Most of us have heard the term, the Age of Aquarius, or at least                                      we’ve heard the famous song about its dawning. What is the Age of Aquarius? What will the Age of Aquarius bring? Here I will explain, without getting too technical, the astronomical and astrological meaning of the dawning of the Age of Aquarius.

The Astronomy of Astrological Ages

During what is called the Great Year or the Precession of the Equinoxes, our sun journeys across the backdrop of the stars in the sky, completing its precession of the equinoxes through all of the twelve zodiac constellations in about 25,772 years. In a precession the stars are observed moving in a retrograde or backwards motion, and their positions in the sky shift approximately 1 degree every 72 years. The equinox sun’s precession through each of the zodiac signs is called a Great Month, and lasts about 2,150 years. That is to say, about every 2,150 years we begin a new age. Though there have been various calculations, the consensus is that the Age of Aquarius will begin about 2600 CE. Currently the sun at the Vernal Equinox in the Northern Hemisphere is in Pisces. Given the retrograde motion, we are entering into the last quarter of the Age of Pisces, or the dawning of the Age of Aquarius.

The Astrological Meaning of the Ages of Pisces and Aquarius

Before we jump into the Age of Aquarius, let’s first understand the age that we are still in, the Age of Pisces. Pisces represents intuition, sensitivity, and compassion. It also represents dreaminess, delusion, illusion, and elusiveness. Neptune rules the sign of Pisces and opens the doors to transcendental and mystical experience, but we can also easily get lost in deception and pseudo-realities. Our personal choices will lead us down one path or the other. This is the age of the “New Age”, an increase in spirituality, self-awareness, personal growth, and soul searching.

As we are entering into the last part of the Age of Pisces, we are already beginning to sense the influences of the coming age, hence the dawning of the Age of Aquarius. Aquarius represents humanitarian efforts, clearer communication, and expansiveness. There’s also stubbornness and rebelliousness. Uranus rules Aquarius and can bring about sudden changes from lightning insights and epiphanies to unexpected revolts and revolutions. Across the globe we can already see the dawning as political changes and humanitarian and human equality efforts seem to be increasing and expanding. The Age of Aquarius will hopefully bring us into an age of world peace, where we all love and respect one another without prejudice and fear.