In April 1994, when Pluto and Jupiter conjoined the North Node in Scorpio the worst genocide of the 1990’s took place when extremist Hutu militias murdered an estimated 800,0000 to 1,000,000 Tutsis and moderate Hutus in Rwanda. It seems that the continent of Africa is so often subject to huge upheavals with so much loss of life, whether through Aids and curable diseases, through famine, or through civil war. Since 1994 Pluto has moved from Scorpio, through Sagittarius – religious terror – and here in the beginning of 2008 it is in Capricorn, so the astrological observer is inclined to a degree of nervousness about what new areas of human experience will undergo painful transformations. When Kenyan elections on December 27th 2007 took place and were followed by riots killing up to 1000 people, the question arises whether one of Africa’s most prosperous and stable countries is about to descend into chaos.
In that election the opposition coalition led by Odinga was forecast to win over the current government leader Kibaki. Vote counting on the 28th gave Odinga a strong lead, but as more results were announced the gap closed. Kibaka declared himself the winner with 232,000 votes and he was sworn in for a second term amidst violent protests from the opposition. International observers pointed to corruption, noting that in one constituency the turnout rate appeared to be 115%. (Note 1)
Odinga is associated with the ethnic group Luo, whilst Kibaki represents the interests of the dominant Kikuyu, who have basically been running Kenya since independence from the British in 1963. The deadly rioting since the election has resulted in an ethnic polarization that has forced millions of people to flee from their homes and relocate to tribal areas where they feel safe. Even in Nairobi many slum areas have polarized in this way. Police are escorting people back to their “ancestral lands” which is creating a complete split in the country between North/East and South/West.
The election took place just after Jupiter entered Capricorn. This was the time when Mars was retrograde in Cancer and in exact opposition to Jupiter, obviously a recipe for ideological conflict along ethnic lines. A retrograde Mars in Cancer always remembers tribal affiliations and is willing to fight for home and family with a primeval emotional motivation. The fact that Mars was retrograde suggests that there is unfinished business, and we can expect a new battle around April 24 when Mars catches up once more with Jupiter, which is about to turn retrograde, at 22 Cancer/Capricorn.
HOROSCOPE: Kenya – 12th December 1963. 0.00 Nairobi.
As the independence chart for Kenya has Mars at 4.56 Capricorn and the Sun on election morning was exactly on this Mars, there seemed destined to be a fight for leadership. The threat of internal revolution is shown by the current Uranus transit in square to the Sun which is exact on March 16th, October 28th and December 27th. This transit shows continued instability throughout 2008. It shows too the magnet that Kenya has now become to foreign dignitaries who in February 2008 are doing their utmost to prevent the situation from worsening. Whilst Kibaki clings to power and hopes that time itself will work in his favor as institutions accept the status quo, the former UN secretary general Kofi Annan is trying to mediate, joined at the time of writing by US secretary of state Condoleezza Rice.
Perhaps Uranus transiting the sun also shows that other famous Kenyan, Barak Obama, whose father (of the same name) had been an economic advisor for the Kenyan government, before being sacked. The father died in 1982, a disappointed man who made little headway with his proposals for a more democratic economic redistribution of resources. Obama visited Kenya in 1997 when he tried to unravel some of the unknowns connected with his father (relating to his own Sun in Leo square Neptune). Obama is, in Kenya, admired throughout the whole country; perhaps people find in him what they have not been able to get from their own leaders. Recently Obama gave a rather courageous speech about corruption in Kenya aimed at the sitting president Kibaki, when he was on a visit there. (Note 2) Perhaps one should not underestimate the fact that Obama’s roots are with the Luo ethnic grouping and he has cemented quite strong bonds with Odinga, as this could have a strong effect on Kenya’s future, if Obama becomes president.
Looking at Kenya’s independence chart, the sun is strong in Sagittarius, and its position in the 4th house may indicate the wide-open spaces and safari associations we have with the country, as well as the international dimension it has always had with tourists, expatriates and Indians. The wide trine to Jupiter in Aries supports this outdoor and optimistic picture. The loose square to the Uranus/Pluto conjunction suggests rather an explosive cocktail with dictatorial tendencies in the leadership that must control a wide mix of peoples. With Saturn now transiting the Ascendant and the Uranus/Pluto conjunction, the weakness of the myriad of ethnic divisions in the land is highlighted.
The strongest aspect to the Sun is its sextile to a dignified Saturn in Aquarius, which in itself contains the roots for a powerful democracy. It is worth remembering that the country is still very young. It has evolved from a single party state to a multiparty state (in 1991 when Uranus went over the Capricorn stellium), and now there are over 20 separate political parties, though power is still concentrated in the hands of the Kikuyu.
The current Uranus transit may shake things up and internationalize the internal strife, but it is unlikely in itself to create a revolution or civil war… just continued disturbances. With Ascendant ruler Mercury conjoining an exalted Mars in Capricorn, there are indications of strong if rather autocratic governance, with an efficient business community. A tight hold is kept on the reins, and the close sextile of Mars to a Moon in fall in Scorpio indicates that the people are subject to strong policing and a lot of rules and regulations.
The current strife is also reflected by Kenya’s progressed Moon in Gemini which has been exactly square Uranus in January. As the moon goes on to square Pluto in April there is still danger ahead as this is a strong signature for ethnic cleansing. Furthermore progressed Venus is now at 9.42 Pisces and during the course of the year it will conjoin the Descendant, simultaneously activating the Uranus/Chiron opposition. Venus progressed opposed progressed Uranus last year and opposes radix Uranus in June this year… there will therefore be more upheaval in the population where the differences between people and groups will be more emphasized than the similarities.
Apart from wounding the population, this development is going to create havoc with Kenya’s economy. Venus in Capricorn is ruler of the 9th and in the fifth, indicating the huge revenues generate from tourism. These revenues will dwindle and plunge Kenya into an economic crisis which will be at its peak from 2011 to 2012 when Venus opposes Pluto. This is also the time when Pluto finally conjoins Mars and sextiles the Moon in Scorpio, which suggests the iron hand of dictatorship in sorting out self-destructive tendencies in the population.
As things stand right now the decisive influence is transiting Saturn on Kenya’s Ascendant awakening the need to tighten controls and the establishment of order. With Saturn making trines to both Jupiter and Pluto in Capricorn, the indications are that a heavy military presence and authoritarian government will maintain a degree of order, whilst there will be a controlled chaos amongst the population with continued reorganization along ethnic lines.
International pressure is geared to creating a power-sharing agreement between Kibaki and Odinga to prevent further violence and polarization of the population. The Saturn trine to Pluto indicates that this pressure is enormous and unrelenting up to May, whilst the trine to Jupiter is exceptionally strong from September to November. If there is to be power sharing, only international bullying will effectuate it, and this could happen at the end of April. It is possible that the progressed Moon in Gemini will see the people represented by two leaders, and the Uranus square to the Sun may indicate a double-leadership. Ultimately the solution will be a transformation of existing government practices and a campaign against corruption, and this is likely to happen with the coming Pluto transit over the stellium in Capricorn. In the meantime increased instability and economic difficulties lie ahead.
Tests have shown that if astrologers are presented with horoscopes for people they do not know, they do much worse than they expect to, when trying to describe who they are and what they do. For example, it has been shown that astrologers do no better than chance when trying to match horoscopes to professions. In actual fact people are so incredibly different, and there are so many of them, that it is impossible in reality to consistently predict what people are like, and what they do. With about 5 billion people in the world, and every one of them different, astrology is still a fantastic instrument, because it can assign a unique and complex signature to each individual, which can subsequently be interpreted according to a set of rule.
It’s the interpretation that is the challenge. My own interpretations only come to life when a living person comes into the room. Until that moment it is as if the horoscope is like a subway map – things only become meaningful when I am actually in the train and hurtling towards the destination. Likewise, it is only when the client begins to explain some of the life structure that I feel I can apply the horoscope map and give guidance. But once the client’s life is mapped on to the chart, it is a different matter. Suddenly it is possible to give detailed descriptions and accurate predictions – especially if there is mastery of the consultation chart, the horary chart timed for the client’s arrival.
But it can still be difficult to answer quite simple questions that are crucial for the client – not least the Big Question: when will I find my partner? The consultation chart would show if a meeting was on the cards in the immediate future, but if it did not, then it would be nice to be able to give some indication about the love life in the more distant future. Transits can show relationships, but in the evolution of the soul and the meeting of a mate the key influence is secondary progressions. (Note 1)
Interpreting secondary progressions is however no easy matter. Just as in horary, planets rule and are representatives for the energy of the 12 houses, so Venus may bring love, but if it is ruler of the 10th it may also bring career success. Or, if Venus rules the 7th and progresses to square 9th house ruler Jupiter, there is a strong likelihood that a legal judgment will go against the partner, or that he or she will fail and exam. Squares and oppositions in progressions can be quite unforgiving, because progressions show the slow unfoldment of the karmic propensities – when Venus comes to square Jupiter it is the result of a process that has been in the pipeline for a long time.
The following interpretations apply best for conjunction aspects. Allowances need to be made for progressed sextiles and trines, which will almost certainly bring happy events, and progressed squares and oppositions, which will bring challenging circumstances in connection with the aspect. Generally when progressed Venus aspects another planet, a person will come into your life who reflects that planet. It is also extremely likely that the person in question will actually have the Venus-planet combination in their own chart. Progressions show encounters, and the subsequent integration and absorption of talents and qualities that are destined from birth. People you meet with Venus progressions have a good chance of sticking around for many years as you learn about the qualities connected with the progression.
Progressed Venus to Ascendant: Arrival of Love
In this period love comes into your life. This is either in the form of a warm-hearted and devoted person who wants to be in your company, or simply because you find new ways of expressing your own romantic and loving nature. Whatever – this is a fortunate time both romantically and economically. You want to establish balance in your life, and you do this by asserting your personal taste, making aesthetic choices and generally adopting a personal lifestyle that reflects an appreciation for beauty and quality. Your heart is opened and love flows – and some lucky person is the object of your affection.
Progressed Venus to MC: Career blessings
There is a very favorable career development at this time, which simply makes work more pleasurable and rewarding. This can be because of the arrival of a kind and generous boss, a woman perhaps, or because of a radical improvement of the environment. This is the time for you to deal with people rather than systems or organization, or if you deal with objects, then aesthetics and beauty will play a role. The funds are there to launch projects and the right people are there to support you in your professional path. This is also an excellent time for happy developments with the home and family… for example a time to renovate the attic.
Progressed Venus to Descendant: A loved one arrives
This is a time when an important relationship can start. If you do not have a partner, then a truly loving person comes into your life to bless you. If you do not have a child, then this is a time when what you have waited for comes to you, or when a child marries for example. Balance and harmony comes in to your life now in a way you have never experienced before, and you develop an appreciation for the good things in life and the pleasures a relationship can bring. This is an excellent time for personal and business partnership, when people from the outside bring something that sweetens your life. These developments can also bring favorable moves or relocation.
Progressed Venus to IC: Love moves in
You can expect a happy development in your domestic life with this influence. This is the time when love comes into your life through a child, a daughter perhaps, or when you can invest in property, or when you find the funds to really do some home improvement that makes your house and garden a pleasure to be in. Whatever: your environment is blessed by love and things of beauty, and this is clearly a family blessing. Someone moves in who has a graceful aura – there may be a certain vanity or self-indulgence, but overall it is a pleasure to enjoy the company. If you can afford property now – and the indications are that you can – it will be lovely.
Progressed Venus to Sun: Blaze of glory
It is at this time of your life that your natural talent and charm comes out into the open and you are able to make a powerful impression on the world. Your aesthetic skills and tastes are somehow central to your whole being, and this creates a charismatic aura that brings success, prosperity and recognition. This is a peak period for your love life, because your powers of attraction have never been more radiant. You can fall head over heels for an influential person in a prominent position. This is a time when love can absorb you totally – even blind you. Yet it is also a time when your own loving nature is expressed fully and completely authentically. You can push for prominence, promotion, more money, and generally get what you put your mind to. But don’t let it go to your head.
