February 2011: Preparing to Move Forward

The month of February is one where relationships are just as important as finding your spiritual center. This is a month where your spiritual awareness can increase your daily success. It’s a month of healing as well as of preparing to move forward.

It begins with a busy day on February 2nd. It starts with Venus forming a sextile to Neptune and later a square to Uranus. Mercury forms a sextile to Uranus. And, the most important aspect is the new Moon with both Sun and Moon in Aquarius. Even though the aspects formed by Venus and Mercury occur earlier in the day, they are felt in at the time of the new Moon.

When Venus makes a sextile to Neptune, it can mean that your attention falls to spiritual matters. You lose focus on the practical and need to be very careful when it comes to commitments and contract negotiations. Not all the information you receive is accurate. You may even be deceived by omission rather than a direct lie. If you use this energy to meditate, you’ll feel inspired. However, if you try to take on practical matters, you may not be able to come to a resolution.

It becomes more difficult to come to a resolution as Venus forms a square to Uranus. Unexpected things start happening, especially with your finances or relationships. If there’s been a problem in your relationship with another individual, that problem will escalate, especially if the other person was trying to control your actions. It doesn’t matter if that person is a significant other, parent, or child.

With Mercury forming a sextile to Uranus, you may say something that you regret, even if you speak the truth. It’s best to try and keep your thoughts to yourself. However, if you spend the day in meditation or reflection, you’ll come up with some good ideas which you can implement later.

The new Moon which occurs supports the need for “spiritual detachment.” There’s a tendency when the new Moon falls in Aquarius for you to want to watch from afar and not get involved. Sometimes that can be a bad thing. However, in this case, watching from afar will give you better insight into your spiritual needs.

On the following day, February 3rd, Mercury enters the sign of Aquarius and Venus follows shortly by forming a sextile to Chiron. When Mercury is in the sign of Aquarius, it’s important to hold your criticisms. You need to take time to understand all the aspects of a situation before you say anything. If you do, you’ll be able to use the healing energy of Venus forming a sextile to Chiron; especially to any relationships which aren’t working out. You’ll have the opportunity to increase your compassion for other people. While you may not always understand what another person is going through, you’ll be able to accept them a little better.

On February 4th, Venus enters the sign of Capricorn. With Venus in this sign, you turn to more serious thoughts about your future and what’s important to you. You start thinking of ways to plan your goals. You start looking at the people in your life and wondering who really fit in and who don’t.

The thoughts of who fits in and who doesn’t becomes more intense on February 5th as Venus forms a conjunction to the Moon’s North Node and Mercury forms a sextile to Jupiter. The Moon’s North Node represents the need to look towards the future. With Venus forming a conjunction to it, you need to consider your financial obligations as well as your family obligations. You may find it easier to talk to people because of the sextile that Mercury forms to Jupiter. You’ll find that you’re open to new concepts and are willing to listen to what other people have to say.

If you felt frustrated by your situation or people in your life, you feel less of this on February 6th as Mars forms a trine to Saturn retrograde. This aspect brings more stability into your life. You are able to focus on what’s important. Even the square to Jupiter that Venus makes a few hours later won’t prevent you from focusing. Rather, you’ll be able to understand how some concepts could interfere with your ability to find satisfying relationships in your life.

Chiron enters the sign of Pisces on February 8th. This could be an interesting placement for Chiron. In your personal life, Chiron represents the need to bring healing from past hurts. Pisces represents subconscious fears which could prevent you from achieving success. With Chiron in Pisces, you’ll have a better chance of bringing up those subconscious fears and releasing them.

In mundane astrology, Chiron represents corporate profits and marketing concepts while Pisces represents individuals who are underserved in society. During the time period that Chiron is in Pisces, you’ll hear more about corporations that are getting involved in social programs or social accounting. Social accounting is a form of determining the cost of helping people and bringing programs that promote their well being. Chiron will actually be in Pisces for the next several years.

Be cautious on February 9th when Venus forms a conjunction to Pluto. This could be a day where the stock market is very erratic as news of world events increase in intensity. In your personal life, don’t let other people try to manipulate you into taking actions which you don’t agree with. In the most positive, this could be a day of passion where you gain some very deep insight into family dynamics which were injurious in the past. If you gain that insight, you’ll be able to move forward and leave the painful situations behind.

Mercury forms a conjunction to Ceres on February 13th indicating that compromises can be made where you and the other parties involved actually feel satisfied. Do be cautious, however. Sometimes when Mercury makes a conjunction to Ceres, accidents happen. Those accidents tend to happen in situations where old infrastructures have not been maintained. If you have anything in your house that needs to be repaired, do it before this conjunction occurs.

