This month the Universal Festival Calendar hits the milestone of five years since it first appeared in June, 1998 as an e-mail newsletter. The UFC first appeared online in this more beautiful form, thanks to the artistry of designer Tim O'Hanlon of HJF Enterprises, when the Hermes 3 website was first launched in May, 2000. All gratitude and blessings to those whose kind insights, corrections and encouragement have helped it continue through 60 emanations.

    June 2003 will be eventful. Rarely have correspondences between the astral dynamics of the coming month and events now taking shape been as easy to read as they are now. On June 2, the day that Jupiter in Leo and Neptune in Aquarius will form an exact opposition -- representing, among other things, yet another moment of high tension between governmental power and spiritual truth -- the U. S. Federal Communications Commission plans to enact new measures deregulating media ownership, thereby placing mass communications within even fewer hands than control them now, and accelerating the conformist agendas of corporate predators, death merchants, evangelists, fear artists and enough other dark forces to make Stalin gape in wonder. 

   This installment of the UFC goes out early, weeks before it normally would, in hopes that it can help spread awareness about the nexus of danger and opportunity that is coming now. This morning (5/15), word has arrived that the Truthout e-mail newsletter is being denied delivery by so many local internet service providers that the publishers are asking subscribers to let them know who's getting the news, and who isn't. The author of this Calendar, while only a minor voice, is getting so many "severe" attacks on his computer that if the firewall ever gives way, I may come home some day to find that the CPU has burst open and spilled so many bugs, viruses and worms that the floor of my office looks like a Japanese moss garden. It becomes increasingly clear, now that the free flow of information on the Aquarian forum of the internet is imperiled, that the Scam War in Iraq is a side show. While our hearts go out to the many thousands who have suffered and died so needlessly, and we lament the loss of a great ancient civilization's priceless heritage, the main conflict goes on behind the lies and logos and jingle music: over ownership of the media, and with it, control of the collective human mind.

    And one of our best players is about to withdraw from the game. Saturn, the most accurate striker in the solar system, whose sling blade cuts away illusion and karmic debris to expose the vein of truth, is about to enter Cancer (on June 4), then Leo (2005 - 2007). In both these signs Saturn is "in detriment", his power weakened. This is why, paradoxically, as Saturn's "malefic" clearing force will seem muted -- so many people will seem brighter and bouncier -- his power of wisdom teaching will likewise be dimmed, and thus, for the next few years, the developed world will resemble an aerobics studio full of people who can't stay on the beat.

    As awakened ones, we will have our work and play cut out for us, especially in the critical love window of early June. It is well that we become more practiced -- as in practical, useful -- in handling the tools of love, and shifting our emphasis away from a personal need that links one to one, and toward a collective soul desire that links One and All. It is well that we know how to lift our own heart frequencies, and those of others, from the lower end of the emotional scale to the top, where the higher frequencies go from courage to bliss. There are many codes of this design. Here is one that shows the main frequencies, with their corresponding planets. There are eleven: the number of tones in a chromatic scale.

   It is evident enough that much of the planet is stuck -- has always been stuck -- in the lower band between grief and wrath. Those who own and operate the money and power structures of the planet prefer it that way, as human beings are much more controllable when they are in the bottom of the scale, especially in the frequency of fear. This is why the endlessly repeated question about every troublesome new issue -- as in last week's Time cover story on SARS -- is "How Scared Should You Be?" The answer, for awakened people is: You should not be scared at all. You should even discard "should" from your vocabulary, and practice living in the middle band of courage, laughter and love. This is much easier to do in company -- the word literally means "[having] bread together" -- with like-minded people who resonate in the heart. That is what the Age of Aquarius is for: rediscovering the simple rites of friendship in food and talk, song and dance, embraces and silences, and lifting one another into love, and beyond.

    Here are some specific notes on the astral dynamics of the month:

 June 2 - 3: Jupiter in Leo opposes Neptune in Aquarius. See above. This combination fades by June 20, by which time the next major dynamic -- Saturn in Cancer trine Uranus in Pisces --  is strong, and about to go exact on June 24.

