Important astrological energies for the month of July 2016

• New Moon with Sun and Moon in Cancer occurs on July 4, 2016.
• Mars in Scorpio forms a quincunx to Uranus in Aries on July 14, 2016. The first time Mars formed a quincunx to Uranus was on February 5, 2016 when it was in direct motion and the second time Mars formed a quincunx to Uranus was on Jun 19, 2016 when it was in retrograde motion.
• Full Moon with Sun in Cancer and Moon in Capricorn occurs on July 19, 2016.

Communicating is the Key

By Misty Kuceris ©2016

As the month of July starts, Venus forms a sextile to Jupiter on July 1^st and all you want to do is enjoy a pleasant day. You don’t really feel like doing too much of anything. You’d rather relax and enjoy your surroundings. You may feel as if you’d like to go on some adventure. But if you do, it’s one where other people are taking care of you and you don’t have to do too much. It’s a great day to be with your friends and enjoy their company.

When the new Moon, with Sun and Moon in Cancer, occurs on July 4^th, you have the opportunity to develop the type of security you want in life. This new Moon forms a trine to Neptune retrograde and a sextile to Jupiter. As you consider your dreams, you’ll find new opportunities presenting themselves. You’ll also find creative ways to approach situations in life. This is important since the new Moon also forms an opposition to Pluto retrograde. You want to feel passion in your life for what you can accomplish. You also want to make certain that other people aren’t trying to tell you what to do when they don’t understand your motivations. The best way to use this energy is to slow down and think about your needs. You want to understand the psychological motivation behind what you’re doing.

The new Moon occurred in the early morning hours of July 4^th. Now, in the evening hours, Mercury is forming a quincunx to Saturn retrograde. With Mercury in Cancer, you feel as if you need to be very gentle in your approach to other people. You don’t want to hurt their feelings. You also don’t want to sound too critical. But, you need to be careful. As you’re trying to be gentle, other people may be sounding a little too critical to you. Also, you need to be careful in taking the direct approach in communicating with others. People may feel as if you’re being too critical. Listening is the key word here.

Being careful with your communications continues to be important on July 5^th as Mercury forms a trine to Neptune retrograde. You may be misunderstood because Neptune retrograde is involved. On the other hand, if you really need to say something, you may find that other people are willing to listen compassionately.

When it comes to any contracts, be careful. Even though this aspect is a trine, it still involves Neptune. That means that you may not hear everything that is being said. Or, other people are not giving you all the information you need intentionally. They are distorting the truth.

You’re better off taking time for creative pursuits today. If you’re an artist, this really will be a great day for you. Even if you are more of a linear, rational person, you’ll find yourself thinking of creative ways to get things done.

July 7^th can be a very intense day with Mercury forming an opposition to Pluto and Venus forming a square to Uranus. You may feel as if other people are trying to manipulate you into doing something you don’t like with Mercury forming the opposition to Pluto. You may even feel as if other people are afraid of your power and trying to demoralize you.

This sense of disrespect continues as Venus forms a square to Uranus a few hours later. You really can’t tell what other people mean. Situations seem to come at you from nowhere. You feel as if you’re under attack.

With both these aspects occurring today, it will be a very volatile day on the stock market. Don’t take any financial risks. Don’t sign any contracts that involve money because you could find that those contracts cost a lot more than you expected.

If you are having difficulty in relationships, those problems will surface. If possible, try not to get into an argument because that won’t solve the situation. Instead, try to see if there’s a way that both of you can accept each other’s differences and still find a common ground. If you can’t accept each other’s differences and find that common ground, it may be a good day to separate.

July 8^th is a much better day with Venus forming a trine to Chiron retrograde and Mercury forming a sextile to Jupiter about 2.5 hours later. With Venus forming the trine to Chiron retrograde, you can do things which bring healing into your life. You may find that you are feeling better about yourself. You may say nice things which help other people feel better about themselves.

With Mercury forming the sextile to Jupiter, you definitely feel as if you can do a lot more in the world. You’re willing to take risks. You feel confident about your abilities. You also feel as if you can inspire other people to be successful. This is a good day for negotiations since your charisma will be very high.

