Sun enters Virgo; balancing earth and air

The Sun moves into Virgo on August 22nd, late in the evening here in the UK. Another of the subtle shifts, which for me at least begin around Lammas, away from summer and deeper into autumn. The Virgo Ingress is just a few hours after the full moon, the second full moon in Aquarius of this year. So we move from celebrating and affirming radical change very rapidly into the hard work and discipline of bringing that change into tangible reality. With Mercury and Mars both in Virgo, we have the potential to balance thought and action, planning and doing. Both are necessary. The Ingress chart has some strong trine aspects between Venus, Saturn and the North Node, in the air signs, bringing an extra depth of connection to the sign of mutable earth. Good communication and connection are likely to be especially important in the coming weeks and we are called to figure out what our truth is, to speak it aloud and to work with others to make it a reality. Virgo season is always a time when we are challenged to put our ideas and knowledge into practice, to do the work of figuring out what works. With Venus and the North Node in the mix, offering and receiving support from others to step out of our comfort zone, to reach for something new and exciting and scary, is also highlighted. Making authentic connections, both within ourselves and with the folk around us is especially important this Virgo season - and then grounding those connections in reality. The balance of earth and air energies, always prominent during Virgo season, is especially powerful this year, with a focus on reaching out and connecting as well as the more usual Virgo dynamic of doing the work quietly, in the background. This is a good Virgo season for learning from and supporting each other, for doing the work together as well as on and for ourselves.

Of course, each zodiac season brings a renewed awareness of its opposite and a chance to reconcile dualities. The personal planets in Virgo will all oppose Neptune in Pisces in the coming weeks (Mercury on August 25th, Mars on September 2nd and the Sun on September 14th), reminding us that chaos and order are two sides of the same coin. The key dynamic of the Virgo Pisces axis is giving service, which can be devotion to a higher cause (Pisces) or quietly doing the work of cleaning up the mess, putting the house in order, on every level (Virgo). The full moon on September 21st, just before the Sun moves on into Libra, will also call us to celebrate and affirm where and how we are giving service - and to what.

The initiating spark of cardinal energy also comes into play in the coming weeks, with Venus already in Libra, sign of cardinal air, and Mercury joining her there on August 30th and Mars on September 15th. Relationships and connections will become even more important and we can relax into our support networks. Squares from Venus (on September 6th) and then Mercury (on September 22nd) to Pluto in Capricorn will remind us to go deeper, to keep dismantling outdated power structures, to keep putting our Libran ideals into practice. There’s no avoiding those Virgo themes of constant practice, refining our goals, and doing the work.