Astrologers are always excited when Uranus enters a new sign. On March 10 Uranus enters Pisces for the first time in 84 years. Uranus is the Awakener. It lifts another layer of veils from our perception so that we discover new vistas and new knowledge.

And Pisces has plenty of veils to lift. Pisces is the Cosmic Connection, the spiritual channel which connects everything. It is a sensitive sign, and is tuned into subtle vibrations. It is the last sign in the zodiac, the end of the journey. In Pisces we transcend our ego selves, as we ready ourselves to evolve into the world of spirit. Pisces is very close to the spirit world.

This year of 2003 is a transition year for Uranus, making the adjustment from its current position in Aquarius to its new role in Pisces (for more on Uranus in Aquarius, see last month's feature article). On September 13, Uranus returns to Aquarius for a few months, and then on December 30 it re-enters Pisces, where it will remain until the next transition year of 2010-11. It then enters Aries, the first sign, for a seven-year journey awakening us to rebirth.

This is absolutely appropriate timing. We are now ending an old system and planting the seeds for a new one, as we can plainly see. (See the review of John Major Jenkins’ very relevant book, Galactic Alignment, in this issue.) 2012 is the common target date for this transformation, and indeed there are enormous planetary changes during 2011-2013, as well as the Galactic Alignment centered at the December Solstice in 2012.

Pisces is in touch with the symphony of the universe, the unity of life, the knowledge that we are all God/Goddess’ children. The urge of Pisces is cosmic—to take our places in the grand design of the universe. Einstein, who created the first Unified Field Theory in physics, was born during Pisces time.

During the coming years of Uranus traveling through Pisces, we will shift to a more spiritual world view, a more "overall" view, a more unifying view, a greater compassion, and a higher level of idealism. It may take years for some of those seeds to sprout, but the germs of a higher consciousness will be laid now.

There will be challenges. Since Pisces makes grand demands, the challenges too will be large.

Think of the sea, ruled by Neptune, Pisces’ planet. Birth originates in the sea, which is the nursery of life. And life is maintained through the sea, with the phytoplankton of the sea which make most of our oxygen, and the fish which provide us with food. And then, after death, everything eventually dissolves in the sea.

The sea is our matrix, our mother. It is deep and mysterious, vast and unknowable. It is the source of life, and yet navigating it is challenging.

People are attracted to living by the sea, and to going to the sea for vacations. The sea has been a lure for countless sailors, and provided inspiration for countless poets. The seashore has been a place of romance for lovers.

So it is for any planet in Pisces.

The sea is central to life on earth. It is powerful, and fluid, and ever-changing, and mostly hidden and secret. And it is vast and threatening to us. Its power dwarfs ours. Everything is there, but it is difficult to get a clear picture of what is in the sea. It is complex and mysterious.

The sea, with its myriad of elusive images, is analogous to the unconscious, and especially to the collective unconscious, which is the repository of earth’s entire history.

How do we grasp it? How do we create a clear evolutionary path for ourselves amidst this apparent chaos, this jumble of ever-changing images? The world of spirit is a very big world.

It is important to see through the confusion of Pisces. How do we do it?

First of all, we clear ourselves as much as possible. We do this so that the voice of spirit has a better path to come in. We clear the channel. Then, we listen to that voice through intuition, which is Pisces’—and Uranus' as well—biggest tool and talent.

In the meantime, we develop the faith that we do have a place in the universal pattern, and we learn to trust our intuition as the guiding force which leads us along our evolutionary pathway.

At the same time we need to look at reality through the eyes of others. We each have a piece of the picture.

These four things--purification, developing our intuition as guide, learning to trust the rightness of the universe, and considering diverse opinions, are important things to keep in mind as we navigate the spiritual waters of Pisces.

Dreams and images are Pisces’ stock-in-trade.

Pisces is a sign of images, of music, of rhythm. It is very creative, and the arts are fine channels for transmitting the universal music. The arts will thrive during these years, and multimedia will lead the way.

Many images can be very inspirational. But at the same time, images can be confusing, misleading, and removed from real human beings. They can rise from fanatic beliefs, destructive impulses, or they can be pure illusion. They can be threatening and malevolent, or they can be bright and pure. Pisces is the master of both illusion and denial.

This is why artists have the reputation for mirroring our society to us. They absorb the images that are extant in our psyches, and they express them. To view the work of a good artist is to see a reflection of the collective unconscious, and to help us to better know who we are and where we are.

But if one is trying to assert will over others in a relationship, or in politics, there can be much distortion, conflict, and chaos, as people each try to manifest their different dreams.

