Tag Archives: Galactic Core

The Day of Fine Appearance: Birthdays and Planet News

Leave a reply

If Your Birthday is Sept. 19
The Day of Fine Appearance | Order 2019-20 Virgo Astrology Studio | You can also pre-order the 2019-20 Libra Astrology Studio | All Other Signs

Pretty much anything is possible with enough devotion and passion driving you. The dream, the desire, are just the beginning; though they also provide the motivation to keep going when you need it the most. What’s important is that they are sincere. That is, you’re pursuing your own plans, rather than what you’re told or expected to follow. With enough determination, you can sculpt a whole new way of being from the raw materials of the present.
— by Amy Elliott

If your Sun, Moon or rising sign is Virgo, you are heading into a most unusual solar year, set up to do the thing Virgo is designed for: integrate the elements of your being, find your direction and purpose, and act on it. Eric lays it all out in your 2019-2020 Virgo Astrology Studio, now available for instant access.

Written in the Planets

Mars in Virgo making a supportive aspect to Pluto in Capricorn today describes the willingness to work for what you want. If you’re experiencing a Thursday slump to your workweek, or if you have a project that got bogged down recently, this could be a good day to re-start your engines. Is there anything you’ve been trying to do but have lacked the right opportunity for?

Note that the Virgo Sun is moving into a square with the centaur Ixion and the Galactic Core in Sagittarius (Chaos in Gemini makes it a T-square). What actually serves your highest good, and by extension the highest good for all? It appears that a sense of tension might exist around this question, namely in the form of feeling like there’s a second chance to get something ‘right’. Can you let yourself off the hook if you feel like you got it ‘wrong’ the first time?

Self-criticism, especially in the form of guilt or shame, can easily get in the way of one’s ability to feel ‘worthy’ of trying again. But it’s never too late to make adjustments to your inner compass, and to orient more closely on ethical choices. It still might not feel easy, but it’s always your birthright to choose differently for yourself — and to learn from your mistakes, heal, and grow.
— by Amanda Painter

My readings offer a place of refuge, an opportunity to suspend self-judgment, and my careful reading of the charts. I offer you reasons to be motivated, and strategies for handling the strange complexity of society at this time. To this work, I bring all of what I have learned as a journalist, editor, astrologer, spiritual student and man of the world; and I offer it to you for an affordable price. Read more here.

Now available for instant access!

In These Times graphic

Saturn Direct and Jupiter square Neptune — Or: What You’ve Learned Over Summer Vacation

2 Replies

By Amanda Painter

Saturn is now in direct motion in Capricorn, as of Wednesday; this begins the final approach to its conjunction with Pluto in January. On Saturday, Jupiter in Sagittarius and Neptune in Pisces will complete their last of three exact squares this year. Both of these events seem to ask: what have you been learning about yourself?

Continue reading →

The Day of the Fearless Crusader: Birthdays and Planet News

Leave a reply

If Your Birthday is Sept. 12
The Day of the Fearless Crusader Order 2019-20 Virgo Astrology Studio | All Other Signs

Remember that your primary relationship is really with yourself, and fulfillment in every other kind of setting comes much more easily if you can give yourself love. This may sound a little counterintuitive, because society teaches us that we are lacking, and that self-acceptance is allegedly arrogance. Yet in truth, embracing who you are is an important aspect of your wellbeing. Love is not a zero-sum game; it’s more like music. The more you practice on your own, the more you have to offer to others.
— by Amy Elliott

If your Sun, Moon or rising sign is Virgo, you are heading into a most unusual solar year, set up to do the thing Virgo is designed for: integrate the elements of your being, find your direction and purpose, and act on it. Eric lays it all out in your 2019-2020 Virgo Astrology Studio, now available for instant access.

Written in the Planets

While you might not actually have the Golden Touch right now, you may in fact be able to create some ‘luck’ for yourself today. Yet that’s unlikely to come through impulsive risk-taking, and more through intelligent foresight and planning, with Mars in Virgo making a square to Jupiter in Sagittarius.

