Hi and welcome to the Stella Starwoman February AstroUpdate delivered to you on the eve of the Aquarius New Moon marking the beginning of the Chinese New Year.
My prayers and good wishes go to our friends in Queensland coping with devastating floods and the onset of Cyclone Yasi. Energy is running particularly high this week with the Sun-Mars conjunction bringing anger and emotion to the surface. The head gasket blew on a friend‟s car; another friend had to have her cat put down and she also has a sister in Innisfail in the direct path of the cyclone; another was assaulted by a police officer and a neighbour‟s boiler burst flooding six flats including mine. Finally my land line died and Telstra can‟t repair it for several days. I pulled a tarot card on how to cope with all this drama, both personal and collective and received The Hanged Man. Stop trying to control circumstances, let go and surrender gracefully. Easier said than done!
Astrology & Tarot Courses – Only 12 Days to Go!
A reminder that my 2011 Astrology & Tarot Courses kick off in just 12 days time so if you want to join up or are sitting on the fence - don‟t leave it to the last minute or you could miss out.
ASTROLOGY FOR BEGINNERS – Fifteen Week Course (Mondays 6-8 pm - starts 14th February) $750 or two instalments of $425 includes 100 page course manual
ADVANCED NATAL CHART READING – Fifteen Week Course (Tuesdays 7.30 – 9 pm - starts 14th February) $650 or two instalments of $350 includes all handouts
TAP INTO TAROT FOR BEGINNERS – Thirty Two Week Course (Tuesdays 6 -7.30 pm - starts 15th February) $350 per EIGHT WEEK TERM or $1200 for the WHOLE COURSE includes all handouts
PRACTICAL TAROT SIX WEEK INTENSIVE – For more advanced students (Tuesdays 7.30 – 9 pm - starts 15th February) $295 includes all handouts
HOW TO BOOK
Click here for ASTROLOGY BOOKING FORM with term dates, price, venue, payment instructions
Click here for TAROT BOOKING FORM with term dates, prices, venue, payment instructions
Or CALL (03) 9534 5021 or email stella@stellastarwoman.com with your credit card details.
You can pay by cash, cheque, money order, EFTPOS, Visacard, Mastercard or bank transfer (details on booking form)
VENUE: Elwood Neighbourhood House, 87 Tennyson Street Elwood
MORE INFO: Click below for more info including student feedback & syllabus
ASTROLOGY COURSES
TAROT COURSES
Why Learn Tarot?
If you love colour, images, storytelling and symbolism, you will love the Tarot. The 78 cards of the Tarot deck are divided into 22 Major Arcana cards, which lead us through the archetypal themes of life‟s journey (birth, grief, love, success, fear, risk, death), and 56 Minor Arcana cards, which symbolise the various things that happen to us on a daily basis (making choices, having fun, working hard, getting a pay rise). With practice, you can become your own oracle.
You can use Tarot as a tool for connecting with the universal unconscious, a way to get in touch with your sixth sense, or as a meaningful story in picture format. The cards represent every element and stage of life, every human emotion and every lesson that needs to be learned. A Tarot reading often brings to light confirmation of things you have always known (through intuition or inner wisdom) or will offer new approaches to a challenging question or problem.
Much of the fear and superstition associated with the Tarot (and other occult sciences such as palmistry, astrology and numerology) is that they foretell the future and seal your destiny. Nothing about the Tarot is inexorable or inevitable. Your life path is a series of possibilities, branching off in one direction or another based on the decisions you make with your own free will. A Tarot reading might suggest what will happen if you continue along a certain path, but it is up to you to take responsibility for choosing your own direction.
If you fancy learning Tarot in 2011, why not check out Stella's Tarot Courses or visit www.tarotforthejourney.com
Year of the Rabbit
The Chinese Year of the Metal Rabbit begins on the 3rd February at the Aquarian new moon. Those born in 1927, 1939, 1951, 1963, 1975, 1987 and 1999 are all born in the year of the Rabbit (some call it the year of the Cat).
Rabbits/Cats are rather private individuals and can be a little introverted or withdrawn. They would rather work behind-the-scenes and enjoy being part of a group rather than leading the group. Friendly, articulate, talented and ambitious, Rabbits are well-balanced people who avoid confrontation and aggressive behavior. When angry, a Rabbit will approach the situation with calmness and consideration, rather than throwing a temper tantrum.
Rabbits are known for their sense of style and love of culture, tradition and custom. They appreciate understated quality, comfort and elegance and can often be found curled up at home on the couch with a glass of fine wine listening to tasteful music. Diplomatic and cooperative, they make excellent partners and family members, offer good advice and always walk their talk.
