“Throughout the ten directions of space
 Occupying all the quarters in & out,”
— Jack Kerouc, “Mexico City Blues” (211th chorus)

When the Sun enters a cardinal sign on the zodiac (Aries, Cancer, Libra or Capricorn), it is a turning point you can see in the tangible world. The risings and settings of the Sun change direction from further South each day to further North at the Capricorn solstice, and back toward South again at the Cancer solstice.

At the Aries and Libra equinoxes the appearance of the Sun marks precisely East, and the solar disappearance takes place exactly in the West. Hence, the year and the zodiac are divided into quarters known as seasons, by what appears from Earth’s surface to be cyclical motions of the Sun.

Of course, we all know that it is, in fact, the Earth’s motion that brings the perceived solar cycles about. It is the rotation of our planet on its own axis that causes the alternation between day and night. Additionally, it is Earth’s orbit around the Sun that precipitates the seasons.

Nonetheless, perception is reality for all practical purposes. What’s more, the principle applies equally regardless of whether you are observing the world or your inner life. In other words, what you feel is just as real as what you see. That’s something to remember when the Sun approaches the middle of a fixed sign on the zodiac (Taurus, Leo, Scorpio or Aquarius), which is the case now. 

When the Sun reaches the central degree of Taurus at precisely 9:42 pm EDT tomorrow (01:42:00 UTC on Thursday), this season will be distinguished from the other three not only by what you see but also by how it feels outside. It tells you where you are in the year.

In addition, what you perceive during what some call Beltane (when life is traditionally affirmed and celebrated) will tell you where you are on Earth. In the Northern Hemisphere you will most likely find flowers. In the Southern Hemisphere you will more probably find fruit. 

Furthermore, and much more subjectively, you will at this time be able to more clearly distinguish this particular season from its previous iterations by how you feel on the inside. That’s because what some call a cross quarter is, for all practical purposes, more the center of a turning than a turning point. In a way, it’s like being in the midst of a rotating storm. What you call it depends on where you are at. Hence, how you feel now depends on your point of view.

The Spring Reading is now published. You may order all 12 signs here or choose your individual signs here for immediate access. You may listen to a free audio introduction here now.

What you find inside now is just as valid as any objective experience of the world. That’s true even if how you feel is at variance with what is going on outside, because it tells you where you are in your life. That’s a good thing to know.

If you have the financial means, you can board an airplane and travel to another time of day or a different season by changing your physical location. While it’s not quite as simple to change your perception, it is possible (and probably less expensive). First, however, you must locate yourself; and one of the best times to do that is now.

During a cross-quarter, especially during the Beltane festival designated by the Sun in the middle of Taurus, it is an auspicious time to turn inward. No matter where on Earth your body is at this time of year, it almost certainly presents the least challenge to your physical well being.

So consider taking a vacation from your outer struggles (if not your place of residence) to find, affirm and celebrate your own center. Whether you ultimately choose to shift where that locus is or keep it where it’s at is a decision that can wait. For now, it will be enough to simply spend a little time to better know where you live on the inside. 

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Venus enters Taurus shortly before 8:36 pm EDT tonight (00:35:32 UTC Saturday). Venus entering Taurus is not all that remarkable by itself. It happens roughly once a year (as it did in March of 2015, May of 2014 and April of 2013, for example) on a predictable schedule.

It is worthwhile, however, to discern the unique context of the Venusian ingress into Taurus this year and at this time. That discernment would naturally begin with the fact that astrologers consider Venus to rule (or, alternatively, have dominion in) Taurus as well as Libra.

A planet returning to its home sign is a significant event for astrologers. The nature of the planet in question is considered to be strongly expressed with a minimum of inhibition where it rules the roost.

The nature of Venus has a lot of upside. Venus corresponds directly with how the ancients believed beauty and truth to be synonymous. According to  the prominent and revered astrologer Robert Hand, Venus is also “a Yin planet.” Mr. Hand goes on to assert that, “In its highest manifestation, Venus is love.” Additionally, the essence behind the meaning of words like ‘abundance’, ‘values’, ‘ease’ and ‘receptive’ are commonly associated with what is also the brightest planet in the sky.

As a matter of fact, Venus is so bright that it distinguishes itself among planets as the only object besides the Sun and Moon capable of casting shadows here on Earth. Given its intrinsic and distinguishing brightness, it is appropriate to note that Venus is basically invisible right now. That’s because Venus is currently lost in the solar glare as it moves to go behind the Sun from our perspective. Later this year, Venus will reappear in the West after sunset, but its long tenure in the East before dawn earlier this year is essentially over.

