Category Archives: current events in the sky

Pallas Into Taurus: the Wise Earth

19 Monday May 2008

Posted by in aspects and placements, astrology, current events in the sky, Pallas, Pluto, Saturn

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We’ve seen startling transformations to the solid structures of the Earth, whether man-made or natural, in the earthquakes in China, with the unseasonal tornadoes across the United States, with the massive cyclone in Myanmar, and I’m sure there have been many other instances of destruction of the current reality, figurative and literal, in many many places. Saturn and Pluto have been showing their willingess to embrace each other; destruction and the solid easily combine, and humankind loses what they count on in the process. With Pallas entering Taurus, we’ll witness a Grand Trine for approximately one week, from the 20th to the 27th. What can we expect when Pallas puts down her shield and spear, and looks to plowing the field? 

The spirit of Taurus is of the Earth itself; when the Warrior Queen enters the sign of the Bull, she puts aside her armor, leaves the battlefield, and returns to the source of sustenance and creation. This is represented by Taurus as the sign of the fields, of gardens and growth (though agriculture is Virgo–why?–because Taurus is the seed, the act of planting that is akin to faith, while Virgo is the gathering in on a large scale of the product); as well, Taurus is the actual soil things grow in, and as such she is the sign that represents those crafts and artisanal skills that are quite literally of the Earth and its products, such as sculpting, pottery, cooking, the fashioning of jewelry, and use of stone and wood to build.

Pallas steps onto the fertile Earth, and a set of talents entirely different than those we’ve seen during her time in Aries come forward. Pallas is an indicator of practical and artisanal abilities herself, and when in Taurus she becomes the pair of hands that deals skillfully with all that the Earth produces. She is also a businesswoman, and as such will deal in Taurus with the material, the tangible, with the real estate (in its most expansive sense) of each one of us. She will help us re-build, help us find a home, bring us to fertile ground, in one sense or another.

When she enters Taurus she creates a Grand Trine with Saturn and Pluto, and should aid in recovery from all the devastation that the Earth and her inhabitants have been experiencing. This aid will be practical and beautiful; Pallas is nothing if not wise in her choices. To respect Pallas is to honor our own wise inner voice, as well as our most useful skills and abilities. For this week long period, we’ll see some of the most meaningful steps being taken in building, planting, with energies rising Phoenix-like from Mother Earth. Check the House in the natal chart where this will occur for you to know where best to apply your Taurus and Pallas oriented efforts–you can make significant strides during the week long trine, and can exercise the wisdom of Pallas Athena in all Earth-related matters as she helps us move forward toward a productive and bountiful summer.

A Heat Wave, Ants Invade, Progress is Made

16 Friday May 2008

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It’s not supposed to be 93 in May in Oregon, but it is; why does reality constantly contradict what’s ‘supposed to be’? That’s so irritating. For once curious about the weather, I looked at the current aspects, just to see what I could see (or imagine, or make up). At first I had no idea what to look for; should I concentrate on elements, certain ‘weather-y’ planet characteristics, hard aspects? (And I’ll apologize right now to those who are more knowledgeable about mundane astrology than am I–I’m making this up as I go along!) Then it jumped out at me: Chiron/ Neptune/ the North Node conjunct in Aquarius, trine Mercury/ Ceres in Gemini, Mercury semi-square Mars in Leo. Debilitating (or perhaps wounding) weather, very humid (fog formed yesterday morning, with temps in the high 70s), a sign of climate change? (NN), contacting changeability and the seasons/ Mother Nature, all in Air, heated up by hard contact to Mars in Fire. Hot air. That describes so much!

Have you heard about the ants that crawled off a cargo ship in Houston two years ago and have now taken over five Texas counties? Dubbed ‘Raspberry Ants’ for the exterminator who first identified them, they are blanketing Pearland, and moving northwest. The good news: they eat Fire Ants, and their own bite is very mild; the bad news: they are unaffected by existing pesiticides. We see a possible indicator of their arrival two years ago with the Ceres/ Neptune conjunction–Mother Nature sneaks in under Neptunian obscuring cover. So why are we hearing about it now? I’m going back to that same well, with the Ceres/ Mercury conjunction in Gemini trine Neptune/ Chiron/ NN, communication, nature, the obscured facet revealed, the skills we need to develop (or is it Neptune, the poison we’ll create?) to deal with this; and today the Moon briefly creates a Grand Trine, perhaps making the importance of this obvious to all. The involvement of the North Node at this point suggests to me that we’re just recognizing that this may be ‘where we’re headed,’ and that it won’t just peter out, but needs to be addressed.

