The Planetary Planner/April Issue

Monthly Astrological Movements| Part 2

A Monthly Overview Review

Your Astrologically No-Nonsense Inspired Takeaway for April

The transitions and transformations of the planetary shifts of energy throughout March—including Saturn moving into Pisces; the sun shifting from Pisces into Aries; Venus moving onward into Taurus; Mercury beginning again in Aries; Pluto into Aquarius for its tiptoe introduction, after moving through Capricorn since 2008; and Mars, finally, making its ingress into Cancer—will all begin to percolate that much more, and become much more obvious to you through the month of April as to what these shifts forward mean for you…

We are embarking upon an entirely new and unknown horizon, and its landscaping—however unknown and unknowable, is promising to offer potentials through participation in regard to any problematic possibilities peaking or progressing.

April, at the very least, offers us something of an ‘easing-in’ through the beginning two weeks, and then, around mid-month, becomes much more… real.

This realness, most really and quite largely, describes the total eclipse… which is much of what April will resemble.

It is roughly mid-month when we begin to feel the stirring of the total eclipse—occurring April 19th—an eclipse that occurs through a degree that ‘speaks to everything flowing smoothly when an individual is in tune with himself and the universe…’

Something that Hannah Tatum Whitall Smith once wrote, an author of the Holiness movement and Higher Life movement, as well as the Women’s Suffrage Movement, inspired that “God stirs up our comfortable nests, and pushes us over the edge of them, and we are forced to use our wings to save ourselves from fatal falling… read your trials in this light, and see if your wings are being developed.”

This degree, further still, suggests that ‘individuals find their world in order when they act in accordance to their own special genius…’

The overall visual for this degree is that of ‘a duck and its brood’, which is to say that a certain personal contentment will be achieved if and when one has gotten their ‘ducks in a row…’ lined up and prepared, organized and put in an order that serves.

Mars, of all planets, governs this month’s total eclipse in Aries, through its anaretic degree no less, and Mars will be moving through a degree in Cancer that, as I noted in Part 1, “might most aggressively impact matters occurring through the eclipsed landscapes of one’s personal reality…” which is to say several things—most specifically—impacting matters within the houses both Aries and Cancer govern within your nativity—though much more intensely through the house that Aries governs; impacting matters regarding aspects of Mars within your nativity; and finally, matters regarding your inner motivations, particularly those you are strategically and actively pursuing.

Further, this degree point Mars is navigating is the natal sun degree within the United States’ chart, so… that’s a detail, most directly to those of you living within the States or dealing with it in any way.

With Mars as the ruling planet of this total eclipse upon an anaretic degree—it is likely most protective to presume a personal preparedness of sorts, which is to say that when Mars is involved, especially within an eclipse, these energies are almost compounded within matters of weakened strengths and compromised abilities.

Mars energies need to sever, to break, to destroy, and to eliminate… while Mars, when in Cancer, does so in a somewhat lateral way—severing in one direction, breaking off from only one matter, destroying one single thing within a much larger thing, and/or eliminating the source and saving the life. Again, these lateral efforts will likely be much more obvious and/or aggressively employed within the sector of your reality that Aries governs within your nativity.

Still, something may need to be entirely severed. Not laterally severed… for now.

Remember!—turning point!—eclipses are extreme turning points.

An eclipse defines the obscuration of light—directly intervening between our most primary luminaries, our most vital life source and force… by definition, this describes ‘a reduction or loss of splendor, status, reputation…’

Splendor, by definition, regards not only brightness and vitality—its origins, ‘to shine’.

A total eclipse refers to a total reduction—a total loss…

Symbolically and metaphorically, we will be entirely without light, without splendor, without strength, or vitality, and without effective power… within the house governed by Aries, and thereby the sectors of our personal reality within one’s personal nativity—your personal power will therefore require much more intention and purpose, and come from a place deep within… a place which defines your personal purpose.

Aries energies are essential for taking action—for venturing forward when ‘the Way’ is not known or even knowable…

Aries energies are extraordinarily inspired through one’s risk to live fully, with true daring and moxie—when one takes action and simply begins, without any guarantee of anything, living with eyes open for everything and the faith necessary to endure Come What May.

