Listen here:

August is one of the most pivotal astrological months of 2026, bringing two powerful eclipses, major planetary shifts, and a rare Jupiter-Saturn trine that invites us to find stability in the midst of profound change.
In this forecast, world-renowned astrologer Rick Levine unpacks what these cosmic events could mean both collectively and personally, offering grounded guidance for navigating a month filled with breakthroughs, turning points, and new possibilities.
To help you work with these transformative eclipses in your own birth chart, download Astrology Hub's FREE 2026 Eclipse Season Guide at https://astrologyhub.com/eclipses

🎬 IN THIS EPISODE, YOU’LL HEAR:
00:00 — July Recap: Did the Astrology Deliver?
05:01 — August's Biggest Astrology Events & Key Dates
07:25 — Leo Solar Eclipse: A Powerful New Beginning (August 12)
13:10 — Should You Set Intentions During an Eclipse?
16:54 — Pisces Lunar Eclipse: Breakthroughs, Release & Uranus Shocks (August 27)
25:42 — Venus in Libra, Mercury in Leo & A Breath of Fresh Air
27:57 — Chiron Retrograde: Revisiting Old Wounds Before Moving Forward
36:15 — Mars in Cancer: Why It's One of Astrology's Most Misunderstood Placements
42:24 — Jupiter Trine Saturn: Building the Future on a Strong Foundation
___________________
LINKS FROM THE EPISODE
Grab our FREE Eclipses Guide for each of the 12 signs: https://astrologyhub.com/eclipses
It’s not too late to join Rick’s course on Midpoints, click here: https://astrologyhub.com/midpoints
Subscribe to Rick’s channel for an even more in-depth monthly breakdown of August: https://www.youtube.com/@RickLevine
Study with Rick: https://portal.astrologyhub.com/produ…

___________________
ABOUT THE SPEAKER:
Rick Levine is a brilliant speaker, lecturing and facilitating workshops all around the world. He’s the co-founder of StarIQ.com, a founding Trustee of The Kepler College of Astrological Arts and Sciences, and co-author of Barnes and Noble’s annual “Your Astrology Guide.” Rick’s daily horoscope column was read by millions of readers for nearly 17 years through Tarot.com and Yahoo, AOL, Huffington Post, LA Times, Beliefnet, and more. Rick has taught an entire suite of astrology foundations with us here at Astrology Hub as well as several courses that are all available in our Academy.
___________________
LEARN ASTROLOGY WITH US:
📚 Courses: https://www.astrologyhub.com/academy
🫶🏼 Membership: https://www.astrologyhub.com/ic
⭐️ Free Resources: https://www.astrologyhub.com/free
🔮 Weekly Horoscopes: https://www.astrologyhub.com/horoscope
✨ Personalized Reports: https://www.astrologyhub.com/reports
🛍️ Our Favorite Products: https://portal.astrologyhub.com/suppo…
___________________
CONNECT WITH US:
📷 Instagram: astrology.hub
💻 Facebook: Facebook.com/astrologyhub
💬 X: @TheAstrologyHub
🎤 TikTok: @TheAstrologyHub
___________________
🎙️ LISTEN & SUBSCRIBE TO OUR AUDIO PODCAST:
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0Em49K3…
Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast…
___________________
💫 ABOUT ASTROLOGY HUB:

We’re so happy you’re here! We created Astrology Hub with the intention to make quality astrological guidance and teachings accessible to you, whether you need help navigating your life, or you’d like to learn how to practice astrology yourself. We see Astrology as the antidote to our time, bringing you more connection, purpose, and magic when the world needs it the most… it is our honor to share this gift with you. Enjoy!
___________________
🌌 NAVIGATE THE STARS WITH US! BECOME A COSMIC INSIDER…

Get your weekly astrology snapshot and practical cosmic tips for living in sync with the cosmic rhythm. As an Insider, you’ll also score exclusive discounts, early access to new episodes, and VIP content to elevate your life and practice. Ready to stay ahead of the cosmic curve? Go to https://www.astrologyhub.com/insider to sign up!
___________________

☝🏼 Disclaimer: The views and opinions in this podcast are of the guests and do not necessarily reflect the views or positions of Astrology Hub, its subsidiaries, or any entities they represent.
___________________
“The dark is a void, and in that moment, there is infinite potential and infinite possibility.” — Rick Levine

Transcript

Laura: All right. Hello, friends. Welcome back to The Astrology Hub Podcast. My name is Laura. I am the head of operations here at Astrology Hub and your host for today's show. Today, I'm here with none other than Rick Levine, where we're gonna be discussing the astrology of August 2026. So Rick, I can't believe we're in August already. I feel like I say that every time we're here, but—

Rick: Well, Laura, I can't believe that the 1990s are gone. Where'd they go?

