Current Transits for December 2000 Current Transits for December 2000Here's some of the important astrological news this month ...
Sun conjunct Pluto, 12-14
Chiron octile Neptune, 12-5
Jupiter trine Neptune, 12-9
Full Moon at 19Gm38, 12-11
Juno enters Pisces, 12-17
Sun conjunct Galactic Center, 12-18
Mars enters Scorpio, 12-23
New Moon / Partial Solar Eclipse at 4Cp14, 12-25
An online ephemeris for the month is available.
I expect that December will be even more of a chaotic challenge than November was. There's a lot of outer planet activity (especially Neptune, the planet of illusion) going on this month, which usually turns all our plans on their heads. The new moon on Christmas is also a partial solar eclipse, as well as part of one of the strongest planetary storms all year -- that'll make for quite a crazy time! More subtly, December (particularly around the 18th) is the time each year when the Galactic Center point is activated, pulling in some very "other-worldly" influences that inspire and illuminate us, assuming you can make any sense of these rarified vibrations. All this should add extra stress to the usual holiday hussle and bussle, so try to slow down and stay focused on the basics. Pay attention to those intuitive messages percolating through your brain -- the information may come in useful later.
Thank goodness the waveform is weak and disorganized now. I've been paying attention to the annual Sun conjunct Pluto for about 9 or 10 years now, since its effects are often so powerful. If you've got any unresolved traumas, suppressed emotions or other skeletons hiding in your closet, this conjunction seems to bring them to the surface in exaggerated form. I've been in workshops over the years that have ground to a complete halt until the group sat down and talked through these paralyzing feelings. It's uncanny to see this happen year after year. Let me suggest a few hints for getting through these few days. First, even though the conjunction is exact and most potent on the 4th, it's actually active for about a week before and a week (maybe two, because of Chiron) after that. Second, this is your unconscious speaking, not "you" (the ego) personally. There may be weird, extreme, and unfamiliar behaviors and feelings bubbling up that are shocking and painful, sometimes even cruel. These are for educational purposes only, to show you what's really going on in your psyche. So three, don't feel you have to act or make decisions based on what's bubbling up right now. 24 hours from now, it'll be something completely different. If you act prematurely, a bad situation could cascade into something much worse as one person's worst case nightmare triggers the other to respond in kind. Before you know it, a cry for help or understanding has escalated into all out war. If you wait, mulling over all the various points of view that are coming up, you can make a more reasoned and effective response later. Take it slow and easy and with a little levity. Being too serious now is deadly. Other than that, have fun...
Chiron is octile Neptune on the 5th, a quick, single pass contact. This starts the tail-end of a cycle that began at the end of World War II with their conjunction on 1945-9-3 (5Li15) and ends 2010-2-17 (26Aq15). Neptune is the Dreamer, the open heart center, the power to transform ideals into reality. It rules the intangible elements of our lives, the subtle energies and currents that create the fabric of our lives for better or worse. In a culture like ours, dreams are the realm of children, idiots and fools, something that is not as valuable as more tangible concerns, unless of course, dreams can be put in the service of making money (e.g., the movie industry). We don't really pay much attention to our dreams, while ideals have become subservient to ideology. Any power of the psyche that is not appreciated recedes into the unconscious, where it relies on mischief to gain what attention it can. Perhaps this is why we have such trouble making our dreams come true instead of our worst fears. This stressful octile from Chiron focuses on how we've rejected our pursuit of ideals, how we've closed our hearts, how we've tuned out the magic of living. The ecstacy of childhood has faded into the mundane realities of adulthood, the fire has gone out of life as we've stuffed all those experiences into that "closet in the unconscious" where all rejected traits go. I've seen in many of my astrological readings for people that somewhere in mid-life, people start asking where all the "juice" in life has gone, leading them to gingerly open that closet and take a peek inside. One of the things they find hiding in there is that child full of wonder about the world that has been neglected all those years and never given a chance to grow up. Chiron reminds us that the contents of our closet are actually the most profound gifts we have to offer the world, if we only have the courage to reclaim them. At the very least, just remember them from time to time, keeping the mystery alive.
Jupiter is trine Neptune on the 9th for the second of 3 times. The first contact was on 7-27 (between 2 eclipses) and the final contact will be 2001-4-5. I believe this aspect softens the effects of the Chiron-Neptune contact on the 5th -- in fact, Jupiter (at 4Gm36) and Neptune (4Aq36) form a helpful Grand Trine with the original 1945 conjunction. The trine expands our mental horizons and removes conceptual barriers, thus allowing a subtle shift of consciousness. It may be hard to describe and may not seem like much to another -- neither Jupiter nor Neptune are known for detailed, concrete explanations. They go for the big picture, the panoramic view, more of a feeling or an intuition than a rigid concept. Perhaps this is nothing more than a feeling of optimism and euphoria, but that in itself can make you look at the world differently. It's a good time to reach out to others, more at a mental level than emotional perhaps, since the "boundaries" between people are easily transcended now. Just be careful to keep one foot on the ground through all this, since Neptune is also a planet of deception or illusion. Channel all that idealistic energy into something practical -- it should be easier to bring it into reality. Enjoy the pleasurable mood of this upbeat power.
I think my first thought when looking at the full moon was, "What a lopsided chart!" With 5 planets in Sagittarius and 5 more in Aquarius , most of the action is all on one side of the chart. Saturn in Taurus and Jupiter-Moon in Gemini have a tough time balancing all that out. Such a pattern, called a "Bucket" , places a strong emphasis on these loner planets, since they must slow down what is essentially a runaway train. There are also two main groups of planets at work here, clustered at 4 and 19 degrees. We're about 14 hours away from the Sun-Chiron conjunction at 20Sa14.
