Tag Archives: Mercury

The Day of Research: Birthdays and Planet News

If Your Birthday is Oct. 28
The Day of Research | 2019-20 Scorpio Astrology Studio available for pre-order | All Other Signs

Prepare to take the wheel and steer your life toward the true north of who you really are, more than you ever have before. Uranus opposing your Sun on your birthday signals that you’re ready to reclaim aspects of your core identity. Opportunities to expand in that direction might arise from challenges in your environment. Wake-up calls could come via relationships that demand a type of conformity no longer compatible with your evolutionary path. The question is: how much have you surrendered for the sake of security, or external expectations? Therapeutic guidance geared toward liberating repressed anger or fears can help you make the most of a pivotal year.
— by Victoria Emory

Do you ever feel like your Scorpio Sun, rising sign or Moon gets a bad rap from astrologers? Eric Francis understands the potential held in your depths — and can walk you through how the planet Uranus in your relationship zone might be stirring things up. Pre-order your 2019-20 Scorpio Astrology Studio reading (offered now at its lowest price!) to move past the stereotypes, and meet your life at full strength.

Written in the Planets

Mercury stations retrograde this Thursday, Oct. 31 — which means we’re entering the ‘storm’ phase now. You’ll want to be as diligent as possible with all communication, and perhaps especially with anything related to security, finances, and any topics you consider particularly private.

Remember that nothing online ever really goes away completely — though you’d be hard pressed to find many people who live like they truly understand this. Be doubly certain you have the right email address or phone number before you send sensitive messages this week (and for the next month). As usual, back up your computer, and be ready to find workarounds for inconvenient glitches.

Although the Moon is making its way further into Scorpio after last night’s New Moon, the Sun is still opposite Uranus in Taurus. So a good deal of yesterday’s Written in the Planets will likely still apply, regarding surprises and secrets. Added to the mix is a square between Ceres in Sagittarius and Borasisi in Pisces. How are your beliefs about what counts as ‘spiritual’ stacking up against what’s genuinely been feeding your soul in recent months? If that question triggers some tension, what do you need to do to resolve it?
— by Amanda Painter

In 2020 we have not one but two conjunctions that mark the turn of a generation, and of an era in history. On Jan. 12, Saturn and Pluto in Capricorn form their once per 33-year conjunction. Then on Dec. 21. 2020, Jupiter and Saturn, both now in Aquarius, form a conjunction in the first degree of that sign. Read more here…

The Day of Impulse: Birthdays and Planet News

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If Your Birthday is Oct. 27
The Day of Impulse | 2019-20 Scorpio Astrology Studio available for pre-order | All Other Signs

A New Moon closely opposite Uranus is pretty much the astrological signature for a clean slate. If you’ve felt somewhat hemmed in or locked into a routine, this year will serve to remind you that you’re the one ultimately in control of your life. If you have major changes to make, the window of opportunity is imminent. Just be sure to tie up as many loose ends as you can. In particular, keep promises and atone generously for any errors. Then you’ll be ready when the moment comes.
— by Amy Elliott

Written in the Planets

Tonight’s New Moon in Scorpio has quite a chart. This conjunction of the Sun and Moon is exact at 11:38 pm EDT (3:38:20 UTC Monday), and exactly opposes Uranus in Taurus. Surprises, upsets and anything out of the ordinary could provoke secrets coming out. Yet it’s also possible that behaving in secrecy could itself be the provocative, challenging or upsetting thing. The signs involved are known for strong emotions, and for fixed points of view that sometimes resist the need to flex. And while New Moons are usually lower-energy events, Uranus packs a lot of electrical current. Also, Mercury stationing retrograde in less than a week could be amping up mental static and the potential for misunderstandings.

Questions this event seems to ask include: Where’s the line between simply seeking new experiences/stimulation and behaving recklessly? What’s the difference between ‘getting real’ or ‘going deep’ with someone, and over-sharing in ways that cause someone to feel blindsided? When do you leave the zone of being ‘private’ and protecting your vulnerability and stray into masking your truth to get power over someone?

