Ignition - and Alignment

Astro Notes for Aries Season (March 20-April 20, 2026)

Happy Vernal Equinox! Happy Astrological New Year! 

On Thursday evening, my wife and I were walking our dogs near the Pacific ocean. As we watched the sun disappear over the horizon, I realized that this was the last time it would set in Pisces — and was thus the final sunset of the entire astrological year. This means that Thursday night was the real ‘New Year’s Eve’! Maybe next year we’ll start a trend and organize a party. 

The Vernal Equinox, as the marker of the beginning of Spring in the northern hemisphere, is always associated with fresh starts and new beginnings. This year, the theme of birth carries even more significance than usual. 

On February 20, 2026, Saturn and Neptune met at 0° Aries — an alignment that had not occurred for over 6,000 years — symbolizing a profound reset moment for human civilization. With the Sun’s ingress into Aries, it is re-activating that same Zero Point, illuminating the new energies coming in not just for the next annual cycle but for an entirely new era. 

In my notes for Pisces season, I drew attention to the large stellium of planets migrating through Capricorn, Aquarius, and Pisces in the first months of 2026. Now this stellium is moving into Aries, bringing us an exceptionally concentrated burst of Aries ‘get up and go’ vitality — high octane rocket fuel for our lift-off. 

The ingress chart — which sets the tone not only for Aries season but for the whole astrological year — shows six planets in Aries, suggesting that the year ahead is likely to be characterized by bold new beginnings and trailblazing endeavors, as well as a headstrong spirit and a fair dose of volatility. The Chinese ‘Year of the Fire Horse’ seems aptly named. 

Aries Ingress Chart (shown without houses, as this reflects the global field rather than a specific location)

The sense of personal and collective ignition is amplified later in Aries season, when first Mars (April 10) and then Mercury (April 15) join the party, bringing assertive speech and actions to power our re-emergence. 

With the Sun, Moon, Venus, Mars, and Mercury all moving through Aries this season, they make a record number of conjunctions with the slower-moving planetary bodies — Saturn, Neptune, and Chiron — already there. These aspects include: 

• Sun conjunct Neptune (March 21)

• Sun conjunct Saturn (March 24)

• Venus conjunct Chiron (March 26)

• Mars conjunct Neptune (April 12)

• Mercury conjunct Neptune (April 16)

• Sun conjunct Chiron (April 16)

• Mars conjunct Saturn (April 19)

Conjunctions symbolize the end of one cycle of time and the beginning of another. They therefore have an ‘Aries’ kind of energy, bursting with new life. With so many conjunctions taking place in such a short space of time, it may feel like a cascade of initiations that propel us into a new reality. 

Furthermore, as of 12.33pm PT on March 20 (when Mercury stations direct), all planets will be moving direct until May 6. When all planets are moving forward, life tends to speed up, notable events happen, and we typically make more overt progress toward our goals. 

The Vernal Equinox, seven planets in Aries, seven conjunctions, all planets moving forward — all this would seem to scream “forward charge!” 

Yet there is an important nuance to this year’s Aries season. 

Just before the Equinox, there was a New Moon in Pisces (March 18), sending a subtle Piscean wave to wash over the monthly cycle. In the Aries ingress chart (see above), the ruler of all those planets in Aries is Mars, which is in Pisces. Also in the ingress chart, the Sun is conjunct Neptune, the ruler of Pisces. 

So there is a strong Piscean undercurrent shaping the expression of the Aries initiating fire. 

Pisces and Aries have a profound connection in that they are the signs closest to the mystery of Origin, or Source. One is surrendering into the Mystery, the other is rising out of it. They share a certain purity or innocence, akin to the relationship between a sage and an infant.

Mars in Pisces does not like to swim against the current. It follows the path of wu-wei: effortless action. It serves as a channel for the will of the Universe. This suggests that while the impulse to move forward will be strong, our actions are not meant to be purely will-driven. It won’t work to simply muscle our way through — over-exertion will likely deplete and exhaust us. Mars in Pisces reminds us that not all movement is aligned movement, and that real progress requires a sensitivity to right timing and a willingness to listen as much as to act. 

At the same time, a harmonious sextile between Saturn in Aries and Pluto in Aquarius is quietly at work in the background of this season. This is a powerful signature for building new, sustainable structures that embody the Aquarian forms of the future. As Aries ignites the spark of new beginnings, Saturn aligned with Pluto offers the capacity to anchor those beginnings in real foundations — allowing our visions to land. 

The invitation, then, is not simply to move forward, but to move forward in right relationship with the deeper intelligence that is guiding this new cycle into being. If we can align bold action with subtle attunement — courage with humility, initiative with listening — this Aries season has the potential to mark not just a surge of momentum, but the beginning of something truly enduring.