Aluna's Current Featured Articles:

In astrology, the Moon is one of the most complex planets. It represents a vast number of areas of our lives. The Moon is our relationships with women (especially with our mother), our childhood, our emotions, our personal rituals, our subconscious minds, habits, and our ability to nurture ourselves and others. The Moon is also our need for security -- physically, financially and emotionally.

Over many years as an astrologer, I have come to see the Moon in a woman's chart as an indicator of how they process emotional stress. It is also gives clues into their relationship with food, body image and negative self-talk. The Moon is not necessarily negative, but it is cyclical, like the ongoing phases of the Earth's Moon. It shows how we unconsciously repeat the same patterns of thoughts and behaviors.

To illustrate, the Moon in our chart is similar to the Moon in the sky. The Earth's Moon has no weather, wind or erosion. If a meteor hits the surface, the impact crater basically remains unchanged forever. So it is with our subconscious mind. We become emotionally wounded and it is recorded in the recesses of our memory. We may forget when and why it happened, or even what the event was (as with repressed memories), yet we will react to the pain of the event in times of stress. It can be difficult to break patterns that are so comforting and familiar, even if they no longer serve us -- the Moon seeks security. Remember there is a dark side of the Moon. This represents the hidden nature of the workings of our psyche. It is not easy to understand our depths. We need courage to plumb the secrets of our internal space, like a space probe exploring the other side of the Moon.

The Moon rules women, food and deep subconscious patterns. I find the manner in which women nurture or harm themselves with food is revealed by the other planets in the chart that contact the Moon and the way in which those planets communicate with each other. For instance, the Moon in a challenging connection with Saturn, the planet of restriction, may be expressed as anorexia. The Moon combined with Jupiter, the planet of excess, can cause severe overeating. Pluto, the planet of deep power and rage often contacts the Moon in the charts of bulimic girls and women.

In order to heal eating issues we need to incorporate the planet that contacts the Moon sign. A Moon-Saturn woman may need a positive system around food, or a healthy structured food plan to replace the harmful restrictive habits. The Moon-Jupiter person would need to honor her need to moderately indulge on occasion. The Moon-Pluto woman will need to express challenging emotions before mealtime, either though verbal communication or physical activity. The point is that we cannot wrench the Moon away from the planets in the chart that communicate with it. These are important life lessons that will not go away by ignoring or suppressing them. At the same time, repeating the negative cycle over and over with no awareness will not bring peace, either.

We must be gentle with our Moon. It doesn't know what to do but repeat behaviors. The Moon is not linear, and neither are our subconscious habits or our relationship with food. We heal in an upward spiral, so sometimes the scenery looks the same, but we are actually viewing it from a higher perspective. As we heal our Moon/eating issues, we aim to discover the root of the pattern. The root will be revealed in layers. Each cycle may bring an opportunity for deeper insights, yet may be heralded by a temptation to slip into old behaviors. The Moon tends to panic when its coping rituals are altered. As you heal, seek out soothing friends or a counselor who knows your cycles and will have compassion. This does not mean you will be stuck forever or need people to condone self-abusive eating behavior. The Moon needs guidance and must be consistently trained in developing new patters. Yet, our subconscious depth is unknowable in many ways. We can never "conquer" it with our minds. If an old pattern re-emerges, we can reaffirm the new pattern as soon as possible. There is a balance between respecting the lesson the old pattern is trying to teach us and getting embroiled in the negative behavior. It takes patience and gentle dedication to create new ways to nurture ourselves on "automatic pilot" when we are under stress. Where our emotions are concerned repetitive cycles are inevitable. The question is not how to stop eating patterns, but how to redirect the energy in order to form a routine of balanced eating.

It has often been said that the human brain is the most complex and wondrous computer in existence. All man-made technology must defer to the superiority of this amazing organ. It is also common to hear that we utilize a very small percentage of our brain's power. I would like to suggest that exploration of this uncharted territory within our own heads is the most valuable technological advance that will happen in the next millennium.

Our brain records every thought, emotion, activity and event in our life. The brain does not only contain information regarding this lifetime, but for every event from every lifetime that our soul has experienced. As we learn to access and utilize more facets of our mind, we experience less limitation and a greater sense of belonging to the world as a whole. Our personal brain becomes linked in with the Divine Brain, or with Divine Mind as our conscious awareness expands.

Spiritual Masters, such as the Buddha or Jesus, have made that great leap in thought to become one with the Divine Mind. Perhaps this also means these great Teachers are using more of the physical brain than the average person. There is an intriguing link between mysticism and science at this point. We know there is so much unaccessed portions of our brain, and we observe that every once in a while, a human makes a great leap in thinking and appears to become "superhuman".

In the new millennium, this could be the destiny for all of us. Because we each have a brain full of vast unused resources, we each have the ability to be "psychic" or "intuitive". We can all reach nirvana or live in continual bliss. It is the birthright for us all to feel harmony with all life and with the Spirit behind all life. The question is, how to begin the process?

One major step must be to refuse all concepts of limitation. Truly, limitations are manifestations based upon habitual thought patterns. Thought patterns can be broken. Powerful new ideas can take root in your mind. It is important to gain the support of like-minded people, since most folks may be frightened by the changes you wish to make and may hold you back. You may even want to release some relationships that do not serve you anymore.

Another step to opening your consciousness is forgiveness. Begin with yourself. You have made most of your choices and lived the majority of your life under the illusion of limited possibilities. Forgive yourself for destructive patterns of thinking and behaving. Forgive yourself for poor relationship or career choices. Also forgive the people in your life, for they live under the veil of limitation as well. Of course, this does not mean you should condone or tolerate abusive situations, yet to "unglue" yourself, forgiveness is an helpful tool for freedom and for releasing resentment.

