Dear Friend and Reader:

There are two patterns in the sky right now. The first is the Sun passing through the Pluto-Eris square. The second is the conjunction of Venus and Vesta, which is further described by Mercury conjunct Chiron. The first pattern is easier to size up than the second.

I will give a short overview of Venus-Vesta and Gemini in the last section, and if the themes appeal to you, I would suggest you listen to my spoken-word presentation in the third segment of Planet Waves FM. (This begins at time marker 1:19, after the second song break.)

Additionally, I focus this topic, along with the upcoming Venus retrograde, on a special edition of Tantra Studio that I distributed last week. It’s the second program down. There are some things it’s easier to describe than to write about, and Venus conjunct Vesta is one of them. I consider the Venus-Vesta pattern to be of utmost importance for those who are focused on their healing process rather than day-to-day strategy for life. It is a once-in-a-lifetime aspect pattern.

Sun Conjunct Eris in Aries

Early Monday, the Sun aligns in an exact conjunction to Eris. An unusual object with a 558-year orbit, Eris was discovered in 2005 and named in 2006. The goddess of discord became the basis for reorganizing the categories of “planet” in the solar system. It was at that time that Pluto was recategorized as minor planet (134340) Pluto. This has done nothing to diminish Pluto’s influence. We might take the hint that if Pluto is a minor planet, others might be equally influential — and one of them is Eris.

Twelve years ago at this time, I commented on the conjunction of the Sun and Eris:

Eris is in Aries and I think that in many respects, Aries in our era is about Eris. Aries is the sense of self and the right to exist. We do a lot of experimenting with identity these days, but most of it is virtual. It is fast arriving at the point that anything that occurs in the physical world is perceived as, or sold to us as, a kind of threat — unless it involves spending money.

Eris is here to teach us to return to the roots of our identity. I do not mean identity as an abstract concept; I mean identity as the direct experience of self and of existence. We may be so far from this that it sounds like an abstraction.

In recent years, I’ve evolved this theory. My overall sense of Eris is that it involves the impact of the internet on identity. Eris is about who we have become under digital conditions, and who we think we are.

With this conjunction, our total immersion in digital technology has been pushed on us even harder, with most of the world in social isolation. We have already seen that with nearly all of our contacts coming through digital devices, we are becoming dislocated from reality, and living in an out-of-body experience: total detachment from what we used to think of as reality, our physical form, and consequently our purpose on Earth.

What we’re talking about is the same as the difference between porno and actual human relationships. The digital version has nothing to do with the actual experience of love and contact. If we are not careful, we’re going to have our entire lives reduced to the porno version, and I don’t think we’re going to be happy about that.

The Only Safe Space?

As the Sun and Eris align today, most of the world is under stay-at-home orders, quarantine or some form of martial law. Here in New York, I can be fined $1000 for speaking to someone on the street. This has forced us to retreat even further into the digital sphere, and our digital “identity” that is shorn of physical reality. One message of the “novel coronavirus” is that physical reality is not safe; the only place you’re really safe is the internet — where you don’t really exist. Surf safely!

While we’re doing it, we might ask ourselves whether this is a sacrifice we want to make, and do some experimenting with how we might turn back toward actual human existence. The problem, as with most things these days, is one of trust. Now just about everyone is convinced that everyone else is a potential vector of a deadly disease. And oh by the way, you might be killing everyone you meet as well. This thought form has nothing to do with the virus being called SARS-CoV-2. It exists independently of the virus, with a life of its own.

We assume this crisis will end, though if we’re afraid that anyone we speak to might kill us, it’s not over — and this is going to be difficult to heal from. For some, it will be impossible.

We already have enough trouble trusting one another in a competitive society. We’ve already been conditioned for decades that the only way of life is “every man for himself.” Now we’re pretending that wearing bandannas and standing six feet apart is somehow going to alter the fact that we breathe the same air.

Sun square Pluto on Tuesday

Pluto and Eris — two ultra-slow movers — are in a long square aspect. Pluto in late Capricorn is making a 90-degree angle to Eris that spans from early 2020 through late 2021. Really, the time orb is much wider than the exact alignments, so add a couple of years onto either side of that time range.

The Sun conjunct Eris (described above) means it’s also square Pluto. So now we combine the identity disorientation of Sun-Eris with the will to power of Sun-Pluto. One problem Marshall McLuhan cautioned about is that people and countries who don’t know who they are often try to find out by use of violence and aggression. Maybe this will give you a clue if you’ve ever wondered why these things are so prevalent.

Our fundamental problem now is that the internet is disorienting. The primary resource it depletes is sense of self; sense of being. And as that goes away, there will be people who try to find out by way of aggressive means.

Mars is in Aquarius through May 13

During this phase of global lockdown, Mars remains in Aquarius, where it will be until May 13. I have been describing this wryly as “the natives are getting restless.” This is a problem, though. Mars moving through Aquarius certainly implies some antisocial feelings or aggression on the collective level. We are seeing this boil over onto the internet, which is currently the only means people have to express themselves.

The Venus-Vesta Pattern, Including Mercury Conjunct Chiron

I will cover this briefly here; it could be the topic of a major Thursday feature. Time is precious at the moment, and I’ve done two comprehensive presentations on this the past few days, in audio format (free of charge). Please refer to the top of the article for the details, if you find this discussion resonates.

The whole pattern can be summed up as an opportunity to be aware of and heal ancestral-level wounding, particularly around sexuality. Ancestral can be your family of origin and it can be your genetic line or one side of the family.

A lot comes down to us via karma, genetics and the wider society. Many people struggle with the resulting problems without giving them names, and often blaming themselves for the patterns that appear in their lives, which are really inherited from the past.

Venus-Vesta is about nurturing the sacred space of self. Mercury conjunct Chiron is about learning how to communicate with yourself and eventually with others about your deepest personal material.

This is sensitive territory, which would be suited for the therapy room if therapists were educated, trained and personally ready to go there. If you feel learning about this would be of benefit to you, please refer to the audio presentations. You will find them calming, centering and worth your time. On this week’s Planet Waves FM, I describe the stage of my healing process where I entered forbidden ancestral territory, and how that changed my life.

Twenty-Fifth Anniversary of My Horoscope

This week’s Monday Morning horoscope is published on the 25th anniversary of my work as a horoscope writer. I wrote my first column on April 13, 1995. I would love to reflect more on what it’s meant to write this kind of open-source spiritual journal for the world.

For now, anyone curious may read the story of how I got into the work. It’s an exciting, excellent read.

And you are invited to explore a database archive of my horoscopes going back to 1998. It would seem that the first three years are mostly lost to history, but we have records almost to the beginning.

With love,