The Grand Cardinal Cross of April 2014 - Fireworks are coming…

The year 2014 has already been a very interesting one with three consecutive periods of retrograde planets coming along to dominate the early months. First up was Venus throughout January, then Mercury in February and now Mars that turned retrograde at the start of March and it will remain moving backwards for the next two and a half months. Also in the past month, Pluto Jupiter and Uranus have been in a tight t-square formation and whilst this was forming the Ukraine revolution took place and Russia sensing a power vacuum in her smaller neighbour dived in to take effective control of the region of Crimea. In the next month this t-square with the aid of Mars will turn into a grand cardinal cross. This formation will dominate the spring of 2014 and will drive the agendas of the world. How is it going to affect us. I give some thoughts on the matter…

Uranus Pluto Square November 2013 – Major changes are on the way.

A critical few days are awaiting many of us now, especially if you have any planets at 9 degrees of any sign (or generally between 8-10 degrees for a slightly less potent effect). If you do have any at these degree on your chart, then it is highly likely that your life is going to be turned upside down, in either a good way or a bad way in the next couple of days.

Death toll rises in Santiago de Compostela train crash

This is an awful crash that occurred last evening in the northern Spanish city of Santiago de Compostela by all reports at 20.41 hrs. A train 247 people derailed going around a bend and all the coaches came off the tracks. The latest reports say that the train may have been travelling too fast for that section of the track and as a result of the crash a shocking 77 people have been killed and many more injured, some severely. The astrology of this incident when you look at it is particularly nasty.

Pluto Retrograde - Time for some internal cleansing

I don’t if you realise, but Pluto is now at an almost dead stop and is just about to turn inwards and move into retrograde motion. You know, because some of these outer planets are retro for long periods maybe we take then for granted, but we should not.

Pluto when direct transforms our world through outside events and incidents that change the direction of our lives. Parts of our lives will die and then we have to take a different course. We may get blocked by facing people in power who have control over us. We may face cruelty or harshness and have to deal with the consequences and we may find that we have to assess our financial position too.

Pluto retrograde turns inward on ourselves and in the next few months we are going to find that our attitudes and patterns of thought are going to change, we may have to psycho-analyse our own lives so that we can get some personal power back in our own hands. If you have been suffering with depression or feeling low, now you will be able to fully deal with those consequences and get to the root cause of the problems.

The other thing that will undergo a huge change under this retrograde period I think are our relationships and matters of sharing of the most intimate nature. Are you in the right relationship and are you getting the most out of it? Our emotions are going to get the full force of Pluto's cleansing power thrust upon them and in square aspect with Uranus which breathes new life into our lives, many of you will be doing some deep thinking and being given the chance to make some radical decisions in the next few months.

Pluto is retrograde from 12th April 2013 and and is going to be moving backwards until 20th September 2013.

South Korea suffers cyber hacking attack

Interesting story out of South Korea over night as authorities are investigating a cyber attack on several broadcasters KBS, MBC and YTN as well as two banks, the Shinhan Bank and Nonghyup Bank. Representatives of the banks said that their computer systems went down and their operations were severely affected and spokespeople at the three TV companies said that their computers crashed and were not able to be restarted, with screens simply displaying error messages. The local authorities are looking into the matter, however the obvious thought is that this might be an attack by their North Korean neighbours.

Mars conjunct Pluto on Facies - Acting without worrying about the consequences

This aspect is active now and effective until 29th November 2012

Mars now is starting to conjunct with the fixed star Facies in Sagittarius, the nebula which represents the penetrating stare of the archer. Nebulae throughout history have been tied to lack of sight and blindness, and Facies seems to impart a type of blindness against the consequences of one's actions. When a planet gets here, it seems to run headlong into situations without fear or regret. I think that Mars, the planet of force and speed is given extra impetus by the conjunction. Mars here is pro-active, brave and reckless, pioneering but possibly foolishly so.

It is interesting that a 140 car pile up occurred in fog on Thanksgiving Day in thick fog in Texas, and this exactly explains what this conjunction on Facies is all about. Running headlong into a situation where you can't see properly, and huge destruction occurs. Pluto also has an underground and secret side to it, so it may be that plans of action in a police or military sense are occurring right now that few people know about. There is also a really dark and sexual nature to this conjunction too. Inhibitions will be let go over the next few days due to this very potent influence in the heavens.

