What brought you to astrology?

This is actually a funny story. When I was in my early 20s and in college, I was waitressing one day. A guy came in and watched me for about ten minutes. Then he said, “I bet you’re a Virgo.” Well he was right and I was quite surprised by his statement, since he didn’t know me at all. Of course, he wanted to go out on a date and he promised to show me a book that would explain a lot more. I accepted the date and he showed me the book, which was Heaven Knows What by Grant Lewi. (Earlier versions of it were under the name of Scorpio.) That book was VERY amazing. I looked up my birth date and read the info, which was incredibly accurate. Then I looked up my family members. STILL very accurate! So even though I had studied medicine and was now an economics major in college, I was hooked.

The next week I started searching for astrology books in the town of Concord New Hampshire, where I was living at the time. This town had a population of about 28,000 people and there were only two astrology books in the town’s bookstores. One was Linda Goodman’s Sun Signs. I rejected that, because I knew it couldn’t be that simple. The other book was The Astrologer’s Handbook by Frances Sakoian and Louis Acker. This book was quite technical and I read and reread it for years, trying to understand the complexities, until I finally made my way to Seattle, where we had an actual astrology bookstore. Thank heavens I finally found it!

Why do you practice astrology—what makes it juicy for you?

When I was a lot younger, I wanted to be a doctor. I couldn’t think of a more valuable way to serve people. But as I worked in medicine, I began to realize that when someone made their way to a hospital (except for mothers giving birth), they were actually at the end of the line. If they had had a different type of help earlier, they wouldn’t have arrived there. Plus I didn’t see any real healing going on in medicine, which greatly discouraged me from that career. So I began looking for a profession that could make a difference to people and how they pursued their lives. The psychology theories I had studied were too simplistic to have any real value (at least for me), so I didn’t pursue that either.

On the other hand, astrology offers very practical and accurate tools for living, which continue to unfold and develop. I like the fact that it starts with a chart, which is an objective piece of information. There are certainly many ways to read charts, but at the center of it, is something objective. This is different from a psychic reading or a channeling for that reason. I like being able to offer insights to clients, which are easy to see astrologically, but which could take several months or years for a psychologist, psychiatrist, or counselor to discover. In my work as a business astrologer, I’m able to see business situations that would take a business consultant months to discover and piece together. So I love the efficiency and effectiveness of astrology.

Eventually I made my way to business and worked in corporations. While I was doing that, I heard Steven Forrest speak at NORWAC on Christianity and Astrology. He talked about why the Bible had the statement in there to not go to astrologers, fortune tellers, etc. It wasn’t because the Christians didn’t use astrology. They DID. They used it in a completely different way. They used it to be in harmony with the Divine Plan of the Day. Essentially a person’s personal transits were not really that important, because they were supposed to be working with the Divine Plan of the Day. That basically superseded everything else. That information led me on my own journey to eventually offer The Good Timing Guide, so others could use good timing, without having to know all the technicalities behind it.

This view also made astrology very juicy for me, because I realized the impact that this concept had on our daily lives and productivity. (Hey, I’m a Virgo!) Imagine what a difference it would make if we knew when to do important activities, so we’re in harmony with the Universe and more successful! This view essentially gave me my mission.

What is your specialty or focus?

My specialty is two-fold. I’m both a business and an economic astrologer. This means that I do astrology charts and cycles for businesses and organizations. As an astrologer with my degree is in economics, I also provide a business and economic newsletter (The Good Timing Newsletter), which gives a very different perspective about what’s happening in the economy. I can only provide that perspective because of my understanding of the cycles combined with my economic background.

Part of being a business astrologer is to find good dates and times for businesses to take important actions. So I provide custom timings for starting new businesses, launching web sites, signing contracts, and introducing new products/services. I also answer specific questions (horary).

Of course I also do personal astrology too. Since I teach prosperity training (8 Keys to the Ultimately Prosperous Business), many individuals also come to me for financial and investment concerns.

Is there a planet, sign, or aspect you’ve been exploring lately that represents an archetype or energy that feels important to you right now?

Yes, I’m feeling like the Transit of Venus this summer is a big deal. This is the bookend to the one we had in 2004. Back then Venus retrograded opposite Pluto during the Transit of Venus. That year millions of people separated or divorced from their personal or business partners, or their partner died. This year, we have Venus retrograde square Mars during the Transit of Venus. I think we may encounter major issues related to the value of our money being cut significantly. There are unconfirmed rumors that the dollar will be devalued by 40%. If that’s all, we’ll be lucky. However, that’s still a huge hit for most people. This is why I encourage people to buy gold coins and even have an article on my site for How to Buy Gold.

