Horoscopes | Week of October 24-30, 2016

ARIES (March 21-April 19): The difference between your being (1) a courageous force who helps crack open the unexamined assumptions, outdated conditions, and/or undeserving lording-over of power in an existing dynamic or institution or (2) a self-important shit-stirrer who'd rather indiscriminately rebel against the establishment rather than constructively strive to create something better, Aries, boils down to a matter of purpose-driven ethics. Based on both your specific intentions and your compliance with the basic protocols of civil confrontation, the feedback you offer (content and tone) could serve as a vitally powerful activator of stalemate-busting catharsis—or instead threaten your very ability to continue down a path under the tutelage of this certain figure and/or the larger institutional umbrella. So, before you open your mouth (or even contemptuously roll your eyes too loudly), please be sure you know what you hope to get out of it. Do you want to effectively provoke change… or merely list off everything that's wrong? Do you wish to provide a tough-but-still-tender critique, to help open their eyes to apparent blind-spots in their understanding… or just rub their noses in your obvious superiority? Your truest answers (not just the ones that sound good) will make all the difference.

 

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): This is a really good week for genuinely trying to get on the same page with your other-half, a key partner, or another central character, Taurus. To be clear, 'getting on the same page' in this context involves openly sharing sufficient information with one another so you both have as comprehensive a grasp on what's at stake as you possibly can. But it does not necessarily imply you will agree in terms what to do about it. For now, that is totally fine—and, if you're both being candid, perhaps quite appropriate to the situation-at-hand. Before you can competently eke out a mutually beneficial solution (or at least a strained-but-mutually-constructive compromise), you must first look at the whole dynamic from all pertinent psychological positions… meaning you might need to mitigate your steadfast (or is it stubborn?) zeal for distinct rights-and-wrongs, in order to hold sympathetic space for their personal experiences (so different than yours, right?) and how these have contributed to their developing of certain positions you're having a hard time reconciling. Whether you resolve this together or ultimately end up still at odds, you'll do your own best job by allowing meaningful interpersonal exchange to complement abstract concepts.

 

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): I'm really liking your week's astrology, Gemini, insofar as it promotes a positive evolutionary step-up in your interpersonal-relationship attitudes and behaviors. I say this even while still bearing in mind last week's essential reminder not to oversimplify your awareness of everything that's presently in play, just to easily enjoy a good time. In fact, in the potential best-case scenario(s), you'd be simultaneously (1) embracing a bigger-and-better realization of just how much gratifying pleasure and joy is possible when you invite someone else to open your eyes to it and (2) allowing that imminently exciting possibility to motivate your continued perseverance in dealing with whatever more-complicated shit might otherwise get you down. Put another way, it's easier to cultivate indomitable strength-of-character when you have the companionship of a spirited partner-in-crime to help you release when the tension gets too much. On a separate note, this is also an excellent moment to direct your mental energies toward finally clearing through any piled-up mundane business you've been unenthused about addressing. Just think about how much background vitality its unfinished status is quietly stealing from you—and how purifying it would feel to clear your decks of it, and reclaim that energy for far-more-interesting pursuits.

 

CANCER (June 21-July 22): There's still an unstable, contentious vibe lurking in your week's astrological outlook, Cancer… only now, with Mercury moving into your 5th (and trining Neptune), you may be feeling emboldened to say more of what's really on your mind, putting it out there for anyone (or, more specifically, that certain someone) to hear, engage with, and respond to. Considering the trajectory of your recent horoscopes, I could hardly discourage you from putting voice to sentiments which assert your own relational agency, fight back unpleasant interpersonal pressures, and/or correct others' misperceptions. This becomes somewhat trickier, alas, should such a highly-charged conversation collide with your professional duties or other day-to-day mundane demands. For one, if the 'certain someone' you need to confront is also your boss, a co-worker, or an important client, it's possible they'll take your self-determination as a calling-them-to-task (which it may well be)—and respond in any number of unpredictable ways. Don't let that freak you out, though: You wanted something to change, right? For another, you have an excellent opportunity to satisfyingly secure a foothold and/or up your productivity with your work or health habits… though you'll likely miss it altogether if you're too focused on holding your own against another person.