Progressed Venus to Moon: Loving and caring
You are entering a period when attachments have never been stronger. There is an overwhelming bond of love – the kind of love a mother feels for a child perhaps – and this creates great intimacy, and also dependence. Finding the balance between loving and needing is a challenge, but there is no doubt that this is a time when your loving and caring sides converge, and totally absorb the object of your affections. Giving yourself completely to the welfare of a child is likely. But this is also a time for romantic love. You meet an emotional and rather dependant person, and there is mutual care and support. With love comes the need to build a home – a place where the family can be nurtured and thrive. There are powerful family developments at this time which open up your heart and increase your vulnerability.
Progressed Venus to Venus: A milestone in love
There is a milestone in relationships around this time, where you reconnect with an essential need or drive to express your values and tastes, and reflect these values in your choice of partner, and perhaps your choice of economic path. You’ve seen it all before, so now you ask the question: What do I truly value? Your choices are up for review, and you search within to find out what you really like and are attracted to; what are your authentic needs, not least in your love life. You draw energy from within, and there you find an endless source of love that you need to share. You just need to make the right choices about how to express your love and who with, and how you want to reflect your self in the things you own and value.
Progressed Venus to Mars: Eve and Adam
A crucial development takes place in relationships around this time, as your inner need for love encounters the ultimate object of its desire. Classically this is irresistible attraction between a man and a woman, the magnetic inevitability of seduction, the creating of a child. If you are single at this time, you can expect powerful sexual experiences – as good as it gets – and this may well be a time when you meet your natural mate, and someone with whom children come as a matter of biological necessity. This is the time to go for what you want. Yet the passions that are aroused can also be overwhelming, and in their wake there can be rage and jealousy… it is after all your animal side that is awakened now. Rational considerations have little effect when love and desire run rampant. This is a good time for dynamic business partnerships.
Progressed Venus to Jupiter: Happiness in abundance
There may be no other time in your life when the horn of plenty is so full. In love you can expect fortunate events like marriage or falling in love, and this will be with someone wise and generous – perhaps from a foreign culture, or at least with a cosmopolitan view. A person who is interested in the music and arts, or with a fine intellectual capacity… for this is the time for you too to do everything you can to expand your cultural credentials. This is an excellent time for intellectual honors, and for being invited into a prestigious social group. Prosperity will also come your way – and without too much effort. Faith in the future and simple good luck bring influential people into your life who influence your career in a beneficial way. Now is the time to make hay whilst the sun shines – for the sun will certainly not shine for ever.
Progressed Venus to Saturn: The welding of bonds
It is at this time of your life that you get involved in a relationship or social circumstance that has great significance for the way you relate for years into the future. There is a heavy commitment, and the hand of karma weighs strongly on your shoulders. You could forge an unbreakable bond with someone or some group, but the responsibilities this entails can be very challenging. There is a sense of inevitability – you cannot escape. You must now commit in the long term and accept the challenges ahead. You gain strength of character. You develop moral fiber. You build economic, romantic or social foundations for the future. There may be times when the pressure makes you feel unhappy or depressed. You may suffer from a sense of being unloved or unpopular. All this must be taken on board – you will come out of this period of relationship challenge with a strong, self-sufficient character.
Progressed Venus to Uranus: Breaking social barriers
Around this time you find yourself being drawn to a completely different type of relationship that inspires you in your personal development. Rather than commitment to a single individual as in traditional marriage, you feel the need to become part of a group of eclectic people who are on the fringe of society in some way and driven by ideals that run counter to convention. This may well place strains on existing relationships – especially as changes can come as a complete surprise – but it is crucial for you to experiment and explore on the social front. If you are unattached you will meet a person who takes you for a walk on the wild side – a person with an electric personality totally different culturally from what you are used to. It is as if you have to explore the extremes in yourself to find out what your true values are. Professionally this is a time to join with international teams and promote values that represent a distinct alternative to what has been previously expected.
Progressed Venus to Neptune: The higher purpose of love
Your values in relationships go through a subtle though powerful shift culminating around this time, perhaps because of events that remind you that nothing in life lasts for ever. Sickness or death is inevitable the older people get, so the crucial attitude is to show your love and appreciation for the people you love – here and now. Or, this period can bring a sense of confusion and dissolution in relationships because you feel that you cannot control the choices of others. And you can’t You need to embrace an attitude of surrender or acceptance. It is precisely at this time that spiritual breakthroughs can provide answers where none could previously be found. By meeting with other spiritual seekers, you can find the blessings of divine and unconditional love, and develop the power of compassion in your life.
Progressed Venus to Pluto: Love and the underworld
Events in your love life around this time awaken such powerful emotions that you can expect a transformation in how you express your love and sexuality and how you bond with others generally. You are drawn to the taboo like a moth to the flame, even if such an attraction threatens to destroy the very foundations you stand on. If you have been living a superficial relationship, then a crisis will force you to confront the demons that have been locked away in the deep. This is the time when you confront jealousy, power and control and are over manned. The release of psychic material transforms your values for ever, initiating a psychological process that brings authenticity, intensity and erotic power. Relationships that develop at this time draw you ever deeper into circumstances beyond your control. On the material front this is also a time to let go of those things that no longer serve any useful purpose, even if this means financial loss. The phoenix will arise from the ashes.
Progressed Venus to Chiron: The love and the wound
Extraordinary experiences can take place in your love life around this time, when you encounter events in relationships that confront you with a weakness or vulnerability that can seem like an unhealed wound. This relates to childhood experiences of hurt through emphatic rejection; experiences that nudged you into detaching from your body and rationalizing your feelings. People you meet and love at this time may be wounded themselves, or you may inadvertently hurt them, and perhaps the same can happen for you too. But there is an important learning experience here, because you also discover the healing power of love within yourself. Giving your heart to another may be painful, but it is also rewarding.
Progressed Venus to North Node: Love and destiny
You find yourself getting drawn into a social group that is an important part of the collective and that can play a crucial role in your personal development for years into the future. This can also be a time when you meet a particular individual with whom you can feel there is an inexplicable bond –a karmic bond – that draws you together across the sands of time. It is a magical world of dragons and fairy tales. Whilst some might say you lose your head, it can feel as if you are at a crossroads, and that your relationship choices at this time will decide the direction your spiritual future takes. Old relationships to groups and individuals fall away now and are replaced by new.
Progressed Venus to South Node: Re-connecting with an old bond
You may find yourself getting deeply involved with someone with whom you feel you have a very strong connection from the past. Some might say this is a karmic bond, at any rate there is a sense of knowing this person intimately… of having some kind of history with this person. By reconnecting at this time, you may restart a relationship that never truly finished, or finish a relationship that was unable to start. This can feel like meeting a soul mate. This can also be a time when you round off a relationship that has run its course. At the same time you can get drawn into a group or social scene which has great significance for you.
The aspects of progressed Venus in themselves are not decisive in regard to love and marriage, but they do show the evolution and integration of qualities that will make your love life richer. If you are in an existing relationship, and progressed Venus conjoins Pluto, then this is not an indication of the end of the relationship, just that it must go through a process of transformation to be healthy. Or, if Venus rules the 7th house, for example, it could show the partner getting interested in therapy, or totally changing appearance or life style. In making judgments about what will happen, house ruler-ship is crucial, and the effect of the progression can be very specific. For example if Venus aspects 8th house ruler Saturn, then your bank may demand repayment of a debt. Your partner may feel blocked sexually because of self-worth issues. You may visit and older female therapist.
Discovering when a long-term partner comes into the picture is a complex process. The best indicator is when the Ascendant ruler aspects the Descendant ruler, or when the progressed Ascendant aspects a planet. (But in the latter case the birth time must be accurate). But Venus will always show matters of the heart, and meetings with people who bring new areas of the heart to flower.
Adrian Ross Duncan 14.01.2008
1. Secondary progressions are a technique where each day after birth is equivalent to a year of the life. The progressed chart for age 30 is calculated by making a horoscope for 30 days after birth – same birth time and birth place. This correlates each revolution of the Earth on its axis (a day) with a revolution of the Earth around the sun (a year). Calculate your progressed chart on line at http://www.astro.com/
Without Jupiter it could be difficult to get out of bed in the morning. Everyday we see to it that we have something to look forward to – a vision to reach, a reward to be enjoyed. So huge is this need that prosperous industries have been built around it. Lotteries, football pools, casinos tune in to our drive to visualize magical good fortune, and we happily pay our money to keep the dream alive. Personal growth industries mobilize our ability to think positively and harness the power of belief… the idea that anything is possible, just as long as we put our minds to it.
When we visualize something with Jupiter, we create an inner picture, an inner feeling or an inner certainty that it will happen. The more we build on this visualization, the more likely it will come true. Because of this positive focus, we simply channel our energy into what makes us happy, and as often as not, if our dreams are within the boundaries of reality – and that Saturn decides – we end up getting what we want. As the saying goes: be careful what you wish for – you might get it.
Beliefs tend to be arrived at through the evidence of our experience through time – Jupiter and Saturn generally work hand in hand. They become solidified into convictions, and these convictions tend to define how our lives develop and expand. Aspects to Jupiter encourage or limit our beliefs, and define what kind of convictions we are attracted to. For example, a Mars/Jupiter conjunction would believe that where there is a will there is a way, whilst a Venus/Jupiter would believe in the principle of abundance (and spend accordingly).
During the course of our lives, there are completely predictable ages at which we will strongly manifest the influence of Jupiter in our lives and redefine our convictions and beliefs. These are of course at the conjunction cycles which take place at the age of 11-12, 23-24, 35-36, 47-48, 59-60, 71-72 and 83-84, and also at various stages of these cycles. The basic factor influencing what we think is possible and shaping our convictions at these times is the birth position of Jupiter by sign. The following texts give some idea of these influences:
Jupiter in Aries
You have a belief in the purity of action, and rather than dithering hesitantly when making a decision you make an intuitive leap based upon a straightforward and uncomplicated view of what is right and what is wrong. Action speaks louder than words as far as you are concerned, and therefore you act, lighting up the path ahead with the torch of righteousness.
Jupiter in Taurus
You believe in the value of material goods, and you are guided by a need to see things grow and to consolidate that growth. You are not convinced by fast talkers, dreamers or anyone with unrealistic plans. A bird in the hand is definitely worth two in the bush. With this attitude you cultivate the soil for fruitful growth.
Jupiter in Gemini
You believe in the power of knowledge and learning, and you can never know enough. You see value in expanding your network of contacts, improving communications methods and language skills and reaching out socially. The more enthusiastic you get, the more you spread yourself, which can dilute your ability to achieve your visions.
Jupiter in Cancer
You have an instinctive understanding of the value of bonding, and this leads you to channel your dreams into creating the best environment for your family. Happiness is in the home, or in creating a nourishing place for people to be. What has meaning for you is a sense of belonging, and you will be both inclusive and protective of those you care for.
Jupiter in Leo
You know that people need someone to look up to, and you believe that person can be you. Growth for you is increasing your qualities as a human being, and expressing these qualities through the things you create. Gaining insight into yourself has a high priority, but you would also like to make a big splash when you announce your arrival on the scene.
Jupiter in Virgo
You have a great body of knowledge concerning administration and organization which gives you skills in dealing with people at work, and insight into interrelationships both on a practical, health and spiritual level. You have strong convictions about the supremacy of efficiency and good planning.
Jupiter in Libra
You believe in balance, and balance for you is on every level – in your relationships, in your choices and in your aesthetic judgment. Fairness is supremely important, and to be fair you believe in seeing things from every angle. You also believe in refined human behavior and are an example to others in this respect.
