weekly astrology forecast | January 16th - 22nd, 2023 - reality checks and rewards, secrets come out, decisions get sticky, a focus on our goals and ambitions, here is the change that was postponed, the Chinese New Year is well timed to get 2023 started

This is a BIG week. 

 

We have the Sun meeting Pluto, Mercury stationing direct, Uranus stationing direct and a BIG New Moon in Aquarius conjunct "the world starts up again" degree of December 2020 and giving us a preview of Pluto's crossing into Aquarius in March (note Pluto will cross back and forth into Aquarius two more times in 2023 and 2024!). 

The Sun's meeting with Pluto shines a light on power. How are we using/misusing or avoiding ours? Secrets come out and kings fall under the white hot spotlight. Mercury's direct station and follow-up, silky smooth trine, with the powerful North Node of Fate means our plans and ideas and conversations are MOVING FORWARD. Delays end. Minds change. Words are our destiny, use yours well. Keep in mind, it will take a few days for Mercury to get up to speed and Mars to get moving (this isn't about rushing into anything). Uranus direct pulls the "change that was postponed" into the collective, our Taurus houses and living rooms. Collectively, at least, financial and resource changes/disruptions are possible. Expect the unexpected. Venus meets Saturn to reinforce the reality checks and stickiness of commitments made now. The New Moon in Aquarius previews 2023's BIG NEW Aqua energies and gets 2023 started, as all planets are in forward motion within hours and as billions of Chinese people welcome in the year of the peaceful/prosperous Water Rabbit (first time since 1963).

 

Let's unpack the week!

 

TUESDAY - Mercury inconjunct Mars

WEDNESDAY - Sun conjunct Pluto, Mercury stations direct

FRIDAY - Sun enters Aquarius, Mercury inconjuncts Mars (yes, again)

SATURDAY - New Moon in Aquarius

SUNDAY - Uranus stations direct, Venus conjuncts Saturn, Mercury trines the North Node

 

On MONDAY & TUESDAY the Moon in Pluto ruled Scorpio provides an 'opening act' for the Sun's annual meeting with Pluto on Wednesday (where our ego/fire meets death/transformation). The two and a half days each month the Moon spends in fellow water sign Scorpio are times - we are nurtured/nourished by power, going deep, knowing something/someone more intimately, sex, secrets, getting to the bottom line, eliminating what needs to go/is dead.

 

On MONDAY, the Moon meets the South Node (the past, the present that we are overdoing, what is riperfor release, what is dead and needs to be buried), opposes Uranus (change, the future, chaos) and squares Venus (in Aquarius, so desirous of freedom and logic while the Moon is seeking depth and intimacy). When the Moon conjuncts the South Node we can find ourselves pulled toward the past, maybe some complicated third party situation, our compulsions, manipulations, our subconscious/darkness. There is comfort in the South Node, not because it is good for us, but because it is what we are used to - keep this in mind. Then the Moon in Scorpio opposes Uranus, so there is something UNEXPECTED that pushes us to detach/change. Then the Moon squares Venus. This is tension/frustration about not getting what we want/not having what we need. Remember Venus and Uranus are in mutual reception (in each other's signs), so challenges now, somehow work out in the end. Somehow work to our benefit over time. This Moon is likely to be showing us what is leaving us and what is ultimately freeing us up.

On TUESDAY, the Scorpio Moon sextiles the Sun and then goes void off a sextile to Pluto, so Tuesday looks much easier. Now we get the creatively opportunistic sextiles. The Moon's sextile to the Cappy Sun is this month's waning sextile - Scorpio/Capricorn. Power, as we release the need to control the stuff we can't. Focus, as our ambitions are controlled. Ambition, as we focus. If we play our cards right Monday and Tuesday, Wednesday's Sun/Pluto will be much easier to manage. Note - the Moon is void from 9:27AM EST to 12:33PM EST. and by Tuesday night the Moon in Sagittarius will be trining Jupiter making us feel better/more optimistic and generous.

