It’s Retro week, with not one, not two, but a record 3 planets turning retrograde: Chiron, Mercury and Neptune. The Chiron/North Node conjunction is inching ever closer, the conjunction with the Mean North Node taking place on June 4th. So next week I hope to write more about the special healing projects it brings into our lives. It’s a good week to notice what requires healing, and in fact to visualize yourself protected by an iridescent bubble of protective light as the strangenesses of the week could require inward searching for answers to fundamental questions in yor life. Chiron itself is the first planet to turn retrograde, on Sunday (25th), and past life work can be relevant to present life dilemmas if you are drawn to work in that way. Bubble-wrap at the ready…But Monday (26th) is really the day you will need it. First Mercury goes retrograde, and just when you need communications and travel to be reliable. Mercury Retrograde has plenty of press these days, you don’t need me to add to it, suffice it to say there is even a book of that name on the market for you to take as travel reading. Very shortly afterwards Neptune goes retrograde and you may experience mental confusion, dreaminess and senior moments at any age on your flight. Make sure you have ordered your vegan wheat-free meal and do not leave your glasses on the tray when the hostess carries it away on your long-haul flight. As if that is not enough, Venus squares Saturn, so you may experience emotional sadness at those you are leaving behind you on your travels and find you are missing them already. Aah, attachment and non-attachment, it’s difficult either way, even if you know which is best. And that’s it – all the main features on one day this week. That just about wraps it up, except that on Thursday (29th) because Mercury is retrograding it makes the same aspect as last Friday, a trine with Chiron, which favours regaining your mental equilibrium. So Shrink rap and Bubble wrap will be handy concepts to remember this week. Cradle your own inner child. Healing on the horizon coming next week, which may mean you need to unpack an old wound from the baggage you are carrying. The mantra for this week comes courtesy of A Course in Miracles: “In my defencelessness, my safety lies.”

You may be in the middle of a healing process this weekend, having earlier experienced a healing crisis. The last few days, due to Venus squaring Chrion, you may have noticed old patterns being stuck and presenting themselves for new solutions. Today brings perfect conditions for those new solutions to emerge and thrive, for doing things in a different way, and applying innovations to long-established routines and traditions. Venus gets the Jupiter-Uranus treatment and carries the day on a wave of buoyancy which could leave you with a new perspective on life. If you are painting or sounding, your brushstrokes and warbles could bring in new frequencies and dimensions in the morning (Venus sextile Uranus), while in the afternoon there is an air of triumph and celebration (Venus trine Jupiter). As with last Monday’s Sun connections to Uranus and Jupiter, there can be breakthroughs. I just hope that all that translates into some relief for the Burmese and Chinese, or what’s a good aspect for? Tuesday (20th) brings just that sort of questioning and some confusion, with Full Moon at the end of Scorpio, Venus square Neptune and Mercury re-entering Gemini on its retrograde path. It’s a day best handled by living a life of contemplation, but if you are trying to get things done you might find yourself going round in circles. It’s a head-spinner, so if you are feeling the slightest bit delicate give yourself some time off – maybe you’ve been doing too much. In relationships, for instance, it will be difficult to know where you stand, and a little more contemplation could clear the mental decks. Negotiate Tuesday and you will find Wednesday (21st) totally different and as promised last week it’s a red-letter day in terms of achievement, surprises and possibly even miracles. If you find it so, you’ll have Jupiter sextile Uranus to thank. If you found that the Sun and Venus links last Monday and today connected areas of your life and psyche in beneficial ways, then you’ll find everything clicking into place in a powerful way on Wednesday for those days were stepping stones to experiencing the full range of Jupiter-Uranus successes. Anthony Robbins, eat your heart out! Moving on, it’s a mixed sort of week because Thursday (22nd) in contrast could see a slump in mood with Sun square Saturn, but in the scheme of things it should not be enough to dent the central events of the week because the Jupiter-Uranus alliance carries more astrological weight. If you are daunted by minor obstacles on Thursday then it could be that you are getting things out of perspective therefore. Friday (23rd) brings a welcome trine between Mercury and Chiron – you can apply your mind to solutions, and mental health will be on an even keel so it’s a suitable day for any charity such as MIND to raise awareness and funds. The week ends with the entry of Venus into Gemini on Saturday 24th which is stimulating for social connections, being a social butterfly, and verbal charm. Terry Wogan should be on good form at the Belgrade Eurovision Song Contest 2008.

