**Times where noted are for the Pacific Time Zone; degrees where noted are rounded to the nearest whole degree.
If thoughts are indeed things, as esoteric teachings go, then May 5th-7th is an ideal time to put those “things” into order, and into the service of something greater than the mind itself. Mercury is the planet that archetypally represents our thoughts, how we perceive the world and communicate that out to others. Now in Taurus, Mercury’s filter of expression will lean to the practical and tangible and that is where the concept of thoughts as things can get interesting. That makes them tangible, something that can be corralled and identified, and put in their rightful place. During this period, there will be dynamic frequencies tuned to the possibility of doing just that when Mercury teams up with Saturn in Scorpio, Pluto in Capricorn and Mars, also in Taurus, in a configuration that facilitates access to internal power and drive but also includes a polarizing tension that makes it necessary to actually look at where we are, or are not, disciplined in the way we operate through our mind. How conscious are we as we move through life? Our minds may appear orderly on the surface but underneath, in the realm of the subconscious and unconscious, is where the real game is played in all its chaotic glory. This period, which comes in the midst of the inertia breaking eclipse season, is an opportunity to do a little internal digging and see what is revealed, to take a practical, honest look at what thought-things aren’t working towards our ultimate goals and may actually be sabotaging them. At that moment of recognition, these powerful “things” that have been operating outside our conscious awareness can be neutralized, and our souls liberated from the tyranny of entrenched belief systems.
As an underscore to this process, the Moon enters Taurus on May 8th bringing a total of five astral bodies in this peaceful sign. The essence of Taurus is simplicity. Complex mind games are anathema to the spirit of this sign which is known for its earthy sensuality that delights in just Being, cherishing all of life’s natural treasures from a clear blue sky to the soft breath of a sleeping lover. The Buddha was said to have been a Taurus, so in the spirit of his teachings, on this day in the uber complex and tumultuous world we live in, may we take a Zen approach to sensing and experiencing life as it is, without reacting, without judging, simply Being our own true Self that mysteriously moves us moment by moment, from our depths up to the height of human consciousness.
Fully empowered from her home stay in Taurus, Venus takes her deep capacity to love, her innate appreciation of art and beauty, and her sweet song of harmony into the quick-tongued literary world of Gemini on May 9th. Venus here is known to be flirtatious and her sweet kisses alight only briefly, but in the exchange there may be long lasting effects. The art of relating is colored with gathering and disseminating hues. Each enriched encounter becomes a learning opportunity. As she moves through the early degrees of Gemini, Venus forms a friction-producing square with Neptune, which becomes exact on May 13th at 5 degrees Gemini/Pisces. While Venus in Gemini may be the unwitting catalytic agent for growth, her alignment with spiritual Neptune, strong in his home sign of Pisces, adds pressure and a sense of urgency for her to become conscious of her deep psychic understanding rather than succumbing to and being rendered completely scattered by the barrage of information that has a stronghold on the surface of life.
The Venus/Neptune encounter sets up the Solar Eclipse New Moon at 5:28 p.m. on May 9th with the sensitivity to recognize the undercurrents at play. While the Taurus New Moon, which occurs at 20 degrees Taurus, will deliver a prodigious energy to bear fruit, the type and quality of what is produced would be dependent upon the origin of its roots. Taurean progeny generally stays connected to and draws sustenance from it past, but the ancestors have their limits. Conservative Taurus generally evolves only as so far as his roots can take him. Visions of something new and completely different and the courage to embark into unfamiliar territory is not his strong suit. However, with this New Moon being a Solar Eclipse and conjunct the South Node – another arbiter of the past – there just may be a chance to deactivate the charge the ingrained inheritances ordinarily would have under this lunation cycle. Eclipses are a time to reset to zero, to wipe the slate clean resulting in a jump in consciousness for anyone willing to risk disrupting the comfortable stability of Taurus for a leap into the unknown. This is no time to stubbornly refuse to let go.
On the heels of the Eclipse is the Superior Conjunction when Mercury meets up with the Sun at 21 degrees Taurus in the afternoon of May 11th. This culmination of the Mercury cycle is when revelations may be had about the predominant issues of the last couple of months. Mental clarity is a signature of this aspect and our thoughts may indeed be mercurial, swift as lightening. Generally, this is the moment when Mercury mind-melds with the Sun and the progression from internal perception to analysis to synthesis and then to articulate communication may appear to be instantaneous, ablaze with hyper intelligence, not to mention efficient! While the Taurus energy is not known to facilitate talking, profound communication can still happen albeit on a different level – with a soul-penetrating look, or the tender touch of a hand. It could also manifest in a solid decision that is made after much mulling over or a highly valued acquisition. Whatever happens under this Taurean Superior Conjunction may well have an enduring legacy.
After only two weeks paying homage to the majestic Earth in Taurus and amped up by his encounter with the Sun, Mercury rushes home to Gemini on May 15th. Not quite interested in the meaning of life – that’s Jupiter’s job – Mercury is more of an info-holic. Raw data is his end point – collecting it and dishing it out. He may not always connect the dots but he provides the tools we need to process life. In Gemini, Mercury will have the opportunity to showcase his natural mental gifts for speed, precision and resourcefulness. But he’ll have to talk fast – he has just a two-week stay in Gemini as well.
As Venus did when she entered Gemini, Mercury immediately enters into a square with Neptune that is exact on May 18th. This aspect tethers the normally skittish Gemini energy to the unseen mystical realms. Fact and fantasy, science and metaphysics enter into a tense relationship and it is the individual profile of each one of us that will determine what our stimulated imaginations will produce. The God Particle was deemed to exist when Mercury was conjunct Neptune back in March. Having processed that over the last couple of months, we may now have a personal discovery of our own. Perhaps we’ll catch a glimpse of the spirit that infuses the molecular structure of all existence, constantly interacting with matter to force it out of its complacent state of inertia.
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