Saturn Return Can Bite Me

Crazy times for Leos...in a good way

2009-08-07T17:15:27Z

"I don’t think many of you realise how the transit of Saturn (from August 2005 to September 2007) chastened our Leo…Saturn in Virgo hasn’t done nearly the same amount of ego-dinging to our Virgo because they LIKE being encouraged to get into shape. 2am shredding and filing orgies don’t phase them. Whereas a Leo thinks he/she should only be up at 2am if they are prancing in the moonlight to Rhapsody In Blue, in first class en route to open some fashion week, at the most fabulous party or receiving declarations of lust/admiration/adoration from someone suitably HOT and preferably FAMOUS.

So Leo was chastened. But from October 17 to early June in 2010, Leos are gonna make up for all that. Mars has not been in Leo this long since 1970 or something…I had it previously on the blog…Ages, at any rate. So, if you’re in love with or otherwise enmashed with a Leo, recognise that his/her ego, ambition, libido, creative urges, performance artiness and energy is soon going to be magnified ten fold. And anything other than abject devotion and 24-7 “support” will be deemed a betrayal."

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Chart challenges

2009-07-30T17:13:35Z

Your chart has significant challenges literally written right into it. Your moon is in challenge aspect to the asteroid Chiron, a potent symbol of issues that cry out for healing. Your Moon is opposite the planet of your survival instincts, Mars, and Mars is also in challenge aspect to Chiron. What this symbol says to me is that you are driven by powerful emotions that are often at cross purposes with you own best interests. In other words, you let your heart rule your head. While we are often admonished to listen more to our hearts and less to our heads, in your situation this is rather like doing too much of a good thing. Why? Because Chiron is sitting there, challenging your heart and your survival instincts to make some intrinsic changes in how you operate.

How do you operate? With three planets in the sign of Leo in your tenth house of career and public image, you like to work from center stage. You take great pride in how you handle your life, and you can be prideful in the choices you’ve made. You need the attention of others, and when you don’t get it in the measure you feel you deserve you tend to feel let down and even depressed. There is nothing sadder than a Leo who feels that they aren’t appreciated. Certainly, in a situation where you hauling all the freight, doing all the work in and out of the home, taking care of the emotional, physical and financial work of taking care of a family, there literally is not enough appreciation in the world that is going to feel like you are getting what you deserve. Yet you can, from the challenge from your Moon to your Uranus/Venus combination sitting in the the tenth house close to your Sun, be quite stubborn in insisting on keep on a course of action, even if it is apparent that course simply isn’t working."

I have some of this myself, but mainly this letter reminds me of a friend of mine with two autistic kids and a similarly difficult life, with Chiron issues.

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Fun with random stoners in the park

2009-07-28T20:12:53Z

Leo guy: "I'm a Leo! I'm a Leo! Look, I have a lion on my skateboard!"

PIsces guy: "Man, I'm so glad I'm not a Leo so I don't act like that."

Taurus girl (me): *quietly snickering throughout the whole thing*

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On the fixed signs.

2009-06-17T17:14:05Z

Oooh, just found a bunch of old articles.

The Fixed Dilemma:

"The fixed dilemma involves power and a variety of sensual pleasures. In one sense, the four parts of life we call “fixed” can be thought of as a gradual relinquishment of power. In another sense, they represent a shift of direction or target in the use of the power. Taurus (and other forms of letter two) as key to our physical pleasure includes money, possessions, appetites and the aesthetic in general, whether we create beauty or just enjoy it. It symbolizes our own money, possessions and appetites, and we have the right to indulge them in our own way, on our own terms.

Leo (and other variations of letter five) represents the ego drive to use our creative power to affect other people and to get a response back from others. This may be as simple as loving and being loved. The actor on stage is applauded. The teacher holds the attention of the class. The salesman-promoter persuades others to do his will. At the physical level, Leo is the orgasm and the procreation of children. Where Taurus may be totally self-involved, Leo requires an outreach and a response from the “out there” if there is to be full satisfaction. So we may feel that Leo involves more power than Taurus; power over people rather than only material things. But the “things” are really totally subject to the will of the owner, while the Leo power has to take into account the feelings of the people, and to temper the power if a positive response is the goal.

