Jupiter's great red spot as photographed by NASA's Voyager 1 spacecraft
(NASA February 1979)
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With Venus in retrograde and Eclipse Effects in full swing, the business at hand starts with Saturn going direct at 28 Scorpio (a degree which concerns itself with the term ‘mastery,’ whether it’s the evidence and/or acknowledgement of mastery or the effort to achieve mastery) on August 2nd at the yawn-worthy hour of 5:54 in the morning, UT/+0 time.Remembering that such an event is global, the typical ‘seriously solid’ sort of vibe we associate with all things Saturn (whether that means they’re durable enough to stand the test of time or painful enough to cause us to learn a lesson for all time) ... given the idea that we give all stations a two-day-before, two-day-after ‘allowance’ all that shift of attention - whether voluntary or by necessity (our choice) is going to begin evidencing itself on early July 31st (which is tomorrow, as this post hits the internet airwaves) ... and all that will last through August 4th.
As with all stations, that which happens before generally refers to things which have yet to happen and that which happens during the allowance period after the station refers to that which is finishing up. Also as with all stations, the closer to such a thing anyone’s birthday or some other major event might fall (say a wedding or the founding of a company), the more Saturnine ‘seriousness’ or ‘weight’ we would attribute to the signal, which has nothing to do with its positive or negative nature, merely that it’s (a.) not some cosmic joke, and (b.) the start or end some process or some phase in the carrying out of some greater plan.
In this case, since I just happen to know (because 28 Scorpio and I are very close), this is far more likely to be a time when one phase of activity or reactivity is closing out or beginning to come to its end - which doesn’t mean anything is finished, just that it (or we) are done doing “this.”
Saturn will get over its Scorpionic testing of our emotional metal (and mental I-beams) by mid-September ... the 18th, to be exact. And lest anyone get all huzzah-ish about this shift, let’s remember that wherever Saturn is in the zodiac round, it represents that which causes us to grow, and not much real grown comes with out effort and growth, a lovely pair of intertwined grinches many of us tend to avoid like Le Plague.
Huya direct at 25 Scorpio at 0:11 am on August 6th, to be followed by Mercury entering Virgo at 7:16 in the evening (19:16) UT/+0 time on the 7th ...
Mercury in Virgo (glyph chart)
August 7, 2015 - 19:16 (7:16 p.m.) UT/+0 - Aries Wheel (Location Not Specific)
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Mercury in Virgo (text chart)
August 7, 2015 - 19:16 (7:16 p.m.) UT/+0 - Aries Wheel (Location Not Specific)
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... a moment which is likely to be famous for its Mars-at-29-Cancer quality, a quality the steam of which is not likely to be quenched until Mars breaches the Leo line on August 8th at 23:33 (11:33 p.m.) UT/+0 time.Before doubling back: Mars at 29 Cancer (a degree which is open to all sorts of emotional influences) can be steamy in all the best ... or worst senses. Moreover, any or all such senses may apply to the several days (the 7th into the 9th) while Mars is marshaling itself to shoulder its Martian way on into Leo.
What this all amounts to is how pressure is received or relieved. Huya, a dwarf planet about that which we will then ‘own’ as a gift we can give to others (and benefit hugely by doing just that) is at its own station, ‘spinning’ a vortex of opportunity we feel inside. It causes us to toy with our own sense of internal sharpness. We know what we do with it ... and we know what we could do with it - IF we put ourselves out in that direction.
Come late on Friday (UT/+0 time) Mercury entering Virgo adds to this the utilitarian and ‘how to’s of all such questions, adding to needs we are likely to be feeling in the moment anyway, courtesy of Mars at 29 Cancer.
And some of us would like to just kick Mars. Then again, some of us need exactly the kind of ‘kick’ a Martian moment like this entails. Mercury’s move out of Leo into Virgo hallmarks the need, desire and impetus to get something done, and as there is a sense of ‘opportunity’ to be availed now, no doubt a bunch of us will head in that direction.
Then again, a bunch won’t. That being the negative side of Huya, that means they will be in for whatever lesson they yet need in their life which will cause them to dislike the ‘dead end’ enough to take on whatever it takes to get out of it - that being, or that understanding of how to do being what will then be part of what one can give to (and profit from giving to) others.
The idea of Huya is very cuddly. It’s a dwarf planet you could just hug. But maybe this isn’t the time to get all cuddly and huggy as bright and early on Sunday, August 9th the North Node (of the Moon) slides into the degree 1 Libra as the South Node arrives at 1 Aries.
And there the two shall remain from August 9th until September 10th ... which would be three days prior to the solar eclipse on September 13th, which makes this nodal position an interesting one to consider. Eclipses can’t happen without the lunar nodes (they have to be in specific proximity to each other or the eclipse doesn’t happen) and the run-up to the eclipse is often ... for most of us ... a hugely intense time, as this is when life tries its best to get us to let go of something we’re clinging to like an apricot reluctant to leave its tree.
Whatever it is we are supposed to let go of, it’s something which either isn’t working for us, or which is working just well enough that we aren’t doing the thing we know deep down inside that we really SHOULD be doing.
And why should we be doing it?
Simple. It’s because it’s who we are. It’s not who we want to be seen as, and it’s not who we were ‘told’ to be.
It’s who we are deep inside. It’s that person we know we are capable of being.
Yeah, that person. That’s the person solar eclipses aim at, and this one, which happens to be at 20 Virgo, is going to ‘aim’ most of all at those of us who have planets, axis points, nodes or dwarf planets at:
15 through 25 degrees of Virgo: This is the ‘it’s all about you’ eclipse in conjunction zone. Something about the symbolism associated with whatever part of your chart is being aspected is going to be transformed or eliminated, a process which is generally disorienting - not to mention often disappointing. In accordance with the part of the chart struck, a conjunction by solar eclipse means that with which you have been ‘temporizing’ no longer works due to circumstances beyond your control or fixing in the relative short run.
15 through 25 degrees of Pisces: These degrees are where the eclipse is in opposition, producing a ‘confronting’ quality which either now confronts us with something or eliminates that which has been confronting us. Oppositions frequently bring out (or in eclipse lingo, ‘expose’) an either-or preference or choice which is now exposed, specifically in terms of the lack of balance we have created in our own life through not treating ‘opposing factors’ in our life as being not yes-and-no or ‘me/not me’ but as equally important to our life as a whole (and therefore to everyone’s life, on the whole) because it’s not ‘that’ or ‘them’ we’re rejecting when we reject such things, but some part of our Self. Either way, our method of, reason for, or perspective on why we react as we do or why others respond to us as they do is going to change. It will take time, but there is much to be gained in the long run.
15 through 25 degrees of Sagittarius and/or Gemini: Both aspects are the eclipse is in square, representing a challenge which either completely ‘remakes’ whatever thing in your chart is being aspected (meaning the qualities associated with it) or some former approach to something which is no longer working is eliminated for (or by) forces beyond your control. The tendency with squares is to ‘retreat’ or hold more tightly to what you do know, though this is not the productive path.
