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Horoscope: February 6 to 12, 2012

Astrologer Pam Younghans writes this weekly astrological Journal based on planetary influences, and offers perspectives and insights to assist you in making the best use of current energies. This column is not intended as prediction. Your own experience will be more specifically defined by transits to your personal chart.

Highlighted Aspects for This Week

Monday: Uranus semisquare Sun, Uranus semisquare Mercury
Tuesday: Mercury conjunct Sun, Saturn stations retrograde 4:43am PST, Saturn quincunx Venus, Full Moon 1:54pm PST, Venus enters Aries
Wednesday: Mars quincunx Mercury
Thursday: Uranus conjunct Venus
Friday: Mars quincunx Sun, Pluto semisquare Mercury
Sunday: Pluto semisquare Sun

SATURN HOLDS COURT this week, as the ringed planet comes to a standstill in preparation for its five-month retrograde (backward motion) phase. When any planet reaches a "station" (the degree where it changes direction), its effect in our experience is heightened. This means we can anticipate Saturn's influence to be front and center this week.

Saturn brings into our awareness the need for discipline,  maturity and personal responsibility. Where that reality check manifests for us as individuals will depend on which house of our natal chart Saturn is currently transiting, and what natal planets are being directly impacted.
 
Individual chart differences aside, with Saturn in Libra, our experiences will have some core themes in common. Libra is represented by the Scales of Justice and Balance, and so brings up themes of relationship, fairness, and unbiased judgment.
 
SOME OF OUR LESSONS with this Saturn influence are certain to involve relationships, and perhaps also will manifest in the ending of those alliances that no longer serve a higher purpose in our lives. If this occurs, it does not mean we need to condemn the entire relationship as being worthless. Every commitment we make has value, and teaches us important lessons about ourselves and how we relate to others. It is important to honor this truth, even if we are saying good-bye.
 
We will also be looking at how we use the energies of Libra in general. Are we able to balance self and other, in all areas of our lives? Are we personally integrated, so that how we act externally is in accordance with who we are internally? Do we know our boundaries and treat ourselves and others with both fairness and kindness?

SATURN IS NOW at 29 degrees of Libra, the very last degree of the sign. This is known astrologically as the "critical degree," where we feel an urgency to bring the lessons of that sign to completion.
 
But, even though Saturn is pushing us to complete our Libra lessons, the ringed planet is also going retrograde. For the next few months (until Saturn goes direct on June 25), we'll have time to review some aspects of the decisions we've recently made regarding relationships, fairness and integrity.
 
This retrograde time will enable us to come to terms with what has occurred, and will also help us stabilize so that we can move forward with greater certainty in the aftermath of changes. Or, we may use this time to rethink recent decisions, and make new ones to take their place.
 
No matter whether we stay the course we have set or choose a different tack, we may not reach full closure or permanent decision until Saturn is again at 29 degrees of Libra, in late September and early October 2012.

THE OTHER PRIMARY influence at work this week, astrologically speaking, is the Leo Full Moon on Tuesday (at 1:54pm PST) -- the same day that Saturn stations. This lunation represents the culmination of short-term themes that began with the Aquarius New Moon on January 22.
 
In certain respects, we have all been working over the past two weeks to establish a greater sense of our independence and individuality, our unique identity and role in the world. Under the reign of the air sign Aquarius, this has been primarily a mental exercise.
 
Now, as the Moon comes to fullness in the fire sign Leo, we need to reconnect with our equally valid needs for belonging and creative, heart-level interactions. This influence may remind us of the yearnings to feel fully alive and completely involved in life, and perhaps provide the avenues for us to express those yearnings.
 
THE SABIAN SYMBOL for the 19th degree of Leo, where the Moon is positioned for the Full Moon, calls us to find those outlets for heartfelt participation in life:

"A houseboat party: The enjoyment of temporary freedom from rigidly structured social behavior."

This seems to be quite a different message than the one Saturn in Libra has been providing. And yet, perhaps we can combine the seriousness of the Saturn effect with the lightheartedness of the Leo Moon to find a new balance between work and play. Paradoxically, if we've been overworking, it takes discipline to break that pattern and incorporate more playtime into the day.
 
Maybe if we envision dancing on Saturn's rings....?
 
THIS FULL MOON does seem to emphasize thinking outside of our normal parameters. At the time of the lunation, the Sun and Mercury are conjunct (at the same degree) in inventive Aquarius, and are semisquare (45 degrees away from) Uranus.
 
These influences may manifest as communication glitches or plans that go slightly awry, but the gift behind any such occurrences is that they open our minds to new perspectives and new ways of viewing the seemingly-ordinary events of our lives. We can assist our process this week by being more willing than usual to "think outside the box," and remain flexible in how we perceive our day-to-day reality.

 About the Author

Pam Younghans lives in a log cabin outside of Seattle, Washington with her two dogs. She has been interpreting charts professionally for over 25 years. If you are interested in an astrology reading, e-mail pam@northpointastrology.com, or call 425-445-3775. For more information, please visit http://www.northpointastrology.com

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