ASTROLOGY

MALCOLM X: AN ASTROLOGICAL PROFILE

By AMIR BEY

This article originally appeared in American astrology, c 1993 JBH Publishing. Used by permission.

Malcolm X has received increasing attention in the years since the 60^th anniversary of his birth in 1985. Though this has certainly come from people who have studied or have otherwise been influenced by Malcolm X, there has also been a growing interest among others who had either forgotten him or were not aware of his influence in the first place.

Malcolm X (born May 19, 1925 at 10:25PM CST in Omaha, according to his birth certificate) was a communicator, thinker, and philosopher. Mercury in Taurus, conjunct Moon in Aries at 29 degrees, in the 4^th house, sextile Mars in Cancer, gave him a fast, responsive, flexible, determined, even militant mind. Uranus in Pisces conjunct the 3^rd house gave depth to his good mind by giving him an intuitive, experimental, unorthodox outlook. In particular, it points to an ability to see beyond the personal and to arrive at a more universal perspective.

Mercury closely trines the Ascendant, sextiles the Descendant, and is opposite the Midheaven, making the planet of writing, speech and travel one of the strongest in his chart. Such Mercury placements and aspects can contribute to a certain amount of instability, but also give adaptability, and even a tendency to adopt (or adapt) the behavior patterns of others. For example, it has been noted that he studied the speech patterns of Paul Robeson closely while was incarcerated.

While Mercury conjunct Moon is a strong indication of someone who is a natural communicator, Uranus in Pisces in the 3^rd house emphasizes this further by its conjunction with the Sun/Jupiter mid-point, giving prominence to the mental faculties and imbuing them with a sense of purpose, honor and power. This made him less the "media manipulator" some said he was and more like an instructor or a professor, especially if you consider his 1^st-house Jupiter. His ability to study for long periods of time is due to Mercury opposite Saturn (ruler of his Ascendant and Jupiter) in Scorpio in the 10^th house.

This Mercury-Saturn contact helped to stabilize and discipline the potentially inconsistent Mercury, Moon and Uranus placements. Saturn opposite Mercury is conservative in nature, and can have a refining, taming effect, usually by presenting difficult obstacles or hardships that can lead to a maturing of one’s mental skills and viewpoint. It is excellent for the "heavier" or practical forms of science.

During his early teens, he had desired to become a lawyer, yet with this aspect he could have been a scientist or involved in any discipline which requires long periods of observation or research. Indeed, with his Saturn in Scorpio and his Uranus in Pisces, with both Uranus’s and the 3^rd house ruler in the 8^th house, he was able to unlock many doors, to be able to search and to reclaim the "unknown" and the "lost." This perhaps indicates a mystical sort of curiosity, though combined with discriminating thinking.

That he was forceful and controversial in his way of thinking and speaking is due to his Moon in Aries in mutual reception with Mars, which itself is conjunct Pluto in the 7^th house. He could be flamboyant, yet able to dig deeply, to an unsettling degree, into areas others considered controversial (7^th house). This configuration shows that he would have been a great challenge to any status quo, no matter what he chose to do with his life. The Capricorn Ascendant with Saturn in the 10^th house opposite Mercury shows an attitude that can range from honesty to shrewdness, while his 5^th house Sun gave a diplomatic potential, especially with his Sun-Venus conjunction.

Malcolm X the Man

During his early years, he often felt awkward around others due to the prominence of Saturn in the 10^th house and Capricorn rising. He was distinctly different and, with his Uranus in the 3^rd house, unconventional compared to other children. Some of this awkwardness was the result of instability at home, (Moon conjunct Mercury and 4^th house cusp, square Jupiter; Mercury in the 4^th, opposite Saturn) due to the death of his father and the subsequent disintegration of the family.

That he had a strong capacity for social life is born out by Venus’s and Jupiter’s positions. These two planets helped him make fortunate contacts with influential people and persons of authoritative standing throughout his life. Along with Saturn, they also helped to advance him very quickly in the Nation of Islam. In the 5^th house, Sun-Venus conjunct can give a sunny, charming disposition, with Venus in Gemini giving him a variety of acquaintances.

The Sun-Jupiter trine bestows leadership capabilities. Jupiter’s ascending position adds generosity, but its Capricorn placement disciplines this possibly excessive aspect, also giving organizing ability. Mars conjunct Descendant and Pluto probably characterizes his social life more than any other single factor, not only because of its angular position, but because of its intense, no-compromise quality.

The dynamic force indicated by these two planets shouldn’t be overlooked, as they direct and channel energies of great potency, showing that behind his Saturn-in-Scorpio reticence lay an active, challenging, keen individual. Early in his life he was too often directed by his impulses, yet finally learned to temper and focus these energies through constructive group enterprises. In other words, he was able to devote his personal resources to a wider self.

As a result of this conjunction in the 7^th house, he had a need to blend his personal and individual needs. It has been said by many that even those who did not agree with Malcolm X were still changed by having come in contact with him. The reverse is true with this aspect also, as people and events around him could influence and shape him, in some cases, drastically. Mars-Pluto can denote a compelling force related to the area of life highlighted by its house position. The 7^th house is the house of interrelationships, partnerships, social activities, and open adversaries, so the conjunction thus describes the element of danger he often faced in his life, as well as his tireless, total commitment in the areas denoted by the 7^th house.

Evolution of a Leader

One symbol for Pluto cold be the Phoenix, the ancient representation of metamorphosis. The angular position of Mars-Pluto is a major indicator of the evolution Malcolm underwent at different times in his life. The powerful momentum of this combination, which kept him on an unswerving course, was re-enforced by his own unambiguous choices.

Its effect can be seen most clearly in the mental and spiritual transformation that took place after his early years, when a life of crime led first to self-degradation, then to prison. The most important point in his personal evolution, however, occurred when his progressed Sun conjoined his natal Mars in the 7^th house, at which time he broke with the Nation of Islam.

Another facet of Mars and Pluto conjunct in an angular house (and Mars in mutual reception to the Aries Moon) was its effect on Malcolm X’s personal energy, which could be described as alert, obsessive, determined, unbridled, challenging, restless and direct. His Sun in Taurus gave this electric combination of forces sustaining power, but its conjunction with Venus also lent a touch of grace to an otherwise dynamic picture. The emotional quality of that Venus is also enhanced through her conjunction with the Moon/Pluto and Mercury/Mars midpoints.

The Sun’s benefic aspect to Jupiter in Earth signs adds a fair measure of stability, allowing him to respond to the adversity which he often faced with a good deal of poise and confidence. Another possibility in this aspect is that the individual whose chart it shows up in can be perceived as a threat to the hypocrisy of others. Thus, this configuration is certainly responsible for the controversial quality in Malcolm X. However, the profound sense of honor, duty, and love for his people symbolized by Venus’ position and the Sun-Jupiter trine, and the fact that the intense energies these and other aspects imply were devoted to a constructive purpose should not be overlooked.

The prominence of his Moon made his nurturing instincts, his need to preserve and protect, strong. At least in part because of this, while was daring, he was not reckless. This is borne out by the fact that even though he felt it necessary to question the direction of the Nation of Islam and Elijah Muhammad’s morality, it wasn’t his primary aim to destroy either one. It wasn’t until he could no longer restrain his strong sense of justice, and that he had no choice, that he opposed Mr. Muhammad and the Nation. When he finally confronted his former mentor, he approached the situation cautiously.

Where nurturing instincts are concerned, it should also be mentioned that Malcolm X had a lot of children! Looking at his house of children, the 5^th, we find his Sun conjunct Venus, with Venus significantly in conjunction with the Moon/Pluto and Mercury/Mars midpoints; and inconjunct the Ascendant, inconjunct the Ascendant rule, Saturn in the 10^th. In fact, Venus is inconjunct the Midheaven/Saturn midpoint! He had six daughters with his wife Betty.

