TRANSCRIPT Ep. 219 | Mercury Enters Aquarius: Eureka!

TRANSCRIPT Ep. 219 (1.29.24)
Mercury Enters Aquarius: Eureka!

Hello Invisible Friend, April here, and the date today is January 29th, 2024. Welcome to Episode 219 of the Big Sky Astrology Podcast. This week, Mars trine Uranus unites perspiration with inspiration; Mercury aspects imaginative Neptune and enters Aquarius; a Scorpio Last Quarter Moon plays bouncer for the growing Aquarius party; and I answer a listener question about the Part of Fortune.

Mars trine Uranus (Jan. 29, 2024, 3:41 pm PST)

The week begins with Mars in Capricorn making a trine aspect to Uranus on January 29 at 3:41 pm Pacific Time at 19º05’ Capricorn and Taurus. Last week we saw Mars connecting with Mercury, and giving us a way to put our ideas – Mercury – into action, and then we saw Mars making a square to the lunar node axis and moving us in the direction of our true path. Mars in Capricorn this week finds its strategies and its planning and the platform that we have been building since Mars has been in Capricorn, finally finds a way to move us in a direction that is new and out of our old way of thinking.

Mars in Capricorn likes to have a plan and a strategy and to move from one step to the next. And while that is really good for getting things done, it’s best for getting unsurprising things done. When Mars comes together with Uranus, there’s an opportunity to do something new, to move in a new direction, and for it to work out really well, for it to actually be a kind of a reward for all of that systematic Mars in Capricorn work that we’ve been doing.

The Sabian symbol for Mars is 20 Capricorn, Hidden choir singing. And the Sabian symbol for Uranus is 20 Taurus, Wind, clouds, and haste. That’s something we’ve been seeing quite a lot over the last few weeks, as Uranus has been close to this degree. The hidden choir singing degree gives me this picture of many voices raised together, which is what Mars in Capricorn is very good at. It’s a good Mars for leadership, for setting a goal and getting a lot of people to follow you in pursuing that goal.

But the symbol for Uranus, Wind, clouds, and haste, speaks of being in a little bit of a hurry and suddenly wanting to break out in a new direction. So if you’ve been working really diligently, but haven’t been feeling particularly inspired by what you’re doing, that could change this week as Mars connects with Uranus, planet of change and innovation.

Mercury sextile Neptune (Feb. 2, 2024, 2:55 am PST)

On February 2 at 2:55 am Pacific Time, Mercury sextiles Neptune. This is another transit, with Mercury being in Capricorn, that is saying, again, you have done your preparation, you have developed a strategy, you’ve been working hard, but as Mercury connects with Neptune, now the job is to let our minds float a little bit. This is the opportunity to go our own way and to take a detour from the straight and narrow. We had a similar aspect a couple of weeks ago that was giving, I remember, a similar message. And Capricorn is, again, wonderful at getting things done. But Mercury at the sextile is on the Sabian symbol 26 Capricorn, A water sprite, and that is an image of letting ourselves go, frolicking a little bit in the water, and not feeling as if we have to take a very particular path to get to what it is that we want to do. This might mean that something you’ve been thinking about for a while and maybe even planning with other people – suddenly, it becomes something that you need to do on your own.

Now, this is a particularly good aspect for artistic work, creative work, music, dance, and also just generally moving into your imagination. Mercury in Capricorn doesn’t often work in that realm. Mercury in Capricorn is very to-do-list oriented. First, I’ll do this, and then this, and then this. And in the process of doing that, we often have blinders on and we’re closed to other possibilities that might be a little more creative or intuitive, poetic. This sextile is an opportunity to explore those things.

The Sabian symbol for Neptune is 26 Pisces, A New Moon that divides its influences. And what I get from this symbol is that it’s about going our own ways. Or, even within ourselves, going a different way than we are accustomed to going. The New Moon is about new projects, maybe new things that you initiated at the Capricorn New Moon.

