August 2024: Full On and Fiery
On 4 August, a warm New Moon in Leo makes the month’s first weekend a memorable one. A Pluto opposition injects a sharp edge into this fiery lunation as it unfolds over the first half of August.
Photo by Elena Mozhvilo on Unsplash
On 4 August, a warm New Moon in Leo makes the month’s first weekend a memorable one. A Pluto opposition injects a sharp edge into this fiery lunation as it unfolds over the first half of August. It is a time to implement last Summer’s lessons on love and desire as learned during Venus’ reversal in Leo from late July to early September 2023.
Mars and Jupiter lend an intense, erratic vitality to the New Moon from Gemini. As Jupiter presses an advantage on Saturn, the fruits of the seeds sown during this lunar cycle are given scope to last the distance. As a fixed sign, Leo also signifies endurance. Venus square Uranus in fixed signs on 2 August signals upcoming turbulence.
As Mercury turns around on 5 August, something which has not been working as effectively as it ought to comes undone in order to be set right and then celebrated.
The strong Virgo energy of 5 August signals the need to clean up and to prioritise service. When Mercury retrogrades first in Virgo and then Leo, thoughts and feelings arise to be gently probed. Virgo supports measured judgement whereas Leo champions heartfelt emotion. How best to integrate their functioning is a live theme throughout Mercury’s retrograde phase until 28 August.
While Mercury reverses in Virgo, reflect on the extent to which you are crafting useful order versus just nit-picking. As Mercury moves through Leo, check whether it is your heart or your conceit which is driving your decision-making.
Sun sextile Jupiter on 7 August provides an abundant confidence boost and a welcome break from mercurial interrogation. The following day’s Mercury-Venus conjunction in Virgo allows your message to land perfectly. A client of mine happens to be giving his fifth best man speech that day, and this time for his very best friend. He will be on top form and his audience will relish his stories.
On 14 August, when Mars meets Jupiter, the risk of acting rashly, mindlessly and with excessive force is heightened. On the plus side, more than seems humanly possible can get done at this time. Interactions with others might also proliferate.
The next day, as Mercury enters Leo on 15 August, the temptation to say too much can be hard to resist. Alternatively, you can find the confidence to finally share whatever is on your mind. With Mercury still retrograde, ideas need a little while longer to marinade before they are expressed out loud.
When Mars squares Saturn on 16 August, the consequences of whatever happened under Mars conjunct Jupiter start to manifest and there’s a risk that things can get difficult and messy. By 18 August, Mercury square Uranus can lead to disruption. Or, more usefully, inspired if somewhat unconventional solutions.
The Leo New Moon culminates on 19 August in a Full Moon in Aquarius. Aquarian cool detachment is temperamentally a world away from Leonine grand passion. Yet the configuration of this particular lunation is brimming with Shakespearean drama. It is intense, full on and ruled by hard-hitting, discipline-minded Saturn.
The Aquarius Full Moon incorporates a Jupiter-Saturn square. This is the first of three cosmic tests on how our world has evolved since the planetary pair last renewed their 20-year cycle in December 2020. Two more tests will follow on Christmas Eve 2024 and in mid-June 2025. These squares can also act as windows on individual growth and maturity since that exceptionally challenging year.
A few days later, when the Sun enters Virgo on 22 August, the theatrics begin to subside. Venus square Mars, Mercury sextile Mars and Venus trine Uranus on the ensuing days prevent life from getting too dull.
As Mercury ends his latest retrograde turn in Leo on 28 August, things start to feel a bit more right and stable again, now informed by the astrology of what August has revealed to us. As Venus enters Libra, getting along with each other becomes easier and more enjoyable again.
