Astrology: a cautionary tale
By: Janette Dalgliesh – Confluence Daily is your daily news source for women in the know.
Today’s piece is a bit of a departure for me.
I’m going full-out 100% vulnerable ‘oh shit if they read this they’ll think I’m completely nuts and incompetent’
Think of this as a true confession from a coach and astrologer whose life is not perfect, not by a long shot.
If you’ve been reading my pieces for Confluence, you know I choose an optimistic and pragmatic viewpoint for astrology.
I genuinely don’t believe in such things as ‘bad omens’ or ‘difficult astrology’ or ‘malefic signs’.
I believe all astrology has the potential to be incredibly useful.
But sometimes even the most useful astrological weather can land like a Doc Marten to the teeth, especially if it lands in a sensitive place in your natal chart (or in this case, mine).
In the world of alchemy, there are said to be three key stages of transformation.
The black phase, nigredo, is where everything rots and dies away. It’s fertile but not pretty. It’s the dark path through the forest, where all seems lost and night seems endless and we think we’re going to die. It’s essential as the beginning of the process of transformation, because without the death of the old there can not be a place for the new.
The white phase, albedo, is the spark of light in the darkness, the moment of hope. The red phase, rubedo, is where the new thing is finally brought to vivid life, made real and meaty and tangible.
Those last two sound lovely, and they are. But nigredo – even when we know that’s what it is – is not fun.
That’s why it’s equated with the psychological phenomenon known as the dark night of the soul.
This week’s had some big astro weather, with a New Moon and Mercury Retro both happening in Pisces, and Uranus moving into Taurus.
I’ve written some pretty cheery articles about them, and I absolutely stand by the optimistic views I hold, especially when it comes to Uranus in Taurus.
But this is a perfect demonstration of how a useful and significant event can kick your butt, depending on where it lands in your own natal chart.
This is one reason I don’t do a weekly ’round the signs’ kind of article. There is so much going on in one individual chart, that generalising has to be SUPER general in order to be useful. (Having said that, if you’re looking for people who do that kind of astrology writing, I highly recommend Kim Falconer and Mystic Medusa).
Uranus into Taurus is going to be fantastic, no doubt. A shake up of your relationships with your body, your resources including money, and with the earth herself. So much potential – and also, if you’re clinging on to the past, it could look violent as Uranus doesn’t tolerate stuckness.
But I’m well-practised at moving forward, at getting aligned, at letting go of the past.
So why did this particular astro weather kick my particular butt?
First of all, Uranus has been transiting through the sky in an area directly opposite my Sun (my sense of identity) and my Neptune (my relationship to the collective unconscious, dreams and the imagination). It’s also been interacting with my natal Uranus (my own inner rebel), plus my natal Jupiter (my sense of expansion and optimism) and Pluto (my deepest hidden sense of personal power).
It’s been a long, slippery and potent journey of change for the past 18 months, which has been GREAT – and also somewhat exhausting.
And now, Uranus moves into the sign which is my Ascendant (the sign rising above the horizon at the moment of my birth).
This is the first time in many decades that Uranus has taken up residence in a highly significant sign for me.
It’s not surprising, then, that this morning I was literally sobbing into my coach’s ear (yes, coaches do that too).
Even though this astro weather promises so much for me; even though it’s a fabulous opportunity for expansion and growth, a powerful moment of shaking off the old and embracing the new – the process of it was, in that moment, really fucking hard.
Full on nigredo, without a doubt. And even knowing that didn’t make it easy.
There were challenges to every one of my beliefs.
There were challenges to how I see myself (that Taurus Ascendant), and how I relate to others (Mercury Rx in my 11th house, the area of my chart to do with connections to groups and collectives).
There were challenges to do with my relationship to money and resources (Taurus again) and also my willingness to work magic before doing That Frantically Important Thing That Must Be Done (Merc Rx in Pisces, inviting me to review and rethink my relationship to magic)
So, if you’re feeling at all shook up in ways that are difficult or painful, or in ways that make you want to hurl a brick at the stupid goddamn stars – believe me when I say, I get it.
The best way to move out of that place, is to keep moving through.
Go back and read about Uranus in Taurus, and find just one practical thing you can implement.
If you’re reading this and thinking ‘huh – I’ve no idea what she’s talking about – everything seems pretty smooth to me’ that’s freaking AWESOME and I couldn’t be happier for you! Rock on your good self.
But if you’re reading this and getting a ping of recognition, take heart.
It’s not permanent. The first days of Uranus in any sign can be rocky AF as he settles in for that seven-year journey.
Definitely revisit the Uranus in Taurus article for a swag of ideas. Given how much has been going on lately, even something as simple as a good nap in the middle of a working day might help. Recharges the body AND breaks the rules (a happy place for that Taurean-Uranian dynamic). It might not be a strategy for every day, but it worked for me today.
Everything got easier again when, following my clever coach’s inspiration, I changed back into pyjamas and went back to bed for a two-hour sleep and skipped the bigger-than-Texas to-do list.
I gave myself permission to fully embrace whatever was happening, and decided to just nap my way through it. I know it’s all still at play, but my response is very different, because I’m not trying to fight it anymore, and I’m giving myself better self-care.
Sometimes even coaches have to scramble their way through to the albedo of a better feeling thought, in whatever way they can. Sometimes even astrologers get kicked around by an astro-weather pattern which is still a positive and powerful force for good.
The good news here?
If I can do it, you can too.
PS if you’d like support with this Uranus into Taurus thing, contact me on my Astrology page and we can figure something out.
Janette Dalgliesh has a simple mission in life – to help every person unlock their capacity for resonant joy, and live it. A keen student of astrology, brain science, chaos magic, law of attraction and positive psychology, she serves her people through astrology consults, coaching, teaching and writing. Her international clientele raves about her wildly accurate, individualized readings, but she doesn’t do general weekly predictions – for those, Janette recommends Kim Falconer (www.goodvibeastrology.com) and Mystic Medusa (www.mysticmedusa.com). Find Janette on Facebook or via her website – or you might like to pick up her free brain-rewiring resource, Identity Shift 101 here.
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