Horoscope: September 3 to 9, 2018
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
All times listed are Pacific Daylight Time. For Greenwich Mean Time, add 7 hours.
MON: Mercury sextile Venus, Jupiter semisquare Saturn, Mars trine Ceres
WED: Mercury quincunx Mars, Mercury enters Virgo, Ceres enters Libra
THU: Saturn stations direct 4:08 a.m. PDT, Mercury quincunx Chiron, Mercury conjunct Pallas Athene, Sun sesquiquadrate Mars
FRI: Mercury trine Uranus, Mercury trine Saturn, Sun opposite Neptune, Chiron opposite Ceres, Mercury sesquiquadrate Pluto
SAT: Uranus trine Pallas Athene, Venus square Mars
SUN: Saturn trine Pallas Athene, Venus enters Scorpio, Venus sesquisquadrate Neptune, Mercury quintile Jupiter, New Moon 11:01 a.m. PDT, Sun sesquiquadrate Uranus
WE ARE ENTERING a time of healing. By the time of our New Moon next Sunday, all ten of the primary astrological planets will be in either earth or water signs. Earth and water signs are feminine in nature and mutually supportive: water nourishes and renews earth, while earth holds and provides a foundation for water.
Since this week is the last of the current lunar cycle, it is also a time of release and completion. If it seems like this last phase of the Moon carries greater weight than usual, that's because we're actually clearing the debris field related to the entire eclipse season. Next Sunday's New Moon is the first lunation since June (!) that is not part of an eclipse-based lunar cycle.
THE THEME of completion also appears in other planetary activity this week, starting with the third and final Jupiter-Saturn semisquare that occurs on Monday. This aspect represents the tension between the desire to maintain the status quo (Saturn in Capricorn) and our knowing that deep change must occur if we are to realize our most profound aspirations (Jupiter in Scorpio). Times of transformation are by nature unstable, and as physical beings, we tend to fear walking on ground that is shaking.
This Jupiter-Saturn aspect occurred for the first time on December 22, 2017, and perfected for the second time on March 14, 2018. This week, we may feel familiar frustrations, but we are different in some way than we were eight months ago. During the course of this aspect's influence, we hopefully have developed and strengthened a new, more conscious perspective, one that now enables us to handle such situations with greater internal stability and external flexibility.
SATURN concludes its backward-motion phase on Thursday, having been retrograde since April 17. This means that Saturn is virtually at a standstill this entire week, hovering between 2 and 3 degrees of Capricorn. This concentrated focus of Saturn's energy provides a more serious undertone for the week ahead, especially for those who have natal planets or points in the first five degrees of Capricorn.
If we've done Saturn's personal growth homework over the past four months, we should be in good position to resume progress toward important goals after the planet goes direct. And just what qualities has retrograde Saturn been trying to instill in us? They include greater patience and endurance, and a stronger capacity to focus our attention on what we want to achieve, rather than getting sidetracked by nonessentials or by emotional turmoil.
Astrologer Bil Tierney tells us that while Saturn is retrograde, we are compelled to work with "weak elements in our personality structure that have been avoided in the past, that now need to be attended to and given corrective focus." He also reassures us that once moving forward again, Saturn will reward us for having done the work of "taking stock of ourselves, and working on building the inner structure needed to foster a greater level of psychological strength."
A SUPPORTIVE earth grand trine occurs this Friday when Mercury in Virgo forms a triangular configuration with Saturn in Capricorn (exact at 12:40 a.m. PDT) and Uranus in Taurus (exact at 5:19 a.m.). This grand trine can help us feel a new level of inner stability, while also motivating us to employ original ideas to formulate a strategy for future success.
Mercury is moving quickly right now, so only maintains that favorable grand trine energy for a few hours. But, on Saturday and Sunday, the asteroid Pallas Athene steps in to fill Mercury's position in the configuration. We may achieve even more under the influence of the Pallas-Saturn-Uranus grand trine, given that Pallas in Virgo provides deep wisdom, the ability to see the essential nature of what is perceived, and the skill to use healing techniques.
OUR NEW MOON occurs at exactly 17 degrees of Virgo on Sunday, September 9, at 11:01 a.m. PDT (6:01 p.m. GMT). The lunation is aligned with the fixed star Chara, infusing this new lunar cycle with qualities attributed to that star. According to astrologer Rodrick Kidston, Chara's offerings include:
".... a feeling of faith in the essential goodness of the universe and a willingness to forgive and try again when things go wrong. But Chara's chief gift, apart from its warm heart and selflessness, is a real knack for communication. It's not just about skill with words, but even more about making strong emotional connections with people rather than relying solely on mental-intellectual exchanges."
THE SUN AND MOON are opposite Neptune and sextile Jupiter at the time of the lunation; in essence, the New Moon is activating the remnants of that watery Jupiter-Neptune trine we've been working with throughout this year. But there's a significant difference -- with the New Moon in earthy, practical Virgo, we also have some grounding for the effects of the trine.
What does this mean for the New Moon, and the new lunar cycle? With Jupiter in Scorpio, there may be more revelations and we may experience some deep emotional responses. And, we will once again need to access a higher aspect of ourselves that is able to transcend the drama and stay in the light (Neptune in Pisces).
But the Sun and Moon will provide a new element to the mix, through Virgo's ability to know what to do next, and how to resolve or heal the problem. Sounds to me like the missing ingredient, one we've needed for a long time now!
IF YOUR BIRTHDAY IS THIS WEEK: This year invites you to find a new balance between the practical and the mystical aspects of your life, and to gain new awareness about when to call upon your innate skills of discernment and when to relax and trust that all is well. This is a good time to look at the theme of service and how it manifests in your life. You may find yourself drawn to new ways of expressing your compassion in the world, but it will be important not to expect yourself to be able to fix every problem you see.
About the Author
Pam Younghans is a professional astrologer, editor, and writer. She lives in a log home northeast of Seattle, Washington with her beloved animal companions. She has been interpreting charts professionally for over 25 years. If you are interested in an astrology reading, e-mail
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