Monthly Vedic Astrology Forecast

Mars Transits Aquarius November 5 – December 23
New Moon in Libra/Vishaka November 7
Venus Direct November 16
Sun Transits Scorpio November 16 – December 15
Mercury Retrograde in Scorpio November 16 – December 6
Full Moon in Taurus/Krittika November 22

Mars Transits Aquarius November 5 – December 23

Mars entered his sign of exaltation, Capricorn, on May 2 and has been moving to and fro through Saturn's earth sign since then. This six-month span has seen Mars moving both forward and in reverse while navigating around the south node of the Moon, Ketu, with whom he shares the dignity of being co-lord of Scorpio. This has been an intense combination that has informed much of the astrological weather of 2018.

Mars becomes exalted at 28° Capricorn, which he reaches finally on November 1-2. During the last two weeks of October, we may have experienced increased levels of drive and focus that Mars brings when in good dignity.

On November 5, Mars moves out of Capricorn, and away from the influence of the nodal axis which currently sees Rahu placed in Cancer and Ketu placed in Capricorn. The amplifying nature of Rahu has been boosting the fiery power of Mars during this entire transit through the summer and autumn months. We may feel a notable sense of release and relief with Mars entering into Aquarius.

We count on Mars to give us strength, focus, planning and strategy while at the same time we want to prevent the aggravation of Mars, which can cause tempers to flare up with aggressive behavior. Saturn in Sagittarius currently will now be giving his aspect to Mars while in Aquarius, which can help us put the chill on Mars when he gets too fiery.

From Aquarius, Mars throws his energy to Taurus, Leo and Virgo, all signs that are currently vacant except for the passing of the Moon once per month. If these signs are prominent in personal charts, they may benefit from the increased power of Mars affecting them through November and December.

New Moon in Libra/Vishaka November 7

The Moon joins the Sun at 22° of Venus' air sign, Libra, on the morning of Wednesday, November 7. This part of Libra is the first quarter of Vishaka nakshatra, ruled by the planet Jupiter and by the deities Indra-Agni. Vishaka spans the last third of Libra and the first few degrees of Scorpio.

With the Moon at its nadir of energy and the Sun debilitated, we may feel some low physical and mental energy during this time, especially with the energetic lord of Libra, Venus, in retrograde motion. Venus is nicely placed with the Sun and Moon in her own sign, but the retrograde status can reverse or agitate the natural expression of planets. Normally in Libra, we'd expect Venus to bring us together, but in this current situation, we may be feeling less social and more withdrawn from others.

The nakshatra Vishaka has a unique initiatory quality. One of the symbols is an arched gateway, which implies an entrance or a passage through something. Vishaka spans through the natural 7th and 8th signs, Libra and Scorpio. This brings up the very passionate human theme that comes through the masculinity of Mars and the femininity of Venus. The 7th house represents the realm of relationships and interactions with others. The 8th house represents how we experience and digest the experiences of relationships. The image of a gateway implies a passage from one state to another, so we may be seeing that manifest in some way in our lives as we take significant next steps. This passage is echoed in the movement of Mars from one sign to another (Capricorn-Aquarius) just a couple of days prior to this new Moon.

The transition between airy Libra and watery Scorpio, bridged nicely by Vishaka, requires moving from ideas, thought and theory to perceiving and feeling practical, tactile results. Easy to say, more difficult to enact! This new Moon may see us reaching inward for guidance on how we are really going to take things to the next level.

Venus Direct November 16

The Moon moves out of Libra and onward, waxing during the middle weeks of November and moving through the garland of planets that begins with Venus in Libra and ends with Mars in Aquarius. Meanwhile in Libra, Venus will be resuming direct motion at 2° on November 16, just as the Sun moves out of Libra and into Scorpio via the Vishaka portal.

This direct motion bodes well for all, as our benefic and beautiful Venus will be quite free of the heat of the Sun at the early degrees of her sign and heading in the direction that supports her energetic, creative and connective nature. After this point, we should begin to see Venus appear in the eastern pre-dawn sky within a couple of weeks.

Venus debilitates the Sun, so this oscillation between Venus heralding the Sun as "morning star" and following the Sun as "evening star" is an interesting phenomena to study. The Sun is the king and Venus is a minister, a diplomat whose focus is the relationship between the people and the governments. This could be a pivotal time for leaders, governments and heads of organizations, as the desires of the people become more prominently displayed.

Venus moves through Libra for the remainder of 2018, getting up early before the Sun and slowly lighting up and cleaning nearly every degree of Libra without much trouble from any other planet. By December 23, Mars will begin to give Venus an aspect, but until then, save for a visit by the Moon, Venus will be alone in her own home, with time to clean and decorate, to create new spaces and forms, to host guests and to connect with others.

