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Astrology of Profession or Calling | 4. Jimi Hendrix

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Introduction

Today is the birthday of Mr. John Allen Hendrix, aka Jimi Hendrix.  I’m a big fan, particularly of his final album, Electric Ladyland.  I’ll be doing the normal very brief profession analysis below. Additionally, I’ll conclude with some notes about indications for character (personality) in the chart.

Profession or Calling

Here, I apply a special technique for delineating profession, or perhaps more accurately, skills development. It originated in the Hellenistic period of astrology with developments and modifications through the medieval period.  The reader is referred to the brief outline of the technique which can be found here, “Astrology of Profession or Calling | 1. Technique“. You should first familiarize yourself with that article to better understand my delineation process and the significance I assign to the planets.

Jimi Hendrix

A brief biography for Jimi Hendrix can be found on Wikipedia. His chart is given a Rodden Rating of AA for accuracy on Astro-Databank. Hendrix’s natal chart is pictured below (CTRL+click to open an expanded version in a new tab).

Jimi Hendrix’s Natal Chart

Relevance to Actions

First, we identify the planets with some pertinence to “actions”.

Places:

Venus, the Sun, and Mercury are in the 1st, and Saturn is in the 7th.  Additionally, the Moon and Jupiter are in the 8th, which is less relevant. No planet advances toward the MC. Mars is in XII so is not relevant by place. Therefore, Mercury and Venus are most relevant by place.

Rulership:

Mercury rules the 10th and is in the 1st.  Venus rules the sign and bound of the MC. Additionally, Venus is the 1st triplicity ruler of the 10th and is in the 1st. Mars has no rulership of the 1st, only triplicity at the 10th, and no rulership of the MC. Therefore, Mercury and Venus have the most relevance by rulership.

Phasis and the Lights:

No planets in phasis.  Mercury and Venus are assembled with the Sun.  Jupiter is assembled with the Moon.  The Moon is separating from Jupiter and applying to Mercury. Mars has no regard from the Sun but is overcome by the Moon. Overall, Mercury has the strongest relationship with the Lights, followed by Venus.

Relevance Conclusion

Mercury and Venus have the most relevance to actions. They are together so their combined significations are particularly important. The Moon, the Sun, and Jupiter have lesser relevance.

Prominence

Secondly, we identify the planets that are strongest in a general way in the chart. These planets push their natural significations onto the life in a strong way

Advancing/Retreating:

There are no planets strongly advancing. However, Jupiter and the Moon are advancing with the greatest strength.  Mars is advancing to a lesser extent and the rest of the planets are retreating.

Relationships to Lights:

No planets in phasis.  As noted, Mercury has the strongest relationship with the Lights, followed by Venus. Additionally, of the other planets, Jupiter has the strongest relationship to the Lights.

Stationing:

No planetary stations.

Prominence Conclusion

Jupiter is the strongest planet.  The Moon is also very strong.  Mercury is the most prominent planet of the three of actions as it is in the 1st with the Sun and receives the application of the Moon.

Synthesis of Occupation for Jimi Hendrix

As in Trent Reznor’s chart, we see that Mercury and Venus are the most relevant for characterizing the profession and are combined. As mentioned in that post, this pair combine the intricacy, intellect, and wind/verbalization features of Mercury with the artistry of Venus.  It is common for music, a profession pertaining to artistry in sound waves (wind), but particularly with singing (air, verbalization), as well as composition/arrangement of songs. Furthermore, Mercury can pertain to digits and manual dexterity, so fingered string instruments are another indication.

In relation to Venus as significator of mastery, al-Qabisi noted, “And she signifies the mastery of all sounds, like music and the rest” (Dykes, 2010, p. 254).  Additionally, al-Qabisi noted, “And if Mercury is complected to her, it signifies the sound which is used in the composition of verses” (Dykes, 2010, p. 255).

Modern Day Apollo

Venus and Mercury are on either sides of the Sun, both of them conjunct the Sun within 3 degrees. Interestingly, when it comes to music, the Sun is most associated with stringed instruments. For instance, the Sun god Apollo’s symbol is the lyre. Here we find intellect, verbalization, beauty, and artistry, joined with and outshone by the dynamic Apollo and his lyre. Furthermore, al-Qabisi noted, “And if the Sun is complected to her [Venus], it signifies the sound of wood [Dykes footnote: “Ar.: ‘the lute.'”] by which one plays in the presence of kings and nobles” (Dykes, 2010, p. 255).

Jupiter and Character

The 1st house cluster is in the sign and bound of Jupiter. Jupiter may be the most prominent planet in the chart.  Additionally, Jupiter is the planet most relevant to character. Jupiter is relevant to character in at least five important ways.

First, Jupiter rules the 1st house. Lords of the 1st house of self were commonly used for character (see Masha-allah and Abu’Ali al-Khayyat). Second, Jupiter is the house and bound ruler of Mercury. Mercury and its Lords were also used for character (see Ptolemy, Masha’allah, Abu’Ali al-Khayyat).  Third, Jupiter is the house and bound ruler of the sect light, the Sun. The sect light has a signifies prominently in the life (particularly when in a “stake” like the 1st), and it is colored by its rulers. Fourth, Jupiter is assembled with the Moon and the exalted ruler of their house. The Moon signified the irrational mind and the body to Ptolemy, and was used in character delineation.  Fifth, it’s generally a strong and pervasive planet, advancing, conjunct the Moon, exalted, and in its own bound. Abu Bakr stressed the impact of prominent planets on character.

Jovial

The English adjective “jovial” literally means “of Jupiter”. It denotes one who is jolly and cheerful.  Jupiter tends to pertain to “out of bounds” and lofty experiences of adventure, spirituality, good fortune, exaggeration, or insight.

On Jupiter as ruler of the chart and primary indicator of character, Julius Firmicus Maternus (4th century CE) noted (Bram, 1972, p. 139):

9. JUPITER. Those who have Jupiter as ruler of the chart are always trustworthy, of high spirit, and are impelled toward great deeds.  They spend more than their resources or their inheritance allows.  Commanding in all their acts, noble, famous, honorable, lovers of luxury, cheerful, desiring to please in every way, large eaters, faithful friends, they are simple and friendly to all; successful and accustomed to do everything well.

10. Their body is of middle size but well-formed, handsome, and they are light-complexioned.  Of beautiful eyes and head, with long flowing hair; firm of step.  Their life will be glorious and filled with good fortune and they attain their desires.  Their activities turn out well, and they are protected by the influence of great men […] Their illnesses come from stomach trouble, from wine and from indigestion; death comes from high living, hemorrhoids, or sexual intercourse.

Further Reading

For more on Hendrix, including a look at a few key events in his life with predictive techniques, please see the article on the houses.

References

Ma’shar, A., & Al-Qabisi. (2010). Introductions to Traditional Astrology. (B. N. Dykes, Trans.). Minneapolis, MN: The Cazimi Press.

Maternus, J. F. (1972). Mathesis: A fourth-century astrological treatise. (J. R. Bram, Trans.). NY, NY: New York University.

Image Attribution
Jimi Hendrix – One by MadeInKobaia, retrieved from MadeInKobaia’s DeviantArt page. Cropped image.

Astrology of Profession or Calling | 3. Steve Jobs & Bill Gates

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The Astrology of Two Tech Titans

Let’s look at the astrology of tech entrepreneurs Steve Jobs and Bill Gates. Their operating systems, Apple and Microsoft, continue to dominate the world computer market and made them both billionaires. Given the similarity of their professional paths and their rivalry, it seems fitting to analyze profession in both of their charts together.

I apply an ancient astrological technique for delineating profession. It originated in Hellenistic astrology. The reader is referred to the brief outline of the technique in the first article, “Astrology of Profession or Calling | 1. Technique“. Please read through that article so you understand the delineation process. Also, see the last article on the analysis of profession in the chart of musician Trent Reznor.

Mercurial Occupations and Martial Strategies

Technologists, businessmen, and scholars all share a strong emphasis on Mercury. Mercury is the planet of intellect, reason, speech, technology, and symbolism. We often (though not always) see a lot of overlap between academic prowess, technological proficiency, and financial acumen. For instance, the founders of Google, Larry Page and Sergey Brin are tech scholars turned business leaders. Entrepreneurship pertains to Mars, due to the heavy emphasis on strategy. Therefore, tech entrepreneurship is a matter that pertains to both Mercury and Mars.

Steve Jobs

A brief biography for Steve Jobs can be found on Wikipedia. His chart is given a Rodden Rating of AA for accuracy on Astro-Databank. His chart is pictured below (CTRL-Click to open an expanded version in a new tab).

Natal Chart – Steve Jobs

Relevance to Actions

  1. Places:

    The Sun is the only planet in a “stake” being in the 7th.  Mercury is in the 6th. Jupiter and Venus are in the 11th and 5th respectively.  Less pertinent are the Moon and Mars in the 8th. All three planets of action are in relevant places, so all have some thing to say about professional skills.

