This is a reference text for for the entire upcoming week. For people who run businesses and plan events and gatherings, reading through the week in its entirety beforehand can be especially worthwhile. Individual posts are also provided for people who prefer to just read them one at a time.
Sunday August 25th
We begin this week as the Moon continues her journey through Gemini. With the Moon’s presence here, our circumstances and moods begin to take on the character of the masculine, diurnal domicile of Mercury. Maybe you have been more on the move the past few days, or more social, or felt yourself inhabiting your mind and the realm of thought more so than usual. However it came up for you, these themes will continue until around 5:00pm EST, at which point she moves into Cancer.
With one exception, the Moon does not form any major aspects today. The squares she formed to the Sun, Mars, and Venus separated two days ago, and her opposition to Jupiter separated yesterday. Chances are that if you experienced any tensions arising in your circumstances from friends, coworkers, more generally between your own intentions and what can be reasonably accomplished, that will all begin to fade away and quiet down.
The one exception to this is the Moon’s host, Mercury, to whom the Moon will form a sextile early this morning. While this day may be a little quieter for you than the previous few days, you can still exception success and support in your endeavors, whatever they may be. Since Mercury is combust, your experiences today are again more likely to take a quieter, less public tone.
Venus is in a bad way this week. She is combust the Sun, in her fall, not forming an aspect to her ruler Mercury. This will create some difficulties related to romantic partnerships and friendships – the social lubricant that is Venus will be missing or weakened from most interactions, and connection and productive interactions are harder to come by. Artists and the arts too will have less inspiration during this week, until Venus moves out from under the beams of the Sun and Mercury enters into Virgo to host Venus.
The Venus-Mars conjunction becomes exact this day. I have written earlier about how the Venus-Mars conjunction will bring more passion into existing romantic relationships, or bring new people together in a way that is very sudden. In general, this aspect can also make people feel things very strongly, though the fact that the aspect is finally perfecting in Virgo will ultimately channel this passage into something practical. You may find yourself enamored by a new craft, or by learning a new skill. Whatever it is you are experiencing related to this, it will reach its height throughout the next few days.
We cannot skip over the fact that this aspect occurs while Venus and Mars are both Combust. Combustion makes the energy or outcomes of a configuration hidden and weakened. Moreover, combustion can also be understood as a kind of rebirth or initiation – this pairs well with the essence of Virgo which already emphasizes self-development. Take this time as an opportunity to really scrutinize your behavior and assess what can be improved.
Monday, August 26th
Today the Moon moves through the first half of Cancer. The Moon is highly dignified here, as she administrates this sign and serves as her own host. This is an excellent time for emotional exploration, for nurturing and being nurtured, and for caring for our bodies and homes. Take a salt bath, write in your journal, and do some tidying. This is also an excellent time for conversations and interactions that require a deeper, more emotive timbre. This day supports friendships and to a certain extant romantic interaction (as much as is able with Venus in her fall combust the Sun), though not business interactions quite as much.
In the afternoon, she will conjoin the fixed star Sirius. Sirius was an especially sacred star to the Ancient Egyptians, whose heliacal rising in the summertime marked the new year and the annual flooding of the Nile. Like the fertilizing waters of the Nile, this was said to indicate riches and an increase in abundance and opportunity.
In the morning, the sextiles to the Sun, Mars, and Venus will be perfected. The sextile to the Sun creates sympathy and cooperation between our own desires and agenda and what our environments and circumstances will actually support. Whatever kind of work you decide to do today, you can expect it to be productive, and for there to be general harmony around you.
The sextiles from Venus and Mars this morning will bring people related to those planets into our lives in some capacity. If you have friends or coworkers who resemble the signatures of Venus or Mars or have these two planets dominant in their charts, you can expect to be on agreeable terms with them today. On a more psychological level, you may find that the work or activities in which you engage are emotionally satisfying, or that deeper harmony has developed between your will and the wills of others.
Lastly, the Moon forms an opposition to Saturn today. Since both the Moon and Saturn are essentially dignified, and Saturn is retrograde, I wouldn’t expect this to be too debilitating. Still, you may find either repressive, Saturnine people or repressive, Saturnine thoughts getting in the way of your emotional flow at some point. If you have strong Saturn energy in your chart, or are prone to Melancholy, you can wear stones to Saturn today such as black tourmaline or blue Sapphire to ward off that influence.
Today Venus and Mars enter their aporroia period. The peak of the aspect is over, and now the experiences you have related to these two planets will take a more inward, reflective tone, and there will be fewer and fewer external events or situations occurring related to it.
Tuesday, August 27th
The Moon will remain in Cancer until around 7:00pm EST. Expect the nurturing, caring energy and events of Cancer to continue, but these circumstances will not be brought to you through other people and situations so much as they will be an outflowing of your own mood and situation.
