The Virgo month, the Libra month

Virgo, Amiens cathedral

I've written several posts about the Zodiac Signs of the moment, so with the Sun currently in Virgo (23rd August - 23rd September) and then in Libra (23rd September to 23rd October), here are some charts and resources to browse through for both signs. Click on the links.

A Virgo Line up

The charts of several well-known performers, past and present, including Lauren Bacall who died recently.

Earthy Pleasures with the Sun in Virgo 

A different take on this sign, the time of the year, and how the harvest is celebrated in one part of France.

Then there is my YouTube video on Virgo:

 
Now on to Libra:

Libra - the grape harvest

Sun in Libra

There are plenty of Libran qualities on show  in this post. . .




The Autumnal Equinox
. . .and in this one too, together with some thoughts on the equinox and the esoteric seed thought for the sign.

 
And there's also my YouTube video on Libra:

  

 

Sun into Capricorn - Winter Solstice

I've written something similar to this in the past around the time the Sun enters the sign of Capricorn, but it bears repeating because we all, myself included, need reminding of things from time to time. And it's always good to reconnect with those events outside of ourselves. Connecting with the position of the Sun in relation to ourselves on Earth is something we can do relatively easily at this very busy time of year. On 21st December the Sun is at its furthest point from the northern hemisphere, making this is the shortest day and longest night of the year. Meanwhile, down in the southern hemisphere the Sun is riding high in the sky as the exact opposite happens.

It may look dark but the light is there, waiting to return

The winter solstice is a festival of light and in the northern hemisphere it coincides with Christmas. This Christian festival takes place at the same time of year as the pagan celebration of the solstice which celebrates the gradual and at first impercetible return of the light of the Sun after the long days of darkness. It's the turning point of the year and marks the return of the light and the rebirth of the Sun (the Son in Christianity...?), together with the promise of the warmth and energy the Sun brings to make crops - essential to life - grow once again after the earth has lain dormant.

This is the time of year when people of all faiths, and none, can express their connection with the earth, our life upon it in relation to others we meet, and our place in the solar system, so

celebrate !

Share the warmth of friendship at the turning point of the year and bring some light and joy into your own life and the lives of others.

What you could do at this time of year to bring light into your own life:

• light a candle 
• call a friend
• perform a random act of kindness
• take a risk and smile at strangers as you walk down the street 
• glow with joy and a warmth of spirit and it will come back to you in spades

Greetings of the season to everyone out there, and may the warmth of friendship be wrapped around you at this time of year.

 

Sun in Gemini

It's that Gemini time of year - the Sun entered this sign on 21st May, coinciding with some dramatic events - the tornado which struck Oklahoma with devastating effect, and shortly after this, the gruesome murderous slaughter of an off-duty soldier outside his barracks in London.

Communicate and understand

With the Sun in the sign associated with communication, and heading for its highest point in the northern hemisphere on 21st June - the Summer Solstice - perhaps we should be focussing on the way we comunicate with each other, across nations and races/cultures/religions. The aim, with Gemini-style fast and diverse communication, is to connect, communicate and understand things from other viewpoints, often different from our own.

Understand viewpoints different from our own

The esoteric seed thought for Gemini points the way: "I recognise my other Self and in that waning of that Self I grow and glow". You may interpret that in whichever way has greatest meaning for you; for me the message is pretty clear - put your own self & cherished viewpoints aside for a while and listen to the other side's.

On a personal level, Sun in Gemini has certain traits which are shared, but not necessarily expressed, by those born at this time of year. Here are a few of my takes on this:

The Libra time of year

The Sun enters Libra on or around 23rd September and this marks the Autumnal Equinox - the point in the year when day and night are of equal length as the Sun crosses the equator and goes on its way south to bring spring and summer to the southern hemisphere, leaving us in the northern hemisphere to experience first autumn, and then winter.

Balance and harmony.......

The qualities of Libra are not about balance for nothing - the equality of day and night, the point when the balance between dark and light are the same. This is echoed in the esoteric seed thought for the sign of Libra: 

 

I choose the way that leads between the two great lines of force

This seed thought could be an effective reminder to anyone who is in any kind of conflict. You don't need to take up arms, or do someone down, or go into battle or get revenge on another person because there is a third way.

