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Topic of the month - Neptune in Aquarius: Serious Business
Special Horoscope for Sagittarius
using the new moon for wish fulfillment
The good side of Saturn in Leo
PLUS - instead of viewing planetary influences as outside events over which you have no control PRACTICAL ASTROLOGY will teach you to view planetary configurations as OPPORTUNITIES that will allow you to work with the timing of the universe to make choices, exert control, observe results and track your success over time.
Each month, shortly before the sun moves into a new sign (which usually happens around the 20th or 21st of the month), I'll suggest a way for your sign to take advantage of the opportunities provided by one of the solar month's major astrological features. In addition, you can read a short article on one aspect of putting together a horoscope forecast that will give you more insight into how to interpret your own chart.
Finally, I'll provide a list of keywords for some of the planets, signs, and houses that make up a horoscope so that you can further customize your horoscope.
Check
in throughout the month,
track your results,
and within a year you'll be an astrological expert
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Mercury stays retrograde until December 4, don't worry about it
the sun's journey and the birthday blues
Jupiter and the nature of luck
MONTHLY HOROSCOPE FOR ALL SIGNS
The sun is in Sagittarius this month.
The new moon is December 1st.
Mercury enters Sagittarius again on December 13.
Venus is in Sagittarius until December 16, when it enters Aquarius.
Mars continues its transit through Taurus, going direct on December 10.
Jupiter is in Scorpio.
Saturn remains in Leo, turns retrograde November 22.
Uranus is direct in Pisces.
Previous Monthly Horoscopes:
July - August (Leo)
August - September (Virgo)
BE CHEERFUL
Happy Birthday, Sagittarius! Now's as good a month as any to be cheerful. Why, you say? Well, first of all it's your birthday month and the holiday season is upon us as well. Thanksgiving, holiday parties, festivities all around. Those are all good reasons to be cheerful.
You've got your own birthday new moon to make a wish on December 1st. Another good reason to be cheerful. Mercury will be in your sign again as of December 13. Sort of a good reason to be cheerful. Venus is in your second house of money and stuff until December 15, where you can nurture every hope that it will be nice to you in a financial sense. Another good thing.
And then Venus enters Aquarius on December 16, giving the universe a double dose of Aquarian power. Not just a double dose of Aquarian power, but Aquarian power from two planets are that are astrologically related, Venus and Neptune. Love planets. A personal love planet and a cosmic love planet. Pretty groovy.
For you, these love planets will be in your solar 3rd house of how you act around other people on a daily basis. I guess you could say the universe is encouraging you to be in a loving mood with those around you, not just your family and friends, but the people you see when you're out and about, attending social events, being festive, and all that stuff.
Of course, Neptune has actually been in this sector of your solar chart for a long time, since 1998 to be exact. Seven full years. And it's only halfway through traveling the sign! This is a long term trend for Sagittarians in which they are being encouraged to be more verbal, open, and expressive about their spiritual beliefs, spiritual orientation toward life, their woo-woo New Age interests, and all that stuff, whether it be astrology, energy healers, psychics, Tarot readers, or anything even vaguely concerned with the meaning of the unseen world. This trend will continue for about another 7 years, bringing you farther and farther out of the closet in these matters and firmly bringing your spiritual purpose into your conversations with others.
So what is your spiritual purpose anyway? Well, you see, that's why I mentioned being cheerful right at the outset. Sagittarians, although no one admits it, are actually acutely sensitive people, and Neptune in the solar third house only makes them more so. No one admits that Sagittarians are sensitive because they have a (sometimes deserved) reputation for blunt forthrightness that not uncommonly tramples over others' feelings, and Sagittarians often don't even seem aware of it.
There is a reason for this. Sagittarians are always picking up so much, in their mutable way, from moment to moment, that the only reasonable way to handle it often seems to be to just dump it right back out, undigested by social niceties like tact. Sagittarians are always recycling so much of their perceptions through the universe, picking them up and sending them back out again (loudly or softly as their rising sign warrants) that without this constant stimulation, they can fall into a mighty depression. Sagittarians who are not sending their perceptions back out into the universe, repressing their natural bluntness, are not happy people. But Sagittarians without constant stimulation are subject to something worse, a terrifying and sometimes despairing sense of emptiness. It's as though they spend so much time recycling their perceptions, they don't give much attention to developing their core. They often have no natural instinct for what lasts in life.
Here's what lasts, Sagittarians, here's what is at your core. Constant optimism, founded and unfounded. In other words, cheerfulness. When you Sagittarians are cheerful, you're really good at being cheerful. That's what your ruling planet specializes in. Add Neptune to the mix, a planet of almost insane hopefulness, in a sector that relates to dealing with other people and we begin to get a sense of what this long transit is all about, and what one of your spiritual purposes is. Communicating that optimism and hopefulness.
All those other people with the strange sun signs you see running around, they don't have your natural over-the-top optimism and hopefulness. They could use some of it. Your mission, Sag, should you choose to accept it, is to use this holiday season to bounce about encouraging people. As loudly as your rising sign will let you. Whether they want to be encouraged or not. You'll never feel empty again if you deal with your momentary down spells, and the holiday blues that hit so many, by getting off your butt and encouraging someone else. Doesn't matter if your encouragement isn't realistic; people need it anyway.
You can use the excuse of the holidays to be cheerful and encouraging. Seek people out to be encouraging to. You'll feel like a million bucks, like a good person, as though Christmas or whatever holiday you celebrate will have true meaning this year. And you'll have a good time in the process.
Give it a try for awhile, see if it doesn't lift your spirits. If I'm wrong and it doesn't work--well write it off as a month of good deeds and go back to something else. But I don't think I'm wrong. Happy Birthday!
