After the last five weeks of ultra-practical Capricorn Saturnian energy, February’s transits will launch us out into deeper water, leaving dry land behind. By the end of 2013’s Water World, we’ll have either learnt to float, surf and swim or have been swept away by the rising tides.
By June there will be no fewer than five outer planets in Water signs:
- Neptune and Chiron in Pisces—calm or deluded
- Saturn plus the North Node of Fate in Scorpio—still waters run deep
- Jupiter in Cancer—longing for home, roots and tribe
The Alchemical Process—Dissolution
We are undergoing nothing less than a true alchemical process (from the ancient Arabic meaning “The Art”).This is not about turning lead into gold on a literal level. It’s a metaphor related to psycho-spiritual work where you recognize, then reconcile, opposites within your psyche. You start off one way and end up another. This can only happen by remaining active, participatory and curious—no effort, no result. It requires waking out of the trance of normalcy, then mixing a cocktail of ingredients to create a reaction for something entirely new to appear. One of the ways to work with astrology is by applying what you know to your own life experience, using your life as an experiment in becoming undivided. Not anyone else’s idea of who you are or should be but your genuine self, a self that is forged by you, an awakening of your essential “you-ness”.
The stages of alchemy are: calcination, dissolution, separation, conjunction, fermentation, distillation and coagulation. Since 2010 we’ve been thrust into the process of Calcination when our egos were broken down; our sense of who we are—little me—was deflated and destroyed. Our old, limited self has been reduced to ashes through circumstances out of our control.
Recognize this, anyone? The purpose is to make space for a bigger Self by getting out of our own way. Now in February 2013 we’re entering the next stage: Dissolution. Emotions and tears melt us down and ego structures dissolve, as the inner planets transiting through Pisces encounter Neptune, Chiron, Jupiter and Saturn.
February Timeline: Water, Water Everywhere!
- 30 January, Jupiter Ruler of Pisces turns direct
- 3 February, Mars enters Pisces
- 6 February, Mercury enters Pisces
- 18 February, Saturn in Scorpio turns retrograde
- 19 February, Sun enters Pisces
- 23 February, 1st of 3 Mercury retrogrades in Water signs
- 25 February, Full Moon 7 degrees Virgo/Pisces
- 25 February, Venus enters Pisces
- 26 February, Mercury conjunct Mars
- 27 February, Sun conjunct Chiron
- 28 February, Venus conjunct Neptune
As each inner planet enters Pisces, it will conjunct Neptune at 1-2 degrees, Chiron at 7-9 Pisces, square Jupiter at 7 degrees Gemini then trine Saturn at 11 degrees Scorpio.
Developing emotional intelligence is going to be the challenge this year at a personal and global level.
This is an energetic shift on a huge scale, either deepening emotions, sensitivity, empathy and family ties or inducing even more addiction, disassociation and alienation, depending on individual choices.
February 2013 Pisces
Neptune and Pisces rule the invisible realm of consciousness, spirit and dreams—everything beyond our five senses. In our culture of materialism, individualism and the rational mind, Pisces is a difficult sign to navigate. By ignoring the invisible, addiction, depression, escapism and denial proliferate as Neptune’s shadow of separation anxiety. Successful passage requires consciously working with the Water element through our feelings, by establishing a safe inner container. Dreamwork, a spiritual practice and any act of creativity such as photography, writing or painting lets us collaborate with deeper parts of our consciousness. The trine from Saturn in Scorpio gives a reality check about keeping our feet planted firmly on the ground through consistent discipline.
The shadow side of this aspect is when you meet darkness or challenges and you build even stronger walls against the pain. Armouring your heart or going unconscious can seem a tempting option when confronted with hunger, wars, natural disasters or financial crashes. Then Neptune in Pisces falls into the passive, addictive mode.
As Mars, Mercury, Sun and Venus are submerged by the waters of Neptune in February, expect an increasing flood of disinformation. We need our internal guidance system in good working order to be able to distinguish between fact and fiction. That means learning to listen and follow that still, small voice inside you, even if it seems counter-intuitive.
When Saturn turns retrograde (February 18 until July), anything you’ve ignored, denied or avoided since the beginning of October 2012 will be excavated for your attention. Knowing this in advance, spend February’s first half scanning those parts of your life that need renovation.
The Full Moon in Virgo opposite Pisces forms a Mutable T Square between Sun, Jupiter and Moon. This is about questioning our most fundamental beliefs, withholding judgment and trusting that events will show the way forward. Our edges are softened. Jupiter in Gemini, now moving forwards, reminds us that truth is relative, that there are untold ways to perceive things and that having information is not the same as having wisdom and knowledge. This Full Moon of completion squares the Lunar eclipse degree (still operative) of 7 Sagittarius/Gemini of 28 November 2012. What opened up for you then?
Look at the natal position of your own Saturn and Neptune in your birth chart and the relationship between them for guidance on creating a strong, safe inner container porous enough to allow your emotions to ebb and flow.
How Might the Piscean Wave Affect You?
If you were born between 1963/4, you’re having your Chiron Return at the same time as this Piscean inundation. This once-in-50-years return of Centaur Chiron to its natal degree in your chart is one of the most significant turning points in your life. You’ve wrestled with hypersensitivity to suffering all your life, frequently encountering situations where you move between rescuer and victim. Recapitulation of your life so far and the possibility of re-birthing yourself as an adult come now, invited or not. Chiron adds an urgency to the choice between taking responsibility for your own destiny or projecting it onto others.
Born between 1982/83? You’re experiencing your first Saturn Return with a trine to Neptune. This is where reality bites, sometimes quite hard. Have a long hard look at where you are in terms of your earlier hopes and dreams then take practical action to make adjustments and changes. It’s no accident that people often leave relationships, change careers or have children around the age of 28-29. The sign of your natal Saturn shows how you deal with life’s requirements . With this trine to Neptune, and Neptune making a sextile to natal Neptune, the overriding task is to re-connect with your private self, the vulnerable, idealistic child within.
If you were born around 1955, you’re in the midst of your 2nd Saturn Return. Older and hopefully wiser, it’s your chance to re-orient away from the overriding concerns of the morning of your life such as forging ahead in your career, building a family, looking for external validation to following your soul’s call. Passions or hobbies become increasingly important and a whole new creative flow inspires you as long as you let go of outgrown roles and goals. The release from the constraints of the status quo can be liberating as you care less about performance and more about your legacy. This dissolution brings you a transition time .
If you have your Sun or planets and points in Pisces, Cancer or Scorpio you will resonate quite strongly to the influx of water. Fire and Earth signs could find the confusion unsettling while the Air signs will seek to intellectualise the emotional intensity.
Navigate the waters by leaving expectations, preconceptions or judgments behind. Humility, openness and curiosity are your best allies in February.
Lorna Bevan is a former Consultant Astrologer for The Sunday Times Magazine and other publications. She works with clients across the world, combining Visionary Astrology with Master NLP Coaching. Her passion is giving her clients the tools to live their best life.
Lorna is currently pursuing a Master’s Degree in Analytical Astrology.
She’s also a Jungian Psychotherapist and Master Coach qualified in NLP and Psychosynthesis.
She writes for the Cosmic Intelligence Agency as Agent 98 and for Daykeeper Journal and Infinity Magazine.
She is a Member of the Association of Professional International Astrologers, The Astrological Association UK, MBACP (British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy ).
Lorna works to the BACP and APAI code and all sessions are completely confidential. Book a 2017 Reading with Lorna
Extremely well written and informative piece (as are all on this site). Thanks for all the useful navigational guidance!