Two days ago my husband received an offer for a new job–it means a promotion, and also a move. The Universe truly does work in mysterious ways. The time when he was offered the job put transiting Sun conjunct exact N Jupiter, and the T Ascendant exact conjunct his MC. But what am I to make of the four horaries that all pointed toward this coming Tuesday, the 20th, as the day of resolution? I’m very curious to see what next week brings–he’s accepted the job, but no paperwork has been signed–in fact, it won’t be until June 16th. I do not like the looks of this day, and am going to ask him to change it to the 23rd (his other option to start). Among the problems: Mercury is retrograde, Pluto is back in Sag, Jupiter is quincunx the South Node, Chiron is conjunct the North Node, and the Sun is sextile Vesta (these latter three are exact). Some of this doesn’t change in just a week, but at least Merc would be direct, with paperwork on that date initiated before the Moon goes Void of Course. Though not an ideal situation (he’ll have to drive one and a half hours each way until we can move), we are grateful and in many ways, it’s a vast improvement over the current, soon-to-end situation. Many thanks to all who offered their kind words and support during yet another personal crisis! I hope that means I’m done with those for a while. UPDATE: The horaries were right! He received a second job offer, for even more money, in an even better situation. Now, I almost delight in bad news, for like Jung I immediately think, “What good will come of this?” I’ve got so much proof that that’s true!

The Devouring Mother: Happy Post (or Anti-) Mother’s Day!

12 Monday May 2008

Posted by in aspects and placements, astrology, Chiron, current events in the sky, relationship astrology

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So we have this T-square formed right now with the axis of the Taurus Sun/ Scorpio Earth squaring Aquarian Chiron, and coming into orb as it did just in time for the pseudo-holiday celebrating guilt and obligation that we generally feel toward our mothers (and come on ladies, it’s up to us to break the cycle with the next generation–let’s free our children, so that when they come to us, they come to us out of love, simply and completely), and this touchy config may have led to some less-than-pretty scenes. Oh, things may have gone well on the surface, but how many of us cringed with carrying out the expected (no, required) obeisance? And how many of us saw dissatisfaction expressed, the kind that poked at the primal wound (Chiron) through a not-so-positive evaluation of our material choices (Earth) or our Soul’s necessary direction (Sun)?

Don’t get me wrong; I’m a mother myself, and know what an incredibly difficult, long term task it is to even try to guide and provide for another human being who comes to us helpless and, to some extent, unformed. It’s been said that mothering is the toughest job in the world; but I believe that mothering well is the toughest job in the world. We definitely need to make a distinction between those who approach the job with the best of intentions and a willingness to do their utmost to provide what their child truly needs, and those for whom motherhood has been a role Self-centeredly, if not unconsciously, played.

If you were lucky yesterday (or today, or tomorrow, or the next day, until the Sun/ Earth moves askew to Chiron) you were or will be reminded of one or more of your most personal, unique, and useful skills/ strengths. These are talents you are born with (and as such your association to Mom may be in some way a trigger, or interwoven emotionally, with this, possibly triggered particularly by the Nodal proximity, which as we know is natally mother-related), that you are probably the best person on the planet to deliver to the world, that you don’t need a license, degree, or permission to use (though you may need to take this attribute from a sensitive spot to a positive ability before you can employ it), and these few days are ones that may bring this to the surface.

Now all of this is just a pre-rumination on the real-life possibilities of a terribly unflattering maternal Archetype, the Devouring Mother (and don’t worry, fathers get equal time; for instance, in the form of child-devouring Chronos, so frightened of a prediction that he would be surpassed by one of his offspring that he ate every one of them he could find!) I’ll post a second part soon, with the chart of a real-life example of the Devouring Mother for us all to inspect.

