The grand trine of mid-July is waning as we head deeper into cardinal T-square territory. There is another very small window on Monday to manifest positive changes, but then we enter a period of heightened breakdown and chaos.

You’ve probably read about Monday’s “Star of David” configuration. In astrological terms, this is a grand sextile – two interlocking trines that look like a six-pointed star (see chart below). Often called the Seal of Solomon, it’s perhaps best known as the symbol on the flag of Israel, but it is not limited to the Jewish faith. In Western Hermeticism, it is a symbol of the sacred marriage of spirit and matter, the conscious and the unconscious, the divine masculine and divine feminine. Astrologically, though, the two trines must be a combination of either water and earth, which are feminine signs, or fire and air, which are masculine signs. Monday’s grand sextile is composed of water and earth signs.

If you do a Web search for the Star of David configuration, you’ll find all kinds of properties attributed to – everything from a portal to higher consciousness to a sign that the antichrist is coming. One YouTube video mistakenly said it would start on July 22. That was the day the new Prince of Cambridge was born, so you can imagine the conspiracy theories. I have to say, it depresses me when stuff like that goes viral. I makes you wonder whether there is any hope for democracy, which depends on a well-informed public. In fact, the grand sextile won’t last for even 24 hours, as one leg of the second triangle is formed by the Moon, and she moves through the degrees very quickly. The trine begins to form around 7:30 a.m. EDT on Monday and starts to wane after midnight on Tuesday. (I cast the chart for 12:27 p.m. EDT by taking the average of the highest and lowest degrees of the planets in the configuration.)

There is no doubt that this is a rare configuration, and it deserves special notice. Moreover, the six-pointed star is significant in several religions over many millennia. My take is that it is positive, and in the water and earth signs, creative. I also believe that if you put your intentions out into the Universe at special times like this, you’re using powerful “magic” to manifest what you want and need. My usual caution applies: Make sure you know what you want! I also believe that when we misuse magic to try to force events that are inconsistent with our individual purpose and destiny, it will backfire in a big way.

If you’d like to know more, the best information I’ve found is on the website of Mary Fortier Shea. Some of you may know her as the author of interpretations that are the basis for my Full Circle Solar Return report. Needless to say, I respect her wisdom and insight. Here’s a brief quote from her series of articles on the grand sextiles of the past two decades:

“I think that each of the Stars of David that appears in the sky tell us something about the human experience and spiritual journey as it is occurring on the planet, both individually and connectively. It is interesting to note what happens during the time periods of each of the Stars.”

I won’t repeat her efforts by listing them all here, and add only that it is difficult sometimes to tell what astrological aspect corresponds to current world events. It’s going to be particularly difficult with this one, because there’s also a strong T-square this week with Mars squaring Uranus on Wednesday, following the Mars-Pluto opposition on July 27. This is a dangerous week overall in global affairs, with the potential for increased violence breakdowns. Ray Merriman has some interesting observations in his forecast for the coming week regarding global financial affairs. As always, his weekly column is well worth the read and one of my favorites.

The T-square continues strong through the end of August, with Jupiter following the path of Mars. Although Mars was considered by ancient astrologers as a destructive influence and Jupiter was considered to bring luck, Jupiter in a T-square with Uranus and Pluto does not signify gold raining from heaven. They don’t call Jupiter the Big Guy for nothing, and when he’s involved in a mess, it tends to become a BIG mess. But on Monday at least, it could be possible to find the opportunities in the mess. Even if those opportunities aren’t immediately available, it’s helpful to be able to identify them.

Note in the chart that there’s also a second, less significant T-square with the Sun, Moon, and Saturn. Like the grand sextile, this one comes and goes in less than a day. The most notable thing about it is its connection with the Full Moon on July 22. After Monday, the Moon is in her last quarter, waning in light. This is a time to wrap up a project (or phase of one) in preparation for new activities at next week’s New Moon in Leo.

In last week’s forecast, I mentioned coming together with like-minded individuals as the new way of being that will help us out of this mess. It’s ironic that people are connected more than ever before through the social networks, but on the ground, not so much. Tweeting directions to the demonstration is one thing; going there is quite another, and the follow-up is quite another yet – as the people of Egypt unfortunately are discovering.

It seems to me that in the United States, we haven’t progressed much beyond sharing Evil Empire horror stories with our Facebook friends. But that could change a lot in the next several years. This morning I read an article on HuffPo about growing poverty in this country. The headline is somewhat misleading, as the poverty rate isn’t 80 percent. Farther down in the story, the number is given as 15 percent. But that’s hardly anything to brag about, and the trend isn’t going downward. Nor did the comments give me much hope. Mostly they were an “Is not! Is so!” shouting match, with Liberal-leaning comments insulting the tea baggers and blaming Bush, and conservative comments blasting Obama and welfare mothers. Somewhere in there, though, were some voices for real change. One comment linked to the United States Federation of Worker Cooperatives, an organization I wasn’t familiar with. This is a good example of a crisis and an innovative solution, and one that requires cooperation. Incidentally, the organization has been around for several years. Maybe it’s time is coming?

Getting back to this week, Venus sextiles Mars on Friday. Both planets are in the sign of their fall. The image I get is of an exhausted couple coming together to appreciate each other and enjoy some quality time together. A quiet dinner at home is more enjoyable than a big night out and won’t drain energy or finances.

On Sunday, the Sun trines Uranus. This is a fire trine and not part of Monday’s configuration. It does, however, form an “out” for the T-square, with a period of influence of three days plus or minus. In mundane astrology, the Sun represents the leader of a country. Leo rules the heart and is the sign of courage and creative self expression. Again, I read this as a positive sign that creative solutions can be found among the noise and chaos. There is love in the world. But at times like these, it can take a lot of courage to hold it in our hearts.

Much love and courage to you all,
Pat