bell hooks, the groundbreaking feminist critic and poet has died after a prolific career as a writer on love, feminism, patriarchy, white supremacy, forgiveness and the power of art. In particular, she wrote about how a person’s race, gender and social class were interconnected. She adopted her maternal great-grandmother’s name as a pen name, but used lowercase letters to distinguish herself from her family member.
She was born on 25 September 1952 at 8.57 pm Hopkinsville, Kentucky, one of six children born to a janitor father and a housemaid mother. She started her education in a segregated school and only latterly in an integrated one, got a college doctorate with a dissertation on Toni Morrison and became a teaching academic. Her Ain’t I a Woman? Black Women and Feminism became a best seller in her thirties and she went on to write another 30 books.
She had her Sun and Mercury in Libra is the entertaining 5th house so she’d appreciate an audience; though with Saturn and Neptune also in her 5th she’d always have a serious purpose and be keen on creating a better society. She was not short of courage or confidence with her Mars Moon in a determined trine to Pluto and her Pluto square Jupiter. She also had a Yod focal point Uranus inconjunct Mars Moon sextile North Node Midheaven in Aquarius which marked her out as a trailblazer, unconventional and a catalyst for change. She would be wilful, at times with a rebellious urge to break rules and regulations and would have a divisive effect. Her Aquarius North Node would give her a humanitarian cause to dedicate her life to.
An extraordinary woman. Her leaving-a-legacy-for-history 17th harmonic chart was exceptionally strong so she’ll be remembered.
Elon Musk, the world’s wealthiest man and all round genius and whackjob has been elevated to Time magazine’s Person of the Year. It has attracted a raft of criticism, given his attitude to paying tax, opposition to unions and playing down the dangers of Covid. He was described as a “clown, genius, edgelord, visionary, industrialist, showman” which covers all bases and hedged with the caveat that his influence was bad as well as good. His businesses are undoubtedly leading edge and super-successful ranging from Tesla cars, to the space exploration SpaceX and the alternative energy company SolarCity.
Born 28 June 1971, he had a much-married South African father, whom he describes in vitriolic terms and a fashion model mother.
He arrived on planet earth only a few days before Julian Assange and has the same rebellious Cancer Sun square inventive Uranus; a creative though neurotic, paranoid and head-in-the-clouds Saturn opposition Neptune Jupiter; and Mars in determined, scientific Aquarius conjunct his North Node.
His mother, Maye Musk, 19 April 1948, has the formidable Mars, Saturn, Pluto in Leo conjunct Elon’s South Node and opposition his Mars which arguably suggests his flight into scientific-fantasies-made-real came from a desire to escape her dark energies. After his parents’ divorce aged 10 Elon opted to live with his father which he later said was a terrible mistake.
There’s no solid birth data for Errol Musk, though one site has 25 May 1946, which would out his Gemini Sun conjunct Elon’s Saturn opposition his Neptune for a confusing crossover; and Errol’s Mars is exactly conjunct Elon’s South Node with his Pluto nearby.
Intriguing to speculate that it was the negative effect of both parents in different ways which ran so much against Elon’s grain that it motivated him to become a phenomenon in his own right. The demons that drive him could have destroyed him but instead he went the other way. Though at some cost to his mental stability it would have to be admitted.
Two faced Janus, ruling the New Year, mourning what has been and looking forward with anticipation, may be flummoxed this year with the groundhog-day strictures and fears of the pandemic still in place. Same old, same old. But up in the celestial sphere nothing stands still as the planets cycle at varying speeds along their own track.
2021 was dominated by transiting Saturn square Uranus bringing tensions, limitations to freedom and a stop-start mood. That will still be in effect this January and February, moving out of orb thereafter, only to return after July for a few months, with one final exact aspect in October.
But Saturn may well be the dominant planet of the year, more so than Uranus, since it holds sway over both sets of eclipses, squaring onto the North Node all year.
Saturn in Aquarius at its best brings technological change – the worldwideweb was born and took off under it in the early 1990s. Medical advances in vaccines shot ahead under pressure in 2021. Social justice will be high on the agenda with a push for progressive change. The power of group movements will rise. But it can also be rigid, emotionally cold, overly serious.
Jupiter having moved into kindly, dreamy Pisces in time for the New Year sticks around till early May, returning for six weeks in November/December. It can be charitable, well-intentioned though is often not realistic. Its conjunction with Neptune in April may coincide with a financial bubble bursting. Jupiter Neptune’s ‘false happiness’ tendencies need to be guarded against since overly high expectations will end in disappointment and not just where money is concerned.
