Mercury enters Taurus

In keeping with the Sabian Symbol for 0 Taurus, "A CLEAR MOUNTAIN STREAM"

(phase 31), a photo of a tumbling Alpine stream in Mollis, Switzerland.

(photo credit Glarnerwolf, October 2014)

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For all those whose brain circuitry is feeling all jumpy or overloaded even with Venus now in Gemini, calming influences are theoretically on the way in the form of Mercury entering Taurus at 22:53 (10:53 p.m.) UT/+0 time on Tuesday, April 14th.

And yes, this may mean you go directly from jumpy to all stodgy or stuck-on-a-stick-(ish), but at least with Mercury’s entrance into Taurus many a thing (human and otherwise) which has come to have a ‘mind of its own’ to the extent that the possible good is being offset by too much consciousness of Self ...or, particularly in the case of inanimate or insentient situations or objects, where there simply isn’t enough ‘integration’ to keep continuation of whatever is going on from creating problems for others/other parts of some ‘food chain.' (Which, in some cases could refer to actual - Taurus - food and/or issues connected to food, eating and the entire spectrum of 'nourishment' as a concept or practice.)

Being our solar systemic indicator of mentality and mental pacing, tone and potential, Mercury’s entering Taurus will reflect in something of a shift in thinking habits. Gone will be the drive and edge so common under Mercury in Aries - and gone too will be the tendency to think primarily (if not only) in terms of our Self, a habit which can be plenty disruptive under Mercury in Aries even if it also is a sign of standing up for one’s self or taking some stand.

Moreover, we’re not all that ‘done’ with learning a few new things. The first three signs of the zodiac (Aries, Taurus, Gemini) are all about learning who we are - and a lot of that learning gets done through other people (i.e., through influences described by the three signs in oppositional polarity to those first three signs).

In Taurus, Mercury seeks ways for things to be secure and secured. Optimally, this combination of sign and planetary symbol speaks to our confidence, our ability to cope when challenged by anything.

But therein lies the rub, if you get my drift. The oppositional sign to Taurus being Scorpio, all things Taurean become or tend to be tested by episodes of push-pull or through ‘discussions’ which we either have with our Self about that Self (and what they are or aren’t doing) ... or ‘discussions’ with-or-about others, with all of this basically being about what ‘worth’ means, and what in life really deserves our time, effort, loyalty, resources, sacrifices or anything other part of our life.

In short, why should we care? Or ... should we care?

Under Taurus we may feel guilty for being selfish or unequal to a looming challenge. We may take to thinking of ourselves as having done all we need to do, or we may recognize that we could do something if we would just prepare ourselves for the task (and eventual triumph!) through committing to some sort of Self-development.

And given the nature of Mercury, variations on these themes are what we are going to think about, talk about and experience from April 14th until Mercury moves on into Gemini come May 1st.

During that transit, Mercury will go retrograde. The dates are from May 19th through June 11th, and that Mercury is going to go retrograde under Gemini means that apart from things which are happening at that time (and which are totally unique to the moment) ... that makes Mercury’s transit of Taurus a period when what we are doing may well in some way end up connecting or contributing to whatever we are focused on (or possibly hung up by) during Mercury’s retrograde period.

Does that mean we will be so focused ...or so determined to finish something (come what may) that we end up making some miscalculation or omission which ends up forcing us to double back as is so common under Mercury retrograde? Might it mean we’re trying to hit/adhere to some deadline because once Mercury enters Gemini (or goes retrograde) we will have missed some known opportunity?

There’s another way to see the whole of this Mercury in Aries, Taurus and Gemini process which also may well apply here, particularly if you’re looking longer term (months or years, as opposed to days or weeks). Considering all else (the recent eclipses and such) and being how all three cited signs are zodiacal first quadrant signs (pertaining to learning about our Self, our abilities or things we need to know in order to effectively live our life), everything we do from now until Mercury enters Cancer (and the zodiac’s 2nd quadrant) is on some level part of an overarching ‘project’ - the inborn ‘project’ we have to tackle simply because we are what and who we are as living beings on this planet in this time.

It sounds so serious. And survival is serious - hence Taurus’ relationship to security and all the ‘necessaries’ which allow us to proceed along our way through life, the most popular of which seem to be personal security (physical and emotional), food, shelter and money ... the basic stuff of life.

If this is you, if you are in the middle of a personal learning ‘project’ (or if you’re needing to tackle one), Mercury being anywhere in the first quadrant supports your investigations - and at the moment, though there is some fixed sign tendency with Mercury to stick on some point just because admitting you’ve been wrong triggers an inner/instinctive sense of vulnerability connected to “not knowing” how to take care of your Self, those who can get past the sticking to the digging into the process of doing, doing better or learning how or why your efforts aren’t effective ... they will all stand to learn a lot and even make themselves feel a whole lot better (about something) through the process of making that effort.

Mercury in Taurus (glyph chart)

April 14, 2015 - 22:53 (10:53 p.m.) UT/+0 - Aries Wheel (Location Not Specific)

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Mercury in Taurus (text chart)

April 14, 2015 - 22:53 (10:53 p.m.) UT/+0 - Aries Wheel (Location Not Specific)

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Of course for some this is a particularly prickly emotional time. That is to be expected in the wake of an eclipse which hit fixed star Scheat - which among other things stands for our ability to wall things out, and our willingness to project the responsibility for feelings and reactions onto others without realizing that if its your reaction its your problem.

And how where and when left unattended, how such denied (Piscean) feelings, no matter how we dress them up or what we call them, are in the long run damaging to everyone, including us and including those many others we would like to think we are ‘sparing’ the sort of grief we are hoping we can avoid through sheer denial.

It’s pretty futile, but people do this sort of thing anyway. We humans are always trying to tell ourselves that if we don’t (Mercury) acknowledge or think about it we won’t have to confront our (Pisces) feelings on the subject and risk facing our own (Taurus) sense of insecurity - that being our true ‘the enemy within.’

Our sense of security - in the end - has nothing to do with anyone else. It’s only and always about us. They’re our emotions, and therefore ours to feel and ours to own and take responsibility for. Furthermore, history and reality teaches us exactly the opposite of that fervent wish occurs when we (Pisces/Scheat) avoid truths as energy is never lost.

So all that energy that we don’t want to deal with - whether for reasons of eclipse denial which we’re now struggling with or because we just don’t WANT to (that stubborn fixed sign thing) ... it has to go somewhere, this being a real challenge posed by the fixed sign energetic. Fixed signs energies are easily applied to resistance or stonewalling - and that’s something we all should think about (and work through) while tackling those challenges which tend to arise when the Sun is in a fixed sign - which it will be once the Sun enters Taurus on April 20th.

We also encounter such energies when we deal with people born under fixed signs, too. (Know anyone who seems born to resist changes to the status quo?)

Fixing things in place (or affixing them in place) is a typical fixed sign tactic ... and also the primary challenge placed before any of the zodiac’s fixed signs (Taurus, Leo, Scorpio and Aquarius). But just as cardinal signs (Aries, Cancer, Libra and Capricorn) need to learn to look before they leap ... and just as mutable signs (Gemini, Virgo, Sagittarius and Pisces) need to learn that never making up one’s mind or committing to a particular choice goes nowhere, fixed signs need to learn that to work at controlling things is not the object.