The Sun squares Chiron today, so you may find it is a day when even skilled craftspersons can’t fit a square peg into a round hole. This may give rise to decision-making or at least debate over what should be done. The craftsperson may have one view, and the person commissioning the artwork will have another. I would advise meditating on the problem, or even leaving the process to nature. On a day when the logistics of getting aid to Burma are on many people’s minds, lateral thinking is definitely required. The global and interfaith approach of yesterday’s Pangea Day seems inspiring. Maybe their organizers know someone who can help…It seems mundane in comparison to be talking about the Sun’s aspects this week, but it appears that Leos will be hogging the limelight after the pirouetting of Sagittarians last week. I did actually do a pirouette in the middle of Cambridge on Friday lunchtime, but I don’t think anyone noticed. However Leos will want you to notice them this week, as they have put in a lot of rehearsal time and waited a long time for this particular opportunity to prove themselves. If you have read thus far and thought “What is she wittering on about?” I am just doing a low-key warm-up for the main show for Leo, which takes place tomorrow (Monday 12th). The day is nicely sandwiched between two aspects to the Sun, one in the early hours of the morning UK time (Sun sextile Uranus) and the other at tea-time (Sun trine Jupiter). Both avail themselves of the Jupiter-Uranus sextile which is not quite ripe yet but promises much for Wednesday week (Wednesday-lovers take note). Sun sextile Uranus brings about the ability to seize the day through a novel idea or surprise package. If you are Dreamworkers, guidance and intuition could come powerfully from an overnight dream, but equally you may have been secretly planning something which you can unveil to the world today. If so, unveil with pzazz and panache – it’ll all add to the general enjoyment. For the office worker living out a pastel sort of working day, you may wonder if life is passing you by, but as you sit staring at the screen inspiration may strike. For the craftsperson or patron of the arts, there may be a breakthrough in the square peg/round hole dilemma, for a positively-aspected Uranus can bring sudden solutions. By tea-time on Monday there should be a sense of marvel as to the day’s outcomes, and a sense of hope that may even extend to getting the aid into Burma. For the second aspect of the day (Jupiter trine Sun) adds a lucky touch of gold to your ventures, and a seal of approval from the Universe. The other aspect to the Sun comes in the middle of the week, Wednesday 14th, when Neptune squares the Sun. It is not an easy aspect to negotiate, especially when the other party in business or relationship may be erecting a giant smokescreen to hide their authentic self. Difficult to know how to handle that, other than being very clear in yourself and knowing that you are not part of the smokescreen. Scrupulous honesty is the antidote then on Wednesday. Hopefully any gains made on Monday will be carrying you through too, and forwards right through to next Wednesday’s grand sextile. Whatever your plans for the weekend on Saturday 17th, you will be on a healing mission, for Venus the ruler of Taurus squares Chiron and relationships and the Arts wil be under the healing spotlight – do they deliver the goods, are they truly authentic, how should they proceed in the future? For Leos and Taureans then it is a week where performance counts, but only if you listen to critics.

This one hasn’t gone away and in fact we are approaching the second phase, that of Chiron’s conjunction with the North Node. Over the summer months, Chiron which is now about one degree away from the North Node will conjunct and for a time travel together with the North Node, and still within the influence of the energies of Neptune. This will take place roughly over the summer months of June, July and August 2008, and I hope to say more on the subject later. It will take place for most of you in the same House (or area of life) as the Neptune/North Node phase of the conjucntion and the issues may be related to those happenings or sequential to them. There will be a greater emphasis on healing, old wounds, healing old wounds, and releasing attachment to them. The recent conjunction between the North Node and Neptune may have hinted to you of a healing project within the area of your life in which it was operating. So, hopefully, a summer of healing?

