Misty Kuceris, ISAR – Certified Astrological Professional May 2010 Forecast

From Echoes of the Past to Actions for the Future

© Misty Kuceris 2010 All Rights Reserved

The month of May begins with an echo to the past. This is fitting since Mercury in Taurus is still in retrograde motion at the beginning of the month. The echo is created on May 2nd when Saturn retrograde forms a quincunx to Neptune. This quincunx was formed before on September 12, 2009 and will be formed again on June 27, 2010. The last time that this aspect formed, the United States Congress returned from recess and began working on the health care reform bill. The public was gaining increasing awareness that unemployment was a problem as it reached 9.7%, the highest recorded since June 1983.

During that time period there was a sense of unease which permeated the world. People in the United States were receiving misinformation about various aspects of the health care legislation. The legislation, Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (H.R. 3590) and Health Care and Education Affordability Reconciliation Act of 2010 (H.R. 4872), was passed on March 21, 2010. Yet, to this day there is still confusion about both pieces of the legislation and already cries for changes are in the wind.

Now new sweeping legislation is in the air. This time the target is the financial industry. Key aspects of the United States legislation include the creation of an agency to protect consumers against abusive lending and increased federal regulation over distressed financial institutions. This regulation includes regulation of derivatives. Again, misinformation seems to be the norm for various factions of the political parties. Yet, both parties are aware that this time “Main Street” is clamoring for protections from “Wall Street.”

Neptune represents the desire to take care of under-represented members of society while Saturn wishes to create systems for those individuals. During this cycle there is a desire to correct what is perceived as imbalances in society. At the same time, Neptune represents either hidden or erroneous information while Saturn represents the need to take a patronizing attitude about who know best in a solution. While the financial legislation is stalled at the time of writing this article, it will pass as did the health care legislation.

The impact of Neptune forming a quincunx to Saturn, especially with Mercury still retrograde, is that not all the information you hear is accurate. You really need to dig for the facts. Also, you need to understand the perspective of individuals who are giving you information. This is not the best time to take things at face value. It’s also not the best time to assume that other people have your best interests in mind. You really need to make your own decisions at this time. You also need to be cautious in discussions with other people because there are many individuals who don’t want changes and would rather leave things well enough alone. You may also find yourself compromising in such a way that you give up your value systems.

It’s important to continue being careful with compromises on May 3rd, when Mercury retrograde forms a trine to Pluto retrograde, and on May 4th, when Mercury retrograde forms a trine to Ceres retrograde. Because all these planets are in retrograde positions, you’ll need to be careful when you discuss matters with other people. Facts could be easily hidden from you through omission, not necessarily deceit. On the other hand, you may need to re-evaluate some situations which you’ve been attempting to avoid.

When Mercury turns direct on May 11th, this is the time to start thinking about taking action in your life. It’s not quite the time to move forward. The time to move forward is on or after May 13th, when the new Moon, with Sun and Moon in Taurus, occurs. If you feel that other people are controlling your life, now is the time to take charge of your daily routine. If you feel that information is being withheld from you, now is the time to research as much as possible and get the facts.

Reclaiming control of your life becomes easier on May 16th when Mercury once again forms a trine to Ceres retrograde. Since Mercury is now moving forward, you’ll be able to understand information and know how to compromise without losing your personal power.

May 17th through May 19th could be difficult days. Venus is preparing to exit the sign of Gemini and enter the sign of Cancer. However, before it leaves Gemini, it forms a square to Jupiter on May 17th, a square to Saturn retrograde on May 18th, and a square to Uranus on May 19th. By forming squares to these planets, Venus creates a mutable T-square.

Mutable T-squares indicate very erratic energy. Weather patterns are extreme and not the norm with this time of year. The fact that Venus is the prime planet in this mutable T-square indicates that the stock market will be very erratic. Emotionally, you’ll feel frustrated because things seem to be ending around you but you don’t really see any new beginnings. The best way to handle this energy is to do things which relax you. Don’t try to force anything in your life. If possible, go with the flow of life.

There is some help during these days as Mercury once again forms a trine to Pluto retrograde on May 19th and Venus enters Cancer on the same day. In addition, Venus forms a trine to Chiron on May 20th. The help will probably come from friends and discussions you have with them. Your dreams will also be an important source of inspiration as you try to find ways to maintain a healthy perspective.

On May 22nd, Venus forms an opposition to Ceres which indicates the stock market may once again become erratic. This is not a good day for any financial negotiations which require you to sign any legal contracts.

