Dateblog: January 2015

January 2015 by Sign

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In terms of personal planets (Sun, Moon, Mercury, Venus, Mars), January 2015 begins with three of the five (and we really shouldn't count the Moon in this discussion as the Moon changes signs about every couple of days) in Capricorn - a sign known for looking ahead and working to carry out plans ... and alternately, for loses (often of stature or reputation) and the reality of life's consequences and world/worldly responses - either for what we've done prior to now or what we're in the throws of doing (or trying to do) now.

By January 4th, that 'solidity' of thrust ... that's going to begin to change. It may not be obvious or evident in any giant way, but as Venus and Mercury move into Aquarius (with Mars already in Aquarius) the emphasis (and thus our mental space) is going to stop being so absorbed by or focused on hard facts and more prone to considering (read: zeroing in on) and responding to things as being relative to other issues, matters and details - much of which is going to be  basically pertaining to those eternal things which form the basis for our life: home, family, mortality ... the land, sea and sky, and all which comes from, or abides in any such location.

Just keep thinking 'basics.'

That shift (the shift in thinking and focus) is going to alter the flow of things. Mars in Aquarius - in pragmatic terms - often represents the motivation to get something done on a broadly unified scale even as it tends to impact, fragment and break apart that which may still be cohesive, but which no longer serves a positive function in that state ... which makes what's going to happen now in many ways dependent on what  what we have come into this period doing, feeling, and being motivated by. With Pluto having just entered the shadow of its 2015 cycle there are things which are going to change or be transformed - some of which at least are going to reflect Pluto's ongoing approach to fixed star Vega, charisma's star. That Pluto isn't going to conjunct Vega (exactly) during 2015 is actually a sign that more and more is going to change and that many of the things we have been 'enchanted' or moved by in times or years past are on the move. They're going to change - and no one can stop that change, insistent though they may be.

For the Mercury watchers (that would be most of us) there's another interesting note to attach to this Mercury-entering-Aquarius moment ... namely that as Mercury enters Aquarius (Venus having already done so), that's also the same date that Mercury will be entering its retrograde shadow as the Mercury retrograde which begins on January 21st (UT/+0) at 17 Aquarius will in time back down to 1 Aquarius - and from 0 to 1 degrees (the movement of one degree) is something Mercury does rather swiftly.

The net of this takes us back to that 'subtle shift' of attitude, 'vibe' or perspective mentioned in terms of Venus and Mercury exiting Capricorn in the sense that though there is a tendency for much of the world to hit the ground running on January 2nd (even if the Orthodox Church hasn't yet celebrated Christmas, meaning their holiday season isn't over yet!) ... that this year that 'hitting the ground running' is going to be colored or affected by the fact that pretty much the whole of January 2015 is going to be a 'hurry up so we can slow down' (or stop) exercise which will manifest in any of a billion ways, hastening and hustling us through the first couple of weeks so that come the 21st, we know what we're attending to.

Or at least waiting for. (At least that's the thought.)

 January 2015 by Element

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And it's not like we're likely to be entirely unjustified. Looking at the month by element, both planets most associated with the rise and fall of lives, regimes, religions and plans in general (Jupiter and Saturn) are now both in fire signs. Added to that, Uranus is also in a fire sign, and since all three planets are in separate signs, what we have implied here is a grand trine (ongoing and virtually immutable) flow of energies which we will be living with until Jupiter exits Leo this coming August, describing a period of time where we can change things and change our approach to life (our 'relationship' to our world) ... or we can have our world thrust change upon us.

(Take your pick.)

That Uranus is going to perfect its conjunction to the lunar South Node this month promises fractious relationships, startling news/events and a number of personal breakthroughs - some of which may be fairly breathtaking (though what that means is individual - some people gasp long before others do!) ... and that it will do as Uranus - which is now in direct motion - is going to be beginning to "close in" on slower-moving Pluto in anticipation of perfecting the Uranus-Pluto square which has been with us now for quite a while symbolizing eruptions of uncontrollable, transpersonal events which are quite literally changing our world.

That square won't perfect until mid-March. But let's just say that the closer we get to Uranus perfecting its conjunction to the lunar South Node (which occurs on January 19th), the more flexing and innovative thinking is going to be called for not just in external life and in terms of what we do (or choose to do/not do) but in who we are - and because this event is currently traversing degrees 12, 13 and 14 of respective signs (with the conjunction of Uranus/Node occurring at 13 Aries-Libra)(the South Node being in Aries and the North Node being in Libra) this entire month is likely to be particularly focal for anyone who with natal placements at one of these degrees in any sign... if particularly (she says, thinking of people in the news) those among us with primary chart indicators (Sun, Moon, Ascendant/Descendant, Midheaven/Nadir) at 13 Aries, Libra, Cancer or Capricorn, followed by those with placements at 13 Pisces, Taurus, Virgo and/or Scorpio.

The first group will face or be facing issues directly. The second group will be facing them obliquely, which is to say that because 'Thing A' happens, 'Consideration B' becomes important.

As to the nature of this particular ripple in the works, this transit - Uranus/South Node - is about a 'shake up' (or shift) in how we relate to our own nature as well as that of others. And though the likes of those news makers (the two I'm thinking of being politicians) and myself (my Midheaven is at 13 Capricorn) are likely to be particularly impacted on a core and/or internal level, there are going to be plenty of things floating around for everyone to be bouncing off of (or around about) - all while possibly getting bruised by, or through the process of participating in doing all that relating, relational or relationship tra-la.

