Category Archives: astrology

Conscious Relationship

27 Wednesday Jun 2012

Posted by in astrology, future events in the sky, relationship astrology, Venus

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Some people give up relationships altogether, and get a cat. Gwen John c1922 {{PD-Art}}

This is a re-print from this blog, 2009–if you’d like the forecast in all its glorious detail, sign up here:

No one is entirely conscious within a relationship; there is always something about ourselves or the other person that we’re willing to ignore, look away from, tacitly accept, or pretend we don’t know. This is part of civilization, an agreement not to read each other’s minds, to embrace the pretense that we can’t know the other person immediately. I think I was first introduced to this concept in Spiritual Midwifery by Ina May Gaskin (during my brief turn as a midwife), and ever since first reading of it I’ve observed human interaction with that in mind: if we want to, we can see the other person whole, for precisely who they are, at any time.

Now, it’s not just the rules of civilization that facilitate the creation of such boundaries; our own psyches need particular experiences, we might call them lessons or interactions or a deepening of our understanding of human nature or of ourselves, and this leads us to ignore what we could know, to put ourselves into interactions that may be, on the surface, damaging, or cause our victimization, or that are some kind of relationship ‘wrong turn,’ at least when seen from the finite, earthly, want to get from point a to point b as quickly as possible, perspective. This is why we shouldn’t be too hard on ourselves when we make, despite our best efforts, what we judge to be a misstep; even the less than perfect experience, relationship, event offers something that shapes us, or that gives us an opportunity to respond differently than we may have in the past, to grow (and it very often offers both).

So, we might want to know which times are best for getting the clearest view possible of our relationships. The upcoming Venus retrograde period will be a prime time, at least in terms of getting an alternative view of relationships, love, and assets as they figure in your life, and this is particularly so if the retrograde occurs in your 5th, 7th, or 11th–this focuses the spotlight on those significant relationships represented by the Houses, with activity in the 8th emphasizing the significant other or a partnership in terms of what’s being shared, while retrograde occurring in the 1st, 2nd, or 12th makes your own internal workings most prominent. Colleagues, teachers, bosses, other authorities, and those with whom you must work get a once over when Venus retros in your 6th, 9th, and 10th, and family relationships are at the forefront with retro in the 4th, and specifically relationships with siblings and neighbors (or those around whom you grew up) are important with the retro in the 3rd.

Other transits that may facilitate clarity include Saturn, which brings reality home to roost, the Sun, which shines a bright light on whatever it touches, and the Moon, which offers fleeting illumination that is at once more subtle or gentle in tone than the Sun’s, but also carries a tinge of the emotional reality, which may or may not aid perceptions. These planets and lights in contact by Solar Arc and Secondary Progression bring the same opportunities but over a much longer term.

Just a Little Astro Essence for Today 25 June 2012, on Saturn Direct

25 Monday Jun 2012

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Girl Chopping Onions’ Gerrit Dou 1646 {{PD-Art}}

On the 1 AM direction of Saturn, from the latest ECLIPSE:

What we can expect, then, may be a re-harnessing, a return to ‘business as usual’, at least as this applies to Libran subjects in general (partnership and marriage, relationships, diplomacy, Art, the law, etc.) and to those subjects of the House(s) in your natal chart with Libra on the cusp. There is also the matter of how it takes two full days plus, after the direction of Saturn, for the ruler of Libra, Venus, to go direct herself. This hints that repercussions in both finances and relationships may come clear over some time, in the peeling of thick Saturnian layers of reality; like an onion, we may think we’ve reached the ‘real’ circumstances of Libran and Venusian matters, only to find another layer that needs removing!

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Just a Little Bit About Your Weekend 22-24 June 2012: ‘A Contentious Climb’

22 Friday Jun 2012

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‘The Peaks of Europe’ Carlos de Haes 1876 {{PD-Art]]

The 22nd of June kicks off our weekend (or wraps up our work week, or however you want to look at it!) with some complex and unavoidable questions of power, empowerment, authority, and control; who really holds it within a relationship will come into stark relief, and only a sense of the worth of the relationship itself, and/ or a sense of generosity or wisdom, will keep us out of a tangle. Pallas sesquiquadrate Juno invites us to question the wisdom of those ‘in charge’, while Vesta opposed Juno may stoke the fires of ‘my values are better than your values, what I care about and am committed to is superior to your petty status and influence concerns’–not an ally-winning statement, whether it’s spoken or just seeps out of one’s pores. But, our saving grace is Venus, still retro but reluctant to be, moving so very slowly, sextiling Pallas, and perhaps showing us in a slightly backhanded but no less charming way what’s really the smart approach here.