The energy for the month of May shifts from echoes of the past to new cycles on May 23rd when Jupiter forms an opposition to Saturn retrograde. This new 18- to 21- year cycle usually occurs in a series of three. In this case, it will also occur on August 16, 2010 and March 28, 2011. Therefore, the actual influence of this cycle will be felt from May 23, 2010 to March 28, 2011, a little less than one year.

Jupiter and Saturn are often considered societal planets when studying personal astrology. Jupiter represents those aspects of your life where you need to push boundaries and question authority. Saturn represents authority in your life: external individuals and institutions that place responsibilities on you, as well as the personal responsibilities you take on in life. When working in harmony, these two planets indicated changes made to institutions and laws that benefit society. However, when in opposition, this aspect can indicate conflict between individuals who want to expand the mission of an organization and those who want no changes in an organization. Historically this can be seen by conflicts within various religious orders such as the “Great Schism” of 1811 when two-thirds of the Welch Protestants left the Anglican Church. It can also be seen with the founding of Jehovah’s Witnesses in 1871 or the founding of the Seventh Day Baptists in 1732.

Another way of looking at the opposition created by Jupiter and Saturn is that this is a time period when things which have escalated out of control need to be reined in. An example of this could be seen in gold prices. In 1970 gold fell below its official price of $35 per ounce. In 1931, Britain stopped using the gold standard for its currency and the price of the pound sterling dropped from $4.86 to $3.49. Australia meanwhile did better in 1851 when gold was found in Victoria, South Wales. Over the last several years the price of gold has been skyrocketing, perhaps out of proportion. During the times periods that Jupiter forms an opposition to Saturn, the price of gold starts declining.

Weather patterns have been erratic over the last few months with earthquakes and volcanic eruptions occurring. This erratic weather pattern tends to continue when there is an opposition between Jupiter and Saturn. It’s as if the world itself needs to blow off steam from all the tension that’s been accumulated.

What does this all mean on a personal level? It’s important that you review your life and see where you are living in excess or outside the parameters of your life style. If you don’t take the time to assess this, the world or other people will do it for you. While pushing boundaries is one way to see how much you can do with your life, there are consequences to pushing those boundaries. If you can afford to live with those consequences, than pushing boundaries may not be a bad idea. However, if you are taking risks without a safety net, you’ll find that life becomes more difficult for you.

It’s especially important to make certain you have safety nets in place at this time because Venus forms an opposition to Pluto retrograde later in the day. Financial problems which are not taken care of will increase. Situations will occur which force you to re-evaluate your priorities. You may even decide that it’s time to end relationships which are not bringing you emotional satisfaction.

May 27th is another important day for new cycles. Uranus enters the sign of Aries a short time after the full Moon, with Sun in Gemini and Moon in Sagittarius, occurs. Uranus is an 84-year cycle and lasts for about seven years. The fact that it occurs just minutes after a full Moon means some of the trends you see will have a personal and emotional impact in your life.

Uranus initially enters Aries for a short time period, from May 27, 2010 to August 14, 2010. This is very common for Uranus. You’re getting a taste of the trends represented by Uranus in Aries. It will retrograde back into Pisces for a few months, until March 12, 2011. The time period that Uranus is back in Pisces represents when you, on a personal level, and leaders of various countries and institutions, on a global level, need to clean-up past mistakes in order for societies to move forward. Uranus will re-enter Aries on March 12, 2011 until May 15, 2018. The “clean-up” period for Uranus in Aries will be from November 6, 2018 to March 6, 2019.

Uranus as a planet is interesting. (See the article on Uranus in Aries on this website.) It was discovered on March 13, 1781 by Astronomer William Herschel. There were disagreements over its name and the name of Uranus wasn’t commonly accepted until 1850. As the seventh planet from the Sun, it has an unusual spin: Unlike other planets, the South Pole of Uranus points almost directly at the Sun. Usually it is the equatorial regions that point towards the Sun.

In mythology, Uranus is more important than many people realize. He is the father of Cronus (Saturn), the last major deity before the reign of the Olympian gods. Uranus and his wife Gaea are also the protectors of Zeus, allowing for the reign of Olympian gods to begin.

All of this is interesting in personal astrology. Uranus co-rules Aquarius with the planet Saturn (Cronus). Uranus represents very erratic actions or emotions in your chart. This is where you either make changes in your life or changes are made for you. When a transit of Uranus impacts your chart, life can change dramatically if you are not in the right space for your spiritual growth.

In mundane astrology, Uranus is also an erratic planet, indicating periods of exuberance followed by periods of difficulties. When Uranus is in Aries, it can bring forth leaders who inspire the public as well as leaders who can dictate how the public will act. Because Uranus is in a sign for seven years, the events which occur during this time have a profound effect on the world.