My 12th Comes to Life

10 Saturday May 2008

Posted by in aspects and placements, astrology, current events in the sky, Pluto, Saturn

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Though I’m loathe to talk about myself (1st House Pisces Moon–see my previous article on how we want to hide!) it almost seems a disservice to relate to my readers, and to astrology, as if it’s all an abstraction, ‘out there,’ and of course part of my job is to apply astrology to real life–so sometimes, as when I spoke of my own recent health crisis, it seems appropriate to share. Almost two weeks ago my husband was told his job would no longer exist as of July 1st. This was more than a shock (and Uranus is conjunct my natal Moon! I was warned of this by an alert reader months ago, but my response was, “Yes, but I think this has already come about with ‘x'” Boy was I off!)–the situation didn’t make sense–my husband’s the guy who actually supervises everyone else, does all the paperwork, keeps things in compliance and running–what were they thinking? That leaves the people who deal directly with the clients, and the big-wigs who do . . . I don’t know what. On top of this, we’ve always been the ones to do the leaving, to wave good-bye to one circumstance as it recedes in the rear view mirror and to head off toward another–no one’s ever said, “You can’t have this job anymore” to either of us. So setting aside the blow to the ego, we’ve both gone through the five stages (denial, anger, bargaining, depression, acceptance) in lightning-quick speed, largely because we’ve both got an extremely strong belief that the Universe is to be trusted, that this is happening not just with good reason, but with our consent. I look at the transits to my chart (and maybe this is a weakness for me, that I’m not constantly ruminating on my own chart) and of course see that one of my greatest fears (held for me in the subconscious 12th, which is Saturn-ruled), the fear of extreme impoverishment (and of course it’s extreme, my Libra Sun must swing to radical ends before it balances itself out) and destruction (my packed 8th House) has come to reality (T Saturn just 13 minutes from N Pluto in the 7th of spouse, the other, the audience, Art–Pluto rules the 9th, which contains Venus and the North Node–Saturn also squares the Midheaven, sextiles Neptune, semi-sextiles Mercury).

Or has it? The more time that passes, the more this seems like an obvious blessing. My husband’s workplace is not just dysfunctional, it seems to be imploding (and there’s some question as to whether his position received the ax because he pushed strongly for compliance with federal mandates, and the powers that be were highly resistant–likely because the obvious analysis would have displaced one or more of them). It has challenged us to move toward what we say we want–and though I love my life here, there are things I want to do that will not happen in this spot. It’s pushed us both to make choices, and I’m grateful for the wake-up call to move us forward in so many ways. Yes, we could still lose our house, could still find ourselves in tough straits–but as I work to live in the moment, what I find is that everything is really going very well–and I’m challenged to trust that whatever the future brings, even if it appears disastrous, is right for us.

Silly me, when I first contemplated the possibilities of the Saturn to Pluto transit, I skimmed over the idea of job loss for my husband (7th House location). Saturn and Pluto have always been my friends, and the idea of him losing his position didn’t make logical sense, so I actually looked forward to this. And now, almost two weeks after revelation, I finally am once again anticipating that this contact will, eventually, be a positive one. One last aside, as an astrologer I of course have done some horaries related to possibilities–and had to laugh, as in three separate charts asking three separate questions and cast at totally different times/ dates, the indication has consistently been that resolution (likely in the form of a new job) will manifest May 20th. I’ll keep you informed!

Jupiter Reverses, Mars Enters Leo: The Madness!

08 Thursday May 2008

Posted by in aspects and placements, astrology, current events in the sky, Jupiter, Mars

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We may be feeling a little unhinged as of late, and I think I’ll lay blame at the feet of giant Jupiter as it retrogrades (the 9th at 3:57 AM PDT) and our little internal warrior Mars as it escapes Watery, touchy-feely Cancer for the bravura Fire of Leo (the 9th at 1:21 PM PDT). We’re stirred up yet short-circuited in our bid to keep getting bigger, in some vital way. Jupiter’s turnaround point forces a pause, and a reconsideration of just what we’ve been up to; and it always comes just when we feel we’re on the verge of that BIG breakout.

