This is an introduction to Shamanic Astrology as taught by Daniel Giamario, and is specifically designed to provide valuable information about your first Shamanic Astrology reading. This introduction covers the philosophy of Shamanic Astrology, how the chart is revealed through the script, the cycles and their significance, and an investigation into relationships through chart comparison.

Shamanic Astrology readings provide clues within an archetypal and mythical framework creating greater awareness for conscious participation with life purpose and the great mystery. Each reading acts to cellularly activate your divine blueprint and bring it further into conscious awareness and understanding, so you can uniquely and creatively express your true essence.

At the Turning Of The Ages our perception of time accelerates and collective confusion is prevalent. Shamanic Astrology provides us with a valuable tool for confirming what we already know, or sense, and assists us in trusting our own inner knowing and inner process. Thus, we can better comprehend and embrace the essence or our original intent, while consciously dreaming the dream onward.

Shamanic Astrology is designed to assist an individual in taking responsibility for their own life. This system is based on the hermetic principle, which says; “As Above, So Below!” This is not operating from the perspective of Cause and Effect!!! Rather, the basis comes from the understanding that the cycles or patterns of the outer world, correspond with the inner cycles and patterns of our own psyche. These cycles and patterns represent the unfoldment of our own lives.Carl Jung referred to this as ’synchronicity’, meaning events that happen together in time. Thus, it is acausal.

The outer cycles don’t cause the inner cycles; they are reflections of each other. Shamanic Astrology takes this idea beyond that, and suggests the outer cycles and the inner cycles are precisely the same thing. The patternings of the constellations are the As Above representation of our So Below great myths and themes rooted in our culture, and therefore, rooted in our consciousness.

Shamanic Astrology looks at the natal chart as a script with clues about our original intent. Thus, the symbols and archetypes of the script are statements of intent. A human being always has the freedom to choose to cooperate with their original intent. We are not forced to be a certain way. Twelve individuals, with Sun in Aries, and Scorpio Rising, are not all the same, but they do all have the same intent.

The main purpose of Shamanic Astrology is to give a person the understanding of their original intent, thereby assisting them, through the power of knowledge, in taking command and control of their own life, and giving them a vision of possibilities. These possibilities include a sense of life purpose, empowering the person with the knowledge of what their life purpose issues are. This is based on the idea that the predominant human motivation is not survival, not power, not sexuality, but is ultimately the quest for meaning and purpose. The quest for meaning and purpose is the real foundation of what drives people. So, if everything in life is going badly, but the person has a sense of meaning or purpose, they can sort it out. They can go forward. If they can discern what the underlying meaning is, then they can create a life that has purpose and magic.

This is not Sun sign astrology and it does not emphasize Sun signs. The Sun is one of many factors on the natal chart. In the last one-hundred years an emphasis was placed on Sun signs because it was easy for a person to know their Sun sign. Before the popularization of Sun Sign Astrology, people gave their Moon sign when asked what their sign was. The Sun is in a sign for thirty days and the Moon is in a sign for two and a half, so the Moon sign is more individualizing than the Sun sign. However, even using the Moon sign is a limiting approach, because the chart as a whole is important and extracting any one element from it does not adequately identify a person.

In Shamanic Astrology, all the archetypes of the signs and planets are valid and equally important. For example, the Moon can show up in any one of twelve different signs. No one sign is greater or better and no one sign is worse for the Moon (or any other planet). Whether or not a person experiences their Moon sign as comparatively easy or difficult is based upon what the prejudices of the given culture are. Our current culture has rendered judgments in the past that have supported certain approaches to being human and invalidated others.

Shamanic Astrology is a full spectrum approach, presenting the vision and understanding that all archetypal approaches to being human are valid. It is time now to know, understand, and validate the expression of the full spectrum of human potential, including all the archetypes, and all the different possibilities available to the male and female principle.

Shamanic Astrology is an antidote for patriarchal extremes. Patriarchal astrology elevated the Sun sign as one God above all others. Ultimately, it was the elevation of the male principle above all others. Shamanic Astrology looks at the whole horoscope in a polytheistic way. There are many Gods and Goddesses. One principle, or one planet, does not operate in a healthy way without reference to all the rest of them. The Sun, Moon, Venus, and Mars, and all the of the planets, represent the complexity of the entire script.

The Script

Shamanic Astrology looks at the horoscope as a symphony of three movements, or as a script for our life, outlining the original intent. The chart as a symphony plays the first movement through the lineage. The lineage refers to the idea that when a person is born, they are not a blank slate. A person comes into the life with a whole series of expectations, habits, addictions, and attitudes that are in place at birth. The Moon position is an indicator of past life themes, what tribe a person comes from, what university they have several Ph.Ds from, the family history, and what is written in the genetic code. Although, past life themes are referred to, this is not literal past life work. We are looking at the past life themes in a mythological way, or as underlying mythos for a person’s life. Whether or not a person has literally had these experiences in past lives is irrelevant, because the stories work.

We are creating a personal mythology for each person from the symbols on the horoscope that have to do with lineage. The Moon position is saying what a person was doing in the past. For example, a person with a Capricorn Moon has mastery in the area of the Capricorn archetype or mystery school. They come into the life with training (or impressions) in that version of reality.

