I loved carousels as a young child, but when my parents finally gave in to my entreaties to learn how to ride a real horse, I lost interest. Grabbing for a brass ring while going around in circles on a wooden sculpture just didn’t compare with riding a live horse on a trail that actually went somewhere. That was gold.
In the upcoming months, we have a chance to trade the brass ring of our daily, repetitive dramas and stultifying habits for the gold of new adventures and discoveries. The astrology of the Spring Equinox shows us the way.
The charts of the equinoxes and solstices are predictive for events and public attitudes and opinions on the big global/national/social stages. But they affect us on an individual level as well — more or less so depending on your personal natal chart.
The upcoming Spring Equinox or Aries Ingress chart is the most hopeful I’ve seen in over a year, and offers plenty of opportunities for beneficial change — but you’ll miss those opportunities if you keep riding around in circles grabbing at random pieces of metal. It’s time to saddle up and get going.
I’ll take a quick detour into the astrology for those who are interested, then we’ll look at upcoming personal, cultural, and political trends and events.
(Astrologers: Remember that the houses of ingress charts will change depending on location. I am using the chart cast for Washington, DC, since it is the capital of the USA. March 20th, 5:38 am EDT. Equal House system.
After four Scorpio-rising cardinal ingress charts in a row we finally get a breath of air with an Aquarius-rising chart and Jupiter closely conjunct the Ascendant.
The Sun’s ruler, Mars, [pay special attention to the Sun’s ruler in an ingress chart. It’s always going to be the same planet year to year — look to its sign, house position, and aspects.] is in Gemini, hanging out in a tight formation with Moon and the North Node, all of which are trine Saturn, Jupiter and the Ascendant, with Moon square Neptune and Mars square Mercury in its detriment/fall.
This configuration is a bit on the anxious and aggravated side, but the trine from Saturn helps settle things down — sort of. And don’t forget for a minute that the Saturn-Uranus square will be in orb all year.)
So yeah, we’re still in the middle of a pandemic, and there’s still a lot of social upheaval and conflict, and the state of the environment is still critical, but the opportunities for beneficial, lasting change are plentiful. The question is how many of us will actually take advantage of them.
The thing about social change is that it ultimately depends on the behavior of individuals. And, while we always influence each other, the only person any individual can truly change is themselves. So let’s take a look at what the astrology suggests about changes we can make in our own lives this season.
Overall, the mood of the zeitgeist is likely to be mostly expansive, optimistic, and forward-looking. Hopefully you’ll find your mood lightening as well. It’s been a tough past year, so take advantage of this energy to actively look for things in your life that bring you joy, and to plan your next steps.
Check to see what ruts you may have fallen into. Sometimes we can get so deep into a rut in one or more areas of our lives that we don’t even realize we have options — we just keep going around in the same circles and ignore the turnoffs we pass, because that well-worn rut carries us along without us having to think much about where we’re going.
The energy of the year definitely does not favor staying in ruts — there will be challenges to face that require new ways of thinking and new ways of interacting.
Specifically, we will be grappling with our ideas of what constitutes material security, and the dawning understanding that the security of money is illusory – it’s the food, shelter, clothing, healthcare, personal safety, and toys that money currently can buy that give us the material security we need.
But if we don’t learn to cooperate, to help each other, to make sure everyone has at least the basics and the health of the environment is prioritized by politicians and corporations, then money will eventually have nothing to buy. Between climate change, resource depletion, and social upheaval with its accompanying violence, we could be in for some very rough times. Or we could come together to create changes that help us all.
Healing begins at home, then extends to healthy communities, and healthy communities are the foundation of a healthy civilization. So take a look around your home this season, and spend some time thinking about how secure you are, and how big a difference community makes in your personal security. Then do what you can to strengthen your home and your community to help make everyone more secure.
You will almost certainly have to break out of some ruts. This will take both courage and thoughtful consideration of your situation and your next steps. Reach out to others and make plans to move forward together.
