Late Aquarius Sun is heading for Pisces

Dear Friend and Reader:

Now that we’ve been a alternate lovestyle website for the past three days, we can go back to being an astrology site. If you’ve been away from Planet Waves this weekend, in honor of Valentine’s Day we have been posting the best of our sex writing from over the years. This column is called “Daily Astrology and Adventure” — sex, environmental causes and politics would be the “and adventure” part of that.

Photo by Sean Hayes.
Photo by Sean Hayes.

We are now in the last days of Aquarius. The Sun enters Pisces — the last sign of the 12 — on Wednesday at 7:46 am ET, and from that point it’s just 30 days till spring in the Northern Hemisphere. Pisces and the end of Northern Hemisphere winter also ends the astrological year. I am sure nobody is complaining about this except for ski resorts. It’s been a long, difficult and indeed cold winter. Thankfully heating fuel was not the $5 a gallon that was being predicted over the summer. As for summer down under, it has been one of the very worst on record, with bushfires in Australia killing many people and causing much damage, grief and havoc. These were the worst bushfires ever in modern Australian history.

If I have not mentioned it before, Kirsti Melto, one of our minor planet aficionados, pointed out recently that Typhon, a slow-moving planet, is mixed up in the Saturn-Uranus opposition. It is in Virgo, in a tight conjunction to Saturn. Typhon is a god associated with hot, dangerous winds — and its involvement in Saturn-Uranus is quite apropos of the raging fires we saw in Victoria, at least from a mythological perspective. I mention this after the fact because Typhon is going to be in that position for a while. Properly called (42355) Typhon, this is an object in the scattered disk, that is, beyond Pluto for much of its orbit. Wiki is not listing the length of the orbital phase; we will check that for you soon. (That would be 232 years, just shy of the length of Pluto’s orbit [that being 251 years] but a lot more elongated, a bit like a centaur or a comet.) Saturn-Uranus can be considered Saturn-Uranus-Typhon — which to me is a hot weather advisory warning for summer in the Northern Hemisphere. It also adds awareness of something spicy to the mentally sluggish energy that we might associate with Saturn in Virgo.

Speaking of hot: Mars is conjunct Jupiter today, in Aquarius. This is hot in a broad-minded kind of way. Mars, currently moving through Aquarius, about to make conjunctions to all the planets you see below at right — except for the Sun, which moves faster than Mars. Look for those ways you can expand your awareness into the ideas that are possible if we work together (Jupiter and Aquarius) rather than if we work alone (Mars in nearly any form).

Today is the last quarter Moon, though this occurs after the overnight square of the Moon (in Scorpio) to Chiron (in Aquarius); and this morning’s emotionally boggy square of the Moon to Neptune (which is/was exact at about 8 am ET). This sequence feels like working out a turning point: consider the aspects in order, ending with the quarter Moon; after which the Sun is void of course for about a day and a half (till it enters Pisces). The Moon will be void of course from shortly after reaching last quarter phase until it reaches Sagittarius today at 7:53 pm ET. So for a little while today, we have both the Sun and the Moon void of course.

February 16, 2009 7:53:02 AM EST
February 16, 2009 7:53:02 AM EST

Now, the whole concept of void of course is a bit controversial, though its meaning is simple enough: the Sun or Moon is about to change signs, and it has no more major aspects to make while it’s in the old sign. The trip through a sign is like a cycle, and at the end of the cycle, the process begins to disengage. The whole effect is about one cycle (the Sun or Moon through a sign) giving way to the next. It’s a little like shifting gears in car; if you are using a clutch, you need to do the shifting process either very consciously, or with second nature.

With astrology, it’s best to be conscious rather than let your hands and feet do the work without the involvement of your mind. Every one of these cycles, particularly the Sun through a sign, gets a little tired at the end, and we might be fatigued with the way things have progressed. The Sun through Aquarius has been exhausting and difficult for many people; there has been a Mercury retrograde, two eclipses, the Saturn opposite Uranus and much else, all piled up. The chart at the right is a snapshot of the positions of the major planets and asteroids as I am writing this morning.

The Sun void is something that is referenced in the Elizabethan texts but generally not by modern astrologers (unless they are practitioners of something called horary astrology). Still, I think it’s meaningful — every bit as meaningful as the Moon being void, which becomes a more useful concept as you start to gain direct experience; easily enough had, since it happens two or three times a week. I have noticed they are both real enough phenomena to keep an eye on, and I am particularly intrigued by what happens in the last days before the Sun changes signs (another way of saying Sun void of course, assuming there are not planets out there in the very late degrees).