Nobody shares all of their innermost thoughts, feelings, desires, fears, shadow material or processing all of the time. Yet you can also open up about secrets and ‘taboo’ topics in ways that don’t feel like an ambush. Oppositions are about negotiation; negotiation is about give and take, and finding a common meeting point. An invitation to join someone in the deep end of the pool might feel risky; but is it really just reminding you of some hidden restlessness, or of some part of yourself that you’ve been longing to express but have not dared to yet?

This New Moon chart also hints that intuitive wisdom and other ‘internal’ ways of knowing are key to navigating whatever comes your way today. Especially if you feel knocked off balance, see if you can stay in contact with whatever your immediate first instinct was. If your initial, intuitive response shocks you, that may be all the more reason to heed it. What does it tell you about what you truly want?
— by Amanda Painter

The Day of Organizational Cohesion: Birthdays and Planet News

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If Your Birthday is Oct. 26
The Day of Organizational Cohesion | 2019-20 Scorpio Astrology Studio available for pre-order | All Other Signs

You may find yourself drawn to explore your inward consciousness; your dreams, your deeper feelings, your secrets. Keep a dream diary; notice if you experience unusual emotions during sleep, or particularly vivid imagery. At some point there will probably be a significant revelation, on the theme of your essential being, or a concept you hold dear. If you’re open to this potential and hold space for it without judging, you could transform your relationship to yourself.
— by Amy Elliott

Written in the Planets

Several planets making contact around the zodiac appear to be emphasizing relationships of various sorts. Some factors speak of getting quite particular about emotional needs. Those conversations will likely be very incisive, zeroing in on the most fundamental desires and triggers, and cutting through the fluff and bullshit. If you find yourself in a situation like that, you may need to bring in some lightness consciously — though not in the form of evasiveness. Think more in terms of reminders of the bigger picture, and of how amazing it is to keep learning about those closest to you and about yourself.

Other factors suggest a combination of intense passion, an ability to speak about deep or intimidating topics in a rational way, and maybe even holding space for an atypical sexual experience or unconventional relationship. Bear in mind that ‘holding space’ for somebody else’s process implies a lack of expectation of reciprocation; it’s a form of service, and service is a form of love — more in the ‘agape’ sense than in the romantic sense.

Yet with so much Scorpio (and Taurus) energy right now, the healing process that you’re bearing witness to could indeed be fairly saturated with emotion or erotic energy. That’s not a terrible thing, it just might be a lot to handle for some people, or could contribute to confusion about ‘intentions’. If feelings of possessiveness or jealousy are creeping in, that’s a signal that something other than ‘holding space’ is going on. You might need to check in (with yourself and/or with the other person) with direct, specific communication to get clear again.

With Mercury less than a week away from its station retrograde (on Oct. 31), you can’t be too careful when it comes to what and how you’re thinking, what you think you’re perceiving from others, and what everyone is and is not saying. Expect the unexpected all weekend, as we approach tomorrow’s Scorpio New Moon opposite Uranus. Note also that a square between Mars in Libra and Saturn in Capricorn describes feeling blocked and getting frustrated. Don’t let that — or fears that you’re not up to the task of overcoming an obstacle — get the better of you. Just proceed very deliberately, patiently and thoroughly — with everything.
— by Amanda Painter

Secrets and Surprises

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By Amanda Painter

In one week, on Oct. 31, Mercury stations retrograde in Scorpio. On the way there, this Saturday, the Sun and Moon make a conjunction — the Scorpio New Moon — which is opposite Uranus. One translation of all this: the next seven-plus days may well be characterized by secrets and surprises. The question is: what determines whether such things feel like tricks or treats?

Illuminated offering at the 2016 Sacred and Profane Festival, Peaks Island, Maine. Photo by Amanda Painter.

The short answer is, “you.”

