Aries (March 20-April 19) — You are entering new territory in your professional life. If it seems like you’ve been doing the same old routines this year, Mars moving across the achievement angle of your chart will be refreshing. One thing to be mindful of is being too proud of what you’ve accomplished, such as when presenting yourself to potential employers or clients. Rather, exhibit a calm, quiet confidence. Take the attitude of “I do my best to get results.” Next, you must understand the politics of every situation you’re involved with. Who holds the power? That’s a good place to start. Know who you’re dealing with. Over the next couple of weeks you must be careful not to be seen as if you’re staging some kind of overthrow or revolt. It would be too easy to get on the wrong side of people in authority, and equally easy to work with them to get the result they want.

Taurus (April 19-May 20) — Old beliefs do not give way easily. The cost for that is living in the past. It’s one thing to seek information from what’s happened before, and to respect elements of wisdom gained through experience. But it’s another thing to inhabit the past, and this is often done through outdated beliefs. It’s now time for some updating. Scan your mind as you go through the day, and notice when you’re making a decision based on a belief that you have not updated recently. Now is the time to do a query, and determine what is currently true based on new information, and then respond. All of this demands that you not be lazy, which is asking a lot in the days of tap on the glass twice and sushi manifests at your door. Challenging and revising beliefs is work, but it’s only the preparatory step. The creative step is replacing them with a vision of what you want instead.

Gemini (May 20-June 21) — Be mindful when conducting any negotiations, particularly if they involve contracts, matters of taxation or negotiating about finances in partnerships. You appear to be motivated to get a fair outcome, but don’t move too quickly. If you feel the discussion is proceeding in a way that is unfair or in which you’re lost in the maze, ask for time to get your facts right. Use your energy on inquisitiveness rather than fighting or resisting. And remember, this is not a matter of how hard you work, or having to earn something extra by your service. This conversation is at the stage of brass tacks; it’s now far less about opinion and almost entirely about power. To keep your power, you must be armed with facts and figures and keep your presentation chilled to just above freezing. People must deal with reality. Emotions get in the way.

Cancer (June 21-July 22) — The recent New Moon served as yet another invitation to take better care of yourself. By now you understand that this is not just a good idea; it’s the only idea. However, you don’t want to do that by neglecting work, which will just raise the tension. Rather, free yourself from work by being the master of your priorities and your time. This means making conscious decisions about what to focus on, and choosing to avoid the biggest time-waster of all: conflict. This would also hold true in your personal relationships. Others may be in a feisty state. It may be personal, it may not be; though you can help the situation by staying a step ahead of people on any shared responsibilities that you may have. As for the fun side of this astrology, people are likely to be more assertive about their desire. You may find yourself with one or more suitors, and with your options open.

Leo (July 22-Aug. 23) — You seem to want to get a lot of work done, but you might ask yourself what has already been accomplished — by others and by you. This will save you plenty of work, as it seems the bulk of what you’re trying to do has already been done. You might do a little research and determine the thing that nobody else can figure out how to do. There would seem to be something, which might have been considered impossible or too difficult to accomplish. You might know exactly what this is. You might need to figure it out; and once you do, you’re likely to discover that it’s not so difficult after all. Well, the passage of time, changing conditions and a new mental approach may be what’s helping the difficulty unravel. Be mindful if a task is taking too long; that will mean you need to reassess whether it’s necessary, check your method or find someone who knows more than you and get some information.

Virgo (Aug. 23-Sep. 22) — Mars has entered your fellow earth sign Capricorn, and that’s an invitation to adventure: creative, sexual, romantic or involving a business enterprise. It could be all of the above, since that’s what we want when we’re really living. All year long, Mars — the ultimate planet of self-expression — has been lingering in some of the most private corners of your chart. Moving into Capricorn, your solar 5th house, Mars is inviting you to hang loose and explore, experiment and take some chances. You might not like to admit this, but you tend to have a conservative nature; you’re more adventurous on the inside than on the outside. Now is the time to bring out those qualities and have some fun. To do this, you’ll need to go past the point of your own discomfort. That might mean coming out of your safe zone. It might mean taking the risk of being known for what you have to say. Or it might mean taking a more assertive role with someone you fancy.

Open the Door to Your Life with Your Libra Reading

Dear Friend and Reader:

How do you invoke the ‘luck factor’ of a Jupiter transit? For starters, you have to be willing to do your part. Think of it like opening the door so that a fresh breeze (or a dear friend) can come in.

