Capricorn, My Capricorn

(image courtesy of www. globalsecurity.org)

On a single day this past September of 2007 I had the pleasure of spending time with 3 Capricorn friends – count ‘em 3 – and all in one day! Much as I hope that I was present for my friends, I could not help but also observe them in my double Libran detachment as I knew that my whole day was to be spent exclusively with Capricorn natives. Perhaps you are wondering if I observed any specific traits. Well, sure, and since the winter solstice of 2007 has now come and gone, I thought to share some of these observations with you now that we have entered the deepest winter territory and the time of the Sea Goat.

To begin with, during that fall day in September I observed first a young 20-something Capricorn who is quite tall and beautiful. She is a gifted juggler, balance artist and fire twirler and she also speaks with a strong British accent although she has lived in many exotic locations thanks to her globe trotting mother. Clearly this world- aware young Cappie is an interesting and erudite person. I will call her Alice. Alice is indeed a world citizen and it is enjoyable to converse with her.

Often she comes into our living room for a chat. She and her husband share the same wedding date as my wife and I, so we often talk about our past weddings. Alice, to me, exhibits a solid sense of herself in this weird world and reflects a kind of responsibility that this double Libran never possessed at her age. In true Capricornian spirit, she takes everything quite seriously and there is a kind of formality to her speaking, which is perhaps partly from her British affect, but to me – it just exaggerates her Capricornian sun even more. Alice will be very polite and talk seriously for a long time. Sometimes I feel a bit railroaded by her (perhaps I feel that I should be consulted before she goes on to deliver a lecture upon her intriguing personal history or her views on the world) but I realize that this is just the Libran thinking that in my quietness people should ask for my permission to continue further with their personal monologues. I realize that this is a distortion …

In any event, Alice exhibits the very best Capricornian characteristics. She is gracious and personable and somehow aware of the seriousness of life at an early age. It is remarkable really that she appears so much older than her years. Of course here is where we get to see the very touchstone of Capricorn: spiritually old when young and eventually young when old. This to me seems very much part of astrological lore that always seems to have some truth in it about Capricorns. I have recently taken stock of how many Cappies I know and it is many indeed. They do seem to find themselves later in life and many healthier vistas open up for them at that point. It is almost as if Capricorn is born in order to get old because then things will be better for them. This is almost a paradoxical life direction for many reasons – youth should be fulfilling and fun, right? On the other hand, I believe that Cappies are so powerful because youth combined with seriousness is inevitably going to create near miracles in human development! Now I am not talking about happiness here necessarily; instead, I am suggesting that Capricorn will accomplish lots in their life times.

Female Capricorns also tend to lose their fathers at young ages, or simply having missing fatherly influences resulting in even more of a need for external and forceful masculine energy. This force can easily be seen in Alice whose father seemed to have been involved only in her very early life.

The Capricorn native also seems to be quite a loner. Doing work at a furious pace is paramount to them. It is almost as though they were engaging in a consuming love affair with their steady professional “obligations” – the question is, of course, whether these are all obligations per se. Couldn’t the Cappie just blow off a few duties and chores? I think not.

Let’s move on to my friend Ted who is also a Cappie and a master tennis player. As a player he is cautious and continually focused on mastering the basics. He hits with a steady power that is quite devastating. He continues to refine and hone and master the forehand and the backhand. He asks questions about his swing and works on perfecting it and he does this through being dedicated to his footwork and through the precise observation of the pros at both local and international tournaments.

Just as I seem to take life quite seriously, so does Ted. He gives me solid advice and it is a unique opportunity when he speaks about his own family obligations to me. He speaks sternly, yet fondly about family roles and of their primacy in life. This is not unlike Alice, who although half Ted’s age, is still able to talk a blue streak about her family lineage back in England with both reverence and a critical eye. Capricorn is indeed concerned with bloodlines and the stories of ancestral significance. When I am talking with either Ted or Alice, it seems strange that so quickly both of us go into talking about the past and its interpretation. Where did we come from? And how?

My great friend Jeannie is an author, an astrology master, a psychologist, an educator, a massage therapist and a sailing expert. I am still trying to figure out the exact Cappie influence in all of this and I think it exemplifies the following theme: mastery.

The Capricorn native wants to master people, places, events, skills, social events, social empowerment movements, you name it! Whether they are off to the mountains or to the oceans – it is onward and upward. They work hard for it and are extremely diligent. They understand how to get the sea of humanity moving. Martin Luther King Jr. emphasizes this fact perfectly. So did Joan of Arc.

