Sacred Self Care Guide for October 2018 from Rising River Wisdom School
In all the worlds’ mythology and culture, there have been wisdom keepers, those who looked to the natural and the hidden worlds as a guide for life on earth. Within these seekers are stargazers, who ascribe meaning to the “stars” and their movements through the solar system.
Though Earth’s Moon is no star, it reflects the brightest light we can see in the night sky. Its phases are a part of human consciousness, and its movements affect systems on earth and sea. When we align our activities to the Moon’s cycles we find a greater connection to both our bodies and intuitive wisdom. Read on for some self care wisdom inspired by the new moon.
Rising River Wisdom School is an immersive program for those looking to step into their own power and carry wisdom for themselves and the world around them. Below you will find some Sacred Self Care insight for October from Rising River Wisdom School’s incredible teachers – we’ve got you covered for setting intentions with the upcoming new moon, to seeking insight from animal guides to plant medicine, plus lots of guidance for mindfully navigating the world with your vibrant well-being in focus.
New Moon in Libra October 8th 8:46pm PDT By Michelle Prentiss
All new Moons are times of beginnings and creating fresh starts in our lives.
This New Moon is in the airy; Venus ruled sign of Libra, which happens to be the only sign of the zodiac to be represented with an inanimate symbol. (the scales of justice). Libra has domain over the time of the year when the days and nights are of equal length and its energetic operation is to create balance and moderation wherever it is positioned.
Venus, the ruler of our lunation, has recently retrograded in Scorpio – pointing to a huge emphasis on the dance between our deep inner needs and the needs of others.
Mars, the warrior planet conjunct Black Moon Lilith in Aquarius creates friction with Venus, resulting in a collective and personal energetic imperative to acknowledge the depth of any hidden pain or trauma in our past experience. This expression is urgent and a necessity in moving forward healthily into the future. Neptune in Pisces helps the process by beaming down a light of empathy for ourselves and connection to others stories.
Make sure to let off steam safely and hold compassion for yourself and others while expressing yourself around this Moon. If any power struggles ensue, between our feminine “receptivity” and “masculine” activity, Libra’s message holds the key – there must be room for both.
Pluto in Capricorn steps in to the mix too, creating friction with the new Moon- but also stability. Pluto is invested in evolving us-often through the death/ re-birth process of growth. In Capricorn it’s evolving all of our structures, habits or authorities, demonstrating what need re-birthing.
Libra season points to peace, but in order to find it sometimes things in our lives need to be transformed before being brought into balance.
As in an alchemical process dissolution precedes coagulation.
Let the things go that need to be released before setting new plans in motion this New Moon. Take a deep dive into your thoughts and beliefs, wishes and dreams. If you do the work of exploring this terrain and balancing self-exploration with action intended to better your world, this can be a powerful time period of metamorphosis and manifestation!
Here is a small ritual for balance adapted from Thoughtco.com:
You’ll need a black candle and a white one of any size, although tealights probably work best. Make sure you have something safe to put them in, either a candleholder or a bowl of sand.
Light both candles, and say the following:
A balance of night and day, a balance of light and dark
Tonight I seek balance in my life
as it is found in the Universe.
A black candle for darkness and pain
and things I can eliminate from my life.
A white candle for the light, and for joy
and all the abundance I wish to bring forth.
At the time of the equinox,
there is harmony and balance in the Universe,
and so there shall be in my life.
Meditate on the things you wish to change. Focus on eliminating the bad, and strengthening the good around you. Put toxic relationships into the past, where they belong, and welcome new positive relationships into your life. Let your baggage go, and take heart in knowing that for every dark night of the soul, there will be a sunrise the next morning.
Read on for plant medicine and power animal guidance for this New Moon in Libra….
New Moon in Libra Plant Spirit Medicine by Jacqueline Zajdman
Inspired by seeking justice and equality, the true Libran nature calls for bringing all things into balance. But in the name of love and beauty, the truest Venusian archetypes for this justice seeker, where can we consider balance? As an art form, cultivating passion around beauty isn’t entirely logical, but instinctual. In fact it’s rather unending, mysterious, and intuitively felt as something that stimulates the beauty within. However subjective, through a combination of sheer aesthetics, nostalgia, and a feeling of equilibrium mastered with sensuality of place, texture, and color, somehow harmony is found.
As I journey through Italy, my destination brings me to a vineyard in Piedmont where I have the opportunity to process the ripened grapes of this year’s harvest. To make wine, a luscious aphrodisiac and food of the gods harking the myths of Dionysus, requires a process of bringing the fruit and fermentation into sheer art form. In excess, this plant that’s grown organically with such meticulous attention, can drive us mortals into a hedonistic frenzy. But with a delicate balance, drinking in this tradition can feel otherworldly, expansive, and divine. An appreciation and reverence for such a process can bring one deeper into the experience; understanding order in creation. When drinking wine, take in the color, the fragrance, the notes of other herbs, fruits and minerals that may have grown in the region and seeped into the soil to feed this plant. Drink it all in, and enjoy your vino! Sometimes we need to be thrown off balance to realize our new center.
New Moon in Libra Animal Guide by Brook Albrigo
Now that we have officially moved into Fall, there has been a palpable energy shift. You might have been feeling it in your body or have had events unfold around you forcing you to slow down. This time of year asks us to harvest what grew over the summer, harvest what will nourish and sustain over the next few months and let go of what is dying off. I was very curious to see what animal popped up for this incredibly potent shift.
I was shown a green tree frog resting on a branch looking up to the storming sky calling out for the rain. Frog is a powerful and often under estimated guide! They have long been connected to the rain and water element, transition, fertility, abundance and purification. What we are seeing right now – not only within ourselves – but also environmentally, politically, socially, is toxicity on so many levels. The toxins that have been polluting our bodies, minds, spirits, and planet for far too long are ready to be cleansed.
Many cultures believed that the frogs called forth the rain. When you heard the frogs voices – rain was sure to follow and that powerful element would nourish, cleanse and bring life and growth forward. Through the purification of our emotional processes, whatever they may be, we will see new life and growth. But first, we must weather the storm and even welcome it. What feels toxic in your life? Do a massive cleanse this month! Detoxify your relationships, your career, your body, your home, the way you “protect” yourself from having to feel unpleasant and uncomfortable emotions. Let the rains wash over and through you. Have a good cry and take lots of baths!
There is also a deep connection between the water element (our emotion selves) and sound here! Listen to music that speaks to your soul; go to a sound bath, chant, sing- embrace sound for your purification process. We are made of mostly water and the sound carries the toxins up and out of us. Embrace this Libra season and release to find balance. Let us be rid of the stagnant muddy waters that keep us from creating the world we wish to see.
We will be in this Frog energy for a one month cycle until the next New Moon in November. If you would like to connect with Frog on a more personal level, feel free to do a meditation inviting it in and ask what specific medicine it brings you at this time. You can also keep an image or get outside and pay attention to how they move and act. I highly recommend finding recording of frogs calling in the rain and see what emotions arise!
