Beginning of the Great Adventure

Dear Friend and Reader:

Monday, the Sun is conjunct Uranus in Taurus for the first time. Last year when the Sun conjoined Uranus, it was still in Aries, before making a brief visit to Taurus last spring and summer.

Power House Mechanic by Lewis Hine, WPA.

I've found that conjunctions of the Sun to outer planets give a clue to how the outer planet can manifest. With Uranus in a new sign, many people are curious. The conjunction is exact Monday at 7:07 pm EDT. Counting Monday's, there will be a total of seven Sun-Uranus conjunctions in Taurus, with the last one being on May 17, 2025. Each one counts. Each will shake up the world in its own way.

One of the reasons that Uranus in Taurus is so interesting is the contrast. It's like a hot fudge sundae. Uranus is known and revered for its eccentricity, inventiveness and association with revolution. Taurus is known for its respect for custom and tradition. Any Taurus person I know aspires to be dependable and consistent, and has a touch of the old-fashioned.

So when you combine the two, you get this futuristic impulse in Uranus mingling with the stability and continuity of Taurus. Yet there is a fierce creative potency contained within Taurus that I've hardly seen matched by any other sign, save for possibly Libra (in traditional astrology, both are ruled by Venus). The contrast is striking, and relevant. My take is that Uranus will activate the deepest creative quality of Taurus in many different ways.

If we go back to the last go-around of Uranus in Taurus, it happened during the New Deal of Pres. Franklin D. Roosevelt -- a series of programs to get society back on its feet during the Great Depression. Roosevelt had to reinvent the role of government, which up to that point involved the military and carrying the mail.

Under the New Deal, the government took on the role of providing services of value to individual people, and initiating change in society. That included both structural change and also fomenting a rapid evolution of values.

But here is an interesting and somewhat tragic fact: the United States was finally able to lift itself out of the Great Depression based on getting into World War II and reinventing itself as a military economy. The precipitating event for that development was the attack on Pearl Harbor, which has a conjunction of Saturn and Uranus in late Taurus [view chart]. In the end, the Military-Industrial Complex (finally warned of by Dwight Eisenhower in 1961, as he was leaving office) was the real reinvention.

The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck takes place during the last cycle of Uranus in Taurus, which ends at the beginning of World War II.

Recently, I asked my Facebook readers to share their thoughts on Uranus in Taurus in a few words. I got some fantastic responses, split into three paragraphs for readability.

Shaking up the status quo. Bodily freedom (such as involving vaccines, or sexuality). Reawakening of Earth wisdom. A revolution of embodiment. Eccentricity to the Nth power. Stampede. Unconventional heaven. An awakening for a lot of folks.

Thunder in the distance. Staying upright while on a moving boat or train by shifting your weight as needed. Staying loose to stay steady. A manifestation of anxiety. The body becomes electric. The dormant quickens. Unexpected awakening that was longed for after all. Getting out of your own way. Impermanent Earth.

The illusion of fixed structures. The unpredictability of concrete. The sudden changing of fixed values. Cattle prod. A gemologist views a ruby through a microscope and sees a whole new world.

These are all perceptive. My personal favorite from the above ideas is, "The unexpected awakening that was longed for after all."

Society is having a sleepy time crisis. It seems like many people are awake all night, and sleepwalking all day. It's time to smell the coffee. This week's horoscope is based on the Sun-Uranus conjunction.

With love,
Holy Week -- from A Course in Miracles Text

This is Palm Sunday, the celebration of victory and the acceptance of the truth. Let us not spend this holy week brooding on the crucifixion of God's Son, but happily in the celebration of his release. For Easter is the sign of peace, not pain. A slain Christ has no meaning. But a risen Christ becomes the symbol of the Son of God's forgiveness on himself; the sign he looks upon himself as healed and whole.

This week begins with palms and ends with lilies, the white and holy sign the Son of God is innocent. Let no dark sign of crucifixion intervene between the journey and its purpose; between the acceptance of the truth and its expression. This week we celebrate life, not death. And we honor the perfect purity of the Son of God, and not his sins.

Offer your brother the gift of lilies, not the crown of thorns; the gift of love and not the “gift” of fear. You stand beside your brother, thorns in one hand and lilies in the other, uncertain which to give. Join now with me and throw away the thorns, offering the lilies to replace them. This Easter I would have the gift of your forgiveness offered by you to me, and returned by me to you. We cannot be united in crucifixion and in death. Nor can the resurrection be complete till your forgiveness rests on Christ, along with mine.

