“The ball is round so that the game can change direction.”
Sepp Herberger
Planetary stations are celestial phenomena that have an enormous impact in horoscopes. Lacking the convenience of having them highlighted with an S until my software upgraded, they were often overlooked in my analyses of charts. Their importance in delineation speaks volumes, and the influence of being born on one lasts a lifetime. This is why stations are one of my favorite techniques; their effect is permanent. A station stamps the entire chart.
As a magician uses smoke and mirrors to create a deception, the planetary motion employs the same suspension of belief with its own form of optical illusion, making a seemingly simple change of direction create a whole new dimension of interpretation.
The Reverse Rotation, or the Wagon Wheel Effect
A spoked wheel appears to rotate more slowly than the true rotation, it can appear stationary, or it can appear to rotate in the opposite direction. This last form of the effect is sometimes called the reverse rotation effect. The direction of movement appears to change. Retrograde is the Latin word for “backward step.” Retrograde motion is an optical illusion caused by the visual system, which is part of the central nervous system that is required for visual perception. This optical illusion is characterized by a visual precept that appears to differ from reality. In a horoscope, this visual precept becomes a frozen snapshot image, a freeze frame of a slowed-down motion that plays a central role in the person’s life, branding them with that planet’s influence. The qualities of the planet become intensified, characterizing the person’s life for better or worse. Anyone born within three days of this planetary phenomenon has the stationary planet functioning on overdrive in their charts and thus in their lives.
Stations are one of my favorite portents in a horoscope. The effects of aspects, both natal and transiting, can be minimized through lifestyle, and eclipses come and go. But if one is born on a station, the areas that come under that planet’s rulership planet are magnified; there is no way to escape their magnetic impact.
The following charts depict individuals who were born within 48 hours of a planetary station. All data was obtained from Astrodatabank. While no time of birth was recorded for Benjamin Franklin, astrologer Frances McEvoy rectified the time from the Franklins’ father’s diary and the baptismal records from the Old North Church.
Born on a Mercury Station
- Writers, storytellers, the printed word
- Transportation
- Writer, storytellers, the printed word
- Transportation
- Information
- Siblings or cousins play a pivotal role
- Exceptionally persuasive conversationalists
- Dialects and language are focal points
- Limbs, flexibility, movement
- Take an alternate route to education.
Example of Mercury SR: Benjamin Franklin
Benjamin Franklin, American inventor, printer, Postmaster, librarian, humorist, columnist, negotiator, and scientist, was a founding father in American history.
After two years of school, Franklin was apprenticed as a teenager to learn typesetting from his brother James, printer of the New England Courant. Despite his talent as a wordsmith, Franklin wasn’t permitted to make any contributions to the newspaper his brother published, only set the type. In 1722 James was jailed for 3 months for publishing a criticism of the governor. Franklin assumed all tasks in his brother’s shop with superior results. During James’ absence Franklin anonymously penned a column in the Courant entitled “Silence Dogood” that resulted in many letters of compliment and inquiry. When James returned and discovered that Franklin wrote this column, a fistfight ensued, and Franklin fled to the stage coach station. According to the law in colonial America, leaving an apprenticeship without permission made Franklin a fugitive, impelling him to take the coach to its furthest destination; the city of Philadelphia. It was here that Franklin’s prodigious abilities manifested in establishing another newspaper, a post office, a fire department, a library, a hospital, and a university. His Poor Richard’s Almanac sold over 10,000 copies per year, and the quotes from it, namely “Time is money,” and “Early to bed and early to rise, makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise,” are ingrained in the English lexicon. Franklin’s insatiably curiosity resulted in the invention of bi-focals, the Franklin Stove, musical instruments, the lightning rod, and electricity. His diplomacy earned him the position of Ambassador to France, where he formed a military alliance to help win the American Revolution, and in 1783 helped negotiate the Treaty of Paris, ensuring financial aid from the French for the colonies. After returning to Philadelphia, he helped draft and then signed the Declaration of Independence.
Franklin was particularly fond of his clever youngest sister Jane, teaching her to read and write at a time when girls in colonial Boston weren’t sent to school, and they corresponded through letters for 63 years. When Jane’s husband died, leaving her penniless and in debt, Franklin supported her for the rest of her life and bought her a house near his own in Philadelphia, where the two were close companions.
Born on a Venus station
- Music and the arts prevail over the life
- Diplomacy plays a central role
- Legal issues with partnerships
- Overindulgence
- Throat and neck problems
Example of Venus SD – Jerry Lee Lewis
Jerry Lee Lewis was a legendary performer and was the first musician inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. His rowdy antics on stage earned him a loyal following and in 1957 he became an international sensation with the hit songs “Great Balls of Fire” and “A Whole Lotta Shakin’ Goin’ On.” Born into an impoverished farming family, Lewis spent much of his childhood sneaking into the juke joint across the railroad tracks, where he emulated the itinerant black musicians playing rhythm and blues. By age nine his innate talent to play their music was so prodigious that his father mortgaged the farm to buy Jerry Lee his own piano, and by 14 the self-taught Jerry was playing in public assemblies, revivals, tent meetings, and on the local radio. Lewis was offered a record deal after his first audition in Nashville and his career was off and running, filling the gap left by Elvis Presley, whose enlistment in the army kept him out of the spotlight. Lewis was a frenzied showman who played the piano with his fists, elbows and feet, thrilling audiences across the globe.
