Astrology of September 2009 by Henry Seltzer (www.astrograph.com)

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The Astrology of September features Saturn and Uranus in opposition, highlighted by the September 18th New Moon, together with another important Mercury retrograde period that starts on the 6th and lasts through to the end of the month. The weekend after Mercury retrogrades, the First Quarter Moon of Friday afternoon and evening, September 11th, when Pluto also turns direct in the first degree of Capricorn, signals the beginning of a powerful week-long period leading up to the New Moon. The biggest news of this transitional month is that Saturn and Uranus are exactly opposed in this mid-September period, which will be the precursor to the cardinal T-square including Pluto that begins in October and continues right through 2012 and beyond. By the end of October Saturn will enter Libra and square Pluto with Uranus a mere seven degrees away from opposing Saturn and squaring Pluto from the other side. Uranus joins the party more fully when it enters Aries in the spring of 2010. This time period from 2010 to perhaps 2014 will be a time of great changes for America and indeed the world.

In the initial portion of this climactic period of time, the current standoff between Saturn and Uranus harks back to last November, when they opposed each other for the first time in this series. Saturn and Uranus are antithetical energies, and can be conceived as conservative support for the status quo versus youthful rebellion that wants to change everything. Of course it is increasingly clear in the final year of this decade that change is needed, and needed badly. Business as usual just doesn't seem to be getting it anymore. On both a personal and a collective level we must accept that the structure of our lives as we have known it is changing forever in the dawn of this new era. The old structure has sustained us but it must now be allowed to pass away, however ungracefully.

Meanwhile, Mercury retrogrades in Libra for almost the entire month. The date of the retrograde is September 6th, and all during the first week of September, as Mercury slows down, we will find ourselves closer and closer to missed communications and the reflective stance that is the hallmark of the retrograde period. Moving backwards until the 29th, Mercury will dip into Virgo before straightening out and regaining Libra in early October, finally leaving its retrograde shadow on October 13th. This entire month and beyond will therefore be a better time for reflecting than for taking new action. All during this month we will be subjected to a sense of introspection and mechanical and communicative breakdown, especially strong since Saturn is simultaneously involved. After the Saturnian (and Uranian) New Moon of September 18th, Mercury's contact with the Sun occurs in the early hours of September 20th. Then Mercury conjuncts Saturn for the second of three times as it moves backward into Virgo, on September 23rd. The final hit with Saturn will take place on October 4th. All these dates will reflect an especially strong dose of Saturn, with the limitations and restrictions implied, as Saturn continues to oppose Uranus.

This opposition of archetypal powerhouses is highlighted by the September 18th New Moon, which conjuncts Saturn and opposes Uranus, almost exactly. We will be called at this time to make sacrifices in the name of expediency, and also to allow inspiration carry us beyond current limitations. Neptune is also in the picture, occupying the 25th degree of Aquarius, thirty degrees away from Uranus, and therefore making an inconjunct aspect to the Sun, Moon and Saturn, an aspect whose keyword is adjustment. As we struggle to make peace with ourselves in this time, we also must rise to the occasion. We can only move forward now in a way that is consistent with our highest expectations for ourselves. At this crucial time in history, nothing else will do.

Transits to the U.S. Chart

In the current month's transits there is quite a lot of activity for the chart of the United States. This is the chart dating from July 4, 1776 when the Declaration of Independence was signed. These highly significant events occur mostly during the first half of September. This is because as Saturn opposes Uranus and Pluto stations in the first degree of Capricorn, these three archetypal powerhouses line up with several sensitive points in the U.S. chart. The various events are detailed below.

The September 4th Full Moon will be active in the U.S. chart, and will likely serve as a harbinger for the more climactic mid-month timing. At the time of the Full Moon, Saturn is exactly conjunct U.S Neptune, while the Sun and Moon trigger U.S Saturn, meaning that certain areas of relative fuzziness surrounding the executive branch will not only continue but become exacerbated. I am referring for one thing to the Obama administration's stance on health care, which will surely loom as a giant issue for the entire nation in the coming weeks and months. Although talking up the virtues of health care reform in this country in a big way, this administration has been rather short on specifics, even taking the most popular option off the official table, namely a so-called "single payer system" such as Canada, Australia and Great Britain currently enjoy. Of course this option is strongly opposed by the health insurance industry, which could lose billions. These transits seem to indicate that that administration's stand on this issue will become if anything, even more muddled over the next few weeks, and that some signal of this may well be sent even before Labor Day. Another area in which the administration seems to be talking in one way and acting in another is with regard to the issue of habeas corpus rights for prisoners in U.S. run institutions like Guantanamo. After announcing policy changes toward granting habeas corpus with great fanfare, including the closing of Guantanamo, the justice department has moved in just the opposite direction with respect to individual cases such as that of Mohammed Jawad (See truthout article) and also for the prisoners of Abu Ghraib and Bagram. These are the types of issues, involving official deception, which are likely to become revived during September.

