Unlike the Solstices of Winter and Summer, which are greeted with celebration, the Equinoxes of Spring and Autumn are thought of as somewhat problematic points in the astrological calendar, points when the change of energy is abrupt and challenging. The Autumn Equinox, for all the season’s beauty, comes with a tinge of sadness as we in the northern hemisphere contemplate the dying of the Sun’s light.
The Equinox also announces the month of Libra, and this year there is a lot of Libra in play, thanks to Mercury spending a couple of months in the Scales, with an irksome three week retrograde involved from September 27th. All three of 2021’s Merc Ret spells are in the three air signs – February’s in Aquarius, June’s in Gemini – suggesting a rethink of our ideas on social organisation, on humanitarian causes, on justice and fair play. Let’s hope as much prevails this autumn.
Major events
- September 7 – New Moon in Virgo at 0.52 GMT
- September 10 – Venus into Scorpio
- September 15 – Mars into Libra
- September 20 – Full Moon in Pisces at 23.55 GMT
- September 22 – Autumn Equinox, Sun into Libra at 19.21 GMT
- September 27 – Mercury turns retrograde in Libra
Virgo
Slow down and smell the flowers? If you like, but as long as Mars is marching through your skies – until the 15th – you might as well stay in get-things-done mode, or in take-no-prisoners warrior mode if you prefer. As much is emphasised by the Virgo new Moon of September 7th (top date for a birthday obviously), which re-launches your energies into the world.
With foggy Neptune in opposition (as usual), your objectives and opponents may present a hazy target, but Martian energies allow you to cut to the heart of a matter or a dispute. Without a very good reason, don’t back down. The full Moon of the 20th, being in opposition, is a less tractable matter- full Moons are invariably loony tunes – but just beforehand the Sun lines up with Pluto to grant you an extra blast of righteous power (it has to be righteous, not malevolent, or it backfires).
The Sun moves on at the Equinox into Libra, to join ruler Mercury and Mars in your cash zone; favourable for making more of the folding stuff, and once Mercury turns backwards on the 27th, for considering how you can make/save more.
More thrilling is the shift of Venus into Scorpio from the 10th; a sexy spot for the queen of relationships, though it seems good company may have to come ahead of l’amour, and that potential lovers may be lurking just round the corner rather than somewhere exotic. Happy Birthday.
Libra
Simple suggestions for the first half of the month: be thorough, be quick and have your charm beam turned up to eleven. That you have two months with messenger Mercury in your skies (as opposed to the normal three weeks) is handy – cogitate and declaim to your heart’s content! – but three weeks with the planet sliding backwards, from the 27th, promises go-slows and cockups. You can’t likely dodge the delays but with preparation, mistakes can be avoided and plan ‘B’s be readied.
As for the charm offensive, Venus in Libra until the 10th offers the choice to be socially and romantically active, or to flop languidly on your chaise longue issuing droll commentaries a la Oscar Wilde (b. 15/10/1884). Or a mix of the two.
From the 15th you have the more strident energies of Mars transiting your skies; fine for getting things done, and for showing your teeth (is that smile or a bite?), but also for offending people you might prefer to have on your side. Your sign is sold as all peace and love, but Librans can be very pushy.
Then, hey presto, it’s the autumn equinox and your birthday season. A time for perfect poise, for manifesting 2021’s personal projects (which genius said paintings are never finished but merely abandoned?) and for making money – Venus is in your cash zone, and an impoverished Libran is a sad creature. The Force is with you…hurrah! but don’t overdo it.
Scorpio
Friends and lovers are a major theme in September’s stars, your mission being to discern who is worth your time, trouble and affection. The new Moon of September 7 is something of a new start in personal affairs, albeit with a cautionary note of potential confusion (ruler Mars is opposite dewy-eyed Neptune). By the time the Moon becomes visible, on the 10th, Luna is in your skies alongside Venus, a cue for a sweet, exploratory weekend.
Venus in Scorpio has a steamy reputation – seduction, intrigue, sex dungeons – but intensity and passion are the real hallmarks. Three weeks of Venus in your skies further suggests new frocks, creative inspiration and posh tea and cake, while the planet’s assorted aspects (until October 7) conjure up a heady assortment of jealousy, over confidence, vulnerability, instant obsession and bust-up as she encounters Saturn, Jupiter, Neptune and Prometheus. The full Moon of the 19th/20th looks especially giddy.
As much should keep you occupied for the month, but Saturn hasn’t forgotten you, and demands persistence where work, property and creative effort are concerned. Your birthday month promises to be a triumphant affair, but you need to put in the graft beforehand.
Sagittarius
Juggling an issue or two too many? Your September ‘scope is certainly a bundle of demands, suggestions and excursions. The Sun’s continuing presence at the top of your solar chart (along with pushy Mars until the 14th) suggests no easy ride at work – nothing alarming, but an insistence you pay attention and deliver, with the new Moon of the 7th favouring a new term reboot. Working solo and/or from home may help avoid irksome office colleagues.
