Pisces - Parallel Worlds 2006   |  Pisces - Spiral Door 2007

Dear Fellow Fish,

At long last, the Sun is in our sign, that always feels good. Fish need water. I said to a friend yesterday that there should be four water signs, not just the usual three. Then I realized that in some ways Aquarius (which is an air sign, though nobody seems to know that) does function like a water sign, because it represents a container of water -- and the act of collecting it, and giving it out. With so many planets in Aquarius for your solar return, this is meaningful, and a reminder to keep a strong focus on your inner life, despite so much happening in the world around you.

Electric eel, courtesy of aqua.org

Aquarius plays a profound role for Pisces this year. This has been building for a very long time, but the energy is now in full focus. Mainly, I'm speaking about the planets now in Aquarius, for example the magnificent conjunction of Mercury and Venus that is happening as I write. Then there is your planet, Neptune, on a long journey across Aquarius; and Chiron, which is on an equally long trek across your neighboring sign.

Planets can represent people, possibilities and a quality of psychic energy. In this case, they represent all three. Yet closer to home, they signify an ever-deepening inner life. Aquarius is the inner life of Pisces, being the sign right before yours (this gives it resonance with the 12th house, which is described in detail in this article from the Compersion series).

Aquarius also shows up for you as Uranus in your sign. I have been noticing that some of my horoscope writing colleagues have begun turning up the energy in their Pisces horoscopes. I keep thinking this is about their finally catching up with the fact of Uranus in Pisces. It takes time for these transits to sink in, and anything that lasts seven years gives astrologers plenty of time to meditate on the news. We've been living with this one for more than four years, and we have more than two to go. Yet the special development is that in a little more than a week, the Sun and Moon are getting ready to make a conjunction (the Pisces New Moon) to Uranus, igniting that revolutionary energy.

What happens in one's own sign tends to represent you, yourself. It's how you feel, how you look, what you're up to and the impact you have on the world. Uranus has a strong resonance with Aquarius, so all those planets tucked away in your deepest, innermost place are finding an expression in the real world of your experiences, ideas and relationships. There is a rather beautiful energy cycle happening here. You are gathering strength, clarity and a sense of identity deep inside your awareness, and then as the coming weeks, months and seasons develop, you will have many opportunities to express that to the world. This is truly a creative process at work -- an inner journey that feeds an outer one; an inner sense of identity that reaches out to people around you.

For Pisces, it can often seem like nobody is listening, trust me -- that just ain't true in this stage of your life. People are listening to you, aware of you, noticing you and to a great extent, taking your lead. Don't fall for that old programming about being, feeling or wishing you were invisible.

Now, this is not to say there isn't an invisible dimension to what you are doing. Water always seeps between even the tightest cracks -- as does energy. You are broadcasting on so many frequencies right now, it's impossible to account for them all. The best you can do is continue with your process of inner alignment, of cultivating inner harmony, which by all indications is going well. Then, pay attention to how you are impacting the world.

As I have suggested many times before -- in annual horoscopes and birthday reports -- because Uranus is in your sign, you are embodying the energy of The Awakener. When you get that job, the most important thing you can do is stay awake. Uranus brings liberation, revolution and more than anything, a shift in awareness that shapes the course of events. It is original, daring and not exactly what you would call cautious. With this influencing your life, you don't need to design your impact on the world as much as you need to keep your focus on your own processes, spiritual, creative and sexual.

If you have a handle on yourself, you will find your relationships are both more stable and more predictable. A key element of relating to others involves simply taking your freedom as granted -- that is, not seeking permission from anyone to do anything. This is a key point in self-actualization; the only approval you need is your own. This is a big step for a Fish, but it's one that you and the world need to take right now. On some level, everyone is seeking both freedom and approval, and you are close to figuring out that you can't necessarily have both; and if you are going to have both, freedom is going to come first and approval is going to come second. Yet by that time, you won't need it. You will be the one others are using an example for what it means to make your own choices, live your own way and be who you need to be.

It may occur that you make some seemingly radical decisions over the next few weeks. You can trust that anything you decide at this point was long in coming. Your choices are merely the result of having aligned yourself inwardly, having found some clarity, and more than anything, having reached the essence of who you are in a conscious way.

True, it often seems that you cannot always be in contact with this core essence, but now is a good time to practice. You are working with so much energy -- broadcasting power, influence, and connecting through networks to other people -- that you need to keep in close contact with yourself and spend most of your time communicating with yourself. This will go as far as you can toward ensuring that when you connect with others (which is frequently) you will give a clear signal that will be repeatable and still maintain its original integrity.

There are other ways to consider inner-outer alignment. One is practicing radical honesty with yourself, the single most vital factor constituting this thing called integrity. Another is holding your individuality so strongly in mind, and in your emotional field, that you cannot lose your identity to another. This is something that humanity has struggled with seemingly forever, and it's particularly vital to a Pisces because of our energetic nature.

Ours is the last sign of the zodiac; it is the end of the great cycle of the seasons. Often this is taken to mean we come in last place, speak last, develop late, or get a chance to express ourselves at the moment of conclusion or transition. In contrast, it often seems everyone else comes first. The world's competitive style does not usually favor the laid-back values of Fish people, who (when they are healthy) usually want little more than to feel good and live in harmony with their neighbors.

Pisces is also the last sign of the winter season in the Northern Hemisphere. The darkness is disseminating and all of nature is quickening, loosening up, and preparing for the surge of energy that comes with the Aries equinox. So the Sun in this phase is a time of preparation. Pisces is where the energy of all the signs and planets collects, and this fertile liquid then soaks the Earth, preparing it for the beginning of the new cycle.

