Full Moon in Taurus: Beautiful Mother

the feast of life

Full Moon in Taurus
October 29, 2012

Tomorrow brings the Full Moon in Taurus, our yearly northern hemisphere reminder, as nights grow long and winds sharp, that the Earth is a place of abundance.

It's time to prepare for the lean season, so the cosmos sends a message––our bodies need feeding, homes need heat, children need warm coats, people need safety in winter storms, and the Earth will provide with our help.

Taurus is the sign of patience, perseverance, and nurturing; the sign that loves the precious physicality of life. Taurus also understands how the world works––systems have cycles and some include loss, so each of us needs to step up for all of us to enjoy the good things of life.

The loaves and the fishes may have appeared miraculously, but they came in answer to a recognized need––someone who noticed, then said out loud, wow, there's a lot of people here who haven't eaten. And all that plenty didn't distribute itself––people came forward to carry, hand out, make sure everyone got some, and collect the leftovers. Pot luck supper where everybody helps, not the miracle drive-thru where someone hands you a bag and you're gone.

Taurus sticks around.

Across from the Taurus Moon, we find the Sun and Saturn in that other sign of great staying power, Scorpio. Here we experience the deeper reverberations of our physical life.

In one framework, we could see Scorpio (especially with Saturn right there), as the big stick behind the carrot, the hellfire consequence of failures of virtue. Scorpio as darkness with a capital "D," as the things we run from.

In another, Scorpio becomes the messenger of the unseen, the one who knows what is not obvious, the one who understands the deeper meanings of our simplest actions. At this Full Moon, the unseen but deeply felt is especially strong:

The Grand Trine in Water still flows, as the Sun and Saturn together trine Neptune and Chiron in Pisces, and Ceres in Cancer. This pattern connects strong energies of dreaming, manifesting, healing and abundance, bringing them all closer to our conscious awareness.

With the Moon opposite the Sun (as always at a Full Moon), this Taurus Moon becomes the apex of a wide kite, receiving sextiles from Neptune and Chiron, and from Ceres. Pluto the Alchemist trines the Full Moon, and sextile the Sun and Chiron.

Meanwhile, Venus has entered her home sign of Libra, and sextiles Mercury in generous, optimistic Sagittarius. Mars is also in open-handed Sagittarius, opposite Sag's ruler, Jupiter the Sage, still reflectively retrograde in Gemini. Uranus, too, is part of the picture, as he semisextiles the Moon and forms an inconjunct to the Sun, edgy as always.

Much can be illuminated at this Full Moon. Look at your birth chart to see where the Full Moon will fall, as issues related to this part of your chart will be in the spotlight. For all of us, the Full Moon in Taurus will ask:

• Where am I feeling well provided for in my life? Where am I feeling deprived or left out? What actions do I need to take, to feel and experience more abundance?

• What deeper motives support (or interfere with) my actions? Where do I need to look below the surface at what's really going on in my life?

• How am I connecting with intuition or guidance in its many forms? Am I listening to compassionate voices seeking my highest good? How can I deepen my most positive, life-enhancing connections?

• Am I a glass-half-full or a glass-half-empty kind of person? What are the consequences of that? If I am less happy than I would like to be, where can I invite conscious, deliberate optimism into my life, and express that to others?

You'll notice that each of these areas end with "what can I do?" kinds of questions ... Saturn is strongly present in this Full Moon, and he doesn't like to see anyone sitting around, wasting time and resources. On the other hand, this is the Taurus Full Moon, and appreciating the wonderful things of life becomes a responsibility too, one we embrace now.

So, sitting around worrying about what's going wrong? Not so much. Resting in the abundance of our Earth Mother, savoring the good things of our lives and sharing them with others––that's a responsible, as well as responsive, way to live this Full Moon.
     

Gibbous Moon: It Was a Dark and Stormy Night ...

into the woods ...