Even though the 5^th is the Sun’s natural house, it doesn’t always bestow children, due to the fiery, barren quality of that body. However, his Sun had a trine from Jupiter and was sextile and trine his 3^rd and 9^th houses respectively. These aspects, along with the Venus aspects, gave him intellectual offspring as well. He founded mosques for the Nation of Islam in major cities around the country at an incredible rate. That he is an ideological and intellectual father to many ideas and movements is one of his enduring legacies.

An Element of Conflict

Malcolm X was certainly not a conformist, but beyond that there is an inherent element of conflict present in the dynamic, even nurturing, qualities noted so far in his horoscope. For example, the Mars-Pluto conjunction in the 7^th house points to the possibility of involvement in factionalism, or perhaps of a schism playing a major role in his life.

An Aries Moon individual finds it difficult to fully integrate with his social environment, but at the same time he does not easily disengage himself from a society that he would like to rid himself of. In the last year and a half of Malcolm X’s life, he was caught up in this conflict between his individual and collective tendencies. Others find it easier to join with others, or to maintain their relationships with their social environments. But those with the Moon in Aries, the planet of familyhood is forced to attempt to blend with a sign whose main tendency is to distinguish itself from the crowd.

Aries, the sign of self, is forced to accommodate or compromise the singularity of its persona due to the lunar influence, so the pioneer must adjust his freedom-loving ways. Malcolm X’s Mars in Cancer was in mutual reception with his Moon - that is, Mars was in the Moon’s sign, Cancer, and his Moon was in Mars’s sign, Aries. His Mars, then, faced similar conflicts, as by nature the planet of initiative tends to move away from the path of least resistance which might otherwise be favored by a Moon-related sign. But Mars is in the sign of the private life (Cancer) finds itself in circumstances that can cause it to boil over.

Here, the impulses are at times to keen, and when the chickens in such an individual’s life come home to roost, they don’t just sit in their nests. Malcolm X said that if a racist grade school teacher hadn’t discouraged him from pursuing law, he might have turned into a "complacent bourgeois." Impossible! With this configuration, no matter what path he chose, he would have shaped and reshaped the concept of that path.

In any case, when Malcolm X broke away from the Nation of Islam, it was not a simple matter for him, as he had so heavily invested himself in the Nation and Elijah Muhammad that it was painful - he himself was splitting apart as he was splitting apart from them. He knew he could not continue within the Nation, and that the next stage in his personal transformation might prove to be his "final" one. Malcolm X often alluded to his dying a violent death because he was realistically aware of the possibilities of the situation.

We have to look at his solar arc and secondary progressed horoscopes and transits at the time of his death in order to gain a full perspective on that phase in his life. The time of death of any person gives a more precise view of that individual than any other event in his life. This is because it is the culmination of life. With the exception of suicide, most death is not planned and therefore reveals the character and resultant destiny of that person.

Malcolm X’s progressed Sun on the date of his death was making a conjunction to his natal Mars, the planet of gunshot wounds. This aspect had been forming since December 1, 1963, beginning precisely at the time of his "chickens coming home to roost" comment about President Kennedy’s assassination. This aspect not only can designate physical danger to the person receiving it, but can also involve that person in conscious actions that often put him or her at risk.

More Than a Martyr

This would suggest that Malcolm X had a purpose in making that pronouncement, and it would certainly have been out of character for him to talk loosely. This is reinforced by the fact that Elijah Muhammad had given orders for his ministers not to make any statements about Kennedy’s death. More than this, his comment was made in the presence of Captain Joseph and John Ali, two Muslim officers with strong animosity towards Malcolm X himself, thus making it seen almost like a dare.

Along with his facing the potentially fatal progressed Sun conjunct natal Mars, both his natal and secondary progressed Neptunes were in conjunction with his progressed Descendant. It should be noted that Neptune is posited in the 8^th house at birth, the house of death. Placement there suggests the possibility of assassination and conspiracy as a cause of death. It should also be noted that his progressed Sun had crossed into his natal house of open adversaries, the 7^th, around March of 1962, but didn’t approach that fatal conjunction with Mars until the period preceding his silencing and suspension by Mr. Muhammad.

Malcolm X’s solar arc progression shows the Sun in conjunction with natal Mars as well. It also shows Pluto at 20 degrees Leo, conjoining the 7^th house cusp at an even closer orb than Neptune in the secondary chart, within one minute of arc of the progressed 7^th house. Pluto is a planet also associated with assassinations. Solar arc Pluto is conjunct Malcolm X’s natal Neptune, further allowing the possibility of an assassination. The solar arc Mars is approaching a conjunction with the house of death and other solar arc aspects give a prominent role to his Mars/Pluto conjunction.

The transit chart for February 21, 1965, the day of the assassination, touches on sensitive points of the progressed charts previously mentioned. We find a T-Square that involves Neptune transiting at 20 degrees and 1 minute Scorpio, almost exactly square to the progressed Ascendant/Descendant, opposed by Jupiter at 19 degrees 1 minute Taurus with Venus squaring that opposition and conjunct the progressed Ascendant, opposite solar arc Pluto, and progressed Neptune. While this Neptune-Jupiter-Venus configuration in itself is a "poetic" one, its effect is wholly different, due to the points that are aspected. Transiting Mars’s close opposition to his natal Uranus - which often signifies something of a shocking, sudden nature - along with a square from transiting Saturn I the 8^th house to the progressed Midheaven, pose danger and can denote a sudden block to the vital functions.

The aspects involving his progressed Neptune and Pluto to his progressed Descendants suggest potential conspiracies against him, but they also symbolize more positive aspects of his life in his year, specifically that he would form unions with others in order to promote the universal perspective inspired by Pan-Africanism. He experienced a social revelation when he traveled to Africa and came into contact not only with African leaders, but African-Americans such as writer Maya Angelou and other expatriates who formed the Malcolm X Committee in Ghana while he was there. As we can see, each planetary configuration can have a number of possibilities. The truth is, we choose which direction a possible manifestation may take.

The same aspects that pointed towards new initiatives in Malcolm X’s life also were those that led to his death. He was in the middle of a promising and momentarily bewildering transitional phase. This was symbolized by his progressed Sun conjoining his natal Mars, an aspect the effect of which would have ended on January 3, 1966; and also by an approaching progressed Half Moon phase, affecting the period from July 7, 1965 to September 6, 1965. That lunar phase, a waxing Moon, would have culminated in a Full Moon 7 years later.

From these charts it appears that he was stopped because precautions which might have gotten through a rough time (astrologically and otherwise) weren’t taken. While the love (Venus) he had for his people inspired the cause that was now being articulated in new ways, it also made it difficult for him to shield himself from the unrelenting enemies trying to eliminate him. An example of this was his growing refusal to search people for weapons as they came to his gatherings, not to mention his rejection of police security (which was cynically offered in any case) when an assassination attempt seemed imminent.

Malcolm X was usually cautious and focused in his words and actions. However, in the last year and a half of his life, he felt it necessary to pursue the course he had set for himself even though it meant the breaking of his many bonds with the Nation of Islam, perhaps with resulting danger to himself. This conflict was due in part to the way his Moon in Aries and Mars in Cancer expressed themselves.

In retrospect, Malcolm’s chart speaks of more than his being a martyr. Martyrdom’s emphasis is too strongly centered on death, and to cast him in this role would imply that his death at the hands of others was the most significant aspect of his life. But the larger picture can be seen by looking at Malcolm X’s natal Moon, which is in the balsamic, or "seed" phase. This phase signifies the formation of the future by gathering collective consciousness and producing a seed to be sown and germinated at New Moon. Malcolm X was gathering a sense of himself and his people from previous experience (history), and was also looking forward to tomorrow. He was able to fulfill his destiny and produce his seeds, and it is for others to nurture those seeds to fruition.

THE COMPATIBILITY OF COMPOSITE AND DAVISON RELATIONSHIP CHARTS

A relationship is as unique as any individual, since people are entities whose interactions and combinations could only manifest in distinctive ways. For those of you who are not familiar with the Composite technique, the earliest known writings were by Dr. Walter Koch in the earlier part of the 20^th century.(1) Later John Townley and Robert Hand wrote ground-breaking books on Composite charts in the 1970s that revolutionized astrological approaches to relationships. Quite simply, it involves the use of midpoints for planetary pairs. For example, if one person has a 10° Aries Sun and another person has a 20° Gemini Sun their composite Sun would be 15° Taurus. House cusps are determined by taking the Midheavens and finding their midpoints and then calculating the remaining house cusps the same way.