Sun Transits Scorpio November 16 – December 15

Just as Venus stations direct and resumes direct motion, the Sun moves from Libra to Scorpio on November 16, joining Jupiter and Mercury. The Sun is moving into a two month period of transiting friendly signs, first Scorpio, ruled by Mars and Ketu and then Sagittarius, ruled by Jupiter. This always seems like a period of retreat and recovery for the Sun on its southern course and coming out of debilitation in Libra.

The Sun will join Jupiter in Scorpio, which is a meeting of friends in a friendly sign. Scorpio is known to be a challenging sign, but the gifts that come through the transformations required to traverse Scorpio include strength and freedom. Jupiter remains in Scorpio from October 11, 2018 – November 4, 2019.

Sun and Jupiter are friends but also given the designation of sattwa graha, the planets that promotes righteous behavior, light and purity. We may see this combined force of Sun and Jupiter bringing light and truth to the dark corners that we allow to harbor our hidden troubles. During the darkest month of the year in the northern hemisphere, this is a good time to light candles as a symbol of bringing light to places that have a natural deficiency of light. With light comes perception, the first step toward deeper understanding.

While the days are short and the Sun's warmth is distant, we will have the addition of warm and golden Jupiter this year to teach us how to find the positive in the difficult situations that require strength and courage.

Mercury Retrograde in Scorpio November 16 – December 6

The third astrological event of Friday, November 16 is Mercury assuming retrograde motion after Venus resumes direct motion and Sun moves signs. Mercury is the third party in the Scorpio zone with Jupiter and Sun at this time and will begin retrograde motion at 20° Scorpio, reversing back toward Jupiter and Sun, reaching 4° Scorpio on December 6, 2018 and resuming direct motion.

Because of this retrograde motion, Mercury will remain in Scorpio through the end of 2018. Interestingly, Mercury moves to Sagittarius and Venus moves to Scorpio at the turn of the new calendar year, after both planets spend a longer-than-average span in the signs they occupy through year's end: Scorpio for Mercury and Libra for Venus.

Mercury in Scorpio is not in a friendly sign, but the flexibility of Mercury enables him to function well in many challenging situations. Mercury's skills include being a quick and bright student, so this is a ripe opportunity to spend some significant time with the teacher, Jupiter. The retrograde portion of Mercury's transit may bring back teacher-student connections or encourage us to review old lessons that may yield new and deeper meanings.

Scorpio is currently receiving the aspect of Rahu from Cancer, so this can always amplify, agitate, confuse or obscure the situation. We could also feel this on a simple level of Rahu's desire for the results of certain signs and houses that he affects with his transit and aspects. We may feel a deep push to study, find teachers or investigate schools and learning opportunities.

Looking from a different angle, Mercury is the ruler of currency and markets while Jupiter is the ruler of positive growth. These two placed in Scorpio may be a bit stifled in these roles, so we may see some volatility in currencies and stock markets through year's end, especially with the aspect of Rahu bearing down.

Mercury in retrograde status can be difficult on practical levels as the smooth running communications that Mercury facilitates can become twisted or jammed, causing miscommunications and interruptions to systems, schedules, vehicles and communication devices. Usually the best remedy is Saturn-related: slow down, use caution, limit activity and double check all connections.

Full Moon in Taurus/Krittika November 22

The waxing Moon passes through all of the planets arrayed between Libra and Aquarius, finally becoming strong and full at 7° Taurus during the evening of Thursday, November 22, which is also celebrated as Thanksgiving in the US. This is a month that the new Moon and full Moon both occur in the signs of Venus.

Krittika nakshatra spans between the latter degrees of Aries and the first ten degrees of Taurus, ruled by the Sun and by the deity Agni. Krittika has a fiery nature that is somewhat dampened by the parts that fall in earthy Taurus rather than fiery Aries.

The lord of Taurus, Venus, will be strongly placed in her own sign of Libra and solidly moving forward in the zodiac. This gives a gentle strength to this full Moon which is supportive of Venus-related matters such as creativity and relationship.

Additionally, Moon will be getting the direct gaze of Jupiter and Mercury who join the Sun and also from Mars who currently moves through Aquarius. This number of planets affecting the full Moon could cause mental and emotional energy to be very intense at this time.

Due to this strong push on the Moon, it may be wise to make plans that create a channel for the strong mental and emotional energy. In the US, this is a day that families gather to give thanks for the bounty that the earth provides. Let us keep this gratitude at the forefront, with the intention that all in the world gain the benefit of clean foods, spacious shelter and protection from manipulation by others.