Malvin Artley has been a practising astrologer for the past 10 years. He is an accredited member of the American Federation of Astrologers.
Malvin is the author of Bodies of Fire: An Exploration of the Lesser Chakra System. He has authored numerous articles and was a member of the faculty of the University of the Seven Rays, a non-profit organization dedicated to the teaching of the Trans-Himalayan tradition as expressed through the books of Alice Bailey, Helena Blavatsky and others.
His primary focus over the past 25 years has been on the sciences as they express occultism and with bridging work between the two. His special interests are the human subtle energy system and all the chakras, or energy centres, physics and technology, astronomy and all aspects of Chinese occultism. He has done extensive work with Chinese astrology and the cycles they use and seeks to synthesize the great Western and Oriental systems on such matters.
Malvin lives in Adelaide, South Australia. He also works in the engineering trades and sends out periodic emails about astrological happenings and developments. Click here to subscribe to Malvin's periodic letters.

The Wesak Festival
Subtle Meanings of the Full Moon in Scorpio [part two]

Malvin Artley continues his discussion of the subtle meanings inherent in the Full Moon in Scorpio. This second part of the article reveals deeper esoteric explanations of planetary configurations. Malvin publishes a regular astrological newsletter, to which you can subscribe by clicking the link at the end of this article.

The festival of Taurus (the Wesak moon) is especially connected with the department of the Manu, esoterically considered. The Manu is the department of the spiritual hierarchy which works specifically with the Will of God. It is this department which produces what we call earth changes and with what we typically term "natural disasters". The Manu utilizes the influx of Shambala forces from the Wesak festival to effect certain changes in the subtle material fabric of the planet, in order that greater Light will come through and a better integration will be effected between the Lord of this world and his bodies. Humanity plays a special role in this process, because we stand as the midway pointas the adjudicator of forces--the connecting link between the subtle and the material worlds. It has been stated in the esoteric literature that nature, unaided, fails. Humanity is the synthesizing point for all the subhuman kingdoms and is the way station for forces to and from those kingdoms. It is primarily through humanity, little as we may realize it that the lower kingdoms evolve more efficiently. So, although Taurus is commonly associated with materialism, it is not materialism as we may think of it. The true resources with which Taurus deals are the subtle energies which shape and mutate form, not the material itself. The office of the Manu is very busy these days, as we are in a period of tremendous flux and change within this point of human history. We are being played upon like we are a venue full of musical instruments, the players being the greater systemic and cosmic Forces extant and impinging upon our globe at the moment. As an orchestra, I would imagine we currently sound badly out of tune. But harmony will soon come.

Vulcan's Hammer

Through the constant hammering of Vulcan upon the spiritual Path and with the periodic readjustment of relationships that Venus brings, eventually the true magnificence of the higher Self stands revealed through Taurus. But, in the process of getting to that point, is difficult to recognize any beauty in it. The old image of the bull in the china shop comes to mind. It is a very frustrating thing to sense so much Light and yet to feel so mired in darkness. Such is the experience of Taurus for most people. This is another reason why, along with the preceding paragraphs, this period of the year is often so difficult for people. The potency is intense, the opportunity great. But, the material world seems to win the day so often. This is only true from a lower perspective, though. Seen from the higher planes, these writhings and commotions we see at the moment on the outer planes are only of small moment and are as the dust that rises from the road as a traveller makes his way to his destination. The dust eventually settles, although the destination is never in question or peril. Though crises may temporarily cloud the vision, peace eventually reigns once again. With all the preceding being said, let us take up a consideration of this particular Wesak festival.

T-square to Neptune

Remembering that the Wesak moon sets the tone of spiritual purpose for the entire year, in this full moon figure we find many interesting and dynamic features. Aside from the fact that the Sun and Moon are on "disaster" degrees, we find our favourite T-square configuration with Neptune at the apex and the Sun and Moon as the arms. This is perhaps the most revealing configuration in the chart, especially considering the fact that this eclipse occurs over the Middle East. Neptune rules religion, among a great many other things. But, it belies all the confusion that is taking place and the motives behind the scenes guiding everything that is going on in that part of the world. Neptune is the planet that eventually brings clarity of thought and vision of the divine, though we have to work through a lot of confusion in the process in most cases. It is the planet that rules the astral (desire) body and thus rules over glamour of all types, psychologically understood. With the Sun in a square to Neptune we see a greatly increased sensitivity to circumstances and emotional currentswhat amounts all-too-often to an over or hyper-sensitivity. The square between the Sun and Neptune is renowned for producing over-sensitivity and unclarity in people who have it natally. The symbol for the Sun is this figure is quite interesting in this regard. It reads thus:

Head covered in a rakish silk hat, muffled against the cold, a man braves a storm. 15 Taurus

Neptune, the God of the Seas, is certainly bringing about those storms that will eventually bring such clarity in the world as it tosses about the collective vessels for our souls and brings the healing rains to the hard and parched land of crystallized human thought. We are seeing only the first sprinklings from an otherwise dark cloud that has hung over the Middle East and other troubled parts of the world for so long. Nowhere is crystallized thinking and glamoured perceptions of the divine more perfectly exemplified for us than in the forces of religious fundamentalism operating so strongly in the Middle East at this timeand I include in this the fundamentalist Christian dynamic underlying much of the current U.S. administration and foreign policy. I would add to this as well the strident forces of patriotism which act so often more as a deterrent to world aid than as a help and which separates countries from their sister nations. Sensitivities on all sides are very strained at the moment and there is a crying need for space, calm and open dialog between all parties involved instead of the with us or against us attitudes and the continuous and destructive dynamic of tit-for-tat reprisals and enforced ideals upon populaces who really need to sort out their own destinies for themselves quite outside of interference and meddling from foreign powers. For any one country to suppose it has the best answers to another countrys dilemmas and to feel that it has the manifest destiny to enforce those ideals on them is arrogance and is criminal in the extreme. Imposition upon another's free will is one of the greatest sins of spiritual living and is to be avoided whenever possible, though there are always exceptions to the rule (rare though they are).

Collective Struggle

Neptune is beautifully highlighting the collective struggle of humanity as we all seek to manifest the higher spiritual ideals and a greater common ground. It is doing this precisely through producing these over-heightened sensitivities within people and through simultaneously giving us a peek at what is possible in any given circumstance by playing upon the human heart---that most beautifully sensitive of all human subtle organsand giving us glimpses of what is possible if we can remain open and sensitive to any given moment in time and the people within it. But we are only able to do this when we can sit within a calm space and dialog with the higher Self about the crisis situations in which we find ourselves. Truly has it been stated The heart resounds to absolutely everything. And, it does so at every momentbut we have to be able to recognize the gifts of those coursing energies in the very midst of our struggles. There is no greater tragedy to befall a person than to be the possessor of a closed and hardened heart. Unfortunately, such a thing is precisely engendered by religious fundamentalism and extreme nationalism. But, on the other side of this seemingly unsolvable quandary is emerging something new and sacredthe seeds of what will be a new world religion. The symbol for the degree of Neptune in this figure is revealing in this regard and reads thus:

A big businessman at his desk. 16 Aquarius

Now, it is well-known in the alternative media and among conspiracy theorists that the main thrust behind the precipitation of the Iraq War was a grab for oil and the furtherance of the aims of big business, especially within the US and Britain. But, there is another side to this as well. The spiritual Hierarchy of our planet operates very similarly to a business hierarchy in some respects and all the great Teachers within that august Group are quite like busy executives, tending the business (which is an unfortunate analogy in some ways) of raising the consciousness of humanity and the other kingdoms in nature. I use this example more in the way of going about ones business, rather than in a corporate/monetary sense. But the analogy between big business and the work of the Hierarchy goes further than this.

In part three of this article, Malvin concludes his discussion of the insights that we can make on the spiritual path in the light of Occult Law and the planetary expression of the divine will. Read part three of The Wesak Festival

Malvin Artley is an accredited member of the American Federation of Astrologers. His primary focus over the past 25 years has been on the sciences as they express occultism and with bridging work between the two. His special interests in those fields are the human subtle energy system and all the chakras, or energy centres, physics and technology, astronomy and all aspects of Chinese occultism.
He sends out periodic emails about astrological happenings and developments. These email messages are sent as a gift and a sharing. They are sent to people of many persuasions, not just astrologers. Blessings. Click here to subscribe to Malvin's periodic letters.

The Wesak FestivalSubtle Meanings of the Full Moon in Scorpio [part two]

Vulcan's Hammer

T-square to Neptune

Collective Struggle

The Wesak Festival
Subtle Meanings of the Full Moon in Scorpio [part two]