With the Composite method it is possible to have otherwise improbable aspects and cycles between planets: Venus and Mercury can be in opposition to each other or with the Sun. Since Composites are based on the nearest midpoints between planets and houses, other unusual planetary relationships can be the result. For example planetary combinations such as Saturn in Capricorn and Neptune in Libra; Uranus in Taurus and Neptune in Sagittarius; Uranus in Scorpio and Pluto in Leo, did not happen during the 20^th century, yet can be found in Composite charts for people born during that time.

The Davison Relationship chart, which is calculated for the midpoint in time and place for two individuals, was introduced by the British astrologer Ronald Davison in his Synastry, Understanding Human Relations through Astrology, Aurora Press, 1983, and is included in several astrology software programs. (2) After many years, results have led me to use both techniques together. While some astrologers are intrigued by the Davison technique, most do not give it the same weight as they do Composite charts. For example, John Townley, in his Composite Charts the Astrology of Relationships, “finds it wanting”. He states that “the Angles and the Moon and inner planets will usually differ radically.” He goes on to say that “The mistake here in time composites, is to consider a natal chart a previous event, rather than the description of an ongoing system and its environment.” (3) Robert Hand said “where it’s the same as the space composite, it works really well – where it’s different, it doesn’t.”(4) Nonetheless, similarities –not radical differences- exist between the Composite and Davison techniques along with features unique to them that reveal an integral and complementary relationship between the two methods. Those similarities are often mirror reflections that add dimensions to the two techniques and are compelling reasons for their combined use. There are three parallels that are found between all Composite and Davison charts:

The Composite and Davison’s Sun and Moon positions are either conjunct or opposite within 5° for the Sun and within 20° for the Moon.
Correspondingly, the lunar phase of the Composite and Davison are either the same or opposite within 20°.
The Composite and Davison Midheavens are the same or opposite within 5°.

The arc between the Midheavens and the Ascendants of the charts will vary more, however. With the Davison, the determining factors are the latitude for the geographical midpoint, and whether there is a sign of long or short ascension at the Ascendant; and with the Composite, what the midpoints for the house cusps are. This difference can be up to 50°, which is quite rare. Often there may be little differences, and this is true with George W. Bush and Al Gore, whose Davison and Composite house cusps are all in the same sign, degree and minute, save for the 5^th/11^th House axis, which has only one minute of difference. (Note: all charts in this article are for Placidus, Tropical zodiac)

COMPARING THE COMPOSITE AND DAVISON CHARTS

A Davison chart has retrograde planets, can be progressed, have returns, and any other derivative chart calculated directly from it, similar to a natal chart. In contrast, progressions for Composites are derived from the midpoints of progressed charts between individual charts. Hand, in Planets in Composite is hesitant about the use of transits to midpoints with Composites. (5) It should also be noted that midpoints from a Davison are not midpoints of midpoints as they would be with Composites. I would like to emphasize that these are functional distinctions and not evidence of the superiority of one technique over the other. Both systems can be used for any kind of relationship: personal, business, or between individuals and historical figures, ancestors, locales, and events. It should be remembered that while much can be revealed by using these two techniques, synastry and other methods should not be abandoned!

Because of the parallels of the Sun/Moon positions and the Lunar phases, blending the lunar phases of the Composite and Davison charts is fundamentally important. The delineations for the eight categories given by Dane Rhudyar in his The Lunation Cycle: a Key to the Understanding of Personality are helpful in comparing and blending the lunar phases, but readers should employ their own knowledge and concepts of the lunar phases. Please note the angle measurement is written as from 0° to 180° for the waxing phase and from 180° to 360° for the waning phase. Here is a list of the eight categories and some keywords:

Waxing Phases Waning Phases

New Moon 0°-45° Full Moon 180°-225°

Emerging/Instinctive Fulfilling/Contrasting

Crescent 45°-90° Disseminating 225°-270°

Expanding/Expressive Demonstrating/Distributive

1st Quarter 90°-135° Last Quarter 270°-315°

Active/Progressive Re-orienting/Idealism

Gibbous 135°-180° Balsamic 315°-360°

Surging/Aspiring Releasing/projecting

However it is more flexible to measure the phases by the angle of separation between the Sun and Moon i.e.: the “light” of the Moon, without strictly adhering to the boundaries usually observed for the eight phases. For example, one couple has the Davison at 179° 44’ and the Composite at 11° 25’. By light they are “opposite”, yet they are not in opposite lunar categories; in this case the Gibbous Moon and New Moon phases. In terms of the Moon’s light, they are approaching the Full Moon, and leaving the New Moon; both are near the lunations. Another example has the angle between the Sun and Moon of their Davison and Composite at 70° 30’ and 87° 13’ respectively, both within the 1^st Quarter phase. When phases are opposite or when they are in the same phase but in opposite houses, their interpretation can be blended the way a house or sign axis is: 5^th and 11^th House, or Pisces-Virgo, etc. The blending of phases may involve combinations of “waning in the 3^rd Quarter and waxing in the Crescent phase” along with house positions such as the 1^st and 8^thHouses.

Measuring the angle of separation from the Ascendant allows one to visualize and place the lunar phase in the chart. This will give an idea of how the Sun/Moon phase functions by the house it falls in, along with the aspects from planets to that point. This is one version of the Part of Fortune, nevertheless for the purpose of this discussion it is more appropriate to refer to that point simply as the lunar phase angle.

The Composite listed earlier with the improbable combination of Saturn in Capricorn and Neptune in Libra is from a relationship between a professor and his protégé, and the date for the Davison is October 16, 1945. The Composite’s Sun/Moon angle of separation is 311° 56’, the 3^rd Quarter –just outside the Balsamic phase, and the Davison’s is at 120° 50’, the 1^st Quarter. Both Suns are in the 7^th House, and the Moons, although not in opposite signs, are in opposite houses, 5^th and 11^th respectively. This combination suggests that with the Sun in the 7^th as a pivot, the Moons’ 5^th/11 House axis emphasizes the partnership (7^th) and the personal friendship (5^th and 11^th) that characterizes this relationship. Measuring from the Ascendant, the lunar phase angle for the relationship is in the 5^th and 11^th Houses, which deepens the personal bond already indicated by the lunar positions for these two. For the blend of their Sun/Moon phases, the combination of the Composite’s 3^rd Quarter refocusing of ideas for manifestation in the future with the Davison’s 1^st Quarter decisive building and application of emerging resources towards a goal suggests a vital consciousness that is purposeful and dynamic as this relationship’s keynote.

A Davison chart’s planetary combinations exist within the framework of the “regular” cycles. The above mentioned relationship has the Davison Mercury within 10 degrees of orb of the Sun in the 7^th House, while in the Composite it is in a 29’ opposition with the Sun in the 1^st and 7^th Houses. This contrast of the Mercuries emphasizes the importance of Mercury’s role here: communication and education between teacher/student that involved travel; the protégé ran an institution whose curriculum evolved from the professor’s extensive work overseas. In both charts Saturn is prominent, ruling the 10^th House cusps. The Davison has Saturn in Cancer conjunct the chart ruler Mars in the 4^th, while in the Composite Saturn in Capricorn is elevated in the 10^th House. With the lunar phase comparisons and these aspects, the charts indicate an almost familial bond in this professor - protégé relationship. They also reflect the importance of Saturn and Capricorn that exists in both natal charts, and how that planet figures in the synastry between these two people.

