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Note: the following horoscopes are excerpts from the 2017 annual readings for each sign, The Book of Your Life. If you have not yet purchased one or more of these chapter-length, year-ahead readings for yourself, you may order all 12 signs here, or choose individual signs here.

Aries (March 20-April 19) — You may notice for the first time just how edgy you’ve been feeling, and decide that you need to pull in a little bit, or seek some refuge in the friendly, benefic arms of whatever Jupiter in Libra represents. One possibility is a wise teacher. Jupiter among other things is a representative of your 9th house of ethics and spirituality. I suggest you use this transit to orient yourself on people who set the example of doing the right thing. This is true of any relationship or partnership you’re in. Tap into the knowledge and wisdom of people around you, and focus on the ones who are the most generous with it. Another representation of Jupiter is even more interesting. It also is associated with your 12th house, Pisces. You might think of Jupiter, in one expression, as representing some version of your inner self. This could manifest a number of ways. One is as someone who is in harmony with your deepest inner life. You will encounter people who seem to already know your secrets and have at least a partial map to your hidden world. However, given that we are talking about a planet associated with excessively dualistic Pisces that is in let’s-weigh-and-balance Libra, there’s another side to the story. You will probably have a series of meetings with people who represent your shadow side. These are likely to be the people who irritate you the most. They have something to show you. They will really teach you something about yourself if you’re paying attention. The thing to do is to keep an open mind, be flexible, and try to retain your sense of humor. For your Eric Francis horoscope this week, please see this link.

Taurus (April 19-May 20) — Taurus is one of the most mental signs. Yes, Taurus is associated with comfort and wealth and nice things and tangible experiences, and it’s also a huge, astounding head-trip. Your ability to get that head-trip under control is one of the most significant factors in your ability to harness your creative force. I’ll keep this short, though I think you’ll appreciate having this information to work with. Gemini is your 2nd solar house, or 2nd house by whole-sign houses if you are Taurus rising. The 2nd house is a direct extension of who you are. It represents your values; first and foremost, what you hold to be true. It also represents possessions including your body, your available resources including your money, the tools of your trade, and your sense of self-worth or self-respect. It turns out that one of the most solid and physical signs has one of the most airy and ethereal 2nd houses. This helps explain why you really have to work to hold onto your money. Gemini flows; you need your money to stick. The best thing you can do is work with the flow: constantly skim from yourself, and deposit your savings into a bank account you don’t touch or even think about. Also, you need to invest in things of lasting value. Finally, remember that your ideas are your most important resource, especially in a year with retrograde Mercury conjunct the Sun when the Sun enters your sign. This emphasizes all things Mercury this year. For your Eric Francis horoscope this week, please see this link.

Gemini (May 20-June 21) — Having Pisces as one’s sign associated with career can feel like a first-time author walking into the International Book Show, wondering where she might fit in. Pisces is the great delta of the zodiac that flows out to the vast cosmic ocean. It’s difficult to gain perspective with Pisces, or to notice where you might fit the scenario at hand. In this way, you may experience your highest aspirations as being far from your reach, or beyond your abilities. You might experience your moments of success as something lacking context or significance in the wider scheme of things. Alternately, you may see your own potential as being limitless and containing all possibilities. And then you would need to find access points into that limitless reality. You’re the one who has to negotiate between your potential and what you do with it. This is an active, everyday challenge being a Gemini. The world can seem so much bigger than you are, and in one way it is — but your mind is the thing that encompasses the world, all the world’s people and all your experiences there. That means that your primary growth task is expanding and deepening your consciousness. What you have going for you are several key talents. One is your flexibility, your ability to adapt. You are a master of language, and communicate with nearly anyone. You could get a laugh out of a riot-police officer in full regalia. You have a gleam and charm to your personality that makes you nearly irresistible for others to relate to. This is your passport to all that seems beyond you: converse with it and see where that leads. For your Eric Francis horoscope this week, please see this link.

Cancer (June 21-July 22) — The internet is a robot. Humans become like the tools that we create, and humanity is fast becoming an automaton. In fact humans are faster becoming robots than robots are becoming human. Artificial intelligence is not very intelligent, but the artificial stupidity that many humans and society are adopting is indeed disturbing. You need to remind yourself that you are not an android, nor are the people you work for, work with, or provide your services to. This means that in all of your professional affairs, you must do your utmost to be a person — the person that you are. One of the gifts of your sign is your value on what is familial, on what is tactile and what has feeling. These are the assets that you must bring to your work, even and especially if your work is in the digital realm. This translates first to being highly adept within the digital realm, and then to utilizing as many in-person meetings as possible, and telephone or Skype when that is not practical. You want the human touch in everything that you do, and the feeling of quality. Use physical mail whenever you have the chance to do so. Use high-quality paper, handwriting when appropriate, and your very best courtly manners in all that you do. If you have any control at all over this, make sure that humans answer the phone where you do business rather than those annoying interactive systems. In other words, go retro. For your Eric Francis horoscope this week, please see this link.

