September begins with three planets in Libra— Mercury, Venus, and Mars. We’re focused on balance, relationships, negotiations, give and take, style and beauty. What we can do for others, and what they can do for us. Libra is the sign of the peacemaker— its greatest strength is diplomacy and the ability to create win-win situations. Libra’s weakness is mistaking style for substance— sometimes a beautiful or graceful exterior belies the turmoil and venom beneath.

Jupiter trine Saturn is in effect through September 8. This marker joins the forces of growth and expansion with practicality and groundedness. It’s a good time to sign contracts, do deals, and set plans into motion.

September 5-9

Three planets in Libra, three planets square Jupiter in Capricorn. Sophia Mason said that squares between Libra and Capricorn indicate insecurity in relationships, paranoia, even greed1. Jupiter exaggerates things. Reactions may be overdone due to fear, and more folks are feeling argumentative. Try to relax— don’t overreact as Mars and Mercury square Jupiter on Sunday (you’ll feel it on Saturday), and Venus squares Jupiter on Tuesday. Don’t make a decision on it until later in the week, when cooler heads prevail.

September 10-14

Stick to routine on Wednesday. Get your most important decisions out of the way before 9:15 am Eastern, and then try to coast through the rest of the day if you can.

Thursday and Friday, Venus and Mars, who have moved out of a square with Jupiter and into a trine with the North Node, conjoin each other in Libra, and the Aquarius Moon enters the planetary love fest. This looks like a great time for a social mixer. The North Node is about making important connections. No guarantees that you’ll find your soulmate, but this does look like a good time for mingling. Something surprising is in the mix too, as the Sun opposes jumpy Uranus. You may feel like shaking things up, or someone else may do it for you.

The weekend looks exciting as the full Moon comes into contact with Uranus, the rule bender. Uranus is the bringer of freedom, the awakener, enlightener. And the bringer of changes that break up stagnant routines that have lost their meaning, and break the ties that bind. The energy is volatile and unpredictable, so be careful around dangerous machines and dangerous people. Especially if the degree of this full Moon, 22 Pisces, is a powerful one in your chart.

September 15-21

There are three trines to Neptune this week: Venus trine Neptune on Wednesday morning, Mercury trine Neptune on Friday, and Mars trine Neptune over the weekend. Neptune is right-brained: more intuitive than logical, more conceptual than precise, more poetic and artistic than technical, more idealistic than practical. So this time favors the creative side of your work, brainstorming, relationship building. Who could you send a gift or a thank you note this week? There’s a flash of something a little more powerful on Saturday as the Sun squares Pluto. This is very powerful energy that can bring about a very positive healing transformation or a destructive obsession. Let go, let go, let go of old outworn habits, resentments, and patterns.

With the Moon in the 3rd quarter, the energy of this Lunar cycle is still strong, making this a good week to get important things done. The energy will start winding down next week, as we get ready for a new waxing Moon on Monday the 29th.

Mercury retrograde begins on September 24. If possible, get car and computer repairs, software upgrades, and other mechanical or technical items checked off your to-do list by mid-month, because the retrograde period tends to complicate these matters and make them more subject to errors and snafus.

September 22-26

Happy Equinox! The Sun’s entry into Libra marks the official beginning of fall. And a special time of balance between day and night, light and dark. How will you be celebrating?

You might notice the winds shifting, traffic getting heavier, internet & other connections getting sketchier. That’s Mercury retrograde coming in.

Choose your battles on Monday. With sweetie pie Venus sextile powerful Pluto, you’ll definitely catch more flies with honey today. It’s a good day to ask someone else for help or to help others. Also a good day to get your finances in order. With Mercury conjunct argumentative Mars, some folks will be in a contrary mood. Try not to engage in some silly conflict when there is so much potential for productive gains today. For my friends on the west coast: the Venus Pluto sextile is exact at 3:23 p.m. PT. Try to get your most important calls done before the end of the day.

Tuesday through Friday are pretty quiet in terms of planetary action. The 4th quarter Moon is low energy and well suited for finishing things up, tying up loose ends, and preparing for something you’ll take action on in the future. And there’s another big picture idea powering up right now: Saturn opposite Uranus.

Saturn opposite Uranus

You may start to sense changes in the air as this volatile aspect powers up. It’s a clash of the Titans that pits innovation and reform against tradition and establishment. This stressful marker brings disturbances and changes of routine that are often unexpected, upsetting, or just throw us off our game. This aspect won’t be exact until early November, but sensitive people may feel it early, especially those with planets in mutable signs: Gemini, Virgo, Sagittarius, Pisces. As we move through October, the aspect grows stronger and stronger.

What I have been noticing most with Saturn in Virgo and Uranus in Pisces is fear. It has come up a lot in my work with clients, lately. Fear can get you all tied up in knots so that you aren’t thinking straight. Then you make bad decisions, which have bad consequences, which makes you more fearful. It’s a vicious cycle. If this sounds like you, here’s my advice— you need to realize that the fear is the #1 problem. The fear itself is, in all likelihood a bigger problem than the object of your fear. Take care of the fear first. This is not so hard if you take it one step at a time. Remember to breathe deeply, remember to eat well, take care of your body and your mind. Nourish, nourish, nourish. Remember that what you focus on gets bigger. And you are in control of your focus. Focus on your options for solving the problem or making it through the hard times. And keep breathing!

The weekend: September 27-30

Not too bad. Mercury will repeat the creative trine to Neptune on Saturday and Sunday. For artists, writers, and other creative types, this is a great time to review and tweak something you started in the past. For the rest of us, it’s also a time to review, repair, revisit. Just about anything starting with “re.”

The new Moon on Monday afternoon resets the emotional vibe and begins a new Lunar cycle. It’s a great day to make wishes and set intentions, especially those issues connected with creating greater beauty, harmony, and balance in your life, more centeredness in yourself and fairness in your relationships.

Mars forms a powerful sextile to Pluto on the 30th that continues into the first of October. The sextile opens a door of opportunity to work with others and find a workable solution to a nagging problem. Despite Mercury being retrograde, it is a good day for action. Seize the moment.

Mark your calendar!

The best days for your top priority plans are September 4-8, 13, 14, 16, 21, 22, 27, 30, October 1.

Slow down on September 3, 9, 11, 12, 18-20.

1 Sophia Mason, Aspects Between Signs © 1977.