Mars began his transit of Capricorn on March 17th, an influence that will remain until May 15th, 2018.
This is an especially significant season for Mars because Capricorn is his sign of exaltation, the sign where he reaches his apex of magical power. Imagine the energy of the planet of war returning in great triumph.
It takes Mars more than two years to make his way all around the zodiac so he has not passed through Capricorn since the end of 2014. This year, Mars’ transit will fortify the energies of Saturn and Pluto, also in Capricorn.
In traditional astrology, Mars and Saturn are the two “malefics,” meaning that they are the planets associated with life’s challenges and hardships.
Mars is called the lesser malefic and Saturn, the greater malefic. When these two planets combine their energies in a single sign, it is typical for some especially gruelling challenges to arise.
With Mars pushing you into action and Saturn demanding that you work harder, you can expect to feel a bit exhausted at times. The periods when Mars and Saturn share a sign are forecasted by astrologers as being unhappy or dangerous times.
However, Mars is in his sign of exaltation and Saturn is in his sign of rulership in Capricorn. So at this time, both Mars and Saturn are enthroned.
The game of thrones played between these two planets may seem domineering and intense. But the lesson within this season of Mars and Saturn in Capricorn is to learn how to avoid falling prey to the tyrannical and ruthless behavior of others.
MARS CONJUNCT SATURN
On April 1st, 2018 Mars will conjunct Saturn in Capricorn, offering an unprecedented level of strength and strategy to be used in the service of attaining victory.
The malefic energy may boil over as waves of anger and resentment. It may be through the rushing power of fury that you finally breakthrough and choose to succeed!
To offset the destructive qualities of this conjunction, put yourself to work. Take initiative and find something to pour your energies into.
Keep in mind that the challenges and difficulties that arise during this time are a test of your strategic intelligence. There is an immense amount of power to tap into, but it is meant to be used intelligently rather than explosively. During this transit, you may find the strength to overcome whatever obstacles may befall you, but only if you proceed with cunning and patience.
MARS CONJUNCT PLUTO
On April 25th, Mars will conjunct Pluto in Capricorn. Though Pluto is not a traditional malefic planet, Pluto has numerous associations with death and destruction.
Thus, the conjunction between Mars and Pluto may create an atomic explosion of ambition, a broiling lust for power. Even if you are satisfied with your position in life, those around you may begin to display obvious signs of discontent and malice.
The easy path under this influence is to act selfishly, pushing your agenda on others by force. The more challenging path is one that seeks to contain these impulses, transmuting lesser instincts and desires into a tidal wave of creativity.
With Mars conjunct Pluto, there is a deep well of transformative energy to draw upon. If ever there was a time to let your fears become courage, this is it.
With the level of fearless intensity afforded by Mars, Saturn, and Pluto in Capricorn, seize fate by the throat and learn to excel at the game of power.
When Mars transits through Capricorn the planet of war is tempered by wisdom. From high atop the mountain peaks of Capricorn, Mars’ hunger for power becomes blessed by enduring patience and strategy. Nowhere else in the zodiac does Mars understand the rules of the game better. And nowhere else is there more potential to attain victory.
In Capricorn, Mars becomes ready to sacrifice rash emotions and immature desires for a wider vision and a greater purpose.
When Mars is in Capricorn, there is no flag waving, no unnecessary demonstrations of brute force. There is no time for elaborate punishments or bloodlust. The acquisition of power becomes a chess game, demanding a clear mind that sees three moves ahead.
And the reward for playing is to ascend to new heights.
Want to learn how to perform effective Mars Magic? Registration for POWER: The Strength and Strategy of Mars in Capricorn is still open!
WAR OF THE WORLDS
The Martial element that exists within the psyche. But getting in touch with it may be a scary thing to do, because Mars is notorious for being the planet of blood-baths and battles and war.
Know that the energy of Mars should only be feared if it becomes imbalanced. It is true that people who become overrun by Martial energies can easily succumb to the warring forces of aggression and destruction. But the truth is that any planet that begins to dominate your psyche can lead to ruin.
Strengthening your relationship to Mars will help you call upon this energy for your benefit whenever needed. This is so important because so many of us are trained to fear, deny and repress Mars.
When Mars is healthy and balanced, it spurs on the motivation to seize the day! Mars is also the pulsation, the bleeding sensation of survival instinct! Without Mars, you would yield to every negating force. It is Mars that offers the antidote to ennui and apathy. And it is Mars that incites the heroic impulse to fight against evil.
It is by working with Mars that you may resurrect your raison d’etre!
As the psychologist Thomas Moore says in his book, Re-enchantment of Everyday Life:
“Leaving a mark on this world is an aggressive act; standing firm, is an expression of Mars’ virility; and letting our spirit and soul creatively loose upon life is an act of reverence to the spirit that makes life vital.”
It is so nice to talk about the heroism of Mars, that spirit that makes life vital! But it must be acknowledged that Mars is also the planet of war and conflict. Whether for noble or ignoble reasons, Mars excited your appetite for POWER.
As Carl Jung wrote in Psychology and Alchemy:
“There is no light without shadow and no psychic wholeness without imperfection.”
