Summary
Mars in Virgo During September
Venus Direct in Cancer September 3
Jupiter Retrograde in Aries September 4 – December 30
New Moon in Leo/Uttarphalguni September 14
Mercury Direct in Leo September 15
Sun Transits Virgo September 17 – October 17
Full Moon in Pisces/Uttarabhadra September 29
October 2023 Headlines

Summary

For an in-depth analysis of specific planetary placements, please continue with the full planetary forecast.

Mars in Virgo During September

Mars entered Mercury's earth sign of Virgo on August 18th and will move into Libra on October 3rd. This puts Mars in a good position to get work done, move things around, and reassign power output. With Mercury retrograde for the first half of September, Mars may be the voice of reason amidst a flurry of activity and multitasking.

When Mars exited Leo in mid-August, he was also exiting from three notable influences coming at him from Saturn in Aquarius and the Jupiter plus Rahu combination in Aries. If it seemed like things began to move, click into place, or begin to work around mid-August, it could be Mars' new post in Virgo that is inspiring this.

Rather than being aspected by others, Mars is pushing back. Transiting through Virgo gives Mars an aspect on Sagittarius, which could be intense, but not necessarily in a bad way, as the Jupiter + Rahu combination is also impactig Sagittarius. Mars will also be aspecting Jupiter's watery sign of Pisces as well as his own fire sign of Aries, where the Jupiter + Rahu combo is actually sitting.

Continue to ride this energetic train through September. The chaos and pressure of Saturn and Rahu will always be landing somewhere in our lives. Enjoy this window of facility where power can be organized and directed in productive ways. There may even be an increase in momentum when Mercury in Leo regains direct motion on September 15th.

Venus Direct in Cancer September 3

By late August, early morning risers will have noticed the gorgeous, shining planet Venus rising before the Sun in the eastern sky. The retrograde phase of Venus will change on September 3, as Venus stations in direct motion at 18 degrees Cancer.

Venus is the planet that pushes the agenda of connection, oneness, beauty, creativity, and vitality. Most human beings desire the Venus-related things in life: relationship, comfort, good food, beautiful things.

Venus began her retrograde cycle in the early degrees of Leo on July 22nd, beginning to move away from her pursuit of Mars through the spring months, then retreating back into the sign of Cancer on August 7th. After regaining forward motion on September 3rd, Venus will move through the latter degrees of Cancer, moving back into Leo on October 1st.

Venus originally transited in forward motion through Cancer from May 30th through July 7th this year. It could be that the events of June that were connected to Venus could get another chance to express.

During June 2023, when Venus first moved forward through Cancer, Mars was heavily involved, which could have been quite passionate, yet possibly frustrating. During September 2023, Venus will be solo cruising through the Moon's watery sign, allowing us to feel into our emotional life and connections with others in a very sensitive way. Feeling the vibes of what makes us comfortable emotionally is a great practice for this month.

Not only is Venus unaccompanied in Cancer, the sign of Cancer itself is a fantastic safe space this month, with no other intense aspects chopping up the waters. This could be great for gaining emotional clarity as well as deep diving into artistic or music projects and pursuits. With Cancer being connected to nesting and home environments, this could be a good month to polish up the look of your home by deep cleaning or cosmetic upgrades.

Retrograde Venus may have brought back previous connections or relationships for your consideration. Forward moving Venus is ready to make things stick if the current connections are feeling nurturing and supportive in these new-old relationships.

The forward jaunt of Venus in Cancer will be entirely in the nakshatra of Ashlesha, a dynamic environment ruled by Mercury. The practical, analytical energy of Mercury could be helpful as we navigate intensifying connections.

Jupiter Retrograde in Aries September 4 – December 30

As Venus stations direct, the great Jupiter stations retrograde on September 4th, keeping our retrograde season clicking along through December. Jupiter assumes retrograde status at 22 degrees Aries, in the nakshatra of Bharani, and will travel all the way back to 12 degrees Aries by December 30th, when he once again bounces his way in forward motion through Aries.

Any planet in retrograde motion can give us wildcard results. Jupiter's natural push for positivity, growth, truth, and wisdom could deflate a bit during this four month period. Not that Jupiter stops being a good guy, its just that what is good could seem a little puzzling, making us question what is actually true, good, and beautiful.

