There are a few astrological factors that stand out during the April month that is upon us, and one is that Mercury is in retrograde or recovery in Aries for the entire month, counting its post-retrograde shadow, while another is the impressive April 8th solar eclipse and New Moon at 19°24’ of Aries, thus in chime with Jupiter at 19° of Taurus, and with Chiron at 19° of Aries. This extra-potent New Moon also features combinations of personal and outer planets, to wit, Mars in close conjunction with Saturn in Pisces, Jupiter with Uranus a mere 2° away, in Taurus, Mercury in partial or same-degree conjunction with Eris, in Aries, while Venus in early Aries lies in an extremely tight parallel with Eris also. The Aries line-up of planets on April 8th is no fewer than seven, counting Eris, and with additionally the North Node at 15° of Aries smack dab in the middle of this configuration. All that Aries energy makes you think of leadership endeavours to be undertaken, although then, too, the fact that Mercury is highlighted and in retrograde favours, introspection over decisive action, plus Mars in delicate Pisces, and with Saturn, represents as well a slowing down of positive initiatives in favour of studied isolation and internal reflection.

Another powerful factor of the April month is transformative Pluto, not so much aspected however in the configuration of the April 8th New Moon eclipse, instead coming into prominence during the culmination represented by the ScorpioFull Moon later in the month, on the 23rd. All in all this month of April represents a very powerful cycle with a great deal of reflective introspection and of settling into ourselves in the deeper layers of our psyches, where we fundamentally live. There will be enormous consequences down the road as this volatile year continues to unfold for all of us, both collectively and individually.

The retrograde of Mercury lasts for the entire month of April, counting the shadow period, conjuncting the Sun on April 11th, with about an hour of its Cazimi happening right at noon, Pacific Time, and then making its station to direct motion two weeks later, on April 25th. Mercury recovers slowly over the next 18 days, finally escaping its post-retrograde shadow on May 13th. As well as the usual symptoms of miscommunications and mechanical breakdown, this implies an introspective time, and, being placed in Aries, right at the onset of the zodiac signs, an opportunity to review, refine, and potentially reset those life factors that have been feeling somewhat out of date with your current more extensive understanding.

That Mercury is in particle conjunction with Eris in the April 8th solar eclipse configuration is also telling; this is an indication that, as we meditate on where life is taking us, we will also have a distinct nudge from the depths of our higher self to draw upon our deepest principles and values as we evolve. Eris represents taking a warrior stance on soul intention, as we are able to discern it. We are therefore enjoined to pay the closest possible attention to everything that is happening to us now, and to the well of profound intuitive understanding that we are blessed with, when we can stay open to possibility and tune into the Mercury Retrograde period’s introspection, revealing soul-level purpose.

It is also interesting to note that Chiron is perfectly conjunct with the eclipse Sun and Moon, to the minute, residing also at 19°24’ Aries in the eclipse timing on the 8th, this in some sense governs the remainder of the month and year. This brings up inner wounding, and you might want to check where this transiting Chiron placement lands in your exact chart, which can of course be calculated with reliable software. You might have experienced difficulties with parental control and discipline, or criticism, in early childhood and filed these experiences away as too painful at the time to deal with. If so, it is a great benefit to attempt to reach down inside yourself to the fragments of the hurt child that lies within you; you can help heal these hidden places within your psyche when you extend loving attention to them, and this can in turn free you up in your efforts to develop into your most authentic version of yourself going forward.

In the last full week of the month, the ScorpioFull Moon, of the 23rd, at 4° of the sign brings Pluto square Haumea into the picture, which is square and conjunct with the Full Moon, with a transformational effect. Pluto is also parallel to Makemake, another of these new 21st-century planets recently named as such by astronomers. The prominence of these natural planets implies that a better depth of understanding of our own moral compass, of right action, right relationship, and truth-telling, is more than possible to arrive at. The effects of Pluto, now in Aquarius, will be felt by all of us and indicate the extent to which we are continuing to transform in our lives, as we grow in understanding of who we are, and the way that we are evolving individually, and in connection with our community and the wider circles of nation and world. Like it or not, we are all connected now in one global society, with instant communication and the ability to see what is happening in all of its corners and aspects. And we are beginning to share as well in the moral understanding of our responsibility to each other, as we go. Blessed be!

Posted on March 30, 2024 in Overviews | 
By Henry Seltzer for ASTROGRAPH Horoscopes