I know everyone is starting to pick up their conversations about eclipse season. Tbh, I’ve talked A LOT about the eclipses, both on TikTok and in my Eclipse Season Survival Guide Class, so I’m going to switch gears and talk about Pisces. Recently, water sign Pisces has been making waves. I mean, there was the Neptune cazimi in Pisces, which was preceded by Venus in Pisces, and before that was the Saturn cazimi, Mercury in Pisces, and Pisces season… Well, guess what? Another planet is joining the Pisces party. On March 22, Mars enters dreamy, passive and sleep-loving Pisces, where it will remain until April 30.
In case you were wondering, Mars is the planet of action, energy, motivation, competition, self-assertion and goals. Mars is fire, heat, action, and your ego. But in Pisces, the ultimate water sign of passivity and pacifism, Mars’s motivation gets drenched in emotions, dreams, intuitive hunches, humanitarian ideals, and compassion. Pisces is the sign of selflessness. Pisces aims for the dissolution of the ego. You see where I’m going here? Mars in Pisces isn’t motivated by the typical ego drives. There’s not a strong desire for competition, excessive self-assertion, outward aggression, or achieving goals for just for the sake of a trophy and/or glory. (Save that for Mars in Aries.) No, Mars in Pisces wants peace, ease, serenity, cease-fires, and a poetic utopia.
So, when the outward-directed planet (Mars) transits the subdued, non-confrontational sign of Pisces, all those Mars-ruled facts of life—aggression, motivation, activity, goal-setting—can feel a bit watered down, like a flooded engine. That’s especially true if you’re trying to motivate yourself to chase/achieve something for purely selfish and/or unethical egomaniacal reasons (i.e.: greed, glory at the expense of others’ humiliation, etc.) Don’t get me wrong, Mars in Pisces has the potential to pursue any goal for greedy / selfish reasons. But because this slippery eel of a transit secretly longs to supersede greed and transcend all the earthly, egoic ambitions of the world, Mars in Pisces won’t feel good about any accomplishment driven solely by selfishness.
All that said, Mars in Pisces doesn't mean you’re completely unmotivated or completely ego-less; rather, what motivates you more during this time are your dreams, fantasies, compassion, emotions, and yearning for something greater. And yes, the typical Mars-associated courage, bravado and goal-setting are all there for you to pluck up and call on, if/when you need to, but they are birthed by energies and themes not traditionally associated with Mars. Think: creative / divine inspiration, compassion and sensitivity to others, emotional investment, commitment to something greater than Y-O-U.
A quick anecdote: My dad has his natal Mars in Pisces. He’s a saxophonist / former engineer and math teacher, And he’s never been a super-aggressive go-getter of a guy. He’s not self-motivated in the literal sense, and he has a tendency to get defeated somewhat easily. He’s neither super spiritual nor ambitious, and he’ll never seek out leadership positions if he can help it, but when it comes to helping and doing things for other people—fixing cars, bikes or guitars, and teaching math to those who swore they’d never be able to learn it—he’ll patiently yet passionately work his ass off. That, I feel, succinctly summarizes Mars in Pisces both as a transit and a birth chart placement: Mars in Pisces cares, nurtures, and senses what others needs. And then, Mars in Pisces tries to heal or help.
So, for the next five or so weeks, you might be like my Dad, and be in tepid pursuit of all things artistic, compassionate, caring or helpful; and you’ll especially like them if they offer you a chance to escape the mundane and immerse yourself in your imagination. (Dad always loves escaping into a good movie or album…) Sure, you might not feel as fired-up or gung-ho about big aims and goals, but think of it this way: you, me, and everyone around us are being given a chance to slow down, rest, and reassess the goals we’re chasing. We’ve been gifted the opportunity to put aside our egos and worldly ambitions to care, help, heal and maybe even fight for those in need: the oppressed, the hurting, the ones who don’t believe in or can’t fight for themselves…
Of course, that’s largely what Mars in Pisces looks to be doing for us collectively. What Mars in Pisces is doing for you, the individual, depends entirely on your Sun and Rising sign. So, without further ado:
Your 2024 Mars in Pisces Horoscope
Keep reading with a 7-day free trial
Subscribe to The Cosmic Almanac to keep reading this post and get 7 days of free access to the full post archives.