We come into October with the Earth Grand Trine still engaged. We may feel competent and highly skilled in what we are able to do. We can combine our visionary intuitive sense with our reasoning critical analysis to develop the most effective and expeditious means to accomplish our goals.
We do need to get a handle on our moods and our emotions and avoid getting carried away with ourselves. Ease of operations does not allow for dismissing vigilance and not staying alert to what is truly going on. Even when everything is operating smoothly, we are living in times when conditions can shift dramatically and suddenly. By being oblivious to what is truly going on, we should expect one body slam after another. What a shame such a situation would be when we have had the opportunity of developing our skill set of navigating the changing currents over the past few years.
The 2nd of October might test our vigilance as Mercury opposes Neptune. What we see may not be what we get, and it would be wise for us to draw upon our critical analysis of any incident and our intuitive sense regarding what is truly going on. If we balance our feeling about things with our reasoning mind, we could draw both upon a visionary projection of how things may turn out and a practical step-by-step approach to realize our goals. Otherwise, we can flip-flop between consciously vetting a situation and determining our sense of the matter based solely on our moods with us ending up in a muddled state of mind.
Whether we got hoodwinked on the 2nd or were able to avoid it, clarity can be a great deal stronger on the 3rd when Mercury trines Pluto. Our mind is likely to be sharp, our ability to cut to the core and get to the essence of the matter astute. Our conversations are likely to be insightful, concise, and to the point. If we have been perplexed by a problem, the solution and resolution could be found under this influence.
Mercury exits its own Sign of Virgo to enter Libra on the 4th of October [8:09 PM EDT]. In so doing, Mercury triggers a Stellium in Libra as Mercury joins the Sun and Mars in the Cardinal Air Sign. People may be considerate of other people, less narcissistic, and more interested in what is going on with the significant people in their life. Discussions could seem friendly with some of the edge of recent times taken off. Relationships may be on an upswing with win-win situations engaged.
The 8th of October can be challenging, both in our physical actions and in our interactions with people. Mars squares Pluto, one of my least favorite astrological configurations since it heightens the liability of people acting out, violent behavior, and explosive incidents. This day also has Venus exiting Leo to enter Virgo [9:11 PM EDT]. Some of the pizzazz we might have felt since June 5th when Venus first entered Leo may be gone, with the Venus in Virgo transitioning into being more critical of other people with an insecure stance of ‘a strong offense is a good defense’.
During the second week of October everyone may seem on edge, the Debbie Downers out in full force, as nothing seems right, everything seemingly wrong.
This mid-month of October could be explosive with people acting out, intense atmospheric storm systems, and the drumbeats of violent behavior increasing in volume and intensity.
Triggered initially on the weekend of the 7th, a long holiday weekend in the US, once referred to as Columbus Day, recently renamed to Indigenous Peoples’ Day, this mid-month has various daunting and taunting energy configurations.
Starting with the Mars square Pluto and Venus entering Virgo on the 8th, the 10th has Venus opposed Saturn and Pluto turning direct [9:10 PM EDT], followed by Mars exiting Libra to enter its own Sign of Scorpio [12:04 AM EDT] on the 12th.
With Pluto going from retrograde to direct motion, we need to be attuned to the liability of explosive situations with atmospheric storm systems, geophysical activity of earthquakes and volcanos, and the foibles of humankind. With Pluto entering Aquarius in late January, we might experience during this autumn more disruptions and even crashes associated with traditional institutions. The cleansings of the past 250 years are not over, but we are likely to see even slight glimmers of the radical changes and revolutions that may be part of the Pluto transit through Aquarius. Dystopia or Utopia, our choice.
This mid-month of October necessitates our girding our loins, being aware and mindful and avoiding immediate reactions to situations until the dust settles. The liability is for people to go off half-cocked, respond rashly to incidents without full disclosure and exert more assertive energy than might be called for.
With life throwing us curveballs now and again, it is suggested that we be astute to changing conditions and adept at whatever comes our way. Even our personal relationships might be dicey. Some people may expect too much from other people. And co-dependency can be thwarting with the neediness of someone seeming like a bottomless pit with enough never being enough.
Even old friendships are liable to be tested as we come to notice the changes we have gone through, the transformations within ourselves, all with increased understanding that things that worked for us before and the people with whom we associated may no longer fit into our new lifestyle.
Mars entering Scorpio on the 12th begins a procession of planets into the Fixed Water Sign as Mars is joined by Mercury on the 22nd and the Sun on the 23rd into Scorpio.
