Welcome to the most intense month of space weather in 2021. The astrology of November is off the chain hook.
The overarching transit of this month is the T-square between Mars in Scorpio, Saturn in Aquarius, and Uranus in Taurus. The aspect becomes more intense the closer the degrees get, but will be in play throughout all of November and into December until Mars leaves Scorpio on December 13.
What’s even more interesting is that the Moon follows this T-square closely. The main phases of this lunation cycle – New Moon, First Quarter, Full Moon and Last Quarter – occur in conjunction with each point of the T-square, very close to when the degrees of that aspect go exact.
First the Moon joins Mars at the New Moon (November 4), then meets up with Saturn at the First Quarter right as the Mars-Saturn square goes exact (November 10), then conjoins Uranus at the Full Moon when the Mars-Uranus opposition goes exact (November 17). And then two days later we get a Lunar Eclipse conjunct the fixed star Algol, which is considered the most malefic star in the sky.
So, the whole lunation of November reverberates with the tense, heavy, disruptive energy of this Mars-Saturn-Uranus T-square.
To spice things up even more, Mercury and the Sun are also in Scorpio for most of the month, so they can be considered conjunct with Mars and therefore blending their energies into that T-square as well.
Here’s a breakdown of each of the key transits to help you conceptualize this a bit. Compare these degrees to your birth chart to see if any of them are hitting any key points in your chart, as that will determine how much these will influence you. Generally, the fixed signs will probably feel this most intensely, so if you’ve got the angles (particularly your Ascendant) or personal planets in fixed signs (Taurus, Leo, Scorpio, Aquarius) this month is one to watch closely.
New Moon at 12 Scorpio – November 4
- Sun/Moon conjunct Mars (3 Scorpio)
- Sun/Moon square Saturn (7 Aquarius)
- Sun/Moon exact opposition to Uranus (12 Taurus)
First Quarter Moon and Mars-Saturn exact square at 7 Scorpio/7 Aquarius – November 10
- Mars is also conjunct Mercury (8 Scorpio) and the Sun (18 Scorpio)
- Saturn is also conjunct the Moon (11 Aquarius)
Full Moon and Mars-Uranus exact opposition at 12 Scorpio/12 Taurus – November 17
- Mars is also conjunct Mercury (18 Scorpio), and co-present (i.e. in the same sign as) the Sun (25 Scorpio)
- Uranus is also conjunct the Moon (7 Taurus)
Lunar Eclipse at 27 Taurus – November 19
- Sun (27 Scorpio) is conjunct Mercury (21 Scorpio) and co-present Mars (13 Scorpio)
- Moon is conjunct the fixed star Algol (26 Taurus) and co-present Uranus (12 Taurus)
- The Mars-Saturn-Uranus T-square is still very much active at this time
Last Quarter Moon and Fixed Grand Cross – November 25
- The Moon moves from 8 Leo to 19 Leo over this day, which triggers a Grand Cross aspect pattern with Mars (18 Scorpio), Saturn (8 Aquarius) and Uranus (11 Taurus) for duration of the day.
- This area in the middle of Leo is a sensitive point because it forms the other point of the T-square that occurs this month; it’s unoccupied until the Moon transits this area of the sky on November 25.
- The Grand Cross is one of the most dramatic and challenging aspect configurations. Thankfully it will pass fairly quickly, but this day is going to be chock full of tension and competing forces.
- Because this occurs in fixed signs, there could be a very strong sense of being “stuck” which will ease somewhat as the Moon continues its journey through Leo.
- This is also a Last Quarter Moon so it represents the waning period of this lunation cycle, a natural release point for all the stuff that’s come before. It might take until the Moon leaves Leo and ingresses Virgo for this relief valve to really be felt, however.
There is a ton to unpack here, given the complexity of the transits at play. The way they manifest in your own life will depend on how they hit your chart – and I hasten to add that while the overarching themes are pretty challenging, hard aspects like a T-square can also end up being quite productive. There’s a strong sense of urgency and need to keep pushing forward on whatever areas of life these planets are hitting in your chart. You may feel stuck temporarily, but there’s also a possibility of breakthrough happening shortly after.
Remember that we’ve had two hits of this Mars-Saturn-Uranus combination earlier in the year: in February, we got a Saturn-Uranus square with Mars conjunct Uranus. Then in July, we got a T-square with Mars-Saturn-Uranus, only that was when Mars was in Leo. This T-square in November, with Mars in Scorpio, will be more potent because of Mars’ rulership over Scorpio.
You can look to the events that happened in your life in early July for some idea of what you might expect this time around; though, the action will likely be oriented around a different part of your life because Mars will be in a different house. Because it’s Scorpio, it could be some hidden things that get pushed up to the surface to cause conflict. But it might end up also being a time where tension and conflict leads to progress.
On a global level, things are likely to get (more) tense and heated on a political level. There have been rumours of conflict involving Taiwan, China and the US – and I sincerely hope those stay as just rumours and don’t bubble up into open conflict.
The supply chain issues that have crept into all facets of our society are likely to come to some kind of peak at this time. Black Friday happens on November 26, the day after that Grand Cross featuring the Moon, Mars, Saturn and Uranus. The massive increase in online sales at this time could be what pushes global supply chains to the breaking point – so to be safe, I’d recommend placing any online orders well before this date, and not waiting for Black Friday deals. Remember that it’s a Grand Cross in fixed signs – so things may be stuck, delayed or otherwise trapped.
