Have you ever done something that you were taught was impossible? Perhaps you responded to a situation in a manner that was totally uncharacteristic of your usual behavior, or even "inappropriate". You might have opened your mouth and heard something come out that was a complete and total surprise.

At some time in your life have circumstances required you to do something you had never done before? Something you were taught or had always told yourself was an impossible feat? All of these experiences are normal modus operandi for Uranus.

Uranus represents a part of you that wants you to know there is more to life than what text books lead you to believe; you can do more than what you have been taught by the familial and social structures that surround and shape your life. Sometimes, in the process of making its energies known to you, Uranus created disruptions, surprising you; your life might seem out of control. At other times Uranus creates excitement, exhilaration and liberation from the limitations or the boundaries of the past.

Uranus represents a part of you that wants you to explore what's unknown, look beyond the immediate for answers, experiment with life and constantly grow as a result. The adventures it brings into your life can be physical, mental, emotional, or spiritual, but they are adventures never the less, and they will always lead you to a surprise destination.

Uranus represents a part of you that wants you to take risks. It wants you to explore and experiment with life. It represents the part of you that wants you to be more than what your limited experience has proven to be possible. Uranus is the liberator, the part of you that wants to free you from boundaries that prohibit access to the unknown. Uranus is the rebel. It thrives on excitement and is repelled by rules and regulations. It represents a living force inside of you that sometimes must go to extremes to make its needs known.

Like any family unit, your internal cast of characters (planets) must learn to function with mutual respect and recognize each other's importance. When one part of you attempts to dominate or control other members of your "family", no matter how good its intentions might be, internal strife and imbalances are experienced. This internal strife is projected onto and into your external activities.

For example, if the part of you that wants to keep you safe and protected (Moon) attempts to block the natural expression of your inner rebel (Uranus), a personal crisis is experienced. Two distinctive parts of you are attempting to function at cross-purposes. Uranus, like an out-of-control adolescent, will retaliate by creating frequent upheavals, emotional instability or inappropriate behavioral outbursts until you recognize the importance of its role, which is to stimulate change, progress and evolution. Until the part of you that wants guaranteed safety (Moon) realizes that stagnation, not security, is what results from lack of fluidity and movement, Uranus will create crisis after crisis in its attempt to prod you forward.

It is equally important for Uranus to recognize, respect, and appreciate the needs of the Moon. When functioning creatively, the part of you that wants protection and security (Moon) is familiar with the part that wants change and progress (Uranus). When these two functions work together harmoniously you are able to experiment with life and still know that you are safe and protected.

Uranus thrives on chaos. When your life feels completely out of control, as if you are riding on the most exciting, but frightening, roller coaster ride of your life, the part of you that is Uranus is ecstatic. Uranus thrives on excitement and risk. Its purpose is to help you evolve, to discover dimensions of life that go beyond the limits of social definition or permission. It may create this outcome by provoking crisis and instability. The more unbending, rigid, or fearful you are, the louder Uranus must roar to make its needs heard. Sometimes, like an adolescent rebelliously trying to break free from family restraints, Uranus seems to go too far in its attempt to find release. When you see this beginning to occur in your life, remind yourself that a part of you named Uranus wants and deserves to be heard, wants and deserves a chance to have center stage, wants and deserves a chance to contribute to your personal evolution.

It is important to recognize and appreciate the reasons that stand behind the disruptions Uranus is so frequently blamed for creating. The intent and outcome of the action, rather than the action itself, are this planet's only concern. Uranus is not concerned with possessions, social protocol, security or obsolete beliefs. It simply but dramatically wants you to change, to grow, to explore, and to experiment. When it deems that the time has come for change, and you consciously refuse to flow with it, Uranus will find whatever way it can to do its job. If it has to create upheaval, then so be it.

It has been said that the outer planets are "bigger than you". They deal with energies and issues that are greater than personality, even though they manifest through it. Uranus, for example, will promote change whether you consciously want change or not. It will keep your life topsy-turvy until you finally acknowledge and own the important role it plays in your life; until you accept it as part of who you are.

Uranus is called evolution, progress, change. Fighting progress is seldom productive. Uranus encourages eccentricity, eclecticism and detachment. It challenges you to let go of the past. It invites and welcomes surprise, excitement, and originality. It rules the unexpected because it is often extraordinary, unexpected events that make you aware of something you never knew before, and probably never would have discovered had it not been for Uranus' surprise intervention. Sometimes its surprises are frightening. Other times they are stimulating, provocative, and exciting. How you respond to the changes it creates can only be defined by how you, and all of your complex parts (planets), understand and cooperate with transformation.

When Uranus is "playing" with your life, it is important that you consciously touch base with all other members of your "family". For example, if you do not consciously access the Moon (your urge to protect and be protected), you could attract stressful and unsettling situations that are unduly dangerous to your emotional well being. Accessing Mercury, on the other hand, encourages you to ask: Are my rebellious urges intellectually sound? Do they make any sense at all?

Venus/Uranus issues revolve around relationships and personal values. If Uranus aspects Venus in your chart, you need exciting, stimulating relationships. Uranus constantly challenges the part of you that wants to please and be pleased, love and be loved. For Uranus to be satisfied in any Venus-ruled affair, it needs to see the relationship moving, progressing, changing.

At the same time, it is important that you don't get so involved in creating constant change in relationships that you fail to acknowledge their value (Venus). If Uranus dominates, valued and valuable relationships are often lost. While the part of you named Uranus might be perfectly content, the part of you that wants love (Venus) feels cheated. Relationships are exciting, but they are usually unstable and not satisfying. On the other hand, when these energies work in harmony, and the needs of both planets are met, relationships are exhilarating, vital, exciting, stimulating, and progressive.

