In the Heart of the Sun: Mercury Cazimi, 8/1 - 8/7
Chad Knight, 1976
The theme of the week is a Mercury Cazimi, which activates the Saturn-Uranus square once more. Earlier in the month, we saw Mars and Venus activate the Saturn-Uranus square which corresponded with wild weather extremes, building collapses and Britney Spears’ plea for freedom. Now we will hear from the Sun and Mercury.
Back in June, I explained in greater detail what this cycle is about. I’ve quoted that section here, if you need a refresher, otherwise scroll down for this month’s report!
The first exact Saturn-Uranus square was on February 17th, the second on June 14th and the final square will be on December 24th, 2021. As planets activate these sensitive degrees, the ongoing themes are also invited to unfold in a more pronounced way.
The Saturn-Uranus square is part of a 45-year cycle which deals with upheaval, breakthrough, and liberation. Essentially, we have outgrown the old order. It’s time for the societal and traditional frameworks to evolve with the current. Humanity evolves. Consciousness evolves. This aspect corresponds with the reflexive need for the laws, policies and political practices to reflect our cultural evolution.
Very often, we will see movements fueled by dissatisfaction with the status quo. It is a time for reform. This time around, the Saturn-Uranus square parallels a global pandemic, shattering the routines and highlighting flaws in the system. We have seen themes around fair worker compensation, the hypocrisy of a health care system which doesn’t cater to our most essential workers, and themes of universal basic income. We are dismantling systemic racism, amplifying a movement to defund the police, and creating more awareness and advocacy for trans and non-binary folks. The pandemic has shifted how we work, how we educate our children, how we socialize, and it continues to send ripple effects into the mainstream consciousness.
Saturn’s square to Uranus is all about reform and discovering more liberating ways to live. It’s about breaking free from stuffiness and trying something else. The concept of defunding police, for example, sounds radical at first, but on a fundamental level these plans to allocate funding into other community resources proposes resolve to a broken system. If it’s broken, fix it!
Astrology Watch
Mercury Cazimi, opposite Saturn (8/1)
Venus trine Uranus (8/3)
Mercury square Uranus (8/3)
Sun square Uranus (8/6)
Mercury Cazimi activates the Saturn-Uranus square (8/1 - 8/6)
In order to understand this aspect, we need to contextualize the primary backdrop of planetary drama. There are a lot of layers here!
Primarily, we have Mercury’s cazimi - an alignment in the heart of the Divine Intellect, the lifegiving Sun. As Mercury masochisticly heads into the destructive blaze of the Sun’s rays, willing themselves to be purified and reborn. It’s like when we enter a sauna or a sweatlodge in order to remove toxins from our bodies and minds so that we may think clearer, move with greater ease, and even connect more easily with spirit. Mercury, the mind, is consistently working overtime in today’s world of media overconsumption. Mercury’s cazimi represents a brief period in Mercury’s cycle for absolute clarity. Some of us may desire to do some sort of ritualistic digital cleanse around this time in Mercury’s cycle - whether consciously or on your own instincts - in order to optimize the opening of our receptive channels.
Mercury aligns with the heart of the Sun this time in Leo, offering yet another grand Leonine alignmnet. Yes, just a few weeks ago, we were blessed with a passionate emblazing Venus-Mars conjunction. Our Leo house is LIT in the best way ever right now (unlike our Gemini or Capricorn houses which have been full of eclipses, retrogrades and malefic conjuctions). The Venus-Mars conjunction in Leo helped us align with our desires. We’re calling it in! The Mercury cazimi brings heightened awareness to this area of life, helping us declutter the path forward. The Leo house is especially important in any given birth chart, because the Sun rules Leo. Your Leo house represents an area of life where we all come alive. Considerable pride and luminosity rests upon the laurels of this house in your chart. Leo season reminds us that we all deserve to shine a little brighter in the world. We have a unique gifts and purposes to share!
On a personal level, however, Mercury’s cazimi arrives just in time to help us leap a giant Saturnina hurdle Olympian style. Indeed, while the Sun is well resourced in its home sign of Leo, it begrudgingly applies closer and closer to leaden Saturn. We are to face our fears of expressing ourselves authentically, to confront any self-doubt and do our damnedest to hype ourselves up again. Saturn represents any obstacles in our way from full embodiment of our creative spark. What is stopping you from your boldness? From accessing your potential? Saturn (and Mercury) will reveal with stark clarity where that block or hesitancy stems from. For me? I know part of it is personal accountability. I know that I need to be more proactive in my life.
Saturn will often reveal harsher truths which are crucial for us to understand. Saturn reminds us of our distinctively human limitations. Alas, even superheroes have a kryptonite and Greek Gods have flaws too. As Leo season reflects to us to shine brighter, it’s important to remember to do so with reasonable expectation. What is your motivation here? Saturn may also point out where we are getting in our own way, and what we need to do to move the block.
Uranus, while not quite exact yet, is still felt strongly here. The opportunity for earthshattering clarity and personal breakthroughs is ample at this time. Uranus helps us to create new patterns and wavelengths in our lives. Dare to try something different. If you’re feeling more wired, caffeinated or stircrazy than usual, that’s the Uranian impulse of awakening - inviting you to get outside and stare at the sky, inviting you to hop on your bike with no destination, to tell your crush you’d like to go on an adventure with them, or to finally start writing that book you’ve been writing in your head for years on end. Uranus says - why wait?
On a collective level, we will see the activation of the Saturn-Uranus square on the world stage. World leaders, royalty, celebrities, corporate personalities, media, writers, thieves, tricksters and technology in general enter the arena to help provoke the necessary evolution we are all collaboratively brewing in 2021. With Mercury, it could be a provacative news report, story or data which shifts our perspective on something important. The Sun’s square to Uranus gradually builds for the entire week, and Venus gets in on the action with a trine. Uranus will have us buzzing all week long. Let’s see what happens!
Exact Cazimi window: 4:08 am – 3:45 pm ET, when Mercury is within 16’ of a degree from the heart of the Sun