Lately, I’ve been pondering truth.
Maybe because it is a political hot button right now.
Maybe because I have had some really hard truth bombs crash into my life of late?
Isn’t it interesting that truth denotes a sense of all-knowing clarity, yet in reality, it often appears anything but?
What do you know for sure?
That’s not always an easy answer.
The Greek word for “truth” is aletheia, which literally means to “un-hide” or “hiding nothing.” It conveys the idea that truth is always there, always open and available for all to see, with nothing being hidden or obscured.
Then why is it so elusive?
Because we do not see the world as it is, we see the world as WE are. Our lens of perception is etched with every experience or feeling we have ever had. Laced with long-buried news feeds from long ago. All of this data becomes an assumption and when proven sufficiently, a belief.
And beliefs and the subsequent truths we tell ourselves are powerful because they hold tremendous co-creative ability. These shape what we expect from others. What feels familiar (not necessarily healthy). What we draw to us. What we experience.
In its highest illumination, truth sparks our creative forces of inspiration, insight, enthusiasm, and hope, tapping into some divine energy within us.
Its shadow, is of course, just as powerful with dogma, doctrine, and infatuation. This kind of “truth” is limited at best and violent at worst. Historically, the lists of atrocities committed in the name of belief are both numerous and horrific. Unfortunately, this continues to this day.
Then truth becomes not a flash of revelation but a forest fire of mob mentality where we become blinded by zeal and quite literally give our power of discernment away.
Closed systems might seem familiar, safe, and even secure. There is something somewhat comfortable about a facade of conformity and “certainty” after all.
I remember my mom decided to become a Jehovah’s witness during my teen years. Now, I have absolutely nothing against that particular flavor of religion. In fact, I embrace their accurate study of the historical bible. I honestly enjoyed the hours poured into this practice, and to this day carry that knowledge with me. The problem was I asked too many questions. Questions they were not only unable to answer but also not even allowed to consider.
A closed system might feel safe and secure, but nothing grows there.
Mercury retrogrades are a call to review, reassessment, reevaluate, and subsequent revisal based on what is learned. We are meant to listen more than we speak, and go inward to intuition and empathy before taking action outward. Mercury retrogrades are a time where disorganization occurs so we can consciously reorganize it in a more evolved, optimum, or enlightened way. It is as if Hermes himself is meeting us for coffee, revealing unconscious habits, thoughts, and beliefs about ourselves, our relationships, and our world.
He expertly holds a mirror before us as we say, “This is not who I am”.
He deftly questions, “Are you sure? Because this is who is showing up.”
Sagittarius is the sign of the archer whose arrow points directly at what we most need to see. Which isn’t always what we want to look at. Especially as this retrograde dips back into Scorpio, the sign of deep soul excavation and rather brutal honesty. (To locate the specific truths you are meant to explore, find the house and planet placements between at 13° Sagittarius and 27° Scorpio or Contact Me for a reading).
Such is the nature of truth. By definition, the evolution of it challenges what we think we know and ultimately who we are.
Soul truth tends to clash with ego comfort.
Culturally, we see the innovators often persecuted for the discovery of new “truths” that challenge old data. As a whole, we tend to resist and condemn what threatens our perceived notion of reality.
Personally, we do the same things. Truth bombs could be erupting in our lives left and right fracturing the bedrock of our belief system in an attempt to let the light in. And yet, there we are, frantically spackling the edges with denial, blame, and projection becoming the spin doctors of our own comfortable story. If we align with our bruises, we anchor in our own bravado, and we find ourselves safe but secluded.
Protected but uninvolved.
Intact but ignorant.
How do you know which truths require re-examining in your life?
They are the ones showing up making you really uncomfortable. They come in the form of conflict that triggers the hell out of us, patterns that loop on repeat, and smacks of reality so sharp they awaken us from our dormancy. The intent is to get our attention to allow the growth of discernment and overcome the comfort of judgment.
So instead of turning away from the light, let it in.
It is time to fact check all fake news.
All of it.
So first, listen.
Listen to the beliefs you utter unconsciously and continuously under your breath. The ones whispered to you long about who you “should” be that you now play on repeat. The ones about the size of your voice, and the width of your hips. The ones etched with shame, guilt, or fear. The ones that keep you small. The ones that tell you that you are not enough. The ones that compare, condemn, control and censure.
What’s more true?
What truths have emerged to meet you this year?
What holds you back from living your truth?
What must you release, face, or undo to live in alignment with your truth?
Where do you invalidate your truth with logic?
What outdated truths are you still aligning with?
Which ones need release?
What new truths want expression?
What knowing is rising within you?
What is it now time for?
Let the light of truth illuminate another way.
How do you know the actual truth?
By the way it feels.
Truth centered in the heart rather than external expectation is one way. A truth that is personally accountable (not blaming another), compassionate, open, and understanding is another. Truth sourced in Love is genuinely willing to ponder, evaluate, assess and grow. It doesn’t imply passivity either. Far from it. Authentic truth is often fierce, even fiery, teetering on the edge of excitement and challenge, inspiration and trepidation.
It is a lot less hustle and a lot more flow.
Check that truth:
If your truth is a reactive emotional response, check that truth. This is not denying the validity of your feelings but to remind you not confuse the past with the present.
If there are no solid facts (non biased) that support that truth, check that truth. This is inner critic work at its finest. It is also the root of denial and cognitive dissonance.
If your truth was given to you a long time ago by someone you wouldn’t listen to today. Check that truth.
If there is not an opening to learn or grow, check that truth. Righteousness often closes the box of understanding and instead stands on a soapbox of defense that halts communication.
If you wouldn’t say it to someone face-to-face, check that truth. This is where truth gets disguised as gossip, social media chatter, shade, and rumors.
If it is a global truth, meaning the source is “he, they, she” check that truth. “Going global” is a popular and influential way of deceiving facts with ambiguity. Just because a lot of people believe it doesn’t make it real.
Check them all. As we walk into the holiday season, these memes of conformity become especially strong offering opportunity after opportunity to not only challenge established spells but assert what is more accurate.
In both our inner and outer lives what we believe about ourselves, our lives, and our relationships become our reality. With every personal truth, we utter a spell of manifestation and incantation of co-creation. So, it is vital we take a moment and ascertain the nature of the truths with which we are consciously and unconsciously aligning.
The genius of Sagittarius embodies the challenging of established truths (yours, mine and ours) to source a new vision.
One that is rooted in authentic change, innovation, and the knowing that takes us out of the box of conformity and into the realm of possibility. So speak, sing, whisper, chant your authentic truth so you can fully articulate a new vision.
The world needs more of it.
“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It’s not just in some of us; it’s in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.”
~Marianne Williamson
Exact dates of the retrograde:
Mercury retrograde 2018 starts on November 16 at 13° Sagittarius and ends on December 6 at 27° Scorpio
Set-up Shadow Period, October 28 to November 16
Mercury Retrograde, November 16 to December 6
Integration Phase, December 6 to 24
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