Squares are hugely productive in our life providing we are willing to reorient our Self to what we think something is worth ... or what it can hold, withstand, support or isolate. That said, they aren’t easy.
15 through 25 degrees of Taurus and/or Capricorn: These degrees are trined by the eclipse. Once thought of as only good, trine energy can actually represent things which are easy to do or get done as well as that which we can’t escape, which means a trine from an eclipse speaks to changes which occur as part of something which we are, or are already involved in, leading to our being changed in some way.
17 through 23 degrees of Cancer and/or Scorpio: Sextiles are said to be an opportunity, if not something we are compelled to do, and when that quality gets eclipsed it’s likely that some opportunity is lost ... or that something we thought we wanted turns out to be anything but what we want, forcing us to reassess our means of finding ways to satisfy our needs.
Sextiles are also not considered ‘strong’ transits, suggesting less of an eclipse effect from this sort of placement. (Which could be a very good thing!)
18 through 22 degrees of Aquarius and/or Aries: Being that getting astrologically ‘eclipsed’ by a solar eclipses isn’t known as your genteel experience ... and how the inconjunct aspect (which we’re describing here) is all about the concept of ‘adjusting’ something either so that it will work (period) or so that it will work for us in conjunction with others and the world (we need no comment there, surely!) having anything eclipsed in our chart by inconjunct is not anything we want even if it represents a force we have to take into account and/or heed if we have any hope of making (a.) headway or (b.) getting where we want to go.
18 through 22 degrees of Leo and/or Libra: The idea of the energy of a solar eclipse coming from a semi-sextile position could be akin to having the blast ‘just miss you’ ... or it could be some giant headache which is totally and entirely not what you need at this time. At least that’s what you think - which is generally some part of the problem: an isolated or short-sighted way of seeing things which can no longer be ignored (by you, by others, or in general, as part of life).
As for those nodes being at 1 Libra and Aries, apart from the indication that our relationships and ability to relate is either focused on basics or basic assertions, actions or choices especially as that concerns relationships and ‘relating’ to the world (in whatever way), 1 Libra is the location of a super-massive black hole known as M87.
Messier M87 as part of a deep image of the Virgo Cluster by Chris Mihos of ESO.org
.Astrologically, black holes appear to function sort of like a ‘magic mirror’ which allows us to see and feel alternatives. Whether this pertains to us or someone else is not prescribed here, but during the August 9th through September 10th period of the North Node (a symbol of what we ‘should’ do or consider) being positioned at 1 Libra alternatives and ‘alternative perspectives’ on ourselves, others, that which we are doing or how we’re going about doing them will arise, and given the North Node’s position here, we will do well to explore them - even if it’s just for the exploring practice.
Or maybe we’ll meet someone ... or meet up with something while doing that exploring which changes everything. You just never know.
All of this nodal stirring of the vibrational waters happens merely hours after Mars enters Leo at 23:33 (11:33 in the evening) UT/+0 time. And with Mars’ ingress being in a sextile to that North Node as it enters Leo, it’s likely we’ll be well aware of something we have our eye on - though we know there are things we have to do (and learn how to do, or do better/differently) before our aim is duly achieved.
Mars in Leo (glyph chart)
August 8, 2015 - 23:33 (11:33 p.m.) UT/+0 - Aries Wheel (Location Not Specific)
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Mars in Leo (text chart)
August 8, 2015 - 23:33 (11:33 p.m.) UT/+0 - Aries Wheel (Location Not Specific)
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There’s already a lot of energy in Leo as Mars leaps into the fray, and with the Sun in Leo’s second (emotionally evocative) second decanate (its second set of ten degrees) there are both reasons to say one’s peace and a deal of roaring out on the human veldt which is simply roaring for the sake of (a.) personal expression, or (b.) as an expression of ‘territory’ of some type. With Mars entering Leo in conjunction with asteroid Hestia, some of this is just ‘maintenance,’ some is just the trying out one’s growl and some is irritation with things in general.Fortunately, Mars in Leo tends to be buoyant, and with the general indications that there are things to be done, most of us will do well enough once we get into our Mars in Leo self-motivated gear.
That Mars is entering Leo in conjunction with asteroids Hestia and Tantalus means some will be tempted to throw on the brakes at this moment. And that temptation in at least a few cases is going to be more about messing up something someone else is attempting to do rather than accomplishing anything positive on one’s own, that coming from the fact that Mars in Leo does have the tendency to ‘amp up’ our focus on Self. And that in turn CAN surely result in a rise in self confidence or self worth, but it can also simply point to the sort of egotistical focus which ignores everyone else and their rights, needs and aims.
This is all to be aware of (or occasionally reminded of) throughout Mars’ August 8th through September 25th transit of Leo. Given Venus’ current retrograde back through Leo, these two planets will come into orb of conjunction as of August 27th. And with that being a day after the transiting Sun conjuncts Jupiter (in Virgo), we should look to these days between August 27th and September 6th when Venus goes direct as a time when we have the opportunity to fix a few things for each other ... if not necessarily for ourselves.
This entire period of days is astrologically ‘littered’ with signs of interaction and social and/or societal recognitions of realities which, though nobody likes them are still the workable path forward.
And that it occurs in the last couple of weeks before life’s ‘eclipsing effects’ push us to ‘eclipse’ who we have been (or who we have been being during the fairly recent past) is a word to the wise about how that thing you have been hoping not only wasn’t true isn’t true - but how we may have been keeping ourselves from accomplishments and advancements simply because we wanted to take some path or route which seemed better for us - but which in the end has only made things more complex.
Another thing to consider as we move through this pre-eclipse ‘breaking down’ period (that break down being internal and pertaining to our resistance to something we don’t want to feel or think about our Self) is how solar eclipse cycles overlap.
Or maybe ‘intersect’ is a better term. Solar eclipses all come with a ‘twist.’ This ‘twist’ happens around the 2.5 year mark after the eclipse and always represents something we could not have done (or understood) had we not experienced the eclipse itself. So... given how ‘eclipse season’ occurs about every six months or so, that means as we get into the heart of this September’s 20 Virgo solar eclipse, another eclipse is coming to its ‘twist’ point.
And that eclipse would be the solar eclipse at 19 Taurus which occurred on May 10, 2013. By itself, 19 Taurus is something like a ‘tofu’ degree in that it tends to take a lot of coloration from its aspects, which given the date of said eclipse would include a hard square from Jupiter in Gemini (read: exaggerated or overblown) and a conjunction from Mars plus Mercury (plus Panacea and Menkar) and the nodes in Taurus - a combination which would have created a ‘if I don’t fight, it will go away’ sort of vibe - one we may have embodied or met up with.
