‘Park in Autumn’ By Michał Gorstkin-Wywiórski c1900 {{PD}}
Just a peek ahead at what to expect:
Today, the 26th, we have a Moon-Neptune conjunction by late PDT, but that’s not the thing that draws my attention; I’m concerned with a sextile of Pallas-Neptune, with Mars still close in square to Pallas. The Moon proceeding to conjunction with Neptune later today only adds emotion and possibly unsettling intuitions to what is already promised: unwise actions (Pallas sq Mars) based on delusion, fantasy, or misperception (Neptune). Add the Sun’s sesquiquadrate to Neptune, and we see that all eyes will be on an array of misbegotten, confusing, and downright untrue choices, actions and events–and all we can do is hope that a Venus trine to Sedna and quincunx Ceres, and Mercury sextile Vesta, will allow at least some of us to heed our own inner knowing and values (if we can accept our own authority), and avoid the illusory nature of what others may try to choose for us (I’m talking to you, US Senate, as against the will of the majority you go forward with a very unwise Supreme Court confirmation–and ‘unwise’ isn’t just my opinion; every single thing involved with this should warn them off proceeding, not just because of Mars and Mercury both retrograde, but also by the symbolism of the real-life super-spreader event that was her nomination announcement).
And almost immediately, those who chose to act on the 26th will have some regrets by the 27th! Let’s just say that some will suddenly realize what they’ve done, in two ways: it will become apparent that choices and actions actually conflict with highest values (Mars sesq Vesta), and that feedback from others puts the spotlight on what we’ve ignored or denied in order to get to this point (Venus and Mercury enter Libra, the latter opp Black Moon Lilith). Trusting our own personal sense of authority, honoring our right to be and to run our own lives, will allow for some inspiring and brilliant perceptions–and keep us out of the muck, for now (Pallas nov Ceres).
On the 28th standing in our own light, honoring ourselves as worthy, brings problems in relationships, but it must be done–even if it hurts (Venus qnx BML, Mercury trine Ceres, Sun contra-parallel Vesta, sesq NN, and qnx Chiron).
The 29th we’d be smart to allow things we’ve buried or hidden, even from ourselves, to inform (and so adjust) thinking. Right now the facts or even our beliefs will only take us so far–we need to see our world, warts and all, in order to succeed (BML parallel Sedna, Jupiter qnx NN, Merc qnx Sedna).
Friday the 30th we have a challenge before us: honor and accept who we are and the responsibilities we hold, especially those things that are unique and original to and about us–we excel in relationships and/ or financial matters if we do–or pay the psychological piper with inner discord if we don’t (Juno contra-parallel Sedna, Venus nov Juno, Sun contra-parallel Uranus).
On the 31st we have a Full Moon (report to follow in a separate post), and we’re offered a unique opportunity in a deja vu sort of way: again, if we will honor our uniqueness and autonomy, and the responsibilities to act with integrity and to create that these imbue us with, we can heal in important ways (Mars parallel Chiron, Sun opp Uranus).
Vintage postcard {{PD}}
It’s a week to act with integrity, to trust ourselves, and to refuse to be fooled or misled–so, like a regular week! Have a great one, and Happy Halloween thinning-of-the-veil!
I’m sure many of us are feeling the heightened energy in the current atmosphere–and even as I write this I’m aware of the inadequacy of that phrase, ‘heightened energy’–it’s really more like the heaviest breeze you’ve ever felt, or maybe like floating inside a lead cloud. My symbol choices may be clunky, but I have no doubt you all know what I’m talking about.
For me it’s manifested as an inability to go to sleep. Now normally when I suffer insomnia, it’s either caused by a hamster wheel of overthinking spinning to the tune of free-floating anxiety, or it’s sheer, unfettered resistance of the ‘I’m a big girl and I don’t have to go to bed right now’ variety.
This time, though, it’s a pure alertness that doesn’t cause and isn’t prompted by anxiety; instead I’m simply AWAKE, with no agenda trying to push its way to conscious consideration–and for me, that’s really weird.
Clearly, this is a wave that’s lapping the globe, generated by a spectacular array of world events–and right now might be a good time to put a pin in the whole thing (with so many bodies in Capricorn, including today the Moon), so that any upset this frequency is creating can be seen for what it is: a Collective ‘web’ in which we’re all vibrating, and so it’s only natural we’re concerned there’s a spider that will emerge at any time to either eat us or wrap us in silk for later!
