Just a few notes on aspects in play this weekend, for your consideration.
On Friday the 18th the trines prevail, to include one between Venus and Neptune-Pallas (the entire period, growing in strength), one between retro Mercury and Saturn, and one between the Sun and Jupiter (stronger each day). Should be wonderful, right? Love and wise ideals work together, we ‘get the message’ (probably in images or feelings, because Merc retro) from the reality picture (and bonus, we are able to ‘control the message’ we convey, a rarity during this part of the Merc cycle), and the sun shines on opportunities, which are abundant. But, to make this all work best, we need to be aware of a few other details: those sunny opportunities may arise out of some unpleasant or hurtful situations–so try to rise above the hurt (instead of just reacting) to see how we can learn, grow, heal, or use our gifts (Jupiter novile Chiron); dreams can become reality right now–and so can nightmares, so use your oh-so-powerful imagination in positive ways (Saturn novile Neptune); and for the entire weekend, be aware of how the past is influencing your actions and choices, and make that work for you, rather than against (Mars approaching trine to the South Node).
For the 19th, two things stand out: the Sun sesquiquadrates Saturn, and Saturn squares and Earth sesquiquadrates Uranus. Suddenly, there are problems, where the way seemed smooth before. It may appear that reality is throwing up roadblocks and material matters are not just unpredictable–it may even feel like inanimate objects are opposing us! All these ‘Stop’ signs are really just ‘Slow’ signs, meant to curb precipitous, headlong progress and make it both safer and more carefully considered. Pay attention and take your time; accidents and shocks will be your indication that you’re pushing too hard, too fast.
Sunday the 20th things may seem a bit tense. Identity crises are a dime a dozen, and fears about our material future, and who will accompany us there, may get the upper hand. These are passing perceptions, born of particular stresses that have been around for a while but are soon to ‘break’, like a fever or a wave. That should tell you that these worries are, well, nothing to worry about! If you do start percolating, get busy with something soothing or creative, as upset now is simply a sign of energy that needs channeling to a worthy destination.
Pluto trine Sedna, Pallas at the midpoint, has been around the whole weekend, but now it seems to come into focus,on Monday, the 21st. Though the Pluto-Sedna contact could read as, ‘ too easy destruction fueled by the suppressed, the instinctive, or what we know but don’t acknowledge’, Pallas at the midpoint of the two says that what is eliminated, changed, transformed, or given power is steered by the inner wisdom, and/ or the sense of practicality. That doesn’t mean what goes down will be seamless or even pleasant, but it does mean that even inadvertently triggered events, encounters, and ‘wars’ will have a smart, ‘house cleaning’ effect, as the world or others offer us the chance to shape our circumstances more to our liking, no matter how random or unanticipated it all seems. Also, the Sun enters Cancer, Earth enters Capricorn, making the feelings a little more tender, material matters a little more cut-and-dried.
Your Weekend Word Image is a scene from a dream: a choppy bay is filled with dolphins colored like orcas (killer whales). The setting is emotional (water), chop suggesting disturbance or turmoil. This points us astrologically toward Jupiter, Neptune, and Venus, all currently in Water signs, to be joined at the end of the forecast period by the Sun–which tells us be patient, illumination will come, if we don’t immediately understand.
Dolphins are intelligent mammals, like us, but potentially even smarter–so, we’re looking at an emotional scenario filled with what seem to be ‘regular’ people. But, and it’s a big one, these individuals have coloration suggesting another animal altogether–and I translate that as them actually being quite aggressive, even predators, in their own way, trying to pass themselves off as reasoned individuals, a ‘we’re just alike, you and me’ that they are signaling is untrue, if we are clear enough (that is, unemotional enough) to see. Hint: your clue that someone is running a number may be that they portray the matter as ‘black and white’, mimicking the coloration of the orca–stark, with no in-between.
Or, these could be intelligent, reasoned others who want to seem more formidable than they are. They try to convince you they are more dangerous, aggressive, or battle-ready than they in reality are–which could leave you in a bad spot if you’re counting on their assertiveness or support.
Jupiter, Neptune, and Venus speak in broad terms to opportunity and knowledge, dreams and illusions, and relationships and finances–all areas where it’s vital to see ‘the Truth’. When the Sun arrives in Cancer on Monday, we should be able to discern precisely the genuine shapes and intents of situations, and the others who people them.
Tomorrow the Sun enters orb of a quincunx to Pluto and perfects a square to Pallas, and more than anything, this may be disorienting, just coming off the Sun’s square to Neptune as we are. The Sun in Gemini isn’t just about communication; it’s as if the very air is charged with information, transmitted invisibly–and yet we know, or at least we suspect, feeling vital revelations as they’re on the verge of forming coherent intel. The contact to Pluto may shake the ground beneath our feet; we suddenly become very unsure of the change we’re witnessing, and question whether we can see its larger meaning. This uncertainty is all because we question our own inner wisdom–or is it that we are being contrary, rejecting the smart or the practical option, because that offers a sense of control, which is something we don’t have if we seem to be acquiescing to a larger authority or a greater wisdom?
So, how do we keep our balance? Accept that we have within us the wisdom and maturity to know what we know, to take the right steps, to do the smart thing. We have the choice to see the nudge from Pluto not as an earthquake but as a display of real power that shows us where we stand in relation, that points out where we do (and don’t) hold true power ourselves. And we can respond to the tough circumstance that calls on us to access our inner adult gratefully, knowing that we have the answer within that will make everything go well–just as long as we aren’t too stubborn, Self-sabotaging, or flippant to ignore it.
