Mars Enters Scorpio: Choosing How to Choose

 

 Mars by Hubble (source: NASA)

Mars entering Scorpio at 10:39 pm GMT means no matter where you are, September 14th has Mars, our signal of assertion, possible anger or aggression, pro-activity, courage and honorable intent moving into a truly powerful and potent period.

The other sign Mars rules is Aries. Aries being a fiery sign of conception, inception and theory, Aries stresses the courage, the moment-to-moment knowing and action side of Mars. Aries is about existing and marshaling or dealing with what exists.

Scorpio, on the other hand, is a sign of water - the astrological element of emotion. So in Scorpio, the Mars instinct to 'do' (born of Aries) faces emotional or emotion-provoking choices. Shall I? Shall I not?

To be involved or not to be involved Mars in Scorpio asks. And what with Scorpio being the polarity sign to Taurus (sign of self worth, values and security), all things Scorpio and all Mars choices in Scorpio test that self worth, those values and that security.

And that often issues power struggles and control issues.

Not to put too fine a line on this thing, there's also that Pluto has just gone direct. Pluto is the secondary ruler of emotionally transformative Scorpio. So we can expect a lot of emotionally transformative pots to be pretty much on the fire and boiling over...now, and for the next six weeks or so while Mars remains in Scorpio.

 Forest Scorpion

As part of the 3rd zodiacal quadrant, Scorpio is defined as public (worldly) and interactive. Thus all situations Scorpionic involve some other party, be that a person, a bank, a contract, a company, a faction, a country ...someone or something else is always in the mix.

But how you feel about things? That's all YOU. And that's one of the big things about Scorpio: the tendency to project and accuse and blame others is super strong under this influence. But it's also a total waste of time. The issue is your having chosen to get involved. Or your feelings, and what you're going to do about them, with them or because of them.

There are three signs of the zodiac well known to test  through fear. Scorpio is the first, Capricorn second and Pisces is third. In Scorpio (and its associated 8th house) we test our willingness to experience fear. This isn't about defeat, though because Scorpio and all matters 8th house are emotional, they feel fearful.

So rejection of Scorpio situations doesn't say you're right or wrong. Or that the thing (or other person) is good and bad. They may be, yes. But that depends on the fact of the matter - not whatever feelings you're feeling. To say you don't want to experience the fear, that vulnerability is terribly human. And yet there's nothing which says not wanting to go through that is necessarily unwise.

It's just it could be. And that's the Mars in Scorpio quandary. You may be frightened of the dentist but still need that root canal. You may be frightened of changing your job field but need to. You may be totally uncomfortable with facing having screwed up, but you need to.

Knowing one thing from the other is the job here. Getting yourself to acknowledge the fear(s) but deal with issues on the basis of fact is the way forward.

And it's a process.

Dominican Ground Lizard

In fact, dealing with Matters Scorpio is such a well known gradation of struggle that Scorpio is the only sign of the zodiac which has three separate totem animals.

The first is the scorpion, representing instinctual preservation - the fight or flight mechanism.

The second is the gray lizard, a symbol of pragmatic existence - the gritting our teeth and doing what needs doing despite misgivings and quakings in our boots.

The third is the sharp-eyed eagle in flight, representing having risen above instinct and fears to a place where we achieve high levels of in/sight, doing only what needs doing (eagles only kill for food) while functioning in a greater capacity of check-and-balance, a function which calls upon us to not operate on the basis of self but with true understanding of cause-effect and how when everyone wins, all is better.

Thus we come to making the Mars choice. Depending on your natal Mars (by sign, placement, aspects and all the rest) you may be more or less comfortable with any decision which asks you to take on emotional risks and endure vulnerability. Some people love it. Some people hate it. Some people are fine with pure physical risk, but terrible with financial, emotional or psychological risks. 

Nothing is defined here. Your life track (as pictured by your natal horoscope) may be all about learning how to be safe. If so, learning to be risk averse may be on your list of life lessons. But maybe you're too shy. Maybe you need to learn how to take risks based on weighing up facts and not risking more than you can afford to at any given time in order to learn.

