Happy New Year! So here we are in the first day of the Chinese New Year (2023 is the Water Rabbit year) with all the planets direct, so what do we do with that? What does that mean for us individually? As I write these words, Uranus is stationed and about to turn direct. That turn to direct motion will then see all the planets direct until April 21st, 2023 when the next Mercury retrograde beings. Then, Pluto goes retrograde the next week on April 29th. However, none of the other planets go retrograde until Saturn turns retrograde on June 17th, at which time Mercury has been back in direct motion since May 14th. While Pluto will certainly be retrograde, once Mercury goes direct in May the period of no retrograde inner planets lasts until June 17th, so we actually have a quite long window with very little retrograde action between January 22nd, 2023 and June 17th, 2023.
This suggests to me that we are now in a period where forward progress is possible, and we can begin new actions, activities and projects. Ask yourself where you were held up, or what you were able to review, go back to or finish up during the many retrogrades of the last half of 2022. What were you required to hold back on starting to make that reorganization possible? The answers will give you some indication about where you may consider acting in the first half of 2023. However, while we can now start moving forward with new projects, new actions and just generally moving about and getting things done again, the entire spectrum is not open to us in this period.
It is important to remember that the planets currently all fall in the half of the zodiac that lies between the South Node and the North Node, except for Mars, which is the only planet fully outside the Nodal enclosure, and while Uranus is just barely past the North Node, it is still in the same sign and very close to conjunction with the North Node, so it is still joined with the energies of the North Node. This Nodal enclosure spans the Tropical signs from Scorpio to Taurus. The Moon, of course, will quickly move out of the enclosure, and will move through the full zodiac once every month, so while it is a very important celestial light in our astrological assessments, in this regard, it is not a focus for understanding how we can now move forward, beyond the fact that it was within this Nodal enclosure at the New Moon and Uranus station direct that kicked off this new direct cycle. By March 20th, Venus will cross the North Node and leave the enclosure, followed by Mercury on April 6th, and while the Mercury retrograde of April will see Mercury return nearly to the North Node (within two degrees) it will not make the conjunction with the North Node before it turns direct and quickly leaves the North Node (and Tropical Taurus) behind.
So what does this mean for this long period with all the planets direct? Well, the first thing that strikes me is that the actions we can take now may be most successful if involving movement from old ways of doing things (South Node) to new ways of doing things (North Node). There may well be a sense of moving from something karmic or fated (South Node) toward some new experiences/endeavors, or some new destiny or phase of life that is unfamiliar (North Node). This may seem daunting, or exciting, or both. However, the focus of any actions will be limited to the themes of the Tropical signs ranging from Scorpio to Taurus, and special focus will fall upon the tropical signs of Scorpio, Capricorn/Aquarius, Pisces, Aries and Taurus as this is where the bulk of the planets will be found throughout this time with Aquarius being highlighted until March 7th.
Sagittarius will have little focus during this period, with no planets present in that sign, and only when the Moon transits Sag will it be a consideration. To understand what this means for you personally, look to the houses where these signs fall in your natal chart and then consider which planets will be transiting those houses, spanning about half of your natal chart. Is it on the night side or day side of the chart? The personal side of the collective side? Where does Aquarius, specifically, fall for you? The house containing Aquarius will be the main driver until March 7th. The half (or so) of your natal chart where this is occurring will be highlighted and is where the main focus of activity should be focused. A further layer of meaning will be found in the aspects the transiting planets in those signs are making to any natal planets or placements. Those aspects will determine what is possible for you, individually, in those Scorpio through Taurus houses and in terms of the actions that the Universe will support for you.
During January, February and early March, Saturn is the final dispositor for the majority of the planets. That will change on March 7th when Saturn enters Tropical Pisces and finally leaves his own signs of Capricorn and Aquarius (where he has been empowered) for the cool, misty and often nebulous waters of Pisces. Saturn has been the major dispositor of much of the planetary activity of the last five years, and this change of sign will be a major shift in the collective energies of the world. After that, dispositorship will shift and change over time and we will see dispositor loops without a final dispositor with some frequency. In some ways, this may make things more nebulous, but it will also make things far less restrictive than the long dispositorship of Saturn has been. While I am a fan of Saturn and the knowledge, skills and discipline it offers, I think the shift out of Saturn in his signs and his dispositorship of the majority of the planets will be good for the world. Most people can’t take too much Saturn for too long. Reality is a hard pill to swallow, after all. While Saturn will be somewhat disempowered in Pisces, he is still a potent planet and this big dose of reality will shift to new areas, not disappear.
