The Daily Astro for September 11, 2013

by Valerie Sylvester

TODAY’S ASPECTS:

The Moon moves into Sagittarius at 2:36 PM EDT. As noted yesterday, Venus enters Scorpio (2:16 AM EDT), and Mars inconjuncts Pluto ( 2:39 AM EDT)in the wee small hours. Mercury in early Libra is making its way towards the Uranus (Aries) and Pluto (Capricorn) square, which will lead to the formation of a dynamic cardinal T-square. Pallas (Athena) has just moved from Cancer to Leo, and The Moon in Sagittarius will trine Mars in Leo and Uranus in Aries, thus forming a Fire Grand Trine. The Moon is in aspect with all the “female” asteroids, including the above-mentioned Pallas, plus Vesta, Juno, and Ceres. Pluto is making its determined way from retrograde to direct motion (September 20). We’re also building up a few other interesting aspect patterns that will become exact in a few days. There’s a lot in the works, and it may be hard to keep track of everything.

Fortunately, the Moon in Sagittarius, busy whirring around that Fire Grand Trine with Mars and Uranus, is always looking for new frontiers. Fire energy likes to move forward, fast. With Uranus and Mars, we’re tinkering with the engine so we can take the vehicle out for a spin to uncharted territories. We’re interested in customizing our ride now, finishing up with a fluorescent sparkle finish topcoat! Mercury entering that Cardinal T-square is going to break your mind wide open, so you might as well go for a test run now. We need new ideas, inventors, futurists, people who can look beyond the morass of the present.

Even though we may have started the day off overwhelmed, overemotional, overenthusiastic or just over it all (Moon with Jupiter at 2:49 AM EDT; Mercury inconjunct Neptune at 6:43 AM EDT; Moon square Neptune at 8:44 AM EDT), don’t wallow or get distracted and let the day slip away because you get distracted by shiny objects. Boundaries may be too permeable today, but if someone oversteps yours, just tell them politely to back off. There may be a few snake-oil salesmen slithering around; don’t sample their wares.

The Moon sextiles Mercury at 9:01 AM EDT, which helps clear up the brain fog just in time for the 9-5, so be pleasant to colleagues; people are inclined to share information and ideas. A Moon/Mars contraparallel at 12:02 PM EDT isn’t exactly wonderful for lunchtime digestion. Somebody’s in hyperdrive; maybe they have chicken salad instead of tuna salad in their lunchbox today and it pisses them off.

I noted earlier that the Moon is aspecting the female archetype asteroids today, and that Pallas has just moved into Leo, where it squares Venus in Scorpio (a touch of dark, dramatic attraction). Astrologer/musician Alan L. Lin has an interesting page on Pallas and he characterizes Pallas/Venus connections as representing “the ability to ‘weaponize’ or strategically employ one’s attractiveness and charm, perhaps to advance one’s career.” With Venus in Scorpio, we’re talking “deadlier than the male” sirens here, like the women who ran rampant in the film noir genre. Moon in Sagittarius opens the door to a wider and wilder world, and with Pallas the warrior leading the charge, we may find that women are fighting back in order to claim or regain lost rights or combat abusive/misogynst behavior. The goddesses are on the move!

Venus is also heading towards Saturn and the North Node, so we may see the rise of a seriously charismatic figure in the women’s rights arena. This is also “relationship karma”, so it may be time to get serious about which relationships are true soul connections with deep roots and which ones need to be dramatically pruned or tossed on the compost heap. Venus is about what we love and what we value, and Saturn = what stands the test of time, so we’re getting serious about what’s truly important and don’t have time for the trivial.

This afternoon and evening can be quite lively, if you’re open to new ideas. The Moon aspects Saturn (4:35 PM EDT) and Pluto (6:10 PM EDT). Don’t go dark, but use these powerful energies as a lever to hoist yourself towards your deepest desires. Remember that Fire Sign Grand Trine? The Moon trines Mars at 6:54 PM EDT–let the brainstorming begin, and follow it up with a burst of action if you want to see results. The Moon trines Uranus at 10:13 PM EDT. This is an incredibly free-spirited combination that “needs space”. Eliminate restrictions that would impede a free flow and see what happens. Do something new that breaks you out of your normal routine; a little bit of strange can stir up the waters and jumpstart creative abilities. Don’t be afraid to be an alien and go way, WAY out.

THE SYMBOLS:

Sabian Symbol for today’s SUN: “An automobile caravan.”

Kozminsky Symbol for today’s SUN: “A great grey warship with her decks cleared ready for action.” (Influence is MARS.)

The Keyword for the Sabian Symbol is: “VARIETY.”

The Keyword for the Kozminsky Symbol is: “PURPOSE.”

I’m not thrilled about the symbol combination today as a predictor of world events. The Kozminsky Symbol shows a warship stripped down and ready to move, and the Sabian Symbol features a group of people mobilized and in the midst of a journey. The Kozminsky brings to mind the image of U.S. warships moving through the waters of the Middle East as a harbinger of war. It’s under the influence of Mars, a god of war and strife. The Sabian Symbol could be seen as a group of people on a carefree vacation or a gathering of forces, a mobilization of effort that involves a group of people. Since the Moon’s in Sagittarius, perhaps a coalition from many nations can come up with a solution that obviates the need for all-out war.

Even if it doesn’t directly relate to something building up to a crisis point in the world, these two symbols do tell us we need to plan ahead and remove encumbrances and clutter from our lives in order to move ahead. The Kozminsky Symbol keyword is “purpose” and relates to a goal or ideal that is held which drives us to action. We may be “deployed” without warning, and need to be prepared. Kozminsky says this degree “denotes one who has strong magnetic force and knows where to use it” (which reminds me of our Venus/Pallas square!) There’s also a warlike or pugnacious (Mars, baby!) element in play here, and a warning about pushing things too far. We may have to follow through on our threats, which can escalate the situation. It can also indicate the need for a “show of strength” in order to keep others from taking advantage of a situation or another person.

The Sabian Symbol has a Moon in Sagittarius vibe–it’s about expansion, moving on, traveling out of our usual sphere, being a vagabond, and finding “fellow travelers”. It relates to team spirit and working with others towards a common goal. The experience is enhanced when we share it with others. This Symbol tells us that today’s the time to get rolling, so if there’s anything you’ve been thinking about doing, get to it! Sometimes doing things with groups of people is more fun than going it alone. The down side of this symbol is aimless wandering, traveling without a goal or plan, being rootless, or putting things off or refusing to commit to something. If your spirits lag, find someone enthusiastic to fire you up again.

THE DAILY DRAW:

6 of Pentacles / 9 of Wands

“Karma Balancer.” Here’s a real “port in the storm” combination. We receive help just when we need it. The Sabian Symbol shows a caravan setting off–the 9 of Wands is that caravan after traveling some very rough roads. We’re still going, but have hit a few potholes along the way. We’re going to finish the journey, thanks to a financial or practical assistance. This combo is about give and take, repayment for something you’ve done in the past when you had to “pay your dues”. These two say: “Always ask for help and it will be there when you need it most.” There’s a “lucky”, Jupiterian element to both these cards (and the Moon is in Sagittarius which is ruled by Jupiter). We’re at the end of a cycle and balancing our accounts. On the mundane level it could be a gift, windfall, or loan coming through in September, or someone offers us a lucrative new position at the point when we’ve decided we need to leave our current job. Other people believe in us and support us because of our track record. Perseverance due to strong core values gets us through a crisis period. Faith in difficult times. Inner security no matter what’s going on in the outer world. A mentor; being guided through a difficult journey.