As the editor of the Astrology Arizona newsletter, I compose an overview of each month. Today we take a look at the primary factors for the month.

The Overview for September

This year the month of September brings us consolidation, understanding and the beginning of a review of how successful we’ve been in learning how to alternate between “hard power” and “soft power” this past year. Even though we’re still in Summer, we’re already getting a preview of Autumn with Mercury in Libra, Venus transiting Libra and Scorpio, and Mars entering Libra.

There are many excellent aspects this month promising clarity and insight, as well as the potential for enjoying the simpler pleasures of life, as well as the more complex ones! The early part of the month should be extraordinarily efficient, while the latter part of the month is the next “dual pulse” energy release/integration because Venus in Scorpio will square Saturn a few days before it opposes Uranus. So this month, Virgo, Libra, and Scorpio are heavily accented, making that part of our chart highly active.

September shows Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto all retrograde, with four of them about to finish their retrograde review. So the Sun, Venus and Mars continue to speed forward, Mercury begins to slow as it prepares to go retrograde at the end of the month, while the outer planets are all slow but beginning to speed up after their oppositions with the Sun.

As Jupiter, Saturn, and Pluto all go stationary direct in October, this month brings the harvest of our multiple review of things seen and unseen these past few months. This will prepare us to move forward with “the child born out of the Cosmic Egg,” learning what we have to learn to “pick up and deliver spiritual power” from late November on.

September gives us a new look at the vision to be launched and the patterns “preforming” the shapes of things to come. As “the power of unrealized purposes” will dominate the landscape beginning October, regard September as a “before the beginning” of larger social and cultural forces which will move forward in October, indicating major emergence of things unknown before now.

Interestingly, our experiences in June and July gave us a rehearsal of what we’ll need if we confront oppositions or polarized thinking or people in late August through mid-September. In June and July, planets opposed Pluto and trined Neptune, throwing a favorable void into Virgo. In late August through the first half of September the Virgo transits oppose Neptune and trine Pluto, opening a favorable void in Cancer.

That means the positive productivity generated this Summer, coupled with the Water trine opening up a favorable void in Scorpio, can serve how we navigate September, October, and November. Regard it as our 2021 Cancer experience giving us valuable feeling clues at that time about how to make progress this month. Also don’t discount that recent and current Earth trines, first to Uranus and then to Pluto, are giving us all a practical grounding in spiritual matters related to the Awakener and the Purifier.

Since June, we’ve been dealing with “the Tension of Opposites” created by oppositions from Cancer to Capricorn, Leo to Aquarius and Virgo to Pisces. As every opposition can produce greater awareness of the whole axis encompassing both of the polarities, we can see the push-pull of the opposing energies within a larger view of how both energies externalize through each other.

The first polarity (Cancer/Capricorn) was the axis of the Innocent, where we learned to trust our primal knowing, freed from ulterior considerations. The second polarity (Leo/Aquarius) was the axis of the King/Queen, or ruling noble, lord of their domain, personal and cosmic, shining light on the greatest good for the greatest number. The third polarity (Virgo/Pisces) is the axis of the Priest(ess) or Healer, the Shamanic guide leading us out of old ways through dark times into new lives. This refines our evolutionary process using Divine Discrimination and the ability to know the relative importance of things.

Saturn has now shown us techniques of direct accomplishment and an acceleration of our evolutionary potential once we have a vision, a plan, and a good time to execute the procedure. As Saturn rules Capricorn and Aquarius, those parts of our chart are where we’re reflecting on past Saturn lessons and experiences and are offered a new understanding from different perspectives based in a holistic view. This month brings us patterns of the future, so pay attention because September gives us a preview of November. It’s still in the social and emotional sector of “Contribution,” so keep the focus there.

