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Artist:
Jonathon Earl Bowser - Used with permission
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"I just
can't get the hang of this!" I threw down my astrology book
in frustration. My teacher looked patiently across the room.
"Give it some time. It will become clear if you keep
practicing."
"I don't know about that," I grumbled. My
fellow students gave me sympathetic looks.
“Try sleeping on it tonight," suggested the teacher.
"Perhaps you're trying too hard."
That night, I folded my horoscope into a little square and
slipped it into my pillowcase. I would literally sleep on it and
see if it helped. I took a few deep breaths, and the day drifted
away from me.
Was I dreaming? I was staring up at the sky, tracing the
patterns of the stars. I found Orion, and then craned my neck
upwards until I could see the three visible stars that made up the
constellation Aries.
As I watched, the stars seemed to re-form themselves until I was
looking at a very heavy, glowering eyebrow. Underneath was a
bright eye staring down at me.
For a moment, I was quite frightened. The stars continued
to draw a complete picture in the sky. When the picture was
finished, there was a tough-looking woman riding a ram.
"Who can that be?" I asked myself, whispering in
the night air.
In reply, her voice boomed around me. "I am the
goddess Athena, dedicating myself to teaching the children of Aries.
Are you one of them?"
"I have Jupiter in Aries," I answered hopefully,
thinking of my chart.
"Good!" Athena's voice was so loud I wondered why
it didn't wake up the neighbours. "So you know that, in order
to grow, you have to be yourself! Follow
your path! Be independent, no matter what!"
"Athena!" Another voice cut in, equally loud.
I looked down, and saw the brightest star in the constellation Taurus,
the bull's eye. Then, to my surprise, a woman's face and torso
formed around the eye. She was shaking her finger at Athena,
scolding her.
"Who are you?" I asked, amazed.
She looked down and saw me. "Don't listen to Athena!
She's much too rash and impulsive to be your teacher. I am
Demeter, and I've come to teach the children of Taurus. Are you
one?"
I shook my head. "No. But your ruler,
Venus, is rising in my chart. And I really want to hear your
words."
"Well then," she beamed. "You must build a
firm foundation. Don'’t change things that don't need to be
changed! Enjoy life as it is in the moment, and build a secure
tomorrow."
"That sounds
good," I answered. But suddenly Demeter's speech was
interrupted by giggling. I looked across to the two bright stars
that pinpointed the constellation Gemini. As I watched, they began
to flash in a whole spectrum of colours. Then they became a face
with two sparkling eyes and a magical smile.
"I am Iris," she told me. "I am here to
teach the children of Gemini. Are you one?"
"Yes," I told her. " My moon is in Gemini.
Teach me!"
Iris' mouth curved in a wide arc. "You should always
keep moving and shimmering, like a beam of light. Let your mind
dance, and let your body fly!"
I couldn't help smiling too.
Then I looked over and saw that the moon had risen, and that she
was close to her own constellation, Cancer. I looked intently
until I saw the familiar woman's face in the moon. But this time
she was looking at me, speaking to me.
“I am Eostre, the goddess of fertility," she said.
"I am here to teach the children of Cancer. Are you
one?"
"Yes," I answered. Cancer is at my Midheaven.
Teach me, goddess."
Her eyes looked sad, and then suddenly happy, as she spoke.
"It's good to cry," she said. "Feel all that you
can feel, all the time. Whether they hurt or give you pleasure,
your feelings always nourish you deep inside."
I was still as I pondered that, and then something bright caught
my eye. I saw that the sky had turned somehow, as though months
had passed, and the huge constellation Leo was coming up over the
horizon.
There, on the back of the lion was a beautiful woman framed in
brilliant golden stars. I stared, startled by this bold
apparition.
"I am Brigid," she announced, "here to teach the
children of Leo. Are you one?"
"I have Pluto in Leo," I responded. "Will
you teach me?"
"Ah, you come from that generation!" Her eyes
were warm. "Such a group of wild children--I've never seen
their like! I love every one of them."
I laughed, and Brigid continued. "You must go through
life burning like fire, creative and wilful and strong. Everything
is a risk, a game, a joy!"
"Yes!" I couldn't help but respond. Then I
dropped my eyes, feeling suddenly shy. When I opened them again, I
found myself looking at the constellation Virgo. The stars there
had formed themselves into a young, clear-eyed face.
"Who are you?" I asked, my voice hushed as I met those
quiet eyes.
"I am Persephone," she answered. "I am here
to teach the children of Virgo. Are you one?"
"My Mars is in Virgo," I replied. "Will that
do?"
