The Astrology Blog 23 January 2023
All times in GMT
“Remember, your mind is like a parachute: If it isn’t open, it doesn’t work. So keep an open mind!”
Buzz Aldrin – from No Dream is Too High: Life Lessons From a Man Who Walked on the Moon
https://www.astrotheme.com/astrology/Buzz_Aldrin
“Your mind will answer most questions if you learn to relax and wait for the answer.”
William S Burroughs – 5 Feb 1914 to 2 Aug 1997
American postmodern author and visual artist
IT’S NEVER TOO LATE …
So Buzz Aldrin has just got married, for the 4th time and on his 93rd birthday. Good for him. He married on his Solar Return (our birthday being when the Sun returns to the same position as it was on our day of birth, hence the saying Many Happy Returns) on 20 January, followed immediately by the New Moon on the following day.
New Moons, the marrying of the Sun (masculine) and Moon (feminine) but any gender combinations apply, are powerful moments for union or for things coming together that set us on a new path. He also had Mercury turning direct (last Wed at 8 Capricorn) conjunct his 7th House (marriage) Saturn at 6 Capricorn.
There’s an exact birth time of 2.17pm given for Buzz Aldrin so this means that there’s no doubt that he’s an Aquarian, not a Capricorn. There’s no such thing as being on the cusp anyway in terms of your Sun sign – or any other planet’s sign – you’re either one or the other. Lights are either on or off. Planets at 0 degrees traditionally carry a lot of clout – beginnings, sometimes ground breaking as in Aldrin’s case. His Sun is at 0.02 of “ahead of the pack” Aquarius.
So he’s lived and continues to live a very long life. I had to laugh at the other quote I found –
“I believe that every human has a finite number of heart-beats. I don’t intend to waste any of mine running around doing exercises.”
It made me think of a comment by my colleague Lynne Ewart, that super fitness isn’t always necessarily healthy. The older I get the more I’m convinced that a happy life is about balance. A conversation with someone newly retired last week also brought that message home, the novelty was wearing off and the future was suddenly looking bleak rather than exciting.
So yes we need to keep active but not punish our bodies, we need time out but also a reason for getting out of bed in the mornings, we need plans and ideas, things to look forward to. This goes deeper. As my friend psychologist Paul Hitchings taught me years ago, “Human beings are meaning making machines.”
Where do you locate meaning in your own life, what might need to be more meaningful, is there anything that you suspect might be a regret if you don’t do it? With Mercury, Mars and Uranus all newly direct the time is right for getting focused on achievements, no matter how small or large these might be, or on what you want an outcome to be.
FEEDBACK FROM LAST WEEK – MERCURY TURNED DIRECT/SUN CONJUNCT PLUTO
So last week we had these two big events happening just an hour and a half apart –
Wednesday 18 January
- Mercury turns direct at 8 Capricorn 13.13
- Sun conjunct Pluto 28 Capricorn 14.42
In last week’s blog I wrote that –
In terms of the kind of news to break we’ll be looking at people in positions of power (eg Scorpio Joe Biden and the top secret documents hoo-ha … Andrew Tate a Plutonic type gone wrong (Venus conjunct Pluto in his chart) and his fate is in the balance this week. This is the stuff of impeachments, resignations or coups.
On Wednesday morning the headlines were the resignation of NZ prime minister Jacinda Ardern. Frustratingly no time of birth for her but I wouldn’t mind betting on a Scorpio Ascendant. Is she otherwise a Plutonic type? Somewhat, in that two personal planets Mercury and Venus are both in aspect to Pluto, and so possibly is her Moon if she were born later on in the day –
- Mercury 16 Cancer square Pluto 19 Libra
- Venus 22 Gemini trine Pluto 19 Libra
- Moon at midday 10 Capricorn – if the Moon were 11 Capricorn or later then this would be within the 8 degree orb to give a Moon square Pluto
https://www.astrotheme.com/astrology/Jacinda_Ardern
She totally fits the Moon in Capricorn, the working mother, and has her own bit of fame in connection to that as she’s only the second woman to give birth while in office, the first being Benazir Bhutto. The square to Pluto would also fit her story and situation, the absence (Pluto) of quality time for her personal life and mother role (Moon) because of being in a position of power (Pluto). She hasn’t even managed to get married yet, which is something she’s been quoted as saying is high on her list of personal wishes.
The current astrology suggests that her Moon would be in orb (a few degrees either side) of 8 degrees Capricorn, the position at which Mercury turned direct. This is an excellent example of what I always say at these times (Mercury retrograde three times a year for three weeks at a time), that there are things that we don’t yet know, but we will, when Mercury turns direct. Jacinda didn’t wake up on Wed morning with, oh I think I’ll resign today. Plans were made, leading up to the announcement.
