Astrology of the Week Ahead with Chani Nicholas - The Week of July 17th: A New Moon, Venus retrograde, and much, much more

Episode Date: July 17, 2023

Episode 135 In this podcast, New York Times bestselling author and astrologer Chani Nicholas discusses the astrology of the week and what it might mean for us all.  The astrology of the week of July 17th, 2023, is chock-full of incredibly impactful astrology. On Monday, Mercury (the planet of communication) squares Jupiter (the planet of luck), bringing us big and impactful news. Later that same day, there’s a New Moon in Cancer opposing Pluto, helping us give ourselves the care we need. Also on Monday, the nodes of the Moon change signs, providing an increase of energy in the area of our charts that contains Aries and a release in the part of our charts that contains Libra. On Thursday, Mars (the planet of courage) opposes Saturn (the planet of boundaries), calling attention to a problem we have to contend with. On Friday, the Sun opposes Pluto (the planet of transformation), shining a light on something that is usually hidden. Also on Friday, the Sun makes a square to the lunar nodes, adding a fated feeling to our revelations. On Saturday, Venus (the planet of pleasure) stations retrograde, urging us to reclaim our desires and deepest feelings amid systems of supremacy. Then, the Sun enters Leo, which is a great time to adorn yourself and bring some flare to your life. On Sunday, Chiron stations retrograde, pulling focus to a wound we are working on healing. Finally, Mercury squares Uranus (the planet of disruption), which could present us with shocking news. This is one of the biggest weeks of the summer, so be extra caring with yourself and refuse to take on work that isn’t yours to take on.  For more, check out your free daily horoscope on the homepage of the CHANI app. Android users can receive their free daily horoscope on the CHANI website. The CHANI app is currently only available for the iPhone, but we are working as hard and as fast as we can on an Android app. In the meantime, Android users can access our content by purchasing the Android Workshops on chani.com. The music featured in the podcast was created by Latashá.

Hello and welcome. This is the Astrology of the Week Ahead podcast. I'm your host, Channy Nicholas. This week is one for the books. There is some incredibly impactful astrology happening. And there's a lot of it. And it's all happening this week. And it all speaks to different themes. So there's not just one thing going on. There are many things happening at the the same time. And that's life. You know, there are those moments where things feel like congested and sticky, but also some really good new beginnings happening and also some really deep moments of reflection. And there is something that's encouraging us to get very close to what we value and very, very true to our heart's desire. In this point,

podcast, we look at the astrology of the upcoming week and how it will be landing for all of us collectively. For a more personalized reading that dives into the ways that this week's astrology will play out for you, download the Chani app for iPhone. I'm not going to cover every single thing that happens this week. I mean, I might, but I think it would get too long. I really want to focus on the big, big moments, and there's too many of them anyways. So Monday, we start out with something that feels really big and boisterous, Mercury Squares Jupiter, not a major thing, but just want to take note that there is something that feels like exciting and there's news that comes that feels big or impactful in some way. And then we have

the new moon in cancer. Now, normally any kind of moon in cancer is wonderful. I'm not saying this isn't, but I am saying this new moon is coming during a week where there are incredible obstacles and also again some deep reflective moments. This new moon and cancer is sitting in a pretty tight opposition with Pluto, which means that it's really good for helping us get down into the underbelly of something. It's a new moon and cancer, so it's going to help us to get down to the root of an emotion or to uncover some kind of feeling. or deep need that we have. It's a really good new moon to make an intention to commit to your nourishment in whatever way you know you need to nourish yourself now. It's a really good day.