For some additional keywords you can use to customize your own horoscope - click here. For instructions on how to use the keywords - click here.
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Hello Aries, how ya doing? Some of you have told me recently you could use a bit of help sorting out the meaning of the eclipses that hit you back in October. That's natural, that eclipse cycle is coming to an end in March of next year, so some of you are getting close to implementing some major structural changes in your life.
The eclipses themselves usually have to do primarily with relationships and learning to be a bit more like an ever so respectful and tactful Libra in them and a bit less like the accidental drill sergeant Aries people sometimes become. But for a lot of you it's more than that. Neptune, our spotlight planet of the month, is in your 11th house of life direction, and so for a lot of you, these eclipses are signaling a fine tuning of your life direction.
Okay, so what sort of fine tuning, and in what direction should you be steering your life these days, as opportunity knocks at your door and then seems to go running away before you get a chance to open it? Well, it'll be a bit clearer by April of next year, but we can gather some clues by looking at Neptune in Aquarius. Since Venus will enter the same sign on December 16, you can expect a bit more emphasis than usual on your Aquarian side this month.
You see, Aquarius in the 11th represents things like your influence on others. The universe would like you to have more of it, and I've seen a number of you moving in this direction, becoming more involved in PTA, community events, leadership positions, and the like. This is all good and it's a long-term trend that lasts through 2011, so you have awhile to gradually rise to the level of influence that best suits you.
But there's another aspect to this transit, and Venus, in addition to making you popular and influential this month (we hope), points out something about where your life needs to be heading. The sign of Aquarius needs variety, change, and control. So do you. You cannot structure your life around sitting in the same cubicle for the next 30 years, facing the same restrictions, and not expect to have the planets get unhappy with you. Whatever happens this month (again, hopefully some good things) towards opening opportunities to tweak your life direction, you need to be working toward variety, stimulation, a change, and more control over your public life, career, community involvement, whatever you're most active in. You need to take charge of your life. Shamelessly seek opportunities to get more variety, take them when they come, and be very very nice to anyone who offers them to you, or could. This may not pay off til next year, but do it now while Venus is on your side. Look for ways to diversify your activities, expand your range, get a promotion, do some new stuff. Break out of your mold as best you can, whatever that mold may be. Go for it. Always music to an Aries' ears. Have a great month.
For some additional keywords you can use to customize your own horoscope - click here. For instructions on how to use the keywords - click here.
Outside Link: A good site for all kinds of information on self-development: selfgrowth.com
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You'd think the month before Christmas would be great for Taureans, since they're often good at and love holidays of all sorts. And many times it is. But for a lot of Taureans, there's an inexplicable sadness that underlines the festivities and get-togethers, a restlessness. Sometimes it's like a wistful nostalgia for a perfect holiday season that never actually existed. When this occurs, it's usually because the sun and Mercury are transiting your solar 8th house, one that can bring up these sorts of feelings. This is not that strange; lots of people get the holiday blues--Taureans are just slightly more prone to them than other signs.
Admittedly, this particular year can be a busy and stressful one for all fixed sign people like you. In addition to Mars in your own sign, Saturn in your solar 4th, and Jupiter in your partnership sector, we've also got Neptune in your solar 10th house of authority--all of them competing for your attention this year.
Neptune, our spotlight planet of the month, has been encouraging you since 1998 to switch careers and become more idealistic in your life direction. A lot of you have dutifully responded to the planet's urging already; some will before Neptune leaves Aquarius in 2012. I've seen a number of Taureans ditch financially-oriented careers to become teachers, firefighters, and police officers, because they know they need to express their desire to be of service to the community. This is great!
Except that changing careers and being more idealistic about your life calling is not always as easy as Neptune would lead you to believe. The solar 10th deals with things like authority, and Aquarius is a fixed sign like your own. Over the course of gaining fulfillment in the world in your own idealistic fashion (and you will achieve this, if you haven't already), you also have to contend with the reality that in many cases, the authority figures you will encounter will be just as resistant to changing their minds as you are!
That's saying something. It's hard to find people as resistant to changing their minds as you, but at some point you are likely to find them. With all the fixed signs activated this month, you may be feeling the pressure this holiday season, at work and elsewhere. Almost everybody is likely to be more stubborn. So....
We need to find a way to scoot around this potential problem so that you can have a delightful holiday season anyway. Our savior is your ruling planet, Venus, which will also enter Aquarius and your solar 10th house on December 16. This is a great opportunity to seek out and get attention from those same resistant authority figures, and even to have them love and appreciate you for awhile. So work this transit! Go for all the outside attention you can get (not just from your sweetie and your family) and revel in every scrap of it you get. Love it, shine, have a ball, get recognized, step up to the plate, take your bows if you have any coming to you. No, you do not have to stop being stubborn to benefit from Venus, but you do have to be nice while you are being stubborn. You can do that! You're good at that. So play to your natural strengths and make this holiday season one to remember, and not just for your (undoubtedly excellent) holiday pies--but for your skills, strengths, and talents in the outside world.
For some additional keywords you can use to customize your own horoscope - click here. For instructions on how to use the keywords - click here.
Sometimes Gemini people kind of forget that other people are not just actors for a Gemini to direct in the daily drama of a Gemini person's life. It's easy to make that mistake. Gemini people are good at straightening crooked paintings, tidying other people's coffee tables, noticing other people's flaws (and criticizing them for it), and just generally bustling about restlessly trying to arrange other people to suit their own sense of order. This character trait would be the average Gemini's downfall, if most of them didn't manage to be so darn charming the rest of the time.
