October 17 2018: Canada legalizes recreational marijuana – check out the article’s section or the “what’s new” list to the right for a brief look at the astrology.
New! Check out my u-tube presentation on Venus retrograde:
Venus retrograde: What is is worth? Can I/we survive this?
Weekly forecasts are published every Thursday by the Georgia Straight Newspaper:https://www.straight.com/life/1154911/your-horoscope-october-25-31-2018
October Overview:
Venus retrograde:
Venus retrograde begins on October 5 in the sign of Scorpio but to a major extent, the karmic call-it-forth program has already launched. There are many examples in the headlines providing evidence of this fact: Bill Cosby has gone to prison, Christine Blaise Ford has come forward with sexual allegations against supreme court nominee Brett Kavanaugh, the death toll rising in Indonesia, the explosive sex scandal in the Catholic Church has threatened the Pope’s credibility and reputation; an intensive Nafta negotiation has been underway and now finalized.
No doubt you have met up with something of significance in your personal life too over the past few weeks. It’s potent, it’s compelling, perhaps it has grabbed you by the balls. Venus, the planet of net worth, self worth, and relating, now dials up everything to do with the grand essentials regarding survival at all levels. On the roster: money, manifesting, and the material world; relationships, sex, sexuality; addiction, personal transformation, mortality.
There’s something important to weigh, something unfinished that needs tending to. Are you going forward with it? Do you feel compelled, obsessed, or provoked? Do you feel you are being pulled into it against your will? There is nothing insignificant regarding what or who shows up now. The last time Venus took a retrograde cycle through Scorpio/Libra was in 2010. Perhaps you’ll see a similar theme yet different experience unfold, or perhaps there is still a residue of the unfinished from that last transit to revisit and resolve.
There is no ability to stay on the surface or to skirt around this one. Venus retrograde prompts a more critical re-evaluation and reassessment. The transit can also prompt an exploration the shadow side of desire, i.e. addiction, obsession, self undermining, destructiveness, jealousy, hidden agendas, abuse of power, sexuality, betrayal, violence.
To paraphrase Mick Jagger: “You can’t always get what you want” – but like it or not, you’ll certainly get what you need from this transit. Watch for the transit to peel back layers, to expose what you need to know. Ultimately, the journey through the dark is meant to turn up the light.
Venus in Scorpio lifts the veil so you can better see what is of value. Dilemma and hard choices are
in the mix. Through the start of December, Venus works through a skipped step (evolutionary astrology) or at the bendings (classical astrology term) relationship with the karmic axis. This is suggestive of running up against it yet again, of facing a threshold that has not yet been successfully surpassed. There is a great opportunity to do it now. (The end of October and the end of November into December are the peak of this Venus square the nodes configuration.)
Venus backtracks into Libra as of October 31 and will finish out the retrograde on November 16 in this sign. When the Libra scales are skewed, we are challenged by life’s imbalances, i.e. one sidedness of give and take, relationship enmeshment, co-dependency, and projected expectations. Venus retrograde in Libra also dials up the complexities of diplomacy, political alliances, justice, and social morality.
Mars in Aquarius is on a “flint strike” pass by with Venus on October 10. It is the third of three Mars/Venus activation triggers (square aspect) this year. You may have felt the first one at the end of February (February 25) stronger than the last one (September 8). Perhaps all three trigger points will prove noteworthy for you. Mars in Aquarius, a personal reinvention transit, has been actively at work to recalibrate – and if necessary, to completely overhaul – personal desire, personal will, instincts, and impulses. This last Venus/Mars meeting stokes the momentum for a major cut to the chase and for new choices to be made. This moment must not be under-estimated. Risk is always in the mix, but that’s no reason to hold back. The time is ripe for a personal, social and collective breakthrough that can jettison you/us/it into a completely new reality. There is a great opportunity to wager and to win over yourself; for us to wager and win over ourselves collectively too.
October 17, Canada legalizes recreational pot, ending the prohibition it launched in 1923. Considering that marijuana was once a legal substance, it is appropriate to see its reinstatement while Venus is still in retrograde. The legalization of pot is huge regarding its social and economic implications.
