(Image: John Jude Palencar)
We’ve got a loaded week of dynamic planetary activity, and to start with I want to emphasize we are in Eclipse season, the zone of time in between a Solar and Lunar eclipse. This is a window of time in which a lot of change is introduced into our life, and there is an energy of doors closing and opening. Things can be initiated at this time that take root for years to come, and we can significantly purge and move past old patterns. We end this Eclipse season at the Lunar Eclipse on the 16th this month, so in the interim, take note of what is changing. It will take time to see the long-term effects, so without jumping to conclusions, this is a time to stay very open to flux. For mood reference, our last Eclipse zone was March 8 – March 23 of this year.
This week we will see the last exact Saturn-Neptune square of this cycle, as well as Jupiter leaving Virgo and entering Libra. Venus and Mars will both be in stressful aspect (Venus squares Pluto and Mars squares Mercury and the Sun), yet Jupiter will have already entered the sign of diplomacy and peacemaking by the time these stressful aspects are exact. At the most superficial level, this week may validate our numerous comparisons of love and war.
On the 7th, Venus in Libra makes contact with Saturn in Sagittarius by the harmonious sextile aspect, as she is building toward stressful aspect with Pluto in Capricorn. This may correlate with taking judicious account of what is working and not working in relationship (to ourselves, included), and communication will be important. Actively listening to others point of view at this time will increase the potential for significant issues to be worked through. When we are overly consumed with our own lens of consciousness and cannot hear others, we more easily project or play out blame. This week may offer us certain cues to drop in and really listen attentively to those that we love or to make time specifically to do so – not to kind of hear the desire to talk things out but put it off, but I mean really show up for it. The generosity of sharing one’s undivided attention without expectation will naturally warm others up to reciprocate – expectations of reciprocity however, will chill these encounters undesirably.
Image: Two people passing each other in a hallway – a feeling that there is something to say that needs to be said. This moment in time holds an important opportunity to bridge a gap even if it is just the honest stated intention “We’ll talk later” and then this is followed through with (Saturn responsibility).
(Image: Ira Carter)
Jupiter enters the sign of Libra on the 9th and will stay in Libra until October of 2017. This is a transit that may people are quite reasonably excited about. To rock Jupiter in Virgo requires such diligence and attention to detail – doing paperwork and chores is like the gateway to expansion in that realm. But once Jupiter moves from Virgo into Libra, more equilibrium and dynamic relationship enters the story. Perhaps you have been busily working at something in your own sphere, but when Jupiter enters Libra, others are interested and want to participate. Wherever you have felt the magnifying glass of both lack and imperfection, as well as diligence and greater attention, the feelings of micromanaging start to dissipate and there’s more external feedback. This is about moving away from an interior gaze of self-refinement and into a learn-who-I-am-by-experiencing-others phase. Curiosity about other people, and finding new ways to relate to others will be lucky during this time. The arts of relationship and relationship as a vehicle of expansion will take on added collective emphasis. Some relationship skills are instinct, but some of our relationship skills are not naturally that great, thanks to societal conditioning and multigenerational traumas. Relationship can very well be a higher art worthy of inquiry at this time. Jupiter relates to the spectrum of truth that includes higher knowledge as well as outright bullshit. In the realm of relationship philosophy, take note of this – some relationship philosophy is specifically driven to charm and manipulate with the end only being power or personal capital. Yet there are also relationship philosophies that are holistic and spiritual and are about connecting with true soul space inwardly and outwardly.
The First Quarter Moon in Sagittarius on the 9th marks the halfway point of our eclipse season. The Moon will be squaring the nodal axis, and emotional balance at this time will be resolved through the Virgo function of life (versus Pisces). Clarity is key over wishful thinking. Health and showing up for details is rewarding. The mundane world is very much a gateway to magic in this landscape: have your bases covered, do your work, be responsible, and it pays off. Finding ignored gaps in your process and filling them in with vision and attention will also pay off.