In May 1958, Lewis’ much-anticipated concert tour in London was cancelled upon his arrival due to an interview with the young girl accompanying the 22-year-old musician, who told reporters she was his wife. Thirteen-year-old Myra Gale Brown (Lewis gave her age as 15), was legally his wife in Lewis’ second bigamous marriage. When the press received this news, Lewis ended up playing in pubs and clubs instead of sold-out stadiums at $10,000 per night, returning to America a few days later to find himself blacklisted. Radios stopped playing his music and his friends abandoned him, yet the couple remained married for 12 years and had two children. Regaining his career foothold in country music after struggling for a decade to resume performing, Lewis soon evolved into a rockabilly superstar. After a total of 7 marriages, problems with drugs, alcohol, and taxes finally took their toll, and Lewis retired from performing in 2019.
Born on a Mars Station
- Aggression manifests
- Athletics and sports predominate
- First responders
- Bold and protective: refuse to back down or play a passive role
- Head injuries change the course of their lives
Example of Mars SR – Knute Rockne
Knute Rockne is regarded as one of the greatest coaches in the history of college football. He was born Knut Larsen Rokne and emigrated to Chicago with his parents when he was five years old. In his youth he excelled at football and ran track. In the summer of 1913, he worked as a lifeguard.
Graduating Notre Dame in 1914 with a degree in pharmacy, he was then offered the job of football coach. His performance and record were unprecedented. In a span of 13 years Rockne led Notre Dame to 105 victories, 12 losses, five ties and three consensus national championships, which included five undefeated and untied seasons. Rockne posted the highest all-time winning percentage (.881) for a major college football coach. Rockne’s charisma and the stylish play of his teams riveted public imagination. He perfected such maneuvers as the Notre Dame Shift, the forward pass, and helped change the game from one of brute strength to one of speed and deception, making him the intercollegiate sport’s first true celebrity coach.
On March 31, 1931, Rockne died a violent death in a plane crash. Shortly after an hour after take-off from Kansas City, one of the planes’ wings broke in flight. The plane crashed into a wheat field near Bazaar, Kansas, killing Rockne and seven others. This tragedy and the resulting public outcry led to sweeping changes to aircraft design, manufacturing, inspection, and crash investigation, igniting safety regulations that transformed air travel worldwide from one of the most dangerous forms of transportation to one of the safest.
Rockne’s unexpected death stunned the nation. Over 100,000 people lined the route of his funeral procession, and the funeral was broadcast live on network radio across the United States, Europe, and parts South America and Asia.
Born on a Jupiter Station
- Philosophy and religion prevail over the lives
- Cross-cultural issues and higher education are focal points
- An extraordinary stroke of luck changes their trajectory
- Problems with legs and hips
- See to it that justice and mercy are implemented
- Righteous; they’ll have “their day in court.”
Example of Jupiter SD – Ralph Waldo Emerson
Emerson was an American essayist, lecturer, and philosopher who was a prominent figure in the transcendentalist movement of the mid-19th century. He was a champion of self-reliance, a prophetic critic of the Industrial Revolution and its stultifying impact on society, and published dozens of essays. A renowned public speaker, he gave more than 1,500 public lectures across the United States.
A core belief in Transcendentalism is in the inherent goodness of people, that nature has its own intelligence, and that people are at their best when they are self-reliant, maintain good conscience, and see the divine experience inherent in everyday experiences, rather than believing in a distant heaven and suffering on earth while preparing for glory in an afterlife.
Emerson began attending Harvard College at age 14. After graduating 3 years later, he worked as a schoolteacher, then entered Harvard Divinity School. In 1829 he was ordained a minister and accepted the position of junior pastor at Boston’s Second Church. Two years later his world fell apart, after losing his adored wife to tuberculosis. He wrote in his journal: “I have sometimes thought that, in order to be a good minister, it was necessary to leave the ministry. The profession is antiquated. In an altered age, we worship in the dead forms of our forefathers. This mode of commemorating Christ is not suitable to me. That is reason enough why I should abandon it.”1
Embracing pantheism, Emerson believed that all things are connected to God and, therefore, all things are divine. His religious views were considered radical during his lifetime. He traveled widely throughout Europe and the United States, lecturing and meeting with prominent writers and philosophers.
Emerson died of pneumonia on April 24, 1882. In May 2006, 168 years after Emerson delivered his “Divinity School Address,” Harvard Divinity School announced the establishment of Emerson Unitarian Universalist Association Professorship.
Born on a Saturn Station
- Father is either absentee or all-powerful
- Maintaining traditions is a focal point
- Depression
- Restrictions
- Fall from Grace
- Longevity
- Become the Standard or an Icon
Example of Saturn SR – Betty White
American actress and comedian, White earned a Guinness World Record for “Longest TV career of a female entertainer in 2014. In a career that spanned more than 80 years, she received eight Emmy Awards, three American Comedy Awards, three Screen Actors Guild Awards, and a Grammy Award.
