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As the New Year opens, we are enjoying a lineup of planets in Capricorn that is sharpening our focus and our ability to ground ourselves into a plan for the coming year. Capricorn is achievement oriented and can be rather driven, but there is also a pragmatism and practicality to that sign that is very useful for life on Planet Earth. The planets involved are Pluto, of course, who will be in Capricorn until 2023; Venus, whose trip through Capricorn helps to solidify our relationships and help us to fulfill our responsibilities; the Sun, lighting the way to devise and create a structure that will provide room for us to grow within; and Mercury, traveling retrograde through Capricorn and causing us to revisit some areas in which perhaps we were less practical than we should have been, and requiring some do-overs. The North Node of the Moon is also in Capricorn which affects us rather less personally, but still there is a sense of moving forward (North Node) with our goals and the practical side of life. The only other planet traveling retrograde is Mars which is in Leo. Mars will remain in Leo until June of 2010: driving us to express our Selves in a creative way, to have fun and seek pleasure, to be generous of heart and vibrant of spirit and ask the same of those around us. As long as Mars is retrograde, however (until March 10), it may be more difficult to actually accomplish our goals and achieve our desires until they have become perfected. Mars retrograde is rather like trying to move forward when the wheels are installed backwards. There is a pull in reverse that can hinder us from getting where we want to be. However, there is also an opportunity here to complete old unfinished projects and alter areas of our life that are affected by the retrograde, such as planets in our chart being aspected by the transit of Mars or houses in our through which Mars is traveling. As January begins we also see Saturn slowing down to a standstill before turning retrograde on the 13th. Over the next two weeks Saturn will travel less than four minutes of arc after it retrogrades it will travel only 10 minutes, just one-third of one degree, so it is virtually stationary throughout the month. When planets are stationary their influence is powerful - like a beam of light coming from the sky, the energies of that planet grabs for our attention. Saturn is the ruler of Capricorn, the sign in which we have the big lineup of planets, so there is a very strong Saturn/Capricorn influence here. That Which Must Be Done takes center focus, and the emotional world recedes into the background. As Saturn retrogrades it will move back into a position to form a square to Pluto for the second time at the end of the month. These two planets acting together demand that we surrender anything in our life that is no longer serving us - any dead weight that we are carrying around out of sentimentality or fear - and rise to the challenge of doing what is necessary and practical to move forward on the evolutionary path. With all of this as a backdrop, it may be a relief to know that there are relatively few interplanetary aspects this month and most of the aspects that do occur are the harmonious kind, suggesting that we are working mostly with the larger issues and will be unfettered by day to day problems that distract us and provide small irritations. Once we have our vision in place of our Saturnian/Capricornian goals and objectives, it will be easier to find the pathway that leads there. This is made all the easier by the fact that the Sun and Venus will be traveling in tight conjunction throughout the month, softening all of our hard edges and opening our hearts to the beauty and harmony that is available all around us. On the 4th and 5th the mind is activated as the Sun conjoins Mercury (information processing) and Mercury conjoins Venus (relating, values, beauty). This is an excellent time for intellectual activities, writing, holding a meeting, or anything of this nature. The mind is highly attuned to aesthetics for a few days here, making this a great time to select paint colors or for a decorating or design project. Our attention is also drawn to relationships of all kinds and we may feel a strong desire to connect with others. This urge to relate returns around the 11th when the Sun is conjunct Venus, shining its light into the crevices of our interpersonal affairs and encouraging us to find beauty and harmony everywhere. This is a very harmonious time and beneficial for all kinds of matters including business and financial. The Venus influence continues to the 13th , softening the retrograde turn of Saturn with a harmonious sextile to Uranus, planet of innovation and change. This is a particularly social time, and even the hermits will seek out the company of others that day. Under this influence we seek stimulation and change, perhaps preferring the company of someone new to those whom we already know well. Saturn turns retrograde on the 13th, and depending on the nature of your own chart you may notice a dark heaviness that seems to descend. On the other hand, you may find that the Saturn experience helps you to focus on clarifying your goals. In any case, over the next few months there will be a need to pay Saturn the tribute that he requires: honoring our responsibilities, applying discipline to our projects, avoiding pie-in-the-sky schemes and fantasies. However, on the day Saturn turns retrograde both Venus and the Sun form a harmonious sextile to Uranus, stimulating new ideas and thought patterns that urge us to deviate from that which is expected. This can be a very productive combination since the Uranian influence inspires us to change, and Saturn provides the focus and discipline to make it happen. The New Moon on January 15th is in Capricorn, continuing the theme of diligence and discipline. This New Moon