25 Dec Burst Like A Star ~ December 26th, 2016 – January 1st, 2017
Archaic Torso of Apollo
by Rainer Maria Rilke
(translated from German by Stephen Mitchell)
We cannot know his legendary head
with eyes like ripening fruit. And yet his torso
is still suffused with brilliance from inside,
like a lamp, in which his gaze, now turned to low,
gleams in all its power. Otherwise
the curved breast could not dazzle you so, nor could
a smile run through the placid hips and thighs
to that dark center where procreation flared.
Otherwise this stone would seem defaced
beneath the translucent cascade of the shoulders
and would not glisten like a wild beast’s fur:
would not, from all the borders of itself,
burst like a star: for here there is no place
that does not see you. You must change your life.
The week after Christmas is always sweet and just a little bit sad. Now that all the gifts have been given, this year’s story is coming to a final conclusion.
With this sense of temporal waning, a certain wistfulness descends. Also, with so much cleaning, planning, and organizing left to do, these days can be a bit overwhelming.
But the promise of a New Year brings a brilliant enthusiasm towards changing your life for the better!
Rainer Maria Rilke’s Archaic Torso of Apollo is the perfect companion for the end of 2016 for many reasons. In the first place, any representation of Apollo, however fragmentary, is a symbol of the Divine Sun!
Archaic Torso of Apollo is a reverie in devotion to the illumined god of poetry.
In ancient Greece, Apollo was a solar deity whose light filled the world with expressions of the soul through poetry and song.
Christmastime is the festival that acknowledges the Sun’s return to the northern hemisphere. Thus, inasmuch as this holiday is traditionally devoted to Jesus Christ, other Solar deities like Apollo are also reified by these festivities!
What is also interesting is that the composition of Archaic Torso of Apollo beautifully describes the the energies of the Sun in Capricorn. When Rilke wrote this poem, he was working as secretary for the great French sculptor, Rodin.
Apparently Rodin instructed Rilke to stop being passive about finding inspiration for poetry. Instead, Rodin advised Rilke to be disciplined, saying, “one must work, always work”.
This is the voice of Capricorn, which seeks mastery through tireless practice and relentless pursuit of improvement. One must work. Always work.
As a result of following Rodin’s noble example, Rilke was able to produce a sonnet that is a revelation of a transcendent reality straight from the dark center where procreation flared.
This week, such a revelation may arrive for you too! Just like the last line of Rilke’s poem, this week may bring a volta: a sharp turn towards the light!
You must change your life.
The planetary aspect involved in this volta is the exact opposition between Jupiter in Libra and Uranus in Aries, which occurs on December 26th. This jolting opposition will bring a rush and push for freedom! This aspect will be influential throughout 2017, but this first confrontation with it will initiate you into a grand revelation about life.
Thankfully, there will be a stabilizing influence to sculpt this liberating energy into a refined form! As this opposition with Jupiter occurs, Uranus in Aries will be in a disseminating trine with Saturn in Sagittarius. Your most ingenious ideas will be given the supportive armature of good ethics and discipline.
But there will be flashes of profound insight that begin to push through! Just as Rilke describes the stone statue of Apollo animated with the light of consciousness, expect your senses to dance with a buzz of new perceptions.
Perhaps your vision for the New Year will be electrified by something as yet unseen! Like the faceless statue in the poem, let all doubt be transmuted into the divine love made flesh!
Mercury will remain in retrograde until the second week of January, and so at the end of 2016, the more rational Cartesian mind may be overridden in favor of random access memories breathing life back into images!
Thus, you may find yourself led into communion with the anima or soul that inhabits all objects, places, and lifeforms. In a state that can appreciate animism, beauty itself is perceived as the breath of divine consciousness.
As Rilke saw in Archaic Torso of Apollo, even the incomplete statue of a god can become the divine light made manifest. When the poet sees the light of Apollo “burst like a star”, he knows the soul of Apollo to be fully present within the statue!
And what does the great god Apollo have to say once invoked?
You must change your life.
Divine guidance for the dawn of a New Year!
Monday/Tuesday: Suffused with Brilliance
On Monday, Mercury retrograde will sextile Neptune in Pisces, making this a dreamy day for mulling things over in your mind with great care and patience. Take things slow and this should be a really nice transition from Christmas to the New Year.
Also on Monday, Jupiter in Libra opposes Uranus in Aries! This will summon a wildness into your repertoire of feelings. There will be an increased need for space and freedom in the coming year which begins to reveal its rebellious nature now.
This volta does not portend a collapse of all structures or relationships, but if there are faulty areas of your life that are currently keeping you imprisoned in a state of stagnation, expect challenges to arise this year. Conversely, all the situations in your life which foster your independence and your spiritual growth will likely begin to sparkle!
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On Tuesday, the Sun in Capricorn will sextile Mars in Pisces. Here is a combination of energies that are perfect for envisioning a great change in your life. The ambition and work ethic of Capricorn will draw upon the creativity of Mars in Pisces, allowing you to dream of a new standard of greatness in your life. Write your ideas down today! Your dreams are suffused with brilliance!
Wednesday/Thursday: Like Ripening Fruit
The middle of the week brings the New Moon in Capricorn! With this concrescence of solar and lunar light right on the cusp of the New Year, it would be wise to set a magical intention strong enough to build upon for the next twelve months.
On the same day, Uranus in Aries (still opposed Jupiter) will turn direct! That percolating energy of revelation will finally erupt! A blossoming will occur! Know that the New Year will continue to flower with inspiration if you cultivate your need for freedom and growth.
Friday/Saturday/Sunday: Burst Like A Star
On Friday, the Sun in Capricorn makes a beautiful sextile to Neptune. If you are able to take time to yourself, the call to commune with pristine nature will be irresistible.
This day would be also be well spent so long as you feel completely immersed in something that is transcendent and resplendent with beauty. Meditation and music and memories….
Saturday is New Year’s Eve and the conjunction between Mars and Neptune will make this night very woozy and boozy. While this makes for a deluxe portrait of a New Year’s eve party, please watch your intoxication levels under an influence like this.
Those bubbles will really go to your head! In terms of maintaining good judgment, a Mars/Neptune conjunction turns every drink into two…
The last night of 2016 will be experienced as aqueous and multidimensional. Prepare to merge with the hearts and minds of others! Therefore, you should choose your auld acquaintances with great care as the membrane between you and other people with will be quite thin and penetrable.
Mars and Neptune conjunct should enable quite a good party if you take set and setting into account. If you don’t, it looks a bit agonizing.
Sunday is New Year’s Day! The beginning of 2017 is red letter day to be sure! Glorify in your new vision of life!
Feel it with your mind, body and soul that it is going to be an amazing year! Though only the most frail fragments of your future are yet visible, like a torso without a head, you may allow your imagination to permeate your visions with transcendent beauty.
We cannot know his legendary head
with eyes like ripening fruit. And yet his torso
is still suffused with brilliance from inside,
like a lamp, in which his gaze, now turned to low…Happy New Year!
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