In the mid-1940s White was rejected from the Los Angeles television studios for being “not photogenic.” In 1952 her success on the TV show “The Make-Believe Ballroom” consisted of five and a half hours of live ad lib television six days per week, including singing a few songs during each broadcast, earning White her first Emmy nomination. The sitcom “Life with Elizabeth” followed in 1953, with White as the title character and producer, making her the first woman in Television to have control behind and in front of the camera.
In the1960s White was a regular on daytime TV and was dubbed “The First Lady of Game Shows.” Her performance in The Mary Tyler Moore show in the 1970s highlighted her comedic skills, winning her two consecutive Emmy awards in 1975 and 1976. In the 1980s stardom was assured in her signature role as Rose Nylund in the hit series “The Golden Girls,” marking the highlight of her already stellar career. She won the Emmy after the first season and was nominated every year of the show’s run. Television appearances on sitcoms in the 90s and in the 21st century, when in 2010, at 88, continued in the 1990s a steady stream in The Golden Pa2010 at 88 as the oldest guest host on Saturday Night Live.
“I’m having the time of my life and the fact that I’m still working – how lucky can you get? I’m 90 years old and still able to work as much as I do. That’s a privilege.” 2 On December 31, 2021 White died peacefully in her sleep in her home 18 days before her 100th birthday.
Born on a Uranus station
- Disrupt the status quo
- They break the mold and create a new one
- Rebel against personal or societal restrictions of all kinds
- Hold strong visionary goals
- Maintain a humanitarian and progressive outlook
Example of Uranus SR: Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln was the iconic 16th American President who abolished slavery and led the nation through the cataclysm of the Civil War. In both popular and scholarly polls, Lincoln is frequently categorized as the greatest president in American history.
A self-educated prairie lawyer, Lincoln’s sweeping changes in American culture had a shocking and permanent impact on the financial and social structure of the United States. The most activist president in American history, Lincoln changed the role of the presidency of Commander in Chief to prevailing over Congress and the courts, and stated that the President was subordinate to neither. Lincoln broke many laws and ignored a series of constitutional provisions. He affirmed his own version of judicial review that placed the President as the final interpreter of the Constitution, and while the government officials are required to support the Constitution it was the President alone who is sworn to preserve, defend, and protect it, placing the well-being and survival of the nation on his shoulders during times of war.
During his speech on September 17, 1859 in Cincinnati, Ohio, he said, “I think Slavery is wrong, morally, and politically. I desire that it should be no further spread in these United States, and I should not object if it should gradually terminate in the whole Union.”3
During the Civil War, Lincoln, a born charismatic leader, was determined to preserve the Union, which was quickly unravelling. Lincoln’s premise to abolish slavery incurred many enemies throughout the Southern States, where slave labor was the engine that drove their agrarian economy. Five days after the Confederate Army surrendered at Appomattox Courthouse, Lincoln was assassinated at Ford’s theater in Washington D.C. on April 14, 1865, plummeting the nation into shock and mourning.
Born on a Neptune Station
- Romantic and idealistic
- Lean toward activities connected to water, swimming, sailing, etc.
- Artistic talent that has an all-consuming, seductive impact
- Selflessly dedicate themselves to a charitable cause
- Wears a mask of deception
Example of Neptune SD: Mata Hari- Margaretha Geertruida MacLeod (née Zelle)
Responding to an ad for a mail order bride, impoverished 18-year-old Margaretha Zelle married Dutch Colonial Army Captain Rudolph McLeod in 1891 in Amsterdam, and the coupled then moved to Java in the Dutch East Indies. McLeod was a syphilitic, abusive alcoholic. Zelle fled the domestic violence in her household and immersed herself in the local culture, particularly Javanese dancing. Joining a local performing troupe, she adopting the name “Mata Hari,” meaning the Sun, or the “Eye of the Day.” Moving to Paris in 1903, she became an overnight sensation as an exotic dancer, claiming she was a Javanese princess of priestly Hindu birth, who had been trained since childhood in the art of sacred Indian dance. Her large following brought many influential contacts, and in 1912 Zelle traded the stage for the life of a courtesan, consorting with military officers of high rank throughout Europe.
At the outbreak of WW I, Zelle, fluent in seven languages, capitalized on her neutral Dutch citizenship to cross international borders with impunity. French military intelligence recruited her as a spy, offering Zelle one million francs if she could seduce admirer Crown Prince Wilhelm, and provide France with valid information about German tactics.
Zelle was arrested in England in 1916 and interrogated. Eventually confessing to espionage, her credibility and integrity came under scrutiny due to her background as an exotic dancer and courtesan; a woman of such loose morals could not be presumed to be telling the truth. To this day it is unclear if her reports were fabricated. She may have thought her testimony made her sound more captivating, or the French authorities were possibly using her as a scapegoat but were embarrassed to acknowledge it. Later that year Zelle offered to share French secrets with the German army in exchange for money, but she only reported gossip. Exasperated and feeling exploited, the Chief Intelligence Offer of the German army exposed Zelle to the French as a German spy.
