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The Festival of the Quickening
subtle meanings of the Full Moon in Taurus

Malvin Artley outlines the subtle implications of the Full Moon in Taurus, the Scorpio Moon for 2004. This Full Moon occurs on 28th of October and Malvin argues that it will present a major spiritual opportunity for all who can avail themselves of it, firstly because it is also an eclipse, and but also because a rare Grand Quintile aspect coincides with it within a matter of a few hours. Scorpio is the sign of depth and mystery and the opportunities for growth in consciousness provided by this powerful lunation are profound.

Life sure offers up its share of twists and turns in the path of one's destiny. Since the inception of the Uranus/Pluto quintile at the first part of September there has been no end of surprises, pleasant or otherwise. In a world where people seek certainty, constancy and security, the only thing of which we can be certain is that our certainty will be shaken or shattered from time to time, leaving us to frequently rethink our world and our lives.

I went to a movie with a Ukrainian Scorpio friend of mine the other day — “Monsieur Ibrahim”. Go see it if you have the opportunity. It's a lovely film, but take plenty of tissues for the ending. After the film we went for a walk along the side streets around the theater. It was after dark and the old neighborhood was in full spring bloom. The jasmine spilling out over the fences and the flowering wattle trees added their fragrance to the freshness of the night air and the old trees spreading out over the well-kept gardens felt comforting in their presence, like kind older counselors offering solace to troubled souls. I could sense the lives of the night watching us as we strolled through and I felt myself moving to a place of reflection over recent events in my life and in the world as we walked and chatted. Our conversation moved from the film to more personal stories as the path we walked took shape before us.

“Why does life have to be so sad?” she asked, finally. I found myself at a loss for words as I remembered the recent tragedy of Beslan, which had touched a place so deep within her heart. I could have launched into all the technical reasons for why humanity seems to have to suffer so in order just to get through life, but it would have been no comfort or help to her. Philosophy in such moments is often more annoying than helpful. So many people have endured tremendous pain in recent history, and Eastern Europe has had more than its fair share. About that time, a young woman walked by briskly with her dog, barely acknowledging our presence on the footpath. “I don't have a ready answer for you, but life does seem to be that way for us humans at times.” I said, knowing it was a bit of a lame answer and that there was nothing I could say at that moment that would have helped much. It was enough for both of us that we were sharing each other's company. That is often all that is needed. And we walked on, the conversation meandering like the curves and turns in the streets onto other subjects. I didn't really have to answer her. Scorpios most often know the answers to questions such as those before they even ask them. We'd had the conversation at other times anyway. Soon sadness was forgotten, though, and there were cheerier topics as the mood from the film and “life” soon faded into memory. In all, it was a good night out.

I have heard from many people about great changes taking place in their lives at this time. Some stories have been extraordinary. Some have been unusual. Some people have had major problems with health, but for all, the changes in people's lives will have repercussions far into their futures. It is no different with me. Though my health is unaffected, I have felt an urgency and potency around the Libra full moon and the first Grand Quintile that has been most unusual. I know, though, that the changes put in place over the next few months will have the mark of the higher Self upon them for everyone. Who knows where it will take us?

A Major Spiritual Opportunity

I had said in a previous article that the first Grand Quintile was a preparatory one and would set the scene for the second one, and that the second one is to be the major transmission and releasing agent for the decisions made around the first one. But, that is always the way of things in the yearly cycle. The decisions made in Libra are tested as to their worthiness in Scorpio. This Scorpio full moon will be a major spiritual opportunity for all who can avail themselves of it, firstly because it is also an eclipse, and especially since the second Grand Quintile coincides with it within a matter of a few hours. It is another quintile-laced full moon figure. So, I am sending this out early in order that we can all make due preparations — if such a thing is possible with a Uranus/Pluto quintile — and so I can begin to give a bit more of an indication as to what we can expect over the next few years of our planetary history. But that is another story, to be addressed in a forthcoming article.

Before we get into the dynamics of the full moon and the second Grand Quintile we need to fill out a bit more information on Scorpio so we can see where and why its energies will take us. If people on the Path dread the Wesak Moon for the hammering and spiritual impulse it brings, then they probably look forward to the Scorpio full moon with as much anticipation as a dental appointment or a trip to the tax assessor. Scorpio is known for two main things in popular astrology — sex and difficult relations between people. Taurus and Scorpio are the two signs of the zodiac most associated with sexuality, with Libra running a close third.

