Interesting Times

For hundreds of years humans have looked at the sky hoping to see a sign of an object from another solar system. And then suddenly in the past eight years we have confirmed the visit of three interstellar objects to our inner solar system. Interstellar objects are those that are not bound by the gravity of our Sun, suggesting that they come from another star system.

The first one which created ripples of excitement, amongst star gazers, is called Oumuamua. In October 2017, Robert Weryk, a teacher at a Hawaiian University, discovered this strange looking object that did not have a 'coma', (a covering of gas) like other comets. Oumuamua in Hawaiian means 'the first one to reach out'.

Following this we were visited by 2I Borisov in 2019. 2= Second I= Interstellar and Borisov is Gennadiy Borisov, the telescope maker and amateur astronomer from Crimea, who discovered this object. Borisov, unlike Oumuamua, had a tail suggesting it is a comet. Its tail was 14 times the size of the earth.

And now in July 2025, Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System (ATLAS), an astronomical survey center based in Hawaii ,discovered 3I Atlas. This comet said to be 7 billion years old, is traveling at a great speed of around 58 km/s. And is making an orbit that seems like a planned design. It will come very close to Mars, Venus and Jupiter, and will be closest to the Sun in October 2025.

Ascending Cycle

Who knows if there is a connection between the visit of these inter-stellar objects to anything that happened on earth. To me,however,  it seems that the last 8 years have been a period of great unraveling.

And what makes this time more fascinating are the compelling and portentous planetary alignments in the sky now. The three outer planets Uranus, Neptune and Pluto are synchronizing at the same degrees, in a harmonious sextile position. These are very slow moving planets with great orbits, to have them synchronize to the degree, is so rare that the last time a similar alignment happened is said to be around 12,000 years ago, probably during the time of the Younger Dryas. However people who study yuga cycles/large cycles of time, say that 12,000 years ago we were in a descending cycle, and today we are on an ascending one. They promise hope of Awakening, Transformation and Higher Consciousness.

Starting now these energies will become more potent, and this tight dance between them will continue until the year 2029. It is a window of opportunity for change. Change made consciously may make us resilient to face any inevitable changes from 2029 onward.

The Catalyst of the Cycle

Now is the time where this window opens.

This is the time of the Lion's Gate portal (8/8, 8th August) in Tropical Astrology. And in Babylonian Astrology this is the time to see the heliacal rise of the star Sirius. In India you can see Sirius on the eastern horizon just before sunrise on August 10th,2025. These periods of the year are considered portals to higher consciousness in many ancient civilizations.

What makes this year extra-special is, we can see close to Sirius, the planet Venus approaching Jupiter for a pairing. Venus and Jupiter are considered the Benefics, they are the great,kind teachers of the cosmos. And both of them are together in the nakshatra Ardra very close to Sirius.

On 9th August, 13.24 IST we have a full moon in Capricorn opposite the Sun in Cancer. If you recall our amavasya post, the sun and moon are together during the no-moon day. And gradually the moon in her dance around the earth keeps growing until she comes to a position where she is on one side of the earth, with the sun being on the other. The earth is nestled in between two glowing bodies of light. The day is called Poornima, 'poorna' meaning 'wholeness' of the radiant moon.

What does this day unfold?

When there is so much going on, how can we harmonize this in the most beneficial way? We can narrow our focus, work in one area and wait and see if that makes any significant improvement in our lives.

Of all the potent energies and combinations of the complex chart, let us sift and bring our focus to one alignment alone : the positions of Saturn, Neptune and Mars.

On the day of the full moon, August 9th,Saturday: Saturn and Neptune form a tight knit conjunction at the same degree in the same house, 7 degrees of Pisces. While Mars comes into perfect opposition, holding the 7 degree mark of Virgo.

Saturn- Neptune Conjunction

We are under a strong influence of Neptune now. Neptune is the co-ruler of the house of Pisces. He moved into Pisces in April 2022. On the positive side Neptune stands for universal love, compassion and spiritual connection. But he is a very deceptive planet, he also rules the themes of illusion, deception, imagination, escapism, addiction and the proverbial blind spot. He is a very challenging planet to deal with, since he throws the veil of illusion, takes you to other realms and makes you lose your grip of reality.

