Category Archives: Forecasts

Weekly Forecast September 2: New Moon in Virgo

Woman gleaning in the Alawite territory of Syria, 1938. From the John D. Whiting papers, Library of Congress.

Something extraordinary appears to have happened. People are waking up.

There was a point last week that I almost started throwing up thinking about the news that the Obama administration was going to go guns blazing into Syria, on questionable evidence of unspeakable weapons used by a loathsome dictator who butchers his own people. It worked once, right? Why shouldn’t it work again?

Well, it seems that a miracle has happened. People on all side of the political spectrum see through the lies, smoke, and mirrors. I spent hours poring through comments on CNN, HuffPo, The Guardian, Fox News, and several others. The opinion was overwhelmingly against further U.S. involvement in Syria, and a good number of people knew it was “further.” We’re paying attention. We know that the United States has been arming rebels fighting the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, some of them far more frightening than the totalitarian regime they seek to topple. And we know our government has been telling blatant lies in an attempt to hide its covert operations in a proxy war. The epiphany hasn’t been confined to the United States.

For a few days, it seemed that public opinion wasn’t going to deter the White House. The idea that the government would ignore the will of the people was even more depressing. As I write, news from Washington is that President Obama will consult Congress before going ahead with plans for military action. The cynic in me doesn’t think his reversal has much to do with the polls, but is more likely the result of hardball back-room negotiating. There is no doubt in my mind that some serious horse-trading took place. As a reporter in Washington, I saw how these guys work. One can only imagine what House Speaker John Boehner may have promised Obama in return for delivering a vote in favor of bombing Syria.

In any case, with Venus in Libra, action was delayed long enough to allow additional facts to surface. And as long as Mercury is in fact-obsessed Virgo, it’s likelier that people will stay grounded in reason and not let themselves be persuaded by a clever new PR blitz. I imagine the spin-doctors were shocked when horrific images of dying children failed to whip up public support to bomb the evil-doer. I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: Democracy depends on a well-informed public. While it’s true that 24/7 news coverage has made it more possible than ever to saturate the Internet with the official version of the truth, the Internet also has provided a vehicle for the real truth to surface. The danger, of course, is that one needs to be very prudent in discerning the reliability of a source. But it does appear that vast numbers of people are doing just that – again, judging by the comments on the various news sites.

So, three cheers for Venus in Libra and Mercury in Virgo.

In the coming week, the dominant astrological aspects are the New Moon in Virgo on Thursday and the sextile from the Sun to Jupiter on Saturday (September 7). Virgo is incisive, analytical, and practical. Indeed, despite the rhetoric coming from the White House and 10 Downing, practicality won in the end, and cooler heads prevailed. It’s reasonable to expect that this mood will continue at least through Thursday and perhaps for the following three days. However, toward the end of the week, Mars edges closer to an exact square with Saturn, and the drums of war will get louder.

Click on image to enlarge

In the chart cast for Washington (as always, with apologies to readers outside the United States), we find Virgo on the Ascendant, with Mercury conjunct by exact degree. There is a national discussion going on, and people are having a rational, informed debate. Granted, there may be a few too many details and not enough emphasis on the big picture, but at least the discussion is taking place.

That said, the Sun and Moon are in the twelfth house, suggesting that a significant high-level discussion is going on outside of the public view. This is the opposite of transparency. Harmonious connections to Jupiter and Pluto suggest that the White House is heavily negotiating with Republican leaders and large financial institutions – not that we didn’t already know that. Mercury “receives” from the New Moon, reinforcing the likelihood of an aggressive PR campaign, probably based on select facts. Just like statistics, facts can be manipulated to make any point one wishes.

The G20 leaders’ summit in Saint Petersburg starts on Thursday. It will be interesting to see if Obama relents and agrees to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Obama canceled the meeting in a huff over Russia’s offer of political asylum to NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden. The two leaders also are at loggerheads over Syria – Obama blaming the chemical weapons attack on Assad and Putin implying it was a false flag operation. Putin has suggested the summit would be a good forum for an international discussion about the crisis in Syria. Astrologically, it’s a terrific time to do just that.

Other aspects in the New Moon chart include the Sun’s opposition to Chiron (exact on Tuesday) and a Ceres-Neptune opposition, which is exact within an hour of the New Moon. Sun in Virgo opposite Chiron in Pisces suggests a collective healing crisis. If you have personal planets from 10 to 14 degrees of Gemini, Virgo, Sagittarius, or Pisces, you could feel an extra twinge of emotional pain, possibly from past memories, whether in this life or other incarnations.

Ceres is in Virgo, which I believe she should co-rule with Mercury, so she’s essentially in her own sign and thus strong. If you remember Mythology 101, Demeter, the Greek counterpart of the Roman Ceres, was the only deity who could challenge Zeus (Jupiter) and Hades (Pluto). In the New Moon chart, Ceres isn’t in close aspect with Jupiter and Pluto but will make contact later this month. Her trine with Pluto on September 17 will be especially powerful. Astrologers are still studying the implications of Ceres in mundane charts, and it could be years before we get enough data to form reliable opinions. In the meantime, we can only speculate. Ceres has been prominent in environmental disaster charts (e.g., the Deepwater Horizon explosion), which makes sense, given her mythology. However, she also was conjunct Jupiter on the Ascendant of the chart for the fall of the Berlin Wall, so there’s something about speaking truth to power, which also is part of her mythology. Neptune rules chemicals, including nerve agents like those used in Syria, as well as oil production. We’ll need to watch the headlines to see how this influence plays out.

In Greek mythology, the identity of Virgo is sometimes given as Demeter or her maiden daughter, Persephone, or as Astraea, the virgin goddess of justice. So the story goes, Astraea lived on Earth during the Golden Age of humanity, but when men became violent and corrupt, she left in disgust, leaving them to fight among themselves.

And Virgo indeed is an antidote. Virgo is the sign of service to humanity. In the Tarot, it’s represented by The Hermit. As I was doing research for this post and reading about Islamic practices of prayer, fasting, alms, and pilgrimage, I immediately thought of The Hermit. Substitute “meditation” for prayer, and helping the less fortunate for “alms,” and you have an age-old, cross-cultural formula for spiritual growth. How often do we talk about “purifying” the spirit? This “virgin” spirit has nothing to do with the religious concept of female virginity, but is about daily renewal through disciplined spiritual practice. Ceres is about the cycles of nature, including the cycle of growth, death, and rebirth. As we move through these turbulent times, I find comfort in the idea that everything is cyclical.

Mercury leaves Virgo on September 9, which happens to be the day Congress returns from summer recess and Mars forms an exact square with Saturn. Boehner said the House likely would take up the debate on Syria that week, just when the war drums will be beating the loudest. I think we also need to entertain the possibility of a staged event designed to swing public opinion through fear and panic, hallmarks of Mars. That’s why it’s all the more urgent that we do what we can this week to search for the truth and spread it around. I’ve been doing my part by painstakingly researching news articles and bookmarking those I deem to be based on credible sources and sound reporting. Here are a couple of links from my growing collection. Some of them are old news but noteworthy for their accurate foresight. Please feel free to share your own.