Jupiter in Scorpio
Having experienced the greatest highs and the deepest lows you believe that Life can come up with anything. Therefore you believe in the supremacy of spirit as a factor of survival. You are determined to uproot falsehood and inauthenticity, and are unflinchingly determined to get to the bottom of everything. You want security, but are prepared to lose it.
Jupiter in Sagittarius
You believe that there is exciting territory to explore both in your inner life and your outer life. There are no limits for the spirit – the liberating factor in life is insight and understanding. You are looking to expand this understanding by any means possible, though study and travel are your preferred methods.
Jupiter in Capricorn
Your opinions are considerably constrained by the demands of society. A strong sense of duty guides you, and the insights you gain remind you that some kind of structure is necessary to contain growth. Optimism is therefore tempered by a somber realism. You measure success by the concrete achievements you have attained.
Jupiter in Aquarius
You believe in the brotherhood of man, and are perplexed by the fact that others do not see how crucial solidarity is. Your opinions are strong and uncompromising, but expressed gently out of consideration for others. You see liberation by embracing change and would like to serve as a bridge of consciousness between tradition and renewal.
Jupiter in Pisces
What is important for you is the unfettered power of the imagination. You see no limitations to belief – if you can think something, it can be done. Whilst experience shows that dreams often founder on the rocks of reality, nothing takes away your faith that there can be a liberation for human beings.
The sign position of Jupiter, tempered by the aspects it makes, will generally define what people believe is possible and/or important. As such Jupiter represents a kind of belief filter that selectively chooses what is possible or not. As beliefs develop into convictions, this filter can be quite a limiting factor in our life experience. Therefore people tend to develop on a predictable path as regards expansion and attainment in their life. Jupiter in Capricorn never gets beyond the conviction that achievement only comes with hard work; Jupiter in Leo can never remove personal ego from the equation of happiness. Still, every time Jupiter is activated in the chart, there is a chance to reorientate and redefine what is wanted from the future.
Opportunities for growth, expansion and success also arise in the 12 year cycle of Jupiter through the 12 houses, and these influences are described below:
Jupiter transiting 1st House
After a period when there has been growth in an inner spiritual level and a certain satisfaction in having a low profile, the time has come for you to actualize your vision of how you would like to be in the future. This means putting your beliefs and convictions on the line and incorporating them into your lifestyle. Outer events challenge you to take a position on what is right and what is wrong, and you need to state this position with the full force of your personality.
Jupiter transiting 2nd House
Having gained tremendous insight into the direction your life is to take, the focus moves on your earning capacity, and you gain a better understanding as to what it takes to strengthen your economy, and what assets you need to develop. This understanding leads to increased personal resources and a broadening of your economic base, which will provide the foundation for increased growth. Guard against over-spending.
Jupiter transiting 3rd House
Once you have learned how to capitalize on your unique resources, then you will need to reach out to others and generally widen your footprint in the environment. This leads to travel and an expansion of your skills educationally. This is a great year to widen your network of contacts. Through increased communication on all levels, you learn how to make sure-footed progress.
Jupiter transiting 4th House
Having developed your education and communication skills, there is an urge to expand your influence and potential on the home front. This brings insight and good fortune connected with property and family, and you can expect considerable expansion in this area. You broaden your emotional foundations, partly because you gain understanding of the influence of your upbringing, and partly because you are curious to learn more about how to create a nurturing and stimulating environment.
Jupiter transiting 5th House
There is a feeling that your emotional base is secure, and at this point you are burning to channel your energy into something creative. You have the confidence to take on much more, whether it is a love relationship, a child or simply a project where you put yourself on the line. Your confidence is at a high point, and you simply have to celebrate your strengths by manifesting your talents.
Jupiter transiting 6th House
After a period of self-realization, you are now more interested into how your talents can be put to good use for the sake of others. You want to understand just how you fit in to the practical scheme of things, and indeed how you can bring more efficiency into that role. You make yourself indispensable in your working relations and generally improve the quality of your everyday life.
Jupiter transiting 7th House
With your working life functioning optimally, you now how an urge to gain insight into important personal relationships, like marriage and business partnerships. Learning to make the right choices and judgments is important to you, and you may have many discussions of principle before getting it right. Still, this is a very fortunate and happy period for both business and love, not least because you meet positive and influential people.
Jupiter transiting 8th House
With important relationships in your life bringing enhanced satisfaction, you realize the need to gain more depth and psychological understanding of issues that are hidden beneath the surface. This is a time when you discover unpleasant truths, yet develop a tolerant and philosophical attitude to them. You discover how much can be gained by sharing, benefit from the generosity of others and can also get involved in large investment projects.
Jupiter transiting 9th House
After a rather heavy emotional period, during which many hopes were dimmed, you now develop a yearning to expand your intellectual horizons either through study or travel. This is an optimistic period when you ask important questions about the meaning and direction of your life, and gain considerable philosophical insight. You will meet wise mentors who broaden your attitude, and help you define your attitude to moral issues, right and wrong and political or cultural matters.
Jupiter transiting 10th House
This is a period when you capitalize on the knowledge and experience you have garnered earlier to make a concrete success of your life. Good fortune smiles on professional endeavors at this time, and you can expand your sphere of influence. Influential people will support you, and if you strive for recognition, you will achieve it. If you go for your hopes and dreams now, then your expectations have a good chance of being fulfilled.
Jupiter transiting 11th House
Having presided over a period of professional success and expansion, you are interested in developing your social and professional relationships and enjoying the benefits of the status you have attained. This leads to an expansion of your social circle, and you will meet influential people who broaden your attitude and define your views. There is a whole new panorama of possibilities regarding your hopes and dreams.
Jupiter transiting 12th House
A cycle of achievement seems to ebb out in this period, as the hopes and dreams of previous years fade. To find new meaning in your life you look within, seeking to understand your place in the broader scheme of things – also spiritually. You discover the inner riches of the imagination, and instinctively understand how all things dissolve with time. You know at this point that happiness is much more than material success.
It is probably true that the condition of Jupiter in the birth chart determines just how many benefits are experienced, when Jupiter transits the 12 houses. But whatever the benefits, Jupiter does not guarantee that they will last. The story of the seven good years and the seven bad years is worth remembering. It is all very well to think positively and go for growth, but unless there is a strategy for consolidating expansion, then there will be no structure to contain that growth when expansion ceases. It is the judicious balance between the positive attitude of Jupiter and Saturn’s skeptical voice of experience that creates lasting growth in the long run.
There is no planet that takes its time quite like Saturn. It never rushes, never accomplishes anything rapidly, always seems to go a little too slowly. From it we learn the qualities of patience, stoicism and perseverance. Time drags on just slow enough for us to actually build something lasting. Any faster and the foundations would not be solid enough. Any slower, and we would give up the struggle. But when Saturn enters Cancer in its 29½ year journey around the Sun, it does seem a little unfair for those souls who are so sensitive to the travails of this planet, namely Capricorns and Aquarians, or those with these two signs particularly strong in their charts. It takes 5 years for Saturn to traverse Cancer and Leo – the opposing signs of Capricorn and Aquarius – and in this long period Saturn it is in its two signs of detriment, weakened and debilitated.
Which really is no fun. For anyone. Saturn in Cancer brought out the worst aspects of nationalism or “patriotism”, and contributed to the urge to fortify or wall in borders to keep foreigners out. Israel walls out the Palestinians, Bush walls out the Mexicans, Europe walls out all those refugees who desperately want to escape chaos in the rest of the world. On a more personal level, the transit of Saturn through Cancer from June 2003 to August 2005 placed its heavy finger on emotional weaknesses especially as regards family duty, bring a time of emotional struggle for those who did not have their house in order. For Capricorns, it emphasized partnership weaknesses and demanded the sacrifice of personal needs in favor of partnership needs. For Aquarians it placed the focus on work, health and employment, forcing them to address deficiencies in this area.
Saturn in Leo has been particularly bad for political leadership in the period from 2005 to 2007. Bush in the USA has lost all his credibility, even amongst Republicans. The swagger of this man, who always seems not quite to be able to fill out his suit, like a small boy, is very characteristic of Saturn in Leo. (Though he has Leo rising and Saturn in fact in Cancer). Tony Blair has squandered massive popularity through lying to himself and to the people. Jacques Chirac in France fumbled through his last weak years of his presidency.
As the new millennium began, Saturn had conjoined Jupiter in Taurus in its twenty-year conjunction cycle with that planet. With a stellium of seven planets in Taurus in May 2000, a completely new economic cycle started with the Dot com crash, which actually also heralded a long period of investment in solid values like property, bringing in time large economic bonuses for sensible souls who owned property.
But the defining moment for the millennium was the opposition of Saturn in Gemini to Pluto in Sagittarius and the destruction of the Twin Towers in New York – the symbol of western economic imperialism. The world was rent asunder. Polarized. Religious fundamentalism was suddenly on the agenda, both that of Islam and that of American neoconservatives. A strange war against an indefinable enemy began – this “war on terrorism”. On the personal front, the Saturn/Pluto opposition brought individual twin-tower crises, as life structures with weak foundations also disintegrated. For Capricorns this particularly affected work structures (6th/12 house), for Aquarians children and social structures (5th/11th house). [See point 1. in graph]
Saturn in Gemini went on to trine Uranus in Aquarius [point 2. in graph] in what was a honeymoon period for Western foreign policy with a broad alliance supportive of American intervention in the aftermath of 9/11. This led to a successful overthrow of the Taliban in Afghanistan and the manipulation of the UN into a half-hearted support of the invasion of Iraq. This was the perfect time for the export of Western democracy. But then Saturn went into Cancer, and things turned sour. Democracy has not proved to sit very well amongst the tribal divisions of Iraq, where clan is far more important than airy concepts of equality.
The next major aspect for Saturn has been the triple opposition to Neptune [point 3. in graph] from Leo to Aquarius. Basically Saturn is on its last legs at this time. Having waded through the mud of Cancer, it is completely defeated by the Neptune’s fog and quicksand. There is only one thing for Saturn to do – roll over and accept defeat. (Though not if you are President Bush… the situation in Iraq can be saved by a “troop surge”. Poor troops.)
On a personal level, circumstances that are seemingly beyond control undermine the situation of the individual in a long and tiring process of dissolution. Being Saturn-ruled, this naturally affects Capricorns and Aquarians most. For Capricorns it is connected with financial, psychological and security issues. For Aquarians, a long drawn out struggle to define the meaning of life, children and relationships is the issue. It is not the worst thing to surrender, or to accept that there are higher forces – karma perhaps – that cannot be avoided. The lesson of Saturn/Neptune is that everything in life is transitory and will be dissolved by time. The kind of acceptance that arises as a consequence is extremely enriching spiritually. As far as the refinement of the soul is concerned, the losers wins, and the winner loses.
At the time of writing (May 2007) Saturn is moving direct in Leo as in trines Jupiter, and things are looking up. Suddenly Saturn-ruled Aquarius and Capricorn start getting the feeling that a 5-year cycle of struggle is about to ease up. The coming trine to Pluto in August 2007 at 26 degrees Leo/Sagittarius marks a Saturn ready to flex its muscles – reborn and ready for a bit of power play. Where Aquarians, with Saturn in their solar 7th house, have had to consistently compromise in relationships and tread real carefully, they will now be prepared to come with an ultimatum if necessary. They are not prepared to be trodden on at this time. Politically, there may be a resolution connected with Iranian nuclear ambitions at this time. Capricorns, who have been going through a period of considerable anxiety with Saturn in their solar 8th house, can expect a powerful emotional catharsis.
