(16 June 2024)   This week’s transits are a study in contrasts.  The most prominent alignment is the triple conjunction of the Sun, Venus and Mercury in sidereal Gemini. This is generally a benign pattern and accentuates the role of rational analysis and effective communication.  Mercury is especially strong in its own sign of Gemini here and gets an additional boost from its conjunction with Venus.  The Venus influence pushes the dispassionate, calculating side of Mercury towards more harmonious social and collective ends.  This strong Gemini influence could improve outcomes in literary and intellectual pursuits, as well as providing a fertile ground for any analytical endeavours.  This week is therefore an excellent time for participating in seminars, book clubs, and professional conferences.  On a more individual level, this planetary set up is conducive for writing, speaking and most other forms of content creation.

Social interaction should also go well, especially on Friday, Saturday and Sunday (June 21-23) when the Moon transits sidereal Sagittarius.  This will place the Moon opposite the Sun, Venus and Mercury and will therefore bring out the more positive side of the 7th house of marriage and more broadly, ‘the other’.  Both business and social relationships are more likely to go well, and the Moon-Venus opposition also carries overtones of friendship, companionship and romance.

The earlier part of the week also looks fairly good as the Moon transits through Libra on Monday and Tuesday.  Since Libra is ruled by Venus and it is in a favourable conjunction with Mercury and the Sun, the Moon will benefit from this additional strength.  As a result, efforts aimed at bridging differences are more likely to bear fruit as Libra’s charm and social graces are put to good use.  Similarly, negotiations and diplomatic efforts are more likely to make progress (Gaza?) early in the week.   And since Gemini is the 9th house from the Libra Moon, government actions are more likely to have constructive ends.

The Moon’s transit through Scorpio on Wednesday and Thursday looks more challenging, however.  As the charts shows, not only is the Moon debilitated in Scorpio, it will be subject to afflictions by no less than three malefics — Mars, Rahu and Saturn.  Mars casts its full-strength 8th house (210 degree) aspect on the Moon and thus increases the risk of conflict and discord.  This is therefore a bad time for meetings and appointments that are intended to reach agreement or mutual benefit.  Rahu’s 5th house aspect (120 degrees) could destabilize the Moon here, and the 10th house/270 degree square aspect could symbolize disappointment and setbacks.  All together, this triple affliction to the Moon is reason to exercise caution on Wednesday and Thursday.  The impact of this afflicted Moon may well spillover into financial markets as the collective mood may temporarily darken.

One interesting artifact of the current transit set up is the placement of Jupiter 12 signs/houses from the triple conjunction of the Sun, Venus and Mercury in Gemini.   While Jupiter is seen as a positive influence on most things, this 12th house placement focuses its benefic influence upon a house with some negative connotations such as loss, sorrow and isolation.  In this case, I would not expect significantly more negative outcomes from this Jupiter placement, but rather positive outcomes in areas relating to the 12th house.  These would include helping those who are isolated, imprisoned or otherwise marginalized.  More broadly, the 12th house Jupiter energy could be best directed towards charitable works.  Foreigners, migrants and outsiders would also tend to find favour at this time as long as the triple conjunction in Gemini obtains.  Venus may be key in this respect since it is the dispositor of Jupiter in Taurus, and thus it is the 12th ruler in the 1st house, conjunct the 1st house ruler, Mercury.   The migrant situation is creating tensions in the US and many European countries as frustrations are rising among native-born population about the social impact of the huge influx of these undocumented/illegal immigrants.  It is possible that we could see some alleviation of the problem in the near term given the benefic influence of Jupiter in the 12th from the Sun.