On July 10^th, Venus forms a square to Ceres. Venus represents the passionate side of love while Ceres represents the protective side of love. One is lover; the other mother. Yet Venus is in Cancer which is more of the sign of mother while Ceres is in Aries which is more of the side of passion and warrior.

There is tension in your life with this square. You want to feel passion in life, yet you fear taking risks. You want to claim your rights, yet you worry that you may come across too pushy to other people. You need to find a way to express your needs without alienating other people. And, that could be very difficult today. If you feel you are being ignored, you may push yourself until other people don’t want to have anything to do with you. However, if you approach situations in a gentle way, you’ll find that other people are there and willing to help you.

In the early morning hours EDT of July 11^th, Mercury forms a square to Uranus. It’s very difficult to concentrate. Many thoughts, from different directions, are coming your way. You may even be involved in an accident if you’re not cautious. You also need to be very careful with your words because you might make other people angry by speaking without thinking. This is not a time period to be rash.

By midday EDT on July 11^th, Mercury forms a trine to Chiron retrograde and you start tempering your words. You become careful with your interactions. You may even feel as if you have to apologize for your earlier words. If you can do that, you may actually make things better even if the day got off to a bad start.

Venus enters the sign of Leo on July 12^th. When Venus is in the sign of Leo you feel very generous about your situation. You’re willing to do more for people. As a matter of fact, you feel inspired to help. But, there’s also a downside to Venus in Leo. You tend to overspend. You go after luxury items when the simple things will do. Or, you help other people out financially and find that they keep coming back for more.

Before Mercury enters the sign of Leo on July 13^th, it forms a square to Ceres. Mercury is the messenger in mythology. Mercury is also the trickster. Ceres represents the desire to compromise from the power of strength. You need to be very careful with your words during this square. You don’t want to compromise to the point that you lose control of the situation. You also don’t want to say too much that you find your words are used against you. This is especially true as Mercury enters the sign of Leo. You may feel as if you can accomplish anything, but you may come across as arrogant. There is a tendency to be a bit sloppy with the facts when Mercury is in Leo. Watch what you say and tone down your communication style if you want other people to listen.

July 14^th could be a very difficult day with Mars in Scorpio forming a quincunx to Uranus. This is not the first time that Mars formed this quincunx in this sequence. Mars initially entered the sign of Scorpio on January 3, 2016 and formed a quincunx to Uranus on February 5, 2016. It re-entered the sign of Scorpio when it was in retrograde motion and formed a second quincunx to Uranus on June 19, 2016. Now that Mars is in direct motion, it’s forming its third quincunx to Uranus. At the beginning of February 2016, you may have felt as if the information you were receiving was disjointed. There was too much going on. You needed to be very careful. The second time this quincunx was formed in June 2016 you may have felt like something was around that corner just waiting to happen. Now you need to be cautious. You want to move on with your life and take action. But unexpected circumstances could change the direction you want to take. You may not be able to complete your plans. Rather than taking any action, you’re better off observing your current situation and waiting for things to take place.

When Mercury forms a conjunction to Venus on July 16^th, you need to be very careful in your conversations with other people. While your charisma may be high, you may still come across as pompous. Where you think that you’re inspiring others, you may actually be putting them off. If you do listen to other people today, you may feel inspired and say just what they need to hear. The key is to listen before you speak.

Ceres enters the sign of Taurus on July 17^th and a few hours later Mars forms a trine to Chiron retrograde.

When Ceres enters the sign of Taurus, you find yourself concerned about your financial stability as well as safety for your possessions. You don’t really trust anyone else when it comes to money. You want to take care of everything. In many ways this is a good thing because you are willing to be responsible. But this could also lead to problems in relationships if other people don’t feel you trust them. The key is to let other people know you’re willing to help if they need it. If they don’t need your help, just pull back and let people learn how to do things on their own.

As Mars forms the trine to Chiron retrograde you’ll realize how valuable it is for other people to do things on their own. You’ll be able to increase trust in your relationships. You’ll be able to see that other people are just as passionate as you are with making certain that things are done right.

