New Solaris Astrology Website now launched.

Just to let all my regular readers know, I have now launched my new Solaris Astrology website at http://www.solarisastrology.co.uk . It incudes all my regular features and will also have pages concerned with fixed stars and other astrological subjects as well as a link back to my blog here on this page. Please go and have a visit, please bookmark it and link through to it (it all helps boost my ranking on the web). My aim eventually in time is to make my new website one of the foremost astrology ones on the internet. You can visit it by clicking on the screenshot above.

Thank you everyone around the world for all your kind comments about the blog here, I have been truly humbled with the fantastic reactions and the love that I have received from all my regular readers over the past 18 months since it began on 16th February 2012. We continue on here as per normal so please do not worry, both sites will live, hopefully thrive and complement each other.

Best wishes,

Paul Saunders…

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Full Moon in Capricorn on 3rd July 12 – Intense and practical, emotional and unpredictable.

On the back of all the intense planetary activity that has been swirling around in the past fortnight, we have a really notable full Moon forming on 3rd July in Capricorn as she conjuncts with Pluto in opposing the Sun making a t-square with Uranus at the focus point (see below). On the same day Mars shifts from Virgo into Libra, the sign of relationships. How will all this pan out? I try to decipher it for once using my own personal experiences.

 

Full Moons show the completion of a cycle as the Moon stands out in the sky in it’s full glory bathed in the light of the Sun which reflects off it. From here in the Moon’s transit around the grand circle of constellations, the light reflected off it stars to lessen and our lunar cousin starts it’s journey of around two weeks until a new Moon is born. In human terms, think of a the Full Moon (the Moon represents the female side of human nature) in the terms of a woman’s monthly cycle as she reaches ovulation. This analogy fits in beautifully with the story I am about to tell.

In astrology, the Full Moon is also seen in as a completion of something, an enforced breaking of ties, a tipping point, an ending of a phase of life or a situation occurs where you realise you have gone as far as you can go. This particular Full Moon is a hugely intense one, coming as it does as part of a t-square which will have ramifications for many of us, including incidentally myself and my wife Efsun, who I love very much. I don’t normally write about my personal life on this blog, but maybe the situation which we will be experiencing can help you understand what this Full Moon in Capricorn is all about.

On the 3rd July, Efsun is flying off to her home country of Turkey for 3 months so we will be apart for a long time, reflecting the nature of the event unfolding above us. This trip was arranged months ago because my sister in law got pregnant and she decided with her husband to have the baby born in New York as his brother lived there. She is very close to her mother and tradition dictates that as much of the family as is possible be at the birth to celebrate, so she asked her mum & dad to travel to America to join them. This lead to complications, for my father in law is 80 years of age and having health problems did not want to travel away for such a long time. A decision was reached between the rest of the family that only my mother-in-law would travel out to help my sister in law, and my wife would return to Turkey to look after dad until after the baby was born.

The Full Moon conjunct Pluto shows the deep emotion of the day when we will part at the airport, but there is so much more to the t-square forming on this day if you transpose it onto our personal charts. Efsun & I have very close ascendants in Libra and so this Full Moon hits both our 3rd houses in a similar spot, the Sun opposite in the 9th. The Sun opposed to the Moon reflects us splitting apart and being as far apart as we could be (Sun husband/wife Moon) and the orientation 3rd to 9th house shows the reason, my wife’s sister in the 3rd house of siblings or my 9th sister-in-law (3rd of the 7th in derivative houses). The 9th is also the house of long distance travel which fits in with the situation. The Full Moon squares onto Uranus in our 6th houses which is the focus of why all this is happening. Both our daily routines are going to be upset by our parting, and low and behold my father-in-law is an Aquarius (ruled by Uranus) and Aquarius rules both our 5th houses, the house of children. You could not make it up!!

The Full Moon in Capricorn will I think bring tough decisions or situations to bare upon us but clarity at the same time, Saturn which is Capricorn’s planet brings us direction even if it brings us hard situations to overcome. The conjunction with Pluto also highlights issues of control and one thinks on a more global scale that the global banking irregularities highlighted in the past couple of days will be cracked down upon swiftly and decisively. This could be the end of a cycle for those in the big financial institutions and investment houses (ruled by Pluto) who thought they could get away with murder.

In more general terms, look for shock emotional breakdowns and endings, made all the more surprising because of the square presence of Uranus. Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes and their impending divorce comes directly to mind as one that came out of the blue and I don’t think Tom saw it on the cards – the full Moon opposes his Cancerian Sun squared by shocking Uranus. Looking at Katie’s chart, that Full Moon lands conjunct in her 5th house, look out for an almighty battle for control over her daughter Suri.

Remember what I said about Mars changing signs too. Our focus will shift to relationships with other people as this Full Moon hits, for fairness and justice and we will be prepared now to fight for what we want. For Efsun and I the focus now is on relationships with other people too; my wife will be helping my father-in law as much as she can, and I will have a chance to throw myself wholly into my work (I obviously deal with people) in the next few months while she is away.

Look to where the Full Moon hits on your chart and then for the wildcard element and the focus of why any change is occurring, look to where Uranus sits. For example if the Full Moon hits in your 2nd house your personal finance or possessions (2nd) may be an area of life that concerns you leading you to interact with big businesses by maybe taking a financial loan out (8th) – this whole episode may be prompted by unexpected 5th house issues centred around speculation, children or maybe creative activities that upset the balance of your life.

The signal sent out by this particular Full Moon I think will be one of tough practical experiences, break ups and endings of cycles combined with deep emotion and lack of control brought about by unusual events that we were not expecting. It is asking us to take up a challenge, to act positively in the face of adversity and the big odds stacked against us. There is a positive slant though; the fact that this is a cardinal t-square, asking us to act and make the best of the situations we are facing. If you do have difficult circumstances like myself and my wife to deal with, remember that the whole episode coming up may be very hard, but in the long run Capricorn(Saturn) and Pluto will eventually bring about slow but beneficial change. In our own case, I am hoping through all the pain of separation and the sacrifice that we must endure, we will get the eventual respect our families allowing us to bond closer than has happened in the past…

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Andy Murray – Could 2012 finally be his breakthrough year?

This is a repost from an article I originally put up on 24th January 2012 during the Australian Open championships. With Nadal already beaten and dumped out of Wimbledon 2012 by Lukaš Rosol in the upset of the decade (the year will not get better for him now as we move into the 2nd half of the season), this clears the road for Murray as he will no longer face him in the semi finals. At last he seems to have finally received a bit of the luck that I predicted would come his way back in January. As a Brit, I hope that it continues…

Here in Great Britain we have been waiting and waiting for a grand slam tennis champion. Andy Murray from Scotland was born into a fiercely competitive era, possibly the best ever with compatriots Roger Federer, Rafa Nadal and Novak Djokovic all standing in the talented Scot’s way. He is long overdue to produce on the undoubted ability that he has, and if he is ever going to fulfil his dream of winning a grand slam, then the stars say that in 2012, it is now or never.