And there’s more!

The 23rd will be a busy day, a tense one, and may result in major change. Vesta perfects conjunction to Sedna, essentially removing our Higher Values compass; the most likely result may be that suddenly we are either uncaring of those things we normally revere, or we are unable to pinpoint them. This can be disastrous.

So finally:

Moon enters Virgo at 4:43 AM PDT of the 24th. Right away there’s a square to Ceres; the emotions, in critical-accounting mode, are immediately challenged to stand up for themselves in the face of those who believe their territory extends under our own skin! So we start off in defensive mode–and maybe it’s better that way.

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A Taste of Venus Retrograde 15 May 2012: ‘Tastes Change’

15 Friday Jun 2012

Posted by in astrology, current events in the sky, Retrogrades, Venus, Venus Retrograde

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The hat Venus wears here is the kind of taste mistake we could make during the retro period. ‘Cupid Complaining to Venus’ by Cranach the Elder {{PD-Art}}

Here’s a little of what I said in ECLIPSE about today’s retrograde of Venus (at 7:32 AM PDT at 23 Gemini 59):

Any Venus area where we have met a dead end while she’s direct is an area prime for rejuvenation during retrograde.

This means that the changed tastes and willingness to try the new and unusual in Venusian pursuits that typically surfaces during this time can be a means to re-generate a part of life that we have worn into a rut with too narrow a viewpoint, taste palette, or definition of what’s ‘right’ or appropriate for us. ‘New’ can definitely be the keyword that frees up an area and an approach leading to new relationships, experiences, and an enhanced aesthetic sense that lasts and benefits us long past Venus’ direction. The retro period can serve to modify our Venusian standards and perceptions so that they are wider and at the same time more refined once the planet appears to move forward again.

What do you make of the impending Facebook IPO during the retrograde period of the planet symbolizing, among other things, relationships and cash? I haven’t studied any charts related to FB, including Zuckerberg’s, but do feel that the stock is immensely overvalued, and that it may plunge drastically within months of the initial offering. Don’t say I didn’t warn you 😉 (then again, if I’m wrong, you can take yourself to lunch on your earnings!)

I‘m away from home right now, so if you’ve written to me and I haven’t answered, it’s because I’m sitting looking out at the Columbia River, dealing with wonky wi-fi and ridiculous heat for this part of the world in May–but I can still get books and ECLIPSE to you, so feel free to order and take advantage of the May Special–2 extra months for a 6 month subscription (for a total of 8) and 1 extra for a 3 month subscription (for a total of 4–and recommended if you’re not sure a Weekly Digest that has articles, commentary, and complete aspect and Lunar forecasts is for you!) If you’re renewing or adding to your existing subscription, you get those extra months, too! Order Now

Sign Relationships, the Quincunx, and Extreme Degree Meanings

06 Wednesday Jun 2012

Posted by in Aspect Delineation, aspects and placements, astrology

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A delicate balance must be achieved when dealing with the contrasts of adjacent or quincunx sign energies. Vermeer c1663 ‘Woman With a Balance’ {{PD-Art}} via Wikimedia Commons

In our quest to access all possible meanings inherent in each sign of the Zodiac, we shouldn’t overlook how the relationships among signs have an effect on meaning. Specifically, we can look at how each sign has a meaning that is a reaction to the one preceding it. This is an especially helpful point of view to have in at least three instances: 1) when we have a placement at 00 degrees of a sign, 2) when we have a placement at 29 degrees of a sign, and 3) when we are talking about the relationship between placements that sit in neighboring signs, or those in signs that are quincunx each other.

For example, Mercury at 00 Libra implies that the communication skills are at the beginning of a journey that will orient expression toward diplomacy, fairness, and balance. These are the impulses; they are in reaction to what came before, the experience of Virgo. The Mercury-centered lessons of Virgo are ones of discernment, critical assessment, and communication as service. We can see a Libra Mercury as a set of values and attitudes that spring from experiences of a Virgoan nature, especially from experiences of a negative Virgoan nature. The impulse toward diplomacy may spring from the one-sided nature of criticism, and from the desire to put the Virgo penchant for communication as service into a situation that acknowledges the rights and contributions of the other party, while the Libran desire for fairness may spring from the experience of receiving criticism.