These latter cases involve the military, and they and others like them where military operations are given media spin of one kind or another, are even more likely to receive renewed coverage a week beyond the Full Moon on September 11th – which is not only the 8th anniversary of 9-11 but also a tension-producing Last Quarter Moon that conjuncts and squares U.S. Mars, symbolizing the military in this country. At this time Saturn and Uranus continue to conjunct U.S. Neptune. This is also the same day that transiting Pluto stations direct – resuming its forward motion into Capricorn, in almost perfect square with the Libra U.S. Midheaven that symbolizes the leadership of the country including the administration. Transformation is still the watchword for America, becoming especially prominent in November and December when Saturn squares Pluto in early Libra. Over the week following, as Mercury retrogrades across the U.S. Midheaven also, and as Saturn and Uranus draw closer to a perfect opposition, further information is bound to come to light concerning the deception in high places that still continues long after the Bush white house has been dismantled.

With the degree of the Saturn-Uranus opposition and this September 18th New Moon aspecting U.S. Mercury as well as U.S. Neptune, the media including the entertainment media will likely be involved.

September 4th Full Moon
This Full Moon, across the Virgo – Pisces axis and 12 or so degrees away from the forming Saturn – Uranus opposition represents the flowering of the impulse from the New Moon of August 20th, which was all about the idealism and the potential pain as well as the joy of living large. Currently in the present month, with so much Saturn in the picture we are being brought down to the reality of the various situations that we find ourselves in, and this Full Moon configuration reflects that in spades. Still, with Jupiter, Neptune and Uranus still in the picture, there is plenty of optimism and the wild impulse of delight to also enjoy, and to deal with.

September 6th Mercury retrograde
Just two days after the Full Moon, Mercury retrogrades in early Libra, square Mars, making for a retrograde event that is stronger than usual. Mercury will re-enter Virgo just prior to the mid-month New Moon, when it will also square Pluto in Capricorn, and conjunct Saturn, finally straightening out on the 29th. Mercury escapes its retrograde shadow on October 13th. With so much Saturn in the picture, this Mercury retrograde will likely be especially obvious, with missed connections and mechanical and communication breakdowns extremely evident. This is a great time for reflection on where your life is leading you.

September 11th Last Quarter Moon
This Quarter Moon, traditionally described as a "crisis in consciousness," is a time of increased awareness brought on by a further unfolding of the dominant polarity of this month, Saturn opposite Uranus. Do we go or do we stay the course? Perhaps a little of both. Jupiter and Venus in the picture of this otherwise quite tense configuration give us optimism. Pluto also stations this day, turning to direct motion and reminding us of the fundamental transformation that is ongoing all this year and next, and that will affect the very structure of our lives. At least on the collective level, this is basically a very good thing as we begin to prune the rose bush that has been growing in some problematic directions for far too long.

September 18th New Moon
This New Moon in Virgo is extremely powerful, especially in the context of the Mercury retrograde period. This is because the New Moon conjuncts Saturn almost exactly, while Saturn is still in close contact with Uranus by means of their nearly exact opposition, bringing in the antithetical archetypes into contrast of conservatism versus freedom from prior conditioning. One idea (Saturn) is simply to stay the course and work within the existing paradigm, while the other (Uranus) is to move forward bravely into the unknown. Neptune in a similar degree of Aquarius is also in the picture, softening and idealizing the impact. Nonetheless, the contrast between these powerful archetypes is stark and uncompromising, so that integration is the challenge. Somehow the middle way must be found.

September 25th First Quarter Moon
This phase is traditionally described as a "crisis in action," and represents a time when the impulse from the New Moon must be rectified with the realities of the situation as it is actually encountered. This is a difficult time, since the working out of the contrasting energies of Saturn and Uranus is problematic to begin with. Pluto, now direct, is doing its transformation and its mischief in the early degrees of Capricorn, meaning that the very structure of our lives that we rely on is irrevocably changing. Mercury remains in retrograde, making it even harder to see clearly through to the resolution that we so desperately seek. All is not lost however; reliance on the power of Spirit has never been higher, or more necessary.