  

Andy was born on 15th May 1987 in Glasgow, Scotland at 14.10 hrs (time from birth certificate quoted by astrologer Joyce Hopewell). This makes Andy a Sun sign Taurean, with a fun Sagittarian Moon and a critical Virgo ascendant. You know, this is a really interesting chart. There is a lot of fire here with 5 planets in fire signs, so there is a lot of get up and go and enthusiasm and with 5 planets in mutable signs, Andy is will be flexible in a tactical sense, able to switch strategies with ease. The combination of Taurean Sun and Sagittarian Moon shows somebody who wants to build a reputation and the Sagittarian Moon wants to have one’s ideas and philosophies respected. I have always held the belief that those with Taurus and Sagittarius prominent tend to mature a little later than others around them. The reason I feel for this is that the nature of Taurus is slow and steady, and Sagittarius is often out enjoying themselves a bit too much, and it takes a while for them to get their head around what they have to do to be successful. I feel the very much the same about Andy.

The Sun in Taurus, which is possessive, a bit stubborn, very down to earth and fond of acquiring possessions for a comfortable lifestyle is conjunct to Mercury in Gemini. Despite his rather dour persona, due to a quindecile between Mercury and Saturn and a square between the ascendant and Saturn which makes him appear far more serious than he actually is, Andy will be a chatty individual with a childlike sense of humour. Mercury in Gemini is always on the go and communication and being informed is very important to him. Mercury is closely conjunct to the Gemini Midheaven, and this leads me to think that Andy could go into journalism after his tennis career has finished. The Sun makes a quindecile to Pluto in the third house, which shows a burning need to be someone important and of stature. Pluto here shows a guy who has very powerful views, and when Andy speaks, people will listen. Pluto brings an inquiring mind, looking and thinking at a deep psychological level. Using this Pluto, Andy can out think and out psyche opponents before they step on and off the court if he fully used the powers at his disposal.

The main thrust of the chart is a powerful opposition, formed into a wedge formation. We have Mars in Gemini in the 10th house opposed by Saturn, Moon and Uranus in fiery Sagittarius in the 4th house. This opposition is made into a wedge by Jupiter and Venus in Aries in the 8th. Mars in the 10th house of work and ambition indicates athletic pursuits and someone who wants to get to the top of their profession. Mars in Cancer is not overly aggressive in fact it works better in a defensive mode, except when ones family is threatened and maybe this is one of the criticisms that is fairly levelled at Andy. Perhaps he could be more aggressive in his game, but that would be going against the very nature of his chart. His natural style is far more a counter attacking one. Opposing this Mars is a powerful triple conjunction. This is where it gets interesting. The Moon in the 4th house indicates a real close bond to the mother, however Saturn and Uranus in conjunction to the Moon and Mars opposite is very strict, unpredictable and even aggressive. I am of the view that the influence of his mother Judy who follows him everywhere he plays is a potentially disruptive influence on him. The planets say he has a strained relationship with her at the very least and if she were to leave him to his own devices he may benefit greatly. Saturn is retrograde and this indicates the lack of the love of a father. Again on this chart we the Sun almost isolated from the main body of the chart where we find the Moon. So often this indicates a broken family, and we know that Andy’s parents split when he was 9 years of age. This accentuates the bond between mother and son, but where is the point where that same relationship can inhibit one’s ambition?

Moving back to the triple conjunction, Saturn/Moon shows restricted emotion and Moon/Uranus shows and unpredictable feelings. It is almost if some days Andy will be serious and his head will be screwed on the right way, some days he will be in a cranky bizarre mood, and on others he will be almost uninterested. Mars opposed to Saturn shows a willingness to work and train hard and Mars/Uranus shows electric amounts of drive and energy. In truth it would need a very understanding person to be able to coach him, and he must be a nightmare to play against, just because of his unpredictable nature. The talent is there in spades with Uranus in the mix combined with a technical Virgo ascendant which brings an ability to be pin point perfect, but it can come out sporadically and in an uneven way.

Venus and Jupiter in Aries is really big hearted and generous to the hilt, and Andy will be attracted to potential partners in a very deep and intense way. Venus in Aries loves the chase but sometimes doesn’t have the staying power of other signs. You often find those with Venus in Aries go through many relationships in their lives. A trine between Venus and Saturn does bring some stability to Andy’s emotional life and a sextile between Mars and Venus is warmly romantic and loving. Jupiter makes trines to the Moon and Saturn bringing some common sense and an understanding and forgiving nature.

Finally I look at Neptune which sits in the 4th house apart from the three other planets. Andy will appreciate some peace and quiet from time to time although he may not get so much of that at home as the other planets here in the 4th house are so disruptive. He is likely to lead a transitory life even once he finishes playing, moving from place to place to place, leading me to think that he will be following the tennis tour imparting his knowledge to others long after he has stopped playing.

Now in the title of this article I indicated that 2012 could be the year for Andy to hit the heights he has wanted to for so long. Why is this? Well the best indications are given by transiting Jupiter. In the summer of 2012, just when the Wimbledon championships finish, transiting Jupiter and Venus will be conjunct his Midheaven (see above). Here are the two most fortunate planets in the zodiac in conjunction at the pinnacle of his chart, the place where ones public image is shown. During the year up to July 2012, Jupiter will be moving through the international 9th house, showing fortune coming his way on his travels. In the first week of July, transiting Uranus will conjunct his North Node, sextile to transiting Jupiter and to his natal Midheaven bringing him lucky breaks when he needs it. If ever he is going to have a chance to win the biggest tournament in the world at Wimbledon, the one Britain wants him to win, then this year has got to be his best chance so far. The only problem for Andy is that Roger Federer has a very similar ascendant to Andy at 11 Virgo, and Jupiter and Venus will be just as close to his Gemini Midheaven as it will be to Andy’s. It could be that the victor between these two will eventually take the Wimbledon crown.

On the bonus side for Andy, Ivan Lendl is a great choice as his new coach. His Sun sits in Murrays 7th house and opposes Andy’s ascendant and Ivan’s North Node/South Node axis squares Andy’s Mars and Saturn Moon and Uranus. Lendl’s Mars sits in Andy’s 5th house trine to his Midheaven, so Andy will appreciate Lendl’s talent and will to win as well as Ivan’s take on things. He will provide an opposite point of view while keeping in sync with Andy’s unusual style. Just what he needs in his corner me thinks.

I have also looked at the Australian final date (29th Jan 12) coming up in a few days time. As I see it looking at all the aspects, all the 4 top players in the world (Djokovic, Nadal, Federer and Murray) have a decent chance, and quite frankly you could flip a coin to find the winner. I slightly favour a Federer versus Djokovic final, with Djokovic just coming out on top due to a trine from his Pluto to his Midheaven and Jupiter closing in on a conjunction with the top of his chart too. As Jupiter exits Taurus and heads towards Gemini, I expect his amazing winning streak which lasted through 2011 to start to slowly fade away. Federer should have a good year with Jupiter moving through his 9th house and Nadal could have a difficult 2012 with Saturn stationed in his 12th house for most of the year. Into 2013 Saturn will conjunct his natal Pluto and then his ascendant entering his 1st. This indicates having to make a new start and a quieter part of his life will ensue. Maybe injuries will catch up with him? Out of the 4, I expect Nadal to struggle the most as 2012 progresses.

