Now that I've sketched out what happens in each of the three acts, let's go into some depth about what Act One drama might look like.
Let's Raise the Curtain on Act One
As I did last time, I'll use an arbitrary example for the purposes of illustrating what I'm talking about here.
Specifically, let's suppose that:
- In your birth chart, you have Mars in Sagittarius in the 7th house.
- Currently, transiting Mercury is drifting through Pisces in your 11th house.
As we look at Act One, remember that during this particular "act," the transiting planet (TP) is in direct motion. (It appears to move forward, rather than backward.)
The Needs and Potential of Your Natal Planet (the One That's Triggered Now)
To interpret Act One of this transit, first, let's consider the needs and potentials associated with the natal planet, or NP, that is being triggered by the TP.
Your natal Mars in Sagittarius in the 7th house indicates that you need to develop and express your assertiveness (Mars) in ways that help you achieve a sense of meaning (Sagittarius), and you especially need to do this in intimacy (7th house), that is, through close, one-on-one encounters with other people, whether they are platonic/romantic, personal/professional, cooperative/adversarial... as well as through your interactions with the public in general.
Do this by using Sagittarian strategies: playing the student, the pilgrim, the anthropologist, the philosopher, the explorer--taking risks, broadening your horizons, focusing on matters of principle. And do it while establishing, developing, and maintaining close connections with others--ideally connections in which you relate to each other as equals, rather than from a "one-up" or "one-down" position.
Other Factors in Your Birth Chart (Related to the Natal Planet That's Being Triggered Now)
To get a sense of potentials reflected in your birth chart, look at factors, such as aspects between your natal Mars and other parts of your chart.
Does your natal Mars in Sag in the 7th house conjoin your Venus in Sag?
Does it square your Uranus and Pluto in Virgo in the 5th house?
Does it trine your Moon in Leo in the 7th?
How about your Jupiter in Aries in your 12th?
(Etc.)
If so, then consider any and all such factors that apply.
For example, with Mars square Uranus, you've got lifelong potential to "do" Mars, Sag, Uranus, Virgo, the 7th house, and the 5th house-related matters well and badly in connection with each other.
How could you express the best and worst of these elements?
Since they're connected by a square, you've got the potential to satisfy one half of the square and try (unsuccessfully!) to ignore the other half of the square. (Either half will do in either role, and you can even switch roles between them, from time to time.)
You've also got the potential to strike and maintain workable, ongoing compromises between those two extremes (that is, catering to one and neglecting the other, or vice versa).
To get at what all of that means, consider the other half of this square: Uranus.
... And In the Other Corner, We Have... Uranus
In your birth chart (continuing our hypothetical example, from above), you have two energetic players or forces, each standing like a boxer in a ring, ready to go into action and square off with each other.
As we saw (above), in one corner, you have Mars in Sag in the 7th house.
Now let's meet boxer number two: your Uranus in Virgo in the 5th house.
Astrologically speaking, here's what we know from the very existence of your Uranus:
In order to truly express and positively experience yourself as the unique individual that you are (in other words, to truly "feed" your Uranus, the planet of individuality), you need to strive toward perfection (Virgo) in your self-expression (5th house).
That means playing the critic, or craftsperson, or analyst, or perfectionist, or martyr (that is, focusing on details, engaging in mental activity, and working in any or all senses of the word)... and doing it through 5th-house pursuits: hobbies, romance, entrepreneurial pursuits, performing in any sense of the word, things that you do for the sheer enjoyment or pleasure of it.
NOTE: When I say "martyr," I mean "one who willingly makes sacrifices for the sake of something that is important to him or her."
Neat Trick If You Can Do It!
Now let's pull together all of the above. As you'll see, it indicates (ahem) a bit of a dilemma to learn to deal with successfully.
Based on the above, we can safely say that feeding your Mars (assertiveness) and feeding your Uranus (individuality) naturally clash. These two "voices in your head" naturally pull you in decidedly different directions. They call you to use decidedly different methods or styles to move in their respective directions. So something's gotta give!