What about when we have a placement at 29 degrees? This is a situation where we have experienced the gamut of manifestations available in the sign, and there is pressure for the individual to ‘finish up’ the lessons of that placement in that sign–this means that one is on the verge of embracing the values of the next sign in the sequence. For instance, what if one has Neptune in the 29th degree of Libra? Likely there is a sense of being very familiar with disillusion in love and delusion in relationship, even from a very young age. There will also be a strong understanding of spirituality in partnership, and the way in which imagination and fantasy can have both positive and negative influences in relationships will also be inherently understood. There may be a certain feeling of dissatisfaction in this knowledge, a feeling that there’s nothing anyone can tell them in this arena. There may be a mental ‘reaching toward’ the ideas of deep, intense communion with Neptunian energies, of the desire to ‘dig up dirt’ (Scorpio) rather than ‘smooth things over’ (Libra). One will be restless with Neptunian energies; of course, as with all planetary positions, the house placement will tell us much about how these experiences will manifest.

When we have placements that are semi-sextile, or quincunx, we have some idea that they have a relationship, and the aspect lets us know the (uneasy) nature of their alliance. But what about when we have placements in adjacent, or quincunx, signs, and they have no ‘formal’ relationship to each other? Then we can look at the way they fail to communicate, and why, by noting the natures of the signs. For example, let’s look at Mars in Gemini and Venus in Cancer–how do they see each other? Mars is likely to funnel assertive energies through communication (especially words/ talk), to exercise the ego energies through networking and social outlets; Venus is ahead of Mars in the Zodiac, and has brought values and relationship concerns into the Cancerian sphere. Venus says, ‘Relationships can’t be just talk, just flitting from occasion to occasion, they must be caring and nurturing,’ while Mars says, ‘My ego wants things light and social; why must relationships be so smothering?’ This means, generally, that Mars and Venus will always be slightly at odds in expression, symbolizing disparities in the personality and the successful manifestation of each of the involved energies.

Placements in signs that are quincunx each other suffer a similar awkwardness in relationship. For instance, Sun in Pisces and Pluto in Libra will never quite express ‘in sync’ with each other. The Sun will be embracing the Universe, accepting all, emphasizing the spirituality inherent in every Being, while Pluto watches from afar and cautions: relationships can be destructive! Negative urges do not support a Oneness of All! Be serious! Suspect everybody!

Noting the relationships between signs can add a little something extra to our understanding of our placements, and as well can help us understand why some energies express with more harmony to neighboring placements than do others. Briefly, Aries is the ego/ individuality rebelling from the All is One stance of Pisces; Taurus says, it’s not just about me, it’s about my things and environment; Gemini says, don’t be so wrapped up in the material, lets talk! while Cancer pleads, don’t be so frivolous, nurturing and love must be sincere; Leo says, good grief, let’s get back to the Star of the show; Virgo says, quit being such an ego-maniac, go help out, and fix everything; Libra puts the other before the Self, and the whole thing better be pretty! while Scorpio says, I can’t make nice any longer, let’s dig up the bodies! Sagittarius says, I can’t live in a cave anymore, let’s get out and explore; Capricorn insists one sit still and get serious; Aquarius wants no restraints whatsoever, unless the group says so, and Pisces says, you can’t be one in the group, you must be the group!

This article is a reprint that first appeared on my blog at Yahoo 360, and that was again re-issued about four years ago–but it’s a worthy subject that can stand another look! Have a great day! jd

Dance With Neptune, Watch Venus Kiss the Sun

05 Tuesday Jun 2012

Posted by in astrology, current events in the sky, Neptune, Venus Retrograde

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‘Dancers in Pink and Green’ Degas {{PD-Art}}

If you felt Neptune’s retrograde at all, it was probably something of a heavy thump, the gentle placement of leaden boots onto your feet, the pulling down of a woolly, brain-stifling cap over your head, the settling of a thick blanket over you that traps humidity and causes a vague, unreachable itch, or, for a few, feeling like the heart is a huge thing, turning over with a thud just under the breastbone. It’s more likely to arrive in a feeling of foreboding or nameless weight that sneaks in during the daily routine than it is to make for the kind of distinct effect other energies do: ‘before Neptune’s retro’ and ‘after Neptune’s retro’ are not so easily or clearly defined. This behemoth turned around at 3 Pisces 09, with the most immediate shift felt via natal placements that he is either squatting on or aspecting by hard angle; you might also feel an alteration in the trade winds buffeting the House in the natal chart with Pisces on the cusp, or perhaps the settling in of something dense and obscuring related to those matters. But in those instances of conjunction or aspect of Neptune to the natal, you will likely sense or be presented with a change in the creative flow, imaginative abilities, to the fantasy life, or to the ‘tune’ you normally dance to in this life area. Changes are not necessarily negative, especially if you have Neptune retro natally–then you might feel ‘back in the swim’ in a way you haven’t lately–but even if you are suddenly more comfortable with the flow of things, it can be disorienting (a Neptune specialty!) and even one who’s celebrating wants to avoid happily twirling through the fog and right off a cliff.