Leo (July 22-Aug. 23) — On the day the Sun enters your sign, it does so in a conjunction with several planets, including Mars. Energy, drive, individuality, self-assertion: Mars will help you with all of these. Mars conjunct the Sun in Leo is pure cardio, the pump of vitality. Mars and the Sun are conjunct a little-known centaur planet called Thereus, which has just entered your birth sign and will be with you through 2020. In one manifestation Thereus represents aggression and warriorship, though not necessarily the spiritual kind of warriorship. The message here is to moderate your energy. As the year develops, you may find yourself increasingly driven to conquer, rebel or revolt; a gentler approach will serve you better. The thing to beware of is frustration. By beware, I mean be aware. You will act differently when you’re irritated and when you feel like your efforts are getting you little for your work. That’s the time to stop and think. Thereus has an interesting property of what you might call multiple solutions or multiple workarounds. If you do something not-so-Mars-like — contemplate your situation — you will see that there are many ways through whatever puzzle or maze you’re looking at. You might take as your motto, ‘There is a better way’. When you solve a problem, try to solve it again, only better the second or third time. Look for a more elegant solution. When you see your way through a social pattern, look more closely for additional information or ideas. The ultimate answer to any social puzzle can be found in considering whether or not you feel equal to the people around you, and why. For your Eric Francis horoscope this week, please see this link.

Virgo (Aug. 23-Sep. 22) — Transpluto is not a planet but rather a kind of mental phantom, technically called a hypothetical. It exists only in mathematics, in computer programs, and in the minds of some few astrologers. It’s still newly in Virgo, at the beginning of an approximately 75-year journey across your sign. Transpluto would be less meaningful were it not so obviously relevant. It represents the principles of narrowness, contraction, perfectionism and high focus. There can also be a do-it-yourself obsession. Researcher Lynn Koiner describes the ‘reformer complex’ as a key attribute of Transpluto, which can translate in the personal sense to an obsession with self-improvement. When we consider your naturally self-critical nature, all of this tells me you must ease back on these qualities rather than lean into them. You have plenty; your momentum will carry you, if you stay out of your own way. There comes that time in any growth or improvement project where you have to ease back, have a glass of wine or even smoke a cigarette. Radical, I know. However, you’re at a stage of your life where you must follow your own rules, and to do that, your rules must be practical and workable. There’s no point setting goals that you cannot meet. Often Transpluto represents an internalized authority complex: a kind of inner persecutor. Nearly everyone on the planet was born with Transpluto in Leo, which describes a certain pervasive self-esteem complex that we experience on a pandemic scale. The very most important work of growth, of therapy, or of any spiritual process, is addressing this internalized persecutor. For your Eric Francis horoscope this week, please see this link.

Libra (Sep. 22-Oct. 23) — There is no way to understate the impact of digital life on human relationships. A philosopher named Eric McLuhan wrote recently, “The body is everywhere assaulted by all of our new media, a state which has resulted in deep disorientation of intellect and destabilization of culture throughout the world. In the age of disembodied communication, the meaning and significance and experience of the body is utterly transformed and distorted.” We are under this influence 24/7, and it’s particularly intense for you at this time, as we’re right in the peak power of the Uranus-Eris formation. Because so much of what you want in relationships involves relating through the body, whether emotionally, physically, aesthetically or as an artist, you might take heed of this idea. Account for the distortion created by fragmented consciousness. Look at your life story. Check in with the people around you. Notice what is different and distinctive about the past five to seven years. Part of the anesthesia we’re all under involves mood-altering drugs, substances that make it difficult to be honest about personal material and which suppress sexual feelings. Whether or not you use these medications, you’re in a world where many, many other people do. Understanding the influence of this would be another item to add to your agenda. Alcohol permeates society like a river running down through the generations and out into the streets. The pressure to be monogamous combined with natural sexual curiosity and a nonstop barrage of advertising and porno can create a toxic mix that turns explosive. It’s amazing anyone has any happiness at all in their relationships, though by some miracle, people sometimes do — and you can. For your Eric Francis horoscope this week, please see this link.

Scorpio (Oct. 23-Nov. 22) — One of the most interesting features of what was named the Thoth Tarot is the Scorpio card. This is Atu (key, or major arcana card) XIII or Death. It’s unlike any other death card I’ve ever seen. The main image is a black skeleton, awake and alert, holding a scythe, the tool of the grim reaper. The skeleton seems to be enmeshed in spiral strands that look like puppet strings, and which reach to the upper right corner of the card. Woven into the spirals are what look like fetuses or ghosts. Those represent entities from our genetic past. We are them and they are us. It was not until 1953 that a scientist named Francis Crick made the first accurate sketch of the famous mirroring spirals of the DNA molecule, an understanding of the structure that is still accepted today. Harris and Crowley had come startlingly close to the accurate model a decade earlier. So what is DNA doing in the Death card? And what’s the whole death thing with Scorpio? And what has that got to do with the association of Scorpio and sex? The connection is the theme of your sign: the mysteries of life and death. The presence of DNA immediately implies sex, because DNA is the very substance of sexual reproduction. Let’s consider a couple of other symbols in the card. One detail is that the skeleton is black. When you’re looking at an image and something is drawn the opposite of its usual color, the artist is telling you to pay attention. Most skeletons you see, the dead kind, are white. A black skeleton is sending the opposite message, of life and of existence. So we know that the card called “death” is really about life. And life is conveyed through sexual communion. For your Eric Francis horoscope this week, please see this link.

