After the Eclipses: Unfolding the Cardinal Square

Dear Friend and Reader:

July began with the third of three eclipses in just one month, and it was an impressive one. You may be aware that the influential planets Saturn, Uranus and Pluto are arranged in what is called a T-square (three planets at right angles). This has been going on for a while -- well over a year, in fact -- and from time to time, it's 'activated' by other influences. That's precisely what happened with the July 1 eclipse of the Sun in Cancer.

Coastal waters in Portland, Maine on July 1, 2011. Photo by Amanda Painter.

We are now on the other side of that event, in a new era of astrological territory. It's like we've entered a new country of time, one offering us different challenges and opportunities. This is a place where you can cultivate an updated version of yourself; let go of old anxieties and outmoded habits; express different qualities of yourself even if you could not express them so effectively before. It can be challenging to leave behind old struggles, familiar emotional spaces that did not serve you, and even physical patterns and commitments that you were already aware in the past no longer worked. Yet this is an opportunity. The next major aspect structure on the horizon is Uranus square Pluto, which is exact for the first time in a little under a year, but which has been gradually warming up. You can think of Saturn-Uranus-Pluto as an experience of compression, and Uranus-Pluto on their own as an experience of unfolding or expression.

This is a 'power to the people' aspect -- and you're a people. It's a time of a new horizon of awareness, and you've said many times you're seeking such a view. Gradually let go of the feeling of what you want to let go; gradually embrace the feeling of what you want to create. This horoscope, a monthly for July 2011, offers some ideas about how to do that. I've also presented them in a greatly expand form -- about 30 minutes per sign -- in my midyear report.

We'll see you with a regular edition on Friday. Of note, Gary Caton has joined our lineup of writers. You've read two of his articles here; he will be covering the Full Moon for us each month. He's also collaborating with me and Amanda Painter on Daily Astrology & Adventure, which posts each night at midnight Eastern Time. See you there.

