Welcome to the April 2021 Wesak edition of our Cosmic Weather Forecast from your editors Curtis Lang and Jane Sherry.
Jane Weeding at Bethabara Gardens, Winston Salem, NC
This week, for the first time since we moved to North Carolina last year at the onset of the pandemic, Jane and I have our fingers in the soil, preparing Jane's new garden plot for seeding next week.
Through a series of synchronistic events, Jane was gifted with a plot of land in Bethabara Garden, America's oldest community garden, established in the 1750s.
Jane at Bethabara Moravian Church
Bethabara is 183 acres on the site of the first European settlement in the Winston Salem area, a Moravian community. Bethabara features numerous buildings dating from the 1700s, and a stockade fort, visible in the upper left of the photo above.
Jane plans on starting her new garden with pole beans, potatoes, and a variety of culinary and medicinal herbs. The clay soil appears to be fertile, with plenty of worms and no evidence of pernicious weedy invaders.
Bethabara Gardens, Spring 2021
We have already harvested gigantic wild nettles we found in the woods about 30 yards from Jane's garden plot. Fresh nettles tea is the ideal antidote to sinus allergies. We are grateful for this herbal gift from Mother Earth because here in this small city of gardens and trees, our car is already covered in green spring pollen, and allergies are running rampant.
It feels so good to be outdoors, among fellow gardeners, who are nearby but not too close, so we don't really need a mask.
For us, gardening is an art, a science and a meditation practice. As we prepare to celebrate Wesak, the Feast of Buddha's birthday, our return to gardening has helped both of us to empty our minds of unnecessary chatter and focus with mindfulness on the web of life that sustains our work in Jane's new garden.
Wesak Festival 2021
Next Monday, April 26 at 11:31 pm Eastern Time, we celebrate the Festival of Wesak, commemorating the birth, enlightenment and death of Taurean Gautama Buddha, at the time of the Taurus Solar Festival and the Scorpio Full Moon.
In the East, Wesak is a yearly Festival commemorating the birth of Gautama Buddha, his spiritual enlightenment, and his transcendent journey beyond the manifested universe.
In the West we also celebrate Buddha's Birthday, Wesak, every year on the day of the Scorpio Full Moon, Taurus Solar Festival.
For Westerners in general, and Theosophists in particular, the Festival of Wesak is a Global Celebration of the work being done by the Ascended Master Teachers in Spiritual Worlds and by the New Group of World Servers, often known as Lightworkers, in the physical realm on planet Earth. The festival is intended to celebrate the Unity of Eastern and Western mystery schools, especially Buddhism and esoteric Christianity.
High in the Himalayas, in the general area of Tibet, there lies a remote valley, all but circumscribed by lofty mountain ranges.
Beginning on the third day prior to the Wesak Full Moon in Scorpio, a slow but steady stream of adepts, high lamas, magi, monks, priests, nuns, high priestesses, clairvoyants, spiritual teachers, and yogis begin to travel through a small funnel shaped opening in the mountains, to the northeast of the valley, and to set up camp on the valley’s plains. . .
For more on the Wesak story, read our article entitled Wesak: Buddha's Birthday & the Shamballa Gathering.
You'll find instructions in the Wesak article for participating in the global Wesak meditation at the time of the Full Moon. We'll see you in the ethers!
Scorpio Full SuperMoon, Taurus Solar Festival Cosmic Weather Forecast
The normally intense Scorpio Full Moon will be fierce this year. This is a Super Moon. The Full Super Moon occurs with the moon at or near its perigee, the point in the Moon's orbit when it is closest to the Earth.
Moon by Amitrakshar
Amitrakshar, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
On the macrocosmic level, the Super Moon magnifies the lunar effect on the tides, and could trigger flooding in low lying areas. On the microcosmic level, this intense Super Moon will stir up repressed emotions surfacing for expression.
In addition, a long term, difficult planetary aspect signals us to prepare for unexpected electrifying shocks and surprises the last week of April.
Uranus in Taurus, the planet of sudden inner illumination and abrupt social and environmental shocks, is exactly conjunct the Sun April 30, amplifying the disruptive potential of this Full Moon week.
Constellation of Taurus, Johannes Hevelius, from Uranographia, 1690.
On top of all that, the Sun at 7° 6’ Taurus and the Full Moon at 7° 6’ Scorpio are both square Saturn in Aquarius, creating a tense T Square in Fixed signs.
