The following is from Planet Waves Astrology News, our subscriber edition published each Friday morning.

Dear Friend and Reader:

In my Planet Waves daily diary all week I’ve been commenting about the conjunction of Chiron and Neptune that is now within one degree, in late Aquarius. This is a ‘near-miss’ rather than an exact conjunction but it’s coming in at a nice strength. Neptune in Aquarius, which began in 1998 around when Bill Clinton was impeached, has been the perfect fodder for our whole “lie to me / why deal with it?” mentality that has been such fruitful soil for the Karl Roves and Dick Cheneys of the world to plant their fleurs de mal.

Rose window at Notre Dame Cathedral, Paris. I am not certain the orientation, but I believe this is the rose window facing northeasterly. Photo by Eric Francis.

When Chiron arrived in 2005, I was certain that there would be a gradual public awakening that would peak as Chiron made its exact conjunction to Neptune. The current one is a near miss, which is at its closest on May 31, to within one-quarter of a degree. Chiron will go retrograde before the conjunction perfects, and the exact meeting will take place Feb. 17, 2010. Of note, this is shortly after the one and only contact of Saturn in Libra square Pluto in Capricorn that occurs in late 2009. The two events are connected.

Finally, there is one last near miss of Chiron and Neptune, also within one-quarter of a degree, on Nov. 3, 2010. (Tracy Delaney in Wales programmed the ephemeris where I am getting this information.)

For the current near-miss, Jupiter is there, so the last week of May we have a very close triple conjunction of Jupiter, Chiron and Neptune. This puts the two rulers of Pisces in a conjunction (Jupiter to Neptune, which happens about every 14 years). The prior cycle of Neptune to Chiron conjunctions was in 1879-1880, in Taurus. The next cycle starts in 2094, in Virgo. This is a once-in-a-lifetime event, and therefore it is astrology that will also define an era of history and mark the astrology of a sub-generation.

Usually we don’t notice these events until it’s over. However, as the Internet has begun to make information available to those who seek it, we can now work with transits like this while they are happening, and co-create their ‘meaning’ and explore their creative potential together.

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By Eric Francis

Oft times nothing profits more Than self-esteem, grounded on just and right Well manag’d.
– John Milton, Paradise Lost; 1667

Dear Friend and Reader:

When we look back honestly on this phase of history, we’ll see that one of the most profound issues of our day is a pandemic-scale crisis of self-esteem. We don’t need to look far for the manifestations of this, or for the causes. They surround us so completely that we barely notice them; or if we do, we assume they are an indelible part of existence. They are built into our relationships, which are often designed as shelter from the storm, but which don’t usually work.

Photo by Eric Francis / Book of Blue.

As Brian, my editor at Chronogram magazine put it when I ran this article idea past him, he’s noticing this most in people feeling like they are going insane because the world doesn’t appreciate who they are or what they have to offer. This is particularly strange in a world that has nothing but ever-increasing needs; in theory we should all be in greater demand.

To describe something as a crisis of self-esteem is to use a byword covering a great many potential situations. Ultimately they all come back to how we feel about ourselves and our existence. Do we feel good about who we are? On a deeper level, do we consciously notice our existence? Do we feel like we have a right to exist?

We may not be so articulate with ourselves. Usually, we get the data in emotional form. If we’re struggling, it may arrive as anything from depression (literally, the sense of being pressed down) to the challenges of adapting in a world that is not the same place from hour to hour. Adapting takes energy and being in a constant process of adjustment can consume nearly all of our energy.

But there is something else unique to our time in history that I think may hold the key: as a society and often as individuals, we live as if we have no responsibility to anyone or anything; not ourselves, not our society, not the world. I’ll give you an example. There is a large swath of society that feels like it’s entitled to do absolutely anything at all. There is a larger swath that allows them to get away with it.

It’s not just how we feel about ourselves that is suffering, but rather how we feel about very nearly everything. And in a word, that would be cynical. Cynical is another way of saying having no respect. Another way is suggesting that we live in a time of ethical bankruptcy, which is taking a personal toll in the form of a great many people feeling worthless. It should come as no surprise that most have done very little to earn that sense of worth from themselves.

Today’s edition of Planet Waves was written with additional contributions from Maya Cook, Kelly Cowan and Christine Farber; and the readers whose ideas were contributed in the self-esteem thread below.

