Marching into Aries…here’s April!

We begin April with four planets in lively Aries!  But we are just getting started.  First, let’s catch up.  On March 12, just about the time of the quake and tsunami, give or take a few seconds, Uranus moved into Aries. 

Uranus energy is fast, deep transformation.  “You have to change, and you have to do it NOW!” That’s how Uranus operates.

Aries energy is the energy of beginnings; it is fearless and willing to try anything.  It goes too fast, ignores warnings, just wants to make it happen and experience it NOW.

Jupiter, the energy that makes things larger, more intense and pretty interesting is also in Aries now.  It has paved the way for Uranus’ visit for the next seven years.  Seven years in Aries, be prepared to see your world change quickly!

On April 1st, the Moon joins the fun and shakes hands with Uranus.  The Moon, the emotional center, laughing uncontrollably, bursting into tears, feeling really restless, these are all potentials with Moon/Uranus.

Now back to April, because there is SERIOUS energy here.  On the second of April, Mars catches Uranus and enters Aries, where it is very at home, as it is the ruler of Aries.  Mars is another strong and high-energy presence, he likes to make things happen, push a little harder.  You can see that when he pals around with Uranus in Aries, there could be mischief, these two like trouble.

It is going to be quite a ride. 

Specifically, on April 2^nd, try not to drive, but, if you have to, be sure the car is in perfect shape and you are paying attention.  The car could easily overheat, blow a tire or just bump into something.  I wish I could tell you all the auto incidents I have seen with these two over the years.  I, personally, don’t drive when they meet.  And now they are in Aries.  Really, be careful.

Now there are six planets in Aries, overloading one of the most intense signs. 

If you are not having enough fun yet, Mercury is retrograde at the beginning of the month, which gives it an extra long passage in Aries.  Mercury retro is well known for messing with communications and communications instruments: phone and computer, particularly.  But remember this one is universal, so it also affects those issues is everyone you deal with.  Expect delays, people thinking you meant something you didn’t when you talk to them, e-mail or instant message.  And expect it to be more in your face than it has been before.

On the fifth we have The Sun right next to Jupiter … that is usually a good day. Mars is separating from Uranus now but is close enough to still expect mischief, and of course there is Mercury retro in this.  It should be a day that has a lot of everything going on. We are probably not going to catch our breath until the Sun goes into Taurus on the 21^st.  But it is not at all certain that this is going to be a lot easier because here comes Venus!

Venus the planet of love, of relationships and creativity is not a shrinking violet.  She can get the emotions roiling. Uranus moves slowly so he is keeping the gateway into Aries, and so as Venus enters, they meet up. Add Venus to Uranus’s electric energy and people could be falling in love and breaking up relationships and also coming up with wild and wonderful new creative ideas.  Venus enters Aries on the 21^st just as the Sun leaves. And we are back to five planets in Aries.

But wait, there is more!  On April 29^th, the Moon joins the fun and shakes hands with Uranus yet again.

On the bright side, Mercury has gone direct again on the 22^nd so that bit is pretty much over by the time the Moon comes in.

When Mercury goes direct, it is still in the “shadow of the retrograde” for awhile, so don’t expect an instant turn around.  But by the 29^th things should be starting to get back to normal, at least as far as the retrograde goes, there are still six planets in Aries.

Now the big question: Now will this affect you? 

First understand that this energy is being felt by everyone, all over the world.  In that way it is sure to affect you through the people you deal with.

The most intense degrees will be the 29^th through the fourth degree in any sign.  The ones affected by Uranus and the planers that will join him this month.  They will be felt most strongly with planets at this degree in Cardinal signs* and in Fire signs.**. 

In the same signs, Jupiter will be affecting later degrees.  Jupiter doesn’t really affect anything badly and it mostly is strong and positive.  So planets in later degrees in those signs will find things pretty lucky and generally pleasant in places.

Just remember that all of this energy is happening together, you can’t really separate it.

Any planet in these signs will be aspected by many of these energies as they dance through this month.  And don’t count out the other signs either, the aspects might be less intense, but you will feel it.

