AstroCast: April 20-May 5, 2011

All times are PDT, unless stated otherwise. Planetary positions are expressed as the degree followed by the sign. If there is a number following the sign, it refers to the minute position in the degree of that sign. As with an hour, there are 60 minutes in a degree. For example, 10° Virgo 43’, means 10 degrees and 43 minutes of Virgo.

Correction to Aries AstroCast: I had said that April 4th, marked Neptune’s first return to Pisces since the American Civil War. Being the sometimes “good” Virgo, I must clarify that Neptune actually entered Pisces during the Mexican War in 1848 and left Pisces for Aries during the American Civil War. So, while Neptune’s entry into Pisces, the sign it rules, does seem to coincide with the US at war, it doesn’t necessarily mean another big war or Civil War. Neptune was last in Pisces from December 1848 to April 1861. It did retrograde back into Pisces briefly from October 1861 to February 1862 after which it returned to Aries, not to return to Pisces until April 2011 where it will be only for a few months before retrograding back into Aquarius later this year. Neptune will return to Pisces in 2012 to begin a 14 year journey through his homeland. During this time, the innovations in our collective brain (the internet, ruled by Aquarius) that were planted during Neptune’s transit through Aquarius will take root during its transit through the sign it rules. Look for a paradigm shift in our collective consciousness (Neptune) that is being propelled by our increased global connectivity via the internet. The global village will gain power and social movements for greater compassion and equality (Pisces), already being seen in the Middle East, could spread anywhere there is a desire for a higher state of being among the masses.

On April 20th at 3:17 am, the Sun moves into sensual Taurus leaving us with four planets in Aries. Take a deep breath, ground yourself and get comfortable during the brief moments before Venus moves into Aries at 9:06 pm that night, bringing us back up to 5 planets in super-charged Aries, including Mercury (still retrograde), Venus and Mars making it very personal, along with Jupiter and Uranus to make it big and possibly very unexpected. You can release that deep breath now if you haven’t already because the hot pursuit of whatever flames your passions will resume post-haste – and remember to take lots of deep breaths before you act impulsively. The ongoing Saturn opposition to the planets in Aries will temper – if you dare to listen to that quiet voice inside you – those impulses with reasonable expectations for well laid plans with lots of details. If you do decide to break free of all your restraints, by all means have a wild and fun adventure. Just don’t expect it to last.

On April 22nd, Earth Day and Good Friday, things start to pick up again as Venus catches up to Uranus at 2° Aries. Sudden and strong desires, love at first sight kind of stuff may abound. You may see something or someone and have that “I want it and I want it NOW!” feeling. Remember, Venus represents longing, especially in partnership, and Uranus the sudden impulse or unforeseen event. Since both are in Aries, ruled by Mars (how we get what we want), which is also in Aries, “want” and “now” may be the operative words. Oh, but Mercury, Saturn and Pluto are all retrograde, so it ain’t going to happen, at least not fast enough to suit you. Retrogrades are great for review but especially with Mercury, not necessarily for starting anything new, including a relationship. Take heart, Mercury is slowing down and getting ready to change direction.

On April 23rd, in the wee hours of the morning, Mercury at 13° Aries stations (that is stops its apparent retrograde motion) in opposition to Saturn and gets ready to start moving forward again. Be sure to engage brain before engaging your mouth or you may yet have to eat your words. This is not the time to check your brain at the door. With Mercury now beginning to move forward, things can start happening with the quickening forward pace.

We now enter into a few days of relative “calm” as there are no major planetary aspects or sign changes other than those involving the Moon until the 27th.

