There’s a Full Moon sneaking up on you. It will happen in Taurus (opposing the Scorpio Sun) on Monday shortly before 9 am EDT (13:51:59 UTC). There is no intention here to imply you are not aware of a Full Moon occurring in less than three days. The purpose here is to raise your consciousness just a bit further.

A Full Moon in Taurus is not just any Full Moon. The Moon (and everything it represents) is what astrologers call ‘exalted’ in Taurus. Exalted is another way of saying ‘strongly expressed’.

If you want an example of how an object in exaltation can correlate with earthly events, you don’t have to look very far back. Mars entered its Capricorn exaltation on Sept. 27, and moved on to Aquarius just as results of the 2016 presidential election in the U.S. were becoming undeniably clear. That was not exactly what one would call an uneventful period.

The Moon and Mars have a lot in common. Both represent qualities essential to sustain life, juxtaposed with characteristics that are hazardous to life. There are also important differences. Perhaps foremost among those differences is that the Moon moves around the zodiac much faster. Compare more than two months spent by Mars in Capricorn to the two days (basically, Sunday and Monday) the Moon will spend in Taurus to initiate next week.

Much like a candidate in the closing days of a political campaign, the Moon tends to pack a lot of activity into a short period of time. Combine rapid and eventful travel with a build-up to the emblematic culmination of a Full Moon — in a sign that amplifies all things lunar — and the implication is a lot of momentum. Hence a good reason for you to raise your awareness as much as possible now.

Momentum itself has an upside and a downside. If you are on top of things, you can get a lot of things done quickly. If things are on top of you, it’s possible to be caught up and swept away quickly by corresponding events.

Obviously, it’s better to have the upper hand when it comes to momentum. In order for you to be on the bright side of Monday’s Full Moon, consider a handful of guidelines. First, have a plan. Sunday and Monday will almost certainly not favor the aimless. Next, do something. No matter how mundane, any actions taken during the first two days of next week will likely yield productive results.

It will also help if the actions you plan to take are chosen with emotional gratification in mind. Picture yourself on Tuesday as being satisfied with what you did on Sunday and Monday, and you will have an ideal to aim for. In addition, bring others along for the ride if at all possible. Many hands make less work. Also, as the legendary Chinese sage Lao Tsu is recorded to have observed, a collective effort creates collective bonds.

Finally, unless your planned action is going to be of the direct and political variety (which would be a good choice, by the way), take a break from current events. Get yourself firmly grounded in your own existence through whatever it is you consciously aim to accomplish on Sunday and Monday. There is more to the world than politics. If it is your choice to spend two days in a garden mulching the soil, or even two days in bed making love, you will be doing your part well by the Taurus Full Moon.

Offered In Service

Eric has begun the early pre-order phase of the 2017 annual edition. You can read his full letter about it here. Or, go straight to the purchase page. (If you’re a Core Community or Backstage Pass member, please email us at cs@planetwaves.net for your discounted price.)

By Amanda Painter

What just happened in this country? In a phrase: Uranus conjunct Eris in Aries. The key phrase for Uranus is, “Expect the unexpected.” And Eris? Well, she is known for taking feelings of being ‘cast off’ and using them to incite competition and chaos.

Detail of Movement II by Peter Bremers at Chesterwood, Stockbridge, Massachusetts. Photo by Amanda Painter.

We have more of that on our plates then we’d like right now. Personally, I am in shock. I knew that Donald Trump could win, but I never thought that he would actually win.

Expect the unexpected. Uranus conjunct Eris.

We’ve experienced two exact contacts between Uranus and Eris so far this year. Before those two planets are done with their tete-a-tete, they’ll conjoin once more in Aries, on March 17, 2017. So, the surprises are not done — though with any luck, the next batch will swing things in a more creative, productive, humane direction to counter what’s been happening in this election year. I’m not making any predictions; just holding space for the idea that even the worst upsets can inspire and engender a wave of energy and action to rebalance what has gone askew.

After all, with each new day we get new opportunities and new astrology to help us make sense of things and move forward. And this week, we get three of the so-called personal planets changing sign.