Astro Tips
Friday 2 August
An unnerving surprise
Venus in Leo square Uranus in Taurus
Sunday 4 August
Dazzle your audience
New Moon in Leo
Monday 5 August
Smart and sensible is hot
Venus enters Virgo
Mercury stations retrograde in Virgo
Wednesday 7 August
Multiple reasons to smile
Sun in Leo sextile Jupiter in Gemini
Thursday 8 August
Technical, beautiful brilliance
Mercury conjunct Venus in Virgo
Wednesday 14 August
Overkill
Mars conjunct Jupiter in Gemini
Thursday 15 August
Tell everyone all about it
Mercury enters Leo
Friday 16 August
Muddled, unclear outcomes
Mars in Gemini square Saturn in Pisces
Sunday 18 August
Firm, erratic views
Mercury in Leo square Uranus in Taurus
Monday 19 August
Full-on drama
Sun conjunct Mercury in Leo
Venus in Virgo square Jupiter in Gemini
Venus in Virgo opposite Saturn in Pisces
Sun in Leo square Uranus in Taurus
Full Moon in Aquarius
Jupiter in Gemini square Saturn in Pisces
Thursday 22 August
Be pragmatic
Sun enters Virgo
Friday 23 August
Effective, dynamic interactions
Venus in Virgo square Mars in Gemini
Saturday 24 August
Lively debate
Mercury in Leo sextile Mars in Gemini
Tuesday 27 August
Caution creates space
Venus in Virgo trine Uranus in Taurus
Wednesday 28 August
Clarity of vision moves you
Venus in Virgo opposite Neptune in Pisces
Mercury stations direct in Leo
Thursday 29 August
Socialise with ease and purpose
Venus enters Libra
Venus in Libra trine Pluto in Aquarius
Astro Request
How can you draw on the Leo New Moon between 5-19 August to favour love and generosity?
Your personal experience is shaped by how this general forecast connects to your own birth chart, and how you respond to the planetary influences. For astrological guidance tailored to you, email leena@leenachauhan.com.
June 2024: Thoughts and Feels
June begins with a vitalising Jupiter-Pluto trine on 2 June which could profoundly and positively transform your outlook this weekend. Allow yourself to roam beyond what you typically expect and unearth new possibilities.
Photo by Clem Onojeghuo on Unsplash
June 2024
June begins with a vitalising Jupiter-Pluto trine on 2 June which could profoundly and positively transform your outlook this weekend. Allow yourself to roam beyond what you typically expect and unearth new possibilities.
Between 3 and 16 June, Mercury in Gemini optimizes negotiations and agreements. On 4 June, Mercury trines Pluto and conjoins Jupiter, adding influence and good fortune to whatever is signed up to. It’s the best time of the month to finalise and significant arrangements.
As Venus restarts her cycle with the Sun in Gemini on 4 June, the importance of being friendly and social for relational health and wellbeing is highlighted.
The new Moon in Gemini on 6 June is ruled by a pumped up Mercury in Gemini and squared by Saturn, boosting this lunation’s mentally refreshing impact. Set intentions to expand your circle of acquaintances. Supportive, influential figures are within reach.
The first 8 days of June are energized by Mars’ passage through the final degrees of go go go Aries. After Mars enters Taurus on 9 June, momentum can be harder to muster. 11 June is especially tough thanks to a challenging Mars-Pluto square. Longstanding tensions are liable to erupt. Aim to find constructive outlets for your anger if you sense provocation else things could get ugly.
Mercury also restarts a new cycle with the Sun in Gemini on 14 June. Let go of perspectives that no longer serve you and make space for ideas that open up your world. Be open to multiple options.
Gemini is curious about everything everywhere all at once. When Venus and Mercury in Gemini square Saturn in Pisces on 8 and 12 June respectively, intuition aids with filtering out the less favorable options. Test whether what you think is right also feels good.
On 17 June, Venus and Mercury square Neptune in sensitive Pisces before slipping into emotional Cancer. Words are no longer enough. Be guided by what is intuited rather than what’s spelled out.
A few days later on 20 June, the Sun squares Neptune before entering Cancer at the Summer Solstice. It’s a cosmic reminder to keep the faith as the Sun shines brightly on the longest day of the year in the Northern hemisphere.
Saturn is virtually at a standstill at the Capricorn Full Moon on 22 June. As Saturn starts to move backwards from 29 June, take stock of how far you’ve come and whether you still want to climb the mountain you’re on. It’s harder than you think.
Saturn represents rules, traditions, structures and institutions. With Saturn in passive, shapeshifting Pisces throughout 2024, the underlying sense of instability is hard to escape. Saturn is also success and accomplishment. In Piscean waters, achievements seem to happen indirectly in their own time and in their own way.
The work is to yield to the process and to keep going and participating even when it feels futile.