Running off with a “so crazy it just might work!” idea could be enticing, and the thought might be just the boost you need to take some initial steps. But Neptune’s proximity to Mars and Jupiter is likely having a slight dissipating effect on what is usually a high-energy aspect. That might actually be for the best. Patient persistence appears to be the more conducive option this week.

Are you experiencing any déjà vu regarding self-critical thoughts or speaking critically to someone else? Mercury and Venus are in a T-square with Ixion and the Galactic Core in Sagittarius, and the asteroid Chaos in Gemini. One of the silver linings to feeling like you keep repeating the same lessons is that each time is an opportunity to make a different choice — one that’s focused on things like ethical behavior, empathy, alignment with dharma, or the highest good of all concerned. That does not always feel fun in the moment. But there appears to be an opportunity to imagine that you’re in the space before all decisions — before any guilt or shame entered into your thinking. From that primordial (or less compromised) mindset, what could you do?

Final note: we’re getting close to the Pisces Full Moon, which is early on Saturday. The Moon enters Pisces today. Keep tabs on any interpersonal situations that are feeling edgy, extra sensitive, or just plain unclear. Gently inquiring about matters is likely better than trying to pin the other person down, though another couple days of patience could be all that’s needed.
— by Amanda Painter

My readings offer a place of refuge, an opportunity to suspend self-judgment, and my careful reading of the charts. I offer you reasons to be motivated, and strategies for handling the strange complexity of society at this time. To this work, I bring all of what I have learned as a journalist, editor, astrologer, spiritual student and man of the world; and I offer it to you for an affordable price. Read more here.

Now available for instant access!

In These Times graphic

The Day of the Cryptic Secret: Birthdays and Planet News

Leave a reply

If Your Birthday is Aug. 20
The Day of the Cryptic Secret | The 2019-20 Virgo Astrology Studio can now be pre-ordered | 2019-20 Leo Astrology Studio is available for instant access | All Other Signs

Your need to express your uniqueness is a fundamental part of your being, as it is for everyone. It’ll help immensely if you give yourself the room to do so, and refuse to confine yourself to the narrow expectations of conventional society. You’d have trouble fitting into that particular box, anyway, and would soon be compelled to burst out and do your own thing. Don’t be afraid of causing a little turbulence here and there; you might consider it a service to the perpetually sleepy.
— by Amy Elliott

Do you have a Leo Sun, rising sign or Moon? Your last couple years may have left you reeling trying to figure out which path forward is best. Hear Eric’s thoughts on expediting your post-eclipse process in your 2019-2020 Leo Astrology Studio reading.

Written in the Planets

A little is likely to go a long way today, in terms of demonstrating your affections (and in seeking such from others). Venus — still close to the Sun and Juno in Leo — has arrived in the last degree of its sign. That alone can have a sort of itchy, edgy or impatient quality. But Venus is also making a trine aspect to Pholus in Sagittarius. Trines are aspects of harmony, which may help soften things a tad — but Pholus is the object of ‘small cause, big effect’. So this looks like a reminder to keep the generosity of selfless giving — rather than what would boost your ego — at the heart of what’s lighting your fire.

The Leo Sun trine the Galactic Core in Sagittarius could help you to channel a broader ‘highest good for all concerned’ type of love into all the ways you express yourself today, though it will help if you set that intention consciously. The Aries Moon swings through to complete a brief grand fire trine tonight with the Sun and Galactic Core (and then does the same with Venus and Pholus). Do you feel inspired toward warmth and illumination, or are you feeling burned out by your impulses? Notice first, and then choose how to proceed.
— by Amanda Painter

It is difficult to feel good these days; it’s challenging to focus on your growth and self-care, or even to relax. We are pulled out of ourselves constantly, and often distracted from our core purposes. IN THESE TIMES, the Planet Waves autumn reading, will help.

CURRENTLY AVAILABLE FOR PRE-ORDER

Read more here.