Today’s Word Image is a dense forest, uninhabited, where explorers suddenly spot high in the trees a clutch of bright balloons caught in the branches. In blazing ‘new territory’ (in relation to your personal experience) where have you found something incongruous and unexpected? What was your reaction to it? Did anyone try to ‘sell’ you on this being a good thing? Is the shine and flash of celebration distracting you from something important? The reality is, those balloons don’t belong in the woods, and in the end those Mylar creations will be nothing but trash. I think this is a message to not be too impressed by, enamored of, or misled by something, just because it’s shiny–if it doesn’t fit the overall picture, it doesn’t belong there, and treating it as if it does could waste valuable time, or just end up polluting something that should be kept pristine.
Two things catch my eye today, and I’m not sure how random they may be, considering we’ve just been through the punch/ caress of the eclipse, followed immediately by the Inferior Conjunction. All I can do, I suppose, is share my thoughts.
The first is the lingering together of Ceres and Uranus in Taurus. This has been going on for a while now, and for some reason I’ve been ignoring them–but they’re under my skin, so I guess I’d better pay attention! This speaks of Mother Nature, the sense of personal authority, the ability to negotiate, the sense of personal responsibility, met by (or maybe bedeviled by) accident, serendipity, rebellion, revelation, Higher Knowledge, or the group Will. That makes for a number of combinations that boil down to: shock and shift that affects those things that let us know who we are and what our function is within the larger scheme, that may challenge our sense of ourselves as good, responsible people. And you know how bad and unreasonable people can be when their sense of themselves as upstanding is perhaps pointed out as not-so-much as they pretend.
But what is a shock and shift in slow motion? Because that’s what we’ve had, a slowly dawning reveal of something around our responsibilities and our prerogatives–and this is definitely something in the material world, something affecting our comfort, well-being, or surroundings. Where are you pretending to be responsible, doing the ‘right’ thing, when you’re not? That will have to be answered, one way or another.
The other thing dogging me is the quincunx just now in orb of Mars, newly in Leo, to Jupiter in Pisces. They’re both recently arrived in their respective signs–and things are bound to chafe in any case, as they adjust, so add a dissonance with another body, and you get–maybe a heat rash, with friction, Fire, and Water, or maybe just a maddening humidity. The desire to act, to alleviate the situation, may be both driven by ego and filled with illusion/ delusion–so a waste of effort, time, energy, and in the end not likely to make us feel one bit better. Frustration is the keyword here–so maybe better to sit back and treat it like a sauna (throw your clothes off, luxuriate in the heat, not think too much) rather than rail against a sticky heat you can do effectively little to escape.
Bonus: those with a natal placement in the first few degrees of Libra receive the quincunx as a Finger of God. This couples action or choice with the natal energy, leading to something Jupiterian–public, published, or belief or fact based–with the suggestion that it all turns out as you imagined, but probably exaggerated, in some way.
A final note: in just under two days the Sun perfects a square to Neptune–and considering that Merc is retro right now, don’t strain too hard to sort out what the problem is–you don’t have to, because the ‘problem’ will present itself to you in short order, and from there it will be clear what actually needs doing, most importantly, because the tension may not be caused by a genuine problem at all, just a change we may not have envisioned, until now.
Have a great weekend, and relax–it’s all going to be okay.
The New Moon/ Solar eclipse of the 10th falls at 19 Gemini 47, poised for the next day’s Inferior Conjunction of retrograde Mercury and the Sun. That makes a kind of double energy of ‘new beginnings’, of germination, in both the realm of ideas and that of the matters of the natal House where this eclipse falls for you. The seminal nature of things means we might not immediately know what is getting its start–but in Gemini, it almost certainly will cause a shift in the mentality, a shift in attention.
The eclipse forms a novile with Mars, already unhappy in Cancer and sitting at the 29th degree, desperate to do, to take action, to make ‘it’ happen–always a bad thing, when we feel pushed to do because we care, or worse, to prove we care, or perhaps pushed by others who care (or pushed by others to care, about something that doesn’t move us)–but if you can connect the passion Mars carries to the feeling nature without conflict or pressure, propelled by ideas, by thoughts we truly want to act on, something may be initiated that can help define your current, personal Zeitgeist and inform thinking and the mentality in a ‘fresh’ way. If you can apply the need for action to what you care about you can expect thought-innovation concerning something that really matters to you, ideas and the energy to put them in motion, as well as knowing who or what contacts will change thought into matter.
The eclipse trines Zeus, and forms a wide square to Neptune and wide opposition to Juno. These contacts suggest that ambition and desire fulfillment is the essence of what occurs at the eclipse–and that this may not agree with what we imagine fulfillment will look like. It also suggests that we may find what starts, at least in the beginning, disempowering–but it’s more likely disorienting, asking us to see things in a new light, one that can work out much better than if things unfolded as we would orchestrate them.
Muddy-ing the mix is a wide square to Vesta in Virgo, perhaps suggesting nothing so much as the potential for stiff-necked and judgmental ‘principles’ to get in the way of what needs to be initiated at this time. With that 29 degree Mars we know something must be done, and if we keep our emotional head on straight, and refuse to succumb to emotional pressures, we can start something big, new, fresh, necessary–so though we need considered judgment, an agreement between head and heart, we don’t need a hyper-critical take on what we want to do.