Watch for plenty of action from October 23 to 31. Taking us deeper and uncovering more layers, the sun switches from Libra to Scorpio on October 23, and Venus retrograde switches from Scorpio to Libra on October 31. The sun opposes Uranus on October 23. On October 24 the full moon in Taurus opposes Venus in Scorpio. Watch for economic/market volatility, political powerplays, or for a personal or relationship push-come-to-shove moment. October 26 to 29, Mercury in Scorpio transits sensitive degrees relative to its upcoming retrograde cycle which will happen from November 16 to December 7. On October 26, Venus retrograde and sun form an inferior conjunction. Marking the midpoint of the Venus retrograde cycle, this a shine a brighter light, consciousness raising combination that holds significant creative potency. It launches a next phase of manifesting and of contracts, karmic and actual. On October 31, 2018 Pluto crosses the plane of the ecliptic (the sun’s apparent path) for the second time since its discovery in 1930 when it crossed to the north. This crossing coincided with the Great Depression. This time Pluto will cross the ecliptic from north to south. Pluto has been and will continue to transit its own south node (conjunction) and the south node of Saturn for the next couple of years. It is suggestive of the activation of a bigger picture next phase of collective consciousness.
Venus retrograde: October 5 to November 16
October 8: New Moon in Libra: 8:47 pm (15:48 Libra) Canadian Thanksgiving
October 24: Full moon in Taurus: 9:45 am (1:13 Taurus)
October 5: Venus stations retrograde: 10:50 Scorpio
October 9: Mercury enters Scorpio: 5:41 pm
October 12: Juno stations retrograde: 9:03 pm
October 23: Sun enters Scorpio: 4:23 am
October 24: Juno retrograde backtracks into Taurus: 0:50am
October 30: Mercury enters Sagittarius: 9:39 pm
October 31: Venus retrograde backtrack into Libra: 12:42pm
October 31: Pluto crosses the ecliptic:
**Please note all times listed are PDT, please check your local time
Dates to watch: October 2, 5, 9-11, 15, 17, 19, 23, 24, 26, 27, 29 -31
ARIES March 19/20 – April 19
What do you want? Where do you want to be? What do you need and how are you going to get yourself there? What feed back are you getting? The month ahead sets up powerplay time regarding an intimate or important relationship, finances (earning, debt, inheritances, investments, shared resources), your career, and personal life ambitions.
The impact of Venus retrograde can be especially significant for you if you are born April 15 to 19 (November is your big action month). There is no such thing as relationship fence sitting while Venus tours retrograde. Mars has been in Aquarius since the middle of May, but all this time it has been on set up. As of now, it is finally ready for action. Regarding circumstances, energy, desire, stimulus, and opportunity look to Mars in Aquarius to kick it up a great big notch, to get you and life moving a lot faster. Mars in Aquarius gives you something new to shoot for, i.e. a new interest, project or goal, a major lifestyle overall, new social or relationship involvements. Reality – it’s a major work in progress. You are too.
TAURUS April 19 – May 20
Venus retrograde has the potential to utterly transform your consciousness, your belief system, your lifestyle, and (most importantly) your future. A key relationship can be the catalyst for radical change, and/or profound inner soul searching and growth.
There is no skirting around this one, especially when issues of trust, betrayal, jealousy, abandonment, sex, addiction, or survival dial up for review. Venus also enhances your observational skill. The retrograde transit forcing you to look, to see, to feel, to reflect and assess. Once the retrograde cycle completes (mid November) it will be time to get a move on. Note that Mercury begins a retrograde tour on the same day Venus ends retrograde (November 16). Something could over-take you; you could find yourself moving in an unexpected direction. You are wise to keep yourself up to speed on the necessary and essentials.
Venus will retrograde back into Libra in November. This will put added concentration on health as well wealth (i.e. work and the creation of more of the desired at all levels). Your dependency on another (materially, emotionally, or financially) can grow and/ or be further compromised. If you have an addiction, this transit could lay it bare. To the plus, this Venus transit is a good one for seeking addition help, for exploring better options and avenues regarding your wellbeing at all levels. It is also a good time to seek additional training and to upgrade your skills.
GEMINI May 20 – June 20
Re-evaluating your job? Your expectation? Your fee, price, or budget? Your involvement or commitment level? How much do you trust yourself, another, the information, the process? Venus retrograde takes you through a critical re-evaluation period.
The transit can show you the shortfalls before you see the benefit. You could work your way through an elimination process. When/if that’s the case, it is likely to fit in the category of a natural progression. Of course, the transit can uncover things that are painful or costly. If so, better now rather than later. Ultimately the transit is meant to show you what you need to correct, upgrade, improve, or heal. It can be time to recommit yourself, to get back to the yoga, the healthy diet, or something much more. When Venus tours Scorpio and especially when it is retrograde, you can do no better than to give it your all. An adjustment (- to the plan, the process, the meds, etc.) could be necessary. Then again, you may need to do a complete overhaul. Don’t hesitate to explore an alternate angle or solution, to get a second opinion or to seek the advice of another specialist. When in doubt or dilemma, pull back. Take more time to observe and research.