Laura: Yeah. True, true. Time is escaping us.

Rick: I mean, it feels like the whole Y2K thing was yesterday, at least to me. I get that I have a few years on you, but yeah, it's moving crazy fast.

July Recap

Laura: Yeah. Well, I'm excited to talk about August, but before we do that, I just wanna recap July, because July was a big month, and we're recording this on the 24th of July, so it's not over yet. We haven't reached that Aquarius full moon. So there's still more to come. So Rick, how has July been for you? Has it been what you expected? What's it looking like from your perspective?

Rick: Nothing ever unfolds as I expect, but I'm not surprised by how it is unfolding. I think that most astrologers, and I, unfortunately, would include myself in this, often look ahead at a transit, at a moment, and expect something to happen that day.

Occasionally it does, but we forget that transits are part of an unfolding wave of energy. And I really think that what we've already been through so far in July—and as you said, the Aquarius full moon is yet to come—and I actually think that this particular full moon and the new moon and full moon, which are eclipses in August, are playing a tremendous catalytic role right now.

And I am expecting yet before the 1st of August some surprises still. Or, again, maybe they won't be surprises, they just might be shocking because when we look at what's going on out there, it's just like everything is so imbalanced in so many ways that we are expecting something to happen like the lightning striking to restore balance, but I don't think it's gonna be that simple or that fast. And so I'm not surprised by July right now. It's, you know, it's complicated. If this was a Facebook relationship, it would be, “It's complicated.”

Laura: It's complicated. Yeah. I mean, personally, I'm happy that we didn't have some big sudden event. To me that seems scarier than the astrology unfolding over a long period of time. And so I guess, what do you say to people who call astrology fake because, you know, there was all this anticipation around July and then there was no big event? Although that's subjective. I think if you look at the news, there's a big event all the time, but what would you say to people?

Rick: Well, I would say that the Earth is burning at a faster rate than it's ever been burning before. I would say temperatures are hotter on the planet than they've ever been before. I would say that there's, in the United States at least, the government is, like, totally in effect shut down even though it's not shut down. You know, we have people who have disappeared who have not been at their job for over a month now. That's never happened before.

We have an increase in fighting, in military ballistics of weapons being fired both in Russia, in Ukraine, in Iran, in Lebanon, in Israel, in Saudi Arabia. And on top of that, that doesn't even touch the daily news of what happens day by day by day. It doesn't touch the level of intensity around disclosure that's still attached to the Epstein files. I don't like that word 'cause it's way more than that, but we have all of that that's been kind of just growing in its intensity. And to say that nothing's happened, it's like I envy someone who can go and look out there and go, “Nope, July, nothing happened.” Oh my God.

Laura: Yeah.

Rick: That's all I have to say.

Laura: Yeah, I feel like we've been desensitized so much that some people are like, it doesn't phase them anymore. But yeah, a lot is happening, and a lot still to come. Yeah.

Rick: And we've talked about that desensitization before the flood—you know, the flood of images. And some of this is very, very consciously being done as a form of manipulation. We're so overwhelmed that when the next crazy thing happens, we just go, “Yeah, more.”

August 2026 Transits and Key Dates

Laura: Right. Right. So let's talk about what's to come. What's going on in August? What should people know about?

Rick: Um, well, actually, there's not a lot going on in August. There's just two eclipses and both of them are pretty powerful. And after a month of almost no sign changes, we have Mars… Well, let me take these in order. We have Venus moving into Libra on August 6th, and Venus has been in Virgo. We have Mercury moving into Leo on August 9th. We have Mars moving into Cancer on August 11th. So Mercury, Venus, and Mars are all changing signs in the first half of the month.

And then we have the Sun, which changes signs every month. The Sun moves into Virgo on August 22nd, and that's followed by Mercury now moving direct and picking up speed. So Mercury moves into Leo on August 9th, and then it moves into Virgo on August 25th. And so I think by the end of the month, our heads are gonna be spinning with the amount of energetic changes of the inner planets. And on top of that, these two eclipses.

The New Moon eclipse, which is a total eclipse, is on August 12th, and that's at 10:36 AM Pacific Time. And then we have the Full Moon eclipse on August 27th, and that's at 9:18 PM Pacific Time. So just from that standpoint, it's intense and crazy. And then as if that wasn't enough, we end the month—and there are some smoother days during the month, interestingly enough—but on the very last day of the month, and this is kind of pushing all month, we have Jupiter trining Saturn. And this is the first sweet spot of the Jupiter-Saturn 20-year cycle since they conjoined, just having moved into Aquarius back at the very end of 2020.

Laura: Mm. Okay. There's a lot going on.

Rick: There's a lot going on.

