Planets in Gemini - Yay!

Venus is now in Gemini and Mars moved in to the sign of the twins on the 11th which I feel will be a great boost for people with their Natal Venus and Mars in fire or air signs.

After Mars has been plodding through Taurus in a slow and steady fashion it is a bit of a relief that he is finally more at home in the restless excitable Gemini. Taurus is, as you may or not know, ruled by Venus, the planet representing the feminine principal, I wonder if this may have had an emasculating effect on the God of War (Mars), who is now probably glad to be getting his freak on and moving freely once again.

You can see how this Mars transit may affect you by having a look at your natal chart (birth chart) and good free charts can be obtained from Astrodienst and the Venus Group and you will be able to see what house Mars is in at this present time. I will take the liberty of giving you all a quick breakdown of how Mars may shake up different areas of your life depending on what house he is now moving through. Bear in mind that Mars is a positive, masculine Yang energy and he will assert himself in such a manner.

1. In the first house this is the house of yourself, associated with the sign of Aries. The Martian energy will manifest in all areas that revolve around you! This is all very much in keeping with the red planet who is extremely happy as he rules this house and of course the sign of Aries - happy days!
2. In the second the focus will be on material possessions values and all things Taurean, you could find that you have a particularly strong drive to succeed or maybe spend money. The Martian energy will permeate your desire to acquire material security, possessions, but it could also manifest as rashness in this area, so keep that in check.
3. The third rules communication and is probably my favouite house (I have Pluto here in my natal chart), short journeys and siblings as it is the house we associate with Gemini the twins. This will no doubt give your mental faculties a real boost and you could find yourself busy flitting here and there on various errands and little jollies.
4. The fourth is the house of home and roots and this is linked to the sign of Cancer. When Mars has been transiting my fourth house I have found that I have been busier than usual at home, receiving guests (with Mars in Gemini at the moment this could be the most likely outcome) and more house proud than usual putting more energy in to organising my surroundings.
5. This is one of my favourite houses as it is the house of all the nice things such as creativity, kids, parties, romance, it is the house of all things Leonine, need I say more. What I will say is lucky you; you're in for a good time, and quite possibly a bit of a sexy time too!
6. When Mars is transiting the sixth house, all matters of a Virgoan nature are given the Martian treatment; the sixth house is concerned with day to day activities, health and diet, work and oddly enough pets. If you have been letting yourself go somewhat this is a great time to start exercising, improve your diet and be more organised and efficient, you will have the Martian energy working for you in these areas.
7. This house is the house of relationships and is associated with the air sign Libra, as Mars rules sex it could mean that things get a little steamy, and that is obviously great for most of us. It will bring the intense focus of Mars to close relationships and partnerships, but this can also signify tension and conflict as you might expect with the planet in question being Mars.
8. Moving on to House number eight and all things of a Scorpionic nature; this is the house of sex, transformation, death and joint finances. Mars is having a good time here, as he rules Scorpio, so he is feeling pretty comfortable. You may also find the Martian energies compel you to investigate hidden or occult matters in true Scorpio style, others people's money may also be brought to your attention. You could see the end of an old cycle in your life and the beginning of a new one.
9. And that brings us to house nine, another personal favourite, and things of a Sagittarian nature such as travelling, studying, adventure, meeting new and interesting people, religion and philosophy. The Martian energy may give you itchy feet and thoughts may turn to those of adventure, if you have been stuck in a rut and jaded of late take advantage of this period in time to broaden your horizons.
10. The tenth house is associated with Capricorn and rules your career, ambition and drive to succeed, Mars is exalted in this house, make the most of these energies to help you achieve your worldly goals, you know you deserve this and Mars will lend his energy in all matters of business and self promotion. You may find abrasive situations with people in authority, but that's only because you know you deserve better than to be bossed around by that joker!
11. Yet another one of my favourite houses, the eleventh is a house with an Aquarian nature and any sort of group efforts or co-operation is likely to become energised with the Martian get up and go. This will be great if you have networking to do and this is also the house that is traditionally associated with gifts from the king, so this is all good as far as I'm concerned. Embrace the feeling of humanitarianism and just go with it.
12. This mysterious house is the house of the unconscious, private and hidden things and it is also a house that is associated with all things Piscean. Traditionally this is also the house of secret enemies, and with Mars transiting this could get quite interesting, however, last time I had Mars transiting my Twelfth house there was no cloak and daggers type tomfoolery going on. I found instead that the Martian energy was channeled in to an examination of matters that I usually force to the back of my mind where they fester and end up causing seemingly unrelated problems. The confrontational Martian energy helped me examine this and start dealing with things in a different way.

Anyhow, Even more interesting is the Uranus and Saturn opposition that is going on right now, although that deserves another post all of its own which no doubt will arrive shortly. Another forthcoming noteworthy event will be the Mars and Uranus square lasting from the 11th to the 26th August - things could get a little interesting, more tales from Uranus.