You can choose to step out of the polarisation of right/wrong which has you in its grip and go instead by the path which leads to neither. This will leave you feeling a lot better and with the energy to do something positive in the world.

As it's the start of autumn (or fall if you live in the US), here are some views of this time of year. If you're interested in astrology you can't separate this from the movement of the Sun and how this affects the world we live in. And autumn is a beautiful time of year - Keats called it the "Season of mists and mellow fruitfulness..."

Spider's web outlined with dew in the autumn sunshine

A bee collects pollen from an autumn-flowering plant

Autumnal scene by the river

Season of mists...

Cancer the Crab

Cancerians - those who are born with the Sun in this sign - are generally closely linked to their family, home or neighbourhood in some way. It is the sign which has affiliations with the collective, and group consciousness.

The symbol for Cancer, the Crab, is described by Louise Huber, in her book Reflections and Meditations on the Signs of the Zodiac as "two bowls merging in an open circle through which everything can flow. The upper bowl shows movement to the left representing a step backwards, a striving towards the starting point, the source of life, the beginning of existence. The lower bowl shows movement from left to right representing a step out into the world in order to prove oneself and realise oneself."

Cancerians can reflect, in their nature and approach to life, the crab as it exists in the natural world. They may approach things sideways rather than head on (as the crab itself scuttles in a sideways direction towards its destination), and at times they may be very sensitive and moody. Ruled by the Moon, the feelings and emotional responses of Cancerians - a Water sign - may ebb and flow just as the tides are affected by the phases of the Moon.

These suggestions, together with what I say about the sign of Cancer on my AstroChat Channel, (see below) are just starters and are not the definitive word about this or any of the signs. For more, see the courses and books available at the Astrological Psychology Association website, where you can learn more about all the signs, planets, houses, and how to interpret charts using the Huber Method for yourself.

Sun in Libra

The Sun enters Libra today, 23rd September. Libra is the Sign associated with beauty, harmony, balance, taste, diplomacy, indecision, pleasant interaction, friendship, appreciation of aesthetics, fashion and style...just to mention a few.

To celebrate the start of the Libra time of year, when autumn colours appear in nature in the northern hemisphere making the world looks very beautiful, when the grape harvest is made, and when the fashion-conscious dive into new-seasons' clothing, here are some images which for me have Libran qualities of balance, harmony and beauty.

Elegant Swans by Maylis

Perfect poise - Hummingbird Hawk Moth


. . . and balance - Meadow Brown Butterfly.

Zodiac Signs: Aries

I wrote this post on International Astrology Day 2010, on the day when the Sun enters Aries on 21st March, crossing the equator and moving into the northern hemisphere. This marks the arrival of Spring in this hemisphere and it is also the Vernal Equinox, when day and night are of equal length.

Aries is the first Zodiac sign. The sign of Aries is associated with the ram

This statue is known as the Moffat Ram, and is in the town of Moffat in the Scottish Borders.

Aries is also associated with new plant life shooting up through the earth, hence the symbol for Aries, which is like the ram's horns, and like the new shoots of a plant.


Here are some more Aries images: Aries carved in stone on the portal of the cathedral of St. Denis in Paris

and Aries and the labours of the month, from Les Tres Riches Heures du Duc de Berry. Look at the top and see the Sun in Aries on the right, leaving Pisces behind on the left. Farmers and land workers are preparing the ground, planting seeds.

 
More on Aries here in this short video on my YouTube channel:

Capricorn and the climb up the mountain

As the Sun enters Capricorn, marking the Winter Solstice and the start of the slow but sure return of the Sun's light to the northern hemisphere, I'm sharing a few images to illustrate the Capricornian journey to the mountain top. These were taken in Alaska and come courtesy of Maylis at www.maylisphotography.com

Capricorn, a Cardinal Earth Sign, is renowned for its determination and staying power en route to attaining the distant goal it has set for itself. Capricorn is symbolised as half-fish, half-goat. Its tail may draw it back towards the watery world where it was spawned, but its head and upper body lead it onwards and upwards towards the distant heights. If you've ever watched goats climbing up a mountainside you'll know that they are sure-footed and determined, leaping from one rock to the next and not always going in a straight line. They take their time, they have a kind of strategy which keeps them on a safe footing as they gradually work their way towards their goal. Observe these traits in people born with the Sun in Capricorn. They don't take unnecessary risks, they suss out all eventualities before embarking on a project and they usually aim high.

