October Horoscopes

Astrology of October
Current Configurations
Past Months

Aries	Libra
Taurus	Scorpio
Gemini	Sagittarius
Cancer	Capricorn
Leo	Aquarius
Virgo	Pisces

October 2010

Current Astrology

	The Sun is in Aries
	The Quarter Moon is in CancerThe First Quarter Moon is in Cancer: All day
	Next Mercury Retrograde Apr 21 - May 14

October Horoscopes

by Henry Seltzer

The Astrology of October focuses on Venus and Mars, Uranus and Neptune. A key feature is the upcoming Venus retrograde, for the early part of her journey in conjunction with Mars. In the first week of October, Venus – already facing difficulty in dark and sexually active Scorpio – slows down to a crawl, and is conjoined by Mars, who brings his own Scorpion sting, being very much at home in Scorpio. After Venus retrogrades on October 8th the conjunction begins to fade. The period while Venus is retrograde, from October 8th to November 18th, and even beyond, through mid-December, will be at least partly spent in trying to refine our understanding of the key relationships in our lives, those from the past as well as those of the present moment. We will also spend an inordinate amount of our energy in more closely examining the dance of relationship.

For almost all of October, therefore, Venus and Mars both reside in Scorpio, the sign of Mars' rulership, and a zodiacal place that Venus always has trouble relating to. The primary meaning of Venus in Scorpio is that there is a more fully visible sexual component to existing partnerships, and that we are more suspicious regarding motivations – both our own and those of others – in relationship situations. This can be difficult of course and dark. But it also has its long-range benefits in bringing important truth to light and in recognizing and honoring our deepest desires, and their profound rewards. We gain through better understanding of ourselves at these deep levels and develop the power to transform existing situations in the light of this self-knowledge.

The Libra New Moon of Thursday, October 7th, at 14 plus degrees of Libra, precedes the retrograde of Venus by one day. This is a dynamic New Moon with the Sun and Moon exactly one sign away from Venus/Mars in mid-Scorpio, a semi-sextile aspect. Additionally, Mercury is exactly conjunct Saturn a few degrees away, reminding us to take a sober-minded approach to seeking greater balance in our lives. Venus and Mars are also in powerful aspect to Uranus and Jupiter in Pisces, bringing to the mix their symbolism of brilliant ideas and rapidly changing and even startling recognition of new realities. In terms of relationships that we currently participate in, this implies graceful and liberating change for the better.

While Saturn, Jupiter and Uranus are peripherally involved in this month's configurations, now that Uranus and Jupiter have retrograded back into Pisces, these three are no longer in the same stand-off that they occupied all summer. What are we to make of this? First of all, let us note that next spring these powerhouse planets will once more be opposed in Libra and Aries – a mere six degrees away from exact – while Pluto remains square to both. So that the polarization that has reached a crescendo in recent months, pitching hawk against dove, Democrat against Republican in angry extremism, is far from over.

However, with Uranus and Jupiter conjunct not in Aries but in Pisces for these next few months, there is however a kinder and gentler cast of mind – and even of heart – that applies right now to these polarities of forward thinking versus cautious holding back. There are recent current events and news stories that signal hope: America at least talking about pulling out of Iraq, the rebuilding of New Orleans and the appointment of consumer finance watchdog and vocal banking industry critic Elizabeth Warren to head the team responsible for building new regulatory measures for financial consumer protection. As we deal with the tough and polarized either-or choices within our own lives as well we might somehow find the magical possibility of a third way, surprising ourselves by leaping right between the horns of the dilemma.