New Moon in Capricorn: Fukushima, Gatekeepers, and the Big Responsibility of Thinking For Yourself

Stay on the trail...

Photos: Willow

We open into 2014 with a Plutonic-Mercurial New Moon in Capricorn on January 1.

The Sun and Moon come together in New Moon conjunction at 10 degrees Capricorn at 5:14 a.m. CST, taking us on a trip through the deep, dark, thorny underworld as we start the new year.

This New Moon falls closely conjunct both Mercury (mind, communication, information) and Pluto (hidden, power, poison), indicating that a major theme for the new year involves breaking the hold of mainstream media and its "official sources" in order to get to a clearer understanding of our reality on the planet.

As we start the new year, information (Mercury) is power (Pluto), and we have to take a much closer look at the power dynamics hidden amongst the messages coming to the populace through media and corporate communications. 

With the planet in its current state of ongoing orchestrated collapse, many people are looking to "authority figures" to tell them what to think. A good, old, strong and stern and responsible Daddy Dearest to tell them what to do and what to pay attention to.

And this practice could not be more dangerous to the future of life on this planet.

The problem is, the "authority figures" are playing the game within rotten-to-the-core Pluto in Capricorn hierarchies. The "official sources" are mostly bought and paid for at this point, looking to cover their own asses and protect their own  positions within the rotten power hierarchies. These authority figures are passing bad information around on heavy rotation, looking to further their own interests while manipulating and placating the public. 

This practice is deadly (Pluto), make no bones about it, and nowhere is this more so the case than with the information, analysis, and discourse surrounding the ongoing Fukushima nuclear disaster. 

In Canada, we have a go-to scientist for the masses by the name of David Suzuki. Suzuki travels around Canada and the world via carbon-spewing airplane to paid speaking gigs (usually on climate change) where he pockets up to $40,000 a pop.

You'll see him in a photo to the left (Holger Motzkau 2010, Wikipedia/Wikimedia Commons) accepting his "Right Livelihood Award" in 2009. (barf) In 2004, a poll taken by the state broadcaster here named him the Greatest Living Canadian. (barf again)

I noticed some previously uninterested ears started perking up in late 2013 when Suzuki released information on Fukushima. All of a sudden, with David Suzuki weighing in, people started to take a bit of notice.

Suzuki really got people's attention when he said that we could potentially be facing the evacuation of the West Coast of Canada and the United States due to the radioactive fallout from the Daiichi nuclear reactors at Fukushima, Japan.

The problem there is that we've known what Suzuki was stating - and much more - for almost three years now. He was not producing any new information or analysis (though it may have been news to most of the mainstream public). He was not producing any crucial research of his own - though he has the means and resources to produce it.

Instead, he was using an "old news," sensationalized angle on Fukushima to get the public's attention - and to hold it.

And here we have an illustration of the "gatekeeper" effect. 

A Peaceful and Contented Solstice to You from Willow's Web Astrology

Cactus plant flowers signal a time to draw back in, to relax, to ease your pace.

Photos: Willow

Winter solstice is just ahead in the northern hemisphere, and the daylight hours are getting short. The Sun enters Capricorn on December 21 (11:11 a.m. Central Standard Time), marking the shortest day in the wintry northern hemisphere and the longest day in the summery southern.

In the northern hemisphere, this is a time of year to draw back into ourselves, to relax our pace, and to let go of some of the usual demands on ourselves so that the mysterious dark half of the year can weave its magic.

My cactus plant (inherited from my sweet Sagittarius Grandma, born today) is blooming beautifully now, and we can take our cues from it and from the rest of the natural world.

When the days start to get shorter and the sunlight weaker, the cactus plant takes it as an opportunity to produce its beautiful flowers. The plant draws back into itself for a while, slowing its overall growth, and the gorgeous blooms are a result.

To experience the beauty and mystery of this time of year, rather than the depression and low energy, it's necessary that we regulate our lives according to a slower pace. It's necessary that we ease up on ourselves. Just as the plants and animals are not pushing full speed ahead now, we must check in with our bodies and with how we feel. We must check in with our energy levels, first and foremost, rather than deferring to the never-ending To Do lists of things we "have to" complete.

One of the major problems with the corporate model of living and working, particularly under Pluto transiting Capricorn, is that it does not take into account the natural ebb and flow of energy in biological life forms.

People are put on the clock, on standard schedules year-round, and this sets them up for dysfunction, ill health, anxiety, depression, and a sense of failure if they cannot complete the usual list of tasks in the usual timeframes.

There is very little "letting up" in the current structures according to the cycles of nature.

The standard schedules, the demanding routines, and the lists of action items are relentless, and this is a big part of what puts people's systems off course. They will often then blame themselves for a "lack of productivity," asking why they can't just be "normal," and this increases the bad feelings.

Our Sagittarian Beacons of Light

Your friendly anarchist astro-reporter, Willow, in the cottonwoods

Photo: Willow's Mama

The Sun entered Sagittarius November 21, and we've officially broken the surface of our difficult and disturbing subterranean travels through Scorpio.

This Scorpio season was particularly challenging with the planet that rules challenges, Saturn, in the sign, colouring a seemingly never-ending Mercury retrograde through Scorpio (October 21 - November 10) that kept some of the darkest and most fearful subjects stuck on our minds. We were dealing with all the challenging aspects of the Scorpionic mind: paranoia, depression, dread, darkness, triggering conversations and information, detrimental thinking, intrusive and obsessive thoughts that gave us little rest, worst-fear subjects preying upon us, emotional and psychological difficulty that took us down for a death roll or two.

For those stuck under Saturn's thumb in Scorpio, there were some bleak Mercury retrograde moments, indeed.

To add to the challenge, we experienced Neptune and Chiron stationing direct in tandem (November 13 and November 19), stirring up painful confusion, illusion, over-sensitivity, disappointment, devastation, sadness, free-floating anxiety with no discernible cause, feelings of isolation, psychic overwhelm, exhaustion, disturbed sleep, and a strong desire for escape.

The Chiron in Pisces station was a particularly painful release point - and a time when many souls went on to the afterlife.

November has not been the easiest of months.

But now, layer-by-bleak-and-scary-layer, we re-surface from the subterranean Scorpionic depths.

Mercury completes its final challenge - the last conjunction to Saturn in Scorpio - on November 25 at 7:54 p.m. Central Standard Time. It will take a few days to move out of the reach of this dreaded conjunction to Saturn, but we've officially made it out of the most disturbing mental and emotional depths as we hit Hump Day this week.

In the wee hours of November 27, Mercury leaves its retrograde shadow at 18 Scorpio, clearing old, dreaded subjects from our minds. As we start our days on November 27, our minds are officially in new territory, on the other side of all the retrograde heinousness.

At the very same time as Mercury is moving on, Saturn cracks into its next retrograde shadow (the degrees to which it will return during its next retrograde) at 16 degrees Scorpio.

See that?

We have over half the Saturn transit through Scorpio under our belts now. We're not going back. And we've also completed the entire transit of Saturn through the often-difficult Via Combusta, an area of the zodiac associated with karma, misfortune, and unfortunate events.

Scorpio is a dense, complex, complicated sign. It's the sign most people fear. It's the sign where we hide everything we're scared of, everything we're uncomfortable with, everything left unsaid.

