March Astrology, Mythology

March hosts one conjunction, two oppositions, two stations (one stationary and one direct), one occultation, five ingresses, six squares, one full, and one new Moon. March energy is a combination of cooperation and contention. The energy supports a striving for excellence in personal as well as in relational issues. It may be difficult to focus on only one thing at a time; so much will be vying for your attention. People with strong opinions will be searching for supporters of like mind and philosophy to commit their faith in a long-term objective. Your challenge will be discernment.

3/03 Sun conjoins Mercury 5:43 PM, 13:49 Pisces. / Mercury opposes Jupiter Rx 7:36 PM, 13:58 Pisces/Virgo. / Sun opposes Jupiter Rx 9:05 PM, 13:59 Pisces/Virgo. You may feel an intense need for patience and objective perspective, which may not be easily accessible at this time ^ search within for these qualities. Emotions are the creative force behind beliefs. If your beliefs conflict with your principles, the inner confusion will create chaos. Now is the time to compare how your principles and your beliefs may differ. Stick with your principles; current details may reveal where the conflicts lie.

3/05 Venus enters Taurus 10:12 AM. Processes that began six months ago may begin to pay off. Identify your strongest creative assets and talents. These will create support for your objectives, and help to resolve inner conflicts.

3/6 Full Moon west coast 3:14 PM, east coast 6:14 PM, 16:43 Virgo/Pisces. Cooperative ventures may begin to unfold in quantum jumps. Be sure of your objectives. If you use your inner strengths and resources as a foundation for your dreams, they can be fulfilled with others' support. Seek an inner balance between introspection and expansion. West coast issues involve making an objective survey of your resources; east coast concerns relate to private relations and communications, hidden resources, and assistance from employees or service personnel.

3/07 Saturn turns Direct 8:51 AM, 6:17 Cancer. Inner and outer cycles may overlap, and conscious awareness enables them to work together. Healing occurs through positive communications and acknowledgement of responsibilities. Make an effort to build bridges over misunderstandings ^ actions speak louder than promises.

3/08 Mercury squares Pluto 1:50 AM, 22:10 Pisces/Sagittarius. Some will attempt to use their powers of persuasion to establish their beliefs over others. This is a time when we must appreciate and value what we truly stand for.

3/12 Mercury enters Aries 1:44 AM. Some may feel anxious, and some impatient, but the overall mental tone now is based on movement ^ the need to get on with observations, criticisms, writing, speaking, and other strategies that support leadership.

Sun squares Pluto 2:56 AM, 22:12 Pisces/Sagittarius. Great strength is brought to fore in the effort to gain control. Promises will be made to promote action. Charming manners may disguise true objectives, but determination and will power can become irresistible components when exhibited by organizers and guides.

3/15 Mercury squares Saturn 7:57 AM, 6:21 Aries/Cancer. A combination of youth and maturity need to be embodied to enable mindful decisions to be made. Take time to look at the alternatives before making a commitment.

3/18 Venus squares Neptune 7:02 PM, 14:28 Taurus/Aquarius. Challenges may arise that ask us to choose between the spiritual or artistic side of life and the practical and ordinary experiences. Find a way to allow both to have meaningful expression without demeaning either one. Right compensation and right livelihood may come into question ^ the challenge to build or fortify self-esteem.

3/19 Sun enters Aries 10:48 PM. Potential leaders may become distinctive, investigating opportunities to present truthful information. Be careful how you expend your energy ^ everyone will be searching for the meaning beneath the obvious topics, and each one will see something very different.

3/20 New Moon 00:39 Aries, west coast 2:41 PM, east coast 5:41 PM. Create new projects based on that which you know; and keep ahead of the learning curve on new knowledge. You and your project will be highly visible, and if it's built on solid principles, it can succeed greatly. Opportunities for growth await you, based on your willingness to stand behind the project. West coast issues deal with being able to visualize the finished product and express that image to others. On the east coast, learn to work in team situations, relying on peers and partners to do what they do best, while you do your part with enthusiasm and confidence.

Mars enters Gemini 11:39 PM. Adopt a craft, or enhance the one that you have. Your facility for artistic work can become an asset to your way of life. Enhance your communicative talents by putting yourself in front of an audience. Learn from your mistakes gracefully.