Today and tomorrow Neptune conjuncts the True North Node, and so there is still time to weave something beautiful out of this spiritual and karmic opportunity, using the information you have gathered over the last week. Why not have a get-together, or two/three or four…for after the stroke of midnight there is a New Moon in Taurus, so today is perfect for affirming that your needs will be provided for and meditating on what are your true needs and those of the planet: true needs for the true node. Tomorrow (Monday 5th) is good for material needs and for sharing any excess, like the bountiful Buddha whose birthday is close to this time. And if you don’t have materiality to share, then share your time or energy or other resources. Friday (9th) – what happened to the rest of the week? – two planets are making significant movements. Sorry, Jupiter doesn’t actually move, it goes Stationary prior to moving backwards. Sagittarians may pirouette and then suddenly take a necessary U-turn in some area of their life or philosophy. But Mars the Mover does move, into Fire sign Leo – salamander heaven. I am hoping that might mean sunnier weather, and we are due for a spot over the UK. Have we earned some, guilt-free? If so, enjoy. Looking ahead, after phase one of the Triple Conjunction (Neptune conjunct the North Node) I am taking a break from being a bore on the subject, but will be back soon with the new delights of phase two: Chiron conjunct North Node. Phase three (Chiron conjunct Neptune) will be later still…it is a work in progress. And for those who feel cheated of their Tuesday to Thursday forecast, create your own middle of the week and cut and paste it in.

To save me repeating myself, read my latest blog about the Triple Conjuction (of which this week’s Neptune conjunct the Mean North Node is the first phase) as it dominate’s the week’s experience – all the rest is mere frippery in comparison! If you can get it right on the main event, then the other aspects will fall into place more easily. So Neptune and the North Node represent the background and bigger picture, and Mercury represents the detail of the week and the more minor events. That said, it is worth paying attention to the detail this week to get the best results. Today may be a little frazzled mentally with Mercury square Chiron, but it may just be pre-triple-conjunction nerves as the next two days will see the most potent manifestation of the union of Neptune and the North Node (with Chiron trailing three degrees behind). If you are feeling edgy or irascible, then make the most of any opportunity to take your mind off your worries today. Get lost in a relaxing activity which bears no relation to your routine, and you may come back to your preoccupations with a different outlook. Monday (28th) and Tuesday (29th) will bring in the main results of the Neptune/North Node wrangles which have been building up in your life but may also impinge on the political scene (who will have the upper hand? Hillary or Barack, Ken or Boris, Mugabe or Tsvangirai?) in situations which remain on tenterhooks. The North Node/Neptune combination can also bring about true spiritual communion – and perhaps the Chinese government really will hold talks with aides of the Dalai Lama… Meanwhile, back to the main Mercury story, the winged messenger makes two helpful aspects on Monday, first a sextile with Uranus which will allow some lateral thinking and solutions to emerge, then a trine with Jupiter which widens the lens of vision and understanding all round. Tuesday and Wednesday (30th) see Mercury seeking attention again as it squares the Nodes and asks: “Whatcha gonna do about it?” like a sulky teenager. You will be forced to decide if you’re bothered. To make matters more confused, Mercury also squares Neptune on Tuesday, so that you may have to bypass the mind to understand what is going on. Reach for the higher dimensions, speak from the heart, or ground yourself. It’s as if there’s a message on your mental screen saying services are temporarily disrupted. This may enable a transition to take place, or a reconnection to other ways of looking at things. But by the evening (UK time) a transition may have taken place and reconnections may be established, because Mercury sextiles Mars, and the left hand will once again know what the right hand is doing and they may both have been manicured in the process. Wednesday also sees Venus changing signs (it’s not all Mercury-Mercury-Mercury) coming into her home ground of Taurus, where she operates better and feels under less pressure. If you Venusians out there have had a hard time while Venus has been in Aries, you may be able to set the pace and experience a more even flow once she changes signs. Artistic and musical ventures may get the go-ahead now. Andrew Lloyd-Webber may have spotted his Nancy. Thursday (1st May) brings more good news and good feeling emanating from Venus as she makes a Grand Trine with Pluto and Saturn. This favours the best laid artistic, musical and relationship plans. Proposals and engagements which may have been thwarted in recent weeks may achieve a breakthrough now. Mercury grabs back the limelight on Friday (2nd) by flitting into its home territory of Gemini, bringing a lighter touch to conversation and maybe a fit of the giggles. It forms a double act on Saturday (3rd) with Saturn, but in a stodgy way, going back over old ground mentally. “Do we really have to revise this?” asks the student. But actually, with Saturn going forward from its retrograde position on this day, you will see the reason for the revision and you may well understand a lot more than you understood the first time round. You may think it’s a drag, but it’s always good to have solid foundations to your studies.

