MARCIA SACKS

The Full Moon is on Friday, March 18 at 2:17 a.m. CDT in 27° Virgo.  This is a time when we find ourselves drawn to the details in life. Sometimes it is breaking down a large volume of information into smaller chunks in order to more easily digest the material. Sometimes it is taking our big (and often overwhelming) projects and begin with the tiniest essential next step in order to get going.

Full Moon in Virgo can also bring a focus on health and nutrition. Neptune in Pisces opposing the Moon can make us over-idealistic, looking for some type of perfection in our food choices. Instead of radical changes, try to improve food decisions over time. To improve your food on a subtler level, consider adding a prayer, blessing or thought of gratitude before eating.

The Vernal Equinox is on Sunday, March 20 at 10:33 a.m. CDT with the Sun at 0° Aries. This can be considered the beginning of the astrological year. Affirm and visualize your highest goal for the year ahead. 

I was so sad to hear that astrologer Alan Oken recently passed from this earthly existence to the next. He was a light on the path of astrology through his writings and teachings. His books were part of my early studies back in the 1970s. He brought both the mystical and the practical into his talks and seminars. Here is an interview with Alan via The Astrology Podcast done in 2019.

The Full Moon and the Vernal Equinox both occur on March 20, 2019. The Equinox is at 4:58 pm CDT, as always with the Sun at 0° Aries. The Full Moon is at 8:42 pm CDT in 0° Libra.  Equinoxes represent balance and the sign Libra represents harmony. One thing to think about at this time is how you can bring more balance and harmony into your own life.
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With the Equinox and Full Moon giving emphasis to the Aries/Libra polarity here are some other things to think about. How you want to approach the next two weeks (the Full Moon time frame) or the next quarter of a year (the Equinox time frame)? Will you choose the forcefulness of Aries or the diplomacy of Libra? What works best for you - the independence of Aries or working together in partnerships like Libra?

With Mercury still retrograde, neither the decisiveness of Aries nor the Libran tendency to poll the opinions of others will have an advantage in the next few days. Important decisions that have legal implications should probably be put off until several days after Mercury goes direct on March 28.

So how has this Mercury retrograde period been for you? On March 5, the day of the Mercury retrograde we were already in the car on the expressway when we realized we left something critically important at home. We had to get to the next exit, retrograde our way back to our house on the local roads, retrieve what we needed, and then get back on the expressway.  That was so totally Mercury retro that we had to laugh even though it was a time-consuming inconvenience.

Goswami Kriyananda said "Karma is forgetfulness." So even though I knew that it was Mercury retrograde, and I knew we needed to stand still for a moment and think before we walked out the door, we still got caught up in that moment of rushing out.  The key point about knowing that an aspect occurred and a piece of karma triggered is that if you can rebalance right away, the piece of karma is over. Actually, laughing is a way of softening or neutralizing karma. If we'd beat ourselves up about the incident all day, we'd have been hanging onto a piece of karma that could have been over.

Here's a relevant Zen story "The Muddy Road" from the book Zen Flesh, Zen Bones by Paul Reps:

Tanzan and Ekido were once traveling together down a muddy road. A heavy rain was still falling. Coming around a bend, they met a lovely girl in a silk kimono and sash, unable to cross the intersection. 'Come on, girl,' said Tanzan at once. Lifting her in his arms, he carried her over the mud. Ekido did not speak again until that night when they reached a lodging temple. Then he no longer could restrain himself. 'We monks don't go near females.' He told Tanzan, especially not young and lovely ones. It is dangerous. Why did you do that?' 'I left the girl there,' said Tanzan. 'Are you still carrying her?'

Keep in mind that when Mercury goes direct on March 28 it's conjunct Neptune so extra 'forgetfulness' is possible for a day or two around the 28th. Do the best you can by communicating carefully and making lists of things to remember. If you have to 'retrograde' to fix a problem, just do it, then let it go. A few days on from March 28, projects and plans will begin to move forward again.

Online:

My article "Astrology, Yoga and Balance" is in the March/April issue of Yoga Chicago Magazine.
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Goswami Kriyananda's Professional Astrology Course is distance learning at your own pace.

In the Future:
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Saturday, March 23, 6:30 - 8 p.m.: Music Meditation with the Temple of Kriya Yoga Musicians at The Yoga Shop, 3830 N. Milwaukee Avenue, Chicago

Sunday, March 31: Astrologer Lynn Ewing is giving a workshop "Retrogrades - the Big Rewind - Karma, Reincarnation, Revisioning" at Life Force Arts Center in Chicago.