An astonishing pronouncement from Saudi Arabia’s young crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman, has vowed to return the country to “moderate Islam” and explicitly condemns hardline religious attitudes in place for three decades which were, he said, “not normal”. He blamed the rise of ultra-conservative clerics and the rigid doctrines that have governed the society as a reaction to the Iranian revolution. “We didn’t know how to deal with it. And the problem spread all over the world. Now is the time to get rid of it.”
His economic and social plans are more than ambitious as he attempts to move Saudi Arabia away from dependence on oil and open up opportunities for the young, including women.
Born 31 August 1985 he is a Sun Virgo, with a powerfully confident and socially idealistic Fixed Grand Cross of Pluto opposition North Node square Jupiter in Aquarius opposition Venus in Leo. He’s stubborn, has staying-power, faith in his own abilities and not too much humility. Plus a gritty, disciplined Mars Mercury in Leo square Saturn in Scorpio – not a man for turning.
If the Saudi 15 January 1902 3.45am chart is sound, then his Pluto is conjunct the SA Scorpio MC so he will have the desire and ability to transform the country, albeit in a highly controlling way. Tr Jupiter moving now into Scorpio is conjunct his Pluto now and the SA MC soon. So the timing fits.
Since the surprising thing about Jupiter in Scorpio is the positive benefits it brings for women (see post October 9 2017), the move away from a misogynistic culture, which has spread far beyond the SArabia borders may also be flagged up.
Not all of his plans will work economically with some dashed hopes in 2017/18; and there is a real risk of a backlash from the Wahhabist religious lobby. But tr Jupiter in Scorpio will certainly help him as it moves round his Grand Cross over coming months – if he doesn’t go into Jupiterian overdrive and get carried away by his enthusiasm.
The Saudi chart looks chipper this December and January 2018 with tr Uranus square the Sun Jupiter in Capricorn; but tr Pluto continues to conjunct the Saturn in Capricorn through 2018 so it’ll be an uphill struggle at times. The results should start to show in 2020/2021 with tr Pluto conjunct the Sun Jupiter, which looks like success and a surge of confidence.
Oddly enough, or maybe not, he was born on Saudi Arabia’s Uranus Return, so just the person to breathe new life into the state.
Bin Salman sounds like he has thought quite a bit about the future, and I hope that his good intentions become reality.
A great read, thank you very much Marjorie!
Best wishes, Henry
The oil dependancy in traffic is coming into end just in a few, short years, and Saudis are preparing to it. They can’t keep the population in the golden cage anymore, and have to offer something else. It could go any way, but really, if they kept going the way they have for decades, The Royal family would eventually have been wiped out by Wahhabi extremists.