Therefore an initial approach is to make comparisons of the Sun and Moon signs and positions of the two charts, and of their lunar phases, which will be in the same or opposite phases. Then match the Composite’s planets with the Davison’s cycles and temporal context. For example, take note of the planets of the Davison, then look at the slow-moving outer and generational planets for the Composite, and see if their signs and cycles are consistent for that time period. Those planets that are not will sometimes be in opposite signs, or the Midheavens can be in opposite signs, which can change the house positions of the planets. The comparison should then be reversed and examined from the perspective of the Composite’s planets being located at the nearest midpoints while the Davison’s deviations from those points are noted. Match the positions of the faster planets, Mars, Venus, and Mercury between both charts. These differences, along with affinities, help to identify the distinguishing characteristics of a relationship, emphasizing important features.

Let’s examine the relationship of Pat and Melvin. The angle of separation for their Composite is 87° 13’ and 70° 30’ for the Davison. The Moons in both charts are growing in light in the crescent phase, and measuring from the Ascendant the angle places the phase in the 3^rd House for both charts. Aspect-wise, the Moon of the Composite is square, while the Moon of the Davison is Quintile, 72°. This combination implies tensions regarding communication (the Composite’s square in the 3^rd) that can lead to circumstances that require creative initiatives or solutions (the Davison’s quintile in the 3^rd). The crescent phase of their Moons is indicative of the expansive effect of this relationship on their work as artists. However, since the Composite’s phase is close to the 1^st quarter, the tension and activity of that phase is an important component. The Suns in both charts are either in the same degree as the 9^th House cusp (Composite) or in that house (Davison), showing the importance of understanding each other’s viewpoint, and travel, which is also indicated by the lunar phase angle working from the 3^rd House. The elevation and conjunction with the MC of Mercury in the 9^th House in those charts further suggests the importance of travel and mutual and differing perspectives in this relationship. One manifestation of these indications is that both companions are artists who have had joint exhibits that involved travel to locales outside of the city they live in. They have also had strong disagreements concerning the values and propriety of their methods of work. The Moon of the Composite is in the 12^th House and is the focal planet of a T Square between a Sun/Mars opposition which conjoins the 3^rd/9^th House axis. This suggests egoistic anxieties that can be resolved through the search for internal feelings that have been hidden and need revelation, or the relationship will suffer. There could be an explosive situation if these feelings are not expressed and acknowledged. At first glance the 11^th House Davison Moon seems less troublesome and dynamic until the applying square from Neptune and trine with Venus are considered. The 12^th House necessity for the uncovering and sorting out of emotions is again symbolized by sign and planet, and there may be a tendency to gloss over currents that are feared upsetting, but should not be ignored. The Davison’s constructive Saturn in Virgo is in a helpful sextile with the Moon while opposing Venus, implying discipline –in their case art- can serve as a regulating influence.

PROGRESSIONS FOR JIMI AND MILES

The Davison for the two great musicians, Miles Davis and Jimi Hendrix provides an example of the use of the Davison in progressed work. Their friendship was not intimate, nor did they collaborate on big projects over an extended period of time. What is important is the meaning of their brief and intermittent interactions, which sewed seeds for a new form of music that Miles eventually initiated. Before Jimi’s death, they explored the possibility of collaborating on music projects such as concerts and recordings that could have resulted in the ultimate in the fusion of Jazz and Rock music. (6) The close opposition of their natal Suns meant that there was a great deal for them to learn from each other and much give and take, plus their unaspected planets (7) –Miles’s Sun and Jimi’s Mars- fit into important configurations in each others’ charts, allowing for exchanges and the absorption of ideas during their dialogues and jam sessions. According to Miles “…he started incorporating things I told him in his albums. It was great. He influenced me, and I influenced him, and that’s the way great music is always made.” (8) For example, parts of Jimi’s “The Wind Cries Mary” are in Miles’s “Mademoiselle Mambry”; the bass line of “Fire” is in “Inamorata”; and “Message of Love” is in “What Can I Say”, these last two are in Miles’s Love-Evil album. (9) Their involvement had profound meaning musically and personally for Jimi, who wanted to add Jazz elements to his music and to form bonds with members of the Jazz world whose craft he admired. (10) Tragically these plans did not mature because of Jimi’s death. The progressions, directions and transits for Jimi’s death will be applied mainly to the Davison. This study allows us to test the validity of a Davison when it differs from a Composite. The Davison’s major difference is Mercury, which as the ruler of that chart is more critical than the Mercury of the Composite. As noted earlier, a Davison chart can be directly progressed, and not by calculating the midpoints between two charts. In this discussion of the progressions “Natal” refers to the Davison. From this study we shall see that the Davison’s ability to be progressed belies Townley’s inference that it is static. Because of space considerations, this analysis does not involve a study of both musician’s natal charts and progressions, which would be necessary for a complete study. Nevertheless aspects to the Davison offer many insights into the end of their relationship by describing Jimi’s death.

Vital Points to Consider

Mercury at 2°57’ Virgo is the ruler of the natal chart through its rulership of the MC and Asc cusps, its tight conjunction -in the same degree- and its rulership of the Sun, and because it is the final dispositor of the chart. The 8^th House is at 17°17’ Aries; its ruler Mars, is conjoined by Pluto, is trined by the Moon (both planets are associated with drowning), and squared by Uranus which resides in the 8^th House. Neptune, associated with music but also drugs, alcohol and drowning, conjoins the midpoint of Sun/Mercury and Ascendant and rules the Moon. The Composite’s Mercury does not have this prominence; while ruling the Moon in Virgo and the 7^th and 4^th House cusps, it does not rule nor conjoin the Sun as tightly in the same sign, and it is not the final dispositor. The phase angle is in the same degree and within a minute of the 8^th House, the house of death and legacies. This is an indication that the function of this relationship’s Sun/Moon, its purpose, and 8^th House activities are inherently linked. Death may end many relationships, and certainly Jimi’s other relationships ended besides his with Miles when he died. Yet here it determined the outcome of a nascent relationship; whatever possibilities of collaboration were concluded, save for their mutual inspirations and the resultant influences coming from them up to that time. Important music was recorded, especially by Miles; possibly the reverse would have been true if Jimi had survived. Through their exchanges legacies were left that significantly contributed to the formation of fusion music. On a more personal note, that short year of interaction included an affair between Jimi and Miles’s wife Betty Davis, who had originally introduced them.

Here are the directions and secondary progressions for Jimi’s death for September 18, 1970 6 44’56” AM.

For Jimi’s death, the only times that are reliable are the request for an ambulance, 11:18 AM; its arrival at the apartment, 11:27 AM; its departure, 11:45 AM; and its arrival at the hospital, at noon. (11) His actual time of death is much harder to determine, and the assumptions of accidental death by complications due to an overdose of barbiturates by the inquest have been effectively challenged by David Henderson in Jimi Hendrix, ‘Scuse Me While I Kiss the Sky. In it a description of how his death transpired is given in chilling detail through the accounts of the ambulance attendants, a policeman at the scene, and the doctors. (12) From Henderson’s research it appears that when the attendants arrived, no one was in the apartment except Jimi, whose body lay in a bed fully clothed and soaked with wine and bile. The bile was so thick and dry that it was not possible to open a passageway to allow breathing, and he had no pulse. At the hospital he was pronounced DOA. Both the doctors and the attendants, who saw and worked over him at different stages, agreed that he appeared to have been dead for at least several hours. This disagrees with the testimony of Monika Danneman, who stated that she had talked with him at 7:30 that morning, and that he had been sleeping “regularly” as late as 10:00. How could he have been sleeping regularly, when he was found by the attendants fully clothed, with dried “tons of” bile and wine in and around his body just over one hour later? One attendant went so far as to say that his state was so horrible, “his own mother would not have recognized him”. Jimi was known to be a moderate drinker, and yet the “masses of red wine coming out of his nose and out of his mouth.” was inconsistent and extreme in any circumstance. In addition, there was a garment or towel around his neck. From the situation of his body and this garment the possibility of forced consumption of wine that resulted in his vomiting and subsequent drowning is suggested. Since no precise times are possible and all times given for the pronouncement of death are questionable, the progressions and the transits are symbolically calculated for dawn, 6:44’56” AM, BST. This does not effect the progressions, but it de-emphasizes the house cusps of the transits except for symbolic associations which will be discussed below.

