“Each generation out of relative obscurity must discover its mission, fulfill or betray it.”
-Frantz Fanon, revolutionary Algerian writer and psychologist
On May 27, 2010, Uranus will enter in Aries for the first time in nearly 84 years. The planetary symbol of change and re-vision in our society’s awareness will travel through this bold and pioneering sign for the next seven years. Of course, I could spill a lot of ink on what this means for those born during this time. But it’s an even more powerful initiatory time for those born between September 1975-November 1981 (or born between November 1974-May 1, 1975), since they were born while Uranus was traveling in Scorpio, the other sign ruled by Mars. (Although that’s more of a coincidence) So what’s the real connection? The big take-off phase before a project launches into air, so to speak, is called the “gibbous” phase of a cycle. For instance, with the monthly lunar cycle, it’s the phase just before the moon looks completely full. It’s like the call for “places” just before showtime or the last wipe of the counter before a barista flips the open sign of a cafe in the morning. It’s the time when a generation steps out of relative obscurity to discover its mission as Fanon says. Uranus in Scorpio, you’re up to bat! What does the next seven years mean for you?
Okay, let’s get the hard to swallow stuff out of the way first. True to the zodiac issues regarding Scorpio, your generation will face challenges and growth in the areas of property, power and personal sexuality. Your generation will nearly worship the word “essential” as you’ll be learning to get by or get the most with only the bare essentials. In fact, “Essential” will probably be a more dominant word in the titles of guidebooks just as “The Dummies” or “Idiot’s” guides were big for the last 7 years. If you’re reading between the lines, as I know you Uranus in Scorpios like to do, then you’ve probably figured out that you’ll have “challenges” in the areas of property, etc because you’re likely to have less of those things, except for the sex. So, yeah, this is the part when I lay out for you that the last time Uranus was in Aries was the start of the Great Depression. So I’ve been expecting this serious downturn, economic challenge/adjustment, major recession, or any other term but what it really is–Global Depression–in our economy for over 7 years. Scorpio is one of the natural Zodiac signs for dealing with communal resources or the open (and secret) resources that we share with others, like partners. Aries is the sign of Spring, of renewal, beginning again. Put the two signs together and what they spell is a renewal of how we, as a society, deal with our shared and communal resources.
A quick glance of the newspaper headlines or the trending topics on twitter/google let’s us know we’re on to something here: the Mississippi Gulf/BP Oil Spill, European Sovereign Debt, Foreclosures, Financial Regulation, “Disenfranchised” Tea Party, Peak Oil, Social Security maxing out, Foreclosures, Gay rights, and the list goes on. A key issue or gripe that I feel will become greater as your generation matures is the distinct feeling that you’ve been shafted or bamboozled. This isn’t wholly wrong. The good news is that you got shafted out of the things that weren’t working so well in the first place. A lot of money was made based on corruption and shaky business practices. Fortunately, your generation is part of a renewed first step toward building sounder foundations, at least until another generation will have to do a similar thing near the 22nd century. I know that sounds nice and offers little real consolation, but think about the good people who invested far more and for far longer into these corrupt systems and how they must feel. This gives your generation ample opportunity to get more right. This goes for sexuality and romantic relationships too. It’s no accident that there’s so much talk about “cheating” on partners these days. You can expect more people to be talking about the issue of open relationships, polyamory and swinging. But the feeling of getting the short end of the stick is a theme that will be hard for you all to shake. You may feel like you have to carry the burden for other people’s mistakes. You have to clean up other people’s messes. The upside is that you also benefit from their mistakes and their missions. Let’s look at other generations to put yours in context. The dates in parentheses are for when the generation would be born. To find the activation point for each generation, add roughly 34 or 35 years from the first date given.*
The Uranus in Cancer (September 1948 to August 1955) is the first generation that really pushed beyond sticking to your herd mentality of the past to learning how to deal with others who are historically or ideologically different from them. When Uranus went into Sagittarius in 1981-2, they had to learn and teach others tolerance. But they didn’t stabilize those structures of tolerance. Now you will do so.
The Uranus in Leo (August 1955 to November 1961) generation made it important to understand the delicate balance between individual power and absolute power as they were initiated in 1989 with the fall of the Soviet Bloc countries and Uranus going into Capricorn. However, individual power when not checked by a collective power will lead to greed and selfishness. Now you must learn to regulate it.
The Uranus in Virgo (August 1962 to September 1968) generation showed the importance of “going green” and creating more effective ways of working and communicating through the internet when Uranus went into Aquarius in 1996. However, ideal or virtual worlds are not substitutes for the tangibles, whether those are from human touch or actual resources as was discovered during the dotcom bust. Now you got to get people to think more about what’s tangible, not just ideals or picture perfect images of their bodies or the environment.
Your immediate predecessors, the Uranus in Libra generation (September 1968 to November 1974), wanted to create more full disclosure, like WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get), and equality in everything from gay marriage to peer to peer file sharing (like Napster) to reality television while Uranus has been in Pisces. Yet pressing for full disclosure or even creating an open peer-to-peer reality doesn’t keep everyone honest and all things equitable. And that’s where you come in. How do you restore the balance? Uranus in Scorpio seems to suggest that it’s by dealing with the down and dirty issues that no one has been willing to face.
