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Taurus New Moon Meditation:
Love Calls Us to the Things of this World
By Jean Hinson Lall
As Aries gives way to Taurus, visionary ideas take on
sensuous form. Enthusiastic planning leads to focused
implementation. The keynote of beauty in action, highlighted
at last month's Full Moon in Libra, carries forward as Sun
and Moon meet in Venus's other dominion of Taurus.
The Moon, the Mother of all, is exalted in Taurus: it is
here in the Fixed Earth sign that her birthing, nourishing
and sustaining activity can work to greatest effect. Taurus
describes our primary experience of the material world through
the senses. Think of the way a baby discovers its own body
as separate from that of the mother and learns what brings
pleasure and what brings discomfort or pain. A child who,
in this phase of development, is physically nourished, affirmed,
comforted and soothed will learn self-care, self-affirmation,
and self-soothing - essential skills for a healthy and fulfilled
life. These Taurean experiences provide the basis for a
stable, embodied sense of self and a confidence in the reliability
of one's perceptions of the world. As the Sun and Moon meet
in this sign each year, we can renew or repair our connection
to the senses, our joy in the body, our sense of proportion
and our trust in the physical world.
Venus teaches not only the proper appreciation and care
of the body but also the soulfulness of stuff and the spirituality
of everyday existence. Proper attention to her
rituals helps assure that our big projects will serve the
Earth rather than exploit and harm it.
Perhaps you already have your own Taurean rituals: gardening,
painting, singing, writing poetry, hanging out laundry,
baking bread. Even more fundamental is the care and adornment
of one's own body. If you feel tired and stressed, it
would not be impious to organize your New Moon meditation
around a restorative bath! First, if possible, gather
some flowers or bring in a small branch from a blossoming
tree. At your meditation place, lay out a favorite tablecloth
or piece of fabric and arrange a few special objects or
icons on it, along with your floral arrangement. Cue up
some soothing music; light a candle or some incense and
carry it to the bathroom with you. Take a leisurely soak,
using fragrant soap, bath salts, oil or perfume. Consciously
love, comfort and affirm your body. Listen to its fatigue
and minister to its aches and worries. Give thanks for it
and promise to take good care of it in the year ahead. Towel
off and massage your skin with lotion. Choose something
attractive and comfortable to wear; take your time getting
dressed and enjoy the texture of the fabrics next to your
skin. Returning to your meditation place, let your refreshed
senses embrace the beauty of the things in the room, extend
your appreciation to each of them, then let the same love
flow out through the walls of your home to touch the garden,
the street, your city or town, and the whole body of planet
Earth with all its living creatures, its mountains and seas,
rivers and deserts, forests and skies.
From this foundation of love, imagine the things you hope
to create in the coming year. Commit yourself to doing your
small but significant part in the renewal of the world.
Ask the Earth for support and the heavens for continued
inspiration. Picture the first steps you will take. At the
end of your meditation, do one thing - make a sketch,
a schedule, a phone call — to launch your project into
tangible existence.
© 2003 Jean
Hinson Lall
All rights reserved
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