99: ORF WITH HIS HEAD!
SUN 21 JUN 07.41 - Mooning Monthly giving white male privilege the chop .....
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Happy Solstice dear ones Whether you're celebrating in the northern or southern hemisphere, the Summer/Winter Solstice is a key moment in our annual planetary orbit round the Sun. It's a solar extreme where we either experience the most or least light from the life giving star at the heart of our solar system, dependent on geographic location. Overnight Saturday into Sunday morning this weekend sees not only the solstice, but a new moon in Cancer powerfully enhanced by a solar eclipse, where luscious Lady Luna forces her way between gorgeous Gaia and old Father Sun. It's an annular solar eclipse whose stunning 'ring of fire' will be visible across central Africa, the Middle East and parts of Asia. Let's hope you get a clear night sky if that's where you find yourselves at the back end of Lockdown. Historically, such astrological alignments have been considered portentous and this particular configuration is shaping up to be little different. The eclipse boosted influence of this Cancer New Moon has a serious nip in its crabby claws. The home loving, nurturing nature of Cancer is currently wedged up against the hardrock of Saturn's ruling authority, traditionally represented by the dominant power structures of the day: governments, their law enforcement agencies; institutions, religions and big business corporations. In our personal lives these Saturn structures can represent the intransigent subconscious beliefs and attitudes that shape our life experience regarding employment; marriage and relationships; expectations of others; 'poor me' victim mentalities and addictive behaviour. The tense duality between freedom of expression (doing what we want to do) and our perceived obligations or limitations (what we think we ought to do) will be prevalent. This Cancer New Moon is nervously crawling sideways from under its Lockdown rock to survey the wider rock pool - from prescribed social distances obviously. For many the view is likely to be an unsettling experience and the desire to scuttle back to what has become the familiar security of our rock might be difficult to resist. As restrictions begin to relax, are we even detecting a degree of nostalgia for the peace, pace and quiet of full Lockdown - not entirely shared by the youth? It may not have been a welcomed option but Lockdown circumstances were widely accepted. It took so many choices away from us and yet, for some - notably those with gardens and freezers - the imposed diminution of daily decision making allowed us an 'unprecendented' opportunity to re-evaluate our previous circumstances and motivations. Lockdown at its height was often strangely low stress - despite health and wealth anxieties there was no commute; temporary work suspension for many; fewer shopping trips; less cars on the roads; gentle solitary exercise in idyllic springtime weather conditions (UK) and unhurried time with family, particularly our children. The days rolled into one another. Weekends were indistinguishable from weekdays. We aligned with time rather than having our daily routines stressfully determined by its passage. For a moment there, many of us became time rich and how the experience affects our social interactions and life priorities post Lockdown remains to be seen (Life after Lockdown article). Under this Cancer New Moon, any genuine desire for societal change towards a more caring, inclusive culture is likely to be confronted by the endemic discrimination of a system that requires winners, losers and liars to perpetuate its ideology. The losers are disproportionately numbered as female, people of colour and children. The minority group winners are predominantly white and male, many of whom lie at will to maintain their privileged status. Wide recognition of these inherent divisions has led to anger amongst those discriminated against by a system designed in its own white, male image. The largely peaceful #blacklivesmatter demonstrations in towns and cities across the globe have an important point to make about enforced world inequities and awareness of these injustices has risen as a result. Ironically, the most violent demonstrations witnessed in the UK have been those led by groups of rascist, white men intent on attacking police or anyone else that stands opposed to their bigoted, ignorant bile. It strikes us that these groups are an extreme manifestation of the same controlling, unquestioning self-righteousness represented by the riot police they take such violent pleasure in attacking. Is it emblematic of our dysfunctional, patriarchal system in collapse; consuming itself like a snake eating its own tail under the moderating eyes of bystander video footage? Is it another ugly last stand of an outdated collective thought form, panicked at the existential threat posed by an expanding, common understanding that all divisive thinking is now redundant? We genuinely hope so. Division serves no one. If these are the death throes of that system, they are likely to be drawn out, violent and painful; the suffering dramatically exacerbated by media outlets vying for audience figures rather than truth. Watch out over the next month or so for indulgent, exaggerated media reporting as this Saturn support system digs in its heels to avoid having to change itself. Mercury goes retrograde on the 18th June which generally means all communications, whether at home or geopolitically, go to shit. If something is going to be misunderstood, the next few weeks are prime territory for the confusion. We need to watch what we say and how we say it. Keep messages clear and simple or just keep quiet. Neither is this the time to be signing extensive new contracts without some very comprehensive research. Let's hope the BLM demonstrations result in clear, meaningful social change but there is a huge amount of work to do.....there are eons of systematic, debasing abuse and murderous atrocities to unpick and redress. (George Monbiot on Boris and Britain's manipulatively edited past) What can the direct beneficiaries of centuries of discrimination, exploitation and murder offer following generations as appropriate reparation? Surely