At this point we know a lot more about everything which happened back then, and as for many that Jupiter square will have represented something they did but perhaps shouldn’t have done (or shouldn’t have done at the time or in the manner they did it) having this ‘notion’ or memory arise in the midst of current debates speaks to not wanting to make ‘that’ mistake again.
The net is about not going too far and not going overboard as part of the current eclipse cycle. Maybe it’s the lesson learned, maybe it’s not wanting to make things more difficult (again) for ourselves than they are going to have to be anyway.
The separation here between beneficial and shooting one’s Self in the foot most likely has to do with our individual sense of morality and how that plays into our willingness (or reluctance) to feel things we don’t like or don’t want to have to feel - whether about our Self or others. At the bottom of this quandary (under that mental rock you’ve been avoiding) is the fact that OUR reluctance has precious little to do with others and everything to do with our Self - most specifically, our personal relationship to emotionality and the idea that while our feelings mean everything to us, that doesn’t mean we should ignore the feelings of others.
Or rather, if we do, we run the risk of that coming back to haunt us.
That idea is a major factor underlying the current eclipse - the one in Virgo, which (oh, by the by) is almost exactly in trine to that 2013 Taurus eclipse.
It all tends to say a LOT about how our lack of personal security tends to manifest in a lack of security in our world - whether that’s our personal and individual world or ‘the world’ at large ... and how this is going to continue being a problem until and/or to the extent that we (as human beings) haven't adapted to the Pisces/Virgo 'coloration' which is so central a part of the Aquarian Age.
A 'natural' horoscope for the Age of Aquarius shows Pisces (color-coded in pink)
on the second house of the Age
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The second house is a personal house. First and last, it's about us and though with Pisces on the 2nd and Virgo on the oppositional 8th house of the Age we may be tempted to think that 'they' are the problem, the 8th house of the chart of the Age - as with any chart - is about US ... and how well we deal with our insecurities and fears (that being the 2nd house part) plus Pisces, which makes our security all about, and dependent on the degree of willingness we are able to bring to looking at (and dealing with) our Self and all those things about our Self which makes us feel insecure or vulnerable.And when we don't do that, or to the degree that we are unwilling to feel our fears and own them, controlling them because they're ours (without allowing our Self to be driven or manipulated by others in the process) ... to that degree we will fear and feel insecure, period.
This is a trend which will last for the next 2,000 years or so - so long as we're living here on Planet Earth, that is. (If we leave our lovely blue marble, astrology has to be reformulated, as it's geocentric.)
All of which means at the moment, we're likely to be thinking too much of ourselves (and about our Selves). But not to worry ... so is everybody else.
It suggests we will all need to do a bit of voluntary changing, lest life confront us with changes we will then have to adapt to, whether we like it or not.
Once Mars enters Leo (August 8) and the lunar nodes back into 1 Libra and Aries (August 9), Monday (August 10) plays host to asteroid Lumiere going direct at 19 Sagittarius, Tuesday the 11th is the date Jupiter enters Virgo (conjuncting royal star Regulus, warning us against revenge)... and Wednesday the 12th sees Sabine going retrograde at 20 Aries in conjunction with Uranus (which just went retrograde back on July 26th).
Uranus, its rings - and some of its twenty-seven (known) satellites
(photo credit NASA-JPL)
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As a series of days, this conglomeration points to information, ideas or insights (Lumiere) on what strength and weakness (or perhaps durability and lack of durability) really are - and how they aren’t exactly what we thought they were, all of which speaks to a need or understanding with regards to the difference between confining and directing (or redirecting) of energies so as to minimize disruption without creating “collateral damage” or more difficulties than you started out with, or already have.All of which should be kept distinct and separate from the fact that as of 11:12 in the morning on August 11th, Jupiter is entering Virgo and that Jupiter will then be in Virgo until September 9, 2016.
Jupiter in Virgo (glyph chart)
August 11, 2015 - 11:12 a.m. (UT/+0) - Aries Wheel (Location Not Specific)
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Jupiter in Virgo (text chart)
August 11, 2015 - 11:12 a.m. (UT/+0) - Aries Wheel (Location Not Specific)
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Jupiter’s shift into any sign is an astrological ‘big deal’ - and not just because Jupiter is the largest planet we have in the solar system (and, according to scientists, a ‘would-be Sun’)... but because the astrological Jupiter speaks to us about where in life we are going to be expanding our view, our understanding, our opinions, our efforts and all the pluses and minuses, the likes and dislikes about, and in life.With an orbital cycle of 11.86 years, Jupiter takes just under one year to move through a sign, and for the past year it has been in Leo - a sign which by its own vibrant ‘let me see what I can do’ nature works well with the astro-Jovian nature as both Leo and Jupiter have a dynamic ability to envision or imagine things and go after just that with heart and soul.
But as of August 11th, all that ends for another decade or so as Jupiter exits its year of ‘self-empowerment’ (doing things which will empower the Self being another way to say this...) and enters a year-long experience of reality and real-time, realistic considerations which require not just thought but thoughtfulness if one is to get the most out of them.
And that ‘thoughtful’ thing isn’t about us - which is the hard part. But it’s not hard because of selfishness, but rather because the typical Jupiter effect is more mental than physical, more personally inspirational than operational - and those things are harder to convey.
Plus under Jupiter in Virgo, doing all that conveying can just seem tedious, a drag - too time consuming, some will no doubt say.
Wherever we find Jupiter in zodiacal terms, that’s what we want - or in this case, need to do. And that’s part of the challenge. While Jupiter’s expansive, experimental, enveloping qualities can cause some to focus on their responsibilities, promises and goals with wonderful accuracy, it can also cause us to focus on one part of the responsibility to the exclusion of the whole (the old “you can’t see the forest for the trees” issue) ... and it can also bring us to giant grief by forgetting there’s anyone (or anything) else having an opinion on the subject - or even a need which needs to be served. Ruled by Mercury, when Virgo works well, it tends to be methodical while maintaining an ability to respond to others and whatever input comes along.
But Jupiter tends to override this. Wherever Jupiter is, the attributes of that sign get ‘pushed’ - and sometimes to extremes. So during the year of Jupiter’s passage through Virgo we can expect some wonderful examples of people working to find solutions which do work for everyone, and at the same time we can expect to deal with people who, maybe with the best of intentions, are so insensitive it drives the rest of the world nuts. Typified by the keywords health, work, service, we can expect much good, a lot of problems and all sorts of debates, investigations and examinations of the methods of doing things, the rationales for doing (or not doing) things, and our own relationship to work, health and service, in all their glory or possible neglect.
Why neglect? That’s simply about the idea of Jupiter as the emblem of expansion - one version of which comes when something has been ‘neglected’ or short-changed. It doesn’t have to be malicious - for instance, with Jupiter having been in Leo (a fire sign) during the past year, it’s shift into earthy Virgo is bound to, simply because of the shift in focus, cause us to notice things we haven’t been looking at during these past few months.
