The Pisces archetype is once again central to the celestial message of the week that asks us to develop the gift of Pisces, “courage,” to fully engage in whatever experiences come our way. Archetypally, Pisces represents the sum of all experiences that happen in the development of the individual progressing through the 12 signs of the Zodiac. A sensitive water sign, Pisces feels everything in a big way but being able to withstand the vastness and intensity of it requires the courage to experience the horrors as well as the raptures of life, one moment at a time.
Currently, the Sun, Mercury, Venus and Neptune are traversing this cosmic space, focusing our attention on where we need to show up in the arenas of life they represent. The fastest moving planet, Mercury is closing in on a conjunction with Venus that becomes exact on March 4. Prior to reaching this point, they both form stimulating sextiles to Pluto in Capricorn (exact on February 27 and 28 respectively) and flowing trines to Jupiter in Scorpio (exact March 1 and 2) creating a gently coaxing “mini grand trine” configuration. Venus/Mercury in Pisces archetypally represents an imaginative fusion of mind and heart that can be expressed as caressing words, gentle touches and experiences that bask in the creative spirit. Under this influence we’re more likely to feel rather than think our way through conversations, endeavoring to understand the deeper lines of communication behind the words. We may also be drawn into a slower pace than usual in order to notice the magical moments of grace spontaneously occurring throughout the day that connect us with something bigger than being human. Venus/Mercury trine Jupiter in Scorpio expands on this mystical connection to the anima mundi, widening our perspective to see the essential part we play in it. Yet, the easy-going nature of the trine between the planets of relating, communicating, and philosophy can mask the need for conscious effort to experience the aliveness of everything. We could savor the feel-good atmosphere without recognizing the depth of the magic in it. To many, just showing up to a heightened state of grace requires courage because it feels uncontainable. Pluto in Capricorn, the anchor point in the configuration with Venus, Mercury and Jupiter, represents the fundamental truth that making the effort to connect to the ‘world soul’ will indeed transform us into a vessel that radiates the grace. In Capricorn, Pluto’s message is to make the commitment to fully experience each moment by being realistic and simply take one step at a time and walking away with only the essence of the lesson contained therein.
The idealism of the Venus/Mercury conjunction is challenged by Mars in Sagittarius, which segues from a square to Venus that perfected last week (see last AstroCast) into a square to Mercury on February 27. This alignment in effect all week adds sufficient tension to spur us to act (Mars) by making our voice heard (Mercury) on matters of our values and relationships (Venus). The Mercury/Mars planetary pair can correlate to quick mental processing and decisive acts. Yet internal conflicts between our true desires and conditioned belief systems can just as quickly erupt into angry words that reveal deep-seated resentments. If we are vigilant about inquiring into our reactivity, we can then take the opportunity to look deeper at the origin of the conflict and ultimately discover how we are resisting speaking our own truth when we relate to others.
The Full Moon in Virgo on March 1 marks the peak of the lunar cycle that commenced with the ‘inertia busting’ Aquarius New Moon Solar Eclipse of February 15 that was archetypally potent with game-changing ideas. The Full Moon in a confrontational opposition to the Sun highlights the contrast between discriminating, detail-focused Virgo and the boundless, all-inclusive nature of Pisces. The seemingly polarized attributes are both necessary in the development of the individual so the challenge is to integrate them as part of the process of manifesting what the eclipse set in motion. The Sun conjunct Pisces ruler Neptune (exact on March 4) immerses the solar principle in a soul-stirring ocean of consciousness at the emotional height of the Full Moon. We could be moved to tears sensing the Divine operating in the most mundane of details we notice in daily life. If we practice allowing this flood of feeling express without fear, we may come to understand that we are much more than the container our mind and body represents. The idea behind the Pisces challenge to develop “courage” is to accept any kind of suffering, including the pain we experience simply by hitting the walls of our self-imposed limits. We are conditioned from birth to want only the good things life has to offer and reject everything else but in doing so we inhibit the development of our capacity to withstand difficulty without recognizing that is a path to Love. Can we arrive at a state of “intentional suffering” and in doing so expand our awareness to accept all that is?
Heaven and Earth have no preference.
A man may choose one over another
But to Heaven and Earth all are the same
The high, the low, the great, the small –
All are given light
All get a place to rest
– Tao Te Ching
Here’s the data (Pacific Time and rounded to the nearest whole degree unless otherwise noted):
February 27 – Venus sextile Pluto at 21° Pisces/Capricorn at 2:17 a.m.
February 28 – Mercury square Mars at 20° Pisces/Sagittarius at 3:56 p.m.
February 28 – Mercury sextile Pluto at 21° Pisces/Capricorn at 8:40 p.m.
March 1 – Venus trine Jupiter at 23° Pisces/Scorpio at 3:22 a.m.
March 1 – Moon opposite Sun at 12° Virgo/Pisces at 4:51 p.m.
March 2 – Mercury trine Jupiter at 23° Pisces/Scorpio at 5:05 a.m.
March 4 – Sun conjunct Neptune at 14° Pisces at 5:55 a.m.
March 4 – Mercury conjunct Venus at 27° Pisces at 10:06 a.m.
Leave a Reply