When Saturn finally comes into Virgo on September 2nd 2007, there are many who will breathe a collective sigh of relief, as incompetent and over-inflated leaders disappear from the scene, and a new spirit of practical humility takes over. This transition to Virgo is eased by the entrance of Jupiter into Capricorn on December 18th, where it goes on to make a trine to Saturn at 7 degrees in January 2008… just as Pluto moves into Capricorn. Basically this is going to be a wonderfully constructive period – a time to heal and repair. (Though the repeated Mars opposition to Pluto from January – March 2008 points to a crisis in other areas.)
But what a major transition this is for Capricorns, who not only get Jupiter and Pluto entering their sign, but also have Saturn moving out of its most uncomfortable placement in the solar 8th house, and into the optimistic 9th. This will result in a radical lifestyle change, bringing a major focus on foreign countries, international travel and intellectual training. For Aquarians, Saturn’s move into their solar 8th house will highlight working on psychological factors, and worrying about security issues perhaps, but the trine to Jupiter brings a reasonably painless transition, and crucially Saturn has moved out of its opposition placement.
The major event for Saturn in 2008 is its opposition to Uranus – something that takes place only once every 46 years. [See point 4. in graph.] The first opposition takes place at 18 degrees Virgo/Pisces at the time of the US election in November 2008. The aspect repeats in February 2009 at 20 degrees and in September at 24 degrees. Obviously this planetary cycle will evoke changes similar to those in the mid-sixties, notably focus on an enormous generation gap. It will be interesting to see how the virtual world of Uranus in Pisces will collide with the practical world of Saturn in Virgo. Web environments like the video world of YouTube.com will have a huge effect on attitudes. Ultimately the anarchic presentation of material that the TV media prefer to keep hidden, or do not have the resources to show, will completely change the power balance, and have a huge new effect on elections.
For Capricorns this opposition from November 2008 to September 2009, will bring the bridging on worlds on an intellectual level. Radical new educational and communication methods will bring challenges as Capricorns reorient the way they understand their position in the world. New languages, new studies, new countries, international commuting are some of many opportunities. For Aquarians there is a focus on new resources, and a struggle to create economic security with new methods. This will be a time of major psychological challenge and growth, when a balance must be found between the ghosts of the past, and the dreams for the future.
Finally on October 29th 2009 Saturn moves into Libra, where it is exalted. Whatever challenges arise at this time – and a major T-square is approaching involving Uranus, Pluto and Saturn – for Capricorns and Aquarius this will at least be a time when they have strength and dignity. While Saturn was in Cancer and Leo, its debilitated position meant that even if there were relatively good aspects, the benefits would be muted. But when Saturn is exalted, even its difficult aspects will not be enough to throw it off balance. So for Capricorns, when Saturn will be in the solar 10th house and Pluto the solar first, there will be enormous strength and power to recreate ambitions and transform the career to create a new future. For Aquarians, with Saturn now in the solar 9th, there will be a world of new opportunity, where many dreams are fulfilled – not least because of a long-running Jupiter/Neptune conjunction in Aquarius all through 2009.
The first square between Saturn and Pluto takes place in January 2010, and we can expect some pretty major political reorganization at this time. What makes it considerably more spicy, is that Uranus enters fiery Aries, recreating aspect patterns that were dominant in the 1930’s. So in July 2010 there is an extraordinary square from Pluto at 3 Capricorn to a Uranus/Saturn opposition at 0 Aries/Libra. Political unrest will sweep the world at this time, and whilst Saturn in Libra will strive to maintain balance – Congress in the USA will be particularly active trying to mediate between individual extremism and state authority – the long term political prospects seem very messy. In fact Uranus will square Pluto not three times, not five times, but an incredibly seven times between 2012 and 2015, and with Saturn moving into powerful Scorpio at this time, the world will be needing some superheroes.
Crucifixion anyone? Drowning, beating to death, stoning, burning alive, impalement, hanging… many methods have been invented to take the life of humans who have been judged to be criminals by their fellow men. In the past, seeing as there were not so many mass entertainment possibilities, executions were quite an event and drew large crowds. That is not to say many people did not have strong sensitivities – already in the early Middle Ages powerful voices were heard condemning the death penalty in Britain, though there was a resurgence of executions under Henry VIII, when you could get hanged for almost anything, like cutting down a tree. In the USA there were also strong voices against the death penalty, including some of the founding fathers and also Benjamin Franklin. America inherited many of England’s capital offences, and included a few of their own, like stealing grapes and killing chickens.
Nowadays, it is pretty difficult to get yourself executed. First of all, it is no use living in a major democracy; capital punishment was deemed uncivilized decades ago. The USA will do it for you, although there are 12 states that have banned it, including Michigan which did so in 1847 and was indeed the first democracy to do so. In America, Texas is the place to get it done – with over 370 executions since 1976. It helps to be black, though being poor does it too. If you would like to increase the odds of execution Singapore is the country that executes the highest number of people in proportion to the population. Asian countries generally approve of capital punishment, as does the USA where a 2000 international Gallup Poll showed 66% for (in contrast to Western Europe’s 34% for). If you do not want to hang around endlessly on Death Row, the best place is China, where you are executed almost immediately after sentencing. With 3400 executions in 2004, 90% of executions worldwide took place in China. (Note 1)
The execution seen by most people will have been that of Saddam Hussein, thanks to the availability of camera phone video recordings. Google seems to register about 20 million views, so that human tendency to gape at other’s misfortune is still alive and well.
HOROSCOPE: 30.12.2006 6 am Baghdad AS 22.09 SG
One of the main issues at Saddam Hussein’s execution was that of dignity. He was filmed and jeered at, and the trapdoor was activated before he had finished his prayers. As the attendees were mostly Shiites (Hussein was Sunni), it gave a strong impression of revenge rather than justice. Looking at the chart for the moment, Saddam Hussein is represented by Ascendant ruler Jupiter dignified in its own sign, and he was the only one who actually maintained his dignity throughout the process. Mars in Sagittarius square the nodal axis is more associated with revenge than justice. Over the coming two weeks Mars approached Pluto, and at the approximate time of the conjunction, Saddam Hussein’s brother in law was also hanged, and decapitated in the process, again provoking international protest. (Note 2.)
Uranus in Pisces in the 3rd house in Hussein’s execution chart probably symbolizes the use of cell phones to spread the video material, and the square to Jupiter shows how Saddam’s fate became a collective event. The approaching conjunction of Uranus with the nodal axis will bring similar electrifying media events over the coming months.
The issue of executions of this sort is becoming globally relevant now as Pluto, that recently demoted dwarf planet, is at 26 degrees 58 Sagittarius, which is in fact the exact position of the Galactic Center – the conjunction is exact to one or two minutes of arc. Humanity is therefore asking serious questions about the right to take human life. With the arrival of Jupiter in Sagittarius a month prior to Saddam Hussein’s execution, the whole question of international justice and the death penalty is coming to the fore. When Jupiter conjoins Pluto in December 2007 there may be a radical evolution of world opinion regarding the death penalty. With the Olympic Games taking place in China just months after, it could be that the Chinese government would consider it expedient to declare a moratorium on capital punishment for example. The US had a moratorium from 1967 – 1977, but resumed capital punishment after this date. As it is a vote winner in the US, and an election is coming, it is difficult to see any change there at this time, though the example the US sets is used by many other countries to justify their continued policy of execution.
Pluto is also trining Saturn in this period, and this aspect too could hint at restrictions being placed on the taking of life. This trine becomes exact just once – at 26 degrees in August 2007 – again activating the Galactic Center. It is likely that the Saturn/Pluto is related to the use of capital punishment. The 1967 US moratorium took place with these two planets in opposition, whilst when the moratorium ended with the execution of Gary Gilmore on January 17th 1977, Pluto was sextile Saturn within ½ degree. So capital punishment was outlawed with the opposition and allowed again with the sextile.
Perhaps the most significant execution of a head of state was that of Louis XVI in 1793. This took place at the height of the revolution and it naturally sent reverberations throughout the royal families of Europe.
HOROSCOPE: 21.01.1793 10.20 Paris AS 13.22 AR
This execution heralded the end of an era in Europe, and the grand cross involving the Uranus/Pluto opposition and Jupiter in Scorpio with Moon in Taurus shows the terror regime of the time. The judgment of Jupiter in Scorpio was obviously death in this period, where Paris was awash in blood from the guillotine. Here also Saturn is sextile Pluto.
150 years previously at the previous Uranus/Pluto opposition, a similar earth-shaking event took place when Charles 1st of England was beheaded under the new republic of Oliver Cromwell.
HOROSCOPE: 30.01.1649 14.04 London AS 12.11 CN
This chart is even more striking than the Louis XVI execution chart, with a massive grand cross in mutable signs. This time Saturn is in conjunction with Pluto. In both charts the Sun is in Aquarius, and on both occasions it is the people who have taken the power. In this chart the Jupiter/Pluto trine makes a grand trine with the Sun, which shows how ideological enthusiasm triumphs over humanitarian considerations.
These royal executions of the past had huge historical significance, partly because they took place at very significant astrological moments, when rare planetary alignments showed the reversal of heaven and earth, as trends towards democracy unseated the aristocratic power base. The execution of Saddam Hussein can hardly be compared to this, much as he would have liked it to. It could be argued that the dominant astrological trend is the trine of Pluto in Sagittarius to a weak but dictatorial Saturn in Leo, and that with Jupiter in its own sign Sagittarius, justice was done. Perhaps the greater significance of this event is the Jupiter/Uranus square and the role of media in displaying events such as this for all to see. This square seems to have exacerbated the religious divisions in Arab society, rather than bring any form of closure.
In previous historical periods, the general idea was to also inflict as much discomfort as possible when executing criminals. They were really meant to pay for their crimes. In Britain a favorite practice was being hung, drawn and quartered – the idea being that it took a certain amount of time before you actually died. The guillotine was a new democratic method which was meant to reduce the element of pain and revenge. Today this has been perfected in the United States with the injection of poisons. Relatives of the victims are invited to attend so they can attain closure.
The historical trend towards minimizing suffering at execution will in the end eliminate execution. At present surveys show 52% of people in favor of the death penalty worldwide, but in the democracies of Europe and South America, this percentage is 34 and 37 respectively. If western democracy becomes the norm in future societies, the death penalty will ultimately be banned everywhere. For example Russia declared a moratorium on the death penalty in 1999. A New Jersey commission has shown that it is cheaper to imprison a person for life than to have the death penalty. They concluded that executing a small number of persons guilty of murder is not sufficiently compelling to justify the risk of making an irreversible mistake either, as DNA evidence has shown time and again that some convicted murderers simply did not commit the crime.
The question remains: when will there be a worldwide abolition of the death penalty? As I write this question and look at the horary chart that forms as a result, I am struck by the fact that the Sun is at 26.58 Capricorn exactly conjoining the MC. This represents the judgment of society, here the death penalty. As the US (Sibley) Pluto is at 27.33 Capricorn, the horoscope keys in to the anxiety factor in America, which is perhaps a primary reason US citizens are so keen on execution. The media in the USA – Mercury in Cancer opposition Pluto – whips up fear through its sensational reporting of terrible crimes, and this unrestrained sensationalism is a major reason for the proliferation of weapons and their murderous use.
HOROSCOPE: When will capital punishment be abolished? 17.01.2007 12.25 Odense AS 3.46 GE
In the horary chart there is a Pluto/Mars/Moon conjunction in the 8th house– not exactly a life-enhancing combination. This stellium affirms the relevance of the horary question, and as far as Mars in Capricorn is concerned, state execution is a valid punishment. But the Moon is in the same sign as the Sun, and there will be a new moon at 28.41 Capricorn. The fact that the moon is at the end of its cycle could indicate that capital punishment also is. I think therefore that the Pluto return to its 27.33 Capricorn position in the 4th July chart, which will take place in 2022, 15 years from now, will signify the final reckoning regarding the death penalty in the US. And, when the United States abolishes the taking of human life by the state, remaining governments will surely also do so.