This month, however, well at least from December 16 onward, Venus and Neptune will be in Aquarius in your solar 9th house, encouraging you to adopt a different attitude. One more in keeping with the Christmas spirit, or the spirit of whatever winter holiday you celebrate. Neptune in your solar 9th house has been working slowly and relentlessly since 1998 to get you to be more aware of other people as actual human individuals like you, and less aware of them as potential chess pieces and pawns in your own show. This planet is gifting you with a gradual revelation, and I've seen many of you respond quite positively, becoming more tolerant and secure, and less inclined to convince everyone that you're right all the time. A lot of the universe is conspiring to push you in this direction anyway over the long haul; Venus in Aquarius from mid-December on just makes it more fun.
From mid-month on, you are likely (I certainly hope) to get positive feedback for your efforts to see where other people are coming from--even if they're clearly wrong. People will appreciate it, and you, if you don't straighten their paintings this holiday season, and instead ask them, and hear, how they're doing. Listening to other people, contemplating their uniqueness, appreciating them for who they are--these things are all more fun than they seem like they have a right to be, and they're way more fun when people acknowledge and thank you for doing that. Since a lot of the fixed signs (Taurus, Leo, Scorpio, and Aquarius) are likely to be stressed out this season, you can practice listening to them. It will be easy and stress-free for you, and it will have the added bonus of making these perhaps grumpy fixed sign people see you in a whole new and more admiring light. And there is nothing more fun for the average Gemini (and perhaps everyone) than to be seen in a whole new and more admiring light. Enjoy!
For additional keywords you can use to customize your horoscope - click here. For instructions on how to use the keywords - click here.
Cancer, forgive yourself if you get all sensitive this month. Venus and Neptune will both be in your solar 8th house this month (Venus from December 16 on), and these are two sensitive planets in a very sensitive house, acting upon a person with a very sensitive sign--you. Not only that, these planets will be squaring a bunch of other planets by sign, making them even more sensitive, if that's possible.
Now there are several ways to handle this. One way is to get all mixed up, burst into tears occasionally when family members start arguing with each other or the Thanksgiving turkey gets all messed up, or when whatever happens, happens. That's a perfectly acceptable way to handle things, happens to most of us from time to time.
Another way to handle it is simply to ignore it. Forget about having a perfect holiday season, take whatever comes along, or do something new and different things, start some new traditions, even skip the traditional family get-together if you're so inclined, and go on a skiing vacation instead. Neptune and Venus, the aforementioned sensitive planets, will be in Aquarius, and Aquarius is certainly not a sign that's going to get mad at you if you decide to check out of any pre-holiday tensions or undercurrents of family drama.
You could also stick around for whatever traditional things you do during this season and just be uncharacteristically grouchy if that's what you feel like doing. All the other signs have their own problems this year, due to all those squares, so it isn't like everyone else will be having a perfect time except for you. Or...
We could completely divert these energies into something entirely different and hopefully scoot around all that potential planetary tension. You see, the 8th house also has to do with things like money and investments. And all that sensitivity borders on the psychic. In fact, if you've been getting more psychic since 1998, you have Neptune to thank. Now, with Saturn in your solar 2nd house not being all that nice to you in terms of regular income, you have a perfect opportunity to put that semi-psychic sensitivity to work intuiting ways to bring in the dollars in a non-regular way. I'm not suggesting you spend all the money you set aside for Christmas presents on a wild investment in the stock market, but...
It could be a lot of fun for you to at least investigate the stock market, real estate, business investments, passive income, and stuff like that. Cancers love money! (Well, who doesn't?) And you have a natural business sense anyway. Use your intuition this month to further your financial interests. Pick some stocks on paper, and see how well you fare. Take a small (small) financial risk on something if you're so inclined; Venus is a planet that brings in money. It's important for you to work with your finances over the next couple of years anyway, things just happen to be more favorable for you from mid-December on. Besides, nothing soothes the natural tensions of a busy season more than a good old-fashioned fantasy of becoming tremendously wealthy.
For keywords you can use to customize an alternate interpretation- click here. For instructions on how to use the keywords - click here.
Leo, this month has the makings of a very nice holiday season for you, in spite of tension around the fixed signs like your own--particularly if you work it right. Jupiter is in your 4th house of home and family, and this is undoubtedly a home and family oriented season for most folks. From Thanksgiving onwards, there is usually plenty of social emphasis on that kind of thing, and Jupiter beams favorably on all these kinds of activities.
Meanwhile, Neptune will be joined by Venus in Aquarius in your 7th house of relationships from December 16 on. The 7th house relates to how we function with other people in general, and with our significant others in particular. Neptune here may have been causing some tension since 1998, and it will probably cause some more before the end of next year. (The transit itself doesn't end til early 2012). Neptune in general has been trying to get you to function in a more spiritual manner with others, and it will continue to do so. Nothing wrong with that in and of itself, but doing so takes a lot of conscious awareness of others as separate human beings with their own lives. Leo's gift happens to be just the opposite, trying to get others to be aware of them!
This is the general drift of things whenever a planet transits your opposite sign--it's working with the energy opposite to the one natural to your own sun. That gets annoying and tiring from time to time, and sometimes it brings out qualities in our partners that we need to develop in ourselves. For example, Leo often likes to be organized, Neptune likes to be disorganized. Having Neptune oppose your sun sign often means a struggle to balance competing qualities, as in learning not to be overly organized, or learinng how to cooperate with others who are less organized. Things like that.
Leo, as a fixed sign, and Aquarius as another fixed sign, sometimes bring out situations when they're activated that cause us to want to be very stubborn about our own ways of doing things, right at the moment when other people feel like being equally stubborn.
