Energy Astrology: March 2006 Column

Lassoing the Stars for a Better Life

By Cyndi Dale

Inside to Outside

How many of us have ordered a QVC or infomercial deal simply because the promoter is promising “instant change?” Needless to say, the miracle product didn’t provide overnight success, and is either gathering dust in the closet or turning into mold in a garbage dump. We’re all guilty of looking for a quick fix, a solution that guarantees our goals from the outside to the in.

Guess what? An outside to inside action usually results in little more than a band-aid. To create lasting change, such as necessary to achieve our life-long dreams, we have to move from the inside to the outside. March has three special stellar events that might very well serve as the turbo-boosters we need to blast off ­ inside to outside.

We’ll spend most of this month going in reverse, as Mercury goes retrograde. Two eclipses, nicely spaced so as to guarantee a partial recovery from the first before we get “kissed” by the second, will then hit us. What spiritual energy is super-charging all three heavenly events? Love. Let me show you what I mean.

The Spiritual Backdrop

How many times do you find yourself uttering one of these common statements about love?

Love is in the air.

Love is all there is.

I just want to be loved.

Why do I put up with him or her? Because I love him/her!

I’m doing it all for love!

I’d do anything for love.

The truth is that most of us do just about EVERYTHING under the rationale of seeking, giving, obtaining, or making love. We diet to look attractive enough to magnetize a mate. We go to the health club to meet someone to date. We read romance novels to convince ourselves of the power of passion and we watch Dr. Phil to learn how to recover from love’s pains and prickles. We go to jobs we may or may not like to lovingly support our families and we eat our mother’s dry turkey on Thanksgiving because we love her. Truly, love is the inspiration behind most of our activities.

Or is it?

Is it really “love” to eat one-half a calorie a day in order to look good enough for someone else? Does the search for love require a squeeze into exercise garments so tight that they hurt at the crotch? Is Dr. Phil really lecturing about love, or about something completely different? Do we force mom’ turkey ­ or criticisms or advice ­ down our throats because we love her, or simply want to avoid being honest? Certainly healthy eating, exercise, working, learning, and the suffering of mom’s cooking can all be motivated by love; then again, these and all other life activities can be more about avoiding truth than about being loving.

In March, three energetic events converge to force an internal discussion about what motivates us. Take a daily occurrence as simple as going to work. Whether you work inside or outside the home, you spend in some sort of service. What is your motivation? Do you love what you do or whom you do it for, or do you feel like you are merely serving out a prison term? Is your heart in what you are doing, or are you following some preprogrammed set of expectations, the majority of which promise love -- but only in exchange for sacrifice of self?

Are you one of the 60 percent of all Americans who really do need to be on a diet? Are you one of those who are currently dieting ­ again? Why don’t you release the weight? Why don’t you love yourself enough to take the actions necessary to be trim and healthy ­ to create the body you are meant to have, rather than one that is probably a composite of your resentments, fears, and losses?

The truth is that most of us unconsciously do what we do because we think we should, rather than because we want to. If we’re doing something out of an “ought” instead of a “want,” we’re going to sabotage. We’re also going to be unhappy and make others unhappy with our unhappiness.

We want to be motivated by Love. God has created us to be motivated and sustained by Love. Hence the emphasis in the most powerful and eternal force in the Universe: Love.

As a spiritual energy, Love can help us accomplish all things ­ but only if we’re real about it. You might want to ask yourself these questions:

• What does Love mean to me?
• What do I really love about myself?
• What does Love motivate me to do, be, and become?
• What foods do I love to eat/clothes do I love to wear/games do I love to play?
• How do I best share Love?
• How can I best accept the Love of God, others, and the world, and use it for a loving purpose?

The answers to these questions can only be found deep inside of yourself. They aren’t posted on a billboard or written in the stars. The answers are etched in your heart. In fact, the answers compose and create your heart, just as your heart forms and fashion the answers. This month, I encourage you to lasso the energies of the eclipses and Mercury in retrograde to look at what Love means to you ­ and to then live the energy of Love in all you do.

The Mix of Mercury and Eclipses

Three stellar events bend the stars to earth as you move through March. Here is what you can expect from these occurrences:

1. Mercury in retrograde. Mercury dances backward March 2^nd through the 25^th, initiating a spin of surreptitious surprises. Mercury’s might move occurs in Pisces, which signifies intuition and emotion. In this position, Mercury stimulates your second chakra, an energy center often perceived as orange, located in your abdomen. Physically, get prepared to face issues in your intestinal and reproductive system. Emotionally, stay alert! The second chakra is all about feelings. Clues for negotiating the Piscean swamp of emotions lies in Mercury’s shifting position throughout the month.