The Sabian for the eclipse is, ‘A Modern Cafeteria Displays An Abundance Of Food, Products Of Various Regions’. That’s an image of choice–a watchword of Mars, which we know is instrumental to what goes down. Note too that it’s a ‘modern’ image, one that provides options we might not have had at other points in time, or even in history–important as it emphasizes the wide reach we now enjoy, the variety at our fingertips, and the wide impact of our own choices, an effect we might not anticipate as we act, but which we should be cognizant of.
Find balance between the head and the heart, and be willing to act–what’s promised is something you’ve long wanted, though be warned, it may not be precisely what you’ve envisioned, it will fulfill the ambitions, the desire nature, the craving you’ve carried–and like so many things in life, surprise us with the form it takes, with what it brings, with discovery about the true nature of what we’ve drawn to us.
Bonus: if you have a natal placement in the 18-21 degree range of Aquarius, you may find this period initiates a new front with a worked-for ambition or aim, likely bringing a workable approach that leads to realization, as your natal placement fills in an Air Grand Trine with the eclipse and Zeus. Congrats!
If thoughts seem still as a woodland pond, it may be because Mercury is stationary, ready to technically retrograde at 3:34 PM PDT of the 29th at 24 Gemini 43. (Or, if you can’t seem to light on any train of thought for long, that’s also a Mercurial stoppage of a sort, the kind that sends you round and round through the same ‘network’ of thoughts and offers no definitive satisfactions.)
The Moon in Capricorn will have just quincunxed Mercury shortly before turnaround, giving us the feels and probably making for some frustration: the emotions either seem obvious, sitting right on the surface, or seem to be in the depths, hidden even from ourselves–but most likely is a combination, that comes along with an awareness that, ‘this emotion is right in front of me, but I know I have feelings I just can’t pinpoint!’.
Merc in Gemini prompts some overthinking, and probably a yearning to ‘make progress’ somehow, to make up our minds about things, particularly the matters of the House in the natal chart where the retro occurs–or, we have the need to communicate without really knowing what our message is. There are two tendencies at this point, and you’ll likely choose one: thinking you can think your way through ‘it’, whatever it is, or a personal approach that relies on 1) scattershot attention, so that nothing gets focus, and so nothing gets done/ decided, or 2) turning to others for endless surveys of their opinions, what they would do, etc., which does nothing to move the matter forward.
None of those are wrong, but it is just spinning our Mercurial wheels. A retro in Air asks us to, in broadest terms, re-consider what and how we think of our world, so full awareness of our own subjectivity is highly useful, when we bother to compare it to the facts, the info available, to the prevailing thought on any matter. Again, neither is no viewpoint is inherently more right than any other; it’s in the comparison, the review of our own methods cast against the thinking of the wider world or the group, that we benefit, find mental inspiration, sort the wheat from the chaff.
The Cosmic picture at turnaround sets the stage for the retro period itself, with Mercury roughly three-and-a-half weeks ahead. Here we see Mercury at the point of retrograde pulling back just before, in direct motion, it would’ve conjoined Venus, suggesting a pull back in relationships or financial matters, a wait-and-see, or let’s think about this some more approach. First aspect Mercury in retro will form is a square to Neptune, promising that any fantasies we hope to sustain may hit the rocks on retro review, and also making it difficult to connect to inspiration or the creative ideal, probably because the mind isn’t ready to stick with a single idea, just yet.
Right about the same time Merc will also semi-sextile Mars and square Pallas, warning us: you may get antsy, want to act precipitously, but that wouldn’t be smart, or may be impractical. So don’t indulge in impulse, during this retro time. Inferior Conjunction with the Sun comes on the 11th of June, and should be the starting point for beginning to gather your thoughts. If you’re a wordsmith of any kind, work it and re-work it, and if you’re not, just let the mind sort through things at its own pace, and start paying attention to what occupies your mental space on the 11th. Don’t demand answers until a bit after direction, and you’ll be all the better for it.
A Lunar eclipse is by definition a Full Moon, a time when the Earth passes between the Sun and the Moon as they are lined up along the ecliptic, offering Earthlings a few minutes when the Moon is prevented from reflecting the Sun’s light. All bodies in our Solar system are more or less lined up along this plane; an eclipse is a point when a New or Full Moon occurs as the alignment of Sun, Moon, and Earth are closest, allowing either the Moon (during a Solar eclipse) or the Earth (during a Lunar one) to block the Sun’s light to the other body.
This Lunar eclipse falls on 26 May, at 4:13 AM PDT, at 5 Sagittarius 25, and of course does so close to the South Node (with Full or New Moon proximity to the Nodes being one sign of an eclipse). Interesting that the closest aspect formed is a sesquiquadrate with Mars in Cancer. With the ’emotion point’ of the chart itself being the meeting of Moon and Earth (with the Moon on the side of Earth opposite to the Sun), Martian energy in the Moon’s sign and in difficult aspect to the Lunar event suggests either aggressive, angry emotions stirred up by endings or conclusions brought by the Full Moon, or that actions or choices (Mars) made because we care (Cancer) bring forward a tough situation (sesquiquadrate).
The Full Moon is also semi-square Zeus, in wide square to Jupiter, and quincunx Ceres. Our desires (Mars/ Zeus) are under pressure (semi-sq and sesqui), and it doesn’t look like we have the opportunity or support we wanted from the larger social sphere or from the facts themselves (sq to Jupiter), and this may cause a dilemma, a need to adjust course (qnx) and make choices based on a realistic picture of our own authority in the matter (qnx Ceres).
