It is almost May Day! The first of May has always been a joyous time marking the point between the spring equinox and the summer solstice. Traditionally it was a time when the Celtic people displayed fresh greenery that was coming back to life after a brutal winter. In a symbolic gesture to the new life of spring, fires were snuffed, fireplaces cleaned and new fires lit. The ritual that perhaps brought the most joy and relief to the villagers was returning the cows to the pasture and away from the homes and barns. Spending the winter in close quarters with cattle, while necessary could not have been enjoyable.
Thankfully, most of us do not have to deal with the intimate actions of cattle these days but we can still celebrate Beltane. It is a wonderful way to thank the universe for the seasons and this season of renewal and rebirth. This Beltane, Jupiter will be in Leo. Since Jupiter rules Sagittarius, a fire sign like Leo, we have a lot of fire around our largest planet. The archetypal energy of Jupiter is unbridled growth, optimism and curiosity.
Combined with spring energy this is a perfect recipe for planning, exploring, growing and changing. Don’t waste that energy! What do you want to accomplish this spring. What new avenues do you want to explore? Is there a class you want to take? DO it now – take Jupiter by the wings and fly!
Pluto turned retrograde on April 16 and will continue this shy motion until September 25. If you think Pluto is intense when direct, than double that and perhaps you will get to the power she has to do her work when retrograde. That might seem a bit counterintuitive; how can a planet be more powerful in retrograde? The answer lies in what Pluto does so well, which is turn inward and root out the “muck” of life that we keep hidden mostly from ourselves. A planetary retrograde turns the energy of that body inward, therefore, Pluto is very much at home with a retrograde motion.
How can you use that in your chart? Find your transiting Pluto (you can employ the help of an astrologer that you might happen to know) and examine the lessons of the house it is passing through. For instance, a retrograde Pluto in the first is demanding you to answer questions about your deepest personality issues. If she is in the 10th house, the questions will swirl around how your present yourself for public approval.
Whatever the house, don’t let this time go to waste. Pluto is the planet that makes us “the offer we can’t refuse.” Don’t make her go all medieval on you to open your eyes on areas that require some very deep personal reflection.
I knew it was inevitable. The questions about the Hillary Clinton Presidential announcement would start as soon as they uploaded the video – and they did. Did Hilary pick a good time to announce her 2016 campaign?
Hillary Clinton Presidential Kick off
With Saturn retrograded in her first house, I am very happy that she did not plan a huge rally. Saturn generally puts a blanket on the house in which it transits. Saturn in the first even without the retrograde, the house of personality, is a time when we wish to withdraw, when our words are hesitant and our actions not conducive to backslapping and frivolity. It should be a time of introspection.
Pluto – big time, rules Hillary! Her rising sign or personality is Scorpio, her Sun is in Scorpio and her South Node, her karmic ID is in Scorpio. Does it surprise anyone that she is a bit too secretive? How can she not be? Pluto rules Scorpio and it is now transiting her second house, that of self-value. Pluto is asking, no demanding, that she dig deep into the hidden much of her psyche to address issues of feeling worthlessness. Perhaps she has done this and has concluded that she can take another run at the golden apple. I hope so.
Pluto is not finished with her, however, as it is now making a conjunction with her directed Chiron and progressed Sun. This is not astrological patty cake. Chiron energetically holds deep wound issues. Where Chiron sleeps lay the head of a person deeply concerned with facing an issue that is so painful they wish to run away from its tentacles. Pluto and Chiron team up to challenge us to go deep (Pluto) and face that issue (Chiron). Remember all this demanding duo is doing the tango in her house of self-value and self-worth. The second us asks the question, do you have what it takes to make it in the world – to find your niche of safety.
If she is inclined to dodge the issue, her progressed Sun, the holder of our inner Chi – the energy of life – is sitting atop Pluto and Chiron. I doubt she can escape these questions even if she wanted.
So, was this a “good time” for Hillary to announce? If she does some very deep soul searching the answer is yes. Of course, don’t get me started on whether is making a good move for her North Node – her current souls learning curve. That is for another day.
With Jupiter and Juno (the loyalty goddess) in her ninth house activating her natal Saturn, Pluto, and Mars conjunction there, she felt the call to be on the world stage again. From that aspect, the universe is smiling down with good energy on her to reach the goals of that house – reaching out to the world – searching for the truth of the world. She wants to make that impact on the world stage – and Jupiter is pulling her along with encouragement.
