Painting from the burial chamber of Sennedjem, circa 1200 B.C.
The vibrancy of Summer abounds around us - the world is verdant, the vegetation lush, and temperatures are balmy. And yet, there are tell-tale signs that this season is beginning to conclude - the first leaves of the trees have begun to fall, crows begin to congregate, and the first hints of a chill linger in the evening air. An unshakeable feeling abounds that this abundant season is coming to an end.
Welcome to the end of summer: the final month of light before we transition into the darker half of the year. Welcome to the time of preparation – the moment we set our houses in order and ready ourselves for the cold months. Welcome to Virgo season.
The Sun will officially pass into this sign on Thursday, August 22nd at 10:54 am eastern time. Virgo is mutable earth, and was traditionally associated with rationality, analysis, reflection, and precise, methodical action.
For our agrarian ancestors, the Virgo period of the year would have coincided with the preparations for the second and final harvest of the season. The first, easier harvest concluded during the heights of summertime warmth and abundance, and so we have already reaped the initial rewards of our work this year. Traditionally, this would be a time of the year in which we would take stock of the food and sustenance we have accumulated thus far - we would be assessing the literal fruits of our labors.
In the same way, we will all feel called to assess our own work: how well we are faring in our careers, our relationships, and in our spiritual paths. You will probably find ways in which you are excelling, and can feel grateful for the work you have accomplished and the progress you have made thus far. But you will also find ways in which there is room for improvement, and strides that you have yet to make.
How well we pass this assessment will determine our next steps - what our preparations look like, and what sort of work we must complete to be fully prepared for the cold months, which are right around the corner. This impulse to prepare gives Virgo its penchant for details, fastidiousness, and supreme industry. In Virgo season, we manage and consolidate the harvest – our food for the winter. Virgo can observe and keep track of every single detail as if it’s life depended on it since, historically, it would have!
In the same way, this is a time for you to prepare your own life for what is to come. All accounts must be in order, all books must be justified. Ready yourself for the next 6 months. Now is the time to properly manage and tend to every aspect of your material life. Leave no stone unturned. Set your house in order.
Virgo is ruled by Mercury, the advisor and vizier to the Sun King. In Virgo, we see Mercury’s face as the manager, organizer, and implementer of the divine, solar will. Virgo represents the chief advisor to the ruler who administrates the entire kingdom and ensures everything is accounted for, and everything is functioning properly. Just like the biblical Joseph keeping an inventory of every single piece of food stored in a granary for an upcoming famine in Egypt, we too take inventory of the fruits of our labors, and ready ourselves for whatever looms over the horizon.
Virgo is an earth sign. The focus our energies during this solar ingression will be on grounding our lives, accomplishing material results, and gaining more mastery over the physical, material aspects of our lives. In this modality, we can focus our minds on the gaining mastery over every single individual aspect of our lives and setting our entire houses in order.
Though Virgo’s focus on detail can feel tedious at times, it almost always means well and wishes to be helpful, just like a well-intentioned advisor or administrator. During this Virgo season, you’ll have the opportunity to practice prioritizing perfection and proper administration of your own life as Virgo does. By learn from Virgoan virtue, you can take a piece of this Virgoan wisdom with you longer after this season concludes.
What grounded change and transformation can you bring to your life this month? How can you master and administrate all aspects of your personal kingdom? How can you prepare for the upcoming 6 months of darkness?
This year, we’ve got an opposition to Saturn in Pisces. This can make the responsibilities of setting one’s house in order feel onerous, burdensome, and at times crushingly heavy. Instead of the exuberant, light, and spacious feeling that can come from cleaning, clearing, and organizing your world, the work just feels like work. It’s dull, and you don’t want to do it. There can be a strong moralizing tone that gets in the way of genuine productivity. Good prophylactics against Saturn include St. John’s Wort and a yellow citrine elixir.
This Virgo season also features a square from Jupiter. While growth and expansion can happen for you this season, it will take more work on your part to see results. Don’t be afraid of taking on more responsibility and putting in more effort - it has the potential to bring more payoff in the long run.
This also means that the Sun is entering into a T-Square between Jupiter and Saturn - I expect some of the collective stress and anxiety that we’ve been feeling alongside the Jupiter-Saturn square (with Mars thrown into the Mix for that matter) will start to intensify for the next couple of weeks, as the Sun perfects to both these hard aspects.
While this period will not be without difficulties, I also expect this to lighten up about halfway through Virgo season, when Mars leaves Gemini and moves into Cancer on September 5th and the Sun separates from these hard aspects. You should find that the impediments to growth and blockages to success that have cropped up in your life the past few months will begin to unwind then.
Your task here is to get things done without stress. The more you can learn to manage the malaise of this T-square without allowing yourself to become too overwhelmed, the more productive this period will be for you. While you may leave this season feeling a little tired and zapped, you can also leave having accomplished a lot, without feeling burnt out.
Prayer: Do nothing, and everything gets done. Let things be accomplished in their own time. Don’t rush, and don’t let the world steal your peace.