Learning to control our most immature and insecure Self ... that’s what frees us to think, plan and choose effectively, which apart from all else would be something we may well need to do (or consider) as a factor as Pluto (you remember Pluto, right? Dwarf planet? Obsessive reputation?)... as Pluto heads into its station and turns to retrograde at the end of this coming week (on the 17th), closing out the first of thirty-six months of Pisces/Scheat solar eclipse doings.

But first we have to get past whatever our personal issues with personal security really are - which generally has a whole lot to do with where we come from in life and things we experienced early on, all of which would be perfect to spend at least a bit of time musing through during these next few weeks.

NGC 7320 in constellation Pegasus, the constellation which

fixed star Scheat is part of.

(photo credit: NASA, ESA and the Hubble-SM4-ERO Team, July 2009)

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Being that Mercury is coming into Taurus in a trine to Pallas at 0 Capricorn (Pallas entered Capricorn last week) we know there are issues (or yes, perhaps people) which matter ("structural," some would call them) and which (this being the 0 Capricorn part) we not only get much from thinking about, but which we 'connected to' and recognize that connecting on a level which is hard to define if vital to where we currently are in our belief in our Self ... and which we know we need to do more about ... or maybe with.

Pallas being an energetic which creates moments and views (or a 'vision') only attainable through cool-minded perspectives, this is likely to be an important - or at least lingering note being struck, if for no other reason than Pallas' impending turn to retrograde (as if you wanted to hear about another station?) at 0 Capricorn come April 19th.

Right now we are getting a perspective of life as offered by life and life circumstances. Once Pallas goes retrograde, perspective will turn on us - we'll see why we are or aren't what we thought or think we are.

But that's then, and this is now. And since Mercury’s transits through Taurus have long been spoken of as a time to develop or show what we’re capable of - most of all to our Self so that we can be confident and productive, not to mention secure in being our Self enough that we are even able to be there for, and interact with others - this is a useful time to think through all such possibilities as we work through our days and life's challenges. Given that we seldom attribute major life events to any of the so-called 'personal planets' (Sun, Moon, Mercury, Venus, Mars) when they're in transit, as with Venus' shift into Gemini a couple of days ago (see previous post) Mercury moving from one sign to another describes background perspectives and modes, just as Venus' placement by sign describes some of the general 'mood' we experience while pursuing our day-in, day-out daily doings.

And so we're clear here, all of this differs entirely (like, totally) from when our personal and natal Sun, Moon, Mercury, Venus or Mars GETS transited by objects from Jupiter on outward into the cosmos.

Those periods (which when we talk about objects like Neptune can take a couple of years) ARE a big deal.

But as for now ...? Qualities we'd associate with Mercury and Taurus - the exploring of how to make what we have go farther and what's worth expending time, energy, attention or priorities on - with this combination of planet and sign, we expect to hear debates and conversations of many kinds, some of which we end up holding with ourselves (in our mind or otherwise) and some of which we experience as an interaction with others, all of it at base - no matter the surface text - being about the worth of things and how values and whether we care or don't care about this, that or them - whether any of it merits your time and loving attention.

And if so, which thing(s) matter - and why?

And all of this makes perfect sense if, when and where we think of Taurus as the sign before Gemini, Gemini being the zodiacal district of information gathering, choice and planning.

After all, before we choose, shouldn’t we get clear - at least to our own secure satisfaction - as to what matters so that based on that we will have the choice to choose intelligently or well?

One would think yes.
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Mars in Libra

 image: 'Stars' by Maxfield Parish - Mars photo by the Hubble Space

Telescope (photo credit: NASA, JPL, Caltetch)

A friend and I stood chatting a couple of weeks ago. It was one of those comfortable chats you know you want to go on for hours, but that day neither of us had time.

So we decided to make a plan about getting together.

(Him) ‘I have exams coming up – I can’t do it until after December 7th.’

(Me) ‘December 7th…?’ My brain was already busy checking references.

And just as obviously, his wasn’t.

(Him) ‘Sure - December 7th . We’ll finish the conversation then. Celebrate a little.’

CLICK: my brain delivered the answer. And being one of those Pisces girls who can’t resist a good line) I gave him a smile. ‘You mean we could get bombed, right? I can’t actually think of a better day to get bombed on than December 7th....’

Hearing myself say those words, the writer in my soul sighed in pleasure. And yet, bright and brainy as he is, he still didn’t connect: for my painful pun I got one of those ‘what the fern are you talking about now?’ looks.

(Me) ‘December 7th is Pearl Harbor Day…what better day to get together and get bombed?’

So today is December 7th and it is indeed Pearl Harbor Day and I am duly grateful for the peace my life and my nation is graced with. I give thanks to those who have served.

It’s also the beginning of the Geminid Meteor Shower which brings up that whole conversation we had on November 28th about Rock Comet Phaethon.

Link to: PHAETHON, ROCK COMET

Phaethon energy has a reputation for being (overly) headstrong - possibly to the point of destroying an aim or ability to achieve that aim, at least for the moment. And since Phaethon’s radiant (the ‘place in the sky’ the comet appears to ‘come from’) is in constellation Gemini, the inference is that Phaethon's 1.43 year-long cycle is saying something to us about our mentality or something experienced on a mental level.

In being like ISON (you remember ISON – the comet which failed to die?) in that Phaethon’s orbit takes it all the way inside Mercury (in other words, 'right into the face of the Sun') speaks to how close or personal we might take such matters now...or how people or forces from 'out of the blue' may bring to us some perspective on what we're doing in our lives. As a ‘rock comet’ (a comet with no tail and thus no dapples of meteoric insight), Phaethon’s origin in the asteroid belt and its lack of ‘spark’ says good or bad, mundane or magnificent, what we're going through is just part of life - and thus something we have to live with or get through.

And so, on this Pearl Harbor Day, as our thoughts are being touched off, as we're going about our efforts (some of which, in true Phaethon style may be hasty or not as yet 'matured')…THIS is the day that Mars enters Libra at 8:42 in the evening, UT/+0 time.

The lower reaches of Mount Sharp, as photographed by the

Mars Curiosity Rover (photo credit: NASA-JPL Caltech, August 2012)

 

Of course once inside the proverbial 'door' of Libra, Mars comes into the orbish auspices of M87…the black hole of relationship alternatives (whatever that means to us at the moment)…and that's a quality, an energetic which may well affect much which happens between now and  mid-December, when Mars leaves M87's orb. Wherever we are coming from, we are either able to see or maybe graced to see or at last willing to see things from a different point of view.

And yes, that perspective might be the perspective being held by somebody else.

Then again, you may now see ("perceive") possibilities in or for your own life which you have never seen before.

Or as you have never seen such an idea before.