  2. Rulership:

    Mercury is the house ruler of both the 10th and the 1st, the 1st triplicity ruler of the 10th, and the exalted ruler of the 1st. Mars is bound ruler of both the Ascendant and MC. The other planets have less relevance as they all have only triplicity rulership in either the 1st or 10th, but not both. As both the 1st and 10th are houses of Mercury, Mercury has the most relevance. Mars has secondary relevance.

  3. Phasis and the Lights

    Mercury is in phasis, coming out from the beams less than a week before birth. Mercury is the planet receiving the next application of the Moon. Mars is assembled with the Moon. Again we see a particular emphasis on Mercury, with a lesser emphasis on Mars.

Relevance Conclusion

Mercury has the most relevance to actions. Of the three “actions” planets, Mars is next most significant.  The Sun is also significant in terms of professional matters. Venus, Jupiter, and the Moon are significant to a lesser degree.

Prominence

  1. Advancing/Retreating:

    The Moon is just about strongly advancing, while Jupiter and Venus are also advancing pretty forcefully. Mars is also advancing, while Mercury is just barely advancing.

  2. Relationships to Lights:

    Mercury is in phasis and is being applied to by the Moon. Mars is assembled with the Moon. Both Lights regard Jupiter and Venus.

  3. Stationing:

    Mercury is very strong, as it is stationing direct within 24 hours of birth.

Prominence Conclusion

Mercury is the strongest planet.  Mercury is stationing direct, in phasis, and is advancing. The Moon is also very strong, while Jupiter and Venus are to a lesser extent.

Steve Jobs Professional Indications

Mercury has the greatest testimony in matters of occupation and is the strongest planet of the chart in a general way. Intellectual development is most relevant to the occupation. This emphasizes technology and business.

An element of publicity (the Sun) is also extremely relevant to the profession. Competitiveness and public affairs are very relevant (Mars). There is also an important role that subjective experience plays (the Moon), which is reflected in his software and hardware design choices (ease of use). There is additionally pretty relevant development in terms of aesthetics (Venus).

Mercury in Depth

To keep things brief though, let’s focus on the primary planet of actions, Mercury. Mercury is in a human air sign, pertaining to social phenomena, like ideas, trends, news, education, and technology. Mercury is in a sign of Saturn and is dominated by Saturn (right-side square). Saturn is the out of sect malefic, so there are many negative associations with Mercury in terms of struggle, death, loss, oppression, and so forth, and Mercury is in the 6th of slaves (employees) and health issues, both of which were critical sore areas in Jobs’ life.  Saturn pertains to solidity, industry, and management, while it is in the 3rd which pertains to communication and transportation.  Mercury’s natural significance in terms of communication is increased and there is an increased association with business management and working with solid resources such as hardware.

Bill Gates

A brief biography for Bill Gates can be found on Wikipedia, and his chart is given a Rodden Rating of A for accuracy on Astro-Databank. His chart is pictured below (CTRL+click to open an expanded version in a new tab).

Natal Chart – Bill Gates

Relevance to Actions

  1. Places:

    The Moon is in the 10th, while Mars and Mercury are in a “stake” (the 4th).  Jupiter is in the 2nd.  The Sun, Venus, and Saturn are less relevant, being in the 5th.

  2. Rulership:

    The ruler of the 10th is Mars, while the Moon rules the 1st.  Mars and Jupiter have dignity in both places, but Jupiter more so.

  3. Phasis and the Lights:

    Mercury is in phasis, coming out from the beams just under a week before birth.  Mars is the planet receiving the next application of the Moon.  Venus and Saturn are also in phasis and assembled with the Sun.

Relevance Conclusion

Mars, Mercury, Venus, the Moon, and Jupiter have  relevance to actions. Of the three “actions” planets, Mars and Mercury are the most relevant and are together in the same sign. Both planets are in a stake of the 10th. Mars has dignity at the 10th and 1st, whereas Mercury does not, but Mercury is in phasis, so it is particularly highlighted. Venus is in appropriate place and in phasis so she has lesser relevance as well.

Prominence

  1. Advancing/Retreating:

    The Moon, Mars, and Mercury are strongly advancing.  All other planets in the chart are advancing to a lesser extent.

  2. Relationships to Lights:

    Mercury, Venus, and Saturn are in phasis.  The Moon applies to Mars.  Venus and Saturn are assembled with the Sun.  Jupiter regards both lights, and is in the home of the Sun.

  3. Stationing:

    Mercury is stationing direct.

Prominence Conclusion

Mercury is the strongest planet.  Mercury is stationing direct, in phasis, and is very strongly advancing.  Mars and the Moon are very strong in the chart. Venus is also quite strong.

Bill Gates Professional Indications

Mars has the greatest testimony in terms of occupation, while Mercury is stronger in the chart overall due to being in phasis, stationing direct, in a “stake” of the chart, and strongly advancing, all at the same.  Jupiter in the 2nd of wealth and possessions, as well as strong, is probably connected in some part to both Bill’s immense financial acumen and development of philanthropic pursuits as a vocation.  He is currently working full-time with his philanthropic organization, The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

The prominence of the Moon is very interesting, as Gates, like Jobs, worked primarily in adapting technology to natural human experience.  The strength of the Moon and Mercury, and the strong connection of the Moon with the 1st, give strong indications of his mental acuity. The Moon and Mercury were the two most important planets for mind or soul in Ptolemy’s astrology. The Moon also pertains strongly to the brain, memory, and intuition.

Mercury in Depth

As with Jobs, Mercury is in an Air sign, pertaining to more social phenomena. Mercury is in a sign of Venus and is assembled with Mars.  We might expect Mercury to pertain to design (Venus) and the military or domestic public affairs to some extent (Mars). In other words, we see a greater emphasis on involvement in meeting the demands of competitive business, military, and public affairs in this Mercury placement, and less on physical materials, than we do with the more Saturnine Mercury of Steve Jobs.

It is worth noting that the twelfth-part of Gates’ Mercury is in the Mercury bound of Aries, the 10th place. This further reinforces the importance of Mercury in his career and connects it with Mars.

Gates with Twelfth-Parts in Outer Wheel

Mars in Depth

Gates was able to secure great success for his company through aggressive strategy. At times his aggressive competitiveness became unethical as he sought to lock out competition, bringing on multiple controversial anti-trust suits. His management style was also known to be particularly harsh and abrasive. Mars is in Libra with Mercury, so many of the same associations with Mercury apply to Mars and they work together. He participated in the congressional Page program at age 17, so his involvement in public affairs came early and has persisted in his life.  In whole, his career has been centrally about beating competition and coming out ahead in power struggles. He was the wealthiest person in the world for 14 years and has persisted as one of the most powerful.

This technique with the chart of Bill Gates shows similar results as those for many very high-climbing politicians and industry leaders. For very socially mobile people, Mars does not show “brawn” so much as a development of competitiveness, strategy, and the desire to make a powerful impact on the lives of others.

Interestingly, Gates had some political experience at a young age. He was a congressional page for the House of Representatives at age 17. That same year he graduated high school as a National Merit Scholar, scored 1590 out of 1600 on his SAT, and enrolled in Harvard the same year. It was the year when Mars directed to the Ascendant by sextile and the Jupiter directed to the sect light (the Moon) by trine. If you are not familiar with primary directions, then please check out the introductory article on them.

Bill Gates Important Aspectual Primary Directions at Age 17

A Key Year: Microsoft Windows

There are a larger number of stand-out events in Gates’ life. Let’s look at one particularly pivotal year for him, age 30, which saw the launch of the first retail version of the Microsoft Windows operating system (on 11/20/1985).

Mercury as Distributor

The event occurred during the first time in Gates’ life in which Mercury was the distributor. Mercury was the distributor from early 1984 to mid-1992. This period saw the development, launch, and ascendancy of Microsoft’s flagship product, Windows.

Bill Gates – Distributors Ages 0-100

Saturn as Lord of the Year Conjunct Mercury

In terms of annual profections, age 30 is a 7th house year. Gates’ 7th house is Capricorn, so the lord of the year was its ruler, Saturn. In his natal chart, Saturn is in the 5th house of good fortune, conjunct the sect benefic, Venus, and dominated by the 2nd house Jupiter. In his solar return chart of the year, we see that the year marked his first Saturn return and that return Mercury was conjunct return Saturn and natal Saturn. Additionally, return Venus was conjunct his natal Mercury. Therefore, we see an emphasis both on Saturn (responsibility, authority, challenge, maturity, solidity) and on Mercury (technology, intellect, commerce), with fortunate circumstances linked to Mercury through Venus (the sect benefic).

1985 Solar Return Positions Marked on Outside of Bill Gates’ Natal Chart

Timing by Degree-Based Profections

In the article on degree-based profections, I noted that they can be used to time out big events in the year within a couple weeks. There are a number of very interesting profections involved with the release of Windows on 11/20/1985.

We’ve already discussed how important Mercury and Mars are for Gates’ career. Mercury and Mars are strongly advancing together, Mercury’s twelfth-part is in the 10th, and Mars is the ruler of the 10th.  Mercury is the distributor for the time period. We also must look at Saturn and Venus. The profection is to the 7th house ruled by Saturn, making Saturn lord of the year, and it is conjunct Venus. Saturn is also activated by planetary years at age 30, and Saturn was lord of days. The solar return emphasized those planets as well.

