Khalil Gibran, the Lebanese-American writer, poet and visual artist, wrote The Prophet, one of the best-selling books of all time, translated into more than 100 languages which became celebrated by the counter-culture and New Age movements in the 1960s. Elvis had a copy, John Lennon, Johnny Cash and David Bowie all used his philosophical poetic thoughts.

 Gibran’s life has been described as one “caught between Nietzschean rebellion, Blakean pantheism and Sufi mysticism.” He was born 6 January 1883 4am Bsharri, Lebanon into a Maronite Christian family and spent part of his childhood in the USA. He suffered ill health throughout a good deal of his life.

  What is surprising about his chart for such a reflective individual is how weighted down it is with Earth signs. He had a Capricorn Sun which can be highly creative, the stander on the threshold between the realm of ideas and the real world. It was conjunct Mars in Capricorn with Mercury at the far end of Capricorn. His Sun was trine Uranus and trine Neptune, South Node and Saturn in Taurus. His Mercury trine Uranus was trine Pluto in Taurus. Neptune conjunct Saturn is also a creative combination as is Uranus trine Neptune.

His Fire Sagittarius Moon Venus would lighten his temperament marginally as would an unaspected Jupiter in Gemini. Tierney says of an unaspected Jupiter: “Even if intensely philosophical  his self-containment suggests he is a loner in his search for higher meaning and ultimate truth. His vision could be very unique because of it.”

  He left behind memorably insightful musings on the human condition.

Quotes:

ON CHILDREN

“Your children are not your children.

     They are the sons and daughters of Life’s longing for itself.

     They come through you but not from you,

     And though they are with you yet they belong not to you.

     You may give them your love but not your thoughts,

     For they have their own thoughts.

     You may house their bodies but not their souls,

     For their souls dwell in the house of tomorrow, which you cannot visit, not even in your dreams.

     You may strive to be like them, but seek not to make them like you.

     For life goes not backward nor tarries with yesterday.

     You are the bows from which your children as living arrows are sent forth.

ON LOVE:

When love beckons to you, follow him,

     Though his ways are hard and steep.

     And when his wings enfold you yield to him,

     Though the sword hidden among his pinions may wound you.

     And when he speaks to you believe in him,

     Though his voice may shatter your dreams as the north wind lays waste the garden.

     For even as love crowns you so shall he crucify you. Even as he is for your growth so is he for your pruning.

ON PAIN

Your pain is the breaking of the shell that encloses

your understanding.

Even as the stone of the fruit must break, that its

heart may stand in the sun, so must you know pain.

JOY AND SORROW

Your joy is your sorrow unmasked.

And the self-same well from which your laughter rises was oftentimes filled with your tears.

And how else can it be?

The deeper that sorrow carves into your being, the more joy you can contain.

Is not the cup that hold your wine the very cup that was burned in the potter’s oven?

And is not the lute that soothes your spirit, the very wood that was hollowed with knives?

When you are joyous, look deep into your heart and you shall find it is only that which has given you sorrow that is giving you joy.

When you are sorrowful look again in your heart, and you shall see that in truth you are weeping for that which has been your delight.

Some of you say, ‘Joy is greater than sorrow,’ and others say, ‘Nay, sorrow is the greater.’

But I say unto you, they are inseparable.

Actress Goldie Hawn has been with Kurt Russell since 1984 and never married which is a perpetual source of questioning by the celeb magazines. Exploring their Astro-connection indicates an unusual bond, not as you might expect.

  She born 21 November 1945 9.20am Washington, DC, she is a Sun and Venus in Scorpio with her Sun trine Saturn; and Moon and Uranus in Gemini, Jupiter in Libra on her Midheaven and a heavyweight Mars Pluto in Leo in her 8^th.

He was born 17 March 1951 10.42 am Springfield, Massachusetts and is a Sun Jupiter in Pisces opposition Saturn with an independent-minded/rebellious Uranus on his Cancer Ascendant. His Cancer Moon is in a showbusiness square to Neptune opposition a 10^th house ambitious Mars. With a yod of Neptune sextile Pluto inconjunct Jupiter. He needs a public audience with a T square focal point Moon and her Gemini Moon will be happy enough to share him with the masses.

  His Pisces Sun Jupiter fits well with her Scorpio Sun and his Cancer Moon squares her Jupiter. Her Gemini Moon squares his Sun Jupiter which is OK and squares his Saturn for work getting in the way of relaxation. His Moon opposes her Saturn which says much the same. Saturn can cut down warmth but does give longevity. His Mars in Aries is trine her Pluto for the odd tension.