Scorpio (and the rest of letter eight) calls for learning to share power with “equal others.” Where Leo sought a sense of superiority, and we do all need to feel pride in ourselves somewhere, and to receive some validation of our worth from others, Scorpio must learn to handle power in close peer relationships, with a mate. Your rights vs. my rights; your pleasures vs. my pleasures; your possessions vs. my possessions; how can we give and receive and share? Scorpio seeks self-knowledge through the mirror of the mate, and learns self-mastery out of respect for the rights of the mate. Where Leo power flows out, Scorpio power turns in, as is true of all fire and water respectively.

Aquarius (and the balance of letter eleven) symbolizes the relinquishment of power except for power over knowledge. The Gestalt prayer exemplifies letter eleven; no one is here to live up to another’s expectations. “If we meet, it’s beautiful; if not, it can’t be helped.” With letter eleven, we have friends, without any limits but also without any commitment—casual, superficial, accepting. It is easy to accept when you don’t have to live with someone.

When we confront the full fixed dilemma, or partial mixtures, we are seeking to integrate these different parts of life. Aquarius in conflict with either Leo or Scorpio is one obvious form of the freedom-closeness dilemma. Both Leo and Scorpio want an intense, personal commitment while Aquarius belongs to humanity, or to the pursuit of knowledge, or just can’t stand limits. Leo needs to feel superior; Aquarius demands equality. Leo and Scorpio are emotional; Aquarius values the detached intellect. Taurus just wants to be comfortable, and can become passive-aggressive when jarred from its rut by Leo’s need to do something big or the Aquarius drive to go beyond the previous limits and try something new. The Taurus-Scorpio opposition can mean a variety of outer struggles over whose possessions or pleasures are being slighted; or it can be an inner struggle between appetite indulgence and appetite mastery, swinging from excess to asceticism; (eating vs. dieting, ambivalence over drinking, smoking, sex, spending vs. saving, etc.). The Leo-Scorpio confrontations are the most intense, and can lead to the most violent power struggles, as we seek appropriate ways to manifest outward power and stay alert to when we need to turn our power inward. In general, fire-water conflicts are the hardest to handle since they are the emotional elements and have trouble being rational, objective or practical about the situation.

Remember that putting the Sun in any fixed sign other than Leo, or in the 2nd, 8th or 11th house, makes it a part of the fixed dilemma. Pluto in Leo is a part of the fixed dilemma, as is Uranus in Taurus, Leo or Scorpio, and the respective house positions carry the same meaning. Remember also that the keynote of the “fixed” quality does not mean unchanging (Leo and Aquarius are both highly creative and leaders in moving the world) but rather “enduring self-will.” Fixed planets, signs and houses do change, but only on their own terms. No one else is allowed to push them into changing. So when we have a fixed dilemma within a chart, we have a beautiful potential for a stalemate or impasse. In my book Finding the Person in the Horoscope, I described the fixed quality as a combination grindstone and volcano. The irresistible force and the immovable object grind until the pressure builds to an explosion, but when the dust clears, the same old impasse is likely to be still there. In one sense, this makes a resolution of the problem harder, but in another sense, the individual often just learns to live with the situation, and the life in general is less disrupted than in people where the cardinal dilemma is the paramount one. It is the charts where there is a mixture of cardinal and fixed that mark the real power struggles with the world."

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Leo is shiny

2009-05-06T16:44:13Z

The house where you have LEO, ladies & gentleman, is where you have to shine, get trophies, be up yourself and have almost a teenagie & egomaniacal lust for life & sensation. It’s where you - DO admit - like a bit of drama & cannot bear things to be tatty nor naff. It’s your sector of bling & mirrors where, actually, it IS a bit of a performance but so what?!

