Weekly Astrological Insights: April 5-11, 2010

Monday, April 5

Today’s a good day for a treasure hunt. There are some riches looming that are yours for the keeping if you mine them. Their location may not be obvious, but with a little bit of diligence coupled with some persistence, mixed in with a splash of not-taking-things-at-face-value but instead digging a bit below the service, gems of insight will be yours.

Tuesday, April 6

While astronomers may have demoted Pluto to a dwarf planet, modern astrologers still consider it an incredibly powerful force in horoscopes. After all, as the celestial body that represents transformation and survival, how could it not?

Every year Pluto spends some time going retrograde, a term that signals its apparent backward motion. Of course, when a planet is retrograde it is not actually moving backwards; rather this is just a phenomenon of how it seems when viewing it from the Earth, owing to the different planetary orbits. Pluto’s annual retrograde cycle begins today, and continues until September 13.

Retrograde periods are times for turning inward to ascertain heightened awareness. Therefore, annual Pluto retrograde cycles can be auspicious times to focus our reflections within and mine our subconscious and conscious minds so we can see how to better relate to all things Plutonian: our personal power, issues related to control, and the letting go necessary for transformation to occur.

We can use this period to dig deep and ask ourselves to be utterly honest. We can turn over the stories that we tell ourselves (and others) to find the inherent truths that lie underneath, those truths that are a key to our healing and ability to be aligned with who we are at the very core.

That being said, the days surrounding Pluto changing direction can be intense; after all, there is a slowing down and a consolidation of energies related to the areas of life that we often turn a blind eye. Go slow, take time out if you need, and remember that inherent within you is a creative, beautiful, and powerful being.

Wednesday, April 7

Today, Saturn retrogrades back into Virgo, where it will spend 3+ months before going back into Libra on July 21. Owing to its 29-year cycle, Saturn will not return to the sign of the Virgin until 2037.

During Saturn’s sashay back into Virgo, it only travels through 2+ degrees of this sign (each sign has 30 degrees). It goes back to 27’50, turning direct at that degree on May 31.

This seems so inherently purposeful and significant to me. It’s as if in order to really understand the lessons of Libra—diplomacy, striking a balance, finding fairness and accord in relationships—we need to more fully integrate Virgo’s skills of discernment, craftsmanship, and fortifying our well-being.

One way to look at what the lessons we are being collectively called on to learn is by reviewing the Sabian Symbols for the degrees of Virgo through which Saturn will travel. Sabian Symbols are symbolic representations/images associated with each of the 360 degrees of the zodiac. They allow us to discover and  uncover important levels of archetypal meaning. See if any of these images hold import for you during the next 3 months, whether they represent any areas of your life and/or psyche that are being given more structure (descriptions below from The Sabian Symbols in Astrology by Dr. Marc Edmund Jones):

27-28 degree Virgo: A bald-headed man. The keyword is Dominance. When expressed positively, it reflects self-mastery.

28-29 degree Virgo: A man gaining secret knowledge from a paper he is reading. The keyword is Discovery. When expressed positively, conscious efforts that can manifest the power of imagination.

29-30 degree Virgo: A false call unheard in attention to immediate service. The keyword is Safeguard. When expressed positively, self-fulfillment through developing integrity.

For more on the Sabian symbols, see this insightful article.

Thursday, April 8

Today provides us with an opportunity to try something innovative or approach a familiar situation from a novel perspective. While we may be drawn to do so, we may not necessarily do so effortlessly as it may seem as if it requires a bit of energy to move us out of our plodding and tried-and-true ways. Yet, consider whether this opportunity for innovation, for expanding minds and patterned ways, can actually be something that aligns with your core values and helps to enhance the sense of beauty and meaning that you can experience in your life.

Friday, April 9

Today we have a tendency to feel a bit je nais se quoi, that feeling of being a bit dreamy yet at the same time highly charged. If you feel a little “off” and you sense that it’s compromising your well-being in some way, see if you can give yourself a time out.

If you can create space for taking refuge in yourself, a time where you can just what you want to do when you want to do it, great. Yet, even if all that reality can afford you is a 15-minute window, then don’t hesitate to take this valuable opportunity. Go for a walk, meditate, listen to music…do whatever you need to do to honor yourself and find a sense of centered peace that will help you feel more nourished and at ease.

Saturday, April 10

Stop. Listen.

What do you hear? Not outside of yourself. But in your mind, in your heart.

What insights are revealed when you give yourself the luxury of quietude?

What can you tap into? What truths do you discover?

Today with the Moon in Pisces harmoniously aspecting Pluto, Mercury, and Venus, we can more readily explore the grace of the knowingness to which we all have access.

Sunday, April 11

An Astrological Haiku

Access great wisdom
It’s here for taking today
If we come from heart.

Tell it like it is.
Reintegrate fragmented
Pieces of ourselves.

Eris conjunct Sun.
Pisces Moon meets Jupiter.
We’re the Web of Love.