Daily Astrology for Tuesday, Aug. 18: Leo New Moon is overnight Tuesday to Wednesday

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Mars retrograde in Aries is the final transition, the emotional, psychological and experiential bridge, to the last event of 2020: Jupiter conjunct Saturn in Aquarius. Mars retrograde represents the work of individuation and of self-actualization that will make the group experience in Aquarius more relevant and more easily workable.

Borrowing a line from Lou Reed, “Self-knowledge is a dangerous thing — the freedom of who you are.” Dangerous perhaps to a way of life that involves allowing yourself to disappear and be insignificant. Mars retrograde in Aries invites boldness and embodiment and the exploration of your will. Pre-order here to get the earliest price.


Chart for tonight’s Leo New Moon

Leo New Moon; Sun enters Virgo

If this feels like an edgy New Moon, it’s not just the Mars-Eris conjunction. The Moon-Sun conjunction is exactly opposite Damocles, an odd minor planet with a 40-year orbit. Damocles is not an asteroid; it’s more like a super-centaur. It spends nearly its entire orbit in one sign, Aquarius: about 28 years, then whips through the other signs in about 12 years.

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Mars Conjunct Eris: Quest for Humanity

This odd sense that everything is growing more chaotic and uncertain by the minute is described magnificently by Mars conjunct Eris in Aries. This is Mars nearly in position to go retrograde on Sept. 9. One of the central concepts Eris represents astrologically is the result of electrical technology on one’s state of being.

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Tuesday, August 18 — The Day of Endurance

If Today is your Birthday: Today’s New Moon on your birth anniversary is urging you to find the present. Rather than planning the future or trying to correct the past, guide yourself into the moment, and stay here. If you find yourself drifting, guide yourself back. Be attentive to who and what is around you in any moment. Take care of physical reality before you move onto digital. Do any activity at all that guides your mind into a Zen state of here and now. That will help you let go of distractions and influences that alienate you from yourself, and keep you centered where you need to be: where the action is.


Monday, August 17 — The Day of Explosive Power

If Today is your Birthday: Bring to closure every open file in your life this year. Do so one person at a time; one emotional file at a time; one sticky matter, then the next. Some will be surprisingly easy to conclude sincerely; others will surprise you with what you learn. Some situations will be difficult and call for humility. No matter: do what you must, and in the process, claim your future. Do not let the past take it from you. Yet for that to happen, you must take possession of your own material yourself. The result will be the rare-but-possible spiritual rebirth.


Monday Notes | August 17: Leo New Moon coming Tuesday; Mars square everything, and Venus square Chiron

The Moon and the Sun align in Leo at 10:41 pm EDT Tuesday for the Leo New Moon of 2020. The Moon-Sun conjunction is in a grand fire trine with Mars-Eris in Aries, and the South lunar node and Galactic Core in Sagittarius. This is the “get the lesson while it’s easy” configuration.

There is a lot to pay attention to right now, and the daily bid to survive and handle the emotional pressure is consuming lots of human energy. It will help if you aim your potential a little higher, and strive to both have some fun and also to recognize that you can play a role in global healing.

Photo by Charlie Lemay.

The place to start is with yourself. Fear is consuming much human energy on the planet right now, which has a paralyzing effect.

In order to have some flexibility of thought, choice and action, you’re going to need to figure out how to work your way out of a fearful state, if you haven’t already started the project or figured out how to do it.

Be aware that there is, coming from many directions, peer pressure to be afraid, worried and freaked out, on pain of being shunned or angering the great SARS god.

Everyone has to work this out on their own, though we could start with how anxiety doesn’t accomplish anything except taking you offline.

There are a good few people who are taking this in a reasoned and balanced way. This is the best approach, if you can educate yourself to the point of getting there.

As for the Grand Fire Trine New Moon — that will create momentum that builds on itself. If this is positive, it will become more so, and if you resonate with fear or anger, that will gather momentum as well. So choose which side of the wave you want to be on, and remember, there’s no time like the present to put all your spiritual training to some good use.


Sunday Notes | August 16: Cancer Moon, Mars square Everything and Venus square Chiron

The Moon in Cancer plunges into the volatile Mars, Pluto & Eris dynamic today (Sunday), while Venus in Cancer forms a right angle to Chiron. That’s a lot of emotionally-charged, complex and fast-moving weather. Cancerian instincts tend in the direction of defensive, internalized response, so slow burns and brooding may be more obvious than direct confrontations.

Observe any sensation of waking up — whatever might prompt it, whether it’s receiving the message of a dream, reaching the point of maximum tolerance, or deciding that now is the time to take acton on something that has long troubled you. Maybe waking up will come in the form of deciding what you want, that you had long denied.

Photo by Charlie Lemay.

Treat yourself and others as gently as you can. Monitor your emotional temperature if feeling especially raw or triggered. Intense reactions, yours or in those around you, are most likely rooted in unresolved personal history, or situations that have been brewing for a while, rather than events playing out right now — as crazy-making as those certainly are.

At the same time, we have a rather spectacular trine between the Sun and Mars, both at full, fiery strength in their home signs. Trines describe easy expression of your feelings and creative impulses.

This is high-energy, can-do spirit; a sharp contrast with the acute sensitivity and deeply colored moods floating around. The two are related. You may be able to siphon some heaviness off via productive work, whether around the house or in the form of physical activity, or more to the point, investing in your creative desires.  Some may channel that into raising the volume on the battlefield, be that on social media or face to face.

Step aside or outside, rather than get swept into conflicts that don’t help anyone involved. Conflict burns energy, goodwill and trust, and it contaminates the future. Resolution builds goodwill and trust, saves energy and protects the future.

There are battles to be waged, to be sure, but know your “enemy” — whomever strives to strand you in a state of fear. There are immense fissures in our social fabric that require a citizenry that’s awake and engaged. So if you’re moved by a cause that calls you, step up with the presence and shield of a spiritual warrior. True power is peace within.

— by Victoria Emory with Eric Francis


Setup for the first Vision Quest House Concert in 2015. Photo by Eric Francis.

August 16, 2020 | Planet Waves FM: Introduction to Mars Retrograde, Inside Covid science, and the history of science. Tantra Studio on having the impossible conversation.

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Sunday, August 16 — The Day of High Voltage

If Today is your Birthday: Take responsibility for how you feel rather than in any way making others responsible for it. The challenge here would be figuring out, sussing out, or vibing out what you’re experiencing inwardly rather than making an assumption about it. Once you will do that, you’ll see that it has little to do with others currently present in your life and everything to do with how you experience your inner emotional reality. Important attributes of this involve your experience of your sexuality. This includes everything from your past injuries, to your deepest needs, do your must curious desires. Give yourself permission to honor it all. The way to free yourself from guilt is to go toward what might embarrass you rather than away from it.


Saturday, August 15 — The Day of Royal Command

If Today is your Birthday: Face personal and professional challenges head on – but understand the difference between power and force. Force pushes against, creating a counterforce and ultimate stalemate. Power is the natural result of inner alignment. Quiet your mind and turn inward. Follow hunches, follow the known facts, and seek wisdom. Your ability to use your strength and your will flows from a state of awareness, and what some call higher consciousness. In case you’ve ever wondered what that means, it’s simply expressed as freedom from fear. Anxiety is the fast food of the emotions, and what drives people to believe they are smaller and less than they really are. There is just one way to find the truth about yourself, which is to practice courage.


Mars square Pluto: Small Moves Mean a Lot | August 15

We are now under the full strength of Mars square Pluto, an aspect that is associated with power trips, power struggles, lone-wolf attitudes such as going it alone. We live in times when respect seems to be a thing of the past; when people use every scrap of ‘power’ they can grab, and when hate is the new love.

Eric Francis

Be conscious of the excuses people are making (whether tacitly, or spoken) to just give up on tradition, protocol or the most basic courtesy — or to give up in general. Hold yourself to a high standard.

Be impeccable, and put up with nothing. Hold yourself and others to their truth — in that order. The seeming chaos of our times is not an excuse to downgrade your humanity or that of anyone else.

Part of this will mean setting limits: on how you are treated, on how you treat others, on how late you are to work because you know they can’t replace you, on anything that needs reining in.

One of the central issues with the current astrology is how one responds to authority. You might have the impulse to be rebellious, aggressive or overly assertive. That will only get you so far. It’s much better use of your energy to be creative, which will be gentle and conscious. As Ellie Arroway’s dad said to the aspiring young scientist, “Small moves mean a lot.”

