Libra Energy: Marie Kondo, AOC, and what it means to be superficial in a deep way

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Introducing...The Shadow Femme Show!

You're listening to The Shadow Femme Show, a show in which we ask and answer questions about humans, our feelings, and the ways in which we make meaning.

I'm your host, Sarah, and I'm an astrologer, human design reader, and psychic medium in training. I use the channeled advice of my spirit guides to help me hone in on different aspects of astrology and human design in order to share insight with people that will help them feel seen and understood, and so they can walk away with a whole new understanding of themselves that will open up possibilities in their lives.

I started this podcast to share my perspectives on life as I see it, and specifically how we as humans can make meaning from our existence. I think that people can learn a lot just through seeing themselves reflected, in all their complexity, through the archetypes of astrology and other modalities. This episode focuses on the archetype of Libra, since we are entering into Libra season very soon, and it turns out that my guides wanted to help me write the script for this episode, and so I'm including their perspectives here.

Okay, so, here is what my guides had me write...

Welcome to Libra Season

Hiii, Sarah's listeners!

We wanted to say welcome.

Welcome to the best podcast you will ever listen to. You think we're kidding, and, well yeah we kind of are, because we don't like to take ourselves too seriously—and neither does Sarah—but it's true that this is going to be a wonderful podcast. Welcome to the first episode. We hope you stay awhile.

We wanted to start by welcoming you to Libra season, as well. Preemptively welcoming you, I guess, because it's coming up in a few days. And we wanted to share some words of wisdom—and from those, Sarah will explore whatever themes that come up, and will ask you some thought-provoking questions from there.

And so we want to start with talking about what it means to be in Libra season. And this is something that is relevant to right now—this particular season—but these are also themes that you can take with you into the rest of your lives because everyone has Libra somewhere in their charts, and so these themes will be relevant to a particular area of life for you as you move through the world, regardless of what season it is that we're in.

And so we are going to start by talking about Libra as an archetype. This is an archetype that is all about presence. Presence in the sense that it is concerned with what it means to be in relationship with someone else and be fully present for it, attentive to the details of mood and tone and social graces and how beautiful the surroundings are—and also what it means to be present for the little nuances of art when one is observing art, whether it is in somewhere formal like a gallery or whether it is simply the art that is created out of the trappings of being alive, like the kind of expression that naturally arises from what it's like to be in a human form and to listen to the need to relive and express and beautify what it means to be in it.

This can be something that turned into a profession—because, after all, a lot of Libras are found in professions that have to do with art in all its forms, whether that's gardening or painting or makeup artistry or writing and acting or designing—you get the picture.

And so why don't you take a moment to contemplate this archetype in your life? Take a moment, and just think about what it means, to be you in your human form, and to be alive in your body with the urge to, on some level, make the world a more beautiful place. Think about all the times you've wanted to take something and alter or improve or refine it—or create something new entirely—and it is something that brings you joy: specifically the kind of joy that arises from a satisfaction of the senses. All the senses are the domain of Libra. All the senses, and that includes taste, touch, smell, sight, sound, and of course, all these senses can combine and feed off one another as well.

Libra is a sign that enjoys the beautiful things in life. It likes to party, but in a way that is light—refined, even—meaning that there is good conversation, good decor, a good ambience, good people there who all get along with one another and who are also smart but in a "cool" way. Meaning that they're stylish and intellectual and they know their social graces—they're tuned in to whatever is trending, as well as what is timeless.

Air signs know the importance of words and are also intimately invested in what it means to relate to other humans. Libra energy is all about knowing the right words to say at the right time, and to the right people. Wherever you have Libra in your chart is where you are concerned with the intricacies of relating to others through your words. For instance, Sarah has her Venus in Libra in the 12th house, and she is deeply concerned with how to relate to others in a beautiful way (Venus in Libra) that takes place in the realm of dreams, the subconscious, unconscious archetypes, and the symbols of the deep collective psyche. She knows this about herself, hence why she does what she does in her business—relating to people one-on-one, in a way that speaks to the other person's deep identity and unconscious needs and drives, and the archetypes of their soul, and she does this all mainly through her words.

She is laughing at us right now because she thinks we're doing a product placement of sorts for her services, right in the middle of this transmission, and she's right—we are! Because we think she should work with whoever resonates with what they're hearing right now. But back to the episode...

Anyway, we were saying...This season, in the coming weeks, think about what relationship means to you. And we mean that in a broad way. In a sense, "relationship" is just a way of saying that you are choosing to be in engagement with what's around you, and, yes, we've spoken about this in terms of humans relating to other humans, but we also mean that "relationship" can apply to any connection you have between you and another being, and this can mean the relationship you have with your toothbrush or your dog or your neighbor or the tree in your yard. This—being in relationship—simply means that you are connected to another, and that you are conscious of this connection in some way, and it is this—being conscious of it, and investing energy in refining and beautifying it—that is the essence of Libra interpersonal energy.

