Mercury Retrograde at 2 Scorpio

A barn raising in Lansing (now North York City Centre) Toronto, Canada

(photo credit Alexander W Galbraith/c. 1900-19, photo courtesy of City of Toronto Archives)

I was stiff when I got up this morning - unusually so, even for an injured person. Figuring there's nothing to do but cope, I went about my business... turning on the television, setting water on for tea...

It didn't take all that long to realize that even for Los Angeles, traffic was particularly rancid this morning.

Putting it together, it makes sense: Mercury has moved on station as of October 2nd to go retrograde on October 4th at 5:03 in the evening, UT/+0 time - and in having done so within some rather evident proximity to the Aries Lunar Eclipse which will occur on October 8th we're getting very personal, physical, situational effects.

Expect such things to keep happening. The Mercury part of this (read: the motion, the thought, the exchange of information or conversation) will ease out of the energetic equation as of the 6th or so (as Mercury's station allowance runs out)... but at that point we're very much into the heart of the incoming eclipse, which in being lunar is very much about emotionality (the experience/effects of) as well as anything which evokes a feeling response.

Which is a rather all-encompassing sort of statement, I know. But then, this is emotionality - the 'where humans live.' As I have asserted elsewhere and experienced in first person reality, human life is an emotional thing. We're emotional creatures. How we feel determines whether we will even get to those lofty, respectable, well-structured thoughts we all like to think we can rely on.

(And isn't it sad how we're so often wrong about that?)

In going retrograde at 2 Scorpio, Mercury is asking us to be use that part of our nature - and also our thinking nature. It's asking that we be responsible in taking charge of our own most human nature. There seems to be some necessity for disappointment with this degree, as if only through failure can we resolve ourselves to our Self as a human person and proceed on that basis.

You know, as the mortal, not the icon, real or imagined.

As for the emotionality which tends to arise at this time, it tends to be very positive or negative and not all that much betwixt or between. Imaged by the Sabian symbol 'a house-raising part in a small village enlists the neighbor's cooperation' 2 Scorpio references both acceptance and it's opposition - rejection and marginalization - plus all the various types of protections (the house) which goes or doesn't go with same.

Then again, there's a Mercury/Neptune factor here as Mercury is going into retrograde in trine to Neptune - a sign that there may be...or have been...some compromise of clarity or truth in the works - all of which seems strikingly in keeping with Royal/fixed star Aldebaran having just moved from 9 to 10 Gemini (Gemini being a Mercury-ruled sign) as of yesterday, October 1st. (See previous post.)

Mercury seeks to clarify - either through mentality (the Gemini way) or through how something is done (or what gets done) - that being more of the Virgo/Mercury solution. But when Neptune and Mercury are in aspect, Neptune's famous 'is it real...is it not real?' qualities of illusion - willful or otherwise - create complications. Confusion. Even out and out lies.

Or, of course, the exposure of same.

So some who have been deceived will discover now. Some who have been deceivers will be laid bare now. All such moments could happen in a snap... or they may 'come to be' over time, which is to say through whatever occurs during Mercury's three weeks in apparent 'reverse.'

Reverses of circumstance, reversals of decisions... we are likely to see/experience many changes of course (charted and otherwise) in these weeks ahead. In going retrograde at 2 Scorpio Mercury's position theoretically supports and enhances our realization... even our understanding/need to understand all the many and varied forms of trial and human ugliness which have been surfacing of late. That Mercury both starts and ends this retrograde period in trine to Neptune combines rather well with the image of the Scorpio eclipse both as a notice as to how we have been 'kidding ourselves' (aka lying to ourselves) or simply where we've been being irresponsible.

To our Self/selves, that is. The single and ultimate plural are both implied here, so there is the You and then there is the Everyone, with virtually nothing between. Given next week's lunar eclipse there is-was-will be many an issue which concerns guidelines and success is attained generally/most often through a basic agreement to (as they say) 'play by the rules.' Problems will occur through trust placed in the wrong people, with such alliances generally based in convenience rather than anything else.

But still, it all counts.

Also - considering how 15 Aries (the degree of the lunar eclipse) has a known tendency to produce the thing we fear through the very energetic of fearing it, this is a time to control our indulgence of our own emotionality. With Mercury going retrograde, some matters will/should be reflected on most thoroughly with an eye to understanding the full spectrum of emotions which may lie behind the urge to do or say something. That Mercury's station is in Scorpio will drive a desire to 'control the conversation' (and thus the emotions and emotionality in place) but to do such a thing - to attempt to manipulate or control are likely to somehow come to naught, most often for reasons which are not all that apparent at this time.

You'll just have to wait, in other words.

Speaking of the post just before this one - that being about Aldebaran's move to 10 Gemini - Aldebaran is, of course, the fixed star which promises success ONLY if we uphold (or establish) standards of integrity. So that Aldebaran is making this move as Mercury goes on station puts a little Mercury in the Aldebaran quotient (lending a quality of vulnerability - ours - to our own insecurities as part of our process) and lends a little Aldebaran to the Mercury station.

In other words, don't be surprised if integrity fouled begins to produce karma.

By the time Mercury reaches its station/direct point on October 25th (UT/+0), the Sun will have eclipsed and we will be not just be ready to move on, we will already be in the process of moving on. (Solar eclipses are odd like that - so often we recognize what they're 'about' only after they occur.) And because Mercury's 16 Scorpio station/direct effects will begin on October 23-24 (depending on where you are) we're seeing Mercury involved with both eclipses - one at either end of its retrograde. Hopefully 16 Scorpio will manifest with on the positive side - which 16 Scorpio is noted for, though its traits of reliability, honor and courage can/will obviously be seen as positive to some and (simultaneously) as trouble to others.

As always, that choice will be ours. The Scorpio (Mercury) component here is always about choice, with our choice always being whether we are willing to treat and experience others as equals. (In other words, it's what you do/don't do which counts...and why you do or don't do it.) Since Scorpio is not about 'them' and what 'they' are doing but rather about whether we're able to be honest with our Self about our Self, what we have earned now survives, doing so through validation, interaction, connection and mutual support.

And what about what we have not earned? That begins to cool and grow less appealing, whether in our Mercurial regard or that of others.