The challenge of Pisces is that while all the natural elements work their way into our sign, so too do the toxins and stagnant emotions for which humanity is so famous. This includes the material of other people, which we Fish are famous for taking on. A vital part of being a Pisces is either routinely or constantly staying in detox mode. People may wonder why we have so much to process; why we are so introverted at times. A lot of it has to do with imagination, yet that too is an aspect of constantly cleansing, refining and filtering our feelings. Again, this points to inner process.

Yet this is the year you are likely to see some of the most stunning results of the long-term projects, commitments and desires you have been cultivating. Your relationships, for example, are coming into focus thanks to Saturn in your opposite sign Virgo. You may go into panic mode from commitment-o-phobia, because Saturn seems to be demanding so much in the way of structure. Actually, Saturn is about changes to the structure of your life, more than their solidification. And for its part, Saturn is working its way toward an exact opposition later in the year with Uranus.

This suggests a meeting with a surprise outcome -- and the development that he or she who appears to be reluctant or conservative will most likely experience a liberating encounter with freedom that will change them forever. You are the one who is grounding the energy of the future, of human potential, and of your own potential. You merely need to stay devoted and hold steady.

And in this, you have considerable support. Jupiter in Capricorn, for example, represents the love and involvement of your circle of friends. Jupiter is currently moving into a beautiful sextile aspect with Uranus in Pisces, and this is about harmony. It is about the understanding you share with your community, and much like Saturn in Virgo, it represents people whose ideas may seem traditional but who are very much in tune with the times.

We live in a world where change happens at a sickening pace, and where our abuse of the future (debt, pollution, dishonesty) seems to consume so many of the best possibilities life has to offer. Every now and then, though, we arrive in a moment where something else is possible; and where true originality can find its place. You are living in such a moment -- but remember: it is not originality you need to worry about. That will come to you as naturally as the flowers and trees blooming. Focus on integrity, which I define as being true to yourself, and you will reap the rewards of so much effort.

Yours & truly,

By Judith Gayle | Political Waves

STAR CROSSED is a good way to describe our coming week. The Sun in Pisces is still opposing Saturn in early Virgo, and Mars in Gemini is facing off with Pluto in Capricorn. If you find yourself conflicted, you will know why -- don't drive yourself crazy double-guessing or over-thinking. Oppositions, considered by many to be the bane of an astrological chart, make distinctions clear. If conjunctions are tricky because it's difficult to sort out the merged energies they represent, oppositions sort out differences and give people the chance to do something we don't normally do: meet our challenges face-on.
 

Chris Jagers "Untitled" screenprint, gouache, conte, paper on paper 2008.

The mutable energy of the week will have us up and running to capitalize on the newly direct Mercury, getting those missed appointments rescheduled and those broken appliances attended to. Your thoughts will turn pragmatic, so while you're at it, be proactive; mend the frayed plug on the toaster you noticed the other day, and if the computer wheezed suspiciously at any point in the last few weeks, you might want to extend the warranty. Meanwhile, Pluto's signature remains an absolute -- restructure.
 
Oppositions can reveal internal conflicts. Pisces is a sensitive sign, and Saturn's opposition to the Sun may have us low on energy, listless, or feeling like we face some insurmountable challenges. Do mental and emotional work as opposed to physical, if you can. Recharge with rest and music and simple, nutritious food. Be easy on yourself, no matter what Virgo whispers in your ear; don't push. There are many ways to be productive. Maximize Saturn's influence by organizing and sorting through what you no longer need, physically and psychically. Let the majority of the heavy lifting be mental and emotional for awhile. In this hemisphere, Pisces comes along when the days are short and the weather tricky -- guilt-free naps are both called for and welcome.
 
The Mars/Pluto opposition continues to add what may seem like a dark dimension in our political and social contracts. Yet mostly, we may be experiencing assertive individuals making sure they get their needs met. Mars is in a wide square to Uranus giving it a trickster flavor -- perhaps a touch of the unpredictable, or the feeling that we might lose our footing. Pluto rules the underworld, and our own personal underworld is usually hidden from us as our "subconscious." Wherever Pluto finds itself in our chart, we need to pay close attention to define or determine its influence on us. But it's worth the effort.
 
The Mars opposition can boil up some of that Plutonian energy for us to examine but it often comes as a reflection of things we stumble on in anger, resentment and conflict. Observe your temper this week, and be mindful of your words; allow yourself to be instructed, long before you set something into motion that you can't turn back. The Serb's setting fire to the American embassy, killing at least one, is an example of the hot-headed, unconscious activity Mars/Pluto can produce. Obviously, burning down the house is not our best option.
 
We're still singing a personal and global freedom song with Mercury, Venus, Neptune, Chiron and the North Node in Aquarius. The eclipse in Virgo/Pisces, and the earlier Aquarius/Leo eclipse, has set the tone for the coming months, and we will continue to examine issues of populism, humanitarianism and common good. Pluto's entry into Capricorn has already set an agenda of restoration; the initial view of its influence will continue to be a shopping list of all that isn't working, while the Aquarian cluster will lift our sights toward altruistic solutions and ideas. Use the remaining time with this potent stellium to brainstorm your own personal issues.

Chiron in Aquarius is the common denominator here, with the other planets conjuncting the centaur's alchemical, self-healing energy. The opportunity to mend ourselves at essential levels cannot be ignored. Conjunctions slip the boundaries between planets and pull them into one another's signature; so much can be digested and transformed under its influence. The Aquarian detachment continues to assist us in allowing our sorrows to become instruction, not destruction. Resolving issues of pain and wounding is never easy, but this period of cosmic assistance won't come again soon. Rebirth awaits.

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