Summary

Youthful exuberance during the 1^st half of the year comes up against a heavy reality check during the 2nd half. Go ahead and get excited but equally, keep your wits about you. Patience please.

Details

Jupiter in Pisces conjuncts with its planetary ruler, Neptune, on 11^th-12^th April. The theme is both otherworldly and inspiring – a welcome sense of emotional renewal. Now is the time to align yourself with a worthy cause that could potentially bring benefit to many different people. 

At the end of April, Venus – the principle of love and beauty and very happy in Pisces – adds her energies to the mix as she comes together with Jupiter/Neptune. At the same time we will experience a new Moon (also an eclipse) in Taurus, where the Moon is also very happy. The Moon is all about how we feel about ourselves and when she’s happy, we’re happy. If that’s not enough to get us excited, add Uranus (in Taurus) – the principle of change, freedom, and breakthrough to the mix!

This is set to be a profoundly inspiring time. What we choose to do with it could go a couple of ways: some of us might find a project well-worth our time and effort and make serious headway to bring new meaning into our lives. Good stuff! Unfortunately, however, others might go over the top and get fanatical, obsessive about their projects/causes in a not so healthy way.

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Should the later happen, it could get ugly. This is because on 10^th May, Jupiter moves from Pisces into Aries. Add to that the planet Mars (now in Pisces) moving into conjunction with Neptune and into mutual reception with Jupiter in Aries. Mars represents that part of our psyches that pushes us to assert ourselves in ways that can easily become aggressive/angry. Along with Jupiter, which represents the principle of expansion at any cost, and the stage is set for indulgent over-confidence. Fuelled by a sense of personal superiority, our lives could easily get out of control. Neptune adds the element of martyrdom and/or personal sacrifice. Think of Joan of Arc, a spiritual quest that leads off onto a crusade. Might it all go wrong? Yes. Might it all go well? Equally, yes. Plenty of optimism here as long as everyone keeps things in perspective.

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By the end of May (28-29^th), Mars moves into Aries and actually conjoins with Jupiter. This is in the midst of a lunar eclipse in Scorpio (also a sign ruled by Mars). The Martian dynamic is seriously in play. If you need some extra energy to get things done, this is perfect time! But please, don’t allow yourself to get carried away.

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By the end of October, Mars (now in Gemini) turns retrograde (apparently peddling backwards through the sky). This happens at the same time that Mercury (representing communication and connections of all sorts) enters Scorpio. Mercury and Mars are now in mutual reception and as the result, working closely together. For the first part of the Mars retrograde (lasting until early January 2023), we might be witness to some seriously dynamic energy. Think back to the early 1990’s when Mars was last in retrograde in Gemini – when we were just getting to grips with the internet, and all the potential that it might (and did) bring.

What might we expect this time? Quite possibly a similar technological breakthrough, the longer-term ramifications of which may not be immediately clear. Equally, this could be a period when older (political) tensions come back into play in a new way, which may not be altogether peaceful although progress can still be made.

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Saturn again squares Uranus in September and October: this ‘two-steps backward for every one step forward’ energy is something with which we’ve dealt during the entire of 2021. The good news is that Saturn/Uranus do not perfect that square again in 2022. So it’s not likely to be as difficult as last year. The bad news is that this archetypal difficult energy does remain in play through the end of November.

Put this together with the inspiring (albeit potentially overzealous) energy in the beginning of the 2022 calendar year, and we can expect the earlier exuberance may now get a conservative backlash. Might this play out well for the Republicans in the American mid-term elections? Don’t be surprised if it does. Equally, be cautious in regard to cyber security, data leaks, and equally potentially damaging scandals.