End of Year review

This material is copyrighted by M Kirby Moore. Please do not reproduce without my explicit permission. Thank you for visiting.

This is a post about taking stock of my life. Where am I at? How content am I? What can I change to manifest my needs?

As an astrologer, there is a nice structure already created, which represents a person’s life – a birth chart. Therefore by going thru the areas of life represented by my chart, or more specifically by its houses (each astrological house represents a broad area of life), I can become clearer about where I am content and where I’d like to make some changes.

Let’s get started:

1st represents relationships, inner hidden personality, conditioning from our parents, etc. This is a very complex area for some people as it is difficult to change fundamental aspects of ourselves (like inherited health). Personally I think it is possible to change these areas, but it takes time and dedication. So let’s move on to an area that is more “outside” of us.

2nd house is what we value most. This is a very subjective category – but in our materialistic culture, most people value money, so that is included here. Personally I value my family, and more, I value my sangha and community of supportive friendships. I also value intimate relationships, so I have already mentioned several things potentially “outside” of myself which I want to change in this new year.

First, I am tired of being lonely and of waiting for my karma to manifest an appropriate partner for me. Therefore I am considering using a Buddhist online matchmaking service. Second I want to be able to be more joyfully social this upcoming year, so I really need to look at whether or not I can keep my 40 – 50 hr / week job. If I am too exhausted to meet any of my extracurricular needs, then I may need to change!

3rd house has to do with several things, like our non-parental family members, our community (neighbors, our neighborhood, our city) but mainly the strangers around us – friends show up later. The third house has to do with our local transportation as well – our cars and other vehicles. Finally, this is the house of communication, including dreams (here is a subconscious communication). How am I doing here? Pretty good, although I would love to be in a monthly process dream group. Here again though we come back to time.

4th house is our parental family (usually mother), our feelings and needs around domestic wants, and this is the most hidden of houses (midnight of the soul), which means any planets in residence in our 4th houses need to be analyzed carefully. This is generally the house of the maternal lineage. Am I content here? My family (mother and step-father really) are doing some incredible healing work right now, so I am quite pleased here.

5th house is self expression, creativity, children, speculation and love affairs. I’m doing okay here except I don’t have time for creativity. But if I did, what would I change? And love affairs are fun, but I am looking more for an appropriate partner. Therefore no more need for any “love at first sight” craziness. I’d rather gradually build trust and lovingness.

6th house is work, discipline, personal choices about health / exercise, and service. This is where a lot of my energy is these days, so I am working tons. I would prefer to not feel a sense of deprivation though which tends to cause me to stick with a job even if it is time to move on… need to ponder that one.

7th house is the capital “R.” Relationships! I want an appropriate one. appropriate age, appropriate life experience, appropriate grounding and practicality, appropriate vocation. But if I have to wait another year, it’s okay. 🙂 goodness knows I easily distract myself from feeling my heart’s yearning.

8th house is extremely complex for some people (including me) but I feel I am doing a good job of changing, transforming and purifying my negative karma. It is also the house of our partner’s money, and it represents an underworld journey of sorts. No problem! (says this ascetic yogi)

9th house is higher education, learning foreign languages, cultures and traveling to new worlds. It represents stretching the mind. This is where I need to persevere and not waiver about. It is my intention to attend JFK University in the fall, so I need to get that application in the mail. Then once I have an advanced degree, then other goals are more realistic.

10th house is giving back to the tribe, our vocation, our profession and our reputation before the public. At present I am working a ton, but I would like to offer more astrology interpretations to paying clients, as well as more bodywork treatments. So I’d like to work smarter not harder.

11th house is a closer community than the third. This is friendships, sponsors, patrons and community organizing. It is a very progressive, interconnected area of our lives. I think I’d like more time to cultivate this domain but otherwise I am doing just fine.

12th house is service and work with charities or large institutions (prisons, working with mentally disabled or physically disabled people, hospitals, etc). This is also the house of self undoing – do we work against ourselves in any way? How are we our own worst enemy? Finally this is also the house of inappropriate fears. My only inappropriate fear as far as I know, besides my fear of heights, is my feeling of deprivation or my sense of lack. Do I have a fear of making an easy, sustained income? Who did I inherit this from? How can I change it? I’m working on it and I have some good leads – someone recently recommended the book, “The Artist’s Way” which I am looking forward to getting into.

