Astrologically Speaking

October 2001 edition ...

17th of March Pluto Retrograde Station at 15° Sagittarius 17'
11th May Mars Retrograde Station at 29° Sagittarius
19th of July Mars Direct Station at 15° Sagittarius 07'
26th of September Saturn Retrograde Station at 14° Gemini 58'
14th of October 2001 South Node at 29° Sagittarius
20th October Mars within bounds - i.e. declination
7th February 2002 Saturn Direct Station
July 2002 Nodal axis at 15° Sagittarius-Gemini
Index - Where these degrees occur in some relevant charts

A look at the build up of planetary energies

The events of September 11, 2001 shook us out of complacency - we are not safe, we are not immune to the events that people in other countries have had to endure. There is a loss of security and freedom, and our life style will undergo a change.

No event happens without build up including how a spot in zodiacal belt becomes sensitized. This terrorist attack was planned - there was a build up and there will be repercussions. Life may and does hand us surprises, unexpected turns of events but there are things we are not necessarily aware of that accumulate and build stress over time before we get to experience them. Let's look at some of the build up and where it might lead us, I personally don't see this as the beginning of the end, rather something that will bring global changes. For better or for worse is up to us…

The latest astrological event is the Saturn station on the 26th of September at 14° Gemini 58' only minutes away from the position it held on the 11th of September 11, 2001. Back in July Mars stationed direct at 15° Sagittarius 07'. In March Pluto retrograde station took place at 15° Sagittarius. The stretch from 14° to 15° on the Gemini-Sagittarius axis is akin to an open wound at the moment. Pluto will reach that stretch late November - early December. The nodal axis will get there in July 2002.

This year Mars has given us quite a spectacular show. It had moved retrograde for those glorious 69 days from May 11 through July 19. All awhile and until October 20, 2001 Mars remains out of bounds, he is no longer travelling in the zodiacal sign of Sagittarius but in Capricorn, yet he is not himself. Physically Mars was closer to the earth on June 21st than since 1989. He will be closer yet in 2003. When Mars is this strong it tends to produce strong and emphasized results. Hostility, frustration and anger has been rampant in our daily lives this long summer and well into the autumn. Since the middle of February when Mars entered Sagittarius until September 9 when he moved to Capricorn, we have experienced seven long months of this action planet in a fiery, righteous, and yes fun-loving sign. When an energy force is given additional fuel, and let's face it Mars has had a glorious run, it tends to become explosive. Mars stationed at 29° of Sagittarius to start its renewed reign and turned direct at 15° 07'. These two spots on the zodiacal wheel are activated. The Mars show has not ended yet; it has been out-of-bounds since mid-April, beyond 23°N27'. It will reach 27°N 02' in August, and won't return to less than 23°N27' until October 20th, 2001. (The out of bounds areas are beyond 23°S07' or beyond 23°N27').

Mars is the planet of action and motion, it represents all those things expressed with verbs in our language. It is to do. For seven months we had time to explore all kinds of visions, dreams for our future and the actions it would take to get there. Sagittarius is excellent at building castles in the air. Hindrances to action would not sit well with energy that is all action. Typically during a Mars retrograde phase we back pedal a lot, it is like taking one step forward and two back. It is as if there is a conflict between the zodiacal sign impulse signals and the Martian impulse signals, and until there is a proper balance action seems impossible. Mars only takes two years to complete its rounds through the zodiacal signs, and out of that 24 months typically spends 2.5 months moving backwards within a sign and a solid quarter of that time in one zodiacal stretch of 30 degrees, this time all in one sign. We all had plenty of time consider our actions, act on our impulses and but without a strong impulse to regret the course of action taken.

Back to Saturn's actions, as he has started retracing his steps and will continue to do so until February 7, 2002. We associate Saturn with structures, limitations, obstructions and time. Saturn gives form and shape to ideas and actions. The transit Saturn is typically said to delay and hinder matters of the house it is moving through. Saturn is in Gemini which is associated with have communication, travel, merchandising, transportation, education, youth and our neighbourhood. Saturn spends 2½ years in a sign. We had a brief preview of the energy in September-October 2000, and Saturn moved to Gemini for its regular 30-month stay in late April 2001. Around that time Venus formed its conjunction in Aries, and although there is a lot of significance to the Venus cycle, I will leave it out of this particular equation, other than to state that Venus retrograde phases are about re-assessing priorities, personal values and the innate value of time.

If we impose limitations and structures around or on Gemini issues, we are forced to learn to communicate more effectively, words need to be considered and/or factual. I heard today that there may be a recommendation coming that pregnant women not be allowed to drive vehicles because of the potential for harm, Gemini is associated with travel and cars, Saturn is restrictions, laws and stipulations. One of the repercussions of the terrorist attack on New York and Washington DC is the limitation of our freedom of movement from country to country. The governments on either side of the 49th parallel are requiring proof of citizenship, the proof part being very saturnine indeed. There is a separate lighter look at Saturn in Gemini on this site.