Lovingly,



Planet Waves Inner Space Horoscope - July 2011

Revised and Updated! Click for Eric's Zodiac Sign Descriptions

Aries (March 20-April 19) -- It's one thing to be spontaneous; it's another to be reactive or impulsive. There is a fine line between the two right now. What side of that line you land on seems to involve where you place your priorities. This is the time to ask yourself: what really matters? If you are in reaction to something, run that question past the conscious part of your mind. If something is meaningless or trivial, treat it that way. If something has actual consequences, meaning or potential, treat it with respect and give it time and space to develop. Certain events may seem beyond your control in the early part of the month, but they are certainly not beyond your influence. One of the most meaningful things you can do is set limits and boundaries, particularly on your own emotions. Be cool, and evaluate the influence of the past on anything you might be experiencing now. Click here to order your 2011 Aries Audio Birthday Report.
Taurus (April 19-May 20) -- The many benefits of experience, of learning and even this elusive thing called 'good fortune' do not come automatically; we have to make them real, take advantage of what we have available to us, and make the most of our lives as a matter of will. This sums up your situation right now. Yes, we live in times when it's necessary to breathe consciously, make decisions every time we eat, and even to choose the way we feel as a matter of moment-to-moment awareness. This process will work on the largest scale you can imagine -- or the deepest. Jupiter is in your sign now, and it's aligned with some of the most potent forces known to astrology. Learn to handle your own mind skillfully; learn to see the opportunity in everything. The potential to make the most of your life is right with you, and in you -- but it's up to you to perceive it accurately, and to use the decision points you encounter as ways of bringing your potential to fruition. Click here to order your 2011 Taurus Audio Birthday Report.
Gemini (May 20-June 21) -- Powerful influences of the past may still be lingering around your awareness, or be present in your life. These influences, strange as they may be, present the opportunity to encounter them consciously, and to resolve anything from the past you've left hanging. They may range from powerful emotions of love and attraction to feelings of anger or resentment. Indeed, you may be mystified at how things that seem to exist in the distant past have such potency in your life in the present. The short explanation is, this is how perception works, until we take over and update our minds. We do have the capability to ignore what from our back files is calling for our attention, and we have the capability to resolve it and free up our energy. Many people live their lives dragged down by the past. I know you don't want to, and I'm here to tell you it's not necessary. Click here to order your 2011 Gemini Audio Birthday Report.
Cancer (June 21-July 22) -- A partial solar eclipse in your sign on July 1 may have you reassessing very nearly everything and everyone in your life. The key to doing this productively is to see yourself as something other than boxed into your circumstances. Most of the factors that seem so influential lost their power many months ago; you're just realizing it now. More to the point, you're being invited to see your immediate opportunities for what they are, and to use the creative force of your mind to see them as authentic. You're past the point where it's even vaguely productive to doubt yourself. You may be confronted by how many people you care about invest their creative energy doubting themselves, and I suggest you look to them as an example of what you don't want to be. Then, quickly look for examples and inspiration of what you do want to be, and by that I mostly mean look within. I'll have the Cancer 2011 birthday report for you soon!
Leo (July 22-Aug. 23) -- Over the next week or two you're likely to notice that your fears were exaggerated, based mostly on information you were missing. It is ignorant to think that ignorance is bliss. Knowledge may not, in itself, be blissful, but it can help us focus our reasoning abilities and see what we're actually confronting and what our real potential is. Most of what you've been concerned about is emotionally driven. When you get your mind into the act, you tend to see things a lot more realistically. But at the moment, you need to assess information carefully; some factors are much smaller than they seem, and others are much more useful than they seem. Therefore, think, but think carefully, adjusting your mental process as you go. To order Light Bridge, your full-length 2011 reading including written and audio segments for Leo, please go to this link.
Virgo (Aug. 23-Sep. 22) -- One sure way to find out whether your sexuality is your own is to try to do something you want with it. It's one thing to think we're totally in control of our desires and our pleasure as long as we follow the rules that everyone else has set for us, and to which we have tacitly agreed. But once we step outside of those rules and experiment with our ability to make choices, we get a reality check. Part of how we get by in the world is telling ourselves we're free. How we actually get free is by experimenting with what we want, and consciously engaging whatever comes up as a result. If you don't feel ready to experiment in the real world, try doing so in your imagination. Let yourself think, want, need or indulge anything or anyone you want, and then observe your responses. One last item, under the general heading of 'reality check': what do you feel confident telling others? Why or why not? To order Light Bridge, your full-length 2011 reading including written and audio segments for Virgo, please go to this link. Photo by Anthony Ayiomamitis. To discover how these changes influence you personally, check out the Planet Waves 2011 Midyear Report by Eric Francis.
Libra (Sep. 22-Oct. 23) -- In this world, we tend to work for our achievements. But when they arrive, often it seems like some circumstance we had no clue about or could not have predicted influences what we accomplished -- or rather, like we would have seen it had we been paying attention. Your role now is to notice those 'unforeseen' factors, use them to your best advantage. You may get caught by surprise, but even then you'll still benefit from a little advanced preparation -- and mostly from being open to some unusual form of success. However, I suggest you not think of success as something you work for as much as prepare yourself for. This is a moment to reap the rewards of what you've built on, and part of your preparation means being open to recognition, visibility and willingness to take some chances -- kind of like you've been doing lately, but from a deeper place. To order Light Bridge, your full-length 2011 reading including written and audio segments for Libra, please go to this link.
Scorpio (Oct. 23-Nov. 22) -- Belief systems are dangerous things, mostly because we don't see them for what they are. We tend to think that 'we believe what is true because it's true' rather than we think something is true because it's part of a pattern that we adopted. There is an easy way to test this theory. Identify one of your assumptions. This might take some thought, but find something you believe is true, then check it out. Determine how right or wrong your belief was. Once you do that a few times, you may decide you had better test every assumption that you make, particularly if it involves what you think of as a 'belief'. Every time you hear yourself say that word, pause and ask yourself what you really mean. To order Light Bridge, your full-length 2011 reading including written and audio segments for Scorpio, please go to this link.
Sagittarius (Nov. 22-Dec. 22) -- Jupiter, your home planet (the gorgeous, enormous orange and yellow one with 63 moons) has taken up residence in Taurus for the next year. This will help you solidify and stabilize your plans, your finances and get clear about your desires. You may feel less ambitious, less hot to burst into the next phase of your life, and cooler in general. But from the aspects Jupiter is now making, I trust that you can see that you have the potential to make some excellent decisions in the next few months. The thing is, these will be deep decisions, and therefore ones that affect your life. Remember to look for the place where the outcome you want the most fits the thing that works best in the world around you. It is a fact that your personal constellation aligns with the greater movements of the cosmos. Feel gently for that opening. To order Light Bridge, your full-length 2011 reading including written and audio segments for Sagittarius, please go to this link.
Capricorn (Dec. 22-Jan. 20) -- An eclipse in your opposite sign, Cancer, may be giving you the feeling that you are at the mercy of the fates. You may have a knot in your stomach that you cannot control what anyone else feels, what they want, or how they respond to you. You will feel better when you embrace this lack of control; by better, I mean you will feel emotionally free, and free to move around in the world without the constant sense of an emotional burden. The people around you are giving you the opportunity to put that emotional burden down. You may on some level equate this with abandonment; it is nothing of the sort. Indeed, this moment is about you learning to embrace rather than abandon yourself. When you make this one simple choice, you will feel much more secure in your relationships. To order Light Bridge, your full-length 2011 reading including written and audio segments for Capricorn, please go to this link.
Aquarius (Jan. 20-Feb. 19) -- Do you ever have the feeling that people are holding out on you, as in not telling you what they know and what you should find out? It's not usually intentional. Social conventions prevent us from saying too much to others; the emphasis on 'mind your own beeswax' gets in the way of 'please don't hesitate to tell me what I need to know'. So, while you may feel like you get some news too late, actually, it's right on time to be useful, as long as you don't fret over not knowing it sooner. Then, you can adjust your own standards for what you want to be told in advance, as well as what you diplomatically mention to others. Remember, these are situations where the messenger isn't always appreciated, but you at least can afford to honor reality for what it is. Thank people for keeping it real. To order Light Bridge, your full-length 2011 reading including written and audio segments for Aquarius, please go to this link.
Pisces (Feb. 19-March 20) -- You have a lot of, and I do mean mucho, creative energy available. The more you use it, the more you will have. This is contrary to the usual laws of the Earth where the more you use, or give, something, the less of it you have. Everyone benefits from what you are offering, and the more you go full-spectrum, the more benefit you will create. This works personally for you as well. The best way for you to get into abundance consciousness is to be generous with yourself, put energy into what you have passion for, make sure people know what you're up to and keep one eye focused on peace and justice at all times. You have every reason to have faith, and every reason to let go of the lack of faith that has been so irritating for so much of your life. To order Light Bridge, your full-length 2011 reading including written and audio segments for Pisces, please go to this link.