Finding Your Creativity in Signs & Houses

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Martialing your Mars in Aries 2020

Heinrich Aldegrever ‘Mars’ from the Seven Planets (British Museum)

Mars has been in the watery sign of Pisces since May 14^th and emotions have been not just been bubbling mildly but reaching boiling point in an explosive emotional way and it has polarized the world, but on June 28^th Mars moves into the Martial sign of Aries and stays there for six whole months. Will this be relief or will it be like throwing gasoline on the fire? During this time Mars will trine any planets you have in Sagittarius and Leo, but it squares those in Cancer or Capricorn and opposes any you have in Libra. This transit of Mars through the warrior sign covers the entire second half of 2020. Fire signs will be even more fired up, especially if you are an Aries sun sign or if Aries is in your first house, but all signs and houses will be affected. But since it is going retrograde in its own sign, it may be worth paying attention to the push-me-pull- you message it is delivering in that area of your life.

The Mars conjunct Neptune June 12th-14th has steamed up the windows so we cannot see clearly and may feel played by what is going on. It feels like the world is drunk on anger and the level of deception and aversion to truth is high. But when Mars goes into Aries on June 26th, it would be time to do and not just talk; not to just follow the trend, but to take a step back and learn to stand on your own and to channel your inner warrior. The lesson of Mars is to treat the life force with respect, embody it in yourself and exemplify it in your deeds, but at the same time, the danger is to feel constantly triggered by news, events and people from your knee-jerk reflexes and not from deeper reflection which is badly needed now more than ever.

Aries is not just the first sign of the zodiac it demands to be first and asserts its right to be the one going ahead for the rest of us to follow. That could be reckless or it could be divinely inspired action, so watching the movement of Mars can tell us where the trigger points happen. Mars is ‘hot’ in all senses of the word. Touch it the wrong way and it burns you. But another kind of hot can be pheromones spiralling out of control, so there may also be super-sexual energy that does not waste time in getting what it wants. Mars is in Aries where the sun is exalted. So Mars serves the higher purpose of the Sun which is the prime creative force and if seen in this elevated mode can bring about the highest expression of its power to bring about enlightened change for the good of all.

Having Mars in Aries is like have a Jujitsu master in town upgrading the training you need for combat and testing out all the split-second reflexes you may need to make best of the energy. If you miss a heartbeat your opponent can have you on the floor- a lesson to be learned from shadow boxing. But if you sidestep and learn a strategy you can keep bouncing on your toes. Periods of moving fast forward will coexist with the need for physical rest and strategic retreat which is as simple as getting a regular good night’s sleep. How you manage to switch between these modes of shooting forward and dodging back is crucial for you to get a handle on this period. This will be especially true during the retrograde period lasting for 66 days starting on September 9^th. The people who move forward fast may need to learn this toggle shift from doing to being, from all action to all reflection. It might feel like you have lost your Mojo, or feel exhausted, but it can bounce back. Reading inspiring books and meditating would be a good way of achieving this to enhance the quality of your state of mind before putting any new plan into action.

Perhaps for the next months we should be more aware of where our buttons are exposed and to anticipate responses rather than knee-jerk react. The irritability factor increases especially when the Mars is conjunct the Moon when moods may shift so fast we don’t realise we are cranking up a rage. That’s usually the people closest to us but also stories promoted by the media. Those dates are 26^th July and August 9^th when Mars is opposite the Moon making it ripe for conflict to flare up from fluctuating moods. When Mars squares Venus also on the 5th September, there could be friction between lovers or just difficulties finding the right balance with social relationships and individual needs.

The best trait of Aries sun sign people is that they may get angry, but they don’t hold on to it, they move too fast for that. But Mars was also the traditional ruler of Scorpio and this is a deeper Mars where the emotion can be frozen to ice and hold itself in that fixed state, unyielding. Rage can be from the ‘ego’ which is Aries, or from the ‘id’ which is more Pluto- the higher octave of Mars.

Bruce Lee, (Mars in Scorpio) Image: http://www.brucelee.com

There are many ways to channel the energy and enjoy the simple physicality of being in your body and actively moving it around- all sports, running, jogging, cycling, swimming, weight training, and definitely boxing, any form of marital art all ruled my Mars. Also fencing, yoga – the Warrior Pose definitely- dancing of any style especially where it requires a degree of physical control. Add massage too, giving and receiving- try Himalayan salt massage as one that kneads the hardest and is painful but it restores lost functions of the nervous system and the Lymph system which does not have any flow of its own. The body basically needs to move just as much as breathe and have water. Movement is vital. When Mars is in Aries would be a great time to start a new fitness routine as the impetus may carry you far towards your goals and keep you motivated to do your exercises instead of giving up. Even if you reel it back in September, you can progress a long way during the summer.

Celebrities with Mars in Aries — celebrities with Mars in Aries

The list of people with mars in Aries hints at how they might lead the pack: Tom Daley Christian Ronaldo, Angelina Jolie, Iggy Pop, Prince, Harvey Milk, Steve Jobs, Walt Whitman, Tolstoy, and many more. It is a strong placement for Mars, depending whether you are their boxing partner or not. Joseph Campbell had Mars in Aries and his work even revolved around the ‘Hero’s Journey’ and the great mythological heroes Jason, Theseus and Hercules- all stand-ins for Ares, the Greek original of the Roman Mars. Mars even has an African manifestation as Shango the god of “thunder, drumming, dancing, fire and male virility. Known for his love of partying, Shango has a ritual dance named after him. He is a master at the drums and the rumble of the thunder reminds us of his rhythmic sounds. Referred to as the “King of Santeria.” What Mars represents is universal to the human psyche.

Shango/Chango http://www.originalbotanica.com

If anger is an issue – and that would be expected given the current turmoil- it will become more so in the coming months. But every time we are triggered is in itself an opportunity to manage it more skillfully. ‘Anger is an energy’ according to William Blake, a line stolen by Johnny Rotten for his song called ‘Rise’. But Mark Twain adds that like electricity it must be used wisely and that “Anger is an acid that can do more harm to the vessel in which it is stored than to anything on which it is poured.” So careful handling of this volatile energy will be needed as anger can be turned in on itself. Frustrations, inhibitions, setbacks and difficulties with authorities could be felt especially during the Mars square Saturn periods and we have already seen the world shake to its foundations, yet there is more rattling to come this year.

At the highest level Mars represents an equivalent to Freud’s concept of Eros, which can be the sex drive for sure, but it is not only that. It is the deep need we have to lay down what Reich called our ‘armour’ – the sum total of all the repressed Mars in the somatic intelligence – and finally be fully in the body, to have it healed and feel ‘chi’ energy flow freely and where we love life to the nth degree. Mars/Eros helps channel the will to live as opposed to the death wish. He is the one who will pull back before we jump off the bridge to end it all. He is the survival instinct that works contrary to death or giving in to oppression. He will fight to stay alive and we need that especially now if we feel under physical attack and whether that comes from imagined health threats we are told make us vulnerable, or from big technology company shenanigans or where we feel public life is not voluntary, or from psychic attackers with their witches brew of toxic ideas. A strong Mars can help you charge up the batteries of your immune system.

We often need to fortify our defenses and who better to help us do that than Mars in its own sign. But this is a power we have to know how to handle or it will burn. The best way to do that is to switch in to ‘get things done’ mode. But if we deny Mars within as well, it can come back to bite us on the backside. People will start acting up like Mars because we have overdone the sweetness and light and become blind to our own hidden aggressions. Mars can be repressed and so turns up in various ways to remind us he is part of us and this goes for both women and men. When Mars is suppressed the end result can be depression which some even define as un-lived anger, fevers, skin eruptions, ulcers, stomach ailments, heart disease and migraines.

If you want examples of this unlived energy, most of J.G. Ballard’s dystopian novels are all recommended as cautionary tales that now read more like current affairs than dysfunctional futures. They are premised on this psychological understanding that people act out violence in ways quite unknown to their conscious selves. They are mostly people doing their repressed Mars. In Crash (1973) people get a sexual thrill out of the crushed metal and broken glass of a car wreck and begin seeking that out to give their lives meaning. Disturbing? Yes, but possibly true. Ballard was a Scorpio. He saw deeply into how people really tick. So this is hugely important to strive to be aware how you are dealing with your inner aggression and drives. These could be well channelled or it could take a passive-aggressive turn and come out as sardonic, bitter words and criticisms.

