Author Archives: Amanda Painter

Opening the Parachute for Uranus in Taurus

Bringing Awareness to What Has Run Rampant

Editor’s note: this is the full PW members’ edition, featuring your weekly horoscopes, the Create feature, Planet Waves FM and more.

Dear Friend and Reader:

If you follow the news, you might have noticed some stories that fit the following theme: things that had once run rampant coming up against greater awareness, the need for deep healing, and a social justice imperative. Not all the week’s news stories fit this general shape, but many do. You might even sense some of those themes in your personal life, or find that certain news stories are resonating with you quite strongly.

Photo by Amanda Painter.

Consider these examples: Bill Cosby’s retrial resulted in a guilty verdict on three counts of sexually assaulting Andrea Constand; a magistrate in Australia has ordered Cardinal George Pell, one of the Vatican’s most senior officials, to stand trial on decades-old sexual abuse charges; women executives at Nike have parlayed an internal, informal survey about long-term sexual harassment and gender discrimination (much of which had been reported to human resources and ignored) into an apparent reorganization of the company.

Additionally, North Korea’s Kim Jong-un promised on Monday to immediately suspend nuclear and missile tests and dismantle one of its nuclear test sites, after a diplomatic meeting with South Korean leader Moon Jae-in. He even pledged to abandon his nuclear weapons if the United States agrees to formally end the Korean War and promises not to invade his country. (We’ll see, but it is a fascinating statement.)

Between these stories of the pursuit of sexual justice and a potential cessation of certain nuclear and war-oriented activities, there’s a common thread. Something that had been running amok in an institutionally sanctioned or corporate/governmental environment, with far-reaching consequences (Pholus in Capricorn), is meeting up with greater awareness in personal and collective realms (Chiron on the Aries Point — the first degrees of Aries). Chiron and Pholus are in a square aspect that is exact on Saturday.

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Bringing Awareness to What Has Run Rampant

The Scorpio Full Moon and the Fire Goddess

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Editor’s note: this is the full PW members’ edition, featuring your May monthly horoscopes, the Create feature, Planet Waves FM and more.

Dear Friend and Reader:

This week’s astrology is building to a Full Moon in Scorpio on Sunday evening. We’re approaching that event while riding on the energetic coattails of an aspect that has to do with the constructive and destructive uses of power. So if you feel like your week has been marked by things like interpersonal conflict, or situations where you’re having to work hard to figure out the best ways to express yourself and take decisive action, this could be why.

Photo by Amanda Painter.

Today’s aspect, which has been coloring the week thus far, is the conjunction in Capricorn between Mars and Pluto. You can read a little more about that in this week’s Monday Astrology Diary.

One hallmark of this aspect is the need to be aware that you’re thinking primarily about your own best interests — in terms of changes that you want to make — while figuring out how your interests and those of others are interdependent. Then you can do some heavy lifting to accomplish a lot.

Similarly, the chart for the Scorpio Full Moon on Sunday shows a need to take action. At 8:58 pm EDT (00:58 UTC Monday), the Moon in early Scorpio makes its exact opposition to the Sun in Taurus (the Full Moon). The Sun and Moon are also square the lunar nodes.

Put most simply, the lunar nodes are two hypothetical points related to the Moon’s orbit.
Having the Scorpio Moon and the Taurus Sun making right angles to the North Node in Leo and the South Node in Aquarius this Sunday means that we’re approximately halfway between eclipse seasons. You might take some time to think about what decisions you made and what actions you took between late January and mid-February, when the last pair of eclipses occurred.

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The Scorpio Full Moon and the Fire Goddess

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By Amanda Painter

Photo by Amanda Painter.

Today’s aspect, which has been coloring the week thus far, is the conjunction in Capricorn between Mars and Pluto. You can read a little more about that in this week’s Monday Astrology Diary. One hallmark of this aspect is the need to be aware that you’re thinking primarily about your own best interests — in terms of changes that you want to make — while figuring out how your interests and those of others are interdependent. Then you can do some heavy lifting to accomplish a lot.