 

This is all lining up to step us right into responsible power. Now, we can't just give our power away (or misuse it) for 363 days and then expect the Moon in Scorpio to resolve a year's worth of messy in two days as we prepare to meet the grim reaper, BUT, what the hell (not literally) better late than never. Think about what you are trying to control and why you are trying to control it. Think about the costs to you in ceding control to others or trying to control (ie manipulate) other people. Pluto rules the South Node, of what is ripe for release, and this complicated drama, messy mergers and debt, needs to GO. Let's resolve to do/be better.

TUESDAY - we talked about this in the 'Mars stations direct' post and we had this aspect back on December 16th with Mercury direct and Mars retrograde. Now we have this aspect again with Mercury retrograde and Mars direct- note, their third and final 'rock and a hard place' will be in just two days with BOTH planets direct. 

 

This is some kind of disconnect between our words and our actions or information and what we need to do to get what we want. This could bring arguments/conflict, accidents - so drive safely, measure twice before you cut, think before you speak. This could be a time when our words are misunderstood or we are misunderstanding someone else. If we have bit off more than we can chew we could have trouble walking our talk. Mercury in Cappy is sober, focused energy and Mars in Gemini is lighter and a bit all over the place, so we could be playing one of these roles and handing the other role off to someone else. Back in the middle of December when Mercury inconjuncted Mars the first time, he/she was also squaring Chiron, so maybe our fears/vulnerabilities kept us stuck or shut us up. This time we have old words and new actions although neither will be really satisfying. We will just have to stay flexible and do the best we can with this. Note we have this aspect again on Friday with Mercury direct. 

WEDNESDAY - The Sun meets Pluto kicking off a new annual story. Venus met Pluto on New Year's Eve, so there could be some connection now to what was happening then. This is INTENSITY. Power is illuminated. Secrets come to light. Debts come due. Inheritances show up. There could be an ego death. A leader might leave. Pluto is down in the trenches, digging up the dirt/stuff we have stuffed. This is Capricorn, so collectively we are talking about business and hierarchies and authority. The Sun comes along shining a light on what we had repressed. Situations conspire for us to see what has been hidden. Situations conspire for us to see how we are dealing with power. This is not the time to be trying to control/manipulate someone or some situation. This IS the time to be stepping into our responsibilities. Be brave. Be honest. There are treasures as likely to be unearthed as skeletons.

MERCURY STATIONS DIRECT at 8 degrees Capricorn. Now he/she starts her final pass through Capricorn - redefining our ambitions, goals, careers, Cappy house themes, authority issues. We have had the time to re-think, re-view, re-work. Our plans, ideas and information - and those sibling, transportation, tech, local community issues - can start to move forward. Career news can come in. Note it will take a few days for Mercury (and Mars who we talked about last week) to get up to speed.

(we can expect the unexpected with the U.S. and Biden now as the energies continue to be all over both charts and Mercury conjunct centaur asteroid Pholus, ie small things that bring big results, especially maybe in terms of fallen leaders)

FRIDAY - The Sun enters Aquarius kicking off Aquarius season. Now we are all burning aqua-eccentric fuel. Our Aquarius house, already buzzing with lovely Venus, really WAKES UP now. Aquarius is still a Saturn ruled sign (co-ruler). It's still winter. Like Capricorn, there is still responsibility and heaviness here, but now it is more of a 'shared experience'. Our ancestors' thinning pantries and need for connection would have brought them out of their snowy huts to see what other people were up to right about now/what cans of beans they might trade for jars of beets. Aquarius season gives us a chance to step back and look at the big picture. It energizes us to step outside the box and try something else. Sometimes we are too close and too enmeshed in a situation to see clearly what is happening. Stepping back is good and needed. We can see what is happening with less judgment. We can see past societal rules (Aquarius is the rebel, genius, criminal). WE CAN BE OURSELVES. We get a new set of eyes to see the world/are more accepting of the unusual. We get smarter/more logical. Of course (that fly in the ointment thing), if we step too far back we are like an outsider in our own life and this is not a good thing. There is also the whole 'group-think' thing with Aquarius that gets dangerous, the "for the greater good" legendary slippery slope stuff. The problem with loving 'people' in general more than we love the person lying next to us in bed ... well .. you get the idea. 