Adrian Duncan 17th January 2007
1. Information from www.deathpenaltyinfo.org
2. This execution took place on January 15th at 3.00 a.m.
It should be simple really. We are born completely defenseless and totally dependant on a woman, who dedicates herself more or less completely to our well being, and without whom we would not survive. For the mother we are probably the most precious thing to have ever happened, and she would not hesitate to give her life for us. We hang on to the mother, and are desperate when she disappears from sight. We rule with our screams of displeasure, and demand to have top priority, which 99% of the time we get. We are fed, bathed, smiled at and pampered with gifts – the center of a hive of activity like a queen bee.
Perhaps it is the psychologists who spoiled the picture. For instead of eternal gratefulness, we have managed to identify the mother and father as precisely those people who have thoroughly messed up our lives. Eminem expresses the zeitgeist of the times – albeit in extreme form – with his dismissal of both his parents.
See chart: Eminem, 17th October 1972, Kansas City, Missouri. Time unknown
His Sun and Moon configure with the Saturn/Uranus trine of the time to make a grand trine which was obviously anything but harmonious. Uranus has an agenda with Saturn, and it is not intended to be a traditional parental scene. Eminem – or rather Marshall Mathers (the two “m”s) – was brought up in a mobile home, and expresses it thus:
“I was a baby, maybe I was just a couple of months,
my faggot father must have had his panties up in a bunch,
cause he split,
I wonder if he even kissed me goodbye,
no I don’t on second thought, I just fuckin’ wished he would die…”
So no father at home, then. Which seems to have made Marshall a little angry, with his Mars at the midpoint of and conjoining Uranus/Pluto in Libra. His Sun also conjoins Uranus and is square the Nodes, which might account for the sudden disappearance of the father, who was just 20 when Eminem was born.
His mother obviously struggled to eek out an existence, travelling from trailer park to trailer park. Eminem wants you to see it from his point of view:
“put yourself in my position,
just try to envision witnessin’ your Mama poppin’ prescription pills in the kitchen,
bitchin’ that someone’s always goin’ through her purse and shits missin’,
going through public housing systems, victim of Munchausen’s syndrome…”
Great lyrics, fantastic rhythm – love the song, which is “Cleaning out my closet” from “The Eminem Show” CD. His mother actually sued him for $12 million because he portrayed her as an unstable drug user. She was awarded just $25,000. He probably was a little miffed because of the court case, but it is not like he did not have the money. No stranger to court cases he actually won custody of his daughter from mother Kim, and she now lives with him. Hope he does a good job.
Psychology gets stranded on an uncomfortable premise: that we are formed by nurture rather than nature. In other words the formative influences of the environment after birth – particularly the parents – create the framework of our character. Other psychological views take into account the period of pregnancy. On a scientific level genetics are enrolled as an explanation of family trends and disposition prior to conception, but not behavior. This puts our parents in the firing line.
Astrology of course does not see things like that at all, but recent trends in psychological astrology have tended to enable a transfer of responsibility to the parents rather than the child. It is very disempowering for the person who does this, and can result in misplaced attempts to confront parents with all the things that they did wrong, as if this would change anything. I recall once attending a Buddhist event, where the religious teacher had to deal with a question from a woman in the audience about how she should forgive her mother. First of all the teacher couldn’t understand the question, and it had to be translated several times for him. He finally got it, and chuckled uncontrollably. He pointed out that the need to forgive the mother never occurred in Tibet, where she is the symbol of a beneficent world, love and compassion, and used as such in meditation.
A more empowering view is the idea of attraction, when the disincarnate soul is drawn to the future parents as they have sex, suddenly getting captured into a physical body to begin again the endless cycle of death and rebirth. The bond with the future parents constitutes an irresistible attraction because of many lifetimes of interaction with them, where the roles, according to Buddhism, are often reversed. The soul has already at this point gravitated to what will be the perfect environment for both future development and growth and the settling of old issues. Take note, Marshall.
Armed with this information, the individuals can no longer see themselves as victims of circumstances, but as major protagonists who have a proactive role in shaping their fate. Here lies the key to empowerment, and also the answer to the forgiveness question, which is neither appropriate nor helpful.
Relations with the mother and father are to a large extent related to the Moon and Sun in the horoscope and the major aspects to them. These heavenly bodies represent the filters through which we view our parents, and through which are parents are forced to interact with us. There are two different areas of this interaction, and we are responsible for both. Firstly we may literally have parents that do not treat us well, (though they have given us precious life); here the responsibility is connected with actions in previous existences. Secondly we can make it impossible for parents to interact with us in any other way than our filter dictates. Both cases give access to therapeutic interventions, which may resolve some existential, emotional and identity problems.
Take a child with a Moon/Saturn aspect. The story is often that the mother appeared not to give unconditional love and security. The child grows up early, maybe even feels that it has to take responsibility for the mother in an unhealthy role reversal. There is a deep and unfulfilled hunger for emotional succor. But what is the mother’s story? Perhaps she had to work all hours to support her child and simply did not have any emotional resources left. Perhaps she did try to hug and cuddle the child, but from day one the child mysteriously rebuffed advances. Perhaps early health issues created a situation where the child simply could not be comforted, and this affected the whole future bond. Perhaps the mother was too young to be responsible, or too old to be an enthusiastic mother. Perhaps no one could get through the inherited emotional armor the child brought into this life.
The aspects of Eminem’s Moon to Uranus on one side – trailer park boy – and Saturn on the other actually perfectly reflect the struggle to provide a home in a gypsy-like existence. Moreover, without this upbringing Marshall Mathers would never have been able to reach out to the collective and speak to them:
“I never would have dreamed in a million years I’d see,
so many motherfuckin people who feel like me.
Who share the same views and the same exact beliefs
it’s like a fucking army marchin in back of me.”
Which brings the possibility of a reframe that puts the whole experience of childhood in a different light. Would Eminem have preferred to have been brought up in suburbia and never have reached so many people? This is a question that can be put to everyone with a difficult Saturn aspect – what have they gained through the struggle that they would not be without today?
Every difficult aspect to the Sun and Moon has a disempowering story regarding the parents, and an empowering one. If you take the Sun in Libra conjoining Uranus and squaring the nodal axis in Cancer/Capricorn, this may show a young father – a teenager in this case – fathering a child and suddenly disappearing. No role model here, just a childhood with father figures who come and go as the mother turns her attention to different men. With no male hero to identify with, Marshall Mathers developed an extreme individuality, and he touched the latent extremism in the world’s youth with his wicked rhymes (Mercury in Scorpio). Having a father figure to guide and discipline him would simply not have equipped him for a destiny in which he excoriates all father figures – not least major American politicians and their wives.
Dealing with a client who has a problem with a parent, it works to take a deeper look at the habit of blame, and to replace it with the attitude of personal responsibility. Blame leads nowhere helpful. There is no dignity in it. A woman with a Sun/Pluto aspect may find that the father was remote, or dictatorial, or hidden behind the mask of a newspaper. This person can back up the experience with anecdotes, memories and anything else that will enroll the listener in a view that depicts the father as perpetrator and the person as victim.
Here is another view of this aspect: the father had to work nights in the first year of the childhood. When he tried to relate to the Sun/Pluto child, it was the child who had already performed the emotional amputation, groomed by lifetimes of experiences of trauma and loss of male role models. The residual pain – the abyss in the heart – was activated by the early disappearance of the new father. The only known survival mechanism was pretending the father did not exist. The father wants closeness – even behind the pages of the newspaper – but it is denied. Later in life the young woman is equally unforgiving of men who appear to reject her, overreacts and drops potential male partners before they can hurt her.
In actual fact the woman herself is the architect of her fate, and herein lies a message of hope. Things that are done can be undone. The motivating energy for the survival mechanism of amputation lies in a core of anxiety within. The person must get into touch with this core energy, if behavioral patterns are to be changed.
Psychotherapy can be very cathartic in resolving these issues – indeed there are hardly any other tools to this job. It is natural to go through a process of projection and blame in relation to parents. And some parents have really harmed their children, for example through physical or psychological violence or sexual abuse. No catharsis will be achieved without reliving in full intensity the emotional pain suffered as a child, and this necessitates remembering the anger, hatred or pain. But once these emotions have been burned in the crucible of consciousness, then it serves no further purpose to project the negative emotions any longer.
There are universal spiritual values that go beyond psychotherapeutic tools. Whilst it is tempting to see the experience with the parent as the prime cause of subsequent behavior, the core energy existed before the parental abuse, and was only triggered by it. The individual carries the imprint of the events within at birth, and it is clearly visible in the horoscope.
A therapeutic intervention that takes this into account would use the remembered experience with the parent as the tool for accessing the deeper energy of the astrological pattern that primed the child to have the experience.
For example, a client with a Moon/Pluto square might have experienced a complete alienation from the mother. Tracing this alienation to its apparent source, the client will perhaps recall occasions when the mother froze her out as a form of punishment – acting as if the young child was invisible. The resultant emotional state would have been one of loneliness and dislocation, a sense of non-existence, a feeling of being deprived of the means of survival from the very person who was supposed to ensure ones survival. Only by revisiting this state can some kind of catharsis be achieved that can change grown-up behavioral patterns, and psychotherapy is needed to do this.
However the root energy will be felt in the body – this is the core Moon/Pluto energy which is neither good nor bad in its essence, and it existed at birth before the mother exhibited damaging behavior. The client can be guided into this body experience; perhaps it is felt as a vacuum in the stomach or solar plexus area, or as a knot or pressure. This root physical experience is what gets triggered by events in the outer world, but in childhood and today. By identifying the trigger it is possible to reprogram reactions to it, and thereby get more empowering results in life.
Today society is storing up plenty of material for future generations of children to react to, as work trends involve both parents in the market place from the early hours of the morning, leaving the bringing up of children to state institutions. Guilty parents make up by showering gifts on their neglected children, who are left to the TV and computer screen to form their views of society. It seems almost as if society and the media are supplanting parents as the primary formative influences. We will probably still blame the parents though, until we grow up, earn money, buy all those desirable items, and have children of our own.
Writing sun signs is one of the underrated skills in astrology, and those that have success at it are either very skilled astrologers, or extremely good at hitting the nerve of their readers. Normally both. Famous sun sign astrologers become icons for millions, and these icons can earn a lot of money. One of the most famous in the UK is Jonathan Cainer, who earns well over two million dollars a year from the newspaper who employs him, and the telephone lines to which customers subsequently ring for more information.Understanding the basics of astrology and writing very well are the two prerequisites for success in the field of sun sign astrology, but in this article I will just deal with the first. The basic technique is simply to make an equal house horoscope for each sign, and study the subsequent house placements and aspects of the Sun, Moon and planets. For example all Leos will currently have Saturn in their solar first house of Leo, and Neptune in their solar 7th house of Aquarius, and therefore partnerships will be profoundly affected by the Saturn/Neptune opposition that occurs three times, in August 2006, February 2007 and June 2007.
The Saturn/Neptune opposition last occurred in 1972, so it is a major long-term trend that tends to undermine all forms of structures, bringing an element of chaos and material difficulty. On a high level, it replaces material values with spiritual, and generally it brings sacrifice and loss. A further complication in 2006 is that Jupiter squares both planets from Scorpio, making a fixed T-square of great power. This puts the focus on the difficulties of expansion, and – because Jupiter is in Scorpio – the likelihood of hidden manipulative forces where there are elements of secrecy or even corruption. This T-square culminates in September and October, which is the time when political and economic difficulties will evoke a lot of frustration and despair.