Scorpio Last Quarter Moon (Feb. 2, 2024, 3:17 pm PST)

And now for the Moon Report. It begins with the Last Quarter Moon in Scorpio on February 2 at 3:17 pm Pacific Time, Groundhog Day. It’s at 13º35’ Scorpio with the Sun on 13º35’ Aquarius. There is a T-square in this Last Quarter Moon chart. The Moon is square the Sun, as it always is at a last quarter, and they are both square Jupiter and Uranus.

Jupiter and Uranus are a little distance apart. They’re moving towards a conjunction that will happen in April, but right now they’re still a pretty good distance. But the Sun and the Moon, by degree, are kind of between the degrees of Jupiter and Uranus, so we’re getting them all mixed up in here.

The Sun is in Aquarius, a sign of social connections. But these social connections can go awry a little bit if we don’t exercise good judgment about who we let into our inner circles. The Scorpio Last Quarter Moon lets us look back, review past occasions when our judgment might not have been completely the best about people, so that we can move through this Aquarius season, and it’s moving into quite a dramatically Aquarian season, allying ourselves with the right people.

The Sabian symbol for the Moon is 14 Scorpio, Telephone linemen at work, which always brings to mind that beautiful old Glenn Campbell song, Wichita Lineman. And this is the very picture of high, lonesome work that is necessary in making groups and organizations function.

The Sun is on 14 Aquarius, a train entering a tunnel. Whenever I see trains in the Sabian symbols, I think of them as representing the collective, how we are all moving together in the same direction. And this train entering the tunnel signifies deep focus.

This is the Last Quarter Moon in a Lunar Phase Family Cycle that began on November 4, 2021 with a New Moon at 12º40’ Scorpio. That New Moon was opposed Uranus and square Saturn. It was during that year that we had a series of Saturn Uranus aspects, and this was a New Moon that was tightly connected with that square. So this New Moon initiated a three year story of the tension between Saturn, which makes rules, and Uranus, which breaks them.

We’ve been working on that ever since, through this Lunar Phase Family Cycle. The First Quarter in the cycle was on August 5, 2022. That is when something needed to happen, some kind of action needed to be taken that was connected to that New Moon in Scorpio in 2021. Then the Full Moon was on May 5, 2023, when we began to see pretty clearly what we had initiated at that New Moon, and now it’s the Last Quarter in the cycle, and this is the time of looking back, and saying, how has this gone, the thing that I planted at that November 4, 2021 New Moon in Scorpio. And you think about where that point, 12º40’ Scorpio, lands in your birth chart, what house? And it tells you perhaps the nature of what was initiated at that time, whether consciously or unconsciously. You began to see it more clearly last May at the Full Moon. But now this Last Quarter says, hmm, how has this worked out? How could I have done things differently? And how might I do things differently for the coming nine months as we empty out this lunar phase family cycle to try to bring this to fruition?

Void-of-Course Moon Periods

Let’s look at the Void-of-Course Moon periods for this week. On January 29th, the Moon in Virgo opposes Neptune at 3:20 pm Pacific Time. It’s Void of Course for a pretty long time, 8 3/4 hours, before it enters Libra on January 30 at 4 minutes past midnight Pacific Time.

An opposition aspect brings awareness. In this case, it is the awareness that balance is needed in our lives between logic, symbolized by Virgo, and intuition, symbolized by Neptune and Pisces. And also balance between practicality, and leaps of faith. This is a nice long Void-of-Course Moon period, and we like the Void-of-Course Moon periods for reviewing and letting go of old patterns that are not working well, and hopefully initiating new ones.

So, the habits to get rid of at this particular opposition have to do with falling too heavily on either side. The logic side, or the intuition side, the practicality, or the leaps of faith side. It’s about finding a better balance of that in your life.

On February 1st, the Moon in Libra squares Mercury in Capricorn at 1:03 a. m. Pacific Time. It’s Void of Course for about eleven and a half hours. We have some pretty long Void of Course periods this week. Then it enters Scorpio at 12:37 pm Pacific Time. Where we see a square, we have conflict. And the conflict here has something to do with how consideration toward others, represented by the Moon in Libra, and how we might always put other people first, that can lead us into vacillation where we can’t really decide what to do at any given moment, because we’re guided by external influences rather than something true and unchanging in ourselves.