Okay, and what else...Libra season is also a perfect season in which to think about your connection to art and beauty. And again, we mean that in a broad sense. We are not strictly speaking of the art you see in museums, and galleries—the kind of thing you call Art, with an official, capital "A." We mean the kind of art you make without meaning to, or without setting out to make some masterpiece per se, but that is nevertheless a type of expression because it is coming from you and from a desire for harmony or balance or a need to see yourself reflected back in the outside world, meaning—outside of the inside of your head. Think about Libra and how the symbol of the mirror is associated with it; it is associated with it for a reason. It is, in part, because Libran art can serve as a much-needed external reflection of what we feel and think inside. So, this season, think about he ways in which you see or don't see yourself reflected in the world around you. Take note of what you want to change about that, as well, because Libra is also the sign of justice, and is represented by the symbol of the scales, and Libran justice is the kind that chooses to fight in a refined and dignified way for the plight of those who are underrepresented in society. Think about this, as well, and how Libra energy contains the seemingly superficial and also the very deep, and that is all contained within just one archetype.

Okay, we think we have given you enough to chew on for now. Now we will let Sarah take the reins and share her thoughts with you—all the thoughts that cropped up as she was transcribing our messages! We hope you enjoyed this. Stay tuned for the rest of the episode. Take it away, Sarah!

Relationships, Animism, Beauty, and Justice

Okay, hi, it's me Sarah, sharing my own thoughts and feelings now.

This was my first time doing this—channeling messages from my guides specifically on a whole zodiac sign—in this case, Libra—and I really loved it.

I love going back to the basics—the fundamentals of astrology, like the signs, planets, and houses—and learning something new about these basic building blocks because I think there is such power in knowing and understanding these fundamental archetypes.

I've read a lot of books and looked at a lot of charts, I've taken classes...and in just one fell swoop my guides were able to illuminate these perspectives on the archetype of Libra that I just hadn't thought about before, but that totally made sense once I heard them, and I am so grateful for that.

So, I'm curious to hear what came up for you as you were listening to that transmission.

I wanted to share a few things that came up for me. First of all, it's pretty common knowledge, if you have some familiarity with astrology, that Libra is the sign that is associated with relationships. But I love that my guides were able to expand the parameters of what that means.

As humans, we often think of a "relationship" as being between two humans—and I say "two" because Libra is all about the one-on-one dynamic—but we can expand that definition of one-on-one relationship to describe the connection with, as my guides said, you and another being. And I thought it was notable that they then went on to name something we normally think of as an inanimate object as an example of another being. You can be in relationship, they were saying—in conscious connection with—something as apparently insignificant as your toothbrush.

If you don't already practice it, Libra season could be a great time to contemplate animism, the belief that objects, places, and creatures all possess a distinct spiritual essence. This kind of thinking can be found across many cultures, namely in the traditional Japanese folk religion, Shinto. Animism is also one of the core beliefs of the pre-colonial religions and mythologies of what is now called the Philippines, where my ancestors are from.

One of the most famous examples of someone who practices animism is Marie Kondo, an author and "tidying expert" who is best known for her book The Life-Changing Method of Tidying Up, and whose methods are, in part, inspired by Shintoism*.* I was actually just watching her new Netflix show the other day, Sparking Joy with Marie Kondo, and out of curiosity, I looked up her chart. And, before I tell you about it—if you don't know already—just take a guess at what some of her placements would be. You would think that someone who has become wildly successful off of an efficient method to clean, tidy, organize, and systematize the home would probably be a Virgo—an Earth sign known for its ability to...efficiently clean, tidy, organize, and systematize.

But Marie actually doesn't have a single Virgo placement in her chart. It turns out that she is—as you might've guessed from the theme of this episode—a Libra!

And so, sure enough, when my guides started talking about being in relationship with something like a toothbrush, and seeing that relationship as something worthy of investing energy into in order to refine and beautify it, I couldn't help but think of Marie Kondo. She greets each home and each object as a living soul worthy of respect and gratitude. She teaches people how to be in relationship—in conscious connection with—the objects in their lives, and she is so intimately attuned to this one-on-one connection, as well as the natural life cycle of a relationship. If an object no longer sparks joy for you—just as you would do if the spark in a relationship with another human was fading and you were prepared to call it quits—according to Marie, you thank the soul within the object, and you respectfully part ways, grateful for the joy it brought into your life, and choosing to let it go rather than hold onto old stagnant energy and a relationship that's no longer working.