Venus retrograde starts May 15th and the Solar eclipse is on May 20th. The day before the Transit of Venus we have the Lunar eclipse on June 4th. Uranus square Pluto is within one degree at that time. Then we have the Transit of Venus on June 5th. Then we have the Summer Solstice, with Uranus square Pluto within 8 minutes of exactness. That’s followed a few days later with the first of seven peaks for Uranus square Pluto, our revolutionary energies. On that day, June 24th. there are cycles that look like we could have a currency revaluation. This could include a lot more currencies than just the US dollar. We’ll see what happens. Venus retrograde is a time of re-valuing. I think this Transit of Venus bookend will be mostly a financial challenge, instead of relationship issues.

Venus square Mars first occurred in March when the War Against Women was becoming an issue. And we won’t get the last one until September 26th, about a week after the second Uranus square Pluto peak. This could also be a War Against Money, as the US dollar continues to be seriously devalued. It’s interesting that whatever we do to our women, we also do to our money. Venus represents the Divine Feminine and until we value her, our women, relationships and money will remain in danger.

Are there any additional comments you’d like to make about your lecture?

Astrology offers so many tools to make our lives easier and more successful. Good timing is one of them. It astounds me how few of us use this fabulous tool or even pay attention to void Moons. I can even remember being with another astrologer when she signed a lease to rent a place, only to discover that the Moon was void at the time. Neither of us had noticed this! Of course that place didn’t work out at all and very shortly she broke her lease and left. It was an important lesson.

One of the things I discovered when I got into this is that the currently accepted definition of a void Moon is wrong. A lot more research needs to be done before we can be sure we have a correct one. All we know for certain is that the current definition is at best incomplete, and therefore wrong at least 10-15% of the time, and sometimes more often than that. I’ll discuss some details regarding this in my talk in May.

Highlight: This month Venus stations retrograde in Gemini, and both before and after her station she will make antiscions to both Pluto and Uranus.

To use this list, simply blend the meanings of planets in combination. Bold dates indicate the strongest day for a particular planetary expression. Dates showing only one planet indicate its ingress into a Cardinal sign (or to 15 degree Fixed), i.e. it is sitting directly on the Cardinal axis, and so should feature prominently that day. Those marked with an asterisk are antiscia formed around the midpoint of two Cardinal signs, which is always at 15 degrees Fixed. Those with a (c) indicate contra-antiscia and are a symmetrical arrangement around the Aries/Libra axis.

May 2012

1^st, 2^nd, 3^rd Venus|Pluto (c)  

1^st, 2^nd, 3^rd, 4^th, 5^th Node|Saturn *

1^st, 2^nd, 3^rd, 4^th, 5^th Mars|Saturn (c)

4^th Sun *

4^th, 5^th Mercury|Mars

5^th Node|Mercury *

6^th, 7^th Mercury|Neptune (c)

7^th, 8^th, 9^th Venus|Uranus *

12^th Mercury|Jupiter *

12^th Mercury|Sun *

16^th, 17^th Mercury *

23^rd, 24^th Venus|Uranus *

25^th, 26^th, 27^th, 28^th, 29^th Venus|Pluto (c)

