By Len Wallick
Today, Venus is separating from yesterday’s superior conjunction. Mercury is slowing down (about 1/3 of its speed of just a week ago) on its way to the forward station. The other “personal planet”, Mars, reaches one of the most crucial points of its long retrograde – an opposition to the centaur planet, Nessus.
 |
The zodiac you recall, is a circle. Circles are 360 degrees circumference. When a planet or event is on one side of the zodiac directly opposite from another, they are 180 degrees apart. That is an opposition. Often taken as negative and nearly always associated with a challenge, an opposition differs from a square in that it has more to do with the external (ie: relationships) than the internal. The barbell-like polarity (with us here in the middle) implies the concept of a bind. Binds can be resolved most efficiently if the pickle in the middle negotiates with each end separately. Today, we get the opportunity to be that lucky pickle.
The first step is to heed Eric’s admonition from last Saturday morning. In that installment of the Cosmic Confidential Diary he discloses that one motivation of writing astrology is to encourage people to participate with the world because that is in our common interest. To which this correspondent might add his own point – participation entitles negotiation. Fair negotiation, conducted in good faith can result in balance. Balance, in turn, can make that intimidating opposition into a barbell that can be lifted to a higher level, making the pickle in the middle stronger.