Fortunately, Jupiter moves on into Sagittarius in November 2006, and already in the spring of 2007 it makes a long trine to Saturn, and thereby also resolves many of the difficulties that occurred earlier, and in particular it makes the Saturn/Neptune opposition much easier to deal with. With this in mind, let’s look at how each of the 12 signs will resolve the challenges which they are facing now.
Aries
The Saturn/Neptune opposition falls from the 5th to 11th house for Aries, and this shows challenges connected with children, self-projection and creativity. Socially there are circumstances out of Aries’ control, which simply must be accepted. There can be a responsibility for a friend or group, which is difficult to shoulder, or simply a sense of social isolation. The square from Jupiter in Scorpio in the 8th can show compromising economic or sexual factors. This is no time to have a love affair! When Jupiter moves into the 9th, creative blocks are removed and there is a renewed faith in what the future can bring. Difficulties with children and lovers are resolved.
Taurus
For Taurus the Saturn/Neptune opposition falls from the 4th to the 10th house, showing factors that undermine basic structural systems in life, like the family and the profession. There may be special responsibilities towards parents to be shouldered, or domestic sacrifices to be made. The square from Jupiter in Scorpio in the 7th indicates a deadlock in relations with others, and a total lack of compromise from someone who is not prepared to budge. When Jupiter moves into Sagittarius, the powers that be will be more willing to compromise, and there will at last be both emotional and financial flexibility. This is a time when money becomes available after a period of drought.
Gemini
In this case the Saturn/Neptune opposition falls from the 3rd to the 9th house, which indicates that there are troubles in the all-important area of communication, travel and education. Doubts regarding education processes can undermine the sense of direction. Sibling problems will seem impossible to resolve. Separations by distance will evoke sadness. The square from Jupiter in the solar 6th house brings ideological confrontation and power battles at work. Very few agreements can be reached at this time. However, when Jupiter moves into the solar 7th, strong partners will be a source of inspiration and provide the encouragement to resolve doubts and disagreements. Everything will be seen in a positive light instead of a negative.
Cancer
The Saturn/Neptune opposition in this case falls from the 2nd to the 8th house, undermining both the economy and self-worth of the Cancer, and creating a difficult material situation which no amount of hard work can seem to resolve. It is unlikely that banks or other institutions will help, leading to many worries both materially and emotionally. The square from Jupiter in the solar 5th suggests that children, love affairs or failed creative projects may be a black hole that sucks away the resources. When Jupiter moves into Sagittarius, trining Saturn in the Spring of 2007, these matters can again be resolved because of new and beneficial circumstances in the working environment, and perhaps connections with abroad that improve the economy in some way.
Leo
With Saturn in this sign, and opposing Neptune in Leo’s 7th house of partnerships, this sign has been feeling the pressure – both in the personal life and relationships – for some time. Self-doubt and a sense of confusion about the life direction has dampened the irrepressible boisterousness of Leo, and a sense of having little control in the development of relationships may give a certain feeling of helplessness. The square from Jupiter in the solar 4th indicates that there is both domestic expansion, but that this does not harmonize with personal and relationship needs. When Jupiter moves into Sagittarius there is a radical change of mood with a creative boost and far better conditions for children, creativity and love.
Virgo
With Saturn in Virgo’s solar 12th house, Virgos generally are in a withdrawn phase of their life, and the loneliness is increased by the opposition to Neptune in the 6th. Either there are issues at work that create a degree of dissatisfaction and isolation, or the actual daily life is simply difficult to get through, whilst health may also be an issue. The square from Jupiter in the 3rd may be good for the spiritual knowledge that blossoms through isolation, and there can be excellent conditions for psychological insight, but there may also be troubling themes connected with communication, both as regards family and work. Then Jupiter enters Sagittarius and the solar 4th, then far greater satisfaction is felt, and there should be fortunate domestic circumstances and a happier partner.
Libra
Saturn in Libra’s solar 11th house shows current difficulties in social relationships, as well as pressure caused by lack of economic resources for professional expansion. The opposition to Neptune may show a long-term challenge connected to a particular friend in need of solace. There may also be a dilemma connected with children that has no easy solution, perhaps because a child is in an unhappy environment. Jupiter in the solar 2nd shows expenses connected with these issues that can drain the economy unless there is considerable restraint. Unnecessary expenditure on prestige items is not the way to go! When Jupiter enters Sagittarius, many of the social difficulties evaporate, and there is a far more outgoing style. This is a time when then can be creative breakthroughs.
Scorpio
With the Saturn/Neptune opposition falling from the 10th to the 4th houses, this is a time of professional power play that absorbs a lot of energy, undermining domestic happiness, as well as making it difficult to advance professionally. The square to Jupiter in Scorpio shows an internalized psychological struggle which is in desperate need of catharsis. Scorpio’s need for personal expansion is prevented by the situation at home and at work. When Jupiter moves into Sagittarius, the professional blockages are removed, and perhaps some kind of promotion or economic boost will happen. At home, new creative possibilities arise.
Sagittarius
Jupiter as ruler of Sagittarius is placed in the solar 12th house in this period, bringing an uncharacteristically introverted and even rather sorrowful year until November 2007 in which there can be a lot of self-doubt and broodiness. With the Saturn/Neptune opposition from the 9th to 3rd houses, there is likely to be a conflict of views and opinions with important people which even a Sagittarius cannot handle, which may be a contributing factor to a self-chosen isolation. Travel and education are particularly badly affected by long-term factors that are hard to solve. However the entry of Jupiter into Sagittarius radically changes everything, and there is an emergence of optimism and hope. In 2007 it will be possible to harvest really positive results after the struggles of the previous year.
Capricorn
Saturn in Capricorn’s solar 8th house has brought a period of anxiety for Capricorns, making them particularly sensitive about threats to their status. With Neptune in the 2nd house, the inability to establish a reliable economic framework gives the sense that hard-won professional gains can be swept away by fate. On an emotional level too there is little security as Capricorn is confronted with sexual insecurity, and feels very dependent on the partner. With Jupiter in the solar 11th, there can also be difficult issues with friends that may well have an effect on the economy. This whole T-square in fixed signs may well indicate large scale corruption too. The movement of Jupiter into Sagittarius brings a more philosophical approach to the things Capricorn has no control over, and brings the chance of much greater psychological and spiritual insight.
Aquarius
Neptune in Aquarius’ first house has brought many changes in life quality in recent years and a new creative approach. However the opposition of Saturn in 2006 and 2007 from the solar 7th house shows that Aquarius is compromised by relationships, and somewhat a prisoner of circumstances. This necessitates taking a low profile in relation to others, in effect putting them first. With Jupiter in Scorpio squaring the opposition from the solar 10th, there can be professional expansion, but personal circumstances make it difficult to take advantage of the opportunities. However, when Jupiter moves into the solar 11th house, a far more favorable situation arises, and Aquarius can take full advantage of the expansion of the social sphere that will result. This brings much greater optimism and better circumstances for partnership.
Pisces
Perhaps Pisces gets through the Saturn/Neptune opposition better than many. Pisces can feel quite comfortable with Neptune in the solar 12th, and the current position of Uranus in the1st trine Jupiter in the 9th brings a dramatic opening of horizons with many travel opportunities. The Saturn/Neptune opposition is an irritation factor because of the gnawing demands of working life, and Pisces will have some difficulty accepting the daily grind when there are so many more exciting perspectives. So there is trouble at work, and these demands put the brakes in many of the hopes and dreams that Pisces has. When Jupiter comes into Sagittarius and the solar 10th house the opportunity comes to translate ideas into achievement. This is the time to get down to work and make dreams into reality.
It is a fortunate thing that the Saturn/Neptune opposition, which starts with a difficult aspect to Jupiter, ends with a positive aspect to an empowered Jupiter in Sagittarius. Politically this has led to a stalemate situation in most areas. The US is mired in Iraq and President Bush is beleaguered. The EU has agreed not to do anything about its political structure, and there is an ingrained resistance to allowing new countries to join. All this will change when Jupiter comes out of the T-square. There will be a new optimism and steps will be taken to expand the EU. Whilst there is no getting away from the troubles of the Saturn/Neptune opposition, for example high prices and the undermining of executive powers, the strong Jupiter will bring hope and a spirit of optimism.
There must be a lot of people with planets in the last 5 degrees of mutable signs who are mightily relieved. Just as Pluto was about to give them some heavy treatment, a bunch of astronomers in Prague stripped it of its planet status, and reduced it to a dwarf. A friend with Moon 27 Sagittarius was on the phone immediately. Now he would not have to move, his family life would not experience meltdown, demons would not arise from the depth of his unconscious and torment him. Pluto, now just a spherical block of ice like so many more in the Kuyper Belt, had just been awarded the same status as the asteroid Ceres, and the next dwarf planet out there, Xena (note 1), which is in fact larger than Pluto.This demotion of a planet is not new. Ceres was discovered in 1801 and was awarded the status of a planet, but as many more asteroids started to be located, then it was demoted again. New astronomical advances have similarly shown many large objects beyond Pluto, and scientists began questioning whether Pluto, which is minute in relation to the gas giants Uranus and Neptune, should really be a planet.
It is relevant to ask: how is Pluto taking all this? The answer is – not very well at all. The evidence of Pluto’s discomfort could be found not far from Prague – in Vienna. On the day before the decision about Pluto’s status was made, Natascha Kampusch escaped from an underground dungeon concealed in the garage of one Wolfgang Priklopil. Kidnapped by this wolfish man at the age of 10, she had been kept as his slave for 8 years. Distracted by his cell phone whilst Natascha was vacuuming his car, he failed to see her make her escape. And when he realized she had done so, he took his black BMW to the nearest railway line, and threw himself under a train.
The story of this abduction and escape riveted Austria, Europe and indeed the world. It had all the elements of a fairy tale. Like Little Red Riding Hood, the girl was wearing a red outfit when dragged off. She dreamed of chopping the Priklopil’s head off with an axe. Wolfgang. But it is of course the mythological symbolism that catches the astrologer’s eye. Just as Pluto ripped Persephone from Demeter’s arms and dragged her into the Underworld, Priklopil dragged Natascha off to his dungeon. She was there for a Venus cycle – the 8 years it takes for Venus to return to its exact phase in relation to the Earth. On her return to the surface, Pluto’s status was diminished, but Demeters’ – Ceres – status was advanced.
So, yes, Pluto experienced some discomfort. But not enough for my friend with the moon at 27 Sagittarius to start celebrating.
It’s an odd thing, but Austrian newspapers at the time triumphantly showed pictures of the passports of both the victim and the perpetrator, and armed with a magnifying glass it was relatively easy to see both their birth dates. A study of the solar horoscopes for them both reveals fascinating information.
Natascha was born around the New Moon in Aquarius with the Sun sextile a Mars/Jupiter trine in fire signs and Venus in Aries. No victim here but a fighter and a winner. As she herself put it in her first address to the media: “He was not my master. I was just as strong… he took on the wrong one (person) — and he and I both knew that.” Obviously having someone like Priklopil as your only companion for 8 formative years is going to mess up relationships, and her Venus in Aries in precise square to Neptune shows her as an angry victim who anyway had to grieve the loss of the only man who she has ever related to in her lonely years in the 9 foot long 6 feet wide dungeon that was her home. As she said: “It was Wolfgang (Priklopil)’s own decision to throw himself under the train. I sympathize with Wolfgang’s mother. I can feel with her and put myself in her position. I, and both of us, think of him”. Well, yes. It must be difficult not to.
It is interesting that someone with such an incredible story is born just a few days after Saturn and Uranus simultaneously entered that sign of hardship – Capricorn. With Mars on the degree of the Galactic Centre and soon to progress onto the Saturn/Uranus conjunction, perhaps it picks up the energy of this black hole at the centre of the Milky Way. Obviously this stellium shows extreme experiences at the hands of men – extreme hardship and extreme cruelty. The only man she has known, and intimately, was a psychopath. Yet at the same time, this powerful Mars, trining Jupiter in Aries, shows someone who combines bravery and spirit with an incredible self-discipline learned from her years of incarceration.
