Pisces 2003: Pisces, Duality and Mass Consciousness
Keynote
“I leave the Father’s home and turning back I save.”
Pisces, Duality and Mass Consciousness
Saddam Hussein and the Iraq Invasion
Pisces, Duality and Mass Consciousness
In considering the Pisces full moon one is reminded of DK’s discussion of a triangle of initiation – Taurus, Scorpio and Pisces. Hercules, Buddha and Christ – and their relation to the decanates.1 Scorpio relates to the physical, Taurus the astral, and Pisces the mental:
“Pisces carries the test into the region of the mental processes, which is the reflection of the will aspect of divinity; the problem of the initiate in this sign is voiced by Christ in the words, “Father, not my will but Thine be done.”The tests carry the self-will of the personality up into the region of the divine will and the result is inspiration and the emergence of a world saviour.”2
Note that Mars is the third (mental) decanate ruler of Pisces3 and relates to the “self-will of the personality”. Mars is also related to the mind because it rules the five senses4 and therefore all that is tangible and objective in human knowledge. Mars is also co-ruler of the solar plexus centre (the animal brain) and constitutes the “beast of personality”, or Dweller – because its basic influence is one of strife and separation. Technically, whilst still in the last decanate of the Piscean Age, Mars has a strong influence, despite the Ray 6 cycle being out of incarnation. Pluto, soul ruler of Pisces, is also a planet associated with the mental processes:
“It [Pluto] governs however the death or cessation of old ideas and emotions, and its influence is therefore largely cerebral and in that you have the clue to its late discovery. Mankind is only on the verge of becoming mental. Its effects are felt first in the mental body.”5
Pluto carries “up into the region of divine will”, and its new symbol of the up-pointed arrow is most suggestive. Mars is also the “alter ego” of Pluto, tying in both these planets at a mental level. Pluto is ruler of Ray One, the ray that conditioned the mental field of Christ6 , in his role as Piscean avatar doing his “Father’s will”, bringing the destroyer ray to purge old religious ideas, yet also to anchor a tenuous thread of the Shamballa force.
The Gethsemane experience where Christ uttered those words, “Father, not my will but Thine be done”, is a supreme injunction to all disciples. The degree of will He expressed is reflected in Luke’s description: “And being in an agony he prayed more earnestly: and his sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground..”7
With so much talk about the Will and Shamballa in recent years, is the World Disciple up for “sweating drops of blood”,? Or might the World Disciple be like Peter: “Peter, the cock shall not crow this day, before that thou shalt thrice deny that thou knowest me.”8 Perhaps there is a middle ground somewhere in there.
The full moon for Pisces 2002 is most interesting from the mental viewpoint as it has Saturn in Gemini at the point of a precise T-square with the Sun/Moon opposition. Will this bring an opportunity to allow old ideas to die and new ones to precipitate (Saturn in Gemini)? Pluto’s transit through Sagittarius has certainly been about the transformation of old ideas, particularly philosophical and religious.
Pluto’s square to Venus in Pisces at this full moon is a major challenge to transform and/or release old relationships, with unconditional and compassionate love and wisdom. Not only does Pluto rule Pisces where Venus is placed in her exaltation, but it also brings in the theme of Gemini which Venus rules esoterically. This refers directly back to the aforementioned T-square with Saturn in Gemini:
“The Twins in Gemini are symbols of the same basic duality, but the experience of the many changing incarnations has done its work, and the Band (uniting the two fishes) is in process of dissolution, for part of the work of Pluto is to “cut the thread which binds the two opposing lives together.” It is the task of Venus to “reunite the severed lives but with no binding thread.” Therefore, Venus is exalted in Pisces and at the end of the greater cycle, the Sons of God who are the Sons of Mind are raised up into glory through experience and crucifixion because they have learned to love and truly reason.”9
Most poignant is the last part of this phrase: “at the end of the greater cycle, the Sons of God who are the Sons of Mind are raised up into glory through experience and crucifixion”, referring to the Gethsemane experience of Christ and the “harvest of Arhats” at the end of the “greater cycle” of 25,000 years. Christ’s Gethsemane experience occurred just before the Aries full moon and his Crucifixion, both key events for the inauguration of the Age of Pisces.
Pisces and Aries have an important link in that one sign is about the ending of cycles and the other the beginning of cycles. Pisces brings to an end in 2002 the previous spiritual year which included the September 11, 2001 bombing and the Great Decision initiation of Libra 2001. It is therefore particularly important that the lessons of the year are indelibly stamped in the consciousness of humanity and all World Servers, so that all individual and group decisions in that year find their continuity and consolidation in the new cycle starting in Aries.
Pisces and Aries also have an important link in that the theme of Ray One straddles these signs. It works in its Pluto destroyer aspect in Pisces, and in its Vulcan building and birthing aspect in Aries; so as we complete the cycle of Pisces we are automatically invoking fresh impulses from Aries.