‘The Inner Planets’ Sasportas and Greene, 1993

Howard Sasportas makes this point well when he says we condemn violence but in the same breath as being fascinated and thrilled by it. Mars has been maligned due to uncomfortable feelings about sex and aggression. This is little understood due to repressive aspects of today’s culture as it is not normally condoned. There is also the phenomenon where we get others to act out aggression we ourselves have denied either in personal relationships or in the collective. Mars in Aries will bring these issues to the front burner and off the back burner, but during the retrograde they might shift back and forth in the house where Mars is in your chart.

How Mars in Aries will Affect you.

Check the house Mars resides in in your chart – on astro.com– to see where that energy pops up. Is it well placed or does it have to struggle? Are you being active enough in that domain? If not then the retrograde period would be a great time to reassess your understanding of whether you are being assertive enough as opposed to being aggressive, or denying it completely. It manifests differently in each house, but is also affected by aspects to other planets.

Mars in the First House

A welcome boost of physical energy may help push you forwards but any fitness regime but come September, it may need to stall in order to be adjusted and reviewed to ensure it is appropriate for your needs and is not harming you in any way. Rest and recuperation is essential to avoid accidents, injuries and impulsivity.

Mars in the Second House

Simple, sensuous experiences, even doing artwork, may give renewed pleasure and help to ground you. But you may need to review your finances and take considered actions to feel really secure about the future but avoid being stubborn, a review should allow you to modify fixed behaviours.

Mars in the Third House

There may be massive proliferation of communications both online and, of among family relations. It’s a great time to start studying a new course but be aware that stating opinions too forcefully can create conflicts and needless arguments. Take time to appreciate the nuances.

Mars in the Fourth House

A good time to reorganize the furniture at home, perhaps with a splash of red or orange to give it an energy boost and try some spicier food. But also it is time rethink who you are in view of your ancestors and review what it is that makes you feel truly secure and in touch with them.

Mars in the Fifth House

This is a great time to romp around with the kids if you have them, and if not, to reinvest your old creative projects with renewed energy. Feeling rejuvenated will feel good, but avoid pushing too fast too soon, and give all the care and attention those projects actually need and then relaunch them when Mars is direct.

Mars in the Sixth House

Time to purify your digestive system of any toxins and get into the details of health and good nutrition. Purge if you need to purge. Learning about ‘chi’ energy can renew healing capacity but do be careful of conflicts with work colleagues or any allergic rashes or irritations that pop up. Rest and recuperation must be equal to pushing forward.

Mars in the Seventh House

It is nice have a partner who is physically fit or encourage them to take fitness seriously. Or at least to seek partners who are decisive and walk their talk so you can sit back and agree. The difficulty here may be that if you sit back too much it becomes a projection disowning your own desire to take charge. Be careful that tiffs and arguments don’t ruin the opportunity to work off energy through diplomacy and/or good love making.

Mars in the Eighth House

Deep and uncomfortable feelings might arise that are not easily settled. Stay with the feelings and work through any problems with shared finances- be the organized accountant there. Be careful that any new sexual and emotional liaisons get out of hand with intense passion. Be the marriage counsellor there. Any therapy you take up might benefit from being physically acted out rather than just spoken to resurface hidden emotions and work them out thoroughly.

Mars in the Ninth House

A renewed passion for ideas, truth, justice and philosophy and spiritual practices may feel welcome to you to intensify your life, but do take care to speak calmly and reasonably and not like you are speaking through a megaphone. No one likes to feel beaten on the head. The truth will shine through on its own without your great powers of sales-speak and inspiring persuasion.

Mars in the Tenth House

This could boost your drive to succeed and you’ll be willing to put in extra efficient work to achieve that status. Gaining recognition is important but it may need careful negotiation with stake-holders as authorities such as the government, police or military may impose draconian measures in which you are complicit or that you resist. Status can have its drawbacks if not aligned with your truer self.

Mars in the Eleventh House

A renewed interest in niche groups and participating in Zoom talks on the internet might become the focus of attention. Social causes and ideologies promoted via hashtags can predominate over more human and individual concerns as Utopian beliefs can seem to be the the ‘only’ right answer. Revise some of these opinions through careful research before giving your total support.

Mars in the Twelfth House

Your dream life can become more lively than your actual life, and you might be feeling trapped by too much isolation and ready to burst out, or the reverse. to retreat even further into yourself. Strict types of meditation such as Vipassana might begin to appeal but take care to express your anger or resentment directly without playing martyr.

‘The Rape of Africa’ David LaChapelle (2009) based on the ‘Venus and Mars’ by Botticelli (1485) A post-coital Mars in repose

Link Tree

Kieron is a London-based and trained astrologer at Proteus Astrology on Facebook:

Natal Chart Readings via Skype with Discounts available– Please just ask.
This is a great opportunity for those who are curious about what a chart reading can do for them and need advice on where to go from here.

Email me on the Proteus Astrology FB page

Or Contact
Eusastro@protonmail.com and you will receive a request form to fill in.

Astrology can help you to understand:

life patterns, purpose and life path
relationships, business and romantic
money, and what it means to you
career issues
personal and spiritual development
vision, hopes and wishes
choices and decisions
planning for the future
health and well being, aligning your energies
stimulating creativity
the best places to travel and live

Featured

The Beardsley Phenomenon

Portraits of Aubrey Beardsley 1:Sepia Print (1890 ) 2: Self Portrait ( 1892) 3: Painting by Jacques Emile Blanche (1895)

It takes some boldness to upstage Oscar Wilde, but young Aubrey Beardsley achieved that. His drawings for Wilde’s play Salome stole the show. They snatched attention away from Wilde himself and though Wilde was generous to Bearsdley, he was not pleased. Sneaky satirical depictions appeared in the drawings of Wilde’s face as a bloated and bleary-eyed moon.

Aubrey Beardsley (1872- 1898) was a spunky character with sun sign Leo, Moon in Aries, and a Capricorn Ascendant. That is plenty of fire to astonish people, combined with practical earth to get the job done. There is little in Air, so he didn’t rationalize much, just went ahead with his plans; and there is little in Water, so he was acutely unsentimental. That made him the standout artist of the late 19^th century and the preeminent illustrator of his age. He defined a period of so called ‘decadence’ while at the same time being one of its main players.

It is curious -but not so curious for astrologers – that Beardsley’s work has resurfaced this corona season. There is a collection of his drawings at the Tate Britain, the first in 50 years, and a TV biography Beauty and Scandal by Bearsdley-fan, Mark Gatiss, of whom more later. The Jupiter/Pluto/Saturn stellium has just transited Beardsley’s Ascendant at 18 degrees of Capricorn, so once again he is being acknowledged as a master of black ink lines. In fact Saturn was exact on this degree three times during 2019 probably during its planning, and Beardsley’s chart completed a fifth Saturn Return. This is mind-boggling when you consider that he did not even reach his first Saturn Return.

I have not given any thought to Beardsley for decades but as a student did a study on his work, and in the month that Venus goes Retrograde in Gemini, here I am writing about him again, so there is a ‘blast from the past’ retro art feel to Beardsley popping up again. Beardsley’s North Node is at 8 degrees of Gemini. And though the exhibition ends May 25^th, Venus will reach that point on 13-14 June and again on July 8-9^th so these days may be retweets of interest in Beardsley to punctuate why he resurfaced in the first place.The day the exhibition began, March 4^th , Venus was conjunct Beardsley’s natal Neptune in Aries. What is new is that since the lockdown this exhibition has had to go online only- very Venus in Gemini, perhaps the first in a series of transfers from the 3D experience of an exhibition to the audio-visual via the internet. His Mercury is well placed in Virgo along with Venus, so the finesse of his artistic technique is on display, as there is an economy of line as fine as needlework in his artistic style. And Venus indeed is the esoteric ruler of Gemini which equates to love of knowledge and learning but also artistry through the hands.

*How King Arthur Saw The Questing Beast* Aubrey Beardsley (1894)

His drawings in pen and ink that require a detailed eye and a precision of execution that he clearly mastered. What’s interesting too is that a Leo sun sign illustrated the typically ‘heroic’ narratives and struggles: Seigfried, Perseus, Tristan, King Arthur, and even Salome is a side story in the eventual death of Jesus. It appeared that he zeroed in on stories that are archetypes of the sun and borne out of solar cult traditions.