Also: none of this is optional. If you're thinking you'll just put everything on hold or hide in some mental (or other type of) hole, you certainly have the choice to do that but the world (that thing you're supposed to be relating to and working on your relationship with?) ... the world will have moved on without you, which brings this all back to the most important thing I ever heard one of my astrology teachers (Robert Hand, as it happens) say: use the energy wisely, lest it use you unwisely. 

Plus that's not all ... (she said, well aware that she may be sounding a bit like a late-night infomercial, which is ridiculous seeing as I'm about as bad at sales and marketing as any human being has ever been) ... January is also playing host to an approaching square to Neptune (in Pisces) by a Saturn which is newly in Sagittarius. That will set in virtually as soon as the new year dawns (read: on January 2nd), and it's likely to be felt as an on-and-off 'haunting' awareness which we're all going to also be contending with not just this month ... and not even just into March, as in the case of the current 'ramping up' of various Uranus/Pluto square pressures and situational anxieties. 

No ... with Neptune-Saturn, we're not getting off that easily: this transit will be with us in various forms through November of 2015, promising all sorts of issues having to do with habits and things we are habituated by - and the many forms of 'addiction' which riddle our lives and world, be that an addiction to a substance or a belief or a perspective on sex, love, work, money, power, violence, happiness, exercise, food, politics - or anything else. Saturn-Neptune contacts being always about reality versus hope and facts versus denial in favor of something "prettier" (or at least more appealing), this is the sort of lengthy square aspect which we would expect to manifest both in our lives and through things in life which effects lives on a global and somewhat 'indistinct' (or) 'impersonal' way or scale.

The Saturn side of this brings the effort to structure, restructure, limit or withstand to the table where the Neptune energetic will inspire ... and then again, also dissolve, whether 'dissolution' or 'dissolving' means eliminating that which stands between you and something (or two separate things) where the elimination of some factor, thought, issue is taken on either because of a depth of feeling which is not only not about the Self (Neptune = lack of personal or individual ego) or because that which we have been sure of comes to no longer function or serve a positive purpose.

Mind you, any of this can be positive: squares ask us to balance different functionalities, much as an engineer balances the substance and structure of a wall against the structure and function of a ceiling. Then again, any of this can be detrimental. And all of it (or any of it) can be hugely informative, most of all as to what the realities and facts really are ... as opposed to what we might want them to be, or what we were hoping they were or would become.

All of which is far more about us than others or our world ... which is probably worth a thought or two.

And fortunately (read: whether we like it or not) Mercury retrograde is going to donate just that dynamic to our universally human personal cause.

So we are going to be learning something going forward. But what are we about to learn - and learn about?
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You Were Searching ...

Fixed star Alcyone as it appears in in the Pleiades Star Cluster

(photo credit: NASA, ESA, AURA/Caltech, Palomar Observatory, November 2009)

It being the end of this calendar year, I thought to write something a bit different ... something totally about you, the readers - and what’s been on your mind.

And how would I know what’s on your mind?

If you’re just a casual blog reader (which is to say, you’re someone who doesn’t write a blog) you may not know what goes on ‘behind the scenes.’ (And it’s certainly not necessary that you do!) But there are a few interesting noodles in that pot. For instance - when you set up a blog, not only do you get all the software tools needed to set up posts (or at least all the tools your blogging platform thinks you need) ... but at least at Blogger, you also get access to several pages of fairly non-exotic analysis reports.

Before you get worried, none of that data is at all specific. We-the-bloggers don’t know who you are, nor where any given comment is coming from.

But one thing they do give us is a list of search terms - you know, those things you type in your browser’s search bar which brings up the slew of options. Depending on what site you choose, a lot of those sites get ‘one liner’ lists of what you were searching for.

Yes, it’s data collection - if in this case (which is to say in the bloggers hands) harmless data collection ... unless you’re unhappy to know that from all I’ve seen it seems nobody uses capitals when they type a search string!

Anyway, those searches are the motivation for this post. I have a list of search terms and am just going to take a shot at answering or commenting on some of them. Who knows, this may even inspire some highly creative future search strings - to which point I have to warn you about one thing: Blogger (Google) only delivers about thirty characters (including spaces) ... which means a few of the missives I’ve collected got cut off, which is a shame as one or two of them looked intriguing.

But if you don’t know the question ... hey, it’s hard to write an answer.

Also - a little disclaimer here. Charts are a unified and connected set of factors: we are not solely our conscious (Sun) mind any more than we are fully defined by the (Mercury) way we speak, what (Venus) flavor of ice cream we prefer or what (Uranus, Neptune, Pluto, etc.) things have happened to us along the way.

That said, I do love your search terms. So let’s try this on with a first handful of search terms ...

Pholus in the 11th House Natal
Pholus is a centaur. So as with all centaur symbols, its effects are first and last about our ability to deal with our own emotionalism, particularly when we have (or have had) any amount of factual or intellectually based training which could (and which maybe should) be what we rely on as opposed to flying off the handle or otherwise throwing the calm-minded baby out with the hot (or at least overheated) ‘idea of the thing’ bath water.

Specific to Pholus, this centaur quandary becomes a choice: as we choose to not take some challenge on thoughtfully, we imbed ourselves in some position about what ‘should be,’ ‘should be done,’ or how things ‘should work.’ Yet in doing that, we limit our Self by choosing not to use some ability we have worked hard to learn. Were we not so wrapped up in some emotionally protective position (which can but doesn’t have to have anything to do with how truly important or not important the issue is) as to instinctually fall back into older habits we would recognize the thing we aren’t doing is more important or far-reaching than that which we are ‘sitting on’ (or holding on to).