What’s more, Venus is moving around the zodiac pretty quickly right now — at a pace of more than one degree per day. Taking into account the fact that Mercury’s apparent motion is quite slow at this time because of retrograde, it means that Venus is currently the swiftest object in our sky except for the Moon. Unlike Mercury, however, the nature of Venus as it manifests in your life is not intimately or usually related to speed.

All of which raises a pertinent question: Is the upside of Venus more or less likely to manifest during this year’s tenure in Taurus if it is also out of sight and relatively fleet at the same time?

As usual, the answer has a lot to do with you. Astrology is not destiny. Destiny has to do with the choices you make, as well as your own, personal nature. Astrology does not happen to you. It is made to happen, or not. Hence, what happens during the time Venus spends in Taurus this year will depend a lot on whether its nature is seen through you and supported by how you live your life.

In order to do your part to bring love, truth, beauty, ease and abundance to the world while Venus traverses its Taurus dominion until May 24, it might help to think of yourself as performing Venus much as musicians perform a song.

Many popular songs (at least) include chord patterns that repeat in cycles, just like planets move in cycles. Commonly those cycles periodically return to where they started after being resolved. That’s what musicians usually mean when they “bring it on home” before concluding in such a way as to leave those in the audience feeling a satisfying sense of closure at the end of a song. Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to bring Venus on home in a similar way.

The Spring Reading is now published. You may order all 12 signs here or choose your individual signs here for immediate access. You may listen to a free audio introduction here now.

Fortunately, you can get some help bringing Venus home to Taurus from the resources Planet Waves has to offer. First off, there is Eric’s 2016 Spring Reading, which features what is essentially the counterpoint to Venus at this time: the retrograde of Mars.

Additionally, to help you hear and harmonize with the proverbial music of the spheres for the rest of this year and beyond, you can become a Core Community Member of Planet Waves for what amounts to a song, when you compare the subscription price to, say, what it costs to see a symphony, opera or rock show nowadays.

While you can always choose to bring Venus home on your own, there is no experience as empowering or satisfying as performing in concert with others. That’s what Planet Waves offers as a resource free of the dissonance of corporate advertising. For it is only readers who choose to pitch in as they can afford to do that will keep Planet Waves going around to come around home to you.

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What is called a ‘zoom’ on your smart phone is not the genuine article. The zoom lens on a conventional camera is a mechanical device that ‘telescopes’ back and forth to change the focal length of the lens. The zoom on a smart phone is just a software program that takes the central portion of the image you’re seeing and enlarges it.

The example of an actual, mechanical zoom compared to a ‘fake’ (digital) zoom is an example of the distinctions to be made in the astrology this week. Your life will go on if you don’t know the difference. If quality matters, however, knowing the difference is important.

Billions of people all over the world continue living day-to-day without knowing anything about what’s going on with astrology. Nearly all of us, however, have had the experience of reading a horoscope (to cite just one example) that puts everything into a better perspective, improving the quality of life.

That’s because astrology is not fortune telling. Your fortune cannot be told by anybody or any system. Fortunes are made. The nature of your fortune, to the extent you make it, will be mostly determined by how aware you are and what choices you make. That’s where astrology comes in.

First off, astrology makes you aware that you are part of a system — the solar system. Unlike the objective detachment of science, which can leave you feeling alone and isolated in a big universe, astrology makes you the subject. Because you are the subject of an ethical astrologer’s work, you are the focus. As the focus, you get a perspective that can help you make a difference for you.

That perspective begins with the understanding that any part of any system (solar or otherwise) will tell you something about any other part of the system, and also will tell you about the system as a whole. With the awareness conferred by an astrologer’s interpretation of your part in the solar system comes data you can use when it comes time to make choices. Going back to our original example, knowing the difference between a mechanical zoom lens and the digital facsimile will provide you with information that will help you to choose the appropriate option when it comes time to take a quality photograph.

When it comes time to get some quality astrology, there is no place like right here at Planet Waves. For example, one big focus this week is the Mercury retrograde that begins on Thursday shortly before 1:20 pm EDT (17:19:40 UTC). Nearly any other source of astrological information will simply dish you the same old cookbook astrology that has rarely (if ever) been useful in helping you make a life of better quality for yourself.