Sagittarius (Nov. 22-Dec. 22) — In the Organon, Samuel Hahnemann’s treaties on healing, he says, “If something aggravates, remove it.” You would be amazed (or perhaps not) at what an alien thought this is to many people, despite being so obvious. If something is making you sick, get it out of your environment. If the whole environment is toxic, then you must get out. In Pisces, your 4th house, Chiron points to physical contaminants; Nessus points to emotional ones. These might be a presence in some form now, or one you’re still cleansing from previous experiences. The presence of Neptune, however, complicates matters, by adding the factor of denial. Neptune can act like a substance to which one is both allergic and addicted. It can also anaesthetize one to other problems in the environment. Under one scenario, it’s possible to respond to the signals and the demand for vigilant awareness of Chiron and Nessus by denying them or pretending they’re not there. You will need to navigate these seemingly dissonant influences within you now. Chiron and Nessus serve profoundly important purposes, which involve healing your past and grounding you in the present. Yet if you succumb to Neptune, you will not get the benefits of these influences. Of course, Neptune in the 4th can make a difficult situation tolerable. Though where Neptune is concerned, you want to set boundaries, in particular, time limits. It’s easy for a month, a year, or a decade to get away from you, if you’re not paying attention to time, and working with a concept of your limits. It’s through these types of diversions that we see so many potentially powerful, undeniably creative people waste their lives on chaos, pain, and struggle. You have the power to overcome this, to the extent that it’s influencing you. For your Eric Francis horoscope this week, please see this link.

Capricorn (Dec. 22-Jan. 20) — For five years, Uranus has been in Aries. Uranus is the most restless and revolutionary planet. It’s the ultimate archetype of disruption. And to the extent that you’ve tried to cling to any notion of yourself from the past, the result has been stressful. In fact if you’ve experienced any meltdowns related to “who you are” and “your family,” you now have a working metaphor to understand them. By far the pressure to change is more potent than anything that might incline you to stay in your shell. The added impact of Pluto through your sign (combined with the series of Uranus-Pluto squares from 2011 through 2014) is making it inevitable that you break free from previous definitions of yourself — from your family or from whatever source — yet you are somewhat stubborn and you do tend to cling to the past. This is, by the way, a tendency affirmed by the inherent past-orientation of Capricorn, and having Aries in a house inherently associated with the past and seeking security there. There is no point clinging. There is no point resisting who you are becoming. It’s long past time to cut the apron strings — no matter whom they are attached to. The ongoing conjunction of Uranus and Eris in your 4th house has raised this to anything from a constant drive to a fevered pitch to moments when you’re utterly frantic to bust into who you are and be who you are. The thing is, your future self is not as easy to perceive as your past self. Every transit I’ve described above adds up to you developing in ways that you simply cannot predict, and which therefore amount to a daunting unknown. In order to face who you are becoming, you must face that unknown. For your Eric Francis horoscope this week, please see this link.

Aquarius (Jan. 20-Feb. 19) — Often you make the whole experience of your sexuality mental rather than emotional and physical. There are a number of ways this is illustrated in your chart. Try this on: the two houses in your chart that have the most influence over your sexuality are ruled by Mercury. Mercury is the planet of ideas, of talking, of gadgets and, best of all, “the mind of the senses, the consciousness of creatures.” Whatever else we might say about you, you need sex to be a mental phenomenon. That’s good, because everything that happens anywhere happens in your brain. This goes for everyone; however, with house 5 covered by Gemini and house 8 covered by Virgo, your sexuality needs a correspondingly mental and psychological component. You are a perfect fit for erotic writing, sex by Skype, sex by email and, heck, sex by Twitter. You probably discovered phone sex shortly after the invention of the telephone (Mr. Watson! Come quickly!). So, lace your sexuality with hot conversation. Tell it like it is. Fulfill your desire to hear all the details from anyone who will reveal them. Virgo on the 8th is all about the details. It’s also prone to a bit of being hyper-picky and to overemphasizing hygiene. Which leads to Pisces. An important root of sexuality is held in the 2nd house, which covers masturbation. My erotic theory begins with the idea that all sex is based in one’s sexual relationship with oneself. Here, you have the potential for a rich fantasy life, which is good for self-sex. The clit is not really the clit; it’s the brain. With Neptune in this house now, there’s really no limit to what you can imagine. For your Eric Francis horoscope this week, please see this link.