On October 15, 1917, Zelle was executed before a French firing squad.
Born on a Pluto station
- Sex and sexual issues take center stage
- Inheritances, legacies, and bankruptcies
- Research and investigation
- Lured toward the Underworld
- Issues of life, death, and crisis
Example of Pluto SD: Gertrude Stein
Gertrude Stein was born into an upper middle-class family. After spending 1877 in Paris with a housekeeping staff, governesses and tutors, the Steins moved to Oakland, California the following year, where Stein’s father purchased the Market Street Cable Car company, establishing the family’s financial security. When Stein’s father died when she was 17, her brother Michael took control over the cable car company. The business thrived.
A brilliant student, Stein studied literature and psychology at Radcliffe and then pursued a degree in medicine at Johns Hopkins College, where she encountered two female medical students in a lesbian relationship. It was then she experienced her “erotic awakening.” A love triangle followed, ending in crushing disappointment, which caused Stein to abandon her studies in 1902 and follow her brother Leo to London. The two siblings moved to 27 Rue de Fleurus in Paris, where Stein hosted her renowned salon, entertaining European and American artists, writers, and bohemians of every stripe. During this time Gertrude and Leo began an art collection, which was to become prominent for its cultural and historical importance.
Alice B. Toklas met Stein at a colleague’s apartment. It was love at first sight. Noting that that the two women were more than friends, Leo moved out and Alice moved in, managing Stein’s household, and helping her preside over the famous salon. Stein’s education and Parisian lifestyle were financed from her inheritance from the cable car company.
At Stein’s death in 1946, she left her distinguished art collection, including paintings of Picasso and Matisse, to her beloved Alice, who subsequently nursed her grief in Italy. During her absence, Leo removed all the art from their apartment and stored it under lock and key. Since Stein and Toklas’ same-sex relationship wasn’t legally recognized at the time, Toklas had no recourse. She spent her remaining 21 years in poverty, depending upon the kindness of friends and the modest income from the publication of two cookbooks.
The above examples highlight the overriding effect of planetary stations. Note them well when you analyze a chart, and discover the power of optical illusions and their impact on the course of events.
Using this technique, stage magicians keep their audiences in awe, and so can astrologers.
Copyright 2022 by Jackie Slevin. All rights reserved.
It is universally accepted that the basic necessities of life are food, clothing and shelter. In industrialized nations in the 21st century, the additional amenities of well being and security would include a cash flow, a bank account, a life insurance policy, and a credit card.
In the western hemisphere from ancient times until the dawn of the Industrial Revolution, a loaf of bread meant virtually all of these things. In 58 BCE the Roman Emperor Clodius issued an edict to distribute free bread every day for the poorer plebeians. This edict continued with minor changes for over four hundred years until the demise of the Empire in the fifth century CE. Thus it is no coincidence that the early Christians, whose primary congregation was in Rome, included the phrase, “Give us this day our daily bread” in their signature prayer.
The staff of life was readily available, and grain in ancient Rome equals oil in the United States in 2008. The temple of Ceres, the Roman goddess of grain, crowned the Aventine Hill in the Eternal City. Another statue of this goddess sits atop the Chicago Board of Trade Building, where agricultural commodities are traded.
Saturn (restriction) in Virgo (the harvest) has wreaked havoc in the world’s food supply. But the price of grain (Ceres) has skyrocketed beyond the means of most inhabitants in third world countries, or modern day “poorer plebeians.” On March 13, 2008, grain prices in Africa had risen 50 percent. Food riots were reported in the African countries of Egypt, Cameroon, Ivory Coast, Mauritania, and Senegal. In Sierra Leone, grain was up 300 percent. On this day, dwarf planet Ceres was at 24 degrees Taurus, 31 minutes, conjunct malevolent fixed star Algol within one and a half degrees. One month later on April 18, the front page headlines of the New York Times read “Across Globe, Empty Bellies Bring Rising Anger,” reporting on the food riots in Haiti, the severity of which sent the prime minister packing. On that same day at noon, GMT, Ceres was at 7 degrees Gemini and 34 minutes, exactly conjunct the Cardinal Axis. (The Cardinal Axes are highly energized degrees at 0 degrees Cardinal, 22 degrees, 30 minutes Cardinal, 15 degrees Fixed, and 7 degrees, 30 minutes Mutable). Thus the goddess of grain was poised front and center on the world stage. Ceres reaches the Cardinal Axis at 0 degrees Cancer on June 11, 2008, when the food crises will no doubt be in the headlines. This summer the world will get a powerful trilogy of events when transiting Saturn is conjunct the Cardinal Axis at 7 degrees Virgo 30 minutes on July 30, the height of the growing season. Two days later the total eclipse of the Sun on August 1 at 9 degrees Leo 32 minutes may signal a heat wave, bringing drought conditions that would affect the harvest. On August 2, the very next day, Ceres is again conjunct the Cardinal Axis at 22 degrees, 33 minutes in Cancer, the sign of food. This celestial line-up is bound to impact the global markets of grain and rice, the fundamental staples of survival for humankind. Many of us will tighten our belts, and perhaps the poorer plebeians may again receive government rations, echoing the ancient petition to give us this day our daily bread.