Today is Venus’ visible transit across the Sun, a startling phenomenon that will not be possible to observe from our vantage point here on Earth again until 2117. Don’t look directly at it–just as with an eclipse, you must protect your eyes from unkind consequences–and there are many places online to watch, should you be in a clouded area (as I am!) Astrologically, this is simply a Sun/ Venus conjunction–it’s the angle that makes it special, as it’s allowing us to see dainty Venus with the furnace of the Sun as a backdrop–but it is a meeting of retro Venus and Sun in Gemini, suggesting at the very least that the attention spotlight is on a re-consideration of relationships and/ or finances. Look for a denouement of sorts, in spite of the fact that the retro period isn’t yet over; expect some kind of ending, conclusion, wrap-up, or resolution that will probably surprise or enlighten in some important way.

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Just a Little Astro Essence for Today 25 May 2012: ’20/20 Hindsight’

24 Thursday May 2012

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A. Lambertsz van den Tempel c1667 {{PD-Art}}

From the just-out issue of ECLIPSE Weekly Aspect Digest/ Newsletter:

The 25th Mercury sextiles Pallas and squares Neptune, and the Sun conjuncts the South Node while Earth meets up with the North Node. Meet-ups of the Sun/ Earth axis with the Nodes can be startling; they offer us a society-wide reality check, a chance to see just exactly where we’re headed as group. We may have a good perspective on the social order at this time, and we’ll be more than willing to give advice on how others should improve things–but of course, we’ll be deluded, confused, misinformed, or living with our heads in the clouds, and so unaware of the ‘real’ situation. It’s an instance where our advice and practically-oriented thoughts are perceptive and ‘right’, but where there’s a disconnect that makes our musings impractical and irrelevant. It’s 20/20 hindsight *sigh*

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Just a Little Astro Essence for 21 May 2012: ‘Distorted Perceptions’

21 Monday May 2012

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‘Ahem said the mouse with an important air.” from Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by L. Carroll, edition illustrated by Charles Robinson 1907 {{PD}}

The 21st sees a contact frenzy among heavenly energies–and we can be fairly certain it’s all prompted by whatever the eclipse brought forward. (And if it seems the eclipse didn’t carry any big event or impact for you, I would assume that the effects have gone underground, and are working behind the scenes in your life, particularly if it fell in the 1st, 12th, 2nd, or possibly the 11th, 9th, or 10th.) We have Chiron sextile Vesta, and Mercury conjunct Jupiter, sesquiquadrate Pluto, and quincunx Saturn, and the effect on the perceptions could be major. We are on the one hand inspired to heal, to serve, and to mold ourselves without hesitation to our highest ideals and to honor those things we consider sacred; but on the other hand, we are suffering mental processing anomalies that are disorienting, traumatic, and even frightening, as they hold the potential to disconnect us from reality, for a time.

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Discussion of the Mystery Charts from ECLIPSE’s Article on Career and Talent Markers, Pt. 1

10 Thursday May 2012

Posted by in aspects and placements, astrology, Astrology and Communication, Astrology of Careers Vocations and Callings, Natal Delineation

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Chart of Mystery Man #1  26 January 1955  1:05 AM  Amsterdam, Netherlands

What grabs your eye right away? That often ends up being something key to understanding the chart, and here it’s no exception; if you’re like me, Neptune in the 12th only one minute from the Ascendant is what caught your attention. This suggests to me a Neptunian quality to this individual’s essence, one that hooks the personality to the Collective, almost in tandem–this man was meant to express something ideal or creative through his individuality that is right in line with a statement of the Collective spirit–and this suggests a timeliness to the expression, where the individual is instrumental in bringing something ‘of the moment’ into being. Neptune is opposed Sedna, though, and that suggests that, though the individual takes to his Neptunian role like a duck to water, he’s really unaware of the true extent of his ability! Neptune rules his 5th, suggesting his role is both creative and a labor of love.

