The leadup to next week’s full Moon (late Sep 1st MST) may at times feel like driving behind an 18-wheeler on the freeway, while cargo is falling out of the truck. There is one group of aspects helping us stay focused on our destination and road conditions, and there’s another tossing out the packages. As the saying goes, to be forewarned is to be forearmed. Under a Virgo Sun, getting organized for the oncoming obstacles is easier than usual. Signaling that we’re indeed in for a bumpy ride, this week begins with a Mars square to Saturn at a seismic 26 degrees. Combative Mars is now home in independent, instigating Aries (and slowing down for its imminent retrograde), and Saturn is also home in conservative Capricorn. In its home sign, a planet’s power is optimized. Mars brings headstrong, impulsive energy to the fight, but Saturn brings the rules and limitations. Astrology’s square is its most contentious angle. Unlike an opposition, there is no point at which the planets can meet in the middle. A square is like a four-way stop, where one body will progress while the other must yield. In the case of Mars vs. Saturn, Mars may be legitimately frustrated, but Saturn has the backing of Jupiter and Pluto, as well as support from Uranus, the Sun and Mercury in fellow earth signs. In other words, though it may feel good, there’s no advantage gained by revving the engine at a red light.
Saturn’s January 12th conjunction with Pluto is now widely associated with the global outbreak of COVID-19. If that conjunction was the touching of two tectonic plates, then we’ve been experiencing the ensuring earthquakes and aftershocks all year. This Mars confrontation with unyielding Saturn is the latest iteration. By the full Moon, Saturn will also be in direct conflict with Venus, via an exact opposition. Before challenging Saturn, Venus will also oppose Jupiter this Tuesday and Pluto on Sunday. Venus is in Cancer, trying to take care of food, shelter and family, and she’s up against major forces coalescing in institutional Capricorn. Battles over money are the most likely manifestations of these aspects. Cancer and Pisces are water signs, and by Sunday the planets inhabiting those signs begin muddying our road.
Sunday is when whip-smart Mercury is opposed by nebulous, all-encompassing Neptune. Mercury and the Sun are in logical Virgo, where they are focused on facts, details and reason. Neptune, along with the full Moon, is in Pisces. The mutable water sign sees the world holistically and perceives it through impressions and feelings. Sunday’s Mercury Neptune opposition foreshadows the (Virgo) Sun full (Pisces) Moon opposition, as well as the Sun Neptune opposition on September 11th. Striking the right balance of Pisces creativity, Virgo practicality and their mutable flexibility can help us cope with any detours or slowdowns we encounter.
Mindful Mercury at home in organized, methodical Virgo is a key asset. On Tuesday Mercury will form an alliance with Uranus and on Thursday one with Jupiter. Those two trines alone bring the grounding dependability of all three earth signs into play. Mercury will form a trine with Pluto just prior to the full Moon and one with Saturn on the 3rd, and within hours of the full Moon the Sun and Uranus will also trine. Those supportive Uranian aspects are like the cosmos bestowing the reflexes of a world-class race car driver. Navigating the onslaught of those boxes might be tricky, but sudden surprises are second nature to exciting Uranus. We have a patchy bit of Highway 2020 ahead, and abundant celestial resources along for the ride.