Astro Tips
Sunday 2 June
Explore wide and deep
Jupiter in Gemini trine Pluto in Aquarius
Monday 3 June
Process with intuition then facts
Mercury in Taurus sextile Neptune in Pisces
Mercury enters Gemini
Tuesday 4 June
Enjoy cathartic, mind-blowing exchanges
Mercury in Gemini trine Pluto in Aquarius
Mercury conjunct Jupiter in Gemini
Sun conjunct Venus in Gemini
Thursday 6 June
Adopt a light touch approach
New Moon in Gemini
Saturday 8 June
Choose with long-term aspirations in mind
Venus in Gemini square Saturn in Pisces
Sunday 9 June
Slow down and expect your views to be tested
Mars enters Taurus
Sun in Gemini square Saturn in Pisces
Tuesday 11 June
Sense the weight and power of your actions
Mars in Taurus square Pluto in Aquarius
Wednesday 12 June
Select intuitively for what might last
Mercury in Gemini square Saturn in Pisces
Friday 14 June
Give your mind and mouth a break
Sun conjunct Mercury in Gemi
Monday 17 June
Experience emotional and mental nostalgia
Venus in Gemini square Neptune in Pisces
Venus enters Cancer
Mercury in Gemini square Neptune in Pisces
Mercury enters Cancer
Mercury conjoins Venus in Cancer
Thursday 20 June
Attune to what is felt over what is said
Sun in Gemini square Neptune in Pisces
Sun enters Cancer
Friday 21 June
Communicate with your feelings and senses
Mercury in Cancer sextile Mars in Taurus
Saturday 22 June
Celebrate your achievements
Full Moon in Capricorn
Wednesday 26 June
Speak gently but firmly
Mercury in Cancer trine Saturn in Pisces
Saturday 29 June
Connect easily and then pause
Venus in Cancer sextile Mars in Taurus
Saturn stations retrograde in Pisces
Sunday 30 June
Get a fresh perspective
Mercury sextile Uranus
Astro Request
How do you listen to your mind and heart and honour both of them?
Your personal experience is shaped by how this general forecast connects to your own birth chart, and how you respond to the planetary influences. For astrological guidance tailored to you, email leena@leenachauhan.com.
Update on Begum vs UK Home Office
It appears that Shamima Begum’s lawyers have decided not to go to the UK Supreme Court. They had until yesterday to decide to escalate her case to the highest court in the land following last Friday’s Court of Appeal judgement that the UK government did not unlawfully deprive Begum of her UK citizenship.
Photo by abdullah ali on Unsplash
It appears that Shamima Begum’s lawyers have decided not to go to the UK Supreme Court. They had until yesterday to decide to escalate her case to the highest court in the land following last Friday’s Court of Appeal judgement that the UK government did not unlawfully deprive Begum of her UK citizenship. The news is silent on their next steps. This makes astrological sense as Saturn, representing Begum’s legal team, is still obscured by solar light.
Pluto crowns the chart for last week’s hearing showing that Shamima Begum’s return to the UK is firmly prohibited. It also shows that the Court of Appeal’s ruling is irreversible. Begum, who is effectively stateless, remains in the al-Roj detention camp in north eastern Syria [1].
When the court said its ‘only task is to assess whether the deprivation decision was unlawful’ [2] it meant that the court’s remit is restricted to determining whether the Home Secretary’s decision to remove Begum’s British citizenship was properly made, not whether they agreed with it.
The proceedings were livestreamed because this case raises serious questions about the circumstances in which the UK government can rescind a person’s citizenship. Begum was born British in 1999.
Since the British Nationality Act 1981 came into effect on 1 January 1983 [3], being born in the UK is not enough to make you British. Your mother or father must also be a British citizen or ‘settled’ in the UK at the time of your birth. What legally counts as being ‘British’ has invited further challenges since Brexit [4].
Statute provides that the Home Secretary cannot deprive a person of British citizenship if it would render them stateless. Home Secretary Sajid Javid asserted that as Begum is the child of immigrant parents of Bangladeshi origin, she theoretically had access to Bangladeshi citizenship. Begum has never been to Bangladesh and the country had already refused to have her. Former Justice of the Supreme Court Jonathan Sumption described Javid’s argument as a ‘legal fiction’ adding, ‘children who make a terrible mistake are surely redeemable. But statelessness is for ever’ [5].