**** Update 6th June 2012 ****

As predicted, Andy Murray vs Roger Federer will be the Wimbledon final, just as I said back in January. I wonder what odds I would have got for predicting that? Gonna be a great match and astrologically I can’t split them. Maybe just Federer will win as he has the extra experience, although I’d obviously love to see Andy win.

Link also to :-    Roger Federer - The "Fed Express" keeps on delivering

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Colorado Springs in danger from wildfires

This is a really nasty one developing. The city of Colorado Springs in the US is being threatened by one of several wildfires that have sprung up in the Rocky Mountains in the past week. Up to 36,000 people have been evacuated from their homes as the fire gets dangerously close to the city, President Obama has declared a national emergency and people are saying that these fires are the worst in history in the state of Colorado. As always, the planets are highlighting this situation in the heavens above us.

Of course right now we have the Uranus Pluto square which is creating a climate for all sorts of disasters to happen, Uranus provides the unexpected nature of these events to occur and Pluto adds death, destruction and regeneration. I think of Pluto as like a wildfire, coming along and wiping out all in it’s path so that new growth can start. At the moment we have a nasty t-square involving the Sun, and this adds fuel to the fire, so to speak.

Any  incident in the world at the moment is going to be connected to this square and the Colorado Springs fires are another example. Look at the pointer (in gold) aimed directly at Uranus from Mars and Saturn. Saturn is hardship and Mars is force, or in this case fire and heat (Mars rules fire) and both these two planets are in focused quindecile aspect, like a laser beam of energy burning into Uranus. Add in a sextile from expansive Jupiter allowing the situation to spread and get out of control and we have a major incident on our hands.

There is one other point I want to add. All incident like these fires need a spark to set them off. A few days ago active for the latitude of Colorado Springs 39 degrees North, Mars connected in paran relationship with the star Sirius which sits in the constellation of Canis Major, culminating at the top of the sky at the Midheaven (MC in red) as Sirius was setting on the horizon(see above). Sirius is a huge bright star commonly known as the “Scorcher” or one who burns. Brady says of the connection that is brings “Heat, politically, socially or even meteorologically”. I hope the people of Colorado Springs who are now feeling that heat all stay safe… 

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Radiation levels rising again at Fukushima nuclear plant.

Record radiation levels are now being detected at the Fukushima nuclear plant that was devastated by the tsunami in March last year.  A report from the Japanese broadcast news service NHK said that “the radiation levels above radioactive water in the basement of the Number 1 reactor reached up to 10,300 millisievert an hour, a dose that will kill humans within a short time after making them sick within minutes”. While the region is still under a strict curfew, we are now approaching the typhoon season and the risk of earthquakes in Japan always exists. Right now they should be on alert, because the astrology over the next few days and months is more than a little worrying.

The transit chart above is set for the moment of the first explosion at the Fukushima plant after the tsunami had hit and in the next couple of days, transiting Mars is going to make a exact opposition to natal Uranus, always a risky and dangerous aspect as we have the potential for shocking action of some kind. What makes this more worrying is that Mars will also square the Nodal axis which does bring potential for out of the blue events. Maybe the opposing presence of Mars “is heating up” those nuclear rods to such an extent that the radiation levels are flourishing? I am no scientific expert, but Mars’ force and energy does and can have a significant effect.

One more Mars aspect to notice is an inconjunct between the planet of action and Neptune which will be exact just before Mars moves into Libra on 3rd July. Neptune rules all types of noxious gases as well as water and potential weather events like typhoons and hurricanes. All seems calm on the weather front in the next few days as Mars makes it’s inconjunct aspect, so the next date to watch out for will be 23rd August as Mars makes a trine to Neptune; after that the start of October when transiting Saturn will be making a trine and Mars will make a square. At the same time as this is happening, transiting Saturn will make an inconjunct to Uranus and Mars will make an trine. This time to my eyes looks quite risky as the nodal axis will also be square to Neptune which through Pisces rules the nuclear 8th house.

 

Transiting Pluto is also moving backwards now to twice more revisit it’s position on the day of the explosion at 7:18 Capricorn. This is a dangerous spot as it will also activate the triple square to Uranus/Mercury and Jupiter which was formed on 12th March 2011. The significant dates to watch out for are 11th August for the next retrograde connection and 25th October for Pluto’s last hit to this degree point, although Pluto will be in range for much of the next 5 months to come. The same goes for Uranus which will exactly square this degree point on 10th September in retrograde and make a final aspect on 8th March 2013.

In truth, I can’t see the danger level reducing for quite a time to come and the environmental damage to a whole region of Japan as well as the sea around the coast is yet unquantifiable. The worry is that the Japanese will underestimate the seriousness of the whole situation. Right now for 37 degrees North, the latitude of Fukushima, Neptune is currently rising with the fixed star Mirach which Bernadette Brady says leads to “a period when there is a false sense of security”. In this case, let’s hope the weather and earthquakes can stay away in the next months so that the Japanese can find some solution to make the reactor plant somewhat safe, otherwise that false hope which this connection indicates could precede a more shocking outcome.

My thanks to Sherri who has been badgering me to do a post on this issue for some while…

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50 Shades of Grey – The dark erotic side of the Uranus and Pluto square.

Over the past weeks and months I have explored the various facets of the Uranus Pluto square which reached the first of it’s exact connections last weekend and today I explore another of them. I am looking at the phenomenal hype surrounding “50 Shades of Grey”, the first book in a trilogy of novels (the other two being “50 Shades Darker” and “50 Shades Freed”), written by E L James, who in real life is Erika Leonard, a 49 year old housewife from the UK. Everywhere one goes, women are talking about the book, texting and tweeting about it. Why? Let’s look at the astrology (yes, books can have an astrology chart too!!) and let me explain…

Unfortunately I do not have Erika’s birth details but I do have the launch date of the book back last year. 50 Shades of Grey was published in New York by Vintage Books on 20th June 2011, one would assume at midnight. Very appropriately, this gives the chart Gemini Sun in the 4th house – this book was written (Gemini) by a housewife (4th house) and Mercury in emotional Cancer (the sign of femininity) sits in the 5th house of creativity, and both the Sun and Mercury sit trine to inspirational Neptune conjunct a Pisces ascendant. In these connections we have a wonderful signature for storytelling & for writing female orientated literature. We have both Mars and Venus in the 3rd house of communication with Venus in Gemini opposite the Midheaven which encourages one to talk and write about love and relationships and Mars in Taurus quindecile the Midheaven which brings a more intimate and sexual feel to the writing, Mars in Taurus loves touching, contact & sensing what is going on, even in a forceful manner.

The Sun/Mercury conjunction is also part of a much bigger configuration, a cardinal cross connecting to Uranus in Aries, Saturn in Libra and Pluto in Capricorn. All the facets of the story are here, the rich controlling billionaire (Saturn/Pluto) Christian Grey, Ana the literature student (Mercury), serious issues about relationships (Saturn in Libra in 7th), the sex and the intimacy of Pluto and the uninhibited, bizarre erotic acts of Uranus in Aries. Combine this with touchy feely Mars in Taurus and the Moon in the 12th house in unpredictable Aquarius hinting at bizarre emotional experiences, sacrifice and service going on strictly behind closed doors and you have a dynamite concoction that lies in wait for Ana in the “Red Room of Pain”!!

