April and Aries

Let's look at the transits to my chart for 10:30am on April 16th 2026. The activity in Aries in intense as Figure 1 shows:

Figure 1

Figure 2 focuses on the planetary positions:

Figure 2

We see the following transiting aspects:

• Sun and Chiron conjunct my natal North Node
• Moon and Saturn conjunct in 7 degrees of Aries
• Mercury and Neptune conjunct my natal Mercury
• Uranus conjunct my natal Moon

It's certainly a busy time, certainly for the world and possibly also for me. I guess the Uranus conjunction to my natal Moon is most concerning. When Uranus stationed on my Ascendant in late July of 2016, my gall bladder died. At least this time, the planet is not stationing but it's still a concern.

A Black Cloud

Shortly after 6pm today, March 8th of 2026, a very heavy feeling washed over me and I felt quite depressed. It came out of nowhere and vanished within the hour but the experience was so unusual that I drew up a chart for the time it happened. See Figure 1.

Figure 1

At the time, transiting Venus was passing over transiting Saturn and both were conjunct my natal Mercury. Though the planets do not affect us directly, their positions reflect what is happening in our psyches and what was happening in my psyche wasn't pleasant at all. Depression occurs when libido is blocked. We are not connected to source. The Saturn archetype, that works to limit and control, is clearly the culprit.Venus and Mercury are the inner planets leading to the Sun, our source of life and vitality, but I felt very cut off from that.

Revisiting Spiritual Discipline

On Sunday February 15th 2026, Saturn will enter Aries for a two year stay. It already popped in but then popped back into Pisces. I asked Nano Bananas to create a graphic using this prompt:

Create an image around the theme of SPIRITUAL DISCIPLINE. The image should contain the astrological glyphs and physical images of Saturn and Neptune. The emphasis should be on the synergy between these two very different planetary energies: the materialism and concreteness of Saturn meets the etherealness and diffuseness of Neptune. The image should be in a 1 : 1 aspect ratio. Colours should be warm and a golden brown should suffuse the scene.

Here is what it came up with:

A conjunction of the two planets will occur on February 20th 2026 in the first degree of Aries. The last occurrence was about 9000 years ago.

Looking ahead to my 77th birthday, a chart drawn up for that time is shown in Figure 1.

Figure 1

Outstanding features are:

• transiting Uranus conjunct natal Moon
• transiting Neptune conjunct natal Mercury
• transiting Chiron conjunct Ascendant

Uranus Station

Tomorrow Uranus will cease its retrograde motion and turn stationary direct in 27º27' of Taurus very near my natal Moon in 29º27'. See Figure 1.

Figure 1

Its effects are already been felt in terms of relocating from my current abode. The Moon is the ruler of my fourth house and being in Taurus this means that my domestic situation can remain stable for long periods of time. However, with natal Pluto in my fourth house, this means that the situation is sooner or later swept away. This seems to be one of those times. The presence of Uranus accounts for the suddenness.

Uranus first swept across my natal Moon in late June of 2025 at which time I was in Australia amidst health concerns. It stationed in 1º27' of Gemini in early September of 2025 and around this time I returned to Jakarta. In late November of 2025 it crossed my natal Moon heading toward its current station. On April 15th of 2026, it will cross my natal Moon for the last time in my current lifetime. With Uranus so active, I'm sure there are surprises ahead.

Uranus will now move forward into Gemini but will of course retrograde and station in 1º41' of Gemini in early February of 2027. This will occur with the same separation in longitude from my natal Moon as the current station. So Uranus will be remain active in this area of my life for another year or more. 

Sun-Venus-Mars Conjunction

Figure 1 shows the forthcoming conjunction of Sun, Venus and Mars around January 6th to 8th of 2026 in the area of 16º to 18º of Capricorn. The conjunction is opposed by Jupiter in 20º retrograde of Cancer.  The midpoint between my Ascendant and Sun is almost exactly 19º Aries so it's likely to have some effect on me.

Figure 1

Here is what Gemini had to say about the synodic period of Venus and Mars.

The synodic period of Mars and Venus relative to each other—specifically the interval between their conjunctions as viewed from Earth—is approximately 2.13 years (about 780 days) on average.

However, this interval is highly irregular compared to the standard synodic periods of planets relative to the Sun. While the mathematical average is about 2.13 years, the actual gap between conjunctions can swing between roughly 1.9 years and 2.6 years due to the planets' complex relative motions.

Here is a breakdown of why this happens and how the cycle works:

1. The "Geocentric" Mechanism

To understand the timing, it helps to view the motions from Earth's perspective:

• Mars moves relatively slowly across the sky. The Sun (and Earth) "laps" Mars every 780 days (Mars's synodic period).

• Venus is an "inferior" planet, meaning it is tethered to the Sun from our perspective. It never strays more than 47° from the Sun.

• The Result: Since Venus always stays close to the Sun, it effectively "tags along" with the Sun as the Sun laps Mars. Therefore, Venus also passes Mars on average every 780 days.

2. Why the Interval Varies

Unlike the Sun, which moves at a relatively steady pace along the ecliptic, Venus oscillates back and forth around the Sun (appearing as the Morning Star or Evening Star).

• Short Interval (~1.9 years): If Venus is on the "leading" side of the Sun during one pass and on the "trailing" side during the next, it catches up to Mars sooner.

• Long Interval (~2.6 years): If Venus is "trailing" the Sun and then switches to "leading" for the next encounter, the gap between conjunctions widens significantly.

• Triple Conjunctions: Occasionally, if Mars is moving very slowly (near retrograde) and Venus swings past it, reverses, and passes it again, you can get three conjunctions in a short span of a few months.

Summary of Recent & Future Conjunctions

To illustrate the irregularity, here are recent and upcoming dates:

• July 13, 2021: Conjunction (Separation ~0.5°)

• February 22, 2024: Conjunction (Interval: ~2.6 years)

• January 8, 2026: Next Conjunction (Interval: ~1.9 years)

Note on Visibility: The conjunction on January 8, 2026, will be very difficult to see because both planets will be very close to the Sun in the sky (solar conjunction).  

Comparison: Heliocentric Period

If you were floating in space looking at the planets orbiting the Sun (heliocentric view), Mars and Venus align much more frequently—every 334 days. We don't see this from Earth because our own orbital motion constantly shifts our viewing angle.

Eris

Having made a post about Eris in my Astrology blog (link), I've now added it to my natal chart (Figure 1) and considered its current position relative to my chart (Figure 2).

Figure 1

Figure 2

As can be seen, transiting Eris is now retrograde and sitting right on my Ascendant and is likely to be in that vicinity for quite some time. Transiting Chiron is close by. Eris will turn stationary direct in 24º37' of Aries on January 11th of 2026. This dwarf planet will remain in Aries until 2044.

Jupiter Station

It seems that transiting Jupiter is heading for a station near a sensitive point in my chart. Figure 2 shows the alignments.

Figure 1

The Jupiter station will occur on November 11th 2025 in 25º09' of Cancer, square my Ascendant and very close to my Nadir. At the same time, transiting Saturn will be in 25º23' retrograde of Pisces, so the two planets will be in trine. Jupiter is currently moving forward through Cancer but it will station and turn retrograde on the day mentioned. Transiting Chiron will be retrograde in 23º45' of Aries, very close to my Ascendant and in a square aspect to transiting Jupiter.