July 2016 Forecasts

Mars Stations Direct June 30
Mars stations at the very end of the sign Libra on June 30, slowly preparing to move forward into Scorpio by July 12. The end of June and beginning of July feels like things can slowly start moving forward, but hold your horses. Things don't get moving at the usual pace straight away. Mars is weak crossing signs by mid-July, and inherently weak at the early degrees of Scorpio, resulting in a lack of any real zest for life until the end of the month. Well, at least we feel we are moving forward, and we can all now get on with it - whatever it is!

Our energy is being unleashed after many weeks of turning inward (since April), and this creates a dynamism which cannot be ignored. Use the impetuous to move forward in the following weeks, gathering all of your energy and action plans from the previous months sojourns, keeping in mind that as soon as Mars re-enters its sign Scorpio on July 11, it is placed with restrictive Saturn. If you can channel the energy to be more calculated in your actions, you may be able to avoid the pitfalls of Mars and Saturn's conjunction - building until its exact conjunction on August 23. These include a build up of tension when things don't move as fast as you would like, or when you must discover your limitations in some areas of your life and have to drop some things you simply can no longer commit to. 

If you haven't been exercising for a while, for example, then don't start with running a marathon! Slow and steady winds the race. Find your edge, of course, but try not to move too far over it and fall off.
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New Moon in Gemini July 4
The Moon wanes into the solar sign Gemini and the lunar sign Ardra, on July 4, coming to the exact degree of the Sun by noon BST. This allows for a clearing out of negative ways of thinking. Don't just focus on what needs to be cleared, however.

The Sun and Moon, as well as Mercury, are all placed in the sign Ardra for this new Moon phase. Ardra's symbol is of a teardrop, as it has the ability to create tears. It's ruling deity is a fierce form of Shiva, called Rudra and is destructive by nature. Storms are destructive, of course, but they also provide a clearing. The lead up to a storm itself has a sense of heightened stress as the electricity builds in the air for this new Moon phase. Once a storm has passed there is a calm which feels more grounded, albeit more subdued. But this calmness after a storm, emotional or otherwise, allows for more acceptance of what we need to say goodbye to. 

On a global scale, we can see Ardra's influence in the Brexit result, as the Sun and Venus - both ruling the signs in which Jupiter and Rahu came together on June 23 - entered the sign Ardra for this momentous break-up. Again, once the storms have cleared we can think more clearly about how to move forward. Relate this to your own life experience and use this new Moon phase to begin again in earnest. 
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Venus enters Cancer July 7
Venus parts company with the Sun by entering Cancer on July 7, finally leaving the intense glare of our luminary. It is visible once again by mid-July, reappearing as the 'bright evening star'; a role more suited to Venus, increasing congeniality and respect, as well as accentuating the finer things in life. 

While Venus was too close to the Sun, the third brightest object in our early morning or early evening skies left us feeling the intensity of other transits without the usual tact. It has, however, offered us the chance to inspect what is truly valuable to us, not allowing any mollycoddling cloud our judgement. Other things have clouded our decisions but not this, at any rate. 

Now that Venus enters the Moon's sign, we are brought into the heart of the matter, as it were. We can feel into our hearts to get relief from the busyness of the mind and recent emotional storms and frenetic impulses. There is a stillness beyond these storms which can be accessed by diving deep into our being. 

Take a dive into your depths this summer and notice the noise on the surface of things. Sensual pleasure can open us up to a deeper connection to our heart's desires. 

Mercury enters Cancer July 11
Once Mercury leaves Gemini and all of the noise and rhetoric of this sign, it begins to loose its efficiency in the ever-changing waters of Cancer. In a positive sense, the mind can express what the heart feels.

​Be aware, however, that it may just as easily play out in childish reactions and emotional outbursts which seem inappropriate. Emotional expressions are necessary, of course, whether inappropriate for others or not. At the very least, Mercury's transit in Cancer can decrease effective communication when expressing oneself from such an emotional place, but our feelings are not less valid in a world of words and language. 

Join your head and heart, expressing the truth of want you think and feel. 
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Sun enters Cancer July 16
The sign Cancer represents our innermost yearnings, our heart-felt desires which are too easily swayed by how we are feeling from moment-to-moment. There is a deeper stillness beyond these fluctuations, of course. Cancer and the Moon represents the ever-changing mind and emotions. Trying to pin them down is like trying to tame the wind or dam a flowing stream. Many try this and can freeze themselves in the process, numbing themselves against the onslaught of thoughts and emotions, or rigidly rallying against thoughts and feelings which become stuck within this rigidity, creating corrosion. 

The difference between emotions and feelings is that a feeling is something you feel in the moment, moment-to-moment, and an emotion is something which does not necessarily have its roots buried in the present. You may be feeling sad because of something you remember, or anxious because of something you anticipate. If a feeling is numbed because of its intensity, it can later create problems as we feel it return even stronger the next time. There has been so much emphasis on what we think because of the prominence of the sign Gemini, but now the time comes to know how we feel and express ourselves from this level of awareness. 

