Taurus Full Moon - Shelter From Hurricane Sandy

Cape May Lighthouse 29th October, 2012

On the 29th October 2012 the Full Moon will be in the earthy sign of Taurus right opposite the dark watery power house Sun in Scorpio. Full Moons are a time of high tides and surging seas. This one co-incides with a massive Super Storm due to a convergence of extreme weather factors that may only occur once in a lifetime. Conservative estimates say that up to 60 million people in the Eastern USA will be effected. As the Moon begins to reach its full power America's Eastern seaboard states have been told to prepare and keep themselves safe from the predicted effects of the coming Hurricane Sandy or 'Frankenstorm' as it has been nicknamed. Power companies are expecting extended blackouts and power outages. In New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg has suggested that residents assemble a 'Go Bag' with water, a first-aid kit, a flashlight, medications, an extra set of house and car keys, and essential documents like birth certificates and passports, in the event they have to leave their homes in any further emergencies. New York is at a total standstill and is evacuating its citizens, with shops boarded up, the lights of Broadway turned off, flights cancelled and the complete transport systems shut down. The Stock Exchange has closed for the first time since 9/11 and the lower end of Manhatten, Battery Park, where people can take ferry rides to the Statue of LIberty and Ellis Island is in Zone A, the first part of New York likely to be hit by Frankenstorm and the area that has to become a ghost town for now.

New York Stock Exchange made safe with sandbags
The Scorpio/Taurus axis if related to finances and now America's financial hub
located in and around Manhatten is closed for business until the storm passes.

Hurricane Sandy has already left fatalities and a sorry state of damage in the Caribbean leaving 65 people dead across the region with Jamaica, Cuba being badly hit. Sadly already impoverished Haiti is still suffering with about 51 from the overall Caribbean death. America is quite rightly holding it breath but also preparing to hunker down, batten the hatches, grit the teeth and stoically do what is required and demanded until this monster storm passes. The next high tide for Cape May, New Jersey, for example, where the waves are already over 20 feet high, is expected to bring severe flooding for the area. 

Traditionally the Full Moon is associated with harvest time, generally a mellow time when we enjoy the riches from the earth, pick the fruits and bounty ripened as a result of the seeds sown at the time of the New Moon. For about 5 days we should have time to gauge whether our ideas and projects instigated or toyed within the New Moon time, a few weeks earlier, are worth developing or simply releasing. One of the Moon's great gifts is that she can direct and illuminates our pathway forward, if we pay attention to her. We should have some time to check over all of these things for the next few days but there is a lot of opposition to this Taurus Full Moon this time. It has not been left alone to calmly glide across the dark night sky. Many forces are agitating it, giving it no rest and all the signs are that this is a far more critical period. Whatever sort of harvest we expected, the fruits of our labours, plump and juicy or not, may just be simply blown away. 

The few days that lead up to the Full Moon are called the Gibbous period. This is a time to gather information and learn from it. Which is precisely what has been happening as Hurricane Sandy swirls over the Atlantic. This hurricane is 900 miles wide and marshalling its strength. For those of us under the storm, all the preparations will be critical.
The ‘Great Mirror In The Sky’ sometimes reflects an image we may find difficult to accept but avoiding the mirror will not make the reality go away. It is better to take a careful look at the picture revealed and make sure that we are as safe as we can be. (Mercury On The Road In The Shadowlands) 
The sensuous and pleasure loving Taurus Moon faces more than a stiff challenge from stern Saturn at the moment, who during its stay in Scorpio has already kicked off in a big way in all directions (Saturn in Scorpio - Snake Charmer Karma). Saturn the hard taskmaster is also opposing the Taurus Full Moon. In other words, Saturn in Scorpio will be staring the Moon straight in the face and allowing it little or no wiggle room at all. 
Who have we got working in ‘The Full Moon Taurus Task Force’, who are the active and key players, who can we count on and who can we learn from and who is just simply troublesome.

