The Amazing 6-pointed Star Pattern

August 18th - October 11th 2002

This incredible and rare planetary alignment lasting 8 weeks, involves every planet, the nodes and main asteroids, with the exception of Mars and Chiron.

The pattern hinges upon two interlaced Grand Trines, which create the 6-pointed stars. Each Grand Trine (GT) has a "base" of two planets, which remain consistent throughout, while the third planet in each GT changes over the 8 weeks.

So, one GT has Pluto and Ceres as the base, with the third planet starting as Vesta, then being replaced by Jupiter on 17th September.

The other GT has Pallas Athene and the Moon's North Node as the base, with Venus as the third planet, then Mercury (4th Sept), then Juno (22nd Sept), which is joined by the Sun on 27th Sept. On the day that Mercury becomes the third planet, Neptune also moves up to conjunct Pallas.

When Venus moves on from 29th August, it creates yet another Grand Trine with Uranus and Saturn until 10th September.
During the 8 weeks that the pattern exists, the Moon contacts each point of the star twice, weaving the whole pattern together.

So let's consider the symbolism and meaning of this elegantly unfolding pattern:

The Grand Trine of Spiritual Purpose

The Moon's North Node, which helps to define the spiritual purpose of the pattern, is conjunct the star Rigel in Orion / Osiris. Rigel is concerned with education, civilisation and development for the benefit of the many.

Pallas Athene, which forms the base of this GT, is at the same latitude as the star Sualocin, the brightest (alpha) star in the constellation of Delphinus, the Dolphin. It is the gentle guide to the depths of the mind using playfulness, curiosity and self-mastery. It is particularly akin to the qualities of the right-brain intuitive mind, which is also Pallas' realm.

So in this Grand Trine the basis is the deepening of the collective exploration of the intuitive and creative mind, which will be released and expressed through the third planet.

At first, this is Venus in Libra, which is conjunct the star Diadem (the Crown) in the constellation Coma Berenices (Berenice's hair). This constellation lies at the North Pole of our Galaxy, from where we view it, so in effect, it is the crown charka of our Galaxy, expressing itself in the human heart, through Venus, the planet of love. Berenice was the sister-wife of Ptolemy III. As she awaited her husband's return from war, she prayed to Aphrodite (Venus) for his safe return. It occurred to her that she should sacrifice something of great value to ensure her husband's safe return. She sacrificed her golden hair, and offered it to Aphrodite. There is some allusion here to a spiritual sacrifice (Crown chakra) as an expression of love (Aphrodite / Venus), and a surrender of spiritual power in order to protect her husband's life. At a deeper level, because this represents the Crown chakra of the Galaxy, Berenice is an expression of the Divine Goddess / Mother. She sacrifices her spiritual at-one-ness or beingness, in order that the male aspect of activity can project into the realm of manifestation and Illusion in order to gain experience. The key to this is Love, the prayer to Aphrodite, which is what maintains the connection.

In earlier times this constellation was known as Ariadne's Hair. It was Ariadne's golden thread, which enabled Theseus to return safely from the labyrinth of the Minotaur - the experience of the Illusion in the Age of Taurus.

As Venus moves on, the next planet to move into this position is Mercury, which becomes exactly conjunct Diadem on 4th Sept., bringing a mental understanding, at some level, of the profound Grace that is present during this time.

Next to move into this position is Juno, bringing the impulse, which has been felt in the heart through Venus, into the reality of our relationships.

Finally, the Sun moves up to join Juno, enabling us to experience the full potential of this pattern and make it a part of ourselves. The Sun is our light; it is how we shine in the world, so this provides us with the possibility to carry the potentials in this figure out into the world.

The Grand Trine of Spiritual Power

Pluto, the planet of spiritual power is above the Ecliptic in the constellation of Ophiuchus, the serpent bearer or healer, trining Ceres / Demeter, the Nurturer and Mother Goddess. Ceres is below the Ecliptic in the constellation of Cetus, the whale or sea-monster of the Greek myth of Perseus and Andromeda..

Pluto is conjunct the South Node, so it is releasing and healing the past karma, associated with the spiritual and psychological patterns reflected in the myth of Pluto, Demeter and Persephone. Ceres (Demeter) and Pluto have a bit of a history. For it was Pluto who raped and abducted Persephone, Demeter's daughter, and carried her off into the Underworld, allowing her to return only for 6 months of each year. There are many levels to this myth:

At one level it is concerned with the need for the psychic separation of an overly close attachment between mother and daughter, Pluto representing the process of transformation and empowerment, emerging from deep within the unconscious.

At another level this myth is concerned with the male usurpation and control of female creative and procreative power. Pluto here represents the dark aspect of the spiritual will, which when not accepted and acknowledged, turns into a powerfully destructive force, and becomes hidden and repressed into the Unconscious (Underworld) as part of the collective Shadow. The relationship of control with Persephone does give rise to a form of creativity, which is born out of the stillness and depths of the dark places of the psyche. But, this enforced separation has also brought with it much grief, sadness, and disempowerment to the Feminine, during the patriarchal era from which we are emerging.

