TAURUS (April 20-May 20): This week Mars is closer to Earth than it has been since cavemen roamed the planet. It also happens to be midway through a five-month sojourn in your astrological House of Networking, which is its longest stay since 1956. Because the red planet invigorates everything it influences, you could very well be a whiz at winning friends and influencing people from now until December. But unless you respond with all your passionate ingenuity to the arousing Martian energy, it may also have a disruptive effect. Go all the way, give everything you have, and don’t hold back.
GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Do you think you’d enjoy being able to focus all your ambitions in one overarching dream? Can you imagine what it might be like not to feel your desires split in five different directions? While your predilection for versatility and vacillation isn’t necessarily a bad thing, it might be interesting at some point in your life to explore the ferocious pleasures of single-mindedness. It so happens that now is a perfect moment to launch such an exploration. Mars, the planet that rules willpower and determination, is currently expressing tremendous force in your astrological House of Total Commitment. There has rarely been a better time for you to stabilize your purpose and steel your resolve.
CANCER (June 21-July 22): The largest mountain on Mars, Olympus Mons, is almost three times the size of Mount Everest. It should serve as your sacred symbol of power in the coming months. Why? Because the red planet is now pouring extra mojo into your astrological House of Exploration, and will continue to do so through mid-December. You will have the ability to pull off frontier adventures that are equivalent to climbing to the top of Olympus Mons.
LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): It’s a perfect moment to purge romantic karma left over from the old days. You shouldn’t go another week without doing a ritual to dissolve the bad memories, lingering resentments and ancient wounds that have continued to tweak your intimate relationships. It’s also time to kill off your outdated dogmas about gender roles and to blow up any obstacles that interfere with your ability to experience total sexual pleasure. How can I be so sure? Mars, the planet of creative destruction, is currently bringing its tough love to your astrological House of Sexy Emotions. It will liberate you from influences that prevent you from finding more beautiful and flagrant ways to enjoy your libido.
VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): Astronomers are uncertain about how brightly Mars will glow this week. It’ll be as close as it ever gets to both the Earth and sun, and should theoretically be a dazzling beacon. But there’s a possibility that huge dust storms will sweep the planet, increasing its reflectivity and boosting its illumination even further. I predict that you will be as shiny and brilliant as Mars, and that any storms passing your way will only make you shinier and more brilliant.
LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): Mars is not only a heavenly body, but also an aspect of your psyche. Your inner Mars consists of your ambition, animal energy, willpower and sex drive. Your ambition will get back on track now if you give it a chiropractic-like adjustment; your animal energy will return to full vitality if you stop doing the careless thing that’s weakening it; your willpower has been muted by the consequences of a past mistake, but you now have the insight to correct the mistake; your sex drive is not as pure and strong as it could be, but will become so if you will just get clearer about what really turns you on.
SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Michel Gauquelin (1928-1991) was a French statistician and psychologist who set out to prove astrology is bunk. To his surprise, he found some scientific evidence demonstrating its validity. One striking discovery was the Mars Effect: There is a significant probability of world-class athletes and military leaders being born when the red planet is rising in the sky. I believe you are now benefiting from a variation on this phenomenon. Mars, which is one of your astrological rulers, is closer to Earth than it has been in 60,000 years. It is also in the midst of a rare five-month visit to your House of Creative Self-Expression. This not only means you are extra fertile; you’re also at the peak of your physical vigor and your ability to emerge victorious in competitive struggles.
SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): You and your tribe are the restless explorers of the zodiac. Your wanderlust sometimes becomes so consuming that you forget how important it is to have a home base. And when you suffer from that delusion, you aren’t likely to devote much creativity to keeping your foundations strong. Luckily, you’re now in a phase when you can’t possibly get away with this ignorance. The energizing planet Mars is stirring up a flood of feelings and ideas about what you need to sustain you.
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): Mars is extremely up-close and personal right now. Not since the time of the Neanderthals has the red planet veered so near to the Earth. In cosmic terms, it’s practically on top of us, ladies and gentlemen. It’s in our faces. It’s forcing us to deal with its favorite agendas. That means you’d better communicate with concise candor in all matters related to your ambitions and sexuality. Find a way to express your burning desires with uncompromising integrity.
AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): Mars is closer to Earth right now than it has been since the Old Stone Age. At the same time, amazingly enough, it’s also making its nearest approach to the sun. As a result, we’re able to get our best look ever at the melting of the red planet’s south polar cap. This rare confluence provides a good metaphor for the effect that the intensified Martian vibes are likely to have on you as they impact your astrological House of Finances and Possessions. I believe your frozen assets are about to thaw.
PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): Mars usually cruises through a sign in five to eight weeks, but it has been in Pisces since June 16 and will remain there until December 16 — its longest stay since 1956. But that’s not all: Mars is now closer to Earth than it has been in 60,000 years. During this unprecedented convergence of unusual events, I predict that your relationship with the red planet will be more intense and intimate than it ever has been. Here are some of the tasks you can expect cosmic assistance with: discovering secrets about how to ask forcefully for what you really want; making your strategies for success more foolproof and irresistible; and getting very clear about the life goals that are most important for you to pursue in the next 10 years. Write a one-page dissertation on "How I Channeled the Fiery Mars Force into Love and Clarity Instead of Anger and Chaos." Send it to