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Friday, August 14 — The Day of the Mortal Mirror

If Today is your Birthday: You want to be in good standing with the most difficult people in your life. So do what you can: learn how their mind works, learn how they take their coffee and make it for them, or perhaps you might decide you have to be the top and they are actually the bottom. Whatever you must do, figure it out, and stay in the position of negotiator for your own cause, and any that you feel needs standing up for. We live in polarized times, where people are quick to make enemies and slow to make friends. That is not sustainable, particularly for you who wants to do something productive with your life. Stick to old-school ways. They work better, and they are designed to help you build the future and gather knowledge and wisdom.


Thursday, August 13 — The Day of Long Odds

If Today is your Birthday: What is your concept of mother, of women, and of where the two relate to one another? Your ideas are changing, though you may not be aware of this yet. It’s vital that you see through your conditioned perceptions. You need to cultivate honesty with yourself, rather than in any way allowing your position to be dictated by loyalty to an idea or to a person. This drives many people to an alarming degree, and has the effect of preventing independence of thought.


Notes for Wednesday, August 12: Moon in Gemini, square Nessus

Today the Moon entered Gemini. If you’ve felt a little chatty, that may describe your state of mind, though the question is what you might talk about. Early in its run through Gemini, the Moon makes a square to Nessus, a centaur that can guide the discussion to matters relevant to personal healing. This could be your opportunity to speak about what you can rarely bring yourself to say.

There is plenty of pain to go around in the world, especially when it comes to sex and some of its negative consequences. Honesty runs the risk of dragging along all that is unaddressed, and all that has been left unsaid, though you don’t need to go in over your head. You can guide the conversation toward challenging topics, and test the water, sticking to the edge.

Remember: the buck stops with you. You are responsible for the content of your mind, for how you respond to what life offers you, and ultimately, for how you feel.


This Week: Mars Square Pluto | August 13

As you may know, Mars will be retrograde beginning next month, from Sept. 9 through Nov. 13. We are now in the setup for that event, as Mars makes aspects this week to both Pluto and Eris — aspects that it will repeat early in the retrograde, then again in December.

Eric Francis

Pluto and Eris both move slowly (they take centuries to around the Sun, while Mars takes just two years), and are currently dancing in a 90-degree angle.

When a close-up personal world like Mars mixes it up with far-away planets that influence long generations, the result is that the private meets the impersonal — and there will be an interesting effect. Interesting meaning intense, sometimes with the sensation that things are (once again) outside of your control.

Yet let’s consider the nature of a square. One quality it calls for is to turn your attention inward. That is unusual in our times, yet that’s the thing to do. Another is, if you have two sides to an issue, situation or problem, take them one at a time. Devote yourself to one side, and then the other, and gradually work it out. finally, remember that squares always call for expression, which would rightly come after a time of inner focus and thought.

There are alternatives, of course, such as aggression — but that does not help anyone. Often, aggression is a quest for identity. There are better ways to get there.

I’ve written an extended article about this, which is posted with my weekly horoscope. Read without a paywall here.


LeoLeo (July 22-Aug. 23) — If you are wondering what to do with your hours, your days, or your life, the question is: in what way are you being called upon to serve? This is not so much about what you want to do but rather the way you feel summoned to take a particular role. The value of preference is way overstated. Many people of great accomplishment followed a calling rather than “did what they loved.” What you may discover when you do that is that you grow to love your calling in a way you never loved anything else. Many people are teetering on this brink at the moment — including a good few who feel fortunate to have had their employment survive this ongoing social and economic tsunami. For anyone whose livelihood has been disrupted, seize the opportunity to make the long-overdue adjustments you’ve wanted to make. Streamline your life, work cooperatively with others, and listen to your calling: listen with your ears and your whiskers and smell the air.


Wednesday, August 12 — The Day of Convention

If Today is your Birthday: My theory of Leo is that your sign was born to serve. Here is the metaphor. The Sun rules your sign, and is at the center of the solar system. You therefore have the responsibility of keeping everything around you in its proper orbit, or least held in place. Your role is to serve; to hear a calling and answer it. Many complain that they don’t hear anything summoning them, though I would then propose to start getting the clutter and the noise out of your life and out of your mind. Create some clear interior space for yourself where you have a sense of potential, of room to move, of room to grow, and space to change your mind. Hang out in that clear pace. Then you might hear it a little clearly.


Tuesday, August 11 — The Day of Validation

If Today is your Birthday: Though enormous changes are moving through the world and quite possibly through your life, you have the ability to harmonize with them, rather than to fight against them. The astrology of our era influences what you do every day. It’s not some kind of abstract phenomenon. Take matters on the most practical level. Think of global changes as challenging you and providing you with opportunities rather than taking anything away. Yet above all else, be mindful of your health — as everyone should be, though especially Leo in this time. If you have your health, all potentials are open to you. Nothing is impossible.


Photo by Lanvi

You can now get instant access to your 2020-21 Leo Astrology Studio, Notes on Love and Courage. The two giants of the solar system meet up at the end of this year in your opposite sign Aquarius. In this extended audio reading, Eric explores what this seminal conjunction means for you, and much more. Get your copy here for just $44. The reading is ready! Transcript is ready! Original music by Vision Quest.

Listen to a sample of your Notes on Love and Courage — Astrology studio for Leo — on this player:


Monday, August 10 — The Day of the Velvet Voice

If Today is your Birthday: Genius or outlaw? The choice is yours, but if you slow down to examine the emotional motivation behind your rebellious impulses, you’ll find the creative sweet-spot between the two. Revolutionary ideas call for methodical implementation, to have lasting impact. For you this applies to your most public self and profession. Enormous changes are underway in how you manifest your gifts in the world. So record your insights for future review and know your priorities. Don’t talk away the magic of ideas you’re working on, and respect those whose help you may need down the road. You’re packing heat, and must consciously harness that energy to use it constructively. With self-awareness and patience, however, there’s little to stand in your way. — By Victoria Emory


Sunday, August 9 — The Day of Psychological Leverage

If Today is your Birthday: Whether in recent years or a previous life, you’ve earned a gift of wisdom that’s been hard-won. As with all spiritual attainments and natural gifts, you must actively use it, lest valuable lessons fade from memory and acquired mastery atrophies. Mercury in your sign trine Chiron on your birthday indicates your readiness to serve as a guide to others, even as your own healing continues to evolve. Do not hesitate to share what you know, which is becoming synonymous with who you are. Your role in the world is taking on surprising new dimensions, and this process is part of it. Follow your inner guidance and don’t look back.  — By Victoria Emory


Notes for Sunday, August 9: Venus in Cancer, Aries Moon and Mercury trine Chiron

Venus finally entered Cancer on Friday, having spent around four months in the sign of Gemini. Venus in Cancer needs strong emotional connection, and to feel part of a close-knit group in the sense of family. Tenderness, nurturing and protective impulses are at home here. Feelings can almost instinctively reflect the moods or needs of others, while at the same time, insecurities might inhibit the very intimacy that is desired.

Today (Sunday) Venus opposes Pholus in Capricorn, the ‘small cause, big effect’ centaur planet. Depending on individual variables, little gestures may strengthen relationships in ways unforeseen, or minor brush-ups may generate more flak than seems warranted — move gently.

The Moon has been in Aries since Friday, and will enter Taurus tonight at 9:28 pm EDT. Before then it conjoins Mars and Eris and squares Pluto early this morning (7:38 am EDT), then hits another square with Saturn this afternoon (3:50 pm).

This is the perfect recipe for road-blocks or power plays, but much of that can be avoided with self-awareness and efforts directed toward work you can achieve on your own. Physical activities that get you outside, even triggering some endorphins and breaking a sweat, are a good way to burn off any angst.

Speaking of Cardinal planets, Mars in Aries is building toward a square to Pluto now and through the week. Contests of will can have intense consequences, so pick your battles wisely.

On the bright side, Mercury trines Chiron today. The potential exists to express yourself honestly in a way that’s mutually supportive to all involved. Another optimal use of this influence is to focus your attention on some personal healing process. That might be the best conceivable goal you could have for today.