Here’s something that may help: the big changes, the big traumas, are already done–Saturn and Pluto are done with their dance, and that means that the real-world manifestations of change have already fallen into place (even if we haven’t yet seen those results, or you haven’t seen the dust settle in your part of the world, yet). By mid-December Saturn will be moving into Aquarius, fostering the processing of previous material events in intellectual terms, finding where they fit into and reflect both the modern Zeitgeist and our own future, and delivering revelations that push some of us to rebellion, some of us to the avant garde in our arena, some of us to erratic (and probably Self-destructive) behaviors, and some to show our most unique and original qualities and creative abilities. And really, it’s your choice, since it’s all seated in our response to prevailing energies, rather than determined by any one thing or series of things that happen to us.
The real culprit shakin’ our web is Jupiter. I really hesitate to call Jupiter by one of its traditional names, The Greater Benefic. It’s not that the moniker is untrue, but that Jupiter can be big, loud, colorful, overwhelming, sweeping in its effects–and that can feel a lot like bullying to more sensitive types, especially those heavy in Water (they need to feel and then sort through those feelings around what’s happening, before they can enjoy it) and those heavy in Air, as they need to digest events mentally, before they can determine their reactions (and that’s so even when onlookers might see things as unreservedly positive–how can they be, asks the Air individual, if I don’t yet know what I think of them?)
As easily as Jupiter can bring bounty, it can bring too much–and if it’s too much of something we didn’t want in the first place, that can be its own kind of trauma. So, now that we’ve properly recognized that Jupiter can be indiscriminately too too, we’ll look at his role in the current situation; we won’t worry about past contacts much, because honestly, at this point so much has happened that going back to sort through with a fine-toothed comb is a waste of time, simply because we don’t need the past illuminated–it’s what’s coming that’s important, now.
Jupiter’s direct and rapidly approaching Pluto, which is also direct as of earlier this month–but at this point the latter is barely moving, lingering on the 22nd degree, where Jupiter will, by November 12th, meet him. Are our beliefs destroyed, transformed, or seen for the darkness they carry? Or is it that what we know takes on meaning via matters of Power and the way they play out? Are we too quick to rage, our upset grown out of all proportion, or do the facts set us free by the way they transform the situation, our outlook, our world? No matter what, Jupiter and Pluto together mean an exaggerated effect, and too many of us respond to Pluto with fear, especially when our own sense of Power is inadequate, damaged, or we have rejected our own strength; that can spell dangerous misunderstanding about what’s happening, what’s changing, that may spiral us into destructive mode out of fear, when a better response would be to reassure ourselves that the Universe is working to our benefit (Jupiter) no matter what those changes (Pluto) we’re facing look like on the surface.
At this point Mars will be poised to go direct, on the 13th–and that adds a strong impetus to move, act, do, that rides on the energy wave of the Jupiter-Pluto meeting. What we learn may prompt our choices and motivate us–but we need to take care, as tendencies to exaggeration and extremes (Jupiter-Pluto specialties) may distort what we glean so that we essentially make those choices based on misleading impressions. It may be difficult to see at the time that the heightened atmosphere is meant to help us ‘receive’ what we need to know–but awareness that it doesn’t reflect reality in its correct proportions is vital to not overreacting, to not destroying or raging out of misunderstanding.
This is a potent influence, and so relatively strong for awhile; the most dangerous point for action based on misperception or illusion will be 5th-9th of December, as Mars moves to semi-sextile Neptune (thanks, Maree!), with the semi-sextile shouting loud and clear that what we base our actions and choices on at a personal level (Mars in Aries) needs adjustment and re-assessment, especially the small kinds that sneak under the radar (the semi-sextile). Those ideals (Neptune) we’ll think we’re serving won’t quite align with reality–so we must tread with care.
Let’s look at the Sabian for the meeting of Jupiter and Pluto: ‘A Soldier Receiving Two Awards For Bravery In Combat’. It’s going to feel very much like that; we’ll want to respond as if in the heat of battle, believing we’re doing the right, the noble, the brave (Mars in Aries!) thing–but as we can see from the larger picture, our viewpoint will be exaggerated, off, over-the-top–and that means our judgment of what to do, how to act, and how it’s all going to work out, will simply be a fantasy (Mars-Neptune).
So, we need to be prepared to feel things ‘too much’, at times, in the coming months, and we must also know that to act on our initial impressions will create problems, simple because what we learn, see, and experience will suffer some sort of distortion. But knowing that, we can go softly, and not need that big stick at all.
