The 15th degree of fixed signs – The “Avatar Degrees” and their significance to us all as 2018 begins.

This is a significant day in astrological terms as the Lunar Nodes now have reached the middle degree point of the fixed signs. In Astrology and in spirituality there is a mythical reputation about 15 degrees of any of the fixed signs, and right now and in the next couple of weeks they will be playing a huge part in all of our lives.

Now for those of you who don't realise, the 15th degree of any fixed sign (Taurus, Leo, Scorpio or Aquarius) is significant because it's exactly midway between the cardinal equinox and solstice points. These degrees have been known as “The Gates of the Avatars” and as you may know, an avatar is a free spiritual being or soul with magical or god like powers. There is a special melding of energy here and throughout history, it has been noted that these degrees have produced people with unusual gifts and talents that have a transcendental quality about them. These are fixed signs too and you often find enormous determination here to beat the odds stacked against you, in both good and bad ways. With the transiting planets there can be amazing coincidences, lucky breaks, the ability to achieve when it was thought impossible to do so.

Now obviously you need some examples and I have many. The late David Cassidy had Pluto at 15 degrees Leo in his 2nd house of making money (ruling his creative 5th house) and the fame and fortune he received because of his talent to charm a generation sent him on a path of personal destruction. Serena Williams has her Mars, the planet of sports on the same degree in her 5th house of sports and games, and she has taken women's tennis to a new level. Pablo Picasso had his natal Neptune at 15 Taurus, and his imagination to create and make things (Taurus is a sign of building) knew no boundaries. Stevie Wonder has his natal Pluto in his 10th house of career and he has overcome tremendous odds since going blind soon after birth (he has disintegrating Neptune the planet of music retrograde conjunct his Ascendant sextile to Pluto) to become one of the music geniuses of any generation. Carlos Puidgemont, the Catalan leader in exile has Neptune at 15 degrees Leo and he has causes chaos and disruption in Spain, and he himself has sacrificed himself for the dream of Catalan independence. Angela Merkel, the chancellor of Germany has her Moon in Aquarius opposite to Pluto and she has become the most powerful woman on earth for many years now. Facebook was launched with the Sun at 15 degrees Aquarius, the sign of networking and the internet and it has become probably the most successful website ever. John Paul Getty had his Jupiter at 15 Taurus opposite to Saturn, and he amassed a huge fortune and was notoriously frugal with it. Both Willie Nelson and Diana Ross had the sign of communication Mercury at 15 Taurus, Marvin Gaye his Uranus at 15 degrees Taurus trine to Neptune, the planet of music and imagination, Leslie Nielsen had his Venus at 15 Aquarius conjunct to Mercury and opposite to Neptune. Alice Cooper has his Sun conjunct 15 Scorpio, and he has made his name through a complete transformation of his persona. Finally Marcel Marceau, the mime artist had Neptune at 15 degrees Leo, the planet of imagination in the sign of performance. I think I've proved my point.

We also have another influence at 15 degrees now, Jupiter at 15 degrees Leo sitting at the North Bendings of the transiting Nodes. The North Bendings is the square point to the Nodes (there is a South Bending Point too) is a position of taking things a little too far and with Jupiter in this position there is a potential for total excess now, or going over the top. The US tax bill was signed on 22nd December with the Nodes at 15 Leo Aquarius and Jupiter square to them, and the general consensus is that the US Senate and President Trump have gone too far in pleasing their own rich and wealthy followers at the expense of the majority of the population. Punitive oil sanctions were voted on against North Korea at the UN security council, banning 90% of exports to that country, however that won't stop the Koreans and President Kim. Why? North Korea has Pluto, the nuclear planet natally at 15 degrees Leo and it is now conjunct to the transiting North Node and square is transiting Jupiter at 15 degrees Scorpio. Remember what I said about beating the odds and having a special mystical quality. North Korea has it too, secretive, utterly brutal and determined. These sanctions won't deter North Korea, indeed I think they will make her even more determined to prove a point.

In this regard I would be very wary in the next week or two, especially as military Mars gets to 15 degrees Scorpio conjunct to Jupiter and sextile to Pluto promoting a dangerous risk taking attitude in the pursuit of power and control. Remember Mars will still be closely square to the Nodes at the “going too far point” of the North Bendings. All this happens as the planet of disruption, shocks and rebelliousness Uranus slows to a halt on 2nd January 2018, stationing direct. You know something unexpected always happens at a Uranus station. I fear the new year may come in with quite a bang!!!