Solar Eclipse in Leo: August 12

Laura: Yeah. So let's talk about the eclipses, 'cause I feel like that is on people's minds. And so the solar eclipse happens in Leo on the 12th. What's of note there? How do you work with eclipses, Rick? Are you someone who doesn't work with eclipses? What is your philosophy here?

Rick: Oh, I think eclipses are like lunations on steroids. I mean, they are highly potentized, to use a homeopathic word. They are highly potentized lunations. So a solar eclipse and a lunar eclipse—solar eclipse being at the new moon, lunar eclipse being at the full moon—are very important because they're where the lunar monthly cycle intersects with the nodal cycle, and we've just had the nodes change signs. You know, the nodal cycle is an 18-year cycle, so the nodes spend about a year and a half in each sign.

And in July, we had the North Node, which had been in… well, it had been in Pisces, but the axis had been from Pisces to Virgo for about a year and a half. By the end of July, by the opening of August, the North Node is at 29 degrees of Aquarius. And so when we have a new moon or full moon that is close to the nodal axis, that's when we get an eclipse. And so these are the first two eclipses with the nodes in their new sign of North Node in Aquarius and South Node in Leo. And so I think that the eclipses are gonna be very important.

Now, in specific, August 12th—and that'll be the 13th for our European friends, but here, actually even in New York, I think it'll be… That's right, 'cause here in Seattle it'll be 10:36 AM, so it'll be on the 12th, but as you move further to the east, it'll be for some people on the 13th.

Here's the deal. When we have an eclipse or a New Moon or a Full Moon, we look to see what aspects are being made to the Sun and the Moon. And here we only have one aspect that is of significance, and we're back to why I thought—and again we'll see how this plays out—why I thought in advance of the Aquarius Full Moon that was gonna be so important, was because of the half squares and squares and a half: the semi- and sesquiquadres.

Well, the total eclipse on August 12th is at 20 degrees of Leo, and there's virtually no traditional aspects made. I mean, they're making trines widely to the other fire sign planets 'cause this is a fire sign New Moon. But the New Moon is very closely within one degree half of a square to Venus, and Venus is making an opposition to Neptune. We'll have more to say about that in a few minutes.

Because Venus is opposed Neptune, this New Moon eclipse is a half square to Venus and a square and a half to Neptune. So this eclipse is not fitting in; it's agitating that Venus-Neptune opposition. But the important thing to understand is that Venus at the eclipse is at five degrees of Libra, which is that same point that the Moon was at at four or five degrees of Libra on July 19th, completing five out of six points on that grand sextile.

So we still have Pluto back at 3 degrees and 54 minutes of Aquarius—six minutes of arc away from being at four degrees of Aquarius. Neptune is still at four degrees of Aries. And Uranus is at just barely five degrees of Gemini, but they're still at those four or five degree points. And on the eclipse day, we have Mercury at five degrees of Leo making an exact or perfected sextile with Venus at five degrees of Libra.

My point here is, once again, on the day of this eclipse, we have planets on five out of six points on that same six-pointed star, and the actual New Moon point itself, the eclipse point, is not liking any of that smoothness. It's fitting in with a half square and a square and a half, meaning that it's exacerbating things, agitating the energy. So I don't find this to be a very easy eclipse even though there's all these trines and sextiles.

And also we have Mars, having just moved into Cancer, making a sextile with Chiron. Remember, Chiron turns retrograde actually on August 2nd or 3rd, depending upon where you are on the planet. And so Chiron at zero degrees of Taurus is being sextiled by Mars. And again, there's a lot of smooth energy, but the eclipse itself is, in my mind, rather agitating.

Eclipse Energy: Should You Set Intentions?

Laura: Hmm. So eclipses are new and full moons on steroids. Would you be someone who would still set intentions and things? Or are you of the type where it's like dark energy, don't mess with eclipses? Where do you fall?

Rick: A number of years ago, I was giving a lecture at a conference in Kolkata, India, and the time of my lecture was in the evening. At the moment of my lecture, about 15 minutes in, was the perfection of a lunar eclipse. I had my cellphone set—the alarm went off exactly 30 seconds before the eclipse. In the middle of a slide, I stopped and I took out my flute and I said, “We're having an eclipse. We should tune into it and meditate.” And I spent about a minute playing the flute, and then I went back into the lecture.

Well, the Indians… there was a large local attendance from the Krishnamurti Institute in Kolkata, and they were horrified. They were horrified that a lot of the Western astrologers had gone outside during my lecture to see totality of the eclipse. I wasn't—I would have if I could have, but I was busy giving a lecture.

