Astrology Report for April 2016, Part I: Seeds of Unlimited Potential
*All times are read for Eastern Daylight Time; for Pacific Daylight Time, subtract 3 hours
Just out of eclipse season, we are experiencing aspects that carry the inherent possibility for major changes in our lives; whether relinquishing something outworn that has been a constant in our lives, or experiencing changes that initiate new themes and chapters. A lot can happen in the next couple of weeks.
The overall climate:
Mars, Pluto and Mercury are preparing to turn retrograde in the second half of the month. Slowing down and gaining momentum. Any aspects involving these planets will carry extra weight.
Venus has moved on from the south node, it was a great time to quit something, also a time that people left the world and maybe came back in or out of our lives. Namely, Patty Duke has since passed on. Chiron remains on the south node, extending the opportunity to release and heal from any and all burdens, whether emotional, psychological, spiritual or physical.
The Sun tightens into a square with Pluto. The potential for personal transformation and growth is maximized. Set the intention now to release that which no longer serves you. Hopefully by the end of this first week, significant progress will be made.
Beginning on the 6th, Uranus’ erratic energy ensues. Be prepared for surprises, commotion, and hopefully not actual earthquakes, but be prepared for shake-ups. This energy peaks on the New Moon, April 7th through the 9th.
Friday, April 1st is April Fool’s Day. The origins of the “holiday” seem to be rooted in the time when the Holy Roman Empire began to merge its holidays with the Earth worshipers. The pagan peoples who continued to celebrate the New Year around the Equinox would be subject to pranks; of course, said pranks were dished by those who changed their calendars and thus already celebrated on January 1st. I’d imagine that some of these “pranks” were quite heinous. Not to dampen to fun, I just thought that was interesting.
On this day, the Moon goes void in Capricorn at 12:39 pm with a sextile to Venus, and remains void until entering Aquarius at 9:37 pm. This void period is meant for enjoyment (or pranks!). Do what makes you happy! If you are at work, I’d imagine that the mood would be elevated. Keep things light and leave early if you can! Socialize with others if it’s available to you. People should be relatively chatty.
Saturday, April 2nd, get in touch with your creativity. The Aquarius moon encourages us to innovate, and change up the process in order to discover new modes of doing. Whatever activities you engage in may result in an upgrade, or an “aha!” There is plenty of energetic inspiration to keep moving! Be playful, spontaneous and experimental. You should feel a magical spark today.
Sunday, April 3rd, we are focused on the future and may even catch a vivid glimpse of what that might look like, should we continue on the path we are on. Do we like what we see? If not, how can we make an adjustment to alter our future in higher alignment with our heart’s path? The ability to recognize patterns is strong today. Pay attention.
Monday, April 4th, dare to dream. Allow yourself to float into the realm of endless imagination today. We have one foot on the ground, while the other floats to the sky, allowing for practical envisioning. We may have to do something that we don’t want to do around 3pm, or we might just feel low energy. However the roadblock manifests, just float through it, knowing that it is temporary. If you are dissatisfied with a routine task at hand, allow your imagination to carry you into your ideal version. What does that feel or look like? The Moon conjoins Neptune in the evening; this is great for healthy escapes: maybe it’s a romantic evening, movie, book, music, meditation, journaling, art or getting creative on your yoga mat. If the weather is nice, go wander around. Disappear into your happy place.
Tuesday, April 5th, the Moon is void for the entire day, so we may not feel much of a shift until tomorrow (unless you are an extra sensitive person), but it is truly an eventful day in the heavens. The day is colored by Pluto, which may call us into the past, deepen our thought, heighten emotion or enhance personal power. The Sun trines Saturn, keeping us practical and grounded as we steadily move closer into alignment with our goals. It’s about building a healthy structure that supports our ego development.
Venus enters Aries, free from the wrath of the fairytale. She’s divorcing the idea of prince charming and she’s ready to play! Venus in Aries puts herself first, no matter what. She’s spontaneous, fun, and bores easily. Once she decides that she no longer likes something, that’s it. She’s done. Venus in Aries enjoys activity and values her independence. The moment she feels smothered, she will flee.
Venus remains in Aries until April 29th. Until then, don’t make too many commitments unless they are truly in alignment with your heart. Allow yourself plenty of free time for spontaneous play. Focus more energy on what is really important to your spirit. Everyone else will be focused on themselves too, so they will either understand, or they will become impatient with you.