If she answered Pluto’s demands, she picked a good time. If she is ignoring Pluto, she will have a bumpy personal ride.
What are her stars doing on Election Day? Well, Saturn will be leaving her first and out of retrograde but most powerful is a Progressed Mars and Directed Uranus bursting forth on her 10th house, that of career. That is a lot of power, a lot of disruptive power – a power of breaking the rules and doing things your way. It is the power of I am taking over and doing it my way. That is a good placement for the first female president as long as Uranus does not make her make rash and brash statements and frighten people with her energy.
After all of these months of bad astrological signs, we have been on a roll of good news in March and April and that good news continues. This week, on April 8, Jupiter that jumbo planet with expansive and growth energy leaves retrograde and goes direct.
Jupiter is the heart of optimism, growth, generosity and abundance. Speaking of heart, Jupiter is now in the sign of Leo the Lion a fire sign ruling the area of the heart. So jump into life! Feel the abundance offered by the universe.
Leo is a fire sign and Jupiter rules Sagittarius, another fire sign, so there should be no holding you back from making opportunities and making the most of those that come into your path. This is a perfect time to literally burn through negative thoughts and blockages.
It is spring – Jupiter is back in a forward motion in Leo – open the windows, clean out the cobwebs and complete the plans that have been stewing all winter!
One word of caution – all of that energy can go into overdrive. The shadow of Jupiter is overconfidence, gambling – throwing all caution to the wind. If you are someone prone to going overboard, you might want to consult with a down-to-Earth Virgo friend to help keep your feet on the ground.
On April 4, the window of universal energy to manifest change that began with the simultaneous Vernal Equinox and solar eclipse will “close” with our full Moon lunar eclipse. Eclipses bring change, the vernal equinox brings change – the universe cannot make it any clearer! Set those intentions and get moving. We will have bigger cosmic kick in the pants this year.
This is a Libra- Aries eclipse so we are still working on the energy of boundaries between where we start and others end. Do you go too overboard to accommodate others or do you think only of yourself? Where are the boundaries? Where do you need to re-set those boundaries?
I also had the great good fortune to see Dame Angela Lansbury in Noel Coward’s “Blithe Spirit” this weekend at the National Theatre. Ms. Lansbury returned to the theater a few years ago following the death of her husband of 54 years, Peter Shaw.
The longevity of their marriage make them rather unique marriage for Hollywood especially because both partners were in show business so I decided to peek into Dame Lansbury’s chart. Not surprisingly, I discovered that theirs was a marriage most karmic in nature.
Dame Lansbury has Aquarius opening her seventh house, the house of marriage and close relationships. She was never going to have a “normal” marriage – and indeed her first husband left her after one year because he was gay. They eloped when she was 18, he was 25, and he left her a note saying he could not continue in the charade. They did remain friends until his death in 1960. Again, that is not a normal state of affairs.
Her second marriage to Mr. Shaw was in her own words, “perfect.” If that isn’t unique, I don’t know what is!
The karmic connection comes in from Ms. Lansbury’s South Node, her past life indicator also being in Aquarius. She knew both of these men in the past and was continuing with them for better or worse – or perhaps worse and then better.
By the way, sturdy Capricorn on her sixth house cusp, the house of health and healing, is one key to her longevity. As someone who has always wanted to be here when she grew up, I am very grateful to Capricorn
I also had the great good fortune to see Dame Angela Lansbury in Noel Coward’s “Blithe Spirit” this weekend at the National Theatre. Ms. Lansbury returned to the theater a few years ago following the death of her husband of 54 years, Peter Shaw.
The longevity of their marriage make them rather unique marriage for Hollywood especially because both partners were in show business so I decided to peek into Dame Lansbury’s chart. Not surprisingly, I discovered that theirs was a marriage most karmic in nature.
Dame Lansbury has Aquarius opening her seventh house, the house of marriage and close relationships. She was never going to have a “normal” marriage – and indeed her first husband left her after one year because he was gay. They eloped when she was 18, he was 25, and he left her a note saying he could not continue in the charade. They did remain friends until his death in 1960. Again, that is not a normal state of affairs.
Her second marriage to Mr. Shaw was in her own words, “perfect.” If that isn’t unique, I don’t know what is!
The karmic connection comes in from Ms. Lansbury’s South Node, her past life indicator also being in Aquarius. She knew both of these men in the past and was continuing with them for better or worse – or perhaps worse and then better.
By the way, sturdy Capricorn on her sixth house cusp, the house of health and healing, is one key to her longevity. As someone who has always wanted to be here when she grew up, I am very grateful to Capricorn.