But also his death reminds us that Beardsley died of a long-standing respiratory disease, Tuberculosis (TB), the aerobiology of which is difficult to stop. To set it in context and as a reference to actual deaths, there were 1.5 million deaths worldwide from TB as recently as 2018. It is a bacterium not a virus and was once called ‘the plague of plagues’. It is as though Beardsley has come back to remind us of this and to keep perspective. In fact, a new study has just revealed that incidence of TB increases due to prolonged lockdowns as the focus is in the wrong place and there’s no access to treatment. So TB proliferates exponentially up to 150 times more than Covid deaths. These dangers we have yet to face. Back in 1898, TB was thought to be incurable and treatments were unavailable. Warm climates were suggested and those helped, but to this day it is still resistant to drugs. Towards the end of his life, Beardsley complained of the endless daily creaking of his lungs. He was 25 when he died.

Drawings from Salome Aubrey Beardsley (1894)

With a career of barely six years, he worked super-fast as he knew he was dying of TB. His ambition and eye for an opportunity kicked in early when he was bold enough to visit Edward Burne-Jones’ studio in Fulham. Burne-Jones famously said Beardsley had the talent to be a great artist and praised Beardsley’s work. Young Aubrey did not lack confidence to promote himself to publishers and to Oscar Wilde himself aged only 20 when he heard about the play Salome needing an illustrator. He had an eye for the opportunities and seized them fast.

With Saturn on the Ascendant in its own sign we would expect a disciplined master of his craft and have a heightened awareness of how he appeared in public so he was a dandy in his clothing style, wearing elegant suits, now imitated by Drag Kings, and he claimed to draw only at night to two Ormulu (an amalgam of Mercury and gold) candlesticks. All this added to the PR. It produced the desired electrifying Beardsley-esque effect that he wanted. His women seemed to not care about men which was new and different. The sinuous lines combine with funky-little details; and the purity of technique, its lack of sentimentality, sits strangely at odds with the impurity of content as Stephen Fry says. Beardsley’s Mars and Uranus together in Leo loved sparking a spitfire drama, and Beardsley loved to provoke scandal and was thrilled by it. The stellium of planets in Leo include Mars, Uranus, Jupiter, and the Sun. It’s as if he saw the world as a stage for him to play on, so he made a startling cameo entrance in life and in London, and then a quick exit. Cue stupendous applause.

*The Wagnerites* Aubrey Beardsley (1894)

His style was uniquely his own, but there’s a thoroughly absorbed understanding of the flat shapes, use of negative space and bold linearity of Japanese Shunga ‘Erotic’ woodcuts. These incidentally flooded into Europe for the first time in the 19^th century. The event that triggered Japanese art into Europe came during the same period that all the Asteroid muses were discovered 1854-1863. To say the Japanese aesthetic had a major influence is an understatement. He made it his own influencing artists such as Austin Osman Spare.

Even the first retrospective of Beardsley’s striking black ink drawings at the V&A exhibition in May 1966 caused a sensation with some drawings being withheld and said to be pornographic. The Sun and Moon were both in Taurus and Jupiter was at 01 of Cancer in its exalted position, perhaps explaining how this triggered a Beardsley revival. He was revived from the history books. Venus was in Aries transiting over Beardsley’s natal Moon/Chiron at 14 degrees. His style is still modern- very sixties- and in its unflinching gaze at the world – it satirized his subjects, but it was but also elegant, razor-sharp and sexually free.

Natal Chart Aubrey Beardsley 21 August 1872 (astrotheme.com)

The muse asteroids are worth checking in the life of any artist. Thalia is the muse of Comedy and Cartoonists and she is conjunct Beardsley’s Ascendant at 26 Capricorn. Beardsley was definitely a Satirist, and hardworking one at that, commenting maliciously on the morals of his age. His detachment was complete from all he observed as he never had a relationship and was thought to be asexual and/or celibate. So it is very apt that Thalia is so prominent. His was a comic genius that was able to disturb as much as entertain. At the same time the other muse that jumps out in this chart is Terpsichore associated with dance and the body is the signature muse for all bodywork practitioners including sex workers, and Beardsley delighted in depicting the human body, often in its grotesque proportions to the point of being obscene. Terpsichore is on his MC at 22 degrees of Scorpio the sign associated with sex and death. He was able to pinpoint human foibles in a way that pushed the limit. No one had gone as far as he did since Greek vases outlined satyrs with gigantic penises.

Vera Historia by Aubrey Beardsley (1894)

I rarely overlook the death of an artist, not out of morbid curiosity, but to examine what the astrological correlations are. Plus, I felt his death contains a message. When Beardsley died in Menton on March 16^th in 1898, Pluto/Neptune in Gemini opposed his Mars/Uranus in Sagittarius. That is quite potent enough to trigger a farewell to life, but just to add n the locational map for Beardsley Mars/Uranus are close to Menton, near Nice, in Nice, south of France. The Pluto line divides up the whole of France and crosses his Saturn line just north east of London. The North Node also was conjoining his Ascendant in Capricorn and thus South Node on the descendant in Canvcer hinting at karmic pasts- he had completed his task on Earth.

Mark Gatiss in ‘Beauty and Scandal’ BBC4 (2020)

So why is that Mark Gatss has put together an assessment of Aubrey Beardsley called Beauty and Scandal? No surprises really as they are both lovers of the grotesque. Who can forget the bizarre League of Gentlemen TV series which was as dark as humour ever gets? Beardsley said“I have one aim – the grotesque. If I am not grotesque, I am nothing.” He claimed that is exactly how he saw people so for him that was realism. Gatiss has also made several documentaries on the history of Horror films, all worth a look as he is something of a connoisseur of the twisted and macabre. His muse asteroid Melpomene, muse of tragedy, resides in Scorpio conjunct this Mercury- so he goes happily into darker territory than most. His Jupiter conjuncts Beardsley’s Mars Uranus in Leo. So I see this as allowing him to be the promoter, expanding Beardsley’s reputation even more.

So again Beardsley is spiralling back to us now for several reasons: the Saturn Return emphasis on his Ascendant at the Pluto/Saturn point, that he was an Illustrator’s illustrator; his death is a reminder, lest we forget, that some diseases are even deadlier than Covid; and the very Venus-in-Gemini emphasis that art exhibitions have have to go online and the guest book is now an interactive chatroom. But all this is not to forget the sheer skill, technique and artistry of a young upstart from Brighton who had the nerve to challenge Oscar Wilde- and that can be celebrated while we are still at home obsessed by images on screens.

*Head Piece for Le Morte D’Arthur* Aubrey Beardsley (1893)

Link Tree

Kieron is a London-based and trained astrologer at Proteus Astrology on Facebook:

Natal Chart Readings via Skype with Discounts available
This is a great opportunity for those who are curious about what a chart reading can do for them and need advice on where to go from here.

Email me on the Proteus Astrology FB page

Or Contact
Eusastro@protonmail.com and you will receive a request form to fill in.

Astrology can help you to understand:

life patterns, purpose and life path
relationships, business and romantic
money, and what it means to you
career issues
personal and spiritual development
vision, hopes and wishes
choices and decisions
planning for the future
health and well being, aligning your energies
stimulating creativity
the best places to travel and live

Featured

The Magic of Magnets

Playing with Magnets: Part 1

So we are in enforced lockdown where people are being shamed for even walking the dog. But stuck in four walls people can get easily very antsy and not know what to do with themselves. Why not play with your magnets? It beats banging your head on the walls?

Magnets polarise energy and remind you there is a north and south to everything- a beginning and an end. Just like politicians they come and go. There is a turnover. If you split a magnet, where it is cut becomes the new north or south depending which end it is. Magnets are heavy but you can feel a magnet pushing and pulling. It sensitizes you to energy you cannot see but you can observe and feel. A magnet has a field of energy around it which splays outwards like an elliptical halo on both sides. There is a zero point where the splay stops and then it reverse swings to the other direction. Magnetic energy is fundamentally linked with electricity just like space and time bend each other, magnetism has an electrical charge and electrons have a magnetic charge. This creates the electro-magnetic field.

