"Is that my brakes grinding or is it just the square?"

As those images of dead children came out of Syria last week and stories of chemical warfare and  questions like who is doing what?  Who is not doing what?   Who is the good guy?  Who is the bad guy?   And what are we supposed to do about it?  Which made me realize the whole world is Chinatown and we are all Jake *  

I thought of course of our current astrological climate of Uranus square Pluto.   For those of you who are regular followers of TracyAstroSalon you know that I speak often of the big ass square that we have been experiencing since 2012 and will continue to process until 2015.    Right now of course Jupiter decided to get himself in the dog fight by moving into Cancer and activating Pluto opposite him in Capricorn and throw a punch or two at Uranus in Aries.   What is the old saying, the enemy of my enemy is my friend?   There you go, Jupiter making friends all over the place!   Anyway, I have been discussing Jupiter for the last couple of months but I think is valuable to hear other astrologer's take.   Lynn Hayes has written up something quite smart on her sight AstroMusings.   Give it a read and check out her other articles. 

Jupiter square Uranus, opening wide the doors of liberation

We are currently in the midst of a major planetary cycle: the square from Uranus to Pluto.  If this concept is new to you, please see the abbreviated explanation in the sidebar of this site.  

Jupiter formed an exact square to Uranus last week, the first of three exact alignments that will amplify the shifting tides in our personal lives as well as on the world stage that are creating the necessity for a complete overhaul (Uranus in Aries) of the very foundation of our lives (Pluto in Capricorn).  With a total of seven exact alignments spanning a period of nearly five years, this planetary cycle is like a hurricane of energy that will strip us of the aspects of our lives that are already in decay (Pluto) and encourage us to refine our lives so that they more authentically reflect who we truly are (Uranus).

Now here comes Jupiter, interacting first with Pluto earlier in August and now Uranus.  Jupiter brings confidence to one’s ventures; it dislikes restrictive boundaries and desires to  expand beyond them.  Jupiter and Uranus are both freedom planets but they behave differently astrologically.  Jupiter is a personal planet, so it represents the internal urge to grow and learn and to live a life that has real meaning for us.  As a transpersonal planet, Uranus inspires us to drop any artifice and react against restriction that keeps us from being authentic and true to ourselves.  When these two interact in the sky, especially in a strong aspect such as the square (90 degree) aspect, the pressure for liberation becomes powerful and impossible to ignore.

Warning: geeky astrological details ahead.  The next exact alignment between Uranus and Pluto occurs November 1 2013, but Jupiter will begin to “translate” that alignment in early 2014 when it first opposes Pluto on January 31st and then squares Uranus on February 26th.   On April 20th and 21st all three planets come together in an exact T-square alignment.

Back to the rest of my readers! The period between January and the end of April 2014 will be extremely significant and offer a tremendous portal for letting go of anything that is not working in your life.  Change is easier for some of us than for others – it requires a great deal of trust that the change will in fact be beneficial.  For many of us the old is familiar and feels safe – even though it may be horrific, it is what we know.  It is exactly  these situations that this kind of planetary cycle is intended for – to force us, despite our desperate attempts to cling to the rotting fabric of the past, to move forward into a brighter future.