  His Uranus falls in her 7^th so freedom will be what they both bring to the domestic table; especially since her North Node falls in her 7^th as well, so she’ll be happy enough at times to slide back into being her own person (1^st house) and not just part of a duo.  And since both have Jupiter in their respective 10^th houses of career, their individual success will keep them glowing.

  The relationship chart has an affectionate composite Sun Venus conjunction; a jointly successful Jupiter in the 10^th; a communicative Air Grand Trine of Mars trine Venus Mercury trine Neptune – and possibly most significant of all a yod onto the Sun inconjunct Saturn sextile Uranus. Composite yods do bring together couples who irrevocably change the destiny of the other – not always for the better it would have to be said but in this case it works. So there will feel as if there is a fated connection.

  His Part of Fortune falls on her Midheaven and her Part of Fortune is trine his Sun and Jupiter – which may also help.

  The Paul Newman/Joanne Woodward relationship chart also had two fated, interlinked yods and their marriage held together through thick and thin – with some of the reality emerging only after his death. See previous posts Oct 30 2022, 27 July 2022.  Joanne W’s Part of Fortune was conjunct his Sun – no idea how it works in synastry so will explore. It was highlighted in the Pinault Hayek marriage see post below, so obviously is a key factor.

“Let there be spaces in your togetherness, And let the winds of the heavens dance between you. Love one another but make not a bond of love: Let it rather be a moving sea between the shores of your souls. Fill each other’s cup but drink not from one cup. Give one another of your bread but eat not from the same loaf. Sing and dance together and be joyous, but let each one of you be alone, Even as the strings of a lute are alone though they quiver with the same music. Give your hearts, but not into each other’s keeping. For only the hand of Life can contain your hearts. And stand together, yet not too near together: For the pillars of the temple stand apart, And the oak tree and the cypress grow not in each other’s shadow.”
― Khalil Gibran, The Prophet

High-end talent merges with luxury goods as Francois Henri Pinault, owner of a range of super-expensive brands –  Gucci, Balenciaga, Bottega Veneta, Yves Saint Laurent, Creed, Puma and Alexander McQueen – buys a majority stake in the powerhouse Hollywood talent agency Creative Artists Agency. He is the husband of Mexican-American actress and film producer Salma Hayek, (his third marriage).  

“There’s no separation between fashion and entertainment anymore,” a luxury consultant said. Celebrities attract legions of followers primed to buy what they’re promoting. Salma Hayek wears Gucci and Balenciaga gowns on the red carpet and appears next to her husband at fashion shows.

 He was born 28 May 1962 3pm Rennes, France and has a powerfully ambitious chart, well-designed for the world of design, fashion and money. He has a creative and good-for-public-relations Venus in Cancer conjunct his Midheaven in a Water Grand Trine to Jupiter in Pisces trine Neptune, formed into a Kite by Jupiter opposition Pluto. His well-travelled 9^th house Gemini Sun is in a hard-working trine to Saturn and a controlling square to Pluto. A leadership Leo North Node in the house of society bodes well though it does oppose his Saturn which could be problematic. His Mars in Aries, doubly determined being on the cusp of the 8^th is in a risk-taking trine to Uranus.  He was never going to slide unnoticed through life.

  Salma Hayek, 2 September 1966, Mexico, no birth time,  has an unpredictable Virgo Sun, Pluto, Uranus conjunction which falls in his 12^th – so she will be an unsettling influence on him. Both of them have an Aries Moon so it will be a sparky union and with her Saturn conjunct his Moon she will either be defensive or work will get in the way. But her Moon falls in his 7^th so she will be a support and her Jupiter falls in his 10^th for success together.

  What is intriguing is that her Jupiter is conjunct his Part of Fortune and her Part of Fortune is conjunct his Midheaven – so they are a combination built for good luck.

  Their relationship chart has an affectionate composite Sun Venus conjunction and a look-on-the-bright-side Jupiter opposition Neptune. Though there is a power imbalance from a composite Mars square Pluto which could brew up a few issues in 2024 when tr Saturn is in hard aspect.

A disastrous flood in Libya after two dams burst has left over 5000 dead and at least 10,000 missing. Entire neighbourhoods in Derna, the Libyan port city have been washed away, with many bodies swept out to sea.

 A 2022 report in an academic journal had warned of flood danger but Libya has been riven by political infighting, corruption and external interference since the 2011 uprising which  toppled Muammar Gaddafi. In the years after 2014, it has been politically split between the internationally-recognised interim government in Tripoli (in the west), and the administration in Tobruk (in the east). Derna was for several years controlled by Islamist militant groups until it was captured in 2019 by Gen Khalifa Haftar, the warlord in charge of an army in the east.

