Summer Solstice 2006: Road To Xibalba

June 21, 2006
Summer Solstice 2006: Road To Xibalba
Gem Fire Air
by marty kleva

During the year following my auto accident, I went through phases of healing, many which had no resemblance to how we ordinarily think of healing. You know . . . take a pill and it’s all better tomorrow.

No, it wasn’t like that . . . rather it was one day up, the next five down, the morning rush to do plans that never got done, taking a nap to feel better only to feel worse and end up in bed for the next 3 days, depressed one day, feeling like a normal person the next . . . like the song says, “upside-down all around”.

That’s what my healing process looked like . . . and it has continued to this day almost six years later although it no longer seems so bleak. I have had to learn to newly recognize the signs and symptoms of stress, and learn to pace myself with them instead of ignoring them or denying them.

The first year was a merry-go-round and a loop-de-loop combined in one. During this time especially, it seemed I was thrown to the wolves' fangs and simultaneously experienced transcendent bliss of the somatic body and mind.

It was both the lightest time and the darkest time for me . . . the dark night of the Soul. It was here that I encountered the dark shadow that encompassed my head and that I write about in a forthcoming article . . . named ‘The Buddha of Fear and Terror’. Both these will be part of the book “Soul Dancing”

But to stay with the topic at hand, I also one day penned a piece that was so dark and virulent and that I had no name for. It almost obsessed me to examine it daily, to see where it came from and to ask what did it mean? I added to it, changed it daily, but never really knew what it was, just that it was me, and it was how I felt and what I was experiencing.

Years later, I came upon some info on the web that immediately tossed me back to the piece I had written. The word that triggered it was “Xibalba”, not know what the word was about . . . surely it was very different. When I looked at the web-material, I realized it was Mayan, and although in the past, I had tried to familiarize myself many times with the Mayan Calendar and culture, I was always put off by it. Simply speaking, it was totally foreign to me and I could not understand it, so I always left it alone. This time was no different except that the word Xibalba triggered something to catapult me back to the piece I had written.

Blindly, I opened it up on my computer and added the title to it, “Road To Xibalba.”

The other day, and now several years later, when I opened up the chart for Summer Solstice 2006, from Planet Waves, I knew there was something important for me to connect with and I began to “study” the chart in my own manner.

As I have stated before, I am not an astrologer, but I am a student of it and I do have expertise in archetypal energies and symbols. So I combine everything and work from a Jungian and energetic viewpoint.

Something that I learned to trust is that no matter what it is that I do or don’t do, there is a significance to it that I will come to understand somewhere along the way. And so I have learned to follow my instinct as a matter of course.

As I worked with the chart and my own materials, a scenario began to unfold and which is the topic of this material.

I find a great connection to “The Road To Xibalba” inside this chart and have finally made a connection to the Mayan symbolism and to their story of Xibalba. I do not say this is the Mayan understanding at all. This is clearly mine and comes out of my own experience, but I trust that there is some Truth here that I relate. To begin with, here is the piece I wrote in 2001 and finally came to name:


Road To Xibalba
mek

Who is this angel mine, come to slay me cold?
Sending me into the shattered abyss to die
Alone and cored to the quick.
Raw, without a place to hold
in this sleek obsidian canyon of hell.

Falling — Falling — Sometimes — Floating,

No guide, no map,
nor light to find my way thru the steep descent.
Except to feel
the dark hood of bleak destruction
hear the torturous legions of my ravaged laments.

Madness comes barreling
with snarling mouth, sneering lips.
Bared white teeth overtake me
Red-hot incendiary eyes pass me by.
Spitting rings of fire at their edges.

Flames whirling behind it
disappearing ahead of me
into the jet black bottomless pit
where surely I am headed
as my eyes pierce the terrain of terror within.


As is plainly clear, this is not about feeling safe, or loved, or good, or whole. It is the pit of fear and terror that seemingly has no way out, being surrounded by nothing but steep canyon walls of sleek black obsidian.

This is the face of terror within, the shadow of terror that eats away at confidence, self-worth, and self-reliance. It is the kind of hell that others do not wish to hear about, and want you to either buck-up and get over it, or want you to go away. Fortunately for me, being a professional therapist, I knew what I was facing on all sides and understood that no one else and nothing else would heal me except me. So I did not seek out the usual medical treatment that I felt sure would try to place me within another category to fit their needs, not my unique and individual ones. So I secluded myself away from that and have only just felt comfortable enough within the last nine months to emerge from my self-created healing cocoon.

