Your Stars December 2020

While 2020 has been defined by the combination of Saturn and Pluto – a doom’n’gloom cycle that rolls round every 30 odd years (next stop 2053) – December promises to break its spell; a circuit-breaker if you like. Bang on the midwinter solstice Saturn and Jupiter make a historic (once every 20 years) conjunction in Aquarius, a sign that brings a lighter, more collective mood to the next couple of years. You don’t have to believe all that Age of Aquarius hokum to see that the Urn Bearer offers a more radical, humanitarian agenda than repressive, establishment-oriented Capricorn, where Pluto still lurks.

There will be far more about the astrology of 2021 in a special Your Stars 2021, due in late December. This includes a 1200 word forecast for each individual sign alongside an overview of the year and the shape of the new era (for so it looks) socially, culturally and politically.

Your Stars 2021 comes wrapped in a PDF format and will be available for download from this site in late December. The price is £7.99.

Back in here and now December, other portents are already at work. We are in eclipse season, with the partial eclipse of the Gemini full Moon of November 30 followed by a total eclipse of the Sun in Sagittarius on December 14. Eclipses often mark endings – the light goes out! – and it is striking how tightly the solar eclipse is focused on the Sun-Moon axis of Donald Trump’s birth chart. Another Sagittarius-Gemini type, Dominic Cummings, hasn’t fared too well either.

As always, the midwinter solstice sees the Sun reborn – and in Christian tradition the birth of the Son. I wish all my readers a Christmas full of light and hope.

Major events

December 1 – Mercury into Sagittarius

December 14 – New Moon/Total Solar eclipse in Sagittarius

December 15 – Venus into Sagittarius

December 17 – Saturn into Aquarius

December 19 – Jupiter into Aquarius

December 20 – Mercury into Capricorn

December 21 – Sun into Capricorn

December 30 – Full Moon in Cancer

Sagittarius

The eclipses flashing across the me’n’you axis of your ‘scope make it hard to decide whether to focus on yourself or on a significant other; your ‘other half’ however you like to define that being. Suffice to say that with this eclipse cycle extending to the end of 2021, you will have plenty of time and cause to decide. Someone pulling a sudden vanishing act may spare you some anguish.

Just now you look brimming with pep and ideas. Along with the birthday Sun comes communicator Mercury in your skies until the solstice, with Venus arriving on December 15 to spread glamour and glitter over your social whirl, or what passes for it in our straitened times. Warrior Mars is also on the march forwards after several weeks of backsliding through your kindred fire sign, Aries. Mars is angled sweetly to the new Moon of the 14th, suggesting that a creative project or a lover from late summer/early autumn is back in the frame. This lunation has a very purposeful feel to it, with your inner fires blazing, as if there is much to complete and dispatch before moving along.

Helping you do so comes the meeting of the Centaur’s ruling planet, Jupiter, with Saturn on the solstice; good news financially (or at least, a blessed relief), and an augury of far busier times in 2021. Happy birthday.

Capricorn

It looks like something of a mad dash to the finishing line, that being when ruler Saturn and Jupiter leave your skies at the midwinter solstice, always a big moment for the Mountain Goat and much more so this year for January 17-19 birthdays, who have this planetary duo passing their Sun. That might require some big and perhaps poignant decisions in the month to come.

Plus birthdays from January 10 onwards face a month when Mars is squaring them, calling for diplomacy, not least with the family. Mars is one reason there seems to be a lot of noise around you; if it isn’t the kids kicking off in the basement then it’s discomforting sounds from the attic, where your personal secrets and deep history are highlighted by the month’s eclipses.

You have a period of grace before the challenges of 2021 arrive – don’t fret, they look way less onerous than the last two years. Communicator Mercury reaches your skies bang on the solstice to help put things in order for the festive season. The full Moon of December 30, in your opposite sign of Cancer – should help you shed the outworn old year. Thereafter you’re moving right along.

Aquarius

You have a more than decent run-in to the midwinter solstice, after which, of course, it’s all about you, you you! That’s what happens when Saturn and Jupiter arrive simultaneously in one’s sign, the last time being way back in February 1961. There’s much more to consider about the pair’s activities in Your Stars 2021; suffice to say that since they will be your companions throughout the coming year, you might as well start on the front foot in the days after the solstice; a waxing Moon in your skies over December 17-18 should help whet your appetite for an eventful new year. Holiday season notwithstanding, get busy!

Meanwhile you are promised plenty of social action – or at least, support – from chums and siblings, thanks to Mars, back up to speed in Aries, and the Sun in Sagittarius, fire signs compatible with the air of Aquarius. The month’s eclipses (November 30 and December 14) fall across the friendship axis of your ‘scope, so one or two folks may be dropping out of your circle, not necessarily because of a faux-pas by you. The arrival of Venus in Sagittarius on December 15 through to January 8, blows a bit of fairy dust in your direction.