This is a bit of a fearsome combination that can be used just as well for good intentions as for evil ones and if you can harness and control the energy here, you can make huge strides in whatever you are doing. The ruthless edge of this combination can sweep any opposition in your line of fire completely out of the way...

This is a trigger happy combination for sure, so handle this conjunction with great care...

Mars moves towards the Uranus Pluto square – Time to act to secure your future.

These aspects are valid now Uranus square Mars is exact on 23^rd November and the Lunar Eclipse is on 28th November.

Mars moving solidly forward now in Capricorn is encountering a square with Uranus moving retrograde in Aries. This is a strong determined Mars and Uranus retrograde is normally more reactionary than when moving direct so we have a clash of energies that normally brings fireworks.

Mars represents positivity, action, force, bravery, strength, rage & anger. Uranus is independent, electric, unusual or unique, talented, revolutionary, rebellious and sometimes perverse.

This square suggest to me taking whatever action one deems necessary to seek freedom. It reminds me of an old fashioned siege, with Saturn the king hunkered down within the castle and the barbarians outside using every weapon they have to try and break an entry. Uranus is still under a close inconjunct from Saturn so that revolutionary energy is being blocked. Now Mars is coming along to add fuel to the fire to try and break down those Saturn walls. Mars as it makes this square also makes a sextile to Saturn so there is huge determination here, but those castle walls of Saturn in Scorpio are impenetrably thick!! So what does Mars and Uranus do? Unusual shock tactics? Diversions? Keep throwing firebombs at the walls hoping they will fall? Saturn sextile to Mars is in an aggressive mood too and will be fighting back with all it’s might. This is an unholy battle going on. 

Are you being held back in achieving your ambitions, it there something in the way that you can’t seem to overcome? Banging your head your head against a brick wall? Uranus shows where you want to revolutionize your life, Saturn shows blockage that is holding you back, Mars shows the action you are trying to take to break the siege. Maybe you are like Saturn in this drama, stubborn, unflinching, afraid to accept change? Putting up the barricades against those rebel forces?

Now, Uranus square Mars shows impulsive action and this can lead to sudden success and achievement; it may win the battle but it won’t win the war while Uranus is retrograde, well not yet at least until Uranus goes direct next month. These two forces are going to need a helping hand to win the day, but fear not as the cavalry is coming.

As Mars gets to Pluto on fixed star Facies next week under the influence of the Lunar Eclipse and the full Moon, then those rebels will get their hands on a terrible weapon that can force a breakthrough. Mars conjunct Pluto square to Uranus does have the destructive power to finally knock down those castle walls to the ground. This is the spark (Mars) to the atom bomb (Pluto), and as diplomatic and peaceful Venus conjuncts with Saturn at the same time, the King will finally be forced to change the rules and make long lasting alliances with those who want to destroy him. Saturn in Scorpio is being presented with a stark choice, comply or die!!

In the same way, there will be changes in your own life. If you are one of those rebels, then I think you will get the chance to breathe new energy and freedom in your life, those blockages may be blasted away and you can move on to pastures new. If you are the more stubborn type like the deposed King I describe, you may have to accept that the rules are being rewritten, and that things are going to be very different not so long from now…

Anti Western protests expand across the Arab world.

Oh dear. I’ve been seeing the signs of these protests for the past few days in the planet star conjunctions. From Cairo to Khartoum and Sana’a anti-American and latterly anti–Western sentiment is rising, caused it seems by a YouTube video posted online in the US which insults Muslims and Islam. Of course we do have the matter of the Uranus Pluto square exact on the 19th September which is in the background revving up initial anger into full scale rioting.

Uranus square Pluto – Are you ready for take off?

A lot of astrologers out there are obviously homing in on the exact moment of the second square between these two outer planets on the 19th September. Not so many are noticing that we also get Pluto turning direct as the two planets meet. Ok, there is this moment when the two planet collide and the world is going to plunged into chaos etc etc. Stop!! Let’s think about your own personal circumstances for a moment. How is this moment going to affect you, as it is a more significant moment than you might think? As these two planets collide, it will be a watershed moment for all of our lives on the planet.

