When one of the outer slow-moving planets – Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto — change direction, their energy and influence is amplified for about a week. While electrical Uranus slows down to turn retrograde, we can feel anxious and destabilized. Under the chaos, Uranus retrograde and the second full moon in Aquarius conspire to help us open our hearts.
August 19 – Uranus goes retrograde at 14° Taurus
All the planets are cosmic players, which each in their own unique way symbolize different aspects of our human experience. The role of the outer planets is to create spiritual transformation. Their retrograde periods are a time for deep inner work. Uranus will be retrograde for five months (until it goes direct January 18 at 10 degrees Taurus.)
While Uranus is direct we become aware of changes that need to be made in our outer world. When Uranus is retrograde, we need to focus our attention on what we need to change internally – in our mind, heart, and emotions – that can be supportive of the external changes we desire.
It’s YOU Who Needs To Change
Uranus retrograde brings into conscious awareness truths that have been frozen in our unconscious and hidden in our subconscious. We may finally wake up to some obvious truths about ourselves and our lives that we have previously ignored, denied, or failed to adequately deal with.
For example, the other day a friend told me that a doctor woke him up to the fact that his ‘food choices’ were causing physical pain. He must now accept the fact that ‘periodic cheating’ is not viable. For many years this friend has talked about how certain foods create almost immediate and excessive pain in parts of his body that have been damaged by radiation. The point is that he has known this for a very long time, but never committed to changing his diet to meet his body’s needs. Can anyone relate?
While Uranus is retrograde in Taurus, pay close attention to the messages from your body. Be available to discover what it is trying to tell you, and take action to improve your physical health.
Deep Clean Fosters Alignment
Uranus retrograde in Taurus is also about bringing order to our physical environment. A deep clean and reorganization of our office, garage, storage unit, computer, and any part of our home can open the space for clarity in direction. A friend shared with me today how good he feels that he has repaired and organized shelving in his garage.
Order and cleanliness are basic Feng Shui principles. Pick something doable and monitor how taking care of this one thing can make you feel. Order has a way of guiding us where we want to go and aligning us with our purpose.
Insight
Uranus has its own unique mode, which defies logic and understanding. We don’t ‘understand’ Uranus through calculation or analyzing the facts. We tune into Uranus energy by listening to our intuition, observing magical moments, and surrendering to a higher power.
Uranus speaks to us through flashes of insight. Sudden illumination can create breakthroughs in consciousness. Divine guidance can seem to come out of nowhere. We may get messages on how to deal with situations that previously seemed impossible to figure out. Even better, they may begin to work themselves out in ways we could not imagine or anticipate.
Surprise Reboots – Off and On
It is Uranus’s mission to get us out of a rut. It does so with surprises and wake up calls that it delivers like a strike of lightening. On our human journey, we wake up incrementally. Uranus gives us a jump start when we need it. Then we have to process what happened and integrate the lesson.
Uranus is electrical energy, which is either on or off. When Uranus is on, we feel electrified, present, tuned in, and turned on. However, when Uranus needs to reboot, it turns off the current and we can feel checked out, out of sorts, and simply unavailable. Give yourself time to recharge.
Shocks and Uncertainty
Uranus is the first outer planet that orbits after Saturn. (Chiron orbits between Saturn and Uranus.) Uranus introduces us to another dimension of reality, where our earthly strategies of control and calculation don’t compute.
Saturn is the last personal earth bound planet. In Saturn territory, what we get depends upon the effort we put in. What we manifest depends upon available resources and how we manage physical reality and its constraints. To get results with Saturn, we need defined direction, focus, commitment, and discipline. Saturn rewards hard work.
Known as the great awakener, Uranus’s mode of operation is surprise and shocks. In Uranus territory, we never know what we get. Uranus can turn things in our favor when we least expect it. It can also disrupt our life when we believe that we are on the right tract (by Saturn’s standards). Uranus makes sure change happens, whether we like it or not.
Freedom
Uranus is about liberating us from the ‘chains that bind us,’ i.e. beliefs and thoughts that keep us mired in limiting ego stories that perpetuate self-inflicted confusion, pain, and suffering.
Freedom requires getting unstuck from fanciful ideas, false pretensions, and unnecessary and stressful demands that we place on ourselves. We must release ourselves from whatever we have constructed that keeps us imprisoned in our minds.
Uranus helps liberate our minds from dogmatic thinking so we can stay open-minded and not succumb to roadblocks that prevent moving forward.
It is important to keep in mind that Uranus seeks freedom. Uranus is not about being right or proving anything. Uranus asks us, ‘Would you rather be at peace or right?’
Another Perspective/Story
For transformative change we have to liberate ourselves from the past, which we can do only when we experience ourselves, our human journey, and the world from a completely different perspective.