The Sabian symbol for this eclipse is, ‘A Game Of Cricket’. Though we’re likely to take what occurs very seriously, we would do well to keep in mind that everything in life is a kind of game. A lighthearted take, or one that is willing to take reasonable risk, or to not take injury too grimly, will serve us well. Know what you’re risking, make your moves, and be willing to lose once in a while, seeing it as the Universe pointing you in another direction. The game metaphor may be old and even trite, but it applies: to succeed we have to be willing to play, to risk, and to know when a win is really a win, and when it’s a distraction from our actual aims (one indication that it’s a distraction: it seems like an end in itself–also when it only makes us want more/ something else).
The Sun has the Sabian, ‘Workmen Drilling For Oil’. The richness of life is there, if we’re willing to work for it, to ‘drill down’ in the right way and in the right place, if we’re willing to ‘get our hands dirty’, as the saying goes–and that means openness to dealing with the nitty-gritty, putting in the time and effort, hoping we can ‘strike oil’–and knowing there’s no guarantee–and that means when we come up dry (that is, when our goals elude us over significant stretches of time and despite all efforts), we need to be ready to declare it a bust, and move on to more promising ground that is more responsive to our efforts–that latter an important point, when pursuing what we want.
Whether the Full Moon is a trigger, ‘lighting up’ feelings about what we learn, already knew but must now face, or discover (Sagittarius), or an ending that opens space for a whole new way of seeing and understanding the world (Jupiter), we need to see that as an eclipse event, it wipes out old circumstances represented by matters of the House in the natal chart in which the event occurs. We learn might be the motto of this Full Moon as it removes previous conditions and presents us, likely via knowledge gained or revealed, or beliefs tested, with a whole fresh assortment of facts.
If it falls in the 1st, we might learn something about ourselves and our interactions with the world; in the 2nd, something around our true talents or about what assets we bring to the table or are capable of earning; in the 3rd, new knowledge or beliefs change our minds or method of assessment; in the 4th something about the family life is revealed, or we have to face facts about the place we see as our current base, or about who we are, deep inside; eclipse in the 5th in Sag says something about what we must risk, or what we must create, in order to get what we want; the 6th brings knowledge that shakes up the everyday, or that re-orders our sense of duty or obligation; in the 7th we may observe what we need to see about ourselves or our situation acted out by others, or the changes come with or through partners or in response to what our ‘audience’ tells us; in the 8th things shift and are revealed through the act of sharing or interdependence, with our cooperative arrangements likely to re-balance; in the 9th the eclipse may force us to reach out, or makes the very instance of discovery or learning into the event itself; falling in the 10th it’s public–others can see, and that may create changes in the career or status; in the 11th a group of which we’re a part may take on a different role in our lives, or we take on a different one in the group–falling here the eclipse may also alter or deliver a long-sought dream or goal, or pave the way for its realization (or final denial); and in the 12th the Moon’s message may arrive in dreams, meditation, or in a realization about our place in the larger Cosmos, or we may find a new chapter opening when we’re under the sway of something much larger than ourselves.
All these potentials include the possibility of expansion, of widening our world, or of gaining experience; we might also find out about our temper and how it drives us, our true power within our own current situation, the difficult or less attractive parts of our ambitions, or we may discover how much we care, even (or especially) if we thought we didn’t. Prepare to have to face the depths of emotions around things we’ve been framing as casual, as something we can take or leave; the eclipse tells us what we need to know–all we have to do is acknowledge that we really want ‘it’, we deeply care about ‘it’, or that we genuinely need ‘it’–and go from there.
On the 10th, during the Dark of the Moon, we may get a shock, as the Moon conjoins Uranus in the world-weary material realms of Taurus. At roughly the same time, Moon-Uranus sextiles Mars and finds itself caught at the midpoint of Chiron and Mercury-North Node. Normally the Dark period is quiet, at least psychically speaking, the energy muted with many of us having the sense that we’re a little apart from the world. Things happen, but we either aren’t yet aware of them or we’re not aware of the full implication of events, as if we’re having trouble intuiting, or maybe feeling, our connection to what occurs.
This time we we may be surprised, or just enlightened, by some revelation, or even some revolution, that we’re witness to. It affects material matters, our security, or our comfort, and at the same time prompts us to act or choose, with the spurring event either evolving from the convergence of past hurt and current, clear thinking about the future, or leading us to a better understanding of the past, ourselves, and where we want to go–and so making what we need to do to get there clear.
That’s the lead-in to the New Moon, which forms at 11:59 AM PDT on the 11th at 21 Taurus 17. We’ve received some flash knowledge the day before, and we see the results of that in two potent aspects: the NM conjoined the Black Moon Lilith point, and the NM as apex to a perfect Finger of God with base of Juno and Zeus. These tell a story that may be a little scary, a little hard to take, simply because we may be faced with some of the more hidden parts of ourselves–and the things we deny, or repress, or think are behind us when they’re not, are some of the most difficult things we ever have to deal with–and they’re all inside us, so challenge us to be unflinchingly Self-responsible–and that’s never easy.
The conjunction speaks of the New Moon beginning/ event as driven by things we’ve ignored, denied, or that have in the past enraged us. It’s the kind of powerful energy that can move us to major feats, to redemption, but also has the potential to simply enrage us all over again as we’re forced to acknowledge something we thought carefully buried! So, we can make the best of it by recognizing what we’ve put aside and then using it as a catalyst to do what needs doing, or we can sink into an abyss of anger at our own choices, pointing fingers at who’s responsible–but by now it’s obvious, the Finger points at us.