And as in mythic terms, that bias itself is poisonous - at least in (or to) the moment.

Taking that to the eleventh house, adding in the house concept adds the issue of Pholus either as that which drives us to cling to or retreat from (or possibly wall out) some idea, person, group, organization or other ‘collective’ which we ‘belong to’ or are ‘seen as’ (social groups, our society, a company or business association, etc.), all of which have to do with ‘fitting in’ and/or being identified and/or rewarded for what you do as an individual. Given this, Pholus in the 11th can manifest as whatever those feelings are which prompt us to hang back in spite of our ability to do, help or connect with others - or with some challenge or situation.

Or it can be the experience of having others (those we want to connect to) refuse to help us or join in some cause which ultimately proves ‘fatal’ (not necessarily literal) to something or someone’s aim, belief or position. Pholus in the 11th can even point to attributes and ways in which we sabotage our Self by not bringing our best understanding or knowledge or ability to the table because we think there will be some advantage to us in hiding it. 

2017 Eclipse Area of Path
There will be two solar eclipses during the year 2017. The first one will be at 8 Pisces and the second will be at 28 Leo. Here are the eclipse maps:

Solar Eclipse of February 26, 2017 (UT/+0) at 8 Pisces ...

an Eclipse Map for the Solar Eclipse at 8 Pisces which will occur on

February 26, 2017 at 14:59 (2:59 p.m.) UT/+0

... and the Solar Eclipse of August 21, 2017 (UT/+0) at 28 Leo.

an Eclipse Map for the Solar Eclipse at 28 Leo which will take place on

August 26, 2017 at 18:31 (6:31 p.m.) UT/+0

Mars opposition Ixion
Without reciting the whole Ixion myth (a post on which you can read HERE), in short Ixion represents some lesson or standard that we don’t learn or refuse to accept or hold ourselves to which, after multiple incidences, ends badly (for us, that is).

With Mars in opposition, assertion, assertiveness, actions, anger and/or ‘injuries’ (however you see the term) becomes the means by which Ixion is ‘set off’ (i.e., triggered) - and that could be your action or anger triggering your own ‘I don’t care I want it anyway’ Ixion tantrum, it could be someone else triggering you, or it could be your choice to do or say things which triggers someone else.

If this is a natal chart placement, as with all natal placements it’s important to note the sign on the cusp of the houses Mars and Ixion are both placed in, and how well or unhappily the planets ruling those signs are in the given chart. If one of those rulers is well placed and the other is badly placed that will tend to ‘color’ this configuration either positively or negatively, and with Mars being a personal (self motivated) symbol and a planet (not an asteroid, not a dwarf planet - a full-fledged planet!) it is likely that any native with this placement is going to face issues about control, through how this manifests will be individual.

Wherever we see Ixion we are going to be prone to some degree of feeling helpless - at least now and again. Ixion’s placement (by house) also tends to say something about where we tend to not like having responsibility. The real positive of this type of configuration is that with Mars in opposition there is an in-built ability to govern the Self which is admirable and often successful even if others fail to flourish. But signs matter a lot here. Given that Ixion is currently in late Sagittarius and how Ixion moves rather at a similar rate as Pluto does we know that there are a lot of people with Ixion in Scorpio out there, and if Mars is in opposition to Ixion in Scorpio, that’s going to mean Mars is (in all likelihood) in Taurus - a position which in opposition to Ixion wouldn’t have Mars-the-Assertive in its most altruistic mode ... and which could easily result in displays of defensiveness which are not the act of the noble warrior defending others but much more about personal feelings of vulnerability.

Does the Alcyone Star Change Over Time
The nature of fixed stars as star symbols doesn’t change over time any more than the symbolic meaning of Venus changes as it moves from sign to sign or degree to degree. Astrology is in some ways very much like playing with a color wheel: if we think of Venus as yellow and it’s in some sign we think of as blue, the result is green - which differs from what we would get if (yellow) Venus was in a “red” sign, which would give us an “orange” result.

So no - the meaning of Alcyone, a star which is both a mystical influence and one which is connected to the ‘point’ of any choice (i.e., its result or consequence) plus whatever ‘judgments’ evolve from there, some of which are likely to be strict or restrictive in nature.

As for its rate of motion, Alcyone moves slowly from degree to degree as all stars do. Currently positioned at 0 Gemini, Alcyone reached that degree in 1999 and will remain positioned at 0 Gemini until the year 2070, lending to the Alcyone ‘nature’ some measure of 0 Gemini’s habit of starting on the ‘dark side’ (or in some sort of “negative mode”) before improvement occurs and a more productive/positive note is adopted at a (Gemini) thinking level - a quality those with natal points conjunct 0 Gemini (i.e., between 25 Taurus and 5 Gemini) probably know a good deal about!

Sexual Aquarius Man in Lilith
Apart from the fact that this search snippet sounds rather like a personals advertisement, I admit it - I’m perplexed as to how a man (or a woman, for that matter) can be “in” a celestial point, be that Lilith or anything else until there comes the day when humans are residing on asteroids - in which case, I suppose someone could live underground (rather like hobbits do) and thus they could be said to be living in Lilith.

File under: intriguing but unanswerable.

Venus is in 3 degrees of Libra
When I see a search term like this, I always wonder whether someone is trying to look up something in their own natal chart or if they’re trying to understand someone they like (and who they probably want to like them).