One last thought... in going retrograde in conjunction with asteroid Lumiere while also trine Neptune it is likely that at least part of what we are not seeing (or being willing to believe or accept) is something we also regard as 'a light' [Lumiere] in our life.

What that means and why it means whatever it means to us is at least part of why this Mercury retrograde has come along. And while it is true that Mercury/Neptune can represent 'the lie,' they can also represent that hope, that thing we hold onto in order to get ourselves through something.

Which is which, you ask?

That's individual. However... as we also know that when Mercury goes direct on October 25th (UT/+0) it will be doing so in conjunction with asteroid Lilith (what I deny or ignore in or about my own life) and Typhon, an emblem of something very basic and very primal. We also know that this October 25th station will occur in relating/relationship-oriented Libra and at one of Libra's more feeling and inspiring degrees (16 Libra).

What this 'spells' (if you will) is an opportunity to learn something about ourselves over these next few weeks which in recognizing will break through our reluctance to understand ourselves in conjunction with others. That, plus Aldebaran's shift plus the idea how by October 25th the Sun, Venus and Pallas (wisdom born of a logical, dispassionate perspective) will either release us to be our kinder (16 Libra) Self or put us in position to be open to that which happens then.

Or it may glue us utterly in place, forcing us to see how our personal short-sightedness (read: self-concern, self-focus) has now hindered our various goals.

After all, apart from all the missed phone calls, distracted conversations, mental headaches, sloppy/botched efforts, losses and mistakes, delays of schedule and endless interruptions so common with any (and every) Mercury retrograde regardless of sign, in a sense Mercury retrograde is all about getting our inner house in order so that we are ready to be graced with all which happens in retrograde's wake. Mercury retrogrades are famous (infamous, actually) for putting us through something which only comes clear just after Mercury goes direct.

And then there's the retrograde shadow. Mercury entered the shadow of its retrograde over the weekend of September 13-14 (depending on what time zone you were in) a won't exit that shadow until November 10th. So while the actual retrograde period may feel the most 'retrograde-like' (putting us on the spot with our Self), there is a greater if rather more 'shadowy' (meaning 'less apparent') implication of some process which spans this entire arc - and which, at least in the short (next three month/lunar eclipse) run is likely to feel terribly, terribly important.

The only thing is that in reality, it's not. And that's where we may be kidding ourselves - a concept we may profit long term by remembering not to forget.
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Mercury in Libra

A field of ripening barley in Palouse, USA

(photo credit: Victor Szalvay, June 2006)

There’s a strong human tendency to make things simply personal...or not personal...according to personal preference.

Surely you’ve noticed?

Yes, any number of us will make the good ‘ours’ and simply reject whatever we don’t like, disowning it lock, stock and responsibility - even when we’re plainly in the mix. So strong is this habit that even when we think about metaphysics, again we tend to divide our charts: the Aries “I Am” of life we stand for and take hold of.

But when it gets to Libra, so often we opt for blanket ‘thou’s, projecting and separating ourselves from things in our own chart.

In other words, in our own life - and we’re not talking about the live being lived in your town, city or state, we’re talking about every moment of that life which has us breathing or holding our breath.

It’s our chart. Libra is in every chart and is a precept in every life. So why do we project? We want a good life, surely. But how can we live a good life if we’re not willing to admit that the life we’re living (inclusive of who we attract, how others feel about us and how our work or efforts are received) how to live that  good life while abdicating the power we hold in our hands (and minds) to empower said life?

There’s a difference between not knowing and not liking, after all. Both can be equally valid in a well-balanced Libra-like world, which is why the difference between Libra’s positives and negatives can both be typified by one simple metaphysical statement: what we put out comes back to us.  

Sometimes we don’t recognize it...and sometimes we don’t want to recognize it.

Pointing at ‘them’ is relatively easy. Dealing with our Self, particularly when that Self is in the middle of wanting (yearning, longing, etc.) to feel better about the life that Self is living...that’s hard. 

Sometimes it’s purely annoying.

And still, after all the projecting is done, there we still are with whatever problems, refusals to see (think, hear, etc.) we came in with...which is a whole other issue. After all, those among us who don’t want to deal with their issues are surely not going to be a cheerfully jazzed to know that they not only still have to deal with things, but that their ‘problem child’ is looking at them from the mirror.

No one likes that. (But it is terribly Libra.) Yes, Libra is about everything we encounter in life because it’s our life. Such things inform us. They test us to see if we really know what we think we know. The Libra Principle becomes active in our life, so that we will learn what works...and what doesn’t work...which isn’t ‘about’ them, but rather about our experience of them or something in our wide-ranging world...or their experience of us or what we do.

By those reactions and responses we learn more about our Self - what parts of it work or don’t work and why.

Dealing with all those ideas, from the ‘what’ to the ‘what happens’ (complete to everything between), that’s Libran too.

It’s to think about. And lucky for us, Mercury (symbol of thought, communication and mentality) is about to enter Libra.

So once Mercury enters Libra on September 2nd at 5:39 in the morning (UT/+0) time, feel free to think up, folks. Think hardy, think thoroughly, give things some thought or think nothing of it - whatever be your personal choice.

You know, a personal choice you’ll make which will then affect others who will let you know if your idea works in their Libra framework and thus in their equally individual Self-driven world? As Mercury enters Libra we are symbolically being told that our communications, our thinking, our experience and estimation of today and tomorrow (and all they may contain) will be moving from a personal orientation to a more worldly one....how what we do, what we are doing will become more visible to others and more apt to be commented on or responded to.

We are also coming to a moment when our thoughts may well change as Mercury moves through Libra’s earliest degrees, that being the position of giant black hole M87. Being that Mercury moves very quickly (its ‘fleet-footed’ orbit around the Sun takes a mere 87.9 days) this contact will be felt rather immediately, raising alternate views (and viewpoint) from September 2nd through 6th, when Mercury exits M87’s orb of influence.

Some of us will be inspired by thoughts and events which occur during these days. Some of us will recognize how we may have been too short-sighted about something - or how we didn’t know, see or listen to something which may at first blink not have been our taste...but which is in reality seriously important to our aims short term and long.

