Redoing the Sun: General Astrological Influences for July, 2019

July is marked by two Eclipses plus a New Moon in solar Leo, offering a rich interplay of Sun and Moon, creativity and intuition, that we can apply to nurture that which is close to our hearts. It’s wise to follow one’s chosen path mindfully, as Eclipses tend to precipitate movement in the direction we are already going. Also, July’s Cancer energies boost compassion, but at the same time we confront stern Saturn and heavy Pluto in Capricorn, stirring us from our summer dreams and urging us to build structures that support our souls, rather than selling our souls for the sake of structure.

In case we had any doubts about July’s intensity, on Monday, July 1, Mars, like a single-minded archetypal sperm cell, escapes the strange waters of Cancer and swims gleefully forward into strong Leo, where he can flex his muscles unimpeded.

Just the next day, we get one of the year’s power portals: a Total New Moon Solar Eclipse. On the one hand, this Moon comes in a spirit of progress, and on the other, despite any desire we may have to fast forward beyond the stuff we’re working through, it’s connected to the past.

Each Eclipse activates either the South or North Node, the former calling us to release old attachments, close a cycle, or give something up, and the latter—considered more fortunate—facilitating an inflow of new energy and situations. This Eclipse joins the North Node or Dragon’s Head, helping us switch gears and move forward, much like a pumped-up New Moon.

However, Mercury retrograde holds us to something we began in the past, any time before Summer Solstice. And, this Eclipse is also connected to the New Moon Eclipse in Cancer of last July 12, so it’s apt to lead back to something we had going on then. It widely opposes Saturn, which sits on the South Node, both orbs being connected to karma—again, the past. And along with Saturn, the Moon too opposes Pluto, echoing the exact opposition of the 2018 Eclipse. So this Eclipse is a new chapter in a story of transformation that we’ve had going on for some time. It brings us the blessing of a jump-start to get things going in a more energetic and decisive manner.

Also as mentioned in our Daily Success Guide, Saturn in the Eclipse chart sextiles Neptune, reminding us to apply discipline to build on our dreams. But Moon in Cancer is tender, and its tensions with heavies Saturn and Pluto poke us to crawl out of our shells and face—perhaps reluctantly—the work and healing we need to do. This lunation is a like a sweet gift whose unwrapping requires boldness, courage, and persistence. It triggers issues around childhood, self-care, paternity, maternity, families and patriarchy.

In this space last July, we predicted that patriotism would be overshadowed by resistance on that July 4 of 2018, “ventilating the shame under Lady Liberty’s skirts” in relation to women and families, as played out by the border immigration crisis. We also said that those issues would again be triggered by the New Moon Solar Eclipse in Cancer that came just nine days later. Those predictions ended up being expressed through one Patricia Okoumou, a protestor who made a big splash on July 4, 2018, as she physically scaled those very skirts. Since that time, both Okoumou and the children at the border are still news, and the patriarchy (Capricorn) still needs revising (Pluto).

This July, Eclipses in both Cancer and Capricorn stir the pot again, and we can expect to see some major issues played out.  Saturn in conjunction to the South Node calls for work to clear up the past, particularly from the ways in which we have sold ourselves and the world’s children out of care and protection (Cancer), in exchange for sustaining the status quo and exterior image (Capricorn). We’re sorry to predict that some new controversy will come to light about families and children at the border, but the revelation will be necessary to create a wider public commitment to helping.