The Sun void is a condition that feels one of a few ways, though we will see how this entirely unique experience manifests; what I’ve noticed is that it’s a phase of time when unlikely things happen. Let’s see if one of them can be figuring out that we really do need to pay attention; wishful thinking (such as in the political solutions being applied to a recession, or resolving our personal issues) is not enough.

Drive carefully today, and let’s do that Aquarian thing and work together as we experience the last two days of the Sun in the signs of cooperation.

Yours & truly,
Eric Francis

14 thoughts on “Late Aquarius Sun is heading for Pisces”

  1. oh, I am so excited. I think I am getting this. Besides the sun pluto saturn thing, there is the trine of the sun to natal neptune in the 12th.

    This is a real good way for me to understand my natal chart. Thanks for the article Mr Eric. Onward!

  2. Oh yeah, the aneretic? I think this sun change is big for me because it is opposite my natal pluto and square my natal saturn. Big time ouch, it can be. I really did not have to hunt through old journals to remember this time of year.

    And yes mystes, there has been death, even physical death around me at this time. The interesting thing I found out in the last few years as things accelerate is this. I would get this feeling that I was gonna die, literally. But every awareness or fear of that, just melding into change. At first I used to cry at the pain of it, and then I would just find myself crying, and then I would just say oh there is more change. I imagine that this sounds outrageously ridiculous to some, but it is the journey I am on.

    With a little help from Hand’s Planets in Transit, some focus from pw, and some meditation, I think I am discovering some cyclical help. The sun will soon be opposite my natal sun. I did look back in my journal about the 2008 birthday where I unawaredly made the decision to break free of unhealthy associations and I am celebrating my work there, amongst other successes I had buried. I think I am in a freeing process of some kind.

    While the awareness of my mind field is a little intimidating, the expansion is giving me room to physically move through space.

    Ye gads, wasn’t I just supposed to work a job, pay bills, get married, have kids, and retire? The map was so simple, or so it seemed.

  3. Gardener, my general rule of thumb is to plant root crops during the waning moon and the above ground fruit/veggie plants in the waxing. Hopefully, I’ll have the head space to use some of this moon sign stuff this year. Spring planting is getting close.

  4. AnnaT, thanks for the lunar talk. The moon appears to be about growth for me at this point. This gardening book talks about a Yalee Dr Harold Burr who drilled holes in trees in Hartford and filled the holes with wires that were connected to a voltmeter which measured the electrical potential of the trees. (It seems like there is a connection between plant growth and the voltage emitted by plants.) He took daily readings and found that the phases of the moon were the only external factor showing any kind of correlation to the tree growth.

    There are other studies about seed germination rates. And the ones that surprised me are the ones concerning the taste and nutritive value of plants that are harvested at certain times. Oh dear, another lab!

  5. oops Victoria – there are some inconsistencies. The farmer’s almanac lists the period between the full moon and new moon as potato planting time.
    My folks always harvested a nice potato crop, but they didn’t always follow the folklore. However, they always planted crops by the almanac.

    I don’t remember a year when we didn’t have a good harvest, even in the drought years. The inch of rain always appeared at just the right moment. I always thought it had more to do with the fact that my parents fed so many people. we actually had someone come to the door and ask for a chicken to eat once. my mom went to the freezer, pulled out a frozen chick, and gave it away. At least they asked, and didn’t steal from us.

  6. Victoria…” What the heck is falling from the sky in Austin? ”

    Part of the entourage, I imagine. Whatever it was, it set the entire local and regional constabulary abuzz, helicopters everywhere – flying very, *very* low. For several hours. It was a busy Sunday, if you recall…

  7. Gardener, picked up a book at a thrift store last week called Astrological Gardening by Louise Riotte. Cracked it open today for a look see. It’s fun so far. Quoted some stuff from the Foxfire Book, Don’t plant potatoes in the feet (Pisces). If you do, they will develop little nubs like toes all over the main potato. My potatoes have resembled that.

  8. mystes, point of no return? Yeah I’d say I’ve moved through some kind of threshhold. Change is change. Not sure what this is about, but it’s about.

    What the heck is falling from the sky in Austin?

  9. Farmers Almanac: www dot almanac dot com/garden/plantingtable/index dot php

    This is the Old Farmer’s Almanac website with planting tables by location. All you do is enter your zip code and it comes up with the moon favorable chart and planting dates specific to your planting zone.

    My mom and all the old-timers always used the almanac as the planting guide, and frankly it was accurate to a T about our winter this year.

    Weed and pick herbs for drying in the fire signs for best results, but the crops planted depend on whether it is above the ground or below the ground. My mom always said do not plant cucumbers in the sign of the feet (pisces) you’d end up with lots of vines and no fruit (strong roots), so wait for Taurus or best of all Cancer. Root crops do fantastically well planted in Pisces, but only if it appears after the new moon. Otherwise wait for cancer or Scorpio.