But all that kind of push-pull will hopefully get nullified by the softening influence of Venus come mid-December. We love Venus for that reason, it makes cooperation so much easier. It's easy to love your sweetheart when Venus transits your solar 7th house, and sometimes it's easy for them to love you back. In fact, it's a great month to be nice to people all around, be conscious and loving and attentive, spend some quality time with the significant people in your life, not just family. It's all very much in line with the spirit of the winter holidays that most of the major religions in the US celebrate.
And that's all you have to do really, is be conscious and not run on auto-pilot or be too excessively self-absorbed. I'm encouraging the other signs to be nice to you, too--after all Venus and Neptune being in the same sign for a while is a nice influence. So if you stay conscious and grateful, and think more about your blessings than all the incredibly multiplying items on your to-do list, you should have a great time.
For keywords you can use to customize an alternate interpretation- click here. For instructions on how to use the keywords - click here.
VIRGO: AUGUST 23 - SEPTEMBER 22
Virgos continue to be molded by a complex set of planetary factors this month. Saturn in Leo continues to roil around in your solar 12th house of stuff in your unconscious that you can't quite put your finger on. Meanwhile, Neptune in your solar 6th, the house most associated with your sign, is busy dissolving stuff that may be important to you, whether it's your job, your health, or your daily routine. Uranus in your solar 7th continues to be active doing goodness knows what to your relationships right now, while Jupiter in your solar 3rd, and Mars in your solar 9th are trying to figure things out.
Put it all together and there may be times when you feel like your life is falling apart. It kind of is, and its possible that your holiday activities this year won't go as smoothly as you'd like, although to be honest, it's kind of hard for holiday activities to ever go as smoothly as a true Virgo would actually like. Virgo standards tend to be a bit high, and this does lead to the occasional Virgo mental breakdown somewhere between Thanksgiving and Christmas even in the best of years.
But there's no way I'm going to encourage you to have a mental breakdown this year. There's no need for it, and hopefully with all the transitions the universe has been putting you through over the past few years, you don't have the energy anyway. Skip the high standards this year, go with the flow and don't worry about it. It's all kind of meaningless anyway, when you think about it, whether things get done right or they don't get done right, or they don't get done at all. What really matters, actually, is your own capacity for understanding. As a Virgo, you have a huge capacity for understanding, whether you know it or not. You're very compassionate underneath it all, and with Uranus and Neptune working their magic on you, getting more so all the time.
Spend this month being all warm and cozy with the people you like, and even the ones you don't like but need to get along with anyway. Burrow, snuggle, cocoon, enjoy the deliciousness of the approaching winter season (if you live in the northern hemisphere, or enjoy the approaching summer if you live in the southern one), have a good time, and don't even try to take a leading role in everything if you don't want to. Or maybe even if you do. This is a great time of year and all you have to do this month is enjoy it. You can go back to running the show in an organized Virgo manner later, when the planets are in a better mood for it. But not this year. This year, just let it all happen.
For keywords you can use to customize your horoscope - click here. For instructions on how to use the keywords - click here.
LIBRA: SEPTEMBER 23 - OCTOBER 22
So Libra, your ruling planet, Venus, starts out the month transiting your solar 4th house of home and family, and then come December 16, it moves into your solar 5th house of love and fun. Those are a pretty wonderful couple of places to host your ruling planet at the end of the year.
When Venus enters Aquarius, and your solar 5th, it will join Neptune in that sign. Neptune's actually been there since 1998, and it's possible it's brought a romantic love affair or two your way in that time period, or that it will before it leaves in 2012. Well, I hope it does anyway, if you need one, 14 years should be long enough for any planet to bring romance into your life.
There's more to this planet than love, kids, creativity, and romance though--the traditional factors associated with the 5th house. There's something much deeper at work here and you get a great chance to work with this energy when your ruling planet joins the party mid-month.
Here's what's up. Libras have a fundamental problem with the notion of attention for themselves. They want it, as most people do, and yet it scares the heck out of them, makes them uncomfortable, awkward, excited, and sometimes dysfunctional. The sign of Libra naturally wants to throw the spotlight on others and sometimes it will accidentally and obsessively do so even when it is craving the spotlight itself. It will listen to other people's problems even when they clearly don't have any and are just taking advantage of Libra good nature. It will be excessively nice and just refuse to garner or accept the attention it deserves. Consistently.
Neptune in Aquarius aims to very gradually change that. Libras want to 'be somebody,' be recognized, just like everyone else. Neptune in the the solar 5th is trying to gradually develop their ability to do just that, and to stop disappearing into thin air every time a legitimate opportunity to 'be somebody' comes along. Add Venus to the mix mid-month and suddenly the notion of attention for Libras gets a double dose of power.
Your assignment this month Libra is to go to an adults only holiday party, get very drunk, and then go suddenly running through the room shouting at the top of your lungs "I AM SOMEBODY!!!"
Just kidding. That's totally optional. No, your assignment is to internalize the notion that it's perfectly okay for people to pay a lot of attention to you, and then allow them to, since from mid-December on, a lot of them want to anyway. And you know, if you're single, and some of that attention comes from another single person of your very favorite sex...well, you darn well better go with it. That's all I can say.
For keywords you can use to customize your horoscope - click here. For instructions on how to use the keywords - click here.
SCORPIO: OCTOBER 23 - NOVEMBER 21
For many cultures, this solar month is supposed to represent a simultaneously festive and spiritual time. Pagans, Christians, Jews, and Muslims all celebrate winter holidays that hopefully work both to dispel winter gloom and to remind people of some of the deeper values in life. Probably other cultures do as well.
This ties in well with our spotlight planet of the month, Neptune, which is all about the spiritual. It just so happens to be transiting your solar 4th house these days, and has been since 1998. It will continue to do so until 2012, which gives you a clue that this planet doesn't work all that quickly. It's relevant this month though, since the 4th house, although traditionally thought to signify home and family, is also a house that represents the innermost soul.
