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by Terry Lamb

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New to astrology? Read on and ignore the technical bits. There's plenty here for you too! Why don’t I write horoscopes for each sign?

OCTOBER WAS A LITTLE LIKE Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride if you have any connection to the stock market. Outer events always reflect what is happening inside us, and our personal world may have been rocked in other ways as well. Mercury has been moving forward for two weeks, and it’s evident that Mercury is not the bad guy. How was the truth brought out in your life?

No matter what your answer is to that question, this is only the beginning of the process. With so many planetary shifts coming, including Pluto’s for-good entry into Capricorn, we’re all in adjustment mode.

This is a good thing. Even though there’s plenty of pain and suffering going around right now, and we all need to do things to help each other, the phenomena of economic change are all good, and there is a way out of the challenges. In a Newsweek article by Fareed Zakaria, “There Is a Silver Lining”, he sees the current economic crunch as blessing in disguise. If it gets us out of the costly credit-driven economy that we’ve been virtually forced into by the slow bleeding of the working and middle classes, it will have the best outcome. It is simply time for us to say, “No more!” to the seduction of having it all today and paying for it all tomorrow (with interest). Many of us are being forced to cut back because we’re tapped out. We’ve gone as far as we can or are willing to go into the financial red.

Creating the Real Economy
The best economy is one that is driven by real industry that produces real products and services, not one driven by the self-created financial industry. Of course, finance is valuable and important in its place, but it cannot be allowed to run amuck with unregulated interest rates and penalties, predatory lending practices across the board, and a casino atmosphere where speculation is permitted to manipulate the markets.

The real economy is driven by the activities of the working and middle classes producing goods and services of tangible value, such as steel and computer systems analysis. When they (we) are enriched, all are enriched, When these jobs are shipped overseas to the serve the power brokers at the top of the scale, eventually the system collapses, but not without the most pain being felt by those at the bottom who have long ago been tapped dry in their efforts to keep their home, send their kids to college, or take care of their health.

It doesn’t trickle down, it “chimneys up”. (My thanks to my friend, CF Perez, for pointing this out to me.) The wealthy use their wealth to create more wealth, not to share with those beneath them on the economic scale. There are exceptions to these generalizations, of course, but the system works on this lowest-common-denominator level.

The truth is, a rising tide lifts all boats. If we can jumpstart the activities of the American economic engine, everyone will benefit eventually. We know from the planetary patterns that relate to the economic crisis that it will be a long slow recovery, but there will be bright spots in the nearer future that we can warm ourselves in.

The best way to manage our situation, whatever it is, is to adjust our value system. If we can give up our attachment to things that are no longer viable or sustainable in the developing real economy, we can benefit by letting them go. The most significant factor to take into account when doing this is the future of Planet Earth. We need to “go green”. This need can be used to drive the new economy.

What planets are involved in this? Nearly every one, and I hasten to add that if we humans hadn’t created this set of circumstances, we wouldn’t be in the pickle we’re in. But here’s the list: 

Mercury: the messenger that brought us into the harsh awareness of how untenable our current economy is. (active through November 3)

Moon: the trigger of market mood, urged by instinct and driven by fear (greed = fear of lack) (currently active several times each week)

            Jupiter in Capricorn: The planet of expansion in its fall in the sign of contraction.

Saturn opposing Uranus: The planet of structure and contraction activating the planet of radical change. (active through July 2010) 

Chiron conjoining Neptune: The planet of healing opening the wound of dissipation (active through the end of 2010)

Pluto entering Capricorn: Has brought the fall of major (corporate) structures and empires, such as the Universal (Catholic) Church’s supremacy (the start of the Reformation) two cycles ago and the breakdown of the British Empire started by the loss of the American colonies on the last cycle. (active through 2014) 

Uranus squaring Pluto: the second major phase in the Uranus-Pluto cycle that started in the mid-sixties, this phase activates the promise of that conjunction in Virgo — the rise of the common man and the protection of the Earth. (June 2010 – mid-2015)

Our Saving Grace
We can save ourselves if we can adapt, and humans are quite adaptable when the chips are down. If we can develop a human community based on systems that are carbon-neutral and support greater self-sufficiency, we will have saved ourselves and the other species of which we are stewards. The planets will be our guides.