"Of course," she said calmly. "Remember that
you must always act with clarity, with method. You must see all
the little details and lovingly fit them together so that the world
works well."
As she spoke, her hands were busy braiding her long, wheat-coloured
hair. I nodded solemnly,
but an amused voice broke in. "There's more to life than
work, you know. What about love?"
I looked to the west, and there was the constellation Libra
before my eyes. The stars had formed into the most beautiful woman I'd
ever seen.
"You must be Aphrodite," I breathed.
"It's true," she said. "And I've come to
teach the children of Libra. Are you one?"
"Yes," I said. "Libra is my rising
sign."
Her great eyes looked down on me. "Then you know that
balance is the key to everything. Everything and everyone exists
in relationship. There is no day without night, no sorrow without
joy. Nothing exists alone."
"Not even death," said a voice. I looked down and saw
the long string of stars that made up the constellation Scorpio.
As I watched, they took the shape of a woman sitting cross-legged.
"I am Changing Woman," she told me, "here to teach
the children of Scorpio.
Are you one?"
"Yes," I answered. "My sun is in
Scorpio."
"Then you know," she said gravely, "that desire is
the motive force of the universe. And you know that every desire
moves towards transformation. Day longs to become night, and night
day. And life rushes towards death, and death towards life."
I absorbed this in silence for a moment. Then, out of the
corner of my eye, I saw something speeding by. It was the constellation
Sagittarius, and it was in motion. As I watched it, the stars
coalesced into the shape of a woman on horseback, drinking from a
gallon-jug. She wiped her mouth, her face quite red, and laughed.
"Who are you?" I asked.
"I'm Rhiannon. Haven't we met before, friend?
I'm here to teach the children of Sagittarius. Is that you?"
"My Mercury is in Sagittarius," I answered.
"And I'd say we've met before."
Rhiannon stretched, yawned, and then suddenly got serious as she
started to lecture. "You must travel," she said,
"in your body, or in your mind. You must follow your vision.
Aha!" Suddenly she was galloping away, giving chase to some
vision of her own.
I looked down and saw the constellation Capricorn. It was
very simple, and the stars seemed to be moving in regular patterns as
they traced the figure of an old woman. I looked at the deep
shadows in her lined face and asked her who she was.
"I am Hekate," she answered. "I've come to teach
the children of Capricorn. Are you one?"
"No," I admitted. "But your ruler, Saturn,
is in my first house. I feel very close to you. Will you
teach me?"
"Yes," she replied. "You must sometimes walk
in the dark, my child. But you will never walk in chaos, because
the world is full of form. When you see walls, my child, do not
say that they restrict you, but that they protect you. And
remember--when you no longer need the protection of those walls, they
will be gone."
"Thank you." I bowed my head. Then I looked
suddenly to the west, wondering if the constellation Aquarius was in
sight. I was rewarded with the sight of a woman's face,
scrutinizing me with an open, intelligent expression.
"I am Inanna," she explained, before I had time to ask.
"I have come to teach the children of Aquarius. Are you
one?"
"No," I answered. "But I feel I know you.
Your ruler Uranus conjuncts my moon."
"Ah, is it?" Her eyes opened wide. "So
you understand that knowledge opens all doors. We are all human
together, and together we will find the truth. And with the truth, we
will make our world a better place."
"Count me in," I responded, my brain teeming with
images of a new world. But the pictures began to slow down,
and I began to feel sleepy. My dream was pulling me back to bed.
"Wait," I mumbled. "There's one more."
And I heard the word "wait" echo among the stars, acompanied
by some vague, sweet music.
"Here I am," said a liquid, womanly voice. I
looked up and saw the constellation Pisces, faint as ever. The
stars were dancing into a new shape, that of a woman astride a dolphin.
"I am Kwan Yin," said the woman. "I am here to
teach the children of Pisces. Are you one?"
"No," I answered, regretfully. "But your
ruler, Neptune, is in my first house. Please teach me too!"
"Ah," she said, smiling. "My lesson is an
easy one. Forget about yourself.
Drift on the currents of the universe, and everything will come
to you."
I felt myself drifting, drifting away. The stars were
fading, blurring before my half-shut eyes. But just as they
vanished, I heard a familiar voice. It was Athena again,
protesting. "No," she cried. "None of this
drifting! Be yourself!"
But it was too late. I felt myself revolving in smaller and
smaller circles until I could fit inside my own brain. A
night-time breeze brushed me, like the hand of the goddess, and I slept.
In the morning, I picked up my astrology books and began to
study. And over every paragraph, I saw a woman's eyes,
winking at me like the stars.
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