2011 will be a year when Rabbits can really shine, both personally and professionally and overcome any recent setbacks or obstacles. For the rest of us, the Year of the Rabbit offers us a chance to catch our breath after the roller coaster year of the Tiger. The Rabbit is the fourth of the twelve animal signs of the Chinese zodiac.
2011 & The Decade Ahead
The Uranus-Pluto square in Aries/Capricorn in mid 2010 set the scene for 2011, taking us on a journey back to the late 1960s when the cycle began with the Uranus-Pluto conjunction in Virgo. The combination of these two planetary energies produces a burst of individual freedom of expression and a refusal to conform to existing conventions. In the 1960s this manifested as hippies with long hair smoking marijuana, psychedelic drugs, subversive music, the civil rights movement, anti war protests, a backlash against traditional religion and desire for more sexual and emotional freedom. Many people used their new freedom in a reckless manner, but others made valuable breakthroughs embracing new dimensions of self-expression and authenticity. Freedom from convention and oppression is a major leitmotif of Uranus-Pluto.
I envisage sweeping changes in the following areas over the coming decade:
- Loss of confidence in traditional corporations, the police force, banking systems and large government bodies replaced by a new focus on small business, personal responsibility and grass roots activism.
- A rise in community and local initiatives with a greater focus on flatter management structures, transparency and cooperation.
- Education moving from bricks and mortar universities to on line learning and independent and home study.
- Increased moves towards environmentally sustainable living, new energy sources and a healthier lifestyle with particular attention to the food we eat and the type of health care we choose.
- Growth in the power of technology to link people and communities and spread and share information leading to a reduction in hierarchy and less focus on academic and professional status.
- Major religious organisations will lose their power unless they adopt a more flexible and inclusive approach.
Another Uranus-Pluto theme is the need to adapt to new and unfamiliar situations. In the next ten years our physical infrastructure and social institutions will be severely challenged and forced to adapt or become redundant. The middle of 2010 when Uranus first entered Aries offered us a glimpse of the shape of things to come with floods in Pakistan, a massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, eruption of the Eyjafjallajökull volcano, public debt spiralling out of control in several major nations and our own Federal Government leadership crisis. Millions of people have been affected by these happenings and billions of dollars lost. Common to all these events was a sense of fear about whether we could cope combined with a loss of confidence in the authorities supposed to be in charge. With Uranus in impulsive Aries, the drive for renewal and change will be intense, abrupt and even violent. Those who have the most to gain from revolution will find this liberating, but others will find the upheaval both challenging and upsetting. The floods in Queensland and riots in Egypt hint at the shape of things to come.
I believe 2011 marks the real beginning of the 21st Century.
Zodiac Screensaver Special Offer
Thank you to those of you who have supported the Stella Starwoman Star Store since we opened in early November. There are still plenty of 2011 Moon Calendars available ($14.99 + P&P) (in fact I‟ve ordered in another batch to cope with demand) but this month we have a SPECIAL OFFER
Stella Starwoman Zodiac Screensavers have been reduced to a new low price of $7.99. Available for both Mac and PC for each of the twelve signs of the zodiac, you receive a brand new affirmation each week for Your Star Sign specially written by Stella. The affirmations are set against a series of beautiful animated backgrounds designed by Cristina Re and featuring stars that twinkle, dolphins that surf, flowers that open and birds that glide across your screen. Perfect for learning more about your own star sign and they make great presents.
Featured Sign-Aquarius
From the 20th January to the 19th February the Sun travels through fixed air sign Aquarius, noted for its egalitarian nature, progressive ideas and humanitarian bent. Aquarius is the eleventh sign of the zodiac with keywords “I am different” and “I am detached”. Aquarians are both radical and immovable at the same time. They will often espouse a social or religious movement such as feminism, Buddhism or environmentalism and then remain committed to it for the rest of their lives. Those born under the sign of the Water Bearer often look to the future and have fine minds and a higher vision for society. Many Aquarians excel in the areas of science, technology and politics. At best they use their cool headed idealism to serve humanity. Negatively, Aquarians can be detached and aloof with a rebellious or fanatical streak. In medical astrology, Aquarius rules the calves, ankles and general circulation. When Aquarians are out of balance they can suffer from varicose veins, sprained ankles, irregularities of the heart action and fluid build-up. The Aquarian colours are turquoise, aqua and silver. Aquarius‟s greatest lesson is to learn to care for individuals rather than groups.
Sun-Mars Conjunction – Fire & Brimstone
Throughout late January and early February 2011 Mars and the Sun tango cheek to cheek, bringing a burst of energy, vitality and high libido. Although passion is the keyword, the Sun-Mars combo will help us work hard and play hard, so now is the time to tackle any challenging tasks and make plans for the year ahead. And as Mars is the god of war sparks could fly and unexpressed anger and frustration rise to the surface... just look what‟s happening in the Middle East!