Saturn in Aquarius indicates frustrating social limitations and awareness in the collective consciousness of seemingly insurmountable obstacles, so this Full Moon week could surface shocking new political, economic or environmental developments that impede our Taurean ability to enjoy our lives during the expansive spring season of new growth and plunge us into the depths of some Scorpionic death or near-death trip.
Pluto in Capricorn, one of the signature planetary placements of the 2020 Covid pandemic, turns retrograde at the same time, so the collective sense of impending doom and gloom is heightened by a growing awareness that we have not yet succeeded in overcoming the social and economic limitations imposed in response to the pandemic.
Political conflicts could escalate suddenly in the US and around the world. Extreme weather events could manifest and a renewed awareness of simmering environmental challenges could arise.
This challenging Cosmic energy signature during the last week of April could indicate sudden reversals of fortune, so watch out for spiking volatility in financial markets.
Over the last month or two numerous financial analysts have compared today's spiking bull market in equities to the 1999-2000 peak of the dot com bubble. Forbes, CNN, CNBC, Politico, Yahoo Finance, and many more financial commentators have published articles comparing today's frothy markets with the run up to the dot com collapse.
Between 1995 and its peak in March 2000, the Nasdaq index of tech stocks rose 400%, only to fall 78% from its peak by October 2002, giving up all its bubblicious gains and triggering a recession that devastated the tech sector.
Financial astrologers point out that stellar aspects experienced during the dot com collapse of 2001 resonate with the astrology of 2021.
In May 2000 Jupiter and Saturn were in Taurus, creating a waxing square between those two planets and Uranus in Aquarius, which perfected from July 1999 - May 2000.
NASDAQ Composite index from 1994 to 2005, showing the stunning peak in early 2000 that coincides with the dot-com bust.
This work has been released into the public domain by its author, Lalala666 at English Wikipedia. This applies worldwide.
This year we have similar aspects but inverted signs. Jupiter and Saturn entered Aquarius on December 21, 2020, in a waning square to Uranus in Taurus. The square between Saturn and Uranus will last through December 2021.
Financial astrologers are concerned that between now and the first two quarters of 2022 financial markets are once again ripe for collapse.
In 1999 and 2000 some astrologers and financial analysts predicted the bursting of the dot com bubble, but no one predicted the 9/11 terror attack on the World Trade Center, which occurred a few months after the dot com bubble burst.
When Uranus is highlighted, expect the unexpected in every area of life. This is not the time to put your investments on auto-pilot. We can't necessarily expect the status quo to persist for long in any area of life.
Mars from Earth
Credit: Jim Bell (Cornell) et al., Hubble Heritage Team (AURA/STScI/NASA)
Hubble snapped the highest resolution picture of Mars ever obtained from the Earth. Visible on Mars are ice caps over the poles in white, regions covered with sand and gravel in dark brown and orange, and large dust storms in light orange.
Fortunately, this Scorpio Full Super Moon is trine Mars in Cancer, providing abundant energy for processing the meaning of the difficult social situations that are challenging our financial and political structures and institutions.
Even more important, Mars in Cancer trine Moon in Scorpio combine to put us in touch with our innermost unexpressed dreams, ambitions and goals, and this planetary combination provides the inspiration and energy required to express and pursue our most heartfelt desires.
Once we have navigated the turbulence of the Scorpio Full Super Moon, the rest of the month of the Bull ushers in one of the more positive astrological influences of 2021.
Tumultuous Clouds of Jupiter
Image Credit & License: NASA/JPL-Caltech/SwRI/MSSS;
Processing: Kevin M. Gill
On May 13, Jupiter enters Pisces until July 28th, when the planetary Guru retrogrades into Aquarius until right after Christmas. Jupiter returns to Pisces December 28 and remains there until May 10, 2022, when it enters Aries for a short stay. Finally, Jupiter returns to Pisces on October 28, 2022, until its final exit into Aries on December 20, 2022.
Jupiter in Pisces radiates the energy of the Second Ray of Love and Wisdom, with a strong emphasis on Love. Jupiter is the Guru planet and Pisces is the sign of the World Savior. Expect to feel an increased flow of warmth, grace and ease in your relationships and your activities while Jupiter resides in Pisces.
Jupiter was the original ruler of Pisces, and the planet of expansive thoughts, words and deeds finds placement in Pisces most congenial.