While physical and emotional health and safety should always be your priority, that statement gets a double underscore while Venus tours retrograde.
On a strike flint aspect (square) to Venus on October 10, Mars is on its last and best leg through Aquarius. Fresh perspective, inspiration, opportunity, and motivation; Mars supplies you with great fuel. The following dates are hotwired for action: October 9 – 11, 19, 23, 24.
CANCER June 20 – July 22
Venus retrograde takes you through an even deeper soul-searching cycle. You’ll find you are better able to pull back the cover, to strip away the veneer, to pierce through top layers and to better put your hands/your heart on whatever has denied you access previously. The cycle will keep you working it through until you get right down to the bottom of what has been driving the bus or causing the issue. You’ll have better staying power when it comes to this process, although, perhaps it is not a matter of choice but of an unfolding of circumstance. No matter what, where, when, or how it (…fill in the blank), the more important keys/questions for you to sort out are why, what next and how next.
Venus retrograde in Scorpio aims to you put you better in touch with the most valuable of your inner resources. The heart journey rates as number 1. Tenacity is also one of your great resources. You are tougher and more durable than you know yourself to be. Venus retrograde in Scorpio sets up a very potent creative cycle. Immerse yourself. Go deeper, get more out of it. New perspectives set baseline for a better abundance and attainment track.
Through its finish in Aquarius, Mars sets the springboard for new financial prospects and for karmic breakthroughs in the relationship department, this regarding all VIP relationships, (included on this list: a new lover for some, a new single life for others.) In November, Venus will back into Libra. It’s a decisive/decision making time regarding home, real estate, family relationships, financial bottom lines, and reconciling with yourself.
LEO July 22 – August 22
You will feel the karmic impact of Venus retrograde more strongly if you are born July 22 to 28, but of course, Venus in Scorpio holds major impact for all. No doubt, you have already been pulled into something major regarding finances and relationships – your relationship to yourself, a key family relationship or family matter, or regarding how you make your way in the world. You are likely to feel a sense of destiny in play, that you are standing on a major threshold, or that there is a critical choice weighing more heavily on you and your future.
Venus retrograde is an exposing and uncovering transit. It helps you to drill deeper, to get to the bottom of what-ever your soul wants you to know so that you can make a more informed choice. The transit can dreg up something or someone from your past. The transit can see you revisit something that you thought was finished or something or someone that you had not expected to meet up with again. The intention of the recall is to gain a fresh insight or perspective, to move the karma forward, to evolve past the limitations of the past. That was then, this is now. How are you going to play it?
Whether is another go around or something completely fresh, Mars in Aquarius is on a bring-it-to-new-life track. Folks can surprise you. Opportunity or circumstances can too. No matter what or how it plays out, Mars take aim on a new and improved course. It will do that by fueling you with fresh perspectives, instincts and impulses. What dials up for you first? Trust your first impression, your first instinct.
VIRGO August 22 – September 22
How you feel, how you think, how you observe, how you process it – its all up for a major overhaul. Through this Venus retrograde transit, you may discover that your own best therapist or counsellor. That’s not to say you should forego seeking advice or a second opinion, only that in the end it is up to you to decide what’s most valuable/most worthy of your time, your heart, your health, your wealth.
Taking you through more critical reassessment, re-evaluation and soul searching, Venus retrograde can cause you to question yourself more. What’s driving you? What’s behind your motivation? What’s behind the obsession?
All retrograde cycles replay something from the past. A Venus retrograde transit will key into something unfinished and karmic regarding relationships. This cycle can take you on another go around with a friend, sibling, or lover. Regarding another, regarding yourself, regarding your relationship to money and/or the creative process of living and learning, the transit is focused on helping you to make a significant breakthrough, to take you out of a stalemate, advance the karma, and to help you make a significant leap. The transit sets you up to face a significant decision-making threshold. How will you know when that moment arrives? The momentousness of it will be your best clue. What choice will you make? All hinges on how well you can move fear out of the way, how honestly you can face yourself.
