The Censer
I’ve heard many stories of sadness over the last week. A colleague from the past, on the verge of homelessness; a friend hitting a pothole on the long journey of recovery from grief; a client remembering a series of deaths and losses. Myself, I was in bed recovering from a minor but tiring malady, resting and healing.
It’s all been leading up to this week’s Pisces Full Moon/Lunar Eclipse (Sep. 17, 2024, 7:34 pm PDT) at 25º40’ Pisces. It’s the first eclipse in this sign since Feb. 26, 2017, and the first in a new cycle of eclipses beginning in Virgo/Pisces (through Feb. 2027). My experience is that an eclipse in a new sign after a long absence of eclipses in that sign, makes itself felt strongly – whether or not it’s making any particular aspects in your birth chart. And this eclipse finds the Moon in a close conjunction, and the Sun in an opposition to Neptune in Pisces (exact on Sep. 20, 2024, 5:17 pm PDT). Any eclipse brings crisis, moments of change; this one asks: Where are we sad, longing, trying to heal, struggling to forgive old wrongs?
Neptune represents our fathomless depths, the sadness that never really goes away, an aching to return to the old ways, and the haunting awareness that we don’t really know what happens after we’re gone. On one hand, we have to be willing to plunge deep within and look at all these things. But on the other side of this aspect is the Sun – the beacon lighting the way out of the abyss, through love, fun and games, joyful creative expression, and sharing our stories.
The Sun’s degree at this eclipse is on the Sabian symbol 26 Virgo: A boy with a censer. In my Catholic youth, the censer was carried only at high mass, filling the church with the strong smell of frankincense, associated with purification, spirituality, and connection to higher realms. That’s a vision for this eclipse: it’s time to let go, but first comes purification, releasing the pain of loss, worry, grief. Carry the censer; fill your home with the healing smoke. Make it an offering in the high mass of the soul.
The Orangutan in the Room
It’s been many years since I held a day job, but I have no trouble remembering what I disliked about it. As a secretary for a large government agency, every day had a crushing sameness about it.
This week, Mercury opposes Saturn (Sep. 18, 2024, 1:50 am PDT, 15º15’ Virgo-Pisces) from the Sabian symbol 16 Virgo, An orangutan. That’s one arresting, attention-getting animal. We can’t turn away from him. Mercury in Virgo can definitely be a sign that gets us lost in details and losing sight of the big picture. And sometimes, we need to look beyond Saturn’s strict rules about how things should be done, and acknowledge the orangutan in the room.
There’s nothing wrong with being the person who works away each day bringing order, setting up systems, and making things run smoothly behind the scenes. But it’s a lot easier to escape tedium and find more satisfaction if you feel that you’re inviting something special and a little bit wild into your days.
Falling into Place
The Sun’s Virgo season shines brightly on qualities like service, practicality, and efficiency. It’s the season to review the systems, habits, and routines that we’ve put in place to make life work smoothly and efficiently. And when the Sun in Virgo trines Uranus (Sep. 19, 2024, 7:04 am PDT), we might do well to realize that some of our routines are outdated, and that however diligently they’ve been refined over the years, they might benefit from freshening up. So for a couple of days this week, let’s attack that particular “to do” list. Changes will fall into place more smoothly now than at other times, and feel new and refreshing once they’re done.
True Power
If you’d asked me when I was young whether I’d rather be rich or famous, fame would have won handily. Today, I’d lean the other way.
But actually, an extreme amount of either wealth or fame seems to come with its share of problems. It seems that our happiest, lightest, most joyful characteristics risk being dimmed or obliterated in either situation.
This week, as the Sun trines formidable Pluto (Sep. 21, 2024, 11:12 pm PDT), true power comes from neither wealth nor fame, both of which make us vulnerable to the whims or avarice of others. Rather, the Sun trine Pluto illuminates the power that comes from joyfully embracing our authentic selves. That’s power that can’t be taken away.
In the end, this kind of power can’t be given to us. We can become obscenely wealthy and still lose a partner. We can be elected to office or crowned a monarch, yet lack the love and respect of our constituents. Pluto reminds that real power can only come from within.
Lay Down the Burden
This week brings one of the year’s seasonal turning points as the Sun enters Libra (Sep. 22, 2024, 5:44 am PDT, through Oct. 22). Traditionally, the Sun is considered weak – in its “fall” – in Libra. This only means that the Sun’s work – the realization of one’s individual genius and soul power – can be difficult to manage in a sign that’s specifically designed for partnership.
On the other hand, we learn things about ourselves in relationships that can’t be learned any other way. Whether it’s a romantic partner, a creative collaborator, or a dear friend, we’ll feel most alive sharing the shortening days with a companion. If we’re alone – and many are just now –it’s a time to make a conscious effort to reach out to others in whatever way we can. In Libra’s season, our personal Sun shines brightest in the company of others.
There is a soothing, romantic quality to Libra’s season; it’s a relief to lay down the burden of the Sun’s zealous self-discovery. Even the world itself seems lovelier. When the Sun is in this sign in Northern Hemisphere’s autumn, its light rests warmly, gently, on the fall trees changing color, the straw bales in the field, the newly-picked apples in bushel baskets. It’s a time of magic, when the softness of the light makes strangers more attractive, and the crispness of the air makes us long for the warmth of another’s arms.
Getting What We Want
Last week, Venus’ trine aspect to Jupiter promised that a gift could be headed our way. Venus square Pluto (Sep. 22, 2024, 2:14 pm PDT) doesn’t negate that, but it does suggest that having gotten what we wanted, we might find that we don’t really want what we’ve got.
A connection between Venus and Pluto can be beautiful and soulful, symbolizing depth of feeling, authentic love, and affection for things or people that are difficult to love. But it’s a combination that has to be treated consciously and carefully, because it’s a fine line that separates deep love and painful obsession. Pluto has a way of sucking up all the oxygen in the room with its focus and desire for control. That’s not for everyone, and not for Venus in Libra, an air sign that appreciates some breathing room.
This is a fast transit, with an influence of just a few days. But take this time to examine whether something you’re feeling is true love or a need for control.
A Wild Garden
Venus enters Scorpio (Sep. 22, 2024, 7:36 pm PDT, through Oct. 17) within hours of her square to Pluto, and brings similar messages. Venus in Scorpio dislikes artifice and resists all efforts to control her. She asks us to find beauty in what we really are and what we’re authentically drawn to.
That’s sometimes been a challenge for my family of formidable women. In defiance of societal ideals of womanhood, we’ve never been dainty; we’re fat and fierce and loud, and when we’re together we laugh so hard that we can’t breathe. Each of us married long-suffering men who had spent at least one major holiday with the family and knew exactly what they were getting into.
Back in late 1988, Scorpio comedian Rosanne Barr premiered a sitcom featuring a TV family that remains, to this day, the only one I’ve seen that really resembled my own. (The exterior of the Conner home was literally photographed in my home town.) Forget the real-life Roseanne and the baggage and controversy that come with her; I loved Roseanne Conner, her funny, sassy, bossy, opinionated, and irreverent creation. I recognized that woman, her children, her husband, her sofa. It wasn’t a pretty show, but it looked real to me. I liked that Roseanne Conner wasn’t defined by her size. I liked that she never apologized for taking up too much space in the world.
As Venus transits Scorpio for the next few weeks, take pleasure in your authenticity. Remember that your life is not a democracy – it’s a wild, uncensored, technicolor garden. Grow what you like there, and love who you are.
Writing and images © 2017-24 by April Elliott Kent
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