If you’re brand new to declination, you might want to check out my blog post “What is Declination.”
December has three big declination highlights – two planets out bounds and one triple parallel. So let’s break that down.
As December kicked off, we were right in the middle of an unusually long Mercury out of bounds period. Mercury remains out of bounds until December 15.
Right on December 1st, Mercury shifted signs, into Capricorn. Being out of bounds can intensify or amplify a planet, and in this case, Mercury’s significations in Capricorn for the first two weeks of December take center stage. This increases the potential for a more serious tone to thought and communication in general in the collective. On the dark side, there’s a potential for more depressive tendencies, perhaps based on a more pessimistic attitude, which is a Capricorn specialty.
We know from behavioral research that the potential for depression increases at this time of year anyway, so even with the Sun in Sagittarius, be aware of this potential, and seek out help if you need it. This is another thing Capricorn isn’t always great at – asking for help.
So if your thoughts are taking a downward or defeated tone, don’t keep it to yourself. Reach out, no matter how hard that might feel. In the moment it’s easy to try to talk ourselves out of speaking with someone – we think, “oh they won’t understand,” or “it doesn’t really matter.” But these are just self defeating tricks. It does matter, and the point isn’t always that they understand.
The point is that in saying what you’re thinking out loud, you have the potential to shift your thinking in another direction. And in a best case scenario, that kind person listening with be instrumental in helping you make that shift.Â
Explore New Directions of Thought, But Wait to Take Action
Mercury out of bounds can be useful energy for thinking outside the box in creative ways. I usually recommend waiting to take action on any new ideas that are either outside your comfort zone, or so outside the norm for you that they seem totally out of character. If you wait for Mercury to come back into normal range, you can reality test these ideas in positive ways.Â
Mercury Retrograde and Square Neptune
Last month, Mercury made the square to Neptune while out of bounds in Sagittarius. Did any of you get the feeling that Mercury was already retrograde? If so, you were probably just picking up on that Mercury Neptune square, which is often associated with communication breakdowns or confusing mixed messages.
Now Mercury is in Capricorn, but it’s heading toward its retrograde on Dec. 12, right before it comes back down from its declination peak on the 15th. Mercury will retrograde back into Sagittarius, and back into another square with Neptune, which will be exact on Dec 27. So you’ll be asked once again to surrender trying to clearly understand, and instead tune into other sources of information, especially energetic sources.
There’s what the other person is saying, and then there’s a feeling that comes through, or some other energetic information that you can discern by setting aside logic for a minute. Mercury will be in Sag, so being unquestioning about being right might be the source of any friction that comes up. Use Mercury in Sag to search for the underlying meaning instead, while tuning into those diffuse energetic Neptunian frequencies for additional info or feedback.
Another declination highlight this month is a triple parallel. This is a parallel between 3 planets, and this one is exact on December 16, with Mercury parallel Mars and Pluto. We’ll need to be careful with our words, and with Mercury and Pluto in Capricorn while Mars is in Sagittarius, a fire sign, we’ll also need to be careful with impulsive actions.
This may be just the time to say something fiercely that’s important or inevitable to communicate, but on the flip side, it’s a time when we could cause a little more harm with our words than we might intend. So seeking balance is in order. This could very well have to do with setting a boundary, or drawing a line in the sand. And that’s almost never received well by the person we’re setting a boundary with. But we can still aim for absolute clarity, speaking on behalf of our own needs, and doing our best to not lash out at the other person in the process.
Mars Out of Bounds Starting December 22
Speaking of Mars, the last highlight I want to mention is that Mars goes out of bounds just a few days after Mercury comes back down, on December 22. This will be a short Mars out of bounds, and will just last through January 23. My prediction is that some of you are going to come up with some New Year’s resolutions that seem a little wacky a few weeks later.
On the flip side, you may come up with some new actions, or new directions to strive in that you hadn’t considered before. In general, I advise folks to wait for Mars to come back down from its peak for at least a few days to make sure you’re still feeling the same. If you can’t wait, don’t stress over it too much. Sometimes we need to boldly push off into new directions to break old patterns, and Mars out of bounds can be a great energetic to tap into to help us do just that.
Mars Square Neptune While Out of Bounds
That said, there’s another cautionary energy at play as we get closer to the end of the month, and Mars comes in range of a square with Neptune, peaking between December 20 and the end of the month. Bold new moves taken during this time would be paired best with a strong connection to source, to inspiration, or to intuition. The thing is, it’s more likely at this time that our intuition gets mixed up with desire in a confusing stew that makes it pretty hard to sort out.
I’ll usually trust intuition most during these times – that is if I can feel confident that my intuition really is coming from source. If not, I wait, if at all possible.
This is a great time to surrender for a bit, to take a break from all of that Mars striving, and to spend some time meditating to increase your connection to source. If you don’t meditate, spend time zoning out, however you like to do that. Time in reverie instead of doing will serve you well. Even though the benefits of taking a break might not be clear until Mars gets more distance from Neptune and moves into Capricorn in January.
Well that takes us to the end of this month’s declination report. To learn more about declination, check out my course Intro to Declination.
I hope you’re able to make good use of the planetary energies this month, and until next time, take good care.Â
Major Declination Dates for December 2023
- November 16 to December 15 – Mercury out of bounds (SG, CP)
- December 1-2 – Moon out of bounds (CN)
- December 12-16 – Moon out of bounds (SG, CP)
- December 12 – Venus contraparallel Jupiter (and opposite)
- December 12 – Venus parallel Saturn
- December 15 – Jupiter contraparallel Saturn
- December 16 – Mercury parallel Mars parallel Pluto
- December 22 to January 23 – Mars out of bounds (SG)
- December 26 – Venus contraparallel Uranus
- December 28 – Mars out of bounds while square NeptuneÂ
Photo credit: Photo by Ruben Ramirez on Unsplash