So as Mercury went picking through this sign, back and forth, we were touching on some of the most difficult subjects in existence (including the possibility of the annihilation of much of humanity via the Fukushima nuclear disaster). Not only that, but Saturn held our noses in these subjects until we got a good, old whiff. Until we got a full handle on every dark and disturbing angle, making the unconscious, conscious. We couldn't squirm our way out of any of it - not if we wanted to be fully responsible and on top of our games moving into the second half of Saturn in Scorpio.

Mercury went direct November 10 at 2 degrees Scorpio, exactly trine stationing Neptune in Pisces.

And now, as Mercury in Scorpio conjuncts Saturn for the last time until November 2014, we start to get some perspective on our hard-won mental, emotional, and psychological progress. We start to see the first fruits of our labours, the first bits of gold that come out of our pain.

As the Sun is shining down on us from jovial, humourous, gregarious, and optimistic Sagittarius, have faith that you will come through this. Have faith that relief is up ahead. Because it is.

Our Sagittarian beacons of light are in the window, guiding us home, guiding us to safety:

As stated, Mercury conjuncts Saturn in Scorpio November 25 and then cracks into new territory early on November 27.

Mercury in Scorpio will form a grounding and productive sextile to Venus in Capricorn (which is preparing for its own retrograde) on November 27, as well (8:45 p.m. CST). This Mercury-Venus sextile provides an earthy outlet and release for our hot and over-taxed Third Eyes, coming out of the extended transit of Mercury through intuitive, alchemical Scorpio. It's likely that we will be able to concretely apply the things we've seen and the things we've uncovered to maximum success here. Every last bit of difficult Mercury in Scorpio perspective is useful and usable now and will be through the upcoming Venus retrograde (December 21, 2013 to January 30, 2014), particularly for advancement in partnership, both personal and professional.

Mercury forms another nice, easy, flowing aspect on November 28 - a trine to Jupiter in Cancer (1:23 a.m.). This trine is some healing balm for our shredded psyches, as the raw Scorpionic intelligence finds a caring home and an accepting place. The meaning and reason for our deep, dark, painful examinations during Mercury's retrograde may become more fully known to us here, and we may have renewed faith that we are on the right track.

The Sagittarius Sun trines Uranus in Aries on November 30 (12:25 p.m.), providing another day of flowing energetics. This trine shines a light on our progress into the new astrological era, providing lightning-flash insight and renewed faith on our weird and wild path forward.

The Moon enters Scorpio November 29 (10:03 p.m. CST) in its Balsamic phase, indicating one last emotional/psychological hurdle as we close out the month of November.

This Dark of the Moon phase in Scorpio closes out a difficult lunar cycle that began November 3 with the New Moon Scorpio eclipse conjunct Saturn. That New Moon eclipse took some of us into very difficult emotional and psychological territory, and we've been kept there ever since.

This Dark of the Moon phase (November 29 - December 2) can stir up some difficult emotions related to this lunar cycle and to any associated events that occurred.

But we are folding it all into the alchemical soup, preparing for new emotional territory. Allow yourself to feel it, but don't get stuck. We're moving on.

The Sagittarius New Moon occurs December 2 at 10 degrees (6:22 p.m. CST), releasing us from the last grips of this very difficult Scorpio season.

Mercury in Scorpio will form another grounding and productive sextile to Mars in Virgo on December 3 (10:35 a.m.), indicating a time when we can practically apply our new intelligence to great effect. An awareness of the details right down to the X-Ray examination level assists us greatly here as we close out the Mercury transit of Scorpio.

Mercury leaves Scorpio (finally) for Sagittarius December 4 at 8:42 p.m., and a cheer goes up across the land!

The aspects as we close out November and begin December are highly supportive to our zippy little messenger planet Mercury (Mercury-Venus sextile, Mercury-Jupiter trine, Mercury-Mars sextile), which has been under such stress over the past six weeks. These aspects indicate that we now have mental support in areas where we have felt isolated, shredded, and under pressure over the past month.

The most debilitating weight of the world is being lifted off our shoulders and off our minds. Allow this process to do its work, layer-by-layer, and have faith that an acute dark period is now behind us.

Note to WWA Patrons

Willow's Web Astrology patrons are supporters of this site. They receive full articles that are available only as excerpts on the main blog. They also have access to a few other extras throughout the year.

Patronage payments are recurring, meaning they will automatically come out of your PayPal account either once per month or once per year, depending on the option chosen.

If you do not want to make recurring payments, you must cancel those payments from your PayPal account.

Otherwise, the amount will come out on the specified date(s).

For more information: Willow's Web Astrology Patrons

Neptune and Chiron Station Direct Trine Mercury in Scorpio: Cutting Through End-of-Era Backwash

Both Neptune and Chiron station direct in Pisces over the next ten days - Neptune at 2 degrees Pisces on November 13, Chiron at 9 degrees Pisces on November 19.

The wounding Piscean era themes are nip, nip, nipping at us through the end of November, and we're going to have to stay awake and alert in order to navigate our way through.

This is tricky because with these stations, things are a little sleepy, a little dopey, and a little...any of the other applicable Seven Dwarves.

The Moon enters Pisces tonight (8:36 p.m. CST) until early morning Wednesday, and this can exacerbate the effects of these stations.

I would sum the vibe of the next ten days up like this:

"Why bother changing into pajamas? I'm just going to have to get dressed again when I wake up in the morning."

These stations can have the effect of softening sharp edges, putting a warm glow over the proceedings. But things can also be slipped by us through these stations, and we can find ourselves doing things or allowing things that are not in our usual characters. You can read about some common Neptune stationing effects here: Neptune Stations Direct and Brings the Foggy, the Floaty, the Wispy, and the Surreal

Neptune went retrograde at 5 degrees Pisces on June 7, 2013. It has now completed that retrograde period and stations direct at 2 degrees Pisces November 13. This is an article from that retrograde station. The themes are kicked up again as Neptune and Chiron station direct in tandem:

"Hollow-gut disappointments hang around us like stale fumes. End-of-era love relationships are a confusing, disorienting mess. The idea that our dreams are not special, that we're not special under egalitarian Aquarius, can erode us at the heart. The discrepancy between where we hoped we'd be at this point versus where we really are is staggering at times - both personally and on a broader societal or collective level.

Anyone aware of the circumstances of humanity on Planet Earth at this time will find them humbling, to say the least...

Some lingering depression, disappointment, disillusionment, despondency, or a sense of utter futility about carrying on from here can be expected for the next couple weeks...There's an unfulfilled sadness in the air, in the collective psyche, so watch to make sure you or your loved ones don't tip too far into the psychic bleak.

The new guy wasn't who you hoped he was. The new job that seemed so interesting turned out to be more of the same. The daily grind seems increasingly dull, painful, pointless, hopeless. Reaching for the bottle, for the bong, for junk food, or for the credit card are all possibilities to dull the pain, to desensitize.

This is standard end-of-era backwash, however. More end-of-Pisces clearing. Fool me once, shame on you, Neptune. Fool me twice, shame on me.

Keep moving, keep flowing, and keep laughing at the insanity of the situations with which we are faced in this foul year of our Lord two thousand and thirteen.

It's the sensitives, the creatives, the Piscean/Neptunians who hold the true weight of where we are right now. They're the ones holding the energy of Pisces, the energy of the spiritual whole, where every last detail matters and nothing can be conveniently amputated or ignored without problematic future repercussions. They're the ones potentially being crushed under the cruelty, the inhumanity, and the dysfunction of the current scenes. Yes, it's that serious.

But it's also funny.

Isn't it?

