Horoscope for 2012 - By Steve Judd Aries, Taurus, Gemini, Cancer

ARIES: 21st March - 20th April

Has to be said, you’re heading into one of the fastest years of your entire life. 2012 will be a hectic year for many of you, with considerable opportunity for breaking free and starting again. Uranus will spend the entire year with you, its second of seven, so expect the unexpected. In general it can be said that the year gets progressively better, but this will only become clear once you’re into August onwards. Some of you, particularly those born towards the end of your sign, are likely to find the first nine months of the year a bit of a drudge, whilst others, particularly those born towards the end of March, may have to deal with a form of opposition that can’t be avoided, requiring fortitude and perseverance. Many of you, primarily those born before the 6th April, will experience the time from the start of June onwards as becoming slowly but gradually more stable and consistent. The main theme, however, continues to be the developing urge for more freedom, independence and autonomy in your life, whilst at the same time maintaining and sustaining those friendships and relationships that are supporting and encouraging you during this time of change. If you stick your head in the sand and refuse to acknowledge the need for change, you’ll find that sudden, unpredictable and disruptive events will intrude on your life in ways that you can’t anticipate, likely to pull the rug from underneath your feet. Alternatively, if you’re willing to flow with the go and surf the waves of change as they come in, you’ll find an energy pattern of stimulation, originality and novelty becoming more and more the norm… the choice is yours

PLUTO is directly challenging those of you born between the 27th and the 30th of March to eliminate the old, transform the residue, and rebirth into the new in a way that is permanent. No room for compromise or half measures.
 
NEPTUNE is only going to affect those of you born at the very end of your sign, and even then only for a short time at the beginning of the year. In 2012 for the vast majority of you there’s no illusion, uncertainly or fog – you’re grounded.
 
URANUS is directly challenging those of you born between March 25th – 28th to revolutionise your lives, to start again and incorporate more personal freedom than ever before – either that or stay the same way as you are now for the very long term.
 
SATURN is opposing the Sun of those born on or after the 13th April until at least May and in some cases until the end of September. These people should cut their losses and consolidate their gains during 2012, going for solidity more than growth.
 
JUPITER will bring a frisson of excitement and pleasantries from the second week of June to the end of September, especially to those born before April 7th.
 
MARS won’t touch you directly in 2012
 
VENUS is with you from the 8th February to the 5th March
 
MERCURY visits from the 2nd-23rd March, and 16th April – 9th May
 
The Aries new Moon is on 22nd March and the full Moon is on 30th September

TAURUS: 21st April - 21st May

You will find that 2012 is split into three clearly defined segments, each with their own peculiar style of effects. The first five months of the year are likely to be very memorable for a number of different reasons, all linked to Jupiter, the planet of growth, expansion and overreaching oneself being in your sign from the start of January to the beginning of June. As long as you keep things in perspective and don’t allow situations to expand too rapidly and get out of proportion to reality, the period until early June should be positive and fun. The early in Taurus you’re born, the earlier in 2012 this influence will occur, and the later in Taurus you’re born the more towards April and May the potentials will be at their strongest. The second four months of the year are much lower key, where you can hopefully assimilate and integrate the lessons of the first half of the year without too much fuss. But in all cases, it’s best to ensure that by the start of October you’re in a clear space with no outstanding difficulties so that from that time on you can concentrate on your priorities. From this time onwards, Saturn moves into your opposite sign and you’ll find that life becomes much more grounded, down to earth and in some cases limited by evolving circumstances. There’s no sense of major disruption here, no major crisis or trauma coming up, and neither is there any sign of gullibility or deception. There’s even a very good case for saying that your psychological well being is in for a real treat in terms of accelerated growth this coming year. Just make sure that you pace yourself, and don’t burn out in the first five months.
 
PLUTO will bring considerable opportunity for internal psychological growth and external professional transformation into the lives of those born from May 26 – 29, and the high point of this is the first two weeks of March.
 
NEPTUNE will bring a much greater degree of sensuality and subtlety into the lives of those Taureans born before the 24th April, with the high point of this process in the first two months of the year. Plenty of scope for quasi spiritual development.
 
URANUS isn’t really affecting you directly during 2012.
 
SATURN is relatively quiet in the first nine months of the year, but as 2012 evolves so a growing sense of anticipation and realisation comes. And some of you – mainly those born in April – may find October onwards hard for growth but good for pruning.
 
JUPITER is in your sign from the start of January to the second week of June, for the first time properly since 2000 and the last till 2024. If you’re wise enough to take chances but not risks, you should benefit in this period. Make it happen.
 