For the directions, Solar Arc Mars, ruler of the natal 8^th House, conjuncts the natal Sun within 3’ as it does Mercury, the ruler of the natal chart, within 22’ of arc; they are all trined by the S.A. Moon, which has just completed a conjunction with natal Uranus in the natal 8th. The Midheaven is conjunct the natal Mars/Pluto midpoint, and the Asc/Dec axis is squaring natal Mars, ruler of the natal 8^th, as the focal point of a T-square. Since Mercury is in the 12^th House, its opposite house, it can be viewed as being in some trouble even though in the natal chart it was at home and in exaltation in the sign Virgo. The S.A. MC/ASC midpoint at 12°6’ Virgo is conjunct natal Neptune (drowning) at 11° 46’ Virgo.

Astrologers usually prefer one progression technique over another and some use a variety of systems together. The Secondary Progressions chart offers some interesting insights: Mercury, the critical planet for this relationship, opposes natal Uranus in the 8^th House within 2’, having just left its opposition with progressed Uranus; Pluto, a planet associated with vomiting is conjunct the Midheaven in a water sign, its ruler, the watery Moon in Cancer is the final dispositor.

Are there any implications of murder caused by drowning, strangulation or suffocation? Yes; the ruler of the Davison 8^th House, Mars, conjoins Pluto in Cancer, they are inconjunct Saturn, with Saturn quindicile (165°) Venus, the ruler of the throat. With these aspects in their Davison, why wasn’t Miles murdered also or at least in some kind of mortal danger? The answer lies in their two natal charts. Space does not permit for a full examination of both natal charts; however this is an example of how one individual’s circumstances can affect relationships. Looking at Jimi’s natal chart, Saturn (strangulation) opposes his Venus (throat) tightly and his Sun (vitality), and Pluto (drowning, murder) is in his 8^th House, and is the dispositor of his unaspected Mars in Scorpio. Looking at his secondary progressions, his progressed Mars is in a tight opposition to Saturn, progressed Saturn had moved to firmly oppose his natal Venus, and he has the Moon entering his natal 8^th(drowning). His Solar Arc Pluto was squaring his natal Sun, S.A. Saturn was inconjunct his natal Venus, another Venus/Saturn –strangulation- contact.

For the transits, since the time of death is not known the transits are for dawn of September 18, 1970. Dawn is often used for a date when the time is not known, and offers a symbolic rendering of the day in question. It is meaningful that the transit’s Ascendant/Sun is 2°10’ from the Davison’s natal Ascendant, with the MC 2°08’ from the natal MC, with Mercury again in Virgo, thus making it the ruler and final dispositor as it did in the Davison natal chart! The transits have Mercury, ruler of both charts squaring the natal’s vital Sun/Moon midpoint at 14°55’ Gemini. The Sun/Pluto conjunction of the transit chart has Pluto opposing the 7^th House natal Moon (death of the relationship?) as the transiting Sun conjoins the secondary progressed Venus, ruler of the progressed 8^th House; the transiting South Node is conjunct in the same degree as the natal Sun and Mercury and the S.A. Mars; transiting Mars is conjunct the ASC/MC secondary midpoint; transiting Uranus, ruler of the natal 8^th, is conjoining the S.A. Mercury and the natal Sun, with transiting Chiron opposing the natal Sun and the S.A. Mercury.

The contacts these charts make with the natal Davison describe the death of Jimi and thus the end of the relationship between Jimi Hendrix and Miles Davis, showing how the Davison can be used in progressions and transits. Because we always have choices and create destiny through them, it is also possible that these aspects could have been associated with other important developments in their lives and careers such as a recording or a concert. It is known that they were to have collaborated on a project during that time but were unable to meet due to schedule conflicts and resulting missed appointments, problems associated with their ruler, Mercury. (13)

When the Composite is progressed, an interesting phenomenon sometimes occurs: planets can change to opposite houses due to changes between their composite natal and progressed positions, which form different midpoints: by the time Jimi was born, Miles’s progressed Sun and Mercury had progressed to form their composite midpoints in Libra. The S.A. Sun and Mercury moved to the 6^th from the 12^th, while in the secondary the Sun also moved to the 6^th, while Mercury moved to the 7^th. These new midpoints for their composite progressed charts dramatically changed the emphasis of their Composite chart! For the Sun, this change suggests a shift from the intuitive/universal mind of the 12^th to the 6^th House’s specific tasks and considerations in order to perfect aims. The 12^th/6^th House axis can prepare individuals for public emergence by honing their skills for eventual presentation, which was the process that Jimi and Miles were engaged in.

This shift can imply a relationship between the craftsman and apprentice; while Jimi was a virtuoso guitarist, he would have learned from the complete master Miles, whose natal chart is very strong with his unaspected Sun in a Gauquelin sector, and his grand trine and fixed cross configurations. It should be stressed that although Jimi could not read music, Miles did not think that he was anything less than a great musician and struck by his dexterity and speed in grasping complex musical structures. And it can be said that Jimi influenced Miles more, if we look at subsequent recordings that Miles produces after Jimi’s death.

The Davison and Composite techniques support and enhance the perspectives of each other. The Davison, even when it does differ from the Composite as with the prominence of Mercury for Miles and Jimi, will work, with those differences yielding important information to gauge characteristics and developments in a relationship. The parallels between them exist because they are the midpoints of zodiacal space (the Composite), and of time and geographic space (the Davison). The feature which metaphorically illustrates these methods’ complementary relationship is that their lunar phases are either the same or are opposite, mirror reflections of two halves forming a complete entity.

Chart Data and Sources

 

George W. Bush July 6, 1946, 7:26AM, EDT New Haven, CT 41N18’29” 72W55’43” birth certificate, (AA) (Lois Rodden)

 

Miles Davis: May 25, 1926, 5:00 AM, CST, Alton, IL 41N51 88W46. From a Birth Certificate, q. in a letter from the Department of Health to Robert Garner (AA)

Al Gore March 31, 1948, 12:53PM, EST Washington, DC 38N53’42” 77W02’12” birth certificate, (AA) (Lois Rodden)

Jimi Hendrix: Nov 27, 1942, 10:15 AM, CWT, Seattle, WA 47N36 122W20. Taken from a birth certificate according to Lois Rodden. (AA)

Jimi Hendrix time of death: As noted, the time of death cannot be precisely determined. The 6:44’56”AM time is for the dawn rising of the Sun, a symbolic time used for dates when no time is known, or to make judgments for a given day, this is a (X) rating, -Data with no time. There have been several times proposed for the official announcement of Jimi’s death, all of which render each other questionable, giving them a (DD) –dirty data rating.

Birth data for the private individuals discussed in this article are confidential.

References and Notes

(1) John Townley, Composite Charts: The Astrology of Relationships, Llewellyn Publications, 2000, p. XVIII.

(2) Ronald Davison, Synastry: Understanding Human Relations through Astrology, Aurora Press, 1983, pp.244-48,

(3) John Townley, Composite Charts: The Astrology of Relationships, p. 29.

(4) Ibid, p. 29.

(5) Robert Hand, Planets in Composite: Analyzing Human Relationships, Para Research, 1975, p. 26.

(6) Miles Davis, with Quincy Troupe, Miles the Autobiography, Simon and Schuster, 1989, p. 292.

(7) Unaspected planets are without the major aspects –conjunctions, oppositions, trines, squares, sextiles and inconjuncts- and without those relationships, considered not to be integrated with the rest of the chart. Through their relative “isolation” they exert a powerful influence. Miles’s and Jimi’s unaspected planets (Sun and Mars respectively) were integrated within the other’s important planetary structures, an indication that their relationship provided an outlet and stimulus for their uniquely flamboyant, self-expressive energies.

(8) Miles Davis, with Quincy Troupe, Miles the Autobiography, p. 293.

(9) John Szwed, So What, Simon and Schuster, 2002, p. 271.

(10) Miles Davis, with Quincy Troupe, Miles the Autobiography, p. 292.

