14 Jul Blackstar ~July 15th-21st, 2019

“I say unto you: one must still have chaos in oneself to be able to give birth to a dancing star.”

– Friedrich Nietzsche from Thus Spoke Zarathustra

This is the week of the Lunar Eclipse in Capricorn, a dark and difficult emotional period that will cut all the way to the bone.

You will be asked to face the hard truth that not every seed of intention can come into being. Some of your precious dreams just weren’t strong enough to make it.

There is a special kind of agony when the soft and nurturing Moon journeys through Capricorn. The Saturnian wilderness is the Moon’s excommunication and exile, for she couldn’t be farther away from home in the zodiac.

In Capricorn, the Moon hardens into survival instinct. Without extra warmth and nourishment, the Moon in Capricorn digs in deep, demanding to survive by whatever means possible.

Capricorn’s ancient association with the goat-fish symbolizes this tenacious evolutionary instinct, a primal force of nature that can adapt and survive in any environment.

(I’m a blackstar, I’m a blackstar)

During a lunar eclipse, the earth passes between the Sun and the Moon and in its shadow the miraculous energies of birth and death are amplified. Common folk beliefs usually describe these times as dangerous.

Lunar eclipses seem to summon the primal chaos, which can be quite destructive when unleashed upon the civilized world. But this destructive quality inspires so much growth.

Most significant leaps in evolution are inspired by danger, necessity and encounters with chaos. Things may suddenly feel like life or death. Apathy disintegrates and instincts sharpen. 

In times like these, real feelings come forward: fear, revulsion, lust, affection. 

The voice of the Moon in Capricorn will urge you to sacrifice something. Most likely your laziness, your self-doubt, or  your self-aggrandizing fantasies of saving the world.

The world can not and will not be saved. What else might life be about?

How many times does an angel fall?

How many people lie instead of talking tall?

…(I’m a blackstar, I’m a blackstar)

Eclipses reveal the depths of what is hidden in the shadows, tunneling into deeper places in the collective memory. This lunar eclipse in Capricorn will also be conjunct to Pluto, making this a journey into the underworld: a death and rebirth. 

As our guide for this difficult eclipse season, David Bowie can be remembered heroically for the great courage he showed in the face of death. After being diagnosed with liver cancer, his final album Black Star was created as a final gift.

Something happened on the day he died

Spirit rose a metre then stepped aside

Somebody else took his place, and bravely cried

(I’m a blackstar, I’m a star star, I’m a blackstar)

In Black Star, David Bowie expresses a vision of immortality in the realm of art and memory. And there are so many layers of personal meaning and connection. The first being that Black Star was a lesser known Elvis song about the day that death finds you. David Bowie and Elvis shared the same birthday of January 8th.

I can’t answer why (I’m a blackstar)

Black Star also evokes David Bowie’s esoteric interests. One of his biggest inspirations, Aleister Crowley once said that “every man and woman is a star.”

And Black Star is probably a reference to the Black Sun or Sol Niger in alchemy. The Sol Niger is a symbol of Saturn, which represents death. And the Black Sun was described as the fire that separates the spirit and the soul from the putrefied body. 

I’m-a take you home (I’m a blackstar)

The Black Sun described a spiritual sun that shines eternally. David Bowie didn’t know what lay beyond death, but the Black Star evokes some vision of a light that never goes out.

I’m a blackstar, way up, oh honey, I’ve got game

I see right so white, so open-heart it’s pain

Black Star has philosophical associations too. Throughout his career, David Bowie took inspiration from the works of Freidrich Neitzche, the late-19th century German philosopher who rediscovered the Dionysian spirit. 

He trod on sacred ground, he cried loud into the crowd

(I’m a blackstar, I’m a blackstar, I’m not a gangster)

Bowie’s very Dionysian career reveals that Black Star must have a hint of Nietzsche’s Zarathustra in it.

“..one must still have chaos in oneself to be able to give birth to a dancing star. I say unto you: you still have chaos in yourselves.“

The word chaos typically evokes images of disaster, panic, and confusion. But Nietzsche’s ‘chaos’ is meant to inspire you, derived from a more primal understanding of nature. 

At the centre of it all

In ancient Greek cosmology, it was said that “Chaos was first of all” meaning it was the prima materia of creation. Pure potential. Divine feminine.

To have the chaos within is to have the divine spark of pure creative potential. And to fear chaos is to fear that which you were born from.

I want eagles in my daydreams,

diamonds in my eyes

(I’m a blackstar, I’m a blackstar)

In the spirit of Nietzsche, David Bowie’s entire artistic career was like the birth of a dancing star. He demonstrated the primal power of chaos, turning all the elements of his life (his pain and his pleasure) into great art. 

I see right so white, so open-heart it’s pain

In Black Star his death becomes an art, demonstrating that those who have the chaos within do not die and disappear into nothingness. They rave on, flame on and evolve.

I’m the Great I Am (I’m a blackstar) 

Monday/Tuesday: Blackstar

The Lunar Eclipse in Capricorn happens on Tuesday, summoning the darkness of the past to arise. Eclipses are healing and transformative times. But this lunar eclipse is like a particularly bitter medicine, with no spoonful of sugar in sight. 

With the Moon conjunct to Pluto stirs up intense emotions, that may tempt you into feeling desperate and afraid. Your thinking may become very black and white, with all the light casting very long shadows. 

Your world is changing. And great loss will be felt. Sometimes you have to allow dark moods, even if they leads towards despair. This is a chance to confront your real feelings, however uncivilized they may be. The truth will set you free.

The Lunar Eclipse in Capricorn is an encounter with primal chaos, a journey that does not end with your demise but with your rebirth into a more inspired being.

Wednesday/Thursday: Diamonds in my Eyes

On Wednesday, Venus in Cancer will cross the North Node, signaling a moment where you begin to feel the future of your romantic relationships and finances coming into clear focus. On this same day, Venus will be opposed to Saturn Rx in Capricorn conjunct the South Node, a restricting energy that demands real commitments to the path you’re currently on. 

On Thursday, Venus will trine Neptune in Pisces, adding a soft touch of gentleness. When Venus and Neptune merge, life becomes more lyrical and poetic. The light seems to soften, luring you into long daydreams. From the Neptunian waters, waves of compassion emerge. Hard feelings may dissolve, renewing your heart with peace and contentment. 

Friday/Saturday/Sunday: So Open-Heart it’s Pain

On Friday, Mercury will retrograde back into Cancer. With Mercury now traveling through the house of the Moon, your thoughts will become slippery and sensitive to the waters of memory, making the past feel alive. History may suddenly inspire you. And the wisdom of your ancestors will be felt everywhere. 

On Sunday, like an exclamation mark at the end of a crazed sentence, Venus in Cancer will oppose Pluto in Capricorn. This will add one last convulsion to the emotional purging of the lunar eclipse, dredging up any unconscious behaviors that are perpetuating toxicity in your relationships. Power imbalances will be revealed.

But there is a motion of purification and renewal underway. Sunday also brings Mercury’s conjunction with the Sun in Cancer. In astrology, this is known as the inferior conjunction, symbolizing purification in the heart of the Sun.

Thus, your mind will be purified by the warm fructifying light of the Sun in Cancer. You will feel deeply connected to your heart, knowing that you have all the guidance and wisdom needed for whatever comes next.