WEEK ONE

Mercury Cazimi, Sun Saturn opposition, Mercury Uranus square

In July, we saw Mars and Venus activate the Saturn Uranus square, bringing some fiery flareups, frustrations and tensions around issues of relationships, independence, sovereignty and authenticity. This month, it’s Mercury and the Sun who will be passing through the Saturn Uranus standoff, bringing the focus to understanding our truth and purpose.

August starts with a Mercury Cazimi on the 2nd, in the Sun’s sign of Leo. This Exterior Cazimi is the midway point of the Mercury cycle and indicates the showdown or blossoming of the initial seed planted at the Interior Cazimi back on the 10th June. Things started or clarified then (be it accidentally or intentionally) should be coming to its peak expression during this 2nd August Cazimi.  This will be a powerful purification event where we can clear away our ego and biases to make room for the renewed insights and illuminations to flow in. 

I always recommend making the most of this time by doing tasks that require mental clarity, acuity and sharpness, especially Mercurial activities like writing, communicating, trading, marketing, planning and strategising . Better still, honouring Hermes through a ritual will be well worth the time, especially for those in a Mercury profection year. Additionally, Mercury Cazimis are said to be auspicious times for gaining honours, gifts and favours especially from higher powers. If you have important emails or requests to make, time it for the Mercury Cazimi to increase your chances of success. This includes pay rises, job applications, housing applications, legal cases and insights, petitions and energetic shifts in any spiritual or magical workings.

The opposition to Saturn during the Cazimi foretells a sobering, serious tone, much to the despise of the expressive and fun-seeking Sun in Leo. While this type of austerity may block the fun of the Sun, it does force us to make good use of this time of supreme insight for long term, future-orientated goals.

Later in the week, Mercury and the Sun will then activate the Uranus square which may jolt us into action or give us additional flashes of insights that could inspire us for change. This will be an electric aspect that could cause us to feel alive but at the cost of feeling unstable, restless and anxious. It’s further compounded by the New Moon joining the Sun, baking this Uranus square into the whole lunation cycle for the next 28 days.  Watch your nervous system from the end of this week until the next New Moon.

WEEK TWO

Mercury in Virgo, Venus is Libra

The second week starts to see some of the tensions ease off from the last couple of months and some really nice mood shifts happening with Mercury and Venus entering their home signs of Virgo and Libra respectively. Use this week to catch up on your work, admin, errands and general business and intersperse this with some guilt-free pleasures for self-care, social connectedness or whatever you like to treat yourself with.

Mercury Jupiter opposition

But before Mercury heads to its home turf, it has an opposition encounter with the ever-expansive Jupiter, challenging us to think big, consider the larger perspective and incorporate a greater growth mindset. So while you may be tempted to stick with what you know, consider looking outside the box as you may just come across some opportunities for growth and abundance if you dare to venture there.

Venus Moon gate #4

This week, we also see Venus and the Moon make their fourth conjunction in the evening sky, activating the heart chakra. In the myth of Inanna, this fourth gate marks the halfway point of her ascension and she gains back her gift of compassion as she passes through this point. An approaching trine with Pluto brings substantial depth and meaning to our relationships as well as the powers of a strong magnetic field of attraction which we could draw upon to manifest our desires and needs. As always in this evening star phase, you’ll be able to see Venus and the Moon in the western sky at sunset.

Moon activating Saturn Uranus square

The Moon then continues to approach the activation of the Saturn Uranus square from its fallen place in Scorpio, reminding us that there is still a long way to go to create the new structure of our ideal life. The ongoing persistence of this aggravating tension is felt deep in our wounds and emotional memories but we must remember that strong structures are built upon even stronger foundations, like those found at the rock bottom.

WEEK THREE

If you’ve been searching for an answer to a persistent challenge, or perhaps you’re just an eternal truth and wisdom seeker, this week is for you! I’d also be interested to follow the lives of anyone born this week – let me know if you know of any. Here’s why…

Heliacal rise of Mercury conjunct Mars and trine Uranus stationing retrograde

The evening heliacal rise of Mercury on the 17th is an auspicious moment of supreme transmissions and those born under this configuration of Mercury are often the wisdom keepers, sages and teachers of the world. When Mercury rises into visibility in the evening skies, we gain a sense of clarity and deep knowing about something that was previously a mystery to us. Or, we get a loud message from Mercury that suddenly clicks in our minds. 

Mercury’s next aspect is a conjunction to Mars on the 19th August, who takes this knowledge and immediately puts things in motion in the most detailed and meticulous ways, both being in the sign of Virgo – Mercury’s domicile and exaltation. At the same time, Uranus stations retrograde and trines the busy Mercury-Mars conjunction on the 20th August, further accelerating, intensifying and making matters more urgent, like pressing the turbo button to an already maxed out vehicle. 

Look at your natal chart and find where 8-14 degrees of Virgo is located. This is the area of life where you’ll be feeling this lightning speed bullet train of wisdom coming through. And, the combination of Mercury-Mars-Uranus seems very connected to the areas of technology, engineering, mechanics, inventions and communications to me – watch for prominent stories around these topics during this week both personally and around the world.

Sun Jupiter opposition

Meanwhile the Sun makes an opposition to Jupiter at the same time (20th August) reinforcing the pinnacle of our truth seeking journey with this Jupiter synodic cycle. The all-seeing Sun adds clarity to the Jupiterian vision and foresight. 

2nd Full Moon in Aquarius conjunct Jupiter

And if that’s not enough, the Full Moon in Aquarius conjunct Jupiter on the 22nd August brings even more clarity and illuminations to this week of insights. This is the second Full Moon in Aquarius (the first one in July) which is the culmination of the New Moon in Aquarius that occurred back in February 2021. Something we started then is coming into its peak now and if we missed the chance to realise this last month, we’ll be getting another opportunity to see it again this month, especially with Jupiter being closely configured to this lunation. Compared to the first Full Moon in Aquarius last month which was configured to Saturn and Mars, the Jupiter version of this same lunation will allow for more grace, opportunities, good fortune and joy. So circle back to what you were doing in February this year and think of how the fruits of your labour are starting to emerge.

As you can see, this week’s configurations are not just about the guru levitating in their mountain cave. It’s the action, drive, courage and service that they commit behind their truth and wisdom that makes this a spectacular time. What do you plan on doing this week?

WEEK FOUR

We enter Virgo season this week as the Moon starts to wane. Venus makes a harmonious trine to Saturn on the 23rd August, which may see some constructive opportunities in areas of relationships, creativity and finances. This may be a flow on from the more challenging Venus opposite Saturn aspect in early July which may have seen coldness, distance and confronting duties around our relationship issues. However at this time, we see a more harmonious exchange between the two planets, allowing us to exercise temperance and seriousness to our commitments with more willingness and acceptance.

Mercury ends the month with an opposition to Moon and Neptune on the 25th, then a trine to Pluto on the 27th August before leaving its home for Libra. Like bookends, Mercury started with a bang and will now end with a bigger picture perspective after going through some major transmissions and downloads during the month.