— By Victoria Emory


Saturday, August 8 — The Day of the Roleplayers

If Today is your Birthday: It’s time to find your voice, and use it. Not that you ever really lost it, but you’re now in position to connect what you perceive and what you understand with what you feel, on a whole new level. You have something to say that others need to hear, but think of it as a process of discovery more than pedantry. You don’t need to be right, you just need to be interested. Exploratory. Thirsty for knowledge. Like a travel writer, put yourself in the path of adventure. No baggage is necessary, the only distance required is from routines. Follow hunches, and take a different route — the one that’s beckoned, but you told yourself, “not yet.” — By Victoria Emory


Friday, August 7 — The Day of the Double Agent

If Today is your Birthday: What you’re about to discover through selfless service, in one form or another, will expand your entire world-view if you let it. Love as a system of barter may spackle over cracks in self-esteem, but it’s a constant struggle and ultimately a losing proposition. Take courageous responsibility for any unresolved relationship issues, if necessary, to clear the path and ignite the life-giving force of your true heart-presence. Just remember that fulfillment through giving is not the same as martyrdom. The latter springs from guilt, whereas offering your gifts freely is an act of joy, and your dharma. — By Victoria Emory


Thursday, August 6 — The Day of Unusual Developments

If Today is your Birthday: Your beliefs about yourself and your experience impact your health and livelihood more than you realize. A belief is just a thought you keep thinking, and the more intense the emotional charge behind them, the more obvious their effect. Seize opportunities available now to deep-dive into the hidden corners of your psyche, clear out debris and lighten your load. But you must find a way to actually express or process the emotional baggage you unpack; express in the sense of squeezing out juice from a fruit. The idea is to get your feelings in motion. Mercury is in your sign! Write, write, write! Don’t be afraid to be wrong. Stream of consciousness litanies in a journal, or emails to save or even delete. This is a path of creative exploration of the highest order. You’ll discover renewed passion for your own unique voice and perspective that serves you far into the future. — By Victoria Emory


Wednesday, August 5 — The Day of Resolute Composure

If Today is your Birthday: While you seem determined to reckon with your feelings, be vigilant about being honest with yourself. First, start with the question of whether these are in fact your feelings you’re experiencing and not those of someone else — such as leftovers from one of your parents. From that point, questions will get you further than quick answers, as they will in just about any spiritual inquiry. The more potent questions do not involve why but rather how. They include, how did this situation come to be this way? How did I get here? And, where am I? Once you have the facts, the reasons will gradually come into focus, and you will be able to put them into words.


Tuesday Notes, Mercury in Leo

Tuesday, one day after the Full Moon; the Moon is still in Aquarius and enters Pisces tonight at 10:27 pm EDT. The past five days came with some unusual pressure and turbulence as the Moon moved through Capricorn (beginning Friday morning) making a series of conjunctions to the many planets there, all as the Full Moon built.

That wave has passed. Take a breather if you can; turn your attention inward. The Moon is waning, and in the Northern Hemisphere, the days are starting to get noticeably shorter. That is all inward guidance.

Of special note: Mercury enters Leo today. Normally a sign change of Mercury is not remarkable, though this officially closes the book on the Mercury retrograde in Cancer that spanned from June 18 through July 12 — which brought a long span of Mercury in a water sign. Let’s see the change in tone as Mercury enters a fire sign for the first time in months.

And there is one more: of the three remaining major events of 2020, one of them is Mars retrograde, from Sept. 9 through Nov. 13. We are in the warmup phase of that now. This retrograde turns the most outward-seeking planet into an introspective oracle. It does not always work well; Mars retrogrades can be violent, if those experiencing them are unfamiliar with their private, intimate inner space.

Violence is a quest for identity. It’s not a healthy one though it seems to be “necessary” as few other venues for self-searching are made easily available. But it’s always possible to lash out, to project one’s guilt onto others, to blame, and so on.

This is especially troublesome in the digital age, when people are so easily numbed out to who they are, to physical experience, to trust, and to the desire for contact. In today’s Covid19 News, we cover some of the ways that the virus has become the fodder for an anti-sex campaign, which means anti-intimacy and anti-contact.

In addition to inward seeking (which is a skill), you need human warmth. You need group contact. None of this needs to threaten your life or thought of as something that might do so. In these days, the most important emotion or state of being to cultivate is trust. It is not easy for some, and it’s been a long time coming for many more.


Your August Monthly Horoscope from Planet Waves


Tuesday, August 4 — The Day of the Guiding Light

If Today is your Birthday: Unlike most people, you can actually get along with others, and you can do so brilliantly this year. Yet to do so, you must be the master of communication. Do not leave people guessing your intentions, your desires or your feelings. It is your sincerity that will win them over, even if they don’t agree with you on certain specifics. There is plenty of room to compromise, and to make sure that everyone’s needs are met — and you are the person who can make that happen. Just make sure you do something a little un-Leo and make sure that you get enough time and space to yourself, and also, learn how to delegate responsibility to competent people.


Special Comment – August 3

Today’s Aquarius Full Moon contains an unusual aspect pattern, spanning the signs Cancer and Capricorn (which are next door neighbors to the Leo and Aquarius axis). The aspect is: Mercury and asteroid Vesta, conjunct, opposite Saturn — all to the degree, a string of pearls with Earth among them.

There is a profound mental independence to this aspect, and setting a limit on accepting all those ideas of all those other people. Original thought usually entails doing what other people think is wrong: not illegal but seemingly against some unspoken moral code or involving one in having what is considered to be too much fun.

Eric with Heather Fae – Book of Blue.

Vesta, the goddess of chosen celibacy, teaches “the right sex or no sex,” which points you back to you as the origins of your erotic experience and sharing.

Masturbation is essential to balanced psychic existence, as it opens a direct portal to the core being where you meet yourself when you do it.

The more conscious this choice the better. As you establish contact with yourself, nobody and nothing else will suffice. As you become your primary source of nourishment, you will have more to offer, and all those other people will serve better as secondary sources.

This is about you giving your orgasm as your gift to your Self and a celebration of existing. Nobody else can affirm this for another person, though each person who discovers their self-fulfillment lights a beacon for others who will benefit from one specific example: that it is possible to release oneself from guilt. This is taught by example, though occasionally words can help.

Here is a thought from The Thresholder Wayshare: liberation is found in the direction of embarrassment. Think of it as a hot source that you swim upstream toward as the layers of binding slip off from around you. From that body of work, still being channeled:

A Teaching for Women on the Power of Erotic No, from Aditi Amrita, a Thresholder of the Spiral Gate

Teaching on the Craving for Yoni, from Lucy, a Thresholder of the Spiral Gate


Monday, August 3 — The Day of the Versatile Signature

If Today is your Birthday: The Full Moon on your birthday suggests you draw from many sources: of wisdom and companionship, of ideas and resources. Prevailing norms about relationships — of whatever kind — do not serve the cause of progress. Expectations, unrealistic ideas about who and what people are, and most of all the incursion of a twisted kind of political idealism onto private or intimate partnerships: you can do without any or all of this. Yet you will have to be the one who leads the way. This will be simple if you think of it as “when you discover something that doesn’t work, try something else.” There are plenty of options and you have an abundance of ideas coming through the infinite portal to spirit and self known as Chiron in Aries.


The Moon has entered Aquarius as of 2:10 pm EDT Sunday. We are now within the Aquarius Full Moon, which is exact just before noon EDT on Monday. The Moon’s ride through Capricorn the past 48 hours or so has been challenging, though you may finally be able to see the light of day. Or at least the night, with Luna high and bright in the nocturnal sky.

The world and in particular the English speaking world is currently entangled in a bout of mass psychosis, driven by the irrational fear of a disease. What is being demolished is social existence: in particular, our ability to trust one another. The Aquarius Moon is the one about “all of us here.”

We are all here, and we are here together. Humans are resilient and naturally tribal, though the bonds of trust are fragile. And there is a temptation to rip them apart, since the whole notion of social and of community implies both trust and vulnerability, states of being which many people do not find appealing.

Sunday Night Notes

This has been an intense weekend astrologically as the Moon has made its way through Capricorn, on the way to full phase overnight and Monday. This has had a destabilizing effect on some people, particularly those who were shaky to begin with.

It does not help that society itself is teetering on the brink of bona fide insanity. I would propose that the time has arrived when we must not expect society to save us, or to change. The essence of our moment is learning how to take care of ourselves first, and others second. That might be a close second though it is a necessity to have the order of priorities.

If you are struggling and you need help, ask for help. If your fear level is rising. find someone who is calm and loving to speak to — not another person whose tendency is to be afraid.