Saturn, generally like the role of senior accountant. Usually dressed in a traditional dark suit cut from an expensive cloth. Known for being dour and craggy, today he has a roguish glint in his eye as if he is holding a secret which only he knows and which seems to give him immense pleasure. He is the oldest in the company and is also it’s longest serving employee. He rose to the top slowly and diligently methodologically working his way up. He is now a loyal and valued member of the firm. He knows all the ‘nuts and bolts’ within the company and as such is usually called in when things have get too out of hand, or if the company has over-reached or is  over-stretched. Saturn is useful in order to reset the boundaries and to impose necessary limits. In some parts of the world, at this moment, the boundaries are very obviously very unclear. When Saturn enters the room everyone expects to hear the dreaded words ‘austerity’, 'realistic', ‘restrict’, ‘necessary’ but maybe now we can listen to other warnings like 'careful' and 'safe'. Every one is slightly twitchy and trawling back through their minds to check whether it is they have really done their jobs well, taken on what they are responsible for or be called to account. This month the board meeting will only have a few key representatives, as always, present will be the Sun sitting directly opposite the Moon. This time the Sun is joined by Saturn also opposite Moon, Saturn sextile the enigmatic Pluto and the Moon will be trying to feel more comfortable by making a trine with the dark, mysterious Pluto.

Vice President Joe Biden _ Sun in Scorpio Moon in Taurus
 Senator from Delaware, one of the states with severe Hurricane Sandy warnings. 
Vice President Biden will step in for President Obama at scheduled Ohio rally with former
President Bill Clinton as President Obama returns to Washington to lead 
the preparations for the response to Hurricane Sandy.

The Sun is most obviously the C.E.O. and is also looking very mysterious in Scorpio colours. He entered the room sporting sunglasses even though the weather is very unpredictable and extremely overcast. This Boss appears to be quietly taking in the whole room, observing and noting the subtle undertones between all the other players around the table. He exudes a strong sense of power and control and has asked his security team to double checks everyones passes as they file into the building. Slightly distracting his attention is an attractive figure glimpsed quickly and surreptitiously behind the frosted glass of the next room. This is possibly Venus in Libra applying some last minute touches to her appearance and taking some last minute briefing calls before making her entrance. There is the slight possibility she may be called in if matters get out of hand or if Uranus and Pluto decide to renew their old conflicts. They both may just flash their tempers, making the whole situation highly volatile and unstable, although the exact timing of their threatening, firecracker ignition is always in the balance. The Sun, as always and not just in this crisis, at these monthly meetings has his attention firmly directed towards the Moon and is mirroring the lunar nodal power balance as well. (Axis of Power & Possessions - Scorpio/Taurus)

The Moon in Taurus normally caters for all of the companies employees as an all round supplier of needs and tends to work for the Buying Department. The Moon in Taurus is also known to change both mood and clothing style with alarming regularity and today is trying to be relatively calm, complacent and practical. In fact, Moon in Taurus would be quite content to pass around the latest batch of cakes with some wine to taste and probably promise to take Pluto, who she feels comfortable with, for a shoulder massage to ease his recent stresses and strains. However, this particular Full Moon meeting has been called by Saturn and it initially related to the Moon's recent behaviors in the purchasing department. Basically the Moon in Taurus has been overspending and overdoing. This Taurus Moon is the one in the firing line. Last month the Moon took up a position as The Peoples Representative (Aries Full Moon - Rebels With A Cause) and joined forces with Uranus in a all raging and revved up position ready to take action, in Aries prime position. Now though, it seems she has tried to settle down, the raging impetus for change may need to calm down and she may even have thought that this could be the time for some ‘R & R’. It should have been a time for some well deserved comfort and she felt like giving everyone a couple of days off and maybe buying in a whole new range of comfortable, ergonomic seating and more relaxing work arrangements. 

Benches Battery Park, New York 29th October, 2012

However, it would appear that Saturn had other ideas and may have assembled this task force to say 'great but enough is enough, time to get back to work'. 

At first the Taurus Full Moon may get a bit sulky, she is very stubborn at heart and resistant to change. Saturn points out that there are more pressing items on the 'to do list' and that we are all working on the steady metronomic beat of nature. Saturn sets the stopwatch as he dispatches the task force into making an emergency inventory because he knows that this may just be the 'calm before the storm'.  

