October Astrology: What Are You Holding Onto?

October Astrology 1–10: Look beneath the surface and reconsider what you want

October gets right into it. We have a lot of Scorpio energy around Mercury, Venus, Mars, and Pluto, and with Venus turning retrograde on October 3, I think we're going to be looking at some things we may have been willing to leave alone for a while.

This can be about relationships, but it isn't only about relationships. Venus also describes what we value, what we spend our money on, what we are willing to invest in, and what we want to hold onto. Scorpio adds another layer because it tends to bring us underneath the surface. We may learn something we didn't know, have a conversation we've been avoiding, or simply realize that something we thought we wanted isn't quite what we want anymore.

Then we have the October 10 Libra New Moon, which gives us an opportunity to start fresh around relationships, cooperation, fairness, and balance. But Venus retrograde square Mars tells us we can't just pretend everything is fine if it isn't. There can be a real difference between what we want and what we're willing to do to get it.

I don't think this is a week for rushing to figure everything out. It's more about being honest about what you're seeing. Sometimes you need to see the whole picture before you know what you want to do about it.

October 11–17: What have you learned, and what are you going to do with it?

By the middle of the month, I think we start moving out of the examination phase and into doing something with what we've learned. That's important because it is one thing to recognize that something isn't working. It's another thing to decide what you're actually going to do about it.

At the same time, Venus retrograde quincunx Uranus can make us aware that something we've been comfortable with isn't necessarily comfortable anymore. Maybe your needs have changed. Maybe the situation has changed. Or maybe you're finally admitting that what worked for you five years ago doesn't work for you now.

With Pluto turning direct, something that has been working internally can also begin to move outward. So this week feels like adjustment followed by action. Not necessarily a huge change. Sometimes the most important change is simply making one decision differently than you would have made it before.

October 18–24: A deeper truth becomes harder to ignore

This is where I think October gets really interesting. The October 20 Venus retrograde square Pluto can bring some uncomfortable but useful awareness around attachment, control, power, relationships, money, and what we are actually invested in. Pluto has a way of showing us where we're holding on because something is truly important and where we're holding on because we're afraid of what happens if we let go.

Then Venus quincunx Neptune on October 21 adds another layer. This is where I would be careful about filling in the blanks with what we hope is true. Sometimes we know more than we want to admit, and sometimes we don't know enough yet. Those are two very different things.

Then we have the Sun moving into Scorpio, the Sun conjunct retrograde Venus, and Mercury retrograde in Scorpio. That's a lot of emphasis on going back, looking again, and seeing something from a deeper perspective. The October 23 Sun-Venus conjunction is especially important within the Venus retrograde cycle because it can illuminate something we've been reconsidering since the retrograde began.

This feels less like something happening to us and more like recognizing something about ourselves. What do I actually value now? What am I willing to invest in? What am I no longer willing to participate in? Sometimes clarity doesn't come because someone gives us an answer. It comes because we finally stop arguing with what we already know.

October 25–31: What actually gives you security?

By the last week of October, we're bringing a lot of these questions back to the issue of security.

Venus retrograde moves back into Libra, so we're revisiting relationships, fairness, compromise, and the balance between what we give and what we receive. Then the October 26 Full Moon in Taurus, opposite the Scorpio Sun, puts the question of security right in front of us.

Taurus wants stability. Scorpio asks what we're willing to share, risk, release, or invest in. So this Full Moon can bring attention to money and resources, but also to the less tangible things we depend on: trust, intimacy, consistency, and knowing where we stand.

Then we have Sun square Pluto followed by Sun quincunx Uranus, which can make it harder to ignore something that needs to change. And the Venus-Chiron opposition gives us another opportunity to look at an old relationship pattern or an old wound differently.

I don't think the question is simply, "What needs to change?" It's more "What is actually providing security for me now?" And just as important, what am I holding onto because it truly supports me, and what am I holding onto because it's familiar?

The progression I see

October 1–10: Look beneath the surface. Reconsider what you want.

October 11–17: Make adjustments and begin acting on what you've learned.

October 18–24: Something deeper becomes clear.

October 25–31: Reassess what really provides stability and what needs to change.

And when I look at the month as a whole, I think the bigger story is really about reevaluating what we value, what we're attached to, and what actually works for us now.

That's a very different question from, "What do I want?"

Sometimes we know what we want. The harder question is whether it still fits the person we've become.

The video blog is here on Patreon

If you prefer here on YouTube