In the beginning of March, Mercury plays with Pluto, the planet of secrets, hidden information, and transformation. Long-held feelings and awarenesses, as well as stifled sensual and creative urges, will emerge from your second chakra as you join with this Plutonian energy. You might feel like an erupting volcano as your feelings and secrets start to surface. Look for opportunities to transform these long-held feelings into magical expressions of self through the spiritual truth of Love. How? Tap into your innate psychic senses and ask God to help you transform your darkest secrets into new ways of looking at yourself. Our most embarrassing, secreted, and hidden feelings and thoughts often hold the truth about our inner desires. Hold onto your desires and release the shame.

Closing in toward April, Mercury faces off in a square against Uranus. Uranus governs several areas, including that of surprises. Don’t hold back! Ignore your fears of change and the unknown. You’ve surfaced your secrets and transformed them into desires ­ now give permission for God to send the serendipity that produces the miraculous. Be prepared to say “yes” to the opportunities that present themselves. As irrational and illogical as some might be, if events come from God, they will move you farther, faster.

2. Lunar eclipse in Virgo on March 14^th. Lunar or moon eclipses encourage us to release and let go. This moon is atypical in that the moon will be dimmed, not totally blacked out; however, it occurs in square to Pluto, so it can potentially bring about dynamic results.

Pluto is an eighth chakra planet. Your eighth chakra lies atop your head and contains the records of everything you’ve ever seen, done, felt, or said. This moon will highlight the effects of Mercury (messages and communication) in Pisces (feelings) as squared with Pluto (transformation.) LET GO! Not all those repressed desires and feelings are applicable to today. Sort what was from what should become, and you’ll come out of this moon refreshed, cleansed, and energized. Let go of those fears of the unknown and be ready to dance forward! As this lunar moon occurs in Virgo, you can especially gain from reviewing all things affecting your health and life systems, including your diet, ways of making decisions, and daily operations. While a stimulation of Virgo energy might bring up perfectionism or fears, combat these tendencies to be hard on yourself or others with the spiritual truth of Love.

3. Solar eclipse in Aries on March 29^th. Solar eclipses are like huge signs that blaze, “Invite the new!” This particular solar eclipse is total and nearly worldwide, so it is extraordinarily powerful.

In a global context, many astrologers are predicting the fall of heads of states. We can apply this same concept for change within the self and seek to eliminate the many “false selves” that characterize our personalities.

What’s a “false self?” It’s something you had to pretend to be in order to survive a difficult time. Many of us form false selves in childhood in order to disguise our real self, thinking that self-revelation will lead to danger. The trouble is that we often forget to drop the false fronts when they are no longer needed. Staying in line with our theme of the month, you can emerge from March’s tribulations and trials as the real self that you are. When fully uncovered and vulnerable, your real self can attract the Love of the Universe, the world, and of others, and thus bolster your progress in all walks of life.

Using Love to Attract Love

By concentrating on the truth of Love, you can not only weather any March reversals and challenges but also gain skills needed to prosper during any life situation. Both good and bad times can be transmuted into permanently golden moments for change, growth, and prosperity, through the ownership and operation of Love. Here are ways to access and apply the universal energy of Love in tandem with March’s celestial offerings.

1. The Mirror of Love. Imagine yourself standing before a mirror. Ask to see the reflection you currently hold of yourself. No matter what or whom appears; no matter his or her shape or countenance; decide to send unconditional Love to the self in the mirror. Watch as your seeming less-than-desirable traits shift and change as you accept this Love.

2. Inside to the Out. This is a two-day exercise. On the first day, imagine that you are creating everything that impacts you. This doesn’t mean that you are causing others to act as they do. Rather, own that you can decide how to act both reactively and proactively. At the end of the day, review what you created in your life. What happens when you own that you are originating your own life, inside to the out?

   On the second day, decide in advance the following:

• What will impact you
• How you will let life events impact you
• How you will be impacting your life and the people you meet

What happens when you actually live inside to the out, owning this as a creative power?

3. Transform yourself. The energy of March is ideal for transformation. Select one thing you would like to change during this month. Is there something you want to give up, like an addiction, weight, or a bad habit? If so, agree to let the energy of Divine Love assist you in surrender. Before you being letting go, decide what you want to put in the empty space: a new behavior, more self-love, a different attitude, or healthier food? This is a great month for transformation!