September
Changes—
September 1
Juno direct
September 2
Mercury direct
September 26
Chiron direct
Read Maya's personal update on August's retrograde Mercury here |
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S E P T E M B E R 2 0 0 4 R E T R O G R A D E W A T C H  by Maya del Mar Just as September is flanked by two full moons, it is also flanked by planets stationing and turning direct. There are three at the beginning of the month, and one at the end. Direct stations release much energy, which is generally used in assertive self-expression within the collective, just like driving through a green light. A direct station, for instance, is a common concomitant of earthquakes, for that energy allows built-up earth stresses to act. Leading the parade we have Pluto in Sagittarius, who sets a deeply transformative stage for the rest of the season. Pluto turned direct on August 30, and you can read about it in the August archives. The deep transformation of the American political scene is being demonstrated at the Republican National Convention, which began on a Pluto-direct station. Sagittarius is a sign of politics. On the morning of September 1, Juno turns direct at 10 Capricorn. Juno is an energy of intimate relationships. She wants fair and harmonious partnerships, but those relationships are exactly the places where we are most apt to find inequities. Thus Juno is often victimized, and tends to feel abused, and angry about it. Juno was the wife of Jupiter, king of the gods, who did cruelly abuse her in many ways. She also represents an area of fear in our charts. Bill and Hillary are an excellent example of this royal couple. Bill has Jupiter in his first house. He is the careless, jovial, charmer. Hillary has Juno on the cusp of her seventh house of partnership, and she is a classic Juno archetype—the good wife who finds herself betrayed by her husband. In a mundane chart, Juno always represents an abusive situation. Juno is now in Capricorn, the sign of government, and we see a great deal of abuse from above, expressed in many ways. Many who have remained loyal to Republican and establishment traditions, i.e., made a Juno in Capricorn compact, are beginning to feel disenchanted. The torture situation now coming to light is an extreme example of Juno in Capricorn, from many standpoints. The targeting by the Iraqi resistance of Iraqis and contractors who have partnered with the United States is another example. Juno has been traveling through Capricorn since January, and turned retrograde in mid-May. Juno is a major partnership energy, and gay marriages attracted national attention then. In this case, the abuse is the government denying the freedom to marry to some. When Juno turns direct, people are not going to want to put up with these instances of abuse by the establishment. Juno was an angry goddess. Look for increased resistance by the Iraqis, as well as by people everywhere, to repression and exploitation. Juno ruled the seasons, and we can expect to see stepped-up turmoil in the weather. (Resistance to the Kyoto Treaty, and especially to its principles, is a major abuse of partnership with government, which makes Juno very angry.) On September 2, Mercury turns direct at 26 Leo, prepared to push Pluto’s and Juno’s concerns right along. They are heavy concerns, and Mercury is in for a lot of action. She turned retrograde on August 9 in Virgo, the sign of problem-solving, turns direct in the exceedingly strong sign of Leo, and will spend most of September in Virgo, helping us work on the deep problems which are being exposed. At the end of the month, Mercury enters Libra to help move along our burgeoning Libra concerns. (See Daily Guide.) Mercury is getting much inspiration and insight from her 3-times opposition to Uranus, who pulls new ideas out of the ethers. The third and final hit is September 13, and we can see the results of the recent efforts of that team then, just in time for New Moon in Virgo, which will set the energy cycle for the next month. This is an extremely somber time. Venus is conjoining Saturn in the sky, and they both conjoin the U.S. Mercury (which is retrograde). Saturn is reality, and this means that the nation’s perceptions of values—Venus—are facing tests of reality with this three-month Mercury-direct cycle. We will all do some serious thinking about our national priorities. With the U.S. Mercury in Cancer, security is a very big issue, and this will be emphasized. Juno is associated with terrorism, and with Juno turning direct at the same time, threats of terrorism will be even more closely related to security. Sun now conjoins GW’s Mars, and he will be loud and clear about his ability to defend the nation. Furthermore, Moon is in the fighting sign of Aries, exactly on GW’s midheaven, his place of public display. However, Chiron opposes this Venus-Saturn conjunction, and I believe that after Chiron turns direct at the end of the month, that story will be less credible. We shall see. Chiron turns direct on September 26 at 21 Capricorn. Chiron in Capricorn disrupts the establishment for the ultimate purpose of healing, and we have been witnessing that disruption since Chiron entered Capricorn in December 2001. Then the U.S. was bombing both Afghanistan and Iraq, and threatening to bomb Somalia. Israel was bombing Palestine. India was threatening war with Pakistan. The U.S. was talking about prisoner torture and, as it turned out later, torturing prisoners in Afghanistan. The U.S. unilaterally abrogated the ballistic missile treaty. But there were protests. In Argentina, the people forced the resignation of two presidents. In Brussels, big demonstrations moved EU policies in the direction of the people. This is a critical Chiron. For one thing, it is in the midst of a 6-month process of opposing Saturn, the planet of structure and government. This gives it a double whammy in relation to the powers-that-be. For another thing, Chiron now conjoins the south node of Pluto, which indicates a big transformation in which something (government) dies. A third thing is that Chiron is in a process of squaring the U.S. Chiron, a big turning point, particularly in regard to the macho image propagated by the U.S. A fourth thing is that Chiron will conjoin the U.S. natal Pluto during most of 2005. The rule of money in the U.S. will change. And a fifth thing is that Chiron, with Saturn and Mars, is crucial at election time in November. The station chart is similar to the U.S. wheel. with Sag on the Ascendant, and Libra on the midheaven. Transformative Pluto is almost exactly rising at the time of the station, and Juno, who will rise next, squares the midheaven, an aspect likely to generate fear from on top. The energetic Mars-Jupiter-Sun trio sits together in Libra in the ninth house. (See Daily Guide.) This could be a scary moment. Pay attention to events now to get a fix on crucial upcoming issues, especially for the United States. Want to know the planetary retrogrades for the year, in advance? Maya's extremely handy 2004 Retrograde Guide shows you at a glance the upcoming retrogrades, and how to best apply your energies during each period. Available exclusively as a Premium Subscriber bonus. |