Playing With Magnets Part 2

Our bodies also have a bio-energetic field so magnets remind us this energy is invisible but at the same time very powerful. All Qi practitioners know this and become vessels for this flow. They practice Qi Gong and Tai Qi to become more aware of how energy moves in and out of the body. Emotional Freedom Technique taps on those meridians using a technique of identifying the words that programme the psycho-somatic problem and help to unlock its baleful effects. EFT practitioners also know that energy flows along meridian lines and tapping key acupuncture points is a way not only to increase the right/left hemispheric balance of your body but also get instant relief.

Here in the videos Parts 1 and 2, I demonstrate how just playing with magnets can realign your energy and it could be feeling frazzled at the moment while in lockdown. First, I show feeling the push and pull, then the cycle pedal, then above and below, sausage roll style nd top spinning. This is done just by whirling the magnet above it and moving the energy. Simple things can trigger an awe at the universe and its mysterious workings.

Astrologers say Venus represents attraction so like one end of the magnet, and Mars is the propulsion, so it is at the other end. Very broadly speaking Venus is Yin to Mars’ Yang and as the Yin-Yan symbol shows it is not static but whirling. The black dot is emerging inside the white petal and the white dot inside the black petal is surfacing and this is a never-ending cycle. It is in constant dance. What this means is that there are permutations. There you have an integrated dynamic that cannot really be separated. Venus and Mars exist as archetypes in both males and females. Venus and the 2nd house are said to attract money, making some people money magnets.

Cole Porter once said in song that ‘a man chases a woman until she catches him.’ Who is chasing who is never clear. In same-sex love there is still a dynamic whereby the attractor and attracted is either fixed in stone, or the partners shift roles and one is more in the lead than the other. I have definitely seen that when Venus and Mars are conjunct in the natal chart or by synastry with a lover- the level of sexual attraction is through the roof. This frisson would exist even if Venus and Mars are in 180 degree opposition. The Sun linked to the Moon as well can create powerful attraction if one person’s Sun is on another’s Moon, or in opposition. The effect operates much like a magnet-locking people together then propelling them apart. Who has not experienced that attraction-changing-to-repulsion-and-back again cycle within intimate relationships? The makeups follow the breakups and this tension sometimes maintain the opposing forces in a state of equilibrium – or not as the case may be. Divorce after all is as useful an institution as marriage and just as necessary.

There’s no doubt there is a push and pull going on in all types of relationship whether at work, with friends or with partners. The Sun and Moon in a chart also carry a lot of attraction, where opposition or intense attraction is indicated.

The Sun and Moon do a dance for us every month from the new phase where the moon is dark to a full moon when it is at its brightest and a super moon when it is closest to the Earth. There are eight moon phases where light on the moon goes from right to left: 1) New Moon, 2) Waxing Crescent, 3) First Quarter , 4) Waxing Gibbous, 5) Full Moon, 6) Waning Gibbous 7) Last or Third Quarter 8) Waning Crescent. It returns each New Moon in opposing signs in approximately 27 days. What we often take for granted is that these phases are only visible with the interplay of the light of the Sun, so it is a Sun-Moon dance. Eclipses are a bit more unusual.

A Lunar eclipse is when the Earth comes between the Sun and Moon causing the moon to be in shadow and when the Moon shadow covers the Sun it causes a Solar eclipse. There are six eclipses in 2020 only some of which will be dramatically visible. The one on June 21st will be the one to watch as it coincides with a new moon solar eclipse and when the biggies- Jupiter, Saturn and Pluto are back together within 5 degrees of each other.This will be mostly visible across Africa, Pakistan, Northern India and China.

The Dance of the Planets – the Sun, Mercury and Venus: Ferguson’ (1771)

Following these Sun-Moon phases in our chart helps monitor our progress and development from seeding to fulfillment. From the germination phase during waxing, towards fullness and then consolidation and absorption periods in readiness for the new cycle during waning. These extreme points are accompanied by dramatic eclipses. The North Node and South Node are points in the sky at the intersection of the Sun’s apparent path. These points in your chart are said to be magnetic too. If for example you have Venus there or Mars, or even Pluto it could mean you have inexplicable powers of attraction, Pluto on a deeper level than Mars. This would also be true of any Scorpio and the 8^th House placements.

The 2nd House ruled by Venus is said to be a money magnet too, and J.P Morgan, while not having Jupiter there, has a stellium of planets in the 2nd House. Where the North and Sound nodes are in the chart can be magnetic points. This nodal dance reminds us of the dynamics of opposing archetypes and they appear to do the magnetic push and pull. Mercury appears to have its intertwined positive and negative signals representing its dualistic nature, but it does its own dance with the Sun when it goes Retrograde a few times a year.

J.P. Morgan ‘The Man Who Bought the World’ Apollo Magazine (2015)

There is even a theory of astrology that gives magnetism a fundamental place. In 1988 Dr Percy Seymour noticed that as an astronomer it became useless to attempt to explain astrology using the theory of gravity. He realized the usual theory that planets influence the earth by their gravitational field did not really fit the phenomena. He proposed a new idea that magnetism from the sun aligns in a holistic way with harmonics, genetics and neurology.

Whether Seymour’s notion that planetary influences form an electromagnetic field or not, and we may never know, but even so, developing your awareness of magnetic attraction and repulsion can trigger some beneficial effects:

1) it can amplify your sensory receptivity and awareness of sensations.

2) it allows you to open and focus your mind at the same time.

3) it helps to distill your mind to its essential parts.

4) increases your understanding of natural forces in nature.

5) increases awareness of your personal bio-energy.

6) alerts you to how Qi flows through your body’s meridian lines.

7) helps to rebalance your bio-magnetic field.

Korean master Ilchi Lee expresses this very well in his videos. He calls himself a brain educator for Earth citizens and uses magnets to illustrate this natural process of attraction and repulsion. He does this in a gentle, soft and simple way that even children can get. From Lee it is easy to see how understanding brings acceptance of change.

This dance that magnets make can seem like a door closing. As T.S. Eliot said in Little Gidding “What we call the beginning is often the end. And to make an end is to make a beginning. The end is where we start from.” For me the main thing playing with magnets teaches you is that it demonstrates clearly that we are more than just our physical bodies. There is invisible energy beyond the body that directly impacts us. Interesting to is that the North and South Poles do not align exactly with the Magnetic Poles. Changes to the earth’s magnetic field can also disturb the intricate balance of nature as when increases of the use of radar and intensification of telecommunications technology, this can have an effect on health of people.

People also talk of the Schumann resonance which is a pattern of spectrum peaks in the earth’s electro-magnetic field first predicted in 1952. Our heartbeat creates its own electro-magnetic field as the Heart-Math Institute have shown. But our lungs too and all organs generate a field of energy that radiates outwards from the core. Increasing awareness of the magnetic push and pull helps us to understand all this and avoid following a narrowly reductive model of the world, and challenges the supposition that is all-too firmly entrenched that only physical is real.

Link Tree

Kieron is a London-based and trained astrologer at Proteus Astrology on Facebook:

Natal Chart Readings via Skype

This is a great opportunity for those who are curious about what a chart reading can do for them and need advice on where to go from here.

Email me on the Proteus Astrology FB page

Or Contact
Eusastro@protonmail.com and you will receive a request form to fill in.

Astrology can help you to understand:

life patterns, purpose and life path
relationships, business and romantic
money, and what it means to you
career issues
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choices and decisions
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Featured

Finding your Creative Signature in Houses and Signs

Now that we are mostly in enforced quarantine at home due to a whole lot of of March madness, it can bring surprising opportunities. One is the quietness can allow the urban noise to dispel to reveal that nature has been there all along- the birds are still singing and the trees blossoming ready for Spring and the Astrological new year March 20th.

Another blessing is that may be able to have time from your day-job slavery to return to that project you forgot about months ago. Mercury is now back in Pisces which is foggy, but it very clear that neglecting your creative inklings may not be good for overall mental and work-life balance. This forced break from the working routine, with many having to work from home, can open a window into that world where there is an increased sense of urgency about what you might do with your time.

Provided you are healthy, this is great for artists and budding creatives. It could be the very antidote needed against the global panic over a certain family of viruses. How many of us have unpublished novels, a poem or a song that used was thrown in the bottom drawer, but is now probably lost on a folder you have forgotten the name of on an external hard drive. Any paintings or artwork can be picked up once again. Take advantage of this time by refreshing your mind about the creative DNA that lies in your personal chart- which planets and aspects point to your artistic inclination. And are you in touch with your inspiration, namely the muses? Or, are you struggling to hear their distant whispers?

