The Scorpio New Moon Eclipse, Halloween, the Season of the Crone

Here in the far north the air is crisp but soft, scented with the fragrance of apples and wet leaves, yet the sun is still strong during the day – what delicious combination. The trees have turned gold, crimson, and rust; the sky is streaked with layers of mauve and apricot. Sweaters and blankets come down from the cupboards, giant pumpkins and stacks of wood appear on the porches; smoke rises from the chimneys and disappears above the steeples and rooftops of our little hamlet. This is an enchanted time of year; the seasons seem to merge; memories of summer linger with an autumn that is still new and fresh as winter waits patiently in the distance, like a wise crone knowing that her time will come.

The courtyard outside the Astrology Café is empty but inside the lights blaze and music can be heard. In the tower high above the café a light beckons. But first come inside and make yourself comfortable. Welcome back dear friend, you have been missed.

If you are a dreamer, come in. If you are a dreamer, a wisher, a liar, a hope-er, a pray-er, a magic bean buyer…If you are a pretender, come sit by my fire. For we have some flax-golden tales to spin. Come in! Come in! –Shel Silverstein (Where the Sidewalk Ends)

There are logs burning in the big stone fireplace; the cats are curled up nearby; there’s good conversation with friends old and new. Jack-o-lanterns and autumn flowers (Asters, Dahlias, Hibiscus) decorate the café; soft guitar music is playing on the stereo and the luxurious aroma of cinnamon, butter and maple syrup fill the air. It’s time again for casseroles, quiches and hearty soups (pureed butternut squash with spicy pumpkin seeds and sour cream, French onion with melted gruyere, black bean, chicken-escarole).We have crusty homemade bread (organic sour dough, crunchy multi-grain, focaccia) served with olive oil, fresh butter or goat’s milk cheese. For dessert: warm apple brown betty, banana-raisin pudding, flourless chocolate cake (all served with a dollop of crème fraiche or vanilla ice cream), baked apple with dried cranberries and maple syrup or a selection of non-gluten cookies. To drink we have rich, dark coffee, thick, velvety smooth hot chocolate with homemade marshmallows, herbal teas, wine or warm apple cider with cinnamon sticks.

When you’re ready follow me up the staircase, past the library, down a corridor, through a door, then up a narrow, winding stairway to the tower where our old friend, the crone, the wise woman is waiting for us. She’s been waiting all along.

Our friend is ensconced in her cozy sanctuary. The tower room is lit by candle light and filled with the faint scent of lavender and rose. Around the room her sacred statues stand like sentries; Kwan Yin, Mary, Buddha, St. Bridget. She is seated at her round oak table; spread out before her are Runes, favorite stones, cards, and crystals. She looks up, smiles warmly and beckons us to join her. Take a seat dear friend for the night is young, magic is in the air and there is much to discuss. She reaches into her purple velvet bag and chooses a Rune; it is Uruz, the Rune of Strength. Listen closely; perhaps she holds a message just for you.

This is the Rune of termination and new beginnings. Drawing it indicates that the life you have been living has outgrown its form, which must die so that life energy can be released in a new birth, a new form. Uruz is a Rune of Passage and, as such, part of the Cycle of Self-Transformation.
    Growth and change, however, may involve a passage into darkness as part of the cycle of perpetual renewal. As in nature, the progression consists of five parts: death, decay, fertilization, gestation, and rebirth. Events occurring now may well prompt you to undergo a death within yourself. Since self-change is never coerced – we are always free to resist – remain mindful that the new form, the new life, is always greater than the old.  
    Prepare, then for opportunity disguised as loss. It could involve the loss of someone or something to which there is an intense emotional bond, and through which you are living a part of your life, a part that must now be retrieved so you can live it out for yourself. Now, in some way, that bond is being severed, a relationship radically changed, and a death experienced. Seek among the ashes and discover a new perspective and a new strength. –Ralph Blum (The Book of Runes)
Eclipses

An eclipse is a super-charged, high octane New or Full Moon. These dramatic events are like wild cards; they shake things up, turn our lives upside down and allow us to connect with what is hidden within ourselves. Eclipses have the power to bring about deep processes of transformation although not everyone will be affected in the same way. If an eclipse falls on (or within several days) of your birthday then this will be an important year. Or if it connects with a planet or an angle in your chart then you will also experience its full force. Two weeks ago (on October 8) we had a Full Moon (Lunar) Eclipse. That maverick Uranus was conjunct the Aries Moon (and opposite the Libra Sun) and it brought unexpected changes, news and disruptions, especially in relationships. This Eclipse on October 23 is a Solar (New Moon) Eclipse; not as unruly as the Full Moon one but no less potent.

