What's yod got to do with it, got to do with it?

photo by Patricia Herlevi

Whether you are aware of it or not, everyone feels the effects of a yod in the universal chart.  This yod involves slow moving planets, with Jupiter moving at the speed of one astrological sign a year.  It currently travels through Gemini.  And our two favorite planets (heh, heh), Pluto in Capricorn and Saturn in Scorpio (already an intriguing combination), form a yod with Jupiter.

I don't do mundane astrology (though I would like to), but you can witness the effects of this yod (which formed on December 13) in the news headlines.  Uranus (not part of the yod yet) went direct also on December 13 and the new moon in Sagittarius soon going into void-of-course and moving into Capricorn also took place on December 13, right after the momentous 12-12-12 energy and the dark moon in the Galactic Center.  And speaking of the Galactic Center, Mercury began its transit into GC on December 11 and Venus moves into the GC on December 16.  With so many planets moving into new signs, and out brooding Scorpio and into the Galactic Center, a time of great awakening is upon us.  By the time this weekend passes, only one planet (Jupiter) is retrograde. Unfortunately, it's traveling over my natal Mars.  Oh, well.

So if life feels like it has sped up, it has.  And if it feels like changes are occurring quickly and manifestation is happening in front of your eyes, it is.  Be especially careful the thoughts you dwell on at this time because you will manifest more quickly than ever before.  Keep track of your moods, emotions, feelings and thoughts.  After all, developing greater consciousness requires exactly that you do that.  The more consciousness you bring to this era, the better off you will feel.  Tired of drama and trauma? Good.  Time to realize that only you can create both individual and collective dramas through your beliefs, emotions, and thoughts.  According to Esther and Jerry Hicks in their Abraham teachings, "A belief is just a thought you think a lot."  And you don't have to believe or think like other people.  Stop trying to please others by cooperating with their damaging beliefs and thoughts.

I believe that the message behind the current transits (and boy is the sky busy right now) has to do with developing an authentic self.  This is a time of stripping away everything that is no longer necessary, and stuff that was never necessary.  This is a time to clean out the proverbial closet, but I'm talking about the closet of your inner self.  Though if you want to clean out the closet in your homes, now would also be a good time to do that--just watch out for rabid dust bunnies...

Okay, so how does this universal yod affect you?  To answer that question you would need to have a natal chart with transits drawn up or printed from a website such as astro.com It's free to register and print out your chart.  Once you have your chart in hand, look for the houses where transiting Pluto (Capricorn), Saturn (Scorpio) and Jupiter (Gemini) are located.  Next, look at the themes of each of those three houses and any natal planets you have in those houses.

photo by Patricia Herlevi

Let's use my natal chart as an example.  At the moment, transiting Saturn is in my 10th house, transiting Pluto is in my 1st house and transiting Jupiter is in my fifth house conjunct my natal Mars.  Am I a happy camper? Probably not, however, I choose to flow with this yod because I know in a few weeks it will reveal hidden treasures in the area of my public life/career, personal development/self-love, and in the area of arts and creativity.  How do I know this?  The 1st house represents the mask we wear and personal development, the fifth house represents fun things like the arts, theater, creativity, love affairs (nope not going there), friendships, and the stuff we do to feel joy in our lives.  And the 10th house represents how the public sees us, our public image, and career.

Now, the energy between Pluto and Saturn flows in a sextile, meaning everything feels okay between my personal development and career.  However, mister expansive Jupiter in chatty Gemini forms an inconjunction with both Saturn and Pluto, shouting at both planets, "Wait a minute and get your cotton-picking hands off each other!" Okay, so it doesn't use those exact words, but Jupiter in Gemini tends to exaggerate situations and it's conjunct my sometimes belligerent Mars who also talks to much, but does very little.

So this plays out in that I'm working on spiritual development using a popular method.  I'm also cleaning up old garbage in the way of beliefs and tracking my emotions, while tossing out beliefs that actually never served me.  I feel frustrated because this is a painstaking slow process and my Mars energy feels annoyed with it.  Mars tells me that he's not going along with anything that does not feel creative or fun.  And Mars rebels against statements such as "Well, you create your own reality."  Remember Mars represents the inner child in us who just wants to play or play and win.  Mars loves competition and is full of ego.

Perhaps you recognize a similar scenario within yourself.  It looks like spiritual competition.  "I'll catch up to those spiritually enlightened folks."  "Why are they so smug and condescending to me? Don't they know who I am? Don't they know I was an avatar in another life?" On and on it goes.  Mars wants to be the best at everything and has absolutely zero patience.  Whereas, daddy Saturn has plenty of patience and Pluto carries a whip.  Not to mention with this configuration, childhood issues surface when least expected.  We also learn new parenting roles for our inner children.

photo by Patricia Herlevi

The planets involved with the yod can turn up in different areas of your chart.  You could have the 2nd or 8th houses involved which deal with resources, skills, and talents, death, rebirth, and soul mates, and deep psychology. The yod could involve the 9th house which you would see delays in travel, relationships with foreigners or foreign businesses not running smoothly or you might question old ideologies, including ones belonging to religion or higher education.  With the 3rd house involved, communication and short distance travel goes amok, and communication with siblings seems argumentative.

This yod will play out well into January 2013.  I don't have my astrological calendar for next year yet so I can't give you an exact date of Jupiter moving well out of the yod zone.  I will say however, that now is a good time to get in touch with your natal chart and track transits.  If you don't want to do all the work yourself, contact an evolutionary astrologer with an optimistic view of the world and current events.  Otherwise, you will just end up with a doom and gloom reading.

Yods provide challenges and difficulties.  They're not fun, but if you navigate a yod and do the work that is required of you, even if it is just backing off and sitting on your hands, you will reap treasures in the houses affected by the yod planets.  See you on the other side in late January.  Feel free to contact me with stories about growth and transformation that occurs during this time.