The open door of the Hermitage at Omega Institute. What door will you open? Your Libra Reading will have clues. Photo by Eric Francis.

That door is the door of opportunity; something that often opens best when a person has done a little groundwork to prepare, takes the time to listen to their intuition and then acts.

Do you need some assistance seeing the doors in your life and knowing the best way to open them? Jupiter in Libra is offering you beautiful potential this year! How will you use it? Are you ready for it?

Eric will describe solid ways you can make the most of Jupiter in Libra — and much more this year — in your 2016-17 Libra Birthday Reading.

In two segments of audio and a video tarot reading, Eric will guide you through the subtle nuances, complex puzzles and in-your-face ‘big stuff’, motivating you to navigate the next 12 months with grace and chutzpah.

Best of all: if you pre-order your Libra Reading for just $19.97 today, you’ll lock in the lowest price we offer.

Note: Your birthday reading is distinctly different from BALANCE: the Midyear Reading. While that was a 12-sign project focused on paired signs, your birthday reading goes into greater, more focused depth, describing longer-term influences on the Libra experience from several directions.

You could pay $100 for a reading elsewhere and not get a fraction of the practical insight offered in Eric’s audio-video readings. So go ahead: pre-order your reading, open the door and turn your opportunities into something with lasting value.

Yours & truly,

Amanda Painter

Planet Waves Astrology Editor

Libra (Sep. 22-Oct. 23) — You’re approaching an important decision. It might seem like the decision is approaching you, though this is something you’ve been thinking about for a long time. Whatever it may involve, the key is to choose from a place of strength rather than one of weakness or lack. Once you commit to this, it will be easier than you think. Your main strength involves your resiliency. A lot has changed in the past month, and you’re working with newly accessible resources, ideas that are coming to fruition, and confidence that can only come from actual trials and tests. If you’ve made it this far, you have not just passed those tests; you’ve emerged into a new phase of your life. You are a bigger person than you once were, and it’s time to step into the new scale of your existence. Remember at all times: you actually have something to offer. You possess knowledge, understanding and a sense of potential that’s about to be realized.

Scorpio (Oct. 23-Nov. 22) — Mars has spent much of the year in your sign, connecting you with who you are on an emotional level. The rest of the year, Mars has been in Sagittarius, reminding you of your spiritual goals and your rather unworldly values. This has been a real test: of your integrity, of your willingness to live the truth of what you believe and, most of all, your willingness to let go of the past. Much of that has been conducted through ‘inner work’, and now that work is moving outward into your most intimate relationships, particularly with neighbors, colleagues and siblings. You simply must live the truth of who you are, rather than wish you could. You need to gain confidence that can only come from experience. To gain this experience you’re going to need to violate some protocols, and get past what you perceive as the expectations of others. You might not need to be bad, but your goal cannot be to be good; it must be to be real.

Sagittarius (Nov. 22-Dec. 22) — It’s time to take action on the money thing. Once there was an astrologer named Lois Rodden, one of the best and most productive of our era. She said to me once, “Most astrologers say Mercury is the money planet. They are wrong. It’s Mars, because making money takes motivation, and that’s what Mars is about.” Mars has now entered the financial angle of your chart. This, after 10 months of retrograde and dancing around in your sign and in Scorpio, as if wondering what the next thing to do really is. Well, now the thing to do is business. You have a keen instinct for finances. You merely need to get past a kind of over-caution that’s not really befitting your swashbuckling soul. Yet you’ve been learning that the careful and reserved side of your nature — especially around money — must be balanced by boldness and imagination, and that’s the story of your life right now. Whatever it is, don’t wait for it to come to you. Go to it.

Capricorn (Dec. 22-Jan. 20) — Mars ingressing your sign this week will have you feeling like your old self again, though in an entirely new way. The main message of this event is that it’s time to unplug fear as a primary force in your psyche. The fear might be there, but you have better sources of information. By fear, I mean anything from vapid anxiety to letting your idea of the worst-case scenario drive your decisions, from the insecurity that’s followed you around for so long to guilt about what you want. You’ve made some unusual choices this year; some have worked out, and others you’re still wondering about. You might count up the cost of what you’ve lost because you were afraid of something that never happened, and was not going to happen. You might seriously reconsider any decision you made based on the fear of some abstract prospect, on guilt, or on any form of denial. Here’s the plain truth: you’re bigger than all of that, not to mention better.

