The last two months of 2010 will be active ones. The high energy of the spring and summer will be "triggered" by a variety of astrological events. We are already familiar with the issues on a personal and collective level, but now we will have to work out how we are going to turn the potentials into realities.
The early days of November show a creative energy. A nice aspect between Venus and Pluto on the 1st suggests we might be able to heal old relationship wounds. That’s a good use of Venus retrograde, and the Goddess of Love is indeed reversing her way through the zodiac until November 18th. This isn’t a great time to go forward with new partnerships (including business mergers) but it is a good time reconnect with significant others from the past.
Things are in wind-down mode until the New Moon on the 6th. Just after the New Moon, Mercury will make a tense square to Neptune, who is quite powerful as he is only a day away from appearing to stop in the sky. The 6th and 7th are probably not the best days to go forward with any practical plans, make agreements, or otherwise engage in decision-making. However, this is an excellent time to get in touch with your dreams and visions. The inward-turning energy of the New Moon in the sign of Scorpio, together with the otherworldly influence of Neptune stationing to move forward, should help us all to see alternative realities. Meditate, keep a dream journal, or at least catch a good movie.
From the 13th through the 17th, we have very constructive potentials. The active First Quarter Moon on the 13th is followed by a series of aspects that should help us to get our projects moving. Use the time well!
The 18th is a very active day, with no fewer than three significant astrological events. Jupiter and Venus both station (appear to stop in the sky) and then start moving forward, ending their retrograde periods. Although this is probably not a great time to make real changes, these stations often inspire and encourage us, and both Venus and Jupiter are very social planets. Whether in romantic relationships or with friends and colleagues, we should be feeling a sense of the possible, and a nice atmosphere should prevail for a day or so around the station. The Sun is also aspecting Neptune on the 18th, blurring the lines of concrete reality but further opening up the sense of possibility.
That energy should keep rolling all the way to the Full Moon on the 21st. A day after that, the Sun enters Sagittarius, and we can feel the mood shift away from Scorpionic issues as we begin to feel the holiday season upon us. The overall feel of things should make for a nice weekend, so get out and socialize.
November 25th through the 27th has some sharp Mercurial aspects. Brilliant ideas and innovative solutions will be flying through the air, but patience will be in short supply. Too excited about speaking our minds, our listening skills may be neglected.
That verbal energy becomes more overt as Mars steps in to make the same aspects on the 29th through December 3rd. The desire to push our "truth" will be very strong, and while a few days before we were inclined to keep it on a verbal level, Mars demands activity. Tempers are prone to flare-ups, and actions speak louder than words. That we are coming into the relative quite of the New Moon on the 5th will probably do little to dampen the intensity of these days, especially as the 5th also features a station of the planet Uranus. Like all planets, when Uranus stations we feel his energy more intensely for a few days before and afterwards. Uranian energy is electric and fast-moving. It encourages independence and innovation, and has very, very, little patience.
Mercury will also meet up with Pluto on the 5th. This can be a kind of like the hobbits going to Mordor to save Middle Earth, although who wins the day is always open to question. Certainly, we’ll all be a bit inclined to speak our minds, and the combined energy of the last week will have us ready to fight for ourselves or our cause, if need be.
Take the time from the 25th of November through the 5th of December to further your own projects and ideas, but recognize that others will also be pushing their own agendas, and we can get in each others’ way. Still, those of us without any specific direction might get the worst of it, as the energy has no outlet. Some moderate exercise might be a good idea if you feel yourself on edge.
On a collective level, the astrology of the end of November and the beginning of December suggest individuals or groups fighting to be heard, and doing whatever they feel is necessary. Things can get to an extreme in this kind of environment, although hopefully we will be able to maintain a sense of collective balance.
For five days, all the planets are moving forward. Then, on the 10th, Mercury stations to go retrograde until the 30th. The usual Mercury retrograde rules apply - it’s a poor time to sign contracts or buy electronics, and all manner of communication issues can be expected to arise.
As we get to the First Quarter Moon on December 13th, the energy is once more running high. Mercury again aspects Pluto, this time while the Messenger is retrograding. What those "in charge" have said around the 5th may need to be revised, although it may be mid-January before we find out the whole story. Mars is also in the mix on the 14th, so angry words and power plays could be prominent. While the energy of a week ago was in the mutable signs, these aspects set off the "cardinal t-square" of this past summer, so political and social contentiousness could be at an all-time high.
The 16th and 18th have the Sun making squares to Jupiter and Uranus. The issue here could be one of egotism, although we might see personal pride hiding behind dogmatic beliefs, so expect to hear more about "the Truth" than about "me, me, me!" - but you know who’s talking. Not that these aspects are all that bad. We can use them to infuse ourselves with a sense of the possible, and to take a leap of faith into something new and exciting in our lives.
The 19th though the 21st carries some very wild energy, as the Sun aspects Mercury, who aspects Uranus and Jupiter, as we have a Total Eclipse of the Moon, and the Winter Solstice. That’s a tall order for any forty-eight hour period! The overarching theme seems to be one of communication, of expressing our thoughts and feelings. But we also need to recognize that power is a real issue. A day later, the Sun meets up with Pluto, to drive the message home. Who has the power within a situation, and what are they (or you, or me) doing with it?
The Lunar Eclipse should be visible after midnight on the 21st in the United States. This is the most impressive Full Moon of the year, with Luna high in the sky creating a kind of silvery daylight - so the eclipse will be dramatic to watch.
The year ends with a square between Mars and Saturn on the 29th, another opportunity to ask if we will go forward or stay put, and if we decide to move, what direction really is forward? For Mercury, who will go direct on the 30th, forward is simply forward!
We have had an intense year, and have had to deal with many issues on personal and collective levels. The last two months of 2010 are an open question - there is immense potential energy, but it is up to us to decide if we will use it creatively or destructively. Either way, our evolutionary movement continues unhindered - but that’s not to say our choices don’t matter. We can create a difficult but beautiful caterpillar-butterfly type of transfor-mation, or we can go the more difficult dinosaur-to-mammal route.
Yet the sense that the old way of doing things - in work, politics, relationship, life - is running out of steam and in need of a new approach is unavoidable. As we end 2010 at the coldest and darkest time of the year, remember that although it is just barely perceptible, the Sun’s light is beginning to grow again. Darkness and light follow each other in the cosmic dance.
May you have a Joyous New Year!
Armand M. Diaz, M.A., C.A., is certified as a Consulting Astrologer by the National Council for Geocosmic Research (NCGR). He is available for private consultations, in which he creates a supportive context for self-exploration, to help clients make decisions which are in harmony with their greatest potential, offering a truly integral approach to astrology. Armand has practiced divination for more than twenty years, working with the I Ching and Tarot in addition to astrology. He has published in various astrological journals, including The Mountain Astrologer. He can be reached at 917-216-1541 or armand@integralastrology.net, or though his website at www.integralastrology.net.