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Horoscopes | Week of June 9-15, 2014

ARIES (March 21-April 19): This week's square between your ruler Mars and Pluto-in-your-10th—the third and final one of this topsy-turvy past six months—suggests that any enduring power-struggles or unfinished fights, particularly with figures who hold the capacity to block you in your ascent to the next stage of accomplishment, may break out into one more round over the coming week or two. But you're (hopefully) in a more emotionally-nuanced, psychologically-strong position this go-around, Aries. Based just on the subtle self-discoveries made very recently, you should now see that your 'win' won't come from decimating the other person. Hell, it doesn't even have that much to do with them, to be honest. It's simply about not giving up ground that's legitimately yours: not money or credit someone else doesn't deserve, not responsibilities you're best equipped to hold, and most definitely not that ethical upper-hand you'd immediately surrender, should you shoot to kill instead of just defending yourself with the minimal force necessary. You're not really battling any other person, merely battling to be your best person… which is an honorable battle that takes into account not only the ends you attain, but how you feel about the means you used, how they reflect on you, once the discord dies down.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): Though I've recently been hailing Venus's blessed presence in your sign at the moment (here and here ), this week's astrology puts her in a head-to-head faceoff with Saturn, still slogging through your relationship house (the 7th). As a result, Taurus, cinching your best personal Venus-bestowed advantages will require simultaneously engaging, with the utmost honesty and respectability, whatever objections or interferences a key life-partner (e.g., spouse, best-friend, close business associate) may put forth. Maybe you shouldn't take the whole heaping pile of goodies for yourself, but instead ought to share the bounty? Maybe you should be extra-generous with your attentions, to compensate for the favored status you currently hold? Or maybe you need to confront this squeaky-wheel partner, not cruelly but nonetheless with the unadulterated truth, about why they're getting in the way of your satisfaction? I can't know whether this particular interpersonal involvement warrants your additional investment of consideration, or if it's infringing on your continued evolution… but these current Venus/Saturn events are revealing a lot about the relative capacity of this relationship to provide both companionship and individual support. If you do detect the need to re-signal your conscientious commitment to another person, I suggest adopting practical results-oriented compromises—at the expense of your insistent ownership of the 'proper' manner of handling the matter-at-hand.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Though you may ardently wish it to be so, Gemini, at the moment you just are not very free to chase your most desired bliss. And though that doesn't suggest all bliss is inaccessible to you (because any enlightened teacher will tell you to connect with the bliss that's already around you rather than yearning for one more specific brand you don't yet have), it does force your focus back onto certain sobering life-restraints you have no responsible choice but to deal with: pressing deadlines, financial reshufflings, stubborn bodily annoyances, a shit-ton of work, that sort of thing. You have to believe me when I tell you, these mundane necessities ('damn them!' though you may be muttering) are actually helping to bring order and form to your day-to-day life, in a fashion that supports both increased physical well-being and improved sanity. If you in fact could follow all the myriad threads of zeal-rousing interest you fantasize about exploring further, you'd not only come up short in certain areas such as bill-paying and house-cleaning, but you'd also likely burn yourself out with exhaustion or malnutrition because your seemingly ceaseless energies would neglect to inform you when they were running on fumes. So, those very items you might curse having to handle may be, at this very moment, slowing you down or tripping you up. Just because you might not understand how this flustering factor benefits you (not even so far into the future, but as soon as a couple weeks from now), that doesn't make it any less true.

CANCER (June 21-July 22): Any vague sense that something's not happening the way you'd counted on it to, in order for your participation to be a legitimate reflection of your proclivities and/or personality (rather than another example of 'going along' with someone else's vision), is a signal to reassert your personal touch, Cancer. Yes, we can't deny the potential subversion of an otherwise pleasant-enough collaboration that your daring to speak up—especially when Mercury's retrograde in your sign and you can't reliably know what might transpire after you do so—could create. But on the other hand, it sure gets damn tiresome being the one who cares more about not upsetting someone else and their precious vision than about your own sense of not-quite-right-ness, doesn't it? Mars-in-your-4th is often a symbol of emotional restlessness… and this week, as he squares Pluto, still in your relationship house, for the third-and-final time in six months, you have a choice as to whether you (1) internalize this unsettled vibe, quietly stewing about what's not going your way due to another person's overbearing attitude (or, even worse, inappropriately venting your frustrations at the wrong person, or (2) proactively express your unsettled feelings to the person who can actually address them (if, that is, they want to), thus tipping the relational balance between you in a manner that empowers you to be more forthright with your desires. Sure, you may well be 'the difficult one' in this situation… but trust me, it beats submissively accepting disappointment so they get everything their way.