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Dear Friend and Reader:

When news broke that the National Security Agency was tapping telephones and skimming emails of American citizens, I wondered why people were not more concerned. This was in late 2005, when we also learned the same day that The New York Times had sat on the story for a year. We learned simultaneously what was happening, and that one of the great newspapers of our civilization had covered it up. It was funny, in a sick way.

Wet Pain. Photo by Eric Francis. Stylist: Sarah Bissonnette-Adler, Book of Blue Studio.

But the response from nearly everyone but political bloggers seemed placid. Given that people often get upset about violations of their privacy, and don’t like having their picture taken on the street, it seemed strange that the government and its contractors having access to everything we say and write in electronic form did not get people more worked up.

We’re all aware of how much salacious personal material is exchanged on the Internet. Long before sexting (that is, teenagers using their cell phones to snap a nude picture and send it to a friend, who sends it to another friend until everyone is charged with kiddy porn and gets a ride on CNN), people were sending one another naughty pictures, explicit emails and engaging in live video play sessions with long-distance lovers. It all started with AOL, the first bit of the Net to catch on hot. Andy Warhol predicted that some day everyone would be world famous for 15 minutes. He did not predict that anyone who wanted could be a porn star.

The first thing I wondered was: what, exactly, would the United States government do with its massive database of pictures, calls, videos and messages? The obvious thing to do would be to make it available to subscribers. It would be the world’s largest amateur porn site, called porno.gov. We would get a useful entertainment service and an important source of revenue for the government. We could even borrow from the concept of C-SPAN and stream ourselves live.

The second thing that occurred to me is that people were taking the news in stride because they were relieved. As hung up as we are on keeping secrets from friends, parents, children, lovers, the boss and whoever else, I believe living with the tension that we might be revealed is extremely uncomfortable, verging on unbearable. People who live under patriarchy already have a guilty conscience; the fact that we try to hide so much from ourselves and from one another doesn’t help. (In homeopathy, weakness and diseases associated with trying to hide ourselves have a name: the sycotic miasm.)

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This edition also includes the astrology of the Italian earthquake, a look at the astrology of anti-globalization protests (including the 1999 WTO protests in Seattle), new writing from Judith Galye and the Eric Francis weekly horoscope.

Dear Reader:

Here’s your April monthly horoscope. The main aspect that it covers is Venus stationing direct in Aries, which takes place in about 18 days. Venus has been retrograde since March, which is a relatively rare event, and she hasn’t been retrograde in Aries since 2001.

These reports also cover the vernal equinox and have an eye on the amazing activity that’s been brewing in Aquarius all year, and which comes to its peak in May. This particular horoscope is called Planet Waves Monthly. We offer four different monthly horoscopes to our subscribers to Astrology News — each with a different theme — as well as a weekly horoscope.

The page you’re on updates several times a day with different features.

Catch you later.

Aries (March 20-April 19)
At a certain point we all learn to stop judging ourselves. It could be sooner; it could be later; but in terms of saving time, emotional energy and conserving opportunities that only come once, the sooner the better. One thing you might have to get over is the notion that the kind of self-critique you’re accustomed to makes you a better person. I don’t think it does. I would say that the only possibility we have of being better people is awareness, and the gradual, repeated choice to surround ourselves with aware people. In the trapeze act of life, we need to work together and the main thing we need support in is consciousness. What you seem destined to learn over the next few weeks is that having a fixed concept of who you are, or who you’re supposed to be, is the basis of your overly critical opinion of yourself. Judgment requires criteria, and when those are unconscious, unreasonable or unrealistic, then the assessment is more of a mental or emotional trip than it is a growth process. You’re working toward an extraordinarily rare moment of being able to let go of the self-concept that is at the heart of this crisis. With it, you may find yourself letting go of certain ideas of why exactly you deserve so much attention. You do, but it’s for reasons other than you think.

Read your 2008 annual for Aries. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Aries and Aries rising here.

Taurus (April 19- May 20)
Visualization is one of the tests of what is possible in the world, or rather, what is possible for you. If you can imagine something, then you can assume it’s possible. One reason we stop ourselves doing this is because we assume that if we fear something, then it may happen; then we shut down the process of imagining, even of the things we want or worse yet, what we actually are. This is a way of letting fear rule your life. I want to propose two exercises that involve the theme of how you see yourself. The first involves observing yourself now: how you move through your day, and how your mind navigates the ocean of consciousness. Notice your moods and what affects them; how you respond to people and how they respond to you. Notice every time you make a decision, and observe the basis of each decision you make; that is, the information you’re working with that leads you to action. This is an exercise in mindfulness; that is, paying attention and staying awake. The second involves envisioning yourself in the future: not what you will look like or what you will be doing, but rather how you want your presence in the world to feel. This is subtle, but not so subtle as you may think.

