Full Moon in Virgo
This full moon happens at 4:28am PST on February 24 in the sign of Virgo, the maiden who nourishes the world. She is most often depicted holding wheat as her constellation is in the sky at the time of the harvest. Although the sign Virgo is often associated with hyper-specificity, being overly critical, and being obsessed with checking things off of lists, it is also the sign that will serve humanity until the very end.
The story of The Virgin begins with the race of giants called titans that existed long before humans. Two of these titans, Prometheus and Epimetheus, were tasked with creating humans and animals respectively, and the one who created the animals, Epimetheus, was meant to bestow gifts on all: wings to some, claws to others, etcetera. This titan was so generous with the animals, however, that he had no gifts left for the humans.
Prometheus would not let them go without their own specialized tools, and so he stole fire from the gods and gave it to the humans therefore making them superior to all other animals.
The king of the Gods, Jupiter, was so angry that this divine blessing would be given to such lowly creation that he chained Prometheus to a rock to have his liver eaten every day by a great eagle, and he sent a curse in a box down to Earth carried by the first woman, Pandora, which she was strictly informed to never open.
Being human, one day Pandora’s curiosity got the best of her, and she opened the lid of the box. As soon as she did this, humanity was struck with terrible plagues that would leave no man untouched: death and sickness in the body, and anger and envy in the mind.
The only thing to not escape the box was hope.
Eventually, Earth became so full of suffering that one by one the gods left to live in Heaven. The last to leave was the goddess of purity, innocence and service, Astraea, at which point she was placed as a constellation in the sky.
The legend is that at some point, the Earth will enter a golden-age, and she will be the first to return.
There is so much that can be taken from this story (the misogyny of the first woman being the one to bring calamity to mankind aside): the purity of our service is what will determine our ability to make a lasting impact. Maintaining the innocence necessary to hold on to hope is what will allow us to stick with it long after everyone else has given up.
The origin of the word virgin means, “woman unto herself.” While we can take this to mean “chaste,” this can also mean someone who pulls strength from their own internal wisdom and moral knowing — someone who is not swayed by the actions of others.
So many culturally notable Virgos (Beyonce, Confucious, Mother Teresa, Kobe Bryant, Queen Elizabeth I — the virgin queen — and others) continued their work regardless of the warnings by others of how they may by perceived at best, and how they could be in danger at worst. Their undying service to their karmic task was more important.
Have we forgotten our own karmic tasks? Have we forgotten that our work is wholly incomplete if it does not serve the well being of every “other”?
Let’s take a note from this beautifully illuminated Virgo moon and make sure “service” and “nourishing” are at the top of our checklist of what needs to get done.
