November… back to basics, then rebuilding…
November continues with the volatility that we have seen with one significant difference. While much of the wild swings that have been occurring since the Autumn of 2008 have been influenced by the Saturn Uranus opposition that has been operational and continues to impact us, both in our personal lives and in the world at large, into 2012; we now have a further energy configuration to deal with and one that may be even more powerful and forceful in its influence.
As of late last month, Saturn has ended its two plus year transit of Virgo and has now entered Libra. Saturn will retrograde back into Virgo in April into mid-July of 2010 before moving back into Libra where it will transit into 2012. While Saturn in Libra is far more comfortable than transits through other Signs, the one catch is that Saturn moving into Libra also moves into a square with Pluto transiting the Saturn-ruled Sign of Capricorn.
Since Pluto first entered Capricorn in January of 2008, the primary question asked of us as individuals and as a society is whether we have built upon rock or built upon sand. And since Pluto first entered Capricorn, later aggravated by the Saturn Uranus opposition, we have seen various institutions, habit patterns and ways of doing things unable to meet the stringent standards of these times and consequently falling by the wayside.
Back in the 1950’s when General Motors was the world’s biggest manufacturer and a virtual symbol of United States economic power, it seemed unthinkable that GM would ever be on the ropes. On the contrary, in 1953 when Charles Wilson, then President of General Motors, was nominated to be Secretary of Defense by President Eisenhower and was asked during his confirmation hearings whether he could ever make a decision in the interest of the United States that might prove adverse to the interest of General Motors, Wilson made the famous remark that he could not conceive of such a situation since “for years I thought that was good for our country was good for General Motors, and vice versa.”
How times have changed!
And that phrase – how times have changed – truly sums up the times in which we find ourselves.
Although we may assume that the worst is behind us economically, and that we are now on a road to recovery with the scintillating sounds of ‘happy days are here again’ playing in our minds and in commentators’ spin of events; I would suggest otherwise.
On the contrary, I would suggest that with the forthcoming Saturn square Pluto and eventually a Cardinal Sign T-Square of the Saturn Uranus opposition both square to Pluto, we have only seen the tip of the iceberg.
This T-Square continues on into 2012, so as Bette Davis is famously known to have said in the movie All About Eve: “Fasten your seatbelts, it’s going to be a bumpy night.’
This night may seem like a long night with this T-Square energy impacting us into 2012.
November gives us the first hit of the Saturn Pluto square, exact on November 15th. This mid-November period could be especially difficult with further indications that the worst may not be over. The veneer of a ‘return to normalcy’ may be stripped away and reveal other problems, other possible collapses, more suggested bailouts and the further need to reinforce the levees against the tsunami-like tides of these times.
With Saturn going through Libra, we shall have to be very mindful of our interactions with other people.
As I have said and written before, the key words and key dispositions of these times ask us to be: aware, mindful, adaptable, flexible, with no rush to judgment.
Saturn in Libra could create tensions and even worse in our relationships. It might be a reaction to the anxiety and frustration that we are feeling, prone to or subjected to other people’s edginess. And in consequence, we have to be especially careful that our significant relationships do not become victim to our frustrations and to any sense of impotence. Otherwise, we might experience tremendous upsets in our relationships and on a societal level an increase in domestic abuse and domestic violence.
At the same time, we could solidify our relationships, go through our contact list and differentiate between our acquaintances and those people that are truly special in our lives.
The times in which we live ask us to strip away the nonessentials, focus on the fundamentals, and build upon true substance and essence. Now can be a very soulful time and a very spiritual time. And in so being, it might necessitate certain releases, eliminations and cleanings out that we do either voluntarily or that the universe steps in and does for us.
The month of November begins and ends with a Mercury note. On the 1st, Mercury squares Mars. People may be forceful in their opinions, belligerent in their need to win in the dialectic of win-lose situations and coming from a certain insecurity, which plays to the concept that a strong offense is a good defense. On the 30th, Mercury squares Uranus and we might realize that some of our beliefs and our opinions do not mesh with variables that we have either unanticipated or glossed over in our thought processes. We might experience how our developed infrastructure cannot keep up with the technological advances and demands. There could be Internet problems, computer glitches, communication issues and other transmission – reception difficulties.
In the interim between the 1st and the 30th, the month is a swing of highs and lows, ups and downs, at times feeling evermore turned around.
