Horoscopes | Week of September 10-16, 2012

ARIES (March 21-April 19): That you, Aries, are presently (1) on fire, (2) still wielding sharp edges, and (3) filled with an innovative spirit propelling you forward is not enough reason to wholly disregard the limits on your free-enterprising which have been set by certain authorities. Even if you're in the long-and-drawn-out process of renegotiating these terms of your deference to such power structures (and if you keep at it, you might well succeed at carving out your own sovereignty), you cannot short-circuit the appropriate order of steps just because you're feeling rambunctiously eager to make shit happen now. Don't get me wrong: There are a lot of instances in which you pretty much can—and probably should—ride this forward propulsion as far as it'll take you. Just don't fuck with the agreed-upon rules, or the sanctity of anybody else's rule over their own kingdom. That's pretty straightforward, right? Furthermore, if you are too fired up and in dire need of a challenge to overcome or some territory to conquer, might I suggest using Uranus's trine to a 5th-house Venus as an incentive to 'fight the good fight' in the realm of romance, pleasure and/or creative self-expression? It'll be far more enjoyable (and far wiser) to flirt yourself into an enviable position or dazzle the audience with your artistic efforts than to bait any power-players into a showdown.

 

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): What's better for you, Taurus, is to sit on it for a spell… to buy yourself enough quiet time (preferably while enjoying a few simple domestic pleasures to soothe your soul) so that whatever golden nuggets of realization will end up busting the standoff or stalemate are safely encouraged to emerge into consciousness. That may be decidedly different than what a certain squeaky-wheel, mischief-maker and/or wielder of fairly tenacious opinions would want from you, were this someone to get their way. They'd probably prefer to actually have out the disagreement with you sooner rather than later, if only to (consciously or not) feed your irritations and win on emotional (as opposed to rational) grounds. If you're backed into such a tight corner right now, you probably won't argue your point in as coherent a manner as you ought to, if you want your ideas (not merely your tone) to come through. Your own interests demand the extra contemplative bandwidth, outside the heightened moment, to best preserve their standing. Therefore, before any threats of tensions materialize into an all-out back-and-forth, take a few breaths… and consider how best to remove yourself in advance of letting anyone 'have it'.

 

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Victory over the painful persistence of constricting consequences should sound something like this: 'I cannot erase this dark mark from my history, nor should I (for the lessons in deepening it has provided), but I will not define myself by it. My best defiance is to keep on living… and in particular, to embrace those very sorts of "silly" or "frivolous" activity that someone "in my position" is often assumed to have abandoned, victim of the debilitating pitying thrown in my direction (from others and also, at times, from myself). There is nothing to pity here, my friends, just one more human whirring through the inevitable cycles, having suffered my periodic low but also actively embracing the next high that, according to the universal laws of nature, I'm now due.' Now, Gemini, please go out and some fun with your friends, if only to snub your nose at the idea you should be at home mooning. Over the few weeks ahead, I believe you'll see actual movement with regards to any 'dark marks'—a profound status-update, a signal of another party's grip rearranging itself, a clearer view of the muddy road toward freedom. Having conscious fun alongside these developments helps propel the movement onward.

 

CANCER (June 21-July 22): You're well on your way, Cancer, to becoming so acclimated to the unpredictable nature of nearly everything around you these days, you finally master the fine skill of staying your own course regardless of adjacent turbulence. Right now, for instance, you are cruising through a potentially lucrative moment of professional (or other outward-focus) innovation… though, if you happened not to take advantage of it (because, perhaps, somebody else's all-intrusive influence has dominated your attention?), no one will force these personal profits upon you. In other words, it's on you to decide you'd rather roll the career dice, and possibly bolster your bottom-line in the process, than once again arm-wrestle some demanding individual for control over one thing or another. (Incidentally, there's no 'right' answer here.) Just in case you think I'm implying this is an easy decision to make, let me clarify: The interpersonal influence is probably stronger, due to the simple fact it's the more familiar one. A fiercer orientation toward riskier self-achievement initiatives is a more unknown commodity, which means it's both (1) scarier and (2) more chock-full of chances to learn new stuff.