So all in all I am doing okay, but I hope some of my intentions for 2013 come true (and I am dedicated to making real changes to ensure they do). Yay! 🙂

Thank you for reading.

Dancing my shadow on retreat

This material is copyrighted by M Kirby Moore. Reproduction without permission is prohibited. Thank you for visiting.

Yet again, just dipping my toe into this powerful cauldron of healing wisdom, if even for just an hour or two has resulted in a cathartic visceral shift.

During the evening hours on the retreat at the Sanctuary in Charlottesville, there is one hour when we Dance our Dreams or do Dream Play. What is this? It is a powerful method for exploring and embodying our dreams. Here is a brief description of the method – someone volunteers a dream, tells it in the first person present tense as if they are re-experiencing their dream, they slowly go through it so everyone in the group understands, and any time they mention a noun from the dream, they say the [noun] part of myself. So for instance, whenever they say the blue corvette, they would also say, “the blue corvette part of myself” or “the suspicious character part of myself” or “the dirty dusty basement part of me” etc.

Then the person who volunteered the dream chooses if they just want to do the parts themselves with everyone else as witnesses, or, and I prefer this option, the dreamer assigns group members to play various parts. When it comes to a juicy part of the dream, the dreamer should ideally play those roles. So there is switching from role to role occasionally.

If there is someone in the retreat who has experience with counseling and leading people through a healing process (experienced doing this work themselves too), then they might also ask questions such as, “As blue corvette, what do you need?” or “As the thief part of you, what do you need to feel complete?” Etc.

Therefore this work can be extremely powerful. And as I danced my shadow parts (of myself) from a potent recent dream, I experienced a huge visceral wave move up from my dan tien (hara or energetic body location below and behind the navel) through my solar plexus and then up through my chest. I had rarely ever felt such a powerful wave move through me, and all I was doing was speaking as my shadow parts. The question which triggered my healing was, “As shadow part, what do you need in relation to Kirby? What does Kirby need to do or need to know?”

It was awesome! I said that Kirby (speaking as shadow) needed to recognize me, then he needed to accept me, he needed to embrace me and finally he needed to fully understand me which would ultimately liberate me. Well, in a sort of crazy wisdom manner, we cut up the shadow parts of me (I played both roles as shadow being cut up and then switched to being Kirby doing the cutting), boiled these parts in a cauldron and then offered them to the wisdom beings to liberate. Woof!

And this all happened in less than two hours… I would say I don’t think this retreat could go any deeper, but I continue to be surprised. So I’m not going to hold my breath.

Thanks for reading!

re-membering, on retreat (?)

I am in the midst of one of the busiest periods of my life. Waves of opportunities and troughs of shock have been experienced lately. In the midst of it all, I am committed to attending at least one hour per day of a dynamic retreat.

I feel like I say this each year, when I do a juicy dive into Bodhicitta filled somatic bliss, but how can I forget so easily that my fluid body is potent, resilient and ever so playful??? To escape from that playful potency is a bad habit of mine… perhaps it is out of fear… or due to imprinting on the tense rigid bodies around me everyday at work. But I need this juicy medicine.

In just two hours this early morning, I chanted some mantras in as present a mindset as I could muster. Then it was contemplating the Eight Verses for Training the Mind. But the juiciest part for me was the Zapchen Somatics that we did for twenty minutes. How did My body forget that I can have warmth comforting fluid in my back, behind my heart, soothing my brainstem? Good golly! I don’t want to have to rediscover these precious nuggets every year 🙂 But if that is the case, it is just fine! Because at least then I would have the inner adventure of a lifetime, all over again. MMMmmm!!

Thanks for reading! This is copyrighted by M Kirby Moore. Please do not reproduce without my permission.

Astrological Whammy(s)

This material is copyrighted by M. Kirby Moore. Reproduction without permission is prohibited. Thank you for visiting.

Has anyone been wondering why I have not been writing much recently? Well I have been busy processing many things – grief, old terror, new fear, etc. I figure I am now ready to share a little bit of what I’ve been experiencing.

