The sun enters Sagittarius II — Austin Coppock called it the Bridle but I prefer to call it the Harness — on I December 2024 at 12:02 pm EST. He moves on to Sagittarius III on December 11, 2024 at 8:26 am EST, making nine days, twenty hours, and 24 minutes.

The ancient Greeks assigned this decan to Kore, a word that simply means “the Maiden,” but may also be a name. This is of course the girl who went down into the earth to be Pluto’s bride… she who would become Persephone as queen of the underworld.

Coppock called this decan The Bridle because it has the energy of persons who need to know the difference between work and rest. I call it The Harness for much the same reason — animals that are new to wearing a harness rarely adjust happily to the work that is expected of them, whether it be a horse adjusting to the saddle and the weight of the rider, or the oxen yoked to the plow, or the donkey or burro learning to be a pack animal for a pedlar. However, they do grow to understand the difference between their “work clothes” when they wear straps and brackets that make it easier for us humans to compel them to work; and their “playtime” when they wear nothing (except maybe a blanket) for their own comfort.

Nor do we humans adjust well to the invisible harnesses of our lives — the regimentation of an industrial-era’s public school, the suit and tie or business dress of the workplace, the face-masks of pandemics, the name-tags of fast-food joints and retail establishments, the false-friendliness of the first-class airline steward. However, as we grow older, we become more accustomed to wearing these various bridles that strap us in to particular habits and modes of thought; and we learn the adage of Steve Martin’s character in, My Blue Heaven, in the scene where he helps Rick Moranis don a new suit jacket, “Sometimes you gotta change from the outside in!” Wearing the right harness, at the right time and place, can make all the difference in how we approach work, or play.

By Chaldean order, this decan belongs to the Moon, and it’s auspicious that the Moon is currently here. She’s in the Nineteenth Mansion, called The Beam, a famous teahouse and traditional inn popular with hunters and travelers, and for bringing friends together… and not in the Twentieth Mansion, The City, much more like a fancy steakhouse for the one-percenters where they scheme and connive to deprive others of both wealth and opportunity. Accordingly, it’s good that the Moon is starting her journey toward the full moon on 15 December with a spring in her step and a desire for favorable outcomes for ordinary folks.

In Alexandria, it was the season of Kore — “the Maiden” of the Hades myth, choosing to go down into the underworld after discovering that her abduction was a binding marriage contract… or at least that six pomegranate seeds meant six months in the cold and lonely underworld. Persephone will emerge in about 120 days, when the Sun rises in Aries II. Although folk etymologies construct her name as “bringer of death,” it may come from a pair of Proto-Indo-European words meaning “grain-thrasher”. But… this is not that woman. This is the scared teenager at the mouth of the steaming cave, with her tearful mother and stern father saying, “you must go in.” Terrified, she goes in anyway.

Months later, she returns as queen of the underworld, a key figure in the mysteries of the risen grain and the harvest that becomes bread, the stuff of life. And it begins with the terrified, courageous act, of directing the youth into the cavern mouth, of planting the seed in the soil… of taking life, and placing it into the ground in a way that prevents it from being eaten or used — or live. What a tremendous sacrifice. And what a great reward.

The dodeks of Sagittarius II speak to this them, by recapitulating the signs of Aries, Taurus, Gemini, and Cancer — here is a secret spring, a hidden season of fertility in the approaching gloom of late autumn or early fall. Some seeds must go into the ground at this time of year, like tulip bulbs or carrots, cabbages or turnips or radishes. If they’re planted now, they will emerge early in the spring and become food crops by summer. In Greece, some winter wheat was planted at this time of year to become the bread of spring and early summer, as well. Here is this hidden fire, this hope, that if we give up some of the food we have now, there will be abundance in some future “starving season.”

House Meanings

The First House, “The Helm”, is Pisces ruled by squaring Jupiter in Gemini, and hosting Saturn and Neptune both retrograde; the recent New Moon has put the Lot of Fortune here as well, while sextile Venus and squaring Moon provide additional support. A female boss or supervisor is likely cramp your style this week, but you should accept the critique; a female friend can provide additional support and help you glow up into finding the right formal vision of yourself. It would be easy to blow off the criticism and just “do as you’ve always done” — but this is a week you should take the hint, and do some self-care for the safe of your household and its well-being.

The Second House of Wealth is Aries ruled by trining Mars in Leo. Buying new clothes or outfitting yourself in a new way for a daily routine can get expensive, and you’re going to find that you want more resources than you have. Some daily habits may have to change, and you may have to restrict your self in some routines in order to be able to afford new needs.

The Third House of the Goddess is Taurus ruled by trining Venus in Capricorn, hosting Uranus retrograde. Squaring Mars promises challenging occasions and contention with “blood families” but support and love from “chosen families” — you won’t be able to just choose one or the other here, though; do your best to keep the peace.

The Fourth House of Home is Gemini ruled by opposing Mercury retrograde who is in mutual reception with Jupiter retrograde in Gemini; squaring Saturn frustrates and challenges family expectations by demanding more for your self-hood. Ongoing shifts in your career and home life require both big-picture thinking and drilling down into the details — but that selfish attitude of both you and your housemates is going to cause trouble. Are you a team, together, or just some folks thrust together unwillingly?

