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All dates and times Eastern Daylight Time; please adjust for your time zone. As the month of July begins, Uranus is “stationing” as it prepares to turn retrograde on July 2nd. Just as a car will slow down as it prepares to make a U-turn, when planets are preparing to change direction they too will appear to slow down as we observe them from our vantage point on Earth. When this occurs, particularly with the outer planets whose effects tend to be more dramatic anyway, we often experience their influence more intensely. Uranus is the planet of radical change; the breaking up of the status quo so that something new and uniquely original can take its place. Uranus brings surprises and can shock us out of our sleep; hence it is often called the “Awakener.” Pisces rules sleep as well as transcendent conscious, and while Uranus has been traveling through Pisces (since 2003) the disruption (Uranus) from the longing for the unconscious (Pisces) has been powerful. Uranus will move into Aries in 2010 and there will be no more opportunity for sleep. This then is a good time to begin to prepare for Uranus entering Aries by completing the awakening process within our own lives. Where are we stuck in subconscious reactions to situations? Where do we limit ourselves by taking the easy road? Uranus always asks the question: Where in our lives can we be more authentic? While Uranus is retrograde we will have a deeply personal opportunity to discover the answers to these questions. The Triple Conjunction of Jupiter, Chiron and Neptune, all traveling retrograde now, will remain in force throughout the month at which point Jupiter will retrograde beyond reach of the other two. Chiron and Neptune, however, will continue their dance into the fall. There is an intensely felt call of the soul now, since retrograde plaents urge us to look back and experience the matters of that planet on a more internal level. The externalized experiences of our life become less important than the inner ones, so with Neptune retrograde we are drawn more into a personal relationship with spirituality and a practice that connects us more soulfully into our lives. When Chiron is retrograde we have greater access to our inner emotional experiences. Chiron encourages us to feel, feel, feel - and often forces the issue by pulling our blinders off where necessary to confront something painful within us. With Chiron retrograde this experience becomes more personal and more internalized. On a personal level this seems to be manifesting for some people as a call to the soul - a yearning to break free of old ways of living that are not authentic for the person we have become. For some there has been the eruption of old painful experiences that need to be healed that while uncomfortable is a necessary part of the process to achieve the ultimate freedom from emotional bondage. In this article I will refer to the conjunction of Jupiter, Chiron and Neptune as the “Triple Conjunction.” The first two days of July offers a powerful array of planetary aspects and is likely to be a fairly intense period even though it lasts only for a day or two. Venus and Mercury are both active, with Venus in a challenging square aspect to the Big Three (Jupiter, Chiron and Neptune) and a harmonious sextile to Uranus, and Mercury is in a harmonious trine to the Big Three and in a challenging square to Uranus. The combination of challenging and harmonious aspects with all of these planets involved suggest an activation and a radical turning point (Uranus) of the transformational Triple Conjunction and the way we view our relationship to our own inner world and subconscious mind (Triple Conjunction). Mercury helps us to process these experiences through the mind and intellect, and Venus brings the process into our relationships and the way we feel about ourselves and our place in the world. This powerful influence will have subsided by the 3rd, at which point Mercury will enter the emotional sign of Cancer. Mercury can be reactive in Cancer, and for the next month or so watch for emotions to rule the mind. This will be particularly true because Mercury is moving into position to oppose Pluto on the 4th which will create additional intensity in the mental reams. This can manifest in a powerful focus that we can use in our work, or for a few days it might create a bit of fear that our emotional security (Cancer) will be compromised. Another fast-moving but difficult cycle overlaps here with a square of Mars (aggression and drive) to the Triple Conjunction. Mars is impatient and can create irritation to nerves that are already sensitized by the occurrences of the previous few days. Between July 4th and the 7th or so, be prepared to handle the surge of energy that is likely to affect you, particularly if the Triple Conjunction is already affecting your chart. This is a good time to plan some exercise or enjoyable physical activity so that the energy can be channeled properly. Venus enters Gemini on the 5th, leaving the solid and stable sign of Taurus for the more lively and communicative Gemini. For the next few weeks communication becomes crucial in our interpersonal relationships. We may find ourselves more active socially and more interested in sharing our thoughts and ideas with others. The Full Moon at 5:21 am EDT on July 7 is also a Lunar Eclipse, in which the light of the Sun as it reflects to the Earth is eclipsed by the Moon. From an astrological perspective eclipses occur when the Moon is within range of the lunar nodes. Because the nodes of the moon tell the story of the evolutionary journey of the soul, eclipses can provide us with a portal to accelerate our inner development. 