To be set up with these seemingly impossible clusterfuck scenarios during our lifetimes on Planet Earth?

It didn't start with us, and it doesn't end with us.

But we do have a prime and shining opportunity to direct things now.

Neptune stationing, like prominent Neptune in the natal chart, can create a sort of stoner effect on even the most sober among us. Air-headed and flaky. Forgetful. Dreamy. Wistful. Pie-in-sky. Avoiding. Self-pitying. Indulgent. La La Land-living.

Stay on track and stay focused on your own newly burgeoning Aquarian-era ideals, despite the Neptunian fog tempting us to go down maudlin back alleys or to take diversionary, wishful-thinking detours. We have plenty of assistance in keeping our feet on the ground with the Neptune trine to concrete and steady Saturn in Scorpio. Focus on dealing successfully with the full reality in front of you, and the rest will take care of itself."

Recall that we're moving through some tough transits, aspects, and dynamics this November, but also recall that we're tougher.

Do whatever you can to keep your spirits up. Keyword: buoyancy

Mercury, now direct at 2 degrees Scorpio, is exactly trine stationing Neptune in Pisces, and at the very least, we are assisted with whip-smart intuition, X-Ray vision, and whispers from the otherworldly guides in order to penetrate the potentially painful dynamics.

Maintain your black sense of humour about the current conditions, speak up when you need to about the things that are oppressing you, and, above all, just keep going.

The Seahags

To ease our suffering minds, here's a little homegrown flavour, The Seahags. "On the Rock Where Moses Stood" and "Barefeet" are particular gems!

Suicide Risk Alert Through December 2

Please Note: This alert is not meant to scare anyone. It does not mean people will be randomly committing suicide. It means that for people already at risk of suicide, this month is potentially very difficult.

We're moving through a time period when concentrated, complex, and multi-layered problems are surfacing from the depths. These problems often have no immediate solutions, and this can drive people to thoughts of suicide or to actual suicide attempts.

There are times when the universe heaps too much upon us, and this is one of those times.

As Mercury (the mind) stations direct November 10 in the sign of death (Scorpio), people are under a great deal of mental, emotional, psychological, and psychic pressure, and it may become impossible for them to see beyond their problems.

This Mercury station coincides with a very emotionally and psychically heavy day for the collective - Remembrance Day in Canada and Veterans Day in the United States November 11. This is a time when the collective psyche is drawing up memories and realizations of mass death, war, pain, destruction, and unresolved trauma related to those things.

This exacerbates the difficulty for individuals, as they also have this heavy collective layer sitting on them at this time.

There is a great deal of collective denial at this time about the true state of things on the planet. This collective denial is always difficult for Scorpionic/Plutonic types who often do not have the luxury of turning a blind eye. The intense cognitive dissonance in the collective at this time can also break individual psyches down.

Currently, we are under the influence of multiple difficult transits and aspects:

We're opening out of a very challenging Scorpio New Moon eclipse, conjunct dreaded Saturn, on November 3, which brought many underlying issues to the surface. We don't fully come out from under the weight of these issues until the Sagittarius New Moon on December 2, just before Mercury leaves Scorpio for Sagittarius December 4.

The fourth Uranus in Aries - Pluto in Capricorn square is just past exact (Nov. 1).

We have a stellium of planets (Mercury, Sun, Saturn, along with the North Node of the Moon) in Scorpio, a sign associated with deep trauma, concentrated fear, and emotional and psychological hell.

Saturn is moving through an area of Scorpio in one pass, indicating a time of potentially intense challenge when we can be pushed out of our comfort zones in a big way, required to do heavy excavation in our lives related to multiple trigger subjects.

As stated, messenger planet Mercury is keeping all this difficulty on our minds as it slows to a stop in the zodiac November 10. All this can prey on people's minds in excruciating ways, and it's possible that they are seeing no way out at this time.

Wounded healer Chiron is stationing direct in Pisces November 19, stirring points of intense hopelessness and psychic overwhelm. Again, this is a "nowhere to run, nowhere to hide" type of theme, problems with seemingly no solutions, and people can simply give up under the difficulty of this.

Venus has just entered Capricorn and is activating the almost-exact Uranus-Pluto square. Venus squares Uranus in Aries exactly on November 14 and conjuncts Pluto in Capricorn November 15. The conjunction to Pluto November 15 is particularly harsh and can result in people feeling cut off from any love or social support. These conditions make it much easier for people to contemplate ending it all.

Chiron in Pisces will be at its most painful point in the direct station at the time of the Venus-Pluto conjunction, as well, indicating themes of isolation, grief, and a desire for escape.

Mercury conjuncts the North Node in Scorpio and triggers the degree of the September 18 Venus-Saturn-North Node conjunction on November 18/19. (I was asked when this suicide risk period began, and I would say around this time - equinox, coming out of the Venus-Saturn-North Node conjunction in Scorpio sextile Pluto stationing direct in Capricorn.)

Mercury will then conjunct Saturn in Scorpio for the final time November 25.

November 18/19 and November 25 (the dreaded Mondays) are dates when things are potentially pushed to a head, reaching crisis points.

The Sun enters Sagittarius November 21, and there will be some relief from the deep and troubling themes of Scorpio starting at that time.

As stated, Mercury leaves Scorpio for Sagittarius December 4.

Understand the month of November as a month of potential emotional, psychological, and psychic crisis. Much of the disturbance is going on beneath the surface, as well, with collective roots, and we simply do not see or perceive everything people are dealing with at this time.

Keep an eye on the people in your circle and beyond. Extend your loving humanity to those who are struggling, and do not heap any more on people already at their breaking points.

The business structures and "business as usual" ethic have to come much lower on the list of priorities now. Maintaining emotional and psychological health, assisting those in crisis, and saving lives are most important at this difficult time on the planet.

Mercury Stations Direct in Scorpio: Yanking Detrimental Mental Patterns Out From the Root

Mercury retrograde has just started slowing to station direct on November 10 at 2 degrees Scorpio (3:12 p.m. CST), and we're picking through trigger-happy conversational minefields all week.

Even the lightest of comments can hit raw nerves now, setting off reactions we may not have intended. Watch your tongue carefully.

That said, there will also be plenty of people intentionally trying to get under our skins. Slough those buggers off right away, and back out of any exchanges that seem to be heading into the trigger-happy danger zone.

We have to police our own thoughts and communication this week, maintaining tight boundaries.

When messenger planet Mercury is in Scorpio, the messages we're receiving can be uncomfortable, traumatic, or even devastating - especially with Chiron stationing direct in Pisces November 19. But these potentially difficult messages are ultimately also empowering, liberating, and consciousness-raising.

The information we're picking up and picking through can consume our minds now, creating scenarios with intrusive or obsessive thoughts. Fixed sign Scorpio takes us under and then holds us there until things really sink in. Some highly irritating and oppressive thoughts have been preying on our minds during the transit of Mercury through deep, dark, emotionally-dense Scorpio, which began September 29 and ends December 4, and these thoughts can increase in intensity going into Sunday's direct station.

To offset the mental depths, reel your brain in, and bring it back from the brink. Meditation, exercise, and good, solid mental discipline all help our cause. We're drawn to intense and even painful subjects now, but we have to keep our minds out of the bottomless pits.

There are some potent exchanges and connections in the works this week and next. The energy of the Venus-Saturn-North Node conjunction of September 18 is being stirred yet again as we continue to wrap our minds around the intensity of that time and what it meant for us.