There seems to be a lot of people to please – Venus in Libra until the 10th, Mars likewise in Libra from the 15th and Messenger Mercury in the Scales all month all suggest a full social calendar and a stream of memos from colleagues. The latter should be despatched with prompt care given the upcoming spell of retrograde Mercury from the 27th. You are under scrutiny all month.
With Venus disappearing into the murk of your solar twelfth house at mid-month, September may not be the ideal moment for a budding romance (unless it’s a secret), but you don’t look short of vibrant company.
The full Moon of the 20th September may bring resolution of sorts to domestic issues and uncertainties. Rather than tumbling along wondering where to lay your hat and call it home, asteroid Pallas suggests a capable, decisive hand in play, whether yours or someone else’s.
Capricorn
As a high achiever, you most likely greet autumn’s new term with relish rather than apprehension. September’s stars give you cause for both feelings, however. On the plus side is the new Virgo Moon of September 7 – so obliging for bright ideas, a refresh of your to-do list and, as pointed out last month, for a refresh of romantic attachments, especially if you are birthday circa January 4th. Mars in Virgo (a fellow earth sign) until the 15th carries much the same message.
On the more challenging side are planets in Libra, up at the peak of your ‘scope where you forge your public persona and career path. The Sun here (from the 22nd) along with Mercury (all month) and Mars (from the 15th) are nothing you haven’t previously faced but call for strategy and possible evasive action if confronted by a hothead colleague. The real challenge is to ensure all communications sent and received by yourself are carefully considered, as any goofs will come to light in the three weeks of retrograde Mercury incoming from the 27th.
Strong alliances are promised by Venus’s move into watery Scorpio from the 10th. Emotions run deep under Scorpio influences, so these are either a case of seep camaraderie or come with a none too subtle tinge of romantic allure. Time to keep your senses open, then.
Aquarius
Two full Moons in your skies last month – as in once in a Blue Moon – should have helped clarify your situation, not least where you stand with one or more significant others. September looks somewhat easier. If there is one area which is indistinct it’s finances, where Mars and the Sun are in conflict with Neptune, and you may be misled about just how much is in the piggy bank. A new Moon and a full Moon in Virgo both suggest you do the math, as the saying goes.
Talking of Luna, she is in your skies over the weekend of 17th/18th, a good moment to straighten out your affairs and issue the odd ultimatum. It’s something of a pivotal point in the month, with Venus up at the peak of your ‘scope asking you to put in a public appearance or two for the sake of your career, and Mars in airy Libra blowing fresh faces your way. Romance? Perhaps a boardroom crush or the equivalent.
The Sun in Libra, after the equinox of the 22nd, is all in your favour. Likewise, messenger Mercury in the Scales lends you good judgment, neither over optimistic or pessimistic but make your calls with care as three weeks of Mercury retrograde from the 27th, will doubtless call them into question.
Pisces
September is not always the easiest month of the Piscean year for the simple reason that the Sun in opposition from Virgo suggests a depletion of your energy levels. Plus, until the 15th, you also have feisty Mars in opposition, perhaps stirring up trouble with you and others if it hasn’t already done so in August. With Neptune – forever in your skies, or so it seems – on the other end, the capacity for mix-up and suspect information is strong.
The annual Pisces full Moon on the 20th – expect a giddy couple of days to go with it – signals the climax or close of this phase of the month. Thereafter, planets in Libra direct you to an overhaul of your financial set-up (if that isn’t too fancy a way to describe surfing your credit card), an ongoing theme into autumn.
More exciting is the transit of Venus, a planet with which you have a particular bond, into Scorpio, a water sign with which you also chime. Whether this means a deepening of an existing relationship or the arrival of a new one, it looks intense and rewarding. This is also a happy omen for those of you involved with travel (chance would be a fine thing), academe or law. Or, given Venus’s associations with art.
Aries
Talk the talk and walk the corresponding walk. September should suit you just fine providing you can maintain your usual level of energetic engagement. The month divides reasonably neatly into two. With your red-blooded Mars ruler in Virgo until the 15th, steady graft pays off. Get the damn job done! This is a notion amply supported by the Sun in the Maiden’s skies, along with a new Moon there on the 7th – mens sana in corpore sano and all that.
Thereafter, governor Mars is in opposition from the 15th, to be joined by the mighty Sun at the Autumn Equinox on the 22nd. One’s ruling planet in opposition is rarely a doddle – don’t be mistaking friends for enemies – but at best brings close allies and romantic admirers into your orbit and close as this distance. It’s a more complicated than usual transit since until September 10 Venus is in opposition – very much your partner planet and a sweet reminder why you are with who you are with, or why some newcomer deserves your attention. Venus in Scorpio – Oo Lala – continues to stoke the fires of passion into October.
