Aspects of Note This Week
All times listed are Pacific Daylight Time. For Greenwich Mean Time, add 7 hours.
MON: Jupiter semisextile Saturn
TUE: Venus sesquiquadrate Saturn
WED: Mercury quincunx Saturn, Venus enters Virgo, Mercury trine Jupiter
THU: Sun sesquiquadrate Saturn, Mercury quincunx Neptune
FRI: Sun enters Virgo, Mercury sesquiquadrate Chiron
SAT: Venus conjunct Mars, Mercury quincunx Pluto, Venus square Ceres
SUN: Venus quincunx Chiron, Mars square Ceres, Mars quincunx Chiron, Venus sesquiquadrate Pluto
LIFE’S FOUNDATIONS may feel especially in flux right now. Some are literally uprooting and moving a household. Others are feeling the impact in their physical bodies, sensing changes in their musculoskeletal systems. In the world around us, we see social and political systems being dismantled or being revealed as unreliable. Earth’s ecosystem is showing evidence of instability. All of this can feel very unsettling, as what we have learned to rely upon appears to longer be able to support us.
Astrologically, this process relates to the Saturn-Pluto alignment we’ve been talking about for several months. Although the exact alignment doesn’t occur until January 12, 2020, the two planets have been in close proximity to each other since February 2019. We felt the impact especially in late April, when Saturn and Pluto were separated by less than three degrees.
As the two planets travel together for the rest of this year and into 2020, we continue to see evidence of outdated systems that are no longer viable, that must be transmuted.
THE END of April also brought Saturn’s first conjunction with the South Node. The South Node is a point in space that represents our collective downfall, karmic traits that humanity now needs to evolve beyond. With the South Node in Capricorn, our current timeline requires that we move beyond restrictive, fear-based perspectives that close us down, that prevent us from living more trusting, heart-centered lives.
Since April, Saturn and the South Node have been closely linked, never separated by more than two degrees in the sky. By the end of this coming week, they will be less than one degree apart. Their close proximity is drilling down on the need to release the fears and controls that come from a limited perspective of ourselves and our capacities. This is the source of much of the pressure that we are currently feeling.
Saturn and the South Node will be tightly hand-in-hand through early October. Their final exact alignment is on September 27.
EACH OF US may clearly see what shifts need to occur in the outer world, and we can all do our part in supporting the changes that will help humanity move into a more open-hearted, creative, and inspired future. But if we are feeling these energies in our physical bodies, what might that mean and how do we deal with it? We certainly cannot just get rid of our bones, joints, and sinews, since that would leave us as a mostly formless heap on the floor.
It is each of our responsibility (Saturn) to discover how we may be allowing fear, rather than trust, to provide the framework of our lives. How has anxiety or suspicion become our fall-back mode, our constant companion, our very skeletal system? What core belief might we be holding that is no longer tenable, that will not support us–and cannot survive–in the new paradigm?
THE ANSWER may not be obvious at first. If we live in an energy for a lifetime, it can be very difficult to step outside of ourselves, to get the perspective needed. But it is possible, and necessary, as we deal with this Saturn-South Node influence.
If we feel fear, we can ask ourselves, “What belief is this fear revealing? What does it show about my perspective on life?” If we find that we actually are living from a limited, fear-based perspective, that awareness gives us a starting point. It also means we can then find the opposite perspective, which is our end point, the belief that we want to live from. From there, it may require work and focus to retrain ourselves and our thoughts–but discipline is Saturn’s specialty.
WITH SO MUCH going on in our personal and shared lives, we may be wondering how in the world we’re going to get to where we want–and need–to be. It can be difficult to see the solution, or even to know which road might lead us there.
But, that’s the whole point. We can’t see the path we need to follow if we keep looking at life from our old perspective. This is one of the higher intentions of the longer-term Saturn-Pluto alignment, being augmented and focused right now by Saturn’s close proximity to the South Node.
ALL OF THIS can feel overwhelming, especially if we don’t know exactly how to start the process. We may want to be more trusting of the universe, more able to be open-hearted and hopeful, and yet doing so can leave us feeling very vulnerable, if we haven’t yet created the new support structure.
So, how do we find stability, as we release the old systems and structures? What can we hold on to?
Synchronistically, as I was beginning to write today’s Journal, Shanta Gabriel’s “Inspiration for the Week” newsletter appeared in my inbox. Its timely theme is how to use grounding to move beyond fear and anxiety. With gratitude to Shanta Gabriel, here is an excerpt:
“Ground any excess energy such as fear, anxiety or anger into the Earth, then bring an open heart into the present situation. Any time you are feeling anxious, angry, fearful or over-excited, you are experiencing excess energy in your body, which can be consciously redirected…
“In a house, there is a grounding wire which connects to the earth so that electricity flows in the proper circuits. It is similar with your body. You are receiving energy from the Divine Source at all times. There are perfect channels in your body for the energy to flow through. If you are not grounded, that is, if you are so caught up in your mental activity that you are not consciously aware of your connection to the earth, this energy can flow into channels that may feel uncomfortable. It can then circulate through your nervous system, over-stimulating your mind and causing anxiety and other mental imbalances. When you notice yourself feeling upset and anxious, it is very helpful to remember that you have feet as well as a head.”
THERE’S A SHIFT in the general energies this week, from playful, dramatic, pleasure-seeking Leo to practical, discriminating, results-oriented Virgo. Mars entered Virgo yesterday (August 17), and will be joined there by Venus on Wednesday and the Sun on Friday. This changing of the guard moves our focus from “How can I be more creatively fulfilled?” to “How can I be of greater service?” or “How can I find the best solutions?”
We will feel this shift as we get toward the end of this week, in particular. Venus catches up with Mars on Saturday, symbolizing the joining of feminine and masculine forces to get important tasks accomplished. This enables work to be done that requires both receptivity and assertiveness.
However, both Venus and Mars are in square aspect to domestic Ceres next weekend, indicating there are some obstacles to be overcome. Since Ceres represents home and family, our personal drive to get something done may be waylaid or delayed by the needs of others in our home environment. With Ceres in Sagittarius, it may be a clash of beliefs or life philosophies that temporarily interrupts the completion of a task.
IF YOUR BIRTHDAY IS THIS WEEK: Personal relationships are in the spotlight this year. Your desire to make connections with others is heightened, and you may start or consummate an important partnership. At the same time, your needs for independence and autonomy are strong, so you may deal with inner conflicts about how to balance the needs of self and significant others, especially family members. Once you more clearly define your boundaries, you can move forward with greater confidence. (Solar Return Sun conjunct Venus, conjunct Mars, sesquiquadrate Saturn, trine Uranus, conjunct Juno, square Ceres)
Pam
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