My clients often ask me for predictions of the future. Prognostication is not my interest. The astrological chart is a map but not the territory. You have to make your life work on your own terms with the help of your own insight and reason.

When I do a chart I see a general outline of habits and potentials, obsessions and talents. By examining the past we can learn a lot about our behavior in the present and future, and also make our own decisions on issues that confront us. There is no guarantee that one path chosen is better than another. All paths have their risks and their outcomes. To be told which way to go can rob you of free will and the lessons you are destined to learn. Your destiny is in your hands, and needs to be uncovered as you proceed in life meeting the chance events that confront you.

Astrology is a tool for learning how you function in the greater scheme of cosmic time. The planets and their consistent cycles represent ideas that we can use; they inform but they do not command. Anecdotal knowledge gathered over the centuries has given astrology a certain command of human behavior. To know more depends on the insight we can bring to a natal chart reading.

Scorpio is the most exalted sign in the zodiac. By this astrologers mean it has the highest potential to transform energy from the depths of the psyche to the conscious mind.

Scorpio is surrounded by two other constellations both bearing snakes, and Scorpio has often been associated with the serpent or kundalini energy of the Hindus. It is a regenerating symbol, for snakes continually shed their skins and then regrow them.

Mars was the ancient planetary ruler of Scorpio, but now Pluto has taken over in the modern era. Pluto, ruler of the underworld, or the unconscious, harbors our hidden agendas that need to come forward.

In the Babylonian and also the Greek mythology the underworld had to be conquered. Humanity had to face its unconscious motives. The warrior Nergal, associated with the planet Mars for the Babylonians, conquered the goddess of the underworld or the psyche, which often is associated with the female.

For the Greeks, it was the opposite. Pluto, was guardian of the underworld. He abducted Persephone from her mother and together they ruled the chthonic depths in winter months, symbolizing the uniting of male and female energies. However, so the Earth would not perish, Persephone was allowed to return to her mother once a year to renew the Earth with spring.

Thus, this time of year, at the doorway to winter, we find ourselves seeking regeneration by transforming the harvest of Libra into the sustenance that will get us through the darker days. As Mars is co-ruler, this is also a time to be aggressive in preparation of the colder months to come.

In Cancer, a water sign like Scorpio, we begin to relate to the mother. In Scorpio, we separate from the mother as in the Greek myth. This is all in preparation for our individuation, as Jung has put it. Only by cutting the bonds that bind us to the collective can we encounter our own unique purpose and potential.

Scorpio is also seen as a sign that combines three stages of evolution: the scorpion, the snake, and the eagle. First we have the creature that stings, then the one that sheds and regenerates, and finally the highest stage of visionary perspective.

Some prominent Scorpios may suggest this evolution, like Fyodor Dostoevsky, Kurt Vonnegut, Grace Kelly, Carlos Fuentes, Sor Juana Ines, Kim Hunter, and Auguste Rodin, to name a few who carved new pathways in life.

The Sun transits the constellation Taurus this coming week. With the evening rising of this sign in ancient Egypt (during Scorpio) the cattle were coupled and oxen yoked for plowing. The star Aldebaran in the middle of this constellation is called the “eye of the bull,” and at one time Taurus was the Spring Equinox in the zodiac. The Age of Taurus extended from about 4,000 to 2,000 BC.

The bull’s horns are associated with the crescent Moon and represents growth and generation. Goddess, Moon, and bull are inseparable symbols for fertility, and this month is the most abundant and fertile period of the seasonal round. Although Taurus is linked with the neck or throat in medical astrology, the ancient Egyptians linked it with the genitals.

Taurus is ruled by Venus, Goddess of Love. One of Zeus’ famous love affairs was his abduction of the maiden Europa. He was disguised as a bull and carried Europe across the Mediterranean to the island of Crete. The word Europe derives from Europa, and Europa is the mother goddess of the peoples of Europe.

The famous Minotaur on the island of Crete was the lusty coupling of Queen Pasiphae with a magical bull that produced a half-man half-bull creature who demanded live captives as sacrifice. The Minotaur was hidden within a labyrinth constructed by the famous architect Daedalus. Theseus slayed the beast with the help of Ariadne, (the Pure One) whom he later abandoned. A beautiful book by Mary Renault, “The King Must Die,” retells this legend.

All these myths have significance for the psyche of those born under this sign, for Taurus in astrology is focused on the physical body in its most natural state. It is a sign full of passion, jealousy, loyalty, and can be quite explosive when angered. But the bull can also be tamed by affection and sensual satisfaction.

Taurus is fixed earth and sustainability. Taurus is slow, stubborn and roots itself in one place until ready to move. Taureans are often gardeners, caretakers of the earth, for within the seasonal cycle this month of May demands seeds be watered and plants cultivated.

Planets in Taurus operate in a very earthy manner, and this can be advantageous if in harmony with one’s Sun sign, or can be an obstacle to the natural rhythms of life. One can nurture the soil or one can overwork it.

Because Taurus is ruled by Venus this sign has a richness of mythic associations, for the Goddess of love and fertility is also linked with beauty and the arts. Shakespeare was a famous Taurean, as was James Beard, Tyrone Power, Florence Nightengale, and Karl Marx, to name a few. The first full Moon in Taurus on the 28^th of April this year celebrates Buddha’s birthday throughout the world.