The Astrology Blog 23 November 2015
First of all a belated but nevertheless big thank you to all the lovely students who took part in the Venus and Mars workshops in London three weeks ago, with Ingrid Hoffman and myself. It was really lovely to see my regular students, and a real treat to see a few I hadn’t seen for years and to meet new faces. We had a fabulous weekend and more events are being planned for the New Year, so I’ll keep you posted.
Secondly, I also want to thank everyone who’s emailed me over the last couple of weeks to check that all is ok and if I haven’t got around to answering you personally I hope you’ll forgive me. It’s the first time since starting the blog several years ago that the blog has lapsed but I heard when I was still in London that my beloved brother in law (who had kissed me goodbye at the airport two weeks prior) was seriously ill, and I returned home to Greece to find him in hospital. In the time I’ve been back he’s been at home only 5 days, the rest of the time he’s been in hospital and he’s now in a clinic in Thessaloniki, many hours from home, and today has had life saving surgery. If you’ve ever had devastating illness in your own family you’ll know what we’re going through and I’ve found it impossible to concentrate on anything that isn’t directly linked to Mike and Sue, as I’m sure you’ll understand.
What’s happening this week?
It’s wonderful that so many people look forward to the blog, to the extent that it has been genuinely missed! To get us going again here’s a mini version – the main astrological events for the coming week and some brief “takes”.
All times stated in GMT
Yesterday the Sun changed sign –
Sunday Sun ingress Sagittarius (15.26)
It’s the time of year that we move away from the intensity of Scorpio and into the fiery optimism of truth seeking Sag, but the immediate road ahead is a tough one. This is because two major planets are now in conflict –
Thursday Saturn 7 degrees Sag square Neptune 7 degrees Pisces (12.19)
The Sun is playing into this heavy aspect with the exact contacts at the end of this week –
• Sunday Sun square Neptune (14.51)
• Monday (30th) Sun conjunct Saturn (00.17)
Being a Sag myself as most of you know I don’t need to dwell on how this is showing in my own life. With my Sun (and Sue’s, as we are twins) at 9 degrees these aspects are far too close for comfort. If you have planets or angles at or close to 7 degrees of Sag or Pisces – or the other mutable signs of Gemini and Virgo – then you will probably already know what shape your current challenges are taking.
Here are the usual links for checking the position of your own planets and angles:
http://www.alwaysastrology.com/birth-chart-calculator.html
You can also try this calculator, which lists all your planets and angles rather than bringing up the visual of the horoscope, so for non astrologers it’s easier to use.
http://astro.cafeastrology.com/cgi-bin/astro/natal
In brief, Saturn by difficult aspect brings blocks, delays, health problems, responsibilities to others, testing times that need stamina and endurance at so many levels, and which need time and resourcefulness. Neptune by difficult aspect brings delusion, confusion, exhaustion and an over active imagination. Look out for that paranoia! So it’s absolutely vital this week to keep our feet on the floor and not to jump to any conclusions or rush into any plan of action. Hunches are more likely to be misguided than helpful and absolutely everything needs restraint and a stringent reality check. This is all the more important as the Saturn – Neptune square will repeat next year on 18 June and 10 Sept, so this is going to be a major backdrop for a long time.
Pay close attention to events unfolding in the first half of the week and think long and hard about your decisions, what you want the end result to be and who you can ask for help. This is underlined by a string of aspects from Mercury the mind planet –
Wednesday Mercury conjunct Saturn (04.58) square Neptune (07.16) and sextile Mars (16.33)
This series of aspects is paving the way to the Saturn – Neptune square and is also followed by the Full Moon in one of Mercury’s own signs –
Wednesday Full Moon at 3 degrees of Gemini (22.45)
Information coming to light at this time may not be what you want to hear, or may add complications into an already difficult mix, but you will at least have a clearer idea of what you’re dealing with. Also look out for choices. Gemini as the sign of the Twins tends to bring up issues of duality. For some this will be playing out in romantic terms as the love planets are also kicking up a lot of dust –
Monday Venus opposite Uranus (22.14)
Tuesday Mars sextile Saturn (05.20)
Wherever new agreements need to be put in place there’s a lot of negotiation to be done, or a new attraction may start in circumstances that are far from ideal. Decide what you are willing to do for love – and what you are not!
So this all adds up to a very big week in the heavens. As above, so below – look out for events that will set the tone for the immediate future, and possibly for many months to come. If you’ve committed yourself to any course of action that you now suspect is unwise then don’t hesitate to buy yourself extra time, and don’t forget that you’re allowed to change your mind. Once the Sun struggles through the Saturn – Neptune square, ie over the coming weekend, everything will start to look a lot brighter and clearer. And beware of astrology articles that glamorize this big aspect – I’ve read a few – as to come full circle the big Sag message is to get at the truth. There really is nothing to be gained by sugaring any pills or making any caps fit, so keep it real and stay safe!
I will be blogging as regularly as possible between now and Christmas but there may be some gaps,
For now love from Greece
Joanna