Aquarius (Jan. 20-Feb. 19) — Your motivation comes from inside you. You know this, you forget it, then you remember, then you forget. Now I’m reminding you. Something has just shifted around this area of your life, and you seem to have a newly lit fire under your ass. Here’s the deeper message: you need to make structural changes in your life. This is less about cleaning your desk and more about moving your office to the right part of your house for maximum efficiency. It’s less about sorting your paperwork and more about inventing a file system that suits your actual needs. Less about getting more clients for your current business than it is about revising your business model or plan. Structural changes will generally relate back to physical changes to your environment; alterations to your work pattern; fully conscious decisions about how you organize your time; and in particular, seeking and removing blocks to your progress. Don’t just turn stones over. Get them out of your way.

Pisces (Feb. 19-March 20) — It’s time to make your presence known: to announce your existence and your ideas to whom it may concern or, for that matter, to whom it may not concern. You’ve certainly not been lying idle these past seasons, but you would benefit from being considerably more assertive about what you’re doing. By that I mean to the public, whatever you consider that to be: beyond your immediate circle of friends and clients. Do not be in any way daunted by naysayers, complainers or those who judge. It’s easy for you to take people’s negativity on board. That’s their problem, not yours. Assert who you are and what you do. Consciously seek out collaborators; people who helped you in the past may be available to help you again. Those who may have had less interest in the past may take an active interest now. This is one of those times in your life when it’s really worth having another try at things you wanted to do but could not quite break through.

Aries (March 20-April 19) — You are saucier than you let on. In fact you’re quite good at this, though it tends to get in the way of your fun. Imagine yourself at your wildest and most outrageous. Then see if you can move 10% of the way in that direction. That would be just enough to get you out of your familiar safe zone and into some territory where you feel different and get different responses from people. You won’t be committing to much, or risk losing control, but what you’ll have is the experience of exploring an edge of your personality. That’s where the action is, when you want to feel fresh and alive and like you’re taking a chance on living. You’ll also notice different people than you’re usually aware of, by which I mean that even if you troop around the same neighborhood all week, stepping outside your usual bounds will cue you into the existence of people you’ll be very happy you noticed.

Taurus (April 19-May 20) — You may feel that if you give too much of yourself, you won’t be able to stop. That would be ideal, actually. That’s the point you find out what you’re made of. This will be a discovery — that is, figuring out how much you have to offer in so many different facets of what you do. One thing that might be productive is taking down the dividers between work, play and creativity. These partitions not only consume energy; they block the flow of creativity. Over the past year, you’ve learned a lot about just how much originality you possess. It’s time to fully claim that and use it as the main fuel that powers your mind. You’re beyond the stage where getting things done is adequate. You’re ready to be brilliant all the time, and there’s just one way to do that: keep your mind on and engaged and ready for adventure.

Gemini (May 20-June 21) — Jupiter and the Sun are now joining forces in the boldest and most adventurous angle of your chart. That’s an invitation to push the limits of what you think is possible. You have a special challenge ahead of you, which will come with unusual rewards if you step up to your potential. It takes a special state of mind to look at a blank page, or to listen to the silence, and imagine something into being. Yet that seeming blankness is speaking to you now. Ideas are bubbling forth from everyone and everything, if you would only listen. You will also need to take the risk of creation, which means letting your ideas out and then giving them a chance to develop. Don’t rush this process; attend to it like the plants on your windowsill: looking after them daily, giving them light and water, and encouraging them to grow. Light and water includes fun and passion. Keep your energy moving.

Cancer (June 21-July 22) — Everyone knows that old Woody Guthrie song ‘This Land is Your Land’. Here’s a new version of that for you: this world is your world. It’s time for you to take up a little more space on the planet, to stretch into the world and, in a sense, to be at home everywhere. This may involve something that’s a bit taboo these days, which is living with a sense of entitlement. I don’t mean this in the arrogant sense of the word, though you may feel as if you would be stepping with a little extra swagger. The state of mind I’m describing is being willing to occupy physical space and mental bandwidth. Expand your sense of being, and your ideas, and perhaps speak more loudly and clearly. Take control of the various environments in your life, whether it’s your home, your office, or deciding where you want to sit in a restaurant. It’s time for people to move over and make some room for you.

Leo (July 22-Aug. 23) — Be generous with praise and compliments, and with sharing your knowledge. You have a lot to say, and it’s time you said it. You have some genuine areas of both expertise and experience. However, you will need to focus what you know and what you’ve accomplished into a form that is relevant for others. This will involve reinterpreting what you know, and in a sense transforming, focusing and making it accessible. Yet if you can do this, you can actually feed yourself using your ideas. This would include any form of business activity on the internet, and many forms of creative work or consulting. The thing is, you need an angle. What you have possession of is like a library, or a mine full of ore. Now you must extract the useful ingredients and fashion them into something valuable. Once you’ve done that, connecting with those who will benefit is the easy half of the gig.

