Astrological Alchemy

Einstein supposedly said that "significant problems" in life cannot be solved by using the same level of consciousness that created them.

In astrology, "significant problem" usually means hard aspects from Saturn and the outer planets that are not integrated very well in our psyche, whether in natal chart or in transit/Solar Arcs.

Here are some of the issues related to each planetary archetype when it is under developmental tension (i.e. hard aspects from the heavier planets):

• Sun - issues of identity (think self doubt and lack of confidence)
  
• Moon - issues of needs and emotions (loneliness, self-abandonment)
  
• Mercury - issues with thoughts (depression, anxiety, negativity)
  
• Venus - issues of emotions and relationships (dysfunctional social patterns)
  
• Mars - issues of anger and its various expression (rage, passive-aggressive behavior)
  
• Jupiter - issues of excess (too much drama, too much food, too much pride)
  
• Saturn - issues of fear, delay and blockage (authority problem, lack of responsibility)
  
• Uranus - issues of isolation and exile (feeling wrong about self for being different)
  
• Neptune - issues of loss of self (giving away of self, escaping from self, suppression)
  
• Pluto - issues of extremism (Add "extreme" to any of the above problems)
  

Archetypes manifest differently for different levels of consciousness. The "significant problem" that we have today is a result of our choosing to stay on the same level of thinking that caused the problem in the first place. The thing to do, then, is raise the level of consciousness in terms of the planets that are involved.

In shifting our consciousness, the archetype offers its own gifts and resources:

• Sun - the gift of self expression (think: 'I am unafraid to show my talents and creativity')
  
• Moon - the gift of nurturing the self and others ('I love myself and therefore I will take care of myself and those I love')
  
• Mercury - the gift of thinking and communicating effectively ('There is another way to look at this situation')
  
• Venus - the gift of love for self and others; the gift of aesthetic perception ('I love and like myself because of such and such qualities - I value myself and others for who we are - I appreciate the beauty that is around me')
  
• Mars - the gift of effective action and self assertion ('I act in ways that support rather than sabotage my goals in life')
  
• Jupiter - the gift of generous giving and enthusiasm ('I give out what I want to receive')
  
• Saturn - the gift of discipline, integrity and necessary self control ('I have the power to make a difference in my life. I choose to do the right thing because it is the right thing to do. I act with honor.')
  
• Uranus - the gift of independent, innovative thinking ('I don't have to follow the herd. Who I am is just as valid as anybody else's identity - I have a special gift to offer for the world.')
  
• Neptune - the gift of creative inspiration, and total absorption in the moment ('I am more than my ego. I am this peaceful presence that witnesses all my experiences right now.')
  
• Pluto - the gift of empowerment ('I am deeply in alignment with my purpose for being on this Earth.')
  

So Neptune in conjunction, square or opposition to Venus may first manifest as "losing the self in relationships" (combine the key words in the first set. But if we shift our consciousness, it becomes a gift to "create beautiful things (as in art or music); to be absorbed in the contemplation of beauty; or relating to others inspirationally, with self love"

Pluto in hard aspect to Mars can suggest a problem with "extreme anger", but if we choose to, it becomes a gift of "empowered action and self assertion"

Saturn in hard aspect to Mercury can suggest "fearful or depressed mind" but can also become the "disciplined thought and communication" (which is what you need if you want to write a book or a dissertation, etc.)

This process of transforming the level of archetypal manifestation has been called "astrological alchemy" by Rob Hand in one of his essays (at least this is how I interpret his words). Try some of the combinations you have in your own horoscope - feel free to comment or ask questions.

New Web Site

A quick announcement, please: after some tweaking, my new website is up (HolisticAstrologer.com).

Comments and suggestions welcome...

Eating Healthy & Some Horoscope Analogy

Our body, just like our mind, works better if we feed it holistically. It is interesting that craving for sweet things is rarely satisfied by eating more of them. By introducing different taste and (natural) color to your menu, the body starts to get what it needs and stops being addicted to something that doesn't work.

Ayurveda teaches that there are six tastes: sweet, salty, sour, bitter, pungent, and astringent. The traditional Ayurvedic cuisine tries to include all six tastes in their meal, whereas in America the typical menu only has sweet, sour and salty tastes in them.

Vegetables come with different colors, representing different spectrum of Sun's light - red, purple, orange, yellow, green etc...These suggest that they each have different things to offer our bodies. You don't need to eat all variety every time, but it's important that the body is fed with enough variety of food from the vegetable kingdom over the course of a week.

When the body doesn't get enough of what it needs, it naturally raises hunger signals to the brain in an attempt to get the missing nutrients. Unfortunately, we often think this means we have to keep eating more the same thing, even though this will not solve the problem. Hence we could say that America's problem with obesity is actually a problem of nutritional deficiency and poor food variety.

When is the last time you ate a handful of organic parsley or a yellow bell pepper in your salad? You might be surprised how different your body feels when given what was missing. You don't need to eat a lot of it, but you do need to eat some.

