What’s Coming in August-October 2023.

At 6:20 am PDT August 27, Mars enters Libra What does this mean for all of us?

It means that how we generally “attack the problems of life,” or how we “take the initiative” leaves the precise and practical Mutable Earth of Virgo and now expresses that energy through the balanced “compare and contrast” process of the sign of the just and equable judge, the idealistic Cardinal Air of Libra.

Libra is where the detailed work done in Virgo is weighed against the ideal, and initiatives are recalibrated in light of what the “public not-self” requires. However, as Mars rules Aries and Libra is the opposite sign to Aries, Mars is said to be in “exile,” or as far from home as it gets. This indicates that Mars, how we assert ourselves, is now moderate, cautious, seeking the “perfect balance” in Libra, which is contrary to Mars’ nature.

Mars in Libra is in its own 7th house relative to its rulership of Aries, and in its own 12th house relative to its rulership of Scorpio. This offers us clues to its expression. The moderated interactivity in self-assertion is indicated by its placement in its own 7th, but in its own 12th shows it’s weighing and judging its Scorpionic side as it closes that part of its expression.

Mars in Libra is great for cautiously taking the thousand step route to accomplish, as it prepares for the intensity of self-application, “take no prisoners” quality in Scorpio. As Mars has the quality of “severing,” then while Mars in Virgo has been more functionally efficient in setting some things aside, Mars in Libra will express more as “the iron fist in the velvet glove.”

Because Venus rules Libra, She will rule Mars from the sign of Leo almost the entire time Mars is in Libra. This makes Venus VERY important in how Mars expresses itself, as Venus in Leo will bring more playfulness, spontaneity, and creativity to Mars. If you want to know more about how to take advantage of Venus' power to replace human folly with Divine Wisdom, please consider getting your copy of The Magic of Venus: Friendships, Soul Mates, and Twin Flames. It is the most comprehensive book on Venus ever written, and offers ways to shape our Venusian responses to make our interactions more satisfying. You will learn about the psychological dimension, the spiritual dimension and the astrological dimension of Venus. It offers practical techniques for changing your image of what you want to attract your heart’s desire, and how to make your relationships more fulfilling because you are living a Soul-ful life. You’ll find out about why you like or don’t like people and things, why you’ve attracted who you have in the past and present, and how to make those attractions more aligned with your Soul purpose in the future.

Mars continues to speed up after its long retrograde in Gemini, and in Libra anticipates what we’ll experience between late September and early December when the inner planets transit that sign. Mars is now moving at about 38 minutes a day and continues to speed up. By early October it’ll move at 40 and still be gaining speed. This indicates a gradual speeding up of our ability to use the transiting Mars energies in precise ways.

Mars’ Path To How We Got Here and Where We’re Going

We’re still expanding from its retrograde period in Gemini which began in late August 2022. It went forward to 26 Gemini in late October, and then retrograded back to 9 Gemini by January 2023, after which it resumed direct motion and stayed in that sign until late March, when it entered Cancer. It stayed in that sensitive sign of its “fall” until It entered Leo at the powerful Fixed T-square in late May, where it blazed a trail for this year’s long stay of the inner planets in that sign. It entered Virgo in early July where it’s been till now.

Mars’ now gives our Aries and Scorpio sectors a Libra emphasis. Its entry into Libra throws the primary focus of activity in the house where we have the first 10 degrees of Libra from now through September 11. From September 12 through September 26, the focus of activity will be in the house where we have the second 10 degrees of Libra, followed by the focus on 21-30 Libra from September 26 through October 11, when it enters Scorpio.

The Mars Challenge For All Signs

When Mars was in Aries, it brought new beginnings to those with Sun or Ascendant in Aries, and new emergent developments to those with Sun or Ascendant in Capricorn. It puts the focus on relationships to those with Sun or Ascendant in Libra, and fulfillment to those with Sun or Ascendant in Cancer. (This last happened between July 2020 and January 2021. This cycle was re-set most recently from late May to July 4, 2022.)