The 30th April Solar Eclipse at 10 degrees Taurus is conjunct Uranus, so there will be surprises, moments of enlightenment, jolts and jangles. The Taurus Node squares Saturn, trines Pluto and sextiles Neptune, Venus, Jupiter which will bring a mixed bag of hardship, tough conditions and high hopes. It is in a Saros Series that Bernadette Brady says is concerned with relationships with authority (father) figures. The key words are responsibility and commitment.
The Lunar Eclipse of 16 May 2022 with the Full Moon in Scorpio at 25 degrees is square Saturn so will bring an uncompromising and serious mood, with intense determination, heavy controls and inflexible attitudes.
From May 11 Jupiter moves into upbeat, pro-active Aries, staying till late October which will be a balancing factor and more go-ahead.
The 25th October Solar Eclipse at 2 degrees Scorpio is conjunct a charming and seductive Venus inconjunct Jupiter which will spread a little frivolous cheer around. Though the ratchety, backwards-forwards Saturn square Uranus has returned and Pluto is in a stressed inconjunct to Mars. This is in a Saros Series which has a manic flavour, brings forceful events, especially in the relationship area, which can include falling on or out of love; and also may involve groups taking power into their own hands.
The 8 November Lunar Eclipse at 16 degrees Taurus is conjunct Uranus and square Saturn, so will bring the 2021 mood back in force though perhaps in a different context. Mars is still inconjunct Pluto and square Neptune Jupiter which may well try to make the best of difficult circumstances by glossing over the reality.
Mars will have one of its long, retrograde phases, staying in Gemini between late August and March 2023.
There will be an underlying sense of endings, of old cycles drawing to a close, with Saturn moving into Pisces and more significantly Pluto into Aquarius in March 2023. 2022 may well be a year when loose ends need tied up, outworn attitudes and even stale relationships need let go. Getting ahead of the game and clearing out what will inevitably go anyway is always wise.
The long running battle to force American Anne Sacoolas to face UK justice over the road accident resulting in the death of 19-year-old motorcyclist Harry Dunn seemed to have reached a turning point. The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) announced she would be giving evidence by video link only to be contradicted by her lawyer who said nothing had been agreed.
She was allegedly driving on the wrong side of the road and was given diplomatic immunity after the event due, presumably owing to her or her husband’s CIA work. The CPS charged her two years ago with causing death by dangerous driving. US officials rejected an extradition request submitted from the Home Office in January last year and they have described their refusal to extradite her as “final” on a number of occasions. The extradition process with the US is very one-sided, skewed badly in favour of the US.
Harry Dunn was killed around 8.25pm on 27 August 2019 near Brackley, England, which puts the Cancer North Node exactly opposition Saturn and Pluto, on the midpoint – a pointer to the seemingly insurmountable obstacles to getting justice. There was also an elusive, evasive Neptune on the Ascendant.
The CPS give Anne Sacoolas birth date as 28 August 1977 – and I imagine they have seen her passport. This makes her a Sun Virgo, and it was one day after her birthday when it happened. Her Solar Arc Mars was square her Uranus exactly at the time which makes sense of a collision and a shock, with tr Uranus moving to oppose her Uranus and square her Solar Arc Mars in the aftermath.
At the moment, assuming the date is sound, she has tr Saturn square her Ascendant and moving to square her Solar Arc Mars. This month looks panic-stricken and calamitous with significant disruptions through 2022/23.
Lewis Hamilton, the Formula 1 racing driver, had the momentum to win the recent Abu Dhabi championship race and was closing in on his eighth title, which would have made him the most decorated F1 driver in history. Instead there was what was described as “a capricious decision by race stewards to allow five lapped cars to overtake the safety car on the penultimate lap. Their intervention ensured that Hamilton’s lead was overhauled by Max Verstappen, driving with fresh tyres. It transformed a thrilling contest into farce.”
Instead of throwing a tantrum, he graciously congratulated Max Verstappen, though the decision is being appealed. At present Hamilton is signed up to Mercedes until 2023.
He was born 7 January 1985 at 3.30am (biography) in Stevenage, England and grew up with divorced parents, started racing early and as the only black competitor suffered a good deal of racist abuse.
He has an ambitious and successful Sun Jupiter in Capricorn and was born at the time of the Full Moon in Cancer (split parents) and the opposition is sextile/trine an obsessively conscientious Saturn in Scorpio. He’s also got a 12th house Pluto in an ultra-determined and courageous trine to a passionately enthusiastic Mars Venus in Pisces; with Mars in a high-octane square to Uranus.