 

LEO (July 23-August 22): Praise Venus (and her lovely trine to Uranus-in-your-9th) for bestowing upon you this blast of visionary optimism for all that your future now promises. If everything's going as the planets wish for you, Leo, you should be receiving glimpses of affirmation that the recent radical changes in your mindset are leading you toward a more consciously meaningful existence. Please do not forget to thank your lucky stars (since what is Venus in one's own sign if not a 'lucky star'?) for gifting you the relevant flashes of enlightenment enabling you to see this whole world beyond your previous block. Now, here's the difficult part to swallow: It is one thing to 'say all the right things', to understand the advantageousness of your continuing to follow this now-opening-up path to a greater sense of self-satisfaction… but it's entirely another to actually walk that path, every single friggin' day, one foot after the other, even when you're tired or hungry or grumpy and wistfully yearning for those salad days of not needing to stay so on-your-toes. As Pluto prepares to station in your 6th, he'd like to remind you it'll be your daily efforts—not just an exhilarating speech every now and again—which make or break your 'meaningfulness'.

 

VIRGO (August 23-September 22): On top of whatever else is going on with you (perhaps as a result of your having 'laid it down' a la last week's horoscope), I want to throw this bit out there: The upcoming weekend's New Moon in your sign (on Sat Sep 15) is a perfect opportunity to do some wishing, Virgo… and therefore, this entire week leading up to it is ideal for discarding whatever rubbish-beliefs might obstruct the transmission of your wishful intentions to their divinely-guided expression. You perfectionist Virgos often instinctively hold onto a lot of self-limited notions, having internalized supposed rules or best-practices from folks you earlier looked up to as authorities on such matters. But you are now the authority—and you have to want what you want badly enough, your desire totally trumps any and all inherited ideas that would otherwise convince you it's impossible (or at least too impractical to bother with). You must become so smitten with your creative vision, your self-fandom overpowers the capacities of your inner naysayer to say nay. Then, at the New Moon, light a candle (or conduct whatever ritualizing behavior you see fit) not only to symbolize your specific wish-intention, but to celebrate the self-confidence you've mustered, to become so daringly driven.

 

LIBRA (September 23-October 22): One more week of letting the epiphanies complete their revelation… of observing uncanny examples key individuals present to you, illustrating their motives in stark technicolor (though likely unbeknownst to them)… and of letting your inner strategist cohere these whirling sentiments into some culmination you can actually verbalize. Come next week, Libra, you'll be expected to talk—and it will be virtually impossible to put it off any longer. Regardless of how long you've been chewing on this, that doesn't necessarily decrease the emotional complicatedness I described last week; it's merely given you enough time to (hopefully) explore its nooks and crannies from various angles, so no scary feelings sneak up from behind and shout 'boo!' in your ear. Once you begin the interpersonally interactive phase of this process, you'll still be coming at it from intense personal emotion… which is a fact you should unashamedly own from the start, lest the other party attempt to critique what you're telling 'em because it's either too 'personal' or too 'emotional'. Those are not qualities to apologize for. If anything, they should appreciate the gesture of intimacy your disclosure represents.

 

SCORPIO (October 23-November 21): Speaking softly, while continuing to carry that big stick, seems to be the preferred strategy for your couple weeks ahead, Scorpio. Though your Mars-enlivened capacity for accomplishing that which you set your mind to will happily remain at a peak, the 'communicative advantage' you were wielding over the past couple weeks is falling away. With both (1) Mercury slipping into the fantastical wonderland of your 12th, where he cannot discern if his words are an actual reflection of reality or a funhouse distortion, and (2) power-player Pluto stationing in a house directly related to your day-to-day exchanges (the solar 3rd), you won't have as reliable mastery over the responses you stir in others. This is a passing moment in which a lot of listening and waiting and silently showing up in the right place at the right time will serve you well… but explaining or going on record or specifically asking for something is likelier than usual to backfire, due to the uncontrollable punch your phrasings will be instilled with. Public appearances are still okay, provided you realize just how far a diplomatic smile-and-wave will carry you. All remains well, as long as you don't try to grab the declarative reins and rattle on about why it's so well.

