Focus on Capricorn
Mastering Material Existence
Mars in Capricorn Feb 5-March 6
Mercury in Capricorn Feb. 1-19th
Venus in Capricorn until Feb. 11th-March 7th
Sun in Capricorn Jan 14-Feb 12
Pluto in Capricorn until 2040.
New Moon in Capricorn on Feb. 9th
February is complicated month with so many planets transiting through Capricorn and conjunct Pluto with Mercury conjunct Pluto on Feb. 5th initiating power struggles and Mars conjunct Pluto on Feb. 14th which can be an earthquake signature and can create selfish and violent behavior. Capricorn, ruled by Saturn is never fun and requires hard work, discipline and accepting karmic destiny to get through. Venus will lighten it up a bit after Feb. 11th but it still has a way of creating heaviness, depression and intensity and the Sun conjunction to Saturn in Aquarius into Feb. 28th tends to increase blood pressure and add to the boil. Stay on top of meditation and exercise and have fun by being with people and going to musical events to lighten the energy.
Capricorn is the business planet and many of the planets going through there will support new business ventures and good strategic planning if you can stay on top of the intensity and anxiety.
Here’s a reprint of my article about Capricorn:
An excerpt from Signs of Life–Barry’s Book
FOCUS ON CAPRICORN
Capricorn is known as Makara or the crocodile in Sanskrit. It represents the fall of the spiritual energy of Sagittarius as it descends into matter and gets involved in material desires. The symbol is not the Western astrological goat or even a crocodile, but an amphibian creature with the face of a deer and a body of an amphibian and hence it is more of a dragon creature that wants to arise out of the swamp of the material world and fly to the heavens. The spiritual essence of this sign is the struggle of an ugly creature of the lagoon to cast into the material prison to free itself of the shackles of the material. It symbolically represents the dragon of wisdom in esoteric astrology and is not a crocodile, but a reptile, and the universal symbol of the pentagram, a 5-pointed star of Divine intelligence.
Capricorn is ruled by Saturn, the planet of infrastructure and physicality, but also embodies deep spiritual longing and hence the sign is very complex. Capricorns are filled with enthusiasm and energy particularly in the nakshatras of Shravana (10-23.20 Capricorn) or Uttara Ashadha (0-10 Capricorn) and idealism, but Saturn by its nature prevents them from expressing their talents Capricorn is connected to the natural 10th sign of the zodiac connected to the desire to rise in status and being seen and acknowledged in the world.
Capricorn is connected to the base chakra or Muladhara chakra out of which the kundalini energy arises. Hence it contains the latent potential for full realization, but remains grounded and hidden in the earth and needs to be awakened. Hence the essence of Capricorn is freeing the spiritual from its material prison.
Saturn rules Capricorn and that is why it is one of the more difficult signs of the zodiac connecting it to hard work, trials and suffering, and not an easy life. If one discovers spirituality then the coiled snake energy is awakened and Capricorn can complete its journey. Capricorns must find meditation and spiritual practice to move out of the grips and jail of the “more stuff” of the material world.
Again if your Vedic Sun (Jan. 14-Feb. 12th), moon, or rising sign is Capricorn it can create a very practical individual with conservative values who spends more time preventing problems from happening rather than using its creative energies. The responsibility of Saturn makes it a great employee and it’s tenacious and persevering energy makes it an ideal worker, but with Cancer owning the 7th house, they are emotionally vulnerable in relationships and hurt easily. Any planet placed in Capricorn in the D1 or D9 chart or any Varga chart is in a kind of a coma and unfriendly and not helpful and is forcing us to work hard to free its signification. It is a difficult sign as it requires toil and grief to become realized over a long time. With Jupiter owning the 12th and 3rd houses and Jupiter debilitated in Capricorn, there is a problem with ethics in business, and Jupiter’s moral wisdom is lost. China, a Capricorn rising country, (Oct. 1, 1949 3 pm, Beijing) is being called out for its business piracy of intellectual property, but stubbornly refuses to bend. In recent years, the infrastructure it is erecting with numerous bridges and highways embodies the power of Capricorn and with Saturn and Pluto going into Capricorn in 2020, we can see a further rise of power for China. Bernie Madoff, a famous Capricorn rising, thought nothing of funneling pension money that he collected into his private coffers.
