The Saturn-Pluto Cycle

The current Saturn-Pluto synodic cycle began Nov. 8, 1982(00:38 GMT), and ends Jan. 12, 2010. This particular planetary cycle is directly related to U.S. power and wealth, as the initial conjunction(27 Libra 36) tightly squared the nation's natal Pluto(7/4/1776). And the 9/11 attack on the Twin Towers and the Pentagon- symbols of America's power and wealth, occurred when Saturn and Pluto had reached their peak Full Moon opposition phase(2001-02).

In Mundane Astrology(pg. 183), Charles Harvey explains, "this(Saturn-Pluto) cycle appears to have a great deal to do with emerging nations and very deep cultural transformations, purgations and 'resurrections'." And Leyla Rael Rudhyar adds, "we can see that the intensely tough purgative qualities of Saturn-Pluto can indicate periods when there is in some way a need to 'get back to basics', to the 'skeleton' of things as it were. Thus critical phases of the Saturn-Pluto cycle can lead to seeing things in black or white, so that only some kind of drastic action will suffice. In so far as Pluto has to do with collective power the Saturn-Pluto cycle would seem to be related to the unfoldment of ordered exercise and administration(or impostion) of collective, compulsive power. Finally- Andre Barbault observes that the -90-(square) phase seems to relate to periods of 'crisis of authority'

Interestingly- Saturn and Pluto were rising(by longitude) in Afghanistan at their 1982 conjunction, and the U.S. launched it's military attack there against Al Qaeda and the Taliban in Oct. 2001, with Saturn opposite Pluto. (The failed Soviet intervention/occupation in Afghanistan took place from 1979 until 1989.)

The 1982 Saturn-Pluto conjunction chart for Washington, DC, has the Ascendant at 29 Gemini 51. And in early 2009, transiting Pluto first opposed this Ascendant- just as the current economic crisis emerged. Theoretically, this base chart for the unfolding Saturn-Pluto cycle, is especially responsive to transits from Saturn or Pluto.

Although the actual squares between Saturn and Pluto don't kick-in until late 2009, we get a small taste of their heavy vibration at the Aries New Moon of Mar. 26, 2009, with these planets in paran(simultaneously on the angles) in Washington, D.C.

Saturn enters the sign of Libra on Oct. 29, 2009, exactly 80 years after Black Tuesday of Oct. 29, 1929, which helped trigger the Great Depression. The horoscope for Saturn's entry into Libra(10/29/2009) at Washington, DC, has Saturn ruling the the Ascendant(17 Capricorn 38), from the dark 8th house of banks, debt, and losses. And as Saturn moves in and out of Libra, it activates the Ascendant(0 Cancer in D.C. - 4 Cancer in N.Y.C.) of the 1982 Saturn-Pluto base chart, which seeded this challenging cycle for U.S. power and wealth(Pluto). Furthermore, Saturn and Pluto will activate the U.S. Venus-Jupiter conjunction, which pertains to the nation's happiness and good fortune. Therefore, the general good karma that the U.S. is blessed with, will be under strain, and subject to fears or threats of loss.

The Saturn-Pluto square of Nov. 15, 2009(14:43 GMT) is angular(powerful) in Washington, DC, and therefore an indication of grave and weighty conditions. (Ascendant = 28 Sagittarius = Pluto 2 Capricorn = Saturn 2 Libra.) While the hopeful, but inflationary Jupiter-Neptune conjunction, falls in the 2nd house of money and assets here. We might speculate that the U.S. will benefit in the end, from the development of more spiritual values(Jupiter-Neptune), as it faces financial stress as a result of it's extreme materialism(Pluto in the 2nd house).

The next square between Saturn and Pluto occurs on Jan. 31, 2010(22:07 GMT), with violent Mars retrograde, and rising in the nation's capital(D.C.). Financial astrologers have noted that the waning phases(after the opposition) of the Saturn-Pluto cycle tend to coincide with tough economic times, when hard choices must be made, and the tightening of collective money-belts is called for. These alignments often mark a period where 'the chickens come home to roost', and some fundamental restructuring is required. Moreover, this current cycle is directly related to U.S. power and wealth, as the 1982 conjunction of Saturn and Pluto, squared the nation's natal Pluto.

