Winter Solstice 2020
The Sun moved into Capricorn today, marking the Winter Solstice and a time of turning inward and reflection. So, let us share a few short thoughts about our reflections.
In regard to reflection, the sign of Capricorn is concerned with time and truth: from the past that has been to the present moment to the direction we are heading in the future. Saturn, the ruler of Capricorn, wants you to know yourself so you can walk your path into the future with confidence. Hence, the Winter Solstice is the perfect time for reflection.
Winter Solstice
A Time For Reflection
For the last week or so, I have spent quiet evenings (when not relaxing to a Liverpool soccer match) connecting more and more of the dots that reveal the deeper story of my life. You might find this to be the right time to buy a notebook or journal and explore your life’s story.
Taking time for quiet reflection is necessary, as the clues to your journey often feel like they are hidden like riddles in the mist.
As you settle into a comfortable chair and put pen to paper, particularly take note of the moments of synchronicity that connect with the turning points in your life. Allow your mind to wander into the realm of inspiration and creativity that often brings recognition of the meaning and direction of your story.
However, this exercise is about more than the past.
Particularly because transiting Jupiter and Saturn have both moved from the sign of Capricorn and into the sign of Aquarius, the quality of energy in the heavens has shifted from a focus on the past to new potentials for the future.
May your reflections support your ability to release the aspects of the past that do not serve you and to step one day at a time into your authenticity. May you also find the way to love yourself more fully and share yourself more authentically to those you love and to life.
On a related note, some have been writing about the end of the Age of Pisces and entering the Age of Aquarius. While there is a technical aspect to the procession of the ages (connected to the position of the Sun in the sidereal zodiac on the Spring Equinox), there is no one agreed upon date for when the Age of Aquarius will begin.
This takes me back to 1969, when the Fifth Dimension inspired both my twelve-year old self and the world when they sang “this is the dawning of the Age of Aquarius”.
It is my sense that it is most helpful to note that the Age of Aquarius and the emerging brotherhood of mankind will come, but they will not arrive next week or probably the week after.
The procession of ages occurs on the level of humanity at large and the evolution the procession brings a long time to unfold. We each play a role, but we play a greater role in the unfolding of our life day to day and that is where our focus should rest.
From the spiritual perspective, as Swami Rama of the Himalayas said, “The Sun, Moon and stars and all the lights you can imagine in the external world are but fragments of that one Great Light that is within you.”
Whenever the Age of Aquarius will actually begin, the place to find it is in you! May your reflections reveal the path to moving in harmony with the Sun, Moon and stars.
Jupiter & Saturn in Aquarius
The Axis of Self-Worth
The story of any archetype is often written for the expression with the broadest appeal. Nothing wrong with that, but maybe that is not what resonates with your story. Sometimes there is a message that is meant for only a few.
Jupiter and Saturn in Aquarius, after their heavy time in Capricorn, appeal to our individuality, our uniqueness and we hear this is a time for bold action and of new beginnings and putting our authenticity on display!
For some that is the right archetype and this is a time to applaud your actions and celebrate in sharing what comes forth! This transit supports the unfolding of authenticity and, being part of the axis of self-worth, expands our sense of worthiness through our unique expression. This is truly a powerful energy!
But what if you enter this transit still feeling unworthy at your core?
Since Aquarius is part of the axis of self-worth, a strong sense of self-worth is required to individuate. For those lacking self-worth, feelings of conflict and yearning may arise because you are not ready yet to dive in head first into the Aquarian swimming pool. That is OK. For you, there is another message.
The energy of the sign of Capricorn at the Solstice is an internal energy of reflection. That backdrop does not change this year.
The Jupiter and Saturn conjunction in Aquarius is taking center stage and there is much chatter. How will this transit be experienced?
For some, it will be freeing and expansive.
For others, it will be dipping the toe in.
For yet others, the focus is the underlying sense of unworthiness that holds them back.
For the group of souls healing karmic tendencies of low self-worth, there is a delicately precious space inside that still needs attention, needs healing and needs know it is safe to be seen and worthy of being seen.
Bold action is not yet possible because the body via angst, pain, fatigue is still trying to protect.
Shame associated with emotional wounding is often at the core of unworthiness. Even if our thoughts have moved beyond our wounding and we understand our authenticity, the body might not yet be fully onboard.
The body may still feel unworthy and that continues to hold us back. This is an ideal time to internally focus on growing our sense of self-worth so that the fountain of worthiness energy starts to overflow inside us! That overflow helps us move from internalization to externalization of the energy of Aquarius.
Unworthiness often sits next to deep, profound, ancient shame.
Shame that was never repaired during childhood and grew into habits with the force to stunt emotional growth, hinder the development of self-worth and make true individuation on the external level beyond reach. Maybe you feel some unworthiness, but not to this degree. The only thing that matters is what is right for you.
Because many of us have healed so much of our internal wounding, sometimes we don’t know the shame is there until we feel like we want to project ourselves into the world in some way, then it arises in the form of anxiousness and doubt and often bodily reactions that serve to hold us back.
Each and every expression of the archetype is valid. Hence, bold action is not yet the answer for everyone. Rather, a patient unfolding of greater worthiness.
If you are in this space, then bold individuating action is likely what you yearn for, but it is not yet possible and that is OK. Greet this moment with care and love and patience and use the power of this archetype to affirm: I am worthy, I deserve, I am pretty, I am good, I am kind, I am loved, I am safe.
Go deep inside and remind the heart, nervous system and muscles that you are deserving and maybe even do some somatic work.
We each deserve this time! We each deserve the excitement of this time! We each deserve an expanded sense of self-worth! We each deserve to be free! We each deserve to feel worthy of shining for all the world to see!
Using this transit to expand your sense of self-worth in any way that is right for you is a very valid and appropriate use of the energy.
May the force be with us all to support using the energy of this transit to move beyond that which most holds us back.