Pisces is the last sign of the zodiac and relates to endings and the completion of the cycle. Words from an old commentary come to mind: “For the circle hath been well nigh trod, and the end approacheth the beginning.” The circle is of course the zodiac of signs wherein the incarnating soul has garnered its experience many times over.
This full moon period falls close to the end of Pisces, very near the equinox, which is of course the first degree of Aries, a sign of beginnings. Both full moon and equinox periods are opportunities to connect with initiating and causal impulses. In the current world crisis, on this cusp of Pisces-Aries, we see the awesome potential of Pisces soul ruler Pluto the Destroyer, and Aries ruler Mars, the God of War.
We see the end of a cycle of dialogue in the United Nations and the beginning of war in Iraq, which has for months had the stamp of probability upon it. What many leaders may not have counted upon was the massed voice of much of Humanity opposed to a war and declaring their opposition to it. Pisces governs mass consciousness and the world is seeing in this particular Piscean period of the year, the voicing of that consciousness around one particular issue, probably more than at any other time in history. This is truly an historic moment. Nevertheless, for right or wrong, elected governments have chosen to go ahead and the world will see those consequences in the intervening years that follow.
Pisces is a dualistic sign, perhaps one of the most dualistic in the zodiac, represented by the two fishes that swim tethered together. At the end of this astronomical cycle of Pisces (which still has about 114 years to run), and on the cusp of the Aquarian cycle, there is still much of the old age that holds sway.
The dualism of Pisces is the fusion of soul and form, producing the expression of soul in form. Yet this form can be the binding prison of the soul, hence the advanced Piscean must use Pluto’s power to sever the thread between the two fishes, yet reunite them through the power of Venus, exalted in Pisces. Venus not only denotes the soul who has truly learnt to love, but also to reason; it recognises wholeness and duality has no place in its expression.
Pisces is a sign of Love-Wisdom, with this (second) ray being its major expression, exemplified by the Christ avatar himself who inaugurated the Piscean cycle. The Christ “overlighted” his close disciple Jesus, who through the Piscean themes of renunciation, sacrifice and death, achieved Liberation from the bondage of matter, taking the fourth initiation; these two “fishes” anchored together an aspect of the divine will which seeks to liberate Humanity.
Pisces peculiarly relates to the expression and unfoldment of the love petals of the causal lotus, yet also to that last tier, the sacrifice petals. Developed love expression allows renunciation and sacrifice to take place through compassionate understanding.
With these themes the Piscean can become the martyr, especially if alloyed with the energies of the sixth ray of Devotion, so prevalent throughout the Piscean age. There have been many martyrs in this age, from Justin Martyr the Christian apologist, to self-proclaimed martyrs and whole groups embracing martyrdom today.
The polarisation of the Piscean can be seen as astral-buddhic due to acute emotional sensitivity combined with a deep compassion, hence the reason why many saints, gurus and mystics have incarnated in this sign. The Venusian expression of Pisces is capable of unconditional loving, that gives rise to all the lesser sacrifices and renunciations, eventually leading to the Great Renunciation. Therefore the heart and the solar plexus are the two major chakras associated with this sign.
Like the other mutable signs of the zodiac (Gemini, Virgo, Sagittarius), Pisces is most impressionable, particularly in the astral body, leading to the expression of psychism in a lower and higher sense.
The lower psychism relates to a relatively unevolved stage of a medium or channel whose astral body is not particularly refined, and therefore sees through that “veil” relative to its quality. To paraphrase St Paul, “seeing through a glass darkly”. This is further compounded by a lack of discrimination as to the nature of the impression upon the astral body, represented by Pisces polar opposite Virgo, the sign of analysis and discrimination.
As with all polar opposite signs, one cannot do without the other. We are all balancing the pairs of opposites within ourselves through the six pairs of zodiac signs. The higher psychism of Pisces is where the medium is transformed into the mediator, who can stand betwixt the worlds with both sensitivity and discrimination – where they can truly serve and assist the release of their fellow “prisoners of the planet”.
It is this sensitivity of Pisces that makes it susceptible to all the desires of the astral body, and hence become enslaved to many forms of addiction, ranging from sex to substance abuse. The end of the Piscean Age has seen a marked increase in all these abuses, yet also a developing awareness and consequent healing of ills. This corresponds to the tests for the first and second initiations, which Humanity is currently undergoing. There is in many a movement away from the solar plexus and its desires, to the heart with its fiery aspiration; from selfish self-centredness to an awareness of the needs of others, witnessed recently by worldwide concern for the Iraqi people.
Pisces’ susceptibility to the glamours of the astral plane can render it to manipulation by hidden forces, whether they be incarnate fellow human beings, or entities upon that plane. Germany, which has a Piscean personality, was subject to this emotional manipulation when the Nazis were in control. On the other hand, France who is conditioned by Pisces at a soul level, anchored a vision of a just and compassionate world with the Declaration of the Rights of Man in 1789.
