Where Energy Flows

In my last post, I wrote about “Sensual Feng Shui” and how we can enhance our surroundings in ways that activate and delight all of our five senses.  When the senses are fully engaged, our experience of the world around us expands as does our sense of joy and pleasure.

Over the last few days, I have been thinking more about this and one thing that struck me was how our Astrology also plays into what we find sensual, pleasurable and beautiful. 

Our Astrological make-up influences our desire and appreciation for art, furnishings, textures and color.  And, each Astrological sign finds different things stimulating when it comes to their personal surroundings.

In my own Astrological chart, the sign that most heavily influences my tastes for beauty and sensory pleasure is Taurus.  Taurus loves texture, fabrics and artistic, beautiful objects.  The Taurus in me is especially attracted to quality handmade objects like thick oriental carpets, pottery with voluptuous shapes and interesting glazes, richly colored hand-woven textiles with natural dyes and other earthy furnishings.

What about some of the other signs?  Well, someone with Cancer as their sign might find sensory pleasure in the kitchen or in the soft curves of a comfortable armchair.  Virgo may find their senses are most delighted in their herb garden.  Capricorn loves things that have a practical nature and furnishings that have a good structure. Someone governed by Libra may appreciate sensory pleasures in the master bedroom with luxurious high thread-count sheets or satin pillows.  And, Aquarius may find their senses are stimulated with objects that are high tech and modern. 

These are just a few examples. 

Interior Alignment™ practitioners use astrology to help tailor feng shui changes to our client’s individual needs.  Interior Alignment™ focuses on one’s Moon sign, but I have found it useful to consider the attributes of both the Sun and Moon sign.

So consider the attrubutes of your sign and think about what sorts of things might please your senses.  Enjoy discovering what satisfies your sign!

Copyright 2008, Deb Swingholm.  All rights reserved.

Changes in the cycles of the seasons or the movements of the sun, moon and stars often give us points in time that are particularly wonderful for doing ceremony, ritual, space clearing or personal growth work. 

A few things of note are happening in the seasons and in the sky over the next few weeks:

Jan 21 - Jupiter-Saturn trine, exact.  This powerful and productive influence (which occurs again in September and November) encourages building new, cooperative structures.  It can offer support in the practical manifestation of our dreams.

Jan 28 until Feb 18 - The planet Mercury turns retrograde.  These retrograde periods allow us to reflect and go back to old projects or issues.  This month, utilize the Aquarian capacity to find new and creative solutions.

February 1 — Venus-Jupiter conjunction. This will be the first of two meetings this year between the two brightest planets in our sky. This beautiful meeting between the planet of love and beauty and the planet of expansion will be visible in the early morning sky, about 45 minutes before sunup. On Feb. 4, a luminous crescent moon will join the two planets. 

Feb 2 - Candlemas.  Brigid’s Feast of the Waxing Light. As the sun’s light grows stronger, traditionally this is a time to seek healing and inspiration.  And - as Brigid was the ancient Celtic Goddess of water and fire - it is a time to honor the sacred flame and holy well.  I have always found that this is a wonderful time for doing ceremony or space clearing, as the energy is one of purification and initiation.

February 20-21 — A total eclipse of the moon occurs during the late-night hours of February 20-21. This eclipse can be seen in much of North America, occurring during evening hours, although Europeans will also be able to enjoy a view of the darkened moon before it sets. Adding to this event, Saturn and the bright star Regulus will appear close to the eclipsed moon forming a broad triangle.

Deb Swingholm, 2008

by Linda Sowden

For years I have written and spoken about Mercury Retrograde. As a double Virgo ruled by Mercury, I lived in fear every time I knew that it was coming, which is almost half the year by the way, when the shadow periods are included. Recently, I realized that there had to be a real benefit to Retrograde Mercury and I needed to discover what that was — and now I feel that I might have the answer.

When Mercury is Retrograde, it is a time to go inside of ourselves, to reconnect with our soul and spirit and to review our actions since the last mercury retrograde to see if we are on the right path: Do we need to readjust our plans, do we need to take a vacation and a break to center ourselves, do we need to slow down? Sometimes this is forced on us if we don’t take heed … maybe a fall that breaks something occurs if we are not listening … so we must slow down and reconnect with ourselves during this time.

Mercury Retrograde is an internal time and that is why I believe there are errors in judgment, we buy the wrong house, we take the wrong job for the wrong reason, we buy the wrong computer……..everyone is slowing down and facing inward at this time and not quite aware of what is going on externally.