Vision is essential for living. Everything manifested begins as a dream. But in Pisces we can get carried away with our visions to the point of destruction. Addiction is one such Piscean pitfall. Fanaticism is also a pitfall, and we see it in all fundamentalist branches of religions. This has been a huge source of conflict, wars, and massacres for millennia.

The biggest danger of Uranus’ journey through Pisces is that evangelists of all stripes can thrive. The visioning function will be extra open now, and it is easy to highjack that function in many people, particularly through TV and the media. Mass hypnotism is a natural. A very strong Neptune prevailing over the U.S. during the last two years has paved the way for that process in the U.S. in particular.

Now with revolutionary Uranus in Pisces, fanatic reform will increase everywhere. Tied with fanatic religious views, it can encourage jihads fueled by various righteous mythologies. Our challenge here is to stay centered, and not be carried away by those visions which are not truly supportive of life.

At the same time, Uranus—the Rebel and the Reformer—will be a big help in detaching ourselves from addictions. The last time, the Twenties, when Uranus was in Pisces, Prohibition forced sobriety for many. However, its strictness also encouraged the use of alcohol as a form of rebellion.

Unity will grow in many ways.

One of them is understanding that another’s suffering is not much different from my suffering. Ego boundaries will lessen, partly through drugs, spirituality, and the arts. Compassion and suffering will also bring us together. Love can grow. Unifying groups will expand, e.g., the United Nations, and new ones will form, as the realization grows that in unity there is power.

The sense that the world is all connected will grow. We will understand better the cycle of life, and understand that whatever we use has its place in the larger scheme of life. Ideals will have more power, and our desire to respect that larger scheme will grow. We will learn better how to solve our ecological problems, and to work in harmony with nature. Water will be a special focus. Also fish.

Science will have a boost, particularly biology, chemistry, and consciousness studies. Virology and epidemics, where disease spreads invisibly in a widespread manner, will be a focus. New discoveries will enlighten us.

Pisces is a health and healing sign, and new ways of healing will become popular. We will see health system reform.

Pisces also relates to racial identity, perhaps because it is a sign which goes back to the beginning of life. It is also a sign of compassion. Thus I would expect all racial groups to see reforms in regard to their rights, e.g., the diminishing of racial profiling.

Uranus enters Pisces amidst much world turmoil.

Uranus enters Pisces on March 10 at 3:54 p.m. EST. The chart set for Washington puts it in the seventh house, the house of relationships. For the nation, this describes relationships with other nations. For all of us, it is in the arena of personal relationships where we make the new discoveries always promised by Uranus. Uranus is exciting, as it awakens us to new vistas. Those vistas in Pisces will help us to grow in wisdom and understanding.

The skies on March 10 set the planetary patterns for Uranus’ Piscean journey. It is a birth chart for our next seven-year phase of enlightenment.

The planets are particularly active on that day, and just that fact tells us that Uranus will be working in a theater strong on action, with lots of buzzing around. Moon in Gemini confirms this.

Much of this action will be in crisis mode, for Sun squares Pluto this day. Power struggles will prevail, with likely destruction, for Pluto is the Great Destroyer. It looks like in its journey through Pisces, Uranus will destroy the old systems so that a new unity amongst humans can begin to thrive.

The cycles this day bring in all of the current trouble spots and conflicts, e.g., Iraq, central Asia, Israel, the Balkans, Venezuela, Brazil, Colombia, Indonesia, the Philippines, the Koreas, much of Africa, and India, to list but a few.

The cycles also bring in pronouncement after pronouncement by GW about using nuclear weapons. I didn’t realize he’d made so many until I checked back. They culminate with this entry of Uranus into Pisces.

The whole feeling of this timing is of pounding punishment of the world by the massive U.S. weapons arsenal. This is shown in part by the last of the deadly Pluto-Saturn opposition, now caught up intimately with both Sun and Moon, the core of life activity.

During the past two years, we’ve been watching the restructuring promised by the Saturn-Pluto opposition, and it has not been pretty. (Read more about the meaning of the Saturn-Pluto opposition in the Daykeeper feature article archives.) Now we can give Uranus seven years to break it up. The breakup will not be pretty, either. But it will open us to the necessary and heart-warming light of compassion and connectedness.

From Aquarius to Pisces, we can move from head to heart.

And, thank the Goddess, we do have a predominance of Piscean energy now in the heavens, and we are in the midst of the annual Piscean force field as well.

In Pisces we can dream our highest dreams, and work towards them. Pisces is nonmaterialistic, and we can focus our full attention on love and spirit. A rich inner life, close to our higher selves, is Pisces’ birthright. Uranus now traveling through Pisces can awaken us to Pisces’ best qualities during the years to come

Mars stimulates Pisces, and Uranus, this coming summer. Watch future issues of Daykeeper for those reports.