You are all stardust. You couldn’t be here if stars hadn’t exploded, because the elements - the carbon, nitrogen, oxygen, iron, all the things that matter for evolution and for life - weren’t created at the beginning of time. They were created in the nuclear furnaces of stars, and the only way for them to get into your body is if those stars were kind enough to explode.
~ Lawrence M. Krauss

6,372 Planets in Aries!

Question: What's red and red and red and red and red and yellow?

Answer: A giant Stellium in Aries and its ruling planet Mars in Gemini.

Huh?

Aries is a Fire sign, usually associated with the colour red, and there are currently 5, count 'em FIVE planets in Aries – Sun, Moon, Mercury, Jupiter and Chiron. And Aries' ruling planet Mars is in Gemini, an Air sign, an element often shown in yellow. Therefore, literally half the solar system is in Aries right now! That's A LOT of heat! More energy than you ever wanted or knew what to do with. Think of it like the Big Bang that spewed out the universe some 13.8 billion years ago, but more local. ;-)

And to top it off, the New Moon in Aries is in the first degree of Aries. This is a very powerful degree, full of potential and anticip-p-p-pation. Archetypally, this is the birth-point of the zodiac, the place where it all starts. The place where all the learning and development from the previous cycle that was extracted and condensed, now emerges as a new seed that will grow and develop. The beginning of the beginning of the beginning of a new cycle.

The Sun reaching 0° Aries marks the Vernal Equinox, when the Sun crosses the equator by declination, moving south-to-north. In the northern hemisphere spring begins, and in the southern hemisphere it becomes fall or autumn. The Moon catches up to the Sun while they're still in that potent degree that ushers in a new season.

This time of year tends to feel like that – changing, shifting, stirring; something just around the corner. And with half the solar system in Aries right now, the effect could well feel more intense than usual. In the north it might feel like spring has finally sprung with a vengeance! Or, if you're still waiting for the earth to come alive, you may be feeling a giddy yearning for that awakening from hibernation.

In the Southern Hemisphere, you could feel like someone lit a fire underneath you to propel you into fall. Or, perhaps it's like a roller coaster on the top of a hill when the coaster car starts to tip downhill – your centre of gravity shifts as you begin the downward slide.

I accept chaos, I'm not sure whether it accepts me.
~ Bob Dylan

"Yippeee!!!" Right? Mmmaybe...

All that Aries energy pushes us to dust off our capes of courage, enthusiasm and eagerness. Gird your loins, and be ready for whatever life may throw at you. It will likely require you to be confident, dauntless, spontaneous and focused.

So: how comfortable are you with a giant spurt of energy? Many of us will say, "Oh yeah, bring it!" Excitement can get your blood flowing, changes will wake you up and keep you alert, and dramatic events around you can inspire you to get moving with new possibilities.

But then, for some of us too much of a good thing can also feel chaotic, overwhelming, anxious, or exhausting. Your emotional buttons might be extra-sensitive and get triggered more easily, making you impatient, quick to anger, defensive, over-reactive, or jumpy.

You might be motivated to take on a lot of new projects, activities, goals or ambitions over the next couple of weeks or so. This could be a welcome breakthrough if you've been stuck for a while, but it can also lead to burnout if you don't pace yourself and recharge your batteries regularly.

And if you're already at a low ebb in your energy, for whatever reason, this Aries overload might feel like a steep uphill climb as you struggle to bring yourself up to speed. Again: pace yourself. Get up and get outside and move your body. Warm up a bit before you go charging off.

To the rescue comes Venus in Taurus conjunct the North Lunar Node. Venus reminds us to ensure we take pleasure in whatever we're doing with all that Aries energy. Let yourself feel the joy of luxuriously stretching your muscles, waking up your body with a brisk walk in nature, or firing up your competitive spirit in your favorite sport. In addition, Taurus recommends that you move in a comfortable rhythm which helps you act more effectively and avoid burnout.

But watch out for Venus' temptations of indulging in too many chocolate eclairs, so much relaxation that you get stuck in laziness, or a deep hunger for pleasure that lures you back into bad habits or addictions. All that impulsive Aries energy could make it a lot harder to resist cravings, desires or compulsions that you know aren't good for you.