Whatever that becomes, Mars entering the orb of opposition to Uranus on December 12th (which happens at about the moment Mars that emerges from M87 territory)...that becomes a time of restlessness or energy, when the need to 'do something' (or change things) becomes rife. And though ordinarily we would think of Mars-Uranus in opposition as explosive (and it may be despite all) there is that relatively genteel Mars-in-Libra energetic to provide us some critical negotiating room with ourselves and others...so instead of being explosive, this may just be when we finally get 'to' something. When we make that change happen. When we 'break through' our own reluctance or hesitation. And that’s the genius of Mars in Libra: it’s ability to ‘trip the balance’ of some situation not through assertion but through asserting yourself in the cause of getting the results you truly want.

There are a few challenges however, with Mars in Libra. One comes from Libra being an air sign. Air signs deal in theory and Mars is an energetic which is all about ‘can we just get on with this?’ (You know…the making it happen part.)

Then there’s the fact that Libra is one-third of the zodiac’s 3rd or interactive quadrant and Mars’ primary rulership is of Aries – the quintessential Me-I-My Ego/Aim sign, one which comes from the ‘I’m Learning About Who I Am and How to Be Me’ zodiac quadrant.

So to capsulize Mars in Libra – (and I’m being very blunt here) - we could say it’s all about how to be (Mars) me while caring enough about them that I get what I want…which is sort of asserting ourselves by being nice enough to not go around being a butthead.

(Actually, there are those who in reading that would immediately insist that there’s time enough for Mars assertiveness to take on that butthead thing once Mars reaches Scorpio come JULY 2014.

(Wait, I hear you say. Did she just say JULY of 2014?)

I did, I did – I did say July 2014. As of December 7th (Pearl Harbor Day), Mars will be in Libra until late July, 2014.

That’s seven months. You know...over a half-a-year.

So it’s pretty much your choice: are you going to be ‘having to deal with’ relationship issues from here until late July 2014? Or are you motivated to pay attention to how you relate to people and to work with(in) yourself on whatever will get the responses or results you want from one and all (personal and professional, platonic, familial and intimate)?

It’s our choice. The things which cause us to choose along these lines (eventually getting us to think more about the subject as a whole, most likely) will occur in many a different venue. We’ll probably make such choices thousands of times between now and July, and slowly we will come to understand why what we do or don’t do…or how we do something (or don’t do it) makes all the difference – both to ‘them’ (whoever they may be) and to how ‘they’ and ‘things’ and the world as a whole responds to US.

Which yes, is what we tend to care about most. Even when you are barely breathing with concern over a loved one – or over some grievous threat to somebody else, there is some degree of not wanting to feel that tension. That (Mars) wanting to act but knowing your Mars actions are being curtailed. That wishing there was something you could (Mars) do but knowing the situation isn’t yours to (Mars/Pluto as Scorpio) control.

If you’re thinking that this super-sized cupful of Mars in Libra must include a retrograde, you’re right. Mars will go retrograde in Libra on March 1st (with Saturn following suit on March 2nd, should you need any convincing that something needs contending with, lest it become problematic). Mars in retrograde can be very annoying, granted. And with this one occurring in Libra, that ‘someone else’ or ‘them out there’ side of the Libra quotient may well be bothering you. If you can turn that ‘bother’ to self-examination without getting defensive, you may well come to understand, appreciate and benefit from what your learn now.

And if you can’t redirect that ‘they’re bugging me’ energy? Then either that energy turns inward (not pleasant!) or you are likely to attract people who will “own” that energy for you…which could be helpful, but might manifest as criticism.

Obviously this is a looooong, long transit. With regards to December (specifically), especially as the Sun will be moving towards the end of Sagittarius as Mars opposes Uranus on December 17th things may get out of hand – or (alternately), you may feel sufficient conviction… motivation… courage… whatever it takes to get past some sticking point. And as this happens just barely prior to Venus going on station to turn retrograde as of December 21st, it is to be guessed that Mars/Uranus is also a stepping-stone in some greater process, though Mars-Uranus connections are plenty vital to herald an event you’ll remember.

And maybe learn from.

That Mars reaches that singular degree of 8 Libra on December 24/25 suggests a couple of days when feelings may be touching, haunting, telling…or even overwhelming – and it’s all in how you use it. This is not an energetic which works particularly well when focused on the Self, particularly not under a Venus retrograde except where self-denial is a conscious choice made for the benefit of someone else.

The overall sense of Mars in Libra is connective. It’s about working with others and on ourselves in connection with how well we ‘work’ with - or get along with, or are able to get what we need from - others. Every time Mars goes retrograde (a bit less than every two years or so), we experience a period of testing where we are ‘pitted’ against ourselves in some regard. The last Mars retrograde began in January 2012 in Virgo, when we dealt with our own ability to keep ourselves on track.

Now we’re seeing how…and if…and how well we are able to ‘take’ our (Mars) efforts out into the world. The who and the what and the why and the why not and the highly Libran question of what and who am I equating myself to? in life…?

These are all important questions.

We’re not going to answer them all at once…but by and by we’re going to know we have to answer them –lest we either lose our Self, our life, our sense of identity and ability to fulfill ourselves.

This is just the start of a process. And a conversation. Where Mars is concerned, being aware is a positive. Being overly certain is iffy. With Mars entering Libra, there is always what the ‘other guy’ has to say...and at the moment they're busy going through their own Mars in Libra issues - which are as important as ours, but not more valid, nor more human.

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Saturn Crossing

A photographic mosaic of Saturn from Cassini photos taken during December 2012

(photo credit: NASA, JPL, Caltech Space Science Institute)

Between November 12th and 20th, Saturn will be at 15 degrees of Scorpio. The degree 15 Scorpio is known to be…well…let’s just say one line of thinking describes it as ‘an under-developed Scorpio degree’…which when you’re talking Scorpio amounts to a degree which picks up more on the instinctive than the thoughtful and more on the survivalist notion than any sort of aware form of endurance where whatever happens becomes a basis for insight and new, ever more constructive plans.

Then again, this is a degree which ‘detaches.’ And that is a useful idea to contemplate as we also consider that 15 Scorpio is one of the zodiac’s cross quarter degree.

The first half of any of the four zodiacal quadrants is about learning and all that we experience while being in ‘learning mode.’ Then comes the second half of the quarter – the putting what you’ve learned into action, seeing what you’ve learned and dealing with taking on learning to master what you’ve learned.

Another part of this first/second half of the quadrant thing seems to be about whether we like or even still believe what we started out thinking. For instance..the second quadrant of the zodiac (the lower right hand quadrant natively ‘colored’ by the dynamics of Cancer, Leo and Virgo) is all about learning to interact…and learning how to interact. The time period which ‘lays down’ the general thinking/patterning for this quadrant being between ages 7 1/2 and 14 (this coming from a variation on the Greek teaching of Profection, in case you’re wondering) describes this as a time which gears us up to make friends…and which then confronts us with the (Cancerian/4th house) emotional challenges of having and being a friend.

In short, by the time we have matriculated our little person selves from 7 1/2 to 14 we will probably have a very different idea about what relationships are as compared to that we came in with as the ‘magical thinking’ of childhood melted away around age 7 and we took on realizing that we exist in this world as individuals.