My point is that there can be something frightening about the dark for many people always, but the dark is a void, and in that moment, there is infinite potential and infinite possibility. If we are afraid of it, yeah, I think it could manifest in very complicated and unpleasant ways. But if we engage the energy and know that all new cycles begin in emptiness or after the death of a previous cycle, I personally do not try to hide myself and I do not try to avoid the eclipse energy. Now, I know there are people who will not put their crystals out during an eclipse, and I can't really comment on that. I don't have personal experience, but I would certainly trust those who say that. But personally, I don't avoid the energy.

Laura: Hmm, okay. So it's a super new beginning for all of us. There's a lot of flowing energy, but this eclipse kind of throws a wrench in the plans or brings some sort of agitation we may feel.

Rick: Remember, solar eclipses… You know, the old saying around solar eclipses is, “Long live the king, the king must die.” There is an ending and a beginning, and it's often unexpected—although I wanna say it's often shocking but not unexpected. And so when we have a solar eclipse, there is often some sort of almost Uranian kind of suddenness to whatever the shift is.

Having said that, we need to remember that eclipses have impact for six months, some people even say up to a year before and after, because it's tied in effect to the previous new moon in Leo or the next new moon in Leo, or the previous or next full moon in Aquarius, because it's tied to that same axis.

So yeah, I think they're important. We'll have to see what happens. But it's an interesting eclipse because of this kind of weird dichotomy between those semi- and sesquiquadrates and the flowing energy of everything else.

Lunar Eclipse in Pisces: August 27

Laura: Yes. So let me go to the lunar eclipse, the full moon of this cycle. It's in Pisces this time around. What is that one about?

Rick: Here I think it's interesting because remember the lunar nodes go around backwards compared to all the planets. And so if the new moon was at 20 degrees of Leo, then 14 days later, a fortnight later, a half of a lunar cycle, the eclipse instead of being at 20 degrees of one sign is gonna be at four degrees of the next sign.

But the lunar nodes have already moved backwards, and so this lunar eclipse is a little bit wide. It's about 15 degrees away from the lunar nodes. And therefore I think this is gonna be a bit of a throwback. You know, we're coming off of a Mercury retrograde in August in general. But I think that this full moon might actually bring us a little flavor of the past, and that's not surprising because full moon eclipses often are more connected with having to let go of something from the past rather than being focused more on the present moment.

But here's the crazy thing—two things. I keep saying crazy thing; well, this one really is a bit crazier because during this eclipse, the Sun is conjoined with Mercury, having just lined up with the Sun, having just done its cazimi. In fact, the Mercury cazimi occurs on the 27th.

What happens is that Mercury just past the Sun is at five degrees of Virgo. The Sun is at four degrees and 54 minutes—that's just about five degrees of Virgo. And we have Uranus at five degrees of Gemini. Here we have an eclipse that is actually square Uranus, and it's an applying square, meaning that the Moon at four degrees Pisces and 54 minutes is squaring Uranus at less than one degree of orb and applying.

And so we're gonna feel the craziness, the intensity of the shock, the surprise. And on top of that—and again this becomes the thing that so many people will miss—the Sun and Mercury, while they're squaring Uranus, are making a half square again to Venus, which is moving about the same rate, same speed as the Sun these days.

So the Sun is half squaring to Venus, and Venus is making a square and a half to Uranus. And so Venus is kind of really out of whack. And it's in Libra. Venus is powerful in her home sign. And so I think that this eclipse is also going to be a bit of a struggle.

The actual eclipsed Moon is going to be sesquiquadrate to Venus at about eight minutes of orb. So it's a really tight angle to Venus, but it's one that many people will miss because many astrologers don't look at the semi- and sesquiquadrates.

Again, I think that the three lunations—the Full Moon at the end of July, the New Moon eclipse in the middle of August, and the Full Moon eclipse at the end of August—are all emphasizing how the Moon is stirring things up. And the Moon represents the public. It represents our feelings. It represents, in some ways, the general zeitgeist of everyone out there as a mass of feelings.

And this Full Moon in Pisces is also a lot less intellectual than if it were in Aquarius. The fact that it's back in Pisces, I think again, can soften the rationality and increase the emotionality of what we're dealing with now.

Laura: So is it fair to say, Rick, that this is a full moon where we're meant to release things potentially from the past that we've been working with? And is it fair to say that with the square to Uranus, this could come through shocking events or unexpected ways or emotional insights, given that it's Pisces?

Rick: Sure. And I think in some ways it represents the potential of separation, of sudden shock, of breakup or breakthrough for Uranus. Which of those occurs really depends upon how much tension we have, because all Uranus actions require some suppressed or repressed tension that then the lightning bolt strikes to release.

Here we can expect perhaps it to release in some sort of social dynamic because the Moon's in Pisces. And I wouldn't be surprised if in fact it was in some way connected to the financial system because of its sesquiquadrate to Venus.