German Elections – Angela Merkel on course for another victory.

If there is so much as a racing certainty in political elections, then on 22nd September in Germany we will see Angela Merkel, the incumbent Chancellor of Germany renew her position for another term of office. Frau Merkel is as popular today in Germany as she has ever been and Germany is seen as the powerhouse in Europe and the one economy that has bucked the trends through the Western World of depression and has kept on building and growing. We all talk about German efficiency, but that the way they like it there and so long as the leader is doing a steady job, the German people like to stick with what they know. Angela has guided Germany through the choppy waters of the past 5 years without hitting the rocks and as a reward she will remain ship’s captain into the foreseeable future. Why? The Astrology says so.

Angela Merkel – German Chancellor facing mounting criticism over EU bail out.

Angela Merkel is facing opposition in her own coalition in Germany after agreeing to bail out European member states in the continuing debt crisis. As the one economy which is bucking the trend of downturn and depression, Germany is facing the prospect of using it’s hard earned profits to help out it’s poorer and one would say badly governed neighbours in Southern Europe. It is a strategy that is not garnering support in the German nation.
She was born on 17th July 1954 in Hamburg, Germany at 17.45, a Sun sign Cancerian with a humanitarian Aquarian Moon and a outwardly looking Sagittarius Ascendant. The mix of Sun and Moon shows that Angela has a social conscience, her emotions go out to help people. She is an innovator, very security conscious and will protect her position and those who support her as much as possible. Angela will be very sensitive to the needs of other people & she will do whatever she can to foster good relations. As with all those with their Sun in water signs, if things don’t go the way she wants, she can get very moody as well.