That Mercury is coming into Libra aspect-free and  on its own speaks to a free-wheeling quality in thought and conversation which though perhaps not overly obvious is there to enjoy...and to employ. However, please be advised: the farther into September we get, the less options we’re likely to have as things seem to acquire a life and momentum of their own. Still, many will be likely to be ‘in their head’ or ‘lost in thought’ or simply preoccupied (mildly or otherwise) for at least some part of this transit. For them, Libra’s interactive quality will reflect in consideration of how to exist with others, among others, in this world or at some other level which has to do with ‘getting along’ in life, though Mercury in Libra by itself isn’t the kind of indicator we would think of as defining times good, bad or indifferent.

What this transit says is that our thoughts will be about others. Or situations others are connected to, or that we (or they) may need to discuss with someone - and because Mercury will be going retrograde come October 4th (September 14th being the date Mercury crosses into its retrograde shadow) the latter part of September is likely to be filled with our feeling pressured and frustrated as we try to get something done with life (and people in that life) resisting, not getting things done as they focus on how annoyed they are with others or whatever is getting in their way or being otherwise entirely unsatisfying.

(Yes, its that projection thing again. We’re not happy, so it or they must be to blame, right?)

(No, not right - but as an example of human nature in function, often accurate.)

More to the point, as Mercury moves into the shadow of its upcoming retrograde Jupiter is just reaching 13 Leo, setting up a sextile. And since Mercury retrogrades (inclusive of their pre-and-post retrograde shadow periods) are periods which will have us catching up with ourselves and sorting things out (or tending to re/organizing of various mental or mentally-governed [Mercury] factors)...to have Mercury sextiling Jupiter as we trip the light-footed fantastic into Mercury’s pre-retrograde zone?

Well...that would seem to be a positive sort of note.

Mind you, just as sextiles offer opportunities, sextiles require work. And after we accept that much, then we add the concept that retrogrades require going through whatever it is we need to go through to get us into position with our Self to take life on come retrograde’s end, when (oh, incidentally...) things - or at least our perspective or thinking about things - takes a turn.

In Libra, this is all going to be about, in conjunction with, and concerning things we experience at the level of interaction - which is to say, they affect our thoughts about who we are (and aren’t) and what we’re doing or why we’re doing it and how that affects our place in the world, just as it’s affecting everyone else in the world at the very same time.

We will all be thinking. And given the Libra effect, we may be more focused on the Other than our Self, but why we would do that would be part of the Mercury in Libra process. Why we care, why we don’t care, why we pay any mind or don’t mind ignoring others if or when they don’t suit what we want to think about our Self...that would be part of the Libran process.

And wherever Libra falls in our natal chart, that tells us what we will experience through that Libra process and how we will pursue our Libran experiences...all wrapped in Mercurial questions, answers, ideas and choices, many of which will prove either harder to make or harder to have work once Venus (ruler of Libra) moves into Virgo on September 5th (UT/+0 time).

Once Mercury enters its shadow (which it will do as Mars enters Sagittarius, heralding new efforts, new actions and new discoveries of every type as a result of actions taken) it will be just over a week until Pluto goes direct. During that time, will something trigger a change in our [Mercury] thinking - and if so, will that guide or control us?

One more thing to toss in the mental stock pot here: Mercury enters Libra on September 2nd, Ixion goes direct on September 3rd, Pholus goes direct on September 4th and Venus ends this cavalcade of shifting on September 5th with its own move from Leo into Virgo.

Yes, Ixion and Pholus went into retrograde together last March...and now they're going direct together in early September.

Is this a hint?

- link to -

Ixion and Pholus Station-Retrograde

From the Mercurial perspective, this would seem to be a recipe for situations which bring out some of our less caring aspects - and end up disliking the results.

Maybe in knowing that we can resist the lesser aspects of this passage? We can use this time to think about others and how to share our space, our ideas, our needs, desires and aims. We can use this time to improve our ability to relate to others and thus our relationships with others...and maybe more importantly (at least to us), their relationship to us.

But will we?
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Venus Direct

Act in Blues

by Antoni Karwowski (January 2009)

Of all the posts I write, without question those marking the end of a Venus retrograde or Mars retrograde are my favorites – if merely for the relief I know they will spell for so many.

So here’s the news we’ve all been waiting for: Venus will go direct on January 31st at 8 p.m. (UT/+0) at 13 degrees of Capricorn.

In going direct conjunct Pluto and in a semi-sextile to an Aquarius Sun everything isn’t perfect or probably even sorted out at the moment. Many of us are still uneasy or undecided about what has happened during the past six weeks. That the degree Venus is going direct in (13 Capricorn) points to where we stand at the moment in our own life as well as where we thought we were going has created a curious sense of separation…isolation…even alienation as we’ve tried to let go of certain things while preserving that which seems vitally important.

And not all those choices have been easy. Or “fair.” Venus in retrograde, so known for its ability to manifest as situational relationship dynamics which disappoint, fall short of expectations or which elicit feelings of compromise, rejection or lack of proper reward for our efforts. Focused through the Capricorn lens, this particular retrograde has been sobering. Apparently ‘aimed’ at our hard core, real life, ‘what it takes to exist’ sorts of Capricorn standards as applied to wherever we need to grow, get more realistic or consider the effort(s) being made – or which need to be made, this Venus retrograde has been uncomfortable for all and costly on a very personal and human scale.

Through others, through our experiences we have been forced to at least consider something about who we are and how we’re going about living our lives. And now that Venus is going direct, all those many things which haven’t been so straight-forward or obvious are facing us – at least as an undercurrent - going forward.

To toss in a little metaphysical history here, that Venus is going direct at 13 Capricorn – a degree which calls on the toughness it takes to make it on your own while making us wish things were ‘nicer’ all the way around – this is a degree hit by a solar eclipse back in January of 2011. At that point something about our ‘direction’ (or the directives by which we live our life) was irrevocably altered, sending us into a three-year solar eclipse rebuilding cycle, the results of which only really began to surface during early-mid 2013.

As those effects did surface, something else was revealed…something we could not have anticipated and which we would not have considered or undertaken to take on had we not been through that January 2011 solar eclipse.