Over the past month, I have witnessed too much suffering, sickness and death. And this is more personal than the recent school shooting in CT, although that was also very tragic and quite frightening. That news definitely hit me hard. And just as a disclaimer, I’m about to mention some heavy stuff, so read on with caution. 🙂

Beginning around Thanksgiving, one of my friends from work cut himself really badly and another was hospitalized. And actually he was in a coma with only a ten percent chance of survival, so I started grieving for him days before he died. Then on the day that he was taken off life support, I learned two pieces of bad news simultaneously. First, another friend went to the ER, luckily only for a minor procedure, and second, one of my family members, a loved one was going in for tests because they feared they might have cancer. Then a week later, while I was at the wake of the early friend’s passing, we found out it was cancer, albeit with a treatable forecast. However, in the coarse of two to three weeks, I faced more suffering than I had over the entire prior year.

So what was happening in my Astrology chart which might indicate this overwhelming amount of suffering?

Well (obviously), several things. One generally does not go from loving an easy life to immediately facing many types of suffering unless one or more major aspects are happening (usually difficult transits will “bring” the most overt suffering from the outside world). Again, just to reiterate, the transits do not bring anything. Rather they are a reflection of our karma. The seeds are already planted. The degree to which our karma manifests is contingent with our frequency (choices, spiritual awareness, devotion to a spiritual path, etc).

With that said, let me get back to my above question. We all went through the brief but intense aspect of Mars conjunct Pluto – whether any afflictions came to us or not, we probably wondered why there were more accidents over that two to three day period. Personally, I was lucky and did not experience anything too difficult personally. But in my chart, Mars and Pluto were both squaring my Natal Mercury. At the time, I brushed this minor planet (Mercury) aside saying, “Oh, it is just the mind-oriented planet, thankfully it is not the Sun or Moon.” Yeah, well, I made a mistake in doing so. This error in judgment came about because every planet operates on multiple levels in Spiritual Astrology.

On the gross level, Mercury has to do with the nervous system, with cars and local transportation, with communication with others, siblings aunts and uncles, and with electronics (computers and especially with communication devices). So a couple of these were affected for me personally. But I was fortunate to, knock on wood, avoid bodily harm. And I thought, I’ve dodged that bullet, I am fine! Yeah, not so fast. Here’s why:

Every planet functions on many levels. The gross levels are the planets in signs and houses. This info is very personal and obvious (to anyone perceptive enough to notice). Then, still on a gross level, the planets make aspects to each other. These aspects can play vital roles in determining how that planet’s energy will manifest. But now let’s go to a subtler level. The planets also act as subtle barometers for each house and sign. What does this mean?

Each planet rules one (or two) signs. This is where Astrology becomes complicated, so if I lose you, don’t worry, you are not alone! Anyway, Mercury rules both Gemini and Virgo – its diurnal and nocturnal manifestations respectively. So no matter where Mercury falls in your birth chart, it will still play a role in the houses with Gemini and Virgo on their cusps. I realize I am using a lot of challenging astro-jargon, so thanks for trying to keep up. Here’s an example of what I am talking about:

I have Mercury in my 9th house in Aries. This is the gross information I was talking about above. On more of a subtle level, Mercury also plays a role in my 11th and 2nd houses because these have Gemini and Virgo on them (I am a Leo rising after all). Therefore, when Pluto and Mars made the difficult square aspect to Mercury, in addition to activating my nervous energy and affecting my computer, the issues reflected within the second and eleventh houses were also activated!

Plus, transiting Saturn is in Scorpio very close to my Nadir (4th house cusp). So I will discuss this as well. And we cannot forget that Uranus is still in orb with Pluto, making the Mars / Pluto conjunction even more intense.

I need to mention too, that I still stand by what I wrote previously about Saturn in Scorpio and about Transiting Mars conjunct Pluto. These can both be whammies, but it depends on where they fall in your chart and what they are aspecting.

More to follow, thanks for reading. Hope this was not over anyone’s head!

