Today on his 70th birthday I could not possibly focus my attention on anyone else. His has been the most amazing life, from poor roots in Kentucky, to conquering the world in the boxing ring with skill and grace, standing for his chosen religion & dealing with illness. Muhammad Ali remains one of the most awe inspiring people in sport and a name that will live on through the ages. Looking at his astrology chart, I want to try and dig a little deeper to try to explain why he is “simply the greatest”.
Muhammad (Cassius Marcellus Clay Jnr) was born in Louisville, Kentucky at 18.35 on 17th January 1942 into a poor family in the city. He is a Sun sign Capricorn, has an Aquarius Moon and a proud Leo ascendant. The Sun in Capricorn shows someone who would have great ambition in his life and would want to make an impression. His Moon in Aquarius showed a real compassion and independent streak. The emotions are very much cooled in Aquarius and one can detach the emotions from any task one is doing. Here is a sneaky liking for glamour and being in the spotlight, and this dispensation is enhanced immensely by the Leo Ascendant. This man would want to be front and centre in being known for his achievements (Capricorn Sun).
Often, coming from adversity gives you the motivation to aspire to greatness. Like so many famous people I have looked at on this blog, the young Cassius Clay had a lack of love from his father (shown by Saturn retrograde). I am sure that he had a difficult upbringing. Venus ruling his Midheaven (via Taurus) received squares from Saturn and Uranus confirming an unpredictable and authoritarian father. Pluto ruling Scorpio at the cusp of the 4th received a square from Mars and the Moon was opposed by Pluto, so his mother was controlling and forceful. This would have affected Cassius’ self worth and he needed something to fortify him. When 12 he was encouraged by a police officer to take up boxing after threatening to beat up a thief for stealing his bicycle. He joined a gym, and the rest as they say is history.
Now the Sun, Moon and Mercury are all in the 6th house, Virgo’s house of everyday work and technique. There is one thing for sure, Muhammad would not get into the ring unprepared. Here is a propensity to work and work and work on one’s skills, he was the ultimate professional and a real perfectionist. The Moon and Mercury makes an opposition to his ascendant, so these skills were part of his physical make-up and there is square to Ali’s Midheaven so here was a link to his professional career. Now there are many boxers who would have also been technically good, but the signs here bring the key to why Ali was so brilliant. Aquarius confers special talent with quickness of mind and of thought. Combined with the cool Aquarian Moon calming the emotions, Ali was able to outthink his opponents as well as out manoeuvre them, keeping calm to deliver the knockout blow of an assassin while maintaining his composure. Mercury in Aquarius made him very quick witted and very a guy who could not stop talking, and of course with this aspect he would have had a fabulous sense of humour. Mercury also was trine to Jupiter, so here was someone who made big confident statements; he became famous for predicting exactly in which round he would dispose of his opponent. Moon in Aquarius trine to Jupiter showed a wonderful philanthropic attitude. This was a generous man who cared deeply about those suffering around him.
The links to the violence of what became his day job, training and fighting in the ring is shown by a tremendously energetic and determined t-square, one of several on this chart. From his Capricorn Sun there is an opposition to Pluto in Leo, yet another indication of wanting to be a notable person and this opposition is squared by Mars in Taurus. Mars in Taurus has a store of steady energy and this was enhanced by Pluto. Mars Pluto can be hugely destructive and hugely controlling. Ali could control his energy expertly, using his technique (Sun in 6th) allied to his brute strength (Mars/Pluto). This t-square also had a second meaning. We all know that Cassius Clay changed his name to Mohammed Ali because of his association to the Nation of Islam group, headed by Malcolm X. Here we see Mars in the 9th house of faith and it’s sign Aries on the cusp of the 9th squared by Pluto the planet of transformation. Three midpoints completed the picture. Ali’s Mars sat opposite his Sun Pluto midpoint (huge aggression and control), his Saturn opposed his Sun/North Node midpoint (known for his ambition and work) and Pluto opposed his Sun/Moon midpoint (transformation of his identity).