Today the Moon is in a state called kenodromia, which literally means void-running but has also been translated as void of course or running in the void. The Moon is void of course whenever she will not form another aspect to a planet before leaving her current sign. The primary task of the Moon is to “gather” the energy of other planets through aspects she forms to them and then send them down to Earth; when she forms no aspects, there is nothing for her to transmit to us, and she becomes quite literally empty of signification.
The Moon running in the void is an excellent time for meditation and spiritual pursuits. Since fewer things and events are signified on the earth, there is more space for cultivation of the inner life. However, this is not as positive a day for attempting to accomplish anything major in the world. Don’t plans any major meetings or work-related events during this day – nothing will come of them.
Venus continues to separate from both the Sun and Mars. While she is still fairly debilitated in Virgo and still combust, the intensity of this period is beginning to wane – difficulties in romantic relationships and between friends will begin to diminish again, though some difficulties will still surface from the next few days. Additionally, the energy and enthusiasm for work that developed with Venus and Mars were conjoined in Virgo will also begin to subside.
Wednesday, August 28th
Like yesterday, today will be a quieter day, as the Moon only forms one aspect. The Leo Moon is much different in character than the Cancer Moon. For each, emotional life and emotional well-being are very important, but the Leo Moon externalizes this energy. You may find your spirit uplifted, and you may be more extroverted and feel more confident taking up space than you normally would. Additionally, your day may be busier and more hectic than it normally is, as the fiery nature of Leo attracts a wide range of experiences and a fast-paced timbre.
Alas, the Moon is not configured to her ruler the Sun by a whole sign aspect, and so they are averse to each other. Inspiration or possible leads that come to you during this time will be less likely to turn into anything promising. If you need help, you will probably have to do more legwork to receive it.
On its own, the Sun-Moon aversion means that this is not a good day for the general alignment of our will and the events and circumstances that come to us. These days are on average less productive, and you will save yourself a headache if you resign yourself to getting less done. You may want to engage in practices and work that develop and perfect yourself (Sun in virgo), but find all sorts of events and circumstances related to your emotional life coming up that keep you from doing so (Moon in leo).
The one aspect the Moon makes is her trine to Jupiter. I have spoken before of Moon-Jupiter trine in terms of emotional buoyancy and general feelings of well-being, and this holds true here too. Additionally, you may find teachers and guides coming into your life to offer you help and support, or simply to be a comforting presence.
Because this is a fire-sign trine, expect the significations to happen quickly and suddenly. The fiery nature of this aspect is helpful for Jupiter’s energy to come through, as Jupiter rules the Fire-Trigon by nighttime, but sometimes this avenue for help can be jarring to the Moon. You may find yourself taken off guard by whomever or whatever comes to you from Jupiter.
The proactive astrologer will also notice that the Moon is copresent with Mercury today in Leo, though this does not technically count as an aspect since Mercury will leave Leo and enter into Virgo before the aspect perfects. While you may have a somewhat easier time expressing yourself with others, the outcomes between the Moon and Mercury “conjoined” here will not extend past that.
Thursday, August 29th
The Moon traverses through the final portion of Leo today, entering into Virgo around 8:00 PM EST.
Like Tuesday, the Moon is again void of course throughout the day. This is again a day that will be better spent on self-work and contemplation than trying to make anything major happen in the world. If you must work, do more personal, organization, or clerical work as opposed to anything more public and social.
Early in the morning, Mercury will ingress into his rulership and exaltation of Virgo. This placement is highly auspicious, especially for people with a strong Mercury emphasis in their chart. Our minds will be sharper, communication will be easier – both at the office and between friends – and cars and other tools for travel will operate more smoothly. For businesses, Mercury placed in Virgo is excellent for promotional work and sales, but still hold off on anything major until the Moon is better situated.
On a more psychological level, Mercury in Virgo will contribute to your ability to manage details and complete a larger number of smaller tasks. You may be more prone to study, but not the study of something abstract and theoretical – more so the study of something mechanical and useful. Maybe you will want to learn how to cook, or work with cars. Spiritually minded people would be well served to learn a new spiritual practice – maybe a new kind of meditation or Reiki.
Friday, August 30th
Today the Moon travels through Virgo. Expect the circumstances and situations to be busy and productive. This is a good day to work and create change in the material world, especially anything involving refinement, optimization, etc. Now is the time to edit and perfect. Additionally, self-examination, journaling, etc. can be effective during this period– if you work for a company, maybe ask your boss for an evaluation.
Before I discuss the aspects that the Moon makes today, I want to mention something about the major Virgo Stellium that has developed, with five of the seven traditional planets occupying this sign. These kinds of emphases on Virgo and Virgo-like practices and experiences are all the more heightened during this period. In a word, it will be hard for all of us to not embody the Virgo archetype to some extant in our behavior – hard-working, perfectionist, analytical, etc. This is an excellent time to do evaluations in your life: ask what can be changed, what should be changed, and how to improve. Do this methodically with every aspect of your life.