(11) Harry Shapiro, Jimi Hendrix: Electric Gypsy, St. Martin’s Press, 1990, pp. 469-71.

(12) David Henderson, Jimi Hendrix: ‘Scuse me while I Kiss the Sky, Bantam Books, 1996, pp.388-394.

(13) Miles Davis, with Quincy Troupe, Miles the Autobiography, p. 318.

Bibliography

 

Miles Davis, with Quincy Troupe, Miles the Autobiography, Simon and Schuster, 1989.

Ronald Davison, Synastry: Understanding Human Relations through Astrology, Aurora Press, 1983

Robert Hand, Planets in Composite: Analyzing Human Relationships, Para Research, 1975.

David Henderson, Jimi Hendrix: ‘Scuse me while I Kiss the Sky, Bantam Books, 1996, personal correspondences, 2003.

Dane Rudhyar, The Lunation Cycle: A Key to the Understanding of Personality, Aurora Press (Originally David McKay Co.), 1967.

Harry Shapiro, Jimi Hendrix: Electric Gypsy, St. Martin’s Press, 1990.

John Szwed, So What, Simon and Schuster, 2002.

John Townley, Composite Charts: The Astrology of Relationships, Llewellyn Publications, 2000.

VAN GOGH AND GAUGUIN

(Please see Compatibility Between Composite and Davison Relationship Charts)

 

Let’s look at the charts (Placidus, Tropical Zodiac) of Paul Gauguin (June 8, 1848 10:00 AM LMT Paris, France) and Vincent Van Gogh (March 30 1853 11:00 AM LMT Amsterdam) and match the lunar phases of the two methods.

The Davison’s Sun Moon arc is at 351° 20’ and the Composite’s is at 168° 48’. By light they are “opposite”, and by category also, Balsamic and Full Moon respectively. In terms of the Moon’s light, we are just before both the New and the Full Moon phases. The Sun remains in the 10^th House in both charts, but the Moon is in the 10^th House in the Davison, and the 4^th in the Composite. Looking at the Composite first, we see the Moon is in the 4^th House, almost full, a little beyond quindicile (165°), an aspect which can indicate the potential for a rupture between the two. The Moon’s arc of separation from the Ascendant would place it in the 6^th House, giving the lunar phase a “perfecting” quality, suggesting that the interaction between the two artists served to have a preparatory and transitional effect in regards to their careers.

The Davison Moon is in an extremely wide conjunction with the Sun, still in the Balsamic phase, the “seed” phase, yet close to the New Moon, very nearly completing the lunar cycle. Looking at the arc of separation, it is in the 12^th House almost at the Ascendant. This implies an approach, an eventual emergence from the past to an instinctive beginning. Both charts are near the lunation, nearing critical points. Could this mean that their interaction was a pivotal interlude during their careers? In both charts the Moon is in opposition with Uranus and Pluto, showing an unsettling tension between the two, and that their relationship posed serious challenges to their personal status quos. With that kind of aspect to a composite Moon in the 4^th House and those planets’ placement in the Davison 4^th House in opposition to the Moon, it would have been hard for them to live together. The Composite’s 10^th House works better in a career relationship, but the Davison shows too much stress both at home and career-wise, with the Moon in trouble in the 10^th.

On the night of December 23, 1888, problems came to a head where the two lived in Arles, France. Van Gogh was already feeling abandoned because his brother Theo, with whom he was very close and was dependant on for the promotion of his work, had recently gotten married. Van Gogh had sensed that Gauguin wanted to leave the town and one night before the 23^rd, Gauguin awoke to find Van Gogh standing over his bed staring at him. On that critical night of the 23^rd, when Gauguin admitted his intentions on leaving Arles, Van Gogh threw a glass of absinthe in his face. After a few hours, according to Gauguin, he was stalked by Van Gogh in the street with a razor. Later that night Van Gogh cut off his own ear with the same razor, wrapped it in a newspaper the way “meat from a butcher” is, and gave it to a prostitute. Gauguin woke up the next morning unaware of what had happened. When he went to visit Van Gogh, he saw blood everywhere in the apartment. He was almost charged with the attempted murder of his friend until the police sorted out the details.

HE 1^ST O.J. SIMPSON VERDICT

The birth data for the individuals discussed here are from Data News, with the exception of O.J. Simpson, which was obtained from The Gauquelin Book Of American Charts. The time used for the 1^st defense witness call is from Court TV, the timing for the horoscope of the vote was obtained from the October 5, 1995 edition of The New York Times.

In astrology, timing is crucial in determining the character and outcome of events. Not surprisingly, there are several factors in the horoscope for the jury’s decision in the O.J. Simpson trial that significantly aspected Mr. Simpson’s natal horoscope as well as the major attorneys involved. The jury voted twice, with the 2^nd and final vote occurring at 2:30PM, PDT, Los Angeles, California, on October 2, 1995. This time was given to the press by the jurors.

That day was also Mr. Simpson’s lead attorney Johnnie Cochran Jr.’s birthday (10/2/37, Shreveport, LA no time of birth at this writing), with his solar return occurring near that time. The Ascendant for the decision was in 17 degrees, 50 minutes Capricorn, conjoining Mr. Cochran’s Jupiter (the judicial planet) at 18 degrees Capricorn, and most importantly, opposing Mr. Simpson’s Sun at 16 degrees, 36 minutes Cancer, sextiling his Jupiter within 5 minutes at 17 degrees, 45 minutes Scorpio, and trining his Midheaven at 18 degrees, 48 minutes Taurus. It opposed attorney Robert Shapiro’s Jupiter which is at 18 degrees, 3 minutes Cancer, and conjoins F. Lee Bailey’s elevated Moon at 18 degrees, 31 minutes Capricorn, and trines his Midheaven which is at 20 degrees, 17 minutes Taurus.

Looking at the chart for the final vote, one can gain an understanding as to why it took less than 3 hours for the jury to deliberate once the case was turned over to them. We can see that a well aspected and decisive Mars at 17 degrees, 20 minutes Scorpio, which rules this chart’s 3^rd house (thoughts, communication), is elevated in the 10^th house, making it accidentally and essentially dignified, is resolutely supported by an applying trine from Saturn, the Ascendant’s ruler, and is aided by a sextile with the Ascendant. Mars’s energies here favor the defense with its tight conjunction to Mr. Simpson’s Jupiter in his 4^th house, the house of conclusions, and by echoing his elevated Mars which is at 6 degrees, 1 minute Gemini, likewise in his 10^th house. His Mars receives an exact trine form the vote horoscope’s 9^th house, the house of juries. While Mars does form a close conjunction with Marcia Clark’s Ascendant at 19 degrees, 23 minutes Scorpio, it also squares her natal Mars in her 9^th house at 21 degrees, 10 Leo, which is not as favorable.

The Moon, ruler of the vote horoscope’s 7^th house, the house of law contests, is rapidly approaching an exact conjunction with Uranus. This combination can yield sudden, radical decisions and conclusions to matters, often indicating events that have unlikely results, or events that may occur in an unusual manner. The Moon/Uranus conjunction’s position is in the 1^st house gives further emphasis to its prominence, and with its square to the Nodal axis, a controversial one. This conjunction did not bode well for the prosecution. The conjunction’s square to Marcia Clark’s natal Saturn which conjoins her 12^th house, while it also opposes her Venus/Uranus midpoint in her 9^th house, are indications of hard disappointment. It also conjoins Christopher Darden’s Mars, opposes his Uranus, and squares his Neptune, having a disruptive effect for him.