the least that should be tendered is an equitable share of the current collective wealth so that no family, or child is left hungry or vulnerable by the system that preyed voraciously on their ancestors. (Footballer Marcus Rashford's recent letter to MP's requesting a continuation of free school meals to vulnerable children over the Summer) Ancient cultural myths, stories that still shape our societies today, are attributed to the Solstice. Christmas is a Winter Solstice tale and a half...we've explored that before (Mooning Monthly 37 on the pre-christian origins of Christmas). The Summer Solstice abounds with tales of kings and sun gods, a few of whom get rudely decapitated at the peak of their midsummer powers so that a new monarch can be crowned, to reign until a similar, cruel fate awaits him at midwinter. The season's king is emasculated or beheaded at the summer solstice, robbed of his solar potency and replaced in a perennial coup that slides inexorably toward winter darkness. In true Christian fashion this Celtic/Pagan midsummer narrative was appropriated by the church as the Feast of St John (24th June) to celebrate his birthday exactly six months before dear old Jesus emerged from the virgin womb - summer and winter kings as it were. The story goes that St John too was eventually beheaded, apparently for criticising Herod's impending divorce. A major error of judgement there by John, but losing his head remains something of a historic, cultural coincidence.... St. Johnny was, of course, the forerunner of the King of Light, "He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light" (John 1:8) and John himself apparently said, "He must increase, but I must decrease," (John 3:30) biblical quotes that lent themselves nicely to the waxing and waning sun in opposing halves of the year between solstices. But hold Mooners, there's yet more Christian patriarchal personification of this previously Pagan period! The feast of St Alban (22nd June) commemorates the first recorded British Christian Martyr who also succumbed to a beheading, this time after refusing to bow to Roman rule and its guiding deities. Oooh, I'm fairly sure there's a link here somewhere... It's tenuous perhaps, but today's equivalent of Rome is burning in front of us. Our complicit acceptance of the consumerist instruction manual has ravaged the planet and a good proportion of its people. Our political and economic systems do not represent or serve the best interests of the planet's precious biosphere or its people. The saturnal edifices of control and authority, designed and implemented to benefit a select array of privileged white men, are being challenged, astrologically in the heavens and most definitely here on terra firma. (As above, so below) Not before time, the White King's reign approaches its natural conclusion in a flurry of outmoded decadence. Let's face it, as a Monarch, he's been a single minded dictator; a territorial bully who still employs dehumanising pillage, rape and torture as tools to cement his regime and is now planning to colonise other planets having fucked this one over good and proper. His has been a dynasty that has covered itself with blood stained plastic waste instead of glory, yet we still champion him as Sovereign. We have waved flags and cheered his carriage through ever more elaborate parades of material wealth and excess. We tune into his heartless rhetoric every time he appears on our TV screens wearing his latest new clothes to proclaim how lucky we are to have him as King. May we respectfully suggest that as the Summer Solstice approaches under this caring Cancer New Moon, we set our intent very clearly to revolt against his pernicious, restrictive dictates and dethrone and divest him of any remaining power. In his stead let us support every man and woman in their rightful claim for personal, equitable sovereignty, nurtured in the knowledge that all are born equal and due equable rights to love, respect and opportunity. The call already resounds across this kingdom of devastating misperception, division and inequality. The White King's reign is over. It is done. OFF WITH HIS PRIVILEGED HEAD! In our post lockdown communities, let's move together as one, learning as we go that the quickest path to happiness lies in forgiveness. Forgiving is NOT forgetting dear Mooners. How we think about the past ultimately determines our present experience. Our true creative power lies in awareness of our thoughts. Under this Cancer New Moon solar eclipse it is likely to be the secrets and ingrained beliefs (Pluto and Saturn) we hold about ourselves in our unconscious minds (Moon) that manifest as our perceived reality. The understanding that we are the ones freed by our forgiveness is crucial. What is not a loving thought, word or action is in essence an attack and any attack in this indivisible, unified whole we call Life, is therefore launched against ourselves. Let's resolve to choose Love. We here at Mooning HQ hope you continue to enjoy these missives, however contentious, written for and exclusively delivered every fortnight to our expanding international Mooning Monthly community. Please encourage friends of a similarly Moonish persuasion to subscribe and share the lunar bounty, all of which can occasionally be found uploaded to the website www.mooningmonthly.com. With Love, still wrapped in layers of appropriate PPE, 'til next time...
The funeral of our community elder Robert Grant Pitts Weighton (29.03.1908 - 28.05.2020) will take place at 3.30pm on Friday, June 19 at Basingstoke Crematorium. The hearse will drive slowly along Anstey Road, Alton at 2.30pm past the Brendoncare appartment where Bob lived. It will then drive along Church Street, turn into Greenfields Avenue past his other previous Alton home, around 2.35 pm, and leave Alton past Butts Green at about 2.40 pm. If you find a moment, do please send a loving thought in his direction on Friday afternoon. We're sure it will be greatly appreciated.
It seems fitting that his remaining vehicle is being driven in another vehicle round the town that he knew and loved so well. There will of course be a major commemorative service to celebrate his life when Covid restrictions permit. In typical Bob style, everyone will be welcome!