These first two suggestions are meant to "weed the garden" of your mind, and of your consciousness. The next phase is to fertilize the soil of your brain. It is at this juncture that meditation or relaxation techniques are essential. In this way, we can bring a higher gradient of thought into our minds -- just as we mix higher quality soil to enhance a garden. Meditation may consist of sitting and chanting, or walking in the woods, or watching a flower swaying in the summer breeze, or practicing yoga. Each person must find a way in which to soothe their clamoring mind and create a bridge for more peaceful thoughts and sensations to enter in.

The maintenance of our "millennial garden" is an on-going process. We must weed regularly, uprooting thoughts of negativity and limitation, and by forgiving our shortcomings along with those of others. We continue to fertilize our soil with meditation/relaxation, making sure the baby seedlings of powerful thoughts have adequate nourishment.

The final action in awakening the potential of our higher millennial consciousness in non-action. We must have patience in the process of our unfoldment. This is where we have faith and await the Grace of God, or, if you prefer, wait for our karma to begin moving in the new direction in which we have steered it. The only action that is possible now is to water the "garden" with earnest desire for growth, and sincere devotion to the process of expanding your soul.

If we can conquer fear and limitation within our own mind, we will have the most powerful piece of technology at our service, which is an enlightened brain. Spiritual Masters have known this "simple secret" for ages, and have attempted to teach it to their followers. The exciting part of the new millennium is that we are moving into a time when more people will be acting upon this empowering information, and not merely honoring those who have made the leap into expanded, unitive consciousness. When people were in awe of Jesus, he declared, "Greater works than these you shall do". He meant that each one of us holds the seeds of greatness within ourselves. The new millennium is the time when we can become Masters of our own inner machinery and work in harmony with the Divine Brain of the Cosmos.

Recently, a friend and I were sightseeing in western Kansas and visited a cathedral. We were alone in the large church, since it was a quiet Monday afternoon. I was enjoying the stained glass when I realized my friend had disappeared. I looked all around, but couldn't find him. I called out to him, questioningly. To my surprise, he stepped out of the priest's side of the confessional booth. He smiled and said, "I'm working on forgiving God, so I thought I'd give Him a chance to confess to me!"

Many people involved in the New Age or recovery movement cringe when they hear the word God. Assumptions assail their mind. Negative memories swarm and old disappointments are brought to the surface. Recovery from addiction often centers around surrendering to and building a relationship with God. This is a touchy situation since most addictive people are angry at God. Their childhood concepts of the Divine let them down, or they felt abandoned and betrayed by God since hurtful situations kept hurting. Traditional Judeo-Christian religions are often viewed as unappealing at best, and hypocritical, abusive and poisonous at worst.

Many people solve this problem by adopting an alternative concept of the Divine. Some people say Spirit, Goddess, All That Is, Great Mystery, Higher Power. Other people may embrace a different traditional religion that seems more holistic and helpful, like buddhism, a Native American tradition or nature-centered Paganism. This solution can be a wonderful beginning in creating a comfortable and loving relationship with the Divine. However, in the recovery process of 12 step groups, a person must comb through her past and examine everything that is hiding in the furthermost reaches of her consciousness. In a similar way, each person will eventually reach a point when the painful resentments of her childhood or societal God must be confronted, forgiven and released.

Ask yourself what you feel or think when you hear the word God. Say it to yourself, silently or aloud a number of times. Does you feel loved and soothed? Do you feel anxious? Angry? Insignificant and hopeless? Maybe you feel so disgusted that you don't even want to read the remainder of this article. It is a challenging task to explore this relationship, yet it is a challenge that will reward you with a wholeness you can only dream of.

Truly, we are not actually forgiving God, as much as we are forgiving our limited concept of God -- and we are forgiving many generations of people who have fueled a dogmatic theology that many see as stifling, barren, out-moded, intimidating, or destructive. It is a wonderful revelation to understand that God never hurt us at all. Rather, it is false ideas of God that injures (as well as people who are locked into these limited beliefs of God).

After we release the images and memories of God that have turned into demons in the recesses of our minds, our consciousness can expand to embrace and become one with a larger idea of the Divine. Our alternate words for the Divine may take on new meaning. We no longer talk about the Goddess -- we live in Her! We practice Zen meditation in the morning and retain a focused, quiet mind all day. We don't merely think about the Spirit of the Universe, but see It shining in the faces of everyone we meet.

The biggest surprise may be that the old, frightening concept of God turns out to be a new spiritual Friend. We may find a gift hidden in the mud of our childhood religion that we had overlooked -- a song, an icon, a ceremony. At the very least, we may have a peaceful truce that helps us feel relieved. Then we can continue our exploration of the Divine knowing our past relationship with It has been addressed clearly and honestly.

Most people become addicted to drugs, alcohol, food, sex, work, etc. because they are seeking an escape from everyday consciousness. The addict is searching for blissful oblivion, a forgetfulness of self. And that is a sacred search. In recovery, the addict continues along that holy path, but replaces the addictive substance or activity with the source of all bliss -- a Higher Power as one understands that Power.

We each must find a face of the Divine that supplies the form of bliss that speaks directly to our own heart. We can choose to turn away from faces of the Divine that are no longer helpful. We can do that in a balanced way, without blocking out those faces with fear or rage. Our resentments toward God can be released.

After all, the Divine loves each one of us, no matter what mode of being we may be in. We are loved when we are addicted, or in recovery -- when we are serene, or stressed. We may not yet be able to love each concept of the Divine, but we can accept and tolerate each interpretation of God as a face that needn't threaten us. Our minds and soul will be freer and richer as a result of this process. May the Divine bless you on your journey to wholeness!