With a base of Zeus (the ambition and desire nature) and Juno (empowerment, status, the role we play), this configuration suggests that the dissonance created by the New Moon revelation/ event is the direct result of our own wants and our attempts to bring them to fruition. These two components of our lives have worked together to bring about this New Moon result, and vice versa, the New Moon tells us a great deal about our actual wants, and our actual empowerment situation.
The New Moon also sextiles Neptune and Pallas (wisdom, practicality, and creative energy are all available to address what comes forward; we just have to make a little effort to apply them), trines Pluto (change or transformation is easy–in this instance a kind of ‘magical power at your fingertips’ aspect), and noviles Chiron. This latter is interesting in light of the 10th, when what occurred (or occurred to us) was related to our sense of hurt (or, in some cases, our very unique personal skills); now a novile says that we have an exceptional ability to heal and/ or utilize that energy in positive ways–it’s so strong, we don’t even really need to try, which means that appropriate healing will occur, even if we don’t see it as such–at least, we may not see it that way yet.
Neptune and the New Moon create another Finger of God base, this one with an apex of Zeus in Libra. This suggests that our purest creative urge, when driven by the New Moon energy (that is, a likely material, Arts-related, or comfort-keyed energy), may inform our ambition pursuit, and possibly connect us with others who can make our desires a reality.
Also of note: Jupiter sits at the stressful 29th degree of Aquarius, signalling one of several things: that the intellect suffers under strain that comes from what we’ve learned or realized; that the social sphere around us is in some way at a tipping point, when feeling (Pisces) will soon overtake the mental lens (Aquarius) we’ve been using for some particular subject; that we’re presented with a crisis or stressful situation that is in reality a major opportunity; that knowledge we’ve acquired or ‘the facts’ of the matter will force us to choose or act–in this case, we’re at the end of the road, there’s no getting out of it.
The Sabian for the New Moon is, ‘A White Dove Flying Over Troubled Waters’. This might be the stance we need to take for what’s coming: bring nothing but a pure kind of peace, an intent to do no harm, to whatever roiling situation you’re faced with. If you find a particular situation is missing something, rather than blaming someone else, what we need to see is that we didn’t bring the missing ingredient, either–and if we choose peace over anything else, as long as it isn’t camouflage for passive-aggression, then we’ll be, at a personal level, in the best position possible to cope, to thrive, to ‘rise above’. And that’s what we all ultimately want, isn’t it? Peace?
What we have to share with others is rarely as tangible as a piece of fruit. ‘Basket of Apples’ By Levi Wells Prentice {{PD}}
Part 1 is here. In continuation, a couple of quick examinations will make it clear that it’s not always easy to distinguish between our actual talents and those things we are, one way or another, obligated to share with the Collective–and then there’s what we want to be in life, the image we want to have in the world, our ideas and beliefs about who we are, and what the social order tells us we are or expects us to be. All these cloud the talent picture and contribute to confusion over how we best fit with and serve the Collective–and it almost goes without saying, what genuinely serves the world serves us as individuals, as well.
Individual Distortions Can Affect the World: Adolf Hitler
Politicians make good fodder for this study, simply because what they do and are affects so many others—they’re the rare individuals whose personal abilities matter to the largest number of people. Though he’s been studied relentlessly, Adolf Hitler (20 April 1889 6:30 PM Braunau am Inn, Austria) is still a great example of what happens when an identity crisis, and confusion about gifts, takes on serious proportions–and if you’re sick of Hitler, just skip ahead to the next example.
He has Scorpio on the 2nd, the House holding Earth, ruler Pluto in Gemini in the 9th (and co-ruler Mars in Taurus in the 8th); on the 11th we see Leo, with the House holding Saturn and the Midheaven, ruler Sun in Taurus in the 8th. Talents revolved around a serious ability to make a material impact through intense communication that goes far and wide (Pluto in Gemini in the 9th), with personal action supported by others in aesthetics or by offering security or comfort—and obviously he showed this with flying colors, by extreme negative example. (And we note, Pluto is conjoined Neptune, a classic contact of misunderstanding, misinterpretation, confusion–which directly affects his own interpretation of his talents, since Pluto rules the 2nd).
With an Earth element Sun at 00 of Taurus (and with ruler Venus also in Taurus, retrograde), Hitler was almost bound to confuse the just-budding aesthetic sensibilities to which his Soul was then turning attention with the Scorpionic intensity of the House of talent and its ruler placements, which likely made him feel (along with Mars in the 8th) that he was perpetually in danger of having his sense of identity, his manhood, and his Will totally subsumed by others, and specifically by their teachings or philosophies (Pluto in 9th plus potent 8th)—not to mention the way others disregarded his attempts to create a career as an Artist. The ‘too soon’ placement of the Taurus Sun, plus the too heavy emphasis on the ‘permission’ of others—the 8th—or of schooling—the 9th—tell us he was unlikely to make headway as an Artist no matter what—this is in spite of the ‘look what the world could have been saved from’ assertion that laments how, if Hitler had only been accepted into Art School, the Holocaust never would’ve occurred.
This line of thinking is typically offered as if merely giving someone what they want will make them a kind and cooperative individual–and anyone who’s tried to appease another knows this ain’t so. The chart proves Hitler’s frustration was inevitable—(and that it was his choice not to learn artisanship—Taurus—that would’ve begun cultivation of and development of genuine artistic abilities). Because Hitler’s attention remained largely focused on himself, in real terms he may never have consciously addressed why he might be here, and what he might have to offer; he was too caught up in the sense of personal struggle (Mein Kampf, and those 8th and 9th House connections) to get beyond that. But what did he really have to share with the world?
