Into the Wild and Woolly
Dates and times are given for U.S. Pacific Time zone.
At length and with confidence
The Sun enters Aquarius this week (Jan. 19, 2021, 12:40 pm), leading the conga line of fast-moving planets that will join Jupiter and Saturn in that sign over the coming month. Popular astrology tends to paint Aquarius as a flake or a weirdo. But something much closer to the truth can be found by combining Aquarius’ element, air (intellect and communication), and its modality, which is fixed. Put them together and you get a profile of someone with very fixed ideas. My old astrology books ascribed to Aquarius the motto, “I know.”
Aquarius can be revolutionary, or at the very least unorthodox; but that’s not the same thing as being flaky. Those whom I know well who have a strong Aquarius signature in their charts are steadfast; they don’t tend to suffer from self-doubt, and they don’t consider their convictions to be opinions, but rather objective truth.
Aquarius is the sign of the Moon in the United States chart, and we do tend to be an opinionated people. A relative of my New Zealand-born husband marveled that you could pull any American off the street, put them in front of a camera or microphone, and they’d answer questions about matters of the day at length and with confidence. While that’s a generalization, it does get to something true about our national character. Our confidence in what we know is a quality that has allowed us to achieve real breakthroughs and innovations, even if it has sometimes stood in the way of collaboration and even greater progress.
Whether or not you’re in the United States, you might wonder about the astrology of this week’s presidential inauguration. I’m not one for fear-mongering, but astrologically, there is reason for concern. As the ceremony takes place, Mars (god of war) and unpredictable, rebellious Uranus are just hours from making an exact conjunction in Taurus. This combination – further exacerbated by Mars’ approaching square to Jupiter (exact on Jan. 22, 2021, 1:49 pm PST) – doesn’t ensure explosive violence, but given recent events it can’t be ruled out, either.
Mars and Uranus are joined by the First Quarter Moon at 1.02 Taurus (Jan. 20, 2021, 1:01 pm PST), on the Sabian symbol, An electrical storm. The Sun, on 2 Aquarius, An unexpected thunderstorm, is conjoined Jupiter and Saturn, and all three planets are square Mars and Uranus. This is an unequivocally dangerous constellation of symbols on a day of great national importance and enormous tension. Think of an angry bull that’s been startled by lightning and breaks out of its pen, trampling those in its path.
But there’s little to be gained from pointing out challenging forces without offering a creative way to work with them. On an individual level, it’s imperative to get grounded. Get your hands and your feet in the soil. Plant something slow-growing. Count to ten before reacting to provocation. And it should go without saying that this is not the week to pick fights.
The week is under a cloud of tiredness and overwhelm, as the Sun approaches its annual conjunction to Saturn (Jan. 23, 2021, 7:01 pm). This is an aspect that, in the days before it is exact, can feel exhausting and dispiriting; we may feel blocked and overburdened. In particular, those with a strong Leo (ruled by the Sun) influence in their charts can find it difficult to summon joy, positivism, or creativity as this aspect approaches. But fortunately for everyone, there is usually a marked sense of relief, like the Sun breaking through clouds, within a day after the exact aspect.
The conjunction is on the Sabian symbol 5 Aquarius, A council of ancestors. I have a strong, sentimental fondness for this symbol; it evokes images of my own wise elders who’ve left this world and whom I can on some level “consult” for guidance. I take strength from them.
But if we’re honest, we have to acknowledge that not all of our ancestors were wise or kind. What we grapple with when this symbol is present, especially with Saturn, is the legacy of our ancestors, in all its complexity – and we are part of that legacy, the part of them that lives on. Saturn is sometimes referred to as a karmic planet, and at this conjunction we reap what has been sown – not only by us, but by those who came before.
Writing and collages © 2021 April Elliott Kent
Jen and I explore all the week’s highlights in our latest podcast episode:
Episode 65 | Mars, Uranus, and Revisiting the U.S. Pluto Return