I think in some way that connection with Venus—Venus being sesquiquadrate the Moon, the Moon being square to Uranus, the Sun and Mercury being square to Uranus, and the Sun and Mercury being sesquiquadrate to Venus—the whole thing makes a complete pattern.

Venus in Libra is about finding that balance. In Libra, because it's Venus-related, I think it could impact things of beauty, things of value, things that are maybe not as monetarily direct as if that Venus was in Taurus. But in the days approaching this eclipse, as the Sun and Mercury have moved from Leo into Virgo, they're both making trines with Chiron. And so there may be some breakthroughs or breakups financially—because Chiron is in Taurus still—that may in fact be felt by what we can buy or what we can't buy, what we can afford to purchase or not. We'll have to see how it plays out, obviously.

Find the Eclipses in Your Chart: Free Guide

Laura: Yeah, for sure. And of course, this is happening in everyone's chart in a different spot. So for everyone listening, we created a 2026 eclipse season guide that you can download for free. It gives you an overview about eclipses as well as horoscopes for all 12 rising signs. If you wanna get your copy, it's totally free—you just go to astrologyhub.com/eclipses and you can download it there.

Rick: And that would basically tell you what whole sign house the eclipse was in, which is the primary thing. Obviously, if an eclipse point makes an aspect with one of the planets in your chart, or for that matter if it contacts a midpoint to any of the planets in your chart, that has personal relevance to you. But just by knowing what house it falls in relating to what your ascendant or rising sign is, or even what your Sun sign is, that can give you a little bit more of a nuanced meaning about how those eclipses might impact you.

Laura: Absolutely. Yeah. Awesome. So we'll see how the eclipses go. I personally love eclipse season, but we'll see how it pans out.

Rick: Well, they shake the energy up, you know? Eclipses can be surprising, and they can be devastating if there's something that needs devastation. And often there is.

Laura: Yeah. Humans aren't the best at embracing change. So as much as you can do to be proactive with change and noticing where you're ready to shift, the easier they are.

Rick: Yeah.

Venus in Libra and Mercury in Leo

Laura: All right, Rick. So you said in the beginning of the month we have a lot of shifts: Venus into Libra, Mercury into Leo, Mars into Cancer. Sun will go into Virgo, and Mercury will then continue on as well into Virgo. So a lot of shifting energy. Could this feel like the pace picking up, or what do energy shifts really feel like internally? What can we expect here?

Rick: Well, when I talked about the shifting energy, I'm talking specifically about the personal planets changing signs. We've had the outer planets all change signs—from Jupiter moving into Leo a little bit over a month ago, Chiron moving into Taurus, Pluto moving into Aquarius, Neptune moving into Aries, Uranus moving into Gemini. These are all background energies that are long waves, like longer goals, longer trajectories.

But this month when the inner planets change signs with such intensity and regularity… remember, Mercury, Venus, and Mars all change signs this month. It's almost like the energy changes its clothing, you know?

I think of, for example, when Mercury, which had been retrograde in Cancer, moves into Leo—what did I say that date was that Mercury moves into Leo?

Laura: The ninth.

Rick: On the ninth, yeah. It's almost like Mercury, which is our intellect and our mind, had been basically at home drinking tea in its pajamas. And then all of a sudden Mercury moves into Leo, and our minds wanna go out and party and wanna be on stage and want others to see what we're thinking or hear what we're thinking.

So the changes of signs of the planets are really like changes not of the character itself, but of what they're wearing, of what neighborhood they're living in at that point in time. I think that the changes of signs are important, but there are other things that are important this month.

Chiron Retrograde August 2: Back to Aries

Rick: The fact that Chiron, which had moved into Taurus, turns retrograde and backs into Aries by mid-September, where it had been for five or six years. And then it won't move back into Taurus until next April.

It's almost like we've had a little bit of a hint or a flavor of what that Chiron in Taurus would represent, and I think we're gonna still be talking about it for a while. But by the middle of September, it's already done with this little visit to Taurus.

So I think that we have to just keep our eye on it and see how that's impacting our money supply, our food supply, the things that have to do with our real down-to-earth life—the things that we have in the three-dimensional world that are things of value.

Best Days of August: The 6th Through the 15th

Rick: I think that that's an important shift. I think that also when Mercury moves into Leo on the ninth, something happens just a few days before that I think we'll still be feeling on the ninth, and that is that on the sixth, the Sun in mid-Leo makes a trine with Saturn in mid-Aries.

Now, that happens exactly on the sixth, and that should be or could be a day of stability. If you wanna do something that's long-lasting and has reality to it, this is the day, or a day to take that action. But it may take until the 9th when Mercury moves into Leo that it really comes more out in the open.