More specifically, it’s things like your perspective, attitude, agility in responding to new information, and emotional attachments (whether to people, to certain ways of doing and thinking about things, to the familiar, to what you think you know about yourself and others) that will contribute to whether life feels like an enticing mystery that you’re unraveling, or a haunted hayride you didn’t want to go on in the first place.

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The Day of Conflicting Karma: Birthdays and Planet News

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If Your Birthday is Oct. 23
The Day of Conflicting Karma | 2019-20 Scorpio Astrology Studio available for pre-order | All Other Signs

Whatever your aims in life, one thing that really helps is to surround yourself with people who not only support you, but also help you grow. You get to choose your friends, and likewise to choose where you give your time and energy. Just now, you need your social milieu to be a bullshit-free zone, as far as possible. Ideally, the company you keep will also challenge and stimulate you on a frequent basis. This will help you get your brain thinking, and give you an ongoing sense of being awake.

Written in the Planets

Scorpio season begins today, with the Sun’s ingress at 1:20 pm EDT (17:19:36 UTC). We’re entering that time of year when the realms of the living and of those who have passed on are said to be in closer contact — though I’ve heard a report from one especially sensitive, witchy friend that the effect may have started early this year. (Possibly in relation to Mercury slowing down in Scorpio prior to its Oct. 31 station retrograde?) Often there’s a deepening of mood that occurs during solar Scorpio; a willingness to consider topics that normally are unnerving, intimidating or outright taboo — sexuality and mortality topping the list.

The most immediate aspects the Sun makes from Scorpio are a reprisal of its sextile to Pholus (see yesterday’s post), though with a shift in tone and themes; and an opposition to Uranus in Taurus. Sun-Uranus won’t be exact for almost a week. But knowing Uranus and its high-voltage ways — combined with the fixity of Taurus and Scorpio — starting now you’ll want to be ready for anything. Which really means: be ready to practice how flexible and fluid you can be. Remember that Scorpio is also the sign of transformation, via flushing out what has stagnated and grown toxic.

Mercury’s opposition to Vesta in Taurus today suggests a conversation in which you physically and emotionally hold space for someone else’s process. You might also find yourself on the receiving end of this kind of service. The asteroid Pallas is involved, offering some insurance that the encounter can be detached in healthy ways. In other words, there appears to be less chance of jealousy, possessiveness or other codependent habits interfering with the potential for healing. Consciously invoking this as a priority should also help.
— by Amanda Painter

The Day of Singularity: Birthdays and Planet News

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If Your Birthday is Oct. 21
The Day of Singularity | 2019-20 Scorpio Astrology Studio now available for pre-order | Order the 2019-20 Libra Astrology Studio | All Other Signs

It’s natural to have periods in your life when you need to slow down, as well as those during which you work harder and achieve more. You might want to be a 24/7 efficiency machine, though it’ll help you to remember that you’re made of organic flesh. Make room in your life for the ebbs and flows. There will be time enough to get plenty done; and taking pauses to listen to the beat of the world, and really live, can stoke your imagination like virtually nothing else.
— by Amy Elliott

Do you have your Sun, Moon or rising sign in Libra? If so, Eric has much to say about stabilizing your relationships in the chaos of the internet, getting some traction in your career, and most of all, how to frame your own reality. in the 2019-2020 Libra Astrology Studio, now available for instant access. Check out the video preview for the reading here.

Written in the Planets

Mercury (the planet of mind and communication) makes a conjunction to the asteroid Pallas (reason, political strategy) in Scorpio today. Although Scorpio is a water sign related to the emotions, Pallas describes a less emotional, more detached ability to broach certain topics. Specifically, there’s potential here to discuss deep and even taboo subject matter in a fairly objective way. This could come as a relief if you’ve been stewing about something and have been on the fence about whether to pipe up.

Scorpio’s relationship to sensitive areas of life (sex, death, money, profound transformation) offers some hints about where the conversation may need to venture. If these things usually make you squirm, all the more reason to take advantage of today’s astrology. Just watch your motives if you start getting ‘strategic’ about the discussion. The idea is to allow candid frankness, not to weaponize what you have to say. Think in terms of entering into the matter at hand together with the other person, rather than ambushing them with secrets as a way to dominate them.

