Mini-documentary featuring Eric Francis. Banned by YouTube!
Who Are You?
Dear Friend and Reader:
Sunday is the New Moon conjunct the very sigil of the electronic age, Eris in Aries. If you could see it, this would be a positively spectacular lunation, but the New Moon is as invisible as the Full Moon is bright. Planets are tucked all around it: Venus, Ceres, Mercury, Chiron and the least famous planet everyone has heard of, Eris.
When you look at the chart, you think, this has to be about something. The chart is always about the “now” that it represents. So then astrology becomes about looking back and forth between the chart and the now and seeing what they are saying about one another.
Ultimately, astrology is about us, and the times we are living through. History factors in. Often the chart for any given moment points to cultural changes long underway. The local news says something about the long-term historical movement that is underway. I will get to that in a section called “Local News and Weather,” which will cover the inner planets Mercury, Venus and Mars.
The New Moon, that is, the Moon to Sun conjunction, is conjunct the dwarf planet Eris, a relatively new discovery as planets come. Hardly anyone remembers what a big deal this discovery was when it was made public in the summer of 2006, and the planet was named soon after. Typical of the disruptive power of Eris, this was the event that led to the Pluto system “no longer being a planet.”
(That was funny at the time, considering that there was not even a clear photo of it available. It is not an overstatement to say that the decision was corrupt. As usual, I know the story, and will tell it another time.)
The discovery and naming of Eris was also the event that alerted the public to the existence of what are called minor planets. This is not a diminutive; think of the minor keys in music, every bit as beautiful and artistically relevant as the major keys (usually, more interesting, too).
Electrical Communication and Disorientation
What does Eris say about how you feel today? How you feel about being alive? What it means to be you? If you don’t mind, I will recap the history of this planet and then go into the psychology. The bottom line is this: the age of Eris is the age of electrical communication. That means people are tribalized, pushed out of their bodies, their minds are scrambled and they have no idea who they are.
However, the real issue with electrical communication — and the reason it’s about out of body experiences — is that it propels people at the speed of light, and creates situations where they exist in two or more places at once.
This is associated with Eris in Aries based on my many observations, and because this technology was emergent at the time Eris entered Aries. It has turned people inside-out and upside-down.
Eris is a very slow mover. It takes 558 years to orbit the Sun. Its discoverer, Mike Brown, described it at the time of its discovery as the furthest, coldest object orbiting the Sun. (I will compare it to Sedna in another article. Discovered in 2002, Sedna, with an 11,408 year orbit, is now in late Taurus.)
I wrote the first monograph (short book) about Eris while living in Brussels the winter of 2006-2007. I called it Facets and Fragments of Self; I could see what was going on. Working with Paloma Todd, I had already been figuring it out under its provisional code name, Xena (named for the warrior-princess of the TV series). It seemed to be associated with the fragmenting of the psyche, and the disorientation of identity. Paloma, well-trained academically, figured out that it was about postmodernism.
In 2007, I got the delineation down to two words: identity chaos.
McLuhan Makes a Cameo
In that article, I mentioned the work of media philosopher Marshall McLuhan as potentially being informative on the topic. I had no notion that I might work with his son Eric and grandson Andrew to figure out both Eris and the internet. (Andrew and I are still at it.)
Eris entered Aries on Feb. 12, 1926 — during the Roaring ’20s. Its total time in Aries is about 130 years. This was the era of the first commercial radio stations being licensed. The age of radio was the age of Gandhi and of Hitler.
TV was being developed by RCA (yes, Radio Corporation of America), and the first transistor was patented (it was the size of a coffee can, not so helpful for a digital watch).
The Eris in Aries era really got going with a conjunction of Uranus and Eris on the Aries Point in 1927 and 1928. We had a similar Uranus conjunct Eris event the years that Trump was elected. The shock, chaos and disintegration of that era led to what we are going through now.
What is this all about? I will once again quote Eric McLuhan, who figured it out for me: “The body is everywhere assaulted by all of our new media, a state which has resulted in deep disorientation of intellect and destabilization of culture throughout the world. In the age of disembodied communication, the meaning and significance and experience of the body is utterly transformed and distorted.”