Okay…so Saturn entered Libra (the first sign of three in the 3rd quadrant) back in late 2009. And ever since then, we have all been going through a whole lot of experiences, searches seeking opportunities and (in general) lessons and growth which could roundly be associated with the zodiac’s 3rd quadrant – the quadrant natively inhabited (“colored”) by the signs Libra, Scorpio and Sagittarius. The age period implied here (which ‘patterns’ this period) is our middle-teen period: roughly ages 14 through 21, and if you recognize that as a rough time in human growth as a whole, then you recognize why the signs and houses of the 3rd quadrant have such a wily reputation. And yes, by the time Saturn reaches the end of Sagittarius (in 2017) we will, one and all of us, like as not have a whole different opinion of what it takes to make things happen in this world…and what it means to stand as an individual amidst other individuals, making, supporting and reaping the rewards (or earning debts) depending on which alliances we make.

As with much else, we tend to come into the 3rd quadrant focused on the goal, and only along the way realize that it’s the composition of the journey which counts. And since the 3rd quadrant faces the 1st quadrant (across the wheel of the horoscope) that means what is being ‘drawn’ on and what is being challenged, critiqued or otherwise tested is our (Aries) sense of self…our (Taurus) security OF self…and our (Gemini) willingness and ability to think things through, make choices and then either follow through or learn differently (and make/remake our choices) so that in time, we get where we need to go – as a person, that is.

The temptation of the 3rd quadrant is to de-emphasize the human in favor of that which society recognizes. Success is framed as finding those avenues of expression which are true and which truly express who you are.

And 15 Scorpio divides this pack.

In crossing 15 Scorpio, Saturn is timing out the separation between a period of trying things out and one when we more or less play ‘for real.’ Over the past few years our choices may have worked well or worked not so well, but for a lot of us (this being where individual charts would register or not register) have not really had our own lives altered or marred or challenged by choices which didn’t pan out.

But from now until 2017 when Saturn leaves this quadrant, things are going to change. The change will be subtle but real – and worth thinking about now and again. There’s been a marked sort of ‘Teflon’ quality to mistakes being made during the past couple of years – have you noticed? A lot of people who you could have sworn should have paid a ‘bigger price’ for something simply haven’t. Or maybe you’ve noticed how you can hold yourself to every best standard in the world (or to not a single standard) and sometimes it all sort of comes out in the wash?

If we take this concept out into the greater realm of metaphysical theory, being that this shift is (at some level) about the difference between learning and applying/trying out what we've learned (or even decided in spite of evidence to the opposite!)...this is an exhalation against the inhalation of learning. This is the testing of your foothold (what you think you know) as opposed to putting your full weight on a decision or directive drawn in nearby sand. 

Saturn shifts equate to slow growth - and the enduring achievement which long-term, attentive dedication to some cause earns us in return. In Scorpio, Saturn is at some level about all those things we can't 'build' into our life but which change us through our assimilating some quality thereof...or the more 'wholesale' being reoriented by...all of which we encounter, assess, develop opinions of - and yet feel drawn to learning from (or exploring more of) despite any previous plan.

Scorpio distracts. Whether it distracts us onto a better route with greater potential reached via more challenging growth or lesser returns courtesy of the benefits of an easier passage - that's mostly about where our native Saturn is positioned and where Scorpio falls in our chart.

At their best, this pairing keeps us directed - if hopefully not so stringently that we end up being deprived of 'special' treasures we find along the way.

(And yes, if they're so special, maybe we'll have to make a Saturn/effort to keep them included in our life, yes.)

Saturn’s rulership of Capricorn and that Capricorn is the first sign of the next quadrant implies that this is such a critical growth period and who we ally ourselves with is now sufficiently important that…well, life is going to do whatever life has to do in order to get us to pay attention to what we’re doing, how we’re doing it and who we’re doing it with.

All that begins shifting…now. The actual passage of Saturn through 15 Scorpio may or may not get your attention. What follows, however? That’s likely to affect you not only from now until 2017 (when Saturn leaves the zodiac’s 3rd quadrant) but in the period of 2017–2019 during Saturn’s transit of Capricorn.

And that brings up karma. We all know that Scorpio is the sign of karma, and the 3rd derivation – the communication or thought associated with Scorpio is a 3rd harmonic function. That third sign IS Capricorn. And Saturn does rule Capricorn, a sign known for upholding structures and structures which either hold us up…or, as in the case of the criminal courts, simply hold onto us… that’s where the legendary toughness of Scorpio decisions come from. That’s where we get the image of Scorpio as a sign which decides once and baby, that’s it!

This is also where we can understand – with some pretty darn good clarity – why the best Scorpio decisions and alliances are made through calm and considered choice, not passion, bias or manipulation.

Saturn pushing through 15 Scorpio may well expose some of our errors or reveal ‘flickers’ of things which are not so very good. You may well be tempted – especially given that there will be much going on and we’re all somewhat still beleaguered from the whole Scorpio eclipse thing – you may be tempted to see the ugly and simply ignore it.

Don’t.

That which we do not correct now we carry with us.

I know that sounds trite…and like some truly moronic statement which should merit nothing more than a giant “DUH!”…but what I’m referring to now is karma.

We are moving through one of our own…well, call it a karmic checkpoint. That we let go of or fix, or even begin to let go of or begin to fix over these next few days we will surely work through and add to a list of accomplishments which not only back us up but support us through the next couple of years.

That we shun dealing with, are overly afraid of or which we allow ourselves to be so ‘wearied by’ that we don’t get to them…? Those are the things and the qualities which will trip us up over the next few years. The names may change. The locations will certainly change, no question. But the themes…?

Those are likely to remain constant, as what we are doing for the next few years is learning and growing through what amount to ‘remnants’ of that which we haven’t dealt with in this past couple of years.

In day-to-day terms, Saturn moving through 15 Scorpio brings an aura of ‘what needs to be done’ interspersed with moments of laughter and lightheartedness. Given that same set of days (November 15-20) will also play host to the Leonid meteor shower its likely to be a lively time, if nothing else.

Then there’s Vesta. Asteroid Vesta – the energetic of paying the cost to do what’s important to you (and/or promised) against the actual cost of doing what’s important to you (and keeping promises) – is moving into Libra at 12:42 p.m. on November 15th. (Yes, just in time to inaugurate this entire party.)

For the past couple of months, Vesta has been in Virgo, giving us to know what the ‘cost’ of responsibility and irresponsibility is…what the cost of feeling is, and what it can cost us when we’re unfeeling. Or when we just feel our own feelings and don’t bother remembering that we’re not the only human on the planet.

Now Vesta is going to move into Libra. Ordinarily I would just make mention here of how we’re all about to find out what our relationships are worth to us. And aren’t worth to us. And what they cost us by our being in them. And (of course!) what we ‘cost’ ourselves by not being in relationships which are truly ‘right’ for us, never mind what others say.

Ordinarily I would just say that and move on to other matters. But in THIS case…since Saturn is making its move at the very same time Vesta is making its move…and all that is happening as we move into and through the latest meteor shower….

Let’s just say this much: if it occurs to you that you need to cover your bases, cover them. If you realize that you’re not really ‘in the right crowd’ or that there are work people, play people and companions in life (or whatever list you want to work up for this occasion)…then deal with it. Put out an email or two. Make a call. Go do that coffee or grabbing a quick bite.