MARS won’t stay with you during 2012
 
VENUS is with you from March 5 to April 3
 
MERCURY visits briefly from the May 9 - 24
 
The Taurus new Moon is on May 20 and the full Moon is on October 29

GEMINI: 22nd May - 21st June

Whereas most of the other signs of the zodiac are caught up in larger, long term developments that are less day by day and more month by month, the opposite is true for you, at least for much of the central part of the year. There’s no sign of major drama or crisis during 2012, nor major disruption or difficult challenge. A few of you may go through a period of loss or confusion. 2012 is essentially split into three sections. The first, until the start of April – little if anything happens. Unusually, the period from the first week or two of April through to the start of August is a period of re-assessment of value system, and the period from the middle of June onwards brings a time of real opportunity for growth. The most fortunate time of the year comes at the end of June and the start of July, when there’s a three week conjunction of Venus and Jupiter in your sign, especially of benefit to those born towards the end of May. You’re not going to encounter any type of new opposition or authoritarian brake being imposed upon you, and in the second half of the year there are clear opportunities for you to stretch your boundaries and move forwards in a way that hasn’t been available since the year 2000 – but accompanying this potential of growth comes the obligation to use it wisely, and to know when to stop before you overreach or overstretch yourself. This will primarily affect those of you born before the 9th of June, but all of you will benefit as long as there is the willingness to recognise the wisdom of moderation. It’s not a difficult year, but it’s easier to live within your own expectations as opposed to those of others.
 
PLUTO isn’t directly affecting any of you in 2012
 
NEPTUNE will square the Sun position of those of you born at the start of Gemini, primarily those born before the 25th of May. Not a brilliant year for signing long term contracts if you’re under this influence, better for getting into art or aesthetics.
 
URANUS is bringing a degree of unusual opportunity to those of you born from May 25-9, chances that should be at least recognised if not taken, and this will be at its strongest during mid July.
 
SATURN will bring a degree of structure into the lives of those of you born after 12 June, and this added low level background confidence and self discipline will continue until at least the end of September.
 
JUPITER moves into Gemini during the second week of June and then stays with you for the rest of the year, bringing a degree of optimism and hope. This will primarily affect those of you born before June 9, but will benefit all Geminis.
 
MARS won’t touch you directly in 2012
 
VENUS, with its retrograde nature, will be in Gemini from Aril 3 to August 7
 
MERCURY will enter Gemini on 24 May and leave after a brief stay on June 7
 
The Gemini new Moon will be on 19 June and the full Moon on November 28

CANCER: 22nd June - 22nd July

Sorry folks! Speaking as a Cancerian, I have to tell you that it’s not an easy year ahead for most of us. Some of us are getting really clobbered by a combination of Uranus and Pluto, although this is primarily limited to those people born towards the end of June. At the other end of Cancer, Saturn is having a field day bringing in a number of different restrictions and challenges right the way through to the end of September. You’re on the receiving end of a number of different pressures from many different directions, and your famed thick shell will come firmly into use in 2012. Having said that it’s not all bad news, as in the second half of the year a new energy emerges, one that brings with it a greater degree of sensitivity, intuition and empathy as well as art and spirituality in a way that hasn’t happened for at least fourteen years. But the underlying message of 2012 is that of having to be strong in yourself, and not to take the effects of other people on you too personally. It may well be that the reason other people are ‘dumping’ on you is because they see you as a safe port in a storm, someone with strong shoulders who is not going to buckle under pressure. So continue to be selective about who you let into your inner circle, and be aware that it is better to have a few quality people than lots of quantity. It’s practically certain that many of you will go through periods of loss and hardship this year, whilst others will have to change things or run the risk of calcification. At the same time, by persevering and maintaining a steady and tenacious attitude, you can real add some flesh to your existing bone structure and firm yourself up.
 
PLUTO is going to be directly challenging those of you born from the 27th-30th June to eliminate and release old and redundant patterns and fears that have outlived their usefulness, and transform and regenerate them into something phoenix like.
 
NEPTUNE is going to bring a degree of greater empathy, imagination and compassion in a favourable way from the start of February onwards, especially if you’re born before June 25th.
 
URANUS is directly challenging some of you to revolutionise your lives, especially those of you born from June26-30, and there’s a pressing need as the year evolves to take a few chances and to know the difference between chance and risk.
 
SATURN will bring a degree of examination and testing to the lives of those of you born after July 13, at least until the start of October. After this time, Saturn starts to bring more structure into the lives of those born before July 1.
 
JUPITER will bring an energy of opportunity and growth potential into every one of your lives somewhere between the start of January and the end of May, and the later you are born in Cancer the later in 2012 this influence will benefit you.
 
MARS won’t touch you in 2012
 
VENUS is in your sign from 7 August to 6 September
 
MERCURY flits through your sign from the 7th to the 26th June
 
Cancer new Moon is on July 19, and full Moon is on both January 9 and December 28