Digital vs Analog People
Last spring, I took my worst beating since challenging the #MeToo movement for publishing an article about a bunch of hippies going to a concert in Upstate New York — in August 1969. I was told I was endangering lives in 2020 by saying that 450,000 groovy peaceniks had crammed into a farmer’s cow pasture to trip out and listen to music during the Hong Kong Flu, which at that time was already said to have already killed 100,000 Americans.
This was taken as my being opposed to social distancing and masks for scientific and other reasons, which was and is true.
Though he said he did not care about Hong Kong Flu at the time, and never even thought about it, photographer Elliot Landy pulled his photos from the article out of concern that I was endangering lives — by writing about a concert in 1969. Many other people objected. Some Facebook threads were 100 comments long.
What was the difference between then and now, besides better music? Why, the fuss now, which nobody cared about at the time?
Identity chaos. Being disembodied — ripped out of body, making you not trust your body. Too much information and misinformation delivered by internet.
As Dr. McLuhan said: “In the age of disembodied communication, the meaning and significance and experience of the body is utterly transformed and distorted.”
Those who attended Woodstock were analog people rather than digital people. They still had bodies, which they used for things like dancing, and sex. These were not special activities, like snowboarding, BASE jumping, parasailing, or search and rescue.
Noticing Something Difficult to See
It is true that the 1960s was the dawn of the digital age. People had heard of computers. They could do things like draw an antique car out of letters and numbers on 22-inch wide tractor paper.
But digital technology was not ubiquitous. Those were the days of looking up credit cards in a little book printed in point size 1 that listed all the bad cards. If your card was in the book, you got “declined.” You were not stalked, connected, or anything.
What is the difference? What is this New Moon saying? It’s saying notice something difficult to see: how our electronic environment has made us into terrified, confused, zoned-out people, who cannot reason.
Into people who think that asking a question means making up a conspiracy. People who think there is no such thing as truth.
But I think there is a much simpler way to say this. Analog people, such as those who attended Woodstock without the least concern, understood something much better than digital: the only real choice is between love and fear.
They were more agreeable. They were more curious about the world. They were not stretched so tight as we are. They knew when something felt right and when it didn’t, because feeling is a form of sensing that you do with your body.
Everyone at that concert, for whatever reason, had the good sense to stay away from Vietnam.
Faithfully,
And in Local News and Weather
Mercury, Venus and Mars factor into the New Moon chart, including the days leading up to it — or soon after. Friday is particularly unusual, and busy.
Presently, Mars (the ruler of Aries) is in Gemini, making its final approach to its square to Neptune in Pisces. Mars square Neptune is a chaotic, potentially self-destructive aspect. This has been building for many weeks, and it comes into exact focus at 3:18 pm on Friday, April 9.
Mars to Neptune: Clearing the Toxic Fog We Are Trying to Breathe
This aspect represents the toxic fog in its current form. It represents the kinds of bad-judgment decisions you hear people admitting to, explaining they really didn’t want to choose that. I would add to this the problem of believing lies; of rationalizing; and of denial. What you don’t know can hurt you seriously. It’s time to stop the usual “Who gives a toss?” Or “I don’t want to know” of our times.
Because both Gemini and Pisces are involved, we have this issue of dualism. Mars square Neptune with these signs involved looks like intellectual and psychic chaos, where simple things are made complicated, and nothing is actually right.
The only way out of this is to notice that it’s happening — and stop making decisions, especially rushed decisions. Use logic: real logic, not any form of “I think” (Gemini) or “I believe” (Pisces). Logic is breaking down the steps. It’s also critical to know when you don’t know.
The Venus Factor
The same day Mars is square Neptune, Venus is conjunct Eris in Aries. This emphasizes the point of Mars-Neptune; the two aspects are synchronous and can be seen as one event. They have a similar feeling, both with Aries involved (Mars as ruler, Venus in sign).
However, Venus conjunct Eris seems more honest: more like a question. It is disorienting but in a potentially creative way. It has a dislodging feeling to it, and demands to know one thing: what are your priorities? What is the most important person, priority, thing or quality in your life?
Venus always raises the question of sex. For as far back as you can remember, how has sex changed from the beginning of your experiences, to the present time?