26^th, 27^th Sun|Saturn *

27^th Mercury|Saturn *

May 3, 2012
Mercury sextile Venus
21˚36’ Aries; 21˚36’ Gemini
8:01 pm

May 5, 2012
Mercury opposite Saturn
24˚40’ Aries; 24˚40’ Libra
6:09 pm

Full Moon
16˚01’ Taurus (Sun); 16˚01’ (Moon)
8:35 pm

May 8, 2012
Mercury enters Taurus
10:15 pm

May 10, 2012
Mercury sextile Neptune
2˚59’ Taurus; 2˚59’ Pisces
3:00 pm

May 13, 2012
Sun conjunct Jupiter
23˚10’ Taurus
6:24 am

Mercury trine Mars
8˚23’ Taurus; 8˚23’ Virgo
1:54 pm

May 14, 2012
Mercury trine Pluto
9˚17’ Taurus; 9˚17’ Capricorn
1:09 am

May 15, 2012
Venus retrograde
23˚59’ Gemini
7:33 am

May 16, 2012
Mars trine Pluto
9˚17’ Virgo; 9˚17’ Capricorn
9:20 am

May 20, 2012
Sun enters Gemini
8:16 am

Solar Eclipse
0˚20’ Gemini (Sun and Moon)
4:47 pm

May 21, 2012
Mercury conjunct Jupiter
25˚14’ Taurus
10:58 pm

May 23, 2012
Sun square Neptune
3˚06’ Gemini; 3˚06’ Pisces
1:57 pm

May 24, 2012
Mercury enters Gemini
4:12 am

May 25, 2012
Mercury square Neptune
3˚07’ Gemini; 3˚07’ Pisces
2:38 pm

May 27, 2012
Sun conjunct Mercury
6˚34’ Gemini
4:20 am

Mercury sextile Uranus
7˚41’ Gemini; 7˚41’ Aries
4:37 pm

May 28, 2012
Sun sextile Uranus
7˚43’ Gemini; 7˚43’ Aries
9:05 am

May 30, 2012
Mercury square Mars
14˚20’ Gemini; 14˚20’ Virgo
5:20 pm

All the submissions were amazing, a fact that was reinforced by the voting results, which were really close. We hope that you will all consider submitting a talk in the future when we do another community-focused event.

Here are the presenters and talks that will be part of this year’s Taste of WSAA:

Rhonda Busby – Natal Panchanga

Marcia Butchart – “Null and Void”? Not!

Bradley Naragon – Insights into Planetary Nodes

[photo by Sister72]

To vote, please read the descriptions of each presentation, then scroll to the bottom of the page and select your FOUR choices by marking the box to the left of the title. Then scroll down in that box until you see “Done.” Click the “Done” button, and your vote will be recorded. Thank you!

A Wholistic Astrology, or: What If There Were 12 Planets?

Description
It seemed we were on our way to having a Wholistic Astrology of 12 planets, one for each sign. Then Pluto got demoted, Ceres got promoted, and new worlds were discovered almost daily. We had entire belts of asteroids and planetoids to integrate. Sign rulership went classical with the stunning return of Hellenistic astrology. And though modern planets showed stronger affinities with certain signs, the developing Wholistic system was dropped before it was completed.

In this presentation, I’ll describe an astrological model of the Solar System that includes 12 archetypal/principal planets. We’ll learn how these planets indeed have a strong rulership of their associated signs, and how the relationships of these planets to each other give astrology a profound feeling of wholeness and completion.

Presenter
John Chinworth

Bio
John Chinworth is an Evolutionary Astrologer, with fourteen years experience, who is skilled in demonstrating how to unify the soul’s intention with one’s persona, while holding sacred space for his clients. He has achieved certification in Evolutionary Astrology from Steven Forrest, and is also working towards a Diploma with the rigorous online International Academy of Astrology.

Around the World: Astrologically

Description
Eminent Astrologer and author Dane Rhudyar determined that there were 12 Zodiacal Astrological Zones of the planet.

Steffan Vanel has been studying these zones for some time and has observed their influences, especially in the four zones affecting the U.S.

He is now completing a round-the-world trip during which he has been observing the Astrological manifestations of each zone. This has been a fascinating study and this short presentation will share some of his observations and insights from this journey.

Presenter
Steffan Vanel

Bio
Steffan Vanel is the author of: The Astrological Karma of the USA and: Charles & Diana: The Inside Story: An Astrological-Karmic View. He is noted for his synthesis of Astrology, Tarot, Kabbalah and Jungian Psychology. He has studied Psychological Astrology with Liz Greene and Kabbalah with Zev Ben Shimon Halevi. Steffan is also a primary exponent of the Astrological information channeled from the Ascended Master Hilarion.

Insights into Planetary Nodes

Description
The Evolutionary Astrology Paradigm in its totality which Jeffery Wolf Green ushered in is vast. There are pieces of this which the larger collective of astrologers are just beginning to integrate into their practices. Regardless of which branch of astrology you embrace and practice, a deeper understanding of Planetary Nodes has great potential to enrich your depth of interpretation.

This brief talk introduces annual cyclic patterning of all planetary nodes. Then, from an evolutionary astrology perspective, we will look at the before and after of a natal chart – focusing on planetary nodes in aspect to Pluto, lunar nodes and their rulers.”

