‘An Arab Caravan Outside a Fortified Town in Egypt’ Jean-Leon Gerome c1900 {{PD-Art}}

This originally appeared in ECLIPSE just after Morsi’s election on 30 June 2012–thought it was worth another look now:

The new president of Egypt, Mohamed Mohamed Morsi Isa al‐Ayat, was born 20 August 1951, ntk, in the Sharqia Governorate, in northern Egypt‐‐since the birthplace is not pinpointed, and the province itself rather small, I chose the capital city, Zagazig Az‐zaq. Morsi’s rise is meteoric only in the sense of his arrival on the world stage; he was a prominent member of the Muslim Brotherhood, but gained the globe’s attention when, in the wake of the Egyptian Revolution, he became the candidate of the newly formed political arm of the Brotherhood, the Freedom and Justice Party. Now, with his election to president, Morsi brings unquestioned loyalty to the Brotherhood and their beliefs to a previously secular post‐‐and, having seen other instances where religious figures rose to political power within the Arab world, the West watches and waits to know the direction its one‐time ally (Egypt) will take.

Public life may be a challenging road, one that fills personal ambitions for Morsi, if he can continue in creating the illusion that he has so far‐you’ll see why I call it an illusion in a moment. He has Jupiter, his relationship to and attitude toward the social sphere, in aggressive and independent Aries‐‐right away he may have problems in the social arena, if he doesn’t get to be the leader! With the exception of one aspect, Jupiter is harshly contacted‐‐but oh that one aspect: it’s a trine to Pluto, suggesting that a powerful leadership position is just the thing for him, and easily attained.

The other Jupiter aspects, though, tell the rest of the story, with the most startling perhaps being the sesquiquadrates to the Sun and Juno, which create a Fist of God with Jupiter apex=if he can mesh the identity‐Soul needs with his empowerment options (which are in some way at odds with the Soul, my guess being that his Leo Sun would simply prefer to be dictator!) then he will actualize the potential leadership role‐‐done and done. Sun, hZeus, and Pluto are all conjunct in Leo, in fact, painting a portrait of someone power‐hungry and focused on acquiring that power for the Self‐‐the Fist, and so the public, simply becomes a way of fulfilling personal goals. Jupiter also is quincunx Mercury (adjustment to speech and writing is necessary for harmony with the public) and square Uranus (the individuality and urge to uniqueness and rebellion were easily channeled against the previous regime, but really want to express as total independence from having to answer to those who put him in place‐‐we must remember that Jupiter is also religion and religious hierarchy). Jupiter also opposes Neptune, placing it firmly (and possibly literally) in opposition to ideals, and we note that Neptune rules both the North Node and Ceres, suggesting a fundamental rejection of both what is ’natural’, and of the future; this is a ‘live in the moment’ guy.

Saturn, which would logically make a significant appearance in the chart of someone strongly involved with a religious hierarchy, barely shows up, here sitting at 00 Libra, so that the idea of hierarchy, discipline, rules are all ’new’ to him; and in Libra, the philosophy presented was likely one of co‐operation, where following the rules and Self‐discipline are not just sacred, they define one as a man (sextile to Mars‐Vesta conjunction). Morsi recognizes the wisdom of this (Saturn trine Pallas), yet justifies his own use of sincere religious principle to further his own wants as required payback for past injury (Saturn square Chiron).

Astrologically speaking, Morsi appears to be an individual who has fooled (or maybe just used) the Muslim Brotherhood for his own, power‐hungry ends; but will this marriage last? Without House cusps, it’s very hard to say, though from the transits, I’m thinking the honeymoon might last awhile, though not indefinitely; Jupiter is in Gemini, soon to square his Nodal axis, signaling that ’people talk’, and though not enough to bring him down, information or gossip propagated now may sow the seeds of his eventual fate. t Chiron is conjunct the natal NN right now, suggesting that his use of very personal and specific skills have led him in his destined direction. t Pluto is moving to oppose natal Uranus, and t Chiron to trine it, suggesting that, as long as he can downplay the individuality urge, the rebelliousness within him to the Brotherhood (because for him it’s all about him, not any kind of religious ideal), and promise healing to the masses, he’ll remain in place. Having attained a pinnacle with the presidency, the vaunted Self‐regard and insistence on doing as he pleases shown by his Sun‐hZeus‐Pluto conjunction will not allow him to ever back down or let go.

t Neptune’s upcoming contact to natal Saturn by quincunx says that Morsi may successfully obscure his own goals or create an illusion that satisfies others, but it will take effort on his part; however, t Pluto trines the natal SN once again in January 2013, possibly stirring those old power urges and prompting a grab, and around August of next year (2013), t Jupiter conjuncts natal Uranus‐‐with this meeting we may watch as his individuality is ’seen’, by religious leaders, or by the masses, and considering that t Saturn will have recently squared natal Mars, reality ’threatening’ his manhood, we may see some fireworks, rebellious behavior, radical responses, or a ’beginning of the end’, as it seems to me a violent finale may be inevitable for this ambitious, would‐be dictator (that Sun‐hZeus‐Pluto natal conjunction in Leo, a human powder keg to which someone, probably himself, will eventually set a match).