employing the dark feminine? Miley Cyrus

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Disclosure: I’m not a fan. I find Miley Cyrus’ expressions (antics) to be predictable. But she did sprout out of our crassly materialistic, oversexed, plastic gummy bear culture, so what can one expect. Something about it all though, particular elements, have really crept under my skin. So I’m turning to some charts to see about why— why the relentless pinging. ”. . . All she's doing, one way or another, is using her body to get herself attention. It could all use a bit less flash (and a lot less flesh) and a lot more substance.”


Cyrus was born with the Sun in Sagittarius, the sign of the centaur - half man and half animal, shortly before sunset, making hers a diurnal chart. The more positive and productive planets for her are ideally those of the day sect: Jupiter and Saturn. And those which ought to present her with more difficulty are planets of the night sect: Venus and Mars. With the Sun in a fire sign we know immediately it has strength, due to it being in its own triplicity. The trigon or triplicity lords for fire are Sun and Jupiter, Saturn is a participating ruler. With fire we know that a measure of success and honors is important to the person (Su/Ju). The Sun is also in the Egyptian bounds (a.k.a. 'terms') of Jupiter, as is Venus and Saturn. When posited in the bounds of a benefic such as Jupiter, the ancients believed it 'magnified the fortune of the native.' Moon, Mercury, and Mars are posited in the bounds of Saturn. 

The north node of the moon, Rahu, is configured by sign with the Sun. Rahu is a notoriously individualistic and eccentric creature in Indian astrology. It is the head of the dragon [or serpent]. Its tail, the south node of the moon, is Ketu. These are the lunar eclipse points, also known as ‘shadowy grahas’ (graha means grasp or seize - and graha is another name for planet). All of this makes the nodes pretty different from the modern psychological /western/ approach to astrology—where the north node is where you are headed and is most certainly good for you—in India, Rahu is known more for its dark side, having an insatiable, exaggerative, hypnotic, and illusory quality. Beyond this wide configuration with the Sun, however, the nodes are not conjunct or square (at the bendings) to anything else in the chart, so we'll move on.

The dark Moon is in the murky waters of Scorpio, the sign of its fall: opposite its exaltation. But this Moon is not at all close to its maximum fall at 3 degrees—unless you perceive the chart through the sidereal zodiac, and one could make a compelling case for doing so, as the ancients would have most definitely noted the Moon and planet positions in the night sky. The Moon’s sidereal position is 3 degrees. The Lot of Fortune resides at 23 Taurus at the Ascendant, as she was born during a very dark waning moon. (The Lots will always be close to the Ascendant in very dark and new moon births—and they will join the Descendant (7th house cusp) at full moon births.)

Mars, known as "Nergal" to the Babylonians, is the planet rising first, leading the way. Mars unrestrained and on its own can be a bit too fierce or aggressive, especially in a daytime chart as it is here. For time immemorial Mars has been associated with war, destruction, fevers, the plague, and so on. It's also how we direct our will and shows what we have passion for, and sometimes (especially per a Uranian perspective) it is reflective of our work. Mars is in Cancer here, a sign ruled by the Moon, and so is associated with the body, feelings, family, nourishment, and shifting tides (it changes). Cancer is the sign of Mars' fall. And here it is positioned at its maximum fall.

Theo Wargo/WireImage

Theo Wargo/WireImage

With the Moon in Scorpio (and Mars in Cancer) the two are making a nifty exchange: seeing one another from the other's domicile. This is a reception, usually a helpful connection, though with both planets in their fall (and contrary to sect) their benefit to each other is altered. As Tom Callanan notes on Skyscript: it is "like two drunks helping each other home." As it's a trine aspect, it flows easily, unimpeded, a maximum assist. And Mars, at its worst with the Moon, can be a degradation of the body or feminine form, or dis-ease for the body generally—or just a load of anger. Consider her ease of expression with regards to raunchy tongue poses and twerking.


One thing I always take note of when examining a chart is where the Moon has been and where it is headed—the separating and applying aspects. In this case we see the Moon has separated from a conjunction with Pluto, as well as a square from Chiron; traditionally we would not consider the aspects with Pluto and Chiron, as they are transpersonal bodies and invisible to the naked eye, but these points of contact are most definitely evocative . . . themes of the Underworld and Wounding . . . from a traditional standpoint we’d note that the Moon is visibly separating in a square aspect from Saturn. And its next visible application is to Mercury. Firmicus Maternus, a 4th century astrologer, writes about the Moon's translation of light from Saturn to Mercury:

"But if the Moon had little light, then either it impedes the sound of the voice or deafens the ears. But it also debilitates the bodies of those who have it thus with wretched weariness; it makes persons suffering from melancholy, jaundiced, splenetic [bad-tempered; spiteful], consumptives [wasting], those suffering from dropsy, [or] lung disease..."

Okay, a wee bit harsh. He goes on, but I think you get the picture. 

 
Saturn has a few faces in astrology. It is the father, sometimes the king or ruler, or a worker of the land, or the people. At other times, it is a dark figure or criminal. Most often it is associated with older men, gives a serious approach, and is connected with the ripening of karma (or fate). It can also be indicative of illness, or makes bodies slender and with angular features. At its most noble it is a significator of great wisdom, self-discipline, sobriety, and surrender: a silent sage. The Moon Saturn aspect in this chart is a bigger deal than at first it may appear. The Moon is tenth from Saturn here, in the Indian tradition, the third, seventh, and tenth signs from Saturn are where it makes its especially potent aspects. This Moon (manas, mind) is most certainly influenced by Saturn.

