Monthly Vedic Astrology Forecast

Planets in Scorpio December 1 - January 31

All hail the final month of 2002. In the western world, we are heading into the transition into a new year, and in the northern world, we are descending into the darkest part of our year. The dark season is always excellent for turning inward and exploring the depths of our soul, and the current dark season is especially good for that due to an abundance of planetary energy in the sign of Scorpio. In the next couple of months, we will see the transit of several of our well-known planets through Scorpio, a sign ruled by Mars, who also rules Aries. January looks to be a potentially rough month astrologically, so my proposal is to maximize any good aspects of Decembers planetary weather in order to smooth the way as much as possible toward a time that holds the potential for conflict.

Since the cosmic region of Scorpio will be heavily visited in the next couple of months, Id like to talk a bit about this mysterious, misunderstood, and much maligned zodiac archetype. If I had to describe Scorpio in one word, that word would be intense, which is also good for describing Mars energy in general. Mars represents the vital energy that propels us forward into action in the world. If youd like to build something, amass an army, engineer an irrigation system, or put monkeys into space, enlist the aid of Mars to propel you through any obstacles that arise on your quest. The Aries aspect of Mars energy is fiery and masculine, wielding the power to initiate, while the Scorpio aspect is watery and feminine, carrying the power of stability and completion. Where Aries is the commander of the army, the one who directs and decides, Scorpio is the army who carries through orders and sees the job done. Aries is fire, Scorpio is ice; these are two extreme substances that used wisely can serve to make our lives more comfortable, but misused or neglected, both fire and ice can destroy and harm. In a similar way, Mars carries the power of vitality that serves either to heal or to harm, and sometimes both.

The symbol of the Scorpion has served to inspire most people to automatically give ample space to the archetype of Scorpio in their lives. The characters generally associated with Scorpio go like this: femme fatale, suave detective, mad scientist, serial killer, and gypsy fortuneteller. People have a hard time trusting Scorpio energy, mainly because Scorpio is the realm wherein much goes on, but little of it is apparent or readily perceived. Scorpio is the place that represents the underside of life, that which is not seen, or that of which we do not speak. Covert operations, the illicit drug world, the mafia, anything described as occult, taxes, sexuality, cults, spy organizations, all of these are Scorpio ruled. Scorpio subjects are not featured on Mr. Rogers Neighborhood. As a result, very scorpionic individuals sometimes carry an air of secrecy or super privacy, and certainly mystery and magnetism. They are comfortable adventuring into territory that frightens most people. If you meet any sex therapists, devoted martial artists, or international couriers, Id be willing to bet they have some action going on in Scorpio in their astrology charts. As a culture Americans are very martial (of Mars). Our use of technology has led us to be supported and defended by a massive military-industrial complex. The technology is the Aries side of Mars, and the black gold that we use to run it, the Texas tea that we all know and love, which we extract from deep beneath the surface of the earth is the Scorpio side of our Mars energy. Yes, my friends, Scorpio rules oil, and when we see through the smokescreen of religious and moral tensions, we can see that really, deep down, what all of this war mongering is about has to do with oil and who's going to control it. I predict that the answer to this question about oil control is going to be heavily pursued in the next couple of months.

Mars and Venus Conjunct in Libra December 1 - December 31

Mars, the ruler of Scorpio, is in tight conjunction with Venus in the sign of Libra throughout the month. Venus and Mars have a love/hate relationship. Although they dont have much in common, they are extremely attracted to one another, and represent the male (Mars) and female (Venus) aspects of sexuality. Mars transiting through Venus sign in step with Venus gives us the opportunity to make nice and lay the groundwork for peaceful negotiations. Things will become a bit hotter, tense and more complex in January when Venus and Mars move into Scorpio and when Saturn, still in retrograde, moves back into Taurus and will oppose Mars and Venus for a short time. Lets hope that Venus takes that tray of grapes with her when she enters Scorpio, and that she keeps feeding them to Mars, keeping him nice and relaxed.