Or more specifically, the two months or so before that eclipse. In some ways we could say that this Venus retrograde has taken up where the eclipse left off, echoing through our lives asking us who we really are – and what or who we want to be thought of as.

The most sensitive points affected by the January 2011 solar eclipse AND this

current Venus retrograde (which takes its station to go direct at 13 Capricorn)

are the Capricorn conjunction, the Cancer opposition (the 'confrontation' with

issues and ideas) and the two squares - one in Aries and one in Libra. Seeing that

all four of these signs are members of the cardinal (pro-active) modality, what the

2011 eclipse may have stopped now will have resurfaced as a check point.

All of these points have a five-degree orb allowance, as shown above.

    

The gaps between those two ideas or values or qualities were shown up in large scale back in 2010/2011 …now we’re at a checkpoint, asking ourselves what we have and haven’t done since then, focusing in particular on the human side of this equation: our satisfaction with life, the integrity with which we think we’re living our lives (and in that, how we feel about integrity as a necessity or option) and what it means to ‘win’ in your terms and survive only to recognize the cost to others…maybe to other things you actually value…and to our self respect, our feelings of self worth and whatever it is which makes us want to do whatever it is we do in this world.

Mind you, this is only Step One in a much longer process. Yes, there will be those among us who will shake off Venus retrograde effects and trot away like some puppy which has forgiven itself its latest transgression. But most of us still have a lot of work to do, the underlying qualities of which are going to remain Venusian and linked to this December 2013-January 2014 retrograde period. Seeing as next up on the calendar is a Mercury retrograde beginning in Pisces and ending in Aquarius we can expect an unusual combination of effort, contemplation,  investigation and rejection during the weeks ahead – all with a dose of wondering what we should take on or be in competition about.

Are we competing with them, with ourselves – or with some ghost of failings past, real, ingrained or imagined?

Then we come to Mars and Saturn retrograde – a pairing of stations which for some may well prove to be monumental on their own and which play into what we’re talking about with Venus seeing as Mars, along with Venus is considered a ‘primal’ sort of descriptor of emotionality – the ‘strength’ side of the feeling energetic - as opposed to Venus which represents a softer and more ‘receptive’ side of our emotionality. And though the natural tendency is to think of these emblems as good-or-bad and even masculine-versus-feminine, that’s not the issue here. This ‘Mars and Venus as Moon partners’ (and the corresponding ‘Jupiter and Saturn as Sun partners’) is not about social attributes, but about whether we are able or even willing to harness our abilities without getting in out own way.

Or maybe more to the point here, what with Mars being in Libra, whether our Mars drive to get things done/assert one’s Self is in harmony with your own intent or desire. And make no mistake, sometimes life knows better than we do…and no, we don’t tend to like it when life takes that tact.

Part of what we are dealing with now – and which we will be dealing with on an increasing basis as we move forward (towards the Mars retrograde and Taurus solar eclipse) is a subtle if ongoing awareness. Mars in Libra is an air sign which functions through the ‘idea of the thing’ – which in the case of Libra is all about who we are in relationship to others, personally and/or professionally. (And yes, sometimes both.)

Meanwhile, Venus in Capricorn (or shall we say, Pluto-Venus in Capricorn) can perhaps be typified as a ‘drive born of necessity’ which operates in a very Big Picture fashion – the ‘big picture’ part being all about the fact that the last four signs of the zodiac (Sagittarius, Capricorn, Aquarius and Pisces) are worldly and public by nature.

Some will spend the whole of these next few months trying to ‘balance’ the individual/interactive concern against their bigger or worldly concerns. Others will instead move towards the idea of relating to others (or what they learn from others) as a ‘microcosm’ of that ‘world’ in the sense that society is really just a collection of countless individuals, all of whom have pretty basic instincts, tastes and opinions.

Considering the sign aspect here is a square (from Venus to Mars) the first variation will tend to cause friction within us (as to how to use our Mars assertiveness energies) and that’s likely to surface as problems, tough choices and for many, hard scenes. With squares – whether by sign or degree – we always want to work towards integration, towards synthesis. That takes work, hence the reputation squares have for being difficult.

But the reward is an inner understanding we’ll never lose…and since this is Mars-Venus we’re talking about, what stands to be gained here seems likely to be self respect or confidence.

The ‘medium’ through which Venus operates may be anything - emotional or financial, something to do with a career you have or want…it may pertain to some physical necessity. Or simple survival needs. You may be grappling with the nature of some responsibility you’ve taken on and whether that really fits who you are.

But whether this time is about something you need to get done in order to move forward towards and into the new…or  whether you’ve determined that you need to put distance between your today and yesterday, this is just the start of a process.

A turning point, call it.

Given the Mars in Libra inconjunct to this April’s Taurus solar eclipse we can anticipate there’s something to be learned from others or experienced through some association or situation which is going to affect us on a substantially personal level.

As for when we’ll encounter such a moment, catalyst or insight…that’s individual. However, considering the fact that Mercury is entering Pisces rather in sync with this Venus turnabout, some of us will be making changes now which we will capitalize on or find out the true wisdom of come this April. Mercury in Pisces can represent indecision and insecurity…but it can also signify intuition and a grace of spirit which is often highly seductive. And because this ingress will occur in tandem with Venus’ station, we can expect an intense few days when relationships and our ability to relate to someone through relationship (be it business or personal) can become a matter of personal fascination.

The caution here is obvious: lest you fall prey to some own desire to be seduced into (or out of) something, know your limits.

It’s also entirely possible that you may now meet or become involved with a project or person who will change your perspective on something fundamental. If so, enjoy the positive but pace yourself. Venus/Pluto connections are well known for stirring obsessive feelings which, given the Mercury in Pisces cue, may be nothing but a mirage.

As always, there is a two-days-before and two-days-after ‘station allowance’ given here, and the usual astro-theories will apply: things which occur during the two days before the station have yet to play out and things which happen during the two days after the station are a playing out of situations already met.

Pluto will be moving into 13 Capricorn as of February 26th…which would be late on the 25th for those in the Americas or eastern Pacific basin. It will then remain at 13 Capricorn and go retrograde on April 14th under Mars retrograde - during the heart of eclipse season.