Pisces (Feb. 19-March 20) — To celebrate the beauty of this moment calls for total commitment to yourself and to what you are called to do. We live in a time when many commitments are faltering, when the social contract is unraveling, and when the values of society seem to be crumbling. Yet you are in a position to rise to the occasion of your existence. You can answer your calling to live not just with purpose, but also in full accord with your deepest values. That is what it means to be a solid person. Once you’ve experienced that, there’s no turning back because there’s nowhere else to go. One discovery you may be making is just how radical you’ve become. By that I mean the astrology of recent years has fitted you with advanced bullshit filters and a commitment to truth. You are less afraid than ever to express what you genuinely believe. In fact, you may be bolder than ever about expressing who you are. Experience has taught you not only that this is safe, but that it’s the only sane way to proceed through life, especially in times of chaos, strife and deception. Even if you don’t feel like you’ve crossed the whole distance, even if you feel like you have so much more progress to make, if you scan back over the past seven years of your life, you will see the considerable progress that you’ve made, and you’ll get a sense of your trajectory. Some of this progress has been in the outer world, the place where you express your ideas, do your work, and relate to other people. Yet the most precious gift of Chiron’s presence is self-awareness. That includes self-acceptance, and the deep knowledge that your most important relationship is to yourself. For your Eric Francis horoscope this week, please see this link.

Love this horoscope? Read all Planet Waves horoscopes by Eric Francis. You can sign up monthly or for the full year.

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Note: the following horoscopes are excerpts from the 2017 annual readings for each sign, The Book of Your Life. If you have not yet purchased one or more of these chapter-length, year-ahead readings for yourself, you may order all 12 signs here, or choose individual signs here.

Aries (March 20-April 19) — The parity and potential disparity between what is happening in the veiled world of your 12th house (Pisces) and the expressed world of your 1st house (Aries) require special attention and understanding. This is truly a call to integrity in the form of conscious integration of facets of the psyche that often go unacknowledged. What I’m suggesting here is that it’s essential to bring the material of your inner process forward into your daily life, which would include being a more transparent person. And it’s essential that you bring the material of your outer life into your inner sanctum for careful review. This combination of factors, and others I have not mentioned, is likely to have an effect (among many) of focusing your sexuality. You will be perceived, and experience yourself, as more sexual, more appealing, and more desirous. Under these conditions, you must summon a measure of fidelity and intentionality around your sexual expression. This does not mean monogamous, though it certainly does not exclude that potential. Rather, it would be more complete to suggest that you stay in contact with the meaning of every sexual encounter you have, and allow its meaning to reach into the depths of your being. Your ultimate fidelity is to yourself, and it’s only when you feel and live that inner harmony that you can express it to others sincerely and meaningfully. It is rare indeed that people treat their sexuality as an aspect of their spiritual path, much less its core element. That approach would suit you. Eroticism moves energy; it’s inherently creative and a necessary part of life. Yours will be increasing exponentially. For your Eric Francis horoscope this week, please see this link.

Taurus (April 19-May 20) — You may yet decide that this phase of your life, the Uranus-Eris era from 2010 through 2018, was the time when you really got to know yourself. It may not have felt like it at the time; you certainly have had your bouts with inner chaos and confusion. Yet you have deep motivation to sort yourself out. Now, enter Venus retrograde. Venus is the planet associated with Taurus. (If you know nothing else about your natal chart, definitely find out the details on your Venus placement: house, sign and aspects). Venus will be passing back and forth between Aries and Pisces. Then Venus will ingress Taurus on June 6, and will enter Gemini on July 4. So, including this most essential passage through your own sign, during which you will do much of the integration work, I am counting the Venus retrograde phase as extending from now through July 4. Let’s look at this closely: Pisces is your 11th house. This is where you relate to the public, whether it’s your circle of friends, the people who follow you on social media, or your readers, viewers or listeners if you’re in the media. The 11th describes how you relate to the wider world, and how you feel when you are visible to others. Venus will then transit into your 12th house, where you have a relationship with yourself that only you know about. There, you seem to make a discovery of some kind, which is related to the recent and ongoing fireworks in Aries (Uranus, Eris and other points). You may have the experience of soul retrieval, or making contact with a much earlier version of yourself — someone you will be happy to make contact with, or at least feel grateful because of the healing possibility involved. For your Eric Francis horoscope this week, please see this link.

Gemini (May 20-June 21) — If you are in business, this may be a genius phase of development for you. You might also notice that you’re feeling somewhat scattered and agitated. This is where grounding comes in, and this looks like you’ll benefit from grounding in purpose. By that I mean invest your energy in staying on task. If you need help doing that, get help. However, purpose is about knowing why you’re doing something, and then doing it. This can take discipline, and cultivating that as a core-level skill will help you. Gemini needs to come to a consensus with itself. You really can feel like you have a committee inside your mind. Consensus is not about settling an argument. It’s best built from the ground up, first by agreeing on core principles. Therefore, that’s the place to start. Understand what is motivating you. Then translate that into priorities, which in turn you can translate into goals. Once you’ve done this work, it will be clear what to do in any situation. Prioritizing is essential, which means knowing what comes first. This takes commitment. For that, refer back to your core values. Now, the Mercury station-direct phase in late April and early May will have the influence of seeming either to awaken you or change your mind. When you encounter a discovery that relates to who you are, that’s the time to pause and re-evaluate your priorities. The essence of mental discipline is the constant focus on your values and your priorities. Know why you’re doing what you do at all times. Check back and make sure something is actually meaningful in the context of what you have determined that you want. For your Eric Francis horoscope this week, please see this link.