The shining disk in the night sky that has held human attention since the dawn of times tells more than we know. Those shifting shadows that signaled to our ancestors when to plant and when to reap marked the passage of seasonal cycles as well as the passage of life itself. The display of nocturnal celestial phenomenon held a myriad of visual delights; planets wandered, stars twinkled, and meteors darted about in showers of light. Many star patterns remained constant for the navigation of nomadic tribes. One thing was certain; the Great White Circle was always changing its appearance. It mysteriously monitored the growth patterns of the mineral, vegetable, and animal kingdoms and these kingdoms were in a continual state of change, for change is the only evidence of life.
To observe the Moon‘s phases was to partake in the ritual of reflection, which is indeed the Moon’s favorite pastime. This distant disk symbolized the patterns of development from life to death, as virtually all living things have a beginning, a middle, and an end. We’re all familiar with the biblical quote from Ecclesiastes that became a credo for the sixties: “To everything there is a season and time for every purpose under heaven.” (Ecclesiastes, Chapter 3).
The Moon pulls the trigger on timing the events that define the experiences of our lives. It can only be observed through the reflection of the Sun and, since it is the nature of the Sun to shine with a fierce light, we can only too easily become blinded by it. Being too bright to comfortably observe, the best way to view cosmic light was from the reflection of the Moon. Although the Sun is 400 times larger than the Moon, the Moon is 400 times closer to the Earth, which is a.ll the better for earthly observation on a clear night. Early peoples knew it was a powerful mirror of their earthly experience and behavior, and thus began to record the occurrences of the changes, or phases, which happened eight times during each cycle. Some of the most primitive etchings on rocks discovered on archaeological sites worldwide are the recordings of the Moon phases, and these rough etchings were humankind’s first calendars. As the phases repeated themselves without fail over time, the lunar calendar was formulated.
What better way to streamline your life than to plan your schedule according to Nature’s timekeeper? The Great White Circle and her measured movements determine the rhythm of the tides, shellfish activity and marine life, and the surface tension of all fluids on the planet; not to mention the moods of the public. “It has been shown that at the time of the Full Moon, and especially during a lunar eclipse, the surface tension of all fluids is increased (the molecular cohesive forces of the surface of any fluid). Because our bodies consist largely of water, this increase in molecular tension is bound to produce a biochemical effect upon our bodies. Furthermore, our bodies tend to take on and hold larger quantities of water during the Full Moon phase each month. The skull, being the only are of the body that cannot readily expand with increased fluid pressure, therefore exerts greater pressure upon the brain cells, which ultimately affect our behavior patterns. (Jansky, Carl, Interpreting the Eclipses). Is it any wonder that the root word for lunatic is luna, which is the Latin word for Moon?
Since the Moon rules the Mother Principle and Mother Nature in general, let’s take a look how She intended the population to perform in their daily lives. It’s Her prerogative to change Her mind, only She calls it a phase. She always comes through on schedule, and would like you to follow her example. Your Mother should know.
The first phase is the New Moon, or the Dark Night of the Moon, when darkness reigns. No lunar reflection is visible; living organisms are left to their own devices with no magnetic field to guide them. All life forms stem from chaos and void. The New Moon symbolizes life at its most basic form, the seed. In order for a seed to sprout, survival tactics are front and center. It is a pure masculine energy, the primitive warrior who lives on impulse and thrives on spontaneous action, requiring no direction whatsoever. Instinct is the only guide. Mental awareness is acute, yet full consciousness is not present. During this wholly subjective time it is best to plant seeds in all forms, whether you plant a garden, devise a new method of strategy or undertake a new project, the New Moon is the starting point. Not every seed is expected to sprout, as any gardener will tell you. Nor will every project reach the finish line, yet this is the time for laying the foundation for your desired goal. One never knows where their beginnings will lead them. You’re at the starting line and the shot is being fired. Go for it! Great oaks from little acorns grow.
The next phase is the Crescent Moon, the time of manifestation, when the seeds sprout. The wise gardener now examines his bed of seeds and thins out those that have never sprouted; they are cast aside for the scavenging birds. The promises, vows and plans that were established during the New Moon are now revised as new developments have come into play. Some prospects, like the discarded seeds, have also been completely forgotten. Those visible green shoots, however, represent the first stage of development of your new desire. They struggled through the metamorphosis from tiny speck to organic growth and, needless to say, not everybody else made it through. Your projected thoughts have taken form, and it is in this Crescent phase that we are most vulnerable. There is much unconscious resistance in public attitude during this period and the phrase “yea, but…” is the order of the day. Like toddlers in the playground, we’re up and running, but our definitive outcomes remain to be seen. Just as all promises are not delivered, not all sprouts take root. Those that do move on to the next development: seedlings.