When Saturn is afflicted in a Capricorn rising chart, the Achilles’ heel is being overly suspicious, selfish, having difficulty making friends, being late and tardy, being gloomy, and overly concerned with security. They make difficult romantic partners unless Venus can come to the rescue in the 1st house, but with their excellent business skills, if Saturn is strong, they are often excellent business partners.
Saturn owns the 1st and 2nd houses for Capricorn rising and Saturn gets its self-worth caught up and what they have. Rahu is the co-owner of Aquarius and can easily get Capricorns caught up in savings and having too many rules around their family. If Saturn is exalted then Capricorn can blossom in relationships and be in service of humanity while in Aries it will suffer from emotional coldness, laziness, and desire to control.
Venus is the best planet for Capricorn owning the 5th and 10th houses and it provides material pleasure for Capricorn and its fun-loving nature balances out the hard-working crusty side of Saturn. Women particularly balance out Capricorn men and marriage, creativity at work and artistic expression and sexual expression and massage are keys to balancing Saturn.
Mercury is the 2nd best planet for Capricorn owning the 6th and 9th houses of Gemini and Virgo. The 9th house connected to another earthy business sign suggests that hard work and practicality in business matters will create success. The prankster and comedic quality of Mercury remind us that Capricorns need more comedy and humor to get through their suffering and hard work and so watching comedy on TV, participating in improv will help lighten their struggles. Ketu does not do well in Capricorn as its mystical nature is deeply disturbed by Saturn’s practical side and Ketu placed in Capricorn can get too caught up in material endeavors and forget its mission.
Capricorn has difficulty with the Sun although the Sun which represents our Divine spark is still a neutral planet to Capricorn because it must ultimately strive for that higher spiritual realm. The Sun can give it power and confidence, but if afflicted, as the 8th house ruler of Leo, it can cause abuse of power and vulnerability. If Sun is exalted in Aries, then Capricorn has a fully realized Divine heart and can move beyond power constraints whereas Sun in Libra where it is fallen will cause power and tyrannical energy at work and may force Capricorns into their dark and controlling nature.
The moon is a difficult planet for Capricorns owning the 7th house of Cancer as they will tend to attract emotional partners at odds with their practical nature, but it can give them strong intuitive abilities in business partnerships if the moon is strong. Moon exalted in Taurus in the 5th house will allow for creative business development due to the joint ownership of Venus owning the 10th. Moon in Scorpio may give them a strong desire for more income to overcome emotional insecurities around self-esteem.
Mars is a difficult planet for Capricorns owning the 4th and 11th they can create cruelty in domestic life to further their work careers and incline them toward real estate and have difficult and fighting relationships with their mother if Mars is afflicted. The 11th house is badhaka for Capricorn creating complex energies around friends, income, and groups and leading to fighting around all of them. If Mars is exalted in Capricorn it can create spiritual energies and strong ambition, but if in Cancer, very difficult relationships will result often leading to divorce.
In summary, Capricorns are powerful creators of the material realm but need to move beyond self-centeredness and discover spirituality to fly out of the swamp of suffering. They must remember to be ethical, balance their life with fun and sensual experience, and strive to help heal humanity. Then the dragon can emerge into its full force of inspiration.
The deepest purpose of astrology should allow us to see the Maya or illusion that runs through our mind and blocks us from seeing our own Divinity. Astrology should reveal our hidden patterns and not just affirm what we know about our self already. Barry’s deep psychological analysis of the zodiacal signs, planets, and houses offers new dimensions and depth in understanding Vedic astrology. While suitable for new students of Vedic astrology, even seasoned veteran astrologer will see new ways of looking at signs, houses, and planets. As a bonus, Barry adds a section on planetary interpretation involving retrogrades, exaltation, debilitation, combustion, and much more.
The great spiritual teacher Yogananda was fond of saying that most of what we call the spiritual battle is really a psychological battle and once that battle is won, the spiritual battle is a short one. This book aims to support you in deep spiritual growth with profound psychological insight.