Maybe we’ll start thinking about what we have instead of what we want. Jupiter in Leo causes us to think big ... if also very much about our Self. During its year in Leo, Jupiter has caused us to learn more about our strengths ... and to consider our weaknesses and places we maybe need to work on developing our Self a little more.
Well... maybe. Under Jupiter in Leo we aren’t thrilled about having to confront anything weak. We like the strong, shiny, perfect image - if life could be a movie designed by us (staring us) we would absolutely dress the part and thrill to the crowd’s approval.
But Jupiter in Leo has also been about finding a way to get past our own reluctance. Analogous to the beginning of the teen years, Leo grants us the valuable resources which is buoyancy and a capacity for optimism ... which means Jupiter’s passage through Leo is likely to support that at the same time that it teaches us (generally through a few toe stubbing incidents) how big a mistake it can be to take on that we are not physically, mentally or emotionally prepared to take on, and how what that ultimately says is that knowing who we are and aren’t - knowing where our ‘safety’ or level of maturity, experience or capacity ends is just as important as the courage to tackle the risk, the challenge and that ‘impossible dream.’
And now, as we move on to Jupiter in Virgo, now we get to find out what we learned ... and didn’t learn. The way this generally works (generally, mind you!) is that at some level, those who have done their ‘Leo growth’ (growing our Self up or growing up in response to social/societal insistence-or-input) ... take some next ‘step’ under Jupiter in Virgo.
They will ‘advance their cause,’ in other words. And as they do, the lessons learned about their Self under Jupiter in Leo will be put to work (or to the test), seeing if we have learned to work with others or for others and not in spite of them simply because we’re not getting our way or getting to do what we want to do in every given moment.
Jupiter in Virgo teaches us to get along with others and how to get along with others - and often, how our current way of dealing with others is more about (as the expression goes) talking AT them instead of WITH them. Let’s remember: Jupiter is one of two planetary rulers of Virgo’s polarity sign, Pisces. And in Jupiter’s Piscean role (as opposed to its fire sign ruler-of-Sagittarius role) the ‘wisdom’ Jupiter is always asking us if we possess is emotional, not visionary or theoretical ... which isn’t the ‘mode’ we’re in as we come to Jupiter in Virgo after a year of Jupiter in imagination-driven Leo.
So don’t be surprised if the shift you feel (and you will probably feel it) in the days following Jupiter’s Virgo ingress. Given that asteroid Sabine (restriction, imprisonment) is going retrograde the day after Jupiter enters Virgo virtually says we’re going to feel somewhat restricted (about something), though WHY we feel whatever we feel - that’s entirely individual.
Rape of the Sabine Women by Giovanni Francesco Romanelli (1612-1660)
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The degree of Sabine’s station - 20 Aries - lends a but of a quirk to this scenario by stirring up an energetic which is said to be fresh and new and not at all shy. So does this mean our feelings of being restricted or ‘held captive’ (Sabine) are going to be manifested as our holding our Self to some task, standard or focus because doing so will allow us to learn or do what we need to in order to that that next ‘step’? Are we being (Sabine) held to some (Virgo) standard which is necessary whether we like it or not? Or will we perhaps find our Self blowing off some sort of requirement, duty, standard or effort because we either don’t care about others or how they think or feel?All of this is in play as Jupiter is finishing off its transit of Leo (the ‘my vision’ of it all) and turning into what it takes to do the job right. And the wisdom of doing things right - which with Jupiter in the opposition sign to Pisces means we will be working to hold ourselves and others to the line, to standards, to their word ... and conversely, we will be having to hold ourselves to our lines, and how well we either perceive what the standard should be, or how willing we are to adhere to some standard, how willing (or likely) we are to hold ourselves to our word ... and everything which can come of doing things correctly or incorrectly.
With a little ‘your correct is incorrect,’ thrown in for cosmic fun, of course.
Plus there is one other ‘little’ fact - that being how we are in the middle of the eclipse cycle backing down through Pisces and Virgo.
So with Jupiter in Virgo, for one that spells high highs and extra low lows over the next year, meaning this September’s and the March 2016 eclipses are involved. Of the two, the volume of change ... the size of the effort or the lesson or the opportunity being grasped ... will be bigger with the March 2016 eclipses, but those are retrograde.
(Read: they are changes in us which result in our world changing in response to our being somewhat different.)
But don’t discount the short-term Jupiter effect, an effect which as Jupiter shifts from Leo into Virgo we are likely to feel as things around us become both easier to work with and harder to feel totally ‘on top of.’ Moreover, since by the time the eclipse actually happens Jupiter will be sitting in opposition to Neptune, some real tests of wisdom are going to occur, and through them - whatever they bring in real time - we’re going to learn a lot more about our Self.
(Read: both the good and those unrecognized self-tripping or self-limiting mechanisms.)
And since the energy of an opposition, in its capacity to show us where we’re ‘out of balance’ in our own life is somewhat in sync with the idea that solar eclipses ‘remove’ something which we may love or like or think we need - but which in reality we are only ‘making do’ with.
They aren’t our real calling - which in the sense that we should probably want to all be following our ‘calling’ brings up the whole concept that this solar eclipse we’re being caught up in is a Virgo eclipse. So the eclipse - simply by its basic nature concerns something which isn’t working, or which is based on some incorrect choice, premise ... decision past or possibly present.
How we find out what it is ... or realize once and for all that we can’t play footsie with some dream anymore as real life requires real responsibility as to what we do with our real time and real efforts (not to mention our efforts in reality), how and when that comes upon us - that’s (say it with me...) individual.
But we do know that whatever ‘comes out’ through the eclipse period - whether in real time or otherwise, it ‘delivers’ us to that which must be done because of whatever comes out.
And that is our ‘being eclipsed’ - which with Jupiter opposing Neptune around the time of said eclipse suggests some real revelations (and even a few surprises of the terribly happy sort!) as this eclipse moseys through.
So Jupiter enters Virgo ... we start to adjust ... and then there’s the August New Moon.
Occurring on August 14th at 2:55 (14:55) in the afternoon (UT/+0 time) at 21 Leo, to everything else gets added a bit of a whiff of ‘things catching up with me,’ which may be big-time and karmic, or just one of those days when nothing happens when it’s supposed to and you end up chasing your own tail.
Remember - it’s still Venus retrograde. Nothing feels quite as wonderful as it ‘should’ in part because it’s Venus retrograde in everyone else’s life too.
In other words, the thing which feels so ‘missing’ - that warmth, that satisfaction, that feeling that ‘all is well’ because you can just feel life humming along ... that isn’t operational at the moment. No one is applauding us. (Or if they are, it’s not hitting the spot. Somehow we’re not convinced.) Some people thrive on the elimination of Venus’ natural personal grace, but obviously those would be the kinds of folks who operate from a perspective (altruism? duty?) other than that we think of as ‘feel good’ satisfaction of the personal sort.
So nobody is applauding us as we’d like them to in part because we’re not in the mood to applaud them.