I could do with a bit more excess. From now on I'm going to be immoderate—and volatile—I shall enjoy loud music and lurid poetry. I shall be rampant.
~ Joanne Harris, Chocolat

Mars, Ruler of Aries

Then there's Mars, the planetary ruler of those 6,372 planets in Aries. For a while now, Mars has had a lot on his plate—and now there's a New Moon in his sign. Good thing Mars likes to stay active!

Mars has been in Gemini since August 20, 2022. Mars finally gets to move forward into Cancer on March 25, 2023 after just over 7 months in Gemini. (!!) This is an eternity, considering he usually takes closer to 6 weeks to go through a sign. The reason for his long stay is because Mars was retrograde from October 30, 2022 to January 12, 2023, spanning from 8:07 to 25:36 in Gemini. During this retrograde cycle, Mars entered the retrograde shadow on Sep. 3, 2022 and just exited the shadow on March 15, 2023.

While retrograde, you may have noticed Mars themes become more prominent and perhaps shifting into their opposites in some way. For example, incidents of violence, conflict and aggression in current events and/or in the world around you. On the other hand, highly charged situations might instead have "gone underground" for a while, becoming eerily quiet or calm. Now that Mars is direct and out of the shadow, old issues might have returned (and you can now approach them from a fresh perspective) or they might be resolved and remain low-key.

Mars is Out-of-Bounds by declination, shown as the red line across the top. The blue line below it is the maximum declination of the Sun: 23°26'. The gold lines going up and down are the Moon. The vertical red line shows the New Moon in Aries in that time range.

Mars has also been Out-of-Bounds by declination since Oct. 22, 2022, and will remain OOB until May 5, 2023. Mars typically OOB takes the usual Mars themes and gives them an extra spin in a different or unusual direction. Mars being OOB in mutable Gemini may have influenced you to find subtle and clever ways to win arguments, or you might have been challenged to think about disagreements in a different way. Or, you might feel inspired to make changes toward a different way of using your ideas, or perhaps to take a stand in support of an unpopular or misunderstood opinion.

When Mars was both OOB and retrograde, energy may have seemed unusually scattered, fragmented or chaotic, making it harder to focus your decisions about how to channel your intentions clearly. Now that Mars is past the retrograde cycle but still OOB, you might be feeling a boost in courage or inspiration to do something with some of those ideas, desires, impulses or urges that seemed elusive a few months ago.

Mars continues his OOB journey in Cancer for the next 6 weeks, returning In-Bounds on May 5 when he reaches 21:23 Cancer. During that time, aim to channel your Mars energy in a way that values self-care, gentleness and empathy toward others, and finding ways to resolve differences that don't leave broken furniture and blood on the floor. ;-) That doesn't mean to become passive or compliant, but to aim for a win-win outcome rather than a winner-takes-all victory.

Since Mars rules Aries, these themes also get passed back to that massive Stellium in the New Moon chart. So, as you're tiptoeing through the Aries minefield around you, remember that you have a chance to not only respond in a different way, but also to take a risk by taking your actions and intentions up a notch toward a higher principle.

A group experience takes place on a lower level of consciousness than the experience of an individual. This is due to the fact that, when many people gather together to share one common emotion, the total psyche emerging from the group is below the level of the individual psyche. ... If, therefore, I have a so-called collective experience as a member of a group, it takes place on a lower level of consciousness than if I had the experience by myself alone.
~ C.G. Jung, The Archetypes and the Collective Unconscious

Pluto in Aquarius

Mars also rules Scorpio, and in modern astrology rulership, Pluto is his partner-in-crime. Pluto has a lot on his plate at the moment, too. In 2023 and 2024, Pluto makes his transition into Aquarius. This is the first sign change since he moved into Capricorn in 2008.

Pluto does a little dance during this transition period. He steps into Aquarius from March 23 to June 11, and back into Capricorn from June 11 to Jan. 20, 2024. Then forward into Aquarius from Jan. 20, 2024 to Sep. 1, and back again to Capricorn from Sep. 1 until Nov. 19. Then finally he makes up his mind and moves into Aquarius on Nov. 19, 2024, where he remains until March 8, 2043 when he begins the move into Pisces.