Before the full Moon occurs on July 19^th, Mercury forms a trine to Saturn retrograde and a quincunx to Neptune retrograde. This energy will be part of the full Moon chart.

When Mercury forms a trine to Saturn retrograde, you feel as if you can focus on the important details in your life. You are able to develop plans which can lead to success. But with Saturn being retrograde, you really need to do just the opposite: you need to consider potential changes to your plans in order to ensure their success.

This need to make changes to plans is especially true with Mercury forming a quincunx to Neptune retrograde. Things aren’t really as they seem. Situations haven’t worked out quite the way you expected. Perhaps you were too practical and didn’t include your dreams in the equation. Or, perhaps you were too focused on your dreams and not practical enough.

With the full Moon occurring it may be easier for you to make changes in your plans. The full Moon is a time period to let go of what doesn’t work. This full Moon will have the Sun in Cancer and the Moon in Capricorn indicating that many of the changes focus on your family and professional life. You need to find the balance between family and work. You need to make certain that your loved ones are involved in any plans you make regarding your professional decisions. With the full Moon separating from a square to Uranus you don’t want to just jump into new situations. You want to take the time to consider the potential impact of any changes. With the Sun forming a trine to Mars and the Moon forming a sextile to Mars, you will be able to focus your attention on the right areas of your life before you act.

July 20^th could be a very sweet day when Venus forms a trine to Saturn retrograde. You may run into someone you know from your past who was special in your life. Or, you may be ready to bring your relationship to the next level. You feel good about yourself. You feel as if you can achieve anything. You have confidence in your ability. While people see that you’re serious about your decisions, you don’t come across as being critical of others. You see and understand the boundaries that other people have created in their lives and respect those boundaries.

Boundaries are a difficult thing to understand on July 21^st when Venus forms a quincunx to Neptune retrograde. What you thought you understood yesterday is so confusing today. You really don’t know what to believe. The key is to just take time and observe people in your life. Don’t make any life-altering decisions. Also, don’t sign any contracts which involve a lot of money since you won’t have all the facts. At least this can be a good day if you’re a creative person. You’ll feel as if you’re receiving guidance from spirit as you’re working on any artistic projects.

Intensity is a key word for July 22^nd as Mercury forms a quincunx to Pluto retrograde before the Sun enters the sign of Leo. You thought you understood situations but now you’re getting new information and you have to readjust your thoughts. You want to hear what other people are saying. But you don’t want to be manipulated by others. Today is a good day to take everything with a grain of salt. If you don’t know the information, research it to find out the truth. Don’t let the enthusiasm of others sway you from the facts you know.

Just as on July 22^nd when Mercury formed a quincunx to Pluto retrograde, you need to be careful not to let other people manipulate you as Venus forms a quincunx to Pluto retrograde on July 24^th. This time you feel as if other people aren’t respecting you. You feel as if you need to stand up for your rights. The best way to use this energy is to find the power of belief that you have within you and uphold that belief. Don’t let other people talk you into doing things which aren’t in your best interest.

When Mercury forms a trine to Uranus retrograde on July 27^th, you really need to be very careful with what you say. There’s a tendency to think without speaking. Thoughts just rush through your head and out your mouth. You also need to be careful of accidents because you aren’t really concentrating very well. One good thing about this aspect is that you can come up with innovative ways to do things. Solutions can just seem to float down through the air.

If you did say too much earlier in the day you may regret it when Mercury forms a quincunx to Chiron retrograde. You may realize that you said hurtful things. Or, perhaps you didn’t say hurtful things to other people as much as you said things which can hurt you later.

Uranus turns stationary retrograde on July 29^th. You may not feel this energy personally, but you will find that things start slowing down a bit on a global level. While there may still be strife, it may not be as bad.

Mercury enters its own sign, Virgo, on July 30^th. You feel more comfortable discussing matters when Mercury is in Virgo. You feel as if you have all the facts. You’re also willing to take matters into your own hands. Be cautious, because there is a tendency to become too responsible when Virgo is in Mercury and take on work which is better delegated to others.