Planet Weather for the Week of April 19, 2009

 

NewsBits: The Torture Papers! Astrologers everywhere, including this one, wondered at how the Mars/Uranus conjunction would manifest. And out came the torture documents authorized by the Bush Presidency, complete with waterboarding, forced nudity, shackling, confinement in very small spaces or with stinging insects, and much, much more creative torture. Publicly, the United Sates subscribes to the Geneva Convention which is totally against torture. The papers have sent shock waves through society and enraged civil liberties organizations. The Mars/Uranus conjunction often emerges as shock, surprise, unrestrained anger, explosiveness, and in the sign Pisces can indicate hidden or secret matters or activity carried out in secret. Additionally, Pisces is a highly sensitive sign on all levels and so is also concerned with compassion, understanding, and issues relating to those who are in prison or otherwise disenfranchised, ill, or down on their luck. In a larger sense, this conjunction in Pisces is the sentiment or the state of conscious awareness about the environments we live in and the ones we create for ourselves. There are those who believe that torture is justified when faced with national security issues (note the TV series sensation “24”), and there are those who believe it is never, ever justified. [If nothing else, it’s a lousy interrogation technique because it mostly elicits false information. Ed note.]

 

Singing Sensation - Following on the heels of the Mars-Uranus conjunction was Venus making its Station Direct at 29 degrees of Pisces, the very last degree of the Zodiac, being “critical” (exceptional impact) degree, and we can say poignant. It carries a similar theme, in that we are asked to look at the spiritual values that are alive and those that have been forgotten or abused and misused. There is another story that has emerged that beautifully exemplifies the energy of Venus Direct on the last degree of the Zodiac and that is the sensation of Susan Boyle, the woman from Blackburn, Scotland, who belted out her song on a national Star Search British TV show and proved her detractors wrong. Susan is 47 years old and matronly and in our youth-obsessed culture was immediately dismissed when she walked on stage. What a perfect description of Pisces – the dilemma of trash or treasure and the standards we use to measure humanity. Pisces can be about glamour and smoke and mirrors but when all is said and done what exactly is the spiritual meaning of what is happening? Susan Boyle may have never been kissed but she certainly knows about the passions and emotions of the heart.

 

SkyWatch: Moon phase of the week: 4/24 -- The Moon enters Her New cycle at 11:23 PM EDT, at five degrees of Taurus, the sign of Her exaltation. (Exaltation is a more or less self-explanatory astrological concept -- when a planet is exalted in a sign it is basically "honored" to be there and does exceptionally well in that placement.) Skywatching events of the week: 4-19 -- The Moon passes within a couple of degrees of bright Jupiter. Their point of closest approach occurs about an hour after noon EST, but look for the two fairly close together in the southeast sky before dawn. 4/22 -- The Moon occults (passes in front of) Venus from 8:21 AM to 9:16 AM EDT. This rare occultation should be visible from most of North America, even after dawn by keen observers, since Venus is bright enough to be just visible in daylight if you know where to look, while the Moon is, of course, readily visible in daylight. If you are far enough west that this event occurs before dawn, you can also see Mars nearby. 4/22 -- The Lyrid meteor shower puts on something of a show, though it's not considered a major skywatching event. The Lyrid meteors will appear to radiate from the constellation Lyra (the Lyre -- hence their name) high in the East at their peak, about 2 AM EDT. You may see possibly 20 or so bright streaks across the sky in an hour. However, the seeing should be good since the Moon will be nearly new and won't rise until just before sunrise, so Her light won't wash out the fainter meteors. Space news of the week: The Kepler terrestrial planet-finder telescope, successfully launched into Earth orbit a few weeks ago, has sent back its first images of a patch of sky where NASA hopes to find Earthlike planets circling distant stars. It will, of course, be a while before these images can be completely analyzed and their findings revealed to the public. Go out! Look up!

 

 Knowing when VOC Moons occur is key to planning your successful week!

 

The Void-of-course (VOC) Moon is a kind of limbo. As it reaches the end of a sign, the Moon makes no major aspect to another planet before it enters the next sign. VOC is best for less outcome-oriented activity, since VOC often means detours, distractions, drifting, or delays. If you want specific outcomes, or if timeliness is critical, don’t use a VOC Moon time. VOC is best for processing, imagining, creating, and open-ended activities, like parties, research, or cleaning your desk/closet for instance! It is said that when a new action is initiated during VOC, “nothing will come of it,” or energies go in unplanned directions, which may not necessarily be negative.

