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The Astrology of November features all the outer planets: Saturn, Uranus, Neptune and Pluto. Just before the month began, Saturn entered Libra and squared Pluto, an important aspect that becomes exact by mid-November. This is a powerful combination of archetypal energies, made even more so because Pluto currently resides in Saturn’s sign of Capricorn. The structure of our lives that we have come to depend on might take a sudden turning.

Like Pluto, Uranus and Neptune symbolize forces for change, although less sweepingly drastic in their effects than their astrological cousin. Both are featured prominently in this month’s configurations. Uranus represents the flash of inspiration that can apprehend in an instant all that we are about, the human condition raised to a level of cosmic understanding. Uranus is prominent in these November skies because it is almost stationary during this month, about to turn to direct motion, and also because it is aspected by both the Full Moon and Venus at the very beginning of the month and the New Moon of November 16th. Neptune is stationing direct this month also, on November 4th. The New Moon of the 16th aspects Neptune strongly, by square, and just as Jupiter closes in on a repeat of the triple conjunction with Neptune and Chiron that was active during last spring and early summer.

Since Uranus and Neptune occupy the same degree of different signs right now, they are linked; whatever configuration, like this Scorpio New Moon, that aspects Uranus also aspects Neptune. Since they also remain in mutual reception, each one in the sign ruled by the other, there is a strong dose of compassionate understanding in the air, a potentially optimistic way of seeing past the enormous burden of change that is upon us. We are fortunate to have compassion and sensitivity for each other and the intelligence to deal optimistically with the changes and the challenges that are upon us as part and parcel of these climactic times that we are living through right now.

The square between Saturn and Pluto is huge, and represents the first combination of these powerful archetypes since the time of 9-11. It becomes even more compelling due to the nature of the degrees involved, since the initial degrees of Capricorn, and of Libra, are equivalent to the Aries point, which is the beginning degree by conjunction, square and opposition of all four Cardinal signs. The Sabian Symbol for the first degree of Libra, opposite the Aries point, where Saturn begins its November journey, is “a butterfly made perfect by a dart through it.” This symbol speaks to the sleight of hand of human perception which transforms the raw stuff of nature into art. As Saturn transits Libra in square to Pluto, the very structures of our lives that we depend upon for sustenance are subject to the storm of destruction represented by Pluto, a storm that can be in the end constructive also. We have room to grow as individuals only by eliminating previous foundations and removing the dead weight of the past that would otherwise hold us back. It is a brave new world that we are entering in this end of the year period, one that is redolent with the reasonable fear of the unknown, and one that holds much promise as well, as we get with the program and let go of what we can no longer hold onto.

ARIES (March 20-April 19) You are getting prepared for one more climb up the roller coaster Aries, and the time is ripe for you to make a new and very different start. This could prove to be a month of trials and also of triumphs for you as you work through issues from your past. These might take the form of a critical partner or greater pressure in career and outer expression but it is really all about your own journey and how far you can allow yourself to bend. Compassion is your keyword. It helps when you able to relax and trust in the power of the cosmos to guide you. Unlike the little mind, the larger and all-knowing universal Mind will never let you down.

TAURUS (April 20-May 19). This is the first month of the rest of your life, Taurus, in case you didn’t know. The call of service to the greater collective that surrounds you has become profound, and along with it the chance to work one-on-one with helpful partners. Right from the very beginning of November you are seeing the future differently these days, with more sharing and more caring. Perspective shifts are major for you right now, and lead you to question everything that has gone before, but in a good way. The edifice you are building upon the wreckage of the old will be longer-lasting and make for a greater level of happiness, so why not jump on in? The only thing that you have to lose is your chains.

GEMINI (May 20-June 20). You are in this for the long haul, Gemini., Even as you deal with the ephemeral shifts and turns of your workplace these days, and bow to the winds of change blowing through you, something inside you is telling you to have faith in the universe to uphold you. Service is an important component of everything that you do, because it takes you further toward what you are now beginning to recognize as your soul purpose. After the mid-month New Moon, important others in your life present you with a more compassionate perspective that enables further metamorphosis as you can allow it. It might sometimes seem as though you are stuck, but then, in an instant, the scene alters and you are cruising.

CANCER (June 21-July 20) You are working on your stuff, Cancer, along with everyone else that you know, and for you, core security needs are an important component. You are likely to further explore this issue in the weeks ahead. Home and family concerns seem stuck but can morph rapidly, leading you out of the trap, as changing worldviews alter your perception of events. These epiphanies are hopefully nudging you toward an attitude of no blame, not for you, not for anyone else. This seems obvious in theory, although the difficulty is still there in actually manifesting this ideal. Different times and changing relationship dynamics call for different responses. True compassion is dawning within you but you must rise to meet it.