Those who have raced beside him for years say they don’t really know what makes him tick and one commentator described him as “an outlier amongst outliers” so his tricky childhood would have given him a defensive shell. His Saturn on the Ascendant will also make him seem shut off.
He has lost the super-successful tr Pluto conjunct his Jupiter and before that Sun/Jupiter midpoint which made his recent years so fortunate. Next year looks the usual muddle of highs and glitches. Though tr Jupiter moving into his 4th might suggest (birth time being accurate) that he’ll want to slow down and relax more ahead.
Max Verstappen, 30 September 1997 1.20pm Hasselt, Belgium, the present Formula One champion, is the son of a racing driver and the youngest to compete in formula one races. He has an ambitious 10th house Libra Sun trine an adventurous and lucky Jupiter Uranus, in a wide sextile to a ruthlessly determined Mars Pluto in Sagittarius. His Virgo Moon Mercury are trine Neptune, sextile Venus in Scorpio – practical and charming.
His Mars Pluto square Hamilton’s Venus Mars in Pisces so not much love lost there but it is a highly competitive sport so no surprises there.
The Promethean torment of Julian Assange continues with UK judges now deeming he can be extradited to the USA, which will lead to lengthy appeals and a longer stay at Belmarsh Prison where he has been since 2019. His travails started in 2010 with allegations of rape and molestation in Sweden, leading to him seeking asylum in the London Ecuadorian Embassy in 2012 where he stayed for seven years until they kicked him out. That cost the Metropolitan police around £12 million to guard the embassy.
His lawyers argue that extradition to the US where he could face 175 years in a maximum security prison could endanger his health and he has already reportedly suffered a mini-stroke recently.
Whatever you think of Assange – and I don’t think much of his morals, decency or careless disregard in some of what he published – he did expose uncomfortable truths and official crimes and cover-ups which would otherwise have stayed hidden. Agnès Callamard, secretary general of Amnesty International, said “Virtually no one responsible for alleged US war crimes committed in the course of the Afghanistan and Iraq wars has been held accountable, let alone prosecuted, and yet a publisher who exposed such crimes is potentially facing a lifetime in jail.”
No public interest defence is permissible under the Espionage Act.
Assange was born 3 July 1971 3pm (biography) Townsville, Australia with an 8th house Cancer Sun in a rebellious, revolutionary square to Uranus. He’s also got a mutinous-about-authority- father-figures Mars in Aquarius in his 4th. His angry, headstrong Mars is further emphasised/afflicted by being on the focal point of a wide-ish Yod inconjunct Pluto sextile Mercury – no surprises he channelled his rage into widespread communication. Plus an emotionally intense Venus in wayward Gemini square Pluto. And a head-in-the-clouds Jupiter Neptune conjunction in an unrealistic can-be-paranoid opposition to Saturn. His judgement isn’t too sound.
As he launched his high-risk wikileaks information flood in 2010 tr Pluto was conjunct his Solar Arc Jupiter for a burst of supreme confidence. Then the ceiling fell in as tr Saturn was conjunct his Solar Arc Midheaven with both conjunct his Pluto for a dead halt. And his over hopeful natal Jupiter Neptune had its enthusiasm well and truly dented as tr Pluto then moved across his Solar Arc Neptune and opposition his Solar Arc Pluto in the years that followed. That exemplifies Jupiter Neptune’s ‘false happiness’ streak with the fantasy-bubble bursting as cold reality breaks through.
When he had his mini stroke earlier this year tr Saturn was square his Scorpio Moon and tr Pluto was in an intense and exasperated opposition to his Mercury.
He’ll stay bullish at times through 2022/23 with tr Pluto square his Jupiter/Pluto midpoint but that runs alongside high levels of nervous strain and mental confusion and nothing much that looks remotely cheering thereafter.
Relocating his chart to London is bad news with Mars in the 8th, a hidden 12th house Sun and a domestically-trapped and unsettled Pluto Uranus in the 4th. If he’d not been so arrogant he’d have skipped off somewhere safer.
Inner – birth chart, middle progressions at death, outer transits at death
Pete Duel, an American actor best known for the 1970 TV western comedy ‘Alias Smith and Jones’ was according to Quentin Tarantino one of the inspirations behind the character Rick Dalton, a washed up actor played by Di Caprio in ‘Once Upon a Time in Hollywood’. Duel was found shot on New Year’s Eve 1971, reportedly suicide though as ever conspiracy theories pointed to murder.
He had evidently been depressed about his excess drinking which had led to a road accident with a DUI court case pending and had talked about suicide early on in his adult life. Tarantino described him as an undiagnosed bi-polar.