There is so much more to this cardinal cross that meets the eye though. Not only has the content of the book fascinated and transfixed women of all ages, but for the first time because of electronic readers like the Kindle, one can read secretly in private (Mercury opposite Pluto) wherever one goes. Even if you are on a train, on a beach or in a public place, nobody knows what you are reading with one of these devices, and they have allowed women to get the kind of private sexual thrill wherever they are, whenever they want.   

Of course, women love chatting amongst themselves about these kind of issues (this is a strictly female thing as most of us in the male population are way too embarrassed to chat in this way!!) and so word of mouth between women of all persuasions has been the catalyst for the incredible success of the books. These discussions with friends and female colleagues are 11th house issues ruled by Uranus and Aquarius boosted by Pluto’s presence here, which if anything encourages the message to spread like wildfire.One last note, the orientation of the cardinal cross is really interesting connecting the 1st house of personal issues to the 7th house of relationships, the 5th house of affairs to the 11th house of receiving love. 

The trilogy have been a runaway business success shipping millions of copies and quite appropriately Jupiter sits in the 2nd house of making money trine to Pluto which promises huge wealth. Jupiter is also part of a mini grand trine connecting the 12th house Moon representing the female who hides her identity and works from behind the scenes and focusing on Neptune conjunct the Ascendant. This signature indicates that the books will be transformed (Pluto sextile Neptune) into film bringing the stories to an even wider audience. I understand the major movie companies were queuing up to sign a deal with Erika, and finally one was struck with Universal Pictures. Expect the films to be a runaway success.

Back in the 60’s when Uranus and Pluto last made a significant connection in prim and proper Virgo (a conjunction) the issues of the day were based around free love, and a revolution swept away the old staid attitudes to relationships and sex that had previously existed. This latest square is showing that these issues are back on the agenda again, however this square lasts 7 exact connections and three long years in cardinal signs. It may not quite be the swinging 60’s again, but maybe this decade will in the future be known as one where the darker intimate secrets of our private lives are thrust out in the open and become more socially acceptable?

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Northern Ireland – Queen’s visit to the province a landmark event.

Queen Elizabeth II shakes hands with Northern Ireland’s deputy minister and former IRA deputy leader Martin McGuinness, the Sinn Fein activist who probably authorised the bombing and murder of Lord Mountbatten, the Duke of Edinburgh’s uncle in August 1979. Such a meeting even until a couple of years ago would have been thought to be unthinkable, yet today the historic meeting between the two took place at the Lyric Theatre in Belfast, and the future of Northern Ireland now looks brighter than it has done for many a long year. Not surprisingly, the upbeat mood as well as a picture of progress is shown in the astrology right now.

The Northern Ireland chart I use harks back to the moment the Northern Irish parliament in 1922 repealed the right to join the “Irish Free State”, thus linking the province to the United Kingdom. The chart has a prominent and rather subversive grand water trine, linking Pluto in Cancer the planet of power and control in the sign of the home and security to Uranus the planet of rebellion in Pisces the sign of faith, and to Jupiter in Scorpio, a planet representing beliefs in the sign of jealousy and underground violence. Religious power and rebellion is inbuilt into the DNA of Northern Ireland.

This troubling grand trine is furthered by a trine between the Sun & Mercury in freedom orientated Sagittarius to Neptune in proud Leo which focuses onto harsh Saturn in Libra, a Saturn that rules the Midheaven. The right to speak one’s mind about one’s faith and religion has always been a bone of contention, and that fight between the communities in Northern Ireland has extended to the control and governance of the province. There is a tense square between Mars in humanitarian yet rebellious Aquarius and Venus in emotional and vengeful Scorpio, so relationships between the people have been prone to bouts of violence, and force has been used for years to sort out disputes, followed by tit-for-tat reprisal action.

The people of Northern Ireland have had a rough deal and it is shown by the Moon in Cancer (the Northern Irish are very proud of their heritage) squared by that Saturn in Libra representing tough relationships taking time to sort themselves out. Anyone who has been suffering relationship trials and tribulations in the same way through the recent Saturn in Libra transit of the past 2 years will know what this is all about!!

Here’s the transits chart for today, 27th June 2012. The highlights of this chart are Saturn turning direct exactly square to the Northern Irish Moon, a real turning point in the history of the country. It is really interesting and a lesson to us all that the handshake pictured above took place as Saturn stopped to turn direct in Libra for the final time, as if time had become a healer, a cycle of history had now completed and that the peoples of this beautiful country could now move on. Just to add weight to this point, Pluto has been opposing it’s own position for a year or two now from inside the 8th house of regeneration, showing a change and transformation taking place in the battle for control and ending the underground resistance movement. Transiting Pluto is quindecile that Moon too, change is coming to the people. 

On this day the Sun was trine to Jupiter which was also receiving a sextile from Pluto, a sign of prosperity to come and one which may encourage more investment to the country. Transiting Mars moving through the 5th house was conjunct the North Node as well as trine to the Midheaven, a really poignant aspect as we had a offer by the man of violence (Mars) to the head of state the Queen (Midheaven) to meet in a place of creativity, a theatre (represented by the 5th house); a public gesture (North Node) showing that the future of the country was now moving forward.

Finally in the stars for Belfast’s latitude 54 degrees North, transiting Venus turning direct and sitting bang on the Northern Ireland ascendant was in paran relationship with fixed Star Deneb Adige (the tail of the Swan in Cygnus) showing the celebration of religion, art and music (how appropriate) and Jupiter highlighted by the Sun was in relationship with Aldebaran, the royal star in the eye of the bull in Taurus as well as with Vindemiatrix which is a star to be found in Virgo. Together they relate a picture of a success focusing on a noble project and an event attended by a gathering of the people for the common good, and under a common banner. Anyone seeing 20,000 people greeting the Queen and Prince Phillip this afternoon would be in no doubt that the stars and planets were reflecting the joyous mood of the day, and that Northern Ireland for the first time in a long time is a nation living together in peace and in harmony.

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Highlighting the astrological reasons behind the Turkish military jet shooting.

Astrological smoke and mirrors in the skies clouded the shooting down of a Turkish military jet into the Mediterranean Sea just off the Syrian coast on Friday. To be truthful, I had been waiting for a dramatic event to happen in the world having looked last week at the planetary movements and the Syrians and Turks didn’t let me down. In an unprovoked action, a Turkish jet seemed to stray close to the Syrian mainland and without warning, Syrian anti aircraft guns blasted the Turkish F4 jet out of the sky.

Here we have the chart of the downed jet. Mars the planet of force and of the military sits on the ascendant quindecile to Uranus in the 7th house of foreign relations and disputes (this is a mundane chart). Uranus is also making a quindecile to Saturn, the planet of authority making a very focused arrowhead or Yod type structure. This Uranus was being very stressed as it was also at the point of t-square formed by an opposition between the Sun and Pluto (issues of control here over land – Pluto in the 4th of territory and the Sun in the 10th of administration and government). Harsh Saturn makes a square to Mercury, the planet of transportation highlighting the fact that this was a serious incident involving a vehicle (military plane). With Jupiter and Venus clamped around the South Node here in an unfortunate international (Jupiter) dispute requiring a lot of diplomacy (Venus).

