26 Aug 18

© Malvin Artley

Topics: (Linked to paragraphs) Overview and Virgo Virgo and service The environment The full moon The current world war Nations with Virgo Paris and the French revelation Future sites of occult training Greece and Syria Lines of thought St. Michael The Virgo nations: Their destiny Some considerations for the future Israel and Virgo Our common humanity and conclusion

Greetings Everyone!

It has been a bit of a wild time here in Italy since the last letter, manifestations of the Mars/Uranus square that has been with us since the end of last month, with Mars moving slowly through its retrograde period. And that will stay with us virtually until the next full moon. Mars will turn direct just after this full moon. We have had a few significant earthquakes along the fault line that runs through Italy and two major traffic incidents, highlighting the problem of crumbling infrastructure, the legacy of privatization. The latter is also reflective of Pluto in Capricorn, with the old political and economic structures that are crumbling and falling away. I noticed that our dogs were acting a little strange today, and as I sat down to write this I felt a tremor go through the house. We sometimes get small earthquakes here in Trentino. But the events here are small in comparison to the bigger scheme of things, though the bridge collapse was awful. The world in general has been restive, with cars torched in Sweden and reindeer there in danger of starvation, flooding in Karala, India and Wisconsin in the US, large wildfires in California and British Columbia, and major earthquakes in Venezuela and Indonesia, not to mention summer heat and winter cold, depending on where you live. In much of this we are reminded that we live in a fragile world, and that we must live in concert with Mother Nature, otherwise we get the sorts of events that we are seeing. Nature is associated with the sign Virgo in astrology, and Nature is the grand nursery in which we live. We will touch on this theme as we go along with this letter, and see what Virgo has on offer in this halfway point in the Year of the Mountain Dog.

Overview and Virgo: There is so much we can say about Virgo, but we will only be able to touch on key points here. We will be taking a different tack in this letter than we have in recent ones, focusing instead on specific efforts to emerge for the uplifting of human consciousness. In this year’s letters we have focused on the nations and the shifting geopolitics as they apply to the nations as outlined in Alice Bailey’s The Destiny of the Nations. But with Virgo and my researches, something a little different has emerged, and I will share that with you here a little later in this piece. The key focus in The Destiny of the Nations is not on geopolitics, though, but rather on the nations as they foster and serve as mediums of service for the advancement of spiritual human potential. There is a consistent theme that sounds throughout that work regarding Virgo, and that is the theme of service. If we stand back and look, though, other themes that emerge with Virgo are those of environment, purity, beauty, and  more importantly work for the future. And most of those nations are meeting places where many races blend and merge, with new possibilities emerging for the future of our humanity. So without further ado, we move on to the main points regarding Virgo and then get to the crux of our considerations.

Rather than going through explanations and commentary this time, it will be easier to quote snippets from the book Esoteric Astrology, followed by their corresponding page numbers, and then move on from there, keeping them in mind as we go along. To start, then: “Virgo is a triple sign (57) [showing] the function of the triple form [the personality] and the liberation of the man imprisoned in that form…to himself and to the world the reality of that which Virgo has veiled or hidden. (58) The rulers of Virgo are Mercury, the Moon [which veils Vulcan and Neptune] and Jupiter (Tab VI 68) The sign transmits ray 2 (62) and also ray 6 via the Moon (87) Virgo represents the crisis of the birthplace (102) It is one of the most significant signs in the zodiac, for its symbology concerns the whole goal of the evolutionary process, which is to shield, nurture and finally reveal the hidden spiritual reality. (225) Virgo symbolizes depths, darkness, quiet and warmth; it is the valley of deep experience wherein secrets are discovered and eventually “brought to light”; [This will have real significance when we consider the Virgo nations] It is the place of slow, gentle and yet powerful crises and periodic developments which take place in the dark and yet which lead to light. It is the ‘blinded stage’ which is found in Masonic rituals and which ever precedes the gift of light. Virgo stands for the “womb of time” (281) [which leads to its esoteric motto]: “I am the Mother and the Child. I, God, I matter am.” (655)