Uranus will disrupt the story we have told ourselves for years. It will clear the slate so we can be more authentic, honest with ourselves, and use our energy more effectively and creatively. Uranus is about radical innovation, which often requires a complete reboot.
Here are some ways we can reboot ourselves.
- X out your expectations. Be with, accept, and enjoy what is.
- Change your priorities. What do you really want?
To be right or to be free?
To be in control or surrender to your highest good?
To live in doubt and anxiety or trust a higher power?
To live from your head or your heart?
To follow your ego or your soul?
- Give up the fight. Call off the war. Dogma is heavy baggage. Dogma doesn’t fly.
Have you used up your tolerance for nonsense yet? 😉
Practice any of the above and monitor how your story and your life can change.
Honesty
Uranus requires complete honesty. We can’t sneak by with half truths or excuses. We can’t cheat and get away with it. Uranus employs its electrical shock treatments to wake us up to how we have lied to ourselves. Of course, waking up to our own value and truth is an on-going process that continues our whole life. Sometimes we need some help! Uranus is available to assist when we want and need to change what is not working for us and move on. If we need to change jobs, we might get fired or laid off. If we are not happy in our relationship, we can use Uranus retrograde to upgrade our self-value and courage to support ourselves.
Honesty and humility set us right with the Divine.
Healing Trauma and Abuse
Uranus retrograde can bring into our awareness long-suppressed memories of trauma and abuse. Personal and generational issues that need to be dealt with can bubble to the surface. This is not our favorite part of the liberation process. However, we can feel a great sense of relief and freedom as we find resolution within ourselves by making peace with our past.
Anxiety and Fear
Because a basic quality of Uranus is disruptive, we can experience intense fear and anxiety. It is important to keep in mind that it is absolutely normal for us to experience fear and anxiety, especially when we are the midst of profound transformation. If we allow ourselves to feel the anxious energy and don’t resist, we can find ide us that can propel us forward!
Divine Intervention
Uranian surprises often feel like universal decrees. We realize we are not in control. The sooner we accept the fact that we are not in charge, the better off we are. We live in a complex world, which involves an infinite number of people, wishes, prayers, and outcomes.
One of the on-going lessons of the outer planets and goals of our spiritual path is giving up our ego need to be in control. Divine intervention and realizing that a higher power is looking after us is a great relief and emotionally comforting.
Uranus steps in when we need proof that the Universe is on our side. However disruptive the change, Uranus only works for our highest good.
How Can We Prepare?
We might ask how we can prepare for Uranian surprise attacks. Actually we can’t. Thinking and planning clog up our receptive channel. The best way to be receptive is to hold an open, clear, neutral space in our meditative mind. Practice deep listening to silence.
Don’t over-analyze or over-think. Our job is to be quiet and listen so that the universe can talk to us. We can’t predict or control what will happen. But we can be aware, notice, relax, and give up resistance to inevitable change.
Uranian surprises pull the plug and force us to detach from what is not working for us. When we allow the blessings of these divine interventions, it is easier to respond appropriately and move on. Uranian surprises bring clarity. We see what we previously failed to see. Denial, excuses, procrastination, and ‘should’s’ are no longer options. What may have been a disjointed hodgepodge gets synthesized into a clear and accurate overview.
If we hold on to the past and try to be in control, this intense Uranus retrograde energy can be difficult to deal with. If we relax, let go, and trust that we are being taken care of, we can thrive and even enjoy the ride. If you have personal planets or angles at 14° in Taurus, Leo, Scorpio or Aquarius, Uranus retrograde can bring sudden changes. (The orb or affect range is about 3 degrees, i.e. 11- 17 degrees.)
When the universe commands, our optimal response is acceptance, not resistance. The quicker we can get on board, the easier the ride. When we have little or no choice, divine intervention can cancel out any ego need to be right or the pressure to figure things out by ourselves. Restricting our options may actually help us do what is possible and let go of the rest.
August 22 – Full Moon in Aquarius
5:01 AM PDT 12:01 PM GMT
This full moon in Aquarius is special for several reasons.
