Tag Archives: astrology

The Day of the Labyrinth: Birthdays and Planet News

If Your Birthday is March 20
The Day of the Labyrinth | Order Pisces Reading | Pre-order Aries Reading | All Other Signs

Aim straight at whatever life goals you most want to fulfill this year, and keep going until you reach them; then move on to the next. You have some powerful forces behind you, and can likely accomplish just about anything you could desire. This is partly because you seem to have a sharpened understanding in terms of what needs doing. You pretty much only need to ensure you choose what’s right and meaningful for you.
— By Amy Elliott

Written for the Planets

Today at 5:58 pm EDT (21:58:18 UTC), the Sun enters Aries for the equinox. This is the first day of northern hemisphere spring, the first day of the new astrological year, and one of two times in the year when all places on Earth receive equal daylight and night. After today, the days in the Northern Hemisphere start to become longer than the nights, and vice versa in the Southern Hemisphere.

This is always a very activated and activating time of year; Aries energy is all about initiative. So, what do you feel called to begin? It’s also a reminder that personal energy and initiative are often intertwined with collective issues. The first degree of Aries, called the Aries Point, has a way of highlighting or seeming to provoke this interconnection. Consider for a moment what news events or social issues feel especially relevant to your personal life right now. What has you fired up, and why? What can you do about it?

Yet, this is no ordinary equinox. About three and a half hours after the Sun enters Aries, the Moon enters Libra. And then at 9:43 pm EDT tonight (1:42:45 UTC Thursday), the Moon and Sun oppose for the Libra Full Moon. This is looking like a highly charged Full Moon for several reasons, its location in the first degree of Aries being just one. Other factors are describing the possibility for actions taken today and the next couple days to carry more weight or momentum than usual, resulting in unexpectedly far-reaching effects.

This could be especially true in matters of romantic or creative partnership, sex (especially the lustier or more ‘taboo’ facets of sex), the way family patterns are playing out in your life, and anything or anyone that feels especially inscrutable — or whose motivations are unclear (particularly your own). Note that a building Venus-Mars square is asking you to figure out how to handle sexual tension constructively. But if that tension is not being acknowledged (long-term relationships or allegedly platonic friendships being of particular focus), things could get a little choppy.

Do your best to express your desires and intentions as clearly as possible, owning what is yours (including your hurts). With a charged Full Moon amping up today, the potential for projecting your ‘stuff’ onto another person increases. It’s possible that the more you can lean on retrograde Mercury in Pisces (in a sextile to Saturn in Capricorn) to help you see what needs to be cleaned up or corrected in your inner emotional or psychic environment, the better you’ll be able to move through this Full Moon without major confrontations. Remember that the Full Moon reflects the light of the Sun: whatever others are showing to or directing at you could very well be a reflection of something you’ve been expressing. Tread with maximum awareness today and tonight.
— By Amanda Painter

The Day of Dogged Persistence: Birthdays and Planet News

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If Your Birthday is March 19
The Day of Dogged Persistence | Order Your 2019-20 Pisces Reading | All Other Signs

Keep your focus. You may feel at times as if anything can happen; yet you have the ability to rise above the chaos and apply your strong sense of resolve. Others are likely to look to you for structure and calm; you can set an example just through being yourself, which is enough for you to stand out. Approaching unfamiliar situations with discernment and a little caution should help you remain on the path.
— By Amy Elliott

Written for the Planets

We’re one day away from the Sun’s entrance into Aries — also known as the equinox. This marks the end of the current astrological year and the beginning of a new one. And shortly after the Sun makes its move tomorrow, the Moon will oppose it for a Full Moon in Libra. So you may be noticing some energy build, or feel an urge to move on to the next stage of something, especially in one or more of your relationships. There’s no need to rush that; in fact, the ongoing Mercury retrograde is a strong reminder to go easy in all things. Due to other factors, relational tension could also come through either as arousal or frustration related to an ingrained habit. How flexible can you be with a partner this week in terms of meeting each other’s needs — sexually, sensually, intellectually and socially?

