Rethinking Jupiter

When I first learned Astrology I was told Jupiter was the best thing under the Sun, pun intended. Oh, where you see Jupiter you see nothing but happy happy joy joy, was the general consensus. Then I started to  look at some charts. I have a friend with Jupiter in her sixth house - the house of health. If that theory held she should be a picture of robust health. In reality she is the person who gets the one disease in a million or the one complication that no one ever gets. Then I noticed that when Jupiter was transiting my sixth house I got cold after cold and my one sinus infection per year turned into three that year. What is it with you Jupiter?

As usual the easy explanation is rarely right. Yes, Jupiter is usually a harbinger of good things. However, as with all things Jupiter has a shadow and that is that it makes everything bigger. Someone with too much Jupiter in their chart can be a gambler or terrible risk taker with money because they think they will always be lucky even when the odds are against them. So Jupiter run amuck is not always a wonderful thing.

I have also learned to look for Jupiter as a harbinger of death. Saturn in the 8th - Pluto there as well usually portend death but so can Jupiter - as the spring board of something bigger - a life beyond.

As are all things, planets are not black or white, they are nuanced - even big, robust, loopy Jupiter.

The Real Eisenhower

First, I am sorry but we still can't find Herman Cain's birthdate... believe me, astrologers are spanning the universe to find it but so far it is a distant secret.


I did read a book this week about a real president, "Going Home To Glory: A Memoir of Life with Dwight D. Eisenhower, 1961-1969" by David Eisenhower and Julie Nixon. I thought the book showed him to be petty and small - not things I ascribed to the great general turned two term president. Frankly, I think it was History rewritten with a Nixonian touch to show how much Ike really like Nixon – really, really and JFK was bad – bad…  Please.
 

When I went to his birth chart, I saw why Eisenhower presented that stoic, silent persona. Look at Saturn in the first house in quiet Virgo. His rising sign too is in Virgo. This gave him an unassuming personality – very methodical, very nose to the grindstone – you know all of those things necessary when planning oh say D Day!  I would love to read a good biography to find out about his secret doubts, fears and even depressive feelings.


The ruler of Virgo is Vesta – and we see that his Vesta is in the Cardinal sign of Libra. Cardinal signs are the movers and shakers of the zodiac – they take the lead and get things done.  This Vesta is conjunct his Sun, Moon, Uranus – and all in the second house – the house of stability and security. Can you see the picture of Ike emerging?


Lucky for all of us he had the Part of Fortune, a little karmic marker of good benefits right on his ascendant. The plans that he made with painstaking detail, with strong leadership had a little kiss of karmic goodness.


Oh and no, I don’t see anything that would make me think he was petty and mean spirited!

James Madison, the Constitution and Pluto

My History Group is doing a program on the Constitution and I am presenting a report on James Madison, the often neglected Father of the United States Constitution. So, of course, I have to run to my software to see what his chart looks like!

Jemmy as he was called by his family has a fascinating combination right on his first house. Remember, that is the house of how we express ourselves to the world.  He has as his rising sign, the sign on the cusp of his first house, Sagittarius. A Ha, the novice might say, there is an outgoing, robust, adventurous person! As usual, the novice would be wrong.  Look what is sandwiching his Sagittarius rising sign--- Pluto and Saturn.

Anyone with Saturn in the first house, especially with one so close to the ascendant, is going to have a somber, perhaps even depressive personality. Madison was so shy, so withdrawn in a social setting that is said his effervescent wife, Dolley, had the band play a song to let people know he was in the room. This, if the story is correct, is the origins of playing “Hail to the Chief” when the President enters a room.

Pluto on the first house cusp gives someone the almost obsessive need to improve themselves .Pluto demands slow and grinding change – it gives a purpose and sense that one must make something of themselves. Important it is although not necessarily fun!

Looking a bit further we can see he has a Moon hidden in his 12^th house, next to the sign of our deepest wound issue, Chiron.  Both of these are in the deep, passionate, introspective, very serious sign of Scorpio (ruled by Pluto. See the double Pluto hit?)  Any “personal planet” – Sun, Moon, Venus, Mercury, and Mars in the 12^th house makes a person secretive and guarded.

Can you see how this 5’4” 100 pound man was often described as a withered apple john?  Everything about him was inward, driven and somber!

Next- I will look at his North and South Node axis which he used so well – thankfully for all of us!

Don't Discount The 99 Percenters

I should know better. Watching CNN is not good for the blood pressure but, silly me, I was doing it anyway. There was the new "Outfront" anchor Erin Burnett smugly mocking the people occupying Wall Street something no one at the major networks ever did with the Tea Party. As I typed out a furious email to CNN, I got to thinking about the movement and how important an impact it will make on America. According to the stars, no one would be wise to mock or discount this movement.

Keep your eye on Uranus, in the chart it looks like a pink H on a unicycle. In the past few months it has moved in Aries, the sign of the ancient god of war. Uranus is electric and quirky and is the harbinger of unique and sudden changes. Meld the two together and you get the energy for the beginnings of a off beat mass of angry people to coalesce into something to be reckoned with.

Now if you look at the chart of the USA, seen on the inside wheel above, you can see that Uranus has just moved into our 4th house, the house of roots and home. So electric warrior energy in the roots of who you are - anyone paying attention yet?

Don't forget, simultaneously we have Pluto, the transformer, in the sign of Capricorn transiting our first house. Remember what I said when Pluto moved into Capricorn? This is will be harbinger of change in those structures which keep society together - the government, the banking system. Pluto moved into Capricorn in 2008 - need I say more.

These guys are poky - both of them will stay in their respective houses for years - well through the 2012 elections and several years beyond. I would tell all politicians not to take anything for granted and be prepared for anything. Nothing will be normal during this time.

