Notes on the Full Moon / Lunar Eclipse

It is hard to believe that this is the solar/lunar anniversary of finding my current home. That is to say, it was during the Full Moon in Scorpio, in early May 2012, that I managed to use astrology to my advantage. It's not all that easy to pull off, because astrology is not this abstract concept, but life itself, and life tends to be pretty unpredictable and messy. Understanding the meaning of an aspect (e.g., Full Moon in Scorpio) does not automatically lead to understanding how the aspect will manifest. You might know what chord will be played, but not how loud it will sound or how long it will reverberate.

I always think of Siddhartha, aka Buddha, during this Sun/Moon combination. Specifically, I wonder how the hell anyone born with the Sun in Taurus and Moon in Scorpio could be detached or calm about anything, much less found a religion (which many prefer to label a philosophy) that most assuredly does not have to do with accumulating material goods and various sensual pleasures (Taurus). As for that Scorpio Moon...

Well, the Moon in Scorpio is often misunderstood, even by those of us born with this Moon placement. In its "fall" (according to traditional astrology), it tends toward extremes, with an aura of danger and a natural inclination to provoke (in a far more unsavory way than rebellious Aquarius). The sexual wattage and seething intensity often eclipse this placement's mystical, sensitive qualities. Just off the top of my head, the Lunar Scorpion Pantheon includes James Dean, Edie Sedgwick, George Harrison, Charlie Chaplin, Warren Beatty, Pat Benetar, Alfred Hitchcock, Elizabeth Taylor, Scarlett Johansson, Bjork, Miles Davis, and Isadora Duncan. The only one on this abbreviated list who might not be considered a sex symbol is Hitchcock -- but his writing was certainly not for the faint of heart, and his name was worthy of an A-1 porn star!

One of the dicier qualities of a Scorpio Moon is its tendency to test people. As a lunar Scorpion, I can attest to this and roll out the excuses while gloomy-doomy music plays in the background: we do it because we don't trust easily; we were betrayed early and repeatedly by the very people who were supposed to love and protect us; we need to know if you'll still love us after we usher you inside our darkness and explosive sensitivity, and one declaration or "proof" of fealty probably won't be enough. It can get pretty tiresome and crazy-making, but we do try to make up for it in other ways that you probably won't find in other, more genteel and balanced Moon signs. To repeat: we are not for the faint of heart.

Perhaps ol' Siddhartha might have been the most evolved type of Scorpio Moon by testing himself above all else. By breaking through all the taboos and don't-go-theres of his comfortable Taurus background, he lived out his Full Moon with great intensity and consciousness.

And only a Head Cheese of the Scorpio Moon variety could inspire this Zen koan: "If you meet the Buddha on the road, kill him." Like practically everything else about the Moon in Scorpio, this instruction is not meant to be taken at face value. But the imagery is pure Full Moon in Scorpio: enlightenment may not come from letting go, but from killing your know-it-all-ism before it makes you insufferable.

On this imaginative, spiritually oriented Moon-Neptune trine shortly before the Full Moon and Lunar Eclipse, try to take a brief break from the mundane, and stretch out that minute or hour as long as you can.

Pluto Profile #1: Liz Taylor, Lunar Scorpion

For quite a while I have been thinking of creating a regular feature within this blog, to be called "Pluto Profiles," which would explore the charts of various Biggies (and Not-So-Biggies) who would qualify in any astrologer's book as Plutonian -- someone born with a strongly aspected Pluto and/or Scorpio placements. The passing of Elizabeth Taylor two days ago has finally motivated me to get said feature off the ground and into cyberspace.

Elizabeth Taylor was, in many ways, a classic Piscean; she was born with a stellim (i.e., three or more planets conjunct) that included the Sun in the first decanate of Pisces (which adds an additional Pisces vibe), and the stellium opposed its despositor, Neptune. Pisces/Neptune rules film, and Taylor began appearing movies at an early age.

Her breakthrough role as Velvet Brown in National Velvet was made possible by the fact that she started horseback riding at age three, which is less than shocking when you consider that she was born with Sagittarius (which rules horses) on the Ascendant (which rules persona, the physical body, and the individual's temperament). Taylor's ruling planet was therefore Jupiter, placed in the sign Leo and trine that Asc. I believe it was this trine, in these particular signs, that stamped her in a highly visible manner: her exotic violet eyes. (Purple is a color associated with the sign Sagittarius and its ruling planet, Jupiter.) The eyes are ruled by the sign Aries, and Taylor was born with an exact Venus/Uranus conjunction in Aries -- this conjunction completed a grand trine in the Fire element.

Taylor certainly embodied many Jupiter in Leo characteristics: glamour, wealth, fame, a love of opulence (e.g., her jewelry collection), and a regal vibe. Even onscreen, she was cast as royalty in Cleopatra. "I've been lucky all my life," Taylor said in an interview. "But I've paid for that luck with disasters...I'm like a living example of what people can go through and survive...I'm not like anyone. I'm me." Jupiter is known as the "lucky" planet, and had it only trined Taylor's Asc. and Venus/Uranus conjunction, she may very well have sailed through life unscathed (although with these aspects, she probably still would have married a nearly unbelievable number of times). However, Jupiter's square to her Scorpio Moon ensured that not only would this movie star receive an abundance of good luck, but also go through near-death experiences that might've put out the flame of a non-Plutonian, including an emergency tracheotomy and brain surgery. Her Moon/Jupiter square in fixed signs also contributed toward her addictive nature as much as her Pisces placements did. She also had to deal with the early loss of a spouse (Jupiter is placed in the Pluto-ruled 8th House of death and partner's resources.)

Taylor's Scorpio Moon was strengthened by its trine to Pluto (which, like Jupiter, fell in her 8th House), and helped her pull through serious illness and other setbacks. Although Taylor's Fire placements may have led her to crave the spotlight, her Scorpio Moon must have had to psych itself out big-time in order to pass through the media's ring of fire. Because her Moon fell in the 11th House of friends, groups, and ideals, she surely could not keep her most private self (as symbolized by the Moon) private, as she might have been able to do had it fallen in her 12th or 4th House. And she became a scandal (a Scorpio/Pluto specialty) many times over.

How apropos that when Pluto transited Scorpio (1984-95), Taylor became an outspoken advocate (11th House) for AIDS awareness (this illness is a frighteningly perfect manifestation of Pluto in Scorpio). She also developed a perfume with the perfectly Plutonian name of Poison and became friends with a highly controversial person: Michael Jackson.

Elizabeth Taylor died of congestive heart failure (Moon in Scorpio square Jupiter in Leo) with the transiting Moon in Scorpio. Although 79 is no longer considered an advanced age to die, especially for women, Taylor's seven decades spent in the public eye, coupled with seven men, may well have made her feel at least a century old. She may very well be remembered as a "celebrity," as opposed to a movie star, by younger generations who did not watch her grow up, and grow older, on the silver screen. Yet as an intriguing blend of Water and Fire, it is safe to state that very few people actually knew this woman. If you happen to be a Lunar Scorpion, or have one in your orbit, you will know exactly what I mean.