Be that as it may, this is Venus in one of its two signs of rulership - so this is Venus in a potent position by sign, whether or not that potential tends to play out well, or not so positively (that part of the question being answered by where Venus is in the chart, the ruler of the sign on the cusp of the house Venus is in and how Venus is aspected by other planets and things like the lunar nodes).

As for 3 Libra, this is a degree likely to exhibit some of the unique or “alternative” qualities we associate with Black Holes as there’s a giant Black Hole at 1 Libra, so don’t look for this Venus to manifest as marked preferences for the classic and traditional  unless everybody else is decidedly non-traditional. Beyond that, this is one of those Libra degrees which calls for connecting to that which is supportive without taking away the necessity to act, lest nothing happen. 

Handled properly and supported by the whole of a productive chart, 3 Libra (and thus Venus in 3 Libra) can be a signature of achievement and success ... it just doesn’t guarantee it.

Aries Nasty Facts
When I saw this search string I laughed. I so wasn’t sure whether someone was looking for information on what their flaws might possibly be ... or if they were looking to hassle some personally known Aries person.

In any case, let’s be honest here - every sign has a nasty underbelly. That’s just the nature of internal sign polarities just as it’s the nature of opposition sign polarities.

As for Aries specifics, if the positive is assertion, the negative is aggression, violence, anger and self-righteousness. If the positive is self-motivation and self-direction, the negative is bossiness and presumptive judgment directed at others.  Confidence is another Aries positive - and one which can be utterly drowned out by stunning displays of Aries ego or some tendency to indulge in ‘it’s all about me’ bragging.

Does Alex Miller Astrologist Use Fixed Stars?
Not that I remember. Alex and I haven’t caught up of late (which is to say I don’t know what it’s working on at the moment) but to my knowledge he works a great deal with ‘personal asteroids’ and galactics (black holes,quasars, masers, etc.) ... but I don’t recall Alex working much with fixed stars.

Orcus Represents Betrayal
Not exactly - except in the sense that Orcus starts as a representation of finality, specifically the type of finality we might associate with death, be it physical or the ‘death’ of faith in an idea, the ‘death’ of a relationship or some project - even the ‘death’ of a job.

If it’s over, in the moment when we recognize it’s over and not going to rise again, that’s when we are dealing with the Orcus dynamic, a quality and the experiencing or grasping what has been lost as we wonder about what lies ahead because of that. Just the process of facing what can’t be changed is Orcus, as is the realization about what having something ‘set in stone’ may be.

You know, the inevitable consequences ... the possible ripple effects ... and all those things which may (or are likely) to happen as a result of something we have chosen, done, committed ourselves to ... all such things are part and parcel of the Orcus Effect.

So ... does Orcus represent the act of betrayal? Not unless it applies to us - which is to say, not unless we believe we have betrayed our own purpose, beliefs or standards. Orcus is not the act per se, which is why it’s hard to associate Orcus with betrayal.

But dealing with the consequences of a betrayal? Realizing that you have been betrayed?

Yes, those would be Orcus-like ... or if I may be allowed to coin a term here, such moments would be Orcusonian.

What is the Venus of 9-15-1979
As of noon (UT/+0 time) on the indicated date, Venus was at 27 Virgo 45.

Do you need a complete chart? If so, there are websites listed in the sidebar where you can cast a horoscope for free.

Constellation Aries

 

4 Major Stars in Aries Constellation
Aries is generally known for three stars, all of which were originally used for navigation purposes. The brightest of the three is alpha Arietis or El-Nath, a star astrologers know as Hamal and which was involved in the April 2014 solar eclipse.

Beta Arietis (beta Aries) is a star known traditionally as Mesarthim or El-Scheratain. Said to have a Mars (plus) Saturn nature, this star is said to bring tough or hard/harsh results where there is a lack of thought or consideration of consequences.

Botein is a star known to astronomers as delta Arietis. Traditionally Botein is also known as Nir al Botain, a name which was brought into Latin as Lucida Ventris (meaning ‘the brightest of the belly’) which gives Botein an interesting association with 41 Arietis, an Aries star well known in Vedic and Chinese astrology (if not in western/tropical astrology) under the name Bharani.

The term ‘major’ stars may or may not apply here as none of these stars are (for instance) considered royal stars as Antares or Regulus is. But in the constellation of Aries these are the four stars which by and large come to the top of the astrologer’s list, so I hope this answers the search.

JSM Dancer - Who is Justsomemotion
To the question ‘who is he?,’ I have no answer other than the obvious: a very talented guy who has posted some dance videos on YouTube.

And yes, I wrote about JSM - in last year’s New Years Eve post, as it happens.

- link to post -

Product Astrology:

Justsomemotion(JSM) + YouTube

But as to your search? He’s not here. But because I’ve seen this question so many times I did go into the back of the blog and turned over a few digital rocks to check.

He didn’t appear, cleanly binary floor or no.

So sorry ... I can’t help with this one.

Gemini and Virgo Sexually
Apart from having to resist the urge to stick a comma into that search string, and though I will guess that the searcher was thinking in terms of Sun signs, the generics here really apply no matter what set of planets or points is applied.

First of all, Gemini and Virgo are two signs which are natively in square to each other, which astrologically speaks to two very different tendencies: that of bonding together as a team and that which we might think of as two cars arriving at an intersection at the same time with both drivers wanting to go first. And that this should be true with two signs which are both ruled by the same planet (Mercury) is one of those things which really underscores how important astrological qualities like element and modality really are.