Gibbous Moon in Pisces
October 25, 2012

"Gibbous" is an odd word, don't you think? It makes me think of gibbons ... gibbering gibbons.

Its origins are equally odd. Gibbous means something convex or bulging, but comes from the Latin gibbus, a hump or hunch. In the fifteenth century, "gibbous" meant hunchbacked.

This Moon phase, which peaks as the Sun and Moon form a square-and-a-half (a sesquiquadrate), is like hitting a bump in the road. We've met the First Quarter square challenge, we can see the Full Moon reward looking ahead, and––wait ... what? I just fell over something.

This Gibbous Moon is the log you trip over on a foggy night in the woods when you've made a wrong turn, the compass needle spins crazily, the matches are wet, and the flashlight battery's low.

The Grand Trine in Water I've written about earlier in this lunar cycle is still with us, emphasized by a Sun–Saturn conjunction in Scorpio, trine Neptune and Chiron in Pisces and Ceres in Cancer. With the Moon also in Pisces, we're going to have a tough time getting our bearings. These energies are filled with glorious spiritual connection, and the cruelest of illusions. Healing and wounding, clarity and confusion, innocence and decadence, light and shadow.

At times like these, rational logic goes out the window. It just doesn't work. The choice point is, are we driven by fear? Or do we tune in to intuition?

Let's not dismiss the fear option out of hand. When I look at the world, our situations politically and ecologically, the treatment of all people in any way disadvantaged, I am afraid. Fear feels like a realistic assessment.

So maybe the question is, what's the purpose of fear? And, beyond that, what do I do with fear? Where does it lead me? Are there healthy ways I can experience and work with fear?

Karla McLaren describes fear as the mood state evoked by change, novelty, and the possibility of physical danger. Oh, snap. "Novelty" seems like a weak word indeed for the level of change coming at us––even "change" doesn't evoke the speed-of-light flows of information, innovation, and transformation swirling around.

Karla sees emotions as moving, calling us to action. Fear, she says, leads us into our instincts and intuitions, the ways we know, outside of logic, what to do right now to stay safe––sometimes by freezing or running away, but often by orienting to the coming changes and flowing with them.

Fear and intuition are not opposite choices. When experienced well, fear connects us to intuition.

Today, intuition is often glossed as "inner knowing." We think of tuition as teaching, and in as inside, so, intuition is an inner guide who tells you stuff.

The origin of intuition leads back to the Latin teuri, a word so old its origins are lost, which means not teacher, but guardian and protector.

Intuition is the guidance within that keeps us safe, activated when we feel the emotion we know as fear. Nature intended this to work seamlessly––the inner alarm bell goes off, we correct our course of action, the alarm bell goes quiet.

This is not a case of "feel the fear and do it anyway" when the action we're choosing makes the alarm bells get insanely loud. Neither is it a call to stick our heads in the sand because this momentarily reduces panic. This is about learning how to respond in ways that make us safer, by accepting, understanding and responding accurately and effectively to our circumstances.

This is the beauty of a trine, especially a Grand one: Trines flow easily.

Even as this part of the lunar phase leads us into the dark, misty forest and lays a log in our path, the energies out there are standing by to offer powerful, easily accessible experiences of how well intuition can work.

Seriously, with a Grand Trine like this one, plus Mercury conjunct the North Node in Scorpio, if we can't get in touch with our inner guidance now, when can we?

OK, that was a bit Scorpionic and snarky. How these transits affect you will depend a lot on your birth chart and how your life's been going lately. At the same time, we really are offered a chance to experience intuition at work (and at play) this week.

Watch for synchronicities. Remember your dreams. Dust off the runes, I Ching tiles, Tarot cards. Watch flights of birds. Listen to the wind.

Important safety tip: Choose ways of working with intuition that keep you safe and in contact with trusted guides who have your best interest at heart. Plan for invocations, prayers, or blessings.