2012 Winter Retreat at the Sanctuary

Several people have expressed interest in the upcoming retreat in Cville, so here is more of a specific schedule:

From Dec 22nd thru Dec 31st, this is the daily schedule:

6-7 am resting in alignment, mantra, silent sitting
7-8 verses for mind traing, vispashyana, Fun yoga for wellbeing (Zapchen)
8-10 breakfast, tea, yoga, walk, rest

10-11 calm abiding meditation
11-12 noon shamatha and long life prayers
12-2 pm lunch rest nap

2-3 pm Zapchen exercises and napping
3-4 silent sitting
4-5 metta loving kindness or guided Tong Len
5-6 light dinner rest

6-7 pm group dreamwork
7-8 shamatha meditation
8-9 calm abiding and closing prayers

We ask that you register ahead of time so we know how many people to expect and how much food to prepare. To register, email Janet Evergreen at janetevergreen [at] cs.com

Thank you and we hope to sit with you!

Winter retreat in Charlottesville

There is going to be a meditation retreat happening in Cville from Dec 22 thru Jan 1st.

Each day will start at 6 am and end at 9 pm. There will be delicious vegetarian meals provided for $5 each (lunch cost). Will be doing shamatha, metta loving kindness, dream play, Zapchen Somatics and more.

Contact me for the specific schedule because you can come for one hour, one morning, one day or more. We just need to know who is coming ahead of time. And we ask for participants to arrive on time for each section.

Comment here to register or for more info.

Thank you and may all beings have the chance to participate in authentically transformative meditation practice.

Mars conjunct Pluto (transit)

This material is copyrighted by M. Kirby Moore. Reproduction without permission is prohibited. Thank you for visiting.

Recently, we on the Planet Earth experienced this raucous little aspect.  Transiting Mars caught up with transiting Pluto and they danced for a couple of days.  So what happens with the “gods” of the underworld and war get to dancin’?

Well, this answer depends on one’s individual chart.  However, because astrology does not merely affect people, this dance may have also been reflected in the now-escalated conflict between Israel and Hamas in the Middle East.  Every organization and country also have a “birth” as it were and therefore they also have birth charts which will reflect their relationships with other such organizations.

But I doubt you are reading this post to hear about astrology and politics.  And if you are, you have perhaps come to the wrong place because I specialize more in working with individuals.

Trauma-Informed Astrology Special

One Hour Astrology Interpretation. Get your Astrological birth chart interpreted from a Spiritual / Karmic / Evolutionary perspective. You name the topic (area of the chart) and we can dive in - these are some possible areas to look at: Timing Astrology, Relationship Astrology, Medical Astrology, Natal Astrology, Psychological Astrology. Thank you!

$150.00

Individually what did this aspect mean?  Again, I wish there was a simple answer.  To give this subject at least an inkling of an appropriate sketch, I must say that it depends on where this aspect took place in your individual chart and on top of that, it depends on what this aspect touched in your chart (which of our natal planets was aspected by this conjunction).

No matter what, Mars dancing with Pluto equals increased passions.  There is a good chance that for a few days your juices were flowing more than usual, meaning that either you had an increased sex drive or your irritation levels got a touch too high and boiled over, resulting in arguments and conflict.  Basically this conjunction would escalate whatever energies it encountered.

If this conjunction falls in the 7th house, there could be increased attraction toward others, both a desire for partnership and sexual union and potentially a magnetic quality attracting others to you (whether you want this or not!).  This would almost certainly be the case if this conjunction aspected Venus.

Donate to Kirby’s blogging efforts

For every $25 you donate, Kirby will write a blog post (article) on the topic of your choosing, within his areas of knowledge. Thank you!

$25.00

If this aspect makes a hard relationship with Uranus, then look out.  Uranus is already the surprising, lightning bolt of instant progress whether we desire it or not, so this combination could lead to explosions of all sorts – emotional, mechanical, firearm-discharge etc.  If this is the case, be extra careful around sharp objects and firearms.

If you have a Moon / Saturn / Mercury T-Square in your chart (a challenging, potentially emotionally constipating aspect), then this could be a time of literal constipation and blockage.  This particular example would be very rare, but if you happened to have a few days of increased stress with chronic dehydration, then the conditions could be in place for an unpleasant few days to be sure.