This morning’s last quarter Moon bodes well for moving into the home stretch of anything you’ve been working on the last few weeks. That aspect spans from Cancer to Libra. Once the Moon enters Leo around midday EDT, conversations could feel more social, open and forthright. If someone seems to be overstating their case, you can likely chalk it up to a penchant for dramatic flair. Why take it personally when you can be entertained?
— by Amanda Painter

The Day of the Projector: Birthdays and Planet News

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If Your Birthday is Oct. 19
The Day of the Projector | 2019-20 Scorpio Astrology Studio now available for pre-order | Order the 2019-20 Libra Astrology Studio | All Other Signs

If you’re looking at changing or enhancing your career, this could be your moment. What you may need to factor in, however, is the importance of work that not only brings home the funds, but really calls to you. This isn’t even about enjoying your job, though that’s certainly a major component. What you do every day must align as far as possible with your principles and your personal journey, and speak to you on a soul level. Keep this in mind.
— by Amy Elliott

Written in the Planets

What mysteries are you puzzling over these days? What questions about your relationships, motives, desires, fears, needs, growth and obstacles have seemed just out of reach but now beckon to you to probe their depths? If you’ve discovered some answers, do you feel more compelled to keep them quiet for further exploration or to tell others about the profound truths you’ve finally uncovered?

Of course, these questions, prompted by a sextile between Mercury in Scorpio and Pluto in Capricorn, might not be such an internal investigation for you. You may be entertaining proposals from others or unclear situations that require thorough questioning. Topics such as psychology, the occult, healing and anything else related to any kind of regeneration and transformation are also ripe for in-depth study. Either way, the superficial is unlikely to hold much attraction today, compared to ‘real’ knowledge.

Whatever you learn is likely to assist you in birthing some new relationship (or new stage of a relationship) from unusual or unexpected parts of your life. As in, social spheres where relationships might not normally spring up for you. Or you may start to relate to someone differently, from a newfound understanding of yourself. All in all, a deeper sense of balance may be available.
— by Amanda Painter

The Day of Personal Leadership: Birthdays and Planet News

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If Your Birthday is Oct. 18
The Day of Personal Leadership | 2019-20 Scorpio Astrology Studio now available for pre-order | Order the 2019-20 Libra Astrology Studio | All Other Signs

One of the most helpful things you can do for yourself at this time (alongside everyone else) is to ensure the ideals you espouse are ones you can actually live by. That doesn’t mean not challenging; just realistic. We tend to set impossible standards and then become disappointed when we can’t follow them. Try a different pattern: aim for targets that are within reach and don’t require you to work against your psychology. You’ll likely find you’re a lot more relaxed.
— by Amy Elliott

Written in the Planets

“Free your mind, and the rest will follow,” as the song goes. The flip side of that might be something like, “The more you think and feel others are trying to hold you back, the more you’ll resist, and the less likely you are to fulfill responsibilities you normally would have with no problem.” Not as catchy, I know. But this appears to be one of the dynamics at play as the Moon moves through mid-to-late Gemini, especially as it opposes Ceres and Jupiter in Sagittarius. You probably have more choice than you realize in how free you feel; either way, it’s your internal sense of liberty (or lack thereof) that will likely determine how you respond to others today.

With the Moon also aspecting the Libra Sun and Neptune in Pisces, there’s some great social harmony available, with potential for a high degree of environmental sensitivity (especially when it comes to people’s emotional energy). In fact, the day could get quite chatty given the Gemini, Libra and Sagittarius influences, despite Mercury being in secretive Scorpio. So if you have a major deadline to meet or many tasks to cram in, beware distractions.

Setting a timer on things like checking social media, texting friends or going out for lunch might be helpful. Same with heading down any meandering internet rabbit holes. Chances are such pursuits will be quite attractive today. If you can direct that inquisitiveness toward your most pressing matters, you may discover much of great use.
— by Amanda Painter