Neptune conjunct Mercury - Open your mind

Today and into tomorrow, Mercury comes and makes an exact conjunction with the planet of mystery, Neptune. This pair really opens out our thought patterns and expands our minds. Intuition and imagination will be very strong and if you are a sensitive type, you may be able to feel what is going to happen before it does. I have met a few people with Mercury conjunct to Neptune in their natal chart and often it does contribute an ability to have totally incredible dreams, as if you are an actor in a real life movie. If you have this combination in your own chart, please let me know if you experience this phenomenon too.

Now Neptune has a darker more sinister side and we may fall foul of con artists, tricksters and those who deliberately want to deceive us. You would be wise to be careful over the next couple of days in exactly what you agree to. Working out fact from fiction, what is real from what is not could be very problematic. All fairy tales have a sinister bad guy, a wicked witch who is evil and horrid and that's Neptune completely summed up, it will take you on a ride of good versus evil, the promise of a beautiful dream tinged with the reality that things are not going to be all that easy after all.

This though is a lovely little aspect highlighting all wonderful ways of enjoying yourself. This combination highlights music and dance, fantasies, theatre, TV and films and creative writing, indeed all kinds of entertainment based on anything that can inspire you. This will be a great weekend for going to a gig, seeing a concert or a film at the cinema. Go out and enjoy...

Neptune conjunct Fomalhaut - Fools rush in where angels fear to tread

This long term connection is now active and will extend through until 23rd February. It occurs at 04:03 degrees Pisces.

This is a very subtle but also intriguing conjunction that is returning again, it occurred previously last year between 23rd March and 3rd May and also between 12th June and 1st October as Neptune moved retrograde over it, so this is the 3rd and final pass.

The star Formalhaut sits in Piscis Australis, the constellation of the Southern fish. This is one of the Royal Persian stars, the watcher of the South and a star that has a really mystical and magical sense about it. This is a star of charisma and anyone who has a connection to this star must try to keep their feet firmly on the ground, otherwise they can become a fall from excessive pride, over optimism or just sheer arrogance. This is a deceptive influence, one of high idealism and sometimes of unfulfilled promise and dreams.

Neptune when it connects with this star heightens the already dreamy and mystical quality that it already has, and it heightens to possibility for self-deceptive and maybe rash behaviour in the pursuit of something completely unobtainable. Yes we can find inspiration through this magical connection, however unless our feet are firmly rooted on terra-firma we can drift of with our ideas, take foolish chances and worse still believe all the hype that surrounds us. What we think is real maybe but a pipe dream, a figment of our imagination. Being a Royal Persian star, this is an understated and powerful influence that can creep up on us without us noticing and dissolve and destroy all that we have been working towards. In the world around us many plans and grand schemes may be shelved because of lack of foresight and I have a feeling that the shady world of espionage and the issues of hidden secrets may rear it's ugly head again. One other thing, look out for dramas on water due to mistakes or complacency or incidents connected to gasses and other noxious substances.

Be careful what you believe in the next month and a half, and if you are going to commit yourself to a course of action make sure that everything is set in stone and you know exactly what you expect to get out of the deal. Rushing into something with your eyes wide shut and with your hopes high, believing that you will succeed without putting the work in or boasting about how well you are going to do before anything substantial has been achieved may end up in total and complete disaster...

Obama facing a test of morals and ethics.

The chemical attack in Damascus, well I am assuming that there were chemical attacks and the evidence seems to be pretty conclusive has left the Western leaders with a big, big dilemma. We all know well that public opinion in the UK and the US has been quite anti-interventionist in regard to Syria, simply because of the long drawn out conflicts in Iraq and especially Afghanistan which dragged on for years costing thousands of military lives for little or no benefit or appreciable gain. The people just don’t want to see their brave boys and girls in the forces dragged into another Middle Eastern conflict with no exit strategy apparent if you get bogged down into it. Syria is a viper’s nest of one faction and tribe against another and within the country you have Kurds, Armenians, Assyrians, Turks, Christians, Druze, Alawitee Shias and Arab Sunnis all of who have their own personal agendas. You may please one side with any action you take but you may upset the others.

