MARS in TAURUS – June 9th – July 20th, 2024

Mars leaves the sign it rules, Aries, which it has traveled through for about 39 days, to enter Taurus, a sign in which it is in its detriment or exile. Of course, these concepts of dignities are still discussed topics in Astrology. Personally, I don’t adhere to this way of seeing things, but I don’t completely deny them either. As we have seen in various world events that occurred during these 40 days of Mars’s journey through its own sign of Aries, we can’t necessarily associate it with particularly beneficial actions, although there always are. In many aspects, it slips out of our hands due to the potency of its energetic power. Upon entering Taurus, however, the energy slows down, becomes heavier, more stubborn and potent. Changing a Taurus’s mind is practically impossible, and with Mars’s help, they will defend their points of view even more vehemently.

Controlling the energy that invades us when Mars enters our sign or in opposition or in square, this time for Taurus, Scorpio, Aquarius, and Leo, respectively, is very difficult. Suddenly everything bothers us, everyone irritates us, and our patience becomes very fragile, making it a big task to contain ourselves. If we engage in physical activities, such as going to the gym, sports, or dancing, we benefit more from it, and our bodies seem to respond to challenges in an extraordinary way. The energy of Mars filters through our muscles.

A good example of this was yesterday, in the Roland Garros final, when two Taurus: Carlos Alcaraz and Sasha Zverev, contested the trophy after an epic 5-set match with a typical Mars level of energy. Although reaching the final of a tournament of that magnitude really means that both finalists are winners, the one who took the big trophy was Alcaraz, who out-energized Zverev. Yesterday, Mars, having just entered Taurus, was exactly passing through Zverev’s Sun and opposing his Chiron. I wonder how this influenced the final result. On the other hand, in Alcaraz’s natal chart, Mars was contacting his natal Uranus by sextile. The Mars-Uranus combination generates a lot of physical energy, especially quick, sharp, and effective.

Mars entered Taurus on June 9, and it is forming a square to Pluto, an aspect that will be exact tomorrow, June 11. The European elections have culminated with a rise in the far-right, especially in France. Beware of power struggles and the intense need to “be right.” We will need a lot of calm to express our ideas without violence. On July 15, before leaving this sign, it will align with Uranus, a combination that makes us more rebellious and revolutionary.

Cancer, Capricorn, Pisces, and Virgo particularly benefit from this transit of the warrior through the sign of the Bull. The fixed signs: Taurus, Leo, Scorpio, and Aquarius, must work on containing and managing this extra energy, which, if they succeed, can bring them many advantages and achievements.

Enjoy it, if you can.

FULL MOON en Sagittarius with the Venus-Júpiter conjunction holding hands with Neptune. May 23rd, 2024

A Full Moon with a Venus-Jupiter conjunction in Taurus truly sounds like summer nights with good food, good music, and excellent company. It would be hard to imagine anything negative if we only think of these two traditionally recognized benefics. Being in the sign that speaks of pleasure, enjoyment, and the experience of the senses, like Taurus, it is difficult to imagine a negative scenario. But of course, while this is real and a great possibility, nothing is that simple in life, and opposing forces always exist. We, mere mortals, swim in this sea of these conflicting currents, ALL THE TIME.

For this Full Moon, in the first degrees of the signs of Sagittarius (Moon) and Gemini (Sun), something urges us to explore the more open and curious side of our psyche. Sagittarius embodies the energy of optimism, adventure, the search for that which brings us closer to our truth, to our inner gods and goddesses, i.e., our faith, our philosophy of life. As the opposite sign to Gemini, which seeks lighter, less committed, more mundane interactions with more “variety” (which Gemini loves!) and without necessarily selecting or analyzing these new encounters; Sagittarius prefers to climb mountains in solitude to find their inner Buddha. Gemini learns from the opinions and knowledge of guests at a social dinner, while Sagittarius prefers to study and investigate in private. Gemini leans toward short and varied courses and “Masters”, whereas Sagittarius may dedicate their life to a single study and, if necessary, relocate to other parts of the world to continue learning from other cultures. A Fire sign and an Air sign—a strongly mental and optimistic combination.

On the other hand, an extraordinary cosmic combination occurs simultaneously as this lunation reaches its peak at the Full Moon. Venus and Jupiter unite in conjunction at the anaretic 29th degree of Taurus and in a sextile to Neptune, also at the anaretic 29º of Pisces, the sign it rules. Venus and Jupiter also form an out-of-sign conjunction with the Sun and an opposition to the Moon, reinforced by Pallas Athena in the last degrees of Scorpio. This famous anaretic degree clearly speaks of something concluding, and there are many interpretations of it. Having been born with my Ascendant at the anaretic degree of Capricorn, I can speak of my experience and my “destiny” to evoke the results of the negative and positive aspects of this Goat sign, but also of the quantum leap to the new (in my case Aquarius) that it entails.

