In astrology, the element of water corresponds with the emotional state. The first water sign, Cancer, teaches about our immediate emotional needs, a mother’s love, and a sense of belonging that arises out of family. With the next water sign, Scorpio, it’s not just our emotional needs, but the needs of a partner. It’s the alchemical process that happens when two people join together, whether through sex or deep intimate sharing. The final water sign, Pisces, the personal becomes transpersonal. It is no longer the emotional needs of an individual or a partner, but needs of humanity and Source. Compassionate Pisces is not only the last water sign, but the last of the twelve zodiac signs — the point where matter dissolves into non-physical, where we return to the divine mother, and to the cosmic womb that will rebirth us into the next life.

On July 17th we reach peak intensity of an astrological formation called the Grand Water Trine. While Saturn in Scorpio and Neptune in Pisces have already been in trine formation (120 degrees) over 2013, the arrival of Jupiter in Cancer completes what is know as a Grand Water Trine, which is like a large triangle connecting at 5 degrees of the water signs. This is an unprecedented opening as it is not often that we have more than two outer planets holding exact formation.

If you’ve needed to catch your breath after getting knocked about by the Uranus/Pluto square, this is your aspect. But know while water is often a balm, cleansing and renewing us, all this water energy can be unsettling. It’s no wonder that we’ve seen so many instances of flooding over the last couple of weeks. And people on my Empowering Astrology Facebook page have reported feeling overwhelmed with tears, their emotional state matching that of the collective. Note that emotions are bubbling up with this energy, whether grief or rage, because they can no longer be contained, like a dam bursting. There is purpose in this even though it can be disconcerting. Think renewal, think cleansing. And note that the energies, while at peak now, will continue into August. In fact Sandra Walter, a channel whose work I follow, indirectly calls this aspect the Summer of Divine Love. How fitting as the energy will be with us all summer long, adding a counter point to the edginess of the Uranus/Pluto square.

The keyword to think with the Grand Water Trine is flow. Trines are about ease and harmony as the planets share the same element. Because divinely inspired Neptune is in Pisces, the trine to Saturn in Scorpio grounds its visions into reality. This is all about manifestation — an idea coming in from the beyond or from the heart and manifesting into physical. As Neptune trines Saturn, the barriers that have heretofore kept us from creating our visions dissolve as do the barriers between this dimension and the knowledge that we are aspects of the divine made incarnate.

So here comes Jupiter in nurturing Cancer, the sign of its exaltation, adding size to the vision; Jupiter doesn’t do anything small after all. In its highest form, Jupiter is a cornucopia of divine blessings. Jupiter in Cancer feels safe, as if we’ve come home after a long journey into the unknown. It is an expansion of emotional connections. It is blessing we need for the visions we’ve been nurturing for so very long. The heart is open and the Grand Water Trine is like a portal for all that creator energy to come through and I keep getting the image of the Blessed Mother with this formation. Maybe this aspect is a manifestation of the divine feminine.

If you have planets at or very close to 5 degrees of the water signs, this is a very magical time for you. You are being opened up to something much larger. Allow yourself to connect to your intuition and allow what is in your heart to manifest into the physical. If you don’t have planets around those degrees, the aspect is still falling in three of your natal houses, activating the areas of life that those houses rule.

Finally, another important piece of the astrology of July 17th is the Uranus station. We’re being thrown a wild card with this energy. Will it be a bolt from the blue? Will it be a long needed miracle? Uranus is inherently hard to predict, but if anything we are being liberated with the Grand Water Trine — liberated from old emotional patterns. Do your best to surrender to the divine healing this summer. And know that you are indeed loved.