I love the Fall season. The weather is usually glorious, with cooler temperatures, sunny skies, and a riot of color as the leaves begin to make their yearly transition. The oppressive heat of summer is gone, along with any unexpected and powerful storm conditions. The energy of this period welcomes a slower pace and prepares us for a slower energy that occurs when the days are shorter and cooler, and we have less hours of daytime than nighttime. It is the perfect phase to reflect on and strengthen our inner being.
As I look to the sky, there are a few main planetary transits that also seem to be following this story line. Three of the main planets that had been in retrograde, will be going direct within a week of each other, and the New Moon will be in the peace-loving sign of Libra. The Full Moon occurs in the sign of Aries, encouraging us to find balance between our personal needs and wants, while taking others needs and wishes into consideration. The Sun enters the sign of Scorpio on October 23rd, highlighting transformation.
On October 6th, the Libra New Moon is quite a powerful energy. It lines up in close quarters with the Sun, Mercury and Mars also in Libra. The key to this energy is about finding balance. Every New Moon is a time to envision your future dreams and desires. It is symbolic of new beginnings and the planting of ideas. With all this Libra energy, it encourages learning how to cooperate with others, to share your goals with others and discover that you can benefit when you allow the exchange of ideas and experiences. Any relationships you have should be of an equal nature, and bring insight in how to be balanced, fair and harmonious as you strive toward new goals. This particular New Moon not only brings fresh and creative energy into our lives, but also into our partnerships and relationships.
Following the New Moon, the three planets that will go direct are Pluto, Saturn, and Mercury. These planets coming out of retrograde will enable us to move forward, help us to launch our visions for the future and allow progress to take place.
During retrograde periods, we are encouraged to reflect, re-evaluate, re-think, and re-do. We are focused on past actions and how we can improve on our existing structures. It is a time where we re-visit old lessons. The purpose of a retrograde is to assess the important things in our life and make any necessary changes. Re-evaluating our personal ambitions, and professional and social decisions, are important during this period so that we can restructure and rebuild the things that are no longer serving us. It is a time when we can slow down and decide if our activities are working in our best interest or if we should change direction. It is a good time to look at our past behavior and relationship with our personal power and see what comes to light.
When the retrograde period of a planet is over and the planet is again in a direct trajectory, this can be a release point for the processes we have been experiencing and working through during the retrograde. It’s a time when clear decisions can be made and past habits, patterns or less than desirable energies can be resolved.
Pluto is the first planet to station direct on October 7th after being in retrograde since April 27th. This retrograde might have been less noticeable and more subtle than the Mercury and Saturn retrogrades, however it affected our lives on a psychological level. It provided the capacity for us to transform and renew ourselves, since the planet represents our personal power. Hopefully, by the time Pluto begins its direct motion again, you will have experienced the release of any inner issues that were held secret or underground, providing the opportunity to bring these feelings into the light for the purpose of greater personal empowerment and spiritual evolution.
Following closely behind Pluto, is Saturn, stationing direct on October 11th. Saturn had been in retrograde since May 23rd, encouraging us to re-evaluate our personal ambitions and professional and social decisions. The goal during this period was to discover how to restructure and rebuild the things in our life that were no longer serving us. It gave us the opportunity to slow down and decide if and where we should change direction.
Did you feel Saturn testing you during this time? Were you able to push through the challenges that came your way? As Saturn prepares to switch gears and move direct, allow the lessons learned during this time, help you find your way and steer you on the right path on your journey. Saturn wants to keep you on track and wants you to move forward with determination and the ability to achieve all that you dream of during this New Moon period and beyond.
Finally, Mercury stations direct on October 18th. This is a much shorter retrograde period which started on September 27th. I feel we all know about Mercury retrograde. Because it is the planet that rules the mind, everything will seem to be a little off in our world involving communication of all types, technology, and commerce. As Mercury moves from retrograde to direct, give Mercury a few days to get his bearings, then you should experience more clarity about whatever issues you have been wrestling with. You will feel more confident in moving forward with anything that requires your intellect and decision-making powers.
The Aries Full Moon will occur on October 20th, rounding out this entire dynamic. Since the Sun/Moon polarity occurs between Libra and Aries, relationships are highlighted. The tug of war is between self and other. But the energy is also calling for us to move into a new cycle. It marks a starting point since Aries is the first sign of the zodiac. This is a time of complete awareness and the realization of all your efforts that you started during the New Moon. Become aware of how to compromise and cooperate with others when initiating or beginning new things. This is a time to invest emotional energy into your personal relationships or business partnerships.
On October 23rd, we enter Scorpio season, as the Sun transitions into this intensely passionate sign. Everything about Scorpio is powerful, from intuition, to a passion for life, an incredible business sense and intensely sexual nature. With Pluto as the ruler of this sign, it is all about diving deep into the subconscious and forcing our deepest fears into the light for the purpose of self-transformation and renewal. It is a time to release the things we keep secret and hold underground so that we can experience a rebirth and transform our soul. During this season, which lasts until the November 22nd, take advantage of this Scorpionic energy by being fearless. You can use this energy in several ways. Ask yourself what you most desire. Connect with others in a more intimate and meaningful way. You may want to merge with your lover in a deeper way, increasing your level of sensual intimacy and commitment. Or you may want to share your inner secrets with your closest friend and allow yourself to open up and be vulnerable without fear of being hurt. It is a great time to dive into deep conversations and have those discussion we most fear.