2006/2007

Dear Readers,

Over the years I have done my best to pose as many varied subjects and questions to Gaia as possible. Sometimes themes become overwhelmingly clear, as in this month's offering. The questions below were all received during the three-week period leading up to Valentine's Day. Gaia's response will not reach you until after then, but I thought you'd appreciate it just the same. I know I do! ~ Always, Pepper Lewis

I recently met someone whom I admire and would like to become better acquainted, but my astrologer said that we were probably not romantically compatible, so now I am uncertain as to what to do next. If the stars don't lie, does that mean my heart does?

After many years of looking for Mr. Right I have discovered that it was Ms. Right I was really looking for. Why couldn't I have known this all along?

I always seem to attract the wrong kind of relationship, the kind we end up calling a life lesson. How can I get beyond this?

I am in love with someone who doesn't or can't love me back. I know that you can't make someone love you, but what is the point of this heart-breaking experience?

My marriage has only recently ended and there is a part of me that in spite of the hurt I feel already knows that a next and greater love awaits me. Would you call this intuition or stupidity?

When I'm not in a relationship I tend to wish that I were, and when I am in a relationship I tend to think I should be on my own, working on my ability to be in a relationship. How messed up is that!

And what do the stars know of love? Are they not the very ones who nightly shine ever so brightly in your direction if merely to gain your admiration? Do they not cascade into one another with abandon because the moment and nothing else desires it so? Very few of the stars are fixed in their position, and those that are for the most part wish that they were not. The planets remain in fixed orbits for very long periods of time, as if in divine relationship with their journey, but even the (our) journeys of celestial bodies are designed to inspire and cultivate love. One does not fall into or out of love without purpose, but it is not the stars that designate or delegate purpose, it is passionate and compassionate souls that do.

Venus, one of my dearest sisters, adorns herself in different costumes throughout the year and invites others to do the same. Gaia (planet earth) is a living library for those seeking their terrestrial spirit; that enduring and eternal quality that All That Is is present in and through all that is. Venus, also a terrestrial planet, is concerned with the aesthetics of togetherness; that which through beauty and truth dispels illusion and presents a more perfect understanding of union.

Terrestrial or telluric planets are primarily composed of silicate rock, the most common and important of the rock-forming (relationship building) minerals, formed from silicon and oxygen combined with various other elements, and classified by their unique crystalline structures. As terrestrial planets, Earth and Venus (also Mercury and Mars) are substantially different from our gas giant brothers and sisters, which do not for the most part have solid surfaces. These family members are primarily composed of hydrogen, helium and water existing in various physical states, but without form. These planets would therefore be more interested in the formless or spiritual essence within relationships. Terrestrial planets have a structure that includes a central core and a surrounding silicate mantle. Relationships also have a central purpose, or core issue, with surrounding elements whose properties create and destroy, or build and erode. Terrestrial planets are also described as having canyons, craters, mountains, and volcanoes. Relationships also have canyons that separate hearts and minds, craters too deep to climb out of, mountains to high to climb, and periodic volcanic eruptions capable of reducing all to a cinder.

At this time, only the earth has an active hydrosphere, the collection of water in its various forms found on, under and over the surface of the earth. The earth has a water cycle that transports its water to and through the planet, including its lithosphere (the water beneath the earth's surface and in rocks) and its biosphere (the water in plants and animals). The water covering the surface of the planet in liquid and solid form makes up the atmosphere in the form of water vapor, clouds and precipitation. Relationships are also hydrospheric in nature and correspond to the emotions. The emotional body is governed by physiologic and psychologic changes in the body's precipitation, which also includes the desire and ability to shed tears. The sharing and exchange of fluids that encompass the human conjugation process are also worthy of being noted. These relationships exist energetically to complement and contribute to your soul's expression, but they do not make demands upon your free will, do you see?

Venus, associated with Love, and named after a Roman goddess, is still little understood. Today, that which is venus-like is called Venusian, a poor replacement for the more appropriate, Venerean and Venereal, absent today because of the societal affiliation with sexually transmitted diseases. Venereal relationships are those that invoke a feeling or bring about an action of great respect and reverence for somebody or something. Far beyond human love, these relationships are worthy of respect as a result of great wisdom, remarkable achievements, and qualities that surpass the everyday. Long ago, venereal relationships were thought to originate in the genital area where sexual desire also arose. Venery, the pursuit or indulgence in sexual pleasure, was then elevated first through the innocence of the heart, and then by the purity of the soul as transcended by Spirit, or divine movement. So that clarity may prevail, this was the true birth and purpose of Venus, and of those whose beliefs and movements paralleled this Goddess. Interestingly, it was the Vestals, or followers of Venus, who above all others could cure discomforts and diseases brought about by sexual imbalances in both men and women. Vestals of Venus were not celibate virgins, but guides in the honor and ceremony of the rites of passage into manhood and womanhood.