The first quarter Moon, also known as the Half Moon, is the phase of the seedling. Our goals have not take root in our consciousness and sprouted leaves; further growth is assured as there is not turning back. We’re now bound and determined to deliver the promises we made at he New Moon, revised or otherwise. Literally or figuratively, we roll up our sleeves and seize an opportunity to do something – anything- to see our projects through. We become walking combustible missiles in action; we’ll find a crisis or make one happen, but we just can’t keep still. The outer world steps in with its own agenda and requires us to conform to some degree. Whether this agenda rewards out efforts or throws a monkey wrench at us, we’re ready for it. We’re in the emotional state of the teenager and we need action, whether it’s a challenge to our abilities or a rebellion to launch. If we’re confused and don’t know which way to turn, this is the time to seek guidance and/or direction.
While undergoing baptism by fire, we are faced with the fact that moving forward with a burning tenacity can lead to problems. Flies in the ointment become inevitable, but they are met with anger and frustration. We’re now in the phase of the Gibbous Moon, where we find ourselves up against a rock and a hard place. After such a good start with the greatest enthusiasm, why do we meet up with obstacles at this point? This phase can bring disillusionment in its wake because we’re up so close, yet so far. The plant is now ready to bloom, but it can’t bloom fast enough. Something has to give. It’s time to rehash, rewrite, and clarify. It’s the time to weigh pros and cons and put yourself in survivor mode. Pull out all the stops on patience and let go and let God.
The Moon is now at the end of her waxing phase. It will no longer increase in light as it’s reached its highest point of illumination. The Full Moon is the Moon in full bloom. It’s all it up doing it’s balancing act with the Earth, as it’s exactly opposite the Earth during this phase. The mood of the population is now blazing at a high pitch and it is open season on human behavior. The Full Moon uses her magnetic field to influence the water levels in our bodies to harness all our capabilities and bring our actions to fruition. The results of this polarity send a push-me, pull you message to earth dwellers to stand in the spotlight of your particular achievement, because it’s ready to harvest. You’re reached your goal; you can’t shine any brighter than you do right now and if you’re not feeling particularly fulfilled during this time, discontent may take root and flourish and you may shine in a dark light. All that increased illumination an heightened magnetic energy field has to get channeled somewhere, and if you haven’t planned your schedule according to the Moon’s phases, Mother Nature’s orchestrations become distorted. Agitation becomes blown out of proportion and thus we encounter Full Moon madness; the negative manifestations of which are legendary. Bask in the light of achievement or howl uncontrollably, the choice is yours. We also become obsessed with relationships during this time, as the Moon is exactly opposite the Earth. It’s as if the two Lights are pitted against each other in a cosmic game of ping pong and heightened sensations are the ball. The Full Moon marks the end of the waxing phase; she has increased her light to her full capacity and now begins her journey home.
After the emotional feeding frenzy of the Full Moon comes the Disseminating Moon, or what this writer refers to as the “Morning After Moon.” The party’s over, all that high anxiety has passed. Depending on how we reacted during the heightened awareness of the Full Moon, we either cry in our coffee or delight in our results. As the Full Moon represented the plant in full bloom, the Disseminating Moon represents the fruit on the vine. This is the time when we renew where we’ve been, where we are now, and decide our next move. If this process requires deep introspection and painful realization, so be it. Now is the time to hone our skills and demonstrate and distribute. The profit-minded gardener or farmer now harvests his or her crop and heads for the marketplace. The fruit must be picked, or else it will die on the vine. The rest of the population wisely holds it current projects up to the light and troubleshoots for any flaws. This is the sum total of our work and, whether we’re satisfied or not, we must put our name on it and accept it in its final form. Our growing season has ended and we must reap what we have sown. This also the time to reach out and lend a hand to your neighbor who is having trouble harvesting their crop, or bringing projects into their final phase. By doing this, you just may get first pick before it all goes to market. To disseminate means to scatter or disperse widely and, in biblical terms, we must now cast our bread upon the waters and it will return to us a hundredfold.
The Last Quarter Moon represents pay day in terms of consciousness. Our tally sheets are on the cosmic payroll desk and this phase of the Moon will determine our commission and ultimate income. If we completed our tasks and followed through on schedule, we can honestly and humbly expect our just desserts. Are we pleased with our harvest or final result? If so, we can pass “Go,” collect $200. and remain a player. If not, gnawing feelings of inadequacy rise to the surface and we must come to terms with the reality that, in order to remedy our output, then we have to change on the inside in order to improve o the outside. This can result in private disappointment coupled with internal crisis as slowly we turn and head back to the drawing board. Just as the plant that grew from the seed at the New Moon has withered and now died a natural death, so our inner structure may wither to make room for the new season of growth. The lunar cycle is winding down and coming in for the home stretch.
