AQUARIUS (January 20 - February 18):

January begins with the love and creative planet, Venus retrograding in Capricorn until February 3, 2006, during which time the lessons of Venus will need to be confronted.  Capricorn affects the private or hidden dimensions of your psyche compelling many of you to be alone so you can figure out your love life. After Venus goes direct Feb. 3^rd it continues in the sign of Capricorn through March 5^th, 2006, a continuing period of adjusting or resolving your Venus challenges. 

Venus in Retrograde is a period that occurs about every 18 months when the shadow side or the irrational part of Venus tends to take over at the most inappropriate times.  Venus represents all that is feminine, artistic, romantic and peaceful. When retrograde, the immature or uncomfortable side of these issues will come up for you. Relationships are often tested during this cycle. The good ones will last and the weak ones won’t. But just as often old loves and friendships can reappear from your past.

Venus in Capricorn will be transiting your the 12^th house sector that is the domain of the shadow and all that is hidden from consciousness.  Venus is a healing and loving energy and during this cycle you might love to just be alone or visit a retreat to be more quiet and reflective. This is a great period for artists to go inward or disappear from the distractions of the world and start creating.  When Venus is retrograde some of you may feel lonely but what is happening is that the love energy is turning inward so deeply that surface relationships may seem pointless to you creating a feeling of separation, but that begins to lift by February.

The major influence of 2006 will be the planet Saturn in opposition to Neptune with Jupiter at the center point that can be the solution to the opposition or it will expand the problems until you do something about it. The silver lining, so to speak, is that our lives will be forced into changing and if you avoid or fear the process you will be the one making it more difficult. With awareness and foresight the Jupiter influence can indicate the area where you will find protection and positive growth.

Saturn was very close to an exact opposition to Neptune before turning retrograde November 23, 2005.  This was also when Mars was retrograde, which was part of the ‘grand cross’ configuration from October 25, 2005 through February 17, 2006 and what happens during this period is a hint of things to come during most of 2006, both in personal lives and the life of the nation. The next Saturn Neptune opposition will be exact August 31, 2006.

Neptune in Aquarius opposing Saturn in Leo is a time when both planetary energies are trying to take control in your life until it comes to a compromise by balancing the needs of both or a stalemate.  Saturn is transiting Leo in your 7^th house sector of marriage, partnerships and contracts until September 2, 2007. Neptune has been in your Sun sign since 1998 indicating a period when your identity and sense of self has been going through a profound, but uncertain transitions.  Saturn in the 7^th house will be put the spotlight on your relationships in both business and personal.  Many will be confronting an identity crisis because of your relationships. It is important to take full responsibility for your part in all partnerships and not avoid the truth.  One solution would be to really listen to what others are telling you and then to think about it before dismissing their opinions as judgmental. Any identity crisis would come from believing that others are totally wrong in their assessments of you.

The 7^th house transit of Saturn is the time to deal with that old issue you tend to shy away, which are relationships. You are not known for your dependence on others, but you may be surprised to find that over the next few years you are ready for closeness and commitment. You have been working hard over the past few years to set up your daily life's work and have found that commitment is both useful and satisfying.  So now it's time to apply this same principle to sharing and relating possibilities.  You are not the loner you think you are. You need others and with them you can reach higher toward your future possibilities. The only problems you may encounter will occur if you hold to old beliefs that no one is there for you or that you are not ready for a partnership.

Saturn, in myth, is the father of the gods and represents authority and the laws and regulations of the land.  Here is when we confront our limitations and our sense of duties and responsibilities.  Often the Saturn transit feels like a burden but that is usually a perspective coming from not wanting to take responsibility for that which is in your own best interest.  This is a maturing transit and it’s only the immature who will resist it and make it worse than it needs to be experienced.

Neptune, in myth, represents the collective unconscious because of its designation as the god of the seas.  The seas are symbolic of the embryonic fluids we all come from and in Jungian terms this is called our shadow.  The best way to navigate through the waters of our shadows is to have faith and trust that all will work out to keep from feeling disoriented or lost. Often the issues associated with Neptune’s cycle are that of transition and the uncertainty of the changes.

Neptune has been transiting your 1st house sector from 1998 through 2012 and not again for 168 years.  This sector rules your self-image and always brings up issues of ‘who am I really’ or ‘what do I really want, or ‘where am I going.’  Not every Aquarius will be open to the experience and some will resist it but those ‘water bearer’s’ will suffer much more when thinking they can hold back these tidal waves of change.  Those who tried to rise to the occasion will have tapped into a broader and more conscious view of life and themselves.  The Neptune cycle continuing in Aquarius until 2012 will be a period of getting more acquainted with this new awareness of self; such as being more intuitive or creative. The Saturn Neptune opposition is your fear of merging with another and somehow losing your identity and independence. However, the Saturn energy will force you to deal with a relationship and eventually you will see the folly of your previous beliefs.

One of the clues for resolution of the Saturn Neptune challenge is the transit of Jupiter moving through the sign of Scorpio through 2006.  Jupiter represents expansion, optimism and protection. When Jupiter activates your chart it expands the opportunities or the problems until you resolve the issues.  Jupiter’s transit is an indicator of where some of the answers to your Saturn Neptune questions are located.

Jupiter is transiting Scorpio in your 10^th house sector of careers and professional standing until November 23, 2006. One clue to opening your guarded independence could be through a beneficial business alliance.  First you get comfortable with a professional relationship, which relaxes you for a closer and more trusting personal relationship later on. Or maybe a future personal relationship begins as a business venture.

The 10^th house Jupiter offers opportunities for career advancement, recognition and acknowledgement. This is when your customer base can increase, or when your boss promotes you, or when you win awards for excellence.  Jupiter also rules travel and media and your business success could come from expanding your business to other cities or through further advertising and marketing.

And finally, Mercury in Retrograde is when everything seems to go crazy and lasts about 3 weeks. Those who know about the effects of the retrograde often cringe when they hear that Mercury is at it again.  What is going on is that everything that is related to Mercury, the messenger god, seems to go awry. This is the time not to sign legal documents or make promises and travel plans are often interrupted.  But what is really happening is that retrograde periods stimulate our unconscious patterns more than usual. Since Mercury represents our decision-making facilities the retrograde period is a time to make sure that your rational mind hasn’t been too overly influenced by your unconscious desires.

The dates of Mercury in Retrograde 2006

March 2^nd   - 25^th

July 4^th - 28^th

October 28^th - November 17^th

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