Virgo is an earth sign: the Virgo energetic works through tangible drives and tangible results with a lot of ‘working with what we have or can get our hands on’ strung between. All things Virgo pertain to things which can be done in terms of how it’s done, inclusive of function, functionality and morality, though nothing about Virgo intrinsically says any of that has to be positive. (You might think that, but no ... it just isn’t so!)
Against all this, Gemini is not an earth sign - Gemini is an air sign, meaning all things Gemini evolve from an idea and exist in theory or  as a concept.  Gemini’s world is all about ideas and anyone with Gemini planets will explore those ideas - within the Self and with others - in terms of the planetary energy Gemini is focused through.

Ceres Cancer 21.09
I’m taking the above search string to mean ‘Ceres at 21 Cancer 09’ with an invisible “What does it mean that Ceres is at 21 Cancer?’ stuck behind.

That declared, Ceres is both a guardian of those involved in a process and the importance of the process or plan itself. The mythic Ceres is often written about as a harvest goddess - but the astrological Ceres seems to have as much to do with how we get something from ‘seed’ to that ‘harvest’ as anything else.

As for 21 Cancer, it represents some sort of challenge to one’s nature (or with Ceres, to some process) which may look like simple rebellion - and if rejection of ‘that’ is all that’s going on, often not much in the way of positive outcomes tend to result. Better outcomes are found with this combination where plans get made and carried out with a set of aims having been decided upon which includes some degree of clarity as to why not just the aim but how you get there matters.

South Node conjunct Antares
The south lunar node being what is always ‘easy’ for us to do. It may be what we ‘know,’ or it may be what we were were ‘brought up with.’ It can even be something which we have a knack for - that informal and mysterious ‘knowledge’ which is just about who we are.

Wherever the South Node falls in our chart, that is an area of life we will find ‘easy’ - which isn’t to say it’s all good. Considering how the nodes always refer to our ability to ‘relate,’ (be that to people, a nation, ideas, career paths - or anything else), the sign that the South Node is in (and the planet which rules it) are always important, but something which is also to be taken in hand as the lesson of the nodes is to do that which isn’t easy and which isn’t hard - which may tell us all something about relationships in general.

In conjunction with Antares (one of the royal stars of Persia) the instruction is that things will go well providing we don’t do one ... little ... very particular thing - which with Antares is ‘obsess.’

And with Antares currently positioned at 9 Sagittarius this tendency is strong, as 9 Sagittarius is known for its fiery and enthusiastic - sometimes over-enthusiastic (read: over-focused) qualities.

So we put these ideas together and come up with the following: to have Antares conjunct the South Node makes it easy to get over-focused on things, on people, on how you feel about things or people - and none of that is likely to help. Depending on the placement/sign of Jupiter in such a chart, someone with this sort of placement might also be charismatic (though they may not know it). Or they may become someone who comes to rely on their charisma as a way to get along ... which lore says eventually won’t be ‘enough.’

(By itself, that is.)

Solar Eclipse Scorpio 3/9 Axis
Any solar eclipse which strikes a cusp (axis or otherwise) ‘explodes’ the current perception or operation of that house, often through something which you can directly attribute to meaning(s) associated with the planet which rules the sign on that cusp.

As with all solar eclipses, whatever comes of that ‘exploding’ the old (which makes way for the new, however happy or reluctant we are about it) will take a full three years (36 months) from the time of the eclipse to either come to fruition or ‘stabilize’ either in reality and real time or as a concept we’re willing to pursue to its aim. Also, the more tightly we try to hold onto or preserve the ‘old,’ the more difficulty we are likely to experience.

And that’s (in all likelihood) a bit of a challenge here, as Scorpio is well known for its difficulty not so much with physical change as with changes of an emotional nature (or the nature of one’s emotionality). It’s somewhat easier if we are the one initiating the change and somewhat more problematic if change is being thrust upon us.

At least that’s what we feel - with there truly being some chance that a solar eclipse striking either end of the 3/9 (mentality versus expansion) axis being a peculiar situation where you can see where something else might be better, but you can’t quite get there emotionally - and the process of understanding that (on the inside) as well as what you are doing/trying to do on the outside becomes a long-term dual journey. As well, depending on which end of this axis line is struck, something which is already in progress may be abandoned - at least for now or in the form that it is in.

As always, all things Scorpio test our understanding of Self, our will to be who we are (and to make something of that) while recognizing that the difficulties we encounter through others (however that may manifest) may well be about them, but at the same time it’s also about us - we attract people, things and situations which test our capacity, our tolerance and our (emotional) willingness to develop our Self so that others will want to “fight” with us - not against us.

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So that's it for now, leaving me to close with a sincere hope that we all enjoy a safe and happy beginning of 2015.

Here's to life, love and peace!

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(P.S. this was fun for me - so you keep searching and I'll see about working in some time to post signposts along your road!)
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Pallas in Sagittarius

A sunrise view from the Gamrig to the Lilienstein in one of Switzerland's national parks

(photo credit: Merops, Occtober 2012)

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Not everyone seems to feel (or pay attention to) Pallas changing signs. But even if you’re not a died-in-the-toga Pallas lover, as asteroid Pallas is entering Sagittarius but a couple of days behind Saturn ... and since Pallas travels through the zodiac at a faster clip than Saturn (a fact easy enough to understand as it only takes Pallas around four years to go once around the Sun and Saturn takes some twenty-nine years to do the same thing) ...well, let’s just say it’s worth mentioning.

(And if you didn't read the post on Saturn in Sagittarius, that may be a good place to start - it's the post just prior to this one.)