There are so many ways that Pluto moving into Aquarius could show itself, but the biggest change will shift from dealing with large societal structures, including governments and corporations (Capricorn), into working with the human constructs in our world, like groups, associates, societies, peer groups, technology and the collective in general (Aquarius).

With Pluto in Capricorn, we've had to take a long hard look at the power balance held by societal structures that have sought to define and control the masses, for better or worse. We've seen many legal struggles over what principles and priorities should guide society in certain directions. We have learned a lot about how the Powers That Be operate behind the throne, as it were.

Now Pluto turns his x-ray machine on the human collective, and the groups and masses that exist within that collective. This is bound to shine a light on group dynamics – the flow of interaction and energy within groups of people. Group dynamics are complex and always changing – think of this like a circulatory system of energy that keep the group alive and functioning and adjusting to new events. Over the next 20 years, we are likely to learn a lot about how that system works, how to influence it, and how to resist those influences.

I'll be talking a lot more about Pluto in Aquarius in the coming months, so stay tuned!

Sabian Symbol

Sabian Symbol for Aries 0: A woman rises out of the water, a seal rises and embraces her.

This is the first Sabian Symbol, depicting the idea of the beginning of a monumental shift of energy, so you know it's bound to be dramatic like an explosion or something, right? But... a woman and a seal?? When you read the interpretations by various authors, you can see there are several layers of meaning here.

The basic idea is that this represents the moment of emerging from the unconscious, from undifferentiation, and in so doing it can evolve and develop into a distinct "something more." Marc Edmund Jones (who co-created the Sabian Symbols with psychic Elsie Wheeler) writes, "Here are elements of soul emerging from primordial nonexistence." (The Sabian Symbols in Astrology, Marc Edmund Jones)

Blain Bovee (The Sabian Symbols & Astrological Analysis) talks about how the seal "is a sea mammal often noted for its human characteristics." And "The selkie fairy and folk tales of the North Atlantic tell of the seal-woman shedding her skin before coming on shore in human form." In other words, one must lose one's symbiotic connection with All That Is if one is to become an individual.

Lynda Hill (The Sabian Oracle – 360 Degrees of Wisdom) points out that the woman is "consciously aware of leaving the past behind in order to emerge into a whole new arena of existence and activity." In other words, the act of emerging and changing our state requires that we leave something behind.

Dane Rudhyar (An Astrological Mandala) gives a very in-depth discussion of this Symbol's meaning. He points out that "the seal is a mammal which once had experienced a biological,, evolutionary but relatively unconscious emergence, yet which retraced its steps and 'returned to the womb' of the sea. The sea., therefore, represents a regressive step. It embraces the Woman who has emerged, because every emergent process at first is susceptible to failure. This process is indeed surrounded by the memory, the ghosts of past failures during previous cycles. The impulse upward is held back by regressive fear or insecurity; the issue of the conflict depends on the relative strength of the future-ward and the past-ward forces."

In other words, the initial degree of the zodiac isn't merely a moment of "Okay, I'm here, what's next?" It is a struggle between past and present, between past and future. It's a battle between sticking with "the Devil you know" or having the courage to choose "the Devil you don't."

So, with all those planets being in Aries at the same time as the New Moon at this primal degree, you may find you're teetering on the edge of having to decide between an unfamiliar future and a familiar past. Even if you conclude that you're not yet ready to take the Big Leap, you still have to decide what you will do. If you're stuck in indecision, it may help to write down the pros and cons of your options, or delve into your conflicting feelings.

The question becomes: what are you prepared to leave behind in order to bring something new into your life?

The present moment is all you ever have. There is never a time when your life is not "this moment".
~ Eckhart Tolle

The Time Is (Always) Now

No matter whether you're yearning for a brand new start, or you're planning a small but significant change, all you have is NOW. Every moment in every life exists in a pervasive Now, buffered by what has already happened in the past and what you anticipate might happen in the future.