Note also that today the Pisces Sun makes a square to Ixion in Sagittarius. Can you pursue your current spiritual quest or creative self-expression without repeating ethically questionable choices? If you’re not sure what that might mean, consider things like emotional, energetic and sexual boundaries. You have the potential to make a choice that works for all parties concerned, or that at least works for you in a way that does minimal harm to others. If you have a second chance at something, how do you plan to use it?
— By Amanda Painter

The Day of Return: Birthdays and Planet News

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If Your Birthday is March 18
The Day of Return | Order Your 2019-20 Pisces Reading | All Other Signs

Dream big, and let the tide of fervor and inspiration carry you along for a while. Once you have the broad concept in place, you can begin to fill in the details. At first, though, it can be immensely useful to spend time with your big vision and experience enthusiasm filling you up like fuel. This doesn’t replace hard work, but it does give life and interest to your efforts, and the gift of perseverance when it’s needed.
— By Amy Elliott

Written for the Planets

The Moon moving through the last third of Leo today suggests a more social Monday than usual. Whether you’re looking for emotional contact from others (which might come via a friend or acquaintance rather than something more intimate), feeling inclined to offer support and generosity to others, or getting chatty in the digital realms, keep the energy moving but remember that it’s not all about you. Juno in Gemini opposite the Great Attractor in Sagittarius could describe a sense that relationship needs are either polarizing, pulling you along, or just out of reach. Is it something you can talk about with a friend or two, so you don’t feel like things are at quite such a stalemate? (Note also that we’re building to a Full Moon in Libra with the Aries equinox on Wednesday.) With almost two weeks left of Mercury retrograde in Pisces, keep reminding yourself to double-check the details and take things slowly. When and if something does go wrong, where’s the deeper lesson in it?
— By Amanda Painter

The Day of the Heights: Birthdays and Planet News

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If Your Birthday is March 15
The Day of the Heights | Order Your 2019-20 Pisces Reading | All Other Signs

Be sure to keep in mind all that you have achieved so far, especially in recent years, and you will be able to fend off any moments of self-doubt. You need to retain a clear head and focus on what is true, what you know in your bones. Doing this will empower you to move forward with the next item on your to-do list, and effectively silence any critics either within or without.
— By Amy Elliott

Written in the Planets

Feeling optimistic about some long-range planning you’re doing? Excellent! Just be sure you slow down enough to account for any details that could trip you up. With retrograde Mercury in Pisces making a square to Jupiter in Sagittarius, creative inspiration and spiritual reflection abound. So why not act on it? Keep your point of view flexible, though; and don’t assume you have all the answers or information you need. You almost certainly don’t at this time, but you likely have the motivation and tools to find most of them. Key insights might not emerge until Mercury stations direct on March 28, but you can still move toward where you want to be — even if the path bends like a river rather than flying straight like an arrow. Keep an eye out for beliefs about yourself that are ripe for review (and possibly for transformation or outright dismissal) along the way; same with self-righteousness. A little humility could go a long way currently.
— By Amanda Painter

The Day of Relativity: Birthdays and Planet News

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If Your Birthday is March 14
The Day of Relativity | Order Your 2019-20 Pisces Reading | All Other Signs

Act on your ambitions; the months ahead are an excellent time to make progress. You may well feel sufficiently driven to power your efforts without any further motivation, such that you might need to check in with yourself occasionally and make sure you’re not pushing ahead at the expense of your wellbeing. Your plans are likely to work best if you’re at your most happy and healthy. If you can muster your powers, you’ll be close to unstoppable.
— By Amy Elliott

Written in the Planets

Work that is a combination of physical and intellectual appears favored today, thanks to Mars and Saturn in a nice earth-sign trine across Taurus and Capricorn. You may even find you’re able to be more diligent than usual with physical tasks, though mind the details; and if you’re currently dealing with a difficult situation, you may feel a greater ability to cope with it. Yet today’s star aspect is a conjunction of the Sun and Mercury in Pisces — marking the astrological midpoint of the current retrograde. If you absolutely must conduct important business during a retrograde of Mercury, and cannot wait, today is traditionally said to be the best day for it.