 June 4: Saturn enters Cancer, in which, as in the next sign of Leo, Saturn is said to be "in detriment". Saturn will remain in Cancer and Leo September 2007, and it will seem at times that Saturn's deepest role as the teacher of karmic lessons is somehow unavailable over the next few years -- though this is an illusion, for Saturn is always available to those who love him. Another illusion that will kick in for the next few years is that more and more of us seem afflicted with a brain virus that turns us into vacuous talk addicts; the actuality is that so many changes are taking place now in the heart and soul that the ego and its advertising agency, the intellect, must fight for control by running what they do best, a stream of words. Assurances of love bring welcome respite from chatter, even occasional silence, which in these times is made of diamonds, not mere gold.

   Note that as soon as Saturn enters Cancer, he moves at once into a trine (120° angle) with Uranus in Pisces. For more on this, see June 24.

 June 10: Venus enters Gemini, where she will be until July 5. It is vital now that the natural loving communicativeness of Venus be directed to the widest possible circle of influence, especially on June 23 - 24, in the days following the Summer Solstice. She gets to play at the festival itself; her uniting power is needed a few days later.

 June 13: Mercury enters Gemini, until June 28. At a time when Saturn's teaching energy is dimmed, Mercury's role as the divine messenger is much needed, especially when he is in Gemini, sign of his rulership. In fact, the clarity that Mercury brings between now and June 28th -- and his example of courage in opposing Jupiter over the Solstice days of the 20th to the 24th do much to create the opportunities at the New Moon on the 29th.

 June 14: Full Moon in Sagittarius, opposite Sun in Gemini. This Full Moon is relatively quiet, and is mainly a complement to the powerful astral forces that are still in play from the top of the month. The New Moon of June 29 (see below) is much more momentous.

 June 17: Mars enters Pisces, where he will be out of his depth for a long stay of exactly six months until he enters Aries, the fire sign of his rulership and power, on Dec. 16. While Pisces is not exactly disadvantageous for Mars, it is not one of his favorite hangouts either, as the Mars fire does not burn hot or strong amid the mists of Neptune. As Mars has an orbit of two years, he will average about two months in any given sign, so a stay of six months anywhere is unusual but not really rare (Mars will be in Taurus for 6 months in 2006).

   One of the keys to the second half of 2003 will be, in fact, the aspects that Mars forms to other planets, especially to Pluto in Sagittarius (late November) and the Moon's North Node (Dragon's Head) in early December. The main Mars event, though, comes this month, as Mars conjoins Uranus in Pisces, both in trine (at a 120° arc) from Saturn in Cancer. This combination forms on June 17, is exact and most intense soon after the Summer Solstice, on June 23, and fades by July 1. The events of late June will not be torpid -- as this Mars/Saturn/ Neptune aspect does involve three "malefic" planets -- yet there is no need to buy a carload of toilet paper either. The most likely outcome is that certain powerful persons will overplay their hands, and others will reap rewards toward which they've worked long and patiently. We will have occasion in late June to reflect on what Lao Tzu meant when he wrote, "Those who know do not speak; those who speak do not know."

 June 20: Another very favorable trine forms now as Mercury conjoins Venus in Gemini, both trine to Neptune in Pisces. This is especially favorable, over the weekend of June 20 - 22, for festive gatherings that are both spiritual and social, among people who like to mix sacred ceremony with fun. Pagans will have an uncommonly good time, even by the standards of the Summer Solstice.

   June 24: Saturn in early Cancer is in an exact trine with Uranus in early Pisces. An "easy" aspect between these two is one of the Odd Couple relationships in the star book, as it pairs the quick, tricky, revolutionary energy of Uranus with the slow, methodical tempo of Saturn in a relationship of surprising teamwork and fortitude. Reinhold Ebertin calls it "The ability to cope with every situation, the power to pull through and endure, perseverance and endurance, indefatigability, will-power, determination." (The Combination of Stellar Influences, p. 184). This will come at a time when the powers that be are pushing their conformist, no-choice line to the max, and many, as always, will keep buying. One wonders at times if God ever says, "I give them so many windows and mirrors and doors. Why do they see only the walls?" The awakened ones, though, are far more numerous than they know, and their numbers will tell sooner than anyone imagines. The Saturn-Uranus trine continues through mid-July.

 June 29: New Moon conjunct Sun in Cancer. This New Moon is the curtain call of the main show mentioned above (June 2 - 17), as Sun and Moon form a double conjunction with Saturn, and all three bodies are trine to Mars and Neptune in Pisces. The end of the month is loaded with opportunity for coalescing in wisdom and compassion, and seeing through the veil of duality, to the perceptions that opposites that seemed irreconcilable are not only One -- they are In Love. Keep holding that frequency.