Yet the truth there is that this isn’t just a Saturn thing. The day before Pallas moves into Sagittarius on December 27th, Pluto will slide across the digital line into it’s 2015 area of affect - it’s ‘shadow’ if you will, though Pluto won’t be in actual retrograde motion until next April 17th, should you care - which if you’re a United States citizen means caring may be in order as Pluto going retrograde on the 17th means it’s station begins on April 15th (America’s annual Tax Day for individuals) if only because odd and  unanticipated things are associated with the period around the time of Pluto’s station. So if Pluto’s degree of station (15 Capricorn) applies to your personal chart, this could indicate an interruption which makes it hard to get taxes filed.

It’s also - because Pluto is associated with problems where ‘values’ are manipulated or denied - a moment and set of days where that we do out of avoidance (particularly out of some sort of avoidance of responsibility or standards which support responsible actions and choices) can come back to haunt us.

But that’s then, and at the moment all we need to deal with is Pluto’s symbolic ‘opening’ of it’s next year’s business, which means we will either now be turning to things which will carry on into next year, whether or not that happens because we relinquish some sense of Plutonic control or conviction we’ve been holding onto or not.

And yes, that may happen - that’s one very sensible way to think of Pallas’ shift into Sagittarius happening in concurrence with Pluto beginning its next year of ‘work’ as Pallas catches up with Saturn - which is really the crux of the astrological affect which will color and crest the period of December 26, 27, 28 and 29 in particular, give or take the fact that Pluto will be going on to do its Plutonic thing from the 26th forward.

As for Pallas, Pallas is an emblem of intellectual wisdom either gained or applied through, and with perspective. Pallas is not passionate - which puts it right in there on Saturn’s side of the astrological ledger and pretty much in opposition to Pluto’s notoriously fervent effects ... which is an entirely different way to see this transit cluster, namely as the realization or determination that some situation or effort which is filled with passion and everyone’s desire to have it work out the way they want it to can’t be dealt with except through cool perceptions.

By sitting in conjunction with Saturn at 0 Sagittarius from the 27th through the 29th, Pallas invites us to think things through on the ‘Saturn level’ - which is to say, cost versus benefit and through the eyes of a realistic mind which knows (despite all the wanting) that the goal - as with most desirable goals - will take time.

Some people may be very unhappy with this fact. The degree 0 Sagittarius is known for substantial understandings and knowledge - but also for impatience and often enough, intolerance, particularly where someone disagrees (or is simply not enthralled) by our perspective, philosophy, aim, product or plan. Yet at the same time, this is a degree which is able to learn and which is known for practical and often quite pragmatic native abilities with finicky or exacting ideas, which with Pallas and Saturn present may surface as a review which seeks to find imperfections or errors based on assumptions of how things should work - which isn’t always the way they work in real time.

Pallas will be in Sagittarius from now until April 8, 2015. During that time, apart from the Saturn conjunction, Pallas won’t be meeting up with other planets, that being something of a statement about how perspectives on many issues will now be freed to develop independent from all else - which may include some facts, and which may at times lack any sensibility of compassion.

Pallas is not a ‘feeling’ emblem. It’s sufficiently devoid of emotionality that some will think of Pallas as a point which is ‘cold’ or as feelings and all we think of as ‘normal’ human emotionality is not in the Pallas definition. If anything, this tendency is exacerbated by Sagittarius as Sagittarius is a fire sign which is all about ‘the vision’ and how things ‘could be.’ In everyday settings, this is likely to create a few problems as one person follows one line of logic and someone else follows another, and with the proximity of Pallas’ sign change to change-prompting Uranus’ having gone direct on the 21st we shouldn’t be surprised if those changes take the form of some other ‘side’ or the voice which hasn’t been heard from, the thing which hasn’t been said, the player thought long counted out ... all those ‘other sides’ and other perspectives now count at least in terms of our ability to know and understand their perspectives.

Ultimately all the positives (and yes, the negatives too) will come out in the Aquarian Age wash. And what with Aquarius being the sign of universal perspectives and Sagittarius’ derivative third sign(any third derivative being about ‘expression’) that suggests that as it transits Sagittarius, Pallas’ impartial ‘vibe’ will provide some measure of logical stabilization, be that of images, proposals, relationships and conversations and whether that which is being perceived OR felt is about someone else - or with regard to some situation we’re in or trying to understand within our Self.

One other thing is afoot as of the latter part of this week, and that’s Ixion (nobody’s favorite Plutino) perfecting its conjunction with Ras Alhague ... if any conjunction of Ixion and Ras Alhague could be said to be “perfect.” Both of these symbols have a dark side, with Ras Alhague playing the part of the choice between healing and harming and Ixion being a habit we each have stuffed somewhere in our personality which drives us to think we can ‘get away’ with something - which eventually proves to be our undoing, or at least the reason our aims tend to fail.

- link to post -

Ixion: Our Conflict of Self

Yet this is also an opportunity - one which will occur either in several parts (perhaps representing steps in a process) or which pertains to separate issues we learn about in turn, representing the ‘healing’ of some injury of confidence or inner gap of understanding. We’ve met up with this combination before, mind you - it’s first instance (in recent history) began back on February 22nd when at least several trials many if not most of us are still dealing with came bubbling to the surface.

Have we learned anything new about that situation or possibly from whatever we were doing at that time? Maybe, maybe not. If we have, Ixion ‘returning’ to the scene of the stellar crinkle (one hopes there's no crime involved ...) is likely to come as a poke from life to see if we’ve really, truly learned whatever it was we needed to learn.

Or ... are we now primed to trip ourselves up - again?

This Ixion-Ras Alhague combination which can be fractious and irritating even when (if) the outcome is going to be positive in time has been with us a long time, having started back in 2010 and set to be with us (with period high-and-low points) until late October, 2016.