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Week of 4/19/09 – Sunday (joyous, dreamy), Monday (easy), Tuesday (struggles, sparks), Wednesday (challenging, changeable), Thursday, (dynamic), Friday (zesty) and Saturday (minimalistic, relaxed). Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday are the most active energetically and potentially very productive days – more Moon or planetary aspects for engagement with others or projects, and/or producing results. On 4/19/09, the Moon is VOC/Aquarius from 6:16PM to 1:55AM EDT(next day!) – On 4/22/09, the Moon is VOC/Pisces from 9:29AM to 10:09AM EDT – On 4/24/09, the Moon is VOC/Aries from 8:12AM to 2:46PM EDT!

 

Planet Patterns & Cosmic Headlines:

 

*Currently Active: Venus Retrograde (Rx) Cycle: Venus is Direct @ 29 Pisces since 4/17/09. Venus re-enters cardinal, fire Aries on 4/24/09. (Venus was retrograde (Rx) in cardinal, fire Aries and briefly in mutable, water Pisces. Venus/Aries turned Rx on 3/6/09. Venus entered Aries on 2/2/09. Venus entered Pisces on 4/11/09). Pluto squares Venus three times in its Rx cycle: 2/5/09, 4/3/09, and finally 5/3/09. Pluto intensified the relationship and values action, pushing hot issues even more powerfully and possibly opening some wounds. Venus passes its “shadow,” 15 degree Aries, at which it went retrograde, on 5/21/09, and that completes the Rx cycle as Venus moves on to new degrees.

 

The Sun enters fixed, earth Taurus on April 19, 2009 until 5/20/09. Now we enter Taurus time, determined but sweet, filled with bloom and expression. Taurus is one of two Zodiac signs ruled by Venus (the other is Libra). We’ve had so much focus on Venusian issues with Venus Rx and Pluto squaring it and intensifying these issues. Venus leaves 29 Pisces about 5 days after the Sun enters Taurus and then Venus, returns to Aries for the duration of the Sun’s stay in Taurus. This means that relationship issues are still uppermost in all of our minds. And we are considering value and what that means to us, where we get it, and with whom. And not just value with regard to relationships but the deeper values of how we live our lives, what is important, what the enduring values are, and what are the ones that do not sustain us. With all this Venus and Pluto/Capricorn energy, we are being asked to reconsider what we’ve taken for granted.

 

Venus in mutable, water Pisces conjunct Mars/Pisces @ 29deg. on 4/21/09. The sparks keep flying. Classically, when Venus and Mars get together something new is created and something new wants to emerge. The conjunction at the last degree of the natural Zodiac is almost prophetic. It is the dream consciousness (Pisces) wishing to manifest, to be born, out of the deep and intuitive dreamtime.

 

Mars enters cardinal, fire Aries on 4/22/09 until 5/31/09. It takes two years for Mars to move through all twelve Zodiac signs and so it is a renewal of life when it enters Aries again, wanting to sing a new tune. Where this happens in your chart will show in what arena you want to surge ahead with new goals and action. This is a good moment to consider what you have accomplished in the last two years, since Mars was last at this point in your chart.

 

Mercury in fixed, earth Taurus is busy this week making connections with Jupiter/Aquarius, Uranus/Pisces and Neptune/Aquarius. Mercury is making the rounds this week, gathering and disseminating information and entertaining fresh ideas as it flits about and exchanges messages first with Jupiter (by square), tending to blurt things out, or exaggerate; then with Uranus (by sextile), synthesizing some new concepts and awareness; and lastly,  with Neptune by square, second-guessing what you know, confusions, misinterpretations, and spiritual awareness of the unity of all things.

 

*Currently Active Paradigm-Shift Pattern:  Part 2 of 5 – Saturn in mutable, earth Virgo opposite (180 deg. angle) Uranus in mutable, water Pisces on 2/5/09 @ 20 deg.  – Preview: Part 3 of 5 is exact on 9/15/09 @ 24degrees. We’re still plugging the dyke with Saturn in Virgo, addressing the most pressing problems and attempting to understand the underlying systemic issues. We have five separate hits to come to grips with system breakdowns.