The New Moon perfects at 12:31 PM PDT on the 16th at 23 Libra 53, after just recently passing Zeus at 21 Libra and so still conjoined, and still within opposition of Mars, which recently conjoined Earth as the Warrior continued apparent backward motion. Immediately the New Moon takes on the tone of the near-past, where emotional aspirations and attentions toward ambitions and passions have been faced with the effectiveness (or not) of choices and actions meant to bring those goals into concrete realization. What dawns here may derive from recent choices and interactions, and let us know who will help us, who has hindered us, and who we must cooperate with or accept support (or even criticism) from, in order to make ‘it’ happen. With whom do we want to bond, with whom partner or share, in whom are we interested romantically, with whom are we aligned? This New Moon brings forward these important questions–but do we get an answer, during Merc retrograde?
Merc in Scorpio is prone to dig, and that doesn’t always sit well within Libran relationships–too, our Mercury cycle may focus our thinking in directions other than those brought forward by the New Moon, so it may be highly individual whether these two tie together in any way. If we don’t learn who is vital to our efforts and our happiness at the New Moon, we’ll definitely get an inkling at the Inferior Conjunction–simply because our excavations will naturally have at least some effect on our relationships, and vice versa.
This time the Lunar event forms one end of an opposition (the other end being the Earth and Mars), with both ends squared by Capricorn residents Jupiter (yes, we’ll give the orb a little more than usual, this time, because this body touches the two that have closer aspects to the NM), Pluto, and Saturn–and of course, that makes a Cardinal T-square. That’s a configuration of tension, stretching all energy components to their extremes within the situation, but it promises us something: we can resolve the basic opposition if we can resolve the conflict the ‘arm’ introduces to the general dynamic.
That presents a picture of ambition and desire fulfillment, and who or what is helping (or hindering) with that, as it stands in relation to our own actions and choices, and how these have affected the material situation. We’ll be seeing the disparities between enacting our Will (Aries) and our desires (Zeus–which naturally involve others, even if only in the form of an audience or witness, because we might ask if we really find satisfaction in a totally unnoticed act–even with an anonymous one, we want to see it affect others–Libra).
We sort through these disparities between getting our way and getting what we desire by recognizing what we’re doing that works, and what is impeding us–and this New Moon says we do so using the three energies of the square in a disciplined and controlled (Capricorn) way. There is a strong element of responsibility in all this, via both the need to assess our own behavior and its effectiveness, and in the ways to modify that in order to get what we truly want.
Jupiter says we need to face the facts, especially those that are restraining us or hemming us in, or it suggests that it’s our relationship to (or perhaps subjugation to) the social order that is causing problems, or that our expansion attempts are poorly engineered, or that our faith is somehow misplaced (probably invested in an unworthy authority figure). Saturn says we just need to stop! or that authorities have deemed we must, or that we are failing to follow ‘the rules’ or to discipline ourselves–and so we miss at least some of our marks. With Pluto the idea of power struggle is introduced, again possibly with authorities, or we either fail to recognize that change has occurred, or that changes need to be made. We underestimate the force behind the social order, the inevitability of evolution, and the march of time, and this New Moon allows us to re-calibrate, in terms of our own efforts.
Remember, it’s natural to weigh things, with this Libra New Moon–we’re meant to assess one thing against another–so don’t succumb to internal critics that may confuse discernment in matters that directly affect you with judging things that have nothing to do with you. Right now, weighing your own choices, actions, and goals is what it’s all about.
Though I don’t typically talk about other aspects in a New or Full Moon picture, because I prefer to keep the energies discussed Lunar-relevant, I want to mention a close square currently in place: Ceres in Aquarius square Sedna in Taurus, both late in the sign but not so late that they demand our attention (right now, at mid-28 degrees, they’re just whining and pulling on our sleeves!) This may bring an entirely different tension that we could mistake for New Moon conflict; in reality this shows more as our own intellectually held concepts of our personal authority as they clash with those matters that either sit in our ‘blind spot’ or that we ‘know but don’t know’. Here the clash is internal, and likely highly distracting, stirring all kinds of feeling–but not the same ones stirred by the Lunar need to measure our actions, and our effectiveness, as it applies to goals and the World.
Too, Black Moon Lilith at this time is found at 29 Aries 29, placing those things we’d like to ignore or that enrage us at a precarious, hard-to-maintain position that could become explosive–and that means this tension might factor in, as well.
This New Moon really is about knowing ourselves (Mars in Aries, retrograde, and so going over territory we’ve already seen but need to reassess), and this knowing must be in the context of our relationships with others. New interactions or bonds can be born at this time, just as long as we face what we need to. This NM may feel a lot more like a Full Moon because of the Mars opposition–so don’t be surprised if it brings as many endings as beginnings.