If fear comes up, try not to immediately shy away. Look for a calm space within. Watch where the fear leads you. Listen to what the message is. Take effective action that increases safety.

Blessings for all of us.
    

First Quarter Moon: On the Edge

First Quarter Moon in Capricorn
October 21, 2012

As the Sun and Saturn reach toward their conjunction, the Sun and Moon square each other in the final degrees of Libra (Sun) and Capricorn (Moon). This last degree is called the anaretic degree, and is an especially fraught point in any sign.

One way of approaching the transition between signs is to think of them as blending––we gradually move from Libra, say, into Scorpio and the energy is a little this, a little that, the two smooshed together. This is where the term "cuspy" comes from ... if you've got a planet in that in-between territory, some astrologers will call it "cuspy" and say it's a blend of both.

I have problems with "cuspy."

My Sun's at 0 Libra and my Moon's at 0 Virgo, so I know from cusps. And I can tell you, I've never felt blended at all. More jagged, actually. Edgy.

Look at any two adjacent signs––do they feel like they'd blend easily? Seriously, Libra and Scorpio, Scorpio and Sagittarius, Pisces and Aries ... pick any two and tell me these are flavors that blend.

As we move around the zodiac, each sign answers a need created by the energy of its predecessor, offering an antidote to whatever has been overemphasized. It's about movement, growth, progression, and challenge, not blending gradually from red to yellow with all that lovely peach in the middle.

So, I felt a sense of satisfaction when I discovered another approach that recognizes the difficult shift from one sign to the other, reflected in part in the final, anaretic degree.

When we reach 29, we're really, really into the energy of that sign. Committed, fully immersed. But we've also taken it as far as it will go. Maybe we're sensing its limitations and excesses. But still, we're in it, all the way.

But wait ... here's a horizon. A new energy right here. We need to jump there, into the new. But can we? Maybe we stick a toe in, pull back. Maybe we make the jump and then the place we just left looks much better and we jump back.

The Sun in Libra is all about beauty, peace, harmony, clear thought, planning, and balance. The Moon in Capricorn is all about rolling our sleeves up and working hard, never mind the muck if we get to the goal.

The Sun is looking at a darker place, the shadowy realms of Scorpio where Saturn the Taskmaster sits waiting, tapping his foot. The Moon sees the grand visions of Aquarius ahead, airy-fairy stuff for hard working Cap.

Meanwhile, Venus in Virgo forms a wide trine to the Moon while sextiling Mercury and the North Node in Scorpio, who are poised between the Sun and Moon. Does Venus help us, or does Virgo increase our anxiety about all this?

The question at this Fist Quarter is, do we embrace challenge as a way forward, or sit on the fence? He who hesitates is lost ... or is it, look before you leap?

The lovely Libran New Moon has sowed her seeds. We're about to leave her beautiful visions behind. If we can hold our dreams clearly in our hearts, we won't need to look back over our shoulders. We can boldly go into the new territories before us. We can step off the edge.

Hey, Felix Baumgartner did it! We can too.
    

Crescent Moon: Breasting the Waves

Sunset surfing

Crescent Moon in Sagittarius
October 18, 2012

The Grand Trine in Water still swirls underneath all we do, and some are feeling the undertow.

Scorpionic Saturn can be fierce in holding up mirrors to what we prefer not to see. Neptune and Chiron in Pisces turn and look, then turn away, floating between truth and illusion.

Ceres in Cancer keeps the home fires burning, reminding us of what we hold dear––which doesn't always help when we're swimming in Neptunian, Chironic, Saturnian oceans.

The lovely Libran New Moon tantalized us with creative visions, hopes of love, and an invitation to rededicate to core values. Today we reach the Crescent Moon, and the first illumination of what may grow from our longings.

This Crescent Moon sails in optimistic, generous and philosophical Sagittarius, joining determined Mars in the seas of possibility. The Moon and Mars together are ready to dive into the deepest waters, certain they will rise again, pearls in hand, triumphant.