I wasn’t planning to write a fifth blog on the Triple Con at this point, but having lived and breathed it for the last four weeks, and observing how it is taking shape, I’ve got too much to say, not to. Even so I will try and keep it brief. This week sees the first phase of the first conjunction, between Neptune and the Mean North Node. Next weekend Neptune will be conjunct the True North Node which may give a slightly different perspective, and this week the experience will be in-between the two, so there may be slightly different nuances at these times. Slightly later in the year as the North Node and Neptune retrograde, they will in turn conjoin with Chiron, so I will keep monitoring these components of the triple conjunction. It seems to me that the categories of experience as we come up to the first main event are falling into three types, sometimes interconnecting. The largest category is that of “Disentangling Karma” and this seems to be formed by group patterns ranging from three or more persons. Neptune is a great planet for paradox, and one of the paradoxes is that you have to experience the karma to disentangle it. So groups are coming together, or sometimes being forced to rub shoulders, in order to recognize the karma and what needs healing, and possibly to change habits of lifetimes. You may find that people are moving out of homes or countries this week, or being shunted to new places to meet people they have seemingly never met before but in fact may know in their souls. The second category is that of “Spiritual Emergency” and you may already have noticed someone in your midst who is undergoing an intense psycho-spiritual crisis and needs constant attention. For some the crisis will be physical, even to the point of actual medical intervention, but it is probably something which has been coming on for some time. On a wider social scale, the ramifications of the current oil (Neptune) crisis in the UK for instance is a chance to work with issues of planetary karma. The third category is that of “Spiritual Communion” where Neptunian vibrations have already been worked on, and perhaps a person is very comfortable with its energies, leaving the channel free to the divine and openness to inspiration and higher frequencies. If you are fortunate to be on safer ground, you will realize that we all have a responsibility to the whole and that we are all one, and so we have to do our utmost to help a soul who is enmeshed in the Spiritual Emergency. It may help to tune into the work of Stanislav Grof on this subject particularly if an issue of mental health is involved, or appeal to the Master Jesus who is a direct line to Neptune, alternatively if you prefer to work with a female divinity Kwan Yin is a Goddess for compassion.

Barry Stevens the Mandala Man is back in town in mid-May and so if it has ever crossed your mind to try your hand at painting mandalas, book yourself in for the next Exploring Colour, Light and Sound Workshop held by Barry and Felicity Cook who of course supplies the mellifluous dimension. She also holds a regular SoundPod and recently started a PaintPod for painting which spills over from mandalic work. Visit either of their websites through my Contacts page. The dates are May 16th-18th 2008, and the town is – well a village actually: Snailwell, near Newmarket.

It’s already afternoon, and I have missed blogging about the Full Moon which fell exactly opposite my Descendant, and am also behind in sending out the Moonpod questionnaires…The Scorpio Full Moon is a particularly intense one especially emotionally, as by now you will be able to testify. However, teatime will give you a chance to reassess and reaffirm how much your nearest and dearest mean to you, and how much life itself means, as the Sun trines Pluto. Tomorrow the Sun trines Saturn, completing a Grand Trine with Pluto, and so the best-laid plans can come to fruition. It’s a good day for instance for finalizing mortgage plans even in this tricky economic climate, if you have done your research and proceed with seriousness and commitment. Tuesday (22nd) brings another trine, this one more upbeat, in the shape of Mars trine Uranus. This one could favour buying electrical equipment (so long as you can’t find a more ecological wind or solar-powered alternative), or for renewing your energies and aligning them with progressive Aquarian values. Come Wednesday (23rd), your energy signals may be giving out the wrong messages, e.g. flirtatiousness when you meant Platonic ideals, as Venus squares Mars. So just as you have got your energy right with the planet, it all goes pear-shaped in your social interaction. More adjustment therefore to be made: you know when you’ve got the vibe right, it’s all trial and error, two steps forwards and one step back. Your body language needs a little more fine-tuning: the little finger may need to be at a slightly different angle in relation to your tea-cup, and beware of a false move of the eyelash…More fun and games on Thursday (24th) again concerning your energies and possibly with men in your life, with Venus square Jupiter (more social faux-pas) and Mars by now opposing Jupiter. This time your sense of humour could go a little too far. In an effort to compensate on your body language, you could find yourself using inappropriate laughter where someone else’s sensibilities are set to deadly serious. Or maybe you are on a mission to wheedle out the funny bone from the Bank Manager, or tickle the train ticket Inspector. Seriously it’s a day you may observe that people are taking risks, but the bread is likely to land butter side down. If the stakes are not too high, then maybe you can experiment with pushing the boundaries. Friday (25th) is totally different in mood with Venus sextile Neptune. After days of dubious shenanigans, Venus settles to cosying up to the upcoming North Node/Neptune conjunction. It is smoothing the path relationship-wise, artistically, musically and harmoniously, enabling the more refined possibilities to emerge from that combination. Venus is good at supporting, and so there may be some delicate supporting going on between people. Important dates and appointments are coming up for people, and those around them may be lending gentle encouragement from the wings. It’s time to foster the best in human nature, and put criticism on a mute button. Neptune conjoins the mean North Node on Monday and Tuesday (28th/29th April), and I hope I have drummed up enough interest in this fascinating conjunction to set up a forum.