Solar Eclipse Activation by Mars

The total solar eclipse of Aug. 1, 2008, which conjoined the Ascendant in Washington, DC, was one indicator of the economic crisis, as it fell in the 8th house(banks, debt and loss) of the U.S. Sibly chart(7/4/1776, 5:10 pm). But we don't usually see the full effect of a solar eclipse until it's degree is activated by a later transit- often from Mars or Saturn. (This rule also applies to an eclipse in an individuals birth chart.) And transiting Mars will move into square with the Aug. 1 eclipse degree around Oct. 17.

The data I'm using for this eclipse chart is Aug. 1, 2008, 10:21:09 GMT,
Washington, DC.

Eclipse Ascendant = 10 Leo 56 = solar eclipse 9 Leo 32.
Bush's Ascendant = 7 Leo = Mercury 10 Leo = Pluto 11 Leo.

Both the solar eclipse chart, and Mr. Bush's natal chart, are having tense transits from Mars at the same time.

If there is an October surprise in the works before the Nov. 4 election, I think we may see it occur around mid Oct. 2008.

Dig Pinpoints Stonehenge Origins

"Archaeologists have pinpointed the construction of Stonehenge to 2300 BC - a key step to discovering how and why the mysterious temple was built. The radiocarbon date is said to be the most accurate yet and means the ring's original bluestones were put up 300 years later than previously thought.

The dating is the major finding from an excavation inside the henge by Profs Tim Darvill and Geoff Wainwright. The duo found evidence suggesting Stonehenge was a centre of healing. Others have argued that the monument was a shrine to worship ancestors, or a calendar to mark the solstices.

A documentary following the progress of the recent dig has been recorded by the BBC Timewatch series. It will be broadcast on Saturday 27 September."
BBC News

Hotel Blast Rocks Islamabad

"A bomb attack has hit the Marriott Hotel in the Pakistani capital, Islamabad, killing at least 31 people.

The BBC's Barbara Plett says the blast created a 20ft deep crater, and destroyed the entire front section of the hotel. She says the building is engulfed in flames, and rescue workers are carrying out bloodied victims and bodies.

Police say the blast occurred as a lorry approached the hotel and they suspect it was a suicide attack."
BBC News

Today's exact Sun-Pluto square is clearly a timing factor for such a violently explosive event. And one horoscope being activated by this square is the Libra Mars ingress set in Islamabad, and cast for the time Mars first entered Libra(Aug. 19, 10:04 GMT).

This chart drawn for violent Mars changing signs, has the Ascendant at 26 Sagittarius conjunct Pluto(29 Sagittarius) square the angular(strong) 4th house(domestic conditions) Moon(28 Pisces). Today's Sun-Pluto square at 28 Virgo-Sagittarius, is activating this chart, that features destructive Pluto rising in Pakistan's capital.

Transiting Mars was square(partile) the Ascendant(15 Cancer 32) of this same ingress chart for Los Angeles, at the recent fatal train crash there, with Mars sharply placed on the IC(4th cusp) in this location. Events in the Los Angeles area are therefore subject to a strong Mars influence until Oct. 3, when the red planet enters the sign of Scorpio.

These events appear to further confirm the efficacy of mundane ingress charts in practice.

Say hi to Haumea - our fifth dwarf planet

'Bizarre' trans-Neptunian object honours Hawaiian goddess
By Lester Haines

"The International Astronomical Union (IAU) has decreed that the object formerly known as 2003 EL61 will henceforth be addressed as "Haumea", and joins Ceres, Eris, Makemake and Pluto in the solar system's league of dwarf planets.

The IAU describes trans-Neptunian Haumea as a fast-spinning "bizarre object with a shape resembling a plump cigar", with a diameter "approximately the same as that of the dwarf planet Pluto".