In terms of major transits the other astrologically relevant activity is that she’s heading for her Uranus Half Return (all change) and that along the way to that she’s coming up for the third and final transit of Uranus (shocks, the unexpected) conjunct her Chiron, the Wounded Healer, at 17.55 Taurus. Her main reason for the resignation was “not enough left in the tank”.
ASTROLOGICAL INTERPRETATIONS – ONE SIZE DOES NOT FIT ALL!
In the Facebook group page this week (The World of Astrology – https://www.facebook.com/groups/131108987086161/) I questioned a comment made about all of us exercising power and authority. These keywords certainly reflected the symbolism of the moment but in turn I commented that it’s important that we don’t use astrology to make sweeping statements. This is not how astrology works, and such statements are fodder to astrology critics.
I’ll add here that this applies to natal astrology as well as any current activity. How many times do you read characteristics of Sun signs that you can immediately dismantle? Such as, all earth signs are practical? I can immediately number several earth sign friends who are clueless when it comes to practical tasks. My comment on Facebook –
Not everyone will or can be in a position to exercise power and authority! Rather we will be more aware of those in power being in trouble, esp Plutonic – Scorpio types (eg Andrew Tate, Joe Biden, as mentioned in this week’s blog) and it will be interesting to see what happens re the collapse or transfer
of power as Mercury turns direct in Capricorn (the system, authority, the men in grey suits) less than 2 hours ahead of this huge conjunction. Let’s watch that space and see what unfolds.
I then got picked up on putting Biden and Tate’s name in the same sentence, so just in case anyone else was thinking the same thing –
Let’s be clear – I am NOT linking Biden with Tate – I am saying that this week is crucial for those who hold positions of power and who are going to be, in their own way, accountable. This applies especially to Plutonic types regardless of what their individual journeys might be. Tate and Biden are in the limelight for their own individual reasons, not because there is any connection between them in any other way.
In the headlines this morning as I write (yesterday, Sunday 22nd) it’s reported that investigators have found six more classified documents during a 13-hour search of President Joe Biden’s home in Delaware. In Romania the courts have extended the police detention period of influencer Andrew Tate and his brother Tristan until 27 February. So, as the astrology suggested, these are huge stories and the details are still unfolding.
WHAT’S HAPPENING THIS WEEK?
Here’s your “at a glance” picture for this week. The current astrology is always reflected in my client work, so I’ve heard some very heavy stories these last couple of weeks, but this week is more action and answer orientated –
Wednesday 25 January
- Sun 4 Aquarius sextile Jupiter 4 Aries 01.31
Thursday 26 January
- Moon conjunct Jupiter 4 Aries 03.19
Friday 27 January
- Venus ingress Pisces 02.34
Monday 30 January
- Sun 9 Aquarius trine Mars 9 Gemini 01.47
- Mercury 15 Capricorn trine Uranus 15 Taurus 02.17
JUPITER – THE GREATER BENEFIC
I know I’m a bit biased, being a Jupiter ruled Sag, but honestly nearly all of the good things in my life have happened under major Jupiter transits in my own horoscope – eg moving to Greece, getting first book contract to name but two. So after the heavy going of this last week am heartened to see that this week starts on an upbeat note with the Sun applying to a positive aspect with Jupiter. This is the second event for the Sun on his new journey through Aquarius, the first being the New Moon at 1 Aquarius (Sun conjunct Moon) that fell on Saturday evening.
Here’s a reminder of Jupiter’s job description –
Jupiter – main principle is expansion, anything that makes our life bigger and better, known as the Greater Benefic (he benefits us) Jupiter brings the things or the people into our lives that are helpful and good for us. Planet of opportunity, luck, liberation (eg from horrible job, wrong relationship, something you wish you’d never agreed to in the first place), good fortune, abundance, generosity both giving and receiving, higher education & learning, publishing, truth and justice/all legal concerns. Long distance travel, foreigners, and all matters or people related to overseas. In the physical body Jupiter rules the hips, buttocks, thighs and sciatic nerve.
This is a pretty extensive list, you can see how far Jupiter’s domain spreads, but if any of these themes are important for you right now then this is a week of progress, either because of the things you yourself set in/have already set in motion or simply because other factors kick in to make something possible. For many there’ll be a sense of “the time is right” and also look out for that lucky break. Jupiter is great at the 11th hour helping hand.
Jupiter moved into Aries 20 December. The monthly Moon – Jupiter conjunction fell on 29 December at 0 Aries so this week is the second conjunction in Aries, this time at 4 Aries, exact in the early hours of Thursday (03.19 in UK, adjust for your own time zone, eg 2 hours later, 05.19 in Greece).
This can be a hotspot of luck or any kind of good fortune, so clock what unfolds on Wednesday evening or what news you might wake up to on Thursday morning, especially if you have natal planets or Angles at or very close to 4 degrees of Aries.