No matter which side of these tendencies you're on, and in which area(s) you tend to be strong or weak (we all have vulnerabilities!) learning what your needs, abilities and tolerances are is part of your human journey.

And on that journey, as Mars comes into Scorpio, the question of whether to risk comes into play. So for the next six weeks or so, expect tests. They may be little, they may be big. They may be financial. They may be physical. They may be about how others regard you. For all we know, you may be asked to decide something. Or you may be asked to cede control. This is all about you, so however your vulnerabilities operate, that's where you're going to feel it, see it, taste it, breathe it, live it.... courtesy of Mars bringing with it a little aura of Aries, sign of existing.

 Asteroid Eros - source: NEAR project/Goddard/NASA

Either way, it's also worth noting that Pluto has 

Either way, remember that Pluto just went direct - so this is going to be an extra-specially intense time. And that Mercury went direct just before that? From here until the end of the month things are likely to feel a bit like one large and exceptionally knotted ball of string. 

There's also the fact that Mars is entering Scorpio conjunct Eros, too. Not to mention that Venus is sitting there...just ahead at 4 Scorpio.This mix tells us how over-focusing (read: obsessiveness) is to be watched out for, if probably likely.

Most often thought of as sexual, Eros also represents the idea of synergy. How in Part A with Part B, what we get is more than a mere sum of parts.

And we're not just talking sex or investments here. The list of 'Scorpio things' is broad and almost limitless - it's anything where you invest your ideas, efforts, resources, money, energy, time, feelings, vulnerability, desires, offerings, products, concepts (etcetera). Scorpio can be about investing in an idea. Or getting others to join you in a cause. Or yes, a relationship. But that relationship may be business, friendship or sexual.

One other famous Scorpio arena to take note of here: destruction versus rehabilitation. There may be a lot of tearing down now - physical, emotional, financial, experiential...however. It could happen at work, at home or in your body - almost anywhere. But at the same time, this can also be a time of rebuilding. Or knowingly tearing one thing down so that it can be replaced with something new and better and far more servicable and functional. 

And that means that as Mars enters Scorpio you may feel yourself getting all fired up to do something. This transit is famous for getting people into and interested in things they otherwise would never have though to look at, so don't be surprised!

 Sea Eagle (source: US Dept. of Fish and Wildlife)

About the only caveat here applies to those addicted to instant success. With Venus in Scorpio, there's some sort of 'proving' which like as not is going to delay bottom line answers. And with Venus going retrograde in early October (while Mars is still in Scorpio) it wouldn't be unlikely to have some sort of 'trial period' be being entered into any time during the whole of this period.

In fact you may do really well to use the Venus retrograde (which starts October 8th) as an enticement to get someone give something a try. Yes, it may also try your patience...! But if you will own that impatience, what you will find is that Mars in Scorpio adds a richness, an awareness to each little thing which in the end makes the outcome all the more satisfying. That's right, even if you eventually decide to go another way.

It's all about greater success down the line. You know, like once Venus goes direct come November 18th?

Understanding how and why we make choices yea or nay is obviously one of the most important things we can learn now...about ourselves, I mean. Knowing what we're good at dealing with helps to not merely avoid life's pitfalls but in the focusing of our energies on things where we can truly serve a greater and more productive purpose.

Still, in saying that, we do come back to the primal Scorpio rule: in Scorpio, success is not ours alone. In all things Scorpio, we only succeed when we earn the respect and support of others by creating/contributing to situations where everybody wins in the terms with which they personally define success.

So don't assume - ask. Strangely enough, asking what others value seems hard. And it so often gets totally forgotten! Yet how simple things often are once we know they like the frosting and we like the cookie. Then life becomes what as an American, I would call your basic Oreo.

Thus the question is this: with Mars in Scorpio, will you have your milk and cookie too? It's certainly possible, and it's all up to you. 

A stack of Oreo cookies

 " Happy Cookie Friday" by Natasha

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