At this historical moment, when we are all transitioning through the anaretic degree of Capricorn, since Pluto has been entering Aquarius and returning to this 29th degree of Cap for the past couple of years, coinciding with the Jupiter-Uranus conjunction in Taurus, we all know that the advent of AI and chatbots like GPT is introducing us to this new Air dimension. It makes us aware of the conclusion of the Capricorn era, our attachment to the Earth element, and the absolute need to adapt to these new paradigms and ways of working, envisioning the future more consciously. Whether you know about Astrology or not, you surely feel this transition we are ALL experiencing.

This Full Moon, in some way, confronts us with another farewell that evokes these significant endings, of which we, the living, are fortunate to be part. Something urges us to learn to seek within ourselves, to learn to enjoy in a way that resonates with our “new” truth, our new way of seeing life, and above all, health. Perhaps the Taurus way of excess that this Jupiter in transit through this sign has shown us is undergoing a positive transformation, and at this moment, we understand that Pleasure and Excess do not have to go hand in hand. This Venus-Jupiter conjunction at 29º of Taurus asks us to reflect on this aspect of pleasure, where a fun night does not have to end with a three-day hangover. You can celebrate without so much alcohol and food, for example, learning to find pleasure in what does not destroy us.

This reminds me of incredible films from European creative cinema of the last century, such as La Grande Bouffe by the Italian director Marco Ferreri, from 1973, who was born with the Sun and Venus in Taurus, as well as Babette’s Feast written and directed by Gabriel Axel in 1987, the latter beautifully and romantically recounted by astrologer Christopher Renstrom on YouTube. These are magnificent expressions of Venus-Jupiter in Taurus. Axel was born with Mercury in Taurus and with a square between Venus in Pisces and Jupiter in Gemini. Ahh! The fabulous cosmic coincidences!

This conjunction between Venus and Jupiter, by the way, will not be visible in the sky as it occurs when these two planets are hidden by the Sun, that is, on the other side, relative to us. They also form an extraordinary exact sextile with Neptune at the anaretic 29º degree of Pisces. Another extraordinary ending, as none of us alive today, roaming the surface of this planet we call “home,” will live through this passage of Neptune through its own sign again, nor have we experienced it before, due to the precious blue planet taking 165 years to orbit the Sun. Neptune is on its way to changing signs and conjoining with Saturn at 0º of Aries, something that has not occurred in this first Fire sign since 1703. Although this conjunction forms every 35 years or so, it is not always in the same sign. The last time it occurred was in 1989, in Capricorn, when the Berlin Wall fell and with it, the Soviet Union. But I will write about this in a forthcoming article. What I can say is that this sextile between the Venus-Jupiter conjunction and Neptune brings us to the brink of the new. It augurs another paradigm shift where the new will take shape, and we will have to adapt and, above all, define new manifestations of our experience in this life. Whatever your age, this is an impulse to RE-invent, RE-create ourselves, and open up to the new.

This Full Moon speaks of this transition regarding old ways of finding pleasure and brings us closer to the this Gate slowly opening to a new vision of life, without so much destruction, without so many struggles between the “old” and the “new,” simply helping us accept the cyclical nature of our existence, allowing us to go through these transitions without so much pain and death. At a time when the news only reflects death and destruction, we must heed this call to transform and reshape our ways. This also reflects the struggle between Globalization (Sagittarius) and the return to each tribe separately (Taurus). What are the benefits and harmful aspects of each stance, and what will we do with it?

Although Uranus is distant from the conjunction of the two benefics, it is close enough to be included in this opposition of Moon-Pallas to Sun-Venus-Jupiter-Uranus, which of course, reminds us that the future is here, and we have no choice but to respond to this call for RE-newal and acceptance of the new.

For this Full Moon in Sagittarius, Zeus (Jupiter) comes to rescue Aphrodite (Venus) to show her a less mundane and more meaningful way to enjoy and remind her that the pleasures of the flesh, albeit beautiful and worldly, are just one aspect of Pleasure. Meditating by the sea or a walk through a beautiful forest can be more pleasurable and meaningful, in addition to filling us with the magic of RE-connecting with the Goddess in our psyche, thus satisfying both the Body and the Soul.

The image was created by DALLE and my prompt.

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HAPPY FULL MOON! ENJOY THE BENEFITS OF VENUS-JUPITER-NEPTUNE COMBINATION! BE ROMANTIC! AND SLOWLY WALK AWAY FROM OLD MENTAL PATTERNS!