The terror is no longer like the above piece, but I am sure that I am still on The Road To Xibalba and that what I have written is a description of a section of the journey down that road.

I make no decisions as to whether or not everyone must or will also take that journey. But I do believe we as a collective species, by virtue of the fact that we live on this planet called Earth, have already, are now presently, or will somewhere in the future experience something similar to what I have written in “The Road To Xibalba.”

And there must be more than just that. As I have stated, I am no longer in that state of debilitating terror, however, I do believe that within the context of this discussion, I am still on The Road to Xibalba and find that it is full of diverse and various opportunities.

So, enough said about me personally; let’s get to the simple astrology of this Solstice happening Wednesday, June 21, 2006 at 8:25 PDT.

Summer Solstice 2006 Astrological Chart (compliments of PlanetWaves)
Most astrological information presented here has been garnished from Planet Waves where there is greater in-depth astrological information. Planet Waves has a huge library of articles to browse through.

The Summer Solstice, here in the northern hemisphere occurs June 21st at 8:25 Pacific Time. This is when the Sun moves into the astronomical constellation of Cancer, and indicates that we are entering the first day of summer. It signifies a time of importance in many cultures both past and present, least of all our modern western culture, which in my opinion, is the furthest removed from any connection to Solstice; we report it, but don’t live it.

This Solstice has some very interesting and possibly challenging astrology to go with it. I promise not to get too deep into the astrology; see Planet Waves for that.

Suffice it to say that there are several major planetary alignments in process around this day and which continue to operate into the future. The Sun in Cancer is still in a loosening relationship to the planet Pluto, that on Sunday, 18th (Father’s Day), was directly opposite the Sun’s position. Not a big deal you say? The big deal is that Pluto is practically on top of and in direct line with the Galactic Core, that place that scientists tell us is access to a far greater cosmic force that anything else that we know of.

If you have read my former series on Pluto and Persephone, you have a good idea about who and what Pluto represents, even if it is general.

Pluto IS the Transformer of anything and everything that is in its path! So if we happen to be in that path, we are literally an invitation to transformation, and by that I mean, astrologically, archetypally, emotionally, psychologically, and spiritually. So that if a planet, asteroid, or centaur planet in your chart is close to 25° of Sagittarius, or opposes it in Gemini or squares it in Pisces or Virgo, or trines it in Leo or Aries, you are being related to by Pluto.

The additional force and importance is that Pluto is 1° away from the Galactic Core. So the Transformer Pluto is sitting on the Galactic center of the Cosmos, as we presently know it. That’s like squaring the #9999999 to the One-Millionth power! In other words, it’s unfathomable. But do not immediately go to destruction and chaos on your mind!

So it would seem that The Earth stands between the Sun on one side and the Galactic Core and Pluto on the other, placing everyone on Earth within the influence of this one collective event.

The second major influence of this Solstice chart is that there is also a Fixed Grand Cross that occurs amongst seven other planets; the Moon is in Taurus (earth), Juno, Saturn, Vesta, and Mars is in Leo (fire), Jupiter is in Scorpio (water), and Chiron is in Aquarius (air).

All four of these constellations, are called ‘fixed’ signs, meaning that their influence is one that is less likely to be flexible, and is more rigid and unbending. Notice also that they incorporate the Four Elements of earth, air, fire, and water, that they make a cross, they don’t match up energetically, and are at cross purposes to each other. They also represent Four Equidistant Points of a Circle or Mandala that we call the Astrological Chart, and therein derives the name Fixed Grand Cross marking a + on the chart.

Think of Da Vinci’s ‘Man’ and place yourself inside that circle like the illustration to get a sense of what it might feel like to be pulled and influenced by four different, diverse and oppositional forces at the same time.

These are the forces we here on Earth are presently under; like two different teams playing Tug-of War across the same playing field, except that our job is to keep the teams as balanced as possible, and to win is NOT to pull the opposing team over the center, but to keep the flag as close to the center while we are on the Tilt-a-Wheel at the Carnival!

Easy enough to say!

There are some mighty interesting Tug-Teams happening here amongst the planets. In Leo we have what is called a Stellium of planets including, the asteroid Juno, Saturn, the second asteroid Vesta, and Mars. All of these four oppose the one lone Centaur-planet named Chiron in Aquarius! You know Chiron, aka The Wounded Healer who was the fabled teacher of the children of the gods. Chiron stands alone in opposition to these four mighty influences, and no matter anything — Chiron is like Pluto — win, lose or draw, Chiron will still have his influence upon the opposition!