Big Picture, Little Picture
This is supposed to be a more personal interpretation of the planetary patterns, but the big picture issues always bear relevance to our personal lives. Right now, if the big picture is not already encroaching on your life, it threatens to. These planetary patterns will have a micro-cosmic effect in our lives as well, most of which I have kept you updated on.

We can think about the gestalt of the whole pattern with the imponderable question, “What effect will this new world have on me and what role will I play in it?” It is just as imponderable as asking the same question in 1995 — the last time Pluto entered a new sign. Think about where you were then versus where you are now. It’s probably quite different than you thought it would be. And we’re likely to have a similar experience relative to Pluto in Capricorn. Truth is often stranger than anything we can imagine.

Pluto is in its final days in Sagittarius; it leaves the sign, entering Capricorn on November 27. A whole new set of dynamics is put into motion. For one thing, on the purely mechanical level, the Moon’s void-of-course periods will be longer much of the time, because there won’t always be a planet placed so late in a sign. This gives us more down time — to dream, to relax, to enjoy life — because nothing’s really happening and we won’t be missed.

The Gourmand Culture Becomes the Frugal Culture.
But that’s the least of the changes. The change of Pluto into a new sign signals a change in focus in mass consciousness, and the shift between Sagittarius and Capricorn is a big one. We could call Pluto in Sagittarius the Gourmand Culture, which chants to itself, “Only too much is enough.” Pluto in Capricorn is the Frugal Culture in comparison.

Everything in the Frugal Culture is about pulling back, contracting. It’s time to the “reduce, reuse, recycle; travel less; cut back; pay things off; repair, don’t re-buy; do-it-yourself, make-it-yourself; what’s-the-bottom-line, cut to the chase; enough is probably too much” mentality. This is Capricorn. And along with Capricorn, we get to deepen our values, because it’s only when we are forced to that as a species we look beyond our creature comforts for more (although individuals may always do so).

There is already a shift from pride in wealth to “an embarrassment of riches” in some people, and this sentiment is likely to become the norm over the next 16 years as Pluto makes its way through Capricorn, although some will never adopt it.

Pluto is not the only planet to participate in this global pulling back. Saturn is the quintessence of pulling back, the ruler of contractive forces. But we need Jupiter so that we can expand in the right directions, and we need Neptune so we can envision the right solutions. These two naturally expansive planetary energies are as important and also in play.

Neptune in the Picture
The month starts with Neptune returning to forward motion. This is huge. Chiron just turned direct on October 25, and these two planets have been cycling in tandem ever more synchronously for the past two years. Their conjunction lasts from 2008 through 2010. This is an incredible blessing, even though we are likely to associate it with pain. Simply put, it represents “healing the core wound”, but we have to understand what that means and how it will play out.

On a personal level, it bears mentioning that we each have a core wound that is spiritual in nature but is felt on all levels of our nature — mind, emotions, physical body, and finally personal expression. We can think of it as an energy distortion. When we heal the core wound, we learn to reinterpret this distortion from its point of emanation. This “straightens out” the distortion, and everything changes — mind, emotions, etc. — often in a dramatic manner.

Each person’s wound is very individual and can be accessed in part as a unique personal story. Each group — family, culture, society, nation, ethnic group, community, organization — has its own wound. The global range of humanity has a wound as well, which is currently expressed in part as the self-defeating use of fossil fuels which could result in the destruction of the planet’s ecosystem.

All core wounds are expressed in part as a dream. In the US, we are built on something called the American Dream, and the old model for this is being disassembled as the economy crumbles. A new one is being built on a renewal and reinvigoration of the original model, the dream of freedom. In each person, each group, each nation, the same process of re-dreaming is taking place in its own way.

This year all things Neptunian are about this issue more so than in previous years, and we will continue to focus on it during 2009 and 2010. If you can find the thread in your life that relates to the dreams that give your life meaning and find the flaws in how you think of it, you will be doing your Chiron-Neptune work.

Right now, both Chiron and Neptune are in the closing phase of their yearly cycle, which ends in February next year. This means that it’s time to integrate what we’ve learned this year about spiritual growth, imagination, and our core dream.