Connections and conversations over the next weeks hit release points, liberating our minds and our emotions from some long-term oppressiveness, but we have to stay with it right to the end and have those squirm-inducing conversations in order to reap the rewards and find relief. 

During this Saturn-infused Mercury transit through Scorpio, we're working to get out from under that which oppresses us, severing ties to it, but it's going to take all our awareness and courage to do so.

We have to speak up over the next weeks about hidden energy dynamics that aren't right in our lives. We need to extricate ourselves from scenarios that put us at a disadvantage. And we have to allow time for the full realizations to rise to the surface of the conscious mind. Be gentle with yourselves and others, but be ruthless in the areas being drawn to your attention.

What intrusive thoughts do you want to eliminate? Whose opinions do you want to delete? What media and information sources do you need to get rid of? Are there perspectives that have undue influence over you? Anyone's crappy comments that have stuck with you for far too long?

Merc Rx in Scorpio is asking us to take action on all these fronts.

This week is great for getting to the bottom of detrimental mental patterns and yanking them out at the roots.

New Moon Eclipse in Scorpio Conjunct Saturn: Final Resolution of Via Combusta Themes

The New Moon eclipse falls at 11 degrees Scorpio on November 3 (6:50 a.m. CST), sandwiched in conjunction between Saturn at 13 degrees Scorpio and the North Node and Mercury, conjunct at 7 degrees Scorpio.

This is an important New Moon for a number of reasons.

As stated previously on the blog, Saturn is currently travelling through an area of Scorpio (11 to 16 degrees) to which it will not return in retrograde motion. Saturn is making only one pass through these degrees of the zodiac. This is it. So we have one kick at the cat with the themes of these degrees and one kick at the cat only.

As Saturn shoots through this zone (October 14 to November 26), we have to focus quite intently on keeping the energy in our lives just right. We are cementing a foundation now, halfway through the Saturn in Scorpio transit, that will either support our emotional and psychological health and development for the next 29 years or create hassles, issues, and karmic setbacks at various times over the next 29 years.

As usual with Saturn, we have to be quite serious about things. And in Scorpio, we have to fully understand our lessons - each and every angle - and integrate them into our selves and into our lives. No half-assing it.

If we have doubts, concerns, or intuitive misgivings about anyone or anything in our lives now, we're required to wait before making any further commitments.

From a previous post:

"If all our energetic ducks are in a row and if all the power dynamics have been worked out satisfactorily, this time period (Oct. 14 - Nov. 26) can result in some fairly easy progress with natural next steps occurring with projects and in career.

People will be moving into more structured and solid positions of authority this fall quarter, and this particularly includes positions involving shared power, money, and resources.

Under the ongoing stressors, people who have not fully earned their authority or positions, who have not set the right energetic foundations, will soon be in over their heads, however.

With Saturn conjunct the North Node this fall, be careful not to take on too much, too fast - no matter how promising things seem. The commitments we make or deepen this fall could be life changing and deeply altering for us over the long term. We must be very careful to follow our intuition down to the last twinge regarding decision and commitments made at this time, particularly involving legal contracts or money."

Not only is Saturn crossing the halfway point in the sign of Scorpio in this "single pass zone," but it is also completing its transit of the Via Combusta.

From a previous post:

"The Via Combusta is an area of the zodiac between 15 degrees Libra and 15 degrees Scorpio (except for 23 and 24 degrees Libra) known as the burning path or combustible way. Traditionally, it is associated with "unfortunate and ineffectual events."

My interpretation of the Via Combusta is humanized and comes from the point-of-view of a person experiencing life with key natal placements in this area.

When the Via Combusta is strongly highlighted, there is a feeling of running the gauntlet through sometimes seemingly insurmountable odds, collective karma, booby traps and friction, very often related to relationship dynamics, which are Libra and Scorpio territory.

There's a fire in the Via Combusta and within people with a strong Via Combusta signature that keeps them burning, burning, burning a path through life as you would imagine a shooting star burning an accelerated path through the night's sky. There's a feeling here that one has to keep going, no matter what, through the wreckage of old, crystallized layers that would keep us stultified, constricted, and unsatisfied with old wounds perpetually reopened by a revolving cast of characters.

The basic goal of the Via Combusta is to reach escape velocity. In space travel, this is the point a space shuttle reaches when its speed and momentum allow it to escape the effects of gravity pulling it back down to Earth. In the case of the Via Combusta, it's about reaching the points of awareness and pure momentum where we escape the gravity of the sticky, tricky wreckage trying to draw us back into old territory, especially involving old constructs and dynamics of relating.

A Challenging Week Ahead: Getting Out From Under the Detrimental Weight of Things

Photo: Willow

We have a potentially challenging week ahead of us October 28 to November 3.

The Mars in Virgo opposition to stationing Chiron in Pisces (exact October 30) is dropping the fog in a big way. End-of-era listlessness, confusion, lack of direction, and "aren't we done yet?" are sitting on us, dragging at us, making the material world that much more difficult. Mars in earth sign Virgo is riding our asses on the details, but one more overlooked detail on our plates could push us over the edge. This is the material realm versus the metaphysical/unseen realm, and keeping the right balance is our goal and our challenge.

Chiron stationing in Pisces makes us want to throw our hands up and weep at the state of it all. This body in this sign in this direct station has a numbing effect, an anesthetizing effect. It tells us to just roll over, pull the covers over our heads, and go back to sleep. The crushing collective psychic pain wrapped up in this placement is tough under any circumstances, but at the end of the astrological Piscean era - where we are now - it can be downright miserable. Expect people to be spacey, easily confused, and easily discouraged this upcoming week. Sensitivities of all kinds are heightened, including to food, drink, and drugs.

Then on the other end of the polarity we have peppy, active drill sergeant Mars in Virgo barking, "Buck up, for God's sake! Get in the game. Show us some drive. How little heart can you possibly have that you're just going to weep and wallow and sigh and give up?" (The full Mars in Virgo post can be found here.)

Mars in Virgo wants us in tip-top shape. No screwing around with the usual Neptunian escapes: excessive junk food, sugar, drinking, drugging, TV, music, internet, shopping, daydreaming, sports, gambling, sex - whatever diverts our attention from the matters at hand.

We can utilize some of these Neptunian escapes in tight moderation and for limited times to ease our psychic and emotional suffering this week, but we have to maintain just the right medicinal doses to keep us balanced and sane.

No going overboard, and no crossing the line, though Chiron in Pisces has us wanting to slip away - far, far away - from it all.

No slipping!

We have some sucking it up to do this week, princesses.

The Blood Moon Eclipse Pushes Relationship Issues to a Peak

The village theatre lit up on show night.

Photos: Willow

On Friday, October 18, we experience the yearly Hunter's Moon, also referred to as the Blood Moon.

The Hunter's Moon or Blood Moon follows the Harvest Moon and precedes the Beaver Moon - the three Full Moons of the year that provide the most moonlit hours. During this time of the year - fall in the northern hemisphere, spring in the southern - the Moon rises earlier in the evening and sets later in the early morning, providing lengthier periods of moon magic than at any other time of the year.

Traditionally in the northern hemisphere, blood ran at this Moon, hence the name. Hunters were and still are able to track and kill their prey more easily under the light of this Moon, filling their stores with meat for the long, cold winter ahead.

There is a brutality to this Moon, as well as a survival necessity. Understand this.

This Aries Full Moon, falling at 25 degrees opposite the Libra Sun, is also an eclipse, which makes the scenes it is rising over just that much more dramatic, unpredictable, emotionally on-edge.

