BY ERIC FRANCIS COPPOLINO
ARIES — This week’s aspects seem determined to teach you that you contain all potentials and possibilities. Look at the world; listen to what the people around you say; gaze at all the crisis and struggle, and all the great achievements and subtle beauty; and admit that you contain it all. That’s the essential ingredient to activating your personal chosen destiny. You are emphasizing one set of possibilities over all the others, though they are just as real. The choice to be a helpful person, to be friendly, to honor your conscience, to develop your gifts, skills and talents: these are decisions you make. Then you take them into the world by your actions. And what you’re considering now, what you’re harmonizing with, and what you’re deciding is true today will be the motives for what spur you to action not so far from now. You may not feel ready, though this is your process of becoming so.
TAURUS — There seems to be something standing between you and your ability to connect with someone. That’s likely to be an idea that you have: a preconception, something you think is so, despite what actually may be so. There’s a layer of reality beyond what you can perceive. If you ease back on the effort, and open your eyes, your mind, your ears and your heart and take it all in, you will experience a revelation. Behind any conversation — whether about relationships, sex, money, business or family — there is an underlying spiritual message that’s trying to come through. It’s simpler than you think, and it might sound trite to put into words, though you may want to do that. What matters is that you connect to that theme coming through from behind the scenes. When you feel or encounter this previously veiled level of truth, do what you can to stay in touch. It’s real all the time.
GEMINI — You don’t need to worry about a situation that is unfolding and appears to be beyond your control. Everything may not seem to be going fine, though actually it most probably is. Right now you’re feeling the pressure, the need to fulfill a commitment and a sense of limitation. You may be wondering why you got involved in the first place. However, take a step back, look at yourself and your circumstances more objectively, and let the scenario play out over the next few days. What may seem today like something stiff, stuffy and not terribly interesting could ignite into something that emits beautiful, necessary light and heat. What will happen in the process is that you adopt a mature point of view. You learn to relate to someone as an equal, even though you may not feel like you are. And you will get the experience of seeing how something entirely opposite what you perceive may lurk behind this illusion that we call and cling to as reality.
CANCER — This is always a busy time of year for you, and this year is no exception. Yet you have priorities now that you didn’t have a year ago, or were not so devoted to. And it’s these that you need to focus on. Start with what seems impossible and work your way backwards from there. There’s something you know you must accomplish, or must resolve; and that’s the thing to focus on. You probably won’t have much choice in the matter, though organize yourself so you can do it and feel good about it and let yourself get excited. The story would seem to go back about three years, and could be described in general terms as a revamping of some kind, or a reassessment, or a restructuring. If that felt like building the Great Pyramid, think of this as the week when you get to put the capstone on the thing. Then, quickly tidy up the construction area and see what you’ve created.
LEO — These days, you live on that line between art and work. The task at hand is to eliminate the line. Bring the full force of your creativity into whatever work you do, and bring the ethics of service and a job well done into whatever you consider your art or talent development. Some of the most gifted and accomplished people you’ll encounter live in their studio, or allow their home to be taken over by their work. We might call that bad boundaries today, but usually it’s necessary to break the rules or social norms to get the job done. How much can someone really care about something where they punch out at 5 pm and don’t think about it again till they punch back in at 9 the next morning? We might ask, though, how you can take care of yourself properly when your mission is what counts 24/7. Fulfilling your dharma requires taking care of yourself. Focus on food and sunlight, and then try to get enough rest. You don’t need much else.
VIRGO — You may feel a little lost, though don’t let that be an excuse for anything. It’s essential you follow your intuition, and learn to distinguish that from any form of worry, fear or external pressure. What is intuitive is the thing you know you don’t have to push back against. Feel carefully. This includes people: the ones who, you might say, intuitively belong in your life are the ones with whom you feel balanced and you don’t have to apply too much resistance or assertion. Take this approach with yourself as well. Imagine that you’re feeling your way through the dark. How would you proceed? Your hearing would open up, and you would listen more carefully. You would slow down and feel your way forward, doing your best to remember what you already know about your environment. You may feel like the lights are on, and you know what’s happening. Yet you need to use all your senses — particularly where a sensitive family or household matter is involved.
