If you’ve been having trouble getting off the sofa the past few days, you’re not alone. Mars, which creates the fire that drives us, made an opposition to Saturn a couple of days ago and is now conjunct Neptune. Neptune, being a watery planet, often puts out the fire of Mars and dampens our physical energy as well as the drives and passions that fuel us to action. Both Mars and Neptune are in Aquarius, where they tend to join in imagination and creativity, but may lack focus and direction.

Mars and Neptune are uneasy bedfellows and can induce a queasy weirdness as Neptune’s misty urge for transcendence makes Mars forget what it came here for. The drive of Mars, along with its passion and urge for action, can become mired in confusion and self-deception when it is buried under the glamour of Neptune’s idealizations.

In an ideal world, Mars and Neptune will unite in a passionate (Mars) compassion (Neptune) for the wellbeing of others, and there is often a desire (Mars) to sacrifice one’s self for a higher good. But the conjunction is just as likely to bring a drive (Mars) for cloaking the truth in an illusion (Neptune).

This is a short-lived transit and will move away in the next couple of days. For those of us (me!!) who are under it’s spell, a practice such as yoga which links the physical energy system (Mars) to a more spiritual one (Neptune) will help to link these energies in a way that’s beneficial and brings out the best of both planets.