There are a lot of events like that. On the 10th, Venus in Libra begins to move into that position where over the days ahead, it begins to make trines, oppositions, and sextiles to all of those planets that are part of that grand sextile.

And I think that that's all important. In fact, I have some notes here: Venus will trine Pluto on the 10th, oppose Neptune later on the 10th, trine Uranus on the 11th, and then sextile Jupiter on the 17th. All of those have to do with flow. And of course, that's all tied up also in the New Moon that doesn't wanna fit into this flow of energy.

I think that all of this happens through that week of the 9th, 10th, 11th, 12th, 13th, 14th—that there's some good energy there. In fact, even Mercury comes whizzing through those same points. Mercury makes its trine to Neptune on the 11th, and its sextile to Uranus on the 12th.

So between Mercury and Venus on those days of the 10th through the 15th, when Mercury catches up to Jupiter and then the Sun, it's potentially a breath of fresh air.

Laura: Mm. Is it safe to say, like, we were talking about Jupiter and all the planets in the grand sextile—

Rick: Laura, Laura, Laura, I don't think it's safe to say anything!

Laura: True! I gotta watch my words here.

Rick: I'm sorry. Go ahead, go ahead.

Laura: Let me rephrase that. So we talked about Jupiter and the outer planets being these long-term cycles that unfold over long periods of time and have less to do with our personal lives.

Are We Part of the Change?

Laura: Now that we're gonna have the Sun and Mercury in Leo and Venus attaching herself to this configuration, could it feel like our personal lives are starting to have skin in the game in this larger formation? Are we gonna start to feel like we're more a part of the change?

Rick: Maybe. Of course, I've been a bit of a broken record, as have many other astrologers, that what seems to be happening out there is so totally dysfunctional and neurotic. And when I use the word neurotic, I mean that there are huge things being suppressed and repressed that are making our behaviors repetitious in order to hide that which we don't want anyone to see. This is what a neurosis is. But also a bit psychotic, 'cause it's so out there everyone can see it.

Seeing what's out there is making us all a bit on edge. I think that what you said is very accurate because as I've been saying for months, what happens over the months and years ahead is determined not by what's happening top-down right now, but by how the masses—humanity as a whole—interacts with pushing up against what's holding us down.

From that standpoint, yeah, I'm hopeful that August may have more of that. But it doesn't mean that it's gonna be easy, and it doesn't mean that if everyone just thinks wonderful things all of a sudden we'll be there, because it's obvious that those in control are not going to let go without a bit of a struggle.

Tesla, Free Energy, and the Move Off Petroleum

Rick: You know, in all the events that I talked about earlier about those people that said nothing happened or nothing is happening, the other thing that comes to mind—which I think is tied to the whole UAP/UFO disclosure, but it's a separate issue—is the ongoing disappearance of scientists who have been working on anti-gravity or propulsion. High-level scientists that are just disappearing en masse, not only in the United States, but in China.

I think that this is the deeper issue—and I've said this over again for months—the real issue is about the movement away from petroleum. That's really what all the struggles are about: people who fear that they're going to lose their power and their position when people have free energy.

Remember, this is why Tesla died penniless. Because when he told J.P. Morgan, who was financing him… Now remember, Tesla's the guy who figured out how to power the entire planet. He invented hydroelectric power. He invented the transformer. He invented wireless communication, and he also invented the wireless transmission of electricity.

J.P. Morgan realized and said, “How do you make money on this?” He said this directly to Tesla: “Where do you put the meter?” And Tesla said, “There's no need for meters.”

I think that's one of the things sitting behind all of this that we may see some breakthroughs on that change the way we think about what's out there. So I know that was a little bit of an aside, but I think it really is relevant to the bigger changes that are going on.

Laura: Yeah. And I've seen discussions around Chiron in Taurus and what that means to our relationship to energy. Hearing about how it's all about resources and energy, I wonder if Chiron's move into Taurus can put us into better, right relationship with the Earth and with our resources.

Rick: Well, that's obviously part of our problem, isn't it?

Laura: Yeah, definitely is. So a couple more questions, Rick.

Mars in Cancer Is Not a Weak Mars

Laura: Can we just talk briefly about Mars in Cancer? Mars in Cancer doesn't have the easiest time. I'm not gonna say it's bad, but it doesn't have the easiest time. So what is this time period good for with Mars? What's the good with Mars?

Rick: I was laughing because Mars in Cancer is my poster child for why I think it's dangerous to put too much effort or energy into the value judgments that many astrologers—not all, not the ones that really know how the system works, but many astrologers—put into Hellenistic dignity.

Because Mars is exalted in Capricorn. When it's not in its home sign of Aries, Mars likes being in Capricorn more than any other sign. The sign farthest away from Capricorn is Cancer, and so it's said to be in its fall. Mars is said to be in its fall in Cancer 'cause it's as far as it can get from the place where it likes to be when it's not at home.