(Image: João Maurício)
On the 10th, Saturn in Sagittarius and Neptune in Pisces form their last exact square of this cycle. I don’t know how many people can say they have enjoyed this aspect but I think that it has been a source of profound growing pain and that many of us are happy with where we have come as a result. Out of hardships have come a better understanding of what our reality is (versus what it is NOT and what we thought it was), as well as a deeper ability to be compassionate to ourselves and to others. This aspect signifies something like a breakdown of a machine – a structured way of being, our beliefs, our most calcified patterning – so that we can open up into something far more infinite and expansive and dreamy even. There is often in this process grief and despair and profound disillusionment. We’re still in the thick of it. When we break out of one shell (perhaps not by choice – it was simply time and we outgrew it) for a time we may mourn the death of that shell, as it was our entire universe. What is actually happening is that we are opening into far greater possibility and wonder than the previous shell could hold. It is like a seed bursting from the ground. In the immediate moment, we may feel the loss and compression or the fear, but as time goes on we will see what feels like an ending as a great beginning, instead. Things must clear away to make space for the new. You are more than the shell! And whether we see this now or not, we will with time.
(Image: René Magritte)
Venus in Libra squares Pluto in Capricorn on the 11th, highlighting power and control dynamics within relationships. Immediately this is a confrontation between reciprocity, balance, desires, commitment, and whether two people are following the same rules or expectations within a relationship. When expectations are not met, it can feel as a betrayal. It can also feel, on the other end, that expectations of us are more like extractions or requirements. On a depth level, this will also signify the conditions we place on ourselves, such as “I will only show up for you when you are fun to be around,” equates to an interior relationship of “I only connect with myself when I like myself, and I disconnect from myself otherwise.” This week presents a breakdown in some of these subconscious dynamics, as certainly some of them are out of balance with our highest wellbeing. This transit can strengthen relationships that can or choose to meet conflict with a mutual desire to resolve it and grow together, and it will expose weak points in relationships that are more fair-weathered, or signify the breaking down of relationships that are unhealthy in some way. On the inner level, this transit correlates with a prompting for love and a greater sense of balance to release our tightened grip on some kind of fixation or psychological pattern that disempowers us, and to allow a more evolved ethic to flourish in our personal and interpersonal spheres.
Mercury in Virgo (currently retrograde) squares Mars in Sagittarius the following day, and Mercury forms a conjunction to the Sun. This is like a very extra-heated Mars. Coupled with the Venus-Pluto, this week is definitely stewing and simmering. At a basic level, this Mars is angered by what is off and out of alignment, and instinctively assigns blame or wrongness and reacts. Communications can be more reactive or loaded this week. At a higher level, this Mars is fueled to discover truth and take charge of how to live authentically by following the cues of what feels lacking by discovering what more there could be. As far as the Sun-Mercury conjunction goes, these tend to have the feeling of the full light of day being shed on a particular message or piece of information. With Mars squaring it, there is a relationship immediately to how this information is going to be acted upon. This can relate to a message coming through this week that heats you up, or your words causing reactions in others – a general reactivity is in the air. Rather than turning this dynamic energy back on who or what caused it – this would be a time to move forward with inspired action into the future.
Another side of conflict is passion, and this week is not short of that. With Venus-Pluto and Mars squaring the Sun and Mercury not simply playing out on the subconscious or reactive levels, there is a bubbling heat and synergy that comes from wielding tension and growing from it. It helps to stay present with the deep intentions of what we’re doing. Having a prayerful intention will help channel this raw energy significantly. This week brings a lot of growth, a lot of Libra, and a lot of experiences to find our balance with. When in doubt, beautify and harmonize.
Thanks for spending the time to meditate on the planets with me. I love writing these forecasts, and even more I really love doing one-on-one work with people and I am currently looking to take on new clients. For a limited time I am now offering an introductory rate of $60 for an astrology reading to new clients. Just enter coupon code “revolution” when you order: For a look on what’s unfolding on the Soul level for you based on your natal chart, schedule a personal reading with me here.
~Sabrina Monarch
Sabrina Monarch is a globally recognized soul-centered Evolutionary Astrologer who publishes weekly astrological forecasts. She has been collecting astrological experience for over a decade. She also enjoys kundalini yoga, hiking and creative writing. You can subscribe to receive her weekly updates by email here.
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