This 13 Capricorn Pluto sequence will recommence just before New Years 2015 and finalize in January, teaching us all a lot about what ambition really means along the way. 

This last six weeks has been difficult for everyone. No doubt it's been particularly hard on Gen X’ers (born under Venus-ruled Pluto in Libra) and Gen Y folks – the Pluto in Scorpio tribe. (My sympathies, absolutely.) But across the board, no matter what generation you were born into, as many times as we've all been told we need to learn to love our Self, most of us aren’t that good at comforting ourselves with the sort of support we need when we feel like no one understands us and we don't understand life, when it seems like our dreams are crumbling for no known reason, when nothing seems to be going our way.

This feeling...the odd malaise so many of us have been laboring under for the past month or so...will begin to pass as January gives way to February. But it will be slow. Any planet coming out of retrograde takes a bit of time to pick up speed again, and thus our lives - or in this Venusian case our sense that things are more or less back to 'normal' will take a bit of time. Some of this is individual. But even if your personal chart doesn't answer to 13 Capricorn (Venus' station point), 23 Taurus (the degree Sedna will go direct at on February 5th) or 3 Pisces (the degree Mercury will go retrograde at on February 6th) it will be mid-February before Venus motion is more or less back to normal - at which point we'll be under Mercury retrograde, an influence which is easier on the heartache but more prone to producing headaches.

That Venus won't be exiting the shadow of this retrograde until March 4th tells us we're going to be working with and through much of which we've been challenged by for a while yet. But that's natural. Some decisions haven't yet been made (or acted on) and many situations need resolutions. Relationships and financial issues are likely to take the longest to sort out and a few such matters (probably those which embody or test our personal sense of vulnerability as it concerns how to proceed) - will become part of Mars retrograde quandaries. 

Still, as of January 31st we can expect communications to warm and many a process human or situational to finally achieve some sort of ease. The combination of Venus going direct as Mercury motion slows can create great clarity, great confusion and a whole list of questions and choices all at once. So yes, we do evidently still have a lot to learn yet.

But at least we've gotten this far.
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Chiron Direct at 9 Pisces

The Education of Achilles by Eugène Ferdinand Victor Delacroix (1800's)

How should we want to react to that which is all about what we feel least equipped to cope with?

…And never mind that, how will we react to that which is all about what we feel least certain about?

Such are the quandaries presented by any moment one could conceive of as ‘Chirotic’ – or having to do with concept embodied by Chiron the centaur, healer and fallen student. It’s a tough role to think of filling on any level…and yet we each have a Chiron, and for these past months Chiron has been in retrograde, emerging (or maybe burrowing) from/through our lives as a series of burning, aching challenges….the many moments in which you know you must do without knowing how to do. Or when you must do while knowing you must do the needed thing – which isn’t the wanted thing – and the trials we each go through when we’re tested by our ability to bear our own disappointment.

It’s the realization that life is what life is…and it’s neither all bad nor all good – but it certainly isn’t what we imagined it to be, and life always, always seems to have some way of tripping us up with exactly that we would have wished to never have to deal with.

Or do.

Moreover, when it comes to the ‘need’ versus ‘want’ thing – who really can say which is which? Is that judgment just for now, or will we believe something entirely differently tomorrow?

Not one of us will now be sure. And that’s part of the Chirotic Effect as well.

Still, not knowing what ‘good’ in one’s life really is without going through the actual (and possibly breath-taking experience) of it is very Pisces. So while Chiron always represents that we cannot understand the full truth of without living it, Pisces asks us to think all things good until proven otherwise WITHOUT getting too Pollyanna, too rose colored glasses, too blissed, too determined never to feel the chill of our own soul reacting to the innate loneliness of individuality.

And as in the end the mythic centaur dies through acting in a haste which caused him to throw away all the discipline which would have told him how to deal with his own impulses…so at Chirotic times we are forced to learn through some ‘death’ of an idea, an effort, a hope – whatever – through such things are we brought to learn about why there is truth in simple truths.

You know…like we are who we are. When Apollo, god of enlightenment, honesty, music and medicine (i.e., many modes of healing) chooses Chiron as his student, Apollo surely saw the centaur’s ability to be blind to the very insight (enlightenment) which could save him. Thus in the relationship of Apollo and Chiron we have pictured the difference between the completely open and brilliant truth of it all – including us…including those Chirotic adventures we call our life.

We know we have the ability to be enlightened. Within us each and all is a knowing…a sense of the greater Whole we are inextricably part of and in alternating cycles (as Chiron the asteroid) moves on its curious path through our solar system, we either work to bring that energetic – that ‘knowing’ into reality or at least into OUR reality….or we live in a questing, searching mode – the reaching for being more.

Why this would be really only makes sense when we remember that Chiron’s orbit does one very peculiar thing which is perhaps easiest seen in this JPL database diagram:

 image courtesy of JPL's Small Body Database Browser

Basically, Chiron is ‘bridges’ the gap between Saturn and Uranus – which in theoretical terms is sort of like saying between ‘the known and that which takes fate-luck-timing-whatever-you-want-to-call-it.’ Uranus is not any unknown, remember…it’s that thing, that ‘push’ that revelation which fractures our continuity just enough to keep us growing. It’s that energetic which lies between what we can’t predict and that we rejoice in discovering.

So…what? Well, if we believe that What Is (all Existence) is, at some level, an endless series of macro-to-micro (or micro-to-macro) parallels of instance and manifestation as that singular thing called Time unfolds…then we look at the JPL image and see that the orbit – the “wheel” or “process” Chiron describes starts just shy of Uranus and ends just inside the orbit of Saturn.

Saturn

time, reality, achievement, loss, responsibility, dedication, structure, support, severance, social/societal respect, durability, earning, effort, consequences, limit, slow growth

Uranus

breakthroughs-break downs-breakage-breaks with tradition/standard/structure, discovery, rebellion, anarchy, insight, brilliance, escape-escapist-escapism, energy, freedom, integration, individuality, unity, alienation, innovation

Chiron ‘bridges’ this gap between the Uranian world of theory and Saturnine solidity. And if we remember that the veils of that which metaphysics refers to as ‘unknowable’ (Neptune) is the next planet after Uranus, then it makes sense that Uranus represents our ability to ‘break,’ ‘break down’ or ‘particle-ize’ all those things astrology typifies as ”Saturn solidity” – especially as we get ever more speculative and willing to take on the ‘unknown’ (to us) in our thinking or experiencing of life. 