Witnesses of Gas Attacks Say Saudis Supplied Rebels with Chemical Weapons
U.S. Offers Syrian Rebels Military Support, Alleges Assad Used Chemical Weapons (June 14, 2013)
Syria: An Energy-Based Proxy War in the Making?

Before I end this long piece (thus the late posting), I’d like to thank everyone who sent supportive comments and personal e-mails regarding my copyright issue. I’ve weighed the input and decided to keep my feed truncated for the time being. I hope no one minds the extra click to keep reading.

Much love and courage to you all,
Pat

Weekly Forecast August 26: Venus Opposes Uranus, Mars Enters Leo

Rocky Path. © Osk Ingad Alden, 2013.

As I was researching the news headlines to write this post, I was reminded of the tagline for the television series, The X-Files: “Trust No One.”

It used to be that you could always trust The New York Times to deliver the facts, but those days came to an abrupt halt after it came out that its reports about weapons of mass destruction in Iraq were completely untrue. Based on unnamed government sources, the articles bolstered the case for the Bush administration to invade Iraq.

Democracy is based on an informed citizenry, but where are we to get reliable information? I barely believe a word I read anymore. The corporate media can’t be trusted. Media watchers blame the failure to investigate and report government wrongdoing on post-9/11 hysteria, but that was 12 years ago. As I see it, Pluto’s entry into Capricorn in 2008 is the bigger indicator – even more so since Saturn entered Scorpio last October, putting Saturn and Pluto in mutual reception (each in the sign ruled by the other). This is Big Brother on steroids. It’s no surprise that as governments become increasingly authoritarian, they set all scruples aside and spare no expense in going after the whistleblowers. Add Uranus into the mix, and you’ve got a recipe for deadly suppression of rebellion. And then along comes Jupiter and inflames situations even more.

Several events in the past week can be traced back to late 2010 and early 2011, when Uranus was moving toward the square with Pluto, and Jupiter in Aries conjoined Uranus and then “carried forward” his energy to a square with Pluto. In February and March 2011, with the square between Jupiter and Pluto close to exact, Mubarak resigned in Egypt, protests broke out in Syria, and a powerful earthquake caused a meltdown at the Fukushima nuclear plant. As Jupiter approached opposition to Pluto earlier this month, Egypt experienced the worst political violence in recent history. A massive underground reservoir of radioactive water began leaking from the Fukushima plant into the Pacific Ocean. In Syria, chemical weapons killed at least 350 and injured thousands more. It appears that the government is responsible, but it has officially denied it and blames the attack on anti-government rebel “terrorists.” As I type, the United States is moving an additional Navy destroyer to within target range of Syria, and the Obama administration is considering its “options.” There’s hardly a mention anywhere of the Israeli government, even though it defies credulity to think they aren’t involved big-time.

In addition to those breaking stories, Bradley Manning, who has asked to be called Chelsea from now on, received a 35-year sentence for blowing the whistle on military abuses in Iraq. The British police – apparently with the approval of the Obama administration – detained the partner of Guardian journalist Glenn Greenwald and confiscated his laptop and other electronic devices. A few days later, sensitive intelligence information was mysteriously leaked to another British paper, which quoted an unnamed source and said the material was contained in the files copied by NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden. It looks an awful lot like a government plant.

There’s so much lying going on that we don’t know what to believe. So most people believe what makes the most sense to them, given their experience, political beliefs, mental filters, and other biases. You have to wonder whether Homo sapiens has devolved into Homo dementis.

I do think we may get some clarity this week, and I also think it’s possible that political crises can be defused, at least temporarily.

Through the middle of the week, Venus transforms the cardinal T-square of Jupiter, Uranus, and Pluto into a cardinal grand cross. Although this sounds kind of scary, it could turn out to be beneficial. Venus in Libra is the diplomat of the zodiac, and while a square to Pluto suggests power struggles, diplomacy may win out … this time. That won’t always be the case. Reason and clarity prevail with Mercury in his home sign of Virgo. The Sun also is in Virgo, which may help tone down some of the rhetoric and posturing. Virgo is analytical and wants “just the facts.”

Both the Sun and Mercury sextile Saturn and Jupiter this week, and they also trine Pluto – Mercury on Wednesday and the Sun on Sunday (September 1). The trine is a favorable aspect, and when it connects to a planet in a tense formation like a square or opposition – in this case, Pluto – it provides a pressure valve to release pent-up energy. Mercury is the communications planet, so I’m hopeful that the release will be in the form of the factual news and information we’ve been waiting for. Maybe there still is a news organization on the planet with the integrity to report the real news. For that matter, The New York Times might even redeem itself by working with the Guardian on the NSA story. That’s not to say it’s all going to be good news, but at this point, we just want to know what’s really going on. People are tired of the secrets and lies.

Now, before that happens, we have an opposition from the Sun and Mercury to Neptune. It will be over by Tuesday, clearing the way for the truth to come out. Matters could be somewhat obscured on Sunday and Monday, though. Or, perhaps some facts will be revealed that are so seriously disturbing that many people will prefer to remain in denial – more than usual, anyway. This is all the more likely with Venus opposing Uranus on Monday. The truth could be downright shocking.

I also need to mention that Mars enters Leo on Tuesday. Mars hasn’t been a happy camper in Cancer, and when he changes to a compatible fire sign, his entry could be dramatic. There’s also the possibility of some saber-rattling here, although, taken together, all the other aspects this week suggest that the pissing contests will be toned down for now. Next week, different story.

What I’ve written above also can apply to our personal lives. Perhaps a frank discussion about a relationship will result in information that helps you make an objective, rational decision. Or you could defuse a tense situation at work through an honest dialog that sticks to the facts. A level playing field can be restored upon the revelation of secrets intentionally kept in order to tip the balance of power. Depending on where they fall in your chart, Venus and Uranus could signal love at first sight, a sudden financial opportunity, or an unexpected social invitation.

Before I go, I want to tell you about a disturbing experience I had earlier this week and to ask for suggestions. I was doing a Google search and came across some text that looked an awful lot like my writing. Imagine my shock when I clicked on the link and found a blog displaying all of my posts since last October, in their entirety, without any attribution, and with only one faint, unidentified link back to RealAstrologers. There were posts by a couple of other astrologers as well, and the site was plastered with obnoxious Google ads. After spending more than an hour trying to find out who owned the blog and how to contact him, I wrote a terse e-mail giving him 48 hours to remove all of my content from his site. He replied that it was “completely legal” to repost RSS feeds! He did, however, comply with my request.

It is most certainly not legal to post someone else’s work and make it look like original content. However, as I investigated my options, I discovered that web scraping, as this is called, is not uncommon, and the only way to prevent it is to truncate my RSS feed.