(Astrologers: Fears about material and community security are built into the ongoing Saturn-Uranus square in Aquarius and Taurus, fixed signs that are resistant to change. But the sextile to Uranus from Mercury in mutable Pisces opens a door to change through empathetic communication and spiritual awareness. This empathy is strengthened by the conjunction of an exalted Venus in Pisces with an exalted Sun in Aries. [Yes, they are combust. For reasons too numerous to go into here, I don’t consider it a problem in this case.]
Sun ruler Mars in Gemini conjunct the Moon and North Node, trine Saturn and square Mercury puts a spotlight on communication and ideas, and Jupiter on the Aquarian ascendant (ruled by Saturn and Uranus!) helps make those ideas and communications expand and take root in the collective mind.)
Communication is something we want to pay close attention to in the upcoming months. Some communications can lead to serious real-world consequences, as we saw on January 6th. While we have easy access to news from around the world, to other people’s ideas and opinions, and places to express our own opinions, our ability to find common ground among all the facts and things pretending to be facts is almost non-existent.
We really need to work on fixing this.
Every single one of us can do our part by taking great care in our own communications to be factual, to check and double-check sources if the information if it is something you’re going to take action on.
It’s always worth working on improving your ability to communicate. Listening carefully is always an effective first step.
Another aspect of life to pay attention to is enjoyment. Even in difficult times, there is beauty, art, and joy to be found in this world if we look for it. (If it wasn’t, the human race probably would have stumbled into extinction out of sheer despair. )
Pay attention to whatever makes life shine for you. Look for what is beautiful, what brings joy, and then showcase it. Let others see it and light their candle from yours. Encourage artists whose work touches you. Find and pursue whatever ignites your own creativity.
(Astrologers: note the Mercury-Mars and Moon-Neptune squares and the exalted Sun-Venus conjunction.)
Looking at the national stage, the likelihood of severe, destructive storms is high. Secure your home as much as possible, listen for weather warnings, and keep at least a couple of weeks’ worth of groceries and other emergency supplies on hand. (Mars, NN, Moon cnj in 4th. Look to house rulers and planetary dispostors for more info)
Politically, the Biden administration should have a lot of popular support. (Jupiter ruling the MC and 11th house and on the AS). But there are hints of antagonism and even violence against members of the administration. (Mars oppose MC)
The scourge of outright lies and fabrications being peddled as news is not going away and the political discourse will continue to feature hyperbole and lies loudly trying to drown out the voices of reason.
On a personal level, we’ll likely be dealing with aggressive attitudes and emotional neediness that is willing to take any comfort it can find, even if that comfort is fed by lies and fantasy.
But I do think we will see the beginnings of effective attempts to counter the lies and conspiracy theories this year. And hopefully we’ll get a clue that a solid, well-structured public education system that teaches our young citizens at least the basics of critical thinking is a necessity, not a luxury, and take steps to make that happen.
(Looking at this chart in a bi-wheel with the Sibly USA chart, we see Mars (Sun ruler) on natal Uranus, Moon on natal Mars, Pluto return almost partile, and Jupiter crosses the natal Moon three times this year [April, August, December])
While there is a lot of optimism in the air in the coming months, and good reasons for it, we’ll also be seeing destructive behavior and stunts that could turn violent.
We are living through the death throes of late-stage capitalism, and as the system’s weaknesses become more and more apparent, as social structures fall apart, we are going to need to pay a lot more attention to what we will replace them with. Informed, active citizens are what make democracy work. Be one.
The ongoing Saturn-Uranus square speaks to trauma and also to the current evolutionary drama of fossil fuel technology, extractive resource mining, and the accompanying pollution and climate change that will — one way or another — catapult the human race into crisis. How we handle that crisis — each and every one of us — will make a difference.
The clouds are clearing, and we can see the path ahead. It holds challenges and obstacles. It also holds beauty and creative breakthroughs. Climb out of your rut and find the path ahead. Don’t settle for the brass ring.
Blessings of the season to you!