On the dark side, however, there is Mao Tse-Tung, another Capricorn native. I have been reading an excellent book by Jung Chang and Jon Halliday (publisher; Alfred A. Knopf) on the real Mao who essentially gained control of all of China and initiated the Cultural Revolution. He achieved this through lying, neglect, murder, infanticide; double crossing … the list goes on and on… The statement on the book jacket reads: “In chasing the dream he caused the deaths of 38 million people in the greatest famine in history. In all, well over 70 million Chinese perished under Mao’s rule – in peacetime.”

Here, then, is the very phenomenology of the Capricorn. “I use” is their statement of purpose. They can choose to accomplish amazing feats for good, or they can build evil empires just as easily. Think Dick Nixon – Never mind Watergate – he started the institution of HMOs.

My friend, Jeannie, then does good. She throws fantastic parties at which people find one another and make lifelong relationships. I found my wife at one of these events. Her parties also create small-scale economies in which people barter or exchange information about jobs and career changes. Through these parties new societies and alliances emerge that are quite unique in their complexity and magnitude. This should be the true mission of the Sea Goat. It is to master and refine and all that goes with that. My Captain, my Captain – this is what the Cappie wants to hear and for the most part, they deserve it!

The Sagittarian

(image courtesy of cyberextazy.fil)

Now the time of transition into autumn 2007 has truly been negotiated and all of us here in the Northeastern United States have moved toward winter in both body and mind. Gone are the torrential and dank rains of the Scorpionic season and in their place have come the morning frosts and biting cold winds that lend themselves towards thinking about snow on the ground. The sun gleams like a diamond on those rare days that it can be seen in full force in a light blue sky. The ability of all of us to perceive changes in light and to negotiate environmental shifts is of course a skill that the mutable astrological signs have down pat – both humans and animals have to adapt – this process is connected to the steady ebb and flow of the life process itself. In evolutionary terms the name of the game is adapt or perish. And of course Sagittarians are very mutable indeed.

The time of Sagittarius that we now find ourselves in is most certainly a time of mutability. Plans are being laid down for the very real approaching winter, yet we are unsure exactly when it will snow. Perhaps a few more hot days will pop up again. A person may now get the itch to make those travel plans and to escape the familiar grays that have seeped into the landscape. Thinking about a new project “for next year” also becomes a real focus now that the dark season is underway. Now the days will visibly shorten until the sign of Capricorn comes to visit signaling the arrival of the winter solstice and Christmas with all its implications for all religions and cultures. But for now, let’s discuss Sagittarius.

Planning and then galloping wildly ahead into the distance seems an obvious course of action for the half-horse / half-person centaur. To me the Sagittarian native is always on the go and somehow in constant activity. I don’t think that this quality is so unlike what happens with the weather and the natural world during this season. The cold bite at your back makes you walk faster; the mind has come to terms with the existential unease of the seasonal change and now concentrates on how to survive. One way to do this is to party! All kinds of religious and cultural holidays are upon us and we have to congregate in big family or friend-based groups. The Sagittarian is ruled by Jupiter with all its bounty and thus he or she is inclined to be very jovial indeed. Both material wealth and resources seem to abound in connection with this sign. It is my contention that the universe smiles upon the independent minded Sagittarian as they go galloping to and fro. It would seem that they can afford “to party”. I know this teenaged term seems dated (or not!), yet I believe it to fit quite well with the mind set of the centaur.

Let’s look at a “king of partiers” – this would be none other than Keith Richards. How much partying has he done in his life? It boggles the mind to even make this conjecture, yet, there it is. Richards, as a true Sagittarian, has partied, survived and made a good deal of money while educating the global public about African American roots music throughout the decades. The fire to educate and party hardy was there in equal measure and bountiful Jupiter blessed Richards by keeping him alive for all of these years. Strangely, too, he distinguishes with age.

Not so with Jimi Hendrix – another Sagittarian who didn’t get a chance to age. Of course we all know how brightly Jimi burned for his twenty seven years. He even went as far as setting fire to his guitar while mimicking sexual release with it – and he made it look good. It has been said that his penis was huge (as stated by the Plaster Casters) and that he could drop more acid than ten men and come back even more enlightened. It has also been said that Jimi did many of the guitar tricks that lesser known bluesmen did for years having never risen out of obscurity, but clearly Hendrix did them all very well and his entire life was in and of itself an education. The arrow that was Jimi’s life flew far indeed and continues in the music. I have always enjoyed playing “Voodoo Chile” on the guitar and with the key lyrical phrase “If I don’t see you again in this world, I’ll catch you in the next one. Don’t be late.” What could be more Sagittarian than that?