Grand Water Trine of 2013 – Time to get things moving at last.

If you hadn't noticed, Mars today moved into watery Cancer and now is moving closer to a conjunction with Jupiter and thus joining the Grand Water trine which so many Astrologers around the world (myself included) have been going on about. This finally as I am about explain will bring some much needed energy to a planetary formation that is sitting there above us with so much potential to help us all.

The Grand Water Trine of Summer 2013 (or Winter if you are in the Southern Hemisphere)

Here we go, the major planetary formation of June, July and into August starts to form in the next couple of days as we get a little taster of what is to come. Right now Mercury and Venus now in Cancer are moving in to form a Grand Water trine with Saturn and Neptune which themselves are making a lovely trine from Scorpio to Pisces. Following on these two scouts laying down the path we have the Sun, then Jupiter and Mars which will all move into range in the early degrees of Cancer between now and the start of August completing the Grand Trine.

So what will this mean to us all? Well the base structure of the Saturn Neptune trine looks really positive. Neptune in Pisces is pure inspiration, it rules one's dreams, deception, escapism, spirituality and suffering too. Saturn in Scorpio is hard and uncompromising and it does bring limitation and rules fear and harshness but here is also the potential for growth, solidity, ambition and slow steady progress. If you use these planets in a positive manner you can use your intuition to make your dreams into reality or your faith can solidify. The down side is that you use deception and the more shadowy side of Neptune's influence it can bring the weight of the law down upon you. The choice is yours as the energy is here.

The planets coming along to complete the trine bring different influences to the picture. Right now we have communication and ideas to protect yourself as well as issues coming along from the past to the past through Mercury all of which can be boosted by Neptune and Saturn.

Venus brings issues of money and relationships (from the past perhaps) to the fore too as well as compassion and caring and beauty. These will be important keywords as Saturn and Neptune bring these things into reality if you really want them to happen.

The Sun's energy will enthuse this grand trine in early July, Jupiter brings expansion and optimism, faith, confidence and maybe international opportunities and then Mars brings strength, determination and action to put all of these factors together.

For any water sign person or those of you with strong water links on your chart, this could be a summer of unlimited opportunities and a chance to make significant progress as Saturn and Neptune combine and enthuse and build. Even if you are not a Cancerian, Scorpio or Pisces, there are wonderful opportunities on offer here wherever these planets touch your chart. For myself a Sun sign Leo, Saturn is just in my 1st house, Neptune my 5th and the other planets in my 9th so maybe for me expansion will come internationally (9th) and I can use my creative talents (Neptune in 5th) to make significant personal progress (Saturn in 1st) - let's hope so :)

Neptune conjunct Fomalhaut - Things just ain't what they seem...

This aspect is now active until 3rd May 2013

I've been away for a few days, but not stopped working. Writing all those monthly horoscopes take some time, and I had a rush of personal reports to write as well.

In the meantime, Neptune has slid into orb of Fomalhaut, the star in Piscis Australis, the constellation of the Southern fish. This is one of the Royal Persian stars, the watcher of the South and a star that has a really mystical and magical sense about it. This is a star of charisma and anyone who has a connection to this star must try to keep their feet firmly on the ground, otherwise they can become a fall from excessive pride, over optimism or just sheer arrogance.

Neptune here brings intuition, imagination and a wonderfully psychic feel to the next couple of months, but don't be fooled. The deceptive qualities of Neptune I think are also enhanced too, and as much as one can wonder at the beauty of the world around you and dream the impossible dream and think that it can become reality, you can also be totally deceived or conned by unscrupulous people.

This is a connection for creating an illusion and making people think that what they are seeing is really real when in fact it is not. Great for TV and making films, producing art and transforming one form into another. I can imagine anyone with creative or artistic talents will be totally inspired by this link between Neptune and Fomalhaut.