Even Marie's catchphrase—"sparking joy"—is so quintessentially Libra. As my guides said earlier, Libra energy asks you to pay attention to joy, and "specifically the kind of joy that arises from a satisfaction of the senses." All five of the physical senses: taste, touch, smell, sight, and sound. We often think of earth signs—Taurus, Virgo, and Capricorn—as being the only signs associated with the physical senses, and we tend to think of all air signs—Libra, Gemini, and Aquarius—as being, well, airy, concerned with the intangible: ideas, concepts, words. But Libra also rejoices in the physical. In traditional astrology, it's said that Venus, the ruler of Libra, "finds her joy" in the 5th house, the house of play, fun, creativity, and pleasure. For Marie Kondo, she finds joy and pleasure in the act of tidying, and through teaching her methods to other people, she encourages them to find their joy too.

All this talk of Marie Kondo brings up another thought—a sort of mini insight I had a little while ago that I've been wanting to share. And it's that, as children, don't we all practice animism?

We endow our stuffed animals and dolls and action figures with rich interior lives and we see them interact in an exciting web of relationships. We talk to trees and seemingly inanimate objects. We give them names. We cry when they're lost or taken away, as if we've lost a close friend.

Maybe I'm saying this because I'm a sensitive Pisces moon baby, and your mileage as a kid may have varies, but I believe all children, to some extent, practice animism. Whether you believe that this is just because kids have more active imaginations than adults, or that they are actually more tapped in to other vibrations and dimensions because they're freshly incarnated souls who have just landed and stepped off the spiritual plane (and yes, that was a spiritual plane pun)—regardless of what you believe, we all know that as we become adults, this early affinity for animism is conditioned out of must of us. And so I'd like to ask you: did you believe everything had a soul, or a spirit, when you were a kid? What do you believe now?

Another thing I was struck by in my guides' transmission is just how beautifully they tied together the themes of art, beauty, and justice, all in one quick but precise brushstroke.

As they mentioned, a common symbol that Libra is associated with is the mirror. Libra is ruled by the planet Venus, whose astrological glyph is a stylized drawing of a hand mirror.

Libra often gets a reputation for being concerned with things we deem feminized and therefore frivolous—beauty, superficial appearances. As my guides have mentioned, though, appearances matter in a more profound way than you might think. Being concerned with our reflection can mean that, yes, we might be worried whether our eyeliner is on straight, but it can also mean that we're concerned with how and whether we're being reflected in the world around us. Libra is associated with both art and justice. It is the sign of the scales, of balance, and therefore quality. Libra energy asks whether we are equally represented in art—in the media we produce and consume—and in justice: in the halls of law and politics.

Libra is also a cardinal sign—one of the four signs that each kick off a season—it's the sign that initiates us into autumn. And like all cardinal signs, its cardinal nature makes it initiatory, forward-moving, willing to get things started. I think we often forget this about Libra, because it's known as such a peaceful, polite, and even demure and people-pleasing sign. But it is a cardinal sign—cardinal air—and so it is driven to get people mobilized for Libran justice and equality, using the power of its words.

A perfect example of this is AOC. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez isn't just a Libra Sun. She also has her Mercury, Mars, and Midheaven in Libra. And her Venus is in the first house—the house of self—giving even more emphasis to this energy!

From her flawless red lip to the symbolic power of her presence in Congress as a millennial woman of color—going back to the association of Libra with representation, and how she is literally, job-title-wise, a United States representative—she is someone who fights for Libra justice in Libra fashion. In the words of my guides, "Libran justice is the kind that chooses to fight in a refined and dignified way for the plight of those who are underrepresented in society." AOC fights with dignity, in the face of violent hate, eloquently using the Libran power of words to mobilize and inspire. She's even said that she's studied great orators so diligently that she is able to speak using only a few notes, extemporaneously giving moving speeches, as well as dealing out cutting take-downs and incisive questioning.

My guides concluded their transmission eariler by saying, "Think about this: how Libra energy contains the seemingly superficial and also the very deep, and that is all contained within just one archetype." I think that internalized misogyny can cause us to dismiss the more feminized aspects of Libra—to downplay appearances and the superficial as indulgent or unworthy of our attention—in favor of deeper themes, but this Libra season, it could be interesting to think about how all these things are actually intertwined.

So yeah, I hope you enjoyed this very first episode!

There will be more to come, and on a pretty relaxed schedule. My guides are trying to get me to not burn out, so for now, I plan on releasing one to two episodes per month. Each zodiac season will have its own special episode just like this one, and I'll occasionally have one other episode per month—either with a featured guest, or a solo episode on some other topic.

And, if you listened to the product placement in the middle of the episode for my one-on-one services, and that ended up speaking to you, just know that I will be re-opening my books for one-on-one sessions very soon. In about a week, I'll be sending out an email to my mailing list announcing my schedule for October, and if you'd like to get in on that, you can sign up for my list at the link in the show notes. These sessions will be intuitive conversations in which I share tailored insight with you based on your astrological chart, human design chart, and channeled advice from my guides.

Alright, that's it for now. Thanks for joining me for this episode, and have yourself a joyous Libra season.

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