You remember that old saying ‘Make Love, Not War’? At the moment, the real question strikes me as being more about whether we even yet know what love is – especially when it comes to loving our Self and appreciating our Self for all the good, all the frailties, all the strengths and all our innocence.

I’m also pretty sure we’re about to get an extended set of lessons, lectures and situational quizzes on the subject.

Which begs the question…do you know where your celestial #2 pencil is?
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Venus in Scorpio, Pallas in Leo

A Pulsar's Hand

(photo credit: P Slane/Harvard-Smithsonian CfA et al, CXC, NASA)

Venus begins just over three weeks of transiting Scorpio on September 11 at 6:17 a.m. (UT/+0 time). Hours later – at 1:49 in the afternoon, asteroid Pallas enters Leo.

These two positions are about as much in square to each other as they can get, which is the first indicator that September 11th is going to be a day when we can be challenged…feel our challenges…or when by getting ourselves not to hold onto attributes associated with one side or the other of the concepts expressed either one of these concepts, we empower ourselves to move forward in (Scorpio) sync with our world and in a (Leo) manner which can lead to great things.

That said, neither one of these placements is a bowl of ice cream with a cherry on top, so that bears a little thinking through.

But let’s start with the square. Long regaled as the bad guys in the world of aspects, a whole lot of astrological research and gathering of statistics and life stories has shown that the ‘difficulties’ often associated with squares is a matter of imbalance.

On our parts, I mean.

Think of it this way…the 90 degree square angle is the angle used most often in construction. But in order for that ‘construct’ to hold together and bear weight, the substance and internal structure – the very nature of the ‘materials’ (i.e., what we invest in a particular attribute) have to be within – as architects and engineers might say – within tolerance.

And that tolerance isn’t about preference – it’s about the very nature of the materials involved. If the ceiling is some massive slab of lead and the walls are made of cardboard, it’s unlikely those walls are going to support that ceiling.

Each thing needs to be proper for what it is, and when we do that, the joining of the two structures becomes something which is a very good example of that proverbial expression ‘greater than the sum of the parts.’

In a natal chart, squares are what we build with. They ‘feel’ inconvenient to start with, but when we master the precepts involved, often we are led to those things which form the actual “building blocks” of our life – that which with we engineer the structuring of our life and our world.

As for Leo and Scorpio, these are two of the zodiac’s four fixed signs – the signs of processing the business of that part of the zodiac. Leo is part of the 2nd quadrant, a quadrant about learning how to operate within ‘our realm.’

Scorpio is part of the 3rd zodiacal quadrant, a quadrant all about learning how to operate in an interactive public realm.

Here’s a diagram of the ‘natural’ zodiac wheel which gives a visual in this regard…

The 2nd quadrant is localized. It’s about growing into our abilities and learning how to manage or operate them to the best of our abilities. Water sign Cancer is the first sign in this quadrant and it’s about the operating of our basic emotionality. Leo is a fire sign all about what we are able to envision ourselves being or doing – and taking our first steps (or our thousandth step!) in figuring out how to bring that ‘vision’ to life and make it ‘be’ what we want it to be. A lot of frustrations are experienced in the world of Leo because in ‘practicing’ terms Leo follows Cancer and Cancer is the first water sign of the zodiac. So we’re talking about basic reactions to our own ability to have things be what they want them to be as we go into Leo.

Being focused through Pallas, this Leo ‘striving’ and desire to make things come into being or be as they want them to be encounters a bit of a cooling off as Pallas (short for Pallas Athena) refers to the sense of ‘dispassionate wisdom’ which we might otherwise think of as ‘perspective.’

Pallas is going to be in Leo until it moves on into Virgo late on November 9th. So these next few months are a time of ‘getting perspective’ on things. Or maybe for you it’s about doing the Leo thing (creating something in your life) while employing a greater sense of perspective…a cooler passion, if you will.

As soon as I say that, it may occur to you (as it did to me) that this may surface in some lives as more of a tendency to ‘operate things’ with an eye to getting what we want from them…or getting what we want from others. If you jump to the term ‘manipulation’ you’re not incorrect. But this could also refer to guidance – the providing of it, or being guided by someone in the learning of something new.

Or maybe it’s just about support and being supported through something or by someone who has walked the same path before you.

Scaling this back into the next three weeks (plus) however, there is the Venus-in-Scorpio thing to contend with. Scorpio is the fixed sign which sits in the middle of the zodiac’s third and interactive quadrant. This is the quadrant all about ‘getting ahead’ in whatever you’re aiming to do, which is why questions of and contests of power are so vibrantly (illustriously?) connected with Scorpio. Whatever the scale…whether we’re talking about friendly competition, the interpersonal emotions we all experience through relating and relationships, the vying for dominance in business or the full fledged war complete with bullets, bombs and missiles, Scorpio essentially is the realm of having our personal relationship with ourselves tested. Yes, we tend to think Scorpio is all about ‘the other guy’ (or gal) but it isn’t – it’s about what we want and that ‘want’ as a sign of the values we hold in general and for our Self. We contest others when we’re either convinced they’re wrong or when we don’t want to admit (to ourselves or anyone else) that there’s something amiss in our thinking.

Or, since Scorpio is a water sign, in the internalized imperatives of the emotionality we bring to any given relationship or situation which calls for us to relate to someone else and where they’re coming from.

Our greatest Scorpio successes occur when we find the right people or the right ‘formula’ which gets everybody to agree to go forward with an equal amount of give and take on all sides, an equal measure of ‘getting what I want’ granted to all parties and when everyone is on the same page as to what the goal(s) are. We don’t have to all be aiming for the same thing in a Scorpio situation – but we do have to be honest about it. The simplest example of this is the all-so-frequent differences in intimate relationships where one person is all about sex and the other person is all about security and being in a relationship they can rely on. Or where one person is all about money or social status and the other person is all about love.

None of these are ‘bad’ combinations so long as we are honest about where we are coming from and what our priorities are…and so long as the person who is agreeing to be in relationship with us understands that what’s important to them is their thing and what’s important to us is our thing and that we are both equally responsible when it comes to respecting the other person as an individual with priorities we should accept – not judge – and that by entering into any relationship of any kind we are accepting…in other words CHOOSING TO ACCEPT the need to honor that other person’s needs AS THEY HAVE BEEN NEGOTIATED GOING INTO THE RELATIONSHIP.

Business is very Scorpio. In fact, high finance and investments are one of the hallmarks of Scorpio. We all know that there has long been a problem with ‘fine print’ and not fully disclosing many facts in the financial world…but on the other side of the coin there are a whole lot of people who want to get into complex financial transactions without bothering to get educated in how they work.

Asteroid Pallas as photographed by the Hubble Space Telescope

(photo credit: NASA, September 2007)

This is very much part of the Scorpio issue. While trust is a lovely thing and yes, there are people in this world who are entirely trustworthy, the person who wants to get into relationships in the Scorpio realm had better be willing to pay the price for their unwillingness to own their own personal power.

When things go wrong in the Scorpio world we feel hapless. Stupid. Unworthy. The instant tendency is to retreat.