Saturn Says Eat Your Greens!

Saturn is a much maligned and overlooked planet in astrology, I often wonder if this is to do with the fact that Saturnian values just aren't particularly trendy.

I often think of Saturn as the fatherly figure who stands over you making sure that you have finished eating your greens before you're allowed to have pudding. This can seem quite intimidating and can really rile a person for obvious reasons. However, as long as you are honouring your part of the deal and munching through that cabbage and broccoli you will get your pudding- you don't want to eat your veg, but you know you have to and that it contains vitamins and minerals, also, you know deep down that it's character building.

Now this is where it gets interesting; will you get the tiramisu, the strawberry cheesecake or the rather uninspiring low fat chocolate mousse? Well, that all depends on what you deserve, Saturn is a karmic planet, you can't hide from karma because sooner or later we all have to reap what we so for good or for ill.

This is why people don't like Saturn, because in Western culture so many of our actions are completely divorced from the consequences, to take true responsibility for our actions is tantamount to a slap in the face. However, Saturn teaches us that nothing of lasting worth is achieved without a solid foundation which means hard graft and integrity, what's more, if you take the time to befriend him he will help you reap the fruits of your labour.

Who better to feel the effects of this teacher than those with their natal Saturn in their first house? The first house is ruled by Aries and Mars and corresponds to the self, so when Saturn takes up residence here we have some challenges and limitations to do with our sense of self and self worth. Saturn highlights karmic challenges to be overcome for our soul development in this lifetime, the house and sign where he resides show us the nature of the challenge or challenges.

The key to overcoming these obstacles is that Saturn often represents limitation and in order to move on we have to accept these limitations and work within them. In the first house, the native often begins life with assertiveness issues and a lack of self worth, often feeling victimised and bullied by others. The challenge is to accept the personal power that is already within and to develop self confidence.

It is interesting to note that Saturn rules Capricorn, a sign that is often said to age in reverse, and the same can be said of natives with a first house Saturn or Saturn conjunct their Ascendant. While they are children they can seem like little old men and women before their time, later in life, if they have remained true to the challenges of Saturn they are rewarded with an envious youthfulness and they are released from the karmic weight that rested so heavily on their shoulders.

Tales from Uranus

If you have stumbled upon my new astrology blog I would like to say hello and welcome. The title of my first post may have caught your attention, possibly in the wrong way, but in the true Uranian spirit I secretly hoped that the puerile play on words may contain some sort of shock value if only for my own sordid amusement.

But enough small talk. In case you have been disconnected from the internet, without an ephemeris or simply new to astrology one of the big events of this present time is the Uranus retrograde in Pisces beginning July 1st and lasting 'till Dec 1st. As a Piscean I have been enjoying the Uranian tomfoolery for some years and must admit that these have been some of the best, most unsettling, disturbing and transformative years of my life with Uranus conjuncting my natal Sun on and off, and this is set to happen one last time before Uranus moves on to occupy the sign of Aries.

Although I have read that Uranus is even more unpredictable, explosive and upsetting during a retrograde, I personally have not noticed this. Maybe it is due to having a retrograde natal Uranus (sounds quite unappealing doesn't it), I feel that the retrograde is less of a shock, as Uranus operates this way for me pretty much all the time (actually I love it). Being in my natal fourth house, it is no surprise that I have just moved house for the 8th time in 10 years and I am already thinking about the kind of place where I would like to live next, no matter how hard I try to stop myself!

If Uranus upsets things and stirs things up, during a retrograde I always look forward to this, and look on it as a chance to spice things up and see what long awaited changes are being foisted upon me this time round. Last year during the retrograde period I started to visualise a move to a rural area and change of location and this year I have other plans. I can't wait for Uranus to conjunct my natal Sun. Actually my son is an Aquarius who has Uranus conjunct his Sun and Mercury in Aquarius in his natal chart, so I have a full appreciation of just how much Uranus encourages us to go our own way, be true to ourselves and do things a little differently. I have certainly identified with the Uranian energy since the planet has been in Pisces. I have actually learned to become much more self centred which is great for me!

If Uranus was a person he would be the really cool mate who appears suddenly to stay for a while, inspiring you with tales and photographs of far off lands, his cool friends and new things to do that you have never heard of before. By the time he leaves you have decided that it's time for a change, you are going to save up for that 3 month ticket to Vietnam, dump your boyfriend, start your own business as a dominatrix when you get back because life’s too short to carry on marching to the beat of someone else’s drum and it's time for you to go your own way and that actually, you don't care what anyone thinks about the new liberated you! But don’t just take my word for it – what does Uranus mean to you?

When the big guy (Uranus) finally moves in to Aries I wonder what kind of shake up the rams will be experiencing. The Uranian archetype stands for brotherhood and also social conscience (among many things) so perhaps certain less evolved Aries folks may get a rude awakening and realise the world doesn't actually revolve around them after all. Not that I have anything against the Ram, however, but we can hope.