OK – Another male Sagittarian – Noam Chomsky. A brilliant mind, a fantastic teacher, and a master theorist. As he is considered to be one of the most important intellectuals of this century, we might further say that being an intellectual is the very stuff of a Sagittarian sun sign. The pursuit of higher knowledge is all typical Sag stuff.

I will go out on a limb and call out the name of another Jewish male Sag – Woody Allen. Look at the mediums that Woody has used: writing, movies, and music – his is truly a mind that is expansive and uncannily tuned within comic delivery. He tends to educate his fans about New York, neuroticism and comedy. The Sagittarian is indeed the teacher and absorber of languages, culture, and politics.

Obviously sun sign astrology is pure simplification, but for the purposes of my monthly postings, I will leave full chart astrologic reading to my more gifted companions.

As I am the double Libra – I must balance this all off with some female Sagittarians. My wife calls them “men”. She says they are competitive like males and are rarely soft. I am not so sure that I agree with this all of the time, but it seems that female Sags are often not stuck as Suzy Homemakers – not that they should be. Look no further for proof of this than in the example of Condoleezza Rice. Here is a woman at the top of her craft and powerful in a world of men BUT she can play piano alongside YoYo Ma and make it look good! She is clearly not small potatoes. I choose not to discuss her politics here, but in terms of body type and scholarly mind – she exemplifies the female Sag.

Let’s not stop here. Check this out: Brittney Spears and Christina Aguilera – both of these POP power blonds are Sags. The meteoric careers of both these stars were also like arrows flying through the air. These young blonds also exemplify the fun loving nature of the Sagittarian and while Jupiter bestows wealth and expansion and luck, it is easy to see that this trait must not be taken for granted. Do they like to party? It would certainly seem that way. I will not comment on family values here and leave that to others.

I will close with a typical Sagittarian story. My godmother Anja lives in the South Bronx and is a Finnish Sag senior citizen. She has been unmarried for most of her life. She loves going out every day and she loves New York and a martini. She has survived strokes and numerous knee and hip surgeries, yet she still scurries to the fourth floor of her walk up apartment in a building that has seen most of her contemporaries buried. People seem to always help her out, but she never seems to ask for help exactly. She seems to take a licking and keeps on going and going and going. I am not putting down Sag as a sign of longevity for obvious reasons, but while it is around – it continues to stay on the move.
By the way, a big Happy Birthday to Jacques Barzun who turns 100 this month. He is also not small potatoes; he merely wrote an analytic interpretation of the entirety that is western civilization! Please continue to educate us all, Jacques!

Check out this link for interesting astrological connections!

http://www.newagenotebook.com/Magic_Spells/

Check out this link for interesting astrological connections!

http://www.newagenotebook.com/Magic_Spells/

The Time of Scorpio is Here!

(image courtesy of BBC)

“Nothing Lasts Forever and We Both Know Hearts Can Change”

Axel Rose’s star power has certainly waned even with the cornrows but the power of these lyrics remains as we all continue negotiating the existentially tough and heartbreaking terrain of early November. Make no mistake about it; November is a time of change and plenty of death. The leaves fall resulting in an ever-expanding shroud of gray. Relatives get sick. The rains crash down harsh and cold, as we look for some kind of deliverance from the skies. For myself, I tend not to believe in deliverance, instead; I like to cozy up to understanding and simple experience.

What is the experience of November? It’s all about Scorpio, a sign of the zodiac symbolized by the eagle or the scorpion. Scorpio is reputed to be the strongest sign. Think Hillary Clinton. Behold Bill Gates. Ingest the salary and trail of broken hearts behind Julia Roberts. These Scorpio folks are not small potatoes. There is money, power and forward movement within these mythic characters. The edginess and intensity of November as a sudden death-like transition drives these clever strategists onward into the mist and gloom where others fear to tread.

OK, I know all of you also have heard that there is a link between Scorpio and the sex drive. Suffice it to say that the karmic words of a Scorpio person, place or thing are “I desire.” If you have read your Freud, then the point to this is self-evident.

Scorpio as represented by the eagle is capable of soaring to the highest heights, albeit usually with a dead rabbit or deceased ideal or life path held within its bloodied talons. Scorpio as the scorpion is intense and wiry with a ready stinger trained on you from which there is no escape.

What does all of this have to do with November? Well, think about it. Suddenly the landscape has become bare and the icy winds are swirling. Cutting decisions and ideas must now suddenly be realized intensely and precisely or mercilessly destroyed. This is not the time of year when babies are outside chasing butterflies.