When the Creative Commons license first came out, I supported it and attached it to all my work. The idea behind it is that sharing information enriches everyone and creates a more informed community. I also believe that the way to cope with the enormous stress we’re all facing is to band together. But when I come across people like this who feel entitled to take whatever they want, I’m not inclined to want to share freely. Moreover, Creative Commons licenses just encourage stealing. The whole thing was all the more infuriating in that I spent more than two days researching the applicable law rather than catching up my work.

Truncating my RSS feed means that all of you who have been receiving my forecasts via e-mail would get only a short paragraph and would have to visit my blog for the rest of the article. That would be my best protection, but it would be an inconvenience for my subscribers. A Facebook reader suggested adding a copyright notice to each article, so I thought I’d try that for a while and see how it goes. Meanwhile, if anyone has any other suggestions, please contact me or leave a comment. And if you come across any violations, please let me know right away.

Much love and courage to you all,
Pat

Weekly Forecast August 19: Full Moon in Aquarius, Jupiter Squares Uranus

Monarch on Thistle. © Osk Ingad Alden, 2013.

Whatever little break we may have gotten last week, it’s over. Aspects are so tense that even astrologers are fighting with each other.

A professional astrology forum I participate in has become an online brawl. I swear, if these people were in the same room, they’d be smashing furniture over each other’s heads. The topic causing such a firestorm is Sun sign horoscopes. I can’t believe that people who are supposed to be enlightened (at least that’s my theory) are resorting to personal insults. It’s quite distressing.

Of course, that’s nothing compared to what’s going on in Egypt. Events there escalated right on cue, with the cardinal T-square formed by Jupiter, Uranus, and Pluto peaking on August 7 and August 21 – this Wednesday. This is a symbolic battle, as the so-called Arab Spring was one of the earliest manifestations of the cardinal T-square in 2010 in the first degrees of cardinal signs Aries, Libra and Capricorn. Uranus, the planet of revolutions, was in the final degrees of Pisces at the time, but Jupiter was in Aries.

A reader e-mailed me recently with comments about the current administration in the United States, which has, among other things, voiced continued support for invasive government spying and unmanned drone attacks, even in countries with which we’re not at war. I agreed that a lot of campaign promises had not only been ignored but shockingly reversed, and yet, what might happen if we took to the streets as the Egyptian people did? Calling for the removal of an objectionable government acting in the interests of only a privileged few could have grave consequences in a Pluto-in-Capricorn world. I saw this coming and have written about it a lot in this blog. The Uranus-Pluto square was ripe for rebellion, but I knew that the response by authorities would be deadly.

Still, I do think there is some hope that the situation in Egypt and elsewhere can resolve. The current T-square is the first in a three-part aspect. The next critical periods extend from February to May of 2014, with Jupiter, Uranus, and Pluto in a square by exact degree in mid-April, with a lunar eclipse. What we’re seeing in this time period is setup for events to come. The crisis has been declared, and now it must intensify and then resolve. That’s the pattern of three-part outer planetary transits. That said, Uranus and Pluto remain in a square until 2015, and then there will be a ripple effect of two to three years. April 2014 will be an especially critical time in the United States, as the T-square falls at the same degree as the U.S. Sun and 1 degree from the U.S. Saturn. Venus crosses over the U.S. Saturn later this month, so we may get an idea then of what’s coming down the pike.

Click on image to enlarge

We also have the Full Moon this week, the second in a row in Aquarius. In modern astrology, Aquarius is ruled by Uranus. Anyone who knows an Aquarian is familiar with their innate rebelliousness against authority (unless they are the authority, and then it’s a different story). As you can see in the chart, this is potentially a difficult Full Moon. Not only is Jupiter in a near-exact square with Uranus, but Venus is about to form a grand cross. Now, this could in fact be a temporary stabilizing influence, as Venus in Libra strongly represents diplomacy, and a grand cross is more stable than a T-square. Still, we’re in a period of heightened global tension that is getting on everyone’s nerves. Even if you avoid news headlines in an attempt to protect yourself, you can’t avoid the tense vibration in the collective. The more psychically sensitive you are, the more you’ll feel it. The most you can do is to be kind to yourself, find moments of peace and beauty where you can (thus the image of the butterfly above), and do your best to give loved ones the benefit of the doubt. We’re all under enormous stress.

The Full Moon peaks late Tuesday (Wednesday in Europe and eastern time zones). It’s interesting to note that in the Full Moon chart, Uranus is conjunct the Ascendant by less than three degrees, with Pluto on the Midheaven and Jupiter on the IC. These are extremely sensitive points in a chart, and I can’t help but feel that Washington is in store for a big shock of some kind. In mundane astrology, Jupiter represents the federal justice system and the banks. Look for dramatic headlines (more than usual) involving the Federal Reserve, the country’s largest banks, and the Justice Department. Uranus represents uprisings and riots, and he’s also the planet of severe thunderstorms. If nothing else, the Eastern Seaboard may see some serious weather.

On Thursday, the Sun enters Virgo, with Mercury following on Friday. Reasoned analysis becomes a bigger part of the discussion, both in the collective and in our private lives. Fortunately, with Venus in diplomatic Libra, we can catch ourselves before saying something insensitive or cruel – and remember, the threshold is low right now, given the amount of stress we’re under. If you have been indulging a bit too much to cope with everything coming at you (guilty here), then it’s time to start watching your diet and getting a little more exercise. The Moon is in Aries on Friday, offering a bit of “just do it.” The Sun and Mercury conjoin on Saturday. If you’ve got children, this is your day to shop for back-to-school supplies. Function trumps style.

On Sunday (August 25), Mercury opposes Neptune in Pisces. Keep a notebook by your bed and record your dreams. When life is moving fast and we’re doing all we can just to keep up, we sometimes have to ignore or stuff down feelings and desires, to the point that we may lose touch with ourselves. Here’s an opportunity to find it.

I’m going to try to post the weekly forecasts on Saturday from now on to give everyone a longer heads up. Astrology can’t make stressful events go away, but it can help us understand the forces over which we don’t have any control, and it can show us where we do have opportunities to make some important choices.

Much love and courage to you all,
Pat

Weekly Forecast August 12: Venus Enters Libra

Dew on Cattails. © Gretchen Friedrich, 2013.

In terms of astrological aspects, this week is fairly calm. But we remain in the period of a tumultuous T-square with Jupiter, Uranus, and Pluto.

The only two major aspects this week are a harmonious trine from Mercury to Uranus and the entrance of Venus into her home sign of harmony loving Libra. Saner minds may prevail, however fleetingly.

Mercury in Leo trines Uranus in Aries on Wednesday (Thursday in Europe and points east). Mercury and Uranus have a natural affinity, as both rule air signs. Leo and Aries are fire signs, which are more visceral and act on gut instincts. This combination of Mercury and Uranus is conducive to intuitive thinking, maybe even a spark of genius, that can withstand rational analysis. The good news here is that Mercury provides a temporary “out” from the tension of the T-square. The pressure of the T-square has been bearing down on all of us, and those of you who are particularly sensitive have felt it even if there’s no noticeable manifestation in your lives. For you, there may be some small bit of relief this week.