Those with Cancer prominent are known for there ever-changing nature. They are like the flowing stream which does not take a direct route, but instead meanders here and there, eventually getting to its destination. Picture a crab scurrying to and fro. Mars finds this to be a challenge as it likes the quickest and most direct route, and is debilitated in Cancer for this reason. The Moon is debilitate in Mars' sign, Scorpio. They weaken each other and yet the Moon cools down an overheated Mars. (it's a complicated relationship!).

As the Sun enters Cancer this year, Mars has already stepped back into Scorpio and the Moon joins it on July 15 and 16. The position of Mars and the Moon feels vulnerable, but the conjunction brings strength to deal with our deep rooted emotions, with the Sun highlighting the issues to be faced. 
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Full Moon in Capricorn July 19
The Moon reaches its fullest at 23.56 BST on July 19 in the Sun's sign Uttara Ashadha which is placed at the end of the solar sign Sagittarius, bridging it with the sign in which this full Moon is placed: Capricorn. The transition from Sagittarius to Capricorn, aided by this lunar sign, is one of turning our outer hopes into inner objectives in order to see something through. First of all we need to work out what it will take for something to be made real; the commitment we must make in seeing it come to pass.

But this too shall pass and we must not hold on too tightly to what we desire, as the waning cycle begins after July 19, and we must let go of our attachment to these as well.

The Moon represents the mind and emotions which fuel our desires through sensual stimulation. You see something, you want it, you taste something, you want more. Capricorn's influence allows a stepping back from pandering to every whim and fancy, allowing for a more objective standpoint which can aid us in making better decisions for the long term.  
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Mercury enters Leo July 27
Mercury quickly makes its way through the Moon's sign and on into the Sun's domain by July 27, where it will remain until October due to its retrograde transit in August and September. This initial transit of Mercury into Leo is but a preview of the big show which is to follow in August/September with the planetary line-up along with the eclipses. This begins a period of exposure for those who would prefer to keep their manipulations a secret. 

Mercury will move all the way through Leo in August, reaching its sign of exaltation in Virgo by August 25, before stationing retrograde in Virgo on August 30 and re-entering Leo on September 9, finally leaving Leo on October 3, after it has stationed direct in Leo on September 22. 

Ok, so let's not get too ahead of ourselves. Mercury does this back and forth more than any planet,as the fastest moving planet. It represents our mind's nature to jump ahead and then recalculate our steps, figuring out what went well and what needs more work. This constant inner dialogue can be of benefit if we can reach the heights of discrimination which the planet affords us. But oftentimes, it can simply drag us down into constantly ruminating on what we could do better. This is reflected in Mercury's dual signs Gemini and Virgo. 
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Mercury in Leo is up for a bigger task than the detail-orientated Virgo which proceeds it. The role of the Sun and the sign Leo is to look out over our lives and see what needs our attention and what can be left to carry on as it is. We often get so bogged down in debate with Mercury, however, and forget the overall picture. Mercury is the messenger, bringing back and forth information which may or may not be accurate by the time it has been delivered. This was most certainly the case for the UK referendum in which Mercury lined up at the same degree as Rahu and opposite Saturn, creating lies and fears during the election campaign. 

Now we have Mercury join the north eclipse point in Leo and we will need to keep an open mind with what is being presented to us. This can highlight certain issues when Mercury joins the Sun in Leo in September after the solar eclipse of September 1. This will unearth so many things we always knew intuitively, but needed confirmation to fully articulate. For now, it is like testing the fires, before we fully engage and understand the process of change taking place in leadership roles, as well as the change required to take command of our own lives. 
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Jupiter in Leo: In Review
This is the last full month of Jupiter transiting through the sign Leo, as it will move into Virgo on August 11. This is perhaps a good time to look back on its transit, and the area of your life Leo represents, to count your blessings. Jupiter has brought expansion - inner and outer growth - to this area of your life, through opportunities which you may or may not have jumped at. The presence of the north node alongside Jupiter has been challenging, no doubt (plenty of doubts, actually), and Saturn's influence felt a little restrictive at times, adding to these doubts. These doubts and cautions provided a solid base for our grand schemes, but only if we were fortunate enough not to get it completely wrong in the first instance.

Take this month to really appreciate the benevolence of Jupiter and the warmth of the sign Leo. You may wish to read an article I wrote about this transit last year here. Jupiter and Leo have instilled a courageous and hopeful force for us all moving forward, even though the north node's shocks have provided enough drama to last us a lifetime. Once Jupiter moves into Virgo, there comes a time when we must work out the details of those things we would love to see expressed in our lives. And without Saturn's gaze on Jupiter restricting us in our dreams, it's time to carefully 'walk the walk'.

For now, we can 'talk the talk' and continue to dream big and bold despite all of our doubts and fears. 
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OM TAT SAT