Another biggie on my list: look for planetary stations. And voila, Mercury! - and Mars. 

Cyrus has a heliacal rise Mercury. It is about to station direct—within a week of her birth to be exact (what we call phasis)—a strengthening factor. And this happens to show up with some frequency in the charts of those special souls who have something to communicate to the world—whether vocally, or technologically (see the charts of Bill Gates and Steve Jobs, and many other highly successful tech people). Or Mercury has something to SELL. It is the great "merkerter" after all. Here it’s in the sign of the Scorpion, a water sign where Venus and Mars rule by triplicity (highlighting passions, love and strife), and it’s retrograding back to a conjunction with Pluto. It has a fierce bite.  

SUN CULMINATION CHART:
Mercury connects to MarS
note: Moon Pluto and Saturn on the Ascendant!

Speaking of fierce, the other planet close to its station, Mars, turned direct about five days before her birth (also a phasis). Essentially what this means is the two planets—which also happen to be in closest aspect in her chart (another on the A-list in my sequence of delineation)—are standing pretty much still in their fervent watery trinal embrace. And it is on this day that their kiss—or excessively sexualized message (Mercury), as Sinead O'Connor warns—perfects. This perfection occurs at about noon, when the sun culminates. (Which, in fact, is another way to look at a chart without a known birth time: use the chart for the culminating sun on the day in question.)
 

A key to understanding all the passionate fusion, creativity, love/hate, and muse-seeking sides to water, as mentioned above, is through the element's two primary trigon lords: Venus and Mars - Moon is a participating ruler. In Cyrus' chart we see all of her nocturnal planets (Venus, Mars, Moon) in the yin/feminine signs (earth/water) and all of her day sect planets (Sun, Jupiter, Saturn) in their own triplicity (fire/air). This adds strength to the chart and gives her a kind of comfort in her skin.
 

winter solstice 2013
Venus stationing retrograde

Her Venus is posited in the traditionally lusty sign, Capricorn—and I'm willing to make a very predictable prediction: there will be more Cyrus controversy in the news in the coming months. Venus begins her infrequent retrograde cycle soon, stationing Rx on the solstice, December 21st @ 28'58 Capricorn, and turns direct on January 31st @ 13'33 Capricorn. This is one degree from Cyrus' Venus. 

Her Venus is also configured with Uranus—a defiant oddball at worst, and at best: a refined, striking, original beauty, with much grace (think of Elizabeth Taylor). However Taylor, unlike Cyrus, had Venus in Aries contra-antiscion her Pisces Sun and dispositing to her Pisces Mars. Pisces is the exaltation sign of Venus, so for Taylor it elevated its position in Aries, though it was still in detriment (and in the sign of Mars, so associated with cutting and separations), so not without difficulty, as was visible in her relationships. Cyrus on the other hand has Venus dispositing to Saturn in Aquarius where Saturn has strength. But its offering to Venus is indirect and without reception. Nor is there an aspect between them. To me it feels quite patriarchal—like the old man pulling the lipstick and powder puff strings from behind the curtain, calculated and measured, it feels stiff and mechanized.

Venus is also configured with Jupiter in a square aspect. This dominating square from Jupiter in Libra to Venus in Capricorn, the sign of Jupiter's fall, may speak to an abundant commercial explosion, not necessarily in good taste. Materialistic excess via ‘the business of sex and beauty.' Though Venus does benefit in the exchange, and controls the outcome for Jupiter. Saturn, too, ruler of the ninth and tenth houses of travel and profession, is greatly helped receiving this blessing-rich trine from the great benefic (Ju) posited in the sign of the reaper's (Sa) exaltation: Libra.

Of special note: the planetary periods for Venus and Jupiter have also been activated this year while Cyrus is 20 years old: Venus = 8 years and Jupiter = 12 years (8+12=20). This activation is even more potent as the planets are in aspect AND Venus rules the Ascendant. She is this business-y, yet otherworldly (Uranus Neptune) Venus.

Saturn is, however, arguably the strongest and most beneficial planet for this chart. Ruling the ninth and tenth houses gives it royal status, greatly strengthening it, and putting her in touch with people at the top. Note it’s the most elevated planet and is also literally advancing on the Midheaven (the culmination point in the chart). And Jupiter’s special aspect, the trine, gives it unbeatable support. The karma for her early success was predestined: as she was born to enter a planetary period of Saturn very young (see the Vimshottari dasa), and this spanned the first 18 to 20 years of her life (depending on which ayanamsa you work with). Timing is everything.


Sun in Sagittarius in contra-antiscion to Mars in Cancer

Pluto in a distant (under 2 degree) antiscion to Midheaven

A SYMMETRICAL FEATURE

Contra-antiscia:  Sun Mars

Her latest work:  Wrecking Ball  

Previous work:  We Can't Stop

Sun|Mars from Ebertin's
The Combination of Stellar Influences : 
the will
activity
ambition
determination
courage to fight
the power of attainment
the desire to be in the limelight
inclination to quarrel
hastiness
soldier..
 