    Knowing ahead of time that this could be a dry year is important (Thanks Eric!). Everyone should be considering using rain barrels. One of the men in my master gardener group put a 100 gallon rain barrel in his basement, to filter and collect rain and run-off water. This ‘gray water’ is used for washing cars, watering the lawn, and any other purpose not associated with food. you can wash in it depending upon how you collect it, and from where. The beauty of it is that it doesn’t freeze in the winter, so it is available for him to use year round.

    This is a year when we could see severe food shortages, so everyone should be preparing for that possibility.

    Seeds are very expensive from the catalog companies, but you can find some good seeds at the dollar store, frequently 10 packages for 1.00. These are last year’s seeds. You can google for info on testing the seeds, but basically all you do is put 10 of each in a wet paper towel and watch for a few days to see if they sprout. If 9 out of 10 sprout, you have 90 percent viability, and that means the seed is still good. If they are viable, go back to your dollar store and buy more seeds. If you can afford to buy them from a certified seed company, that is great. If you plan to save seeds from your own plants, you need to read how to do that. There are plenty of references, but at the library you can read through the old Organic Gardening magazines and Mother Earth News magazines and find good instructions on all aspects of gardening. My favorite seed company is still Seedsavers.org. They have thousands of heirlooms, but if you don’t know what you are buying you could end up with vegetables you don’t like. Do some research first and find out what the other gardeners like.

    My other pet peeve is plastic. My friend (above) also cut his trash down to one large trash can per year by recycling! I am working on it but I’m not to his level yet. It is a challenge, but we can all work to eliminate trash.

    Back in the 70s there was a big movement to recycle and reuse everything and the lady who wrote the Tightwad Gazette wrote that she made a piece of aluminum foil last for over a year. It is definitely possible, especially if you use your cookware the way it is intended.

    I have been so horrified by what happened in Australia that I think everyone should be doing everything possible to clean up their own back yard. I saw the photos of some of the dead animals in Australia – it was estimated that over a million animals died in the blazes, in addition to the tragic human deaths.

    If you google for the drought tables, you will see that much of the world is in a terrible drought right now, including South America, Mexico, and the American Southwest.

    One of the elementary schools that my garden group works with has a lovely garden that is enclosed on 3 sides. By using trellises and mulches, they were able to harvest Tomatoes up until Thanksgiving, which is amazing considering we had our first heavy frost around mid October. I’ll see if they have a website with photos, because the work those kids did was fantastic. The children eat their own produce as part of their school lunches.

  10. Anaretic… hmmm… I vaguely remember that mou aresis means ‘I like you’ in Greek. So anaresis would be akin to ‘turning away’? Anaretic in Random House goes to ‘destructive’ or something like self-disabling.

    But in the astrological definitions I looked into all indicated that the anaretic degrees are more extreme expressions of the qualities experienced during that cycle. An acceleration to the point of no return.

    Does that resonate anywhere?

  11. Would love to hear what you think of this submarine collision business, if you’ve got a few. It certainly was a gee whiz sort of moment…

  12. Victoria –
    I’ve been working with the Moon for a couple of decades now, in the sense of using new and waxing Moon to bolster my inteneions and goals, and also planting garden seeds; waning Moon to assimilate; dark moon to end, clear. I have a standing date with my therapist/body worker/energy worker, at the dark of the Moon, to help me clear out and get ready for a new cycle. That 1st glimpse of fragile crescent, in the west, is always a holy moment.

    Also, try to be aware and in harmony with the energy of the Moon in the signs, as she goes round. I don’t always get to pick dates, but get-togethers can be more fun if Moon in Libra, dinner parties when Moon in Cancer, performing, when Moon in Leo, etc.

    I will try to remember about weeding and cleaning at the waning time.

    In my younger years I used to photocopy 8 1/2 x 11 lunar calendars, with lots of cut-and-paste lunar lore on the back side, and hand them aut to my circles at the dark of every year. Used to joke that I was proselytizing for the Moon!

    I’m a sun-sign Cancer, so it figures, eh?
    AnnaT

  13. I don’t really know what exactly is affecting me in this new way. But I am intrigued as I try on this new perception of mind field.

    As I consider starting the walk into my vision, I think of the moon phases. Is there anything to waiting for the new moon to start? I know that when I weed my garden, weeds stay gone better when I pull them during a waning moon. And seeds planted during a waxing moon seem to sprout better, which I am particularly grateful for during late planting. I have clutter to clear yet and perhaps time would be utilized best doing that now and then move forward at the new moon?

    Just curious if anybody uses the phases of the moon and what is behind all that. Or is that too simple and are there other factors to consider?

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