On April 27th Venus at 7° Aries squares (90°) Pluto at 7° Capricorn. This is a first quarter square, a “crisis of action.” Pluto, God of the Underworld, can be obsessive but also transformative. When Pluto touches another planet, something could be revealed in the arena that planet rules. Venus is not only about love, beauty and desire, but also rules money, what we value and our own self-worth. In Capricorn, Pluto is all about the business and not necessarily compassionate. It will be raw and certainly not sugar-coated. Venus in Aries will want to act, and still being close to Uranus, could still act rashly. Try to avoid any sudden desire to buy an expensive confection or to jump on that “get rich quick” deal. Be careful not to overlook some bill you need to pay. This is a time to think before you buy or invest. Check it out thoroughly. Is it something you really need? Is it really a good buy? Is it a good investment at this time? With five planets still in Aries, things are still volatile and the momentum will be hard to resist. Ultimately you may need to face your needs and desires with more honesty to keep it real.

Time for more deep breathing and grounding people. We have two events coming up on April 30th – one of individual interest and one of shall we say potentially “Biblical” proportions.

On April 30th, Venus at 11° Aries opposes retrograde Saturn at 11° Libra. Venus rules Libra and so Saturn “pays homage” to Venus looking to crack down on chaos and reestablish balance in all things. However, Venus is in its detriment in Aries, meaning not as strong or not as in control. Aries is about self and Libra is about relationships so we are being called on to reevaluate our relationships and what relationship in general means to us. What is an “acceptable” balance between self and others in our lives? Balance these energies of attraction and restraint by knowing what you want and being patient enough to wait for it to come to you rather than trying to force it.

On the “Biblical” or if you prefer historical scale, we have a stellium (three or more planets) conjunct at 22° Aries: Jupiter (expansion), Mars (action) and Eris (Goddess of chaos, sister of Mars). When Jupiter and Mars get together there is plenty of energy to put grand plans into place. Just watch out for flaring tempers where the energy doesn’t have an appropriate outlet. What makes this of historical scale or proportions is that as near as I can tell, the addition of Eris to this combo has never happened in the common era, that is in over two thousand years. On the “doom and gloom” scale, we have the God of War (Mars) getting together with his sister, the Goddess of War and chaos (Eris) and Mr. Big, expansionist Jupiter, all in the sign of Aries, the Greek God of War. Could all “you know what” break loose around this time? Yes, that could be one possibility. Am I saying it will? No!

In looking at past conjunctions of Mars and Eris in Aries, there is no correlation to wars beginning or significant battles or disasters. The conjunction of Mars and Eris in Aries has been happening about every 23 months since Eris moved into Aries in 1923.

Looking at conjunctions between Jupiter and Eris in Aries is a different story. The emphasis on the military is consistent in the notable events, however not always bad. At the previous conjunction May, 1999, there was the war in Kosovo and the accidental bombing of the Chinese embassy by a NATO fighter resulting in the deaths of three Chinese embassy workers. The previous conjunction was in May 1987 at which time a Soviet airliner crashed in Poland killing all on board and there was an Iraqi missile strike on the USS Stark, killing 37 sailors. Klaus Barbie went on trial for WWII war crimes and there was a coup in Fiji but it was bloodless, giving hope for those struggling in the Middle East.

Going back to the previous Jupiter/Eris conjunction in May 1975, there was the seizure of the American merchant ship the Mayaguez by Cambodian forces and the fall of Saigon. And going back to May 1963, Castro visited Soviet Union, race riots in Birmingham where dogs and fire hoses were used on the protestors and protests by Buddhists in Vietnam resulting in violent retaliation by the South Vietnamese Army added much intensity to the year.

Remember, events don’t necessarily happen at the time of the exact aspect. Mars events often happen prior to the time of the exact event. So, related events may happen prior to or even after the time of the exact aspect and depending on the individual’s natal chart the energies could be more intense if there are exact aspects. Maybe it’s time for a reading.

On May 2nd, we have a New Moon (Sun/Moon conjunction) at 12° Taurus 31’. The new Moon marks the beginning of a new lunar cycle and is the best time to start new projects. Budding ideas will hopefully grow and manifest at the following Full Moon. While the New Moon is in earthy Taurus, it will still have an Aries feel to it with five planets still there: Uranus at 2°, Venus at 14°, Mercury at 16°, Jupiter at 23° and Mars at 24°. We also have Eris still in the mix at 22° Aries.

Till next time. Enjoy your transits.