The Sabian for the New Moon is, ‘ A Butterfly With A Third Wing On Its Left Side’. This New Moon seems to be about discovery, specifically about our own assets and what we can do with them. An extraneous ‘third wing’ may at first appear useless, random, even in the way of our successful ‘flight’, but on a butterfly a wing is an object of delicacy and beauty, with location on the left suggesting a spiritual purpose or meaning to it. It may be that with this New Moon we find something, in the course of all our other weighing and measuring, that offers a profound spiritual connection to our own beauty and ability–do your best to accept it as genuine, and to incorporate it in your idea of You.
Feel like Saturn’s giving you a hard time lately? Are you near a Return? You may want to visit (or re-visit) this real-life Saturn advice.
The Messenger (and Trickster) enters apparent retrograde motion at 6:05 PM PDT of the 13th at 11 Scorpio 40–and his first move will be to reapply by opposition to Uranus, which is also retrograde. That aspect last perfected on the 7th, and perhaps offers a glimpse into this Water (Scorpio) into Air (Libra) cycle.
Mercury always means review: re-visiting, re-considering, reflecting, and perhaps going over plans or making plans to ‘try again’. We start that period in emotional, intuitive Water, and will initially be asking ourselves, “What am I feeling, and what do I think about that?”
In Scorpio this kind of review involves digging, getting to or acknowledging secrets, assessing our feelings about change and determining what further change we might want. It also encompasses those situations where Power is in play, and any relationships or situations where passions have been stirred, or betrayals have occurred (and remember, the concept of betrayal is seldom objective, when it comes to personal interactions–often it can be a matter of perspective, and this retrograde may bring consciousness of this to the fore).
With the re-visit to the Uranus opposition the first aspect, we may find that something we ‘knew’ (especially something Higher Mind or academically. i.e. fact-oriented) is overturned. We are likely to be surprised by some discovery we make, or shocked at something we witness, perpetrated by others in our direction or by ourselves unexpectedly, that latter as we ‘explode’ from accumulated pressures or act erratically in a bid for freedom. It could be that we wrap our minds around some spiritual concept for the first time (something we may have sensed or ‘known’ but been unable to put into mental forms like words), or we may find that accident illuminates our feelings about something–and so changes our perceptions.
House matters that come forward for this retrograde always have the chance of involving the subjects and energies of the natal Houses Mercury rules, and we must typically add to this the House where Mercury is currently transiting. That gives you some idea of where to be on the lookout for change, research, and re-thinking, as well as the potential ‘surprise’ factor of this particular retrograde, and can offer a head start if you know present circumstances in one or more of these realms are dicey.
The Inferior Conjunction of the Sun and Mercury (‘Inferior’ referring to Mercury’s retrograde status) occurs around the 25th-26th of October, marks a point I would characterize as a ‘birth’ point, where some attitude or mental choice takes form and perhaps is decided upon or simply becomes conscious, and this is based on what’s been revealed so far during the retro. Just remember not to act, yet.
Fountain with head of Mercury on Mercury Street in Pompeii watercolor by Luigi Bazzani from the book “Pompeii”, by Amedeo Maiuri (Pompeii superintendent from 1924-1961) {{PD}}
We re-align our passions, explore what we’ve been hesitant to think about or to really know what we feel about it, and then Mercury retros into Libra–and all the focus moves to our relationships, or, less probably, to financial or aesthetic matters. This occurs in the final few days of October, and is characterized by a back-and-forth square of Mercury to Saturn, which happens one more time after Mercury turns direct (on November 3rd, with the final square very close the 4th-7th).
This back-end bookends the retro period with a hard reality check for each of us, concerning all that we’ve reviewed and concluded over the cycle. Our present realities, as well as any boundaries, limitations, and requirements of duty or obligation come into direct conflict with at least some facet of our thinking–and this is a good thing, meant to show us where we might have slipped into thinking that doesn’t take into account where we really are or what we’re actually surrounded by or must deal with.
Use this retro period to see where you can transform the thinking or perceptions about those things you feel passionate about, have an overwhelming curiosity over, or need to investigate for what’s been hidden from you, and how this can constructively be applied to relationships with those you care about–and be ready for revelation, that can spin the whole game in another direction. The usual admonitions apply, with no signing or buying of major items, unless you’ve already pre-retro thoroughly inspected conditions and agree to them, and with the expectation that any agreements reached or conclusions drawn will likely need review or revision after Mercury goes direct.