Adding to this 29^th to 1^st degree energy we have another really big change going on this month.  Over on the edge of Pisces, Neptune is moving into its own sign.  This will make it very powerful and Neptune’s power is an entirely different thing than the planets in Aries are bringing. 

Neptune is the energy of connection with the limitless state of the universal mind. Neptune eats away at ego perception. It defies logic and rational approaches. Neptune operates on a very subtle level. It is beneath the place where we keep our conscious awareness, beneath the area where we have words.

Neptune is best perceived in meditation, a slightly altered state where you can see beyond physical reality.  It is part of our lessons at this time and we have to keep it in mind while dealing with all of this direct energy.  We must use both.

Now Neptune can be perceived as very confusing.  There are often vivid dreams.  There is often a feeling that you are not seeing everything you need to know.  This is true, because there is a lot going on in the parts of your mind where you don’t have experience in this life.

It is going to push us to really transform our thoughts and visions.  Really magical things can happen when we allow Neptune to have its highest manifestation.

The danger of Neptune is that if you do not use it spiritually or creatively, you can feel so confused that you reach for some self medication.  All kinds of drugs and alcohol addictions are possible here if you don’t get a positive grip on it.  So be careful.

This will be felt most by Mutable Signs*** and Water Signs**** but its energy will be with all of us, one way or another.

The Universe has set us a very intense challenge this year with all of this happening at once.  You really can’t duck out on it, it is everywhere.  The whole planet is set up for transformation that is deep and will change everything.  You are part of it.  Enjoy the ride.

*Cardinal signs: Aries, Cancer, Libra, Capricorn.

** Fire signs, Aries, Leo, Sagittarius.

***Mutable Signs: Gemini, Virgo, Sagittarius, Pisces.

****Water Signs: Cancer, Scorpio, Pisces.

Uranus Ingress into Aries

Uranus ingress into Aries happens on the 11^th of this month.  This is intense.  The planet of change and transformation is entering the fearless sign of the Ram.  No one will want to put up with limitations gracefully.

We are going to see a lot of change in the coming years, this is just the beginning.  It is a noisy combination, not content to move slowly.  It pushes us.  And it will keep pushing.

The energy of Aries is new life celebrating itself, trying new things it is about action.  If it falls down, it gets up and goes at it harder.  And it is having fun.

Uranus is pretty happy here, it can make change without mucking things up, it can be direct.  Transform now!

Look in your chart for planets at 0 degrees, give or take three degrees.  This is where you will feel it first, personally.  Look at the house and see what area of your life is being affected, look at the sign for the kind of energy surrounding it and finally, look at the energy of the planet that is at that degree.  This is how you can personally see the effect.

But this energy is all around you too, everybody in the world will be a part of this transformational experience, especially this year. 

On March 20^th, the Sun enters Aries on the equinox, as it enters it is conjunct (exactly on the degree of) Uranus.  This energy on the Aries ingress is the new year of astrology.  As we look at the dynamic of the year there.

These are two big energies merging and influencing the next year.  Hang on to your bippy!  And at the Aries ingress we also have Jupiter in Aries, Jupiter’s actions are to makes things bigger, generally better, but it does not make this less enthusiastic a transformation, it makes it more.

Mercury the planet of thought and communication is there too, slowing down in the shadow of the retrograde coming on the 30^th.  So back up your files.

And before we leave March behind take a look at Jupiter.  They used to call it the Grand Opposition, Jupiter opposed by Saturn.  The big push me-pull you of the two giants.  With all the Aries energy behind it, it does look like Jupiter will take the day.  But with Saturn in the relationship house of Libra and Jupiter and his friends in independent Aries, it does not seem to be an energy that bodes well for relating.

This is all in the macro though, for the planet.  Individuals will find this energy in their personal houses will rule the day.  If you don’t know what house is which in your chart, now would be a good time to find out.  You will need to know your birth time for this.

Some states have them on the birth certificate, others don’t record them, but if you have a mother or a baby book, do some sleuthing and try to find it.  It adds a whole new dimension to the chart. 