There’s a conflict between these noble Libra characteristics and Mercury in Capricorn, which has the drive to complete a task and can sometimes approach that in a way that is a little bit harsh with other people. So this 11 ½-hour Void-of-Course Moon period begins with us asking, Am I doing too much of one of these or the other? Am I paying too much attention to what other people want and not enough to moving in the direction that is true for me? Or conversely, am I being a little too harsh and too determined to do things on my own timetable, in my own way, and sometimes at the expense of getting along with others and respecting what they want?

And on February 3, the Moon in Scorpio sextiles Mercury in Capricorn at 7:24 pm Pacific Time. It’s Void-of-Course for a little over three hours. And then enters Sagittarius at 10:28 pm Pacific Time. The sextile is an opportunity aspect. And the opportunity during this Void-of-Course period is to use that Moon in Libra that we just had square, Mercury in Capricorn. Scorpio brings that to a much more decisive place. And examining that and seeing if there is a way, now that you feel a little more clear about what you want, how that can help you in setting goals and completing some tasks, which is represented by the Mercury in Capricorn.

There’s also an opportunity because it’s the Moon with Mercury, that our deep intuition and insights and ability to see deeply into others can also be put to use in the way we communicate with others, as represented by Mercury in Capricorn.

Mercury enters Aquarius (Feb. 4, 2024, 9:10 pm PST)

Mercury enters Aquarius on February 4 at 9:10 pm Pacific Time. It’ll be in Aquarius through February 22nd. Aquarius is one of Mercury’s favorite signs. In some modern texts, you will see Mercury labeled as being in its exaltation in Aquarius. That’s actually how I learned it when I was coming up. And this is because Mercury, being connected with thinking, thought processes, cognition, is particularly clear and brilliant in the sign of Aquarius. It is a sign of eureka connections, inventive ideas, of thinking outside the box.

Mercury is going to be a little bit of a scout planet here. The Sun and Pluto are already in Aquarius, but now they’re being joined by Mercury, and then we will have Venus and Mars in the coming weeks. So Mercury moving into Aquarius is getting the lay of the land, is looking around, is building connections, is putting meetings on its schedule. Where we can, as this energy builds, so many planets going into Aquarius, Mercury is the one that is setting the stage and collecting the resources and ideas and connections to help us do the very most with that.

Look to the houses of your birth chart that have Gemini or Virgo on the cusp and you will see probably during this time that Mercury is in Aquarius, more and more innovative thinking, ideas, and breakthroughs. If, in those areas of your life, you have been stuck with trying to come up with a solution to a problem or an idea that you want to develop, this is going to be a wonderful opportunity to do that kind of brainstorming. And especially, maybe, to get together with others, because Aquarius is a very congenial sign. Get together with others to brainstorm some new ideas.

Listener Question: The Part of Fortune in Synastry

In this week’s listener question, listener Lynn writes: Hi April, my question has to do with the Part of Fortune. My spouse and I share the same degree of Part of Fortune, 23 degrees 15 minutes Sagittarius in the 4th house for me, 23 degrees 53 minutes Sagittarius in the 8th house for him. I find this fascinating, since it’s not actually a placement but a calculation.

So what are the odds? We have what I would consider a challenging synastry chart, which holds true in real life, but sharing the Part of Fortune makes me think that’s the reason we have made it work.”

April: Now, I’m just going to interrupt Lynn’s email for one second here to explain to those who might not know what we mean by the term Synastry. Synastry is just an astrological technique by which we take a look at the planets in one person’s chart and look at the influence they have In another person’s chart. And now back to Lynn.

Lynn: There is precious little good information I found on the internet about Part of Fortune placements in synastry charts. And one of my all-time favorite books, Parker’s Astrology by Julia and Derek Parker, doesn’t touch on it at all. Can you give us any enlightenment on the Part of Fortune, such as what exactly it means and how it’s calculated? I’m endlessly fascinated with the way astrology always seems to work out, and this little discovery has made me so excited, but I’ve got no one to share it with who really knows what I’m talking about! Thank you so much for all you do.”

