Aspects of Note This Week
All times listed are Pacific Daylight Time. For Greenwich Mean Time, add 7 hours.
MON: Moon square Mars 9:45 a.m. PDT
TUE: Mercury conjunct Neptune, Venus semisquare Pluto
WED: Mars sextile Chiron
THU: Pluto conjunct South Node 12:17 p.m. PDT
FRI: New Moon 1:50 a.m. PDT
SUN: Mercury sextile Saturn, Mars sesquiquadrate Saturn
APRIL is
a time of sharp contrasts. The planetary events this month are one of
the main reasons I entitled my recent webinar "Into the
Heart," because it is during this month that we are most likely to
become aware of issues that are at the heart of current challenges. We
are also called to become more heart-centered in how we approach those
concerns.
Our
experiences this first week of the month will give us a good idea of
what we will be working with throughout the next thirty days. We will
want to pay particular attention to occurrences on Thursday and Friday
this week, as indicators of key themes that will be with us for at least
a fortnight, if not longer.
WE START the
week on a quieter note, with no major aspects and the Moon in subdued
Pisces on Monday. How appropriate that the Moon is in the sign that
specializes in illusions on April Fools' Day! If planning a practical
joke, be aware that not everyone will respond kindly, especially around
the time of Luna's square to
Mars in Gemini (9:45 a.m.).
A
Mercury-Neptune alignment occurs in the wee hours of the morning on
Tuesday (2:36 a.m. PDT), energetically bridging Monday and Tuesday. This
alignment in Pisces inspires a rather mystical or creative Monday
evening. It can enhance our intuition and our imagination, as well as
our ability to receive messages from spirit throughout our dreamtime and
in our meditations.
THE WIND SHIFTS as
early as Tuesday, when a Venus-Pluto semisquare is in effect. The
tension of this aspect, which calls our core values into question, is
felt in our relationships and in our pocketbook, areas ruled by Venus.
Wednesday's
Mars-Chiron sextile is an opportunity to reinforce our knowing of our
ability to be strong in the face of chaenges. This is a healing
aspect, designed to be encouraging and uplifting, if we take the time to
tap into its potentials.
PLUTO'S alignment with the South Node on Thursday is the big event of the week, and perhaps of the month. The
effects of this joining are not limited to the one day, but Thursday is
the day that Pluto and the South Node are both at exactly the same
degree, at 23°03′ Capricorn.
As
Lord of the Underworld, Pluto oversees the greatest transition we make
as humans, that of death of the physical body. But Pluto rules far more
than literal death -- he also rules the transition process that occurs
whenever something has reached the end of its viable life span, and must
change form.
Pluto's
energies are currently focused on the transformation of those areas
ruled by the sign Capricorn, which includes governments, politicians,
economies, social structures, corporations, and authority figures. In
particular, Pluto is revealing ways in which society and governments
have abused authority, ignored the plight of those who require
protection, or otherwise strayed from highest
integrity. It exposes the behind-the scenes strategies of those in power who have yet to learn the lessons of the heart.
THE SOUTH NODE is
the Keeper of the Cosmic Law. By the sign it transits, it shows us
where we are dealing with karmic issues that require our attention and
resolution. The South Node has been in Capricorn since last November,
calling us to dismantle old patterns of
fear, cynicism, and pessimism. These attitudes are the Achilles' heel of
our progress, and must be evolved both personally and globally.
The
South Node in Capricorn also reveals how we have allowed the need for
control to undermine our capacity for caring. Under severe challenges,
it is common to steel ourselves off from the deeper emotions we are
feeling. We resist being truly vulnerable, perhaps seeing it as a sign
of weakness, but also fearing that if we truly allow ourselves to
experience the true depth of our emotions, we will be
taken advantage of.
We
may also fear that the feelings will be more than we can handle, and
that we will never again emerge from their grasp once they are allowed
to come forth. And so, we protect ourselves. We close off our capacity
to feel our deepest emotions, which eventually also closes our hearts to
the needs of others.
WE MIGHT CONSIDER this
lack of empathy to be a core issue that we are dealing with in today's
society, and we wouldn't be wrong. But, since each of us believes
ourselves to be caring and empathetic, and that it's the "others" that
are the problem, "What's a mother to
do?"
In
essence, Pluto conjunct the South Node is uncovering anywhere that we
are choosing fear over trust, separation over connection, suspicion over
appreciation, materialism over heart-centeredness, and pessimism over
inspiration. This revelation is occurring for all of us -- not just
those "others" who we can clearly see making these unevolved choices on a
regular basis.
As
we work with whatever issues come forth this week and this month, our
challenge is to become more openhearted, not less. We may experience the
bitter taste of fear and cynicism, but we do not need to let it flavor
every meal. If we allow emotional wounds to harden into scars, we will
simply be reinforcing the cold-heartedness that we see in the world --
the very qualities which injured us in the first
place.
THE NEW MOON on Friday occurs when the Sun and Moon align at 15°17′ Aries, at 1:50
a.m. PDT. This lunation is notable primarily because it reinforces many of the themes we've just been discussing.
In
the chart for the New Moon, the Sun and Moon form a cardinal T-square
with Pluto, the South Node, and Saturn in Capricorn, and the North Node
in Cancer. In other words, it triggers the energies of that Pluto-South
Node alignment and adds Saturn's influence to the mix as well.
To quote myself (!), I wrote in my forecast column for The Mountain Astrologer
that with Saturn's involvement: "Chickens come home to roost; the
repercussions of our actions (or inactions) can no longer be ignored.
Whatever Pluto has revealed, Saturn brings into sharp relief."
IN ESSENCE,
this is the energy of April. It will be strong throughout the month,
but especially this first week when Pluto aligns with the South Node,
and again in the last week, when Saturn exactly aligns with the South
Node (on April
30).
As
beings who are aware, it is up to us to hold the higher intentions of
this time, to consciously choose trust over fear, connection over
separation, appreciation over suspicion, heart-centeredness over
materialism, and inspiration over pessimism -- in every area of our life
experience.
Into the heart we go ...
IF YOUR BIRTHDAY IS THIS WEEK: This
year, you are challenged to get very clear on what you truly want and
what you need to do to make it your reality. It is not a time for
wishful thinking, but for patient planning. This is energy you work
with every seven to eight years, and it provides the opportunity for a
course correction, if needed. Any seeds planted now will take until the
fall to sprout, giving you plenty of time to do all the necessary work
of preparation. (Solar Return Sun square Saturn)
In Gratitude and Light,
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