Not so instant – or automatic – is the necessity to understand not what they did…but what in US caused us to pick them to ‘get into bed’ with - be that physically, emotionally, in business or any other way. We also need to think through what it is (specifically) in us which is so hurt…and whether that part of us has truly (honestly) been badly treated, or whether we are simply so sensitive or maybe unrealistic or perhaps just underdeveloped/underutilized that we are unable to stand the “normal” amount of daily rough and tumble which is part of human life.

Those who ask themselves these questions, those who are willing to learn and grapple with that they need to learn often return to the Scorpio foray and do very, very well the next time out.

Those who don’t, repeat their mistakes – sometimes until they refuse to emerge from their shells ever again.

There are aspects of these lessons which are about the ‘crucible’ process of being a human. The heartbreakingly tough time so associated with Scorpio loss, Scorpio defeat, Scorpio miscalculations, Scorpio abandonment – even the experience of being the object of Scorpionic abuse – these are all ‘shaping experience’ which cause us to realize what life really is…as opposed to what we want to think it is. In his masterful book “The Prophet,” Kahil Gibran wrote ‘out of suffering have emerged the strongest souls; the most massive characters are seared with scars’ and that is a poignant Scorpionic statement. 

No matter who we are, respect – including that we have for ourselves - is earned.

And often the greatest amount of that respect is not earned through being the naif who ‘lucks out’ but through being the person who has felt the pain and been knocked down and who has gotten back onto their feet. ‘Older but wiser’ as we say, they learn more about who they are and about how others are and how to value both…and how to work with both…and the dangers of ignoring one or the other.

That is the Scorpio process.

All of this now comes into play with Venus’ entrance into Scorpio. That the first couple of weeks of this passage will have Venus in Scorpio against Sun In Virgo suggests that providing we are willing to be invested in knowing our own values and what we are getting into…and how that may affect us and thus our feelings about ourselves moving forward. Virgo being a sign about improving who we are, how we do what we do and our ability to grapple with our Self while taking the needs of others into account in an honorable manner, this is a period when the Venusian cause/effect. Why? Because Venus in Scorpio is all about the ‘what we do’ turning into ‘into how we are received or responded to’ – which with the Sun in Virgo can be all applause and ‘thank you’s or critiques which can feel very harsh.

Once the Sun moves into Libra on September 22nd the aura of life becomes more airy and that leads us to reflect…and contemplate…and think through and over what is going on. And what we think we should do. And what we need to understand before moving forward…or what we need to understand before making a choose to move forward in one direction or another.

This is a good time to get input from others. It’s also a good time to have as open and honest a conversation you can muster with people whose experiences mirror yours (or your proposed path forward). Understanding the thinking of others is important during the second half of Venus’ transit through Scorpio as this is where we have the greatest opportunity to understand the values of others (which we need to take into account and treat honorably) and where/how we are invested, under-invested or over-invested in one aspect of our life or another.

Given Sun in Libra against Venus in Scorpio, emotional investments are at the top of our list – and that doesn’t just mean personal or professional relationships, but rather our relationship to emotional investing (in ourselves and others)…AND our involvement in any situation which affects us emotionally.

And let’s face it…that’s just about everything!

Which calls to the fore another Scorpio issue: priorities. Scorpio is the land of emotional priorities and prioritization of emotions and emotionality. Understanding what (and who) is more important to you now can be challenging. But on the other hand, this well may be the challenge you need to face. Scorpio is the land of reconciling through negotiation with nothing ever being 100% what we want it to be.

And that calls out the best from Sun in Libra – namely, the Sun in Libra as the insight which ALLOWS us to negotiate and strike a bargain with ourselves and others which all parties can live with.

Still…don’t plan on any Libra/Scorpio love fests. These are sequential signs and sequential signs always feel a little bit awkward. Moreover, if your personal chart is very air-born or very water-logged (logged into this life as watery and therefore emotional) your tendency is going to be to ‘favor’ on thing over the other – which with Venus in Scorpio may mean ‘fighting’ for the right to splurge however you tend to splurge, whether that means ‘doing too much’ or ‘doing not at all.’

As photographed from space, an orbital sunrise with Venus and Mars just visible in the glow

(photo credit: NASA, Aug 1995)

Both are splurges in the metaphysical sense. Any time we ‘polarize’ and indulge, that’s a splurge!

Going back to Pallas…hopefully Pallas’ dispassionate nature will help us think things through. With Mars also transiting Leo throughout this time there’s no lack of will to operate…but there may be some unwillingness to see any perspective other than your own.

And that is just the nature of the beast…and hopefully not the beastliness of this time.

That all is not going to be totally cool, calm and collected is to be anticipated going through these next few weeks if only (only?) because Pluto will be going direct on September 20th and – though you might be bored with hearing me say it – we are in the auspices of the approaching Solar Eclipse.

Some things will be insecure now. Some things will be crumbling even as we try to hold onto them. Why they are no longer stable - that's the question to ask. That which is not working is not working because it has outlived its function at least in the format which it now exists. Maybe you can reinvent it? Venus in Scorpio would be good for that. Maybe you need to reorganize your priorities - the 'investing' of your time, your feelings, your regard for self-versus-others?

Maybe. It all depends.

Speaking of which, Venus will hit the degree of the eclipse ON September 20th or 21st, depending on where you live. The days around Pluto’s station – considering Pluto is the ‘outcome’ ruler of Scorpio – is going to tell you a lot about the choices you have already made, and pose a few new choices which need making.

Hopefully you will employ your very best Venus in Scorpio in making them. The combining of Venus in Scorpio with Pallas in Leo which will deeply color September's mid-section and lead us into the Pluto station is all about what we might call 'dispassionate passion' - the ability to care about the internal functionality of something and its integrity as much as 'what it looks like' or how that relates to some other thing (or how someone else relates to it).

The more we remember that what we want has to be gotten from someone else, the more we are likely to realize that what we do and how we go about doing it has a far, far greater chance for success if we remember that others have feelings and needs and aims which are quite as strong and quite as valid as our own.

We don’t need people to be like us…we need people who will be fair and caring about who we are.

And that starts with our being fair and caring about who everybody is. We change our world by changing ourselves and our relationship to that world. We can’t shut it out and expect it to take us in, we can’t dishonor ourselves and expect to be respected and we can’t be our best Self except in the company of others who are dedicated to being the best human being they know how to be.

There are lots of posers. The conservative bet now and moving forward however, goes to those and that which embodies lasting quality.
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Dateblog: August 2013

If we were simply to summarize August in a couple of words it would be dream your finest dreams, then fulfill them. That Mars and Jupiter are both in Cancer throughout this month creates a restless urge to ‘grow’ our lives. Mercury finishing up its own transit of Cancer during the first week of August with the ongoing Jupiter-Saturn-Neptune grand trine in water is likely to test us all with little niggles of ‘are you kidding me?’ and ‘am I kidding myself?’ which will manifest in various forms of pinging and ponging back and forth from yea to nay, from enthusiastic to discouraged, from gung-ho to ho-hum.