Remember that crap-cutting Libra New Moon within cardinal Grand Cross we experienced October 4? This Full Moon eclipse in Aries pushes to a peak all the relationship issues and sometimes dark realizations that were stirred at that time.

At this Aries Full Moon, we stand alone in our relationship choices, in the decisions we came to around the time of that New Moon.

 We hold our standards, even when that means ruffling feathers or saying goodbye altogether to a relationship.

At this Aries Full Moon, at this Blood Moon, with relationship planet Venus in truth-telling Sagittarius trine Uranus, we have to stand in the truth of who we really are and what we really want. We stand in this truth even when it does not match the expectations others have of us, even when it does not jibe with the relationship constructs we are working within.

This Aries Full Moon is emotionally energized, edgy, raw, even angry. We courageously and defiantly stand as who we are here, come what may. We stand in our own truth, even when it doesn't fit the story others have for us. Especially then.

Mercury is currently stationing retrograde at 18 degrees Scorpio (October 21), about to go back over the information, the messages, the insights, and the intuitive hits we've received since the Libra New Moon, particularly as they involve relationships and relationship dynamics.

These are challenging times for relationships of all kinds. The Piscean era constructs continue to promise, to disappoint, to dissolve. The Aquarian era constructs have not yet fully emerged. There is isolation here and emotional erosion through that isolation. There is frustration. There is anger. 

But there's also us. There are sexy, beautiful emotional warriors here, under this Aries Moon, unwilling to compromise ourselves, our full selves, to fit within standardized relationship constructs. Unwilling to take less than what we desire at a soul level, than what will truly make our hearts sing.

We're at the very beginning here. At the beginning of a new era and at the beginning of a whole new ballgame for relationships. It can be stark, terrifying. But also exhilarating. As the Moon conjuncts Uranus in Aries October 17 (2:01 p.m. CST), drawing the new-era energy into this Full Moon, we can feel it. We're the pioneers. We're cutting the trail.

And it's bloody hard, at times. It's lonely. It feels foreign, frustrating, confusing, desolate. We wonder if we might have taken a wrong turn, but there's really nowhere to go but onward. There's no one to rely on but ourselves, nothing to guide but our instincts.

We're the ones blazing this trail. We're the ones breaking down barriers for the generations who follow. And we're doing it our way.

How much more inspiring a time can there possibly be?

Know that if you are standing strong and true in your full self, in your full truth, you are exactly where you need to be under this Blood Moon - whether inside a love relationship or out.

Honour your rock-and-roll soul under this Aries Full Moon. Honour the fight in you, the never-say-die in you, under this Moon. Honour the survivor that is you, and honour the fresh relationship territory you have fought, tooth-and-nail, to come into.

To paraphrase one fine anarchist band, we get knocked down, but we get up again. No one's ever going to keep us down.

And that's the plain, honest truth, motherfuckers.

Kick up your heels under this Moon and celebrate the fact.

The Aries Full Moon is exact at 6:38 p.m. CST on October 18.

Mars in Virgo Kicks a Little Butt, Takes a Few Names

Action planet Mars entered crisp, clean, clear Virgo in the early morning of October 15, where it will remain until December 7.

This transit officially brings a two-year Mars in Virgo-infused goal and personal direction cycle to a close - but not before we put every last bit of its energy into active practise in our daily lives.

Mars last went retrograde January to April 2012 from 23 to 3 degrees Virgo. The planet related to aggressive action, will, goals, sex drive, and personal direction spent almost eight months in the sign of work, health, and function - from November 2011 to July 2012.

During that time, as Mars opposed Neptune and Chiron, newly in Pisces, we were required to take on a path of hardcore, warrior holism in reaction to the state of eroding health on this planet.

From a post August 29, 2011:

"This is the fight (Mars) to heal (Virgo) and to stay healthy, to maintain health as Fukushima spews, as our environments are poisoned physically, emotionally, psychically, electromagnetically all around us, as we are manipulated by those who profit from us being unintegrated, toxic, unbalanced, disconnected, dysfunctional."

In basic terms, the almost eight-month transit of Mars through Virgo in 2011/2012 indicated a time when we had to set a fierce trajectory to get out from under layers of eroding poison. We had to fight (Mars) to pinpoint and analyze (Virgo) these layers: radioactivity; genetically modified organisms, growth hormones, antibiotics, and other additives in our food; chemical pesticides and herbicides; chemicals and industrial waste in our water; chemtrails and other forms of disorienting and deadly weather modification; toxic pharmaceuticals; injuring vaccines; HAARP activity and other frequency/electromagnetic pollution; psychic and mental disturbance from manipulative mass media; chemical perfumes, cleaners, and dyes; and many more.

And we had to fight to pinpoint and analyze these layers as the powers that be, including the manipulated mainstream media, denied these things even existed. This was the wounding Neptunian smokescreen effect (Chiron/Neptune in Pisces).

If the establishment was forced to admit these things existed, we were assured they had no ill effect on the health of human beings or other living things.

So we've had to outsmart the so-called leaders, the so-called authorities on these issues. We've had to take responsibility for our own paths to health, often outside the mainstream establishments.

(In fact, following the advice of the mainstream establishments has often only made us sicker.)

And now, as Mars makes its way back to the sign of Virgo for the first time since that retrograde, we're required to get very serious and very active, bringing the last little details into play, creating the most optimum function and health we possibly can in order to withstand the stresses of the upcoming winter, followed by the exact cardinal Grand Cross formation April 21 - 24, 2014.

Here is a reminder of some of the Mars in Virgo themes, from a post November 13, 2011:

"The Mars transit and retrograde through Virgo involves an eight-month period of mutable, transitional energy that requires our precise and active participation to direct, re-direct, adjust, and re-adjust our courses. Throughout this time, we'll be directed down only the most pertinent and effective channels in our lives, honing and refining our courses and withdrawing personal energy from anything that is not necessary, valuable, or vital moving forward. This process is happening, specifically, in the house or houses where Virgo falls in your natal chart. That's the area where things need to be tightened.

Virgo is one of the quieter placements for Mars. Mars is active here but only in the ways that count. No excess of motion, exertion, words, mental function, or use of will. Small movements, adjustments, and re-direction have big effect, and temperance rules, as too much effort in one direction results only in energy expended for self-correction.

The energy on the planet will be getting very bizarre and out of control at times over the next years, and things can really go haywire if we allow them to. This is why we need the Virgoan qualities applied through the iron will of Mars to set our courses now, doing battle on the fine points.

If we're oh-so-careful and diligent, smoothing every screwy detail, critiquing every glowing illusion, attending to every nagging issue, we set a tone with this retrograde that can keep us grounded and out of the worst of the hyped baloney and utter bullshit being amped up on this planet.

Clean, crisp, clear. In Virgo, every detail matters. Virgo is a sign that needs things to be just right, and with Mars here, we're going to have to take it personally when they aren't.

If it hits our ears as incorrect, it's rejected, no matter how many people are saying it, doing it, or believing it. Anyone trying to fill our minds, bodies, societies, or environments with useless crap is viewed as an enemy of our health.

Enemies of our health. There are many. Under Mars in Virgo, we're consciously fighting to maintain health in a world increasingly toxic to living things. Our systems are quite literally being attacked on multiple fronts. There's an immediacy with this Mars transit. There's no more time to put off the changes necessary to fortify our health. It's on. In order for our systems to continue processing and metabolizing what's going on, they need to be in tip-top condition.