Read your 2008 annual for Taurus. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Taurus and Taurus rising here.

Gemini (May 20- June 21)
Every time you tell yourself how open-minded and flexible you are, I suggest that you question this assessment. I’m not saying you’re wrong; but you won’t know if you’re not asking. Every time you discover that you’re actually less progressive than you think is an opportunity to make a choice to open your mind to other influences. Part of the problem is that we currently have exceedingly few examples of what it means to actually be open. Our entire social climate is so guarded right now that the smallest modicum of depth or authenticity feels completely radical. This is a distortion. If you’re on a path of self-development, seeking your freedom and willing to explore, I suggest that you open yourself to the ideas of other cultures and other times in history. What is normal now is not what is or was normal at other points in space and time. We live in a unique moment, most notably because so many people feel so paralyzed and indeed passive, waiting for something to happen. You seem to be among those who have decided that you’ve waited long enough. One thing to look at closely is everything you avoid; check out what you pretend you don’t want; make a little note every time you decide something is impossible. Then, ask yourself how you came to be in this place.

Read your 2008 annual for Gemini. Order your Next World Stories 2009 annual for
Gemini and Gemini rising here.

Continue Reading »

Thursday was a close call for the International Space Station when a piece of space debris the size of a marble hurtled past and within just three miles, as reported by CNN. Station crew were ordered into the Soyuz capsule just in case an emergency evacuation was necessary, the article stated.

The International Space Station was nearly taken out by a chunk of satellite debris the size of a marble. Photo: NASA.

The idea that something barely a centimeter across can be that big a danger is pretty eye-opening, given that the amount of junk circling our planet runs into the tens of millions of objects, according to NASA’s Orbital Debris Program. And while the program’s websie says the space station should be tough enough to handle an impact by debris up to a centimeter in size, the real danger comes from the 200,000 objects that range from one to ten centimeters in size, and the 17,000 that are even bigger than that.

Not all the debris shares the same orbital altitude as the space station, of course, but there’s plenty of stuff circling Earth at varying altitudes, which could put any number of commercial and government satellites at risk. The best recent example is the Feb. 10 collision of the Cosmos 2251 satellite (a defunct Russian communications rig) and the privately owned Iridium 33 satellite. That orbital wreck produced more than 500 pieces of debris, all of which is being tracked (the folks at spaceweather.com are on top of new developments in that arena). Some small pieces have started falling into the atmosphere — nothing big enough to survive re-entry, it is believed — but it could be years before it’s all cleared out of orbit and indeed may never be.

And by then, even more junk — from other collisions or just the flotsam that accompanies a standard launch — will join the orbital traffic jam. Bonus: Space Weather has a user-submitted video showing the leftover chunk of Iridium 33 passing through the star field at this link.

Subscribers who have purchased access to Next World Stories can proceed directly here to get into the site. You have your log and pass in your email. Any of the 12 horoscope log and pass combinations will get you in the front gate. If you have an “all 12″ log and password set, that will work both for the front gate, and for all of the horoscopes. If you would like to subscribe to Next World Stories, here is the best option: three months of Planet Waves Astrology News plus all 12 signs of Next World Stories for $50. You can also purchase signs individually. Here is a letter summarizing the project and the two options mentioned here. Thanks everyone for making this project a bestseller. We are advertising free thanks to you.

Chart of crash of Flight 1549. Return to main article…

Dear Friend and Reader,

TODAY MERCURY AND THE SUN form their interior conjunction in Libra, which marks the midpoint of the Mercury retrograde — in other words, we’re halfway through with the experience (it goes from Sept. 24 through Oct. 15). Interior conjunction means that the Mercury is between the Earth and the Sun. During the exterior conjunction, which occurs in about two months, the Sun is between Mercury and the Earth (Mercury is direct for this experience).

Jupiter and the Red Spots Credit: NASA, ESA, A. Simon-Miller (Goddard Space Flight Center), I. de Pater, M. Wong (UC Berkeley)

Today’s Sun/Mercury conjunction is distinct because it’s exactly square Jupiter. This adds a sense of things being larger than they are; Jupiter can inflate things mentally or emotionally, and when other planets get mixed up, you need to beware of confusion and keep a handle on what is your own and awareness of what is not your own. The square indicates an internal process of working out, which goes nicely with Mercury retrograde (retrogrades tend to internalize the energy of planets, thwarting expression and enhancing the mental or psychic dimension).

