The Neighborhood Is Changing

After Pluto was discovered in 1930, astronomers and astrologers would often talk about one more Planet X yet to be found. There were even some astrologers who hypothesized Transpluto, and started using it’s theorized positions in charts. But neither the astronomers nor astrologers ever expected the multitude of new bodies that would be discovered in the neighborhood of Pluto and beyond.

When Uranus was discovered in 1781, it shattered our preconceptions and added a whole new dimension to astrology. Sixty-five years later, the discovery of Neptune showed us our universe was much larger than we had dared imagine. In 1930, Pluto exploded into our consciousness with an intensity that made the previous discoveries seem almost pale by comparison. Each of these pushed the borders of our solar system further outward, and at the same time there was a corresponding delving deeper and deeper into our inner psyche.

But we thought we knew the area within the borders quite well.  That is, until 1977, when Charles Kowal stunned the world by finding a possible planet orbiting between Saturn and Uranus!  We didn’t really know the immediate neighborhood at all!  And a few years later, in 1992, the discoveries of the first body out past Pluto (nicknamed QB1), and another body in between Saturn and Uranus (named after another Centaur, Pholus) marked the beginning of a whole new wave of discoveries, one that is still going on.  During the past 20 years, so many new bodies have been discovered that the mind boggles.

Our ancestors, the astrologer/astronomer/priests, only had to make sense charting the motions of the Sun, Moon, five planets, and the Moon’s Nodes.  Most of what we know of today as astrology is based on the findings of those early skywatchers.  We adapted somewhat in 1781, and the Uranian shockwaves are still being felt.  We adapted again after Neptune’s discovery but while some things became more clear, others became much more fuzzy.  We are still trying to adapt to all that Pluto has brought to us, and it has been quite often a very painful experience.  But in each case, humanity and its astrologers have had several decades to begin comprehending the new perceptions of how our world fits in the largest universe.

Chiron’s coming into our consciousness changed the dynamics, forcing us to take second and third looks right here in our immediate neighborhood.   Those who were brought up to read the Christian New Testament are probably familiar with Luke 6:42, which advises us, before we can help another person, we must first the splinter from our own eye.  You can interpret this on many levels, but it’s very much Chiron, which is telling us that in order to truly step outside of our own limits and be of use to the rest of the universe we must first work on our own selves, our own immediate issues.   And, thick and fast, more and more Centaurs have been showing up, showing us our own darkest sides….the areas of ourselves we really need to work on.  Just as they are being discovered in our own backyard, relatively speaking, in parts of the solar system we thought we knew well, we are having to look at parts of ourselves for the darkness we once tried to assume was always in ‘the other person’….and acknowledge that, no, it’s in all of us too.

The Neighborhood is Changing.   It can be terrifying.  But just as in art, the empty spaces help define the artist’s work, the darkness helps to show us what is truly good about us as well. 

In the new neighborhood, we are all human, all wounded….but all have the potential to help each other help ourselves heal.

—————

Say hello to some of your new neighbors.  These are all the Centaurs that have been named so far:  Chiron, Pholus, Nessus, Asbolus, Hylonome, Chariklo, Pelion, Okyrhoe, Cyllarus, Elatus, Echeclus, Bienor, Thereus, Amycus, Crantor

 

 

An Eclipse Over Massachusetts

11 degrees 01 minute Gemini —- that’s where the Solar Eclipse

fell on June 1, 2011, the day the twisters hit Springfield,

Massachusetts. There have been some extremely nasty tornadoes

this year in the ‘Tornado Belt’, but Massachusetts rarely gets

them, so the resulting destruction and chaos in Springfield

seems all the more horrible.

The word Chaos comes from the Greek name for the primeval state

of the universe before even their gods were born. The word

today has several meanings but probably the most widely used is

a state of utter confusion resulting from disorder or lack of

organization. Think about news photos of Springfield in the

aftermath of the twisters, and you’ll have no difficulty using

the word chaos to describe the scene.