The rebirth of a proud (and slightly bonkers) nation.

The party’s over, but what a party it’s been!! As someone who hails from London, this morning I am welled up with enormous pride. Last night, at the end of the closing ceremony of the most fabulous Olympic Games ever, I shed a tear or two and I suspect I wasn’t alone. In Britain we will never forget the last two weeks. We invited the world to our wonderful eccentric country, we opened our hearts and the love poured out. And you know what? In the process, we as a nation found a new self-confidence; Britain transformed live on TV before your very eyes.

Aurora Batman Shooting – Another Mars, Uranus and Pluto event.

There has been a nasty shooting at the screening of the latest Batman film “The Dark Knight Rises” in Aurora, Colorado. A young 24 year old, James Holmes, apparently opened fire at cinema goers during a shoot out scene in the film, letting off a smoke bomb and leaving 12 dead and 50 injured. Luckily he was arrested by local police before he could kill any more and is now in custody.

Mont Blanc avalanche, another Syrian massacre, expect more tragedy as Mars, Uranus and Pluto collide.

We are coming up to a very dangerous astrological formation in the next couple of days, a t-square forming between Mars Uranus and Pluto in the universe above us is probably one of the nastiest ones I have seen since I started doing Astrology. It will have ramifications for many people and the news reports I fear will be dominated by a series of tragic incidents.

Summer floods and banking scandals in the UK – it’s all linked…

This summer in the UK has been dominated by two themes so far; a complete and total washout weather wise and news of complacent bankers illegally setting interest rates. Since records began, never has so much rain fallen and so consistently with both April and now June posting records of total rainfall and July has started off in the same vein. Why? Is it down to global warming or are we in the UK just simply unlucky? In the city of London, a scandal broke after it emerged that Barclays Bank had been manipulating the Libor rate, the interbank interest rates so that they could make millions more on interest payments. American Bob Diamond, the CEO of Barclays promptly fell on his sword after increasing pressure from members of Parliament and the press, however he hinted that Barclays had not been the only bank carrying out this dubious practice.

Full Moon in Capricorn on 3rd July 12 – Intense and practical, emotional and unpredictable.

On the back of all the intense planetary activity that has been swirling around in the past fortnight, we have a really notable full Moon forming on 3rd July in Capricorn as she conjuncts with Pluto in opposing the Sun making a t-square with Uranus at the focus point (see below). On the same day Mars shifts from Virgo into Libra, the sign of relationships. How will all this pan out? I try to decipher it for once using my own personal experiences.

Colorado Springs in danger from wildfires

This is a really nasty one developing. The city of Colorado Springs in the US is being threatened by one of several wildfires that have sprung up in the Rocky Mountains in the past week. Up to 36,000 people have been evacuated from their homes as the fire gets dangerously close to the city, President Obama has declared a national emergency and people are saying that these fires are the worst in history in the state of Colorado. As always, the planets are highlighting this situation in the heavens above us.

50 Shades of Grey – The dark erotic side of the Uranus and Pluto square.

Over the past weeks and months I have explored the various facets of the Uranus Pluto square which reached the first of it’s exact connections last weekend and today I explore another of them. I am looking at the phenomenal hype surrounding “50 Shades of Grey”, the first book in a trilogy of novels (the other two being “50 Shades Darker” and “50 Shades Freed”), written by E L James, who in real life is Erika Leonard, a 49 year old housewife from the UK. Everywhere one goes, women are talking about the book, texting and tweeting about it. Why? Let’s look at the astrology (yes, books can have an astrology chart too!!) and let me explain…

Pluto meets Facies in Capricorn – A history lesson of debt, taxes & rebellion.

In Astrology it is often worth going back into history to work out the lessons from times past. At the moment those in the Astrology world are transfixed by the Uranus/Pluto square that is exact for the first time later this month, however I have turned my attention to a sub-plot that is also going on in the heavens that happens only once in every around 248 years which I believe is no less significant, a conjunction between Pluto in Capricorn and the fixed star Facies.

Costa Concordia – Shipwreck a genuine mistake or a grave error of judgement?