The first degree in the zodiac is like the eternal Now from whence all things are possible. The trick is how to harness that energy and focus it in a direction that will feed your dreams, your yearning, your desires, your passion. But before you choose that harness, that focus, it can be wise to allow that explosion of possibilities to unfold first, so you know what those possibilities are and which ones light up your soul.

There's a lot of "new beginnings" in the air these days. Saturn just went into Pisces on March 7th, where it will stay until May 24, 2025. It has spent the last 5 years going through the two signs it rules – Capricorn (Dec. 2017 to March 2020) and Aquarius (2020 to 2023).

Now it travels through the foggy, nebulous oceans of Pisces. At best, this can be a time where you crystalize your creativity and dreams into something real. On the other hand, it can also be a time when the structures in your life start to erode, collapse or undergo some form of change. This could include your job, your career, the roles you play in your life (parent, child, spouse, employee, etc).

It's easy to say something like, "If you're losing your job/partner/parent/direction, then it's time to just let go." But that's often easier said than done. Whether it's an ordeal or a relief, it's natural and part of the process to have a lot of feelings about it, including anger, grief, resistance, negotiation or depression. So, this bonfire in Aries could bring up feelings that may require you to stop and take care of yourself, have your feelings, express them, vent and process them in whatever way works for you.

Pluto is teetering at the brink of Aquarius – moving from one Saturn-ruled sign (Capricorn) into the other Saturn-ruled sign (Aquarius). Again, a new beginning is upon us courtesy of a slow-moving planet. When the outer planets change signs, it's like the ground moves and we start to observe differences in the world around us.

When this happens with more than one planet changing signs, it can feel a bit like the earth is moving under our feet. On a personal level, it might feel like nothing is working right; somebody changed the rules or you woke up and the furniture is moved around. You might think it's just your own "stuff"—and indeed it usually stirs up personal themes—but you are also resonating to the changing energy in the world around you.

The next New Moon will also be in Aries – in the last degree of Aries. This typically happens about every couple of years or so. Is this like having a so-called Blue Moon, which is popularly (but incorrectly) defined as the second Full Moon in a calendar month? Well no, not really. A Blue Moon is a complicated thing (read my article, Blue Moon Lunacy). Having two lunations consecutively in the same sign does, however, take us through two perspectives of that sign's themes.

In this case, there's an extra spin on this – the second New Moon in Aries is also a Solar Eclipse. Eclipse season (as we astrologers like to call it) comes twice a year, and can be a time of significant change when emotions and reactions tend to be more intense. With this one being in Aries, this is likely to be especially so.

With the Solar Eclipse also being in Aries, it will be a time when you'll be challenged to take this burst of energy that emerges now and start to focus it into a clear intention. So, this first New Moon in Aries will be like surfing on the ocean waves – first you paddle like crazy to catch the swell. Then by the time the second New Moon comes, you're gliding your way to shore with the help of Saturn in Pisces to avoid wiping out. ;-)

What can the Aries Big Bang be for you? What urges and impulses are pushing up from inside you? Perhaps something you've been wanting to do for a while but other things keep getting in the way? Or maybe you've been at the edge of a threshold, trying to get up the nerve to cross into something new?

It's good to wait until you feel ready, but it's also easy to get stuck there. So figure out what you need to find your spine and take a step. Doesn't have to be a huge leap, just get moving and then check your pulse – are you okay?

The courage you need is inside you. Others can remind you of it, encourage it, and cheer you on, but ultimately it's your inner courage that will get you there.

Every moment is Now. Every moment can initiate that shift for you.

The next update will be for the Full Moon in Libra on April 6, 2023. Until then, stay safe. Stay sane. Stay awesome. The world needs you. ❤️

You can dance in the storm. Don't wait for the rain to be over before because it might take too long. You can do it now. Wherever you are, right now, you can start, right now; this very moment.
~ Israelmore Ayivor

© 2023-03-20 Wendy Guy, all rights reserved. Astrological diagrams by Wendy Guy. Divider of Colourburst by Gerd Altmann via Pixabay.com. Sabian symbol image of Woman and Seal by ELG21 via Pixabay.com.