Cancer (June 21-July 22) — Mars retrograde was particularly poignant for you, as Scorpio is your 5th solar (or whole-sign) house, relating to your ongoing sexual experiment in life, and Sagittarius is your 6th house, relating to your healing process and your most practical version of spirituality. My take on the 2016 Mars retrograde is that it represented an initiation that will take some years to integrate, and that we count it as more of a natal chart feature than as something fleeting. The lessons revealed and the integration called for are ongoing and they are relevant to your growth at this time. The message in your solar chart, with Mars in your sign at the time of the 2017 summer solstice, is to embody the results of what you’ve learned. ‘Embody’ is a strange concept here in the age of disembodiment, though it’s a necessary idea. I’m talking about getting the material out of the abstract and/or intellectual realm, and into the realm of physical activity and lived reality. To do this, you must make decisions and stick with them long enough to test the result. It’s fortunate that Mars in Cancer is about passion; or, better, living passionately. Yes, it indicates strong feelings, yet what it’s inviting you to do is to live with full commitment. Living in peace with your desire is one commitment to make to yourself. As you do this, it will have an influence on your relationships. This is to say, as you raise your energy and commit to being real with what you want, others will take notice. Ultimately the result will be living in your body rather than in your head. For your Eric Francis horoscope this week, please see this link.

Leo (July 22-Aug. 23) — For many people, it’s special simply to have something they care about, some purpose that drives them, even if they don’t make it their daily occupation. I think the spiritual seat of one’s true work is in the 5th house of creativity. This continues into the 6th house of day-to-day work and service. But the motive for why one would bother getting up every day has to be some creative impulse, which for you is blended impeccably with your spiritual connection. In essence, the secret to doing what you love involves working the connection between your 5th house Sagittarius (where spirituality and art merge into one thing) and your 6th house Capricorn (where you do what you do for its own sake, and to succeed at it for its own sake). The two signs you have on these houses are a perfect fit for meaningful independent employment. Yet the root of this energy, for you, comes from Sagittarius. Creativity is so crucial to Leo because of that spiritual connection. If you’re looking for Goddess or God, look no further than art, however you define art. It’s vital that you define this idea for yourself, and that you dive into some new expressions of the creative divine in your life. What is special about this year is that Saturn makes a long conjunction to one of the most sensitive points in Sagittarius, the Galactic Core at 27 degrees. This one event will cast its light on all the world, and be available to everyone; where it shows up for you is your devotion to your creative process. For your Eric Francis horoscope this week, please see this link.

Virgo (Aug. 23-Sep. 22) — Each breakthrough in self-relating is likely to help you feel a little younger. The way we see this is the ongoing transit of Pluto through your 5th house. The 5th is the house of pleasure and adventures in play. It should be the most active house in the life of a kid. In the case of Virgo, with Capricorn here, there’s that element of being forced to take on adult responsibilities or cares before you had a chance to fully imbibe and experience childhood. Pluto continues to open up your 5th house; which is to say, its movement represents experiences that are urging you to live with passion. Remember, this is about experience, not theory; and experience begins with an experiment. You might say that this is an experiment in coming out of your shell. For your objectives, anything that leads you to explore life merely for the purpose of fun is something that will serve you well. If you’re really feeling Pluto, that quest will become a bit obsessive, potentially subverting your usual sense of purpose, which is about living well and living seriously. Passion is about healing. Erotic sharing is about healing. Art is about healing. Humor and diversion are about healing. All of this will contribute to your integrity by allowing you to integrate rather than isolate those states of being. You could say that apart from all the psychological concepts attached to self-esteem, the experience you’re looking for is feeling good about who you are. This is a feeling, not a concept. Rather than strive for the feeling, the thing to do is give yourself the experiences that you want; the experiences that will enrich you and help you develop into your personhood. For your Eric Francis horoscope this week, please see this link.

Libra (Sep. 22-Oct. 23) — When determining the nature of your character and the necessities of your healing, it would be wise to look for patterns. It’s true that one event may complete the pattern and provide the clue that you need, but it has to be about the pattern — and that’s calling on you to be especially attentive. Venus retrograde begins in Aries and moves back into Pisces. That’s your 6th solar house, or if you’re Libra rising, your 6th whole-sign house. The 6th is the realm of healing, of service and of the good work that you do. Having Pisces on this house makes you sensitive; you are as close to a born artist as it gets. Your creative gift is associated with a spiritual gift, which in turn is about a healing gift. If you’ve ever felt the calling to provide healing through your work, or through your creative flow, I would say that’s worth responding to. And Venus retrograding into Pisces will take you there. This first must be read as a “heal thyself” aspect. It’s taking you deeper than the appearances of your relationships, deeper than self-concept, and deeper than the mirror in any form. Rather, Venus in Pisces is an occasion to feel yourself as a unified being, beyond the projections and the seeming needs of relationship. This can be a moment of genuine relief from the hall of mirrors, true or otherwise. Aries tends to polarize. Pisces is like soaking your body in the ocean and feeling one with it. The single most distinctive and life-changing aspect of Venus retrograde is that it ends in an exact conjunction with Chiron. The precise date is March 4, but leave a margin of about five days on either side for the full threshold. For your Eric Francis horoscope this week, please see this link.