It's a really good new moon to think about the ways in which you're learning to reparent yourself. I know I said that about the Capricorn full moon that happened a couple of weeks ago, but honestly, same same in a kind of different way on the other. other side of the coin. This is like, okay, I have access to the care. How do I want to be intentional with it? And this new moon is also inviting us to go deep into something. So if we're starting something, if we're working with this new moon to begin something, which you can, I'm just saying that it's intense. It's not like a really like wonderful, dreamy, abundant. kind of imprint on this new moon. This new moon is like, I need to go deep into this thing. This is an

intense mission. I've taken it on with full conscious awareness and it's going to help me investigate something. It's going to help me to root down. It's going to help me to uncover something here that I need to uncover. So it's a time, if you will, to do something that might feel a little bit challenging or you could not. You know what I mean? Like you could just be like, I'm just not going to with this new moon. It's fine. You can just kind of let it pass. The thing is, is that on the day of the new moon, on Monday, we're still just on Monday, the nodes change signs. And the nodes are places where eclipses happen. So when they change signs, which they do about every 18 months, it means that we're going to start working with a new story.

Now, we just had an Aries eclipse a couple of months ago. On April 19th, that was the first eclipse in Ares that we've had near the North Node in a couple decades. That was when the North node was still in Taurus. Now that node has moved into Ares and the south node has moved into Libra as of Monday. And this signals a shift. So in the area of your chart that contains, Aries, there's going to be an increase of energy and an increase of desire and an increase of

wanting to forge ahead with full courage and do something bold and probably quite exciting. On the other hand, the part of your chart that contains Libra is going to be hosting the South Node. And the South Node is about release and letting go. The South Node is about, in a lot of ways, coming to terms with something. that needs to be offered out or up or back to its source. So the area of your chart that contains Libra is going to be going through a big clearing and cleansing. We haven't yet had a eclipse near the South Node in Libra this year. We're going to have that in a couple of months.

We are halfway in between eclipses as of this week. So really important to know the part of your triut that contains. the house in your chart that contains Aries and Libra. We talk about that at length in this week's reading in the Chani app. Go to your weekly reading. And it's going to shift things in our life. So a part of the focus in our life starts to shift to those areas, to the parts of our chart. And therefore the areas of our life that are being worked by this nodal shift.

And it's kind of wild that there's a new moon, cancer, the moon belongs in cancer as the ruler of cancer. And then the nodes, which are the nodes of the moon, also change signs. So it just feels like there's a lot of change in the air. There might be a lot of new beginnings because that new moon is sitting in opposition to Pluto. It does feel intense and cathartic and emotionally charged. So just, you know, use that info as you need it. And then the next thing that happens is on Thursday, and it's a big one. On Thursday, Mars makes an opposition to Saturn. And we're going to be feeling this all week, and you probably have felt it last week when Mars entered Virgo on the 10th of July. And we've been leading up to this moment from July 10th to now.

This is the first time that Mars and Saturn are making an opposition immutable signs. Saturn just entered Pisces back in March of 2023. And so this is a new kind of setup. And it's interesting because Mars and Saturn are like mortal enemies. We could think of them as such. So you can think of this as like mirroring something in your life where you're like, not that, anything but that. And then you're like, there it is.

That's the problem that's going to arise or that's the obstacle that I have to work through. or that's the thing that I've got to contend with. That's like the thing I don't want to contend with. But once we do contend with it, we feel like, okay, if I can do that, what else can I do? You know what I mean? Like there's something here that tests us. And if we're like, okay, this is a test week, then we can go into it being like, I'm going to hone my skills. I'm going to be very specific and I'm going to be incredibly strategic. Be as strategic as you

possibly can. Think about the most strategic people that you know, talk to them, interview them, think about the role models in the world that are incredibly strategic in the best possible way and think, what would they do? And then try to embody that kind of wisdom. That's what a Mars Saturn opposition wants us to do. It's like we can't not do the thing. This is something we've got to work through. And for some of you that will feel like a block. And for some of you, it will feel like a hefty workload. And for some of you, it will feel like a no or a stop sign or something that is non-negotiable. In any of those cases, there's something to be learned here. Generally, what I tend to learn with a hard Mars-Saturn situation is like, wow, I totally underestimated

this project, this situation, my time and energy and capacity, and what it would take to get this thing done. And then I'm usually handed a nice reality check and I got to cash it because that's life. It's tough. So there's tough stuff here. It could be psychological. It could be emotional. It's probably going to be pretty practical. And because Mars and Saturn are in these mutable signs, Virgo and Pisces, it's also like a little bendy, right? So there is space to bend the rules, I think, but still it requires us to be exceptionally strategic and really cognizant of every little piece of space or time or resources that we can work with. Again, strategic. So look where things are wobbly and maybe a little movable, but also.