This evening at approximately 10 PM EDT, Uranus and Pluto will make the last of seven squares since they began this crazy dance in 2012. This is the last gasp of the Grand Cross that began in early 2014 and saw Saturn, Mars also at odds with Pluto and Uranus. The first two have moved on their way leaving just the slow movers still butting heads.
Uranus-Pluto is a clash of the titans of change – Uranus demanding quick action and Pluto, the master of bidding one’s time and forcing change in his own good time. It has been a rough ride, just look around at the world and see the violent clashes of old and new.
The last time we saw a similar dance between these two was in the 1960’s and much of the unanswered work of that time has come back to haunt us. We have new threats of nuclear proliferation, ugly race clashes, environmental neglect and sexual exploitation and discrimination. The good news is that we have made some progress from the last square but we have so much further to go! However, growth only comes from pain and we have several chances this week to manifest great personal change.
At the time of the vernal equinox – the time on new beginnings – we will also see a solar eclipse, another harbinger of awakening. If you want another excuse to manifest change in your life, there will also be a new Moon.
In these few days before the Equinox, work on the long overdue personal changes you want to manifest. Think of the positive values of each planet at work here – Uranus thinks 20 years ahead of society so who do you want to be 20 years down the road? Pluto forces us to dig deeply and root out the negative to manifest true change. What attributes do you just need to throw out now? Pluto will help you find them.
This week on my podcast “Astrological Cook” http://webtalkradio.net/internet-talk-radio/astrological-cook/ I promised a visual illustration of the impact of the Vernal Equinox on our birth charts This is a time of rebirth and renewal and it is important to know where the universe is sending you the strongest energy of change. On the Equinox, the Sun moves into the constellation, Aries, the first sign of the zodiac. This is a huge cosmic do-over. Using a chart of the Equinox (number 1) I then created a bi-wheel (2) of the my birth chart and the Equinox showing that the Aries Sun will be in my 6th house, the house where we feed, care for and work the body. It is the house of health and domain over how we use our body to achieve our work goals. That is why I have doctor and dentist appointments this month and am carving out a space to start my new book.
Working with the energy of the universe makes our path easier.
By the way, do you know where we get the name “Easter” or the why eggs and bunnies are symbols of this time of year? Why do we eat lamb at Easter? Find out by tuning into my show this week and find out!
In the next podcast we will talk about the Equinox Solar Eclipse and Full Moon!
On Thursday, the universe will grant us a full Moon. For the Moon to be “full,” it must be as far away as it can away from the Sun, 180 degrees. Now that the Sun is in Pisces, the Moon has to be in the opposite sign, which is Virgo. Yes, it is the dreaded Pisces-Virgo axis! I am being a little snarky here but this the traditional “Victim-Martyr” axis in Astrology.
Virgo is the victim to the service to perfection. Virgo must serve either a person or a cause and whatever they do it must live up to their sometimes-grandiose ideas of perfection. Of course, the trick is that nothing is ever perfect enough for Virgo so they can get on a downward spiral of self-criticism as they never measure up to what they high standards. The martyr aspect of this duo is Pisces, a sign that really does not like being here on Earth.
Pisces, the old soul of the zodiac, and on some level knows all there is to know about universal mystery. They have a cosmic memory of life in spirit and frankly, they prefer that existence to this one. In order to get back to spirit, Pisces will pile on the karma to get off the wheel a bit faster. You will find many people with Pisces Sun, Moon, and Ascendant allowing a person, addiction or situation to victimize them. Remember, we are talking shadow here. Not all Virgo’s are crazed perfectionists and not all Pisces are slaves but both of these signs have the propensity to exhibit some of these aspects of their signs.
A full Moon is the time for renewal and rebirth. Look at your chart and find where your personal Virgo-Pisces axis exists in your chart. For instance, if you have Virgo on the first house cusp, as your ascendant, are you still to self-critical, do you keep hiding yourself because you will never live up to your own image of perfection?
In my chart, I have the full Moon occurring between my 5th and 11th house. Where I need to review my victim-martyr response is in the arena of showing off my creative self (5th house) and my friends (11th) house. Some questions I can ask myself are, do I allow them to overshadow me, am I allowing them to think for me and am I asserting myself in a group enough. Knowing where these cosmic events are occurring in your chart assist in making the changes we need to grow. Remember, your chart is your cosmic GPS, don’t go through life with it turned off.