Looing at the position of the planets in relation to the stars, in the past week Jupiter had been conjunct fixed star Mirfak which sits in Perseus the warrior. Connections between these two often bring on times of military action. I will repeat exactly what I wrote on 10th June.

“There is one more conjunction that begins on 17th June as Jupiter conjuncts Mirfak in Perseus until 24th June. Mirfak is a decisive star in the young warrior Perseus who in Greek mythology was seen as the conquering hero who saved Andromeda by cutting off the head of the Medusa which he holds in his hand (represented by the star Algol). This is a headstrong star which can reflect bold but possibly rash action being taken. Now Jupiter has international connotations and in the skies Jupiter will be square to Neptune at the time of this connection. Will bold or rash international military action be taken now?”

Mars on 22nd was conjunct the fixed star Alkes which is the most prominent star in the constellation Crater, the cup which sits on the back of the Hydra which protects it. The Greeks believed that Icarus stored his sacred wine in the cup, and in many cultures and religions the sacred and holy cup or goblet holds deep symbolism. Here we have something precious to the people that we have to look after, seen through the main star here Alkes. Now when Mars conjuncts Alkes, we have active even forceful protection which is activated. At the time that the Turkish jet came close to Syrian territory, their forces protected their sovereignty and land in a decisive Martian way, by shooting it out of the sky.

You would think that this is a cut and dried case of one country acting against another, but the Neptune square to Jupiter Venus and the South Node as well as the Pluto Sun Uranus and a trine between Neptune and the Sun makes me think that there is much more to this situation than meets the eye. Whenever you get Jupiter, Neptune and Pluto heavily involved in a major world incident, I think of smoke and mirrors, international secrets, underground knowledge, power plays and use of control, deception, hidden agendas and things going on at a deep, deep level. Something is going on, that we as the majority of the general public of the world are not aware.

I am uneasy about this incident, happening as it did on the cusp of the first of the seven exact conjunctions of Pluto and Uranus. Often on a first connection of an aspect, you don’t get the full impact of what will eventually transpire. This, I believe is the first act in a play which has many episodes to run. I will leave you with this thought. Do you believe with the locational technology available in the cockpit under the control of any military jet pilot today, that he would make such a mistake as to go into Syrian airspace by mistake and without prior authority to do so? The dance of Pluto and Uranus in the heavens, an aspect that will shape our world for the next three years, has just begun.

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Spain – Financial bail out a sticking plaster over a big gaping wound.

I am returning to the issue of Spain again today as I noticed something that I think needs to be highlighted. Over the weekend the man above Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy pocketed a cool 100 billion Euros to bail out the crocked Spanish banking system, however I see this as little more than delaying the inevitable. This bail out is very much related to the previous solar eclipse of the 20th May 2012.

 

The above chart shows the transits for today, however the last Solar Eclipse hit on the Spanish chart exactly where transiting Jupiter sits today on the cusp of Gemini within the 4th house and directly opposite to the Spanish Sun. A southern eclipse to a Sun either direct or in opposition can lead to a death of some sort which the subject needs to deal with. I have seen this effect on personal charts several times, indeed I predicted such happenings. Such a connection to a country’s Sun is a huge issue to deal with. The eclipse puts enormous pressure of the whole country and the leadership itself to reform, and encouraged the speculation that built up over Spain in the past fortnight. Jupiter has come along to bring some respite to the pressure in the form of international (Jupiter) financial (natal Jupiter in 2nd house) aid allowing Spain to get her house (4th house) back in order, however the after effects of the Solar eclipse will be felt in Spain for months to come until some hard decisions are made.

Jupiter does brings optimism, however this loan under Jupiter happened when the planet of fortune was conjunct fixed star Alcyone which Brady says is a time when “brave reform is suggested and big solutions are sought”. This is ok, but Jupiter is also currently square to Neptune in the heavens right now, which brings the idea of blind optimism, especially when Jupiter is conjunct a star nebula (nebulae in traditional astrology have always been associated with blindness). In my view, it is not a good strategy to lend huge amounts of money under such an influence, as Neptune has a nasty habit of bringing false hope before dashing them all and bringing suffering and loss of reputation.

As I have mentioned in previous posts, I think that later this year Spain is going to financially implode and possibly in the long term take the whole European model down with it, and I still hold to this view. The loan this week is a dangerous one, it just delays the inevitable without sorting out the root causes of Spain’s problems, the employment crisis, the vast numbers of immigrants and the level of debt incurred after the folly of a tremendous housing boom. Spain has been living on credit for far too long, and the eclipse of the past two weeks will be a shock to the system that will reverberate and shake things up. It’s going to be a long, tough summer in Madrid. 

Link to Spain facing financial storm - Published 11th May 2012

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Maria Sharapova – The golden girl of tennis back on top of the world.

She was pushed hard, oh so hard by Sara Errani yesterday in the final of the French open, but Maria Sharapova finally overcame her plucky opponent to complete her set of Grand Slam titles, a feat that only 10 women in history have achieved. In her speech afterwards, I sensed a real maturity in her response to her victory. The victory came after her career was nearly wrecked by a debilitating shoulder injury, and I would guess all the sweeter for overcoming it.

Maria was born on 19th April 1987 in Nyagan, Russia in deepest Siberia (I do not have a birth time) and has an Aries Sun and an ambitious if reserved Capricorn Moon. This chart is all about fire and achievement with 5 planets in fire signs, her enthusiasm for any endeavours she takes on does burns brightly, and with five planets in cardinal signs and 4 in mutable ones, this is a girl who’s ambitions drive her on to be first, to win and be pre-eminent. Maria does have the ability to adapt to the situation, however the lack of fixed planets in her chart may deprive her of the stamina and ultimate determination to dominate for long periods of time. When she shines, she shines brightly but when the flame goes out, it takes a long time for the fire to relight.

The Sun and Moon combination show a similar story. The Capricorn Moon needs to achieve and the cardinal energy of the Aries Sun helps her to go out with a pioneering spirit to fulfil this need. We have hot fire and ambition combined with cool emotions and a level headed attitude. Maria was born to be a winner and she plays with the same aggressive attitude allied with an icy will to succeed. The Sun sits trine to independent Uranus in Sagittarius which is conjunct to Saturn, so it is no surprise to me that she left her native Russia to further her ambitions. This is a girl who can function out of her comfort zone in order to get to the top. Uranus Saturn conjunctions do impose a need to break the routine every so often, to change things so that you can progress up the ladder of life. It is really noticeable about her latest triumph that Maria recently broke a long association with her old coach Michael Joyce to replace him with Thomas Hogstedt and it has immediately paid dividends.

Saturn and Uranus square to Maria’s Venus in Pisces. Venus in Pisces is very soft hearted and sympathetic and Maria will be very selfless in the way she treats the ones she loves. She is drawn to creative souls who need her attention, to creative, imaginative types – this is a girl who is tremendously compassionate but someone who may have to suffer some heartaches before she finally settles down. Saturn in Sagittarius’ square to Venus is never easy and indicates hard lessons need to be learned in love and the Uranus square does tell me that her relationships may be quite unstable and maybe broken often by times of independence or being away from the one she loves more than she would wish for.