It is interesting in this current world crisis that France and Germany are prominent in their opposition to the Iraqi invasion. They have their various reasons, no doubt ranging from the selfish to the altruistic, and time will reveal motives eventually.
Saddam Hussein and the Iraq Invasion
Turning now to the consideration of the full moon chart for Baghdad, and the most striking feature is a T-square from the Sun-Moon opposition to Saturn in Gemini. This is difficult and restrictive at the best of times, with Saturn the Lord of Karma in the sign of communication. Ruler of Gemini, Mercury, is conjunct the Sun, even more closely square to Saturn, traditionally an aspect that is never good for negotiation and communication. The tension is there in this pattern for a breakthrough in negotiations at the eleventh hour, although given the failure in talks between nations and in the UN to date, it is hardly likely.
A couple of days after the full moon is the start of the new spiritual year as the Sun enters Aries. The Aries Ingress chart set for Baghdad has several significant points. It has humanitarian Aquarius rising, with Neptune conjunct the rising sign. Neptune as ruler of the Piscean waters is also a planet of peace: Much of the world has demonstrated for peace in Iraq. Neptune however, also rules oil, which some say is the motive for this war, and many oil wells could well be set alight in the next week.
Mars the Lord of Conflict, is in its most powerful position in Capricorn, making a difficult square to the Aries Sun which it rules. It also makes a harmonious aspect to a Mars-ruled Scorpio Moon. This Moon exactly opposes Saddam’s Taurus Sun. Transiting Mars also precisely opposes his progressed Sun. Added to this, Uranus, liberator and revolutionary, squares Saddam’s natal Mars and Moon in Sagittarius. In other words, Hussein’s chart is besieged by many difficult aspects and planets, reflecting his position of being besieged in Baghdad; his policies have shaped Iraq and therefore the whole nation also bears the extreme risk present in his chart. A recent poster in Baghdad reads: “Saddam is Baghdad, Baghdad is Saddam”.
One of the major aspects in this full moon is the last opposition of Pluto and Saturn, that has been occurring on and off over the past two years. It was essentially this energy which lay behind events such as 9/11, which triggered off the situation in which the world now finds itself. The forces of Pluto have been destroying the old mental constructs of Humanity, particularly in the areas of religion and philosophy. Saturn in Gemini opposing Pluto has been helping to create new templates and thoughtforms that will serve the next cycle of ideologies.
It will probably not be until around 2010, when Pluto leaves Sagittarius and goes into Capricorn, that those ideas will begin to precipitate as practical laws by which to live. And it may not be until around 2020 (when Humanity has 20/20 vision?), when Saturn and Pluto come into conjunction, will the fruits of this turbulent period of their opposition be more successfully realised in wholeness and unity. Centuries of old habits and beliefs do not change overnight.
Never has the outcome of a potential world conflict been so uncertain – in the short-term or long-term. Literally anything could happen and the world runs the risk of descending into chaos and global war. Other “rogue” nations such as North Korea also may choose to complicate matters if an attack is launched on Iraq.
Notwithstanding Hussein’s death or survival, the West will probably be engaged in a long and protracted struggle, probably in line with Uranus’s passage through this sign over the next seven years. Let us hope that those involved in vigorous peace demonstrations can direct their forces toward the aftermath to a war, by the process of healing, education and economic assistance that is required for a lasting peace – between the millions of Arabs and Muslims and the rest of the western world.
The keynote of Pisces is: “I leave the Father’s Home and turning back, I save.” This brings up the theme of the Science of Redemption, so-called by the Master DK. It is through a knowledge of this occult science that “redeeming” can be far more consciously practiced, thereby ultimately shortening the cycle of the wheel of incarnations.
Whether it is the redeeming of the “lesser lives” of the substance in our personality vehicles, or the return of an advanced soul into earthly incarnation to assist the redemption process of their fellow humanity, Pisces is the “blessed redeemer”.
Pisces denotes the Path of the World Saviour, a most arduous path that few in the human family are capable of treading. Pisces rules the feet, so let us take inspiration from the “communion of saints” who have trodden the path before us, and may we tread it lightly and in joy.
Phillip Lindsay © 2003.
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- Esoteric Astrology, Alice A. Bailey p.204-5 [↩]
- Esoteric Astrology, Alice A. Bailey p.205 [↩]
- Esoteric Astrology, Alice A. Bailey p.132 [↩]
- Esoteric Astrology, Alice A. Bailey p.215 [↩]
- Esoteric Astrology, Alice A. Bailey p.439 [↩]
- The Destiny of the Nations, Alice A. Bailey p.38 [↩]
- Luke 22:44 [↩]
- Luke22:34 [↩]
- Esoteric Astrology, Alice A. Bailey p.130 [↩]