The 5th February is the date of the exact Sun-Mars conjunction, marking the beginning of a new two-year cycle. If the Sun is Chairman of the Board in the heavens, Mars is the CEO. When they work together, they form a dynamic duo and extraordinary achievements are possible. The conjunction occurs in the sign of Aquarius with the Sabian Symbol for 15o Aquarius being „a big businessman at his desk‟ symbolising the importance of organised effort to achieve great results. Let me quote from the book of Sabian Symbols by Dane Rudhyar on this point. “A great deal of what is glowingly written about the Aquarian Age is probably sheer glamour. This New Age should be one in which man learns to use the power generated by human togetherness and group interplay – that is, to use it harmoniously for the welfare of the whole, of which all individuals are parts, humanity and the planet Earth. This has never been achieved an only very rarely attempted.” Interestingly, Rudhyar wrote his book back in 1973 before PCs, the internet and global networking had even begun, but his words have a prophetic ring. This Sun-Mars conjunction offers us the opportunity to use Aquarian technology to work together on a global level to tackle the problems we face. We are perfectly capable of achieving miracles when faced by disasters such as the Queensland floods or the Haitian earthquake. Our challenge over the next decade is to mobilise this same level of group cooperation to deal with issues such as global warming, population control, food supply and water conservation. It‟s easy to be motivated for a few weeks when there‟s a crisis, but much more difficult to think long term when there is no immediate and visible disaster to tackle.
NASA challenged by Sun-Mars Conjunction
And lest you think that the Sun- Mars conjunction is merely an astrological or symbolic phenomenon, NASA has announced that its surviving Mars rover will be unable to receive commands from Earth for much of the week, as the red planet is about to pass behind the Sun. The plan is for rover Opportunity to spend the blackout period sitting stationary, blasting a rock with a cobalt-powered radiation beam. According to a statement issued by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California, from which the rover is directed: „During the days surrounding such an alignment, called a solar conjunction, the Sun can disrupt radio transmissions between Earth and Mars. To avoid the chance of a command being corrupted by the Sun and harming a spacecraft, NASA temporarily refrains from sending commands from Earth to Mars spacecraft in orbit and on the surface. This year, the commanding moratorium will be Jan 27 to Feb 11 for Opportunity, with similar periods for the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter and Mars Odyssey orbiter.‟ NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter will be compelled to reduce the amount of data it gathers during the conjunction; its onboard storage is simply not large enough to compensate for the reduction in download speeds to Earth!
February Moon Calendar
Launch projects at the New Moon, bring them to completion in the period from just before the Full Moon to the Third Quarter phase and wind them down and reflect on developments in the week before the next New Moon. The period between the New Moon and the Full Moon is the waxing moon (moon getting bigger and fuller). The period between the Full Moon and the New Moon is the waning moon (moon getting smaller and thinner).
You can use this moon table to select the most favourable days to slow or increase hair regrowth. Full instructions can be found in my Lunar Hair Care guidelines at www.stellastarwoman.com/files/LunarHairCare.pdf but to get you started I've marked the best dates for waxing/shaving to slow regrowth in yellow and the best dates to cut hair for thicker, lusher growth in green. If you‟re serious about Lunar Hair Care - order your own Moon Calendar from the Stella Starwoman Store then you'll know exactly what time of day the moon changes from one zodiac sign to the next.
|
Date |
Sign |
Element |
Moon Phase |
|---|---|---|---|
|
1st-2nd |
Capricorn |
Earth |
|
|
2nd-4th |
Aquarius |
Air |
Chinese New Year New Moon 3rd |
|
4th-7th |
Pisces |
Water |
|
|
7th-9th |
Aries |
Fire |
|
|
9th-12th |
Taurus |
Earth |
First Quarter |
|
12th-14th |
Gemini |
Air |
|
|
14th-16th |
Cancer |
Water |
|
|
16th-18th |
Leo |
Fire |
Full Moon 18th |
|
18th-20th |
Virgo |
Earth |
|
|
20th-22nd |
Libra |
Air |
|
|
22nd-24th |
Scorpio |
Water |
|
|
24th-27th |
Sagittarius |
Fire |
Third Quarter |
|
27th-28th |
Capricorn |
Earth |
Thanks for being part of AstroUpdate. If there‟s something you‟d like to see featured, or have something you think would interest others, please contact me at stellaw@ozemail.com.au
PS – Don‟t forget to check out your February Monthly Stars at www.stellastarwoman.com to see what‟s coming up for you this month.
Happy Stargazing
Stella Woods www.stellastarwoman.com