrowing a phrase from someone dear to me, is between the lamp that lights a home, and a raging forest fire. One is intensely personal, and the other is at the collective level. Each has its place, its purpose and potential. This conjunction brings with it a chance to find a path of mediation , a reconciling of the two. I suspect this process will be more visible at an internal level.

Some of you might simply feel more grouchy or irritable today. Others might try to let it go without getting to the root of it. Some others will look for the deeper lesson and in so doing, potentially re-acquaint themselves with a Self they thought they lost. There are many potential ways this can play out. I´ve shared my experience with this alignment in the Postscript below.

Those of you with placements near 22 degrees Aries, Libra, Cancer or Capricorn (Cardinal signs) will feel this alignment intensely! Eris and Vesta are also making a sextile to Kassandra and Damocles (23 Aquarius). Those of you with placements near 23 Virgo will be experiencing a powerful Yod or Finger of Fate. One that challenges you to speak your truth, claim your mantle of power – or step away from it entirely. (And sometimes, saying No and Walking Away is the right thing to do). Eris and Vesta also trine Lachesis (21 Sagittarius), indicating the need for powerful emotional release, recognition of deep-trauma or energetic stagnation in matters pertaining to religious systems, academia / higher education, foreign travel, teachers or mentors, and so on. Tears that well up from your innermost being, at this time, can be powerfully cathartic.

I hope this mythological and symbolic analysis of Eris and Vesta has been of benefit and interest. Much of the historical research I used was available online – and Wikipedia is an awesome place to start. I also ended up looking at the Ancient History Encyclopaedia. Quite an interesting resource.

Blessings to All,

Bairavee Balasubramaniam
The Sky Priestess

Post © Bairavee Balasubramaniam, 2016. Feel free to share this article using the Share button on Facebook or Reblog on WordPress for personal, non-commercial use. For any other purpose, please get in touch with me first. The interpretive material in this article is based on unpublished original research, and so I ask you to cite this piece if you would like to incorporate it into your own work or writings.

Image: ´Priestess´ By Leticiabanegas (Own work) [CC BY-SA 4.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)%5D, via Wikimedia Commons. Used for non-commercial purposes under fair use policy.

Postscript  – my personal experience with Eris/Vesta :

Normally I don´t comment about a who-said-what kind of thing. But it fits Vesta conjuncts Eris (article below) quite well. A man inboxed me with regards to some aspect of ritual worship. I explained I did not work in that understanding of spirituality, but that I would answer what I could. He wanted to know if I did Vedic astrology, and I explained how I grew out of it. After dozens of readings as a child (and seeing it with family, and with some clients who never really felt it ´fit´), I opted to be a Western astrologer. As I´ve said before, which system you choose is up to you. They read different parts of the story, through different lenses.

This provoked an intense reaction from the man, saying how I had missed out and how Western astrology was shallow. And questioned how I could ´like´ Hindu gods because they were astrological. He started trying to pressure me with demands to answer his questions which, really he did not want to have answers for. To him, it was a need to prove that his system was better than mine. It was more of a bombardment that I neither had the time, nor the interest to handle.

I simply said that I wasn´t here to answer a pop quiz. And that it was an imposition on my time. I would block him if he persisted.

He laughed at the fact I identify with the priestess archetype and claimed I needed spiritual practice and that he was a panditji. So I should learn from him. (The unspoken assumption being that I had to yield to invasion of my space and time despite my clear lack of interest)

I simply responded that he neither understood what a priestess was or what she did.

To which he claimed to understand the Goddess, feminine energy and Devi worship.

Now, up to this point, I had been firm, but polite. I simply concluded with the following:

” Truly, a man who persists in imposing himself upon a woman´s time when she has said no?

Revolutionary.

Goodbye and I hope you find clarity. “

I realize that the old anger I had, that reaction I would once have instantly flared up with when seeing this kind of misogyny (and boy, do you see in in so called realized male Masters who claim to know the Feminine) – was gone. Just a cool detachment. Ready to cut the cord without turning back. Able to simply say no, without giving into the need to be liked, accepted or wanted.

Yeah, Eris! Go, Vesta!

I had been thinking about my role as a priestess, and what that meant to me. Which is why I haven´t been writing as much. I parted ways from someone significant to me (in my spiritual life) as I discovered she neither had the time or headspace for the path I was walking onto. One where I was less open to the manipulations of others, or the fantasies of my own ego (and yes, we all have it). One that came straight from the Dark Void, the Womb of the Dark Mother.

I didn´t know if what I was doing was right or wrong, because so much of my work was linked with the approval of this early mentor. And I questioned myself, bitterly, brutally – even to the point of wondering if I should just leave all this and get back into academia and/or a job at the UN.

I´d been in a state of not-knowing and not-being, and well, I was waiting for the spark to appear. The catalyst that would shift me out of my limbo. Something that would help me find my own answer.

Without my head, without (what is tradtionally understood as) the heart, something that comes from a place deeper than my gut, womb … at the heart of the Dark Core. That first spark of Awareness that says …

HERE, I AM.

Thank you Mr. Diehard-Feminine-Indian-Astrologer Guy.

You made my night 😀