In world events, the U.S. government continues to launch drone strikes on “suspected terrorists” in Yemen. In last week’s forecast, I commented that the astrological charts indeed showed some trouble, possibly radiating from the Middle East, and that it was connected somehow with the United States. When no terrorist attack materialized, I questioned my analysis … until I realized that what I was seeing was right; I just had the roles switched.

If I’m right about the astrological underpinnings of this trend, it’s not going to end anytime soon, and there may be an increase in the violence next week, when Jupiter squares Uranus. That said, this is a long-term astrological trend that continues on and off through next May. Outer planetary aspects can manifest at any time during their period of influence. I know I’m not the only person deeply disturbed by the notion that someone can be targeted and killed on suspicion of an unspecified crime that government authorities say might happen. I cringe when I read comments on news articles by people who support this measure as a way to prevent deadly terrorist attacks. Fortunately, there seem to be as many people who believe in the principle of innocence until proven guilty. What we’ll do about it is another question. Uranus in Aries can take to the streets in mass protest, but it’s not a good combination for follow-through. Complicating matters, it’s entirely possible (and some say likely) that drone strikes are increasing the possibility of retaliation against the United States. The T-square hasn’t had its final say yet.

On Friday (Venus day), Venus enters Libra, the sign of balance and harmony, which is under her rulership. Libra is the sign of diplomacy, and I do think there’s hope that diplomacy can cool off some of the hot spots in the world. Venus in Libra also is going to transform the T-square between Jupiter, Uranus, and Pluto into a grand cross starting at the end of next week and lasting until the end of the month. Now, this might sound ominous on the face of it, but T-squares are inherently unstable, and a fourth planet to “close” the loop can be grounding. The point opposite the apex can be a “out” for tense energies. In this case, I can’t think of a better out than diplomacy. We may have a situation in which the antagonists are unable to move forward but, temporarily at least, unable to do further damage. This could apply to weather, as well. NSA surveillance also comes to mind. President Obama said on Friday that he would order a review of government intelligence gathering. This week, he’ll have a chance to show whether he really means it.

Personally, the Mercury-Uranus trine may not show up in your life unless they are making close aspects to personal planets in your chart. In that case, you may see a short increase in communications, especially e-mail, and ideas may come to you in rapid succession. Write them down, because they may be so fleeting that you forget them.

It’s more likely we’ll feel Venus in Libra, and probably as a balancing, stabilizing influence, especially in close relationships. Conflict isn’t always a bad thing; sometimes you need it to clear the air and get out of a rut. But there are times for conflict and times for compromise. Venus in Libra favors the latter. Agree to put differences aside for now and just enjoy being together. Find ways to support one another. Create some happy memories to balance out the sad ones. If you’re single, make a point of noticing beauty in the people and places around you, or seek it out elsewhere. Focus on it, burn it into your memory.

Speaking of burning beauty, don’t forget that this week is the peak of the annual Perseids meteor shower. It has been too overcast the past two nights in the Seattle area (big surprise there), but I sat on my deck on Thursday night and saw a couple of spectacular fireballs. In between, I got to sit quietly under the stars and just listen.

Much love, beauty, and courage to you all,
Pat

Weekly Forecast August 5: New Moon in Leo, Jupiter Opposite Pluto

Normally I’d be the first one to dismiss the recent U.S. terror alert as a ploy to convince people that intrusive government surveillance is justified. But given this week’s astrology, I’m not so sure.

On Friday, the U.S. State Department announced it would close 22 embassies and consulates for a day and issued a warning to travelers. It didn’t explain the unprecedented move, other than to say there’s an imminent threat of an attack by al Qaeda, particularly in Yemen.

The timing certainly is suspicious. Two days earlier, a new report in the Guardian revealed the most damning evidence to date that the National Security Agency, despite its denials, maintains vast databases of detailed information on U.S. citizens that can be easily accessed without a warrant. Further, there’s growing support in Congress to limit NSA spying.

As if that’s not enough, reports are beginning to surface in the media that the attack on the consulate in Benghazi was related to illegal CIA activities and that conflicting stories by members of the Obama administration were attempts to protect the CIA. This isn’t new information; alternative news sources had the story long ago, but it’s finally going mainstream.

All in all, that would give the administration plenty of incentive to concoct a new crisis intended to instill fear and convince people that the heavy surveillance is for their own protection. Judging from the comments on news websites, a majority isn’t buying it. It just smells so obviously political.

Ironically, there just might be something to the warning – at least, from an astrological perspective. And who knows, maybe someone in government actually did consult an astrologer … um, OK, probably not. Astrologically, this is one of the most dangerous periods of the year, with Jupiter forming a T-square with Uranus and Pluto for most of August. Adding more weight to the possibility of a threat, Interpol also issued a warning, the reason being the alleged escape of allegedly hundreds of alleged terrorists from prisons in Libya, Pakistan, and Iraq. Absent confirmation by an independent source, I guess we have to take their word for it.

Click on image to enlarge

The Jupiter-Pluto opposition isn’t exact until Wednesday, but you can see it in the chart for Tuesday’s New Moon in Leo. Mars also is involved, although the influence began waning after his square with Uranus last Wednesday. As it so happens, the Jupiter-Pluto opposition is exact just as Jupiter is rising over Yemen, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Syria, and Turkey, with Pluto on the Descendant. So it’s entirely plausible that violence could erupt in these locations or emanate from it. The line extends through Eastern Europe, as well.

The question is, “dangerous” for whom? It’s hardly a stretch to imagine increased violence in the Middle East or North Africa. But that doesn’t necessarily mean a terrorist attack. It could be another wave of deadly protests, financial collapse, more train or plane crashes, violent weather, or all of the above. Upon reading the State Department’s broad warning, I was struck by how much it’s like an astrological prediction. I’ve seen indications in clients’ charts of increased risk of accidents, but I sometimes hesitate to mention it to them – not because I worry it might be a self-fulfilling prophecy, but because it doesn’t do much good to tell someone, “Be careful, you might have an accident.” There’s a reason they’re called accidents. No matter how careful you are, you can’t foresee all possibilities, nor can you control the carelessness of others. Likewise, what good does it do to tell travelers to exercise caution for the next month? Should they not use public transportation anywhere in the world or visit popular tourist attractions? Avoid everyone wearing a backpack, especially if they look Middle Eastern? Not go to bars known to be terrorist hangouts? It’s hard to know the purpose of such an extensive warning but not hard to imagine ulterior motives.

Despite what I wrote above, I do believe it’s possible we’re being played. It would be a gamble, for sure. If the administration wins – if they manage to “foil” a major attack – they’ll have to jump through hoops to convince the public that the threat was real and even more hoops to prove that NSA spying caught the bad guys. If they lose and don’t stop a major attack, it’s even more of a risk. Then, it’s possible they don’t give a rat’s ass about public opinion but are attempting to keep Congress in line. I won’t discount the possibility that the biggest danger we face in the coming months – indeed for several years ahead – isn’t from terrorists but from our own government and its corporate sponsors.