  The Eclipses this year located to Libya have been triggering with the April 2023 Solar Eclipse having Mars on the IC and Jupiter on the Ascendant. The May 2023 Lunar Eclipse conjunct Uranus which rattled the Libya Venus for an emotional upset was also highlighted with the Full Moon falling across the Asc/Desc axis.

  The October 2023 Solar Eclipse at 21 degrees Libra is exactly conjunct the Libya Neptune which certainly fits a water disaster as well ass Uranus on the Ascendant.  And the October 2023 Lunar Eclipse located to Libya has Neptune conjunct the Midheaven.

  There is no indication that Libya’s woes, political and other, will resolve quickly with tr Pluto square the Moon this year and next for a beleaguered population; and an undermining tr Neptune Saturn square the Capricorn Sun in 2025/26 alongside a jarring, accident-prone SA Mars conjunct the Sun.

Chris Evans, ‘Captain America’ in a string of Marvel movies married Portuguese actress Alba Baptista on Saturday.

 He was born 13 June 1981 6.16 pm Boston, Massachusetts, and has a Gemini Sun on the cusp of the 8^th opposition Neptune and trine Pluto – so mega-ambitious as befits one of the highest paid actors in the world. He has Jupiter Saturn conjunct in his career 10^th house trine a 7^th house Mars in Gemini and an 8^th house Venus Mercury in Cancer trine a 12^th house Scorpio Moon. And last but not least an innovative Uranus on his Ascendant. A curious mix of detached Air and super-intensely emotional and private Water.

 Alba Baptista, 10 July 1997 Lisbon, Portugal, no birth time, is a Sun Cancer with a Virgo Moon so she connects with his Venus in Cancer and Scorpio Moon and offers a practical Earth Moon to compensate for his No Earth chart. Her Sun does square her Saturn in Aries opposition Mars so she will have had tough moments in her life which will have left her defensive but able to put up with challenging situations.  Her Venus in sociable Leo opposes Uranus and Jupiter in Aquarius which will help to offset the harder-edges of Saturn Mars. Like him she is Water Air which is a tricky balance to find between thinking and feeling.

  Her Sun falls in his 8^th for a deep connection with her Moon in his career 10^th. But her Saturn in his 5^th may damp spontaneity especially since it opposes his Pluto. Her Pluto on his Ascendant could find her trying to control his image and since her Pluto opposes his Mars it could lead to differences.

  Assuming the birth dates are sound, it is an odd match with the relationship chart having a composite Sun Saturn opposition Neptune Uranus – too much work, some doubt and suspicion, needs space. Plus a composite Mars square Pluto which suggests a power imbalance. There is at least an enthusiastic Mars trine Jupiter to balance up the trickier elements. The second half of this decade with tr Neptune and Saturn in Aries square their composite Sun etc will see a fair few wrinkles needing to be ironed out.

The Poland elections on October 15 are being seen as pivotal to the future of the EU and the outcome of the war in Ukraine as well as the most important election in Poland since 1989. “Depending on the outcome, the country will either reorientate itself as a euro-enthusiastic rising democracy or will commit further to an illiberal turn at loggerheads with Europe over the rule of law and enlargement.”

  The right-wing populist Law and Justice Party in power since 2015 has polarized political debate, ramping up the kind of identity politics which have dominated the US, UK and elsewhere. Jarosław Kaczyński, the leader, and Mateusz Morawiecki, the prime minister, face opposition leader Donald Tusk.  Commentators reckon the result will be so narrow that fresh elections will be required within a minimum of two years.

 The Prime Minister, Mateusz Morawiecki, 20 June 1968 2.15pm Wroclaw, Poland, a Sun, Mercury, Venus Mars in Gemini square Uranus Pluto in Virgo, looks deflated over the election with tr Saturn opposition his Jupiter and in for a sudden change with his SA Midheaven conjunct his Uranus. And has a mixture ahead of undermining Neptune through into 2025; and some upbeat influences late this year into 2024.

Jarosław Kaczyński, 18 June 1949, another Sun, Mercury, Mars in Gemini, looks seriously aggravated at the moment, with tensions rising later in the year. He would not give in easy since Pluto is conjunct his Jupiter through till late 2024 but he is not in a progressive phase.

  Donald Tusk, 22 April 1957, whose main policy is to oppose the government, is a Sun, Venus, Mercury in Taurus so should in theory be heled by Jupiter moving through Taurus But he is looking jangled and jolted now, downbeat and devastated in 2024. With maybe just maybe a glimmer of uplift in later 2024.