A week is short, and yet this holy week is the symbol of the whole journey the Son of God has undertaken. He started with the sign of victory, the promise of the resurrection, already given him. Let him not wander into the temptation of crucifixion, and delay him there. Help him to go in peace beyond it, with the light of his own innocence lighting his way to his redemption and release. Hold him not back with thorns and nails when his redemption is so near. But let the whiteness of your shining gift of lilies speed him on his way to resurrection.

Easter is not the celebration of the cost of sin, but of its end. If you see glimpses of the face of Christ behind the veil, looking between the snow white petals of the lilies you have received and given as your gift, you will behold your brother's face and recognize it. I was a stranger and you took me in, not knowing who I was. Yet for your gift of lilies you will know.

In your forgiveness of this stranger, alien to you and yet your ancient Friend, lies his release and your redemption with him. The time of Easter is a time of joy, and not of mourning. Look on your risen Friend, and celebrate his holiness along with me. For Easter is the time of your salvation, along with mine.
INTELLIGENCE Available for Instant Access
Epic 2019-2020 Annual Edition of Planet Waves is Ready

Dear Planet Waves Friend and Reader:

The INTELLIGENCE written and audio readings are available for instant access.

Thank you to everyone who has already purchased this set of readings -- my first-ever covering two years (and really three, because the audio begins with a review of 2018, information that will remain relevant for years). We have now published the Taurus reading -- all 12 signs are available for instant access. You can view samples of the audio and written readings here.

Read more... Monthly Horoscopes and Publishing Schedule Notes

Your extended monthly horoscope for April was published on Thursday, March 28. We published your extended monthly horoscopes for March on Thursday, Feb. 21. Please note: we normally publish the extended monthly horoscope after the Sun has entered a new sign. Aries (March 20-April 19) -- You survived the Sun's run through Aries and the first expression of the 2020 alignment that directly involves your sign. This portends a year with many relevant turning points -- and some inevitable ones. You're under astrology unique in all the world, though there is a worldly theme: reaching escape velocity from the influence of your parents and your family of origin. You are at the point where you have no choice but to be who you are, which is easier said than done. There is always the temptation of retreating into some old-fashioned not-self pattern of fear, resistance, resentment or frustration, and using that as an excuse to stay put. But the more you hold fast, the faster the forces of your own nature will pull you free. There is one essential ingredient that is almost mandatory to overlook these days, and I don't know if anyone understands what I mean when I say it, but it's time for you to live your sexual truth. This will be equal parts healing, experimentation and understanding where your experience of love matches your biological experience. One clue I can give you is that it has nothing to do with what you see in the movies. Get your full Aries reading by Eric here.

Taurus (April 19-May 20) -- The Sun has arrived in your sign, in grand style on the heels of last week's Libra Full Moon, and with the Sun making a conjunction to Uranus. You are in all-new territory. It would be fair but not entirely accurate to say you are becoming a new person. Closer to the truth is that you are taking the chance of discovering who you are, which if it's working always comes with some surprises. No matter how old you are, you contain a continent or two of unexplored territory, which you've always had inside of you. You've felt this many times, though there is something about Taurus that tends to resist the kinds of energy flow that Uranus represents: difficult to control, unexpected, erratic, shocking and brilliant. Uranus comes in fits and starts, but it's a constant and continuous presence. You don't need to imbibe this influence all at once. Take it one day at a time, one season at a time. A reader named Alison wrote to me and said, "Uranus seems to be about burning through convention to see what remains, like the alchemical calcination phase, and using what's left to (re)build something new." She said the influence started in May 2018, though, "At that time, I didn't know what I was heading towards, just what I was leaving. It began to emerge over the summer but didn't really gain momentum until earlier this year and is still becoming clearer by the day." Note to Taurus and Sun and rising: I'm planning to record your Astrology Studio reading on Monday; here is how to pre-order.