 

LEO (July 23-August 22): Be careful with any declarations of love, Leo, even if you're feeling really good about the given situation and/or enjoying yourself immensely. (For the record, 'love' in this context isn't limited only to the romantic sphere, but applies to any affection-inspiring participation or pursuit.) I'm not suggesting this isn't genuinely love… merely that you probably shouldn't skip the step of making such statements to yourself first (a la 'I think this may be love'), internally processing the emotional impact of this admission (so you better understand what exactly you mean by it) before including someone else in it. Incidentally, the same goes for any realizations that love has slipped away or is lacking: Don't rush to inform whoever would be impacted by such disheartening news, when instead you ought to take a few moments to let this truth to settle into your heart. Either way, with Mercury entering your private 4th-house realm and trining Neptune-in-your-8th, anything you utter aloud may prove to be too unformed, sentimental, and/or subjective—and therefore could easily give someone else (or even you) the wrong idea. Leave some time to marinate in these feelings, in advance of attempting to articulate them.

 

VIRGO (August 23-September 22): Look for your peace inside you, Virgo… or at least in whatever domestic enclave or other intimate realm permits you the agency to close the door on that which rankles your emotional being. Back out in the interactive world, you may notice a newly escalated level of incessant discussion arising, the participants of which would very much appreciate you lending your voice to the cacophony. Some of this discussion may be directly related to any strongly-asserted preferences you've recently put out there—and some of it could be (to your mind, that is) mindless prattle or otherwise totally irrelevant to anything you're actually interested in. Either way, you probably should earnestly attempt to fulfill this expected role in such proceedings. But as far as your own expectations are concerned, no amount of conversation is likely to leave you feeling much more 'at peace' about your divergent interests, attitudes, or stakes-in-the-matter. Remember that, please, once you notice this or that individual not fully grasping a certain strain-of-thought or properly considering the different complexities at play. It may prove a waste of your brainpower to try explicating any apparently-poorly-understood concepts if you'll need them to experience an authentic 'a-ha!' moment in order for you to feel at ease. The at-ease feeling, as I've already told you, will only come from within.

 

LIBRA (September 23-October 22): With a radical emotional awareness of what you don't want to fucking settle for now emerging in your consciousness, Libra, you face the exquisite challenge of how to communicate it: not too meek, oblique, or politely incomplete; not too angry, judgy, or sloppily imprecise. On the one hand, it seems you owe it to any affected party (yourself included) to outwardly verbalize the truth that's erupting from within, in frank and unambiguous terms—even if you aren't especially certain of the outcome you'd wish to actualize as a result. This act of conscious conversation will aid you in discharging the emotional energy, consolidating the various threads into a lucid assertion, and superseding any sense of 'being all alone in it' with sincere interpersonal connection. On the other hand, your current astrological scene remains somewhat volatile… which means if you aren't mindfully concentrating on both the productive, purposeful tone you probably ought to adopt and the specific main-points of content you're aiming to express, you're flirting with a heightened potential to unwittingly transgress a boundary or overshoot your mark. But isn't that a perpetual Libran balancing-act? How can you be more unabashedly, forthrightly self-expressive while still staying comfortably considerate and courteous?

 

SCORPIO (October 23-November 21): Your week kicks off with the arrival of messenger-god Mercury to your home-sign, Scorpio… which also brings the official end to all my recent cautions about your temporarily-unreliable command of clear communications (such as last week's). Thankfully, you'll now actually be better able to put forth the correct words to convey what you're thinking… though that won't altogether erase the Mars-in-your-3rd potential for your conversational tone to still ring a bit sharply. (You are a Scorpio, though. Is that really such an unfamiliar problem?) You probably should be aware, however, you'll also simultaneously be expressing the more idealistic, inquisitive, and/or dreamy side of your personality—as opposed to coming off as flatly pragmatic, realistic, or ultra-rational—whether you intend to or not. This hardly qualifies as some grave danger I must warn you about, lest you be perceived as having 'too much imagination' when it's both a fair assessment and a valuable asset in many ways. Yet, in more practical-minded contexts, you may be asked to explain how your inventive ideas will actually function and/or to justify the importance of creative visioning as an essential aspect of doing good work. Don't be offended or get defensive. These are reasonable questions… and, with the right mindset, nothing you aren't quite capable of addressing.

