Solstice. Cancer Season of 2023
Happy Cancer Season and Happy Solstice! The longest day of the year, the stream of solar energy is very powerful and requires resonance with our inner Sun. We have a very significant task at this Cardinal point in the wheel of the year, the task is to initiate ourselves into the second part of the year, to begin the maturation in alignment with our unique blueprint. The chart of Solstice has Sun in the home of the Moon and Moon in home of the Sun, mutual reception of luminaries prompts us to weave the parts of ourselves instead of choosing the dominant one, there is a need for integration of our duality. We can turn the sails of our ship with the support of the Solstice energies. Solstice marks a point of needing to take responsibility for our ancestral knowledge, for the memory we hold within ourselves, for how we are going to enter the second part of the year. After the period of growth the Sun is ready to start going inward, to make sense of the lessons of the last 6 months. This is a time for us to clear out any notions and attachments that are preventing us from embracing the fullness of our inner Sun and true blessings of maturation.
Cancer season is a time to tend to our roots, sense of safety, home and nourishment, recognizing the need for a container that is providing us with all that is important on the core, deep level. Security becomes a point of focus, as we grow into the realization that our individual and collective well being is directly tied to how safe we actually feel. Here we are asked to initiate, but from a very different place, one where we suspend impulsivity and check with our emotional state every step of the way. Cancer season's cardinal drive is coming from the connection to the idea of home we carry within ourselves, to the memories that stem from before our conscious mind was developed. On the mundane level this is a great period to tend to our actual home, creating a place where one can truly rest and feel comforted by their surroundings, investing in property or creating business that is home based are all Cancer season themes.
Mars is in Leo until July 10th, pushing us to use our will and courage to bring creative vision we hold within to greater visibility, this is very outgoing and gregarious Mars placement, do not be afraid to embrace boldness that comes with this Mars transit. On June 26th Mars in Leo will square Uranus in Taurus at 21 degrees, pushing us through some level of tension to align our creative self, ideas and need for full hearted presence with our values and desire for stability that maybe looks different from the places where we learnt about stability first. Because possibly, on some unconscious level a lot of us don’t believe that our innate talents are enough to provide us with the proper foundation and bring ease into the life we are trying to create, and that is simply not true. Uranus can take us out of our comfort zone and we need to exercise courage not slip back into old, seemingly safe but unfulfilling patterns of holding ourselves back. One way to direct this energy to your benefit is to focus your energy on the joys of growing into the new kind of safety and the joys of creative explorations that can be a wonderful means for a new foundation.
On the same day, June 26th, Mercury enters Cancer and brings a quality of mental focus to our emotional needs. Mercury here is not about linear rational approach, it is driven by the underlying desire for safety and care. Having connections and conversations that allow us to gain a deeper understanding of our core needs is very beneficial. Tending to agreements related to property or our living situation can be important. On June 30th Mercury in Cancer will form trine to Saturn in Pisces, providing us with an opportunity to make changes in the mental attitudes that are rooted in early childhood that are long overdue for gentle and grounded shifts. Later in the day on the 30th Mercury will go through the heart of the Sun in Cancer, further illuminating some memories and mechanisms of the mind that need to be looked at from a more compassionate and maybe less analytical perspective. This is a brilliant time to apply your emotional awareness to the way you create, write and present yourself in the world. Mercury here is going to form a very supportive aspect to Saturn in Pisces in your 11th house on June 30th, helping you re-organize some of the plans and projects in accordance to the well-being of those involved, as well it will bring greater structure to the ideas you may share with others. Tapping into the emotional undercurrents through the way you choose to deliver messages can be beneficial for many.
July kicks off with Venus in Leo forming a square to Uranus in Taurus at 22 degrees on July 2nd. This energy is daring us to lean into trust that what makes us alive and happy has the capacity to also provide for our safety and security. Mark this date as this energy will have further unfolding through Venus’ upcoming retrograde journey. Second square between Venus and Uranus will take place on August 9th and the last one on September 29th. This is a tension of a fixed nature, proceed cautiously but not stubbornly, feel the difference between not rushing and resisting the progress. Venus square Uranus, times 3, is an invitation to allow the stagnant shell that is doing nothing but restricting our creative vision and obstructing the flow of abundance to start falling off. Trust in the essence of who you are through these 3 Venus/Uranus connections. Changing the ways you think about your finances, finding exciting ways to expand your awareness and learning how to turn your interest into the source of monetary gain. We are in for a very interesting summer full of divine interventions, re-alignments of our values and creation of the lifestyle that is appropriate and attuned with the changes we have been going through in the last couple of years. This square is inviting us to reinvent ourselves in ways that might feel initially unsettling, but if you honestly look at yourself, you may see that staying in the old skin is even more unsettling.
