All the Qualities that Make Us Human

Tonight’s conjunction of Mars and Venus has me thinking about masculine and feminine qualities. The planet Mars is named for the masculine god of war, while Venus is named for the feminine goddess of love. Even popular culture has picked up on this idea as when a psychologist assured us several years ago that men are from Mars and women are from Venus!
 
If you look off into the western sky tonight just below the crescent moon, you should see the two planets Venus and Mars very close to each other.  This conjunction happens every couple of years and it is an opportunity to reflect on the conjunction of masculine and feminine qualities. Such qualities are much more than what makes a person male or female, but rather point to archetypes of the ideal qualities that we all want to cultivate in order to be balanced in our personality.
 
Here’s a brief meditation you can do tonight. It is based on the archetypal qualities in Deepak Chopra’s book The Spontaneous Fulfillment of Desire. As you read the following two lists of qualities, notice how they make you feel—which ones do you like or dislike on a physical level?
 
Masculine qualities of being strong, decisive, courageous, articulate and powerful
 
Feminine qualities of being beautiful, sexual, intuitive, nurturing and affectionate
 
Now that you have a personal connection to the qualities, participate in the following visualizations:
 
Imagine that you are as stable as a mountain.
Imagine that you are as flexible as the wind.
Imagine that you are a shape shifter and that you can be masculine or feminine as you choose.
 
Today’s special planetary conjunction of Venus and Mars is a reminder that a full range of human qualities are always available to us, guiding us to the best response in any life situation.