I’ve been pondering whether the current planetary configuration indicates an attack (if indeed there is one) from a bona fide terrorist group or whether it looks more like an inside job. Obviously, the inside job would be more outrageous, but both are diabolical acts intended to kill people for political reasons. They both look the same on the outside, and I’m not sure how I’d tell the difference in a chart. Pluto’s involvement in the T-square suggests covert, shadowy operations, but that could refer to terrorist groups with or without links to the CIA and other Western intelligence agencies.

If and when an event occurs, the chart could provide more specifics, and I’ll try to post an analysis as quickly as possible. In the meantime, let’s take a look at the New Moon chart and aspects for the rest of the week.

The first thing you might notice in the New Moon chart is that Pluto is near the Ascendant in Washington – the mirror of the chart for the Jupiter-Pluto opposition in the Middle East. Jupiter, Mars, and Mercury all are in the seventh house, which in mundane astrology signifies open enemies as well as allies. The New Moon is in the eighth house, in a waning trine to Uranus in Aries in the third house. Uranus signifies protests, riots, and explosions. The third house is associated with local transportation – subways, commuter traffic, intercity railways, etc. – and communications, including Internet traffic. The eighth house is associated with Scorpio and death. It also rules loans to and from other countries. Jupiter rules national banks and the official state religion. Rather than speculating on all the possible scenarios, I’ll leave that to you.

I know that many of you want to know how the New Moon will affect you personally. As usual, that depends on where it falls in your natal chart, and that has little to do with your Sun sign. If you’re an early degree Rising Leo, then the New Moon will fall in your first house, a wild card you can use to advance any number of goals, particularly if they’re relationship-oriented. If you have planets near 14 degrees Leo or Sagittarius, they will be positively aspected by this New Moon. Planets near 14 degrees of Scorpio, Taurus, or Aquarius will be tensely aspected, but that doesn’t necessarily mean anything negative. It could simply be an indication of new developments in a challenging situation of which you already aware. Also, think back to what was going on in your life near the solar eclipse on May 9. Eclipse events sometimes don’t unfold until three months later.

You’ll feel the Jupiter-Pluto opposition personally if you have a transit from Jupiter, Uranus, or Pluto to a personal planet in your chart. In that case, you’ll have a complicated multiple transit that is beyond this column to explore. I’m not doing written reports yet (I’ll have news about that in a few weeks), but I am available for a limited number of telephone consultations. Use the contact form in the sidebar to contact me if you’d like to schedule a reading. If you don’t have a transit to a personal planet but have an idea of how the Uranus-Pluto square has been playing out in your life, look for major developments this week at the New Moon. Although we’re in a tense period overall, it’s possible that individual breakthroughs could be quite positive. The biggest danger may be too much of a good thing. Take care not to bite off more than you can chew. It’s also possible that a change, however positive, could come at an inconvenient time or require major adjustments, some of which could be upsetting.

Looking at the rest of the week, Mercury enters Leo on Thursday after spending an unusually long stay in Cancer. The Messenger typically blows through a sign in two weeks, but he spent two months in Cancer due to his retrograde cycle. As long as Jupiter and Mars remain in emotionally driven Cancer, decisions based on feelings will continue to rule the day. We may notice a small difference with Mercury in Leo, although reason may not be restored until Mercury and the Sun enter Virgo later this month. By then, Venus will be in her own sign of Libra, which also should help restore some balance, especially if events in the next week or two cause widespread fear and panic.

On Sunday (August 11), Mercury squares Saturn, a challenging aspect that nonetheless is conducive for heavy mental lifting and reasoning through problems. Sometimes looking out for Number One requires tough self-discipline, but it will pay off in the long run.

Much love and courage to you all,
Pat

Weekly Forecast July 29: Grand Sextile, Mars Square Uranus

Water and earth. Fisher Pond. © Pat Paquette, 2013.

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.)

Click on image to enlarge

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

Weekly Forecast July 22: Sun Enters Leo, Full Moon in Aquarius

Creatures of the Sun. © Pat Paquette, 2013.

Creations of the Sun. © Pat Paquette, 2013.

In contemplating what to write this week, I’m at a loss to come up with anything new.

The news gets more and more depressing. The Obama administration has given itself a free pass to keep spying on the world, U.S. citizens included, while Edward Snowden is trapped at the Moscow airport, and Bradley Manning faces life in prison. Did you see the photos of him leaving the courtroom at Fort Meade? Why does such a little guy need to be surrounded by beefy, gun-toting guards? Obviously, he scares the bejeesus out of some powerful people.

News headlines get multiplied by orders of magnitude on the social media. I have to tell you, I’m burned out on the constant stream of posts screaming, “Oh my god, have you heard what they’ve done now?” I get it! Everyone with a brain connected to a heart gets it. Those without that connection aren’t going to get it, no matter how many times the message is repeated on Facebook or how loud it’s shouted. Really, it’s not much different than trying to convert someone to your religion.

OK, so we know it’s bad. The police state is so far advanced that it’s too late to fight without risking life and limb. Even more frightening, many of the 99 percent defend it. Yet, every now and then, between the predictable comments on news articles, an intelligent voice in the wilderness asks, “OK, but what can we do about it? Venting in comments and on the social media does nothing.”

So here we are, looking over a deep chasm, the bridge collapsed and rusting, and no way across. Which brings me back to where I started. I’ve been saying all of this for so long that I feel like a broken record, and I don’t have any new answers. All I can do is look at planetary movements and form some kind of an educated guess about how long the current situation will last. Unfortunately, the news isn’t good. We’re in for several more years of turmoil, and things are going to get worse before they get better. You don’t need to be an astrologer to know that. In the meantime, we need to get our priorities straight, examine our values, revise our goals, and work within our communities – not necessarily in that order.

Of all those strategies, finding your community is the hardest, especially if you’re a free thinker. The trick is to maintain your individual voice while working for the common good. Humans are social animals, and most of us do care about our fellows. I’d venture that a good majority are even willing to give more than they get back – provided, of course, that they feel they’re giving to a worthy endeavor. But we don’t like being just another cog in the wheel, especially when that wheel powers a destructive machine.

This is precisely the message of Aquarius, sign of Monday’s Full Moon. Aquarians (of which I am one) tend to be freethinking individuals who don’t go along with the groupthink, and yet this is the sign of humanitarian causes, community action, and our human “family.” Liberté, Egalité, Fraternité. I’ll talk more about the Full Moon, but first let’s have a look at the general lay of the land.

This week we’re in the in-between zone of last week’s dreamy grand trine and a tense cardinal T-square. In both configurations, Jupiter and Mars play a key role, and we start right out on Monday with an exact conjunction of this dynamic pair. Indeed, Monday is the biggest day of the week. Right after the conjunction of Mars and Jupiter, Venus enters Virgo, then the Sun enters Leo, and just over two hours later, we have our first Full Moon in Aquarius of the summer. Yes, there will be another on August 20.