The Moon and Mars still feel energized by their contact with revolutionary Uranus, and head into opposition with Jupiter retrograde in Gemini. There are several courses here, and good navigation is a must:

The Moon and Mars in Sag might leave Uranus all fired up, sure they have everything they need to surge ahead, full steam, damn the torpedoes ... and run aground on Jupiter's uncharacteristic indecision. Suddenly, the course is not so clear. Where were those charts again? Oh, forget the fog, just open the throttle and let's go!

Or, Moon and Mars can celebrate the energy of Uranus by taking action to confirm the details of intuitive guidance, checking where the rocks and shoals are before leaving port. In this scenario, the reflective mood of Jupiter retro in Gemini alerts us to possibilities lurking at the edge of vision, things we might miss if we don't double-check.

The semisquare from the Sun in clear-sighted Libra offers just the check Moon–Mars needs, so pay attention if something looks off balance, not quite right, or out of true. A small correction now could avoid a major oh-no-we're-completely-off-course later.

Venus moves out of her square to Jupiter, and as she's in Virgo, sign of the careful planner, this is another reminder to pay attention to details during this Crescent Moon. She sextiles Mercury in deep Scorpio, so the details we need to watch for might be the hidden ones. Mercury in Scorpio sees in the dark, and is never fooled by Neptunian sleight of hand. Pay attention to where your attention goes; watch for tricks.

With the native caution supplied by Virgoan Venus and Scorpionic Mercury, the Moon and Mars can enjoy this Crescent Moon. These are not armchair travelers, content to read about other people's adventures ... these two are ready to hit the road and see where it takes them.

Despite the strong tides around us, we can embrace the challenges of wind, rain and currents, glorying in the feel of wind in our face and the taste of salt on our tongue. Where will the journey take us? Let's find out!
    

An extra New Moon note...

An extra note as we head into the New Moon ... this New Moon ushers in a void-of-course time that lasts all day, so open heart and mind, allow your consciousness to learn what it learns, and save the plans and requests for tomorrow. Today is a day to receive rather than to intend.

New Moon in Libra: Open Mind, Open Heart

dancers in motion

New Moon in Libra
October 15, 2012

Tomorrow's New Moon in Libra is brought to you by peace, harmony and beauty, with additional support provided by creativity, relating and abundance.

Really! This New Moon, arriving at 22 degrees Libra, offers an opening in the spiral of time to reflect on all things wonderful about life, our lives, and the values we cherish and want to expand.

Because this New Moon occurs late in Libra, the Full Moon that will illuminate its seeds falls in Taurus (rather then Aries, the sign opposite Libra, and the sign of last month's Full Moon). It happens that Libra and Taurus are the two signs ruled by Venus, making this goddess the patron saint of this lunar cycle (to mix a few spiritual metaphors). She's a rich goddess whose gifts include the sensual pleasures and beyond, to include the networks of relationship that enfold us.

At each New Moon, we begin again. Entering the dark Moon time, something is released to become fertile ground, and something germinates. I write about this as a time for wishing and intending, for working with the forces surrounding us rather than seeking to impose our conscious will.

Astrologer Dana Gerhardt goes farther into Moon mysteries in acknowledging that sometimes, maybe more often than not, we can't see and don't know what seeds are splitting open at this time, and what might show up in our gardens afterwards. (Find Dana's wonderful writing about the Moon at astro.com and available as ebooks on Dana's website, Mooncircles.)

Dana suggests the New Moon as a time of allowing, and this month's New Moon in Libra invites that approach especially. Underlying the New Moon is a Grand Trine in Water of Saturn in Scorpio, Neptune in Pisces, and Ceres in Cancer. Trines in Water carry us into flows of emotion and intuition. This one links Saturn and Neptune, leading to manifestation. The presence of Scorpio and Pisces lets us know we're in deeply psychic and insightful territory. The goddess Ceres (Demeter) in nurturing Cancer offers protection.