LEO (July 23-August 22): Under the current Mercury-retrograde instability in verbal expression (along with plenty of other astro-factors compounding the potential threat), you could become your own worst enemy, Leo, if you start nervously overcompensating for lurking insecurities by saying way way too much about items or issues best kept a bit more private. At times like this, when our words are not to be trusted to convey exactly what we think they're conveying, it's a lot wiser to let our actions do the talking. Put differently, a far better way to deal with insecurity or nervousness related to your public image would involve actually doing (or at least investing a great effort into the attempt to do) something that demonstrates you are capable and competent. Such doings not only circumvent the need to really say much at all, but they'll also build confidence at the same time… thus simultaneously alleviating both the present risks to speaking so totally off-the-cuff and the self-doubt which would inspire the verbal diarrhea. Words feel especially cheap at the moment, by the way, like a teenager's meager efforts to convince their parents they are indeed worthy of greater responsibility and freedom when, in fact, the kid's up to no good and the desperate move to cover those tracks smacks of insincere desperation. You won't convince anybody by trying to talk yourself into a securer spot; your deeds, however, tell a different story.

VIRGO (August 23-September 22): Though I pause at offering feedback which might put a damper on your latest enthusiasms, Virgo, I must speak up about the essential necessity of diligently handling all interpersonal contact and communication related to whatever's passionately driving you forward. It's been a little while since I've offered this type of counsel—though, in the year-and-a-half since Saturn's been in your solar 3rd, the need to properly integrate your solitary processes with what other relevant players are doing (despite any annoying delays which occur as a result) has been a recurrent theme—but with your ruling speech-writer Mercury retrograde in another house of interpersonal exchange, this is really coming into play now. So, I yet again encourage you to put in far more effort than you'd probably want to into explaining all the ins and outs, walking the folks through each and every small step, and giving everyone the opportunity to voice their thoughts… even if, at the end of it all, you proceed exactly as you would if you hadn't belabored these details. Though you're understandably jonesing to 'get somewhere already!', you'll ultimately benefit more (albeit not as quickly) by impeccably offering pure transparency (at least with everything that's relevant) to those who are along for the journey (even if only for this leg of it).

LIBRA (September 23-October 22): Rather than let another Mars-Pluto square re-inflame that same festering soreness you've felt inside for way too long—and which was exacerbated over these last bumpy months, hopefully to healing ends—I recommend letting this time be markedly different, Libra. In the midst of any demotivating or debilitating messages burbling up from their dank cave and trying to wrestle you for control over your inner landscape, you actually possess the wherewithal to step back from the goings-on and identify them for what they are: the desperate machinations of a internal schoolyard-bully, acting out worse because its power over you has become increasingly tenuous, whose ability to negatively impact your life is neutralized as soon as you choose not to react to his taunts and teasings. You have to be willing to call bullshit on this bully's efforts to convince you that its voice carries the Truth, not just a single subjective take purposely engineered to hold you back from reaching too far. You must confidently see your own truth as the one hard-earned in the trenches… and once you clutch firmly to that one, these internal messages reveal themselves to be merely a bunch of noise, with historical sources, and not at all applicable to your current state. The same advice applies, incidentally, should another person play out the role of manipulative critic or self-doubt instigator. Don't permit their so-called 'truth' to chip away at the only relevant version, which is yours.

SCORPIO (October 23-November 21): Venus's presence in your 7th (the one-on-one relationship house) is supposed to make it easier and more enjoyably grounding to spend time with your favorite companion(s)… though this week, Saturn threatens to dash this potential for easy joy by (yes, again) demanding more of you, Scorpio. You probably shouldn't overload your interpersonal connections by allowing hyper-romantic hankerings or an overvaluing of passion as 'the only thing that matters' motivate you to totally transcend the bounds of reason, eschewing responsibilities or healthful behaviors just to keep 'feeling it'. But you also shouldn't play everything off like you're easy-breezy about it when you're not, withholding relevant information or denying feelings so as not freak anyone out, but sacrificing authenticity in the process. As always, Saturn asks you to find appropriate middle-ground in your relational attitudes: not too intimidatingly intense, not too insincerely cool-with-whatever. If that feels like too much pressure, please know it's the effort that's most important, not attaining flawless results. This advice is meant to be followed through outwardly lived exploration, by legitimately attempting to be both present with someone else and properly boundaried, to allow vulnerability but without overwhelm. Privately stressing about where that 'perfect balance' rests, separate from actual interpersonal contact, misses the whole point of sharing the experience.