I believe it was the poet Wallace Stevens who said of November: “When the leaves fall, it is a time for the end of imagination.” The starkness outside contains both life and death; harvest time is over and it is time to ponder the very nature of the crop. The Scorpionic eagle flies above the desolation searching for opportunity and new life validations. No one will escape the keen eye of the eagle.

The Time of Libra

The bright sun of the autumnal equinox as experienced on my most excellent friend's boat Gaia. 2007


There can be no doubt that summer is finally over and now we in the western hemisphere have come into that most magical time of the autumnal equinox or the beginning of the time of Libra. Today is October 1st and as we in the western hemisphere understand this month – it is truly the autumnal month. The equinox took place late last month when the day and the night were of equal duration and the fall actually began. Elsewhere in the world Muslims are fasting and Jews have been atoning. This time of year to me is kind of an antidote to the summer with its long days of incessant activity and light; full out activity is the norm in July with little time for reflection!



Here in Burlington, Vermont USA we humans and animals alike are often caught in the web of a bipolar existence in which a powerful sun propels us into a whirlwind of activities on the good weather days or the lack of sun coupled with plentiful rain drives us all into deep introspection or even despair on the bad weather days. For any Libran this kind of behavior is crazy making. The scales can’t seem to balance within this kind of lifestyle. What is especially true of this situation is a lack of harmony. To me Vermont weather feels to my physical body like a punishing surge of Redbull and adrenaline in the morning followed by a handful of Xanax in the afternoon. This is a kind of play that goes on during this time of year in Vermont as we all get used to a decrease in light and activity time. Should we run around like squirrels gathering nuts or should we mope like old dogs by the fireplace?

If we take October as an example of the spirit of Libra, I believe it to be easy to recognize some characteristics of this time of year in New England. The leaves are changing and the dazzling colors bring us into an amazing field of explosive scenery coupled with some still warm sun that simply creates a beautiful landscape that is ever so fragile for it is so fleeting. Cool winds blow. The forest and mountains seem to be so full of life now, yet the time of Scorpio is just around the corner when all must truly die and the world will turn once again into grayness. To me this all seems so very reflective of the time of Libra. There exists a poignant balanced fragility that is just about to go out of balance!

Here, then, arrives the vibration of Libra – anxiety. Observe the big hitter Mark Maguire or the cigar-chomping Groucho Marx, both are obviously connected to easy-to-spot manly phallus symbols, yet they are mostly soft-spoken men who have gained power and fame through keeping lightly on their toes either at home plate or on the comedy movie set. There is a razor’s edge lightness to both these figures because they need to be able to quickly move to the next thing in their daily and hourly interactions. Buster Keaton’s masterful and athletic pratfalls exemplify this Libran quality perhaps even better. Female Librans such as Serena Williams and Susan Sarandon bring to mind another kind of quality of the sign being that of adaptability and creativity within such varied pursuits as tennis, acting, social activism, music, and fashion and glamour. Enough has been said about these qualities of Venus types that it is perhaps unnecessary to mention that disharmony, ugliness, nihilistic behavior and imperfection drive Libra to drink. Think about the aforementioned qualities and how much of all that there is in the world in order to develop a sense of how many Libran drunkards walk our streets! As a rule, I feel that Librans cover their anxiety and unease with that strange spaciness of theirs.
As a practicant of Buddhist meditation and ideation, I feel that what is most neglected in examination of Libra is indeed its connection with anxiety. As I embrace the Buddhist ideal that all is forever changing and that clinging to attachment is just plain ridiculous, I really get freaked out when I begin to see how futile is the Libran’s battle toward perfection and what I like to call homeostasis – that state of being in perfection and perfect balance were all “can get no better”. My proposition is this: If all is forever changing, then the achievement of a perfect state of balance is damn near impossible! This says much I think about the Libran’s psyche – it is in constant turmoil. It is indecisive about being both decisive and indecisive at the same time. It sees the foolishness of having to constantly choose when in doing so already so much has been given up by doing so. It sees the futility in both action and inaction! Yikes! Where to go from here? Perhaps it is best to reach for the Paxil or the yoga mat – avoid the coffee and the Red Bull.

Finally … a bit of trivia. What is the most common birthday in the United States? October 5th is the answer. This is my birthday. And since Cancer rules the United States and currently there is a Cancer president in the White House, it is my theory that the US is in some kind of a Libra-Cancer (4-10 vibration) always. The Libra-Cancer “battle” is a serious one. Feelings versus intellect. Intuition versus empirical evidence. The summer picnic sun versus a splash of cold color before the decline of November.

Is it any wonder that US elections take place in the cold drizzle of November?
Be nice to your scale friends – even if they don’t move a muscle they have a lot going on!