Tarotscopes with Brandon Alter—September 2020
By Brandon Alter:
Is it just me or has the elasticity of our days gone slack? Every Monday, my therapist asks me to recount the past week, and my mind goes blank. Hours blur. I feel like it’s always 6 p.m. and I’m having to figure out what to make for dinner, again and again and again. I ask friends on the phone, "Did I just talk to you yesterday or was that two weeks ago?" "Gurl, we talked this morning," they reply. I wander the house, the dog follows me like a shadow: What am I looking for? Where am I going? My husband asks, "What’s wrong, babe?" I have no words; the best I can muster is to say, "I feel unmoored." I feel unmoored.
He admits that before he met me he’d never heard anyone use that term. It’s a nautical expression that refers to a ship having lost contact with the dock, nothing tethering it to land. I don’t know where I picked it up; I’ve never been a sailor—maybe in a past life but probably not. I feel unmoored. I repeat it like a mantra. I chant it, silently, out loud, whisper it to the dog, to the olive tree out back, to anyone who will listen. I feel unmoored. And as I lean into it, as I accept it, it changes shape. Instead of lamenting this feeling of confusion—this sense of being completely unanchored to anything—I start to celebrate it. I let it liberate me. "I’m unmoored," I proclaim. I’m free.
What does this have to do with Astrology, you might be wondering? Well, before there was time as we know it, before there were the seven days of the week and the Hallmark holidays, and Summer Vacation, there were the seasons. The seasons were how we charted time. They are an unchanging cosmology to which we can anchor ourselves. And these four essence energies haven’t gone anywhere. The original Astrologers determined the Zodiac meanings based on the happenings of the seasons on Earth. The cold, sometimes aloof expressions of Capricorn and Aquarius are not separate from the chilly winter frosts that accompany their birth. You see, we are the seasons. And as the outer (and somewhat arbitrary) structures of our contemporary lives continue to fall away, what we are left with is the truth of who and what we are.
We can look to the wheel of the Zodiac to help us understand who we are and where we are. Especially now, as our distractions and illusions melt faster than the glaciers, I find it a helpful practice to ask questions of myself that align with the Cosmic Season in which we find ourselves. The question that rules Leo is: How am I? And I don’t mean like “How are you doing?” I mean HOW do you behave, how do you express yourself? How do you truly want to be? When left alone to your own devices, how do you move through the world? What is your unique style of existence?
If no one were watching, if you couldn’t post about it on Instagram, how would you naturally shape your days? Would you be writing poetry in the nude? Would you be cooking lavish meals in your Sunday best? Would you be quietly sipping pink champagne by a creek somewhere? This is the perfect time to commit to discovering your true nature—especially now as there is more space than ever before to be as we truly are. If we can stop performing our lives for others and live them fully for ourselves, we will be tapping into the true power of Leo Season.
The truth is, we have always been unmoored. We just got really good at pretending otherwise. These inherited fictions (the Stock Market, Gucci, Valentine’s Day) are just stories that we have raised up as unchanging gods—but they are false gods and nothing more. The original gods are nature, and to those gods we are now returning. We might feel unmoored because we are being forced to question everything, to denounce our comfortable prisons in exchange for the wilderness of a new frontier. But as we lose our ability to distract from the truth of who are, what we gain is a sense of the divine order which permeates.
Leos live from the heart. And they live, primarily, for themselves. Yes, low-vibe Leos can be narcissists, the same way low-vibe Aquarians (Leo’s opposite sign) can be martyrs. But they are both coming at the same ontology from a different angle. Serving oneself is serving others. Honoring your innate nature is crucial if you're going to be of any good to anyone else. The mantra of this season is this: If you’re always putting out the fires of others, you’ll never be able to tend to your own. This is the time to pull your energies all the way back so that you can focus on yourself. Once you’ve fully explored and understood the HOW of your life then you can choose to put your magnificence in the service of others. But slow down, babies, that’s what Virgo season is for, and we aren't there yet.
The Leo New Moon that perfects Tuesday evening is the flag we plant in the ground that claims our lives for ourselves. Living for others isn’t as easy to spot as it seems—our ego's machinations can be insidious. We’ve been so thoroughly indoctrinated into the church of achievement that it takes practice to discern where societies' programming ends and your true desires begin. This New Moon is a window of clarity to ensure that we are living our best life. It’s a golden opportunity to take back your sovereignty from the powers that be and affirm that your life is your own and you get to live it however your heart deems best.