Virgo (Aug. 23-Sep. 22) — The great god Mercury has resumed direct motion in your sign; Mercury retrograde is over. You may be breathing a deep sigh of relief, as this retrograde has practically kidnapped you and taken you on a wild ride for the past month. You may have experienced a diversity of misadventures and unexpected turns, and invested some energy in things that turned out to be questionable. Yet one thing is clear: you learned something you never would have learned any other way. By learned, I mean you discovered that something was possible, which you may have deemed impossible before — or, more likely — never even considered. Not only is it possible, it will take considerably less effort the next time you do it, and you’ll get better and more efficient as time goes on. Always remember: you know you can do it.

Jupiter is now in your sign, prompting you to reach far and aim high. Eric will show you how to maximize this opportunity in your 2016-17 Birthday Reading. Pre-order your copy here for the best price.

Libra (Sep. 22-Oct. 23) — This week’s meeting of the Sun and Jupiter in your birth sign is nothing short of a glorious invitation to live, to live fully, and to live well. It’s also about your newfound ability to make solid and tangible what was, before this time, wispy and lacking form. You now have some firm, fertile soil to sink your roots into, and to grow tall in. You can think of Jupiter in your birth sign as an opportunity to redefine yourself — how you experience and perceive yourself, and how you want others to experience you. You can magnify the elements of your character that you want to emphasize: such as talents or skills, or things you might not feel you ordinarily have the privilege of expressing. Think of any aspect of yourself that you love but tend to hide. You might think of this as a giant coming-out party. It’s time!

Scorpio (Oct. 23-Nov. 22) — Venus is now in your sign, and you’re like honey to the bees. Jupiter is in Libra, an angle of your chart that’s a well of imagination and fantasy. The thing is, you can now make your fantasies and desires real easier than usual. You have the influence and the charisma. Start by acknowledging them to yourself. Do so boldly and graphically, including some details. Then determine which people you might need to get into the act. The thing to remember — and it’s crucial in all facets of life here in the digital age — is that fantasy is different from reality. There’s a necessary step you take into a denser and seemingly less fluid experience when you go from imagination into physical reality. Therefore, be patient, and gain practice. Experiment with people you trust. Try something three times before you decide whether it’s really for you. Once is not enough.

Sagittarius (Nov. 22-Dec. 22) — If you’ve been struggling to increase your professional income, now is the time. This will come with the enhancement of your professional stature. You’ve spent much of the last two years doing the real work: building your skills and your reputation. Of course, you can always be better at what you do; and you will get better with the doing. However, you’re at a point in your journey where it’s time to collect on what you’ve accomplished. If astrology is a true indicator of your environment, you will be supported generously. What you need to do above all else is to step into your new stature. You need to be the person you are becoming, only not in the sense of putting on a costume but rather of transforming yourself from the inside out. This will take commitment and practice, especially when you’re in public or among friends. Stand at your full height and walk with confidence.

Capricorn (Dec. 22-Jan. 20) — You’ve come a long way in a short time. Suddenly, that is apparent. You are getting a taste of what it’s like to be recognized and appreciated for what you do. There would seem, however, to be something else that you’re seeking, a different kind of success or reputation. What is this about? I reckon you’re not quite sure yet, and that you’re consciously searching for something. That something is not a thing; it’s yourself. While it’s possible to seek and find some elements of yourself through some activity — which is exactly what you’re doing — this is a journey that you’ll need to take deeper. It will help to avoid any form of false certainty about who you are. And it will be a difficult temptation to resist. Yet the equation is simple: what you do does not define who you are. Who you are is the bottom line.

Aquarius (Jan. 20-Feb. 19) — Celestial activity this week will lighten up your vibe and remind you that there is a world beyond what you know. The challenge you face now, and for the next few months, is to allow aspiration and the love of what you do to motivate you, rather than fear. This will take some imagination, and a real measure of daily discipline. You may not be able to detach yourself completely from the possibility of negative outcomes; they do exist, in potential. But you can use them to your advantage through a time-honored method known as engaging with shadow. In other words, rather than suppress difficult feelings like shame and fear, admit that they exist, and explore them consciously. This will free up energy, which you can then use for whatever you want. Holding down your feelings burns up life force. Perhaps take this as your mantra: the way out is through.

