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There are many challenges connected with being a professional astrologer, but blessedly getting older is not one of them. Unlike runway models, athletes, and rock stars, a few “credibility lines” on the face only enhance our plausibility in the role.

Another plus is that, the older you get, the more transits you have personally experienced. No one asks a teenager about the second Saturn return!  Let’s celebrate this under-appreciated dimension of our field. Not old yet? Well, maybe you aspire to be . . .

We hope you enjoy this keynote presentation from the 2013 NORWAC conference. 

by Tony Howard

Mars buddied up with Saturn in Capricorn at the end of March, and almost instantly I started hearing from friends whose charts are triggered by this aspect. One friend with transiting Mars-Saturn squaring her natal Pluto wrote, “I’m feeling confronted with this left, right and center.” You can hear Mars in the word “confronted” and the overwhelm feeling that can be associated with any transit to Pluto. So let’s work out how to respond to this energy in a constructive way.

Last year I was invited to speak about Mars to Frank Clifford’s London School of Astrology. As part of my lecture, I spoke about Mars-Saturn aspects in the natal chart. After looking at some Mars-Saturn charts in preparation, the word “tenacious” came to mind. So I Googled quotes with the word “tenacious” and amazingly, the first three quotes were all spoken by prominent people with Mars-Saturn aspects.

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Mars, currently in Sagittarius, enters Capricorn on March 17^th, joining Saturn and Pluto there. Interestingly, around the same time, it also goes “out of bounds,” crossing south of the Sun’s most southerly possible declination. Mars remains in that strange, volatile “OOB” condition until early April. On April 1, it forms its conjunction with Saturn. Finally, back within bounds, it catches up with Pluto on April 26^th.    

It promises to be a colorful few weeks.

Before I attempt to unravel all this moving symbolism, first let’s have a quick word about what it means when a planet goes out of bounds just so we are all up to speed. It’s an easy concept – imagine Earth’s equator projected onto the heavens. Planets are usually above it or below it, just like New York is north of Buenos Aires and they lie on either side of the equator. In the sky, what we call “latitude” here on Earth is called “declination.”

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"A Man Born Before His Time"
by Vernon Robinson

Bayard Rustin was the chief strategist for Martin Luther King’s famous march on Washington, but he was also a behind-the-scenes force in various rights movements, including Civil Rights, Labor Rights and Gay Rights. A man born before his time, he was a black, gay, pacifist (WWII), radical at a time when each of those identities worked against the grain of the dominant culture. He believed in changing the status quo to have a more democratic and equal society. Rustin has not been as well-known as other historical figures, perhaps because of his sexuality and the times he lived in, but also because others in the movement considered him a liability. We’ll talk about that shortly.

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by Steven Forrest

“In like a lion, out like a lamb” is a proverb generally associated with the month of March.  Blame it on global warming, but I think we will see that happy transition occurring a little earlier this year, in February.  And I am not exactly talking about weather reports.  The warming trend I am expecting is in the human heart.  The month begins with an unusual concentration of energies in feisty, often-contrarian Aquarius. By mid-month, we begin to see a mass migration into milder Pisces.

Let’s look at the astrological specifics for starters, then dive into their meaning and purpose.

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Saturn has begun its three-year passage through Capricorn. The King has returned to his own land, in other words. In a way, it’s Judgement Day, but don’t worry – if you’ve lived with integrity, you’ll be rewarded. (That coin has another side, however.)

In our December newsletter and podcast Steven looked into the mirror of history,  exploring some of the past events that illustrate this epochal transit. He reflected on its current collective significance in the larger world. That free offering provides a solid foundation for the deeper material he's just recorded for a new audio download.

In this new recording, Steven offers a more intimate perspective. What does Saturn’s return to Capricorn mean for you personally?

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by Steven Forrest

Saturn is the planet that gives us the ability to do what we do not feel like doing. When was the last time you felt like going to the dentist? Or cleaning the house? But consider the consequences if you simply decide to blow off those little duties.

Well, your personal “forever” is likely to be shorter and less pleasant.

If Saturn could Tweet, here is what it would say: Every action, wise or foolish, has consequences. Now do whatever you want.

Capricorn is similar in nature. Up here in the northern hemisphere, the Sun’s entry into the sign of the Sea-Goat signals winter’s beginning. And in winter, in order to survive, we must do many things that have nothing to do with satisfying our immediate appetites: getting out of bed even though it’s cold, for starters.  Chop the wood, shovel the snow. Make 678 beans last until the Big Thaw . . . whenever that decides to happen.

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COMING SOON TO A SKY NEAR YOU --
DON’T MISS THE BIG VENUS-JUPITER CONJUNCTION!

Are any of you out there in the mood to get out of bed before sunrise on November 13th?  Or maybe you’re a night owl. Then it might be better just to stay up all night and catch the late show that way?

Either way, there’s a rare visual treat in store. That night, the two brightest planets in the sky – Jupiter and Venus – will very nearly merge into one single blinding light. This is an unusual event. It is actually one of the many possibilities cited for what the famous “Star of Bethlehem” might have been.

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When Jupiter, the reigning heavyweight champion of the solar system, enters a new sign, stand back – the “gravity” of the symbolism is going to pull a lot of events into its synchronistic orbit. Jupiter crossing such a line is the main event this month, as it enters Scorpio. Jupiter takes about twelve years to orbit the Sun, spending an average of one year in each sign. It entered Libra on September 9, 2016. The passage into Scorpio occurs on October 10. After that, it remains there until it crosses the Sagittarian frontier on November 8, 2018.

Jupiter’s principle effect is to expand anything it touches. It symbolizes abundance – hence, its historical reputation as the “Greater Benefic.” But before we leap into paroxysms of ecstasy here, let’s reflect on exactly what Lord Jupiter is going to be expanding. The answer lies in the symbolism of Scorpio, and as in all things astrological, there’s good news and bad news.  Better said, there are ways to get it right and ways to get it wrong.

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I got a worried email from a student of mine this morning. He had a client who had experienced transiting Uranus conjunct her Moon, but “nothing had happened.” He was concerned and embarrassed that his predictions had failed. I offered him a few possible explanations. As I responded to him, I realized that his question would be a fine topic for our newsletter and podcast this month.

The first point I want to make will sound pretty dogmatic, but I do believe it to be true: astrology never fails. I would quickly add that astrologers themselves often fail, but that is a different issue. Astrology is fundamental to how the universe operates. Astrology failing would be like gravity failing.

But astrologers’ predictions sometimes do fail and it behooves us not to be afraid of acknowledging that fact and perhaps learning something from it. There are a lot of potential issues here. Let’s have a look at them. 

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