The Mercury Factor
Mercury is in Aries, recently conjunct Chiron, slowly moving up on Eris. What is interesting about Mercury is that it is in mutual reception with Mars in Gemini. That is, Mars is in the sign ruled by Mercury, and Mercury is in the sign ruled by Mars. You can think of them as being able to trade places, or you can think of this as a hostage situation.
Mercury in Aries is likely to be caught in the toxic fog of Mars square Neptune. There is only one remedy to this: take the time to figure out what is true. Not just true for you. Not just what someone is pushing you to do. Not just what you think or believe, but what is actually true.
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2020-21 Taurus Astrology Studio: The Taurus Guide to Radical Transformation
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Instant Access: Aries Astrology Studio 2021-22
Aries (March 20-April 19) — In many ways, chaos has become a way of life. It’s no longer possible to expect stability, consistency or a coherent meeting of the minds. Yet you might feel like those things are expected of you. This may be the cause of considerable tension, as you do your best to keep your commitments while the world seems flakier every day. Or at least we can hope that is your problem: under the current astrology, you may not have a grip on yourself. If that is true, address the matter forthrightly with partners or anyone who is counting on you. The solution is to communicate, not to go silent. Request an adjustment to expectations if you must. As for meeting your commitments, there are people who will help you, though you need to choose well. You want those who are disciplined and a little stoic. If you must delegate, assign work to people who deliver, rather than those who merely promise. The promisers may look good; those who deliver may seem dull by comparison. Here is the key: work only with those who honor time, and can meet deadlines.
Self-assertive, sometimes bold, Aries is always up for an adventure. A new adventure awaits — preorder your affordable reading by Eric Francis today.
2021-22 Aries Astrology Studio: The Continuing Adventure of Chiron in Aries
Taurus (April 19-May 20) — What exactly is bothering you? I have an idea. Taurus may be the most perfectionistic sign of them all, to the point of setting standards for yourself that are impossible to meet. At the same time, momentous activity in Aquarius is calling you to set an impeccable example for others as integral to your leadership role. There may be moments when you feel like a hypocrite for not being a model for what you want from others. Yet you might ask whether there really is a disparity; whether you’re not judging yourself a little harshly. You are probably asking for less than you deliver, though that would make a good point of evaluation. This is not so much about proving yourself but rather about a sense of equilibrium. A good guide might be: not expecting others to do what you won’t do. Yet what if something requires technical expertise that is over your head? You can set an example in the form of always being willing to learn, and to assist in the ways that it’s possible for you to do so.
Calm, collected and attractive on the outside, raging like a tempest on the inside, Taurus is the blacksmith shop of the soul. Forge your path with this reading.
2020-21 Taurus Astrology Studio: The Taurus Guide to Radical Transformation
Gemini (May 20-June 21) — What has come to light the past few days is now in awareness, and is in play. You probably feel better. Now it is up to you to be fair-minded and to tidy up any misunderstandings. Your good intentions are not enough: they never are. Commitment is what counts, or what you might call Dharma. That means doing your part to hold together a world that is under considerable stress right now. If you notice that you have not been wholly honest with yourself or with others, make the corrections — gradually if need be. Take care of anything you may have neglected. Make sure that you clear the fog of any commitments made to you that don’t seem to be realistic. Make your adjustments incrementally, and look for a solution that serves everyone. If you do, you will find it. Mars in your sign is passing through its square to Neptune, and will soon make a trine to Jupiter. This carries some promise that a win-win situation is available. One usually is, though it’s vital to use that kind of thinking now.
Geminis ask a heck of a lot of questions, and much of what you are curious about is yourself. Find some answers in your affordable reading by Eric Francis.
2020-21 Gemini Astrology Studio: The Sacred Space of Self
Cancer (June 21-July 22) — The best thing you can do is be yourself. The second-best thing you can do is have clear agreements with others. The two are closely related, as the context of your relationships with others is so critical to your ability to function. There must be a real measure of order and organization, more so for you than nearly anyone else. You need to have reasonable expectations and then to have those expectations be met. This requires an understanding that goes a little further than the world usually delivers these days, or has even heard of. However, that cannot get in your way. You need to build your world on your terms, despite the prevailing condition of society or the people in it. There may not be many people you can work with on those terms, so therefore, trim back if necessary. The one thing you would be wise to avoid is falling prey to your insecurities. Stand up for yourself in ways large and small. Challenge people to be real with themselves and with you. Make that your personal credo.