Mars and Jupiter are conjunct not only by latitude but also in declination. In other words, they will be extremely close to each other in the sky, which isn’t always true of conjunctions. This makes the aspect all the more powerful. In earlier times, this combination in the birth chart of a prince was considered a good sign that he would be a strong king, bringing the country wealth and military might. I’m not a big fan of European royalty, but I can’t help notice that Queen Elizabeth has a close conjunction of Mars and Jupiter in Aquarius. If Baby Cambridge is born in the next few days, she (I’m hoping) also will have this signature. Incidentally, if Kate has the baby right before the Full Moon, it could still be a Cancer. That was my bet, but we’ll see. (Tomorrow’s Full Moon was my third choice.)

Click on image to enlarge

Mars and Jupiter conjoin at 6 degrees Cancer, which is still quite close to trining Saturn at 5 degrees Scorpio and Neptune at 4 degrees Pisces. The trine continues through the first week in August, so there’s still time to work with these flowing energies to find solutions to tough problems before the window starts to close. Indeed, the Full Moon might add some urgency. The chart to the right is kind of messy, but if you look closely, you can see a faint red triangle from the Sun and Moon to Saturn. That’s a square, and while we’d normally consider a Full Moon squaring Saturn to indicate trouble, any crisis that might arrive could come with a brilliant solution, perhaps not short of a miracle. Remember, Saturn is the traditional ruler of Aquarius (before Uranus was discovered in 1781), and he represents structure. Now, with Saturn in Scorpio and in mutual reception with Pluto, any structures we build these days are subject to immediate collapse. However, a sound, workable plan initiated since late June could put a strong foundation under your project.

The closer a planet is to the Sun, the faster it appears to move in the sky. While Jupiter is pulling away from the grand trine slowly, Mars is quickly heading for his next connection, which is a cardinal T-square with Uranus and Pluto. Mercury currently is closest to the third leg of the T-square, so we’re getting a glimpse of what’s ahead. Later this week, Mars opposes Pluto, and we descend into the belly of the beast. Mars squares Uranus next week, and then Jupiter comes along in early August. This is one of the stormiest astrological periods of the year, second only to early November. The one consolation I can provide is that you probably already know how the Uranus-Pluto square is manifesting for you personally – if it is, which isn’t a given – so whatever comes at you, while it may seem out of the blue, likely will be part of a ongoing crisis and not an entirely new situation.

Right before the Full Moon on Monday, the Sun enters Leo, sign of individualism and will. Leo has a reputation, not undeserved, as “self-oriented,” but the Full Moon in Aquarius reminds us that individuals form communities, and successful groups value the creativity and individuality of all their members. When the group itself becomes more important than the individuals in it, it’s a slippery slope to forced allegiance and tyranny. It’s interesting that we get a Full Moon both at the first degree of Aquarius and again near the last. That’s nearly a month to contemplate the concept of communities made up of empowered individuals.

Turning to Venus, she’s not at her best in Virgo, and on Friday, she opposes Neptune. The conventional interpretation of Venus opposite Neptune is delusions in love (on a date night, no less). Again, however, we’ve got a mitigating circumstance via a sextile to Saturn that makes it possible to see clearly and make sound decisions. That could be anything from recognizing a one-night stand for what it is and enjoying it while it lasts, to realizing that the guy or gal of your dreams has been sitting under your nose all along, and you were too scared, proud, or downright stupid to notice. On Sunday, Venus sextiles Jupiter, another fine day for settling into a realistic partnership. Positive Venus-Jupiter combinations also can be terrific for your finances, depending on where they’re transiting your chart.

To sum up, we’ve got our work cut out for us for the next few weeks, but we’re not without the resources to get it done.

I leave you with a stunning video that could change how you think of Saturn forever. And this is just the trailer:

In Saturn’s Rings

Wishing you all much love and lion-hearted courage,
Pat

Weekly Forecast July 15: Grand Water Trine, Mercury Direct

“Not a morning person” doesn’t even begin to describe me. On a good day, it takes three to four hours to jumpstart my lacertian metabolism.

In other words, waking up is a bitch. Until the sun rises in your brain, memories of past lives, childhood trauma, unforgotten insults, and the awful things you’ve done to others dance in your head like ghosts on a grave at midnight.

So perhaps it’s no surprise that as humanity wakes up, the trauma in the collective unconscious is unleashed in the world and manifests as unspeakable acts of violence. The good news is that increasing numbers of people finally are hearing the alarm clock. The bad news is that the collective metabolism is worse than mine. And there’s no guarantee, actually, that people will get up and get moving. We might just decide to stay in our jammies and lie around watching re-runs of Arrested Development.

It’s hard to remain optimistic with all the grave headlines in the news and the dawning realization that we’re not heading toward a global police state, we’re already there. We know we need to act, but we don’t know what we should do or even can do, without risking everything, including our lives. Several years ago, I read a study showing that workers in oppressive job environments end up depressed. (Needless to say, it wasn’t conducted in this country. If anyone can find it, feel free to leave a link.) Is it any coincidence, then, that we have a serious mental health crisis in the United States? An estimated 11 percent of Americans take antidepressants, the third most commonly prescribed medication. More people die of suicide than gun violence or terrorist attacks.

I truly want to believe that we’re on the threshold of a leap in human consciousness, possibly so significant that we might mutate in to a higher species. But I also know from history that we’ve been in that place before, and the transformation either was aborted or sabotaged. The example that comes immediately to mind is the revolution that was taking place in Occitania in the 12th century. The region was the first to emerge from the Dark Ages, with flourishing music, literature, and a culture that respected women. The Church wasn’t having any of it, and conspired with the king of France to overrun the region, slaughter much of the population, and burn dissenters as heretics. So much for the revolution.

We can’t take it for granted that an evolution in human consciousness will happen all by itself. It faces enormous pressure by those who stand to lose the most. We need to support each other in waking up and staying awake. By “support,” I don’t mean attempting to convince others that they need to “wake up” and think like you. Spiritual awakening is a deep, mysterious internal process. It’s not going to happen by shouting down people who don’t agree with your politics.

Over the past few weeks, as the summer’s grand trine approached, we’ve seen some incredible acts of heroism and inspiration. Edward Snowden blew the whistle on NSA’s data collection, Wendy Davis literally stood up to the good ol’ boys in the Texas legislature, and Malala Yousafzai faced world leaders with a powerful call for equal education.

Click on image to enlarge

The chart to the left shows the grand trine (blue triangle) between Saturn, Neptune, and Jupiter. You also can see the looming cardinal T-square (red triangle). On one hand, we have a favorable configuration, filled with opportunity and hope. On the other, we have a difficult configuration, filled with conflict and dread. One might be tempted to conclude that the opportunities won’t be as great or that they will be extremely short-lived and overshadowed by disaster. The way I see it, it’s precisely through the conflict that the opportunities and breakthroughs will come. Isn’t that usually the case? Only when we face impossible obstacles do we come up with miraculous solutions. Or, as a friend once said to me, people tend not to change until their back is pushed so far against the wall that their asshole is sucking plaster. Sounds like an effective wakeup call to me.