Feeling Goofy???

Finding the Path, Arlenew.com

Are you feeling a little wacky, a little off-balance? Blame it on the Libra stellium now sitting over us. If you are on the East Coast of the U.S it is in the 8th house, if in Western Europe on the 7th and if on the West Coast it hovers somewhere between the two.

Libra is and air sign depicted by the Scales - Libra tries to seek balance but often it swings wildly. Libra is very concerned with the other person - not self and it's biggest shadow is co-dependence. Libra also deploys her planet Venus to help us create things of beauty.

Right now we have the Sun, Mercury, Venus, Juno, Saturn and the Moon all hanging out together having a good old time in Libra. In a nut shell, this means we are looking for something to attach to, something or someone to join. Of course, if in the 7th house, the house ruled by Libra - this could be a wild time of people looking to resolve issues, please the other people in their life, forge new alliances. However, this is also a harbinger of a time of great creative expression - someone with well aspected Libra in their chart could find themselves finishing that scrapbook, working on that painting again or even finally cleaning up the bedroom and hanging the pictures!

The eighth house is a bit more tricky - this is the house of death and rebirth, it is also the house of insurance and goods of the dead. Feeling the need to literally shed old skin and do some heavy internal work - figure out where we are going - what we are doing with ourselves; these are all in the eighth house arena.  This is a time of intense soul searching to say the least.

If this were all loopy enough those retrogrades that I spoke of last week have now crept up to first house - our house of personal expression. So on one hand we have this need to deal with this huge issues, what do I believe in, who should I commit to and on the other our personal energy and power are being dragged down by the retrogrades. How Libran! One side up - the other side down.

My suggestion - think about this big issue items but don't try to act on them until the retros get moving out of 1 - better yet wait until they go away completely in the early New Year. Think, ponder, delve - then act in January!

Happy Equinox - beginning of Cardinal time.

The Autumnal Equinox will soon be upon us - September 23, 9:04 AM is when fall arrives in the Washington, D.C. area. Yippee... I love fall and winter - sorry for those who are cold-boned but I can't wait for fireplaces, sweaters and stews.


This is a time when the Sun reaches a "balance" and the day and night will be equally long. It is also the time when the Sun will be at zero degrees Libra, moving into the Constellation of Libra. All of the equinoxes and solstices happen when the Sun is moving into a Cardinal astrological sign.


Cardinal signs are the movers, the shakers the doers. If you are born with a well aspected cardinal sign on your ascendant you are apt to be someone who takes lead, takes charge of things. The Cardinal Signs are Aries, Cancer, Libra and Capricorn.



When people take on spring cleaning in March (Aries) and fall cleaning in September (Libra) they are doing Cardinal activities. Cancer time is summer the time for planting and Capricorn happens around the winter Solstice activities when the houses are full of people and activity.



Fixed signs are those that exhibit stubborn resolve to forge ahead no matter what. Taurus, Leo, Scorpio and Aquarius are all fixed. Taurus follows Aries so you need to cultivate and watch your garden to make sure it grows. Leo is in rule in summer when, for me anyway, you have to get the resolve to face another hot day. Scorpio is the time of Halloween and moves us into the other fixed tradition of Thanksgiving when much attention must be paid to working hard on the harvest and Aquarius is in the dead of winter when it takes a lot to get through the cold.



When the Sun goes into mutable signs, Gemini, Virgo Sagittarius, Pisces we are less concerned with tromping ahead and slugging it out. Gemini is late spring, early summer when we can relax and exchange in mental exchange of ideas, Virgo early harvest when we can see what foods we need to gather to care for our bodies. After Scorpios hard work, Sagittarius can lay back and shoot his arrows into the sky looking for the truth and then Pisces, ah other-worldly Pisces – March brings buds of spring and the time to think of rebirth and new worlds.


So enjoy this Cardinal time. Celebrate the Equinox and get to harvesting your thoughts for the winter to come!

Retrogradessssssssssssssss

A friend whined to me a few weeks ago, "When is Mercury going to get out of retrograde?" It was about to leave I assured her. (However, it will zip back in November 23 - December 13.) Retrogrades are a time for whining. Everything seems to go backwards, cars don't start, computers go on the fritz, and things just don't get done. However, instead of whining we should remember that retrogrades are a time for going within and working on the internal stuff before pushing forward.

Right now we have an inordinate amount of number going retrograde. No wonder people feel like they are under water and so dejected.



Pluto is still in retrograde - until Sept 16 - but we talked about Pluto recently in another blog entry.



Right now most of the "girls" - the big asteroid are in retrograde. Juno, Vesta and Ceres are all retrograded. Juno is where our loyalty lies - so there might be relationship issues coming up. Vesta, where we feel we must dedicate to something, when in retrograde will make us feel like I can't get excited about anything. Ceres is our mothering, nurturing nature - need I say more?

An asteroid that vibrates to male energy, Chiron, our sacred wound issue - a pain so deep we don't want to deal with it is also retrograded. We are feeling pain but can't get to the source, can't confront it.



Had enough? Too bad. Neptune, Uranus and Jupiter are also all retrograded! Really people - I wish the pundits who rap about how the American people are feeling can take a look at this! Neptune, our connection to the spiritual, Uranus, our energetic change energy and Jupiter our expansion and hope guide are all going in reverse. Makes you sleepy just reading it.



Never fear - these guys never stand still for long. Jupiter is being quite dramatic and going straight again on December 25, Uranus December 10, Chiron November 10, Neptune November 9 and Ceres December 6. Vesta will only be retrograded a few more days and Juno will follow Chiron.



So see - it won't last. Remember that retrograde is a time to go within and learn why we are feeling the way we are. Whining never gets us anywhere!