Shopping as local as possible will be the best way to insulate against these things, so it’s more important than ever to spend your dollars (on anything, but especially the necessities – food, clothing, medicine, shelter) within your local community as much as you possibly can.
The same goes for travel during this time, especially international travel: expect disruptions. If you will be travelling at this time, be prepared for unexpected things to happen – or for nothing to happen, recalling that strong fixed energy. This will be a time of shifting rules around borders and who can/can’t cross these boundaries, and those rules might change quickly. At all costs, do not lose your temper (Mars) if you run into any surprises (Uranus) when travelling across borders (Saturn).
Mars entered Scorpio on October 30. Mars rules Scorpio, so he is in his full power in this sign. Some of the general significations of Mars in Scorpio include things like espionage, assassination and all other sorts of hidden, dangerous things. On a personal level, these are the kinds of things that, when exposed, make you feel intensely vulnerable and exposed, and your impulse is to lash out in self-defense.
On a global level, Mars in Scorpio is the dark corners of the world that most would prefer to ignore. It’s the violent, criminal underbelly that polite society wants to pretend doesn’t exist. It’s the corruption, cronyism, fraud, criminality and treachery that has come to underpin our international network of politics, business and finance.
These forces are in direct conflict with Saturn in Aquarius. Saturn rules Aquarius so he is also in his power. On a personal level, the significations of Saturn in Aquarius include our personal boundaries and bubbles, especially in relation to our inflexible ideas and opinions – beliefs that we hold so strongly that they will not bend, but might break if put under enough pressure.
On a global level, Saturn in Aquarius represents those beliefs, ideas and ideologies around which we’ve structured our societies. Saturn in Aquarius is the ethos behind the Universal Declaration of Human Rights: the objective, inflexible laws that are supposed to ensure all human beings on earth are allowed to be free and equal.
When you put Saturn in Aquarius in conflict with Mars in Scorpio, you get the toxic mixture of all those dirty, hidden, violent things that have undermined, damaged, sabotaged or otherwise subverted our beliefs, ideas and rights. And when you add Uranus, the great disrupter and harbinger of breakthroughs and breakdowns, you further destabilize this entire mix.
My greatest hope for November is that more people begin or continue to realize just how deep the level of corruption in our society goes, particularly in relation to the ongoing pandemic. The level of collusion between governments and big business, particularly in the field of medicine (but really, everywhere else too), has reached a crisis point.
I don’t know how this will play out. With Mars, there’s always the potential for violence – but because he’s in Scorpio, this violence may not play out in full view. Or, the details around it will be obfuscated. This entire configuration reeks of assassination.
Other significations, in no particular order: black-ops and false flags, oil spills and explosions, scientific breakthroughs, major cyber-attacks, stock market peaks and crashes, genocide, prisoners of conscience, medical coercion, mass immigration.
Fun list, huh?
If there’s one saving grace to the lunar eclipse conjunct Algol, it’s that it occurs at the end of the Sun and Moon’s respective signs. The eclipse is exact at 1:57am MST on November 19. The Moon changes signs just a few hours later, entering Gemini at 7:33am. This sign change should serve to dissipate some of the most intense of the eclipse energies, though bear in mind that the period between eclipses (there is a solar eclipse on December 4, in Sagittarius) is still considered a fairly malefic time period. It’s not a good time to start anything new or otherwise do really big life events if you can avoid it. It’s best to just let things play out and keep living your life as best as you can.
This is also the first of the eclipses in the new eclipse cycle that occurs across the Taurus-Scorpio axis. We get one more from the previous Gemini-Sagittarius cycle (the solar eclipse on December 4), and then the rest of the eclipses for the next two years are in Taurus and Scorpio (until they start shifting into the Aries-Libra axis in April 2023). So, take a look at which houses Taurus and Scorpio are in your chart, because the eclipse cycle is moving into that realm and will kick off a new period of activity related to those houses.
This all seems overwhelming and scary. The important thing to remember is that in almost all cases, the most extreme manifestations of any given transit are very unlikely. Transits are almost always experienced somewhere in between the most extreme forms of them. Sometimes you don’t even notice them.
There is the undeniable potential for some really big shit to go down on the world stage, however. So even if you will not be directly impacted by it, or if the direct impacts are manageable but not devastating, now is the time to centre yourself and be as mindful as possible.
Your spiritual hygiene has never been more important. If you don’t even know what that means, now is the time to figure it out. Meditate every day (no exceptions), pray, burn frankincense or palo santo (especially during the eclipse), keep your house tidy, express gratitude, embrace temperance, don’t push yourself too hard. Now is the time to channel your best impression of a hurricane’s eye. “Make your heart like a lake, with calm, still surface, and great depths of kindness.” (Lao Tzu)
There are more transits in November, of course. Two of the big ones that I didn’t discuss include Venus’ ingress into Capricorn and Mercury’s ingress into Scorpio, which both happen on November 5. I will have more to say about Venus in Capricorn in December, but I won’t get into that now as the previous discussion gives you plenty to work with/freak out about.
As for Mercury in Scorpio – I can only hope that having the messenger planet alongside Mars in Scorpio will mean we actually get information about what activities Mars gets up to at this time. It’s actually a good omen for disclosure, in whatever form that might take – but keep in mind everything else that’s at play this month, and recognize that whatever information bubbles up in November, it will never be the whole story.