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Astrology for Oct. 10-16, 2022: In Another’s Eyes

In Another’s Eyes

Dates and times are given for U.S. Pacific Time zone.

A Second Opinion

Born without so much as an asteroid in Libra, its other-oriented impulses have always mystified me. I craved companionship, but that extended only to the boundary of my creative efforts. In these, I worked alone, created what I pleased, then forwarded the output to my Virgo planets for endless and merciless refinement. Others were free to enjoy the results or not, as they wished.

Then, at the age of fifty, my progressed Sun entered Libra. Suddenly, I became interested in actively trying to entice the marketplace with my offerings. My business has improved, but in one basic tenant of marketing I’ve failed miserably – and that’s in asking for feedback about what I’m offering. It goes against everything in my Leo nature. Picture me clapping my hands over my ears and humming loudly to keep out the voices of disapproval or dissent.

But if we’re going to make the very most of ourselves, it’s very helpful to get an outside perspective. This week, Mercury shifts from Virgo, sign of never-quite-satisfied perfectionism, and into Libra (Oct. 10, 2022, 4:51 pm PDT through Oct. 29), and it feels like the right season to ask for feedback. The quality of our work or even our intention in creating it is no longer our only consideration. Libra’s question is, will others find it helpful, beautiful, uplifting, meaningful? This requires that we not only ask others their opinions, but also let ourselves be influenced by them.

The Wind at Your Back

Around the time of the May 15 Lunar Eclipse, when the Sun and Moon were square Saturn, something broke loose in many of us. We realized something had to change in our relationships, in business or our life path, even if it was going to mean a lot more work. This week, as the Sun trines Saturn (Oct. 11, 2022, 6:06 pm PDT, 18º41′ Libra/Aquarius), that work begins to pay off. Perhaps someone in a position of influence offers praise, or you receive an offer to play on a much larger stage. There will still be plenty of hard work involved – that’s Saturn for you! – but that’s a lot easier to bear, now that you feel the wind is at your back.

Fast-Talkers

In my early twenties, I had a very bad boyfriend. He was a charming, sweet-talking thief who, with my willing participation, came close to ruining my life. I behaved in ways I still don’t understand, except to say I was under a kind of spell; appropriately, the relationship began under a Neptune aspect to my natal Mars. It took me about four addled years to pull loose from our tangled, toxic dance.

If you’ve ever succumbed to a charming fast-talker, even as your intuition was thrashing madly like a fish trying to detach itself from a hook, you have some idea of the potential dangers of Mars in Gemini square Neptune in Pisces (Oct. 11, 2022, 10:47 pm PDT, 23º21 Gemini/Pisces). Whether it’s buying a car, filing our taxes, or negotiating to buy a house, we have to learn to defend ourselves in a fast-talking world. This means sharpening our minds, learning to trust our intuition, and putting on the brakes if we need time to think things through. And it means staying vigilant for at least six months: Mars makes two more squares to Neptune, on Nov. 19 and Mar. 14, 2023.

Transmuting the Light

We’ve just passed through an especially frustrating Mercury retrograde period. It was hard to stay positive as plans fell through, meetings were forgotten, and technology acted up. Now, as Mercury makes the last of three oppositions to Jupiter (Oct. 12, 2022, 00:24 am PDT, 1º40′ Libra/Aries – the other two were on Sep. 2 and 18), it’s on the Sabian Symbol 2 Libra: The light of the sixth race transmuted to the seventh. It’s a somewhat inscrutable symbol, but let’s focus on the immediately accessible vision of transmuting (altering, changing) the light, or spirit, to a higher level.

As Mercury connects with Jupiter, on the Sabian symbol A comedian entertaining a group, we enter a dialogue with hope and good cheer. In what way can we be lighter and optimistic, and more importantly, to bring that light and joy to the world?

The downside of Mercury in Virgo was the tendency for our minds to run in circles of increasing dissatisfaction about our quality and capability. Virgo’s job is to find what isn’t congruent with the whole, to separate the wheat from the chaff. But it’s hard to turn our minds off when they start complaining about what we’ve done wrong. Mercury in Libra is more forgiving, and more so as it connects with Jupiter. Find your light. Be confident in carrying it out into the world. Rest assured that it’s as bright as it needs to be.

The Future in Another’s Eyes

Some relationships exist purely for pleasure. You might enjoy the occasional lunch with a casual acquaintance, wish them a happy birthday, compliment their latest selfie on Instagram. In some special cases, you enjoy sensual escapades together without the desire for anything more serious. Relationships built on pleasure are Venus in its simplest form.

But there are a few times in life when you look into another’s eyes and see the future staring back at you. You realize that you could build something with this person. It might be a band, a business, or a family. But whatever it is, they draw you toward a future you’d never have imagined on your own.

This is what it’s like when Venus in Libra trines Saturn in Aquarius (Oct. 13, 2022, 11:21 pm PDT, 18º39′ Libra/Aquarius), and the personal becomes eternal. There’s a reason Saturn, the planet of commitment, is exalted in Libra, the sign of partnership. Commitment doesn’t preclude pleasure, but in Venus-Saturn relationships it’s no longer the only thing that matters.

Writing and collages © 2017-2022 April Elliott Kent

More about this week’s highlights in the latest episode of my podcast!

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8 comments to " Astrology for Oct. 10-16, 2022: In Another’s Eyes "

  • I think you are doing a great job, and what someone else has or the way they are living may look terrific on the outside but what is going on in their personal lives may not be what you want at all. Money and grand houses aren’t the answer for everyone. I’ve been there and there was a big price to pay emotionally. Not worth it. Onward and upward for all. You find the most wonderful vintage photo’s to post each week, along with your posts.

    • April

      You’re very kind, Judie. And as the old saying goes, we mustn’t judge our insides by someone else’s outsides!

  • Anna

    Re: Mercury Rx in Libra and Virgo, it stationed Rx exactly on my natal Mercury in Libra degree. Virgo is my 12th house and Libra is my first. From late August to present, I’ve found myself repeating: “That’s not what I was asking.”

    I ask my questions, simple, everyday questions that used to work, but it’s like people are imagining a conversation in their heads that I’m not a part of. The answers I get have not had much to do with the info I hoped to get.

    I’m sure it will blow over soon. (sigh)

    • April

      Anna, that’s such a classic description of Mercury retrograde! That happens to a friend of mine all the time, and as she says, “I must be speaking an entirely different language, because nobody gets what I’m saying!” Good luck! 🙂

  • At the risk of you singing ‘La, la la’ while I feedback, I’ll express my appreciation for all the wonderful work you do, April! Your unique combination of stunning collage and astrological insight is always thought-provoking and insightful. I copy the most relevant parts into my digital journal throughout the month to guide me and steer me away from pitfalls.

    I have spent the summer house-sitting and the peek into other people’s lives has shown me that very often the houses there the swankiest on the outside are the most dirty and disorganised on the inside! We can never know the exact conditions that lead to someone else’s ‘success’ and certainly the veneer often belies the truth of what lies beneath, Let’s celebrate and love and live our own lives. Many people may well be envying ours!

    • April

      What a lovely comment, Cherry, and most insightful! You’re quite right. And I’m gratified to hear my work is inspiring to you and helpful! Thank you. 🙂

  • kaye

    this is soo helpful. i was just manipulated by someone with mars in gemini for quite some time and with the current transits coming up (and my neptune rising) i am very hesitant to even hear anything that anyone says. the trauma is very real and i hope i can make it to a place where i can believe someone again, but i feel cheated by the whole experience.

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