Bill Gates Natal Chart with Twelfth-Parts (outside wheel)

Take note of the following natal positions: Mars at 10 Libra, twelfth-part Ascendant at about 23 Taurus, and twelfth-part Mercury at 19 Aries. The rate of change for degree-based profection is 2.5 per month. About 3/4 of a month had elapsed since the solar return, amounting to just under 2 degrees. It was a 7th house profection, so the year starts with all points opposite their natal positions. Therefore, every point in the natal chart would have profected to the opposite degrees as its natal position plus about 2 degrees.

Bill Gates 11-20-1985 Profections

The following profectional conjunctions are within a degree at the time of Windows release: profected Moon conjoins natal Mars; profected Saturn conjoins natal twelfth-part Ascendant; profected Mercury conjoins natal twelfth-part Mercury.

Conclusion

Both Bill Gates and Steve Jobs have Mercury and Mars as the most relevant planets for actions. While both were technologists (Mercury), they were also both leaders engaged in highly competitive strategy and public affairs (Mars). The combination of Mercury and Mars is also evocative of electronics themselves. The emphasis on air signs in both charts gears things toward the more human and ephemeral (software) as well as the utilitarian and trendy.

With Steve Jobs we see Saturn play a stronger role, both in terms of a greater focus on the physical (hardware) and in terms of the more pertinent career struggles. Bill Gates highlights the more important role of Mars, where the emphasis is more on the competitive advantage and being number one.

Image Attribution

Featured image by Joi Ito from Inbamura, Japan [CC BY 2.0], via Wikimedia Commons

2018 Update

Note that this article was updated in late 2018 (October-December) with some additional information on twelfth-parts in the charts and the addition of the example of the release of Windows.

Astrology of Profession or Calling | 2. Trent Reznor

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The Astrology of Profession

In the first post of this series, I explained an ancient technique for finding the significator of the profession in the birth chart. I will apply the technique in this series of articles, so please first get acquainted with it by reading the initial article.  Now, let’s explore the astrology of profession in the chart of Trent Reznor, and how it relates to the music of Nine Inch Nails.

Trent Reznor

Trent Reznor is a musician, primarily involved with vocals and electronic composition.  Lately, he has been involved with major film soundtracks, including that for “The Social Network” and the “The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo”.

A brief biography for Trent Reznor can be found on Wikipedia. His chart is given a Rodden Rating of A on Astro-Databank (note: Astrodatabank’s biography of him has some factual inaccuracies).  His chart is pictured below (CTRL-Click to open an expanded version in a new tab).

Reznor’s Natal Chart

Thinking in Terms of Planets

As an artist, we can expect Venus to play a major role in matters of profession.  Vocals, as well as composition, are areas of music particularly pertinent to Mercury due to Mercury’s associations to verbalizing and intellectualism, respectively. Mercury also pertains to technology which plays a strong role in his music. His particular style is characteristically dark, with strong themes of pain, oppression, death, and control – things typical of the domain of Saturn. The style is also aggressive and industrial, things associated with Mars.

Finding the Professional Indicators

Before analyzing the profesional indicators, let’s briefly review the technique. The technique involves finding planets with more pertinence or “testimony” regarding “actions”, which involves the Mars, Venus, Mercury, the 10th place, and the Lights. We also look at general indications of planetary strength. The factors and basics are from Hellenistic and Persian astrology.

Relevance to Actions

  1. Places:

    No planets in the 10th or its “stakes”.  In terms of the 2nd and 6th, Venus and Jupiter are most pertinent, as they’re in the 6th.  Mercury and the Sun are relevant by this factor because they are in the 5th. Therefore, of the three planets of action, we look to Venus and Mercury.

  2. Rulership:

    The ruler of the 10th place is Venus, which is also a triplicity ruler of the Ascendant. The only planet with a stronger relationship to both the 1st and 10th is Saturn. Jupiter is the bound ruler of the Ascendant (and Mars is the bound ruler of the MC).  Mercury does not have rulership at the Ascendant but is the first triplicity lord of the 10th. Therefore, between Venus and Mercury, Venus has more important forms of rulership at the 10th place and the Ascendant.

  3. Phasis and the Lights:

    No planets are in phasis. Venus is nearly so, as she is moving out from the beams. Mars is the bound ruler of the sect light.

Relevance Conclusion

Venus has the most relevance to actions. Mercury is also significant. Note that Venus is in the place of the Lot of Fortune and Mercury rules the place, providing lesser indications. Jupiter, the Sun, and Saturn may also relate to the profession, though they are not among the three planets of actions.

Reznor’s Natal Chart

Prominence

  1. Advancing/Retreating:

    Mercury is conjunct an angle within 3*, so I consider it advancing in the strongest sense. All of the planets, aside from the Moon, are advancing, but the Sun is the next most advancing behind Mercury.

  2. Relationships to Lights:

    There are no planets in phasis. The Moon is applying to Mercury and had separated from Saturn. Mercury is assembled with the Sun. Saturn and Mars are the only planets regarded by both Lights. Therefore, Mercury has the strongest relationship with the lights.

  3. Stationing:

    There are no stations.

Prominence Conclusion

Mercury is by far the most prominent planet.  The Sun and Saturn also have prominence. Therefore, we expect Mercurial significations to crop up strongly in all areas of life. Mercury signifies rationality, intellect. technology, complexity, vocalization, language, and all forms of exchange.

Synthesizing Venus and Mercury

Venus is the planet with the most testimony regarding this matter but Mercury is the strongest planet of the chart and has some testimony with regards to actions.  Therefore, we take both Mercury and Venus.  Venus is viewed more in terms of the types of actions the native would like to be involved in as a calling due to her greater overall relevance. However, Mercury is the type of skill development that tends to dominate and get the most attention due to his generally powerful and pervasive influence in the life.  We expect a desire for artistic work with a strong intellectual, technological, and/or verbal component (in this case, all three).

That Venus is in a house of Mercury (Gemini) and Mercury in a house of Venus (Taurus) further stresses the mutuality of both, rather than them being totally separate skill sets.  In fact, Mercury is in the term of Venus also, and is in the 5th house, the Joy of Venus. The 5th house pertains to children as well as other forms of creative output (performance, works).  It is as if these planets keep evoking each other and looking for new ways to serve each other.

Venus in Depth

Further delineation of Venus finds that she is in the domicile of Mercury.  She is naturally fortunate as she’s a benefic and she’s in sect. Her fortune is enhanced by her assembly with Jupiter, location in Jupiter’s term, and the regard of the sect light, the Moon.  However, she is also in the 6th, dominated by Saturn and square to Mars, so she is strongly connected with malefic themes.

The themes which Venus connects with are the most prominent themes of Nine Inch Nail’s music. The strong associations of Venus with Mercury pertain to lyrics, vocals, programming, and a rational orientation. Venus is in an air and human sign, Gemini, so music (air art) and technology are fitting. The duality of the sign indicates an orientation toward playing two roles (singer, programmer/instrumentalist). The themes of the music relate strongly to her place and aspects, from her location in the 6th place, a bad place associated with slaves, accidents, and disease, to her associations with dark Saturn and violent Mars.

Saturn and the Self

Venus is colored by Saturn, lord of death, darkness, loss, and oppression, and Saturn has a strong association with the character and identity of Reznor. Saturn rules Capricorn, the 1st place of the self, so the planet of doubt, dread, death, and darkness makes its mark on Trent’s appearance and self-identification. An out of sect Saturn is particularly malefic. Venus is dominated by Saturn (right-side square) so themes of constriction, abuse, and bondage connected with sex and beauty are symbolized.

While an aside, it is interesting that Saturn is in the third place of siblings. When Reznor’s parents divorced he went to live with his grandparents and was separated from his sister who lived with their mother. The Moon (mother) in the 12th house of oppression dominates Saturn and the third house of siblings. Much more could be said about Saturn and the self but the focus of this article is on professional matters.

Mars in the House of God

Saturn, the ruler of the self, is strongly opposed by Mars in the 9th house of God, and both are in the stakes of Venus. The symbolism is of a violent God (Mars in the 9th) oppressing one who is despairing, doubtful, and downtrodden (Saturn as lord of the 1st). However, there is also a strong identification with Mars, as Mars is the exalted ruler of Capricorn and a triplicity ruler. The Saturn-Mars configuration connects strongly with the self and with Venus, so we see its autobiographical role in the art. The struggle with truth, doubt, and the trespasses of religion are frequent themes in the music of Nine Inch Nails.

Mercury in Depth

Mercury is in the domicile, term, triplicity, and Joy of Venus. Therefore, Mercury (communication, intellect, reason) is strongly directed to the arts (Venus). Matters associated with a Mercury have a strong and pervasive effect on the life. Mercury is determined most directly to creative works (5th place, Joy of Venus). Saturn overcomes Mercury by sextile and is assembled with the Sun, so there is both a sense of strong duty and discipline associated with Mercury and of publicity and achievement. The 9th place of God is ruled by Mercury, so there is a rational and utilitarian outlook on higher truth.