The Capricorn Moon sits with her Neptune in Capricorn square to the North Node, Jupiter and Mercury, which is emotionally gentle but also cool. To say that Maria has an old head on young shoulders is true, but that Moon in Capricorn does also hold back the undoubted emotions which lie within, bringing the impression of the Siberian ice queen that we know. The square between Neptune/Moon and Jupiter/Mercury is hugely idealistic and Maria will have strong if rather conservative faith. There is the need to travel and get away from the pressures of life in general and find her own peace and space, indeed with Jupiter in conjunction with her North Node, hers is a fortunate life filled with opportunities to travel far and wide so that she can find this contentment.

Jupiter conjunct to Mercury in Aries is a very busy combination and I can guess that she is always on the go, not stopping from one second to the next. This conjunction is sextile to a busy bee Mars in Gemini so the need to communicate, to find out information and to be occupied with doing “something” is very strong. Jupiter Mercury in Aries in connection with both Mars and Neptune is an international advertisers dream, as it indicates a connection to worldwide media, TV, product endorsements and positive direct messages. It is not surprising that her commercial activities dwarf the prize money she earns on the court.

Now a really interesting feature of this chart are two sets of interlocking yods with Mars and Pluto at the focus of each one. Mars as a focus point indicates that for a while in her early life at least, Maria’s energy was not being properly used and needed an outside controlling factor to channel it. Every time this yod is activated, Bill Tierney says that “one finds oneself centred upon a new life course requiring one to mobilize one’s vital forces in an extremely demanding manner”. In essence, a new challenge appears that one must use strength and determination to conquer. The Yod with Pluto at the focus point, is more transformational however remember that Pluto does form part of the sextile base for the Mars focused Yod. Connections by transiting planets here set one off on a new direction in life and an increase in one’s power and one can never return to the old existence that one had. This is destiny forcing the hand of the individual to improve one’s life, and eventually rise to a position of high influence.

Here are the outer planet and North Node connections to Maria’s Mars and Pluto since she was born :-

1994 – Jupiter to natal Pluto – Goes to America to join the Nick Bollettieri  tennis academy

1995 North Node to natal Pluto – Signed by IMG who sponsors her & pays for her finances to stay in America

2000 Jupiter to Mars – Wins first major international Junior Girls title at under 16  level aged just 13

2001 Saturn to Mars – Makes professional tennis debut.

2002 North Node to Mars – Youngest player ever to appear in the Australian Junior final

2005/6 Jupiter to Pluto – Becomes world number one player.

The next hit will be in July 2012 when Jupiter connects again with her natal Mars. Might she win Wimbledon 2012 off the back of her French Open triumph? If she can keep her body injury free, I can see her going on to be head and shoulders the best female tennis player on the planet for a while to come, and following this connection Saturn will conjunct with her Pluto as Jupiter returns in retrograde motion to connect with Mars. This double hit on the two Yods in her chart I think is significant and occurs at the end of 2012/start of 2013 when transiting Pluto also squares her nodal axis and Jupiter/Mercury conjunction.

You can see both Pluto and Saturn lighting up that Mars yod from the base sextile at the bottom just as Jupiter and Uranus does the same with the Pluto yod. It is a dramatic astrological  picture and I would expect big things and big news of Maria at this point in her life, especially as you see the history of how she reacts when outer planets hit these vital points in her chart. A career grand slam turning into the ultimate goal of holding all 4 grand slam titles at the same time? Seeing this planetary set up, it is entirely possible that it could just happen…

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Fixed Star Connections - Mon 11th June until Sun 17th June 2012

This particular week in the heavens looks as if it will be quite an active one with the Sun and Mercury making several connections to fixed stars in the heavens and Jupiter making an important conjunction as the week ends.

To start off, we still have some influences that are still in force all this week with Pluto still in contact with star Facies and Neptune conjunct Formalhaut and Sadalmelek and Jupiter conjunct Alcyone through until 15th June. To read these interpretations, please look at the previous fixed star report Fixed Stars from 7th June - 10th June 2012

We start off on Monday/Tuesday with the Sun connecting with both fixed stars Capella, one of the stars in the constellation Auriga (the Charioteer), and Bellatrix which sits in the warrior Orion. Both these stars when combined with the Sun tend to highlight the actions of a warrior, maybe a sports star. Bernadette Brady says of these connections that with Sun/Capella “the free agent or sports star takes centre stage” and Sun/Bellatrix highlights the actions of the “wounded warrior”. Maybe at Euro 2012, one player maybe highlighted for his play or possibly someone around the world in the military will capture the headlines?

Also effective on Monday Mercury conjuncts fixed star Murzims. Here we have new potential business ideas being floated or media ownership controversy will be stirred up. I can see this conjunction being especially potent as Mercury will be forming a t-square in the heavens opposite to Pluto and square Uranus. At the Leveson enquiry in the UK this week we have some heavy hitters in the witness stand including former UK Prime Ministers Gordon Brown and John Major, the current Chancellor George Osborne and Prime Minister David Cameron. I can see some dirt being dragged up especially from Brown who had little if no time at all for media baron Rupert Murdoch.

Onto Tuesday/Wednesday and the Sun moves onwards to conjunct with stars El Nath in Taurus and Phact in the constellation of Columba (the Dove). El Nath sits at the point of the horn of the bull of Taurus and traditionally this has been known as a rather aggressive spot in the sky. After all the bull’s horn is a weapon which can do great damage or it can be used in a defensive mode. El Nath is one of those stars that portents either terrible happenings or events of great good and honour. Will there be some type of battle ensue, will this be a time of attacks, either physical or verbal, will there be a hero or victor to acclaim, or a defeat to mourn?

The Sun’s connection with the star Phact indicates a headstrong individual capturing attention, someone who is passionate about their beliefs and does not take advice or no for an answer. Look around the world on these days and no doubt someone fitting this description will be in the headlines. Mercury will have moved on to conjunct the star Alhena which sits in the heel of the left twin in Gemini. This is an interesting star as Alhena has two meanings. It is known as the marching star or represents one who marches forward following a cause or a belief and it also can show the wounded heel, in effect the Achilles heel of someone or of an idea. Here we have the notion of someone moving forward, but also possibly in pain. Brady says of this connection that “some scandal, injustice or swindle will come to light” when Mercury conjuncts the star Alhena. Will someone feel pain? Will someone who is following a process or cause suddenly find that the path is not so easy as they thought it might be?

On Wednesday/Thursday the Sun reaches a conjunction with Alnilam, the buckle in the belt of Orion. This star is associated with pulling things together, be it ideas or people. This is not an inspirational star as the qualities which are being used are already there waiting to be used, but more practical in it’s application. This is a functional star which can tie all the loose ends together and produce something that lasts for a long time. It could be that someone now starts this task of bringing people and ideas together for the betterment of everyone.