Virgo is the sign where mental introspection and critical analysis become possible [going around the wheel of the zodiac] (118) It shows where the hidden man is making his presence felt. The intellect is awakening and instinct – after passing through the emotional stage – is being transmuted into intellect. (119) The mind, under the influence of Virgo, which has been analytical and critical, changes to that quality of mind which is best described by the words, illumination and revelation. (121) The mystery of the Sphinx is connected with the relation of Leo and Virgo, and tied up with the secret of the solar Angels. This is not the mystery of soul and form, but the mystery of the higher and the lower mind and their relation to each other. (155) Virgo is the focal point for the expression of the third aspect, that of active intelligence. In that sign the highest function of matter is symbolized. (195) Virgo [leads to] Meditation [and thus to] Soul life, as sensed in man, [this being] the [soul’s] gestation period. (229)” End quotations. These talking points lead to practical application for the person who has Virgo as the sun-sign or ascendant especially.

As for practical applications, the ascendant represents a method or pathway toward realization of one’s spiritual purpose. It does not represent the higher Self, but is a doorway to it, if you will. The sun-sign represents our present challenges, what we are working through this life and the present point in our karma. There is a key in the ascendant as to the method for building the bridge of light[1] and for doing so in one’s everyday life. In the case of anyone who has Virgo rising, the planets Mercury and Vulcan are prime considerations. With Mercury, that means the development of critical thinking, of promoting discourse (rather than controlling discourse) of knowledge for the sake of service (the use of it instead of collecting it for its own sake), the fostering of ideas and methodologies, and of being of service according to the immediate need. Virgo is a sign that promotes recognition of the immediate need in any situation and the method for achieving an appropriate outcome or fulfillment.

Virgo and service: All types of service are indicated here, but with Virgo in particular there is a compelling sense of service. With the Moon, the emphasis is upon divine will toward spiritual expression and manifesting that in everyday life. Virgo is thus powerfully expressive of the ‘service instinct’, if we want to call it that. We might not think of Virgo in the following way, but the military and police services are all ruled by the sixth house in a mundane horoscope, and Virgo is the natural ruler of that house. There is something noble about putting one’s life on the line in defense of one’s country, if that is the way the military is truly used. And with respect to that, what mother would not put her life on the line for her child? A parent takes on a joyous burden when they bring a child into this realm, when that child ‘falls into the ocean of cyclic existence’ as Buddhists view it, and the first stage of the process falls predominately on the mother, who furnishes the primary nurturing. With respect to that, we have the following line from a Buddhist prayer, connected with Virgo:

Seeing that just as I have fallen into the ocean of cyclic existence, so too have all transmigrating beings who have been my mothers, I ask blessing to develop the supreme thought of enlightenment which takes on the burden of liberating transmigrating beings.

That’s no small order, but it is the prime directive of service. There is no greater service to render to all our fellow sentient beings – human, animal and otherwise – than for our constant aim to be that of liberating them from their bondage of having to return to this level of existence repeatedly. So, the ultimate service that Virgo renders is to establish the path and motivation that enables one to first liberate themselves from the need to reincarnate and in so doing to liberate others as well. No greater love hath a mother for her child. The sixth house also signifies the health. One’s health is intimately tied to one’s state of mind. “As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he.”[2] So, we see that Virgo is very important to the advancement of humanity in general, to health and to the general welfare of ourselves and our world.

The environment: Given all we have just discussed about Virgo, especially regarding ‘our mothers’, there is a particular aspect of Virgo that will be increasingly important to us in the years ahead, and which in itself will cause large geopolitical shifts as time goes on: climate change. Virgo has a connection with Mother Nature, of which we are a part, and which is the nurturing environment in which we progress spiritually, all being well. But all is not well with our world now, nor with our Mother. Now, we can deny climate change is ‘a thing’ all we like, dismiss it as some sort of government conspiracy/New World Order effort to enslave us and reduce population. There is one thing we cannot deny with any factual basis, though, which is that the average annual temperature of the Earth is slowly increasing. There is a video graphic which demonstrates this clearly. We live in a closed geological system and any increase or decrease in temperature has effects across the globe. What we will see with increasing temperatures are extremes in many areas, not simply in temperatures. We can list the effects as follows:

• Hotter summers and colder winters. We see this in the US, for instance
• Longer more severe droughts and excessive rainfall (California and Kerala, resp.)
• Shifts in the ocean currents, which will strongly effect coastal countries and migration patterns for aquatic animals and birds
• Shifts in the jet stream, which cause shifting weather patterns
• More severe hurricanes, cyclones and tropical storms, with huge economic costs
• More severe and more frequent forest fires, and closer and closer to the arctic. (Sweden)

The bulleted items above are caused by two things, primarily: increased heat and changes in the water cycle. It works as follows:[3]

1. For every degree of temperature increase, the atmosphere sucks up 7% more moisture from the ground
2. The heat forces the extra moisture into the clouds, so we get more concentrated precipitation, more violent storms, but they are more infrequent, throwing off the water cycle of the earth
3. As a result, we get blockbuster snows, greater spring floods, more prolonged cycles of drought, monster hurricanes and typhoons
4. As a result of what has taken place already, we are in the 6^th extinction cycle on earth. Over the next 7 decades we could lose over half the species of animals
5. Sea ice melts are changing the ocean currents. This will cause storms we cannot imagine by the end of this century. It also changes the migratory patterns of fish, resulting in fish shortages.

To arrest the worst of the climate change we have to be off carbon as a fuel in 40 years, according to computer modeling. To do that, we need a new economic and industrial model, one that is focused upon getting away from carbon as fuel, which will require moving spending away from the military and into infrastructure, and it has to happen quickly. Currently, there is no political will, too much cynicism and blatantly overt propaganda that militates against this. If we do not think climate change is a major concern and that nothing needs to be done, that it is all just a big psy-op, then we might want to think on this: Why do the US Dept. of Defense and the Dept. of Homeland Security see climate change as a top priority in planning for national defense? Going along with that, then, why do successive US administrations and lawmakers fail in their task of recognizing and addressing climate change as one of the biggest threats, not just of national defense, but of life on this planet in general?

The full moon takes place on 26 Aug 18 at 11:56 UT (9:56 PM AEST). There are two hidden features in the full moon figure: a Sun/Orcus conjunction in Virgo, and quite a bit of quintile activity, indicating hidden creative potential. Otherwise, there is a grand trine with the Sun, Saturn and Uranus, which is a very tough and tenacious combination. With the involvement of Orcus there is a general theme of ‘sticking to one’s guns’ in terms of value systems, which also means that if others do not follow suit then one needs to be prepared to either move on or confront issues head-on. Virgo is not known for letting things slide anyway, and with Orcus there the analytical and often divisive qualities of Virgo will manifest more strongly than usual. It first peeked into Virgo in 2008, the median year of the last big financial collapse, and now we see finances again becoming shaky, especially with the entry of Uranus into Taurus. Orcus will remain in Virgo until 2039. During that time we will see it do its work behind the scenes resolving religious and ideological differences or causing schisms within groups. Its influence can be seen, for one thing, in exposing the use of extremists for the purposes of regime change by the US and other Western nations, and the consequent defeat of the former in ongoing battles. Orcus has a way of winnowing the wheat from the chaff when it comes to any sort of group work.

The current world war: Before we get to the Virgo nations, we are witnessing the beginning of another world war, but this war is to be primarily financial. The emerging powers cannot be defeated militarily any longer, not without serious repercussions on the aggressor(s) and/or their allies. With the solar minimum in place the chances of major open military conflict are slim, anyway. The last two solar maxima we had were in 2001 and 2014. What is at stake in this financial war is who will emerge supreme – if there is to be a ‘supreme’ nation or bloc – as the controller of the world’s financial markets. Will it be the dollar, the yuan, a cryptocurrency, or will the whole concept of money need to be rethought? With Uranus transiting through Taurus and then Gemini anything is possible. We cannot rule anything out at this point, especially as it is early days in this conflict. Who are the main combatants in this financial war? Well, the obvious ones are the US, Russia and China, with belligerents in the US and London seeking to keep the dollar dominance since the 1970s and secrecy zones intact. But, fiat currencies generally only have a lifespan of a generation or thereabouts. That being the case, the period of dollar dominance would appear to have reached its limit. That doesn’t mean that it will disappear, but it will probably not be the ruling currency in a few short years the way things are going. And we see this with many nations of the world adopting other payment systems, bypassing the dollar. The main targets in this epic battle at the moment are China, Russia, Iran, Turkey  and Venezuela. These are the main nations attempting to bypass the dollar. We will probably also see the BRICS bloc in toto eventually face such targeting. I mention this here for two reasons: as a preface to the next letter, where we will have a look at money and its use for the common good in general, and to link that to the discussion of emerging blocs we had in the Sirius letter. So, we will leave this consideration for now, to pick it up at the next letter. Moving on to our main discussion, then, the nations and places with Virgo prominent, are as follows:

Nations with Virgo:[4]

To start, one thing of particular interest with the nations listed is that the rays for them are not listed, except for Brazil, with a 4^th ray soul and 2^nd ray personality. Another point of interest is that most of them are islands, or have large islands as part of the nation, the latter being Greece in particular. Brazil is the exception. These points are suggestive of something gestating and to emerge in the future in these nations, yet to be fully expressed. These nations have been places of isolation in times past and have or had unique biospheres. Brazil has the Amazon River and rainforest, the largest such area in the world, and which is shared with eight other nations. The Amazon basin is like a great womb in the north of South America, and it absorbs a huge amount of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere every year. The Amazon basin is now under threat of desertification due to climate change, with three severe droughts having taken place there in this decade alone. However, there is a seed thought that applies to all the nations with Virgo as their soul expression: Virgo hides the light which irradiates the world in Aquarius.[5] That statement can be read either archetypally, as a description of how the signs interact and evolve in expression, or it could possibly be read as a prophecy, especially with these Virgo nations.

Paris and the French revelation: Another note of interest is that both Australia and Greece have the same astrological soul and personality expression as that of Paris. We will unfold more about that in a moment, but first there are some more ancient factors to consider here, starting with Paris. The cathedral of Notre Dame  in Paris is built upon the ancient site of a Temple of Isis[6] on an island in the Seine (Île de la Cité). Paris nurtures the Pisces soul[7] of France via Virgo. This ancient site, upon which now sits the most famous cathedral in all of France, is imbued with the ancient rites of the worship of Isis. Notre Dame itself means ‘Our Lady’ although the modern name for the cathedral is ‘Our Lady of Paris’, having been built, “…to show that Paris was the political, economic, and cultural capital of France.” Still, the idea of ‘Our Lady’ persisted in the region. Isis, “…was our Immaculate Lady, Star of the Sea, Queen of Heaven, Mother of God. We see her, in pictures, standing on the crescent moon, star-crowned, she nurses her child Horus, and the cross appears on the back of the seat in which he sits on his mother's knee.”[8] Isis stands for the quickening in the gestation process,[9] when there is ‘movement within the waters’, signifying emotional birth, or the animation of the astral nature. Isis is the middle of three goddesses that find their synthesis in Virgo, the other two being Eve, representing the mind and conception, and Mary (mother of Jesus) representing physical birth.

It is not by accident that the Notre Dame cathedral was built on an island in the middle of the Seine.  The goddess of the Seine herself (Sequana) was worshiped for her healing powers. She is depicted standing in a duckboat, draped in a long gown with a diadem on her head. Isis, too, was worshiped as a goddess of healing in ancient Egypt. Paganism and early Christianity mingled in the Mediterranean region until well after the start of the first millennium CE, and much of our Christian symbolism and ritual is adopted directly from pagan rites. The point of this is that Isis and her kin imbue Paris and the waters that flow through her with the idea of healing the woes of humanity, a point that will have real significance a few paragraphs from here. Isis is representative of  that which is to be eventually birthed physically in France. So, what does this have to do with Paris and France? Referring to France, her astrology and her destiny, spiritually considered:

…the infant Christ in Virgo comes to full flower in Pisces [the soul expression of France]. Here lies the hope of France…from France will come a great psychological or soul revelation which will bring illumination to world thought. If the true Piscean element can be drawn forth [the salvation element] and the selfishness and the self-protective interests of the French nation can be offset, France then stands free someday to lead the world spiritually as she has effectively in past history from the more political and cultural aspects, but this can only happen when the personality ray is subordinated to the soul ray and Leo can respond to the Aquarian influence in the coming new era when Aquarius is dominant.[10] (emphases added)