But this internal direction is one that we clearly need to take. Most people are incredibly confused (we wouldn’t need astrology otherwise). What I find interesting is how the presence of Jupiter in Capricorn (a kind of authority figure) shows up and seems to loom over our internal process — and that is often how it is, until we overthrow our parents and our attachment to Big Mama or Big Daddy keeping an eye on us, giving their approval and giving us the feeling that our mistakes are going to be compensated by some other force — one that also restricts freedom. Indeed, much of the creative process involves relating to internal authority, censors, editors, and so forth — and going past its edicts and dictates.

Finally the Moon enters the scene, making a conjunction to Jupiter and squaring Mercury and the Sun. I would say be careful what you talk about today, and why you do it, and with whom. Get to understand your motives, and let them reveal themselves in layers All plans are in motion, anything you were working out over the weekend you are still working out, and though today is clearly a turning point, it is not quite a point of commitment.

Genevieve has interpreted this week’s aspects. I’ll add my comments [in brackets].

Yours & truly,

Eros encourages the dish to run away with the spoon, seen at left. Seriously tho, in ancient Greece, sex and the Gods were depicted on household objects.

6 Monday: Sun squares Jupiter and conjoins Mercury. Mercury squares Jupiter. So to break it down, this means your power of being will come into conflict with expansion, and your methods of communication and craftsmanship will help this along. It might be a day where you find it better to keep under wraps your big ideas about the scheme of things. Or, perhaps it will be a good time to let your outcast-ish self shine through. Either way, today your voice is hooked up to a psychic amplifier. Use it as you will, but be prepared for the response. Psyche enters Sagittarius direct.

7 Tuesday: First quarter Moon. Venus sextiles Saturn. Venus squares Chiron. [The Venus-Chiron square is like a hot night with a lover you don't know that well. It's emotionally intense, you feel all kinds of deep passions, and ultimately you are left alone with your experience.]

The Moon is growing towards full — indeed, a very unusual Full Moon — and because of that, it’s a good time to continue moving those things that will contribute to your personal goals. Use love to support your work today. Remember that everything you do, ideally, is something that you want to be doing. If it’s not, try to figure out why it’s not and why you started doing it in the first place. [Those aspiring to the creative life would do well to remember some advice given to Paul McKenna's design classes at SUNY Buffalo: being an artist means you motivate yourself with creativity no matter what you're doing; that is to say, one use of your creative talent is to help you be creative when it comes to working through otherwise boring projects.]

8 Wednesday: Moon enters Aquarius at 12:03 pm EDT. Juno trine 1992 QB1. Eros conjoins Rhadamanthus. These aspects speak of promises, equality, oaths and the truth as it appears to yourself and those in relationship with you. Much of what we have been taught as correct is no longer right, yet it remains a popular way to steer through our society. Continue Reading »

Dear Friend and Reader

This week’s highlight is the New Moon, which occurred in Libra early this morning, covered in detail in this post. Libra is seeking balance and justice; Mercury retrograde is asking us to look at our relationships with others, and whether they reflect what is truly meaningful to us.

The Moon, but not in the New phase.

We are all feeling the quiet sense of uncertainty that is in the air, verging on outright fear — but the one reassuring thing is that we’re all in this together. And I think that just below the fear, many people are becoming conscious of their anger.

It’s sure to be an emotion-filled week, with the occultation of Mercury the Moon on Tuesday, and Mars entering Scorpio on Friday. Challenges are sure to result in great personal reward, so it’s necessary to keep moving forward and looking back as little as possible.

All the activity in Libra and Scorpio is surely making some interesting times in personal relationships. If you’re confused, if you’re struggling, if you don’t know what you want, remember, we are all in this together. Very few people do, and many of the ones who seem like they do are faking it.

Happy New Moon, and read below for further details on the week ahead, written by Genevieve Salerno with some editing by me. The aspects were calculated by Tracy Delaney’s ephemeris at Serennu.com and by Raphael’s Ephemeris.