My general advice based on the planetary positions this month is this: clean out your basements, both physically and mentally. Own up to your stuff, on all levels, and either make it work for you or get rid of it. Scary monsters hiding in the closet need to go. Communicate honestly. Always remember that you have the choice to put the truth to work for you rather than fighting or rejecting it. Mercury is in Sagittarius for most of December and this indicates the power to communicate the truth. This could help as you excavate the dark corners of your life. Jupiter begins retrograde motion this month, right after the new Moon of Dec. 4th. Indulge in the traditional holiday activities and celebrate the promise of light that the winter solstice holds. Get together with friends and family for feast and communion. Jupiter loves religious holidays, and probably eggnog as well. Jupiter's retrograde motion may affect Mercury a bit, as Jupiter is the ruler of Sagittarius. We may experience some mild Mercury retrograde-like effects, so exercise the usual caution: double check your equipment, make sure that appointment times and places are clearly understood by all parties, and don't expect everything to go off without a hitch.

Full Solar Eclipse December 4

The first exciting Scorpio event this month is a full solar eclipse in the 8th zodiac sign on December 4th. Eclipses occur when the Sun and Moon are conjunct with either of the nodes of the Moon, Rahu or Ketu. Rahu and Ketu are the points in space where the path of the Moon crosses the ecliptic. In this case, the Sun and Moon are conjunct, in usual new moon behavior, in Scorpio within a few degrees of Ketu. Ketu, the south node of the Moon, carries an explosive yet internal energy, which can make things quite uncomfortable. Indeed, Ketu's energy is much like that of Mars and some Vedic astrologers contend that Ketu is exalted in Scorpio. This gives Ketu extreme power over the Sun and Moon on this day, and this Ketu energy may flavor the upcoming lunar cycle, which mostly plays out during December. This combination gives us the opportunity to address the Scorpio part of ourselves both on an individual and a collective basis. We all have Scorpio in one of the houses of our chart, and that arena of your life may be poked at a bit this next month.

The major challenge/opportunity of this event is the ability to see how we are manipulative and aggressive in our lives and to change those tendencies if we see fit. For example, on a collective level, we could own up to the harm that our nation and its lifestyle causes, both to ourselves and to others. (I recently had a thought that the best way to wage war on Americans would be to leave us to our own devices: soon our gluttonous habits would propel us into such a state of disease that we would be unable to continue our conquest of all of the worlds resources.) On an individual basis, this Scorpio New Moon/Solar Eclipse energy could lead to something similar to this: You suddenly realize that the intense hatred that you feel for racist people is a reflection of your own inability to accept others for who they are. You realize that your own disgust for people who refuse to use their turn signal is not unlike the repugnance that certain people feel for others based on skin color, religion, or nationality. The exposure of this variety of behavior pattern can lead to the decision to own up to the conflict that we create in the world. These types of Scorpio inspired revelations are seldom glamorous and encouraging, and are more likely painful and embarrassing. Scorpio has the power to transform matter and energy: Don't let the revelations be the end of the story. Really dig in and rework the internal wiring this month. The transformation of personal attitudes equates in reality to changing the world. Taking advantage of this opportunity this month would be an excellent preparation for the shaky ground that seems to be coming over the horizon.

Full Moon in Gemini December 20

By mid-month, much of the Scorpio inspired questioning of the new Moon will have seemed to slip away, but its really on hiatus, scheduled to come back up again in January. In the meantime, the Full Moon in Gemini on December 20 will conjunct with Saturn, and both will oppose the Sun and Mercury in Sagittarius. Use this time to learn, grow, communicate, and expand any decisions you may have made or directions you may have taken during the beginning of the month. Rejoice in seeing the truth of the matter and making choices that support that truth. Get comfortable with what really makes you grow and bring it in to your life.

Winter Solstice December 21

The winter solstice occurs on the evening of December 21 for those living in the United States. Our longest night of the year will be brightly lit by the Moon, which will be just past full. Thats good, because we need all the light we can get right now. Seasons greetings to all.