Pisces (Feb. 19-March 20) — The past month or so has presented some significant challenges in your relationships. There have been great moments of promise, which have been interlaced with misunderstandings. Yet you must admit that the ground beneath you has shifted in a positive and helpful direction, thanks in part to your recent intimate encounters. What it will help to remember is that relationships and partnerships of all kinds are built on common values, desires and interests. Yes, to some extent, opposites attract — though there’s only so far that goes; even opposition contains elements of mutual contact that make it workable. It’s essential now that you spend time with the people around whom you feel good. Though it’s easy to build relationships on commitment, obligation and continuity with the past, you’re beyond the point where you can accept anyone in your life besides those you know and feel in your heart you want, and to whom you are willing to offer yourself.

Aries (March 20-April 19) — You may feel like it’s taking you 10 hours to get an hour’s work done, or a thousand words to cover what you might ordinarily clear up in a sentence. I suggest you back off on the effort and focus on inner clarity. It’s tempting to want to get things right in relationships, and with work relationships sometimes it’s essential. However, most of what you get done these days, you’re going to accomplish despite other people rather than with their assistance. That’s likely to shift when the Sun ingresses your opposite sign Libra later in the week, and Mercury resumes direct motion after its three-week retrograde. Once that happens, you will need to prioritize carefully rather than trying to catch up with everything in one day. Figure it will take you about one week to get back up to speed. Focus on what is the most pressing or timely, and then tidy up the less important tasks as you go.

Taurus (April 19-May 20) — You will only act on one condition, which is your own willingness. It’s important that you not be fooled by some other idea, or try to fool yourself. This puts you into control of your own life, to the extent that such is possible. You might, then, focus on willingness as your primary way of relating to life. Whatever may be motivating you, that means working with what you want, or with whatever goal you want to achieve. Presumably, if you want the goal, you will be willing to take the steps to get there. Those will invariably involve some tasks you like more than others, and some that you prefer less than others. They are all part of the same process, as is working with some people you fancy more and some you fancy less. What matters is that you understand what you want to happen, and what it will take to accomplish that; and understand that reaching the goal means not resisting any step along the way — or else changing your goal to suit your needs.

Gemini (May 20-June 21) — Mercury is about to change to direct motion this week just as the Sun enters your fellow air sign Libra. You may have the urge to accomplish every task that’s been bumped off your to-do list the past three weeks. You might suddenly feel that anything is possible. I suggest, however, that you begin your catch-up process close to your most basic emotional needs, your physical body and your living space. Then it will be easy to branch out from there. It will serve you better to work from the inside out, because without you being aligned inwardly, it’s difficult to manifest your intentions or desires in the outer world. One question you might face is what to do in the case of seemingly conflicting desires. This is why knowing yourself, feeling centered and understanding your priorities is so important, and why it’s the place to start.

Cancer (June 21-July 22) — The past few weeks have been mentally agitating, though that does not appear to have dimmed your enthusiasm. You may have exerted quite a bit more energy and worry than you care to. With Mercury returning to direct motion and the Sun moving in your favor later in the week, you’re more likely to get a grip. Overall the astrology is delivering one message, which is that the central priority of your life must be your life, rather than your work. However, work is an essential part of life, so this re-prioritization is likely to require many subtle changes in your way of life — though now is the time to make them. The first among those adjustments is making sure that all of your relationships are founded on a degree of genuine mutuality. This must begin with the people closest to you. To make it happen, you might need to think your way out of a box. But it’s only a box.

Leo (July 22-Aug. 23) — When the Sun changes signs this week, you may start to give yourself a break from worrying about money. Cash flow is meaningful but understanding your priorities is more important — and that’s the place to start. Once you determine what really matters, you might be surprised to see how much else does not matter. It’s been easier than usual for you to obsess over the small details lately, because there have been so many of them, coming at you so fast. For the next few weeks, you have the perfect opportunity to work through essential or desired tasks left incomplete, or those that have been forgotten. It will still be easy to get distracted by trivial worldly concerns, so you will need to keep prioritizing as a conscious act. These days that’s an essential skill, with so much mental overload. Yet do it long enough and you’ll get the hang of it, and get back into the flow.