On one level, this indicates shifts in thinking, in how we receive and relate, and in how we take action toward what we want. Here’s what’s going on astrologically:

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Sometimes astrology is affirmed by events. Other times, astrology is validated by profound timing. If ever you are likely to see both a precise temporal correspondence and compelling correlations to astrological events, it will be when Mars leaves its Capricorn exaltation behind to enter Aquarius shortly before 1 am EDT (05:51:23 UTC) tomorrow.

You don’t have to be an astrologer to understand Mars. All you have to do is see it in the sky. The steady red glow of Mars is unmistakable, as is the feeling you get in your gut upon consciously sighting it with an awareness of what it is.

Maybe it’s the color. Perhaps it’s the corresponding mythology. It’s even possible that your genetic memory recognizes its origins when Mars is brought to your attention by either direct apprehension of its visage or an indirect experience of its manifestations.

At its best, Mars is emblematic of all the distinctions that separate merely existing from truly living. The energy, passion, desire and need which go into making an effort and finding a way are a vital part of how astrology characterizes the Martian archetype. Paradoxically, Mars also symbolizes much of what is destructive to life.

While there is some continuity of expressed identity, the astrological qualities of Mars are not constant. Context is all-important. A big part of context for any planet is what sign it is currently traversing. That’s how a planet exiting one sign to ingress another is considered by astrologers to be an important occasion. Interestingly, the impending Martian shift into Aquarius will be taking place at about the same time we all get a notion of how an important political event (the U.S. presidential election) is turning out.

Given the pronounced partisan divisions that have so long distinguished U.S. politics, there will be a lot of unhappy people no matter what happens after the votes are counted. Even so, a lot of the same people will also be relieved to see what has been a largely sordid and impertinent campaign finally come to an end. It therefore makes sense that Mars is now winding up about six weeks in a sign where its excesses are implicitly indulged by the established order, and is proceeding to enter a sign where Martian characteristics are likely to be mediated by a more collective sway.

Your part in the grand scheme of things would be more fully realized if you were to move on along with Mars. Implicitly, that would entail putting the election — but not its politics — behind you, beginning tomorrow. That’s because this particular election will more likely signify a beginning than an end. For if there is one common ground that unites both the U.S. electorate and citizens of the world, it’s a clear sense that there has to be a better way.

At this point, a better way to determine how we are all governed will not happen by itself. Even if you are sick and tired of what has happened over the last six weeks, you can be sure that the less savory and more abusive members of existing power structures will not surrender their hegemony. If you do not want politics to continue following its currently disgusting course, you will need to do something — and doing something is what Mars is for.

Offered In Service

Eric has begun the early pre-order phase of the 2017 annual edition. You can read his full letter about it here. Or, go straight to the purchase page. (If you’re a Core Community or Backstage Pass member, please email us at cs@planetwaves.net for your discounted price.)

According to some ancient traditions, we are moving into a special time of the year. Astrologically, the period begins with the Sun precisely in the middle of Scorpio (which will take place Sunday or Monday, depending on where you are), and ends when the Sun enters Capricorn for a solstice.

The name for this special period of time from the Scorpio cross-quarter to the Capricorn solstice will vary from one culture to the next, but there is a common thread: the ratio of daytime to nighttime goes askew. In the northern hemisphere, days get shorter. In the southern hemisphere, it is the nights that decrease in length.

When days and nights lose any semblance of symmetry, it is not uncommon to perceive time differently. With a different perception of time comes a different consciousness. A different state of consciousness, in turn, changes how you evaluate possibility. What previously seemed impossible might soon look plausible. On the other hand, so-called ‘slam dunks’ and ‘no brainers’ could soon cease to become a sure thing. Hence, depending on who you are, we are about to enter a period favoring astonishing miracles, fertile chaos or a bit of both.

This year, it’s interesting that both a change in civil time-keeping and a prominent lunar phase will take place precisely as the Sun reaches and passes the middle of Scorpio. As Sunday begins, daylight savings time will end in the U.S. Monday, the Moon will reach its first quarter in the middle of Aquarius, separated by 90 degrees from the Scorpio Sun.

With changes from standard time to daylight savings time and back again, it’s usually necessary to make some adjustment. At this time of year, the ‘fall back’ is advertised as being able to get you an extra hour of sleep. The reality is often a bit different. As result, a natural phenomenon that initiates a period of time distortion will be given a boost by an unnatural human intervention. Know that ahead of time, and you will better know how to adjust yourself.