As I write, we’re already feeling the influence of this extraordinary trine. We did have something like it in 1967, complete with Uranus and Pluto in a revolutionary aspect. But that trine wasn’t as close is this one, which is aligned to the exact degree from Monday to Wednesday. There have been other trines between these three planets, too, but not in water. I don’t know how many centuries we’d have to go back to find another like this. In short, it’s exceptional.

After forming an exact trine with Saturn and Neptune on Wednesday, Jupiter advances a degree, but we’ll still be able to ride this incredible wave through the weekend and on into next week. On Saturday, Saturn and Neptune form an exact trine. Mars, meanwhile, has just entered Cancer and traces the path of Jupiter until he finally overtakes him next Monday (July 22). The energy begins to drop after that, but we’ll feel this positive vibe until the end of the month.

Right in the middle of all of this, Uranus turns retrograde on Wednesday, which means he’ll start moving back toward an exact square with Pluto in early November. As Jupiter advances, he’ll turn the square into a T-square. We had a taste of it already a couple of weeks ago, when Mercury passed that degree. It’s not too much of a stretch to imagine that greater numbers of people will suddenly “get it” and that protests against repression, corruption, and injustice will get bigger and louder as the glow of the grand trine wears off and the reality of the T-square sets in.

Speaking of which, for those disappointed by the ruling in the murder trial of George Zimmerman, stayed tuned. The jury has spoken, so it’s not likely the verdict will be overturned. However, at the moment the jury announced its decision, Mercury was retrograde and the Moon was void of course. Typically, this indicates that something is going to change. I just read that the Justice Department is looking into a criminal civil rights violation, and Zimmerman also faces civil penalties. This isn’t the end.

Mercury finally returns direct on Saturday, and not a moment too soon. Maybe it will end the spate of stupidity and ignorance requiring public apologies. It seems like many of them had to do with racist remarks. The trickster has been retrograde in Cancer, which is associated with family and ethnic roots. Then there was the story about the student who absentmindedly dropped an envelope with $400 into a mailbox. The envelope was unsealed, and the only thing written on it was “deposit.” Classic Mercury retrograde. I’m guessing she had a lucky transit or two to compensate, because the Postal Service tracked her down and returned her cash.

Wishing you all a wondrous week filled with love and courage,
Pat

Weekly Forecast July 8: Saturn Direct, New Moon in Cancer

A Water Baby, by Herbert James Draper, 1900.

To anyone familiar with astrology, recent events, however shocking, make perfect sense.

A couple of days ago, I read an essay on Counterpunch by Israeli writer and peace activist Uri Avnery on the situation in Egypt. Avnery starts out by declaring the 1968 cultural revolution in Paris as the forerunner of events all over the world today. He goes on to ask, “Why now? Why in so many totally different countries? Why in Brazil, Turkey and Egypt at the same time?” He considers the possibility that it’s something in the Zeitgeist – the spirit of the age – but concludes that it’s more likely a result of instant communications via television and the social media.

It’s really too bad that academics dismiss astrology. Otherwise they’d understand the outer planetary cycles underneath the dramatic events taking place in our time, which we indeed can trace back to the Uranus-Pluto conjunction in the mid-1960s.

I’ve been thinking a lot about these outer cycles, especially as they pertain to repeating patterns in history. I’ve been working under a theory that the “apocalypse” is a lifting of the veil, and that the “veil” is the mechanism in our brains that limits our perception to this particular place in space and time (which we call “reality”). As our perception broadens to include other dimensions of reality, it’s as though the actions of our past are a legion of demons escaping from hell. I can’t think of anything happening today that doesn’t have a parallel in human history – our collective past.

At the end of his article, Avnery broadens the idea of Arab Spring and asks if there’s not a “Human Spring.” I believe there is and that we’ll see it happen over the next five to ten years. By the time Pluto enters Aquarius in 2024, the world is going to be a very different place. (Actually, he dips into Aquarius in 2023 but then turns retrograde and returns to Capricorn until January 2024.)

With so much violence and unrest in the world, it’s hard to believe that the positive aspects on the way over the next few weeks will have much of an effect, especially since they are relatively short compared with the astrological signature behind the upheavals. Not to sound like a Pollyanna, but I do believe that the approaching grand water trine heralds some strongly positive developments to counterbalance all the chaos. And while it’s true that the trine will start dissipating by late July, giving way to an even stronger conflicting configuration, I nevertheless believe that it can have some far-reaching effects, both globally and individually. That’s why it’s so important to take advantage of this short window, which also includes Monday’s New Moon in Cancer.

Before I discuss this week’s aspects, I want to mention one important factor in the chaotic events of the past week. In last week’s forecast, I mentioned that the T-square formed by the Sun, Uranus, and Pluto would provide a glimpse of events during the more energetic T-square with Jupiter in mid-August. It’s a pretty safe bet that the violence is going to escalate. However, Saturn’s station retrograde gave the past week a powerful punch that will be waning by August. Unfortunately, Saturn’s station will be felt for another week or so, as he returns direct on Monday.

Saturn’s return direct can coincide with dramatic events, especially the destruction of infrastructure. But it can apply to societal structures as well. As I wrote last week, Saturn in Scorpio can represent structures that are rotten and ready to break down. Given the mutual reception between Saturn and Pluto, Saturn’s station feeds a blast of energy into the Uranus-Pluto square, which last week was temporarily a T-square. Nowhere was that more evident than in the ousting of Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi. Mercury retrograde can account for some of the false news reports and communications difficulties among competing factions, but I attribute the overall failure to install the kind of democratic government demanded by the Egyptian people to this strange combination of Saturn in Scorpio and Pluto in Capricorn. It’s as if a new structure is torn down almost as soon as it is built.

The good news there is that there is plenty of room for experimentation. Using Egypt as an example, a popular uprising resulted in the resignation of Mubarak in February 2011 and the creation of a new government that in theory was supposed to replace a dictatorship with a democracy. It didn’t quite work out that way, and rather than waiting for elections, millions of people took to the streets declaring that the experiment had failed and that they needed to start over. Although attempts to form a new government are faltering, I see the grand trine as a ray of hope that they might succeed.

Likewise, we have a short window to find creative solutions to longstanding conflicts in our personal lives. You do need to put some effort into it, and you need to be clear about your overall goals.

Click on image to enlarge

Saturn returns direct just two hours before Monday’s New Moon in Cancer. You can easily see the grand water trine becoming more exact (the blue triangle), even as Jupiter approaches an exact square with Uranus and Pluto (the red triangle). I read this as a clear and straightforward message: Through conflict and breaking down what is no longer working, opportunities arise for new ways to live and interact with each other in a spirit of community and cooperation. Connecting to the natural world is part of the equation.

