From
the BigSkyAstrology Archives: This
article was originally published
at MoonCircles.com
in Oct. 2004.
Recently,
an artist friend gave me a delightful, whimsical painting
that I immediately hung in a place of honor, above the living
room fireplace. But the painting’s colors are so rich and
exciting that, by contrast, they transformed the pale,
yellow walls of my living room from tastefully neutral to
washed-out and boring.
I
liked the colors in the painting much more than the color
on my walls, so I decided to adapt the room to fit the painting.
I began with the wall behind the fireplace, painting it deep,
bright red. The result was gorgeous; it practically glows.
And it shows off the painting to perfection… but it made the
other drab, yellow walls look even more insipid. So, an adjoining
wall got a coat of warm khaki - a dramatic, but pleasing contrast
with the red wall.
You
can probably see where this is going. Now, of course, the
other two walls look even blander. So tomorrow, I’m off to
the paint store for more colors - perhaps a pale aubergine,
a light straw-colored gold. The final effect may very well
turn out to be a bit too much like the Partridge Family’s
gaudy, multi-colored bus; but for now, I find the contrasting
colors unexpectedly harmonious. I don’t have my friend’s
talent for drawing, but I’m enjoying the artistic challenge
of transforming the room one color at a time, carefully balancing
one tone against the next. It’s a bit like creating a painting
of my own.
The
artistry associated with Libra, the sign highlighted
by this New Moon, is a reflection of Libra’s genius for combining
one element with its natural complement. Libra, with its inherent
sense of cosmic balance, delights in bringing together the
right mix of people for a stimulating dinner party, two single
friends who might find each other interesting, or yes, an
interesting selection of paint colors for a room. We tend
to imagine that such artistry is a mysterious talent granted
to some and not to others, a cosmic gift that can never be
truly taught or learned. But is this true? After all, Libra
is an air sign, more analytical than instinctual. Surely
the gift of gracious living is available to all of us who
are willing to learn.
In
fact, Libra’s artistry seems surprisingly akin to math:
each requires that we know what must be added or subtracted
to get the right result. The mathematics of Libra guides the
writer who carefully deletes a turn of phrase she dearly loves,
not (as Virgo might) because it is thematically inconsistent
or grammatically awkward, but because it simply doesn’t harmonize
with the rest of the piece. It is present in the hostess who
recognizes that a gregarious guest of honor is an exotic flower,
one that finds its complement in fellow guests who are generous
in their praise, yet interesting enough in their own right
that their praise is worth having. Libra even lives and breathes
in the consummate salesman who is able to match a product
with the buyer by identifying some intangible common ground
between them. Somewhere in your chart, Libra is present;
and somewhere in your chart, you are an artist.
The
red wall in your living room.
Along
with the inner artist, this potent New Moon summons the powerful
energy of a solar eclipse [NOTE: This year's eclipse was
in September, in the sign of Virgo).. Eclipses signal
that we’ve reached a scary, prickly moment of truth. Don Juan
speaks of "the assemblage point," your innate point
of view, which can suddenly "shift" in response
to the unexpected. Likewise, an eclipse signals that something
in you has recently shifted, as surely as an earthquake
shifts the foundation of a house. Sometimes the shift is subtle;
a crack in the plaster, a picture that falls off a wall. Other
times, as when the eclipse point makes a close aspect to a
planet in your birth chart, your whole house is picked up
and shaken.
Look
to the house of your chart that contains Libra. This house
describes an area of your life where a single focal point
has exerted itself as boldly and incongruously as the red
wall in my living room. The rest of your life has been thrown
out of balance by this concentration of energy, and at
this New Moon, the energy of Libra is rushing in to restore
equilibrium with a contrasting point of view. Since the
New Moon/eclipse point makes a square to Saturn, it may not
be a message you’re particularly ready to hear. Nevertheless,
like advice from a bossy older sister, it may be the one
message that can help you restore your balance.
Complementary
colors
What
needs to be added or subtracted to make your inner landscape
more pleasing? Just as a color’s natural complement can be
found on the opposite end of a color wheel, look to the house
opposite Libra’s to find the solution to the problem. The
house Aries rules in your chart identifies where you’ve been
leaking energy, the room whose demure tones suddenly seem
pale and uninteresting next to the single, vivid wall.
In
my chart, Aries rules the fifth house. In recent months, I’ve
been consumed by politics – ruled by the eleventh house. My
almost desperate concern about the upcoming elections reached
its peak with the high-strung intensity of the Virgo New Moon.
But just after the full moon in Aries, I took a spontaneous
mini-vacation from worrying about politics. I stepped into
the creative, playful energy of the fifth house, turning on
the local jazz radio station, picking up my paint brush and
boogied along while I painted in broad, red strokes. I didn’t
go anywhere, I saw almost no one – a self-imposed Saturnian
exile into hard but joyful labor. At the end of two days
I was rejuvenated, as if the act of turning my metaphorical
red wall - of eleventh house political distraction - into
a literal one had opened me up to other creative possibilities.
Now
the Libra New Moon eclipse is energizing my eleventh house,
urging me to put down the paintbrush and rejoin the affairs
of the world. But this time, I’ll surround myself with
complementary colors. I’m hosting a campaign phone party,
where friends can gather with potluck dishes and cell phones
and work together toward a common goal. My new, fifth-house
crazy quilt of colorful walls will serve as a lively backdrop
not just for my treasured painting, but for the eclectic group
of friends that Libra has expertly chosen for me.
At
this New Moon, let "unity" be our meditative mantra.
Unite your strong voice with those of people who think like
you and, more importantly, people who don’t; like artists
whose canvas is the world, persist in blending your colors
with those who have a different artistic vision. Paint in
bold strokes and vivid hues, and remember that the most beautiful
paintings don’t rely on matching colors. Indeed, as I learned
from my single red wall, there is unexpected pleasure to be
found in contrast.
