Times to Work on Yourself

There are times when it’s very good for you to focus on improving yourself. Astrologically, you can experience this with transits involving the 1st house, Sun, 8th house, Pluto, or 12th house. The 1st house is the house of the self, and also rules new beginnings, so when you’ve got planets going through this house, you can focus more on you and what you want to be doing and who you want to be. You can also see this with sextiles and trines to the 1st house cusp or ruler. The energy associated with the 1st house tends to be positive and upbeat, so you can work on yourself in a positive, upbeat way.

The Sun rules you, your true self, and transit aspects to your natal Sun can be great times for change. Sextiles and trines can make it easier, but the conjunctions, squares, and oppositions may actually be better for working on yourself because the energy is stronger, and you can be pushed to deal with things you wouldn’t normally but need to work on. This is especially the case with Saturn, Uranus, and Pluto.

The 8th house and its ruler, Pluto, rule transformations, as well as what you hold deep inside of yourself, and show a little of your inner darkness, so it makes sense for transits involving these two to be good for working on yourself. These transits can be much more serious though, and can take time before you see results or feel a change. The change needs to be deep and profound.

The 12th house rules your subconscious mind, so it governs your subconscious issues and motivations, making transits to the 12th house an excellent time for working on those subconscious issues, and better understanding your subconscious motivations. Transit Mars, Saturn, Neptune, or Pluto touring this house can be particularly good for undergoing this kind of self-analysis. The 12th house is also the last house and so is associated with endings and letting go, especially of emotional or spiritual baggage, so a lot of the work you do on yourself under a 12th house transit may be releasing of what you no longer need and has held you back.

(originally in the October 2016 newsletter)