To have a lunar first quarter concurrent with both the Scorpio cross-quarter and a temporal adjustment of human creation will add another layer to the experience. The Moon’s gravitational influence on Earth’s seas is undeniable. The effects of gravity are not nearly as pronounced for smaller bodies of water, however. There are no discernible tides on ponds, or in your cells. Instead, it is likely that what you feel of the Moon is more a memory of cellular life’s probable origins in our rhythmic oceans.

Memories can manifest as realities if one is not aware enough to put them into perspective. Being present to what is actually happening at any given moment puts recollection of past events in their proper place as only part of the picture. You are now a creature residing predominantly on land. The Moon and its phases are now more usually indicative of how you connect with the Earth (and with life), and less likely a matter of destiny.

The first quarter Moon is the halfway point between a New Moon conjunction (Sun and Moon in the same degree of the same sign), and a Full Moon opposition (Sun and Moon in the same degree of opposite signs). If you think of a New Moon as correlating to initiation and a Full Moon as corresponding to culmination, the first quarter can then be taken as a moment when the outcome is in the balance. What happens will depend, at least in part, on what you choose to do — or not.

Hence, the astrological implications for this coming week. Awareness will be huge. Being present in the realities of the moment will be essential. Knowing that adjustment will be necessary will prepare you. Making choices will empower you.

It will not do to live in the past, or to give power away next week. Above all, pay attention to potentials that time seemingly out of time will present. Just as with music, creative potential increases when rhythms of memory are changed with conscious intent in the present. Next week could very well be your time to shine — not because of influences out of your control, but rather because you will implicitly have a greater chance to exercise influence over what’s actually and truly yours.

Offered In Service

Eric has begun the early pre-order phase of the 2017 annual edition. You can read his full letter about it here. Or, go straight to the purchase page for the current early discount, which will increase again later in the season. (If you’re a Core Community or Backstage Pass member, or have questions, please email us at cs@planetwaves.net for your extra-special discounted price.)

By Amanda Painter

If you have any puzzles, mysteries or proposals on your plate today, you should be in the perfect frame of mind to dig deep, investigate and scrutinize it until you are satisfied. But what if that puzzle or mystery is something about yourself — specifically something regarding certain of your beliefs?

Illuminated box at the 2016 Sacred and Profane Festival, Peaks Island, Maine. Participants had to figure out what would prompt the silent, masked box-holders to open the lid wider and offer its contents, rather than close the lid and withdraw. Photo by Amanda Painter.

The astrology looks good for cracking that nut, too, though it may happen in unexpected ways, or could come with some emotional release.

And given how high emotions are running already this election season, and the way so many people are doubling-down on what they believe to be ‘true’ — regardless of facts, context or their own past stances on similar issues — don’t be surprised if your next political conversation is a catalyst for that release.

Not everyone is comfortable with intense or highly focused self-expression, however, including their own…or especially their own. If that sounds like you, I’d definitely encourage you to see the process as one of exploration and even relief or liberation, rather than as any kind of threat to whatever neat, tidy package you’ve constructed for your self-image. We’re all works of progress, remember. No shame in that.

In fact, when you allow yourself to be moved and ‘let it out’ (whatever ‘it’ may be for you), you begin to get clearer on your deeper values. Those moments are practically arrows that point you to your core bottom line, your ethics, your essential humanity. True, sometimes those arrows also point to shadow material, baggage or sore spots that still need some TLC, understanding, unpacking and illumination. Again, nothing wrong with that — it’s all part of healing and growing. Those triggers can be incredible teachers when we’re able to hold space for them.

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Among all of the major planets, Neptune is arguably the most difficult for astrologers to interpret. If there is any non-planetary factor even more challenging than Neptune, it’s probably your own part in the cosmic scenario. Interestingly, both Neptune and your place in the celestial order are in the spotlight this week.

Having Neptune in the astrological spotlight is usually akin to driving your automobile on a foggy night with your headlight beams aimed high. Accurate information is hard to come by, and it’s necessary to proceed with caution.