We cannot look at Saturn in isolation, particularly this time, as on the opposite end of the Gemini-Sagittarius axis we have Pluto in Sagittarius. Pluto is associated with big business, power, corruption and annihilation. Pluto has earned a reputation as the planet whose transits to natal planets and houses eliminate all that which has ceased to be viable. Sagittarius is the sign associated with religion, foreign countries, higher education, long-distance travel and values associated with beliefs. Pluto is about evolution, change and catharsis - not a lightweight by any stretch of the imagination. It will force change whether we attempt to resist or not. That Star Trek statement of the Borg is actually quite profound - resistance is futile. Borg is a collective people and Pluto is often said to represent the collective unconscious. I sometimes wonder if Pluto represents what we as humanity know to be the right thing to do regardless of the immediate cost. And with Pluto resistance is absolutely futile.

On October 14, 2001 the south Node of the Moon will move to 29° Sagittarius and travel through that degree in the course of a fortnight. Call it activation number two. Mercury and Venus will travel through that degree in December as will Chiron over a period of a week.

An entity be it a person or a country needs to have a planetary energy at these degrees for an event to activate. The external transits need to apply to something "stationary". A natal chart of course is the snapshot of the sky at the moment of birth, which does not move. United States has a 14° Sagittarius Ascendant if we use the Sibly Chart.

When we combine these "elements" we have potential for the violent terrorist attacks we have already witnessed - not that these two planets alone describe the event far from it. Let me reiterate one of my favourite statements: "The planets themselves do nothing except move either forward or appear to move backward from our earthly perspective." The actions, thoughts and deeds of mankind and each and every individual are reflected in the cosmic patterns that the natal chart and the wandering planets paint together. The statement cannot be that because I have a Sun square Uranus aspect in my chart I am unpredictable and spontaneous. The statement has to be that I am unpredictable and spontaneous, which is reflected partially by the Sun square Uranus aspect in my natal chart.

That being said, let's continue with this simplified tackle of the opposition aspect of Saturn and Pluto. Opposition is an aspect of conflict, debate and in its nature a compromise act. If Saturn had one end of the rope, Pluto had possession of the other end and each kept pulling in a tug of war. The stronger of the two might win or it would simply be each exhausting their energies in a futile effort to emerge the victor.

From the simplified keywords we associate with these elements we could better understand the recent bus strike, and the hospital/nursing crises in British Columbia, the global airline crises that was thrown into turmoil with the September 11 events. Air travel has become very common place and is more Gemini than Sagittarius in nature, long distance travel these days would have to be off the Earth. Remember we are painting a partial picture only - the workforce of a nation or company is its 6th house, unions are Neptune's domain.

The stock market crash on October 4, 2001 has been speculated. Will it take place? We had the literal crash already; it wasn't what we expected but then when we add a touch of Uranus to the equation - who can tell? It is supposed to be unexpected. Typically the market fluctuates and adjusts when the nodal axis travels through a mutable axis, and that is about to begin. With the emphasis of sensitive points and powerful forces in the Gemini-Sagittarius axis already built up we may spin into a depression. During a depression there are wealth shifts, those who were rich may not be so at the end of it and those who flow with the punches may emerge wealthy when all is said and done.

Globally people who are affected the most are those in the already reeling travel industry, those employed by the transportation industry and quite likely our educators. The things and matters on the Gemini end of the axis are in for re-structuring; limitations and those at the Sagittarius end will have to face transformation and change.

In our personal lives these forces are always in action, it is that this time it was an event that is impossible to ignore. I read stories of people who found courage to make big changes in their lives when they realized how fragile life is on earth, every day can be the last. Live each day to the fullest is a credo so difficult to apply to day to day existence when we are overwhelmed with our obligations, and the need to do what we do in order to eat and pay our bills. Eye openers like this one (and I would hate to see more, although undoubtedly we all will) sometimes awaken us to follow our hearts rather than our minds. In our hearts we do know why we chose this life and this time frame to live it in.

Is it the end of the Innocence…

As an astrologer the hardest thing to reconcile is the fact that the same planetary configuration can cause bliss and devastation. I am sure that there was a child born at the time the terrorist attack on the twin to towers and the Pentagon took place. In fact 22 babies were born in on New York hospital alone one that day. At the time those four jets were hijacked a couple or a few declared ever-lasting love. Why didn't astrologers predict this ahead of time? They did but not in with specific enough words. Did you also miss those little statements columnists and speakers had in their columns and lectures - potential for violence, acts of terrorism or even a holy war escalating. Stock market crashes were predicted, some astrologers talked about the potential for terrorist attacks around the time frame. No prediction would have prepared us nor prevented this from happening.