- Two Full Moons in Aquarius
First, it is the second consecutive full moon in Aquarius. July 23-24 we had a full moon at 1° Aquarius. This one is at 29° Aquarius. The full moon at 1° Aquarius showed us where we stand, and what kind of problems we need to tackle if we want things to change. This full moon at 29° Aquarius shows us what is possible once we’ve done our Saturn in Aquarius work.Its rare to have two Full Moons in the same sign. The last time we had two Full Moons in Aquarius was in 2002! Do you remember what happened back in July-August 2002? You can expect similar themes, patterns and events to emerge now. - Conjunct Jupiter
This Aquarius full moon is conjunct Jupiter – the great benefic planet in our solar system! There are ZERO negative aspects. The Sun, at 29° Leo, is conjunct Regulus (the brightest star in the Leo constellation) which represents success, brilliance and honor.Jupiter is retrograde. An injustice may be exposed and the truth made known. Our biases and false assumptions can be revealed and our connection with our heart expanded, getting us in touch with our own truth and giving us faith in ourselves - Harmonious Aspects
Both rulers of this full moon (Saturn and Uranus) make harmonious aspects with other planets. Saturn in Aquarius is trine Venus in Libra. Uranus in Taurus is trine Mercury and Mars in Virgo.This is really a rare and amazing line up that creates an atmosphere of hope, clarity, and relief – things we hadn’t had in a long while. - Gifts from Saturn
Saturn entered Aquarius December 17, 2020 and will be in Aquarius through March 7, 2023. When a planet enters a new sign, it usually exposes the problems and challenges of that sign. When Saturn moved into Aquarius for a few months in March 2020, we got slammed with the restrictive side of Saturn in Aquarius – the lock down and social distancing. For the entire 2021 we are feeling the friction of Saturn squaring Uranus. Squares require hard choices and demand change.But as the Saturn-Uranus square wanes – i.e. separates (from 2022 onward) and thus is no longer active, we can slowly witness the positive expressions of Saturn in Aquarius.Saturn requires that we work within the limits imposed by physical reality. When we do so, Saturn rewards our commitment, hard work, and dedication. Saturn actually wants us to reap the fruits of efforts. The great task master delivers.
This full moon in Aquarius can give us a glimpse of what is possible if we hang in there and don’t give up. Further illuminated by Jupiter, we will be uplifted and encouraged to believe in our vision, goals, and higher purpose.
Leo Heart-Centered Polarity
The Aquarian full moon is complemented by the Sun in heart-centered Leo. The majestic Lion reminds us that love is the driving force of the universe. We are each driven in our own unique way to awaken to divine love and to embody that frequency as we live our lives.
The Aquarius-Leo polarity pair forms an interesting partnership, whose goal is to be true to ourselves while participating in the larger community.
The highest expression of Aquarius is an elevated collective consciousness that makes justice for all, egalitarianism, and peaceful collaboration possible. The ultimate Aquarian goal– the mind awakened to universal consciousness – releases mass consciousness from herd mentality where we depend on others to the point of losing our personal identity and freedom and succumb to social pressure to conform (falsely believing that conformity can create acceptance and community).
The highest expression of Leo is an awakened heart capable of actualizing one’s true identity and unique creative expression. We can resist group pressure, be authentic, and join forces in a community that thrives in its diversity.
Our Head Must Bow to Our Heart
Aquarius is the last air sign. Its job is to hold an expanded divinely connected neutral space so that we can be receptive and available to channel the most appropriate infinite possibilities. The role of the Leo polarity is to filter choices through our heart.
Aquarian energy is detached and focuses on logical mental explanations. Aquarius can discount or ignore the emotional components of issues. We need to be able to apply a reasoned and detached approach to avoid getting sucked into impassioned conflicts. In today’s world the art of presenting the facts in a logical and fair way has been overridden by emotional opinions.
Aquarius needs to bow to its polarity Leo for heart-centered direction. Without heart, unawakened Aquarius can be cold and uncaring. It can get lost in mental arguments and fixated on judgments and righteous opinions. It can believe in artificial intelligence (AI) and fail to connect with Universal intelligence. (UI) But beware, AI is NOT UI!
Allowing and acknowledging divine intervention and tuning into and following universal intelligence are the highest Aquarian expressions, which help us realize a principal goal of our spiritual path – to experience that ‘I am not alone.’ Awakened Uranus helps us change our mind, by elevating it out of duality. Convincing ourselves doesn’t work. We have to experience how the universe is helping us out. Uranus uses insight, inspiration, magic, and miracles to get our attention. Pay attention and experience the mystery for yourself.
A Magic Formula – Kindness
We are always looking for secrets and short cuts. The Tao says that the quickest way to enlightenment is through non-judgment. The best way to avoid being judgmental is to be kind. When your mind starts to judge someone or a situation, try smiling and shifting your thoughts to ‘Blessings on your journey.’
Practicing kindness, gratitude, blessings, forgiveness, acceptance, and compassion are keys that open our heart. When we hold these feelings and thoughts, our heart generates coherent electromagnetic waves, which radiate out, creating coherence in our energy field and in our environment. As our mind, heart, and emotions resonate in coherent alignment, we magically transform ourselves and our world. Try it and find out for yourself!
(These are documented results from studies by Heart Math Institute https://www.heartmath.org. Summarized in Aquarius-Leo Full Moon by Stephanie Austin, www.EcoAstrology.com.)