Life is not allowed to be humdrum in the House of Hubris, soz, Leo & it’s also where you thrive on expressing a creative & playful attitude to the whole thing. Anyone attempting to guilt you in areas that pertain to the House of Love awakens your ire, turning you into a minotaur-style tower of outrage. You can’t dress down in the House of Leo. Shine or Abdicate.

Some examples; 7th House Leo goes for looks-looks-looks when it comes to partners & they’ll worry about the sanity etc later. 10th house Leo is a genius at self-promo & come alive when they’re on the telly. Has billboard fantasies. 3rd House Leo rehearses anecdotes & attempts to bignote siblings. 9th house Leo is ostenatatious traveller with “proper” luggage…never baggage. 8th House Leo - a PORN star?

And, this is heaven, whilst you’re figuring out your House of Hubris/Leo, note that action-planet Mars is going to be stimulating it non-stop from October 09 to June 2010….Eight months of egomanically fuelled passion & creation.

Dear lord, that 10th house Leo thing is true...

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The Leo/Aquarius eclipses

2009-02-12T22:17:46Z

I keep forgetting to post this.

"eclBut my dirty little secret was that I’d become a musician not just for the satisfaction of self-expression, but because I was a social misfit without a lot of other options. Unlike the girls who hung around backstage at the clubs where my band played, who traveled in tight, homogeneously attractive groups, I didn’t fit in. And to be honest, I envied – still envy – women who "fit in." Even now I often feel out of place at a bridal shower or girl’s night out.

Those of us with untapped Aquarius energy wander through life feeling as though we missed school on the very important day when social networking skills were taught. Humans are social animals, and it’s threatening to be unable to find a place in one’s pack. We’re hard-wired to crave the very Aquarian experience of belonging. But if fitting in means surrendering the ideas, gifts, and self-expression that are uniquely ours, our Leo selves insist that it’s too dear a price to pay.

As it turned out, not fitting in has proved to be one of my greatest blessings. I remember thinking early on that if I couldn’t fit in, I’d damn well make the best of standing out. So I gave myself over completely to music and later to writing, and in the end, a wonderful thing happened: By standing out, I somehow managed to find my place – to find love, acceptance, and friendship on my own terms.

Every now and then, the odd Uranus transit or progressed planet in Aquarius gives me a taste of what it’s like to simply, effortlessly, belong – to take enjoyment and energy from social connections. But when the transit passes and I return to the social wilderness, I don’t mind. There are creative treasures to be found there. I find myself there.

When eclipses fall in Aquarius and Leo, we’ve been asked to remember what kind of fuel powers the engine of our hearts - and to seek our place in the hearts of others."

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Eclipses again

2009-02-09T19:34:43Z

The Aquarius one was conjunct my Juno, the Leo one today(ish?) is conjunct my dreaded Saturn.

So far, nothing Juno/home related has gone on, I am still hardly home anyway. And I was about to go, "eh, nothing's gonna happen on the other one either."

Oh. Wait. Don't I have that conference this weekend? Talking about Saturn?

*faceplant*

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This is interesting

2008-12-13T00:09:13Z

Obama family analysis.

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AstroBookReview: Finding Success In The Horoscope

2008-10-09T21:04:49Z

Finding Success in the Horoscope: The Slevin System of Horoscope Analysis

Jackie Slevin

I have had issues with vocational astrology books. They tend to not be that helpful. I never got around to reviewing Vocations on here, but it was particularly bad for showing tons of examples and no way whatsoever to translate them into something I could apply to others. (I passed the book on to a friend of mine, who was even more baffled.)

I am happy to say that this one is pretty darned good. Clear to understand, gives examples and explains what they mean. Huzzah!

The "Slevin System" (to be honest, this makes me giggle a little, it sounds like some kind of huckster thing. Oh well, the author can't help her name) actually works pretty well for figuring things out for yourself.

