07 Jul The Labyrinth ~ July 8th-14th, 2019

“Ashes to ashes, funk to funky

We know Major Tom’s a junkie

Strung out in heaven’s high

Hitting an all-time low.”

This is the week in between eclipses, a very tense and challenging time. It begins with the Sun in Cancer opposing Saturn Rx in Capricorn as Mercury Rx is conjunct Mars and square to Uranus in Taurus. This a wild tangle of thorns, making you vulnerable to an existential crisis. 

The Sun in Cancer is in touch with emotions and is fiercely protective. Do what you can to move slowly and calmly. Eclipses energies are like a storm that must be weathered with as much patience as possible. Whatever your mood may be, do not be led by impulsivity.

Eclipses change the shape of your destiny making this a volatile and magical time. You’ll feel guided and connected to ancestral wisdom through deep feelings and dream imagery. But the overall mood will be rather melancholy.

Though it is no longer fashionable to associate eclipses with apocalyptic power, the truth is that they seem to initiate a path of destruction that clears the way for the future. Serious healing crises and ego deaths are common symptoms.

There is no one better to serve as the psychopomp for this journey through the eclipses than David Bowie, whose artistic career offered a quintessence of transformative and creative power.

The perfect song to evoke the haunting mood of this week is Ashes to Ashes, a melancholy epitaph to his persona Major Tom.

A feeling of mythic tragedy is evoked, for Major Tom was lost in space and then forgotten. Regarding the writing of the song, David Bowie once said: 

 “There’s a child’s nursery rhyme element in it, and there’s something so sad and mournful and poignant about it…”

Ashes to Ashes is Major Tom’s confession after years of painful isolation. Even more sad, his story is received by the public with apathy and dismissal, heard in the lines:

 “Ashes to ashes, funk to funky

We know Major Tom’s a junkie

Strung out in heaven’s high

Hitting an all-time low.” 

There’s nothing like music to remind you of the special beauty in sadness, for it has the power to draw you deeply inward. Sadness summons you to return to the source of divine love within. 

Like Ashes to Ashes, this week may feel like an epitaph for the past, haunted by longing and sadness. But these feelings are an invitation to know yourself more deeply, returning to the heart for wisdom and renewal. 

To cultivate your connection to the heart, let yourself be guided on an inward journey through the ancient symbol of the labyrinth.

Unlike a maze, which branches off in many directions, a labyrinth is defined by a single path that leads all the way into its center. The labyrinth is universal, an image that seems to have emerged from the collective unconscious. 

The image of the labyrinth has been traced all over the world, including India, Egypt, Crete, Sumeria, Norway and the Americas. The labyrinth symbolizes a spiritual journey of transformation, a return to the center of being for rebirth and renewal.

In most traditions, the center of the labyrinth protected the mysteries of the goddess. This ancient pagan tradition was carried on into the Medieval cathedrals of Europe, whose labyrinths were centered upon a sacred rose, symbol of the blessed Virgin Mary. 

The winding journey into the labyrinth symbolizes a return to the origin of your being. The most traditional labyrinths have seven-circuits, corresponding to the seven classical planets. Thus, a walk through a labyrinth represents a cosmic journey into inner space, initiating a transformation of spirit and soul.

The labyrinth offers peace in times of trouble. In a labyrinth, you can not get lost. The path is certain. Without worrying about your direction, your mind becomes free to commune with the heart.

Returning the center of your being is the key to navigating this eclipse season. The tangle of planetary energies will turn life into a seemingly impossible maze. But the primordial image of the labyrinth offers you a way to go deep within, passing through the veils of fear and sadness back into wisdom of the heart. From this place, the future is blessed by love.

Monday/Tuesday: Ashes to Ashes

Monday is a tangle of thorns. Something emotionally intense or uncomfortable is likely to emerge. A painful square between Venus in Cancer and Chiron in Aries will make romantic relationships and friendships quite vulnerable to attack.

Meanwhile, the conjunction between Mercury Rx and Mars in Leo will create an edgy atmosphere, dangerous to fragile opinions and egos. You may be uplifted by a sense of self-confidence and assertive speech. But beware the types of people who become too easily insulted.

On Tuesday, the Sun in Cancer will conjoin the North Node as it opposes Saturn Rx in Capricorn. 

The best evocation to describe this transit is heaviness and isolation. You may feel like Major Tom, lost in space, unable to return home.

When the Sun is opposed by Saturn, the mood is darkened by sadness. But Saturn’s pressures are not meant to crush. They are meant to force you to find a way to move forward. Saturn is a teacher, not an enemy. So when Saturn knocks you down, getting back up has great reward.

Wednesday/Thursday: Funk to Funky

During the middle of the week, the waxing Moon will transit the sign of Scorpio, the sign of her fall. The most primal instincts arise, making everything feel a little more hungry and manipulative.

The Saturnian heaviness will find some relief through the disruptive square between Mars in Leo and Uranus in Taurus, triggering accidents and explosions of anger. There will be a rebellious angst, a desire to throw caution to the wind and take action! If this energy finds a healthy form of expression, you can unleash it as potent creative fire. If you deny this urge to break free, it can become destructive.

Friday/Saturday/Sunday: Major Tom’s a Junkie

The weekend is influenced by the Sun in Cancer’s opposition to Pluto in Capricorn. 

Pluto is the aeonic tide, the ebb and flow of death and rebirth. Plutonian energies summon the darkness of the void, the great mysteries of the unknown. 

When the Sun opposes Pluto, a crisis emerges, something that forces a change in consciousness upon you. Your life my feel chaotic as lies are confronted by truth and repressed feelings become obvious feelings. 

Things may feel like they are falling apart, but remember that Pluto’s influence is not merely destructive. Pluto is not the darkness itself, but is the energy that transmutes the darkness into light. 

You’re not lost. You’re just in the middle of a deeply transformational journey.

The inward journey to the center of the labyrinth is followed by the outward return.