Scorpio (Oct. 23-Nov. 22) — Perhaps the primary transit is that Saturn is going to spend most of the year conjunct the Galactic Core. This is saying that while spirituality is natural and organic, for it to have meaning in the world takes time and discipline. Where Saturn shows up in one’s chart, there is a focus on business. By business I mean what you do with your precious time, creativity and energy. I also mean the business that you’re in. You know you’re doing the work of Saturn when you love going to work. Do you? Do you have a total investment in what you do, because you relate to its meaning? Sagittarius, which represents your values, demands that you live in a meaningful and relevant way. If you are bored at work, if you are concerned that you’re devoting your energy to something you don’t agree with, if you’re in a position where you must deceive others to make a living — and you’re aware of these things — then it’s time to raise the level of your existence to where you feel that you’re ethically aligned with your own choices and actions. I would propose that being aligned in this way is a foundation of true self-esteem. This is about your life having actual meaning. It’s easy for you to have theoretical meaning; Sagittarius is great at that. But actual meaning? That comes from sustained action and investment in yourself. Saturn and Sagittarius are a tense mix, though Saturn will push these issues until it gets your attention. Saturn is a constant reminder that you must work for what you want to be. For your Eric Francis horoscope this week, please see this link.

Sagittarius (Nov. 22-Dec. 22) — The 5th is the house of art, playful sex, and games of chance. It’s also the house of children and the kinds of fun that children like to have. You have Aries in this solar house (or whole-sign house), which in part describes why you’re so adventurous; yet Aries can have the feeling of being all about you, and you don’t necessarily need playmates to have a good time. Contrast this with the emotional complexities of the 4th house. With Venus retrograde across Pisces and Aries, you’re allowing a vent from the emotional pressures and healing work of your 4th to enter the expressive realm of the 5th. To me this looks like art therapy, sex therapy or play therapy. If you’re carrying any burdens, stress or tension from the Pisces zone, populated as it is by centaur planets that are making you focus on your healing process, Venus is saying: express yourself. At a certain point healing must become celebrating life, if it’s to be meaningful — or if it’s to have a purpose. What you’re likely to find is that creative self-expression puts you in contact with who you are. There’s plenty going on in Aries right now — it’s the seat of the hottest, boldest and most chaotic astrology in more than 50 years. But Uranus and Eris (which are in Aries) can be alienating and difficult to grasp. Venus makes Aries personal for you. Contact of Venus with Pisces makes it even more personal, and more emotional. Imagine that this course of events is creating an energy conduit from your emotional house of security (Pisces 4th) to that of sex, creativity and play (Aries 5th). If you use this, it will let off pressure. For your Eric Francis horoscope this week, please see this link.

Capricorn (Dec. 22-Jan. 20) — Pluto has already compelled you to make many changes to the structure of your life, whether this has involved your previously most stable relationships, your home, your profession or, most of all, what you thought was the trajectory of your existence. When we move your charts up to 2017, a few things become apparent. One is that this process is still in full force, and that you’ll encounter some peak experiences of growth and self-discovery. By peak I really mean personal breakthroughs on a level you’ve never experienced. This is indicated by a subtle factor: in the conjunction of Pluto and asteroid Icarus in the most recent Capricorn solstice chart. Pluto gives the depth and the power of change; Icarus describes the craving to do this in big ways. That’s the thing about Icarus: it makes one want that experience of peaking, and its expression is often dramatic. Here’s the thing: Capricorn is like the surface. It’s more about your personality than what you really are. As a personality factor, it would be impressive (and often still is), were Pluto not in your sign revealing something deeper. The real changes from Pluto happen when you open up and something else is revealed. One thing to remember is that your integrity is not linked to your being unchanging. In fact, your integrity is about your ability to change in helpful ways, and not to resist what you need the most. As well, you must be honest with yourself and with others about your uncertainty. It’s all too tempting, in times of profound change, to attempt to cling to some form of fundamentalism or false security. For your Eric Francis horoscope this week, please see this link.

 

Aquarius (Jan. 20-Feb. 19) — Belief is not only less threatening than reality, it seems more solid, and this has led to our world of people living in bubbles, believing anything they click on — as long as it appeals to them. Now Saturn is about to encounter the Galactic Core. You might say that all of this worldly jetsam and flotsam will be neatly cooked off by this long contact with the Galactic Core. This is religion meeting the religious experience. It is the holy roller actually encountering the Holy Spirit. It’s the philosopher having an experience of unspeakable truth. Whether this manifests for you in a dramatic way is an open question; that it will manifest in some way is a given. This represents a personal change for you; it represents a change in society to some degree (we shall see to some extent); and because this is in a public house in your chart, it represents a reorientation on your relationship to your community. More than anything, though, this event describes a transformation for you personally, and the context in which you relate to the world. Both are changing at the same time. The upshot of this transit is that you know that it’s up to you above all else to have faith in humanity. This is not about idealism or some form of light spirituality. It’s about the actual work of evolutionary growth. It will not be all sweetness and starlight; to do the right thing, and to accomplish what you need to accomplish, you may encounter some of the more shadowy sides of human nature. You will be able to withstand this if you maintain your integrity at all times, and come back to it as soon as you notice you’ve digressed. For your Eric Francis horoscope this week, please see this link.