There is a spiritual link here and it no surprise that the new Pope will be nominated under it's gaze. Maybe one of his remits will be to finally deal with the unseen and unholy rumours of abuse and deception in the Catholic Church that have been going on for decades now? This is a conjunction ripe for espionage and for the dark arts that governments get up to and for lifting a veil on any bad practices that have been going on. Robson says this influence is connected to secret affairs or government work, occult interests, detective ability, many secret enemies and maybe violent death through them, gain through speculation and many narrow escapes. It sounds very much like the plot to a Bond movie.

Interesting times lie ahead for us all under Neptune conjunct Fomalhaut, but remember that not everything and everyone that you meet, see and hear will be honest and working for your best interests...

Neptune conjunct Sadalmelek - Opening the floodgates

This aspect is active from tomorrow 14th Feb until 11th April 2013

Tomorrow on Valentine's Day, Neptune enters within one degree of orb with the fixed star Sadalmelek, one of the most prominent stars in Aquarius the constellation of the water bearer. This star sits on his shoulder and is seen as one of the most lucky stars in the sky, indeed Al Sa'd al Malik in Arabic means "lucky one of the king". What's more we have a confluence of water here, the water bearer pours a stream of talents and skills from his urn. Neptune of course is the ruler of water, of inspiration and dreams, so for the next couple of months we have a potent mix of watery energy in the water sign of Pisces.

This is a lovely inspirational and very psychic combination of planet and star. More than ever in the rest of February and into March your imagination can run wild, ideas and ideals can mix with your abilities and desires; the possibilities can be simply endless. In the unforgiving world of Saturn in Scorpio and Pluto in Capricorn, this aspect brings light and colour to contrast against the unforgiving dark and gloom that we have been experiencing through the depths of winter (here in the Northern hemisphere). This connection is much needed, it is like the breaking of a drought with plentiful rainfall, a monsoon which will bring life and lush pastures to parched fields and plains.

In your chart, look to the house where Neptune is moving and here is your chance to break the drought that lies within. Neptune at 3 degrees Pisces is a place of fortune and inspiration that can help us to attain our deepest wishes.

In the world, Robson says that this position is favourable for gain through companies, stocks and shares, so maybe the financial markets will feed off this energy? There is much sympathy and kindness here too, so maybe we will start to see a bit more caring and compassion between people? With the other influences active now it is difficult to imagine this, but maybe this conjunction will soften moods a little? This is a spiritual union which brings favour to the new Pope when he is selected, and in weather terms I can imagine incidents on water and flooding to be more prominent in the rest of this month and into March, the amount of watery energy is enormous and free flowing.

Mars conjunct Neptune - Providing a little bit of inspiration, or deception…

Mars is now rapidly getting close to a conjunction with Neptune, it actually occurs on 4th February but the initial effects of this conjunction will be felt already. This is one of those aspects that you never know how it is going to affect you, whether it's going to promote positive or unfortunate effects.

We have the planet of action of force making a connection with the planet of dreams, imagination, escapism and deception. Quite a mixed bag there as you may be able to understand. On a positive note, this conjunction stimulates us to act on our ideals, that which we dream and long for. In an artistic manner, Mars conjunct Neptune is charismatic and inspirational, great for using your imagination to solve any issue, and I also think it can promote a more mystic and psychic atmosphere, one where you become more receptive to the moods swirling around you. This is a wonderful aspect for helping others, being active in aiding the suffering, being charitable or of service to those who need help.

All well and good, but Neptune has a much darker side too. The conjunction can encourage wrong doing, slight of hand, it can deceive us into believing that fantasy is actually real. Neptune's connection to alcohol, drugs and illegal practices is given a boost now, so be careful not to engage in something that you didn't plan to get yourself into. The chances of this happening are quite high, seeing as this conjunction will be square to expansive Jupiter, breeding false confidence and optimism. My advice to to keep your feet firmly on the ground and your wits about you for the time being.

Neptune rules water, gas and noxious substances and this is possibly while Israel has used force (Mars) this morning in a pre-emptive strike against a Syrian chemical (Neptune) research plant, as according to the BBC it fears chemical based weapons falling into enemy Palestinian hands. Smoke and mirrors or a real threat? Under Mars conjunct Neptune, you never really know.