Brihaspati, God of Wisdom, Guru to the Gods, Planet Jupiter
Jupiter's energy supports the expansion of consciousness through the process of fusion. Jupiter is the celestial alchemist, harmonizing the dualities of mind and body, personality and Higher Self, head and heart, love and rationalism to produce the Second Ray energy signature of Loving Wisdom.
The Second Ray of Loving Wisdom is focused through Jupiter, which acts as a capacitor and a conduit, making this powerful Second Ray creative energy available to human beings in a manner that they can absorb and digest. The Second Ray facilitates the manifestation of the Divine Plan in our Universe in this way.
Jupiter in Pisces is often associated with an influx of Grace and Guidance made available to all open, aware and receptive souls, so we can expect to experience enhanced support for all spiritual practices designed to promote the fusion of Higher Self with the human personality.
Jupiter radiates more energy than it receives from the Sun. Jupiter's nature is selfless service. The gas giant's planetary consciousness is defined by this ability to perform as a mini-star, flooding its planetary neighborhood with cosmic heat.
Lightworkers, meditators, spiritual aspirants and spiritual activists will experience a strong pull to be of service to humanity while Jupiter transits Pisces, since Jupiter is the dispenser of loving wisdom and Pisces is the sign of the World Savior, who has achieved the Jupiterian fusion of personality and Higher Self.
Those who are sensitive to the Jupiterian promptings of Higher Self, Guides and Teachers may be prompted to take direct action to alleviate suffering in their families, their neighborhoods and around the world during this time, for that is the task of the awakened Piscean human being, the World Savior.
Divided Self Made Whole, Magic Lantern Drawing by Jane Sherry
All quintessential Piscean activities will be turbo-charged during the transit of Jupiter in Pisces.
Artists and musicians will find new inspiration during this period and their creations will inspire people around the world.
Old fashioned romance could make a comeback in the collective consciousness, on Netflix and in our lives.
Our individual and collective histories will provide us with insights that promote healing, reconciliation, and co-operation during this Jupiter in Pisces interval.
Healers, meditators, disciples, spiritual aspirants, and Lightworkers will find renewed support for personal and group work. The collective consciousness will develop a heightened aspiration to achieve more lofty spiritual goals.
Birdwoman page from a one-of-a-kind artist book by Jane Sherry
Jane and I affirm that all of us now experience an increased flow of ease and grace during this Scorpio Full Super Moon and Wesak Festival of Enlightenment. We send you Love and Light!
This Wesak let's all gather in meditation, visualizing the congregation of Ascended Master Guides and Teachers and spiritual seekers in Shamballa and celebrate this ongoing crisis of human civilization as a golden opportunity to reflect upon our interdependence.
We express our gratitude to all those around the world who contribute to our continued well-being, and to our Spiritual Guides and Teachers, incarnated and discarnate alike.
Meditation Moment: Earth Day 2021
Azaleas in Bloom, Reynolda Gardens, Winston Salem, North Carolina
Earth. Remember; there is one; an Earth,
beneath your feet, and all around. And sky.
Perhaps a pandemic has forced you
to go outside. Outside of your comfort zone, your
office tower, your once busy schedule and see there-
it is earth. Feel the earth beneath your feet.
Feel the wheeling stars overhead. See the stars
have fallen to the ground, a blanket of flowers.
For you.
Our earth, our only real home, offers comfort.
Comfort to the bored, the bereaved, the lost, those
without structure to their day, those too alone. Perhaps
you planted a garden, visited a forest, played in the leaves
last fall, when all looked bleak, and came, perhaps
to depend on the nurturing pace of the natural world.
For you.
Discover trees. They are a community, not singular beings.
Hear the birds sing. There are still birds, there are still
creatures in our web of life. Their stories will unfold;
Listen to the stories the animals tell you, know this-
there is wisdom and happiness there in those creatures
large or small, winged or four legged, plant or rock.
They are our community in our everyday world.
For you.
Remember the wisdom stories in the teachings
of the earth, in the non human beings; remember to
listen to the stories of Native peoples, those who came
before. Remember there is sentience in the animals-
silence and song, not just our human voice.
Not just the machine voice, nor the staccato of our repetitive
daily tasks. Remember and add joy into those tasks.
Remember to listen to the songs of mystery and Joy that
is Life on Planet Earth. And to give honor, to plant seeds.
For us all.
© Jane Sherry April 22, 2021
Jane on Giant Magnolia Tree, Winston Salem City Hall, Photo by Curtis Lang