Presenter
Bradley Naragon

Bio
Bradley Naragon found his passion for astrology in 1998. Immediately Ieaving behind traditional college, he continued creating art and studying astrology, which became the seeds for establishing Blue Dragon Arts and Astrology in 2006. Bradley hand crafts “astrological shields” – functional mandalas for seeing the dance of the spheres. Also he facilitates the creation of public mandalas throughout his home town of Olympia, Washington. Bradley is committed to sharing the teachings of Jeffery Wolf Green through speaking, tutoring, writing and astrological counseling. When not busy with EA in some form, life is full of family, gardening, and working at the local Food Coop.

Mr. Responsible’s Visit

Description
The 29+ zone is such a strong structure builder for making our busiest years productive and fruitful. As a practical astrologer, my Saturn-Jupiter conjunction in the 9th house put a lot into play for me between 29-32. I knew nothing about Saturn, or what a Saturn return even was. Nonetheless, Saturn was guiding me to find life practices that would benefit my whole life.

Presenter
Anna Wilde

Bio
I am a self-employed tax preparer with 30+ years of experience, a small business owner with over 20 years experience in elder care/home maintenance work, as well as a practicing astrologer since 2006. I earned a BA degree in Psychology and History in 1999, and have utilized my degree within the framework of my astrological practice and my service work in helping people build sustainable life structures, as well as fulfill their karmic destiny through building and/or rebuilding their life structures.

Natal Panchanga

Description
Panchanga is Sanskrit for “five limbs,” or the five sources of energy that influence any given day based on the Sun and Moon:

1) Vara, the day of the week: one’s creative force and vitality.

2) Nakshatra, the constellation of the Moon: grows one’s life.

3) Tithi, the phase of the Moon: one’s attitude toward life.

4) Karana, half a tithi: bringing life’s actions to fruition.

5) Nitya Yoga, the daily angle between the Sun and Moon: how one’s life is held together.
Knowing these placements at the time of birth can give you greater understanding of the energies of your life and its purpose, and help you align with the Sun and Moon with nature and the greater cosmology.

Presenter
Rhonda Busby

Bio
I worked as a midwife for much of my life, and began getting involved in various healing modalities in the 90’s: Enneagram (certified teacher), Reiki (completed three levels), Guided Self-Healing (completed two years of training), BodyTalk (certified practitioner), Emotional Freedom Technique, and Energy Medicine (Donna Eden’s work).

Then I discovered astrology! I graduated from Kepler College in 2007 with a Bachelor’s degree in astrological studies. At Kepler I was exposed to the long history and many rich traditions and paradigms of astrology. The one that most drew my attention was Vedic astrology, so after graduating from Kepler, I completed the two-year course in Vedic astrology from the American College of Vedic Astrology. I am now finishing a one-year training in life coaching and plan to use it to help people deal with difficulties, in their charts and in their lives. I have been using personal panchanga as a way to first access the birth chart, which allows the stories of one’s life to unfold in very organic ways.

“NULL AND VOID?” NOT!

Description
When is the Moon actually “void in course”? The modern definition—when the Moon has made Her last “Ptolemaic” aspect to any planet while She transits a sign—stems from medieval astrological tradition. This differs from earlier Hellenistic definitions, which make a void Moon a much rarer occurrence than we tend to think! Come learn this tradition, receive a table of void times for the next twelve months… and perhaps play with its use. There may be no need to put life on hold every three days.

Presenter
Marcia Butchart

Bio
Marcia Butchart is a Seattle-area astrologer (NCGR III) with a special
interest in Hellenistic and medieval techniques, that include use of the
fixed stars. Originally self-taught, she later completed the Astrology
Institute’s certificate programs in basic/advanced astrology and counseling
training, as well as diplomas in AstroLogos’ Visual Astrology and Predictive
Astrology. She is currently enrolled in the Sophia Centre’s master’s degree
program in Cultural Astronomy & Astrology at University of Wales Trinity St.
David. When not cudgeling her brains, her Taurus Moon loves to cook (and
eat!), while her 6th House Sun crochets.

Reassigning Mars: Pinpointing Passionate Purpose

Description
Glenna experienced her first natal astrology reading just three years ago. Today she is busy building a thriving astrological practice. Leaving a 25 year career as a sign language interpreter, she took a risk and sought out resonant teachers nationally and internationally in order to pursue her newfound passion…. interpreting signs.

