March starts with a very strong stellium in Aquarius formed by Moon’s North Node, Jupiter, Mars, Mercury, Chiron, and Neptune. This energy of Aquarius is a very critical underlying theme throughout the month but particularly until March 14th when Mars finally enters Pisces.

Whenever there’s a stellium, you feel intense pressure to take an “all or nothing” stance in life. At the same time, you feel that forward motion is being obstructed by some unseen force. Both feelings are accurate. The intensity of Aquarius means that you need to find ways to do things with other people and not try to do everything by yourself. It also means that you need to be careful not to get sucked into the words of people who express themselves with righteous indignation. If you feel tired this month, it’s because you’re trying too hard to get things done even though you’re not totally sure where to start. It’s more important to move slowly and not push yourself before you are ready to take action.

Mercury forms a conjunction to Mars on March 1st and it’s easy to get frustrated. You feel as other people aren’t listening to you. Unfortunately, you may be right. If you speak without thinking and without compassion, you may express words that hurt other people. And, the pain of those words will come back to haunt you on March 3rd when Mercury forms a conjunction to Chiron.

Confusion can also result on March 5th when Mercury forms a conjunction to Neptune because you don’t get the full story. This is not a good day for any negotiations because information is being withheld from you. This is also not a good day to sign contracts for the same reason. Later in the day, Mars forms a conjunction to Chiron and now you really need to be careful not to let your frustration get the better of you. If you do, you may take some actions that you’ll regret later. This day can be a good day for you if you use it as a day of rest and meditation. For those of you who are artistically minded, you’ll find it easy to tune into your muses and create beautiful works of art or music.

Venus turns retrograde on March 6th and will stay retrograde until April 17th. As always Venus retrograde indicates that you need to be very cautious with any major purchases. There may be hidden costs written into the contract. If you own a business, this is not a good time to implement any new marketing plans or introduce any new products. Either the marketing plan will not generate the results you expect, or the product introduced will cost you a lot more to produce than anticipated.

Venus is in Aries at this time and not really in a comfortable sign. The lesson to learn from the Aries energy is that you need to put your needs before those of others. Yet, the lesson for Venus is to understand the value of people in your life and give them compassionate support. The best way to use this energy is to support your friends but don’t change your personal ethics as you are showing them compassion.

On March 8th, Mars forms a conjunction to Neptune and Mercury enters Pisces. Again this can be another day of creativity if you take the time to relax and meditate. Trying to accomplish important goals just doesn’t happen. There’s too much scattered energy floating around and you can get caught in it.

The full Moon that occurs on March 10th will be very intense. The Sun in Pisces is forming a conjunction to Uranus and the Moon in Virgo just passed a conjunction to Saturn retrograde. Usually this is a full Moon of healing where you understand what your needs are and you start doing things on a daily basis to make certain that you take time for yourself. However, the Sun forming a conjunction to Uranus indicates that concern over the direction of the government and any attempts at improving the economy are really on your mind. With the Moon just separating from the conjunction to Saturn retrograde this indicates that you don’t know who’s in control of the situation. Since the economic picture is so unclear, you need to be very careful with your own personal financial situation, especially as it relates to banking, stocks, and real estate. Even the weather will be unsettled on this day and unexpected storms will occur on the east coast.

Be very cautious in the early morning hours when Mercury forms an opposition to Ceres on March 11th. This can be an accident aspect. The day does improve after 8:30 am, east coast time in the United States, when Venus retrograde forms a sextile to Jupiter. There are opportunities for some financial improvements. There are also opportunities for you to encounter people from your past who were fun to be with.

When Mars enters Pisces on March 14th, the intense Aquarius stellium that began the month of March finally starts abating. It’s as if the tide is shifting and you feel a little lighter. Mars is not totally comfortable in Pisces because there’s a dreamlike quality to Pisces which makes it more difficult to find the motivation to do things. So, if you feel a little confused about what direction to take in life right now, just go with the flow. Information will come to you in bits and pieces and you’ll be able to put it all together at the end of the month.

Compromise is something that you’ll have to consider over the next few days. On March 15th, Ceres retrograde forms a trine to Pluto and compromise is possible if you really understand what it is you want. Also, it’s very difficult for other people to manipulate you into situations or projects which aren’t in your best interest. However, compromise will be more difficult on March 18th when Mars forms an opposition to Ceres retrograde because people will try to push their agenda on you. Any negotiations on this day could led to arguments and hurt feelings. If there are arguments, hopefully you’ll use the energy of Mars forming a sextile to Pluto on March 19th to resolve those problems and not hold on to the hurt feelings.

The Sun enters Aries on March 20th and the Spring equinox occurs in the western hemisphere. This is the beginning of the astrological year and the chart sets up the underlying theme for a country for the next twelve months. To look at a specific country, you set the chart up for the capital of the country. In the United States, the chart puts most of the energy into the eleventh and twelfth houses giving the chart an Aries ascendant. What this means is that it’s critical that people work together, especially Congress in the United States, if they want to get out of this economic crisis. It also means that new action needs to be taken and initiated as quickly as possible. However, with Ceres and Saturn both retrograde and in the house of workers, it also means that in implementing any financial plans workers cannot be forgotten. It’s the workers, employees and small business owners, who will eventually either suffer from financial discord or grow in political strength.

No matter where you live, the fact that this chart has a strong energy of Aquarius and Pisces, it means that you really do need to reach out to your friends and family. Because Venus is retrograde in this chart, you need to watch your money, especially any investments, carefully. The stock market will not recover as quickly as people think and the greatest danger is to your pension funds.

With the planetary pattern of this chart, it also means that you need to look at new ways to live. Previously the economy was based on consumer spending. Economists are still using this old model in their current economic forecasts. Yet, the reality is that the new economic model needs to be based on consumer conservation. Read about the automobile industry and you find one of the best examples of over consumption. Even if you started buying new cars, you still wouldn’t be able to deplete the stock pile of cars out there waiting to be purchased. In the new economy, materials and products need to be built not for consumption but for conservation.

As your economic lifestyle changes from consumption to conservation, you’ll find that things start balancing out. Unfortunately, it will take a number of years before this balance becomes institutionalized in the global economy. Meanwhile, what little you can do towards conservation will improve your economic future.

The need to make adjustments in your life becomes very evident on March 22nd when Jupiter forms a quincunx to Saturn retrograde. This same aspect will occur again on August 19, 2009 and February 5, 2010. Jupiter represents your ability to find solutions that are outside the normal perspective of life. Saturn represents the ability to use the past and create a new foundation for the future. Since this is a quincunx, it means that you need to adjust your vision of what you want in life so that you don’t repeat the mistakes of the past. Rather you want to use the past as stepping stones for the future. You may feel frustrated that you can’t do this immediately. However, the economic problems which are now bubbling around you didn’t occur immediately. So, creating and implementing solutions will also take time.

Mercury enters Aries on March 25th and just hours before the new Moon occurs on March 26th, Mercury forms a quincunx to Ceres retrograde. With the new Moon in Aries, there is a stellium in Aries until March 28th between Mercury, Sun, Moon, and Venus retrograde. Between March 25th and March 28th, it’s very important for you to think of your own needs and those of your family. It’s not that you don’t want to work with other people in creating a better future. It’s that you want to make certain you’re not losing your own spiritual and ethical direction. This is especially true on March 27th when Mercury forms a square to Pluto and other people try to convince you that their way is the only way. If you can maintain your spiritual and ethical goals, it will be easier for you to work with others in making changes that can improve your economic goals.