Venus moving retrograde connects with one of the royal stars of Persia on Thursday for three days as it conjuncts Aldebaran, the eye of the Bull in Taurus for the second time since a first hit on 16th April. This connection often highlights community, social or environmental concerns or issues, although Venus’ connection to finance also I think means that financial issues can be in the spotlight too. On 16th April 2012 when the first hit was made, Anders Behring Breivik made his first court appearance highlighting Norway’s multicultural and social policies, UN monitors entered Syria for the first time as attacks on the population grew, it was revealed that Spain had borrowed record amounts of money from the European Central Bank and Iran said it was open to talking about it’s nuclear development. We may well see advances in one or all of these topics as Venus connects this spot in retrograde for a second time.

Friday 15th June finds Mars conjunct the star Denebola in the tail of the Lion in Leo. This star is a bit of an enigma as it favours action which goes against the mainstream of public thinking. We find people who live on the edge of society having strong links to this star, those who are difficult to control or who tend to rebel against the majority. Mars connecting here brings the increased possibility of some sort of shock action happening that nobody was suspecting, maybe something unique or special will happen or maybe someone from the edges of society will have an effect that is noteworthy in some way.

Also on Friday Mercury conjuncts with stars Canopus (the keel in the constellation Carina)  & Sirius which sits in Canis Major. Both these connections are connected with communication, published material or the words of a person which may be censored in some way, or it may be that something said may have far reaching repercussions. Maybe the story of the day will be the fact that lines of communication may be undermined or broken. Again we have the influence of Pluto and Uranus to think about connecting with Mercury, rebellious words or the control of what is able to be said may be important on this day.

There is one more conjunction that begins on 17th June as Jupiter conjuncts Mirfak in Perseus until 24th June. Mirfak is a decisive star in the young warrior Perseus who in Greek mythology was seen as the conquering hero who saved Andromeda by cutting off the head of the Medusa which he holds in his hand (represented by the star Algol). This is a headstrong star which can reflect bold but possibly rash action being taken. Now Jupiter has international connotations and in the skies Jupiter will be square to Neptune at the time of this connection. Will bold or rash international military action be taken now? Will this action look good and appear the correct course at the time, only for the true state of affairs to be revealed later on as the Neptunian mist clears? This could be true of a nation or indeed an important person.

This whole connection reminds me of blind optimism, an act of bold and rash faith, and does reflect Neptune’s position conjunct to Formalhaut which promises the earth only for one to be let down. In my mind I am lead to think of two possibilities that could take place. The first is the situation in Syria and the need to take some sort of hold on a worsening crisis. If so, the world not only needs an entry strategy but a comprehensibly thought out exit one too if they decide to act. Neptune’s square to Jupiter worries and concerns me that confusion and unclear thinking may hold sway, and we could see the Syrian crisis turning very messy indeed. The second reminds me of the US Presidential race, Jupiter representing the challenger Mitt Romney. Maybe something bold or foolhardy he says or does may in the fullness of time come back to hurt him in the future. I am not so sure on this one, but it is just a hunch I have in the back of my mind. We will see as the Presidential race heats up further…

The events of the week so far

Bang on cue the captains of both the host nations Andriy Shevchenko (Ukraine) and Jakub Blaszczykowski (Poland) scored crucial goals to light up Euro 2012 confirming the Sun’s conjunctions to Bellatrix and Capella highlighting a sport’s star actions. Russian and Polish fans unfortunately clashed in Warsaw highlighting the Sun’s connection to Bellatrix in the constellation of the warrior and it’s contacts with aggressive El Nath on Tuesday. In Syria, UN monitors were shot at and attacked by a stone throwing crowd as they tried to investigate more government aggression on the town of Haffa. Later A UN commentator claimed that Syria was in a state of “civil war”. In Tunisia, the violent themes were continued as a riot in 8 separate regions of the country forced the government to enforce a curfew.

In Moscow, thousands of people defied the Putin administration to protest at the increasingly iron grip that the President is taking over Russia and it’s citizens, continuing a theme I have said would happen several months ago.  At the Leveson enquiry, as predicted Gordon Brown was on blistering form as he showed his opposition to the Murdoch regime and there seemed general opposition of press intrusion into people’s lives as well as media ownership which controls too large a percentage of the market in the UK. 

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Miley Cyrus & Liam Hemsworth – Engaged, but is it too early in their lives for such a big step?

I haven’t done a relationship post for a while so it was nice that the engagement of these two young stars appeared in the news. As an Astrologer, one can’t help but be interested to see if a relationship dynamic will work out well or wether it is forever doomed to failure. Lets have a look into the synastry charts for Liam and Miley and see what comes out!!

We have a very young couple here with Liam, one of the stars of the Hunger Games a tender 22 year old, and child star, actress and pop singer Miley even younger aged just 19. Liam born 13th January 1990 in Melbourne, Australia is a an ambitious Capricorn with a flamboyant Leo Moon, and it seems that Miley was born in Franklin, Tennessee on 23rd November 1992 at 6.37hrs, the time mentioned a few days ago on Twitter. Astrotheme now quotes this time although I do have to be a little careful of the veracity of this information, as Astrotheme often does not check sources well. Miley has a Sagittarian Sun and a Scorpio Moon, made that much more intense by a conjunction to Pluto.

Right, first off we have Liam’s Sun sextile to Miley’s Moon which immediately says to me that they are good friends and best of buddies. This is a nice complementary aspect and brings a harmony between them which can override quite a lot of more difficult ones. The same goes for a sextile between Miley’s Sun and Liam’s Venus. This is very friendly and fun and they will enjoy each other’s company. As for compatibility of signs, the Capricorn Sun of Liam is far more goal orientated than Miley’s Sagittarian one which is more playful. Liam will be the realist and Miley the optimist, however this can work out so long as Liam does not curb Miley’s enthusiasm for life. In a way, looking at the position of each Moon we have the opposite problem in reverse, as Miley’s secretive and very emotionally charged Moon in Scorpio is quite insular in nature in comparison to Liam’s outgoing Leo one. Can they square the emotional circle here? Because we do not know Liam’s birth time, it is possible that his Moon opposes Miley’s Saturn and squares her Moon/Pluto conjunction. This is a really interesting potential connection which could be emotionally highly charged and yet difficult to deal with as Miley’s Aquarian Saturn would lay down the law to his light hearted and yet proud Leo Moon. Would she hold him back and maybe frustrate him emotionally?

The key is often communication in a relationship, and with Liam’s Mercury in Capricorn and Miley’s in Scorpio we have an Earth and Water mix which frankly is not bad. Liam’s Sun makes a wide sextile to Miley’s Mercury, so we do have a line of communication here. Liam’s Mercury is conjunct Miley’s Venus/Uranus/Neptune conjunction which is very inspirational and creative, there will be no end of ideas for the future flowing between them. I notice that Liam’s Mercury/Neptune conjunct’s Miley’s Neptune so there is a possibility for a bit of deception going on, although more likely on Liam’s part than the other way around.

Liam’s Sun and Venus both oppose Miley’s Cancerian Mars which is invigorating and competitive too. These two will love each other, but there is the potential for arguments and lover’s tiffs too.  Jupiter squares Jupiter and Miley’s Jupiter also squares to his Neptune, Mercury and Saturn and trines his Venus, so I can imagine that they will between them be a generous and very idealistic couple and could spend fortunes on each other. Have you seen the the engagement ring, only 3.25 carats?!!!

