October is not a particularly exciting month, but it will be an intense one. To begin with, Mercury, as well as all five outer planets, will be in retrograde. Progress cannot be made quickly under this influence. When Mercury goes direct on October 3, we may start to feel a little more freed up. But only a little. It takes Mercury about a week or two to get back on track after being retrograde. Patience and diligence will be important qualities to maintain. By the end of the month, only three planets will be in retrograde. By then, the energy will be loosening up quite a bit and progress will resume.
The month also begins with Saturn and Uranus making their last exact square aspect (at least to the minute). Both planets will be at 18 degrees from October 1st to October 12th. Saturn (tradition) and Uranus (rebellion) are co-rulers of Aquarius and, as such, are harbingers of social change when they create difficult aspects to each other. This conjunction occurs about a month before the midterm elections. Will the country continue moving towards authoritarianism? Or will there be significant pushback? Whatever direction the country goes, we will be sorting out the repercussions until 2032. Then Saturn and Uranus will form a conjunction in Gemini and a new 45-year cycle will begin.
Mars continues to square Neptune throughout October. This is a difficult aspect that can carry murky and corrupt energy. This transiting aspect is also creating aspects with the Mars-Neptune square in the natal chart of the United States. As I’ve said before, this is a time to reconcile our national history of exploiting or sidelining the poor and minority groups.
The New Moon at 2 degrees of Scorpio on October 25 will be accompanied by a solar eclipse. This adds extra intensity to the New Moon. In addition, this New Moon will be conjunct Venus and Inconjunct (an unusual 150-degree aspect) Jupiter. I encourage all of you to write affirmations and visualize the manifestation of your fondest dreams and wishes. This will be a lovely time to start creating what you really want. Don’t hold yourself back! Be creative and be bold!