Don’t Worry Baby ~ Full Moon in Pisces-September 1st, 2020

“The calm sea is the Absolute; the same sea in waves is Divine Mother. She is time, space, and causation…She is God, nature, and soul (humanity)…Worship Her if you want love and wisdom.” 

 -Swami Vivekananda (July 1895)

The month of September begins with the Full Moon in the sign of Pisces, bringing a tidal wave of emotions to the surface. In these waters, the salts of all sorrows and all joys dissolve into an infinite abyss.

Well it’s been building up inside of me

For oh I don’t know how long

Under the light of this Moon, your eyes will reveal your deepest feelings. And all manner of dark and romantic moods will emerge, rushing, hissing, and foaming upon the waves. 

This Full Moon in Pisces will greatly support the Sun in Virgo’s desire to cleanse mind, body, and spirit. The waters of Pisces are cooling and soothing, lulling you back into the bliss of your dreamworld. Let your rough edges be smoothed by these waves as many of your narrow-minded ideas and programmed opinions sink beneath the waves, never to be heard from again. 

But she looks in my eyes

And makes me realize

As a bridge between seasons, the month of September is always bittersweet. The ambiance vacillates wildly, transforming from radiant to blistering, from apple-ripe to mellow yellow. 

No matter how the light shifts, the end of summer is exquisite. The fruits become sweetest before they fall from the tree. And the flowers emit their deepest fragrance right before they fade. It is the looming shadow of death that makes this time very precious. And it is this conscientious quality of time that is essential to the Sun in Virgo. When Virgo and Pisces are in dialogue, spirit and matter come into balance. An inner sense of immortality opens the sacred dimension of life. This inspires an alchemical journey, devoted to refining the primal fear of death into a more profound appreciation for life.

For the last six months, the psycho-spiritual climate of 2020 has been in purgatory. Haunted by worries about the past and future, the anxiety has been ruinous. And the fear of the unknown has caused many to cling to their suffering: a desperate attempt to have something familiar to hold onto while lost in the void.

The real crisis of the pandemic hit the United States six months ago, when the Sun was in Pisces and the Full Moon was in Virgo. Now that the Sun and Moon have traveled halfway around the zodiac, it is time to reflect upon everything that has happened. The virus was only the first symptom of the madness that struck.

Back at the Full Moon in Virgo in early March I said: 

“…things may become feverish and hallucinatory. Purgatory is outside of space and time. Upon this voyage, you will drift beyond the edge where your maps become useless…with the light of reason dimmed by a swell of emotions, you will feel totally lost.”

This Full Moon in Pisces brings a great wave of emotional relief and a chance to regain your direction. A trine between the awakening power of Uranus in Taurus and the Sun in Virgo may inspire a philosophical breakthrough, a vision of the future that breathes with new life.

This trine to Uranus marries the element of chaos to divine order, catalyzing your soul’s growth. Challenges will appear as opportunities to reshape your character and discover your destiny. 

The Moon’s rays glimmer with primordial visions upon the face of the waters, reminding you that everything in manifest reality was first born in the oceans of imagination. Pisces is the beginning and the end, the eternal flow of imagery that dissolves into all of creation. And it is in these waters that the World Soul speaks.

…she says “don’t worry, baby”

The month of September is tangled with thorns, especially those winding through the square between Mars in Aries and Saturn in Capricorn. This began when the Sun entered Virgo and will continue to stir tension until October. 

The influence of Saturn is stronger, especially after Mars turns retrograde on September 9th. With Saturn weighing Mars down, you’ll feel pressure building up inside.

Well it’s been building up inside of me

For oh I don’t know how long

Time will seem to slow down. For weeks following the Full Moon, everything will seem to require extra effort and great labor. Anyone trying to push too hard or move too fast will be haunted by the fear of death

Something’s bound to go wrong

The axis of Virgo and Pisces is devoted to purification and refinement, revealing the alchemical nature of spiritual evolution. The Sun in Virgo will be hard at work, rooting out whatever has become poisonous to your soul. The black tar obscuring your inner vision will wash away, dissolving your fears in a hush of peace.

But she looks in my eyes

From across the darkness of the abyss, the bright light of illumination emanates from the eyes of the World Soul. This is the feminine principle of fertility, the secret of magic and the mystery of creation. 

Matter. Mater. Mother. It is in the waters of Pisces where the World Soul first dreamt you into being. 

She makes me come alive

At this Full Moon in Pisces, soft murmurs of love will wash over everything, pouring into your heart through music and poetry.Music and poetry arise from emotional trance, in which the full spectrum of love, fear, anger, and grief can be safely expressed. This creative flow is an ancient rite to the goddess, whose many names are like petals circling the same sphere of light.

When she says “don’t worry, baby”

Poets and musicians know how to capture some of the ceaseless flow of images, bridging the abyss between spirit and matter. And nobody can bridge this abyss during this strange and difficult summer quite like Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys.

As the ultimate California Dreamer, Wilson’s beach was on the shoreline of imagination. Immersed in the majesty of the ocean, he seemed to drink endlessly from the waters of the World Soul. As a perfect medicine for the angst of this time, I suggest listening to Don’t Worry Baby from 1964.

On the surface, Don’t Worry Baby is a teen angst hot-rod epic: the inner turmoil of some Rebel Without a Cause. But the Beach Boys were brilliant artists, transforming these pop lyrics into shimmering light.

“She is time, space, and causation…She is God, nature, and soul”

Don’t Worry Baby evokes the primal relationship between poet and muse; lover and goddess; soul and World-Soul. The song describes the emotional purgatory created by the fear of death. And how in a moment of total vulnerability and surrender, a voice of comfort can wash everything away.

Oh what she does to me

When she makes love to me

Don’t Worry Baby emerges from the waters of creation where the primordial goddess speaks:

And she says “don’t worry, baby”

Everything will turn out alright

The soothing wisdom of the World Soul sparkles through the melody that Wilson wrapped around his lyrics. Thus, like a stairway of angels spiraling up to heaven, this simple pop song evolves into something transcendent.This Full Moon in Pisces reconnects you to the power of your dreamworld, where the boundless sea of images ripple out into eternity. And the Sun in Virgo will remind you that how you use your imagination matters. The visions you breathe life into will become manifest, so… 

don’t worry baby

It may be true that the path ahead looks dangerous. The remaining months of this year have many more twists and turns. But to allow your imagination to be choked by fear is to remain trapped in the tunnels of Purgatory. With a small offering of courage, the currents of this Full Moon will bring divine comfort and reorient you towards the freedom of inner space where there is nothing to fear.

Ancient philosophers knew the World Soul to be diffused throughout all of nature. And it is this diffusion of soul that invites your imagination to discover cosmic meaning and purpose in every situation. 

“She is God, nature, and soul (humanity)…Worship Her if you want love and wisdom.”

This is why, even when everything seems to be falling apart, she says:

Don’t worry, baby

Everything will turn out alright

Happy Full Moon!

Much Love,

Rachel