However, I think that this is a direct function or symptom of the patriarchal origins of Western astrology. And that is that if Mars is not interested in asserting itself to the extent that it's aggressing on those that are weaker, if Mars is not taking things from those who have things that it wants, if Mars is not militaristic and raping and plundering and doing all those things that a macho Mars should do, then it's dysfunctional.

And yes, Mars in Cancer has a harder time doing those things, and we have a culture that places a positive value on those things whether we have those values individually or not. I don't think that there's a problem with Mars in Cancer unless you're being judged or judging yourself by how assertive or aggressive you should be.

If you wanna see a Mars that's functional, mess with someone who has Mars in Cancer. Mess with their child, mess with their parent, mess with their home—you're screwed. You've never seen a Mars that is so capable at defending its home territory.

So yes, there is a shift from Mars in Gemini. Mars in Gemini will engage in anything in any direction at the drop of a hat. “That looks good, let me go! Oh, how about that? Okay, I'm in!” You know, it's a line that I sometimes use for Aries, but it's Mars in Gemini: ready, fire, aim. It's do it first and then think about it afterwards.

In Cancer, Mars is contemplative. Mars doesn't wanna waste energy. It's too compassionate to just beat on someone that's less fortunate or less aware. And so I think that we have to shift our thinking.

At the beginning of the month, we have planets that have already in July moved through Cancer and are now putting on the show in Leo. And I say “putting on the show”—there's a mistake also here about Leo that's patriarchal, and that is that we think that all Leos should be: “Here I am, dramatic, I'm on stage.”

Well, all you need to do is look at the difference between a lion and a lioness, and you will see how Leo functions in its yang masculine way or its yin feminine way. In its masculine way, male lions spend their entire life roaring and boasting and posturing and fighting amongst themselves to see who the alpha lion is gonna be—top cat.

Meanwhile, the female lionesses are giving birth, raising the cubs, doing the hunting to get the food for their cubs, taking out the trash, balancing the books, doing the work, and looking at the guys hanging out in the locker room beating each other up talking about who's the greatest.

And so again, we have this patriarchal thing about the value judgment of how Leo should be, and too many of us say—and I've done this too, I'm as guilty as anyone else 'cause this is the system we buy into—”Oh, Leo is about drama. Leo's about putting on the show. Leo's about self-expression.” No. Leo is fixed fire. It's about the intention of burning what your intentions are, no matter what.

Now, in Cancer, that Mars is not going to push out of its shell until it's ready, meaning probably until it goes into Leo. But man, mess with it and you'll see that Mars at work. So I think it's important that we readjust our thinking a bit.

Again, I'm not suggesting that some people who have a natal Mars in Cancer may not be plagued by how difficult it is for them to be assertive or aggressive when they see other people doing it so easily. I'm not judging that. I'm just saying that we put so much weight on the positive/negative that I think we miss the deeper point. Mars in Cancer is a secret power. In fact, some of my favorite people in the world and in history have Mars in Cancer, so I don't think we should be too quick to judge it as difficult.

Laura: Yeah. Sometimes when we think about it from that patriarchal view, we miss the gifts that it brings, the uniqueness that we can tap into if we actually just think about how we can use this. “Mama bear” is a great example.

Jupiter Trine Saturn August 31: First Since 2020

Rick: Yeah. One other thing I do wanna say about the month is that this entire month is moving toward this trine, which I mentioned at the very beginning, between Jupiter and Saturn.

Now, Jupiter and Saturn in their 20-year cycle is basically the cycle of the decades. Jupiter joins up or conjuncts Saturn typically on the even-numbered decades—meaning they did that in 1880, 1900, 1920, 1940, 1960, 1980. In 2000, they actually did it in early 2001. They did it again in 2020, and they will do it again in 2040.

Right now we are at that point where instead of conjoining or opposing—like they do in the odd-numbered decades in 1910, '30, '50, '70, '90, 2010, and 2030—it's almost like a cycle of planting the seed, almost like a new moon and full moon. And so we had the '60s that were the seed period growing outward, the '70s, the '80s that were more outward, the '90s… and so on.

Yet at this point, the trine between Jupiter and Saturn that's exact at the end of this month in a way represents a balance between expansive Jupiter and constrictive or restrictive or resistant Saturn. And so I think that there's a lot of emphasis moving this month toward: how do we stabilize or how do we make something real happen out of all the disruptions that we have experienced recently and will continue to experience?

