SET YOURSELF FREE
By Michelle McClunan – Counselling Astrologer
Full Moon August 15th in Aquarius comes hot on the heels of Jupiter moving direct, after being retrograde since April AND Uranus moving retrograde. Both Aquarius and its ruler Uranus, as well as Sagittarius and its ruler Jupiter, are signs associated with freedom, seeing the bigger picture, changing perspective and liberating ourselves from the prisons we have erected. Opposite the Moon we have the Sun, Mars and Venus in expressive, heart-based Leo.
The energy of Jupiter moving direct and Uranus retrograde feels a bit like a horse quivering with energy and gusto, itching to run free and wild, but confined by a gate… or so it would seem. The reality is that he could very easily clear that gate, but, due to past conditioning, he doesn’t realise that he can! Let’s call his perceived prison the conditioned mind – that which convinces this magnificent animal that he has no option other than to stay in captivity.
THE PRISON
Very often when we feel frustrated or even angry with a situation in our lives, it’s because of old conditioning and beliefs that are still running the show. Ancient stories that we don’t really deserve to dance and laugh and run with abandon; or that its too late for us; or that we’re just too busy “doing” life, surviving, paying the rent etc.
And so? We stay put, locked in a cage of our own making.
Many years ago, I had an astrology reading with a woman who asked me what I did on a daily basis to care for my soul. I looked at her as if she was a little crazy and started to recite all the reasons why I simply didn’t have the time… far too busy was I! I will never forget how she lowered her specs and fixed her gaze on me, asking a question that has never left me … “You don’t have time for your Soul? Then what are you doing here? “ My prison was the belief that I didn’t have enough time or didn’t deserve to spend time nourishing my Soul.
Our prisons are often set up early in life, when we are admonished or programmed with words like “Be quiet, children are to be seen but not heard”, “Life’s not a bowl of cherries”, “Money doesn’t grow on trees”, “Get your head out of the clouds, “Go and get a real job” … and on it goes. We are urged to work hard, get good marks at school and University, find a well paying job and assured that then, everything will be fine and we will be happy.
And so, we start to live in the world that is purely outcome driven, one that champions earning an income, paying the bills and accumulating possessions in order to gain approval from others.
THE MIND’S PURPOSE
We start living with our minds as our masters, rather than our servants and in so doing, move further and further away from the essence of who we really are. Our mind’s purpose is to get our survival needs met. It wants assurances, certainty and security and differentiates, polarises, divides and strategises in order to achieve them.
THE HEART’S PURPOSE
Our heart’s purpose is to connect us to all that is, to the mystery and flow of the creative force of the Universe. It collaborates, cherishes, connects and opens the way to feeling fully.
“It is only with the heart that one sees rightly. What is essential is invisible to the eye”. The Little Prince
ESCAPING THE PRISON
Over the weekend we watched an interesting Indie movie called the Guitar, a story about a woman who was diagnosed with terminal cancer, told that she had a month to live, given the boot by her boyfriend and fired from her job – all in one day! Her world, as she knew it, was turned on its head completely, and, as she had nothing left to lose, she made a few radical moves, which eventually landed up changing her entire life. She didn’t just jump out of the cage. She ditched it completely! Walking out of the darkened basement where had been living, she hired a big white spacious loft, furnished it with stuff that she loved (ordered online with her credit card) and threw her old clothes out of the window. She also bought a bright red electric guitar and started learning how to play it, a dream that she had had since childhood, but had never realised. She gave herself permission to be exactly who she was in the moment, feeling the emotions that she needed to feel and having the experiences that she wanted to have. In the process, she liberated herself and in so doing, re-ignited her life force. Without telling you the end of the story, in case you want to watch the movie, as a result of these choices, everything changed and miracles started happening in her life!
YOUR ESSENTIAL SELF
Now, we can’t all walk out of our lives, hire a loft and max out our credit cards, tempting as that might be, but it is a good idea to acknowledge the voice of our unique essence or as Martha Beck would call it our Essential Self. The little bunch of planets in Leo is urging us to connect with the childlike part of us that knows exactly what we need, but who is so often ignored.
If you are feeling frustrated, stuck, irritable or angry, see if you can connect with the younger you, and ask her/him 2 questions:
A What are the things, situations, activities that make you feel limited, frustrated or small?
B What are the things, situations, activities that ignite your soul, light you up, make you feel alive?
Now ask the Adult You:
- Is it possible to do some more of B and less of A and how?
- What changes would you make in your life, if you had one month to live?
- What would you do, if you had nothing left to lose?
- What do you really want in your life?
- Imagine achieving or attracting that and feel how it would feel
- That feeling, right there, is what you really, really, really want
- So, why not spend more time doing whatever it is that makes you feel like that!
WHAT DO YOU REALLY WANT – A REAL LIFE EXAMPLE?
Q: What do you want?
A: To make lots of money
Q Why?
A: So I can give up my job and become a yoga teacher
Q: How would you feel if that happened?
A: Free
If your ultimate desire is to feel free, what can you do today and tomorrow and the next day to activate the energy of freedom? This is what the real Law of Attraction is based on!
Maybe your childhood dream was to be a Prima ballerina or a Rock Star! Those things might or might not happen, but what’s stopping you from dancing or making music anyway?
CHALLENGING THE OLD
Without going into all the astrology of it, this is a super powerful time to challenge our old conditioning, paradigms and change our perspectives – in a big way! With the current planetary alignments and retrograde focus, it might be a good idea to re-visit the past (just briefly). This might bring up uncomfortable fears or feelings of stuckness, or negativity or even hopelessness, but those will help us to see where we’ve constructed our own prisons.
Try, for a few moments letting the feelings that arise be exactly as they are. Move into the middle of them and feel them even more fully, without judgement, in other words, with total acceptance.
Then investigate your thoughts about the feelings and ask if they’re true. It helps to journal at this point.
Then, take a few deep breaths and move around a little. Look at things from a different angle. Brainstorm or blue sky any problems that you might have and see what pops up.
The current energy is potentially creative, inventive and ingenious. Let’s use this opportunity to leap over the fences and escape the prisons we have made for ourselves.
WHERE IS ALL THIS HAPPENING FOR YOU PERSONALLY?
If you would like to understand how and where these alignments and retrogrades are impacting you personally, you need to look to the houses where they fall in your birth chart. These are the areas in your life that are generally magnified and sensitised and brought into the light during these times.
You are most welcome to schedule a session to work with me on this, to optimize the learning. Read more here or email me for more information
SPRING CLEAN YOUR SOUL – ART & SOUL WORKSHOPS – GILLITTS
21st and 22nd September 2019
Join us as we prepare for the Spring Equinox, with a weekend of Colour, Creativity, Flowers, Music, Peaceful Natural surroundings and Delicious Vegetarian food. Over that weekend the Sun will spend its final few days in Virgo, which is all about discerning what needs to be cleared and detoxing MIND, BODY AND SOUL , in order to prepare for new growth and change.
I’m delighted to be part of a beautiful programme at Rest & Digest In Gillitts, called
Rise and Shine – a Mind, Body and Soul Spring Clean.
Deborah and her team at Rest & Digest will be offering a full 10 DAY RE-SET DETOX PROGRAMME.
John Homewood will be running a powerful workshop called AWAKENING THE FLOW on the first weekend and I’ll be ending the programme off with a two day SPRING CLEAN YOUR SOUL WORKSHOP the following weekend.
You can choose to do whatever modules resonate with you.
In life and Light
Michelle