Venus rotates on its axis in the opposite direction of the Earth. This means that on Venus, the Sun rises in the west and sets in the east. Does not love also attract its opposite? In geometry, sides or angles in an even-sided polygon that face each other are called opposites. An opposite is also something that is completely different from another or from what is commonly expected. In art as in nature such opposites are considered complementary. One day upon Venus is equal to approximately 243 Earth days, and stranger still is the fact that a day on Venus is longer than an entire year, because its orbital period around the Sun is only 225 days! Venus is one of only two planets that rotate in opposite, or retrograde motion. It is therefore normal for Venus, the planet associated with love and relationships, to move in a way and in a direction that is unique unto itself. Shall we continue?

Two symbols are associated with Venus. The first is the same as that which is used in biology to denote the female sex, a stylized representation of the goddess Venus's hand mirror; a circle on top of a small cross. Alchemically speaking, the circle represents spirit and the cross represents matter. There is a period of 266 days between the conjunction (the position of a planet when aligned with the Sun, as seen from Earth) and maximum elongation (a planet's angular distance from the Sun, as seen from the Earth). This close association with the length of human gestation has also served to associate Venus with fertility, but a closer look will reveal more: Venus and Mercury are the only planets that can transit in front of the Sun, because they do not ever reach opposition. Mercury reaches a maximum elongation of approximately 28 degrees from the Sun, a time (age 28 approximately) in which the soul seats or enthrones itself within its purpose on Earth. The masculine principle is at work here, and either gender expressing its masculine alignment may contemplate marriage at this time, even if they do not complete the experience. Venus, at between 45-47 maximum elongation, manifests upon the earth at a time in which the masculine alignment retracts and sometimes invalidates the promise it has made to another in order to rebalance the masculine and feminine inner alignments. To be certain, this can happen at any time and age, as well as to either gender, but here we are concerned with measurable masculine and feminine forces that influence human rites of passage.

The second symbol associated with Venus is that of the pentagram. Long ago scholars discovered that when viewed from the Earth, the successive conjunctions of Venus plot a perfect pentagram around the Sun every eight years, returning to its starting point after a forty-year cycle. Those who closely align themselves with Venus will experience a potential change of heart at every eight-year point (stab) of the pentacle, until at age 40; they finally complete the cycle of doubt, or karmic relationship in order to give themselves anew. Those who as partners and companions accompany this journey, have reasons of their own for doing so. All are faultless and blameless in love's expression, which is only a reflection of the divine wishing to know itself as Itself. As if all this were not enough, there are also religious sects and beliefs that associate Venus with Hell. Its extremely high surface and impenetrable cloud cover has inspired the belief that the fires of Hell burn on the surface, obscured from earthly view.

Every planet, star, relationship and beingness is a living example of wholeness. The tempering and perfecting process may be different in each case, but the desire is one and the same. Terrestrial planets express this desire in many ways, one of which is the allowance and compassion they share for that which takes place upon and within their body, as evidenced by earth as a compassionate library. Another way involves a unit of measure called Eccentricity. Eccentricity is best interpreted as a measure of how much a shape (an orbit in this case) deviates from a circle. Under standard assumptions, any orbit must be of conic section shape (a closed curve such as an ellipse). An orbit's eccentricity is an important parameter that helps to define absolute shape. Although planet's orbits are elliptical, Venus's orbit is closest to circular, with an eccentricity of less than one percent. Relationships can be expressed in similar units, but not in the way that you think. For instance, an eccentricity similar to that of Venus does not guarantee longevity. For some, the more elongated the ellipse, the longer the journey. By the same token, the journey back home, or back to center may be too long!

And there's more still. As a terrestrial planet, Venus has two major continent-like surfaces, one the approximate size of Australia and the other roughly the size of South America. With very few exceptions, all of the surface features of Venus including its highlands and depressions have been named after feminine goddesses and deities; no other planet is so arranged! Presently, Venus is unequaled in its features as a planetary influence of feminine love, beauty, lust, romance and relationship. But it has no consort within its own landscape, only in that which opposes it. In other words, in order to become whole Venus must go outside of itself to find a partner. As long as humanity looks to Venus for answers on love, it too will continue to look without in order to complete that which is already whole within.