Astrologers have been talking about some major planetary configurations for a long while. The first one was the Jupiter-Saturn conjunction, which also was in an alignment with five other planets in May 2000, and this one occurred three times. Most astrological configurations do - it takes three. The second alignment was the one to follow by Saturn and Pluto, an opposition.

Pluto is the planet that can bring catastrophic changes at a multitude of levels. Saturn is the planet of structures, rules and boundaries. They alone do not reflect these changes. The United States Chart - July 4, 1776 at 5:10 PM has 12° Sagittarius 21' on the Ascendant, this is the point that represents an entity's façade, this is the face the World sees. It is also the physical body, in the case of a country the land and its people. Pluto stationed within 11' on that Ascendant in the 1st house. This ascending point became active - Saturn at the opposing end had entered the 7th house of open enemies. Uranus of sudden, unpredictable events is involved in the planetary figures that are activating in the near future, so this is far from over. The event north node of the Moon was exactly on the natal Venus for United States. If this transit were occurring in the chart of an individual you'd expect them to discover who their friends are - namely those who can help them get where they need to go. Let's remember that in November also many of the inner planets will travel through the constellation of Sagittarius like they do every year. The Moon crosses this point once every 4+ weeks and the south node of the Moon will cross this point in about a year - July 2002 to be precise.

Since May we have had hostility galore which is reflected partially by Mars. This of course is near the Ascendant degree for the United States. Pressure has been slowly building. Within hours of the attack the transiting Moon joined US natal Venus, Jupiter and Sun stellium and the country literally leaped into action with rescue efforts, donating blood and other resources.

Through declination we have parallels and contra-parallels, which are similar to conjunctions and oppositions in their behaviour. Mars won't be making too many connections through declination. Planets out of bounds are said to behave more like their true nature. Mars is the planet of action; war, hostility and unguarded action can take different forms. The devil may care attitude that I'll just do this regardless of whether it's right or wrong may feel liberating, wild and free - but when its not just you feeling this energy, there is bound to be a back-lash.

The Mars attack continues, it is out of bounds until October 20, 2001. While there it is more powerful in the expression of its energy. The week of September 10-16, 2001 Mars was with the south node of the Moon. This is a karmic point and has the potential of unleashing the rewards of past actions. Both Mars and the North Node are in Capricorn, Mars will move ahead in this sign of Saturn but the Node is moving backwards and will shift into Sagittarius, and will have a meeting of minds with Pluto. The knowledge and information exchange from now will by carried to that meeting. The Moon and its nodes hold memories.

The planets in the sky continue their motion, the meetings planets have by aspect, especially the potent conjunction, the coming together of energies, represent the influence of the affairs of the World. Capricorn is structures big and small, governments, power and authority. Sagittarius can be the sign of religious fanaticism and when the sign quality is coupled with the destructive, transformational force of Pluto the planet, we get to see the action. The September 11, 2001 event looks to be motivated once again by religion. So many of the devastating events in the world have resulted from religious wars. The positive in this all, that proverbial silver lining, to me is the fact that people have gathered in places of worship and embraced each others' religions and beliefs. A small, symbolic move perhaps - but maybe out of this a new freedom of religion is born.

The indigenous people all over the world have always stated that there is only one God, but he has many names. Maybe now the World will be a little more willing to embrace that statement and what it means.

Change often only happens as a result of a catastrophe, how do you wrap your mind around the fact that there is a positive change when thousands of people lost their lives? Maybe it had to happen in the United States so that this leader of the Western World would launch a war on terrorism, which countries like Israel, Ireland and so on have endured for decades - all in the name of religion. Maybe this will force individuals to take care of their own safety and not expect their governments to protect them from unseen, unpredictable forces.

As an astrologer I focus on cycles and timing, and when I ask myself when will this end, I come up with limited answers. The stock market probably won't rebound until mid-spring 2002. The structures lost will eventually be replaced - in July 2002 Saturn conjoins Mars in the chart for United States, not quite closing the wound but bandaging it. Is that the end of hostilities - of course not. Life, however, is forever changed - in a way it does mark the end of the innocence. © Anne Massey 2001

Index

Event chart 8:46 AM September 11, 2001:
Saturn at 14° Gemini 45'
Chiron at 29° Sagittarius
Pluto at 12° Sagittarius 38'

Chart for Manhattan 2/12/1653 Noon LMT (Source: AstroDatabank):
Uranus at 29° Sagittarius 44' conjunct Neptune at 23° Sagittarius 15'
Pluto at 12° Gemini 06'R

New York City 01/01/1898 12:01 PM EST (Source: AstroDatabank):
Saturn at 14° Gemini 45' event chart at 8:46 AM
Mars conjunct Venus both at 29° Sagittarius

Chart for World Trade Centre - Data suspect 4/4/1973 12 Noon (Source: AstroDatabank):
Saturn at 15° Gemini 52'

Astrologically Speaking

October 2001 edition ...

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