The previous time that Uranus was in Aries was during the time of the stock market bubble in 1927 in the United States as well as the Great Depression. It was also the time period that Adolph Hitler gained power in Germany and World War II began.

Excitement seemed to rule this generation of people. But the biggest psychology that ruled this generation was the fear of banks collapsing and money disappearing. Life was a harsh experience which needed to be controlled through security and safety.

When Uranus was in Aries between 1843 and 1851, people were rushing to California to find gold and England was trying to expand its empire into India and New Zealand. Conditions were shocking for the workers as Charles Dickens and Sinclair Lewis wrote short stories and books publicizing their plight. Dorothea Dix revealed the shocking conditions found in prisons and asylums. And many Irish immigrated to the United States as a result of the potato crop failure. There was a desire for this generation to improve their lives by expanding to new frontiers.

The theme of improving one’s life is also seen when Uranus is in Aries between 1759 to 1768. The United States only exists at this point as a group of colonists settling the new world. England is beginning to create its empire in India and the potato crop becomes the most popular food source in Europe. England tries to control its settlers in the new world by preventing them from printing their own money and passing the Stamp Act. But once again people want to improve their lives and they don’t want to be controlled by anyone else.

Overall there will be several things that occur when Uranus enters Aries in 2010. Economic upheaval will lead to another generation of people who are trying to find ways to improve their sense of security, perhaps making them overcautious. Expansion of the boundaries won’t come from discovering new lands in the world but will come through technological discoveries and uses which let people communicate beyond their normal borders. Some people will actually see this as a time period of excitement where they can go out and change their lives. They’ll be willing to take risks. For people living during the time that Uranus is in Aries, there seems to be one extreme or the other: People either live very cautiously for fear of loss, or they live in the excitement of bettering their lives with the changes that are occurring.

The impact of Uranus in Aries on a personal level will come through the need for you, as an individual, to look at the world with its recent upheavals, and decide how to find a connection between you, your beliefs, and your place in this world. Psychologically, there may be a push to make extreme changes in your life, such as various immigrants did in previous generations. These extreme changes may be what you need to do, but if you decide to make these changes, do so with caution.

Historically, Uranus in Aries is a time period where swings between good and bad economic times occur. Because of these extremes, it will be very important to protect your finances. Laws governing banking and other financial institutions will change increasing regulation over those institutions. While there is a fear that institutions may become “too large to fail” in the United States and England, the reality is that financial institutions actually need more centralization if they are to efficiently operate in a worldwide marketplace. Electronic transfers and other financial obligations dictate that banks need to be large. This also means that you’ll find increased pressure to utilize electronic means for all your financial transactions.

Uranus in Aries is also a time period when health focuses on the body’s ability to take care of itself. The discovery of vitamins as well as male and female hormones during the last few times that Uranus was in Aries, indicates that science is looking for ways to improve the well-being of individuals, leading to longer life, as well as the ability to increase life through various scientific aids. The study of vitamins, especially Vitamin D and its steroid hormone, Hormone D, is critical in cancer research.

As the month of May draws to a close, Jupiter forms a semi-sextile to Neptune on May 28th indicating that you can take this day to meditate on some of the changes which will occur over the next several years. There is potential for you to look at your life in a compassionate way so that any changes you need to make can be done in a gentle manner and you don’t need to go to extremes.

On May 30th, Venus forms a conjunction to the Moon’s South Node and Saturn in Virgo turns direct about twelve hours later. The South Node represents what we carry in our lives from the past. It also represents how we use our knowledge of the past to improve our future. This is a good time to review your relationships with others and acknowledge those in your life who have been supportive of your actions.

With Saturn turning direct, it is beginning to leave the sign of Virgo for the next 27 years and preparing to enter the sign of Libra which will occur on July 21, 2010. Between now and July 21st, take time to review your daily routine, both as it relates to work and your health. What you implement during this time period will last over the next several years of your life and help you over the next three years improve your relationship with others.

Neptune in Aquarius turns retrograde on May 31st and will remain retrograde until November 7, 2010. This energy is very subtle; you may not really notice it. But, if you are a person that meditates on a regular basis, you’ll find that your meditations really allow answers to your questions surface in a gentle fashion. Years ago I was taught the importance of taking time to reflect even if there is not enough time to meditate. Reflecting simply means sitting in a quiet place and letting thoughts surface. Those thoughts lead to answers. As the month begins with an echo to the past and shifts with a look into the future, reflection brings a balance and understanding of the best actions to take.

Misty Kuceris, Certified Astrological Professional (CAP) with the International Society for Astrological Research, Inc. began her consulting practice in 1969. She teaches workshops and classes on astrology, tarot, Reiki, and spiritual development.