It could be said that Hitler came equipped to share the difficulties fostered by vanity and intricacies of how to ‘shine’ in the social sphere, and what the need for Self-regard, both Self-esteem and Self-awareness (all Leo), will do to someone who doesn’t have that genuine Leonine regard for the Self (and so seeks to form the world around them to supply the esteem they lack). The ability to wield power, to make and re-make, to rise from the ashes (Scorpio/ Pluto), especially mentally (Gemini) and philosophically (9th), is there; he could’ve served as an example of how to find one’s place in the larger order, to cooperate and support others (11th, 8th House Sun), but the insecurities plus the Leo energy seem to have overwhelmed any potential positives–he went straight to bully for and grab the personal glory, as soon as his initial impulses weren’t valued–a childish response that unfortunately had the power of Pluto behind it, to the detriment of so much and so many.
Too, consciousness about what every individual contributes to the Collective, and of the role of an effective group leader (MC In 11th), as well as awareness of the virtues and dangers of elevating a sense of discipline and rules above common sense (Saturn) appeared to have been part of his potential offering—and all these he did share, in one form or another—but until he embraced the individual role within reality and the established order (Saturn in Leo) and the interconnectedness of all people (ruler Sun in the 8th), especially through their interdependence materially (Sun in Taurus) he would live and die unfulfilled—and I think he did just that.
Food For Thought: Anthony Bourdain
The late chef, author, and travel host Anthony Bourdain (25 June 1956 8:35 AM New York New York USA) carved a career not just from his love of and expertise in the world of food, but from his presentation of first the culinary world (in books like ‘Kitchen Confidential’), then the world at large (in several shows such as ‘No Reservations’), through his restless and very particular personal viewpoint, focused through food. The Cancer Sun of course fits someone for whom food occupies an outsized role in the life, and its placement in the 12th House might suggest he would’ve been destined to thrive behind-the-scenes, in the kitchen rather than before the camera–so what happened?
When we look at the 2nd of talents and personal assets in Bourdain’s chart we see an empty House filled by Virgo, with ruler Mercury strong in its own sign of Gemini in the 11th of what one has to give the world, goals, friendship, and group involvement. Now, we know that an empty House doesn’t mean ‘no talent’, but it does place an exceptional amount of importance on the situation of the House’s ruler. We might translate this as a talent for critique and communication (Virgo)–a strong one, with Merc in a sign it rules–with the signal that the ruler landing in the 11th means this is the real talent, the one he was meant to share, no matter how otherwise nurturing life in the kitchen may have been.
The 11th also holds the South Node, which is conjoined Mercury, suggesting past knowledge that can be applied to talent expression, and Venus, which is not only retrograde but is also major body of latest degree in the chart. Venus in Gemini reads as communicating beauty and values, but when we factor in the retro condition and the latest degree position, we may find someone who always ended things, especially relationships and weighing the worth of things, at a mental stalemate; too much mental activity, too much musing over the meaning of things, may have short-circuited his relationships with the things and people he loved–so the world could’ve felt to him a very lonely place, as his own mind created distance with others, or a too-critical note with values or interactions better just enjoyed.
This is important to the talent picture as Venus is both the rewards we receive and the enjoyment we partake in–and Self-expression suffers, nay, doesn’t even happen, if we’re not getting those pay offs. Venus rules the 3rd of thought/ communication, linking it even more firmly to the Mercurial/ talent energy, and also rules the 10th, making it vital to the career–and this latter may carry the implication that the career would never offer the Venusian rewards and good feeling we all look for, considering the connections it has to overthinking and the inevitable disappointments of a naturally critical assessment of things.
Venus is part of two Fingers of God: one sees Venus sextile Sedna, apex Saturn=combining the desires, love, assets with what one ‘knows but doesn’t know’, what the instincts inform of, can successfully shape the real world and the reality picture–that’s hopeful, and certainly one of the ingredients behind his success; the other has Venus in 11th sextile Pluto-Jupiter-Zeus in the 1st of Self, apex the Moon-Hygeia combo in Capricorn in the 6th=at least some of that thinking and re-thinking about relationships, what’s worthy in life, about values may be stirred by ambitions, knowledge of the wider world, and all the fears, sensitivities, and destructive elements he’s seen on a day-to-day basis.
Relationships themselves, even money (Venus), may have felt like the thing that brings opportunity (Jupiter) and allows ambition fulfillment (Zeus), and also promises destruction and power struggles (Pluto)–though the optimistic potential for transformation (Pluto) may have helped him go forward for quite awhile. And, Venus trines Neptune-Vesta in Libra=easy to be misled, to lie to oneself, to imagine things are ideal–and that violates a genuine belief in the sacredness of human interaction (Vesta), especially at an intimate level. Essentially, this may bring cycles of disappointment if ideals or creative perfection aren’t reached. So, lots of conflict inherent in the way the psyche processed relating to others, even as there may have always been a spark of inspiration and hope for the ideal in relationships.
And we haven’t even talked about Mercury much yet! Only two more things here I think might apply to the talent and asset picture. Mercury is apex to a Fist of God with base of Neptune-Vesta square Hygeia-Moon. That suggests there was a basic conflict between maintaining a healthy emotional state and pursuing creative ideals, making ‘the dream’ happen (and this in any area, career, relationship, and so on), with the stress likely coming from the Neptune in Libra tendency to over-romanticize intimate relationships, and Vesta insisting on seeing every close connection as sacred. The continual tension (the square of the base) that arose from knowing that loving relationships aren’t fantasy-perfect (Venus in Gemini trine Neptune-Vesta), that such an ideal wasn’t healthy (square to Moon-Hygeia) pushed the Mercury apex for an answer–but does an unsolvable problem, or maybe a wish like this, have an answer?
