Strap in tight: October’s keyword is WHOOSH! Two eclipses have us simultaneously zooming ahead and bolting doors on the past.

It’s a volatile, anything-can-happen pairing, but the skies are encouraging civility (at least, through the 22^nd), as well as healthy choices and boundaries. Gear shifts accompany the excitement from all the inner planets changing signs. They make possible clear, sensible thinking and action, and give us a fighting chance for getting along.

The first big event is a solar eclipse, the Libra New Moon October 14, upgrading relationships and our approach to them, to support our current conditions (and upgraded senses of self). Some of those upgrades come from – or force – departures, which might be immediate or might be on a time delay. All the departures, and arrivals, and other big developments come with pressure, raw survival instinct, and a sense of inevitability. Those fly off the Moon’s wide square to evolutionary change agent Pluto, as well as the sensation of a cosmic finger pushing and poking and pointing the way. (One is, actually, a Finger of God, formed by awakening Uranus and otherworldly Neptune.)

The second big event is intense and supersized, just in time for Halloween: the Taurus Full moon lunar eclipse October 28. This one is wrapping up the evaluation of money and resource issues we’ve been undergoing for the past two and a half years. Huge revelations are coming out, followed closely by major departures and slamming doors. With amplifying Jupiter opposing Mercury, they all loom larger than life, like figures casting distorted shadows in a horror film. Adding to the high stakes, the Sun and the Moon are again widely squaring Pluto, this time out of sign and with the luminaries squeezing him from opposite directions. We’re acutely aware of emotional treasures and costs, and of the tangible ones as well, and where our evaluation lands feels inevitable. And no going back.

The eclipses’ combined impact is not so much a one-two punch, but a gigantic jumble of volatility. Fortunately, the skies are equipping us with focus and clear-headedness. No matter what symbolic weather is blowing around you, you can get through by keep your eye on the bottom line, on details, and on what’s in front of you at any given moment.

Our communication channels, socializing, and actions all change modes of expression this month, and each shift follows a meeting with the clarifying scythe of Pluto. This means that each area of existence becomes intense, profound, and pared back before the next mode takes over.

Thought processes, conversations, and information channels strip down to what’s most important when Mercury trines Pluto October 3. (Time heavy discussions for then.) The messenger god then moves into Libra from October 4-21, which encourages artful phrasing, soft-pedaling messages, and, paradoxically, fighting for justice and harmony, whatever our individual definitions of that may be.

Details, boundaries, and improvement all around come back into the picture when Venus enters Virgo and earth mother mode October 8 ,for the remainder of the month and beyond. Just before, though, on her way out of Leo, where she’s been shining since June, she touches Pluto in an inconjunct, which unleashes adjustments in relationships and self-expression. (Watch the allure of summer’s newcomers dissolve into dust.)

As Venus changes sign, developments are probable that call on her discernment and tidying skills. The shift coincides with fierce demands for action that are impossible to ignore, from Mars’ square to Pluto October 8. The impact will not be subtle, but bold, decisive, and possibly cold-blooded. (After all, the clash is pitting the god of war against the god of death.) The impact primes Mars for his next journey, through the power-laden undercurrents of Scorpio, which begins October 12. Want to research? Work behind the scenes? Maneuver undetected? This is your time.

Deep-level routing out and clean-up are possible, with Venus and Mars traveling sextile by sign. Thanks to them, focused action comes easily once we get past the solar eclipse. Their simpatico potential makes it possible for you to evaluate a situation, then engage in precise, efficient strikes.

One of the month’s moments of stabilizing lands early in their collaboration. You may not see what’s happening, but you will experience results when action hero Mars trines Saturn, planet of structure and adulting, October 13. Acting responsibly pays off. Acting behind the scenes for the greater good pays off. Trusting your intuition pays off, perhaps as simply as being in the right place at the right time.

Tough conversations and candor – in thoughts, in words, with yourself – come when Mercury and the Sun square Pluto October 20 and 21. They then dive into Scorpio, October 22 and 23 and swim straight into the month’s other moments of stabilizing, trining Saturn October 22 and 24. Watch for confirmation of hunches and more.

Your sixth sense takes the lead the last week of the month. Whatever the lunar eclipse lights up for you, you’ll know precisely how to respond. Watch for dazzling, if backroom displays of form following thought when Mercury conjuncts Mars October 29. One carefully placed whisper could work wonders.

The month ends with a surprise party for Halloween. Anything can happen: Last-minute schedule changes that deliver unexpected fun (or people).A new person or situation materializing in an empty space created by the lunar eclipse. Something you had never thought possible suddenly becoming possible. Love goddess Venus is trining quick-change artist Uranus October 31, and their collaboration sends us flying out of the month in ways we could not have foreseen at the beginning.

Learn more in Outta My Way! The Aries/Libra Eclipses of 2023-2025

Re-blogged on crystalwind.ca with written permission from Kathy Biehl.