Neptune in Pisces

As I consider the public enthusiasm about Neptune’s transit through Pisces, I find myself wondering whether we’re truly riding a wave or just drowning in optimism.

As I write this, I can hear my Pisces friend Steve saying, “There she goes bashing Neptune again.”

He’s right. I am hard on Neptune, and I can cite several good reasons why: Transiting Neptune conjunct my natal Descendant, Mars, Saturn, Mercury, Sun, Midheaven, Venus and Chiron (not to mention its square to my natal Moon).

In fairness, as a Sun Sign Capricorn I am a child of Saturn which means I’m not exactly comfortable in the ethers. However, over the course of my lifetime I have come to know Neptune intimately, and I know firsthand that even if it turns out to be good, what you see is not what you get.

Truth be told, I want to believe, I want to have faith, and I want to surrender to a higher power, but I’ve learned that it’s best to do so with a clear head, eyes wide open and my feet planted firmly on the ground.

And I urge all of you to do the same because as Neptune makes it way through Pisces, there will be a shift in consciousness, the keyword being “shift.” Neptune does not bring abrupt change like Uranus or pulverizing change like Pluto. Neptunian change comes slowly, gently and quietly.

And sometimes it occurs insidiously.

While I do believe that Neptune in Pisces will yield much good, including a genuine spiritual renaissance, advances in medicine, new technologies connected to energy, art and entertainment and ultimately a new generation with significant intuitive and creative gifts, I am just as confident that during this cycle we will witness new addictions and mass victimization through spiritual fraud.

History and cycles do repeat themselves, and as Uranus and Pluto continue to do battle in the coming years and life as we know it grows more uncertain, there will be many who will seek to escape through alcohol and drugs while others will be desperate for something or someone to believe in.

The last time Uranus and Pluto were squaring each other was in 1932-1934. During this time the USA was in the midst of the Great Depression, dictators Hitler and Stalin were gaining power and the American public escaped from it all by going to the movies.

As listeners of Anchored in Astrology already know, it is my personal belief that the USA has actually been in a depression now but thanks to a combination of credit cards and Neptune conjoining the nation’s Moon (which just happens to rule its eighth house of debt), we have been able to maintain the illusion that it’s just a recession. As Neptune moved away from the USA’s natal Moon, the nation’s public awoke from its collective coma and found itself shocked by the dire economic realities of everyday life.

Now as in the 1930’s, the public is feeling desperate and is looking for something to ease their pain and someone to ultimately save them, and with Neptune in Pisces, this is a very dangerous attitude.

As the natural ruler of the 12th house, Pisces rules drugs and depression, and approximately 15 years ago while Saturn (big business) was in Pisces, this nation’s pharmaceutical industry was given the green light to promote its products directly to the consumer.

As a result, ads for anti-depressants began appearing on television, radio, in magazines and eventually on the Internet. While Uranus (new technologies) was in Pisces (2004-2011), the drug industry stepped up its already aggressive marketing campaign, so that on any given day we were reminded that if we were feeling overwhelmed or sad, there was a pill that would help make everything better.

Better yet, all we have to do is visit our primary care doctor. Gone are the days where we had to consult with a trained mental health practitioner. Instead, our general practitioners and OB/GYN’s routinely recommend and prescribe anti-depressants as easily as they dispense antibiotics.

By 2011, the CDC announced that anti-depressant use had increased by 400% in the last 15 years, making it the third most prescribed class of medications in the US with 11% of the general population taking them even though two-thirds of them weren’t currently depressed (See Antidepressant Use Has Gone Crazy).

In addition to drugs and depression, Pisces also rules escapism, addiction and things that are hidden. The ability to take a drug and feel better without having to address the issues is a risky form of escapism, because as we have since learned through significant class action lawsuits, these drugs have addictive and potentially deadly side effects.

So how does all this relate to transiting Neptune in Pisces?

Since much of our society has come to accept anti-depressants as being as mainstream as blood pressure medication, Neptune in Pisces expected role in dissolving boundaries poses a threat that as life becomes more stressful our already overmedicated society will become an unwittingly addicted – and therefore ore passive – society.

While no one wants to be unhappy or struggle, the truth of the matter is that all change stems from dissatisfaction. If I choose to change the color of my yellow walls, it doesn’t mean that I necessarily hate the color yellow but it does mean that I’m no longer satisfied with it.

If as a society we opt to take the edge off on a daily basis, our collective motivation will decline as we succumb to artificial contentment and before you know it, we the people will become we the sheeple and instead of being part of Uranus squaring Pluto, we will find ourselves the victims of it.

Likewise, during the next 14 years it is important to employ discernment when it comes to spiritual practices and practitioners.

Again, history and cycles do repeat themselves, and since the last time Neptune was in Pisces the spiritualism movement took root in the USA, I believe we will witness a spiritual renaissance.

While Neptune is in Pisces, many will be drawn to spiritual work, and I do believe that many gifted metaphysicians and spiritual leaders will emerge during this time, but like the spiritualism movement in the 1800’s, the profession will be rife with fraud as many will use it as a means to profit on the insecurities, and in some cases the desperation, of those living in fear.

Moreover, in contrast to the 1800’s where communication was generally limited to word of mouth and newspaper articles, today’s Internet technology not only enables us to convey our thoughts, ideas and messages to the entire world through blogs, videos and Internet radio and TV programs, but it allows us to collect payment as well. Consequently, when it comes to peddling false hope for profit, the target market has become much bigger.

Why am I so certain that we will witness a new breed of spiritual impostors and false prophets?

Again, history and cycles repeat themselves.

While Neptune was in the spiritual sign of Sagittarius from 1970 – 1984, several religious cults gained a strong foothold.

Founded by Jim Jones fin 1970, Jones Town became immortalized in 1978 after its members died in a mass suicide courtesy of cyanide-laced Kool-Aid. In 1971, Sun Myung Moon, founder of the Unification Church, moved to the United States. I can tell you from personal experience that during the 1970’s not a week passed by that I wasn’t approached by a “Moonie” and invited to a church meeting. Last, but certainly not least, David Koresh began his ascent as a self-proclaimed prophet in Waco, Texas in 1981.

With Neptune in Pisces, the potential for self-delusion is much greater than when it was in Sagittarius, and the state of our economy makes many, especially the poor and the downtrodden, more vulnerable to charlatans and pied pipers who can provide them with a glimmer of hope.

Like a siren’s song, Neptune’s promises are seductive and its “oh-but-it-feels-so-good” energy can make you forget to take a deep breath before immersing yourself in its waters.

So while I look forward to the shift that the sublime side of Neptune in Pisces will bring, as a child of Saturn I prefer to experience it above sea level.

I invite you to join me, because we all know what happens when we run out of air.