Number four in my series, and just to recap there is a triple conjunction going on this year in Aquarius between Neptune and karmic features North Node and Chiron, which falls pretty much in one area of your life. The North Node/Neptune component, exact at the end of April, highlights the complexity of interaction between people, but can also bring about spiritual understanding between them. This week I am looking at where the triple conjunction falls in the charts of Politicians and Countries. In these charts, the North Node/Neptune may for instance have the effect of exposing scandal. For the more spiritually inclined it will refer more to spiritual and karmic factors. Integrity will be an important feature for Ken Livingstone as the triple conjunction straddles his 1st (Personality) and 2nd (Finance) Houses. There may be a microscope on his spending. Appearing in the 3rd House of the chart for Portugal, it highlights issues of communication, which may hint at the role of the media in creating and destroying illusion, secrecy and deception. Margaret Thatcher has this conjunction in her 4th House of home and family affairs, and in her later years her focus may be veering slightly more towards this area, for example the Neptunian complexities of her son’s worldly affairs. Neptune/North Node is transiting the 5th House of Nicolas Sarkozy and certainly it’s his love life, leisure activities and glamorous partner which have been receiving more intrigue and publicity than his political side recently. Tony Benn has the conjunction in his 6th House and in recent years has suffered some health complications in the nature of his Aries Sun Sign, but he continues to be passionately driven by his social conscience. The triple conjunction placed here enables him to continue to make a contribution of service, but he has to tread delicately and take into account health weakness with Neptune also opposing his Neptune (which was exact at the time he announced his comeback). Prince Charles has North Node/Neptune currently in his 7th House of Marriage and Close Relationships, and there may be emerging deeper layers of interaction between him and his nearest and dearest. For China, the conjunction appears currently in its 8th House of death and rebirth, and the deep challenges to its human rights record and image may reflect the presence of Neptune here while the North Node represents the clamour for change coming from world opinion. The Dalai Lama has the triple conjunction in the 9th House, and while the state of being in exile in foreign lands has been a theme all his adult life, the spiritual connotations of the 9th House also combine to make this a crucial time for him in combining his spiritual and temporal roles because of the karmic nature of the North Node. There is a similar theme going on in the chart of Tibet, which you will see under the 12th House. Going South, the new Labour Government of Australia may show what it is made of ethically and idealistically at the end of April, for instance on the issue of climate change, with the conjunction occurring in its 10th House of Politics. Our own Gordon Brown has the triple conjunction in his 11th House, and friendships and alliances are tricky for him at this time, and a test of sincerity both for him and those around him, conjuring up a picture of whispering corridors, and a cloak and dagger scenario reminiscent of a scene from Les Liaisons Dangereuses. And finally the chart of Tibet shows Neptune/North Node plus Chiron in the 12th House, a house of spiritual rescources but physical weakness. It is also the house of karmic justice, and this is a placement to watch with interest to see what is revealed over the coming year.