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Sunday, October 31, 2010

Astro Tips for November 2010

When the Sun travels through the sign of Scorpio, our thoughts turn to the mysteries of life and death. Samhain, the Celtic celebration to welcome the winter and to begin the New Year, gives us the history of this dark time of year. Costumes were worn to hide from evil spirits and to stay out of the way of any unwelcome dead returning to visit. The ancestors were honored, but the living lit bonfires to keep the living safe. Too much closeness to the mystery is uncomfortable and risky.

Perhaps the association of Scorpio with sex and death is exactly why there are jokes about that sexy Scorpio tribe. Without procreation there is no life. Without life, there is no death. We have to make jokes about that. Another hot Scorpio topic is taxes. People aren’t joking about that one either.

The New Moon on November 6th has Venus retrograde sitting off to the side of the Sun and Moon union in Scorpio. A current example of Venus retrograde showed up on October 9th when Virginia Thomas, wife of Justice Clarence Thomas, left a phone message for Anita Hill asking her to apologize for nearly ruining Thomas’s career back in 1991. Thomas was accused of inappropriate verbal harassment of a sexual (Scorpio) nature. It is still coming back to haunt him. The events of 1991 have been rehashed. A new generation is educated about the imperfections of a Supreme Court justice. (See The Plain Dealer, Cleveland’s newspaper, October 24, 2010, for an excellent article on the subject).

Venus backs into Libra after the New Moon and then turns direct on November 18, the same day that Jupiter goes direct after its long retrograde phase since July 23. This is an optimistic event. On the personal level, we may feel better about how we have sorted out our lives in the past few months. Perhaps we feel clearer about what we value and about our goals and potentials. On the collective level, the right will be happy or the left will be happy! It isn’t voting day as I write this.

One thing is very clear. Part of the population will feel frustrated and disappointed. Events will be blown out of proportion. Frustration and resentment will contaminate the airwaves. Saturn, the planet that is reality based makes a difficult connection with Neptune, the planet that dreams. Furthermore, Chiron is conjunct Neptune and both of these bodies go direct during the New Moon time. Chiron, the wounded healer, may have played a pivotal role in getting the health care program launched. Chiron and Neptune together are geared towards compassion and healing. Unfortunately this funny aspect/connection with Saturn implies that the reality is messy. The health care bill didn’t go far enough for some; the status quo system lobbied to make sure that didn’t happen; and the bill went too far for others. This is still to be worked out with Saturn’s hard working help.

Another tip about Chiron and Neptune is this: it is difficult to discern the distinction between fact and fantasy. Notice the media! It is very confusing. It doesn’t matter what you think the fact is some people won’t believe it. People seem to be prone to believing what they hear, if they hear the same lie over and over again. Neptune tends to confuse and dissolve boundaries. When it touches Chiron, the wound is sensitivity to this lack of boundary. We are living in a time when people are caught up in collective emotion. It is hard for people to step aside and gain objectivity—hard to feel the boundary between self and the emotional hoopla. This Chiron/Neptune union affects us all. Saturn is tugging on the chain telling us to get real and rational. The Health Care bill that was passed is a part of this messy dilemma. Our challenge is to recognize that we are all one (Neptune) but we have to honor the reality (Saturn) of our separatness.

On the personal level, this is a powerful month. The Full Moon offers energies of cosmic connection if we can avoid the our own forms of self-undoing. Admittedly on the day of the Full Moon, Venus at 27 degrees of Libra makes an awkward connection with the Moon and Jupiter. We should all be careful not to get carried away with financial speculation. Remember the Scorpio/Taurus polarity has much to do with money and resources. The Full Moon in Taurus says be careful while the funny aspect with Venus says, oh, go ahead. Also on the day of the Full Moon in Taurus, Mercury and Mars are sitting together in Sagittarius and squaring Jupiter and Uranus. The handicap here is harsh words that are hard to retract. This is a combo that promotes impulsive speech. Try writing it down first. Try holding your tongue. If that doesn’t work, apologize quickly. Prominent personalities will make outrageous statements leading them into the hall of fame or the hall of scorn.