Mercury also changes signs, entering sensual Taurus today. Our exchanges with the world will rely on all 6 of our senses. Most people hear, but now is the time to truly listen. The mind slows down a bit in Taurus. See if you can use this energy to absorb what others are genuinely saying: use your ears, eyes and heart. Listen to the Earth, to your higher self, to spirit… This is an excellent time to nurture the meditative mind, the neutral mind that is here, now.
Wednesday, April 6th, the Moon enters Aries and catches up with Venus in the wee hours of the morning. It should be easy to get up and get moving today. Today is inherently potent for getting things done. Rapidly check off that to-do list if you can!
The Sun comes into an exact square with Pluto. Old aspects of the self arise for purging, perhaps it's a feeling. Sit with these feelings and ask yourself why they are coming up. What is the purpose? What is the lesson? How is this serving me? Anger and sadness can be excellent teachers, but do you want to stay in the same classroom forever? At some point, you have to do your homework and graduate. The lesson here is evolution. Rise above. Use the muck to fuel you forward. Shit is the best compost in the world. Fertilize that soil and grow.
Thursday, April 7th is a wild New Moon! Why so wild? Because the Sun and Moon see their new cycle conjoined with the planet of unpredictability, Uranus. All three of these guys square the planet of turmoil and transcendence, Pluto. This is a very powerful New Moon centered around change. New Moons are periods of renewal, setting intentions and initiating anything new. This is the kind of change that revives you in some way. You might feel reawakened, inspired to approach something in a new way.
The Sabian Symbol for the 19th degree of Aries is “a magic carpet.”
We are invited to elevate our perspective, to rise above an obstacle, or to distance oneself from a stressful situation. When you are in a maze, it’s difficult to see the solution. Often, it’s helpful to step away and do something that brings you joy. It’s there, in your elevated state, that you are finally able to see what it is that you need to do. This could indicate that a vacation or a mini excursion is in order. Magic carpets are of course, magical! Invite magic into your life with intent or with play.
This symbol can also allude to meditation, astral travel and other spiritual arts. When we feel we are in the flow of magic, we are liberated from stress. Anything seems possible. Magic carpets zoom above the terrain. We are in the fast lane now. When you connect with your bliss, you are in the fast lane. The line always moves slower when you are stressing about it. The caution here is the avoid unrealistic or unhealthy escapism. Avoiding the problem completely doesn’t solve anything. You must be willing to participate.
Following the New Moon at 7:48 am EDT, the Moon goes void at 10:56 am. The rest of the day is colored by Uranus’ wild streak. Things move fast and fiercely. Be careful driving and be ready for surprises.
Friday, April 8th, is a rather pleasant day. The Moon is in harmonious, constant Taurus. Optimism and patience are easily accessible. Listen to your body. If you don’t feel like getting up, it’s okay. If you have a craving for a certain food or drink, there is probably a good reason for this. Yesterday may have created some anxiety, so today’s aspects indicate recovery, however your body instructs you. Listen. Tomorrow, the Sun conjoins speedy Uranus. Due to his lightning speed, we often feel his presence early. Perhaps a physical outlet is needed, to curb anxiety or restlessness.
Saturday, April 9th, the Sun makes its annual conjunction to Uranus at 5:27 pm. With this speedy guy, we’ll be feeling the heightened energy all day. People move as quickly as their tongues─ Be careful what you say! Good foresight would be to plan plenty of activities so that the energy has a healthy outlet. Expect radical headlines today (although they’ve probably been wild all week). There’s an energy around rebellion, revolution, discovering new avenues of doing, innovative findings and events that shatter reality as we knew it. Uranus rules lightning and earthquakes because of its ability to awaken and dismantle. He is an unpredictable renegade, heralding new ideas and structures. Expect these themes to be rampant from April 7th, to now and for the next few days.
Sunday, April 10th, begins to a beautiful start. The Moon is in chatty Gemini and makes a harmonious aspect to Venus. Sunday-fun-day. It’s a spectacular morning to get brunch with friends, or to be on the move; excellent for bike riding, running or visiting the museum. Gemini is a gathering sign, who loves to soak up new information. So get outside and experience the world. If you’re not feeling it, books are nice too. Around 4:00 pm, it’s possible that someone gets a little overzealous. Debates are possible and they won’t necessarily be cordial if someone is really strong in their beliefs. Try to stay level and exchange objectively, without getting emotionally disheveled.
We are all entitled to our beliefs. Today and tomorrow, the Moon is activating the Jupiter/Saturn/Neptune T-square of 2016. This is a stressful configuration that confronts truth, reality, myth and fantasy. Often when people nestle themselves into a belief, they can become hardened, resistant to new information. Sometimes people will go to extremes to maintain their belief structure.