There is an even more intriguing aspect to this myth, which holds some clues to the theory that Ceres, and the asteroids are the remnants of a star - Phaëthon, which was once the second Sun of our solar system.

At the beginning of the myth, Ceres/Demeter and Persephone blissfully wandered the Earth together, delighting in each other's presence during a Golden Age of perpetual abundance and harvest. This would be the case, had there been two suns in our system, as the whole cycle of the seasons would have been different. As Persephone was wandering alone one day, sniffing a 100-blossomed narcissus flower (allusion to the crown chakra, and self-absorption) the earth split open and Pluto emerged riding his golden fiery chariot, drawn by 4 black horses, ravished her and carried her off.

There are similarities here to the chariot of Helios (the Sun) which Phaëthon wished to drive across the heavens, causing it to plunge to the Earth, and creating all manner of earthquakes and fiery (volcanic/Plutonic) eruptions. The other mythologies of the destruction of Phaëthon (possibly by Venus changing her orbit) tell of earthquakes and chaotic destruction on the Earth. Could this be another allusion to this major catastrophe in the solar system, which destroyed the atmosphere on Mars, placed Venus in a new orbit, and changed the whole pattern of life and the seasons here on Earth. The energetic effect of this would be to cause profound changes within the human psyche, and human psychology. The Earth titling on its axis in relation to the Sun would have created a "fall" from bliss-consciousness through the apparently destructive influence of Lucifer, which is Venus, the Light-bearer or morning star, coming too close to the Earth. This resulting physical shift would create a psychological and spiritual shift and deep sense of separation and loss from the experience of oneness.

Vesta is conjunct Acubens, the alpha star in the constellation of Cancer. Acubens is concerned with resurrection, and new life. Vesta herself carries the transformational essence of the Life Force, through the power of the kundalini. Cancer is the sign that connects us most deeply to our emotional roots, and at the spiritual level to our deep devotional connection with the Mother aspect of the Divine. It is our spiritual home.

Now, here we have Vesta, the flame of love within the heart of the Divine feminine, blazing upwards to complete the new relationship between the Goddess of the Earth and the God of the Underworld / Unconscious. A re-connection through Grace (the Grand Trines) with our spiritual power.

Finally, Jupiter moves up to take the place of Vesta, enabling us to expand and extend outwards this new self-expression, with confidence and generosity of spirit, enabling our inner abundance to be increased and magnified a thousand-fold.

These are the positive possibilities for this amazing sequence of alignments.

Within the alignment, there are also several oppositions and quincunx aspects, which will bring challenges to our consciousness as we integrate the overwhelming Grace of the pattern.

Two planets, Mars and Chiron are the only ones that do not become directly involved in the star alignment. This suggests that the pattern is more concerned with the alignments that will arise out of the feminine energy of Grace. Also because Mars and Chiron are not involved, it will be like a testing of the degree to which the masculine energy of Mars has become healed (Chiron), as they stand objectively outside the pattern.

As the star begins, Mars is conjunct the Sun, and both of them are opposing Uranus and Pallas Athene. This is the challenge of the male will as it confronts the qualities of intuitive perception and wisdom to integrate them through a soul-centred perception by means of the semi-sextile connection to Mercury conjunct Juno. In other words, a clear mental perception of the soul energies that are at play will help to defuse the threat, which this pattern poses, to male-ego oriented destructive control patterns.

Six-pointed Star update

Now that the energy of the star pattern is with us, it is becoming easier to understand its nature and energies.

The main axis of the whole figure hinges on the opposition of Pluto/South Node with the North Node.
Pluto is within 2º conjunction with Ras Algethi, the alpha star of Hercules. This star is concerned with having a sense of awe for the natural and spiritual worlds, and being in harmony with the divine order of things with humility and devotion. As Pluto is also conjunct the Moon’s South Node, this suggests that it is time to collectively let go of our attitudes towards power, which do not embrace such a sense of awe for the divine order, or the natural order of Nature – hence, for example, we are seeing more controversy about issues such as GM crop and animal production – which is clearly an interference with the natural order, however you regard it. Also, there has been the focus on sustainable development at the Johannesburg Summit. There is a line in the Tao te Ching: "when people lack a sense of awe, then there will be disaster". This sums it up really, and is particularly the case where Pluto is involved. Pluto brings us into alignment with our inner spiritual, or divine will. If we ignore, deny or suppress this irresistible force, then eventually it will make itself known to us in a powerful manner that we can no longer ignore.