This evening I finally got hold of the time of the Costa Concordia accident close to the Island of Giglio off the west coast of Italy. To all reports, the cruise liner struck an undersea rock on Friday evening at approximately 21.30hrs. The question everyone is asking is what the hell was a huge liner like that doing being in so close to the island of Giglio? Did the captain on such a modern ship (constructed in 2005) really lose his way? The answer possibly was given on UK Sky News this evening reporting that the new captain went close to the island because a friend lived there. To all reports, this practise of sailing close to Giglio seemed to be a tradition on this particular ship as an old officer who worked on Concordia used to live there too, and so the ship would go close to the island’s coastline and sound it’s horn as a gesture. Does this show up on the astro chart? Amazingly there is a hint that it does.

Riots in the UK – The Uranus Pluto square part 2. The crackdown has started.

All astrological aspects tend to have more than one meaning. Whereas one set of people will use an aspect in one way, somebody else will use it another way. Being an Astrologer, in prediction it is often very hard to pin down the correct outcome of what will happen because of double meanings. Sometimes you get an effect and then a reaction to that effect.

As the riots hit their peak in the UK I reported about the Uranus Pluto square which was being turned into a t-square by a connection to Mars. Yesterday, the reaction came. Two internet users who incited rioting from their computers via Facebook were convicted to 4 years in prison!! They didn’t loot a shop, they didn’t burn down any buildings, they just set up a Facebook page and suggested their friends meet up and have a riot. Certainly I cannot condone such an action, encouraging people to commit crime is an offence, but 4 years?? Smacks of a complete over-reaction to the situation, doesn’t it?

The crackdown comes as a result of the “other” side of the Uranus Pluto square. As I wrote a couple of weeks ago, Uranus is shocking violent acts and Pluto can mean mass destruction. There is another side to these planets in connection. Uranus is a social planet associated with technology and Pluto can also mean harsh restriction. In effect, a crackdown on social media. The t-square with Mars is still in force, but now Mars has moved on to conjunct with the UK Midheaven. The decisions made police and authorities represented by Mars are now having a public effect. The transiting Sun is also directly square the UK Saturn so the Government are supportive of these harsh measures. Transiting Jupiter is trine the UK Sun, so the legal processes is being overloaded (2000 court cases in just over a week) and with transiting Jupiter conjunct the UK natal Mars, the authorities are being over zealous in the punishments they are handing out. Finally, transiting Saturn is hitting the UK South Node, a very difficult and authoritarian position. No wonder the more liberal members of society are reacting with disgust to the sentences being given.

Pluto as I have said before never knows when to stop and we in the UK are now on the receiving end of the harsh energies it encourages, both in the cause of the riots and now the hard-line retaliation by those in charge. Restricting social media, tapping into BlackBerry messenger by the police; all these issues are being discussed and quite frankly if measures like these are taken and passed into law, it will only incite more vitriol from those in society who have incorporated these things into their daily life. The youth of the UK live by social media. The last thing you want to do is incite another riot by disaffecting them even more, do you?

I only hope that some common sense can be found in the wreckage of what is going on right now in Britain. Those in charge should be using their energies and intelligence to find a more permanent solution to the considerable problems in the country, especially to those on the edges of society, otherwise when transiting Pluto conjuncts the UK natal Sun in January 2013**, all hell may break loose.

 

My previous post - The Uranus Pluto square – Britain burns. Riots in Tottenham, Lewisham, Hackney, Peckham and right across London.

 

** The effects of this connection may well be felt in Summer of 2012 when Pluto comes within 1 degree of exact conjunction with the UK Sun.

The Uranus Pluto square – Britain burns. Riots in Tottenham, Lewisham, Hackney, Peckham and right across London.