In this session, Glenna will zero in on Mars in the chart, seeing it as the “cosmic erection”. Where and how does our passionate purpose move us? What are the compelling questions Mars is now asking? As we move into the Aquarian Age, where might these energies traditionally associated with the God of War be invited to assert themselves next? This promises to be a useful and entertaining presentation.

Presenter
Glenna Bain

Bio
Glenna Bain is a mother of five who lives in Ellensburg Washington having recently returned from journeys to Bali and Uganda. With a BA in Social Welfare from the University of Washington in 1981, Glenna enjoyed a successful career as a certified as an American Sign Language Interpreter for the past 25 years. Now she is “interpreting signs” in her new career as a Counseling Astrologer. She is a Level II apprentice in Steven Forrest’s and studies with Alan Oken and Stephanie Austin. She is currently working on her book with the working title of “Pinpointing Passionate Purpose.” Her birth info: 2/25/59, 3:54 am in Seattle Washington.

Sedna’s Fury and the Evolution of Humanity!

Description
Sedna is the immortal ocean goddess, a beautiful Inuit woman who drowns following the betrayal of both her husband and father, sinking to the cold depths of bottom of the sea. She governs the rules of respect for the ocean and its creatures in order to provide the tribe with food from the sea. In the Pagan tradition, Sedna is the victim but also the victimizer.

Where Sedna lies in the chart hints to where we suffer abandonment, fury and
betrayal, especially of the feminine by the masculine. She has the glyph of the third eye, where we are provoked to awaken in our chart, arise to humanity’s calling, to see through the illusion from the dark, dense murky waters and into the light.

Presenter
Darleen Christopher

Bio
I’m Darleen Christopher, a full time professional astrologer, clairvoyant, palmist. I have been practicing since 1993. I have been drawn to astrology since I was 8. I attended Laura Nalbandian’s Astrology et al school for two years and have attended Norwac consecutively since 1998. I have a space in the Pike Place Market called “Christopher’s Lamp” and have been there since 2000. Please visit my website and check out my reviews at www.christopherslamp.com

The Juggler

Description
I had no idea that I would be in the circus circuit. I just had an interest in astrology back along the way. Now I have discovered that I am a juggler in the three ring circus of the astro world. We as astrologers are in the process of telling stories to each other about the exchange of energy and the archetypes we each bring to focus. This process we utilize when reading the planetary messages is like seeing how many balls of life energy we can juggle at the same time while keeping things in focus.

Presenter
Jeff Peters

Bio
I have been studying astrology for about 42 years. From early Rudhyar thru to Steven Forrest and some Hellenistic technique with Chris Brennan as well as the course by Kelly Lee Phipps. Mostly, I was self-taught up until the last few years. I lean more toward an archetypal consideration of the astrological story that is unfolding in a person’s life with the hope to inspire each person to recognize the path they have chosen to walk.

There are two very busy time periods on the cardinal axis this month. In the early part of April we see Mercury in contra-antiscia to Uranus twice—due to Mercury’s station. At the second occurrence, after Mercury stations direct, in addition to Mercury|Uranus we find the contra-antiscia of Mars|Saturn joining the picture, along with the still lingering Saturn|Neptune antiscia, and Venus|Saturn briefly on the axis. This all occurs on and around the Full Moon on April 6^th. The other eventful time to note is later in the month, around April 16^th, when Sun|Mars are antiscia at the same time that Sun|Neptune and Mars|Saturn are contra-antiscia and Mercury lies on the Aries Point.

To use this list, simply blend the meanings of planets in combination. Bold dates indicate the strongest day for a particular planetary expression. Dates showing only one planet indicate its ingress into a Cardinal sign (or to 15 degree Fixed), i.e. it is sitting directly on the Cardinal axis, and so should feature prominently that day. Those marked with an asterisk are antiscia formed around the midpoint of two Cardinal signs, which is always at 15 degrees Fixed. Those with a (c) indicate contra-antiscia and are a symmetrical arrangement around the Aries/Libra axis.

April 2012 

1^st, 2^nd  Mercury|Uranus (c)

1^st—9^th  Saturn|Neptune

4^th, 5^th, 6^th, 7^th, 8^th, 9^th, 10^th  Mercury|Uranus (c)

6^th  Venus|Saturn *

6^th—30^th (strongest 13^th / 27^th) Mars|Saturn (c)

7^th, 8^th  Jupiter *

11^th  Sun|Venus *

14^th, 15^th, 16^th  Sun|Mars

16^th  Mercury (c)

15^th, 16^th, 17^th  Sun|Neptune (c)

29^th  Sun|Jupiter *

29^th, 30^th  Venus|Pluto (c)

What brought you to astrology?