Or…seen in the other direction, Uranus’ connection to Aquarian/11th house ‘unity’ (at any level) is a counter-balance: the taking of the unknown, the amorphous, the ‘broken down’ or ‘broken apart’ and seeing in that the Uranian ‘brilliance’ which leads to unity and the unleashing of extraordinary power.

OUR power.

And that’s the thing to understand about Chiron. Chiron represents a power in our lives which we are capable of tapping into, utilizing – even embodying and standing for as a whole. But to get there, we have to go through challenging times with our Self – and at the moment, that challenge to bridge the reality and the speculation or faith or hope or longing or desire to be protected by…all that is being focused through 9 Pisces.

And 9 Pisces is not the least daunting of all degrees – which should tell us that during these days ahead (call it November 17th through November 21) in particular we should not be surprised to feel unusually tested as we try and think about what to make of ourselves…our life…and whether it’s possible to be who we really are.

Or even…well, should we just leave well enough alone? Is it worth all that hassle? Do we really need to be that person we know we are, deep inside?

That would seem to be at least one tine of the Chirotic fork we poke…or are poked with.

And yet…with that comes a sense of resolution and replenishment as we recognize that our challenges are ours for a reason. In being ours, surely they are fit and shaped by our Existence as part of Time Manifest, right?

So our challenges are ours for a reason. It isn’t willy nilly. It isn’t chance.

  From the world of..."We Know She Must Have a Crib Sheet"...

this is a screen shot (and a fuzzy one at that - why, I do not know) of part of a pretty extensive Excel file

I've created showing planets, comets, dwarf planets, asteroids (and anything else out there) in a

line-by-line order according to orbital distance from the Sun. That means that every object/planet/asteroid

gets two lines...its innermost point (the perihelion) and the outermost point of orbit (the aphelion).

By having such a spread sheet, we are able to see 'what orbits with what' and assemble an

entirely separate (and evocative) perspective on how "mythic" images are interwoven on an astronomical

level...which should, one would think reflect in the microcosmic manifestations of All we each call

our Life. Above is a small segment of said worksheet detailing the section including Saturn and

Uranus. (Saturn's inner orbital 'band' is off-screen at the top). That Chiron's 'orbital band width'

(the breadth of its energetic is inter-threaded with where Pholus 'comes to us' (the good and bad

of self concern), at Saturn's outer reach (how the good or bad of self concern affects our accomplishments

and what we are able to get ourselves to accomplish in life, be that in a personal or worldly sense)

plus the inner orbital points of Nessus (poisonous issues revisited), Pelion (huge undertakings), Typhon

(primal instinct/drives) and Uranus (change) would seem to say that Chiron's stations are times when we

wrestle with our ability and/or willingness to get past  self-limitation...provided

we aren't so blinded by "survival fears' that we are unable to even know how we limit ourselves.  

  

Looking up the Sabian Symbol, it would seem to echo this thought: AN AVIATOR PURSUES HIS JOURNEY, FLYING THROUGH GROUND-OBSCURING CLOUDS. And given Astrologer Marc Edmund Jones’ added keynote…‘man’s ability to develop powers and skills which by transcending natural limitations allow him to operate in mental-spiritual realm’…the sheer harmony and parallel of this idea with Chiron’s function would seem to say many of us – in particular those whose charts would directly answer to 9 Pisces – will now encounter opportunities.

Or at least the notion that the creating of an opportunity (or success) is possible.

And yet…probably all will not come to fruition just yet, even if you make your most sterling effort.

Why not?

Answer: Uranus and Saturn – as stated above. Chiron energetics…at some level…connect some of the functionalities of Uranus and Saturn, as attributes and in cyclic timing.

Chiron will go direct on November 19th at 12:06 in the afternoon (UT/+0). Uranus will be going direct on December 17th.

Uranus is (by far!) the bigger object here. And astrologically we would say any planet denotes basic traits or individual personal attributes where objects like Chiron represent ‘factors,’ efforts or choices made along the way.

As for where that ‘along the way’ is headed at the moment, again thinking in terms of the JPL diagram (above) Chiron is currently on its outbound path – which is to say, it’s moving towards Uranus. And that implies that we are in the process of taking things apart so that they can then change.

Perhaps radically.

Not that all that changing will happen quickly. Chiron doesn’t reach its aphelion – the point farthest from the Sun, which is also Chiron’s closest approach to Uranus – until the year 2021. Until then, we get to achieve our greater…and perhaps greatest understandings of and enlightenments about our own ‘Apollo’ traits by ‘taking things apart’ and clarifying our understanding of them.

Given that Uranus' orbit ranges from being 20.083 AU from the Sun (at its farthest) to

18.375 AU from the Sun at its closest...which means that Chiron's 18.846 AU aphelion

(Chiron's farthest point from the Sun) falls right in the 'thick' of Uranus' orbit.

(image courtesy of JPL's Small Body Databank Browser)

  

Surely once we reach our Uranian stage, those of us who have done our Chirotic work will find ourselves reforged and reformulated as our more 'potentiated' Self.

But until we get there, we take our cues from that which surrounds us for the ‘phase’ or stage of the process we’re in at the moment. Considering this station takes place with Neptune having just gone direct and just after a Full Moon in Taurus, one would suspect our sense of satisfaction is being throught through. Considering that as Chiron goes direct Venus enters the shadow of its upcoming retrograde, one would also expect many of us to be thinking along the lines of ‘less risk, more focus on what’s important’…even though we may not yet know what that really means.

And then there’s the ambient throb of life. The last few degrees in Scorpio are all about how power gets used – and why one would use it.

Which really points to the crux of the entire matter: the idea that there’s something we need to deal with, and that’s about who we are.

Or if we’re even capable of being who we really are.