The Sun in Leo against Venus in Virgo for the first two-and-a-half weeks of the month represent tests of even the stoutest will to either keep up the pace, keep up the enthusiasm or just keep up the game face. This isn’t a necessarily graceful combination – and once Mercury joins the Sun in Leo there will be a rise in willfulness which for some (those prone to it) will spell frustration. Even people long used to (or really good at) the nose-to-the-grindstone routine are likely to suffer from a case of ‘can we be done with this, already?’

Fortunately, this only lasts until mid-month – and given the end of the grand water trine plus peak of the Perseids around the 10^th through 12^th, that would be around the time to expect light at the end of the tunnel. (Or at least directions to the end of the tunnel!)

Once Venus moves into Libra on August 16^th, the wheels of progress will begin turning in some of our lives – those who have been working towards something, one supposes. With Mars still in Cancer, Venus’ passage through Libra creates a natural square-by-sign which in this case will prove more helpful and motivational than not.

Meanwhile, there will have been a very personal energy felt during the middle of the month (the 8^th through 21^st) which in reflection of the double Leo Sun/Mercury signature heightens the need for self-reliance. Some will no doubt call this ‘willful’ and in some conversations, Sun-Leo in Mercury can be willful in the sense that people may tend to see their own point or aim and remain curiously blind to the needs or perspectives of others. But as they say…it’s all in how you use things, right? Sun/Mercury in Leo can be a delightfully creative time. Or when kicking back and doing exactly what pleases you just scratches that inner itch. This is also a good time – especially during the latter days of this conjunction (say, the 17^th through 21^st) when answers to questions of how to make something work – in general – or work for you in your own life may just pop into your head in a ‘why didn’t I think of this before now?’ moment.

And perhaps you’ve noticed that Jupiter squares Uranus just as there’s an Aquarian Full Moon? That sounds like a moment, doesn’t it? Not only will we get the high water fervency of an Aquarian Full Moon but Jupiterian ‘expansion’ meeting Uranian ‘break out’ energy?

One can only hope (and guess) that in many a life this will be the dawning of great things yet to pan out. But this is also combination which, in combining the ‘group dynamic’ and social-societal ‘mass marketplace’ emphasis of Aquarius against Uranus’ notable reputation for clocking anarchistic expression makes one wonder. No matter what happens, the energy involved is meant to get us to think bigger – or maybe ‘more consequentially’ or ‘long term’ is a better way to put it.

We live as energy in a vastness of other energies…the ripples we create become influences on the lives of others.

Once we pass through August 22^nd and 23^rd and this Sun-Mercury pairing moves on into Virgo, the need and ability to think things through and focus on ‘perfecting the means and method’ by which we move on becomes thematic. Some of us will take to this like the duck in proverbial water. Then again, some of us who are more into the Venus in Libra ‘good time’ and the Mars in late Cancer ‘I don’t want to be told what to do’ vibe will need to be prompted more by need…or maybe simple responsibility…into getting ourselves into gear.

In local planetary terms the last piece to shift while August is still on the calendar is Mars leaving Cancer for Leo, which spells a general picking up of the intensity of energetics, and maybe also the pace of things. Just remember, this could also spell heels being dug in – and maybe a reason why you need to dig them in. It does all depend!

August begins with a personal planet lineup in Cancer, Leo and Virgo, emphasizing ‘localized’ doings. These are all signs which belong to the 2^nd zodiacal quarter: they’re still in the ‘private’ zone even though they’re responsive to others. We know the world is there even if we aren’t, maybe aren’t ready to be or don’t want to be fully exposed to its elements.

But as August ends, the personal planet lineup has moved into Leo, Virgo and Libra. And since Libra is the first of the 3^rd quadrant signs , we know life is intent on moving us into a bigger and more public, worldly realm of life activities. That the first planet to get there is Venus symbolizes the allure and temptation to grow our life through interacting with others – and we’re ready for it.

Or at least we will be as August becomes September, and September becomes October.

More to come!
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Mars in Aries: Who Me?

An Eruption of Italy's Stromboli volcano in 1980 taken by Wolfgang Beyer

On March 12th, at 6:27 in the morning (UT/+0), Mars enters Aries.

As an astrologer I’m very happy I’m not required to get up and sound any trumpets about such things as 6:27 in the morning is way to early for brass fanfares. But apart from that, once Mars does enter Aries it’s likely to be a good thing.

Well, at least on some levels.

The ‘good’ here would be how Mars in Aries tends to be a time when people are spunky and filled with energy and a will to get things done.

Of course, Mars in Aries is also a time when people can get so full of themselves that they ignore everybody else. There is that.

So the energy part of Mars in Aries is useful. The willful conviction part? Well, that depends on who you are. I’d like to say that if you’re the shy, meek type Mars in Aries could give you the gusto to go out and be all you could ever want to be. But even if Mars in Aries is known for conquering goals, if your goal is to never (ever!) have to do anything or expose your vulnerabilities, Mars in Aries can just have you doubling up (or down) on that very sort of determination.

Under the best of conditions, Aries is the sign where Mars represents a rise in consciousness. We should size up what needs doing, what we can do about it and go do just that. But for some, Mars in Aries becomes a time of self-consciousness. Or even inflated ego. Which you are (and which those you care about are) depends on the natal chart…and probably where Pluto falls in that chart natally and by current Capricorn transit.

Why Pluto?

Because Mars has two signs of rulership. And any time any planet which has two signs of rulership enters either of their ruling signs, qualities related to both signs get stirred.

The atmosphere of Mars  as photographed by the Viking Orbiter

(photo credit: NASA, 1976)

That’s a whole subject of its own which I’ll explain in a different blog (it’s kind of annoying and kind of illuminating), but for the moment, let’s just stick to the Mars stuff. (It’s sticky enough!) But just to touch on that here, given that the ‘other’ sign Mars is a ruler in is Scorpio, that’s the big clue to why Mars in Aries can be so hard-headed.

Aries is a cardinal sign. Cardinal signs learn through doing. In other words they do, look at the results and decide what they did right, and what they should probably do differently next time.

Scorpio is a fixed sign. Fixed signs would like to understand everything about how the thing works before they dip their toe in even a thimble of the possibility that they might get involved, never mind DO anything.
Therefore, that Mars is a ruler of a primary cardinal sign which is about BEING and DOING and MAKING THINGS HAPPEN…which at it’s emotional (Scorpio) core should be about making things work better for everybody but which often turn into an exercise in wanting to be ‘seen’ a given way or wanting to ‘win’ approval or support or NOT wanting to end up being told you’re wrong about anything…

Yeah, it’s a bit of a contest. And a contest we each will contest in our own sweetly (or not so sweetly) personal way between March 12th, when Mars enters Aries and April 20th, when Mars moves on into Taurus. (Let’s not get me started on the Mars in Taurus stuff yet…that will just lead to a lot of discussion of the May Solar Eclipse in Taurus, and we’re going to be discussing that at length soon enough!)

What seems important to think about here is how March 12th through April 20th is basically five weeks.
It’s an interesting oddity, this Mars orbit we live with. What do I mean by that? Okay…consider this: Mars’ full orbit of the Sun is 687 days (1.88 years) long. And when you divide 687 by 360 (degrees in the zodiac or a circle), you get 1.908333333…(add as many ‘3’s as you like).