Creative Signatures

First off there is the definition of ‘creative’ to get out of the way. There is an energy around it, a buzz that must come out somehow, and whatever form it takes, full blown art, or modest, or somewhere in between, it brings something into being by your tapping into the imaginal realm to produce an artefact of some kind. If you believe creativity is only for full time artists, you may be overlooking how your imagination is actually creating scenarios in your life all the time, but have you harnessed that and directed it? Don’t dismiss that modest hobby you have as not being professional enough as the point of it is that it channels your creative impulse into constructive activity so – cooking, DIY, water colour sketches, doodles on notebooks, montages, party organising, decor, keeping a diary – all of it is good.

There are many signs of creative urges in the natal chart. Venus is prominent as queen of the Visual arts in Taurus and arbiter of taste and interior decor in Libra. Mercury is often thought of as the ‘writers’ friend’ with good reason. It gives dexterity and skill to juggling with words or doing hand crafts. Yet combine Venus with Mercury in a conjunction and the talent enhances that eloquence, that beautiful way with words. T.S.Eliot wrote complex poetry but was one of the best loved poets during WW2. He had a Venus-Mercury conjunction on his Ascendant. Maya Angelou also had this conjunction and pleased the world with her heartfelt words. Leonard Cohen had two artistic heavyweights Venus and Neptune conjunct in the 12^th house and so he was inspired and inspiring to many. He appeared to be stimulated by seclusion on Hydra, a Greek island with no cars, and as a monk. But also his Sun was conjunct muse asteroid Erato and he wrote love poetry inspired by the women in his life. out of deep seclusion.

Another radiant signature of creativity is the Sun as this is the life force itself, the light you beam into your simple hobbies and creative pursuits. Where the Sun is can tell you a lot about what you could create. In Leo the sun is strong, and often front of the stage, playing out scenes in the repertoire and getting people’s attention. The Sun manifests through all the signs as the carrier of purpose. Also, the Moon which gives intuitive promptings and the primary energy to imbue artwork with a nurtured feeling as if cultivated in the allotment. Then there is Neptune which is the ocean of the imagination, the depths which can drown you, but also carry you on its mysterious tides on to a shore that is productive of artwork.

Combinations and aspects of the Sun, Mercury, the Moon, Venus and Neptune are prominent in the charts of artists. Often overlooked is Saturn which gives constructive skill, and a sterner edge to what is created. Pluto too lends visceral and transformative power to any work, making something small into something big and vice versa. The ground is deep. An additional layer are the muse asteroids which can indicate which genre your creative energy takes, whether it is love-inspired (Erato) , or inclined to historical topics (Klio), or about the body (Terpsichore), or scientific and astrological ( Urania).

The Creative Houses

It is often said that the planets are the actors and their field of activity are the houses. So the houses are the stages on which the actors – the planets- play out the script. Therefore the signs are the interpretation, the manner in which the energy is revealed in life. So which houses are the most creative? The problem lies in the question, how it is framed. If you say the ‘most’ you may miss the less visible types of creativity that are also vying for attention. They too need to be acknowledged. and needing to be acknowledged. There are houses that stand out as obvious candidates: the 2nd ruled by Venus, the 3rd ruled by Mercury, the 5th ruled by the Sun- and these are the stereotypes of ‘artistic’ activity, painters, writers and actors. But there are no un-creative houses. All houses are creative , each in their in their own distinct way. This chart shows how each house has something to offer.

So, for example, in this chart, if the first house is not usually associated with art, but Martial is also an art. The physical body can be trained to a very high level to enact movements of sport and athletics that can also have grace and refinement blended with spiritual force. It can be a lifelong choice. The Fourth House can sometimes be associated with artists, and even writers, but this house governs diarists, archivists, and museum curators- and let’s not forget chefs and restauranteurs – is theirs not also an artistic and aesthetic? This house is of the self, the home (of the soul) and Mexican artist, Frida Khalo rendered an image of herself in almost every painting. She put self portraiture centre stage and has now achieved iconic status. She had Neptune conjunct the Sun in Cancer, so while they were not in 4th house, the overlay of the 4th through Cancer influences the 11th house. Her image is now branded and marketed across the world via the internet.

”Fulang Chang and I’ by Frida Khalo (1937)

So too with the 8th house ruled by Pluto, there is an art to counselling and psychotherapy. The ninth inclines whichever planet is there towards the art of religion, the sacred, theology and philosophical musings perhaps in written form or in speech making. The tenth house, ruled by Saturn, may not be a house connected to any art, but a lot of our infrastructure would not exist without engineers who become architects of buildings. The art of designing buildings includes the shaping of negative space and interplay with the surroundings. Then there is the 11th House, ruled by Uranus. This area can be just as creative as the 3rd and the 5th as Uranus is associated with genius, but it could be a technological flavour, manipulating digital art via Adobe Indesign skills. This can point towards blogging and the internet or being a social influencer- and of course astrologers of a creative bent.

The 12th House is regarded as problematic, shifty and hidden, but it can be among the most creative houses of all. But the inclinations of any planets or the sign resideding theremay not be fully understood or incorporated into the mind-body psycho-somatic mix. These energies may be unconsciously played out unless there are more favourable influences, yet it is ruled by Neptune and that is the planet of the boundless imagination from which a sea of ideas rises up. This fresh way of looking at the houses can begin to signal where your creative urges may lie in a more comprehensive way, uncovering potential under every stone.

Hilary Mantel and the Muse of History

If you see an indication through planets and signs this can be enough, but if asteroid muses are added and their placement is significant, then another more highly specific signature can show up. It offers a more nuanced view of the particular art form. For example, Hilary Mantel has just published the third book in her historical trilogy about Thomas Cromwell to a great fanfare of attention not seen since Harry Potter. ‘Wolf Hall’ (2009) won the Booker Prize and was adapted into a successful TV drama. The second book ‘Bring up the Bodies (2012) also won a Booker Prize. This made her the first woman to win the Booker prize twice. So we might think her signature as a writer is with Mercury, and it is true that her Mercury is in Leo in the 11th sextile to Saturn in Libra in the first so she is a good and balanced storyteller and knows her audience. But the books are historical, and her particular skill is in bringing fresh insight to the circumstances of 16th century intrigues.

Very telling is to locate asteroid Klio, the muse of history in her chart. It is placed in the 4th house- where archiving, history and domestic details thrive. Sure enough, her Sun conjunct Uranus and Venus are all in Cancer -the house of self and the nation she belongs to, in the 10th, but this trio directly opposes Kilo residing there in the 4th suggesting that history might be her main driving force-as she declares she never suffers from writer’s block and has too many ideas. When ‘Wolf Hall’ was published in 2009, asteroid Klio had just transited 5 degrees across Mantel’s trio of Uranus/Sun/Venus in Cancer giving its blessing. It doubled the emphasis as Klio is also known as the native’s ‘claim to fame’ as well as being muse of history, and of teachers. Although Mantel had many readers well before ‘Wolf Hall’ arrived- if she will be remembered in years to come for any achievement, it will be these historical novels.

There are so many factors involved in finding what is creative that no one planet sign or house would ever give you the full picture. It is jigsaw and the pieces may not obviously blend together. If we don’t feel like doing anything, that is fine too, but there is a belief that every single thought we have is creating something in our world, whether we like it or not. Thoughts tend to percolate on the back burner- there is constant activity waiting to burst through to boiling point.

So if the motivation is there, we can get in touch with these whisperings, check the chart, look for the main signatures- they are usually there in the main players in which signs and which houses they are placed- but also check for any extra overlays which may point to a specific type of artwork you might best channel that drive towards doing, making and producing.

Link Tree

Kieron is a London-based and trained astrologer at Proteus Astrology on Facebook:

Natal Chart Readings via Skype and in person

This is a great opportunity for those who are curious about what a chart reading can do for them and need advice on where to go from here.

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Astrology can help you to understand:

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Sessions can also be in person and will include a full recording of the sessions, with print outs of your chart, astromaps, and notes.

