good time oatmeal

The Big Picture

Aside from dealing with traditional mysteries associated with Scorpio, this most potent sign of the zodiac; this month’s theme involves us in dealing with issues of dissolution and a renewal of personal faith and power as we release outdated belief systems which are causing us to be ill or to lose our touch with the magic of life. Some things must pass
away as the old wineskin is emptied possibly resulting in a type of dark night of the soul. As we successfully continue our personal growth, we will have the opportunities to renew our faith. This renewal will bring about a regeneration of vitality.

A second theme will involve our most intimate personal relationships. The natural cyclic pattern of decay will cause some relationships to terminate. In most situations we will renew our efforts to serve those whom we love. In similarity to the above described pattern, this process of sublimating the ego to the more important demands of relationship will bring a fresh renewal. A sense of joy and shared spiritual understanding will result.

The first five days of November will offer us opportunities to have more meaningful communication with people we care about. The context will be deep. The depths will be plumbed as we directly confront the bottom line. As Mercury trines Jupiter on November 4th, we will find ourselves making plans for the future. A sense of optimism will be in the air. Opportunities for practical gains, such as new ideas about how to increase our income, will present sound solutions. Some legal matters or payments, which have been delayed, will be concluded. Because this period is immediately preceding a rather tricky New Moon, it would be wise to keep our plans in mind and hold acting on them until the morning of Monday, November 8th.

The New Moon for November occurs in the 14th degree of Scorpio, on the 6th day of the month at 12:52 AM EDT. I mentioned this New Moon as a rather tricky one because some rather difficult alignments between Mercury, Neptune, and Uranus attend this occasion. When Mercury and Neptune are sort of out of whack like this, it is easy for us to act in misjudgment. We may be deceived by someone who misrepresents himself. We may also deceive ourselves as we go off on a wild goose chase after something which turns out, indeed, to be too good to be true. We may feel a general confusion on the 5th, 6th and 7th of the month. This should be cleared by the 8th.

For some time, Neptune has been creeping slowly retrograde through the last few degrees of Aquarius. On November 7th, Neptune stops in its tracks and very slowly turns around to begin forward motion. Throughout the month of November, Neptune hardly moves at all, hovering around the 25th degree of Aquarius. This won’t have an outwardly noticeable effect on most of us. However, if you were born between February 12th and 18th, or August 12th through the 18th of any year, this, so called, “stationary” planet will be directly affecting your Sun.

Neptune is not easy to describe, by its very nature. It is too watery and amorphous to be bound by logic. It seeks to transcend the mundane in any way possible. This can result in a renewed sense of personal faith as we successfully apply Neptune’s transcendental energy to our lives. Sometimes Neptune can result in less fortunate displays of escapism. Alcohol or drugs are an example of this. Part of the mystery of Neptune is that this planet tends to dissolve our ego boundaries. We may find ourselves enchanted by our desire to subjugate the ego for the sake of transcendence. On the flip side, Neptune can cause a drop in our immune system, mysterious hormonal imbalances, misdiagnosed medical conditions, and a general loss of meaning in life.

Many of us will project this energy out into the world. This will occur in the form of confrontations with people who are ill and fading away, or people who have substance abuse problems, or the need for us to shoulder the load for someone we care about whom is experiencing difficulty in managing to deal with normal affairs of daily life. For all of us, this can be a time of renewal in faith.

This is a month of several planetary “turn arounds.” A planet in retrograde is usually no big significant thing. It’s happening all the time. But when a retrograde planet goes through the process of gradually slowing down and then becomes virtually stationary for several days as it changes direction, a sensitive point appears at the degree of the Zodiac where the planet “takes station.” This affects us all to some degree and tends to coincide with major life changes if we have one of our planets near that specific degree.

On November 18th Jupiter turns around in Pisces. This is vitally important for people born between the tenth and the eighteenth of March regardless of what age we are. The Sun occupies the above sensitive area of Pisces every year. Here lies great opportunity. With Jupiter conjunct your Sun for a number of weeks you are possibly in for some very positive rewards. Jupiter is known as the “greater benefic” in traditional astrology: bringing health, wealth, and an increased sense of real meaning to life. Opportunities for success will abound. There is hardly a better time to reach for the highest aspiration. Many of us will have some other planet placed here, but a look at the birth chart is needed to determine that. The nature of the benefit will coincide with the nature of the planet so positioned in the chart.

Venus is retrograde less often than any other planet and is known as the “lesser benefic.” She also takes station and turns direct on this day. Those of us born between the fifteenth and the thirtieth of either October or April will certainly be affected. Venus is a very personal planet and is associated with affection, marriage, aesthetics, harmony and money. Art, wine, roses, love, and lots of chocolate follow in Her sweet passage.

The Full Moon occurs with the Sun in the last degree of Scorpio and the Moon in the last degree of Taurus at 12:28 PM EST on November 21st. Here we have a very fertile Moon with a tremendous amount of emotional intensity related to the period.

The Sun leaves Scorpio and enters Sagittarius early in the morning of November twenty second. Sagittarius is enthusiastic, broadminded, fiery, and associated with our general philosophy of life. All kinds of worldviews, from the zaniest to the most profound are generated by the Sagittarian influence. We will explore Sagittarius in greater depth next
month.

Key words for Scorpio are ambitious, efficient, courageous, resourceful and intuitive.

New Moon is on November 6th at 12:52 AM EDT @ 13 degrees Scorpio
Full Moon is on November 21st at 12:27 PM EST @ 29 degrees Taurus