The Capricorn traveller sees the goal - the mountain peak. It's in the distance, there's a lot of ground to be covered and there's cloud on the mountain top. All risks and possibilities have to be covered before the traveller sets off. Capricorns are good planners - be creative and imagine what this one might wear and carry with them at the start of their journey! There's a glacier to be crossed before the mountain is reached and the real climb starts.

Crossing the glacier could be fraught with unexpected dangers so the Capricorn traveller needs to plan ahead and have the right equipment. The journey may take longer than planned if the traveller has to make detours to skirt around the crevasses. And if Capricorn decides to leap across, this will not be done without care, attention and risk limitation!

When the mountain top is finally reached, the view is breathtaking and the air refined and of a different quality. Here, Capricorn may well "see the light" and gain a vastly different and far wider view and perspective on the world, life and his or her own reason for being here. But this is a practical Earth Sign and although the spiritual heights can be reached, Capricorn's task is to bring the insights from this journey and experience down off the mountain and share them in some way (perhaps simply by example) with others.

The esoteric seed thought for Capricorn is "Lost am I in light supernal, yet on that light I turn my back" and that more or less sums up what I've tried to relate to you here about the highest expression of this Sign.

Canning by the Signs of the Zodiac

Ever since I wrote about the Signs of the Zodiac and the body parts they are associated with, I've been fascinated to see how many people read this post and I've found out why.

It seems that it's important to can/pickle/preserve food according to the agricultural calendar, which is closely associated with the 12 Signs of the Zodiac and the planting, harvesting and dormant/non-growing times of the year.

I've always been interested in the tasks or labours of the year associated with the different Zodiac Signs, and this approach to canning by the Signs (especially it seems, for sauerkraut) makes a lot of sense. You can read what I write about the Signs and some of the agricultural tasks associated with them in The Cosmic Egg Timer available from the APA on-line Book Shop.

You can also read up ideas on canning and preserving for yourself at Appalachian Voices where there is an item about Eula Vines, an elder and an experienced bottler/canner/pickler of vegetables. I quote here:

Eula believes in canning by the signs. It is a long-standing belief among food preservers that zodiac signs can affect the outcome of any batch of canned vegetables, especially those that are pickled.

You can find the signs -marked as tiny fish (Pisces) and lions (Leo) among others- on certain calendars and in many almanacs, often with a corresponding graph of the human body. Each date has a designated zodiac sign, and each sign indicates a relationship to a specific body part.

“I never pickle when the sign is in the feet,” Eula said, flipping through her wall calendar. “I pickle when the sign is in Aries or Leo. One of them’s in the head; one’s in the heart.”

She explained, “I know the signs work. Yesterday was an Aries day, but I’ll pickle through next week because the sign will still be in the neck. I’ve pickled when the signs are in the legs, but I won’t pickle when they get into the feet. I’ve had kraut smell bad and be soft when it’s in the feet.”

That makes a lot of sense. Pickling or preserving when the Sun is moving through the Sign of Pisces, which rules the feet, is the time of year, in the northern hemisphere, when it's still winter and stocks of produce are running low. Freshness and suitability would be doubtful; the produce to be preserved could have been touched and ruined by frosts.

Right now the Sun is in Virgo, the Sign associated with harvest and the bounty of the Earth. This image is of one of the roundels in the Zodiac window in the cathedral of Chartres, France. All 12 Zodiac Signs are depicted in the window, along with the 12 labours for each Sign, which follow the agricultural cycle of the year. Virgo rules the intestines and as a Sign is associated with health, well-being and healing. It would follow, then, that if canning or preserving at this time of year it's important to do so with really fresh produce which has just been harvested and is at its best.

I know that right now I'm picking berries, apples and other soft fruits from my garden and am either eating them right away when their at their best, or am freezing or preparing them for storage on the same day.

The Moon in your Birth Chart

It can be fun having younger members of the family playing at hairdressers - with blunt scissors!

The Moon in astrological psychology represents the sense of self we gain through our feelings and emotions, and often our sense of fun and child-like excitement.