Sunday, August 2 — The Day of the Versatile Signature

If Today is your Birthday: You must decide what you value more, the past or the future. I know that all those incense-proffered books sold next to wind chimes say that the present is all that matters, and we may take that under advisement. Yet the actual choice you’re making is whether you want a future different from the past, or more or less the same as the past. This may be a long-running standoff in your life, or a struggle to free yourself from the debris and mire of your personal history. You have some momentum toward progress, though this energy must be guided by your awareness, your intention and your actual ability to see distinctions and act upon them. What you want matters. Admit it to yourself.


Saturday, August 1 — The Day of Original Style

If Today is your Birthday: Try to think of your life as an adventure rather than as a test. Yes, on any true adventure you must rise to the occasion, and this time in your life is no exception. Most of this involves responding to your own need to change, and to change radically. This primarily involves your emotional orientation: you can no longer afford to hold onto the past. Doing so holds you back and also takes away the influence you have over your affairs in the moment when you can make decisions. The alternative is managing crisis and complication ongoing, which is getting tired. Be bold, and know what it means to resolve something rather than to live with it.


Capricorn Moon Notes | July 31

As of Early Friday, the Moon is in Capricorn, moving through the cardinal cross pattern, beginning its run-up to Monday’s Full Moon. Today this includes making aspects to many of the newer points that are so prominent right now — Pholus, Chiron, Quaoar and Salacia.

These points represent the roots of the emotional power that, first, our families had over us, which is then transferred to people who stand in for those characters in every other of life’s dramas.

While some may respond to this as an invitation to rebel or revolt, for most this astrology will have the opposite effect: to take on blame for what was done to you in the past, and to experience paralysis as guilt or resentment.

You do not need to stand up to yourself where others are concerned. Rather, you must be your own advocate within your own love, affirming your right to feel, and to feel better.

Before you can expect others to get on board with this project, it’s essential that you be ready to receive what you need, and the place to get that response cycle going is within yourself. This is what is meant by “inner work” — you might describe it as first doing for yourself what you wish others would do for you.

While there is a risk of overdoing self-reliance, the heart of the matter is that it’s unlikely you can receive from others what you cannot receive from yourself.

You cannot expect others to be fair with you until you are fair with yourself. You cannot expect others to honor your pain and your healing process if you do not honor these things yourself.


Friday, July 31 — The Day of the Human Portrait

If Today is your Birthday: Maintain structure in your life. Handle your situations one at a time. Watch for the patterns, and when you see one, gradually move your awareness of both problems and solutions to the more comprehensive level. There is momentum behind you, and rather than making fast, unplanned adjustments, take your decisions incrementally, gently, and test out your theories before you apply them to everything. In all matters, consider the ways in which you may be personally carrying material from the past that influences you now. You may not be able to resolve it all at once, though being aware of it will take away some of the power it seems to hold over you.

Listen to a sample of your Notes on Love and Courage — Astrology studio for Leo — on this player:


Stay tuned for Aquarius Full Moon roundup!


Thursday, July 30 — The Day of Tangible Presence

If Today is your Birthday: If you find yourself in a fog, slow down. You may not realize it’s a fog, though, so take your cues from things like wrong turns and mistakes you don’t usually make. Once you are proceeding with a heightened level of awareness and caution, you will get better information from inside yourself than you will from outside. While it’s important to notice what your senses are telling you, it’s more important to be able to listen to the still, small voice within, which gently whispers the truth. Your physical body will also help warn you when you’re doing the right thing. Notice your breath, and whether you feel like you’re walking through quicksand. That’s a sign to slow down and even to stop and figure out what is going on.

Listen to a sample of your Notes on Love and Courage — Astrology studio for Leo — on this player:


Wednesday, July 29 — The Day of Cultural Assessment

If today is your Birthday: You need to a strategy. You need to know when to apply pressure, when to negotiate, when to pick the lock and when to conquer the territory, all of which you will do minimally if you are doing things well. The essence of your strategy will be feeling your spiritual guidance and having the calm sense of self-presence to know when to follow it. Recent past events have put you through what one might call tests of your passions. You now see the necessity of knowing what you actually want. That is the thing you’re most likely to get.

Listen to a sample of your Notes on Love and Courage — Astrology studio for Leo — on this player:


Notes for July 28+ — the Moon is now in Scorpio. First quarter was Monday, and the Moon is heading toward full (in Aquarius, on Aug. 3). There were a series of challenging squares, which are still lingering around but are past their prime. Squares point a person inward (see Monday’s birthday for some specific interpretations).

Today, some of that pressure is relaxing. Though Mars continues to be in the spotlight, as it has begun its trek across the retrograde zone. It is also square Pallas, the asteroid of politics, of law and most notably, of negotiation. In these tense days, negotiation and discussion are essential and also in short supply. Self-righteousness is in the air, and it’s not serving anyone’s best interests, much less those who wage it on others. It is clear that people are egging others on, and what is a deeply troubling situation has become a venue for social justice warfare — which in truth is no such thing.


Tuesday, July 28 — The Day of the Winner

If today is your Birthday: You have leverage. This is a concept that most people don’t really understand except in the darkest sense of being able to take control of a situation, using some unfair advantage. What I mean is that you have all of the fair advantages, and they are yours to use. You have, for example, the gift of persuasion. You have insight and depth of understanding. You have the ability to feel out where people are coming from. You have actually gained some self-confidence with your words in recent years, maybe even very recently. You do not need to speak loudly; you only need to think strategically, look at your situations from all sides, and make your decisions one at a time.

Listen to a sample of your Notes on Love and Courage — Astrology studio for Leo — on this player:


Monday, July 27 — The Day of the Decision Makers

If today is your Birthday: You might try living as if no external factor can influence you — only the internal ones, which means within the confines of your mind, feelings and power of decision. That is not strictly true of course, as you live in an environment, and for all of us, it’s fraught at the moment. Yet the nature of your astrology is inward-seeking, so that is the place to start. Pay attention to how honest you’re being with yourself, and whether you’re aware of multiple sides of any emotional issue. Pay attention to the influence of anger on your thought process. Seek a better way.


Weekend Notes, July 24-27. The astrological circus of the past few weeks (centered around the Cancer solstice more than a month ago) has settled down, and we’re in a phase of lower-key and I dare say ordinary astrology. The big news of the next few months will center around Mars retrograde, which is gradually taking hold.

This began with Mars entering Aries on June 27 (during the above-mentioned circus), and continues to develop as Mars presently enters “shadow phase” — that is, the degrees where it will be retrograde. Said another way, when Mars retrograde ends on Nov. 13, Mars will be exactly where it is this weekend.

Me with Justin Castello, whose dad Angelo (who took the photo) will be my guest on Planet Waves FM this Friday night.

Also in Mars news, Mercury in Cancer (recently retrograde) is making its third and final square to Mars in Aries this weekend as well: this is one of those “anger management” kinds of aspects. When I was living back on Vashon Island on the West Coast, I had an astrological partner-in-crime named Debbe, who was constantly muttering, “Everyone needs anger management.”

Being pissed off all the time is a way of life for many people. Either they do not see an alternative, or enjoy the feeling of their own brain tissue burning up. If none of those options is appealing to you, perhaps consider some third way. If you decide you’re sick of being miffed or outraged all the time, call someone up and tell them that, and get a posse going.

The Moon, in Virgo and then Libra

In local news, the Moon enters Libra at 9:54 pm EDT Friday. Through the day Friday, it will be in Virgo, where it’s hanging out in a loose opposition to Neptune. I am one of those astrologers who prefers close orbs, which is a theory I let go of totally with Mr. Dreamy Pants, who has the widest orb of all the planets.

There are days where it feels like Neptune occupies every sign at once and has everyone in its thrall. With the Moon in an opposition, that counts for more than usual. If you combine that with you just read about Mars above, make sure that you know what you’re actually feeling before you decide you feel a certain way.

I am a fan of the Sally Brompton horoscope: she is one of the best daily stars writers ever (and one of the greatest mundane astrologers, ever), and the best currently in print. Today she wrote something for Pisces that I think applies generally:

“You may not be able to explain why you distrust someone but you know from long experience that it is always a mistake to ignore what your instincts try to tell you. You don’t have to confront them, but you do need to stay out of their way.”

She is a Libra and generally, they prefer to avoid needless conflict. Speaking of Libra, the Moon makes its way in Friday night EDT. That means it will be making aspects to everything on the cardinal cross through the weekend, which includes many points and planets (most of them, actually).

