Electric Virgin
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Thirsty earth
This month marked the 50th anniversary of the three-day Woodstock music festival, which transformed a small farm in upstate new York into a city of 400,000 hippies overnight. Although the infamous Uranus/Pluto conjunction in Virgo had separated by then, Woodstock and its rural, eccentric utopia serves as an apt metaphor for this week, as multiple planets in earthy Virgo meet revolutionary Uranus.
On Aug. 29, when Mercury (0:48 am PDT) and the Moon (5:07 pm PDT) enter Virgo, they’ll be joining the Sun, Venus, and Mars – and fully half our planets will occupy the same earthy, discerning, helpful sign. The major story of this week is the unfolding of a series of trine aspects between all those planets in Virgo and Uranus in Taurus, leading up to the Virgo New Moon.
A trine (120 deg.) angle is considered harmonious, because it naturally occurs between planets in signs of the same element – in this case, earth. A trine is an aspect of non-interference; the two planets work together comfortably, even if their essential natures are radically different. And the sign of Virgo and the planet Uranus actually share in common a certain untouchable independence – all of which points to an exceptional week for individual, innovative work.
But with all but two planets now in earth signs, our topsoil will need some enrichment and stimulation to avoid becoming dusty and hard. Enter Jupiter in Sagittarius and Neptune in Pisces. Early August carried an enormous amount of enthusiasm and high-spirited drama, as Leo’s creative spirit trined Jupiter. As those planets have drifted in Virgo, it seems time to get down to business and do something with all those high-flying ideas. The challenge in the coming month, as Virgo planets meet Jupiter in Sagittarius, is to strike a winning balance between big dreams and the careful and practical attention to detail necessary to bring them down to earth.
Not too careful, though, and not entirely practical: the Virgo stampede must eventually confront Neptune in Pisces, its opposite sign. Ask any farmer about the importance of water to his land, and the importance of good irrigation channels, and you’ll glimpse the interdependence of Virgo and Pisces. After several weeks under a fiery Leo sky, Virgo’s fields are thirsty – and Uranian lightning is about to strike.
Nourishing water
Our spirits, so recently raised high, have hit the dry earth a little hard. We’re ready for water, our primordial mother. We gestated in amniotic brine; we weep salty tears when we need comfort. And when our days become consumed with practicalities, stagnant routines, and boredom – without the nourishing liquid of laughing, dreaming, art – we shrivel like thirsty acres of corn.
The greater the astrological momentum toward Virgo, the greater Neptune’s seas will swell in response. “Don’t just get things done, get the right things done,” they whisper. And do them with caring, compassion, and magic, not just logic and manual deftness. Build boats and bridges to better unite with others, to provide safe passage for those in harm’s way. Uplift society with honorable work. Take care of one another. At Woodstock, the crowd of nearly half a million stoned twenty-somethings (many born with Uranus square Neptune) rose to the occasion, holding each other’s hands through bad acid trips, getting each other fed, and frolicking together in the mud when the rains came.
As Virgo planets meet Uranus this week, the message is something like this: Making tiny, incremental changes to your own, tiny plot of land, your office, the way you move through the world on a daily basis – can be revolutionary. To realize the big Leo dreams of early August, you will need practicality, invention, and most importantly, a little help from your friends.
Calendar
Aug. 26 – Venus makes her trine to Uranus (8:37 am PDT), coincidentally, on Women’s (Venus) Equality (Uranus) Day in the U.S. The feminine principles of accommodation, intuition, and receptivity are ascendant, and earthy desires push open the floodgates of change.
Aug. 28 – As Mars trines Uranus on Wednesday (3:51 am PDT), will and action unite with innovation and rebellious zest. Been wanting to launch a new project? This could be an inspired day for it, even if the results prove unpredictable.
Aug. 29 – Mercury enters Virgo, one of its strongest signs (0:48 am PDT), and the Sun trines Uranus the same evening (8:13 pm PDT); harness all your Mercurial skills and tools of magic, and as the Sun’s light leads the way down an unexamined path, use them to build something new.
Aug. 30– As the spectacular New Moon forms on Friday (2:37 am PDT), joined with Venus and Mars and in close aspect to practically every other planet as well – the sky shouts out its message of Virgo integrity, Uranian ingenuity, and Jupiter and Neptune’s dreams of inclusivity. (More about that in my New Moon mailing.)
Aug. 31 – The only element unrepresented in the sky this week is air – the only element more urgently necessary to us than water. Savor the week’s end, as the Moon enters Libra (4:08 pm PDT) and it’s a little little easier to breathe, and socializing is a little more welcome.
Sep. 1 – Sometimes, we get lucky, and find that we want the right things. We’re happy in the job that we do well, that pays a good salary and brings respect. We desire the partner who brings stability and teamwork to our lives instead of drama and angst. We crave the food that’s healthy for us. You may get a taste of that kind of luck this week, as Venus makes a trine aspect to Saturn (11:48 am PDT). It’s a quick transit, so pay attention or you might miss it. Enjoy the calm and sense of purpose that comes when your desires align with the part of you that has your best interests at heart.
© 2019 by April Elliott Kent
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