Between Mercury’s retrograde status and the fact that it’s moving into contact with Jupiter, there’s a real possibility for sloppiness with the particulars of any given situation to creep in. Measure twice and cut once, however you apply that metaphor. Sun-Mercury conjunctions tend to indicate heightened self-involvement — and can make it a little harder to see yourself as others do. Can you use that direction of focus to review or untangle some facet of your past spiritual growth? With today’s first quarter Moon also square Jupiter, you have some leverage to work with.
— By Amanda Painter

Reflections from the Perfectly Imperfect

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By Amanda Painter

Have you ever looked at your reflection in the water with the Sun directly behind you? Your reflection ends up being mostly a silhouette that’s gently distorted by the movement of the water; and though you can’t see your own features very well, you can see all the color and detail of what’s behind you — it’s just softer than if you turned and looked directly at where you are.

Photo by Amanda Painter

It occurred to me this might be one way to think of tonight’s conjunction of the Sun with retrograde Mercury in Pisces.

Due to the compression of your perspective with the source of illumination, you may not be able to see yourself as others see you right now. Yet you might find a new, gentler appreciation for where you’ve been — a view with softer edges but no less imagination-sparking (or growth-sparking) insight.

After all, Mercury retrogrades really are about slowing down and reassessing more than they’re about everything getting glitchy and going to hell in a handbasket. As I saw suggested elsewhere, those hiccups are generally the result of us fallible humans refusing to slow down, pay closer attention, and retrace the steps that got us where we are now (or where we have been many times). It’s trendy these days, even for people who scoff at astrology, to blame everything that goes wrong on Mercury being retrograde — even when it isn’t.

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The Day of Fateful Prediction: Birthdays and Planet News

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If Your Birthday is March 13
The Day of Fateful Prediction | Order Your 2019-20 Pisces Reading | All Other Signs

Take decisive steps this year to claim your place in the world. Act on every opportunity to stand up and stand out, though also ensure what you have to share is substantive and can help make a difference. Some effort may be needed initially to refine or expand your ideas; yet you have the seeds in place and you know where you want to be heading. Getting people to pay attention probably won’t take long.
— By Amy Elliott

Written in the Planets

Wield your creative powers for good today, particularly the good of all concerned in any particular endeavor. The Pisces Sun is making a couple of aspects indicating that you can get a lot done right now. With the Sun’s sextile to Pluto in Capricorn, consider first focusing on clearing up anything that has become disordered or confused (including your home, work area, or an interpersonal situation). That should open up some space in which to really get into a project, plan or goal that excites you — the territory of the Sun’s square to Jupiter in Sagittarius.

If you’re naturally a go-getter, you may need to guard against overextension; on the other hand, if you typically tend to be cautious, you may be able to succeed at more than you normally might. The one thing to watch for with all this good juju is the potential to get a little self-righteous, or to believe a little too fervently in anything that’s not solidly factual — including your own personal mythos about who you are in the world. There’s always more than one side of the story of how we affect others, and of our origins. You may encounter fertile, multifaceted imaginative territory today, but it will be up to you to meet it constructively so that chaos does not reign.
— By Amanda Painter

The Day of the Great Leap: Birthdays and Planet News

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If Your Birthday is March 12
The Day of the Great Leap: | Order Your 2019-20 Pisces Reading | All Other Signs

Focus on tying up loose ends before moving on to the next phase of your life. You can make your journey much smoother the less you leave unfinished; it can take energy to deal with matters you would prefer to be over, especially if they crop up unbidden. Sorting this out includes asserting your freedom from other people’s agendas. You can learn a lot by noticing who is willing to respect your boundaries, and who isn’t.
— By Amy Elliott

Written in the Planets

As the Pisces Sun moves into its square to Jupiter in Sagittarius (exact tomorrow), you may want to give yourself a reality check. Are you sure you’re being completely honest with yourself about a certain matter — especially something about yourself, which you may be unknowingly expressing? The flip side of this aspect is that it’s offering significant creative and spiritual energy right now. How will you use it to move something forward in your life?

Also, today Ceres in Sagittarius opposes Juno and the object Altjira in Gemini; Altjira was named for the Aboriginal creator god of the dreamtime. Overnight into tomorrow, the Gemini Moon will sweep through this aspect pattern. You may wish to pay particular attention to your dreams tonight. Anything related to your relationship needs, communication with a partner, certain friendships, or mentorship could try to get your attention in subtle, subconscious ways — or might be reflected back to you by someone else. Between this aspect pattern, Sun-Jupiter, and Mercury being retrograde in Pisces, it may be wise to fact-check what seems to be intuition before you barrel forward with it.
— By Amanda Painter