The Moon signifies these spontaneous and fun-loving child-like responses, and it also acts like a mirror, reflecting what's going on around us because it can sense and pick up on atmospheres and feelings very easily. It's a sensing tool, the part of us that feels.

Of course, the way the Moon operates and expresses itself out in the world will be coloured by the Zodiac Sign it's in, which acts like a "costume" which clothes the Moon and modifies its expression. On a basic bottom line level, its expression is influenced by the Element (Fire, Earth, Air or Water) of that Sign.

Fire Sign Moons - those in Aries, Leo and Sagittarius - will tend towards optimism and enthusiasm. Fiery Moons want to be noticed! They will be lively, expressive and outspoken with energetic feelings that demand attention.

Earth Sign Moons - those in Taurus, Virgo and Capricorn - will have a strong practical streak. They may be a bit fussy, but they are down-to-earth and generally enjoy sensual things, espcially Taurus Moons. They will appreciate good quality in all areas of life.

Air Sign Moons - those in Gemini, Libra and Aquarius - love to communicate and share ideas with others, so they enjoy seeing friends and family, chatting and catching up on news, attending talks, lectures and events which will stimulate the mind.

Water Sign Moons - those in Cancer, Scorpio and Pisces - tend to be very emotionally sensitive and tuned in to the feelings of others. They can be very caring, needing to express their feelings and regard for others in tangible ways. But they can also be moody, living life through their feeling nature.

The Moon, representing the sense of self we get through our feelings, is often a part of the personality which is neglected or repressed. We may have been brought up not to show our feelings; they might have been regarded as unacceptable or not something to share or talk about in the environment we grew up in. But they are there all the same, and sometimes they need our attention.

In this video I talk about some of the ways we can work on developing and understanding the Moon and our feeling nature. There is more on this in my book The Living Birth Chart. Click on the Books by Joyce Hopewell tab at the top of the page.

Pluto in Capricorn

If, in 2016, it seems like the world is going to hell in a handcart, take a look at what I wrote back in 2009.

Pluto entered the sign of Capricorn in January 2008, hung about a bit until June, edged back into Sagittarius until November and then finally took up more long-term residence in Capricorn at the end of November 2008. Now it's 2009, and Pluto will be in Capricorn until 2024.

Pluto in Capricorn - what might this mean? I enjoy working with images, especially with clients whose charts I see, and I aim to help bring their chart to life for them in a hands-on way which reflects real life experience. So Pluto (powerful and transformative) in Capricorn (earth-related, material, mighty structures) for me suggests the potential for volcanic eruptions and upheaval. Fiery power and change can shake the very foundations of the earth itself, and bring about cleansing changes.

The effects of Pluto in Capricorn are already being felt. Large structures, organisations and establishments are falling and failing in the current global economic climate. Banks, once regarded as strong, mighty, secure Capricornian set-ups, are buckling. Financial institutions are under pressure from this and are being aided and abetted by the current Saturn/Uranus opposition. Well-known and long-established retail businesses, such as Woolworth's, have already folded. Things are changing fast as this volcanic upheaval hits home, and if those fat cat bankers and hedge fund managers are harbouring illusions about saving their bacon and still getting away with taking large bonuses, then I for one will have a smile on my face when Pluto's heat ray singes their greedy grubby fingers.

But Pluto in Capricorn is not all doom and gloom. It brings bountiful opportunities to start afresh with a clean slate, and to bring about perfection in we humans who in habit the world. Pluto is renowned for its cleansing energies on all levels - the physical, emotional and mental. One of my students once described Pluto by saying it was "like prunes as it goes into the interior and does good works"! If it can clean out our tacky institutions and establishments so that they operate in a more transparent and fair manner, then this is no bad thing.

In Yorkshire (a large county in England, if you're reading this elsewhere in the world), there is a word used for clearing out cupboards, drawers, cellars and attics and getting rid of what is no longer of any use. The word is "bottoming" and I guess it means that as you clear things out you get to see the bottom of the drawer or cupboard. Pluto is about bottoming, getting rid of the unwanted rubbish and starting afresh.

Pluto in Capricorn will offer endless opportunities for us all on a personal level to clear out our own clutter, be it emotional or psychological. In the wider sphere, those Capricornian institutions which form the very fabric of society could also be in for a shake up. Big businesses which are not ethical, bosses who are less than honest, governments who neglect their people, fat cats who take more than they will ever need - watch out.