Yours & truly,

29 Monday: New Moon in Libra at 4:12 am EDT. Sun sesquiquadrate Neptune. This is a trigger aspect, but it’s difficult to trigger Neptune. It tends to rise like flood waters that you saw coming months ahead but ignored. Sound familiar? Mercury was (and still is) opposite Eris at the moment of the New Moon. The stuff that you really want to be doing has been giving you goosebumps today. Perhaps you feel like just by imagining your fantasy, you’re tip-toeing on the edge of going crazy. That’s good! It means what you are doing is genuine. Use this feeling today to study the world around you. You are being given a rare capacity to see the projections that others are putting forth in order to get by in our world. A sense of compassion will be helpful today. If you’re going to project anything, let that be it.

30 Tuesday: Moon enters Scorpio at 12:26 pm EDT. Occultation of Mercury by the Moon. Mercury square Varuna. An occultation, like an eclipse, is when the Moon passes in front of a planet (under rare circumstances, it can involve two planets; and when something passes in front of the Sun, that is called a transit of the Sun — also extremely rare). What this means energetically is that for today, emotions are going to come right to the front of your personality. Normally we deny them and they bottle up. It might even feel like you are wearing how you feel on your forehead and what you’ll be feeling will tend to be very intense. Ethics prevents me from telling you what to do, but I can suggest that it may be in your best interest to wait until tomorrow, or the day after to share your thoughts with those closest to you, so that you can gain a little balance to offset what may be an exaggerated feeling of defensiveness. Of course, what comes out comes out. But try to be gentle. Continue Reading »

Dear Friend and Reader:

Today we’re posting the September Eriscope, which is a sex-oriented horoscope that is published to subscribers as one of our “bonus horoscopes” one Tuesday per month.

As some of you know, I was writing about sexuality long before I even thought of writing a horoscope. Eriscope contains some practical thoughts on applied eroticism; that is, how to think about your sexuality that is outside the usual box, but is also sane and compassionate (at least in my opinion). It is not a “say no” kind of piece of writing; it is definitely “say yes if you want, but think it through first.”

For new readers wondering what other kinds of horoscopes I write (four other columns actually — three other monthly horoscopes, and a weekly horoscope) here is a sample of Planet Waves Monthly, the October column that we published to our subscriber lists yesterday. (This particular column has run continuously since 1996). All subscribers who sign up today will receive horoscopes each Tuesday and Friday with your subscription. To sign up, please check this link.

Today Mercury stations retrograde. There is additional information below, and also at the top of Planet Waves Monthly for October (the one linked in the paragraph above).

Thanks for reading –

Aries (March 20-April 19)
Quite the tale of intrigue is showing up on the September radar, events that seem strange, beautiful and in some way fated. One theme is that for most people, love is based on need, and clearly you’re feeling that. Another is that what appears to be love may be one of several emotions that is not specifically love, but which you have the ability to take to another level. Last is that sex is going to guide you into yourself, into self-awareness of everything you need to feel, express and embrace about yourself. I imagine you’ve got your ear on someone who seems to speak deeply to who you are. Let that message go in and allow your emotions to soak into you until the full spectrum of their contradiction is revealed. You crave sex and you crave unabashed surrender. I assure you that what you truly crave is self-knowledge. Fortunately the way there is illuminated by heat.

Cecilia from Book of Blue. Photo by Eric Francis.

Taurus (April 19-May 20)
Vesta, the most misunderstood of the major asteroids, is in your sign. She is the creative fire of the psyche and you are the one who embodies her. She identifies as sexual and, at the same time, in full possession of her purity. This is not a paradox; it may be that the inner core of sex is the only purity, so closely is it connected with the existence of humanity. The work of Vesta is to hold us to the fire and purge us of all the shadowy emotions we associate with eroticism: shame, guilt or any other sense of wrongness. Then there is the loss of self-possession that sexual involvement so often seems to inflict. Finally there is the tendency to take sexual energy and either stuff it or subvert it into some other form of expression, rather than letting eroticism be the inspiration for expression. Right now these are the themes upon which your life is turning.

Gemini (May 20-June 21)
You may be inclined toward a lot more casual sex than usual this month. Oh, did I just imply that you’re normally accustomed to a good bit of such, and now it’s time for a good bit more? That was totally unconscious on my part! Anyway, pay attention to situations where you are triangulating into or out of a relationship. For you right now, sex is all about those three-sided shapes. If you get involved, don’t be surprised if you get more involved than you were expecting to, emotionally mingled up and connected by some unusual, hidden layer of karma that you make contact with as you plunge into the hot waters of the flesh. Drink from that water and let it be from the stream of remembering rather than forgetting. There is something about your past that you need to embrace and, I trust, give yourself permission to have experienced. The way is open. Continue Reading »