These aspects reveal how both the prosecution and the defense had substantial links with the vote horoscope. However, they favor the defense because many of the prosecution’s aspects with the vote horoscope are hard aspects that were largely of an unsettling nature, while the defense had combinations of hard and soft aspects, allowing for a more integrated relationship with the vote horoscope. As noted before, this is especially true with Mr. Simpson’s horoscope. In fact, the vote horoscope not only significantly aspects the natal charts of the major defense attorneys through its Ascendant, it also opposes within 8 minutes the Sun’s position when the defense called its first witness on 7/10/95, at 9:35’51"AM, PDT, Los Angeles, CA, which put the Sun at 17 degrees, 58 minutes Cancer. That position of the Sun also conjoins Mr. Simpson’s Sun within 1degree, 22 minutes. The vote horoscope’s Ascendant squares Mr. Darden’s Sun, and Prosecutor William Hodgman’s Uranus receives an opposition from it, yet it does not aspect the natal chart of the most important member of the prosecution team, Marcia Clark.

Marc Edmund Jones’s Sabian Symbols for the 17 degree Capricorn/Cancer axis which he has listed as the 18^th degree, are "The Union Jack", and "A Hen Scratching For Her Chicks", respectively. The common theme is protection. He says, "This is a symbol of the maximum protection which life at large will provide for the individual in general…" With Capricorn the accent is on the social or political, and with Cancer, the accent is on the personal.

Would the manner of the jury’s action been different if the jury had begun its deliberation a day later? The answer is most certainly yes, an hour would have made a difference. Would the result have been different? That is another question.

UNITED STATES HOROSCOPES

There are numerous birth-charts for the United States, that are the results of speculations and rectifications that yield conflicting maps. Why, there is even a chart for July 2, 1776 (probably done by someone eager to beat the holiday traffic), and another done for a different year entirely! The founding fathers didn’t help matters for future astrologers by not leaving either a document or some testimony stating the precise time for the signing of the Declaration of Independence. Otherwise, all of the remaining charts agree that July 4, 1776 is the D.O.B. of the Grand Republic.

For this discussion, two of the front-runner candidates for the natal chart of the United States will be examined. There is the chart that has 8 degrees 27 minutes Scorpio Ascendant with a Midheaven of 15 degrees 58 minutes Leo, done for 2:21PM, and the chart having 7 degrees 35 minutes Gemini Ascendant with a Midheaven of 13 degrees 57 minutes Aquarius, done for 2:14’55"AM, both at Philadelphia, PA.

In order to draw distinctions between these two maps, we should look at 3 major factors: the Ascendants, Midheavens, and what house or houses the six planet Gemini-Cancer stellium of the United States falls.

The Scorpio Ascendant Chart

The 1^st house of a mundane chart for a nation describes the people of that nation. The Scorpio Ascendant chart indicates a people who are a reticent, close-knit family who may undergo fractures, as there is turbulence beneath the surface of this apparently unitary populace. The history of the people will be marked by turning points that transform the make-up of the nation. There is an alchemical quality to these metamorphosis. These transformations are necessary for the nation’s survival.. The transformation of raw materials would be another manifestation of this sign placement. The closest aspect to the Ascendant is an inconjunction from Uranus, at 8 degrees 55 minutes Gemini. The Ascendant is trine the Sun/Jupiter midpoint, and also receives a trine from Venus, all in Cancer. Uranus’s aspect indicates continual disruptions, as Uranus presents challenges from new social and technological developments. The trines from the Sun/Jupiter midpoint and Venus provide material and intellectual resources from external and collective sources, due to those planets’ 8^th and 9^th house positions. The Sun, as it is in the 9^th, with a wide conjunction with Jupiter, has a moralistic or religious character. There are no planets in the 1^st house, yet its ruler, Pluto retrograde, is in the 3^rd house and receives an opposition from Mercury retrograde in the 9^th house, and a trine from Neptune in the 11^th. This opposition stresses the forceful communication of ideas, yet the retrograde motion of these planets suggests a subtle influence, especially with Neptune’s trine/sextile taken into account.

The 10^th house of a mundane chart for a nation describes the executive branch of the government of a nation. The Scorpio Ascendant chart has a Leo Midheaven, a sign which describes a monarchy, or the power of a singular personality. Combined with the Scorpio Ascendant, there is the implication of an empire rather than a democracy. As mentioned above, the Midheaven’s ruler, the Sun, has a conjunction with Jupiter, and trines the 1^st house, which implies a benevolent relationship with the ruler/government and the populace. Thus, the people’s benefits come at the government’s discretion. The Midheaven has a sextile from Saturn, a semi-square from Venus, and semi-sextile from the Sun. The Sun and Venus aspects are essentially benign, while the Saturn aspect is substantial, as it also squares the Sun, the Midheaven’s ruler. This gives the idea of an austere or conservative government. The square would become prohibitive of certain liberties, except that it has a wide separating trine with Uranus, not a very strong aspect, but one that breaks up the rigidity of the Sun/Saturn square. Both of the horoscopes discussed here have this square.

The Gemini-Cancer stellium straddles the 8^th and 9^th houses, concentrating itself in the realms of collective resources and ideas. Certainly this is the placement of a country whose material wealth is linked with its partners, and especially with Venus ruling the 7^th house cusp, and posited in the 8^th. The Sun/Jupiter conjunction on the 9^th house cusp with Mercury in that house indicates a nation possessing a philosophy that could border on self-righteousness, particularly when the square from Saturn is considered. Literacy and higher education would be on a significant level. The importance of the law, national and international, would be pronounced. The Moon is in Aquarius in the 4^th house, and is the ruler of the Cancer stellium. The Moon would be strong with these factors, yet is void of course, which is not good in an inception chart such as this.

The Gemini Ascendant Chart

This chart has Uranus within 1 degree, 18 minutes from the Ascendant, with Mars also in the 1^st house, in the house’s latter half. Gemini describes a people who are diverse, youthful, mobile, and curious. With Uranus dominating the Ascendant inventions, new social trends, and in Gemini, innovations in various fields including communications, travel, and commerce are likely manifestations. Freedom, a Uranus concept, would be emphasized. Mars’s 1^st house position would describe personal liberties, or self-rule. Uranus rules the cusp of the 10^th house, and as with the Scorpio chart, the Moon, which is located in the 10^th here. This indicates a relationship between the populace and the government, which would be characterized as a constantly changing one. The 5^th house Saturn trines the Uranus/Mars midpoint, which channels the restless energy of those that midpoint into more conservative forms of expression. There are possibilities of conflicts between the government (Saturn) and the individual rights described by Uranus/Mars. This is due more to the character of the planets involved, and not to the aspect between them. There are grand trines in air signs involving Mars, Saturn, Moon & Midheaven, and Uranus, Saturn, and Midheaven. There is a distinction between the trines that involve Uranus in one configuration, and Mars in the other. Uranus is the planet of fellowship, discovery, social trends, freedom, and science. In Gemini, it has a circulatory movement, and suggests a populace that is linked through channels of communication. Mars is the planet of personal initiative, machinery, the military, and industry. Mars is pioneering, and assertive. They both indicate an autonomous people, with Uranus describing freedom in a social context, and Mars in an individual context.

The Aquarius Midheaven depicts a government that is determined according to social trends, and with the Moon in the 10^th, describes periodic adjustments to a popular government. Uranus and Aquarius are significators of legislative bodies, which implies the executive branch is closely connected to the congress. Because Uranus is the dominant planet of the 1^st house, and ruler of the cusp of the 10^th, the congress in turn is determined by the people. The Gemini Ascendant government must appeal to the people of this nation, and understand what the social trends are.

The stellium of the Gemini Ascendant chart involves only the sign Cancer, and is mainly in the 2^nd house, with Mercury in Cancer in the 3^rd. A conjunction of Venus and Jupiter, with a wide conjunction from the Sun with Jupiter in the 2^nd house in the most fertile sign describes an extremely wealthy country. With the Moon, ruler of these planets elevated in the 10^th, this enormous wealth is a factor in the governing of the nation. The Moon in this chart is not void of course, and its last aspect was a trine to Mars, which is favorable for an inception chart. The square from Saturn to the Sun, along with its role in the grand trine in air, indicates this wealth will not be squandered, and at times will be conserved for practical use.