Pluto doesn't discriminate; it cleanses, and brings swingeing changes.

Addendum: May 2009 - MP's expenses scandalAll of the above applies equally to the current spate of revelations in the British press about many of our MP's apparently milking the system which allows them to claim for expenses incurred by having second homes to allow them to sit in the Houses as Parliament as elected representatives of the people. Pluto in Capricorn, having revealed the rot at the heart of the banking and financial systems is now turning it's heat ray on to another very rotten core and is demanding, via the justifiable anger of the people of Britain, a full-scale cleansing which needs to go to the very heart of British democracy.

December 2009 - my current thoughts on Pluto in Capricorn from my YouTube channel, Joyce Hopewell's AstroChat.

A Virgo Line-up

It’s the Virgo month, so here’s a line-up of well-known Sun Virgos, past and present. Of course, it’s more than likely to be a neat, orderly line-up - they are Virgos after all! But just how “Virgo” are they? I thought it would be interesting to keep things simple and just look at

• How many planets they actually have in Virgo in addition to the Sun, and

• What the colour balance of red: green: blue aspects is in each chart, as this can give insights into the inner and often unconscious motivation of the individual.

I could find the time of birth of some of these Virgos but not all of them. As I wasn’t sure of the accuracy of the times I found (they weren’t rated/verified in any way) I decided to level the playing field and set up all the charts for noon. This puts those Virgo Suns right at the top of the chart. The orientation of the aspect structure is going to be inaccurate in most cases, but the balance of the aspect colours is more than likely to be correct.

Bearing in mind that the “ideal” balance and ratio of red: green: blue is 4 red: 2 green: 6 blue, and that red = action and doing, green = awareness and sensitivity and blue = stability and maintaining the status quo, here goes! You can read about colour balance and motivation in more depth and detail in my books Aspect Patterns in Colour and The Cosmic Egg Timer - see Books tabs at top of page.

Greta Garbo: Swedish film star, born 18.9.1905, Stockholm. Sun and Mercury in Virgo. 6 red: 2 green: 7 blue aspects. An excess of red “doing” energy there, perhaps offset by the 7 blue aspects, but maybe not much! Image:Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago

Jeremy Irons: British actor, born 19.9. 1948, Cowes, Isle of Wight. Sun and Saturn in Virgo. 5 red: 2 green: 6 blue aspects. Another actor with an excess of red “doing” energy. Virgos work hard at getting things right, perfect and just so! Image: movie.moldova.org














Sophia Loren: Italian film star, born 20.9 1934, Rome. Sun and Venus conjunct Neptune in Virgo. Venus/Neptune seems apt for a steamy, sexy film star! 4 red: 5 green: 5 blue aspects. An excess of green here means she could be very sensitive and touchy as well as changeable, perhaps having people in her surroundings trying to second guess her next move. Image: www.fest21.com















Twiggy: British supermodel, born 19.9.1949. Sun and Saturn in Virgo. 4 red: 1 green: 5 blue aspects. An excess of red, with a slight lack of green. Twiggy, iconic face of the Swinging Sixties, is still working as a model 40 years on. Image: www.dailymail.co.uk














Lauren Bacall: American film star, born 16.9.1924. Sun and Mercury in Virgo. 6 red: 4 green: 3 blue. A lot of red/green compared with her lack of blue aspects, so maybe touchy, driven, and finding it harder to rest and just “be”. Image: navcity.files.wordpress.com














Peter Sellers: British comedy actor and film star, born 8.9.1925, Southsea. Sun conjunct Mars in Virgo - how’s that for a hard-working perfectionist? 4 red: 3 green: 6 blue aspects. Sellers is perhaps best known for his role as the bumbling Inspector Clouseau in the “Pink Panther” films. A slight excess of green suggests heightened awareness and sensitivity. Image: blogs.sfweekly.com













Maurice Chevalier: French singer and entertainer, born 12.9.1888, Paris. Sun in Virgo. 3 red: 0 green: 5 blue aspects. Lacking in green he may have veered between the two opposite poles of “doing” and “being”, with little awareness that he was actually doing this. Image: www.musiqueenligne.com

Gemini: Chatterbox of the Zodiac

The movement of the Sun progresses on through the Zodiac, and today enters the Sign of Gemini. On the Zodiac Clock in Chartes Cathedral (shown above), the Gemini Twins can be seen at 11 o'clock, engaged in an intense and perpetual dialogue with each other.