After working with Shamanism and the Tarot, in 1993 my life was changed forever.
I began to have a series of very vivid, symbolic dreams. In the final one, I was lying on my back in an enormous field of green grass with the Sun directly overhead (similar to the scene for the template of my website!). I love to do this, and while I was enjoying myself I noticed that I could look right at the Sun. Emblazoned in the Solar disk was the symbol for Venus.

I instinctively knew this dream was telling me something, so I managed to obtain an ephemeris and gradually deduced that the planet Venus had been transiting in conjunction with the Sun on that very day! Wow, my astonishment continues to this day.

Why do you practice astrology—what makes it juicy for you?

Having two stelliums in Aries in my third house, Astrology is an endless source of fascination and curiosity. There are so many things to look at and learn, how could anyone ever get bored?! Also, my 7th house Jupiter in Leo really gives me the love of teaching, speaking and consulting.

What is your specialty or focus?

My specialty is the synodic cycles of the inner planets. Curiously, most modern astrologers think Mercury and Venus simply go around the zodiac once yearly and there is not much else to them. But there is so much more! Just for starters, Venus is the brightest object in the sky besides the Sun and Moon, so that makes her very important. Tracking the visual cycles of the interior planets is very interesting and the ability to distinguish the oriental/morning star appearance from the occidental/evening star appearance gives another important layer of interpretive ability and greatly adds to the depth and richness of a reading.

Is there a planet, sign or aspect you’ve been exploring lately that represents an archetype or energy that feels important to you right now?

For the last six years I have been researching the asteroid Goddesses. I have written articles and given presentations on them. And now I have another article, this one on Pallas Athene and her interaction with the Uranus-Pluto squares, which is coming out in the June-July issue of The Mountain Astrologer.

Are there any additional comments you’d like to make about your lecture?

I have hours and hours of info on Mercury, but I think I’d like to focus on what I’ve seen called the Mercury Elemental Year. You’ll see the underlying patterns behind Mercury’s three retrogrades each year and learn to harness their transformative power.

The planet Mercury definitely has a transpersonal or collective dimension. He was an important player in many of the major myths and he often shows up in important events as well. The Mercury retrogrades of each year occur within one or two particular astrological elements. This year in 2012 the Mercury retrograde stations happen in Fire signs then Mercury moves back into Water signs for his direct station. So we have a combination of both the Fire and Water elements. Everybody knows these elements don’t mix well and so this has the potential to be even more volatile. Both Fire and Water signs are very emotional and Mercury retrograde is a time when we are operating on a more instinctual level. This is why logic and things that we expect to work logically often fail us during Mercury retrograde. It is more important to understand what is going on internally on an emotional, instinctual and spiritual level during Mercury retrograde than to try to manage outer world events which need to be logical and/or linear in nature.

April 3, 2012
Venus enters Gemini
8:18 am

April 4, 2012
Mercury SD
23°50’ Pisces
3:11 am

April 5, 2012
Venus square Neptune
2°13’ Gemini; 2°13’ Pisces
6:51 pm

April 6, 2012
Full Moon
17°23’ Aries (Sun); 17°23’ Libra (Moon)
12:19 pm

April 7, 2012
Venus square Mars
3°55’ Gemini; 3°55’ Virgo
4:37 pm

April 9, 2012
Venus sextile Uranus
5°24’ Gemini; 5°24’ Aries
9:52 am

April 10, 2012
Pluto SR
9°33’ Capricorn
9:21 am

April 13, 2012
Mars SD
3°40’ Virgo
8:53 pm

April 15, 2012
Sun opposite Saturn
26°10’ Aries; 26°10’ Libra
11:27 am

April 16, 2012
Mercury enters Aries
3:42 pm

April 19, 2012
Sun enters Taurus
9:12 am

April 21, 2012
New Moon
1°35’ Taurus (Sun and Moon)
12:18 am

April 22, 2012
Sun sextile Neptune
2°38’ Taurus; 2°38’ Pisces
2:20 am

Mercury conjunct Uranus
6°07’ Aries
1:30 pm

April 23, 2012
Sun trine Mars
4°15’ Taurus; 4°15’ Virgo
5:59 pm

April 25, 2012
Mercury square Pluto
9°30’ Aries; 9°30’ Capricorn
7:50 am

April 29, 2012
Sun trine Pluto
9°28’ Taurus; 9°28’ Capricorn
2:33 am

This month the long-standing Saturn|Neptune antiscia is at its most intense between March 1 and March 15. At the end of the month, Mercury, while retrograde and slowing down to station direct, falls contra-antiscia to Uranus and lasts for several days.