And lest you think otherwise, when you get to that moment, you’ll feel entirely justified. You won’t want to applaud them - that’s how it works (the Venus retrograde, I mean). And the funny part is that this still is Venus in operation. Venus is the ‘hinge’ effect which says what I put out comes back to me (otherwise known as) cause-and-effect.
So we’re not happy with them which at the moment is just what they’re sending back at us.
It’s weird. But trust me - it will be going around, especially as Venus will have retrograded back to 23 Leo by the time the 21 Leo New Moon occurs (yes, we call that a conjunction), making the eventual subject of this Venusian retrograde: a coming to grips with our Self while realizing how our feelings about others have only been as off-kilter as our perspective on our place in the whole of life is ... making all of that part and parcel of this New Moon and the whole of the Leo New Moon cycle which is to follow.
And that cycle ends in the solar eclipse - the September 13the New Moon at 20 Virgo BEING the solar eclipse by another name.
So now we have Sun and Mars in Leo, a New Moon in Leo and Venus retrograde in Leo.
What do you think the chances are that we’re all likely to be a bit full of our own perspective?
Probably good. With that much Leo energy PLUS the Venus part being all retrograde-ish PLUS the ‘break down’ quality of eclipse effects, for all our definites and sunny moments of effortless bravado, every one of us has something they will be dithering wildly about inside.
Should I risk the status quo? It isn’t working for us (that being the quality of the current solar eclipse) ... and there is something now understand is a necessary, and that isn’t anything ‘new’ to us, it’s something which has been evolving over the past couple of years (the twist coming from the maturing 19 Taurus of 2013) ... and none of this feels all that (Venus retrograde) thrilling.
HOWEVER ....
IF you will take on what you need to do, once you get involved in it, you’ll be surprised how much easier things get.
And that’s a BIG key for the Leo lunar month (life’s day-to-day events) ahead. With Venus retrograde so intimately a part of the ‘setting ‘of this cycle, having a project or something you can be involved in will be a plus. Just make sure this isn’t about ‘appearance’ - Venus retrograde has an evil reputation when it comes to ‘sealing’ contracts, splurges and impulsive decisions. (Read: most don’t make you as happy as you thought they were going to make you in the long run.)
On the other hand, this kind of combination does support working on things about who we are or are being in life, particularly when and where that effort is (a.) something no one else wants to ... or even dares do, or (b.) something we have put off due to our discomfort either with the process, our own feelings about some subject or some form of risk we feel we may be taking, either financial or coming from the ‘how would it look?’ reputation or appearance departments of life.
New Moon at 21 Leo (glyph chart)
August 14, 2015 - 14:55 (2:55 p.m.) UT/+0 - Aries Wheel (Location Not Specific)
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New Moon at 21 Leo (text chart)
August 14, 2015 - 14:55 (2:55 p.m.) UT/+0 - Aries Wheel (Location Not Specific)
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With asteroids Eros,Terpsichore, and Apollo in conjunction with the New Moon there’s an idea of being passionate (Eros) about something - both around the time of the New Moon event and as we go forward through August and on into September. Eros is the general concept of passion - not just the erotic type. If Eros was conjunct this Leo New Moon all by itself, we would be thinking in the direction of fabulous good times and beautiful moments - things which (Leo) suit our fancy and which (Eros) fire anything from our interest to our imagination.But this isn’t just Eros, Sun and Moon - Venus retrograde is right there, a couple of degrees ahead, implying that there is something ‘coming towards us’ which may dampen our passion or good time. Or maybe it’s going to represent something we want to tackle with all our passion and (Leo positive) self confidence while hopefully avoiding those Leo negatives - arrogance, presumptuousness, selfishness, etcetera.
With Terpsichore here, the good news is that what we will tackle, we will tend to tackle with our strengths, making things go easily - which with Venus retrograde may or may not equate to ‘going well.’ And with Apollo rounding out the asteroid trio, there is some form of truth or harmony which can come out of this time (meaning the New Moon period and the lunar month ahead). But with the end of this lunar cycle being September 13th’s solar eclipse, whatever happens now involves some sort of ‘breaking down’ of defenses - which for all they may have physical attributes really are the metaphysical reflection of our defenses and/or defensiveness. Either we’re in the middle of learning a whole new set of lessons about who we really and who we really should be (which may or may not be convenient, given the moment), or we are in the process of recognizing how or where or why we have been defending, standing for, or taking part in something which is either outmoded, impossible, immoral on its face, or unethical in its manifestations format due to some human and passionate (Eros) desire to (Leo) prove one’s self (or your ‘team’) right or good or worthy or capable in some way which may have once been true, but which is either true no longer, or not true in this particular instance or as presented, brought into being or embodied.
There are only a couple of strong aspects to this New Moon: an inconjunct to Chiron (retrograde) at 20 Pisces and a trine to Eris retrograde plus Uranus/Sabine. The Uranus/Sabine part of this would be akin to the idea, feeling or accomplishing, accomplishment or reactions to and feelings about either breaking free of restraint (or) situations which exhibit the ability to trap or disruption through an energetic confining of options.
And with Uranus still at 20 Aries (the degree Uranus went retrograde at back on July 26th) this is, to some extent, the continuation of an experience we’re all going through (at least within our Self) which among other things asks us how well we deal with the idea versus the management of power and how that affects our general standing in the world and either our ability or willingness uphold our responsibilities, personal and otherwise.
So that’s the New Moon of August 14th, the last in a series of astrological events which stretches back to Huya (and Saturn) going direct. The 21 Leo quality of said New Moon lending to all an increased ability to understand or sense what’s going on with others, which is a positive particularly in situations or relationships which have gotten off-track because of a misunderstanding. Another thread associated with this degree is success where sensitivity and tact is required and dutifully (attentively) applied in dealing with extreme sensitivities - be they physical, emotional, financial, experiential or of any other type.
Once this cycle begins, evidently we have all we need to proceed for a bit, as after the New Moon of August 14th the next astrological even of note is the Sun’s entering into Virgo at 10:38 in the morning (UT/+0) on August 23rd.
Sun in Virgo (glyph chart)
August 23, 2015 - 10:38 a.m. (UT/+0) - Aries Wheel (Location Not Specific)
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Sun in Virgo (text chart)
August 23, 2015 - 10:38 a.m. (UT/+0) - Aries Wheel (Location Not Specific)
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There’s a list of standard sorts of things we know about Virgo - such as it’s an earth sign, meaning that for the duration of the Sun’s transit of Virgo (August 23 - September 23) our conscious approach to life as well as our impressions and perspectives on life are going to be earthy, focused on the tangible and aiming at concrete results.We also know that by modality (meaning, in terms of the manner or ‘rhythm’ of things which occur under Virgo), Virgo is a mutable sign. So it’s not a cardinal sign like Aries, Cancer, Libra or Capricorn - under Virgo we don’t just charge off into the wilderness because it sounds like a good idea. Or at least we shouldn’t, as under Virgo, things need to be learned along the way - sometimes at every step. Like the other three mutable signs (Sagittarius, Pisces and Gemini), Virgo is open enough to investigations, though like all signs it has its flaws. With Virgo, that flaw tends to be emotional and/or centered around emotions as representative of the polarity sign, Pisces. What this means in real time experience is that any energetic passing through Virgo (which at the moment of the Sun’s ingress would include the Sun, Mercury and Jupiter) indicates the means, or the ‘area of life’ through which we are going to encounter/be called upon to consider how to deal with things, people and situations which touch off our emotionality and in particular, things about our Self which we are afraid to feel, experience or know about our Self on some emotional level.