Deep Oceans to Sizzling Fire..... Spring

The beginning of this month finds us swimming 

in very deep water.  

Pisces, the last water sign of the old cycle, like all water signs is emotionally based.  It is also the last sign in the winter and corresponds to twelfth house energy.  It is a time to release old patterns in preparation for new energy that is coming in with the equinox.

If you are holding on to any old emotional baggage, it is time to release it.  You don’t want to be carrying into the new cycle.

You can’t swim through Aries, you have to be light and loose in the fire sign this year.

So, in preparation, the Universe has given you just the right energy to do Pisces in a big way, to let go of the little prisons you have made for your emotions and to really drop them off into a sea of transformation.

How is this done?  It starts with forgiveness.  It is not a confrontational forgiveness that just gets it going all over again in the same circles.  It is a personal forgiveness.  You just forgive the person who you see as causing the pain you are holding.  Then you release the energy.

This kind of forgiving allows you to let go of the patterns that have been holding you back, keeping you going into the attic of your soul and going through the old memory trunks that bring back the painful memories.

When you forgive, you very often have to take a good look and notice that the person you are forgiving was only being himself or herself as far as they knew how to be at the time.  You can’t be blaming someone for that.  So forgive them, forgive in your heart, don’t tell them, just feel the release.  Drop that old emotions into Pisces’s deep waters and let the water transform it.

You will often find that when you explore these areas, you realize that you could have done a bit better at the time too.  So forgive yourself.  For everyone you need to forgive, forgive yourself twice.  Just let it go.

And if you reel the need as you see things more clearly, go ahead and apologize of anyone who might be holding negative ideas of things you may have caused.  You didn’t know better then, but if you have learned, you can do this honestly.

When you know better, you do better.  

After the 21^st, this month will shift abruptly and be all about doing.  You want to be light and loose going into it, because it I going to have a lot of energy and you’ll want to play with it.

This is about as far as I have ever written an astrology blog without mentioning which planets are where.  We start March with Sun, Mercury Mars and Uranus in Pisces.  This called a stellium, a concentration of planets in one sign.  It emphasizes the energy of the sign.

Mars is one of these planets; Mars is usually your power planet.  But fiery Mars kind sizzles and sparks in this much water, it can’t help you much. 

Mercury is about thought and communications. Here in this sign he thinking about feelings, he doesn’t do that often or very well. 

The Sun in there and always the energy of the chart, it can handle the water very well, but it won’t let you pretend that these emotions are not there, he makes you focus on it. 

Finally, thee is Uranus, powerful change and transformation!  Uranus has been hanging around here for years, he knows the place,  he has recently had a visit from Jupiter and Uranus now has a chance to proceed with knowledge of the change that is needed.  But Uranus is impatient.  He wants the change now, and this is his last pass in Pisces for about 160 years!  You will feel pushed to change this emotional area during the first two weeks of this month.

Still think you can hold out?  Well the moon joins all of this for three days on the 3rd, 4th, and 5^th.  The Moon is all about emotion.  You might as well dive in, get this done and be ready for the changes later in the month because they are pretty intense.

Aries Comes IN, in a Big Way.

The Vernal Equinox, the first day of spring, little crocuses appearing, hints of warm breezes.  This year though, Yowzah!  There is a lot more energy than usual in this seasonal change! 

Remember Uranus, the one who likes to make changes fast, the one who takes no excuses and demands Change NOW?

Well he is entering Aries today with the energy of the SUN exactly with him.  The first degree of Aries is one of the most active in the Zodiac.  It is a birthing time for the year.  The zodiac’s Happy New Year without all the alcohol.

It is opening, trying new things (everything is new) being fearless.  Aries makes a motorcycle seem like a great idea, doesn’t mind trying a little mountain climbing even though it might still be a little slippery.

Jupiter, the Great Beneficent, is already there preparing the way with confidence and high expectations. And now it begins with the Sun and Uranus teaming up to begin the business of change.  Don’t hang on, go with it.  It is play time.

Don’t be afraid of change, unless your life is absolutely perfect, change is good news.  Even if you have been hunkering down like many have in this time of economic difficulty, it is time to get into action.  It doesn’t have to be pointed towards the practical this month; this is more of an unexpected breakthrough.

