Sagittarius, September 2015

In our monthly horoscopes, we provide a more in depth look at what's happening in the sky. If you are not a Sagittarius and/or don't care about Saggitarii, you can read the rest of our monthly horoscopes here.

The centaur, galloping with her bow and arrow, sees countless stars in an expansive sky. Abundant, expansive, and lucky are all words used to describe your ruling planet, Jupiter. You, too, are undeniably larger than life. You're philosophical and highly cultured, but there's one thing that makes you, Sagittarius, so you: You can't be bothered with the details. You're a big picture kind of girl. You don't have time to be such a perfectionist or nit-picky. Landing among the stars when you shoot for the moon doesn't feel like a consolation prize to you: You know you aren't limited in how often you can shoot—you'll shoot and shoot again, eventually getting your moon, and, in the meantime, collecting an enviable pile of stars.

However: Virgo, the sign your ruling planet is currently transiting, works quite differently. Virgo isn't looking up to the sky. She's down here on earth, counting sand (and yes, Virgo will count all that sand). Oh, how Virgo hates sand… it's always up your butt or in your shoes. It's not something neat, meticulous Virgo finds pleasant. Every sign has a planet that rules them, and we look to see where that planet is in the sky in order to get a sense of how that sign will be doing. Over the next year—beginning this past August and lasting until September 9, 2016—your own ruling planet Jupiter will be in Virgo, demanding that you narrow your focus and consider the details. Landing among the stars won't happen this year; instead, Virgo encourages you to slow down and take your shot for the moon deliberately.

This attention to detail will serve you well, especially when it comes to your career, your reputation, or any fame you might hope to achieve. Don't fight against this new way of living— it won't last forever (it's just a year!), and resisting change will make you look like a giant dick to everyone who is counting on you to be responsible. Go with the flow, Sagittarius, which this year means you need to be a little more anal.

In fact, over the next two years or so, getting a little uptight shouldn't be too difficult. Saturn will reenter Sagittarius on September 17, where it will stay until December 17, 2017. Saturn is the taskmaster of the zodiac, and as such, you can expect your life to be filled will obstacles and curmudgeonly authority figures—that is, unless you can embrace responsibility. Acting maturely is the key to managing any Saturn transit, a planet which has a truly horrible reputation for making life miserable. Don't worry about the hype: If you can enjoy dressing in business attire, embracing tradition, respecting your elders, doing some antiquing, coping with some gloomy moods, enjoying sarcastic company, and working your ass off, the next two years will be hugely rewarding—not only financially, but emotionally and spiritually as well. This time period will be major in your life; when you're on your death bed, you'll think back to these two years as very important times when you built the foundation of your life… or knocked it down with your irresponsibility and carelessness. Which will it be, Sagittarius?

This summer has brought you some tension, but not in the same way that Saturn will when it enters your sign. Venus turned retrograde on July 25, and, since then, you've felt quite tied down, even bored. On an emotional level, your philosophies concerning relationships have been challenged and reworked. Venus, the planet of love and money, ends its retrograde on September 6. Once Venus goes direct, you should notice things ease up a bit, especially anything concerning travel and education. You'll also come to some sort of conclusion or understanding regarding Venusian themes: love, beauty, money, harmony… you get the picture. If, at the beginning of the month, you feel super pressured to talk to your partner about your rules re: monogamy, seeing other people, or the amount of time you spend together, waiting until after September 6 could be a good idea—After Venus goes direct, your mind will feel more settled, hopefully making that conversation more productive and satisfying.

There's a New Moon solar eclipse in Virgo on September 13, which will have a tremendous impact on your career or your reputation, and it will also involve your social life in some way. Branding is everything, Sag! Who's hanging out with you in your Instagram photos? The eclipse may attract some new people to your life for you to associate with, and their impact will greatly affect your status, in your career or otherwise.

But this eclipse won't be all cocktails and social media tags: Some project or goal you've been excited or dreaming about may be ripped away. Sudden shake-ups or exits at work are possible as well. If it's you who's leaving: Trust the process. Eclipses are times when fate unfolds, when destiny arrives. Eclipse periods are very intense times— when you look back on 2015, you'll definitely feel a sense of life prior to September, and life after September.

On the relationship front, this eclipse could bring some drama to your partner's home life. Issues with family or housing could come up for them— are you in a place now in your life, Sag, where you can support this person? We also have an other eclipse later in the month, but first let's talk about September 17… September 17 will be one of the craziest days of the month for you, Sagittarius. Mercury turns retrograde in Libra; Jupiter (your ruling planet) opposes Neptune; and Saturn enters your sign, which we talked about already.

Mercury retrograde in Libra should be quite interesting, especially after the eclipse you experienced earlier on the 13. Libra is a graceful, social sign. Mercury, the planet of logic and communication, is highly cooperative in Libra, seeking to find common ground and harmony. We think of Libra as being the sign of decision making; however, since Libra is represented by the scales, there isn't much of a decision to be made— either one object is heavier or not. That's not as much of a decision as it is a fact. When Mercury is retrograde in Libra, we can expect some judgments and decisions to be reversed. For you, Sag, this will involve your social life, your hopes and dreams, and even the compensation you receive at work. The eclipse earlier this month stimulated these themes for you as well, so you might revise some decisions you made then. We also had Mercury retrograde in Libra last October, in 2014— it's very possible that any plans, contracts, commits (social or career-related) from then will get reworked this month.

Also on the 17, your ruling planet Jupiter will oppose Neptune. Neptune is the planet of fog and confusion, and it's currently located in an equally foggy, equally confused Water sign, Pisces. Oppositions like this bring confrontations and realizations; a confrontation between the planet of illusion (Neptune) and the planet of exaggeration (Jupiter) will be quite interesting— do you place a little too much faith in something that cannot possibly live up to your expectations? You'll come face-to-face with your delusions mid month, Sagittarius. You are known to be one of the most optimistic signs, but there's a possibility here that you're being a little too trusting or enthusiastic. Remember: Saturn also enters your sign on this day. Err on the side of caution. Saturn wants you to be conservative. Pretend you're like fellow sanctimonious-yet-free-spirited Sagittarius, Ann Coulter (but don't be a dick about abortion or immigration).

The Sun enters Libra on September 23, marking the beginning of fall. Mars enters Virgo on the 24, giving you some extra energy around material matters; the next day, September 25, Pluto turns direct, inspiring you to end some self destructive trends in your spending habits. It will also encourage you to transform or heal some of your ideas around worth or even self-esteem.

There's a Full Moon lunar eclipse in fellow Fire sign Aries on September 27—but thankfully, your career is no longer in the crosshairs (you have enough work stuff going on with Saturn sitting on top of you and Jupiter in hardworking Virgo). This eclipse will echo some of the same energy around friends and your plans for the future, but there will be a huge emphasis on creativity and breaking through any kind of rut you've been in. I don't want to freak you out, Sag, but conversations about babies (as in, making them) may come up. Wear a condom. A whirlwind romance could also be on the menu for this eclipse, as well as a 72-hour party. Aries is an invigorating, joyous energy— this eclipse will blast away any summertime boredom, but the energy will be so high-impact that you will need to schedule time off. Seriously, like, plan days off now, well in advance, because you're going to be totally exhausted.

The month ends with the Sun in Libra, the sign of balance. You, Sagittarius, are the sign of excess—but you'll be learning plenty about your bad habits with your ruling planet in the sign of the minimalist, Virgo. It seems there's a lesson about quantity here somewhere? You're the great philosopher of the zodiac, Sag, so I'll leave it to you to figure out what that is.