May 2020 initiated a “graduation into a new realm of Being” for all of us. How we’ve responded since then was tested in May 2021, which brought us the first of three radical transformation periods this year. The second transit of Jupiter through “the Transfiguration Zone” at the end of Aquarius occurred in the first half of August, helping us take a second look at the larger transfiguration process going on in our lives, and the third pass in December will finish the process of expansion to be powered up between the middle of February and the middle of April 2022. All three transfiguration periods this year hold the promise of great opportunities, vision, and understanding!

Planets Slowing Down and Shifting Signs

This month we have Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto retrograde, with Pluto, Saturn, and Jupiter about to go direct in October! With all of them still retrograde in September, it indicates the larger spiritual field is leading us through reflections and reviews as we go inward to re-examine our 2021 process of purification, connectedness, individuation, discipline, and sense of vision. All retrogrades represent a review, or a time when we get a different angle of understanding about what that planet brought us when direct.

An analogy for the direct to retrograde to direct process would be that the first direct movement through the Shadow Zone (the span of degrees between where a planet goes stationary retrograde and where it goes stationary direct) is when we “toss the stone into the pond.” The retrograde period is when the ripples, having hit the far edge of the pond, return to center. The third transit of the Shadow Zone happens after the retrograde, and indicates a time when we can be clear about how to use that planetary function effectively within the conditions we’re in. So right now we’re getting the “karmic returns” of Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto!

As Venus, the Sun, and Mars change signs this month, it indicates that the rulers of 6 of our houses and signs will experience a distinctive change in those areas of our chart. Venus will give us two sign experiences (Libra and Scorpio), the Sun will give us two (Virgo and Libra), and Mars will give us two (Virgo and Libra). This clearly indicates a lot of activity in our Virgo, Libra and Scorpio sectors of our chart.

Mars

Mars in Virgo is methodical, organized, practical, and efficient. It does well in that sign, since the Earth quality is a factor in Mars’ exaltation. We should see stable precise effective functioning when Mars is in the Taurus decan of Virgo the first half of the month. Virgo’s mutability actually helps Mars to be more adaptable and flexible, while encouraging practicality and precision of expression.

Mars is moving fast and continues to speed up, transiting between 22 Virgo and 10 Libra this month. That means Mars is ruled by Mercury the first half of the month, and because Mercury is in Libra, that will moderate Mars’ expression. However, this changes in mid-month when Mars enters Libra, the sign of its “exile.” It is said Mars, the planet of direct action, doesn’t do well in tentative Libra, but I would think it excellent for weighing and balancing various approaches, and perhaps great for developing more diplomatic ways of achieving our ends.

When Mars enters Libra in mid-month, it will be ruled by Venus which transits Scorpio at that time. So these two social planets will be in each other’s signs, which is called a “Mutual Reception.” This is a very powerful closed loop of self-reinforcing energies, and with both planets in signs opposing the ones they rule, it could be a time when many feel like there’s never quite a satisfactory resolution even if things are getting done.

This month Mars makes a mixed bag of aspects. The beginning of the month Mars opposes Neptune and trines Pluto, favoring “cutting to the chase” and focusing on essentials. When it trines Pluto it also quincunxes Jupiter, bringing sacrifices and adjustments which should help us consolidate and (re)integrate. The second half of the month shows Venus novile Mars and Mars trine Saturn the entire time, with the end of the month bringing Mars sesquisquare Jupiter, tredecile Pluto, and biquintile Uranus.

As I’ve offered before, when Mars is within a degree of forming or separating while making a hard aspect with a planet, slow down and show deliberation and caution in how you use force, with an eye to moderating or antidoting impulsiveness and impatience. The aspects this month show great understanding and stability along with needed sacrifices and adjustments to make space for the gifts to come at the end of the month.

Sign Focus

September is a month when the first half multi-sign influences are different than they are the second half. We begin the month with Mars and the Sun in Virgo and Mercury and Venus in Libra, showing those signs predominate that period. This puts a heavy emphasis on those parts of our chart.

Then Venus enters Scorpio on September 10, beginning a time of rapidly shifting sign energies. Within a few days after that Mars enters Libra, and a few days after that the Sun enters Libra. That makes Libra is a constant all month, so take a good look at what’s up, since it’s showing us what’s coming in October!

