We begin with the momentous Neptune-Pluto septile that has been in effect since 2000, and in Section 3, New Aspects for March-May, 2012 we'll look at the explosive square between Uranus in Aries and Pluto in Capricorn, exact on April 30; and the Solar Eclipse in the Pleiades on May 20.

Here are the main players for March - May, 2012:

Feb. 3: Neptune enters Pisces, until March 29, 2025. The main Neptune-in-Pisces phase now begis, and is the last of the long-lasting "outer planet" transitions to come before the end of 2012.

For the basic nuances of this sign placement, see Hive Mind (April, 2011). We can find additional clues by looking at some earlier Neptune-through-Pisces periods:

1847 – 1861: the first passage of Neptune through Pisces after the discovery of Neptune in 1844, considered by some writers the beginning of modern spiritual consciousness. Revolutionary events shook Europe in 1848, and in the United States the crises of slavery and economy climaxed in civil war. The Interfaith Movement was born. Photography developed, and along with it came the promise of other magical effects and illusions.

 1519 – 1533: The Protestant Reformation and the German Peasant Revolt, Magellan’s voyage and the publications of Copernicus. Luther translates the first German Bible, thereby liberating his country from the control of Rome and encouraging other Protestant communities to create their own translations and come into solidarity with one another.

 1190 – 1203: A classic time of religious fractures and alliances, as Saladin leads the armies of Islam to defeat the Third Crusade, and Pope Innocent III imposes on Catholic Europe strictures that will lead to the Holy Inquisition. Genghis Khan is on the move.

 The common threads in all these Neptune-in-Pisces periods are political upheaval and spiritual change, as old religious authorities either stiffen and hold, or give way under the pressure of new ideas. The same will come now in 2012.

April 30: Uranus square to Pluto. Back despite popular demand, this ongoing friction between Uranus in Aries amd Pluto in Capricorn (since July 14, 2010) returns for its next and most implacable engagement. The Uranus-Pluto opposition is exact this year on June 24, and fades Nov. 18.

Too bad. This square will be upsetting to those who’d hoped, from the “easy” and “positive” aspects of early 2012, that we’d finally turned the corner in relation to one another more kindly, and that the road would be smooth through the end of 2012. No such luck. This square is the diehard, last-ditch-warrior aspect, so determined to get his way – yes, usually his rather than hers – that any means from fakery to force will be in play. Sadly, as the aspect profile above shows, this aspect will be exact around the times of the summer solstice and autumn equinox, so even Earth-based spiritual communities that thought themselves progressive and enlightened will get stuck on some ego thorns now. There is no cause for alarm. If anything, this spiritual touchup work is encouraging.

May 20: Solar Eclipse in the Pleiades: Astrologically speaking, this New Moon and annular eclipse of the Sun is a T-cross among Sun and Moon in the first degree of Gemini opposite the Moon’s North Node in Sagittarius, with Uranus in Pisces in the middle. Some astrologers will claim that a grand cross forms now, though Mars is really too far out of orb.

Astronomers reckon that this eclipse occurs not in Gemini, but in the Pleiades, in Taurus. For Mayan timekeepers, who say their people came to Earth from a home planet in the Pleiades, this eclipse is of very high importance because the Sun – with the Moon – will be in the Pleiades exactly at the zenith point over the temple complex at Chichen Itza.

For the significance of Venus passages, see The Mirror of Venus.

While these squares are likely to manifest as political conflicts and deception before the American election of 2012 – what else is new? – the more momentous fact of the moment is that Jupiter is now in Gemini. This planetary position typically brings change, even upheaval, as is evident in some of the Jupiter-in-Gemini years that have occurred in the last century: 1905-1906 (Russo-Japanese War, Russian 1905 Revolution), 1917-1918 (Russian October Revolution, climax of World War I), 1929-1930 (Wall Street collapse), 1941-1942 (Hitler invades Russia, Japanese attack Pearl Harbor), 1988-1989 (Soviet Union and other red regimes fall) and an unconstitutional American presidential selection (2000 – 2001).The encouraging news is that the major political, social, cultural changes of the year beginning now all point to a single spiritual cause: the continuing emergence of the Aquarian hive mind, and the effort of fear-frozen authorities to fight a rearguard action against it. The months to come are a crucial transition from hierarchic authority to unstructured friendship.

With Neptune still square the Dragon’s Head, predictable disputatiousness, lying and winning at all costs in an election year no doubt continues through mid-September. Of greater and more lasting import is the new position of the Dragon’s Head in Scorpio, sign of death and rebirth, represented by several symbols in classical alchemy and astrology (see Spiritual Love in Chapter 9). For those seeking to bring the spiritual renewal of Earth and humankind, the Dragon’s Head in Scorpio is most auspicious. While undermining forces will still work against our collective effort, we have at this time the ability to adjust to shifting circumstances, and to exert the passionate, driven energy of Scorpio at its most determined. Vedic astrologer Sally Spencer’s sidelight: “Rahu, the [North] node of great illusion and worldliness, will be in Scorpio, the transformer, so a lot may happen then, as Scorpio is a deep sign. Ketu [South Node] will be in Taurus, a Venusian sign, and will mean a spiritualizing of the physical, sensual life.”