Our physical energy may increase with less waffling or being overly accommodating to other people’s needs. Our intensity can ratchet up with dogged persistence regarding our intentions.
Mars trines Saturn on the 13th of October giving us the will to strip away the non-essential, rid ourselves of the superfluous, and focus on being more effective with less expenditure of energy. No dilly-dallying for us, as we accept our quest of taking machete in hand and carving our own path.
The 14th of October has the Libra New Moon [1:55 PM EDT] and a Solar Eclipse as the Moon conjuncts the Sun. The New Moon influences the next two weeks up to Taurus Full Moon on the 28th.
This two-week period is one when we can entertain various alternatives and doing so with an ability to weigh our options as to whether they are worth our time or just a waste of time. Increasingly, we might consider the ROI [return on investment] regarding investing our resources — time, energy, finances. This concentration would include our activities, our planned projects, even the people with whom we share our time. If things do not work for us and are found wanting, we are likely to cut them from our engagements.
We are seeking the quality in our living, not as concerned for the quantity.
October 20th – 21st could prove problematic. The 20th has the Sun conjunct Mercury and Mercury square Pluto. The 21st has the Sun square Pluto.
Even our most trusted allies might dismiss some of our plans. We may be excited about what we are considering, but we are liable to have neglected the means to achieve our aims. Even if we have strategized what we consider a best practices approach, we could have forgotten something, left out an important specific, and even assumed that our project would have a life of its own and tweak any issues we had not accounted for as we go along. Not everyone may be as forgiving as we are. Hard, cold truths about our intentions can create a contentious atmosphere. We need to avoid enforcing a sentiment of ‘either you’re with me or against me’.
The 20th – 21st is not a time to dream the impossible dream, even if we are tempted to do so.
The more we would cut away the dross both of our involvements and our prospects, the less encumbered and more successful we are likely to be.
The tandem plays of Mercury and the Sun continue the 22nd and the 23rd with Mercury entering Scorpio on the 22nd [2:49 AM EDT], followed by the Sun entering Scorpio on the 23rd [12:21 PM EDT].
The 22nd also has the two ‘good guys’ of the planetary realm, Venus and Jupiter in trine aspect.
A key factor during these times is volatility. The swings of emotion can contribute to ill-conceived behavior. On the one hand, the blatant evidence suggesting conserving one’s resources is countered on the other hand by an emotional response of ‘live for today’. Extremes may be crazy-making, and it would be wise for us to modulate the extremes with engaging an attitude of ‘moderation in all things’.
With Mercury and the Sun entering Scorpio, they create a Stellium in the Fixed Water Sign as they join Mars in Scorpio. The intensity may be ratcheted up, and as these three planets transit through Scorpio, they will later this month and into November oppose the two Taurus-transiting planets of Jupiter and Uranus.
Push – pulls between expenses increased through a rise in inflation [even if inflation seems to moderate, it is important to recognize that inflation figures represent a rate compounded] and a devaluation of fiat currency by the constant press runs of money printing can force us to maintain awareness and be astute regarding our personal financial situation.
The opportunity to get serious about conditions and circumstance is benefitted by the Mercury trine Saturn on the 22nd and the Sun trine Saturn on the 24th. We can prioritize, prepare, and devise ways by which we have monies available for the proverbial ‘rainy day’.
It may be old school to consider rainy days, but generations previously did so and often in consequence of a lack of safety nets such as today’s governmental entitlements, easy credit and ‘buy now, pay later’enticements. It may be ‘old school’ but being prepared for the ups and downs of our personal financial world might be the best approach when the so-called safety nets are seen as being full of holes.
The 28th of October has the Taurus Full Moon [4:24 PM EDT], a Lunar Eclipse, as the Moon opposes the Sun. Mars opposes Jupiter and Mercury opposes Jupiter. Mercury conjuncts Mars on the 29th.
Perhaps it is fortunate that these two days are weekend day, days when the stock markets are closed. Historically, October has seen two of the worst stock market declines. In 1929, on October 28th and 29th, the US stock market fell by about 25%. In 1987, on Black Monday, October 19th, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell by 22.6%. Maybe we’ll avoid a market crash and, if we do, it may be in no small measure due to trading halts and the Plunge Protection Team instituted in 1988.
No matter what the global markets might do at this time, it would be wise for us to be judicious with our finances, avoid heavy financial commitments or debt load and have cash or hard assets on hand.
October ends on the 31st with Venus trine Uranus. No tricks for us on this Halloween, for interesting encounters may offer us tantalizing treats. We do need to be open to the magic of this moment and receptive to unexpected opportunities.
October 2023… from bounty to necessity…
