b2ap3_thumbnail_working-mind.jpgEmancipate yourselves from mental slavery.
None but ourselves can free our minds.
― Bob Marley

"Responsibility to yourself means refusing to let others do your thinking, talking, and naming for you; it means learning to respect and use your own brains and instincts; hence, grappling with hard work.”
― Adrienne Rich

The chart of the Autumn Equinox will resonate until sometime around the Winter Solstice. The equinoxes are always points of balance, and this chart emphasizes that we are at a tipping point — globally, nationally, locally and personally. Change is in the air, and decisions we make now will have long-term repercussions. Fortunately, this chart offers much-needed inspiration, energy and opportunities to improve our connections with others. We are heading into a challenging Winter — but we will be given the opportunities and wherewithal to make a difference. Thoughtful, skilled use of the cosmic tides of energy and change will help us steer ourselves and our world toward a better future.

I expect that most of my readers do magic, meditate, pray, or have some spiritual practice they engage in regularly. There’s plenty of energy to light a fire under your practice in this chart, and I hope you will use it, because the world needs all the positive vibes we can send it right now. There are deeply destructive forces — patterns of thought and emotion — that have woven themselves tightly into the fabric of our culture, and it will require clear, focused work on the energetic/astral/magical levels by those who are capable of it to unravel and re-weave ourselves into a strong, sustainable, global society.

We, too, have forces and patterns for change that are available to us — innovative, empathetic and far-seeing patterns of creative energy we can tap into and strengthen. But we need to do the work. (Why, yes, I am assuming that no Deeply Destructive Forces™ are reading this post. ;-) ) The work of change begins inside of us — the world is changed from the inside out. 

The conjunction of Sun and North Node at the “Aries point” (zero degrees of any Cardinal sign) suggests a major confluence of energies that may manifest significant events right around the time of the Equinox — and sprinkled through the next 3 months as sensitive points in this chart are triggered by transits. Mars is cutting in to the ongoing dance between Jupiter, Saturn and Neptune — a dance that will define the year to come — and Mars always stirs things up. 

Events will resonate with the voices of the leading planetary actors:

  • Jupiter in Virgo: The professor is doing a lab tech’s work — washing the glassware and cleaning and organizing the lab. If her mind wanders too far into abstract speculations about her latest research, broken glassware and misplaced test tubes are her results. Jupiter’s natural expansiveness is harnessed to practical needs.
  • Saturn in Sagittarius: The CEO demands accountability and results. Philosophical speculation and creative brainstorming are only tolerated if they lead to demonstrable, practical applications. Saturn restricts and focuses our higher ideals.
  • Neptune in Pisces: Joan of Arc, with her visions, her faith and her martyrdom is a Neptune in Pisces icon. Self-sacrifice is a big theme with Neptune in Pisces — the awakening to Oneness, then the recognition that it is all Self, and so there is no sacrifice that is not self-sacrifice.

But as hard as Neptune wants to believe, and make everyone else believe, in the reality of "Oneness”, the other planets remind us that we have chosen to experience reality as separate beings within the frame of Time and Space. Now is when we see the blaming side of Neptune in Pisces, which feels abandoned, because Oneness just won’t stay put and be One, so we can all float happily in the primordial sea. Asked to focus and do some work, Neptune instead sulks, becomes passive-aggressive, labels itself a victim, and refuses all responsibility. Besides, as long as someone’s doing something, I don't have to do anything, Neptune says, because we're All One, man, so you can do it for me!

Pointing out the fallacies in that approach is the job Jupiter and Saturn have taken on, and you’d do well to make sure you have figured out those fallacies yourself, because victim attitudes (along with plenty of actual victimization) will be widespread. You’ll need to learn to separate the dramatists and their egos from the deserving and their needs. You may find yourself in situations where you have a choice between knee-jerk reacting, or taking independent action and shouldering responsibility for that action. You may also find yourself in a position where you need to explain the concept of personal responsibility to others.

So think these things through now. What are your core beliefs about self-sacrifice and responsibility? About justice, victimization, fighting back, claiming and giving away personal power? Can you look at your beliefs from a different perspective? Would they change if you did? Do these beliefs fit well with other beliefs you hold about how the universe works?

Congruence and authenticity are important now. Dig deep into your own psyche and figure out what you believe and why you believe it. There will be a lot of people who will get caught up in the whirlwind of the collective unconscious in the weeks to come. Mob psychology is an attempt to find safety in numbers. But it’s not safe. Don’t fall for it. Think for yourself. Know where you stand.

And speaking of safety, fear is another subject we need to consider, given the current astrology. Mars in this chart is strong in a Fire sign (Leo) and it is rising in the chart cast for the USA (Washington, DC). It squares Saturn, is moving into wide opposition with Neptune, and is in a tense aspect with both Venus and Pluto. This suggests inchoate fears and flaming anger. These are also classic aspects for an epidemic — which could be a physical or a mental/emotional one (fear or panic).

What will help is if we can anchor ourselves in a knowledge that comes only from direct experience of Spirit, of the ultimate rightness and creativity of the Universe, of Consciousness. If we always remember that we are a part of that creative Consciousness, a part that is creating within the frame of time and space but exists eternally, then we will have a perspective on life — and death — which reveals fear as the impermanent construct of time and space that it is. Mars is all about courage. I urge you to find your own courage, cross the threshold, walk through the doors that lead beyond fear.

How this equinox affects you personally depends, of course, on your personal birth chart. If you’re interested in learning more about astrology so you can learn more about yourself and your soul’s journey in this lifetime,  I’ve opened registration for my class Chart and Soul: Astrology for Yourself, a 9-week, online class that begins October 19. For more information and to register, go here.

We have an eclipse coming up Sunday as well -- I hope to get a post up about that before the end of the week.