What this says is that the mean average movement of Mars through any given degree should take almost two days, meaning thirty degrees (a sign’s worth of degrees) should take sixty days.

But if you look back through an ephemeris, what you’ll find is that apart from the years when Mars is retrograde in Aries (which will next happen in the year 2020) Mars generally does only spend about five weeks in Aries.

Maybe that is a key to why we do so much and get to hopping on things when Mars is in the most basic of cardinal signs?

It’s probably not just that Aries is cardinal which applies here. Aries is not just cardinal, it’s also a fire sign. In fact, it’s the only cardinal fire sign. There are four cardinal signs (Aries, Cancer, Libra and Capricorn) and each one belongs to a different element. Aries is fire, Cancer is water, Libra is air and Capricorn is earth. This is true of every ‘modality’ – or ‘triplicity’ as cardinal, fixed and mutual are collectively known.

And this is part of the genius of the zodiac – and of understanding life and other human beings as it happens. I’ve heard people say ‘I’m an air sign, I only get along with other air signs,’ to which I say “Really?” Since the modality (the ‘mode of activity’) of a sign is the general description of how someone works, why would whether they put things in airy, theoretical terms trump whether they go for it (the cardinal way of doing things) versus whether they hem and haw and try to make sure there are no other options (as fixed signs will do) or start and stop, learning as they go and changing their plans accordingly as mutable signs do?

After thirty-some years of listening to this ‘I like earth sign people,’ ‘I like water sign people’ and so on, I tend to think that it’s just easier to grasp the nature of elements (earth, air, fire, water) than it is to grasp modalities.

But in the end, modalities probably make and break more relationships - personal and professional. If she’s really a cardinal sign gal and he’s really a fixed sign guy, she’s going to get tired of waiting for him to make up his mind and he’s going to feel like she’s nagging him. If the lawyer is a highly mutable person and their client is a seriously cardinal person, that client is likely to think the lawyer is flakey, no matter what flavor of flake that comes out being.

Yes, we do need to be tolerant of each other, and under Mars in Aries we can either not do that and get all frustrated and impatient (which happens a lot) or we can grow into some personal insight about what individuality really means. About who that “I” person in your head really is, and how it’s foolish to expect anyone to be ‘just like you’ or to know who you are if you haven’t been that person yet.

Mars in Aries is the heart and soul of by our actions we shall be known. That starts with being conscious that we are…and conscious of who we are, both of which are the process and outcome of Mars in Aries. It’s a time for learning more about ourselves through what we do and what happens or what prompts us to get off our duff or open our eyes…and it’s a time when by choosing or not choosing to act, and the quality of our actions we reveal ourselves and our capacities to ourselves – never mind to others!

You’ve heard me talk about the first zodiacal quadrant as being about ‘the self.’ Aries is what starts that off. The sign progression here being Aries, Taurus, Gemini, you can’t respect your Self or have self worth invested in that Self if you have no idea who that Self is, or what they are capable of or willing to do.

And without both of those, who thinks you can make a decent (Gemini) choice about anything?

I’ve also said this before (and yes, I’m going to say it again!)…but it’s also as important to understand what zodiac quadrants don’t contain as what they do contain. The first quadrant is cardinal, fixed and mutable (triplicities repeat in each quadrant)…AND the first quadrant is fire, earth air.

The four elements – the quadruplicities of the zodiac also repeat. The sequence is fire, earth, air, water…right round the wheel. But when you have four elements and only three signs per quadrant, one element is going to get left out.

And in that first quadrant which is all about the Self and learning who and what we are and that we exist and how we feel about ourselves and what we’re able to do if we’re capable of doing anything?

That first quadrant of the zodiac does NOT have water in it. So though we may think (air) fervently. The sheer emotionality and all the instinctual qualities we metaphysically attribute to water don’t show up until Cancer – and Cancer isn’t part of the first and most primary quadrant of the zodiac.

It’s part of the second quadrant (and the right side of the wheel, as opposed to the left). That second quadrant is about interaction. Call it learning to be social and interact with others. Where the first quadrant (and first three signs) embody the idea of the infant through toddler into childhood stages (ages 0-7.5), the second quadrant embodies ages 7.5 through 14. Thus the zodiac defines emotionality as responsive…the whole right side of the wheel (and the signs associated with that right side of the wheel) are reactive and responsive.

And that leaves us with a greater understanding of why Aries – and thus Mars in Aries can be such a self-involved time. You may use that as getting to know yourself. Then again, you could be more egocentric than usual. (Who, YOU? Egocentric?)

At the same time, all signs are part of dualities – you know, the ‘oppositional polarity.’ With Aries, that opposition is Libra, which is not precisely the “you” of it all. No, Aries/Libra is what I do will affect you so that you will respond to me…HOW?

And yes, I’m putting my money on the awareness ticket this time around. At least on the value of the awareness ticket for this Mars-in-Aries quadrille. And why would that be? That would be because as Mars enters Aries, it’s going to be doing so in the company of Photographica, an asteroid which appears to be about ‘the image.’ In Aries, the sign of the physical self, this may be about your looks. It could be about a health problem. It could be a focus on what others think of you or what you want to work on in order to shape what people think of you.

Given that the Moon is going to follow Mars into Aries within less than five hours of the Mars ingress, we can also bet there’s some sort of sensitivity involved. And yes, some cause for sensitivity, whether that’s in-built ego vulnerability, some actual cause for physical concern or a simple desire to change. With Mars changing signs pretty much in the dawn of day after the Pisces New Moon, Eris is still conjunct Pallas too.
But just perhaps of note here is that in the hours between that New Moon and this Mars ingress, Eris and Pallas have changed places. As the New Moon occurred, some ‘dispassionate wisdom’…maybe better put as ‘perspective’ occurred to call our ‘Pallas’ attention to something in such a way which we hadn’t suspected (Eris) and which forced us to choose between the easy and challenging ways forward.

And that isn't always easy - a fact which the following piece of art would seem to show has been something people have been thinking about for a very long time! 

This 1771 painting, "The Combat of Mars and Minerva" by Joseph-Benoit Suvee will seem far more apropos to today's discussion if we remember that Minerva is the alternate name for Athena...also known as Pallas Athena, she who sprung full grown from the thoughtful brow of Zeus (aka Jupiter).

This can be just a little thing. Then again, if your chart aligns with 21 Pisces (the New Moon) or 21 Aries (Pallas-Eris) or even 0 Aries (the Mars ingress), you could be going through a whole period which is at some level about understanding your own capacity. And what you may need to do in spite of the fact you’re not exactly jollied at the prospect of doing it (Pallas/Eris).

There’s more to this period…it’s continuing to evolve. But we’ll get to those factors as they become more likely to be active on the backgammon board of life. (Or Monopoly, if you prefer.)

But right now, we know that as of March 12th (which would still be late on March 11th for those in the western Americas or eastern Pacific Basin) there’s something of a celestial starting gun being sounded at the energetic level.

Ready…set…go where?

Be what?

Good question!
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