Chart with twelfth-parts is quite illuminating! Look where the twelfth-parts of Venus and Mars' fall:


For those interested in the twelfth-parts (dodecatemoria) - See the Venus Mars positions right at the Ascendant(!) in Mars' bounds. This reiterates an animalistic, lusty nature; sexuality up front and center; and not necessarily great for health, or for the wellness those things signified by Venus (love, relating, aesthetics). And see Jupiter's position @ its fall with natal Venus, again: the "bu$iness of beauty."

Free software: Morinus

A Similar Maleficence : Fred West

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Preamble: I do not believe the planets, stars, or signs cause people to do horrific things. We cannot blame our chart for our problems. It is up to each one of us to decide how we will express and direct our energy and impulses. I believe there is a higher and lower expression to everything. The symbols do speak to and show where there may be difficulty - but it is often these very same influences that compel people to do the most interesting work.

Dahmer reverberates - 
Another horrible story.  

When I searched my database for another 'contrary to sect' Mars in Aries in the whole sign seventh house, I didn't come up with much - an athlete, an actor, a few others, sure...  However I was totally creeped out when I found an equally (to Dahmer) disturbing character, Fred West. He has not only the same basic signature (Mars Aries 7H) as Dahmer, but other shared degrees and sign placements. 

West, along with his wife, Rosemary, was a serial killer, rapist, zoophiliac, torturer, pedophile, incestual father, and all around general criminal. He likely suffered a brain injury in his teens (Aries rules the head, the battering ram, and is in opposition to his Sun in the whole sign first house of the body) - though this hardly explains the atrocities he committed as many suffer mild to extreme brain trauma and do not harm others.
 

Creepy, even as a child.

Creepy, even as a child.

The birth time on this chart is 'B' rated (from a biography), so there is a possibility it is not correct. I found it too curious however to see such sign similarities to Dahmer to not share.

In addition to the powerful out of sect malefic Mars in the seventh (Mars is generally less good for people who are born during the day), we see the signs: Taurus, Gemini, Virgo and Capricorn inhabited again, as was the case with Dahmer. Shockingly, if the time is indeed correct (though it's quite likely rounded off), they share the same zodiacal degree rising - the degree of the Sun at its maximum fall:  19+ Libra. 

Like Dahmer all the so-called (in ancient texts) "licentious, wanton, lecherous, and filthy sexed" signs are covered here. Capricorn again at the bottom of the chart, a house pertaining to death and burying the relatives under the family home (in very ancient times this was not a corrupt thing, but a place of burial for the ancestors) - and is exactly what he and his second wife maliciously did. Capricorn is inhabited by the Moon (its sign of detriment). The Moon (family, feelings, body, mother, the irrational) dominates Mars by square aspect - again, like Dahmer, Mars receives an aspect from a planet in Mars' sign of exaltation and seems to be empowered for the worse. And the Moon is in a superior trine to Saturn, the other malefic. Saturn (the almuten) an alternate ruler of the Ascendant is in Taurus (the Moon's exaltation) and sees the Moon occupying his own sign (Capricorn) while placed in the whole sign eighth house, another house of death. This is, once again, a lot of seeing and receiving between the three houses of death (4, 7, 8). See a previous post if you are scratching your head as to why these three houses pertain to death.  

Mercury and Venus are in Scorpio (a sign of detriment for Venus) and disposit to Mars. Mars is in fact the final or 'sole dispositor' of the chart. I find when a malefic is the sole dispositor [especially if it is the malefic of the sect not in favor = Mars, when the native is born during the day, and Saturn, if the person is born at night] that it can be quite problematic for a person, and extra care and conscientiousness must be worked on. 

And what about that grand trine in earth?  =  Moon  Saturn  Neptune 
Grand trines humorously garner a lot of attention for being a good thing - but it is entirely dependent on a) the planets involved, and b) the person's consciousness.
Reinhold Ebertin in The Combination of Stellar Influences has things (on the darker side) like this to say:

The sickness of the soul.. the inability to mature or develop emotionally.. a low character.. pessimism.. pathological states of depression..

 

Inner wheel: West
Outer wheel: Dahmer

One chilling point in the chart that compelled me to post is Rahu, the north node of the Moon and head of the dragon, it resides at 21+ Virgo the exact degree of Dahmer's north node in the twelfth house - a traditional house of imprisonment and self-undoing.  

If anyone has insights about this particular degree of Virgo, or other observations, please leave a comment. 

 

Curious Maleficence : Dahmer

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Essential dignity is important. Yet I think it is easily misunderstood, overemphasized, or used willy-nilly without considering a lot of other factors. Assessing dignity [like most things in astrology] is complex. Some people will make a really big deal about a dignified planet, but dignity does not simply make a planet good. Dignity is also strongly altered by planetary aspects and receptions. 

In a very dark example, likely the darkest expression of the day, we see a so-called 'dignified' (in its own sign) yet 'contrary to sect' malefic, Mars, configured with the Moon in the place of the setting sun (7th house). Mercury, Venus, and Saturn as well are all in their own domicile (sign), and therefore have essential dignity.