On the election front, tommorrow is the "drop dead date" for Florida's decision. Jupiter and Saturn seem to be struggling to make the creaky machinary of democracy and our society work in a situation it was never designed for. All decision making processes have grey areas, blind spots, and a margin of error that comes from poor human planning and a perverse, Trickster aspect of material reality that transcends mere logic. This is normally not a problem, but combine it with the Mercury station on 11-7 and the system breaks down, or at least backs up to Plan B. Those 5 Sag planets seem to symbolize the crucial role of the courts, since it's their job to separate the grey areas into black and white, creating "truth" and "facts" where none existed. The Sun between Pluto and Chiron is showing us some unsavory parts of the national psyche -- what will we do about it?
On the personal front, there's a lot of light, airy energy here. It's a good time for blue-sky thinking and playing with ideas. Just remember that much of this game is going on unconsciously, with game pieces that you can't see clearly. What may seem clear at first is actually much more convoluted than you can imagine. You may be fired up (literally) and ready to explore, displaying a lot of optimism and enthusiasm, but I'd suggest holding back a little. Because of all that "below the surface" activity of the outer planets, you need to give your intuition some time to size up the situation and feed you reliable information to act on. The emotions coming up may be hard to decipher or even repressed outright (there's practically no water in this chart!), so you may not know what you really feel about the situation. Pull back from the busy-ness of life to get in touch with your quiet center from time to time if you want to stay on an even keel in the midst of the chaos.
Juno moves from Aquarius (after a 10 month stay) into Pisces on the 17th. This can either be a time when love relationships blossom or else turn into an emotional prison. At its highest, this placement brings out the most beautiful, idealistic and supportive sides of love and commitment to a partner. This is selfless love and a merging of souls without parallel. On the other hand, Pisces often has a bit of the martyr or victim in it. Old patterns of being a victim in love can come oozing out of the woodwork now, leading to poisonous emotions that can kill a love. Jealousy and (barely) suppressed rage are common with Juno spurned, as she has no tolerance for unfair or deceitful relationships. This period requires the utmost of honesty, since any confusion in communications will likely spiral into a messy situation. Make sure arrangements are not only fair and equitable, but unmistakeably so -- it's easy for unfounded suspicions to grow. This is a tricky time for partners, so strive for the best. Juno enters Aries on 2001-2-18.
Is it a coincidence or a cosmic joke that the Electoral College votes today? Two years ago today, it was the House impeachment vote. Every year about this time, the Sun passes over the Galactic Center (currently at 26Sa51). As I get to know about this point more, I'm fascinated by its deep, "spiritual" qualities, although most people can barely tune into these energies. Astronomers now believe there's a giant black hole in there about 2 million times more massive than our own Sun that is constantly sucking energy and matter out of our view -- what a symbol for the deep unconscious! Scholars now think one of the functions of the Mayan calendar, temple sites and mythology was to track the GC and help initiates tune into it -- for them, this black hole energy was a powerful God. Today, we say it has an astrological influence on us -- same thing. There's often something very unworldly about these few days, as we move through a reality that's much vaster than our mundane concerns -- pay attention to your intuitions and daydreams! The GC is often associated with our scientific and technological breakthroughs, especially aviation and space flight -- this is the 97th anniversary of the first plane flight at Kitty Hawk. Breakthroughs in consciousness are also likely now. Note that Mercury also passes over the GC, on the 20th, so our mental circuitry is being primed for handling some new input shortly. More interestingly, Chiron first hits the GC (3 times total) on Valentine's Day, really shaking up our connections to the deeper self. I'm still mulling this one over...
Mars enters Scorpio on the 23rd. You can almost hear the Warrior God sighing in relief as he escapes Libra. Not that there's anything wrong with Libra, but a guy whose motto is "Me First!" has a tough time in the sign of relationships and diplomacy. Mars has an affinity for Scorpio, although this placement can be more moody and emotional than he's used to. The passions burn hot and will power is strong. Just be careful you don't get so tied up in your inner emotional storms that you become ineffectual on the outside. It's a good time to get to the bottom of things, although you have to tone it down if you tangle with someone else -- some of the feelings may not be too pretty. Besides, with everyone's egos set to kill, not stun, it's easy to get into butting heads. Having said all that, if you can avoid the traps, this can be a powerful, moving time, especially for relationships with a passionate or sexual side. Incidentally, Mars goes over the 11-7 Mercury direct station point (29Li56) that fouled up the election so badly early today. Why do I get the feeling that there will still be election aftershocks even at this late date? Mars slips into Sagittarius on 2001-2-14, just in time for Valentine's day.
The new moon on Christmas Day is notable on two counts. First, we are coming off the most powerful Koz Alert all month (it peaks at 571 units early in the morning), so there's a lot of energy going on now. Second, this is a partial solar eclipse, visible throughout most of North America (except Alaska). Here in the Minneapolis area, the Sun is half obscured at mid-day (it might be fun to go outdoors and observe it). The core pattern in this chart is another Yod centered at 3 degrees; a secondary pattern pops up at 20 degrees.
The eclipse degree (4Cp14) is close to the winter solstice, one of the most powerful times of the year. This Christmas present to us is a hint to get busy in the coming months and make some practical, down-to-earth changes in your life. If you apply the disciplined effort consistently, good results are likely to follow. Relationships with loved ones may be up in the air, but if you step back a bit and look over the problems dispassionately, you may find some unexpected solutions to the problems. Good communications are vital now, as situations change quickly in a confusing manner, and the deeper issues that are sabotaging your efforts are beginning to emerge. If you just talk things out, much of the hassle can be avoided completely. Feel free to withdraw from the fray if matters get too heated, however. This is a time of Light and Rebirth, helping the quiet Child within to come into this world. Take some time to listen for him...