The media blackout of Bernie Sanders is a reflection of this astrological configuration. The media produces a version of truth that supports the agenda of the elite. Meanwhile, a large portion of the population feeds into this propaganda, thus believing that these rigged structures actually have their best interest. More and more people are waking up, realizing that the media supports a contrived reality, one which distorts the collective state of inequality; these people seek news elsewhere. There is a billionaire behind the curtain and his name is Walt Disney. Every major news channel is owned by someone who is absurdly wealthy, and who will do anything to protect their dishonest gains. Recently, it was revealed that Disney fired several employees, who will be replaced by low wage international workers. What a shame.
This is of course an extreme example of this energy. It can manifest on a personal level as well. Where do we willingly pull the wool over our eyes? Everyone has their own truth, so it’s challenging to discern the whole truth. This T-square helps us to confront fallacies, in order to create a sturdier structure around the dream that we are creating, both personally and collectively. The more energy you focus on your vision, the more likely it is to arrive. Dreams really do come true!
Monday, April 11th, the work week gets off to a healthy start with the Moon in vivacious Gemini. If you need to launch something new, get it off the ground before 2:57 pm EDT, when the Moon goes void. Plenty of energy is available to carry you through the rest of the day.
Tuesday, April 12th, Venus forms a harmonious trine with Mars. This is a fiery, independent female and a well-read male who has a strong moral philosophy. They are having a friendly conversation. Aside from the “friendly” part, this duo reminds me or Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders. Let’s see what happens. These planets have been talking since the weekend, but arrive in exactitude today. On a personal level, this could be a harmonious interaction with the opposite sex. In the fire signs, this is a lot of passion. Passion can heighten attraction, or even anger! Since this is a trine, I would guess that should an argument arise, it will be easy to squash and something good will come out of it. This is great for witty banter with your mate and doing fun things together.
Wednesday, April 13th, the Moon is in sensitive Cancer. The morning starts out steady, with a dose of optimism. As we move into the afternoon, emotions intensify. We are going to feel moody today. It’s okay, you’re allowed! Get a healthy outlet. If a good cry is in order, watch a movie that is sure to invoke tears. Breaking glass is a good ritual to rid of anger. I recommend smashing the glass into the dumpster, so that you don’t pass the anger on, by potentially puncturing someone’s bike tire. That's bad karma! While some people say that breaking a mirror is bad luck, other cultures believe that glass absorbs negativity, then rids of it upon breaking. Last week on the Saturn station, I was feeling melancholy at work. At some point during the day, a hand mirror slid off of my station and shattered! I got a good chuckle out of it knowing that it happened for a reason! Yes, I’m condoning glass breaking, however, I suggest that it be a ritual of intent.
Thursday, April 14th, the day may have a slow start if you rise early. The pace picks up a bit at 9:53 am when the Moon enters passionate Leo. We are feeling more positive today. There is a grand trine between Mercury, Jupiter and Pluto in the Earth signs. Some keywords for the day are: resourceful, methodical, grounded ambition; strategic, patient, loyal, productive and steadfast. No need to be extraordinary, just consistent.
Ceres enters Aries today, where she will stay throughout the planting season. Aries is a dry fire sign, not the optimal place for the Goddess of Agriculture. Without pleasure, I predict that there will be some kind of shortage. Ceres was fighting with her arch nemesis Pluto (who abducted and raped her daughter, Persephone) in 2014 when lime and hazelnut crops were threatened. Due to El Niño, I wouldn’t be surprised if our crops were to behave differently this year, anyhow. Might el Niño cause plants to sprout too early? This is also an Aries characteristic of jumping the gun too early. Potential shortages could also be due drought in some regions or insect infestation. We shall wait and see.
Friday, April 15th, there is an abundance of ease. The day has a nice flow to it. The fabulous Leo Moon gets us in touch with our playful side. With a nice grand trine to Venus and Saturn, we may feel inspired to put an extra snazzy spin on our outfit or hair today. Be authentic, and be fearless to try something you’ve always wanted to try. There is *another* grand trine with Mercury, Jupiter and Pluto, enhancing personal power, productivity and pursuing your ambitions in a grounded, strategic manner.
May we all awaken to, and walk in our highest truths; may we all activate our heart chakras, elevating the collective vibration of Mother Earth.
Love, peace and heart activation to ALL....
-Catherine
*all images discovered and graciously borrowed from google images.