Neptune in Aquarius has been gradually pushing you to make some radical departures from your roots, your old ways of life, into something or some things that fit your own personal soul pattern better. How's that for a vague description? Well, that's Neptune for you; it's nothing if not vague.
Neptune here in Aquarius is actually squaring your own sign and all that vagueness can cause a bit of tension. Some Scorpios have gotten awfully darn tired of vagueness by this point and would like to have a considerably clearer idea what the heck their soul wants them to do and how it expects them to feed the family while they're doing it. It's pretty normal for that feeling to arise at some point when dealing with this transit.
I wish I could tell you the answer to that, if you're still waiting for it, but, alas, I can't. I have no actual idea what your soul wants you to do. I only know that the activities of this month are likely to activate this Neptune thing at some point. I know this is disappointing, because it would all be so much easier if someone would just tell you, either what to do, or what it is your soul craves. Unfortunately perhaps, however, it appears you are going to have to craft your own life, from the very fundamentals up, without my sage advice or anyone else's. Meanwhile, this month there are five planets and an asteroid in fixed signs, all arguing with each other about the soul meaning of everything, making it almost impossible for a fixed sign person like yourself to sort it all out. So don't!
Make use of another meaning of Neptune--escape! Winter vacation! Holiday travel! Getting out of Dodge. Blowing off steam. Having some fun! Even though about half the planets and asteroids used most often in astrology will be trying to bug you this month, you do not have to cave in to their nebulous whining. You can figure it out later. Next year maybe. For this month, just adopt a good solid Scorpio attitude and say screw it! I don't care how I feel, I'm going to have a great month anyway. Nobody argues with Scorpio when it makes up it mind on things, and maybe, just maybe, the planets won't either.
For keywords you can use to customize your horoscope - click here. For instructions on how to use the keywords - click here.
CAPRICORN: DECEMBER 22 - JANUARY 19
So Capricorn, I coud talk about the spiritual meaning in your chart of the season before Christmas. After all, it is the month before your birthday which means some of the astrological bodies, including the sun, Pluto, and Mercury will be transiting your solar 12th house, one which does incline itself towards pondering the deeper meaning of everything, including the religious and family-themed celebrations that begin in the US at Thanksgiving. Uranus in Pisces, and Neptune in Aquarius in your third and second solar houses are somewhat spiritually inclined as well. So I could talk about that.
But I'm not going to. You'll handle the spiritual and solemn aspects of the season just fine. You don't need my help. What I'm more worried about is your finances. You see, the long transit of Neptune in Aquarius, lasting all the way from 1998 through 2011 is affecting your solar second house of material resources. Material resources are important to Capricorns, because part of the reason they're on this planet is because they're good with them. Conserving them, building them, using them, and caring about them. Somebody needs to care about that kind of stuff, and Capricorn is one of the signs that's been assigned that job.
Neptune, however, doesn't give a dang about material resources, and although its transit through your second solar house undoubtedly has some deep meaning regarding a general broadening and loosening of the occasionally tight-fisted Capricorn value system, it does other things as well. Like take material resources away, make you think you have them when you don't, and just generally fog up your financial status on an ongoing basis. You've been living with this for a long time, and you'll continue to do so. You'll manage.
But every once in a while, at least once a year, you need to sit down and figure things out in terms of money and stuff, see what you have, what you don't, what you need, what your plan is, and how you're going to survive. That time is now. Venus, a favorable minor money planet starts the solar month in your own sign, and then moves into Aquarius and your money house mid-month. It will provide the only real help you're going to get in this area, so you need to take advantage of it while it's happening. Neptune in the solar second house is kind of challenging for everyone, more so for a Capricorn, so you need to seize your one chance this year to get a handle on things.
Do your end of year planning and budgeting. With Saturn in your solar 8th house of taxes, it's also a good time to see if there's anything you can do before the end of the year to reduce your tax bite come April. Adjust your retirement accounts. Stuff like that. Getting on top of these things before your birthday will make you feel a whole lot better than me trying to talk to you about the deeper meanings of Neptune and the universe. Forget about deeper meanings for a while and, as Dr. Phil would say, grab your chance to get real about money.
For keywords you can use to customize your horoscope - click here. For instructions on how to use the keywords - click here.
AQUARIUS: JANUARY 20 - FEBRUARY 18
Aquarius, this month we talk about a planet that's been affecting you a lot, off and on, for a long time. If you've experienced some kind of profound spiritual, psychic, or New Agey type awakening in the years since 1998, great. If not, well Neptune in your own sign, the planet responsible for that kind of stuff, will be hanging around you for another 7 years. You've got time.
Right now, Neptune, which has by now become kind of a personal planet for you, what with being not only in your own sign, but in mutual reception with your own ruler, Uranus, is squaring off with a number of the other big players in the planetary lineup--Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn.
On the one hand, this has sort of a mundane kind of meaning. It means simple things like, if you live in the northern hemisphere and the weather's getting cold--well, dress warmly and keep your head covered. I'm not kidding. Neptune is a kind of planet that tries to walk around in the clouds, and it doesn't pay attention to things like avoiding colds and the flu. Saturn in the opposite sign of Leo is exactly the kind of planet that would love to take advantage of that, and get you all sick this winter just to prove the point to Neptune that you've got to be practical about things. So be practical and dress warmly. Don't get absent-minded and think you don't need to take care of your body. You do.
Neptune in your own sign can also make you feel great, loving, in love, bouncing on air. Or it can make you all depressed. It governs aspirations, and its aspirations for you are quite high. Saturn, a planetary nemesis, soon to be opposing Neptune directly (in 2006) is actually here to help you. Saturn helps by reminding you that if you want to attain your high aspirations, you've got to build the structures to support them. If you don't build the structures, the depressing part of Neptune will kick in, which is a life of unrealized aspirations, things that you thought were going to be so great and exciting, but that never materialized or didn't pan out. You don't want that to happen to you.