The Aquarius-Taurus Tension This Year

In January and February, Jupiter transited the first half of Aquarius, heralding what will be crystallized by Saturn throughout 2021. What Jupiter opens, Saturn will structure as it rumbles through the first half of Aquarius this entire year. Jupiter’s transit of 17-24 Aquarius in March opened what Saturn will secure in 2022, and Jupiter’s transit of 25-29 Aquarius in April opened what Saturn will secure initially between May and July 2022, and fully crystallize in January, February, and early March 2023.

Because Saturn is still retrograde and Uranus has begun its retrograde movement, even though they are still out of orb of the square, that tension will resume in October! That marks the approach of their third square which will be exact in December and early January. (The final square happens September, October, and November 2022).

This square shows the need to stay focused on what’s really pertinent while disregarding older or unimportant interference. Even though the Aquarius to Taurus square is somewhat offset at present, it will be activated by various semisquares, squares, sesquisquares, and oppositions during late Virgo/Sag and early Libra/Capricorn transits, as well as Scorpio transits. All of these will generate powerful releases wherever we have these sectors in our charts.

That tension will be set into motion in early September when Mars sesquisquares Saturn and mid-September when Mars sesquisquares Uranus. This will be repeated by the Sun between September 12 and 25. Venus squares Saturn the third week of September and opposes Uranus the fourth week of September. As you can see, September will trigger the tension in various ways!

These Octile aspects, especially those from Scorpio making offset T-squares with Saturn and Uranus, indicates we’re moving into a powerful period good for integrating some pretty intense energies. The oppositions provide the awareness of what must be integrated, and the third planet making the square drives the integrative process via the void. As Scorpio transits create offset T-squares there will be a need for good Leo responses, with the Moon triggering things when it moves through late Mutable signs and very early Cardinal signs, as well as between 5-17 degrees of the Fixed signs.

The Fixed sign squares represent turning points and braking actions necessary for us to get our wisdom aligned with our understanding. These points of tension occur off and on the entire year as Saturn “makes real” all which Jupiter promised by its transit the last half of January and first half of February.

The first square from Saturn to Uranus in February was from 8 Aquarius to 8 Taurus; the second was in June, with Saturn retrograde at 14 Aquarius square Uranus at 14 Taurus; the third happens just after the December 2021 Solstice with Saturn direct at 12 Aquarius and Uranus retrograde at 12 Taurus. These waning (upper) squares between Saturn in Aquarius and Uranus in Taurus mark the culmination of the cycle of these power planets which was set into motion when Saturn conjuncted Uranus in 1988. Interestingly, in 1999-2000 Saturn in Taurus made its waxing (lower) square to Uranus in Aquarius, so this year activates conflicts dating back 20 years.

We’re Actors On A New Stage With A New Set

The Grand Mutation in December 2020 began a new 20 year Aquarian Era, marked by Jupiter conjunct Saturn at 1 Aquarius. That conjunction also set a new 200 year Era into motion, moving global energies out of Earth and into Air. We’ve begun to move beyond the materialism of the past 200 years and entered two centuries of the qualities of Air, with the associated qualities of relatedness, receptivity, versatility, movability, lightness, and cooperative ideas, visions, and ideals.

The 2020 Summer Solstice Solar eclipse is still facilitating a grand reorientation in our lives, including an acceptance of new allegiances and life directions, and the December 2020 Solar eclipse at 24 Sagittarius is still helping us remove blocks to our happiness. The recent Solar eclipse at 20 Gemini is already removing irrelevant and extraneous ideas and considerations from our decision making process.

We’re still "under the beams" of the Solar Eclipses we experienced in 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2021, and these “cosmic recyclers” continue to remove all that we no longer need in our lives. Take note of where you have 1 Cancer, 24 Sagittarius, and 20 Gemini, since we’re aligning ourselves with a larger reality in the first, finding happiness in the second, and removing what cannot be assimilated or communicated in the third.