At this particular time, Mercury is retrograde in Cancer, a water sign. It is a time to nurture ourselves, the home of our soul, our families and our external homes, our Mothers and Mother Earth. Our emotions need to be healed and soothed so that when Mercury Retrograde is over we can reconnect with our external world and merge our inner thoughts with our outer life … blending and harmonizing our lives with our spirit.

So, when the next retrograde is around the corner, I will wait excitedly and patiently to see what my soul and spirit has cooked up for me and where I am being directed to spend time and revisit my next step in life.

Copyright Linda Sowden, 2007. All rights reserved.

Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine that one day one day I’d be teaching a class on astrology! For one thing, in the past I considered astrology to be the realm of entertainment. And that is fine - entertainment is great! I just couldn’t see the logic of it and therefore remained a ‘polite skeptic’. But often it is the skeptic who fall the hardest, when they fall in love.

And indeed I confess to being in love with astrology — Interior Alignment™ astrology at any rate. My affair began in 2004 when I began training as Interior Alignment™ Teacher. When I returned home from my training I ordered a birth-chart from one of the on-line companies — and was disappointed. Mind you this company tells it like they see it — they don’t mince words - it is just that I didn’t like the words being said about me! I felt like I just got the ’bad news’ and was left high and dry and I thought, now what? What does it mean? Can I change this assessment or is my fate sealed whatever I do?

I believe that with Interior Alignment™ astrology, the answer is yes. Interior Alignment™ astrology is not an interpretation or predictive course. It is based on the principle of archetypes.  For example, the first thing I explore with a client is their Sun sign. The archetype of the Sun sign is the outward expression, the public face you present to the world.

I find that your Sun sign can directly correlate with the big lesson you are here to work on in this life time. Your Sun sign can also manifest as your highest self, or your authentic self, when it is balanced. So, in doing a consultation, I have a conversation about what being in balance with your Sun sign looks like. It is through this coaching relationship that includes taking stock of where you are and doing specific homework assignments that, while not changing your birth-chart, gives you the opportunity to step into your highest self.

For me, Interior Alignment™ astrology helped me to understand where my strengths are: as a student doing the research and going deeply into a project (Scorpio Sun), and as a teacher, finding new ways to present material and expressing my delight in passing on what I’ve learned (Libra Rising).  

And so, here I am, as a Master Teacher and Advanced Teacher of Interior Alignment™, doing what I am supposed to do. There is vulnerability and risk in this chosen path as whenever one offers a passion to the world there is a risk of meeting indifference, being ignored or rejected.

In the bagua, this exploration of one’s path is the Fame gua. In my book, Odyssey of the Heart - Paths to Wholeness through Feng Shui, I write “You are both a receiver and a transmitter of light: You take light into your being in the form of inspiration, courage, faith, and love, and then you reflect and illuminate the way for others. As you begin to glow with inner light, you can make a significant difference in your own life and also in the world around you.” And THIS, I know comes from my higher source and the most authentic expression of my Sun sign.

Copyright Deborah Redfern, 2007. All rights reserved.

I’ve been feeling particularly fortunate to share Interior Alignment™ Astrology with both student and client this week. Interior Alignment astrology is a western approach that focuses on the archetype of the signs, planets and houses.

My client commented that with traditional astrology readings it was ‘being told’, but with Interior Alignment™ astrology it was a conversation with give and take. Yes, I do some telling but with the purpose of introducing the archetype of the sign or planet we are working with. Then we look together to see how that energy — the theme — is presenting itself in your life. Since the client and I had the same sun sign we compared notes on how the sign manifests in our lives: what the joys are in the energy of that sign, and what the challenges have been. The result is being able to look at the same events and experiences in a new way. Then I give homework exercises: some of which focus on feng shui, others on space clearing and others that take on more of a life coaching aspect. The purpose of these exercises is to release past conditioning and go forward in life.

I’ve found Interior Alignment™ astrolgy particularly helpful for people who have had difficulty identifying with their sign. The IA astrology interpretation is like Interior Alignment™ itself: empowering. In Interior Alignment feng shui we believe there are no wrong houses: in IA astrology maybe we can say there are no wrong signs! I discovered this past week that I really love teaching IA astrology.  

Copyright Deborah Redfern 2007 All rights reserved.