Mars in Aquarius

The exterior (and roof lines) of the Bilbao Guggenheim Museum

(photo credit: Dvdgmz, August 2005)

Mars enters Aquarius on December 26th and 50 minutes after midnight, UT/+0 time…and will be in Aquarius until the early hours of February 2, 2013.

Mars in Aquarius describes a time, an energy…impulses which are very gung ho. But unlike Mars in Capricorn (the sign Mars is just leaving) Mars in Aquarius doesn’t drive for the ‘thing’ – the tangible goal, the known deadline or the concrete gain. Aquarius being an air sign, Mars in Aquarius is more about the idea of the thing. So given the choice, Mars in Aquarius will be more about proving the point than signing the deal (unless of course, the point is signing the deal!) Known for it’s quirky sense of humor, Aquarius is a sign all which embraces both the heart of the mainstream and the truly unique – which if you think about it means ‘the all,’ the everything.

And thus since Aquarius is an air sign, universality.

Being also the sign of systems and what we get as a result of what we (Capricorn) do best in this world, Aquarius is also the sign of economics, economies and income. Thus Mars in Aquarius tells us that this is a period during which we will either be/become aware of the idea that the broader the market, the better the Aquarian result…or that we’ll get caught up in the individual-versus-universal concepts which are the challenges and pot holes one steps into any time they’re in the Aquarian realm.

The key to understanding how this Aquarian quandary works is probably easiest to understand if we think of the Aquarian-Leo polarity. Leo being the sign of whatever it is what we create (be that a child or a product or some personal ability) it is the degree to which we are able to find a place in the universal  (Aquarian) society and the value of what we put out there which determines what we get from that society, be that in the form of income, popularity, acceptance or self-identity as part of the ‘group,’ the world, your society, family, community – etcetera.

It’s really an old cry differently worded: what you give out determines what comes back to you. If all you’re aiming at is what you can get, then you’ll never feel accepted as that isn’t actually your aim. It sounds hokey to say ‘contribute to the world’ but that’s the idea behind this universal rule of realistic functionality. First you build the better mousetrap, then you offer your better mousetrap to the world, and if it truly is a better mousetrap, you become the big cheese in the world of mousetraps! People all over the world hail you for having solved a serious problem and your friend will ask you how you ever came up with the idea for that new-fangled hot shoe solution.

In other words, when you operate Mars in Aquarius properly, the idea is the thing. And when that idea woks – be that physically, emotionally, economically, systemically or any other way – you earn the brownie points, personal, professional, social and societal. But what you can do for (or offer to) others is the key here.

 The gears of a mechanical watch

(photo credit Michel Villeneuve, June 1999)

And that’s where we see a lot of people get lost in all things Aquarian (and 11th house, if you’re considering a horoscope).

Mars in Aquarius can be very thorough – attending to all which will create success and good results. Or it can be very fly-by-night or hurried. Or careless. Or haphazard. Where results – the thing – mattered while Mars was in Capricorn, the ethics, the proper application, the consideration of consequences matters with Mars in Aquarius.

And is where we can run ourselves right off the road!

To make this all a little more interesting (as if it needed to be), Mars is entering Aquarius as part of a somewhat subtle Yod.

Yods are funny things. The ‘Y’ described is composed of two 150-degree inconjuncts (or quincunxes, if you prefer) to a single point. In this case, the ‘point of adjustment’ implied by the double inconjunct is Byblis.
Byblis is all about that thing which you want, but which your shouldn’t want. Or that position you may be holding onto which, when you get right down to it, is downright indefensible.

With Byblis (at 1 Leo) inconjuncting Neptune in Pisces and Juno in Capricorn the normal Byblis tendency to want to hold onto what you want is either emphasized by its being in Leo, or this is a sign that you want to do something (or develop something) which you know you shouldn’t.

'Byblis' by William-Adolphe Bouguereau (1884)

From Byblis to Juno is six signs – and thus what we call a 6th harmonic. From Leo to Capricorn asks ‘is this useful? or is this merely something you want because you want it?’ Will it play well for your greater (Capricorn) efforts and long term stability to stay where you are, or put in the effort which it will undoubtedly take to effect any change?

Juno being on the ‘other end’ of this inconjunct refers to discipline, being disciplined or ‘managing’ something – which may be our own (Leo) desires, impulses, or focus on one thing and one thing only when a broader perspective is more useful. In Capricorn, Juno asks that we choose with an eye to greater responsibilities and stances which will pay off in the long run.

then we have the inconjunct which connects Byblis in Leo to Neptune in Pisces. In terms of Byblis (which we start with because Byblis is the joining point of the Yod) this is eight signs and thus an 8th house harmonic…a tricky wicket if there ever was one. Why? Because the 8th harmonic is all about knowing how to negotiate a path or make choices which take the needs and values of others into account. But with Neptune in this position…?

The Sutro tower in San Francisco casting a shadow in the fog which both reflects some

of the fascinating visuals in our national world, but which seems very much like a classic

Neptune 'what you think you see may or may not be real' effect.

 (photo credit: Brocken Inaglory, 2006)

Let’s just say that what we think is real is likely not to be and what we think can’t be true may well be the true and total answer. Moreover, what we think we want may end up being not anything we like once we get it.

Been there? We all have. Byblis/Neptune is one of those connections which asks if we’re kidding ourselves, or if we really think we can get away with “that” – whatever “that” may be. The one thing we do know here is that Neptune in Pisces is going to force us to face all those things which cause us to make decisions based on what we don’t want to face rather than we want to create…and that it’s going to backfire on us each and every time as life proves to us that reality is a fact and evasion of whatever type - verbal, emotional, religious or spiritual, sexual, monetary (etc) – only set us up for harder falls and deeper regrets.

And with all that now safely stowed in mind, now for the twist in the story!

What twist?

That twist would be the ‘solution to the Yod’ twist. Yods you see, come with a set of instructions on how to solve the inevitable dilemma which arise, however blatantly or subtly. That ‘solution’ is found by going to the point which is half-way between the ‘Y’ points of the Yod.

Which means that the solution to Mars in Aquarius is…Mars in Aquarius!

Surprise!

(See? I told you Aquarius is quirky!)

Seriously though…what this says is that at this point (and moving forward) paying more attention to traveling the straight Mars-in-Aquarius high road ticket is the solution to whatever “Byblis-type” problems we’ve all gotten ourselves into. So whether that means you don’t spend the money until you’ve earned it, or you earn the respect of others before you act as though everybody likes you…there’s a certain implication here that this next six weeks or so is truly about getting right with ourselves.

First with ourselves, then with everybody else by being a person we can respect and which they can respect, like and appreciate in whatever manner is appropriate to the moment.

Are whatever changes we need to make going to come about instantaneously? Probably not. We have an opportunity now to make a start. And many of us will get ourselves (re)established and on the road before Mars moves on into Pisces on February 2nd. But it’s worth understanding that Mars – a decidedly personal planet with a 1.86 year-long cycle – will hit it’s first quarter square to this Aquarian ingress in late April and May 2013, which will sync with a Scorpio lunar eclipse and Taurus solar eclipse.

Does that mean there’s a dotted line between this Mars ingress and next April and May’s eclipses?

Yes, sort of.

Let’s just say that once you get there you’ll see how it all adds up.

Mike Gogulski took this photo of a sign in New Cuyama (California)

which one could say shows an Aquarian sense of humor!

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