Gemini (May 20-June 21) -- Mercury is now in Aries. Your ruling planet is in the process of passing through several different levels of full-strength astrology, so you can reasonably expect unusual developments, deep experiences, and a tour of various forces outside of your control. Yet the choices you make are all your own. How you respond to your environment is your decision. Be aware that the more force you exert, the more pushback you're likely to get. When you articulate your energy, and refine your thought process, and make your choices carefully, you will get a better result. Because Mercury is involved, your use of words is a critical factor: how you express yourself, how you describe your situation, how you speak to others, and what you choose to discuss. My suggestion is to keep your responses on the level of what you can build, weave, make or create. Stay off the level of ego, personality and conflict. If you have to wrestle with something, let it be your conscience. If you must tackle something, let it be a real problem, not a made-up one. Live by one standard: the truth is true, and nothing else matters. Get your full Gemini reading by Eric here.

Cancer (June 21-July 22) -- Developing astrology puts you further into the public eye. Since we're talking about the Sun-Uranus conjunction, don't try to be normal. It's true that part of your usual strategy is to dress well and present yourself like a professional. You tend to be understated and well-spoken when you know people are watching. You can relax that standard, and allow yourself to be as different as you want to be. You don't have to flaunt convention for its own sake. You are free, however, to be as eccentric as you really are. You are free to experiment. You're welcome to be a little shocking and to call it like it is. Though we're talking about Uranus, we're also talking about Taurus, which is a reminder to make sure that whatever you do, you bring an aesthetic quality: emphasize beauty. My work-a-day motto for American life (applicable elsewhere) is that you can do anything you want, as long as you do it well. For you, doing something well always includes a touch of class, and of elegance. Get your full Cancer reading by Eric here.

Leo (July 22-Aug. 23) -- Uranus in Taurus, and the Sun's conjunction to it, are invitations to open up new horizons in your professional life. This is the time to shift from "career" to "vocation." A vocation is a calling, that you answer with your whole being. Career is (for example) when your parents tell you to be an accountant, or they won't pay your tuition. Vocation is (for example) when you want to be a bass player and you do so with no thought of making a living at it, only doing it for its own sake. This will call for some inventiveness, which Uranus grants. Fortunately, the world has become flexible enough to accommodate these kinds of choices more easily. When I was in my 20s, someone once told me I was too weird to be a freelance writer. We've all been offered that kind of horseshit advice, and it's best to leave it in the compost pile, so maybe it will become something more useful. The technological environment will be your friend and ally, opening up many possibilities, though ultimately it's the quality of your ideas, and your dedication, that will get the result. Get your full Leo reading by Eric here.

Virgo (Aug. 23-Sep. 22) -- This week's astrology ignites a kind of alchemy between the spiritual, the erotic and the artistic that just about everyone is passionately determined to avoid. And why would that be? Well, for one thing, investing yourself in these primal forces of consciousness calls on you to be open to change, from the inside out. This is not the kind of change that comes from making decisions but rather the type that comes from lighting yourself on fire. If you move your life in this direction, you take the risk of total involvement, which means surrendering your expectations about the future, about yourself and, in many ways, about the world. It's why so many people so often take what they perceive as the safe path, of seemingly little risk. Yet what is sacrificed is existence actually having some meaning that comes from deep within you. That, too, might result in some temporary but palpable sense of disorientation. In any event, whatever you choose to do with it, your transits are pointing you away from the familiar and into the unknown. You might want to board the next flight to Greenland or South Africa. Or you can admit how much you don't know and begin right where you are. Get your full Virgo reading by Eric here.

Libra (Sep. 22-Oct. 23) -- At this stage of your life, there is no place for secrets or denial. Both are serious hindrances to your wellbeing, your spiritual health and having full access to your wisdom and potential. Yet for many people they are ways of life. Often that is because everything else seems so scary. After all, if the truth were known about you -- who you are, what you want, what you've done, and how you feel -- do you think that your current relationships could withstand the shock of that awareness? That remains to be seen, though what would surely happen is that any disruption would call everyone present to their actual reality, their feelings and desires. This would lead to a reorientation of awareness and the need to make some decisions. Whether you desire this or not, something about you is likely to shift this week that compels you to reassess your intimate situations. And though you may not think of it this way, it involves all you have not said to the people close to you. Perhaps make a list of what that includes. Get your full Libra reading by Eric here.