The astrologers at Planet Waves, however, go the extra mile. This particular Mercury retrograde will not be the same-old, in part because of the context in which it is taking place. An important part of that context is the fact that several other planets (most notably Mars) are retrograde at the same time, which does not happen every year.

Therefore, to make the most of this particular Mercury retrograde in this particular year, you might want to take a look at Eric’s 2016 Spring Reading. With its sharp and specific focus on both Mars and you, the Spring Reading could very well make this the Mercury Retrograde you turn your fortune around from cookbook-level fare to something of gourmet quality, for a lot less than the price of a gourmet meal.

Another thing that will make this particular Mercury retrograde special is that Mercury will be moving across its own heliocentric node in the process. What does that mean for you? It means that you will be able to start planning now to see Mercury move across the face of the Sun on May 9, when retrograde Mercury reaches the degree of Taurus where its node is located. It will be an event without temporal equal since May of 1970, not to be even approximated again until May of 2095.

The Spring Reading is now published. You may order all 12 signs here or choose your individual signs here for immediate access. You may listen to a free audio introduction here now.

The reason you will want to plan for the Mercury transit is that looking at the Sun without the proper protection for your eyes can be dangerous. Also, your smart phone will almost certainly be of insufficient quality to take a photograph.

Granted, your life will go on whether or not you see Mercury’s solar transit, but if kids yet unborn ask you to tell them about it someday, being able to provide an eyewitness account (and even a photograph) could make a big difference in your relationship with them.

Furthermore, if you become a member of the Planet Waves Core Community before May 9, you will be able to provide those same kids with the collective perspective of perhaps the only astrological website that knows enough to inform you of such a distinctive event far enough in advance that you can make some good fortune out of it.

The Mercury transit will, in essence, be an eclipse. From an astrologer’s point of view, that means Mercury (which, among other things, represents your mind and its means of expressing itself) will be symbolically merging with the Sun (which, among other things, corresponds to consciousness) on May 9. As with biological forms of merger, the potential of this transit will be to yield progeny.

From astrology’s perspective the most meaningful offspring of Mercury’s transit of the Sun will be those (like you) both conscious and mindful of distinctions that most people will never know or care about. That awareness will in turn distinguish you, providing the means to live as a conscious and mindful part of a grand system, and thus experiencing a quality of existence most people will never know.

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Heavy rains don’t last forever. Neither do high winds, nor seasons. That’s the way of life on Earth. There is ebb and flow. There are cycles. Furthermore, it is not unusual for your experience of cyclical phenomena to differ from that of others at least as often as you find yourself sharing the same experience with others.

It doesn’t really matter whether your experience of life’s ebbs and flows converge with or diverge from that of others at any given time. Over time, the breaks tend to even out. What does matter is whether or not you choose to have any experience in its fullness from beginning to end.

It is thus important to remember that the current lunar cycle is only halfway towards completion now that the Scorpio Full Moon of 2016 is just a few hours behind us. Even though a lot has transpired since the Aries New Moon of April 7, it would almost certainly be a good idea to stay tuned as the Moon wanes towards newness again.

Probably the best way to stay tuned in to the monthly cycle (often called a “lunation”) that proceeds from one New Moon to the next is by watching it. Astrology correlates the Moon with the many things that you privately experience ‘in person’. That’s the reason it’s so important to look up and see the Moon with your own eyes as often as you can. Actually seeing the Moon (and consciously noting your feelings while doing so) is the most straightforward way to understand how its motions and phases correspond to your own.

In the first two weeks of a lunation (as the Moon waxes towards fullness) it’s pretty easy to see the Moon because it is already up in the sky by nightfall. Full Moons are also fairly available because they rise in the East as the Sun is going down and remain in the sky all night, only setting in the West at dawn. Because the Moon continues to rise a bit later every night, however, viewing the Moon during the second half of its cycle (as it wanes towards newness again) is problematic because it means you you must stay up later and later to catch your glimpse.

It’s easy to lose visual contact with the Moon in the second two weeks of a lunation. Fortunately, you still have contact with your own body. While the experience is often subjective and not easily amenable to empirical proof, it’s reasonable to hypothesize that your body is at least synchronized with lunar cycles. After all, the actual stuff you are made of has been recycled through many bodies before yours. Additionally, among all the experiences of previous lives coded into your DNA, there is almost certainly included some extensive familiarity with the Moon.

Therefore, especially if you have to observe a regular bedtime, pay attention to your body over the next two weeks. Feel consciously. Be particularly attentive to any physical developments or visceral sensations that seem to represent a complementary ‘other’ side to how you have experienced the two weeks just past.