This conjunction has two parts to it as Mars makes it's initial contact on approach while in Aquarius, before making the actual contact in Pisces. It suggest to me a harder more severe edge it it during the Mars in Aquarius phase, before the softer more imaginative but deceptive side takes hold as Mars enters Pisces...

As I mentioned at the outset, with Neptune and Mars, you get a real concoction of influences happening, and it is difficult for any astrologer to get a correct interpretation on this one. Much the best to use your instincts which are heightened by these planets to see your way though the mist that is descending...

Mercury square Neptune – Not everything is what it seems

This aspect is now active and exact on 13th November 2012 and in force until around 16th November.

This is one very tricky and potentially difficult aspect to deal with, and over the next couple of days you should all be rather wary of it. As you will be aware Mercury is retrograde and this aspect is often associated with things going wrong, communications getting lost or mixed up, delays happening and technical failures occurring. Now Mercury moving in retrograde will be making a troublesome square to Neptune which has just turned direct. With Neptune retrograde until just recently, our minds will have been clear and open to all possibilities and our intuition will have been serving us well. I don't think that we would have been so open to deception, only to deceiving ourselves. The reason is that any planet in retrograde works on an internal level, rather than in an external manner.

A good analogy for Neptune retro and direct can be seen in the weather. Neptune moving direct is like a low pressure system. The wind blows pushes us off course, the clouds roll in obscuring our view and the rain falls. We may get plenty of ideas, but we can't see properly how to implement them until some clear weather arrives; our intuition may be rather off the mark. The clouds brought in by the low pressure fog our minds and we become susceptible to deception and illusion from others. As the weather may be bad, we put on protective gear to shelter us from the storm and as such we do become more attuned to what is going on around us, and we become more pro-active.

When Neptune is retro, it's like a high pressure weather system. Normally you get clear still weather and you can see for miles in all directions. In the same way, Neptune retro brings clarity to our minds and we can see any problems way before they hit us. This clarity allows us the make use of the ideas we had during the Neptune direct period but it may also encourage us to get rather lazy, complacent and self-delusional because we know what the weather is going to be and we aren't expecting any nasty surprises. As we can see all the possibilities and we know what we want to achieve, we can avoid any dangers without having to try too hard.

Now with Mercury running into Neptune moving direct the chances of things going awry because of wrong or deceptive information. Our intuition may be a bit more tuned in now that Neptune is moving forward, but it better be as the con-artists and deceivers out there will be looking for likely victims. It is not a good idea to deal with important documents or make important decisions under this influence, as not everything we see, hear or experience will be as it seems...

By the way – look at the picture above one more time…

Sun trine Neptune - Flying away in your imagination.

A nice gentle influence to write on in the midst of some rather impassioned aspects elsewhere. The Sun trine to Neptune is applying in the next 2-3 days from today the 19th through until 23rd/24th October, a time where your imagination can run wild. This is a lovely, dreamy aspect which is wonderful for enjoying art or music or even creating and writing it, for helping those in need or spending some time alone in peaceful solitude. There is a sympathetic air about Sun trine Neptune which can calm and cool even the most inflamed of situations, even if you have tell a little white lie to do so.

So if you need to back away from the hectic pace of life, then use this weekend for some rest and recuperation. Sun trine to Neptune is an escapist aspect too, and it will be very easy to lose yourself in alcohol or stronger narcotic substances, so if this your method of relaxation, please try not to overdo things.

Saturn trine Neptune (Part 2) - Bringing deceit into full view.

I mentioned yesterday on about the Saturn Neptune trine and how it can help you. In Astrology of course, there is always two sides to every story and this is why it is the most difficult of subjects to read and accurately predict. This is the second of two posts about the trine between the two outer planets making the aspect currently dominating the night sky.

The rebirth of a proud (and slightly bonkers) nation.