This puts a lot on your shoulders, but this is why Uranus in Aries is your initiatory influence—you can begin again after what seems like a social death or the aftermath of disaster. Like the Uranus in Virgo generation’s Y2K, we find you standing up amidst the buzz of another apocalypse: 2012. Your generation may fear, as many generations have before, that they are the last generation. Nothing could be farther from the truth. The true meaning of apocalypse is “revelation” or a “lifting of the veil.” What’s a more fitting image for a generation marked by Uranus in Scorpio, a sign known for managing secrets, than “lifting a veil.” You’re the generation that unmasks the multiple Ponzi schemes of economics, philosophy, politics, religion and sexuality that have gone on too long. There is a price to pay for unveiling the truth that the “emperor” has not been wearing any clothes for a long time. You may not feel up to the task. You could become bogged down in your own resentments about being part of the “down and dirty” clean up crew for the world’s messes. You could become haunted by images of the apocalypse or the feeling that “Big Brother” is still watching you. I’m willing to bet though that your generation, on the whole, would rather live challenging a lie than die living one. You’d rather get back to basics or essentials than have a bunch of comforting fluff that will certainly fail you. This is the sentiment to which you must stay connected. It’s good to get back to basics or the bare essentials, so you’re creating and building on sturdier ground. This lays the groundwork for Uranus’ journey into Taurus in 2018 and that’s a different generation. We’ll get to that in 7 years. For now, stand up and be counted, Uranus in Scorpio generation. All of us are counting on you!
*The timings vary with Uranus, depending on when he enters a sign and then retrogrades. That’s why for some generations it’s between the ages of 34-35, for the oldest of that generation, instead of exactly at 35 years.
Practicing Astrologer 
Venus Retrograde in Scorpio 2010: Before I let go…
October 8, 2010 — return2thesourceThe astrological Venus is the harmonizer. She’s the planet that establishes how you resonate with what or who is like you, as in affinity, and what (or who) you actually like. In myth, we know Venus as the goddess of lust, love and all things or creatures beautiful. In Taurus, one of her key signs of operation, she establishes how we resonate with the natural or material world. In Libra, she establishes how we resonate with each other. When she’s traveling through the signs of Mars, Aries and Scorpio, she often finds it hard to blend an impulse toward harmony and asserting herself passionately(as Mars likes to do). This is what has been happening as Venus has been in Scorpio for the last month. But when a planet goes retrograde, meaning she appears to travel backwards through the Zodiac, then she has some extra trouble.
Retrograde planets find it harder to function because they are journeying deep in our psyches. Rather than being upfront, with retrograde planets, nothing is as it seems or what has not been seen for awhile resurfaces. You might remember when I spoke about Mercury going retrograde recently, I talked about how that planet’s importance became exaggerated during the retrograde, highlighting our attachment to all things Mercurial.This also happens when Venus is retrograde, as she travels into the underworld of psyches.
So this is the time when we have to pay careful attention to our attachments, whether material or emotional. The power of this retrograde is even greater because it comes on the cusp of a New moon in Libra. If you’re starting a new relationship, then be attentive to the issues that surface as they may surface rather fast. If you recognize a pattern with this new person, chances are it’s not him or her. It’s something you’re not perceiving about yourself.
Likewise, if you’re holding on to old worn out things (like clothes, furniture, etc) or harmonizing with people who don’t match your identity or current sense of self, you may be either inspired (or pushed) to release those people or things. The pushing part may come in the form of losing some things or having disruptions or arguments with people who you normally get along with. Unlike Mercury, however, the problem may not be just one of communication, but something deeper: you may not resonate with each other at a core level.
It’s also true, since it’s a retrograde, that someone with whom you thought you didn’t resonate or only resonated with on a superficial level may become closer to you. For instance, a client of mine told me that her husband gave her a newly redone diamond-studded wedding band last night as a symbol of their re-commitment to each other. Last year this time they were on the rocks. So what’s lost can be found; what’s held too tightly can have its grip loosened; and what’s loosely held can be held tighter. The important thing is to keep your integrity at this time.
With Venus out of sorts in Scorpio, she is challenged to call forth the best in her nature rather than get down right treacherous and nasty, which could be easy to do now. (Remember: we’re going deep into our psyches now, so people, places and memories from the past surface as do all the possibly strong negative feelings surrounding them.) The key is to keep perspective, realizing what rock star Sting once sang is likely true: “If you love someone (or something), set them free.” As much as we put energy into loving someone, it doesn’t mean we own them or they owe us. Love freely given must also be freely received as well. When love given is not honored, then Venus uses the force of Scorpio to exact revenge, which is not her nature. She wants to redeem the past by making the present more than what it is. She can’t, however.
The force of Scorpio is best used, not for revenge, but for summoning from the depths to herself the one true aspect of her nature that she can control: her dignity. You can get angry when you’ve been violated, either in the past or present. You can get sad when hurt. But the best thing is to get up, dust yourself off, and move on. Going through hell and back, as Venus is symbolically doing with the retrograde, is really about the going forward AND then carrying the things you KNOW belong to you after going through hell and back–even if you don’t have much but just the skin on your back because, at least, you KNOW that’s yours! Everything else?…let it go.