Muhammad has three major planets in his 10th house of worldly ambition and career, Jupiter, Saturn and Uranus. Both Saturn and Jupiter in this house conferred the desire to be someone of note and someone who made a big impression on people, touched their lives in some manner. My word did he do that!! Uranus here bucks society, shows a rebel tendency and wants to initiate change. Now what type of change? Peaceful change. For someone who was so successful in such a brutal sport, Ali was a humanitarian and a pacifist at heart. Why? Look at the chart. We have Venus in his 7th house of relationships bang opposite his ascendant in humanitarian kind Aquarius. Venus in Aquarius likes to relate, to get on with people and thus will rebel against discrimination. Notice that the Uranus in his 10th house which wanted to change society’s perceptions and bring about change is in Taurus, the two planets are in square aspect, form a bigger t-square formation and crucially Venus and Uranus are in mutual reception. This t-square was working beautifully in harmony, and Ali used his personality to fight for his community. This was an emotional quest with Venus in conjunction with the Moon and something he did vocally with Venus conjunct Mercury.
It is interesting that after changing his religion and name, it was abroad where Ali’s new identity was more accepted. Mars and Aries in the 9th not only shows athletic ability shown internationally, but and enthusiasm and progressive attitude to his personality away from the US. Mars receives a square from Pluto, so abroad there was jealousy of his ability, but ultimately his ability and his humanitarian stance won over his critics there. In contrast in the US it was much harder for him to gain acceptance. Looking to his 3rd house of his local environment and his 4th house of home and country things were more tricky. On the 3rd house cusp we find Libra and Venus it’s ruler receives a squares from a critical Saturn and rebellious Uranus. The 4th house cusp has Scorpio on it’s cusp, and of course Pluto it’s ruler receives a square from aggressive Mars. At home he was vilified and even hated for the anti-military position he took, his vocal stance against discrimination and the action of changing his faith.
This peaceful and public stance from a man from an “inferior race” and of different religious beliefs to many around him was also directed at the nation through his refusal to join the military during the Vietnam War, which drew meant that the authorities threatened to throw him in jail. The same peaceful ascendant/Venus opposition is squared by Saturn, laying down the law against him. You know in astrology when you get to planets in conjunction and in competition in the same sign, there may be a battle for supremacy but the slower moving planet will always win. This time in a battle between Saturn square Ascendant/Venus and Uranus square Ascendant/Venus, Uranus did win the day, Ali had the charges eventually dropped and this provided the inspiration for his friend Martin Luther King to raise his voice on behalf of the oppressed black community in America. There was however a second link to faith on the chart. We have a grand earth trine on the chart, a store of talent & inspiration which was one of the driving forces in his life. Uranus in his public 10th house trine to spiritual Neptune in his 2nd house of self-worth trine to his Capricorn Sun. By changing religion, Ali became twice the person and his self belief would have soared. By using his spiritual beliefs in opposing war, he change society and precipitated a revolution of equality.
Of course as Ali’s glittering boxing career ended and he moved into middle age, he had another battle to fight, his one with Parkinson’s disease. I return to that Pluto in the 12th house opposing Ali’ s Sun Moon and Mercury in the 6th house of health. Pluto is retrograde and coming out of the 12th house of sacrifice and suffering. Whenever I see an opposition across the 6th/12 house of health axis involving an outer planet (Saturn, Uranus, Neptune or Pluto) and one of the planets involved in the opposition rules the ascendant (this time the Sun), one knows that health issues may affect the subject and the body. Pluto not only opposed the Sun, but also opposed the Moon ruling that same 12th house and made an opposition to Mercury representing the brain. Parkinson’s disease is a slow degrading of the brain, exactly expressed by this opposition.
He is a amazing human being, with endless compassion and the heart of a lion. He may have been known as a warrior in the boxing ring, but I think the greatest fight he won was the stand he took in opposing violence and eventually bringing freedom to his community.
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