This introduction is not designed to go into the meaning of all the different Moon positions, or the meanings associated with the other portions of the script. Rather, this is designed to share a sense of the scope of the script, so when a person receives their reading they have an idea of the kinds of things that will be covered. Knowledge of the Moon allows us to determine the addictions and attachments a person has. It also represents the areas of life where a person, at a certain point, has to get their power back.

It is important to know it doesn’t matter how perfect a person is with their Moon or lineage; even if they lived the principles of their Moon tribe perfectly, it is insufficient to their liberation. Living according to the principles of the Moon is regressive. At best, the Moon is the foundation, the ground on which all the current life activity stands on, but without attachment. Interestingly, the only portion of the entire horoscope that has much to do with how a person tends to be when they come into the life, is the Moon. Virtually everything else on the entire horoscope are statements of intent. That’s why the Moon position is similar to the portions of astrology describing personality traits, general characteristics, and qualities a person is born with.

Tools and Equipment

The second part of the script has to do with the tools and equipment of the current life. There are five symbols that determine what the tools and equipment are. These symbols are Sun, Mercury, Venus, Mars, and Jupiter. The Sun is best understood as the fuel a person burns, or the type of food a person needs to eat or consume, so they can grow as quickly as possible in the direction of their current life goals. However, the Venus and Mars position are more important with reference to the specific archetype, or images associated with the version of the feminine and masculine a person is working on in the current life.

The male and female principles are like a twelve-spoked wheel. Each spoke of the wheel is presided over by different Gods or Goddesses, different stories, different myths, and a different set of themes. This is a system of twenty-four archetypes. The importance of this is that it gives the entire spectrum of possibilities. Remember, all the Gods and Goddesses, or all the Venus and Mars positions are equally valid and important. There is no judgment about one being better, or worse, than another.

Since the Venus and Mars position are archetype specific they are more dominant than the Sun sign. If the Sun sign is in a different sign than the Venus or the Mars, it is important to first understand the Venus or the Mars. Once the Venus and Mars are understood, then we say they burn the fuel of the Sun. Approximately one out of twelve men have Sun and Mars in the same sign, and approximately one out of three or four women have Sun and Venus in the same sign.

The majority of people have an individualistic feature that requires an understanding of the archetype of the Venus or Mars as something separate from the Sun. Remember, rather than being statements of how a person is, these are statements of intent. As mentioned before, twelve people with Mars in Scorpio may not all be the same, but they do all have the same intent.

Astrology in this form can’t be proven by mechanistic, linear, scientific methods, because intent can not be quantified. Otherwise, correlations could be made about people with Mars in Scorpio, such as they will all end up becoming nuclear physicists, or they will always have a particular sexual style. However, because Mars in Scorpio is a statement of intent, it can’t be quantified. Men with Mars in Scorpio, either, desire to develop the qualities associated with Mars in Scorpio, or they are already in the process of developing these qualities, but because of all these factors, and others not yet mentioned, they are still not all the same. Spiritual psychology can’t be quantified in a mechanistic, left brained, logical, rational way, because it is dynamic and progressive, and needs conscious awareness to activate it.

Next on the script are Mercury and Jupiter. They also represent the tools and equipment of the current life. Mercury has to do with how a person thinks, and Jupiter represents the kind of life experiences that take a person to their life goals as fast as possible.

The Ascendant and Other Angles of the Chart

The third portion of the script has to do with what this is all leading too. This is the most individualizing and important part of the script. It is why we need to know the birth time. Without knowing the exact birthtime, we can not know the angles of the horoscope, the Ascendant, Descendant, Midheaven and Nadir. The angles change degrees about every four minutes, and change signs about every two hours. This is what individuates the horoscope, and describe the uniqueness of each person. Without the exact birthtime about seventy-five percent of the script is accessible, such as what tribe a person is from, who is the emerging God or Goddess, etc. . These are important things to know. However, these factors are not individualistic enough to define what it is that makes a person truly, clearly, a separate, unique human being.

The angles of the chart deal directly with experiential astrology, because the angles are determined by what is happening in the sky when a person is born. The Rising sign is the primary symbol of a person’s current life mystery school, life purpose, or the Personal Identity Project. The Midheaven symbolizes the Right Livelihood Project. Historically, in astrology, what is coming up over the eastern horizon, and what is directly over head at the time of birth are the most important symbols of a person’s fate or destiny. Hence, the comparative high level of importance to those issues are also associated with Shamanic Astrology.

The Shamanic Astrology Medicine Wheel shows how the four angles of the chart work, and it shows the Goddess (Venus) and the God (Mars), the tribal totem (Moon position), and the Spirit Horse or the Fuel (Sun Sign). The Spirit Horse is what we ride to get to our goal. What we ride (represented by the Sun) is a generalized sense of energy. The specific costume we wear to reach our goal is the archetype of the God (Mars) or the Goddess (Venus) that we intend to experience on our journey.

The Outer Planets as Strategy

In Shamanic Astrology, the outer planets represent the strategy. The hard aspects (squares, oppositions, and conjunctions), and the outer planets (Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto), define the strategy employed by an individual to WAKE UP. The strategy is designed to assist a person in reaching their current life goals the most quickly. The strategy can include some of the most excruciating wake-up call situations, and defines whether a person has a coasting path (an easy chart where not much is happening). Some people have highly melodramatic lives where they are constantly at the effect of dramatic events, happening to them, where they have to react. There are no judgments, positive or negative, about any strategy. For example, horoscopes with the most extreme versions of Saturn and Pluto strategy, (these are some of the most drastic versions of strategy), are not judged as “bad” in Shamanic Astrology.