I would suggest that from now through March 7th we can make progress on preparations for the projects we hope to set in motion after March 7th. Saturn as final dispositor will allow disciplined effort, planning and giving structure to our plans. Laying the groundwork during this period can give a strong foundation for what we work on through the rest of this period with all the planets direct. The next Mercury retrograde will offer us a window to review what we have completed by April 21st and the new plans we have set in motion. When Mercury again turns direct on May 14th, we will still have a period of a few weeks to keep moving forward at a fast clip on our new plans and new directions, as Mercury goes direct on a near conjunction to the North Node, empowering knowledge and ideas for forward motion and new endeavors.
As Mars is outside the enclosure of the Nodes, it suggests to me that we may feel impatient with the progress we are able to make or the speed we are able to move at, especially through early March, as Mars is also disposited by Saturn, and that in some ways pulls Mars into the enclosure too, though Mars will feel himself very much outside of the enclosure, and that he shouldn’t be held back. In the end, he will be held back by it though, as Saturn is setting the tone. This suggests to me that the best use of all that martial energy is in laying the groundwork for new ventures and new projects as dictated by the planets within the Nodal enclosure, and especially by Saturn, Aquarius and the natal house where they fall in your chart, along with the aspects to natal points made by them.
After March 7th, creativity will become the keyword, as Saturn in Pisces allows us to bring creative ideas into reality. However, it can also make us feel moody, depressed and nebulous, so by laying a strong foundation for what you plan to work on while Saturn is still empowered in Aquarius this will give you firm ground to stand on when Saturn goes into Pisces and it begins to feel like the rug has been pulled out from under us in some ways, or as if we are not standing on firm ground. Saturn in his own signs may be restrictive, but it is firm and we know where we stand. Saturn in Pisces may not be so restrictive, but it is less firm and grounded. It’s all a trade-off. If you have made good progress within Saturn’s limitations, and use these final weeks of Saturn in Aquarius well, you will have a flotation device for support as we navigate the swamps and misty waters of Pisces for the next three years. You may say, “Well, not every planet will be in Pisces, so there will be some areas that don’t have that soggy Piscean weirdness. Right?” That is true, but never forget that Saturn defines reality. It is one of the keywords for Saturn. So Saturn defines the times. If you can really wrap your mind around that fact about Saturn, you can have a good idea of where progress is possible in any given period of time. Use the period from today through March 7th wisely, and then the period from March 8th through June 17th can be a very creative period for you.
I’ll have much more to say about the individual transits and sign changes that will occur from now through June in upcoming posts. If you enjoy my posts and find them useful, please consider becoming a supporting member of my work here at Substack. There will always be free articles here for everyone to read, but as I need to do other work to support myself, writing these posts is something I am only able to do when I have free time. During the pandemic years starting in 2020 I had a lot of time to write and produced all the articles I have previously posted at my blog and have been sharing here since I started this substack. I am happy to have had the time to create those many articles and I hope you enjoy them and find them useful. Now that reality calls again though, my time has been more limited for writing and I have not been able to produce as much new content. I am hoping that in the future I can move toward doing astrological readings and write about astrological subjects on a more full time basis, but I can’t do that without your help. Please consider becoming a contributing member of this substack, if you can. I would also love to do a reading for you. I have developed a unique method of chart reading using a synthesis of both Tropical and True Sidereal zodiacs to arrive at a very comprehensive analysis of the natal chart. I will have a special offer on an introductory version of that type of natal chart reading coming soon for new clients, so please subscribe and follow me to see that offer in the upcoming weeks. Click here to read more about my chart reading offerings. As always, thank you for reading! Whether a free reader or contributing reader, know that you are appreciated! Please like this post and share it with others who you think might also enjoy my writing, and most of all, Happy New Year! May 2023 bring you all the blessings in the world!