Birth of Nine Inch Nails

Pretty Hate Machine was released in October 1989 and was Reznor’s first album as Nine Inch Nails. Reznor was 24 years old. Therefore, in terms of annual profections, the album was released during a 1st house year, with Capricorn, and its ruler Saturn active. It was a pivotal year in terms of defining his identity as Nine Inch Nails.

As the cycle of Jupiter is 12 years and that of Venus is 8 years, both Jupiter and Venus are activated at 24 years (see planetary years). Additionally, both were undergoing their returns at his solar return for the year. In fact, the solar return for 1989 had Venus, Jupiter, and Mercury all together in Gemini. This highlighted the year as one in which their combined significations would come together. Additionally, Saturn was transiting through Capricorn, the first house, further highlighting the year as key to the Saturnine aspect of the identity. There was even a Mars-Saturn opposition at the time, mirroring that theme in his chart.

1989 Solar Return Transits (outer) to Birth Chart (inner)

1987-1992: Nine Inch Nails is Born

The primary directions of the Ascendant are very interesting for the period. We see his musical path become more defined in later 1987 and early 1988 when Venus aspects the directed Ascendant. The first Nine Inch Nails album is recorded in 1988, and re-recorded in 1989, and released in 1989. Broken is also recorded in early 1992. For the recording of both of these pivotal albums, the directed Ascendant was in the bound of Venus in Aquarius. In other words, the distributor, the planet that is most strongly activated in terms of life events, is Venus, his primary lord of actions.

Reznor Primary Directions of the Ascendant 1987-1997

Late 1992-1997: Peak Success

Interestingly, the peak success in his career came from late 1992 to 1997, with release of Broken (1992) and the Downward Spiral (1994). This was a period in which Jupiter was the distributor. Jupiter is conjunct Venus in his natal chart signifying fortunate circumstances related to Venus.

Conclusion

I hope you enjoyed this brief look at the professional indicators in the chart of Trent Reznor. In future articles in this series, we will continue to explore matters of profession in the astrological chart.

Note: This article was significantly expanded and revised in April 2018.

Image Attribution

Featured image of Trent Reznor (cropped) by Rob Sheridan (Trent Reznor, February, 2008 (Press Photo)) [CC BY-SA 2.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

Astrology of Religion, Atheism, and Belief | 8. Pope John Paul II

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Introduction

This article continues the series on examining religion, faith, or lack of such in the astrological chart. In the last article, we looked at the chart of an atheist, Arthur Schopenhauer. In this article we turn to the chart of a religious leader, Pope John Paul II. The ingredients and recipes for this type of analysis can be found in the first article, on James Randi. The basics were reviewed with additional comments in a few articles back, on Madalyn Murray O’Hair.

Pope John Paul II

Pope John Paul II was the last pope before the current Pope Benedict XVI.  He was one of the more tolerant and well-liked popes. He encouraged interfaith dialog, in pretty sharp contrast to the current pope (Pope Benedict) who has made public derogatory remarks about other religions.  Pope John Paul II also heavily engaged in that other 9th House activity, travel.  You can check out his biography on Wikipedia by clicking here.  His natal chart is below, and has been given a Rodden Rating of A.

Pope John Paul II’s Birth Chart

Pope John Paul II’s Chart Analyzed in Brief

Jupiter:

Extremely strong

Jupiter is extremely strong, strongly advancing on the MC.  That Jupiter is overcome by the Moon, dominated by the Sun, and in the domicile of the sect light, The Sun, also confers strength and prominence.

Extremely benefic

Jupiter is naturally benefic, and here is in sect, in perhaps the most benefic place, the 11th (the Joy of Jupiter).  It is also dominated by the benefic Venus, and overcome by the Moon by sextile.

Notes on Jupiter

Jupiter is one of the strongest planets in the chart, and the most benefic.  Lofty spirituality has a profound influence over the life, and is associated with very fortunate matters.  While Jupiter is only a triplicity ruler of the Ascendant, there is still likely to be a strong identification with Jupiter because Jupiter dominates the Ascendant and has some dignity there. Additionally, the domicile and exaltation rulers (Venus and Saturn) are both in aversion to (i.e. don’t regard) the Ascendant (i.e. less direct access to the self).  Jupiter, Venus, and Mars, all have a strong effect on the character.

9th Place:

Very strong, Lunar and Mercurial

The 9th, Gemini, is ruled by Mercury.  Most importantly, the Moon is in the 9th, bringing much prominence to matters of the 9th.  The ruler of the 9th, Mercury, is advancing and in phasis, so is very strong also.

Quite benefic, some mixed indications

The benefic Moon is in the 9th.  The ruler Mercury is also benefic overall, despite being in a bad place (the 8th), as Mercury is in sect and conjunct Venus (as well as ruled by Venus).  Saturn squares the 9th, so more negative associations can also be present, particularly with Saturn’s activation.

Notes on the 9th Place

Matters of belief are very prominent in the life, and overall associated with fortunate happenings.  The 9th is most directly Lunar (powerfully and vividly subjective, personal, even irrational).  The 9th is also quite Mercurial, and in fact, John Paul II put a strong emphasis on reason during his papacy. He drew on St. Thomas Aquinas in stressing how reason and faith can be mutually supportive of each other.  The Moon is the natural significator of journeys in ancient astrology. Mercury also pertains to movement. Therefore, it is little wonder that the association of the Moon and Mercury with the 9th signified such a globe-trotting pope (9th pertains to travel as well as religion).

Saturn:

Mildly strong

Saturn is mildly strong, as it is advancing, though also cadent.  However, Saturn is arguably the weakest planet in the chart, as it is the only cadent planet.

Quite mixed, somewhat malefic

Saturn is naturally a malefic so will indeed have some negative significations, particularly as it is in the 12th place.  However, Saturn is in sect and is overcome by trine by Venus, as well as overcome by both Lights, so we can expect things to be quite mixed overall.

Notes on Saturn

Saturn’s significations are not nearly so strong as those of Jupiter, nor of most of the other planets in the chart.  However, Saturn does make itself felt, and with mixed results.  Saturn is the exalted ruler of the Ascendant, but we don’t expect as much identification with Saturn because Saturn doesn’t regard the Ascendant.

Mercury:

Quite strong

Mercury is advancing, and is in phasis, so Mercury is quite strong.

Somewhat benefic

As mentioned, Mercury is overall benefic because it is in sect and assembled with a benefic.  There may be some difficult associations on occasion due to the fact that Mercury occupies the 8th, which is a bad place.

Notes on Mercury

There is not a strong identification with Mercury, but there is a little bit of one, as Mercury is a triplicity ruler of the Ascendant and is conjunct the Ascendant Lord, Venus.  Mercury is quite strong, and has mostly benefic associations, so there may be an overall pleasant relationship with rational intellectualism.

Conclusion

In conclusion, Pope John Paul II, like most religious leaders, had an extremely strong Jupiter, an emphasis on 9th house matters, and a relatively out-of-focus Saturn.  Through the Lunar and Mercurial characterization of the 9th, we see the stress on humanity and reason which characterized his particular brand of religion. The association of the Moon and Mercury (the swift planets) with the 9th also reflects his propensity for nearly constant travel.

Featured Image Attribution:

Image (cropped) by José Cruz/Abr – Agência Brasil

Astrology of Religion, Atheism, and Belief | 7. Arthur Schopenhauer

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Introduction

The ingredients and recipes for this type of analysis can be found in the first article of the series. The basics were reviewed with additional comments in the article on Madalyn Murray O’Hair.

Arthur Schopenhauer

Schopenhauer’s beliefs were quite complex. Belief played a major role in his life.  While he was an atheist, he was also heavily influenced by Eastern religious thought. You can check out his biography on Wikipedia by clicking here.  His natal chart is below, and has been given a Rodden Rating of AA.

Schopenhauer’s Birth Chart

Schopenhauer’s Chart Analyzed in Brief

Jupiter:

Very weak

Jupiter is retreating and cadent, so it is very weak.

Mixed, somewhat benefic

Jupiter is naturally benefic. Here it is in sect and overcome by Venus by sextile, so Jupiter has positive significations. However, Jupiter is in a bad place (the 12th) and is dominated by Saturn (right-side square) so there are negative significations with Jupiter as well.

Notes on Jupiter

Jupiter is the weakest planet in the chart. There is not a pervasive influence of spiritual expansion and positivity in Schopenhauer’s life.  However, there is some identification with Jupiter as it is the exalted ruler of the Ascendant. Jupiter overall signifies fortunate matters in the life, but it is not a prominent influence and has many negative associations. Additionally, Jupiter is dominated by the planet of doubt. 

