Your Personal Horoscope 2018. Joseph Polansky

will be tender towards the family and will want a family life that is nurturing and supportive. Aries likes to come home after a hard day on the battlefield of life to the understanding arms of their partner and the unconditional love and support of their family. An Aries feels that there is enough ‘war’ out in the world – and he or she enjoys participating in that. But when Aries comes home, comfort and nurturing are what’s needed.

Horoscope for 2018

      Major Trends

      Some of the long-term major planets are shifting this year. They will make sure that you don’t get too fixed in your ways. Saturn changed signs at the end of 2017. Most of you – especially those of you born late in the sign of Aries in April – haven’t felt this yet, but you will feel it more next year. Saturn will be in Capricorn, your 10th house, for the next two years, which will make the year ahead a very strong career year. It’s the kind of year where you succeed by sheer merit and for no other reason. Therefore strive for excellence in all that you do. More on this later.

      The other important headline is Uranus’s move out of your sign – where he’s been for the last seven years – into Taurus. This is not yet the full-blown transit but a ‘shot across the bows’, an announcement of things to come. After seven years of redefining yourself and experimenting with your image, you seem to have settled on something that works for you. You’ve learned to deal with sudden personal changes. Now, you will learn to deal with sudden financial changes. The financial life is becoming very exciting – very adventurous – just as you like it. This move will also start to stabilize your love life. More details later.

      Jupiter has been in Scorpio, your 8th house, since October 2017 and he will be here into November of the year ahead. This indicates the prosperity of partners or the current love interest. Often it shows inheritance, but hopefully no one has to die. It shows good fortune in tax and estate issues and an ability to pay off debt. It also favours projects involving personal transformation. For many of you, depending on your age, it indicates a sexually active kind of year. Again, more details later.

      On November 8 Jupiter will move into Sagittarius and into a beautiful aspect with you. He will bring more travel, more money and more optimism. He will bring good news for those applying to colleges or universities – and for those already enrolled in these places, he brings success in studies. But first, you have to pay your dues of hard work and striving for excellence.

      Neptune has been in your spiritual 12th house for many years now, and he will be there for many more. So the spiritual life is important, and growing. Those of you on a spiritual path will see much progress this year for Jupiter in Scorpio is making very nice aspects to Neptune.

      Two important planets in your chart – Mars, the ruler of your Horoscope, and Venus, your love and financial planet – will make rare retrogrades this year. Unlike most of the other planets, these only move backwards once every two years. Mars will be retrograde from June 26 to August 27 and Venus from October 5 to November 16. Retrogrades are good times for reflection and review, rather than overt action, and we will deal further with this in the monthly reports.

      Your most important interests this year will be your body and image (from January 1 to May 16 and from November 6 to December 31); finance (from May 16 to November 6); sex, occult studies, personal transformation and reinvention (until November 8); foreign travel, higher education, theology and philosophy (from November 8 onwards); career; and spirituality.

      Your paths of greatest fulfilment this year are personal transformation and reinvention (until November 8); foreign travel, higher education, religion, philosophy and theology (from November 8 onwards); children, fun and creativity (from January 1 to November 17); and home and family (after November 17).

      Health

       (Please note that this is an astrological perspective on health and not a medical one. In days of yore there was no difference, both of these perspectives were identical. But now there could be quite a difference. For a medical perspective, please consult your doctor or health practitioner.)

      Though Uranus leaving your sign is a good aspect for health, you still have two cosmic heavy hitters – Saturn and Pluto – in stressful alignment to you, so health still needs careful attention paid to it this year, even if you don’t feel like it. The empty 6th house of health suggests that you’re not paying enough attention.

      Two long-term planets in stressful alignment will not of themselves cause disease, although if you have pre-existing conditions they can worsen now. But when the short-term planets join the party, this is when you become more vulnerable. So the times to watch are from January 1 to the 20th, June 21 to August 22, September 22 to October 23 and December 21 to the 31st. Try as much as possible to rest and relax more during those periods. If you can afford it, spend time in a health spa or book some massages. Let go of frivolities that waste your energy and focus only on essentials.

      As our regular readers know, there is much that can be done to enhance the health and prevent problems from developing. Give more attention to the following – the vulnerable areas of your Horoscope (the reflex points are shown in the chart below):

       The heart has become important in recent years and is still important this year. Cultivate a healthy faith. Many spiritual healers affirm that worry is the root cause of heart problems: replace worry with faith.

       The head, face and scalp are always important for Aries. Regular scalp and face massage will not only strengthen these areas but the entire body as well, as there are reflexes and meridian lines there that run through the whole body.

       The musculature. It isn’t necessary to be Arnold Schwarzenegger, just to have good muscle tone. Weak or flabby muscles can knock the spine and skeleton out of alignment, which will cause all kinds of other problems. What are often diagnosed as ‘back’ problems are really muscle problems. Vigorous exercise – appropriate to your stage of life – is advisable.

       The adrenals are also always important for Aries. More importantly, learn to control anger and fear, the two emotions that stress the adrenals.

       The small intestine is another important area for Aries, and the reflex points are shown above.

      Mercury is your health planet, and he is a fast-moving – and often erratic – planet. Sometimes he moves very fast, sometimes he goes slowly, sometimes he goes backwards. It is no accident that the qualities of flexibility and changeability are attributed to Mercury. Your health regime should embody this kind of flexibility.

      Because Mercury moves so fast, he will move through every sign and house of your Horoscope in a given year. Thus there are many short-term health trends that depend on where Mercury is (and the aspects he receives). These are best dealt with in the monthly reports.

      Mercury will go retrograde three times this year – from March 23 to April 15; July 26 to August 19 and from November 17 to December 6. These are times to avoid making major changes to the diet or your health regime. Instead, do more research and homework during these periods.

      Home and Family

      This is not an especially strong home and family year; career seems much more important this year. Your 4th house is basically empty in 2018, with only short-term planets moving through there. Generally this shows the status quo prevailing. You seem more or less satisfied with your home and family situation and have no pressing need to make important changes. It is basically a good sign.

      However, changes and upheavals will happen, but you will more or less react to them rather than be initiating anything new. For a start there are three solar eclipses this year. This is very unusual – generally there are only two in a year. This indicates dramas – life-changing kinds of events – in the lives of children or children figures in your life. The eclipses will also impact the overall finances of the family and