The Astrology of 2023

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Before sprouting,
the seed have to rot first.

In this article we are going to provide an overall view of the Astrology of 2023. This year we are going to experience many shifts in terms of astral energy. This is because many slow-moving planets are going to change sign. Jupiter is going to move into Taurus, Saturn in Pisces and for three months Pluto is going to move into Aquarius.

As I’ve pointed out in previous articles, information fragmentation is one of astrology main problems. Simply put, we tend to focus on single astrological events, tackling them one after the other. And by doing so, we loose contact with the essence of the year, which we should rather be looking at as a real spiritual being.

In order to get this connection back, this article is going to function as a master post. This means that as we go through the Wheel of the Year, I’m going to add all future articles as links down below. This way we’ll always be able to step back and looking at the bigger picture.

Let’s start by looking at this image, that summarizes in a single glyph the astrological events of 2023.

The circle in black at the center is the wheel of the Zodiac, as you can see from the twelve signs of the same color all around it. Then, we find:

• In purple, the positions of the two lunar nodes, the spots where eclipses take place. At the moment the nodes are in Taurus and Scorpio. But in July 2023 they are going to move backwards (they always move in a retrograde motion) into Aries and Libra. This means that part of 2023 Eclipses are going to take place in those signs.
• In yellow, the orbit of Mercury doing its three retrogrades loops during the year. Mercury is going to station in all three Earth signs: Capricorn, Taurus and Virgo. It is very peculiar that 2023 is going to start with Mercury turning retrograde in Capricorn on December 29, 2022—during the Holy Nights. And 2023 is going to end also with Mercury retrograde in Capricorn.
• In magenta, we find the orbit of Venus—which is going to get retrograde in Leo next Summer. This event is going to enhance the Fire element, since Venus is going to stay in Leo for five months—an unusual amount of time for such a quick planet.
• In blue, we have the orbit ofJupiter. As we know, Jupiter changes sign once a year, giving it a specific color. On May 16th, Jupiter is going to enter Taurus. It’s interesting noticing that although Jupiter is going to be in the same sign of Uranus, they are going to conjoin only in 2024.
• In indigo, Saturn. As we’ve mentioned in the intro, in 2023 Saturn is going to change sign as well. Saturn change sign every roughly 3 years. On March 7th, 2023 it is going to enter Pisces, and between June and July it is going to make a sextile aspect with Jupiter. This is going to be their first aspects since the spectacular 2020 Great Conjunction.
• In dark purple, we have the orbit of Pluto. Yes, Pluto is going to change sign as well! This event is going to be extremely important to understand how the energy shift, brought by Pluto in Aquarius, will manifest in the future. In fact in 2023 Pluto is going to stay in Aquarius for just 3 months, to enter back in the sign only in 2024.

Let’s see now all these points into more detail. As always we are going to delve deep into them in specific articles as the year unfolds.

2023 Eclipses
The Nodes moving into Aries and Libra

Every year there are about four to six eclipses. We are not aware of that because most of the times they are not visible from our location. Yet they happen anyway, and every time a new moon or a full moon take place on a lunar node, we have an eclipse. For this reason they occur in small sequences of 2-3 eclipses every about six months. We call them Eclipse Seasons.

Their effect is very important for life on earth. From a spiritual standpoint they function like release valves of naughty astral forces expelled from the Earth to the Astral World (and viceversa).

In 2023 the biggest news concerns the shift of the north/south node to the signs of Aries/Libra, respectively. Next year eclipses are going to take place partly in the Taurus/Scorpio axis and partly in the Aries/Libra one. In particular:

• All Lunar Eclipses are going to occur in Taurus or Scorpio;
• All Solar Eclipses are going to occur in Aries or Libra.

In general, eclipses bring deep transformation and sudden changes in the areas of life indicated by Taurus and Scorpio. So the nodes changing sign represent in this regard an important energy shift.

First Season

• April 20, 2023: Total Solar Eclipse at 29° 50′ Aries

• May 5, 2023: Penumbral Lunar Eclipse at 14° 58′ Scorpio

Second Season

• October 14, 2023: Annular Solar Eclipse at 21° 07′ Libra

• October 28, 2023: Partial Lunar Eclipse at 5° 09′ Taurus

Mercury Retrograde
Elemental Triangle of Earth

Mercury turns retrograde three times a year, stopping rhythmically in zodiac signs of the same element. For example back in 2021 it formed an Elemental Triangle of Air. Whereas in 2023 it’s going to draw this pattern in Earth signs, creating an Elemental Triangle of Earth.