The party’s over, but what a party it’s been!! As someone who hails from London, this morning I am welled up with enormous pride. Last night, at the end of the closing ceremony of the most fabulous Olympic Games ever, I shed a tear or two and I suspect I wasn’t alone. In Britain we will never forget the last two weeks. We invited the world to our wonderful eccentric country, we opened our hearts and the love poured out. And you know what? In the process, we as a nation found a new self-confidence; Britain transformed live on TV before your very eyes.

Huge underground water supply found under the deserts of Namibia.

I love astrology!! From my last post where in China they are having too much water and rain falling on them causing floods to this story from the deserts of Namibia. Scientists have found a huge underground store of water, such a precious commodity in dry countries sitting deep under the Northern Namibian desert. Apparently there is so much sitting there in this aquifer, that it could supply the north of the country for 400 years!!

Summer floods and banking scandals in the UK – it’s all linked…

This summer in the UK has been dominated by two themes so far; a complete and total washout weather wise and news of complacent bankers illegally setting interest rates. Since records began, never has so much rain fallen and so consistently with both April and now June posting records of total rainfall and July has started off in the same vein. Why? Is it down to global warming or are we in the UK just simply unlucky? In the city of London, a scandal broke after it emerged that Barclays Bank had been manipulating the Libor rate, the interbank interest rates so that they could make millions more on interest payments. American Bob Diamond, the CEO of Barclays promptly fell on his sword after increasing pressure from members of Parliament and the press, however he hinted that Barclays had not been the only bank carrying out this dubious practice.

Neptune in Pisces – The planet of mystery returns home.

On 3rd February Neptune silently & covertly slips permanently into Pisces. Not many people outside those who follow Astrology will realise it, but this will signify a major shift in life on earth. None of us have ever experienced Neptune in Pisces except for the 3-4 months that Neptune dipped it’s toes in the water back in April last year before moving back into Aquarius in early August. This time Neptune stays in it’s own sign until 2025.

Neptune – The mystery planet celebrating her 1st birthday

Tomorrow on 12th July 2011, Neptune will celebrate her first birthday, as far as our knowledge of her on Earth goes. It was on the evening of the 24th September 1846 when Neptune was discovered by Johann Gottfried Galle, using mathematical predictions made by Frenchman Urbain le Verrier. Around the same time, British Astronomer John Couch Adams discovered Neptune independently, and now all three are credited. Since that day, it has been 164.79 Earth years or 1 Neptunian year since she was first viewed.

Looking at the day astrologically, Neptune was closely conjunct to Saturn and sextile to Pluto. Effectively, Neptune which was hidden to the world (Pluto) was being given definitive form (Saturn). There was a lovely quindecile aspect from social Venus in analytical Virgo to the Saturn/Neptune conjunction. Here we see people working intensely together to work out the exact location of Neptune (all these precise calculations are very Virgo), before the announcement to the public (Venus). Quindecile aspects create enormous focus, and finally that focus brought Neptune into being and to our knowledge. At the same time there was a trine from Mars (in social Libra) to Uranus, Mars being the planet of pushing forward barriers, and Uranus (in Mars’ sign of Aries complementing the trine) of course rules anything to do with space and our universe. Incidentally, the Saturn/Neptune conjunction was in Aquarius, ruled by Uranus, thus beautifully completing the picture of a new planet being found in our solar system. The square from Venus and Mercury to Jupiter in Gemini shows news (Mercury/Gemini) being shared publically about the new planet in a far off place (Jupiter is all about knowledge and discovery). If Neptune was first seen around 21.40, the Saturn/Neptune conjunction would have been at the Midheaven, the most elevated point in the sky & a quite appropriate position for the discovery to happen.

Of course to us astrologers, the discovery of Neptune filled in a new piece in the jigsaw of how the planets affect us all, and Neptune’s rulership of mysterious Pisces is still very apt. In truth, 164 years after her discovery, we still know few hard and fast facts about Neptune the planet. Just like a lady wearing a veil, many of the secrets of Neptune are still hidden beneath her noxious gaseous atmosphere, the beauty of her form hiding a forbidding world below. 

Happy birthday Neptune!!!