Horoscope: August 13 to 19, 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: Moon in Virgo, Moon enters Libra 9:57 p.m.
TUE: Moon in Libra
WED: Moon in Libra
THU: Moon enters Scorpio 1:54 a.m.
FRI: Moon in Scorpio
SAT: First Quarter Moon 12:48 a.m. PDT, Mercury sextile Venus, Moon enters Sagittarius 9:45 a.m., Mercury stations direct 9:24 p.m. PDT
SUN: Moon in Sagittarius, Jupiter trine Neptune
THIS WEEK, we begin to integrate the profound and perhaps overwhelming experience of having had three high-impact eclipses within the course of just 30 days. As we ponder and assimilate the lessons of these weeks, we start putting some of the puzzle pieces into place, making it possible to see the larger picture.
But we're not out of the eclipse woods quite yet. Yesterday's Solar Eclipse was a New Moon, which means the new lunar cycle we have just entered is based in eclipse energies. As we wend our way through the next four weeks, we will continue to work with some powerful and potentially life-changing issues.
Given that fact, it is a relief that the planets seem to be sitting back this week, giving us the time to adjust and rebalance. And, with so many planets now retrograde (moving backward) -- six plus Chiron -- inner processing is meant to be the priority.
WE'LL BE WORKING primarily with Moon aspects for the first part of the week. The Moon moves quickly, covering the entire zodiac in 28 days, so its aspects affect just a few hours at a time, and are not usually included in an overview of a week's astrological influences. But this week, we may feel more in tune with lunar activity, which means our own moods will also come and go quickly.
The week’s main planetary activity finally occurs next weekend. On Saturday, Mercury changes direction, and on Sunday, we have the third and final Jupiter-Neptune trine.
This might sound like an uneventful week, given the lack of planetary action. But lest we forget (and most of us cannot), we're still working with the eclipse energies, as well as with the effects of the ongoing Mars-Uranus square. This is the volcanic, fiery aspect that started last May, was a powerful part of the July 27 eclipse, and continues to be strong through the September Equinox.
This square is literally and figuratively lighting fires beneath our feet -- especially for those born on the cusp of fire and earth signs. This means anyone whose Sun is at the end of Aries/beginning of Taurus (April 18-21), at the end of Leo/beginning of Virgo (August 20-23), or at the end of Sagittarius/beginning of Capricorn (December 19-22).
WE'RE ALWAYS glad to see Mercury returning to direct motion after its retrograde phase, given how many components of our daily lives the planet affects. So, many will be pleased to see Mercury coming to its station this Saturday, hoping for better communications, more reliable computers and cell phones, and fewer detours as we go forward. And, if we've done our mental review work over the past three weeks, we should be better positioned to finalize some of our plans in the days that follow Mercury’s station.
However, five other key planets are still retrograde -- and with Mars being one of them, we are still cautioned not to take concrete action until the Red Planet goes direct on August 27. So, even though Mercury will soon be direct, continue to use this week and next for reconsidering what actions you want to take (based on your revised plans), and whether they will truly bring you what you are desiring.
THE INFLUENCE of the Jupiter-Neptune trine has been with us for many months, as the two planets have danced in and out of the exact aspect. The first trine, when the two planets were exactly 120 degrees apart, occurred on December 2, 2017. The second occurred on May 25 of this year, and the third is next Sunday, August 19.
This is a harmonious aspect, by definition providing opportunities that we can take advantage of. And so, while Jupiter in Scorpio has been magnifying the dark side, its trine to Neptune has been offering a higher perspective for us to access. Neptune in Pisces specializes in forgiveness and clearing work, enabling us transcend the shadows.
This trine is meant to help us release the emotional weights that have been tying us down and holding us back. The ancient patterns of power abuse are being purged, and will no longer be accepted. And for many, as they become unshackled, they gain increased access to their own innate spiritual and creative sensitivity, divine gifts from the great god Neptune.
IF YOUR BIRTHDAY IS THIS WEEK: Although fiery Leo typically thrives on activity and interaction with others, this may be a more introspective year for you. An inward focus will allow you to access new levels of creativity and personal fulfillment that may not have been possible before. If you are a writer or a teacher, this is an especially good time to tap into new ideas that will alter how you usually do this work. This year is also a time of healing, of those wounds that tell you that you cannot have what you desire, or that insist that your creative gifts are not needed in the world.
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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