Lastly there is messenger Mercury to consider. The tiny planet is in opposition all month, and in retrograde from the 27th. Mercury encourages you to talk until you drop, to maintain dialogue at all costs, whether it’s sweet talk, veiled threats, idle gossip or plain reason.
Taurus
You won’t be left off the ‘chain gang’ – to use the Prime Minister’s phrase for work – for long this year…either you’ll be grafting or worried that you have become surplus to requirements. However, September does promise you something of a holiday. The Sun in Virgo, with Mars also in the Maiden’s skies until the 15th, promises a break from pressure from above, along with new developments on the social front and, if you are looking, a flirtation or two (Mars is none too subtle about such things). The new Moon of the 7th signals fresh energy to your cause, while the full Moon of the 19th/20th calls for good company and celebration.
There is alas, not much respite from the daily routine, where planets in Libra insist that you spend time, and with Mercury due to go retrograde here on the 27th, overhauling your habits may be required.
A major shift in September is your ruler Venus moving into opposition from Scorpio at the 10th. At worst this is a case of jealousy from a rival (or even close friend). More likely is a deepening romantic involvement or temptation from a new association. The opposition of Venus to Prometheus (in your own skies) on the 24th may prove a game changer. It certainly makes you a live wire, promising (or calling for) a wild weekend – have fun.
Gemini
While you are not altogether free from the stresses and strains of life, especially domestic life, September’s stars come laden with promise. An empowered Venus in Libra, albeit only until the 10th, is just the ticket for a romantic tryst or a more general charm offensive. But there is plenty of Libra to go round this month. A fellow air sign and like Gemini interested in ideas, society and pleasure, Libra now entertains your Mercury ruler for nine long weeks, plus Mars from the 15th and the mighty Sun from the Equinox on the 22nd, all of which favour your assorted roles as flanneur or flanneuse: guy or gal about town, thinker, poser, creative wizz and social fixer. Take your pick but stay active and on no account stop talking, though with ruler Mercury retrograde from the 27th be careful what you promise – it’s likely to come back to haunt you.
The season of Virgo is less inclined to extravagance, more concerned with the details of home and hearth, with the new Moon of the 7th a moment to refresh your lovely home. Up at the peak of your ‘scope, where you are most on public view, comes the full Moon of the 20th, next to dreamy Neptune, fine for a show-off role on stage, but also for some self-delusion. Air sign that you are, with your head often in the clouds, but you still need your feet planted on the ground. Stay practical.
Cancer
September’s stars offer a pleasantly mixed bag. The season of Virgo, an earth sign, chimes with watery Cancer, giving you an easy ride from peers, siblings and acquaintances. Virgo is above all a practical sign, so good for everyday tasks, and with Neptune in the mix, especially at the full Moon of the 20th, inspiration for loftier matters is surely on tap.
The other sign pressing your buttons this month is Libra, or rather the planets therein are doing the pressing. Libra is a cardinal sign like your own and similarly pushy (while pretending not to be!). Expect a shove or two on either the domestic front or in your career; with Mars in Libra from the 15th and the Sun there from the Equinox you are unlikely to be spared criticism or have your plans unexamined. Mercury in Libra for nine long weeks means you have ample opportunity to talk through issues and, during the planet’s retrograde from the 27th, to make adjustments.
The trump card in September’s pack is Venus. The goddess of pleasure and lu-u-rve moves into Scorpio on the 10th and into prime position for you to bask in adoration/engineer a particularly hit date/complete your masterpiece/locate a dinner party (delete as required). Creativity comes in many guises, but whatever you choose, put your heart in it.
Leo
Without wishing to alarm you, in October taskmaster Saturn return to active duty in opposition, while at the end of September Mercury enters one of its three-week retrograde spells. All the more reason, then, to use September to regroup after what may have been a hectic birthday season, and to get your affairs on an even keel.
As much applies firstly to finances, rarely a favoured subject for Leos but one in the spotlight now thanks to Mars joining your Sun ruler in your cash zone, with a new moon there on the 7th. The message is simple enough; grasp the nettle, wrestle your spread sheets into submission, and if funds are low, either cut your overheads or earn more! It isn’t rocket science.
Money aside, September is leant an upbeat mood by the presence of planets in Libra, supplying air for your fire. Venus spends the first ten days here (handy for those in the dating game), followed by Mars from the 15th and your Sun ruler at the Equinox. Messenger Mercury is here all month and beyond and given that Libra represents communications in your solar ‘scope, there seems to be a lot of travel involved, even if it’s small-scale stuff, along with a lot of self-representation very much Leo’s thing). If you are in education, on either side of the desk, you look busy and well-starred for the new term.
Venus’s shift into Scorpio on the 10th turns attention firstly to your home and the chance to beautify it for the winter months ahead, secondly to making peace with any members of the family with whom you are on the outs, and thirdly to romantic matters. The last look to be intense and perhaps provocative. However, rather than react in an aggrieved manner, it’s simpler to sit thing out until early October, when Venus moves on to the more amenable skies of Sagittarius.