Astrology of August 2020: Conflict can be creative

While conflict features heavily in the astrology of August 2020, if handled creatively and constructively, it can be part of a broader evolutionary process. This month features the first of three squares between Mars and our amigos in Capricorn, as it makes it’s unusually long, six month passage through it’s own war-like sign of Aries.

If I was to use one word to describe the mood of July 2020 it would have to be ‘paranoid’. We all seem to be afraid of something: the virus, masks, social control, the ‘deep state’. Pluto rules manipulation, control and death and Jupiter amplifies everything it touches. Jupiter is now headed away from Pluto and will not be making contact again until November, when their epic triple conjunction will finally be over.

So, on to the astrology of August 2020…

This is another chaotic month with both Mercury and Venus opposing our amigos in Capricorn, and Mars squaring them all from his mighty position in Aries. Think chaos and strife, especially as the Sun squares Uranus tomorrow, on 2 August.

Yes folks, this is a hard time and I make no bones about it. Just remember that astrology is like the weather. It doesn’t tell you what will happen, it tells you what could likely happen. If it rains you will likely get wet. If you know that it is going to rain, you can choose to bring an umbrella.

Astrology rarely dishes out the tough transits without significant positive and supportive trines and sextiles to balance things out. In this case both the Sun and Mercury make a series of supportive trines to Mars, Chiron and Black Moon Lilith in Aries, as well as to the Nodal axis. Bearing in mind that this is BML and Chiron we’re talking about, the rage of the ‘feminine’, the subordinate, and woundedness, so this trine ain’t necessarily pretty. But it will give us a healthy way to express and communicate our anger, confusion and hurt.

Due to the influence of Aries and Leo during this time we should be wary of arrogance, ego and selfishness. If your chart is touched (between 18 and 28 degrees of the Fixed signs) you may be more prone to these experiences, as well as aggressive or overly assertive in your way of relating to others. But as these planets are in trine aspect there is a lot of potential for what I call Creative Conflict, which brings things to a head, openly thrashes out competing needs and ultimately facilitates positive change.

Jupiter, Saturn, Neptune, Pluto and Chiron remain in retrograde motion all month, with Uranus also turning retrograde on 16 August. This continues our theme of isolation, seclusion and lockdown. We are going inward and backward, trying to work out what went wrong, trying to pick up the stitches we have dropped.

A friend recently mentioned natural immunity and how little emphasis is being placed on this in our current situation. To her, it shows how far our society has strayed in the wrong direction, away from self-care and true nourishment, towards reliance on a mass-produced and profit-driven pill or vaccine to fix things for us. Chiron and the others in retrograde give us pause to consider this, and many other facets of our lives that are being shown up in this harsh new light.

As we stand at the brink of a completely new social order, how can we learn from our mistakes? What will we do differently next time?

So, we begin the astrology of August 2020 with an opposition from Mercury to Pluto. This is an indicator of cognitive dissonance. Our thoughts and our experience don’t agree. Reality does not fit the narrative. Our assumptions are being summarily obliterated. As with any opposition, it is super easy to cast blame on others for the discomfort this brings. Projection is a common feature of this type of aspect.

A day later, on 2 August, Sun squares Uranus and the hornet’s nest has been kicked. Lie low or jump in and ride the wave of chaos if you dare.

The Full Moon rises on 3 August at 11 degrees 45 minutes of Aquarius, as Mercury opposes Saturn and Mars forms a square aspect to Jupiter. This is the beginning of a three week long martial dance of Mars with our team in Cap. It’s personal rights vs. social regulation and control. Unfortunately, whether the rules are just or not may not matter very much to our warrior. He’s just spoiling for a fight.

The feeling that someone or something is trying to control you, or put you down, may be stronger than any rational analysis on the need for such things as public health mandates or established democratic decision-making processes. Whereas we might otherwise seek mediation, here we jump straight into the fray, making decisions that we may later regret.

On 5 August Mercury enters Leo, where it will stay for just two weeks. This energy makes us hotheaded. We may dominate conversations or metaphorically talk with the “Royal We”, as though our opinion is the generally held or best point of view. Be careful! Especially if your chart is triggered! Those with planets or points in the Fixed signs (Taurus, Leo, Scorpio or Aquarius) should be very careful of how they communicate over the next two weeks or you may later look back and cringe.

Thankfully, on 7 August, Venus enters Cancer and we will start to be a little more nurturing and compassionate towards others. This will create a much needed buffer around humanity, because on 10 August Mercury will square Uranus, as Mars simultaneously conjoins Black Moon, squaring Pluto on 13 August. This is a signature of powerful rage and aggression, played out against the backdrop of the Corona virus pandemic, and the lead up to the US Presidential Election.

Our hero the Sun and negotiator Mercury come to the rescue from around 11 August, trining Black Moon Lilith and Mars over the course of the week. Remember that Lilith and Mars are conjunct in Aries, and the Sun and Mercury are conjunct in Leo, so this is a powerful double trine. The power date for this aspect is the 17 August. You can set an intention or use a manifestation technique and expect good results at this time.