In 1998 a body was discovered out past Pluto which was

subsequently named after that Greek myth. Chaos moves slowly

taking more than 309 years to orbit the Sun, and its influences

seem to quite aptly fit its name. Where was Chaos at the time

of the eclipse? Right nearby at 13 Gemini 33. But it gets even

more interesting when you look at its most recent station.

Planets appear as seen from Earth to slow down and then move

backwards for awhile. Of course they are not really moving

backwards. Imagine you are driving your car at 65 mph and you

pass a car in the right lane doing only 50 mph. Even though he

is going the same direction as you are, he will appear to be

moving backwards. This is similar to the retrograde motion the

planets appear to exhibit. And just as at the moment when you

are exactly beside the other car and see that it appears to be

standing still, so the planets appear to come to a complete

stop, and this stop is called a Station. Astrologically,

planetary stations are extremely important as they make the

degree of the station carry their energy for months or even

years at a time. When anything transits the point where a

planet made its station, that planet’s energy is activated, or

stirred up, and becomes intimately involved with transiting

body.

The body Chaos made its most recent station on February 22,

2011, at 11 Gemini 53. The eclipse took place less than a

degree away.

And there is more.

The midway point between any two bodies, or midpoint, is an

extremely active point combining the energies of those two

planets. Anything aspecting a midpoint by conjunction, square

or opposition creates a ‘planetary picture’ which speaks volumes

about how the energies manifest. One such midpoint is the one

between Mars and Pluto, and while it can have many positive

expressions, it can show itself in unbridled, unstoppable force

that can be relentless and potentially quite destructive. At

the time of the eclipse, this midpoint was 11 Pisces 26, making

it in very close square to the eclipse/Chaos energy.

If we set up an astrological chart for the eclipse, locating it

in Springfield, we find that it falls in the 8th house, which

among other things is the house of death, transformation and

rebirth. The Mars/Pluto midpoint falls in the (Placidus) 4th

house, which among other things represents the foundations.

Mars and Pluto co-rule the sign Scorpio, which was rising at

that moment, 3 degrees 26 minutes, almost exactly quincunx the

planet known for shaking things up, Uranus at 3 Aries 59 (and

Uranus is still in orb of its square to Pluto.

I might also mention that two Centaurs were also connected to

the Eclipse. Amycus was in opposition from 10 Sag 07, and John

Delaney has suggested keys for this body include ‘showdown’,

‘ingenuity through adversity’, and ‘seclusion and exile from the

state of nature.’ And Thereus was conjunct from 13 Gem 00,

right near Chaos. What I have seen with Thereus is that it will

sometimes come out of nowhere, totally without warning, and

strike where something is most vulnerable, forcing an action to

be taken.

And as a final bit, there is an aspect of 45 degrees called a

semi-square. This is an irritation, sometimes minor, but one

which must be paid attention to, one that cannot be ignored.

The eclipse was semisquare two asteroids in the sign of Cancer,

America, and Pandora. Perhaps the aspect to the former was why

such a major event hit America. And as for Pandora, I’m sure we

are all familiar with the story of how she opened the box and a

whole slew of bad things flew out into the world.

32 Years

The ancients knew that there was a Sun/Venus cycle of 8 years.  Today, we call it a recurrence cycle, because every 8 years the Sun and Venus return to approximately the same relationship to each other around the same date.  So for example, say you had Sun at 8 Scorpio at birth, and Venus at 19 Libra.  Around your eighth birthday, the Sun would again be around 8 Scorpio, and your Venus around 19 Libra.  This would occur at age 16, age 24, age 32, age 40, etc, etc.   Some astrologers even cast charts for when the Sun and Venus return to the exact birth angle and view it as describing the coming 8 years in terms of things like self-respect, personal values, creativity, and even expressing love.