As an example, if you were somehow ill between April 7 and today and are starting to feel better, pay attention to all the experiences that correlate with recovery. See if any parallels come up for you. Don’t think too much about it. Just be present to your feelings and let correspondences come as they may. Then as the next New Moon on May 6 approaches, start looking for correlations with other people and over longer periods.

The Spring Reading is now published. You may order all 12 signs here or choose your individual signs here for immediate access. You may listen to a free audio introduction here now.

One way of filling out your personal experiences with this current lunar cycle is to get some useful information from an experienced astrologer. Fortunately, Planet Waves has some resources for you.

As we approach a New Moon that will also represent the middle of our current season, you can build on your work of integrating the current lunar cycle through your body by consulting Eric’s 2016 Spring Reading. Think of it as the extra mile you would not be able to run without a little guidance.

Then, as you get the hang of working with future lunations so as to give yourself the full experience, give some serious thought to how you might use your work as a springboard to a wider understanding of the world as a whole, as well as broader service to it. Should you aspire to such service, a membership in the Planet Waves Core Community will go a long way towards helping you reach your aspirations, by giving you a way to connect with others whose work parallels your own.

No matter how personal the experience of living in a physical body may be, none of us are in this earthly boat alone. No matter where you are in your own process, and no matter who you are in relation to others, life and its cycles are constantly turning towards making us one. Your part in making that happen is to see each and all of your own experiences through to fullness and completion as best you can.

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You made it. If you are reading this you lived to see the Sun enter Taurus again, which it did at about 11:30 am EDT (15:30 UTC today). The Sun in Taurus matters because you matter as matter. The implication of solar Taurus is to proceed with the flow of the seasons to confirm your tangible self.

No matter where on Earth you are, there is now no denying the reality of the season that started about a month ago. Because the seasons of Earth are synchronized with the cosmos, there is also no denying your connection with the universe.

Furthermore, because you are part of both the Earth and cosmos, there is also no denying your physical existence and all that goes with it. Among other things, that’s what solar Taurus is about.

Now you can implicitly diversify your life beyond conforming to the requirements and expectations of others, at least a bit, and at least for a while. The best way to do so is to give your body some equal time to tell you how to confirm as well as conform.

For it is from the realm of physical needs, desires and understanding that the teaching of solar Taurus are best received. Being a fixed earth sign ruled by Venus, the Taurus season functions to confirm your special place in the universe. While it is entirely well and good to search for life elsewhere in the solar system and beyond, it is also essential that such explorations be grounded in the daily miracle you are a part of.

You are representative of a miracle: sentience grounded in and interacting with the physical. It is no small thing that you can move about from one place to another at will and with conscious intent. It is significant that you can ingest parts of your world and integrate those parts into a meld of body and mind that is continuously changing and exchanging with its surroundings while at the same time remaining a distinguishable continuum of identity.

Yet, in an age when digital connections often serve as a proxy for physical contact, it’s easy to take your body for granted. It’s the path of least resistance to live in and for what is abstract. So far as we know, however, your physical existence remains the necessary requisite to your mental existence.

One planet with a firm correlation to your physical existence is Mars, which stationed retrograde over the weekend in Sagittarius. Mars retrogrades are not exactly rare, taking place roughly every other year. It has been much longer, however, since a Mars retrograde has symbolically moved from one state of existence to another by moving from one sign to another. To have such a retrograde happen now is thus excellent timing, because it can serve as a metaphor to help get you get more fully and consciously into your body during the season when it is most appropriate to do so.

Fortunately, Eric has you covered. The work Eric has put into your Spring Reading for this year is focused on providing you with an awareness of how you can interact and exchange with the Mars retrograde much as you do with your physical environment. Eric’s approach will allow you to ingest information about what would otherwise be an abstract celestial event, so you can tangibly improve the quality of your physical existence.

As regards to both the bigger picture and longer term in which both the Mars retrograde and the current season exist, Planet Waves has you covered there as well. During a time when the often pernicious influence of campaign financing is a hot topic of discussion, it is also an appropriate moment to contemplate the degree to which financial support of any kind holds sway nearly anywhere.

Find out what the Mars retrograde will mean for you in Eric’s 2016 Spring Reading. You may Order all 12 signs here at a value price. Includes video readings!