Just thought this was pretty–it has nothing to do with Chiron–fungi are very Plutonian! Watercolour depiction of the fly agaric, 1892. Likely painted at an art class near Bristol, England, the writing says “Agaricus muscarius” and “Leigh woods Sept/92” CC BY 4.0
In our ongoing exploration of specific natal aspects Readers have submitted for discussion (submissions are closed), we focus now on Chiron. Though initially considered an asteroid, it’s currently classified as a Centaur (it was in fact the first-discovered, lending its character to the classification itself), which is defined as an object orbiting the Sun between the asteroid belt and the Kuiper belt–and yet it behaves a little bit like a comet, so also carries a cometary designation (95P), and some even consider it a dwarf planet. All this variety (or is it confusion?) about how to categorize it hints at one of its most prominent characteristics: that what it designates in our natal charts has layers of meaning, an onion of hurt, experience, skill, and unique perspective, all of which can teach us about ourselves and our place within the world.
There is the Chiron hurt, something so deep and pervasive the individual can often be unaware of it; there is what we learn from the hurt, that we can then utilize, to help both ourselves and others; there is a Chirotic gift (or more than one) related to the sign and to our own processing and experience of it, which before 2012 we could offer only to others (and that we can now access–and so ‘do’–for ourselves); and there is a Transpersonal expression of this energy, one that takes the individual, cumulative Chiron knowledge and applies it to the Collective condition. So, Chiron designates qualities that are highly personalized, highly individual, and that with enough effort at understanding and re-shaping, we may at some point in life lift from the entirely personal, reactionary arena to utilization of the ‘gift within the wound’, to, finally, a transpersonal, Collective expression, one where our gift in some way answers a need found in the Collective or out in the world.
(Birth data redacted) I am interested in my Chiron, in Capricorn. I have had numerous struggles with structures and authority figures. I feel that this recent period has been sort of like a final exam or defending my thesis. I know that the wound doesn’t really go away but I feel stronger just putting all the past struggles into context now instead of feeling as though they are coming at me as a series of random tortures. I wonder what you would have to say about a broad now-moment and a future with Chiron in Capricorn. Thanks for choosing my inquiry–if you do!
You don’t ask about an aspect, but rather an entity, a single body, which is okay when it’s one that in the general astrological world still suffers from a state of too little clarity–that is, it’s difficult to see Chiron’s action in the natal chart when we see it in its most simplistic terms, ‘wound and gift’. That tempts us to want to reduce its effects to a clear-cut negative or positive, and that’s not only unproductive, it dismisses our need to look at how truly personal the manifestations of this energy are, how completely they have been tailored to our character, experience, and responses. Neither of those definitions of Chiron as wound and gift is wrong, but those labels do remove the nuances of what can be a very important, even vital, influence for the individual.
For you, Chiron plays a fundamental role in Self-image, with its location in the 2nd of assets and talents, and in Capricorn, the wound almost certainly involves your relationships to and reactions to both structures in the life and the concept of authority, with the initial reaction almost always presenting in response to those who hold authority in your life. At least part of why you may be responding so strongly and personally to Capricorn life areas is this body’s location in the 2nd of Self-image–it may feel that what hurts you also, inevitably, defines you (and we might want to throw in rules, ways in which your Will or feelings have been thwarted or restricted, and matters where you feel it’s ‘all work and no play’, particularly when this stands in contrast to what others around you seem to enjoy).
Does it feel as if the drudgery always falls to you? Where Chiron sits can often seem to be a difficult place, one where we’re denied joy, and if it does for you, dear Reader, that’s not surprising, especially considering that the closest aspect Chiron makes to a major body is its opposition to Uranus–and that may feel as if every time you try to ‘be yourself’ or act spontaneously or think independently (Uranus rules the 3rd) you get a Capricorn response (which may sound like ‘Control yourself’ or ‘Sit down’ or even ‘You’re not allowed’ or ‘That idea’s crazy!’). Compound this with Uranus in the 8th suggesting that others seem to have all the freedom, are allowed to be as erratic, unpredictable, or unique as they want–and that you may feel you have to clean up after them–it may be the only initially perceived path that allows you to feel good about yourself, by complying with these ‘demands’ (and this is supported by Chiron’s semi-sextile to the Ascendant and its trines to Jupiter and Hygeia in the 6th, all possibly making you feel it’s your duty to serve the larger social order, and to modify yourself in order to do so, that being healthy depends on it–but really, being healthy depends on working out your relationship to Chiron and the social order that surrounds you, rather than just complying with it, as you’ll never find peace by conforming).
And, with Uranus in the 8th but ruling the 3rd (as well as the close assembly of Sun, Mercury, and NN–Whole Sign), you may have the feeling that others are either trying to control your thinking, or that they are assessing your mental processes and reasoning as flighty, unreliable, or ‘out there’–and so, by extension, calling you these things (Sun in Aquarius 3rd), reaching into the mentality and insulting the Capricorn wound, which demands adherence to and observance of the rules, the status quo, and authorities. It may seem you are being insulted, expected to be ashamed, every time you act in ways that feel original or unique to you–but that’s an internal mechanism, one that plays out in you but that is spurred by others, even though the message you may be getting is, ‘Who do you think you are?’
