We come into November under the dampening effect of the start of the Mercury retrograde. The next three weeks into November 20th has us mired in Mercury retrograde with its web of confusion, misunderstandings, deceptions and illusions. Welcome to the fun house!
Being in Scorpio, this Mercury retrograde may highlight talk with little substance and pontifications without empirical evidence to back them up. Areas likely to be discussed during this three-week retrograde may include talk about impending recession, housing slowdowns, staggering debt and monumental deficits, and war-like overtures. People may be on edge, intense, and liable to lose it without a moment’s notice.
Throw in the influence of the curveballs from the Scorpio New Moon back on the 27th of October when the Sun Moon conjunction opposed Uranus, and certainly the first two weeks of November can test our strength of character and our ability to keep it together.
Perhaps the best suggestion for the first two weeks of November would be to engage the 5 D’s of Dodgeball: dodge, duck, dip, dive and dodge.
A saving grace on the 1st of November may be Venus exiting Scorpio and entering Sagittarius. Not only does Venus end the Stellium in Scorpio, but the Venus entry into Sagittarius can make our relationships more upbeat and more fun with us seeking out good times with good friends for some grand adventures. We are all less secretive, less jealous, and feeling more inspired. It’s not a case of ‘misery loves company’, but rather the ability to have a broader perspective and see beyond our own narrow constructs. We are interested in the experiences and exploits of those people different from our own experiences and exploits.
The 5th of November has another of my least favorite energy configurations — an adverse aspect between Mars and Pluto, as Mars squares Pluto. My least favorite aspect for air travel, travel of any kind, communications and high technology functionality is an adverse aspect between Mercury and Uranus. An adverse aspect between Mars and Pluto is more physical with the liability of explosive behavior, violent actions, and bomb blasts. These are times when people are likely to be acting out, and when atmospheric systems provide violent storms, and when geophysical phenomena of volcanoes and earthquakes are active. One cannot stress enough that under this energy configuration of Mars square Pluto it is essential to avoid knee-jerk reactions, apply braking action, and not give way to a sense of being on a runaway train.
Whether we can avoid or fall prey to reckless behavior on the 5th, November 8th and 9th provide the energy configurations to pick up the pieces or make amends for earlier outlandish behavior.
The 8th of November has the Sun sextile Saturn, Sun trine Neptune, and Saturn sextile Neptune. This is a day when we can blend our spiritual with our practical. There is a wise and old saying, often lost in today’s society, that advises: ‘render unto Caesar that which is Caesar’s and unto God that which is God’s.’ This Friday allows us to do just that. Our inner world may be in harmony with our external self. We could have a sense of alignment whereby what we are doing in the physical world meshes nicely with our soul journey. Our intuitive sense may provide foresight and a certain ‘knowing without knowing’, thereby allowing us to create the right template, engage the right moves to accomplish our goals.
This harmonious integration is followed on Saturday the 9th of November by Mercury sextile Pluto. Our understanding of situations can be spot on. We could strip away the dross and the decorative to get to the heart of what is truly going on. Our mind is sharp, our communications concise and to the point, and our compassion for our fellow beings heightened. If an issue has been perplexing, this is a time when we can see the fundamentals of the matter and devise the most effective approach to a successful resolution.
These two days of November 8th and 9th are likely to have us highly productive and being far more effective with less expenditure of energy.
Once we get beyond the 5th of November with its liability to explosions and intense blasts, the following eight days are relatively smooth sailing, and days when we are more centered, more in our own body, and consequently more in tune with what we need to do and what we want to do.
The 11th of November has the Sun conjunct Mercury. If we would restrain our desires to make things happen and to be in control of our circumstance, then our inner voice and our inner knowing can guide us wisely and adeptly. We may have the ability to create greater comfort in our life. We might even have a spiritual awakening. Whether we go off on a spiritual retreat or just turn inward, we could gain sustenance and clarity by engaging quiet times, turning away from the distractions and diversions and being one with our own spirit and our soul.
The 12th has the Taurus Full Moon and Mars sextile Jupiter. If we used some ‘down time’ to be quiet, receptive and just listen, then this Full Moon could heighten our ability to put spirit into action. As if fortified by an appreciation of our own life path, we can be determined to move ahead with our plans and goals, knowing that we are on the right track and headed in the right direction. More comfortable in our own self, our relationships can also improve. Not interested in one-upping anyone, we can better appreciate the qualities in someone else as we are fully appreciating our own personal characteristics.