2009 is a potent year for eclipses with six eclipses instead of the usual four (two pairs of solar and lunar), which suggests that this is a significant year for the human species as a whole. However, this particular eclipse is not as powerful astrologically because the nodes of the moon are 15 degrees from the lunation, and in a different sign (dissociate). This Full Moon is in Capricorn, the sign of achievement and getting down to business. Though the Sun is in sensitive Cancer which cares more about keeping the family safe and protected, that influence is eclipsed now by the Capricorn Sun. Capricorn invented the expression “nose to the grindstone,” and there is a strong focus on responsibility and achievement with this Capricorn Moon. Somewhat impatient with sensitive emotions that get in the way, particularly in the eclipse where it can become somewhat overwhelmed. This lunar event incorporates the challenging square of Mars to the Triple Conjunction, but it also includes a harmonious sextile from Mars to Uranus which helps to open up the doorways of perception to let in a new brilliance and openness which will help to break apart areas in which we have become stuck. Capricorn is about form and structure, and it is easy with that strong emphasis on discipline and boundaries to become rigid. This nice aspect between Mars and Uranus will help to lubricate the wheel of change. The conjunction between Jupiter and Neptune, while part of the Triple Conjunction which is already in force, peaks on July 10 which will unleash a flow of creativity and imagination for at least a week before and is also incorporated into the chart for the Full Moon. This flow will become even more pronounced on the 9th of July when the Sun forms a harmonious sextile aspect to Saturn and we are able to jump into the flow of positive energy. Mercury will form a nice sextile to Saturn on the 11th, which gives the gift of mental focus and acuity. With Mercury in Cancer we may find ourselves thinking about our home and the people we love, cooking good meals and taking care of others. The sextile to Saturn inspires us to put those thoughts into new form. Mars also enters Gemini that day, leaving staid and solid Taurus to join Venus in the chatty sign of Gemini. Gemini likes to do more than talk – there is also a desire to learn and absorb as much information as possible. The focus on communication and learning becomes even more potent over the next few days with a series of Mercury transits. The Sun conjuncts Mercury on the 13th, illuminating the mind and helping to clarify our vision for a day or two. On the 16th, Mercury forms a harmonious trine to Uranus which helps to open up the higher mind to intuition and greater understanding. Remember that both Mars and Venus are in Gemini now, and Gemini is ruled by Mercury and shares the longing to absorb and transmit information so that is of supreme importance now. For my writers out there, your time is NOW!! On the 17 Mercury enters the vivacious sign of Leo where it’s not enough to learn and share – we must be seen and recognized for our brilliance and our wit. Leo is ruled by the Sun and the solar influence reminds us that the Self must be celebrated. The conjunction of Chiron and Neptune are driven more by an urge to transcend the Self, but the solar influence becomes more significant with a trine from the Sun to Uranus on the 18th. This is a day of individuality and new ideas. A harmonious sextile of Mercury to Mars on the 20th helps again to sharpen our focus even more, giving us the mental energy we need to get through any difficulty we encounter in our day. This sextile is embedded in the energy of the second New Moon in Cancer which occurs on the 21st at 10:35 pm EDT. When there are two New Moons in the same sign, this is sometimes called the Secret Moon. Because Cancer rules the Moon, it is particularly powerful in Cancer and because this is an eclipse of the Sun the lunar influence prevails. The first Cancerian New Moon occurred in June on the day following the Summer Solstice which added its own bit of drama. This New Moon is at the 29th degree of Cancer, within two degrees of the North Node. The 29th degree is sometimes called the “critical degree,” and there is a sense of something coming to a close, of needing completion. The New Moon, when the Sun and Moon conjunct, is typically a time of new beginnings; however, here we have something new beginning and closure occurring at the same time. The Sun is on the cusp of Leo, so the fresh new start is already in place – we have only to turn our view so that we are looking forward again and we will be in motion. With Cancer there is a sense of “gathering the tribe,” but relationships may be under some pressure with a square of Venus (relating and beauty) to Saturn (disappointment and restriction). Relationships now take the forefront (this includes the way we relate to ourselves and how we feel about our lives). On the 27th Venus interacts in a happy trine to the Triple Conjunction which will help to facilitate the healing of relationship problems and lubricate the healing process necessitated by the Big Three, although a challenging square of Venus to Uranus may also bring about some endings and separations. Over the next few days Mercury (mind and communication) faces off against the Triple Conjunction in an opposition formation which pits our mind against the emotional rollercoaster of the soul evolution that is taking place deep within us. Challenging planetary events such as the opposition (180 degree angle) can be powerful agents for change if we integrate the energies of the planets within us. In this case, using the power of our mind to work WITH the flowering of our inner heart to find greater balance can help to propel us along our path with greater wisdom. On
the last day of the month, July 31, Venus enters the sign of Cancer
where our aesthetics turn to food and the beauty of the home environment.
The Triple Conjunction begins to wane in early August and so will
the hyper-sensitivity of the past few months. We then begin to
move into alignment for the next phase of the opposition between
Uranus and Saturn – the battle between that which changes
and that which stays the same. |
7/1
Uranus turns retrograde