We also recently had a Total Lunar Eclipse in late May at 6 Sagittarius/Gemini affecting us all for 5 months, and mid-June brought the Solar Eclipse at 20 Gemini, shutting down parts of our lives in that sector for 5 years to come. These eclipses are removing old ideas, old perspectives, old truths, and old futures, creating voids for new manifestations of these to come forth at the right time in our lives.

As we study how successive Eclipses have affected various areas of our charts and lives, we can get a sense of the utility of these “Cosmic Recyclers” in removing what we no longer needed in those areas, creating a void which attracted new life experiences. They invite us to look back, and then forward, to see the continuity of “letting go, taking in, letting go, taking in” across the years.

The Grand Irrationality

In September the 7-pointed “Star of Destiny" I’ve termed The Grand Irrationality is activated between September 11-17 when Mercury makes triseptiles to both Uranus and Neptune, creating an evolutionary “Kite” configuration! Pay attention, since this heralds more triggers in the same Libra zone when the Sun, Mercury retrograde, and Mars all transit that zone between October 6 and 15.

All the septile-series aspects trigger crucial choices and changes at “forks in the road of destiny.” I have written extensively about “The Grand Irrationality” which has been active for many years at this site and why all of humanity is forging its future destiny at this time. If you have a planet or point near any of the seven zones, your life is sure to be affected. In September these zones are around 29 Capricorn – 3 Aquarius, 21-25 Pisces, 13-17 Taurus, 4-8 Cancer, 25-29 Leo, 16-20 Libra, and 8-12 Sagittarius.

If things seem irrational and don’t make much sense, there’s always a septile-series aspect in the mix. During the periods these 7th harmonic aspects are in play, if things get a little weird or crazy, just go slow and be clear about the choices you’re making. While a lot won’t “make sense,” it doesn’t have to; all we must do is be clear about what we’re doing and why. Even though it may bring interactions with unreasonable or irrational people, we still have the power to respond in productive ways.

As with “hard” aspects to and from Mars, if that planet (or really any planet) is involved in any non-rational aspect, whether one to our natal Mars or transiting Mars making a non-rational aspect to one of our planets, it’s a time to be cautious during the period when the aspect is within a degree of forming or separating. Things have a way of getting strange during 7th harmonic aspects, so those are times to be especially deliberate and thoughtful in choosing our responses.

Primary Action Beats for the First Half of the Month

September begins with Mars opposed Neptune while trining Pluto the entire first week. Also in play the first four days of the month are powerful quincunxes from Venus to Neptune and Sun to Chiron. Keep it slow and steady as your purify and/or clean out things and people using Mercury trine Saturn and Venus square Pluto through the 6th. Good for planning and bringing old social patterns to completion.

The 6th brings Venus trine Jupiter, the New Moon exactly trine Uranus, and Mars quincunx Jupiter. The trines are exceptionally favorable so whatever had to be adjusted or sacrificed at the beginning of the month leads to favorable openings and an understanding of what’s important and what of the past needs to be left behind. The Earth trine helps us keep it organized and on track, while the Air trine brings protection and blessings by opening something related to the “pruning and shaping” we did in June and July. These two trines are great for planets we have in the middle degrees of Earth and Water and the latter degrees of Fire and Air!

The New Moon encourages us to show “tender care” for whatever we’re doing, being persistent in following through on something of worth. However, the Mars quincunx Jupiter and Mercury opposed Chiron at the end of the first week indicates adjustments and a need to coordinate something to bring forth our ability to teach or be taught some practical skill which serves our emergent spiritual intention.

So the month begins with several powerful aspects and evolutionary configurations dominating the atmosphere. The opposition, sextile, and trine made by Mars with Neptune and Pluto generates very favorable Cancer energy, and allows us to “cut to the chase” and be highly efficient in eliminating or regenerating things as we stand on the threshold of a new way of doing things. Venus trine with Mars quincunx Jupiter obviously favors Venusian things while requiring some adjustment, either to our Mars way of expression or our Jupiter way of expansion.