These are just a few of the potential manifestations of this energy as reflected in the sky above.  Considering I am writing this post about a week post facto, you can use this information for next time (which would be about 670 days away).  If you do have Mars and Pluto coming together in your chart AND they will make a hard aspect to something in your Natal Chart, then it is highly advised to consult your astrologer.  And if you need one, you can always give me a call.  🙂

May all beings successfully navigate the streams of challenging karma!

Comprehensive Natal Chart Interpretation

Kirby will spend 90 minutes interpreting your Natal Birth chart. You can chat about any area that you like. This includes printed charts and it also includes about 30 minutes of preparation time! These are typically done on the phone, via Skype or in person if you happen to be in Virginia, USA.

$150.00

Transiting Pluto square Mercury: possible effects

This material is copyrighted by M. Kirby Moore.  Reproduction without permission is prohibited.  Thank you for visiting!

“Do not make enemies by accident.”  I loved this quote from the Dowager Countess on the first season of Downton Abbey, which I recently got into.  I also think it is the perfect quote for people who have Transiting Pluto making a hard aspect to their Natal Mercury.

I do need to start off an article like this by saying that our personal Mercuries are all unique.  Sure there are similar degrees – I have Mercury in 8 degrees of Aries, while someone else might have their Mercury at 9 degrees of Aries, and you would have a serious question if you asked “So what’s the difference?!”

Trauma-Informed Astrology Special

One Hour Astrology Interpretation. Get your Astrological birth chart interpreted from a Spiritual / Karmic / Evolutionary perspective. You name the topic (area of the chart) and we can dive in - these are some possible areas to look at: Timing Astrology, Relationship Astrology, Medical Astrology, Natal Astrology, Psychological Astrology. Thank you!

$150.00

Well here’s the thing: Mercury is the connection between head and heart and it is the planet of communication.  It is also the most fickle planet in the Zodiac, as it takes on characteristics from whatever environment it finds itself in.  In my opinion, in addition to being the butterfly of the Zodiac (Gemini especially), Mercury has some shapeshifting / chameleon-like traits.  And this is why two people having the “same” Mercury could experience an entirely different result / situation as Transiting Pluto makes a square to their Mercury.

Let me go a little more in depth here.  As Mercury is the planet of connection between head and heart, and it is the Throat Chakra of the Zodiac as it were, the curious communicator, it depends greatly upon what is in said head and said heart as to what comes out of the mouth.  This is another reason this transit will look different for all of us.  We are at differing frequencies – we have made different choices in our lives to get where we presently are.  You could call it karma, or you could say it is Divine Fate or whatever, but we have some choice in our lives, and our choices influence who we are.

Donate to Kirby’s blogging efforts

For every $25 you donate, Kirby will write a blog post (article) on the topic of your choosing, within his areas of knowledge. Thank you!

$25.00

With this said, I will try to nail down some generalities about Tr. Pluto making a hard aspect to Mercury.  But do keep in mind that for someone who is well-balanced, who generally is able to speak their mind and who seems to have a practical head on their shoulders, this transit might not be a big deal.  It might just be a few days or weeks of added intensity with communication or issues with relatives or in-laws, etc.  However, for others, specifically people who are naturally pleaser types or people who placate others with ease or people who are too soft and you might call them push-overs, then Pluto making a hard aspect to Mercury might get a bit messy.

Generally speaking, what can happen when the power-hungry planet of the Underworld meets the busy-body, messenger of the gods?  Righteousness.  That’s right – we can suddenly (or because this aspect will last for at least a year or two off and on – gradually) notice that we are picking fights with people because we feel we are right.  Although, Pluto is a very insidious energy – we will rarely ever notice our own righteousness.  Unless we have a habit of reflecting on our words and comments and actions and unless we are open to the truth of a situation, rather than what we want it to be, Pluto will blind us for a few months.  We might become more picky about someone not doing their job – pointing out the tiny details where they can improve, or we might respond to people in a new, intense and steamy way, because we feel they are somehow wrong and someone has to point it out to them.  Really?  In the long run will it really matter?

Comprehensive Natal Chart Interpretation

Kirby will spend 90 minutes interpreting your Natal Birth chart. You can chat about any area that you like. This includes printed charts and it also includes about 30 minutes of preparation time! These are typically done on the phone, via Skype or in person if you happen to be in Virginia, USA.