In traditional astrology, it is difficult to come up with anything good to say about such aspects. Shamanic Astrology views these aspects as an intelligent strategy for waking up. A person cannot but “get it,” because eventually they do end up getting the joke. The joke involves understanding things about life that the average person may never become aware of or know.

Cycles

First we look at the basic elements of the script, and then we look at the strategy. After the investigation of the strategy, we look at the cycles. Often, the main reason many individuals choose to get an astrology reading is because of cycles, or timings they are currently experiencing. This comes from the idea that…The universe is supportive of a human being who consciously participates with their cycles.

f a person knows what cycle they are in, they stand to benefit. For example, there are times in a person’s life when all the doors are closed. This is a time when there are far better things they can do than keep trying to make things work in the world (similar to beating one’s head against the wall). Conversely, there are timings when all the doors are open, but if a person doesn’t know that, they might just kick back, take it easy, and miss the opening, miss the opportunities. Remember, no cycle, in and of itself, is good or bad. All cycles have a reason for being.

When we know and understand what initiation cycle we are in, we can benefit. There are certain cycles that are experienced as beyond ordinary reality. They are designed to produce a certain type of initiation. When we know we are in one of these cycles, we can consciously give ourselves permission to experience the intent of the cycle. One of astrology’s greatest contributions is to identify what cycles we are in, the intent of the cycles, and how to participate with those cycles!

There are cycles that are totally confusing, a time for a walk-about, a time for vision quest, a time when it is completely okay to not know. Conversely, there are cycles when it is time for the person to be clear and focused, and take some kind of specific action. There are some cycles that are free spaces. Free spaces are times when a person is closer to conscious free will than any other time, so the person can’t blame an astrological cycle for what is happening.

Cycles have a beginning, middle, and end. Knowing what cycle we are in is liberating in our understanding of what process we are undergoing. Knowledge of the precise astrological points of the cycles gives us specific dates we can use in a ceremonial way. These dates do not necessarily indicate some amazing event scheduled to happen to a person from the outside. Rather, knowledge of the timing allows a person the option of letting the universe know, they know what is going on. Then they can consciously choose to cooperate with the cycle taking place in and around them. It’s a process of consciously co-creating with universal intelligence. When this takes place the inward and outward cycles move into alignment.

This information is not only important, but useful with reference to relationships. For example, two people who have been in a long lasting stable and happy relationship may be confused when one partner (or both partners) moves into a new cycle. The person going through one of these cycles is no longer the same. However, knowing a cycle has a beginning, middle and end, helps us to understand the process and intent of the cycle. It helps us know the cycle will end and ordinary reality will return, perhaps transformed into something even more wonderful.

Relationship Comparisons

Relationship comparisons are another important area to look at. Many people getting a reading have questions either about their relationship, about a new person in their life, or their lack of relationship, and what they can do about it. Shamanic Astrology looks at what a person is attracted to, and what the chart indicates relationship intent is. It is important to know these are two completely separate issues. The horoscope includes clues about why a person wants to be in a relationship, or what the relationship intent is. These are similar to the characteristics looked at by cultures who did arranged marriages, or marriages based upon family history, class, and/or economic status.

There are many different possibilities for relationship intent. Shamanic Astrology recognizes and validates each of these. Another portion of the horoscope has to do with romantic love and physical attraction. This is the area of the chart that has to do with the ‘magical masculine’ and the ‘magical feminine’. We are all wired to be attracted to a certain kind of person. About two-thirds of the time what we are attracted to and our true relationship intent are drastically different.

Many of the difficulties people have in relationship are due to this reason. In fact, the great majority of the time when relationships do not work, it’s not because one person lacked merit, and it’s not because one or both partners didn’t know a lot about relationship. It simply has to do with differences in their intent for relationship. This is why it is important to understand the principle of ’sacred marriage’.

The ’sacred marriage’ is when a man walks through life with the magical feminine on his arm at all times, regardless of who he is with or whether he is with anyone at all. The ’sacred marriage’ for a woman is when she walks through life with the magical masculine on her arm at all times, regardless of who she is with or whether she is with anyone at all.

It is owning and taking responsibility for the inner masculine or inner feminine, then it doesn’t matter anymore if a person has a successful relationship or not, because they are now complete, autonomous, and sovereign, on their own. However, once the sacred marriage takes place, some people will be on a path of relationship and others will not. The script helps to sort this out. The people having the most difficulty with relationship are almost always the ones who have set their life up in such a way; they are forced to do the sacred marriage.

These same techniques of chart comparison also work in helping to sort out the circumstances with parents, brothers, sisters, friends, coworkers and business partners. However, for the purposes of a one hour reading we must limit the comparison work to one person. There is an additional $15.00 charge for comparison work due to the extra preparation time.

The purpose of this introduction is to give a sense of the scope of what a person can gain from a Shamanic Astrology reading. Again, the purpose of all of this work is to provide the clues and information that assists a person in the process of waking up and assist them in making conscious choices that supports the awakening process. This provides invaluable tools and helps each individual take responsibility for their own evolutionary path and supports the Aquarian Dispensation that says: “Every human being should have the freedom to take personal responsibility for their own evolutionary path.”