While Mars was in Taurus, it brought new beginnings to those with Sun or Ascendant in Taurus, and new emergent developments to those with Sun or Ascendant in Aquarius. It puts the focus on relationships to those with Sun or Ascendant in Scorpio, and fulfillment or public activity to those with Sun or Ascendant in Leo. (This last happened January and February 2021. This cycle was re-set from July 4 to August 19, 2022.)

While Mars was in Gemini, it brought new beginnings to those with Sun or Ascendant in Gemini, and new emergent developments to those with Sun or Ascendant in Pisces. It puts the focus on relationships to those with Sun or Ascendant in Sagittarius, and fulfillment to those with Sun or Ascendant in Virgo. (This happened between early March and late April 2021, and the last transit of Gemini re-set the energy anew between late August 2022 and late March 2023.)

While Mars was in Cancer, it brought new beginnings to those with Sun or Ascendant in Cancer, and new emergent developments to those with Sun or Ascendant in Aries. It puts the focus on relationships to those with Sun or Ascendant in Capricorn, and fulfillment or public activity to those with Sun or Ascendant in Libra. (This cycle was re-set and renewed between late March and late May 2023.)

While Mars was in Leo, it brings new beginnings to those with Sun or Ascendant in Leo, and new emergent developments to those with Sun or Ascendant in Taurus. It puts the focus on relationships to those with Sun or Ascendant in Aquarius, and fulfillment or public activity to those with Sun or Ascendant in Scorpio. (This cycle was re-set between late May and July 9.)

While Mars was in Virgo, it brings new beginnings to those with Sun or Ascendant in Virgo, and new emergent developments to those with Sun or Ascendant in Gemini. It puts the focus on relationships to those with Sun or Ascendant in Pisces, and fulfillment or public activity to those with Sun or Ascendant in Sagittarius. This cycle was re-set between July 9 and now.)

While Mars is in Libra, it brings new beginnings to those with Sun or Ascendant in Libra, and new emergent developments to those with Sun or Ascendant in Cancer. It put the focus on relationships to those with Sun or Ascendant in Aries, and fulfillment or public activity to those with Sun or Ascendant in Capricorn. (This cycle was re-set between mid-September and late October 2021, and now re-sets again between late August and mid-October.)

While Mars is in Scorpio, it brings new beginnings to those with Sun or Ascendant in Scorpio, and new emergent developments to those with Sun or Ascendant in Leo. It put the focus on relationships to those with Sun or Ascendant in Taurus, and fulfillment or public activity to those with Sun or Ascendant in Aquarius. (This cycle was re-set from November through mid-December 2021, and will re-set again between mid-October and late November 2023.)

While Mars was in Sagittarius, it brought new beginnings to those with Sun or Ascendant in Sagittarius, and new emergent developments to those with Sun or Ascendant in Virgo. It put the focus on relationships to those with Sun or Ascendant in Gemini, and fulfillment or public activity to those with Sun or Ascendant in Pisces. (This cycle was re-set from December through late January 2022.)

While Mars was in Capricorn, it brought new beginnings to those with Sun or Ascendant in Capricorn, and new emergent developments to those with Sun or Ascendant in Libra. It put the focus on relationships to those with Sun or Ascendant in Cancer, and fulfillment or public activity to those with Sun or Ascendant in Aries. (This cycle was re-set from late January through early March 2022)

While Mars was in Aquarius, it brought new beginnings to those with Sun or Ascendant in Aquarius, and new emergent developments to those with Sun or Ascendant in Scorpio. It put the focus on relationships to those with Sun or Ascendant in Leo, and fulfillment or public activity to those with Sun or Ascendant in Taurus. (This cycle was re-set from early March through mid-April 2022.)

While Mars was in Pisces, it brought new beginnings to those with Sun or Ascendant in Pisces, and new emergent developments to those with Sun or Ascendant in Sagittarius. It put the focus on relationships to those with Sun or Ascendant in Virgo, and fulfillment or public activity to those with Sun or Ascendant in Gemini. (This last happened from mid-May through late June 2020. This cycle was re-set from mid-April to late May 2022 .)

Obviously within these transit spans there are other “phase relationships” between transiting Mars and all the planets in our charts, but to go into all of them would make this article a book. For example, Mars makes aspects to your other planets which are different than aspects to your Sun and Ascendant. All aspects, waxing and waning, fall within “The Whole Cycle” of each planet to every other planets and our Ascendant. You can find out more about the Whole Cycle in my book Saturn: Spiritual Master, Spiritual Friend, linked below, where I explain the various phases in the planetary cycles in terms of the Whole Cycle for various generations.

What We Experience When Mars is in Each Sign

Mars in Aries teaches us how to act on our own initiative, not defer so much to others, and “working half-heartedly is not the way to accomplish much.” Mars in Taurus teaches us to “take pleasure in our work” as we learn to keep it simple and steady despite crosswinds, and Mars in Gemini teaches us adaptability because “there are many ways to get things done.” Mars in Cancer teaches us to “be watchful as we work,” acting with sensitivity, care, and caution.

Mars in Leo teaches us to “work with flair and style,” putting on the show as we accomplish things in inspired ways. This is a time to show our power and style when opportunities present themselves, and see how our command of energy can be expressed in creative ways. Mars in Virgo teaches us “All play and no work make for an ungrounded life.” Mars in Libra teaches us “All work with no socializing makes for an unsustainable life.” Mars in Scorpio teaches us “doing the wrong thing in the wrong way with the wrong people will never make us happy, so do the right thing and be happy!”

Mars in Sagittarius teaches us how to be a “stylish and bold Archer riding our Sacred Arrows to our dream,” as well as “scattered effort leaves us frustrated.” Mars in Capricorn teaches us “Work for the now, work for the future, work for all time.” Mars in Aquarius teaches us “As you strive for greater things, you make manifest a future ideal which will outlive you.” Mars in Pisces teaches us “to witness our common humanity as we struggle for clarity in a murky collective environment.”

Mars Set the Pattern of the New Age in 2020

Mars conjunction with Saturn at 1 Aquarius in March 2020 launched a totally future oriented period of human existence which began to take shape in a new 20 year Aquarian Era with Jupiter’s conjunction with Saturn on that same degree in December 2020. And here it’s important to note that this is the last transit of Saturn through Aquarius before we “slip across the edge of the Age” after 2050.

I explained how various Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto transits over the past 3 centuries each strengthened the advent of the Age of Aquarius in the article Uranus Awakened the Age of Aquarius, Neptune Dreamed It Into Collective Consciousness, and Pluto Will Sprout It Into Life, as well as why we are not yet fully into the Age of Aquarius yet, but will be in the third quarter of this century. Of course, living on the cusp of a Great Age means we will be dealing with the dying echoes of the Age of Pisces for some time to come, since many who were born under those dying assumptions will try to perpetuate them as long as they can.

Just remember that the Capricorn cycles set into motion by Mars in March 2020 will have far reaching implications, some of which won’t be completed until 2053! We won’t have another Saturn conjunct Pluto for over 30 years, nor another Jupiter conjunct Pluto until early 2033. These Capricorn cycles will play out until the next transit of the outer planets over the conjunction points as a finish to what just began, and as prelude to the next cycles beginning then. (There will be an exact Sun conjunct Jupiter as both conjunct Pluto in February 2033 at the Angel Point at 15 Aquarius. That promises to be a much happier cycle than the current one!)

Aspects in Play

We’re now going to experience a renewed Libra experience in the house(s) where we have that sign in our charts. During Mars’ transit of Libra, it makes a septile and sextile to Venus, its ruler. This will bring a Leo backdrop to how Mars expresses itself. It won’t make any significant aspects to the Sun or Mercury, and most of the action will be show through aspects to the outer planets.

The main aspects from Mars to the outer planets show Mars makes a quincunx to Saturn in early September, a biquintile the second week of the month, and a sesquisquare around the time of the Equinox. It makes a sesquisquare to Uranus the second week of September, a biquintile around the Equinox, a quincunx in late September and early October, and a triseptile between October 3-10.