Nurturing, loving, devoted, cuddly, milky and self-centered, Cancer has it all. You can even have instant access to your reading when you purchase today.
2020-21 Cancer Astrology Studio: I Feel, Therefore I Am
Leo (July 22-Aug. 23) — Your spiritual quest continues in a world where this journey has now become an entirely practical matter. While the cosmos may not be binary, on Earth the journey comes down to one of love versus fear. This seeps into every transaction, every choice, every moment of perception. The question at the moment is, what do you do when people are making the sublime terror known as anxiety a way of life? What do you do when people around you are giving up? What do you do when they deem anger and judgment to be love and civic-mindedness? Worse, what happens when this becomes a way of life? That is when you must set off on your own, on the path of the sannyasin: one who abandons their claims and ties to the social world. I don’t mean this in the strict sense of the term from Hinduism, but rather in the sense of one who is an independent seeker of their own knowledge and destiny. Most of the togetherness of the old world was a ruse. Categories were falsely misnamed as communities. You will find the real thing by setting off on your own. For you, this is the path of liberation.
Leo is THE sign of human vitality and in many respects the source of strength, light and creation. How’s this for a bright idea: get your reading by Eric Francis!
2020-21 Leo Astrology Studio: Notes on Love and Courage
Virgo (Aug. 23-Sep. 22) — You can now set your goals more clearly, as long as you don’t mingle them up with the goals of others — or what you perceive as their expectations of you. You may not be hung up on what anyone actually thinks, but rather what you think they think. Your life at the moment is an exercise of separating your identity from that of other people. In some ways this has always been true. Yet it is coming into full focus now, with Chiron and Eris provoking you to be self-aware in a way that may seem frightening at times. That is the edge you want to work: the zone where you feel uncertain. Long ago, a teacher named Alan Watts wrote a book called The Wisdom of Insecurity. It is one of my favorites from my early spiritual path in this lifetime. Here is a taste: “The desire for security and the feeling of insecurity are the same thing. To hold your breath is to lose your breath. A society based on the quest for security is nothing but a breath-retention contest in which everyone is as taut as a drum and as purple as a beet.”
As a Virgo, it’s your role to make the world a better place: to offer, if not solace, then solutions. Find both for yourself when you purchase your reading.
2020-21 Virgo Astrology Studio: I touch the Earth. The Earth touches me.
Libra (Sep. 22-Oct. 23) — You may feel like you’re going through some agonizing death and rebirth process. It may seem to be about your relationships. But it’s really about you and you alone. Much of what I said for Virgo (above) applies to you. But your inner state these particular days is more pronounced, with the feeling of not being able to escape some enforced change or transformation. That is the sensation of Venus square Pluto. This relatively transient aspect is emphasizing the message of much other longer-term astrology, so the immediate situation you’re in may feel disproportionate. It is not; what Venus is doing is making it personal. There is something about you, and your approach to life and to your relationships, that has served its purpose and needs to transform itself. Taking this out of New Age language, there is something that is at its end-point, and you will be much happier about embracing the future if you recognize that and use it to your advantage. You have had other opportunities to take this leap, but none so poignant as right now.
Aleister Crowley said that the essence of the sign Libra is the drive for justice. Tap into your essence with this reading, and bring balance to your world.
2020-21 Libra Astrology Studio: Notes to Myself
Scorpio (Oct. 23-Nov. 22) — Your ruling planet Mars in Gemini has been through an ordeal, and taken you with it. You might call this a test of truth, or a proving, of a certain kind. Mars has been square Neptune in Pisces for many weeks, which will culminate in a few days. There is likely the sensation of burning off karma in a sexual relationship. Given that the signs involved are Gemini and Pisces, the feeling may be akin to a David Lynch-like hall of mirrors. This is potentially entertaining. It may be great fun, and could surely be under certain conditions. Yet the ultimate message is that relationships either create or resolve karma. You are learning something about the power of sex and sexual attraction to make more of whatever is there. Yet the true benefit of this astrology is the ability to see just how much of being in a relationship is relating to yourself. This is the open secret; this is the seemingly elusive truth that is taboo to acknowledge. Relationships become more meaningful as you figure out what they are.
Scorpio is an odd hybrid, both a product — and an instigator — of evolution. Purchase your latest reading to delve deeper into the mystery of yourself.