How can we truly live in freedom unless we really know all the possibilities? When there is only a limited range of possibilities available, we can’t really be free. For example, if a person has as their distinct color turquoise blue, and is born into a family that only sees red and white, what happens to turquoise blue? They may be totally ignored. In which case, they don’t get any validation or feedback for how well they are doing with turquoise blue. A more negative example is if the person is punished for being the color they legitimately are. There is no tolerance, or freedom, unless all the possibilities are known and affirmed.

In Shamanic Astrology, the Rising sign indicates a person’s enlightenment path. This is not an attempt to define spiritual enlightenment, as it is an issue beyond duality and difficult to define. Rather, it is acknowledging that different people have different paths to reach their place of self-actualization, or total freedom. Some spiritual traditions refer to it as a person’s way of “getting off the wheel.” It is kind of comprehensive enlightenment where each person is totally free. No path is better than another. There are twelve distinct paths with infinite variations on how to fully achieve mastery of that specific path. This is defined by the Rising sign, and all of the other factors on the chart, identifying the uniqueness of the path.

The following brief examples of rising signs are limited to the rising sign only. All the other factors on the chart are important for a comprehensive picture. Libra Rising suggests a person can’t truly reach enlightenment without experiencing some form of nonhierarchical, conscious equal partnership. It is the process oriented path of relationship. Scorpio Rising requires the person to master life force energy. It is a tantric path, that includes feeling the feelings, especially passion

. The Sag or Aquarius Rising path requires the development of the virtues of detachment and cosmic overview. The Sag/Aquarius path is more closely associated with the idea of getting off the wheel. They desire to disconnect from deep involvement with the physical and emotional.

Capricorn Rising is resonate with karma yoga, or the householder path, where one is developing responsible administration of their domain. These are examples of how different people have different legitimate paths leading them to their own state of freedom or comprehensive self-actualization. When all of the clues start to make sense, then we can begin to clearly answer these questions; “What is my contribution? What is my job? What color am I? What God or Goddess do I most express? What is my unique, individual creative self expression?”

Magic happens in our life when three things are in exact alignment. One, it is the right timing. Two, we have our tools together. Three, our desire is in alignment with what the original life dreams are, or is legitimately part of our script. If those three things are together, life is magical. If any one of those three things is not in place, then at best we must be patient, while expanding our self awareness.

The Turning of the Ages

Collective humanity is at the end and beginning of entire 26,000 year cycle. The exact alignment is happening in May 1998 when the winter solstice point aligns with the intersection point of the Milky Way Galaxy and the ecliptic. At the end of a cycle, everything speeds up and is recapitulated. A 26,000 year time track is reaching its conclusion. The origination point is nearly 26,000 years in the past. This means all of the dreams and visions each of us has had on our personal time track are reaching completion. The dreams we have dreamed are now to be fulfilled. That’s why it is so important to be in touch with what the original life dreams are. We are also dreaming the dream onward into the next cycle. Conscious (and unconscious) dreaming, at this time, is seeding the next 26,000 years.

How You Can Consciously Participate

One way is to know your script, and your timings. Because we are at the end of a 26,000 year cycle most of the principles of traditional astrology, either do not work, or are irrelevant. They represent, or speak of, issues that are not of any particular use to people at this time. In the midst of this speeded up phenomenon we need tools to tune in, as fast as possible, to the original life purpose issues. Equally important is using the astrological timings with as much awareness as possible, so we are consciously co-creating with the intelligence of the universe.

This version of astrology works best as dialogue. The more you can share and bring to the session the more depth that comes from it, and the more insight you will get. The exactness and precision of this process operates directly from the amount of feedback that takes place. It is the soul to soul encounter, it is not an abstraction, or something that can be done on a computer.

Through the soul to soul encounter, the Gods and Goddesses, and symbols and myths, come alive. They are cellularly and consciously enlivened, and this assists us on our journey. This is a journey of discovery. How do the archetypes and symbols express through you? Myths and stories tell us how the archetypes and symbols expressed in the past. Now they are evolving and seeking new expression through each of us. We are the living, evolving archetypes and myths. This process allows us to participate with greater understanding and awareness, so what we are co-creating is magical and in alignment with our greatest good.

by Daniel Giamario, edited by Cayelin K Castell

Author’s note: The original form of this article appeared in the second edition of my book, The Shamanic Astrology Handbook, co-authored by Carolyn Brent (now known as Cayelin K Castell) and published by JCA Unlimited in 1995*. The essence of this information, developed in the late 1980s, has been a regular part of my classes and workshops for years. For me, the original spark igniting this investigation came from a wonderful essay written by Robert Hand in Essays On Astrology (also similar information is mentioned in some of his tape sets) concerning the movement of the solstice and equinox points into new constellations. Hand’s essay was inspired by C. G. Jung’s treatment of the same subject in his book, The Aeon.

Over the years, my experiential and ceremonial work with the night sky, as well as the process of teaching the night sky to others, crystallized the workability of these ideas. In those days, nearly a decade ago, very few in the astrological community were interested in this material. The only other person I knew of, who was aware of the solstice galactic alignment, was constellational astrologer Raymond Mardyks, whose fine work can be accessed as an example of other directions this same data can lead.

In the late 1980’s, I began corresponding with European master astronomer Jean Meuss, via a recommendation from astronomer-publisher Guy Ottewell, concerning the precisely calculated dates of entry, into different constellations, of the solstices and equinox coordinates. I sent a communication to Meuss in 1991 asking him to calculate the exact date of the winter (December) solstice alignment with the intersection of the galactic plane and the plane of the solar system. His response was May, 1998. I have been sharing this date in my talks and workshops ever since. Jean Meuss references the May, 1998 date in his recently published book Mathematical Astronomy Morsels.