 

 

Some technical gymnastics:

The Ascendant in Dahmer's chart rises in Libra at the degree of the Sun's deepest debility. The Sun is most exalted at 19 degrees Aries and is at its maximum fall at 19 Libra. I think this is an immediately important factor since it is a daytime chart (the Sun is above the horizon and so is the luminary of the sect in favor). The ruler of the Ascendant is Venus (the benefic of the sect not in favor - it prefers the night). It has 'power' in its own sign, Taurus, so it is good at getting what it wants, even if this is not particularly good for the native. It is in the 8th whole sign house, so it does not see the Ascendant. The 8th house is the traditional house of death. Venus is also rising before the Sun, and so is a morning star Venus, showing her more assertive and warrior-like face. Venus connects to Rahu, the head of the dragon (north node of the Moon), by a close trine aspect, but it is the sign of Venus' fall (Virgo) in the 12th house. The exaltation ruler (and almuten) of the Ascendant is Saturn in Capricorn (its own sign) in the whole sign 4th, giving a strong connection to and esteem for the parents and tradition. Also think of the 4th as pertaining to things buried, or deep under the earth. Saturn is, however, in a tight square aspect to the Ascendant, so we see potential for stress and blockage here. Houses 4, 7, 8 all pertain to death; in the 4th we return to the place from which we came, 7th is the setting place, and 8th is the experience of death, often not our own but the experience of death and upheaval around us (sometimes called a place of transformation). Also of note here, as all these places are highlighted, houses 4, 8, 12 according to the 13th century astrologer, Guido Bonatti, were thought to be houses of varying kinds of imprisonment.  

The Moon, luminary of the night sect (not the sect in favor), is waning and is right on the horizon, setting at the time of his birth. The Moon is configured in the whole sign 7th (traditional house of death = setting Sun) with the contrary to sect malefic, Mars, which is in its own sign Aries (making it strong, though potentially reckless). Moon (pertaining to body, nourishment, feelings, and the irrational) receives a dominating square from both Jupiter - which is debilitated in the sign of its fall, Capricorn, and is also the sign of the Moon's detriment - and Saturn, strong in Capricorn, but seeing the Moon in the sign of its own fall, Aries (which it does not care for). Mars receives these squares as well, and since Capricorn is the sign of Mars' exaltation, it is strengthened further (and apparently not for the better). Remember, strong does not equal good. Saturn sees Mars in this square and being the sign of its fall is not especially pleased. Mars is also the lord of the 7th house of partners and open enemies.

Mars severs, it is related to cutting and knives, it separates . . . 

Mars is also antiscia the moon's Node - a point symbolizing connections. Mars|Node can be work connections, physical, sexual, or athletic connections, connecting with men, or collaborative or quarreling connections. Mars can also sever or cut connections (Yikes!- when considered literally). Antiscia, being symmetry around the cardinal axis or Aries Point, is indicative of how we connect to the world. Dahmer connected via Mars|Node. Of course, a general Mars|Node connection means a lot of different things as noted, dependent on varied context and circumstance.

The Sun, the luminary for the day, is configured with Mercury, the lord of 9 and 12 and in the curious, dual sign Gemini. Mercury is a youthful and somewhat androgynous character, one that moves between worlds (the underworld and the earthly world). The primary trigon lord for Air signs in a day chart is Saturn, so both Sun and Mercury are tied strongly to Saturn at the bottom of the chart.
 

Chart set up from the Lot of Fortune. 
(Vettius Valens, a 2nd century astrologer, instructs us to use the Lot of Fortune as an alternate Ascendant.)


I read the chart from Fortune with whole sign houses, meaning: 0-30 Virgo is the 1st house, 0-30 Libra is the 2nd house, and so on. 


Pluto, lord of the underworld, rises with the north node, Rahu - the insatiable, hypnotic and deceptive head of the dragon. Neptune in 3rd - confusion and deceit in communication. Jupiter in its fall with Saturn in 5th - morally problematic pleasures and recreation; Venus' joy distorted. Chiron and Ketu, the tail of the dragon, indicative of loss, illusion, and wounding in the place of the other -the 7th. Moon and Mars - body and cutting and upheaval in 8th. Venus 'strong' in Taurus (strong for what? pursuing one's bodily desires? pursuing 'matter') and in the 9th, the traditional house of god and spiritual concerns; Dahmer's life was devoted to matters of the flesh. Of note here, Venus receives superior trines from both Jupiter (in its fall) and Saturn, in Capricorn; Capricorn is a notoriously lusty placement for Venus, and so due to the unimpeded flow (trine) it is highly affected by this influence. Sun Mercury in whole sign 10th - public image - Mercury in its own sign is receiving its only strong aspect from Mars, a superior sextile from the malefic contrary to sect. Mercury Mars is adept at handling tools, dissecting for instance [in his case, curiosity gone horridly awry]. Two faces, two places. Uranus in 12th - strange secrets. 

A brief interview with Dahmer. 

His father's perspective. 

This is of course a horrific example of a person with a serious mental illness. Astrology does not show that he is mentally ill, and it does not show that he would harm or kill people. It does show issues with emotions, parents, and others, but astrology does not say what a person will do or how conscious, conscientious, or aware they are. 