Pallas Athena by Franz von Stuck (cropped)

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As for what we need to learn or how we go about learning it and why we have some tendency to do time and again which don't pan out well for us, that would be a great thing to get some Pallas perspective on, though with Ixion-Ras Alhague in this mix it’s just as likely that with some people (and as this pertains to certain issues) the old ‘try, try again,’ mantra will simply get used because ... well, because.

And whatever tripped us up before will trip us up again.

So... will we learn - or learn better - about things during these next several months? Maybe. Starting from where we are, as we do we increase the chance that we’ll know how to handle things when Pallas reaches Capricorn.

And if we don’t, we merely put off until tomorrow that we could be learning today, postponing the success, the validation and the rewards we think we want ... which may be why we now need perspective, and what we need perspective on in our short run.
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Saturn in Sagittarius

Taken by NASA's Cassini spacecraft, Saturn looms large in the foreground with

our beloved Terra Earth but a distant dot in space.

(photo credit: NASA, JPL, Caltech, 2013)

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As Sagittarius is the 9th sign of the zodiac, Saturn’s entering Sagittarius indicates a shift into the 9th derivative phase of everything which requires focus, discipline/self-discipline, structuring, responsibility, dedication and/or diligence.

It’s also the place in our individual Saturnine process where (and when) we come to feel like we can finally see our goal. It’s right there. It’s right ...

And then something happens.

Why would something happen? No, it’s not because Saturn is out to get you (even when life feels like it) and it’s not because anyone just wants to rain on your parade.

So why would something happen? That’s because Sagittarius, being the 9th sign in the zodiac is the sign right behind Capricorn (zodiac sign number 10), Capricorn being the sign of accomplishing the success which then ‘pays off’ in Aquarius (zodiac sign number 11). And that’s important because Saturn rules Capricorn, which makes Sagittarius the 12th derivative sign to a sign Saturn rules.

The 'natural zodiac' wheel

To work with derivatives, start with the sign you are looking to find the derivative of. Counting

that as "one," go counter-clockwise around the wheel (as the signs are numbered here) until

you arrive at the 'derived' sign of influence.

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Sagittarius is about expansion - the expanding of what we know, what we want to know, our sphere of influence, our understanding of our Self. In being the opposition sign to Gemini (the sign where we are asked to think things through, make a choice and construct priorities and plans) Sagittarius is also the sign where we meet up with people and things which may further contribute to our (Gemini) choice-and-plan ... or which may challenge it or point out it’s chinks or flaws, causing us (more often than not) to go back and review all our Gemini (and 3rd house natal) choices.

Sometimes we return to Sagittarian mode and stand up for ourselves, which wouldn’t be unlikely moving forward as Saturn is all about standing up for Self and the ‘standing’ of the Self as Saturn is astrologically all about structure (including backbones, real and proverbial) and the process of re/structuring ... some of which will happen over the next couple of years as we (Sagittarius) expand what we know or understand and see the benefit of building for a future, or bringing our past up to date.

(Or at least working on it.)

And about that ‘Sagittarius as the 12th sign to Capricorn’ which was cited because Saturn rules Capricorn. First of all, ‘rules’ are a big thing with both signs: Sagittarius covers the theory of law and Capricorn (hence Saturn) represents the reality of it - the rewards and consequences both for breaking a law and whatever the consequences for a given law may be whether planned or otherwise.

What isn’t in this mix however is politics, politics and all of its highly verbal operations being Aquarian and 11th house. (Which yes, does mean that the age we are now entering - the Aquarian Age - is going to end up being highly political and less based on the universal faith or the universality of faith, that having been a ‘last Age’ theme).

However ... Saturn itself (as opposed to Capricorn) is quite often a tinge political - and being the ‘in door’ ruler of Aquarian, that makes sense.

Why bring all this up? Because Saturn will be traversing the 12th house to its ‘sole ownership’ sign of rulership (Capricorn) at the same time as Saturn is - by moving through Sagittarius - also in (and therefore activating the 11th derivative to the other sign it rules: Aquarius.

What this amounts to is a crib sheet which says that during the whole of the period which starts on December 23, 2014 (at 4:34 p.m., UT/+0) and which ends on December 20, 2017 (when Saturn moves on into Capricorn) we can expect substantial successes and structural challenges where/when we test our own limits and our own (Gemini) ideas. And since wherever we see Saturn we earn what we get and get what we have earned, there are likely to be any number of debates both with our Self and with others - often in public as the public airings of opinions and getting ‘out there on the record’ are essentially a Sagittarian forms of sport.

But more to that derivative concept: the 12th to any sign being where we are emotionally tested or tested on our ability to accept our own feelings and our feelings about emotions (got that?), with Saturn moving through the 12th sign to its own Capricorn ‘home base’ (so to speak) is to virtually guarantee that we will - each and every one of us - have, or run across some sort of gap or glitch which we will react to for however short or long a time depending on your personal relationship to that which is hard for you to face. When that happens, the extremes of response will be at one end a fervent sort of frigid rejection and at the other a determination to accelerate some process in the name of necessary in spite of how we may or may not feel about it or about how it might affect us personally.

At the same time that that’s in play we will also experience Saturn being in the 11th derivative sign to its other sign of rulership (Aquarius) makes a reference to earning results, inclusive of whatever might prompt us to want to work towards some particular result and all that we are challenged by along the way. As with all eleventh derivative signs we will all be called upon to balance that which distinguishes us against that which distinguishes us from others. And at the same time that we’re doing that, we’ll also be having to satisfy that uniquely  Aquarian requirement that we balance the idea or ideal against everyday practicality and universal functionality - all without fracturing or breaking society’s structures into layers, classes, castes or anything else which embodies some sort of exclusion.