Within the last few years, spontaneously and intuitively, many people, from many different backgrounds, have become aware of this larger context calendric frame of reference. I suspect this awareness and understanding has occurred at other times in history, then was forgotten for a time and remembered again. In any case, these insights are not necessarily original or new. I’ve recently seen flyers from different organizers, of mainly ceremonial and shamanic events, referencing the upcoming alignments. These events are occurring in various places ranging from the British Isles, Mt Shasta, the Yucatan, and others. Lately, more and more astrologers are showing interest in these events, and this article is responding to that interest. What is offered here is not dogma, or copyrighted material, but rather is intended to inspire speculation and imagination. The clues are all in the sky. All we need do is look and be open.

Nearing the end of this millennium there is much speculation about the so-called “end times.” Catastrophes, apocalypses, various end points of cultural calendars, as well as world renewal and oncoming Golden Ages are common themes. In an astrological context this is often referred to as the beginning of the Aquarian Age.

Within this century, literally scores of scenarios have developed claiming conclusive dating for the beginning of the Aquarian Age.(*2) The question of when the Aquarian Age actually begins is a highly interesting field of inquiry, and worthy of several entire books. However, I prefer to investigate a larger context, which can answer questions and raise issues that renders the timing of the “Aquarian Age” moot. I believe shamanic methodology demonstrates that humanity is exactly at the end and beginning of an entire 26,000 year cycle (with 1997-1998 as the center point).

The longest cycle in the natural world that can be apprehended by the human senses, in a single lifetime, is the 26,000 year cycle marked by the precession of the equinoxes and solstices.(*3) This phenomenon is caused by the interaction of the twenty-three-and-a-half degree tilt of the Earth’s axis (creating the seasons) and the wobble of the Earth’s axis (causing entirely different stars to mark “North” over the 26,000 year cycle, among other things). The interaction of the tilt and wobble of the Earth’s axis causes the solstice and equinox points to move backwards or precess one degree every seventy-two years through the zodiac.

There is a huge amount of available literature concerning the so-called astrological ages, their connection synchronistically to history, and their remarkable relationship to esoteric and occult mystery schools. Personally, I consider that the western scientific view (also held by some astrologers) contending that the precession of the equinoxes and solstices was unknown before Hipparchus is pretentious and oblivious to the obvious. It is on par with the belief that no culture, prior to the age of western science, had any awareness of the eighteen to nineteen year Lunar Standstill Cycles. Within the last ten years, scores of astro-archetypelogical sites have been shown to have as their basis the extremes of the Moon’s orbit.(*4) Yet, even if no one knew about the precession of the equinoxes and solstices prior to 300 BC, it still serves as a valid basis for the investigation at hand, which is a shamanic investigation of The Turning Of The Ages.

There are generally two eclipse seasons each year, about six months apart. These always contain at least two eclipses, Solar and Lunar, and occasionally three, as I discussed in the July, 2009 Eclipse article . This current season includes the Lunar Eclipse of December 31, 2009 followed by the highly unusual annular Solar Eclipse of January.14/15, 2010. The astronomical midpoint of this season is January 11, when the Sun and North Node exactly align at 21Cap07. This time frame includes a number of unique and unusual elements worth pondering:

1) A Penumbral Lunar Eclipse at 10Cancer15 on December 31, 2009 at the center of the hoop of stars surrounding the Galactic Edge, the place of Soul entry and star creation.

2) Earth at Perihelion, closest to Sun, on January 3rd

3) Sun conjunct Mercury, on January 4th, the interior conjunction on the inside track between the Sun and Earth at 14Capricorn.

4) On January 3rd and 4th the Sun is conjunct the stars of the Archer, including Nunki, the vane of the arrow, and Ascella and Manubrium, from where the arrow is released into the Galactic Center. We have previously examined the Jupiter transit to this area in 2008 presaging the collapse of the economic system.

5) On January 11th, Venus is conjunct the Sun (with the North Node), but as the exterior conjunction on the other side of the Sun in her underworld phase.

6) From Jauary 13-15th , the Moon travels through Capricorn, over the Nunki region, approaching the New Moon/Solar Eclipse.

7) January14/15 Annular Solar Eclipse at 11:11am PST (on January 14) at 25Capricorn0n

This is North Node Eclipse conjunct Sun future-oriented Super New Moon.

It’s the LONGEST Annular (meaning ‘ring’) Solar Eclipse until 3043, lasting 11 minute and 8 seconds! The extreme length is due to the Moon being its near extreme apogee (farthest distance from Earth). Therefore, whilst the Sun/Moon syzygy is completely precise, with the Moon so far away, only 92% of the Sun is covered, creating a huge ring of fire around the Moon.

The path of the eclipse begins in Africa, touching down first in the Central African Republic, then through the Congo, Uganda, and Kenya, across the Indian Ocean over the Maldives, then across the Southern tip of India, Northern Sri Lanka, over Mandalay in Burma, and then across China. Amazingly, this was a part of China that was under the 2009 Total Solar Eclipse.

Take note of these parts of the world as the path of the eclipse often accents, like a paintbrush, the physical area of Earth that it crosses, maybe a year or year and a half on either side of the Eclipse date.