If you don’t stay centered, this could be a bumpy ride. Centered means holding your center within yourself, and being aware of what you feel before it takes over your whole consciousness and starts running your life. Therefore, centered implies being a step ahead of yourself, and not taking things too personally: people have issues, some have very serious issues, and much of the world is powering its journey on delusion and denial.


Sunday, July 26 — The Day of the Symbolic Herald

If today is your Birthday: You will always have the option whether to fight, or to negotiate. Both require you to use your skills, though one is far less costly than the other. And while anyone can slug it out, not anyone can engage others in a dialog about what is in everyone’s best interests, and how you might weigh the interests of one person against those of another and come to some mutual understanding. That takes true intelligence, sensitivity and most of all, the willingness to be at peace with those around you. However, “at peace” does not mean eating your own soul so that others will leave you alone. Being forthright takes courage and involves a personal risk.


Saturday, July 25 — The Day of Quixotic Exploits

If today is your Birthday: Work out your differences with others in a direct and no-nonsense way and you will remove the power that these relationships seem to hold over you. One challenge is that you take things too personally, rather than recognizing that they are merely factors in your social environment. A fine place to start would be stepping back and considering matters more objectively, and making sure that you size up two or three sides of the story. And remember: much of what people experience is indeed a story, or a constructed version of events from the available facts. You might try taking them apart and putting them back together in a few other configurations.


Friday, July 24 — The Day of Exciting Instability

If today is your Birthday: If you want your emotional needs to be honored by others, you must start with doing so yourself. Otherwise, how will you know what it feels like, so that you know when it’s happening? You may seem to have the problem of living in parallel worlds where certain desires are concerned: they may seem to conflict or compete with one another. That is an illusion. Yet it’s true that you must learn how to be in harmony with yourself, which is another way of saying maintaining an honest dialog with yourself. This is the essence of why people go to therapy for years — which you can safely bypass if you learn how to be sincere within the confines of your own heart and soul.


Thursday, July 23 — The Day of Uncertainty Resolvers

If today is your Birthday: The question is about how much power you want the past to hold over you. Ideally it would be none at all, and you would only take the benefits of what you’ve learned. If you find yourself “reliving” past relationship experiences, pause and ask yourself why. You do not need to play a role, though that also means not choosing people in your life who place you in a position to do so. Remember, your relationships are never really about other people. They are about your expectations, patterns, and ultimately, your desires — so decide what you want, and choose what you want.


Wednesday, July 22 — The Day of Occupational Fluctuation

If today is your Birthday: You may not know if you’re coming from your heart space or your mind, though it’s essential that the two be in harmony. Let there be a dialogue between your passions and your ideas; your love for the world, and your love of truth. Pace yourself; when you’re in a rush, you tend not to make good decisions. This is the year to get it right the first time. Lord knows you’ve been through quite enough. You can have better times, though this is not a matter of destiny. It’s a matter of strength and integrity. You are one self, united with your purpose.


Tuesday, July 21 — The Day of Tragicomic Controversy

If today is your Birthday: Mercury’s square to Chiron on your birthday is reminding you that you are an adult, ready to stand up to adult challenges. If you feel that you are in some way compromised, or like you’re not fully prepared for your circumstances, consider who it was that told you so. They were wrong, yet at the same time, you must rise to the occasion of your life, and your desires. Any weakness you may perceive in yourself covers for a deeper strength.


New Moon Notes – Monday, 1:33 pm EDT

Today’s New Moon in Cancer is the second in a row — the first was the annular solar eclipse on the solstice, way back on June 21 (okay, just four weeks ago; it seems like longer, but I guess objects in the rearview are closer than they appear).

This is an unusual New Moon for other reasons, one of which is how much presence and activity there is in the sign opposite the conjunction, which is Capricorn. This creates balance and it also creates polarity; the two are related. It is also one of the official Last Hurrahs before the massive Capricorn part of the past 12 years winds down with the entry of Jupiter and Saturn into Aquarius in December.

Condensed New Moon chart earlier Monday.

But let’s stick to the local news — what is happening today, which is the New Moon opposite Saturn in late Capricorn. The graphic at the right shows you what that looks like — focus on all the planets with a 28 next to them: there are three, the Moon, the Sun and Saturn.

When Saturn enters the picture, which does not usually occur when there are water sign events because it is in Capricorn, we have a call to grounding and to stand on the foundations of tangible reality. We live in a disembodied age, so the whole concept of “real” is not quite real anymore; we expect everything to be some kind of virtual or “enhanced” event and that is what we get.

Yet for this most relevant lunation — the first, after a series of three eclipses, and the second consecutive one in the sign of incarnation — we are being asked to get real. Some are being told to get real and others will have no choice. For some this will feel like pushing against the wall of a swimming pool as you turn around doing laps.

Others might feel like their back is against the wall, or like they have reached some limit they must contend with. With all these planets retrograde in Capricorn — an impressive lineup, including a sample of nearly every kind of Solar System object — there is family material that must be addressed, and for many that means past trauma.

Many times the past week or so, I’ve recommended the book A General Theory of Love. This was a basic text in my Hakomi therapy training work I did with Ron Kurtz in Seattle, earlier in this century.

This book offers a useful, emotionally and intellectually grounded analysis of the problem of family baggage and how it keeps coming up over and over again, such as in personal relationships and experiences of being triggered. It talks about how the primary goal of therapy is forming trusting relationships.

What we think of as healing process is only available where trust is possible; where it is cultivated and respected and recognized as a specific necessity. I would refer you back to my article Summer of Trust: The Great American Eclipse from three years ago.

Leo Ingress of the Sun

Wednesday at 4:37 am EDT, the Sun enters the tropical sign Leo. This is the peak of the season — the peak of summer in the Northern Hemisphere, and of winter in the south. Between 6:28 pm EDT and the time of the Leo ingress, the Sun is void of course. You never hear about this; I have stumped even classical astrologers with the reference that I read in a trusted old astrology book by William Lilly.

When the Moon, Sun or other body is void of course, that means it will not make an aspect to any other body prior to changing signs. Through this afternoon/evening in the U.S., the Sun is directly opposite Saturn, so we have some grounding to use and work with.

What I love about the void-of-course Sun is that unusual things are possible. It’s as if a portal opens, into what is unlikely or unusual. There is also a transporting or transforming quality that can be worked with: that same door facilitates change.

Please follow this space for additional coverage tomorrow of the Leo ingress of the Sun.


I was banned from Facebook for 24 hours for posting this article.


Monday, July 20 — The Day of Ups and Downs

If today is your Birthday: Your life runs in cycles, and you must know how to use them like navigators at sea learn how to use the tides and the currents. Your circumstances are guiding you in a certain direction more boldly than you may recognize. The point of resistance is where you push off in another direction, like a swimmer pushes off against the side of the pool when doing a turnaround. You must use resistance to your benefit and not to your detriment. This includes internal resistance and that which is seemingly the product of your surroundings, including others. You do not fight it: you tap into it like an electric current and turn it into power.


Weekend Notes, into Monday’s New Moon

We are in the last two days before the Cancer New Moon. This is, notably, the second Moon-Sun conjunction in Cancer — the first was a solar eclipse on the summer solstice. The Moon just entered Cancer at about 10:24 am EDT Saturday. This begins the Moon’s trek through many factors in the cardinal signs — Aries, Libra and Capricorn, which means lots of squares and oppositions: the most obvious aspects to feel and experience.

There is a ‘proceed with caution’ dimension to this weekend’s astrology, which translates to doing things like observing speed limits, being sober and attentive while doing anything potentially dangerous, and avoiding needless conflict. This is the kind of astrology that says “work it out for yourself.” It will be best not to turn your relationships (of any kind) into the theater of the psyche (as in yours).

The late stage in the lunar cycle, particularly following a a series of eclipses, is about clearing the dross from your life, and being thorough and thoughtful about any unresolved business you may have. As a conscious human, this is one of the most important modes of self-care you can honor yourself with.


Sunday, July 19 — The Day of Controlled Movement

If today is your Birthday: Others may seem to be setting limits on you, though when that happens, step back. Ask yourself if they are not really doing you a favor. Question the role of the relationship and hold your mind open to potential answers. For too long, others have seemed to wield power over you. They have seemed to set the terms and conditions on your life. Yet the question of whether this is really so is a crucial one. Remember that you assign people the roles that they have in your life, whether “unconsciously” or intentionally. You choose who populates your world and the terms on which they do so. The lesson of this year is to exercise your prerogatives boldly and courageously.