And in that opposition is a very interesting set of teammates. We have two Feminine asteroids and two Masculine planets. First there’s Juno, wife of Jupiter and considered the Goddess of Relationships, then we have Saturn, the father-image of the Patriarchal Establishment — establishment of anything and everything albeit government, courts, or the money system. Saturn has a set of rules and wants us to live within them and keep the status quo at any and all costs.

Shoulder to shoulder and one degree away are Juno and Mars. Mars is the Warrior planet, and some would say The God of War! On Sunday past (18th) Saturn and Mars were even chummier and sat at the same place at the same exact degree — remember, at the same time opposite Chiron — like sitting at Arthur’s Round Table across from each other.

In the three days since the 18th, Mars has moved in orbit faster and is now one degree ahead of Saturn, so that on the 21st Solstice, they sit shoulder to shoulder, after being in each other’s pocket.

Sitting with Mars is the asteroid Vesta, the Keeper of the Fire, representing the Flame of the Temple of the Vestal Virgins, the Hearth of the Community. All four sit within three adjacent degrees in Leo.

As we have already said, in opposition to these four, we have the lone Chiron in Aquarius.

The second Tug-Team consists of Jupiter in the water sign of Scorpio, representing the head of all the gods, and opposite the Moon representing the Feminine in the earth sign of Taurus.

Symbolically we have the signs represented by: Taurus/bull, Leo/lion, Scorpio/Eagle, Aquarius/a human being. John dramatically describes all of these in the Book of Revelations. Additional symbolism is carried throughout other belief systems as well. The Egyptians held the bull as a sacred initiatory animal. Isis and Hathor are depicted with the headdress of the horns of the bull to symbolize the Divine Feminine.

The Sun is in the Feminine sign of Cancer. There is a total of seven major players that sit at this Round Table.

We are six and a half years from the end of the Mayan Calendar that unfolds as its own mystery — admittedly, one that I can only catch a glimpse of. Not to promote any of this here, but to say that for some reason, this Solstice has drawn me to represent it with a photo of a local public tile mosaic depicting a scenario between the Sun, a snake, and a jaguar. Note that I had to crop out the Sun to fit the photo and it would be loceated in the lower left-hand side.

Something within this photo speaks to me about what is occurring astronomically and astrologically in the skies.

The Feminine Principle is the Focus: Snake = Transformation and the Higher Feminine Principle, could say that this is represented by the Moon, Juno and Vesta, Pluto and Chiron, all who are related to Kundalini energy.

The Jaguar is linked to the lower earthy Feminine principle, being grounded in the physical world. The Sun in Cancer is another Feminine-based symbol, Cancer being ruled by the Moon and representing the Mother.

Between the Snake and Jaguar is the Taoist yin/yang symbol of masculine/feminine balance. Something hangs in the balance of the Fixed Grand Cross.

Returning to the previous Tug-of-War analogy, remember, this is not to “win” but to remain centered and balanced.

I offer here my observations and hope that you can add some of your own. This grand cross is not going to go away anytime too soon, and the Pluto/GC conjunction is here to stay for more than another year with Pluto steadily moving to meet it exactly before it passes beyond it. That will take us up to 2012.

During those dark nights of the Soul, the one major thing that I learned is this: Everything that makes me uncomfortable and that I see as being different from me is actually Me. All the terror and fear is Me. I am the Terror and Fear. Anyone outside of myself who wishes to attempt to have any control over me just needs to bring up an issue that makes me feel unsafe or different and they have me in their sights! This goes for family, friend and/or foe.

We use fear of losing our safe space in all corners of this culture as well as in our personal relationships because it makes us feels safer to see someone else feel intimidated.

No matter how we cut it, we all have some piece of the Bully Arrogance in us whether we use it in a subtle framework or we wield it in the public forum.

Additionally, I can say that it was the most grueling work I have ever undertaken and I never knew how I would come through it. I believe that this grand cross offers us the opportunity to practice balance in the face of real or perceived fears, needs, and/or desires. It will come through the collective, meaning all of us, and it may depend on some to be the referee at the center of the circle to communicate to all parties the state of affairs as to where the point of balance really lies.

My friends and colleagues— I wish you all the best of discoveries on The Road To Xibalba!


con amore,

mek