Pisces (Feb. 19-March 20) — If we take Chiron in your sign as a delegate of Sagittarius (in the context of the quest), there really is no mission, career or vocation: there is you, becoming who you are. I feel like I keep saying this, though this notion keeps coming up in your astrology. You’re not really changing; rather, your inner essence is emerging in a way that is both unstoppable and undeniable. And this you can express as mission. Don’t be deterred. If something seems to be difficult, or taking too long, persist. If funding is an issue, look for innovative ways to get the money flowing. Look for and address waste. And be bold about seeking support. You are perceived as someone in leadership, and you have significant respect from people of influence and high ethical standards. If you need something, ask for it, and don’t spend any time justifying your goals — just state what they are. The relationships between many signs and planets in your chart — including your own sign, plus Libra and Sagittarius, and Venus, Jupiter and Saturn — are the very image of dharma: acting as if to hold the world together. Speaking of holding the world together: for the allegedly laid-back, guitar-strumming, wine-sipping, peace-and-love, noncommittal stoner image that many people have of Pisces, you sure do care about this. You take a formal view of people and society; it’s fair to say that you have inherent respect for the world. This is demonstrated by Capricorn on your 11th house. The 11th house is about groups, and it’s also about your highest ideals. It’s about your standing in the community. And it’s about the revenue you receive from answering your professional calling. For your Eric Francis horoscope this week, please see this link.

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Aries (March 20-April 19) — Over 30 years ago, a young musician spoke of his reasons for giving so much for so little in material return. It was, he said, for his friends. He made music that was authentic for his community of choice at a time when commercial markets offered nothing of the sort. The years passed. The world caught up with that musician, rewarding him with fame and wealth. But his old friends still remember the unconventional cause that led to his conventional success. Chances are you are now in much the same position that young man was when his artistry provided little more than relief from being excluded. You have a gift. It’s likely that only those you now identify with can appreciate what you have to offer; but if you devote yourself unselfishly to friends in need now, it’s very possible that you will have no cause for want in a future that your example helped to create. — By Len Wallick. For your Eric Francis horoscope this week, please see this link.

Taurus (April 19-May 20) — The time has come for you to see how your most cherished aspirations can be so much more than simply achievement objectives. Just note how the extent to which you have realized your calling thus far has also been the degree to which you have found (and truly come to know) yourself. For you, the key to a life worth living can never be lost so long as you keep sight of what it is you feel you must do with the time you have. Even so, there is another level of consciousness which will serve to benefit not only your personal evolution, but also that of uncounted others in the world. To reach that next level, you must first soften any tendency you have to be self-critical. Then, acknowledge how even partially attaining your vision for yourself will also serve to bring a form of sight to many who have previously been blind to their own purpose. — By Len Wallick. For your Eric Francis horoscope this week, please see this link.

Gemini (May 20-June 21) — Some believe no good deed goes unrewarded. Others assert no good deed goes unpunished. It would appear you are now entering a period when the universe will be more likely to support faith than cynicism. If you are in doubt about this, experiment with being good to yourself. Provided the cosmic indications being represented here are anywhere near correct, good choices consistently made will show undeniably positive results in two months or less. For a variety of reasons, it would probably be both easier and more convincing if you were to focus on what you choose to take into both your body and mind. A wholesale change in lifestyle will not be necessary. If you can simply refrain from consuming just two things you know to be unhealthy, and replace them with a few demonstrably healthy alternatives, the results will be impressive. — By Len Wallick. For your Eric Francis horoscope this week, please see this link.

Cancer (June 21-July 22) — You have more leadership potential than you give yourself credit for. It’s all a matter of what you think leadership consists of. For you, at least, actions will always be more effective than words. That’s especially true now. Keep your ears open for voices of discontent among your associates. Make a point of offering only solutions when others offer complaints. When you hear judgments, encourage understanding. Whenever you are invited into an argument, show restraint with everybody. Wherever you go, seek only to make your vicinity a better place. After a while, people will finally begin to notice how your presence makes a difference, and will miss you more than ever before when you are absent. Eventually, when you hear the words “we” and “our” being used more often in your company, you will know that you have succeeded. — By Len Wallick. For your Eric Francis horoscope this week, please see this link.

Leo (July 22-Aug. 23) — Don’t take even the smallest fortunate events for granted. More often than not, good luck is no accident. In all probability, at least one person is doing what they can to steer some good cheer in your direction. For the moment, all you really need to do in response is get better at cultivating gratitude. For all but a fortunate (and perhaps even fictional) few, life is rarely easy. It’s all most people can do to keep up with what they have taken on. Only rarely does anybody end a day with enough left over to project either good or ill will outside of their circle of influence. Yet, if anybody is currently getting the best of what somebody else has to spare, it’s almost certainly you. Someday, it will be your chance to offer the same. When that time comes, the quantity of difference you make for someone else will be in proportion to the quality of your gratitude now. — By Len Wallick. For your Eric Francis horoscope this week, please see this link.