$150.00

This is because Pluto does seek power and control.  Whether we’d like to admit it or not, pointing out someone else’s flaws can be fun (especially under this ill-fated transit).  But does it help anything?  Are we just picking fights for petty reasons?  Pluto can and will bring whatever is hidden to the surface, so if you find that you are becoming a monster under this transit, saying “crazily awkward” or “intense fighting” words, then you should know that that part of your nature has been there all along.  I’m sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but I noticed this in myself.  At first it is hard to swallow.  You might say, “this is not who I am?!!”  Well, we have news for you – that is who you were in your unconscious and now you are more conscious of your lower self honey…  Ooph!!  Yep, this transit can shed a lot of light on our personal fallacies.  Where do we want control in our lives?  Where do we need to stand up for ourselves in our lives (appropriately)?  Where are missing the forest for the trees – being so concerned about every little detail that we miss out on the beauty of life around us?  Any of these things are possible with Pluto making this challenging dance with Mercury.

Generally speaking, Pluto’s transit over any planet forces some type of transformation.  As I mentioned above, for someone who easily speaks their mind and is not afraid to speak their truth to power (this is a rare trait I should add), then Pluto’s passage may not be that transformative.  Like I mentioned, Mercury also rules local travel, relatives (aunts, uncles, cousins, siblings) and communication.  So there are other facets of life that could be “stirred up” as it were.  But for any of us who do have some lingering fear of upsetting people in power – whether we are projecting old stuff onto the present, or whether we need to keep our mouths shut to keep our job, Pluto will begin to press for us to transform and to step into our truth and empowerment.  As you know, this can be a messy or a sticky process, but it is well worth it in the long run.

Pluto’s ability to bring to the surface stuff that has been hidden can also have another effect.  There is a small chance that during this transit, we will realize that we have been deceiving ourselves in a certain area of life.  And of course, if we are deceiving ourselves, then it follows that we are deceiving others.  And this would be a time when our deception gets noticed by others and we have to start cleaning up our act.  You see, Pluto demands or provokes confrontation.  This can take many forms, and Pluto / Scorpio energy people are very good at finding the right angle to approach an issue or to open up a potential sticky conversation.  But the most difficult person with whom we might have a conflict is with ourselves, especially if we are older and / or set in our ways.  Pluto might be asking us to change (for the better, even though most of us fear change in one way or another).

Finally, there may be jealousy and / or resentment which crops up around a situation, and this situation must be confronted.  If not confronted, the body / mind could be affected by mysterious maladies (which would actually be the inflammation of resentment turned inward on the body).  Do not expect this situation to be an easy fix – there may be complications or sticky entanglements to peel apart first.

And as always, Pluto’s and Mercury’s house positions play a large role in determining what will actually come up during this transit.  Also, is Mercury well aspected in the birth chart?  Does it make an aspect to Saturn or Pluto natally?  Is it a Singleton – a lone nomad planet without any aspects?  These will all play a role in determining what this time will look like.  And, right now, Uranus is also in this mix, as it is making a Transiting Square to Pluto in the sky, which means if these two transformative Giants affect one planet in a hard aspect, we will have to deal with both planets making a change-filled aspect as well.  Therefore, I will end this long post by suggesting that if you have some planets in the 6 to 12 degree range of Cardinal signs (Aries, Cancer, Libra, Capricorn), then you should have your chart interpreted by a competent astrologer, because there will probably be some significant changes ahead for you.

But this too shall pass.  🙂  So take a deep breath and know that we are doing the best we can with the resources at our disposal.  And it never hurts to ask for support.

Have a great day!  And thank you for reading.

Cause for Celebration

mistrust is beginning to give way
visceral adhesion slowly loosening, peeling
angels and outer wisdom beings cheer,
gradually my pace is becoming natural, easy, effortless

fear, karma, conditioning lead to tense mediastinum
no longer pushing, no more forcing
“may I rest down and relax completely” comes true
cause for celebration, inner wisdom beings smile

still work to be done
weeds still grow in my garden
but I’m becoming a more vigilant, relaxed gardener
mindfully liberating from conditional happiness

may all beings know ultimate happiness
and its causes