9th Place:

Very strong and Saturnine, Solar, Mercurial, and Jupiterian

The 9th, Pisces, is ruled by Jupiter.  However, planets in the place will have a more direct effect on the place’s dealings. The presence of a Light, the Sun, in the 9th (the Joy of the Sun) is enough to make the 9th very strong. One signification of the Sun in the 9th can be in terms of honors and achievement related to matters of belief (religion, philosophy, science).  Saturn and Mercury are also in the 9th, characterizing it as a place of much doubt, skepticism, and intellectualism.  Jupiter rules the 9th, so there is a sense of religion and spirituality influencing the 9th in more of an overall sense. Therefore, the 9th is very prominent and very complex.

Benefic

While Saturn is in the 9th, it’s in sect, in a good place.  Having the sect light (the Sun) in the 9th, Jupiter ruling the 9th, and both Jupiter and the Moon in stakes of the 9th, makes this place a place of very positive significations in this life.

Notes on the 9th Place

The 9th is a very complex and prominent place in this life. Overall it signifies very fortunate circumstances that arise in the life. Doubt (Saturn), Achievement/heroism (Sun), and Intellectualism (Mercury) very directly impact matters of belief in Schpenhauer’s life, but there is an overall influence of religion and spirituality (Jupiter) upon these matters.

Saturn:

Strong 

Saturn is very strong, despite being combust and in a cadent place. It is strong because it is not only Strongly Advancing but actually conjunct the MC within 2 degrees.

Somewhat benefic

Saturn is naturally a mafefic so will indeed have some negative significations, but Saturn is in sect and in a good place, the 9th. Therefore, Saturn signified some fortunate matters in Schopenhauer’s life.

Notes on Saturn

Saturn is a very prominent and pervasive influence in Schopenhauer’s life. It is particularly strong in relation to belief.  Saturn is made somewhat benefic, so is not necessarily inclined to connect a lot of destructiveness and fear with matters of belief. However, Saturn will add considerable skepticism and critical thinking (more common among scientific seekers of truth than religious seekers).  The strength of the 9th and its beneficence shows considerable comfort with matters of belief and attainment of wisdom.

Mercury:

Strong

Mercury is strongly advancing, so while combust and in a cadent place, it still is strong overall.

Mixed, somewhat malefic

Mercury is somewhat malefic due to being out of sect and assembled with Saturn, but Mercury is in a good place and is naturally neutral, so Mercury’s capacity to signify unfortunate matters is limited.

Notes on Mercury

Interestingly there is not a strong identification with Mercury, the planet of intellectualism, though Mercury does have a strong influence upon affairs in the life.  There may even be some degree of negative association with intellectualism due to Mercury’s capacity to signify unpleasant or unfortunate states of affairs.

Conclusion

Schopenhauer is considered to have been an atheist. He was critical of religion and objected to the notion that a god or gods created this world.  However, he was not an outspoken atheist in the sense of actively speaking out against religion and all things supernatural.  Rather, Schopenhauer was strongly influenced by the Upanishads and Buddhism, and strongly advocated compassion. The Full Moon in its Joy in the 3rd, also reflects a component of the belief connected with powerful vivid subjective experience.

As typical of those who are skeptically inclined and averse to uncritical and/or jubilant spirituality, he had a very strong Saturn and a Jupiter that was not prominent (actually, quite weak).  Additionally, his 9th place  and Jupiter were both under the strong influence of Saturn.  Mercury was also quite strong.  However, what made Schopenhauer so complicated on these grounds is that the prominence of the 9th place with all of its pessimism, intellectualism, and achievement, appeared to nevertheless evoke a spiritual purpose and sense of goodness. This is shown in part through Jupiter’s rulership of the 9th house. Additionally, Schopenhauer probably identified more with this Jupiter truth-seeking than with doubt or intellectualism.

Astrology of Religion, Atheism, and Belief | 6. Billy Graham

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An Astrology of Religion?

Is a predisposition toward belief or doubt shown in the astrological chart? In this series on the astrology of religion, we have explored the charts of a number of famous believers and doubters. In each chart we look for signs of belief and doubt. Here we explore the astrology of religion in the chart of Billy Graham, the famous evangelist.

The ingredients and recipes for this type of analysis can be found in the first post of the series, which you can view here. The relevant factors were reviewed with additional comments in the last article of the series, on Madalyn Murray O’Hair.

Billy Graham

Billy Graham is one of the most prominent Christian evangelists.  You can check out his biography on Wikipedia by clicking here.  His natal chart is below, and has been given a Rodden Rating of AA.

Billy Graham’s Natal Chart

Billy Graham’s Central Belief Indications

Jupiter:

Quite strong

Jupiter is strongly advancing in the chart and is in an angle/”stake” of the chart.  However, Jupiter did station retrograde 4-5 days before birth which is somewhat weakening to it.  When a planet is strongly advancing it is as if the volume is cranked very high on the planet in the person’s life. The planet’s significations are powerful and pervasive, touching upon all areas of life. Therefore, this Jupiter is quite strong.

Extremely benefic

Jupiter is naturally benefic, and here it is in sect, in a good place, and scrutinized by the Sun (by trine). The Sun is the sect light, so it provides a benefic influence and it confers power and prominence (making Jupiter even more prominent because of its close connection).  Additionally, Jupiter is trine Venus (with Venus applying to Jupiter).  There are no major indicators of maleficence for Jupiter, so it is very benefic.

Notes on Jupiter

Jupiter is one of the most prominent planets in the chart (the Moon, and to a lesser extent Mars, are also very prominent).  There is also an identification with Jupiter. This self-identification is because of Jupiter’s strong connections with the Ascendant which symbolizes the self in the chart. Jupiter is the term ruler and triplicity ruler of the Ascendant, regards the 1st Place, and rules the Lord of the 1st (Mars).  Religious identification is strong, and religion represents almost purely good things in this person’s life.

Billy Graham’s Natal Chart (Ctrl-click to enlarge)

The 9th Place:

Extremely strong and Lunar, Martian, and Jupiterian

The 9th place, Sagittarius, is ruled by Jupiter, characterizing it as open and expansive in orientation. Planets in a place have a more direct effect on the place’s dealings. The planet ruling a place provides a more overall characterization.  The presence of a Light, the Moon, in the 9th is enough to make the 9th very strong.  That the ruler of the Ascendant, Mars, is in the 9th, makes the 9th even stronger, and very strongly tied to this person’s sense of self.  Additionally, the Moon is within 5 degrees of the MC, thus is quite prominent, and Mars being tightly conjunct the Moon and just over 5 degrees from the MC, is also quite strong.  Jupiter rules the 9th, and again is quite strong.  Rarely do we see such a prominent 9th house, and one so strongly tied to the individual.

Mixed, somewhat benefic

–The benefic Moon is in the 9th, and the most benefic planet in the chart, Jupiter, rules the 9th, so there are strong associations of the 9th with beneficence.  However, the out of sect malefic, Mars, is also in the 9th, and both Mars and the Moon are overcome and scrutinized (in this case a right-side trine) by Saturn.  Saturn is not the ruler of the 9th, nor is Saturn in an angle or stake of the 9th, so the 9th is not Saturnine in nature though.

Notes on the 9th Place

The 9th is Lunar (powerfully and vividly subjective, personal, even irrational) and Mars-y (competitive, contentious, aggressive), in sometimes unpleasant or difficult ways. However, its overall characterization is that of religious and spiritual expansiveness (Jupiter).  There is extreme self-identification with matters of belief, and Jupiter plays a major role in the belief-system.

Billy Graham’s Natal Chart (Ctrl-click to enlarge)

Saturn:

Somewhat weak

Saturn is arguably the weakest planet in the chart (Venus is also very weak).  The Moon and Mars are conjunct the MC, Jupiter is strongly advancing, and the other planets are advancing (Mercury is also in phasis). However, Saturn is just barely advancing, with no other major strength indications.

Quite mixed, somewhat benefic

Saturn is naturally a malefic so will indeed have some negative significations, but Saturn is in sect and in a very good place, the 5th place. It is also being scrutinized by the Moon by trine. These are all indications that Saturn can also have positive significations. However, Saturn is also scrutinized by Mars by trine (in fact, exactly), showing maleficence.  Therefore, we have quite a broad range for whether Saturn’s significations are more positive or negative.  A fair characterization would be to say that Saturn overall serves to improve life circumstances, but in ways that are constrictive or challenging.

Notes on Saturn

Saturn’s significations are not prominent in Billy Graham’s life, nor does he really identify with them.  Saturn has little influence on matters of belief, but does characterize some of the planets with direct influence on belief as more Saturnine.  Overall, Saturn is more geared towards its positive significations (duty, tradition, discipline, tangibility), than negative ones (fear, depression, death, loss).

Billy Graham’s Natal Chart (Ctrl-click to enlarge)

Mercury:  

Somewhat strong

Mercury is just barely advancing, but Mercury is in phasis, so Mercury has some strength.

Malefic

Mercury is somewhat malefic in the chart, as Mercury is neutral, and so easily swayed, and here Mercury is out of sect, in a bad place (the 8th), and dominated by Saturn, which scrutinizes it (right-side square within 3 degrees).  Mercury is assembled with Venus and overcome by Jupiter though, so we expect some positive associations with Mercury also.