Or for that matter, willing to be our honest Self.
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Sun into Sagittarius, Mercury into Shadow: Working the Perspectives

A rendering of the 'impossible cube'

So...yesterday was the 2010 edition of a Taurus Full Moon.

And today, we enter into a zone where everything that Full Moon was turns into repercussions, explorations, adjustments and eye-opening moments of realization as the Sun enters Sagittarius and Mercury crosses over into the shadow of what will be a three-week December retrograde.

And yes, it's all about how you see things - beginning with what we've learned so recently on how well (or not well) our values, methods, priorities and choices mesh or don't mesh with others - that Scorpio functionality poke we got from yesterday's Full Moon.

Considering that Full Moon was at 29 Taurus (meaning the Sun was at 29 Scorpio), that makes today the day that the Sun enters Sagittarius, a fire sign known for expansive thinking, discoveries of any and all types... and fiery attitudes, pursuits and proclamations.

Of the three signs in the worldly/interactive zodiacal quadrant (Libra-Scorpio-Sagittarius) one is an airy sign of ideas, theories and 'meetings of the mind' (Libra)... one is an emotional water sign where we experience our own feelings through contending with life and others (Scorpio)....and one is our coming up with ways to affect the world and/or testing out those ideas in the world.

These signs are not just individual experiences. They're a process. Through our interactions with others we experience our Self and recognize what works and what doesn't work. And whether we win or lose, we emerge from the crucible of realization (Scorpio) generally ready to tell the whole world what we've learned - or to set off in the directions of our goals yet again.

That's the Sagittarius part of the process.

Yet as those born under Sun in Sagittarius will probably tell you, the Sagittarian vibe is not just about getting on with what we want to do. The whole idea of Sagittarius involves seeing what works and what doesn't work.

So if you skated (slouched, sauntered, stalked, scurried) or otherwise weathered this year's Scorpio testing without making changes - to life, to your approach, to your companions or how you go about picking what you choose to do and who you choose to do it with - then prepare yourself. These weeks ahead are likely to be full of toe-stubs and rebuffs.

And yes, the occasional 'that's brilliant!' too.

Interestingly, this 'interactive' quarter of the zodiac which has no earth 'tangibility' in it is all about trying to make things happen and be/become real. Does that make sense? It should, if you think in terms of that 'grass-is-greener' sort of logic. Each quarter of the zodiac includes three signs, and in each quadrant, what we are seeking has to do with the missing element.

It's sort of life's version of 'fill in the blank,' yes!

 After Aristotle, these were the four Hellenistic

elements - the basis of the ancient Greek concept of physics.

The Sun representing life, will, energy, we can expect the pace of life to pick up and carry us forward through the next month or so - interestingly (and quite tellingly) in sync with the holiday season.

Fast pace, more energy...how is it that the 'busiest' time of the year for most folks (the holiday season) is supported by this karmic, cosmic timing?

Some would say this is a sign of a 'sentient' Being overseeing all of life. But maybe this is just the way life is made. Maybe the fabric of life is just made so that the things which work because of such juxtapositions carry on and become traditions?

Could be. It just could be.

The other thing happening to day is that Mercury is reaching 19 Sagittarius - the degree it will ultimately come back to at the end of its upcoming December retrograde. This forward (to retrograde) /backward (during retrograde) /forward (after retrograde ends) pattern is known as the 'shadow' of the retrograde. Every planet which goes retrograde - which would be everything except the Sun and Moon - describes a 'process' and a period of time bracketed by its periodic retrogrades.

This one starts in Sagittarius, specifically in an emotional degree known for difficulties with the conventional and repercussions of rebelliousness. Nineteen being the last of Sagittarius' emotional degrees there would seem to be a 'climactic' sense of feeling or  conviction here; lore speaks of defeats and difficulties arising out of this degree bringing on bitterness and vengeance.

That this crossing into its retrograde shadow happens with Mercury conjunct Hybris underscores needs to be right and the lengths some will go to be right - or at least to appear that way.

And yet...as postulated originally by astrologer Alex Miller with everything found so far in my own work backing this up - where goes Hybris, there to we find an eventual 'comeuppance.' With this degree also being flavored by the 'alternative reality' of a galactic Black Hole, this may thus be the arrogant pronouncement...or the discovery that someone (even...yuk!...you!) have been oh-so-very wrong.

Given that this cycle concerns Mercury, symbol of thought, communication and daily doings from errands to neighbors to household matters and such...there are like as not parts and details and factors involved no, no matter what happens.

For some, the situation will evolve, take a turn at the station/retrograde and resolve at Mercury's station/direct in late December.

For others, this is a moment of decision which will take from now through Mercury's retrograde to set up, work out or get put in order.

For still another group, this moment launches a month-plus period of personal upheaval.

Whatever happens, watch for events which happen as we go into retrograde (December 10 at 12:05 UT/+0) and come out of retrograde on December 30 (7:22 UT/0+). As with all retrogrades, the day or two to either side of these dates is significant. Information you want or need is not expected to be fully forthcoming until retrograde ends, too. Something is holding you back from being 'fully operational' in some sense.

Many people will welcome this Mercurial 'umbrella' effect ...or at least manifest it as their turning their attention to family and/or holiday matters, forget everything else.

And yet, this can be problematic. Mercury in Sagittarius is notoriously sloppy, hasty, overstated, exaggerated and demanding. Yes, even selfish.

And yes, this goes all the way to the famous 'cutting my nose off to spite my face' degree. So don't be shocked if there's something important or difficult (or even just emotionally hard to grapple with) on the table about now and someone abandons the conversational ship.

Some people will push for what they want now - screw  the cost. Right or wrong, sensible or not, maybe even legal or not, safe or not, possible or not....

You get the idea.

And yet with all that said, this may also be the moment when good sense finally dawns. It sort of depends on where you are in what area of your life coming to this day and time....particularly as Mercury is going retrograde at the degree of Pluto's turning last April.

Had a big turn of events this year? Stand by for the next act...or what comes now, because of (or out of) what happened...or changed...or was denied...or left not fully dealt with back then.

A Full Moon in Saturn's Shadow

The Full Moon of October 23rd (tomorrow) takes place at 1:38 (+00/UT) at 29 Libra. And this is but a few hours after Saturn moves into the shadow of its upcoming 2011 retrograde.