To recap, it seems clear that essential dignity does not make a planet good, it may make a planet good at getting what it wants, but this might not be good for others or for the person himself. Dignity does seem to strengthen a planet, but again that can be for better or worse. (Frida Kahlo for instance had an exalted Mars in the 6th (health, disease, accidents) and it was in partile opposition to her Sun in Cancer (the sign of Mars' fall) - it seems probable this powerful planet did more harm to her than it did good.)

One must look at the whole chart. Aspects relaying dignity or debility (called receiving and reception) seem to alter and affect things immensely, as does the way in which one chooses to direct and work with the energy. 

 

K U R T

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Today it has been nineteen years since Kurt Cobain's death. To commemorate him, his life's work, his bittersweet poetic and musical contribution to the world (which I personally think was of tremendous importance), I will delineate a few elements of his natal chart that I believe speak a great deal to his style and character and maybe also to his destiny.  

As you probably already know, much about astrology is finding recurring or reiterating themes (i.e. confluence). Usually one does not make a judgement or assessment about a chart based on a single factor alone. This is especially true when examining a natal chart (a person's birth chart). When an astrologer sees repeating or similar factors emerging from different aspects of the chart, they can be near to certain that the expression of those themes will be present and active in the native's life. With Kurt Cobain we see this.
 


First, some basics. You can see in his chart the Sun is under the horizon in the sign of Pisces, Venus' exaltation. He was born after sunset. The rising sign is Virgo, and in the hour and minutes of Cobain's birth the long-standing conjunction of Uranus and Pluto were rising right on the horizon at his Ascendant. His character was greatly defined by these two radical outer planets.

Mercury is the lord of, and is exalted at, the Ascendant and is another major definer of character. It is in Pisces, which is the sign of its fall, and it sees the Ascendant from the seventh place. A planet in its fall frequently must do things outside the box -- in some way outside what society deems is acceptable or normal or appropriate. This somewhat androgynous Mercury, guiding souls to and from the underworld, is a powerfully descriptive planet for him. In earlier times, when we would not have had Uranus and Pluto to help us see immediately the revolutionary or rebellious qualities inherent in his chart, we would associate much of these things to Mercury in Pisces (along with the position and aspect of Saturn, more on that in a minute). 

Cobain's powerful Moon in Cancer (the Moon rules Cancer) is positioned in the eleventh sign from the Ascendant, the place of friends, gain, and Good Spirit. The Moon is the sect light (the 'luminary of the sect in favor' - due to it being a night chart) and is of supreme importance. It is configured with Jupiter which is also in Cancer (Jupiter is in its exaltation). Jupiter is a great benefic and can bring great success, and Jupiter is positioned here in its own house of Joy strengthening the association. There can however be a tendency toward indulgence and extravagance with Jupiter and that possibility is increased here due to its being a night chart. Because Jupiter is a planet belonging to the day sect, and is therefore out of sect in this chart, its potential for boundlessness, knowing no limits, is increased. This can be good and bad, and in Cobain's case I believe we see both. The good and bad is reiterated again by aspects the Moon and Jupiter receive: superior trines from both Venus, the benefic that is of the sect in favor (for a night birth), also in its sign of exaltation, and Saturn, the most difficult malefic being out of sect at night. Venus Saturn being dark art, torment and love. (As an aside, you see the Moon configured with Jupiter in Whitney Houston's chart too, though in the second sign from the Ascendant; Saturn also is in a superior aspect. She too was a night birth. I'm not implying that you will always see problems associated like the ones shared by these two artists, but wanted to mention this similarity in expression.)

Returning to Pisces, the seventh sign from the Ascendant -- classically a place of marriage, enemies, the later part of life, and death -- we see the Sun configured with Mercury, Venus, and Saturn. Saturn being contrary to sect is a very important player here, it colors Cobain's character in a very strong and distinct way -- a way of decay, darkness, and heaviness, like lead. (Another aside, these are a lot of planets dispositing to a very dignified (by sign and place) benefic, Jupiter. We see something similar in Jimi Hendrix's chart: the Sun, Mercury, and Venus all in Sagittarius disposing to Jupiter also exalted in Cancer and configured with the Moon.)
*See charts for both Houston and Hendrix at bottom of article. 

Next we note Cobain's Mars, the "better" of the hard-working malefics, is dignified in its own sign Scorpio, which favors meaningful conflict and struggle and a preference for experiences that are passionate and devotional. This is the third sign from the Ascendant, one might say a place of oracles, and as it's Mars (in Scorpio) its expression is intense. Configured here with Mars is the south node of the Moon (a.k.a. Ketu, a mystical, otherworldly figure) and Neptune. This leads us to an importantly precise grand trine between Neptune, Jupiter, Venus and Saturn. Flowing, and again, knowing no bounds, for better and worse . . . inspiration, devotion, manifestation of melancholic beauty, fantasy, slipping into escape, overwhelm . . . a dream that's gotten out of control.

The Lot of Fortune (an alternate Ascendant) is in Taurus and its ruler Venus is located in the eleventh sign from fortune, a place of acquisition. Again: the place of friends, gains, and Good Spirit, a place associated with Jupiter; a theme is reiterated. 

Much of what we associate with Neptune was originally expressed through Jupiter and Saturn. Something to think about....