Libra energy reminds me always of the Beauty Way, the prayer of the Diné which says we walk in beauty, beauty before us, beauty behind us, beauty all around. This New Moon surrounded by powerful Water allows us to see, in the dark, the wonder of our one precious life. Even in times of great challenge––sometimes especially in such times––we walk in beauty.

Jupiter the philosopher remains reflectively retrograde in Gemini, widely trine the New Moon, and squaring Venus in careful Virgo. Mercury in deep Scorpio is inconjunct Jupiter and sextile Venus. Edgy connections here, drawing us in to analyze our values, to look beneath the surface of our relationships, to reexamine our ideas of abundance.

The transformative signature of our time, the Pluto–Uranus square, is energized at the New Moon by a trine from Mars in optimistic Sagittarius to Uranus in fiery Aries. When we allow energy to move, change happens easily, visibly, and quickly.

Saturn's move into Scorpio put him in mutual reception with Pluto in Capricorm––they each inhabit each other's signs now, another aid to positive, necessary change.

As always, look to your birth chart to see where this New Moon will fall and what it will touch. These areas of life may be the fertile spots from which new seeds will emerge. Making wishes and setting intentions is worthwhile.

And for this New Moon, add in the "yes, and" of improvisational theater ... let's support the actors on stage with us, and build on their intentions as well as our own. Yes to the Sun and yes to the Moon. Yes to Venus, yes to Saturn, yes even to Uranus and Pluto and the great changes flowing in their wakes. Yes, and yes, and yes again.
    

Balsamic Moon: Down the Rabbit Hole

Balsamic Moon in Leo
October 11, 2012

This Balsamic Moon reminds me of the Mock Turtle in Alice in Wonderland, a melancholy creature neither one nor t'other, styled after an imitation, who's word play made him almost impossible to follow.

Here we are at the tail end of a lunar cycle that began in Virgo and climaxed in Aries, turning everything topsy turvy and tossing a few thunderbolts here and there just for effect. Like Alice, we look around for something familiar to tell us where we are, precisely, and how we get home.

This is the time for letting go, releasing what no longer serves us, in preparation for the New Moon cycle to come ... but first we have to sort out which end is up and what sort of world we've gotten in to.

Underpinning everything is a Grand Trine in Water that flows between Saturn and Mercury in Scorpio, Neptune and Chiron in Pisces, and Ceres in Cancer.

When Neptune and Chiron seem to be dragging us into waters way over our heads, an ocean that might well be made of tears, Saturn and Mercury throw a lifeline of insight––although the insight might be in the form of satire, absurdist word play, or, in a pinch, heavy sarcasm.

Ceres in Cancer offers the hope of nurturing, safety, and tribe, and yet in this mix, she's also quite ready to be fierce, refusing to participate until she gets her own back. Strange depths we find ourselves in!

The Moon anchors a jumbled Grand Cross in which planets at the beginning and end of their signs form out-of-sign squares and oppositions. There is challenge here, and plenty to be explored and learned, but the unusual pairings turn the usual interpretations on their heads.

The Leo Moon squares the Nodes of the Moon, making her the missed step that needs to be found again. This Moon wants to create, play, express from the heart. She will not be silenced. She steps forward into the light.

The Nodes in Scorpio and Taurus prefer to stay put, thank you very much, and yet Sagittarian Mars joins the North Node, squaring the Moon while adding his Fire to create movement and change.

Neptune and Chiron also square the Nodes and Mars, opposing the Moon, in cosmic, creative, emotional Pisces.

There's a lot to balance; we're now at the Mad Tea Party, when everyone wants their say and no one makes sense.

With Alice, we cry, "Is everyone mad here?"

It's not all smoke and mirrors, though. There are some strong threads to guide us through the maze.