With the North Node still at 1 Libra, relationships and our ability to relate to others or to how we interact (or have interacted) with others is a primary focus here. With Venus in retrograde, fences may need mending (don’t expect instant forgiveness!) and people are more prone to feeling offended in general, making everything feel more critical as a general habit of touchiness fans across the map. Claims of ‘unfair’ and ‘selfish’ are likely to be rife and with the North Node at 1 Libra, some will find trying to blame others terribly handy (read: overly tempting), particularly as their own ills of behavior, choice and priority hit home.
Over the next month, as we are going about doing the many things we need to do and which need doing, we are all going to meet up with questions, challenges, moments and situations which through this raising of issues with things we’ve done and things we want to think true which cause us to learn more about our Self. To such moments we will react, and to the degree that we are in denial or afraid of facing some mistake, lie or loss of standing (particularly in our own eyes) with regards to whatever subject has been touched on, we’re likely to fight.
And for those who are so inclined - fight dirty.
The derivative fifth (‘what I like to do’) derivative sign from Virgo (i.e., the trine) is Capricorn, that being where we get the notion of Virgos as ‘liking’ structure and liking things to work and Virgo of a sign of aptitude when it comes to ‘structuring’ life (and your own life, if you’re a Sun sign Virgo). Does having Pluto in transit through Capricorn, affect that? It would indeed, which means that the years of Pluto in Capricorn (which started back in late 2008) there can be a very distinct create, deny, destroy energetic employed under Sun in Virgo which though powerful indeed can also backfire mightily.
And let’s not forget, Neptune is in Virgo’s opposition sign - Pisces - where Neptune rules the outcome of our willingness to be in emotional touch, not just with our Self, but with our immediate and global worlds. With so much energy transiting Virgo (even were there not about to be a solar eclipse in the sign) this opposition from Neptune could be counted on to reveal some illusions even as it promotes imagination (new ideas) and dissolves resistance.
Our resistance, that is.
Beyond all this, once the Sun enters Virgo, eclipse effects will go into hyper-drive, bringing down whatever barriers are walling us off from the truth of some truth which must be faced and either adapted to or acted on. With all of this happening with Mars in Leo (the 12th sign to Virgo) there’s bound to be some frustration ... and that frustration may lead to some sort of intuitive form of inspiration.
Or it could just get the best of us.
Of course, turning this the other way around, once the Sun reaches Virgo that also indicates the eliminating or simple ‘melting away’ of something which has been standing in our way. And yes, it may have been simple reluctance - or a lack of self confidence understandable under any Venus retrograde.
And then we add in how Venus in Virgo undermines so much of our ability to be effective because we aren’t feeling all that good about what we’re doing or that we’re having to do it (not to mention the fact we aren’t sure how it’s going to turn out). Even when things are fine they don’t feel spectacular under Venus retrograde and Venus in Virgo just adds a note of goals which now are wobbling at a conscious (Sun) level in our minds. Either we see some problem, or we’re not crazy about participation in something for any of a hundred of exceptionally fine, if personal reasons.
(No, we don’t want to discuss them. In fact, they’re so personal, we aren’t even going to discuss them with our Self.)
All of this is going to pose some sort of question as the Sun enters Virgo, a question which is imaged by the Sun (conjunct Jupiter) being at the apex of a t-square at it jollies into said sign.
The t-square beings with Sedna in Taurus - an interesting concept in itself as Sedna will be going into ‘station mode’ on August 25th in anticipation of Sedna going retrograde on the 27th just a couple of days from now.
And what is Sedna? Sedna is our ability to rise above whatever our ‘programming’ is (or if you prefer an even fancier word, acculturation). Whatever we have learned to ‘expect’ about life from our parents or culture or some body of tradition (religious or otherwise) ... to the extent we are able to see life without that ‘preconceived’ structure of good-and-bad, or us-and-them, or mine-versus-theirs - the theory of Sedna speaks to our ability to be truly be an individual only to the extent that we are able to do that.
And when we don’t, or aren’t able to get beyond our preconceived notions of life, relationship, values, right and wrong, how life ‘should’ be ... then Sedna speaks to how our life becomes a virtual ‘prisoner’ of those notions or definitions - and how conversely, we are only truly free when we stop ‘holding onto’ such expectations or preconceived notions of what is ‘best’ or what we-or-others ‘should like’, whether they apply to our Self, others or something around us or being newly encountered.
In a t-square, the ‘object’ (goal) is to get to the symbol beyond the ‘hurdle’ of the “t,” - that ‘hurdle’ being expressed here as Sun-conjunct-Jupiter (and Regulus) in Virgo with the ‘goal’ being Saturn at 28 Scorpio: the mastering or mastery of either a situation or ability to understand and interact productively with others without falling into unproductive Scorpionic emotional habits (fear, flat rejection, manipulation, need for control, lust, greed, destruction, etc.) and without having to resort to ‘preying’ on that or those you are facing in order to win your point.
With Sun, Regulus and Jupiter at the ‘hurdle’ of this t-square, whatever is standing in our way (if something is standing in your way) ... that isn’t about ‘them,’ it’s about us. Being that this is a global transit-and-ingress, it therefore is about each and every one of us in our own way. Sun-Jupiter being known for that which is ‘overblown’ or righteously asserted to the point of arrogance and/or falsehood, royal star Regulus serves as the notice here that to ‘go too far’ will bring failure. It may not be instantaneous, it may be the farthest thing from our mind at the moment, to be sure. So where Sun/Jupiter tends towards excess and overstatements with the Virgo quality trending towards ideas like the expression of abilities and methods, Regulus warns that all must be kept in proper and responsible perspective and that in whatever we do we may not employ any methodology which smacks of revenge, vengeance or any other kind of ‘I’ll get them,’ whether or not we think it’s justified (which may just be the Regulus point).
Going back to that notion of global transits for a moment, it’s also important to remember here that global (or “mundane”) transits do apply to everyone. Yet beyond this is the t-square mandate which says that the ‘image’ at the “t” (Sun, Jupiter, Regulus) cannot be approached from one’s personal point of view. So whatever is being driven or aimed at in this moment (and over the next month of Sun in Virgo) our solution to life’s challenges have to work for everyone - which seen through the filter of Venus in retrograde and the Virgo solar eclipse points to all those things we don’t want to do and all those things we (desperately) don’t want to experience feeling in, or about our Self.