The Geminian Mercury outlet probably saw the mind as the ‘way out’, believing it was up to him to sort it out, get his head on straight, so to speak, with belief in the responsibility of the Self strong (Jupiter–the belief system–in Leo in the 1st). With Merc in the 11th, this was a line of thinking (that probably felt like a life-line!) that said pursuit of dreams and goals would almost magically (Neptune is involved, after all) resolve the ongoing tension–and though reaching goals or achieving positive relationships may have temporarily alleviated the dilemma, it wasn’t a permanent answer, as the ideal vs. healthy/ real dissonance continued (Merc sesquiquadrate the base square).
Mercury is also conjoined the South Node and part of a T-square with the North Node, with all squared by Mars in Pisces in the 8th. That Mars placement could put a lot of pressure on a man to live up to his ideal of the ‘perfect man’–and in the 8th his short-comings in this regard could’ve felt very public, with a tendency to project his own beliefs and expectations of perfection onto others, making him feel they were judging him, or pressuring him to meet their standards–and that’s a tough complex to go through life with. The square between Mercury-South Node and Mars could indicate an elephant-like memory for things said to him in the past by others, especially friends or in group situations (8th and 11th)–and we all know how judgements made of us, even casually, can echo for the rest of our lives, sometimes crippling our Self-image unnecessarily.
The T is of course a tense aspect, with the thinking and perceptions melded to the past in some form (in his case, maybe a constant awareness of his own past, which included addiction), and by sheer placement, somewhat contradictory to the idea of progress, of going forward into the future (NN). Mars in square adds stress to every thought (Mercury) and action (Mars)–is this the right thing to do, considering my past, and looking toward, and trying to move into, my future? Again, a refrain that doesn’t have an answer–though a sense of traveling and learning certainly helped him cope (Mars rules the 9th).
Perhaps surprisingly, what Bourdain had to give the world was his unique way of thinking, processing, his critical eye on the world around us, and the way that world is reflected through culture and a culture’s choices about food. That’s a pretty wonderful legacy, opening our eyes, giving us a greater sense of what’s out there to be explored, and emphasizing how no matter our differences, food connects us all.
Hangin’ out with the party planner. ‘Bacchus, Ceres, Proserpina and Pluto’ By Pieter van Lint c1660 {{PD}}
In both senses of the phrase: Pluto enters apparent retrograde (a visual phenomenon caused by our viewpoint here on Earth), and in going back over territory he just crossed, returns, we might say, to the scene of the crime. With this latter meaning we see the god of the Underworld re-trace his steps, with the result for us that anything shaken loose, ripped open, torn asunder, or apparently destroyed or transformed recently (since roughly late December-early January) will get a second look.
Pluto turns around at 26 Capricorn 48, with only a single aspect on the horizon, as Ceres heads toward perfecting a square with the ‘heaviest’ planet in the solar system (yes, it’s a planet! I insist). Heaviest, of course, describes the impact of something so slow-moving, the psychic grind akin to the passage of a glacier over the tundra–it creates tremendous pressure, a weight that flattens in slo-mo whatever is in its path. We might initially think that this is a totally destructive interaction, but in reality it creates, as well. Intense pressure forms diamonds, and releases seeds from their shells as when fire sweeps a forest floor. Pluto can bring the loss or tragedy that sets us on a new and better path, and we need to remember that when something is destroyed, that makes room for a fresh beginning.
The Ceres aspect is already in effect and will remain so as Ceres completes that last little span, with the aspect perfecting and then beginning to separate by the 30th. It’s not unusual for another body to be the instigator in an aspect with Pluto; it’s almost inevitable that the majority of Pluto aspects will be formed as other bodies move into position– seeing Pluto make the contact itself is rare.
Here we have the king of the Underworld in a conflict dynamic with his mother-in-law, who just happens to be Mother Nature herself. Don’t forget, their power stand-off was a formidable one that involved Ceres negotiating for time with her daughter–and Pluto conceding some, which should tell you what a powerful figure Ceres is. Symbolically this is a clash between gods, the meeting of entities that represent and control primal forces, one side chiefly generative in its thrust (Ceres, life-giving) and the other with the capacity to take things to ashes (Pluto, destroying), but with both also containing the opposite ability; that is, death is the inevitable end to life, and from nothing (which we can call death) comes the spark that creates new life (the phoenix potentials of Pluto).
Difficulties between these two were over a third entity, Ceres’ daughter who became Pluto’s wife, Proserpina/ Persephone. I’m struck in this situation by the way two Beings who hold immense amounts of power take it for granted that it’s within their rights to decide the fate of another. Ceres oversteps in a motherly way, trying to control the commitments of a grown daughter, while Pluto oversteps in the way of a partner who sees it as natural that he decides how his significant other spends her time. In essence, neither respects the individuality and autonomy of Persephone; neither sees her as a complete Being with rights of her own.
