Victoria Bearden, Intuitive Astrologer

Looking Ahead to 2003,
an Astrological Perspective
by Victoria Bearden

Victoria Bearden
P.O. Box 1415
Solana Beach, CA 92075
(760) 634-1028
Victoria Bearden

I'm finally getting my Astrology Update out there to you guys. Keep in mind, I wrote most of this stuff months ago and am just mailing it out now, so some of the things I'm taking about have already happened. This is going to be an interesting and tumultuous year, and much wisdom can be gained by looking at some of the astrological patterns of the year.

I also want to mention right up front that I will have an active website up and running pretty soon. You'll be able to check up on me, read articles I've written, and get all kinds of cool and useful info. Look for an email from me soon. Most likely, you will be able to access my site on www.victoriabearden.com, but I'm not quite up and running yet. I'll keep you posted. I'm hoping to get started before Mercury Retrograde. Wish me luck!

I'm contemplating starting up a Tarot Class for beginning and intermediate students at my home office on Wednesday evenings in April. We will also be working on some principles of psychic awareness as well. It will be $20 dollars for each class, and at present, I'm thinking about 7pm-8:30pm for the time. If you are interested, email me. You will need Rider Waite Tarot cards, a notebook, and I will suggest some reading material, although that is optional. I want to see how many are interested before I finalize this offering, so let me know. I will probably keep the class fairly small, it works better that way, so get back to me soon and let me know what you think.

I am still at the Phoenix Dragon in Encinitas on Tuesday and Thursdays from 4-8pm. For those of you that still do not know this, Phoenix Phyre closed and reopened in a new location as the Phoenix Dragon. I also fit people in at my home office in Cardiff on the other days of the week. I try to be pretty flexible, but usually read from the afternoon into the early evening. Sometimes I can do Saturdays. You can call my office at 760-634-1028 for appointments, or catch me at the Phoenix Dragon at 760-436-7740.

My friend, author Jamie Wood, will be at the Phoenix Dragon doing a book signing. I believe it will be for her new book on magical herbs, but she has written several interesting books, including the Wiccan Cookbook. She's really quite a wonderful and unique person. If you'd like to meet her, come down to the Phoenix Dragon on Saturday, the 29th of March at around 12noon. Call the store to make sure about the hour. There will also be a Psychic Fair that weekend, and I will probably be there doing readings for part of it, but call ahead to make sure. The place is a little hard to find, so make sure and ask for directions. It's not at the old Phoenix Phyre location, in case you haven't figured that out yet.

Spring Equinox is here. The Sun goes into Aries on March 20, 2003. Interestingly, Aries is the god of war, and he certainly seems to be dominating our lives right now. This is going to be a wild year and there will be lots of hostility in the Middle East and elsewhere. We all need to be centered and put our psychic energy to work to help increase the power of good. The Spring Equinox symbolizes the return of the "Light". In ancient times in the Ukraine, women painted intricate symbols on eggs to encourage the positive power of the goddess of life and fertility to bless us and help keep evil in chains. So when you dye those Easter Eggs, think about the original meaning and put some good vibes out there.

Spring is also the season where the dying god Bacchus, comes back to life, which is also symbolized by Christ's death and resurrection. It is a time of rebirth and renewal. One little catch to the beginning of this spring cycle is Mercury Retrograde. Mercury actually turns retrograde on April 26, 2003, but the effects will begin to be felt as early as April 12 2003. Mercury goes direct on May 20, 2003. The dates when Mercury Retrograde is at its strongest influence will be as follows: April 21-May 2, and May 14-May 28. It will be in the sign of Taurus, so heads up, you bulls, you might be strongly influenced by this retrograde cycle.

Mercury Retrograde periods occur 3 or 4 times a year and life goes on, but it's nice to know when it's going to happen so you can plan ahead and not get frustrated if some of the typical retrograde stuff starts affecting you. The planet Mercury rules communication, electronics and computers, transportation, and has a big impact on business and personal interaction. Most common difficulties associated with Mercury Retrograde are misses appointments and messages, poor communication, doing something and having to do it over again later, computer problems, car problems, misunderstandings with others. It is not the greatest time to start a new business, sign important contracts, get surgery, or by major appliances, cars, or appliances.

But Mercury Retrograde does have its benefits. It is a great time to get in touch with helpful people from the past and do research and preparation for future projects. In general you'll get through Mercury Retrograde periods a lot more gracefully if you slow down a little, check and double check your schedule, don't assume people are understanding you, and think carefully before you speak. Also, get your car tuned up and your tires checked, and make a spare set of keys and hide them in your garage. Oh, and by the way, old boyfriends/girlfriends always seem to come out of the woodwork during these cycles, but it does not mean you need to get back together with them if they weren't good for you the last time around. It's just the Universe getting you to review your lessons and see how far you've come!

There's also a Big Fat Lunar Eclipse right in the slowest part of Mercury Retrograde on May 15, 2003 at 7:40pm in Scorpio. It's liable to be a dilly and it would be a good idea to really work on being calm and centered in the days leading up to it. Full Moons are a bit intense anyway, and eclipses even more so. Very emotional, so work at keeping your cool, even if others are a little unhinged. I have a feeling the Eclipse and Mercury Retrograde in May will have a fateful kind of effect on world events. In our own lives, this powerful eclipse may represent a kind of turning point, and the revelation about deep issues that have been affecting us for a long time. In that sense, it may have some positive outcomes. Taurus and Scorpio people might find this period particularly interesting, especially is you were born near the end of either sign.

