Cosmic Journal

#023

IN these long-drawn sunlit hours
Wisdom lends her voice to thee:
“cast thyself amongst the world’s lustre (luster) 
to reëmerge with feeling’s pearl, now see:
the Human Soul may now herself surrender
to find herself again in me.”

Liturgy of the Year, Week 11, translation by 

Max Leyf

---

Dear friends,

Today is Monday, June 10th and the Moon remains backed by the constellation of Cancer since its entrance into the stars of the great Crab yesterday morning.  Opening up and looking at our Biodynamic calendars, we can see that we are also currently within the two week Transplanting Time period marked by the descending Moon which began on Friday, June 7th and will last until June 21st. 

As astral forces shine upon us here on Earth, we too can absorb and transmit our own good intentions as we farm alongside our Mineral, Plant, and Animal Kingdom partners as we continue to build interconnected relationships within our unique farm and garden environments. This weekend and onwards as we work, we acknowledge and celebrate the 100th anniversary of Rudolf Steiner’s Spiritual Foundations for the Renewal of Agriculture lectures - a series of gifts that began on June 7th, 1924 and continues to serve as inspiration to us as Biodynamic practitioners, anthroposophists and members of this Earthly world.  

These lectures, as well as Steiner’s many other contributions to the sciences, education, medicine, architecture and much more, invite us to look deeply inward in order to reconnect to the purest of elements and ethers that exist in and around us.  Related to Agriculture, Biodynamics allows for our ancestral relationship with the plants we grow, animals we tend to and wild spaces we explore, to continue to evolve, once again creating union and balance here on Earth.   On a macro scale, Steiner’s teachings has brought forth our contemporary concept of “organic agriculture,” sparked the creation of CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) programs here in North America and was essential to the start of the “environmental movement” in the mid-20th Century.   

As we continue to farm and garden, bringing ourselves to the Earth altar each day, a Biodynamic calendar is one tool we can carry along with us as we personally evolve along this journey.  This resource gives us daily reminders and guidance as we strive to live more in alignment with the soil, plants, animals and Higher Worlds and it is highly encouraged that you adapt these recommendations to fit your local ecosystems and climate conditions.  

With the Moon in the Water sign of Cancer on Monday, June 10th, we are encouraged to tend to our leafy vegetables.  While we work we can pay attention to areas that are wet and dark throughout the garden, creating balanced air flow by weeding and pruning as needed throughout.  Slugs and other insects that enjoy their meals in these hidden spaces may become uncovered during this process and if you are interested in Biodynamic peppering solutions, today while the Moon is in Cancer would be an ideal day to prepare that.  For more information on peppering, please refer to page 74 in the 2024 Maria Thun Biodynamic Almanac, visit JPI’s substack article Pest and Weed (Peppers) Revisited or check out Stewart Lundy’s Pest Peppering Workshop recording from 2022. 

On Tuesday, June 11th the Moon moves into the Fire sign of Leo early in the morning at 3am shifting our focus for the next three days onto fruiting plants.  Remembering that the Moon is descending, we work this week to transplant out any remaining starts, getting our garden spaces filled up for Summer.  Today through Thursday, June 13th as we tend to fruits which require much time to become ripe, we bring our awareness to the ether of Warmth, fostering Love between our hands as we work with abundant squash and tomato plants, our grain crops that continue to reach towards the sky and the countless other berries and stone fruits that both surround us in the wild and within the garden.  

On Wednesday, June 12th at 7:30pm EST we gather together under the warmth of Leo as the ongoing discussion hosted by JPI and Spikenard Honeybee Sanctuary continues to explore Rudolf Steiner’s Spiritual Foundations for the Renewal of Agriculture lectures.  This monthly event is free, open to all and explores biodynamic farming, beekeeping, BD preparations, Spiritual cultivation, community connections and so much more! To join in live or to access recordings from the previous lectures, visit SpikenardFarm.org

At 1am on Friday, June 14th the Moon leaves Leo and enters into the constellation of Virgo which has an affinity to the Earth, the Mineral Kingdom, soil Life and root plants.  Following our astral viewpoint from Earth, we view Virgo as one of the largest constellations, taking up 3.1% of the sky, whereas others are smaller like Cancer and Libra which are only 1.2%.  As the Moon moves through its orbit, it will spend the next four days passing in front of Virgo and we can cultivate the soil, transplant out any type of crop and tend to root veggies through the weekend.  

At 10am on Friday, the Moon also reaches Apogee, the farthest point away from Earth in its orbit.  No need to pause cultivation and transplanting work today for this occurrence since in general the Moon’s position away from the Earth does not have a negative effect on plants.  

On Friday afternoon with the Moon in Virgo, we can offer BD 500 Horn Manure, the Pfeiffer Field Spray or Barrel Compost to your farm or gardens, harnessing the positive influence of the descending Moon as well as the Earthly influence of Virgo.  

With intention, we can gather in the late afternoon to stir the Biodynamic Horn Manure preparation which itself has undergone transformation while buried underground all Winter (possibly even unearthed fairly recently).  As we kneel over our beautiful ceramic crock (or 5 gallon bucket), we focus our attention on our own actions as we use our hand (or possibly a stick) to create a vortex within the vessel.  When, and if called to change directions, we create chaos for the tiny particles as we realign the body of water to the new direction, creating an alchemical effect between our fingertips that is far more powerful than we can imagine.  

While each stir is unique, clearly making our intentions known to the garden and its Spirits as we gather is central to our work as practitioners, asking for our relationship with the Universe to be deepened and expanded as we meditate into the vessel before us.  Whether we stir for 1 hour, 10 minutes or 60 seconds, pouring our unconditional Love into our actions as we stir (and then spray) our BD prep out over the farm helps amplify these relationships, enlivening all of the elements and elementals above and below. Feel free to explore all aspects of this, measure your impact and make adjustments as needed.   

To learn more about Biodynamic preparations, please join us this weekend, June 14th - 16th for the Spring Biodynamic Workshop held by JPI in Floyd, VA. This is an amazing opportunity to get hands-on with BD 500 Horn Manure, 501 Horn Silica, 502 Yarrow, 503 Chamomile and 506 Dandelion preparations while also making lifelong community connections and celebrating the 100 year milestone of Biodynamics. 

Throughout the weekend on Saturday, June 15th through Monday, June 17th the Moon remains in Virgo.  Besides the Moon moving through the Sun’s ecliptic at 4pm on Saturday which encourages us to refrain from afternoon work, we can continue to work with Earth life forces on Sunday and Monday. Any afternoon would be great for the Biodynamic soil sprays as well as the addition of Biodynamic Compost Preps to piles.  

On Tuesday, June 18th the Moon is in the Air sign of Libra which has an influence on flowering plants.  While the Moon will remain here only for ~34 hours, we can greet the Sun with our BD 501 Horn Silica offering with intentions to support plant photosynthesis, overall crop health and to aid in the formation of Spiritually mature fruits.  This spray which is infused with Spiritual Warmth and Light helps to balance the Life and Chemical forces cultivated by BD 500 (or comparable prep). 

This week we might also be called to add BD 508 Equisetum tea and/or BD 507 Valerian to any of our stirs to aid against mold and other plant diseases.  Malcolm Gardener discusses this underutilized BD prep in our recent JPI Substack Post, Gaia Workshop Summary describing Valerian as a “match” that lights up the fire of life in the soil and as Dr. Lievegood writes in his 1951 Study Material publication, Valerian is connected to the “most distant forces of Saturn.. close to Spirit” which helps plants to strengthen their own willpower to grow and mature to fulfill their Spiritual archetype.¹  As interactive members of this relationship and temporary land stewards, our offering of BD 501 this morning ties us also directly to the Spiritual world, allowing each one of us to fully be present within ourselves as we celebrate the freedom to stir, spray and offer our prayers as the closest Sun begins to illuminate our day here on Earth.    

After our morning offering, and maybe then coffee and breakfast, we spend the day deadheading, transplanting and harvesting our (almost) Summer blooms.  Feel the ether of Light as we work, our faith is placed in the fact that each of our plant relatives rely on much more than just the Yellow light of our Sun to fully mature - Spirits of Saturn and beyond that we connected to during our Horn Silica stir.  This deeper Light both shines upon us from the periphery, as well as from within us, as we are blessed to be able to touch the Earth with our hands, becoming a greater bridge of harmony between Worlds. 

At 8am on Wednesday, June 19th the Moon moves into the constellation of Scorpio, a Water sign with affinity to leafy plants and the ether of Tone. Tone, as described by Steiner is the “spiritual sound [that] organizes material existence… which man can only recognize with his external senses when it is transmitted by the air, but it lies spiritually behind all existence.”²

On these Water days, we can quiet our own mental chatter tuning into the music that naturally surrounds us, allowing us to fully experience the world between the Earth and Sky, our Home here in the garden.