An extract from The Cosmic Egg Timer, my book co-authored with Richard Llewellyn, says of Mutable Air Sign Gemini:

"This Sign has an insatiable hunger for information and communication, reflecting the busy information-seeking nature of its ruling planet Mercury. It is happiest when talking, asking questions, gathering or disseminating information, using the phone, surfing the internet or learning a new foreign language. For Gemini, variety is the spice of life, so the more new or interesting experiences and snippets of information it can get hold of, the better! This is the Sign of the Twins, and as such, Gemini is most happy with (at least!) two of everything, if not more! The Twins are a duo, a double act, and as two people often do when they get together, they talk! With Gemini, the duality that underlies the Sign may go something like “On the one hand, I see it this way…….yet on the other hand, there might be another way of looking at it…”
Gemini is quick-witted and amusing. It’s a Sign that can think on its feet and simultaneously have fingers in many pies. Gemini will have a busy engagement diary with an accompanying lifestyle, and in conversation will show a rapid verbal delivery and an ability to speak on a wide variety of different subjects. This is a Sign that doesn’t stop still for long because it is constantly moving on to the next intensely interesting yet hugely different source of fascination. Sounds exhausting? Not to a Gemini! It is their lifeblood.

Of the new things learned and the projects undertaken, many may be scanned quickly and absorbed at a skin deep rather than a heart and soul level. This doesn’t mean that Gemini is not capable of going into things in depth - it’s simply a matter of the time available and the urgent need to be moving on to something new, not letting the grass grow under their feet. Gemini is frequently on the go, maybe travelling - but short haul for preference - and in advance they will have absorbed the contents of the guidebook in order to gather as much information as they can about their destination. Time will be allocated for sightseeing. Oh yes, and they will aim to take plenty of good holiday reading with them too. Most important of all, they will want to meet with as many locals as they can in their chosen destination, and of course, they will be keen to try out their newly-acquired language skills!"

Mercury/Gemini heaven? A book stall like this one, or maybe a busy social gathering with a wide variety of people to talk to.

Image: Bouquiniste by Maylis Photography

Aries and the Vernal Equinox

The Sun enters the Sign of Aries tomorrow, on 20th March. This is the Vernal, or Spring, Equinox when day and night are of equal length (equi - equal, nox - night) and it marks the point in the year when the Sun crosses the equator and moves from the southern to the northern hemisphere. The start of Spring in the northern hemisphere marks the start of Autumn in the southern hemisphere.

I've set up the chart for the Sun's change of Sign from Pisces to Aries (also known as the zero point of the zodiac). The chart is set for 06.00 GMT in London, with the Sun just 33 seconds into Aries; at this time it will have been hovering over the zero point and entering Aries for approximately 10 minutes. If you're up and awake then you can welcome the Sun and the start of Spring!

Aries is the first Sign of the zodiac and is associated with go ahead behaviour, leadership qualities, a tendency to rush at things and reflect on them later (that "opening your mouth and putting your foot in it" syndrome!), impulsiveness, an ability to get new things started, lots of energy and enthusiasm and a fearlessness which can allow those with Sun in Aries to forge ahead where others would falter.


The symbol for Aries is the Ram. With head and business-like horns down it can rush headlong at anything which gets in its way, or which it wants to get the better of.

The chart has some interesting features. There is a Double Ambivalence figure which fills a large area of the chart. Quadrangular in shape, it has a security-seeking motivation. One part of it works energetically with that Aries Sun at the "doing" apex of the red part of this figure. At the blue "escape" corner is Saturn. These these two planets are connected on the inside of the figure by a green quincunx endowing awareness and the capacity to learn; Sun and Saturn can work cooperatively if the enthusiasm of the Aries Sun can be tempered by the caution of the Virgo Saturn. The other planets involved - Mars and Pluto - share the same Cardinal qualities as the Sun. Saturn alone in this pattern can provide a Fixed and steadying influence and will help underpin the security which this particular figure seeks.

Photo of the Moffat Ram, Moffat, Dumfriesshire, Scotland