It has been said that money talks. If that is so, then it can also be said that big money from corporate interests screams so as to drown out any competing or divergent message. The hegemony of corporate funding is at least as pervasive as the digital environment, and an alternative grounded in the truth of your physical existence is just as necessary.

Becoming a member of the Planet Waves Core Community is one of the few ways you can avail yourself of an alternative to always hearing what the corporate plutocracy wants you to hear. The information, perspective and tools that continuously flow to Core Community members are financed only by subscribers. What members get in return is content focused on your priorities, and presented so as to further your interests. As a fringe benefit you receive a continuous connection with others of like mind.

So take advantage of the season. Avail yourself of the connections less often made. Whether through your own body or through tangible participation in the Planet Waves Core Community (and hopefully both), there are options available to you. From those options you can choose. With your choices you can confirm that you are indeed a miracle manifested in matter with the power to make a difference for yourself, for others, and for the world in which you live.

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No matter how good things get for you, there’s always going to be room for improvement. Fortunately, you live in a world where things can (and often do) get better. Even so, and paradoxically, two important conditions that make betterment possible also have a bad reputation.

The first condition necessary for progress is change. Yet, somehow, change can provoke fear as easily as it can stimulate hope. Although it’s not quite as clear a requisite as change, the other proviso for amelioration is uncertainty.

If you stop to think about it, change would be impossible without uncertainty. In spite of that simple fact, however, it’s entirely natural for even the most reasonable person to confront the unknown with apprehension.

So here you are, a reasonable person in between ways of being with your world. You are capable of thinking one way, but also prone to feeling an entirely different way about two of most fundamental conditions of your existence. Fortunately, there are two things you can do to move away from being stuck in between, and move towards improvement.

The first thing you can do is orient yourself. For as long as there have been people on this planet, it’s been essential to know where you are in relation to both where you have been and where you are going. Going back as far as we know of ourselves, one sure way to get your bearings is to look at the sky. Even though the sky is constantly changing, order and patterns are still discernible. Astrology, in turn, provides a systematic way of deriving discernment.

The second thing you can do to welcome change and embrace uncertainty is get perspective. Your own life provides some perspicacity. Insights from your friends and teachers offer a valuable supplement to your experience. Beyond what you and our contemporaries can bring to the table, however, is the perspective only an exceptional astrologer can provide.

Exceptional astrologers combine the distillation of thousands of years of lineage with a stable, realistic personality, a trustworthy ethic and a capacity for innovation. Few offer that combination more reliably and affordability than Eric Francis. Furthermore, seldom has there a better time for you to avail yourself of two of Eric’s current offerings.

Yesterday, Mercury entered the narrow corridor of Taurus in which it will spend nearly eight weeks moving forth, back and forth again.

That’s right, we have a Mercury retrograde coming up, beginning April 28, and Mercury is even now moving over a slice of the zodiac it will revisit two more times. That’s another way of saying Mercury has entered the so-called ‘shadow phase’, which proceeds the actual retrograde by about two weeks.

If there is anything in astrology that provokes the same sort of paradoxes as the words ‘change’ and ‘uncertainty’, it’s a Mercury retrograde. If there is any astrologer who can provide you with orientation and perspective, it’s Eric.

For purposes of figuring out where you are in relationship to where you have been (as well as where you want to go), perhaps nothing can orient you better than Eric’s Spring Reading. That’s because the upcoming Mercury retrograde will not take place in a vacuum.

Find out what the Mars retrograde will mean for you in Eric’s 2016 Spring Reading. You may pre-order all 12 signs here for less than $40. Includes video readings!

Mars is also about to station retrograde for the first time in two years, and for the first time in nearly a decade the Martian retrograde motion will bridge two signs.

Where your own memory of what has gone around to come around again might fail you, Eric will reliably have your back with an innovative video format to serve as your compass for the remainder of this season.

Finally, when it comes to ongoing perspective, Eric and Planet Waves have you covered as well with a Core Community membership. By becoming part of the world’s only comprehensive astrological resource that is not littered with commercial advertising, you will continue to benefit from the astute and grounded perceptions of everybody on the Planet Waves team — long after this particular season of change and uncertainty has concluded.

Eric has purged some of Mercury retrograde’s undeserved reputation by proposing that we refer to its current phase as an ‘echo’ rather than a ‘shadow’. With that simple word substitution, he showed us that it is possible to reorient yourself and gain a more healthy and hopeful perspective about the often paradoxical — yet ultimately fortunate — realities that go with the privilege of being alive on Earth; perhaps the only place in the universe where things can get better.

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