Jupiter entered into Aries on April 20, 2023, joining Rahu, which created some turbulence for many of us. Jupiter joining Rahu can create situations where rapid growth is possible, but assurance that the direction is right must be solid. Galloping off in fits and starts or jetting off into the wrong regions could have been a theme in the past four months.

Jupiter will be alone in Aries for the final four months of his year-long Aries run, when Jupiter resumes direct motion at 12 degress Aries, in the last pada of Ashwini nakshatra. This pivot of Jupiter, just as 2023 comes to a close, could be a very positive moment where we go either backwards or forwards to the first steps of a new enterprise or venture, a do-over or giddy-up situation where, either way, we're on the road to growth and a new phase of learning.

During Jupiter's retrograde phase, the Rahu-Ketu axis will also be shifting. There are two calculation methods for pinpointing the location of the north and south nodes of the Moon, which are actually abstract mathematical points that can only be observed when the axis aligns with a Sun-Moon conjunction (at the new Moon) or Sun-Moon opposition (at the full Moon.)

The nodal axis location progresses through the zodiac in opposite direction from the usual path of the Sun and Moon. This antizodiacal motion is accompanied by a wobbly nature, which actually sees this axis move in forward motion, sometimes... Tracking the exact location of the nodal axis yields our "True Node" calculation. We have developed a way to smooth out this wobbly path by averaging the location of the nodal axis, resulting in our "Mean Node" calculation.

When we are thinking about this upcoming shift as applied to our own lives or horoscopes, we want to know when this shift will occur! The Mean node shift of Rahu to Pisces and Ketu to Virgo occurs on October 29th, while the True node shift occurs on November 29th, giving us about a month window where we may feel comparable shifts in our own lives as the nodal axis settles into position for the next 1.5 years.

September sees Jupiter begin retrograde motion. October will show us an eclipse pairing affecting the signs of Virgo and Libra (at the Annular Solar Eclipse on October 14th) and then Aries (at the Partial Lunar Eclipse on October 28th-29th.) Just after the lunar eclipse at the end of October, the Rahu-Ketu axis begins to shift, leaving retrograde Jupiter alone in Aries through year's end.

The separation of Jupiter and Rahu, followed by Jupiter's subsequent return to direct motion in fiery Aries, implies that in order for us to fully embody the positive, powerful growth that Jupiter alone in Aries implies from December 2023 through April 2024, we may have to release something, something that we likely really want to hold on to.

As we work up to these astrological events that move us through the final quarter of 2023, start now with the task of detangling what you want from what is good for your forward progress and long-term growth. Jupiter's retrograde cycle starting September 4th may slow things down enough in some realm that it is possible to back out of what isn't working and re-evaluate direction and resources. Jupiter loves a good investment and is wise enough to know when a good investment has gone wrong.

New Moon in Leo/Uttarphalguni September 14

The strong Sun in Leo will have the Moon come in to join for the new Moon at 28 degrees Leo, in the Sun's own nakshatra of Uttaraphalguni, on September 14th. With the trio of impactive aspects still coming into Leo from Aquarius and Aries, we could find ourselves ready to really scrap it all and start fresh in some way. If it hasn't yet become clear that some things are working and some aren't, and that in order to move forward, what is not working needs to be remediated or rejected, it likely will become clear by mid-September.

Notice which of the fruits have ripened on your trees and begin the process of harvesting. What has not fruited will be ready for compost. Notice where your energy drains are. Take stock of what charges you up and makes you shine.

Joining the Sun and Moon in Leo will be retrograde Mercury, just at the last few hours of his recent retrograde phase, slowing down to stop and move forward again. This could feel like a pivotal moment when what has passed will recede, whether we are ready or not.

Shed the skin and get ready to wiggle forward. As the Moon waxes through the latter half of September, we may be moving toward new creative endeavors, fresh connections and relationships to expand our engagement with life. The next new Moon occurs on October 14th as the Sun and Moon meet in the late degrees of Virgo, close enough to the shifting nodal axis to cause an annular solar eclipse at the juncture of the signs Virgo and Libra.

Mercury Direct in Leo September 15

Mercury lingering in Leo has been extended due to a retrograde cycle that wraps up on September 15th, just a couple of days before the Sun transits to Virgo, after which Mercury alone will remain in Leo, the sign that is currently receiving the most intense, compound, and challenging aspects from the outer planets. This signals deep, disruptive, and inevitable change for the Leos among us, or for the house in one's personal horoscope that coincides with the sign of Leo.