NEW MOON in TAURUS with Venus trotting through her own sign

After one of the most turbulent Aprils in a long time, we march towards a New Moon in Taurus and a very different month from the one that ends. First, from the beginning, we will notice the incredible energetic shift of this May that starts with a “bang! as on its first day, Mars begins its journey through the sign it rules, Aries, which it will travel through until June 8. Mars, the inner warrior, drives us to action, often not very thoughtfully, but in tremendously powerful fashion, and so, wandering through its own sign, Mars only fills us with “a lot of energy”. Something like a renewed sense of Being and “doing”, with a great impulse to move in the desired direction. A kind of “nothing can stop me!” will invade us and if we know how to handle it, it can gift us moments of true sense of achievement.

If you have been feeling low energy, weighed down by the difficulty of situations to resolve, this Martian energy will be welcome. Those with planets in the cardinal signs: Aries-Cancer-Libra and Capricorn, will notice it more than anyone, but of course, the other fire signs: Leo and Sagittarius, will also find this powerful impulse. If you were waiting for the right moment to return to the gym, or to any physical or sports activity you usually do, that time is Now. On the other hand, if this energy is not recognized and used positively, it can bring us real tense and confrontational situations, when we least desire them.

Venus, for its part, begins the month at 2º Taurus 29′ in square to Pluto which suggests a deep transformation of our deepest values and will travel the rest of the sign where Aphrodite feels best, until May 23, when right for the Full Moon of this month, Venus will align with Jupiter. The two benefics par excellence, together in Taurus! WE can only sense Beauty and pleasure! But…. we won’t see it in the sky, since this meeting occurs behind the Sun, relative to us, therefore the Solar light does not allow us to see them. This does not mean that the conjunction is not occurring, but perhaps in a more subtle way. Even so, a sense of well-being and optimism accompanies this conjunction. Of course, in its most negative version that it also has, an excess of good things like eating or drinking too much can also affect us less positively.

This New Moon, forms exactly at 18º Taurus 02′, and comes accompanied by Venus at about 11º, Uranus at 23º, and Jupiter at 26º. 5 planets in this first Fixed sign, of the Earth element, which relates us to sensuality, beauty, and with our deepest values and sense of security. Taurus and its ruler Venus/Aphrodite, the majestic goddess of Beauty and Seduction inspire us to connect with that part of our psyche. Whether you are a man or woman, the need to seduce, to attract, to connect with others, to feel beautiful or capable of being loved, is a vital part of our being. It nourishes the Ego with an internal sense of value, necessary to traverse life in a positive and above all creative way.

Ceres forms a trine to all these planets in Taurus, from Capricorn, as if wanting to protect us and remind us of the importance of taking care of our body, of nourishing it correctly, of connecting with it and of course with the Goddess, meaning, Nature. If you were waiting for the moment to change your diet, to learn to cook for yourself and enjoy those everyday moments that include a good meal, this is the best New Moon of the year for that. The fixed signs: Taurus-Leo-Scorpio and Aquarius, are the most called to Restart a healthier and yet no less enjoyable lifestyle. Learning to enjoy a consciously healthy life is part of this package of planets in Taurus. Virgo and Capricorn will benefit from it more than anyone. Also in its most negative aspect, with the addition of Saturn, Nessus, and Neptune in Pisces, we might have more situations with the Water element, like, more floods and intense rains. On the other hand, the Japanese are launching whale fishing once again, which will meet with much international resistance.

The influence of Uranus in this New Moon speaks of opening ourselves to the new, and above all encouraging us to let life surprise us, leaving behind those self-imposed shackles that keep us faithful to values already obsolete or irrelevant in our current moment. This is also exacerbated by Pluto’s Retrograde that begins on May 2, which will take it to RE-enter Capricorn for the last time, between September 3 and November 18. Once it enters Aquarius, it will not return to Capricorn for about 250 years. Yet this return to the sign of the goat shows the obvious resistance of the old Order fighting to maintain its grip and control over the world.

As Harrison Ford said at the last World Summit on Climate Action: “Everyone, rich or poor, powerful or powerless, will suffer the consequences of the destruction of this planet’s ecosystem, the only home we know and will know, at least for many more centuries. We need Nature to survive!” – Of course, this was directed at those who defend the Old Order, deaf and dumb before the warming of the climate: those who insist on eating whales, deniers of science and climate change, arms dealers and war provocateurs, all those who insist that everything continues the same, despite the damage we do to the planet and ourselves. Especially to those who refuse to let the new generations act and insist on maintaining the grip of power, to all those who refuse to enter the 21st century.

Enjoying life with awareness is enjoying twice as much. Let’s do what we have to do with consciousness and love, it’s not that difficult.