After all, Neptune has made only a little more than one full circuit of the 12 astrological signs since it was first sighted in 1846. That’s not very much experience. In addition, Neptune’s astrological identity has proven itself to be nebulous at best. As a case in point, witness just how far off the mark many astrologers were when Neptune returned to Aquarius, the sign in which it was first sighted, in 1998.

At that time, the Internet and associated technologies were still a frontier of exciting potential. It is therefore not surprising that a large number of astrologers looked forward to Neptune’s Aquarius tenure as a period that would fulfill Richard Brautigan’s 1967 poem envisioning a future in which we were “all watched over my machines of loving grace.”

What we got instead was an era of interminable war and the beginning of unprecedented surveillance into every detail of your life. The result was a widespread disillusionment that dealt a severe blow to the idealism and hope that informed Brautigan, Bobby Kennedy, the Reverend Doctor Martin Luther King Jr, and many other Sixties icons.

By the time Neptune left Aquarius behind to enter Pisces in 2011, hope was passe, and idealism had been rendered all but quaint. Now, about one-third of the way through its Pisces domain, Neptune is reaching at least two metaphorical turning points. On Thursday, Neptune will share precisely the same degree of Pisces with a calculated point known as the mean descending (or ‘south’) lunar node. Then, on Nov. 19 (or Nov. 20, depending on your time zone), Neptune’s 2016 retrograde will come to an end.

If we learned anything from Neptune’s time in Aquarius, it was to eschew astrological prediction. Were we to salvage something from Neptune’s most recent Aquarian era, it might well be to embrace astrological participation. Astrology is but an indicator of potentials that can go either way. Hope is not fulfilled as a matter of course. Only actions can result in hopes being realized. Likewise, ideals are not manifested as if by magic. Only a strong desire to make ideals real can see ideal outcomes through to completion.

It is worthy of note that Mars, the planet most often associated with action and desire, is currently in a position of indicative strength. During the next seven days or so, Mars will be concluding a tour of nearly six weeks in its Capricorn exaltation.

During the same period of time, the Sun (an emblem of conscious awareness) and Mercury (a symbol of not only mind but also cybernetics) will be moving through the thick of Scorpio — a sign traditionally ruled by Mars. The net implication is that Mars will factor in for good or ill with Neptune’s turn-around, largely depending on you.

Among the many things you can do during the week or so to come is to begin an intentional recovery from the hangover left by Neptune’s most recent trip through Aquarius. The period from 1998 to 2011 was more than just an era of disillusionment. It was also a time when action (especially political action) was too often forsaken, and desire (especially sexual desire) was devalued — especially in comparison to the 1960s.

As with any form of recovery, coming back from what we have wrought so far in this century will take time. You should not anticipate changing the world in one week. You can, however, make a start. The first step would be to act politically according to your ideals, even if only means casting a ballot. Potentially even more important than political action would be any steps you can begin taking to emancipate your desire.

If all you do this week besides vote is begin to feel a little better about what you desire in your heart of hearts, you will have joined with Neptune in bringing a long period of retreat a close. You did not come here to be frustrated. You came here to make an effort, and find a way — your way.

To paraphrase John Lennon, your way through your life need not consist of laughing in the face of love and other ideals. Neither are you here to live as a slave to pain and fear. You are here to experience something more that must necessarily be made to happen.

Among other things, the immediately previous period of Neptune in Pisces was distinguished by a movement to abolish slavery in the U.S. — culminating in Abraham Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation in 1862. It was not the end of the struggle for those who had been brought from Africa to the Americas in chains, but it was at least a solid beginning. This time around, it is all of us whose freedom is to be won. This time through, the endeavor to win liberation must begin not in the halls of government, nor on fields of war, but within.

The chains with which you and everyone else must now be concerned are on the inside. Those bonds inhibit you from acting for the good of all. They constrain you from being comfortable in your own skin. If you can make only one effort over the next week or so besides voting, let it be to accept your own desires. If you can do just that, you will have at least initiated what must certainly be an ultimately fulfilling struggle to see your desires accepted in the world.

Offered In Service

Eric has begun the early pre-order phase of the 2017 annual edition. You can read his full letter about it here. Or, go straight to the purchase page for the current early discount, which will increase again later in the season. (If you’re a Core Community or Backstage Pass member, or have questions, please email us at cs@planetwaves.net for your extra-special discounted price.)