Tarot and Astrology for the first week of February 2021

And so a new month begins…

In many ways, February will continue what January introduced, although the month is slightly less intense (thank god!)

Here are the aspects I mentioned in this episode (you can listen here):

• Venus joins the Aquarian committee when she enters the sign of Aquarius on February 1
• Venus conjunct Saturn on February 6
• Venus square Uranus on February 7
• The Sun square Mars on February 1

When I babbled on about my revelation about the direction I want to take my life in the beginning of the the podcast, I forgot to mention that this very much had to do with the Sun conjunct Jupiter aspect which perfected on January 29, but was definitely close enough that it could be felt during the full moon.

Editing podcasts is a big pain, especially since I still talk too fast, so I thought I’d just mention this here rather than redo that part of the recording.

Hope you also got the chance to do some positive-yet-intense soul searching under these aspects around the full moon as well!

p.s. If you’d like to watch a video where an astrologer breaks down these transits in a clearer, more down-to-Earth way than I’m yet able to do, check out this video by Acyuta-bhava.

Tarot Reading for the First Week of February

For this reading, I decided to ask the cards to tell me what each of the aspects I mention in the podcast are trying to teach us this week.

For the Sun square Mars, I pulled the seven of cups, for Venus in Aquarius I pulled the Temperance card, for Venus conjunct Saturn I pulled the Ace of Pentacles and for Venus square Uranus I pulled the Moon card.

What I find interesting about this spread is the sandwich effect it has between thinking colored too much by desire and fear as opposed to rational, balanced thinking which approaches what is whether than how we wish things were.

The first card, the seven of cups, speaks to our desire to see “reality” from our own individual perspective and name this “the truth” when in fact it has much more to do with our own subjective opinions and cultural conditioning.

Who’s right about reality, the Sun in Aquarius or Mars in Taurus? How you feel (feel because this is the suit of cups) about this likely has more to do with social media algorithms and media source echo chambers rather than the actual state of affairs.

So how can we move out of this and gain a better sense of clarity?

The card I pulled for Venus in Aquarius seems to be offering a solution: temperance, or contemplative moderation.

Take a good look at this card. The angel pictured is not flying to the heavens; their wings may be spread, but their feet are still very much on the ground. One foot is dipped into the pond and the figure is calmly pouring water from one cup to another. This means they are not entirely detached from the emotional nature of the situation at hand (signified by water) but are still able to remain rational and observant rather than become overwhelmed by the fears surrounding these emotions (moon) or lose their clarity of thought (seven of cups).

Remember that Venus is the fifth visible planet to join the Aquarius committee. She was preceded first by Saturn, who entered Aquarius for good on December 17, then Jupiter on December 19, Mercury on January 8 and the Sun on January 19. At this point, we should have a good feel for the inspiration (the Star card, which traditionally is assigned to Aquarius) and call for change of this Aquarian energy that ushered into the new elemental age of air.

In this card, Venus entering Aquarius seems to be calling for pause and harmonize the needs and (perhaps unconscious) emotions of both sides of the equation.

Notice there are two cups here, not just one. However, the cup in the angel’s left hand does not appear to be emptying and the one in its right hand is not overflowing. Instead, the card calls for the quiet beauty of a controlled and contemplative sense of unity.

But where will this lead us?

If you look closely at the the Temperance card, you will see a path leading from the mountains in the distance. Although perhaps picturesque, this could also represent an arduous journey we had to embark upon to reach this pond (or one that still have ahead of us should we choose to turn around). Will we turn around and head to the mountains, or will we cross over the pond into a new, still unseen world?

Since this figure is an angel, why not simply fly?

If you look at the next card, the one I pulled for Venus conjunct Saturn, this seems to be the case.

Notice the mountains through the gate of this lovely garden, which appear further away and less treacherous than in the Temperance card, although it’s still not entirely clear if we’ve crossed them or simply flew further away.

Yes, this garden is walled off and has a clear gate and boundary (Saturn) but it is also beautiful (Venus), with blooming flowers: two different kinds, both flourishing, perhaps watered individually with each of the cups of the preceding card.

I take this card to represent a celebration of the beauty of Saturn in Aquarius’s plans for rebuilding and restructuring the world in a way that bring a new sense of wealth and security (Ace of Pentacles) that still remains “up in the clouds”, casting its radiance onto this lovely garden from above, as is fitting for material values (Pentacles) as they will increasingly be defined in the new age of air.

However, as much as Venus may like it to be the case, we are definitely not yet in this garden.

Saturn is slow, and many of these plans to rebuild will gradually roll out and may not bear much fruit until he moves from Aquarius to Pisces in March of 2023 or, in a deeper sense, until Jupiter and Saturn complete their 20-year cycle and meet up again in the sign of Libra in September, 2040.

Saturn may be many things, but speedy he is not.

As for Venus, despite her striving for unity, balance and togetherness with a somewhat somber tone when she enters Aquarius at the beginning of the month, she will still have to deal with a square from the rebellious Uranus.

For this aspect, I pulled the Moon card.

This card echoes the Temperance card in many ways. Again, we have a path and on each side of the path a different dog is howling their own howl at the moon, each hound dwelling in its own castle.

A crayfish is emerging from the pond to do what? Pinch each of these noisy dogs? Or will this shy creature return to the depths, too afraid to venture onto dry land?

The Temperance card (Venus in Aquarius) is calm; the angel is performing its balancing act under the warm rays of the sun.

But the scene here (one perhaps taking place at the other side of the pond?) is at night under the full moon. Do the animals here represent our animal natures, not willing to cross the path, insisting my castle is the best castle, with a potentially aggressive version of this nature lurking in the waters? If so, are they wild because they don’t know any better or because this is what they want?

If this card represents the unconscious and irrational, anxiety and fear, as the Moon card does traditionally, then what are these dogs howling at and what is drawing the crayfish out of the water?

The moon.

And what does the moon represent if not change itself, that which Uranus brings into our lives whether we like it or not?

Whew.

Quite a ride. Hope you could take away something from that.

Until next week,

XOXO

Rebeccah