 

SAGITTARIUS (November 22-December 21): I'm not typically a suspicious person, so I can't entirely explain why I'm suddenly moved to offer a small warning to you, but: Please pay attention to your instincts if you feel any odd feelings about a certain partner or colleague, Sagittarius, as if what they're telling you sounds too perfect or rings like a convenient cover for something they're not telling you. Under this awkward angle between a questionable Mars in your 12th (sometimes known as 'the house of secret enemies') and the happy-go-lucky Jupiter in glib Gemini in your relationship house (the 7th), there may be more happening beneath the surface or behind your back than surface dynamics would reveal. The probable reason such a suspicious spin hit my radar, I should mention, is that this is really just a mirror-reflection of last week's horoscope, in which we discussed the possibility of you conducting secretive business while outwardly preserving an official party-line. It's only fair, then, to consider the flipside alternative to how this astrology might manifest. (That's just how archetypes work.) No matter which way the potential shade is being thrown, it's still important to prioritize your own practical (read: economic) interests over espionage games merely for their own sake.

 

CAPRICORN (December 22-January 19): The currents in your life are shifting over the coming couple weeks, Capricorn, carrying you back into the uncomfortable spot of having to (re-)empower yourself… in order to attack a project or problem that, just a few short years ago, you might've believed you were incapable of ever tackling. The past few months have given you a chance to integrate your last similarly uncomfortable stretch into these uncharted lands… to retreat a step or two back into a relative safety-zone, to check your ego for bumps or scratches, and to re-gather the enduring courage necessary to return to exploring this alien terrain. But too long a back-step into familiarly downplaying your potential, as if falsely assuming efforts already made have been sufficient (when, in fact, there remains plenty still to do), will do you no favors. Were you to try to slide back into this former incarnation, you would soon find it to be far more ill-fitting than you remember… because, of course, you have now outgrown it. You'd be at least as uncomfortable back there (if not more) as you will by pressing farther forward into unfamiliarity, only without the opportunity to continue evolving.

 

AQUARIUS (January 20-February 18): Your best antidote to panicky thinking remains open conversation, Aquarius. Even if you end up receiving exactly whatever kind of response you've been quietly dreading, that is not the end of the story. Important issues aren't usually wrapped up neatly with a bow on top within a single interaction. All parties need ample space for first-and-second-reactions and more, each revisiting from a different emotional vantage-point, based upon having taken time to consider and process, weigh and reformulate. As long as you remember this, then hopefully you can approach each step with less burdensome anticipation, knowing you needn't worry so much about achieving conversational triumph within the next thirty or forty minutes. Similarly, this relative lack of attachment will strike the other party as far more inviting of their reactive complexities, so they can be honest at every juncture without fear you'll pin them into a single stance. Their thoughts, like yours, remain actively evolving. Please also internalize the idea you have nothing to prove. Your gutsy participation itself, whatever its moment-by-moment tenor, is the only 'proof' you need.

 

PISCES (February 19-March 20): What registers as unqualified productivity on your end, Pisces, may be subject to others' doubtful or dissenting judgments as to whether you're working like they would if they were in your shoes. But putting too much stock in such antagonistic opinions—for what exactly would be the purpose for their offering this sort of feedback, if not to leave you questioning yourself while making them look like they hold some knowledge or expertise you don't?—will right away disrupt your flow, taking the focus off you and what you're hoping to accomplish. You rightly understand you're supposed to be tackling this one on your own, at least at this stage… even if your methods look odd to others, don't always follow the fastest route between two points, and/or involve a bit of reinventing the wheel. You're in the process of demonstrating independent self-sufficiency to yourself (which is far more important than whether you're doing this or that task by the books). Anyone who, consciously or not, seeks to subvert this confidence-building exercise is proving not to be a supportive ally. Take note.