April: Well, thank you, Lynn, for that question. The Part of Fortune seems to be an indispensable part of the traditional astrologer’s toolbox, along with the Part of Spirit. And although the Part of Fortune was always drawn in the charts that I got when I was first starting out in astrology – and the symbol for the Part of Fortune, if you’re looking for it in your own chart, is a circle with an X in the middle – I have to admit, I really haven’t worked with it all that much over the years. That said, the year that my secondary progressed Sun made a conjunction with my Part of Fortune in the House of Career, absolutely a breakthrough year for me professionally. So I do believe it can be a powerful and important point in the chart.

Before we get to the Synastry question, let me just run down the basics of what the Part of Fortune is. It is one of the Arabian Lots, also known as Arabic Parts, which are, as you say, calculated points in the chart, not physical bodies. These sensitive points are determined by mathematical formulas involving the positions of planets and houses, in some cases, and other factors in a birth chart.

Each Arabian lot is associated with specific life themes, such as love, career, or health. Common examples are the Part of Fortune, and the Part of Spirit, as well as the Part of Love. And as an aside, my own Part of Love is in an almost exact conjunction with the Sun in my husband’s birth chart. And his Part of Fortune is in a conjunction with my Ascendant. So, I think you’re onto something here, Lynn.

Anyway, the Part of Fortune is derived from arguably the major three points in the birth chart. These days, they’re referred to as the big three. The Sun, Moon, and Ascendant in an individual’s birth chart. It’s the symbol of your potential for success, happiness, and well-being.

The exact formula varies a little bit in different astrological traditions. The most important difference being that the formulas are different depending on whether you were born during the day or at night. So think of the Part of Fortune as an indicator of personal fulfillment and prosperity. Its placement by house and sign influences the areas of life where you might experience good fortune and opportunities.

Even though it’s not a planet, the Part of Fortune is considered a sensitive point that adds depth to an astrological analysis, and provides insights about our path to fulfillment and joy. In my own book, The Essential Guide to Practical Astrology, I do cover the Arabic parts very briefly in Chapter 15. And there, I include the method for calculating the Part of Fortune and a few of the other Arabic parts or lots, such as the Part of Love and the Part of Marriage. But there are Arabic parts for almost everything. It’s really amazing. In the show description, I’ll see if I can find a link to a long list of these, along with the formulas.

So, if you have planets or angles in your chart that are in a close aspect to the Part of Fortune, the planet that rules its sign tells a lot about your calling and talents. And its aspects will very often show how easy or difficult it will be for you to access those and do something with them.

And the sign and the house placement of the Part of Fortune describes how and in which areas of life you are likely to find success. You and your husband having your Parts of Fortune in the same sign and so close together by degree means that important transits will affect this point for you at the same time as it does your husband, and often brings some kind of good success for both of you.

You might have this point in different houses, but there actually is quite a bit of sympathy between the fourth house where you have it, and the eighth house where he has it. These are both houses of close bonding, of deep emotion and sensitivity and trust. Transits or progressions that connect with your Part of Fortune in the 4th house might bring welcome breakthroughs related to your home, your actual house you live in, or your family.

Your husband’s 8th house Part of Fortune could bring some kind of financial fortune, perhaps related to investments or inheritance, or just having married someone awesome and supportive.

Lynne, I hope that that helps. I don’t want to pretend that I’ve done some great study of this in synastry, but I think now that you mention it, it is a really interesting avenue to explore for future research.

I do think the Arabic parts in general can be really useful, especially when it comes to things like secondary progressions and transits.

And if you, Invisible Friend, have a question you’d like me to answer on a future episode, just leave a message of one minute or less at SpeakPipe.com/bigskyastrologypodcast or email me at April (at) BigSkyAstrology.com and put “podcast question” in the subject line.

Donor Thanks

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That is it for this episode. Join me again bright and early next Monday, and until then, keep your feet on the ground and your eyes on the stars!