This thinking applies in astrology too...If we're too obsessed in one area of life (relationship, for instance), you begin to imagine that one area (i.e. better relationship) will solve all of your problems, which puts a lot of pressure on the other person.

Holistic approach to the horoscope means you look at the entire chart to see if some areas are not getting enough nutrients (i.e. attention and effort.) This can also happen in a planetary sense - like someone liking their Venus too much and doesn't want to take hold of her Saturn - so she is relationship obsessed but feels powerless in the world, etc.

In this case, she may think that more relationship activities are going to solve her unhappiness, but really she may need to start working toward manifesting her creativity, career empowerment, spirituality, curiosity toward education or international travel, or whatever else that her chart suggests (who knows, she might even find her soulmate while exploring and nurturing her other needs.)

Some of the "other needs" may not seem like "needs" in that they don't feel all that enjoyable (Saturn, for instance, is about work, effort and responsibility - not too much sweetness there), but like eating parsley, you'll get used to it and start liking the bitterness of it, and what it does to your overall self.

Barack Obama Natal Chart Analysis Using 7:24PM Time

Since the birth certificate for Barack Obama is finally out (despite a number of people voicing their doubt about the authenticity of it), it's probably time to take a look at his chart again. The actual rectification would involve the study of major events in his life and correlating it to Angular transits and Solar Arcs. Here I'm just starting the process with the natal and vocational analysis.

Natal:

1)Western Hemisphere emphasis suggests giving of self to others, sometimes too much so.

2)Sun in Leo in 6th, ruling the 7th: The energy to be recognized by the public, through work and service. The need for public recognition and service is accentuated through the Angular position of the Sun, also being the co-final dispositor of the horoscope.

3)Moon in Gemini ruling the 6th house: the need to communicate about work and service. The Moon's communicative need uses the theatrical energy of the Leo Sun, making him a dramatic public communicator. The Moon is further elevated through its contact with the Midheaven.

4)Aquarius rising further accentuates the need to help others through innovative ideas directed to all. Uranus, the ruler of the Aquarius Ascendant, is peregrine (ptolemically unaspected), which makes this need a dominating factor of the horoscope.

5)Saturn Retrograde suggests passive or absent father figure; Uranus conjunct the Nodal axis further suggests the important influence of the maternal figure - perhaps in shaping him to be the intellectual humanitarian. We know that Obama's parents divorced when he was two, and his grandmother (his mother's mother) is a crucial figure in his development (Obama referred to her as the person that made him who he is today.)

6)Jupiter conjunct Saturn almost always suggests the need for a higher purpose in life.

7)The peregrine Venus in Cancer is at the Aries Point: this is the public charm; a grandly projected image of caring for the weak. It is astonishing how important this placement is in softening Obama's public image.

Summary: Much of his horoscope suggests his need to be recognized as the humanitarian, the public servant. This is the reward he seeks (Jupiter in Aquarius.) He attacks the inadequacy of the status quo through his analytical intellect (Mars in Virgo), and can communicate this to all in an effective, dramatic manner (Gemini Moon, Leo, Aquarius.) His diplomacy and the consistent tone of caring for the weak and helpless (Venus in Cancer at Aries Point) endears him to the public. In short, he is one heck of a charismatic leader.


Vocational Analysis: I'm going to take it step-by-step so you can see my thinking process. If you're interested in the method, you can study it through Noel Tyl's book "Vocations*."

1)Midheaven is ruled by Pluto (suggesting big business, including the government.) Pluto also rules the 9th house of internationalism, academia, law and publishing - all of which are relevant in his career.

2)Pluto contacts Moon, ruler of 6th. Moon is also in contact with the MC, suggesting public service.

3)Pluto is disposited by Mercury, and Mercury contacts Jupiter. Both Mercury and Jupiter contact MC: this brings "writing" strongly into the picture (whenever you see Mercury and Jupiter involved with the MC and in the dispositorship routing, you jot down this possibility.)

4)Mercury is disposited by the Sun ruling the 7th, a final dispositor. This is a strong statement of public communication (7th house suggests public.) The Sun is quindecile Saturn in 12th, ruling the 12th, a co-final dispositor (in Capricorn.) This emphasis on Saturn and the 12th house, along with Pluto, suggests strongly a government administration.

Summary: a need to help the public through laws and government administration. A need to write and communicate dramatically, in order to innovate and foster social progress (Uranus peregrine.)

The horoscope sings pretty well about who Obama is and what drives him. Now I'll either find someone that will do the rectification work, or do it myself and post it sometime.


*as a study aid to the book, you can also visit noeltyl.com - there he has a discussion forum, where he does an exercise every Thursday in which anyone can participate and learn. It's impossible to teach this in a single web page, so we have to go the long way and buy a book. It's worth it if you want to help people (or yourself) know what they are good at.

