The planetary alignments in March build an interesting dynamic between the four directions – North, South, East and West. Here’s the summary:
- 4 March, Mars returns to Zero degrees Cancer (‘North’)
- 7 March, Mars opposite Pluto at Zero to One degrees Capricorn (‘South’) (The last of three hits)
- 8 March, New Moon in Pisces (17 degrees Pisces) right on top of Uranus
- 20 March, Autumn equinox at Zero degrees Aries (‘East’)
- 22 March, Full Moon in Libra (01 degrees Libra) (‘West’)
Notice how all of the above (except the New Moon on 8 March) are triggering Zero degrees of North, South, East and West. In astrology these are known as the Cardinal points because they mark the beginning of the seasons. Cancer is astrological North and associated with Winter, Capricorn is South and associated with Summer, Aries is East-Autumn, Libra is West-Spring. I’ve given the Southern Hemisphere associations – it’d be the opposite for the Northern Hemisphere (e.g. Cancer equals Summer in the Northern Hemisphere).
In March there’s an unusual emphasis on the Zero or One degree point of each of these Cardinal zodiac signs. Cardinal signs are to do with new beginnings – they get each one of the seasons started, and zero to one degrees represents the start of a zodiac sign (each zodiac sign goes from zero to thirty degrees). So, there’s a big message in March about new beginnings.
Whenever we start something new, effort is involved – think of a baby being born. We often associate effort with hard yakka, yet there are other ways to use our focus. The Cardinal zodiac signs have the ‘oomph’ and leadership qualities required to get things moving and as such show different ways to use effort. Aries uses motivation, courage and force to enter new ground. Libra uses strategy, gentleness and co-operation to create fair agreements and relationships. Cancer builds safety & emotional bonds for rest and support. Capricorn finetunes plans and goals before carefully taking one slow step after the other on the path to success. Birthing or breakthrough energy therefore requires different types of effort – not only the force of Aries or the steady persistence of Capricorn, but also Cancer’s rest and sustenance and Libra’s patient and considered problem-solving.
In March if you’re having difficulty birthing the new, perhaps try out an archetype you might’ve been overlooking. For instance, if you’re a Fire sign, you might be using too much courage and force. If you’re a Water sign, you might be using too much rest and waiting. If an Earth sign you might be doing too much planning and procrastinating. If an Air sign you might be doing too much talking or thinking. Instead, try to mix and match the energies for a rounded and smoother birthing of the new.
Early in the month, it’s mainly the Cancer and Capricorn themes that get the most attention. This means home and private life issues, plus work and public life issues are most likely to be highlighted. Cancer brings attention to our living and family circumstances. For example, high mortgage rates, sick family members or marriage difficulties could be emphasised. Capricorn focuses our attention on the workplace and world affairs. For example, salary conditions, unfair systems or corrupt authorities are on our minds. The most intense period for these issues is from 4 to 8 March, with Mars going into Cancer, a New Moon in Pisces and Mars making its last alignment to Pluto.
A New Moon in Pisces – notice the word ‘new’ there too? Yet another opportunity for a new beginning. This New Moon is significant because it falls right on top of Uranus, which is also in the zodiac sign Pisces. Uranus brings sudden change – either through shocks and shake-ups or lovely surprises. Whichever type of change comes to you, the deeper meaning is one of change for the better, even if some disruption and chaos erupts first. As the ruler of Aquarius, Uranus brings change that allows equality for all. Human rights and fair distribution of the Earth’s resources are Aquarian themes. Remember that both the New Moon and Uranus are in Pisces – this brings the Pisces energy into full focus. The essential quality of Pisces is compassion. The combined energy of Aquarius and Pisces asks for compassion and empathy toward all humans and all life forms, no matter how different or ‘wrong’ they might seem.
The new beginnings and Pisces themes continue in the second half of March with the rebirthing energy of Easter highlighted. In this day and age, we’d be forgiven for forgetting that Easter eggs represent celebrating the rebirth of the ‘Christ’ (Pisces) energy. The Christian tradition is to schedule Easter Sunday on the first Sunday after the first full moon after the Autumn Equinox. In 2008 there’s a full moon less than two days after the Equinox, which explains the early Easter this year. Scheduling Easter to match these alignments is a human choice, yet it’s cosmic design to have the two (Equinox and Full Moon) so close together. This creates added intensity in an already intense month.
The Autumn Equinox on the 20th at Zero degrees Aries (East) and Libra Full Moon on the 22nd at One degree Libra (West) bring in the last two Cardinal points for the month – Aries and Libra. Aries represents the masculine archetype – keywords include ’self’, ’separation’, ‘war’, ‘action’, ‘assertion’. Libra represents the feminine archetype – keywords include ‘others’, ‘connection’, ‘peace’, ‘balancing’, ‘receiving’. Aries represents standing up for our individual needs to be met, whereas Libra represents creating the right connections with others to move forward with more impact than when alone. Images of the right and left sides of the brain come to mind. Think of those who tend to view the world only through the lenses of logic, rules and reason. Then think of those who filter the world through feelings, intuition and creative chaos. We can go it alone by living in one hemisphere of our brain, or we can bridge the two hemispheres and benefit from both functions. Similarly we can build bridges with others in order to relate well and experience more of life.
The cosmos is currently favouring relationship and connectedness without sacrificing independence or individuality. The message is that masculine and feminine can be bridged. The third and final alignment, for the time being, of Mars opposite Pluto on the 7th (the first was Sept 07, the second was January 08) is asking us to say ‘no’ to dynamics that are too separatist or too focussed on the individual. The Aquarius-Pisces theme described above alerts us to the current age of connectedness, community and ‘the butterfly effect’ (i.e. even the smallest action impacts all). March is a month to foster small acts of kindness and enjoy the ripple effect.
In summary, the energies in March are asking us to realign our Cardinal points – our North, South, East & West bearings. If we are leaning too much on one of those poles, we might need to spread some of our energy out toward the other directions. For example if we are being too independent (Aries), we might need to reach out more to others (Libra). If we are being too family & home oriented (Cancer) we might need to think more about our connectedness to the world at large (Capricorn). All in all, it’s a time to clear out old beliefs of being alone or unsupported. Everything in the cosmos right now is asking us to reach out and to connect to 1) our own passion & creative desires(Aries); 2) our relationships with others (Libra); 3) our family, home and support team (Cancer) and 4) our sense of community and connection to larger issues.
All the best with re-aligning your compass bearings, and then happy rebirthing!