Therefore, you need to get straight with Saturn, now, while all these planets are in fixed signs, pulling you in different directions, and before Saturn and Neptune start really mixing it up in the middle of next year. Mars and Jupiter are concerned with your family and career, but Saturn itself is interested in your personal life. It's interested in things like whether you are going to remain single if you are currently, or how you are going to deal with your significant other, if you have one.
Neptune is concerned with developing your individual and unique opinions, your intuition, your sense of where you fit into the world at large. Saturn thinks that if you don't have the support of close personal relationships, it's not going to matter what your opinions and intutions are, you won't have an impact on the world at large, because you will end up an isolated crackpot, unable to work effectively with others, no matter how much you have to offer. Saturn can be kind of a harsh planet that way. But it's got a point, even if it does tend to overstate things at times. The point is, you need to build a workable, functional, satisfying personal life if you ever want to make use of your unique and wonderful Aquarian gifts. The planets are asking a lot of you these days. They're asking you to grow in a bunch of different directions at once. The result may be that you don't feel like you're really growing in any of them.
So, let's boil down all these conflicting aspects into one thing you can do this month, besides keeping your immune system up. You can, and you should, talk to your sweetie, your significant other, this month about where you're coming from, your aspirations, dreams, sense of purpose, personal feelings, opinions, vague psychic intuitions, and all the rest of it. Meaningful, sharing conversations. Romantic ones maybe, or ones about commitment and future. Reveal yourself.
If you don't have a significant other, talk about these things with anyone who will listen, because revealing yourself, your growing Neptune self, will help you attract the support you need in the long term. (Saturn is thinking long-term.) You want to do this kind of stuff as much as you can before the middle of next year, in order to build a firm foundation so that when Saturn and Neptune really get into it, you won't be caught in a living nightmare.
Okay, so let's rephrase that more positively. What a great month this is, as Venus enters your own sign on December 16, to get all romantic and intimate and sharing, and warm and cuddly with your best beloved. If you don't have a sweetie, what a great month this is, with Venus the planet of attraction moving into your own sign, to flirt, mingle, party, talk, talk, talk, and try to get a romantic spark going for yourself. Let's rephrase that even more positively. Put yourself out on the line a little bit this month, and people will love you, something you may not even have been anticipating.
For keywords you can use to customize your horoscope - click here. For instructions on how to use the keywords - click here.
PISCES: FEBRUARY 19 - MARCH 20
Pisces, this month we talk about your ruling planet, Neptune, which is currently transiting the house most closely associated with you, the 12th house in your solar chart. While here it is busy spinning glorious and gorgeous fantasies about your future, none of which it is taking any action on whatsoever. While Uranus transits your solar 1st house, and Neptune transits your solar 12th, your life is kind of not your own to call the shots on, for a very long time, several more years at least. Stuff happens, and will happen, and the universe will guide you more than you will be able to guide yourself. That's okay, you can deal with it, you're a Pisces, a mutable sign in harmony with the universe anyway and able to go with the flow.
One of the things that's going on below the surface is that Neptune in the 12th is actually busy tossing out all kinds of things in your unconscious or subconscious that you're not going to need any longer. That partly explains the fantasies it spins. It takes out your accumulated hopes and dreams, looks at them in detail, and then decides, with Uranus' help, that you don't really need them anymore, and moves on. That's why it's not taking any action. It's like an incredibly extended period of mental housecleaning. Others prefer to look at it as Neptune loosening the bonds of whatever your personal karma may be by breaking old patterns. The bottom line is that you don't actually know what your glorious future will consist of yet, or what will bring you the most meaning down the line. The plot line of your personal narrative still has some twists and turns up its sleeve.
But that doesn't mean that you can't cooperate in creating your glorious future, or that you're not already. You probably are. You're probably accidentally letting go of old stuff you don't need, even as you read this. You have an opportunity this month to get a little further down the path. The full moon this month, in Gemini, impacts your 4th house of home and family, your past, your childhood, and so on. Conveniently, this is a very family oriented month for most people, starting with Thanksgiving, and continuing through the Christmas season. So you have a chance to let go of some family stuff this month. You can look at your family, particularly your family of origin, and just gently let go of any ideas you may still be harboring about how things could have gone, or how people could be improved. Any regrets, disappointments, sadnesses, resentments, etc. (most people have them), you can just let dissolve in favor of just seeing how people are now. They're not perfect, I'm sure, your family of origin, because no one's can be, but that's neither here nor there. If you can allow yourself some moments of peace with who they are now, and who you are now, you'll have a nice season, and you'll be a little closer to manifesting your glorious Piscean future, whatever that may be.
For keywords you can use to customize your horoscope - click here. For instructions on how to use the keywords - click here.
NEPTUNE
IN AQUARIUS:SERIOUS
BUSINESS
Neptune has been transiting Aquarius since 1998 and it will continue to do so into the early part of 2012. This placement has been affecting everyone on the planet in one way or another and it is a far more serious placement than a quick glance at planetary keywords would lead you to believe.
Neptune has a reputation for being a spiritual, nebulous, foggy, idealistic, slow-moving planet more concerned with unseen realms than daily life. Aquarius is said to be the sign of humanitarianism and universal brotherhood. They both seem like kind of nice, benign energies. What could possibly go wrong when they get together? In fact, what could possibly happen at all except that everyone could get a little more spiritual and humanitarian? Ah, but sometimes it doesn't pay to underestimate the power of the cosmic cycles these energies represent.