One of the most difficult facets of your placement is that this energy is in a highly personal space (the 2nd, the part of you that judges yourself) but doesn’t contact any of the personal planets. Without contact to the personals (Sun, Moon, Mercury, Venus, Mars) one can feel adrift, as if the wider world, even the Universe, is targeting you, inflicting puzzling and unwarranted Capricornian penalties, suppressing your efforts at Self-improvement and earning (2nd)–and unless you can get some perspective, may trap you in ‘Me Against The World’ scenarios that play out over and over in new circumstances, but using old energies. Capricorn Chiron can bring a heavy sense of responsibility, and that’s difficult to fulfill when you feel that authority may consistently be against you (or that authorities have such high expectations or standards for your performance that you feel they’ll never be met).
Born just after a Lunar eclipse, hence the natal Sun and North Node are quite close, and may give a sense that accomplishment is a relentlessly difficult uphill climb, as if the prime moment for presenting what you know and feel has somehow passed. Re-frame this as a sense of completion in terms of being ready to pass things on to others or to cooperate with others in your efforts. A sesquiquadrate of Chiron to Ceres points out how tough the relationship is not just to external authorities but to your own inner sense of being in charge, of granting yourself permission to go forward. Become your own authority, in a sense, and this may offer the freedom you’ve (probably) been seeking.
Though this exercise was about natal aspects, not forecasts, I can suggest this: both personal security about who you are, and about making your way in the world, likely comes from disciplined expression of the talents, especially the creative ones, when applied to achieving specific goals with the cooperation of others (Chiron ruler Saturn conjoined Neptune in Libra in the 11th of goals, wishes, friendship, group involvement); look for others who support your originality and who are accepting of an individuality that’s comfortable for you–and there’s no ‘right’ model for this, that’s what makes it so hard–you have to trust yourself and stay firmly connected to the reality of things, even as you dream and invent. This may be an intense academic stance, may involve the sciences or futurism, may be about creative uniqueness, especially manifesting the imagined in real-world terms, or the way Higher Mind and spirituality are intertwined, and may involve a need to write, speak, or communicate your specific viewpoint to others.
Taking an intellectual approach (Sun and Merc in Aquarius) may initially cause internal conflict as Chiron demands a material response, but seeing that creativity in the current reality (Chiron ruler Saturn conj Neptune) is needed will resolve the tension, without too much conscious effort. Knowing healing is possiblewill go a long way toward repair of the wound; so will seeing the creative or spiritual take material form in the life.
Pluto spends so much time retrograde each and every year (roughly six months) that it tends, in whatever direction it’s exhibiting apparent movement, to become like background noise, a steady, grating grind, often convincing us that the conditions it offers are unavoidable, inevitable, ‘just the way it is’, simply because they take shape and then, because of Pluto’s snail-quick movement, stay that way. This is especially true at points of retrograde and direction; the circumstances around both Power and Change seem cemented in place, even as deep and scary changes well beyond our control appear unavoidable. So, simultaneous feelings of being stuck, accompanied by a sense that all will soon be flung into chaos from massive change.
At this point in time, ‘America’s Laxative’ might be exactly what Pluto is! Antique bottle of “Pluto Water” from French Lick Springs. From a display of memorabilia and antiques at the West Baden Springs hotel, French Lick Indiana. Photo by Geoffrey A. Landis CC BY-SA 3.0
This time, the first aspect it makes after direction will almost be inadvertent; as Pluto shifts its apparent direction (while still at the same 22 Capricorn 29 position), Mars in retrograde motion in its own sign of Aries slips toward a square, perfecting on the 9th of October–and what do we get from Cardinal squares? Action! Change! And no small amount of conflict, fiery pushes to express, and temper. It’s almost as if these two don’t mean to meet, as neither is in actual forward motion–and that can imply that the conflicts engendered aren’t ones we look for, but stem instead from more compartmentalized energies that happen to find themselves at odds. BUT, Mars will be moving retro, and Pluto will still be at the station position–and that could signal regressive upsets (that is, ones springing up, re-ignited, from the past), old territory of resentments, grievances, and Will thwarted, clashing with an entrenched power position or entity that is both immovable and seemingly permanent–yet here is the lesson of a square: that the particulars, the specific circumstances of each body, speak of the actual situation from which the conflict will arise–so that the anger may have a difficult time knowing where to go, that actions may be timid or find us ‘holding back’, and that the stock-still and apparently impenetrable nature of power matters at present is not at all the reality–things are on the brink of changing.