 

The composite or relationship chart shows a longer term view of how they will get on. Straight away we have optimism here and no little luck. We have a lovely trine between Sun/Mercury and the composite Jupiter so this is an expansive, optimistic & high spending couple who will want to travel and enjoy life together.

The composite Moon is square to the Sun which adds a bit of spice to their potential marriage. Yes they are different people working on different levels, but this can provide a nice tension between them to keep each other on their toes. The Moon also sits in conjunction with Mars and this elicits very strong feelings between the two. Remember what I said earlier about their natal Mars Venus opposition. This is a highly charged connection with can veer between love and hate, and this conjunction is square to Uranus which fires the passion up an extra couple of notches. If things do blow up, they will blow up big style!! Mars squares Neptune which shows we have two egos at work who will potentially compete against each other, each fearing that the other will outdo and overshadow each other. This can weaken the union and it will be something that they will have to guard against.

These potential problems can be overcome though. A key to this chart is the Moon/Mars conjunction which is trine to Saturn. This is a wonderfully stable influence that can reinforce any love and will tie them together emotionally. This is a real indicator of a serious partnership and of two people who really want to make a good job of being together. The same goes in a way for Venus conjunct Saturn. This does cool the emotion over time, but also adds a permanence to their relationship. This is a steady as it goes type of connection. If they are looking for long term raging passion, then it is not to be found here, but if their idea of marrying is to have a stable family life, then they have a decent chance of having it. Venus conjunct to Neptune is very friendly and warm and Venus sextile to Pluto provides a depth of emotion and intimacy that will change both of these two people I think for the better.

Finally of course, these are two famous people who are engaged to be married and the square between Pluto and Jupiter shows a tremendous need to expand their lives together. This will be fine if they can work in harmony, but if they try to undermine each other then this square can be problematic. Success and the way the outside world reacts to them can also be a problem. Outside pressures could cause fissures in this relationship, and they will have to learnt to not aim too high and be too ambitious, otherwise the whole relationship could come crashing down around them.

The fact that Liam and Miley have been seeing each other for three years shows that there are deep feelings here between them, and the relationship analysis bares this out. I don’t think that this is a one off stunt a la Kim Kardashian/Kris Humphries which was doomed to almost certain failure from minute one. It is also reported that they have split up at least twice before getting back together. I just wonder if this is a step too far too early in their young lives?

If they were older, looking at the whole picture I would give them a decent chance of a stable if unspectacular marriage. The fact is however that they are still both growing up and there is enough tension here to see any marriage disintegrate into a real fight if they are not careful. I never wish any couple any harm and I wish them luck, however for it to work they will have to control their egos, limit their ambitions and work together to love and trust each other. In the glare and spotlight of Hollywood and all those associated pressures, I am not so sure that this will be possible for a marriage between them to endure through the test of time…

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Understanding the world’s muted response to the Syrian massacres through the stars.

It’s an awful picture, isn’t it? Here are the residents of Houla in Syria burying their dead after 110 women and children were mercilessly killed by government troops. As I have found over the past year and a half in doing my website, if I look hard enough, I can see the answers to almost any world event through either the horoscope or through the relationships between the planets and the stars. In the past fortnight in Houla  and again tonight in Hamah, the atrocities keep coming and yet the world stands idly by. Why? I’ll try my best to explain.

I am going to focus on the Houla story first through some fixed star relationships. The first is a paran relationship between Mars and Antares, a royal star which is known of the heart of the Scorpion in Scorpio. Here, on 25th May, the day of the massacre, when Mars was rising (hitting the horizon line), Antares was at the nadir of the chart (IC in red). This is a particularly strong connection because in ancient Astrology Mars was the original ruler of Scorpio before Pluto was discovered. When you get forceful Mars rising up combining with the royal star in the constellation of the fearsome Scorpion, the lord of the underworld at the bottom of the sky, then it doesn’t take much imagination that you will expect death and destruction. Bernadette Brady says just this, she quotes this relationship as indicating “life and death events”.

The second image also for the 25th May showed a relationship between the Moon and the fixed star Alphard which is the heart of the Serpent in the constellation of Hydra, both culminating at the Midheaven (MC) at the same moment in the heavens. Alphard is a passionate star, and is often associated with obsession of a goal, with strength and determination, however when there are darker elements involved at the time, then Alphard can be expressed through violent, murderous or chaotic action.  Now we have a relationship with the Moon, the planet which rules women, children, nurturing and the home. Put everything together and you can immediately understand the massacre of the innocent women and children in their own homes, especially as Mars and Antares were hooking up elsewhere in the sky, creating a nasty undercurrent to the overall picture.

Now seeing the awful pictures of women and dead children gunned down in cold blood surely would encourage the leaders of the world to act, yet nothing seems to be happening and the calls for the violence to stop falls on deaf ears. Why? Look at Saturn conjunct to the star Spica in the constellation of Virgo. If there is a more gentle and non threatening place in the sky that Saturn could be sitting, then this is surely it, connected to the brightest star in the hand of the goddess of the skies. Authority is calmed here, one carefully considers one’s options and action, if any is taken, is normally measured and controlled in fashion. Any forceful response from the world has been held back because of this Saturn/Spica conjunction in the skies, and we will not see any until Saturn moves away from Spica which sits at 24 Libra. Thankfully this will be soon to happen, as Saturn is moving retrograde through 23/22 Libra where it will station at the end of June before moving direct again. 

So astrologically, there is a window of opportunity opening on 7th June until 13th July but it will not be open for long. Despite this opportunity, I can only see two options available, as the major powers will not want to enter the viper’s nest that is Syria with it’s collection of differing regions and peoples, getting bogged down in another Middle Eastern war if they do. Either they will arm the Syrian people to fight Assad and his forces, or they will wait until Saturn moves out of range of this gentle influence when one assumes they will be forced to act out of sheer desperation to end the bloodshed.

I move on to today’s reports (6th June) in Hamah region. Mars in the time since the 25th May has moved on to make a paran relationship with the fixed star Zosma. As you can see above Mars is reaching the Midheaven at exactly the same time as Zosma is. This is never a good connection as it predicts either a person or a group of people being victimised. As I write now, the BBC is saying that 86 people including 20 women and children have been killed.

If you look at the outer transits wheel you can see that Mars is now opposite the Syrian natal Moon symbolising the people. A chilling picture showing the forces of authority supressing the people. You know, this is such a sad transits chart. Disruptive and shocking Uranus is trine the brutal Pluto North Node conjunction, opposing the deceptive 12th house Neptune in the house of suffering, is square to the Syrian Sun which is being pressured by transiting Pluto and is sextile the very violent natal Uranus/Mars conjunction in the 8th house of death and underground acts. Neptune is also square this conjunction bringing confusion and despair and the transiting South Node is now conjunct this spot. The Nodes often signify a turning point and maybe, just maybe, the latest killing spree could jolt the world’s leaders into action?

Surely something must be done soon, and as transiting retrograde Saturn moves away from it’s conjunction with Spica and transiting Jupiter, which if anything could represent an international response, conjuncts Mars/Uranus & I hope the world will get it’s collective will around doing something to solving this intractable problem. The repressed and brutalised people of Syria deserve better than they are receiving right now…

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