 

MUSIC +
POETRY

Cobain was born just a couple of days before both Mercury and Neptune stationed retrograde. Because stations occur over time, meaning the planet from our perspective doesn't just stop on the day of its station, but slows down and stalls out, literally standing still for days at a time, any planetary station which occurs within a week of one's birthday (on either side of the date) is of huge importance. 

Indian astrologers hold the opinion that retrograde planets are actually at their strongest -- this usually differs from traditional or modern Western thought. 

Mercury, along with Venus, is very much associated with music and musicians.
Neptune, the imagination. 

 

SYMMETRY

 

Being the huge nerd that I am, I also love to examine declination +and+ antiscia.

With Cobain we see parallel conjunctions of Mercury, Venus, and Saturn. We already know that the planets are conjunct by zodiacal degree (longitude), but by declination (sharing the same latitude) they are even more closely aligned. This further strengthens their conjunction and because they all rest near the celestial equator (by 2.5 degrees of Southern declination), they are very much tied to the earthly plane.

Note too that the Moon is way Out Of Bounds. Another signature for a bit of a radical character and unrestrained energy; and ruling the eleventh, extremes apply to fortune and friends, and, as astrologer Austin Coppock points out, fans.

 

ANTISCIA?
 

Planets and angles connected by antiscia (symmetry around the zero degree cardinal points) have been recognized as important and potent for at least two thousand years.

A more modern perspective sees connections across the axis as illuminating 1) that a person will connect to the world, and 2) how that person will connect with the world (whether it be intentional or not).

With Cobain we see a strong connection between the powerful and dignified luminary of sect the Moon and his Midheaven. The Moon is emotion, it rules the public, also women and the feminine. And this ties the lord of the eleventh (again), the place of Good Spirit, fortune, and friends, to the MC (Midheaven) - the point of profession, one's mission or path, and culmination in the life, and for Uranian astrologers: the soul. In fact, in Reinhold Ebertin's classic book, The Combination of Stellar Influences, the principle delineation given for Moon|MC is =

"One's own soul." 

 

To me, Kurt Cobain expressed, exposed, and shared with us his soul. He certainly touched other souls. Like the Moon, his work and nature was not, or seemed not to be, rational. And his music, his lyrics, prose and poems, uncomfortable at times (Saturn), sometimes desperately sad, touched and spoke to others on what I can only think of as an emotional (Moon) soul level. 
 

 
 



Leave a comment if you like. 


​androgynous mercurial chart ruler 

​androgynous mercurial chart ruler 

Whitney Houston, Big Voices, and Some Simple Antiscia

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The power of antiscia can be seen in a natal chart very simply and strikingly sometimes. I've been finding a particular antiscia signature with some frequency in the charts of musicians, and singers specifically: Mercury antiscia to Jupiter. A big or great voice. 

Here, on the 360 degree dial, is the natal chart for the late, and very vocally talented, Whitney Houston.

(Note: The 360 degree dial does not change the placement of planets in a chart, or their relation to each other or to the angles, but instead emphasizes their connection to the cardinal axis (the solstice and equinox points falling at 0 CANCER/CAPRICORN and 0 ARIES/LIBRA). The dial makes for a quick and easy way to see antiscia and contra-antiscia (terms used for planets falling evenly around the cardinal points). Since everything on earth is dependent upon and affected by seasonal changes, the cardinal axis is a point we all share and is therefore important and relevant for everyone. It is a point through which we connect to the world.)

In Whitney Houston's chart Mercury sits at 10'15 VIRGO and that is the exact mirror or shadow point (antiscia) to Jupiter placed at 19'29 ARIES. 

We also find here the antiscia of Jupiter to Pluto, which ought to add even greater power and influence. At its best Jupiter|Pluto is regenerative, providing an ability to transform and develop something, to build something up and make it better; at its worst it can lead to excess, or great accumulation and wastefulness.  

A third powerful signature we find in her chart by contra-antiscia (planets falling symmetrically around the Aries/Libra axis, or equinoc­tial points) is Sun to Neptune. This illuminates her mystique and appeal, but is likely also indicative of the trouble and addictive situations she faced. 

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To reiterate this theme of great voices, and the antiscia of Mercury|Jupiter on the cardinal axis, here are the charts for two other phenomenal vocalists, Sinead O'Connor and Gillian Welch. 

Both charts have Mercury contra-antiscia to Jupiter. Also, Jupiter is in a superior position (earlier in zodiacal degree) to Mercury and, in these two charts, is connected by a sign-based square. 

In Sinead O'Connor's chart Mercury is located at about 26 SCORPIO while Jupiter sits at 04 LEO.

In Gillian Welch's chart Mercury is 03 SCO and Jupiter is 27 LEO. These places are regarded by some ancient astrologers as the "hearing" or "commanding/obeying" signs. Read more about this on SevenStars blog. 

A nice thing about antiscia, and midpoints generally, is that you can examine a chart that does not have a birth time and still gather quite a bit of information about a person or situation (as revealed with the two charts above). Though remember to disregard the angles of the chart, and also do not put much emphasis on the Moon due to its speed. 

I do of course advocate using charts with good birth data. Nothing can replace the depth and structure and sound foundational story one finds through examining a chart in its traditional form, like the one below.