We may get some of the story, of both the square repercussions and the overall disposition of energies, if we examine a few other contacts on and around the 9th. At that point we actually see Zeus in Libra step in opposed Mars, forming a tight T-square with our heroes just as their contact reaches perfection. That implies that what we see aflame will be fueled by frustrations or denials around ambitions and desires. We also see that Pluto will be quincunx, Mars sextile, and Zeus trine the North Node=creation of our future comes directly from pursuing those ambitions, with success dependent on how well we adjust to and are able to modify the power situation, or to create change or even to change ourselves.
But perhaps most telling about the atmosphere may be a Finger of God with base of Venus-Juno, apex Chiron. This suggests that for each of us the power situation may feel very personal, but that with some effort, we can actually heal some significant facet of things (and this is so no matter the frustrations of the square/ T-square, though we should note, these matters aren’t necessarily the same–they could exist in two completely separate situations). We use our talents, our assets, what we care about, our relationships, or our values, applying them to the power we currently hold, even if that power seems inadequate to address a larger situation. (This is one of those times when doing what we can ends up multiplying its effect, being far more potent than we imagine possible). Putting into action what we have, doing what we can, opens the door to healing a personal wound (Chiron in Aries) around the Self, the identity, the ability to act as an individual, and around expression of the Will. Sound familiar? This may be a further expression of what occurred at the recent Full Moon, building (Pluto in Capricorn) on new, different, necessary changes to the power landscape, ones that will in time reveal Truth, and in doing so offer transformation of one kind or another to each individual.
Photo By Emma Brick, Japan Folk Stage Art, CC BY-SA 4.0
The Full Moon perfects at 2:05 PM PDT on the 1st at 9 Aries 08, the Moon and Earth meeting just after passing over Chiron (the Earth by a couple of days, the Moon by a couple of hours), and with which the Full Moon is still conjoined. It suggests that FM events arise from our wounds–not necessarily hurtful at present (in fact, hurts that are likely tucked away, out of sight, or which we think we’ve grown past), but injuries centered in those factors of personal autonomy, expression of Will, leadership, and temper/ anger that we’ve not yet faced and/ or processed. These can be ego wounds (held purely within the emotions or psyche) or they may be related to actions taken and the repercussions and reactions these brought, or to actions not taken, and our regrets, particularly about things we could’ve been or roles we could’ve played, that are now (to our way of thinking) out of reach.
Since this is a Full Moon in Aries, it brings to culmination something about identity and role, especially about who we think we are. It’s the Self-image, the sum total of all our choices, viewed through the mental lens (Aries rules the head, after all–it’s where we ‘look out’ from at the world). This Moon is very much about conclusions or arriving at a pinnacle related to the Self-image we carry inside, and at least some of that may involve how singular we feel, how connected to others, how independent, how ‘different’, and how this state might wound us, as well. The semi-sextile the Moon makes to Uranus makes us aware of all the ways we may ‘stick out’, be unusual or seen as ‘foreign’, and it could emphasize our sense of being alone, or conversely, our sense of being a part of ‘the Group’, but perhaps not adequately appreciated or even seen.
The Full Moon also makes a novile to Ceres, the asteroid at 29 tense degrees, suggesting a crisis situation that we can address in some brilliant way. The implication is that what happens at the FM sparks a new way of approaching health and what we ingest (in all forms, physically, mentally, emotionally, spiritually, especially when this intake is unconscious, shown by the presence of the Moon in the equation), gives us clever ways to benefit from, support, and interact with Mother Nature (and this can be anything from understanding and respecting our own impulses and nature to caring for our little piece of the planet), and can show us adept ways to negotiate for what we want (remember Ceres was able to negotiate even with someone as powerful as Pluto/ Hades and successfully get her desires met, within reason–and that might be something to remember here, that if our asks are appropriate, we can get them). And that leads us to this: in the overall scheme of things, this aspect promises we will find excellent and beneficial ways of dealing with Power, whether it’s expressing our own, gaining more, or dealing with those who have the power to influence us.
And that’s it, a very simple but striking aspect picture for this Aries Full Moon: it’s about us, our role and how we see ourselves, it’s about the Power picture in our lives, it’s about where and how we might feel isolated/ ostracized and just as much where we feel we fit in, and it suggests another important effort to ‘get along’ with Mother Nature.