The 2nd, seat of his assets. is ruled by Pluto, which sits in the 10th of career–this suggests both the ability to be known specifically for one’s talent, and to make a lot of money at it (Pluto can be connected to serious money wherever we find it). Pluto is conjunct Zeus–in someone with fewer positive attributes, this could read as ‘naked ambition’, but in this man it manifested in career focus that took him to the top. The 2nd also holds Pallas, Venus, and Ceres–again, money, wisdom (perhaps in the guise of a smart woman at his side), and access to nature, this latter a connection that can give someone a ‘primal’ edge, and so make them very appealing.

The article also noted Chiron as indicating abilities, and his is at 29 Capricorn 51, conjunct the Sun in the 3rd, opposed the Jupiter/ Uranus conjunction of the 9th and quincunx 10th House Zeus; Chiron in Cappy suggests a practical or ‘applied’ bent to the talents, with conjunction to the Sun making it integral to identity (indeed, the 29 degree placement says Chiron expression is a must, and so lends some urgency and feeling to what might’ve otherwise been a too-cool Aquarian Sun). Tucked near the IC, though, Chiron/ Sun says he doesn’t need the spotlight–bringing the talent forward is really about communicating who he is. Jupiter/ Uranus conveys luck in a lightning-strike kind of way–Jupiter rules the 3rd, Uranus rules the 4th, reiterating the communication/ identity focus, and ruler of both these, the Moon, sits in the 4th in Aquarius, conjunct Mercury–again, deepest Self and communication as a focus, and with the 3rd/ 4th so much involved, we might expect that family, specifically the father or a sibling, has something to do with this–and they do.

The unconscious influences are creative (Neptune in 12th), influenced by the Self-worth picture and the assets/ talents (12th ruler Venus in the 2nd), with a need to communicate at a ‘higher order’ level, and/ or the need to be original, surprising, and inventive. Partnership is a big part of this (Libra on the 12th) Of all the Neptunian Arts, music might be the one we would call ‘highest level’, with its correspondence to mathematics, and if you guessed music is this man’s field, you are correct. He is capable of putting the brakes on, and of Self-discipline when need be (Saturn in the 1st, which has a lot of contacts to other energies).

What about his audience–what do they want from him? The 7th says energy, drive, ‘manly’ performance, while the 10th says that power and desire are visible to all, as is his essence, with the Sun ruling the 10th–people see him, and approve his efforts toward ambition fulfillment, fame and fortune. Nice if you can get it, right?

After a period of big and relatively long-lasting success, this man’s band went through some difficulties and some decline–and once they’d retreated somewhat from their more prominent status this man suffered cancer of the tongue–are we surprised, considering the emphasis on Merc and communication, the conjunction of Mercury with the Moon, and Pluto’s opposition to these? No, we’re not; illness in a part of the body representative of something critical to life expression is not uncommon with a sensitive individual when the road gets rough–and we can’t overlook the influence of the father here, as when this musician early on complained of extreme pre-performance nerves (a perfect expression of an anxious Aquarian Sun) the father (remember the family/ 3rd/ 4th emphasis) told him to just have a drink to calm his nerves–thus precipitating a serious substance abuse habit, again, not surprising with Neptune right there in everything he does. And there’s more family involvement, as this man formed his band with his brother.

Commenter Dunyazade got the power in his field part very right, along with the way his Art got this man into (substance abuse) trouble, and Aphelionex was right top to bottom–impressive!–kudos to both of you! And Donna Davidson didn’t waste time; she went straight to the answer, correctly naming this the chart of Eddie Van Halen.

Will discuss the 2nd chart tomorrow. Many thanks to those who participated! And don’t miss the subscription specials, listed below–

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Charts for the May 4-10 2012 ECLIPSE: What Are They Good At?

04 Friday May 2012

Posted by in astrology, Natal Delineation

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Subscribers, here are the two charts for the article on career and success markers in the natal chart. Both happen to be for males, both are living, and both made their mark in the Arts; those are the only clues for now, but if you choose to make comments I’d love to hear what area of the Arts you think each would excel in–and of course all comments, especially those focusing on the principles outlined in the article, are more than welcome, and all commenters are welcome, whether you are a subscriber or not. Will post my take early next week. Enjoy your weekend, and Happy Full Moon in Scorpio!