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Astrological Forecast for December 2007
by Armand Diaz
As 2007 draws to a close, it’s time to reflect not only on this year, but on the dozen or so years that Pluto has been in Sagittarius. This is his last full month in the sign of the archer before moving on to Capricorn (although he’ll be back from June to November of 2008) and we need to do some reckoning about the lessons we have hopefully learned as he passed through this sign.
Sagittarius is the sign of beliefs, of religions and philosophy, and it is also deeply involved with the idea of ethnicity and the “other,” as it rules long-distance travel and hence “foreigners.” Pluto brings up buried issues wherever he goes, letting us know that we still have more work to do. In stirring up the dark muck of our unconscious, he gives us a chance to fully experience and thus purge ourselves of the unfinished business, transforming the difficult places in our collective psyche. In his trip through Sagittarius he has given us the chance to experience the best and the worst of the things that sign represents.
Lets start with religion and spirituality. On the positive side, there has been an explosion of spirituality in the last decade. Never has such a range of material been so easily available. The continued success of Wisdom magazine is one example - look at the number of events that are offered each month in its pages, count the number of professionals offering their services and spiritual guidance! Or go to the book store and see how the New Age section has grown. Recently I was in a large chain store and was surprised that I couldn’t find the New Age section - but it turned out that it was huge, I just hadn’t been looking in the right place - it was in the front of the store! Whether your interest is in Buddhism or Wicca, Tarot or Taoism, it is all available as never before in history.
But there is a dark side to this as well. In the last decade we have also seen religious fundamentalism grow explosively (sometimes literally). In a world that seemed very secular twenty years ago, we now accept religion as a polarizing force between nations and in our communities. In its darkest manifestation, we have seen the zealots who kill themselves and others for the glory of their image of God.
As Pluto moves out of Sagittarius over the next year or so, we’ll start to hear less about religion in its more polarizing form. Spirituality, also, will become more grounded (Capricorn is an earth sign) and will have a different flavor than the open-ended exploration we’ve experienced recently. Pluto casts his shadow before him, and you can already sense some of what I mean by this.
Then there has been the issue of immigration, a concern around the world as the European Union expands and the United States tries to contract its borders. Pluto in Sagittarius has heightened the sense of the “other” as one to be feared and blamed for our difficulties. Even as the world has really opened up and peoples of all belief systems and ethnicities live together so much more than in the past, the opposite reaction, one of protectionism, has set in almost everywhere. In the U.S., relations between ethnic groups has been rather poor recently, a reminder that the work which began in the 50’s and 60’s is far from complete.
Sagittarius has an optimistic, outgoing feel to it, although it can get more than a little stubborn at times. As Pluto runs through the last degrees of this sign over the next year, we’ll see a temporary increase in high-flying rhetoric and calls to action, even as we come to terms with the Capricornian reality which is much less given to flights of the spirit. It should be very interesting.
Narrowing our focus to this December, some days will tend to set off this Sagittarian energy. The 6th has Mercury and Saturn squaring off, making communication difficult, especially with authority figures. On the 7th the sun squares Uranus, pushing us to break free of limiting beliefs and ideals. It’s Mercury’s turn with Uranus on the 10th, creating a high energy day where the creative and new is valued and words fly fast. The entire first half of the month is colored by the Jupiter-Pluto conjunction on the 11th. This aspect creates a combination of optimism and action, and although that sounds nice, remember that it works for good ideas and bad ones, too.
Saturn stations to retrograde (apparently backing up in the zodiac) on the 19th. The days before and after a Saturn station usually have a heavy, serious feeling about them, perhaps slowing down the party atmosphere we expect around the holidays. Mercury conjuncts Pluto the same day, giving voice to some of our deeper feelings.
The Winter Solstice is on the 22nd, at 1:07 a.m. Eastern time. On this, the darkest day of the year, the sun begins his long climb up towards the light of summer. Once again we are asked to open to the cosmic lesson that just as things reach their low point, a change takes place and that which is empty moves towards fullness. A good lesson to mull over at this time of year, especially this year as Pluto, leaving Sagittarius, is sitting so close to the solstice point.
Take a look at the full moon on the 23rd. The Long Night Moon is the highest the full moon goes in our skies. If it’s a clear night, this moon should light it up - contrasting the darkest day with the brightest night.
New Year’s Eve comes on the tail of all these aspects, and has the additional energy of the last quarter moon. After a time of reflection and reckoning in December, we’ll be looking forward, cautiously, towards the New Year. May yours be Joyous!
Armand M. Diaz, M.A., C.A., is certified as a Consulting Astrologer by the National Council for Geocosmic Research (NCGR). His approach to astrology readings is to create a supportive context for self-exploration, to help clients make decisions which are in harmony with their greatest potential. Armand has studied divination and oracles for more than twenty years, working primarily with the I Ching in addition to astrology. He has published articles on the astrology of politics and social phenomena in Geocosmic Journal , The Astrological Journal, and The Mountain Astrologer. He can be reached at 917-216-1541 or armand@bluemoonastrology.info
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