The implication is that the picture painted in the preceding quote lies somewhat into the future, possibly centuries from now. But, the preceding is quite a statement. Returning to the ideas of motherhood and nurturing, then, and tying together some of the ideas we are discussing, a fetus in the womb can be seen as a type of island, isolated yet connected to the parents, both genetically from conception and physically. The fetus is also in a state of confinement, where the soul is being imprisoned in a way, yet where preparation is being made for the anchoring of greater spiritual expression in physical life at the same time. Incarnation is a two-way street – confinement of the soul (‘spiritual death’ in other words) by ‘descending’ into physical existence, and the seeding of the physical realm for the liberation of the souls of the world. Pregnancy is a meeting place, where matter increasingly dominates, yet the seeds for spiritual expansion are also being planted. We have an example here, then, of how Virgo works in the soul expression of nations, and of people too, for that matter. From France via Paris will come a great animating revelation, one which will illuminate the spiritual thought of humanity – a sort of 2^nd French Revolution, if you will – but this time, one of thought. It will be liberating to the great mass of humanity, and by extension, to all the kingdoms of nature. How, then, might we see that working out in places such as Greece, Ireland and Australia in terms of their Virgoan souls, and the other nations with Virgo personalities?

Future sites of occult training: Both Ireland and Australia are to house sites where advanced occult training is to take place in the future.[11] Ireland’s particular focus is to be along the lines of the Bodhisattva (the line of love/wisdom). We see this in Ireland’s Piscean personality, that sign being associated with salvation, the work of bodhisattvas. The sites for such work will be found in the magnetic spots of the various nations involved. This is not to say that spirituality will not be advanced everywhere else, quite the contrary. But the nations cited will be focal points and exemplary of a particular type of work the work to be undertaken. In Ireland, these places would be in the vicinity of sites such as the so-called ‘thin places’. It is said of those sites that, “Heaven and earth are only three feet apart, but in thin places that distance is even shorter.” (from the linked website) There are two other necessary characteristics of such sites in any nation where advanced work is to take place: isolation and silence. In other words, they must be ‘islands of serenity’. Additionally, the advanced sites will more than likely be in mountainous areas,[12] where possible. In Australia these would be places like the Grampians, the Great Dividing Range, Wilpena Pound, the Blue Mountains and the Flinders Ranges, although there are many possibilities. I have been to some of those and they do induce a profound sense of silence, inward-looking and reflection. In Ireland there are many magnetic places, with the more mountainous areas lying in the north and the south of the country.

Greece and Syria: There is a special note of interest regarding Greece. It is stated that a preparatory center for occult training is possibly to be centered in Greece, but there is also the possibility for it to be centered in Syria instead. Both nations have been through great suffering in recent years, with Greek woes centering around economic and governmental matters and with Syrian difficulties coming as a result of foreign interference and warfare. Both nations suffer with foreign interference to varying degrees, both nations are on friendly terms with Russia (where there is to be an advanced center), and are more centered in the Near East. Currently, Syria has largely been destroyed, but it will be rebuilt. We are not told when these occult centers are to appear, and in the large it depends on the response of humanity regarding these places.

The preparatory sites are to be placed near large bodies of water and near large population centers, for purposes of purification and testing the ability of the participants to stay focused and centered within themselves while having to deal with everyday life. Of interest to note is that Syria does not feature in The Destiny of the Nations except to mention such a site and that one of the Masters is/was Syrian,[13] the possible implication of its absence in that book being that the occult center would be centered in Greece. Athens and Corfu come to mind as possible sites. Plus, there is not a major city near a large body of water in Syria. There is one point to note, though: At the present time, if one really wanted a good training/testing ground for staying centered and focused and for working at meditative practice while engaged in worldly affairs among the stresses and strains of human relations, there would be few places better than Syria in which to do so. The opportunity presented by such a circumstance would be great. This goes along, too, with the fact that the center in Syria or Greece would be preparatory for a more advance center to appear later in Egypt, which will be for people who work more with the ray of will or power.