I think that that's one of the pieces of the secret sauce of August: to keep in mind that amidst the noise and chaos, there is still the potential for finding that inner sense of peace, center of gravity, or calmness—the eye of the hurricane kind of concept. Where we actually can make intentions and look back at what we were doing back at the conjunction during the height of the COVID period of time when humanity was busy having a stroke, which is really what happened.

Everyone was running around being busy, and one day, all of a sudden, it stopped. You can say that it was related to a virus, you can say that it was government… I don't care what your position is, but the outward manifestation is that we went into this paralyzed state of emptiness, almost like that eclipse moment of the void or a new moon.

And at this trine, there is a balance. So look back at what you were doing back toward the end of 2020 at the height of the quarantine meltdown, whatever it was, and think about what it is that you want to not just think about, but begin to put into motion, into action—some of those things that you are looking for toward long-term growth.

Remember that at that lunar eclipse on the 27th, the Jupiter-Saturn trine is just one degree of orb. It's still applying over the next few days because it is technically perfected or exact on the 31st. But even on the full moon day, it is already there. So even with the craziness of whatever is going on, this is a time to find that balance.

Laura: Yeah. And I imagine with this trine, we're in this trinal energy for a window of time because they move so slow. What window would you say we have to work with this energy?

Rick: Oh, I think even by the beginning of August, we're already feeling it. By the beginning of August, it's already about seven degrees from being exactly trine, but Jupiter's moving pretty quickly now. By the 14th or 15th, it's within four or five degrees of orb. So it's pushing all month.

Again, orbs are like radio stations: they come in gradually, and if you're looking for them and tuning for them, you can get them before… I always think of it as trying to be the first person to see Venus before the sun fully sets. If you're looking for it and you know where to look, you can see it. Other people won't even notice it even after the sun sets.

So I think part of this Jupiter trine Saturn is to be aware of it, see patterns in our lives, and make things happen—and don't wait for the exactness at the end of the month.

Rick's One Word for the Month

Laura: Yeah, absolutely. All right. Well, we've got a month ahead. Rick, I'm gonna put you on the spot. How would you sum up this month in a phrase, a word, a song?

Rick: I hate this part. How would I sum this month up in a word or… You know, there's a Queen song: “Don't Stop Me Now.” That's what it is. “I'm a rocket ship on my way to Mars.” There's that sense of: we're moving.

It may become obvious which direction we're moving in, and yet it's early enough in this thrust forward that a little correction now can have a lot of impact as the trajectory continues onward. It's the idea of early training of a pet or of your kid. In the early stages of everything that's unfolding now—and things are unfolding—the more we can do now, the greater the impact it'll have later on.

So, yeah, I don't think there's any ability to stop what's unfolding, but there is a huge ability to make alterations to the trajectory in small ways that can have large impact down the road.

Laura: Incredible. I'm gonna have that song stuck in my head for the rest of the day—Don't Stop Me Now.

Rick's Midpoints Class

Laura: So before we wrap this up, Rick, I just wanna talk briefly about the Midpoints class because we are in our second week now. And if you're catching this episode on the day it's released in July, you still have a chance to join while we're in the live pricing.

I just wanna let everyone know that the price goes up on August 1st. So if you wanna get in, if you've been on the fence and you've been waiting, now is the time to join. Get in at the lowest price we'll offer it, because the price will go up $100 on August 1st. So it's been super fun. I've been learning a lot, Rick.

Rick: It's been… I mean, the Mercury retrograde piece of this has, I think, made us all a bit crazy. But it's been just tremendous putting this into… It's not that it's complicated, it's a whole new way of looking at things on some level. Watching people's eyes open up and reading the email feedback that I'm getting from people who said, “I never realized,” and then they tell their story…

Yeah, it's an exciting class to be teaching. I thank Astrology Hub for the opportunity to bring this to so many people.

Laura: Yeah, we're so grateful. I mean, I've been studying astrology since 2012, and I've never really looked at midpoints. So when I looked at my chart, I was like, “Wow, a whole new world just opened up to me.”

So if you wanna join that, you still can: astrologyhub.com/midpoints. You'll get access to most of the classes right away. So if you wanna binge-watch them—I wouldn't recommend it, but if you want to, you could do that! So astrologyhub.com/midpoints to learn more.

Rick: And the reason why you'll have access to those classes is that each week we're releasing two one-hour—I've gone over a little bit, but two one-hour—or so classes, followed up by a live Zoom class the following week. And so we'll still have several of those. Even if you miss those, they'll be recorded as well.

Laura: Absolutely. Yeah. So we'd love to have you join us if you want. And yeah, we'll be here next month. We'll discuss how August went and give you the download for September.

Thank you, Rick, for everything. You're just amazing. I'm blown away every time. And thank you all for joining us, for listening, for tuning in, and thank you, as always, for making astrology a part of your life. We'll catch you next month.

Rick: Thank you, all.