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Horoscope: July 8 - July 14, 2019
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 Eastern Time, add 3 hours. For Greenwich Mean Time, add 7 hours.
MON: Venus square Chiron, Venus sextile Uranus, Sun quincunx Jupiter, Mercury conjunct Mars, Chiron stations retrograde
TUE: Sun opposite Saturn, Sun conjunct North Node
WED: Sun trine Neptune
THU: Mars trine Chiron, Mars square Uranus
FRI: Mercury sesquiquadrate Neptune
SUN: Sun opposite Pluto
AS WE NAVIGATE this week between eclipses, we are already working with the energies of July 16's Lunar Eclipse/Full Moon. This is because some of the components of the eclipse will perfect (become exact to the degree) during this "tween" week. Most notable among these are the Sun's alignment with the North Node, and its opposition to Saturn, the South Node, and Pluto.
The influence of an opposition is just how it sounds: Two planets, two people, two ideologies, two options are diametrically opposed to each other. Polarities are established, and either a seesaw effect or a tug of war can ensue.
HOLDING one end of the rope are the Sun and North Node, currently in the sign of Cancer. Archetypes associated with Cancer are Nurturer, Therapist, and Empath. At the other end of the rope, in Capricorn, are Saturn, the South Node, and Pluto. Capricorn's archetypes include Achiever, Ambitious One, Authority, and Hermit.
As these oppositions play out in our experience, we may be drawn into an inner conflict, torn between the calling of our more emotional, sensitive, and caring nature (Cancer) and the practical traits of discipline, self-reliance, and goal orientation (Capricorn). As one manifestation, some may struggle with the balance between family and career, or between self-nurturing and discipline.
MOST TIMES, when we're working with an opposition in astrology, we are advised to find a balance point in the middle, not simply to choose one option and ignore the other. With the Cancer-Capricorn polarity, we can see the wisdom in giving both the heart's guidance and practical concerns equal consideration. And, for a fulfilling life, we need both emotional support and a sense of purpose.
However, the involvement of the nodal axis in this current opposition is sending up a warning flag. The South Node represents our default mode, but one that is also our downfall. The North Node represents the qualities we must develop as part of our evolutionary growth.
So, with the South Node currently in Capricorn, we must look at the unfavorable qualities associated with that sign. And, we must also look to the beneficial qualities of the North Node, currently in Cancer.
FIRST, let's be clear that each sign has both higher and lower traits. The only reason we're dwelling on the down side of Capricorn and the up side of Cancer is because of the current placement of the nodes.
The South Node, being reinforced by Saturn and Pluto throughout 2019, is showing us where we have become too fearful, too limited, and too controlling. The less-evolved Capricorn is pessimistic, unsympathetic, melancholy, and even miserly. These are the qualities we are being asked to evolve beyond.
The North Node, being reinforced by the Sun this week and next, is asking us to be more trusting, sympathetic, and unselfish. The highly-evolved Cancer is intuitive, creative, and emotionally generous.
THROUGHOUT this eclipse season, we will see these opposing stances play out in many ways. Going back to our tug-of-war analogy, we may find ourselves pulling on one end of that frayed rope, with someone else holding strong at the other end.
This dynamic will also play out in the social/political arena. The current placement of the nodal axis is one of the astrological influences behind the immigrant and homelessness crises. Society is struggling with the Cancer-Capricorn polarities: Do we open our hearts and our pocketbooks to the "poor, huddled masses," or do we close our doors and our borders out of the need for personal privacy and a belief that isolationism is the better choice?
ON MONDAY this week, we are likely to see some dramatic words and actions. Mercury the Messenger and Mars, the god of war, are aligned in Leo. At its best, this joining of planets represents creative leadership, and a capacity to be generous in thought and deed.
However, we also know that Leo the Lion, king of the jungle, likes to roar and intimidate, so our leaders may be especially verbose and vitriolic early this week. And, anytime Mercury and Mars get together, there's a tendency to leap before we look. Watch impulsive actions under this influence, since they can take us down roads we'd rather not travel.
ALSO PROBLEMATIC is Thursday's Mars-Uranus square, which can elevate tensions. This pairing can bring radical actions, as well as sudden breakthroughs or breakdowns.
We'll want to be especially aware of our own reactivity with Mars and Uranus facing off. It is similar in effect, in some ways, to Monday's Mercury-Mars alignment, but more explosive and surprising. With Uranus currently in Taurus, we might also see more seismic activity or other extreme natural events around this time.
THE SILVER LINING to these stormy clouds is applied by the paintbrush of two helpful aspects: Sun trine Neptune on Wednesday, and Mars trine Chiron on Thursday. These influences offer a more gentle path we can take.
The Sun-Neptune trine helps us tune in to our compassionate, empathetic, and spiritual nature. The Mars-Chiron trine enables us to take action based on the wise knowing that each person has their own places of fear and vulnerability, and that these insecurities are often at the heart of anger and distrust. If we focus on these perspectives, taking the higher road through all that arises, we can safely make our way through the nettles and brambles of the other aspects.
IF YOUR BIRTHDAY IS THIS WEEK: This year has already been powerfully transformative for you, dear Cancer. You have experienced loss and limitation, and are deeply aware that your life and self-concept are changing in profound ways. And yet, all of these experiences are meant to help you release old emotional patterns, and to enable you to find a new sense of personal purpose in your life. The vulnerability that you feel is teaching you to truly care for yourself, to nurture your well-being in ways you may not have allowed before. At times when all seems to be stripped away, we have the greatest opportunity for rebirth. (Solar Return Sun conjunct North Node, opposite Saturn, opposite Pluto, trine Neptune)
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THERE'S STILL TIME to purchase the replay of my recent webinar! "Coming Into Focus" covers the astrological influences over the next seven months, including that pivotal Great Eclipse Alignment between Saturn, Pluto, the Sun, Mercury, and Ceres in Capricorn in January 2020. To learn more, please send an email with "Webinar Replay" in the subject line to
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For previous weeks of the Astrological Journal, click here.
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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