Just at the moment we are experiencing one of the most difficult square formations I have seen in my lifetime, a close formation involving a Uranus/Pluto square. The last time we saw a Uranus Pluto connection on this scale was back in the revolutionary mid-to late sixties when Uranus and Pluto were in conjunction. There were a string of coups and internal uprisings across the world. This square is likely to be more potent and destructive as it is in cardinal signs, the conjunction was in mutable Virgo. This square started to take a firm hold last Summer in June/July and is going to stay in operation for the next 3-4 years. Uranus in action is the harbinger of shocking things, of accidents; it encourages unpredictable and rebel action. Uranus is also a very socially orientated planet, connected with technology. You never know how a connection to Uranus will pan out, other than you know something will happen. Uranus picks you up by the bootlaces and drags you into the unknown. Pluto as I have said many times before either destroys all in it’s path or it blocks things up completely so nothing can move, forcing major action to happen to shift the blockage. Pluto clears a path so that new structures can be built. It encourages metamorphosis, allowing change and the ability to renew in the future. Pluto can be responsible for underground action, for depravity, for torture, death and destruction. Right now both planets connected are in cardinal signs. Cardinal signs encourage positive action, they encourage one to put your foot forward & to move on. This is especially representative of the sign Aries, and Uranus is now sitting there. Putting both Pluto and Uranus together in a tension aspect as we have now and already you have seen the power and potential for massive social change.

Right now, Uranus and Pluto are being joined by Mars. Mars is aggression, the planet of war and violence and right on cue across London simmering anger over the shooting of Mark Duggan at point blank range by the police turned to violence. There is a police investigation going on to find out why that action was taken, however this trigger point gave the excuse for the arson, violence and looting to begin. Pluto is in Capricorn the planet of authority, of administration, government and businesses. London and the UK are affected as the UK Ascendant lies at 7 Libra, right in the firing line of a square from transiting Pluto. In London, we have seen all these elements I explained combining. Enraged rebel groups using technology and violence to target businesses, shops and the police. The social and technological element of this square make it almost impossible to hold down. In London BlackBerry messenger, twitter, mobile phones and other social media have allowed the trouble to spread like a wildfire. In the Arab world, the effect has been the same. Internet cafes were the focal point to co-ordinate the attacks on the dictatorships first Tunisia, then Egypt fell, then Yemen. Libya is in a protracted struggle for change as is Syria. Governments and authorities are struggling to contain the speed and connectivity of the rioters, who can change tactics as fast as the local police and forces can. This is an element that they will have to get used to, and fast otherwise mob rule and anarchy could take over the streets as this vicious square continues to wreak havoc.

 

Worrying times then. So, what does the future hold? Mars in the next couple of days will tighten this square to become exact so more than likely the violence, looting of shops and trouble in London will get worse. As I write, areas in Hackney and Lewisham are seeing trouble and I fear that by midweek, what we see now in London could turn even nastier and spread across the UK, this is a situation affecting the whole country. The current t-square may hit it’s peak by midweek, the 10th/11th August. Following on what is happening now, we may see something dramatic happen around the 17th August 11 as the July 1st solar eclipse degree (9:12 Cancer) is activated by transiting Mars. I’m not just talking in the UK here. Then Venus moves in to square Uranus and Pluto in mid September. The next real pinch point will then be November this year, as transiting Mars makes a square to it’s position right now as well as being square to it’s own eclipse degree point 7:17 Gemini late in the month. On 27th November Pluto returns to it’s eclipse degree point 6:07 Capricorn, something I have pointed out in a previous post. As Venus, Mars and the faster moving planets connect back to the on-going Uranus/Pluto square the potential for a major events erupting like the London riots is a definite possibility. This pattern will continue on for the next couple of years; I think it is going to be a very bumpy ride.

Timeline – dates to watch out for in 2011/12

4th / 10th August – Mars at 2-6 Cancer square to Uranus Pluto square

17th August – Mars hits 9:12 Cancer (the eclipse degree of July 1st 11)

16th /19th Sept – Venus at 2-6 Cancer square to Uranus Pluto square

22nd Sept – Venus at 9:12 Cancer (the eclipse degree of July 1st 11)

27th Nov – Mars at 7 Virgo (square to her own July 1st eclipse degree of 7:17 Gemini)  - Pluto at 6:07 Capricorn returns to exact position of 1st July.

25th Mar 2012 – Uranus at 4:32 Aries (the eclipse degree of July 1st 11)

10-18 Jul 2012 – Mars at 3-9 Libra square to Pluto & opposite to Uranus. This comes just over one week before the London Olympics - London Olympics chart - 1 year to go

To see the UK natal chart – please follow through to this link - UK Natal Chart

Pluto Uranus and Mars in action – Here are some of the latest pictures of the anarchy on the London streets in the past couple of days…