Saturday, July 18 — The Day of Conviction

If today is your Birthday: Honor your endings, and your beginnings. Bring closure to what needs to be resolved, and establish your commencements on valid understandings, that are articulated in words and verified through your feelings. This year you will go through alternating (and sometimes simultaneous) phases of initiating certain matters and wrapping up others. They will not always seem to happen in the ‘usual’ order. Some of these moves will come of necessity, or seem enforced. Others will be solely by choice. Make sure that you lean in the direction of choosing as much as possible. If you do not have a second option, make one, or better yet, two or three.


Friday, July 17 — The Day of Career Concerns

If today is your Birthday: Above aught else, you must be honest with yourself. There is no room for compromise on the truth; there is no such thing. You may be able to tell yourself this might be true and that might be equally true, though that is reflective of a state of avoidance. Observe the known facts and seek an understanding of what is so, particularly in any exchanges with close partners. You can only insist on veracity if you are totally honest with yourself and others. That is the ground you stand on; there is no other.


Thursday, July 16 — The Day of the Rising Tide

If today is your Birthday: You’re not in competition with anyone, for anything. It may feel as if circumstances or individuals in your life are determined to push your limits, test your patience or hem you in. Yet if you persist rather than resist, you will figure out just how much freedom and latitude you have. You want to live in your idea of the present, not the past of other people. You don’t need to ask permission to be yourself, to do your thing, or to sleep in your own bed when you want to. Your life is yours.


Here is this week’s Leo horoscope

Leo (July 22-Aug. 23) — This week the Sun, ruler of regal Leo, moves into aspect with the core astrology of our times: the Jupiter-Pluto-Eris configuration that has been spinning the world on its finger lately. Here’s the thing to remember, now and forever, when the Sun is making aspects, no matter how intense they may be. The Sun is the center of the solar system, holding in orbit nearly a million known planets, asteroids, centaurs and other objects. The Sun has seen it all, and is essentially untouchable. So use this as a profound moment of observation and self-observation, when you may come into possession of a whole new idea of your calling and your spiritual path. This will stem from a discovery you’ve made about yourself the past few days, something related to your emotional life and the necessities of self-care. What you discover or what comes to you will be easy to forget or deny, so make sure you remember it. It’s likely to relate to food or diet in some way.

This feature and all of my writing are sponsored by our Core Community.


Thursday notes: Today the Gemini Moon makes a series of harmonious aspects to Chiron, Venus, Mars, Mercury and Uranus — a rare interval of astrological calm. Of course, you might not notice: what you really experience is your own state of mind. The planets describe that to some degree, though ultimately it is up to you. The challenge of the day seems to be staying in the present. Many retrograde planets in Capricorn are leading to a general condition of obsessing over the past, whether consciously or not. Yet there is a dimension to retrograde planets that’s rarely discussed: their tendency to lead people to shut down their power and creativity so as not to threaten others in their environment. Notice when you’re doing that. This is not about challenging anyone, but rather about being yourself on your own terms.

Earlier this week, I published an article on Mars conjunct Chiron, exact Tuesday and still in full effect now. Here’s the article. This feature and all of my writing are sponsored by our Core Community.


Here is this week’s Cancer horoscope.

Cancer (June 21-July 22) — Mercury has stationed direct in your sign (as of early Sunday morning). Think of this as a moment of clarity. I have found that stations of Mercury, particularly direct, come with a burst of information; or you can solve a riddle, or you learn something useful that was previously concealed by some kind of veil. Be sensitive to that: look, listen, and read carefully. Follow the thought process of people you may disagree with. On Tuesday, Mars conjoins Chiron in the bold vocational angle of your chart, Aries. This is a calling to leadership. It’s not so much your personal and individual choice but rather the fulfillment of your dharma. In your situation, leadership means acting in service to others in the capacity of one who facilitates healing. This would hold true even if you’re chosen to be CEO of a casino on the Las Vegas strip. The chances are good your calling (or promotion) will be more down-to-earth, though the central mission remains the same.

This feature and all of my writing are sponsored by our Core Community.


Wednesday, July 15 — The Day of the Material Inducers

If today is your Birthday: The Sun’s opposition to Pluto on your solar return is urging you to allow life to have an impact on you. That means people and events, whose influence you welcome. You may be repelled by the intensity of certain individuals, or of the total environment in which you live, though those things are not going to change — at least not for you personally. They will all in some way penetrate your consciousness and your experience, and therefore the only way to respond is to form a relationship with them and explore the experience consciously. Events will change you this year, guided by forces you need to work with rather than against. This is because mostly they are coming from within you.

This feature and all of my writing are sponsored by our Core Community.


Tuesday, July 14 — The Day of the Rising Tide

If today is your Birthday: The Sun’s opposition to Jupiter on your birthday is suggesting that you see contrast for what it is. Everything is not the same; you are different from everyone in your life. Yet we live in a world of monoculture, where many distinctions seem to be meaningless. Observe the ways you stand apart from others. It’s only through that understanding that you can find your true common ground. Particularly when you are called into a leadership situation, which will be often, possessing and using the skill of mutual understanding — of differences and of shared values — is essential.

This feature and all of my writing are sponsored by our Core Community.


Monday Notes | Mars Conjunct Chiron: The Convincing Storyteller

We are about to experience the first Mars conjunction to Chiron in Aries. This is exact Tuesday and is in full force now. The most recent conjunction of Mars to Chiron occurred in late Pisces on Dec. 29, 2018, during Chiron’s transition from Pisces to Aries. Mars and Chiron are conjunct about every two years, following the cycle of Mars.

I could say a lot about this aspect — it’s one of my favorites of the lot, inviting the full activation of Chiron by Mars. However, in Aries, this aspect has special meaning. That’s because I consider Aries to be the scene of the crime where electrical technology has turned people into a swarm of tribal robots.

Eric Francis

This aspect, exact July 14, can have a few possible manifestations. Under the best circumstances (balanced person, communicative environment), it’s about the healthy and bold expression of individuality. Chiron’s mission is to turn injuries and wounds into healing gifts. This happens over time, with experience and maturity.

Under less ideal circumstances, this aspect could provoke a deep feeling of injury, related to the sensation of loss of identity. As the McLuhans have noted, violence is an attempt to find one’s identity. Total immersion in electrical technology, particularly digital technology, has gone a long way to deplete people’s sense of being.

So this could also result in the eruption of aggression and conflict as associated with being clueless about one’s actual reality — which would be a misplaced attempt to “find oneself.” I guess we have to resort to desperate measures after living online for 20 years — that makes anything and everything in the physical world too dangerous to even consider.

In the end, that is what we’re experiencing with this whole virus thingie: the reason it’s the result of digital consciousness is not just that it’s been amplified and distorted by social media and 24-hour news feeds, which make it impossible to tell which way is up, unless you work with a research team.

The real crisis is that from the cool, clean, and most of all disembodied standpoint of the digital universe, anything pertaining to the body is diseased and disgusting. And that has taken us a long way from home.

With love,
eric


Mercury direct theme…capo at 8th fret.


Sunday notes. Mercury stationed direct this morning (at 4:26 am EDT / 1:36 am PDT). I’ve delineated some of what I see as the deeper themes in this article. In terms of practical reality, give the direct-motion a few days to settle in before you jump into starting anything new. Mercury’s apparent change of direction requires adaptation. While the station-retrograde is more challenging, the station-direct cannot be taken for granted. So approach matters slowly, and pay attention to any details you might be missing. Also, pay attention to details that other people might be missing, if they might in any way affect you.


Monday, July 13 — The Day of Taken Opportunity

If today is your Birthday: Mars is about to form a conjunction to Chiron on your birth anniversary — your solar return falls the day prior to the alignment. This is a reminder to use your considerable knowledge and experience, whether we are talking about what you’ve learned from all your work in this lifetime, or any other. The main problem with the past is that we do not usually apply its lessons to the present, no matter how hard won. There is something here not just about remembering what you know but remembering who you are, and noting the many ways that self-awareness and inner consciousness is stripped away by obsession with both technology and with appearance. Tune into the substance of who you are. Your image matters not — not in reality, anyway.

This feature and all of my writing are sponsored by our Core Community.