The Scorpio New Moon Eclipse – October 23, 2014

Scorpio rules what is below the earth and what is beneath our conscious mind. No light weight, this powerful sign is associated with depth psychology, taboo, intimacy, birth, death and alchemy and transformation. A New Moon is a new beginning, a birth, yet surgical Scorpio includes purging the old. Something is ready to die; something else is on the verge of being born. Look to see where zero Scorpio falls in your chart; that is a place where you are being called to go deeper. Will you answer the call? Are you willing to do the necessary work? Eclipses repeat themselves every nineteen years. What was going on for you in the fall of 1995; what is calling you now? There couldn’t be a better time to take inventory, release old habits, do some shamanic healing or shadow work.

We’re not supposed to live a horizontal life on the surface of things. We are supposed to live the entire gamut, from the heights of thought and imagination all the way down to the depths of woundedness and the deeper capacity to love. – Michael Meade

Beautiful Venus in is conjunct the Sun, Moon. The goddess of love in seductive Scorpio has a magnetic quality and a powerful desire to merge but in this compelling sign she demands total honesty and a willing to explore difficult issues. Compassionate Neptune makes a positive trine to the Sun, Moon and Venus, strengthening our compassion, deepening our intuition and assisting us in the healing process. Mercury turns direct on October 25 moving forward, freeing up energy and information. The planet of communication, in diplomatic Libra, reminds us to listen loudly, speak kindly and above all to have compassion for ourselves and others. Perhaps all the dragons of our lives are princesses who are only waiting to see us once beautiful and brave. Perhaps everything terrible is in its deepest being something helpless that wants help for us. -Rainer Maria Rilke

Halloween – October 31, 2014

Called Samhain (summer’s end) Halloween is the Celtic New Year and one of the four cross-quarter holidays (the others are Imbolc, Beltane and Lammas). It is said to be a time when the veil of the astral world is lifted, the psyche is unfettered, and anything is possible. The pagan idea used to be that the crucial joints between the seasons opened cracks in the fabric of space-time, allowing contact between the ghost world and the mortal world.

Walking, I am listening to a deeper way. Suddenly all my ancestors are behind me. Be still, they say. Watch and listen. You are the result of the love of thousands.
-Linda Hogan (Native American writer)

This is the time of the Crone, the witch, and the weaver; the time of year to honor our ancestors and to connect with them for guidance on the year ahead. Decorate your altar with photographs of friends, family who have passed over as well as your heroes and heroines. The last day of October is the beginning of the year’s dark season. Traditionally, it is the time Persephone returns to the underworld to take her place with Pluto her husband and her consort. Like Persephone we now begin to turn inward, to go deep and connect with what is real. At this time we can access the unknown and the unseen. What is it you desire to bring to consciousness? Remember, what is freed at Halloween is conquered and integrated. Open to the deep rivers of your wisdom and intuition. Surrender to the space between the worlds.

It is your turn now.
You waited, you were patient.
The time has come,
for us to polish you.
We will transform your inner peal
into a house of fire.
You’re a gold mine.
Did you know that,
hidden in the dirt of the earth?
It is your turn now,
To be placed in fire.
Let us cremate your impurities.
–Rumi

Beloved Friends, It is late here in our tower room above the Astrology Café. The candles have all burned down and outside the old owl has appeared on the branch of the Alder tree reminding us that it is time to say goodbye. Your presence has been a gift; thank you for visiting. Enjoy this rich and generous season. Relish the beauty around you and within you. Stay connected to your heart, your family, friends, and tribe. Above all, love yourself, feel good, and be grateful. All is well, you are loved, Virginia

Be sure to connect with me on Facebook, check my website (www.virginiabellastrology.com) for updates on the New and Full Moon each month and read my blog: www.youarenevertoolate.com

October is colorful, it is exuberant; it is full of lively spirit. Spring fever can’t hold a candle to October fever, when it comes to inner restlessness. The birds are on the wing, leaves are footloose and eager for a breeze; the horizon is a challenge that amounts to insidious summons. Listen closely and you can hear October, that fellow in a crimson shirt, whistling a soft melody that is as old as autumn upon the earth. –Hal Borland (Borland Country)