Consider a square between Uranus and Mercury. Uranus wants Mercury to think in progressive, possibly unconventional ways. Uranus challenges the Mercury-mind to take risks, dare to explore mental concepts that go beyond those you already understand. Break out of a traditional or conventional mindset and explore the unexplainable. The square suggests that this challenge is not easily met. One of two things could result. If Mercury shuts out Uranus, and refuses to investigate progressive ideas, Uranus will rebelliously retaliate by creating mental short-circuits, unrest, and disturbance. This can happen in any number of ways. At the other extreme, if Uranus dominates and doesn't respect Mercury's role, the mind will function erratically and with extreme eccentricity. The way you express your Uranian energy simply won't make sense and will cause dis-integration of your internal family unit. Cooperation between the "thinker" (Mercury) and the "rebel" (Uranus) is the ultimate goal.

Easy aspects suggest that an amiable relationship was established at birth between these two inner parts of you. For example, a sextile suggests that constructive tools are available to help the two energies form a productive relationship. Powerful, challenging, provocative aspects, such as the conjunction, square, quincunx, or opposition, require effort to integrate the energies. But regardless of the aspect, Uranus/Mercury contacts always imply a potential for ingenuity and exceptional originality.

Whenever Uranus overwhelms or ignores the needs of your other "family members", instability and disintegration occur. As an example, consider what might happen the first time you meet an opportunity to go skydiving... something you've always wanted to do. A part of you (Uranus) is excited. You can almost hear its silent voice saying, "Go for it! It's what you want! It will be exciting! Liberating! It will change your life forever! Jump!"

At the same time, another part of you, named Moon, is afraid. It knows that skydiving involves some element of risk. It recognizes that you have no past experience to assure you that you'll come out of this safely.

If you fail to skydive, even after you learn how to use the equipment and carefully observe the landscape to see if obstacles block your path, you are allowing the Moon to dominate Uranus. Uranus is left unfulfilled, possibly seeking revenge! Uranus wants to add a new dimension to your life, and you are denying it freedom.

On the other hand, if you go ahead and jump without recognizing and respecting the Moon's wish to protect you, you put your life in grave danger. Leaping before looking has potentially devastating results. Remember that Uranus does not have the survival instincts provided by the Moon. Uranus has no logic (Mercury). Uranus laughs at rules (Saturn).

This same principle applies when evaluating how Uranus interacts with all personal and social planets. Its role is to create change in your personal life and in how you function as a social participant. It wants you to be more tomorrow that you are today. It wants to liberate you from boundaries that limit future possibilities. The parts of you defined by planets in easy aspect with Uranus welcome its liberating promises. Planets in challenging aspect represent parts of you that are reluctant to change, or lack experience in doing so gracefully.

One of the most exciting, if not potentially dangerous, combinations of planetary energies is seen in Mars/Uranus interplay. Mars represents the part of you that wants you to be assertive, action-oriented and independent. Its job is to get you whatever you want. It can easily become overwhelmed by the Uranus challenge. Uranus wants you to take risks every time you go after what you want (Mars). It challenges you not only to pioneer new trails in life (Mars), but to use untried, unconventional techniques in doing so. While this particular combination can be extremely exciting, it can also be very unstable and volatile. Anger often erupts unexpectedly; actions can be initiated erratically in Uranus' attempt to show you that you can do more than what you thought possible.

If Mars, in its attempt to do things its own way, refuses to change its mode of expression, Uranus will instigate crises to show you that things can be done differently in the future than they have been done in the past. This aspect is truly revolutionary. Because of its potential volatility, if you have these planets in stressful aspect in your chart, you have a dynamic responsibility to understand and direct the energies.

Jupiter and Saturn are the "social" planets. They represent the parts of you that want you to function in society. Jupiter wants you to expand, to grow, to take advantage of all of society's facilities and the opportunities they provide. It urges you to go outside your own limited environment to expand or enlarge your understanding of life.

When Uranus is in aspect to social planets, it challenges you to break out of socially conditioned attitudes and beliefs. You have a unique ability to use your rebellious, individualistic talents to make changes in the world around you. This power to change might involve political (Saturn) or philosophical (Jupiter) policies or beliefs. If Uranus' urges are not utilized in a positive way, they can easily manifest in socially irresponsible behaviors that label you a "rebel without a cause."

The House containing Uranus describes where you will go through major and memorable changes, possibly chaotic instability. It describes an area of life where you need to recognize and appreciate your inner rebel, your unconscious desire to break free from socially conditioned beliefs, to detach from any attachments or personal possessiveness you might have toward that field of life experience. Dare to explore and experiment when you meet situations and challenges in the area of life described by Uranus' House. This House shows where you need to be "different," where you are challenged to defy systems and preprogrammed methods of defining or finding personal happiness. Here you need to be experimental, detached and exhilarated by visions of future possibilities.

Astrologers often blame Uranus for creating events involving upheaval. Perhaps it's time to consider this powerful planet from a different perspective. Does Uranus, the planet, bring crisis to you? Or does it represent a part of you that helps you live through it? Major changes or crises occurring in Uranus' House seem, and sometimes are, out of your conscious control. Circumstances, even tragedies, spur your inner-Uranus to emerge to help you solve problems and face challenges in a way that you never knew you could, and probably never would have discovered had a crisis not occurred. Uranus helps you to break free from attachments, or a limited mindset, and discover new dimensions of yourself. Out of this new awareness, a more interesting life emerges.

Consider the life of Helen Keller, who had Uranus in the third house of her chart. Her inability to communicate, to hear or to speak, was her greatest tragedy. The very limitation created a need for her to access and utilize her Uranian potential. By rebelling against her limitations, she unleashed her own genius and freed herself from bondage to her handicap.