Being an air sign, Libra is usually very logical, objective, and emotionally detached in its analyses of what is just, fair, and equal in our exchanges and interactions with others. Yet when passions and possessions are added to the mix of considerations as they are in this conjunction of Mars and Ceres in Libra (exact at 7:09a PDT on Saturday 12th July 2014), that logic, objectivity, and detachment may be challenged like never before.
Libra is also associated with peace and beauty, creating a popular belief that Libra strives to keep the peace – to be diplomatic so it doesn’t ever get its hands “dirty”. However, I have found that true peace and beauty emerge once balance, fairness, and equality are established either in an environment or within ourselves. That said, we aren’t usually dealing with environments that are truly balanced, fair, just, and/or equal. And when matters are not fair, not just, or not equal, the illusion or pretense of peace and beauty can be used to cover up the imbalances – to ignore them or act as if they don’t exist. This is when Libra is willing to get its hands dirty – when it recognizes a need to jump on the other side of the scale in order to restore true equality and fairness to situations, relationships, and partnerships of all kinds.
Mars is the planet and energy of action and activity. It takes initiative, and in the sign of Libra, it applies that initiative to the restoration of those Libran ideals. Mars is known as the fiery warrior of the Zodiac, and can be very assertive if not aggressive in its efforts to bring fairness and justice to the matters at hand. This is how Mars represents “the passions” in this dynamic.
Ceres brings personal lifestyle matters to the fore, revealing our personal values and morals as result. Ceres is the physical mother of the Zodiac (in comparison to Cancer, the emotional mother), making sure that each of us has what we need in order to survive and thrive. In Libra, Ceres is bringing a heightened awareness to our material, physical, and financial resource needs and desires and how they are being handled. Questions of whether or not lifestyle resources are being distributed equally or fairly and/or whether or not the resources are being used in fair and just ways are coming to Light now more than ever. This is how Ceres represents “the possessions” in this dynamic.
Value-based relationships are healthy and good when both or all parties are exchanging resources or services of perceived equal value out of the arrangement – it’s the foundation of the barter system, the only true currency of exchange in the world.
But when it comes to Light that one party is getting more out of the connection than the other, or when one’s independence or freedom of expression or belief is being compromised, or even when one’s lifestyle or life is in jeopardy due to an imbalance in resource or service distribution, these value-based relationships can be very difficult relationships to navigate or sustain. Through this Mars-Ceres conjunction, the relationships bonds that have formed out of an exchange of lifestyle resources or services may be brought to Light and tested now.
The thing to remember about this Mars-Ceres conjunction in Libra is that people are acting in alignment with their personal or communal morals and values, and that fairness and justice are being assessed through the filters of their personally or communally-held beliefs about “right and wrong”, “good and bad”, and most importantly, what they need (or think they need) in order to sustain and survive. They are taking actions which reflect what is truly most important to them, where they really stand, and how they really think and/or feel about certain matters and certain people in their lives. They think they are operating from pure logic and reason.
However, people can be very passionate about their resource needs and possessions as well as their ethical and moral beliefs, especially when they feel their way of life or their very livelihoods are being threatened or compromised. As more and more people are finding their lifestyles more difficult to sustain, the more they are becoming increasingly unwilling to budge from their positions or perspectives of “how things should be”. Their mental-psychological investment in their value system(s) is anything but pure logic and reason once the objectivity is compromised for personal gain, sustenance, or survival.
Words usually don’t speak as loudly as actions, but under the influence of this Mars-Ceres conjunction in Libra, words have absolutely no chance. Action is definitely the dialogue of this transit that will be felt from the 10th through 14th of July, and it may represent the end of diplomacy as we know it as people are willing to fight – figuratively and literally – for what they truly value most.
This conjunction of Mars and Ceres in Libra may represent the moment when traditional diplomacy – the days of “let’s talk it out” and “let’s find a compromise” – may be coming to an end. People may no longer be willing to keep up appearances of civility to hide their true feelings in order to maintain an often uneasy truce. The parties involved in conflicts may see this as the time to recognize their impasses and to start getting their hands dirty to resolve their disagreements.
Notice how this relationship dynamic is playing out on the world’s stage. Look at how value-based diplomacy is affecting all that is happening on community, national, and international levels to see how this powerful Mars-Ceres conjunction is bringing some long-standing diplomatic challenges to a head. Tension is increasing in certain diplomatic dialogues and violence is escalating in certain parts of the world. Certain parties are taking desperate measures to maintain their existing connections, conditions, contracts, or treaties that are now under threat of dissolution. Others are tossing their agreements aside to move forward with their own true agendas. Can you see where the resource and value imbalances exist and what is really occurring in those diplomatic efforts?
On a personal level, you may see this Mars-Ceres conjunction playing out in your partnerships and relationships as one or both of you is beginning to move in new or different life directions. Each of you involved in a partnership may be assessing your connection from a perspective of “does this relationship still hold any true value for me?” and/or “does this partnership support the direction I’m now moving toward in my life?”, and your real agendas for maintaining the relationship may be coming to the surface and/or coming to a head as result.
This is why it helps to be clear about your own personal ambitions, goals, and boundaries as early as possible. When you’re clear about your own needs and wants, it’s easier to identify when a relationship is out of balance, when your boundaries are being crossed; and possibly, and when it is time to simply let it go and move on. This is the kind of awareness that is awakening under the influence of this Mars-Ceres conjunction in Libra.
If you aren’t already clear about where you stand in certain matters of your life regarding your lifestyle resources and the personal morals and values you apply to them, you’d best figure out where you stand and what you want to (or may need to) do during this time to make your values known to others. Your actions or your lack of action will make your positions clear for you, possibly forcing you into them if you don’t gain clarity by simply thinking them all through for yourself.
Once you’re clear about where you stand and where you want to go, then it’s up to you to take the actions that help you move forward in the direction that YOU want to move into. The Libra Mars-Ceres conjunction is here to empower you to take action in alignment with what you value most in yourself and your life – to stop being so diplomatic and get your hands dirty to start restoring and strengthening balance in your own life.
Thanks for reading and sharing Signs and Numbers. Until next post…
~Light, Love, and Blessings,
Grace