Saturn enters Sagittarius (first ingress, glyph chart)

December 23, 2014 - 16:33:59 (4:33:59 p.m., UT+0) - Aries Wheel (Location Not Specific)

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Saturn enters Sagittarius (first ingress, glyph chart)

December 23, 2014 - 16:33:59 (4:33:59 p.m., UT+0) - Aries Wheel (Location Not Specific)

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As Saturn enters Sagittarius it may well also be useful to note that Saturn will be making this ingress not once but twice, as Saturn will reach 4 degrees of Sagittarius by next March, go retrograde, and then back into Scorpio...

Saturn retrogrades out of Sagittarius (glyph chart)

June 15, 2015 - 1:35:31 a.m. (UT/+0) - Aries Wheel (Location Not Specific)

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Saturn retrogrades out of Sagittarius (text chart)

June 15, 2015 - 1:35:31 a.m. (UT/+0) - Aries Wheel (Location Not Specific)

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...for just about three months between mid-June and mid-September before going direct on August 2nd (UT/+0) and re-entering Sagittarius on September 15, 2015.

Saturn's 3rd (final) Sagittarius ingress (glyph chart)

September 18, 2015 - 2:49:12 a.m. (UT+0) - Aries Wheel (Location Not Specific)

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Saturn's 3rd (final) Sagittarius ingress (text chart)

September 18, 2015 - 2:49:12 a.m. (UT+0) - Aries Wheel (Location Not Specific)

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Looking just at the first ingress, Saturn is conjunct dispassionate Pallas in a degree which speaks to ‘mastery’ (28 Scorpio) whether we have it or not - which again points back to that Saturnine ‘have you earned it?’ quotient. With Sedna at 24 Taurus (and retrograde) in opposition to Pallas but not Saturn, we all have something we’re unwilling to give up which is holding us back, just as we’re all perfectly able to see someone else doing the exact same thing - and guess who we’re pointing fingers at?

Right ... probably ‘them’ for something we are in our own (perhaps distant) way equally enmeshed in, consumed by or (self)righteously devoted to - probably for reasons which go back to the basics of who we are, how we were raised and with what values and so on.

This ‘inner’ knowing or perspective on something we are doing ... and probably something we’ve done in the past as well ... to some degree this holds us to standards now just as to some degree we are proceeding in spite of not yet having sufficient experience or ‘maturity’ with something to be completely sure we know either what we’re doing - or that how we’re doing it is going to get us where we really want to get to.

We also know (this being purely Saturn) that it’s going to take time to get anywhere ... even if once we get there we realize that’s not where we want to be, at which point we’ll pack up our lesson learned and move on.

In keeping with regular astrological theory, retrograde passes (such as the one we’ll see this next June as Saturn moves back into Scorpio) tend to be personal - and this one is unlikely to be anything different, although with Saturn itself now in opposition to Sedna while also in opposition to the Moon and Mercury at 4 Gemini (a degree known for insight and interactive perception) even though Sedna isn’t conjunct the Moon and Mercury suggests being of ‘split mind’ - or at least attention - though why that is would be up to specific circumstances, specially as Saturn is also trine Vesta and the lunar South Node as this ingress gets made.

It would seem a moment of inner caution, though why that would be is entirely personal. It could be something small like dreading having to clean out a garage or going to the dentist. Then again, it could be something which - especially with a lunar node involved - plays on or through some relationship, be it person or that you have to some subject, effort or avenue of undertaking which has for good or not-so-good gotten out of hand.

It will take a couple of months from June for Saturn to finish retrograde and get back to it’s Sagittarian ingress, but once it gets there come September 18th, we will certainly know some form of ‘workable versus unworkable’ (Saturn trine South Node at 0 Aries) and that we are either ready to proceed with some furthering of some cause or that we need to proceed according to some new tact or tactic, the Saturnine reality of which we are ready to begin working on now. However ... that Saturn is not just opposition Sedna (which in its own grand trine to Ceres and the Sun reads rather as a status quo, personal allegiance (or) vision or tradition which we don’t want to let go of but may need to)... but that Saturn is also in square to Mars at 25 Leo?

Saturn and its largest moon, Titan, which is some 3200 miles or 5150 kilometers across.

(photo credit: Cassini - NASA, JPL, Caltech, SSI)

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Well, this is Saturn coming into Sagittarius and ‘committing’ to the full transit of Sagittarius as the object of a t-square with a Leo Mars as some ‘hurdle’ we have to get past - and in this case the hurdle is related to not just an individualistic highly biased (whether pro or con) Mars expression with regards to problems of pride, ego and luxury and/or luxurious self-indulgence, often to such an excess that the gift itself runs out.

Thus some come to Saturn in Sagittarius to forge ahead while others come to Saturn in Sagittarius to pay the price for what they’ve done ... a thought which leads to why those responsibilities spoken of in connection with Saturn must be those we owe others because we owe it to our Self.

That's the Saturn if Sagittarius premise - that we owe it to our Self to be someone who not only learns what they need to learn (i.e., to survive or get ahead) but how to their utilize skills, knowledge and conviction such that by the time Saturn reaches Capricorn and Aquarius, things we have put to work (and worked through) during this learning phase become the foundation for becoming someone capable of manifesting greater successes as a human being ... not merely as someone others see as manifestly successful. 
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