Notes on Mercury

There is not an identification with Mercury’s significations as Mercury neither rules, nor even regards, the 1st place.  Intellectualism and communications have a somewhat strong influence upon the life, but they also have primarily negative associations in the person’s life.  Mercury’s assemblage with Venus may show an artistry with communication, or a “way with words”, and Mercury’s ruler is in the 9th of belief, putting Mercury in its service.

Billy Graham in 1966

Strong Spiritual Belief with Crusading Energy

In conclusion, Billy Graham has one of the most belief-oriented natal charts one can find.  Doubt and intellectualism are eclipsed by a strong personal relationship with belief systems (Jupiter and the 9th), and a pervasive spiritual influence (Jupiter), particularly upon matters of belief.  We also see a strong Mars influence upon belief that is characteristic of evangelizing or “crusading” for one’s beliefs (even characteristic of crusaders for atheism).

Image attributions: 

Featured image is in the public domain.

Chart images produced using Morinus software.

Billy Graham in 1966 is in the public domain. 

Astrologers Should Be on Diaspora* | RIP Ilya Zhitomirskiy

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What is Diaspora*?

As a long-time user and fervent advocate of the leading open-source, privacy-aware, social network, Diaspora*, I was recently very shaken by the death of Ilya Zhitomirskiy.  Ilya was one of the four original founders of the project and a core developer.  He died this past Saturday.  The cause of death is believed to have been suicide though it has not yet been conclusively confirmed.

Diaspora* is a rather young social network, making its debut in November of 2010. As of this writing it is still in Alpha.  Many people are familiar with the even newer Google+ and its use of “Circles”.  However, few know that Diaspora* had such a feature from its very launch, called “Aspects”. Aspects operate in a similar, if not easier-to-use, fashion.  Diaspora* is spreading by word of mouth, as the project is donation funded.  It was started by four NYU college students with a desire to make a social network that didn’t operate like a panopticon.

What’s wrong with other social networks?

Other social networks like Facebook and Google+ are wielded by multi-billion-dollar multi-national corporations. These corporations use these networks to build a centralized database of our lives.  Multiple controversies have arisen with these corporations over their use of our information. Their data is often openly accessible to government agencies with specialized interfaces. They enable surveillance, profiling, and identity theft on a scale hitherto unknown. These popular social networks are the most effective panopticons of all time, putting everyone in a position to socialize about any and everything together. While we do this we supply personal photographs, videos, and information in a convenient ready-for-database form. We do this without any way of knowing if others are monitoring and what others are doing with this information.

Why Diaspora*?

The founders of Diaspora* set out to make a social network that was quite different.  Their social network demonstrates a commitment to privacy, decentralization, community ownership, and freedom of speech.

Privacy

Privacy features like “Aspects” are built-in and prominent so you can be sure that what you say is seen only by the connections you specify. Additionally, the network is decentralized, such that anyone (with the property equipment and know-how) can host the software of the network themselves.  Each instance is called a “pod” and seamlessly connects to all of the other pods on the network.  Diaspora* is not located in any one place on the net, such as diaspora.com, but rather is located at any domain hosting a pod.  The founders’ pod is Join Diaspora, but is invite only. However, there has been an outcropping of more and more pods allowing instant public joining as well. These include Diasp.org (which I’m on) and Poddery, among dozens of others.  Most of these pods are ad-free and donation-funded.

Diaspora* also freely allows the use of pseudonyms and doesn’t require inputting any personal or identifying information whatsoever to use and enjoy. This is in stark contrast to other proprietary social networks.  You can have multiple accounts with different names and that is just fine.  The founders of the social network realized that pseudonyms promote free speech and the protection of personal privacy.

Rich Features

While only 1 year old and in alpha, without millions or billions in funding like other social networks, the network is surprisingly feature-rich. Current features include: convenient tagging functionality; following public posts when you add someone prior to reciprocal sharing; animated gifs; embedded videos and music; messages; email forwarding; tools for rapid sharing through your browser; photo upload (with photos only posting to those who you want to see them); posting to FB, Tumblr, and Twitter from within Diaspora*; public posting; a community spotlight feed; the ability to follow tags; a markup language for formatting text; ability to post very long messages with an expandable preview showing in the feed; posting pictures as clickable links from url. New features are always being added.

Did I mention that the program is also open-source? Software developers can examine the code and take part in its development.

Why is Diaspora* Right for Astrologers?

Astrologers should find Diaspora* to be the most hospitable of all the social networks. By astrologers I mean people who do astrology for a living, as well as hobbyists and people just interested in learning and talking about it.  Astrologers as a group are frequently under attack by both religious fundamentalists and the skeptic community. Astrology is seen to involve supernatural views and concepts largely incompatible with both religious fundamentalism and materialist fundamentalism.

Most astrologers don’t do astrology for a living. Additionally, some are involved in serious scientific or intellectual work. Many jobs also involve extensive work with the public at large.  A privacy aware and decentralized social network can allow people to discuss astrology without broadcasting it to others. Talk about science with your scientist friends and astrology with your astrology friends freely on the net, without going permanently “on record” with both. You also don’t need to set up a profile of yourself for advertisers, government agencies, and who knows who else.  Social networking is intended to be chatty, informal, and free-flowing. With Diaspora* it can be like that without all the big corporations and data harvesting. Talk about astrology, politics, or anything you want without a need to explain yourself to those who may pass judgment on you, or even seek to harm you.

Aside: Astrological Circumstances Surrounding Ilya’s Death

When Ilya passed I was very shaken, and I am still quite shocked that such a bright, charismatic, and innovative person could see the end of life at only 22 years of age.

Astrology doesn’t really help me to change the events of life, as it may for some people.  I look to my will and spirituality to overcome.  However, astrology does  provide me with some insight that everything happens purposefully within a context of rich meaning, known by an intelligence far greater than my own.  For this reason, when unfortunate events occur, I eventually get around to looking at the astrology.

Ilya was born on October 12, 1989.  I don’t know his time or place of birth, thus the possibility for very extensive chart work is ruled out unless such reliable information comes to light.  I do know that he was born with the Sun at late 18 or early 19 degrees Libra, co-present with the malefic planet Mars at 14 degrees Libra, and Mercury at 1 degree Libra.  Mercury is in phasis, and thus appears to be strong in the chart, showing intellectualism.  This stellium of planets in the socially-oriented Air sign, Libra, is squared (in a sign with a 90 degree relationship with the other sign) by both Jupiter and Saturn (Jupiter and Saturn being opposed to each other in Cancer and Capricorn respectively.

Saturn conjunct Sun in Solar Return

Ilya passed one month after his most recent solar return. A solar return is one’s astronomical birthday – the exact moment of the Sun’s return to its position at one’s birth.  The solar return has been used since ancient times as a chart signifying important happenings for the year.  Saturn in his solar return was at 20 degrees Libra, within about a degree or less of Ilya’s Sun.  Saturn is the planet signifying death, as well as melancholy, depression, fear, and dread.  The Sun is the planet most associated with the life force.  Ilya’s solar return signified a strong and rare joining of the force of death and dread to his personal force of light and life.  I found this to be a sad and fascinating metaphor for his death.

Ilya Zhitomirskiy’s Birth Chart (inner – time unknown) with his 2011 Solar Return (outer)

Saturn’s trip around the zodiac takes about 28 years, and thus Saturn conjoins one’s natal Sun for a period that occurs at most about once every 28 years.  While the event happens about every 28 years, it is even rarer that at the time of one’s solar return for the specific year of the conjunction, Saturn should be within about a degree of the natal Sun. Note that same configuration occurred in Kurt Cobain’s final solar return prior to his suicide.

Rest In Peace Ilya ZhitomirskiyI thank you sincerely for your dedication to human integrity and liberty.  You will be dearly missed, both by those intimate with your unique spirit and the millions whose lives you will have helped to make a little better.

Astrology of Religion, Atheism, and Belief | 5. Review and Madalyn Murray O’Hair

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Introduction

In the last article of the series, we looked at the chart of Pope Benedict XVI. For those that are new to this series, the basic rules of the game were spelled out in the initial article which you can find here. This is a series on determining if there is belief indicated in the natal chart, and as such each analysis is not intended as a thorough look at any individual’s life.

Review of Significators

The basic idea is that Jupiter tends to give strong significations about the role of expansive spirituality in the life. Similarly, the 9th house tends to give indications about religion, but more broadly about philosophy, higher education, and “belief systems”. Saturn is a natural significator of doubt, fear, skepticism, and challenge. Mercury is a natural significator of intellectualism. The 1st Place (i.e. the rising sign) and its ruler tend to reflect strongly on the individual, their character, and self-identification.

Perhaps in a future article, I will go into more depth on the Hellenistic and Persian techniques for delineating faith and religion. Those techniques tend to incorporate additional things, particularly the Lot of the Sun (i.e. Lot of Spirit) and/or Lot of Faith, and the 3rd Place.