Virgo (Aug. 23-Sep. 22) — You can finally start making some plans again with at least some assurance that something will come of them. Please keep in mind, however, that making plans has a lot in common with making wishes. In both cases, it is vitally important that you prepare yourself to get what you have asked for. Therefore, move forward by all and any means with the thinking, organizing, scheduling and flawless follow-through you are so good at. At the same time, be present to anything you are not so good at, and be alert for when any setbacks or delays experienced in the past might seem ready to repeat. This will help you to prevent them from happening again. Perhaps most urgently, have a plan to overcome any temptation to think yourself unworthy when you reach the threshold of all you have worked for — and have justly earned. — By Len Wallick. For your Eric Francis horoscope this week, please see this link.

Libra (Sep. 22-Oct. 23) — Looks to be high time for you to begin planning a voyage of self-discovery. It’s possible that the journey best for you would be an inner one. In all probability, however, the most appropriate form of exploration for you now will take you away from familiar physical environs and somewhere out into the world where you have never been before. In either case, the undertaking should be neither small nor casual. Think big, and you won’t regret it. Dare to make a commitment to a serious and substantial enterprise, and you won’t be sorry. Sometime during the last four months, it is almost certain that you have either come up with an idea on your own or received a clue regarding where you need to go. Now, even if you have to ask for help from others to get you there, it’s time to somehow get underway. — By Len Wallick. For your Eric Francis horoscope this week, please see this link.

Scorpio (Oct. 23-Nov. 22) — Either literally or figuratively, you are almost home. Yours is almost certainly not an example of returning to something you left behind sometime in the past. Instead, it should be quite apparent that you are finally settling into either a physical space or a metaphorical place all your own for the long term. The benefits of having finally staked out some real or symbolic ground should be abundantly apparent to you. For example, don’t be shy about taking comfort in having somehow arrived. What may not be so obvious are two other consequences that will come with the full realization of your arrival. First, it will be appropriate to release attachment to some fantasies in proportion to the amount of certainty you have. Additionally, you will want to accept (or even enjoy) the maintenance responsibilities that will come in proportion with the security you have. — By Len Wallick. For your Eric Francis horoscope this week, please see this link.

Sagittarius (Nov. 22-Dec. 22) — Being forced to make some big choices can be a stressful thing. It need not be so for you, however — at least not at this point in your life. You are in a fortunate position. It appears that some (if not all) of the choices you now face come down to one thing: setting an example, or following one. The sort of issue being referred to here has to do with lives you have witnessed, and possibly even sampled. Now you get to decide whether to emulate or differentiate. This is not a matter of choosing between bad or good. You are not compelled to select between right and wrong. The issue is what works for you, and what does not. The one choice you should not make is not to choose at all. You are only one person after all. Now it is time to make it known who and what you have decided to be. — By Len Wallick. For your Eric Francis horoscope this week, please see this link.

Capricorn (Dec. 22-Jan. 20) — There should be no doubt you have good reasons for any anger that has come up for you lately. The real question is how and when you should express any just and proper annoyance. Of course it is nearly always self-destructive to hide powerful emotions, and the last thing you want to do is damage yourself. Yet, perhaps now more than ever, it is also crucial that you direct your indignation so that it does maximum good and minimum harm to others. This means getting to the root of what has provoked you. Perhaps you can do it alone. Quite possibly you will need some help. Either way, you need to be absolutely clear about two things. First you must have no illusions regarding the source(s) of your vexations. Then, you must consciously own and accept full responsibility for how you choose to get rage off your chest. — By Len Wallick. For your Eric Francis horoscope this week, please see this link.

Aquarius (Jan. 20-Feb. 19) — No matter how old you are, every day is in fact new. You are among the few who can authentically understand how today actually is the first day of the rest of your life. Therefore, it does not really matter whether or not you have attained that understanding before this moment. What matters is that you begin now to see how can get yourself to that point. To start off on the right foot, you must no longer buy into the stories other people tell themselves (and others) about you. To reach your potential by becoming a real and present master of time’s mysteries, you must write (and tell) your own never-ending story. It needs to be a story that defines you without confining you. You must also accept that some people may never grasp what you are saying any more than they can comprehend that neither yesterday nor tomorrow are in any way real. — By Len Wallick. For your Eric Francis horoscope this week, please see this link.

Pisces (Feb. 19-March 20) — Being ‘full’ need not mean being at maximum capacity. Attaining fullness can represent transcending limits rather than reaching them. No doubt you have had more than one occasion when you sincerely felt that you had run out of bandwidth. Looking back from this point in your life, however, you are now in a unique position to see those instances in a different light. If there is even one thing you can do now which seemed impossible for you at some time in the past, you have proof of a profound certainty all too easily overlooked. The truth is that you were not born with limits. Instead, you were born with an ingenious proficiency for creating limits. Like all talents, this one can be both a blessing and a curse. You’ve had more than enough of the curse part. Your mission now, should you choose to accept it, is to explore the blessing part as if there is no tomorrow. — By Len Wallick. For your Eric Francis horoscope this week, please see this link.