Diet, exercise regimes, habits, routines, work conditions, the quality of our food and water, our mental and emotional environments - a crucial analysis and refinement is on the docket during this transit, fighting to maintain systemic health while preparing us for the next years on the planet. This involves the removal or at least strong limitation of anything that weighs our systems down: excess alcohol, drug use, cigarettes, perfumes, air fresheners, chemical cleaners, electromagnetic pollution, noise pollution, pesticides and additives in food, refined sugar, artificial colours, genetically modified food, fluoride, excessive internet, TV, music, shopping, socializing.

Mars is a hard-ass in Virgo, and with good reason.

Even things touted as healthful should be gone over with a fine-toothed comb. With Virgo, less is more. Be careful what you add to your life and to your system. In most cases, Virgo is about what needs to be taken away.

There is a sexual element (Mars) to health (Virgo) here. A more precise application of sexual energy is required. A new understanding of the effects of sexual activity on health and on the surrounding energetic environment as a whole comes about here. The "too much, too fast, too soon" sexual ethic constantly shoved down our throats is rejected by those who use this transit well, and the application of sexuality is streamlined with a new awareness and focus on the health of the individual, the partner, the relationship, the immediate social groups and society, and the spirit, in general. There's a re-wiring of attractions and sexual habits here, a clarification, and a removal of toxic sexual connections. Holistic sexual health.

Our work is infused with a necessary level of fight during this transit. We fight to overcome the redundancy, uselessness, and listlessness forced upon so many through mass institutionalized unemployment, underemployment, and lack of meaningful paid employment."

Virgo is the final sign related to the honing and perfection of the self (as much perfection as is possibly in these fallible human forms).

The next Mars retrograde will be in Libra, the sign of Mars' detriment. Relationship-oriented Libra is the first sign to go beyond the self, relating to other people, relationships, partnerships, social responsibilities, justice, and maintaining our equilibrium in relation to others. Mars enters Libra December 7, 2013 where it stays until July 25, 2014. It will retrograde March 1 to May 19, 2014 from 27 to 9 degrees Libra. 

In order to be successful as Mars turns its sights to others in Libra, bringing some stressful relationship dynamics onto our plates, we have to be functioning as well as we possibly can as individuals. We have to be honed, toned, streamlined, and functional, firing on all cylinders. In order to maintain the types of relationships and the types of social relations we desire with Mars transiting Libra, we have to have the kinks worked out in our own selves and lives first.

This is the primary goal of Mars in Virgo, and it has been our goal for the past two years, under the Mars in Virgo-coloured goal cycle.



Become a Willow's Web Astrology patron to read the full article. Full articles available only as excerpts on the main blog are emailed to patrons.

USDA: You're on Your Own Against Monsanto, Farmers!

The first case of natural alfalfa contamination by a genetically modified variety was reported by a farmer in Washington state in September 2013. The farmer’s alfalfa crop was rejected for export because, without his knowledge or intention, it was found to contain genetically modified material from Monsanto’s Roundup Ready GM alfalfa variety.

Because many countries worldwide have banned genetically modified seeds, crops, and foods, including the European Union, any crop found to contain GM material will be rejected for export.

The Washington farmer complained to the United States Department of Agriculture, which has just responded with an “it’s not our problem” stance on the issue. The USDA claims the unintentional contamination of the natural alfalfa crop, as well as the resulting loss of markets and non-GM food security, are a “commercial issue” that must be dealt with in the marketplace.

In other words, we approved GM alfalfa unconditionally amidst huge opposition, we approved it against your will, but now that it's contaminating your crops and adversely affecting your livelihoods, you’re on your own against Monsanto, farmers!

The United States Department of Agriculture, under the Biotechnology Industry Association's Governor of the Year, Tom Vilsack, approved the commercial sale and planting of genetically modified alfalfa unconditionally in 2011 amidst huge opposition from farmers and citizens.

It has been planted in the United States for three growing seasons now, and we are just starting to hear the stories of unwanted contamination.

Farmers and citizens who understand plants and agriculture know that the contamination of the natural alfalfa crop is inevitable with the widespread sale and growth of genetically modified varieties. Alfalfa is a feral perennial (grows back year-after-year). In other words, it grows and spreads like a weed. In fact, if a farmer does not want alfalfa in his or her field, it is very difficult to get rid of. Alfalfa is pollinated by wind, bees, and animals. Because of this, it is impossible to contain the spread of GM alfalfa, including with so-called buffer fields between GM and non-GM crops.

Alfalfa is a staple livestock feed. It is used as fertilizer in organic agriculture. It is also often grown during the three-year transition period from conventional to organic farming. In other words, there are many avenues by which alfalfa finds its way into the human diet.

The opposition to GM alfalfa in Canada has so far held off its planting and growth in this country. However, a Wisconsin-based company, Forage Genetics, plans to sell Monsanto's Roundup Ready GM alfalfa in Ontario and Quebec as soon as it can.  

Farmers in Ontario recently made a request of the Ontario provincial government to do an environmental assessment on GM alfalfa before its commercial sale and planting were approved in the province. The Ontario government has just announced its refusal to do that assessment.

This echoes the stance from most provinces in Canada: it's a federal government matter, none of our concern.

The Federal government in Canada, of course, is led by the Harper Conservatives, a group of "free" market, corporate-loving neo-conservatives that is as pro-GMO as you can get. Safeguards will not be forthcoming.

Major Health and Safety Concerns Raised by Studies of GM Diets on Animals in 2012 and 2013

* An unprecedented animal feeding trial found in 2012 that laboratory rats fed genetically modified corn as well as glyphosate residue - the primary ingredient in Monsanto's herbicide Roundup - developed high incidences of tumours, multiple organ damage, and premature death.

The results of the GM feeding trial were published September 19, 2012 in the scientific journal "Food and Chemical Toxicology." The peer-reviewed study was conducted by a team of scientists led by biologist and endocrinologist Gilles-Eric Seralini of the University of Caen in France. The study was attacked vociferously as flawed by other scientists and biotechnology groups. Despite the uproar, the "Food and Chemical Toxicology" journal, a major journal on toxiciology, refused to retract the study.

The trial studied the long-term effects of exposure to NK603 GM corn (Monsanto's Roundup Ready variety) and glyphosate - individually and combined - on the health of rats over two years.

The study found that even exposure to levels considered "safe" resulted in severe negative health effects in the animals:

- Of the rats fed GM corn or glyphosate residue, 50% of males and 70% of females died prematurely. This was compared to 30% and 20% respectively in the control group.
- Female rats developed fatal mammary tumours and pituitary disorders. Males developed liver damage, kidney and skin tumours and had problems with their digestive systems.
- Rats fed GM corn or Roundup residues developed two to three times more tumours than the control group.

The study found that ingestion of GM corn and glyphosate caused similar damage in the rats whether consumed separately or together. Even the lowest doses of GM corn and glyphosate, touted as safe by industry, were associated with severe health problems.

Previous studies have produced similar findings, but this was the first ever feeding trial done over the course of the entire lifespan of a laboratory rat - two years.

Despite the fact that lab rats live only two years, no genetically modified animal feeding trials have been done up to this point for longer than 90 days. Genetically modified seeds/foods were rushed onto the market in Canada and the United States without any longer-term studies on potential effects.

The majority of the tumours and devastating health effects that developed with the rats in the Seralini study were detected after 18 months, which means that prior GM testing done over 90 days would not have discovered them.

