NorthPoint Astrology Journal: Your guide to planetary energies for August 3 to 9, 2015 By Pam Younghans

NorthPoint Astrology Journal:
Your guide to planetary energies for August 3 to 9, 2015
By Pam Younghans


Highlighted Aspects this Week:
MON: Jupiter square Saturn, Ceres enters Capricorn
TUE: Jupiter sesquiquadrate Pluto, Venus conjunct Jupiter, Venus sesquiquadrate Pluto
WED: Venus square Saturn
THU: Sun quincunx Pluto, Mars trine Saturn, Mercury conjunct Venus, Mercury square Saturn, Mercury sesquiquadrate Pluto
FRI: Mercury conjunct Jupiter, Mars opposite Ceres, Mercury enters Virgo
SAT: Mars enters Leo

THE PLANET SATURN is known by many aliases -- Taskmaster, Lord of Karma, Tester, Teacher, even Father Time. Each of these labels reminds us that the Ringed Planet deals with the practical responsibilities of our life experience, and that it intends for us to develop maturity, patience, and discipline. Through the lessons it brings forward, Saturn also helps strengthen our sense of personal authority, which then enables us to take charge of situations as needed.

Saturn just completed its retrograde (backward-motion) phase on Saturday. As it now slowly begins to move forward, we enter the completion phase of the lessons we've been working with since Saturn first entered Scorpio on October 5, 2012.


These lessons -- or maybe even our test results -- will be clarified this week when Saturn squares (is 90 degrees away from) Jupiter, Venus, and Mercury. These latter three planets are aligned in Leo, joining forces as they meet the challenge from Saturn.


SCORPIO AND LEO are both fixed signs, so they are both very passionate and tenacious, and tend to put up resistance under pressure. But the primary desires and motivations of these two signs are very different.


In simple terms, Scorpio wants to experience depth, intensity, and honesty; Leo is motivated by the needs for creative self-expression, attention, and a sense of belonging. Scorpio is a water sign and Leo is a fire sign -- water extinguishes fire, and fire turns water into steam -- so when the two come into aspect, both of them end up changing form.

Photo: A wide-angle lens captures auroras and the Milky Way
over Antarctica, and the ground at both top and bottom of the photo
(credit: LI Hang, Astronomy Picture of the Day for July 27, 2015)

AS THE SLOWER-MOVING PLANET in the mix, Saturn is the strongest influence, and its agenda is likely to be the one that takes precedence. Even Jupiter in Leo may be hard-pressed to maintain its optimistic stance when facing the truth of the situation.


But, as with all Saturn squares, this is a necessary reality check. It will help us get back on track if we've gone too far down a side road. It helps us trim out the extraneous, those places where we've been expending energy unnecessarily. In Scorpio, especially, Saturn reveals truth that we haven't seen as clearly as we needed to. It can also help us get clearer on what steps we need to take for the best results.


IF WE PAY ATTENTION to its messages, the Jupiter-Saturn square can ultimately enable us to use our creative forces more intentionally and to focus our energy on achieving important goals. Note that although the Jupiter-Saturn square is exact on Monday of the coming week, we may have started feeling its effects last week, as the two planets started interacting.


Later this coming week, when Saturn first squares Venus (Wednesday) and then Mercury (Thursday), we will integrate recent learnings more fully, consolidate our efforts, and make decisions that will better support our long-term goals.


IF WE FOLLOW Saturn's lead, and use maturity and self-discipline to meet the challenges represented by the square aspects early in the week, we can then take full advantage of a supportive Mars-Saturn trine on Thursday.


With this trine aspect, we can harness the energy and courage (Mars) needed to make tangible progress (Saturn) in the areas where we've recently met with challenges. And, with both planets in water signs, our emotions are likely to be strongly engaged in whatever choices we make.


PLUTO is also involved in the energetic stew this week, being in a longer-term semisquare aspect with Saturn (exact three times: November 27, 2014; and June 20 and August 13, 2015) and this week being in sesquiquadrate aspect with Jupiter, Venus, and Mercury. These are called "minor" aspects in astrology, which means their effects can be subtle -- but given that so many planets are involved in the mix, we may feel the influence more directly.


Here's what I wrote about the Saturn-Pluto semisquare in the Journal entry for the third week of June, when the aspect was last exact:


"There's always a need, with Pluto, to acknowledge and dismantle old patterns that have held us in fear; with Saturn, the experience is meant to teach us to how to hold our sovereignty more surely. This aspect will compel us to move beyond the grasping for control that comes from fear and to claim our strength and our ability to successfully navigate whatever issues arise." (NorthPoint Journal for June 15 to 21, 2015)

Over the next two weeks, as we work with the third and final semisquare between Pluto and Saturn, we'll be wrapping up the lessons that have been involved in this longer-term aspect. If we've done our work, we'll be able to see how much stronger we are than we used to be. We'll know with greater certainty that we can manage life's twists and turns while keeping our hands firmly and confidently on the steering wheel.


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Copyright Pam Younghans 2015. All rights reserved.