Venus is holding on to the end of her trine with Pluto, reminding us that sometimes the only way out is through, and a willing acceptance of necessary change can make the process less painful. The Sun trines Jupiter retrograde in Gemini, bringing thoughtful, creative reflection. Mars moves into his trine with Aries, ready to act, walking into the fires of transformation on the journey to something better.

Most intriguing of all, the passionate Leo Moon forms creative quintiles to Jupiter and Mercury. Quintiles are rare aspects that invite imaginative play and innovation. At this Balsamic Moon, we're called to combine hard-won personal insight, philosophical reflection, and courageous expression.

Beneath the absurd twists of circumstance, the challenges of fate, and anxieties about where we are and what it all means, the great heart of the Leo Moon beats strongly and steadily. She brings laughter, life and love. Out of all the madness, she says, beauty will rise.
    

Last Quarter Moon: When It's Darkest

Starry Night Over the Rhone –– Van Gogh

Last Quarter Moon in Cancer
October 8, 2012

So, let's acknowledge up front that things feel a bit bleak, now Saturn has followed Mercury into Scorpio.

They're trining Neptune and Chiron in watery Pisces. The Moon's in Cancer, at her most emotional, and Venus is in anxious Virgo.

I've already seen Facebook posts from usually cheery friends talking about climbing back into bed with hot cocoa and blankets, even though the sky is blue and clouds fluffy. This is internal weather we're talking about, and sometimes a lovely day just makes it worse.

We're in a Shadowy season, and this year's will be more intense than usual. Those of us interested in psychology reach for the James Hillman. Fantasy fans may find cheery tales just don't cut it right now. Happy endings? I double-dog-dare ya.

Sooooo ... what do we do with all this heaviness?

Satire is always good, while remembering the distinction between satire and mere sarcasm. Scorpio excels at both.

Creative work is an excellent choice. Saturn loves form. He's trining gifted Neptune, with communicative Mercury and mentoring Chiron in close attendance. This pattern pushes us to go beyond wallowing in drama du jour, and instead see what it's made of, what can be made of it, and––in the process––what we're made of.

Wallowing is a bit of an issue when the Moon's in Cancer, which is exactly the challenge presented by tomorrow's Last Quarter Moon. The Sun's at 15 Libra, the Moon at 15 Cancer, and the Water Trine is Grand, with Saturn, Mercury, Neptune and Chiron as described and Ceres (Demeter) holding the third corner in emotional Cancer.

At the Last Quarter, we turn toward the coming New Moon, and look at what we need to let go of ... but, oops, Cancer and Scorpio hate to let go of anything. Old patterns? Check. Hurts and losses? Check. Grudges and resentments? Check. We've got 'em, and they're all up for review. Sounds fun, huh?

This is where the good side of Saturn comes to the fore. (Yes, Saturn has a good side.) This is the serious guy, the one who wants to see hard work, responsibility, commitment and patience. Raising a sardonic eyebrow at all this emotional baggage, Saturn asks whether any of it really matters.

Which issues contribute to our lives going forward, and which are so much dead weight? Which ones are we ready to commit serious time and effort to understanding, and which can we just let go of, right now, this week? Suddenly we notice things on the list not worth worrying about ... sure, pitch those over the side ... buh bye!

The opportunity at this Last Quarter Moon is to commit to spending serious Saturnian time with the real issues in our lives and let the rest go. With Saturn in Scorpio, we're in for some heavy weather, and traveling light is an excellent choice.

It's time for realism. The old proverb "It's always darkest just before the dawn" is not helpful, and not true. It's darkest right in the middle of the night, and that's where we're headed.

Instead, I offer Emerson: "When it's dark enough, you can see the stars." This, I like. Darkness offers contrast, the velvety blackness that makes any spark stand out. I've been in caves deep beyond any ambient light. It's surprisingly comforting ... and wow, do candles look great!

At this Last Quarter Moon, we've got Uranus in fiery Aries lighting a huge candle. He's at the apex of a yod with Saturn and Mercury on one side and Venus on the other, sextiling each other. So, he's the answer, the way out, the light in dark places when all other lights go out.