Sunday, July 12 — The Day of Persuasive Presence

If today is your Birthday: Mercury stationing direct on your birth anniversary will provide the slow, steady momentum you need to work out some issues that have gained importance in your life but have not been easy to work through. You must bring your awareness, your intelligence, and your personal experience to the questions you face. It’s vital that you learn to state matters on your own terms, and propose any solutions to what you identify as problems. Then you can consider additional possibilities and negotiate from there.

This feature and all of my writing are sponsored by our Core Community.


Saturday, July 11 — The Day of the Unsolicited Opinion

If today is your Birthday: Hold your thoughts rather than sharing them before you’re ready. Silence is important because you need to see where other people stand, before you make choices or decisions. There are big movements in the lives of others. Some will include you and some will not; some you want to be part of and some you do not. Your circumstances will have an influence, though you must be as present as possible, and decide what is right for you rather than allowing others to do so.

This feature and all of my writing are sponsored by our Core Community.


Friday, July 10 — The Day of Passive-Active Duality

If today is your Birthday: The time has come to participate directly, and to speak your mind. You may be reluctant to say much, fearing that you’ll get it wrong, or just because you don’t want to expose your vulnerability. Yet you have big plans, and while it would not be wise to reveal them all, you will need to work one-to-one with certain individuals on certain elements of your project. It’s true that people can be unreliable and insensitive, though you simply must learn to stand up to the world and assert your will in it. Listen carefully before you speak and you will take some of the pressure off.

This feature and all of my writing are sponsored by our Core Community.


Weekend notes. The main event of the weekend is Mercury stationing direct early Sunday morning. That’s the kind of event that can draw all the other astrology around its vortex, and dominate the feeling tone — especially in an emotionally sensitive sign such as Cancer.

Work to close up old business as you make your plans for what you’re going to do next. Old business first, new business second. After Mercury stations direct, it’s best not to bust out of the gate like a racehorse, but rather to implement your plans one step or stage at a time. Focus on getting your message right, particularly with individuals. That means saying what you have to say.

Venus in Gemini. Photo by Eric Francis / Book of Blue

Venus in Gemini is now making a slow, condensed sextile to Chiron in Aries. This is the sex conversation. Here’s a clue about that. Much of what pauses the honest discussion of sexuality is feeling dualistic: a little bit this way, a little bit that way. This can enter any facet of erotic existence. It is truly rare that people feel exclusively one way about something, even something (or someone) they love and desire.

The dualism could be doubt, or it could be a kind of equal and opposite pull. So if you assert one version of your personal truth, there may be another one right next to it or behind it. This is the problem with defining “consent” as enthusiastic yes, yes, YES! as if it is written in a script. Most people enter their most wholesome and nourishing erotic experiences a little tentatively, and explore. There is often that element of doubt — and if it’s not given a voice, it can come back to haunt you. Give it a voice and it will be a great teacher. “It” means you. Use your voice!

Any discussion of sexuality must acknowledge that our society tends to make it all wrong. Whatever you like can be construed as wrong, beginning with experiencing any sexual desire at all, on out to being curious about another person while you’re in a relationship, curiosity about a same-sex friend, or any curiosity at all.

Having gone to such astonishing lengths to make all sex wrong, it’s a miracle that anyone has any fun at all. Your curiosity is legitimate. Your desire for experience is legitimate. Honesty and a little preparation up front can lower the risk level of any encounter. But it helps to remember that perfection is not a value. An experience may go well, it may not, it may be just OK. The question is what you learn, and where you go from there.

Pro tip: if you are curious about something such as a bisexual encounter, or a threesome, give it a few tries rather than deciding you didn’t like it the first time. There is always a little awkwardness around new experiences, and you have to get over that in order to have the real fun. It also helps if you take a more active role rather than letting others lead the way exclusively. Here again, curiosity is your best friend. Curiosity and trust are the two most important sexual feelings.


Photo by Lanvi

Your 2020-21 Cancer Astrology Studio is available for instant access. This year, the time of Cancer began with an eclipse on the solstice, as well as Mercury retrograde in your sign. This is astrology that points to you in a personal way, describing a transition you may not feel ready to make but have been preparing for over long years. Chiron in Aries is also a prominent factor, pointing to some pioneering developments in your professional life. I cover these aspects, and much more.


New article: Three Eclipses are Behind Us

Thursday notes. Venus in Gemini is sextile Chiron in Aries today. This is happening as part of Venus moving in direct motion through the degrees where it was recently retrograde. This is the invitation to a sincere, emotionally grounded conversation about sex and sexuality. No part of this aspect says “political” or “rights” or “controversial.” Everything about it says emotionally aware and respectful.

That may seem to be asking too much of this world, though I assure you that it is asking only enough to get the process started. The world is soaked in sexual injury, which manifests as personal pain, agony and isolation; as public contention and ‘culture wars’, and relationships that, over and over, people report as depleting and hurtful. Where exactly can we go for help? Who is capable of having a sane, sincere, loving conversation about this world of experience?

The answer is not going to be found by going to war on Twitter, where people attempt to demolish others for their views. That is the essence of woundology, and the perpetuation of the cycle of abuse. No peace will come from this. The result will be more conflict and distraction, which seems to be the point.

To remind us about mother and her emotional response to existence, the Moon makes a conjunction to Ceres and Nessus in Pisces today. This is about experiencing, and questioning, mother’s logic. In the life of every child, logic is imposed by the mother, which the child must accept on pain of having their basic needs denied. This includes how mother felt about father, about men, and about the world. Was any of it true? Well, people tend to continue living within mother’s logic even as adults, and seem to be no happier for it, nor do they tend to have better relationships.

What was your mother’s logic? How did she feel about men? What did that teach you about yourself and your relationships? Were her views even meekly realistic, or were they based entirely on her pain and delusions?


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Thursday, July 9 — The Day of Wonder

If today is your Birthday: From lending my ear to many hundreds of astrological clients, I have a sense of how the healing process can go in circles seemingly forever. You now have an opportunity, rare as they come, to find a way into your inner territory. There, you may learn what you need to learn, reconsider elements of the past in a way more humane to yourself, and have the conversations you need to have (which I suggest you start, if you want them). Little doubt some of these conversations will involve leveling with others about your feelings on sex and your sexuality. There is something about resolving or (better) exploring a certain kind of ambiguous quality you’ve discovered in yourself. Not quite here, not quite there, though someplace potentially interesting. Talking about this is an essential element of your growth and healing process.

New article: Three Eclipses are Behind Us


Wednesday notes. The Moon enters Pisces today at 2:23 pm EDT. It would be void of course till then, except for making a trine to the north lunar node in Gemini. Still, that’s not especially solid. I would propose holding off on irreversible decisions until the Moon changes signs, unless you’ve been thinking about something for a while and you know now is the time.

Your astrologer, hard at work or hardly working.

Mercury continues to slow down a little more every day, and stations direct early Sunday. Today Mercury is also square Mars in Aries — which is one of those “anger management” types of setups. Express your feelings, avoiding blame and shame of yourself or others.

While it’s changing directions, Mercury will be holding a long, powerful aspect to the slow-moving Pholus-Quaoar-Salacia square. This is about unfinished family business, particularly as pertains to sexuality.

There are not a lot of places one can go to discuss these things openly, though some people understand the issues and see them in a nonjudgmental light. In any event this is unlikely to be a moral issue about you, so ask yourself whether any guilt you may be feeling is actually appropriate.

Guilt is not proof of anything, though it’s usually experienced that way. “I feel terrible, therefore I must have done something bad (or be a bad person)” is typical human psychology. I propose we be skeptical of all the making bad that is happening in American society right now. Those making others feel bad are not solving a problem, and guilt is a form of violent communication (rather than nonviolent).


Wednesday, July 8 — The Day of the Dark Pragmatist

If today is your Birthday: Make peace with the chaos factor that has infiltrated our lives in these strange seasons. You personally stand as an organizing principle, so you don’t need to look for another one. That’s a humble role, though, and your astrology is bold at the moment. So what I suggest is that your actions be the source of your leadership rather than your words. The only authority you need is your personal integrity, which includes your willingness to hear all sides of any issue and make a fair decision. That is a rare human quality in the world today, and at the moment, you possess it. Use it wisely and well.

