Monthly Vedic Astrology Forecast

Mercury Transits Cancer July 2 – 21
Venus in Taurus June 29 – July 26
Full Moon in Sagittarius/Purvashada July 8
Mars Transits Cancer July 10 – August 26
Sun Enters Cancer July 16
Mercury Transits Leo July 21 – September 26
New Moon in Cancer/Pushya July 23
Venus Transits Gemini July 26 – August 20

Mercury Transits Cancer July 2 – 21

After crossing through the signs of Taurus and Gemini during the month of June, Mercury dives into the Moon's sign of Cancer on July 2, still moving quickly but slowing down a bit compared to June's speed.

This will be the first spell for a few months that Mercury has a bit of alone time to think clearly, having been traveling close to the Sun, Mars and Venus during the past few months.

Mercury and the Moon share the designation of planets associated with mental activity. Mercury's realm lies in the informational and analytical functions of the mind while the Moon covers the vast ocean of consciousness and emotions that flow from the mind. The Moon is friend to all, so Mercury is in neutral territory in the Moon's sign of Cancer.

Mercury transit in Cancer brings dry, objective mental functioning into a sea of tenderness and emotion. This is a good space in which to learn from emotional reactions and analyze feelings.

Venus in Taurus June 29 – July 26

Venus begins July in the early degrees of her own sign of Taurus, moving through and exiting to Gemini on July 26. This position of Venus is also quite supportive to Mercury's placement in Cancer. There is a permanent aspect between the signs of Taurus and Cancer which is highly energized with the presence of Venus and Mercury during the first few weeks of July.

This relationship between Taurus and Cancer energized by Venus and Mercury should be quite supportive of relationship, creativity, mental awareness and physical rejuvenation.

The sign of Gemini currently holding Sun and Mars is also cushioned by Venus and Mercury flanking, bringing some peace and beauty to the very fiery combination of Sun and Mars for the first part of July until they join Mercury in Cancer by mid-month.

Planets gain strength to produce results in the signs that they rule, which is the case with Venus in Taurus. Taurus is additionally energized by receiving planetary aspects from Saturn in Scorpio and Jupiter in Virgo. When a sign gets energy from the expansive Jupiter and the contractive Saturn at the same time, it is a call to establish balance between the forces of growth and diminishment. This entire month we should be enjoying this strongly placed Venus as it receives signals of "yes" from Jupiter and "no" from Saturn, asking us to weigh the wisdom of both concepts, especially as they manifest in Venus' realm of connection, relationship and creation.

Full Moon in Sagittarius/Purvashada July 8

The Moon is waxing as July begins; make sure to look for the Moon with Jupiter in the western sky in the evening after sunset from June 30 – July 1. On Thursday, July 6, the Moon joins Saturn at 29º Scorpio, which may bring some pressure and trouble to the mind, but that should pass by the next morning as Moon moves into the early degrees of Sagittarius, coming into opposition with the Sun and Mars.

By the evening of July 8, the Moon grows to the fullest point at 24° Sagittarius, exactly opposite the Sun at 24° Gemini. Sagittarius is ruled by the planet Jupiter, giving the Moon a very positive and auspicious placement. Additionally the Moon will be moving through the constellation of Purvashada, lorded by the planet Venus and ruled by Apas, the lord of the waters.

This full Moon that occurs in Sagittarius each year is known as Guru Purnima, the full Moon when we are called to honor our teachers and guides. The two gurus among the planets are Jupiter and Venus, both of which are supporting the Moon as the sign lord (Jupiter) and nakshatra lord (Venus.) Let us all honor our teachers on this day as we gratefully bow to those who transmit knowledge, wisdom and guidance.

Mars Transits Cancer July 10 – August 26

On Monday, July 10, Mars changes signs from Gemini to Cancer, where he moves steadily through in about six weeks. Mars is preceded by Mercury entering Cancer and quickly followed by the Sun a few days later.

The Sun has been moving at a faster speed toward Mars and the two conjoin at 10° Cancer on July 26, after which the Sun will move ahead of Mars in the zodiac. This means that we will begin to see Mars appearing in the eastern sky before dawn (like Venus) by mid-August.

There was a similar configuration of Mercury, Mars and Sun in Cancer between July 31 – August 5, 2015. This year, those three are in Cancer between July 10 – 21. The Moon is the ruler of Cancer and makes a nice watery environment with which to temper the fiery natures of Sun and Mars.

Mars' debility in Cancer can manifest as frustration. Mars enjoys engineering ways to maximize power; the sign of Cancer is rather a gentle environment, more along the lines of a nursery, aimed at nurturing growth and accommodating the fluctuation of emotion. Cancer can be equated with the home environment; this may be a good period for renovation or work projects in the home.

In August, we will see Mars and Rahu meet at the border between Cancer and Leo. Mars will move forward from Cancer to Leo and Rahu moves backward from Leo to Cancer. It is difficult to pinpoint a day that this occurs, as Rahu's nature is more likened to a cloud or shadow rather than a discernible body.

By "mean node" reckoning, Rahu enters Cancer on August 18 and by "true node" reckoning, Rahu enters Cancer on September 8. This three week period can be viewed as the transition of Rahu/Ketu axis into Cancer/Capricorn. Either way you look, Mars will also be moving from debility in Cancer, through the gandanta between Cancer and Leo and into a friendly sign for him, Leo.

For those particularly ruled by Mars or those with significant placements near this Cancer-Leo gandanta, this time period between mid-August and first week of September could yield notable situations. Therefore, watch how this Mars in Cancer transit is manifesting in your day-to-day life as it could give clues to what shifts may occur as Mars and Rahu interact later in the summer.