Key points in the system:

Determine the sign and degree on the Midheaven.
Find the planet nearest to that degree in Ptolemaic (well, let's say exact) aspect within signs. This is your Principal Planet.
Note the PP's sign, strength, and direction.
Note the PP's house or if it's within 5 degrees of the next hours cusp.
Note the aspects the PP makes.
Note the house(s) the planet rules.
Note if the PP is conjunct/within a degree of the Cardinal Axis
Note if the PP is in mutual or mixed mutual reception with any other planets
Note if the PP is conjunct/within a degree of any Royal Fixed Stars.
Combine those factors to get a description of the personality, and define the strongest attributes for achieving success, notoriety, or the highest visibility.
Do this again with the planet nearest to the degree of the PP.
Note any planets in the tenth house

So, trying this out myself, I get:

Leo 8 degrees MC.
Planet closest to it is Mars in Leo at 5 degrees in the 9th house. No particular advantages or disadvantages. It squares the Sun/Chiron conjunction (The tying planet with Mars is Chiron at 5 degrees, square, but since this book doesn't go into Chiron, I'll just ignore this.) in the seventh. Sun is the ruler of Leo.
No fixed stars, no cardinal axis.

Leo midheaven = artistic pursuits, money, athletics, ambassadors, dignitaries. (Example: Princess Grace Kelly.)

Principal Planet conjunct the MC = "the fish are caught close to the market, with a brief and seemingly effortless return. The catch of the day is fresh, local, and readily available." If it's square, "the boat did not need to travel as far but the tide is against the fisherman on his return trip, and the motor on the boat had to work at full capacity to bring the catch in."

Mars as a PP = your boat is a speedboat, with fishermen who go off looking for sharks. Bunch of warriors. Example: guy who started a volunteering crime-fighting organization.

Not featured in the above system, but in the book, is a section on heredity. If you have Cancer/Capricorn emphasis or Moon/Saturn ties, you are bound to your family, like it or not, and can't escape. (Certainly sums up my life.)

But the part that makes me happy...

"In the Slevin System, the tried and true formula that indicates success in one's chosen field of endeavor is a specific aspect called the Boomerang. It occurs when:
The ruler of the Midheaven is in Ptolemaic aspect to the Midheaven.
Even if the ruler of the Midheaven is not the Principal Planet, if it is conjunct, trine, sextile, square or opposing the Midheaven within an orb of 8 degrees, success is a given in the Slevin System."
"Individuals with this extremely fortunate aspect are poster people for success. In the style of an express elevator, Fate enables them to reach the top, parting obstacles like the Red Sea, and remain in a penthouse of achievement. Their rank and public presentations can set the standard in their profession, and they often leave a legacy of notable success or notoriety." (Example: Katharine Hepburn.)

I totally have that, so YAY ME!

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Fun with fixed signs

2008-10-03T22:22:13Z

Not my chart, but similar.

"Michele, with several planets in Leo, your Ascendant in Scorpio, and Mars in Taurus on the Descendant, you are a strong fixed-sign person. I am, too, and so I can sympathize with where you are right now.

The fixed signs - Taurus, Leo, Scorpio, and Aquarius - can be difficult to work with, because they are stubborn and immovable. The flip side is that they are stable, reliable, and durable. We can carry burdens that would break others. Of course, that can mean we get a heavier load in life, too.

Leo and Aquarius are being impacted heavily right now due to a series of eclipses in these two signs that began this past February and will run until August 2009. To a lesser degree, Scorpio and Taurus also are being impacted (along with Scorpio and Taurus Rising). Since you are a Rising Scorpio, you are getting hit doubly hard. I don’t doubt that you are tired. I am, too! But hang in there, because you are being offered an opportunity to transform, grow, and evolve. Unfortunately, this never happens without a certain amount of pain.

Simultaneously with the eclipses, we are experiencing an opposition of Saturn and Uranus. These two patterns don’t seem to be related, but they are linked in an indirect way. I bring this up, because Saturn currently is moving through your tenth house of career and is transiting your lunar North Node in Virgo. The North Node often indicates our “mission” in life, so I feel fairly sure that you are about to find it.

Your challenge, as I see it, is that you have a lot of “self-oriented” Leo energy in your chart, while your North Node in Virgo indicates that your life’s work is about service to others. You will have to find a balance that allows you to fully express who you are while also serving humanity."

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