Emphatic efforts to restore balance may have been set into motion in the wake of the square between Mars in Libra and Pluto in Capricorn (see last AstroCast). On the wane but still in effect, it may be correlating to strong feelings being expressed about a relationship in great need of some structural adjustment. As the action planet moves away from Pluto, it segues into an opposition to Uranus in Aries. While this aspect is not exact until next week it is worth noting now because Mars “translating” the planets representing power (Pluto) and freedom (Uranus) hits the midpoint mark over the U.S. Thanksgiving holiday and may stir more than a few declarations of independence as folks gather to celebrate their blessings. Venus in Scorpio, however, provides an outlet for working out fundamental relationship issues as it moves through a sextile to Pluto, exact on November 21. The Scorpionic transformative intensity of late may take on a cooperative tone with the archetypal Goddess of Love in harmonious relationship with Scorpio’s ruler, the King of the Underworld that sees all the things we try to hide. With a little digging, we may recognize how deeply essential it is to regenerate the love bond between souls that has suffered from selfish ego desires.
Symbolizing the archetypal progression of individual development to the next level, the Sun leaves the deep realm of Scorpio for the wider-visioned world of Sagittarius on November 21. After mastering intimacy, we now are tasked with learning how to relate in ways that benefit the whole of society through the exploration of ideas, philosophy and ethics. In Sagittarius the Sun is tasked with the ‘civilization process’ that includes the creation of laws and agreements that reduce chaos. In this age of atomic bombs, we need to make greater effort to come together as a society and understand each other. This is “the art of living together” that Dane Rudhyar calls the gift of Sagittarius. With the Sun’s radiant light guiding us through this optimistic sign over the next month, we have the opportunity to look at how we embody the “the love of humans that is the indestructible foundation of creative tomorrows.” Connecting with others is the “living substance of all civilization,” says Rudhyar. “It is the Divine singing at the core of human relationships.”
At the end of the zodiacal developmental progression, Neptune in Pisces asks us to connect with others through a state of Unity. Retrograde since June 16, Neptune’s sublime archetypal influence is enhanced when it stations direct on November 22, pivoting our focus from an internal review of how we connect through unconditional love, to an external expression of that love force. Neptune asks that we let go of ego and move towards a state of unity consciousness. Yes, we live in a harsh world and it takes much courage to live in it with sensitivity and compassion. “Courage,” therefore, is the ultimate gift of Neptune in Pisces, says Rudhyar. Having the courage to stay fully present in the moment, to face life directly and grow from its lessons is how we experience the Divine. “We’re all living the same basic archetypal saga,” says Jim Sher. “The battle has to do with soul, not mind, to make a conscious decision to stay engaged in a situation that is difficult. We must make a visceral, ‘being’ decision not to shut down and instead develop a strong sense of self, in a big picture, highly inclusive way. Each day you stay in courage saying ‘I can do this,’ you grow, and that has a ripple effect. It may be subtle, but it affects everyone. You might as well show up now, because the same demands will come again and again in all different forms until we finally decide to go through whatever process is necessary.”
Currently in the first leg (the “shadow”) of the Mercury retrograde cycle, we may soon have an experience of going through the same lesson over and over until we get it in our own personal “Ground Hog Day” movie kind of way. In addition to Mercury traversing the same degree space three times through January 10, it will also conjunct Saturn in Sagittarius and trine Uranus in Aries three times over the course of seven weeks, commencing November 25 – 27. Furthermore, this same planetary pattern occurred when Mercury was retrograde in Aries last spring, except it was conjunct Uranus and trine Saturn three times (more on that here). Mercury, which rules our thought processes, harmonious trine Uranus, which rules innovation, can correlate to a flow of new ideas from unusual sources, or the sudden recognition of a belief system that has been stealthily limiting our freedom of expression. The stronger aspect this time, Mercury conjunct Saturn will be in effect for a long three weeks in the belief system territory of Sagittarius. Mercury melding with Saturn, a stabilizing force that rules our physical and psychological structures, can correlate to situations being set up where we recognize the necessity of working within the rule set of our reality and taking responsibility for our choices, unconsciously made or not.
The intellect (Mercury) joining forces with the drivers of mastery (Saturn) and originality (Uranus) offers an opening to full understanding of how the mind works and in the process radically shift to a position of taking full responsibility for our state of mind rather than blaming “them” for our unhappiness. Looking at this dynamic archetypal pattern recurring for the second time this year, we may recognize how our mental outlook has changed since last spring. Have we made conscious choices to accept or reject belief systems we heretofore took for granted as gospel truth? With the world in such chaos right now, it is clear we need a new way of being, and that starts with letting go of our attachments to negative thinking. Do we have the Saturnian discipline to focus on this subject long enough to let Uranus break us free from outmoded conditioning so we can experience the outer reaches of unfettered cosmic thought?
Here’s the data (Pacific Time and rounded to the nearest whole degree unless otherwise noted):
November 21 – Venus sextile Pluto at 18° Scorpio/Capricorn at 3:26 a.m.
November 21 – Sun at 0° Sagittarius at 7:05 p.m.
November 22 – Neptune station direct at 11° Pisces at 6:21 a.m.
November 25 – Mercury trine Uranus at 25° Sagittarius/Aries at 2:55 a.m.
November 27 – Mercury conjunct Saturn 27° Sagittarius at 10:59 p.m.
Leave a Reply