To use this list, simply blend the meanings of planets in combination. Bold dates indicate the strongest day for a particular planetary expression. Dates showing only one planet indicate its ingress into a Cardinal sign (or 15 degree Fixed), i.e. it is sitting directly on the Cardinal axis, and so should feature prominently that day. Those marked with an asterisk are antiscia formed around the midpoint of two Cardinal signs, which is always at 15 degrees Fixed. Those with a (c) indicate contra-antiscia and are a symmetrical arrangement around the Aries/Libra axis.

March 2012  

1^st–31^st – Saturn|Neptune

2^nd – Mercury (c)

3^rd, 4^th– Venus|Neptune (c)

10^th – Sun|Pluto *

12^th, 13^th, 14^th – Sun|Mercury (c)

15^th, 16^th – Sun|Uranus (c)

19^th, 20^th – Sun (c)

22^nd – Venus|Jupiter *

22^nd, 23^rd – Mercury rx (c)

28^th, 29^th, 30^th, 31^st – Mercury|Uranus (c)

Astrology began tapping on my door in stages, first through a few comments from a Swiss Jungian who taught at Harvard when I was there in the late ‘60s and early ‘70s, then through some suggestive indications from Rudolf Steiner. But it was when I came to Esalen Institute in the mid-1970s that I became fully engaged: The community living there during those years pursued many esoteric and heretical perspectives, and I was impressed by the fact that a number of highly educated people there took astrology seriously. Then when Stan Grof and I stumbled on what was to us at the time astonishing correlations of specific transits with specific kinds of experiences individuals had during deep therapeutic or shamanic explorations, we took up astrological research in a systematic way. It all just kept expanding from then on.

Why do you practice astrology—what makes it juicy for you?

There are so many reasons: I find that astrology is a never-ending source of aesthetic delight as it reveals unexpected beauty and “patterns that connect.” It shines light on so many aspects of human experience — on history, on the psyche, on philosophy, on politics, the arts, religion, science, the evolution of world views. It provides a center of orientation and equilibrium from which to navigate life, both my own individual path and my participation in the collective unfolding of our age. And it provides a larger, cosmic and archetypal frame of reference for everything I experience, everything I study.

What is your specialty or focus?

I’m especially compelled by the interpretive profundity of the major planetary archetypes and the major aspects, and their relevance for understanding individual biographies (with special interest in major cultural figures), the larger patterns and turning points of history, and the depths and heights of non-ordinary states of consciousness.

Is there a planet, sign, or aspect you’ve been exploring lately that represents an archetype or energy that feels important to you right now?

The past several years have given me new appreciation of the Sun and Moon as fundamental archetypal principles that, in a sense, govern everything, the ruler of the day and the ruler of the night. In a way, I think our civilization as a whole, like men and women in their individual lives, is working out the profound dynamic relationship between the solar and lunar dimensions of being, the radiant individual autonomous solar hero and the relational-intuitive-psycho-somatic mysterious encompassing lunar matrix of the whole.

From your unique perspective, how do you see what’s come forth recently with regards to the current astrological weather?

Clearly, the Saturn-Uranus-Pluto T-square has done its work on our civilization these past four years, in every way that this combination would have led us to anticipate from earlier times they converged in our history. And, for the rest of this decade, the Uranus-Pluto square itself, the first dynamic alignment of those two planets since the 1960s. The revolutionary energies sweeping the planet, the collapse of old structures, economies, governments, the tremendous polarization between conservative and progressive, reactionary and radical, the empowerment of youth, of women, of the masses in the streets, the ecological crisis and transformative impulses at work everywhere – all clearly reflect these hugely significant world transit alignments. I look forward to exploring all this, as well as the more personal dimension of astrology associated with synchronicity and romantic love, when I visit the Seattle astrological community.

Richard will be presenting a lecture entitled Synchronicity, Romance, and Astrology on Thursday, March 8. For more information see here.

He will also be offering a workshop–Understanding Our Moment in History: An Archetypal Perspective–on Saturday, March 10. Details can be found here.