The Moon’s North Node is presently in the middle degrees of Gemini, holding the balance between the opposites, and enabling is to see the world of manifestations intelligently and objectively if we so choose. There is something in this opposition that is about seeing the glaringly obvious, and having the opportunity to go beyond convoluted intellectual blindness, posturing, excuses and Orwellian "double-speak" or "spin", as it is now called.

The North Node is longitudinally conjunct Cursa, the beta star of the constellation Eridanus, the River. The stars of this constellation have historically been associated with natural disasters such as fires and flooding, and we have witnessed the worst floods in Europe for over a hundred years, not to mention other flood disasters happening around the world. Clearly there is some cleansing and purification going on here. The Node is also within 2º conjunction with Rigel, which is Orion’s (Osiris’) left toe that touches Eridanus, the River. "In ancient Egypt, to be under the pharaoh’s foot symbolised being under Osiris’ protection." (Brady’s Fixed Stars) So here the Node is offering us the opportunity to return to the natural protection, and Grace offered by our re-alignment with the divine, natural order. The flooding that is being experienced is another warning of the dangers of believing that we can go against natural patterns and rhythms without there being any consequences. The Earth is teaching us that if we don’t remember how to manage the planet properly, then the consequences can be sudden and devastating.

The Grand Trine, which pivots upon Pluto and the South Node, also involves Ceres and Vesta. There is something here to do with our deep connection to Mother Earth (Ceres), the small voice of our own heart (Vesta), and its attunement to the soul of the Earth. Pluto and Vesta are both concerned with the inner fire, or life force of the Kundalini, whilst Ceres is the body that contains this – all three are in the fire signs.

This Grand Trine is showing us the value and importance of re-connecting with the inner spiritual fire which dwells within the heart of the Earth, and the recognition on a collective scale that this is a living Being upon which we all reside and depend for our very existence.

The second Grand Trine, is formed by Pallas Athene, the Moon’s North Node, and Venus, which is then replaced by Mercury, followed by Juno and finally the Sun. We have already considered the North Node above; the other permanent feature in this Grand Trine is asteroid, Pallas Athene. She is way to the north of the Ecliptic (about 27º lat.) actually passing in front of the stars of Delphinus, the dolphin. Pallas is the female warrior, the seeker after truth and justice – aligned as she is with dolphin energy, this quest for truth will be instinctively aligned with the heart and love; this is reinforced by Pallas being conjunct with Neptune. In other words, at a collective level, it will be very easy to see not only our own truths, but to discern when we are being lied to by governments and people in power. It is important that we trust this inner sense, and know that we are not alone in this. In the Tropical Zodiac, Pallas (and Neptune) is in Aquarius, which means that this has the potential to move into collective awareness, and as such can empower us to bring about positive change. This pattern is suggesting that it is not enough just to be in awareness of unconditional love, or bliss - Pallas requires that we act on that and seek to defend these principles in our hearts, in the outside world – but remembering that Pallas’ way is always to use her wisdom to protect and defend, never to attack.

At first, the third corner of the Grand Trine was held by Venus, who was opening our hearts, at the personal level, to receive the bliss-state which this pattern makes accessible.

Now (from 4th Sept), Mercury has moved into the position where Venus was, and is enabling us to begin to communicate to others, and understand more fully what we are dealing with. Mercury makes it important that, having first felt the energy in our hearts (Venus), we begin to connect to the energies of the pattern through our throat chakra and listen with our inner clairaudience, in order to understand and be able to express what is happening at the mental and intellectual levels. Mercury is now conjunct the star Diadem (the Crown), which lies at the Crown chakra of the Galaxy, enabling us to use our critical and positive discriminatory faculties of mind, to make sense of what we are receiving in our hearts, and what is down-flowing from the spiritual realms. The key here is that the mind be able to maintain its stillness and detachment, not becoming caught up in judgement about the disturbing events which are unfolding in various regions of the globe; the minute we judge these situations or those involved, then we too are adding negative energy to these conflicts.

On 22nd September, asteroid Juno will move into the position held by Mercury. This will create the opportunities to bring us into right relationship with our own souls, so that we may fully receive the energies of Divine Grace and spiritual power directly at the soul-level, and extend our feelings and thought perceptions out to begin to express and share it with others. Juno is now conjuncting the Galactic crown centre, aligning us with our Divine purpose at the deepest levels of our being…..this is a crucial time for just Being, and not getting distracted by unnecessary doing.

On 27th September, the Sun will move up to join Juno and Diadem at the galactic crown centre. This is when we have the opportunity to integrate the energies of Grace that have been flowing into our souls, and bring them into harmonic resonance with our human ego and personality. It is time to walk our inner talk from the very deepest aspect of our being. It is time to stand in the world in our full soul consciousness and simply Be our Truth. The Unconditional Love, Grace and Infinite Compassion that is surrounding the Earth at this time through the planets and stars of the six-pointed star, will support us in this beyond our wildest imaginings. It is time to turn the soul’s Dream into Reality!