So do not overbook yourself this week. I've been saying that for weeks now. Just give yourself extra space to work through whatever obstacle is here. The thing about these moments, these hard Mars-Saturn moments, is they're exceptionally clarifying. And you're like, ah, that is the exact skill that I need to develop. This is the exact thing that I need to know. And this is the specific shape of this obstacle. I can't pretend that I don't know what it is.

And knowing what it is gives me the capacity to be like, okay, these are my options to deal with this thing. I got to choose one. I'll choose the best one and I'll just go forward. So think as practically as you possibly can. And like what would like the best coach or the best strategist do in this situation? How do we win the game no matter the obstacles we've got? Or how do we play the best game or the game with the most intubstant?

And that's really the thing to win at here is to stay in integrity and to stay with the best choice for the situation, for yourself, for your entire well-being while moving through this kind of moment. Then on Friday, on Friday, the sun makes an opposition to Pluto that was present in the new moon, but it's really like peaking by Friday. So again, it feels like a deep cathartic moment where something gets uncovered, where we are faced with a power differential or something that feels like, oh, that's sneaky or that's underhanded or that's really covert. There's something that could get exposed like a light is being shone on something that's usually underground. Then, at the same time, the sun makes a square to the nodes that just entered cardinal signs. is the very end of cancer season. And that also feels quite pivotal. We are exactly in between eclipses now.

This is the moment that there's like something gets revealed that also feels fated in nature. So Friday does feel quite shadowy. It does feel quite suspect. It does feel like we should pay attention to what's being illuminated here. And that might be very much on the world stage and not really in your own person. life. So just want to say that. It might be. And again, we talk about this in your reading for the week and where this is happening and what to pay attention to you. But like, this is some tough stuff. You know, Thursday, Friday feels like hefty and severe in some cases and also like, whoa, that's

dramatic or that's extreme or that's really intense to be uncovered. Like that kind of thing is like, okay, let's let's not cover that up. Let's let's let's let. it be exposed and revealed, seeing the bones of something almost. And it might be related to what happened in the last eclipse, could be related to what's upcoming in the next eclipses in a couple months. And on Saturday, Venus stations retrograde, like one of the biggest pieces of astrology this year, Venus stationing retrograde, and also the nodes changing signs, and also Mars making an opposition to Saturn. Like those three things are huge for 2023, and they're all happening this week. Okay, so Venus stations retrograde in Leo. This is dramatic, theatrical. It's like lights,

camera action. I'm ready for my close-up. And the close-up is Venus, which is our relationships, the way we value each other, the ways in which we can center what we value in our relationships and in our lives. This is about beauty. This is about art. This is about the creative force, the creative muses, hopefully that we entertain and feed and devote ourselves to. Venus retrograde is a major moment. And in the year, but also personally, and what it teaches us is always how to go back and retrieve something from a part of ourselves that has felt rejected or maligned or relegated to the outskirts. It is also a sense. sense of like being in an underworld journey, kind of like a Mercury retrograde, but this is an underworld

journey to reclaim something of your desire, of your deepest feeling of your heart. And Leo rules the heart. And this is Venus, which is relationship. So it just feels very poignant and probably quite poetic. And because it's Venus, Venus rules women and femmes and feminine energy and the arts and relationships, beauty, et cetera, stylists, styling, all kinds of beauty creators. But there should be most likely over the course of the next couple of weeks, as Venus does its retrograde, they'll most likely be some headlines that will be related to issues that folks that fall under those categories experience. So there's always that to look forward to a, specific type of articulation of the patriarchy and the violence that it inflicts usually comes up during a Venus retrograde.