On 18 August, Venus sextiles Uranus in the feminine signs of Cancer and Taurus. This is a grounded, nurturing energy being brought sp. to bear on our relationships, which nevertheless will be changed dramatically. Uranus rules social change but Taurus is a Fixed archetype and somewhat resistant to change, especially when it suggest instead – ‘that change’ seems to undermine the sense of security and belonging we have come to take for granted. Venus in Cancer is motherly, allowing people to change in their own time, without manipulating the process. Uranus in Taurus makes me think of how we cannot force the flower’s bloom. It will come in its season.

Perhaps 19 August is the first bloom of the bud as the New Moon rises at 26 degrees 34 minutes of Leo. Although the New Moon does not make an exact trine to BML and Chiron, the Moon will trine them both in the days before, creating a powerful impetus to our intentions and creative manifestations around personal and social conflict at this time.

On 20 August Mercury enters Virgo and the Sun follows two days later. Mercury is in his rulership here, which means our capacity for critical thinking and discrimination will be very much enhanced, which may help some of us escape the clutches of this prevalent paranoia! Also, we’re ready to get things organised and shipshape, to accept reality and work with it. We put our minds to systems and sorting, getting rid of what is no longer necessary. We write lists and generally put things in order. We can see what needs to be done.

On 22 August Mars sextiles the North Node, trining the South Node. This is our reality check, our connection with mission control. It reminds us of our greater karmic story and the destiny of our planet and all who dwell upon it. This is a tough time but it’s part of a process and this difficult time will come to an end.

Astrology shows us that time is cyclical – sort of. The thing to remember is that at every iteration of a fast moving planetary cycle, say Venus or Mars, there is a slight change, a slight advance in the movement of the slower planets through their own generational cycle from Aries to Pisces. So although time is cyclical, no cycle is ever the same. IMO, at each iteration of the cycle we have a little more awareness, a little more knowledge of how to work with this ‘weather’ – both personally and on a societal level. We have evolved just that little bit further, as person and as a society.

For example, for most of the last few centuries people who stood up against the status quo, or the general view on things, were often put to death. Think of the tens of thousands of people executed for witchcraft. In our own day and age, diverse viewpoints, lifestyles and the right to have your own opinion is something that has become the norm. This is the energy of Uranus we see coming into play, so that when opposing opinions clash we are more likely to LISTEN to another’s point of view. On the other hand Uranus also makes people more likely to fight for their rights and this can get a bit messy when two ‘rights’ are opposed to one another. Thankfully Aquarius gifts us with a fundamental belief in equality which makes us humble, more aware that each person gives a uniquely valuable perspective on a situation.

When things get tough we should bear in mind that Saturn and Jupiter will both move into Aquarius, the sign ruled by Uranus, at the end of the year, which I am very excited about. Pluto will hang around in Cap for a couple more years, just generally scything and composting, if you know what I mean… but the intensity will back right off.

On 24 August Mars finally squares Saturn, signaling the end of this first of three squares that Mars will make to Jupiter, Pluto and Saturn, over the next six months. The final two are in October, which will be the tough one, and December, which will be easier. As of 13 November Jupiter and Saturn are both heading away from Pluto, towards Aquarius. The pressure will be less. There will be a sense of resolution, as is usually the case with transits that make more than one pass. The first pass is a wake-up call, the middle pass a reality check, and the final pass an acceptance of change.

On 25 August Mercury trines Uranus as Venus opposes Jupiter. This week-long energy gives clarity of mind, coupled with generosity in relationships. Just remember that it’s healthy to meet your own needs before helping others. The trine aspect will likely affect you if you have natal planets or points between 7 and 13 degrees of the Earth signs. You will feel the opposition most strongly if you have planets or points between 14 and 20 degrees of the Cardinal signs, especially if the aspect forms an ephemeral t-square or grand-cross in your chart. If this is you be careful of giving too much in relationships, particularly with family, and then lashing out in anger or passive aggression when that it doesn’t work out for you.

BTW, that’s me, with natal Venus, Sun and Moon between 16 and 18 degrees of Capricorn, the last of the four Cardinal signs. I will personally be keeping a very sharp watch on myself to make sure I am meeting my own needs and setting clear boundaries, while at the same time nurturing the relationships that I sustain and that sustain me. Yes! A juggling act. This transit lasts until 28 August as Venus moves seamlessly into a trine with Neptune.

Ah me! I have a real soft spot for Venus trine Neptune which occurs once or twice each year. This time, Venus is in Cancer, trining Neptune in Pisces, the sign of its rulership. This is relating based on compassion, empathy and nurturing. It’s an energy sorely needed right now, especially as Saturn approaches Pluto again in September.

On 29 August Mercury trines Jupiter which literally translates to open mind. Thankfully, because on 30 August we see two oppositions become exact: from Venus to Pluto and from Mercury to Neptune. There is a strong chance of power struggle in relationships, self-deception, delusion and projection of our shadow onto others. In some cases manipulation and oppression will be real, in other cases imagined. It will be difficult to see things clearly. Venus goes on to oppose Saturn on 2 September before moving on into Leo.

This has been your energetic weather report ;) I will leave you with a quote by Indian author Nitya Prakash: “Blooming and withering both are inevitable. Let’s stay graceful in the process.”

Love to you all,
X Faith

PS: To understand how the astrology of August 2020 impacts you, grab your free natal chart at astro.com and then download my free ebook The Language of Astrology to get started.

PPS: Check out our brand new course Love Align which starts on 30 August.