You don’t have to work with this kind of change, just join with it and play along, push through further when you see an opportunity.  Don’t be afraid of going too fast, don’t try to catch your balance, there is time for all of that later.

As we get to the end of the month, Mars is about to enter Aries too, its own sign.  The energy changes again.

February, a change in energy.

Talky dreamy friendly.

After a long January in Capricorn, February looks like a whole new thing, and most of us can use a new thing.


With seven planets in air signs, quick thinking and communications are highlighted. Venus and Jupiter are both in fire signs. Things are moving now, it is not just thinking it out, and there is an urge to be doing.


We start February with a new moon on the 3rd this one has Mars on it. It could have you making new plans for action, especially in the next couple of weeks. It might bring a new man into your life or magnify your own masculine side to make things happen.


On the fourth, Mercury moves into Aquarius and revs up your social side. But at the same time, that crescent moon is right on Neptune and that can bring dreams and these are very strong times to experience your own psychic side, feeling your feelings deeply and sensing other people’s, too. Pay attention to those little voices in your head at this time and stay clear.


You don’t want to do any kind of drug that is not absolutely necessary at this time, it will mess with you in unexpected ways.


Venus meets Pluto on the ninth and they are squaring Jupiter. This happens at about 3-9 degrees in Earth Signs or squares in Cardinals. If you have a chart check those degrees, the more exact it is the more likely it is to be an issue for you.


You will see transformations in relationships and deep but beneficial changes. It is a powerful and very positive, but don’t try to hold onto things as they have been when change like this is at hand or it can be difficult to navigate. The Moon trines here too, trines are good so it might help you with the emotional side of the issue.


Pluto has a “you can pay me now, or you can pay me later” quality that is way easier to deal with if you go with the flow.


Saturn is dancing in Libra at the moment, making that sign a bit tricky and not at all easy to deal with. Bumping along with responsibility and authority figures is tiring anywhere in mid Libra. But all this Aquarius energy this month might just lighten it up a bit.


And we have this year, one of the most interesting Valentine’s days I have seen in awhile.


The emotional Moon is trining all those Aquarius planets, one after the other with Neptune strongly in it at the moment. It will be fun, no doubt but it is probably not your best time to make commitments. Try to put them off until next month when you’ll all be in a better emotional spot than on Valentine’s Day. Play, have fun, talk and dance and dream, things that happen today might jut turn into something but not right now.
This is such a Neptuney month that I am going to add information about Neppie’s energy at the end of this. You need to know that this is why you are feeling kind of different with all of this.


On the 20th especially with Mars and Mercury both smack on Neptune at 28 degrees in Aquarius. Uranus, meanwhile, is at 28 degrees in Pisces. So this planet of change will be affecting all of this too, making it a time that would not be great to make big decisions or to try to think things through.


Just enjoy the trip for a bit. Toward the middle of March you will see things beginning to move along quickly and the things that are just a germ of an idea now will move along very quickly then.

Neptune is the energy of connection with the limitless state of the universal mind. Neptune eats away at ego perception. It defies logic and rational approaches. Neptune operates on a very subtle level. It is beneath the place where we keep our conscious awareness, beneath the area where we have words.


Neptune is often called a higher vibration of Venus. It is love beyond relationship, unconditional. Neptune doesn’t recognize conditions. It is inspiration as opposed to creativity.


Neptune always brings confusion to the rational process. There is no order to it. It works with the creative forces without a rational filter. When you think about it, you don’t have any idea where inspiration came from, it just came.


Musicians have strong Neptune placements. So do addicts.


Rudhyar says, "Every force which denies limitations and tends to make us whole, which saps the strength of a particular viewpoint and injects into it the fluid of unearthly desires; every agency which dissolves crystallization's and puts the lens of the ego out of focus, which stirs us with divine longings through days of second puberty and enravishes us away from family and home into the snow white peace of convents or to the living fermentation of the jungle, all belong to the Neptune symbol."


