ARIES (March 21-April 19) Our government spends an obscene fortune on its armed forces — almost as much as do all the other nations of the world combined. If our military costs were cut down to a more reasonable size — say, the same as China's — we'd have a trillion-dollar bonus to deal with the financial infection that erupted here and sent toxic ripples throughout the world. Keeping that in mind as a metaphor, make this your hypothesis: By reducing the hostility, combativeness and judgmental ire that you personally generate, you'll be far more likely to navigate your way toward prosperity.
TAURUS (April 20-May 20) The days leading up to the national election feature a rare opposition between Saturn and Uranus. Since Saturn symbolizes the past and Uranus the future, we might expect there to be a showdown between what has been and what will be, not only on a collective level but also in our personal realms. In what areas of your life do you think that will materialize? Identify those hotspots, then get to work coordinating interactions between the seemingly contrary forces.
GEMINI (May 21-June 20) Write the number 10 followed by 11 zeroes. Our Milky Way Galaxy has that many stars. Write a 10 followed by 12 zeroes. That's the size of America's national debt in dollars. Now promise me that for the next month, you will avoid absorbing any scary, overwhelming data like that. Worrying about the big financial picture would not only be fruitless, it would also distract you from your main tasks, which are as follows: Regard the crisis as an excellent opportunity to shed materialistic obsessions and live more humbly and creatively. Sublimate your buy-ological urges into biological urges. Stretch yourself to get into closer touch with your spiritual core.
CANCER (June 21-July 22) As the markets crashed, a different kind of global devastation received scant notice. The World Conservation Congress revealed that 25 percent of the planet's mammal species and one out of eight birds are close to extinction. We're not just talking about exotic animals in remote hideaways, but rabbits, deer, cardinals, turtledoves. As you meditate on how to reinvent yourself in the wake of the financial chaos, hold a vigil in your heart for endangered creatures. The two crises are related — the greed to turn everything into a means of generating money has led us to both despoil nature and risk the crazy gambles that have savaged the economy. The more you understand that, the better your intuition will be as you make decisions affecting your future relationship with money.
LEO (July 23-Aug. 22) The Daily Show did a mock biography of Barack Obama, poking fun at the adoration he inspires. Every time he speaks, said the narrator, "an angel has an orgasm." You now have a scaled-down version of that power. You may not incite the same intensity of pleasure in the heavenly hosts, but you could unleash eruptions of raw enthusiasm in numerous humans. I suggest that like Obama, you channel it in service to a cause beyond your own selfish interests.
VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22) When the planet Uranus comes into play, as it is now, it's a good time to initiate experiments that will expedite future blessings. Pushing beyond comforting habits, you thrive by going in quest of bracing truths, unfashionable beauty and wild justice. The nature of Saturn is different. It invites you to creatively limit and discipline yourself so that fate isn't forced to limit and discipline you in unpleasant ways. It so happens that Uranus and Saturn are now in opposition to each other. Will they work at cross-purposes, or is there a way for you to get them to work together? More than you imagine, you have the power to affect how they interact in your personal sphere.
LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22) "I cannot tell if the day is ending, or the world, or if the secret of secrets is inside me again," wrote poet Anna Akhmatova. That's a feeling many have now. Part of the time we're on the verge of freaking out, half-expecting some new calamity to befall the world. Other times we're awash in wonder and awe, catching glimpses of the miraculous flow that's hidden just below the surface of everyday chaos; we're tantalizingly close to understanding that everything is proceeding exactly as it should. In the coming weeks, this excruciating poignancy will peak for you. Regard it as a gift — a difficult blessing that has the potential to free you of your illusions.
SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21) What do you do when you're squeezed between the demands of authority and the healthy need to rebel? How do you respond when the past and future are at odds? What resources do you draw on when the person you have always been starts to evolve into an interesting new form that you don't recognize? You've come to a fork in the road when you will be asked to deal with these questions on a larger scale than before. My advice? Study your past so thoroughly that you'll be able to keep it from repeating itself, and open your mind to possibilities you've rarely considered.
SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21) The world is poised at the threshold of a great choice: Should we stick with what has worked for us, even though it's not working any more? Or should we experiment with possibilities that may work in the future, even though they don't have a track record? You can and should be a leader in this epic adventure. The best way to do that is to summon your dormant courage as you apply the questions I just posed to the specific circumstances of your personal life.
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19) The planet Saturn symbolizes the conservative tendencies of evolution. It teaches us to learn from the past and keeps us from rushing into the frontier before we're ready. Uranus, on the other hand, represents future shocks, both the disturbing and benevolent kinds. It disturbs our sleep in order to wake us up and energizes us to reinvent ourselves on the fly. What happens when these two planets slip into an intimate dynamic, as they are now? Will one prevail in a great battle, or will they coordinate their efforts in a riveting, gorgeous dance? Amazingly, the outcome depends in part on you.
AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18) No faking allowed. I mean it. You must do no pretending, tell no dirty lies and never act as if you know things you don't truly know. Instead, say exactly what you mean; be more real than you have ever dared to be; be nothing more and nothing less than who you actually are. Why is this authenticity crusade so important right now? Because in the coming weeks, you'll be setting your life's tone for months to come. You will be planting more seeds than you can imagine.
PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20) Uranus symbolizes your instinct for freedom. Saturn represents structure and responsibility; when it's prominent, it's time to get back to basics and cut down on distractions and excesses. So what should you do when these two planets are in exact opposition, as they are now? We're all being squeezed between a mandate to head for the border and the pressure to play it safe. To keep from being paralyzed, we have to choose one way over the other. In my opinion, you are likely to profit by choosing the Uranian path.