3/23 Mercury enters shadow (BSP) 6:45 PM, 21:09 Aries. Much adventure lies ahead between now and May 15, as you explore the range of thinking between rational, logical deliberation and rashness, quick-wit, and exciting surprises. Keep yourself open to the information as it appears, knowing that each piece fits in the puzzle somewhere.

3/24 Pluto turns Retrograde 7:09 AM, 22:15 Sagittarius. Powerful communications, promises, and announcements can bring hope to many people, but it may be too soon to define outcomes. Previous words and choices can return to remind us of our aspirations and objectives.

3/25 Moon occults Mars 3:36 PM, 2:59 Gemini. No matter how hard you try to keep it, emotional focus may slip away for a short time. Be assured that your real feelings will bring actions to a head, and lead to opportunities for honest insights, and truthful interactions with others.

3/26 Sun squares Saturn 3:14 PM, 6:38 Aries/Cancer. Firm determination to establish reliable principles can be put into practice. Determining a true diagnosis for chronic problems is possible now, apart from, or exceeding those of the thoughts and ideas of others.

3/28 Mars squares Uranus 9:39 AM, 4:45 Gemini/Pisces. A surge of activity in search of self-determination is possible ^ if timing is set up in support of objectives that have been long in the works. Customary, logical steps may be passed over if they can be accomplished in other ways.

3/31 Mercury enters Taurus 6:28 PM. A week and a half taste of practical thinking will test our resolve to gather information in the coming month and a half of investigative action. A great time to hold debates or join discussion groups. Read a book that has ideas that are opposite from yours, and try to see some new perspectives or solidify your current understandings.

MARCH 2004 SYMBOLISM

March was named for Mars, the great Roman warrior god, son of Juno and Jupiter. This was an appropriate association, for in the ancient world of the Mediterranean, the third month was known for its dynamic weather patterns. Mars was known in the Greek world as Ares, the warrior, and in northern and central Europe as Tiu or Tiwaz. His Celtic name was Teutates and his Norse name was Tyr. In addition to being known as the god of war, he was also worshiped as the protector of agriculture. In another link with the third month, Mars appeared in three expressions: the martial Gradivus, the rustic Silvanus, and the Roman patron Quirinus. Mars' sacred totems are the wolf and the woodpecker.

The inner theme of March deals with developing wisdom and compassion, and finding one's life path. The search for self is associated with Mars; it is a process that precludes association with others. This process can be a lonely path that requires great stamina and the development of inner strength.

March's gemstone is the bloodstone, also known as the heliotrope, which means the "turning of the Sun." This refers to the equinoctial passage of the Sun - its change of declination from the Southern to the Northern Hemisphere. In the Christian tradition, the bloodstone, deep green jasper with crimson spots, is symbolic of the blood of the Christ spilled at Golgotha by a Roman soldier's spear. The stone is said to hold a divine power to stop hemorrhaging, and was widely used in folk medicine to stop nosebleeds and cure wasting diseases. The bloodstone was employed in rituals at the time of eclipses to invoke invisibility (eclipses result in the momentary invisibility of the covered celestial body), and was used by Pliny, the Elder as a mirror with which to safely view Solar eclipses. The stone was used as an amulet by the Gnostics to prolong life, and in thumb rings (the Mars digit) by the Egyptians, to sustain courage.

March 1st is the World Day of Prayer, which dates back to the 19th century Christian women of the United States and Canada in support of women's involvement in missions. Over the years this idea has grown and been accepted by many countries and many religions. March is Women's History Month. March 1st is also St. David's Day. The twelfth century Welch Archbishop is the patron saint of water (that is the only liquid he ever drank), and legend has it that clear springs appeared on his path. His most famous saying was his admonition to "do the little things". He is said to have lived for 100 years. His emblematic plants were the daffodil and the leek ^ the daffodil for a symbol of renewal, and the leek for the nurturance of the body.

March 7-9. Jewish festival of Purim begins on the eve of the 14th day of Adar in their Lunar calendar. It is a joyous time, celebrating Queen Esther's victorious intercession in an ancient plot to commit genocide on Persian Jews. The theme of Purim is a skillful use of the law, aimed at the triumph of good over evil.