It might not, but I always assume that something in that vein will. And just in our own personal life, it's like what would it look like to reclaim our own erotic energy from heterosus normative white supremacist patriarchy? Because that's a part of this Venus retrograde. It is reclaiming our own unique self-expression when it comes to our erotic energy. And all those systems that I just mentioned massively clamp down on our ability to express it or wants to, right? So like how do we uncouple ourselves from those systems in our imagination, in our self-expression, in our bodies, in our relationships? What does it look like to do that work in our relationships in a really deep and sincere? kind of way. Like, I don't want to perpetuate the model of supremacy or extraction that we live

within. So what does it look like to be in relationships where, again, we're really clear on what we value and we center those things together. What can we create when we do that? And then Leo season occurs. So then we've got, you know, Venus and the sun in Leo. And it sheds light on our all of this as well. So it should be a fairly dramatic, tenderizing Leo season. It will definitely help us get to the root of something and help us to heal it. It's a great time to adorn yourself. Venus loves adoration. Leo loves a little attention, has that ability to get it, has that kind of flare. So it's a good time to like bring some of that in and evoke some of that. Venus's color is green. Leo's color is gold, vibrant, you know, yellows, oranges, reds. So you can bring some of that

in to honor this transit. And then on Sunday we've got Chiron stationing retrograde. Not the biggest deal of the year by far, but I always notice when Chiron stations retrograde are direct. I don't really pay attention to a ton of other Chiron aspects, to be honest, unless it's conjunctions. But when it does station, it pulls focus and, you know, it always pulls focus on a wound that we're working on healing or the pain that we've yet to acknowledge can kind of keek. So, you know, we're already dealing with Venus retrograde stuff. It does feel like a little bit of a challenging weekend. And again, it might not be for you personally. This might be stuff that starts to unfold on the world stage. I just want us to, again, be mindful of that Mars, Saturn situation that happens on Thursday.

You might just need some extra time to rest and recuperate this weekend and do some Venus stuff. Be in gardens. Be in bed. Be with lovers and loves. And be in beauty. Be with art. Be creating art. Be filling your life. with flowers and beautiful things and loves and music and song, dance, all of it. That's how we are able to pay alms to Venus. So it's a great way to start the Venus retrograde because it really is about art and creative self-expression at least on one level here. So think about that.

Think about how you can honor your muses and maybe reclaim your relationship with them. Maybe that's what it's about for you. Again, we go in-depth. about what this is for you on the Chani app and both your weekly reading and also the year ahead reading for July. At the end and end of everything, Mercury makes a square to Uranus, which feels also like a little bit of shocking news. Anyways, there's enough big things going on that I'm sure it will all feel like it's coming together in a lot of different ways and kind of layers and levels of things. And we put together a ritual for you to help you work through

some of this on the app. We have guided meditations and affirmations to support you through this. So I hope that all of this info is helpful. I never, ever, ever want it to be alarming. I just want you to have it so that you know the quality of time we're about to move through. And you can be extra tender and caring with yourself and refuse to take on work that isn't yours to take on. Those are the two things I want you to come away with after listening to this. Thank you all so much for leaving us reviews in the app store. I wanted to share this one with you. It's called the astrology app of all astrology apps by At My Directions Fund. The Chani app would be one of my three necessities if I'm stranded on an island.

I'm so serious, the insights, the comfort, the accessibility. This app has been my favorite for over two years now, and I'm recommending it to everyone, even slightly interested in astrology. Is it possible to have a comfort app? As a cancer rising, I think it is. The meditations are so helpful, especially during rougher transits, and I love having journal prompts to aid me in making the most of the magic. The alter suggestions are also helpful.

I can't say enough about how deeply I love and appreciate Chani and the whole team involved. Heart emoji. I'm sending you so much love, so many blessings. I will see you back here next week to talk about the rest of July. Bye for now.