Pluto is currently in Capricorn, suggesting that his energies are concentrated on breaking down established norms, authority, and structures societal, governmental, and that offer security, dependability, regularity. Ceres squares him from Aries, implying a strong individual Will comes to call out (and so question) Pluto’s destructive priorities. Pluto is always looking for a clean slate, whether that’s a productive approach or not; Ceres is always looking to exercise personal authority, even if it infringes on others. Both have trouble with boundaries (and by trouble I mean neither one recognizes those, unless another equally strong individual steps forward to enforce them).
There’s also the fact that Pluto carries an implicit promise of re-generation, while Ceres carries one of the inevitability of Nature always returning to balance–so at the very least, that tells us that despite the clash, a compromise will be reached when these two meet, a balance agreeable to both destructive and generative energies.
So, we have to ask ourselves what developed since late December that caused something destructive, a loss or elimination or change that struck us profoundly, that in reality has broken open the seeds of a new venture, that has offered greater personal autonomy, or that has altered the power balance or our own relationship with Nature (with this latter think health, or our own efforts at growing or producing natural product, as small as herbs on the windowsill, as big as agribusiness or the construction of a dam). That change-through-loss now offers us a new (or renewed) path–and over this retro period we’ll have the chance to review what changed, to course-correct, and to exercise our own prerogatives along ‘natural’ lines in shaping what the results of that loss or removal will, ultimately, bring.
This will very likely frame itself as some form of You (the ‘I Am’ of Aries) versus the current powers-that-be, which are undergoing inevitable changes of their own (Capricorn). Expect to negotiate; know that Mother Nature will have her say, will figure in (remember that ancient commercial, ‘It’s not nice to fool Mother Nature’? Don’t even try); and be aware that there is a quiet but central entity somewhere that needs to be listened to, if only to show the Universe that you’re not an egotistical brute (Aries) or a rigid conformist (Capricorn) but someone who’s fully aware of and considerate of the impact your choices have on others.
Also note: as Ceres moves away from Pluto, Jupiter comes along by sextile, with the aspect perfecting as both are in 29 tense degrees of their own sign, this on 5 May. Expect feedback over the negotiation/ change/ power struggle, from the social sphere, via irrefutable facts, with an infusion of knowledge, or with a new sense of optimism or access to new opportunities. That should tell you: don’t be afraid of loss or change, something new always, always, comes from it, and whether you are able to see it or not, it’s always to your benefit (eventually, though in-the-moment it can be quite hard to believe–another Jupiterian concept).
‘Moonlight in the Adirondack Mountains’, Photographer Unknown {{PD}}
The Full Moon perfects on the 26th at 8:32 PM PDT at 7 Scorpio 06, with the Sabian, ‘A Calm Lake Bathed In Moonlight’. In Scorpio a lake is dark, with an uncharted floor, mysterious, a symbol of considerable gathered emotion, calm on the surface, but promising something in the depths, maybe something hidden in caves or grottoes yet to be discovered. A Full Moon with this image suggests there’s a large well of emotion, one with many facets of which we’re not aware, that will either reach peak or reach capacity, with the former implying the highest (so most strenuous) point of feeling, while the latter says the dam may break, the feeling overflow, and so need release. This may bring the emotional scenario to an end, or it may allow ‘breathing room’ in order to go forward.
I like tight orbs for a crisp Lunar picture, and here we have lots of contacts that don’t strike me as relevant, at least not in an event chart. They imply some ‘befores’ or ‘afters’ that don’t figure in, with orbs so wide they don’t currently (or won’t for some time) count, so I’ll stick with my usual. There is an approaching opposition to Uranus that promises the FM may take us by surprise; revelations, specifically about secrets, our feelings around our material situation, and shocks, delivered by friends, groups, or an unanticipated ‘modern’ way of doing things, could arise from Lunar events (and then be acted upon via the approaching trine to Mars, and blocked or become a reality by the approaching square to Saturn, with the cost or the payoff announced by the approaching opposition to Venus–but I digress, or maybe jump too much into the future!)
There’s also a sextile to Vesta, which tells us that the Full Moon will in some (relatively easy) way show us something about our values and what we dedicate our time and energy to. Lunar events may show us what needs to go in the commitment department, show us ways to enhance our honoring of and dedication to what we find sacred, and may reinforce responsibilities and relationships we’ve been wavering on, either to clear them out with Full Moon energy, or to enter a new stage of the interaction, a ‘next step’ for the future.
There are two other aspects of note, which with the Full Moon form a Fist of God: Hygeia squares the FM, and both sesquiquadrate Neptune. Health matters, physical, mental, spiritual, emotional, give us a problem we need to resolve–if we do so successfully, we can create an ideal, can reach into the hopes and imagination and bring a desire for ‘perfection’ in some form into being; if we are unable to handle the problem presented, we may retreat to fantasy, confusion-as-an-answer, or ‘drown our sorrows’, at least symbolically speaking. I need not tell you which of those responses is preferable.
We always look at the Sun’s Sabian for a Full Moon, as Sol emits the light that makes the Full Moon possible: ‘A Sleigh On Land Uncovered By Snow’. This speaks of being inappropriately equipped for the situation. What thing are we carrying around, in our heads, in our psyches, or in the physical world, that’s not of use to us at all? This is something that under other conditions we would find quite useful–but right now that’s not where we are, and we may want to think about the unnecessary emotional burden this could signify. Typically we hold tight to things we’re not using when we’re convinced we may need them later, or we have a philosophy of ‘just in case’. This image likely relates to the Fist, telling us that we can take the energy required to maintain the useless thing and translate it into something of an ideal realized, a dream come true, or an inspired perspective–much more useful than allowing something that doesn’t fit the current landscape to take up space.