Speaking of world events and astrology, I am saddened as I think about the Space Shuttle Columbia. Unfortunately, it was launched right in the middle of Mercury retrograde on January 16, 2003, and as fate would have it, Columbia's return to earth coincided with a four planet line up in Aquarius with the New Moon conjoining Neptune in Aquarius and Pluto and other malefic forces in strong angular positions over the western skies on February 1rst 2003. None of this was good news. The four-planet line up in Aquarius on February 1rst was strangely similar to a four-planet line up in Aquarius on January 28th, 1986 when the space shuttle Challenger met with disaster. In fact, the similarities between the astrology of the two events are uncanny. I wonder if there might have been some way to avert the tragedy if the timing of the event had been different.

But don't think this year is going to be nothing but war and disaster. There is always good news. It is important for us to go toward that which is positive and "carry on" as the song says. Jupiter goes direct in the sign of Leo in April, which will definitely put some wind in our collective sails and spark some optimism and new energy by May. We likely will not see its full glory until Mercury Retrograde is over in June. Leo people will probably really feel like they have a new lease on life from this period on into the summer.

Uranus enters the sign of Pisces in March 2003. It will stay in this sign for roughly 7 years. Last time Uranus was in Pisces was the "Roaring 20's", a particularly wild and creative time for art and fashion. Interestingly, it was also Prohibition, and I expect to see lots of backlash against drugs, both legal and illegal, as well as lots of interest in new in "designer drugs", medical marijuana, and the pros and cons of alcohol consumption. Pisces is the last of the 12 signs and Uranus; the great awakener will be tuning us in to many karmic lessons we've been collectively creating here on earth for the last 80 some odd years. Compassion, healing, and creativity will be stimulated.

I'm going to say a couple of things about Pisces that you might not be too thrilled about. The problem is this: Pisces, the 12th house, and Neptune are difficult for us here on planet earth. They just are. If you are a very spiritually oriented helper, healer, artist type person, Pisces, 12th house energy, and Neptune can be your muse, your salvation, and your godsend. But the Pisces vibration is definitely a double-edged sword, even for the most enlightened and well meaning amongst us.

The problem is Maya. It's all about illusion, confusion, wishful thinking, and the like. Most of us mere mortals are just not savvy enough to see through the veil of Pisces/Neptune glamour, especially those of us who think we are. I hear spiritual types ranting and raving all the time about how they have already "done their work" and they really are coming from the highest place as they proceed to do some of the dumbest things imaginable. I can say this lovingly, having done it many times myself. So, one of the upshots of Uranus, the planet change and revolution going into the sign of Pisces is this: we are going to think big changes and events out in the world or in our own world mean one thing, when in actuality, they mean something quite different. As you can imagine, this could be a problem. Also, since Pisces, Neptune, and the 12th house have to do with things like criminality, hidden enemies, chemicals, oil, disease, epidemics, human suffering and the like, one can only conjecture that there will be some unprecedented events related to such areas during Uranus' stay in the sign of Pisces.

Now, obviously, there are some good things too, so keep reading and follow my thread through the end. I want to be realistic. I want to give you an idea of what the energy is, how it works, the likely ramifications, and what you can do about it, but that will take a bit of writing, so bear with me. Life happens, but as we become more in tune with planetary forces, our personal experience becomes more effortless, and in turn, the energy of the entire world shifts a little. I am a believer in the "Hundredth Monkey" principle. If one person "gets it" it magically spreads out to others. Hey, it keeps me going.

Here are a few "predictions" based on the astrological themes of this New Year. There will be much change due to Uranus going into Pisces in March, and Saturn going into Cancer in June. Of course, if you are a Pisces born at the beginning of the sign, or a Cancer born at the beginning of the sign, this will be a big year for you.

Since the late nineties we have had some of the most dramatic astrological configurations in hundreds of years, all in a row. I have outlined many of these in previous articles. This is the reason so many of the ancient seers like Nostradumus and others looked at the times around the year 2000 as a huge and potentially difficult shift for humanity. And guess what? They were right. The world isn't going to end; we just need t6 change.

The year 2001 and 2002 were notably very difficult in astrological terms, and this year may not be quite as difficult on the global front, and here in the US, but there are still some concerns. Energies that were stirred up over the past four years are still rolling through the cosmos, so even though there might not be anything huge on the astrological radar screen, like Saturn opposing Pluto back in August 2001, right before 9/11, there is still a lot of unstable energy out there to deal with now and in the future. Some of the big issues of the last two years will come to a head in 2003. To me, this means the Middle East. Iraq will not be the only problem to be solved in that region. North Korea could also become an issue. The posturing that is going on internationally at this time does bear a vague resemblance to a pre-WWII climate. Let's hope that the somewhat benign qualities ascribed to the Chinese Year of the Ram may offset some of the potential trouble. Suffice it to say, it will be a year of war. Let's pray that whatever happens is quick.

On that note, here's the big news of 2003 in astrological terms. Saturn and Mars will both be at perihelion this summer. Both planets will be the closest to the sun, hence the earth as well, as that their orbits permit. These two planets are associated with war and destructive and oppressive forces. The last time the two did this was 1915, during World War I. All indications point to the furthering of the "War on Terror" in Iraq, and possibly elsewhere. Unfortunately, this looks like another year where terrorism here is very likely. At present it looks like the US has the upper hand in the situation in Iraq, but I am somewhat concerned that things might still be unresolved or complicated by new problems by the time we get into June.