* In 2013, the results of a five-month feeding study done on just-weaned pigs were released in the "Organic Systems Journal." The study, conducted by lead researcher Judy Carman of Flinders University in Australia, found that a diet of genetically modified corn and soy produced severe stomach inflammation in the pigs, as well as enlargement of the uteruses in female pigs, indicating both digestive and reproductive damage from GM diets.

Carman said that pigs were used in the feeding study because their digestive systems are similar to those of human beings.

Carman is calling for further long-term animal feeding studies on GM foods before they continue to be commercially planted and ingested by humans.

* Also in 2013, the results of a study on glyphosate excretion in the urine of Danish dairy cattle were released. The study, led by Dr. Monica Kruger, looked at 240 dairy cattle from eight different dairy farms in Denmark. It found that glyphosate was being excreted in varying amounts by all the cattle. Blood tests showed toxicity, with a particular effect on liver and muscle cells. The conclusion of this study was that glyphosate is toxic to the metabolism of dairy cattle.

Roundup is currently the world's most popular and widely-used herbicide. Its global usage is set to double by 2017, according to Global Industry Analysts of San Jose, California.

 

So despite these dire feeding trial results, which, at the very least, indicate further animal feeding trials are necessary before GM crops continue to be planted and ingested, governments at all levels in the United States and Canada steamroll on with the pro-GMO agenda.

 

The current focus among members of the public is the labeling of GM products on store shelves.

 

While this is certainly a good step, this type of labeling does not address the unknown and unintentional contamination of foods by GMOs.

 

We can label foods we know are GM. We can label foods we know have been produced with genetically modified ingredients.

 

However, we can't label foods that have been unknowingly or unintentionally contaminated by GMOs.

 

This unknown and unintentional contamination is the real key with GM alfalfa, which is, again, a feral perennial plant that grows and spreads like a weed, pollinated by wind, bees, and animals.

 

Our food supply is being insidiously, invisibly contaminated by GMOs. This is going on without the public's full knowledge or consent.

 

Animal feeding trial results released in 2012 and 2013 indicate strong connections between GM diets and tumours, organ damage, digestive problems, reproductive damage, and premature death.

 

We are being failed on multiple levels by both government and industry. Both these groups tout "the science" in their blind acceptance and promotion of genetically modified crops. But the science they are using is incomplete and terribly outdated.

 

These bodies that claim to keep us safe from harmful products are turning a blind eye to the solid science showing major concerns with a GM diet for both animals and humans.

 

Now is the time for all concerned citizens to raise their voices on this issue:

 

Stop GM alfalfa in Canada and Worldwide!

"Stop GM Alfalfa" bumper stickers from WWA Activism 

All articles on GM alfalfa from Willow's Web Astrology: GM alfalfa

A Crap-Cutting Libra New Moon Sets a New Tone in Relationships of All Kinds

We're currently in the Dark of the Moon in Virgo, ahead of an uber potent Libra New Moon within cardinal Grand Cross on Friday, October 4 (exact 7:35 p.m. CST) that will reverberate strongly throughout the weekend and into the beginning of next week.

As the Moon goes dark in practical, no-nonsense Virgo today, ahead of this "relationship changer" New Moon, pay attention to people's real, actual track records, what they do on a day-to-day basis, rather than to their charms, their glowing plans, or their stated intentions.

There are some subtle details we need to feel out here in the dark, ahead of the New Moon, and these details shape our orientation as we move through the New Moon portal.

We're at the end of the line as far as hoping and wishing and praying for things to get better. With all four cardinal (action, initiation, leadership, new direction) signs activated at the time of the New Moon, it's time to take action in relationships of all kinds - personal and professional. It's time to make things better. And that very well might involve leaving relationships that are no longer viable, healthy, or offering any true reciprocity.

Venus in Scorpio is the dispositor of this New Moon, the love and relationship planet in the sign of its detriment, and this is the primary influence over the energy and themes.

From a previous post:

"Venus is the planet that rules relationships. Scorpio is a sign that involves patterns ending. Hence, transiting Venus in Scorpio (September 11 - October 7) is a great time to end detrimental patterns in relationships of all kinds.  

 

Venus in Scorpio will suck the poison out of your relationship. It will reformulate things from the guts out. But your relationship has to be strong enough to withstand that process first. If it isn't, it will end, die, come to a point of completion. All Scorpio themes.

This is one of the reasons Venus is so uncomfortable in the sign of the scorpion. Venus is about love, beauty, relationship, mutuality, shared enjoyment. Who ever wants to see a love relationship die? Who ever wants to dig up issues that could bring about your relationship's demise?

With Venus in Scorpio, however, there are some underlying issues, some imbalanced energy exchanges, some true feelings being swept under rugs, and if these are ignored or denied for long enough, they start to undermine the entire foundation of the relationship.

This is what Venus in Scorpio knows, and this is why Venus is so intent on getting to the roots of the matter during its time in the sign of the investigator.

There's more to our relationships than meets the eye when Venus is transiting Scorpio, as it is now, and we have to penetrate these hidden layers, releasing pent-up energy, suppressed emotions, and convoluted relating patterns - or deal with a slow, potentially-painful relationship death.

These are life-saving efforts being applied by Venus in Scorpio in relationship now, but these efforts could also kill our relationships. This is the razor's edge we walk between life and death, sustainability and collapse, when planets are transiting Scorpio."

This is a true "cutting the crap, cut to the chase" New Moon, and it falls in a sign that generally needs help cutting the crap - charming, congenial, smooth-it-over Libra!

A square to Pluto, an opposition to Uranus, and a Scorpio stellium should be just the ticket for getting down to brass tacks, however.

In addition to dispositor Venus, Mercury, Saturn, and the North Node are transiting Scorpio, creating a concentration of energy in the sign of deep, dark, underlying power dynamics.

Wherever you're fed up, over it, or tired of the crap in relationship, that's where this New Moon in Libra opens a door. Use it.

"If you're giving way more than you're receiving in your relationships, it's time to either a) reformulate or b) make a clean relationship sweep, withdrawing your energy, talents, and skills from unsatisfying relationships that lack true reciprocity."

The square between the Libra Sun and Moon to Pluto in Capricorn forces our hand. To continue in these same dynamics would be death. It would be insanity.

The opposition to shaking-things-up Uranus in the sign of self, Aries, provides a shot in the arm for relationship-oriented Libra, a sign often afraid to be on its own. A sign often pathologically afraid to be on its own.

With so much Scorpio influence, we're digging down to the emotional attachments and psychological patterns the keep us stuck, stifled, and unfulfilled in relationship. This is potentially fearful territory. We're required to address some very hot button issues here, issues that, yes, could bring certain relationships to an end, rather than just the relationship dynamics.

But the Uranian writing is on the wall: it's a thousand times better to be on your own, standing alone, independent now than to remain in an untenable, crap sandwich relationship.

The Piscean-era relationship ideal of constant and perfect union-communion is giving way to something more realistic, something more aligned with the times.

Recall that aggressive malefic planet Mars will soon transit Libra for almost eight months (December 2013 to July 2014). Libra is a sign that Mars does not like to be in all that much, and this transit will be bringing the angst to our relationships if we've chosen to look the other way and keep things lovey dovey, sweet-as-pie.

Anything glossed over and any anger left unaddressed at the time of this New Moon will be coming up again during that Mars in Libra transit, which activates cardinal Grand Crosses over the course of the transit and retrograde, including the exact one at 13 degrees of the cardinal signs in April 2014.