   What may be an indicator is that tr Uranus is now trine tr Pluto suggesting the beginnings of a shift into a new scenario – which may not come immediately for Poland but will make its influence felt over time.

  I keep trying to work out why we have been cursed with all these yowling, damage-wreaking, rabble-rousing Geminis since the middle of last decade – Trump, Boris etc etc etc.  It must be something in the celestial waters.

Mo Farah, the British-Somali long-distance runner, considered one of the greatest of all time with four Olympic and six World titles to his credit, has officially retired after his last race.

  What makes his story even more extraordinary was that his father was killed in Somalia in a genocide when he was four, after which he became separated from his mother and was illegally trafficked to the UK aged 9 and forced to work as a domestic servant. When he was 11 he started attending school and confided in a teacher who arranged to have him fostered by another family. That was when he started competing in athletics. He told Sky News: “In what I went through as a child, sport has saved me, to become the man I have become.” In adult life he reconnected with his mother and two brothers.

  Born 23 March 1983, he has a top athlete’s chart with a prominent Neptune opposition North Node square an Aries Sun and Mercury in Pisces. Neptune is surprisingly common in competitive performers’ charts. His pro-active Aries on the focal point of a T square would give him with the confidence despite his rocky start in life to push ahead. Plus he has a do-or-die determined Mars in Aries opposition Pluto stemming from his high-risk childhood which faced him with rolling crises and danger. His Chiron in Taurus is conjunct Algol which is tricky to interpret but it puts his woundedness close to the heart of darkness is the best I can do.

  His Sun Mercury are quincunx a Pluto Saturn conjunction which suggests immense strain trying to balance the hardship of his beginnings with his inspirational Fire Sun.  What lightens his burden is a lucky, adventurous Jupiter Uranus conjunction in Sagittarius trine his Sun which would give him a crazy optimism that his luck would hold good – which it did.

  He won’t find the transition to retirement too easy with tr Pluto squaring his Pluto and Saturn and tr Neptune Saturn squaring his Mercury Sun over the next two or three years. But he’s nothing if not resilient. Once he gets over the upheaval of his SA Pluto conjunct his Uranus next year he has a super-confident SA Pluto conjunct his Jupiter which will help him over the next hurdle.

 His leaving-a-legacy 17^th harmonic is well aspected and confident as is his 5H.   

From hero to zero, Elon Musk’s troubled trajectory is a dizzying pinball run from highs to self-defeating failures. Though the latest outcry about him cutting off Ukraine’s Starlink service in Crimea to aid the Russians does not appear to be true. It was already deactivated there, and he refused the Ukrainians’ emergency request to activate it so they could carry out the attack, for fear of it leading to a nuclear war.

  A new biography attempts to pin down what has forged his oddball character and extraordinary talent. Born 28 June 1971 Pretoria, South Africa with no birth time but a rectified one by Starkman of 8.42 pm, he was a headstrong child brought up in an ‘abusive, friendless childhood’ who read science fiction novels and superhero comics and bossed his younger siblings and cousins around. His parents split when he was nine and he elected to live with his wealthy father, an electromechanical engineer, which he later regretted. His interest in computers started when he was 10 and aged 12 he sold his first video game.

  Recently Musk has lurched rightwards, embracing conspiracy theories, railing against restrictions, fouled up Twitter, been accused of sexual misdeeds and had his array of multiple children exposed. His biographer thinks he may be going the way of his father who has apparently moved into paranoia, conspiracism and overt racism.

Elon Musk, like Julian Assange born a few days later, is a Sun Cancer square an innovative and rebellious Uranus. He has a creative though can-be-neurotic Saturn opposition Neptune (Jupiter) and a contrary, inordinately stubborn Mars in Aquarius conjunct his North Node. Sakoian & Acker presciently remark in their handbook published in the 1970s that 1971 when there was a long station of Mars in Aquarius was a year when “many souls came into the world who will spearhead a new way of life.”  Such a Mars is reformist, deaf to advice, has to learn through their own mistakes and can throw out the old order before having a suitable replacement organized. So it can be destructive as well as constructive.

  If Starkman’s rectified time is sound then Elon Musk‘s ornery Mars North Node is conjunct his Ascendant for a full-on assertive/aggressive approach. His Cancer Sun is in the flamboyant, attention-seeking and children-focused 5^th; his Jupiter Neptune of visionary dreams and success is in his career 10^th; and his Pluto and Uranus are in his 8^th giving him access to his deeper unconscious with potentially positive and potentially negative outcomes – inspired but mentally balanced on a fine edge.

