Monday Morning Horoscope for July 24, 2017

Aries (March 20-April 19) — People, especially younger ones, are systematically having their courage bred out of them. Older people tend to become more reserved and conservative because they think they have more to lose. Young ones have always provided a resource of willingness to try something new for its own sake. Sadly, that’s being injected with a kind of psychic Botox. Your astrology is calling you in the opposite direction: to embrace the unknown with yearning, to directly enter what’s unfamiliar, and to view your life as a creative experiment. This is not theoretical, but rather something you would do from day-to-day, even hour-to-hour, as a yoga of the mind. Be eager to do what you’ve never done. Travel back from someplace by a different route than how you got there. Contemplate how sex is the origin of all life.

Taurus (April 19-May 20) — You may be feeling so much restless energy that it’s scaring you. Your charts are definitely sending you a message to stay grounded in whatever connects you to the Earth, and to your body. Though you may feel like getting out of the house a lot; or if activities call you out of the house, to connect with your home base every day. That might mean preparing one meal, doing some housework for the pleasure of it, or taking a bath. The idea is to make contact with the solid ground beneath your feet and in your soul. Be cautious about getting into any conflicts with relatives or if you’re in a shared living situation; make sure that you settle the matter of your psychic and physical space without being defensive. Your home is very, very important to your wellbeing right now.

Gemini (May 20-June 21) — The essence of your learning path is to keep an open mind. Know when you don’t know, which is likely anytime you think you’re certain. Get into the habit of proving yourself wrong. Assume you know less than you know, even on subjects where you’re considered an expert, and cycle some of your energy into finding out more. That will keep your mind open to the possibilities and ensure that you don’t get stuck in a point of view, which would be all too easy right now. All certainty is potentially false; and ignorance is a synthetic product, bred entirely of the desire not to know, or not to admit the truth. You must stand boldly in between the two. Use what you know; be willing to be wrong; and make sure that all new information is subject to verification.

Cancer (June 21-July 22) — Money is not the only measure of value. What’s far more meaningful is how you perceive your own worth, and how you go about earning the money you acquire. Are you investing your precious days in something that genuinely matters to you? Would you do what you do for no pay? These questions will help guide you to a more meaningful existence. Most people think nothing of investing their lives in activity they are doing only because they get paid. Of course, this is related to the belief that what really matters to you is not worth someone investing in. More often, though, people are disconnected from what really matters to them, which is a situation you must resolve, if it’s even vaguely true for you. Find that thing that you care about, and do it as much as you can.

Leo (July 22-Aug. 23) — Sunday there was the first of two New Moons in your birth sign, both of which are extraordinary events, and are here to deliver a message. At this stage of your life, you have little choice but to stand in your power. This is not a state of mind or a mood; it’s not a thing you do. It’s a property of who you are, though perhaps the more accurate word is influence. You cannot control the world around you, and you cannot force anything to happen. But you can influence the flow of events, in ways large and small. The single most relevant thing you can do is to know what you want, and have some idea why you want it. Don’t make assumptions; check yourself, verify your ideas about life, and let curiosity be your guide.

Virgo (Aug. 23-Sep. 22) — You may feel like you’re living your life for someone else, or are serving as a vehicle for their growth. That may be true, and it’s a meaningful role to play; others have done this for you many times. Yet it would help if you took a broader-minded look at your situation. You’re doing plenty else in the world, though on some level, it’s almost always true that one’s most important responsibilities involve serving others. Still, you seem to keep encountering a persistent mystery about your role, purpose or the meaning of your life. To answer this riddle only requires that you be a little more courageous, and a lot more honest with yourself. If you find yourself being passive or ambivalent, turn up your courage and honesty. You don’t impress anyone by being meek and mild, and you don’t help yourself, either.

Libra (Sep. 22-Oct. 23) — It’s time to step into a more public role, though the chances are that without doing much, circumstances will call you there. Your challenge will be minimizing conflict and controversy, and knowing how to deal with it when it happens. First, I suggest you only be as public as you need to be, and no more. This is not the time for notoriety or influence purely for fun. Everything you say and do must be connected to a purpose, and applied with a minimalist philosophy guiding you. You’re working with more mojo than you may think, and at the same time, it will be easy to get caught in the rather nasty trap of glamour. The safe and practical way to do this will be to take a conservative approach, using the right tools at the right time.

Scorpio (Oct. 23-Nov. 22) — Power for its own sake is always toxic, both to you and to others. With the Sun, the Moon, Mars and other planets moving across the fame and recognition angle of your chart, the thing you must focus on is accountability. The world is not encouraging this right now. It seems every day like we’re in the “get away with whatever you can” Olympics. If you play that way, it will come back to bite you so fast you won’t know what got you. Therefore, use your power judiciously, and stay close to the purpose of whatever system you’re influencing. You must proceed with dignity at all times, even if that means cramping your usual style. It’s not enough to be ethical; you must have the appearance of being so. It’s not enough to be honest. You must be willingly vulnerable as well.

Sagittarius (Nov. 22-Dec. 22) — Over the weekend, the Sun and the Moon entered your fellow fire sign Leo, which is stoking up your confidence and your sense of purpose. As a Sagittarius, you can handle this better than most. Yet, because Saturn has been in your sign for so long, you may be eager to push the edges of your newfound freedom. Ease back on your restlessness and carefully consider your possibilities. Understand that your potential can describe your future, if you take yourself seriously enough to recognize that you do, indeed, grow. You don’t need to impress anyone; you don’t need their permission; you do need to trust yourself. When travelers who had come thousands of miles reached the Delphic Oracle in the ancient days of Greece, they were met with the message: Know Thyself. Take that as your mantra.

Capricorn (Dec. 22-Jan. 20) — Sunday’s Leo New Moon happened in the angle of your chart associated with deep sexual and emotional bonding — and financial legacies, inheritances and marriage. You must treat each of these subjects separately, rather than allowing them all to merge into one thing. You will have more influence over your own life if you see each of the issues for what they are. Make no mistake, there are others who would prefer if you remained confused or, at least, so swept up in your own passion that you don’t bother understanding what’s really happening. You can have great fun right now, and make considerable progress in the most meaningful areas of your life; though the cost of that will be vigilance, self-awareness and maintaining clear agreements with the people around you — especially those you find most frightening.

Aquarius (Jan. 20-Feb. 19) — There are some song lyrics I love, which come out of the Grateful Dead camp: “Stake my future on a hell of a past / looks like tomorrow is comin’ on fast.” That about sums up your life at the moment, and this can be a beautiful thing. Change is upon you, and it’s likely to enter your experience through other people. Therefore, you must constantly distinguish between what they want and what you want. It will be too easy to get vacuumed into the desires of others without much thought on your part, and once that happens, it’ll be difficult to get out of those situations. Therefore, know your own desires, and make sure they’re a match for any circumstances you find yourself in. Step back or step forward according to what’s appropriate, making a conscious choice one way or the other.

Pisces (Feb. 19-March 20) — This may be one of the most productive months of your recent life, as long as you pace yourself. It would be easy to burn yourself out on activity and even on success; you will need to moderate your level of energy output, and prioritize your tasks. Taking proper care of yourself is a top priority. If you’ve committed to something there’s no turning back on, embrace that fact, then figure out a way to make it work for you. Remember what you’ve learned about leadership the past few years, and the most effective ways to take charge of your own life. You have plenty of help available, though you’ll need to distinguish between situations when the presence of others makes your life easier and when it’s more challenging. And know that you have far more control over timing than you may realize.