* If you are confused by the chart above not having house cusps, please understand that I use and encourage everyone to try whole sign houses. I still use the angles and see them as incredibly strong points in the chart, especially when planets are advancing toward them or are retreating, having just passed them by, but I prefer whole sign houses for topical purposes. A whole sign house system is elegant, simple, powerful, and makes the most sense to me theoretically. 

 

dark, haunting beauty

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Being artistically-oriented myself, I quite enjoy looking at the charts of artists and musicians. Lately, I've been looking especially at the 360 and 90 degree dials with the TNPs (Transneptunians). I'm looking for recurring themes, threads to follow, something from which I can build my own experiential resource base for how these symbols (specifically the TNPs) speak to me. 

The work of Francesca Woodman is one of my latest obsessions. 

These photos were made by Francesca, a fiercely evocative photographer who died by suicide at a very young age (twenty two). Her work is rich in symbolism, and a theme of impermanence, or breakdown and decay, is portrayed quite literally through all of the imagery.

While I do not have an exact time for her birthchart, it is still valuable to examine the aspects and planetary placements, and by using the dial I can gather even more clues as to what themes are most prominent.  

Placements I note first are Francesca's exalted Sun in Aries in opposition to a bright (full) Moon in, the Venus ruled sign, Libra - will versus feeling; Mercury's opposition to Jupiter, North Node, and Neptune - anabudance of creative ideas; Venus' opposition to Pluto - magnetism, and intensity in relating; And Mars' wide opposition to Uranus - unique, individualistic, sometimes rebellious expression.

This is a large number of oppositions to have in a chart, and it is noteworthy that all of the inner planets are being influenced by the outer transpersonal planets. Oppositions speak to the pull between what is inside vs. what is outside, yours or mine, yin/yang, even black and white (like her photographs). 


Standing on the Cardinal axis, we find Mercury in antiscia to Pluto and Venus antiscion Node/Neptune.

The Node is her only personal point on the axis, and is how she is tied to and connects with the world. This combination can also be viewed as a completed planetary picture:
Mercury + Pluto - Venus = Node/Neptune  or  Me + Pl - Ve = No/Ne.

Reinhold Ebertin says of Mercury Pluto: the art of persuasion, suggestion. This speaks to her ability to powerfully communicate something to the world, but not totally literally. It is the element of suggestion that pervades her work. Pluto, also associated with the Underworld, can bring a darkness to what is [in this case] communicated. And it is known for great growth and development, or great decline. Venus Node is a love-union or pleasant connections with others, and Venus Neptune is creative imagination and can contribute to much idealism or disillusionment in love. Because Ve|No|Ne is on the same axis as Me|Pl they are all rather intensely connected, and being on the cardinal axis (the world's stage) it is for all to see.

Communicating beauty (and the female form) powerfully, and most often with an aspect of disillusionment, darkness, destruction and decay, was certainly her modus operandi.

 Self portrait

With the chart on the 90 degree dial (below), we see Neptune also stands on the Cardinal axis at 11.25 (black dot is indicator).

Among other things, Neptune = Photography.  



When we add the TNPs, things only get more interesting....

Sun Poseidon signifies her use of light (as in photographic images). It is pure energy and spirit, but can also be associated with spirits, as in ghosts. On this midpoint axis also lies Venus Pluto, indicative again of her immense creative power; and Ve|Pl pushes through Sun Poseidon its darker, more annihilative quality. Adding to this force is Mercury Vulcanus also standing on the axis. Many of her images have blurry or moving figures. This is literally what Me + Vu = Su means: a body in motion.

Zeus and Kronos also figure prominently, standing near Pluto. Zeus and Kronos, especially with Pluto and Venus, signify enormous creative inspiration, mastery, and an eagerness to work. Think how young she was when she began working and how many incredibly beautiful images she created in such a short amount of time.

One final important TNP to note on this Sun axis is Hades. Standing at precisely 22.5 from her Sun (see the large black dot), Hades reiterates many of the themes already noted, and additionally signifies old and outworn things, garbage, death, decay, filth, secrets or hidden things, want, and loneliness. Are her images not utterly representative of Hades Poseidon? 

After writing this article, I came across a review and thought it described eloquently the symbols as I saw them. The New York Review of Books writer, Eizabeth Gumport, said of Francesca's work:

Her concealed figures, however, call to mind corpses, or ghosts, as if the wall between our world and the spirit realm had begun to fall. In her images, dust abounds, and there are no new buildings, only ruins, whose disintegrating forms evoke the wrecks admired by the eighteenth- and nineteenth-century Gothic revivalists often cited as major influences. The out-of-focus figures are faint and friable-seeming, and Woodman’s gray tones as powdery as crumbling stone.

While there is so much more we could learn from this sadly poetic chart, I want to move on to the date of her death: Jan 19, 1981. 


There are many things one can examine in timing and event charts. Here, I look primarily to just one large factor, a theme repeated again and again, because it speaks so loudly: Hades. 

Because Francesca was 22 years old at the time of her death, her Solar Arc would be close to that degree; it was 22 19' 19" to be exact. That would mean any of the natal indicators in her chart standing at that distance to another factor would be coming to fruition - including Hades to her Sun.

