Insights for Leo

As our world turns, and turns again…

These insights are offered as contemplations on the astrological aspects of the moment. As we consider and contemplate what we might call sky writing we invite the muse. No two perceptions are exactly the same but each and all may be awakened by the same images.

July 22

Sun enters Leo:  10:26 AM EDT
Venus opposite Jupiter 

Before the Sun officially enters Leo, Venus in the earliest degree of Virgo wants us to consider what really matters to you and for the seven generations we give lip service to. Trauma is not a buzzword, it is the ground of our being. It is the soil out of which we can grow a more compassionate inclusive way of living. To imagine such a thing starts the process of bringing it into being.
And then there is Leo: We seem to be living in a time of wounded kings; rulers who refuse to admit that they, as well as the systems which hold them in place are, in fact, wounded. This denial is the strongest indicator of how very wounded they are. As the damage becomes clearer we all wish for a hero to set it right. Leo is not heroic although it is courageous. It’s about love which emanates from the heart. The Sun is the beating, pulsing heart of our solar system. Each of us is a little solar system of our own, powered by a beating, pulsing heart. Hearts are courageous in that they risk loving. They are innately generous because there is no running out of love. This may sound trite but imagine a world in which wounded kings truly loved the people they serve, rather than the ones who pay for their favors. Leo will continue to be put to the test this month as it follows in the footsteps of Mars in this fiery sign; symbolizing the heat and the fires which have burned and continue to burn. The Sun will oppose Saturn and square Uranus before it catches up to the conjunction with Mars and an opposition to Jupiter.

July 23
Full Moon: 01 degree Aquarius 10:36 PM EDT
We often feel the effects of Full Moons earlier than their official time of exactitude. And these effects last longer. It’s a celebration and it starts as soon as you notice the big shiny ball in the night sky. All creatures under the Moon (and Sun) are welcome!
As this Full Moon lights the night and we approach the mid-point of summer (quite close to the New Moon in two weeks), look around. The pandemic has estranged us from one another in time and real space. And yet it is also true that we have come in contact with many people from far and away. How it is our heart makes room for others? Who do you favor, whose favor falls on you? How do we take joy in each other?

July 24 & 25
Mercury trine Neptune, opposite Pluto
As Mercury prepares to leave Cancer we might give thought to the painful and grievous revelations that occurred when Mars was there not so long ago. So much happens and our thoughts are carried away from one unspeakable tragedy to the next. The cruel violation of families and communities of this land is true. These things actually happened. The unmarked graves of so many children remind us that the mistreatment of children is a weapon of war.
Our inner children know this even if our adult selves turn toward other issues of the day. Allowing ourselves to grieve even if they weren’t ‘our’ children is a protection for future generations. As we step into the unknown future which is filled to the brim with innocent, trusting, vulnerable children, we do well to re-member the losses, to listen to their stories which are our stories. This helps move forward.

July 27 & 28
Mercury enters Leo
Jupiter rx enters Aquarius
Radical shift. One planet enters at the beginning of the sign (Mercury) , the other, retrograde (Jupiter) backs into the sign it is re-entering. A shift in perspective is called for. Time to shift perspectives. Both these planets are leaving the realm of water which connects us all for those of fire and air which encourage passion and ideals. Jupiter reminds us that we can make plans, we can envision where we want to go. Mercury will follow the Sun and Mars. It suggests we think creatively and take risks, at least in our minds.

July 29
Mars opposite Jupiter
Mars enters Virgo
With a burst of courage and will Mars challenges Jupiter just before leaving Leo. It’s a bit of an adventure story. If you’re out and about having adventures pay attention to thresholds, moments or locations where one thing changes into another. It is true that flying sparks can start fires and little bugs can be so much more than annoying. It is also true that we can turn a corner and be struck with the full force of Nature’s power and beauty. Mars in Leo loves a good adventure, Virgo is attention and fascination with detail.

August 1 & 2
Mercury conjunct the Sun and opposite Saturn
Sun opposite Saturn
We humans can be creative to a fault when our will to express ourselves is unchecked by actual skill and discipline. We learn best from masters, who have experience. In an age driven by likes (and dis-likes) we need, more than ever, to discern true expertise from persuasion and charisma. The heart has innate wisdom in these matters if we are courageous enough to listen. Circumstantial obstacles and resistance to self-expression are teachers of merit. And of course there is no point in arguing with a boulder blocking your path. 

August 3
Venus trine Uranus
Mercury square Uranus
From now until the 8th doors open and shut with alarming frequency. The doors themselves might be interesting. We want so much to be on the other side of change we can miss the invitation itself, which means we miss the power of making choices. Thresholds are not incidental. There is a gap in our understanding of how to get to ‘there’ from ‘here’. The solution might be hidden in the nature of the call rather than the imagined end result.

August 4   
Sun trine Chiron 
Who is the guardian at your gate? Why does the gate need guarding? What is the teaching? Even as you stand before your own gate, it may also be true that you are the guardian at someone else’s.  

August 6
Sun square Uranus
In the thick of change even the noblest of hearts must bend or bow to what they cannot control. Love itself is the strength that enables us to do this.

August 8
New Moon: 16 degrees of Leo: 09:51 AM EDT
Yesterday was the exact midpoint between solstice and equinox. Today is close enough, and a New Moon too. We are invited to affirm and intend something, starting right where we are. Is this magic? Science? Geometry? Power? Imagination? Is there a story to tell in the subtle waning of the light as the year bends toward winter? There is if you tell it. What reminds you of the dark in the midst of so much light? What intention do you have as you stand in the heat and light, sensing the fading of the light? What difference does it make? The New Moon is always a beginning.

August 09
Venus opposite Neptune
Devotion is most effective when it has practical application. This does not preclude beauty or dreaming. Our lives play out on many planes of existence.

August 10
Mercury opposite Jupiter
Think creatively as you reach beyond simple self-expression for the good of all.

August 11
Mercury enters Virgo
Venus trines Pluto
Problems have solutions. It’s the nature of things. Time often reveals these things, time and a deep appreciation for the cycles of life.

August 16
Venus enters Libra
 Art and culture. What’s it mean to you?

August 18
Mercury conjunct Mars
Energetic speech, precise and sharp in its ability to describe helpful innovations. It’s a tall order but preferable to supreme irritability and snide comments.

August 19
Sun opposite Jupiter
Uranus stationery retrograde
The easiest thing is to point, to blame, to judge. Righteous indignation protects us from our feelings about tragic and systemic injustice. In this way we shirk responsibility for the restoration of dignity to those who have suffered. Revolution is one of the 10,000 words we have for change. It beats the notion of evolution which is a rather hierarchical concept, suggesting a fundamental need for improvement and a relentless faith in progress. Perhaps we need to extract the notion that we revolve. We live in cycles. Turning and turning, ever returning to the same place with new eyes, new understandings. We have all been here before.

August 20
Mercury trine Uranus
Fix what you can. New worlds are always made from the materials left from old ones. If it’s really broken consider mosaics.

August 22
Full Moon: 29 degrees Aquarius 08:01 AM EDT
Before the Sun enters Virgo today there is a Full Moon in the very last degree of Aquarius. Full Moons are high energy. Some astrologers say 29 degrees is about living two lives in one. We are endlessly dancing on the head of a pin, waiting for the world to begin (again?) Imagine your precipice, a meeting (and parting) place of heart and mind.