It is worth noting that we have what we believe is a more accurate birth time for John McCain, and this gives him Pisces rising (instead of Libra) and an Aquarius Moon (instead of Capricorn). It makes immediate sense in terms of the way that Senator McCain telegraphs his emotions through facial expression and why he picked Sarah Palin as his running mate (their Moons are conjunct). This changes some of the prognosticating I’ve done in the last two forecasts, but not substantially; it suggests that, instead of troublingly untrue statements coming mostly from McCain, they came primarily from his campaign and surrogates. This was probably extremely distasteful to Senator McCain.

Personally Speaking
In our personal lives, we’re feeling pulled between the way we’ve done things up to this point and the way we must change in order to respond to the transformations we see around us. Each of us has an individual story about this, but regardless of the level on which we are experiencing it (from personal to global), there’s a radical “get rid of something or somebody” feeling to our response. This suggests a sea change in government, but our own lives are not exempt from this either.

Whatever we are cooking in the pot of change, it will take until July 2010 for it to be done cooking. It is useful to write down our experiences and impressions of what’s in our recipe for change and to add to it as the next two years unfold. This two years is the culmination period of a cycle that began in 1987. We can tie our situation now in some way to decisions that were made at around that time. This is true in politics and economy as well as in our personal lives.

It’s Not as Bad as You Think . . .
Believe it or not, this is a soft landing for the US and global economy. This may be true only because people are making the right decisions about how to manage the crisis, including who to elect in the US on November 4. We know this because Jupiter is trining Saturn, the last of five trines over the past 18 or so months. This harmonious contact is generally supported by the fast-moving planets in November, and two things come to mind: The election will bring an outcome that bring peace and optimism to the population; and we will see a leveling off of the downward global economic trends. These are probably psychologically tied together. It also means that we are likely to see the economy begin moving again after two months of being frozen.

. . . But Watch for Lurking Challenges.
On October 18, Venus entered Sagittarius, from which planet/sign we will experience a T-square with Saturn and Uranus on November 3. This is a bellwether contact to tell us how the economy will do in the coming months of transition. This will be felt most strongly in the economy, as everyone pauses to see what happens in the election. Will it be fair? Will the voting machines work? Will the right person win to assuage the fears of those in the markets? Will the right balance be found in the House and Senate to satisfy the majority of voters? Will those elections be fair?

The election takes place as the tension in the T-square wanes, but it will hang over us for a couple of days, or until all the election races are resolved enough to provide an outcome that the markets feel gives a clear picture of what the political landscape will become in January. Watch for what occurs during this week, because it will portend the challenges that will arise December 5–15, when Mercury, the Sun, and Mars mimic the pattern in a tightly bound configuration.

One Last Word
Uranus, which has been retrograde since June 26, returns to forward motion on the 27th (the same day Pluto enters Capricorn). This event rarely occurs without some notable hoopla somewhere. If your life tied itself in knots in June, look for an event or change in circumstances that will relieve the pressure in some way around this time. This means that Uranus also enters the closing phase of its yearly cycle, and it’s time to reach final resolution on open issues and integrate what we have learned. We have until the next cycle starts in mid-March to do so.

We Have a Few Especially Golden Days.
As Mercury spent its long sojourn in Libra, we had a dry spell where opportunities for good outcomes naturally occurred. However, better opportunities make a comeback as Mercury sextiles Jupiter, forming a minor grand trine with Saturn. This pattern is available to us November 4–16, and then on the 21st. This is especially auspicious because it also ties to Uranus and gives us a way to harmoniously use the intense energy of the Saturn-Uranus opposition. If you’re keeping track, this creates a cradle configuration, which is very potent in creating beneficial change. This bodes well for the economic summit of the Group of 20, which will be held on Nov. 15 and will include the president-elect. While such energies can be misused to minimize the problem or to use a teaspoon of medicine where a gallon is needed, it’s better to have such a pattern available.

We will leave November knowing much more than we did when we entered it. The reduction in the uncertainty factor will give us more structure, and that gives us more room to move and more traction when we act. It’s important to count our blessings during such a time, and may you have many to count.

Significant Planetary Events

Uranus and Neptune are retrograde. Mars is in rulership. Venus is in detriment. Jupiter is in fall.

All dates are based on Pacific Time.
Blue = harmonious/Red or orange = challenging/intense
Events in bold are more significant.

© Terry Lamb