LEO (July 21-Aug. 21) Communication and outreach is the name of your game right now, Leo. You have energy for relationships of all kinds, business partners and more intimate ones, and your mission is to use that energy wisely. You could well find that some degree of perplexity reigns in the area of interpersonal relationships, with also the possibility of sudden breakthrough. You are in the process of shucking old patterns and this can be a confusing but ultimately rewarding process, as you come to a new understanding of what you are about in this important area. Of course, it is also important to keep firmly in mind that these roads that bring others into the picture in the end lead you back to yourself.

VIRGO (Aug. 21-Sept. 21) It might be difficult and it might be easy, Virgo, but it will certainly be interesting. This is a time of gathering your energy for your next phase and of learning more about what you will become when you grow up. If this is a rough ride you are on at least you have plenty of company and there are plentiful rewards for staying the course. You are perhaps experiencing sudden enlightenment through friends and partners that could help to pave the way for a helpful attitude adjustment. Security issues that you may have, and how you deal with finances, are hot-button items for you as you go through this month’s set of changes. Partly as a result, you are transforming in the way that you project yourself out into the world.

LIBRA (Sept. 22-Oct. 22) This month that follows your birthday represents a great moment of burgeoning awareness as you take on a new persona and begin to concretely act it out in the world. As you grapple with inner patterns and take a serious look at your new mission statement, at the same time you are exploring a powerful set of revelations that stem from the very core of your being and that practically shut you down in terms of outer agenda. You must form your own unique path through the soul truth that you experiencing right now and it takes all you’ve got. That doesn’t mean that you can’t have fun with this. The saints laugh, because at bottom they and you remain eternally joyous to be alive.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21) This is a month of great outer as well as inner work, Scorpio. You are manifesting and achieving, no doubt about it. You may also encounter a trace of tension in your process as you face challenges to your equanimity that can be decoded as a series of tests to your new persona. You are finding both joy and madness in issues that remain at your psychological root level or as revealed in home and family interactions that have come back to haunt you. You can put these to bed with a determined effort to look on the bright side and see the glass of your evolution as half full rather than letting the darker side of your imagination detract in any way from your ultimate success.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 20) This is a darkly magical month for you, Sagittarius. The last two weeks of October have been good, and have made you fortunate in your visioning capabilities for future-oriented societal connection, whether or not you have consciously acknowledged these powers. It is a new mandate for social change that you are currently experiencing. On the other hand, there is a fated quality to all that you have chosen to take on, and a seriousness to your attitude there that leads to greater wisdom surrounding your choices. This entire cycle of events will improve your understanding of the values you aspire to and the way you operate in the world in order to grant yourself a sense of security in challenging times.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 21-Jan. 19) Your times they are a’changing, Capricorn. So are everyone else’s but right now you are ahead of the curve. You seek to transform all that has grown stale in your life and that no longer serves you, and the pace is accelerating. When you hold back and attempt to stay static, you make things difficult for yourself, whereas when you go with the flow of recent life developments you enhance all your possibilities. It helps to remember that the changes that are being thrust upon you are ultimately in your own best interest, and will see you through. It’s only a question of whether you go painfully, or easily and gladly, into the future that is building for you.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 17) This is a powerful time for you, Aquarius. A rapidly changing worldview has created opportunities that were previously dim or nonexistent, giving you much food for thought as you ascend the mountain of your destiny. Your transformation takes hold of you from the inside out. This is also a time when you are shucking off pieces of the story you tell yourself that no longer fit, and transcending old patterns that no longer serve you, and it can be confusing and painful as you do. Encapsulated within what you are going through are the seeds of celebration, that comes when you simply accept it that your life is no longer the same, and you are lighter and move more easily because of it.

PISCES (Feb. 18-March 19) This is an extremely active time for you, Pisces, but not obviously so. There is a lot happening and it is all behind the scenes. Destabilizing revelations are still as plentiful as they have been in recent weeks, maybe even more so, but you are less than reactive on the surface. Your ship of state keeps sailing on, although you might be in a ferment below decks. You are perceiving things more clearly now, and exploring your options with a different perspective. This as you prepare to make an important move toward what you can see as your emerging life path. The time for action is not yet but it is coming soon, before the end of the year, and when it does it will be dramatic.

Henry Seltzer, transformational astrologer and creator of the TimePassages astrology software, is based in Santa Cruz, California. An extended look at this month’s star signs is available on his website. Holding degrees from MIT and the University of California-San Diego, Henry is a popular speaker and also offers life enhancing private astrological counseling. Call him at 831-425-3686, or visit his website at www.astrograph.com