The Full Moon in Capricorn arrives on July 3rd. This lunation falls on 11th degree of Capricorn, so if you have placements between 8 and 13 degrees of cardinal cross ( Aries, Cancer, Libra, Capricorn) this is going to be more pronounced for you, as the endings in the ways you relate to the themes of career, relationship with authority figures, status and ambition will be more on the surface. The house with Capricorn on its cusp is essential to our growth, the patience learnt when faced with the demands of Saturn ruled Capricorn is so important for getting us where we aim to go. This Full Moon and following two weeks is a wrap up period from the New Moon in Capricorn that took place on December 23rd of 2022 at 1 degree of Capricorn. With Pluto out and in of Capricorn for 2023-2024 you may have been redefining what discipline and structure really mean to you, and this lunation is an opportunity to gain greater clarity on what do you want to really focus on for the long haul in regards to your work and place in the world, and what do you need to let go for that to happen, the opposition to Mercury points you that a lot of that has to do with the language you adopted long long time ago, changing that can lead to other changes. The Full Moon forms a beautiful trine to Saturn in Pisces and opposition to Mercury in Cancer, allowing you to align your energies with a clear message and the emotional attunement to close the chapters that have fulfilled their purpose. This lunation helps you to grasp the broader view on what needs to be tempered or disciplined, so you can proceed to bringing your long term visions to reality.
On July 10th your Mars enters the mutable earth lands of Virgo. This Mars transit is bringing our focus to the routines and habits in both our home and professional lives, to our health, nutrition, pets and the workplace. Mars will stay in Virgo till August 27th, and I would suggest using this time to tackle any of the lingering tasks that are essential to the long term goals we have set for ourselves. Mars generally doesn’t like paying attention to details, there is an impulse to move forward quickly, so while you have Mars transiting detail oriented and meticulous Virgo make a list or a plan of all the things you need to take care of, but have been procrastinating. Also this is a great time to start an exercise routine that is more suitable for your health needs at the moment. Watch your digestion, as Virgo is associated with it and Mars can be a touch inflammatory. Plan plan…
As Mars enters Virgo on July 10th, the ruler of Virgo, Mercury in Cancer is forming an opposition to Pluto in Capricorn in the last 29th degree, facilitating opening for deep conversations, inner revelations about the dynamic between our need for safety and our worldly goals, our sense of comfort and desire to get out of the comfort zone. This dynamic has been playing out for years, be mindful of what triggers strong emotional responses with this transit. Right after this opposition Mercury enters Leo, bringing all the zest and fire to our mental landscape and creative endeavors. This is the time to speak out loud about what inspires you, connect to people who feel like a celebration, don’t be afraid to share your creative vision, you never know where it will take you and who will be inspired by it. Mercury in Leo is incredible energy for uplifting, for infusing your immediate environment with the words that come from your heart.
New Moon in Cancer takes place on July 17th and it is one to watch as it is a new beginning that is very Plutonian in nature. Check if you have major placements between 22 and 27 degrees of cardinal cross, if you do, this new Moon is going to be even more impactful for you. Moon and Sun in Cancer are in applying opposition to Pluto in Capricorn. This is asking us to pause and consider how our emotional state, safety and our memories influence the way we move through the outer world that can be restrictive and often demanding. How can we hold on to our inner power and cultivate greater emotional support for ourselves? Pluto here can act as a magnifying force and pull all sorts of triggers, but good news is that this lunation receives harmonious support from Neptune in Pisces and Uranus in Taurus. Trust that you deserve to have your needs met, and trust your intuition when it tells you that your needs are being dismissed, be it by a person or by social structure. Neptune is carrying the messages and Uranus is not allowing us to settle for something that is not aligned. Take good care of yourself during this Cancer New Moon, tend to your home, lean into compassionate thoughts towards the place you came from and towards yourself, initiate this very gentle yet powerful cycle from the emotional state that reflects your authentic needs.
Last days of Cancer season are truly gem packed with big cosmic shifts, as on the same day of the New Moon in Cancer, on July 17th, Nodes of the Moon move out of the Taurus/Scorpio axis into Aries/Libra axis. Fixed cross people are getting a bit of a release, as the cardinal placements are coming to the center stage. North Node signifies an area in your life where you crave growth and expansion, the South Node is always opposite to the North Node. These axes deal with the balance of the self, identity and life direction with North Node in Aries and your one on one relationships, both romantic and professional, marriage, legal matters with South Node in Libra. Our collective focus is now on the Mars ruler Aries, the courage and the will to step into our full being, the energy to move towards your dreams boldly. Connections to people who feel like you have known them before is not unlikely, but whatever happens choose to follow your path, what inspires your fire and attunement to life itself. This ingress is especially significant for those with major natal placements between 26 to 29 degrees of the Cardinal cross (Aries, Libra, Cancer, Capricorn). And gradually it will move through the degrees towards 0º, as Nodes move in the opposite direction (an extensive post on the Nodes is coming soon).
July 22nd might be the most cosmically charged day of the season, as Sun in Cancer, Nodes in Aries/Libra and Pluto in Capricorn form a grand cross that is going to test our ability to prioritize our needs and desires without falling into the extremes of relational dynamics. This grand cross can bring to the surface the ways we need to take back the responsibility and power of providing ourselves with safety, nourishment and care, to make choices that are not robbing us of the opportunities to fully express ourselves, to mature and to recognize authority that we need to embrace. This is a pivotal point that will test how much we have learnt about taking responsibility and taking charge in accordance to our evolving nature. Have a blessed Cancer Season! With Love, Mariana.