Taurus is the polar opposite of Scorpio and, if you will remember, the Wesak Moon this past May was a doozy (to be technical about it) in terms of spiritual impulse-and also a major eclipse that has brought an escalation of many things on the world stage, not least of which has been the insurgency in Iraq and the many revelations about the truth of that conflict. Taurus is said to be the bearer of “The penetrating Light of the Path”, and that full moon has certainly illuminated the paths of many. But, Scorpio is the beacon that shines out “The Light of Day” in spiritual terms, although many people equate the sign and its natives with darkness, brooding moodiness and “the sting in the tail” when it comes to human relations. This eclipse and associated Grand Quintile will do very much to shine the Light of Day onto many problems for humanity and, coming as it does just before the US elections, should bring along its fair share of “illuminating moments”, for those with a sense of irony.

I spoke in the Libra article of the two main rulers of any sign—the orthodox and the esoteric. The esoteric ruler of a sign becomes more apparent as one begins to consciously walk the spiritual Path and is the conditioning planet for the person in the long run. Most signs have two different planets for those rulers, not counting the Hierarchical rulers. But, there are three signs whose esoteric ruler is the same as the orthodox one, and those signs are Leo, Capricorn and Scorpio. All three of those signs are known for the difficulty in life they can produce and all three are great signs of initiatory impulse and experience. Leo brings difficulty because of self-centeredness and initiation through self-forgetfulness and spiritual leadership. Capricorn brings difficulty through worldly and material ambition and initiation by transfiguration of the little self through sacrifice, self-responsibility and giving. Scorpio brings difficulty through desiring for self at the expense of others and initiation through striving for others through an intense spiritual passion. The desires of the little self are thus forgotten in the process.

Soul Purpose... or Personal Force?

In all three of the aforementioned signs there is a direct resonance between Soul purpose and personal force. That is both the guarantee of ultimate success and the greatest impediment if the Soul's purposes are used toward selfish ends in those signs because the Soul force in such a case has a direct pathway to the persona. This dual emphasis on one planet creates an intensity of personal and Soul expression not found in the other signs. These are all signs that can exhibit tremendous potency in the outer life if the persona acts at least somewhat in concert with the Soul's purpose. But, if the person is largely selfish then the situation for the soul in that life can be difficult to say the least. In extreme cases such a strong selfish emphasis upon one planet in the makeup can produce an absolute despot (Leo), a “Montgomery Burns” (Capricorn), or a fiend (Scorpio). Happily, such cases are rare, and the Soul is usually at least able to live out its allotted task through the persona in any given life. But, these are all special signs of the zodiac and their achievements for humanity have been legion, most of which go unnoticed by the public at large.

In the case of Scorpio we have a double emphasis upon Mars, from the esoteric perspective. Modern Western astrology attributes the orthodox rulership of Scorpio to Pluto. To the esotericist, though, Pluto is the lower expression (the “lower octave”) of Mars and on the Path it is Mars that comes to the fore in the life of the Scorpio. Pluto is then only a preparatory planet or phase in the life of the Scorpio type and governs what is known as the lesser burning ground, wherein all that proves to be a hindrance to the Soul's true work for that life is burned away through the fires of purification, largely relating to the desire nature and the lesser mind. After that, Mars takes up the call and the battle for supremacy between the Soul and the persona is on. This is an important consideration in the life of the Scorpio type, for Mars rules the entire human persona-physical, emotional and mental, and if that persona is to be a fit instrument for the service of the Soul and thus to humanity, then it must be tested and tried in the furnace of the forces we call human experience. Thus, to the casual observer, the life of a Scorpio is one of trial and tribulation, although it is seldom realized that the story of Scorpio is the story of each of us to greater or lesser degree, for we are all tested throughout life.

Mars brings about those conflicts in life wherein the persona is tested as to its worthiness, archetypally speaking. Mars is the planet which most fully expresses both devotion and fanaticism-devotion to a cause and the fanatical pursuit of its ends. Whether the cause is the simple desire of the common person or the high-minded desire of the humanist or spiritual seeker/server, Mars brings through the force in the persona that sees that the goal is met-that the desire is satisfied. Mars is the planet that most forcefully expresses desire, and for most people desire is either along material or sexual lines because that is where and how they identify themselves. As was stated earlier, Scorpio is most often equated with overt sexuality and sensuality, but that is really only the low end of the scale of desires. This is not to say that sex in and of itself is a base desire. It is actually the second-strongest force in the human being, the strongest being the urge toward connection with the divine, or the religious impulse as we might call it. But, as we know, there is sex as an expression and natural outgrowth of the love between a couple and then there is sex based upon the gratification of an often overheated glandular system and an unhealthy imaginative life. It is this latter with which Scorpio is often associated, although wrongfully so.

In part two of this article, Malvin Artley explains the true meaning of Scorpio and the nature of the influence of the Warrior Planet, Mars. He discloses the origins of the scientific forces now so potently operating, by revealing the nature of the Primary Lotuses. This is all greatly amplified under the influence the current Grand Quintile aspect.

Read part two of The Festival of the Quickening