Astrological Forecast for August 2014--Shoulder to the Wheel

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Looking at the astrological forecast for August, I picture an image of a strong man with his shoulder pressed against a medieval wheel.  I see another man laboring in the fields with a horse and plow and sweat dripping off his brow. Roll up your sleeves and get to work, August feels like getting work done.  

For many July felt like a retreat and many of you took your annual vacation during the past month. But now Mercury picks up speed zipping through two signs, Leo (1-15) and Virgo (16-9/2).  In Leo, Mercury wants attention and shows off.  Mercury in Leo talks big, especially when Mercury conjuncts Jupiter on August 3rd and thereabouts.  At that point, people exaggerate, puff themselves out like hormonal roosters, blow hot air or tell ribald jokes, though we might find ourselves laughing more than usual.  The comedian comes out in all of us and life's a gas.  But then after the 15th, Mercury heads into Mister and Missus Fix-it Virgo.  Suddenly the Sun moves behind a cloud and we see the world in grey tones.  We find that we put on too much weight, that we depleted our savings account and the party has ended.

Mercury in Virgo opposes Neptune on the 19th and this represents a time to examine our dreams.  While we don't wish to over analyze or look at the glass half-empty, realism is required.  How can we adapt our daily life to manifest our dreams? How can we communicate our desires to others without sounding unrealistic or as if we're just floating around never allowing our feet to touch the ground? We speak of service to community and humanity as well as, spiritual ascension.  And for spiritual teachers, this opposition allows us to re-tool and re-examine our beliefs and teaching methods.  Perhaps there is a better way to approach spirituality that we haven't tried yet.  Or we look at spirituality from different perspectives.

Rider Waite deck

Next let's look at Venus transits since she too switches signs mid-month.  During the first half of the month (until the 12th), Venus transits in Cancer. She starts off the month with a trine to Saturn and Chiron, so a Grand Water Trine that we saw at the end of July.  We ask ourselves better way to nurture our bodies through food and take better care of our sensitive stomachs and breasts (Cancer).  We spend more time outdoors (Venus), in nature or with animals.  We feel heightened tastes where food is concerned and we might switch to natural foods, if we haven't done so already.  With Saturn in Scorpio, we have the discipline to make dietary and other lifestyle changes.  And as we do this, we examine beliefs about food and self-nurturing we learned as a child (Chiron).

People with eating disorders are encouraged to stick with therapy until they unearth the roots of their condition.  And in fact, now is a good time to heal distortions around food and body image with Saturn, Venus and Chiron in this configuration.  However, trines make us lazy so we must pull on the Saturn energy to get disciplined in these areas.  It's time to accept our bodies as they are and give them love.  By doing this, we heal our distortions.  We can also heal food phobias in which there are many: Fear of sugar, fear of gluten, fear of dairy, etc...If you have food allergies, by all means, stay away from culprit foods, but at the same time don't make food the enemy or deprive others of enjoying what they eat.  Ultimately, my hope is that we get to a place where we no longer have food raised with cruel methods to animals or the earth, but can we get there without losing the phobias? I don't think we can.  Love is the answer.

Later in the month, Venus transits in Leo and Squares Saturn/Mars and inconjunct Chiron (around the 26th) so do most of your inner and outer work during the Grand Water Trine.  In fact, this week could feel excruciating for anyone on the path to self-love.  Venus in Leo picks up an ego or becomes more heart-centered and she goes to inner battle with Saturn and Mars while Chiron holds up a yield sign.  So we could feel that we are stuck on a roundabout over a body image issue or that we just feel stuck which leaves us feeling irritable.  We could also experience digestion problems with too much fire or not enough fire in the digestive system.  Nausea and heartburn are possible now, but Chiron redirects us to using energy healing to release our suffering.

Archangel Gabriel, Wikipedia

All three outer planets (Uranus, Neptune, Pluto) are retrograde with a 5 degree orb sextile between Neptune and Pluto (so no yods this month) and a wide square with Uranus and Pluto (5 degrees and 4 degrees at the month's end).  We will still see tension brewing in the world, but in some regions the tension will simmer down and some situations that were escalating calm down.  If we desire human justice in the world, then we must do the inner work to have justice within ourselves and in our families and communities.  Remember that with these planets in their current signs, inner work heals the planet faster than activism.  The spiritual warrior turns his sword of truth to the workings of our souls.  When we don't heal ourselves and judge others, we send out waves of fearful energy that ripple throughout the world causing wars, suffering, and catastrophe.  We create that when we refuse to heal ourselves.  And frankly, I believe we are running out of time to do this healing so I urge each of you to get to work.  I know I have my share of healing to contribute too.

The Full Moon in Aquarius transits at 18 degrees on the 10th.  It opposes Sun conjunct Mercury in Leo and squares Saturn.  We pit our identity against the collective while themes around discipline, responsibility and integrity rear their heads.  Self-investigation eases some of this tension.  We explore narcissism verses self-honoring, humanity verses individual freedoms.  We could see debates in city planning, legalization of recreational drugs, libertines and authority.  And with this fixed T-Cross, no one is going to budge from their position while egos fly or emotions detach.  Let's just say this Full Moon is going to feel weird and out-of-touch as if people pushed the disconnect button.  I'm seeing Fellini's Satyricon--yeah, that kind of weird.

Wikipedia

The New Moon transits at 2 degrees Virgo on the 25th.  This Virgo New Moon opposes Neptune and sextile the asteroid Ceres.  So again, we see the theme of making our dreams reality by employing Virgo practicality.  I feel like this Moon represents a time of harvest, not just food, but food for thought.  We could learn new skills too if we apply ourselves.  Organize the daily routine so that it matches the desire you want to manifest.  For instance, if you would like to manifest a new job, clear away distractions and time sucks from your daily life and carve out the necessary hours to include a new job.  If you want to manifest a new relationship then clear out distractions, including negative thoughts about relationships so that you have space for a relationship.  We feel tension between Neptune's transcendental energy and the Moon in Virgo's practical girl scout (or boyscout).

So there you go, the August transits asks us to go back to work. This includes cleaning up the daily routine and getting organized as well as, healing our mind-body-soul.  The Mars conjunct Saturn in Scorpio and the Full Moon in Aquarius provide the biggest challenges.  While the Grand Water Trine during the first half of August and the planets transiting in Leo give us a boost in the right direction.  Challenges sharpen us while trines bless us with gifts and opportunities.

I am an astrologer and intuitive coach (for artists and entrepreneurs) who give in-person readings in Bellingham, Washington or long-distance astrology readings via e-mail reports.  I assist you on your path to self-mastery and transformation.  Sign up for a reading at Metaphysics for Everyday Living.