SAGITTARIUS (November 22-December 21): At the same time another familiar wave of disconcerting uncertainty about your abilities, your current direction, and/or your general worthiness threatens to dampen your productivity, here comes one more careless friend or infuriating foe or distressful rip-in-the-social-fabric you've now got to deal with. God save the poor creatures who find themselves caught up in your furor, Sagittarius, should you not shrewdly identify these as two totally separate circumstances… and instead channel your personal unsettledness into angry responses to those who showed up in the wrong place at the wrong time. I don't claim there won't be real reasons to be frustrated with anybody who utters an offensive remark (and maybe even refuses to acknowledge the offense), participates in an activity that reflects poorly on them, critiques your belief-system head-on, and/or talks shit about you personally—yes, these are examples of the type of social-group-related crap you might face during these couple weeks. But do they justify the over-the-top level of your possible reactions, if you don't realize that you're also upset because of what's going on inside? The best way to counteract the reappearance of self-doubt is not through aggressively ripping somebody else a new one, just because they hurt your feelings or offended your sensibilities or just plain suck at being a trustworthy pal. It's simply the act of showing the uncertainty who's boss, by continuing along with whatever you're doing, inner or outer antagonists be damned.

CAPRICORN (December 22-January 19): Though a recent horoscope described the fun-bus potentials inherent to Venus's current 5th-house travels, I'd be remiss not to also mention the potential consequences (I know: what a buzzkill) now that she's being opposed by Saturn. By choosing what—and/or who—you want to do for your own pleasurable purposes, you presently risk disappointing expectations certain friends or community-members have put on you. They might not like your tastes, your timing, or your level of brashness. They could be jealous, judgmental, or disapproving. And their opinions may or may not matter a damn to you, Capricorn. That's your call to make, in how to balance personal desire with social respectability. In some cases, the 'rejection' you'd experience could prove a welcome relief, revealing once and for all that their true colors just don't match your preferred scheme. No more playing nice with folks who don't actually like who you are, and/or you who they are. But in cases where you genuinely value the friend-connection, or perhaps need to keep these certain folks on your team for strategic or professional reasons, it probably behooves you to be more discreet… maybe even to smooth over their ruffled feathers or offended sensibilities, with some stroking show of solidarity. Plus, be forewarned, with Mars squaring Pluto-in-your-sign again, your edges are pointier and pokier than usual. If you feel impatient or annoyed with 'pandering', it'll definitely be obvious.

AQUARIUS (January 20-February 18): Those few precious intervals of peace-and-quiet at home you so feverishly crave—and which you thought you'd be basking in right about now—seem unfortunately likely to be interrupted by an unyielding obligation that sits squarely on your lap, Aquarius, due to the unique position you're in. Nobody else can cover all the bases quite as adeptly as you (the burden of which is, of course, an ironic pitfall of your level-of-achievement), which therefore means you aren't as freely able as you might wish to push away an expectation on you when its timeliness is unquestionable. You still do hold the right to say 'no' on grounds of self-care (and, damn, if only such sound thinking were more widely accepted), but there will be some sort of consequence, not necessarily overt but nonetheless impacting your continued evolution beyond this point. And I suppose you could turn this into a larger philosophic meditation about what sort of message this 'always-on-the-clock' quality to your present responsibilities sends about life's other important priorities… though that'd be more a matter of indulging your desire to stand atop a soapbox than about effectively making your point, and it's apt to only further damage your reputation amongst those who'd rather you just shut up and take care of business. So, maybe you'll now have even fewer of those precious peace-and-quiet moments; it's therefore that much more pressing to thoroughly appreciate them while you've got 'em.

PISCES (February 19-March 20): It is decidedly not your job to toughen up, get back to business, and save your emotional responses until you get home, Pisces. Just because other people might be uncomfortable with the organic penetration of (gasp) feelings into all parts of daily life, that doesn't make the innately sensitive state you exist in a problem for you. Often, we are pressured to suck up the less 'convenient' splashes of emotion—in the supposed name of 'reasonable' behavior—because somebody else doesn't wish to contend with the potentially upsetting reality we're experiencing. But that reality still looms, even if everyone in the near vicinity wants to pretend that sunny days are here again while the air thickens and the clouds darken. Thankfully (and I mean that with the utmost sincerity), you aren't very adept at such 'pretending'. Your emotionality always seems to lead… which, though this fact has probably been used against you countless times by callous manipulators or delusional bliss-ninnies, is actually a great gift of being Piscean. Your feelings help keep you honest, provided you speak up whenever they tell you to. So, just as last week's horoscope celebrated your capacity for 'pure heart-speech' even when it's likely to be misunderstood, this week's edition also encourages you to share what's in your heart… to vent or cry or raise your voice in righteous indignation, though the timing might not be ideal (is it ever?) or the venue's a bit too public (for whom?). Allowing yourself to be guilt-tripped or strong-armed into feigned unemotionality is to deny your true being.