Destiny has been described as the place where the deeds of gods unite with a human life. The destiny planets are those that weave between Earth and Sun, and as we approach the stillness of solstice, the festive Christmas time, and the final weeks, days, and hours of the year, these destiny planets are aligned in beautiful array, looking west after sunset.
On Christmas Eve, Saturday, the Moon will be at waxing crescent phase, just beside Venus and Mercury about 20 minutes after sunset. Venus, Mercury, and the Moon are the destiny planets, so what are they saying when they line up this way at this time of year?
Venus is always associated with love and beauty, and as evening star right now, she can be imagined as the “Maris Stella,” the star goddess, rising in the ocean-being of the spirit.
Mercury is escort of souls, and offering his hand to Venus in the twilight, he intends to see this goddess across the threshold of the darkest time of year, into the birth of the light.
Then there’s the Moon, a cradling crescent, a boat of spirit knowledge, come to ferry Mercury and Venus, and all willing hearts, into the new year with this strong sense that it’s in our destiny that we commune with the gods. So now is the time when it’s appropriate to reflect back on the year, to discern the shining seeds of destiny culminating in our lives, and to look ahead, to what will be required to bring these shining seeds to fruit.
After gathering up the destiny intentions of Venus and Mercury on Christmas Eve, the Moon slips through the Capricorn gateway of the gods, a light, shining in the darkness that we may find our way, with truth, with goodness, in beauty.
With my very best wishes for this sacred time of year,
Mary
Within our circle
there is formed a knot of threads that karma spins
world-fashioning.
Thy sufferings, my friend, are links in chains,
Forged by the hand of destiny, whereby
the deeds of gods unite with human lives.~
~Rudolf Steiner
from his mystery drama
Scene III
The waxing crescent Moon cups Venus and Mercury where the grace the western horizon in the evening light, the destiny planets gathered to witness the birth of inner light during the darkest nights. Image from Sky&Telescope.
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