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This week the astrology is like a deep exhale after the more fiery and confrontational aspects at the end of June and first week of July.
Two fast but interesting events are Venus moving into Virgo (today) and into conjunction with the south node, as well as Mercury retrograding back into a conjunction with the Sun, marking the midway point of the retrograde cycle.
Venus is considered to be in its “fall” in Virgo (opposite its exalted sign, Pisces). From a classical astrology standpoint, that is considered challenging (despite Virgo being the sign of the Goddess). The translations of ancient concepts tend to polarize meanings into “good” or “bad,” when it’s always more nuanced than this. Eric’s classical astrology teacher David Arner suggested that astrologers look at planets in “detriment” (opposite rulership) and “fall” (opposite exaltation) as rising to a special challenge. Unusual properties will come out due to the extra effort required. In the end, this works a little like Chiron: an irritation that produces an unusual effect or talent.
Arriving in Virgo and immediately conjoining the south node could feel like most of the charismatic air suddenly leaving the room. The south node tends to reduce whatever is nearby and so Venusian themes may not have the usual energy or spark or may carry with them extra karmic weight, especially compared to her stay in bright and sparky Leo. The opportunity is to bring awareness into topics that arise on the Virgo-Pisces axis, as illustrated below.
There may be sparks of a different kind though, as Venus will also be applying to a square with Uranus. This is less of Venus’ “in love with life and love” fire and more like the Venusian soul getting shocked out of the karmic bog. This is good energy to use to leap out of any weepy replays of victim stories or pining obsessive worry, and into a more spacious place, offering a wider perspective free of unhelpful expectations. This may be exactly what Venus needs to find the fun, creative side of Virgo (yes, there is one).
This aspect can also indicate a kind of shock and destabilization, so it’s a good time to take care of body, mind and spirit. As Venus enters Virgo she is greeted with a beautiful trine to Chiron, helping to do just that. One of this week’s articles, “Whatever Happened to the Holistic Principle” is in honor of this aspect and a song for Venus in Virgo.
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This is a developing story as Mars has just created its own pyrotechnics with Uranus (on July 4) and now Venus is applying to square Mars, which will perfect hours ahead of the Full Moon on July 29. Squares are considered to have the energy of Mars and so with first Uranus and then Mars, these squares look a lot like a gift for Venus this month while she’s in a place she forgets to have fun in. Uranus and Mars in Gemini look like very exciting remedies, but they do require surrender to the element of surprise.
Mercury conjunct the Sun, or “cazimi” is considered to be a brief moment of illumination, clarity and insight in an otherwise more compromised time for Mercury. Traditional astrology says that Mercury during these hours is said to be at the “heart of the Sun” or “in the throne room of the king.”
This is also the interior conjunction of the Sun and Mercury, which is the midpoint of Mercury retrograde — that ends on July 23.
My favorite personal example of a cazimi moment was when a dear friend called me at the exact Mercury-Sun conjunction while I was at the immigration office (a mercurial place) to ask me to be the godmother of the child growing in her womb. Mercury and the Sun were exactly opposite my Moon, the luminary of mothers. Of course I said yes, and my godson turns 10 this year. A personally relevant cazimi is more likely when the conjunction is connecting in an aspect pattern with important natal planets.
The Moon is in its last quarter phase this week and will start a new cycle (the New Moon) next Tuesday, July 14, just two days after Mercury’s morphing with the Sun. This is a New Moon receiving a healthy dose of tension from the Aries side of the zodiac via Vesta and Pallas and is the last New Moon before eclipse season begins with the New Moon solar eclipse of August 12.
The New Moon is like the bottom of a long exhale, at the precise moment the next inhale begins, and this one comes with an invitation to linger in the dark silence and notice what has changed in the past few months now that all the slower-moving planets have finished changing signs. The shifts may be big or quite subtle, but noticing what’s happening in the inner and outer landscape is crucial and may even be fun. Once something is noticed, it’s a whole lot easier to relate to it in some way, either in a practical or creative sense.
The weeks building up to the Full Moon on July 29 are action packed and some of the most interesting of the year, all the reason to slow down with the waning of the lunar cycle.
Here are the important astrological events for this week:
July 9 — Venus enters Virgo and meets the nodal axis — out of all the signs, Venus may be the least at ease in Virgo, the sign of bringing spirit into matter. It’s not the function of Virgo that’s difficult, it’s Venus getting bogged down in all the details and expectations of perfection in Virgo territory. Giving Venus a wild place to play in the very manicured garden of Virgo could be some good medicine. Conjunct the nodal axis there may be deeper layers involved with themes of perfectionism, self-criticism and criticism of others, overthinking, obsessive worry, playing the victim (drama triangle dynamics), escapism, and addictive patterns.
July 12 — Mercury cazimi (exactly conjunct) the Sun at 21 degrees Cancer — There is often a flash of intuition or a direct message that can come the day that Mercury is cazimi (technically, a conjunction closer than 17 minutes of arc or about a quarter of a degree), and sometimes these are literal phone calls. This happens right before the New Moon in Cancer so there may be messages about the family patterns that have been coming up for review for the past month. Cazimi means “in the heart of the Sun.”
July 14 — New Moon in Cancer at 5:44 am EDT at 22 degrees Cancer — A new lunar cycle begins after a month of significant transits. Vesta and Pallas in Aries are holding tension in the form of a reminder that tribe, traditions and memory all die without tending to the fire of vital creative being within each of its members, offering quite the spark of remembrance at the beginning of one of the most interesting lunations of the year.
With love,
Eric on the alleged split between logic and intuition, and why neither science nor spirit alone speaks to the whole person.
In honor of Venus entering Virgo in a trine to Chiron: Eric’s meditation on Rachel Carson, the discovery of the ecosystem, and what “holistic” really means.
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