It is clear that the Neptune symbol is not the favorite energy of the social order or the rational mind. It is completely transcendent and while in Neptune's energy these things are insignificant and the individual floats above them.


In order to embrace Neptune energy, you must give yourself permission not to know. The position of the person seeking a vision quest is, I know nothing". So it is with Neptune.


When Neptune cycles come up in a person deeply rooted to a Saturn world, (social structure, rules, laws, rational order) It is the confusion that is most unsettling. When so much energy is based in structure and left brain activities, the right brain making known a larger awareness is not often welcomed.


Illumination is received holistically and as it tries to enter the perceptions which are carefully guarded by logic, the senses seem to be deceptive.


The relevance of Neptune effects are often discarded because it is not possible to apply them to the rational mind. Still under the surface of the most closely guarded ego, Neptune is working its wordless alchemy both in the highest connections of the soul and in the part of the brain so deep, it has no words. Change will happen. Slowly, almost imperceptibly, change will find its way into the rational mind.


During this process the rational mind will only find confusion and illusion. Still, it knows that something is changing, something over which it has no control, cannot describe. this can be very unsettling.


It is often a point when a person with a dim perception that it is time to open the limitations, will get involved with drugs. Drugs can give the illusion that barriers in the mind are broken. This thought is deceptive and can lead to addiction.


Under addictions, the perceptions might change, the limitations might be challenged but the holographic perceptions of a larger reality cannot be perceived. This is the reality Neptune would have you seek.


It is a strange land and cannot be seen through the filter of the known. It dissolves ego, to remove limitations and introduce the soul to a higher order of perception.


The effect being accomplished is a higher connection to the collective unconscious. With cooperation (allowing yourself not to know) it can become the connection with the God source.


Transcendent is the key word. The transcendence is beyond the personal, beyond the social, beyond anything the mind has perceived, out into the space where every quark is made of unconditional love and dimensional space does not exist and time is a whole new ball game.

Big Day Coming

We are going to start the New Year with some extraordinary energy this year.  If it is a taste of 2011, this is going to be quite a year! 

The Date to look for is January 4

It is a Solar Eclipse at 13 degrees Capricorn.  At the same time,  there is an exact conjunction of Jupiter and Uranus at 27 Pisces and that is trine to Venus in Scorpio.  

Also, Venus is squaring Neptune which of course semi-sextiles Uranus and Jupiter.

This is a lot of energy interplay and as an eclipse it will influence the energy for at least half the year and make that point at 27 degrees a point that springs to life when other planets hit it all year. 

Four planets in Capricorn emphasize that energy, ambition is key as is practicality.  But Pluto is one of them and on its long Journey through Capricorn will transform Capricorn’s issues of government and business, so expect the ripples to begin.

Jupiter and Uranus are causing change, in Pisces it is kind of a finish up with emotional issues change.  

This is necessary because next they both transit high energy Aries, not a place to be dragging old issues through.  

So use this end of year time to forgive and forgive more, forgive yourself twice every time you forgive someone else.  Tidy up your emotional issues and free yourself to begin a new journey through Aries this year.

With this trine to Venus, you can expect some really emotional, even romantic issues to come up where they are least expected.  Oh my, they will be deeply emotional too.

But notice Neptune at the square. so it might not be exactly what it seems. 

Juno at 26 Virgo is very much in this too, opposing Uranus/Jupiter and sextiling Venus.  Juno is about relationships, contracts, marriage.  Uranus is about dramatic change or unexpected conditions, Jupiter seems to bring beneficial, if larger than life results.

If your chart shows planets at 27 degrees (three or four degrees away will count too).  This might be the drama you are dealing with during this time.

And remember this is not just a one day transit, the eclipse holds the energy for some time.

I didn’t mention Chiron who has been traveling with Neptune for some time.  To me this indicates that the whole drama is given to you so that you might use the experience to help others heal.  

With Neptune there, though, it might be awhile before you realize what this energy was about; because Neptune has a way of blurring reality.

All in all this is a big day for the energy of the next few months.  Enjoy the ride!

Solstice Eclipse...and Galactic Center!