Virgo (Aug. 23-Sep. 22) — Mercury changes to direct motion in your sign this week. On one hand this will come as a relief, like an invisible pressurized bubble bursting. On the other hand, this retrograde phase has been keeping you focused on something — possibly to the point of obsession. Whether it’s a constructive activity or not I don’t know, but this looks like the kind of thing you can really make work for you. I suggest you take advantage of it while you can, which means for the full week or so that Mercury seems to be standing still. What that means is that you have an opportunity to complete some deep or introspective journey into yourself, and then to pivot on short notice. This will allow you to respond to a shift in your intentions by making actual changes, some of them on the structural level. Use this moment well, because it’s truly unique in all the world, and it has your name on it.

Jupiter is now in your sign, prompting you to reach far and aim high. Eric will show you how to maximize this opportunity in your 2016-17 Birthday Reading. Pre-order your copy here for the best price.

Libra (Sep. 22-Oct. 23) — The Sun is about to join Jupiter in your birth sign, which will emphasize what an unusual time this is in your life. By unusual I mean beautiful, and with your potential making itself known to you. The thing with potential, though, is that you must consciously choose to make it into something, and then take action. Feeling what you might do, and how much you want to do it, is a good start; now comes the addition of intention and dedicated effort sustained over time. The time factor is one of the most significant issues of our era; the immediacy and instant gratification of our culture (mostly driven by digital consciousness) makes it difficult to think about anything coming to fruition in the long run, such as over the course of a year or so. This is an impossibly long span of time to consider for most people, though if you can focus that much energy and concentration, it will be just enough time to accomplish what you want to accomplish.

Scorpio (Oct. 23-Nov. 22) — You seem like you’ve been wanting to burst and keep total control at the same time. You cannot do both, but you may be able to choose when and where you want to let it all out. The thing not to deny is that you have all this energy running through you, and it’s lighting you up and pumping your heat and giving you all these impulses what to do. Once you make friends with your drive and desire and core-level need to express yourself, you will feel more balanced. Yet the thing to do is to actually get your energy moving and to direct it in intentional ways, focused on what you really want to express or create. It would be too easy to blow off all your energy in a way that’s not especially constructive or creative. It will be almost as easy, and much more fun, to focus and do something productive, pleasurable and real.

Sagittarius (Nov. 22-Dec. 22) — The concept ‘spiritual’ is often described as a kind of Zen state of mind in a hushed space filled with calm and quiet, and a little tree, and a meditation cushion. Then it turns out that the many people we respect the most, the ones who have the courage to challenge authority and to make changes in society and to let their energy have an impact on the world, are doing a whole other kind of spiritual — the one that’s about the fire of actual spirit coursing through their heart and soul. That’s what you have going on right now. It’s as if you’re channeling the energy of the cosmos into every cell in your body. There is intelligence coming through in this experience: about what you want and do not want, about how to make decisions and how to conduct yourself. You can afford to let go into this experience; it’s far better for your integrity than holding yourself back.

Capricorn (Dec. 22-Jan. 20) — If you’re honest you will admit to yourself that some of your perceptions of life, and some of your expectations, have fallen short of realistic. I’m not advocating for limiting yourself or curtailing your dreams in any way. Rather, I’m suggesting that you take some time to do a reality check. Saturn, the planet associated with your sign, is calling on you to look at yourself and your life from a new angle, one that shows you something you’ve been missing. Here’s a suggestion: it’s easier than you may think to meet people on common ground. You don’t give up any part of yourself by finding a point of agreement or of cooperation. Rather, you will only enhance your life by sharing your desires, your passion and your drive for success. Life is not an all-or-nothing exercise. Your reality overlaps those of the people you care about in many different ways.

Aquarius (Jan. 20-Feb. 19) — Whatever challenges you may be facing in your immediate time and place, you’re being called to take the long view of your life. Even if you’re doing brilliantly and are both happy and successful, it’s time to expand your view of yourself and your purpose. Rather than planning for the future, you might imagine yourself in 10 years looking back at yourself now. What ideas or advice would your future self have for you now? What obstacles that look so challenging today would seem minimal if seen from a greater distance? And what opportunities do you have available that are obscured today, but which seem obvious if seen from a different vantage point? Try a few exercises like that, and stretch your ideas about who you are and what you’re capable of. With the perspective offered by astrology, it’s obvious this is far more than you may think.

Pisces (Feb. 19-March 20) — It’s up to you to set a positive tone in your relationships. More than anything that includes leaving the past behind. Humanity is in the unfortunate state of seeming to drown in its own karma. Many people cannot seem to get out of the past long enough to catch a glimpse of the light of day. You cannot allow this to dictate the course of your life, or of your relationships. Yet this is not a matter of wishful thinking, of hope, or of optimism. Rather, it’s about calling yourself to be fully present and maintaining your awareness of the present. Along the way, you must let go of many insults and injuries that have been cast about, which date back as long and as far as you remember. If you can do this for a little while, the return of happiness, shared space and productivity will demonstrate that it’s the best way to live.