Draw the veil. The Dark Night of the Moon is upon us. This last and final phase is known as the Balsamic, and old English noun with several definitions. One of which is an “aromatic ointment for ceremonial or medicinal use,” another is “any agency that heals, soothes and restores.” (Websters’ unabridged). This is the perfect description of this Dark Night, as this is the time to to retreat, restore, and rejuvenate. It’s the time to let go of the Moon’s magnetic tie on us and be cast adrift in the void so that the soothing energy can filter through and the healing can take place. The field must be weeded and the desk cleared. It’s the time to withdraw and meditate. Psychic energy is at its peak as we let our intuition guide us through the shoals in darkness, by tuning in, inner navigation is successful. By shutting out, we may encounter fog and chaos. Here in the Dark Night we contemplate our higher purpose and clear the path for Destiny to take over. In this midnight of the psyche, Mother Nature tucks us in for a good night’s sleep. She’s come full circle back to the beginning, and she wants us to be well rested for the forthcoming New Moon. We’ll need all our energy for the growing season. Mom always did know best.
Any astrologer worth his or her salt has done the synastry and composite charts for Bill and Monica and interpreted ad infinitum, but here’s yet another look at this nation’s most infamous couple at the end of the current millennium.
The pre-natal eclipse can serve as an indicator of the collective unconscious that your soul chose to incarnate through, with your mother as the vehicle through which you pass through the veil between the worlds. The moment of your birth, otherwise known as your Ascendant, is your own personal window on the world; the Ascendant is you, the pre-natal eclipse is the group collective or, to put it in a more catchy phrase, “the horse you rode in on.” The sign of your prenatal solar eclipse describes the more positive qualities you have to give to others. The sign of your lunar eclipse tells what qualities you didn’t get or use the last time around, so you must find a way for your soul to learn its lesson this time. If either eclipse is in conjunction or other hard aspect to a planet or angle, then the planet or angle can serve as a signpost to working out our K word, better known as our karma.
For example, if your pre-natal solar eclipse is in Taurus, your soul came down this time with an eye for quality, a love of creature comforts and strong instincts in business. You could have the Midas touch in financial acquisitions without being greedy, ensuring that others gain from your ventures. If your pre-natal lunar eclipse is in Gemini, you never developed your communication skills, never traveled far from your local environment and may have had a penchant for gossip and slander. You may have also been a frequent visitor to the seamy side of life, hobnobbing with pickpockets, con artists and forgers.
The houses these eclipses fall in your chart show where these energies will be played out. Someone born with a pre-natal lunar eclipse in Leo in the second house came here this time flaunting their gaudy jewelry in everyone’s face and must spend a fortune on themselves in order to feel worthwhile. A pre-natal solar eclipse in Cancer in the sixth house means you can cook like a chef, or even be one. Or a first-rate pediatrician. You get the idea.
And now to our dynamic duo. Bill Clinton’s data is August 19, 1946, 8:51 AM CST. Hope, AK. 33N40, 93W35. (Source: birth certificate. Reference: Lois Rodden). His pre-natal solar eclipse is 6 degrees of Cancer, exactly conjunct his Midheaven. Thus he was born to be the boss and share his nurturing qualities with the world at large. The Cancer/Capricorn axis rules government and, as goes the family, so goes the nation. His pre-natal lunar eclipse is 23 Sagittarius in his third house. Bill touched down this time with ambiguous religious convictions and he might have had the inclination to preach right and wrong to his neighbors. Sagittarius rules ethics, and the third house rules rumors and lies. I’ll say no more on this particular interpretation. I don’t need to. Pick up the newspaper or turn on your radio or television and observe what everyone else is saying about it.
Monica Lewinsky was born on July 23, 1973, 12:21 PM PDT in San Francisco, CA. 37N46 122W25. (Source: birth certificate. Reference: Lois Rodden). Her pre-natal solar eclipse is is 8 degrees of Cancer conjunct her South Node in her 9th house of lawsuits, ethics and the media. Monica came here to wrap up unfinished business (South Node) by telling the truth concerning government (Cancer/Capricorn axis) in a court of law and have the whole world know about it. Take note that this conjunction matches Clinton’s pre-natal solar eclipse within two degrees, and is thus conjunct his Midheaven!!!! Is this past life pay back or what?????? If this conjunction between charts is not enough to convince you that a divine plan is at work between these two, let’s put the icing on the cake with Monica’s pre-natal lunar eclipse. That’s right, you guessed it! Monica’s pre-natal lunar eclipse is 24 degrees Sagittarius, conjunct Clinton’s pre-natal lunar eclipse!!! Matching pre-natal eclipses between two star-crossed wooers, two peas in a pod. It’s also in her third house of communication and we’re back in the land of rumors again. Wasn’t it a taped conversation that got the word out? Perhaps Monica functioned as a Town Crier the last time around and lacked discretion in divulging delicate points of information to certain individuals. Karma rides again.
The ramifications of the “relationship” between these center stage characters remains to be seen. It’s just mind-boggling to observe how it all falls together in the jigsaw puzzle between Bill and Monica, just another microscopic view of how the heavens work on earth.
Copyright 1998 by Jackie Slevin, M.A., C.A. NCGR All Rights Reserved.
Landfall of Hurricane Katrina
Hurricane Katrina made landfall at Buras, Louisiana as a category 4 hurricane at 6:15 AM, CDT on August 29, 2005. As the storm traveled north the city of New Orleans, cradled between Lake Ponchartrain and the Mississippi River, prepared for the emergency, but what they ended up facing surpassed their deepest fear. Despite typical wind damage of fallen trees and power lines, the city’s horror manifested when the obsolete levees were unable to sustain the 28-foot surges and tragically broke, perilously flooding a city that, in many places, is already below sea level. The catastrophic deluge demolished the Big Easy, marking Hurricane Katrina not only as the most destructive storm, but also the most extensive and expensive natural disaster in American history.