The 11th through the 13th of November are powerful days, days when we might feel more complete and more capable of dealing with the vagaries of life during these highly disruptive times. Not only may we acknowledge the truth to the wise admonition that ‘we never get more than we can handle’. We could also recognize that we can easily navigate the storm-tossed seas and turn the most problematic situations to our benefit.
The 13th of November has Mercury sextile Saturn, Mercury trine Neptune, and the Sun sextile Pluto. By drawing upon our intuitive sense and our practical knowledge, we can refocus our involvements with a concentration on the most meaningful. All of us are going through a metamorphosis, a transformation. We can either go through this dramatic change in a subtle manner whereby we gradually shift and change in accord with our own individual unfolding. Or some people may go through these changes in exaggerated ways, kicking and screaming as they shift from who they have been into who they are becoming. Let’s keep in mind that few people easily incorporate significant change. Yet change is in the process of occurring.
While the 11th through the 13th can be primo days for us, and more so the more we embrace this integration of spirit and action; the 14th of November raises issues and issues around how we are relating to other people. Venus squares Neptune on the 14th. As though there is greater transparency and greater clarity, we might strip away some of the illusions we have regarding someone, and someone may do the same to us. We could experience a disappointment if we have given the wrong person the benefit of the doubt. This is a day when we might either buy into the Wizard of Oz screen or pull back the curtain to reveal who is pulling the strings. As a spiritual teacher of mine repeatedly said of those working on themselves: ‘Life doesn’t get easier, only clearer.’
And so it may be on the 14th of November with the Venus square Neptune. With our perceptions sharpened, we are less likely to be sold a bill of goods… unless we choose to make the purchase.
The 19th of November has Mars exiting Libra to enter Scorpio. Mars is moving out of a Sign in which it is in Detriment and moving into a Sign that Mars co-rules with Pluto. Our physical energy and our martial intents are heightened. We briefly have a Stellium in the Fixed Water Sign as Mars joins Mercury and the Sun in Scorpio.
This intensity is heightened on the 20th as Mercury ends its three-week retrograde cycle and turns direct. With Mars in Scorpio and Mercury turning direct we have a powerful and passionate energy at play. If we are triggered, our response could be too hot to handle.
On the 22nd, the Sun ends this brief Stellium in Scorpio as the Sun exits Scorpio to enter Sagittarius. While the past month may have had us persistent and determined, we may also have been secretive and keeping things to our self. The move of the Sun into the Mutable Fire Sign has the Sun triggering a Stellium in Sagittarius as the Sun joins Venus and Jupiter in the Mutable Fire Sign. We are likely to be thinking about coming out of our self-imposed shell, spreading our wings and broadening our activities.
Stretch is one thing but a huge leap something else. The 24th of November can have us intending a great leap forward. The ‘two good guys’ of the planetary realm, Venus and Jupiter, are conjunct. Enough might not be enough, and too much might still be not enough. The liability to excess and indulgence cannot be denied. And with Mars opposed Uranus on the same day the liability is heightened with a tendency towards being accident-prone. We can be impulsive, operating on blind faith, and assuming that we can lunge forward with no dire consequences only beneficial results. What an error in judgment that would be!
Similar to the short-lived Stellium in Scorpio, the Sagittarius stellium is short-lived as Venus exits Sagittarius to enter Capricorn on the 25th. The movement of Venus into Capricorn triggers a Stellium in Capricorn as Venus joins Saturn and Pluto in the Cardinal Earth Sign. Our interactions might have a purpose — what can our contacts and connections do to help us advance our plans and achieve our goals?
The Sagittarius New Moon on the 26th can have us getting into holiday gear. We may be interested in what is going on with people far from our local environment. Reaching out to family and friends who live at a distance could have us texting, emailing or chatting up people with whom we have had little recent contact.
Neptune turns direct on the 27th with Mercury trine Neptune on the 28th. Venus also trines Uranus on this day, which in the US is Thanksgiving. Conversations can be intriguing discussions and might make us aware of how perceptive we truly are. There can also be serendipitous encounters, meeting up with people as if bumping into them unexpectedly. This can be an exhilarating time, and a time to keep aware of all sorts of possibilities, even the seemingly impossible.
Whatever we gleaned from this Thursday, we could put into practical application on Saturday, the 30th of November. Mercury sextiles Saturn and our foresight and vision can blend nicely in practical application. This is a time when we can resolve certain matters and explore new trajectories for ourselves.
November 2019… time to adapt, time to grow…