Featured

Warrior Mars Enters Executive Capricorn

Whether you are male or female the chutzpah of this energy will get an extra boost when the sun moves into Aries on the 20^th March. The joys of Spring in the northern hemisphere then will shift more into high gear. But before all that, as we swim through Pisces, our goal-shaping can still be sharpened and refined and business acumen may be at a peak from tapping into this Mars in action. It is a great time for finessing daily routines, and perhaps doing more work than usual, as long as it is useful, constructive and efficient work and does not fritter away valuable time. One thing that is hard to do is to just accept things even if they irritate you. There is often some greater purpose that is serves.

Get the ignition key handy and get moving with this push start to your ambitions. If you can manage this along with some shuffling and navel gazing due to Mercury in Pisces then all the better. Put all your energy into organizing the details. Do the step by step logistics of anticipating problems and doing it all with painstaking care that a master of discipline bestows. Get all your plans, papers, systems and processes sorted these next few weeks. The son is working for his dad’s company and getting all the necessary training to eventually take over as CEO.

This acceleration symbolised by the warrior planet may slow down in September when it appears to go backwards in the sky. But that’s not for a few months. It is not going retrograde just yet. Plans may move forward more easily now. Mars will join Saturn, Jupiter and Pluto over the next few weeks so that might be a bumpy ride. It will overtake each on in turn, even crossing the South Node of the Moon.

If this long cycle meeting of the outer planets Saturn and Pluto in the sign of Capricorn is like a council of the elders, sorting the world’s problems, then that is important enough. But it seems all generations are coming to the ritual circle, mythological brothers Pluto and Jupiter, who argued over the daughter of Ceres, and the old daddy Saturn, master of the cycles of time. Jupiter traverses this territory bringing a breezier and less heavy-handed attitude with a bit of guru wisdom. But he can be curtailed by Saturn and Pluto.

Then along comes the young buck to visit everyone and he might get very antsy. It takes a lot of self control for the urban warrior to listen hopefully and take note of what the elders advise. The fact that he is in Capricorn suggests that this time instead of being impatient to leave, or to jump ahead too soon, he will actually listen and something productive may arise. It is a series of learnings for this impulsive streak that might be like a hero’s education. The focus is definitely on the ups and downs of your physical energy so watch out for pushing to extremes and how others might fly off the handle.

Could it all get out of control? Yes, easily, so keep an eye on the road ahead and drive your life with the skill it deserves.

Mars enters Capricorn today February 16th until 30th March.

Mars is out of bounds from February 9th to March 2nd.

Mars squares Chiron February 21st

Mars conjuncts the South Node of the Moon on 25th and 26th February- 6 degrees of Capricorn.

Mars conjuncts Jupiter March 20th at 22 degrees Capricorn.

Mars conjuncts Saturn April 1st at 0 degrees of Aquarius.

Mars conjuncts Pluto March 29th at 24 degrees of Capricorn.

Link Tree

Kieron is a London-based and trained astrologer at Proteus Astrology on Facebook:

Or Contact
Eusastro@protonmail.com and you will receive a request form to fill in.

Astrology can help you to understand:

life patterns, purpose and life path
relationships, business and romantic
money, and what it means to you
career issues
personal and spiritual development
vision, hopes and wishes
choices and decisions
planning for the future
health and well being, aligning your energies
stimulating creativity
the best places to travel and live

Sessions can also be in person and will include a full recording of the sessions, with print outs of your chart, astromaps, and notes.

Venus Retrograde in Gemini: Venus in the House of Mercury

Mariska Veres sings ‘Venus’ in Shocking Blue (1969)

We are approaching a phase of Venus in Gemini where she will retrace her steps as if she has forgotten something in the house of Mercury. To make sense of Venus in everyday life we start reviewing our social connections and what they mean to us: all the people we know and the intricate web of emotional attachments we value as important. But Venus also relates to the world of objects and the internet of things- what we wish to acquire and attract. Put Venus into Gemini -the house of Mercury- and tongues will be wagging about all that we value- a bit of this that and the other- but it will have this purpose, to reevaluate key relationships, which includes to things, allowing us to move on.

Who does not love all things Venusian, beauty, the arts all the finery and razzle dazzle? The morning star form of Venus was known as Phosphorus– ‘the sparkling one.’ She is certainly gorgeous as visible in the evening sky during April. We cannot tell that she revolves West to East the reverse of the Earth. But, as everyone knows, all that glitters is not necessarily real gold. Nor is everything to do with Venus about women alone, as Venus can manifest as a boy, as much as Mars as a woman. So there are anomalies to pay attention to. Her domain covers bonding with girl and boy buddy gangs.

Venus casts a real spell over us all. She can mean lust for money and materiality with a bit of manipulation thrown in. Venus makes us see what we are identified with – is it what we have or who we really are? During the Venus retrograde phase from May 13^th to June 24th -we might be thinking more about which ways we might be more authentic and how we might detach from false values.

Giorgio Vasari ‘Birth of Venus’ (1555-57)

Astrologers say Venus is about love, pleasure and emotional connections, but it is not always romantic lovey- duvvey type love as it can be more to do with personal values, but as Venus in Capricorn shows love is more about status and respectability, working in discreet ways to maintain that. Other styles of Venus are those who use shopping as therapy in place of real nourishment and love sustenance. Venus rules the signs Taurus and Libra in slightly different flavours. In Taurus she is rutting in the field content with being simple, and in Libra she is preening in the mirror checking her colour-coordination. But Venus also represents the fine, and nice things in life that makes it livable.

From April 4^th to August 8^th 2020 Venus is in the sign of Gemini an unsually long time. This means love in the house of communication ideas and learning. This could increase the online chat room activity ten fold. Talkers will come to the fore. Those who love oral satisfaction, for whom a good chinwag is as satisfying as any real meeting, will be in their element. It could see an increase in love-bombers, those hit-and-run lovers who strike using emoticons but are gone before you scratched the surface. But during this time of uncertainty people might feel that cannot handle any deeper entanglement is too much trouble. You want lightweight not heavyweight people this time around. It most definitely will see a rise in verbal dexterity and wordplay. It will more likely be sapiosexual charm that is on full display during Venus in Gemini. Romance as a consequence might be less about the physical than mental stimulation, brain not brawn.

Relationships might also take on the style of a business deal or trade off with flirting online-hundreds of texts back and forth, and a whole lot of chit-chat as foreplay, talking about it before doing it. Then deftly avoiding signing the contract. Take care to speak to your partner with compassion before ending a relationship suddenly as break ups are a feature of Venus Retrograde- likewise new partners and especially getting married are best postponed until July. There might also be a massive increase of shopping online as we have already seen, filling Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos’s pockets even more. But expect delivery to be slow and you will need to be more discerning about what to buy. On the other hand, we may turn away from material goods, and it might drive us to writing poetry or songs which is a useful creative and therapeutic outlet for this energy.

The Venus Retrograde in Gemini 2020 (astroseek.com)

The Retrograde phase will be interesting -no doubt about it- if anyone feels fully the actions of Venus, and they are inescapable, they know how important it is. Those born with Venus Retrograde also tend to know that love doesn’t always come easily but will be the better for wiser choices. This period extends from May 14th to June 26th- six weeks- past the Solstice which is accompanied by an eclipse. Then Venus once again goes direct having finished up her business in Gemini not going into Cancer until August. It is crucial to know your own chart and which house Venus is in to see how this might impact your life, otherwise advice can seem very generalised. You need not only to know where Venus is located, but also where the sign of Gemini is- there are two different pieces of the puzzle. The North Node arrives in Gemini too adding to higher levels of trade and exchange locally.

The easiest example to use is if you have Venus in the 3rd House, it already relates to Gemini and communication, so this period will feel normal. Or, if you have Venus and Mercury conjunct in your chart. It will be even more pertinent for you if you already have Venus in Gemini between 5 -25 degrees. This makes it particularly personal and relevant, giving you a intense drilling over with a Venus return boosted by her Retrograde action. While poets have multiple chart signatures, the poets whom the public most loves stand out. They often have Venus and Mercury conjunct. T.S.Eliot had this placement for example He was named ‘the most loved poet’ in Britain during WWII because his words spoke persuasively to people’s emotions during a difficult time.

how Venus Retrograde in the houses might affect you

If you have Venus in the first house, it would relate to your physical appearance so don’t do anything drastic, just refresh your style; if it is in the second, to evaluate your budget, does income match outflow?; in the third house questions about short online courses, which one suits you best?; in the fourth to reviewing notions of your self or to the nurturer in your family, is that you?; in the fifth to restart your creative projects, and which story you tell yourself about that?; in the sixth to concern about reboots to the immune system at home, the new workplace- is it functional?; in the seventh to realisations of your acts of mirroring with partners, is it working for you?; in the eighth to a reevaluation of shared resources and impulses to transform,how is that going?; in the ninth to a re-connection to a love of wisdom, crazy ideas and philosophies; in the tenth, to a review of your visible status and reputation, is it still what you want? ; in the eleventh, it offers restarts in finding your real tribe, how to proliferate your social media connections, is a cull needed? ; and finally, in the 12th, it will bring a subconscious reprocessing, perhaps with sweeter but complex dreams that inspire poetry, how is being stuck in the house working for you?