The center in New Zealand will be interesting to see. An attempt has been made on the South Island in the area of Christchurch

Lines of thought: But, there is even more to these nations than meets the eye, especially regarding Greece and Syria. Greece received a large number of refugees from the war in Syria, more than a million since 2015. Greek and Syrian cultures have been admixed at various times since before the current era (BCE). As well, both Greece and Syria were part of the Ottoman Empire. The Greeks gained their independence from the Empire in 1829, the Syrians declaring their full independence in 1941. No matter in which of these nations the preparatory occult site is situated – Greece or Syria – in the future there will probably be interplay between those nations, especially now that there is a large expat Syrian population in Greece. How many of those people will remain in Greece has yet to be seen, but on the whole they have been better integrated into Greek society than they have in other European  nations, which is telling in itself. Kudos to the Greeks. And, there is one more point of interest to consider.

There is a straight line (above left) on the Mercator projection map of the world that crosses sites dedicated to the Archangel Michael which runs from the island of Skellig Michael off the coast of Ireland to Mount Carmel (a sacred site for the Bahai faith) in the current state of Israel. Mt. Carmel is especially connected with the Virgin Mary – ‘Our Lady of Mt. Carmel’ -- Also of interest, the line passes through Athens, Mt. Gargano in Italy, Torino, Normandy and the southwest tip of England, all magnetic spots, and all points of spiritual significance. That line also happens to be otherwise known as the “St. Michael Axis” in Europe, which also happens to run across the European nations that are to have these sites of occult studies, excepting Sweden. Skellig Michael may be of interest to some readers, as it was the site where Rey received her Jedi training from Luke Skywalker in The Last Jedi film.

However, there is a British ‘line of Michael’ (above right) that also runs through southern England that, projected onwards, runs also through the southern tip of Sweden and through to Russia. The former ‘axis line’ from Ireland to Mt. Carmel intersects this other northern European line at Michael’s Mount at the southwestern tip of England. If one traces this other line around the globe in a spherical arc, (above) it also runs through Western China, Australia, New Zealand and Brazil. The Skellig Michael/Mt Carmel line, projects around the Earth (below), passes westward through Newfoundland, down through the eastern US, through the east of Texas and then Mexico, then down through the Pacific, passing just under the south island of New Zealand, and under  Australia. The two lines intersect again in the Pacific off the coast of the South Island of New Zealand. Although it is not shown in the map below, the English Michael line passes through the South Island of New Zealand not far from Christchurch, where there is a Church of St. Michael and All Angels, and where a preparatory center for occult studies is being attempted, still in its early stages, and founded by some colleagues.

Is this just coincidence that this line passes through nations where such centers are to be opened at some time? I’ll leave that for you to decide. There are exceptions, such as Japan and the west coast in California, which do not receive contacts, thus bringing the idea into question. It is more than a little interesting, though, and there is some occultism in the various sites dedicated to St. Michael. Whether or not these lines are true energetic lines in the earth, coincidence, connected through streams of thought, who can say? But there is a connection in consciousness. One of particular interest is at Gargano, Italy, a place I have visited, and there is something quite compelling about it, some of which I did not know until I got there.

St. Michael: St. Michael is another name for the Archangel Michael, and he links Judaism, Islam and Christianity, being recounted in all three religions. The Archangel Michael led God’s armies against the forces of Satan in the Book of Revelation. St. Michael’s Day is May the 8^th. He is depicted as a winged, armored man (our anthropomorphic depiction of an angel, and this one reminiscent of Mercury) standing either on a dragon or on Satan (himself depicted as a man) with either a sword or a long lance, ready to strike the fatal blow that will send evil to its rightful place and bring a millennium of peace on this planet at the end of Armageddon. There is a legend about St. Michael and Mt. Gargano, where he appeared in apparitions three times. Mt. Gargano is the oldest site in Europe dedicated to St. Michael and the site of his first appearance in Western Europe. Buddhism has its version of St. Michael as well in Yamantaka, the ‘Victor over Death’, who is the wrathful manifestation of Manjushri. The legend at Mt. Gargano has resonances with Yamantaka, but we don’t have the space to go into it here. However, we note that the ‘Michael line’ passes through Tibet, where Yamantaka was widely practised.

