Star Struck Style

“A Monastic Consciousness” is the title of my horoscope on astro.com. The passage refers to Saturn’s current trine to my natal Neptune.

This aspect is rare, although it does have the potential to linger in one’s chart for a while depending upon how quickly Saturn is moving through the zodiac. That isn’t the case at the moment as Saturn has recently ended its retrograde cycle and is moving swiftly past this point in my horoscope. It’s only going to be within orb for about three weeks. The interpretation of the event on the aforementioned site reads as follows:

“At this time you will reach a new understanding of your own being and the world around you. In recent years you have probably been through periods of great doubt, uncertainty and confusion. Although those periods were painful they have contributed to your new view of the world. Now is the time to deepen and take advantage of your new understanding. This is an excellent time for studies that can raise your consciousness, such as yoga, occult metaphysics, spiritualism and mysticism. Now you are able to study these subjects and put them into practice in your everyday life. They will not be purely intellectual or mental activities — you can make them real and useful!

At this time your own ego involvement in your activities is low. You are more likely than at other times to act for altruistic reasons. You can devote yourself selflessly to movements and activities that help you bring your ideas to reality. Yet you do not feel that you are denying yourself, for everything you do seems to be a logical expression of what you are.

Your ideals are not in conflict with the realities in your life at this time. They are in creative balance, with the ideal giving form and the real giving life. Your approach is one of calm sober reflection. This is not a time of lightness and gaiety; instead it produces an almost monastic consciousness that contemplates the world with detachment.

You have learned much in the last several years, and now you will be able to put into practice what you have learned.”

What interests me the most about this forecast is the idea that this alignment of planets “produces an almost monastic consciousness that contemplates the world with detachment.” I feel as if I need to detach right now so that I can make decisions for myself that are ultimately productive. I need to detach from my devotion to my current place of work and the stress I am under. I need to detach from the current political situation that is causing me anxiety. I need to find a place where I can tune out for a while. In summertime, that’s my garden. This time of year, I’m not sure where I’m going to find it.

Anyway, I’ve got a couple of days off from work. Maybe I can calm down with some “yoga, occult metaphysics, spiritualism and mysticism.” Those are typically things that bring me back to back down to earth when my head is somewhere in the clouds dreaming up the worst-case scenario about where my current situation might take me. I’m sure that plenty of people think I’m a flake for believing in what I believe, but even in my flakiest, most stressed-out moments, I tend to be solid as a rock. The Saturnine side of my personality ensures that I rarely succumb to the worst of Neptune’s influence when it is highlighted in my horoscope.

I think I’ll be okay . . .