Other planets also have recurrence cycles with the Sun, and with each other.  It is especially interesting when three bodies return to the same relationship which, as you might imagine, occurs less frequently.

Thirty two years…the title of this post, marks one such special recurrence cycle.  Every fourth Sun/Venus recurrence coincides with with a Venus/Mars recurrence.   Thus, at one’s 32nd birthday  (and 64th, and 96th  if one lives that long), there is a special vibration that echoes the pattern established at birth involving the one’s basic self-expression (Sun), what one values and wants to attract (Venus), and how one acts to go after what one wants (Mars).  (Forgive the oversimplification.  Sun, Venus and Mars are much, much more than just these words, but I hope the essence of this recurrence will be captured using them.)

For those long past their 32nd birthday (like the author), studying what your 32nd year was like should tell you a lot about yourself, what’s really important to you, and what you are willing to do to go after it.  It can reveal, as well, a lot about your whole attitude towards relationships, and even about your comfort or lack of as a male or female (as the case may be.)   For those approaching the 32nd solar return, I’d like to suggest that you take stock of what’s really important to you, and the means you choose to go after them or attract them to you, and get to know yourself much, much better this year.  Keep a diary or journal….you’ll be glad you did.

A chart doesn’t have to be for a person in order for it to have recurrence cycles…..any chart will have them, be they for an organic life form, a venture of some kind, or even the chart of an event.  I’d like to look back for a moment at something that occurred in the Autumn, 32 years ago.

On October 18, 1977, at 9:08 pm PDT at Palomar Observatory, a photographic plate was exposed to the light of the telescope, and then put away for later review.  At around the same time the following day, a second plate was exposed to the same section of the sky, and filed away with the first plate.

Astronomer Charles Kowal finally got a chance to look at these plates on the morning of November 1st.   He put them side by side in something called a blink microscope, which basically moves back and forth between the two as quickly as the blink of an eye.  To the observer, any star will be still, but a moving body will flash back and forth before the observer’s eyes.  At a little before 10 am, became the first person to become aware of a body he later named Chiron.

So around October 18, 2009 will see a Sun/Venus/Mars recurrence in the chart of that first photographic plate, and November 1, 2009 will be this recurrence to the Chiron Discovery Chart.

What could this mean?  Let’s look briefly at the two 1977 charts.

The photographic plate can in some ways be considered the ‘conception’ chart for Chiron’s entry into our consciousness, since the ‘seeds’ of its discovery were ‘planted’ on the plate in the form of a photographic image.  Venus was quite important, being in its own sign Libra, and ruling the Sun in Libra (as well as Mercury, Pluto, the North Lunar Node, Vesta and Pallas.)  Mars in Cancer was out-of-sign sextile to Venus, and closely square the Sun (and Mercury).  And since we are talking about Chiron, we must mention that Chiron was out of sign square to Mars, and quincunx Venus, as well as being in Venus’ other sign Taurus.  I’d say the Sun/Venus/Mars/Chiron relationship was rather significant, and Mars’ importance was even moreso as it co-ruled the Scorpio Ascendant.  (Oh, yeah, so Venus also rules the Descendant!)  If this is truly the conception chart, then Chiron’s conception is intimately wrapped up with the Sun/Venus/Mars relationship.  And it shows, to my thinking, that the Meaning of Chiron for us is rooted in the the dynamics of relationships of all kinds, of uncovering what is keeping us from realizing our self-worth, and what is keeping us crippled in some way unable to truly express our full energy.

If the photographic plate is the conception, then the discovery is the birth of Chiron into our consciousness.  There is a conjuncton of Venus with Pluto, the North Node and Vesta that is strong in the chart, with Venus still occupying its sign Libra….and the stellium is conjunct the Libra Midheaven. As if that wasn’t emphasis enough, that whole stellium is square the Moon in Capricorn. Mars in Leo is no longer square Venus, but instead is squaring (and in mutual reception) to the Sun in Scorpio (Sun is also conjunct Uranus), as well as ruling the Aries 4th cusp.  And Chiron is now opposing the Sun, and it’s square to Mars is only 42′ away from exact. Chiron’s birth into our consciousness, if we can take a queue from this chart, is once again about our relationships, but ALL of our relationships, including those we have inside with different parts of ourselves; and it is about extremely painful hurts we have experienced, that have brought about a disassociation within us, and from each other, and how we can learn to heal the wounds, bring the parts together into a whole, and bring people together so they can act as one.