The Home Secretary’s decision on Begum’s citizenship sets a chilling precedent for any citizen whose parents are not born in the UK to have their British citizenship revoked as a purely legal manoeuvre, with no practical application [6].
Sajid Javid deemed Begum to be a risk to national security when he took away her British citizenship from her. In the Court of Appeal, Begum's lawyers argued she was groomed to join Isis group as a minor. Ten days after she arrived in Raqqa, Syria as a 15 year-old, Begum was married to Yago Riedijk, a Dutch Muslim convert. They had three children - a one-year-old girl, a three-month-old boy and a newborn son - all of whom died from malnourishment or disease [7]. The Moon’s separating square from Uranus describes how harshly and abruptly the childhoods of Begum and her offspring ended. The Moon’s placement on the fifth house cusp emphasises the childhood theme. This whole story stems from a misguided childhood decision which is now coming back to haunt Begum as a 24 year-old, as shown by the Moon’s applying opposition to Mercury, her significator.
It has been said that a civilised country would not have made Shamima Begum stateless [8]. The chart for the Court of Appeal hearing confirms that Shamima Beguma was highly unlikely to get justice. Jupiter, the astrological significator for justice, resides in the chart’s darkest house and has no dignity. The natural significator for truth, the Sun, is besieged by Saturn and an afflicted Mercury, and also lacks dignity despite residing in the house of freedom. The house ruling the court judgement contains elevated, angular Pluto with Venus and Mars, rulers of the houses of slavery and imprisonment.
As Mercury and Saturn conjoined the Sun last Wednesday, Begum’s excellent legal team probably surrendered to the hard truth of this situation. The Court of Appeal’s constitutionally legitimate refusal to pronounce on matters of public policy would very likely be upheld by the Supreme Court. Begum’s lawyers have been doing their very best to seek redress for what are essentially political problems via judicial means. The judiciary are not supposed to pronounce on matters that fall within Parliament’s realm of responsibility. Saturn represents the judges as well Begum’s lawyers. All their hands are tied. It is the Home Secretary’s job to resolve Begum’s predicament, as shown by Jupiter’s disposition of Mercury and Saturn. Further legislation, which has to be initiated in and then passed by Parliament, is the only way to ensure that no-one else risks being stripped of their British status on spurious grounds.
References
Shamima Begum Loses Appeal to Overturn Removal of UK Citizenship
A short while ago, the Court of Appeal upheld the Special Immigration Appeals Commission’s decision that the government acted lawfully in 2019 when it removed Shamima Begum’s UK citizenship. The chart for today’s proceedings unequivocally shows that Begum’s bid to restore citizenship would fail.
Photo by Ethan Wilkinson on Unsplash
Earlier this morning in the Court of Appeal, Lady Chief Justice Carr, Lord Justice Bean and Lady Justice Whipple upheld the Special Immigration Appeals Commission’s 2023 decision that the government acted lawfully in 2019 when it removed Shamima Begum’s UK citizenship [1].
East Londoner Begum travelled to Syria as a 15 year old in 2015 to join the Isis group. Her citizenship was revoked on national security grounds shortly after she was found in a Syrian refugee camp in February 2019.
In her judgement, the Head of the Court of Appeal Lady Chief Justice Carr noted that the court’s ‘only task is to assess whether the deprivation decision was unlawful [2]. We have concluded it was not and the appeal is dismissed’.
The chart for the start of today’s proceedings unequivocally shows that Begum’s bid to overturn last year’s decision would fail.
Begum is shown by Mercury who has just entered Pisces, its weakest zone of influence in the zodiac circle. This sign change alone is enough to anticipate the outcome. Supporting testimony is required to strengthen the reliability of this astrological judgement.
Here, Mercury is combust and will then be cazimi, or blinded by the Sun, on 28 February, as will Saturn. Neither Begum nor her legal team are well placed to begin with in this matter and their condition is worsening. The Moon’s applying opposition to Mercury also counts against Begum. All these factors strongly indicate that the court would not rule in her favour today.
Both Mercury and Saturn are ruled by Jupiter who signifies the UK Home Office. This describes how the question of Begum’s UK citizenship ultimately lies in the hands of the Home Secretary.
Finally, Pluto in a fixed sign on a fixed midheaven argues that today’s ruling will render Begum powerless to return to the UK. Her legal team have until next Friday to decide to appeal today’s legal judgement.