On The Banks of the Mississippi
“The city of New Orleans must be forever associated with the Mississippi River, for the city was built to guard the mouth of this great stream and owes its existence to its geographical location.” (Lyle Saxon, Fabulous New Orleans, Robert L. Crager and Co., New Orleans, 1954, p.73.) Indeed this is true. Location is everything, as any realtor will tell you. And so will any astrologer, providing he or she has done their homework to determine the very planetary locations that aligned the Crescent City with the ferocious winds of Hurricane Katrina.
Incorporation of New Orleans
The City of New Orleans was incorporated on February 17, 1805 at noon (Carolyn Dodson, Horoscopes of the United States and Cities, AFA, 1975, p.66.). Its pre-natal solar eclipse, an indicator of the city’s collective consciousness, occurred almost three weeks prior to the city’s incorporation on January 30, 1805 at 10 Aquarius 32. The position of the progressed Moon on the incorporation chart to August 29, 2005, the date the hurricane struck, was none other than 10 Aquarius 55, exactly conjunct the pre-natal eclipse. This obscure, yet exact conjunction emphasizes the progressed Moon serving as the second hand on the horoscopic clock of destiny. The New Moon on August 5, 2005 at 12 Leo 48 opposes this degree, and the Full Moon on August 19, 2005 at 26 Aquarius 50 conjuncts the Midheaven and the Sun on the chart of incorporation. The triggering of pre-natal eclipses, along with previous lunations in hard aspect to the incorporation chart, are classic techniques of mundane astrology. Their tight orbs in this example clearly illustrate their impact. Angles are the most personal points in a chart, and any planetary contact to them points to increased, if not frenetic levels of activity in mundane interpretation.
Progressions
In the progressed chart of incorporation, progressed Pluto is exactly conjunct the IC, indicating domestic crisis, destruction of housing, evacuation, criminal activity, and death. Progressed Jupiter is conjunct the progressed Ascendant within one degree, with Neptune right behind it, signaling an overabundance, the dissolving of boundaries (levees), and the inclination toward flooding. Moreover, solar arced Neptune to the date of the storm is exactly conjunct the Ascendant of incorporation, serving as yet another powerful indicator of the deluge. One can also characterize this conjunction to the Ascendant in a mundane chart with hysteria, lawlessness and looting, all of which manifested in the storm’s aftermath.
Transits
If the above indications with eclipses, progressions, solar arcs were not enough to foretell disaster, the transits tell their own sad story. Transiting Uranus is conjunct Pluto of the incorporation chart to the minute. The transiting South Node is conjunct Saturn, transiting Saturn opposes Venus, Jupiter is conjunct Uranus, and Chiron is conjunct the North Node. Transiting Saturn just passed a conjunction of Mars and an opposition of Mercury and Venus. These respective transits point to collective trauma, social and political unrest, restrictive delays and the need for medical and educational reform. The lunar eclipse at 4 Scorpio 05 on April 24, 2005 is exactly conjunct the sixth house Placidean cusp of the incorporation chart, showing the depletion of basic food and medical supplies. The servants of the city, namely the police, firefighters and other civil workers, will be tested to their limits, much like the levees. So will social services and civic aid in general. This eclipse degree also squares Mercury in the incorporation chart, emphasizing communication and transportation breakdowns, and Venus, ruler of pleasure. In the city whose motto is “Laissez bon temps rollez” (Let the good times roll), all one has to do is read a headline or watch their television screen to see that the good times are no longer rolling in The Big Easy.
Reconstruction
Despite widespread catastrophe, the “city that care forgot” will definitely rebuild. Astro-relief is on the way. In October of 2005, transiting Jupiter will trine the MC and Sun of the incorporation chart, Pluto will sextile the MC, Saturn will sextile the Ascendant and Neptune will station at 14 Aquarius, trining the natal Saturn. This station of Neptune may well mark successful reconstruction of the levees, so vital to the safety of this water-surrounded city. Overall conditions will clearly improve. The eclipse at 10 Libra 19 on October 3, 2005 has too wide an orb to affect Saturn in the incorporation chart, and the eclipse at 24 Aries 13 on October 17th bypasses this chart altogether, eliminating crisis from the immediate future.
Based upon the coming transits, the city of New Orleans can look forward to clear sailing in the months ahead for its reconstruction. Despite a disaster of biblical proportion, citizens and services will regroup, rebuild, and regain their distinctive joie de vive. The Mardi Gras will again reign as America’s premier street party, tap dancers will entertain, and jazz will fill the air in the city of its birth. The good times will roll again, and when they do, the citizens of America’s most distinctive city will rise from its ashes, grab a go-cup, and sashay down Bourbon Street.
I can smell the gumbo from here.
Copyright 2005 by Jackie Slevin. All rights reserved.