In These Times graphic

The Day of Emancipation: Birthdays and Planet News

Leave a reply

If Your Birthday is July 1
The Day of Emancipation Order Your 2019-20 Cancer Reading | All Other Signs

It is a fact of your reality that you have little choice but to be exactly who you are. Yet in order to do that, you need to know what you are not, and drop it like ballast from a balloon. There is some old story that is clouding your perception, and some old commitment that is blocking your ability to move effectively in the world. With a little thought, you will be able to determine what this is. Whether you have the power to let go of negative attachments — well, that, you will see. That would be good, since much better possibilities await you.
— by Eric Francis

Hear Eric describe the impressive eclipses involving your Sun sign or rising sign in your 2019-20 Cancer Astrology Studio Reading

Written in the Planets

You might consider today how your closest bonds and pairings support your creativity, your mind, your emotional wellbeing and your sense of yourself as a whole and interdependent (but not codependent) being. There are many ways this can happen; usually we look for our relationships simply to make us feel good — and that’s an excellent sign. Sometimes, though, our most effective relationships — even if short-lived — are the ones that spur us to reconsider what we’re doing, or to realign with what matters most to us, or to grow. And often growth comes about in challenging ways.

However you think about it, you might have an encounter today that helps you to see things from this perspective, or similar. It’s possible you’ve already had such an experience sometime in the last few days, as Venus in Gemini has moved into an opposition with the Galactic Core and the centaur Ixion in Sagittarius. Notice in particular what people are showing you about your power to choose.

If you’re seeing something that looks like a ‘second chance’, how might you prefer to choose this time? What might feel like a truer, more authentic, or more holistic way of relating? If you find yourself sliding into frustration or critical self-talk about your choices and tendencies, consider that a hint to look for the grace in the situation, such as gratitude that you’re able to see it at all. As a spiritual being having a physical experience, a little self-forgiveness can go a long way toward learning the lessons we keep repeating.

Later this evening, Mars joins Mercury in Leo, which suggests getting fired up in spirit and body. Then the Moon enters Cancer (at 9:24 pm EDT), on its way to tomorrow’s New Moon and solar eclipse. What intentions would you like to set for your next 6-12 months, and what can you do in the next couple days to put energy toward them?
— by Amanda Painter

Partial Lunar Eclipse: Dec. 31, 2009. Photo by Anthony Ayiomamitis.

Partial Lunar Eclipse: Dec. 31, 2009. Photo by Anthony Ayiomamitis.

New in the Special Readings Series
Magnum Opus on Eclipses, Now Through Late 2020

Eric’s new 90-minute discussion of all things related to eclipses, in any sign — with a focus on Cancer and Capricorn eclipses, from the current pair through 2020 — is available now for instant access. Part audio reading, part astrology class, it offers you a lot of help processing the solar eclipse on July 2 and the lunar eclipse on July 16, and features original music. Hear it as part of the 2019-2020 Astrology Studio for Cancer, or purchase the Eclipses Reading separately for only $33.

The Day of Airborne Dreamers: Birthdays and Planet News

Leave a reply

If Your Birthday is June 29
The Day of Airborne Dreamers | Order Your 2019-20 Cancer Reading | All Other Signs

Hold out your full respect for the power of desire. That is what drives you, on whatever level you may need to be motivated. The words, “I shall not want” represent the surrender of your personal volition, the most potent force in your psyche. The challenge, though, is knowing what you want, which is also about knowing what’s true for you. This is your quest. As you embark on it sincerely, you will notice there are a lot of things you have no use for, and should not be part of your life. And you will notice what really turns you on. Mark the difference.
— by Eric Francis

Hear Eric describe the impressive eclipses involving your Sun sign or rising sign in your 2019-20 Cancer Astrology Studio Reading

Written in the Planets

How many different stories do you tell yourself about who you are in your friendships and love relationships? If you hold any conflicting beliefs or emotions about yourself in this regard, do you tend to favor one side and try to ignore the other? Venus in Gemini is making a square to Borasisi, and could raise these issues. Venus is also conjunct the asteroid Chaos. Is there a place in your heart that predates your relationship narratives? If so, does it feel like a place of origin or homecoming, or does it just feel confusing?