Pluto in Capricorn, the Venture Capitalist, artfully conveying the overt art of power dressing, has been looking forward to enjoying his relaxing neck and shoulder massage arranged by Taurus Moon and so is a little more inclined to be on her side. He decides to give her a boost by firing up her sense of mission and reminds her of her burning ambitions. He leans over and whispers to her that she is really close to realising her dream of working in an organisation where everyone is well served and where everyone is ‘one big happy family’. The Venture Capitalist and Senior Accountant briefly glance at each and exchange a look. 
All these thoughts of comfort and leisure may work in the future but Saturn has emphasised that there is a more urgent, obvious and realistic agenda on the planning table right now. The U.S Presidential Elections are days away, on the 6th November 2012, and Hurricane Sandy has literally taken all the wind out of both the Democratic and Republican sails as they hastily readjust their campaign strategies. President Obama has returned to Washington to supervise the crisis and Mitt Romney has cancelled his plans for two days.

It is true, many people around the world will either unconsciously or wittingly pass through this week with little or no real noticeable change in their day to day routines. Their daily life rituals will ebb and flow as per usual and both inner and outer events,  could seamlessly blur into usual repetitive actions. However, a significant number of us will register the alterations acutely and will be affected by the shifting currents of change mirrored in the skies at the moment very personally. Some of us can capitalise from these changes, tack with the trade winds and surf on waning jet stream. Unfortunately some of us will need to prepare to avoid getting into much deeper water. 

Crew from a three mast tall replica ship HMS Bounty, built for the 1962 film 'Mutiny on the Bounty' have been rescued after being forced to abandon the ship off the east coast of America on the 29th October 2012. The ship has been used in many films including 'Pirates of the Caribbean' today the coastguards are still searching for two missing crew members very close to the eye of the storm.

HMS Bounty 28th October, 2012Hurricane Sandy creates waves now thought to have sunk the tall ship

Some of us can try to use this time of deepening focus to remind ourselves of just what we need to do. Some of us may get too sidetracked by worrying about too distant a future when it will be much more beneficial to stick with the immediate, here and now. If you feel things are too bad and too difficult to think of any good gains at this moment then allow yourself even that acknowledgement, as a gain. You are being honest and realistic with your situation and not trying not to glaze over your reality. Whilst things may appear more bleak at this time, look at how you have withstood and endured and that is your real triumph. Those of us who have something to celebrate can relax for a while and enjoy the moment but you also know that some hard work and sustained effort is due to follow.

Crane hanging from high-rise in New York 29th October, 2012
(from chris wade twitter)

This Full Moon is at 6 degrees of Taurus, sitting on the fixed star Hamel, on the horns of the Ram. So it still continues to draw on this ‘lets-get-to-it’ energy. Tapping into this energy can feed our own will power and light up our sense of independence but as Bernadette Brady warns in her book ‘Fixed Stars’ it 'can be expressed by temper or frustration and the inability to deal with authority figures’. Going against those in authority during this time will not be advisable given the temperatures indicated in the celestial weather forecasts. All in all heed advice, now is not the time to rail against authority. Keep safe is the message from this Full Moon.

NASA video of Hurricane Sandy

As the planets and stars gather for this Task Force we can see clearly that quite a few of them are already at odds with one another. In Astrology terms these positions are forming a 'cats cradle' of oppositions and in psychological terms they are highly inclined to be project onto one another. We have the Scorpio Sun opposing Taurus Moon. We have Saturn in Scorpio also opposing the Full Moon. Then we have the lovely Libra Venus opposition with unpredictable Uranus in Aries. Others are also involved in the fray causing some unrest but thankfully their positions are in a separating mode so their effects are not so acutely experienced.

What are our choices then? Shall we just focus on our immediate goals quietly, just keep on going, move ahead, take things slowly and surely? One thing, we can take our cue from the nature of the Taurus Moon, that will always find the time to savour a few good things. Taurus moon urges us to focus on simple, necessary, life sustaining actions. Get practical, use our hands, build, sustain, protect, all very Lunar Taurus in impulse. Saturn reminds us that we must also acknowledge we may need to reign in our desires and urges for a more practical use of our time. We have the determination and hopefully so will everyone else living under the same skies even though for some of us they are darkening for the moment. Perhaps respecting and listening to what others have to say may just save us from exhausting, draining and needless complications and confrontations and lead to more, much needed, co-operation and a feeling of safety and security.
                        
credits: cosmostoursandcruises & reuters & cbs & forbes & chriswade twittter & ny pop-culture & rt.com afp mark wilson & space.com
posted by pippa ponton & jphibbs