Compared with the intense activity of the first week of the month, the second week is fairly tame. The biggest features are Venus entering Scorpio and Mars entering Libra. There are no significant aspects during that time except Mercury quincunx Uranus on September 10 and Sun opposed Neptune on the 14th. The quincunx happens in Mercury’s shadow zone, with productivity to be found in subjecting appearances to necessities with an eye to what’s coming down the road. Foresight and a sense of “rehearsing for the future” is required, as well as clarity about a) the roles we are and are not playing, and b) what is unclear or confused in the general atmosphere.

Primary Action Beats for the Second Half of the Month

As noted, the second half of the month has a different energy than the first half, even if the New Moon’s influence will extend through the last 3 weeks of September into the first 6 days of October. The main emphasis is that the ruler of Libra, Venus, is in Scorpio, and Mars, the ruler of Venus, is in Libra in a powerful “Mutual Dispositorship” of self-reinforcing energies. So mid-month kicks off with Mars entering Libra, the sign of its “exile,” promising more of a search for balance and moderation in how we express what we express.

September 16 shows the Sun quincunx Jupiter and trine Pluto with Venus square Saturn. That will help us get to the heart of any matter; just remember the quincunx will require some sacrifice or adjustment in those areas, while Venus waning square Saturn will no doubt bring more “Venusian information” about the Aquarius square Taurus energies in play this year into next. Sun/Pluto shows us the heart of how to enjoy life in simple, practical ways, while the Venus square shows us we must pay attention to the inner changes as things intensify while “using knowledge and skill to meet the demands of a stage yet to come.”

We then see Mercury quincunx Neptune on September 17, followed by a harmonious weekend leading up to the Full Moon at 29 Pisces on the 20th which features Venus quincunx Chiron and Mercury trine Jupiter. Whatever the Venus trine Jupiter brought us in early September will yield valuable information, understanding, and insights when Mercury makes the first of three trines to Jupiter from Libra to Aquarius. Again, all of this shows us how our Gemini experiences between mid-May and mid-July can help us understand the need for crafting our focus.

The last 10 days of the month brings Mercury square Pluto just before the Autumnal Equinox which is immediately followed by Venus opposed Uranus, completing the offset Fixed sign T-square. Again, with the energies thrown into Leo, show heart, creativity, and generosity of spirit. Mercury square Pluto challenges us not to buy into extreme points of view and to keep the positives in sight despite the looming negatives.

Over all the last 10 days of the month are dominated by Mars trine Saturn, helping us find a good rhythm and balance to stabilize whatever we’re doing. Find multiple angles of approaching anything as you begin something anew. On September 26th, Mercury goes stationary retrograde at 26 Libra, giving us a look back on this year’s theme set into motion when Mercury went stationary direct on this degree in November 2020.

The coming Mercury retrograde period will give us a review of how well we’ve learned to alternate between “soft power” and “hard power,” “Yin and Yang,” “Heart and Mind” since late 2020. As it falls square Pluto, biseptile Saturn, and trine Jupiter, a lot will come to fruition, understanding will open, we’ll see how to make progress despite limiting conditions, and get a rehearsal for dynamic choices and changes which will happen the last half of October.

The month ends on a high note with Venus trine Neptune and Sun trine Saturn on the 29th, favoring planets we have in late Earth and Water signs, as well as early Fire and Air signs. The Venus trine is great for using intuition to get under the surface of things, and the Saturn trine is great for finding clever ways to get things secured. We then have Venus square Jupiter on the 30th, so build through the Mercury trine Jupiter and release through the Venus square Jupiter. These are immediately followed by Mars opposed Chiron, and Mercury square Pluto with Venus sextile Pluto the first two days of October, so take note!