Having the Scorpio Moon and the Taurus Sun making right angles to the North Node in Leo and the South Node in Aquarius this Sunday means that we’re approximately halfway between eclipse seasons. You might take some time to think about what decisions you made and what actions you took between late January and mid-February, when the last pair of eclipses occurred.

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Taurus Sun and Mars-Pluto: Power and Grounding

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We begin this week with the Sun in Taurus (as of late last Thursday). The more relaxed pace of solar Taurus should offer a counter-balance to some rather high-octane astrology that’s brewing: Mars forming a conjunction to Pluto in Capricorn Thursday morning.

Lightning; photo by Dean Souglass.

Mars-Pluto conjunctions are all about energy and power. In its most productive form, that means having the get-up-and-go to make meaningful changes to your environment — including changes that benefit those around you as well as yourself. In its more destructive form, that can mean things like power struggles with others, or using your power ruthlessly or even violently.

Remember: power in itself is not bad; it’s all about how you use it. We might take our cue from martial arts theory, which teaches the concept of using an opponent’s energy to block them; or, rather, redirecting their energy. That requires stepping back and viewing the situation from a place of detachment, as well as understanding where someone is really coming from — which in part means doing the same for your own motives.

If you’ve ever been drawn in to an online comments-section battle, you may know the value of this skill. The first tool is usually time: when in doubt, pause and reflect before responding, and check any immediate impulses.

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Chiron in Aries and the Sun in Taurus

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By Amanda Painter

Tonight, at 11:12 pm EDT (3:12 UTC Friday), the Sun enters Taurus. This happens just two days after Chiron’s noteworthy move into Aries. You might be having an “interesting” week — though having the Sun in Taurus should help you to ease back on the pace and find some solid footing.

Early sumac leaves; photo by Amanda Painter.

Part of the “interesting” factor likely comes from the fact that Mercury is still getting itself sorted out after its station direct in Aries this past Sunday.

While the planet of the mind gradually makes its way in forward apparent motion, things sometimes stay a little bumpy for a while. Often that’s the result of new information leading to reversals of decisions, and new levels of insight.

In the midst of that, I hope you’ve taken a moment to notice some of the week’s news stories, especially those that broke on Tuesday with Chiron’s entrance into Aries. This is one way to gather clues about a planet’s “message” in a new sign; that is, what it’s trying to bring our attention to. When a planet enters Aries (or any of the cardinal signs, which also include Cancer, Libra and Capricorn) political events and news that embodies something of the current zeitgeist — and which is personally relevant for many people — can be very telling.

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Mercury Direct, Aries New Moon, and What’s Next

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By Amanda Painter

If you’re feeling a little on edge this week, you won’t be surprised that astrological events are offering a picture of why that might be. Topping the list are Mercury moving through its ‘storm’ phase prior to stationing direct on Sunday; the Aries New Moon Sunday night; and Chiron in the last degree of Pisces (it enters Aries two days later, on April 17).

Faux fire in Grand Cayman; photo by Amanda Painter.

Although New Moons generally are not considered ‘edgy’ astrology, this one is special, as the Sun and Moon make their conjunction nestled between the disruptive, chaotic influences of Uranus and Eris.

With a waning Moon often indicating a sense of lower personal energy, it would not be surprising if you’re feeling a little less able to deal with the onslaughts of modern life in the digital age right now. That said, there’s still intriguing potential in the current astrology. For one thing, hopefully this Mercury retrograde phase through Aries has offered you a fruitful review of certain decisions, actions, desires and ways of seeing yourself (what you think of as your identity).

Recognizing those openings for insight sometimes asks for a higher level of awareness than what we’re able to muster, however — especially if one is in the thick of a communication crisis, car breakdown, financial mess or other stressful, complex situation. That’s okay. Hindsight is often when we’re able to get some perspective, not when we’re in the middle of things (though sometimes that happens, and it can save a lot of angst).

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