 

SAGITTARIUS (November 22-December 21): Please study the snapshot your coming week will provide you, Sagittarius, of both the advances you've earned and the limitations now becoming apparent. Concerning the former, it's critical for you to respectfully recognize the enhanced position (whether in professional contexts, amidst your social community, and/or within particular partnerships) you have created for yourself, with diligent focus and persistent effort. If you don't pause to acknowledge and appreciate, you cannot fully embody that which you strove to manifest… thusly implying you aren't especially interested in understanding the effects of your energy-investment (which of course begs the question of why you even bothered). Concerning the latter, I advise you to take careful note if it feels like such an investment is beginning to yield diminishing returns, particularly if you're hitting an immovable ceiling career-or-finance-wise and/or realizing that a certain relationship no longer has anything fresh or stimulating to offer you. With both considerations, however, the resultant data from your study is presently for you and you alone. Wrap your mind around it, but don't start talking about it yet.

 

CAPRICORN (December 22-January 19): A central part of successfully wielding this full brunt of personal power, Capricorn, is rightly recognizing when your best advantages will come from holding back in some way. Venus's conjunction with Saturn in your 12th this week indicates that obvious returns or external rewards may temporarily be in short supply, since the main dividend you can expect to reap is a self-validating reaffirmation of who you honestly are on the (gulp) spirit/soul/higher-self level—and who you aren't. This suggests you'd better be cognizant of the current Mars-square-Uranus temptation to forsake your usual self-control, in reaction to any real-or-imagined encroachments into your emotional free-space. Even the very possibility that someone might attempt to impose their notion of how you should feel about such-and-such an issue or incident could be enough to trigger in you an individuating lash-back… a seemingly justified response to their audacious presumption that they're entitled to a say. While I affirm your indignation may indeed be justified, such a stormy outward response wouldn't be so wise. A more personally-fruitful tactic would be to quietly accept the radical awareness that they don't know the first fucking thing about how the unique individual that's you would feel in this (or any!) situation… and to reserve the energy you would squander by lashing out (then enduring the self-inflicted emotional aftermath of replaying it) for something of your choosing.

 

AQUARIUS (January 20-February 18): With Mercury now joining the Sun in your 10th, Aquarius, this is no time to be shy with your message. The folks in your community and/or those who strongly resonate with your worldview will take great mobilizing inspiration from the words you offer them in solidarity… helping to cement that they are with you, and you with them. However, there's no getting around the simultaneous risk of alienating those who don't like your outspoken pitch, agree with your staunch stance, or care to confront the depth of what you're saying. Furthermore, you won't likely become immediately aware of which unfaithful 'friends' or shadow-lurking rivals may be decidedly unsupportive or hostile to your position. On this last point, it's worth acknowledging, then, there's not really anything you can or should do to shield yourself from reactivity or animosity you don't even know about—with the exception, perhaps, of choosing not to publicly indict or attack the proverbial 'hand that feeds you' (i.e., those chief figures and institutions responsible for employing you). Beyond that, though, when it comes to your role in a larger social matrix, it's better to have the right comrades confidently by your side, based on what you authentically believe, than a larger crowd you can only hold together by holding your tongue.

 

PISCES (February 19-March 20): Take a realistic look at where you are professionally and/or in terms of accomplishing any longer-range life-goals, Pisces. Even if you aren't very satisfied with what you're seeing, this week's 10th-house Venus-Saturn conjunction indicates you can still find favorable angles (if you aren't being too unreasonably pessimistic) from which you might derive encouragement and/or identify an avenue of further potential. Don't disregard any disappointment, of course, but also don't let it blind you to what is working well. That's what you can effectively build further upon right now, thanks to Venus's presence. After all, knowing where and how you are successful is key to positively attracting more success. That's why it's just as important to be realistic (and decidedly not self-effacing) about your successes as you are about your disappointments. Expressing excessive modesty, even if by habit, doesn't engender the sort of worldly confidence (either in others' impressions of you or in your own self-image) necessary for standing tall in one's achievements. If it's hard for you to own what you've achieved because it feels too awkwardly ego-aggrandizing, I recommend reframing it as personal satisfaction in having done something to make the world a better place.