As the Moon continues to shine in Scorpio on Thursday, June 20th the Sun transitions into Gemini marking the beginning of Summer.  In the morning we can continue our devotional work to ourselves and our farms through our work with leafy vegetables, transplanting, harvesting and caring for what's needing attention in the garden.  At 4:51 EST we celebrate the Summer Solstice, gathering together with friends and family members with lots of delicious food as the Sun now shines in the stars of the Twins. 

This year, Solstice festivities will be held at Spikenard Honeybee Sanctuary (VA), Sustainable Settings (CO), in Tennessee with Jeff Poppen and worldwide at many local Biodynamic farms (sorry if we missed you in this list!!). 

Feel the Earth’s Soul and Spirit today as the world reaches full exhalation, a time of abundance, fulfillment of deeds, and Spiritual evolution as the Summer Light radiates ever brightly.  Each year, the Earth inhales and recharges itself through the Fall and Winter, ripening into maturity through the Spring and Summer, a spiraling process of Life, death and rebirth.  

As our friend Cynthia Hoven writes on her website Eurythmy Online: 

“At this season of the year, the marriage of the Sun with the Soul of the Earth has created the marvelous, multi-colored, multi-fragranced World of Nature. The seeds that were buried in the earth throughout the winter have left the nest of darkness, and the plants are daily drawn higher and higher, away from the earth. The Earth Soul now clothes herself in all the colors, fragrances, and essential oils of the plant. These are enveloped by the frenzied dances of the birds, the dragonflies, the honeybees. The soul of the earth is ecstatic, as she celebrates a kind of sacred matrimony with the Sun.” 

This beautiful symphony of life that we are privileged to be a part of continues on Friday, June 21st as the Moon remains in Scorpio through the day, continuing to encourage us to work alongside leafy plants, surrendering to the fluid tonal ethers that fill the air. 

At 5pm on Friday, the Moon transitions into the Fire sign of Sagittarius and at 9pm EST it will reach Full illumination.  This evening we can cast our dreams out to the world, reflect on the abundance that exists within our lives and give our gift of unconditional Love to those around us.  We might spend time this evening harvesting Strawberries, chasing fireflies or relaxing on the porch as the rising 9pm Moon and cosmos nourishes us with the highest tune of Life forces.  

As the night continues, the Moon reaches its lowest point in the Sky at 11pm, ending the Biodynamic Transplanting Time. For the next two weeks the Moon will be ascending in the sky as we continue to apply our own Will to manifest and create our Full Moon dreams through acts of Love and compassion.  For plants, energy will now be moving upwards into their limbs, flowers and fruits making the end of June a great time to harvest! 

For further personal reflections related to the Solstice and sequential BD Sprays check out last year’s JPI posts Summer Solstice Horn Manure Offering:

And Summer Solstice Horn Silica Offering. 

This sequence of BD 500 / BD 501 offerings could be slightly adjusted this year to Tuesday / Wednesday this upcoming week when the Moon is in Capricorn & Aquarius and linked above as inspiration.  

Into the weekend, Saturday, June 22nd and Sunday, June 23rd the Moon remains in the Fire sign of Sagittarius as we enter into the Summer Season, sacred to the Archangel Uriel who represents Universal Wisdom and Truth and guards over Eden.  This weekend we might also celebrate the Festival of St. John, an interconnected Christian tradition recognizing the birth of John the Baptist who reminds us to align our own conscious actions with the Cosmic I. 

Cynthia Hoven further explains, “The midsummer sun will soon decrease so that the Inner Sun can appear in midwinter. And John, a radiant sun-like being, is willing to let his own light fade, so that he can make room for a new kind of spiritual awakening on the earth. He can foresee the mantra, ‘Not I, but Christ in me.’”³

With long days of Summer upon us, we can spend time contemplating these historical events, their rhythmic impact on our lives, and connection to the natural processes of life, death and evolved rebirth as seen yearly in the garden, throughout forests and beyond as seeds and plants adapt.  

To learn more about Rudolf Steiner's teachings, visit the Rudolf Steiner Archive or check out the recent writings by Max Leyf, Hazel Archer-Ginsberg, Stewart Lundy and many others here in the Substack community.  

JPI currently has the Maria Thun 2024 Biodynamic Almanac in stock at JPIBiodynamics.org which is a great resource to follow along with us here on JPI’s Cosmic Journal.  Stay tuned for more Stella Natura Biodynamic Calendars since they appear to have sold out and we’ll be back next time with notes on June 24th - July 7th ! 

Wishing you all the best - Russell  

1. Experimental Circle of Anthroposophical Farmers and Gardeners, pg 31

2. (CW122 Genesis, Lecture 4, 20 August 1910). 

3. Thoughts for St. John’s Tide