Astro-logical Forecast for Thursday & Friday 3/31-4/1/2011: What is a void-of-course moon?

Whatever you’re doing today, consider slowing down. First, the Moon is in Pisces — a sign that likes to go with the flow. Second, Moon goes void-of-course at 9:43AM EDT…and doesn’t enter Aries until 7:16AM EDT on Saturday, April 2nd. Break time! Third, Mercury turned retrograde yesterday afternoon and you’ll need time to adjust to the seemingly backwards mental flow — unless you have Mercury retrograde in your birth chart; in your case, these retrograde periods may not be as disorienting. Fourth, we are in the dark side of the Moon — the end of a lunar cycle (New Moon on 4/4/11 in Aries — and it’s looking pretty darn potent). It’s time to wrap things up and get ready for the next round of excitement.  So if you can, take a break over the next couple of days — planning an escape (in honor of the escapist Pisces Moon) is an excellent strategy for today and tomorrow.

Not that it’s likely to be quiet in the arena of world events. Mars, planet of action, is now at 29 degrees of Pisces — the end of the  zodiac — and about to hit 0 Aries (the Aries Point) just after 12AM on Saturday (EDT), followed by the Moon in Aries at 7:12AM EDT. If you’ve been following this forecast, you’ll recall that many astrologers (myself included), wrote that a big shake-up was suggested when disruptive Uranus made a similar transition to 0 Aries on March 11.  This weekend can anticipate more significant news from Japan and on the other shake-ups in progress — in the Middle East and in the continuing mishegosh of power plays and battles over draconian measures vs. freedom currently happening at all levels of government in the US — and in other areas of the globe that have yet to chime in.

Weird accidents also a possibility as Mars hooks up with erratic Uranus at 4:52PM EDT on Sunday — and so are technological breakthroughs, including startling news from the cosmos. Do be especially conscientious if you are on the road, and count to ten before you lose patience or your temper!

So, to recap: Thursday and Friday are days to chill if you can. Saturday is a noticeably different story: fiery, pioneering, combative — but also excitement about change and the potential for creating a whole new paradigm. We are supposed to be letting go of old patterns and embracing a new way of being at this stage of our collective soul; that’s what planets in Aries (Mars, Sun, Uranus, Mercury), Libra (Saturn) and Capricorn (Pluto) need to do. Hanging on for dear life to outmoded structures and resources will are strongly likely to make necessary transitions much harder than need be. OK, enough about world events and power plays. In your own personal world, there’s plenty to enjoy over the next few days — and including a weekend of potential fun, high-energy and innovation. Will write more about the opportunities presented by the New Moon in Aries in a day or so…stay tuned.

Until then, some helpful words posted several months ago on Moon voids — what they are, how to deal with them…but first, a word from our sponsor:

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WHAT IS A VOID-OF-COURSE MOON?

Here’s a visual for you: think of a pinball game. Last night at 6:38PM EDT 3/30/11, the Moon entered the sign of Pisces (imagine the moon as the pinball being launched into that sign). As the moon travels through a sign, it makes aspects to other planets (imagine the pinball making contact w/all the bumpers and stuff in the game; think of the dynamic way the pinball/moon moves after it makes contact). The LAST aspect the Moon makes before entering the next sign (this will happen at 9:43 AM EDT today when the Moon makes a contact with Pluto) is the time when the moon goes VOID.

Think of what happens to the pinball after it makes contact w/the last bumper before falling back down the board to be re-launched — it kinda loses steam, right? This is the kind of energy we have during the void, especially long ones (several hours or more). Sensitive types will notice a “floaty” feeling; it can be  challenging to travel in a straight line during a void, and we are more likely to encounter curve balls and other twists. Clients call with crises that later turn out to be nothing. Lines of communication get crossed. Your waiter says “Good Morning!” and it’s four in the afternoon. You pour water over whole bean coffee — oops! You pick up the phone and it’s someone you’ve been trying to avoid. Details fall through the cracks; it’s important to double check everything — you get the idea. 

Moon voids are good for a nap, sleeping in late, leaving work early, a creative brainstorm, writing music, meditating, doing yoga or doing things that are considered routine. I’ve tested this rule many times by breaking it, so now I avoid buying things (even on sale, because I find I just don’t use them), and I try to schedule important meetings and calls when the moon is NOT void.

There’s a higher “flake factor” during voids, too – people don’t show up for planned events. Other “twists” include upsets in sports matches (it’s a good time to bet on the underdog) and elections (the classic example is the presidential election on Nov 7,  2000 — Bush v. Gore — which happened during a Moon void AND when Mercury was stationary direct — talk about a set-up for errors and confusion). So during a void, sleep in…rest…try to take it easy until the Moon moves into the next sign.  Of course there will be times when you’ve got some big thing scheduled during a Moon void — that’s just life. The key then is to be AWARE and flexible about whatever might come up that’s not what you’re trying to achieve; sometimes the twists can actually be beneficial (such as ones that come about during brainstorms).