Generally, Mercury retrograde periods can be quite active, either by choice or by circumstance. While active, it may not be wholly productive, due to indulgence in too much multitasking or overextending time bound schedules.

As Mercury comes to a stall at 14 degrees Leo in the nakshatra of Purvaphalguni on September 15th, we may find ourselves taking stock of the frenetic events of the past month, with compound retrograde planets mutually aspecting, specfically Saturn and Mercury, both retrograde and opposing one another in Aquarius and Leo, respectively.

The last week of August through mid-September could feel busy, urgent, and full of expectations. When Mercury resumes direct motion and Sun also moves out to Virgo, we may begin to gain confidence in our projects and directions, inspired and excited to dive into new creative pursuits including music, fine arts, writing, and performance of all kinds.

When Mercury resumes direct motion, it will be receiving aspects from retrograde Jupiter in Aries, as well as nearly-always-retrograde Rahu in Aries, as well as directly across the board from retrograde Saturn in his own sign, who also is pushing on the pairing in Aries. This is quite a powerful flow of pressure and movement, that due to the instability and upredictability of retrograde motion expressing through both Saturn and Jupiter, could require that a great deal of recalibration be applied to our plans on daily basis.

Direct moving Mercury will advance quickly through the latter degrees of Leo, entering his own sign of Virgo on October 1st. Mercury leaves Leo as Venus enters, moving through Leo from October 1st to November 2nd, giving us one more month and one more planet to creatively confront the life shaping influences from Saturn, Jupiter, and Rahu before that structure begins to break up starting in November.

Sun Transits Virgo September 17 – October 17

With Mercury left to remedy and manage the continuing choppy, push-pull energy coming into Leo, the Sun moves on to Virgo on September 17th. For the first half of this Sun transit through Virgo, the effects of Sun and Mercury will be energized and improved by a parivartana, exchange of signs. Sun in Virgo is hosted by Mercury, and Mercury in Leo is hosted by Sun. This exchange creates a strong bond temporarily betweeen the two planets involved, elevating their function and results.

The Sun joins Mars in Virgo for the first couple of weeks of his Virgo transit, bringing fire and focus to the projects governed by Mars. Those with significant placements in either the sign of Virgo or its opposite, Pisces, could feel empowered by this transit through the later part of September. Virgo is a sign ruled by the earth element, which provides good grounding for the fiery influences of Sun and Mars combined.

Get fired up and make sure you are grounded while doing it. Avoid impulsive decisions that are motivated by impatience or frustration. Mercury and Sun in exchange give us the perspective and the data; its up to us to manage our decisions and directions.

Full Moon in Pisces/Uttarabhadra September 29

Depending upon your location on Earth, you will see the full Moon in Pisces late in the evening of September 28th or early in the morning of September 29th. The Sun at 12 degrees Virgo beams directly across the zodiac, catching the Moon full-faced at 12 degrees Pisces.

Moon will be in the sign of Pisces ruled by Jupiter and more specifically in the nakshatra of Uttarabhadra, ruled by Saturn. This cradling of the vulnerable Moon by the weavers of time and space is further echoed by Saturn and Jupiter flanking the Moon in Pisces as they occupy the adjacent signs.

After some intense months behind us, this could be a moment where even amidst a perpetual pile of detritus and disorganization, we can see the big picture and have some faith that even though we can't see around the next bend, we are indeed on the right road. A special combination of practical foundation and positive bravado should be able to push us up and out when the time is right.

With the retrograde status of both Jupiter and Saturn affecting this full Moon, it would be wise to plan and scheme your forward progress while remaining open to unexpected twists and turns that could provide both depth and breadth to the plans you may be cooking up.

October 2023 Headlines

Mercury Transits Virgo October 1 - 18
Venus Transits Leo October 1 – November 2
Mars Transits Libra October 3 – November 15
New Moon in Virgo/Chitra October 14 (Annular Solar Eclipse)
Sun Transits Libra October 17 – November 16
Mercury Transits Libra October 18 – November 6
Full Moon in Aries/Krittika October 28 (Partial Lunar Eclipse)
Nodal Axis (Mean Calculation) Moves to Pisces/Virgo October 31