The ongoing lineup of planets in Aries has brought demonstrations of passion and impulsive and feisty behaviors all around.
I have seen and heard about some spectacularly passionate arguments between romantic partners, coinciding with Venus at 7º25’ Aries squared Pluto 7º25’ Capricorn on April 27th. (Uranus, Mercury, Mars, and Jupiter were also in Aries that day.)
Both of these situations involved long-term partnerships where unbridled, long simmering emotions came right up, front and center. At the least, both of these situations involved a dramatic and quite public (Aries) purging (Pluto) and certainly a release of energy; it’s too soon to say if any rebuilding or recreating of these particular relationships will occur.
But as Venus moved on to 11º55’ Aries, she opposed Saturn retrograde Libra at 11º55’ on April 30; we know that significant negotiations and realignments continue in all relationship matters. I have heard of some realignments with a healing tone; the heat and forward motion of Aries is present, but not all partnership engagements have been as volatile as the two I personally know about.
The influence of the martial sign is evident on the geopolitical scene. As the Moon moved into Aries on the 29th, it crossed Uranus at 2º, then squared Pluto and opposed Saturn, before conjoining Mercury, Mars, and Jupiter early on Sunday morning, May 1st. Aside from what we can imagine as an active time for those playing in the realms of sexual passion, the aggression has increased in at least one of the current wars.
NATO forces, which began an air assault on Libya on March 21 (with the Sun conjunct Uranus at 1º Aries), escalated attacks this week and (unconfirmed) reports say that Gadaffi’s youngest son and three of his grandchildren were killed on April 30. Even for wartime, this is controversial. It was described as a “disproportionate use of force … leading to detrimental consequences and the death of innocent civilians,” by the Russian Foreign Ministry. (1)
As I’m writing this the networks have announced that the President is about to speak to the public that Osama bin Laden has been killed in Pakistan. (The announcement came at 11:36 p.m. in Washington.)
The first obvious thing is that transiting Saturn is now on the World Trade Center first plane attack Ascendant, and Venus and Mercury are on the Descendant.
This is news (Mercury) that completes something (Saturn), or provides some sort of “bookend” to the attack.
Looking at the composite chart for President Obama and the event (i.e., the first plane at the World Trade Center), we see Sagittarius rising with the ruler, Jupiter, at 21º Aries. (2)
Transiting Jupiter is now at 22º Aries, i.e., a successful outcome? At some level, I suppose this is true. The idea that this may be a personal (and political) success for the president is also suggested by the Sun in this composite horoscope. It is 0º42’ Virgo; Obama’s progressed Venus is now at 0º22’ Virgo. Transiting Neptune, now in Pisces, shows the spectacular (or exaggerated or misleading) media attention to the event.
The U.S. Sibly progressed Venus, ruler of the natal 10th house of reputation, is also at 21º49’ Aries.
The U.S. Sibly progressed Moon at 2º Libra has come to the natal Midheaven. This shows a lift to the spirits of the American people and an increase in our visibility in the wider world. (People are celebrating across the nation and congratulatory messages are coming from around the world.) The Sibly progressed Moon is also trine Obama’s natal Moon at 3º Gemini.
The transiting Moon at the President’s announcement was at 28º Aries, conjunct his natal Part of Fortune.
The impact of this event on U.S. politics and the complexity of its implications in the rest of the world will unfold — probably in some startling ways. (The current Aries stellium contains Uranus; transiting Mars and Jupiter are conjunct Obama’s progressed Ascendant and he has progressed Mars conjunct the Descendant.)
The immediate reports strongly demonstrate the Aries archetype. The teams of “elite forces” who were responsible for the military action that killed bin Laden were referred to (by former Army General Barry McCaffrey) as “the most dangerous people in the world.”
The gruesome details continue. On Monday morning, a White House official called the raid in Pakistan a “kill mission,” with the intent “to wipe him off the face of the earth.” A bullet to the left eye killed bin Laden. In medical astrology, the Moon rules the left eye in a male. There was a rare triple conjunction – the Moon, Mars, and Jupiter conjunction at 23 Aries – on May 1, the day he was killed.
Bloody wounds to the head and elite military operations fall under Aries, of course; the spontaneity of people cheering in the streets, in what looks like a sense of relief and simple happiness, demonstrates another side of the archetype.
Although President Obama has committed to a large-scale military presence in Afghanistan for the next four years (progressed Mars conjunct progressed Descendant), my (simplistic and naïve – there’s Aries again) hope is that the death of bin Laden will increase the American public’s demand to bring the troops home.
On a far more light-hearted note, but still within the theme of the Aries stellium: in yoga on Sunday a woman at least as old as me (and I’m not saying how old that is) got up into a headstand and stayed there for quite awhile.
She had just the right support from her fellow student’s hand (Saturn in Libra) and was able to go up. She was so happy; this was a first after many, many years of practicing yoga. Yoga practitioners know that inverted poses are challenging and to experience one is an exhilarating moment.
Aries rules the head, of course, so here’s to all of us being able to stand upside down in some way in our lives and turn our view of this whole world on its head.
Onwards! What a week we have ahead of us.
Footnotes:
(1) Huffington Post
(2) I first starting looking at composite charts for an individual and an event after reading an article called “A New Way of Forecasting: The Composite Transit Chart,” by Robin Heath, in Aug./Sept. 1999 TMA. (That issue is, unfortunately, sold out.)