For, you see, Neptune in Aquarius is the placement responsible for the war in Iraq. Since the media keeps telling me the public is increasingly disillusioned with that war, Neptune in Aquarius may not seem like a very good thing at all. Perhaps it is, perhaps it isn't. It is certainly not something to take lightly.
Let's look at how the combined energies of Neptune and Aquarius created the perfect storm that facilitated the US led invasion of Iraq. There was deception, confusion, and deceit right from the get-go. Weapons of mass destruction were not there, intelligence was faulty, lying was done, mistakes were made. All of these are Neptune specialties. The idea was in the air that it would be easy, that an American victory would be fast and painless, even though there were no clear-cut objectives at the time, and no pre-installed exit strategy. What could go wrong, the thinking went. The hope was bandied about that Iraqis would react to liberation by dancing peacefully in the streets, rather than setting off car bombs in crowded civilian areas.
The lure of easy victory was an illusion, indeed, a delusion, and that, for better or worse, is another thing Neptune specializes in. The delusion that things will be easy, when in fact, they will not be. The tremendous sacrifices of soldiers and civilians--more Neptune energy. The chaos and dissolution of an entire social structure, you can't get more Neptune than that, for Neptune is the very planet of chaos and dissolution. The uneasy feeling that perhaps the whole thing was a terrible mistake--that's Neptune too. Even the role the religious convictions of President Bush played is a Neptunian influence, for it deals with matters of faith and religion.
And yet...the underlying reasons for that war were, at root, humanitarian. Not only the humanitarian objective of getting an entire nation out from underneath the horrifically oppressive rule of a very bad dictator, but even more profoundly, the idea of bringing democracy and freedom to people who had no other chance at it. That's the Aquarian side of the equation. President Bush has, on a couple of instances, eloquently articulated the faith that freedom, justice, and equality can be brought to a people, and that this is something worth doing. In true fixed sign fashion, he is sticking to that faith, and not giving up on the enterprise. That's Aquarius.
Indeed, Aquarius is not generally seen as a warlike sign, but it is the sign most willing of all to fight, and to fight very hard, for democracy, freedom, and self-determination. Aquarius never backs down from a war when human liberty is at stake. Is this a good thing or a bad thing? History, I suppose, must be the judge of that. At the moment Saturn in the opposite sign of Leo is reminding everyone that freedom and democracy don't necessarily arise spontaneously from the shards of a broken system, but that an often painful and tedious building effort must take place as well. Saturn in Leo is here to teach us that all freedom is hard work.
But...what does all this Neptune in Aquarius mean to you and I personally? For some I suppose, it inevitably means a confrontation with conviction, to support or oppose the war effort as a matter of conscience. Almost no sign is more conscientious than Aquarius, and the consciences of reasonable people do not always reach the same conclusions. For others, here and abroad, it means heart-wrenching Neptunian sacrifices. Sacrifices that the planetary energy of the month compels us to respect and honor.
For the rest of us, I think it means something profound and complex about human nature. It seems that Neptune, as a prodder of collective and individual human progress, believes that sometimes you and I won't make the effort, won't reach at all for something noble and unlikely, if we aren't tricked into being deluded that it will be effortless. Neptune wants us to reach, reach high, reach for an ideal, a belief, for something meaningful. It wants us to try, even if our initial efforts end in failure and loss. Neptune in Aquarius is an unsettling reminder that progress is often fueled by unrealistic hopes, misguided optimism, muddled motives, and even outright error. Without the influence of something like Neptune, human beings would never explore the reach of their potential.
As we head toward 2006, Neptune is encouraging each and every one of us to explore the reach of our potential in some key area in our lives. Saturn, moving slowly toward inexorable opposition to Neptune by the middle of next year, is encouraging us to remember something equally important. That faith, hope, and optimism by themselves are not enough. That progress in our lives takes work, dedication, and requires good, realistic decisions based on truth, not fantasy. Look closely at the areas affected by Aquarius and Leo in your chart. They will be significant all throughout 2006, and in 2007 as well. Give these placements for your full respect, for they may change your life in more profound and far-reaching ways than you even imagine.
Some additional keywords for Neptune in Aquarius: Global events, dissolution, delusional hopes, dreams and sleep, the perfect storm, group action, generational differences, the karma of the masses, psychic phenomena, soul growth, spiritual truth, subtle changes.
Some Keywords for the 1st house: The identity, self-image, self-centered interests, assertion, spontaneous action, instinctive attitudes, personal enthusiasms, ideals, and goals.
Some keywords for the 2nd house: Money, possessions, ownership, the value system, security, and personal resources.
Some keywords for the 3rd house: Communication, ideas, conversation, daily moods, research, sociability, short travel, mental activity, wit, and humor.
Additional keywords for the 4th house: The past, conditioned responses, the instinctual, emotions, yearnings of the soul, cocooning, subliminal awarenesses, sensitivities, home, and family.
Some keywords for the 5th house: Individuality, creativity, children, lovers, entertainment, self-expression, showing off, and financial speculation.
Some keywords for the 6th house: Helpfulness, service, work, health, illness, and purification.
Some keywords for the 7th house: Marriage, close relationships, rapport, cooperation, and the public.
Some keywords for the 8th house: Memories, sore spots, neurotic complexes, traumas, taboos, unconscious motivations, death, psychic ability, insight, privacy, taxes, and sources of money outside of job-related income.
Some keywords for the 9th house: Beliefs, ideals, dogmatism, self-righteousness, being aware of the value of others, publishing, government, long-distance travel, higher education, and religion.
Some keywords for the 10th house: Authority, worldly success, public reputation, social status, responsibilities, and ambitions.
Some keywords for the 11th house: Life direction, popularity, group activities, hopes and wishes, future goals, social activism, and humanitarian impulses.