That's a whole interesting astrological mouthful right there.

For one, any time we see a lunar cycle tied to anything having to do with Saturn, it's at least a subtle suggestion that this is a connection between our most personal life (the Moon) and our worldly life, the world, or things we need to do or get done (Saturn).

That what Saturn is doing at the moment is entering the shadow of its 2011 retrograde? That tells us two things. The first is that what happens from here until Saturn goes retrograde is likely to take longer than we think to play out or come to fruition. The other concerns those of us who have something of 'note' happen as this transition into 'shadow territory' happens. Those who have 'events' marking this moment are given a pretty clear indication that the process itself OR what it means to you will take time to unfold.

That Saturn is in Libra tells us that the standard Libra list is the venue for these processes or life adventures - how you deal with others (and thus how they deal with or receive/reject you) is all about how you present yourself or what you do to them. Remembering that Libra is about the scales, any sort of 'connection' is about creating a 'balance.' Where there is no balance, the scales will tip, situations will get 'out of whack' and someone will feel things aren't 'in line' (balance).

So the issue is not about 'good' or 'bad': the question is whether standards and aims are 'evenly aligned.' They don't have to be alike, but they need to have equal merit or quality.

This all gets a little harder because this year Saturn is passing through Libra's 2nd and most emotional decanate (degrees 10 through 19). So 'sobriety' is on the menu - and how you deal with that (or tend to hear that) will color a lot of how you tend to think 'things are.'

 

 Saturn's orbital period of 29.46 years echos

that of the Moon, which is 29.53 days long

  

If you're someone who likes people to be up and happy all the time, look out. If you're someone who likes to have everything your way at your pace, expect rebuffs. Saturn in Libra's 2nd decanate is about life's give and take as experienced emotionally.

And yes, given that Saturn will move on out of Libra's 2nd decanate come October 2011, you can try to 'tough it out.' But seeing that Saturn represents maturation (and the necessity to mature) you will only be short-changing yourself if you don't try to learn about yourself through what goes on during these coming months.

That said, back to present tense. Saturn hitting this mark is a subtle 'sounding of a gong' which being that it's being sounded at 10 Libra really emphasizes the sense we each have at some level that we are 'the outsider' or 'alone' or 'misunderstood' or even 'maltreated.' And when we draw the dotted line from there to a Full Moon presenting at a degree (29 Aries) about the 'art of being human'...

Whether you see this as literal art, or the figurative 'artfulness' we each face and are challenged by through our everyday relationships, this is really entirely about our relationship to self. This is a Full Moon which, by construct and implication, will force us to connect to who we are. And aren't. It will test our willingness to own up to what we need to do against what we merely like to do. It will emphasize the necessity to work and transact with others, even if they aren't on your 'side' or don't share your views.

With 29 Libra being a critical degree, this moment may well be one of emphasis. Twenty-nine degrees of any sign is always intense (that being the definition of the astrological "critical degree") and this one being Libra, the issue is all about that Libra balance. Seeing that Libra is airy and theoretical, right here trumps might, though that may not be popular.

 The Full Moon (source: NASA)

Given that Full Moons are when matters (and yes, tides) come to their highest point and by implication are emotionally (Moon) highlighted ('in fullest light'), this one is also flavored by a Black Hole.

Black Holes being indicators of an 'alternate reality,' with this one being conjunct the Sun (in opposition to the Moon/our feelings) there is definitely some suggestion of 'a different point of view' implied with this event.

Is it this then a moment when some door opens to a new and different reality in our lives? Or is it about someone confronting us with a different/differing point of view - a moment of conflict?

With Libra (Sun and Saturn) ruled by Venus and Aries ruled by Mars, we get an immediate sense of 'creation' and possibility. Something 'wants' to 'come of' what's going on now. But how does it work? How can we best use this dynamic?

For that, we have to get real with ourselves. Venus is in a personal degree - so this is about what we do or how we do it and whether that gets us where we want to go. Positioned in a degree which carries with it a whiff of   'deprivation' and emotional reflexes learned early on in life, that Venus is also retrograde says dealing well with this moment requires understanding what is habit or a 'repetition of emotional' habit - or even possibly that not liking to see, hear about or deal with hard feelings.

Not up on Venus retrograde? Here's the blog link.

Considering Libra is the signature here, that means yours, those of others, or how your actions, attitudes or choices possibly exacerbate certain dynamics, creating resistance and/or enmity in others which comes back to haunt you.

Mars is meanwhile positioned at 26 Scorpio conjunct fixated Eos and leap-before-you-look Icarus. Considering any 3rd decan (degrees 20-29) indicates something worldly which is not in our control, does this mean your leaping out there and going after what YOU want can cause trouble? Maybe yes. Does it mean that others going after their own aims without any regard to you (or possibly anyone else) can engender bad feelings? Yes.

The point here is that it's the polarity, the polarization, the extremes of position or assertion or presentation or attitude which are probably generating whatever is at hand. And that means that however good OR bad things are right in this moment, this like as not, is merely the 'crest of the tide.'

Considering realities instead of allowing ourselves to be swept away by any surging ocean of emotion of the moment is probably good. Where all is well, enjoy it but don't be careless - Venus in retrograde can prompt splurges of many kind which we then live to regret at leisure.

Then again, if life seems to be raining disasters, don't think all is lost. Full Moons can be heights of delight and then again they can represent someone else deliberately trying to get your goat.

Those who own their feelings while also recognizing the 'underlying drives' will of this moment pave a path forward which ultimately ends in a moment far different than this one.

But it's all in how you handle the situation - and that all starts with you. In but a tick of the cosmic clock the Sun will shift into Scorpio, changing the emotional landscape. So do you bet your life on this moment?

Maybe yes. But only if you're a gambler with wings of far better construct than those of wax Icarus wore when he flew too close to the Sun, only to have his support melt away causing him to fall to his youthful doom. 

Feel all you like, but save time for thinking. Saturn's framework around this moment of mortal process tells us we are in for a reshaping which can benefit us if we will allow ourselves to recognize we need to grow into our structural - not emotional - strengths.