8)  The powerful intentionality applied to ceremonial awareness for the first New Moon of the Year is exponentially amplified by the North Node alignment and the precision and uniqueness of this eclipse.

Including:

All the mythic implications of the presaging alignments around Nunki and the release of the old and obsolete into the Galactic Center via the arrow of the Archer.

Then add the additional transmissions available from Venus in the Galactic Underworld on the other side of the Sun, together with Mercury on the inside track emerging as Morning Star in its new 120 day synodic cycle, emphasizing, of course, the sign of Capricorn.

Putting all this together reveals a theme suggesting the continuing revision of the Capricorn Mystery School now at the apex of the Turning of the Ages.

This includes further phasing out of the dominator, patriarchal, and theocratic versions off the social, economic and political structures of global humanity. The slow emergence of a new operating manual presided over by a circle of grandmothers genuinely respected and empowered for taking responsibility for the Earth and for the benefit of the 7 Generations to follow and beyond.

9) Finally, as the first event following the Super New Moon, just after the first visible crescent in the evening sky, on January 17th Jupiter moves into Pisces. Pisces then symbolizes the primary evolutionary enlightenment theme for 2010 expressing as transpersonal and heartfelt empathetic compassion for all life, a new Boddhisatvic ideal for humanity.

ClOSING NOTE: Ceremony with Solar and Lunar eclipses is not to be taken lightly. There are reasons why shadow and difficult events have been historically associated with eclipses. Strong intent and the support of a harmonious circle is suggested. It’s also prudent to employ underworld/Pluto navigation strategy through conscious intent and without fear of invoking any worst case scenarios. For example embracing the thought: ‘What is the worst that could happen”…and then, As Ram Dass has suggested, to invite those fears ‘to tea”.

Near Tucson, Arizona

Advanced Chart Analysis Training with Daniel Giamario and Cayelin K. Castell

The primary emphasis for this training focuses on chart analysis and counseling techniques.
We will explore the following areas:

• Deepening skills in Chart Analysis
• Questions on Chart Analysis
• We will spend time in groups reading charts

Early Registration if paid by: February 15, 2010

• $525.00 for S AMS Members
• $595.00 for non-members

Reg

istration after is:

• $595 For SAMS Members
• $650 for non-members

SAMS Membership Registration Information, plus there are a limited number of Sliding Scale fees available. Contact Daniel for details

Requirements for Advanced Shamanic Astrology Intensive:

• Basic Understanding of Shamanic Astrology, Charts, Shamanic Timeline, Synodic Cycles
• Attend at least one basic Chart Analysis Intensive
• Or Purchase and listen to a recent Chart Analysis Intensive on audio cassette
• Or Tutoring with Daniel, Cayelin, or another Certified Shamanic Astrologer

Registration:

There are two ways to register. You can mail a check or go through PayPal. (PayPal info below)

Paying by Check:

Make out the registration check made payable to SAMS Events and send to:

Cayelin K Castell
1725 S Jones BLVD. # H-11
Tucson, AZ 85713
Phone: 520-744-6923

Paying by PayPal:

If you are using PayPal the processing fee PayPal charges us for using their service has been included. Also be sure to send an email with your name, address, phone number, email address, and birth data (date time and place) for the person registering. Note: the course fee is non-refundable but can be transferred to another event minus a $30 processing fee. Space is limited so be sure to register early.

Advanced Chart Analysis

Members Early Registration $542.00 Non-Members Early Registration $617.00 Members Late Registration $592.00 Non-Members Late Registration $670.00

Where: At Gael Chilson’s Home near Tucson, Arizona
Gael can be reached at 520-625-5762.

When: Highly recommended but not required is to plan to arrive a day early and stay an extra day after the event to enjoy and integrate your Shamanic Astrology experience.

Food and Lodging Details

Plan to arrive in time to gather at 7 pm for our opening circle. The course will end by 1 pm on the last day. Be sure to allow enough time for a leisurely departure. The Tucson airport is about 30 minutes away and the Phoenix airport is about 2 ½ hours if there are no traffic delays.

If you have housing questions Gael can be reached at 520-625-5762.

Cayelin can be reached at 520-744-6923 or email for questions or to register.

Collapsing Cultural Cornerstones:

The Imperative to Change

Saturn in Libra, Pluto in Capricorn:

New Rules for Partnership In the 21st Century

by Sao

Part 1

The Four Cornerstones of Our Lives:

(1)    Aries: one’s personal identity (who we consider ourselves to be and who we are becoming)

(2)    Cancer: home-family-roots

(3)    Libra: partnerships and relationships (of all kinds)

(4)    Capricorn: the man-made rules that govern our lives (for better or for worse) and the people who make them; also career, contributions to community, honors and reward for a job well done.  (NOTE:  For most of humanity’s sojourn on Earth, the rules have been “man”-made, i.e., made by men.  Absolutely as soon as possible, these rules must become human-made, created by man and woman, absolutely asap.)

These four cornerstones hold in place the very foundation of our world and our lives, and the strength or weakness of that foundation determines our ability to engage the other eight archetypes or arenas in a way that generates a sense of fulfillment.  The nearly three-year transit of Saturn through Libra and the sixteen-year transit of Pluto through Capricorn signal a seismic shift occurring in two of these cornerstones, Libra and Capricorn (and by reflex, Libra’s polar opposite, Aries, and Capricorn’s polar opposite, Cancer).