Pluto might be expected to be prominent in her chart; it had just turned retrograde in Scorpio, and Mercury, also retrograde, was to go back to 12 degrees Aquarius to make the exact square to Pluto. There it dwelled in progressed square to Pluto (within a degree) from the age of 3 to the fateful age of 10 at which time she was led underground. Pluto at birth is semisquare Mars, and really this was a time of undiluted horror for her – in a tiny room without windows which she was not allowed out of night or day for the first six months of her captivity.
Interestingly her Ceres is a 17.26 Aquarius conjoining Mercury, and at the exact mid-point of (and precisely septile to) Mars on the one side and Venus on the other. Ceres is the Roman name for the Greek goddess Demeter, who lost her daughter to Hades. The gods intervened and returned Persephone to her mother, but unfortunately she had eaten that fateful fruit of love, the pomegranate, whilst in the arms of Hades, and is condemned to periodically return. Just after progressed Mercury, now direct, conjoins Natascha’s Ceres, she also escapes and is returned to the world.
There is evidence that if you want to escape, it is good to wait for good aspects to come along, rather than bad. When Natascha found the right moment (Note 2), the Sun was at 0.11 Virgo and in precise trine to Uranus and Saturn. The moon was at 26.24 Leo in precise trine to Mars and Jupiter. And for those who are beginning to get interested in Ceres, it was at 17.26 Aquarius at birth and at the moment of escape it was at… 17.26 Aquarius. No orb. One Ceres cycle.
So who is this guy Wolfgang Priklopil, who spent the midnight hours building the concealed dungeon and equipping it with advanced electronic surveillance systems until ready to pounce on his captive?
This is someone who robs innocents from their mothers. Venus is at 19.33 Gemini – just 10 minutes of arc from Ceres. The Mercury/Venus conjunction in Gemini obviously gives a predisposition for schoolgirls. Mercury looks blameless enough, but it actually goes stationary by progression on the Venus/Ceres conjunction, dwelling on them within a degree from the age of 5 to 19. What goes on in these years? Mercury moves from retrograde to direct motion at 11.51 Gemini which is exactly where it is in 1998 when he abducts Natascha. Trine Saturn at 11.21 Aquarius. A great planner. Quincunx Neptune – imaginative. Finally, Wolfgang left this world when progressed Mercury returned to degree of birth Mercury. He did not get very far.
His grand achievement – the abduction – took place as Natascha was going to school on the morning of March 2nd 1998.
Abduction: 3rd March 1998 School start. Vienna
The abduction took place just after a solar eclipse at 7.55 Pisces which was exactly opposite Priklopil’s Pluto. This was his moment of destiny – the time when he took an irrevocable step into the dark side. The eclipse conjoined Jupiter and squared transit Pluto, which at this point was exactly square his natal Pluto. As Priklopil is born with Pluto opposing Jupiter, this was a unique moment. In fact, the astrological detective could – if presented with Priklopil’s date of birth at the time of the abduction – have seen that this was the time when his dark fantasies about imprisoning a schoolgirl would be activated. The abduction chart and the natal chart echo major themes of domination and imprisonment. The fact is detectives visited Priklopil’s house to question him, but never searched it. The abduction also took place with an exact Venus/Mars sextile, echoing the same sextile in Priklopil’s birth chart.
Natascha Kampusch has a lot of catching up to do. She has chosen to limit her contact with her parents, who had divorced prior to her abduction. At present communication with them is limited to the phone. A live interview had the highest viewing figures ever in Austria and generated huge licensing revenue, which Kampusch is reported as having donated to women in need in Africa and Mexico. She has granted other interviews in return for a package including housing support, a long-term job offer, and help with her education. (Note 3) She’ll probably manage all right if her horoscope is anything to go by.
One of the main consequences of the new dwarf planet status of Pluto, is the promotion of Ceres, and the iconic story of Priklopil and Kampusch emphasizes the power of Ceres, making a strong case for its inclusion in the standard astrological chart along with the other major planets. Judging from its effect in this story, and a glance at the charts of people I know well, it seems Ceres is very connected with the mother archetype and the motherhood role. One client I know has Ceres between Uranus and Pluto and claims, because of extreme childhood experiences, that her mother is a psychopath. Another returned to his mother country after many years when his Sun progressed conjoined Ceres. The Greek myth points to the connection of Demeter with famine, and embedded in Ceres is the latent tendency for extreme contrasts between nurture and abandonment and loss.
As regards Pluto there are probably other stories coinciding with the date of its demotion from the pantheon of the gods. As a rule events in the field of astronomy tend to be reflected by events on earth. When Voyager flew past Uranus, the space shuttle Challenger exploded. When Voyager flew by Neptune, millions joined hands across the borders of the Baltic countries, dissolving the borders and the domination of the Soviet Union. The New Horizons space probe (Note 4) will arrive at Pluto in 2015. Expect to see an interesting demonstration of its effect.
As the years go by – if the Prague decison holds – Pluto will be redefined in school text books. It will lose some of its iconic power. Will the atom bomb go the same way as Priklopil? How will psychology fare? But right now it is firmly enconsed in the horoscope, and – sigh of relief – clients are still having traumas and crises. Clearly, as astrologers, we have not lost a planet – we’ve gained two. Now where is Ceres in my horoscope… not to mention Xena!
Adrian Duncan 19th September 2006
1. Xena’s position is currently 21 Aries – noticed anything? – and an ephemeris can be found at www.astro.com
If you had to invent a horoscope to describe a country in constant tension with its neighbors, a land that has risen from the ashes, a land with supreme confidence that could fight its own battles, then you might have chosen the 14th May 1948, and that country would be Israel. This was the time when Jewish figures under the leadership of Ben Gurion declared the existence of the state of Israel whilst the Arab League was in the process of invading the country. Even at inception, Israel was at war.See chart for Israel 14.05.1948 16.00 Tel Aviv
This horoscope is one of the most interesting horoscopes of all time for a myriad of reasons. The country was formed less than a week after a solar eclipse at 18 Taurus, which squared a Mars/Saturn/Pluto conjunction in Leo, thereby assuring its destiny at the center of a power hub in which war, struggle and survival were to be the keynotes. The Saturn/Pluto conjunction takes place every 35 years, and in this case it shows the rebirth of the Jewish nation after the Holocaust. The sun placed on the 8th house cusp shows that the country’s identity is based on contested territory – it is in fact founded on other people’s land, and these people were made permanent refugees in the war of Israeli independence. Ever since, the Palestinian people have claimed their land back. Indeed extremist forces in Arab countries have called for the elimination of the state of Israel. The fate of Israel is to live under the constant threat of extermination, and to cope with this they have an enormous willpower to survive.
Fortunately for the Lion of Israel, they have an extremely strong Mars in Leo, which trines an even stronger Jupiter in Sagittarius. This is a people with a well-trained army with enormous confidence and will to win. They have the sense that right is on their side, and that might is right. Mars is actually square the Sun, and there is the suggestion that the army can run independently of government, but as the Sun disposes of Mars, then it can be reined in.
The horoscope ruler Venus is in Cancer and the 9th, and this shows an important side of the Israeli character. They love their home and their family, and they are settlers, trying to build a home in a difficult environment. The 9th house position of Venus also shows that many have arrived from abroad – in fact this Venus position is exactly on the Venus/Jupiter conjunction of the United States, which of course the protector of Israel both financially and militarily. This is a soft and cultural influence, and with the square to Neptune in the 12th there is also a sorrow and awareness of the martyrdom of their race. As Ascendant ruler, Venus has a special role to play, especially in Israel’s progressed chart.
Mercury is strongly placed in Gemini, which probably says something about the many languages spoken in the country and the dual use of English and Hebrew. The strong aspect of the 8th house Mercury to Pluto in Leo indicates the effectivity of the country’s intelligence services, particularly Mossad. The ability of Mossad to orientate itself in the Arab world is a major extension of Israel’s power. Mercury makes a powerful trine to Neptune in the 12th, which gives great spiritual depth and teaching tradition, and shows the success Israel has in keeping alive the knowledge of the Holocaust. Mercury has also an extraordinary story to tell in the progressed chart.
Israel has been in extreme turmoil since the elections in Gaza that gave power to Hamas, which is generally seen as a terrorist organization. This coincided with the withdrawal of the military from Gaza and the removal of settlements. At the same time, Ariel Sharon had his near-fatal stroke, and the party he had just formed on November 21st 2005 – Kadima – won the March 28, 2006 elections with Ehud Olmert as its leader.
Progressed chart July 2006
Weakness has never been a very useful strategy in the Middle East, where the spirit of compromise is so difficult to capitalize on. Olmert has a chart with three planets in fall – Sun in Libra, Mars in Cancer and Venus in Virgo – and this is not going to stand him in good stead in the current conflict that is escalating with Hizbulla in the Lebanon. (Note 1) Olmert is in fact an idealist, with a Sun/Jupiter/Neptune conjunction in Libra – a good man who believes in compromise. In fact his chart is similar to the UN, and he should get them involved as soon as possible.
It is an extraordinary thing that both Mercury and Venus retrograde from Cancer and back into Gemini for a very long period. During this time their energies merge with the Uranus/Jupiter opposition clearly indicating the years and years of international diplomacy connected with the dilemma of Israel/Palestine and how to create two separate states that recognize each other’s existence. The long Sharon/Arafat “dialogue” was a manifestation of this activation of Uranus in Gemini.
Mercury retrograded into Gemini in 1993, and will reenter Cancer this year by progression, and this probably marks the end of dialogue, in the sense that Israel now make unilateral decisions and no longer negotiate officially with the Palestinian government. This is the end of the 1990’s epoch of the Oslo accords, which had such limited success. The policy of Israeli unilateralism will continue into the foreseeable future.
As may be expected with the sudden explosion of violence in the Middle East, Mars is involved. At the time of writing – when bombs are being dropped over Beirut and rockets falling on Haifa – transiting Mars is in fact exactly on Israel’s Mars at 28 Leo, so quite obviously Israel is flexing all its muscles. However, progressed Mars is at 26.52 Virgo – exactly conjoined by progressed Moon! – and approaching the square to progressed Uranus at 27.44 Gemini and natal Jupiter at 27.39 Sagittarius. This is a high explosive cocktail, and it looks like going on for a while. Progressed Moon enters Libra in October, which may help peace negotiations, but the exact Mars square takes place at the time of the New Year in 2008. This indicates that high tech warfare may flare up periodically over the next 1½ year period. And as mentioned in a previous article, air strikes on Iran are a distinct possibility.
The progressed Mars to Jupiter, which is exact at the end of 2007 indicates that the actions of Israel will not meet with approval. They will overreact, and definitely be open to the charge that they are using disproportionate force (which Europe is already claiming). With progressed Mars in Virgo this could be because military efforts are focused on the destruction of infrastructure.
The current efforts to establish security in the face of fundamentalist threats will only have a limited success. The Saturn/Neptune opposition of 2006-7 will square Israel’s Taurus sun created a long-lasting and apparently insoluble problem. Saturn squares the sun on 27th October 2006, and 15th January and 13th July 2007. Neptune squares the sun in 2008, and Mars in 2010. This is going to be a damaging time for the Israeli economy in particular, and dealing with increasing debt will be a major preoccupation. At the same time military methods for conflict solving will become less and less effective as time goes by. The entry of Mars into Libra in 2012 will signal the end of the smaller skirmishes with militants, but there may be new alliances and heightened world tension at this time.