Of these two charts, I favor the Gemini Ascendant chart although I admit I haven’t followed the Scorpio chart as closely through the years. I am basing my opinion on the description it yields for the people and government of this country, and the how the stellium in the 2^nd house indicates the United States’ extraordinary wealth, and progressed and transiting aspects. I cannot imagine an astrological map that fits its subject so well: America’s inventiveness (Uranus in Gemini in the 1^st) airplanes and air travel, the telephone, highways, television; its popularly elected government (Moon in the 10^th in Aquarius) which even signifies the Electoral College by showing the relationship between the legislative body and the executive branch.

The Scorpio chart is not without foundation. The description it offers with the U.S. Sun conjunct Jupiter in the 9^th does fit this country’s tendency to preach to the world, and with the Moon in the 4^th, there is an indication of this country’s international appeal, and of resultant immigration.

There are affinities between these two charts, and it is likely that you will find some affinities between any two charts that are approximately 12 hours apart. For example, both charts have the ruler of the 1^st house in the 3^rd, emphasizing travel and communications, yet there is a difference between retrograde Pluto in Capricorn with Capricorn on the 3^rd house cusp, and a retrograde Mercury in Cancer conjoining the 3^rd house cusp. The former would project power, the latter flexible communication. America does exert influence through its media and world view, which could also be manifested by the 9^th house Pluto of the Gemini chart. As mentioned above, the Sun of the Scorpio chart in the 9^th house conjunct Jupiter denotes a nation that preaches morality to the world, but so would Sagittarius on the 7^th of the Gemini chart, with the same Jupiter conjunction with the Sun.

Progressions and Transits

Finally, the proof is in the progressions and transits. For an explanation of the United Parcel Service strike of the summer of 1997, the inconjunct aspect from transiting Mercury in Virgo to a retrograde transiting Uranus in Aquarius seems to be an important factor. I say seems because I do not have any data for UPS at this time, and I don’t have information on events of the days preceding the strike. Uranus has a connection with strikes, and combining that planet with Mercury in Virgo the sign of labor, in an inconjunct aspect would upset the regular functions of labor and of delivery services. This transiting aspect occurred on August 1^st, and therefore should have had some influence for the affairs this combination governs for the month of August. Both planets were also in signs of their rulership, giving this combination even more significance.

It should be noted that on August 1^st 1997, Mercury, which was at 6 degrees 35 minutes when the Mercury/Uranus inconjunct aspect was exact. Thus Mercury began an applying square to the US natal chart’s Ascendant using the Gemini Ascendant chart of 7 degrees 35 minutes Gemini (Gemini- mail, communication). The transiting Sun began approaching a conjunction to the US’s natal IC cusp (13 degrees 57 minutes Leo) on the day that the strike began (August 4^th), indicating the domestic influence of the strike. Mercury also exactly squared the US’s progressed Ascendant for August 1^st, which was at 6 degrees 30 minutes Sagittarius on that day! The US’s natal basis for the strike can be found in natal Uranus’s conjunction with the Ascendant and the two planets in question, Mercury and Uranus, were originally in a semi-square.

Looking at the Gulf War, Astro*cart*ography reveals an interesting distinction between these two charts. Both maps have a Mars line running through Kuwait and Iraq. The Scorpio map has a Mars IC line, while the Gemini map has a Mars MC line in the same area. President Bush’s natal Sun conjoins the natal Mars of the United States, which illustrates his role as the architect and leader of that operation. Which Mars describes that action most appropriately, a 4^th house Mars, or a 10^th house Mars? Domestic activities are in the domain of the 4^th house, yet this was not a domestic war for the United States. Remember, the necessity of United States involvement was debated by many. This was undoubtedly a 10^th house activity, as it had to do with United States Prestige, with the United States promoting "New World Order."

Observations For The Future

Natal Uranus conjoined the 1^st house cusp, ruler of the Moon, and the 10^th house cusp of the Gemini chart. Transiting Uranus will enter the 10^th house of that chart on February 22, 1999. This could indicate a crisis in government, or the government will have to be ready to make adjustments because of unusual circumstances. Uranus the ruler 10^th, conjunct the 1^st and transiting the 10^th would be an indication of a new development in the participation of the citizenry in governmental affairs. This aspect will be in effect from February 5 through March 13 of that year. Uranus will make another pass on August 30, 1999, with the aspect forming on August 4 and lasting through October 8. It will make its final pass on December 13, with the aspect forming on November 5 and will run through January 4, 2000. Uranus will be approaching this point during May of 1998, but goes retrograde on May 17 before it will be within orb of aspect.

For the Scorpio Ascendant horoscope, Uranus was in the 8^th house, ruler of the Moon, and of the cusp of the 4^th. It was in a separating inconjunction with the Ascendant, semi-square Mercury, and has a wide trine to Neptune. Uranus will enter this horoscope’s 4^th house on April 6, 1999. This indicates changes in domestic areas, influencing immigration, labor, and further technological advances effecting home-life. Old ways of families’ living and relating will be tested. Privacy may give way to wider forms of socializing. Natal Uranus’s conjunction with the 8^th house and rulership of the 4^th house, and the Moon (and the Moon’s of the 9th and Jupiter) indicate effects from America’s trading partners on the economy of the nation. The aspect will first form on April 2, 1999, and last until August 4. This will be a significant pass, as Uranus will be stationary (May 21) while still in aspect. It will make its final pass beginning December 31, 1999, be exact on January 23^rd, 2000, and last through February 9, 2000.

It shouldn’t be forgotten that both charts will also have a conjunction by Uranus to their natal Moons. These conjunctions will be more revealing than the house cusp transits discussed above because there will be a greater separation of time between their occurrences due to the 7 degrees, 17 minutes of arc between their positions. The dates for Uranus’s conjunctions with them are as follows:

The Gemini chart will enter aspect on February 11, 2000, exact on March 2, through March 21, 2000. Its next pass, while retrograde, will be August 2, 2000, exact on August 28, through September 29, 2000. Its final pass will be on November 22, 2000, exact on December 22, through January 12, 2001. Because the Moon is in the 10^th house here, the effect will manifest in the public and governmental arena, and because of the Moon’s rulership of the 2^nd house, there will be economic repercussions.

The Scorpio chart will enter aspect on April 30, 2001, will go retrograde while still in aspect until exiting on June 29, 2001. It will re-enter aspect on February 8, 2002, exact on February 25, through March 15, 2002. Because the Moon is in the 4^th house here, the domestic situation will influence the United States’s international relations and philosophy, due to the Moon’s rulership of the 9^th house.

For both charts there is the implication that the usual fashion of tending to the affairs of these houses will be challenged, or adjustments will be necessary. Innovation, emancipation, and renewal will be positive results, while reversals, unrest, incompatibility with reforms are negative possibilities.

When mundane research is done for entities such as countries, cities, or corporations, one chart will not give a complete picture for them, no more than a natal chart is sufficient to have a full scope of an individual’s chart. There are many stages in a nation’s development, and it is useful to take charts for those times into consideration. In this case, the chart for the Declaration of Independence, which would be the chart for this country’s inception, its natal chart, does not have a recorded time. There are reliable times for other phases of this country’s history that yield revealing insights.

Because the charts are rectifications, I did not explore the subtleties of the Sabian Symbols here because the differences between the effects of the three factors used, the Ascendant, Midheaven, and the position of the Gemini-Cancer stellium can be observed with more certainty.

Interested readers should look up John Worsdale’s (1766-1828) Astronomy And Elementary Philosophy (1819). He gives the opinion that the "elevated and dignified" positions of the planets at the time of American independence "most clearly forebode, that the time will arrive, when THAT EMPIRE shall give laws to all Nations, and establish FREEDOM and LIBERTY in every part of the habitable Globe." Worsdale was an English astrologer/astronomer. I came across this while reading Patrick Curry’s Prophecy And Power: Astrology In Early Modern England, Princeton University Press, 1989. Mr. Curry is thorough in his research, and this inspiring book illustrates the power and prevalence of astrologers and their craft in 17^th - 18^th Century England. At present, I have been able to locate only two copies of Worsdale’s book, one at Harvard, the other at Northwestern University in Chicago. Neither library will copy this book, due to its fragility.