With Mars in Libra for eight months within Grand Cross, we're going to have to fight for the types of relationships we want - personally and professionally. We're going to have to fight for more fairness, kindness, reciprocity, and balance in our relationships. And this battle is much easier if we're proactive every step of the way, including at this potent, potent Libra New Moon.

The Moon enters lovely Libra tonight at 10:00 p.m. CST.

The New Moon falls at 11 degrees Libra at 7:35 p.m. tomorrow, October 4.

The Moon enters Scorpio at 3:33 a.m. on October 6 and conjuncts Mercury, the North Node, and Saturn that day.

Venus enters more buoyant and optimistic Sagittarius around noon on Monday, October 7, providing a little breather from the intensity of the transit through Scorpio.

The Moon will enter Sagittarius at 7:21 a.m. on October 8 and conjuncts Venus in Sagittarius at 8:56 a.m., giving us a moment to digest the ultimate relational truths coming out of the Libra New Moon.

Knowing When to Turn the Tap On and, More Importantly, When to Turn it Off

Mercury enters deep, dark Scorpio on September 29 (6:38 a.m. CST), and our mind, our communications, and our connections are filtered through the penetrating, unwavering gaze of the scorpion.

Creepy.

Mercury in Scorpio wants to see what lies beneath the surface. It wants to know what's really going on. It wants some validation for that sick feeling in the pit of its stomach, for the crawling of its skin, for the tingling spidey sense. Mercury in Scorpio is a researching mind, an uncovering mind, drawing uncomfortable tidbits of information up to conscious awareness for integration into the broader scene.

The festering stink-pile of corruption and lies on Planet Earth is one of the prime targets for this laser mind, this Mercury in Scorpio. And there can be no doubt, really, about the state we're in on this planet. We're teetering at the point of no return, led there by generations of materialist mass murderers masquerading as our leaders. We're close to the point of energetic impossibility.

And let's not be silly about this: we'll be making some life-or-death connections throughout this Mercury transit of Scorpio (September 29 - December 4, 2013). It's that serious. Messenger planet Mercury has some reality-based information that we must digest over the course of the transit, and it's in our best interests to heed every last squirmy detail.

Mercury will retrograde in the sign of sex, death, birth, healing, X-Ray vision, and hardcore soul drive from October 21 to November 10, travelling backward in the zodiac from 18 to 2 degrees Scorpio.

This is the third and final Mercury retrograde of 2013, all of which have been in water signs.

As Mercury transits Scorpio, it will conjunct the North Node and Saturn three times, reactivating the obscenely powerful and intense Venus-Saturn-North Node conjunction, which occurred at 8 degrees Scorpio on September 17/18. That conjunction occurred exactly sextile stationing and inky-potent Pluto at 8 degrees Capricorn, which turned direct September 20.

Those unaffected by the intensity and energetic demands of the week of September 16 - 22 were fortunate. There were exhaustion, breakdowns, meltdowns, and acute stress involved. At the end of our ropes and beyond. We processed a massive amount of energy through our bodies and through our relationships during that week - and we're still processing it. We'll be processing the energy of that week and integrating its lessons for some time to come, including during the transit of Mercury through Scorpio.

We set a whole new, soul-driven tone in human relationships that week, and it was no joke. The way energy is distributed in our relationships, the underlying power dynamics, the allotment of that precious, supportive, soulful Scorpio energy are all under a state of reconstitution and reconstruction, continuing with the Venus retrograde in Capricorn at the end of the year (December 20, 2013 - January 30, 2014).

With restricting Saturn involved, we had to pull the reins in on a number of relational fronts. To continue in the old dynamics brings depletion.

We're working with restricted energy, particularly emotional, psychological, sexual, and psychic energy. At times during the transit of Saturn through Scorpio (into September 2015), this will be severely restricted.

We need to invest our precious time and energy oh-so-wisely now in order to make it through the next couple years successfully.

So heading into autumn equinox in the northern hemisphere, we went through a very extreme Pluto station, a very extreme Venus-Saturn-North Node conjunction, and an over-the-top Harvest Full Moon in Pisces.

We now get a little breather with the Sun in Libra working to rebalance our upset energetic systems.

But it won't last long.

Mercury enters its retrograde shadow at 2 degrees Scorpio on October 1, just in time for the Libra Sun to enter a cardinal Grand Cross formation ahead of the Libra New Moon October 4.

In other words, kiss that harmonious Libran equinox breather goodbye, and prepare to play your 'A Games.' If you were expecting an easy breezy Libra season, you're in for a surprise...


Read the rest of this post by becoming a Willow's Web Astrology patron for as little as $2.50 per month. Less than the cost of one fancy Starbucks coffee per month. Patrons will also receive some extra tidbits from Willow not available on the main blog.


What is Mercury retrograde?

Getting Crystal Clear on What's Hurting & Sickening Us: A Pisces Full Moon Re-Post at This Harvest Moon

Photo: Willow

The Moon is currently growing full in dewy and sublime Pisces, opposite the Sun in late Virgo, and it touched wounded healer Chiron in Pisces early this morning on its way to the peak.

This late-Pisces Full Moon (exact at 6:13 a.m. CST on September 19) is the Harvest Moon, the Full Moon closest to autumn equinox, so named because farmers could work well into the night under its light. The Harvest Moon, along with the Hunter's Moon and Beaver Moon in following months, rises earlier and sets later than the Full Moons in other months, providing more moonlit hours.

This Harvest Moon in Pisces has end-of-era themes radiating from its moonbeams, as well as an impetus to get much clearer on the things that are hurting and sickening us on this planet.

This is a re-post of an article I wrote for last year's Pisces Full Moon. The themes continue to apply, maybe moreso than ever. The nuclear disaster in Fukushima, Japan continues to unfold, two-and-a-half years after the initial event, and genetically modified alfalfa has just started contaminating the natural crop in the United States.

"A Chiron-Infused Pisces Full Moon, Pisces for the Aquarian Era, and Shifting Ideas Around Healing and Health" from the last Pisces Full Moon August 25, 2012:

"When health is absent, wisdom cannot reveal itself, art cannot manifest, strength cannot fight, wealth becomes useless, and intelligence cannot be applied."

- Herophilus, some 3rd/4th century doctor dude who fancied himself a philosopher

I read this quote recently on the back of a $13 package of smug hippie cereal that comes from the Canadian West Coast. There are a lot of smug hippies out there. The thing is, though, a lot of times, the smug hippies get it wrong.

I've been ill (though improving) for almost three years now. The military industrial complex disguised as Big Pharma disguised as an inexperienced doctor in a walk-in clinic slipped me poison in the form of an antibiotic called Cipro, and it devastated my system.

That said, I have to refute the quote by the good doctor up there. The best astrological work I've done has come during the time since I was poisoned. Since then, wisdom has revealed itself more fully, art has been expressed more richly. Not only was I able to fight, I was Plutonically strengthened to fight. Fighting those to-the-roots Plutonic fights gave me almost otherworldly strength at times, even as my body and physical system were weakened. Even as I was picking out words on the keyboard with a pencil in my mouth because my arms and wrists were not fully functional. Intelligence was most certainly applied. I don't think there can be any doubt that cosmic intelligence is coming through loud and clear.

People often say, "If you don't have your health, you don't have anything." I really wish people would stop saying that. It's kind of an assholish thing to say, especially to people who have compromised health.