Review of Factors

Prominence

We restrict ourselves to just 4 major strength/weakness indicators. However, on occasion I mention more minor strength indicators such as dignity, joy, and regard from one of the Lights, i.e. the Sun or Moon. The strength of a place or a planet will show more prominence and pervasiveness in the life.  For instance, a more prominent Jupiter will make spirituality, fortune, and positivity more prominent in the life. A more prominent Saturn will tend to make doubt, criticism, and challenge more prominent themes.

Interestingly, we found that both atheists and religious folk tend to have a strong 9th place.  In other words, for both types belief plays a major role in their lives. This lends some credence to the view that atheism IS a religion, albeit one of doubt. However, “philosophy” is a better all-encompassing term for 9th place matters. Philosophy is inclusive of religion, science, atheism, and other approaches to belief and “big truths”.

Beneficence

We also use 4 major beneficence/maleficence indicators. Again, there are many more minor ones, such as being in the place or term of a malefic.  These can be a bit trickier than the strength/weakness indications. They give us a measure of whether the planet tends to signify unpleasant matters and states (bad times) or more pleasant and fortunate matters and states (good times).  All planets will signify a mix of some good and some bad. However, there is a great possibility for a predominance of signification of one or the other. There can be very mixed, maybe even to extremes, such that good is signified in connection with certain configurations and difficulty with others.

This is not necessarily a view incompatible with human will and spirituality (i.e. not necessarily fatalistic). Rather, we acknowledge the fact that will acts within a context and contexts can be very unfavorable.

Our finding so far is that atheists will tend to have negative associations tied to Jupiter. They will also tend to have a Saturnine influence on the 9th (doubt-oriented belief-system). Additionally, a strong identification with Saturn and/or Mercury (i.e. doubt and negativity and/or intellectualism and rationality) is common, as shown through the 1st place.  Religious people on the other hand, will tend to have more positive circumstances associated with Jupiter and the 9th. They may also have a more Jupiterian (faith, positivity, expansion, fortune, spirits) characterization of the 9th.

Why Use Folks Representative of the Extremes?

Of course, the bulk of us humans are likely to be quite mixed.  This mixture emerges through time in the form of various degrees of faith and doubt through life. Similarly, belief itself may have an unstable importance in our life, sometimes figuring into matters, sometimes disregarded. Some of this complication can be seen in just a cursory glance at the factors I’ve discussed in a natal chart. One can be highly religious but still be a scientist and a rationalist. Similarly, one can simply have no interest in either religion or atheism, putting their focus completely elsewhere. The natal chart of an average person typically shows a complex mixture of indications concern religion and spirituality, befitting the complexity of the matter.

Trent Reznor and Complex Beliefs

For example, sometimes people strongly critical of religion, who are assumed atheist, have also publicly stated that they believe in some form of God or higher power in explicit terms. In such cases, they are often mislabeled as an atheist or agnostic.  An example, which I hope to address in a future post is Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails, who has railed strongly against religion, leading many to assume atheism (one quick example), but also has acknowledged explicitly that he does believe in God.  Reznor has Mars in the 9th, Virgo, with Mercury ruling the 9th, though Mars is in sect and dominated by both benefics, Venus and Jupiter. Mercury, as you might imagine is extremely strong, and is actually conjunct the IC.

Extremes as Test Cases

The techniques “work” quite well, and can even be used predictively to see events affecting these matters. However, they won’t necessarily classify the populace into “believers” and “non-believers”. Human beings are complex and dynamic. The techniques need continual refinement and improvement if we are to untangle the web and grapple with that complexity. When we examine the charts of people who sit strongly on one end or another of a continuum, we can test our hypotheses regarding which factors are most important and in what ways.

Madalyn Murray O’Hair

Madalyn Murray O’Hair was a prominent crusader for atheism. She helped to put in place many reasonable political reforms related to her beliefs. For instance, she helped protect public school children from having someone else’s religion hoisted on to them in their daily lives. With three planets in the 11th place of friends/groups, she emerged as an activist and organizer. Her beliefs were a strong reflection of important personal circumstances in her life, particularly surrounding abortion. She was known to generate a fair amount of controversy.

Sadly, O’Hair was also a victim of career criminals who kidnapped, killed, and mutilated her. I will not be addressing her death in this article.

More information about her and her AA rated chart can be found here, as well as through Wikipedia and/or an internet search.

O’Hair’s Natal Chart

O’Hair’s Chart Analyzed in Brief

Jupiter:

Somewhat strong

Jupiter is somewhat strong, as Jupiter is advancing.

Somewhat malefic but mixed

Jupiter is naturally benefic and is in sect, but Jupiter is dominated by Mars, the out of sect malefic.

Notes on Jupiter

For an atheist, we find Jupiter unusually strong and mixed.  The 2nd Place was included in the bad places in Hellenistic astrology. The 2nd doesn’t regard the 1st. The 6th, 12th, 8th, and 2nd don’t regard the 1st and therefore were considered “dark” or “bad”.  However, in many ways the 2nd is the least bad of those houses. It may be the case that O’Hair’s atheism was a development in life brought on by Mars dominating Jupiter. This is a common configuration for evangelizing but can similarly pertain to aggression, contention, and competition when it comes to belief.  She was known to purposely try to offend people that disagreed with her. Additionally, she disowned her own son for becoming a preacher (Moon in V applies to and is dominated by Jupiter but is opposite Mars; Jupiter’s twelfth-part is in V). 

9th Place:

Strong and Saturnine

Just as in the charts of James Randi and Percy Shelly, we see the 9th empty but ruled by an extremely strong Saturn.  Saturn is in the 3rd of communication (messengers, transportation, as well as siblings/cousins).  Saturn is in a cadent place, but Saturn is Strongly Advancing. It is in fact the most Strongly Advancing planet in the chart. Therefore, 9th place matters of philosophy, belief, and religion are very prominent in the life, and strongly Saturnine (doubt-oriented).

Malefic

The 9th is ruled by Saturn. Saturn is naturally malefic. Saturn is not only the ruler of the 9th but also opposes the 9th. Additionally, Mars overcomes Saturn (right-side trine) and aspects the 9th. Venus is in a stake of the 9th (the 12th) but it is a left side aspect. Venus is also out of sect and in a dark place. The 9th is linked with Venusian matters (reproductive rights) but Venus is associated with being under threat (dark place, out of sect, square Saturn and in Saturn’s bound).

Notes on the 9th Place

Displeasure pervades matters of belief in her life . The 9th house is more oriented toward destruction and contention than construction and enjoyment.

Saturn:

Very strong

Saturn is very strongly advancing, but is in a cadent place.  In any case Saturn is quite strong, and could easily be considered the strongest planet in the chart, though I think Mercury is a bit stronger.  The influence of Saturn in the life is extremely pervasive.  The lord of darkness, death, doubt, and dread should make its mark all over the life in a major way.

Somewhat malefic

Saturn is naturally malefic entailing very malefic significations, unless there are major counter-indicators.  Saturn is in sect. However, Mars (out of sect malefic) overcomes Saturn (right-side trine).

Notes on Saturn

As with Randi, O’Hair is someone in constant touch with a powerful force of doubt, skepticism, and hardship of an often harsh sort.

Mercury:

Very strong

Mercury is advancing (albeit barely) and is in phasis.  Mercury is therefore very strong.  In my opinion, Mercury is the strongest planet in the chart, and then Saturn. Both of them having a very powerful and pervasive influence over affairs of the life. We also find Mercury in its own bound, a minor strength consideration.

Somewhat benefic to mixed

Mercury is in sect and in a very good place (the 11th of friends).  Overall, Mercury should be quite benefic, associating Mercury’s significations with the more enjoyable things in life.  However, Mercury is assembled with (and ruled by) the out of sect malefic, Mars. Mercury’s negative significations follow from Mars.

Notes on Mercury

Mercury is the ruler of the Ascendant, as in James Randi’s chart.  There was a strong self-identification with that signified by Mercury (intellectualism, rationality, speech, and argumentation). Mercury overall signified some of the better circumstances and matters in her life, and was a very strong and pervasive influence. However, it is charged with the more malefic side of Mars (meanness, vulgarity, aggression, and competitiveness).

Conclusion

In conclusion, in O’Hair’s chart we see Saturn much stronger than Jupiter. Additionally, Mars afflicts Jupiter. We also see a 9th place characterized by Saturn and impacted most strongly by the malefics. Like many skeptics and atheists, her identification with Mercury (as well as Saturn) was strong.  Her strong and aggressive, sometimes vulgar, war against all things religious seems strongly signified by Mars dominating Jupiter in her chart.

Featured Image Attribution

“Madalyn Murray O’Hair (full)” by Alan Light – Flickr: Madalyn Murray O’Hair. Licensed under CC BY 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons – https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Madalyn_Murray_O%27Hair_(full).jpg#/media/File:Madalyn_Murray_O%27Hair_(full).jpg

Astrology of Religion, Atheism, and Belief | 4. Pope Benedict XVI

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Introduction

In this article, we turn again to someone who is highly religious We are focused particularly on how Jupiter, the 9th, Saturn, and Mercury are placed and relate to the person’s sense of self.  The ingredients and recipe for this analysis can be found in the prior article which you can view here. Note that this series of articles is one on discovering indications of belief in the astrological chart and will not really address other aspects of the life or personality.