Aries (March 20-April 19) — With the Sun moving into Virgo this week, you will now have the energy to accomplish some of the many goals on your list. I suggest, however, that you begin with what is the most difficult, which is likely to be the one you’re the most passionate about. It would be easy to get lost in many side-tasks and alternate projects, and lose sight of the thing you want to accomplish the very most. What could deter you is the feeling that it’s not possible. Let that thought go. Anything is possible; there’s nothing you can do that can’t be done. Yet you will need to focus your energy, and very likely neglect what seem like potentially relevant tasks. Even so, nothing is more meaningful than the one thing you know it’s time to do — and you’re finally in a position to do it. You might notice that when you gather your mind, your intentions and your energy, and stay at it, accomplishing this particular goal will be far easier than you imagined.

Taurus (April 19-May 20) — Current aspects are the perfect fertile ground for growing your blend of intellect, creativity and passion. The Sun is about to join many other planets in the most alive and dynamic angle of your chart, fellow Earth sign Virgo. You are about to figure out that you have everything you need to create anything you want. I know that’s a big statement; it’s tempered by your tendency to think on a small scale rather than a wider and deeper one. You might consider going up one or two orders of magnitude on your plans. Whatever you happen to be working on, ask yourself how this would look and feel were there a larger audience and more elaborate stage. What is the right scale on which to do the things you’re doing? One thing you may have to step over is the sense of limitation imposed by someone close to you, who is not accustomed to thinking in terms of the greatest potential. No offense to anyone, but you’re the one who actually grasps what is possible.

Gemini (May 20-June 21) — Let others lead the way, at least for themselves; they know best, or they think they do. If you stand back a few paces, you’ll succeed in doing two things: allowing close partners or loved ones to make their own decisions, and having some perspective so that you see where you fit in (or don’t). What I suggest you not do is intervene, or try to alter anyone’s trajectory — even if you don’t think they’re doing the right thing. You might be right; or alternately, they might know something you don’t know. There is plenty going on in your life that’s calling for your attention. You seem to be preparing for some emergence into a new phase of your talent. Stick to that. Take care of yourself. Leave the people close to you space to deal with their stuff, and give things a solid week or more to settle down and sort themselves out. You’ll save a lot of needless bother.

Cancer (June 21-July 22) — It can take a long time and a lot of thankless work to reach the point of a breakthrough. You’re at that spot right now, and I suggest you proceed with persistence rather than with pressure or force. Gently guide the flow of energy, relying on the considerable momentum that you’ve accumulated. When you encounter resistance, use water rather than fire: that is, slow, gentle, rhythmic pressure rather than a siege or flare-up. The most valuable information you can have at any time is where you are in that moment, and what direction you’re headed. Resist or let go of any notion of planning the future and stick to right now. I don’t mean to get too Zen or New Agey on you, but that’s what your solar chart is suggesting: focus on the task at hand, and focus on doing it well. Tap into your abundant intelligence and think through every problem or puzzle at least three different ways. You will find out all you need to know.

Leo (July 22-Aug. 23) — You have abundant resources to work with. Therefore you can go light on your own money and toil. Pause and take an inventory of what’s available. I assure you that anything you need, you or someone close to you already has. Proceed in the spirit of service without necessarily using that word. State clearly what you want to get done and by when. Remember that any project you’re involved with will have in equal measure creative potential, the ability to support others, and a visionary touch to it. You may be feeling that the time is now, though you don’t need to proceed with urgency or a sense of pressure. You’re fully connected to the best possible outcome, though you may need to work your way through some turbulence to get there. This is why I’m suggesting that you conserve your energy and use what you have wisely. Make a goal of never getting stressed. When in doubt, get out your sketchpad and draw something, or put on some music and dance around the room for a few minutes.

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Virgo (Aug. 23-Sep. 22) — If you’re the kind of Virgo who often feels trapped in a world of imperfection, where everything needs to be improved, you can take a rest from all that. Stretch into this moment. Feel how it feels to be complete in yourself. I say this knowing that you may be facing what seem like intense emotional challenges. Yet you are larger than these issues, and remembering that is the most significant step toward resolving them. You seem determined to clear out your emotional body and no longer be a slave to the past, or to your family, or to your need for security. That takes some rebelling. The way out of your need for security is just that: to no longer need false reassurance, or father figures of any kind to lean on and ultimately deprive yourself of your independence. You have everything you need right now, though the only way to confirm that is to actually use your resources.