New article: Three Eclipses are Behind Us


Cancer Horoscope for This Week

Cancer (June 21-July 22) — The Moon has just finished an eclipse in your opposite sign Capricorn, which may feel like the pressure is suddenly off. If you have that sense of not quite knowing what to do, you’re in a good place. However, you have a few important goals you must focus on, without relying on anyone else to bring them to closure. You probably know what they are; if you have not registered that consciously, make a list of three, and adjust it till you’ve got the right items. These would be actual matters of mostly professional urgency, where your leadership is the only kind that will suffice. That’s because you are the one who is ultimately responsible, and the one who knows the most. Therefore, you’re the most qualified and whose care and power of decision will have the most influence. Raise your awareness to the point where you can identify one issue that deserves your attention, devotion and will.

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Tuesday, July 7 — The Day of Imaginative Revelations

If today is your Birthday: You will surprise yourself with your bold choices this year. Still know when to put the brakes on a plan and give it a few days of extra thought. That is the thing described in your charts, more than anything: extra thought, reflection, reading and serious study. There comes a time when you must take a position on an issue to the degree where you can make a decision, and you need the discipline to get there. That, and you have learned plenty that you do not take into account. Be sure to use what you know; you know it for a reason.


Monday notes. Overnight Sunday to Monday, the Moon formed a conjunction to Saturn in Capricorn (exact Sunday at 5:35 am EDT / 2:35 am PDT / 10:35 am BST). This was the last stage in the events associated with the eclipse of the Moon that occurred overnight Saturday to Sunday. Moon-Saturn in Capricorn may have come with a heavy feeling, though one that will at least tell you about the bottom line of necessities involved, whatever the circumstance. Use what you know.

The Moon is shown as a grey crescent. This is the moment that it enters Aquarius, at 6:08 am EDT. You can see that it has just passed by the triple conjunction of Pallas, Jupiter and Pluto.

The Sun is still in an exact conjunction to Vesta, which is a reminder to work with the idea of a central organizing principle in order to get a grasp on your affairs. That means the thing around which all other priorities are arranged. Everyone has one; know what yours is and make sure it’s the correct one.

Emotional pressure, overcommitment and the need to take better care of yourself all may have come along with the weekend’s transformation astrology. Remember what you discovered about yourself the past few days.

You’re unlikely to get the message in as succinct or easy-to-see way again. Events of the weekend represent an emotional transformation, best illustrated as a snake shedding its skin — a rather mysterious thing, yet it happens all the time.

There are layers and layers to this; the world is in a complex and dangerous process of rebirthing, which is in some ways driven by natural psychic processes. In other ways is driven by forces provoking artificial transitions in society. You must know where you stand with all of this. That will require going deeper than the surface version of events and understanding the different motives and agendas that are in motion.

You need yours: rather than going with the flow and waiting to see what happens, you must keep your eye on some important goal during this maelstrom. You may get information about that early in the week.

At 6:08 am EDT the Moon enters Aquarius. After what may have been a heavy or restless night, the energy opens up and more workable aspects begin to develop, beginning with the Moon connecting to Mars (motivation) and Chiron (lucid awareness) through the day Monday and overnight into Tuesday.

Gently take action on the important items on your agenda — there should not be many, perhaps two or three at the most.


Monday, July 6 — The Day of Magnetic Desire

If today is your Birthday: A conjunction of the Moon and Saturn in Capricorn, your relationship house, is urging to you resolve a relationship matter while you can, and while you have negotiating power. You know that you are called to take care of other people, which does not necessarily mean just your partner. In order to fulfill your role as one who is available to serve and to lead, you must be taken care of. Therefore, you must co-exist with others close to you on terms that are actually mutual, and take into account all of your responsibilities and personal needs. You seem ready and willing to take on important worldly matters. This will call for the full cooperation of those around you.


Sunday, July 5 — The Day of the Showman

If today is your Birthday: Your sign is ruled by the Moon, which today aligns the triple conjunction of Pallas, Jupiter and Pluto. Relationships are important to you, though you must rise to the occasion and insist that they be on your terms. I don’t mean “my way or the highway” but rather that everyone understands that you cannot simply adapt to whatever intentions or desires another person may have, no matter how compelling the situation. Be not willing to sacrifice yourself for what in truth may not be your needs at all. Rather, take your needs into account at all times and in every decision you make.


Weekend Notes. There is a Full Moon eclipse during Independence Day weekend in the United States. Our country is at a critical time in its history; we are fully into the country’s first Pluto return. Most things on Earth don’t survive 248 years. Most countries go through government reorganizations much more often than that.

What we are seeing play out in the U.S. is reflective of the astrology we are experiencing, which is accented this year by a Full Moon Eclipse aligned with the United States Sun — in other words, on its birthday.

So we are seeing a peak of emotions, and the rapid precipitation of events. There is a sense of something being out of control, and it’s not on the physical level. It is emotional, it is mental, and it’s as if someone left the psychic window open and there’s a thunderstorm going on.

Graphic from this weekend’s edition of Planet Waves FM.

There is a panicky, polarized quality in the human sphere right now. It’s as if one cannot be worked up enough, worried enough, or demonstrating enough just how much one cares. I would propose a better approach is turning one’s attention inward. There is an emotional and psychic wave (as in tsunami) passing through, as we speak, which will peak at the Full Moon, overnight Saturday to Sunday.

The asteroid (4) Vesta is in the picture. The brightest asteroid, Vesta has many levels of influence. When Vesta is a significant influence, there can be the expectation of sacrifice and loss. That is, however, on the level of sleepwalking. The question is, how much are people willing to sacrifice to their fears, or to their self-indulgence?

I think of Vesta two ways: one is as the organizing principle. It’s the hearth at the center of the home; the fire at the center of the Kiva. This also works for the creative and erotic fire burning at the core of each person: our vital force energy, whether contained, or not.

At this moment, we need some containment, some emotional regulation. I am speaking mainly of the rampant fear and panic that seems to be loose. If you are feeling this, that does not mean you’re responding to something that is actually threatening you. Please note whether what you are concerned about is actually present in your immediate environment. If there is a source of fear, it’s probably your TV set. If not that, it’s wherever your “news” is coming from.

I not only watch television, I study it (something I learned from my dad, who was doing his graduate work in media ecology when I was a kid). I have never seen TV be this toxic, manipulative or rife with disinformation — to rival both Iraq wars and other comparable events. It is not helping anything.

One thing I would suggest is, when you hear someone state a statistic, ask yourself: what numbers feed into that final result? What is really being counted? What is the meaning of that thing being counted? And even, is it true?


Saturday, July 4 — The Day of Group Representative

If today is your Birthday: The Full Moon eclipse on the anniversary of our birth speaks of a profound calling to service. Will you have the courage to respond? Are you worried about what you would have to give up, or are you willing to offer yourself to the mission and purpose that summon you? In short, do you have the guts to do the right thing? It may have seemed like there were obstacles, or as if you had excuses you could not answer or get out of the way. You may notice that deadlock suddenly slips. You may find that suddenly you are in a new place. Today’s eclipse will help you let go of the past. This must come from the inside; it is something that acts through you. It’s not something that you do personally.


Friday, July 3 — The Day of the Commemerator

If today is your Birthday: Remember what you learned today. I say that because it would be too easy to forget; the Moon is conjunct the Galactic Core, which bestows ideas and brilliance that can disappear like smoke. Therefore, write it down; write a letter to yourself about your intentions for your life. Celebrate the fact of your existence and the mystery of your existence. Both are necessary elements of the same idea: the tangible fact, and the elusive quest for truth. I would propose the thing you will benefit the most is good questions rather than answers, whether true, false or otherwise. Let your questions stand.


Thursday, July 2 — The Day of Disconnected Unconscious

If today is your Birthday:  Not everything is political; you don’t have to please someone with every decision you make. You don’t need to bargain or trade. When you find yourself in a position to make a choice, ask yourself what you really want, no matter what everyone else might think. Your choices are about you: though this goes deeper than your desire. They are about your ability do choose on the basis of your knowledge of who you are: of your own inner authority. As lessons go, this is a fantastic one.


Wednesday, July 1 — The Day of Emancipation

If today is your Birthday:  You must hold the line between informal and formal agreements. Dating is in the first category; marriage is in the second. There may seem to be a fine gray divider, but this is really about lack of boundaries more than anything else. The same holds true for business relationships, where you will want to have the terms in writing, even if it’s basic letter of understanding. Everyone must make their position known, beginning with you. You set the terms. You connect the dots.


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