Mars Turns Direct

Mars Turns Direct - Stalled Energy

"The feeling of commiseration is the beginning of humanity; the feeling of shame and dislike is the beginning of righteousness; the feeling of deference and compliance is the beginning of propriety; and the feeling of right or wrong is the beginning of wisdom."

— Mencius

Mars turns direct in Gemini this week, on Thursday. Often, there is an immediate surge of energy when Mars returns to direct motion. However, with Mercury retrograde in Capricorn, ruling Gemini, there is a more considered, deferential, and circumspect quality to the revived martian energy. As well, Venus makes a trine to Mars, just before Mars turns direct, softening the shift. Finally, a Venus-Chiron sextile on Thursday, incorporates some significant empathy and concern for the effect that our actions (Mars) have on others. The overall effect seems to create a rather disorienting environment where we find ourselves struggling to adapt to the shifts. Tempting distractions and some difficulty with follow-through also keep us from taking definitive, quick action. However, we may be far better off by allowing the energy to build slowly. Mercury makes the second of three trines to Uranus at the beginning of the week. Our insights are more closely held than the first Mercury-Uranus trine back on December 17th. There are seeds of wisdom beginning to sprout which helps us to spend more time listening without feeling the need to 'expound' on every detail of the insights we are finding. The tentative quality of this week's shifts allows us to build our awareness of where we actually are. We are crossing a bridge to the future. Our success will depend on understanding the past, acknowledging the value of lessons learned, and releasing the pain of disappointment and resentment. Taking time to understand what is happening around us and the perspectives of others will help us create a sturdy foundation for future progress. Mercury will turn direct on January 17th and Uranus will turn direct on January 23rd. We will certainly get a more definitive GO! signal following those upcoming shifts. As well, the Aquarius New Moon (12:53 PM PST 1° Aquarius) at the end of next week in a sextile to Jupiter will shake up some of the remaining inertia and push us forward.

Seeds of wisdom are sprouting on Sunday under the Mercury-Uranus trine. We feel a strong sense of independence and freedom. There is a significant concern over appearances but if we are open about our vulnerabilities, we will find that others are also feeling vulnerable. Valuable connections can be made. There are numerous tempting distractions on Tuesday. Maintaining focus is challenging. We find opportunities to show new insights in tangible ways on Wednesday. We are encouraged to explore innovation. We are inclined to share more of our frustrations and vision for the future on Thursday. The more open that we can be, the more valuable the connections we can make. We struggle to adjust to a new environment on Friday. The new atmosphere is disorienting. There is tension between our own needs and the needs of others. That tension continues into Saturday. The gears seem to 'grind' a bit. Impulsiveness is tempting but ultimately quite unsatisfying.