A mighty week is upon us, inaugurated on Sunday, November 3, 2024, by the opposition between Mars and Pluto that will occur two more times in the coming months due to Mars’ impending retrograde motion.
Astrologically, Pluto is given dominion over the region of Scorpio, a constellation once ruled by Mars. Given this switch, it’s easy to assume that their “cosmic relationship” is competitive or even contentious.
The region of Scorpio is highlighted by its brightest star Antares, which means “anti-Ares,” or “rival of Ares.” Ares is the Greek God of war equivalent to the Roman Mars, so here we get a clue about why these relationships might be considered fraught.
But maybe Antares has this relationship with Mars not out of contention, but because, as a fixed star, Antares has the ability, or maturity, to stand up to and even to resist Mars, thereby giving form to Mars’ unbridled or aggressive behavior.
Lately, I’ve been thinking of the challenges we face in the context of Michelangelo as a sculptor, standing before a block of marble and recognizing something as graceful as the pietà within its unformed mass. Releasing the form from the dense rock requires simultaneous force and precision, and never losing sight of the goal, despite the strength required to boldly carve out graceful form in the densest of materials. The beauty resulting from this strenuous effort in no way belies what it took to bring it into being.
Perhaps this is how we meet the opportunities presented to us by Mars and Pluto in opposition, as Michaelangelo, who said: I saw the angel in the marble and carved until I set him free.
~Mary
This episode of The Storyteller’s Night Sky airs on Interlochen Public Radio Monday, November 4, 2024 and can be heard on podcasts anytime, wherever you listen. Cover image shows the thinnest crescent of Moon sweeping by Antares in Scorpio, just as the planets Mars and Pluto (not shown) come to the first of three oppositions, when viewed from the earth (November 3, 2024, January 3 and April 26, 2025). With Venus nearby, the accent is on releasing the beauty from whatever challenges. Image from Sky&Telescope.