At the New Moon, Mercury is conjunct the Sun by two degrees (exact on Tuesday), and he’s exactly halfway through his retrograde cycle. This is often when we start feeling the retrograde the most, so do take extra care this week, especially at home. Back up your computer data, and if you’re running extra air conditioning, be sure you don’t overload the circuits. Unfortunately, I don’t have any good advice for how not to blow an emotional fuse. Be clear in your communications. To do that, you need to be clear with yourself about how you feel. If you’re confused or unsure, postpone discussions until after Mercury returns direct on July 20. That’s a long wait, so do let others know you need more time rather than just staying silent. It’s a sure bet that someone will misunderstand your silence for lack of concern or worse.

On Saturday, Mars enters Cancer and approaches conjunction with Jupiter. Although Mars isn’t at his best in the sign of the Crab, he’ll give some extra energy to the Jupiter leg of the grand trine. This is mostly good news, but I do hold out a bit of concern that the grand water trine could coincide with severe storms and flooding.

With so much upsetting news in the headlines, it may seem frivolous to pay any attention to celebrity news, but I do want to mention that we’re getting close to the birth of the first child of the William and Kate. The official due date for Baby Cambridge is July 13, but reporters already are staking out their ground and taking absurd measures to make sure they don’t miss any detail of the story. I wouldn’t assign much significance to this event if it weren’t for the extraordinary chart this child will have – a chart that all children born around this time will share. These water babies will reach maturity in the 2030s and will leave a very distinct mark on the world. Baby Cambridge likely will have a major impact on the UK government.

Lastly, I’d just like to give a quick update to those who are still waiting for reports. I have started writing again, but the going is very slow. At my best, I was able to do two reports a day. It’s now taking me two days each. I’ll try to e-mail everyone this week with an ETA. I can’t apologize enough, but there was little I could do. Even astrologers go through long transformational periods, and having some idea they’re coming doesn’t soften the impact. In the meantime, if you’d like a transit report, I’m offering a three-month forecast for $19. (Click here to go to the order page or here to see a sample for President Obama.)

Wishing you all infinite love and courage,
Pat

Weekly Forecast July 1: Sun Opposes Pluto, Squares Uranus

The United States is taking a lot of heat this week, literally and figuratively.

Record-breaking temperatures are baking much of the Western U.S. (To my readers in California and Arizona, I hope you are staying cool indoors.) The political heat is on, as well, just in time for the U.S. solar return – depending, of course, on which natal chart you use for the United States.

There are plenty of valid arguments for dates other than July 4, but this is the date on the Declaration of Independence, which we more or less consider our country’s birth certificate. It’s also the date in the collective consciousness, and so I’ll follow the people on this one. We were, after all, supposed to be a democracy. The exact time is debated as well, but according to Thomas Jefferson’s account, the debate was concluded in the evening. One of the best articles I’ve found discussing the U.S. birth chart was written by Dane Rudhyar in 1971. Rudhyar made a case for the popular “Sibly” chart, rectified by about four minutes.

I won’t do a complete analysis of the U.S. solar return chart, but I have a couple of comments to share. First, it is laid out similarly to the Cancer ingress chart I discussed in my June 17 forecast. In both charts, the Sun is in the fourth house, with the Uranus-Pluto square in the first and tenth. People are in a rebellious mood, and what transpires over the summer will continue to reverberate for an entire year. In both charts, Jupiter is sitting right on the fourth-house cusp, reinforcing the potential for devastating storms. There are a few major differences between the two charts, and of the two, I judge the solar return chart to be the most troublesome, which leads me to the conclusion that the summer’s political and weather-related activities will be a warm-up act for the rest of this year into mid-2014.

The two big astrological events of the summer are the grand water trine with Jupiter, Saturn, and Neptune, and the cardinal T-square with Jupiter, Uranus and Pluto. Last week, the Sun formed a grand trine with Saturn and Neptune, giving us a taste of what’s to come under the more-powerful configuration, which peaks in mid-July. This week, the Sun forms the T-square, and so we’ll get a glimpse of what’s coming with the difficult Jupiter-Uranus-Pluto configuration in mid-August. I know, it’s all so confusing. And Mercury is retrograde, which doesn’t help with clarity or confidence.

Last week I watched The Prestige, with Hugh Jackman and Christian Bale as stage magicians in a death match to outdo one another’s illusions. David Bowie makes an appearance as real-life scientist Nikola Tesla, who is best known for his work with electricity. The plot jumps back and forth through time in a way I found confusing, but the nonlinear narrative was quite effective as a dramatic device, and it all made sense in the end. It seems as though current events are unfolding in a strange sort of discontinuous time, like in the film.

As this week begins, the cardinal T-square is already in effect, and it will remain in play through the weekend. The Sun forms an exact opposition to Pluto on Monday, and then squares Uranus on Thursday (late Wednesday in western time zones). Egypt is the latest hotbed of protest, and it looks like clashes are about to get violent as opponents of the current president call for his resignation.

Also on Monday, Venus squares Saturn, an astrological wet blanket if ever there was one. In Texas, Governor Rick Perry has called for a special legislative session to begin on Monday to readdress an abortion bill blocked last week after a filibuster by state Sen. Wendy Davis. Ceres is closely conjunct Venus and squares Saturn on Wednesday. It doesn’t look good for Davis and her supporters in the near term. If the legislative session drags on into the following week, the outlook is better for women’s rights advocates, as Venus will form a lovely trine to Uranus, planet of rebellion and change (the aspect is exact on July 7).

Saturn, meanwhile, is stationed to return direct next Monday. A planet is said to station when it appears to stop in the sky before changing direction. Stopped in Scorpio, Saturn will be stubborn as a mule. In general, I’d say that Saturn represents the “establishment,” but Saturn in Scorpio is a strange animal. Structures are ready to rot and break down, and with Uranus at the apex of a T-square, there’s no telling how events could defy even the surest of expectations.

Speaking of Uranus, T-squares, and rebellion, what better time could there be for reading the Declaration of Independence? If you haven’t done so in a while, I strongly suggest revisiting it. Our Founding Fathers – who surely would have been branded “terrorists” according to the current government definition – laid out quite a brilliant argument for abolishing a government that no longer serves the people. I have a feeling we could come up with a list of grievances as long as the colonists sent to King George.

The other aspect worth remarking on this week is the Moon’s entry into Cancer on Saturday. Normally, lunar movements are too fast to signify much more than fleeting events and moods. However, this will be the first conjunction of the Moon with Jupiter in Cancer. The Moon moves forward to conjoin Saturn and Neptune on Sunday. Again, we may get a quick glimpse of things to come as Jupiter, Saturn, and Neptune approach an exact trine on July 17. That’s only a couple of weeks away, and it’s the most exciting, positive aspect we’ll experience all year.

Next week starts out with the New Moon in Cancer, so over the weekend start thinking about what projects you’d like to initiate. I just wish I could help you out in that regard with a StarGuide report, but that project is still on hold. Do keep in mind, though, that if you’d like a three-month transit report, you can order one for $19 (click here to see a sample).

Wishing you all much love and courage,
Pat