11 August 2018, 09:46 UTC

“As I see and love in the mountain and the rock the primordial forces of gravity, in the animal the mobility and the disposition of freedom, I see in man (who portrays all these things at the same time) primarily, that form and ability of expression we call “soul” and for us people does not seem to be a random ray of life within a thousand others, but defined, selected, superbly sophisticated – an ultimate goal.”

Hermann Hesse, “Concerning The Soul “, 1917,  (1)

Re-learning life. Honouring life.

The New Moon / Partial Solar Eclipse in Leo’s urges us to get in touch with our soul . What validates us, what makes us feel alive, what stimulates aliveness, what rejuvenates us. The New Moon is the seed of a new cycle of emotional intention, and with the eclipse phenomenon we are being given a more intense impetus with longer-term dynamics. In the sign of Leo self-expression, the authentic self, and connection with our center the heart is being pronounced. An urge to come close to the essential experience of what it means to feel alive. It is when we fall in love, face challenges, become creative, or play, that the capacity to take risks, to indulge wholeheartedly, that this sense of spiritedness emerges.  All this has to do with the relationship of choice and self-will. The noon Sun is the most powerful, we are in the heart of summer in the northern hemisphere, and the New Moon takes place in the most stable middle degrees of the sign. According to Homer, “thymos” is the feeling of aliveness that manifests when we take risks, when we bravely face a situation when we do something with soul. In other words “thymos” is passion. In modern greek it is used to refer to anger, yet it may be so potent to remember it’s origins and correlations to our beeingness.  Plato distinguished “thymos” as one of the three constituent parts of the psyche (thymoeides). The thymus gland is associated with the immune system which is central to our vitality. Leo and the Sun are associated with the heart. Our relationship with validation and the sense of euthemia and passion are interchangeable. The need to express our personality, our leadership capacity, to find the hero within, are emphasised too.These are the main themes that this New Lunar cycle brings to light. This eclipse creates tension and momentum to make decisions, and to recognise or become conscious of shadows, fears, our vitality level, and all  that is central to our life force. We need to get out of our comfort zones, and understand our attitude toward life. How do we respond to life, how does our psychology work in relation to vitality and anger. What is the logos of passion? Continue reading →