SUN TRINE MARS
The Sun moves on to make another positive alignment, this time with Mars, who himself is now starting to power forwards having turned direct on 12 January (after being retrograde since 30 October). The aspect will be exact in the early hours of next Monday morning so is “applying” – in the making – over the whole weekend.
The god of war is therefore underlining the action theme of the week, the chance to get going on immediate jobs or any important plans for the year ahead. Pay close attention to what kicks in for you, especially in terms of your social life or a shot in the arm with motivation.
This is a great aspect for romance too, Mars ruling both men and also all the heated emotions like passion and lust! If you’re single and searching don’t sit at home – although Aquarius does favour online dating as well – and if your relationship is flagging sexually the time is right for remedies.
As a general rule couples who make love stay together, those who don’t drift apart, unless a platonic relationship is genuinely wanted on both sides. More usually a boring or nonexistent sex life is the root of resentment, which is acid to any partnership. I have a long history of client work to prove this point!
MERCURY TRINE URANUS
Mercury first reached 15 Capricorn and therefore the trine to Uranus at 15 Taurus on 17 December. Mercury aspects are one offs, unless he’s about to turn retrograde and loop backwards, which of course is exactly what happened on this occasion. Here’s the sequence –
- 1st trine – 17 Dec
- Turned retrograde – 29 Dec
- 2nd trine – 8 January
- Turned direct – 18 January
- 3rd and final trine – 30 January
All of these trines happen when the two planets are at 15 Capricorn and 15 Taurus respectively. This is because Uranus has hardly moved in recent weeks and literally just turned direct, last night –
Sunday 22 January
- Uranus turns direct at 14.56 Taurus 22.59
Uranus has been “stationing” (appearing to stand still in the skies while ending a backwards loop and appearing to start moving forwards again) so has been “stuck” at 15 Taurus since the beginning of December and won’t reach the next degree of 16 Taurus until the middle of March. This gives you an idea of how slow these turning points are but they’re always worth noting, especially Uranus, who can be dramatic and is also the most “date sensitive” of the outer planets.
For example, Uranus rules electricity, and Pakistan (5 hours ahead of GMT) came to a standstill at exactly the moment that Uranus turned –
Pakistan suffered a huge power cut early on Monday following a breakdown in its national electricity grid, the energy ministry said. Power was out in all the country’s major cities, including the biggest city Karachi, the capital Islamabad as well as Lahore and Peshawar.
The bigger implications are that Pakistan is having a fuel crisis and the country has already put early closing times in place for malls, restaurants etc, aimed at saving the country a staggering power bill of $270m, £220m. am wondering if we’re getting a glimpse here of Pluto’s ingress into Aquarius (Uranus’s sign, the collective) in March? The surge in global energy costs points to a new urgency in finding alternatives.
Here we’re in the middle of massive thunderstorms. It’s been raining for days and really threw it down all night, along with very loud thunder, so was soothing a frightened dog at 4am! My other plans for this morning that involved the dogs have been cancelled.
On the plus side, a friend went off to Athens at 4am this morning for an op that’s been needed for ages, and the logistics for this all came together very suddenly. And as Uranus rules groups of all kinds, any gathering as well as humanity as a collective, it was perfect timing that I also woke up to a Whatsapp message from Rosalind Moody, editor of Soul & Spirit magazine who came to do an astrology week during last September’s Summer School. She wrote to tell me that her write up (Mercury) in the Feb issue is out now so do head out and grab a copy if you can.
The magazine feature is a good example of the combination of a newly direct Mercury (the written word, information, media) in Capricorn (business) with Uranus (groups) and from a predictive point of view I expect this week to bring some enquiries, ie we have a week to go before the third and final Mercury – Uranus trine. I’ve also got other Mercury irons in the fire so will report on those next week.
I also love the Mercury – Uranus combo for brainwaves and solution finding. That is why I chose the quote at the top for this week, as simply the passing of time may well be a factor in a plan or idea finally getting off the drawing board.
VENUS INGRESS PISCES
In the middle of this flurry of activity the love and money planet Venus quietly slides into Pisces in the early hours of Friday morning. This is good news because Pisces is Venus’ sign of “exaltation’ – her best placing. This doesn’t necessarily mean magic wands, although it can do, but it definitely shifts the focus onto enjoying or creating the Venusian things that bring emotional contentment.
Venus will be travelling through the whole sign of Pisces until 20 February so if you have any natal planets or Angles in this sign then it’s well worth looking up the dates for your Venus transits – ie when does Venus arrive at the same degree.
Next week Venus will square up to Mars and we’ll also have the Full Moon in Leo square Uranus, so these are the themes I’ll be writing about next time,
Until then, with love from a waterlogged Greece,
Joanna