And yet, that’s the thing - we don’t get a choice: either we heed what life is telling us or things will just get more complicated and ugh-worthy until we let go of our expectations and (Sedna) desires not to have to not deal with anything besides the things we like or think of as ‘fun.’
As of August 24th - the day after the Sun enters Virgo, the Perseid Meteor Shower ends. Every year the Perseids turn up in July (this year they started on July 17) and throughout the weeks of their dappling our sky little twinkles of ‘things new’ turn up here and there, spurring us to try this or that ... or at least to consider this or that as part of the general Leo theme of self-development, getting into new ideas and the continuing to ‘grow’ and enhance our lives, lest we get bored or become unproductive.
Some tend to apply these inspirations to projects and some of us tend to respond to such ‘sparking’ as an invitation to have fun. And either one is a valid Leo expression if (or as) we remember that Leo is part of the Leo/Aquarius polarity, a polarity which is all about the give-and-take of life. The Leo side of this polarity stresses self-development and natural abilities where the Aquarian side says we will only be rewarded (monetarily or with acceptance) when/to the degree that whatever we Leo create, develop or perfect is useful, interesting and acceptable to others and/or others in this world.
With Eros (passion of any type) and Terpsichore (grace and/or facile ability) just behind the Sun have just been ‘passed,’ ‘passed up’ or acknowledged as part of that the Sun will ‘operate’ with (or on) as it reaches Virgo. In spite of that, it shouldn’t surprise anyone if, as the Sun enters Virgo, life takes on a somewhat more somber and focused cast which seems all the more different for its following a month of Leo envisioning and motivational ideas.
This is neither bad nor good - it’s just the difference between fire and earth as elements. Those who like having the ideas more than getting the job done will like Leo more than Virgo. Those who are more into getting somewhere and making ‘this’ happen so we can get on to ‘that’ in real time and reality without all the talk and ‘what if’s tend to prefer Virgo.
And some people (granted, fewer than might be useful) recognize both of these attributes and periods as not just valuable in their own right, but part of that greater cycle known as ‘growth’ - growth of Self, growth of abilities, growth of accomplishment.
Moreover, given the nature of the incoming solar eclipse, this is exactly what some people will begin realizing or recognizing in some new and vital way as the Sun enters Virgo and we encounter those settings which lead to ‘paying’ for excesses while requiring that we make some effort towards that which we need to do as part of sustaining and/or building our life.
And when a few days after the Sun enters Virgo, Sedna goes retrograde (on August 27th at 3:18 in the morning, UT/+0 time), that will point out the pluses and minuses of our dependence on (or independence from) all those standards we were taught, imprinted by and which - for the most part - we tend to be unconscious of until they smack us in the psychological face.
Sedna is slow moving. One orbit around the Sun takes over 11,000 years to complete. So things we associate with Sedna ... our maturation of identity, our gaining perspective on how we have been shaped by others and life (and whether we want to be that person who has resulted from such shaping) ... all that takes time to understand, work through and recognize the full implications of. Now, as Sedna is going retrograde, we begin a period of months when the growth of our perspective (or resistance to any growth of perspective) will be internal. We will reflect within - and for those whose charts are within aspect of Sedna’s position (which given its slow movement, won’t change much at all) we will gain some measure of perspective on why we have been, and why we have done as we have been and done - and why that may not be appropriate, or useful. Given the nature of human culture, we learn many things which though beautiful as heritage and lovely as family traditions are, aren’t useful or sometimes even workable in daily modern life. Wherever Sedna is in our chart, that’s where (or how) we ‘act out of’ that programming, wherever it may come from.
And that’s also where we have the greatest perspective to gain - both as a direct opportunity in the present, and as a means by which we learn (as a separate, if connected lesson) how the very process of gaining that perspective and the internal solidity which comes from such perspectives on choices which are conscious ...(as opposed to those made for us which we then try desperately to defend because someone somewhere decided something ‘should’ be that way)... is empowering in a way very little else is, or ever will be.
That all of this occurs on the same day that Mercury enters Libra (at 15:48, or 3:48 in the afternoon, UT/+0 time) suggests that all of this will evolve (or revolve) around matters having to do with connecting to others, ongoing relationships or situations, negotiations and the negotiating of unpredictable moments rife with energies - at least some part of which are probably being misspent. This combination (Sedna’s station plus Mercury’s ingress) is likely to produce feelings of separation, even isolation. And for some, this will be exactly what needs to be considered. Or maybe that will, for whatever reason, produce the dynamics necessary to get to whatever ‘breakthrough’ gains us our needed Sedna-like perspectives.
Moreover, since as Mercury enters Libra both Mercury and Sedna are in that planetary picture known as a ‘kite’ with Sedna at the position of the kite’s ‘tail’ or “string,” (depending on how you feel about it), that tends to say it is the examining of OUR perspectives (not ‘theirs’) on things which is the useful path forward.
With Black Moon Lilith conjunct Mercury, there is something about ‘rejection’ or ‘denial’ in the mix, though how that manifests may vary. Being that the Black Moon (like Mercury) is sitting at 0 Libra, these effects may surface as we try to explain something to someone who doesn’t want to hear it just as easily as it may involve someone taking some position we don’t reject even once we have heard it.
The degree 0 Libra is said to exhibit difficulties in relationships even though there is no lack of quality or intelligence associated with this position. This being the first degree of Libra (and thus the first degree of the public half of the zodiac) there are likely to be some qualities of hesitation or ‘naiveté’ (or inexperience) which need to be dealt with as well.
And of course there is that ever-popular (if often very not useful) human habit of steadfastly ignoring or denying actual truths which don’t fit with what we want to think is true. That would fit this combination too, though again - with Sedna in the ‘solution’ or ‘directing’ position in this configuration, recognizing why we have come to be who we are with the opinions and positions we hold is the best way to go in the long run. Some will (without question) experience the (Ceres-Mercury/Black Moon-Sedna) grand trine as refusing to even contemplate any such thing ... but the outcome of that will likely be failure as the ‘object’ pointed to by this figure (Saturn at 28 Scorpio) points to the solution, the ‘mastering’ of whatever ‘security problem’ we are facing, as being about us, within us, and awaiting whatever circumstances will trigger the kind of introspection which will allow us to master whatever scares, bothers or seems ‘wrong’ to us simply because it’s different.
Or because ... well, maybe it’s just coming from a different (Sedna) perspective.
With all of this happening on August 27th and the Full Moon occurring on the 29th, we are still ‘pushing’ or working to ‘grow’ some effort as we come to Sedna’s station (and Mercury’s ingress of Libra) ... and the station of asteroid Pax (peace) which occurs on the Friday between. As Pax is going direct, there is a suggestion that our ‘peace’ is to be found by ‘getting out of our Self,’ which runs a bit counter to Pax’ degree of station (5 Capricorn), as 5 Capricorn tends to manifest in two very different, if often connected ways. On one hand, 5 Capricorn speaks to a useful sort of confidence and comfort which makes being on your own and attending to your own business very positive.