For Scorpios, empowerment is currently your middle name. Pluto, ruling planet of Scorpio, is working hard. It continues to tear down the old structures that hold you back. And, Pluto’s connection with Uranus continues to encourage insight and growth. Venus in Scorpio, even retrograde, has empowered Scorpios to get clear about values, love, partnership, and resources.

During these Scorpio days we will be bombarded with the reality of living in a world of duality. Each side of the fence thinks the other side is living in the dark. We complain about the dark ways of our civilization, but maybe we should contemplate the possibility that we are evolving at a fast pace now. The more light, expansive thinking there is, the more apparent the contractive darkness will be. Maybe we can’t have the light without the darkness. Maybe we need the contrast. “When it is dark enough you can see the stars.” (Charles Austin Beard)

Tuesday, October 12, 2010

Astro Tips for October 2010

American is having a nervous breakdown

Dr. Cornel West (writer, philosopher, activist) recently said, “America is having a nervous breakdown.” Isn’t that the truth! The Sun is in Libra but life seems anything but sane and harmonious. The Libra scales do not feel steady at the moment. Our society seems to be emotionally out of balance. And ready to crack apart.

When someone asks me about the planetary news, I have to say, the pressure continues. With the Libra New Moon on October 7th, Saturn was still opposing Uranus and both of those planets were squaring Pluto. This arrangement has been in place for a long time now. Pluto, the transformer, holding both Saturn and Uranus in a tight grip, wants us to eliminate what we no longer need and make appropriate changes. We have seen financial meltdown followed by painful unemployment. We have had many natural disasters and the Gulf oil spill. Now in Hungary there has been another chemical disaster killing people and spoiling the water and land. Mother Earth doesn’t even feel safe. Individuals and corporations who hold the power are not reliable. There is human error, accident and downright negligence occurring over and over. Has anything been eliminated yet? Now we have the politics of mid-term elections. Shock and bizarreness! It doesn’t look like we are evolving; however, we are in the movie. We aren’t watching the movie. Perhaps we cannot see from our perspective that we are evolving.

Saturn is transiting Libra

The planet Saturn is traveling through Libra until well into 2012. The Sun, Moon, Saturn and Mercury were sitting in Libra on the New Moon. Saturn brings our attention to limitations. Libra is balance, harmony and fairness. Saturn brings our attention to the lack of those qualities. Libra is about relationship. Perhaps on the individual level these days are filled with happy relational stories, but on the global level people just don’t seem to be getting along. When Libra is out of balance, life is not pretty. Saturn adds an element of fear to whatever it touches. To some degree America’s nervous breakdown is based on fear. Saturn in Libra asks us to reach for more maturity in the relational realm. Saturn in Libra suggests we get over our fear of each other. Saturn in Libra challenges us to examine issues and reach for fairness and justice. Saturn in Libra doesn’t like ugly behavior, and ugly really gets our attention these days.

Special message for all Libras

For those readers who were born under the sign of Libra, this is a serious time in your life. Saturn is sitting with your Sun. Life is not frivolous at the moment. You are facing life issues that only you can address. You will feel wiser and more mature as you face your challenges. You will confront what is really important to you. You will address your values and you will address the state of your relationships and all things that are truly valuable to you. That is what Saturn will ask you to do. Maybe it will be your family relationships, maybe friendships or work place relationships. Perhaps valuable means qualities, like self-respect and integrity. Saturn will teach you about yourself and you, in turn, can be a leader and teach others. Astrology says that Saturn is exalted in Libra, so you have the opportunity to behave with fairness and dignity and to make an impact on others. We think of Libras as nice people who want everyone to get along. We think Libras don’t like to fight. You will fight, however, if you feel you are being treated unfairly. If your values or relationships are threatened, you will fight to make things right.

