“Mars in Libra is the Husband/Partner.  His intent is to experience relationship as a path to God and to fulfill the quest for the soul mate.  His sword quality is relatedness.”– from the 2012 Edition of the Shamanic Astrology Handbook by Daniel Giamario with Cayelin Castell

The planet Mars is moving into the sign of Libra on December 7th at 12:43pm Pacific time.  The ingress into Libra looms large for many on a personal level but also in a general way for the world.  The recent passage of Saturn through Libra from late 2009-late 2012 marked an evolution of how we view relationship in the Western culture.  We are seeing the ripples of that passage echo strongly with Union and Marriage between people where gender is secondary to the heart.  The old cultural views of marriage and partnership are falling away with a more progressive movement toward a new, more flexible structure on relationship being birthed.  This is certainly another sign that we are living in a higher octave of the mid-to-late 1960s. and the Turning of the Ages.

With Mars coming into the picture, there is greater opportunity to take action through instinct as to how one can express themselves in relationship with others and themselves.  In this age of creating new, organic rules for relationship almost anything goes and will be experimented upon to find out the better ways of living and being with a partner, be it romantic or otherwise.  This includes working with constructive circles of people in community and family.  Healthy relationship is important, on some level, to all of us.  But it becomes a enormous priority to those with significant Libra archetypal energy.

Through July 25th, 2014, Mars stays in Libra and gives all of us a chance to see deeper into our relationship experience now and into the future.  For those with one or more personal Libran archetypal energy (Sun, Moon, Mars, Venus, Jupiter, Ascendant) in Libra, this passage is especially noteworthy.  Relationship is a path to the Source, God, Great Spirit or the Universe.  It is authentic and valid and should not be ignored.  Of course, for those who have just a Libra Moon, the path is going to be different because it will be one of the other eleven mystery schools or archetypal intents going forward as a personal identity project or life purpose.

In Shamanic Astrology, Mars is the “Masculine Principle” or animus of a person (Male or Female).   Libra stands for “conscious, equal partnership” and together this energy needs to be honored within themselves either by developing the capacity to be conscious of others’ needs within the self (as opposed to projecting it onto others) or having their partners honor the Libra within them.

Mars will begin a new 25+month synodic cycle on April 8th.  It starts with the astronomical alignment called a “acronychal rise”.  This happens when one object sets as another object rises.  In this case, it is when Mars rises in the east as the Sun sets in the west.  In the sign in which Mars rises, Shamanic Astrology calls it the “overtone” of the planet for the entire 25+month period of time.  So, in other words, the focus on Libra isn’t just through July but an exploration of the Libra “god” or “masculine principal” all the way until May 22, 2016 when Mars goes into opposition again with the Sun in the sign of Sagittarius.

During this time, we can ask ourselves where we are with relationship, not just with a romantic partner, but how we develop it with friends, colleagues and family?  Is it healthy or one-sided where one is giving all the time without reciprocation?  Have you lost yourself in the relationship without honoring your own interests and identity?  Are you choosing to be with someone because you feel “incomplete” or “insecure”.  Or does it come from a place of “wholeness”?  How can we act in relationship that is harmonious and healthy to the overall sphere of the people involved?  These are just a few of the items to meditate on during this Martian transit into Libra.

I will be covering this more as the calendar moves closer to April.  For now, I wish everyone joy and magic in their relationships with friends, significant others, family and colleagues!  May all draw a little bit closer to wholeness . . .

– Erik Roth, Shamanic Astrologer