Mars makes a triseptile to Neptune in late September and the first two days of October, followed by the quincunx from October 3-9. It makes a serendipitous tredecile to Pluto from September 7-15, and an important biseptile from September 17-22 en route to the square in play the first half of October.

As I’ve offered before, when Mars is within a degree of forming or separating while making a hard aspect with a planet, slow down and show deliberation and caution in how you use force. Hard aspects to/from Mars always require that we moderate or antidote impulsiveness and impatience.

What Do Mars Oppositions Teach Us?

At this point in its cycle, Mars is actually a sort of “herald” as it transits Virgo and Libra before the inner planets pass it beginning late October. We go through a long stretch each year when we have no oppositions other than those made by the Moon. Mars at 1 Leo made the first non-Lunar opposition to another planet with its opposition to Pluto in late May. It then made an opposition to Saturn in mid-July, Neptune in late August, with oppositions to Jupiter and Uranus in late October and early November.

Please remember that while they can be tense, those oppositions require us to use different spiritual planetary energies. All oppositions made by Mars externalize various types of wisdom, since the “Tension of Opposites” between the planetary expressions in the signs they’re in entirely determines the spiritual tests to learn and demonstrate.

As I noted in Chapter 2 in my book Saturn: Spiritual Master, Spiritual Friend,

Mars' duality is Grace/Sin. This is the aspect of consciousness that shows whether our responses are manifesting error or truth, maladjustment or beauty. By our Martian function we force things before their time or confront abrasive, aggressive, or hostile energies in ourselves and others, and thus we learn how to sever what must be severed, and further what must be furthered, quickly and directly. (As an aside, the original meaning of “sin” had nothing to do with moral failure. It was an archery term meaning “to miss the mark,” or not hitting the center of a target. I use it here in that sense.)

So Mars has now made several oppositions, and is making waning aspects to Pluto, Saturn, and Neptune, while still making waxing aspects to Jupiter and Uranus. That has put us in a time of “tests of skill” in expressing the realizations which surface at Mars oppositions. May, June and July brought bring realizations about Pluto and Saturn, August brought realizations about Neptune, while late October and November bring realizations about Jupiter and Uranus.

Mars Links to the Past, Present, and Future

While Mars now initiates a new time of activity wherever we have Libra, it activates the information the inner planets will bring us when they transit Libra between late September and early December. Mars activates what the other planets have set into play with their transits, which in turn affects what springs forth when Jupiter subsequently transits those points.

When Mars conjuncted Jupiter in Aries on May 29 at 4 Aries, it began a new two year cycle of opportunity and expansion wherever that falls in our charts. That set the pace for the rapidly unfolding developments of Jupiter in Aries, which was active from late May through late October 2022, with a rapid return between late December and mid-May 2023. This is now bubbling to the surface with Mars in Libra. The Mars/Jupiter 4 Aries pulse will be re-activated by Mars in early May 2024, with collective implications when Saturn and Neptune transit 4 Aries in early 2026.

So in 2022, we got a sense of the promise of things to come when Mars transited Sagittarius, got a new look at what we are to do and how we are to do it during Mars in Capricorn, and a new engagement with multiple long wave Aquarian cycles. We moved through vast fogs of the collective consciousness where we had to bless a lot to move down the time stream in Pisces so we could embrace the important new initiatives of Mars conjunct Jupiter in Aries!

We secured the momentum in Taurus and found there were many ways to do things in Gemini, so much so we had to go forward, backward, and forward in that sign from August 2022 through March 2023. We then resumed our journey and found relative security and intimacy in Cancer, and then some play or enjoyment in Leo. We enjoyed the ongoing shared service with our Spiritual Brothers and Sisters in Virgo, and now get to enjoy playing the peacemaker, moderator, and the person who refines things to make them more pleasing.

Reprinted on crystalwind.ca with written permission from Robert Wilkinson. Copying this article to other blogs is strictly prohibited. It is copyright protected. 

© Copyright 2023 Robert Wilkinson

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