2020-21 Scorpio Astrology Studio: The Scorpio File
Sagittarius (Nov. 22-Dec. 22) — You simply must grapple with an issue from your past that is clouding your judgment of the present. It’s the same thing you keep getting stuck on though may not realize it because it comes in different forms each time it comes around. There are several things going on. One is that as someone born under a mutable sign, you tend to think of yourself as a flexible person. Yet your mind has the quality of a fixed sign, in particular, Aquarius. That suggests that you don’t change your ways or your way of thinking so easily. You may think of yourself as objective and science-minded, though you might do a study of the steps that you took to reach any truth you hold dear. When was the last time you reevaluated it? Saturn in this angle of your chart for the foreseeable future is pushing you to do just that. Jupiter is there temporarily, which is all about what you would seem to know, though Saturn brings the critical element of doubt. And those doubts will be compelling enough to get you to stop and reconsider, well, just about everything.
Sagittarius, yours is the sign of the quest, the far away and far-out. Purchase your reading today and continue your adventure with the stars as your guide.
2020-21 Sagittarius Astrology Studio: Live from the Galactic Center
Capricorn (Dec. 22-Jan. 20) — The world is in a state of mania over being accepted by groups. There are days when it seems like the planet has turned into a version of the infamous Jonestown, with everyone jonesing to be part of the club. This is spiraling to the point of obsession, due to influences in both Aries and Aquarius. Which club? Well, look around. There are a lot of them, and they are extremely popular. But the question is, when you get in, what’s the vibe? Just because it says PEACE AND LOVE on the door does not mean that’s what you get when you walk in. I propose being extremely cautious of two things: one is any group that thinks it’s better than any other group, even if it defines that other group as bad individuals. Two is any conflation of morality and spiritual elevation with medical status. This is the elixir of tyrants, who use their influence to declare war between the supposedly clean and the unclean. Remember it was Jesus, said to be a Capricorn, who washed a leper with his bare hands.
We depend upon Capricorn to hold things stable. But you’re not as boring as you like people to think you are. Unearth your inner revolutionary with this reading.
2021 Capricorn Astrology Studio: One Night Only Kala Sarpa Yoga
Aquarius (Jan. 20-Feb. 19) — Saturn is often mistaken to be the agent of being stuck. I’ve probably said this a few times, though it bears repeating as Saturn is in your sign — the one it has the strongest association with. It’s true that there are several ways to experience this (one for everyone in the world, though two in the broad sense). The first is the obstacle, and the other is the lever. Often with Saturn, the obstacle works as a lever. It’s the thing you have to get around, so you invent a new route. It’s the problem that presents itself, leading to an invention. It is the sensation of feeling small that can provoke the need to grow. Of all signs, Saturn in Aquarius is what you make of it. It can be woefully dogmatic, or impeccably fair. There are many factors, but mostly, the difference is about not just what you want but how much work you’re willing to do. For example, it is easy to have an opinion. It is difficult to get to the truth. Beware of “there is no truth.” That is a trap.
You’re not after progress for its own sake; Aquarius is the discriminating embracer of innovation that works. Get your reading and be brilliant.
2021-22 Aquarius Astrology Studio: A Reading For Our Moment
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Pisces (Feb. 19-March 20) — You are in a position to make some radical changes in your financial picture, and don’t be afraid to. Make sure that your spending cuts are more valued than your increases. You need to spend less, not more, and you need to reassign your values. Mostly, to the greatest extent possible, your financial priorities must match your wider life priorities. We have all heard of voting with your dollars. Think of this as voting for yourself with your dollars, quid, euros, yen, pesos or rubles. This is the way that money “is spiritual.” It is an affirmation of your reality. Let this come from the inside out. Recognize that you are changing and part of how you can guide that change is to invest in what matters, to you. You may find that this sparks a revolution in your heart, your values and in your appreciation of your preferences and understanding of life. Do one radical thing for yourself — something you might ordinarily be too conservative to do, or think would in some way be inappropriate.
The hidden realm is vitally important to Pisces: in a sense it is your home. Find your way back home, guided by your latest reading.
2021-22 Pisces Astrology Studio: Every Decision You Make
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Acting as if to hold the world together for over twenty years