 

(The Sun will be in Aquarius for the next month. We know at some point he will shine a light on our Aqua planets, square the Nodes of Fate (bringing us to decisions and cross-roads) as well as our Taurus and Scorpio planets and points (bringing challenges). We know he will meet up with Saturn (report card time). We know he will sextile Jupiter bringing optimism and expansion, as well as our Aries and Sagittarius points and planets. We know he will oppose our Leo planets and points (problems with authority, groups, ego). We know he will trine Mars (forward movement, smooth progress) and our Gemini and Libra planets and points.

 

Now, Mercury, newly direct, inconjuncts Mars for the third time. Now both planets are direct, so here is where we are making decisions and having conversations and taking action after weighing the pros and cons of whatever this is. Cappy/Gemini - the need for sobriety and authority and goals and structure and the need for versatility and lightness and humor and change. If we have overextended ourselves in some way, multiple aspects indicate, the chickens coming home to roost. There isn't really an answer here, but after Mercury gets into Aquarius, he/she will trine Mars (around February 22) - so we have to get smarter/get some distance from the situation before this smooths out. For now we are kind of integrating unlike things.

 

SATURDAY -BIG New Moon at 1 degree Aquarius opposing Black Moon Lilith freshly minted in Leo. This is conjunct "the world starts up again" Jupiter/Saturn of the winter solstice, December 2020 and precedes Pluto's March entry into Aquarius. We are doing things now and deciding things now (and over this New Moon cycle of the next couple weeks) that will have LONG TERM CONSEQUENCES, RAMIFICATIONS, REWARDS. Notice the opposition to BML in Leo, this is kind of echoing the Sun/Pluto ego-challenges and the collective vs the individual. BML won't be ignored. We will need to find the sweet spot between personal sovereignty and group dynamics. This Moon is also conjunct asteroid Klotho, one of the Three Sisters of Fate - the one charged with bringing someone back to life who died too soon, this New Moon (and the Age of Aquarius) is destined to do just that ... for all of us.

 

Expect a BIG post.

SUNDAY - this is a BIG day, but, of course, events are applying all week and can play out anytime - Mercury trines the North Node, Venus conjuncts Saturn, Uranus stations direct

 

Mercury trines the North Node - we are moving forward with our ideas/plans. Conversations and communications can point us toward a more simple/stable/abundant future. We are moving past the delays and slow downs. THEN Venus, ruler of the North Node meets Saturn (ruler of Mercury in Capricorn). In the best case this is just kind of solidifying the whole thing. This is commitment. Something is STICKY. Here are the rewards for all the hard work/sobriety. 

Words are aligning us with our destiny.

 

Venus/Saturn can also indicate an ending or a "no". A relationship or financial obligation or reality check. We could feel old or alone. In this case, the Mercury/North Node will be information or a conversation that can point us in a newer/better direction. The reality check pushes us to make new decisions/plans. Either way the Mercury/North Node is a SMOOTH aspect. 

 

There is a way forward and it won't be some big complicated thing. There will be no banging our head against the wall with this one. What makes the most sense/cents?

 

THEN Uranus stations direct - here is the change/chaos that was postponed. This could be financial shake-ups, weather/environmental/resource events. Our stability changes. Our Taurus house shifts - for example, if you are a Scorpio rising and Taurus is your 7th house of other people - maybe a partner changes direction (or changes hit you through them) ... again. People with planets or points in the fixed signs near 14 degrees will feel this most strongly. For all of us this is about changes with our values, resources and self-esteem. Expect the unexpected. This is lightning strikes/flashes of genius.

This is also the day billions of people celebrate the Chinese New Year. China, (like the United States), has an Aquarius Moon (the people are the future), so Uranus, ruler of Aquarius, stationing direct today should really power up the year of the Water Rabbit. And according to google, "the water rabbit is the symbol of longevity, peace, and prosperity in Chinese culture - 2023 is predicted to be a year of hope."

 

Sounds good to me!

 

xo all - I hope something here is helpful. Back with the BIG New Moon post - we should all get some previews this week, and over the next two weeks, of the year ahead. Pay attention. Talk to people. Make plans and get things moving.