A further layer of meaning can come from checking where the sign of Gemini falls in your chart, as Venus will affect those areas of your life. Combine the planet Venus placement with the sign Gemini placement and you can build a more comprehensive picture of how the retrograde season will affect you.

The Dolly Parton Meme Challenge (Oprah magazine, Jan 2020)

Gemini is about communication, interactions, collection of information and getting quickly bored. Facets of self in Gemini and the trend for posting several images of oneself all shown together so Linked In, Instagram, Facebook, and Tinder.The trend was apparently started by Dolly Parton -whose Gemini signature gave the name Dolly to the first cloned sheep. In different photos showed four facets of how people present themselves on social media: the roles they play in work, business, hobbies and the more intimate side. The Tinder photo was the erotic pose – doing their Venus- in contrast to the ones on Face Book and Linked-In, not in birthday but the dark banker suits- doing their Saturn. Some presented themselves as a joke as if to say I do not hide myself behind masks with the same picture in each Platform. Masks themselves are a bit of a lark, well used by criminals, and very Venus in Gemini. They say to the world, I have facets of the self that comprise the whole, and most of us would agree this is true. We can wonder now whether this is duplicity or is it survival instinct that the roles we play for work create a barrier between ourselves and the outside world to protect the more sensitive inner self.

A warning attached to this might be that sweet words sound good but are not always true. Venus squares Neptune May 4^th and May 20^th.So confusion and deceit are abroad in the world, as if we could not already see that. People who are in love with love can be more easily deceived. People come to you the gift of the gab and it is just that- all talk with no substance. We all know that lies and statistics are conflated, and where there is smoke there are mirrors reflecting back to us a mirage of the truth.

Pieter van der Heyden ‘Ship of Fools’ engraving (1559)

The pandemic has thrown people into a terrain where we are all vulnerable to being lead along by what the media tells us is true, when differing stories are in conflict. Venus in Gemini may start questioning all of that. It will bring more revelations to come during May and June. It can trigger continuing reevaluation of all that we know, what’s real and what’s not. This can be a shock, and it is dividing people in new and unexpected ways which could create even deeper rifts in the coming months. But on the plus side it helps you to be sure who is your real tribe and who is not. If an ex-lover pops up again, as is the trend during a Venus retrograde, it may just be that it is to have that final conversation that settles scores but said in a reasonable compassionate way so whatever difficulties passed between you can be signed off once and for all.

It is not useful to talk about Venus without mentioning her shadow side which is not all sweetness and light. She is the queen of Hot as in Erotic, as spawned at her birth was both the god Eros and Hymenos- Love and Desire. Through Venus we get our sexy grove on – we are in touch with our hotness. But hotness can burn. It brings us a lot of fun, but also trouble. The successful ITV show Love Island caught people’s attention but it has its shadow in terms of the mental health casualties. Carol Flack became the third contestant to commit suicide after the show. Desire for love and fame and riches are fine, but rapid exposure in the harsh light of reality TV can produce extreme withdrawal symptoms when it is gone. There is an imbalance, prompting suicides in the contestants. So there is a ruthlessness in Venus that is easy to underestimate. She married Hephaestus and then proceeded to cheat on him as she pleased- not caring whether her lovers were mortal or immortal. So vanity and selfishness, even narcissism where she is shown looking in a mirror is part of her nature. The lyrics of Shocking Blue’s 1969 song go:

Her weapons were her crystal eyes
Making every man mad
Black as the dark night she was
Got what no one else had

This puts at least one of her feet into similar territory of the dark vengeful goddesses Kali and Durga and it is through relationships that we can see the darkness of ourselves. Venus can rule people’s lives without their knowing and undercut their espoused values especially if aspected to Pluto. Remember that it was Venus who encouraged Pluto to go after the daughter of Ceres/Demeter creating deprivation, loss, food shortages grief and eventually the seasons. So go easy and keep a check on all that you value. There is nothing wrong with fun as we all need or creature comforts, we all need to feather our nests. But if you see through the glamour, the artifice and jewellery, there is a darker side to Venus that we would be well to pay attention to, especially during a retrograde. She can be capricious- just because she can. Venus is also out of bounds so playing wild.

The higher octave of Venus is Neptune and this is spiritual love and universal compassion beyond earthly love. So we can aspire to that if we know how to guide the energy. The question during this retrograde is to ask ourselves: do our values match up to our choices? That is tricky to answer, yet all of May and part of June, we may be forced to answer by reviewing what we value.

See the Video Version of this Venus Retrograde in Gemini

Link Tree

Kieron is a London-based and trained astrologer at Proteus Astrology on Facebook:

Or Contact

Eusastro@protonmail.com and you will receive a request form to fill in.

Astrology can help you to understand:

life patterns, purpose and life path
relationships, business and romantic
money, and what it means to you
career issues
personal and spiritual development
vision, hopes and wishes
choices and decisions
planning for the future
health and well being, aligning your energies
stimulating creativity
the best places to travel and live

The Bumpy Ride gets Bumpier: March 2020

When I talked about transits of Mars in a previous post, I said get ready for a bumpy ride as the sun comes into Aries. That’s right about now, March 20th. So congratulations we have made it to this point. But this global panic, crisis and toilet paper hysteria is just a taster of things to come. This is the astrological new year- the zero degree of Aries. It is a reset of the new cycle of 2020-2021. But it has taken everyone by surprise that this past week would be this turbulent, unsettling, or that trouble would escalate so fast and probe right in to our private fears and concerns. We need more than safety belts, we need full awareness, coordination, resilience and adaptability and for the things that will challenge us. The ride may be about to get rockier. It will magnify, transform and solidify, when Mars transits first Jupiter (Saturday, March 20th), then Pluto (Monday March 23rd), and then by the end of the month, Saturn (Tuesday, March 31st). Yes, it sounds exhausting and we need to get used to being jolted out of our focus. One way to do that is to go within first before marching out. Follow the intuitive hints of what your body needs. Take up your nourishing rituals, or regular practice that includes just slowing down, being still, breathing deeper, reciting mantras, doing yoga, meditation, honoring the body via anything that works for you, and yes, that includes having more healthy sex as the inner urge may be there- with this supercharged Mars leading the way.

Being grounded is not a bad thing but the build up of energy will need to be channeled effectively. The energy will be like a combustion engines- so keep a steady head and balance as it peaks two or three times including at the new moon in Aries on the 24th. Mars is sometimes trigger happy, combative and unleashing primal energy in the body and in the world. We can see that happening everywhere. But he may also act like the spiritual warrior here, if we are lucky, calling us to our higher selves and in tune with a more meaningful collective purpose, yet not sacrificing the individual needs that now arise now the sun is in Aries full on.

Transits of Mars in March (astro-seek.com)

The Mars-Jupiter conjunction is at 22 degrees 48 at 11.34 am on Saturday March 20th. This could see a sudden expansion of all the tension in the world, an escalation of talk of a pandemic and resulting of governments acting like the military amping up the sirens of emergency. There could be an over confidence in taking risks. You can say this crackdown is needed to protect against the virus, but it has created an irrevocable internal recognition that ‘things fall apart, the centre cannot hold’ as W.B Yeats’ poem ‘The Second Coming’ says, and as in the late imperial phase of any culture. Being forced to be at home in your bubble can restore the Cancer archetype, home-loving and feeling safe, but it can also make people feel like caged tigers where there is not enough space to breathe. Divorce is already on the rise. Social isolation sounds like a recipe for anxiety and lack of community, but it is just self isolation as people are busy linking up to their online tribes. Saturn is at the difficult degree 29 of Capricorn condensing all the lessons that have accumulated from its time in Capricorn.This is the last we will see an easing off of stellium in Capricorn of Saturn, Pluto, Jupiter and Mars before Mars and Saturn move on in a few days time. Chiron is also conjunct Lillith to add a twist to the unfolding drama.