To the plus, Venus retrograde can help you to learn just how much you have going for you, how rich you are on the inside. The transit can help you to tap from a creative well spring, an inner emotional reservoir, and resourcefulness you never knew existed inside you. You are much more than you measure yourself to be. You are worthy, you are deserving. Don’t ever forget these truths!
Through the middle of November, Mars in Aquarius helps you to break new ground and to get to know a whole new side of yourself. Mars is also of benefit regarding the development of new skills and talents; the search for a new job, new helpers, healers, and agents; for evolving, adopting and acclimatizing to a new lifestyle, a new reality, a new you.
LIBRA September 22 - October 22
Venus begins its retrograde cycle in Scorpio but will finish the cycle in your sign (October 31 to November 16.) Venus retrograde is always of high impact, especially when it tours Scorpio. The transit will be even more fecund for you if you are born Oct 18 to 22. While the cycle begins on October 5, Venus has already launched the program regarding a reassessment of relationships, finances and personal priorities. You can likely feel a sense of an undercurrent or something very potent stirring. An irresistible attraction, curiosity, or sense of déjà vu is also a clue that there is much more than meets the eye. There are layers and levels to get through. It’s a process. Once triggered, you can’t back out or side step. You will have to dive deep, and then go deeper.
What do you need to do, to accomplish to feel re-empowered, to feel better engaged or connected, or to get back in the game again? To rebuild your net worth, to rebuild your self worth? To create more impact in your personal or professional life? It’s also a major soul-searching transit. The month ahead will take you through several checkpoints. (October 9 – 11, 19, 23,24 29- 31 to name a few.)
Mars in Aquarius is your ally. Beyond boosting your social life, Mars in Aquarius provides you with fresh ideas, opportunities and incentives. The transit helps you to be more of a risk taker, to experiment more, to express yourself in a new way, to stand apart from the crowd. If someone or something new appears, it is because you have earned it and deserved it. Hello again or goodbye again. While Venus retrograde recalls from the past, Mars in Aquarius is poised to take that past and catapult it to higher ground. The next two plus months takes you through a karmic gateway. Your next chapter is now signed up for an intensive script writing workshop.
SCORPIO October 22 - November 21
Involvements and investments at every level are up for review and reassessment. Venus retrograde in Scorpio is of major impact for everyone. It is likely to be of especially so for you if you are born October 22 to November 3. Whether it is a sense or a circumstance, you now stand on the threshold of the next phase of your life. Yes, it is that momentous. The past is your springboard. It may or may not support in the way it did previously, but to be sure, it will no longer hold you back. It will jettison you instead.
Wanted or not, Venus retrograde can bring you added attention. While you might want to pull back from an involvement, you could get sucked in all the same. There can be something unfinished or unresolved to address, this regarding a relationship, a health matter, your finances, or your reputation. To the plus, Venus retrograde can give you a second chance to handle it better, make a better choice, upgrade it, reconcile with yourself, and/or advance the karma.
Venus retrograde Mercury tours Scorpio from October 9 to 30. Watch for a key someone to take you through another go around. It’s an appropriate transit for visiting a specialist (health or wealth), for doing more research, and for getting better trained or informed. Too, you can be occupied with paperwork, refinancing, or contract renegotiations. As stated while Venus is in retrograde, you may work your way through the darker side of relating, i.e., issues of trust, betrayal, non-disclosure, abuse, sex, jealousy, manipulation, abandonment, etc. On the plus side, the transit is about re-empowerment, regeneration, and personal reinvention. Even if the cycle puts you through the ringer, it is set up for you to come out the other side with a better version of you – stronger, sexier, feistier, more formidable. As stated in the intro, this Venus cycle is simply one component of a lengthy transition cycle. You’ve been working at it all year. There’s just a few more months to go.
SAGITTARIUS November 21 – December 21
There’s more on brew and more at stake for you than meets the eye. Likely you are aware of more than is obvious regarding others too. Venus retrograde keeps all your sensory faculties greatly heightened. While Mercury (starting October 9) Venus retrograde (starting October 5) tour Scorpio, you’ll find you are even more adept at reading the signals/what’s between the lines. It’s about gaining a deeper trust in what you feel, what you “see”, and what you know. Look, listen, tune in, lock in; the inside scoop gives you the advantage, instincts serve you well.
Loaning you even more of an advantage, Mars in Aquarius keeps you quick on the uptake and helps you to stay a good step ahead of the rest. Mars stimulates plenty of fresh ideas and puts you in touch with plenty of folks to share with. Perhaps there is someone new to get to know, something new to try on for size. Use your social media, upgrade your website, start a fresh project or conversation. A first date or first try can be the start of so much more to come.