Why would the Universe orchestrate such a frustrating pattern? We get a clue in the way the Sun trines Jupiter just after retrograde–this points up that we have reached a reasonable peak relative to our efforts, and now must in some way re-visit our path to this moment, if not for revision then at least for time to truly assimilate what’s occurred. But what happens when, as we’ll see now, the ego and assertive urge undergoes its own ‘crisis’ as it moves from one sign to the next?

Mars is liable to burst forth as it hits Leo. Simultaneous to entry into the sign of the Lion, Mars will quincunx Pluto and then semi-sextile Saturn, and this influence will be felt! The urge to run forward will plunge us into some dark material, some of it by accident, some by design as we hope to erradicate problems and ‘clean it up.’ Saturn’s involvement may bring energies into reality more easily than we would typically anticipate–and then our Mars/ Pluto quincunx will be staring us right in the face–so what should we do, now that we have a chance to make real change?

My thought is that we can look to the House(s) Mars rules in the natal chart, and to Pluto’s natal state in general, for appropriate and effective outlets for this exuberant (and if not controlled, destructive) energy. Elimination of the negative, the encumbrance, the hurtful thing that’s been holding us back, is possible, and timed with Jupiter’s withdrawal of permission to expand indefinitely, implies a graceful intelligence at work in the Universe that prevents us from overdoing the destruction or elimination; instead Jupiter helps us avoid leaping over the brink, and saves us from devastating sturctures, relationships, and creations that we would never be able to recover.

Pluto Transforms Us All

01 Thursday May 2008

Posted by in aspects and placements, astrology, current events in the sky, Pluto

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It seems that tremendous change, if not disaster, has come to everyone in one form or another. What gives? Weren’t all these Grand Trines supposed to bring earthly nirvana, wonderful bounty, and make it really easy to get what we want? Apparently not. Of course, I read trines as an ease in expression; I don’t necessarily see this as positive. So, I’m not surprised by the many traumas and major life developments all around me; I am surprised, shocked, even, by the extremity of the manifestations, by the sheer magnitude of the events. We’re not just seeing death in the vicinity, we’re seeing the life-altering death of parents or siblings or spouses; we’re not just seeing the loss of a job or position, we’re seeing the security and income of entire families wiped out; we’re not just seeing the disintegration or severing of relationships, we’re in the midst of bruising alterations of vital relationships, the kind we use as an emotional refuge, now gone from the face of the earth with a tsunami-like influx of change–but what’s really driving this?

The nature of the change shouts Pluto, and with it sitting at 00 Capricorn we may be seeing Pluto’s blunt introduction of what its time in Cap will really be like: paring everything it touches to the bone. Why didn’t this happen when it first entered Capricorn last winter? Possibly the effect was downgraded somewhat, particularly by the encounter of Pluto and Jupiter in December; that set up the origins of what’s occurring now, but so subtly that we didn’t take those tiny tremors for anything we couldn’t handle, and didn’t already have figured out. We met what came, adjusted, and felt we’d weathered the storm, patting ourselves on the back and thinking we’d come out of that with barely a nick–silly mortals!

As I mentioned in writing about this pairing at the time, this conjunction has the habit of triggering major changes that take some time to surface. Look back twelve years, and tell me there wasn’t a similar, irretrievable shift in your world then, too. The unfortunate part is that currently we are both extremely capable of handling these crises and even making the most of them, but we are also simultaneously incapable of discerning exactly where the correct path lies, and fear is a major factor here (Neptune, North Node, Chiron conjunct; Saturn conjunct the South Node; Mars quincunx Neptune/ North Node, Mars opposed Jupiter, for a touch of exaggeration!)

It reminds me of what was my basic theory of the situation on the show ‘Lost,’ before the story shot off in a thousand different directions: I thought each character was in a netherworld where they encountered their deepest, most secret fear; a fear of not being able to step up to the task or the challenge or the responsibility, to be honest, to walk away from the addiction, to keep someone important to you alive and safe, to love. I suspect that’s the mechanism here; we’re meeting a form of our worst fear, and we must call up from our best selves all that the situation requires. 