Pope Benedict XVI

The current Catholic pope is Joseph Ratzinger, who has taken on the name Pope Benedict XVI.  His natal chart is below and has been given a Rodden Rating of AA.

Natal Chart of Pope Benedict XVI

Pope Benedict XVI’s Chart Analyzed in Brief

Jupiter:

Extremely strong

Jupiter was conjunct the Ascendant, rising at birth.  This means that it was both strongly advancing in the strongest way possible, and in the strongest “stake”, the rising sign.  None of the planets in the chart are stationing, in phasis, nor combust.

Primarily benefic

Jupiter is naturally benefic.  It is in a good place, the 1st, where it directly affects the individuals sense of self, so there is a strong identification with Jupiter.  Jupiter has some malefic influences owing to being dominated by Saturn (right side square regard from Saturn, the out of sect malefic) and being out of sect.

Notes on Jupiter

Jupiter is both in and ruling the 1st. Therefore, the identification with spirituality, religion, and expansive wisdom is very strong with this person. Additionally, Jupiter’s effect in the affairs of the life are powerful and pervasive. 

9th Place:

Very strong and Martial

The 9th, Scorpio, is ruled by Mars.  Mars, like Jupiter, is strongly advancing in a “stake” of the chart. It is in the last degree of the 4th sign/place, Gemini.  Mars makes the matters of belief, wisdom, and religion signified by the 9th prominent.  It tends to make matters more competitive, quarrelsome, even violent, depending on the benefic/malefic tendencies of the planet.  A very Martial 9th can be found with those that actively crusade or attack those with different beliefs, as well as those that compete for positions of religious power. The Mars influence can also simply show contentions about particulars of their belief system.  It depends on many additional factors, but in either case some level of aggression and drive is connecting with matters of belief, wisdom, religion, dogma, and the like.

Mixed, somewhat benefic

Mars, while naturally malefic, is in sect, in a good place, and dominated by Jupiter (Jupiter regards from right side square).  Saturn regards Mars from the opposition, and Mars is naturally malefic, so the 9th place matters are likely to be beset with difficulties at time, particularly at activations of the Mars-Saturn opposition.

Notes on the 9th Place

The 9th place relates strongly to the Jupiter-Mars square in the chart which has Jupiter dominating. We see ambition and competition (Mars) strongly linked with the faith and self-identification (Jupiter in I; IX). .

Saturn:

Somewhat weak

Saturn is somewhat weak, as it’s retreating. However, it is in a “stake” of the chart (the 10th), so while not overtly pronounced it has a strong effect on important matters in life.

Malefic

Saturn is the out of sect malefic, and is therefore malefic, even though in a good place, the 10th. However, this would be modified somewhat by other minor factors which add up. These include the placement of Saturn in the sign, term, and triplicity of Jupiter (Jupiter has a lot of power over the development of Saturnine activity). Jupiter therefore has an influence on alleviating challenges to his status or authority, and challenges from government and other authorities (i.e. challenges from 10th house figures/matters).

Notes on Saturn

Saturn is not strong in a general pervasive sense (not advancing, stationing, etc.) so its significations are more focused. It is in X and dominating the first house, so it does influence the character and career to a great extent. Saturn has the capacity to signify considerable challenges, but also can signify hard-won religious authority through its strong connections with Jupiter.

Mercury:

Very Strong

Like Jupiter, but not the same extent as Jupiter, Mercury is strongly advancing and is in the strongest “stake” of the chart, the 1st place.  Unlike many religious figures, Ratzinger self-identifies as an intellectual, as Mercury is in his 1st place, though he identifies more strongly with Jupiter (religion, God) because Jupiter is both in and ruling the 1st.  Mercury has a pervasive and powerful effect on the life, and there is much intellectual activity.

Somewhat malefic/mixed

Mercury is somewhat malefic in the chart, as Mercury is neutral, easily swayed. Mercury is out of sect and dominated by Saturn, and in a close applying square with Mars. However, Mercury is mixed because it is in the 1st, in a good place, and is assembled with Jupiter.  Still, we expect Mercury to be attached with difficulties.  Mercury strongly reflects this person’s own self, since it is in the 1st, so there is likely to be few qualms about putting forth inflammatory and hurtful comments, words, and intellectual positions on occasion.

Notes on Mercury

Pope Benedict does strongly identify as an intellectual, and doesn’t mind being controversial or contentious on intellectual pretenses. However, overall the chart shows a person who identifies more strongly with religion and spirituality (Jupiter).

Conclusion

In conclusion, in the Pope’s chart we see an extremely strong and pervasive influence of Jupiter and the 9th. This influence is for the most part positive. However, because of the influence of Mars, things can get competitive, zealous, and contentious.  This person identifies strongly with both religion/spirituality and with intellectualism, though more strongly and fundamentally with religion/spirituality.  Saturn is one of the weaker planets in the chart, and certainly the most malefic planet in the chart.

Astrology of Religion, Atheism, and Belief | 3. Percy Shelley

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An Astrology of Religion and Atheism

In this series, the charts of notable skeptics and religious folk are analyzed. Consistently applying some basic principles of Hellenistic astrology, we find that atheism and faith shows up in the birth chart.

The basic rules of the game were spelled out in the initial post of the series which you can find here.

Percy Shelley

Once again we are going to be looking at the chart of an atheist. This time it is the brilliant poet, Percy Shelley.  He led a short life filled with romance, as well as controversy. Notable for our purposes, Shelley was expelled from Oxford for writing a pamphlet, “The Necessity of Atheism”. Shelley is one of the few notable atheists of past centuries whose birth time is said to be accurate, with an A Rodden Rating.

Percy Shelley’s Natal Chart

Percy Shelley’s Chart Analyzed in Brief

Jupiter

Weak 

Jupiter is weak, as it is retreating and cadent.

Malefic

Jupiter is naturally benefic, but here it is out of sect, in a bad place (the 6th), and assembled with (actually in partile conjunction with) Mars.  Jupiter is regarded by Venus from the right side, but overall Jupiter is strongly associated with unpleasant things.

Note on Jupiter

Jupiter is weak and malefic, so we don’t expect expansive spirituality and religion to be a prominent influence in the life. We expect there to be a lot of negative associations with religion and faith.

9th Place

Strong and Saturnine

Just as in the chart of James Randi, we see the 9th empty but ruled by an extremely strong Saturn.  Saturn is in the 1st of the self, so there is a strong personal identification with Saturn. Saturn connects the self with matters of religion and belief very strongly, but in a Saturnine way filled with doubt, fear, and darkness.

Malefic

The 9th, is ruled by the out of sect malefic, Saturn, and so is connected with negative circumstances, particularly concerning fear, control, doubt, and so forth.  Mars is also square to the 9th place from the right side, adding to the contentiousness of this place.

Notes on the 9th Place

The influence of Saturn, planet of doubt, over the 9th place of God is very strong. There is an identification with the 9th place and a prominence in the life, but it is in a destructive sense. The 9th place is associated strongly with fear and suffering (Saturn) as well as fighting and contentions (Mars dominating the place and its exalted ruler). Therefore, there is a strong pull to repudiate religion. Also, matters of spirituality and higher truth have a dark coloring to them.

Saturn

Very strong

Saturn is strongly advancing and in the 1st place (strongest place), in fact, conjunct the Ascendant (Saturn was rising at birth).  The influence of Saturn in the life is extremely strong and pervasive.  The lord of darkness, death, doubt, and dread should make its mark all over the life in a major way.

Quite malefic

Saturn is naturally malefic, and as the out of sect malefic, entails malefic significations.  Saturn is in a good place (the 1st) but overall Saturn signifies for some of the worst things that happen in the life.

Notes on Saturn

As with Randi, Shelley was someone in constant touch with a powerful force of doubt, skepticism, and hardship of an often harsh sort, even identifying with such.

Mercury

Somewhat strong

Mercury is advancing and is in its own sign and bound, without any other major strength/weakness considerations.  Mercury is therefore somewhat strong.

Mostly benefic

Mercury is in sect and in a good place (the 5th of creativity and procreation) but is also regarded by Saturn by trine on the right side.  Overall, Mercury will be more benefic, but the influence of Saturn likely had it signify some negative matters or dark influence in the life at certain points.

Notes on Mercury

Percy identified quite strongly with Saturn, which occupies the Ascendant, and Venus, which rules it. Mercury is not a planet that was strongly identified with but it is prominent due to advancing in its own sign and bound.

Parting Notes

In conclusion, in Percy Shelley’s chart we see configurations typical of deep skepticism and atheism. Notably, Saturn is prominent, Jupiter is weak, and Jupiter and the 9th are associated with with malefic planets and tendencies. These indications are often accompanied by a strong Mercury or a strong identification with Mercury and/or Saturn.

 

Image attribution:

Featured image (Mary and Percy Shelley Engraving by George Stodart after monument by Henry Weekes) is in the public domain.