Have you a noticed a rise in the popularity of homosexual over heterosexual relationships? The numbers have been steadily increasing and show no favor or prejudice between men or women. Lesbian relationships are in vogue as they were long ago, and homosexual relationships, while still vastly ignored by most cultures, are finding more stability and acceptance within open-minded circles. These too, are the by-products of Venus attempting to remake herself within a new paradigm. Can we not assist her in doing so?

Venus is often thrown in with Mars, her brother, as consort. Celestially speaking, this is a temporary attempt at match making and will not last. Only rarely, and for very short intervals of time, do Venus and Mars ever respect one another. Ah, but what music they make during such encounters! Like rocket fuel they go very far, very fast - but do not always leave enough in reserve for the return trip home. These two very different energies are not easily integrated and are best expressed within the more compatible elements such as fire and air, or earth and water. Venus attracts but Mars attains, and this can prove difficult for those who insist upon longevity. Mars is associated with masculinity, courage and will. He is assertive and his initiative matches anger with lust. Venus and Mars both share desire for union, but often express it differently, confusing and confounding the other without meaning to. It is important that the two act inter-dependently of one another so that they do not co-create the co-dependencies that are so common today. Each must have the courage to risk all in order to invite rather than acquire what they most desire.

A relationship is best experienced without expectation of the masculine ideal or an ideal masculine form, as its representative imagery is changing quickly now. The feminine ideal with its associative ideal feminine form is also amid change and highly unpredictable. The best measure of love is your own ability to express it and receive it. Your loving kindness toward yourself will invite affection from others, including friends, family and lovers. The ability to form and remain in partnership with another depends upon your ability to do the same with yourself. Speak the language of truth first and the language of romance will easily follow. If your creativity invites harmony and balance, it will see inner and outer beauty as well.

Venus will have another consort soon, as other planets are discovered and recognized, and there will no longer be a need to foist her upon Mars or vice-versa. When this occurs, relationships upon earth will immediately benefit and become more balanced than they are today. In the meantime, it is best to make fewer demands upon others while making greater discoveries within yourself. The personification of stars and planets is not new, and then as now, gods and goddesses have been held to account in almost every aspect of life, but life is a mystery that even gods and angels dress themselves in. Humanity also dwells within these complexities, prevailing upon them while simultaneously attempting to decode them. Fecundity, the capability of a species to reproduce, is a key element in the survival of humanity as a race of beings. Equally as important, fecundity is the ability to produce original, imaginative and reproductive ideas and relationships.

Your relationships are reflections of what is within you; the more you know yourself, the better you will be at creating complementary rather than adversary relationships. Be kind to yourself and faithful to your cause. It can take many lifetimes to recognize your own reflection as God's. Even if it takes several years within this life to recognize yourself as Love they will have been well invested and offer a grand return. Trust in the stars and the planets to guide you; it is their purpose and they will not fail you. Trust what they are as God has charted them in the canopy above you, rather than how they have been charted for the year you will soon sail past. Trust also your intuition, because it is aligned with your soul. Choose the next step in your journey rather than a destination that you cannot see at this time. Your heart is a reliable and resilient muscle and it's beat is accurate and perfect. Like the pulse of the solar system, it is timed by the angels and heard by All That Is.

Have these words answered the questions that preceded them? Perhaps not, as the questions were as individual as the questioners, but the general theme is one of dissatisfaction, confusion, and lingering anticipation, a theme that can be applied to almost every area of life, especially now. Demystifying the conundrum of life, one hurries along its passageways be they dark or light, without hesitation. But when there is trepidation, fear lingers in the same passageways, coating them with a dense tar-like substance that prolongs the process and reinforces doubt. Eventually, all turn the corner, a new page is revealed and a new chapter of life begun. This is that time, and it is so for almost everyone. These same passageways are very busy now, congested with souls in a hurry to advance before the next chapter begins. In doing so, be clear in your purpose, which now and always has been to discover that the light you follow without is the same as that which resides within. Together (earth and humanity) we are hurtling through space, time and dimension at an amazing rate on a tour that we have been gifted with. One day this tour will conclude, and I for one wish to remember every moment that has included you, even this one!

[This article, especially the final paragraph, is dedicated to my former father-in-law, Al Lewis, who crossed-over on February 3, 2006. Although he will be remembered by most as an actor, appearing on stage and later in television on Car 54 Where Are You? and then, The Munsters, I remember him as a public advocate for prison reform, racial equality, environmental preservation, world literacy, and political restructuring. May he rest assured that he did indeed make a difference in many lives, including my own. ~Pepper Lewis]

Copyright © 2006 Pepper Lewis, The Peaceful Planet