Pisces

Best expect a bit of push and shove in your professional world as you head through eclipse season. The Sun flashing off and on at the top of your solar ‘scope may even see the displacement of a powerful colleague but in any case, calls for a rethink about where you might direct your energies over the months ahead. Your ability to find favour among fellow travellers isn’t about to disappear, but you may be pushed into more self-reliance and to become more of a solo act.

The new position of ruler Jupiter from the midwinter solstice suggests as much, but first, before Jupiter moves on, comes a flurry of possible deals when you may have to act quickly to finalise agreements and your instincts need to be trusted. With Venus crossing a very public sector of your ‘scope, a charm offensive is in order.

In your own skies comes Ceres, an asteroid now rather rudely deemed a ‘dwarf planet’ by astrology. Ceres – Demeter to the Greeks – is a goddess of agriculture, fertility, nurture and female power, a useful companion in troubled times as we head through the winter. Money issues remain prominent; with Mars reactivated in your cash zone it’s time to chase debts and promises from the autumn and get your cash-flow flowing in the right way. The full Moon of December 30/31 lines up with Ceres, Neptune and Mars to make a romantic, possibly expensive farewell to the old year.

Aries

ariesHaving been half asleep for much of autumn, your ruling planet Mars is now in a hurry for the concluding weeks of 2010, and the first week of 2021, a period when you can achieve more than you perhaps suspect. The key thing is to keep the pressure (mostly) on, to grapple with issues that have been dogging (or overwhelming) you this last six or nine months and to bring them to some kind of resolution. As Jupiter and Saturn head for a new home in Aquarius, completion is the name of the game. While issues of property, status and survival are the most likely, December may also see you shrugging off a stalled relationship… or revivifying it.

You have, in short, plenty to prove, if only to yourself. The season of Sagittarius, a fellow fire sign, is grist to your mill, with Mars lined up to the new Moon of December 14. Since this is also an eclipse you might like to pause for a couple of days before renewing your assault on projects, if only to check that a wise compadre hasn’t vanished along the way.

The midwinter solstice is often a tricky way station for Aries, with the Sun cresting your solar chart and demands on your duty and time cranking up over the following month. This year is different. The Sun and Mercury are back in Capricorn (ouch) on the 21st, but Jupiter and Saturn are in Aquarius – for the coming twelve months and two years respectively – lending your outlook a rosier, more personal glow. The waxing Moon in your skies on December 22 and 23 aligns with those Aquarian planets to announce a new team. This could be the start of something big!

Taurus

taurus bullTransformation approaches and with it the need to hold the good ship Taurus on a steady course. Not that your horoscope holds too many immediate storms, but 2021 is shaping up as a test of your fabled equilibrium. Just now, the transformation looks smooth, albeit in a busy month. Saturn and Jupiter in earthy Capricorn urge you to tie off this year’s projects and be ready to move on. The two heavyweights move to the peak of your ‘scope on the midwinter solstice, promising a mixture of opportunity and pressure throughout 2021.There’s little point in dallying through the festive season; get to work.

The Sun and Mercury take over as a more emollient force from the 21st, giving you continuity into the electric climes of early 2021. You also get the comfort of a waxing Moon in your skies over Christmas itself; the cue for a Taurean feast (indulge, you?).

The season’s eclipses – at the full Moon on November 30, and a total solar eclipse at the new Moon on the 14th – fall across the financial axis of your ‘scope, a pattern that continues through next year. Better check no-one has stolen away the bullion you keep in the cellar, but also consider different solutions to your income and cash flow and how fiscal burdens are shared out. There’s more than one way to fund a Bull.

Gemini

You begin with a partially eclipsed full Moon in your own skies on November 30/December 1 (cue celebratory trumpets) and move onto a total solar eclipse opposite your Sun on December (sound ominous chord). Those eclipses alone lend December a busy look, even without the big news of Jupiter/Saturn shifting into your fellow air sign Aquarius on the midwinter solstice (more trumpets please).

The eclipses may rattle a partnership or friendship, introduce you to someone new or bring a resolve to overhaul your ‘look’ – could be a case of seeing yourself through others’ eyes. June 14 birthdays are most in the firing line of that solar eclipse but given there are more eclipses across the same axis in 2021, many Geminis will be considering a change of scene or sidekick. If you are on the lookout for a playmate, then the arrival of Venus in opposition from December 15 should brigs some suggestions over the festive season.

The fresh planetary action in Aquarius certainly signals fresh scenery. Jupiter’s swift sprint from the solstice onwards would normally suggest a refreshing long-haul holiday, but with the world locked down you may have to be content with inner voyages. Saturn moving onto Aquarius offers the hope that financial restrictions may also start to lift; perhaps you will no longer be shelling out for someone’s upkeep. But Saturn moves gradually, and with the Sun and ruler Mercury moving into Capricorn at the solstice, you may have to see out January before things pick up.

Cancer

It’s understandable if you feel a little battered after two years of Saturn in opposition, and birthdays between July 16-21 have had it especially trying in 2020. There’s only three weeks to go before the midwinter solstice, when the ringed planet moves on. Try to tie off problems and projects before then. The issues don’t necessarily vanish; as ever at midwinter you immediately get the Sun opposing you from Capricorn, but that is of a different, more manageable order from the weighty stuff Saturn dredges up.