Hypothetically speaking, let’s say you are a bit like me: a romantic soul, a pacifist, a vegetarian…etc… Awake to the dream of world peace, you avoid power struggles preferring to believe that your mild manners will be enough to get by.
Whether you can admit it or not, you crave power just as much as anyone that you might criticize and perhaps even more by virtue of the fact that you refuse to admit it.
As Robert Greene reminds…
“The feeling of having no power over people and events is generally unbearable to us–when we feel helpless we feel miserable. No one wants less power; everyone wants more.”
Mars urges you to admit what power you have already been blessed with and asks that you become courageous enough to work with it.
The ability to trust yourself is the foundation of all power. If you can’t be sure that you will do what you say you are going to do, then all else is lost. Nobody will ever trust you if you don’t trust yourself.
Now consider what other power you have been afforded in this world. If you can’t think of any, remember that the ability to afford food is power.
The freedom to make ideological choices about what you read and eat is tremendous power. Having a group of friends or family who are influenced by your ideas is power.
And access to the internet is POWER!
The wisdom of Mars, Saturn and Pluto in Capricorn can teach you how to not just have power but to excel at it. If you want to make the world a better place, to be the change that you want to see in the world, then you must learn to excel in power. Ghandi certainly did… as did Martin Luther King Jr…
“…Powerlessness will make you miserable. Instead of struggling against the inevitable, instead of arguing and whining and feeling guilty, it is far better to excel at power. In fact, the better you are at dealing with power, the better friend, lover, husband, wife, and person you become.”
LIFE ON MARS
To work with Mars, you must accept that you have a craving for power and that this poses a threat to many people. No matter how genuinely decent, kind, or generous you may be, there is no way to please everyone and there is no way to avoid threatening people.
If you find that you are often fatigued, indecisive, and tormented by the fear of upsetting people, then you are struggling to work effectively with Mars. Why?
Because like so many good people, you are hoping to find a way to avoid power struggles and conflict.
Reflections upon your relationship to power are often uncomfortable because it can be a struggle to see how Mars’ appetite for power can coexist with wisdom and morality.
As a warning to anyone who wishes to avoid Mars by hiding behind morals, consider what the most notorious political philosopher of the Renaissance, Niccolò Machiavelli once said:
“Any man who tries to be good all the time is bound to come to ruin among the great number who are not good. Hence a prince who wants to keep his authority must learn how not to be good, and use that knowledge, or refrain from using it, as necessity requires.”
As you can see from Machiavelli’s statement, ignorance and avoidance of power struggles can only lead to ruin. Despite the fact that narcissists and sociopaths continuously prove that Machiavelli was correct about the world, most people (myself included) still try to always be good.
Why?
Because it’s such a nice feeling to say, “I’m a lover, not a fighter.”
And to have to learn how not to be good, and use that knowledge, or refrain from using it, as necessity requires is terrifying! Learning how to play both sides is a great power that comes with great responsibility.
Don’t worry, your fear of this is normal.
In astrology, there has long been a philosophical precedent suggesting that Mars should be feared, avoided or quieted down as much as possible.
Traditionally, Mars is called the lesser malefic, the term malefic indicating that Mars brings an influence that is antithetical to happiness.
There are some very good reasons to be afraid of Mars. All eruptions of hatred, violence and war are expressions of martial energies, so it is no wonder that gentle and loving people fear the source of these miseries. Wise people know that power can become a narcotic that stirs insanity and that not everyone can be trusted with a weapon.
But people who sublimate their natural craving for power tend to degenerate into the worst kinds of hypocrites. Rather than becoming increasingly heroic, creative and strong, they seethe with resentment against the world and play the victim.
These are the types that erupt with hatred during malefic conjunctions.
Astrology is a language that enables you to accept your own natural qualities of aggression without fearing the potential for violence. People who embody courage, community leadership, and confidence are emblematic of Mars.
But if the spirit of Mars becomes buried under fear, the desire to raise things up and bring them into distinction is denied. The mask of victimhood obscures your power and creativity becomes lost to oblivion. Instead of building things up, you begin to tear them down.
You know this dynamic well in all forms of racism and sexism.
But what do you hate about the world? Is there any repressed destructive tendency lingering in you?
Everyone knows what kinds of perversion and suffering can arise from the forced suppression of sexuality. So, repressing one’s desire for position, influence, and power is the same kind of deal. It makes a very decent person into a very dangerous person.
This is why in the 48 Laws of Power, Robert Greene warns the reader especially to watch out for those who pretend that they are totally uninterested in power. These people are either so unconscious of their own shadow aspects that they are dangerous to be around. Or, they are pretending to be innocent in order to manipulate others. In either case, don’t trust them!
As a reminder of how many power-hungry and manipulative people pretend to be gentle, he writes:
“Our world today…imagines itself the pinnacle of fairness, yet the same ugly emotions still stir within us, as they have forever. The game is the same…unless you are a fool, you learn quickly to be prudent, and to do as Napoleon advised: Place your iron hand inside a velvet glove.”
The iron hand Napoleon referred to is Mars, the aspect of your humanity that craves the kingdom and the power and the glory, forever and ever
Amen.
Much Love,
Aeolian Heart
P.S. Want to learn more about Mars Magic? Registration for POWER: The Strength and Strategy of Mars in Capricorn is still open! Sign up now.