He was born 24 February 1940 7.59 am Penfield, New York with a creative, hidden 12 house Sun Pisces and an exuberant Jupiter Venus in Aries on his Ascendant. His Saturn in forced-to-be-self-reliant Aries was conjunct Mars in Taurus with both square Pluto – which would give rise to intense frustrations. He did have a dark streak.
When he died there was a transiting Pluto opposition Mars which would resonate with his deeper angst. His Progressed Moon was opposition his Progressed Mars and his Progressed Saturn was square his Progressed Pluto. All of which would contribute to a mood of black melancholy. Tr Neptune was also square his Moon which wouldn’t clarify his thinking.
The astrology won’t give definitive answers but it looks less of a brutal assault than was showing on the Hendrix chart, more a descent into deep gloom.
Ioan Gruffudd, a recognizable but not A-list actor (Hornblower, Australian TV Harrow etc), has split from his actress wife to hook up with his co-star. So far, so uninteresting. Except the Daily Mail has helpfully aired the wife’s chagrin at the split with a series of raging social media posts. All appears to be settling down now presumably the lawyers have got a grip to settle details of custody battles and alimony.
The only fact of astro-intrigue in the scenario is that the about-to-be-former and humiliated wife Alive Evans was born on 2 August 1968 only three days before Marine Le Pen, the far-right French politician. She has the same bleak and fated Yod focal point Saturn as Le Pen and it squares her volatile Mars in Cancer. So she will have a short fuse. She’s also a Sun Leo so will feel the public dent to her ego more sharply than most. Her Sun is being elbowed by the tr Saturn opposition and tr Uranus square at the moment into early 2022.
Not that he is exactly a slouch when it comes to heated discussions, 6 October 1973, with his Mercury in Scorpio opposition Mars in Taurus square Jupiter (Moon) in Aquarius. Though he has sensibly decided to keep his head down in public over this spat. He also has a Yod onto his Mars inconjunct Neptune sextile Pluto so will be impulsive and self-willed. He’s also got an unbudgeable Sun Pluto in Libra square Saturn.
His Sun is conjunct her South Node so he will tend to pull her back in a less helpful direction. To develop she needs to stand on her own two feet – with an Aries North Node.
It will always have been an argumentative chemistry between them with a composite Sun Mercury square Mars in their relationship chart and a needs-space Venus Uranus.
Their Wedding chart of 14 September 2007 contained more than a hint of a turbulent, exciting and unpredictable liaison. The Virgo Sun was in opposition to Uranus square Mars and opposition Pluto and Jupiter. A roller coaster all the way through.
Ethan Crumbley, 15, the latest in a long line of school shooters, ended four young lives and wounded another seven of his peers, some of them seriously, on November 30th in Michigan. What is unusual in his case is his parents have been arrested and charged with involuntary manslaughter. He used his father’s new 9mm Sig Sauer semi-automatic handgun, which he had claimed was his own in troubling Instagram posts beforehand, to which his parents had been alerted by the school.
Born 28 April 2006 (wiki) he is a Sun and Moon in Taurus opposition Jupiter in Scorpio square Neptune – stubborn, over confident and delusional. With his Sun in a contradictory low self-esteem square to Saturn. And his Jupiter in a Water Grand Trine to Mars in volatile Cancer trine Uranus – Water Grand Trine types can be detached from reality, living in their own bubble. He would get double messages from his father which are always confusing for children – both spoilt and punished.
It isn’t a particular brutal chart though his self-defeating 10th Harmonic is ruthless and over-pushy; and his ‘serial killer’ 18H is also heavily aspected and stressed.
His father James Crumbley, 25 July 1976, a Sun Saturn in Leo with Venus Mercury also in Leo seems to have been the main influence on him – though not clearly all in the right direction with Junior’s Taurus Sun exactly conjunct his father’s South Node and trine his father’s Mars and opposition his father’s Uranus.
Their relationship chart has a power-couple/tussle-for-the-upper-hand Jupiter square Pluto; and an unkind/cruel composite Mars Saturn – quite a mix.
His mother Jennifer, 1 April 1978, a Sun Aries opposition Pluto trine Neptune had an even more fractious relationship with him – their relationship chart has a composite T square of Mars opposition Neptune Uranus square Sun; and a resentful, chained-together Saturn square Pluto. An elder half-brother (same father, different mother) left the family home last year because of difficulties with his stepmother/Ethan’s mother.
Nothing much to conclude apart from the usual – the gun-toting genie is out of the bottle in the USA and there’ll be no stuffing it back in. That argument is well and truly lost. But holding parents’ responsible might just make a small dent in the problem.