The Fifth House of Pleasures is Cancer ruled by an inconjunct Moon in Sagittarius and getting support only from an opposed Venus in Capricorn. If you are a man, or mass-presenting, when important women and girls in your life tell you important things this week — believe them, immediately, even when it’s inconvenient or uncharacteristically blunt or out of alignment with your own personal experience. Your friends, your family, your kids… all are more likely to open up to truth that you need to hear this week, and you will have a LOT less fun in the future if you choose to discount their experiences now.

The Sixth House of Toils is Leo ruled by a trining Sun in Sagittarius and hosting Mars. Jupiter retrograde in Gemini gives support from the sextile. My mother was fond of saying, “everyone likes being seen, but nobody likes being watched.” Unfortunately, it’s a week when bosses, supervisors, and rivals are all likely to be watching very closely. It’s less about being busy and productive, than it is about appearing to be productive and busy. To attract too much notice this week is not likely to go well — practice being beneath notice because you’re working on something important, profitable, and worthy of your pay scale.

The Seventh House of Relationships is Virgo ruled by a squaring Mercury retrograde in Sagittarius. The Moon makes an uncomfortable square but Venus is a supportive trine. It will be too easy to look at your spouse or partner with way too much cold calculation this coming week, and lose sight of the forest in all the highly detailed trees. Don’t fall into analysis paralysis, especially in long-term relationships — and it’s worth remembering that nobody is only who they have to be on the most trying days of their lives. Remember to shine a light on the memory of your spouse or significant other’s best selves, and not just on who they are on a terrible, horrible, no-good, very bad day.

The Eighth House of Obligations is Libra ruled by a squaring Venus, but receiving support from a trining Jupiter and a sextile Mercury. There are financial and market systems that are going to be sorely challenged in the next ten days, and this will lead to trouble for your household and for your workplace. In the office, focus on speaking the right buzzwords and presenting the right data-sets to show why no one could have predicted this; at home with your family, think about the bigger picture and draw your friends in for the best forms of mutual support — because of course you’ve been paying attention to the bigger picture all along, right? How could anyone not have seen this coming? Save your best work for family, in other words, even as you cover your ass with gobbledegook with your corporate overlords.

The Ninth House of Travel is Scorpio ruled by squaring Mars in Leo, promising secrets uncovered in the last push to semester’s end in college and university, and almost-sensual delays in holiday travel plans (for some people, that may be a gut-punch in the groin; for others it will feel like foreplay). Allow additional time for travel — know that it’s going to be a week for learning things you might not want to have known — recognize that sunlight is usually the best medicine even if it hurts.

The Tenth House of Honor is Sagittarius ruled by opposing Jupiter retrograde in Gemini but who’s in mutual reception with hosted Mercury; both the Moon and Sun are also at home here on the Midheaven. Sagittarians experience a rare week of honor, recognition, praise, and reward during these next ten days, and gain significantly as they’re approached about taking on new projects or new leadership roles. These may pull them away from family members for a period of time, but the rewards are worth the engagement. Others may find that the eyes of their employers or hierarchical superiors are more feral and predatory than usual; don’t blink, stare back.

The Eleventh House of Friends is Capricorn ruled by sextile Saturn in Pisces, hosting supportive Venus. The instinct to hoard, to repair, to fix, to retain, to remedy, and to restore friendships is going to be strong this week, but it’s worth taking note of Queen Elizabeth II’s processes here, too — the crown can never be seen to fail, and someone has to take the blame for majesty’s shortcomings. Let a female friend do the hand-holding while you make plans to shuffle off the people in your life who’ve wronged you but are still somehow “friends” with you.

The Twelfth House of Challenges is Aquarius ruled by inconjunct Saturn in Pisces, but “supported” by sextile Mercury and trining Jupiter, both of whom are retrograde. Aquarius plays host to Pluto, as it will do for the next nineteen years. You’ll be substantially dependent upon “those who know” — that is, those whose profession and responsibility it is to know how to do things, and what to do, in the coming ten days. But those people’s responsibility is to themselves, to their household, to their employer or to their professional code of ethics… and not to you. Expect that rising costs are going to eat at your substance… and that you in turn will have to claim the costs of what you yourself know. On the one hand, don’t be greedy; and on the other, recognize that you have a window of opportunity to be true to yourself and to your people here.

Horoscopes

Decan I of any sign (usually covering the 21st of the month to the first of the following month) is free to all visitors; Decan II is only available to Patreon and Ko-Fi.com subscribers; and Decan III is available to Patreon, Ko-Fi, and MailChimp subscribers.

I recommend reading your Sun sign, Moon sign, and Rising sign for best results. I write them with rising sign in mind, but several people have told me they find that they do better with all three.

Pisces:

Aries:

Taurus:

Gemini:

Cancer:

Leo:

Virgo:

Libra:

Scorpio:

Sagittarius:

Capricorn:

Aquarius:

Colophon

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If you want to read some of my astrologically-oriented poetry, the largest collection is called A Full Volume of Splendor and Starlight, available through my Etsy shop, and containing poems and hymns to the planets, constellations, decan deities, and Moon Mansion angels. While not astrological, Festae contains hymns to some of the older Roman gods and spirits from the calendar created by Numa Pompilius, the second ancient King of Rome.

I use iPhemeris for my charting software, and screenshot it to make charts. I want to thank the team that develops iPhemeris for the addition of Terms and Decans to their charts. I also use Hugh Tran‘s Physis typeface to craft logos for this blog, as well.

I use Christopher Warnock‘s The Mansions of the Moon as the basis of my Moon placement delineations, and Austin Coppock‘s 36 Faces for much of my planetary delineations. Neither gentleman endorses me.