Saturn and Pluto reach an exact square three times. The first occurred on Nov. 16, 2009, the second will occur on Feb. 1, 2010 with Saturn retrograde, and the third on Aug. 21, 2010 with Pluto retrograde. During these transits we’re challenged to accept and participate in major transformation of all four cornerstones, Libra-Aries and Capricorn-Cancer, but the real potency of this energy is anchored on the Libra and Capricorn angles of that cross.

Many astrologers make the judgment that a square (90-degree) aspect is “bad” because of the tremendous tension between the planets involved.  The reality is that this is the tension that produces growth.  Saturn and Pluto are two very intense, very insistent energies even when they make no aspect to another planet, so when they are in square aspect to one another the tension becomes extreme, unavoidable and undeniable and will eventually reach a point where something (or someone) has to give (surrender and change).  The energy of this transit is immediate and powerful, growing daily in momentum and intensity, affecting all of humanity at every level — personal, national and international, corporate-governmental-political, economic, religious, and social.

In the song “Closing Time”, the great songwriter Leonard Cohen speaks of something that he says “looks like freedom but it feels like death, it’s something in between I guess”. That sentiment applies to this transit.  It’s clear that major changes are occurring in these two arenas, Libra (relationships/partnerships) and Capricorn (the rules that govern our everyday lives, including our relationships/partnerships), so for many people the quest and the question regarding these two is, are we being set free, are we dying, or something in between.  Pluto does The Dance of Life And Death – someone or something is born, then it dies, then it’s born again, then it dies again.  Everyone and everything does this.  People are born then we die, leaves on trees are born then they die, animals are born and then they die.  The days of the week, the minutes of each day, stars and whole galaxies are born and then they die.  In this very moment, as you read this you are simultaneously living and dying.  The moment we’re born and enter the Earth plane we begin living and dying and we continue to live and die all day long every day until our sojourn on Earth is done.  That’s Pluto.  For us the issue is not fear of Death, the issue is our fear of the feelings associated with Death.  Pluto is those deep feelings and emotions, the very deepest feelings and emotions that humans experience, that’s Pluto.

Saturn is the law-giver, the rule-maker, the human-made rules that govern everything we do, from how we drive cars to how we educate ourselves to how we eat to how we shop to how we participate in relationships and partnerships.  So this Saturn-Pluto square is powerfully and dramatically impacting the rules that govern our relationships and partnerships, all of our relationships, not just intimate ones.

In this writing, let’s take a closer look at Saturn in Libra, the rules that govern our relationships/partnerships, whether for better or for worse.  In subsequent newsletters we’ll zoom in tighter on Pluto’s role, the transformation (death and rebirth) of those Saturnian rules and the dynamic of the square between the two planets, the tension that is forcing us to change and grow – to die and be reborn in these two arenas.

LIBRA
It’s possible that Libra is the most overlooked, underestimated, undervalued, and devalued of the twelve signs or archetypes.  Libra (and the seventh house) is more than just “relationship”, it is the human potential and possibility for True and Real Partnership — not just relationship.  The sooner we engage, explore, understand and create true and real partnership, not just any ol’ sloppy relationship, the sooner we succeed in this human experiment.  The longer it takes us to do that, the more we risk catastrophic failure.  Libra is a very, very important key; it could be the key to the whole experiment.

One primary factor leading to a more evolved expression of Libra is to realize the need for discernment, to begin to discern, to critique our relationships to see whether the potential exists to develop the relationship into a true and real partnership, or whether the interaction is intended to remain a relationship.  At this stage of our evolution, a true and real partnership is a rare experience, for most of us it might happen only once or twice in  our lives, or we might not experience it at all.  True and Real Partnership requires and even insists that the interaction be completely just, utterly fair and balanced, harmonious, equal measures of give-and-take, a fifty-fifty proposition.  One person is a “part”, and the other person is a “part”, and the two come together as equal parts, equal part-ners in a true and real partnership.  On the other hand, a relationship can be anything, can fall anywhere on the map.  It can be wondrous and exhilarating or it can be treacherous, devastating and completely disastrous.  It can be all give and no get, all get and no give, all out of balance.

We’re not very good at true and real partnership.  Now, the good news is that we’re not supposed to be, not yet.  We’re in the process of awakening the Libra part of our Selves so that we come to the realization (soon!) of the power and importance of true and real partnership and how to create it.

There are a number of factors that make this process mildly to overwhelmingly difficult.  The number one problem is that we live in a culture that actually discourages true and real partnership!  What do I mean?  In every culture and society there are laws (Saturn), both written and unwritten, that govern and regulate the way the people live, including the way we participate in and conduct ourselves in relationships.  Those laws/rules either limit or expand our ability to do this.  In the U.S. we’re told that these laws are to be found in the spirit and the letter of documents like The Constitution of the United States, the Declaration of Independence, the U.S. Bill of Rights, etc.  For the most part, these documents are expressions of high and worthy ideals, however they are not the laws we live by; it might be good if they were, but they’re not.  The fact is most of the 300 million people in America have never read a single word, not one word, of any these writings.  Have you read them?   Then how could these be the laws we live by if hardly anyone even knows what they say (and this could include many members of the U.S. Congress – the lawmakers).