When legend has it that Michael sends Satan packing, it is allegory for our enlightenment and liberation from the need to reincarnate. We ‘descend into hell’ – personal life – when we incarnate. Now, we probably don’t see our personal lives as being hellish, although some of us might. But ‘being cast into hell for an eternity’ is another allegory – for our having to incarnate again and again due to the pressures of our karma and for our need to learn how to be of service – in other words, to learn how to love as do the great bodhisattvas and world saviors of all the world’s religions and spiritual paths. Such is the destiny for each of us. St. Michael’s sword or lance represents the blinding discriminating light of wisdom that vanquishes our sense of separateness from other beings and our ignorance of our true nature. St. Michael himself represents our higher Selves. It is we who vanquish evil from this world, and it is we who must do so, starting with our own darkness. St. Michael is/was invoked for healing and protection. It is said that the greatest suffering is that of the mind,[14] which goes along with the saying that ‘the mind is the slayer of the real’,[15] the latter meaning that if our focus and attachments are on the temporal things of life, then we do not see life truly, and hence suffer from our attachments to those things.

The Virgo nations: Their destiny: The destiny of these Virgo-associated nations is not that of  military, financial or geopolitical interests, but something that supersedes those interests: the liberation and enlightenment of humanity. Their work in these areas is to awaken in the minds of those who are ready to receive those initiatives that will go toward saving of the planet by many means, towards developing the consciousness within the people drawn to those nations the sacredness of life and the means of its advancement, and the fostering of the immense creative potential of the human being in all areas of human life. As we can probably surmise, that work will evolve over time, and is as yet embryonic. There are many factors that militate against that advancement. Australia and Greece especially have old legacy systems that must first be broken down, for instance, with their focus upon materialism and the ‘old boy’ corrupt politics, to eventually be replaced by governments that serve the needs of their people and their environment rather than corporate, foreign and elite interests. Gough Whitlam was a forerunner of such in Australia before he fell afoul of the system, for instance. Conditions are not yet conducive to such work with the present economic, political and social stresses as they exist today, although those factors are in process of rapid resolution. And, seeds have been planted.

Some considerations for the future: So, we may want to consider the following, with regard to the eventual appearance of these sites of future training and service:

Experiments are being made now, unknown oft to the subjects themselves, to see how quickly a man may be pushed through experience and a general hastening [quickening] of the evolutionary process into a position where it will be safe to train him further. People in many civilised countries are under supervision, and a method of stimulation and intensification is being applied which will bring to the knowledge of the Great Ones Themselves a mass of information that may serve as a guide to Their future efforts for the race. Especially are people in America, Australia, India, Russia, Scotland and Greece being dealt with. A few in Belgium, Sweden, and Austria are likewise under observation, and should the response be as hoped they will form a nucleus for further expansion.[16]

This is not to say we are lab rats. These efforts are undertaken with our full cooperation at subjective levels. We just do not register it in the brain consciousness in most cases. But, how often have we noted or had it related to us in conversations with others that life seems to be intensified, quickened, more ‘in-your-face’ than usual, whatever ‘usual’ might be? There does appear to be a particular sense of expediency in living these days, a sense that there is not much time, or that the ways we used to do things simply do not work any longer? For myself, the days do fly by and people appear to be more stressed than they did in the past. Really, given the state of the world at present, increased stress levels are not to be wholly unexpected. A breaking point does seem to be coming, even though we have turned a corner geopolitically in the past few years. But then, that is why there are increased stress levels. If the preceding quote is true, then all seems to be going according to plan and the experiments do appear to be having their desired effects. It is a particularly important period to be living at this time, in this ‘stage of the forerunner’.[17] And, maybe with these points in mind, this idea of our being forerunners takes on added meaning. We are the ones preparing the way for a quieter period, a new era in international relations and for better conditions that will enable all of us to approach our spirituality with greater freedom.