A Rotten Sign

Currently I'm working on a little piece for a local magazine on "ego and astrology" - not sure how it'll come out, but we'll see. I wanted to share some stray thoughts I had while brainstorming on this:

1) Some signs are simply more "ego-friendly" than others - i.e. its energy, needs and resources are readily utilized by the ego for self serving purposes. Think of Gemini's communicative energy, mightily applicable to all spectrum of usage, both high and low. Or Leo's theatricality that is bound to make you noticed by others.

2) Other signs are much harder for ego to handle; Scorpio's need for penetrating knowledge and deep control is way too strong for strictly self serving ends - you end up appearing ruthless if you use all that power just for yourself. Virgo's analytical capacity can turn to neurotic perfectionism if ego tries to use it just to feel better about itself.

This is pertinent for most inner planet placement (inner planets having more to do with ego.) Recall Stephen Arroyo's comment about Virgo, Scorpio and Pisces appearing to be "karmic" signs that call for some degree of suffering (from Astrology, Karma and Transformation). I think what this means is that those energies are best utilized by non-ego part of us.

If we totally live from ego-point of view, these signs may seem rotten. But they may simply be calling for more conscious usage of their power: I don't feel sorry about my Scorpio planets or Pisces Ascendant, but they did call for an alternate level of consciousness before I was able to fully tap into their resources.

Come to think of it, maybe this applies for many planetary aspects that are traditionally thought to be "rotten." Saturn or Pluto aspect, for instance, may seem rotten on the "ground floor" level of ego-consciousness, but once you start going up on the ladder of consciousness (i.e. serving something outside of yourself, using your power for others), maybe there are sublime riches on the upper floors, so to speak (for more of this kind of thinking, you're invited to read about the elevator analogy.)

Twelve Instincts vs Being Normal

Consider the following quote from Abraham Maslow, discussing human instinct:

It was assumed that the deeper urges in man could be seen most clearly in the insane, the neurotic, the alcoholic, the animal, the feebleminded, the child. This is a mistake. They may perhaps be seen best in the healthiest, most evolved and matured individuals; and in such people, it can be seen that these deepest urges and needs can be "high" as well as "low", e.g. a need for truth, a need for beauty.

(The Farther Reaches of Human Nature p381)

This suggests that successful people (great political leaders, philosophers, artists, mathematicians, athletes, etc) didn't succeed through suppressing their human instinct, but rather they have fulfilled their instinct to the fullest.

Take a quick look through the 12 signs: Just as there is an instinct to fight for what we want (Aries), there is an instinct for beauty and stability (Taurus); instinct to satisfy curiosity and communicate (Gemini); instinct to nurture (Cancer); instinct to be creative and important (Leo); instinct to analyze knowledge (Virgo); instinct for harmony (Libra); instinct for control and regeneration (Scorpio); instinct for truth (Sagittarius); instinct for order (Capricorn); instinct to innovate, to help others (Aquarius); and instinct to be connected with the universe, to experience altered state of consciousness (Pisces).

Freud thought civilization existed to suppress people's destructive instincts - I think it's better to say that civilization exists to suppress most other instincts too, thereby making everyone "normal." Paradoxically, it is the lucky few people brave enough to be true to some of their instincts that often get to be successful and leave a legacy that shapes the society.

Normalcy often implies suppression and herd mentality; great scientists have to be "abnormally curious" in order to search for new knowledge. Artists have to be obsessively passionate about forms, colors, and beauty. Great leaders, whether in business or politics, have to be excessively firm in their beliefs and vision.

Maybe it's time we awaken our instincts by becoming aware of them, paying attention to them, and acting to honor them.

Working with Mars

Mars is the explosive, lecherous, carnivorous, murderous cells (loosely paraphrasing Joseph Campbell's description here) within our bodies that are yet wild and untamed. It knows what it wants.

I have Mars conjunct Uranus and square Saturn, and here is how it works with me: if I'm off purpose, I start to feel this smoldering anger build up from within me, directed at nothing.

While I was in Noel Tyl's Master's Course, it often happened that when I wasn't working on his lessons for a few days, I'd start to get really irritable. Then as soon as I started to work on it, I felt this sense of deep release and peace, a sort of empowered calm. I believe that meant I was aligning my action with my deeper purpose.

I've been feeling a buildup of frustration for the last few days, and it didn't clear until I went to the local library today and - after some searching - found what I wanted: Abraham Maslow's book "The Farther Reaches of Human Nature." I feel calm, focused and empowered while studying it.

This dynamic is amazing to me, and it happens again and again (I just checked transiting Mars' position, and behold it is conjunct my Saturn! Go figure - get purposeful and start working, or be frustrated and depressed.)

These murderous cells know what they want, and they start to growl if I'm too passive to their desire. The path of the warrior is to give these cells a disciplined mode of expression - through work of art, writing, studying, athletics, martial art, etc, etc. This path may not be for everyone, but it certainly is important for most males, and any Martial females.

100th Post - Noel Tyl Interview

This is the 100th post for my fledgling blog. Thanks everyone for reading, subscribing, and sending me comments and encouragements!

This is a recent interview with Noel Tyl done by my friend Ana Cristina - a worthy read. Enjoy!