Both Mercury and Ceres will form a trine to Saturn retrograde. Mercury will form this trine on February 14th and Ceres will form this trine on February 15th. These are two more days where compromises can be made that bring good results to all parties involved. You’ll get all the facts you need. You’ll be able to understand the information. And, you’ll be pleased with the end results. Again, however, be careful to make any repairs to items that need those repairs before these two days if you don’t want them to break down permanently.

The full Moon of the month occurs on February 18th with the Sun in Aquarius and the Moon in Leo. Both the Sun and the Moon are at 29° of their signs. Most of the time, as in this case, it means that the full Moon is void-of-course. Usually the full Moon is a time period where you reassess the past few weeks and make any necessary changes to make certain you’re on track. You may have difficulty with that at this time. Part of you wants to be detached from any problems that are in your environment. The other part of you wants people to pay attention and understand that you are doing the best you can. Basically, take it easy and don’t try so hard. Be gentle with yourself and with other people. Remember, they are feeling the same way.

This feeling is emphasized as Venus forms a square to Saturn retrograde later in the day and the Sun enters the sign of Pisces. There’s a tendency to feel lonely when Venus forms a square to Saturn retrograde, especially if you don’t feel you have a healthy relationship in your life. Even if you do have healthy relationships in your life, you may find yourself being too critical of your own actions. And, with the Sun entering Pisces, you may let these feelings intensify. Instead, use this energy to understand what you need in your various relationships, whether they are personal or professional. Understand that you can ask for what you need. You don’t have to suffer in silence if you feel your needs are not being met. By taking the time to communicate, you’ll use this energy in the positive way by getting as many facts as possible about your relationships and letting other people understand your needs.

February 20th can be a day of confusion if you’re not careful. Both Mercury and Mars form a conjunction to Neptune. You may not fully understand what other people are trying to tell you. Or, they may not understand you. You may have these feelings that something is hidden under the surface but you just can’t seem to grasp it. This is not a good day for negotiations because communication is not easy. Also, you may let your feelings interfere with your ability to see things clearly and, if not careful, act in a passive/aggressive manner. It’s better if you can spend this day in meditation or reflection. Even if you have to interact with other people, it’s better if you just sit back and listen to what they have to say. Things will get clearer over the next few days.

You have a great opportunity to correct mistakes on February 21st through 24th. During this time period, Mercury enters Pisces on February 21st and forms a conjunction to Chiron on February 22nd. Mars enters Pisces on February 22nd and forms a conjunction to Chiron on February 24th. Because all the planets are in Pisces, your ability to feel things is heightened. You’re able to “see through the curtain” of feelings and thoughts other people have. This gives you and others a rare opportunity to discuss matters in a sensitive way. You’ll be willing to listen to each other. Through this increased sense of compassion, you’ll be able to come up with solutions to problems. You’ll even be able to heal some old wounds. If you can’t heal those wounds it means the time has come to end the relationship and move on.

As the month of February draws to a close, pay special attention to February 25th. This is going to be an important day. Mercury forms a sextile to Pluto and later Jupiter forms a square to Pluto.

Jupiter forms a square to Pluto about every 12 to 13 years. When it forms the square, it tends to occur three times during the cycle. The first time that it forms, you start experiencing situations which need to be addressed in your life. The second time it forms, you have a chance to review what you’ve done concerning these situations. If you started taking action and addressed the situations in your life, you finally start seeing results by the third time this aspect forms. The results can vary from implementing plans in your life to experiencing successes.

Jupiter first formed the square to Pluto on July 24, 2010. The second time that it formed the square to Pluto was August 3, 2010. Now, February 25, 2011, will be the third time that it forms the square. Historically gold prices start to decline around the time period this square forms. Politically, power struggles intensify because there is a schism between people who want to hold on to the past and people who want to move their country into the future. It’s interesting to note that spiritualism and spirituality become more important as people try to find their own center of balance

Because Mercury forms a sextile to Pluto a few hours before Jupiter forms a square to Pluto, you’ll be able to find deeper understanding from any situations which occur on this day. If you took time to understand or address important matters in your life in July 2010 and August 2010, you’ll move forward with the conviction that you’re on the right track. If you didn’t address those matters, you’ll have one more opportunity to really understand what to do.

Jupiter may represent the need to move forward with your spiritual beliefs, but Pluto represents the importance of stepping back and understanding just what those beliefs mean to you and people in your life. You may feel a little tension because you think you’re not moving fast enough. But, there is always a plateau effect when it comes to changes, especially if Pluto is involved. What this means is that as you get ready to change, your subconscious mind may start putting up barriers to those changes. (The old saying: Better the devil you know than the future you don’t.) But, those changes need to occur for you to succeed in life. By letting those changes settle into your thoughts, you’ll find that the subconscious fears subside. Once those fears subside, you’re ready to move on.