Venus is retrograde

On October 8th, Venus began its retrograde cycle in the sign of Scorpio and this continues until November 18th. Venus isn’t particularly fond of the Scorpio sign. Mars and Pluto belong to Scorpio, making the sign intense and dramatic. Scorpio might bring power struggles rather than co-operative, supportive relationships. Venus is happy in Libra and Taurus. Scorpio is about intimacy that may be gained through sex, power and domination. Libra is about nice relationships! So here we go, Venus retrograde in Scorpio. Furthermore, Venus repeats its same retrograde cycle every eight years. Think back to 2002 or pull out your diaries and journals and see what was happening in October of 2002. What were you doing when Venus was retrograde in Scorpio in 2002? What were your concerns? For the individual, Venus retrograde invites a person to re-examine their relationships and values. A person may also examine their financial situation (Scorpio is one of the money signs). As a nation we are certainly looking at money, debt, over-spending, and allocation of resources. And just as Mercury retrograde sometimes brings messages from people we haven’t heard from for a while, the same is true of Venus retrograde. Loved ones from the past reappear. And with Venus in Scorpio, many people will deepen their relationships or try to improve them. Couples may go to counseling. They may go to a workshop to re-ignite their relationship. Scorpio is a “let-go and eliminate sign” so some relationships will end during their period if the fire cannot be re-lit.

Some people may end a chapter of their lives during Venus retrograde. Perhaps their values have shifted completely and it’s time to let go of an entire life chapter. Retirement, moving to a new location, finding a new career, and letting go of possessions are a few examples of what we might expect during the retrograde phase. It may take many more weeks for the new life chapter to unfold, but the seeds are in the ground and actions are taken now.

On the national, collective level, we see the harsher aspects of Venus in Scorpio playing out in the mid-term campaigns. Venus is retrograde in a sign that hisses and manipulates the truth. One of the symbols for Venus is the mirror. The political scene is holding up a mirror. We are seeing our diversity, our meanness, our kindness, our sanity, our insanity, our security and our insecurity. This mirror has a rear-view element since Venus is retrograde. We are looking back and seeing what used to be commonly held values. Whether it’s values around same-gender relationships, women’s reproductive rights, or economic opportunity for all, we are looking in the mirror and seeing all the things that our society has believed and to some extent continues to believe. When the chips are down, we cannot even say that everyone in the mirror supports religious freedom. Wow. People are agitated and spitting out their discontent. This Venus retrograde is transiting President’s Obama’s 10th house—the house of authority and leadership—on Election Day. I wish I could predict the outcome of the mid-term elections. The energy is unstable, fragile and unpredictable. The outcome will depend on what the people see in the mirror. We have the opportunity to look deeply (Scorpio) or to just see the surface.

Full Moon in Aries

The Moon is full at 29 degrees of Aries on October 22. The Moon opposes the Sun, Mercury and Venus. This is a sensitive, critical time where we have the opportunity to balance the needs of the self with awareness of the needs of other people.


Are we ready for 2012?

It helps to remember that our global society is undergoing enormous change. If the 2012 seers are correct, we are evolving into a more sensitive and spiritually connected species. Eventually we will understand our connection with the Universe. First we have to comprehend our connection with ourselves, with the Earth and with each other. So here we are in the days of Libra and we have time to contemplate our relationships. Not just our family and friend relationships. Not just our relationship to community and nation but our relationship to those who are not like us. It is hard work to get through this eye of the needle. How do we maintain respect for human diversity and actually embrace that diversity and let it be? We are fearful of losing our identity. Libra seeks out relationship and then runs the risk of losing the self and all clarity in that relationship.

The Pluto/Saturn/Uranus drama makes sure that people are afraid of losing their power identity. If we all get along, then we all are entitled to be treated the same. Love your neighbor as you love yourself. What happens to power then? Who has the power? Does anybody need to have the power? Will there someday be a humanity that figures things out without power being handed to just a few or to just one class or one race or one nation or one anything? All I know right now is this: the scales are shaking around and the archetypal energy of Libra is having a nervous breakdown.