This map is completely NOT to scale

On December 21^st we have a lunar eclipse right on the Solstice.  This particular eclipse lines up with the Galactic center.  That is the Earth, Sun and Moon in a straight line to the center of the Galaxy where all of the energy comes from that we have been beginning to experience.

There are waves of energy emanating from the center of the galaxy that have marked certain periods of change in the Earth’s history.  We are entering one of those waves now.  It is not just Earth; every planet in the solar system has been changing.

This line up is sort of a precursor to 2012 energy.

The eclipse points become charged for year ahead, but certainly for the next six months. Expect to feel the energy get more intense around you.

This is not a bad thing if you are working with the energy.  It makes the energy easier to access, not so ephemeral but a real force.  It makes healing easier because the energy around you is easier to feel and direct.

Remember that the real power is unconditional love.

This particular eclipse pulls in Uranus and Jupiter energy in a tee square so expect changes continuing for awhile.  It is not a bad thing, change, it just makes you have to stay on your toes, be ready to change directions positively and quickly.

There is no point in trying to stop the change or even to hold it back. That is what can make this time difficult.  You have to learn to flow with it.

Mercury is part of this change, so be careful if anger needs to be expressed, to point it at the right person. Mars is pretty close too which can cause quite a lot of extra need to express explosively.  Make sure that you do it appropriately.

The winter solstice is a good time for ceremony and with the lunar eclipse visible all over North America; it gives a real opportunity to take a moment for whatever kind of practice you do.  I know that it is cold, but do go out and watch it; a lunar eclipse is a wonder.

December Clusters

December looks like a really interesting month. Lots of planets in Capricorn, it is quite a dance.

This energy is mostly in one place, so if you look at your chart, it is all in Capricorn, well, mostly.  So if you know what house Capricorn is in, early Capricorn, in your chart, you should be able to discover what area of life this is all operating in.

You can’t use house placements unless you have your time of birth, they are all based on that.  But there are other things you can see without it so here goes.

On December 10^th Mercury goes retrograde, again.  And with that come all the little hassles retrograde Mercury brings around communications.

Then there is Pluto, just waiting for them, just lurking to join the party.   Pluto in Capricorn is about transformation of the earth energy that rules government and organizations.  This energy will be an area of transformation for years. 

On December 5^th, Mercury swings past Pluto,   Pluto is less than a full degree from the North Node that day, So we are looking at: transformation, spiritual evolution and communications energy in the energy of Capricorn: practical,  ambitious,  stable.

Mercury moves fast, this is normally a quick one, day pass.  But not this time, remember the retrograde?   Mercury turns around just a degree and a half from Pluto, so that communications and mental energy it brings is going to transform.

On the twelfth Mars conjuncts the North Node, bringing whatever past issues you haven’t yet dealt with.  Mars brings direct energy and often energy around men.   Karmic issues that need resolution in order for you to progress.

All of these energies are functioning together for the next week, until the 13^th and 14^th at least with those two days being the strongest energy.

Then on the 13^th through the 16^th, the Sun squares Uranus and Jupiter with the Moon on Uranus and Jupiter on the 13^th.   That is a LOT of energy for a particular day.  And all of the energy is toward change.

Uranus likes immediate change.  Pluto generally gives you a lot of time to transform.   And Saturn who usually slow down the change is completely out of the picture.

Mercury and Mars are active personal energy.  This can be an amazing time.

In your chart, look for planets between 2 and 6 degrees for the strongest impact.  Look especially at Earth signs (Capricorn, Taurus and Virgo) for the easier but no less profound changes.  And look at Cardinal signs (Aries, Cancer,  Libra and Capricorn) for the most intense changes.  Other signs at the degree will feel this, but not as intensely.

And remember that even if it misses hitting your chart, you will be dealing with a lot of people that will be finding these intense energies making changes and transforming their lives, probably very unexpectedly.

If you have old forgiving to do, this is the time.  If you have old issues to resolve do it now, so you can move ahead.

If you stay in the light this transformation can be amazing; it is an opportunity to leave old issues behind and rapidly transform your personal destiny to a higher space.