Sagittarean Mars is trining Uranus, boosting Fire's energy exponentially, combining to offer a double-edged sword: Are we looking for piercing personal insight, or a torch to burn something down? Could work either way.

The Chicago Marathon is today, another setting in which blazing energy and long-term commitment combine to create success. I'm not a runner myself, but some of my nieces are running––I wish them well; may Aries and Uranus put wings on their feet, and Scorpio ensure their energy never gives out!

For the rest of us, let's pull those tired old issues out into the light, and toss the ones we don't need onto our personal bonfire of the vanities. We commit to a journey into the depths for important issues, but not for trivial matters that are just. so. over.
    

Disseminating Moon: Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes

Autumn twilight

Disseminating Moon in Taurus
October 4, 2012

Today's Disseminating Moon arrives in the midst of change––planets changing signs, turning retrograde, realigning.

After the intense Aries Full Moon, we're adjusting, finding new places in a shifted world.

Venus entered Virgo earlier this week and Jupiter turns retrograde today, events that might not seem related but both indicate energy turning inward, slowing down, becoming more finely tuned.

Jupiter is in the sign of Gemini, and both Virgo and Gemini are ruled by Mercury, so we might find  thought and communication shifting gears this week from full-on, full-tilt high energy to something more careful, analytical and measured.

The Taurus Moon is slow and steady too, which allowed me to enjoy a wonderful massage yesterday and a slow restful day––and wait until this morning to write my blog entry!

The Disseminating Moon is a time of sharing, sending things out into the world, and looking around to see what's different. If this Full Moon felt explosive,with unexpected illuminations, the Disseminating Moon might feel like the movie scene after the cataclysm when everyone cautiously peeks out to see what's left and where it landed.

Venus in Virgo wants to check in and make sure everyone's OK, handing out supplies and sandwiches. Jupiter in Gemini wants to connect, and as he turns retrograde, some of that connecting is thoughtful and inward. What just happened––to me?

Meanwhile, Mercury and Saturn are poised to move into deeply introspective Scorpio. Tomorrow (Friday) they join each other, shift into Scorpio, and trine Neptune in Pisces, offering powerful energies for self exploration, dreams, visions, divination and magic.

When Saturn and Neptune flow energy together, our dreams become reality, and when cosmic Pisces and deep Scorpio are involved, powerful connections are made. With Mercury there too, magic words and thoughts emerge––a time to focus on our biggest visions and be careful what we wish for!

Mercury's trip through Scorpio lasts until October 29, although he'll dip back in during his early-November retrograde. Saturn, though, will remain in Scorpio for the next two and a half years, bringing a longer-term focus to matters of transformation, power, sexuality, death and rebirth and the deep psyche. Saturn pushes us to look at structure, karma and responsibility, so prepare for intensity.

Those of us with natal Saturn in Scorpio will experience a Saturn return during this time––more introspection and focus. 

We're moving into the Scorpio time of year, Autumn in the Northern hemisphere. Surrounded by signs of waning, of loss, of harvest, we naturally attune to similar patterns within. This week cues us in, drawing our attention to the natural cycles of life and death, and inviting us to welcome each turn of the wheel.

Jupiter remains retrograde in Gemini through the end of January 2013. This is Jupiter the philosopher, considering whether the systems of thought, the idea collected together, the ways of communicating we've developed for ourselves are still working.

Do we, at this point in our lives, have a consistent, workable approach to life? What might be missing? What needs rethinking? What needs to be revisited? This will be an excellent Fall and Winter for diving back into important books, exploring the roots of our personal philosophies, and having deep conversations.

If this sounds heavy, it is... no way to avoid it, really, with Saturn moving into Scorpio and jovial Jupiter looking within. Accept the invitation to think deeply, and enjoy a slower pace. The rewards can last a lifetime.