LIBRA — Do not go blow for blow. By that I mean de-escalate every conflict, consciously delay confrontation, and use diplomacy where you ordinarily might use force or manipulation. It’s up to you to find the common ground among the people in your environment; and you stand to gain plenty by doing so. Alternately, if you allow yourself to slip, make any erratic moves, or challenge the wrong person (who you won’t know in advance is such), you will pay for your error. The planets are set up in such a way as to suggest that you’re likely to make a series of unproductive moves before finding a successful strategy. You can just as easily put matters of planning first, which would preferably include a study of your environment and the people in it. Someone you’re dealing with has given you all the information you need, or will do so soon. That will include some clear signals how to handle them. However, as Mars continues to move through your sign, maintain your policy of extreme mindfulness well into early December.
SCORPIO — Handle financial matters with care and caution, which means slowing down your spending to match your cash flow, or maybe further. You’re on the verge of solving a persistent problem that’s been vexing you for a few years. The solution involves getting all parties involved, or who have an interest, on the same page. Everyone must play fair and do their part. Therefore, be bold about enlisting the cooperation of others. This is about more than asking for help once. It’s about enlisting support in a cohesive way; fostering communication; and staying present while people work through matters of commitment. That’s the thing to look for, though in this equation, your commitment is the individual most meaningful factor. You tend to charge forward and back off, if only because persistence is so difficult to maintain. Yet what you can learn now is how to apply focused, gentle, steady intention over an extended period of time. That, and keep the conversation going.
SAGITTARIUS — As you know, Saturn is about to leave your birth sign, after sailing back and forth through it for the past three years. Saturn in one’s sign — conjunct one’s natal Sun, or moving through the rising sign — has been about the process of coming to terms with yourself. Sometimes this feels like a burden. Sometimes it’s about rising to the occasion. Other times it’s about coming back to what you want even if you keep getting drawn away by distractions or other commitments. Right now it would seem to be about a making a decision. You might feel that all you’ve done and been through the past few years comes down to this one thing, and it may involve how you handle a relationship. It may involve how a partner is responding to your need for more independence, or to your process of becoming self-actualized. Take it slowly. This situation is not as dense as it seems, and the appropriate actions or solutions to the riddle will be obvious.
CAPRICORN — You may be feeling all kinds of agitated; for example, like there’s something urgent you must act on, but you don’t know what it is, so you cannot possibly know what to do. If you slow down and tune in to your interior world, what’s percolating around in your mind will be easier to identify. Yet this calls for inner awareness, which is extremely rare to find these days. It’s so rare, many people don’t even know it exists; others have a clue but are made nervous by the experience of turning toward themselves. However, you now have some incentive, if only to alleviate stress. But there’s a more significant reward available, which involves preparation for a phase of your life that’s in the process of beginning. It’s fair to say your most pressing concern involves the future, which in turn relates to bringing certain important matters to closure so that you have nothing holding you back. Just a little reflection will help you figure out what those are.
AQUARIUS — You have more creative things to do with your energy than engage in controversies. To the extent that you want to challenge consciousness, or experiment with ideas, put out your most creative expressions rather than wrangling or wrestling with people. By all indications, you have some innovative things on your mind. You want change; you want progress; you want the world to be a better place. Heck, you’re an Aquarian; of course you do. Now you’re at a point where tangible choices you make and actions you take can indeed move some energy. Yet be aware that you are the person who must be open-minded, flexible and circumspect (which means looking at any situation from many different points of view). In the first instance and the last, making the world a better place is about changing and evolving your own thinking. And then maybe along the way, you can have an influence on other people who will benefit from your efforts.
PISCES — Continue your process of consolidating your gains, and recognizing your own accomplishments. For three years, Saturn has been gradually making its way across your 10th house of achievement, reputation and accountability. Meditate on those three words, and how they relate to one another: achievement, reputation and accountability. Consider each one individually: where do you stand with them? How would you have answered at this time in 2014? There will probably be a pretty big difference. It’s been an eventful three years. What happens over the next few days will call into focus the ways in which your efforts have had actual results. You may even get a look at what those are: where your work or ideas have had an impact. I hear it said over and over again that young people want to make a difference. Yet to have that, it’s necessary to learn how to see progress for what it is. Sometimes it’s really, really obvious and you still miss the point.
