Imbolc to Ostara 2008(February 2nd - March 21)

Yes, yes, Mercury is retrograde, can you tell? The update is late!

With any luck, this Mercury retrograde in Aquarius – touched by an eclipse, happening while Venus and Jupiter are strutting together through Capricorn, and nudged by Mars going direct in communicative Gemini – will finally lead to a grassroots backlash against the repetitive, nauseating coverage of celebrity shenanigans in the media, and stimulate some substantive discussion about the problems we are facing in the world. Or perhaps I am being too optimistic.

Whatever, remember that Mercury retrograde is not all bad. It can be helpful if you are revisiting issues/situations that should have been resolved in the past, but weren’t. But don’t lose sight of its usual reputation for communications breakdowns, and double-check all emails, contracts, etc. Since it is in Aquarius, major technology breakdowns are also probable. It turns direct on February 19th.

Pluto moved into Capricorn a few days before Imbolc, and, after a brief retreat into Sagittarius during the summer and fall of this year, it will be in Capricorn until 2024. During this time, we’ll see deep transformation of governments and large institutions, and the corporatocracy that seems to have finally consolidated its hold on us by working hand-in-glove with world governments, may (hopefully!) crumble to the ground. What we will build from the rubble Pluto leaves in its wake as it goes through Capricorn is something we should all be thinking about long and hard. Uranus and Neptune in mutual reception continue to support creative and spiritual envisioning of the future – look where those transits are happening in your chart to help determine in what areas of your life you might seek visions for yourself and the world.

The “Aries Point” (AP), which is 0 degrees of the cardinal signs, is a particularly sensitive spot in the Zodiac, and Mars will trigger Pluto at the AP early in March. Mars and Pluto tend to be an explosive combination – look for major issues of power and authority brought to the forefront on a world stage and in your personal life. I suspect we may also see issues of energy usage brought to our attention in a big way – particularly nuclear.

This period also encompasses two eclipses (they always occur in pairs), a solar (new Moon) eclipse at 18° Aquarius, and a lunar (full Moon) eclipse at 2° Virgo. These are powerful, total eclipses, and are closely aligned with Neptune in Aquarius and Saturn in Virgo. As always, check the house position and planetary contacts of all these transits in your own chart to determine the areas of your life that will be affected.