Saturn is, in a way, the complete opposite kind of energy. Saturn is the cold task master. He teaches through grief and misfortune. Which is why he is feared by many. He wants you to do the hardwork, be disciplined and to show up. While at the same time he doesn't make it easy for you to do so. He is a tamasic planet, one with heavy inertia, he is slow moving as well, and this makes the tasks even more difficult to do. And he is only interested in dispensing karma, not in mollycoddling you with rewards as carrots in front of donkeys. He rules one portion of Pisces, Uttarabhadrapada, the sombre deep nakshatra, symbolized by the back two legs of the funeral cot. Now placed there he is the cold realization of mortality.

But he may find it difficult to hang around Neptune until 2027. In fact his problems become a lot similar to our own. With a very strong Neptune, things that are illusory seem to become more and more real. We are living in nothing less than a sci-fi world, with AI, augmented reality, social media etc creating worlds of illusions that we have accepted quite readily. And the values of Saturn which are to do the work, write the poem, grind the code, do your chores all seem to be a waste of effort when you can get it done with ChatGpt or a robot. 

The problem when it comes to dealing with illusions is the difficulty people have in discriminating between real/unreal and even between right and wrong, good and bad. How does it matter in the illusion, people begin to think.Their grip on reality loosens and boundaries get blurred. Everything seems to be okay, and a manufactured context or distraction as an excuse, seems to be enough, to quell any doubts.

Let's look Saturn and the high energy planet Mars to help us deal with the overpowering influence of Neptune.

Mars- the Warrior

Mars is a planet associated with youth, virility and the masculine. He is the great warrior. He is also called Bhumisuta, or the 'Son of the Earth', red as a ruby, birthed by the earth and around half her size.He is the skilful strategist.

Mars is tiny in size compared to Saturn and Neptune. And on August 9th he is going to be directly facing these two giants. Saturn and Mars are traditionally considered enemies. They are often seen as conflicting energies. Saturn represents slowness, restriction, and discipline, while Mars embodies speed, action, and aggression. This could be a difficult energy where you want to do something, but feel like you are held back. But if we find a way to work with both these energies Mars and Saturn can be extremely effective in bringing Neptune under control . And a balanced Neptune can help us enjoy the positive sides of this deep planet.

Walk the Straight and Narrow Path

Mars and Saturn are in opposition for August and September. However contradictory their energies may seem, Mars and Saturn are planets of reality. Of the physical world. They can be very beneficial for us in getting a grip of the real world. We can improve our sense of discernment/viveka by finding a way through the difficult clash of their energies. We need tremendous energy to think and figure out what is real and what is not, what is right and what is wrong. Also we need patience to take one step after the other in the direction of our goals. No matter how insignificant the mainstream wants to make your goals appear to you.

Make some plans. Execute them. Make the plans very small. Think tiny. Don't expect a pat on the back. Instead of feeling the need to gush about your problems, take the time to sit down quietly and reflect. Feel the pain, the sorrow, the discomfort. Do it for only short manageable periods. Seek help if you need to.

Think about the issues that you see around you. Don't gush on social media. If you can, then discuss them with a friend. Do not get into arguments surrounding personalities. Even if you don't discuss the issues with anyone, find out what you think. Ask yourself why you think that way.

Take walks.If you can't then try connecting to the earth in someway. Just feel her underneath your feet.

Just keep on with this strategy until October 3rd, 2025. 3I Atlas will come very close to Mars on this date. By then we may well change something in the cosmos and within ourselves.

Going forward

Increasingly our importance as humans is questioned with a heartlessness. Technology makes it seem like we are dispensable, programmed robots. Our smallness rubbed in our face makes us want to simply give up. Who are we in the face of big systems, big funding, big numbers, big data? It may even seem egotistic and delusional to think that you can make a difference as a mere individual.

But stop ,and question the mainstream programming.

Pioneering, groundbreaking research throughout history has been made by individuals. Ignaz Semmelweis, Alexander Fleming and other individuals contributed the biggest discoveries in the medical field, despite in many cases facing opposition from the system. In astronomy we just saw that it was ordinary individuals, doing 'their thing' who discovered the inter-stellar objects. It was smple individuals again who discovered the outer planets through sheer passion and enterprise.

Don't doubt your beauty. As you think you become. Think differently today. Think of yourself as powerful. Fight the battle between good and evil within the landscape of your own heart. Do not surrender to the illusions of grandeur. Discriminate, discern and reflect. 

It will surely not be easy but do the work. And until next week, invite a drop of silence.