New Moons signify new beginnings. Each month when the Moon and the Sun meet up, they have a conversation about where they’ve been, what they’ve learned, and how they want to start again. But this New Moon has a guest star, Mercury. The planet of communication and mental gymnastics is part of the party, sitting only two degrees away from the Moon and the Sun’s reunion. This luminous trio wants us to communicate our inner and outer desires with the world but not for the world; cue "I’m Coming Out" by Diana Ross because that’s exactly what this New Moon is hoping for. The Moon also trines Mars in Aries, meaning that we are divinely assisted in taking the actions required to cement these intentions. It’s not enough to just talk about it, you gotta take some action to prove it to yourself. In fact, you may want to talk about it after you’ve already started doing it.
Mercury and Mars and the Sun and the Moon all in harmonious aspects with one another in the sign of the diva means we get to talk our walk and walk our talk. We get to ensure our insides match our outsides and that our appearances reflect our inner gifts. There’s a really nice harmony to all of this, an invitation to release anything that is contradictory or paradoxical. You get to be you, completely—it’s as simple as that. You get to walk like you, talk like you, dress like you, express like you. And anything that you’ve inherited from your family or your culture that feels heavy, you get to set it down. Yes! You really do! You don’t have to carry that shit one second longer! Mars is set to square the heavy hitters—Jupiter, Saturn, and Pluto all in Capricorn over these next few months—so you will feel resistance. You may even feel dangerous in how you continue to choose yourself over anyone else, over and over again. But sometimes danger means you’re on the right path, so don’t let the shade or the side-eye keep you from carrying on with your bad self.
This may seem silly, but I’m going to share it anyways. My grandma is always coming for me because I paint my nails. She doesn't get why a grown man would want his fingertips sparkling like the galaxies. I tell her, "Grandma, I just don’t understand why girls get to have all the fun." She nods like she gets it, but I know she doesn't agree. Because then she’ll call my Mom and tell her to convince me to take it off. This is that sort of square energy I’m talking about. This is the patriarchy coming for you and your freedom. Don’t let them have it. Just keep painting your nails and focus on you. But don’t think that just doing you to the fullest won’t instigate some pushback. It will. People will be threatened by your liberation. Pay them no mind. That’s the cosmic octave of Leo: the lust for life, the relentless creativity, and the unbridled enthusiasm to be your most authentic self. The more you can illuminate yourself, the more your life will liberate others.
From here on out, through the rest of 2020, our New Moons will be happening at the end degrees of the sign. This is significant, and it shifts how we might think about the intention setting that we do with New Moons. Each sign has thirty degrees, and I believe that any planet in the last five is leaning into mastery of that energy—so our New Moons are becoming more masterful. We are not starting from scratch anymore; we might still be starting over, but now with the awareness of what has come before. We can take our experiences to help inform the new choices, actions, and awareness we wish to empower. For more Astrological insights, I encourage you to join us for the Spiritual Gayz Virgo Season Webinar next week. Think of it as an Astrology kiki, as we get you prepped for the next moonth of cosmic happenings. And if you’re looking for a more experiential offering, our Breathwork Healing Circle is all about connecting to the Goddess energy that Virgo Season invokes.
And lastly, our magical divination course, TAROT + COSMOS, is set to start again on September 28th. This is our eleven-week online immersion into the Tarot that will help you unlock your own psychic potential. And it’s perfect for beginners who know nothing about mysticism or magic or experienced intuitives looking to sharpen their skills. Week by week, Angel and I will break down the hidden energies the cards illuminate and help you to uncover the language your own inner gifts use to communicate. It’s not just a classroom, it’s a virtual sanctuary—and goddess knows we all need a sanctuary at these times.
Registration is open now for our September 28th start date—but we will keep registration open for a full week after we begin in case you didn’t get the message in time. Sign up by September 1st and take advantage of our Early Bird Pricing, use the coupon code: EARLYBIRDIE and save some dough! And don’t worry if you can’t attend classes live, all students will get lifetime access to the sessions within 24 hours of recording. Each class will begin with a guided meditation and end with Q&A. You’ll get a copy of our extensive and original Tarot notes + additional materials to inspire and expand your relationship with the Tarot. And as a bonus, you’ll receive free access to the Spiritual Gayz Moonthly Astrology Webinars while class is in session! Here’s a week by week break down of what you can look forward to learning!
For more specific Cosmic Updates and Tarot Wisdom, I highly encourage you to tune into The Spiritual Gayz. This is our twice monthly podcast dedicated to exploring the wide reaches of spirituality without pretending that it all makes sense. We have tons of episodes on Astrology and Tarot and healing and magic. Not to mention fascinating interviews with groovy cosmic queers like Steven Canals, writer/co-creator of the hit TV show POSE, actress/icon Lena Waithe, and beauty/make-up expert Lihja Stewart.
Below you’ll find your individual Tarotscopes for the complete lunar cycle.
Leo is the sign in which the Sun feels most at home,
so please read for your SUN SIGN.
You could also read for your RISING SIGN, too,
if you're needing a double dose of cosmic guidance.