Sunset Activation, by Francene Hart

One of the more interesting things about planetary activity this month is the fact that Jupiter, Saturn, Neptune, Uranus and Pluto are all slowing down to a “station” as they prepare to change direction. Jupiter traverses less than a degree during the month, Saturn less than half a degree, Uranus just one degree, Neptune only about 11 minutes, and Pluto just over 30 minutes. The influence of all of these planets is particularly focused and intense now, and this is exceptionally true if any of these planets are affecting us by transit.

The Nodes of the Moon are not planets; they are points in the sky where the Moon crosses the ecliptic, or the apparent path of the Sun. The North Node represents our evolutionary direction towards the future; the South Node holds us back. Aspects and transits of planets to and from the North Node often point to a change of course, or a (usually) fortunate event that aligns us more completely with our evolutionary journey.

Neptune opens our eyes and our hearts to a different way of seeing and healing – one that comes from within. Neptune’s reputation for confusion and illusion and deception arises from the fact that sometimes in order to encourage us to look a little deeper for answers we can lose our footing and try to find those answers elsewhere. The alignment of the North Node this week signifies a change of direction that (a) encourages or (b) forces us to let go of our attachment to what we thought was real in order to deepen our experience of the true reality that transcends the physical world.

This aspect coincides with the Taurus New Moon tomorrow, and a Grand Trine of Venus, Saturn and Pluto which are all in Earth signs. All this wonderful Earth energy helps to ground the Neptunian longing for transcendence and can be used to help us along the path. Grand Trines offer opportunity but require focus and attention to take advantage of the positive energy that is present now. Intentions that are set now during this New Moon period will have tremendous power for the weeks to come.