Here’s the dates:

• December 29, 2022: Mercury turns retrograde at 24° 21′ Capricorn (Holy Nights)
• April 21, 2023: Mercury turns retrograde at 15° 37′ Taurus
• August 23, 2023: Mercury turns retrograde at 21° 51′ Virgo

And before the end of the year, Mercury is going to turn retrograde again in Capricorn!

• December 13, 2023: Mercury turns retrograde at 24° 21′ Capricorn

The year is going to start and finish with Mercury retrograde. This fascinating synchronicity points to the fact that most of the geopolitical configurations are being second guessed. In fact Capricorn is the zodiac sign of the archetype of the Empire, and in this regard the cosmic mind (Mercury) is rethinking middle term strategies.

But in general Mercury retrograde in the Earth element focuses on practical problems. The cosmos is inviting us to process our unresolved issues concerning matter and the earthly plane of existence. And given the major changes in the geopolitical order, we can’t expect an easy time for the global economy. In this regard, Mercury retrograde will help us to embrace change.

Venus Retrograde in Leo

Venus turns retrograde roughly every 1 year and half. At the very end of 2021 Venus was turning retrograde, so 2022 started with a Venus turning direct in late January. Next summer, Venus is going to create a stationary loop in the zodiac sign of Leo. Specifically, it’s going to turn retrograde from July 23 to September 4, 2023.

So what does Venus retrograde in Leo mean? Venus is our value-giving faculty and Leo is the Zodiac sign of self-esteem, passion and self-expression. Venus retrograde in Leo is about second guessing our choices in regard to what we are passioned about. With Venus, this can of course refer to love and relationships (especially former flames) or in general to what makes us feel alive.

On a social level, Leo usually refers to regals, nobility, and people in positions of power. This means that their position in terms of authority may be challenged by the masses during next summer. As always we’re going to talk about it in a dedicated article.

Jupiter entering Taurus

On May 16th, 2023 Jupiter is going to enter Taurus. Its ingress is not going to be an easy one. In fact the chart of the event features Jupiter closing the Mars and Pluto opposition in a T-Square. Such a configuration, taking place in fixed signs, doesn’t exactly represent an ideal start

However, we expect Jupiter in Taurus to bring in general some stability. In fact 2022 featured a super emotional and empathic Jupiter in Pisces, and a strong and fiery Jupiter in Aries. On the contrary, Taurus is a Venusian sign, which expands the soul in an atmosphere which reminds humanity of the Garden of Eden.

In this regard Jupiter in Taurus can help us bringing abundance, and counterbalancing the issues that Mercury retrograde in Earth signs will inevitably bring.

Saturn entering Pisces

Arguibly, this is the most important astrological event of the year. After 5 years, Saturn is going to leave one of its zodiac signs. Since 2017 Saturn has been in Capricorn or Aquarius, its nocturnal and diurnal domicile.

On March 7, 2023 Saturn is going to enter Pisces shifting energy dramatically. This placement makes most of saturnian significations—such as deprivation and renunciation—to turn inwardly. This translates into the keyword “sacrifice”, which resonates with Pisces understood as the zodiac sign of Christianity.

Saturn will definitely leave Pisces only in 2026. We’re going to understand the general meaning of this fascinating placement in a dedicated article.

Pluto entering Aquarius for 3 Months

The ingress of Pluto in Aquarius is an extremely important event. I don’t consider it to be the main event of the year only because Pluto is going to stay in Aquarius just for 3 months: from March 23 to June 11, 2023. As you can see March is going to be a very important month, due to the energy shift cause by both Saturn and Pluto.

This transit is going to give us just a taste of what is waiting for us in the future. For this reason we’re going to monitor closely these three months. In general we should be able to get some insights about what is going to fully manifest from late 2024 on, when Pluto is going to definitely enter Aquarius.

In Conclusion

In general it seems that the emphasis for 2023 is going to be on the Fixed mode: Leo (Venus), Aquarius (Pluto), Scorpio (South Nodes) and Taurus (Jupiter and the Nodes). This may indicate a general resistance to change.

In fact the Water element, which represents emotions, is turbulent due to the presence of Saturn and the South Node. This is also confirmed by the fact that many slow moving planets are going to change sign, and that Mercury is going to turn retrograde in Earth signs.

One of the most interesting features of 2023 is the year starting and finishing with Mercury retrograde in Capricorn. This is definitely a key point to understand how this year is going to ask us to rethink in general our relationship with control and with what we thought to be something stable and lasting.

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