I mean, think about it.
Doing what's meaningful versus striving toward perfection.
Being an adventurous, risk-taking, horizon-expanding student (or explorer, or philosopher, or etc.) ...
... versus being a deliberate, detail-focused, step-by-step analyst (or critic, or craftsperson, or etc.).
How do you give top priority to both such agendas (or styles) at the same time?
Neat trick if you can do it!
Your Mars-in-Sag and your Mars-in-Virgo "voices" simply cannot both equally call the shots at the same time in how you go about living your life, day in and day out.
One of them has to defer to the other, at least somewhat, at any given time.
Now, neither of these basic needs of yours (that is, neither your need to develop and express your assertiveness nor your need to develop and express your individuality) are going anywhere.
They both matter.
They're both important.
So what 's a guy (or doll) to do?
The Most Advisable Course of Action
Given all of the above, the most advisable course of action... when one part of your birth chart (i.e., something in Virgo) squares another part of your chart (i.e., something in Sag)... is to always try to accommodate both your Virgoan and Sagitttarian agendas, at least a little ... and in some situations (or at some times), to give a higher priority to the Virgoan agenda than to the Sagittarian one... and in other situations (or at other times), doing the opposite of that.
Relating the Transiting Planet to Your Natal Planet (That It Triggers Now)
Once you've look at the potential associated with your natal planet in question (that is, Mars) and its connections to the rest of your chart, then consider the themes and issues associated with the transiting planet (i.e., Mercury) that is triggering your Mars now.
In this case, we're talking about transiting Mercury in Pisces in your 11th house.
Mercury is the planet of information, ideas, opinions, and so on, as well as environmental stimuli to your senses (what you see, hear, etc.)
As zodiac signs go, Pisces is naturally associated with inspiration, confusion, etc.
Put these two symbols together, and we get this:
With Mercury in Pisces now, the information, ideas, etc. that are coming in to you now could be inspiring or confusing. They could encourage you to make at least a little bit of some dream of yours come true here in the real world. They could also encourage you to confuse your greatest (escapist) hopes or worst (catastrophizing) fears with whatever is really currently true (i.e., "the facts") in your life.
And where are these bits of information, ideas, etc. coming from?
Which part of your life are they especially likely to pertain to, one way or another?
Mercury's transiting through your 11th house, so a lot of it is related to how you approach your future: the goals that you set, the priorities that you set, and the methods that you use to pursue them, including joining forces with like-minded people, in groups of three or more of you at a time... or your lack of such things (that is, your drifting, your avoiding setting goals/priorities, etc.).
The question with a Mercury transit is how you'll respond to incoming information, so let's look at your choices for that.
The Choice Is Yours
Will you go into mental and verbal overdrive by rationalizing and shading (or twisting) the facts to fit your preconceived notions of the world?
("Don't confuse me with the facts. I've already made up my mind.")
Or will you update that mental map of the world in your head, to make room for facts that don't jibe with the way you used to see things?
During a transit from Mercury to some part of your birth chart, the choice is yours.
Transiting Mercury Squaring Off With Your Natal Mars
Besides looking at general themes associated with the transiting planet, look at the nature of the aspect that it makes to your natal Mars.
In this case we have transiting Mercury squaring your natal Mars. Inspiring/confusing new information, or ideas, or communication related to your goals and group pursuits (Mercury) clash with your customary way of expressing your assertiveness/fear in your most intimate encounters with other individuals / with the public (Mars).
During such a square, you're challenged to strike a compromise between Mercury and Mars. They'll both have to give up getting some of what they'd naturally prefer in order to co-exist.
In my next entry, I'll go into some detail about Act Two and Act Three, still using our hypothetical example of transiting Mercury in Pisces in your 11th house squaring your natal Mercury in Sag in your 7th house.
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