is an "annular" solar eclipse, and it will be a powerful one because it is the longest in duration of any solar eclipse since 1992. It will be most visible, and therefore most powerful, in Africa and eastern Asia but it will have a strong influence on the rest of us as well. Eclipses do not affect everyone the same way, and not everyone will be affected by every eclipse. But they tend to have the effect of unmasking or revealing something which has been hidden, and at the New Moon there is an opportunity to wipe the slate clean and begin something completely new. Mercury turns direct the day of the eclipse, signaling that it's time to give birth in form to the ideas that have been circulating during the retrograde period. Mars is still retrograde so the actual motion forward may still be slow or difficult, but the mental process flows more easily now. An eclipse occurs when the Sun and Moon conjunct the lunar nodes, the points at which the Moon crosses the ecliptic of the Sun's path. Because the nodes of the moon represent the evolutionary direction of the individual, there is often a sense of destiny in an eclipse. The New Moon here incorporates a tight conjunction to Venus, the ruler of love and beauty but also of values and possessions. The triad of the Sun, Moon and Venus, along with the nodes, forms a harmonious sextile to Uranus, planet of innovation and revolutionary new ideas. There is a sparkling energy here for new beginnings but there must be that Capricornian structure from which to begin. We also have a conjunction of Pluto to Mercury embedded in the chart for the eclipse, suggesting the need to let go of thoughts or beliefs (Mercury) that no longer serve your mission. The process of letting go of these beliefs may be intensified or painful under Pluto's guidance, but ultimately will serve you in the ongoing flow of your life. Jupiter enters Pisces on January 17th, the sign of its traditional rulership. Jupiter is expansive and promotes abundance and faith, and in Pisces, the sign of the mystical experience of the divine, there is an unfolding of the divinity within each of us. Watch these pages for an article about what Jupiter's passage through Pisces over the next year or so will bring. On the 18th Venus enters Aquarius, followed into that sign by the Sun on the 19th. Aquarius is the sign of innovation and social justice, and although it tends to be rather impersonal the passage of Venus through Aquarius warms up that sense of justice and makes it more personal. For the next month or so the idea that all sentient beings have rights and deserve equality will rise to the forefront and be aided by the still-strong sense of responsibility that Saturn is instilling within all of us in the square to Pluto's challenge of transformation. Mars in Leo forms a harmonious trine to Ceres in Sagittarius on the 21st, inspiring us to cook delicious foods that nurture us and our families and infuse us with a love and connection for the Earth and a deep sense that our life on the planet has meaning . A trine from Venus to Saturn on the 22nd settles us into our responsibilities to our loved ones and may cause us to pull back from any kind of reckless behavior. Our awareness of our obligations is further intensified on the 24th with a trine from the Sun to Saturn. This period between the 21st and 25th or so is excellent for business projects or anything requiring a practical focus. On the 27th Venus engages in a challenging opposition to Mars, followed by the Sun's opposition to Mars on the 29th. For a few days here there may be more aggressive energy interrupting the flow of everyday interactions and tempers may flare. This leads up to the fiery Full Moon of January 29-30 which will stoke the fires of our inner aggression and challenge us to direct that fire wisely. This Full Moon is in the fire sign of Leo - sign of expressing the Ego and expansion of the Self. The Leo Moon conjoins Mars, also in Leo, and opposes the Sun and Venus which are both in the impersonal (or transpersonal) sign of Aquarius. The theme of this Full Moon is that of balancing the shadow of the inner fire for self-direction with the solar conscious principle of fairness and justice for all. This balance is not easy to achieve, but we have in the chart of this Full Moon the additional aid of a harmonious sextile between Pluto (transformation) and Jupiter (philosophy and Truth). We are certainly aware that our personal desires (Moon/Mars) are conflicting with what we know to be necessary in order to achieve harmony in our life (Sun/Venus), but we are inspired to seek the ultimate Truth (Jupiter) so that we can let go of the past and shed the old ways that don't serve us (Pluto). The chart for this Full Moon also shows the conjunction of Chiron and Neptune which is extremely tight now, within a half of a degree. The opening of the heart and the soul and the flood of outpouring of emotion that can result is more and more intense at this time. This aspect will culminate in February, but its influence begins with this Full Moon. The gentle guidance of Pluto and Jupiter is offset by the intensity of the Saturn/Pluto square which is only six minutes from exactitude. This combination is rather like the influence a teacher who is gentle in his strong guidance, but who when crossed reveals a formidable temper. Any attempt to deviate from the lesson required by this Full Moon will be met with challenge and the potential for self-destruction. Serious focus is demanded here, but much will be given in return. For
those of us on a path of personal transformation, every planetary
movement, whether difficult or easy, offers us an opportunity
for new wisdom. If we look for that kernel of wisdom in every
challenge, we can more easily move through the times of difficulty
and come out of them with greater understanding. |
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Sun conjunct Mercury