The Sabian for the Full Moon is, ‘A Teacher Gives New Symbolic Forms To Traditional Images’. Let’s also note the Sabian for the Sun, source of the Moon’s light: ‘Having Passed Through Narrow Rapids, A Canoe Reaches Calm Waters’. The combined message seems to be that Full Moon events will offer a new take on what already is, will re-frame the status quo in such a way that we reach a peaceful détente with whatever has been harrowing or threatening personal serenity. Obviously, there’s a lot that can torment us nowadays, but this promises a fresh understanding of and approach to what has been trying–and that’s nothing but good.
Together Sabians and aspects tell us that we will enjoy a new and more tranquil sense of ‘I Am’–I for one couldn’t ask for more.
I’m taking some time off, and don’t know at this point when I’ll be back. I’ll pop in when I can. Thank you to All! And have a wonderful October!
The 30th Is A Good Day To . . . know that what we have been turning away from or trying not to think about is where all the Love, Beauty, and Rewards reside today. Our previous disinclination to deal with certain matters is based in either delusional thinking or having been misled, and that’s caused us to fear what will actually benefit us, once we face it. Somehow, someway, what seems a little dark and mysterious and so maybe scary holds something highly worthwhile for us. Plunge in; what had been a beautiful secret you’d been keeping from yourself can become an excellent asset or reward fully available to you, mystery, shame, and fear-free. Bonus for those who were misled: if you can understand the why behind someone’s deception, you gain a clearer vision of who they are, and you’ll see the situation open up for you via the application of equal measures of empathy and a sense of control/ knowledge within the relationship that elevates your standing.
A Good Day To . . . is based on the aspects perfecting on each day, Pacific time.
‘Head of a Woman’ By Andrea Verrocchio c1475 {{PD}}
The 29th Is A Good Day To . . . be aware that, despite a strong sense of personal empowerment and a mental stance that embraces can-do-ism, we are likely to find that efforts in just about any direction will meet with immovable resistance. There is a way around the brick walls, barriers, catches, and opposition we find, and that consists of being Self-aware enough to insure that actions and choices aren’t arising from past hurt that puts the ego or a sense of grievance in charge.
It’s worth asking why we’re so injured; what defines the injury, so that we can locate it, inspect it, and drag it out into the light where it can die? It’s seated in one of two identity aspects: either it comes from not being seen for who we truly are, or from not being seen as we’d like to be seen. The former is a genuine injury, one that suggests those around us don’t have clear vision and so ‘injure’ us with every interaction, while the latter says we’re in an indignant snit because someone isn’t agreeing to pretend we are who we say we are (rather than who we are by our simple existence). It’s the difference between having others support our true Self, and having others support an engineered Self-image that isn’t true to the Soul.
So it’s obvious: we either need to cull those around us, choosing more genuinely loving individuals to populate our world, or we need to realize that, if we want to promote a non-genuine image of ourselves, we’ve got to accept that at least some people won’t want to play the image game–and that’s not going to feel good, when we interact with them. Making ambitions and desires harmonize with highest values isn’t easy in a world that makes so many demands on us, but it’s vital to creating success that feels like success. Just something to occupy our minds, should we be adept enough to keep from whacking into that brick wall!
A Good Day To . . . is based on the aspects perfecting on each day, Pacific time.
‘The Triumphs of Caesar, 5. The Elephants’ By Andrea Mantegna c1490 {{PD}}
The 28th Is A Good Day To . . . adjust our surroundings so that the figurative elephant sitting on our figurative chest doesn’t drain us of creativity or make us so tired and distracted that we do something rash. That elephant is Saturn stationing direct, and it may seem that the state we find ourselves in will last forever, but it won’t, so know that anything uncomfortable, that restricts or binds us, or that appears to block or deny us something, will pass, and so will in some way a situation that seems secure or a state that seems permanent. In these latter circumstances, it becomes about awareness that time itself is change, and that we must appreciate what we have even as we know it will become something else someday, just like we will.
The one thing working really, really well today is a female-male kind of dynamic, anything where complementary energies can cooperate or work together, thanks to Venus trine Mars. This can translate in many ways, including taking the right actions in Love or Money, making a move to gain, profiting from our choice, or doing out of Love. Strangely enough, we might also see aggression stirred in competition for Love or Money, or a ‘Me First’ grab for assets or rewards, with Mars in Aries. But, we also have Venus in Leo, suggesting that any move toward absconding with assets or taking ‘too much’ could muster a fiery defense of the need to share, or the right of the original owner to keep their fair share–so don’t worry, Venus will defend herself! Moving in the positive ways that we can and doing what we’re empowered to right now will take our focus off the places where we may be temporarily stuck, and help us relax in that area that, just for now, is refusing to budge from the current status quo (Thanks, Saturn!)
A Good Day To . . . is based on the aspects perfecting on each day, Pacific time.
Julie Demboski's ASTROLOGY 
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