Last week a minor solar system body previously classified as one of those 440,000 asteroids
received a promotion. Because of many fussy technical terrestrial criteria, most notably an iron
core and a crust similar to those of Mercury, Earth and Mars, astronomers granted Vesta an
upgrade to protoplanet.
Like dwarf planets Ceres, Eris, Makemake, Haumea (and who knows what Sedna is really?), Vesta moves from relative obscurity into a more significant and highly visible position in astronomical awareness. Oh yeah, that thing called Pluto is a dwarf planet, too. The big question is: will the astronomical elevation of Vesta result in a similar movement in astrological circles?
It should.
Equated to the approximate size of Arizona (Ceres is approximately the size of Texas), the second most massive asteroid and fourth minor solar system body discovered (1807), is the brightest asteroid as seen from the Earth. Based upon visibility alone, she should have enhanced status. The orbital period of Vesta stands at a mere 3.63 years.
Known as the keeper of the hearth in western mythology, Vesta’s Chinese name, zàoshénxīng, means hearth goddess keeper - a curious astronomical meeting of east and west.
The important role of keeper of the hearth was once an important task assigned to a specific group of virgins in days of old who endured a thirty-year tenure as a tender of the sacred fires. This tenure consisted of ten years of training, ten years of direct service, followed by ten years of direct tutelage. The virgins were forcibly taken from their families, but in return for their diligent service, they received rights not available to other women of their day. The vestals could oversee their own economic matters, possess land, travel freely if in a carriage, and they received special front row seating at the sporting events of the day. After their thirty years, they were free to pursue whatever life they chose. However, those who violated their virginal status were buried alive, and those with whom they consorted, received a punishment of being whipped to death in public. According to lore, there were only eighteen such instances in a thousand years of vestal service.
Other than the awareness of the importance of the hearth in a household - also synonymous with the focus of a house - is there a way to extract personal importance from Vesta?
First, Vesta represents the need to keep one’s eternal flame burning. Symbolically, this represents the fire at the base of the spine that drives one’s internal life force, aka kundalini. Okay fine, so Vesta rules this and those birthday candles that you can’t blow out on a cake. What else you got?
Presently, cruising early Taurus, we could glean some insights from current corporate news. On the virtual eve of Facebook’s IPO, we find the keepers of the investment hearth at JP Morgan Chase asleep at the fire stoker position. But there must be more meaning to extract.
As with any planet in the solar system, we can examine where Vesta is closest to the Sun to determine what she finds most urgent, and where she crosses the ecliptic to gain a sense of her mission statement. Vesta’s perihelion (a heliocentric measure) is 13 Sagittarius 45 - very close to the Great Attractor recently mentioned in SkyScraping. Her north node, also seen from the Sun’s point of view is 13 Cancer 45. With a combination of a fire sign orbital element and a signature from the sign archetypally seen as the home, it is perfectly appropriate that these signatures apply to the planet of the fire focal point of the house and sacred temples.
The urgent theme of Vesta reminds us to include all knowledge, frequencies, insights that serve our growth and put them into the mix (fire). Having a clear, ever-evolving belief system might just be the thing that gets you from here to there, provided your internal engine never quits burning. True to the Sagittarius theme, all agendas must be placed on the table, with nothing held behind the back, hidden or undisclosed.
The Cancerian nodal theme of Vesta can be seen in the hexagram “Corners of the Mouth” in the I-Ching. The nature of a person’s character can be seen by what they choose to foster. As well, those things that a person uses as support mechanisms provide clear indications of the value system of that person. Care of the home, the fire that sustains life, and the inner flame that must burn as long as life is sustained become the priorities of one’s consciousness once committed to the essence of Vesta.
Combined, the orbital elements ask poignant questions. Can your belief system keep your soul sustained with passion, fervor, brightness and for the duration? Are you nurtured by your beliefs? Is your soul fed by the doctrines you claim drive your life? With the transit of Vesta in Taurus, the themes add elements of real world demands. Can your quest for success and acquisition fulfill your most primal physical world needs? Are your professional and economic pursuits in alignment with the highest banner of belief you hold? Is there a need to fortify, purge, reaffirm or recommit to the long term agenda of your soul in this incarnation?
Collectively her message is that of gather your thoughts and sort them, keeping only those that directly contribute to the sustenance of your greatest soulful aspirations. New to the full planetary status of Vesta, will grow into her counsel and hopefully use her guidance well in creating healthy and fervent internal fires.
Vesta’s new status is partly due to the Dawn Spacecraft which recently visited her. Dawn now heads to Ceres for her next exploration, and in her wake she leaves us with new light to either begin or reclaim refreshed awareness.
Finally, to remind one and all of last week’s hyperactivity alert, the Sun continues to be active. It is reasonable to expect over the next week that ongoing blasts from Coronal Mass Ejections will continue to impact our planet. Take extra chill time in high energy or agitated circumstances. Keep priorities clear. Pick challenges carefully and grant your intuition the right to over ride logic. As well as the CME’s the Sun crosses the centaur Asbolus, an amazing auger in his time. As the month draws to a close, Jupiter meets up with Asbolus. Allow instinct and those present tense physical reactions to alert you to situations ahead. There’s nothing like a good set of goosebumps to put a psyche on elevated alert.