Muharram, the first month of the Islamic liturgical year starts on March February 22. Ashura (March 2nd) is a day of fasting dedicated to the memory of the martyrdom of Imam Husayn, the grandson of the Prophet Muhammad, who stood up against corruption and tyranny. Al-Husayn was born in Medina on 3rd Shaban, 4 A.H. (Islamic calendar) and died in Kerbala on 10th Muharram, 61 A.H. (October 10, 680 A.D. Solar calendar)

The Spring Equinox, this year on March 19th. (also known as Alban Elir, the fifth station of the year). Equinox means "equal night", and is the moment when the Sun crosses the equator in the juncture between the dark and light halves of the year, when the days and nights are equal. It is the midpoint between the Solstices (the turning points of the Sun's yearly motion). It is a day of honor for Iduna, or Idunn (A Scandinavian goddess), the equivalent of the Greek Hebe. This goddess is the spring symbol of the triple goddess, and was charged with supplying youth and strength to the rest of the gods and goddesses, by providing them with the ambrosia and nectar of immortality. She is the maiden form of Hera (aka Hertha, Nerthus), whose name means "Our Lady", who was the primary goddess before the advent of patriarchal gods. This is also the day that the Hindu goddess, Sri Ushas, (goddess of the Dawn) is honored. The Wiccan festival of Ostara welcomes the spring and the transformation of the goddess into her form of the Maiden. We now celebrate this day as International Astrology Day.

In the Christian religion, the Annunciation (March 25) celebrates the unconcealing of the mission of Our Lady, The Blessed Virgin Mary, when the archangel Gabriel announced to Mary that she would be the mother of the Christ. In the British Church, Lady Day commemorates the philanthropic works of twelfth century Lady Mabella Tichborne, who overcame great physical odds just before her death, to make sure that the poor were annually provided for. Known as the "Tichborne Dole," her wishes are carried out to this day. In some of the nature religions, Invocations are made on March 25th to many of the major goddesses: e.g., Isis, Venus, Tara, and Persephone, to bring enlightenment to women regarding their missions in life. Neria (the strong), consort of Mars was also honored on this day.

March 28 was the date given for Jesus' nativity, before the Christian Church adopted 25th December as the „correct‰ date in 336 AD. This date was also the old Roman festival of the Sacrifice at the Tombs (honoring their ancestors).

The number three is sacred to March. The triangle, being the strongest of all figures, is used in many religions to signify strength and to symbolize the unity of the three basic attributes of their beliefs. The triple-goddess in pagan beliefs and mythology is used to signify the three stages in the process of life: fertility, nurturance, and wisdom. In Jewish folklore, it symbolizes the closing of the circle of wisdom. In this story, the Jewish elder, Mordecai recognized 3 principles of faith from out of the mouths of 3 young boys: "fear not, speak the truth, and God will protect", possibly the source of the symbolism of the three sacred monkeys: "hear no evil, speak no evil, and see no evil". Christian symbolism celebrates the number three during the 3rd month of the year. The Lenten cycle has constant reminders of the Holy Trinity, such as cloverleaf rolls, and the lowly pretzel (German for "little arms"), a tiny three lobed loaf of bread, representing crossed arms. In the 4th century, one was eaten each day of Lent, as a symbol of prayer, fasting, and pious works. Salt was added for grounding and penance.

St Patrick, a Celt with Roman citizenship, who converted to Christianity in fifth century Ireland, used the abundant shamrocks to teach the lessons of the Trinity. St Patrick, whose death is commemorated on March 17, utilized an ancient Gaelic invocation called the Lorica, or the Breastplate. He used it to shape-shift himself and his monks into deer when they were pursued and persecuted by King Loegaire's troops. The Lorica has been used by many over the centuries as a magical invocation of Divine energy, and reflects the presumption of astrology being accepted and used throughout early centuries. The Lorica is filled with astrological symbolism:

St. Patrick's Lorica

"I arise to-day

Through the strength of heaven;
Light of Sun,
Radiance of Moon,
Splendour of fire,
Speed of Lightning,
Swiftness of wind,
Depth of sea,
Stability of earth,
Firmness of rock.
I arise today
In acceptance of the Three,
Supported by the One."

March Astrology Report 2004

by Roxana Muise