There is much Aquarian influence over Angela. Her Sun is closely in contact with Uranus and the Moon is in Aquarius. You know looks can be deceiving. This lady is very much an individual, quite quirky, plus her instincts will encourage her to go out on a limb and stand her ground. The Sun and Uranus are a very stubborn combination in this regard, and it may get her into trouble if she decides on a course of action in disregard to others advising her. It is very interesting that the Sun and Uranus, as well as Pluto (associated with big business) and Venus (associated with social affairs and personal possessions) are all in the 8th house of other people’s money, and her current stance over the debt bail out is the one causing her trouble. With 4 planets in the 8th, interest in big business, investment & finances will have coloured her life. Uranus here always indicates someone who favours free market economics, Uranus does not like barriers. Angela’s relationships will be emotional, intense and stormy with both Pluto, Venus and Uranus in this house, although you won’t know it. The Cancer Sun and Scorpio influence (8th house and Pluto) will mean that both her husband and any problems will be kept strictly out of the public glare, firmly behind closed doors. Angela will also have a interest in scientific subjects, she studied physics at university and also more taboo subjects too like life after death, maybe astrology and the occult, and I am sure that she will be an inventive cook. Cancerians love their food and Uranus adds ideas and the need to experiment. 
The Sun and Uranus make a square to Neptune and the Midheaven. I always say that the Sun and it’s position show a picture of the father and with Angela’s chart it describes him perfectly. He was a Lutheran pastor, a man of the cloth. The link from Sun to Neptune (the spiritual planet) shows this clearly. The interesting part is that despite living in East Germany, he was allowed to preach in West Germany, travelling across the Iron Curtain border without hindrance. The conjunction of Uranus, the planet of freedom and humanitarianism connecting with both Sun and Neptune indicate the privilege he had. In Angela’s life this square highlights that she has a social ideal and dream that she wants to share through her work in service to others. Neptune is in Libra which if anything accentuates the community aspect of this. It is also conjunct to Saturn. Saturn is in Scorpio the 10th, a very heavyweight placing. Angela has a deep overriding desire to administrate, to control & to be in charge, to be a respected person of stature in the world. Neptune adds a preaching element to the mix and through to the Midheaven we have a connection to being at the top of the tree. A sneaky liking for being in the limelight is also given by Neptune being in the middle of the sandwich between Saturn and Midheaven. She will be very hard on herself and also on others around her. Letting go of that controlling tendency to allow other people to do their job, will always cause friction in her life and in her relationships.
Being a social servant of others is also shown by the Moon in Aquarius which is in the 2nd house of finance and personal possessions widely opposite to Pluto. Her emotions are cool on the outside and turbulent on the inside, as well as being fickle. Sometimes she will be passionate and involved, sometimes cold and uninterested. The connection to Pluto shows that on an emotional level, at least once in her life, she will ditch all her ties and start afresh, and it is known that she divorced her first husband Ulrich, and she then remarried. I can imagine there would have been a battle over finances in the split, Moon in the 2nd opposite Pluto in the 8th will fight for their own possessions and money with fierce determination.
That determined streak to win in any battle is shown by Mars trine to Pluto from the first house. Mars is in Sagittarius showing a wonderful pioneering spirit, a Sagittarian Ascendant needs a challenge to keep them going. There is a definite sense that she is someone with boundless energy, full of grand plans and big ideas; although she must also be careful not to promise more than she can deliver. Angela will get most offended if she is not listened to, and if her ideas and philosophies are rejected, then depression can set in. Mars is retrograde in her chart indicating that the energy she has is internally focused and will be turned in on herself, frustration may well be something that beats her up inside, rather than externally venting it on those around her.
Mars makes a tight quindecile to Jupiter and Mercury in the 7th house. Here is someone who will be aggressive and very quick off the mark in debate with others (7th house). She will love the cut and thrust of discussing theories, philosophies and policies and sharing them with the public. She will not mince her words with Mercury trine to Saturn; she will be a straight talker, getting down to the bare bones of an argument or discussion without any fuss. Her brain will work on a deep serious level and she will be able to handle complex problems and ideas in a thorough and methodical approach. Jupiter and Mercury often indicate a talent for teaching and this is one avenue she may well take up once she leaves politics following her mother. Jupiter and Mercury are in conjunction with the Nodal Axis (the maternal axis); Angela’s mother was a language teacher – Mercury accentuates communication and Jupiter shows the international nature of it. The Moon in the second (the other indicator of the mother) shows that she served the public.
Mercury through the trine to Saturn makes a grand mini trine to Venus in Virgo. She will be interested in and will appreciate beauty & fashion, but her own style will be in a straight-forward and unfussy manner, rather more functional than haute-couture.
Problems do look as if they are on the horizon for Angela on the work front. Looking at the transit chart first, the standout aspect I see is Saturn approaching a conjunction with Angela’s Midheaven at 17 Libra. This aspect which becomes exact in September is a double edged sword. Saturn hitting the zenith of a chart is a time when all the chickens come home to roost, everything that you have been preparing for workwise in the previous months and years comes to completion, with either good or devastating consequences. Looking to where Saturn and Capricorn is placed tells me that Angela during the first pass will lay down the law but in the process, her authority will be challenged (Saturn in 10th house) and as such her self worth will be hit (Capricorn on cusp of 2nd house). Saturn will then go on to conjunct with Neptune at 23 Libra and in the process square to her Sun/Uranus and sextile to Pluto; Saturn will finally return to this degree in May, June and July next year. This is a very depressing, downbeat, disintegrating type of influence that is connected with the finance problems which are surfacing now through the connection to the planets in the 8th house. By extended house rulership, the 2nd, 8th, 11th and 12th houses will be hit most  - self worth 2nd, other peoples money and big business 8th, party issues and alliances 11th, and a lack of personal control over things 12th. What happens to her at this time will be the result of other people’s decisions.

On the Solar Arc Charts, SA Pluto sits on Angela’s Midheaven which shows a transformation in progress of her public image. SA Neptune is also making a sextile with her Midheaven, putting a cloud over her authority. SA North Node and Ascendant are both quindecile Pluto showing her making a stance and putting her firmly in the public eye. Finally in one year’s time, as transiting Saturn completes it connection to Neptune, Sun and Uranus, SA Midheaven will conjunct her Ascendant. A time for appreciating one’s achievements, but also a time for moving on? I don’t think so, although after the latest set of transits her authority will be much weakened. Angela is one tough, tough cookie and will take some shifting, she won’t go without being pushed. However in 2013/14 as SA Venus starts to connect with Angela’s natal Saturn, the time of the next scheduled elections in Germany, I think she will either be voted or forced out. Libra rules her Midheaven and so any transit or progression to or from Venus will affect her position as Chancellor.