Sun Enters Cancer July 16

Sun exits Gemini and enters Cancer on July 16 for the dependable one-month transit through each sign, exiting to his own sign of Leo on August 16. The Sun joins Mercury and Mars in the Moon's placid sign of Cancer, free of other planetary aspects but crowded together in the same sign.

Whatever sign a planet occupies is under the direct influence of that sign's lord. In Cancer, the Moon is the controller of the planets contained therein. As the Moon's status is constantly changing due to the rapid movement of the Moon into different nakshatras and signs, as well as different phases of waxing and waning, we can expect the results of the planets in the Cancer to reflect this changeable nature. This may result in rapidly changing moods, emotional fluctuations and mental gymnastics.

The Sun is in a comfortable position in Cancer. While none of the planets are pushing a planetary aspect onto the planets in Cancer, the sign of Scorpio gives its sign aspect to Cancer, similarly to Taurus giving aspect to Cancer as mentioned above. This brings the influence of Saturn in Scorpio into Cancer for the remainder of Saturn's transit there, until October 25.

Because Saturn in Scorpio may bring in themes of deep blockage or pressure, this could be a source of that frustration for Mars and a source of challenge for the sovereignty of the Sun. Try to keep cool and balanced, knowing that there are hidden sources of pressure coming toward personal power and autonomy. As always, the remedy for Saturn's difficulty is rooted in humility and surrender.

Mercury Transits Leo July 21 – September 26

Mercury begins to cool his heels as July progresses, moving into Leo on July 21, right into the cloud of Rahu's presence at 1º Leo. This again triggers that first zodiacal gandanta, those three junctures in the zodiac that join a water sign with a fire sign. In this case, we are seeing the joint between Cancer (water) and Leo (fire.)

Overall, 2017 has a gandanta theme, with Saturn crossing the gandanta between Scorpio (water) and Sagittarius (fire) three times, courtesy of a well-timed retrograde cycle. The other major contributor to the theme is Rahu, who moves naturally in reverse motion, crossing the gandanta between Cancer and Leo but in reverse order, fire sign (Leo) into water sign (Cancer.) This crossing of Rahu happens between mid-August and the first week of September.

This means that for a few weeks, we have Mercury joining Rahu in Leo, at the last part of Rahu's transit there. Mercury is great at analyzing and organizing, which is a great compliment to Rahu's impulsive and chaotic nature. This would be a good time in which to look back on the events of the past 1.5 years since Rahu has been transiting Leo and try to understand what really transpired and why, especially in the realm of raw desire, which is ruled by Rahu.

The last crossing of Rahu from Leo to Cancer occurred around December 18, 1998 – January 12, 1999. Mercury would be delighted to analyze events of that time and correlate them with current events. Saturn was retrograde then, too and placed in the early degrees of Aries, whereas at this time it is retrograde and placed in the sign of Scorpio, both signs ruled by Mars.

Aside from the meeting with Rahu, Mercury in Leo can be expected to boost our studies, communications, performance and leadership capacity. The reason for Mercury's long stay in Leo will be an upcoming retrograde cycle between August 12 – September 5. That will be a good time for editing and re-wiring.

New Moon in Cancer/Pushya July 23

The Sun and Moon join at 7° Cancer in the nakshatra of Pushya in the pre-dawn hours of July 23. Since the Sun will not yet have risen, the day is still Saturday, making Saturn the ruler of the day at that moment. Saturn is also the planetary ruler of Pushya, the nakshatra where Sun and Moon join with Mars (8° Cancer) for the July new Moon.

As mentioned earlier, we are also seeing the sign aspect between Cancer and Scorpio activated by the many planets involved in this new Moon. The ruling deity of Pushya is Brihaspati, the counselor and priest of the devas (divine beings.) This nakshatra is associated with applied wisdom, ritual and righteous behavior.

The involvement of Saturn and Mars with this new Moon may imply some work or willing sacrifice that can be made to initiate needed changes. Brihaspati would be pleased with a small ceremony that defined and honored this sacrifice or relinquishment.

The sign of Cancer is ruled by the Moon itself, and while it will be hosting debilitated Mars, even at its new phase, the Moon is relatively strong due to being in its own sign. In addition, Venus the planet that exalts the Moon will still be placed in its own sign of Taurus. This supports Moon as well as sweetening the status of Saturn, who Venus is nearly exactly opposing on this new Moon. Strong Venus in Taurus is also in a sign aspect relationship with the planets in Cancer, bringing a compassionate and creative tone to this new Moon cycle.

Venus Transits Gemini July 26 – August 20

After the supportive participation in the new Moon of July 23, Venus exactly opposes retrograde Saturn on the morning of Monday, July 24 and then moves on into Gemini on July 26. Gemini is a very friendly sign for Venus and remains unaspected by any malefic influences during the entire transit of Venus through August 20.

This is a quick transit for Venus in which we may feel quite energized to move about, network, socialize, communicate and create. This could be a comfortable, positive groove that encourages us to make friends with the underlying demand that the 2017 gandanta theme is making.

Gandanta theme implies pushing through a difficult, tight situation in order to transition from one segment of a cycle to another. In life, this can manifest in many ways. The fact that both Saturn and Rahu are passing through these points during this calendar year is giving quite a clue that something may have to be dissolved or destroyed in order to clear space for new growth. Saturn and Rahu are both associated with vayu tattwa, the air element, paradoxically both invisible and impossible to touch yet as strong as the wind.

With the underlying pressure and challenge that comes with pushing through difficulty, we can greatly appreciate the positive, diplomatic relating ability of Venus, strongly placed in Taurus for most of the month followed by the transit of Gemini which should lead to some productive Venus activity.