The month begins just before the Taurus Full Moon on the 2nd. On the 1st, we have Mercury square Mars. And the month begins with two planets in Fire Signs, one planet in an Earth Sign, four planets in Air Signs and three planets in Water Signs. The month starts with four planets in Cardinal Signs, five planets in Fixed Signs and one planet in a Mutable Sign. Six planets are in Positive Signs, four planets are in Receptive Signs.
By Sign, there are two T-Squares to begin the month — one in the Cardinal Signs, the other in the Fixed Signs.
We start the month a little unbalanced and it should not be too surprising since we may begin the month weary of the volatility, tired of the ups and downs and yet getting used to things being one way one day, quite different the next.
The lack of Earth and the lack of the Mutable quality to begin the month could prove vexing, since it might create a certain impracticality, lack of groundedness and also short on both adaptability and flexibility. We could easily be fixed in our opinions, despairing of conditions beyond our control that still impact us. We could be hoping for the best, all the while fearing the worst.
It is essential that we maintain objectivity, engage a sense of buddhic detachment from the goings-on, and keep ourselves from knee-jerk reactions while trying to maintain an open mind. A recognition of unanticipated variables impacting our lives, and a willingness to suspend judgment until we have as much full disclosure as possible and have done our consideration with due diligence would be wise to take into account.
With the Taurus Full Moon on the 2nd, we have the opportunity of considering a good Autumnal clean-up and cleanout, decluttering ourselves, ridding ourselves of the superfluous and extraneous, and focusing on the truly important and worthwhile. We could easily be seduced by suggestions or prospects that seem to offer us all the things we had ever hoped for. We shouldn’t discard them out of hand, but we should also remember that there are times when we need to get rid of things in order to make room for new things to take their place. Out with the old, in with the new.
While it might seem that we are, at times, being thrown back upon our own resources, we should also keep in mind the paraphrased words of Charles Dickens as these times being the best of times, and the worst of times.
While our focus might be on the worst of times with various things falling apart, a certain ‘crash and burning’ having already occurred and likely continuing to occur, we also need to work with peripheral vision and recognize those magic moments, those asequential realities, those mini or major miracles occurring in our lives. We may not always enjoy the dynamics of these times, but such volatility also is the breeding ground for things to shift and change dramatically without a moment’s notice. In deed, we have the opportunity of stepping on to what I refer to as the magical, mystery tour.
We no longer have to make things happen, but we do have to be open to receive the opportunities that the universal energies afford us.
With a Stellium of three or more planets in Scorpio from the 7th through the 15th, when on the 7th Venus enters Scorpio to join Mercury and the Sun in the Fixed Water Sign and until Mercury exits Scorpio to enter Sagittarius on the 15th, it would be wise for us to consider what we can do without, the peripherals of our lives and to focus on what we consider the most important elements of our lives, meanwhile clearing away the debris of our past, the excesses we may have employed and getting lean and mean.
The entrance on the 7th of Venus into Scorpio, where it is in Detriment and not a comfortable Sign for Venus to transit, can ratchet up intensity in our relationships. This intensity could prove especially true around the 15th and 16th, so it would be wise to cut ourselves and other people some slack. If we don’t, certain relationships could suffer even to the point of closure. This could also be a period when the irrational exuberance of recent times, with the sense that the worst is behind us, may seem an illusory fallacy that has only seduced us into a fantasyworld now seen as a figment of smoke and mirrors.
While mid-November could prove dicey and possibly quite stressful, the latter part of the month allows us to consider a rebuilding or a greater philosophical sense in moving forward with our goals and our ambitions. Mercury moves into Sagittarius on the 15th, followed by the Sun on the 21st.
We may have to pick up the pieces, move to a different rhythm and even in a new direction, but let’s always keep in mind the truth to the wisdom teaching that we never get more than we can handle.
The challenges of these times provide the opportunities of these times. We can whittle away excess, break free of indulgences and focus on the accountability and responsibility of our own individual journey. No one, no entity, can do it for us. The journey is ours alone.
While we have this T-Square operational over the next three years, with the Saturn Uranus Pluto interchanges, this T-Square is in the Cardinal Signs and speaks to new beginnings, initiations, allowing ourselves to test the waters before committing.
November is a time to do an inventory taking, focus on what we need, consider what we truly want and then take the steps necessary to clear our path, all with an understanding and appreciation that as we move in the right direction of our life’s journey and embrace our life’s purpose, the tools and the ways will be made known to us.
November… back to basics, then rebuilding…