Yet on the other, 5 Capricorn also speaks to a lack of understanding what is valuable to others, about the fact those others feel that way - and why all of this matters not just in their life, but also in ours.
With Pax’ station falling after that of Sedna, how we handle the one (Sedna’s station, including its various parameters) may well affect the other. Pax’ station falling after that of Sedna says we may well be finding something out, or finishing something around this time which produces some measure of peace providing we gain (and perhaps act on) some ‘turn of’ perspective.
Then again, with Pax’ station/direct falling after that of Sedna station/retrograde, events which are now encountered as we move forward and which produce a change of perspective may, in providing some sort of solution (‘peace’) to others, those around us or in our environment, offer us the opportunity to (Sedna) see our path to (Saturn @ 28 Scorpio) some form of mastery, or the mastering of some task.
All of this is the lead up to this month’s Full Moon, a Moon which ‘highlights’ matters having to do with 6 Pisces, an emotionally challenging degree which sets up interesting dynamics between people by making one side wonder if they’re being used by the other because the attitude of that other varies, sometimes being warm and friendly and sometimes being cool and distant. In zodiacal terms, this is just another example of how any Pisces degree (and thus any Pisces moment) tends to show two very different sides of whatever is being focused on at the moment - and how those witnessing (or experiencing) those differences find them sufficiently hard to accept (‘acceptance’ being the magic Pisces word) as valid or maybe non-manipulative that problems often occur, making a hard time worse.
In this sense, 6 Pisces asks whether we think the discussion or relationship is ‘worth’ dealing with such differences from either side as either party is likely to object - either to the lack of ‘consistency’ (as it seems to the observer) or the unwillingness to ‘trust’ or be ‘trusted’ on the part of the this-and-that person, who may simply be confused or under stress or just having a bad day.
But then we get to the ‘worth’ question. And the text and texture of all there picks up on not just Mercury’s arriving into a sign all about relationships, relating and all that goes into whether we ‘relate’ to something or someone or not (Libra) but also Pisces as a sign often associated with wealth or the kind of income one doesn’t actively work for (annuities, pensions, royalties, interest income, etc.). One writer speaks of this degree as being particularly important where financial matters and money are concerned, and considering how this happens under Venus retrograde it is likely a few lessons (pro AND con) will be proposed now as to who has been honest and who has been mistaken.
In other words, count on a few assumptions - some of which are correct ... and the correcting of a few presumptions which now are proved incorrect. In some cases apologies will be tendered, though with Venus retrograde, they may ‘feel’ insincere.
In general, this is a very difficult period for making those who feel aggrieved get past feeling aggrieved. This Full Moon has the Moon conjunct Neptune (at 8 Pisces) with the Sun still in conjunction with Jupiter (at 3 Virgo), emphasizing the ‘hidden’ or mysterious quality of people’s feelings, the dropping of the Neptune ‘veil’ over everyone’s emotions being why some will feel suspicious (even paranoid) while those they are thinking are trying to do something to them may just be sad, confused or otherwise not even thinking about what kind of appearance they’re giving off.
Either way, whatever feelings we have, they are likely to be ‘about’ our connections to others (or the lack thereof). And though we will tend to project both the source and solution to our problems onto others (or the world) the real issue is why we feel the way we do.
We are in essence, focusing on ‘them’ because we don’t want to recognize, face, and deal with OUR feelings about OUR life and OUR history and OUR disappointments, flaws and hopes - the acceptance of our Self being the most common ... and eternal of all Pisces challenges.
And there is always the idea that for some, these feelings of being pushed away or repelled is serving some metaphysical purpose of steering them away, sending them off in a new direction other than that in which they were going.
Some of what we are feeling driven by here is bound to be connected to some sort of long-held (Sedna-like) presumption or expectation about how we think things “should be,” and thus how others “should” act ... with Sedna’s turn to retrograde symbolizing the beginning of a process which in time will become more illuminated for us, allowing us to in time “own” our opinions without needing to have others agree or validate our opinion, leaving us to operate comfortably and (Pax) peacefully.
In the meantime, we are likely to be suspicious of others and blaming them for what we don’t understand and believe “isn’t” or even “can’t” be true, whether it is or not ...or even whether we fully understand what’s going on.
And that’s not about them, that’s about us - and like as not about a greater issue being revealed to us in terms of how we think (or don’t think) and how our regard for others is ... in the end ... not likely to be any more accurate than the perspective we have on our Self.
Part of this is simply of the moment and month. But part of it applies to the eclipse at 20 Virgo, as the incoming solar eclipse is in great measure about getting us to weigh the reality of the situation (how real life and real lives are, and may yet be affected) and using that to get us past the kind of personal defenses and defensiveness which attract and create that we like worst about our world.
The Full Moon is the last astrological ‘statement’ for August. With the lunar nodes still at 1 Libra (North) and 1 Aries (South) we are still working through how to approach what we know we need to do. Whether or not that’s a good idea may well become more apparent as August turns into September and we encounter three more stations - those of Ixion, Byblis and Pholus - in advance of the eclipse.
Will we make the changes which need making before then? We can’t be sure as to that, but with the end of August will come a next post, during which we will consider what’s ahead.
And in the meantime, I’ll be around doing the writer thing. If you have questions, you can leave them here (look for a small “pencil” icon in the post footer) or, for those on Facebook, astroPPM has its own page and you can post questions there too.
Good luck with your August. Try to be patient, with others and your Self. Feel your feelings and don’t ignore those eating and sleeping basics (they often go astray during Venus retrograde). This is a difficult time for many, but also a time when (as discussed) it’s easy to critique, it’s likely we’ll all project (to some degree) and that which we feel so embedded in (or about) is like as not about us ... not about the ‘someone’ or ‘something’ we’re actually wanting it to be about so that we can feel better about ourselves (that’s a Venus retrograde tactic, if a very poor one) when the truth is, we know we haven’t done our best.
At least not yet.
Lastly, I'd like to thank you for supporting the change in the blog's format - those of you I've heard from have been entirely supportive about my need to try to support myself. As for how said change is going, much to my own surprise this is the longest post to hit the digital web-waves here at astroPPM, and more importantly, it's fully two-thirds of what I had been writing for an entire month. (Surprised? I was!) Plus by doing things this way, I get days for working on keeping me both financially afloat and physically walking (yes, I'm still working on that) ...while you get this only somewhat-shortened digital bucket of information - which I hope you find useful!
I wouldn't be gone if I didn't need to, but you may be assured I am here because I care ... and if you read Pinocchio Girl (below), you'll know how I learned to forever know why the universal caring about each other is the only thing which really counts, lest nothing count at all.
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