Some keywords for the 12th house: Karmic liabilties, religious devotion, the spirit, service, creative imagination, empathy, transcendence, withdrawal, guilt, universal forces, one's inner life, and the sensation of oneness with all things.
HOW TO USE KEYWORDS: The essence of learning astrology is understanding how to mix, match, and blend the concepts associated with signs, planets, and houses to figure out what is or will be affecting you at a given point in time. This takes practice and practice is exactly what you're going to have a chance to get if you use the keywords each month.
Keywords can be used to plan and take action using the month's energies, to explain events or to make predictions. Scan for keywords that seem relevant to situations in your own life. You'll have 3 sets of keywords you can blend, one for the planet discussed, one for the sign it's in and one for the solar house it's transiting. Pick the keywords that interest you most and create your customized horoscope!
For example, if the Sun is in Aries in your solar first house, if you want to plan or take action you might pick the Sun keyword 'power', the Aries keyword 'initiating', and the 1st house keyword 'self-expression' to create an intention for yourself that you have the power to initiate actions to express yourself more fully in ways that you desire. You'll know what 'self-expression' means to you. It works best if you pick keywords that 'speak' to you or that coincide with elements of your life that already concern you. To receive astrological benefits, it's not necessary that you obligate yourself to do something huge - it's only necessary that you take one step in the right direction at the right time. Astrology concerns itself with when things are born, and if you start something at the right time, you're riding on the energy that's already available to you in the universe.
You can also use the keywords to try to figure out if something that is affecting you is 'in the stars'. For example, let's say you find yourself wondering why you're getting drawn into conflicts with people at your church. You scan the keywords and realize 'Aha! The fiery energy of Aries is currently being activated in my 12th house of faith-related matters!' If the energy is uncomfortable, you'll have a gauge as to how long it will be prominent (oh good, it should ease up next month!) or if it's a good energy you'll know which planet to thank!
You can also try your hand at predicting. If you check in at the beginning of the month and notice that your house of friendships is highlighted along with some active planetary or sign energies, you might predict for yourself that you will be engaging in a lot more fun and restorative activities with your friends in the coming month. This is basically what professional astrologers do and now you have a chance to try your own hand at it and compare your results with the pros. Have fun!
NOTE: There are a wide variety of potential keywords associated with each sign, planet, and house. I pick different ones each month to give you an idea of the range from the most common concepts to much more subtle ones. Over time, you'll gain an intuitive sense of what kinds of concepts are associated with each element and you'll even be able to generate your own keywords as you get a feel for each of the signs, planets, and houses. Each keyword also inherently contains its opposite as well. For example, if the keyword 'divorce' is displayed, it doesn't mean you'll get a divorce. But it does mean that if that is a concern for you and something you want to avoid you have an opportunity, while that energy is activated, to take proactive steps to deal with potential problems or head off an undesirable outcome. So you can turn 'divorce' into 'keeping a marriage together' or 'illness' into 'taking steps to get and stay healthy'.
Use your rising sign for better forecasts! Most published horoscopes are based at least in part on transits to solar houses. Solar houses are based on your sun sign and are easy to calculate. Your sun sign is your solar 1st house, the next sign in the zodiac is your solar 2nd house and so on. You can always determine what solar house a planet is in if you know the sign. Simply start with your own sign and count around the zodiac until you reach the sign you're interested in. For example, if you're a Gemini, the sign of your solar 3rd house is Leo. Pisces is the sign of your solar 10th house. Astrologers who publish horoscopes use sun signs and solar houses for several reasons: a) almost everyone knows their birthday; b) they're easy to calculate; and c) they actually do have some effect. However, if you get a personal reading from a professional astrologer, he or she will almost always use transits to your natal houses to give you a reading instead. Natal houses are based on your rising sign, which is determined by the exact time, place, and day you were born. Transits to your natal planets and houses have at least as much effect on your life as transits to your solar houses, sometimes quite a bit more. If you really want to know your chart, and get better horoscopes, you should find out your rising sign (also called Ascendant). If you know the exact time and place of your birth, you can do this for free at a wonderful website - www.astro.com. Click on the link near the top that says 'Free Horoscopes'. On that page, scroll down to the link that says 'Chart Drawing, Ascendant'. Follow the prompts to enter the information concerning your birth time, date, and place. You'll get a chart that shows your Ascendant (the sign next to the designation 'AC'). To the left will be a box listing your planetary placements. Next to the listing for 'AC' your rising sign will be listed along with the degree of your Ascendant within that sign. Make a note of that sign and be sure to check the horoscope and keywords for your Ascendant as well as your sun sign!
TRACK YOUR RESULTS! Next month when you come back here for your next horoscope, take 30 seconds to assess the results of the action you took last month as a result of your horoscope. Did it make you feel better? Did it make your life any better? Did it give you renewed energy or did you find your effort blocked, delayed, or ineffective? Judging your results allows you to assess how responsive you are to a particular planetary, sign, or house energy. For example, some people are very responsive to the astrological Sun just the way some people are very responsive to a sunny day. Other people work better with the energy of other planets. Only by taking a moment to gauge your results can you learn which planets work best for you in your life. You may have an 'afflicted' natal Sun that never does much for you, but a raring-to-go Mars that will help you in a pinch every time. Checking your results each month will give you an increasingly accurate guide as to how to use astrology to enhance your life.
The PRACTICAL ASTROLOGY website provides a free, sequential course in astrology with at least one article each month on a particular element of horoscope interpretation. If you want to see any articles you've missed, or to receive each month's update by email, sign up using the link below. The Practical Astrology website does not share your email address with anyone else and only uses it to provide you with information concerning astrology from this website. Sign up!