Aries energies exude courage, a fierce motivation toward independence in nearly all ways, and an assertion that borders on obscene…

The final degree of Aries is more powerful as it represents that which is happening, that which is emphasized by one’s life, that which is traditionally defined as the Fate Degree—as it describes that which can be/become problematic, peaking, or final… as it is the final degree within its zodiacal sign, this is the ultimate ‘test degree’, the degree through which one is able to master that which one has learned.

So, again—this is to say that this final test degree is without light.

Particularly the power to begin something new.

Obviously, within a personal nativity, one’s ‘fate’ is not so doomed or so darkened—though it is likely that there will be a severe ending and possibly botched beginning of some magnitude within the sector of your reality that is governed by Mars, and most definitely through Aries, and/or possibly, within the sector governed by Cancer within your nativity.

Eclipses are also extremely volatile times to actually begin or initiate anything.

And ever so celestially conveniently, you will have several days to await the metaphorical lights coming back on before acting… and as it’s a total solar eclipse, as opposed to a lunar eclipse, the darknesses we are meant to navigate through this event and its symbolisms and potentials, are in regard to dealing with that which remains unfinished, confronting personal hesitations and weaknesses, and becoming aggressively honest with ourselves, and simply intending toward the future.

Still, as a solar eclipse, with both the sun and moon in Aries, this total eclipse is quite emotionally experienced, as in emotional volatility—with Mars motivating the moon our emotional responses are likely to be much more reactively triggered and impulsive.

Finally, this total eclipse is square to Pluto!—so closely!!!—it’s bound to be so intense.

Intense, with. an underlying side effect of urgency.

Are you prepared and protected—depending upon the house this impacts for you?

Are you setting yourself up to make aggressively reactionary decisions at the height of an unknown and unknowable circumstance?

Would more preparations—in regard to the sector of you life most impacted by this eclipse—be a more advantageous decision for you in right action?

Do you naturally handle impulsivity better than most?

Maybe even last-minute reactionary type triggers toward the unknown…

Whatever it is.

However it manifests.

For better or worse—this eclipse will bring about something intensely urgent or urgently intense.

Still, through this square to Pluto, the struggle may very well be—to your power—a struggle to regain personal power both within and with yourself, with your higher potential, to do the shadow work required to sever any fears, particularly those regarding feelings of powerlessness and vulnerabilities. Are you living in your light?

It’s also closely conjunct the asteroid Vesta, which would suggest that one’s inner light will be both highlighted and illuminated through this event, or will flicker through the shadow work still needing to be honored and processed, and likely also bring back up that seemingly endless reverberation of personal purpose and authenticity again—but in a much more powerfully dis/empowered way.

Wherever Vesta is moving within the chart is where personal investments should be made, honored, ritualized, and/or empowered—though this close conjunction is, by technicality, an out-of-sign conjunction as Vesta will be in Taurus through this event. When Vesta is in Taurus, investments will be empowered through self-nurturing practices and in making beneficial adjustments toward personal security and gains, comforts and overall spiritual wealth… it’s actually a really good time to consult with an astrologer—just sayin’.

Further, out-of-sign aspects tend to imply something presenting itself in a way that is not typical, familiar, or recognizable as it was—such as when our behavior displays itself in a more reactionary way rather than a prepared and consciously intentioned responsive manner… others may be somewhat thrown if present or informed thereafter.

Or, it could manifest in a way where something different emerges within the space you had planned for something else—an alternative scenario presenting itself to choose from.

Again, authenticity. When acting in accordance with one’s own special genius…

Ultimately, eclipses inspire, motivate and support one’s initiatives… it’s just not ideal to initiate anything through an eclipsed an event—because, it’s energies are being eclipsed.

Eclipses are combustive energies of transition—extreme turning points!—once a glimpse of light is regained, even if only to see but the shadowy outlining of something, however unfamiliar, much becomes clear from there… if you have the courage to go forward, remember who you are to your core, and test your wings.

“Always behave like a duck—keep calm and unruffled on the surface but paddle like the devil underneath…”

—Jacob Braude

Image credit—@cult.class om instagram