Evolutionary Development

This is the seventeenth month of the North Node in Gemini era, showing that our line of greatest evolutionary development is through seeing the many ways to learn and communicate a given thing, especially with an eye to assimilating diverse ideas from diverse sources. The line of greatest growth is to open to themes related to finding information we need to achieve outer forms of success, as well as thoughts we can act on to fulfill some discovery.

Because we are in the thick of learning lessons associated with Saturn in Aquarius, keep showing patience as you lighten and brighten your life where you have Aquarius in your chart. As I’ve mentioned in past newsletters, this year we’re being tested to use the (almost) non-stop friction of the Taurus/Aquarius square to launch new visions, new models, new interactions, and new teamwork. We are now cruising into the last third of the year, with Virgo, Libra, and Scorpio energies making all kinds of aspects to the outer spiritual planets. We’re finishing a Summer of adaptation, adjustment, and getting clear as a prelude to the renewal of our spiritual quest, mutated by Spirit, in October.

Through transiting Jupiter and Saturn, we’ve begun to catch glimpses of how to shortcut certain processes, whether our own evolution or to accelerate some work we’re doing. Keep open to ways you can make a greater contribution to your society or the world while understanding 2022 will bring us radical new experiences which will be very different than 2021.

We’re definitely in a new era, so use the integrative power of the offset T-squares involving Scorpio, Aquarius, and Taurus to demonstrate good Leo traits such as strength, courage and determination. When Scorpio squares Aquarius and then opposes Taurus, BE the “Light and Mind” of Leo; show heart, take heart, trust the heart, strengthen the heart, and radiate the Love you ARE to your world.

While Leo was about finding what we can put our hearts into, Virgo helps us learn the “lessons of significant form,” Libra helps us find a pleasing balanced perspective on things, and Scorpio helps us eliminate all we don’t need to fulfill whatever the cycle is about. The group work continues to expand, so please keep in mind that we're all more aware, capable, and stronger together than we are separately.

The Sun in Virgo is a time to see the Light of how to radiate humility as we perform “enlightened service,” demonstrating Divine Discernment as we work with precision, practical grounding, and balanced flow doing our part in the greater work. We’ve all “graduated into a new realm of Being,” with new openings to all who know they are a unique spark of Light within infinite fields of Light.

As we’ve launched into a new 20 year and 200 year cycle, remember a new era has dawned, so have courage and take the initiative to leave the Earth and fly free into the Air of what’s opening as the Grand Mutation expands its promise into the Divine Discernment of a greater awareness and service in Virgo and a transfigured ideal of a more just truth and future in Libra.

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Since I also include this in the newsletter, I’ll offer it to you here:

PLANETARY MOTIONS IN SEPTEMBER 2021

SUN – 10 Virgo to 9 Libra
MERCURY – 3 Libra to 26 Libra
VENUS – 19 Libra to 22 Scorpio
MARS – 22 Virgo to 10 Libra
JUPITER – 26 Aquarius to 23 Aquarius
SATURN – 9 Aquarius to 7 Aquarius
URANUS –15 Taurus (all month)
NEPTUNE –23 Pisces to 22 Pisces
PLUTO – 25 Capricorn (all month)
TRUE NORTH NODE –7 to 4 Gemini

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SIGNIFICANT ASTROLOGICAL OCCURRENCES IN SEPTEMBER 2021

NEW MOON – September 6; Sun and Moon at 15 Virgo
MERCURY ENTERS SHADOW ZONE; September 6 at 11 Libra
VENUS ENTERS SCORPIO; September 10
MARS ENTERS LIBRA; September 14
FULL MOON – September 20; Sun 29 Virgo, Moon 29 Pisces
SUN ENTERS LIBRA/AUTUMNAL EQUINOX; September 22
MERCURY STATIONARY RETROGRADE; September 26 at 26 Libra
JUPITER, SATURN, PLUTO ALL OCCUPY THEIR SD DEGREES; September 29/30

Reprinted on crystalwind.ca with written permission from Robert Wilkinson. Copying this article to other blogs is strictly prohibited. It is copyright protected. 

© Copyright 2021 Robert Wilkinson

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