What can we do to cope? Hang tight, and even if you’re a born pessimist, become both a realist and an optimist; the combination of clear seeing and faith in the positive is in my opinion the ticket out of this. I’m not talking about hope–that’s something we offer when we are able to, or intend to, do nothing–I’m talking about an attitude that trusts the Universal wisdom and the rightness of all things and pairs this with a willingness to do, to be inventive, to allow inspiration, quite literally, welcoming the Universal spirit, and  continuing to dream, to live, to become.

Leaping Into the Hand of God

03 Thursday Apr 2008

Posted by in Chiron, current events in the sky, Neptune, North Node

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In the dream I am riding a motorcycle, very very fast, racing with another rider who is on my left, but he is unable to catch me. The road is little more than a blacktop path; there are trees on either side, small pines and brush, and it’s as if I can hear people talking, like I’m wearing a headset or bluetooth. I’m flying along and realize there is a river that crosses my path. It runs through the bottom of a very deep canyon, and I know that I have to try and jump, even though as I approach I can see that there is literally no way to land on the other side; the ground is much higher there, with a sheer rock face. I know I must jump, not because I can’t stop (though that would be hard), but because I realize that I want very much to know what will happen. I drive at full speed toward the gorge, and the voices are telling me that there is a way to land successfully; there is a rock extension that juts into the gorge and is invisible until you are practically on it. They say that it’s known as ‘The Hand of God’ and they show me (as only dream voices can!) that it looks like a giant hand, palm up. I think that I will make the leap of faith, just like Indiana Jones when he steps over the abyss and finds a rock bridge. I soar into the air and am able to hang there, searching for the hand, but can’t find it. I somehow seem able to land, though, just short of the other side, without falling into the water, but I’m aware that I don’t really know what happened. The man I’m racing doesn’t fly very far before he tumbles into the river.

I woke up thinking of Neptune, and a quick inspection shows it currently at the midpoint of Chiron and the North Node. It could certainly represent my dream ‘flight,’ perhaps as the inspiration to attempt something that calls for both unique skills (Chiron) and that is part of the destiny, literally the river of life. When I check my own chart for current transits, I find indications that this is about bringing something forward within myself, with Chiron, Neptune, the North Node, the Moon, Uranus, Vesta, and Venus all within my 1st House at present. I also noted, all within one degree orb, Vesta exactly conjunct my natal Moon (the sacred and the emotions/ intuition, perhaps applying to the work, as the Moon rules my 6th); transiting Earth conjunct my Sun (a reverse of my natal axis, offering a Soul and Material Purpose assessment as to how well each is serving the other); Saturn conjunct Pluto (and this is echoed by the transiting trine–best encapsulated by the phrase ‘inevitable change,’ and brings together my 12th and my 9th, the broadcasting of the unconscious, bringing that material out where I can deal with it); Mars square Jupiter (action urge and ego needs conflicting with the requirements of the social arena–this combo also marries my 2nd, 10th, and 11th, bringing together Self-image, income, career, and what I offer the world, with the square suggesting these are at odds); and Ceres opposed the Midheaven, perhaps pitting the internal authority against the public Self.

What does this spell for me? It suggests a rough road in terms of reconciling particular needs, wants, and functions, but I’m thinking the dream is pointing the way out, through the inspired use of skills that move me forward (Neptune, Chiron, NN). Finding new expression that is both personally satisfying and furthers my work or career seems to be the paramount challenge, with some reconciling of the Ceres authority with the public persona–balancing the internal nature goddess with role I play here, on the internet. But what might this dream mean for everyone else? My sense is that taking the inspired course is what a lot of us need right now, trusting that both guidance and the loving hand of God will be there to catch us. It’s not so much that we need to take a leap of faith, as it is that we need a leap of faith centered in our own ability to rise to and meet the challenges presented, that will bring a new level of fulfillment to one personally and publicly. Has anyone else taken a ‘leap’ lately? What special skill did you call forward in taking the ‘leap’? What inspired you? And how did you reconcile the requirements for private, ego, and personal needs with what your public role or career demands of you?