So then, what laws do we live by?  There are four, and they’re gritty, grisly, growly laws that govern both our personal and impersonal lives.  They are:

(1) “Every man for himself!” (women don’t even get a mention)” and,

(2) “It’s a dog-eat-dog world!” (everybody devour somebody) and,

(3) “I got mine, you get yours!” (see what I mean about actually discouraging true and real partnership?) and,

(4) “It’s the survival of the fittest!” (if one “makes it”, and the other doesn’t – oh well, too bad)

The reality is that this nation is not propelled by “laws” at all.  America slogs along on the backs of  “slogans”; the four slogans listed above are the pistons that pump the engine that runs this nation.  They actually discourage True and Real Partnership, yet they strongly encourage sloppy, shoddy, any ol’ kind of relationship based primarily on what one person stands to gain from, not give to, another, or vice versa.  Saturn says, “C’mon, get real here!  Grow up!”  If and when we muster the courage to get real about how we participate in and conduct ourselves in relationships, as the great Bob Dylan said, “It’s easy to see without looking too far that not much is really sacred.”

Now, obviously not all Americans consciously, deliberately, and intentionally enter into and participate in relationships with this discouraging intent in mind.  What happens is that cowboy capitalism (aka raw and rampant greed, competition, covetousness and self-ishness) is an extremely powerful subconscious, undercurrent, involuntary urge and motivation that influences, in varying degrees, almost every relationship in America – business, family, intimate, et. al. (again, Libra is all relationships, not just intimate ones).

A second key factor is this:  Many, if not most people never even think about true and real partnership.  For most Americans, we learn to spell the word “partnership” in the fifth grade or so, then we forget about it, it simply vanishes from our consciousness and is not thought of or discussed ever again.  When was the last time you heard someone even say the word “partnership” (much less true and real partnership)?  When was the last time you said it.  In spelling class in the fifth grade?  We speak of “relationships” often, you might hear that word several times a month, or more, but almost never “partnership”.

Living under the influence of these four slogans, blind to the power and importance of true and real partnership, we wander around dazed and confused about ourselves and one another, in and out of sloppy, shoddy relationships and we never grow up.  Instead we grow old with little to no idea of the Libra reality.

As Saturn moves through what astrologer Steven Forrest calls our inner sky for the next three years in Libra, we’re feeling (Pluto) the pressure to awaken to and Trust the Truth:  that true and real partners and partnerships are an absolutely indispensable key to our sustenance and success as humans, that it is not possible to succeed in our human experiment without this Libra part of ourselves being activated, experienced, understood and integrated into our being, our lives, our world.  Our current plight on Earth provides the clear evidence that this is so, and this Saturn transit is the time to take a hard, brutally honest look at the paradigm of relationship we’ve created, allow it to die and be reborn as something new and better.

The Universe is powerfully supporting all of the effort we put forth in this direction.

Almost every day in every reading I’ve done since this square has been active, I see people stretched to the breaking point as a result of this tension between the old and new ways of doing relationships.  The traditional way of doing relationships is feeling (Pluto) more and more unhealthy and unfulfilling, and increasingly people either want out or they want to find a new way to stay in the relationship.  The question is this:  Who will breakthrough to new horizons and who will breakdown?  It’s a choice each of us must make for ourselves.  The new way requires a willingness to investigate new rules and generate a major shift in our understanding.  This is a big change, not a small one.

As these cornerstones quake and rumble and crumble, our challenge is to shift relationships into the Universal Spirit and the Cosmic Law of Aquarius – “One for All, All for One” – true and real partnership.  Try saying that softly and slowly – “One for all, all for one”, and notice the difference between that and the four grisly, death-oriented slogans mentioned above; how much sweeter, how much more pleasant and pleasing, comforting and confirming that is.  We have to find our way along the path that leads us to “One for all, all for one.”  Cooperation trumps competition.  That’s our challenge.

Usually Saturn gets a really bad rap because in Saturn cycles we’re asked to grow up, not grow old, but grow up, and we’re in a culture that is allergic to growing up, to maturing, to being wise (evidenced by the billions of dollars spent every year on cosmetic surgery in order to appear young).  Saturn asks us to step up to the next level of maturity (whatever that step is in any given cycle of our lives) and accept the new responsibilities associated with the new level of maturity.  In the case of Saturn transiting through Libra, the challenge is to accept that to a great degree we have been and still are more than a little immature in the way we initiate, engage, behave and participate in relationships.  It’s time to grow up.

But Saturn is foundations, skeletons, the bare bones of a structure, as in the bones in our bodies, the structure on which all the rest of the body is built and depends.  So our charge over the next three years is not to build the whole new paradigm for true and real partnership, but rather lay the foundation, the skeleton, the new rules for the new paradigm.  After that we’ll have about a quarter of a century to add flesh to that foundational structure.  We have time, yet no time to waste.  Time does not wait.  Ready or not this has already begun.

As Martin Luther King said, “Either we live together as brothers (and sisters), or perish together as fools.”

It can be difficult to imagine the degree to which Life on Earth, and especially in America, will transform over the next fourteen years and beyond.  These are times of radical and prolonged change, changes that have their origin in the depths of the Cosmos.  True and Real Partnership is a fundamental key to A New Way of Being on Earth.  We’ve only just begun.

Expect the Unexpected and Trust Truth.

Coming soon: Part 2: Pluto in Capricorn: Carrying our collective denial to the mountaintop to surrender it to Love so that the new rules for relationships and partnerships are based in how we really feel (Pluto).