Lest you think I forgot, I started this post talking about 32 years.  And 2009 is 32 years since 1977.

On the 32nd anniversary of that ‘conception’ chart, we again have Mars sextile Venus, but in a tighter orb, with Mars in Leo. Venus is also conjunct Pallas in Libra, Mercury is in Libra, and of course the Sun. But what makes this chart stand out, for me, is that the Moon is just past the New Moon, which mens the October New Moon is almost right on the Sun in the 1977 chart. For those of you who have experienced a New Moon on the day of your Solar Return, you will know how significant this is…..SOMETHING new is going to enter our consciousness about the root meaning of Chiron!

On the 32nd anniversary of the ‘birth’ chart, we again have Venus in Libra….this time in a close opposition to Moon in Aries, with Venus very closely trining (Moon sexiling) Chiron, as well as Jupiter and Neptune. And at right angles (squares) to Venus/Moon are the Moon’s Nodes, the north one being in Capricorn Mars in Leo is again closely squaring the Sun in Scorpio, as well as Mercury and Ceres. From this alone, I’d say all the Chiron issues we have been becoming aware of for the past 32 years will be very much “in your face”, not just in the year ahead, but for the next 32 years at least. But that’s not all.

October 30, at around 10:45pm PDT (only a little over a day before this return chart), Chiron goes stationary direct. As you probably know, a body at or near its station is at its strongest intensity, and an outer body like Chiron moves so slow in the days near the station that it’s like the station lasts a few days, not just one.

Did I say that Chiron will be “in your face” following this return chart? I’d say the station amplifies that statement ten-fold.

The depth of Chiron’s importance to us is going to be revealed in no uncertain terms as a result of this recurrence return. If we thought we were getting a handle on Chiron’s meaning before now, we will come to realize that we’ve only touched the tip of the iceberg (or the halo of the comet, if you’d prefer), and we are going to learn about Chiron whether we want to or not.

I won’t get into it here, but I suspect that we are going to get a lot more into bodies like Sedna, Eris, Haumea and Makemake now too.  Chiron’s going to rip the door open, and we are going to find we need a lot of new tools to deal with what we will discover when we are shoved through that doorway.  (By the way, Chiron was conjunct Sedna when it was discovered, and Eris was conjunct the Moon’s South Nodes.)

Photographic Plate that led to Chiron's discovery

Chiron's Discovery

There is a conjuncton of Venus with Pluto, the North Node and Vesta that is strong in the chart, with Venus still occupying its sign Libra….and the stellium is conjunct the Libra Midheaven. As if that wasn’t emphasis enough, that whole stellium is square the Moon in Libra. Mars in Leo is no longer square Venus, but instead is squaring (and in mutual reception) to the Sun in Scorpio (Sun is also conjunct Uranus), as well as ruling the Aries 4th cusp.  And Chiron is now opposing the Sun, and it’s square to Mars is only 42′ away from exact. Chiron’s birth into our consciousness, if we can take a queue from this chart, is once again about our relationships, but ALL of our relationships, including those we have inside with different parts of ourselves; and it is about extremely painful hurts we have experienced, that have brought about a disassociation within us, and from each other, and how we can learn to heal the wounds, bring the parts together into a whole, and bring people together so they can act as one.

Lest you think I forgot, I started this post talking about 32 years.  And 2009 is 32 years since 1977.

32nd Anniversary of the Discovery Plate

32nd Anniversary of the Discovery