With Venus also moving into an opposition with the Galactic Core, stepping back to see the bigger picture — such as in spiritual terms, rather than ‘personal’ emotion — could help you to get oriented. In other words, how do concepts like agape or the Golden Rule intersect with how you think about and offer love? Notice if anyone this weekend offers that view to you, and maybe write a love note to yourself about what you learn, for future reference. The Moon entering Gemini later today could accelerate the speed of thoughts and moods, making them trickier to pin down as sociability increases.
— by Amanda Painter

Did you know that Eric Francis recorded insight-rich videos for all 12 signs, specifically investigating Mars interacting with some of astrology’s most influential planets this season? His Call the Astrologer readings are available individually or as a 12-sign set to share with your loved ones. Check out samples here and here.

The Day of the Spark: Birthdays and Planet News

Leave a reply

If Your Birthday is June 19
The Day of the Spark | Order Your 2019-20 Gemini Reading | All Other Signs

Do not let push come to shove over joint financial, investment or taxation situations. Be proactive, and take steps to secure your best interests and protect your assets, now and in the long run. Proactive begins with having full knowledge of what are in truth your affairs down to the last detail, and ensuring that the numbers add up. The more you know, and the sooner you know it, the more likely you are to avoid confrontations and work toward mutually beneficial solutions.
— by Eric Francis Coppolino
Hear Eric speak about your year in-depth in your 2019-20 Gemini Astrology Studio Reading.

Written in the Planets

As Mars and Mercury in Cancer oppose Pluto in Capricorn today, they also start getting into range of Eris in Aries. Mars, Mercury and Pluto are all making squares to Eris. One interpretation: this looks like a reminder to notice whether any of your emotional reactions to authority figures are being fueled by feeling left out or pushed aside. Even if that does not describe the reality of the current situation, consider asking yourself if something similar from the past is being triggered or echoed by your responses.

The Gemini Sun is also opposite the Galactic Center and a centaur planet called Ixion. How you encounter things that are ineffable or spiritually complex, or the vast spectrum of humanity, or second chances to behave ethically, could emerge as themes today. It’s also possible that you may find yourself entertaining two very different perspectives on whatever it is you’re facing today. Can you recognize your role in the causes and effects of the circumstances of your life, and what it means to learn from those experiences?

Finally, note that we’re getting closer to the solstice: the Sun enters Cancer on Friday. And the day before that, on Thursday, Mercury enters its pre-retrograde ‘shadow’ or ‘echo’ phase. As busy as your mind — and therefore, your life — may be, it could feel helpful to look for this past month’s loose ends and start tying a couple of them up.
— by Amanda Painter

Did you know that Eric Francis has recorded new videos for all 12 signs, specifically investigating Mars interacting with some of astrology’s most influential planets this season? His Call the Astrologer readings are available individually or as a 12-sign set to share with your loved ones. Check out samples here and here.

Photo by Amanda Painter

Photographic Proof: Mars and the Sagittarius Full Moon

2 Replies

By Amanda Painter

As you may be aware, we’re in the thick of Mars in Cancer making “the” aspects of the season (and of the year): oppositions to Saturn and Pluto in Capricorn, which themselves are headed toward a stunning conjunction in January. We’re also building up to a Full Moon in Sagittarius on Monday that appears to carry some profound themes.

Photo by Amanda Painter

Photo by Amanda Painter

Speaking broadly, that’s a lot of energy looking for a way out, and it’s likely to find its expression in your relationships with other people. The Mars aspects indicate navigating the difference between empowered interactions and power struggles — with a layer of karma-fueled growth pointing toward new territory. The Full Moon, taking place on the ‘mental/spiritual’ spectrum, also carries its own karmic twist, which you may be able to apply to your relationships.

First, a refresher of the Mars aspects. Tomorrow (Friday), Mars makes an exact trine to Neptune in Pisces and makes its exact opposition to Saturn in Capricorn; on Wednesday, June 19, Mars opposes Pluto and heads toward Eris. All of these aspects have been in effect and growing in strength for a number of days already; you may find it useful to review Eric’s coverage of the themes from earlier in the week.

Continue reading →