October 25th ~ November 1st
“Boreas” by John William Waterhouse
You shall ask What good are dead leaves And I will tell you They nourish the sore earth.You shall ask What reason is there for winter And I will tell you To bring about new leaves. You shall ask Why are the leaves so green And I will tell you Because they are rich with life. You shall ask Why must summer end And I will tell you So that the leaves can die. ~ Nancy Wood
Traditionally this time of year was seen as the beginning of Winter. As the days become shorter and cooler here in the Northern Hemisphere, we go within, focussed on making our inner world safer. We would do this in preparation for the dark months ahead, but also to protect ourselves from the denizens of the other worlds. For it was also believed that at this time of year, the veil between the human realm, and the realm of the spirits, the ghosts, the wraiths, became permeable. The recently departed would walk the earth, and the living would leave them spirits and treats as they passed through. Samhain, Halloween, the Day of the Dead, along with festivals of light, such as Diwali, are all celebrated in the depths of Scorpio season.
This is a a very occult and mystical time of year. In addition to preparing hearth and home, we are also asked to turn within to do our own inner work. Scorpio is a sign of transitions and endings, and so we honor and pay respects to the dearly departed, sending them off to the other realms This is a time of letting go, of releasing, not only those who had passed, but to also confront our own mortality, as a natural part of the alchemical process we call life. Endings and beginnings, birth and death, are as mundane as they are profound. And so we all turn within along with the turning of the veil, where the past and the future collide, and our insights into the very meaning of our lives runs penetratingly deep.
This year we dive even deeper, as Pluto is in this very last degree of Capricorn, along with so many other planets, also in the very last degrees of their signs. Like a farewell party to what once was, we are bidding goodbye to a prior era. And there will be no going back to what once was. And while some will be celebrating, others will be desperately holding on to the status quo.
For the next few weeks, Mars, which is apparently slowing for its retrograde station on December 6th, will be opposite Pluto. Both at the anaretic 29th degree of Cancer and Capricorn, this is yet another portent of endings that are well nigh due.
Mars/Pluto oppositions are indicative of extreme power (even life and death) struggles with others. Because of the retrograde phase of Mars, this transit will be repeated 3 times. The first will be exact on November 3rd, the 2nd on January 3rd and the last one on April 26th. This first one is the longest of these 3 transits, and the only one when Mars is in Cancer, and Pluto in Capricorn. The struggle continues. But there is no going back after this. For on November 18th Pluto will enter Aquarius, where it will remain for the next 20 years.
What I know is that the young women I met across northeastern Syria, from all its communities ~ Arab, Kurd, Christian ~ want the same things from their lives as thousands of girls I have met every other place in the world, including the United States: a chance to go to school and an opportunity to forge their own future. The world has a way of telling girls and young women what they should want from their lives, and of telling them not to ask for too much. ~ Gayle Tzemach Lemmon (The Daughters of Kobani: A Story of Rebellion, Courage and Justice)
There can be a holding on to the past in the very last degree of a sign, even if it must be at the expense of future growth. The Sabian symbol for the degree that Mars is in, this last degree of Cancer is “A Daughter of the American Revolution”, which speaks to the idea that there are those, once benefitting from their own revolutionary past, now aim to repress the emergence of new revolutionary ideals. They squelch any new revolutionary ideas, because they fear losing all that they have built up, and have held on to up until now.
There is a certain stability and security found in the patriarchal sign of Capricorn. Capricorn represents what we are familiar with, and what we know. It is what is already established. And any changes to this can feel destabilizing. Especially for those who benefit from it. But we are all subject to growth. The sort of growth that begins from the inside, and to which the outer circumstances of our lives need to adapt. And like a hermit crab that has outgrown its shell, periodically we need to search for one that is more accommodating.
Cancer is a matriarchal sign associated with Women, with Families, and Community. The warrior god in the sign of Cancer, is the stealth amazon, ready to take up arms, when feeling motivated to do so. And Mars in Cancer will be motivated to action when backed into a corner. Especially when she is also being called on to protect or defend those in her care. We tend to circle the wagons when Mars is in Cancer, defending the people and things that matter most to us. It could take a lot for Mars in Cancer to rise to the occasion. However, like the strong Mama bear she is, Mars in Cancer will leap into action when she perceives her loved ones or all that she loves is in danger of annihilation. She is the hero who lifts the car off the child, who stands up to the bullies, and secures the perimeters. Just know that when Mars in Cancer feels called to action, as she will when pushed into a corner by Pluto this week and next, she will be a force to be reckoned with.
But she is not alone. There are allies, and buffers, holding her aloft. Her heroism will not be forgotten, nor will it be for naught. In the days leading up to the Mars/Pluto opposition, Mercury in Scorpio will trine both Mars and Neptune, while sextile Pluto, creating a Kite formation, with a Grand Trine in Water. This is a configuration of great potential. Of possibility, hope, courage and aspiration. Of Love, Kindness and Compassion transcending oppression. And as Pluto grasps on to its last bastion of power in Capricorn over the next few weeks, you can almost hear all the planets whispering in their own sacred voices: Once you have known what freedom feels like, there is no turning back.
For this week’s horoscopes, click below: