March begins on the heels of a powerfully optimistic Full moon in Virgo that included a conjunction of the Sun to expansive Jupiter, and the energy of that lunar event continues into the first few days of March. We also see the continuation of the alignment between Chiron and Neptune which has been gathering and releasing so much emotional drama for us over the past year. The exact conjunction occurred in mid-February and the planets are separating now, but they will be entwined and working as a team for most of the year so this process has not yet abated.

The other big news for March is, appropriately, Mars. The month of March is named for the planet Mars, because in the Julian calendar this marked the end of winter and the time to go back into battle. Mars in the sky has been traveling retrograde since December (planets don’t really move backwards, obviously, but sometimes they appear to and we call this retrograde motion), and March 10 it will change direction again. When a planet is preparing to change direction its motion slows down to a crawl and its influence is stronger. This will be particularly true this month because Mars is changing direction on the zero point of Leo where it is most powerful, and we are already seeing a heightening of aggression and combative behavior. Watch for this to become more pronounced as we get closer to the 10th, and then Mars will begin to pick up speed again. The faster a planet moves, the more quickly its influence fades.

On March 1, Mercury enters Pisces which will internalize our attention for a few weeks. Mercury, ruler of the mind and the mental function, is creative and full of imagination when in Pisces, but can be prone to fantasy and dreaminess. This is not always a bad thing but it does require care and attention that may be lacking now. However, it’s the perfect time for creative endeavors that require imagination, or for spiritual practice that involves stillness and connecting to the inner source.

On March 2 an challenging square from Uranus to Ceres will culminate. This has been building for some time and has likely created disruptions in the routines that we habitually practice to care for ourselves. Meals, exercise schedules – it may be that it’s been difficult to keep these things on track. Or perhaps we’ve been breaking up our routines to pursue new avenues of improving our connection to our bodies. This aspect was also involved in the earthquake in Chile.

Ceres is the goddess that presides over our attitudes towards caring for ourselves and for others, so when there is disruption (Uranus) in this area it can spill over into other areas of our life. But while Uranus has been challenging Ceres, Neptune has been soothing her with a sweet sextile and integrating our inner child with peace and divine love and compassion. This is a great combination, because Uranus pushes the limits and Neptune expands us spiritually.

On the 3rd Venus will conjunct Uranus followed by a challenging square of Venus to Ceres on the 4th and for a couple of days our relationships may require more attention which keeps us from our own needs, but after that point these issues will subside. With Venus moving into the self-oriented sign of Aries and trine Mars (ruler of Aries) on the 7th, it will become easier to maintain our center in our relationships.

We become more self-oriented under these influences, but the trine to Mars helps us to maintain balance. This is also aided by a conjunction from Mercury to Jupiter, helping our intellectual process (Mercury) to remain positive and to see Truth in all situations (Jupiter). By the 9th, however, some stress may have peeked into our relationships when Venus opposes restrictive Saturn. This will only last a day or two, and it could help us to strengthen our commitments and resolve towards others.