Scorpio (Oct. 23-Nov. 22) -- People are full of surprises. If someone close to you presents you with something you just were not expecting, slow down and consider where they're coming from. Most people you will meet, or even know well, are not so good at expressing their healing needs. Here is what I suggest you keep in mind. When someone says what they need, or even is honest about how they feel, that creates a vulnerability. And more times than not, on our particular planet, there's always someone waiting to either turn that need into an advantage for them, or to exploit the vulnerability. This is not about you personally; it's just the way things usually are. Do your part by not allowing this particular circumstance to turn into that, in any way, shape or form. Do not let your intimate exchanges be about power. Go in the other direction -- guide your purpose toward healing, service, and what you have to offer. It's essential at this time in your life that you allow the people close to you to be who they are, recognize their needs as be valid, and give them space to exist. You need the same things. Get your full Scorpio reading by Eric here.

Sagittarius (Nov. 22-Dec. 22) -- Keep your temper, particularly if you run into frustrating circumstances early in the day Monday. Mars moving through your opposite sign Gemini can have a combative feeling, and you may be living with the illusion that you don't really know where anyone is coming from. For now, you will have to take them at their word, while at the same time giving them space to evolve their views and correct statements that turned out to be inaccurate. If you try to hold people to absolute consistency, you'll only burn up what good faith the situation includes, and there is plenty. How you handle self-destructive tendencies, whether your own or those of someone else, is another question. And they are likely to be a factor as Mars makes a square to Neptune over the coming week. You may feel a tendency to go into retreat or reverse, though that's not what your situation calls for. Rather, you are being invited to take a new kind of risk, where you allow yourself enough vulnerability to create something new for yourself. You will know you're really doing that because it feels dangerous in a way you can't easily describe. Get your full Sagittarius reading by Eric here.

Capricorn (Dec. 22-Jan. 20) -- Saturn stationing retrograde between now and the 29th will help take off some of the pressure you've been feeling, and cool off your sense of imminent change (or doom). Yet it remains true that you have important matters from the past that you must address before you can guide your life forward. Commit to doing that this spring and summer, starting immediately. Begin with what is the easiest: for example, addressing unfinished business with people you've been close to recently. Then go deeper into the past and sort out a few situations about which you may have some misgivings, or where you wish you had handled things differently. See, for real, how people respond to you when you reach out to them. Americans in particular have a tendency to try to blaze into the future and bury the past before they've come to any real closure about what occurred there. Saturn's presence on the South Node in your sign says that you have little choice but to confront your personal history, though you're also protected from the worst results of certain less than helpful decisions you've made. Get your full Capricorn reading by Eric here.

Aquarius (Jan. 20-Feb. 19) -- If you're experiencing a shakeup involving your home base or sense of personal grounding or security, take it as an invitation to new and better things. In particular, it's clear you need to design living spaces that are more suited to your state of mind, and that are more accommodating of the future. That likely means some combination of lightening your load and also giving yourself room to work, to grow and to play. If you're flexible and have even a mild sense of adventure, you can work any situation to your advantage. Make sure your strategy includes plans A, B and C. In the end, you'll borrow a little from each of them and come up with a synthesis that works for everyone. Note that Venus, a vitally important planet for you, is making a conjunction to Chiron and other sensitive points this week. To me that says keep a handle on your emotions, choose your words wisely, and emphasize expressing yourself in a creative way rather than a self-centered or combative one. To get out of the trap of "self," stick to the topic at hand. You are a reference point, though there's something much larger than you at work and at play. Get your full Aquarius reading by Eric here.

Pisces (Feb. 19-March 20) -- Keep calm and keep cool. Don't play it cool; relax and be aware, of your surroundings and the flow of your thoughts. Both are likely to be rather adventurous in a number of ways. Two of the most personal angles of your chart, Aries (house 2, values and value) and Taurus (house 3, words and immediate surroundings) are illuminated by powerful conjunctions, both exact Monday. Venus conjunct Chiron in Aries is about tapping into your deepest well of self-worth and staying rooted there. Don't let anyone shake you, fool you or trip you up. You've been through a lot, and you know who you are. The Sun conjunct Uranus in Taurus is encouraging you to be a little outrageous. You can drop your filters a little, and be dauntless if you feel the need to provoke someone, or say something that's out of character for you. Actually, you are beginning to inhabit some very new personal tendencies and explore your inner territory in an unfamiliar way. Therefore, push the edge, take some risks, and allow yourself the freedom to get in the face of anyone who tries to tell you who you are. Get your full Pisces reading by Eric here.

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