 Neither of his parents were easy temperaments. Father Errol, 25 May 1946 (net sources) was a Sun Gemini with an dominating Mars Pluto in Leo.  His mother Maye, 19 April 1948, was a Sun Aries/Taurus with Saturn, Pluto and Mars in Leo. Both parents sparked off his Mars which would fuel his anger and defiance.

  On his Harmonics – his get-it-together 5^th is creative. His leaving-a-legacy-for-history 17H is confident, lucky and notable. But so is his self-defeating, highs and lows 10^th harmonic which suggests that wild overconfidence and lawlessness could be the undoing of him.  

Add On: There is also a birthtime from his biography  of 7.30am which puts his contrary, angry Mars in Aquarius in his 8^th house of business finances and unconscious drives with Jupiter Neptune in his 5^th house of children and romance – which could also fit. Whichever birth time is accurate or neither – he is in trouble come 2026/27 with SA Pluto square his Mars and tr Saturn Neptune in Aries square his Sun.  That is around the time Twitter is in real trouble. See post 26 April 2022.

A powerful 6.8 earthquake in central Morocco has killed more than 2,000 people. It caused major disruption in Marrakesh and many of the deaths were said to be in hard-to-reach mountain areas. The quake struck just after 23:00 local time 8 September 2023.

  The recent Lunar Eclipse of May 2023 has Mars in Cancer conjunct the Midheaven set for Marrakech square Jupiter on the Descendant. Planets on the angles mark a location out as a potential crisis region.  The April 2023 Solar Eclipse has Neptune close to the Ascendant.

 The two upcoming Eclipses in this coming October both look critical as well with Saturn conjunct Midheaven on the Lunar and the Eclipsed New Moon exactly conjunct the Descendant on the other.

 The Morocco country chart, 28 May 1956 11am Rabat, Morocco, moved into a period of considerable turmoil and disruption this year and on for two years ahead. Exactly now tr Pluto is square the Solar Arc Neptune which is the classic earthquake/natural disaster indicator for devastation, confusion and chaotic conditions. That influences comes back again later in the year which doesn’t mean a repeat, just that the mayhem will run on.

  Tr Uranus is also exactly square the Morocco Jupiter which is itself could be a lucky influence but since the Jupiter is conjunct Pluto opposition Mars and square Saturn it has the effect of tr Uranus in an upending square to Pluto, and a ‘shocking’ accident prone square to Mars and a high-tension opposition to Saturn – and that Uranian roller coaster runs on into 2025. Plus tr Saturn square the Gemini Sun this year and a destabilizing tr Pluto opposition the Uranus last year and this year – not so much a perfect storm as challenging phase of turbulence and tumult.     

Add On: The  Royal Palace has remained mostly silent in the early days of the crisis with little sign of government-promised rescue teams initially and offers of international help being only selectively accepted. The worst-hit provinces are among the poorest in Morocco, with some lacking electricity or running water, even in better times. An American academic commentator said: “The reality is that the moment you step out of Marrakesh, the people are essentially living as if they are back in the Middle Ages because of the absence of the state.”

 King Mohammed, 21 August 1963 who acceded to the throne on 23 July 1999, is the richest king in Africa and the fifth wealthiest monarch in the world with an estimated fortune of many billions. In 2020, he purchased an €80 million mansion in Paris from the Saudi royal family.

   His Accession chart has tr Pluto opposition the zero degree Leo Sun this year and next, so this starts the most challenging phase of his rulership though he doesn’t seem to be rising to the test. His rulership chart is exceedingly Fixed with Sun Mercury in Leo opposition Neptune square Jupiter in Taurus opposition Mars in Scorpio – acquisitive, indulgent, unrealistic, scandal-prone, unbudgeable. Plus Uranus in Aquarius square Saturn in Taurus and a Leo North Node = autocratic. Mohammed did shift marginally after the Arab Spring in 2011 to reform the constitution but he still retains complete control over the armed forces and the judiciary,  retains the authority to appoint and dismiss prime ministers. Criticizing or directly opposing the king is still punishable with prison.

  His way ahead looks troubled with a devastating 2025, indeed now and 2024 as well, given that the Sun opposes Neptune so they will both be triggered by this quake and what comes next.

 His own chart with a flashy Sun Venus in Leo opposition Saturn in Aquarius with Neptune in Scorpio is equally stubborn and is also on a bumpy ride with tr Uranus hard aspects over the next two years; as well as tr Saturn opposition his Uranus Pluto. His Solar Arc Saturn is tugging on his opportunistic Mars opposition Uranus since 2021 through till 2025 – for a discouraging, accident-prone and enthusiasm-denting run.

   His ‘caring’ North Node in Cancer needs a serious prod.

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