Mars enters Scorpio; Part Two of Before and After Chiron

Mars enters Scorpio, one of the signs it rules, at 11:24 am EDT today. After an unusually long journey through feminine Virgo earlier this year, and then Venus-ruled Libra, Scorpio brings a clear change of pace and energy to Mars. Here Mars gets to be itself: motivated, action-oriented, expressive of its sex drive and strong.

Pluto is Scorpio’s other ruler – and certainly, the deep, transformative powers of that sign fit Pluto’s M.O. But the sexual drive of Mars is also a clear match. Martian fire in the fixed water of Scorpio (a sort of pressure) creates steam. When that steam is channeled well and constructively, it makes for deep, personal security (according to Isabel Hickey). Harnessing that can mean harnessing some intense sexual energy.

The key is handling the more animalistic side of Mars in Scorpio well. When insecurity or self-esteem issues arise, Mars in Scorpio can tend toward manipulation. When those things are relatively in balance, Mars in Scorpio offers the willpower and stamina to meet challenges of all sorts, break sexual taboos, and put instincts to work.

Upon its ingress, Mars makes a sextile to the Sun in Virgo and a trine to Neptune in Pisces. The circuit made by these three planets suggests a couple things. One, you can expect that any dreamy Neptunian fantasies and altered-state journeying may get a libido boost.

Two, if you’re putting the energy of the Sun-Neptune opposition into some sort of creative/artistic service project, set clear goals – and don’t be shy about them. Just be ready to be the one to supply the initiative to get to them, since trines and sextiles are ‘softer’ aspects. They don’t push you the way squares do, though Mars is adding steam power you can harness. You’ll just want to use the mental clarity and precision of that Virgo Sun to keep things focused. Note also that the first quarter Moon is tomorrow, so there will be some lunar help in turning the corner on projects begun at the New Moon last week.

Lastly, here is the second half of Eric’s article on Virgo and Chiron. We published the first half yesterday in Daily Astrology.

Before and After Chiron

By Eric Francis Coppolino — Bamberg, Germany, 20 August 2004

Under the traditional system of rulerships that was codified (but not invented) by Claudius Ptolemaeus in the 2nd century C.E., Mercury rules two signs, Gemini and Virgo. Ancient astrology describes Mercury as being neither male nor female but some of both, so we have an unusual planet to be associated with the sign of the Goddess and the matriarchy. Bailey, in her system of rulerships, associates the Moon and Jupiter with this sign. The ancient Celts felt that Venus was the spirit of Nature herself. Venus is, in my experience, by far the most intelligent planet, which feels rather like what we’re talking about here.

In terms of traditional astrology, one of Mercury’s two signs, Gemini, has the quality of relating to abstract thought, whereas Virgo seeks out much more tangible, solid reality that you can ponder out loud, put into print and footnote, or squish between your toes. Mercury seems to represent one distinct aspect of Virgo, the mental one. As we have seen, there is far more to the reality of Virgo than this.

And then came Chiron. Discovered in November 1977, Chiron is physically a massive comet. At 160 to 180 kilometers across, it is thousands of times the size of even the largest comets we can typically see — but too far away to resolve even for most telescopes. Chiron orbits our Sun in a 51-year egg-shaped path that crosses Saturn’s orbit and goes out nearly as far as Uranus. The discovery of Chiron, and considerable early enthusiasm about it, raised much speculation about what sign this new planet might rule. This notion was based on an assumption that new planets rule anything at all. But by 1977, the modern planets (Uranus, Neptune and Pluto) were said to rule Aquarius, Pisces and Scorpio respectively. So when Chiron came along, astrologers were ensconced in the dubious habit of thinking that something new had to rule a sign.

While this issue is debatable, Chiron certainly has a lot to say about Virgo. Chiron’s dedication to healing, service and perfecting the human experience are related to Virgo rather impeccably. Chiron always seems to be struggling to bring something from a ‘higher level’ into the physical plane. Chiron will do whatever it needs to do, again and again, until he gets it right. It is not easy integrating the energy of one level of experience into the other — anyone who has tried to bring loving vibes into their place of work might know what I’m talking about — but with persistence, it can be done. And Chiron is persistent if nothing else.

Chiron of Greek mythology was a surgeon and the primary teacher of Asclepius, the god of medicine. There is not a lot of room for error in these distinctly human fields of work. The roles of both teaching and nursing have long been associated with Virgo.

The mental obsession that Chiron can bring helps us see through Virgo in a way that’s helpful. As Barbara Hand Clow has pointed out, this obsessive quality is one of the most important links between Chiron and Virgo, something that tricksterish, often annoyingly neutral Mercury could not really explain fully. Chiron is no messenger, and he’s not neutral; he is someone with a mission, who speaks through action.

That mission has been likened to the Christ from the earliest days of astrologers interpreting Chiron, so we might speculate that Virgo has given birth to the Christ energy in the form of this new planet. Many of the early astrologers who considered the mythology of Chiron, which involves an immortal who experiences death and resurrection, have made this connection, particularly Zane Stein. But what exactly does this mean, in a world where the mythology of Jesus is twisted in ways that are used to preach intolerance, hatred and mass murder?

It means that a) we had better start thinking of Jesus a bit more compassionately, and b) that Chiron is going to push us to become whole, authentic people, whatever it takes.

By ‘push’ I am referring to the events, experiences, transitions and life circumstances that surround Chiron transits. Chiron transits often come with a good bit of suffering, but that struggle always serves to clear away the old personality shell so that the essence within us can emerge. Study your Chiron transits and you’ll see what I mean. (For example, look at Chiron’s squares and oppositions to itself; look at when Chiron crossed your ascendant; and when it made conjunctions to your Sun and Moon).

Even astrologers who don’t use Chiron will tell you that there’s something really, really intense happening when Chiron shows up, though for many astrologers it’s difficult to put their finger on. Many astrologers have difficulty discerning the qualities of Chiron from those of other planets which are making major transits at the same time. This difficulty is understandable enough. Chiron is entering the field of experience from an entirely different level than we’re typically used to. It will, in turn, make use of anything and everything available in your current reality to raise awareness. Its mission is to help us see and feel beyond the edge of what we thought of as reality, and what we thought of as ourselves, and experience ourselves as something entirely new.

Imagine Chiron’s orbit piercing the ego-boundary of Saturn. It plunges into our reality like the comet that it is, often guiding, prodding or stunning us to awareness — always gently first, then in escalating degrees. Like Virgo and the 6th house, Chiron brings the message be here now. Stand in your true nature. Be who you are. Remember that you are part of nature and cannot escape from it. For those accustomed to living a life of escape and diversion, this is not always a pleasant message, but ultimately it both sets us free, and leaves us free to do what we came to the Earth to do.