Libra (Sep. 22-Oct. 23) — For Libra, this is International Get Along With Your Neighbors Week. By that I mean your literal neighbors and housemates, and your sibs and cousins in all their forms, genetically real and metaphorical. There’s tension in this angle of your chart right now, and you’re the one who has the power to guide things to a higher plane of reality. You don’t need drama, and you know that nobody else does, either. You cannot control others, and you have only limited influence over them. What you can do is respond with kindness and concern, which is the missing piece in the world right now. Yet where care and gestures of love exist, it’s best to proceed without attachment. You won’t always get a positive response, though it will help if you continue to respond positively, or just step back until the dust settles. In a sense, what you’re learning is your independence; love must stand on its own, rather than get mired in need and complexity. This is considered impossible for most people, though not for you.

Scorpio (Oct. 23-Nov. 22) — You have a knack for holding the pieces together. Heck, you may be the one person on the planet who is capable of herding cats. Your first order of business is literally business: take care of money, keep the flow going, and allocate precious resources carefully. Make every decision count. You seem determined to work through one particular choke point to your cash flow. If astrology means anything, it looks like this: you have a lot of energy tied up in something that’s not easy to access or to put to use. In a sense you are blocking yourself. What you’re now trying to do is unravel that interference. You may be inclined to do so violently. What I suggest you do, rather than taking a hammer to anything, is to get out your magnifying glass and look closely at the details. There is some deception involved. It may be that you’re not leveling with yourself, or that someone is trying to get one over on you. Be open-minded. Figure this out and you will take many steps ahead.

Sagittarius (Nov. 22-Dec. 22) — You’re about to experience a personal breakthrough that will, at first, take you by surprise. Then it will seem like you knew exactly what was about to happen, and knew how to respond and what you were going to do with the sense of release you knew you would feel. Take hold of the moment of mystery while it lasts, while the developments still hold their full potential. Stop and consider what you want to do with such a rare moment of transformation. You are setting something within yourself free. That something has a life of its own, which is your life, and you want to express yourself. Yet you no longer have any use for holding any aspect of yourself down. That seems to be the larger message of these events. Hang loose, relax and let the energy flow through you. If you have questions, take your sweet time answering them.

Capricorn (Dec. 22-Jan. 20) — If you can rise above your fear, you can do anything you want, and there is plenty that you want to do. I would remind you, though, that to most people, freedom ranges from scary to terrifying. Who would have thunk it? Yet humans invest vast amounts of energy in retreating from their potential rather than exploring it curiously and courageously. I suggest you go right in the direction of what makes you nervous, or gives you butterflies or goose bumps. Those things contain the experiences you seek. The fear is merely what you experience when the first blush of energy rises, though it’s partly about an ingrained habit. Face it: you see far more potential in yourself and to life than your parents did. You are willing to take greater risks for a greater reward. That is progress, if anything is.

Aquarius (Jan. 20-Feb. 19) — Muster all your personal resources for the task at hand: your skills, your inventiveness, your bullshit-sniffer and your ability to get people cooperating. You’re in that moment when an ideal or fantasy is about to become a reality. There’s always a transformation involved; what you imagine rarely feels like what actually manifests. Yet it will help if you stick close to your core intent, which is to shake up belief in something that’s no longer working. This will require you to do that inside yourself, which in turn will open up the potential for something that gets the result that you want. Just remember, it’s unlikely to happen the way you were planning. Therefore, let go of your plan the moment you need to. Rather than adapt to the new conditions, create something you were not planning. A little turbulence and chaos will go a long way toward creativity and adventure.

Pisces (Feb. 19-March 20) — You know where you stand with yourself. Don’t forget. You know what you want to accomplish. Remember that every day, from hour to hour. The only way anyone can fool you is if you deceive yourself; therefore, be clear and real about your intentions and do not hesitate or doubt yourself. This is a moment that requires leadership — and in your life, you’re the one who’s going to provide that. No matter who may be involved, or how many people may be involved, the central organizing principle of your existence is your ability to keep your focus. This is a gentle process. People can feel the intensity and drive that you’re carrying now. Pay attention to who notices; observe who intuitively is drawn to what you’re doing and the way you’re doing it. Develop collaborations with those to whom you need to explain the least: those who already feel the rhythm and follow the melody.