Lebanon celebrates its independence on 22nd November, after it wrested power from the French in 1943, and a noon chart places the Moon at 26 Gemini, which is exactly where the progressed Moon and Mars of Israel are right now. Pluto is squaring this position and opposing Lebanon’s Saturn in Gemini, showing the upheaval and restructuring currently going on as a consequence of Israel’s bombs. Lebanon has Mars, Saturn and Uranus in Gemini which clearly indicates the religious polarities in the country and the potential for civil war. This is obviously a destabilizing time in a country that has never been stable.
The general consensus regarding the current war footing of Israel is that this is something that has been orchestrated by Hizbulla at the behest of Iran and Syria. With the current pressure on Iran because of their nuclear program, a low-intensity Middle Eastern conflict can be very useful in distracting energy and attention away from its president Ahmadinejad, and a reminder of Iran’s regional power. The new longer-range rockets are manufactured in Iran, and can now reach major population centres in Israel. Given Israel’s extreme sensitivity regarding the capturing of their soldiers, it is a simple matter to provoke Israel into an escalation of hostilities, and this has probably been the intention of Hizbulla and their patrons. Everyone is a hostage to this – even the Hamas government of Palestine, who would probably love to be able to prevent its fundamentalists sending rockets into Israel. The Lebanese government would probably also love to stop Hizbulla aggression, but moderate Arabs have very little influence these days. With a peaceful resolution of this conflict in the hands of the masters of Hizbulla, there is likely to be low-level conflict for some time to come.
As mentioned earlier, Venus progressed retrograded into Gemini in the mid-90’s and will remain there until 2029. It stations in 2011 at 24.38 Gemini exactly on Uranus (24.21) and also conjoins Uranus progressed from 2000 to 2025. As ruling planet for Israel this shows an extremely disturbing process, characterized by the stress of rockets and suicide bombs. Uranus in Gemini shows provocative neighbours and the challenges in dealing with people whose language, religion and culture is almost insuperable. To learn to communicate with people who are so different is the fate of Israel. Peace will come in 2030.
The discovery and exploitation of oil in the early 19th century made a lot of whales very happy indeed. Until that time whale oil was extensively used primarily for lighting and to a certain extent for cooking, but with the development of kerosene, the bottom – fortunately for whales – fell out of the whaling industry over a period of several decades. Plastic is currently performing the same service for trees. Traditionally oil and gas have been associated with the planet Neptune (as indeed whales are), and it is probably no coincidence that the first commercial exploitation of oil in the 1850’s took place soon after the discovery of Neptune in 1846.When Neptune was discovered, it was in exact conjunction with Saturn at 25 Aquarius, and subsequent Saturn/Neptune conjunctions have correlated with dramatic political upheavals – there were many (relatively peaceful) social revolutions in Europe in the late 1840’s because of the rise of socialism. The correlation of the 35-year Saturn/Neptune cycle with social change has been well documented, especially as regards communism, whose defining moments – the 1917 revolution, the death of Stalin in1953, and the tearing down of the Berlin Wall in 1989 – all occurred at the conjunction.To a certain extent the Saturn/Neptune cycle is also related to the supply of oil and gas, which is natural enough considering the association of Saturn with restriction and blockage, and of Neptune with oil. As consumers, we become aware of this through the price of oil at the petrol pump, but the correlation between petrol prices and oil supply is complicated by a number of factors, not least the desire of OPEC countries to maintain stable oil prices by pumping more or less oil as the situation demands. There is naturally also a correlation between oil supply and growth and prosperity, but again there are a number of factors that complicate the equation. For example there has been excellent growth in the United States in 2005 even though the price of oil tripled over the last three years. Conversely, with the discovery of the largest oil pool ever in Texas in 1930 – at the time of a precise Saturn/Neptune trine – the price of oil was brought crashing down bringing chaos to the industry and considerably worsening the Great Depression. High oil prices do not guarantee economic woe, and low prices do not guarantee prosperity. Stable prices are best.
The classic example of the correlation between oil supply and the Saturn/Neptune cycle is related to the opposition that took place prior to the 1973 Yom Kippur war and subsequent Arab oil embargo. In fact the first opposition (in a series of three) took place on June 25th, 1971 at 0 degrees Gemini/Sagittarius, and it seems as if the entry of Neptune into Sagittarius at the beginning of the seventies heralded an epoch in which “foreign” countries, where the oil originated, began to take control. This was a time when OPEC flexed its muscles, supporting Iraq for example when it nationalized Western oil companies in Iraq in June 1972. OPEC itself was formed on September 14, 1960, when Saturn made a precise sextile to Neptune. (Note 1)
Oil prices rose dramatically up to 1974, and leveled off, even falling, but with the political disintegration of Iran and overthrow of the shah, oil prices took off once again and the price of oil almost doubled in relation to the 1974 peak of $38 per barrel (2005 dollar rate) to reach $63 by 1981. This was largely due to the US embargo on Iranian products in the wake of the US embassy hostage crisis in 1979 and the subsequent Iraq/Iran war in 1980. Astrologically this is interesting, because the Saturn/Neptune square from September 1979 to June 1980 spanned this period. Therefore it is reasonable to assume that the opposition and square in the 70’s – a time when Neptune was in Sagittarius – corresponds to restrictions on oil connected to Arab nations with a strongly religious agenda.
A new Saturn/Neptune cycle began in 1989 with the series of conjunctions that took place around 10 degrees Capricorn from March to November. As with all previous conjunctions, this had monumental political repercussions – in this case no less than a New World Order, which was connected with the fact that Uranus also conjoined Neptune and commenced a new 172 year cycle shortly afterwards. It seems likely that the Saturn/Neptune conjunction creates the new political structures through which form the background for oil supply, and that each conjunction has a different emphasis. At any rate it seems that the newly formed Russia, sensitive as it is to the Saturn/Neptune cycle, is now taking over in significance from the Middle East, and with the current build up to the first opposition of the 1989 cycle, it is Russia that is flexing her muscles rather than OPEC.
The bullying tactics of Russia have been clearly apparent in their dealings with the Ukraine as 2006 began. This was a major manifestation of the colossal grand cross between Saturn, Neptune, Jupiter and Mars, that was operative from August 2005 to February 2006, and it gives a foretaste of what is to come when the Saturn/Neptune opposition really kicks in. Basically Ukraine refused to allow the gas pipelines that go through its country to come under the control of the state-owned Russian gas giant Gazprom, and Gazprom responded by demanding that Ukraine would then have to pay the EU market price for gas, which at around $220 per 1000 cubic meters quadrupled the price for Ukraine. When Ukraine understandably rejected this – they had previously been guaranteed a fixed price five years into the future – Gazprom shut down supplies.
As the gas pressure fell also for European countries, it became quite clear for the EU that they themselves were now vulnerable to Russian blackmail, as Gazprom already supplies 25% of EU’s gas. What is more, this figure is growing as European supplies of gas dwindle, and new pipelines are being built from Russia. Interestingly, Gerhard Schroeder, the former premier of Germany is chairman of the board of the Gazprom branch for the pipeline going directly under the Baltic Sea to Germany. There are even rumors that Italy’s premier Berlusconi – if he loses his current post, will become chairman of the southern Gazprom pipeline bound for Italy. As Putin expands Russia’s web of pipelines into Europe he will clearly acquire a stranglehold on EU energy. Obviously this will not be used overtly – that is bad business practice – but Russia will acquire enormous influence… and great riches too. This must be sweet music to the Russian nation after the economic humiliations of the 1990’s.
Gazprom was formed at the Saturn/Neptune conjunction in 1989 and though privatized during the 1990’s Putin reasserted state control by acquiring 51% of the shares when he came to power. He went on to crush the competing oil giant Yukos, whose chairman Mikhail Khordorkovsky was jailed in 2004 for tax evasion… though everyone knows that the real reason was that he had presidential ambitions. The head of Gazprom is Aleksej Miller who is an old pal of Putin’s from his time as mayor of St. Petersburg. In reality Gazprom is an arm of the Kremlin, and is being used not just as a financial instrument but also as a political tool. Whilst America depletes its resources on foreign adventures in Iraq, Russia is rapidly consolidating its power. Quite apart from huge pipelines to northern, central and southern Europe, there are deals with Japan, Korea and the Far East, capitalizing on the huge demand for oil in these countries, which Russia is in a strong position to satisfy because it has almost a third of the world’s gas reserves.
It is in this light that the coming Saturn/Neptune opposition should be seen. This phase of the Saturn/Neptune cycle corresponds to the earlier 1972 opposition phase – in other words it is likely that the last half of the 35 cycle – from 2006 to the next conjunction (in Aries) in June 2025, will see the use of oil and gas to leverage Russia as a growing power on the world stage. The opposition phase of a cycle is connected with awareness, and just as the West became aware of the power of the Middle East in the previous cycle, the EU, and belatedly the US, will become aware of the power of Russia in this cycle. The events connected with Ukraine prove that this is not a benign influence… the power is there to gain advantage.
It is too late to do anything about the growing power of Russia… the pipelines are complete or under construction, North Sea supplies are running down, Europe is hungry. It is Russia’s turn to prosper, and the country is in great need of wealth after a dire period of poverty and disintegration. The choices in Europe are stark, and there will naturally be a strong incentive to economize by building economical houses and cars and investing in alternative energy supplies, and this in turn will stand Europe in good stead when the next Saturn/Neptune cycle runs its course from 2025 to 2060. It is those countries that become relatively independent of fossil fuels that will be in a supreme position as it becomes more and more expensive to extract diminishing quantities from the earth.
Meanwhile it is likely that the Saturn/Neptune opposition from 2006 to 2007 (see graph) will brings economic unrest. As Jupiter is involved in this – and Jupiter/Neptune squares are associated with the bursting of economic bubbles – there is likely to be some kind of market crash connected with power and corruption (Jupiter in Scorpio). Anything unrealistically priced will be cut down to size (watch it Google, watch it property market!). The warnings will come in the first quarter of 2006, but the crash is likely in September and October. But with Saturn increasing its restrictive grip on oil supply, I would imagine oil prices will go up even from their current highs. Venezuela is encouraging a wave of solidarity in South America and reducing the control the USA has on its deliveries from that quarter. Iraq’s already damaged production could get even worse through civil war. Iran’s confrontation course with the West can limit supplies. These factors are likely to contribute to economic depression in the USA and Europe.
The Yom Kippur war and Arab oil embargo took place a year after the previous Saturn/Neptune opposition, and it seems like there will be upheaval after the 2006-7 opposition, with the building up of an awesome grand cross involving Pluto which enters Capricorn and Uranus which enters Aries, indicating an aggressive period in world politics spanning the years from 2010 to 2014. There is likely to be highly charged interaction between the West, Russia and China at this time, and some political reconstruction will take place owing to the rise of extremism. This may or may not be related to the economic discomfort likely to be experienced in the wake of the Saturn/Neptune opposition.
The Age of Oil will run its course, just as the Age of Coal did. At current rates of extraction, oil will run out in the middle of the 21st century, though – as it gets more and more expensive per barrel – it will be a slow process as oil gradually gets supplanted by other power sources. The big question is: how peaceful will this process be? As dynamic technological progress made living easier, populations have exploded and dependence on cheap energy is what makes the world go around today. Yet there will be a future in which the burning of fossil fuels simply does not take place. Houses will not be heated by coal, gas or oil. Cars will not run on gasoline. Power will not come from oil, gas or coal-fired stations.
There are two views as to what will happen in the transition process. One is the Roman Empire model – the fall of civilization. The other is that man’s ingenuity will find solutions, and this view is more in keeping with the Aquarian Age prophecy. The exploitation of Earth’s resources is a phenomenon largely reflected astrologically by the 200 year Saturn/Jupiter conjunction cycle in Earth. When this moves to Air for another 200 year period – in 2020 – other energy sources based on light and waveforms will gradually take over in an extremely low-energy society. Whilst we have difficulty imagining this transition, our children, and our children’s children will easily find the way.