The Mars-Pluto conjunction follows just a few days later. It is at 24 degrees of Capricorn on Tuesday, March 23rd. It precedes the new moon in Aries on the following day which will be conjunct Chiron so the lesson may be profound. This is another pot hole in the road and could potentially throw us into a powerful tailspin if we do not see it coming and gear up for the vortex of spring Equinox energy. On this transit, the moon has just passed Neptune in Pisces affecting first house stuff, so we could be feeling physically sensitive and aware of every sniffle or sneeze, and it would be good to sense nervousness and peculiar feelings that reside deep in the body at the cellular level. perhaps holding us frozen and stiff and unable to relax – our psychic armour.

One positive that should not be overlooked is that from the Moon/Neptune is sextile Venus in Taurus which also trines Jupiter in Capricorn – this could bring some direct healing benefits into your life. But when Mars is on Pluto, it combines some of the most powerful explosive energies in the world and could lead to political unrest. It could feel heavy, or you might feel paranoid and fearful of food shortages until it becomes clear what is actually happening behind the scenes and how this crisis may have been up to now, manipulated, and from now continue to be used for nefarious purposes.

The reason I am keeping my eye on Mars is that at the end of March, Mars takes a third major bump as it hits against Saturn. The energy surges forwards once again, but this could bring a wackier edge as it is in Aquarius not Capricorn- a more electric style of expression. The traditional rulership of Saturn in Aquarius could mean that Saturn may prevail over Mars as it is no longer exalted in Capricorn. Saturn may show restraint in contrast to that previously turbo-charged Mars. We may not rush so much into groups and revolutionary ideologies. We may see backlashes in all the controversies that rage on social media and on the Twittersphere. There may be clever advances in technology and Mars may take on a revolutionary fervour that may be suppressed. There still may be many new things on our plates presented to us at top speed which can be overwhelming and require time for us to absorb. This conjunction peaks on Tuesday, 31st March at 7.30 pm, Greenwich Mean time. Mars and Saturn will be at 0 degrees 34 of Aquarius and will affect how we feel about home and security. Mercury will still be only at the midpoint of Pisces so even here things may still not be clear or comprehensible in that clouded water.

With conjunctions it is more of a ramping up of the intensity and a fusion of the two archetypes rather than any oppositional or difficult energy though it certainly feels polarised and extreme- like the entire machinery of medicine, politics, banking, public life and cherished societal values are undergoing a major overhaul. All in all, these three conjunctions keep us on our toes in March but are just a fraction of what there is to deal with in 2020 with three conjunctions of Jupiter and Pluto, the nodes changing signs into Gemini and Sagittarius, and both Venus and Mars going retrograde later this year.

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Kieron is a London-based and trained astrologer at Proteus Astrology on Facebook:

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Astrology can help you to understand:

life patterns, purpose and life path
relationships, business and romantic
money, and what it means to you
career issues
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choices and decisions
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Deep Sea Diving: Mercury in Pisces

Mercury entered Pisces on Monday February 3rd and I immediately felt drained as it is the communicator was diving under the surface. He is taking a long-held breath and swimming down to the bottom of the Ocean. This could be tense and require extra energy and attention, but the results are great. You may find that glistening pearl or bit of treasure that lies on the sea bed if you eyes can see in the dark. It just was not visible from the surface. You may have to trawl down several times to pull anything back up. It may feel rather like we are floating, and dreamy, so keep a notebook handy for any creative ideas that swim into view. People who were born with Mercury in Pisces are poets Wordsworth, W.H.Auden and Maya Angelou, and astrologers Bernadette Brady and Dane Rudhyar, singers Nina Simone, Aretha Franklin and Lady Gaga – just to give a flavour of this kind of inspiration.

We may not see all of the details as Mercury as we’ll be immersed in another medium and Mercury is the opposite sign of Virgo here but the cure for hypercritical Virgo is a deep sea dive in Pisces and one cure for that feeling is a fresh focus on the details, but that phase is not now. Mercury will stay in this Neptunian soup until April 11^th. He goes Retrograde on the 17^th to make things even more challenging to see clearly, and we may feel the drag of the watery undertow pulling us back. His companion on the journey is Venus which went into Pisces on January 13th. But Venus will leave its exalted heights of bliss and emotion and heavenly love and will stride forcefully into Aries on February 7th wanting, even demanding her own way instead.

Mercury is language and artful conversations, dialogues and negotiations, and Neptune (ruler of Pisces) is disguise or deception so there could be an even greater wave of distortion in the media, making something seem plausibly true, but which is not at all. Thicker, wispier smoke and even shinier mirrors than usual could make it more .difficult to separate fiction from fact to arrive at a clear-eyed view. Mercury is foggy in Pisces and that may well be so, but it is also more psychically attuned. It is Mercury in the underworld of the subconscious mind trawling for gems and pearls and it does a great job of tapping out morse code from the deeper layers of the mind to the surface.

This may seem unrelated but it is a story that brings to light the murky journeys Mercury makes while in Pisces. This is the adventure of Sir Richard Burton (1821-1890). In 1853 he planned to venture into the heartland of Islam Medina and Mecca which were off limits to Christians. Non-believers were forbidden with severe punishment. He himself had Mercury in Aries but his Sun, Venus, Mars, the North Node and Pluto were all in Pisces. So he was certainly gifted by the ability to transform himself into someone else. These planets all reside in his 5^th House so this gave him a richly creative mind and the ability to concentrate totally on the task in front of him.

He was so fluent in Arabic he could don the simple cloth of a Muslim pilgrim and pass for one of the ‘believers’ without being detected. This is so Mercury in Pisces. It might even give us a clue for how to ‘pass’ through all the fear-mongering and nonsense in the media to see it more realistically and to remain untainted. We can still be perceived as one of the crowd – in it, but not of it. Seemingly in line with the view that “we see the world not as it is but as we are ” Burton said “The more I study religions the more I am convinced that man never worshipped anything but himself.”

Jupiter is the traditional ruler of Pisces and so governs religions and this can be extended to any ideology held intensely and journeys can be into the interior world. Burton travelled from Egypt into the Arabian peninsula, to Mecca where the mosque is where Hajj (plgrimage) is performed. He even looked like Middle Eastern pilgrim and no one uncovered his stratagem. This is the slippery trickster energy of Mercury combined with Neptune, but there was high risk too. Yet he carried it off, doing the circumambulations and rituals along with the other pilgrims. He made many observations of the famous black stone at the centre of the mosque in Mecca:

“it is an aerolite. It is curious that almost all agree upon one point, namely, that the stone is volcanic. Ali Bey calls it mineralogically a ‘block of volcanic basalt, whose circumference is sprinkled with little crystals, pointed and straw-like, with rhombs of tile-red felspath upon a dark ground like velvet or charcoal, except one of its protuberances, which is reddish’. It is also described as ‘a lava containing several small extraneous particles of a whitish and of a yellowish substance” (read more)

This description allowed people to see what could not otherwise be seen.Such a piercing unflinching gaze transforms our view of tasks that seemed impossible, but that cut through to just what is actually there. Burton also did a translation of the 1001 Arabian Nights that burrowed into all the source social and sexual details and brought it to life in a more realistic way. His was deep research that left no stone unturned.

Mercury is the writer and translator of ideas. Pisces is the ocean of creativity. Retrograde is a time of reviewing- always a good thing- and if that means slowing down then okay, we can take more time to reflect. Pulling all these strands together during the next few weeks with so many other things going on in the world, will be the challenge.

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Kieron is a London-based and trained astrologer at Proteus Astrology on Facebook:

Or Contact
Eusastro@protonmail.com and you will receive a request form to fill in.

Astrology can help you to understand:

life patterns, purpose and life path
relationships, business and romantic
money, and what it means to you
career issues
personal and spiritual development
vision, hopes and wishes
choices and decisions
planning for the future
health and well being, aligning your energies
stimulating creativity
the best places to travel and live

Sessions can also be in person and will include a full recording of the sessions, with print outs of your chart, astromaps, and notes.

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