You can see in the chart above that not only was Hades due to her Sun by Solar Arc (the green and red bars), but it was also transiting her Sun by exact half square (or semi square). This is something we find because Hades' orbit is about 360 years. It was a Hades time more than ever in her life. Clearly something needed to die and be let go of. It is sad she took her own life and wasn't able to force in entirety the expression in a worldly endeavor. 

Neptune also was due on the Cardinal axis at that time (not visible in chart above). Likely this reiterated a feeling of helplessness, disappointment, and assumably disillusionment and despair or desperation.

But her ethereal, almost supernatural, Neptunian work does live on in the world. Certainly she continues to touch and deeply affect many people with her profound talent --> Communicating depth and beauty and darkness and light - and the transient nature of life. 

 x

personal points on the cardinal axis : Abe Lincoln

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Abe 

I will use President Abraham Lincoln as an example to illuminate the power of Personal Points on the cardinal axis. But first a quick description of the personal points and the cardinal axis.

In Uranian Astrology (aka Symmetrical Astrology) personal points are a big deal. The six personal points are the Sun, Moon, the moon's Node[s], Midheaven (MC), Ascendant (AS), and Aries Point (meaning, zero degrees of any cardinal sign: Aries, Cancer, Libra, Capricorn).  

Through the personal points we connect to things. Through the Sun we connect via our will, purpose, body. Through the Moon we connect through our feelings, emotions, and perception. The Ascendant connects us to our locale, our immediate environment, and the people in our environment. Through the MC we find our sense of "I" or "My," our soul connectedness; it is the place within, and a place we see the world from; and in a way I like to think of the MC as connecting us to spirit. The Nodes are all about connections or unions by themselves, showing us how and with whom we'll connect. And finally the Aries Point, which is both the cardinal axis and the intersection of two great circles (Ecliptic and Equator), is the way in which everyone and everything connects in and to the world. The Aries Point is the personal point we all share.

My teacher Gary Christen would say a person who has personal points on the cardinal axis will be very visible and known in the world. Though having personal points connected to the axis is not a requirement of visibility, you do find it shows up frequently, and is always descriptive of the way one connects to the world. In a minute you will see that President Lincoln serves as a great example of this.

What does it mean (technically) to have personal points on the cardinal axis? When we say a person has points on the axis we're not limiting this to their having planets or angles at precisely 0 degrees of the cardinal signs (or 29 mutable), though that works too. We're interested in whether they have personal points engaged and reflected around the axis as well. This is called antiscia: when points fall on either side of a 0 degree cardinal point in perfect symmetry. 

Note: Zero degrees Cancer/Capricorn are Solstice Points - zero Aries/Libra = [Equinox] Equinoctial points

And Antiscia, sometimes referred to as Solstice Points, have been used for a very long time. Hellenistic authors refer to them not infrequently. 


As an example, in the chart for today, we see that Mars resides at less than 1 degree Cancer. This means that Mars sits directly on the cardinal axis. 

 

 

 

And in another recent example, the chart for the Summer Solstice, June 21, 2011, we can see several points are in antiscia to one another on the cardinal axis.

 


Here we find Node Pluto in anitscia, and also Jupiter Ascendant (Note: AS is only relevant in the immediate locale - here in Seattle. Lucky us.) Node Pluto would be indicative of transformative and powerful connections, changing connections, possibly concealed or subversive connections, and likely some big developments and/or power struggles. 
 


Back to Abe. 

Let's first look at his chart on the classic pie wheel.

If the birth time we have for Lincoln is correct, we notice right away the powerfully angular Sun in Aquarius rising, and the Moon above the ascendant in Capricorn in the twelfth house. I find Saturn at the top of the chart (with Neptune) a very interesting feature, as it resides in the famous Gauquelin sector. Isn't Saturn so very appropriate for Lincoln? From his stature, to issues with melancholy, his reflective nature, social commitment, and responsibilities... And both the Sun and Moon of course disposit to that Saturn. I find it also quite fascinating that all five of the innermost planets, Sun through Mars, are in detriment (opposite the signs they rule). Just one planet, Jupiter, is in its own domicile (Pisces). 

Now let's look at the chart on the 360 degree dial. 

Look at those personal points! 

At first glance we see 4 of the 5 personal points sitting in reflection on the axis. The Sun lies antiscia to the Node, general connections in the public, to reach out and make contact, meetings with others. The Moon is antiscia to Saturn, connecting with laboring and suppressed people, work with the public (Moon), a public administrator; also feeling inhibited, somber, or lonely; and since it is the Moon this can also describe the woman he relates to (think of his wife and some of her difficulties). And- Ascendant to Node, connections with many in one's environment, many acquaintances, even a kind of 'group identity.'

We can also see that he has a powerful Venus Jupiter contra-antiscia. Lincoln literally saved the Union. 

Upon even closer examination- if you see where the tiny black dot is by the MC, the fifth and final point, the Midheaven, is actually pulled onto the axis at 22.5 degrees. 

This is easier to see on the 90 degree wheel:

If this birth time is indeed accurate, both the Ascendant and Midheaven stand on the axis, meaning President Lincoln has every single personal point on the cardinal axis.

We can most definitely say he is a man known in the world.

In concluding this post, I find it somewhat interesting that his Node is due to his Sun by solar arc . . .

Is he connecting with the world again?   ;-) 


The chart (the moment) (the person) (the connection) lives on . . .

Be well.