The name is taken from the goddess of childbirth and fertility in Hawaiian mythology, which the IAU considers particularly appropriate since "Haumea also represents the element of stone and observations of Haumea hint that, unusually, the dwarf planet is almost entirely composed of rock with a crust of pure ice".

To further back its choice, the IAU notes that Haumea is "joined in its orbit" by two satellites thought to have been created by debris knocked off its surface by historic impacts. The goddess Haumea's children "sprang from different parts of her body", according to Hawaiian lore.

The largest of the two kids has been christened "Hi'iaka" in honour of Hawaii's patron goddess, who was born from the mouth of Haumea. The second is "Namaka", a water spirit who emerged from Haumea's body.

Haumea is currently lying "roughly 50 times the Sun-Earth distance from the Sun". Its elliptical orbit's closest approach to the Sun is around 35 times the Sun-Earth distance."

Bootnote
We don't know about you lot, but these names are getting a bit esoteric, what with Makemake and now Haumea. We're therefore lobbying the IAU that the next dwarf body be dubbed "Dave" and its satellites "Chantelle" and "Chelsea".

And from the NewScientistSpace:
Controversial dwarf planet finally named 'Haumea'
Link

Full Moon in Pisces

Sept. 15- Today's Full Moon that conjoins Uranus and squares Pluto, is not a typical lunation in mellow Pisces, but a more unpredictable event with intense undertones. Transformative(Pluto) change(Uranus) is written in the sky with bold letters, as the Full Moon culminates at 2:14 am, PDT. This Full Moon has a marked violent potential for the USA.

Fatal Train Crash in LA

From the BBC News:
"At least 17 people have died and 137 have been hurt in a head-on collision between a passenger train and a freight train near Los Angeles. The crash derailed both trains and forced the engine of the passenger train back into one of its coaches.

Fire-fighters put out a blaze under one of the carriages and have been cutting through metal to rescue trapped people. The exact cause of the crash - believed to be one of the worst in Los Angeles' history - is not yet known.

The crash happened at 1632 local time (2332 GMT) on Friday, at a time when the passenger train is thought to have been carrying more than 200 people, most of them commuters.

The Metrolink passenger train was travelling from Los Angeles to Moorpark, north-west of the city, a spokeswoman said. It collided with a Union Pacific freight train on a curving stretch of track in Chatsworth, in the San Fernando Valley area of Los Angeles county."

Last month, I mentioned to my peers on the Political Astrology list, that Mars will be sharply placed in Los Angeles as it enters Libra on Aug. 19. The chart for the Libra Mars ingress shows violent Mars exactly on the IC/Nadir in Los Angeles. Midheaven = 0 Aries 37 = Mars. The chart's Ascendant = 15 Cancer 32, and today's fatal crash coincided with the partile square of Mars(15 Libra 52) to this Ascendant.

The annual opposition of the Sun and Uranus which also occurred today, was a more general indication of sudden, radical events, or accidents.

Sept. 19 Update:
Light rail train hits bus in LA
(Another Mars related event)

"A light rail train slammed into a bus near downtown during Friday morning's commute, injuring as many as two dozen people, but none fatally.

The impact knocked the front car of the electric train off the track.

The crash comes just a week after a Metrolink commuter train smashed into a freight train in the San Fernando Valley, about 30 miles northwest of downtown, killing 25 people and injuring more than 130."

Astrology and Wisdom

By Robert Zoller

Introduction
"In more recent times the pursuit of wisdom as the prime objective of mainstream astrology has been abandoned. The majority of Western astrologers have given way to the pursuit of psychological analysis and introspection. This has taken astrology in the wrong direction and must be corrected.

The predominance of the consideration of idiosyncrasies of character, coupled with the belief that anyone who study's astrology can be a competent astrologer turns on its head the basic and ancient understandings of the Art of astrology. These understandings need to be re-established. For, astrology without doubt provides one of the missing links between the natural world which empirical science has made its province, and the spiritual world."
More