While Mars in Aquarius is good for sharing and engaging, it best to hold something in reserve while Venus retrograde tours Scorpio. Don’t divulge everything. Take time to feel it out and to see it how it shapes up.
Venus retrograde also prompts major soul-searching. When/if dilemma gets in the way of clarity, security or commitment, use the elimination process. What can’t you live with? If the final or ultimate answer is yourself, well, then….
CAPRICORN December 21 - January 20
Venus in Scorpio can take you through a questioning period and review process. Did you make the right choice? Did you miss out or is there something/someplace better for you to be? Could you have handled it differently? Venus retrograde can prompt you to make an adjustment or a complete overhaul regarding a goal, an investment, or an involvement.
Are you too involved, overly committed, or overly consumed? Is something or someone eating up your time, your heart, or your money? You may feel the need to pull back to get yourself sorted out better. It’s a good idea. Nothing is surface or superficial when Venus transits Scorpio. The retrograde cycle holds significant karmic impact. Put yourself on observation mode and use the Venus retrograde to feel your way along. Clarity will come in due course. You have no choice but to appreciate the process.
Something you thought had run out of steam, was finished, or that you put to rest can be up for another go around. You may not quite be done with a key someone. Contracts, karmic and actual, are also up for review or renewal. Venus will complete retrograde in Libra in November. Timing is key. Venus in Libra can turn the table or the tide. It is a good feedback transit. Venus in Libra is well timed for enhancing your professional profile or reputation, your personal assets, and for getting on the good side of decision makers.
For the most part, Mars in Aquarius is a positive stimulant. Innovation and upgrading serve you well. Don’t hesitate to explore a new interest or creative solution. Take a risk on a new venture, product relationship (professional or personal), a new lifestyle, or a new you.
AQUARIUS January 20 – February 18/19
Mars first entered Aquarius on May 15. From the end of June through the end of August, Mars was travelling in retrograde motion. Mars typically spends about 6 weeks touring a sign, but due to the retrograde cycle, you have been given an extended fuel up. Now on the final leg of its journey through Aquarius, you’ll now gain a fresh top up of super fuel to work with. Mars provides you with the best incentive it has to offer through November 15.
While Mars is on a fresh trajectory, Venus is on a look-back. Venus begins the retrograde tour in Scorpio on October 5. On October 31, Venus will revisit Libra, tenanting this sign through the end of retrograde on November 16 and continuing through December 2. Venus retrograde takes you on a review of the unfinished/unresolved matters of relationships. It is also a time to reassess finances and assets. What do you have going for you, what don’t you have going for you? You can’t keep going the same way, nor do you want to. Working in tandem with Mars, you’ll find your impulses, intuition, and instincts to be on a progress track, i.e. naturally geared to representing for yourself and tackling it in some new and ground-breaking way. Also, you’ll find that you can better commit to taking the risk and to giving it your all. Good on you!
Mercury retrograde immediately follows the end of Venus retrograde. Even though there may be more to relinquish, overall you should feel like you are making great gains where it is most essential and most opportune.
PISCES February 18/19 to March 19/20
Venus retrograde takes you through an intensified questioning cycle. Where do you see yourself when you look ahead? What have you been projecting and envisioning in terms of your future? Your motivation, confidence level, and beliefs can be put to the test during this transit. What do you trust? Who do you trust? Do you have faith in yourself?
Venus retrograde takes you on an exploration that is aimed at getting to the bottom of why you feel the way you feel. What is it that is motivating you? Is it instinct, inspiration, desire, a sense of earning and deserving? Is it your unresolved subconscious complexes – i.e. fear, jealousy, emotional pain, attachment, enmeshment, retribution, etc.? The deeper you go, the more you uncover, the more honest you can be with yourself, the better aligned you will get with that which holds the key to your re-empowerment track. Take the time to observe and to feel. This process will lead you to a more grounded, more well-rounded response. You’ll cross plenty of personal thresholds over this stage setting month. Venus enters Libra on October 31, Jupiter enters Sagittarius on November 8 and Mars hit Pisces as of November 15. Expect to hit full swing and full steam ahead!
Rose on Guiding Stars EA Radio
Audio of Rose’s appearance on Kristin Fontana’s Guiding Stars Evolutionary Astrology radio show, broadcast on Wednesday’s at 10 AM Pacific, 1 PM Eastern on www.healthylife.net