Jupiter and Saturn in Aquarius heighten financial issues and the way money ties you together with significant others or is a barrier to you getting along with them. On the basis that Saturn restricts while Jupiter expands, 2021 could be a contradictory year.

Helping you flit gaily through the autumn leaves is Venus, in watery Scorpio until the 15th and keen on your creativity, pleasures and romantic passions (with Scorpio involved, likely to be dramatic and possibly secretive). More provocative is the other relationship planet, Mars, coming at you from Aries, suggesting you engage warily with pushy types across the ever-emotional festive season. The annual Cancer full Moon arrives on December 30 to grant you warm, perhaps excessive new year celebrations.

Leo

December and its festivities invite us to look both backwards and forwards but do your best to stay in the here and now. Your horoscope burns with a fierce but helpful energy across the month. Partly that’s due to the annual visit of your Sun ruler to fiery Sagittarius, but Aries, the third fire sign (after your own) has Mars at full power. With that configuration you can create, conspire, woo, and generally be the star of any socially distanced party you can find; likely your own.

The month’s two eclipses – lunar on November 30 and a total eclipse of your Sun ruler on December 14 – call for a short, thoughtful pause and a clarification in your own mind about what you want from the year ahead, where more eclipses lie in wait.  Since 2021 has Saturn in opposition throughout – from December 21 – funds may be restrictive, though Jupiter insists otherwise. That looks like quite a balancing act.

Since Aquarius also represents partners, pal, ex’s, suitors and sworn enemies, the new year asks for full engagement with significant others. You won’t get things all your way, but in December you just might! Venus in the Centaur ‘s skies from December 16 through to January 6 lends you a winning hand. Magnanimity, which comes easily to Leo, is a strength you can play to.

Virgo

Patient, pre-planned, good on detail…you may need some of your sign’s many virtues in the run-in to the festive season, with ruler Mercury at odds to you for the first three weeks of December. It isn’t a slow slog, however; issues arise and need prompt solutions. The picture is one of short-term challenge within a long-term framework, the latter supplied by the total solar eclipse at the new Moon of the 14th. There are more eclipses across the Gemini-Sagittarius axis in 2021, signalling a rethink in your career arc and/or your domestic set-up. December may hand you clues about where you are heading on both counts.

It’s a mixed picture; as busy on the social front as lockdowns allow, with allies there to lend support. Projects and relationships you have nurtured over the past year can be brought to resolution, pay-off even, as Jupiter and Saturn complete their transit of Capricorn’s skies. The duo’s new position in Aquarius, after the midwinter solstice, promises a different outlook through 2021, though not one of opposition, just one where you work for every advantage. Business as usual for many Virgos.

As ever, the solstice brings the Sun into earthy Capricorn, a helpful position for you, and with Mercury arriving in the Goat’s skies on the same day, you are perfectly positioned to switch between blatant pleasure and creative inspiration over the following month.

Libra

libraThink hard, be swift and be decisive. The last of those three suggestions may be the most difficult for many Librans, for whom there is always another angle to consider. However, Saturn and Jupiter at odds with your sign may not leave you with the luxury of options. Situated in earthy Capricorn, the pair have been nudging you all year with questions about career, finances or your property/domestic set-up, meaning December may come less as a crisis than a resolution.

At the midwinter solstice the pair move on to airy Aquarius, an easier and more fruitful transit for Libra. You won’t be able to sit back and put up your designer-clad feet, however. Get down to work as soon as festivities allow – work you love and which inspires you that is, not the humdrum stuff.

December is something of a balancing act (excuse the pun), however. Mars remains in opposition, and now the red planet is motoring forwards, one or more significant others may need pacification, reassurance…or avoidance! Helping you keep the peace are the Sun in Sagittarius, along with ruler Venus after the 15th. Big-hearted, restless and strangely free is the ticket for the festive season.

Scorpio

With Venus in your skies until the 15th, you should be able to sail through the first half of December, and with good company in tow. Concentrate on looking after number one and adding life’s little luxuries into the mix. The weekend of the 5th/6th looks good for the romantics among you. Just before Venus leaves your sign she makes some promising aspects with Jupiter and Saturn – especially pertinent to birthdays 19-21 October – which may allow you to put to bed a personal or business issue that’s been bugging you this autumn.

That heavyweight planetary pair reach the root of your solar scope on the solstice, the 21st, and sound the chimes on the incoming year – expect to be put through your paces in 2021, when infrastructure – home, income, support systems – is questioned for weakness by Saturn, while Jupiter urges you to raise your ambitions.

The festive season is, of course, early days in this process, yet with almost all the solar system’s planets moving at full speed, events may take on a life of their own. The full Moon of December 30 is a Janus-faced affair, asking you to look back and evaluate the last twelve months while beginning the challenges of 2021.