As the Moon will conjoin four other planets today in Virgo, it will be difficult to disentangle their significations, and you may find for yourself that everything happens all at once, or that the different aspects blend with each other in ways that are unique to you. In what follows, I will delineate each of the conjunctions one by one, but you should expect some bleed-through effects between these aspects during this day.
The Moon made her first aspect to her ruler Mercury late last night. Throughout this day, speaking from a place that is more heart centered and from your emotions will be easier. Self-expression in general will come more naturally. This is a good day for conversations with friends and family. This aspect is also supportive for the significations of Mercury – intellectual or investigative work will be supported today.
Thereafter, at 6:00am EST, the Moon will conjoin the Sun today for the new Moon in Virgo. On its own, new Moons are excellent times for setting intentions and getting clear about what strides you want to take in the upcoming month. The placement in Virgo allows you to be more methodical and exact with your intentions. New Moons are also auspicious insofar as they fully harmonize our own will and desires with our environment; unless you have a lot of planets in Gemini, Sagittarius, or Pisces, you can expect things to run smoothly in general for you today.
Around the same time, the Moon will conjoin Mars. This is a great indicator for stores of energy today, and another indicator that today will be productive, as the heat and power of Mars provides us with greater initiative and drive to accomplish things. However, this aspect can also shorten tempers and make people more disagreeable to each other. But the fact that they are both received by their ruler Mercury, and the fact that the Moon will conjoin Venus later help to ameliorate the downsides of this aspect.
Finally, the Moon-Venus conjunction will occur around 2:00pm this afternoon. Besides easing the Mars aspect, I do not foresee this aspect doing much, since Venus is in her fall and combust. Some friendly, Venusian people may come into your life, but your interactions will be weighed down by details, planning, etc. The natural heart-opening interactions Venus signifies will not be as likely to occur.
All in all, unless you consciously choose not to leave your house today, chances are that this day will be very busy and productive. That all these things are happening in Virgo strongly indicates effort and hard work will be involved. But the fact that these planets are all hosted by Mercury is a guarantee that you will see practical results and returns for the work that you put in.
I will save the Moon’s other two aspects to Jupiter and Saturn for tomorrow when they perfect.
Saturday, August 31st
The Moon continues to travel through Virgo, allowing us the opportunity to perfect and optimize the way we live our lives. Editing work, cleaning, honest self-reflection, and strides to maximizing efficiency will be very effective now. The fact that the Moon is co-present with her ruler is a strong indicator that the work of this day will turn out well.
At this point, the Moon has broken free of the beams of the Sun and emerged in her waxing crescent phase. The period after the new Moon while the Sun and the Moon still occupy the same sign is generally considered favorable, notwithstanding their own sign and house placements.
The Moon forms a square to Jupiter in Sagittarius today. Psychologically, this can bring some wavering confidence, which in Virgo can turn into complete self-doubt. This can also bring in teachers and authorities who help us, but not necessarily in an easy way. Someone may speak into your life in a way you dislike. If you do decide to ask your boss for an evaluation, you may get some blunt, but helpful feedback.
The Moon also forms a trine to Saturn in Capricorn. Psychologically, this can provide groundedness and a feeling of emotional security. You may feel more reserved and calmer, and the earthy nature of Virgo will fortify this as well. Saturnine people such as elders and more distant authority figures may come into your life in ways that are helpful and supportive.
Several other noteworthy developments occur with the other planets today. Most importantly, Mars has entered into his cazimi period with the Sun. This is a strong intensification of Martial themes. This is an excellent day to push oneself and work hard, as the Mars cazimi provides a strong influx of energy and motivation, and the placement in Virgo will direct this energy towards practical matters. Like yesterday, you may have some difficulties with your temper and with anger.
Additionally, two of Venus’ aspects have entered their engagement period, when the aspects come within 3 degrees. Venus’ square to Jupiter is classically still considered fortunate since both planets are benefic. This indicates good fortune, acquisition, and prosperity. But the square can create some instability and impermanence of the good that comes from this – don’t count your chickens before they hatch.
Second, Venus’ trine to Saturn has entered its engagement period. Classical authors also considered this harmonious. The social intelligence of Venus well-paired with the wisdom of Saturn makes people with this natal placement excellent negotiators and managers. For business owners now, this is a good time to meet with your team and plan the direction of your company.
Saturn here will also help to lift Venus up from her fall in Virgo. For the next few days, if your relationship has been struggling, you may find some helpful outside advice. Artists may get a flash of insight for their work.
Finally, Mercury – in addition to being closely combust the Sun – has come within three degrees of Mars. This may make you bolder in expressing your ideas, and since Mars is so powerful right now you may find yourself particularly prone towards argument and disagreement. This is an excellent time for research, as the passion and fire of Mars provides Mercury with ample resources to learn and explore new things.