Israel and Virgo: There is one more turning point to be kept in mind, relative to Virgo, and it particularly involves Israel and its immediate future, although we will only touch on it here. It goes as follows:

The personality ray, the material form ray of the Jewish people, is the third ray. Their egoic ray is the first. Their astrological sign is Capricorn, with Virgo rising. Mercury and Virgo play a prominent part in their destiny.[18]

 Before making comment on this, we should keep in mind that this does not refer to a particular racial type, but rather to one who has been born into Jewish heritage and practises the Jewish faith. There is no ‘Jewish race’ per se. This is not to single out Jews in particular, either. The Jewish people were mentioned here specifically for their connection with Virgo and Capricorn, as well as for what I see arising in relation to Israel. And as for Judaism, Zionism and Israel in general, we have covered this before. It has also been very ably addressed by a colleague. What is of particular interest regarding Israel in our current discussion is where the Virgo/Capricorn polarization of the Jewish people has led. As to what we see developing in Israel and the region, I have addressed those points in the 2^nd Iran article. Our focus here instead is upon the spiritual evolution of the Jews and current obstacles to that evolution. Also of interest here is that the ancient sign for Virgo was the six-pointed star, what we otherwise know as ‘the star of David.[19] Their Sun/Ascendant combination can be briefly summarized as follows: The emphasis of the lives of the Jews as a collective must turn inward, away from material and political ambitions, away from the exceptionalist, separative and arrogant view that they are somehow ‘the chosen people’ (Capricorn) and instead foster the growing sense of ‘the Messiah within’ (Virgo), rather than looking for salvation from outside. I would say a great many Jews already do this or at least have a sense of it, and they live well-integrated in their home nations.

There is a very vocal and militant faction within Judaism, however, and others allied with them – many US evangelical Christians, for instance – who are the cause of many of the current troubles in the Middle East. The Jewish Capricornian nature is expressed most strongly in the Zionist views of their politics and domestic policies, and those are in direct conflict with ‘the Messiah within’. The Christian would call the ‘Messiah within’ the ‘Light of the Christ’. It is, from previous  points, our higher Self. With recent developments in Israel, supported by the present US administration, we see a state that is setting itself up for its own tribulations, which we might add, is something for which the Christian Zionists pray – the ‘end times’, the destruction of Israel, the coming of the New Jerusalem and the conversion of the Jews to Christianity. The Christian Zionist is no friend to the Zionist Jew. Both sects see themselves as exceptional, as chosen by God. It is a very toxic mix of factors that we see playing out in US/Israeli relations, and it goes against all principles of right human relations. It has no other destiny than its own destruction. The Zionist regime in Israel is like an albatross around the neck of the Washington establishment, which Washington was key in creating, and by extension a problem for the peoples of Israel, the US and the region.

Our common humanity and conclusion: The problem we all face is the same as that of the Jews. To project hatred onto Jews, to paint all Jews with the same brush, or anyone else for that matter, is to expose those same qualities within ourselves. In a sense, we are all ‘the wandering Jew’, the ‘prodigal son’, with no permanent place we can call home and indeed being no different from anyone else. It is beholden on all of us to foster our inner light, to let go of attachments to things personal and instead to give freely of the gifts of the soul. And for the temporal enjoyments and things of this world, as the saying goes, “You can’t take it with you” when  the angel of death comes knocking. Lastly, as for the two nations with the Vigo/Capricorn  polarization – Greece and Australia – the same goes for them as goes for the Jewish people in many ways – to put material concerns in their proper context as a means for serving the common good, for care of the environment, care for the young and the disadvantaged, ensuring proper education and giving people space and time to reflect on their spiritual needs, concerns and service, rather than always having to ‘serve mammon’.

Lastly, one of the more unfortunate manifestations of the Virgo/Capricorn pairing is the ‘nanny state’ – the over-regulated, intrusive, enforced politically correct state that fines its citizens instead of advancing society – the terrible mother who lives vicariously through her child and parasitizes the child at the same time. Any good mother wants her child to thrive, to be a valued member of society, to be free and to live the promise of their incarnated soul. It is this latter that Virgo in its true essence manifests, and the promise to which all Virgo nations will especially aspire. It is also the promise of Virgo in general for anyone who has the sign prominent in their chart. Through the stresses and strains that we now experience, Virgo does its work, inspiring us to think clearly, to see matters true and to have care for each other and all beings. It is the basis from which salvation for ourselves and our world comes, to recover the purity from which we came and to manifest that in our daily lives. The nature of the Mother is to care for each according to their need, seeing all as equals, until such time as each one can live free and independently. It is the Mother’s gift to us. It should be our gift to all in turn.