Reconnecting with the Astrological Landscape

A is for Aries                                  The beautiful landscape of the Mendips                     The abundant Bronze Age mines near Priddy

Reconnecting with the Astrological Landscape

It's May and Spring has finally arrived. I think there is a growing consensus that we are being cheated of our warm weather seasons as Spring is arriving ever later and Winter seemed to be upon us in November last year. For me I always need to find reasons for everything and if I'm not sure of anything the land is where I go to find wisdom and answers to my questions.

I have my moon in Taurus, that means that the energy of Taurus lies within the heart of who I really am. It is also my north node which is where I am headed if I choose to move out of the stuckness I am holding in my south node: the past life issues I keep repeating. Taurus is all about abundance and being able to receive it from the land. It is ruled by our Earth. So Mother Nature is a key player here and I'm blowed if I'm going to miss out on the lesson this time.

For the past year I have been immersing myself in the energy of love, having found a wonderful new life partner and I realised that perhaps my mind has been off the track a little. However, to reel me back in, last month I was very excited to be part of the launch of a new book. Its called 'Signs and Secrets of the Glastonbury Zodiac' and contains 31 essays. These range from in-depth analysis to poetry and personal experiences (which is my contribution) on walking the Glastonbury landscape. Katherine Maltwood began investigating the idea of 'as above, so below' and with the help of obliging RAF men in WW1 and portable cameras the Universe synchronised events so that the landscape could be studied from an arial view point. From 1917 onwards a complete map of the constellations of the stars was found in the land, created by rivers, roads and other natural landmarks.  By walking the figures amazing things begin to happen and I have talked much about it in my essay and in my book 'Journey to the Golden City' which I hope will be published soon. 

I have been walking this landscape a little since 2009 when I became aware of it, but for the last year, as I said, my mind had been taken of it. So after feeling very stuck with the long, cold winter we all experienced and with the launch of this beautiful book inspiring me once more to reconnect with it, I set out in April to revisit the Aries walk. 

Aries is the first month in the astrological calendar and is all about birth, the creative spark and fire. It is ruled by the astrological figure of the ram. As soon my partner and I arrived in the roadside area of the Aries walk we could here gunshots repeatedly echoing around the landscape. Someone was having a clay pigeon shoot and we had immediately found the fire aspect of our walk. When I arrived I was not expecting anything more than a lovely walk in some woodlands with perhaps some ideas coming to me as we walked, that is usually how I work. However, my new partner was new to all this and needed some coaxing and help to understand what it was all about. The universe was obviously deciding to give us the big picture version and we were in for some fun. As we walked a little further we came across a field of sheep and there were many spring lambs leaping around and enjoying themselves. At first I wasn't sure, but as we looked closer we realised all the lambs had horns. Now I live in the country and every year there are lambs in the field opposite my house but I'd never seen this before! But yes, there they were, little ram lambs especially for us on our Aries walk. 

As we got deeper into the woods the energy was very beautiful with a wonderful light created by the sun we were only just getting used to seeing and then we came across the tree I've shown as my first photo above. It was a definite A for Aries and the doorway was inviting us to step through. It was an invitation to rebirth into the new energy of 2013 and an opportunity not to be missed.

Following that walk, some aspects that had been stuck began to be forced into motion and Taurus arrived with its invitation to recognise the abundance that is everywhere in our lives. 

I am about to leave the Mendips after having lived here for eight years and my partner had a life changing holiday to the Mendips when he was eleven which ensured that he moved West after being brought up near London. Priddy is a very special village in the Mendips with some ancient archeological ruins from burial mounds to bronze age mines. Last week, still in Taurus, we walked this landscape in the beautiful May sunshine and without thinking I chose to step off the path at one point only to come across this amazing ancient mine which my partner had seen on a television programme about the history of this area. I had stumbled across the largest mine, seen in my third photo above, where such abundance was brought up from the earth. I couldn't help but chuckle. I truly hope that I am in the process of finding my abundance, though I must recognise that it's not that it needs finding, it is always there, it's about being open enough not to block it and allow it step fully into your life. I am now ready for this. Hoorah!

Having sorted out my personal questions for the moment I needed to revisit my original question: why are we  having to deal with more cold months while our warm months are getting fewer? I can only answer now that I feel that as the winter months are about the spiritual journey, the time when we hibernate, reflecting Mother Nature as she breathes in, when we go in and find the inner path. This time is in opposition to the Spring and Summer months where we concentrate on the physical growth of form, on youth, reflecting Mother nature as she breathes out her energy of growth. However, if you get caught up in that energy and forget the other side of the wheel this can lead us to forget our spiritual path. Perhaps we are being asked to spend more time investigating that inner, spiritual journey for without it we are doomed to a life of fear and individualistic, destructive power rather than a world of community that is rewarded by our connection to Mother Earth and her healing gifts of abundance.